Former favourite to win 2012 presidential election may return to France more popular than ever if cleared of all charges French Socialists were in chaos as key figures speculated whether Dominique Strauss-Kahn could return to challenge Nicolas Sarkozy in the presidential race next year, throwing the party into another round of instability and internal ego-clashes. Strauss-Kahn was the clear favourite to win the 2012 presidential election before he was arrested for allegedly attempting to rape a New York hotel maid in May. He is no longer under house arrest, but still faces seven charges ranging from attempted rape to sexual assault. If he is cleared or charges are dropped, supporters such as former culture minister Jack Lang suggested he could return to France more popular than ever before. Strauss-Kahn’s possible return has thrown the Socialist party’s primary race into disarray. The party had presumed his presidential hopes were dead and opened its selection process for another candidate last week. Candidates must declare by 13 July for an October vote, but Strauss-Kahn’s next hearing is scheduled for 18 July. Current front-runner François Hollande was the first to declare this weekend that he had “no problem” with pushing back the declaration date until the end of August, allowing Strauss-Kahn to return from New York if charges were dropped quickly. But the party’s interim leader, Harlem Désir, snapped back that there didn’t seem to be “any reason” to move the deadline. The row has weakened Martine Aubry, who declared her presidential bid last week, but had a pact with Strauss-Kahn and could be pressured to stand aside for him. All depends on whether the prosecution maintains its case and goes to trial or quickly drops charges against Strauss-Kahn, and if so how the French public and opinion polls perceive him. Even while the charges still stand, some French supporters presented him as an innocent victim, hero and martyr. Left-wing philosopher Bernard-Henry Lévy spoke of a noble man who had been the victim of a “spiral of horror and calumny”. He told Le Parisien that Strauss-Kahn had been “lynched” by the “friends of minorities” in the US. He said that because the victim was “poor and immigrant” she had been presumed innocent, and because Strauss-Kahn was “powerful” he had been presumed guilty. Sylvie Pierre-Brossolette, political editor of the weekly Le Point , felt “anything is possible”. A returning Strauss-Kahn might be seen by the French as “hero” mistreated or “humiliated” by the American justice system. Much would depend on whether French left voters still saw him as a “saviour” against Sarkozy, she wrote. But while many Socialists felt DSK could return triumphant if totally cleared, others worried about the stain the case would leave on French politics and the damage done by revelations about his private life and his attitude to women. Since his arrest, a French taboo has been broken and Strauss-Kahn’s behaviour towards women, deemed “libertine” by his friends, has been raked over. Socialist Anne Mansouret, who said she regretted dissuading her daughter, journalist Tristane Banon, from pressing charges over an alleged sexual assault in 2002, had said Strauss-Kahn had a “problem” with women which could be seen as a sickness. Strauss-Kahn seemed not to be worried about his political image on Friday night when he went out for a $100 bowl of pasta with friends, casting aside the controversy in France that he should tone down his image of “champagne socialism”. Socialist MP Marisol Touraine, a key DSK ally, said she hoped for Strauss-Kahn’s “rehabilitation” but warned that he would not be able to return to a “status quo” in France as if nothing had happened. Gérard Collomb, the mayor of Lyon and Strauss-Kahn supporter, warned that Strauss-Kahn should first “rebuild himself” before a possible return to the presidential race, warning that no one emerged from such a case “unscathed”. Pollsters cautioned that Strauss-Kahn’s return would be shaped by whether the American justice system cleared him or whether charges were dropped, leaving doubts. Pascal Perrineau, of Paris’s Institute of Political Science, said that if Strauss-Kahn was cleared of all suspicion, his return to France could still be complicated. “If a strong doubt persists over his behaviour, and even if that behaviour isn’t as criminal as was once suggested, a return [to politics] seems really very difficult,” he told Reuters. Gerald Bronner, a sociologist at Strasbourg university, said: “This case has allowed another image of Strauss-Kahn to be put forward in French public opinion. The public wasn’t informed of the slightly libertine side of his personal life.” Jean Veil, Strauss-Kahn’s French lawyer, said: “He will speak once he’s in France and cleared of all suspicion.” Dominique Strauss-Kahn France Europe Nicolas Sarkozy Angelique Chrisafis guardian.co.uk
