Tuesday, July 14, 2009

RCI Cyberjournal

SOS sent for Canadian journalist in Iran


Canadian astronaut delayed again


Canadian nickel miners throw down tools

TORONTO: OPPOSITION WANTS HELP FOR CANADIAN JOURNALIST IN IRAN

The leader of the Canada's federal opposition New Democratic Party, Jack Layton, is appealing to the government for help in arranging the release of Maziar Bahari, a Canadian of Iranian origin who is being held in prison in Iran. Mr. Bahari was arrested last month in Tehran while he was reporting on post-election violence for the American weekly magazine Newsweek. At least 24 journalists are known to have been detained. Two weeks after Mr. Bahari's arrest, Canada's foreign affairs minister, Lawrence Cannon, filed a formal protest. Mr. Cannon had also met with the Iranian chargé d'affaires the day after Mr. Bahari's arrest. Mr. Layton calls the delay in filing a protest unacceptable and wants Canada's government to take immediate action to secure Mr. Bahari's release.

CAPE CANAVERAL: SHUTTLE FLIGHT AGAIN DELAYED

The launch of the U.S .space shuttle Endeavour was delayed for the fourth time on Sunday, again due to local thunderstorm activity near Cape Canaveral, FL. The launch was rescheduled for Monday. The shuttle's seven-person crew, including Canadian Julie Payette, will go on a 16-day mission to the international space station. Miss Payette will join her Canadian colleague, Bob Thirsk, at the space station. It will be the first time that two Canadian astronauts are in space at the same time.

OTTAWA: QUEEN RETURNS TO CANADA

The Queen will visit Canada next year. The British monarch and the Duke of Edinburgh will come sometime during the summer. Their itinerary has still to be announced. The Queen last visited Canada in 2005, when she toured the Prairie provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta during their centennial years. Her son, Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, are planning an extensive visit to Canada in November. Meanwhile, the Queen has bestowed Britain's Order of Merit on former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. The honour is conferred on individuals of distinction in the arts, learning, sciences and public service. Mr. Chrétien served as prime minister from 1993 to 2003.

ST. JOHN'S: SHRIMP FISHERY REOPENS

Newfoundland and Labrador's shrimp fishery will reopen after the fishermen's union and seafood processors reached an agreement on the price of shrimp. Processors stopped production almost two months ago, saying that the high Canadian dollar and dwindling global demand made it unprofitable. The stopped left shrimp fishing boats tied up at wharves and 2,000 plant employees out of work. The union says agreement was reached that fishermen will be paid 42 cents a pound for their catch. The province is a major supplier of cold-water shrimp.


PAKISTAN

Pakistan's government has begun the process of returning about two million people to their homes after they were displaced two months ago by the army's assault on Taliban militants in the Swat Valley. The exodus from Swat was one of the biggest human migrations in recent times and led to a global appeal for humanitarian help. Pakistani officials say people are allowed to return home because the army has pushed Taliban rebels out. The army launched the offensive in April after militants took over a district just 100 kilometres from Islamabad raising fears for Pakistan's stability.

RUSSIA

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev paid his first visit to South Ossetia. He had a meeting in the region's capital Tskhinvali with its leader, Eduard Kokoity. Russia fought a five-day war against Georgia last August after the Georgian military attempted to wrest back control of the breakaway territory. Russia subsequently recognized South Ossetia's declaration of independence. The Georgian government denounced Mr. Medvedev's visit as a provocation. The mountainous Caucasus region is only recognized as an independent state by Moscow and Nicaragua. It remains a major sticking point in relations between Russia and the West.

NORTH KOREA

North Korea's leader, Kim Jong-il, is said to have cancer of the pancreas and does not have long to live. South Korean media cited information gathered from Chinese and South Korean intelligence sources. The 67-year-old Mr. Kim has not been seen in public often in the past year, leading to speculation that he was in ill health. Mr. Kim took power in 1994, when his father died at the age of 82. His youngest son Kim Jong-un is regarded as the most capable of Mr. Kim's three known sons.

