[Onthebarricades] Ethnoreligious protests, Apr-Aug 2008
Andy
ldxar1 at tesco.net
Fri Aug 29 23:30:26 PDT 2008
ON THE BARRICADES: Global Resistance Roundup, April-August 2008
https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/onthebarricades
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/globalresistance/
* NEPAL: Police kill three in protest over inter-group conflict
* NEPAL: Ethnic organisations stage anti-Hindi protests in Terai
* NEPAL: Indigenous Tharus march against "One Madhes" demand, fight police
* UKRAINE: Russian Crimeans called to protest anniversary
* INDIA, Meghalaya: Bandh in dispute over state borders with Assam
* INDIA, Mumbai: Sikhs attack MTV station over advert
* PAKISTAN: Gilgit-Baltistan students protest against union with Pakistan
* KENYA: Twelve killed as banned sect protest
* PHILIPPINES: Iligan villagers protest inclusion in Moro homeland
* KOSOVA: Albanian radicals protest elections
* KOSOVA: UN police officer dies after clash with Mitrovica Serbs
* KOSOVA: Serbs protest "illegal" mosque building in disputed area
* KOSOVA: Army vets scuffle with police
* SERBIA: 80 injured in protests against Karadzic deportation
* SERBIA: Nationalists protest local government
* EGYPT: Protests against town region switch; police attack
* IRAN/UAE: Protest against renaming of "Persian" Gulf as "Arabian" Gulf
* KYRGYZSTAN: Protest against land transfer concessions to Kazakhstan
* KOSOVA: Mitrovica Serbs protest EU agreement
* MACEDONIA: Protests against attempts to change official name of country
* NIGERIA: Biafran separatist group plans week-long march
* INDIA, Malabar: Factional conflict turns into crisis
* KOSOVA: Albanians protest return of land to monastery
* TURKEY: Rize town group protests UK police operation name
* SOUTH AFRICA: Zulu protests, unrest over street renaming
* YEMEN: Southern army protests continue, bomb blast wounds protesters
* THAILAND/CAMBODIA: Protesters arrested at disputed temple
* SOMALILAND/PUNTLAND/SOMALIA: Protest over Somaliland "aggression" to
Puntland
* INDIA, Andhra Pradesh: Protest for Telangana state
* INDIA, Hyderabad: Christians protest depiction of Jesus
* GERMANY, FINLAND: Sri Lankans protest against Tamil Tigers
* AUSTRALIA: Protest supports Tamils
* INDIA, Orissa, West Bengal: Protests against "Greater Jharkand" call
* ESTONIA: Ethnic Russians protest on "Bronze Soldier" anniversary
* SIERRA LEONE: Opposition party attacked in factional protest
* MALAYSIA: Students protest to keep locals-only policy
* KOSOVA: Serbs protest against border
* INDIA, Puducherry: Protest over centre-focused independence day
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/05/28/asia/AS-GEN-Nepal-Shooting.php
Police shoot at protesters in west Nepal town killing 3
The Associated Press
Published: May 28, 2008
KATMANDU, Nepal: Police opened fire on protesters in western Nepal on
Wednesday, killing three people, an official said.
Government administrator Chetra Bahadur Bhandari said police were compelled
to shoot at the demonstrators who had surrounded the district administration
office and began attacking the building.
They demonstrators were protesting the beating of some local people by rival
groups a day earlier and allege the authorities failed to take action.
Bhandari said an indefinite curfew has been imposed in the town about 550
kilometers (310 miles) southwest of the capital, Katmandu.
The two sides of the dispute had gathered at the office on Wednesday so that
the officials could resolve the differences.
However, the two sides began clashing with each other and police and they
began throwing stones at the administration office. Police first fired in
the air but had to shoot at the protesters to control the situation, the
official said.
Bhandari said officials were investigating and searching the area for the
attackers.
The protest was not related to the rallies being held across this Himalayan
nation to celebrate the declaration of a republic state on Wednesday.
Security has been stepped up across this Himalayan nation for the planned
rallies in major towns and cities. The special elected assembly meeting in
Katmandu for the first time on Wednesday is scheduled to make the
declaration, and celebrations are planned throughout the country.
The assembly is to abolish Nepal's centuries-old monarchy and declare the
country a republic state.
http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080060118
Anti-Hindi protest disrupts life in Nepal
Press Trust of India
Tuesday, August 05, 2008, (Kathmandu)
Indigenous ethnic organisations in Nepal on Monday revived the anti-Hindi
protest triggered by Vice President Parmananda Jha taking oath of office in
Hindi, with normal life disrupted across 22 districts in the Terai plains
bordering India.
Normal life across 22 districts in the southern Terai region was affected
following a general strike call by the Tharuhat Struggle Committee, an
association of Tharu community, in protest against newly elected vice
president's decision to take the oath of office in Hindi on July 23.
The Tharuhat Struggle Committee affiliated eight other organisations also
expressed solidarity with the one-day strike. The protesters claimed that
Jha had "disrespected" the interim constitution by the taking oath in
foreign language.
Protesters blocked traffic and held demonstrations disrupting normal life
across the Terai districts, including Morang, Sunsari, Siraha, Dang,
Rupandehi and Rautahat, the Kantipur online said on Monday.
The protest revived the language row that had calmed down following the Vice
President's statement on July 29 apologising for unwittingly hurting the
sentiments of non-Hindi speaking people.
Jha is a member of the ethnic Madhesi community that dominates the southern
plains bordering India, and for whom Hindi is the most common language.
Nepal's Supreme Court had issued notice to the Vice President and the Prime
Minister's office on a petition filed by Nepali lawyer Bal Krishna Neupane
demanding the oath to be invalidated.
http://www2.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-234/0807286421183041.htm
10 injured as anti-Hindi protests in Nepal turn violent
New Delhi, July 28, IRNA
Nepal-Anti-Hindi Protests
Ongoing protests over use of Hindi language during oath taking ceremony by
Vice President Parmananda Jha on Monday took a violent turn in Kathmandu
when the protesters clashed with police leaving 10 people injured.
Six students, three policemen and a youth were injured when agitating
students and youths clashed with the police near Amrit Science College here
as normal life in the city nearly came to standstill, PTI reported here.
Jha, formerly associated to the Madhesi People's Rights Forum (MPRF), took
oath in Hindi which triggered widespread agitation across the country.
The agitators also vandalized the central office of MPRF at Baneshwor area
in the outskirts of Kathmandu.
Some 200-250 people stormed the office of the Forum, which fielded Jha for
the post of vice president.
Police had to intervene to stop further damage in the office.
The agitators also burnt tire and effigy of Jha in different places blocking
major roads.
Vehicular movement came to nearly a halt in most part of Kathmandu due to
the protest.
Meanwhile, the eight major student unions affiliated to the ruling parties
have dissociated themselves from the violent protests.
Issuing a press release they said that they have withdrawn all the protest
programs in view of the present sensitive situation.
"Seeing the vulnerable situation in the country as also the matter being
taken up by the Supreme Court we have decided to withdraw the agitation,"
said Nepal Students Union President Pradeep Poudyal.
http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2008/jul/jul28/news15.php
CA directs govt to take steps to maintain communal harmony; students call
off protest
The Constituent Assembly (CA) today issued a directive to the government,
asking it to take immediate steps to maintain communal harmony in the wake
of the ongoing street protests in the capital and outside against Vice
President Parmananda Jha for taking oath in Hindi language.
Today's legislative meeting of the CA unanimously passed a 'proposal of
public interest' presented by Maoist CA member Chandra Prakash Gajurel. The
proposal expresses worry that the agitations, if unchecked now, could harm
the communal harmony and tolerance.
Commenting on the proposal, Nepali Congress CA member Laxman Ghimire, MJF's
Bijaya Gachhedar and UML's Pradeep Gyawali emphasised that the parties
needed to work together to ward off possible communal discord. They also
expressed support to the proposal tabled by the Maoist party.
Responding to the queries of CA members over the ongoing protests against
the Vice President, Home Minister Krishna Prasad Situala said the government
was taking all necessary measures to control the protests. He, however,
claimed that the situation was fully under control.
Meanwhile, the eight student unions affiliated with various political
parties including the three main parties - CPN (Maoist), Nepali Congress and
CPN (UML) - have called off their protest against the Vice President.
Issuing a statement, the student groups said they had decided to withdraw
the protest programmes in view of the fragile political situation in the
country.
Earlier today, the student groups had submitted separate memos at the
offices of the President and chairman of Constituent Assembly (CA),
objecting to the VP's oath in Hindi language. In the memos, the students
also demanded that Jha correct his mistake and apologise publicly.
nepalnews.com mk July 28 08
http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2008/jul/jul06/news08.php
Indigenous Tharus continue protest against 'one Madhes' demand
Members of indigenous Tharu community continued their protest against the
Terai parties' demand for single Madhes province, in Kathmandu, Sunday.
