The influence of money – and not ideologies – has perceptibly gone up in the elections to the 15th Lok Sabha. There are more crorepatis in the fray than ever before.
In the 2004 elections to the 14th Lok Sabha, 9 per cent of the candidates were crorepatis. Five years later, the figure stands at 15.5 per cent, according to National Election Watch data.
The data covering the contestants for 401 parliamentary seats in the first three phases and in Delhi and Rajasthan in the fourth phase state that of the 5,573 candidates in the fray, 862 have assets of more than Rs 1 crore. The data also show sharp increases in the assets of those, who got elected in 2004. About 125 common candidates in 2004 and 2009 account for an average asset increase of over 130 per cent.
In Delhi, the increase since 2004 is 755 per cent, while it is about 450 per cent in Mumbai.
Most of the super-rich candidates come from the south and west-based regional parties. The Telangana Rashtra Samiti and the Telegu Desam Party in Andhra Pradesh account for 77 per cent and 71 per cent, respectively, of crorepati candidates, while in Karnataka, about 63 per cent of the Janata Dal (United) candidates are crorepatis against the BJP 45 per cent.
In the west, about 90 per cent of the candidates put up by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena are crorepatis, while the figure for the Nationalist Congress Party is 50 per cent. In Goa, about 33 per cent of all the candidates are crorepatis.
Professor Arun Kumar of the School of Economics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, who conducted studies on the role of money in electoral politics, said, “The evil in the electoral politics of the south is money power, and not muscle power like in Bihar and UP.”
However, the national parties are not lagging far behind. Of the 356 Congress candidates, close to 50 per cent are crorepatis, while the BJP’s figure is about 40 per cent. But the Left parties have the lowest number of crorepatis in the fray. The Bahujan Samaj Party, which has the richest contestant this time – Deepak Bhardwaj worth Rs 603 crore from west Delhi – has 25.6 per cent crorepati candidates.
Gandhians and freedom fighters Shambu Nath Sharma and L.C. Jain said, “The day is not too far when Parliament will become an exclusive club of crorepatis and criminals
Monday, April 27, 2009
Lanka ready to handover LTTE chief to India
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has said Colombo would extradite LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran, if caught alive, to India but after first putting him through trial in his country.
"Why should I keep him... India has the right... a man who is responsible for killing Rajiv Gandhi, one of the greatest leaders," he said and added that right now the effort is to catch Prabhakaran alive.
In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN, Rajapaksa also said that Sri Lanka will immediately stop air strikes and use of heavy weapons in the war zone but he made it clear that it was not a ceasefire.
"It is not a ceasefire. Freeing the people who are kept there as hostages is my duty,” Rajapaksa said
On ceasefire
No, it is not ceasefire. It is freeing the people who are kept there as hostages. That is my duty. The army is only helping the civilians. We just want to get the civilians out from there. When you say that we are not using heavy weapons and air attacks, then what is it? It is almost like ceasefire. It is only now that the soldiers are moving forward. When we use all this it looks like a real war. But when you are not using that, then what is it?
Surrender or face the army
Intelligence reports say that they (LTTE) are still there but we are waiting. We have asked them to surrender and lay down their arms. But they haven’t done that. As far as we can see now either they have to surrender or face the army, that’s all.
It is over for Prabhakaran
Now it is almost over. They have to surrender, there is no other option for them. This is only six-square kilometers, so we will be cleaning up. Till the last hostage is taken out from the LTTE hold we will continue. We are not worried about Prabhakaran or any other person.
India may get Prabhakaran
First he (Prabhakaran) has to go through our trial. For what he has done he will have to face that prior to anything. Then if anybody wants them (the rebels) then they can take them. This is because I think India has the right. The man who killed Rajiv Gandhi… he is one of the greatest leaders of India. Whichever government comes they have to deal with this man. This is my personal view about it.
"Why should I keep him... India has the right... a man who is responsible for killing Rajiv Gandhi, one of the greatest leaders," he said and added that right now the effort is to catch Prabhakaran alive.
In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN, Rajapaksa also said that Sri Lanka will immediately stop air strikes and use of heavy weapons in the war zone but he made it clear that it was not a ceasefire.
"It is not a ceasefire. Freeing the people who are kept there as hostages is my duty,” Rajapaksa said
On ceasefire
No, it is not ceasefire. It is freeing the people who are kept there as hostages. That is my duty. The army is only helping the civilians. We just want to get the civilians out from there. When you say that we are not using heavy weapons and air attacks, then what is it? It is almost like ceasefire. It is only now that the soldiers are moving forward. When we use all this it looks like a real war. But when you are not using that, then what is it?
Surrender or face the army
Intelligence reports say that they (LTTE) are still there but we are waiting. We have asked them to surrender and lay down their arms. But they haven’t done that. As far as we can see now either they have to surrender or face the army, that’s all.
It is over for Prabhakaran
Now it is almost over. They have to surrender, there is no other option for them. This is only six-square kilometers, so we will be cleaning up. Till the last hostage is taken out from the LTTE hold we will continue. We are not worried about Prabhakaran or any other person.
India may get Prabhakaran
First he (Prabhakaran) has to go through our trial. For what he has done he will have to face that prior to anything. Then if anybody wants them (the rebels) then they can take them. This is because I think India has the right. The man who killed Rajiv Gandhi… he is one of the greatest leaders of India. Whichever government comes they have to deal with this man. This is my personal view about it.
Sri Lanka to end use of heavy weapons in war against Tamil Tigers
The Sri Lankan government yesterday announced it was ending the use of air and artillery strikes in its war with the Tamil Tigers, after weeks of denying that it was using such tactics.
Under intense international pressure to end the fighting, the government claimed combat operations had reached their conclusion and it would now concentrate on rescuing civilians. However, there was no sign of an end to the fighting, which has claimed the lives of at least 6,000 civilians in the last three months.
The statement appeared to contradict previous claims by the military that it had not been using heavy weapons.
It came a day after the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) announced a unilateral ceasefire, allegedly to allow civilians to leave the no-fire zone, a tiny coastal strip no larger than four square miles, where tens of thousands of people remain trapped by the fighting.
With the UN's top humanitarian official, John Holmes, already in the country and Britain's foreign minister, David Miliband, expected tomorrow, along with his French and Swedish counterparts, both sides appear keen to secure a propaganda advantage. But reports from the ground suggested the statements had little impact on the conduct of the war. The military said it was continuing to pursue the LTTE and heavy fighting was reported inside the no-fire zone.
A doctor working in the zone, Thangamutha Sathiyamoorthy, said there had been air strikes on the south Mullivaikkal area around 12.40pm and 1.10pm and artillery fired into the north Mullivaikkal area at around 5.40pm. Both areas are inside the no-fire zone. The government has accused Sathiyamoorthy of acting as a mouthpiece for the LTTE.
In a statement, the government said: "Our security forces have been instructed to end the use of heavy calibre guns, combat aircraft and aerial weapons which could cause civilian casualties."
John Holmes, the UN undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs, said: "I hope that the idea of not using heavy weapons will genuinely be respected, which I am afraid has not been the case in the past."
He also criticised the LTTE, saying it had given no indication that it would allow civilians to leave the area. "These people are in mortal danger," he said.
A government spokesman said that the decision signalled "the nearing victory of one of the world's most successful battles against terrorism". He said: "It is a decision that displays the genuine will of the Sri Lankan government to rescue its citizens from terrorism."
A military spokesman, Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, later insisted that air strikes and artillery had not been directed at areas in which civilians had taken shelter. But he did confirm for the first time that those weapons had been used against the LTTE during the fighting in recent weeks. "We have been using them outside the safety zone," he said.
Pictures have shown large plumes of smoke rising from inside the no-fire zone, consistent with the use of high explosives. Brigadier Nanayakkara said the smoke could have been the result of the LTTE setting fire to civilians' tents. "Smoke can come from anything," he said.
The government claims that no more than 20,000 civilians remained inside the no-fire zone, although UN officials have suggested that the true figure could be as many as 150,000.
The reports can not be verified because journalists and humanitarian staff have been denied independent access to the area where the fighting is taking place.
EU foreign ministers yesterday urged Sri Lanka's government and the LTTE to agree an immediate ceasefire to allow the UN to organise an evacuation of the remaining civilians. "It is very, very important that we follow through on the government's welcome announcement," Miliband said. "This is a humanitarian crisis that needs to be tackled with real urgency."
Gordon Brown was reported to have telephoned the Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapakse, on Sunday to pledge £2.5m for humanitarian assistance for the displaced civilians.
Under intense international pressure to end the fighting, the government claimed combat operations had reached their conclusion and it would now concentrate on rescuing civilians. However, there was no sign of an end to the fighting, which has claimed the lives of at least 6,000 civilians in the last three months.
The statement appeared to contradict previous claims by the military that it had not been using heavy weapons.
It came a day after the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) announced a unilateral ceasefire, allegedly to allow civilians to leave the no-fire zone, a tiny coastal strip no larger than four square miles, where tens of thousands of people remain trapped by the fighting.
With the UN's top humanitarian official, John Holmes, already in the country and Britain's foreign minister, David Miliband, expected tomorrow, along with his French and Swedish counterparts, both sides appear keen to secure a propaganda advantage. But reports from the ground suggested the statements had little impact on the conduct of the war. The military said it was continuing to pursue the LTTE and heavy fighting was reported inside the no-fire zone.
A doctor working in the zone, Thangamutha Sathiyamoorthy, said there had been air strikes on the south Mullivaikkal area around 12.40pm and 1.10pm and artillery fired into the north Mullivaikkal area at around 5.40pm. Both areas are inside the no-fire zone. The government has accused Sathiyamoorthy of acting as a mouthpiece for the LTTE.
In a statement, the government said: "Our security forces have been instructed to end the use of heavy calibre guns, combat aircraft and aerial weapons which could cause civilian casualties."
John Holmes, the UN undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs, said: "I hope that the idea of not using heavy weapons will genuinely be respected, which I am afraid has not been the case in the past."
He also criticised the LTTE, saying it had given no indication that it would allow civilians to leave the area. "These people are in mortal danger," he said.
A government spokesman said that the decision signalled "the nearing victory of one of the world's most successful battles against terrorism". He said: "It is a decision that displays the genuine will of the Sri Lankan government to rescue its citizens from terrorism."
A military spokesman, Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, later insisted that air strikes and artillery had not been directed at areas in which civilians had taken shelter. But he did confirm for the first time that those weapons had been used against the LTTE during the fighting in recent weeks. "We have been using them outside the safety zone," he said.
Pictures have shown large plumes of smoke rising from inside the no-fire zone, consistent with the use of high explosives. Brigadier Nanayakkara said the smoke could have been the result of the LTTE setting fire to civilians' tents. "Smoke can come from anything," he said.
The government claims that no more than 20,000 civilians remained inside the no-fire zone, although UN officials have suggested that the true figure could be as many as 150,000.
The reports can not be verified because journalists and humanitarian staff have been denied independent access to the area where the fighting is taking place.
EU foreign ministers yesterday urged Sri Lanka's government and the LTTE to agree an immediate ceasefire to allow the UN to organise an evacuation of the remaining civilians. "It is very, very important that we follow through on the government's welcome announcement," Miliband said. "This is a humanitarian crisis that needs to be tackled with real urgency."
Gordon Brown was reported to have telephoned the Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapakse, on Sunday to pledge £2.5m for humanitarian assistance for the displaced civilians.
