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Pope art

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 09:30:03 GMT

By David Willey
BBC News, Rome

Pope Benedict has invited international artists, sculptors, architects, musicians, film directors and even a solitary Italian prima ballerina to meet him under the soaring vaulted ceiling of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel in the Vatican on Saturday to begin a new dialogue between the Catholic Church and the arts.

Five hundred invitations were sent out to leading figures in the arts around the world last September, and more than 250 acceptances have been received at the Vatican.

Among them are such well-known names such as Anish Kapoor, whose current exhibition at the Royal Academy in London is drawing crowds; Zaha Hadid, the Iraqi-born British architect whose striking new Maxxi Museum of Modern Art has just opened in Rome; Daniel Libeskind, the Polish-born American who won the competition for the reconstruction of the World Trade Centre site in New York; and F Murray Abraham, the American movie star of Syrian descent who won an Oscar for Best Actor for his role as Salieri in the Mozart film, Amadeus, in 1985.

It is an eclectic list in which Italians outnumber all the foreigners. Among them are sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro; the doyen of film score composers, Ennio Morricone; and opera star Andrea Bocelli.

For the moment, the Vatican is being coy about revealing which artists refused the Pope's invitation or excused themselves on the grounds of a previous engagement.

The Sistine chapel choir will welcome the artists with a motet by the 16th Century composer Palestrina as they troop into the awe-inspiring chapel where Popes are elected, to hear extracts from a letter addressed by the late Pope John Paul II to the world's artists exactly 10 years ago.

Pope Benedict will then give his take on the long-established and rich connections between the Catholic Church as patron of most of the arts represented among his extensive guest list.

Crucified frog

Popes love to lecture their guests. John Paul described artists as "ingenious creators of beauty" in his address on the eve of the new Millennium, and distinguished between the roles of "creators" and "craftsmen".

"The Church needs art," Pope John Paul wrote, "but can it also be said that art needs the Church" he went on to ask.

In today's growingly secular societies, art sometimes manages to offend the Church.

"The building of these churches, and the pride the parishioners take in them, show that we have a dialogue with the architects of modernity"

Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi

A German artist, Martin Kippenberger, who exhibited a sculpture of a crucified frog at an art exhibition in Bolzano in northern Italy last year, got into hot water with the local ecclesiastical authorities.

Pope Benedict's new reaching out to artists is being masterminded by his newly-appointed culture commissar, Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, a biblical scholar, archaeologist and author, who now heads the Pontifical Council for Culture and the Church's commission for Cultural Heritage.

Within months of his appointment, Archbishop Ravasi was suggesting a Vatican cultural presence not only at the Venice Biennale but at the Frankfurt book fair and "an analogous presence in those places where the new artistic vocabulary is elaborated".

Addressing the issue of modern artists, he said in a recent interview with Osservatore Romano, the Vatican daily, "experience tells me that there is less a preconceived attitude of rejection [on the artists' part] than their conviction that the Church has long since taken another route. But when we show our interest, the responses we get are mostly positive".

'Devil's work'

The Vatican Museums were opened 500 years ago. A number of factors subsequently weakened the artists' relations with papal patronage.

Unification of Italy in 1870 reduced the Vatican possessions from a large swath across the peninsula to just 110 acres. As art trends gradually turned away from the figurative toward the abstract, many people, priests included, failed to keep up with the taste of art sophisticates.

"Today our problem is to get ordinary people to welcome this type of art. We need to help them to understand that art is part of the spirit," Archbishop Ravasi said.

A number of Roman Catholic churches have been built recently by such renowned architects as Renzo Piano of Italy, Richard Meier from America, and Tadao Ando of Japan - and celebrated by parishioners as well as by architecture critics.

"The building of these churches, and the pride the parishioners take in them, show that we have a dialogue with the architects of modernity," Archbishop Ravasi explains, "but there's another problem here: Often the great modern architects do not want interference with the purity of their buildings."

This architectural purity can conflict with the Church's reliance upon religious symbols.

When a church is too lacking in the traditional symbols of Catholicism, the parish priests tend to take their own initiatives, often with indifferent results, Archbishop Ravasi said.

Changing parishioners' taste will not be easy, he admits, even when a parish priest forsakes craft work for the avant-garde.

He tells the story of his introducing segments of modern music into the Church liturgy on several occasions in Milan.

