Saturday, March 28, 2015

LEE KUAN YEW TO RECEIVE STATE FUNERAL IN SINGAPORE

Singapore's founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew will receive a state funeral later (Sunday).

He died last week at the age of 91.

UK correspondent Olly Barratt has been talking to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair about the man who oversaw Singapore's transformation from small city-state to global hub.

He started by asking Mr Blair why he'd sought a meeting with Lee Kuan Yew on winning the leadership of the then opposition Labour Party in the UK.

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TB: "At the time I'd become leader of the Labour Party, I was leader of the opposition, wanted to win an election, but I also wanted to learn something about government. And I'd studied and admired LKY for a long period of time, and even though there were obviously political differences, in terms of tradition and political history, nonetheless I'd watched him very carefully and studied him and I went to Singapore, and went to see him. And I always remember, because, the first question he put to me, rather bluntly, was, 'so why have you come to see me?' And I said to him, well I've come to see you because I want to hear from you how you think I can win, and learn from you how I should govern. And he sort of took that in, in the way he did, and then just literally gave me fabulous politcical advice about how to win and then some very good advice about how to govern."
OB: "And he knew how to win, didn't he, and you won several elections, obviously, was his thinking important to you?"
TB: "His thinking was very important because I think LKY, I think this is one of his underestimated achievements, is that in my view he was probably, the first leader in that later part of the 20th century to understand that governing was about efficacy rather than ideology, and that the most important thing in politics is to search for the right answer and then do it, rather than start from some ideological predisposition and then work out how you fit the facts around it and he was the person who when he came to construct Singapore said, right, What's going to make this country great? And then he set out to do it. And that approach I think didn't just excite me but excited a whole lot of politicians, whether they were from centre left or centre right, that that was the right approach to government."
OB: "So is it fair to say that LKY has therefore had a significant impact on British politics?"
TB: "I think LKY's had a huge impact on global politics, I think from his obvious influence on the Chinese leadership and the development of China, to you know, people like myself in the UK, but people like Bill Clinton in the USA, and others who saw in him a model for how you should try to put the interests of the country first, that being an effective executive was every bit as important as being a great communicator, and then on very specific issues like law and order, how you get the right intellectual capital into your country, he was a pioneer, and he was also a pioneer in this sense, that he didn't allow any false sense of economic nationalism to get in the way of genuine national economic achievement. So for him to learn English was obvious because that language was going to connect Singapore to the world, it didn't matter how many people said, well oh no, you're denying us the pride in our local languages, he said no, what we've got to do is make this country a country that can trade with the rest of the world. You know, when it came to bringing business in from abroad, there was no false pride about it, he said, ok, let's bring in the best. And now of course, singapore is an actual exporter of intellectual capital. So this is what I think made him significant and great."
OB: "He was obviously more authoritarian than you would have been, or could have been, was that authoritarianism justified by the results? In terms of what he achieved for Singapore."
TB: "Look, I think there are things you can learn from different societies, and things you can't. You're never going to have that same system in a western developed democracy, but there are things nonetheless that we can learn. Law and order, I was a huge advocate of a stronger position on law and order, and Singapore was one of the countries I looked to for that because one of the things he understood was that if you want your economy and society to function today, people have got to feel safe. And that citizen security was a major part of his achievement. In addition, and it's very important people on the progressive side of politics realise this - he was an absolute champion of cultural integration, from the beginning, and was very clear and way ahead of his time in recognising that where you end up with cultures living separately, in one country, you're going to get big problems. So he was not just an advocate but an implementer of the idea that people from different cultures should live side by side and should respect each other, and treat each other as equals."
OB: "After the Arab Spring, we've had Iraq and Afghanistan, lots of countries around the world searching for democracy, pushing towards democracy. What can the rest of the world therefore learn from the Singapore model, or is it difficult when you're looking at a small city state to extrapolate from that."
TB: " YOU see, I don't thing Singapore teaches us so much about democracy or not democracy because I think different countries have different systems. I think what it teaches us, is far more to do with the quality of governance, and the quality of executive decision-making. And you know, when people say to me, and they do, in the work I do around the world, you often get presidents or prime ministers who say ' make me like singapore'. And I say to them, well, first of all you've got to have your LKY, but most important, the lesson of singapore is that you govern in an effective way, without corruption, and you take the decisions that are actually best, based on the evidence, now if you govern like that you can make your country successful, but that is the lesson, and that lesson is one that has got big implications for the way government functions for the 21st century, and Lee Kuan Yew was you know, it's not a coincidence that the LKY school of government was formed in his memory, because for today's generation of leaders, that's what you should look at and that's what you should seek to emulate."
OB: "You mentioned his bluntness, and you mentioned his frankness, as well - did that make it easier or harder to do business with him?"
TB: "Well it was easy to do business with LKY because he was so direct - I mean, he wasn't impolite, by the way, at all, but he was direct. And you know you asked him a question and he gave you an answer. And he wasn't frightened at all of having a head on fight with someone he disagreed with but he treated it as a disagreement. You should never underestimate the quality of his intellect, by the way, I mean he was an extroardinarliy clever individual, with a really vast intellect, and deep intellect. And that's something fortunately he's passed on to his children, and it's also something he's in a way, he's given something of that spirit of intellectual inquiry to the country, and I think that's one of the things sometimes people miss with LKY, is that he was, i mean he could hold his own with any academic or professor anywhere."
OB: "Lord Powell told us a meeting at his house, I think, at which you and LKY had a long, in depth conversation, I mean - were there a series of them over the years and what kind of things were you talking about, was it always work?"
TB: "It was mainly work, we got to know each other pretty well and I would regularly come and see him and even after I left office I would regularly come and see him. And I found him first of all an enormous source of information. He became like a kind of advisor to the world in what was happening in Asia and particularly in respect of China. But he was also someone who was, you know because he thought out of the box, he was always fascinating to engage with on any subject, so whether it was radical islam, or you know what to do about europe, you know he would have views and they were always views that were formed by this piercing intellect, combined with very, very practical outcomes."
OB: "And what was he like as a friend?"
TB: "I think he was a good friend, I mean I came to like him very much as a person too, I think he was a person of profound principle. His family meant an enormous amount to him. He was an absolute patriot for his country. But he was also someone who could be immensely engaging company, and you know I had many a good dinner with him when he would relax and you'd have a friendly and frank conversation across a whole range of subjects. No, he was a - in a world where politicians aren't always of the first rank and where politics doesn't always produce you know, great leaders. He was a great leader and beyond doubt one of the most significant and impressive leaders of the late 20th century.

