US Threaten in Aussies Filter

The United States has raised concerns with Australia about the impact of a proposed Internet filter that would place restrictions on Web content, an official said Monday.
The concerns of Australia's most important security ally further undermine plans that would make Australia one of the strictest Internet regulators among the world's democracies.
"Our main message of course is that we remain committed to advancing the free flow of information which we view as vital to economic prosperity and preserving open societies globally," a U.S. State Department spokesman Michael Tran told The Associated Press by telephone from Washington.
Tran declined to say when or at what level the U.S. State Department raised its concerns with Australia and declined to detail those concerns.
"We don't discuss the details of specific diplomatic exchanges, but I can say that in the context of that ongoing relationship, we have raised our concerns on this matter with Australian officials," he added.
Internet giants Google and Yahoo have condemned the proposal as a heavy-handed measure that could restrict access to legal information.
The plan needs the support of Parliament to become law later this year.
Australian Communications Minister Stephen Conroy says the filter would block access to sites that include child pornography, sexual violence and detailed instructions in crime or drug use. The list of banned sites could be constantly updated based on public complaints. If adopted into law, the screening system would make Australia one of the strictest Internet regulators among the world's democracies.
Conroy declined to comment on the U.S. concerns.
"The Australian and U.S. governments liaise regularly on a broad range of issues. It would be inappropriate to discuss the details of these consultations," said his spokeswoman, Suzie Brady.
Some critics of Australia's filter have said it puts the nation in the same censorship league as China

David Mikael Taclino
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Myanmar Reports: Opposition to Boycott Polls Result

In a bold gamble, the party of Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi decided Monday to boycott the military-ruled country's first election in two decades, saying it would carry on its struggle for democracy even if it was officially disbanded.
The decision by the National League for Democracy, approved by an unanimous vote of the 113 executive members present at an all-day meeting, spotlights the question of the polls' credibility. The NLD won the most parliamentary seats in the last election in 1990, whose results the military refused to honor.
The party said new laws guiding the election are undemocratic. Their provisions would bar Suu Kyi from participating, or even being a member of the party she helped found 22 years ago in the wake of a failed popular uprising against military rule.
"We will continue to pursue, through peaceful means, democracy and human rights with support, understanding and assistance from the people, ethnic nationalities and democratic forces," said party vice chairman Tin Oo.
The boycott could undermine the junta's claims that the election represents a step forward in its "roadmap for democracy."
The reaction of the international community, which has already expressed doubt over the fairness of the polls, could be crucial in determining whether the election will proceed smoothly. The junta hopes holding the vote will ease pressure for political reforms and accommodation with the country's pro-democracy movement.
At the same time, the party risks being further marginalized. It has been the focal point for opposition to military rule, even though it has faced fierce repression. If it loses its status as a legal party, it may face tighter restrictions.
A call to revoke the country's 2008 constitution, pushed though by the military to ensure its influence under an elected government, also puts it in jeopardy of laws against criticism of the charter.
"It is a great pity that they've opted out to participate. I could understand why they would have done this, because of the adversity they have to face. But it would be a great loss to Burma and the Burmese people," said Trevor Wilson, a Myanmar expert at Australian National University. Burma is the former name for Myanmar.
"This may prove quite significant for NLD's future," he said. "Because of this, they may not be as productive or as valuable to Burmese politics as they had in the past."
Cheering could be heard from the delegates after they reached their decision and concluded their meeting. Officially, the party decided it would not register itself, the first legal step to taking part in the polls.
Earlier, a message from Suu Kyi was read to the delegates, explaining her position. Suu Kyi is still general-secretary of the party and its most dominant figure. The pro-democracy icon has spent 14 of the last 20 years in jail or under house arrest.
Party spokesman Nyan Win told reporters afterward the party should not take part in the polls because new electoral laws were "unjust and biased" and the stipulations "undemocratic."
Nyan Win did not elaborate, but the party had previously objected to a provision of the party registration law that requires parties to expel members who have criminal convictions, or face de-registration.
Because Suu Kyi was convicted last year of allowing an unregistered guest to stay at her home, the provision would appear not to allow her to be a member of the National League for Democracy, which she helped found.
"In her message to the people, she said she will continue to work for the achievement of democracy," said Nyan Win, quoting her saying, "I don't consider the party finished if the party is dissolved."
The new election laws require political parties to register before the first week in May. Parties that do not register will not be able to participate in this year's election and will cease to exist.
No date has been set for the polls, which many critics deride as a sham designed to cement the power of the military.
Last week, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said key nations want Myanmar's government to give its people the opportunity to participate freely in upcoming elections — including political prisoners and Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest.
He spoke after a meeting of the Group of Friends of Myanmar to discuss the country's new electoral laws.
The group includes about 15 countries, including Myanmar's neighbors, interested Asian and European nations, and the five permanent U.N. Security Council members: the U.S., Russia, China, Britain and France. Ban said the group believes inclusive elections are necessary to advance the prospects of stability, democracy and development in the country.
"The government must create conditions that give all stakeholders the opportunity to participate freely in elections," Ban said. "This includes the release of all political prisoners — including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi — and respect for fundamental freedoms."