"The church was filled with young people," he said. "It was a fine experience - but later I received letters of protest from older parishioners, some of whom considered the new music the Devil's work."

A small collection of modern art was first put on view in the Vatican as long ago as 1932. But it was Pope Paul VI who decided in the 1960s to extend the Vatican's huge collection of antique art to include major 20th Century artists.

Before the Sistine Chapel meeting, the invited artists are being taken on a guided tour of this collection which includes works by Francis Bacon, Graham Sutherland, Matisse and Georges Rouault. They will be gently encouraged to make a gift of one of their works to the Vatican collection.

Television queen

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:30:02 GMT

By Kevin Connolly
BBC News, Washington

When most American corporations announce the launch of a new business plan, it is done in a statement on Wall Street or at a meeting with a handful of high-powered analysts.

When the corporation in question is Oprah, Inc, the news is delivered in a slightly tearful and clearly heartfelt statement to camera.

We are being given plenty of time to prepare ourselves for the change ahead.

The last edition of the show which is syndicated to 200 markets throughout the US and 140 countries around the world will be broadcast at the end of the 2011 season.

Oprah told her audience that after prayer and careful thought "25 years seems right in my bones and right in my spirit".

It didn't feel quite like Oprah-geddon, as it was described in the blogosphere, but as you watched it you sensed that you were present at a big moment in American television history.

Broadcasting shift

Such is the depth and intensity of America's relationship with Oprah that this is all being reported as the end of an era.

Viewers are reminiscing about the show where she gave every member of the audience a new car or the way she marked the programme's 20th anniversary by taking 1,000 members of staff on holiday to Hawaii.

In truth it is more about changing technologies and business models in the world of broadcasting.

Oprah became rich through keeping hold of the syndication rights to her programme as it was sold to more and more broadcast television stations.

The future, though, is going to belong to other ways of reaching audiences. Oprah has a new venture with Discovery, one of the big players in American broadcasting, which will be launching in 2011.

It seems reasonable to assume that she will be appearing on that new cable channel, The Oprah Winfrey Network, to ensure that it gets the best possible start on America's crowded television landscape.

That is a shift of some significance in the way business is done in American broadcasting.

If the richest woman in American broadcasting thinks it is the moment to get into cable then the industry will sit up and take note.

Straight talk

Audiences, though, are sitting up and taking note because Oprah has made herself a comfortable and predictable part of their lives for 25 years.

This moment of change has become an opportunity for Americans to reflect on what Oprah means, in the way that the birthday of a favourite relative gives you an opportunity to express how much you love them.

Her daunting CV - philanthropist, magazine publisher, broadcaster, literary critic, Oscar-nominated actress and producer - is only part of the story.

Nor does her extraordinary wealth explain it, although she has been described as the only black woman on earth to become a billionaire and was for several years listed as America's only black billionaire.

"Her influence is so great that it amounts to a kind of power"

Part of her power lies in the fact that her life story resonates with her audience, as a kind of exaggerated version of the American dream.

She was born into rural poverty in the south and survived an abusive childhood and a teenage pregnancy to build a stratospherically successful career in television and beyond.

She became a star because of the way she opened up about her problems to her audience. Something in her honesty and her sometimes painfully emotional directness struck home with a certain type of American.

She has spoken of being abused herself - and so when she deals with the issue of abuse for example, it is real in a way that other broadcasters simply cannot match.

Her audience shares her joys and sorrows. It reads the books she recommends, it empathises with her eternal struggle with her yo-yoing weight and it allows the view from her sofa to shape its view of the world.

Political clout

Her influence is so great that it amounts to a kind of power. Her decision to endorse Barack Obama for the presidency long before he was favourite to win was a key moment in the campaign.

He had his own inspirational life story, of course, but in endorsing him Oprah was able to make much of hers too.

"There are those who say that it's not his time," she told one audience. "Think about where you'd be in your life if you'd waited when the people told you to. I wouldn't be where I am if I'd waited on the people who told me it couldn't be."

That was a moment that proved Oprah was unique. Try to imagine candidates for the most powerful job on earth seeking the endorsement of any other TV presenter.

Oprah is of course seen by African-Americans as an icon of black achievement - and so she is.

But she is a genuinely post-racial figure too - one of a very, very small number in a society which remains acutely race-conscious.

In endorsing Mr Obama Oprah was not just recognising another hard-scrabble life story which would move an audience, she was vouching for Mr Obama with a white American audience that was still getting to know him.

