Archive - Apr 2, 2010

• New airport screening policies draw mixed reactions
• Residents of Guam say US military expansion threatens culture, ecology
  (click here for web-only version)
• India launches census count of more than one billion residents
• Veterans of Falklands-Malvinas war still fighting for recognition and benefits

• Israeli air raids on Gaza intensify
• Guinea-Bissau PM released by military
• Sudanese opposition parties to boycott national election
• US sees slight gain in new jobs
• Scott Roeder sentenced to life in prison for killing abortion provider
• Prominent Brazilian land-reform activist murdered

The Department of Homeland Security announced new airport screening policies for overseas flights to the US. But the new procedures are being met with mixed reactions. Tanya Snyder reports.

(web only extended version)

The US is planning one of its largest realignments of military assets in decades. Over the next few years, the Defense Department will bring thousands of marines and personnel to the western Pacific island of Guam, a US territory. According to the Defense Department's Inspector General, the project will cost 16 billion dollars. Six billion of this has been pledged by the government of Japan, where many of the Marines are currently based.

But the move is meeting resistance from the people of Guam – who are concerned over ecological impacts, strains on infrastructure and cultural independence.

We go now to Guam, where we’re joined by two people. Hope Cristobal is a history instructor at the University of Guam, and a former Senator in the Guam legislature. Sabina Perez is a cultural activist and permaculturist from Guam. She has led delegations to the United Nations to advocate for Chamorro self-determination.

The US is planning one of its largest realignments of military assets in decades. Over the next few years, the Defense Department will bring thousands of marines and personnel to the western Pacific island of Guam, a US territory. According to the Defense Department's Inspector General, the project will cost 16 billion dollars. Six billion of this has been pledged by the government of Japan, where many of the Marines are currently based.

But the move is meeting resistance from the people of Guam – who are concerned over ecological impacts, strains on infrastructure and cultural independence.

We go now to Guam, where we’re joined by two people. Hope Cristobal is a history instructor at the University of Guam, and a former Senator in the Guam legislature. Sabina Perez is a cultural activist and permaculturist from Guam. She has led delegations to the United Nations to advocate for Chamorro self-determination.

Local community group in Guam, “We Are Guahan”: http://weareguahan.com/

US Department of Defense’s Inspector General page on Guam: http://www.dodig.mil/Audit/guam/index.htm

The US is not the only country currently doing a census count. India has launched what it describes as the largest counting exercise ever. The 2011 Census of India began this week and aims to count more than a billion people in the next 11 months. Along with the Census details, officials are also collecting biometric data from every citizen to create India’s National Population Register. FSRN's Bismillah Geelani files this report.

Today marks the 28th anniversary of the Falklands-Malvinas war between Argentina and the United Kingdom. The Falklands islands are in Argentine waters, but have been occupied since the 18th century by the French, British and the Spanish. Recently, England initiated off shore petroleum exploration near the Islands, which has renewed the centuries-old sovereignty debate. But while diplomatic conflict grabs international headlines, there's a lesser-known story connected to the Falklands-Malvinas island dispute. It has to do with veterans of the war and their ongoing fight for recognition and benefits, nearly three decades later. FSRN's Marcos Federman has more.