[NV Greens] Fwd: [usgp-dx] U.S. Green Party News Circulator for 3/7/05-3/14/05

[Paul Etxeberri]

>
>
>U.S. Green Party News Circulator for 3/7/05-3/14/05
>
>For more Green Party news go to http://web.greens.org/news/
>
>******************************************************************
>
>1) CALIFORNIA: GREEN CANDIDATE BACKS PADILLA
>2) ITALY: MARINES FIRE AT HOSTAGE
>3) ENGLAND: CROSS BENCHER; LEADER CROSS BENCHER
>4) PAKISTAN: CITY: RECEPTION FOR NISA TODAY
>5) NEW ZEALAND MCDONALDS LINKED DENTAL SPONSORSHIP SHOULD BE DUMPED -
>GREENS
>6) NEW ZEALAND: GREEN MP AT FESTIVAL
>7) IRELAND: HEARING BEGINS INTO WASTE LICENCE
>8) IRELAND; GREEN PARTY CANDIDATE SAYS M3 ROUTE MUST AVOID TARA
>9) GERMANY: SCANDAL COULD HURT GREEN PARTY, EXPERTS SAY
>10) ENGLAND: POSTAL SWITCH 'UNECESSARY'
>11) WALES: GREENS SEE RED ON BNP
>12) MEXICO: PHARMACY MAGNATE SEEKS SPOT ON PRESIDENTIAL BALLOT IN MEXICO
>
>13) IRELAND: ABUSE 'GOES ON EVERY DAY';
>14) CZECH REPUBLIC : CULTURE MINISTER STRIPS LITERARNI NOVINY WEEKLY OF
>SUBSIDY
>15) MISSOURI: MAYOR HOPES PRIMARY VICTORY SPURS MORE CITY IMPROVEMENTS
>16) AUSTRALIA: AUSTRALIAN LAWMAKERS MULLING INQUIRY INTO TORTURE
>ALLEGATIONS BY GUANTANAMO SUSPECTS
>17) FRENCH POLYNESIA: GREENS LEADER SURPRISED PARTY NOT IN NEW
>GOVERNMENT
>18) NEW ZEALAND: CHINA CONFERENCE FALLS ON TIBET ANNIVERSARY, SAY GREENS
>
>19) SCOTLAND:  GREENS TO MOUNT CITY GENERAL ELECTION BLITZ
>20) ENGLAND: GREEN QUITS TO JOIN MAREK
>21) GERMANY: GERMAN GREENS WARN OF TOXIC RISK FROM NORWAY SCRAPPING
>22) ENGLAND: PARTIES SEE RED OVER GREEN
>23) ENGLAND: NATIONAL AMBITION FOR TOWN COUNCILLOR
>24) ENGLAND: FOUR PARTIES FIGHT TO REPRESENT TOWN WARD
>25) NEW ZEALAND: ACTION WANTED ON PPCS DISCHARGE
>26) GERMANY: GERMANY MOVES TO CURB PROTESTS NEAR HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL
>SITES
>27) IRELAND: NOT SO FAST . . . BURGER OUTLET ON HOLD OVER HEALTH
>CONCERNS
>28) CANADA:  SHEILA COPPS RAISES EYEBROWS IN POLITICAL CIRCLES;
>DENIES SHE'S READY TO JUMP SHIP
>29) NEW ZEALAND: CLARK: BLOOD TEST NOT ONLY SOLUTION
>
>******************************************************************
>
>1) Sacramento Bee;  March 4, 2005
>
>CALIFORNIA: GREEN CANDIDATE BACKS PADILLA
>
>by Jim Sanders
>
>Green congressional candidate Pat Driscoll threw his support Thursday to
>Democrat Julie Padilla in a strategic attempt to defeat Doris Matsui, a
>Democrat with significant name recognition and financial advantages in
>her bid for her late husband's seat.
>
>Driscoll can advance to a May runoff only if Matsui does not receive
>more than 50 percent of the vote in the March 8 election. He said he
>would prefer that Padilla win the Democratic nomination in the 5th
>Congressional District because he opposes Matsui's stances on key
>issues, as well as her fund-raising methods.
>
>   "Julie and I share the same platform," Driscoll said. "And as I am
>assured a spot in the next election round, I think it would be great if
>a progressive Democrat also was in the next round." Padilla was
>registered in 2000 as a Green Party member. But she said Thursday that
>she considers herself a "lifelong Democrat" who registered Green at the
>time because she worked on Green presidential candidate Ralph Nader's
>campaign.
>
>Matsui's campaign downplayed Driscoll's move.
>
>"We're not interested in making an ideological point," said Matsui
>spokesman Nick Papas. "Our goal is to ensure Sacramento has a voice in
>Congress as soon as possible."
>
>******************************************************************
>
>2) Sunday Mail (SA); March 6, 2005
>
>  ITALY: MARINES FIRE AT HOSTAGE
>
>by Patrick Quinn
>
>US troops have been condemned over the shooting of an intelligence
>officer who threw himself in front of a freed Italian hostage as their
>vehicle approached a checkpoint in Baghdad yesterday.
>
>"Another victim of an absurd war," Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, leader of
>the Green Party, said yesterday. "They shot the good guys, when will
>this stupidity end?" ...
