Hearing may ban workplace smoking 1 More than 350 speakers to testify before the Occupational Safety and Health Administration on proposal Los Angeles Times WASHINGTON - With a wit- ness list including organizations from nearly every walk of American life, federal work safety officials opened a marathon hearing yesterday on a pro- posal to ban smoking in virtually all workplaces, including restaurants and bars. Although the federal officials have waged a broad assault on smoking Ond tobacco over the last year, the hearing by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) should provide the widest-ranging government forum yet for debating the effects of second-hand smoke. More than 350 speakers are to testify before the hearing concludes in December. The opening day provided a ,limpse of things to come as Ted ossman, a lawyer for tobacco com- pany RJ Reynolds, told members of the OSHA panel that under his inter- pretation of the proposed rule, "a judge all alone in his chambers, reading a book, couldn't light a pipe, right?" John Martonik, OSHA acting di- rector of health standards programs, answered yes. The witness list, in addition to apresentatives of the tobacco and anti-smoking lobbies, includes a ca- sino association, beverage groups, a carpet and rug institute, a postal work- ers' union, an air traffic controller group and the Refrigeration Service Engineers' Society. The OSHA rule would confine smoking in the workplace to enclosed, ventilated areas. Employers would be quired to develop written indoor air uality plans, which would be en- forced by OSHA inspectors. "OSHA's decision to develop rules on indoor air quality - includ- ing rules affecting environmental to- bacco smoke - flows directly from our duty, our statutory responsibility, to protect the right of American work- ers to a safe and healthy workplace," said Michael Siverstein, OSHA di- tor of policy, as he opened the hearings. OSHA is the branch of the Labor department charged with protecting the safety of the nation's workers. Tobacco advocates are sounding alarms over the rule, which they claim is too restrictive. "The only possible way to make this plan work is to create a heated, *entilated chamber where no busi- ness can be conducted, no drink or no food can be served," said Tom Lauria, assistant to the president of the To- bacco Institute in Washington. Lauria said most businesses would opt to ban smoking in their buildings rather thvn spend the money to create a smoking room. OSHA is not likely to have an y ride if it is to endorse its plan er hearings end. The tobacco lobby is expected to challenge the rule in the courts, which could hold up execu- tion of the rule for years. A coalition of health groups that includes the American Lung Asso- ciation and the American Cancer So- ciety endorsed the plan, pointing to statistics that list "involuntary smok- ing" as the third-largest cause of pre- ature death. The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, September 21, 1994 - 3 Killings continue m Rwanda, panel asks for more aid Hiwatha of Cult Heroes sings with the Navarones yesterday during an event sponsored by Amnesty International. City ordmance makes home not assweetfo Pe-nn State students By ANDREW TAYLOR Daily Staff Reporter The house is perfect: five large bedrooms, two bathrooms, spacious kitchen and living room. There's just one problem - only three students can legally live there. That's the case at Pennsylvania State Univer- sity. How- ever, students i#'tUS N6 this week are " Penn State challenging ' the 15-year- o old local or- dinance that a prohibits sND v more than three unrelated people from living together in many residential areas of State College, Penn. "Most students don't know the law exists," said Mark Shepanski, a member of the Penn State Under- graduate Student Government (USG). Three years ago, however, a hous- ing task force sponsored by local resi- dents began to sweep through the residential districts, attempting to enforce the ordinance and send stu- dents elsewhere. The plan was not successful in limiting households to three students, so in June the Coalition of State Col- lege Neighborhood Associations asked the local government to create a new ordinance to limit student hous- ing in the residential areas. Resident groups claim students are disruptive with their different lifestyles. The proposal is to change the three person residency rule to one that regu- lates the density of the student popu- lation in a given area. This sent the student government into action, drafting a proposal of its own. USG President Mike King has developed a plan that would use the square footage of a house to deter- mine the number of students that could live there. "The size of the house is not con- sidered under the current law," said Shelli Scott, a Penn State sophomore. "What we need is for the law to allow for realistic occupancy rates in these big houses." This controversy has even brought together two traditionally rival groups - students and landlords. The State College Planning Com- mission, a part of the city council, meets Friday to decide the issue. The student government has collected well more than their goal of 1,300 signa- tures to petition the commission to consider King's proposal. One councilman was quoted by King as saying, "We never make an example out of anybody. I think it's time we throw some people out in the snow." However, the councilman de- nies such a statement. King said that the constituency of the council consists of more students than homeowners. Between the stu- dents and the landlords, the council should listen to the proposal. "We feel that we have the upper hand," Shepanski said. "They won't be able to blatantly segregate the stu- dents from town." ® Government still persecuting Hutus, panelist says By JOSH WHITE For the Daily As national attention shifts to Haiti, many people have forgotten the all- too-recent tragedy in Rwanda with the belief that the problem in the small African country was solved when a new government was established. While the Rwandan Popular Front, which currently holds power, tries to settle the tribal conflict between the Hutu and Tutsi tribes, the killing con- tinues in the war-torn state. Amnesty International sponsored a discussion group last night to bring attention back to a country desper- ately in need of help. "Our intention in holding this event is to raise awareness, to get people talking about an issue that seems to have been put away and to talk about what lies ahead in the future of Rwanda," said Abdurrahman Baris, a member of Amnesty International's Local Group 61 and the coordinator of last night's event. Baris said that proceeds from ticket sales, a silent auction and donations from more than 40 local businesses will go directly to relief agents situ- ated