The Tharu activists imposed chakka jam (traffic blockade) for half an hour
at Minbhawan and Naya Baneshwor areas as part of their protest. They chanted
slogan against the 'one Madhesh demand' as well as yesterday's police
intervention into a demonstration in front of theConstituent Assembly
building at Naya Baneshwor.
Tharu Welfare Assembly, which has been organising protest in the capital and
Terai districts since last few days, has declared that the protest movement
world go on as long as attempts to establish a 'single Madhesh province'
continue. It has also objected to the government's recent decision to
introduce a supplementary constitution amendment bill to address the demand
for 'autonomous Madhes province'.
Meanwhile, as many as 15 organisations including Nepal Federation of
Indigenous Nationalities (NFIN), CPN (Marxist Leninist) and Chure Bhawar
Ekta Party have announced their support to the Tharu community's protest.
nepalnews.com mk July 06 08
http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2008/jul/jul09/news06.php
Tharu activists to continue protest, more organisations rally against 'one
Madhes'
Tharu Welfare Assembly (TWA) has said that it would continue with its
protest programmes in Kathmandu as well as in various Terai districts
against the demand of some Terai-based parties for an "autonomous Madhes
state".
The organisation working for the welfare of ethnic Tharu community in Terai
said that it would take out torch rallies in various Terai districts on
Wednesday.
Ethnic Tharus led by the TWA have been demonstrating in front of the
Constituent Assembly venue in New Baneshwor against what they call
'Madhesisation' of 'what is originally Terai.' They have threatened of
strong protest programmes against moves of Terai-based parties to undermine
their identity in Terai by raising their demand for autonomous Madhes state.
Meanwhile, with each passing day ethnic communities living in Terai are
rallying against "One Madhes" demand raised by Terai-based parties to
declare whole of terai as autonomous Madhes state.
The latest joining them are the Kamaiya community who were freed from the
age-old oppression of having to work as a bonded labourer for landlords in
terai through a government decree.
The Freed Kamaiya community have announced a protest movement against the
demand of "One Madhes State".
Speaking at a programme organised by Sustainable Development Society which
is working for the welfare of the freed kamaiyas in Gulariya of Bardiya
district, the society's chairman Bantiram Tharu said that the demand for
"One Madhes province" is not acceptable to them under any circumstance and
said that the society would express its solidarity to impose a bandh in most
of the terai districts from Jhapa to Kanchapur against it.
"If our demands are not met through peaceful means then we would wage a
strong movement carrying our spades, axes and plough," he said.
nepalnews.com ag July 09 08
http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2008/jul/jul05/news07.php
Protesting Tharu activists clash with police
At least half a dozen people were injured in police baton-charging during a
protest of indigenous Tharu community against the 'one Madhesh one province'
demand in the capital Saturday afternoon.
Members of indigenous Tharu community staging demonstration against'one
Madhesh' demand ...
One protester was critically injured in the police action at Naya Baneshwor
Chowk. Both the protesters and the police pelted stones at each other.
The agitators chanted slogans against the police crackdown as well as the
Terai parties that have been demanding a single Madhes province. Tharus have
also opposed the decision of the government to introduce a supplementary
constitution amendment bill in the Constituent Assembly (CA) to address the
demands of the Terai parties.
The protest rally began from Koteshwor and converged into a gathering in
front of the CA building at Naya Baneshwor.
Leaders of the Tharu Welfare Assembly, which organised the protest, said
that single Madhesh was unacceptable to indegeneous Tharus. He also warned
of serious consequences if their voice is not heard.
President of Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NFIN), Pasang
Sherpa said all the indigenous communities would support the movement
launched by Tharus.
Addressing the Gathering, CA members and Indigenous community leaders said
that a single Madhesh was acceptable in no circumstance.
UML CA member Santa Chaudhary declared that if the demands are not met, she
would resign from the CA and join the protest movement of Tharus.
nepalnews.com July 05 08
http://en.for-ua.com/news/2008/05/08/174448.html
8 May 2008 | 17:44
Crimean citizens are called to acts of civil protest
Russian community of Crimea calls Crimean citizens to take part in mass acts
of civil protest in case of derangement of the festive events dedicated to
225th anniversary of the Black Sea Fleet of Russia. It is said in the
statement of the Russian Community of Crimea. "Stand up for Sevastopol! for
the225th anniversary of the Black Sea Fleet of Russia and the Hero-City
Sevastopol".
Russian community of Crimea believes that "recent campaigns aimed at
derangement of the celebrations in Sevastopol, dedicated to the 225th
anniversary of the Black Sea Fleet Russia", are another link of the
"anti-Russian policy", conducted by the Ukrainian authorities.
In connection with such actions Russian Community of Crimea declares its
firm intention to protect the interests of the Black Sea Fleet of Russia and
encourage all its supporters to participate actively in the festive events
dedicated to the 225th anniversary of the Black Sea Fleet of Russia, and in
case of derangement - to take part in acts of civil protest.
http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=445791&sid=REG
Border row: Meghalaya bandh to protest Assam ministers visit
Shillong, May 29: Assam and Meghalaya appear to be on a confrontation course
on the vexed border dispute, with some local bodies of Meghalaya calling for
a bandh to prevent a 'illegal' visit by some Assam ministers to a disputed
area.
In view of a 24-hour bandh called by traditional bodies of Lagrin area in
West Khasi Hills tomorrow, the state Chief Secretary has advised the Assam
ministers not to visit the disputed place.
Official sources said two of Assam ministers, including Health Minister
Himanta Biswa Sarma, were to visit the disputed area this weekend to lay the
fundation stone of a health center besides some official quarters.
Chief Minister Donkupar Roy visited the area yesterday along with his
ministerial collegues to take stock of the situation.
"The area belongs to Meghalaya constitutionally. The government will not
allow encroachment on it," Roy told reporters today.
Meghalaya government alleges that Assam has gradually encroached upon the
area since 1979, besides pushing Nepali migrants to settle there.
The Chief Minister claimed that Assam has encroached 40 km inside Meghalaya,
and contended that laying of the foundation stone could bolster their claim
on the area.
The Chief Minister is expected to discuss the issue with his Assam
counterpart in a day or two.
http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-06/2008-06-17-voa40.cfm?CFID=22331723&CFTOKEN=18500308
Sikhs Arrested for Vandalism During MTV Protest
By VOA News
17 June 2008
Police in India's financial and entertainment capital, Mumbai, have arrested
70 members of the minority Sikh community accused of vandalizing television
channel MTV's offices while protesting an advertisement.
The protesters allegedly threw stones, broke windows and damaged furniture
Monday while protesting an ad for a show called On the Job 2. The
advertisement for the show about unusual jobs depicts a Sikh girl giving a
man a massage.
The 70 people arrested were later released.
MTV's legal counsel in Mumbai called the incident "unfortunate."
http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php?sid=355131
Gilgit outfit protests against 1949 Karachi Agreement
ANI Saturday 3rd May, 2008
Rawalpindi, May 3 : A students' body of Pakistan's Gilgit-Baltistan region
participated in a major demonstration here recently to highlight their
opposition to the controversial "Karachi Agreement" of April 28, 1949.
Claiming that the agreement had led to the illegal handing over of the
Gilgit-Baltistan region to Pakistan till Kashmir dispute with India was
resolved, representatives of the Balawaistan National Students' Organisation
(BNSO) said the pact was primarily responsible for the political and
socio-economical problems that Gilgit and Baltistan were facing almost 60
years on.
Terming April 28 as a "Black Day", BNSO leaders Shujaat Ali Engineer, Zafar
Iqbal and Tufail Dogar, besides key representatives of the All Parties
National Alliance (APNA) and the Jammu Kashmir National Awami Party (JKNAP)
appealed to the Government of Pakistan to have the "unilateral and
unconstitutional" agreement annulled or declared void ab initio (invalid
from the outset).
The event was also used to highlight the alleged excesses of the Pakistan
Government in Gilgit and Baltistan during the past 60 years.
They urged authorities in Islamabad to restore all human, constitutional,
political, economical and social rights of the people of these two deprived
and underdeveloped regions.
They said that the people of Gilgit and Baltistan would not accept the
hegemony of any outsider any more.
At the end of the meeting, the following six resolutions were passed:
1.To end to corruption in Karakoram University
2.To provide merit-based employment to the educated youth of Gilgit and
Baltistan
3.To teach and promote all languages of Gilgit and Baltistan to ensure
protection of the egion's distinct identity
4.To protect the culture and civilisation of Gilgit and Baltistan
5.To terminate the construction of the controversial Bhasha Dam. If it is to
be constructed, it should be renamed as the Daimer Dam and
6.To ensure full statehood status of Gilgit and Baltistan till the
resolution of the Kashmir dispute.
Spanning an area of approximately 72,496 square kilometres, the present-day
Northern Areas in Pakistan, or what is traditionally known as the
Gilgit-Baltistan region, is an area that has historically been of pivotal
strategic importance, and so remains.
