Reports of mass murders and rapes in villages. Pro-government forces also accused of atrocities Mass killings have been carried out by both sides of the conflict in Ivory Coast, according to the campaign group Human Rights Watch. Their report documents a trail of death and destruction carried out by rebel forces who have swept through the country and are now fighting on the streets of Abidjan to secure the presidency for Alassane Ouattara. As Ouattara, backed by the UN and the international community, edges closer to victory, the Guardian has uncovered evidence of atrocities committed by the forces acting in his name. Refugees who scrambled through the rainforest to safety in neighbouring Liberia have described children being burned alive during rebel attacks and bodies littering the streets. HRW is calling for an investigation into massacres carried out by both the rebels and those loyal to the defiant president, Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to give up power after losing the presidential election in November. Hundreds have been killed by forces loyal to Ouattara, according to HRW’s report. It found that summary executions of perceived Gbagbo supporters had taken place, and reported accounts of mass rape. Matt Wells, HRW’s Ivory Coast researcher, said: “In village after village, Ouattara’s forces terrorised civilians perceived as supporting Gbagbo, killing hundreds and raping dozens more. In committing to move Ivory Coast out of its longstanding crisis, Ouattara must ensure that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes are brought to justice.” Pro-Gbagbo forces are also accused of having carried out atrocities, killing more than 100 presumed Ouattara supporters as rebels advanced. The Guardian spent a week travelling in the border region between Ivory Coast and Liberia, hearing tales of savage attacks on civilians. It also encountered what is emerging as a recurrent aspect of the violence in Ivory Coast: the use of mercenaries from Liberia, believed to have been recruited by both sides in the conflict. Crouching in the bushes along the banks of the river that separates Liberia from Ivory Coast, two young Liberian men in filthy clothes and flip-flops agreed to a recorded interview after a small payment was made. They described how they had just returned home from a nine-day operation with pro-Ouattara rebels, where they said they were told to kill “anyone and everyone”. They described barbaric scenes in which they surrounded villages in the west of Ivory Coast and, armed with machetes, killed everyone they saw. “The town we entered first, most of the people were on the road. We killed them, just cutting them with our machetes,” they said. One of the towns they claim to have attacked was Blolequin. UN investigators said yesterday they had found more than 100 bodies in Blolequin and surrounding towns. Some appeared to have been burned alive and others had been thrown into a well. The UN believes Liberian mercenaries may have been responsible. Toulépleu is another town the two mercenaries say they attacked, and where HRW has uncovered evidence of mass killings. One mercenary said: “There are so many bodies in Toulépleu. A digger came from Danane to bury the bodies. There was no way for cars to go over there because of the bodies on the ground. It stank.” Now in the safety of a transit camp in Liberia, refugees fleeing from Toulépleu spoke of the horrors they witnessed there. They described how they grabbed family members and escaped from their homes in a hail of bullets. Whoever and whatever were left behind were burned. Cradling his five children in the red dust outside the UNHCR tent that is now all he has, Kuide Pehe Ferdinand described the chaos when the attack began. “I had too many children to save when the rebels hit. We tried to pick them all up, but one of my baby girls is disabled and we had to leave her. When I went back, they had burned the house with my baby inside.” The Audgines were also grieving for a loved one killed after the rebels set fire to their home. “I can’t even eat, I feel such sadness now,” said Rosaline, mother of nine, whose elderly father was burned alive. She said she could do nothing to help him, as he shouted to them from within the flames. She and her children are a few of the many people in the camp who have shaved their heads in a traditional gesture of mourning. The International Red Cross recently reached Toulépleu, and said it found a town almost completely razed to the ground. HRW has documented the executions of elderly people who were unable to escape rebel attacks. It says they were held captive in their villages by the pro-Ouattara rebels, and has evidence that more than 30 were executed. One 67-year-old woman from the village of Doké told HRW that pro-Ouattara fighters had taken several captives out each day – often men and women between 60 and 80 years old – and executed them at point-blank range. The pro-Ouattara forces have denied killing civilians in their advance upon Abidjan, blaming any deaths on Gbagbo’s soldiers. Those standing guard at the border crossing with Ivory Coast near Toe Town, eastern Liberia, were in victorious mood when interviewed by the Guardian. In their smart camouflage gear and with AK47s slung around their