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Wednesday, March 25, 2015

CLARKSON FIRED BY BBC

Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson been fired by the BBC.

It follows an altercation with a producer but was the latest in a series of controversies.

The move by the BBC not to renew his soon-to-end contract has upset Top Gear fanatics around the world.

But as details of his sustained physical attack on a producer emerge, the BBC felt it had no choice.

And police in Yorkshire - where the incident took place - say they may investigate.

Nonetheless, in Britain some are threatening to protest by not paying their licence fee - the payment which funds the BBC's existence.

The show is one of the BBC's biggest assets worth an estimated $75 million a year, with a worldwide audience of 350 million people.

Olly Barratt reports from London.

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After a fight with a producer of the show, apparently over the lack of a hot meal after filming, Jeremy Clarkson could not remain on Top Gear, according to the BBC's director general.

CLIP

Tony Hall did, however, thank Jeremy Clarkson for his work at the corporation.

CLIP

Top Gear fans had been so keen for Jeremy Clarkson to be reinstated as presenter they had driven a tank to the BBC with a petition signed by over a million people.

Organiser of that stunt, Harry Cole, wanted him back on the TV after the BBC pulled Top Gear from UK schedules.

CLIP

But Jeremy Clarkson may not need our sympathy or help with employment.

CLIP

CHARLIE GIRLING, ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR, at LBC, expects a bidding war for Jeremy Clarkson's services - perhaps along with his co-presenters James May and Richard Hammond whose contracts are also reportedly up soon.

CLIP

"I think all of the international broadcasters will be lining up to sign him up, so I think he will be absolutely fine."

Favourites to replace him include BBC presenter Chris Evans - not a man with the international profile of Jeremy Clarkson - and apparently not interested.

CLIP


With Clarkson gone the huge revenues the show generates internationally for the BBC are far from guaranteed

That will be worrying the accountants as the BBC says it is looking at how to relaunch the progreamme next year.
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Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Obama To Slow Down Afghanistan Troop Withdrawal


President Obama has announced that the US will keep nearly 10,000 troops in Afghanistan throughout 2015, delaying plans for a gradual withdrawal of American forces. Originally, Mr. Obama planned to cut the US presence in half by the end of this year. The announcement comes during Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's first visit to the US since he was elected. On Tuesday, he held a series of meetings with President Obama and Vice President Biden at the White House. Lorna Shaddick reports from Washington.

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Script:

UPSOT military band music

Thanking American troops for their sacrifices…

Before arriving at the White House, Ashraf Ghani made a stop at Arlington National Cemetery, to lay a wreath at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The message - Afghanistan doesn't take American help for granted.

UPSOT Obama - Good afternoon everybody, please have a seat.

That was something he emphasised later during his press conference with President Obama.

SOT - Ashraf Ghani Afghan President
You stood shoulder to shoulder with us, and I'd like to say thank you. I would also like to thank the American taxpayer for his and her hard earned dollars.   

Behind the charm offensive, a mission. Mr Ghani wanted Mr. Obama to slow down the troop withdrawal timetable, concerned about a tough spring fighting season, and Islamic State militants trying to recruit in Afghanistan. 

And after several meetings and a working lunch on Tuesday, President Obama appeared to agree with the need for delay:  

SOT - Super: Barack Obama 
We're determined to preserve the gains our troops have won. President Ghani has requested some flexibility on our drawdown timelines. I've consulted with General Campbell in Afghanistan and my national security team and I've decided that we'll maintain our current posture of 9800 troops through the end of this year. the specific trajectory of the 2016 drawdown will be established later this year. 

Behind that decision, say experts, is a much better relationship between the US and Afghanistan since President Ghani took power - less acrimonious and complicated than it was under the more diffident and defensive Hamid Karzai. 

But some caution that it's early days yet. Here's Michael Kugelman, a senior associate at Washington's Wilson Centre. 

SOT - Michael Kugelman, Senior Associate, Wilson Center
It's important to keep the right perspective. There's all this talk about how Ghani is such an improvement over the past, anything would be better than Karzai, new chapter in the relationship. But let's keep in mind that back in 2001 when Hamid Karzai became President of Afghanistan, he was a hero in the United States, everyone loved him in this town, he could seemingly do no wrong. But then things didn't work out very well. 

