JUNE 2003
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Wednesday, 25th June,2003
SOKOLSKI INTERVIEW
Henry Sokolski is accusing North Korea and Iran of developing a nuclear weapons program and is calling for a more severe international response to each of them. Since the days of George Bush Senior he’s been working as a specialist weapons and nuclear advisor for leading Republicans and defence organisations. Currently, he is the executive director of the Non-proliferation Policy Education Centre in Washington. Mark Davis spoke with him earlier.
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Wednesday, 25th June,2003
NUKE BACKGROUNDER
So far, there’s one down from George Bush’s "Axis of Evil" list and presumably still two to go. Both North Korea and Iran now stand accused of possessing or developing nuclear weapons and a showdown is looming for both.
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Wednesday, 25th June,2003
SEYMOUR HERSH INTERVIEW
Mark Davis caught up with Seymour Hersh in Germany where he is currently on assignment.
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Wednesday, 25th June,2003
HERSH BACKGROUNDER
After three months of searching, coalition forces in Iraq still haven’t found any weapons of mass destruction. Around the world, questions are now being asked whether the intelligence on Saddam’s supposed weapons arsenal was embellished, or even simply made up, to justify the war on Iraq. The first cracks in the American case for war were exposed by one of that country’s leading investigative journalists, Seymour Hersh. Dateline will be speaking with Hersh but first, John Hosking gives some background to recent events.
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Wednesday, 25th June,2003
SPRAY DAY
When a small moth arrived in New Zealand from Australia a few years ago, the authorities were keen to stamp it out when they realised the threat it could pose to the nation’s valuable plantation forests. But apparently they were not quick or keen enough. The little Australian not only has a liking for pine trees but for the suburbs of Auckland as well, where it has taken up residence. Now the government is attempting to eradicate the invader with aerial spraying of a pesticide whose contents they won’t reveal. As Edwina Throsby reports, the spraying is dislodging hundreds of people in Auckland.
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Wednesday, 18th June,2003
SAEB EREKAT - INTERVIEW
Another central figure involved in every twist and turn in negotiations since the Oslo Accords has been Saeb Erekat - until a month ago the Palestinian’s chief negotiator. With the appointment of Mahmoud Abbas as Palestinian Prime Minister, Erekat resigned as Minister for Negotiations. In the wake of his resignation he cast doubt on the current peace process but now seems more optimistic. Although controversially, he is now calling for new Palestinian elections - the first in seven years. Mark Davis spoke with him in London.
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Wednesday, 18th June,2003
TERJE ROED LARSEN - INTERVIEW
From the amount of blood that has been shed between Israelis and Palestinians in the past few weeks it has been easy to forget George Bush’s road map to peace. As the killings continue, sceptics abound. Tonight, two veterans of the negotiation process give us their views on the chance for peace. Terje Roed Larsen was one of the architects of the 1993 Oslo Accords - a landmark agreement - and he has been negotiating between the two parties ever since. As Kofi Annan’s special peace envoy to the Middle East, he is one of the rare individuals who has managed to keep some good faith with both sides for the past decade. Mark Davis spoke with him in Norway a short time ago.
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Wednesday, 18th June,2003
WANTED FOR BHOPAL - WARREN ANDERSON
In December 1984, a toxic cloud of gas from the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, silently enveloped the surrounding city, leaving thousands dead. For almost 20 years, the survivors of the disaster have sought punishment for those they hold responsible, and they start at the top. They’re targeting the American chief executive of the company - the now-retired 82-year-old Warren Anderson. So where does the buck stop when it comes to culpability for the world’s worst industrial tragedy? Amos Cohen reports on the hunt for Warren Anderson.
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Wednesday, 18th June,2003
HUNTING WARREN ANDERSON
The company name Union Carbide is synonymous with the worst industrial disaster in history – the explosion at a Union Carbide plant, on December 2, 1984, which released a toxic cloud of gas over Bhopal, India.
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On DATELINE this Wednesday, June 18 at 8.30pm, Amos Cohen investigates whether Warren Anderson, the man who was CEO of Union Carbide at the time of this terrible accident, should be held responsible for its consequences. Anderson is burnt in effigy in Bhopal on every anniversary of the explosion and these survivors want him punished for the thousands of deaths and their ongoing suffering.
