2 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, March 5, 2003 NATION/WORLD Terrorist bomb hits Manila airport NEWS IN BRIEF. --l -lil 143 1~ T-*7 1 1~C A n A 4 A ( TTAT . . 1 . 1' . .n . - *l 9f n. p J t w * .A W * i k 't7Gt 11L11VCJ rnum t-nkjl11Vt) 1 riC 1VVK1 1) s;11 MANILA, Philippines (AP) - A bomb planted inside a backpack ripped through an airport terminal in the southern Philippines yesterday, killing at least 19 people - including an American missionary - and injuring 147 in the nation's worst terrorist attack in three years. The blast comes at a time of heightened debate over the role of U.S. troops in the war on terror in the Philippines, where Muslim insurgents have battled the government for decades with attacks, bombings and kidnappings. Three Americans - a Southern Baptist mis- sionary and her two young children -- Were among the wounded. Many of the injured were in serious condition, and officials feared the death toll could rise. The dead included a boy, a girl, 10 men and seven women. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who invited U.S. troops to help train Filipino soldiers in countert- errorism later this year, said the bombing at Davao airport on Mindanao island was "a brazen act-of ter- rorism which shall not go unpunished." President Bush condemned the attack as a "wanton terrorist act" and sent condolences to the people of the Philippines, his press secretary, Ari Fleischer, said. "The president notes that the bombing underscores the seriousness of the terrorist threat in the southern Philippines, and he emphasizes that the Philippines have been a stalwart partner of the United States in the war against terror," Fleischer said. No one claimed responsibility for the blast, but Arroyo said "several men" were detained. The military has blamed Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels for a string of attacks, including a car bombing at nearby Cotabato airport last month that killed one man. Eid Kabalu, spokesman for the rebel group, which has been fighting for Muslim self-rule in the pre- dominantly Roman Catholic Philippines for more than three decades, denied his group was responsible. He condemned the attack and said the group was ready to cooperate in an investigation. Police said the bomb was hidden inside a back- pack planted in the middle of the airport's waiting area. The blast was heard three miles away; some of the debris landed on the tarmac 100 yards away. The Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board in Richmond, Va., confirmed that missionary William P. Hyde, 59, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, died in surgery from head and leg injuries. Hyde had gone to the airport to meet American missionaries Barbara Wallis Stevens and Mark Stevens and their family, who were had just arrived from Manila when the bomb went off. "I just heard it explode to my side," said Bar- bara Wallis Stevens, 33, of Willard, Mo., who was slightly wounded. "I was carrying my infant son so I grabbed my daughter and picked her up and ran away. I was afraid there could be more bombs." She said 10-month-old Nathan was hit by shrapnel in the liver. Her daughter, Sarah, was also injured but released after treatment. The family has lived in Davao for five years doing missionary work with local tribes. "The president notes that the bombing underscores the seriousness of the terrorist threat in the southern Philippines, and he emphasizes that the Philippines have been a stalwart partner of the United States in the war against terror' - Ari Fleisher White House press secretary Hyde, a former music teacher, had been a mis- sionary since 1978. He and his wife Lyn have two grown sons, one of whom is a missionary in Cambodia. David Miller, pastor of Northbrook Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids, called Hyde "kind of the teddy bear type - kind, gentle and always smiling." "The irony of a man that sweet and kind being killed in an act of terror and hatred is just really sad," Miller said."They knew that it was danger- ous over there," he added. "They were on our prayer sheet week by week for their safety." WASHINGTON Men charged with smuggling weapons Two Taiwanese businessmen have been charged with trying to smuggle U.S.