Ashraf Ghani's warm reception at the White House, signaling a new era of co-operation, is likely to be repeated when he addresses a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. But just as it was for his predecessor Hamid Karzai, getting the US on side is the easy job. Much harder is focusing on the domestic problems waiting for him back home - power sharing, negotiating with the Taliban and fighting corruption. Progress on those fronts is how America will ultimately judge him. Lorna Shaddick, Washington / SOC 

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Monday, March 23, 2015

LORD POWELL: LKY 'WAS ALWAYS RIGHT'

Singapore has started seven days of national mourning after the death of its founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

He died at the age of 91.

Mr Lee was Singapore's Prime Minister for 31 years - turning the city-state into a global financial hub and one of the wealthiest nations on earth.

Lord Powell of Bayswater met Lee Kuan Yew frequently while serving as former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's Private Secretary.

The two developed a firm friendship, and Olly Barratt caught up with him - and started by asking him of his memories of official meetings with Lee Kuan Yew.

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****



TAKE LORD POWELL OF BAYSWATER



"I had so many meetings with him over the years…many of them together with Margaret Thatcher, for whom I worked. They all made a strong impression, he was quite simply a remarkable man, a remarkable leader."



OB:



"Remarkable in what sense? What was it about him that made him remarkable?"



LORD POWELL:



"Well first of all, his achievement in turning Singapore into the world's most efficient, most admired economy, quite frankly. It was a remarkable achievement to have built Singapore with no natural resources into a place which is generally regarded as the best place in the world for companies to do business. But more than that, it was his single-minded determination. The idea that leadership and government could achieve a great deal while still supporting the free market economy. He was a believer in the state's role in the economy, in creating the right environment for a country to flourish. That is what made him really remarkable. He was not a socialist, and yet he built a country which really led the world."



OB: 



"How did Lee Kuan Yew and Margaret Thatcher get along together?"



LP:



"Lee Kuan Yew was a man to whom one listened. Because he had so much to say and so much to offer. Margaret Thatcher regarded him as one of the great brains of the modern world. She says in her memoirs quite openly, 'I relied on Lee Kuan Yew's wise advice, and extraordinary knowledge of politics throughout my time as Prime Minister.' And my memory is that whenever Margaret Thatcher was heading towards Asia I was instructed to plan a programme which diverted her to Singapore because as she once said to me, 'Charles, how will we know what to say, if we haven't talked to Harry?" I think they first met each other when she was education secretary in ted heath's government in the early 1970s and she regarded him as a friend and mentor from that time on. And you know, at many Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings, the two principal agenda items would be the view of world economic affairs, and a view of world political affairs. And either Margaret Thatcher or Lee Kuan Yew would lead on one or the other. And it used to be rather like going to Wimbledon, because they were the two champions, hitting the ball to and fro across the net while the rest of the commonwealth countries looked on, with their heads going from side to side because they were such virtuoso performers. So he played a far beyond the confines of Singapore. He was recognised really globally as a remarkable statesman, certainly the most important Asian statesman of his generation."



OB:



"Were there similarities between Lee Kuan Yew and Margareth Thatcher and their ways of doing business?"



LP:



"I think there were similarities in that they both were single-minded, they were both determined to change their countries for the better, they didn't spend much time on opposition, on worrying about what everybody thought. They knew they were elected to do a job and they got on and did it, in their not very different ways. Yes, there were great similarities, both believed in the free market, both were disciples you might say of Milton Friedman, and one of Mrs Thatcher's proudest achievements was when she was able to say that Lee Kuan Yew had congratulated her on the changes she had brought about in the British economy because for decades he had been a great critic of how Britain had allowed itself to deteriorate and the fact that he approved of what she'd been able to achieve by the later 1980s was perhaps one of the greatest satisfactions she had in her time as Prime Minister. And that illustrates how deeply she respected him."



OB:



"How big an influence do you believe that LKY had on the wider British political establishment?"



LP:



"Well he certainly had a wide influence, most of our Prime Ministers knew him, talked to him, consulted with him. and he made a point when he came here, of trying to take the opinions of widest number of people he could see. He would regularly see the heads of our intelligence and security agencies, for instance,and he had a circle of friends here, of whom I was proud to be one, who he met for dinner and listened to and also educated. Tony Blair was close to him - I remember hosting a dinner for him and Tony Blair at home when they had three or four hours of really profound conversation. So yes his links with Britain were obviouslyy an important feature of his life. He was disappointed in Britain, I think, during the 1970s and 80s, and indeed after our withdrawal from east of suez in 1968, and the way the economy declined, and the country seemed to be on a permanent downward slope, but he was much encouraged by the revival of the 1980s and 1990s and he came here in a way, I think, just to refresh himself from his Cambridge experience, from his earlier days in the UK, but also to promote Singapore. Which he did extremely successfully. One of his ideas, which I was a participant in, was to set up a Singapore-British Business Council, to try to revive the trading and economic relationship between Britain and Singapore and I was first Chairman on the British side, indeed for 10 or 12 years, and it was highly successful, we did really engage with Singapore in a business sense, thanks to his inspiration."



OB:



"When you look around the world at the various areas of unrest, we've had the Arab Spring, there are too many other regions to mention where times are difficult - do you think more and more people around the world are looking at the singapore model and scratching their heads at how they've done it?"



LP:



"Well I think a lot of people do study the Singapore model - it's not an easy one to replicate. Singapore is a small country, and you can't always apply what works in a small country to others. One of the particular lessons you can take from Singapore, and you know I think the people most interested are mainland china - china itself, i think, sends a lot of delegations to Singapore. And I remember Lee Kuan Yew himself telling me how some senior Chinese would say to him, well tell us, what's the secret of singapore? How do you both be a democracy but also have this astonishing economic success and the same political party always wins the elections? And he said that his reply was always - you have to be close to the people. And I think that was the secret. He was always close to the people because he knew what they wanted and he was able to deliver what they wanted."