>
>******************************************************************
>
>3) Sunday Express; March 6, 2005
>
>ENGLAND: CROSS BENCHER; LEADER CROSS BENCHER
>
>THE GREEN Party launched its spring conference last week with a joint
>speech by its joint leaders. Tony and Gordon spend so much time
>complaining about each stealing the other's thunder that perhaps they
>should take note and try teaming up.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>4) The Pakistan Newswire; March 7, 2005
>
>PAKISTAN: CITY: RECEPTION FOR NISA TODAY
>
>LAHORE; A reception will be organized for the newly elected president of
>Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) Justice (Retd) Fakhar-un-Nisa
>Khokhar by the Greens Party chairperson Yasmin Hussain advocate at
>Lahore Press Club here on Tuesday.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>5) New Zealand Press Association; March 7, 2005
>
>NEW ZEALAND MCDONALDS LINKED DENTAL SPONSORSHIP SHOULD BE DUMPED -
>GREENS
>
>Whangarei, March 7 - Health authorities should dump a sponsorship deal
>for Northland mobile dental services that has links to fast-food chain
>McDonald's, the Green Party says.
>
>But those behind the plan say Northland children have the worst rates of
>tooth decay in the country and the region needs all the help it can get
>to improve dental health.
>
>Ronald McDonald House Charities has granted the Northland District
>Health Board a fully equipped state-of-the-art mobile unit to provide
>dental care for more than 2500 children a year.
>
>The service will provide preventive care, diagnostic services,
>restorative services and education to children and their families. It
>will allow more children to be seen in a shorter time.
>
>But Green MP Sue Kedgley has criticised the plan and is calling on
>Health Minister Annette King to pull the plug on the grant.
>
>  One of the major reasons for poor dental health among our children
>today is the amount of high-sugar food and drinks children are
>consuming,'' she said.
>
>  McDonald's sells these high-sugar drinks and foods that are damaging
>our children's teeth as well as their health and so it is
>incomprehensible that a government health service would promote a
>company which contributes to the dental problems the clinic is trying to
>fix.''
>
>Ronald McDonald House Charities executive director Sarah Hood said it
>was concerning that organisations were trying to discredit the work of
>the charity, which was not run by McDonald's.
>
>  We are proud to have McDonald's as one of our supporters, but we are
>not McDonald's.''
>
>McDonald's was the biggest supporter of the charity, which aimed to
>improve the health and wellbeing of children.
>
>McDonald's spokesman Liam Jeory said the issue was not the type of foods
>and drinks children ate but whether they brushed their teeth or not.
>
>Children in remote Northland communities would visit McDonald's only
>once in a blue moon'' so it was inconceivable an occasional visit to
>McDonald's was causing tooth decay.
>
>  I seriously question why the Green Party are so determined to derail
>something so desperately needed.''
>
>Northland District Health Board chief executive Karyn McPeake said the
>health board was proud to work with Ronald McDonald House Charities and
>looked forward to seeing a positive difference in the community.
>
>  In the Northland area only 35 percent of five-year-olds are free of
>tooth decay,'' she said.
>
>Ms King will officially launch the Ronald McDonald Dental Care Unit on
>Wednesday March 23.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>6) The Nelson Mail (New Zealand); March 7, 2005
>
>NEW ZEALAND: GREEN MP AT FESTIVAL
>
>Green Party co-leader Rod Donald was guest speaker at the Riverside
>Community Peace Festival at the weekend. The two-day festival
>celebrating diversity, saw hundreds of people attend a multitude of
>music, song and alternative therapy workshops at the Lower Moutere
>commune. A speech from Mr Donald focused on the demand for oil exceeding
>world production and the need for lifestyle changes by New Zealanders to
>ensure sustainability in the future. He also acknowledged the Riverside
>Community's principles of pacifism. The community was established in
>1941.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>7) The Irish Times; March 7, 2005
>
>IRELAND: HEARING BEGINS INTO WASTE LICENCE
>
>by Liam Reid
>
>The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is to begin oral hearings
>today on an application for a waste licence for a municipal incinerator
>at Carranstown, Co Meath.
>
>The proposed incinerator, which is a byelection issue in the east of the
>county, has already received planning approval, but will also need a
>waste licence if it is to operate...
>
>...The Green Party is attempting to make the proposed incinerator a
>major issue in the east of Meath during the last week of the byelection
>campaign. Both Green Party leader Trevor Sargent and chairman John
>Gormley are to attend the hearing today.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>8) The Irish Times; March 7, 2005
>
>IRELAND; GREEN PARTY CANDIDATE SAYS M3 ROUTE MUST AVOID TARA
>
>by Liam Reid
>
>Meath and Kildare byelections: Meath's Green Party candidate Fergal
>O'Byrne is standing on the side of the Dublin road, just outside Navan,
>alongside his party leader, Trevor Sargent. He is pointing to a large,
>lined, open pit. Infrastructure the focus of Greens' campaign in Meath
>
>This, he explains, is the latest example of Meath's infrastructure
>deficit; a sewerage overflow station which is needed because the
>four-year-old waste treatment plant for the town is unable to cope.
>
>He has recently been informed that sewage is also being taken by tanker
>from the sewerage plant at Farganstown to Dublin's Ringsend facility.
>"Even the effluent has to commute to Dublin," Trevor Sargent says.
>
>Infrastructure, or the lack of it, is very much the focus of the Green
>Party campaign in Meath, and the party is keen to shed the perception
>that it is anti-development. O'Byrne says he is not opposed to the M3,
>but believes the current route should be changed to avoid the
>Tara-Skryne valley.