This is the ancient 'axis of Asia', where South, Central and East Asia
converge. Gilgit-Baltistan was traditionally both India's and China's
gateway to Central Asia and beyond, into the heart of Europe.
The Karachi Agreement of April 28, 1949, purportedly signed between the
Pakistan Government and the 'President' of 'Azad Kashmir', Sardar M. Ibrahim
Khan, and President of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference,
Chaudhary Ghulam Abbas, ratified the administrative control of Pakistan over
these areas.
Pakistan also reportedly received letters of accession from the Mirs (local
rulers) of Nagar and Hunza. These letters, however, do not hold any merit as
the Rajas of Nagar and Hunza had no power of accession since the entire
State of Jammu and Kashmir reverted to Maharaja Hari Singh after the
departure of the British.
Critics of the agreement have charged Pakistan with suppressing these
letters of accession, because it sought to bring the whole State under
dispute before the United Nations (UN).
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/14/2216764.htm
12 killed as banned Kenyan sect protests: police
Posted Mon Apr 14, 2008 7:44pm AEST
At least 12 people have been killed in a series of clashes involving Kenyan
police and members of a banned Kenyan sect protesting over the killing of
their imprisoned leader's wife.
Police said five people were killed in Nairobi, four in central Kenya and
three others in the Rift Valley region where members of the Mungiki sect
were blocking roads and stoning motorists.
Nine of those killed were Mungiki members shot dead by police, while the
three others were reportedly civilians caught up in the violence, police
officials said.
"We have things under control and have deployed security forces across the
country to ensure that peace prevails," national police spokesman Eric
Kiraithe said.
"We assure the public that peace will be restored and all these hooligans
brought to book," he added.
The Mungiki sect was once a religious group of dreadlocked youths who
embraced traditional rituals, but the authorities say it has evolved into a
ruthless criminal gang involved in extortion and murder.
The Mungiki members were protesting the killing of Virginia Nyakio, the wife
of imprisoned sect leader Maina Njenga. Nyakio's mutilated body was
recovered on Friday - three days after she was seized by unknown kidnappers.
- AFP
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storyPage.aspx?storyId=127285
Iligan villagers protest inclusion in Moro homeland
by JOYCE VELOSO and FATIMA IMAM
abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak
A group of residents in Iligan City launched a street demonstration Monday
morning to protest their villages' proposed inclusion in the new Moro
homeland agreement that was supposed to be signed by the government and the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Malaysia on Tuesday.
Demonstrators wore red T-shirts to symbolize their opposition to include
eight villages of Iligan in the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE). These
areas are: Digkilaan, Dulag, Hindang, Kalilangan, Lanipao, Mainit,
Panoroganan and Rogongon.
Should these areas become a part of the expanded Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao (ARMM), over 66,502 hectares of land or about 81.76 percent of
Iligan’s total land area will be ceded to the BJE.
The demonstrators opposed the move, saying that majority of residents in the
these villages are not Bangsamoro people.
In a statement, the Coalition Against the Inclusion of Iligan to the BJE
said a big part of these villages is inhabited by the Higaonons, one of the
Lumads or indigenous tribes of Mindanao.
These Lumads have applied for land titles over ancestral domains found in
Rogongon, Mainit, Panoroganan and Kalilangan, the group said.
http://www.b92.net//eng/news/politics-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=05&dd=10&nav_id=50126
Radical Albanian group protests elections 10 May 2008 | 10:47 | Source: B92,
Beta PRIŠTINA -- Albin Kurti's Self-Determination movement staged a
demonstration in Priština yesterday to protest the holding of Serbian
elections in Kosovo.
The protest in Priština Friday (Beta)
Several hundred of his supporters, who engaged in violent demonstrations in
the past that ended with fatalities, threw bags of garbage at the seats of
UNMIK and Kosovo government.
"UNMIK serves as dumpster," said Kurti, who is on house arrest pending trial
over the deadly Feb. 2007 protests in Priština, as his activists carried
Albanian flags and anti-UNMIK and Kosovo institutions slogans.
Kurti said that both the UN mission and the government of Kosovo should have
prevented the parliamentary and local elections Belgrade is organizing
tomorrow, as they "question the integrity of Kosovo".
"The Serbian structures in Kosovo have for the past nine years controlled
one fourth of the territory. Now these structures will be made official
through the May 11 voting inside the republic of Kosovo. After May 11 there
will be 23 parallel municipal presidents in Kosovo," Kurti said.
But he added the protest Friday was "not against the international
community" – rather, Kurti said, the international community should not rule
Kosovo, "but should instead have an advisory role".
UNMIK chief Joachim Ruecker yesterday announced that the parliamentary and
local votes in the province are "unacceptable, contrary to Resolution 1244,
with the goal of creating parallel, illegal and illegitimate structures of
Serbia in Kosovo".
http://see.oneworldsee.org/article/view/150740/1/3188
UN Policeman Dies after Clashes Between Protesters and Peacekeepers in
Mitrovica
Luan Ibraj
18 March 2008
A member of the United Nations police force in Kosovo has died of injuries
he sustained in violent clashes with Serbian demonstrators in the divided
town of Mitrovica. While, more than 150 people, including NATO and UN
personnel, were wounded on Monday during running battles between
peacekeepers and Serbs opposed to Kosovan independence.
Angry demonstrators attacked international troops with rocks, grenades and
Molotov cocktails as the joint UN and NATO force took back a UN courthouse
which the Serbs stormed last week.
Kosovo Police Service (KPS) spokesman Veton Elshani said one of those hurt
had later died. \\\"An Ukrainian police officer died of wounds suffered
during violent demonstrations in the north of Mitrovica.\\\"
After the police detained around 50 Serbs in the court, hundreds of
residents from the Serb-populated northern part of the town attacked the
security force\\\'s convoy and managed to free some of the prisoners.
The two sides exchanged gunfire in bitter clashes which left 60 peacekeepers
and 70 Serbian protesters injured.
Later during the day police withdrew from the northern half of Mitrovica,
but NATO-led Kosovo Force peacekeepers remain in the town, taking control
for the situation in town.
Monday\\\'s clashes were the worst seen in the region since Kosovo
unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia last month, and they came
four years after bloody riots among Kosovo Albanians and Serbs.
Mitrovica, is a renowned flashpoint for violence. Bridges that connect two
sides of the town have been closed to prezent clashes among the two
communities.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/02/22/news/Serbia-Kosovo.php
Tensions remain high in Serbia as protesters attack UN police
The Associated Press
Published: February 22, 2008
KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, Kosovo: Violent protests rocked Serb-dominated northern
Kosovo on Friday, as mobs chanting "Kosovo is ours!" hurled stones, bottles
and firecrackers at U.N. police guarding a bridge that divides Serbs from
ethnic Albanians.
The scenes evoked memories of the carnage unleashed by former Serb autocrat
Slobodan Milosevic the last time Kosovo tried to break away from Serbia,
which considers the territory its ancestral homeland.
There were disturbing signs the riots in Belgrade, Serbia, and in Mitrovica
have the blessing of nationalists in the Serbian government. The government
hopes somehow to undo the loss of the beloved province, the site of an epic
battle between Serbs and Turks in 1389.
Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica's authorities have repeatedly vowed to
reclaim the land, despite U.S. and other Western recognition of Kosovo's
statehood. Some hard-line government ministers have praised the violent
protests as "legitimate" — and in line with government policies of retaining
control over Serb-populated areas.
In Washington, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said it was time for
Serbs to accept that Kosovo is no longer theirs. She also suggested it was
time to drop centuries of grievance and sentimentality in the Balkans.
"We believe that the resolution of Kosovo's status will really, finally, let
the Balkans begin to put its terrible history behind it," Rice said Friday.
"I mean, after all, we're talking about something from 1389 — 1389! It's
time to move forward."
Serbian President Boris Tadic called an emergency meeting of the national
security council and said the rioting that engulfed the capital must "never
happen again."
"I most sharply condemn the violence, looting and arson," Tadic said in a
statement. "There is no excuse for the violence. Nobody can justify what
happened yesterday."
Kosovo's ethnic Albanian leaders declared independence from Serbia on
Sunday. The province, which is 90 percent ethnic Albanian, has not been
under Serbia's control since 1999, when NATO launched airstrikes to halt a
Serbian crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists. A U.N. mission has
governed Kosovo since.
The U.S. ambassador to Serbia demanded that authorities do more to guarantee
the safety of foreign diplomatic missions after nationalists in Belgrade set
fire to the U.S. Embassy in riots Thursday that left one dead and more than
150 injured.
The State Department ordered nonessential diplomats and the families of all
American personnel at the embassy to leave Serbia after the attack.
In his first post-independence interview, Kosovo's prime minister told The
Associated Press that the violence is reminiscent of the Milosevic era.
