&Kuwaitis ttempt o mend ~conomy KUWAIT CITY (AP) - Gaso- ine is free, but it's tough to find a chocolate bar at any price. Un- skilled Filipino laborers have sud- Zenly become the subject of bid- ing wars. In one of the world's ichest countries, hardly anyone has money. Kuwait's once prosperous econ- omy is now distinguished by widespread shortages and quirks ;hat are bewildering Kuwaitis as rey try to recover from the Gulf 'We don't know what the gov- rnment is planning to do. We W on't know how things are going to wvork," said Mohammed al-Yahya, general manager of the Commer- cial Bank of Kuwait, the emirate's second-largest bank. - Insurance won't cover war Josses. Banks say new loans are a Oistant prospect. Most consumer oods, from clothes to electronics o cars, are not expected to reap- *ear soon. Some merchants have goods, ut won't offer them for sale until the government announces the kuwaiti dinar-U.S. dollar exchange rate. "I have $5 million of stock ready to go, but I'm not opening intil I know the exchange rate," said Samid Samad Rahami, an Iranian who runs Seven Sea *keady-Made Garments. "I have to buy everything in dollars." The government is importing gasoline from Saudi Arabia and pumping it free at filling stations that often have lines snaking for several blocks. ,'Restoring the banking system is essential for Kuwaitis, even ,wealthy ones, who are desperate k ::rcash. Most banks have been dosed since December, and Kuwaitis who have currency are likely to be holding Iraqi dinars They were forced to use during the occupation - money now consid- )red largely worthless. For now, U.S. dollars, Iraqi di- iars, old Kuwaiti dinars and Saudi 'Arabian riyals all are in use. Abdul Rahman al-Awadi, min- *1ster of state for cabinet affairs, said Sunday that Kuwait would *issue its currency "within a max- imum of 10 days." He promised anyone who had a bank account in Kuwait on Aug. 1, 1990, the day before the invasion, would be entitled to the full amount once currency was reis- ,s'ued. The Michigan Daily -Tuesday, March 19,1991- Page 3 LSA gov't to hear proposal condemning Women's Studies by Purvi Shah Daily Staff Reporter The LSA Student Government will hear a proposal today con- demning the Women's Studies program for denying a University Activities Center (UAC) request to sponsor Student Soapbox, the new open forum. UAC needed a letter of spon- sorship in order to use Rackham Auditorium, which is reserved for graduate activities. The Commu- nications department is now au- thorizing the forum. Although the Women's Studies program denies the charge, UAC's Viewpoint Lecture representatives claim the department refused to sponsor the forum on abortion be- cause of speaker Phyllis Schlafly, who is touted as the conservative voice of America. "We have a member of UAC on the council and he was rather upset because they told him that the only reason they weren't going to sponsor it was because Schlafly was speaking," said LSA-SG Ex- ecutive Council member Rob Reilly. Mark Bernstein, Viewpoint Lectures co-chair, said, "The whole University is so vigilant about not taking away your rights, but this is enforcing their views on it." Women's Studies Director Abigail Stewart said the request was refused because the Women's Studies program was not involved in planning the forum. She also felt the forum was too polarized and the lack of incorporation of the opinions of women of color was a "very serious omission." LSA-SG Vice President Andy Petrella and Reilly, the sponsors of the proposal, fear only one side of an issue will be presented if Uni- versity departments sponsor pro- grams based on the participants involved. "The University is here to edu- cate us, not indoctrinate us. We want to hear the women's side, but they can't be hypocritical about the situation," Petrella said. "That's their right not to like her, but at least allow her to speak." Reilly said, "We're opposed to the fact that any University de- partment takes a stance on an issue rather than presenting both sides to students. We don't pay big bucks to be told what we believe." Reilly hopes to "raise aware- ness to the trend on campus to ris- ing P.C. (politically correct) think- ing" by getting the proposal passed. Because Petrella views the fo- rum as a way to increase student participation and education on cur- rent issues, he believes any Uni- versity contingent should have backed the program. "I think that every department would want to sponsor a program like this," Petrella said. "They should have been honored to have been asked." Representatives from the Women's Studies program had no comment on the new develop- ments. LSA sophomore Jarman Davis and Engineering sophomore Brian Grieser study chemistry by the soapbox advertising Thursday's forum. Students can no longer take' by Stacey Gray, Rape, pornography, prostitution, homosexuality, romantic love, and; transexuality are topics that will no longer be discussed in Sociol- ogy 102 - section 015 - when the class is canceled after this term. The section "Sociology of Love," which has been offered for the past four winter