LIBERIA

Lawyers defending former Liberian leader Charles Taylor began their defence arguments at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Mr. Taylor will testify in his own defence on Tuesday. He's the first African head of state to be tried by an international court. Mr. Taylor is accused of 11 crimes including murder, torture, using child soldiers and rape. The prosecution has sought to prove he led rebels to gain influence in neighbouring Sierra Leone to steal its mineral wealth. During a year of testimony, the court heard from witnesses, some of them missing their hands, who testified about atrocities committed during Sierra Leone's 11-year civil war that ended in 2002. Mr. Taylor's lawyers argue that he should be found guilty merely out of disgust with atrocities committed by others.


SUDBURY: NICKEL MINERS STRIKE

About 3,100 workers went on strike Monday at one of Canada's biggest nickel mines. The workers at Vale-Inco Nickel mine in Sudbury, ON, rejected the company's latest contract offer by a margin of 85 per cent on Saturday. Sudbury's operations produce 10 per cent of the world's nickel supply. A long labour strike could lead to higher nickel prices.

MONTREAL: AIR CANADA PILOTS, ATTENDANT OKAY LABOUR PACT

Members of the labour unions representing Air Canada's pilots and flight attendants have voted to ratify contractual arrangements which the employer says are crucial if it's to avoid going back into bankruptcy protection. The tentative agreements call for a 21-month extension of existing contracts, thus freezing wages, pensions and benefits at current levels. The union representing thousands of repair crews and baggage handlers rejected the deal but will vote on it again, the results being known on Wednesday. Under the various labour agreements, the airline's unions receive a 15-per cent stake in the company and a seat on the board of directors. In exchange, the unions would consent to a moratorium on pension payments.

BERLIN: MAGNA HAS NEW RIVAL FOR OPEL

Holding company RHJ International SA has entered the competition for ownership of German automaker Opel. The Brussels-based investor says talks regarding Opel with General Motors Corp. have been taking place for several weeks and are at "an advanced stage." The company didn't specify how big a stake it wants. Canadian auto parts giant Magna International Inc. and Sberbank of Russia have a tentative accord to take a majority share of Opel but German officials have stressed that that agreement is preliminary and that other players remain in the game. Last week, China's Beijing Automotive Industry Corp. put in a bid for Opel. Fiat Group SpA of Italy has dropped its official bid but says it remains interested.

TORONTO: TIM HORTONS EXPANDS IN BIG APPLE

The Tim Hortons coffee shop chain will open 15 new shops in New York City this month and next. Some of the stores will be located at such landmarks as Broadway, Times Square and Madison Square Garden. Tim Hortons has 3,500 stores across North America, most of them in Canada.


BASEBALL

Toronto Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay has officially
been named the American League starter for Tuesday's all-star game.
Major League Baseball made the announcement today in St. Louis.
The honour is well-deserved for Halladay, who is 10-3 with a 2.85
earned-run average in 17 games this season.
This is his sixth all-star game selection and he's pitched in
three of them so far.


Weather

British Columbia on Tuesday: mix sun cloud, high 21 Celsius Vancouver. Yukon, Northwest Territories: sun. Nunavut; rain. Whitehorse 26, Yellowknife 21, Iqaluit 10. Prairies: rain. Edmonton 16, Regina, Winnipeg 19. Ontario: sun south, rain north. Quebec: sun. Toronto 25, Ottawa 20, Montreal 19. New Brunswick, Nova Scotia: sun. Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador. Fredericton 20, Halifax, Charlottetown 22, St. John's 23.

Monday, July 13, 2009

NEWS /www.nrcu.gov.ua/

Dear subscriber!

We offer you most recent news by this moment on air at National radio company of
Ukraine. To read these news items in full, please, refer to our site
www.nrcu.gov.ua.