-made weapons to Iran, the latest in a string of illegal arms sales foiled by law enforcement activities increased in the aftermath of Sept. 11. Federal authorities announced yesterday that a U.S. grand jury in Balti- more indicted En-Wei Eric Chang, a naturalized American living in Tai- wan, and David Chu, a Taiwan resident, on charges they tried to buy early warning radar, Cobra attack helicopters and U.S. spy satellite photos for Iran in violation of U.S. embargoes against that country. Chu was arrested during a sting operation in Guam, but Chang remains a fugitive, authorities said. "The object of the conspiracy was to enrich the defendants by shipping aircraft, helicopter, and weapons system parts to Iran through Taiwan and elsewhere," the indictment said. Officials said the indictment resulted from a yearlong arms-smuggling investigation that grew out of a new cooperative program created by U.S. officials after Sept. 11 that encourages American sellers of sensitive mili- tary equipment to report suspicious inquiries and sales. WASHINGTON White House: War on terror outlook positive New terrorism indictments and a key al-Qaida capture show the United States making progress in the global war on terrorism, three top Bush administration officials told Congress yesterday. Facing a Senate Judiciary Committee that includes several prominent administration critics, Attorney General John Ashcroft, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge and FBI Director Robert Mueller highlighted recent successes in the ongoing war on terrorism while also stressing the need for terrorism prevention efforts in the future. Lawmakers applauded these victories - but many questioned whether the government's tactics and the need to expand anti-terrorism laws were necessary. Ashcroft said the weekend capture in Pakistan of al-Qaida operations chief Khalid Shaikh Mohammed was "a severe blow" that could "destabi- lize their terrorist network worldwide" by providing a trove of intelligence that will prevent new attacks, showing the success of the U.S.'s ongoing battle to overcome the problems of terrorism. 0 BOOKS Continued from Page 1 Some professors and Graduate Stu- dent Instructors have cancelled class or devoted class time to discussing the situ- ation in the Middle East. Physics Prof. Dan Axelrod will dis- cuss the history of nuclear threat in the Middle East at one of tomorrow's semi- nars. Along with visiting physics Prof. Tom O'Donnell, he will speak about "The Real Reasons for War: U.S. Hege- mony in the Middle East," at 2 p.m. in room 1640 of the Chemistry Building. "The U.S. has not changed their poli- cy - this is a long history trend of dom- ination in the Middle East," Axelrod said. "Since there are no other super- powers, the only opposition the U.S. will face is from the people around the world." But despite the growing anti-war sen- timent, many students on campus do not oppose war in Iraq. LSA junior Robert DeVore was called up from inactive reserve duty in the Air Force after Sept. 11 and served in Saudia Arabia for four months. "Most don't even understand what's going on or why there needs to be a war," DeVore said. "It's as if protesting is the politically correct thing to do so that's why they do it." A new mini-course for credit about the war on Iraq will also launch today, with a new speaker every week dis- cussing a different aspect of the war. Dean Wang, chairman of Young Stu- dents for Freedom, said he will attend class today instead of going to the anti- war lectures. "A march for peace is a march for (Saddam) Hussein," Wong said. "I think war should be used as a last resort, and this is the last resort. Hussein needs to be removed." Other groups, including Students for Social Equality and Environment Justice Group, are sponsoring lectures on the future of progressive left and radioactive waste, respectively. C hinese leadership prepares to leave nation to successors BEIJING - China convened a land- mark session of its largely toothless legislature today, preparing to anoint a new generation of leaders who will shepherd Asia's fastest-growing econo- my through fundamental economic and social change. At the top of the agenda was the vir- tually certain ascension of Hu Jintao, the Communist Party's newly installed general secretary, to the presidency now held by Jiang Zemin. It will be the final phase of what is considered the first orderly transfer of authority since the communists took China in 1949. The leadership walked into the Great Hall of the People in single file, led by Jiang. Wu Bangguo, a top Communist Party official expected to be the legis- lature's next leader, opened the meet- ing and a military band played China's national anthem. Premier Zhu Rongji, in an address on the state of the nation, identified the struggle against poverty - rural poverty in particular - as China's top priority for the coming year. "We should do everything possible to increase farmers' income and light- en their burden," Zhu said, according to a copy of his 55-page report that was obtained in advance. Actcrs Needed! Summer Orientation Theatre Troupe AUDITIONS Friday, March 7 5pm-Angell Hall Aud. D No need to prepare anything No prior acting experience necessary Rehearsals begin in May with performances 4 nights a week from early June through early August. Compensation will be discussed at auditions. Direct ?'s