necks, they swaggered up to the barrier across the bridge between the two countries. “I pray for democracy in Ivory Coast and that the will of the people will be respected,” said “Angelou”, their commander, gripping his gun. As he talked, the sound of gunfire cracked from the forest behind him and his troops. “We don’t have problem with civilians. If you see someone’s died, it’s because he’s taken up a gun. If he’s taken up arms, he is not a civilian, he is my enemy.” The conflict threatens to cause a wider humanitarian crisis in the region. More than a million people have been internally displaced within Ivory Coast, while more than 125,000 have crossed the border into Liberia, a country that itself has been devastated by 14 years of civil war. Many Liberian communities are sheltering refugees, but barely have enough food for themselves, and there are fears the crisis will destabilise Liberia’s fragile peace. Ivory Coast Alassane Ouattara Laurent Gbagbo Rachel Stevenson guardian.co.uk
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Well, it looks like Republicans in the House of Representatives weren’t about to let this one slip past a possible government shutdown — they just passed a measure that seeks to block the FCC’s net neutrality rules by a largely party line vote of 240 to 179. That follows a House subcommittee vote last month but, as then, the bill still faces an uphill battle in the Senate and with the President, who’s expected to veto any such legislation if it somehow got to his desk. Not surprisingly, the rhetoric from both sides is only increasing following this latest development, with Democrat Rep. Henry Waxman saying the Republican bill would “end the internet as we know it,” while Republican Rep. Fred Upton argues that “the internet is not broken and this bill will assure that the FCC does not break it.” House of Representatives votes to block FCC’s net neutrality rules originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Apr 2011 16:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Obama and Democrats forced to accept $39bn package of cuts while Republicans gave way on health care for women A shutdown of the US federal government scheduled to begin on Saturday was averted after the Democrats and Republicans reached agreement only hours before midnight on budget spending cuts. The shutdown would have triggered major disruptions across the country and could have set back the country’s fragile economic recovery. Hundreds of federal agencies would have closed down and about 800,000 federal staff faced suspension. The deal came after days of negotiation between Obama and the Republican House Speaker, John Boehner, and the Democratic leader in the Senate Harry Reid. A deal had appeared to be tantalisingly close several times but was not finalised, until Friday night. Boehner, an hour before midnight, told journalists in Congress: “I am pleased that Senator Reid and the White House have come to an agreement that will cut spending and keep government open.” It would have been the first federal government shutdown since 1995-96 when there was a stand-off between the Republicans and the Clinton White House. Barack Obama tore up his schedule for Friday, including the start of a family weekend break in Virginia, to concentrate on negotiations with Republicans. He had hoped to reach a compromise Friday morning but discussions dragged out throughout the day. Obama portrayed the compromise as a tribute to US democracy as he said: “Tomorrow … the entire federal government will be open for business.” Reid, like Obama, paid tribute to the Republicans in spite of the repeated clashes over the last week. “This has been a long process,” Reid said. “It has not been an easy process. Both sides have had to make tough choices.” The Republicans forced the Democrats to agree to $39bn (£23bn) in spending cuts in this year’s budget to September, $6bn more than the Democrats were prepared to accept earlier this week. In return, the Republicans dropped a demand to cut funding for Planned Parenthood, an organisation providing health care for women. Republicans objected to the organisation’s links to abortion. Boehner had as many problems in negotiations with his own Republican party as he did with the White House and Democratic members of the House. Many Republicans were elected in November with the support of the Tea Party movement who have demanded huge reductions in the federal deficit. After reaching a deal with the White House and the Congressional Democrats, Boehner had to take the proposal to Congressional Republicans for final approval. Boehner said Congress would pass a temporary spending measure to keep the government open until mid-way through next week. This would allow time for passage of the budget bill covering spending up until the end of the fiscal year in September. The deal came after Obama spoke twice by phone Friday with Boehner. The Republicans faced being blamed for the disruption if they had not reached a deal. But Obama could have suffered too, accused of weak leadership, unable to prevent a government shutdown. About 800,000 federal employees would have been suspended without pay from Monday, more than a million troops at home and abroad would not have received pay, tax offices