VATICAN CITY

Pope decries terrorism, calls UN to action...

Pope Benedict ushered in the first New Year of his papacy yesterday urging humanity to take a leap of faith in God to prevent terrorism, nihilism and fanatical fundamentalism undermining peace.

The Pope addressed his homily to thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter?s Basilica for New Year?s Day mass, celebrated on the Roman Catholic Church?s annual World Day of Peace. The German Pontiff also called on the United Nations to fulfil its responsibilities to promote justice, peace and solidarity in an increasingly globalised world. ?Terrorism, nihilism and fanatical fundamentalism ? faced with these threats, it becomes more than necessary to work together for peace?, the Pope said. ?There is the need for a leap of courage and faith in God and mankind to choose the path to peace.? Terrorism was an important theme in the Pope?s World Day of Peace message, which was issued last December and sent to heads of state and government and to international organisations around the world for Jan. 1. In the message, entitled ?In Truth, Peace?, he also said war could not be an excuse for disregarding international humanitarian law. The Pope did not name any countries or wars, but his words chimed with reports of abuse of prisoners by the United States in Iraq and at Guantanamo Bay.

The reports have incensed adversaries of the United States and alienated some of its allies. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice came under pressure in Europe last month over reports that the CIA had set up secret prisons on the continent. After the mass, the Pope addressed pilgrims huddled under umbrellas in a rainy St. Peter?s Square. He spoke to them in seven languages.

The next major event on Benedict?s calendar is a mass on the Feast of the Epiphany on Jan. 6. In early January, he is due to publish his first encyclical, a major writing addressed to all Church members, addressing the individual?s personal relationship with God.

Phil STEWART

CHINA

Hu vows peaceful and cooperative development

Chinese President Hu Jintao marked New Year?s Eve on Saturday with a speech pledging peaceful, cooperative development, but reiterated a standard warning that China would not tolerate independence for Taiwan.

In a brief address broadcast on state radio and television, Hu did not dwell on the numerous problems facing China, such as pollution, corruption and the widening gap between rich and poor.

?The Chinese people love peace, and yearn for a good life?, Hu said. ?I stress again, China?s development is peaceful, open, cooperative and harmonious.?

Last week, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso said China?s military build-up was a threat, triggering an angry retort from Beijing.

Fears have also been raised in Washington that China could use its growing economic clout to increase its influence in Asia at the expense of the United States and its regional allies.

Hu offered his New Year greetings to people in Taiwan ? a self-governing island China claims as its own ? and said Beijing would strive to promote cross-strait exchanges and maintain stability while pushing for reunification.

?Opposition to Taiwan independence splittist activities will not be compromised?, he said, standing on a simple podium in front of a Chinese flag.

Taiwan split from the mainland at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949, but Beijing still sees the democratically ruled island of 23 million as part of Chinese territory and has pledged to bring it back into the fold, by force if necessary.

Hu spoke of infectious diseases, pollution and poverty as global problems, but said nothing about how they were affecting China and how Beijing would deal with them in the coming year.

China announced its third confirmed death from the deadly H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus earlier this week, and has reported over 30 outbreaks in poultry this year.

On the economic front, Hu said China would continue to open its markets and improve the investment environment, at the same time as working to help developing countries.

Premier Wen Jiabao, who likes to cultivate an image as a man of the people, was shown on state television visiting people in southeastern Jiangxi province, which was hit by an earthquake in November that killed 14 people.

Wen was shown inspecting rebuilding efforts, kissing school children, talking to local people and asking government officials to look after the earthquake survivors.

TAIWAN

Chen signals tougher stance towards China

Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian signalled a tougher stance towards China yesterday, warning his people of investment risks in the mainland and what he saw as the growing military threat from the island?s political foe.

Defying expectations that he would use his New Year address to take a more conciliatory approach and seek to patch up ties, Chen said his government would assume the role of a gatekeeper to guard Taiwan?s economic security. ?Cross-Strait economic and trade policies do not seek to fulfil the financial interests of any individual or corporation,? Chen said. ?Instead, our main interest is Taiwan?s sustainable development.?

?Therefore, ?proactive management and effective liberalisation? represents the new mindset and course of action for our future cross-Strait economic and trade policies?, Chen said from the presidential office in Taipei. Previously, his administration had followed a policy of ?proactive liberalisation and effective management? in favour of economic opening.