to pvachon@umich.edu Inaugural National Conference Depression on College Campuses "Best Practices and Innovative Strategies" ABUKHALIL everything that America is supposed to stand for. Think how upset we were Continued from Page 1 when 3,000 people died on September most affected, will not receive advance 11. We'll kill a lot more innocent civil- warning;" Abukhalil said. - , ians than that if we go to war." He stressed the importance of open Abukhalil cited the food drops in dialogue concerning U.S. propaganda Afghanistan followed by constant bomb- and its role in war enthusiasm, using '-ft he country as a major example of Sept. 11 as his primary example. propaganda used to appease the Ameri- "We should be upset about September can people. 11, but other people have suffered "It's like having a gun to an Afghani numerous September 1lths. The U.S. civilian's head and asking 'Would you itself has inflicted countless September like fries right before I kill you?' It was 1 Iths on Iraq but no fuss was made. merely a method to force the American When casualties are dark-skinned and people into believing in their govern- Muslim to boot, people don't tend to ment's humanitarianism. The line of care, but shed even one drop of Ameri- thinking is - if the Afghans were get- can blood ... suddenly everybody is ting food, little as it was, then it should- furious," Abukhalil said. n't matter too much that they were being Abukhalil mentioned the suffering of bombed," Abukhalil said. the people that tends to be overlooked in, Abukhalil finished by emphasizing this "war on terror" - the Iraqi people that America was its own enemy in the themselves. "war on terror" due to its policies and "The Iraqi people are victims of dou- actions in the Middle East. ble oppression - the Saddam Hussein "U.S. rhetoric and actions have been a dictatorship as well as constant U.S. better recruiter for Bin Laden than Bin attacks. How many people know that in Laden himself ... America has certainly the past week, the U.S. has been bomb- done a good job of having the U.S. gov- ing Iraq everyday?" ernment detested in the Middle East. "This war seems to me, a terrible Such a good job that even kooks like thing to institute," Ann Arbor resident Bin Laden get a little sympathy because Anne Remley said. "It goes against of strong anti-American views." TALLAHASSEE, Fax Gov. Bush asks voters to reconsider budget With Florida facing its tightest budget since he was first elected in 1998, Gov. Jeb Bush said yesterday he wants voters to reconsider expensive constitutional amendments they passed to cap class sizes and build a high- speed rail system. In his annual State of the State address, the Republican governor said the amendments would require tax increases and hamper the state's ability to strengthen the economy and protect its residents from terrorist threats. "I believe we must go back to the voters and have them make a deci- sion with all the information in hand, information about the new chal- lenges our state faces, and informa- tion about the massive tax increases that will be necessary to pay for them," said Bush, who has proposed a $54 billion budget. Bush says Florida is better off than most other states. WASHINGTON Republicans oppose Bush's health plans Republican lawmakers showed the same disdain for President Bush's latest Medicare prescription drug plan yester- day as they did his first one a month ago, promising that after two failed attempts by the White House they will write their own plan with bigger bene- fits for older Americans. The administration spent the day explaining facets of the proposal, which offers a general outline but leaves specifics to congressional discretion. At the center of the proposal is a plan to offer older people increased prescription drug coverage if they choose to participate with HMOs or other private health plans. As Bush was outlining his propos- al in a speech to the American Med- ical Association, senior Republicans in Congress responsible for putting legislation together were picking it apart. WASHINGTON Poor economy causes health insurance loss The sluggish economy and rising health costs are combining to cost more people their health insurance, with 75 million uninsured at some point during 2001 or 2002, a study finds. In tight times, businesses cut back cov- erage or charge their workers more for it. The result: the ranks of the uninsured now cut deeper into the middle class. It's a scenario that could spur Con- gress, stalled now on how to solve the problem, to approve some sort of assistance. "I think that there's more and more interest as the problem gets larger and larger," said Sen. John Breaux (D-La.), who is proposing a major overhaul of the health insurance system. Breaux wants everyone, including workers, the elderly, the poor and