FBI monitored members of O.C. mosques at gyms, alleged informant says
As part of their anti-terrorism efforts, FBI agents monitored popular gyms throughout Orange County to gather intelligence on members of several local mosques, according to a man who claims to have been a key informant in the operation.
Sal Hernandez, director of the FBI's Los Angeles office, declined comment on the matter Monday. Another law enforcement source, however, confirmed that the surveillance occurred, but emphasized that it was a narrowly focused operation targeting people whom the informant had already implicated in alleged crimes.
The informant is Craig Monteilh, who said he posed as a Muslim convert at the request of the FBI to gather intelligence that might aid anti-terrorism investigators.
Monteilh, a muscular man with a background as a personal trainer, said he was instructed to lure mosque members to work out with him at local gyms. FBI agents, he said, later would obtain security camera footage from the gyms and ask him to identify the people on the tapes and to provide additional information about them. He said he was told that the agents then conducted background checks on the men, looking for anything that could be used to pressure them to become informants.
Disclosures of the FBI's tactics have angered some leaders in the Muslim community in Orange County who saw it as a betrayal of their efforts to assist law enforcement after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The issue has reverberated nationwide.
Last week, a coalition of the nation's largest Muslim organizations, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Muslim Public Affairs Council and the Islamic Society of North America, issued a statement demanding that the Obama administration address FBI actions, including what they described as the "infiltration of mosques," the use of "agent provocateurs to trap unsuspecting Muslim youth" and the "deliberate vilification" of the council.
"While the FBI does not comment on investigative techniques, it's absurd to suggest that FBI agents are randomly targeting Middle Eastern men or any other ethnic group for investigation," said FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller.
Monteilh, 46, is a twice convicted felon who says he was recruited by the FBI in 2006 to go undercover in the Islamic Center of Irvine, where he said he pretended to be Farouk Al-Aziz, a Syrian-French American searching for his Islamic roots. He says he surreptitiously recorded conversations with members of several mosques and provided the recordings to the FBI.
Though FBI officials have declined to discuss Monteilh's alleged role in any investigation, a law enforcement source confirmed that he worked as an informant.
Monteilh (whose name is pronounced Mahn-Tay) said the FBI stopped using him as an informant in 2007 when a supervisor questioned his credibility. He has since filed a legal claim against the bureau, accusing officials of reneging on promises to pay him $100,000 and place him in a witness protection program.
In several recent interviews with The Times, the 6-foot-2, 260-pound Monteilh said he was encouraged to invite members of several mosques to join him for workouts at various fitness centers in Irvine, Tustin, Laguna Niguel and Costa Mesa. Monteilh said he would routinely lead between eight and 15 men in a regimen of weightlifting and cardiovascular exercise. He said a car key operating as an electronic recording device was capturing whatever he and the men talked about.
About a month after the workouts began, Monteilh said one his "handlers" at the FBI started showing him photos that he was told were still shots taken by video surveillance cameras at the gyms. He said the agent would typically show him between 75 and 100 photos per meeting, which he said were usually at various Starbucks in Orange County.
Monteilh identified the agent by name, but his identity is being withheld by The Times at the request of an FBI official who cited his involvement in covert activities unrelated to the case that Monteilh said he was involved in.
Monteilh said the agent would ask him to write down the name of the person in each photo, the mosque they attend, their nationality and the names of their associates. He estimated that he identified several hundred men, the majority of them between the ages of 18 and 50. Many were professionals, including doctors and lawyers, he said. Most were students.
Monteilh said he broached the topic of racial profiling, but was rebuffed.
"White little old ladies aren't blowing up buildings and planes," Monteilh quoted one agent as saying. "We're looking at these people based on the fact that there's a terrorist threat in the Islamic community . . . there's no other way."
He said the project was working so well that his handlers were given clearance to use him to open a gym that would cater to men in the Islamic community. It was supposed to have a prayer room next to the workout area and the entire place was going to be wired for audio and video surveillance, Monteilh said. He said the project was scrapped after his cover was blown.
A spokesman for one of the fitness centers where the activities allegedly occurred said the company had no knowledge of the FBI probe. Representatives from other gyms did not respond to inquiries from The Times.
Gyms have played a role in the formation of terrorist cells, experts said. According to the British government's report on the bombings in London on July 2005, three of four terrorists became connected at gyms. One of the British gyms was dubbed the "Al Qaeda gym" because it was known as a hotbed for extremists, the report stated. The 9/11 terrorists and Madrid bombers also bonded at gyms.
Monteilh's role as a government informant seemed to be supported by the testimony of an FBI agent in February.
The agent, Thomas J. Ropel III, was testifying at a bail hearing in the case of Ahmadullah Sais Niazi, who is charged with perjury, naturalization fraud and making a false statement to a federal agency for, among other things, not disclosing that his brother-in-law is Osama bin Laden's alleged security coordinator.
Ropel told the judge in the case that Niazi had been secretly recorded by an informant as he threatened to blow up abandoned buildings. The agent did not name Monteilh but testified that the informant was the same man Muslims had reported to the FBI as an extremist two years earlier.
Monteilh was reported to the FBI in June 2007 after members of the Islamic Center of Irvine alleged that he was promoting terrorist plots and trying to recruit others to join him.Monteilh denies being a terrorist and said anything he said or did at the mosque was in his capacity as an informant for the FBI. He said he was given permission by authorities to engage in terrorist rhetoric, planning and "pretty much anything short of an actual attack" as part of his assignment.
Sal Hernandez, director of the FBI's Los Angeles office, declined comment on the matter Monday. Another law enforcement source, however, confirmed that the surveillance occurred, but emphasized that it was a narrowly focused operation targeting people whom the informant had already implicated in alleged crimes.
The informant is Craig Monteilh, who said he posed as a Muslim convert at the request of the FBI to gather intelligence that might aid anti-terrorism investigators.
Monteilh, a muscular man with a background as a personal trainer, said he was instructed to lure mosque members to work out with him at local gyms. FBI agents, he said, later would obtain security camera footage from the gyms and ask him to identify the people on the tapes and to provide additional information about them. He said he was told that the agents then conducted background checks on the men, looking for anything that could be used to pressure them to become informants.
Disclosures of the FBI's tactics have angered some leaders in the Muslim community in Orange County who saw it as a betrayal of their efforts to assist law enforcement after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The issue has reverberated nationwide.
Last week, a coalition of the nation's largest Muslim organizations, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Muslim Public Affairs Council and the Islamic Society of North America, issued a statement demanding that the Obama administration address FBI actions, including what they described as the "infiltration of mosques," the use of "agent provocateurs to trap unsuspecting Muslim youth" and the "deliberate vilification" of the council.
"While the FBI does not comment on investigative techniques, it's absurd to suggest that FBI agents are randomly targeting Middle Eastern men or any other ethnic group for investigation," said FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller.
Monteilh, 46, is a twice convicted felon who says he was recruited by the FBI in 2006 to go undercover in the Islamic Center of Irvine, where he said he pretended to be Farouk Al-Aziz, a Syrian-French American searching for his Islamic roots. He says he surreptitiously recorded conversations with members of several mosques and provided the recordings to the FBI.
Though FBI officials have declined to discuss Monteilh's alleged role in any investigation, a law enforcement source confirmed that he worked as an informant.
Monteilh (whose name is pronounced Mahn-Tay) said the FBI stopped using him as an informant in 2007 when a supervisor questioned his credibility. He has since filed a legal claim against the bureau, accusing officials of reneging on promises to pay him $100,000 and place him in a witness protection program.
In several recent interviews with The Times, the 6-foot-2, 260-pound Monteilh said he was encouraged to invite members of several mosques to join him for workouts at various fitness centers in Irvine, Tustin, Laguna Niguel and Costa Mesa. Monteilh said he would routinely lead between eight and 15 men in a regimen of weightlifting and cardiovascular exercise. He said a car key operating as an electronic recording device was capturing whatever he and the men talked about.
About a month after the workouts began, Monteilh said one his "handlers" at the FBI started showing him photos that he was told were still shots taken by video surveillance cameras at the gyms. He said the agent would typically show him between 75 and 100 photos per meeting, which he said were usually at various Starbucks in Orange County.
Monteilh identified the agent by name, but his identity is being withheld by The Times at the request of an FBI official who cited his involvement in covert activities unrelated to the case that Monteilh said he was involved in.
Monteilh said the agent would ask him to write down the name of the person in each photo, the mosque they attend, their nationality and the names of their associates. He estimated that he identified several hundred men, the majority of them between the ages of 18 and 50. Many were professionals, including doctors and lawyers, he said. Most were students.
Monteilh said he broached the topic of racial profiling, but was rebuffed.
"White little old ladies aren't blowing up buildings and planes," Monteilh quoted one agent as saying. "We're looking at these people based on the fact that there's a terrorist threat in the Islamic community . . . there's no other way."
He said the project was working so well that his handlers were given clearance to use him to open a gym that would cater to men in the Islamic community. It was supposed to have a prayer room next to the workout area and the entire place was going to be wired for audio and video surveillance, Monteilh said. He said the project was scrapped after his cover was blown.
A spokesman for one of the fitness centers where the activities allegedly occurred said the company had no knowledge of the FBI probe. Representatives from other gyms did not respond to inquiries from The Times.
Gyms have played a role in the formation of terrorist cells, experts said. According to the British government's report on the bombings in London on July 2005, three of four terrorists became connected at gyms. One of the British gyms was dubbed the "Al Qaeda gym" because it was known as a hotbed for extremists, the report stated. The 9/11 terrorists and Madrid bombers also bonded at gyms.
Monteilh's role as a government informant seemed to be supported by the testimony of an FBI agent in February.
The agent, Thomas J. Ropel III, was testifying at a bail hearing in the case of Ahmadullah Sais Niazi, who is charged with perjury, naturalization fraud and making a false statement to a federal agency for, among other things, not disclosing that his brother-in-law is Osama bin Laden's alleged security coordinator.
Ropel told the judge in the case that Niazi had been secretly recorded by an informant as he threatened to blow up abandoned buildings. The agent did not name Monteilh but testified that the informant was the same man Muslims had reported to the FBI as an extremist two years earlier.
Monteilh was reported to the FBI in June 2007 after members of the Islamic Center of Irvine alleged that he was promoting terrorist plots and trying to recruit others to join him.Monteilh denies being a terrorist and said anything he said or did at the mosque was in his capacity as an informant for the FBI. He said he was given permission by authorities to engage in terrorist rhetoric, planning and "pretty much anything short of an actual attack" as part of his assignment.
Poll Suggests Obama’s Term Is Altering Views on Race
Barack Obama’s presidency seems to be altering the public perception of race relations in the United States. Two-thirds of Americans now say race relations are generally good and the percentage of blacks who say so has doubled since last July, according to the latest New York Times/ CBS News poll.
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Despite that, half of blacks still say whites have a better chance of getting ahead in American society, the poll found. Black Americans remain among the president’s staunchest supporters; 70 percent of black respondents now say the country is headed in the right direction, compared to 34 percent of whites.
The poll found broad support for Mr. Obama’s approach on a variety of issues, including one of the most contentious on his plate right now: whether Congress should investigate the harsh interrogation tactics authorized by his predecessor, George W. Bush. Sixty-two percent of Americans share Mr. Obama’s view that hearings are unnecessary.