"The pictures of yesterday in Belgrade were pictures of Milosevic's time,"
said Hasim Thaci, a former guerrilla leader of the disbanded Kosovo
Liberation Army, said at his office in Pristina, the capital. "What we saw
were terrible things."
He said the violence was reminiscent of Milosevic's bloody 1998-99 crackdown
on ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo — which was only halted by NATO
airstrikes on Serbia.
In Kosovska Mitrovica, some 5,000 Serbs rallied in the tense town, waving
Serbian flags and chanting "Kosovo is ours!" in a fifth day of protests
since the independence declaration. Protesters lobbed firecrackers in a
skirmish with police.
The clashes took place on the Kosovska Mitrovica bridge over the Ibar
River — dividing Kosovo Serbs from ethnic Albanians — long a flashpoint of
tensions in Kosovo's restive north.
"Kosovo is Serbia and we will never surrender, despite blackmail by the
European Union," Serbian government official Dragan Deletic told the crowd,
which responded by chanting: "Kosovo is Serbia."
He was referring to the several EU countries, including Britain, Germany,
France and Italy, that have recognized Kosovo's declaration of independence.
Tensions were higher than usual Friday after French NATO peacekeepers on
Kosovo's border refused to allow in several busloads of Serbs who wanted to
join the rally.
There were fears that Serbian soccer hooligans, the same ones who attacked
the U.S. and other embassies in Belgrade, were among those on the buses.
Some of the hooligans apparently managed to evade the blockade, leading the
clashes at the bridge.
Kosovo Serbs have been venting their anger over Kosovo's statehood by
destroying U.N. and NATO property, setting off hand grenades and staging
noisy rallies.
Even so, some Serbs seeing the violence can't help thinking the spasm of
outrage will set back their cause. Pictures of women returning repeatedly
for armfuls of clothes at trashed boutiques drew particular note.
"It is sending the picture of Serbia as bandits," said Miobor Stosic, 67, a
retired airline official. "We are so ashamed."
Toma Rajcic, 40-year-old lawyer from Belgrade, was depressed over what
happened.
"It is disgusting. It is all coming back, the fighting, darkness," he said.
"It is disgusting. It's time to leave this country."
Pro-Western politicians in Serbia accused hard-line nationalists in the
Kostunica's government of inciting the violence.
Parties of Tadic and Kostunica are united in a coalition government that has
ruled Serbia since mid-2007. But the two differ sharply on Kosovo, with
Tadic saying Belgrade must press on with efforts to join the EU regardless
of Kosovo, and Kostunica seeking to drop the bid because most EU countries
plan to recognize the province's independence.
Kostunica appealed for an end to the violence.
"This directly damages our ... national interests. All those who support the
fake state of Kosovo are rejoicing at the sight of violence in Belgrade," he
said. He made no mention of the damaged embassies.
Police said that in addition to the U.S. and Croatian embassies, the
missions of Turkey, Bosnia, Belgium and Canada also were targeted.
The U.S. ambassador to Bosnia said he had closed the consulate in the
northwestern city of Banja Luka a day after protesters burned the U.S. flag
and tried to storm the building.
Bosnia consists of two ministates, one run by Bosnian Serbs, the other by
Bosniaks and Croats. The Bosnian Serb parliament has condemned Kosovo's move
and said it will consider a referendum to secede from Bosnia if more
countries recognize Pristina's government.
http://www.b92.net//eng/news/society-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=06&dd=26&nav_id=51419
Serbs in protest against mosque construction 26 June 2008 | 15:19 | Source:
FoNet BERIVOJCE -- Serbs from the village of Berivojce near Kosovska
Kamenica are obstructing work on a building site where Albanians have begun
illegally building a mosque.
The Serbs are demanding that UNMIK and the Albanian authorities in Kamenica
put a stop to the work and the “further irritation of the Serb populace”,
reads a statement from the Kosovo Ministry.
Over a hundred Serbs are protesting. One Serb representative, Boža
Stanojević, said that a number of Kosovo Police Service members were
harassing and provoking Serb protestors.
“It is absolutely unacceptable that a mosque is being built in the Serb part
of Berivojce. This is clearly intended to further embitter the lives of over
1,100 Serbs in this village,” said Stanojević, according to the statement.
http://www.b92.net//eng/news/politics-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=08&dd=11&nav_id=52615
Army vets in scuffles with police 11 August 2008 | 10:44 -> 16:53 | Source:
B92, Beta, Tanjug MERDARE, LESKOVAC -- Five former reserve soldiers have
been lightly injured today when they clashed with police.
Protesters were tying to cross the administrative line with Kosovo at
Merdare, when MUP officers stopped them.
A quadruple police cordon prevented the demonstrators from passing through
to Kosovo, and the protest ended peacefully.
The former army reservists from 22 southern Serbian municipalities gathered
to protest at the line.
Dušan Nikolić, of Leskovac strikers, told B92earlier today that only the
presidents of the striking committees will show up at Merdare crossing
today, and that the protest "will not be massive".
Yesterday, Chairman of the United Striking Committee of the 3rd Army
District Gorjan Jakoviljević said that today's protest will have the goal
"to pull down a sign reading, 'Kosovo Republic'".
"It all started in Kosovo, and that's where it will all end. We will try to
cross the administrative line, and to light candles for our fellow fighters
who lost their lives defending Kosovo," he was quoted as saying by Beta news
agency.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/07/30/europe/EU-Serbia-Protests.php
80 people injured in Serbia
The Associated Press
Published: July 30, 2008
BELGRADE, Serbia: Serbian doctors say 80 people have been injured in clashes
during protests in support of war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic.
Belgrade's emergency clinic says it has treated 51 policemen and 23
civilians. The city's military clinic reports treating three policemen and
three civilians.
All were injured in clashes late Tuesday between police and nationalist
rioters.
On Wednesday, the extremist Serbian Radical Party accused pro-Western
president Boris Tadic of "provoking and organizing" the violence.
Party leader Tomislav Nikolic says Tadic wants to "wipe out" the Radicals
and "take Serbia into a war."
The party has pledged to continue with daily protests.
Karadzic was handed over earlier Wednesday to a U.N. war crimes court to
face a genocide trial.
http://politicom.moldova.org/stiri/eng/138377/
Anti-Tadic protesters rally
A Belgrade rally by about 15,000 protesters opposed to the pro-Western
government of Serbian President Boris Tadic turned violent Tuesday night,
officials said.
Police efforts to disperse the crowd brought accusations of brutality by
Alexander Vucic, secretary general of Serbia's Radical Party, ITAR-TASS
reported. Vucic said he was struck four times by police wielding rubber
batons, the Russian news agency said.
Thirteen policemen and 15 protesters were treated for injuries, ITAR-TASS
said.
The demonstrators were voicing their support for Radovan Karadzic, the
former political leader of Bosnian Serbs who has been arrested on war crime
charges.
A few hundred protesters threw rocks at police, who responded with tear gas
and baton rounds, The Guardian reported.
Vucic had instigated the demonstrations, accusing Tadic of treason and
dictatorship, the British newspaper said.
Tadic responded that the protesters had a right to demonstrate peacefully
but that There's no patriotism in hooliganism.
Belgrade media has been reporting that Tadic has been receiving death
threats, The Guardian said.
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7010698224
Egyptian Demonstrators Protest Governorate Change
ShareThis
April 20, 2008 8:54 a.m. EST
Joseph Mayton - AHN Middle East Correspondent
Cairo, Egypt (AHN) - Egyptian police forcibly ended a demonstration in the
Western desert oasis of Bahariya on Saturday. The citizens of the small
desert oasis were protesting against a presidential decree that moved the
town into the Minya governorate from Giza.
The move sparked the anger of approximately 5,000 demonstrators who called
for a reversal of the decision to allow the town to remain in the more
prosperous Giza governorate.
An Egyptian security official, who was not authorized to speak with the
media, told AHN Media Corporation that police had used tear gas to disperse
the 5,000 residents who had been protesting the move.
"We received reports that about 5,000 people were protesting in the
streets," the official said, "where they shouted and burned tires before the
police stepped in and used tear gas."
The official added that at least 15 people had been detained in Egypt's most
recent social upheaval.
The protest in Bahariya comes less than two weeks since mass demonstrations
and a general strike gripped the North African nation as people complained
of low wages and high costs of living.
http://www.thenational.ae/article/20080430/LATESTNEWS/753856085/1003/NEWS&profile=1003
Students protest outside UAE embassy in Tehran
Last Updated: April 29. 2008 6:15PM UAE / April 29. 2008 2:15PM GMT
TEHRAN // Hundreds of students today protested outside the UAE embassy
against what Iranian state media called recent moves by Arab states to cease
using the term "Persian Gulf".
The protest was held ahead of National Persian Gulf Day, which takes place
tomorrow.
The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) said the High Council of Cultural
Revolution has designated April 30 as the national day as it marked the
withdrawal of Portuguese forces from the Strait of Hormuz.