Much of what is being written about Oprah would almost have you believing that she is about to quit the national stage, apart from a 2010 series which she promises is going to "knock our socks off".

That really doesn't seem likely. Her new channel will consolidate her position as one of the most important entrepreneurs in American broadcasting.

But it will also give her unrivalled and unlimited opportunities to present and as a shrewd producer she will know she remains her own best asset.

This might be the end of an era for broadcast television, but you can depend on this. In every possible sense of the word, Oprah still means business.

Week in Pictures

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:30:02 GMT

source...

Sri Lanka refugees 'to be freed'

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:58:08 GMT

Sri Lanka says refugees living in camps since the government's conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels will have freedom of movement as of next month.The camps were set up to house Tamils fleeing the final stages of the 25-year civil war which ended in May.

The special adviser to President Mahinda Rajapaksa also confirmed the authorities intended to close down camps which still house 130,000 people.

He said all the residents would be resettled by the end of January.

UN condemns Iran on human rights

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:58:08 GMT

A key UN committee has voted to approve a non-binding resolution condemning Iran for its crackdown on protesters following June's disputed elections.The resolution also repeated annual criticism of Iran's human rights record, including the use of torture and an increasing execution rate.

It urged Tehran to end persecution of political opponents and release those imprisoned for their political views.

Iran's UN ambassador dismissed the resolution as politically motivated.

Mohammad Khazaee said such measures had "created an atmosphere of confrontation and polarisation" at the UN.

Friday's text was approved by 74 votes to 48 with 59 abstentions, which the US said was "the largest vote margin on such a resolution on Iran in the UN ever".

'Deep concern'

Deputy state department spokesman Robert Wood said it demonstrated the international community was "deeply concerned" about the human rights situation in Iran.

Powers 'disappointed' by response

Q&A: Nuclear issue

The resolution expresses "deep concern at serious ongoing and recurring human rights violations" in Iran.

But it said there was "particular concern" at the Iranian government's response to the 12 June elections and the "concurrent rise in human rights violations".

It comes as the major powers said they were disappointed with Iran's response to an offer of a deal over its nuclear programme.

President Mahmoud Ahmandinejad was declared the winner of June's election, resulting in large scale protests by supporters of opposition candidates who said the poll had been rigged.

The UN committee criticised the subsequent "harassment, intimidation and persecution, including by arbitrary arrest, detention or disappearance" of opponents of the government.

It also condemned alleged abuses of those in prison and "numerous deaths and injuries" in the crackdown.

The BBC's Barbara Plett in New York says some of those countries which did not vote for the resolution did have concerns about the state of political rights in Iran, but objected to the practice of singling out specific countries for condemnation.

Saudi Arabia broke ranks with Muslim nations and voted in favour of the resolution, possibly because it accuses Iran of backing Shia rebels in neighbouring Yemen, says our correspondent.

On Friday, following meetings in Brussels, the six world powers negotiating with Iran said they were disappointed by Tehran's failure to respond positively to a recent deal on its nuclear programme.

Iran has rejected the offer, which would allow it to continue to develop a nuclear reactor by exporting uranium to other countries to be enriched.

Vatican talks over Anglican plan

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:58:08 GMT

The Archbishop of Canterbury is meeting the Pope in Rome amid tensions over the Vatican's offer to welcome disenchanted Anglicans into the Catholic fold.Pope Benedict's proposal would allow Anglicans to convert while preserving many of their traditions and practices.

The archbishop, Dr Rowan Williams, has said he does not believe the initiative will harm relations.

However, some Anglicans have accused the Pope of interfering at a sensitive time for the Church of England.

The Vatican says its invitation came in response to pleas from Anglicans unhappy about the creation of women bishops.

BBC religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott said: "Dr Williams says he accepts it was not intended to poach clergy or undermine relations.

'No unity'

"But he will go into his meeting with Pope Benedict knowing the nature of that relationship has changed. The Roman Catholic Church has all but given up on the idea of unity with Anglicans."

Dr Williams has signalled that he would like to build a new relationship, emphasising shared fundamental beliefs rather than "negative" secondary issues such as women clergy, our correspondent added.

Another cause of discord in the worldwide Anglican communion has been the election of an openly gay bishop and the blessing of same-sex unions.