As Mr. Obama approaches the 100th day of his presidency, Americans seem to have high hopes for him; 72 percent said they are optimistic about the next four years. By and large, Americans expect the president to make significant progress in revamping health care, energy and immigration policy, issues central to his ambitious domestic agenda.
But the optimism is tempered by a feeling of resignation about two of the most difficult challenges the president faces: reviving the economy and ending United States military involvement in Iraq. Most Americans say Mr. Obama has begun to make progress on both fronts, but many do not expect either the recession or the war to be over by the end of his term.
It is not unusual for new presidents to enjoy substantial public support at this point in their terms. But Mr. Obama’s 68 percent job approval rating is higher than that of any recent president at the 100-day mark. Former President George W. Bush had the approval of 56 percent of the public at this juncture.
But while Americans clearly have faith in Mr. Obama, the poll revealed something of a disconnect between what the public thinks the president has already accomplished, and what it expects him to achieve.
Fewer than half of those surveyed, 48 percent, said Mr. Obama had begun to make progress on one of his major campaign promises, changing the way business is conducted in Washington. And just 39 percent said Mr. Obama had begun to make progress on another major promise, cutting taxes for middle-class Americans, even though the stimulus bill he signed into law does include a middle class tax cut.
Mr. Obama will mark his 100th day in office on Wednesday with a trip to St. Louis and a prime time news conference, where aides say he will make the case that he has made ‘’a down payment” on fixing the nation’s biggest problems. The poll found Americans seem to share that view, suggesting the White House has been effective at casting Mr. Obama as an agent of change, while persuading the public that change will take time.
“With all Obama wants to do and all he’s got going, it’s going to take more than four years,” said Larry Gibbons, 58, a retired restaurant manager and Republican in Phoenix who voted for Mr. Obama’s opponent, John McCain. Speaking in a follow-up interview, he added, “Obama is attacking everything at once and I do approve of that.”
Throughout Mr. Obama’s candidacy and his young presidency, race has loomed as an undercurrent to his message of change. Yet the president shies away from talking about it. In response to a question at his last press conference, Mr. Obama conceded that his election had created ‘’justifiable pride on the part of the country,” but quickly shifted gears, adding, “That lasted about a day.”
But Americans do feel differently about race and race relations with Mr. Obama in the White House, according to poll respondents who spoke in follow-up interviews. Some, like Jacqueline Luster, a 60-year-old retired bank employee in Macedonia, Ohio, say the times are changing, but that Mr. Obama seems to be speeding that change.
“With him as president, people seem to be working together toward the same goals and that has helped race relations,” she said. “Before there was more of a separation, blacks working for black goals and whites for white goals. Obama has helped change the perception of blacks in a positive way, but it’s also the times. ‘’
Another Democrat, Lisa Fleming, 49, who is white, said that even in the small Illinois town, Potomac, where she lives, she notices ‘’people of different races being kinder to each other” since Mr. Obama’s election. A white Republican homemaker in Kansas City, Mary Robertson, 78, said Mr. Obama’s ‘’openness and acceptance have helped others be more open and accepting.”
The nationwide telephone survey was conducted Wednesday through Sunday with 973 adults. For purposes of analysis, blacks were oversampled in this poll, for a total of 212, who were then weighted back to their proper proportion in the poll, according to the Census. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points for all adults, and plus or minus 7 percentage points for blacks.
After nearly 100 days of watching Mr. Obama conduct the affairs of state, more than two-thirds of Americans say he is not a typical politician, though most say he is set apart more by his style and his personal qualities than his policies.
For instance, the poll found the public appears divided over whether the Obama administration has broken with the Bush administration in its overall foreign policy. Forty-three percent of respondents said there had been some change in foreign policy since Mr. Obama took office, the poll found, while 44 percent said there had been no change and 13 percent did not have an opinion.
Yet the public does give Mr. Obama credit for improving the image of the United States with the rest of the world. And the poll found support for Mr. Obama’s overtures to Iran and Cuba; a majority, 53 percent, said they favor establishing diplomatic relations with Iran, while two thirds favor Mr. Obama’s plans to thaw relations with Cuba.
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Despite that, half of blacks still say whites have a better chance of getting ahead in American society, the poll found. Black Americans remain among the president’s staunchest supporters; 70 percent of black respondents now say the country is headed in the right direction, compared to 34 percent of whites.
The poll found broad support for Mr. Obama’s approach on a variety of issues, including one of the most contentious on his plate right now: whether Congress should investigate the harsh interrogation tactics authorized by his predecessor, George W. Bush. Sixty-two percent of Americans share Mr. Obama’s view that hearings are unnecessary.
As Mr. Obama approaches the 100th day of his presidency, Americans seem to have high hopes for him; 72 percent said they are optimistic about the next four years. By and large, Americans expect the president to make significant progress in revamping health care, energy and immigration policy, issues central to his ambitious domestic agenda.
But the optimism is tempered by a feeling of resignation about two of the most difficult challenges the president faces: reviving the economy and ending United States military involvement in Iraq. Most Americans say Mr. Obama has begun to make progress on both fronts, but many do not expect either the recession or the war to be over by the end of his term.
It is not unusual for new presidents to enjoy substantial public support at this point in their terms. But Mr. Obama’s 68 percent job approval rating is higher than that of any recent president at the 100-day mark. Former President George W. Bush had the approval of 56 percent of the public at this juncture.
But while Americans clearly have faith in Mr. Obama, the poll revealed something of a disconnect between what the public thinks the president has already accomplished, and what it expects him to achieve.
Fewer than half of those surveyed, 48 percent, said Mr. Obama had begun to make progress on one of his major campaign promises, changing the way business is conducted in Washington. And just 39 percent said Mr. Obama had begun to make progress on another major promise, cutting taxes for middle-class Americans, even though the stimulus bill he signed into law does include a middle class tax cut.
Mr. Obama will mark his 100th day in office on Wednesday with a trip to St. Louis and a prime time news conference, where aides say he will make the case that he has made ‘’a down payment” on fixing the nation’s biggest problems. The poll found Americans seem to share that view, suggesting the White House has been effective at casting Mr. Obama as an agent of change, while persuading the public that change will take time.
“With all Obama wants to do and all he’s got going, it’s going to take more than four years,” said Larry Gibbons, 58, a retired restaurant manager and Republican in Phoenix who voted for Mr. Obama’s opponent, John McCain. Speaking in a follow-up interview, he added, “Obama is attacking everything at once and I do approve of that.”
Throughout Mr. Obama’s candidacy and his young presidency, race has loomed as an undercurrent to his message of change. Yet the president shies away from talking about it. In response to a question at his last press conference, Mr. Obama conceded that his election had created ‘’justifiable pride on the part of the country,” but quickly shifted gears, adding, “That lasted about a day.”
But Americans do feel differently about race and race relations with Mr. Obama in the White House, according to poll respondents who spoke in follow-up interviews. Some, like Jacqueline Luster, a 60-year-old retired bank employee in Macedonia, Ohio, say the times are changing, but that Mr. Obama seems to be speeding that change.
“With him as president, people seem to be working together toward the same goals and that has helped race relations,” she said. “Before there was more of a separation, blacks working for black goals and whites for white goals. Obama has helped change the perception of blacks in a positive way, but it’s also the times. ‘’
Another Democrat, Lisa Fleming, 49, who is white, said that even in the small Illinois town, Potomac, where she lives, she notices ‘’people of different races being kinder to each other” since Mr. Obama’s election. A white Republican homemaker in Kansas City, Mary Robertson, 78, said Mr. Obama’s ‘’openness and acceptance have helped others be more open and accepting.”
The nationwide telephone survey was conducted Wednesday through Sunday with 973 adults. For purposes of analysis, blacks were oversampled in this poll, for a total of 212, who were then weighted back to their proper proportion in the poll, according to the Census. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points for all adults, and plus or minus 7 percentage points for blacks.
After nearly 100 days of watching Mr. Obama conduct the affairs of state, more than two-thirds of Americans say he is not a typical politician, though most say he is set apart more by his style and his personal qualities than his policies.
For instance, the poll found the public appears divided over whether the Obama administration has broken with the Bush administration in its overall foreign policy. Forty-three percent of respondents said there had been some change in foreign policy since Mr. Obama took office, the poll found, while 44 percent said there had been no change and 13 percent did not have an opinion.
Yet the public does give Mr. Obama credit for improving the image of the United States with the rest of the world. And the poll found support for Mr. Obama’s overtures to Iran and Cuba; a majority, 53 percent, said they favor establishing diplomatic relations with Iran, while two thirds favor Mr. Obama’s plans to thaw relations with Cuba.
Gujarat Muslims the 'living dead'
Muslims in India's Gujarat state who bore the burnt of religious riots in 2002 say they have been abandoned by the political parties. The BBC's Soutik Biswas met some riot victims ahead of the general election in the state.
The acrid smell of burning oil singes your nose and eyes as you walk into Bombay Hotel, a sprawling ghetto of Muslim-owned homes on the eastern flank of Ahmedabad, the main city in western Gujarat state.
A pall of black factory smoke hangs over this untidy patchwork of squat, ugly houses. Residents pay 150 rupees ($3) a month to a private contractor who supplies yellow-coloured drinking water through dirty garden pipes. Sewage flows out into the street.
Bombay Hotel, which takes it name after a local roadside eatery, is one of the places where many Muslims displaced by the 2002 Gujarat riots moved to. Over the past seven years, it has transformed from a remote industrial colony to become a busy refugee settlement.
The anti-Muslim riots, sparked off by the death of Hindu pilgrims in the firebombing of a train, led to the death of 1,392 people in five districts, according to official records. NGOs say the toll is closer to 2,000.
Shambolic
The riots also left some 140,000 people homeless. They were put up in camps and given 2,500 rupees by the government - the majority of the displaced were in Ahmedabad city.
Thirty-six-year-old Meraz Ahmad Jalaluddin Ansari is one of them.
Bombay Hotel is a Muslim ghetto which lacks basic amenities
He was lucky that he did not lose any relatives in the riots. He and his family fled their home in the Chamanpura area after Hindu neighbours warned them that the rioters were closing in.
But he did lose his home and livelihood.
He had hired a dozen workers and owned 15 sewing machines. He would make, he says, 15,000 to 20,000 rupees a month from embroidery work.
After fleeing the riots and panic-selling his house to a local Hindu neighbour for 275,000 rupees, Mr Ansari moved into Bombay Hotel.
His living standards are shambolic, the markets where he can sell his wares are now 10-12km away, and his children are soon going to lose their neighbourhood municipal school. It will be scrapped to make way for a bus lane.
Mr Ansari has picked up the pieces again, built a new home and managed to buy about five sewing machines to start work.
He can no longer afford to employ people. The government, he says, gave him compensation of 300 rupees for the damage to his house in Chamanpura.
"Once I was fairly well to do. Now I work a lot more and just manage," he says. "Life can't come to a halt. But sometimes I feel we are the living dead."
Noor Banu and her husband are still trying to pay back a loan
The riots do not find any echo in the general elections in Gujarat.
Seven years after the incident, both the ruling BJP and Congress party remain silent on the shoddy rehabilitation of the victims or the delay in bringing the culprits to justice.
"We cannot vote for the BJP and the Congress almost has a fixed deposit on our votes. So it's a choice between the devil and the deep blue sea," says Mr Ansari.
There is little talk of the impending polls at Bombay Hotel. When you raise the subject, the residents turn their faces away in disgust.
