Wikinews:Audio Wikinews/Transcripts/May 26, 2005

Audio Wikinews transcript – 2005 05 26 – 2300 UTC
As reported by Nicholas Gerda

May 26, 2005. This is Wikinews.

Lead Story
Amnesty International calls for Guantanamo shutdown In their annual report on human rights Amnesty International Secretary General, Irene Khan, said "Guantanamo has become the gulag of our time." In this 308-page report, they also called for the United States to shut down the Guantanamo prison. The report continues the critical analysis of the actions of the U.S. government, but criticism is sharper. The introduction to the report states "The 'war on terror' appeared more effective in eroding international human rights principles than in countering international 'terrorism'." In calling for changes from the U.S. government, especially regarding Guantanamo Bay, Amnesty International's voice is joined with calls from both the International Red Cross (IRC) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The IRC has said it reported to the U.S. government detainee's reports of desecration of the Qu'ran. The ACLU's Freedom of Information Act requests turned up U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) reports which echo the IRC's concerns. The documents are purported to show a consistency with reports from detainees of abuse to their religious symbols, as well as reports of beatings and other interrogation methods. Amnesty International's Secretary General, in her introduction to the report, points to the United State's foreign and military policy as providing a justification for other governments to ignore human rights. "The USA, as the unrivalled political, military and economic hyper-power, sets the tone for governmental behaviour worldwide. When the most powerful country in the world thumbs its nose at the rule of law and human rights, it grants a licence to others to commit abuse with impunity," said Irene Khan. White House spokesman Scott McClellan responded saying the report's allegations were "ridiculous and unsupported by the facts. The United States is leading the way when it comes to protecting human rights and promoting human dignity. We have liberated 50 million people in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have worked to advance freedom and democracy in the world so that people are governed under a rule of law and that there are... protections in place for minority rights, that women's rights are advanced so that women can fully participate in societies where now they cannot", as well as supporting the fight against AIDS in Africa. About the allegations of abuse at Guantanamo, which McClellan has previously called isolated incidents, he said, "We hold people accountable when there is abuse. We take steps to prevent it from happening again, and we do so in a very public way for the world to see that we lead by example, and that we do have values that we hold very dearly and believe in."

Headlines
Power crisis in Moscow and central Russia largest ever recorded Yesterday, a huge power outage occurred in Moscow today. The failure in the accumulative power supply system in Mosenergo which occurred at 11:15 a.m. local time on Wednesday, led to a power outage in all areas of the city. Light was disconnected in apartment buildings. Some lines of the Moscow underground stopped for four hours. Trams and trolley buses, electric trains of the Moscow railway also stopped. Hundreds of people were trapped in apartment building lifts. In addition to lighting problems, the homeowners have also lost their water supply, as pumping stations in Mosvodokanal were disconnected because of the power failure. 15 big cities and five areas of Moscow suburbs, some areas of the Tula and Kaluga areas were left without electricity. At 12:00 noon, food shops in the affected areas started closing. In shops where sellers continued trading, huge queues accumulated. To avoid panic at train stations, workers with megaphones informed passengers of train movements. At train stations, reserve power supplies are being used. According to eyewitnesses, there was no electric lighting at many stations and in transitions between them. Escalators also did not work. This morning, trolley buses and trams still do not work in southern areas of Moscow. Despite repair work conducted all last night, it was impossible to power all trolleybus and tram lines. In total 8 tram and 25 trolleybus routes do not work. Buses will take over those routes. Besides this, in the south of Moscow there are still many disconnected apartment houses. All stations of the Moscow underground are working normally. All trains are running on schedule. The entrance to Moscow for supersize automobiles will be limited up to 14 o'clock in the afternoon. The limitation was put in place yesterday because of difficult road conditions in the city after the power failure.

Marshall Islands to request $3 billion more from U.S. for health effects of nuclear testing The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) is petitioning for $3 billion in additional compensation from the U.S. government, after receiving $270 million in an agreement which expired in 2001. The U.S. government performed a series of 67 tests of nuclear weapons in the Marshall Islands between 1946 and 1958. Fallout from the testing is claimed to have affected some of the island's near 60,000 inhabitants. "We're finding people on remote islands with high percentages of cancers," said RMI Foreign Minister Gerald Zackios. A report last year from the U.S. National Cancer Institute estimated that about 530 total cancers could appear, almost double the amount currently known. The U.S. government disagrees over which islands were affected by the testing. Also, U.S. agencies have concluded that there is no further legal requirement for compensation above what has already been provided, unless the situation changes substantially. The government of the Marshall Islands plans to "work tirelessly together to make certain that the nuclear issue is settled in a fair and just manner", said RMI President Kessai Note. Both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate plan to hold hearings on the claim as soon as May 25.

