Lack of media freedom was one of the reasons cited by the Council of Europe when it

Lack of media freedom was one of the reasons cited by the Council of Europe when it delayed Croatia’s admission for several months last year – Reuters. Slobodan Milosevic is on the offensive again. On Tuesday night the wily Yugoslav President engineered the sacking of the most popular of his opponents as mayor of Belgrade. The revised code is intended to take effect 1 January next year and follows international criticism of curbs on the media in the former Yugoslav republic.

Croatia unveiled a new penal code allowing the prosecution of journalists for reports considered “insulting”, even if they are factually correct. He has been criticised for emphasising trade agreements over worker rights and the environment – AP. The Senate Finance Committee approved the measure by voice vote. Bill Clinton is seeking so-called fast-track negotiating authority to expand the North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico to other countries in Latin America and beyond. Those watching his television broadcast said the 54-year-old infantry general looked tired and seemed to have lost weight, but did not appear to be at death’s door with cirrhosis of the liver, as opposition publications had claimed – Reuters. The request by the United States President for congressional authorisation to negotiate new trade agreements, a top priority of his second term, cleared its first legislative hurdle.

Without its backing, he may not be able to get his budget passed and his 17-month-old government would be at risk.. The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, is withdrawing a human rights team from the Democratic Republic of the Congo pending clarification of whether President Laurent Kabila will allow them to investigate alleged massacres. Gen Abacha, in a broadcast marking 37 years of his country’s independence from Britain, told dissidents to back his plan to restore civil rule in 1998. “The team in Kinshasa has been unable to carry out its mandate ” – AP. The Nigerian military ruler General Sani Abacha confirmed his grip on power after rumours of sickness. “The Secretary-General has decided to withdraw the UN human rights team for consultations pending final clarification from the government on its policy,” spokesman Fred Eckhard told reporters. The hard-left party, which has ensured Mr Prodi’s majority in the lower Chamber of Deputies, says the budget contains unacceptable cuts in welfare and pensions.

The Prime Minister, Romano Prodi, prepared to meet President Oscar Luigi Scalfaro to discuss the crisis that threatens the first Italian government to include the left since the Second World War.
Mr Prodi told union leaders earlier that his majority was in jeopardy after the Refoundation refused to back his 1998 budget, which the government considers essential to secure Italy’s membership of the single European currency. Rome (Reuters) – The Italian government stopped work yesterday and said it was ready for a showdown with its rebellious hardline ally, the Communist Refoundation, a move which could cause the collapse of the coalition. But it also stresses that need to maintain “the required balance” between flexibility and job security.British officials said the key to tackling the EU’s unemployment ills rested in flexible labour markets and adaptable workforces while maintaining “decent” minimum standards at work.. Governments judged by their peers to be lagging behind would be issued with specific recommendations for remedial action.The plan acknowledges that work patterns and organisation need to be “modernised” to allow more flexible working arrangements and the possibility of reduced working time. Katherine Butler reports from Brussels

The Commission’s proposals, which controversially call for member states to judge each others job-creation performance, come ahead of next month’s special EU leaders’ employment summit. But they set the scene for open confrontation at that meeting between on the one hand those, such as the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, who believe that governments ought to be tackling excessive workplace regulation, and others such as the French, who see government compliance with centrally prescribed job creation targets as an essential parallel for Economic and Monetary Union.
According to the plans outlined yesterday by Commission President Jacques Santer, governments would commit themselves to increasing the numbers of unemployed on job training schemes from the present rate of 10 per cent to 25 per cent.Combined with a reduction in employers’ contributions, these steps would, Mr Santer said, help reduce the rate of unemployment from 11 per cent to 7 per cent.Padraig Flynn, the EU social affairs commissioner who framed the details said “The time has come to set targets and quantify our employment goals.”He added that there would be a “moral obligation” on each member state to meet the targets they had signed up to.

The explosions occurred in the crowded Sadar Bazar area, where many of the city’s wholesale markets are located The bombs were placed on the roadside and were not powerful. Most of the injured were pedestrians and shoppers thronging the area. The crowds are larger at this time of the year because of major Hindu festivals in October In July, blasts in the same area had injured 12 people. No one claimed responsibility for those blasts, but Muslim and Sikh separatists have been blamed for previous explosions..