Sincerely yours, administrator.
webadm@nrcu.gov.ua
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
2009-07-13 17:54:00
2014 to be declared Year of Taras Shevchenko's Heritage.
The CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly is planning to ask the CIS Heads of State
Council to declare 2014 a Year of Taras Shevchenko's Heritage due to the 200th
birthday of the Ukrainian poet and painter. The decision was taken at a meeting
of the assembly in Kyivtoday.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94880

2009-07-13 17:48:00
Viktor Yushchenko concerned over financing of Ukraine's preparations for EURO
2012.
President Yushchenko had again expressed concern over the financing of Ukraine's
preparations for UEFA EURO 2012 in 2009, adding that of the UAH 7.2 billion
foreseen for this goal this year, only 5% had beenallocated.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94879

2009-07-13 17:42:00
Our Ukraine People's Union party officially registers replacement of party's
name.
The Our Ukraine People's Union party has submitted an official statement to the
Ukrainian Justice Ministry regarding the replacement of the party's name.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94874

2009-07-13 17:35:00
Ukrainian Prime Minister says peak of global financial crisis in Ukraine and
world over has passed.
This is what Yulia Tymoshenko said while speaking at a meeting with
representatives of the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations
in Kyiv today.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94871

2009-07-13 17:23:00
President Viktor Yushchenko congratulates Kharkiv Dynamo club archer Viktor
Ruban on victory at 25th Summer Universiade in Belgrade.
"It is one more contribution into the gold medals collection of the Ukrainian
National team.I am proud of you and your sports talent, your professional skills
and striving for victory", the President's message of greetingsreads.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94870

2009-07-13 13:10:00
Gambling businessinto going into shadow in Ukraine.
As Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said today during her meeting with
representatives of the All-Ukraine Council of Churches, enactment of the law
prohibiting gambling business has drawn some of those businesses intoshadow.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94822

2009-07-13 12:56:00
Speaker's proposal to hold meeting of Parliament jointly with President and
Premier not supported.
Volodymyr Lytvyn said this in the ICTV television channel interview.He didn't
specified who did not support his initiative.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94821

2009-07-13 12:46:00
Parliament unlikely to override President's veto of nationwide referendum law.
Such an opinion was expressed by First Deputy Speaker Oleksandr Lavrynovych."It
is unlikely to happen, because a political stand of the BYuT faction without
which it is impossible to override veto, varies and always depends on the
political environment, " hesaid.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94816

2009-07-13 12:43:00
Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn not to refuse from running for presidency.
This was voiced by him recently in the air of one of Ukrainian tv channels. He
explained his position by the negative situation that is now in the country.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94815

2009-07-13 12:24:00
Ukraine's athletes ranked 6th in team classification at 25th Summer Universiade
in Belgrade.
Ukraine's athletes won 31 medals at the 25th Summer Universiade in Belgrade,
Serbia (7 gold, 11 silver, 13 bronze) and the Ukrainian team is finally ranked
6th in team classification out of 56 countries.
http://www.nrcu.gov.ua/index.php?id=148&listid=94812


-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

RCI Cyberjournal

Fourth delay for Canadian astronaut's space flight.


Queen to visit Canada.


Police charge wife in boxer's death.

CAPE CANAVERAL: FOURTH DELAY FOR CANADIAN ASTRONAUT'S SPACE FLIGHT

The launch of the U.S. space shuttle Endeavour was delayed for the fourth time on Sunday, again due to local thunderstorm activity. The launch was re-scheduled for Monday. The shuttle's seven-person crew, including Canadian Julie Payette, will go on a 16-day mission to the international space station. Miss Payette will join her Canadian colleague, Bob Thirsk, at the space station. It will be the first time that two Canadian astronauts are in space at the same time. In all, 13 astronauts will be on board the station. They'll work toward completing the station's construction.

OTTAWA: QUEEN TO VISIT CANADA

The Queen will visit Canada next year. The British monarch and her husband, Prince Philip, will come sometime during the summer. Their itinerary has still to be announced. The Queen last visited Canada in 2005, when she toured the prairie provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta during their centennial years. Her son, Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, are planning an extensive visit to Canada in November. They'll make stops in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and the National Capital Region.