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Duke and Duchess of Cambridge gear up to visit Quebec, centre of the separatist movement, where protests are planned The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Canadian tour enters its second, and potentially trickiest, phase today as the couple visit French-speaking territory. They arrive in Montreal this afternoon and will spend the night aboard a Canadian navy frigate sailing up the St Lawrence river to Quebec City, traditionally the centre of the separatist movement, for Sunday. Royal visitors have had an uncertain welcome in Quebec province – where more than 80% of the population speak French – in recent decades. The Queen has not returned to Quebec city since protesters turned their backs on her and booed in 1964, and two years ago Prince Charles and Camilla were held up by scuffles between demonstrators and police as they visited Montreal. Radical young protesters from the Quebec Resistance Network have called for a demonstration outside the city hall on Sunday, though they have promised it will be peaceful. Patrick Bourgeois, leader of the network, said the separatists want to send a message “that the monarchy is not welcome in Quebec”. Prince William has emphasised Canada’s bilingualism and dual identity – “Bonne fête, Canada, happy birthday,” he exclaimed in a speech. The visit to Quebec province is a sign that the authorities believe their appearance there will be a success. In a recent poll, more than half of those questioned described themselves as excited by the prospect of seeing them. During the first two days of their tour in Ottawa, the royal couple have been greeted by huge and adulatory crowds. More than 300,000 people were estimated to have crowded around the capital’s parliament hill during the Canada Day celebrations on Friday, many of them travelling for hours and some sleeping out to catch a glimpse of the prince and his bride. Although the duchess has not visited Canada before, her husband has stressed her links to the country where he recalled that her grandfather had trained as a pilot in Alberta during the second world war. The Queen has visited Canada more frequently than any other country: 22 times, most recently last year. On Saturday morning, the royal couple will go through the near-obligatory tree-planting ceremony at the governor-general’s residence – a Canadian hemlock. Later they will meet military veterans and members of the war brides association at the Canadian war museum – nearly 45,000 young British and European women emigrated to the country after the second world war. Arriving in Montreal later in the afternoon, the couple will tour the Sainte-Justine university hospital centre, which has a world-renowned children’s unit, before joining a cooking workshop at the Institut de Tourisme. Prince William Monarchy Kate Middleton Canada Protest Stephen Bates guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Duke and Duchess of Cambridge gear up to visit Quebec, centre of the separatist movement, where protests are planned The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Canadian tour enters its second, and potentially trickiest, phase today as the couple visit French-speaking territory. They arrive in Montreal this afternoon and will spend the night aboard a Canadian navy frigate sailing up the St Lawrence river to Quebec City, traditionally the centre of the separatist movement, for Sunday. Royal visitors have had an uncertain welcome in Quebec province – where more than 80% of the population speak French – in recent decades. The Queen has not returned to Quebec city since protesters turned their backs on her and booed in 1964, and two years ago Prince Charles and Camilla were held up by scuffles between demonstrators and police as they visited Montreal. Radical young protesters from the Quebec Resistance Network have called for a demonstration outside the city hall on Sunday, though they have promised it will be peaceful. Patrick Bourgeois, leader of the network, said the separatists want to send a message “that the monarchy is not welcome in Quebec”. Prince William has emphasised Canada’s bilingualism and dual identity – “Bonne fête, Canada, happy birthday,” he exclaimed in a speech. The visit to Quebec province is a sign that the authorities believe their appearance there will be a success. In a recent poll, more than half of those questioned described themselves as excited by the prospect of seeing them. During the first two days of their tour in Ottawa, the royal couple have been greeted by huge and adulatory crowds. More than 300,000 people were estimated to have crowded around the capital’s parliament hill during the Canada Day celebrations on Friday, many of them travelling for hours and some sleeping out to catch a glimpse of the prince and his bride. Although the duchess has not visited Canada before, her husband has stressed her links to the country where he recalled that her grandfather had trained as a pilot in Alberta during the second world war. The Queen has visited Canada more frequently than any other country: 22 times, most recently last year. On Saturday morning, the royal couple will go through the near-obligatory tree-planting ceremony at the governor-general’s residence – a Canadian hemlock. Later they will meet military veterans and members of the war brides association at the Canadian war museum – nearly 45,000 young British and European women emigrated to the country after the second world war. Arriving in Montreal later in the afternoon, the couple will tour the Sainte-Justine university hospital centre, which has a world-renowned children’s unit, before joining a cooking workshop at the Institut de Tourisme. Prince William Monarchy Kate Middleton Canada Protest Stephen Bates guardian.co.uk
