Wednesday 17th September 2008 MEDIA HEADLINES IN ENGLISH

You’re listening to NEWS REPORT, a summary of today’s media, prepared by UNMIK ON AIR

Kosovo is calm, says EU representative,
Serbia to address the UN on Kosovo, and
Killings of Afghan civilians sharply up

KOSOVO
Kosovo remains relatively stable seven months after independence was declared, the EU special representative to Kosovo Peter Feith said in his first speech before European parliament members. Speaking on the future international presence, Feith said EULEX would continue talks with representatives of the communities on the importance of the mission to help rebuild the society.

A decision to re-open courts in northern Mitrovica is expected soon, according to UNMIK deputy chief David Harland. “UNMIK must implement the decision to open courts very soon because one can feel the lack of judicial institutions in the northern part of Kosovo,” Harland said in Mitrovica yesterday.

Following a meeting with the Kosovo Minister of Justice yesterday, the EULEX head of rule of the law department said, that the main challenge and priority for his department will be the creation of an independent judicial system yesterday. He added that all citizens should have equal access to the justice system.

Papers report that the Japanese Liaison Office in Pristina has announced that Japan will recognize Kosovo passports. Japan also commended Kosovo’s ministry of interior for producing high-quality passports.

After meeting Kosovo’s Prime Minister, the Czech ambassador Janina Hrebickova said that the Czech Republic respects but does not support the Serbian initiative to seek the opinion of the International Court of Justice over the independence of Kosovo. Croatia declared yesterday it will follow the same line at the UN.

Switzerland has vowed to help Kosovo develop its e-government in public administration. A delegation from the Ministry for Public Services is visiting the region of Geneva, where it received promises for technical support on the implementation on e-governance.

The Head of the Kosovo Protection Corps has called on the Government not only to support the planned disbanding of troops but to work more to accommodate them in other sectors. Sylejman Selimi suggests that officers who fail to be invited to the Kosovo Security Force, they should be included in the border police force.

REGIONAL
Serbia will request from the UN General Committee today in New York to include its request at the General Assembly to ask the International Court of Justice’s opinion on the legality of the unilaterally declared independence of Kosovo.

A senior EU official says Croatia has not yet fulfilled the requirements needed to allow the bloc to set a timetable for membership talks. Jose Manuel Barroso says Croatia needs to make faster progress in areas such as the reform of its judiciary, the fight against corruption, war crimes trials and human rights, and open privatization process.

The poverty and discrimination that blight the lives of many Roma across Europe have dominated an EU conference in Brussels. The special meeting on Tuesday was called to encourage EU member states to give Roma the access to education and welfare that other citizens enjoy.

INTERNATIONAL
Nearly 1,500 Afghan civilians were killed in the first eight months of this year, many in attacks on schools, medical clinics, bazaars and other crowded areas. The U.N. human rights office said the spike in fatalities had coincided with "a systematic campaign of intimidation and violence" by Taliban forces targeting civilians.

The US Federal Reserve has announced an $85bn rescue package for AIG, the country's biggest insurance company, to save it from bankruptcy. The rescue follows the collapse of US investment giant Lehman Brothers, which caused share prices to plummet across the world's financial markets.

A Nigerian man with 86 wives, Mohammadu Bello Abubakar, has been arrested by an Islamic court for refusing to divorce all but four of them. He was picked up in a pre-dawn raid on his house in Bida, Niger state and charged with "insulting religious creed" and "unlawful marriages".

WEATHER
Rain throughout today with a high of 11 degrees and a low tonight of 8 degrees; tomorrow the skies will clear up and the sun will come out with temperatures ranging from a high of 13 to a low of 4 degrees Celsius.

And that’s all for today, thank you for listening.