terms, is taken mostly by seniors because it closes within the first few hours of CRISP. This semester it registered about 150 students with a waitlist of 400, said TA Lori Keough. The class is being canceled be- cause of budget restraints, said Mayar Zald, chair of the sociology department. Zald said the budget no longer allows for lecturers who are not regular sociology depart- ment faculty to teach sociology classes, such as Sociology of Love professor Luis Sfeir-Younis. "Zald told me that for this class he would have to ask for additional money from the dean and at this time he didn't think it was appro- priate because of budget prob- lems," said Sfeir-Younis. "I think a course like this might be cut be- cause classes with practical value are not seen as intellectually strong or sound." Keough also questioned the reasons behind the cancellation. "The demand for the class is incredible," she said. "It deals with issues that need attention in our society: rape, pornography, gender role stereotypes... and how these things restrict our freedom to love and function as well-rounded individuals." Many others said the class has taught them a lot about love and related topics. Business School senior Jim Hechtman said, "I think it is a se- rious mistake. I've learned more in this class - information that is pertinent to reality and life - than in all my other classes." "The change in many of my students is amazing," said Susan 'Sociology McDonald Black, another TA. "They had never really thought about issues like homophobia and racism."j Students in McDonald Black's three sections are trying to keep the class alive for their group project. "I think as a diversity class it is very important," said Leigh Gal- tand, a first-year LSA student. "It seems a lot of people don't take it seriously because it is about love and intimacy and I. think that re-j flects our society - it is some- thing that should be taken seri- ously - that is why we have so; many problems." of Love' The section groups are writing letters, contacting news and talk shows, drawing up petitions, per- forming skits, and hanging banners in their attempt to keep the class available. Sfeir-Younis was flattered about the projects but stressed that he had nothing to do with originating them. Zald said the Sociology de- partment tries to offer as compre- hensive a program as it can under its budget. "If we had a regular faculty member who wanted to teach it I would jump at it," Zald said. "I've had students calling me about it; they would like to see the course taught." Soviet voters support preserving federation MOSCOW (AP) - Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and his maverick rival Boris Yeltsin yesterday both emerged from the first referendum in Soviet history able to claim victory. In the nonbinding election held Sunday across the Soviet Union, Gorbachev won overwhelming support for preserving a renewed federation with the majority of the population. But partial returns showed Yeltsin winning on a question that has been opposed by Gorbachev: creating a strong presidency for the Russian federation, and filling it Both President Gorbachev and rival Yeltsin claim victory after first referendum in Soviet history by direct election. Yeltsin was elected chair by Russia's legislature in May. Known as the Russian president, he is in danger of losing that job. The hard-line members of Russia's Congress are planning a no-confi- dence vote on March 28. Even if Yeltsin lost that vote, he would be strongly favored in a popular elec- tion. Gorbachev's referendum won by margins of 70 percent to 95 per- cent in seven of the 15 republics: the Ukraine, Byelorussia, and in the five republics of Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tadzhik- istan, Turkmenia and Kirgizia. Six independence-minded re- publics refused to hold the referen- dum and the majority of their vot- ers appeared to stay away from polls held in Communist Party and military bases. Gorbachev first proposed the referendum in December as a means of pressuring leaders of the 15 Soviet republics into signing a new Union Treaty to preserve cen- tr4l control over politics and the'' economy. The main referendum question did not mention the Union Treaty and was so vague that even Gor- bachev's allies were not sure how to translate an electoral victory into policy. Gorbachev campaigned heavily in favor of the main referendum question, and after casting his bal- lot Sunday said he opposed strengthening the Russian presi- dency. He called the Russian presi- dency "dangerous," but said he would "respect the opinion of the Russians." Yeltsin said Friday that "introducing the post of president of Russia will help strengthen the sovereignty of the republic." Gorbachev has avoided a popu- lar election. *Clarification The decision to allow the Anti-Imperialist Action Caucus to run candidates for executive officer positions on the Michigan Student Assembly was made by the Central Student Judiciary. This information was not clear in Friday's Daily. a'THE LIST What's happening in Ann Arbor today Iraqi rebels clash with