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Campaigners accuse Israel of ‘outsourcing’ its blockade as Greek coastguard stops flotilla sailing from Athens Greece has banned all ships in the Gaza-bound “freedom flotilla” from leaving port, dealing a further blow to activists trying to break Israel’s blockade on the Palestinian territory. Greek authorities said an international group of vessels planning to sail from its ports and deliver humanitarian aid to the Gazan population would be stopped, a move that lends the support of Prime Minister George Papandreou’s administration to Israel’s contentious four-year siege of the Gaza Strip. An American boat participating in the flotilla was forced to return to shore after it tried to defy the ban and set sail from Athens on Friday. The Audacity of Hope was turned back by the Greek coastguard. Passengers claim Greek commandos pointed machine guns at those on board to stop the boat reaching open water. Campaigners accused Israel of “outsourcing” its blockade to Greece. “Greece sold its body to the banks and its soul to Israel and the United States,” flotilla activist Dror Feiler told Israeli news outlet Ynet. “I don’t think – I know – that Israel and US pressure caused this.” Hamas also condemned the Greek decision, describing it as “inhumane” and “contrary to international regulations and norms”. The Greek announcement is the latest in a series of setbacks for the organisers of this summer’s flotilla, which comes just over a year after a similar mission ended in the deaths of nine activists following the storming of their boat by Israeli military forces. Participants claim that two of the 10 ships in the flotilla had been sabotaged by Israeli agents – a claim Israel dismissed as “ridiculous”. The Israeli government has described the flotilla as an act of anti-Israeli provocation rather than an attempt to convey much-needed aid to Gaza’s 1.6 million inhabitants, who have lived under an economic blockade since Hamas took control of the territory in June 2007. However, Israel has been embarrassed by the release of an anti-flotilla video which was later exposed as an elaborate hoax, seemingly produced by somebody with government links. Gaza flotilla Gaza Palestinian territories Middle East Israel Greece Europe Jack Shenker guardian.co.uk
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US secretary of state says Libyan leader’s warning that he will attack Europe will not deter Nato or affect its air campaign Nato will not be deterred from its military action in Libya by Muammar Gaddafi’s threats to take the war to Europe, the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, has said. Clinton brushed aside Gaddafi’s warning that unless air strikes against his regime stopped, he would retaliate with attacks on civilians in Europe. Speaking in Spain on the last leg of a three-nation European tour, she said: “Instead of issuing threats, he should be putting the wellbeing and interests of his own people first. He should step down from power.” Her comments came as Nato announced it was ramping up airstrikes in the western half of Libya, which is still largely under Gaddafi’s control. Nato said it has destroyed more than 50 military targets in the west of Libya this week. Clinton said the Nato mission to protect Libyan civilians was on track, with pressure mounting on Gaddafi to step down. “The rebels are gaining strength and momentum,” she said. “We need to see this through.” The Libyan leader, facing an international arrest warrant for his brutal response to the rebel uprising, yesterday told a large pro-government rally in Tripoli that “homes, offices and families” in Europe would become military targets if the Nato campaign continued. Speaking alongside Clinton on Saturday, the Spanish foreign minister, Trinidad Jiménez, also pledged that Gaddafi’s threats would not diminish Nato’s resolve: “We will continue exerting the same military and political pressure to protect Libyan citizens from the threat and the use of military violence by Colonel Gaddafi.” Libya Hillary Clinton Muammar Gaddafi Nato Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Africa United States David Batty guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Maria Sharapova v Petra Kvitova – Wimbledon 2011 women’s final live! | Scott Murray
July 2, 2011 No Comment