PORTO DE GALINHAS: POLICE CHARGE WIFE IN BOXER'S DEATH

Police in Brazil have charged the wife of Canadian boxer Arturo Gatti with his mysterious death. Mr. Gatti's body was found on Saturday in a hotel room in the Brazilian resort town of Porto de Galinhas. He was 37. He was formerly world welterweight boxing champion. Police believe that he was strangled with a strap found at the scene. He also appeared to have wounds to his head. Police say that his 23-year-old Brazilian wife, Amanda Rodrigues, was implicated in his death.

TORONTO: OPPOSITION PARTY LEADER SEEKS HELP FOR DETAINED CANADIAN JOURNALIST

The leader of the federal opposition New Democratic Party, Jack Layton, appealed on Sunday to Canada's governing Conservative Party for help in arranging the release of Maziar Bahari, a Canadian of Iranian origin who is being held in prison in Iran. Mr. Bahari was arrested lsat month in Tehran while he was reporting on post-election violence for the American weekly, Newsweek. At least 24 journalists are known to have been detained. Two weeks after Mr. Bahari's arrest, Canada's foreign affairs minister, Lawrence Cannon, filed a formal protest. Mr. Cannon had also met with the Iranian charge d'affaires the day after Mr. Bahari's arrest. Mr. Layton calls the delay in making a formal protest 'unconscionable.' He's asking Canada's government to take immediate action to secure Mr. Bahari's release.

EDMONTON: CHARITIES GO BEGGING IN TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES

The recession in Canada is having a bad effect on contribitions to charities. Cash contributions to charities and donations to food banks have been declining since January, while the number of people who rely on them has been increasing. The agency, Canada Helps, which distributes donations to charities, says the average amount of individual donations has dropped to 120 dollars from 150 dollars. The Salvation Army says its stores and shelters are receiving fewer second-hand items. At the same time, Food Banks Canada is reporting a 20 per cent increase in the number of users since January. Canada along with other countries is suffering in the global economic crisis.


HONDURAS

A two-week-long curfew in Honduras was lifted on Sunday. The interim government says that calm has been restored. During the past two weeks, the country has been the scene of large public demonstrations protesting against the military's removal of President Manuel Zelaya last month. Talks between Mr. Zelaya's representatives and the interim government ended abruptly on Friday without any results. The two sides agreed to meet again but failed to set a date. The United States and the United Nations have condemned the military coup and demanded that Mr. Zelaya be re-instated.

CHINA

The regional government in China's city of Urumqi has raised the number of people injured in recent ethnic violence to 1,680. Earlier estimates were just over one thousand injured. Two hundred and sixteen of them were seriously hurt. The official number of people killed stands at 184. China's government says that most of those who died were Han, China's dominant ethnic group. Police on Sunday imposed a ban in the capital, Urumqi, to prevent people from gathering in public places. The day was set aside for traditional mourning. A large demonstration was held on Sunday in Istanbul to protest against violence toward Muslim Uighurs in China's Xinjaing province. Several thousand Turks gathered at a square in support of the Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking minority in the Chinese province.

SOMALIA

Dozens of people are reported killed in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, in the city's most severe insurgent attack in two months. About 150 people were wounded. Local hospitals struggling to cope with the casualites say that many of the victims were women and children. For the first time, African Union peacekeepers intervened to support government forces in repelling Islamic extremist militants trying to extend their control over Somalia. The militants advanced into the north of Mogadishu, coming within one kilometre of the presidential palace. Various Islamist extremist groups have been fighting for control of Mogadishu for more than two years.

MALI

A rebel group in Mali has freed a Swiss man who was kept hostage for six months. Werner Greiner was the last Western hostage in the hands of a group called Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. Mr. Greiner, his wife Gabriella
Burco, Marianne Petzold of Germany and British national Edwin Dyer were seized in January in Niger, near the border with Mali. The kidnappers freed Ms. Burco and Ms. Petzold in April along with two Canadian diplomats who'd been kidnapped in December. Last month, the Al-Qaeda group that announced it had beheaded Mr. Dyer because Britain refused to release a radical Muslim cleric, Abu Qatada, from a British prison. Swiss government officials say that no ransom was paid for Mr. Greiner's release. They credit Mali President Amadou Toumani Toure for arranging his freedom.