"Before the 2002 riots, there were just a few houses here. Now there are 15,000 houses and 80,000 people. Muslims have moved in from all over. They feel relatively safe here," says Shabit Ali Ansari, 32, who owns a sweets shop.
"But no party does anything for Muslims. The authorities do nothing for people here unless we raise a storm," he says.
Cynical
Barber shops, groceries, sweets shops and even a photo studio that have sprung up in the grubby lanes do brisk business. But residents work on pitifully low wages.
Riot victims like Noor Banu, 45, and her husband, Ashik Ali Badar Ali, 50, who moved here after their house was attacked in the Saraspur area, are struggling to make ends meet.
The neighbourhood school is being demolished
Mr Ali used to drive an auto rickshaw and bring home up to 150 rupees a day. Now he earns barely 1,800 rupees a month working as a security guard.
Their three daughters chip in making lacquered bangles to help pay back a loan of 70,000 rupees the family borrowed for the two-room hovel in which they live.
Next door, Asiyana Ahmed Sheikh, 12, makes kites. And Zarin Aslambhai Ghanchi gets less than one US cent for cutting and stitching together a campaign banner for a political party.
"Even the political parties exploit us when giving us jobs. This is the state of affairs here," says Zarin.
Ashik Ali Badar Ali says he is going to vote for the Hindu nationalist BJP, which was blamed for inaction during the rioting.
"The BJP is an open enemy of the Muslims, and the Congress is a hidden enemy. I'd rather vote for the open enemy, so I can go to them for protection."
Muslims comprise barely 10% of the population in Gujarat.
"Despite the riots and the headlines, the political parties here feel that they can ignore them, because they don't comprise a decisive vote bank," says analyst Achyut Yagnik.
The acrid smell of burning oil singes your nose and eyes as you walk into Bombay Hotel, a sprawling ghetto of Muslim-owned homes on the eastern flank of Ahmedabad, the main city in western Gujarat state.
A pall of black factory smoke hangs over this untidy patchwork of squat, ugly houses. Residents pay 150 rupees ($3) a month to a private contractor who supplies yellow-coloured drinking water through dirty garden pipes. Sewage flows out into the street.
Bombay Hotel, which takes it name after a local roadside eatery, is one of the places where many Muslims displaced by the 2002 Gujarat riots moved to. Over the past seven years, it has transformed from a remote industrial colony to become a busy refugee settlement.
The anti-Muslim riots, sparked off by the death of Hindu pilgrims in the firebombing of a train, led to the death of 1,392 people in five districts, according to official records. NGOs say the toll is closer to 2,000.
Shambolic
The riots also left some 140,000 people homeless. They were put up in camps and given 2,500 rupees by the government - the majority of the displaced were in Ahmedabad city.
Thirty-six-year-old Meraz Ahmad Jalaluddin Ansari is one of them.
Bombay Hotel is a Muslim ghetto which lacks basic amenities
He was lucky that he did not lose any relatives in the riots. He and his family fled their home in the Chamanpura area after Hindu neighbours warned them that the rioters were closing in.
But he did lose his home and livelihood.
He had hired a dozen workers and owned 15 sewing machines. He would make, he says, 15,000 to 20,000 rupees a month from embroidery work.
After fleeing the riots and panic-selling his house to a local Hindu neighbour for 275,000 rupees, Mr Ansari moved into Bombay Hotel.
His living standards are shambolic, the markets where he can sell his wares are now 10-12km away, and his children are soon going to lose their neighbourhood municipal school. It will be scrapped to make way for a bus lane.
Mr Ansari has picked up the pieces again, built a new home and managed to buy about five sewing machines to start work.
He can no longer afford to employ people. The government, he says, gave him compensation of 300 rupees for the damage to his house in Chamanpura.
"Once I was fairly well to do. Now I work a lot more and just manage," he says. "Life can't come to a halt. But sometimes I feel we are the living dead."
Noor Banu and her husband are still trying to pay back a loan
The riots do not find any echo in the general elections in Gujarat.
Seven years after the incident, both the ruling BJP and Congress party remain silent on the shoddy rehabilitation of the victims or the delay in bringing the culprits to justice.
"We cannot vote for the BJP and the Congress almost has a fixed deposit on our votes. So it's a choice between the devil and the deep blue sea," says Mr Ansari.
There is little talk of the impending polls at Bombay Hotel. When you raise the subject, the residents turn their faces away in disgust.
"Before the 2002 riots, there were just a few houses here. Now there are 15,000 houses and 80,000 people. Muslims have moved in from all over. They feel relatively safe here," says Shabit Ali Ansari, 32, who owns a sweets shop.
"But no party does anything for Muslims. The authorities do nothing for people here unless we raise a storm," he says.
Cynical
Barber shops, groceries, sweets shops and even a photo studio that have sprung up in the grubby lanes do brisk business. But residents work on pitifully low wages.
Riot victims like Noor Banu, 45, and her husband, Ashik Ali Badar Ali, 50, who moved here after their house was attacked in the Saraspur area, are struggling to make ends meet.
The neighbourhood school is being demolished
Mr Ali used to drive an auto rickshaw and bring home up to 150 rupees a day. Now he earns barely 1,800 rupees a month working as a security guard.
Their three daughters chip in making lacquered bangles to help pay back a loan of 70,000 rupees the family borrowed for the two-room hovel in which they live.
Next door, Asiyana Ahmed Sheikh, 12, makes kites. And Zarin Aslambhai Ghanchi gets less than one US cent for cutting and stitching together a campaign banner for a political party.
"Even the political parties exploit us when giving us jobs. This is the state of affairs here," says Zarin.
Ashik Ali Badar Ali says he is going to vote for the Hindu nationalist BJP, which was blamed for inaction during the rioting.
"The BJP is an open enemy of the Muslims, and the Congress is a hidden enemy. I'd rather vote for the open enemy, so I can go to them for protection."
Muslims comprise barely 10% of the population in Gujarat.
"Despite the riots and the headlines, the political parties here feel that they can ignore them, because they don't comprise a decisive vote bank," says analyst Achyut Yagnik.
WHO raises swine flu alert level
The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised its alert level over swine flu from three to four - two steps short of declaring a full pandemic.
WHO Assistant Director General Dr Keiji Fukuda said it signalled a "significant step towards pandemic influenza", but added "we are not there yet".
Mexico earlier said it believed 149 people had now died from the swine flu outbreak - only 20 cases are confirmed.
Other, milder, cases are confirmed in the US, Canada, Spain and Britain.
The WHO's decision to raise the alert level to four came after an emergency meeting of experts, brought forward by a day because of concerns over the outbreak.
WHO PANDEMIC ALERT PHASES
Phase 1: No viruses circulating among animals causing infections in humans
Phase 2: Animal influenza virus causes infection in humans, and is considered potential pandemic threat
Phase 3: Influenza causes sporadic cases in people, but no significant human-to-human transmission
Phase 4: Verified human-to-human transmission able to cause community-level outbreaks. Significant increase in risk of a pandemic
Phase 5: Human-to-human transmission in at least two countries. Strong signal pandemic imminent
Phase 6: Virus spreads to another country in a different region. Global pandemic under way
Life at centre of the outbreak
Swine flu: Your experiences
In pictures: Swine flu
Level four means the virus is showing a sustained ability to pass from human to human, and is able to cause community-level outbreaks.
"What this can really be interpreted as is a significant step towards pandemic influenza. But also, it is a phase that says we are not there yet," Mr Fukuda said.
"In other words, at this time we think we have taken a step in that direction, but a pandemic is not considered inevitable."
He said the virus had become too widespread to make containment a feasible option, and said countries must focus on trying to put measures in place to protect the population.
He also stressed that the experts did not recommend closing borders or restricting travel. "With the virus being widespread... closing borders or restricting travel really has very little effects in stopping the movement of this virus," he said.
The first batches of a swine flu vaccine could be ready between four to six months, but it will take several more months to produce large quantities of it, Mr Fukuda said.
Health experts say the virus comes from the same strain that causes seasonal outbreaks in humans. But they say this newly-detected version contains genetic material from versions of flu which usually affect pigs and birds.
Mexico deaths
Earlier, Mexico's Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova said the suspected death toll from swine flu had now risen from just over 100 to 149. Of that number, 20 have been confirmed as swine flu.
All of those who had died were aged between 20 and 50, he said. Infections among young healthy adults was a characteristic of past pandemics.
"We're in the decisive moment of the crisis, the number [of deaths] will continue rising," Mr Codova told a news conference.
He said nearly 2,000 people had been hospitalised since the first case of swine flu was reported on 13 April, but half had now been allowed home.
Schools nationwide are to remain closed until 6 May as the country attempts to grapple with the outbreak.
As Mr Cordova spoke, Mexico City - where the outbreak is centred - was rocked by a 5.6-magnitude earthquake. It shook tall buildings and led to evacuations, but there have been no reports of damage or injuries.
SWINE FLU
Swine flu is a respiratory disease thought to spread through coughing and sneezing
Symptoms mimic those of normal flu
Good hygiene like using a tissue and washing hands thoroughly can help reduce transmission
Swine flu cases confirmed in UK
Q&A: What is swine flu?
'I couldn't get out of bed'
In almost all swine flu cases outside Mexico, people have been only mildly ill and have made a full recovery.
In the US, a further 20 cases of swine flu were confirmed in New York. Cases have also been reported in Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California, bringing the total across the country to more than 40.
It is thought that only person in the US had been hospitalised as a result of contracting the virus, and all had recovered.
Dr Richard Besser, acting director of the US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has warned that a new US travel advisory is being prepared suggesting "non-essential travel to Mexico be avoided".
Earlier, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou separately urged caution for those considering travelling to Mexico.
In Canada, six cases have been recorded at opposite ends of the country, in British Columbia and in Nova Scotia.
SPREAD OF VIRUS
Mexico: 26 confirmed cases (Mexico puts suspected deaths at 149)
United States: 40 confirmed cases
Canada: 6 confirmed cases
Spain: 1 confirmed case
UK: Scotland says tests confirm 2 cases
Israel, Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia and New Zealand: Suspected cases being tested
Swine flu officially arrived in Europe on Monday, when tests confirmed that a young man in Spain and two people in Scotland - all of whom had recently returned from Mexico - had the virus. They were said to be recovering well.
Tests are also being carried out on individuals or groups in New Zealand, Australia, Brazil and Israel who fell ill following travel to Mexico.
A number of countries in Asia, Latin America and Europe have begun screening airport passengers for symptoms, while Germany's biggest tour operator has suspended trips to Mexico.
Several countries have banned imports of raw pork and pork products from Mexico and parts of the US, although experts say there is no evidence to link exposure to pork with infection.
Shares in airlines have fallen sharply on fears about the economic impact of the outbreak.
WHO Assistant Director General Dr Keiji Fukuda said it signalled a "significant step towards pandemic influenza", but added "we are not there yet".
Mexico earlier said it believed 149 people had now died from the swine flu outbreak - only 20 cases are confirmed.
Other, milder, cases are confirmed in the US, Canada, Spain and Britain.
The WHO's decision to raise the alert level to four came after an emergency meeting of experts, brought forward by a day because of concerns over the outbreak.