At the end of 1999 the office of Bhopal’s medical commissioner had registered 22,149 deaths directly related to Bhopal. At least 1,000 people a year continue to die prematurely as result of exposure to the toxic gas.
Warren Anderson’s response to the Bhopal disaster was, against the advice of Union Carbide’s lawyers, to immediately fly to Bhopal. To his horror, as soon as he arrived, he was charged with culpable homicide and placed under arrest. He was released on bail within 24 hours and quickly left the country after signing an undertaking to return to face any court summons. Anderson has never returned to India but pressure continues to grow for his extradition from America.
For more than ten years there has been an outstanding warrant for his arrest.
A class action by the victims of Bhopal was thrown out by a US judge who said it had to be heard in India. The case was settled in 1989 for $US470 million (the original claim was for $US15 billion) – about $US500 compensation for every person involved. Last month a civil case in the US brought by survivors – seeking compensation for the ongoing pollution – was also thrown out. They have appealed.
That’s DATELINE, this Wednesday June 18, 2003 at 8.30 pm. -
Wednesday, 11th June,2003
KRAKATOA - THE BIG BANG
More than one hundred years after the eruption of Krakatoa the volcano still has the power to fascinate and create new legends. For some people the shock waves are still being felt - tourists, scientists and soothsayers still pay homage to the now famous volcano. As David O’Shea reports.
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Wednesday, 11th June,2003
BURMA INTERVIEW
In Burma, the opposition leader Aung Sung Suu Kyi, remains in detention following a savage attack on her convoy two weeks ago, dashing hopes of reconciliation with the regime after 12 months of talks. Yesterday, a UN envoy met with Suu Kyi, confirming that she is apparently uninjured but remaining under military detention. Little else is known about the attack, when she will be released from custody or the status of Burma’s reconciliation process. Dominic Faulder is a noted Burma specialist and journalist. He writes for the monthly publication ’Asia-Inc.’ and the Burmese opposition newspaper ’Irrawaddy’. Mark Davis spoke to him from Bangkok earlier.
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Wednesday, 11th June,2003
CONGO INTERVIEW
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, an ongoing massacre of terrifying proportions has gone virtually unreported until recent days. Just over a month ago, after a UN-brokered peace deal was signed, 6,000 Ugandan troops pulled out of Eastern Congo. Just 700 Uruguayan peacekeepers took their place in the town of Bunia. Within a day, the streets were awash with blood as local militiamen went on a rampage. Hundreds were killed as the Uruguayans remained in their compound. French troops are now being deployed and a UN Security Council delegation is on its way to observe the chaos first hand. Dateline’s Bronwyn Adcock is in the Congo en route to Bunia. Mark Davis spoke with her from the capital, Kinshasa.
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Wednesday, 11th June,2003
WHEN THE CLERICS CLASH
As the American led coalition in Baghdad struggles to contain lawlessness, much of Iraq has already come under the control of Shia clerics. In the holy city of Najaf, the clerics have established a strong administration based on Sharia law - certainly not what the US had planned. But behind the scenes a crucial confrontation between two leading Mullahs is occurring. And as Matthew Carney reports, the outcome could decide the future of Iraq.
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Wednesday, 11th June,2003
THE FIGHT FOR CONTROL OF IRAQ
On DATELINE this Wednesday, June 11 at 8.30pm, Matthew Carney presents a report on a power struggle which could decide the future of Iraq – the battle between two Shia mullahs who want to lead the nation.
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This crucial confrontation is being played out in the holy city of Najaf – the centre of the Shia world. Americans are not welcome in Najaf, a hostility recently intensified when America installed its own interim governor to the holy city, outraging Shia leaders and confirming their deep distrust of the United States.
Najaf is already being successfully run by a civil administration led by the mullah Muktadah Sadr and his young advisors. Sadr has emerged as the most likely leader of Iraq’s 12 million Shia. After Saddam Hussein’s agents assassinated his father in 1999 Muktadah started an underground movement to resist the dictator. In a rare interview he outlines his vision of a future Iraq to DATELINE –“I want an Islamic government all over Iraq…Sharia law should be applied to all – even non-Islamic people.” Najaf now has a Sharia law court.