Under the terms of the Pope's proposed Apostolic Constitution, groupings of Anglicans would be able to join "personal ordinariates".

This would allow them to enter full communion with the Catholic Church, but also preserve elements of the Anglican traditions including the possible use of Anglican prayer books.

The first English clergy could convert early next year.

US couple admit spying for Cuba

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:58:08 GMT

A retired US state department official and his wife have admitted spying for Cuba for nearly three decades.The former official, Walter Kendall Myers, 72, had access to top-secret government information.

Under a plea deal, Mr Myers will spend the rest of his life in jail while wife Gwendolyn, 71, will serve a term of no more than seven-and-a-half years.

She pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of conspiracy to gather and transmit national defence information to Cuba.

The couple also agreed to forfeit $1.7m (£1m) in assets - including a Washington DC apartment and a 37-ft yacht - an amount equal to the total salary he earned from the state department.

Shopping trolley swaps

They have been in custody since being arrested in June, following an undercover FBI sting operation.

"For the past 30 years, this couple betrayed America's trust by covertly providing classified national defence information to the Cuban goverment"

David Kris
Assistant attorney general

Myers was known as Agent 202, while his wife was Agent 123, according to court documents.

Prosecutors say the couple were recruited three decades ago while living in South Dakota by a Cuban intelligence agent, who had met Myers during his previous role at the state department.

In 1981, the husband and wife returned to Washington where Myers got a job back at the state department and worked his way up.

US authorities say that from 1983 until this year the couple had a shortwave radio to receive messages from the Cuban government.

They also delivered government secrets by swapping shopping trolleys with their Cuban handlers at stores, and spent an evening with then-Cuban leader Fidel Castro in 1995, say officials.

The US justice department said the case should serve notice that America remained vigilant in protecting its secrets.

"For the past 30 years, this couple betrayed America's trust by covertly providing classified national defence information to the Cuban government," David Kris, assistant attorney general for national security, said in a statement.

But the couple's lawyer, Bradford Berenson, said they had acted "not out of selfish motive or hope of personal gain, but out of conscience and personal commitment", reports AP news agency.

Flood-hit UK braced for more rain

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:58:08 GMT

Flood-stricken parts of the UK are bracing themselves for more rain after an "unprecedented" deluge swamped homes and brought down bridges.Forecasters predict Saturday will bring 15mm (0.5in) to 40mm (1.6in) of rain to Cumbria, where police said 100 people spent the night in emergency shelters.

There are 24 flood warnings in force across Scotland, northern England, the Midlands and Wales. Four are "severe".

They all affect Cumbria, where Pc Bill Barker died after a bridge collapsed.

Pc Barker, 44, was directing motorists off the bridge in Workington when a swollen river caused it to cave in.

The body of the father-of-four, who would have celebrated his 45th birthday on Saturday, was found on a beach almost 10 miles up the coast at Allonby.

His wife Hazel said her husband was "my best friend, my forever friend and an amazing dad", while Prime Minister Gordon Brown paid tribute to his "heroic" qualities.

In nearby Cockermouth, where water reached 2.5m (8ft 2in), boats and RAF helicopters rescued more than 200 people after rainfall expected for an entire November fell in one day across west Cumbria.

Flood levels were dropping by around two inches an hour as officers on foot patrol conducted searches through the night for any residents still trapped in their homes.

Forecasters say recovery efforts may be hampered by rain through Saturday but that it is unlikely to cause major problems or get near the record 314.4mm (12.3in) for a 24-hour period recorded at Seathwaite Farm.

The BBC's Peter Gibbs said: "We've got more rain on the way and some gale-force winds - just normal amounts now, not the extreme figures we saw.

"It looks like the south-east of the Lakes and the Pennines that gets the heaviest downpours, with southern Scotland also seeing some heavy rain."

The southern Highlands, where river levels remained high, could also get some heavy downpours, he added.

Tributes paid to flood death Pc

Your stories: Eyewitness accounts

Floods: Your pictures

In Cumbria, a police spokesman said the rescue efforts had been scaled down.

"Nobody has been reported missing in the area at this time. It is now a police-led operation on foot.

"Less than 100 people remain in reception centres, with the rest having made alternative arrangements to stay with family and friends.

"Emergency services are again highlighting the need to exercise caution around bridges in areas affected by flooding. Many bridges are under extreme pressure due to fast flowing flood waters and present a danger to members of the public."

