Khmer Rouge tribunal facing budget crisis; G7 warn global economy at risk; Obama takes Wash., Louisiana, Nebraska; Huckabee takes Kansas, LA......

10 February :: Highest official yet from Khmer Rouge Cambodian regime, accused of murdering 1.7 million people in ideological purge 3 decades ago, stands trial, but tribunal is facing managerial crisis, related to allegations of mismanagement and lack of sustainable budget... Financial ministers from the "G7" group of industrialized democracies have said the prosperity of the world economy is at risk, citing a reduction in available credit, the collapse of the US housing market, and soaring petroleum prices... Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) has won three decisive victories in primary votes this Saturday, defeating rival Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) in Washington, Louisiana and Nebraska; the margin of victory was surprisingly wide in both Washington and Nebraska, roughly 68% to 32% over Clinton; turnout surged in Saturday's primaries, as it has elsewhere this year: NYT reports "In Washington, the Democratic party reported record-breaking numbers of caucusgoers, with early totals suggesting turnout would be nearly be nearly double what it was in 2004 — itself a record year — when 100,000 Democrats caucused"... Fmr Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee won the Republican contests in Louisiana and Kansas, surprising a party that has begun to rally around Sen. John McCain (AZ), its "presumptive nominee"; Huckabee has said he does not intend to withdraw from the race, despite McCain's massive lead in delegates to the Republican nominating convention; in Kansas, Huckabee took 60% of the vote, compared with McCain's 24%... Daily News reports "Calling herself a 'mother first,' Sen. Hillary Clinton blasted MSNBC Saturday and demanded further disciplinary action against a correspondent who suggested 27-year-old Chelsea had been 'pimped out' by her presidential campaign"; in a letter to NBC News president Steve Capus, the New York senator wrote "There's a lot at stake for our country in this election. Surely, you can do your jobs as journalists and commentators and still keep the discourse civil and appropriate"...

Bush admin. says waterboarding legal, may be used again; Malay destruction of Hindu temples sparks anger; UK bugs MP without warrant...

7 February :: Bush spokesman says "waterboarding" is legal, may be authorized for use at any time, "under certain circumstances"; critics express disbelief, as two recent laws, Supreme Court ruling clearly bar use of abusive interrogation techniques; according to the LA Times "The technique has been traced to the Spanish Inquisition and has been the subject of war-crimes trials dating back a century", and Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (AZ) recently said in a televised debate he found it inconceivable "anyone could believe that [waterboarding is] not torture. It's in violation of the Geneva Convention. It's in violation of existing law"; it is thought the declaration by a White House spokesperson is based in part on the Bush administration's long-running, highly controversial assertion that Congress cannot dictate such policies to the Executive... Destruction of Hindu temples by authorities in Malaysia sparks ethnic tensions, allegations of a racist state that ignores the ethnic Indian minority; some 20,000 ethnic Indians defied a gov't ban against organizing a march through Kuala Lumpur to protest ill treatment, marginalization, demolition of places of faith and worship... Outcry in Britain over apparently irregular bugging of a minister of parliament who visited a constituent facing extradition to the US; according to the Christian Science Monitor "The outcry involving Sadiq Khan, whose conversations with a man facing extradition to the United States on terrorism charges were secretly recorded, has generated alarm that individual rights are increasingly becoming subordinated to national security"; the UK has until now resisted using wiretap evidence in court, but CSM adds that "Bugging and telephone wiretaps can be set up without recourse to a judge – unlike the vast majority of European democracies and the US. The home secretary authorized more than 3,500 spy operations in 2005 and 2006"...

Chad rebels stage coup attempt, refugee aid may be stalled; Obama, McCain gain momentum in CA...

