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Autonomous Council for Bodos NEW DELHI: Leaders of the Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT), a powerful guerrilla group in the north-east, on Monday signed a peace deal with the federal Government. The BLT, fighting for political autonomy of the Bodo tribe in the tea-growing and oil-producing State of Assam, agreed to a federal proposal to form a tribal council ... (Contd) NATO Rift Deepens Over Iraq LONDON: Turkey has called for unprecedented emergency consultations at NATO to seek mutual help to defend itself in the event of a US-led war on Iraq, reports BBC. The Turkish move, which came after France, Belgium and Germany blocked a US request to begin boosting Turkish defences, is a sign of the deepening divisions in NATO over the Iraq crisis. France and Germany, as well as Russia, have voiced concern at imminent military assault on Iraq. Both France and Russia could veto military action through the United Nations Security Council, which is due to hear the UN inspectors' key report on Iraqi compliance this Friday. France, backed by Belgium and Germany, argued that preparations to defend Turkey could undermine diplomatic efforts to avert a conflict in Iraq. Their decision, which US officials had earlier described as "shameful" and "inexcusable", prompted an emergency meeting of NATO ambassadors. Turkey invoked Article 4 of NATO's founding treaty - it's thought to be the first time it has been used. This says that NATO members will consult "when in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the parties is threatened". The BBC's correspondent in Brussels, Stephen Sackur, says the rift between the US and what US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld has called "old Europe" threatens to do lasting damage to NATO solidarity. The increasingly poisonous relations are also being exposed by Franco-German proposals to expand weapons inspections, he says. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is due to hold talks in Paris with his French counterpart Jacques Chirac, has expressed support for the initiative. China to Cut Embassy Staff in Iraq (Go To Top) BEIJING: China is withdrawing some staff from its embassy in Iraq as the prospect of war between the Gulf nation and the United States appeared to increase. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue made the announcement on Monday, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. "China has decided to cut its embassy staff who were not in urgent need," Xinhua paraphrased Zhang as saying. The decision was made because of growing tensions in Iraq, she said, but gave no more details. China, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, has continuously advocated a diplomatic solution to the stand-off between Washington and Baghdad, saying war would be bad for the global economy and should be avoided if at all possible. Beijing has also called for UN weapons inspectors to be given more time to complete their task, though US President George W Bush said Sunday that "it's over." Sudhir Vyas Returns via Wagah (Go To Top) WAGAH BORDER (Punjab): India's acting high commissioner to Pakistan Sudhir Vyas drove home on Monday across the sub-continent after tit-for-tat expulsions that further soured tense relations between India and Pakistan. Vyas reached Wagah checkpoint in Punjab, the only border crossing still partly open between the two arch-rivals. The expulsions brought a fresh chill to the relationship between India and Pakistan, which came close to war last year over Indian accusations that Pakistan funds, arms and trains Kashmiri Muslim militants. Four other diplomats from each side were also expelled in a row over Indian allegations that Pakistani high commissioner to India Jaleel Abbas Jilani had funnelled cash to Kashmiri separatists fighting Indian rule in its only Muslim-majority State. Jilani denied the allegations. Jilani also left New Delhi for Lahore, near the Wagah checkpoint, by 1 pm (local time). 12,000 Surplus Staff in Pakistan To Be Laid Off (Go To Top) ISLAMABAD: The Jamali Government has decided to terminate the services of 10,000 to 12,000 employees of the federal Government who were declared surplus by the Musharraf regime during its rightsizing campaign. Sources said the employees declared surplus were 20,000 but now only those who have completed two years in the surplus pool would be terminated while the remaining would be terminated next year. The socio-economic impact of terminating such a large number of employees has not been evaluated, as these people would be facing tough financial situation. "This is the first major blow to Government employees by Jamali Government and will lead to its unpopularity," an official said. Sources pointed out that military regime set no hard and fast rules for formulating lists of surplus staff and gave sweeping powers to federal secretaries and heads of the divisions to pick and choose and enlist officials in the surplus pool. One Killed in Blast at Pak Nuclear Research Site (Go To Top) ISLAMABAD: One man was killed and another injured on Sunday in a blast at a liquid nitrogen plant which is part of a nuclear research facility at Nilore, 25 km from here, sources said. The explosion ripped through the Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences, an educational wing of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission. Officials have ordered an inquiry to determine the cause of the blast. No Pakistani nuclear facility has been affected, said the sources. Bangladesh Foreign Minister to Visit India (Go To Top) NEW DELHI: Bangladeshi foreign minister Manzur Morshed Khan is to visit India from February 13 to 16. Announcing this here today, external affairs ministry spokesperson Navtej Sarna said, "all important bilateral issues will be discussed during his visit." Khan, who will visit Ajmer Sharif on February 13, will return on the 14th. He will then hold talks with external affairs minister Yashwant Sinha. On the 15th, he will hold talks with other leaders and depart on the 16th. It is expected that the recent India-Bangladesh stand-off over the illegal Bangladeshi immigrants on the border and the recent escalation of tensions between the two countries will come up during the discussions. Bangladesh Refutes Vajpayee Charge (Go To Top) DHAKA: Bangladesh has rejected Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's charge that its territory was being used as a base for Pakistan's intelligence service. "Bangladesh would like to strongly reiterate its principal policy not to allow its territories to be used by anyone for subversive purposes against any other country, including India," a statement from the foreign ministry in Dhaka said on Monday. The statement said Bangladesh was still seeking to ascertain "the exact nature" of comments made by Vajpayee. "Bangladesh would find it extremely regrettable if any such statement has been made from anyone or from any level," the foreign ministry said. On Saturday Vajpayee said that Pakistan had done nothing to end "terrorism" against India, accusing it of expanding its campaign to Nepal and Bangladesh. "Available reports suggest that the territories of Nepal and Bangladesh are now being used by the ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence, Pakistan's secret service) to pursue its anti-India agenda," he said. Autonomous Council for Bodos(Go To Top) (Contd) ... with more political and economic powers. Formed in 1993, the BLT accuses the Government of neglecting the welfare of Bodos, ignoring their economy and flooding their areas with outsiders. A Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) was signed after a series of meetings between the BLT, federal and State Governments. "Issue which has been satisfactorily resolved... is the recognition of Bodo territorial council in the sixth schedule of the Constitution of India. We have agreed that this will be recognised in the sixth schedule," RCA Jain, a secretary in the home ministry, later told reporters. The main provisions of the agreement relate to creation of an autonomous self-governing body, the Bodo Territorial Council (BTC), within Assam. The body will fulfil economic, educational and linguistic aspirations, socio-cultural and ethnic identity of the Bodos in the region. The proposed BTC will comprise 3,082 identified villages and areas which will be divided into four contiguous districts after re-organisation of the existing districts of Assam within six months. The agreement on creating autonomous council is similar to the Gorkhaland Hill Development Council in West Bengal and the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council in northern Jammu and Kashmir which have earlier helped end alienation turning violent in the regions and bring peace. During past ten years tribal guerrillas have carried out several bombings on passenger trains, railway tracks and bridges, besides killing more than 2,000 civilians. Three years ago, the BLT declared a ceasefire with troops and engaged in negotiations with senior federal officials to find a solution to their problem.
The north-east, home to more than 200 ethnic and tribal groups, has
been plagued by separatist and tribal insurgencies for more than half
a century. The federal Government's talks last month with the National
Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isaac-Muivah), the oldest rebel group
in the north-east, did not make much headway. -ANI |