IRNA added: "During the protest gathering, the students quietly and calmly
expressed their anger at [forgetting] the name of the Persian Gulf by a
number of Arab countries, including the UAE.
"The people, divided into small groups, chanting slogans against the move
taken by several Arab states.
"The Persian Gulf with its God-granted rich resources has been playing a
decisive role in Iran's economic and social development in the past 1,400
years."
http://kazakhstan.neweurasia.net/2008/04/29/kyrgyz-protest-against-concessions-to-kazakhstan
Kyrgyz Protest against Concessions to Kazakhstan
Posted by Adam Kesher | in Politics, Foreign Affairs | on April 29th, 2008
Tags: No Tags
As we already reported earlier, the long-running dispute between Kazakhstan
and Kyrgyzstan over ownership of resorts on the shores of Lake Issyk Kul has
been resolved in favor of Kazakhstan. But far not everyone in Kyrgyzstan is
happy with the compromise.
Hundreds of people marched in Issyk-Kul region Saturday to protest a
government decision approving the handover of four Soviet-era tourist
complexes in the area to Kazakhstan, reports AP. Besides, Kyrgyzstan also
gives up three other disputed areas along the border with Kazakhstan.
“Land transfers always cause a lot grievances among the population,” said
opposition Social Democrat party lawmaker Murat Jurayev, adding that the
land transfer could set a dangerous precedent for the small country
surrounded by larger Uzbekistan, China and Kazakhstan, with all of the
neighbors having certain appetites towards Kyrgyzstan.
http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-05/2008-05-01-voa40.cfm?CFID=23171096&CFTOKEN=95681794
Mitrovica Serbs Protest EU Agreement
By VOA News
01 May 2008
Serbian workers march with banner, reading: "You too are a member of the
Union," during a May Day rally in Belgrade, 01 May 2008
A group of Kosovo Serbs has demonstrated in the northern city of Mitrovica
protesting against Serbia's decision to sign an agreement on closer ties
with the European Union.
The protesters burned the U.S. flag and criticized Serbian President Boris
Tadic for authorizing the signing of the accord.
Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica has opposed signing the accord
unless it specifies that Kosovo is an integral part of Serbia. He says an
accord without such a provision will constitute support for the February
decision by Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority to declare the area's
independence from Serbia
More than 30 countries, including the United States, have recognized Kosovo
independence. But Serbia, backed by its traditional ally Russia, insists on
maintaining sovereignty over the area.
EU officials hope the signing of the deal before Serbia's May 11
parliamentary elections will help reformist politicians in the balloting.
The accord, signed Tuesday, specifies that it will not be ratified until
Serbia improves its cooperation with international prosecutors seeking to
arrest fugitive Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic and his top military
leader, Ratko Mladic. Both fugitives from the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s
are thought to be hiding in the region.
Kosovo has been under United Nations administration since 1999, after NATO
air strikes halted Belgrade's crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists.
http://see.oneworldsee.org/article/view/150637/1/3193
Protests against Initiatives to Change the Constitutional Name of the
Country
Dejan Georgievski
20 February 2008
Several thousand citizens of Macedonia gathered yesterday, at the Macedonia
Square in Skopje, to protest the initiatives to change the constitutional
name of the country, organized by the Youth Knows nongovernmental
association.
- The protests aim to express our position, as citizens of Macedonia, that
we will not accept any change of the constitutional name, the Republic of
Macedonia, emphasizes he organization, on the eve of the latest proposal
expected to be submitted by UN Mediator Matthew Nimitz.
The Youth Knows claim that they have no intention to undermine the country’s
protest towards EU and NATO membership.
- We want to support all those that want Macedonia to take its rightful
place and the privileges that come with the membership in these
organizations, but not if the price we pay is the name of the country and
our national identity, add the organization representatives.
The protests didn`t pass without incidents. A group of protesters stoned the
Greek Embassy in Skopje, expressing their disagreements with official Athens
through vandalism and violence.
Last night, Mediator Nimitz was expected to come forward with the final and
ultimate proposal for the name that would be acceptable to both parties in
the dispute.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200805140285.html
Nigeria: MASSOB Plans Week-Long Protest March to Mark 41st Anniversary
Leadership (Abuja)
14 May 2008
Posted to the web 14 May 2008
Edem Edem
Abuja
Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB),
may disrupt economic, social and political activities in Cross River State
over the planned protest March scheduled to hold from 22nd to 30th May 2008.
During the period, markets, schools and other businesses are expected to
close down. The protest March is to mark the 41 years independence
anniversary of Biafra.
Addressing a press conference in Calabar, May 13, 2008, the group led by
Engineer Sylvester Okafor, Regional Administrator and Director for
Information in Cross River State stated, "we wish to use this opportunity to
call the Easterners to come out en-mass and partake in this peaceful protest
to show the world that we are united with one resolve for freedom.
The people again stated, " Gentle men of the press present here, we the
MASSOB are happy to be in your midst to intimate you about the programme
activities for the incoming Biafra independence anniversary and 9 years of
tortuous struggle by MASSOB for the actualization of this independence."
The group said the organisation, which was formed by Chief (Dr.) Ralph
Uwazuruike in 1999, aimed amongst others to unify the people of Eastern
Nigeria to one united group of people, actualisation of determination, to
stop the continued systematic killing of Easterners, which started since
1953. To give hope of security and survival to Easterners whose lives and
properties are not guaranteed in the Northern and Western regions of Nigeria
Consequently, the people alert that since nine years of MASSOB existence,
despite her non-violent agitation for freedom, the Nigeria State had
continued this genocide which led to the massacre of over 2000 members and
detention of several thousands in various Nigerian prisons without trial.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/05/27/stories/2008052753640400.htm
Protests continue to rock Malabar region
Biju Govind
IUML-Congress stand-off keeps the police on their toes
KOZHIKODE: The stand-off between the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and
the Congress is snowballing into a law and order problem in north Kerala,
particularly in Kozhikode and Malappuram districts. At least a dozen
incidents have been reported from the rural belts of the district over the
last three days. A hartal was observed at Kuttiyadi on Monday in protest
against attempts by a group of people to set on fire the local IUML office,
Bafaky Bhavan, on Sunday night. Nadapuram, a politically and communally
sensitive area, observed a dawn-to-dusk hartal on Sunday. Two offices of the
Congress came under attack on Sunday. Statues and banners of the party were
destroyed at Vanimel. The party offices at Chekyad and Kadameri were also
attacked.
Clashes were reported between IUML and Congress workers at Kadiyangatt and
Perambra. Attempts were also made to ransack the Congress party office at
Parambil Bazar.
The police had a tough time defusing a potentially volatile situation after
the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress and IUML took out separate
rallies in Nadapuram town. BJP activists took out a rally to celebrate their
victory in the Karnataka Assembly polls.
Burnt in effigy
Congress leader Aryadan Mohammed, whose remarks against the IUML triggered
the spate of protests, was burnt in effigy at many places, including Mambad,
Pookiparamba and Randanthani in Malappuram district. Protest marches were
taken out at Tirur, Edavannapara and Chemmad. Workers belonging to the IUML
and Congress party almost came to blows at Wandoor.
Cases have been registered against 600-odd activists belonging to different
political parties at various police stations. A large posse of policemen,
including a striking force, has been deployed in sensitive areas.
“As of now, the issue has not acquired a serious law and order dimension.
The police are well prepared to tackle any situation,” Kundan Singh
Jangpangi, Additional Director-General of Police, North Kerala, said.
http://www.b92.net//eng/news/society-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=06&dd=04&nav_id=50813
Albanian protest in Dečani called off 4 June 2008 | 15:53 | Source: B92
BELGRADE -- The recent decision by UNMIK Chief Joachim Ruecker to return
property to the Visoki Dečani monastery has come in for criticism from local
Albanians.
Protests and demonstrations against the decision had been scheduled for
today, but were cancelled in the meantime.
The municipality itself is due to hold a debate on the topic after it was
ordered by Ruecker to return all property belonging to the monastery that
was seized 99 years ago.
Priština media were the first to report today’s planned demonstrations in
Dečani, claiming that the organizers of the protest were Kosovo Liberation
Army (KLA) veterans led by Abdyl Mushkolaj.
Mushkolaj was arrested after the Kosovo riots of March 17, 2004 on suspicion
of instigating those incidents in western Kosovo and the Dečani
municipality.
However, according to KiM Radio, the protests have been cancelled until
further notice.
KPS spokesman Zeqir Kelmendi said that the police did not have any
information regarding the planned protest.
“I have no information of any demonstrations, no-one has given me any
information regarding protests, so I do not believe they exist. We had a
meeting this morning and no one said anything about any demonstrations,”
Kelmendi insisted.
http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=106935
Rize group protests United Kingdom policy
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Rize group protests United Kingdom policy
A member group of the Rize Federation of Associations (RİDEF) protested in
front of the British consulate in Istanbul yesterday regarding the use of
the city's name to describe a police operation in the United Kingdom. RİDEF
President Ahmet Yurtman said Rize residents were saddened by the decision to
call the UK's biggest-ever organized crime and narcotics operation �Rize.�
He also invited the British administration and Istanbul consulate to visit
the small Black Sea city.