OB:



"Tell me a bit about the role - the important role - that Lee Kuan Yew played with Margaret Thatcher in terms of Britain's negotiations with China over Hong Kong."



LP:



"Well Margaret Thatcher often tapped into Lee Kuan Yew for advice - in particular I recall on Hong Kong and the future of Hong Kong. She had the very delicate task of coming to an agreement with China about Hong Kong's future in the early 1980s and she had frequent conversations and messages from him at that time about how best to handle the Chinese, the best way to present her ideas and so on. She found that enormously valuable .  She also found valuable his strong aversion to communism and to communist influence spreading in Asia, and his support for the americans, in the vietnam war, his willingness to provide naval and other facilities to western forces. He was a strong believer in maintaining a strong US presence and always regretted that Britain reduced its presence. SO he had a strategic sense, a global strategic sense, in which Singapore played quite a minor role but the fact that his powerful voice from singapore would be heard on these issues was enormously influential."



OB:



"What do you believe Lee Kuan Yew's legacy will be for Singapore but also for the wider Asia region?"



LP: 



"Well his legacy to Singapore is very obvious - it is modern singapore itself is his legacy, and you couldn't have a better legacy than that. And I think despite tensions with malaysia and indonesia over the years, I think they too respected his leadership and singapore's success. He was strong minded - he had a fairly blunt way of expressing himself which did not always go down well with some of his neighbours, indeed I know Margaret Thatcher rather relished it because she wrote in her memoirs that he wouldn't stand for the sort of left wing rubbish one often heard at commonwealth prime minister's meetings, so that didn't always win him friends, but even if people didn't agree with him they knew he was right. And that is what matters."

ENDS
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Lee Kuan Yew remembered at Cambridge University

Tributes are being paid to Singapore's longest serving Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who died at the age of 91.


His state funeral will take place on March 29th, following a week of mourning.


Hailed as the country's 'Founding Father', Mr Lee's history with the UK dates back to the 1940s when he studied at Cambridge University.


Our UK correspondent Natalie Powell retraced his footsteps and spoke to academics at his college about his time in Cambridge.


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SCRIPT


VO: After the second World War, Lee Kuan Yew came to study at Cambridge's Fitzwilliam college - where he obtained a starred  first in English Law.


He was the only one in his cohort to do so.


Today Fitzwilliam College in Cambridge looks a lot different, having changed location. But there are still reminders of Singapore's Founding Father's time at the college.


UPSOT:

"This is the record book that shows that he matriculated on the 28th January 1947…"


This is Professor David Thompson, a life fellow and Archivist at Fitzwilliam college


PROFESSOR DAVID THOMPSON, LIFE FELLOW AND ARCHIVIST, FITZWILLIAM COLLEGE CAMBRDIGE

"You can get a first class result if you simply get first class marks in the majority of your papers…."


Lee Kuan Yew, who called himself Harry when living in England first enquired about a place at Cambridge in 1946, but the college was oversubscribed which led him to attend a year later


PROFESSOR DAVID THOMPSON, LIFE FELLOW AND ARCHIVIST, FITZWILLIAM COLLEGE CAMBRDIGE

"If he hadn't got in to Cambridge he would have probably gone to the London School of Economics but he got into Cambridge. We took quite a number of people, both from India and other commonwealth territories, stretching as far East as Singapore and Hong Kong at that time" 


VO: In 1949 he graduated top of his law class…


UPSOT:

"There is Lee Kuan Yew, with the only star of all of those. The Group…who became professors at Cambridge..If I remember correctly he lived in Blincove Grove..."



PROFESSOR DAVID THOMPSON, LIFE FELLOW AND ARCHIVIST, FITZWILLIAM COLLEGE CAMBRDIGE

"…He didn't like that very much because his fiancé was at Gurten…"


UPSOT:

 "This is the photograph of graduation day with Lee Kuan Yew on the censors right…"



It's been said that Singapore's longest serving Prime Minister disliked the English, but liked their way of doing things. 

After graduating from Cambridge University in 1949, Mr Lee was accepted into the English bar in 1950, but decided instead to return to Singapore. 

And his decision to do so, ultimately lead to the transformation of singapore from a small port city into a wealthy global hub under his leadership.


SOC

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LORD HURD ON LEE KUAN YEW

Singapore has started seven days of national mourning after the death of its founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

He died at the age of 91.

Mr Lee was Singapore's Prime Minister for 31 years - turning the city-state into a global financial hub and one of the wealthiest nations on earth.

Catherine Drew has been talking to Douglas Hurd.

Lord Hurd served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major between 1979 and 1995.  

He served as Foreign Secretary between 1989 and 1995 

She began by asking him for his memories of first meeting Lee Kuan Yew.

IN: "I first…
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LORD HURD

I first met him when I was working for Ted Heath a long, long time ago, in 1969 and he took me round the Far East to discuss the "East of Suez" policy that the Labour Government was pursuing and our job was to tell the rulers of the Gulf and people like Lee Kuan Yew not to take too much notice of it because Ted would win the election in 1970 and it would all be up in the air again.  So I went round with him and that was the first time I saw Lee Kuan Yew and I was very impressed.  and then later when he came to London he used to stay in the Hyde Park Hotel and he used to send for me, because he felt he knew me and that I talked something approaching sense, his standards were very high in that respect.  He didn't suffer fools gladly at all, but anyway.  So I got sent for and I used to go round to the Hyde Park and spend half an hour with him and used to ask me how things were going in Britain and I told him as best I could. 



