Politics

Over 200 parties are gearing up to begin a month of campaigning across the Democratic Republic of Congo, ahead of voting at the end of July. At midnight on June 29, canvassing can officially begin across the country, in the first open elections since the country gained independence in 1961. Polls were originally due to take place last year but were delayed twice by the interim government. The international community is taking a keen interest in events, many with a hopeful belief that the elections will end nearly a decade of violence in the

Portugal received on June 29 a Russian Beriev 200 airplane that the Portuguese Government has rented for two months. The stated objective is to test the aircraft during the forest fire season, allowing the Ministry of Internal Administration to determine if it should buy it. The correspondent agreement agreed to by the Portuguese vice-Minister of Internal Administration, Fernando Rosa Andrade, and the director of the Russian company Beriev, Victor Kobzev, will cost Portugal €1,234,000 (USD 1,552,802) for two months rent and maintenance. The ob

An amendment of the United States constitution banning the burning of the American flag failed by one vote in the Senate on Tuesday. The final tally was 66-34; two-thirds (67 of 100 senators) was required for the amendment to pass. U.S. President, George W. Bush, gave a statement commending the bipartisan group of Senators for trying to pass the amendment. It was sponsored by Orrin Hatch, a Republican Senator from Utah, and backed by the Republican Majority Leader Bill Frist, of Tennessee. Even though some members of each party voted for th

A 3,000 strong detachment of the Israeli Defense Forces has moved back into the Gaza Strip only months after withdrawal of settlements from the area. Eight Hamas cabinet ministers, in addition to other officials, have been detained in a coordinated action codenamed Operation Summer Rains. The pre-planned operation was launched in immediate response to what Israel said was the kidnap of 19-year-old Israeli tank gunner Cpl. Gilad Shalit on 25 June. Three bridges in the Gaza Strip have been bombed for the stated purpose of restricting the movemen

A left-wing student group clashed with Greek police in the centre of Athens during a demonstration organized by university students against new laws which have been proposed by the Greek Minister of Education, Marietta Yiannakou. The conflict occurred as part of nation wide student protest against the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) attempts to eliminate state funded universities in Greece. The most serious incidents occurred near the Athens' Polytechnic and outside the Law School of Athens in the center of Athe

The New Zealand government officials have announced that it will give NZ$160,000 in aid to help farmers who were affected by the huge amounts of snow in Canterbury, New Zealand two weeks ago. The aid package will provide four regional offices for co-ordination, food supplies and ongoing support. The Federated Farmers for mid Canterbury say that the aid will be a start to what looks like a tough winter. President of the mid Canterbury Federated Farmers Rupert Curd says, "It is too early to say exactly how much help the relief package will prov

Nguyễn Tấn Dũng has been confirmed as Vietnam's next prime minister, winning by a majority vote of 92% by the National Assembly. He is the country's youngest Prime Minister since 1975, when Vietnam was unified, and is replacing the 72 year-old Phan Van Khai. 63 year-old Nguyen Minh Triet, who is an economic reformer and the Communist Party Chief for Ho Chi Minh City, was appointed as the country's president yesterday, with a majority vote of 94% by the Assembly. He replaces the 69 year-old Tran Duc Luong. In a speech to the National Assembly,

Australian Minister for Vocational Education and Training, Gary Hardgrave has announced the government will provide AU$15.8 million to establish an Australian Technical College in North Adelaide. The minister said the government was entering into a partnership with the Archdiocese of Adelaide and consortium of industrial and manufacturing companies. The North Adelaide college will be located in Elizabeth and be operated as an independent non-government school. The college is one of 25 to be established across the country. Enrolments at the co

Mauritanians voted in favour of a new Constitution by an overwhelming majority in a referendum held on June 26, according to results announced by Interior Ministry officials today. The new Constitution sets limits on the number of presidential terms a leader can serve, in contrast to several sub-Saharan countries, where several leaders have amended their Constitutions to retain power. The Interior Minister, Mohamed Ahmed Ould Mohamed Lemine said that over 96 percent votes cast were in favour of the new Constitution. The turnout was over 76 per

The East Timorese Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri has resigned from his position. He cited the growing violence and the threat by President Xanana Gusmão to resign if he did not. "I am assuming my own share of responsibility for the crisis affecting our country, I am determined not to contribute to any deepening of the crisis," said Mr Alkatiri. The news of the Prime Minister's imminent departure comes after the Foreign Minister, Jose Ramos Horta, a former Nobel Peace Prize winner, resigned from his position earlier in the week stating he could

Since Saddam Hussein was toppled in the allied invasion of Iraq in 2003, Iraqi oil production figures have been bleak. However, new signs are being revealed that Iraqi oil output is at its best since the fall of Hussein. The Iraqi oil minister, Hussain al-Shahristani, stated that about 2.5 million barrels of oil are now produced per day, a figure that has seen a rise lately. During the invasion of Iraq, lead by the United States, oil output was at about 2 million barrels per day (bpd) and before the invasion oil production ranged from 3 million

Scott MacLean, an ordained United Church of Christ (UCC) minister and the early morning Newscast Director at WFSB-TV, Channel 3 in Hartford, Connecticut, is running for the Republican nomination as the U.S. Representative in the Connecticut first district, and according to an email sent by MacLean to Republicans in Connecticut, MacLean has been using First Church in Hartland Congregational UCC to hold campaign meetings. In the email, MacLean claims that "the good folks from the First Church in Hartland-Congregational (my home church) have graci