It was estimated that 1,100 homes across Cumbria were affected by flooding, with several hundred people displaced and more than 1,000 households left without power.

Four bridges collapsed in the county and schools were used as makeshift community centres after the deluge struck.

Three RAF search and rescue helicopters and two RAF mountain rescue teams had been drafted in to help recovery efforts, with more than 50 people rescued by helicopter.

FLOOD ADVICE

Do not drive unless essential
Do not walk through floodwaters
Do not try and unblock drains yourself
Look out for vulnerable friends and neighbours
Have torches, waterproofs, water, radios, medication and other essential items at hand in case you cannot get home or need to be evacuated.
Take essential items upstairs or to a high point in your property
Listen to the emergency services and evacuate when told to
Cumbria Police casualty bureau: 0800 0560944 or 0207 1580010
Floodline number 0845 988 1188

What to do if floods hit

Key local info from BBC Cumbria

Environment Agency (England and Wales)

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Radio BBC Cumbria
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About 150 more had been helped to safety by the RNLI and other emergency crews.

The Environment Agency said its Floodline service received more than 12,000 calls in 48 hours after the "unprecedented" rainfall.

It says the severe flood warnings still in place in Cumbria describe conditions posing a threat of "extreme danger to life and property".

As well as the other 15 standard flood warnings, it has issued 31 less serious flood watches across England and Wales.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has five flood warnings and 12 flood watches in force.

Drivers have been warned of "treacherous" conditions across much of Dumfries and Galloway where fire crews have been called to rescue a number of stranded motorists.

Up to 40 businesses were flooded in Dumfries and about a dozen roads in the surrounding area remain closed.

In north and mid-Wales, roads were closed and train services disrupted, and a brief power cut in Anglesey affected 2,000 homes.

The flooding in Cumbria is the latest in a series of severe flooding events to hit the UK in recent years.

More than 1,000 houses and businesses in Carlisle, Cumbria, were overwhelmed by water in January 2005, when the city suffered its worst floods since the 1820s.

In June and July 2007 torrential rain lashed the country, flooding Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Wales, the Midlands and the West Country. Among the worst-hit towns were Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire and Upton upon Severn in Worcestershire.

Are you in one of the areas on flood alert What are conditions like where you are Send us your comments and pictures.

Send your pictures to yourpics@bbc.co.uk, text them to 61124 or you have a large file you can upload here.

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Fatal China mine blast traps many

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:58:05 GMT

A gas blast at a coal mine in northern China has left 139 miners trapped underground, state media have reported.Xinhua said 389 people had managed to escape the mine in Hegang City, Heilongjiang province, and rescue teams were trying to reach those trapped.

China's coal mines are notoriously dangerous despite tighter government regulations aimed at upgrading safety.

Last year alone, more than 3,000 people were killed in accident while working in coal mines.

Managers sacked after China blast

Most accidents are blamed on a failure to follow safety guidelines, often in an attempt to cut costs and meet China's increasing demand for fuel.

The latest blast hit at 0230 local time on Saturday morning (1830GMT Friday), when 528 people were working in the mine, said Xinhua.

The mine is reportedly owned by the Heilongjiang Longmei Mining Holding Group.

Homecoming hell

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:58:05 GMT

By Saroj Pathirana
BBC Sinhala

It has been six months since the end of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka, but normality has yet to return to the Tamil cultural heartland of Jaffna, activists and former residents say.

Groups of former Tamil residents and media activists recently visited Jaffna.

It was an emotional and nostalgic journey for Nirmala Rajasingham - the first woman to be detained under Sri Lanka's anti-terror laws in 1982 - when she visited her home town after nearly three decades.

The former senior LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) member used to be known as Nirmala Nithyanandan.

She escaped from prison in 1983 to India and then made it to UK where she has been living since.

'Deaf and blind'

Ms Rajasingham, whose sister Rajani Thiranagama was shot dead by the Tigers, says there are still many concerns over human rights violations despite the end of the conflict with the rebels.

"People whom I spoke to are extremely happy that the LTTE is defeated," she told BBC Sinhala upon her return to London from Jaffna.

"But many say their friends and relatives who were with them the previous day suddenly disappeared the next. Many people behave like deaf and blind as they no longer have a voice."

After years of changing hands between the security forces and the LTTE, the government re-captured Jaffna in 1995.

Mostly Tamil Jaffna has a small Muslim minority and virtually no members of Sri Lanka's majority Sinhalese community as a result of years of war.

Historically, it is a place that has produced men and women who have achieved distinction in art, literature and other aspects of life.

But that active society is no longer seen, says Ms Rajasingham.

"People in Jaffna plan for the future - trying to send their children for higher education, getting their children married or trying to build a house. Jaffna people go about it with such vigour, but I couldn't see that happening any more.

"In fact, people look like they are living day by day, as if there is no future for them."

Special permits

Her comments were echoed by a group of 25 Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim journalists and activists who visited Jaffna last week.

"It was like visiting another country," says Ananda Jayasekara, who works for Transparency International Sri Lanka.

"You need a special permit, it is like getting a visa, to enter Jaffna and it is only valid for a month."

The unusually high cost of transport makes one suspicious over the motives of the authorities, he says.

The return air ticket costs 25,000 Sri Lankan rupees ($220), a price most Sri Lankans cannot afford.

Mr Jayasekara says it appears that Tamil and Muslim communities are yet to make any serious attempts at reconciliation, although it has been more than a decade since Jaffna was recaptured by government forces.

'Authoritarian'

Ms Rajasingham's husband, Rajesh Kumar, had also not seen Jaffna for 30 years until he travelled to his home town recently.

Rajesh Kumar, also known as Raghavan, was among the first five founding members of the LTTE, then known as the Tamil New Tigers, together with Velupillai Prabhakaran in 1974.

Although initially part of the rebel movement, the couple were later staunch opponents of the LTTE.

"While travelling to Jaffna, all I saw was huge destruction," Rajesh Kumar said.

He accuses the Sri Lankan government of behaving in the same authoritarian way as the Tamil Tigers in his former home town.

"You need to wait at least three hours to board the plane. And all the buses only leave once a day, so that security officials could check the buses at once and relax for the rest of the day," Mr Kumar says.

"The biggest mistake of the Tamil Tigers was not to allow any other Tamil voice to operate in their territory.

"But the irony is that the government is now behaving in the same way as the Tamil Tigers, and I could not see any attempt at reconciliation or to create a vibrant democratic society in Jaffna," he said.

Critical

Another former Tamil militant from Jaffna currently living in the UK also went back recently. He did not want to be identified.

"I arrived in Jaffna and took a bus to Nelliadi, my home town, and then walked about a kilometre to my village, Vadiri. A few cyclists passed by, but I did not recognise any of them."

His ancestral house - once home to 11 brothers, a sister and his parents - is currently being used as timber storage.

"The house legally belongs to my younger sister, who is currently living in the UK. She is no longer interested in claiming it back, and neither am I."

All former Jaffna residents have been highly critical of what they say is a lack of any genuine effort to reconcile the area's communities after decades of civil war.

The Sri Lankan government, however, says that it has launched a major redevelopment project called the "Northern Spring" in the area.

Projects to build new housing, roads and bridges will create jobs as part of plans to regenerate the north, the authorities say.

Childhood abuse 'quickens ageing'

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:58:05 GMT

Physical or emotional abuse during childhood could speed up the body's ageing process, US research suggests.A team from Brown University focused on telomeres, the protective caps on the chromosomes that keep a cell's DNA stable but shorten with age.

They found the telomeres of people who had reported abuse as children tended to shorten more rapidly, speeding up the ageing process of cells.

The study, featured in Biological Psychiatry, is based on 31 adults.

Lead researcher Dr Audrey Tyrka said: "It gives us a hint that early developmental experiences may have profound effects on biology that can influence cellular mechanisms at a very basic level."

Telomeres are relatively short sections of specialised DNA that sit at the ends of all our chromosomes.

They have been compared to the plastic tips at the ends of shoelaces that prevent the laces from unravelling.

"Shorter telomere lengths are linked to ageing and certain diseases, so it is possible that this is a mechanism of risk for illness following childhood abuse"

Dr Audrey Tyrka
Brown University

Each time a cell divides, its telomeres shorten and the cell becomes more susceptible to dying.

Previous research has found that telomeres shorten at an accelerated rate when exposed to toxins such as radiation and cigarette smoke.

There has also been work suggesting that psychiatric problems and stress could have a similar effect.

The latest study suggests psychological trauma early in life could store up similar problems for the future.

