"The Human Rights Record of the United States"

India-Africa, the new development initiative
New Delhi, Mar.2 : India's efforts to aid and support Africa in its development and in the establishment of its industries is likely to receive a major boost through the three-day India- Africa Project Partnership 2005 , which got under way in the Indian capital this evening.

UN troops cautioned on sex abuse
The UN has warned peacekeeping forces operating under its banner to obey strict rules on sexual conduct.

South Africa dismisses US report on human rights
South African government Wednesday dismissed the 2004 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices compiled by the United States' State Department as presumptuous in the extreme regarding South Africa.

The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2004
In 2004 the atrocity of US troops abusing Iraqi POWs exposed the dark side of human rights performance of the United States. The scandal shocked the humanity and was condemned by the international community. It is quite ironic that on Feb. 28 of this year, the State Department of the United States once again posed as the "the world human rights police" and released its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2004. As in previous years, the reports pointed fingers at human rights situation in more than 190 countries and regions (including China) but kept silent on the US misdeeds in this field. Therefore, the world people have to probe the human rights record behind the Statue of Liberty in the United States.

'Immoral' attitude to Africa criticised
World Bank president James Wolfensohn on Thursday described the West's attitude to Africa as "immoral and frightening".

Africa weak in fight against drugs
Africa remains the world's weak spot in the fight against drugs because most countries on the continent lack the means to combat trafficking, the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) said here Wednesday.

SA troops off to Sudan
The deployment of South African troops to strife-torn Darfur in Sudan is under way, the defence department said on Thursday.

Zim 66: Papers being finalised
The department of foreign affairs expected the bulk of 67 South African mercenaries held in Zimbabwe to be released and deported later on Thursday.

S Africa fears mercenaries' return
MOST of the suspected mercenaries detained in Zimbabwe over an alleged coup plot in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea are being released and will probably return to South Africa by the weekend, their lawyer said today.

UN soldiers hit back in Congo
KINSHASA - United Nations peacekeepers have killed up to 60 militiamen in the Democratic Republic of Congo after an ambush in which 19 soldiers from Bangladesh were killed and mutilated last week.

Do peacekeepers have a right to fight?
United Nations peacekeepers say they have killed more than 50 militia fighters in an offensive in the Democratic Republic of Congo

UN denies killing Congo civilians
A United Nations commander has denied claims that civilians were killed in an offensive by peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He said his men were careful to avoid harming villagers when more than 50 militiamen were killed in a gun battle in the north-eastern region of Ituri.

S. Africa probes killing of militias in Congo
South African defense authorities said Thursday they were gathering details on the reported killing of 50 Congolese militia by South African and Pakistani peacekeeping troops in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Maximum pain is aim of new US weapon
THE US military is funding development of a weapon that delivers a bout of excruciating pain from up to 2 kilometres away. Intended for use against rioters, it is meant to leave victims unharmed. But pain researchers are furious that work aimed at controlling pain has been used to develop a weapon. And they fear that the technology will be used for torture.

Hariri's Murder Only the Beginning
Indulging in speculation regarding the identity of Lebanese former prime minister Rafik al-Hariri's real assassins is of little value now. What demands urgent scrutiny is how his murder will play a large part in the remolding of Lebanon's role in the Arab-Israeli conflict and the balance of power in the region.

New Generation Fills Abbas Cabinet as Arafat's Men Exit
A new Palestinian cabinet with a significant injection of younger figures from outside frontline politics was finally approved by parliamentarians after President Mahmoud Abbas had intervened to halt a three-day political crisis.

Saddam lawyer seeks to delay tribunal
Saddam Hussein's chief lawyer said Thursday that the murder this week of a judge appointed to a tribunal to try the former dictator and his aides shows that Iraq remains too dangerous for such trials and urged authorities to delay proceedings by at least another year.

Trade with Latin America
The Western media have made accusations that China's trade with Latin America has hurt the interests of the countries involved. These are groundless, says an article in People's Daily.

Pakistan court releases 5 men sentenced for "honour" rape
A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the conviction of a village elder and four other men who had been sentenced to death for allegedly ordering a woman gang-raped as punishment for her brother's illicit sex with a woman from another family, a defence lawyer said.

America No. 1?
No concept lies more firmly embedded in our national character than the notion that the USA is "No. 1," "the greatest." Our broadcast media are, in essence, continuous advertisements for the brand name "America Is No. 1." Any office seeker saying otherwise would be committing political suicide. In fact, anyone saying otherwise will be labeled "un-American." We're an "empire," ain't we? Sure we are. An empire without a manufacturing base. An empire that must borrow $2 billion a day from its competitors in order to function. Yet the delusion is ineradicable.