>
>Indeed, he believes that if a more direct route could be chosen, then a
>transport corridor could be created to accommodate a rail line.
>
>The road has become a big election issue, with surveys indicating that
>many people want the current route to proceed, because of fears that a
>rerouting would cause delays, which has been seized upon by Fianna Fail.
>
>The Green candidate is irate at what he sees as deliberate
>misinformation. "The protesters haven't delayed this road at all. It's
>the Government that has delayed things, because they wanted to toll it.
>
>"Originally a dual carriageway was planned for this road, with bypasses
>of Dunshaughlin, Navan and Kells, and the existing road in between being
>upgraded. It would be built by now, if they'd gone ahead with it.
>
>"Instead the Government decided to bring in tolling, and because dual
>carriageways can't be tolled, they upgraded the M3 to motorway, and
>we're still waiting for it."
>
>Fergal O'Byrne is an election veteran at this stage, having stood and
>lost in both the council election last year and 2002 general election.
>He acknowledges his chances are slim, but isn't despondent. "Anything
>can happen in a byelection."
>
>His canvas hit an unforeseen block however. It's Mother's Day and,
>unusually for a Sunday, almost every house is empty. The full car parks
>in the hotels and restaurants indicate most Navan mammies had been taken
>out for lunch.
>
>At the few houses where someone is at home, O'Byrne gets a good welcome.
>
>"At least you've come to the door, not like them others waiting at the
>escalators in the shopping centre," says one indignant voter.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>9) Greenwire; March 7, 2005
>
>GERMANY: SCANDAL COULD HURT GREEN PARTY, EXPERTS SAY
>
>Germany's Green Party, one of the most powerful such parties in the
>world, could be facing major electoral hurdles due to an immigration
>controversy ensnaring its highest-ranked official.
>
>A staple of German politics for a quarter of a century, the Greens are
>part of a ruling coalition with the Social Democratic Party.
>
>In 2001, the party scored one of its biggest political victories around
>the world when the German Parliament approved a plan to shut down the
>country's 19 nuclear plants within 20 years. Phasing out nuclear power
>-- which provided nearly one-third of Germany's electricity -- was one
>of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's key promises to the Green Party.
>
>Green Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer is in the center of a scandal
>involving visas granted to Ukrainian human traffickers. As the most
>visible figure in his party, his possible resignation may hurt the
>party's chances in upcoming elections, analysts said last week ( The
>Economist March 3 issue). -- CD
>
>******************************************************************
>
>10) The Gloucester Citizen; March 7, 2005
>
>ENGLAND: POSTAL SWITCH 'UNECESSARY'
>
>The Green Party in Stroud says an open market for postal services should
>have been unnecessary. From January 1, 2006, the Royal Mail's 350-reign
>as the nation's postal provider will come to an end, with private
>companies able to offer a postal service.
>
>  But Martin Whiteside, the Green Party's Prospective Parliamentary
>candidate for the Stroud District, said: "Why does anyone think we need
>a choice of postal providers if the single system we've got now worked
>properly? "Surely the only choice the public is interested in is whether
>a letter gets there on time or not?"
>
>******************************************************************
>
>11) South Wales Evening Post; March 8, 2005
>
>WALES: GREENS SEE RED ON BNP
>
>The Green Party in Swansea has said it will not share a platform with
>the British National Party in the forthcoming General Election. The
>extreme right-wing BNP, which is campaigning to halt any further
>immigration, has announced plans to fight for a seat in Swansea for the
>first time.
>
>  The party will field a candidate in Swansea East in the coming General
>Election, which is widely expected to be held on May 5.
>
>  But Swansea Green Party election campaign manager, Leigh Richards, said
>today his party would have nothing to do with the BNP.
>
>  "As far as we are concerned, we are disappointed that the BNP will be
>standing in Swansea in the next General Election.
>
>  "We want to make clear that we will not share a platform with any of
>their candidates at any time."
>
>******************************************************************
>
>12) Associated Press Worldstream; March 8, 2005
>
>MEXICO: PHARMACY MAGNATE SEEKS SPOT ON PRESIDENTIAL BALLOT IN MEXICO
>
>by  Morgan Lee
>
>MEXICO CITY-- Discount pharmacy magnate Victor Gonzalez says he can feel
>the support of the people, with Mexico's presidential elections now 16
>months away.
>
>Gonzalez has made a name for himself based on the popularity of his
>fast-growing discount drug chain Farmacias Similares, but still needs
>the backing of a political party to get on the presidential ballot in
>2006.
>
>"They ask me if I have a party," Gonzalez said at a news conference
>Tuesday. "Yes, the party is my entire country."...
>
>...The uncle of Green Party President Jorge Emilio Gonzalez and the
>brother of the small party's founder, Victor Gonzalez has ruled out an
>affiliation with the Greens, preferring to strike out on his own....
>
>******************************************************************
>
>13) Irish News; March 9, 2005
>
>IRELAND: ABUSE 'GOES ON EVERY DAY';
>
>GREEN Party spokeswoman on women's affairs Councillor Bronwen Maher said
>violence against women was an everyday occurrence in the Republic.
>
>  "Research shows that 18 percent of women have experienced domestic
>violence, and 20 percent of adult women have experienced sexual
>violence.
>
>  Given the scale of the problem, the Green Party is calling on the
>government to increase the current level of funding for specialist
>services which deal with violence against women, " she said.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>14) Czech News Agency; March 9, 2005
>
>CZECH REPUBLIC : CULTURE MINISTER STRIPS LITERARNI NOVINY WEEKLY OF
>SUBSIDY
>
>PRAGUE, March 9 (CTK) - Culture Minister Pavel Dostal suspended the
>subsidy which the ministry grant commission for literature recommended
>to give to the weekly Literarni noviny this year, the ministry's
>spokeswoman Katerina Besserova told CTK today.
>
>"At present it is totally unclear which direction the paper contents
>will follow, whether it will focus on literature or be connected with
>specific political activities," Dostal said.
>
>He added the case will be reassessed when the controversies over the
>paper's concept are solved within the editor's office.
>
>Dostal informed on his decision Literarni noviny editor-in- chief, Jakub
>Patocka, and head of the publishers, Alexandr Kliment.
>
>But Patocka said he had not yet received Dostal's letter and told CTK he
>would not speculate on whether the decision would financially threaten
>the weekly.
>
>According to CTK information, Literarni noviny asked for a 2.9 million
>crowns subsidy, but the commission recommended to grant the weekly
>600,000 crowns. Last year, it received 650,000 crowns.
>
>Literarni noviny had problems to get the subsidy last year already as it
>was allegedly politicised.
>
>The weekly faces an uncertain situation because 11 of its 16 editors
>handed in their notices in February over repeated complaints against
>Patocka.
>
>They say Patocka has not been almost interested in the weekly's
>management because of his involvement in politics.
>
>The editors twice asked the publishers to dismiss Patocka, but in vain.
>Two members of the publishers committee, writers Viola Fischerova and
>Eda Kriseova, resigned from their posts in protest.
>
>The critical situation will be solved at a extraordinary general meeting
>to be held in several weeks.
>
>Patocka plans to move the editor's office from Prague to Brno, south
>Moravia, and employ mainly external editors.
>
>Patocka is a member of the non-parliament Green Party. Last year he
>failed as its candidate to the European Parliament. All the editors, who
>had not submitted their notices, are members of the Green Party.
>
>Literarni noviny was set up in 1952 as the weekly of the Czechoslovak
>Writers' Association. It was officially banned following the Russian-led
>occupation of the country in 1968 and re-established after the fall of
>communism in 1990.
>
>($ 1=22.284 crowns)
>
>******************************************************************
>
>15) The Associated Press State & Local Wire; March 9, 2005
>
>MISSOURI: MAYOR HOPES PRIMARY VICTORY SPURS MORE CITY IMPROVEMENTS
>
>by Betsy Taylor
>
>ST. LOUIS-- Bidding for a second term, St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay says
>he hopes he can use his victory in Tuesday's Democratic primary as a
>springboard to get more done in office.
>
>Slay got 24,930 votes - 66 percent - in light turnout Tuesday, handily
>defeating city alderwoman Irene Smith, with 11,732 votes, and school
>board member Bill Haas, with 1,263.
>
>St. Louis is a Democratic stronghold, where a Republican hasn't held the
>city's top job since 1949. No Republicans are running, making the only
>other candidate in the April 5 election the Green Party's Willie
>Marshall, who got 123 votes Tuesday....
>
>******************************************************************
>
>16) Associated Press Worldstream; March 9, 2005
>
>AUSTRALIA: AUSTRALIAN LAWMAKERS MULLING INQUIRY INTO TORTURE ALLEGATIONS
>BY GUANTANAMO SUSPECTS
>
>CANBERRA-- Some Australian lawmakers are pushing for an inquiry into
>allegations that the United States sends terror suspects to foreign
>countries to be tortured, and the opposition Labor Party was deciding
>Thursday whether to back the proposal.
>
>The left-wing Greens Party planned to formally propose a Senate inquiry
>next week following allegations by an Australian released from
>Guantanamo Bay in January that he had been sent to Egypt to be
>tortured....
>
>The Egyptian-born Australian, Mamdouh Habib, 50, claimed in a television
>interview broadcast by Australian public broadcaster SBS on Wednesday
>that his Egyptian interrogators who allegedly tortured him had been
>briefed by Australia's secret service.
>
>His allegation raised fresh questions about Australia's knowledge of
>abuse.
>
>The Greens would need the support of Labor as well as other opposition
>parties and independent senators for the inquiry to be established,
>because government senators will oppose it. The government does not hold
>a majority of seats in the upper house Senate....
>
>******************************************************************
>
>17) Tahitipresse/Pacnews (Through Asia Pulse); March 10, 2005
>
>FRENCH POLYNESIA: GREENS LEADER SURPRISED PARTY NOT IN NEW GOVERNMENT
>
>FRENCH POLYNESIA 10 MARCH 2005 (Pacnews): Jacky Bryant said Tuesday he
>was surprised his Greens Party was not included in French Polynesia
>President Oscar Temaru's new government. Bryant noted that his party was
>part of Temaru's multi-party Union for Democracy (UPLD) coalition for
>the Feb. 13 by-election for the 37 Windward Islands seats in the 57-seat
>French Polynesia Assembly. "I'm surprised insofar as the overture that
>was promised us didn't occur," Bryant said. "The idea of a collegial
>structure that we displayed during political meetings is not found in
>the government," he said, referring to the absence of any Green Party
>members among Temaru's 16 government ministers announced Monday.
>
>"I think that Oscar Temaru chose more qualified people," Bryant said. As
>for a ministerial post for the Greens Party, he said, "We didn't ask for
>anything. But we thought that it was obvious to everyone." Bryant,
>however, becomes one of the UPLD's 29 representatives in the Assembly by
>replacing Patricia Jennings, who was appointed minister of solidarity in
>the Temaru government.
>
>Bryant said his party is due to meet Saturday to discuss the makeup of
>the new Temaru government. -
>
>******************************************************************
>
>18) New Zealand Press Association; March 10, 2005
>
>NEW ZEALAND: CHINA CONFERENCE FALLS ON TIBET ANNIVERSARY, SAY GREENS
>
>Wellington, March 10 - The Green Party said today it could not believe
>the Government was promoting the benefits of a free trade agreement with
>China on the anniversary of Tibet's uprising against Chinese occupation.
>
>  Today marks the anniversary of when the Dalai Lama went into exile,''
>Green Party co-leader Rod Donald said.
>
>  And here we have all these people talking about how to make profits by
>trading with China without acknowledging that those profits have been
>made at the expense of working people and particularly political
>prisoners.''
>
>Prime Minister Helen Clark spoke today at Auckland Rotary Club's Inside
>the New China: Updating Challenges for New Zealand Conference.
>
>In her speech, she outlined the benefits of a free trade agreement (FTA)
>with China although she also noted the differences of perspective'' on
>human rights.
>
>Miss Clark said the next round of negotiations on a FTA with China would
>be held in New Zealand in May.
>
>Chinese President Hu Jintao and Miss Clark launched negotiations for a
>FTA last November.
>
>Mr Donald, who was protesting today outside the conference venue, told
>NZPA the Greens were opposed to a free trade deal with China.
>
>  We cannot understand why a Labour Government would want to give
>preferential trade access to a country that refuses to ratify five core
>international labour conventions and continues to abuse the human rights
>of its own people and the people of occupied Tibet.''
>
>He said there should be a free Tibet before free trade with China.
>
>  It's most insensitive that this conference is being held today because
>this is the 46th anniversary of the Tibetan people's uprising against
>Chinese occupation.''
>
>Rotary had a creed it operated to that included whatever they were doing
>had to be beneficial to all''.
>
>There were rules against importing goods made in prison camps but a
>written answer from Government Minister Rick Barker said officials had
>no way of checking.
>
>  There are seven million political prisoners in China, many of them
>Tibetans, who are making a whole range of products... Some of them are
>bound to be coming in to New Zealand.''
>
>The Government has estimated New Zealand's exports to China would grow
>by between $ 260m and $ 400m a year more than the level which would be
>achieved without the removal of trade barriers.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>19) Evening News (Edinburgh); March 10, 2005
>
>SCOTLAND:  GREENS TO MOUNT CITY GENERAL ELECTION BLITZ
>
>by Ian Swanson
>
>GREEN Party candidates will stand in all five of Edinburgh's Westminster
>seats at the General Election for the first time.
>
>  The party aims to build on its success in winning two Lothians seats at
>the last Scottish Parliament elections and a strong performance at last
>year's European election.
>
>  But it is also preparing the ground for the next local government
>elections in 2007, which will see the introduction of proportional
>representation, giving smaller parties a much better chance of success.
>
>  And the Greens believe they could win up to nine seats on Edinburgh
>City Council. The party unveiled its General Election candidates for the
>city today and said it would campaign on major national issues such as
>opposition to the Iraq war and tackling climate change, as well as local
>matters like reducing traffic pollution and protecting green spaces.
>
>  The Greens made their first major breakthrough in Scottish politics at
>the Scottish Parliament elections in 1999, when former teacher Robin
>Harper was elected as a Lothians list MSP, the first Green
>parliamentarian in Britain. At the last general election, in 2001, the
>party only fielded a candidate in Edinburgh Central, but polled enough
>votes to save its deposit for the first time at a Westminster election.
>
>  At the 2003 Scottish Parliament elections, the party concentred its
>efforts on regional lists. That resulted in a total of seven MSPs,
>including a second Lothians Green, Mark Ballard. And in the European
>Parliament elections last year, the Greens came second in Edinburgh
>North and Leith and won more votes than the SNP in Edinburgh Central and
>Edinburgh South.
>
>  Mark Sydenham, convener of Edinburgh Greens, said: "There was a strong
>Green vote in Edinburgh, particularly in North and Central
>constituencies, at the European election last year, which bodes well for
>the Westminster election. And on that sort of showing we would expect as
>many as nine Greens on Edinburgh council in 2007."
>
>  He also claimed the road tolls referendum had boosted support for the
>Greens, despite the rejection of the congestion charging proposals.
>
>  Mr Sydenham, who has written two books on environmental issues, is to
>be the Green candidate in Edinburgh North and Leith.
>
>  Cara Gillespie, a former support group worker for rape victims, will
>stand in Edinburgh East.
>
>  The candidate in Edinburgh South will be Steve Burgess, who has
>campaigned for Greenpeace in Australia and New Zealand and now leads the
>research team for the Green MSPs at the Scottish Parliament.
>
>  Edinburgh South-West will be fought by John Blair-Fish, a Scottish
>champion hill runner who has a Meteorology PhD and chairs the Edinburgh
>and Lothians World Development Movement.
>
>  And Alisa Spindler, the former director of a human rights organisation
>in Brussels, will be the Green candidate in Edinburgh West. She said:
>"The current UK Government has taken us to war on an immoral and illegal
>basis, while ignoring pressing issues at home. Its record on
>environmental protection and human rights is a disgrace."
>
>******************************************************************
>
>20) Daily Post (Liverpool); March 10, 2005
>
>ENGLAND: GREEN QUITS TO JOIN MAREK
>
>A LEADING environmental campaigner has quit the Green Party to join
>Forward Wales.
>
>Klaus Armstrong-Braun was the only Green county councillor ever elected
>in Wales.
>
>He said he was joining Forward Wales because the party embraced green
>principles as well as having clear policies on defending public services
>and democracy in Wales.
>
>Mr Armstrong-Braun, of Broughton, served on Flintshire County Council
>for nine years and is still a Saltney town councillor. He is a prominent
>critic of Labour-run Flintshire Council. He also campaigned against
>genetically modified crops being tested in Wales and led protests
>against testing at Sealand to keep Wales GM-free.
>
>He said: 'I'm hoping my experience on social and environmental matters
>as a former county councillor will help Forward Wales move ahead
>according to green principles.'
>
>Forward Wales leader John Marek, AM for Wrexham, welcomed the new
>recruit
>
>******************************************************************
>
>21) Lloyd's List; March 10, 2005
>
>GERMANY: GERMAN GREENS WARN OF TOXIC RISK FROM NORWAY SCRAPPING
>
>by Ed Holt
>
>GERMANY'S Green Party has warned of a huge environmental risk in the
>planned break-up of the Norway - once the largest liner afloat.
>
>The party has said the ship, built as the France 45 years ago, is almost
>certain to contain substances such as asbestos, carcinogenic PCBs, toxic
>chemicals and environmentally hazardous oil and coolants.
>
>Party MPs want authorities in Bremerhaven, where the vessel is docked,
>to carry out a detailed study to assess the potential environmental
>risks before permission to scrap the vessel is given.
>
>Green Party MP Rainder Steenblock said: "It is imperative a thorough
>inspection be undertaken to determine that the Norway in no way poses a
>threat to health or to the environment during the scrapping process."
>
>Norwegian Cruise Lines, which owns the vessel, reportedly took the
>decision to sell the ship for scrap after failing to find a buyer
>willing to pay more than $ 20m - Norway's estimated scrap-metal value -
>for the intact vessel.
>
>Launched into service in 1962, France was, at 315 m, the longest ocean
>liner in the world at the time. But it suffered as transatlantic jet
>travel took off and was taken out of service in 1974.
>
>In 1979 it was bought by the Norwegian Caribbean Line, renamed Norway,
>refurbished and began operating on year-round cruise routes.
>
>But in May 2003 while the ship was docked in Miami a boiler exploded,
>causing a fire which killed six crewmen and injured four others.
>
>At one stage German shipyard Lloyd Werft was set to repair the Norway
>but legal battles over compensation for the families of the dead crewmen
>left the ship docked in Bremerhaven and high maintenance costs led its
>owners to eventually look for a buyer.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>22) The Star (Sheffield); March 11, 2005
>
>ENGLAND: PARTIES SEE RED OVER GREEN
>
>A ROW has broken out over the environmental credentials of Sheffield's
>Green Party.
>
>The Lib Dems have accused the fledgling Greens of ignoring their
>electoral pledges - and of backing Labour.
>
>Lib Dems today claimed they carry the standard for the environment, in a
>swipe at the newest party with representation at the Town Hall.
>
>They claim the Green's budget proposals for 2005-06 had no new "green"
>policies at all.
>
>But the Greens hit back saying they were presenting a "realistic"
>budget, arguing it was better for all parties to co-operate to bring
>improvements rather than to argue for argument's sake.
>
>Coun Martin Brelsford, Liberal Democrat Shadow Cabinet member for
>Environment, Culture, Leisure and Sport, said: "The Green Party slogan
>for the last local election was 'the real choice for real change'.
>
>"The Green manifesto promised a zero-waste policy, more pay for carers
>of the elderly and the abolishment of residents parking fees, amongst a
>whole catalogue of pledges. Now they have a Green councillor they
>haven't changed a thing and have gone along with the Labour group."
>
>******************************************************************
>
>23) Kent and Sussex Courier; March 11, 2005
>
>ENGLAND: NATIONAL AMBITION FOR TOWN COUNCILLOR
>
>A Town councillor from Crowborough is hoping to transfer his campaigning
>views onto the national stage by running for MP. Julian Salmon, 43, who
>is well-known in the town as the council's solitary Green Party
>representative, has announced he will try to oust MP Charles Hendry at
>the next General Election, widely tipped for May 5.
>
>Cllr Salmon is vying for the Tory's Wealden seat along with Lib Dem
>hopeful Chris Wigley and Labour's Dudley Rose.
>
>This will be his second attempt to get onto the Commons benches after
>unsuccessfully standing at the 2001 general election, when he polled
>1,200 votes. He also stood in the 1999 European ballot.
>
>Cllr Salmon, a resident of Jarvis Brook for 15 years, has been on the
>town council since 1999.
>
>He is a staunch supporter of keeping Crowborough's natural habitat
>intact and vocal in his opposition of mobile phone masts.
>
>On a national scale, he has also attended several protest marches in
>London against the invasion of Iraq and has written to home secretary
>Charles Clarke about the detention without trial of prisoners in the UK.
>
>Of Iraq, he said: "The millions or billions of pounds spent on this
>illegal invasion would have been better spent on health, education and
>the number one threat to our planet - climate change. Ever wondered why
>you pay so much tax?"
>
>******************************************************************
>
>24) Kent and Sussex Courier; March 11, 2005
>
>ENGLAND: FOUR PARTIES FIGHT TO REPRESENT TOWN WARD
>
>Against a backdrop of fierce political campaigning in Tunbridge Wells in
>the run-up to the general election, grass roots politics has its own
>battle for the votes. Candidates from four parties are fighting for a
>seat on Tunbridge Wells Borough Council after the departure of Lib Dem
>Cllr Geoff Young.
>
>He was one of three ward members for St John's and has moved away from
>the area. The by-election will be held on Thursday.
>
>The Lib Dems will be hoping to hold on to the seat through lawyer Joanna
>Au Brey.
>
>But well-known Maurice Knights - a resident of more than 40 years and a
>Southborough town councillor - has thrown his hat into the ring for
>Labour.
>
>The Conservatives will be hoping to increase their stronghold on the
>48-seat council through businessman Brian Ransley, and retired
>specialist dyslexia teacher Phyllis Leslie will be on the campaign trail
>for the Green Party...
>
>...Staunch Green Party candidate Mrs Leslie, of Queens Road, who is in
>her 60s, said she would "put residents before developers and tourists".
>
>  "I would listen to residents and find out what is important to them. I
>am concerned about affordable housing, pollution, traffic calming, and
>parks and open spaces being available to everyone.
>
>  "I am concerned about the spread of housing into rural areas, and
>greenfield sites should not go except where absolutely essential.
>
>  "Walking and cycling routes are also very important." ...
>
>******************************************************************
>
>25) The Timaru Herald (New Zealand); March 12, 2005
>
>NEW ZEALAND: ACTION WANTED ON PPCS DISCHARGE
>
>by Nellie Husband
>
>A group of Pareora residents is taking a stand against the continued
>discharge to ocean of "filth" from the freezing works.
>
>PPCS's consent to discharge waste from the slaughtering process expires
>this July and the company has lodged an application with Environment
>Canterbury (Ecan) to renew the consent for 10 years.
>
>An additional request to irrigate about 229ha of land is also part of
>the new consent application.
>
>Residents Against Pollution of the Pareora Environment (RAPPE), a
>recently-formed group supported by the Green Party, are preparing a
>submission to Ecan opposing the application.
>
>Spokesperson Paul Rosie yesterday expressed disbelief that the discharge
>of barely treated material to ocean was still permissible in 2005. The
>Green Party would be raising the issue in Parliament over the next
>fortnight, he said.
>
>However, PPCS says it is working towards a land-based treatment system,
>and improvements on site -- including water conservation and separating
>clean and dirty wastewater streams -- will improve the quality of the
>effluent being discharged to ocean.
>
>An Ecan letter informing Mr Rosie of the application for resource
>consent lists the discharge's "potential contaminants" as nitrogen,
>phosphorous, sodium, calcium, potassium and greases.
>
>"(The works) have been making profits for many years and they've been
>spewing this filth out for many years and the best they can come up with
>is more of the same."
>
>Mr Rosie had seen "many times" the discharge drift up the coast as far
>as Normanby and believed it often reached Jack's Point.
>
>While Mr Rosie said he did not have any personal objection to irrigating
>land with the discharge aside from the issues of smell and flies, RAPPE
>wanted to see better treatment of the discharge, or preferably, no
>discharge.
>
>"It's a way of covering up a terrible rape of the resource (water taken
>from the Pareora River). There must be more they could do."
>
>Mr Rosie cited successful community action against the works at Pukeuri,
>which saw the plant subjecting its discharge to more intensive treatment
>and said RAPPE would be satisfied with a similar outcome.
>
>The group would be following due process as outlined by the Resource
>Management Act (RMA) but if Ecan agreed to the consent application,
>RAPPE would not back down.
>
>"If PPCS wants to be seen as something out of the dark ages and refuses
>to take responsibility for their discharge then so be it and they will
>have a fight on their hands. But at this stage, we're hoping that the
>freezing works will do what's right and be responsible."
>
>PPCS technical services manager Grant Pearson said the adverse effects
>of the effluent discharge to the ocean are minimal, however as it
>results in discolouration, the company is working towards a land- based
>treatment.
>
>It has purchased a block of land north of Pareora for this purpose, and
>as it is not free-draining, the company is investigating the appropriate
>effluent irrigation rate.
>
>"For this reason, we have applied for a relatively short-term consent,
>so we can fully develop the irrigation system and determine if there is
>a need for any further effluent treatment systems.
>
>"Because this new scheme will take several seasons to develop, we need
>to continue discharging a limited amount of effluent via the ocean
>discharge, when there is surplus effluent."
>
>" With a combination of water conservation on site and separation of
>clean from dirty streams, the discharge to the sea will progressively
>reduce and get cleaner."
>
>"We believe that this approach is the best environmental solution."
>
>******************************************************************
>
>26) Los Angeles Times; March 12, 2005
>
>GERMANY: GERMANY MOVES TO CURB PROTESTS NEAR HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL SITES
>
>by Jeffrey Fleishman
>
>BERLIN--  In a move to limit neo-Nazi rallies during the upcoming 60th
>anniversary of the end of World War II, the lower house of the German
>Parliament voted Friday to tighten restrictions on gatherings around
>landmarks honoring Holocaust victims.
>
>The move came amid government fears of a resurgence of right-wing
>extremism. Immigration and high unemployment have allowed radical
>messages to resonate, especially in the Dresden region, where far-right
>parties won 12 seats in the state legislature last year.