But Muktadah Sadr has his rivals, including the powerful Ayatollah Bakr Hakim. When the Shia rose up in 1991 and declared an Islamic republic, Ayatollah Hakim was declared its leader. The return of Hakim from exile in Iran means the real battle over who will lead the Shia has begun.
In this DATELINE program, Muktadah, for the first time, breaks a longstanding taboo against publicly criticising Hakim who, unlike Muktadah, has agreed to work with the Americans in forming the new Iraqi administration.
That’s DATELINE, this Wednesday June 11, 2003 at 8.30 pm. -
Wednesday, 4th June,2003
INTERVIEW - ALEXANDER DOWNER
As inquiries begin around the world about the politicising of intelligence in the lead up to the Iraq war, should the same question be asked here?
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Wednesday, 4th June,2003
ANDREW WILKIE INTERVIEW
Mark Davis spoke to Andrew Wilkie, former ONA officer, in Canberra earlier.
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Wednesday, 4th June,2003
WMD BACKGROUNDER
Coalition forces have now been in Iraq for more than two months and, not for want of trying, no weapons of mass destruction have been found. A situation that is profoundly at odds with the intelligence that the US and Britain say was a justification for war. This week in Washington, London and Canberra, the same questions are being asked. Where are the weapons, and did political leaders exaggerate the evidence in the lead up to the war?
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Wednesday, 4th June,2003
RUSSIA - TERRORISM TAKES FRONT STAGE
Two weeks ago, we broadcast dramatic allegations about Russia’s security police, the FSB, being involved in drug running and organised crime. Tonight there’s more allegations against that organisation. A former Chechen MP and rebel fighter, Akhmed Zakaev, says the police were directly involved in staging the infamous Moscow theatre siege which resulted in the death of Chechen terrorists and more than 100 hostages. Next week, Zakaev will face extradition in a London court. On the surface, his claims are those of a desperate man, and vehemently denied by the Russian Government. But, as Nick Lazaredes reports, there are many who take his claims seriously.
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Wednesday, 4th June,2003
TERRORISM TAKES FRONT STAGE - RUSSIA’S THEATRE SIEGE
On DATELINE this Wednesday, June 4 at 8.30pm, Nick Lazaredes investigates the Nord Ost theatre siege in which over 150 people died in Moscow last year. He asks whether the end of the siege was a proud achievement of the Russian government in the global war against terror or an atrocity connected to the Chechen war.
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On October 29 last year a group of fifty terrorists brandishing guns, wired with explosives and calling for Chechen independence laid siege to a Moscow theatre. After days of stand-off, Russian special forces responded in decisive terms - by pumping a powerful knock-out gas into the theatre. Then, while they were unconscious, the terrorists were eliminated one by one with a shot to the head. The “collateral damage” was also severe - more than one hundred of the terrorists civilian captives also died – poisoned by the gas.
The Russian government declared the outcome a victory in the continuing war against Chechnya but many Russians, including politicians, journalists and intelligence agents are not convinced.
Alexander Litvinenko, a former lieutenant colonel in Russia’s Federal Security Bureau (FSB) says the terrorist event throws up many unanswered questions –
* How could 50 armed and camouflage dressed “terrorists” have crossed Moscow undetected?
* Why were all the terrorists – who together with the hostages were put to sleep by gas – executed instead of being kept alive to be questioned?
* Why were the bodies of two informants who took part in the siege - and were well known to the FSB - never found? Were they released?
Litvinenko believes these two men – Abdul the Bloody and Abu Bakar - were working for the FSB and persuaded other Chechens to join them without revealing their connection to the FSB. Litvinenko thinks the Russian Secret Service organised the whole theatre siege and that all the others involved in staging it were killed to conceal the FSB’s involvement.
Chechen rebel leader Akhmed Zakayev says the Nord-Ost siege did not benefit the Chechens but only the Russians who gained a reason for continuing the Chechen war.
That’s DATELINE, this Wednesday June 4, 2003 at 8.30 pm.