WHO PANDEMIC ALERT PHASES
Phase 1: No viruses circulating among animals causing infections in humans
Phase 2: Animal influenza virus causes infection in humans, and is considered potential pandemic threat
Phase 3: Influenza causes sporadic cases in people, but no significant human-to-human transmission
Phase 4: Verified human-to-human transmission able to cause community-level outbreaks. Significant increase in risk of a pandemic
Phase 5: Human-to-human transmission in at least two countries. Strong signal pandemic imminent
Phase 6: Virus spreads to another country in a different region. Global pandemic under way
Life at centre of the outbreak
Swine flu: Your experiences
In pictures: Swine flu
Level four means the virus is showing a sustained ability to pass from human to human, and is able to cause community-level outbreaks.
"What this can really be interpreted as is a significant step towards pandemic influenza. But also, it is a phase that says we are not there yet," Mr Fukuda said.
"In other words, at this time we think we have taken a step in that direction, but a pandemic is not considered inevitable."
He said the virus had become too widespread to make containment a feasible option, and said countries must focus on trying to put measures in place to protect the population.
He also stressed that the experts did not recommend closing borders or restricting travel. "With the virus being widespread... closing borders or restricting travel really has very little effects in stopping the movement of this virus," he said.
The first batches of a swine flu vaccine could be ready between four to six months, but it will take several more months to produce large quantities of it, Mr Fukuda said.
Health experts say the virus comes from the same strain that causes seasonal outbreaks in humans. But they say this newly-detected version contains genetic material from versions of flu which usually affect pigs and birds.
Mexico deaths
Earlier, Mexico's Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova said the suspected death toll from swine flu had now risen from just over 100 to 149. Of that number, 20 have been confirmed as swine flu.
All of those who had died were aged between 20 and 50, he said. Infections among young healthy adults was a characteristic of past pandemics.
"We're in the decisive moment of the crisis, the number [of deaths] will continue rising," Mr Codova told a news conference.
He said nearly 2,000 people had been hospitalised since the first case of swine flu was reported on 13 April, but half had now been allowed home.
Schools nationwide are to remain closed until 6 May as the country attempts to grapple with the outbreak.
As Mr Cordova spoke, Mexico City - where the outbreak is centred - was rocked by a 5.6-magnitude earthquake. It shook tall buildings and led to evacuations, but there have been no reports of damage or injuries.
SWINE FLU
Swine flu is a respiratory disease thought to spread through coughing and sneezing
Symptoms mimic those of normal flu
Good hygiene like using a tissue and washing hands thoroughly can help reduce transmission
Swine flu cases confirmed in UK
Q&A: What is swine flu?
'I couldn't get out of bed'
In almost all swine flu cases outside Mexico, people have been only mildly ill and have made a full recovery.
In the US, a further 20 cases of swine flu were confirmed in New York. Cases have also been reported in Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California, bringing the total across the country to more than 40.
It is thought that only person in the US had been hospitalised as a result of contracting the virus, and all had recovered.
Dr Richard Besser, acting director of the US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has warned that a new US travel advisory is being prepared suggesting "non-essential travel to Mexico be avoided".
Earlier, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou separately urged caution for those considering travelling to Mexico.
In Canada, six cases have been recorded at opposite ends of the country, in British Columbia and in Nova Scotia.
SPREAD OF VIRUS
Mexico: 26 confirmed cases (Mexico puts suspected deaths at 149)
United States: 40 confirmed cases
Canada: 6 confirmed cases
Spain: 1 confirmed case
UK: Scotland says tests confirm 2 cases
Israel, Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia and New Zealand: Suspected cases being tested
Swine flu officially arrived in Europe on Monday, when tests confirmed that a young man in Spain and two people in Scotland - all of whom had recently returned from Mexico - had the virus. They were said to be recovering well.
Tests are also being carried out on individuals or groups in New Zealand, Australia, Brazil and Israel who fell ill following travel to Mexico.
A number of countries in Asia, Latin America and Europe have begun screening airport passengers for symptoms, while Germany's biggest tour operator has suspended trips to Mexico.
Several countries have banned imports of raw pork and pork products from Mexico and parts of the US, although experts say there is no evidence to link exposure to pork with infection.
Shares in airlines have fallen sharply on fears about the economic impact of the outbreak.
Taliban suspends talks with Pak, won't lay down arms
Taliban on Monday suspended talks with the Pakistani government on the Swat deal to protest against the military operations in Dir, adjoining Swat Valley, in which so far 30 militants and an army officer have been killed.
As the Pakistani forces intensified the operations for second day on Monday, Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariah Muhammadi spokesman Izzat Khan told reporters that no peace talks would be held with the government unless the security forces halted the operations.
Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan also said the militants will not lay down their arms at any cost.
The Swat peace deal stipulated that the militants would lay down their arms once the demand for enforcing Islamic Sharia law in the once Pakistan's famous tourist resort was implemented.
The security forces continued shelling militant hideouts at several places in Dir district.
Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said security forces had killed at least 30 militants during the operations, which was launched in retaliation to efforts by the Taliban to extend their influence outside Swat.
The Taliban confirmed that commander Maulvi Shahid was among the militants killed on Sunday.
Gunship helicopters targeted militant hideouts, killing and injuring a number of them.
Two personnel of the paramilitary Frontier Corps were also killed and a Major was among five personnel injured in an ambush in Maidan, the hometown of TNSM chief Sufi Muhammad.
Army helicopters airlifted Frontier Corps troops to strategic hilltops in Dir while armoured personnel carriers were seen moving towards the area.
An indefinite curfew was imposed in Lal Qila, Islampura, Kal Kot and several other areas in Dir considered to be strongholds of the Taliban.
Security forces on Sunday took control of Lal Qila after clearing the key area of militants.
Reports from Swat on Monday morning morning said the Taliban had occupied a telephone exchange in Bahrain town.
Security forces arrested four militants with heavy weapons at Khwazakhela in Swat.
Militants in Dir have also taken up positions on hilltops to resist the security forces.
The Inter-Services Public Relations said the operation in Dir was launched on the request of the North West Frontier Province government to rid the area of militants who were threatening peace in the area.
The situation in Maidan, the hometown of Sufi Muhammad, worsened after district police chief Khurshid Khan and local mayor Alamzeb Khan were killed and scores of people were kidnapped in the past few weeks.
As the Pakistani forces intensified the operations for second day on Monday, Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariah Muhammadi spokesman Izzat Khan told reporters that no peace talks would be held with the government unless the security forces halted the operations.
Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan also said the militants will not lay down their arms at any cost.
The Swat peace deal stipulated that the militants would lay down their arms once the demand for enforcing Islamic Sharia law in the once Pakistan's famous tourist resort was implemented.
The security forces continued shelling militant hideouts at several places in Dir district.
Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said security forces had killed at least 30 militants during the operations, which was launched in retaliation to efforts by the Taliban to extend their influence outside Swat.
The Taliban confirmed that commander Maulvi Shahid was among the militants killed on Sunday.
Gunship helicopters targeted militant hideouts, killing and injuring a number of them.
Two personnel of the paramilitary Frontier Corps were also killed and a Major was among five personnel injured in an ambush in Maidan, the hometown of TNSM chief Sufi Muhammad.
Army helicopters airlifted Frontier Corps troops to strategic hilltops in Dir while armoured personnel carriers were seen moving towards the area.
An indefinite curfew was imposed in Lal Qila, Islampura, Kal Kot and several other areas in Dir considered to be strongholds of the Taliban.
Security forces on Sunday took control of Lal Qila after clearing the key area of militants.
Reports from Swat on Monday morning morning said the Taliban had occupied a telephone exchange in Bahrain town.
Security forces arrested four militants with heavy weapons at Khwazakhela in Swat.
Militants in Dir have also taken up positions on hilltops to resist the security forces.
The Inter-Services Public Relations said the operation in Dir was launched on the request of the North West Frontier Province government to rid the area of militants who were threatening peace in the area.
The situation in Maidan, the hometown of Sufi Muhammad, worsened after district police chief Khurshid Khan and local mayor Alamzeb Khan were killed and scores of people were kidnapped in the past few weeks.
Mamata campaigns jointly with Sonia, Pran
Congress and Trinamool Congress are campaigning together for the Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal with Sonia Gandhi and Mamata Banerjee sharing the dais after almost 10 years.
Assailing West Bengal's Left Front government for "running a dictatorship", the Congress President expressed concern at the Communist rulers' failure to "improve the lot of the minorities" and the poor.
In a stinging attack on the Left during an election meeting in a remote area of Murshidabad district, she described as a "matter of shame" the state government's inability to provide job cards to hundreds of thousands of poor people under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA).
Referring to the violent incidents in Nandigram and Singur, she said: "These people (the Left) call themselves messiahs and sympathisers of the poor and working classes. We all know how peasants of Nandigram and Singur became victims of violence in their bid to protect their own land. Our Congress party activities had lathis (sticks) rained on them for trying to give a voice to the people."
Addressing the meeting for Minister for External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee, who is contesting from the district's Jangipur constituency, Sonia Gandhi charged the Left Front with running a dictatorship in the name of democracy.
Murshidabad is the only Muslim majority district in the state. Sonia Gandhi gave an account of the welfare schemes launched by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government at the Centre for the minorities, and pilloried the LF for "not doing much" in this regard.
"In West Bengal, what is the social and economic position of the minorities? It is a cause for grave concern. During the long years of Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) rule, I have a feeling nothing much has been done for minorities," she said, during her 12-minute speech in Hindi.
She said despite the Centre sending thousands of crores for welfare schemes to the state, the Left Front rulers had only used the money for benefit of their party activists.
"Ask the state government why funds allocated by the Centre for welfare schemes are not reaching the people. Had it been given to the people and had this government's intention been good, then there would not have been so many poor people in the state, particularly in this area," she said.
"Instead of implementing the central schemes with honesty to benefit the people, they used it to benefit their leaders. Despite being in power for 32 years, they have failed to bring electricity to all the rural areas."
Referring to the Left parties's withdrawal of support to the UPA Government on the India-US civilian nuclear deal, Sonia Gandhi said: "We had signed the deal only to bring electricity to your homes".
She said the peasants were not getting a remunerative price for paddy here, due to the apathy of the state government, while industrial activities had stopped in the last decade.
Expressing happiness at the alliance with Trinamool Congress, she said: "I am happy that Mamata is again with us," and appealed to the people to vote on polling day and not remain in their houses "out of fear".
Assailing West Bengal's Left Front government for "running a dictatorship", the Congress President expressed concern at the Communist rulers' failure to "improve the lot of the minorities" and the poor.
In a stinging attack on the Left during an election meeting in a remote area of Murshidabad district, she described as a "matter of shame" the state government's inability to provide job cards to hundreds of thousands of poor people under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA).
Referring to the violent incidents in Nandigram and Singur, she said: "These people (the Left) call themselves messiahs and sympathisers of the poor and working classes. We all know how peasants of Nandigram and Singur became victims of violence in their bid to protect their own land. Our Congress party activities had lathis (sticks) rained on them for trying to give a voice to the people."
Addressing the meeting for Minister for External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee, who is contesting from the district's Jangipur constituency, Sonia Gandhi charged the Left Front with running a dictatorship in the name of democracy.
Murshidabad is the only Muslim majority district in the state. Sonia Gandhi gave an account of the welfare schemes launched by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government at the Centre for the minorities, and pilloried the LF for "not doing much" in this regard.
"In West Bengal, what is the social and economic position of the minorities? It is a cause for grave concern. During the long years of Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) rule, I have a feeling nothing much has been done for minorities," she said, during her 12-minute speech in Hindi.
She said despite the Centre sending thousands of crores for welfare schemes to the state, the Left Front rulers had only used the money for benefit of their party activists.
