PACIFIC DISASTER MANAGEMENT INFORMATION NETWORK (PDMIN) 1 Jarrett White Road MCPA-DM, Tripler AMC, HI 96859-5000 Telephone: 808.433.7035 · [email protected] · http://www.coe-dmha.org Asia-Pacific Daily Report August 12, 2003 Afghanistan US to accelerate Afghan reconstruction assistance The United States is reportedly looking to accelerate its assistance for Afghanistan. US Secretary of State Colin Powell told reporters yesterday after a meeting with the United Nations special envoy to Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, that the US remains committed to Afghanistan and was looking at ways to accelerate its work with new resources including additional funding and other assets. Powell said he was pleased with the progress made in Afghanistan, adding that serious work remained to be done. Brahimi told Powell, “things are difficult, there are problems” but added that there were reasons to be optimistic given the commitment of the United States and the rest of the world. Last month (July 28), the Washington Post reported that the US administration was working on a US$1 billion package aimed at accelerating the reconstruction process in war-ravaged Afghanistan. The White House’s Office of Management and Budget is reportedly still looking at ways to divert funds already appropriated for 2003 to Afghanistan. However, it is not yet clear where the new funding would come from. The US has already provided US$700 million in aid to Afghanistan since the ouster of the hardline Taliban regime in October 2001. http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/6686f45896f15dbc852567ae00530132/19bbfc8e0a20242149256d80001d2c9f?OpenDocument India Border alert as raid on militant bases in Bhutan continues; 10 security forces killed in Tripura; BJP leader kidnapped in Bihar According to the Hindustan Times today, a series of raids on camps of the Indian rebel group, the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) in neighboring Bhutan, has continued after they began over 2 weeks ago. Security forces on both sides of the border have been put on alert to prevent the rebels from fleeing back to the northeast Indian state of Assam. The initial crackdown in Bhutan came after the Bhutanese government issued a series of warnings for the rebels to leave. In addition, Indian National Security Advisor Brajesh Mishra recently visited Bhutan, although officials remain tight- lipped over the proceedings. Unidentified gunmen, reportedly mercenaries and members of former ULFA rebels who broke off after group infighting, have conducted at least 3 major raids. Meanwhile, 3 soldiers were killed today in nearby Tripura state when they clashed with suspected National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) rebels. Another 7 policemen were killed in a landmine blast allegedly set by the rebels in restive West Tripura district. Finally, a leader of the federal ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was kidnapped by unidentified people in Rohtas district. There has been a recent increase in kidnapping cases in the state. http://hindustantimes.com http://www.sunnt.com/news/national/national.asp?id=13897 http://hindustantimes.com http://hindustantimes.com Demonstrations hit Pulwama; Violence kills 2 civilians, 5 soldiers and 6 militants A prominent separatist leader and at least 20 people were arrested in Indian- controlled Kashmir (IcK) after a protest march was held in the summer capital of Srinagar. Shabir Shah of the Democratic Freedom Party (DFP), was leading a protest against the alleged disappearance of two young men from a northern Kashmiri town while in army custody. The protest was the second such incident in about two weeks in IcK, where public demonstrations have been banned since the 1989 separatist revolution. Human rights groups have alleged atrocities by both security forces and militant groups in IcK. Meanwhile, a civilian woman was reportedly shot dead in her home in Kupwara district yesterday. Police say she was killed on suspicion of being an informer for Indian security forces. Another Muslim was reportedly shot dead in southern Anantnag district. Police say he was a member of the pro-India militant group, Ikhwan. A third civilian was killed when he stepped on a landmine in his field in Budgam district. Both civilians and soldiers have been victims of extensive mining, particularly in border districts. In addition, 6 militants and 5 soldiers were reportedly killed in separate clashes since yesterday in Rajouri and Doda districts. http://www.expressindia.com/print.php?newsid=23853 http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/aug2003-daily/12-08-2003/main/main13.htm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/south_asia/3144427.stm India-Pakistan meet ends on good note; Hizbul Mujahideen calls for return of Pandits A meeting of Indian and Pakistani Members of Parliament (MPs), journalists and experts, the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA), reportedly ended today on a positive note. At least 153 prominent people attended the meeting in Islamabad and discussed India-Pakistan