The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, November 2, 1994 - 3 Problems require global solutions, Polish leader says By TRACEY ROGERS For the Daily For Jacek Kuron, a prominent member of the Polish Parliament, tak- ing a stand against Communist rule in his country was his destiny. "Everyone looks at the world from his own place, and every one of those points of view has a place," Kuron told an audience of about 100 people Rackham Amphitheatre last night. He described the Polish problem of post-communist adjustment as a world problem, and emphasized the necessity of the global community to work together to help get the world back to an acceptable status quo. Kuron dispelled notions that the United States may have been strength- ened by the collapse of communism, nd instead said that the country has een weakened. Kuron compared the collapse of communism and the end of the 50- year Cold War to the downfall of the Holy Roman Empire. "(Communism) has collapsed as a system of the world security," Kuron said. "Though it may have been imperfect and failing, now we are left with nothing." The Cold War was more than two Anflicting ideologies, he said. Aside rom being a propelling force of economy and revolution, it also set the stage for the arms race. The two nations had reached their peaks, and now that they are falling down, there is no place else to go, he said. On the question of freedom vs. security, meaning the freedom of the individual versus the sense of belong- ing, he contrasted the rich minority with the poor majority, and said he hoped to find a universal solution to the problem of poverty. Kuron said communities must band together as a majority within society and create change. "This prob- lem must be solved on a global scale. We must come up with a program on the same scale as the arms race and the conquest of space. If nothing is done, the price the world must pay is bigger than these, and the later a deci- sion is made, the more we have to pay. During a question-and-answer period, his future role in Polish poli- tics was discussed. Kuron said he wanted to be prime minister. "It is easier to become a prime minister than it is to govern," he said. Kuron has been active in the anti- Communist movement in Poland for more than 30 years. In this time, he has led an open attack on the govern- ment through radical literature that led to arrest by and expulsion from the Communist Party and the Univer- sity of Warsaw. The event was sponsored by the Copernicus Endowment in affiliation with the Center for Russian and East European Studies. This is one of many events the center is sponsoring and the office will continue to support Polish cultural and humanitarian af- fairs at the University. Former Ann Arbor mayor and Democratic candidate for state House Liz Brater answers questions from students at Hillel last night. To her right is retiring state Sen. Lana Pollack (D-Ann Arbor) Local Uems discuss Student vote U.S. ups aid for both Irish republics The Washington Post WASHINGTON - In an effort to encourage the peace process in North- ern Ireland, the Clinton administra- tion last night announced a modest increase in U.S. financial aid to North- ern Ireland and the Irish Republic and said President Clinton will host an Irish trade and development confer- ence in April. The economic-incentive package is intended to be "the United States response to the cease-fires declared by both sides," that have brought a fragile calm to Northern Ireland after a quarter century of violence, a senior White House official said. The Catholic-dominated Irish Re- publican Army, which seeks union with the Irish Republic, and the Prot- estant militant groups insisting on remaining part of Britain have both announced cease-fires, a development for which the Clinton administration's diplomatic efforts have been given substantial credit by Irish leaders. Though limited in scope, the eco- nomic package is a logical extension of a policy, which the aministration has pursued for much of the past year, of encouraging Northern Ireland's suspicious factions to give up vio- lence without taking an active role in whatever negotiations may ensue. The process began with the politi- cally risky decision last spring to grant a limited U.S. entry visa to Gerry Adams, the leader of Sinn Fein, the IRA's political wing, who had previ- ously been banned as a terrorist. Irish leaders of every stripe who have visited Washington this year have said economic development is essential to redressing the real or imag- ined grievances of the people of one of most depressed areas of Western Europe. The Clinton administration's aim is to "get in on the ground and show both sides the benefits of peace as soon as possible," a senior official said. "These guys need jobs." According to a White House an- nouncement, the U.S. contribution to the International Development Fund for Ireland, an international seed- money kitty aimed at stimulating eco- nomic development, will increase by $10 million a year, to nearly $30 mil- lion, beginning in fiscal 1996. Oevil's Night damage: 182 fires burn Detroit By JOSHUA GINSBERG Daily Staff Reporter In an effort to increase the number of students involved in local politics, several Ann Arbor Democrats spoke at Student Forum '94 last night