"Ask the state government why funds allocated by the Centre for welfare schemes are not reaching the people. Had it been given to the people and had this government's intention been good, then there would not have been so many poor people in the state, particularly in this area," she said.
"Instead of implementing the central schemes with honesty to benefit the people, they used it to benefit their leaders. Despite being in power for 32 years, they have failed to bring electricity to all the rural areas."
Referring to the Left parties's withdrawal of support to the UPA Government on the India-US civilian nuclear deal, Sonia Gandhi said: "We had signed the deal only to bring electricity to your homes".
She said the peasants were not getting a remunerative price for paddy here, due to the apathy of the state government, while industrial activities had stopped in the last decade.
Expressing happiness at the alliance with Trinamool Congress, she said: "I am happy that Mamata is again with us," and appealed to the people to vote on polling day and not remain in their houses "out of fear".
Lanka Tamils vandalise India embassy in London
Sri Lankan Tamil protesters smashed windows of the Indian High Commission and forced their way inside the building during a demonstration on Monday.
The High Commission has sought adequate protection from the British Government.
British police arrested five Sri Lankan Tamils after several demonstrators broke into the Indian High Commission in the middle of the protest outside the building in central London.
A spokesperson for the High Commission said the protest began when a crowd of about 100 to 150 protesters gathered outside India House at 0815 hrs (local time), their numbers swelling to over a thousand later.
The demonstration over the current civil war in Sri Lanka became violent when a few of the protesters forced their way into the building when its door was opened to allow a staff member in.
"The crowd outside have shattered some of the glass windows of the High Commission's premises with heavy objects. Police and security agencies are on duty outside the premises. No one in the High Commission has been injured," the spokesperson said.
She said the British Foreign Office had been informed about the incident, "along with the High Commission's concerns about the security situation and their need for adequate security measures."
The High Commission has sought adequate protection from the British Government.
British police arrested five Sri Lankan Tamils after several demonstrators broke into the Indian High Commission in the middle of the protest outside the building in central London.
A spokesperson for the High Commission said the protest began when a crowd of about 100 to 150 protesters gathered outside India House at 0815 hrs (local time), their numbers swelling to over a thousand later.
The demonstration over the current civil war in Sri Lanka became violent when a few of the protesters forced their way into the building when its door was opened to allow a staff member in.
"The crowd outside have shattered some of the glass windows of the High Commission's premises with heavy objects. Police and security agencies are on duty outside the premises. No one in the High Commission has been injured," the spokesperson said.
She said the British Foreign Office had been informed about the incident, "along with the High Commission's concerns about the security situation and their need for adequate security measures."
Probe Narendra Modi's role in Gujarat riots: SC
The Supreme Court on Monday asked a special probe panel formed by it to look into the allegations that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi along with over 50 other politicians and government officials had aided and abetted statewide communal riots in 2002.
A bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and Asok Kumar Ganguly directed the panel headed by former Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director R K Raghavan to particularly look into the allegations that Modi was involved in the killing of an MP in Ahmedabad's Gulbarga Society arson case.
The panel was asked to file its report within three months.
A bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and Asok Kumar Ganguly directed the panel headed by former Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director R K Raghavan to particularly look into the allegations that Modi was involved in the killing of an MP in Ahmedabad's Gulbarga Society arson case.
The panel was asked to file its report within three months.
Pakistan president pulls out of press conference with Gordon Brown
Deepening divisions between Pakistan and Britain were exposed today when President Asif Ali Zardari pulled out of a planned press conference with Gordon Brown.
Downing Street played down talk of a snub, insisting it was happy that the Pakistan prime minister, Yusuf Raza Gilani, took part in the press conference instead.
"It is entirely appropriate that he has a press conference with his counterpart," a No 10 spokesman said. However, on his last visit to Pakistan in December, Brown and Zardari did stage a joint press conference.
Zardari and Brown met for a private meeting after the press conference. But his absence from the press conference comes as the Pakistanis chide British officials for overly hasty conduct after the arrest of 11 Pakistani students a fortnight ago. The Home Office refused to share any information about the arrests with Pakistan.
At the press conference, Brown defended the arrests.
"I think we have got to recognise that we have both got problems that are affecting both the security of our citizens and the sentiments in our country, with terrorist plots that have been planned and some people are trying to execute. We want to work together with Pakistan to deal with these issues and to tackle terrorism at its roots."
Brown flew into Islamabad after a whistlestop visit to Kabul and Helmand province in Afghanistan.
The Pakistani press had predicted that the prime minister would receive short shrift from Pakistani officials after the prime minister's condemnation of 11 Pakistani nationals who were arrested on terror charges in the UK.
At the time, Brown said UK intelligence services had foiled a "very big plot" before all were released without charge. Senior Pakistani defence officials have said the British authorities failed to consult them adequately, and greater cooperation would have avoided "embarrassing mistakes" for the British government.
In the days after the arrest of the Pakistani students, the government maintained its criticism of Pakistan with the immigration minister, Phil Woolas, saying that the allocation of student visas to young Pakistanis – between 2004 and 2008, 42,000 were issued – was the "biggest loophole in British border controls".
A memorandum of understanding had been presented to the Pakistanis under which the UK government was to have the right to deport any Pakistani on the grounds that he or she had become a threat to national security without having to follow due process.
In an interview with the Guardian on Saturday, the Pakistani deputy high commissioner, Asif Durrani, said he regarded constant British briefing that Pakistan was a hot bed of terrorism to be "vindictive" and "slurs".
Today Brown repeated his assertion last made on his December visit four months ago that three-quarters of Islamic terror threats originate in the border region between the UK and Pakistan
Downing Street played down talk of a snub, insisting it was happy that the Pakistan prime minister, Yusuf Raza Gilani, took part in the press conference instead.
"It is entirely appropriate that he has a press conference with his counterpart," a No 10 spokesman said. However, on his last visit to Pakistan in December, Brown and Zardari did stage a joint press conference.
Zardari and Brown met for a private meeting after the press conference. But his absence from the press conference comes as the Pakistanis chide British officials for overly hasty conduct after the arrest of 11 Pakistani students a fortnight ago. The Home Office refused to share any information about the arrests with Pakistan.
At the press conference, Brown defended the arrests.
"I think we have got to recognise that we have both got problems that are affecting both the security of our citizens and the sentiments in our country, with terrorist plots that have been planned and some people are trying to execute. We want to work together with Pakistan to deal with these issues and to tackle terrorism at its roots."
Brown flew into Islamabad after a whistlestop visit to Kabul and Helmand province in Afghanistan.
The Pakistani press had predicted that the prime minister would receive short shrift from Pakistani officials after the prime minister's condemnation of 11 Pakistani nationals who were arrested on terror charges in the UK.
At the time, Brown said UK intelligence services had foiled a "very big plot" before all were released without charge. Senior Pakistani defence officials have said the British authorities failed to consult them adequately, and greater cooperation would have avoided "embarrassing mistakes" for the British government.
In the days after the arrest of the Pakistani students, the government maintained its criticism of Pakistan with the immigration minister, Phil Woolas, saying that the allocation of student visas to young Pakistanis – between 2004 and 2008, 42,000 were issued – was the "biggest loophole in British border controls".
A memorandum of understanding had been presented to the Pakistanis under which the UK government was to have the right to deport any Pakistani on the grounds that he or she had become a threat to national security without having to follow due process.
In an interview with the Guardian on Saturday, the Pakistani deputy high commissioner, Asif Durrani, said he regarded constant British briefing that Pakistan was a hot bed of terrorism to be "vindictive" and "slurs".
Today Brown repeated his assertion last made on his December visit four months ago that three-quarters of Islamic terror threats originate in the border region between the UK and Pakistan
U.S. toxic-asset plan stirs fears
The Obama administration's impending effort to buy about $1 trillion in toxic assets in partnership with private investors -- aimed at solving the most intractable part of the credit crisis -- is now generating widespread fear that it is vulnerable to manipulation and carries sharp risks for taxpayers.
The program represents the biggest gamble yet in the federal bailout, but its still-hazy details have prompted bankers, economists, federal investigators and politicians to question whether it will solve the financial crisis. More than 400 written comments were recently submitted to the Treasury Department, many of them sharply negative.
The program is trying to create an artificial market for assets that have no known value, something that has never been done before on this scale. The only way to accomplish that is for the government to accept a mountain of risk.
In the process, critics fear that the banking system could be further damaged and the program subjected to a boom in fraud.
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz of Columbia University said the program violated so many laws of economics that it was little more than an "empty box."
The toxic assets are a multitrillion-dollar collection of mortgage loans, commercial loans and a variety of complex debt securities, in which many borrowers have stopped making payments and the value of the underlying properties have tumbled. There is so much uncertainty about the value of those loans -- held both by banks and by big institutional investors -- that they have become a black hole in the financial system.
Critics say the government's effort to engineer a solution is creating risks similar to the ones that created the financial crisis in the first place.
"We are repeating all the mistakes that the mortgage guys made," Stiglitz said. "In the worst case, the national debt goes up by $1 trillion."
Supporters of the program say that the economy would face bigger risks if nothing is done to solve the problem. The program, they say, represents a bold move by the government to unfreeze the financial markets. In the process, taxpayers could reap multibillion-dollar profits from the partnerships.
Indeed, when the program was unveiled one month ago, it was met by such euphoria that the Dow Jones industrial average shot up 500 points in a day.
The program, called the Public-Private Investment Program, is still being formed and basic answers about how it will work are being hammered out by officials at the Treasury Department, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Federal Reserve.
The goal of the program is to create a market for the toxic assets that are now clogging the system. They sit on balance sheets, tying up funds and obscuring the condition of financial institutions.
The loans and debt securities are not worthless. In some cases, individual loans within complex bundles have not gone bad. And even in the cases of loans that have gone bad, the underlying homes or other assets still have some value. But because nobody knows how to value these loans and debt securities, nobody is willing to trade them.
If the program can help set prices for those assets and create markets for their sale, banks will more quickly regain healthy balance sheets and financial markets that trade in debt securities will regain their footing.
The government hopes to jump-start a market. Private investors would be enticed to join and, by competing against one another, finally set a price for the assets.
The Bush administration last fall had planned to simply buy all the toxic assets on its own, but there were concerns that it would end up overpaying and it didn't have enough money. With private investors involved, there is the hope that their competition and desire for profit will ensure that prices aren't set too high.
The government does not have to buy every bad asset, Treasury officials said, but simply get enough activity going so that buyers and sellers could begin to set prices on their own.
There are two separate pieces to the program -- one operated by the FDIC to auction bundles of troubled bank loans and another operated by the Treasury Department to buy securities without auctions from hedge funds, investment firms and others.
The money to operate these programs is coming from the $750-billion Troubled Asset Relief Program that was enacted last fall, along with additional lending by the Federal Reserve.
Under the Treasury plan, five so-called fund managers would raise a pool of private money, matched equally by the government. Then, the Fed would double that pool with loans or loan guarantees. Thus, the government would be putting up 75% of all the money.
The fund managers would negotiate to buy the toxic securities based on an analysis of the investments and a bit of educated guessing.
The FDIC program would rely on even more government-backed debt. A variety of partnership funds would be created with private investors kicking in 7.5% of the money and the government providing a matching 7.5%. The government would then provide the remaining 85% in loans or loan guarantees.
The partnerships would bid against one another in an auction.
Although the two plans address different parts of the credit crisis and use different methods, critics see many of the same vulnerabilities.