Chen?s approval rating hit a record low after his party?s crushing defeat in the December local elections, in part because of a poor administrative record during his five years in office, especially on ties with China.

Beijing and Taipei have been diplomatic and military rivals since their split at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. Beijing sees the island as part of Chinese territory and has pledged to bring it back into the fold, by force if necessary.

Despite often testy ties, trade, investment and tourism have blossomed since the late 1980s. Taiwan businessmen who have poured up to $100 billion into China have called for permanent direct links, which analysts say are essential for the island to remain economically competitive. ?Whilst Taiwan would never close itself off to the world, we shall also not ?lock in? our economic lifeline and all our bargaining chips in China,? Chen said.

Analysts said Chen?s comments were likely to pour cold water on the financial markets, which have been betting on closer economic and trade links across the narrow Taiwan Strait. ?(The speech) indicates mainland policy will be tightening and more conservative,? said Li Fang-kuo, an analyst at SinoPac Securities. ?It will have a negative impact on the stock market.?

Underscoring China?s threat, Chen said the People Liberation Army (PLA) had deployed 784 ballistic missiles targeted at the island and set up a three-stage war plan. He said the PLA aimed to establish what he called contingency-response combat capabilities by 2007, build up combat capabilities for large-scale military engagement by 2010 and to ensure victory in a decisive battle by 2015. ?In the so-called ?carrot and stick? strategy China has employed against Taiwan, the ?soft tactic? is a mere deception, but the ?hard tactic? is real?, Chen said. ?It has unceasingly pursued its ambition to annex Taiwan.?

Chen, who advocates a separate Taiwan identity, repeated a timetable to have a new constitution for Taiwan before his second ? and final ? term ends in 2008. He stressed that the island?s future would be decided by its 23 million people alone.

In a move sure to anger Beijing, Chen said the island could hold a referendum on the new constitution by 2007 if conditions were ripe. Beijing sees Chen?s constitutional re-engineering project as a provocative step towards formal statehood. In his New Year?s Eve speech, Chinese President Hu Jintao vowed that China would not tolerate Taiwan independence.

Alice HUNG

UNITED STATES

2006 cheered from New York to New Orleans

Huge crowds braved tight security and cold, rainy weather to usher in New Year?s yesterday in celebrations at New York?s Times Square marked by the return of veteran television host Dick Clark.

The arrival of 2006 was also cheered in New Orleans, the historic Gulf Coast city devastated by Hurricane Katrina last August. Thousands of revelers packed the French Quarter to listen to music by Arlo Guthrie and bid good riddance to a year the city was not likely to forget.

Clark, battling back from a stroke that forced him to miss last year?s show, returned to his longtime perch as host of his live ?New Year?s Rockin? Eve? show, which he started in 1972.

?It?s real good to be back with you again this year?, Clark, 76, once known for his perpetually youthful appearance, said in a halting, slightly hoarse voice as he came on the ABC program about 11:35 p.m.

He added after the giant crystal ball dropped at the stroke of midnight to usher in 2006: ?There?s nothing like being in Times Square on New Year?s Eve. Believe me, this is one night I will never, ever forget.?

Police had said they expected about 1 million people to attend the 101st New Year?s celebration in Times Square. Revelers came from across the United States and began arriving on Saturday morning to stake out prime spots so they could watch the ball lowered at midnight to ring in the new year.

?They said this wasn?t gonna happen?, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin shouted to a cheering New Year?s Eve throng at a concert outside Jackson Square. ?They said New Orleans was dead. But we proved them wrong. New Orleans is alive and well.?

The first New Year?s celebration in the city since Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast was smaller than usual. Only about one in four residents, by some counts, have returned to the storm-wrecked city, and few tourists have ventured back.

The mood was jubilant as Nagin ticked off the final seconds of 2005. At midnight, a replica of a gumbo pot decorated with New Orleans symbols, including a bottle of hot sauce and a French Quarter street sign, slid down a 25-foot (8-metre) pole atop Jackson Brewery. ?I?m so excited about leaving 2005 behind, y?all just don?t know?, Nagin said.

In New York, security was a main concern amid the festive atmosphere, although Mayor Michael Bloomberg had said there were no specific threats against the city. Police officers led bomb-sniffing dogs throughout the party zone, while biochemical hazard teams and decontamination centers were on standby in case of attack. A mobile laboratory was on hand to test the air for suspicious substances.