at Hillel. Outgoing state Sen. Lana Pollack (D-Ann Arbor) and Liz Brater, a can- didate for the state House and former Ann Arbor mayor, discussed issues important to students in the upcom- ing elections. David Stead, the Democratic can- didate for mayor, did not attend the panel discussion as scheduled. Pollack addressed the importance of electing intelligent candidates who are not ideologically bound, while maintaining the middle class and la- bor unions. "Republicans are out to destroy the labor unions," Pollack asserted. She noted major contribution of the unions, like working to prevent trag- edies like the Triangle Shirt Factory fire from being repeated. Pollack acknowledged that the is- sue of labor unions does not directly effect most University students, ex- cept in terms of education. "Most graduates will not be in jobs represented by a labor union but what they have to understand is that education depends on a strong middle class," Pollack said. She said that if 95 percent of the population is making $5.50 an hour, universities such as Michi- gan may have hard times ahead of them. Pollack also focused on social is- sues of importance to students with regard to the rise of the radical right, particularly freedom of religion and reproductive freedom. Pollack asserted that Republican candidates have to espouse anti-gay views and pass the "creationism test," which means candidates have to ad- vocate teaching both creationism and evolutionism. "That's the litmus test," she said, adding that not all Republicans nec- essarily believe those views. Brater mentioned health care re- form, sexual assault and security con- cerns while stressing her attachment to the University community. She said one of her reasons for running for a seat in state House was to make sure that the state continues to invest in the University. "It's a public university and it would be a shame not to keep it that way," she said. Brater said she has witnessed a trend - a decrease in the diversity of the socioeconomic backgrounds of University students. There has been an agenda to pre- vent students from becoming politi- cally active, she said, recognizing the value of such organizations as the College Democrats, College Repub- licans and Israel Michigan Public Affairs Committee, which hosted the event. Both Brater and Pollack asserted dishonest politicians are part of a self- fulfilling, media-created prophesy. "The more the press paints politicians as evil, the more it deters honest people from involvement," Pollack said. While Brater doesn't feel that po- litical apathy is a problem on campus, Pollack observed that the phenom- enon is common with students being concerned with their classes and so- cial lives. "If students are going to live in this country, their futures will depend on who gets elected whether they vote or not," Pollack said, adding that they might as well use their vote rather than pass the responsibility on to someone else. "The Republican party will change when people stop voting for it," Brater said. DETROIT (AP) - Mayor Dennis Archer said yesterday that Detroit recorded 182 fires on the night known as "Devil's Night," an annual Hal- oween eve arson spree. That was up from 65 reported last year. Detroit averages about 60 fires a day. Archer earlier said warm, dry weather contributed to Sunday's out- break of fires, most in trash or aban- doned buildings. Devil's Night 1993 was cold, with a mixture of rain and .Snow. & But at a news conference yester- day, he also acknowledged that his new administration had failed to fol- low all the steps used by his predeces- sor, Coleman Young, to suppress the arson spree. "We know today that we did not have the same effort that the mayor did in 1993," Archer said. In particular, he said the city will ,ke steps to get more volunteer fire- atchers on the street. The city re- ported having 8,000 volunteers this year, compared with 40,000 reported in 1993. "This is rather painful going through this process," Archer said. "We will take what we learned this year and apply it in the coming year." Of the 182 fires reported on Oct. 30, 33 were in occupied dwellings, 37 S vacant structures, 18 in garages, 25 in vehicles and 69 in refuse contain- ers or brush, he said. Archer said he suspects some fires that occurred on Devil's Night 1993 'This is rather painful going through this process. We will take what we learned this year and apply it ...' - Dennis Archer mayor of Detroit weren't included in the official count. Firefighters say non-structure fires put out by public works employees may not have been included in the 1993 count, he said. The official 1993 count included 17 occupied dwellings, 22 vacant, nine garages, six vehicles and 11 refuse or brush. From now on, the city will fully report on Halloween-period fires, he said. "This is a benchmark for the fu- ture," Archer said. Asked what steps the city may have missed this year, Archer said he learned that the Young administra- tion took more elaborate steps to re- cruit volunteers, including holding mass meetings in advance of Devil's Night. In addition, officials in past years went around to neighbors of aban- doned structures and asked them to be on guard for arsonists, he said. The city is sharply stepping up its program to demolish