• Email scott.murray@guardian.co.uk with all your thoughts • Press F5 to refresh this page or use our auto-refresher Here they come. A long march through the clubhouse. Both women are given huge sprays of flowers before they take to the court. Kvitova smiles shyly. Sharapova looks stern and serious. Both look nervous as they wait to be announced to Centre Court. And they have a fair old wait before they’re allowed to enter the arena. Which they eventually do, to trademark polite Wimbledon applause. If I’m ranking the flowers, Sharapova’s arrangement looks a bit more varied in colour to me. Kvitova’s bunch is a tad purple heavy. Too many Purple Flowers (purplus indigo flowerum) . Sharapova wins the toss, but strangely allows Kvitova to serve first. Hugely Talented Sports Star In Feet On Ground shock: Kvitova’s just been interviewed on the BBC. A more charming chat you’ll do well to lug in on. Do you like designer gear, she’s asked? “Nah. I like normal clothes, jeans and t-shirt. Sometimes a dress. I don’t want to change, I just want to be like everyone else, I’m nothing special.” The crowd: Increasingly unfunny. The weather: Overcast / sunny. They’ll be out soon to knock up. Play begins at 2pm. And with the dust coming down, the two deserving finalists are Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova. The 24-year-old Russian is hot favourite to win her first slam since the Australian Open in 2008 – it would be her second Wimbledon title, after the victory in 2004 which saw her introduce the concept of text messaging to Sue Barker – but the 21-year-old big-hitting left-handed Czech is hotly tipped as a future slam winner. Here’s hoping for a classic tussle to put the cherry on a fine 2011 tournament. You can’t knock the quality of the Ladies Singles this year. The intensity of the fascinating Marion Bartoli. Amazing comebacks for Venus and Serena Williams. Shocking defeats – possibly of the harbinger variety – for Venus and Serena Williams. Promising performances by Plucky Brits® Heather Watson and Laura Robson. The wildcard heroics of Sabine Lisicki. Barry Davies back in the commentary box. The simply astonishing Kimiko Date-Krumm. It’s been a blast . Those who continually knock the women’s game want to take a long hard look at themselves in the mirror. Wimbledon 2011 Wimbledon Maria Sharapova Petra Kvitova Tennis Scott Murray guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Jobsworths misusing rules to ban fun at school, says health and safety chief
July 2, 2011 No Comment
Agency vows to challenge ‘daft and misguided decisions’ that make playground games, sport and science lessons dull Misguided “jobsworths” are preventing children from enjoying traditional playground games through the over-zealous application of health and safety laws, says the watchdog for the legislation. Judith Hackitt, head of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), accused schools and councils of using health and safety rules to avoid providing activities that might cost money or expose them to being sued. She said children’s play and education had been damaged, with some playgrounds becoming joyless no-go areas, while science lessons had been hampered by bans on practical experiments. Hackitt warned the HSE would challenge bureaucrats who attribute “daft decisions” to ban innocuous activities to safety rules. Warning that “the gloves are off”, she said the rules were wrongly blamed for decisions to make children wear goggles when playing conkers and ban running at a pancake race. “The creeping culture of risk aversion and fear of litigation … puts at risk our children’s education and preparation for adult life,” she told the Telegraph. “Children today are denied – often on spurious health and safety grounds – many of the formative experiences that shaped my generation. Playgrounds have become joyless, for fear of a few cuts and bruises. Science in the classroom is becoming sterile and uninspiring.” She said the problem was not just confined to schools, citing the recent decision to turn off the big screens at Murray Mount in case spectators slipped on the wet grass. The people behind unreasonable rulings were often “well-meaning but misguided jobsworths” who go too far, said Hackitt, adding that many organisations imposed restrictions not out of concern for people’s safety but due to fears of no-win no-fee lawsuits for personal injury. Other bodies used the guidance as a cynical excuse to cut services, she added. Her comments came as the education secretary, Michael Gove, announced an overhaul of the red tape required for children to go on school trips, which he said would mean a “more common-sense approach to health and safety”. The Department for Education, along with the HSE, is publishing new guidelines for parents and teachers in England, which it hopes will mean more children go on school trips. The department has cut its 150 pages of health and safety guidelines to eight, and directed schools and local authorities to ditch “unnecessary paperwork”. Paul Tombs, head of education at insurers Zurich Municipal, said only 3% of local authority personal injury claims related to educational activities. He said: “We therefore consider that any public perception and fear over a lack of available insurance cover, or a perceived rise in premiums for these activities, is unfounded.” Health Schools Education policy Health policy Public services policy School sports School trips David Batty guardian.co.uk