veterans, to get insurance from a central system. - Compiled from Daily wire reports. R 9 i WAHID Continued from Page 1 effectively curb militant Muslim activi- ties, terrorist attacks can be stopped. "In the past, there was no control," Wahid said. Terrorists "were able to bomb, like in Bali," Wahid said. Addressing the relationship between Islam and the West, Wahid said Muslim youth feel endangered by the West. But the differences between the two cultures do not have to result in violence, he said. "We are different from each other but that doesn't mean that we have to be against each other," Wahid said. "We will be able to overcome the chal- lenges of Western civilization." In the political climate after the Sept. 11 attacks, Wahid said the public needs to be educated about Islam. "We have to explain to the masses," Wahid said. "Osama bin Laden is not Muslim." He said Bush's pre-emptive war in Iraq is largely based on Middle East- ern oil. "I feel that George Bush will fail in his objectives," Wahid said. He added that the Southeast Asian nations will speak out against U.S. action if a full- fledged war takes place. Cleaven Yu, an Engineering graduate student, said the lecture was an excellent way to understand the current political situation. "Islam and terrorism are such a hot topic right now," Yu said. "What better way is there to learn about them than from a well-versed person?" The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by stu- dents at the University of Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily's office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $105. Winter term (January through April) is $110, yearlong (September through April) is $190. 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Price Jones, Kylene Klang, Jennifer Misthal, Jordan Schrader STAFF: Elizabeth Anderson, Jeremy Berkowitz, Kyle Brouwer, Sojung Chang, Kara DeBoer, Ahdirj Dutt, victoria Edwards, Margaret Engoren, Rahwa Ghebre-Ab, Michael Guovitsch, Lauren Hodge, Lisa Hoffman, Carmen Johnson, Christopher Johnson, Andrew Kaplan, Emily Kraack, Elizabeth Kassab, Lisa Koivu, Tomislav Ladika, Lydia K. Leung, Andrew McCormack, Whitney Meredith, Layla J. Merritt, Jacquelyn Nixon, Shannon Pettypiece, Mona Rafee, Erin Saylor, Karen Schwartz. Maria Sprow, Dan Trudeau, Samantha Wll, Allison Yang, Min Kyung Yon EDITORIAL Aubrey Henretty, Zac Peskowitz, Editors ASSOCIATE EDITORS: John Nonkala, Jess Plskor STAFF: Dan Adams, Sravya Chirumamilla, Howard Chung, John Honkala, Aymar Jean, Bonnie Kelman, Garrett Lee, Joey Litman, Christopher Miller, Ar Paul, Jason Pesick, Laura Platt, Ben Royal, Lauren Strayer, Courtney Taymour CARTOONISTS: Sam Butler, Karl Kressbach COLUMNISTS: Peter Cunniffe, David Enders, Johanna Hanink, David Horn, Hussain Rahim, Jon Schwartz, Kashif Sheikh. Luke Smith SPORTS J. 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Gaerig, Meredith Graupner, Lynn Hasselbarth, Andrew Jovanovski, Stephanie Kapera, Graham Kelly, Jeremy Kressmann, Christine Lasek, John Laughlin, Joseph Litman, Laura LoGerfo, Zach Mabee, Maureen McKinney, Josh Neidus, Caitlin Nish, Archana Ravi, Adam Rottenberg, Melissa Runstrom, Mike Saltsman, Niamh Slevin, Christian Smith, Luke Smith, Jaya Soni, Brian Stephens Andy Taylor-Fabe, Douglas Wernert, Alex Wolsky, Daniel Yoweil PHOTO Tony Ding, Brett Mountain, Managing Editors ASSOCIATE EDITORS: David Katz, Brendan O'Donnell, Alyssa Wood STAFF: Nicholas Azzaro, Elise Bergman, Jason Cooper, Tom Feldkamp, Ashley Harper, Seth Lower, Danny Moloshok, Lisa Oshinsky, Sarah Paup, Frank Payne, Rebecca Sahn, Nicole Terwilliger, Jonathon Triest, Ryan Weiner " March 6-7, 2003 Michigan League Keynote Speakers Andrew Solomon The Noonday Demon Kathy Cronkite On the Edge of Darkness: Conversations About Conquering Depression Meri Nana-Ama Danquah llw W /n f nr MP- A r c warkmzn' KOREA Continued from Page 1 protest and we're talking to our allies about the best manner to do that," Fleischer said, adding that "North Korea continues to engage in provoca- tive, and now reckless actions. And North Korea engages in these actions as a way of saying, pay me. That will not happen." In a commentary, North Korea's Minju Joson described Bush as "a political illiterate and a shameless aims: a nonaggression treaty and economic aid. "The reckless move is a signal to the United States at a time when Washington pays little attention to North Korea's repeated demand for direct dialogue," said Lee Suk-soo, a military studies professor at the National Defense College in Seoul. North Korea yesterday reiterated its demand for a nonaggression pact, saying through Radio Pyongyang that it was "to remove an unreasonable U.S. threat, not to ONLINE Soojung Chang, Interim Editor BUSNES LiI~I±k-STAFF JeffrevYh~ Valuck. 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