vacant, unsalvageable buildings, Archer said. Archer inherited a $9.6 million demolition budget for the 12 months ending Sept. 30. Sources: D.C. Los Angeles Times sault rifl WASHINGTON - A note day afte scrawled on a map and statements by White H a former co-worker have led investi- ing a fo gators to believe that Francisco Mar- was nev tin Duran, the Colorado man accused The n of spraying bullets at the White House, inside Dt may have come to Washington to try to say "k to assassinate President Clinton, fed- word wa eral sources said yesterday. referenc As a result of the new evidence, close to federal prosecutors are considering a It wa new and more serious charge of at- from Du tempted assassination of the presi- Sunday dent, the sources said. If filed, the "semi-su charge would be in addition to the tain spe four felony charges he already faces The c in federal court. came fro Until the new evidence surfaced, 20, who investigators had been reluctant to the Broa attribute a motive to Duran, who fired rado Spr 20 to 30 rounds from a Chinese as- terviews gu1nman e at the White House Satur- ernoon. Clinton was in the ouse private residence watch- otball game at the time and er at risk. note, scrawled on a map found uran's pickup truck, appeared kill the president" but the last as unclear and may not be a e to the president, a source the case said. as the second note to surface uran's truck. Federal sources described the first one as a uicide" letter that did not con- cific threats toward Clinton. other new evidence yesterday m statements by David Millis, once worked with Duran at admoor resort hotel in Colo- ings, Colo. Millis said in in- yesterday with The Associ- ss and television's "A Cur- air" that he heard Duran say ed to shoot the president. n said he wanted "to take out ident," Millis said in a paid :w on the television show. plotted assassination Millis added that he had volunteered the information to the FBI after Saturday's incident. Also yesterday, Eric H. Holder Jr., U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, designated the FBI as the lead agency in the case. The move is significant because the FBI has juris- diction in such matters only if they involve an attempted assassination. Otherwise, the Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting the presi- dent, would be the investigating agency. A Clinton administration official said last night that the Duran case is caught in a turf battle between the Secret Service and the FBI. Each agency is emphasizing evidence that would give it jurisdiction, the official said. The official went on to say that he believes the exact charges may matter little in the end because Duran ap- pears to have mental problems and could be judged incompetent to stand trial. If so, he would be committed to a mental institution. A federal judge has ordered Duran to undergo a mental evaluation to determine his competency. But the defendant refused to proceed with the evaluation yesterday after his attor- ney began filing motions trying to stop it. Leigh Kenny, Duran's public de- fender, asked U.S. Magistrate Deborah Robinson to delay the evalu- ation until after Duran's preliminary hearing. Robinson denied the motion. Kenny immediately appealed to Chief Judge John Garrett Penn of the U.S. District Court, who also denied it. At the hearing before Penn, Assis- tant U.S. Attorney John Facciola said Duran had told a psychiatrist trying to conduct the evaluation that "in light of the action by his counsel he would not speak to her." A source close to the case said that the preliminary competency exam is expected to take place today. The purpose of the examination is to de- termine if Duran is mentally capable of understanding the charges against him and of aiding in his defense. Correction Belinda Biggs' name was misspelled in a letter to the editor in yesterday's Daily. ated Pre rent Affa he plann Dura the presi interview ------ ----------------- G 04le: Group Meetings U Discussion Group for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual People, 763- 4186, Michigan Union, LGBPO Lounge, 5:15-7 p.m. U Hindu Student Council, 764- 0604, Michigan Union, Pond Room, 8 p.m. Q Rainforest Action Movement, 662-0232, Dana Building, Room 1040, 7:30 p.m. " Reform Chavurah, open meet- ing, 769-0500, Hillel, 7 p.m. U U-M Taekwondo Club, begin- G 04ble! guages Building, Room B 116, 5-6 p.m. Events Q "Israeli Society Through its Music," sponsored by Progres- sive Zionist Caucus, Hillel, Uper Lecture Hall, 7 p.m. Q "Music in Leonardo's," acous- tic guitarist Paula Denton per- forms, North Campus Com- mons, 8-10 p.m. Q "Managing Group Projects," workshop, sponsored by LS&A Humanities and British Studies Program, Clements Library, 909 S. University, 4:30 p.m. U "The Circulation of Elites in Post-communist Transition," Ivan Szelenyi, brown bag lec- ture, sponsored by CREES, Lane Hall Commons Room, 12 noon Student services U 76-GUIDE, peer counseling phone line, ,a7 p.m.-8 a.m. U Campus Information Center, Michigan Union, 763-INFO; Food Gatherers is the food rescue program serving It distributes roughly a ton of food every day to 70, serving people experiencing hunger. Washtenaw county since 1988. different community agencies 1 Show your suPbort and help make this holiday season a habbv one for all I