Thursday, 14 February 2002

Spy tells of plot to kill Mugabe, The Australian, 14 February, 2002

Spy tells of plot to kill Mugabe: [2 Edition]

David Nason, John Stapleton. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 14 Feb 2002: 9.
Ari Ben-Menashe, now a principal of the Montreal-based political consultants Dickens and Madsen, said an associate of Mr [Morgan Tsvangirai] had asked him to arrange the [Robert Mugabe] killing at a meeting in London last October.
"He (Tsvangirai) tried to hire us to kill Mugabe," Mr Ben- Menashe told The Australian from Montreal last night.
The Dateline report said the fee for the Mugabe assassination was $US500,000 ($980,000) plus the promise of lucrative contracts from a future Tsvangirai government. SBS identified a British company which it claimed was the vehicle through which an assassination downpayment of $US97,000 was made to Dickens and Madsen.

Full Text

A FORMER Israeli intelligence agent last night accused Zimbabwean Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai of plotting to assassinate President Robert Mugabe before next month's national elections.
Ari Ben-Menashe, now a principal of the Montreal-based political consultants Dickens and Madsen, said an associate of Mr Tsvangirai had asked him to arrange the Mugabe killing at a meeting in London last October.
Mr Ben-Menashe, a shadowy figure once described by the Jerusalem Post as a "notorious chronic liar", said he informed the Zimbabwean security authorities of the assassination plot.
He was then paid by the Zimbabwean authorities to swap sides and gather information about Mr Tsvangirai's complicity in the plan.
The result was footage filmed by a hidden camera that shows Mr Tsvangirai talking about suspending the elections and sharing power with the Zimbabwean armed forces after Mr Mugabe's "elimination".
The footage, reportedly taken at a meeting in Montreal in December, was the centrepiece of a special report by Australian journalist Mark Davis on SBS Television's Dateline program last night.
"He (Tsvangirai) tried to hire us to kill Mugabe," Mr Ben- Menashe told The Australian from Montreal last night.
"It was an illegal matter, so we immediately reported it to the authorities."
Mr Ben-Menarshe, who has lived at various times in Iran, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Sri Lanka and Australia, is the author of the controversial 1992 book Profits of War, an account of the international arms trade.
He said Dickens and Madsen would issue a full statement today on their involvement in the attempted assassination.
The Dateline report said the fee for the Mugabe assassination was $US500,000 ($980,000) plus the promise of lucrative contracts from a future Tsvangirai government. SBS identified a British company which it claimed was the vehicle through which an assassination downpayment of $US97,000 was made to Dickens and Madsen.
But speaking to The Australian last night, the head of the British company dismissed the allegations as "preposterous".
Mr Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change shocked Mr Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party when it won nearly half the seats in Zimbabwe's last parliamentary elections in June 2000.
A former trade union leader, Mr Tsvangirai enjoys strong support from Western countries such as Britain, the US and Australia, which have condemned Mr Mugabe's support for the takeover of white-owned farms by Zimbabwe's black rural poor.
Mr Tsvangirai was regarded as a strong prospect to topple Mr Mugabe in the presidential election due on March 9. However, he now faces the prospect of international condemnation and possible criminal charges over the alleged assassination attempt.
Illustration
Caption: Caught on camera: Footage from the Dateline program; right, Mr Mugabe, top, and Mr Tsvangirai; Photo: Photo
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Monday, 11 February 2002

Bewildered local tipped for UN job, The Australian, 11 February, 2002

Bewildered local tipped for UN job: [1 Edition]

Stephen Romei * New York correspondent, John Stapleton. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 11 Feb 2002: 3.
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AUSTRALIAN aid expert Bruce Davis has denied reports that he is the frontrunner to head the World Food Program, the UN's frontline agency in the war on global hunger.
Despite the speculation, a spokesman for Mr [Alexander Downer] said Mr Davis was staying in his current job. "He is well regarded and very experienced," the spokesman said. "He has been in working in the world development area for many years."
The possibility of Mr Davis replacing her is causing angst in Washington DC, not because he is Australian, but because the US's role at the UN will be further diminished.

AUSTRALIAN aid expert Bruce Davis has denied reports that he is the frontrunner to head the World Food Program, the UN's frontline agency in the war on global hunger.
The New York Times has reported that Mr Davis is the leading contender for the soon-to-be-vacated UN job, which is based in Rome.
Both Foreign Minister Alexander Downer's office and Mr Davis himself have denied any knowledge of the reports.
Ipswich-born and Canberra-based Mr Davis, 48, has been director general of the Australian Agency for International Development, AusAID, since October 1999.
Mr Davis, who is married with two children, has worked in international aid and development since joining the department in 1975.
But despite the speculation, a spokesman for Mr Downer said Mr Davis was staying in his current job. "He is well regarded and very experienced," the spokesman said. "He has been in working in the world development area for many years."
Mr Davis has also expressed bewilderment at the suggestion he is about to take on the high-flying job.
"It has never been mooted -- it has never been floated. I have never had any contact with anyone about it," he told The Australianyesterday.
The WFP co-ordinates food distribution to impoverished nations and organises emergency food relief during crises, such as thefloods now devastating parts of Indonesia.
United States bureaucrat Catherine Bertini is coming to the end of the maximum 10-year term as executive director of the agency.The UN is expected to announce her replacement this week.
The Bush administration put up only one candidate for the job, Indiana University board of trustees president James Morris, whomthe UN rejected.
Ms Bertini was the first American to head the WFP, to which the US is the biggest donor, providing $US796 million in 2000.
The possibility of Mr Davis replacing her is causing angst in Washington DC, not because he is Australian, but because the US's role at the UN will be further diminished.
The US was stung last May when it lost its seat on the UN Human Rights Commission. A congressional report released two months later warned the US was seriously under represented at the world body.
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Carr hails the gold, gold, gold of being Olympic host, The Australian, 11 February, 2002.