relations, particularly the Kashmir dispute. Although there were no expectations that the conference would lead to the resolution of several key issues, it was generally agreed that the meeting would help ease tensions and pave the way for “some” official dialogue between the two countries. Shortly after meeting the Indian MPs, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf called for a ceasefire on the disputed Line of Control (LoC). Indian and Pakistani troops routinely exchange small-arms fire across the LoC. However, the Indian Foreign Ministry quickly rejected his ceasefire call. Observers say the Indian government is anxious to keep the nationalist vote for the upcoming national elections. Meanwhile, the major Kashmiri militant group, the Hizbul Mujahideen, today called for the return of Kashmiri Pandits, a class of high-caste Hindus that had formed part of Kashmir’s traditional elite class. At least 300,000 Kashmiri Pandits fled the region since the 1989 revolt, while about 100,000 remain, many of them in government-run camps. The statement was the latest in a series of reconciliatory gestures from the group. However, Kashmiri Pandit leaders rejected the statement, saying that they will not return until militants stop targeting Hindus. In recent months, there has been an increase in deliberate attacks against civilians in Hindu-dominated Jammu region in Kashmir’s south, increasing communal tensions in the traditionally harmonious region. http://asia.news.yahoo.com/030812/3/12lob.html http://hindustantimes.com http://hindustantimes.com Nepal Talks between Maoists and government to be held Sunday Talks between Maoist rebels and the government will take place on Sunday (August 17), according to a Nepali minister and an intermediary. “The talks will be held on August 17 which has been fixed by a consensus by both sides,” Padma Ratna Tuladhar, a talks facilitator said. Minister for Information and Communication and government spokesperson Kamal Thapa also announced at a press conference that the date and venue for the third round of peace talks had been set after holding informal talks with the Maoist side. Both said that the talks would be held in Nepalgunj, located some 310 miles west of the capital, Kathmandu. The city is located near the Indian border with Nepal, and an area where the Maoists have a strong presence. Both sides had signed a ceasefire in January and held two rounds of peace talks, but talks stalled in May after the rebels demanded a restriction in army movements. However, on July 31, the rebels agreed to resume talks after the government gave in to one of their demands and freed three top Maoist leaders. Meanwhile, the Defense Ministry reported yesterday that 5 rebels were killed and two soldiers wounded in a clash on Monday (August 11). Although the January ceasefire has largely held, sporadic clashes have become increasingly less uncommon in recent days. http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters08-12-051530.asp?reg=ASIA http://www.kantipuronline.com/kol_news.html#Third%20round%20of%20talks%20on%20Sunday%20in%20Nepalgunj http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/south/08/11/nepal/index.html North Korea Armitage says multilateral talks on North Korean nuclear crisis likely to be held on August 27; US, Japan and South Korea to hold prep talks this week in Washington US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage says that multilateral talks on the North Korean nuclear crisis will likely take place on August 27 in Beijing. Armitage made the announcement during an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corp. (ABC) in Sydney, Australia today in the first formal announcement of when the talks might actually take place. “Yes, we do probably starting around the 27th of this month in Beijing,” Armitage answered when asked by the ABC if there was a date in mind for the talks. Pyongyang had been pushing for bilateral talks with the US, but finally agreed earlier this month to hold multilateral talks with the US, South Korea, Japan, China and Russia. China’s Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said yesterday that the 6-way meeting was likely to take place in late August. The standoff began last October when Washington said that Pyongyang had admitted that it had a secret nuclear weapons program. The situation worsened when the North pulled out of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, restarted a nuclear reactor and expelled UN nuclear inspectors from the country. Meanwhile, State Department spokesperson Philip Reeker said that meetings would take place this Wednesday (August 13) and Thursday (August 14) in Washington between the US, Japan and South Korea in preparation for the 6-way talks with North Korea. Yesterday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov said that Russia would hold talks with both South and North Korea this week on the proposed 6-way meeting in Beijing on North Korea’s controversial nuclear program. Losyukov said that talks would be held in Moscow and another meeting involving Japan could also take place in the near future.