No More Jail Terms for Drug Possession--Moscow Times/New WMW

Full excerpts, links up now at http://www.zianet.com/insightanalytical
Tomorrow at Buzzflash.com


WORLD MEDIA WATCH FOR MAY 14, 2004

1//The Independent, UK--BLAIR: ‘I WILL REMAIN SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH GEORGE BUSH’ (A defiant Tony Blair said yesterday that he would not change course over Iraq and rejected the growing demands by Labour MPs for him to distance himself from President George Bush. In his first interview since the crisis over the mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners caused speculation that he might stand down, the beleaguered Prime Minister told The Independent he was "frustrated" that Iraq was overshadowing what he called the Government's significant achievements on the economy, jobs and public services. He slapped down calls for him to "put some light" between Britain and the US, insisting that it would be exactly the wrong time to do so.)



2//Asia Times Online, Hong Kong--IRAQ’S NEIGHBORS WAIT THEIR CHANCE (Following decades of Saddam Hussein's unpredictable rule, Iraq's neighbors are now interested in a stable and secure country, and no capital is seriously suggesting the United States-led coalition withdraw its forces immediately. That's just about where agreement ends, however… Julian Lindley-French said all of Iraq's neighbors want US forces to stay in the country, at least for the near future. He said all states, including Iran, clearly understand that a hasty departure would create instabil

ity in the region. "I don't think they want the Americans out of Iraq until things are far more stable in Iraq," he said. "If the Americans withdraw from Iraq when there's chaos - if there's chaos - then that has security implications for Syria, for Saudi Arabia, in particular, for the Gulf states, for Jordan. None of them want that instability.")



3//The Hindu, India--SHOCK AND AWESOME (It became clear well before noon on Thursday that the Congress and its allies had pulled off a historic upset, outdistancing the NDA and finding power well within their grasp. In no election in the past had opinion and exit polls gone so wrong. Every pollster and pundit had put the NDA close to the majority mark and the Congress nowhere in the picture as far as forming a government was concerned… As the celebrations continued at the AICC headquarters, the big question remained: who will be the new prime minister? Most Congressmen were clear. They wanted Sonia Gandhi, the leader of the largest single party in the new Lok Sabha, to lead any potential coalition as Prime Minister…The problem is what many perceive as Sonia's own ambivalence.)

4//The Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippines--BISHOP TO MACPAGAL FOES: SHOW PROOF OF FRAUD (Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal said Thursday he met with representatives of presidential candidates Fernando Poe Jr. and Eduardo Villanueva, but said it would be "premature" to make a judgment on whether massive fraud marked last Monday's elections. Vidal said that at their meeting on Wednesday afternoon, Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay and Luis Sison, representatives of Poe and Villanueva, respectively, told him about the massive fraud allegedly perpetrated by the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and asked him to do something about it.)



5//The Moscow Times, Russia--NO MORE JAIL TERMS FOR DRUG POSSESSION (Under a new law that came into effect this week, drug users can possess a greatly increased amount of an illegal substance -- for instance, 20 grams of marijuana or 1.5 grams of cocaine -- without the risk of being thrown in jail…President Vladimir Putin signed an amendment to the Criminal Code in December stipulating that possession of no more than 10 times the amount of a "single dose" would now be considered an administrative infraction rather than a criminal offense. Punishment would be a fine of no more than 40,000 rubles ($1,380) or community service.)

oh, yeah, I forgot....we've got a hoarde of religious zealot at the helm. :eyes: