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| Sunday, 17 October 2004 |
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US Presidential polls campaign hots up Globescan by M.P. Muttiah US President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry have ended their third debate. President Bush, who was leading at the beginning of the campaign, has been pushed back. At a recent poll conducted by newspapers in ten countries, showed most of the people prefer John Kerry to George W.Bush. The significance of the poll was that it was held in countries that are allies of the United States.
Voters in Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Japan, Mexico, Spain and South Korea favoured John Kerry, while Israelis and Russians supported Bush. Canadians' decision could be considered important as that country borders the United States. One of the issues at the poll was Iraq war. France which opposed the war was the most pro-Kerry country among the ten. Although some of the voters viewed that the war in Iraq had contributed to the fight against terrorism around the world, former Chief UN Weapons Inspector Hans Blix has said that the US-led invasion of Iraq had failed tragically in its aim of making the world a safer place and succeeded only in stimulating terrorism. While the opinion of the majority of world countries was against Bush, opposition to his ally, Pakistani President Pervez Musharaaf, rose to a higher level. Pandemonium reigned in the National Assembly when a government bill submitted at the House to allow Musharaaf to remain as army chief well beyond a constitutional deadline of December 31. Under an agreement last year with the Islamic Opposition Alliance, Musharaaf assured to step down as army chief in return for their support to constitutional changes that gave him sweeping powers to dissolve parliament and dismiss the government. However, Musharaaf turned down his assurance. The bill was passed in the National Assembly since the majority of parties were pro-military. The Opposition claimed that the military dictatorship was ruling the country. The opposition submitted a no-confidence motion against National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussein with 107 members signing it for his alleged partial attitude during the assembly proceedings. This was the second time, that Hussein was facing a no-confidence motion. Afghanistan, the closest neighbour of Pakistan, went for polls amid tension and anxiety. The pro-US Hamid Karzai claimed the majority of votes. Early results showed Karzai was far ahead of his main rivals. Of nearly 40,000 votes which tallied in six northern and central provinces during the first day of counting on Thursday, Karzai had won some 20,000, securing 56.2 per cent. Other contenders did not get even 20 per cent. According to reports, 85 per cent of the people had voted. According to observers, the suppression of women during the Taliban regime had contributed for the large turnout of the opposite sex. Meanwhile, in India, rebel groups in Andhra Pradesh and Assam have started their peace process. The Maoist rebels, the People's War Group, are negotiating with the State government to end the ten-year old insurgency that claimed more than 6,000 lives. The Congress government that came to power early this year, agreed for talks and a truce. One of the demands of the PWG is the distribution of land to rural poor. At the same time, the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) has begun a truce in Assam. The NDFB is fighting for a separate homeland for ethnic Bodos in Assam State. This front blames both the Centre and the State governments of neglecting the welfare of tribals. Assam government has accepted the unilateral six-month ceasefire offer. The Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi urged the other rebel outfit, ULFA, to enter into peace talks. Bordering India, a significant event has taken place in China. China and Russia resolved the decades-old border dispute during a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Both countries signed an agreement fixing their 2,700 mile-long border for the first time. The struggle over border areas resulted in violent clashes in the 1960s and 1970s, when strained Sino-Soviet relations fuelled fears that the conflict could erupt into a nuclear war. Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, signed the final agreement at a ceremony in which Putin and Chinese President Hu Jintao were present. Putin said that they had found a solution to the border issue which would allow them to have closer co-operation with regard to development of natural resources, environmental protection and economic issues. |
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