would have been disrupted and, in Washington DC, rubbish collection, parking control and other services would have ceased. Pollution checks by the Environmental Protection Agency would have stopped across the US, as would monitoring of Wall Street transactions. The White House, Congress, the Pentagon and hundreds of other bodies would have had to reduce staff. The immediate impact of a shutdown would have been felt by tourists hoping to visit some of America’s most popular attractions, the 400 national parks, monuments and historic sites. Queues grew at passport offices on Friday as tourists and people traveling for business or other reasons put in their applications afraid of a closedown. The dispute offers a glimpse of bigger battles to come over the 2012 budget, in which Republicans are likely to seek much bigger cuts. A Gallup poll published on Friday showed 58% of those surveyed favoured a compromise in this week’s row, with 33% backing the Republicans to hold out. US politics Barack Obama John Boehner Republicans US Congress Democrats Obama administration United States Ewen MacAskill guardian.co.uk
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Frustrated Republican Congressman and tea party members criticized Democratic Sen. Harry Reid on Friday for refusing to allow the Senate to vote on the latest temporary budget measure from the House. (April 8)
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Glee Spin-Off | Darren Criss | The Glee Project | Oxygen | The … “I would have never guessed in a million years that that would happen.” The Warblers album drops April 19th and the Season 2 finale of Glee airs May 24th. Would you watch Darren Criss in a Glee spin-off ? I know I would. Related Stories: … Adzookie.com | Home Billboard | Paint Your House | Mortgage … Will Darren Criss Front a Glee Spin-Off ? Meet Showtime’s New Real-Life “Gigolos” · Watch Daft Punk’s Homoerotic “Alive” Music Video · Movie Review: Arthur · Cirque Du Soleil “O” In Las Vegas · Do You Have A Tube Crush? … Scarlett Johansson | I Stand With Planned Parenthood PSA … Will Darren Criss Front a Glee Spin-Off ? Meet Showtime’s New Real-Life “Gigolos” · Watch Daft Punk’s Homoerotic “Alive” Music Video · Movie Review: Arthur · Cirque Du Soleil “O” In Las Vegas · Do You Have A Tube Crush? … donovanmp says: Will Darren Criss Front a Glee Spin-Off ? – Last night, new Glee favorite Darren Criss attended the Oxygen upfront pr…
Continue reading …Arizona’s House yesterday approved a bill allowing people to have guns while walking or driving through state university and community college campuses, sending the measure to Jan Brewer for her signature. The Senate had already passed the controversial bill, but not before watering it down a bit, changing it to…
Continue reading …Rush Limbaugh asks: If the troops aren’t paid because of the government shutdown, are they Obama’s slaves?
April 8, 2011 No CommentLimbaugh never misses an opportunity to act like a racist pig. If you haven’t been following the last few days, the Republicans are using the troops as a wedge for their budget fight. Today, House Republicans pushed through their stopgap measure in a 247-181 vote. The bill, H.R. 1363, quickly came under fire for demanding a series of non-budget related policy riders, including an anti-abortion policy restriction banning D.C. from using its own local funds for abortions and anti-environmental restrictions to limit the EPA from regulating green house gas emissions, on top of an extra $12 billion in cuts. “With an eye to protecting themselves politically ” from blame, the GOP quickly redefined H.R. 1363 today as the “ troop funding bill. ” The wingnuts are making believe they are outraged by Obama’s veto threat and are getting their freak on, led by Limbaugh: LIMBAUGH: Theo, thanks for the call. If the troops are not paid by their commander in chief — I have a question. If the troops still engage in battle, if they go to war and they execute the orders issued by their commanders, if the troops are thus not paid by their commander in chief, are they his slaves? What would you call it? Can those serving in the military just walk off the job? I don’t think so. So if Obama does not sign the bill to pay his troops, then it sounds sort of like forced labor to me. I mean, it’s one thing, folks — and we can all agree on this — it’s one thing to have to pick cotton. But to be forced to risk your life overseas without being paid, that’s the worst kind of forced labor to me. Are you kidding me? How can the president of the United States, on the eve of the anniversary of the Civil War, the 150th anniversary, threaten to withhold payment to Americans who not only risk their lives for their country but are required by law to serve or face court martial after they volunteered? I believe desertion in wartime is still a capital offense. But if these wars are just kinetic military operations, maybe an unpaid warrior who walks off the job only gets jail time. Because we’re not at war — the regime won’t say so. These are kinetic military actions. It’s bad enough that our troops were sent into Iraq in the first place by hook and by crook to fight Bush and Cheney’s war, and they’ve paid a heavy price for the lies that got us into it. Why must they suffer this fool too?