The researchers concentrated on people who although reporting abuse in childhood were otherwise healthy and had no signs of current or past psychiatric disorders.

Dr Tyrka said more work was needed to pin down the exact impact of childhood stress on cellular ageing.

"The study and resulting theory is plausible as researchers have found previous telomere links with chronic stress"

Professor Tim Spector
King's College London

She said: "We don't know what the full implications of this are yet.

"Shorter telomere lengths are linked to ageing and certain diseases, so it is possible that this is a mechanism of risk for illness following childhood abuse.

"But the precise role of telomeres in this process remains to be determined."

Shorter telomere lengths have been linked to a variety of ageing-related medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease and cancer.

For this study, the scientists looked at 22 women and nine men.

Some subjects reported happy childhoods, while others reported emotional, physical or sexual abuse or neglect.

Professor Tim Spector, an expert on telomeres and ageing based at King's College London, said: "The study and resulting theory is plausible as researchers have found previous telomere links with chronic stress.

"However, many different adverse environments are known to reduce telomeres - such as cigarette smoking, obesity, lack of exercise and social class as well as genes.

"In such a small sample such as this - any of these could actually be responsible rather than the abuse - so it needs replication on a much bigger scale."

US sets marker on Afghan corruption

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 02:58:03 GMT

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has said international donors must do more to ensure their aid does not encourage corruption in Afghanistan.Robert Gates said donors should tighten control of how the "significant influx" of money into the country is used.

He was speaking a day after President Hamid Karzai was sworn in for a second term after a controversial election.

Western leaders have put pressure on Mr Karzai to deal with corruption and remove former warlords from government.

US President Barack Obama - who is considering whether to send up to 40,000 more troops to tackle the Taliban in Afghanistan - has also spoken out about the need to fight corruption in that country.

Mr Gates said the presence of international forces and contractors in Afghanistan had "provided a significant influx of assistance dollars and contracts".

"The place to start is where we're writing the cheques"

Robert Gates

Karzai speech: Key excerpts

Reaction to inauguration

Inauguration: Afghan views

He said the US and other foreign donors should act whenever they found signs of corruption in their contracts or development projects with Afghan or international groups.

"The place to start is the place where we have the greatest leverage and that's where we're writing the cheques," he said. Mr Gates' comments, at a news conference in Halifax, Canada, echoed remarks by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday.

She said the US was working to ensure US funds in Afghanistan were "accounted for and used as intended".

The BBC's Paul Adams in Washington says that at a time when the US public is increasingly sceptical about the war and its cost, the Obama administration is clearly seeking to give reassurance that the cause is worthwhile.

Warlord killed

Mr Karzai was sworn in as president on Thursday, following an election which was tainted by widespread fraud.

West seeks new beginnings

Karzai's 'new season'

He was declared president after a second round election run-off was abandoned when his sole remaining challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, pulled out, saying the vote could not be free and fair.

In his inauguration speech, Mr Karzai pledged to clean up the country's politics, saying corruption was "a dangerous problem".

Mr Karzai said he would organised a conference in Kabul to "organise new and effective ways to combat this problem".

Earlier on Friday, at least 16 people were killed and several wounded by a bomb in the south-west of the country.

Police said a suicide bomber in a motorbike detonated the device in a crowded market in Farah city, capital of Farah province.

Also on Friday, a controversial former Afghan warlord narrowly escaped an assassination attempt which killed at least five of his bodyguards in Paghman district, north of Kabul.

It is not clear who attacked Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, who is an ally of Mr Karzai and now an MP.

Water world

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:30:03 GMT

After a series of devastating storms since late September, many communities in the Philippines are still badly flooded, and the government estimates it may take months for the waters to drain, reports the BBC's Daniel Vincent from Manila.

A frail Rosita Gillaco stands waist deep in the waters outside the debris that was once her home, waiting for help that may never come.

Everything she owned was destroyed in the floods that swamped her village of Palingon. Her house was submerged when Lake Laguna, south-east of Manila, overflowed.

Like many in her community, the 65-year-old prefers to live in the dirty waters that flooded much of the area around Manila than take refuge in the overcrowded evacuation centres.

"I may get relief first if I stand here. Now everything in my house is destroyed. I don't have a second floor so I just stay here," Mrs Gillaco says.

Waterborne diseases

Palingon is one of more than 20 villages near Manila that are still under feet of water after a succession of deadly typhoons.