İSTANBUL � Anatolia News Agency
http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_South%20Africa&set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=nw20080623102548709C919583
IFP protest infringed on constitution - cops
June 23 2008 at 10:28AM
The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP)'s protest at the weekend had infringed on
the constitution and the democratic principles that governed SA,
KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Hamilton Ngidi said on Monday.
On Saturday, the party embarked on a protest in Durban central and in Umlazi
against the street renaming process and the removal of a grade 12 History
book it said destroyed the legacy of its leader, Mangosuthu Buthelezi.
Police said protesters had been armed with axes, knobkerries and weapons and
had broken shop windows, damaged cars and other property during their march.
Police had to use rubber bullets to disperse the huge crowd.
Ngidi said the protest was in contrast to the country's ideology of a
peaceful protest and that comments made by the party's Albert Mncwango could
influence disorderly behaviour in future.
Mncwango had reportedly told media the party's protest action was at its
second stage and that a third stage was yet to come.
"Judging from what transpired during the march in regards to the unruly
behaviour and defiance of the rule of the law, an inference could be drawn
that such a statement could lead to disorderly behaviour in the future,"
Ngidi said.
"We will always frown upon statements inciting unruly behaviour and call
upon leaders to desist making such statements. The South African Police
Service is always prepared to maintain law and order at all costs," he said.
Ngidi said the investigation into the incident would be finalised and
forwarded to the National Prosecuting Authority. - Sapa
http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2344516,00.html
Protesters, cops clash in Durban
21/06/2008 14:08 - (SA)
Johannesburg - Police have used rubber bullets to disperse Inkatha Freedom
Party demonstrators at the Dalton Hostel in Durban, the SABC reported on
Saturday.
They were trying to join another group of marchers when they clashed with
police.
They were on their way to the Durban City Hall to hand a memorandum to
municipal officials objecting to a proposal to rename the Mangosuthu Highway
the Griffiths Mxenge Highway.
A group of youths, believed to be Inkatha Freedom Party Members, earlier
blockaded the highway and burnt tyres in protest against the proposal.
http://www.dawn.com/2008/07/08/rss.htm#e7
Blast wounds seven Yemenis during protest by members of disbanded southern
army SAN'A, Yemen, July 8 (AP): Police arrested a man for allegedly throwing
a hand grenade that injured seven people in southern Yemen’s Dali province
Monday, Yemen's official news agency said. A spokesman for former soldiers
from Yemen's disbanded southern army said the blast occurred during a
protest marking the anniversary of the north's invasion of southern Yemen.
Police said 120 people were arrested. (Posted @ 10:05 PST)
http://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking_news_detail.asp?id=340
Thai protesters nabbed at disputed Cambodian temple
(07-15 14:51)
Three Thai protesters at a disputed ancient temple were detained by
Cambodian soldiers for illegally entering the site, which is closed to the
public, a Thai provincial governor said.
The 11th-century Preah Vihear temple is at the center of a long-running
territorial dispute as the main compound is situated inside Cambodia but the
most accessible entrance to the site is at the foot of a mountain in
Thailand.
"We are negotiating to secure their release through local officials,'' Seni
Chitkasem, governor of the border province Si Sa Ket, told Thai television.
Cambodia sealed off the temple last month after about 100 Thai protesters
attempted to march on the ruins on June 23.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2008/07/16/2003417586
Heritage site protesters sent back
TEMPLE SPAT: About 40 Thai border police officials crossed into Cambodia to
retrieve trespassing Thais, alarming tourists and sparking a flurry of
diplomacy
DPA, BANGKOK AND PHNOM PENH
Wednesday, Jul 16, 2008, Page 5
The Preah Vihear temple in Preah Vihear Province, Cambodia, is pictured on
June 21.
PHOTO: AP
Cambodia defused a tense border standoff yesterday by returning three Thai
nationals, including a Buddhist monk, who had crossed into Cambodia to
protest the recent decision to list Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage
site.
The Thais, identified as Phicharn Thapsorn, 35, Chanikarn Singnok, 64, and
Buddhist monk Khamphor, were detained by Cambodian soldiers for trespassing
in the Preah Vihear temple compound on the Cambodian side of the border.
The men, reportedly members of a Buddhist peace pilgrimage group, had
crossed into the temple area from Khantalak District, Si Sa Khet Province,
which borders Cambodia’s Preah Vihear Province, on Monday night.
Si Sa Khet Governor Seni Chittakasem confirmed that Cambodian authorities
had released the three men unconditionally by yesterday afternoon.
FEARS
An estimated 40 Thai border police had crossed the Cambodian border into
Preah Vihear temple to retrieve the trespassing Thais, alarming tourists and
sparking urgent talks between the two sides, Cambodian authorities said.
“After the arrests, around 40 black uniformed Thai border guards with guns
arrived at the temple and scared tourists with their weapons,” said Hang
Soth, secretary-general of the government’s Preah Vihear authority in a
telephone interview.
Cambodia has had riot police and military on standby at the temple since
Thai protests began earlier this month.
HERITAGE SITE
Preah Vihear temple, known as Phra Viharn in Thailand, was named a World
Heritage Site at a UNESCO meeting in Quebec City earlier this month, despite
Thai opposition to the listing.
The ancient Hindu temple, perched on a 525m-high cliff on the Dangrek
Mountain range that defines the Thai-Cambodian border, has been the source
of a sovereignty dispute for decades.
An ownership spat between Cambodia and Thailand led to a suspension of
diplomatic relations in 1958 and eventually ended up in The Hague for an
international settlement in 1962. Cambodia won.
The temple reemerged as a source of bilateral tensions in 2006 when Cambodia
first proposed listing the monument as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Thailand objected, and succeeded in blocking the subscription attempt in
2006 and last year on the grounds that parts of the temple compound were
still subject to a border dispute.
Cambodia redrew the Preah Vihear inscription map this year, excluding the
disputed territory.
It was approved by the World Heritage Committee on July 7.
The Thai government at first backed the proposal, but then withdrew support
when the issue became a political hot potato.
Residents of Si Sa Khet province, about 400km northeast of Bangkok, have
been protesting the listing, prompting Cambodia to shut access to the temple
from the Thai side.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200807160008.html
Somalia: Anti-Somaliland Protest in Sanaag
Garowe Online (Garowe)
15 July 2008
Posted to the web 16 July 2008
Hundreds of protestors gathered together in the region of Sanaag, in
northern Somalia, to protest against the separatist republic of Somaliland,
Radio Garowe reported Tuesday.
The protestors, including students and women activists, carried placards
expressing their messages, from supporting peace in Sanaag to condemnation
of Somaliland's aggressive policies in the region.
The demonstrators walked up and down the streets of Badhan, a town in the
eastern part of Sanaag.
The region is disputed between breakaway Somaliland and the semiautonomous
state of Puntland, located at Somalia's northeastern tip. The two rival
sub-states have fought several times in Sool and Sanaag regions since 2002.
Last week, Somaliland forces briefly seized control of Las Qorey, a small
port town along the Sanaag coast, before withdrawing voluntarily.
Meanwhile, a German man and his wife who were kidnapped by Somali pirates on
June 23 are still being held hostage somewhere in Sanaag region.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/18/stories/2008071860240400.htm
Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad
TRS cadres stage protests
Special Correspondent
HYDERABAD: The cadre of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) staged demonstrations
before houses of Congress MPs on Thursday as part of an agitation by the
party demanding the Congress to concede separate Telangana before it took
the confidence vote in Parliament next week. In the State capital, the
demonstrations were held near the houses of Anjan Kumar Yadav at Golla
Khidki, G. Venkatswamy and Sarve Satyanarayana at East Marredpally, S.
Jaipal Reddy and D. Vittal Rao at Krishnanagar in Jubilee Hills. The TRS
supporters also gathered near the house of Madhu Yaskhi at Nizamabad and A.
Indrakaran Reddy at Nirmal in Adilabad.
The police arrested several demonstrators, including MLAs T. Harish Rao and
K. Nagesh and former MLA Nayani Narasimha Reddy. They were released later.
Mr. Harish Rao and former MLAs G. Vijayarama Rao and T. Padma Devender Reddy
participated in community lunch outside the house of Mr. Sarve
Satyanarayana. The police foiled similar attempts near the houses of Mr.
Madhu Yaskhi, Mr. Indrakaran Reddy and Mr. Vittal Rao.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/22/stories/2008072255000400.htm
Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad
ABVP to stage protest today
HYDERABAD: The ABVP calls for protest by students before the Collectorates
in Telangana districts on July 22 demanding an announcement on separate
Telangana before the 2009 elections. It alleged that the Telangana movement
was getting diluted by “opportunist” parties. –Special Correspondent
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/14/stories/2008071450360100.htm
Protests by Christians across State
HYDERABAD: Christians across the State strongly protested the publication of
an objectionable picture of Jesus in a Telugu daily on Sunday.