David Mikael Taclino
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Nigeria's Ethnic Line

 Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi suggested Monday that Nigeria be split along ethnic lines, like Yugoslavia, into several mini-states as a way of resolving violence in Africa's most populous nation.
Gadhafi drew Nigeria's anger last week by saying the oil-rich nation should be divided into Muslim and Christian nations along the model of the 1947 partitioning of the Indian subcontinent, which led to the independence of India and Pakistan.
In those comments, he told a group of African student leaders in Tripoli that the violence in Nigeria was symptomatic of a "deep-rooted conflict of a religious nature" and required a radical solution.
On Monday, Gadhafi said that wasn't radical enough.
"Actually, the problem of Nigeria won't be solved by dividing it into two Muslim and Christian states. There are other people who, regardless of their religion, also demand independence," Libya's official JANA news agency quoted Gadhafi as saying.
"Therefore, what fits Nigeria in this case is Yugoslavia," he said.
Nigeria criticized the earlier remarks as unacceptable and withdrew its ambassador from Tripoli.
Nigeria has experienced two outbursts of violence between Muslims and Christians this year, where men, women and children were slaughtered. The violence mostly involves revenge attacks, but growing religious hatred, political and ethnic rivalries and poverty have fueled the unrest.
Nigeria, a nation of 150 million people, is almost evenly split between Sunni Muslims in the north and the predominantly Christian south. The recent bloodshed has been happening in central Nigeria, where dozens of ethnic groups vie for control of the nation's fertile center.
The mercurial Libyan leader, who until recently was chairman of the African Union and adopted the title "King of African Kings," has always claimed to be a champion of African unity.
David Mikael Taclino
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Tornado Hit Bahamas

Police in the Bahamas say a tornado has apparently touched down in at least two places on the island of Grand Bahama.
Police spokeswoman Loretta Mackey says there are no immediate reports of fatalities. Mackey says authorities are still checking reports of damage at the island's container port and elsewhere.
Monday's storm uprooted trees in the tourist area of Lucaya.
There are also reports of damaged cars and businesses.
A forecaster with the Bahamas Meteorology Department says heavy thunderstorms are expected to last until at least late afternoon.









David Mikael Taclino
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Britain's Credit Risk

Britain's credit rating could be lowered if a new government fails to cut massive public debt, Standard & Poor's warned on Monday as rival parties traded barbs over strained public finances.
With polls widely expected in early May, S&P affirmed Britain's top-grade AAA rating but said it remained on "negative outlook," meaning the rating could be lowered -- a move that would cause shockwaves in the global economy.
"The outlook on the United Kingdom remains negative based on our view that ... the UK's net general government debt burden may approach a level incompatible with a 'AAA' rating," S&P warned in a statement.
S&P said "the rating could be lowered if we conclude that the incoming government's fiscal strategy is unlikely to put the UK debt burden on a secure downward trajectory over the medium term."
The ruling Labour Party and opposition Conservatives have made the public finances a key battle ground in the run-up to the general election, which is widely expected to be held on May 6.
The government says it has had to spend massively in order to keep the economy on track during the worst global slump in decades.
Any move now by the Conservatives to withdraw some of the spending so as to balance the state's books will only undermine what is a still tentative economic recovery, Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his cabinet have argued.
The Conservatives in turn insist that a massive and growing budget deficit alongside soaring national debt endangers the longer-term future of the country and something must be done -- for example through budget cuts.
Analysts at Schroders, a London-based asset management company, said in a report that Britain was in for "a rocky ride" on financial markets in the coming months and that its bonds and the pound could become targets.
"Now that a solution has been announced for Greece, bond vigilantes will be taking stock and looking for their next target," Schroders said, referring to proposed EU-IMF loans to help Greece through a public finances crunch.
"As we approach the general election and the probability of a hung parliament rises, (bond market) vigilantes may find the allure of a vulnerable UK too tempting," it said.
"We expect increased volatility in Sterling and Gilt (bond) markets in the short-term," it added.
Michael Hewson, an analyst at online trading company CMC Markets, said that "the prospect of a hung parliament continues to be the over-riding concern for investors right now and this will continue to weigh."
A hung parliament is one in which no single party has a majority, meaning a coalition or minority government.
Earlier on Monday, the Conservatives pledged to scrap a planned extra levy on personal income, saying it was "a tax on jobs and the middle classes."
The planned rise in National Insurance contributions was "the economics of the madhouse," said George Osborne, shadow finance minister, pledging that the Conservatives would cover the cost by cutting six billion pounds of "waste" from the public sector.
S&P forecast that general government debt will rise to 77 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2010 and approach 100 percent by 2014 -- far higher than official forecasts -- because of weak growth and a huge deficit.
The government forecasts debt to peak at 89.2 percent of GDP in 2013-2014.
"As a result of the sizeable structural general government deficit, together with our weaker economic outlook, we project the general government gross and net debt burdens to continue on an upward trend," it added.
The ratings agency also said that the budget announced last week did not make any clearer how the government planned to deal with the debt in the medium-term, adding that there was "substantial uncertainty" over policy.

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