in Rwanda. And relief is necessary. Gaetan Gattgtete, a Tutsi who spoke on last night's panel, said that in the three months following the April outbreak of civil war, there were more than one million people killed and more than two million refugees. He also said that 200,000 children were orphaned. "There was never a hate between the Hutu and the Tutsi," Gattgtete said. "But politics messed everything up in Rwanda. Politics created this hate, politics made us kill each other, politics made this genocide. "We now have a government. The solution is to teach each other to for- give and love each other again," he said with a bit of hesitation. "But how do you forgive someone who killed your father?" Mary Lu, a Hutu member of the panel, said that the current govern- ment, which is mainly Tutsi, is at the heart of the problem. "These are the names of people that the government wants to find and then kill," she said, unrolling a list that covered more than 15 feet of paper. "They are Hutu who are living as refugees and are forced not to re- turn to the country, they are afraid for their lives. "Do not believe what they say in the papers and on the television about how the RPF government has restored peace. They are wrong. Dead wrong." Lu went on to explain how refu- gees are killed in the camps outside of Rwanda's borders and how Hutus that try to return are shot. "They say that there is a democ- racy in Rwanda," she said. "There will be no democracy in Rwanda until there is peace and we can live in harmony." Ken Harrow, an Amnesty Interna- tional country coordinator for Rwanda, said the government is act- ing in the best interests of the country. "There is no hard evidence to sup- port the fact that the government is killing Hutus who are returning to the country," he said. "Amnesty Interna- tional representatives who went to Rwanda said that the killings are not government supported, that they are random acts, possibly of revenge." Leonidas Murembya, who also spoke last night, said that what the country needs is unity and for other countries to realize that the horror in Rwanda is not nearly at an end. "We don't want people to say 'You are a Hutu' or 'You are a Tutsi,"' he said, noting that he is a Hutu. "We want people to say 'You are Rwandan."' Another panelist, Gerard Cefuco, agreed. "We need to give the 200,000 chil- dren who have no family left a home and a country," he said. Union, League look for holiday By DAVID SHEPARDSON Daily News Editor Searching to accommodate all re- ligions and cultures on the thorny issue of December holiday decora- tions, officials from the Michigan Union and Michigan League held the first of two public comment sessions yesterday. Audrey Schwimmer, director of the Michigan Union, chaired the ses- sion that took place in the Pond room and drew only half a dozen staff mem- bers. "We're looking for student feed- back," Schwimmer said. "We look- ing for a method so not to offend anyone, but we don't want to make the place look generic." A donated Christmas tree was placed in a Union lobby last Decem- ber, wreaths were hung and garland was strung in numerous places, draw- ing the ire of some University stu- dents. "We try to show all different faiths and cultures: Kwaanza, Judaism and Christianity," Schwimmer said. Amy Bogle, special events coor- dinator of the Michigan League, said that the League's governing board had ordered that Christmas music not be played in the League last Decem- ber. The League, which also displayed a donated Christmas tree, had a sepa rate Hannukah display in a glass case. Additionally, the League food service employees annually make a ginger- bread house during the holiday sea- son. Bogle said the League had taken luggestions steps to try not to offend members of the University's diverse community by not using red and green napkins or other red and green items at holiday parties. "We're looking for the right an- swers. It's not easy," Bogle said. The officials discussed a proposal to create separate displays for reli- gions and cultures. But Schwimmer said she was un- sure how much time or interest stu- dents would have in creating holiday displays. 'U' departments seek input on ways to eliminate workplace violence By JENNIFER HARVEY For the Daily With an increase in reports of workplace violence within the Uni- versity and schools around the na- tion, faculty and staff are invited to talk about their experiences tomor- row at 7 p.m. in the Michigan Room of the Michigan Union. The meeting was organized by several University departments, in- cluding the Department of Public Safety, to develop understanding and awareness of the concerns University workers have regarding threats or acts of violence. The possible formation of a "Workplace Violence Task Force" will also be discussed. No task force panel is yet assembled. Keith Bruhnsen, a University or- ganizer of the event, said the meeting will focus on gathering information about workplace violence. "The University is a large institu- tion. We need people to come for- ward so we can develop policies and comprehensive help programs," Bruhnsen said. Bruhnsen said this action is in part the result of the recent national spot- light on workplace violence. He added there has been a recent increase in the number of reports of workplace vio- lence within the University. Workplace violence includes threats, harassment, property destruc- tion, physical attacks and threatening letters, telephone calls, or other com- munications. The violence stems from different sources. Among them are employees, students, visitors, guests and other staff members, Bruhnsen said. He also said the first step to find- ing solutions to the problem is gather- ing data. Tomorrow's meeting is open to the public. Bruhensen added that any- one who comes forward may remain anonymous if they wish to do so. IT'S FINALLY HERE DAILY MASS MEETING 7:30 p.m. Student .Publications Building 429 Maynard (behind Betsey Barbour) U. Group Meetings O U-M Shorin-Ryu Karate-Do Club, men & women; begin- ners welcome, 994-3620, CCRB, 2275, 8:30-9:30 p.m. " St. Mary Bible Study, Catholic Student Fellowship, Center- ing Prayer, 663-0557, St. Mary Student Parish, 331 Thompson, 7 p.m. EECS, 1003, 12:30 p.m. Q Alpha Phi Omega Mass Meet- ing, 668-0043, Union, Anderson Rm., 7 p.m. Q Rainforest Action Movement Mass Meeting, 913-4008, School of Natural Resources, Dana 1046, 7:30 p.m. Q Hindu Students Council Mass Meeting, 994-0907, Mosher-Jor- dan Nikkf ~iGr oncrep Rn~m Communism: In Search of a Paradigm of Transforma- tion" with Jadwiga Staniszkis, CSST Colloquium, 764-0351, LSA, 2553, 4 p.m. Q "See you at the flagpole" Chris- tian Fellowship & Prayer, South Quad at the flagpole, 11:30 a.m. to noon. Student services Where?? . the Student Publications Building (behind .. > ->< PB-arbulaebrrv i