Publication of the picture triggered an attack on the office of Sakshi daily
in Chirala town in Prakasam district and demonstrations in Nandyal,
Guntakal, Anantapur, Guntur, Ongole and Bhimavaram. Copies of the daily were
set ablaze in some places.
The picture published in the religion column of the features section of the
daily owned by Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s son Y. S. Jaganmohan
Reddy showed Jesus Christ in a manner that was reprehensible and hurt the
sentiments of the community, Christian organisations alleged.
Daily’s office attacked
Reports reaching the State headquarters said irate Christians attacked the
Sakshi office at Chirala. The enraged youth raided the office, ransacked the
furniture and threw down the computers. They also damaged window panes of an
APSRTC bus.
Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy, Chairman of Jagati Publishers, which publishes the
daily, tendered an unconditional apology for hurting the sentiments of
Christians. In a statement issued here, Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy said: “Sakshi
will publish front page apology on Monday.” He sought forgiveness of the
Christian community for inadvertently publishing the picture and clarified
that the photograph was downloaded from the Internet by a sub-editor, who
failed to notice its quality.
Publication condemned
Notwithstanding the apology, Christian and SC organisations condemned the
publication. The SC Cell of the Telugu Desam Party at its State executive
meeting in Khammam decried the publication of the photo.
http://www.asiantribune.com/?q=node/12495
More than 1200 protesters marched against LTTE Tamil Tigers in Berlin
Thu, 2008-07-31 04:43
Berlin, 31 July, (Asiantribune.com): Now it is the turn of the Sri Lankan
diaspora to protest against the reclusive Tiger leader Velupillai Prabakaran
and his terror outfit, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam throughout Europe.
The latest successful protest march against the Tamil Tiger terrorists’
atrocities was staged in Berlin, Germany. These type of marches against the
Tamil Tigers were something unthinkable a couple of years ago, but today Sri
Lankan diaspora in Europe are determined to expose the terrorists atrocities
to the world by protesting in all the European capitals.
On 26 July, "Sri Lankans against LTTE Terror – Germany", successfully
organized a demonstration against the Sri Lankan terrorist group, the LTTE
also known as Tamil Tigers.
More than 1200 Sri Lankans and Germans from all over Germany took part in
the demonstration, which commenced from Alexanderplatz.
The protesters marched carrying placards and shouting slogans from
Alexanderplatz in Berlin-Mitte via "Unter den Linden" through Brandenburg
Gate inside Tiergarten to Scheidemannstrasse opposite the Bundestag, the
German Parliament. Along the way, the bystanders were educated about the
objective of the demonstration with leaflets.
The protesters demanded Germany to take action against the LTTE and its
front organizations that collect funds for the LTTE terrorists under the
guise of charity.
"Sri Lankans against LTTE Terror- Germany," who organized the successful
protest march demanded the Federal Government to:
1) Execute the EU Ban of the LTTE also in Germany on the highest level.
2) Ban the LTTE in all the 16 Federal States as a terrorist organization
without any exclusion.
3) Ban all its front organizations active in Germany like the Tamil
Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), Tamil Youth Organization (TYO), and Tamil
Coordinating Committee (TCC).
4) Execute strict Observations, Investigations and Punishments with regard
to the fundraising activities of the LTTE in Germany in a sustainable way.
- Asian Tribune -
http://www.nowpublic.com/world/sri-lankans-finland-protest-against-terrorism
Sri Lankans in Finland Protest Against Terrorism
by Christina 123 | July 26, 2008 at 12:25 pm | 103 views | 2 comments
by Christina 123
It has been revealed that Sri Lankan protestors have turned out in force in
Helsinki to protest against ongoing civil unrest in the country.
Sri Lankans in Finland stage protest demonstration against LTTE terrorism
Sri Lankans living in Finland yesterday (July 25 ) staged a mass protest
demonstration in Helsinki against LTTE terrorism in Sri Lanka . The
protestors held their demonstration for 2 hours in front of the Finish
parliament with a strong participation of Sri Lankan of all ethnicities and
Finns alike.
The protestor displayed banners saying that Sri Lanka is the homeland of
Sinhalese , Muslims and Tamils but not of a single race. Many other banners
and placard were seen held by the participants against recruiting of child
soldiers , ethnic cleansing and civilian massacres, routinely carried out by
the LTTE.
The protesters also urged the Finish government to curb LTTE's front
organizations that engaged in fundraising for the terror outfit and other
LTTE affiliated criminal gangs that collect funds from the Tamil people
through extortion.
Also , they requested the Finnish Government to help Sri Lanka in defeating
terrorism and building peace and harmony for the war torn nation.
http://www.greenleft.org.au/2008/760/39263
Protest remembers Black July
J. Nathan
26 July 2008
Despite the heavy rain, more than 100 people participated in a rally through
Sydney’s CBD on July 25, protesting the ongoing discrimination, abuse and
killing of Tamil civilians by the Sri Lankan state.
Twenty-five years ago, Sri Lanka experienced Black July, a government-backed
anti-Tamil pogrom in which human rights groups claim over 3000 Tamils were
killed and over 150,000 were left homeless.
Fifty years ago, also in July, hundreds of Tamils were attacked and killed
in the 1958 anti-Tamil riots, the first of many such riots to follow.
Today, the Sri Lankan government has withdrawn from a ceasefire agreement
with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and entered into war, thousands of
Tamils have “disappeared” over the last few years and Tamil journalists, aid
workers, human rights activists and politicians have been assassinated.
Human rights groups and media watchdogs point the finger at security forces,
but to date no-one has been brought to justice.
The rally started with a testimony from a member of the Tamil community who
shared her devastating story of Black July. She witnessed rioters, supported
by the government, throw burning tyres onto her father and brother, burning
them alive. She was 17 years old at the time.
Three young Tamils addressed the crowd, speaking about what Black July meant
to them. “If the international community can acknowledge that minorities
will not be treated with equality in East Timor and Kosovo, and help create
an independent state for them, then surely the same applies to the Tamils
living on the island of Sri Lanka”, said one of the young speakers.
Members of the Tamil Australian community joined others in remembering the
incident that made so many of their families homeless and destitute
overnight. The rally marched from Martin Place Station to Town Hall Station.
“History keeps repeating itself in Sri Lanka. Tamils are being killed and
abducted on a daily basis, but the news just doesn’t get as much publicity
as Zimbabwe or Darfur. So we decided to beat some drums and make some noise
about it!” said Raj Jega, a member of a Tamil youth group.
For information about Black July other human rights abuses against Tamils in
Sri Lanka, visit http://www.blackjuly.info
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/24/stories/2008072455060100.htm
Bandhs to protest Soren’s demand
Bhubaneswar: Demonstrations and bandhs were staged in various places in
Orissa on Wednesday in protest against Jharkhand Mukti Morcha chief Shibu
Soren’s demand to form a ‘greater Jharkhand,’ taking away three districts of
the State and three more from West Bengal.
Normal life was affected in tribal dominated Mayurbhanj as BJP and BJD
observed a 12-hour bandh across the district. Mr. Soren wanted Sundergarh,
Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj districts included in the Greater Jharkhand State.
Shops, business establishments, educational institutions and some offices
were closed during the shut-down. — PTI
http://www.nowpublic.com/world/orissa-bengal-protest-sorens-territorial-demands
Orissa, Bengal Protest to Soren's territorial demands
by akhand11 | July 22, 2008 at 06:04 am | 91 views | add comment
By Akhand in Bhubaneswar
Jharkhand Mukti Morchha(JMM) supremo Shibu Soren's demand for a greater
Jharkhand state by carving out three districts each of Orissa and West
Bengal elicited heavy protest in the two states.
All political parties excluding congress, which wants the support of the JMM
to save the Government in the centre, has strongly oppose the proposal.
They even held demonstrations in different part of the state and soren's
effiges were burnt.Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in a strong reaction
said if the UPA government accepted Soren's demand, it would be treated as
'anti-Orissa'. We will oppose the move.
Soren reportedly proposes to Central Government to carve three districts of
Orissa Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar and Sundargarh and other three districts of West
Bengal — with the present Jharkhand state for ‘Greater Jharkhand’.
Patnaik, chief of Biju Janata Dal, a Regional Party ruling Orissa, Mr. said
Orissa's long-standing demand had been for inclusion of Oriya-speaking
Sadheikala and Kharasuan areas of Jharkhand in the state. The other
political parties in the state were more aggressive in their reaction,
saying not an inch of the territory would be given to anyone.
Activists of BJD, Bhanja Sena, Mayurbhanj Suraksha Samiti and other
organisations held demonstrations at Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar district.
Soren's effigies were also burnt.
