AAP Internet Bulletin 0001 Monday Dec 28, 1998

AAP General News (Australia)
12-28-1998
AAP Internet Bulletin 0001 Monday Dec 28, 1998





[T][YACHTING SYDHOB][YACHT]

Rescue drama as storm lashes race

Gales have caused havoc to the Sydney to Hobart yacht race, with crew washed overboard,
yachts abandoned and a helicopter winching injured crew members from mountainous seas.

A crew member from the Sydney yacht Sword of Orion was still missing last night as the Navy
deploys helicopters with night vision to search.

With westerlies gusting to more than 70 knots off the southern NSW coast and in Bass
Strait, several yachts have reported injuries and serious damage.

At least 20 yachts in the field of 115 which set out from Sydney yesterday had retired
before sunset and others put in to Eden to wait for better weather.

Tasmanian race director Biddy Badenoch says conditions are extremely severe, the worst
since the 1993 race when 66 of the 104 starters had to retire.

Through it all, giant American maxi Sayonara and last year's line honours winner
Brindabella continue their duel through Bass Strait with Sayonara about four nautical miles
ahead off the northern tip of Flinders Island.

Although the two were forced to reduce sail and cut speed, they were still well inside the
race record for the 630 nautical mile race of two days, 14 hours, seven minutes and 10 seconds
set by German maxi Morning Glory in 1996.





[A][TOLL NATIONAL][FED]

National road toll stands at 48

The nation's Christmas-New Year road toll stands at 48, with New South Wales roads claiming
four more lives yesterday.

A 72-year-old woman and her 40-year-old son died when the car they were travelling in hit a
concrete culvert and rolled at Cobar.

Another man died in a head-on smash south of Grafton, and a third man died when his station
wagon ran off the road and burst into flames north of Newcastle.

A 25-year-old from Holt in the ACT was killed in a motorcycle accident in the Canberra
suburb of Higgins on Saturday night.

NSW has the worst record with 16 deaths since the start of the Christmas-New Year road toll
period on December 18.

Victoria has recorded 10 deaths, Queensland has eight and Western Australia six.

South Australia and Tasmania have three each, and the ACT two.

Only the Northern Territory remains fatality-free.





[T][CRICKET ENGLAND][CRIK]

Langer and Waugh resume run chase

Australia resumes at two for 59 in reply to England's first innings of 270 in the fourth
cricket Test at the MCG today.

Justin Langer is not out 26 and Mark Waugh is on 12.

Yesterday England skipper Alec Stewart scored his maiden Test century against Australia
with his 107 including 16 fours.

The only other major contributors with the bat for England were Mark Ramprakash with 63 and
Graeme Hick with 39 but once they departed the lower order again folded meekly as England lost
their last seven wickets for 70 runs.

Stuart MacGill was the best of the Australian bowlers taking 4-61 while Glenn McGrath took
3-64.

Newcomer Matthew Nicholson was expensive conceding 59 runs in 10 overs but he did take the
wicket of Nasser Hussain.

Australia leads two-nil in the five Test series.





[I][IRAQ ATTACK]

Iraq steps up pressure on US and UK

Iraq will fire on US and British warplanes patrolling the no-fly zones which the United
States and its allies imposed after the Persian Gulf War, Iraq's vice-president said today.

Iraqi Vice-President Taha Yassin Ramadan told Qatar's Al-Jazeera television that Iraq would
not accept the flights of US and British aircraft in the zones over northern and southern
Iraq.

"We say frankly now that any violation of Iraqi airspace will be met by Iraqi fire,"
Ramadan said.

The United States, Britain and France set up the no-fly zones in 1991-92 to halt air
attacks against Kurdish rebels in the north and Shiite Muslim rebels in the south.

Iraq has never recognised the zones and has occasionally confronted aircraft flying in the
area.

In Washington, National Security Council spokesman P J Crowley said the threat would not
compel the United States to change its policy in the region.

