Section A · Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Thursday, October 14, 1999
Nation/World
Pakistani coup may make region unstable
Native students expected takeover
Todd Halstead
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Pakistani students at the University of Kansas reacted with hope about the news of the military coup against the democratically elected government in Pakistan.
On Monday, Pakistani military troops seized state-run media and placed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif under house arrest. Army chief of staff Gen. Pervaiz Musharraf accused the government of driving the economy toward collapse.
Fahad Maral, Lahore, Pakistan, junior, said the coup came as a surprise because a majority of parliament had supported Sharif.
He said that there had been friction between the prime minister and the military, and the firing of Musharraf while he was in Sri Lanka might have instigated the coup.
"There might have been a personal grudge," Malal said. "There's always something hidden." Paul D'Anier, associate professor of political science, said there was a long history of military coups in Pakistan — corps the United States generally supported for political reasons.
"It would appear, however, that the U.S. is not very happy about this particular group of folks," he said. "This military group is going to be more desiring of having a nuclear arsenal than the
D'Anieri said the military leaders now in power were displeased with the way the civilian government had recently backed down in the conflict with India about the territory of Kashmir.
civilian government. There's not too much the U.S. can do about this. A lot of aid was already suspended because of nuclear testing."
Faisal Iqbal, Karachi, Pakistan, junior, said the citizens of Pakistan understood the military's actions and the coup had been expected.
"Personally, I think it will be good because the government thrown down was not doing good and people were not satisfied with the government's performance," Iqbal said.
"Reactions of people on the street were calm," Iqbal said. "People were relieved. Naturally in a democratic country people don't want military rule, but things had gone so far downhill."
He said that after watching the news he thought there was total chaos, but after speaking with his parents he discovered that conditions in Pakistan were subdued.
Maral said his country was in economic turmoil because of sanctions imposed by the United States and other countries in reaction to Pakistan's nuclear testing in May 1988. He said the counm may cause further sanctions.
"If he rules by military laws, that will be a bad thing," Maral said of Musharraf. "We are already in a depression over the nuclear testing incident because of an economic embargo. My future and many others is in the middle of nowhere if our economy goes down because of this."
- Edited by Chris Hutchison
White House wants democracy restored
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Clinton administration yesterday called for a return to constitutional democracy in Pakistan after the army seized power from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said the coup created a new level of uncertainty in a region where bitter rivals have tested nuclear weapons.
President Clinton discussed the situation with British Prime Minister Tony Blair during an hourlong telephone call. The two leaders expressed hopes for the restoration of civilian government, National Security Council representative David Leavy said.
"What we hope very much is there is a return to a constitutional system in Pakistan and that we are able to continue the work that we have been doing to deflect the conflict, to get India and Pakistan to talk again about solving the Kashmir problem peacefully," Albright said.
Albright said U.S. officials have been in contact with military leaders in Pakistan in hopes of persuading them to return the country to a democratic government. "A military takeover of this kind ... does make it difficult to continue business as usual," she said. "A serious outbreak of hostilities
there could create great instability.
A senior government official who discussed the Pakistan matter on condition of anonymity said U.S. intelligence had warned for several months of the possibility of a military takeover in Pakistan.
Army chief Gen. Pervaiz Musharraf deposed the prime minister Tuesday after what had appeared to be promising signs of reconciliation between the two following an extended period of friction.
The United States is watching closely for indications about the direction Musharraf intends to take the country, White House spokesman Joe Lockhart said yesterday.
"We still are concerned and will continue to work until we get a clear picture of what's going on on the ground," Lockhart said. "We call very clearly for the earliest possible restoration of democracy and constitutional rule in Pakistan."
Colombian cartel leader arrested in anti-drug operation
The Associated Press
BOGOTA, Colombia — In the biggest blow to Colombian drug trafficking since 1995, authorities yesterday arrested 30 people including Fabio Ochoa, a leader in the oncepowerful Medellin cartel, the national police director announced.
Meanwhile, in a separate series of raids, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in Puerto Rico announced that drug agents in 15 Caribbean and Latin American
countries had arrested 1,290 people, burst into illicit laboratories, torched cocaine plantations and seized a veritable navy of drug-running boats during a two week period.
Colombian police chief Gen. Rosso Jose Serrano told reporters in Bogota that suspects in today's action were seized in predawn raids, and those captured in Colombia will be extradited to the United States for trial. Most of the suspects were arrested in Colombia, with others captured in Ecuador, Mexico and
the United States. he said.
This was an immense operation, an operation you could call perfect," Serrano told reporters.