>
>"A broad majority of the [parliament] has given the victims of the Nazi
>regime a clear signal: Germany will remain vigilant even 60 years after
>Auschwitz," Silke Stokar von Neuforn, a Green Party member, said after
>the vote. The legislation was supported by all major parties and is
>virtually assured of passing the upper house of Parliament next week.
>
>Under the measure, which was appended to an existing law, demonstrations
>near monuments marking the Holocaust will be restricted and protesters
>who glorify Adolf Hitler's Third Reich will be jailed....
>
>******************************************************************
>
>27) Irish Independent; March 12, 2005
>
>IRELAND: NOT SO FAST . . . BURGER OUTLET ON HOLD OVER HEALTH CONCERNS
>
>by Gordon Deegan
>
>CONCERNS over the potential health impact on local children in Ennis
>from a new McDonald's outlet yesterday resulted in the planned
>restaurant being put on hold. This follows Green Party councillor, Brian
>Meaney yesterday appealing Ennis Town Council's decision to grant
>planning permission to the fast-food giant to construct an 85-seater
>drive-thru restaurant to An Bord Pleanala. Cllr Meaney said yesterday:
>"It is imperative that the appeals board order an Environmental Impact
>Statement into the health impacts of the proposed McDonalds.
>
>He added: (Such a statement) can be used as a template when assessing
>the merits of other fast-food outlets across the country.
>
>In granting planning, the Council stated that the proposal is in
>accordance with proper planning and development as it will not be
>injurious to the amenity of adjacent properties. Currently, each day in
>Ireland, 150,000 people eat at McDonalds' 68 outlets.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>28) Edmonton Sun (Alberta); March 12, 2005
>
>CANADA:  SHEILA COPPS RAISES EYEBROWS IN POLITICAL CIRCLES;
>DENIES SHE'S READY TO JUMP SHIP
>
>by  Sun Media
>
>Sheila Copps was, not unexpectedly, a no-show at the Liberal party
>convention in Ottawa last weekend.
>
>The longtime Chretien loyalist and Martin leadership opponent was busy
>raising eyebrows in Toronto a few days before the convention when the
>former environment minister showed up at a Green party function in
>Trinity-Spadina.
>
>Copps gave a talk on environmental issues, pushing the Martin government
>for early action on the Kyoto accord to halt climate change.
>
>Still steaming over the heavy-handed tactics of the Martinites in a
>bitterly contested Hamilton riding nomination just before last year's
>election, Copps flirted with Jack Layton's New Democrats.
>
>Is she now taking a serious look at the Greens?
>
>"No, I'm not about to change (political) colours," Copps says on her web
>blog.
>
>******************************************************************
>
>29) The Daily News (New Plymouth, New Zealand); March 12, 2005
>
>NEW ZEALAND: CLARK: BLOOD TEST NOT ONLY SOLUTION
>
>by Rochelle West
>
>PRIME MINISTER Helen Clark has backed away from suggestions the
>Government should provide extra health care to Paritutu residents
>affected by dioxin.
>
>While in New Plymouth yesterday, Miss Clark said she believed the
>Ministry of Health was on the right track in dealing with Paritutu's
>historical dioxin issues.
>
>That was despite Green Party MP Sue Kedgley calling for the Government
>to provide free blood tests to everyone who lived near the former Ivon
>Watkins-Dow (IWD) chemical plant in New Plymouth while it was in
>operation.
>
>Ms Kedgley also believed the Government should provide free annual
>medical checkups, then treatment if necessary.
>
>But Miss Clark said offering free blood tests would not necessarily
>prove anything.
>
>"The blood test will tell you what the level of dioxin is, but it
>doesn't tell you if there is anything wrong with you.
>
>"(Ms Kedgley) is jumping from what we know about the dioxin levels, to
>implying that it is a diagnosis of disease, which it isn't.
>
>"One of the frustrating things for everybody about this is that we can't
>say with any accuracy, what might happen to any individual," she said.
>
>The results from a second round of blood tests, released on Thursday,
>confirmed that people living near the Paritutu plant between 1962 and
>1987 -- when IWD produced the weed killer 2,4,5-T -- had high levels of
>potentially cancer-causing dioxin in their bodies.
>
>Dioxin levels in 52 people tested ranged from no higher than the New
>Zealand average, to 15 times higher.
>
>Those people involved in the studies are entitled to a free visit to
>their GP.
>
>Miss Clark urged any former Paritutu residents -- no matter where they
>now lived in New Zealand -- to contact their local Medical Officer of
>Health, where they would be offered an examination and counselling.
>
>"I think the message will clearly go out . . . that the levels found
>were an average four-times greater and (people) will be pretty alert to
>any change they feel in the health condition.
>
>"Unfortunately, we are dealing in an area where no one knows enough,"
>she said.
>
>The dioxin studies were on-going and more information about cancer rates
>in New Plymouth was due out by the end of June, she said.
>
>Miss Clark was ruling out any compensation for affected Paritutu
>residents, however.
>
>"The advice we have is that we would be most unlikely to succeed in such
>an action against Dow."
>
>******************************************************************
>
>NOTICE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is
>distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest
>in receiving the included information for research and educational
>purposes.
>
>For more Green Party news go to http://web.greens.org/news/
>
>
>
>
>
>
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-- 
Paul Etxeberri

"Forests precede civilizations and deserts follow"   ---Chateaubriand