CD

And when he called you to meet him at his hotel, did that make you slightly anxious?



LORD HURD

Originally I was, but once it had happened once or twice I got used to it and I had a great admiration for him.  He talked very sensibly about the world, he never said a foolish thing that I remember and of course he was hugely respected not only in Singapore but throughout the Far East.



CD

But you said he had a good sense of humour as well?



LORD HURD

Yes.   Yes he did, he did.   Umm.  It was quite often at someone else's expense if you see what I mean.  He didn't mince his words and he talked very frankly. 



CD

You told me earlier that when you were with Ted Heath, Lee Kuan Yew had some interesting comments about the success of Singapore?



LORD HURD

He said that the British Empire was quite largely the result of Britain looking for places where we could refuel our warships which were oil run and needed constantly replenishing. And we'd chosen certain places, we'd chosen Aden, we'd chosen Bombay, we'd chosen Hong Kong and we'd chosen Singapore.  These were our main stopping points going round the world.   And what he said was, "and I tell you that of that competition Singapore is going to come out on top. We are doing things that the rest of the world envy."



CD

And of course he was more or less correct?



LORD HURD

I think the competition with Hong Kong is still to play for but both sides will tell you confidently that they're going to win. 



CD

Lee Kuan Yew is much admired for his strategic thinking and insight.  Did he get on well with former British Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and John Major? 



LORD HURD

Um.  I don't know I imagine he did.  Margaret Thatcher I think he did.  He and Ted Heath were quite close and they talked from time to time.  I think he had quite a range of people that were on his wave length here. 



CD

So did Lee Kuan Yew advise Britain in the run-up to the handover of Hong Kong to China?



LORD HURD

We didn't certainly formally ask for his advice but he was in touch with Margaret Thatcher as you say and he had a very clear idea of what China was and the way China was going and he thought that we had no option but to leave.  And so he supported what Margaret Thatcher did, the agreement she reached with Deng Xiaoping in China and he thought that was the only way go. 



CD

Lee Kuan Yew has written and spoken widely about the transformation of Singapore, what lessons do you think, that he leaves the world? 



LORD HURD

I think Singapore has, he's right, they've hit a winning streak and that wasn't by good luck, they've had good luck of course but they've got highly intelligent population and he's made sure they're properly educated and on good terms with their neighbours.  It's crucial for a small state, he saw the importance of that.  I daresay he had critics at home in Singapore  but I think in the world outside Singapore, outside the immediate problems of Singapore, he was very well respected, he was one of the few wise men around and I think everybody who met him was impressed, by his, what you call his strategic vision, that's a good phrase, I think he had that.



CD

So how will you remember Lee Kuan Yew?



LORD HURD

He saw the world as a whole, and that was one advantage of being the leader of a small state, you couldn't afford to do other than look at the world as a whole, and he did, that is his strategic vision.  He had a view not just of Britain, not just of America but all of us put together.  I respected him as a great man, as one of the few people in the world today who exercised leadership and have what you've called a strategic vision I think that's exactly right, he thought about the world as a whole and he was shrewd about his judgements of people and events and I think, reasonably detached.   Of course he stuck up for Singapore, Singapore was everything to him but he didn't limit his vision to Singapore, he thought in terms of the whole world and how the whole world was doing. 

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Wednesday, March 18, 2015

OSBORNE DELIVERS FINAL BUDGET BEFORE UK ELECTION

UK finance minister George Osborne has been hailing Britain's economic success while delivering his final budget before a general election.

He says that Britain is 'walking tall' again, and revealed the UK economy is expected to grow slightly faster than previously thought.

The Chancellor's tax and spending plans include an ambition to use improving public finances to pay off national debt and end a squeeze on public spending a year earlier than planned.

But the opposition Labour Party says his time in office has seen falling living standards and worsening public services.

Olly Barratt reports from London.

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Conservative Chancellor George Osborne insists his economic plans have succeeded.

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There were no major giveaways - he doesn't have the money.

And this being a coalition budget, weeks before an election - some of the measures he did announce on tax and spending plans may never become reality if the Conservatives don't win that election.

But George Osborne says the biggest hurdle for his and everyone else's planning - is the eurozone.

IN: "A disorderly...
OUT: ...the world."
DUR: 20 seconds

Less than 50 days from an election neither the Conservatives nor opposition Labour have establisjed a meaningful lead in the polls - which predict there may well have to be another coalition of some form after May 7th.

Labour leader Ed Miliband has a clear line of attack on this budget - a refrain we will hear often in coming weeks.

CLIP

There were small cuts in alcohol taxes, a freeze in fuel duty, and a scheme aimed to helping people save up deposits to buy houses.

Small rabbits from a small hat because of continued attempts to cut the budget deficit.

But some - like Dr Steve Davies from the Institute of Economic Affairs - believe they demonstrate what's wrong with the UK's budget system.

IN: "Basically...
OUT: ...in Parliament."
DUR: 29 seconds

But that's not likely to change soon - in fact there could be another budget within weeks of May's election.

Depending on who wins it and how long the process of coalition-forming takes - assuming it's needed.

SOC


--

Olly Barratt
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Friday, March 13, 2015

Kerry Heads to Switzerland For Crucial Iran Nuclear Talks


Intro:

The US and five other world powers are preparing to enter a decisive round of negotiations with Iran over its controversial nuclear programme. Many experts say the two sides are within striking distance of an initial deal with Tehran, after months of diplomacy, before their self-imposed deadline of the 31st March.  But US Secretary of State John Kerry could face a more difficult job defending the accord to skeptical lawmakers back home on Capitol Hill. Lorna Shaddick reports from Washington.