Metal detectors were used to check the revelers and large bags and backpacks were banned from the area. Snipers were deployed on rooftops, while helicopters circled the area and police patrolled the city?s waterways on boats.

The celebrants had to endure temperatures in the mid-30s F (1-2 C), as well as rain and wet snow. Bloomberg was among those welcoming back Clark to the city?s New Year?s festivities. ?It just would not be New Year?s Eve without Dick Clark,? Bloomberg said on the ABC program moments before Clark?s introduction. ?I know I speak for all New Yorkers and all Americans ? Dick, we love you.?

THAILAND

King Bhumibol urges public to have clear mind

In his traditional New Year speech, His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej declared that a clear mind is important if one is to find happiness, prosperity, fame and honour. The monarch urged the people of Thailand urges to have a clear mind, to be understanding and to treat each other with compassion.

?People?s wishes do not vary much. They wish for a healthy life filled with fortune, honour, peace and security. Peace and security can be divided into two: external and internal. External peace and security is livelihood and an environment that is free from danger and troubles like floods, fires or conflicts. Internal peace and security is a clear mind free of worries and irritations. A clear and calm mind is very important because it brings about consciousness and right judgements?, he said.

FRANCE

Chirac invites the French to ?modern? patriotism

Standing up for the republican values, intense struggle against unemployment, industrial innovation: for his last year in office, French president Jacques Chirac, sees himself as the scout of a ?modern? patriotism faced with globalisation.

?Faith in France? : this seems to be the watchword of the Head of State for the year 2006 following a dark 2005 during which the ?french model? has been badly questioned.

?We must recover the rallying force and the modern meaning of the word ?patriotism? : love for the country, being proud of her and doing things for her?, he explained.

?Together, we shall accelerate our action and adhere to a collective project?, has stressed the French president.

THIRD WORLD

East African leaders worry over food shortages

East African leaders said yesterday that millions of people in the region faced hunger because poor rains had affected vital crops and pasture, giving their New Year messages a sombre tone. Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki said a famine facing the region?s biggest economy was a national disaster and at least 10 percent of the country?s 32 million people would need foreign and local food aid.

?In the next six months, up to 2.5 million people will be in need of famine relief,? Kibaki told guests attending New Year celebrations broadcast on state television. Eleven billion Kenya shillings will be needed to meet their needs, he added.

In tiny coffee-growing Burundi, President Pierre Nkurunziza lowered taxes on food imports to help feed thousands of poor rural farmers. ?Regarding the hunger which affects some regions of the country, the government has decided to reduce tax on imported food from 30 percent to 5 percent?, Nkurunziza, a former rebel leader elected in August, said in his New Year message.

He also announced the release of prisoners who have served a quarter of their sentence to ease congestion in prison, though those jailed for crimes such as rape and assassination would not be freed. But he promised to release political prisoners soon, after a commission studying the issue has completed its report. Burundi is recovering from a 12-year conflict between the Hutu majority and the minority Tutsi elite in which more than 300 000 people were killed.

In neighbouring Tanzania, newly elected President Jakaya Kikwete described the food situation as precarious and urged Tanzanians to use the available food wisely. ?The rains have not been sufficient to meet our agricultural requirements?, he said. ?Rains in areas which normally get adequate rains starting in October came late, and when they did come, they were below normal.? Kikwete, sworn in on December 21, decried the fact that food prices had shot up partly because of unmonitored cross-border grain exports to Zambia and Malawi.

The government had said 613 000 people would need 21 500 tonnes of food aid between November 2005 and February 2006. But Kikwete said both figures could rise because of poor rains. The US-based Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWSNET) has warned that millions of people in Ethiopia and Somalia also face acute food shortages as a result of poor rains.

David MAGERIA

GERMANY

?Peace and freedom? from Merkel

Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, asked her people to achieve a bit more in 2006. Sha said her ?greatest wish? for the coming year was for Germany to live ?in peace and freedom? with its neighbours and wished for more efforts to approve a European constitution, which was rejected in the French and Dutch referenda in 2005.

Merkel also noted that Germany would be the focus of attention in 2006. The whole world will be watching when the next football World Cup is organized throughout the country.