Carr hails the gold, gold, gold of being Olympic host: [1 Edition]

Stapleton, John. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 11 Feb 2002: 7.
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NSW reaped substantial economic rewards from the Olympics, Premier Bob Carr claimed yesterday at the release of preliminary findings of a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Mr Carr identified several companies which had gained international reputations for their work at the Olympics. They included Croker Oars of Taree, a rowing equipment manufacturer which now has 25 per cent of the world market. Sydney-based Fairlight ESP, which developed the audio system for the Games, has been contracted by the American NBC TV network for the next three Olympics.
NSW reaped substantial economic rewards from the Olympics, Premier Bob Carr claimed yesterday at the release of preliminary findings of a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The accountants' findings, published to coincide with the beginning of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, support the view that the Games provided substantial benefits to Sydney, NSW and Australia.
The study found that there were $3 billion in business outcomes, including $600 million in new business investment, $288 million in new business under thestate's technology programs and $2 billion in infrastructure developments.
There was also international media exposure valued at $6.1 billion and more than $1.2 billion in convention business.
The PricewaterhouseCoopers study found that while overall infrastructure investment for the 2000 Olympics was greater than Los Angeles and Atlanta, when SOCOG revenues were counted, the total economic stimulus from the Sydney Games was still among the highest for recent Games.
Mr Carr said he was pleased with the continuing economic benefits of the Games. He said when Sydney first won the Olympics he was worried it could become a financial disaster.
"I have been relieved for some time that we never faced a post- Olympic downturn," Mr Carr said. "This is investment that will continue to underpin jobs and attract further investment for years."
Mr Carr identified several companies which had gained international reputations for their work at the Olympics. They included Croker Oars of Taree, a rowing equipment manufacturer which now has 25 per cent of the world market. Sydney-based Fairlight ESP, which developed the audio system for the Games, has been contracted by the American NBC TV network for the next three Olympics.
Next month, former SOCOG head Sandy Hollway will participate in a state government-arranged business mission of more than 20 NSW companies to Shanghai and Beijing.
Illustration
Caption: Relieved: Mr Carr; Photo: Photo
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Lost: The Only Refuge for Men and their Children in the Country, with Steve Graham, Dads On The Air, 11 February, 2002.




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Friday, 8 February 2002

Firefighters get paid for lost income, The Australian, 8 February, 2002.

Firefighters get paid for lost income: [1 Edition]

Stapleton, John. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 08 Feb 2002: 5.
NSW Premier Bob Carr praised the Government's action. "These volunteer firefighters did not hesitate to answer the call," Mr Carr said. "Many left their families on Christmas Day and gave up their holidays."
The one-off payments will be made to volunteer firefighters who are members of recognised firefighting organisations and who lost income fighting fires during the declared emergency period from Christmas Eve until January 16.

Full Text

THE federal Government will compensate thousands of volunteer firefighters who lost income as they battled the NSW bushfires over Christmas.
Acting Prime Minister John Anderson is to announce the ex gratia payments today when he addresses the firefighters at a ticker-tape parade being held in Sydney in their honour.
The payments will be made available through Centrelink. Income lost by volunteer firefighters has been estimated at more than $10million.
Mr Anderson said the volunteer firefighters had inspired a great sense of pride and community around the country.
"More than 26,000 people from across the country were involved in fighting the fires and providing support each day," he said. "They have our gratitude and respect; their dedication is a sterling example of the Australian spirit."
NSW Premier Bob Carr praised the Government's action. "These volunteer firefighters did not hesitate to answer the call," Mr Carr said. "Many left their families on Christmas Day and gave up their holidays."
The one-off payments will be made to volunteer firefighters who are members of recognised firefighting organisations and who lost income fighting fires during the declared emergency period from Christmas Eve until January 16.
A spokesman for the Rural Fire Service welcomed the payments. "They will benefit a lot of people who basically left their employment to help with the fires," he said.
"We will be contacting our members and providing them with all the information we can.
"Morale is very high among our 70,000 volunteers across NSW, but no doubt this one-off official recognition will help boost people's spirits."
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Thursday, 7 February 2002

Vaccine promises yearly hay fever jab, The Australian, 7 February, 2002.