Saddam's troops Meetings Recycle U-M, weekly mtg. 1040 :Dana, 7 p.m. Kaffeestunde, weekly German con- versations. MLB third floor conference room, 4:30-6. German Club, weekly mtg. MLB, ;Rm. 2004, 7:00. Anthropology Club, weekly mtg. Dominick's, 7:30. :Time & Relative Dimensions in 'Ann Arbor, weekly mtg. Call 971- 2072 for info. 2439 Mason Hall, 8:00. :Ultimate Frisbee Club, weekly mtg. Fuller Park, lower fields, 5 p.m. Take Back the Night, weekly mtg. League, Conf. Rm 4/5, 7:30-9:30. Phi Alpha Delta, pre-law fraternity :mtg. League, rmn D, 7:30. Asian American Association, work-. shop mtg. Trotter House, 7 p.m. Speakers "Just and Unjust Uses of Power," Peter Boeve, president, Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice. Inter- national Center, noon. "Ring-Slippage Mechanisms and Kinetics of Ligand Substitution of Organometallic Complexes," Fred Basolo of Northwestern University. Chem Bldg, rn 1640, 4 p.m. "The Pink Triangle: Gays Under nor Coon. Rackham Amphitheater, 4 p.m. Bert Hornback, reading the poetry of William Butler Yeats. University Club Terrace, 8 p.m. Furthermore Safewalk ,nighttime safety walking service. Functions 8-1:30 a.m. Sun.- Thurs. Call 936-1000 or stop by 102, UGLi. Also at the Angell Hall Com- puting Center 1-3 a.m. Sun. - Thurs. Call 763-4246 or stop by the court- yard. Northwalk, North Campus nighttime walking service. Functions 8-11:30 Sun.-Thurs. Call 763-WALK or stop by 2333 Bursley. ECB Peer Writing Tutors available Sunday-Thursday, Angell/Haven Computing Center, 7-11; 611 Church Computing Center 7-11. Free Tax Preparation. Sponsored by VITA until April 15. Union, 3rd floor, 9-5. The Yawp literary magazine. Submissions accepted until 3/22 in the box at 1210 Angell. U of M Women's Rugby Club, Tuesday practice. Call 995-0129 for more info. Sports Coliseum, 8-10 p.m. U of M Taijiquan Club, weekly practice. Cube, 5:15. NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) - Kur- dish rebels said yesterday the Iraqi army was using virtually every weapon it has to try to break the back of the rebellion in northern Iraq. Spokespersons for Shiite Mus- lims also fighting to topple Presi- dent Saddam Hussein maintain their fighters are holding off a three- pronged assault by Iraqi troops on the southern cities of Basra, Karbala and Tannuma. Iraq's government-controlled newspapers claimed the army crushed the revolt in the south, despite at- tacks from Shiite rebels that had left cities in ruins. Kuwait's Crown Prince disputed that, saying Iraqi re- sistance was winning in the north as well as in southern Iraq near Iran. Officials of the Shiite and Kur- dish rebel groups in Damascus and London charged Iraqi forces were us- ing napalm and phosphorus bombs, to try to put down the twin revolts against Saddam. None of the claims could be in- dependently verified. Refugees fleeing Basra told re- porters with U.S. troops in southern Iraq that rebels still held parts of the city and were being pounded by Iraqi artillery. Tehran radio, monitored by the BBC in London, said 12,000 to 16,000 people were reported killed on the highway between the Shiite holy cities of Najaf and Karbala in the Iraqi south. It gave no source for the figure. In Washington, State Department deputy spokesperson Richard Boucher said there was heavy fight- ing between Iraqi forces and Kurdish dissidents in northern Iraq. He said the dissidents "now ap- pear to be in control of large por- tions of predominantly Kurdish areas of northern and northeastern Iraq." Fighting is also continuing in the south along the lower Tigris and Euphrates rivers and in the vicinity of Shia holy cities, he said, adding that there had been damage to holy shrines. In Kuwait City, Crown Prince Saad Abdullah al-Sabah told U.S. congress members the Iraqi resis- tance has the upper hand in northern' Iraq and in southern Iraq along Iran's border. Based on intelligence reports, al- Sabah said Iraqi forces "have not been able to control the situation, especially in the northern part of Iraq." "In the southern part of Iraq, es- pecially the areas that are in the bor- derline between Iran and Iraq, this is some sort of no-man's land. It is not under control of either the Iraqis or the Iranians," he said. "There are a number of groups that are facing the armed forces and the authorities of Iraq. They have been able to take control of some of the police centers and the govern- ment buildings," he said, without specifying locations. It was the first high-level confir- mation that the Iraqi opposition was controlling the border area. In Damascus, Sami Abdul Rah- man of the Kurdistan People's Democratic Party said Kurds fighting in the north retained control of a wide swath of territory along the Ira- nian and Turkish borders. He said they controlled all or part of the districts of Kirkuk, Suleimaniyah, Erbil, Dehok, Jalaul4 and Knanagin. "Gen. (H. Norman) Schwarzkopf received daily satellite pictures, but no one is supplying us with such pictures," Abdul Rahman said. "We know that a substantial part of Sad; dam's army is still there. It may not have been a match for the allies."