U. S. drug officials said the organization moved 20 to 30 tons of cocaine a month into Mexico for distribution throughout the United States. Colombian police worked with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and CIA in the yearlong investigation that began in Houston and Ecuador and tracked the ring's operations all the way to
Europe, Serrano said.
"These people made gigantic shipments of drugs and flooded the U.S. markets." Serrano told RCN radio.
The sting was dubbed Operation Millennium, and Serrano called it the most important blow to drug traffickers in Colombia since the Caii cacile cartel's leaders were captured in 1995, ending the era of huge, vertically organized cartels and splintering the business.
The other drug raids, conducted between Sept. 29 and Oct. 11 and
announced today in San Juan. Puerto Rico, were not related to Operation Millennium.
Though most of the people nabbed in the two-week crackdown were low-level drug courriers or street dealers, the scale of the raids was enormous.
"This was an operation like never before seen," said Michael Vigil, chief of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency's Caribbean headquarters in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He added that it was the largest anti-drug operation in history.
New French law protects rights of gay, straight unwed couples
The Associated Press
D 1999 Teachers Insurance and Assurance Association College Retirement Equities Fund, NE, NY
They also feared the law would lead to lifting rules forbidding gay couples to adopt or have children by artificial insemination.
The National Assembly approved the law by a vote of 315-249 nearly a year after it was introduced.
PARIS — French legislators adopted a law yesterday that gives unwed gay and straight couples the same rights previously reserved for those who are married.
But the socialists, who introduced the bill, said the law would better protect couples, regardless of their gender.
Visibly pleased leftist lawmakers stood up after the measure passed. Justice Minister Elisabeth Guigou, a socialist, said the law would help diminish homophobia and intolerance.
Similar legislation already exists in several European countries, including Iceland, Belgium and Sweden. Laws in Denmark and the Netherlands are even more liberal.
Conservative lawmakers immediately said they would ask the Constitutional Council to decide if the law was unconstitutional, in which case it would be void.
Conservatives argued the Civil Solidarity Pact, better known by its acronym PACS, would undermine traditional family values.
In France, the law would affect mainly the 4.4 million heterosexual couples who live together but are not married. Forty percent of French children are now born to unmarried couples. The number of gay couples is unknown.
The PACS law would, among other things, let couples file tax forms together after three years; help people bring foreign partners to France; force employers to take couples' joint vacation plans into account and make partners accountable for each others' debts.
LAWRENCE AUTOMOTIVE DIAGNOSTICS
842-8665
2858 Four
Wheel Dr.
AT TIAA-CREF LOW EXPENSES ARE A HIGH PRIORITY.
All financial companies charge operating fees and expenses some more than others. Of course,the lower the expenses you pay, the better. That way,more of your money goes where it should-toward building a comfortable future.
As the largest retirement system in the world, $ ^{1} $ we have among the lowest expenses in the insurance and mutual fund industries. $ ^{2} $
In fact, TIAA-CREF's $0.35\%$ average fund expenses are a fraction of the expense charges of comparable funds. $ ^{3} $ It's one reason why Morningstar says, "TIAA-CREF sets the standard in the
financial services industry."
A focus on your future Of course, expenses are only one factor to consider when you make an investment decision. Morningstar also noted our commitment to "consumer education service" and "solid investment performance." Because that can make a difference in the long run, too.
At TIAA-CREF, we believe people would like to spend more in retirement, not on their retirement company. Today, over two million people count on that approach to help them build financial security. So can you.
Ensuring the future for those who shape it. $ ^{t} $
1 800 842-2776 www.tiaa-cref.org
To find out more-give us a call or visit our website
1 Based on $250 billion in assets under management. 2 Standard of Practice Insurance Ratings Analysis, 1999 and Liquor Analytical Services, Inc., *Liquor Analytical Data* 1999 (quarterly). *Morgan Stanley Variable Annuities* 620/1009, 1998. Of the 6,832 insurance payments tracked by Morgan Stanley, the average fund had total free non-contingual expenses of 0.84%, plus an insurance expense of 1.29%. TIAA-CREP certificates are subject to change and are not guaranteed for the future. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. TIAA-CREP Individual and Institutional Services distribute CREP certificates and interests in the TIAA Real Estate Account. For more complete information, including charges and expenses, call 1 800 842-7776; extension 6099, for prospectuses. Read these carefully before you invest or send money.
SIMON SAYS free T-Shirt with purchase!
Free JNCO T-Shirt with purchase of "JUMP START" at Kief's (while supplies last) Playing Thursday Oct. 14 at the Bottleneck
KIEF'S
24th Iowa St.
Lawrence, KS
785-842-1544