Democratic Republic of Congo adopts new constitution, plans elections The Democratic Republic of the Congo adopted a new constitution on May 13, and elections are being planned for the first time in more than 40 years. The Congo has been torn by five years of civil war. Peace was declared in 2003, but hunger and disease continue to trouble the country. The U.S. State Department praised recent political developments in the African nation. Spokesman Richard Boucher made a statement that the new constitution "establishes a balance of powers between the branches of government, ensures protection and development of minorities, and provides for a limit of two presidential terms. We note the flexibility shown by all members of the transitional Congolese government in reaching this agreement." Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht asked for civil calm as the difficult process of preparing for elections goes forward. The election has already been delayed by the government for several months, and further postponements are expected. Congo was once a Belgian colony, and the two governments are working together to prevent the outbreak of more rioting such as happened after the last election delay in January. Congolese President Joseph Kabila has requested military assistance from the European Union to help restrain and instruct the Congolese army and integrate it better with the government. The EU announced Monday that ten of its member nations plan to participate. This is the first such deal made by the EU.

Ebola outbreak in Congo Reuters reports that nine people have died from Ebola in the Republic of Congo this month. The outbreak is in the Cuvette-Ouest region near the Gabon border, where a previous outbreak had occurred in 2003. The government of Congo and the United Nations World Health Organization have announced a quarantine of the Etoumbi and Mbomo districts. They are monitoring 84 suspected cases in the two regions. Jean-Vivien Mombouli, advisor to the Congolese Ministry of Health, pointed out the individuals may not actually have the virus; only one confirmed case of Ebola has been diagnosed thus far. "We will wait for 21 days just to be sure then after that, if the person does not get sick, he is out of danger," Mr. Mombouli said of the patients. Ebola has a five to ten day incubation period. Neighbouring Uganda has stepped up its surveillance in response to the outbreak. No cure exists for Ebola, and between 50-90% of those who contract it die. Zaire/Congo has sustained the largest number, and most severe, outbreaks of the Ebola virus. Although no cure exists, work continues on a vaccine and it is in the human trial stages, as well as research into pharmaceutical treatments.

Voyager 1 enters heliosheath at edge of solar system The Voyager 1 spacecraft, launched in 1977 to explore the planets, is now agreed by scientists to have entered the heliosheath at the edge of the solar system 8.7 billion miles (14 billion kilometers) from the Sun. In a few years, Voyager 1 is expected to become the first man-made object to cross into interstellar space. "Voyager has entered the final lap on its race to the edge of interstellar space, as it begins exploring the solar system's final frontier," said Dr. Edward Stone, Voyager project scientist at the California Institute of Technology. As long ago as 2003, scientists thought Voyager 1 was entering the termination shock region of the solar system, but there was some dispute. The termination shock is the area preceding the heliosheath, where the electrically charged solar wind is slowed and concentrated by contact with interstellar gas. The heliosheath is considered the outer edge of our solar system. Around it is the heliopause, a cosmic bubble where the pressure of solar wind and interstellar wind is in balance. The solar system as a whole is in orbit around the center of the Milky Way galaxy. As it plows through clouds of interstellar gas and dust, a bow shock forms ahead of it, which has been compared to the turbulence a ship creates as it sails through ocean currents. Voyager 1 is still operational and sending back reams of scientific data. Already notable for more than 27 years of successful operation, Voyager 1 is projected to continue operating on its plutonium power source possibly until the year 2020. Voyager 2, its companion probe launched the same year, has visited more planets than any other spacecraft. It too is eventually expected to exit the solar system at a more downward angle, but is currently only 80% as far from the sun as Voyager 1. The Voyagers are not only gathering data about the cosmos, they are sending the greetings of the human world out to it. Each Voyager contains what is known as the "Golden Record", which is an audio recording on a 12-inch gold plated copper disc. The discs contain samples of nature sounds, spoken greetings in 55 human languages, and musical compositions. The collection of samples was supervised by astronomer Carl Sagan, and is intended to convey the hopefulness of life on Earth for possible discovery by alien races or retrieval by some advanced human civilization.

Wikipedia Current Events

 * Voyager 1, the most distant man-made object, has entered the heliosheath and is on the verge of leaving the solar system and entering the interstellar medium.
 * The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, the world's longest oil pipeline, is opened in Baku, Azerbaijan.
 * At Atatürk Olimpiyat Stadyumu in Istanbul, Liverpool F.C. defeat A.C. Milan 3-2 in a penalty shootout to win their first UEFA Champions League football title since 1984.
 * Nambaryn Enkhbayar of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party is elected President of Mongolia.
 * Chancellor Gerhard Schröder of Germany announces early federal elections to be held later this year, after his Social Democrats lose the state election in North Rhine-Westphalia to the Christian Democrats, ending 39 years in government.

Today in History provided by Wikipedia
May 26' is Independence Day in Guyana and Georgia. Today is also the Feast of Corpus Christi in Catholic and some Western Christian traditions, and Mother's Day in Poland.


 * 1805 - Napoléon Bonaparte was crowned King of Italy in Milan with the Iron Crown of Lombardy.
 * 1896 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average was first published by Charles Dow as a stock market index.
 * 1918 - The Democratic Republic of Georgia was proclaimed.
 * 1972 – Richard Nixon and Leonid Brezhnev signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in Moscow, concluding SALT I.
 * 1986 – The European Community adopted the European flag.

Today's fact provided by Wikipedia
Soccer player Antonín Panenka famously scored the winning penalty for Czechoslovakia in the 1976 European Championship final against West Germany by chipping the ball.

Thank you for joining us for today's segment. Join us again tomorrow for more headlines, news, facts, and anniversaries; and next week will have our very first Special Report.

I'm Nicholas Gerda.

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