In The News

Not So Fast!

Omayma Abdel-Latif June 13, 2003
The question 'was it a war of occupation or liberation' dominated much of the international debate on the US-led war in Iraq. Now, the debate has reached the local level. The decision by the US administrator for Iraq, Paul Bremer, to appoint a council of Iraqis in an advisory capacity has many local political and religious leaders upset. Leading up to the fall of Baghdad, those in...

Students Roil Iranian Capital in 3rd Night of Protests

Neil MacFarquhar June 13, 2003
Violent and vocal, Iranian students marched in protest again this week. The immediate stimulus was a government proposal to privatize the universities, but, according to one government worker who joined in, "For 25 years we have lived without any freedom. We want social freedom, economic freedom and political freedom." Cell phone calls by protesters to a Persian-language television...

U.S. Steps Up Pressure on Burmese Junta

Seth Mydans June 13, 2003
In an effort to support the opposition led by Aung San Suu Kyi, in the past the US imposed a five year economic ban against Myanmar's military Junta. But these tactics were inconsequential; Myanmar (Burma) continued to thrive through relations with its regional neighbors and $300 million in exports to US clothing and footwear companies. Following a recent attack on Suu Kyi and her entourage...

Immigrant Horror Stories Leading Nation to Policy Change

Carlos Guerra June 12, 2003
Along the US-Mexico border, this year alone over 100 people have died while trying to illegally cross into the US. But the high death toll will not prevent yet more hopeful migrants from making this dangerous journey. Economic downturns like the current one often lead to calls for tougher immigration restrictions in the US, but, ironically, they also often coincide with an increase in flows of...

A Primer for Cross-Strait Relations

Chen Hurng-yu June 11, 2003
If Taiwan ever wants to improve cross-strait relations and free itself of interference from Beijing, it will need to depart from the 1971 framework and change its foreign policy, says Chen Hurng-yu, professor of history at Taiwan's National Chengchi University. The overlapping claims of Taipei and Beijing to sovereignty over China – a dispute that has continued since the UN denied Taiwan’s...

Crisis Puts Burma Back in the Spotlight

David I. Steinberg June 11, 2003
The current flurry of interest in Burma occasioned by the arrest of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi will likely wane, as it has so often in the past, before another episode thrusts it back to the world's attention. David Steinberg, a Burma scholar, says that such sporadic focus, accompanied by sanctions, has not made any change in the Burmese situation. He maintains that current policies...

Thaksin in America: PM Denies Visit is to Patch Up Ties with US

Yuwadee Tunyasiri June 10, 2003
Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra denies that his visit to the US is to smooth over tensions with US President Bush. This comes amidst reports alleging that Bush is displeased with Thailand’s refusal to acknowledge publicly its role in the war in Iraq, and in the fight against global terrorism. In response, Thai officials maintain that Thailand fully supports the international community...