Headlines for Friday, January 30, 2009

• Myanmar Denies Citizenship of Rhingya Boat People
• Sri Lanka Sees Unofficial Ceasefire while Civilians Leave War Zone
• Tsvangirai Officially Agrees to Take Role in Unity Government
• Taliban in Pakistan Allows Girls to Go Back to School Through Grade Four
• Two Big Court Rulings in California

Myanmar Denies Citizenship of Rhingya Boat People
As controversy swirls about the Thai government's treatment of the Rohingya Muslim boat people, Myanmar today denied the immigrants are actually Burmese. The government says the boat people, who come from the western part of Myanmar, are not a recognized ethnic group and consequently are not citizens.   Claudia Cragg has more.

For their part, Prime Minister Abhisit's Thai government insists the Rohingya are not refugees, and should be deported.  However, the latest influx of 66 Rohingya have been processed by the Thai police in full view of the media, and human rights groups hope this is a signal that Thailand has dropped its unofficial policy of towing the immigrants out to sea and leaving them.  However the Thai government has now granted the UN access to the most recent group, bit not to all the Rohingya refugees being detained in Thailand.  Brad Adams is the Asian Director for Human Rights Watch.

"We believe we may have convinced the Thai government to -- from now to -- work with the United Nations and consider asylum applications and to launch an investigation into what happened but we will see whether or not the Thai government really follows through on those commitments."

This latest group of Rohingya boat people have been charged with illegal entry and ordered to be deported.  For FSRN, I'm Claudia Cragg.

Sri Lanka Sees Unofficial Ceasefire while Civilians Leave War Zone
As Sri Lankan government troops close in on what they say will be the final military confrontation in their battle against the separatist Tamil Tigers, the international community continues to voice concern for Tamil civilians in the war zone.  From Colombo, Ann Raber reports.

The Sri Lankan government is hoping that the Tamil Tiger rebel fighters will honor a 48-hour deadline to release all civilians who are living on the battlefront.  The military has pledged to not fire weapons for two days, to allow civilians living in the battle zone to reach safety in government camps.  This battle, in the Northeastern town of Mullativu, is said to be the last military front in the war against the separatist Tamil Tigers.  Humanitarian groups estimate that there are about 250,000 civilians trapped in the war zone. The government has long claimed that the Tigers are using civilians as a human shield and won't allow them to leave.  LTTE officials deny that, saying civilians are afraid to leave the Tiger controlled area for fear of abuse by the government.  The UN pulled 226 seriously injured residents out of the battlezone yesterday.  For FSRN in Colombo, I'm Ann Raber.

Tsvangirai Officially Agrees to Take Role in Unity Government
A unity government seems likely to go forward in Zimbabwe following an official decision by opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai to take up the Prime Minister post.  Davison Makanga reports from South Africa where the leaders met to forge the new government.

The Movement for Democratic Change's national council gave the green light today to go ahead with the power sharing deal signed last September.  This follows the Southern African Development Community's order earlier this week compelling the parties to form the shared government by February 13TH. The MDC says it is confident that the unity government will work to better the people of Zimbabwe.  Party spokesperson Nelson Chamisa says disagreements between the MDC and President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF party should be set aside.

"We feel that an inclusive government is a perfect opportunity and window to try to stabilize our economy, to reconstruct our country, to make sure that we heal our nation.  And more importantly to make sure that there is a platform for a free and fair election."

Some African leaders are still calling for Mugabe's ouster.  But overall, the unity government in Zimbabwe is seen as the best opportunity to revive the economy's steady decline.  Yesterday the country's finance minister declared that all foreign currencies are now legal tender.  For FSRN, this is Davison Makanga in Cape Town, South Africa.

Taliban in Pakistan Allows Girls to Go Back to School Through Grade Four
The Taliban announced they will allow female students in the Swat region of Pakistan to go to school through the 4th grade.  This comes after the group demanded the closure of all Swat girls schools earlier this month and the subsequent destruction of several of the buildings.  From Pakistan, Afridai Afridi reports.

Residents of Swat welcomed the announcement, but most want the Taliban to allow girls' education to go further.   A female teacher from a private school in Swat spoke to FSRN, requesting not to be named for fear of her safety.

"It is very good to hear that there is some flexibility, but the Taliban did not say anything about the female teachers.   And I'm not sure any women will teach until they say it is allowed.  Most of my colleagues have left Swat because of the ban, as teaching was their sole source of income."

Although a Taliban commander announced to the international press they would allow limited girls education, most parents in Swat aren't ready to send their daughters back to school.  They are waiting to get permission locally on Taliban pirate radio, the only reliable source of information in the region.  For FSRN, This is Afridai Afridi.

Two Big Court Rulings in California
Following up on two stories recently in our newscast:  A California judge has ruled Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger can force state employees to take two unpaid days off a month.  California Unions had challenged the governor's plan.  Schwarzenegger proposed the cutbacks to help ease the state's financial crisis.

And a California district court has thrown out a case brought by supporters of Proposition 8, who asked their campaign contribution information be taken down from state reporting websites.  They complained that supporters of gay marriage were harassing them and boycotting the businesses of contributors.  The judge justified the decision saying, "If there ever needs to be sunshine on a particular issue, it's a ballot measure."

Click here for the full newscast for Friday, January 29, 2009