JAPAN

Japan's Prime Minister Taro Aso and his governing coalition have suffered a bad defeat in local elections in Tokyo, just three months before national elections. The opposition Democratic Party won the most seats in the vote, while Mr. Aso's Liberal Democratic Party and its junior partner lost their majority in the Tokyo assembly. The vote is considered a barometer for the national election. The LDP has seen internal fighting recently. Mr. Aso's critics have openly urged an early party leadership vote to replace him.

INDIA

At least 24 policemen were killed on Sunday in an ambush by Maoist rebels in the eastern state of Chhattisgarh. The attack came one month after 11 special police officers were killed in a landmine explosion triggered by Maoists in the same region where the rebels are based. Maoists say they are fighting for the rights of neglected tribal people and farmers without land. They are active in more than half of the country's 29 states particularly in the east, the poorest part of India.

IRAQ

Bombs exploded near five Christian churches in Baghdad on Sunday, killing four people and wounded more than 30 others. Police say that the explosions were likely coordinated. Iraq has about 750,000 Christians, a small minority in the mainly Muslim country of about 28 million people. Many Iraqi Christians have fled abroad.

UNITED STATES

The former U.S. vice-president, Dick Cheney, is being accused of withholding information about a secret government counterterrorist program. Democratic Party members of the U.S. Congress say that he might have abused his power by failing to inform them about the program. Mr. Cheney has declined to comment on the accusations. Some high-ranking congressional members are seeking an investigation.


WORLD UNIVERSITY GAMES

Canada's women's 4x400-metre relay team won the gold medal on Sunday at the World University Games in Belgrade, Serbia. Carline Muir, Amonn Nelson, Kimberly Hyacinthe and Esther Akinsule captured Canada's first Univeriade gold on the track in 26 years. The relay gold medal boosted the track and field team's medal total to eight and marked the team's best performance since Canada won 13 in track and field at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton.

AUTO RACING

Dario Franchitti won the Honda Indy in Toronto on Sunday. Ryan Briscoe finished second and Will Power was third. Helio Castroneves crashed into Canadian driver Paul Tracy, knocking both men out of the race. Canadian Alex Tagliani finished ninth.

ROWING

The Canadian men's eight crew won a silver medal on Sunday at a World Cup meet in Lucerne, Switzerland. Doug Vandor and Cam Sylvester won silver in the lightweight men's double event, while Lindsay Jennerich and Sheryl Preston were third in the lightweight women's double.

BASEBALL

Baltimore beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-2, on Sunday.

TRIATHLON

Canadian Kathy Tremblay finished fourth on Sunday in a World Championship Triathlon Series meet in Kitzbuhel, Austria. Australia's Emma Moffatt was first, Nicola Spirig of Switzerland was second and Andrea Hewitt of New Zealand finished third.

HORSE RACING

Gallant won the 74th running of the Prince of Wales Stakes in Toronto on Sunday in a photo finish with Milwaukee Appeal, a filly that finished second. The latest Queen's Plate winner, Eye of the Leopard, was third.


Weather

Here is Canada's weather on Monday. British Columbia will have variable cloudiness. The high temperature in Vancouver will be 21 degrees Celsius. The Yukon: variable cloudiness. Whitehorse, 21. Northwest Territories: sunny. Yellowknife, 18. Nunavut: rain. Iqaluit, eight. Alberta: showers. Edmonton, 19. Saskatchewan: rain. Regina, 19. Manitoba: sunny. Winnipeg, 25. Ontario: variable cloudiness. Toronto, 23. Ottawa, 21. Quebec: increasing cloudiness. Montreal, 23. New Brunswick: drizzle. Fredericton, 22. Nova Scotia: drizzle. Halifax, 21. Prince Edward Island: showers. Charlottetown, 21. Newfoundland: increasing cloudiness. St. John's, 23.