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Coalition of 270 groups may seek judicial review claiming welfare cuts ignore impact and breach equality law The government faces a legal challenge from charities over its plans to cut benefits for disabled people by more than £2bn. The Disability Alliance has warned the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) that it will take legal action to obtain a judicial review of ministers’ plans to replace Disability Living Allowance . The alliance, a coalition of 270 disability charities, said ministers had not properly assessed the negative impact of the benefit cuts, adding that the reforms did not comply with the Equality Act. It has issued a “letter of claim” to the DWP calling for it to demonstrate that it has fulfilled its legal obligations to properly analyse the impact of welfare reforms on disabled people. If the department does not comply, the letter also warns that ministers face legal action. Neil Coyle, Disability Alliance director of policy, said the government may be in breach of both domestic and European legislation, including its responsibilities under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. “We are giving formal notice that unless the concerns that disabled people have legitimately raised are addressed in the context of the Welfare reform bill, there is a strong legal case,” Coyle told the BBC. “Our legal advice … is that the government may be in breach of both domestic and European legislation if it fails to consider the impact on disabled people of the plans to cut £2.17bn from DLA expenditure.” The alliance contends the government’s welfare reform bill will disproportionately disadvantage disabled people and their families. Among its main concerns are proposals to abolish the care component of DLA at the lowest rate of just under £20 a week, which is received by 652,000 people, and to end mobility support for disabled care home residents, without clarifying how the impact of this loss in support would be mitigated for the 78,000 disabled people affected or their families. Coyle said disability charities were threatening to take legal action because the government had ignored the concerns they raised in the formal consultation on the welfare reform bill, which ended in February. Coyle said more than half of the disabled people who use the DLA to support them in work, they say they would have to give up their job if the benefit was cut. “For many disabled people, it helps to pay for an adapted vehicle, so if you can’t afford to run a vehicle, and that’s what you’re using DLA for, there’s a strong chance you won’t be able to continue in work. “One in seven disabled people have been telling us that without DLA they won’t be able to manage their health condition or impairment, and they’re more likely to have hospitalised periods, which cost far more to the taxpayer than paying, for example, £19.55 a week, which is the bit of the DLA expenditure the government is targeting for ending.” The DWP said: “We are following the usual processes and are working with disability organisations on DLA reforms, including with the design of the assessment. “It is premature to talk about a judicial review as the regulations do not go through until 2012.” Disability Charities Voluntary sector Welfare Public services policy Conservatives Liberal Democrats Liberal-Conservative coalition Equality Equality Act 2010 David Batty guardian.co.uk
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Reports give no reason for Bashar al-Assad’s decision but state TV footage shows huge crowds The Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, has sacked the governor of the city of Hama where 200,000 people took to the streets to protest against his regime. State TV announced the removal of the governor on Saturday. Although the report gave no reason or detail for his sacking, video footage showed the huge crowds of protesters in a central square of the provincial capital calling for an end to Assad’s rule. “The Syrian president signed a decree today relieving Doctor Ahmad Khaled Abdel Aziz of his post as governor of Hama,” the state-run Sana news agency announced. Hama was the site of an armed Islamist revolt against Assad’s father, Hafez al-Assad, in 1982. At least 10,000 people were killed and part of the old city was flattened when the army crushed the uprising. The protests on Friday across Syria were the largest since the uprising against Assad’s rule began nearly four months ago. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets nationwide, with human rights groups saying that at least 24 people had been killed by security forces on what was dubbed “the Friday of departure”, a slogan borrowed from the demonstrators against Hosni Mubarak in Egypt at the start of the Arab uprising. Activists claimed many were injured when police fired on protesters in the Damascus suburb of Daraya. Demonstrations were also reported in Aleppo, Latakia and Homs. Human rights campaigners estimate that more than 1,350 civilians have been killed since the uprising began in mid-March. The government says about 500 security personnel have also been killed. Days after the protests erupted in the southern city of Deraa on 18 March, Assad sacked its regional governor. Syria Bashar Al-Assad Arab and Middle East unrest Protest Middle East David Batty guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …The Michael Vick comeback continues: Nike has re-signed him to an endorsement deal, reports AP . The company cut ties with Vick nearly four years ago after his dog-fighting troubles, though it had been supplying him with equipment since his NFL comeback. It’s not the Eagles’ quarterback first endorsement deal since…
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