Friday, September 5, 2008

• 396 People Arrested on Final Night of RNC
• McCain and Palin Hit the Road
• Republicans for Choice Makes Strides on Platform
• Concussion Grenades, Tear Gas Used Against Demonstrators in Saint Paul
• Thailand Divided
• The Plight of Disappeared Pakistanis

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396 People Arrested on Final Night of RNC

More than 800 people have been arrested this week in the Twin Cities; nearly half of them were taken last night during what started as a peaceful protest in Saint Paul. We hear from Hip Hop Artist Stick 187 – one of hundreds of people outraged by the police suppression last night.

McCain and Palin Hit the Road

Coming off the four day long Republican convention, which got off to a slow start due to Hurricane Gustav, John McCain and his vice presidential pick Sarah Palin have hit the campaign trail as the official GOP ticket. FSRN's Leigh Ann Caldwell reports.

Republicans for Choice Makes Strides on Platform

The Republican Platform is the document that defines the party's core beliefs and positions on varying issues. One of the planks in the platform is a hard-line stance against abortion. But as FSRN's Tanya Snyder found this week, there is some surprising new language in the preamble which may help free Republicans from towing the line.

Concussion Grenades, Tear Gas Used Against Demonstrators in Saint Paul

As we reported at the top of the newscast, nearly 400 people were arrested on the last night of the Republican National Convention here in the Twin Cities, bringing the preliminary total to more than 800. Rachel Bengtson is the Vice President of the Minnesota Chapter of the Lawyer's Guild – FSRN's Aura Bogado spoke with her as authorities detained dozens of Lawyer's Guild legal observers.

Thailand Divided

Thailand's beleaguered Prime Minister, Samak Sundaravej says he will not resign despite mounting pressure. On Thursday, he offered to hold a referendum on whether he should stay or go: a compromise proposal which has met fierce criticism from anti-government protestors who want immediate elections. On Tuesday Samak imposed a state of emergency in Bangkok after his supporters and opponents clashed in the capital, leaving one person dead. Protesters say the government is a front for Thaksin Shinawatra – the former prime minister, now in exile. As FSRN's Rebecca Henschke reports the nation is deeply divided.

The Plight of Disappeared Pakistanis

A federal grand jury in New York this week indicted a behavioral scientist on charges that she tried to kill her American
terrogators when she was arrested in Pakistan in July. It is alleged she has ties to al-Qaeda, but no terrorism charges were files. Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, who disappeared in 2003 with her three children during a stay in Karachi, has become a cause célèbre among Pakistanis. The US government says it had no idea of Siddiqui's whereabouts till her arrest this July in Ghazni, Afghanistan. Her supporters say she's just one of the 600 Pakistanis disappeared by Pakistan's government to serve the US war on terror. From New York, Madiha Tahir reports.