3 February :: Surge in violence in Chad appears to be coup attempt against Déby gov't in N'Djamena; France has begun evacuating foreigners from Chad, in face of what could be severe violence between rebels, gov't; rebel offensive comes just days before EU "humanitarian protection force" set to arrive in Chad... CSM reports "If President Idriss Déby's government falls by military coup, humanitarian aid operations feeding nearly 400,000 Sudanese refugees and displaced Chadians will be thrown into disarray, and half a dozen Darfur rebel movements taking refuge in Chad may be forced to move their bases back into the troubled Sudanese region"... New poll in CA shows Obama, McCain dramatically increasing support in recent weeks; Obama now runs even with Clinton, whom he trailed by 12 percentage points just two weeks ago, while McCain surging to an 8 percentage point lead over closest rival Romney; Obama also has edge over Clinton against McCain in general election, according to poll, with respondents saying they would vote Obama over McCain 47% to 40%, or Clinton over McCain 45% to 43%...

Ethnic violence spreads in Kenya, US envoy says "ethnic cleansing"; Australia to apologize to Aboriginal minority for past abuses...

30 January :: US envoy to Kenya, visiting to evaluate tribal violence spreading across east African nation, says "clear ethnic cleansing" taking place in efforts to purge certain areas of Kikuyu tribe members, loyal to fellow Kikuyu, Pres. Mwai Kibaki, accused by opposition of rigging December elections... CSM reports on observers' feeling that violence in Kenya can be stemmed, peace restored, before ethnic clashes become full-scale war, in some areas where Kikuyu, Kamba are majority of population, violence has yet to spread, but fears of spreading clashes have ignited tensions, could send entire country into "spiral of violence", driven by ethnic hatred, from which it would be difficult to emerge into peace in coming weeks, months... NY Times reports "The new Australian government of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will apologize for past mistreatment of the country’s Aboriginal minority when Parliament convenes next month, addressing an issue that has blighted race relations in Australia for years"... Sen. McCain wins Florida, Romney 2nd, McCain leading among senior citizens, Hispanics and moderates, as well as those who put economy first among concerns, while finishing close to Romney with self-professed conservative Republicans; Sen. Clinton finished ahead of Sen. Obama in the Democratic primary, as record 1.7 million voted, but because Florida's Democratic party violated DNC rules by moving its primary to January, it will send no delegates to the nominating convention... FT reports "The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday slashed its forecast for US growth and warned that no country would be immune from what it termed a 'global slowdown'", warning that US growth would slow to 0.8% in 2008, sharply down from previous projections...

Doctors without Borders reports 10 most underreported humanitarian crises of 2007

The top ten most underreported humanitarian crises worldwide are, according to Doctors without Borders (MSF), "Displaced Fleeing War in Somalia Face Humanitarian Crisis; Political and Economic Turmoil Sparks Health-Care Crisis in Zimbabwe; Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis Spreads As New Drugs Go Untested; Expanded Use of Nutrient Dense Ready-to-Use Foods Crucial for Reducing Childhood Malnutrition; Civilians Increasingly Under Fire in Sri Lankan Conflict; Conditions Worsen in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo; Living Precariously in Colombia’s Conflict Zones; Humanitarian Aid Restricted in Myanmar; Civilians Caught Between Armed Groups in Central African Republic; As Chechen Conflict Ebbs, Critical Humanitarian Needs Still Remain".

The official press release goes on to explain that "The DRC and Colombia, both wracked by ongoing civil conflict and massive internal displacement of civilians, have dominated the list over the past decade, each appearing a total of nine times. The humanitarian consequence of war in Chechnya has appeared eight times. Somalia has appeared seven times, most recently because renewed fighting centered in Mogadishu in 2007 has killed thousands of people and forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes, only to endure disease and extremely precarious living conditions.

According to Andrew Tyndall, publisher of the online media-tracking journal, “The Tyndall Report,” the countries and contexts highlighted by MSF on this year’s list accounted for just 18 minutes of coverage on the three major U.S. television networks’ nightly newscasts from January through November 2007. This figure does not include coverage of Myanmar or tuberculosis; both generated significant media attention, but very little of it focused on the medical humanitarian aspects of either context. Chechnya, Sri Lanka, and CAR—where many villages were burned to the ground in fighting between government forces and rebels and tens of thousands of people fled into inhospitable forests seeking safety—were never mentioned."