Vaccine promises yearly hay fever jab: [2 Edition]

Sarah Stock, John Stapleton. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 07 Feb 2002: 3.
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The vaccine, the brainchild of husband-and-wife team Prem Bhalla and Mohan Singh of Melbourne University, could mean people need only an injection each year before the hay fever season to ward off the allergy. It could also mean a potential goldmine for Melbourne University, which together with the scientists owns the patent to the vaccine worldwide.
"Skin prick tests to assess the protein's safety suggest it is a significantly safer and more effective alternative to the current immunotherapy used to treat grass pollen allergies," Associate Professor Prem Bhalla said yesterday after details of the vaccine were reported in the European Journal of Immunology.
A VACCINE that could treat the quarter of the world's population that suffers from hay fever and other grass pollen-related allergies has been developed by Australian scientists.
The vaccine, the brainchild of husband-and-wife team Prem Bhalla and Mohan Singh of Melbourne University, could mean people need only an injection each year before the hay fever season to ward off the allergy. It could also mean a potential goldmine for Melbourne University, which together with the scientists owns the patent to the vaccine worldwide.
Licensing rights have been granted to US firm Heska Corporation but the university and scientists would be paid royalties if anyone in the world attempted to sell a grass pollen-related vaccine.
The vaccine, which has been tested on humans in Vienna for safety but still needs more extensive trials, has been 15 years in the making and could be available to the public in three to five years.
It was formulated by cloning and modifying a rye grass protein, one of the most potent environmental allergens known. The genetically modified protein significantly reduces allergic responses, making it safe for highly allergic people. Yet the modified protein is still capable of boosting immune responses.
These features, say the researchers, are the key to effective immunotherapy -- giving allergic patients small but increasing doses of allergen-containing extracts to boost immune response.
Immunotherapy so far has involved injecting crude pollens containing unknown substances and can induce severe reactions.
"Skin prick tests to assess the protein's safety suggest it is a significantly safer and more effective alternative to the current immunotherapy used to treat grass pollen allergies," Associate Professor Prem Bhalla said yesterday after details of the vaccine were reported in the European Journal of Immunology.
"The symptoms of allergenic disease, like asthma, hay fever, allergic dermatitis and conjunctivitis, can be controlled with drugs, but specific immunotherapy is the only way to treat the cause of allergies that produce a potentially life-threatening hypersensitivity."
The vaccine has been tested on 40 people in a collaborating hospital in Vienna. Trials on a few hundred Australians through St Vincents Hospital in Melbourne are hoped to be conducted this year.
The vaccine could be ready in three to five years time after human trials have been completed and evaluated.
Immunolgy and allergy director at Sydney's Concord Hospital Ron Walls said yesterday the vaccine looked hopeful but clinical trials would be needed to determine its effectiveness.
Illustration
Caption: Seeing the light:; Photo: Photo
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Wednesday, 6 February 2002

Australian fatigue, The Australian, 6 February, 2002.



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Monday, 4 February 2002

We're back: More entertaining and more outraged than ever, Dads On The Air, 4 February, 2002.



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Friday, 4 January 2002

Weather map offers no relief - DAY 11: NO RESPITE, The Australian, 4 January, 2002.

Weather map offers no relief - DAY 11: NO RESPITE: [1 Edition]

Stapleton, John. The Australian; Canberra, A.C.T. [Canberra, A.C.T] 04 Jan 2002: 2.
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Temperatures in Sydney reached 28C on the coast and 30C in the western suburbs yesterday. Today is expected to be much thesame -- dry, gusty and reasonably hot, with 26C on the coast and 30C inland.
Monday is the next most dangerous day, with temperatures expected to hit 39C in western Sydney and 33C closer to the coast. A total fire ban is in force throughout NSW, with high to very high fire danger.
THERE is no rain in sight. While the weekend is expected to be slightly cooler than the extreme conditions earlier this week , this good fortune is not expected to last.
Forecasts for next Monday are for fire conditions to be as bad as ever, with hot, dry and gusty conditions hindering firefighters.
The present extreme fire conditions across coastal NSW are due to a rare repeating pattern of slow-moving low pressure systems in the Southern Ocean.
A new low pressure system expected to track across Tasmania early next week is the third such virtually identical system in a row.
Temperatures in Sydney reached 28C onthecoast and 30C inthewestern suburbs yesterday. Today is expected to be muchthesame -- dry, gusty and reasonably hot, with 26C onthecoast and 30C inland.       
A southerly change predicted to come through Sydney and surrounding regions late today is unlikely to bring relief, with no rain forecast. The southerly could change the direction of flames and cause more problems.
Monday isthenext most dangerous day, with temperatures expected to hit 39C in western Sydney and 33C closer tothecoast. A total fire ban is in force throughout NSW, with high to very high fire danger.    
Illustration
Caption: Maps 'NSW emergency' and 'Sydney' and table 'Roads closed last night' available - see image for details; Photo: MapTable
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