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Speaker of the House, John Boehner, says Republicans are demanding significant spending cuts in the budget fight taking place in Washington. However he says he does not want any type of government shutdown.(April 8)
Continue reading …NBC’s Gregory Asks Rep. Hoyer About Dem Strategy to ‘Cast Republicans as Extremists’
April 8, 2011 No Comment
In an interview with Democratic Maryland Congressman Steny Hoyer on NBC's Today, Meet the Press host David Gregory, filling in for Matt Lauer, asked: “I wonder, as a Democratic leader, whether part of the strategy here is to cast Republicans as extremists and ultimately get a lot more of a winning political hand for the Democrats through this process.” With that setup, Hoyer proclaimed: “David, I think the Republicans are doing that to themselves very frankly. I don't think we have to cast them in that light. They're casting themselves in that light with the Tea Party coming to town and demanding that they either get 100% or shut down the government.” As part of his question to Hoyer, Gregory also touted the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll : “…in terms of who would get the blame. Republicans, certainly a lot more than Democrats.” A graphic of the poll appeared on screen, showing that 37% would blame congressional Republicans, 20% would blame congressional Democrats, and 20% would blame President Obama. Considering President Obama is a Democrat, the math would indicate that 40% would blame Democrats in Congress and the White House for a shutdown. In addition, there were numbers that were not featured in that graphic. Beyond those three responses to the poll question, 2% blamed both the President and Democrats, while 17% blamed all parties involved. 4% of respondents were “not sure.” So the real numbers would be 42% would blame Democrats in some form, 37% would blame Republicans, and 17% would blame members of both parties. In other words, a pretty even split. Earlier in the interview, Gregory identified Republican efforts to de-fund Planned Parenthood as “the real focus” of the budget debate and something that may “ultimately derail any potential compromise.” In a prior report, White House correspondent Savannah Guthrie similarly declared: “The parties are still sparring, not about money, but over so-called 'riders' to the budget bill, policy provisions the Republicans want, like a measure to strip funding from Planned Parenthood. Another provision would sharply limit the EPA.” At one point in the interview, Gregory did challenge Hoyer, asking about Democrats getting some of the blame if there is a government shutdown: “Congressman, you know it takes two sides to shut down a government. Aren't you embarrassed by all this?” Hoyer replied: “I am embarrassed by it. I think – I'm not sure it takes two sides. It takes one side that is prepared to demand 100%, and if the other side doesn't lay down and totally give up then they'll shut down the government.” Gregory did not press Hoyer further on Democratic stubborness. Here is a full transcript of Gregory's April 8 interview with Hoyer: 7:05AM ET DAVID GREGORY: Democratic Congressman Steny Hoyer of Maryland is the House Minority Whip. Congressman Hoyer, good morning. STENY HOYER: Good morning, David. [ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Deadline Day; Will Washington Get A Budget Deal Today?] GREGORY: So deal or no deal? How's it going to go down? HOYER: Well, there's no deal yet, unfortunately. And you know we have a history, a pattern of the Republicans taking control and shutting down the government, as they did in '95. It hasn't happened since then, even when we had significant disagreements between George Bush and the Democratic Congress. That's not an alternative we ought to be taking. I think we're very close. I think we've come 70% of the way, in terms of dollars. That's a long way to go in trying to reach compromise. Now, of course, as the President has pointed out and Harry Reid pointed out, there are some social issues, which the Republicans are demanding and holding hostage the government. GREGORY: And Congressman, my understanding is the real focus is on those issues, like limiting funding for Planned Parenthood. How does that get resolved? And does that ultimately derail any potential compromise? HOYER: Well, I think the President has clearly indicated – as George Bush did, his predecessor – that he would not sign bills that were contrary to the policies that he believed the American public elected him to carry out. After all, he was elected overwhelmingly as President of the United States. The Republicans