Many people are now living on the upper floors of their homes. Below, boats run along the flooded streets and children wade through the water, catching fish.

A bamboo bridge circling the village is now the only route to dry land.

At the current rate, authorities say it will take three to six months for the waters to recede.

Residents describe the waters rising with every new storm. Nearby Lake Laguna, the largest lake in the Philippines, is at twice its normal level and the overflow has moved on to the natural floodplain near the lake.

A planned channel from the lake to Manila Bay that would have helped drain the excess water brought by the storms was never built.

Now the threat from contaminated water may be greater than that from the weather.

The World Health Organization says it is battling serious outbreaks of waterborne diseases like Leptospirosis and acute diarrhoea, as well as respiratory infections.

Health workers say thousands of people could be affected.

Urban sprawl

The floodwaters now stagnating on the floodplain also highlight the Philippines' problems with unregulated urban growth.

Instead of using the floodplain for crops that thrive in watery conditions, such as rice, Manila's urban sprawl has been allowed to extend up to the lake shore.

"Politicians who will continue to protect squatters will earn brownie points come the elections"

Edgardo Manda
Laguna Lake Development Authority

Many of the residents here are squatters, some of the millions who have moved to Manila. The government has blamed the squatters for much of the flooding because many people have built homes along the city's canals and waterways.

Mounds of rubbish have piled up over the years, blocking the vital waterways.

Manila authorities estimate that 350,000 illegal residents must be evicted in order to clear the waters that are now spreading disease.

The central government has ordered the squatters be evicted, but many refuse to leave.

And politicians have been hesitant to evict them for fear of losing votes ahead of the general elections next year.

"The reluctance of the government is at the local level. Politicians who will continue to protect squatters will earn brownie points come the elections," said Edgardo Manda, from the Laguna Lake Development Authority.

'Balancing act'

One of the squatters facing eviction is Liza Lacap, who lives in a riverbank community in Pasig City in Manila. Rubbish is strewn across the river.

Signs of the heavy rains that fell here are everywhere.

A dusty Virgin Mary stands on a shelf on a wall and dried muck from where water and mud swept over her home has solidified on the inside of her roof. Muddy residue runs up the outside of her home.

"Being evicted is a bigger disaster than the typhoon," said Ms Lacap, 29. "I have lived here all my life but now I have to leave."

After surviving the floods, she has been given just days to relocate.

"They do not want to move out, they fear that if they do, they will lose the communities that they once occupied," said Mr Manda.

"For those living in the main town - the mainstream population - they will see the local government officials in a very negative light if they continue to protect the squatters.

"But for the squatters if they are evicted they will stop supporting politicians. It is now a balancing act for them," he said.

Blackwater guard charges to drop

GSBot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:30:03 GMT

US prosecutors have asked for charges against one of five Blackwater security guards accused of killing up to 17 unarmed Iraqi civilians to be dropped.No reason was given for the move to dismiss charges against Nicholas Slatten, of Tennessee.

But prosecutors left open the option of reinstating proceedings at a later date.

Four other men are due to face trial in February over the 16 September 2007 incident in the Iraqi capital.

A sixth pleaded guilty and agreed to co-operate with prosecutors.

The killings - which strained Iraq-US relations - took place when Blackwater guards opened fire in Baghdad's Nisoor Square while escorting an American diplomatic convoy.

The firm says its guards were acting in self-defence but witnesses and relatives of those killed maintain that the shooting was unprovoked.

The US says 14 people were killed but an Iraqi investigation put the number at 17. Children were among those killed, and several people were wounded.

Iraq later withdrew Blackwater's licence to operate within its borders and the US government stopped using the firm to guard its diplomats in Iraq.

Blackwater has changed its name to Xe Services.

Israel halts stadium construction

GSBot — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:58:02 GMT

Israel has ordered construction work on an internationally financed football stadium being built for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank to be halted.Palestinian municipal authorities in al-Bireh, near Ramallah, have been told they lack the correct permit to build.

This is because Israel has designated some of the plot for the planned stadium as under its exclusive control.

If Palestinian officials do not comply with the order, Israel could demolish the arena.

The stadium's development has been financed by the world football's governing body, Fifa, as well as France, Germany and Gulf states.

Palestinians have said that Israel's issuing of the stop-work order is unreasonable and politically motivated.

Israeli officials have said they are working with their Palestinian counterparts to resolve the issue.