Vacancies in US executive at worrying high; US House to debate Armenian genocide; China's Communist party congress opens...

15 October :: Unfilled vacancies in top-level executive-branch positions in US gov't startlingly common, leaving multi-billion-dollar agencies without leadership; interim appointees can serve for up to 210 days with full authority, while approval of nominees runs through Senate, 462 days remain in Bush term as of today; IHT quotes Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), ranking Republican on the judiciary committee, as saying "In the long history of the country, I don't think the Justice Department has been in such disarray", citing unconfirmed openings throughout the top ranks; observers speculate raft of vacancies reflects belief next admin. will be led by Democrat, meaning less 'job security' for able Republicans if named now; 3 Cabinet posts remain unfilled... Pelosi has announced she will bring the resolution on the 1915 Armenian genocide, at the hands of Ottoman Turks, to the full House for debate and passage; Turkey's top general has warned passage would permanently damage the strategic alliance with the US... China's Communist party congress opened today in Beijing; NYT reports Pres. Hu "promised to address social fissures, a degraded environment and rampant corruption during his second term as China’s top leader, but he all but ruled out more than cosmetic political reform"... Sir Menzies 'Ming' Campbell has resigned as leader of UK Liberal Democrat party, the nation's 3rd largest, after mounting criticism in party, press, that his leadership was not strong enough to represent a serious opposition... US, EU talk of barring all new investment in Burma, in effort to completely isolate junta, a move that goes far beyond the current sanctions regime...

China facing Three Gorges fallout; Turkey says US Armenian genocide resolution strains ties; UN calls for Iraq contractors to face justice...

11 October :: China plans to relocate some 4 million additional people to curb ecological fallout from massive reservoir, "irrational development", ecological collapse around Three Gorges Dam; move comes after top officials, engineers at site warned gov't the project could lead to "environmental catastrophe"; ENN reports "Environmentalists have long criticized the project, saying silt trapped behind the dam is causing erosion and warning that the dam's reservoir will turn into a cesspool of raw sewage and industrial chemicals backing onto Chongqing"... Turkey's gov't has condemned a resolution passed by the US House recognizing the WWI massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide; PM Tayyip Erdogan, head of the conservative ruling party, has been preparing to push for permission from Parliament for a military incursion into Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq, says US resolution will damage strategic relationship "make relations with a friend and ally, and a strategic partnership nurtured over generations, more difficult"... Reuters reports "The United Nations wants probes to determine whether private security contractors in Iraq have committed war crimes and for governments to ensure that the rule of law is applied, U.N. officials said on Thursday"; statement comes after a shooting incident in which a Dubai-based security firm allegedly "shot randomly" at security checkpoint, killing two female civilians, amid mounting pressure to rein in security firms after Blackwater guards allegedly killed 17 Iraqi civilians in mid September shooting... Monks detained by Burmese junta reportedly told "you are no longer monks", as guards abused, threatened them, forced them to stand in cages for days with no toilet or wash area...

Sudan drone aircraft, Khartoum says it is militarily 'self-sufficient'; UN calls for progress in Darfur conflict...

5 September :: Sudan gov't announces it has successfully produced military-use drone aircraft and is seeking ballistic missile capabilities; the Khartoum-based gov't of Pres. al-Bashir has said Sudan can now manufacture enough conventional weapons to be "self-sufficient" in defense-related production; observers say the announcement is disconcerting primarily because it is not clear against what perceived threat Sudan is arming itself; the top UN official in Sudan has called for progress on a negotiated political settlement to the conflict in Darfur, where some worry that a heavily armed Khartoum regime might use its military to support the ongoing slaughter with impunity...