Stiglitz, along with others, believes the market will be far from perfect. Since the government is putting in so much more money, it would lead private investors to take on riskier investments. And the burden of that increased risk would fall almost entirely on the government, even though the government would share only half the potential profit.
The FDIC has said that if it faces too many defaults, it may have to assess new fees -- which are already increasing -- on the entire banking industry, a scary prospect for smaller banks.
Although the FDIC has downplayed the risk of such defaults, other experts are not so sure.
"We are in an economic climate that is still filled with a tremendous amount of uncertainty," said Rodney K. Brown, the president of the California Bankers Assn.
Brown said if the Treasury plan tanks and the FDIC has to increase insurance fees, it could saddle many small banks with losses.
Small banks are worried about such potential fees, said Jerry Cavanaugh, counsel to the Community Bankers Assn. of Illinois.
"These megabanks are receiving the lion's share of the Treasury loot, while community banks are called upon to restore the FDIC's financial position through increased premiums and special assessments."
Then, there is the criminal problem. The potential for manipulation, price fixing, collusion and other forms of fraud were outlined recently by special inspector general Neil Barofsky, who released a lengthy report that cited serious problems with the program. Barofsky said that collusion between investors or banks could result in kickbacks among bidders or sellers. For example, a bank could create a phony subsidiary to bid up the value of its own troubled loans. Or a network of banks could conspire to bid up one another's assets, kicking back profits to one another.
Other experts are not so sure the entire program will even help banks.
If banks have to sell troubled loans at too low a price, it could force them to take additional losses. Aaron Deer, a bank analyst at financial research firm Sandler O'Neill & Partners, said one potential risk was that low prices for loans at one bank could force other banks to mark down the value of similar loans that they had no intention of selling. On the other hand, if the loans are offered at too high a price, private investors will see no profit.
"We are hoping to hit somewhere in the middle," FDIC spokesman Andrew Williams said.
Scott Talbott, chief lobbyist for the Financial Services Roundtable, which represents large financial institutions, said that though his group supports the program, its biggest challenge would be determining prices for the assets. He predicted a reluctance to participate if that is not clarified.
Pressure for major changes in the program is growing.
"We expect that Treasury, the Fed, the FDIC and other regulators will take their concerns into account and incorporate any additional necessary taxpayer protections as they refine these programs," Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said in a statement Friday.
The program represents the biggest gamble yet in the federal bailout, but its still-hazy details have prompted bankers, economists, federal investigators and politicians to question whether it will solve the financial crisis. More than 400 written comments were recently submitted to the Treasury Department, many of them sharply negative.
The program is trying to create an artificial market for assets that have no known value, something that has never been done before on this scale. The only way to accomplish that is for the government to accept a mountain of risk.
In the process, critics fear that the banking system could be further damaged and the program subjected to a boom in fraud.
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz of Columbia University said the program violated so many laws of economics that it was little more than an "empty box."
The toxic assets are a multitrillion-dollar collection of mortgage loans, commercial loans and a variety of complex debt securities, in which many borrowers have stopped making payments and the value of the underlying properties have tumbled. There is so much uncertainty about the value of those loans -- held both by banks and by big institutional investors -- that they have become a black hole in the financial system.
Critics say the government's effort to engineer a solution is creating risks similar to the ones that created the financial crisis in the first place.
"We are repeating all the mistakes that the mortgage guys made," Stiglitz said. "In the worst case, the national debt goes up by $1 trillion."
Supporters of the program say that the economy would face bigger risks if nothing is done to solve the problem. The program, they say, represents a bold move by the government to unfreeze the financial markets. In the process, taxpayers could reap multibillion-dollar profits from the partnerships.
Indeed, when the program was unveiled one month ago, it was met by such euphoria that the Dow Jones industrial average shot up 500 points in a day.
The program, called the Public-Private Investment Program, is still being formed and basic answers about how it will work are being hammered out by officials at the Treasury Department, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Federal Reserve.
The goal of the program is to create a market for the toxic assets that are now clogging the system. They sit on balance sheets, tying up funds and obscuring the condition of financial institutions.
The loans and debt securities are not worthless. In some cases, individual loans within complex bundles have not gone bad. And even in the cases of loans that have gone bad, the underlying homes or other assets still have some value. But because nobody knows how to value these loans and debt securities, nobody is willing to trade them.
If the program can help set prices for those assets and create markets for their sale, banks will more quickly regain healthy balance sheets and financial markets that trade in debt securities will regain their footing.
The government hopes to jump-start a market. Private investors would be enticed to join and, by competing against one another, finally set a price for the assets.
The Bush administration last fall had planned to simply buy all the toxic assets on its own, but there were concerns that it would end up overpaying and it didn't have enough money. With private investors involved, there is the hope that their competition and desire for profit will ensure that prices aren't set too high.
The government does not have to buy every bad asset, Treasury officials said, but simply get enough activity going so that buyers and sellers could begin to set prices on their own.
There are two separate pieces to the program -- one operated by the FDIC to auction bundles of troubled bank loans and another operated by the Treasury Department to buy securities without auctions from hedge funds, investment firms and others.
The money to operate these programs is coming from the $750-billion Troubled Asset Relief Program that was enacted last fall, along with additional lending by the Federal Reserve.
Under the Treasury plan, five so-called fund managers would raise a pool of private money, matched equally by the government. Then, the Fed would double that pool with loans or loan guarantees. Thus, the government would be putting up 75% of all the money.
The fund managers would negotiate to buy the toxic securities based on an analysis of the investments and a bit of educated guessing.
The FDIC program would rely on even more government-backed debt. A variety of partnership funds would be created with private investors kicking in 7.5% of the money and the government providing a matching 7.5%. The government would then provide the remaining 85% in loans or loan guarantees.
The partnerships would bid against one another in an auction.
Although the two plans address different parts of the credit crisis and use different methods, critics see many of the same vulnerabilities.
Stiglitz, along with others, believes the market will be far from perfect. Since the government is putting in so much more money, it would lead private investors to take on riskier investments. And the burden of that increased risk would fall almost entirely on the government, even though the government would share only half the potential profit.
The FDIC has said that if it faces too many defaults, it may have to assess new fees -- which are already increasing -- on the entire banking industry, a scary prospect for smaller banks.
Although the FDIC has downplayed the risk of such defaults, other experts are not so sure.
"We are in an economic climate that is still filled with a tremendous amount of uncertainty," said Rodney K. Brown, the president of the California Bankers Assn.
Brown said if the Treasury plan tanks and the FDIC has to increase insurance fees, it could saddle many small banks with losses.
Small banks are worried about such potential fees, said Jerry Cavanaugh, counsel to the Community Bankers Assn. of Illinois.
"These megabanks are receiving the lion's share of the Treasury loot, while community banks are called upon to restore the FDIC's financial position through increased premiums and special assessments."
Then, there is the criminal problem. The potential for manipulation, price fixing, collusion and other forms of fraud were outlined recently by special inspector general Neil Barofsky, who released a lengthy report that cited serious problems with the program. Barofsky said that collusion between investors or banks could result in kickbacks among bidders or sellers. For example, a bank could create a phony subsidiary to bid up the value of its own troubled loans. Or a network of banks could conspire to bid up one another's assets, kicking back profits to one another.
Other experts are not so sure the entire program will even help banks.
If banks have to sell troubled loans at too low a price, it could force them to take additional losses. Aaron Deer, a bank analyst at financial research firm Sandler O'Neill & Partners, said one potential risk was that low prices for loans at one bank could force other banks to mark down the value of similar loans that they had no intention of selling. On the other hand, if the loans are offered at too high a price, private investors will see no profit.
"We are hoping to hit somewhere in the middle," FDIC spokesman Andrew Williams said.
Scott Talbott, chief lobbyist for the Financial Services Roundtable, which represents large financial institutions, said that though his group supports the program, its biggest challenge would be determining prices for the assets. He predicted a reluctance to participate if that is not clarified.
Pressure for major changes in the program is growing.
"We expect that Treasury, the Fed, the FDIC and other regulators will take their concerns into account and incorporate any additional necessary taxpayer protections as they refine these programs," Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said in a statement Friday.
Faster Cuts and More Loans Key to G.M. Survival Plan
General Motors said on Monday that it needed $11.6 billion more in government loans and that it planned to file for bankruptcy protection if a debt exchange with its bondholders was unsuccessful.
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Fabrizio Costantini for The New York Times
Fritz Henderson, chief executive of General Motors, at a press conference on Monday at GM world headquarters in Detroit.
G.M. also said that, by 2010, it would phase out its Pontiac brand, eliminate 42 percent of its dealers, close 13 plants and cut 21,000 hourly jobs as part of its revised restructuring plan.
“We need to have a more stable and sustainable business model, because, candidly, we only want to do this once,” G.M.’s chief executive, Fritz Henderson, said at a news conference. “We don’t think that what’s being asked of us is too hard. Our objective here is to create a strategy where we can win, not simply survive.”
G.M. shares rose 25 percent in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange after the plan was announced.
The cuts outlined on Monday are considerably greater and scheduled to occur sooner than G.M. had outlined in its February restructuring plan. The plan would result in the federal government becoming G.M.’s majority owner.
Since December, G.M. has borrowed $15.4 billion to keep it out of bankruptcy while it tries to restructure. The new request would bring that figure to $27 billion. The company originally said it needed between $22.5 billion and $30 billion to remain solvent.
In the plans announced on Monday, G.M. wants to persuade 2,641 of its 6,246 independently owned dealerships — 500 more than it previously announced — to close four years sooner than it had intended.
By the end of next year, it plans to employ 40,000 hourly workers at 34 plants, down from 61,000 workers at 47 plants. That is at least 7,000 more job cuts and one more plant closure than the February plan called for. An additional 2,000 jobs would be cut in 2011.
G.M. said the additional actions would allow it to break even at industry sales volumes as low as 10 million a year. Sales this year are expected to be slightly higher than that figure.
In addition, the company said it would give bondholders 225 shares, worth $414 as of Friday, for every $1,000 that they hold.
It urged the bondholders, who hold more than $27 billion in G.M. debt, to accept the deal to allow a faster out-of-court restructuring and said their bonds could be worth less or nothing in a bankruptcy filing.
G.M. said the holders of at least 90 percent of its outstanding bonds must agree to the swap by May 26 for the company to avoid bankruptcy.
“We do not intend to seek relief under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code if the exchange offers are consummated,” G.M. said in a regulatory filing.
By exchanging stock for its bonds and by converting its debt to the Treasury Department and to a retiree health care fund for the United Automobile Workers union, G.M. said it can eliminate $44 billion in debt. The Treasury and the U.A.W. would own up to 89 percent of the company’s outstanding shares, while bondholders would hold no more than 10 percent and current shareholders would hold 1 percent.
The Treasury would own more than half of G.M. on its own and therefore have control over the election of its board and other matters requiring the approval of shareholders.
In a bankruptcy, G.M. said it might separate itself into two companies: a new G.M. composed of desirable assets like the Chevrolet and Cadillac brands, and a collection of its unwanted assets that would then be liquidated.
G.M. has been negotiating with an ad-hoc committee representing large bondholders, but the two sides have been unable to reach a deal. The bondholders committee says G.M. has not been responsive to its requests in more than a month.
