Saturday, March 20, 2010

“In direct appeal, Obama tells Iranians US wants educational, cultural exchanges - Washington Examiner” plus 3 more

“In direct appeal, Obama tells Iranians US wants educational, cultural exchanges - Washington Examiner” plus 3 more

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In direct appeal, Obama tells Iranians US wants educational, cultural exchanges - Washington Examiner

Posted: 19 Mar 2010 09:15 PM PDT

WASHINGTON — In a fresh appeal directly to the Iranian people, President Barack Obama says in an Internet video that the United States wants more educational and cultural exchanges for their students and better access to the Internet to give them a more hopeful future.

In the video, the second of his presidency directed at Iran, Obama said that the United States' offer of diplomatic dialogue still stands but that the Iranian government has chosen isolation. He said the U.S. believes in the dignity of every human being.

The White House released the video late Friday, timing it, as it did last year, to coincide with Nowruz, a 12-day holiday celebrating the arrival of spring and the beginning of the new year on the Persian calendar. The video comes as the United States has hit a rough patch in its relationships in the region, particularly with Israel.

"The United States believes in the dignity of every human being and an international order that bends the arc of history in the direction of justice — a future where Iranians can exercise their rights, to participate fully in the global economy and enrich the world through educational and cultural exchanges beyond Iran's borders," Obama said in the video, which had Farsi subtitles.

Obama has signaled a willingness to speak directly with Iran about its nuclear program and hostility toward Israel, a key U.S. ally. At his inauguration last year, the president said his administration would reach out to rival states, declaring "we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."

It's been a rough road for Obama, and there have been few signs Tehran is loosening its grip after bloody elections marred with allegations of fraud. And efforts to impose new sanctions have been slow to find unified support from U.S. allies.

"Our offer of comprehensive diplomatic contacts and dialogue stands," Obama said in the video. "Indeed, over the course of the last year, it is the Iranian government that has chosen to isolate itself and to choose a self-defeating focus on the past over a commitment to build a better future." The United States has not had formal diplomatic relations with Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has criticized Obama as merely a continuation of President George W. Bush's policies toward Israel. Khamenei has called Israel a "cancerous tumor" that is on the verge of collapse and has called for its destruction.

Last year, Obama's message to the Iranians warned that better relations "will not be advanced by threats. We seek instead engagement that is honest and grounded in mutual respect."

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said then that Iran would welcome talks with the U.S. — but only if there was mutual respect.

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On the Net:

Obama video: http://www.whitehouse.gov/Nowruz

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France rules out opening embassy in N.Korea - AsiaOne

Posted: 18 Mar 2010 03:30 AM PDT

TOKYO - France will not open diplomatic relations with North Korea but plans to establish an office there to support non-governmental groups, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Thursday.

'We are not going to open an embassy, certainly not,' Kouchner said at a press conference in Tokyo. 'Open an office, yes, in order to help the NGOs (non-governmental organisations) there.'

France is the only European Union country other than Latvia that does not have diplomatic ties with the communist state.

Paris has argued that the human rights situation in North Korea must improve and has cited concerns over nuclear proliferation.

In December the French special envoy to Pyongyang, Jack Lang, said France had offered to forge permanent cultural links with North Korea but not full diplomatic ties, hoping to pressure it on the nuclear issue.

'Our proposal... is to open a permanent structure of cooperation with North Korea - humanitarian, cultural and linguistic cooperation,' Lang told a hearing of members of the French parliament at the time.

Kouchner, asked to clarify the French position during his Japan visit, said that 'we are not rewarding them at all in opening an office' that would support French NGOs working in the isolated country.

France is not part of six-nation nuclear disarmament talks - involving North and South Korea, Japan, Russia, the United States and China - but is one of the five veto-wielding permanent UN Security Council members.

The North quit the talks last April - following international criticism for its firing a rocket over Japan in what it claimed was a satellite launch - and conducted an atomic weapons test in May, its second since 2006.

Kouchner told his Japanese audience that for them it would be 'certainly very difficult to understand (if) we will reopen diplomatic relations, as North Koreans are sending missiles over your country.'

He criticised the Pyongyang regime for developing a weapons programme while its population is suffering desperate poverty.

'When I consider these very poor conditions and sometimes starving conditions of the people, this is a scandal to develop an atomic bomb in that case,' said Kouchner, a co-founder of French NGO Doctors Without Borders.

Kouchner, who arrived in Japan Thursday, later met his counterpart Katsuya Okada to discuss issues including climate change and non-proliferation, especially the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea.

He was due to meet Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama later Thursday and fly to South Korea on Friday.

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Tim Burton and Marion Cotillard Land Top Cultural Honor ... - AceShowbiz

Posted: 15 Mar 2010 09:41 PM PDT


The director of 'Alice in Wonderland' and actress Marion Cotillard have been honored at the Culture Ministry in the French capital, making them officers of the National Order of Arts and Letters.

"" director Tim Burton and actress have been awarded one of France's top cultural honors at a ceremony in Paris. The American moviemaker, whose adaptation of the Lewis Carroll's classic has smashed winter box office records around the world, joined Oscar winner Cotillard at the Culture Ministry in the French capital on Monday, March 15, when they were both made officers of the National Order of Arts and Letters.

After accepting the accolade from Culture Minister Frederic Mitterand, Burton paid special tribute to the country, saying "I feel much more at home here than I do in my own country and I thank you very much."

"Alice in Wonderland", starring , grossed $210.3 million worldwide in its first three days of release, from March 5 - 7, scoring the most successful 3-D opening ever and the biggest opening in the first quarter of the year. The film opened in America with an estimated $116.3 million, easily beating the winter record set by "" in 2004, and added a further $62 million to its domestic earnings over the weekend.


 

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Fire And Death At Major Ugandan Cultural Site - Scoop

Posted: 17 Mar 2010 09:32 PM PDT

UNESCO Chief Saddened By Fire And Death At Major Ugandan Cultural Site

New York, Mar 17 2010 4:10PM The head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today expressed her sorrow over the fire that destroyed the Tombs of Buganda Kings, a World Heritage List site in Uganda.

Two people were killed during protests sparked by anger at the destruction of the site yesterday.

Irina Bokova, UNESCO's Director-General, appealed for calm, saying the agency stands ready to help Ugandan authorities to assess damage and take remedial action to restore the religious site.

"The Tombs of the Buganda Kings at Kisubi is a World Heritage site of great cultural and spiritual significance. The destruction of this site is a tragic loss for the whole world," said Ms Bokova. "I am also deeply distressed to learn that two people lost their lives in protests that followed the fire, and hope there will be a swift return to calm at this difficult time," she said.

Located on the Kisubi Hill, five kilometres from Kampala city centre, the historic site, including four royal tombs, suffered extensive damage in the fire, whose cause has not yet been established. The site's buildings were made of dry grass thatch and wood and efforts to put out the fire were unsuccessful.

According to media reports, police shot two people in a crowd that staged a protest at the site suspecting that the blaze was an act of arson.

The Tombs of the Buganda Kings were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2001, recognized as "a masterpiece of human creativity and an eloquent manifestation" of the cultural traditions of the Baganda people, Uganda's largest ethnic group. The site has been an important centre of religious activity for the Baganda people since it was established in 1860.

ENDS

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