have taken one-third of the government, the House of Representatives. When we were in charge of the House and we had disagreements with George Bush, we compromised, we kept the government open. We understood that the President could veto and I would hope the Republicans would make that same understanding. After all, this debate began about bringing down deficits, about bringing down numbers and cutting spending. We have done that, as I say, we've come 70% of the way. I think that the agreement on numbers is close and we ought to make those agreements on numbers. And as Governor Daniels said, of Indiana, we ought to fight the social issues on another bill. GREGORY: Congressman, you know it takes two sides to shut down a government. Aren't you embarrassed by all this? HOYER: I am embarrassed by it. I think – I'm not sure it takes two sides. It takes one side that is prepared to demand 100%, and if the other side doesn't lay down and totally give up then they'll shut down the government. They know we don't want to shut down the government, so they think they can hold hostage things that we certainly don't agree with but that we will cave in order to keep the government running, which we want to do. GREGORY: Well, you talk – you talk about compromise. Look at the findings of our NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, in terms of who would get the blame. Republicans, certainly a lot more than Democrats. And I wonder, as a Democratic leader, whether part of the strategy here is to cast Republicans as extremists and ultimately get a lot more of a winning political hand for the Democrats through this process. HOYER: David, I think the Republicans are doing that to themselves very frankly. I don't think we have to cast them in that light. They're casting themselves in that light with the Tea Party coming to town and demanding that they either get 100% or shut down the government. Last night the founder of the Tea Party, one of the Tea Parties, said if Boehner came out with $99 billion that would not be enough. $100 billion was what they wanted and nothing less. You can't negotiate, in a Democratic society, on the basis that one side gets 100%, the other side gets zero. That doesn't work. GREGORY: Just a few seconds left, Congressman. Should you get paid if there's a government shutdown? HOYER: Well, I think that probably we ought not to get paid. Of course the Constitution says you can't have your salary diminished, so that people can't threaten one another for votes on that basis. But the fact of the matter is, we should not shut government. We should keep government going, not just for the federal employees, David. But for the millions and millions of businesses, people's families, that will be adversely affected and the hit that the economy will take by shutting down government. This is not a good strategy. Taking us to the brink like this is not appropriate, particularly when we have agreed, the President has agreed, to come 70% of the way toward what the Republican position was on cutting spending. GREGORY: Alright, we'll leave it there. We'll be watching. Congressman Hoyer, thank you very much. HOYER: Thank you, David. — Kyle Drennen is a news analyst at the Media Research Center. You can follow him on Twitter here.
Continue reading …Prior to this week, President Obama had been so detached from the budget debate that some in his own party have openly criticized him. Obama, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin declared in early March , has “failed to lead this debate or offer a serious proposal for spending and cuts that he would be willing to fight for.” Yet when the President chose to parachute into the budget talks earlier this week, most of the mainstream media neglected to remember his long absence, but instead acted like White House stenographers in praising his “adult” and “grown-up” approach — conveying the obvious implication that House Republicans and/or the Tea Party have been acting like children. A video compilation of some of the more noteworthy these comments appears below the fold; a link to audio of remarks by CBS’s Chip Reid, CNN’s Gloria Borger and CNN’s Eliot Spitzer, all from April 5, is here . CHIP REID (CBS Evening News, April 5): The President said he’ll call congressional leaders back here to the White House every day this week if they can’t reach a deal on their own. One thing the White House is hoping to do is have the President appear like an adult breaking up a childish battle. CNN’s GLORIA BORGER (CNN Newsroom, April 5): Politically, what he’s trying to do is to be the grown up….
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