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Script:

John Kerry is once again heading to Switzerland to huddle with his Iranian counterpart, this time in Lausanne, where there are hopes that this could be the decisive round of talks in the search for a deal over Tehran's nuclear programme. 

Ellen Laipson is President of the Stimson Centre, a global security think tank in Washington. She says there's much that hangs in the balance: 

SOT - Ellen Laipson, President and CEO, The Stimson Center
It appears that they're in the final push for what will still be just the framework of the tradeoffs that have to happen… number of centrifuges, duration of the interim agreement, relief from sanctions - how does that package get balanced so that all parties feel that they did the right thing? 

Secretary Kerry himself made it clear, during recent talks in Paris with European foreign ministers, that it's now up to Iran to decide whether it's willing to make concessions: 

SOT - John Kerry, US Secretary of State
We're all mindful that the days are ticking by, but we're not feeling a sense of urgency that we have to get any deal. We have to get the right deal. // The reason we don't have an agreement is we believe there are gaps that have to be closed, there are things that have to be done to further strengthen this; we know this.

Those gaps include when any relief from sanctions would kick in, and how big a nuclear production capacity Iran would be left with. There's also the so-called 'sunset' problem of how long any agreement would last. 

Here's Ellen Laipson again:

SOT - Ellen Laipson, President and CEO, The Stimson Center
The officials are suggesting that this March deadline is where the basic concepts get locked in, and then you have lots of lawyers working out the fine details of the text that would be signed mid-year. So now is the time for all the parties to decide what the politics at home will bear.  

UPSOT Netanyahu announcement: Mr Speaker, the Prime Minister of Israel (applause)… 

And this is what the politics at home in the US has sounded like recently - a speech in Congress warning against a deal from the Israeli Prime Minister, at the invitation of Republican lawmakers…

Then there was a protocol-breaking letter from nearly four dozen Republican Senators to Iranian leaders, suggesting that a future president could simply reverse any deal after Mr. Obama leaves office. 

Speaking to Vice News, the President rubbished that move: 

SOT - Barack Obama, US President (drumbeat underneath put there by Vice News) 
I'm embarrassed for them. For them to address a letter to the Ayatollah, who they claim is our mortal enemy, and their basic argument to them is don't deal with our president, because you can't trust him to follow through with an agreement, it's close to unprecedented.

But the episode raises thorny questions about the role of Congress and whether it would need to ratify any eventual agreement…  

But if a deal does succeed, it would be a lasting legacy for a President and a Secretary of State whose sights are now set very much on their write up in the history books.
Lorna Shaddick, Washington/SOC. 

ENDS
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Thursday, March 12, 2015

Two Officers Shot in Ferguson as Anti-Police Protests Continue

Two Ferguson policeman have been released from hospital after suffering gunshot wounds in the worst outbreak of violence since protests erupted in the St. Louis suburb last summer.  

One of the officers was shot just below the eye the other in the shoulder.

It happened overnight when gunfire broke out during protests outside the Ferguson Police Department.

Our US correspondent Kevin McAleese reports

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DUR: 2 mins 25 secs

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SIR TERRY PRATCHETT DIES AT 66

Author Sir Terry Pratchett has died in the UK at the age of 66.

He wrote more than 70 books over the course of his career but was best known for his fantasy Discworld series.

He'd been diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2007 and campaigned for more research into it.

Sir Terry was also outspoken in his belief that assisted death should be legalised for terminally ill people.

Olly Barratt reports.

***

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A statement on his website and a series of tweets announced that Terry Pratchett haddied.

The last one read simply, 'The End'.

He'd spoken about the end frequently - wanting to break the taboo surrounding death.

In 2010 he delivered the Richard Dimblebly lecture - or at least his friend, the actor Tony Robinson did on his behalf because by then Sir Terry found it hard to read out loud at length.

He called - through his friend - for people to be allowed to end their lives in their own way.

CLIP

His books were translated into over 30 languages and sold tens of millions all over the world.

He got into writing satire and fantasy by starting his working life as a journalist.

CLIP

He died at home - where he wrote most of his books - surrounded by his family and with his cat on his bed.

Sir Terry won't, however, have been expecting to meet God - not being a man of religion.

CLIP

Despite campaigning for assisted suicide, Terry Pratchett's publishers say he did not take his own life.

He leaves behind a vast literary legacy of over 70 books, the last of which was completed last year.


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Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Hillary Clinton defends use of personal e-mail in first public comments

Hillary Clinton has conceded making a mistake in failing to use a US government e-mail account when she was Secretary of State.

Addressing for the first time questions about why she chose not to use a State Department e-mail address, she said she had "opted for convenience".

She insisted that she'd broken no rules, and had handed over to the State Department all the "work-related e-mail" contained on private servers in her New York home.

Our Washington Correspondent Simon Marks reports.

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For reporters of a certain age in Washington, it was almost like stepping back in time.

It's been a while since we've seen a Clinton on the defensive…facing a bank of cameras…and an echoing array of questions about a bubbling political scandal.

But there was Hillary Clinton on Tuesday afternoon…at a solitary microphone at UN headquarters in New York.

AXX

Almost playing with the press…she kicked it off by discussing her work on gender equality…and the speech she'd made moments before.

Then she toyed with reporters further….

AXX

But she eventually got to the entire reason for her first encounter with reporters in 2 years:  the burgeoning questions about why she failed to use government e-mail accounts when she was Secretary of State.