The Obama administration’s autos task force gave the automaker until June 1 to develop a more aggressive turnaround plan and to reach deals with its bondholders and the United Automobile Workers union. Talks with the U.A.W., which announced a cost-cutting deal with Chrysler on Sunday, are continuing.
Skip to next paragraph
Enlarge This Image
Fabrizio Costantini for The New York Times
Fritz Henderson, chief executive of General Motors, at a press conference on Monday at GM world headquarters in Detroit.
G.M. also said that, by 2010, it would phase out its Pontiac brand, eliminate 42 percent of its dealers, close 13 plants and cut 21,000 hourly jobs as part of its revised restructuring plan.
“We need to have a more stable and sustainable business model, because, candidly, we only want to do this once,” G.M.’s chief executive, Fritz Henderson, said at a news conference. “We don’t think that what’s being asked of us is too hard. Our objective here is to create a strategy where we can win, not simply survive.”
G.M. shares rose 25 percent in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange after the plan was announced.
The cuts outlined on Monday are considerably greater and scheduled to occur sooner than G.M. had outlined in its February restructuring plan. The plan would result in the federal government becoming G.M.’s majority owner.
Since December, G.M. has borrowed $15.4 billion to keep it out of bankruptcy while it tries to restructure. The new request would bring that figure to $27 billion. The company originally said it needed between $22.5 billion and $30 billion to remain solvent.
In the plans announced on Monday, G.M. wants to persuade 2,641 of its 6,246 independently owned dealerships — 500 more than it previously announced — to close four years sooner than it had intended.
By the end of next year, it plans to employ 40,000 hourly workers at 34 plants, down from 61,000 workers at 47 plants. That is at least 7,000 more job cuts and one more plant closure than the February plan called for. An additional 2,000 jobs would be cut in 2011.
G.M. said the additional actions would allow it to break even at industry sales volumes as low as 10 million a year. Sales this year are expected to be slightly higher than that figure.
In addition, the company said it would give bondholders 225 shares, worth $414 as of Friday, for every $1,000 that they hold.
It urged the bondholders, who hold more than $27 billion in G.M. debt, to accept the deal to allow a faster out-of-court restructuring and said their bonds could be worth less or nothing in a bankruptcy filing.
G.M. said the holders of at least 90 percent of its outstanding bonds must agree to the swap by May 26 for the company to avoid bankruptcy.
“We do not intend to seek relief under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code if the exchange offers are consummated,” G.M. said in a regulatory filing.
By exchanging stock for its bonds and by converting its debt to the Treasury Department and to a retiree health care fund for the United Automobile Workers union, G.M. said it can eliminate $44 billion in debt. The Treasury and the U.A.W. would own up to 89 percent of the company’s outstanding shares, while bondholders would hold no more than 10 percent and current shareholders would hold 1 percent.
The Treasury would own more than half of G.M. on its own and therefore have control over the election of its board and other matters requiring the approval of shareholders.
In a bankruptcy, G.M. said it might separate itself into two companies: a new G.M. composed of desirable assets like the Chevrolet and Cadillac brands, and a collection of its unwanted assets that would then be liquidated.
G.M. has been negotiating with an ad-hoc committee representing large bondholders, but the two sides have been unable to reach a deal. The bondholders committee says G.M. has not been responsive to its requests in more than a month.
The Obama administration’s autos task force gave the automaker until June 1 to develop a more aggressive turnaround plan and to reach deals with its bondholders and the United Automobile Workers union. Talks with the U.A.W., which announced a cost-cutting deal with Chrysler on Sunday, are continuing.
Warnings as swine virus spreads
A top European Union official has warned against travel to areas hit by an outbreak of swine flu, amid growing concern over the spread of the virus.
Experts suspect it has killed more than 100 people in Mexico. Cases have also been found in Canada, the US and on Monday in Spain.
At least five other nations are testing patients for possible swine flu.
President Barack Obama said the cases in the US were a cause for concern but not alarm.
World Health Organization experts are meeting later to discuss the global threat posed by the virus.
The UN has warned that the virus has the potential to become a pandemic. But it says the world is better prepared than ever to deal with the threat.
SWINE FLU
Swine flu is a respiratory disease thought to spread through coughing and sneezing
Symptoms mimic those of normal flu - but in Mexico more than 100 people have died
Good hygiene like using a tissue and washing hands thoroughly can help reduce transmission
The EU has called an emergency meeting of health ministers to discuss the situation and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said he was monitoring the situation closely.
EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou said people should avoid travelling to virus-hit parts of Mexico and the US unless it was "very urgent".
On Sunday, Mexican Health Secretary Jose Angel Cordova said suspected swine flu cases in his country had risen to 1,614.
Of the 103 deaths in Mexico, only 20 are so far confirmed to have been caused by the new virus.
There are 20 confirmed cases in the US, six in Canada and one in Spain, the first case in Europe. In most cases outside Mexico, people have been only mildly ill and have made a full recovery.
In other developments:
• Tests are also being carried out on individuals or groups in New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Britain and Israel who fell ill following travel to Mexico
• A top US health official has warned that there could be "more severe cases" to come
• Shares in airlines have fallen sharply on fears about the economic impact of the outbreak
'Evolving picture'
Health experts say the virus comes from the same strain that causes seasonal outbreaks in humans. But they say this newly-detected version contains genetic material from versions of flu which usually affect pigs and birds.
FLU PANDEMICS
1918: The Spanish flu pandemic remains the most devastating outbreak of modern times - infecting up to 40% of the world's population and killing more than 50m people, with young adults particularly badly affected
1957: Asian flu killed two million people. Caused by a human form of the virus, H2N2, combining with a mutated strain found in wild ducks. The elderly were particularly vulnerable
1968: An outbreak first detected in Hong Kong, and caused by a strain known as H3N2, killed up to one million people globally, with those over 65 most likely to die
Swine flu: Your experiences
There is currently no vaccine for this new strain, but severe cases can be treated with antiviral medication.
Dr Keiji Fukuda, the WHO's assistant director-general in charge of health security, said all countries were "looking at this situation very seriously".
"But it's also clear that we are in a period in which the picture is evolving... [and that] we have to be very careful to collect the best possible information," he said.
The WHO is advising all countries to be vigilant for seasonally unusual flu or pneumonia-like symptoms among their populations - particularly among young healthy adults, a characteristic of past pandemics.
Most of those who have died so far in Mexico were young adults.
A top US health official warned that there could be worse to come.
"From what we understand in Mexico, I think people need to be ready for the idea that we could see more severe cases in this country and possibly deaths," Richard Besser, acting head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told ABC television.
President Obama described the situation as "obviously a cause for concern" that "requires a heightened state of alert", but added "it is not a cause for alarm".
He told a meeting of scientists that a public health emergency - declared after cases were found in New York, California, Texas, Kansas and Ohio - was a "precautionary tool" to ensure that all the necessary resources are available "to respond quickly and effectively".
Screening
Countries across the world are taking measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
In the Mexican capital schools, bars and public buildings remained closed and many people were staying indoors.
The BBC talks to people in Mexico City about the flu outbreak.
In pictures
Soldiers handed out six million masks in and around the capital region, where the outbreak is centred.
In Canada, cases were recorded at opposite ends of the country, in British Columbia and in Nova Scotia, while in Spain, a young man who had recently returned from Mexico was found to have the virus. He was said to be in a stable condition.
A number of countries in Asia, Latin America and Europe have begun screening airport passengers for symptoms, while Germany's biggest tour operator has suspended trips to Mexico.
Several countries have banned imports of raw pork and pork products from Mexico and parts of the US, although experts say there is no evidence to link exposure to pork with infection
Experts suspect it has killed more than 100 people in Mexico. Cases have also been found in Canada, the US and on Monday in Spain.
At least five other nations are testing patients for possible swine flu.
President Barack Obama said the cases in the US were a cause for concern but not alarm.
World Health Organization experts are meeting later to discuss the global threat posed by the virus.
The UN has warned that the virus has the potential to become a pandemic. But it says the world is better prepared than ever to deal with the threat.
SWINE FLU
Swine flu is a respiratory disease thought to spread through coughing and sneezing
Symptoms mimic those of normal flu - but in Mexico more than 100 people have died
Good hygiene like using a tissue and washing hands thoroughly can help reduce transmission
The EU has called an emergency meeting of health ministers to discuss the situation and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said he was monitoring the situation closely.
EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou said people should avoid travelling to virus-hit parts of Mexico and the US unless it was "very urgent".
On Sunday, Mexican Health Secretary Jose Angel Cordova said suspected swine flu cases in his country had risen to 1,614.
Of the 103 deaths in Mexico, only 20 are so far confirmed to have been caused by the new virus.
There are 20 confirmed cases in the US, six in Canada and one in Spain, the first case in Europe. In most cases outside Mexico, people have been only mildly ill and have made a full recovery.
In other developments:
• Tests are also being carried out on individuals or groups in New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Britain and Israel who fell ill following travel to Mexico
• A top US health official has warned that there could be "more severe cases" to come
• Shares in airlines have fallen sharply on fears about the economic impact of the outbreak
'Evolving picture'
Health experts say the virus comes from the same strain that causes seasonal outbreaks in humans. But they say this newly-detected version contains genetic material from versions of flu which usually affect pigs and birds.
FLU PANDEMICS
1918: The Spanish flu pandemic remains the most devastating outbreak of modern times - infecting up to 40% of the world's population and killing more than 50m people, with young adults particularly badly affected
1957: Asian flu killed two million people. Caused by a human form of the virus, H2N2, combining with a mutated strain found in wild ducks. The elderly were particularly vulnerable
1968: An outbreak first detected in Hong Kong, and caused by a strain known as H3N2, killed up to one million people globally, with those over 65 most likely to die
Swine flu: Your experiences
There is currently no vaccine for this new strain, but severe cases can be treated with antiviral medication.
Dr Keiji Fukuda, the WHO's assistant director-general in charge of health security, said all countries were "looking at this situation very seriously".
"But it's also clear that we are in a period in which the picture is evolving... [and that] we have to be very careful to collect the best possible information," he said.
The WHO is advising all countries to be vigilant for seasonally unusual flu or pneumonia-like symptoms among their populations - particularly among young healthy adults, a characteristic of past pandemics.
Most of those who have died so far in Mexico were young adults.
A top US health official warned that there could be worse to come.
"From what we understand in Mexico, I think people need to be ready for the idea that we could see more severe cases in this country and possibly deaths," Richard Besser, acting head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told ABC television.
President Obama described the situation as "obviously a cause for concern" that "requires a heightened state of alert", but added "it is not a cause for alarm".
He told a meeting of scientists that a public health emergency - declared after cases were found in New York, California, Texas, Kansas and Ohio - was a "precautionary tool" to ensure that all the necessary resources are available "to respond quickly and effectively".
Screening
Countries across the world are taking measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
In the Mexican capital schools, bars and public buildings remained closed and many people were staying indoors.
The BBC talks to people in Mexico City about the flu outbreak.
In pictures
Soldiers handed out six million masks in and around the capital region, where the outbreak is centred.
In Canada, cases were recorded at opposite ends of the country, in British Columbia and in Nova Scotia, while in Spain, a young man who had recently returned from Mexico was found to have the virus. He was said to be in a stable condition.
A number of countries in Asia, Latin America and Europe have begun screening airport passengers for symptoms, while Germany's biggest tour operator has suspended trips to Mexico.
Several countries have banned imports of raw pork and pork products from Mexico and parts of the US, although experts say there is no evidence to link exposure to pork with infection
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