Apart from the chief minister, some ministers in his cabinet also came out
with sharp criticism of the JMM chief's demand. They include Golak Bihari
Naik and Chaitan Prasad Majhi.
Political parties in Orissa on Tuesday opposed JMM supremo Shibu Soren's
proposal for formation of a greater Jharkhand state.
Strongly criticising the proposal, the ruling BJD's Sudergarh district
leader, Anand Mohanty, said, "Not an inch from Orissa would be given to the
JMM for its proposed Greater Jharkhand state."
Mohanty told that "It is nothing but daydreaming on the part of Soren. The
people, irrespective of all political parties, will fight against the
proposal."
BJP protests
Sundergarh MP and BJP national vice-president Jual Oram, sharply reacted to
the proposal and described it as "quite unfortunate." The BJP, according to
Oram, will strongly oppose the move at the national level.
Several leading citizens and sociocultural organisations of the state have
condemned the proposal.
Sananda Marandi, BJP MLA from Kuliana Assembly constituency in Mayurbhanj
district, has slammed JMM supremo Shibu Soren and Mayurbhanj MP Sudam
Marandi for amalgamation of three Orissa districts — Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar
and Sundargarh — with the present Jharkhand state for ‘Greater Jharkhand’.
Reacting to the absurd proposal for truncating Orissa for Greater Jharkhand,
Sananda reminded Shibu Soren and Sudam Marandi that they were ‘nobody to
shape the destiny of the people of Mayurbhanj’.
Sananda in a statement asserted that it was a historical truth that some of
the areas like Seraikela, Kharsuan, Dhalbhumgarh, Chakradharpur, Manoharpur
now in Jharkhand were part of the erstwhile princely state of Mayurbhanj and
due to a political conspiracy these areas were included in Bihar and later
in Jharkhand.
Now the two JMM leaders’ move to snatch Mayurbhanj for formation of a
Greater Jharkhand has churned the emotions of nearly 22 lakh people of
Mayurbhanj, the Kuliana MLA further reiterated.
Protest in WB
In West Bengal, CPI-M's Rabin Mandal said the demand, if accepted, would
divide the people of the state. Noting that Soren in his 13-point charter of
demands had not only wanted three districts of Bengal carved out but also
shifting of the headquarters of the Coal India and DVC in return for support
to the UPA in the trust vote, Mandal wanted an all-party resolution on this
issue.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/04/26/europe/EU-GEN-Estonia-Russia-Riot-Anniversary.php
Several dozen demonstrate to mark anniversary of Bronze Soldier riots in
Estonia
The Associated Press
Published: April 26, 2008
TALLINN, Estonia: About 100 demonstrators gathered in the Estonian capital
Saturday to commemorate the anniversary of the riots that shook the small
Baltic nation one year ago.
A decision by the government to remove a pro-Soviet war memorial — dubbed
the Bronze Soldier — and a nearby war grave sparked two nights of unrest in
April 2007 that left one dead, more than 100 injured and many shops looted
and burned.
On Saturday, protesters — mainly ethnic Russians — met in a park holding
banners calling on people to turn their backs on the government and
demanding that Prime Minister Andrus Ansip resign. The event was peaceful.
To ethnic Russians — who comprise about 25 percent of the country's 1.3
million — the Bronze Soldier was a sacred symbol of the defeat of Nazi
Germany, but to many Estonians the monument was a caustic reminder of five
decades of Soviet occupation.
The statue was relocated to a military cemetery some 3 kilometers (2 miles)
from the downtown square where it had stood for over half a century.
Relations between Estonia and Russia deteriorated after the incident, with
Moscow making efforts to isolate the Baltic state and punish it
economically.
http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2375641,00.html
Cops fire teargas at protesters
14/08/2008 12:08 - (SA)
Clarence Macaulay
Freetown - Police said they fired tear gas on Wednesday to disperse a crowd
of violent protesters that besieged the offices of Sierra Leone's opposition
party.
The protesters - mostly youths angered by remarks made on the party's radio
station criticising the government - attacked the headquarters of the Sierra
Leone People's Party and tried to force their way into the radio station.
Assistant Inspector General of Police Richard Moigbe said he received a
distress call from the party early on Wednesday morning.
Police fired a volley of tear gas canisters to push the rowdy crowd back
from the building, he said.
Several people have been arrested, Moigbe said, adding that the violence had
"political connotations".
Details of the remarks that caused the outbreak of violence were not
immediately available.
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/8/16/nation/22098629&sec=nation
August 16, 2008
Students hold more protest
PETALING JAYA: Several more groups of Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM)
students, this time from Segamat, Butterworth, Bukit Mertajam, Alor Gajah,
Arau, Bandar Jenka, Sungei Petani and Kuala Terengganu, joined fellow
students in Selangor and Ipoh to protest against any proposal for the
university to open its doors to non-bumiputras.
UiTM’s corporate affairs coordinator Jafri Jawahir said that besides the
protest, the students also launched a signature campaign.
The students, together with the Federation of Peninsular Malay Students,
will submit the protest signatures to the Prime Minister soon, he said.
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=59407
2,000 Sabah Mara students protest
16 August, 2008
Kota Kinabalu: Some 2,100 students from Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM)
Sabah branch marched in protest Friday over the proposal to set a 10 per
cent quota for non-bumiputeras to study in the institute of higher learning.
Led by UiTM (Sabah) Student Delegates Council President, Awangku Ashari
Awangku Yussof, they started the peaceful march from the hostel and walked
for half a mile to the campus gate, he handed over a memorandum and a thick
wad of papers containing signatures of students to Deputy Campus Director
Abdul Kadir Rosline @ Ruslim.
The students, he said, were upset with Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul
Khalid Ibrahim for suggesting that non-bumiputeras be allowed to study in
UiTM.
"The UiTM is the last line of defence for bumiputera students to gain higher
education. We felt angry and disappointed with the Selangor MB for
insinuating opening the university doors to non-bumiputeras," he said.
He said the university was set up to provide higher learning education to
the Malays and other bumiputeras.
This, he said, is enshrined in Act 153 of the Constitution that bestows
special privileges to the Malays and bumiputeras the opportunity for higher
level education.
Abdul Kadir said the varsity administration allowed the peaceful march to
enable the students to vent their feelings on the proposal.
"Obviously, the Menteri Besar's statement had offended the students. We
respect their stand on the matter and for that reason we allowed the march,"
he said.
He said Abdul Khalid was wrong to state that there are unhealthy elements in
terms of competition, quality and excellence level in the UiTM.
Based on a recent ranking system, he said UiTM has been ranked among the top
varsities in the country, so much so that it outdid other senior public
universities.
"The UiTM can vouch for its excellence and credibility unlike what the
Menteri Besar had described," he said. Sabah is the fourth UiTM campus in
the country after Perak, Kelantan and Shah Alam to conduct the protest
march.
Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid suggested that UiTM allocate 10 per cent
of its intake to non-bumiputeras and foreign students so as to improve
academic quality and raise competition among its students.
However, he clarified that his remark was made in the context of raising the
standards of higher education in the era of globalisation so that
bumiputeras could improve their career prospects. He had also stated that it
was only his personal view and not that of the opposition Pakatan grouping.
http://www.b92.net//eng/news/politics-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=08&dd=25&nav_id=52965
Kosovo Serbs hold protest rally in north 25 August 2008 | 14:39 | Source:
Tanjug ZUBIN POTOK -- Several hundreds Kosovo Serbs rallied in Zubin Potok
on Monday in a protest they said was to warn UNMIK.
They voiced their opposition to the setting up of the border between Kosovo
and central Serbia in the north of the province, and sent out a message that
they do not recognize EULEX.
Zubin Potok municipal president Slaviša Ristić said that Kosovo Serbs will
never allow representatives of UNMIK, KFOR and the Kosovo Police Service to
set up the border between Kosovo and Serbia.
Ristić said that the installing of video monitoring at the administrative
crossing that prompted the Monday rally is aimed at setting up customs in
northern Kosovo and deployment of EULEX in this area.
The EU mission in Kosovo is illegal and unlawful, because it does not have
an approval of the UN Security Council, Zvečan Municipality President
Dragiša Milović told those gathered.
The peaceful protest was held in the central part of the town, and the
participants carried banners reading “Stop to EULEX”, “Kosovo is Serbia”,
and, “We do not want borders and customs”.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/08/stories/2008080852240300.htm
Other States - Puducherry
Association threatens to stage protest
Staff Reporter
PUDUCHERRY: The French Indian Puducherry Viduthalai Kaala Makkal Nala
Narpani Iyakkam has threatened a protest if the Independence Day of the
Union Territory is celebrated on August 16.
The association pleaded with the government to celebrate November 1 as
Independence Day in the Union Territory of Puducherry.
Manmohan, Sonia informed
According to a release, the association had already informed Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi about this. They would
also meet the Lieutenant Governor and the Chief Minister and submit
petitions.
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