It was all, she insisted, above board… a mistaken decision based on convenience.

AXX

And she argued the fact that she SENT so much of her e-mail to government officials meant that it was captured and archived on government servers as required by law….the servers THE government was using to store THEIR e-mail….as opposed to the private server farm she created for her correspondent at her New York home.

Twice she was asked, and twice she sidestepped questions about whether she could guarantee that she had turned over ALL her work-related e-mail to the State Department and not deleted any of it.

AXX  

Those personal e-mails, Mrs. Clinton said, related to her daughter's marriage, her mother's funeral and her own yoga classes.

They would not, she said, be made public…and almost teasing the Republicans, she indicated that some of the communications were personal between her and former President Bill Clinton.

They too will remain under wraps.

AXX

That insight, said Mrs. Clinton will be "interesting"…and certainly eagerly awaited by her supporters and detractors alike.

The State Department says the first few hundred pages of e-mail will be released soon…but it will take months for the rest to follow.

As to whether any of this is going to impact Mrs. Clinton's plans to seek the Presidency, she ignored the question.

Leading Democrats, however, cannot….and in many cases they are seriously worried that this is just the beginning of a quagmire over e-mail that will dog Mrs. Clinton just at the moment she was hoping formally to declare her decision to enter the Presidential race.

SOC

=================================
 
 President & Chief Correspondent
 Feature Story News
 1730 Rhode Island Ave NW, Suite 405
 Washington DC 20036 USA
 Phone:  + 1 202 296 9012
 Websites:  www.featurestory.com  and  www.simonmarks.com
 Twitter:     @simonmarksfsn <http://www.twitter.com/simonmarksfsn> 



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MISSING SYRIA SCHOOLGIRL FAMILIES 'LET DOWN BY POLICE'

The families of three British girls who've traveled to Syria have told lawmakers at Westminster they had no idea the teenagers were being radicalised.

They've also spoken of their anger at not being informed directly by London police that a friend of the three girls was already in Syria.

It comes as British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond accused so-called 'apologists' in Britain of sharing responsibility for acts of terror carried out by jihadists and terrorists.

Olly Barratt reports from London.

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DUR: 3.10 secs


15 year-old Shamima Begum is one of three teenagers who traveled to Syria last month - thought to now be staying at an Islamic State controlled address.

Her sister Sahima told MPs the family had no idea she was being radicalised.

And further, that if police had told them a friend of Shamima's had gone missing, they would have acted.

CLIP

Police gave a letter about the girls' friend to the girls - it never made it to their families, who think police should now make a full apology.

But Prime Minister David Cameron, talking to LBC, insisted the police can't take all the blame.

CLIP

It comes as Phillip Hammond delivered a major speech to praise British security services in response to claims their actions have helped to radicalise people like Mohammed Emwazi - a young Londoner now known worldwide as Jihadi John.

CLIP

And Calum Jeffray of the Royal United Services Institute has some sympathy with Philip Hammond's message - and the security services.

CLIP

In terms of the three girls who traveled to Syria - their families told MPs they didn't know how they found the money to pay for their air fares to Turkey in cash.

Police say they believe they raised the funds by stealing family jewellery.

Olly Barratt, 

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Monday, March 9, 2015

Obama furious over Republicans' letter to Iran

President Obama is accusing his Republican opponents of finding "common cause" with hardliners in Iran.
He spoke after 47 Republicans in Congress sent a letter to the Iranian leadership, warning them that any nuclear deal Tehran strikes with the United States could be undone after the next American election.
Our Washington Correspondent Simon Marks says it's the latest source of tension between the White House and Republicans on Capitol Hill.
IN:  "Just days…."
OUT:  SOC
DUR: 2:28

Just days after they swooned over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech on Capitol Hill warning of the perils of the Iran nuclear deal….the Republicans were at it again.
Their letter to Tehran, which infuriated the Obama administration, posited that senior Iranian government figures don't understand the US Constitution….and the vital role that Congress plays.
The Republicans argue that any agreement President Obama strikes with Iran should legally be considered a treaty…and therefore a document that requires ratification by Congress.
Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas authored the letter to Iran…and denied on CNN that it's an unprecedented attempt to limit a President's foreign policy authority.
AXX
The White House has long-argued that the agreement with Iran will not constitute a "treaty" and therefore will not require Congressional approval.
So, in their letter, the Republicans warn Tehran that - quote - "the next President could revoke the agreement with the stroke of a pen".
The letter also points out that many of the Republicans who have signed it will remain in office "well beyond" President Obama's departure from the White House…."perhaps", it says, "decades".
AXX
The current occupant of the Oval Office was not amused…President Obama offering reporters what his spokesman called a "forceful" rebuttal of the Republican initiative.
AXX
For their part, the Iranians said they would ignore the Republicans' letter.
The Iranian foreign minister, Javad Zarif, called it a propaganda ploy.
And he issued a warning of his own to the Republicans…saying that if they were to revoke the agreement that is still being negotiated….they will have committed a "blatant violation of international law".

=================================

 President & Chief Correspondent
 Feature Story News
 1730 Rhode Island Ave NW, Suite 405
 Washington DC 20036 USA
 Phone:  + 1 202 296 9012
 Websites:  www.featurestory.com  and  www.simonmarks.com
 Twitter:     @simonmarksfsn <http://www.twitter.com/simonmarksfsn> 



Posted by at

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Hillary Clinton e-mail flap intensifies

US officials say that a review of e-mails sent-and-received by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will take "several months", stoking fears of Democrats that the issue could cloud her ability to run an effective campaign for the US Presidency.


Mrs. Clinton has acknowledged failing to use official government e-mail accounts while she was the country's top foreign policy official, and her aides are calling the flap a "manufactured controversy".


But our Washington Correspondent Simon Marks says Mrs. Clinton is now coming under considerable pressure to explain whether she safeguarded every e-mail she sent as Secretary of State, as US law requires.


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AXX


When the celebrity website TMZ starts hounding you with a camera at Washington's National Airport…..generally speaking, it's not a good thing.

Hillary Clinton maintained a stony silence in the face of questions about the growing scandal concerning her e-mail.

The issue hit the nation's front pages via a New York Times exclusive on Monday….revealing that as Secretary of State she never used an official government e-mail address…..indeed, didn't even have one.

And if that gave rise to the idea that the Secretary of State was communicating with world leaders via Gmail, or another off the shelf commercial provider….they were quickly dispelled when it became apparent that in fact, she set up a sophisticated network of servers at her home in upstate New York. It seems to have been specifically designed to bypass US government systems.


AXX


State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf has spent most of the week promising reporters that she'd get back to them with information about whether Hillary Clinton met the legal requirement to safeguard any e-mails relating to government business….and make them available to Congressional committees, the media and historians.

Mrs. Clinton would have known about the importance of that because officials in George W. Bush's White House got into trouble for using personal e-mail accounts and not archiving the contents correctly.

So far, the State Department can only say they have 55 thousand pages of Mrs. Clinton's e-mail, handed over 2 years after she left office.

They cannot say whether that's every thing.

Republicans, smelling a rat, are issuing subpoenas that would require Mrs. Clinton to safeguard any e-mail still in her possession.


AXX


Chris Cilizza is a political columnist for The Washington Post.

He says the story is more than the "manufactured controversy" Clinton loyalists maintain, because it underscores the sense that there's an arrogance at the heart of Mrs. Clinton's operation.


AXX


The only comment the former Secretary of State has made came on Twitter:  "I want the public to see my e-mail" she wrote, saying she's asked the State Department to release it as soon as possible.

But officials now say that will take months….which could be disastrous politically for Mrs. Clinton.

She was hoping to announce her candidacy for the Presidency as early as next month.

Democrats, watching on, are now nervous that her Presidential aspirations are looking a lot less solid than before.


SOC


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U.S. Justice Department says no charges for Ferguson officer, but pattern of racial bias

Nearly seven months after unarmed black teen Michael Brown was shot dead by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, the U.S. Department of Justice has announced that it does not have enough evidence to press charges against the officer.

A federal investigation did, however, uncover a pattern of racial bias among Ferguson police.
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Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Opening Statements Begin in Boston Bombing Trial

The opening statements have been heard in the Boston Marathon bombing trial Wednesday.  

The prosecution says Dzhokar Tsarnaev carried a bomb in a backpack and purposefully left it near a group of children watching runners at the finish line of the Boston event in 2013. 

21-year-old Tsarnaev could face the death penalty if convicted of the attacks that left three dead and more than 260 injured.

FSN's Nick Harper reports from Boston 

----------------

IN: A stunning...'
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Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Israeli leader warns US congress over 'bad' Iran Nuclear deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the U.S.-led nuclear negotiations with Iran will result in a "bad deal." 

Speaking to a joint meeting of Congress, Netanyahu predicted that a deal would not stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons going on to say that the greatest danger facing the world is the "marriage of militant Islam and nuclear weapons." 

In Washington Kevin McAleese reports 

IN:The Israeli...'
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Ebola Conference in Brussels with Presidents of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone

The leaders of the 3 worst hit countries of the Ebola crisis have been in Brussels for an international conference on how to combat the disease - involving officials form the US, EU, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone are still struggling to rid themselves of the disease but the focus is now shifting on how to repair the damage to their economies which have been hard hit by the epidemic.

Jack Parrock reports.

IN: "For the Presidents..."
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-----------------------------
SCRIPT
REPORTER VO:
For the Presidents of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, the conference in Brussels is about pressing on their international partners to deliver 5 billion dollars worth of aid pledges.
The World Bank has been one of the most forthcoming providers of aid - giving around a billion dollars already.
The bank will host a conference in April where the costs of recovery plans will be outlined.

BITE: Keith Hansen - The World Bank
"It's not about abstract numbers, this affects livelihoods, it affects futures and opportunities, it affects trade, it affects the abilities of a country to make the investments that they need. If you're growing at ten percent a year, your economy doubles in seven years. If you're shrinking point three percent a year, obviously you're shrinking tax base, shrinking set of opportunities. We actually have seen ripple effects all across the continent already in economic terms and we estimate that it could be as high as 6 billion dollars this year outside the Ebola affected countries."

REPORTER VO:
New infections in all three nations are decreasing - but so are economic forecasts. Collectively the countries are seeing around 5 per cent drop in overall GDP.
Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf called for a so-called marshall plan to help the west african countries -  like was given to Europe following the second world war countries.

BITE: Mr. Abebe Selassie, International Monetary Fund - Africa Department
"What our support does basically is makes room for the government to be able to spend more money on health services and also make up for the loss of revenues so that it continues with regular operations, pays civil servants salaries, all of these things that the government undertakes, our financing goes directly to the budget."

REPORTER VO:
The outbreak has killed nearly 10 thousand people. There are now only around 100 new cases per week detected, at the height  it was around 900.
Despite a spotlight being shone on the economic effects of the outbreak, everybody here knows that the most important way to counter the negative effects of the Ebola virus is to reduce the new cases to zero.
Jack Parrock, Brussels
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