"We will continue to enforce the no-fly zones in the north and the south," Crowley said.
"Iraq knows that it should not interfere with those flights, and our pilots can act in
self-defence if they feel threatened at any time."

Ramadan's interview was conducted in Baghdad hours after Iraq said its anti-aircraft
gunners had driven off an attack by "enemy" warplanes that flew in from Kuwait and Saudi
Arabia.

The official Iraqi News Agency did not identify the nationality of the aircraft, but it
usually uses the word "enemy" to describe warplanes from the United States and Britain. The
United States has aircraft in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Britain also bases aircraft in Kuwait.

Defence Department spokesman Army Major Paul Phillips said, "Iraq understands its
responsibilities. Our aircraft maintain a high level of capability and the ability to respond
to threats."





[A][BALLOON AUST][NSW]

Aussie outback to launch balloon bid

The Australian outback is to be the launch pad for the next round-the-world balloon
adventure, after British tycoon Richard Branson's latest bid ended in shark infested waters.

Hot on the heels of the Branson team's weekend splash down in waters off Honolulu, a joint
Australian-US crew today made final preparations for their shot at the round-the-world record.

Weather permitting, Team ReMax plans to lift off from the outback town of Alice Springs
about 6am (CST) on Tuesday.

Their non-stop expedition is expected to take 16 to 18 days and bring them back to
Australia.

Team ReMax media spokesman Bill Echols said the team expected to succeed where others had
failed by taking the high road -- floating on the outer edge of the atmosphere where
unpredictable weather, the bane of previous attempts, should not be an issue.

The space gondola will carry pilots John Wallington of Canberra and Americans Dave Liniger
and Bob Martin on a quest to set a multitude of new balloon records including duration,
distance and altitude.

They will fly a giant polyethylene balloon -- as thin as lunch wrap and 40 stories tall,
big enough to envelope a football stadium -- to an altitude of 39km to pick up stratospheric
winds headed westward over the southern hemisphere.

Mr Echols said the high cruising altitude will help them avoid weather problems and the
political obstacles that have hobbled all previous attempts at claiming the elusive aviation
milestone.

"But we're in a class of our own, a different world of flight from that of Branson's
attempt," Mr Echols told AAP.

"Since the weekend the anticipation is climbing rapidly, we're all excited ... it's kinda
crazy, we're going much higher."





[A][IMMIGRANTS][SA]

Customs to interview nationals today

Custom officials are expected to begin interviewing some of the 50 foreign nationals that
have been rounded up on a remote Northern Territory peninsula in the past four days.

Officials say eight more nationals were found by Customs on Saturday night on a track
leading to a fishing resort on the Cobourg Peninsula, north-east of Darwin.

Immigration officials say the group had joined 42 other foreign nationals, found on
Thursday and Friday, that are being held in a detention centre in Darwin.

Immigration spokeswoman Bronwyn Collins says the detainees are recuperating before
officials interview them to find out where they're from.

It's believed the group travelled on a cargo ship that ran aground on Christmas Eve.





[A][YACHT ALONE][FED]

French sailor back racing

French solo sailor Isabelle Autissier is back in the around the world race after conducting
emergency repairs to her stricken yacht in Tasmania.

The 42-year-old yachtswoman had been expected to dock at Adventure Bay on Bruny Island,
near Hobart, late yesterday but a thunderstorm followed by calm conditions slowed her
progress.

Around Alone race spokesman Dan McConnell says Autissier finally docked shortly after 8am
(AEDT) today and pulled out again at about 1.30 pm (AEDT).

He says she's back on track after repairs to her stricken yacht.

Autissier, who's said to be in good spirits, has told race organisers her support crew has
done a wonderful job.

She'll now hope for favourable weather conditions as she heads for Auckland and tries to
make up time on the last stretch of the second leg of the gruelling race.

Autissier was rescued from the Southern Ocean by the Royal Australian Navy four years ago -
costing taxpayers an estimated $5.8 million -- after her yacht was disabled during an earlier
solo around the world race.





[A][FRAUD][FED]

Fraud control costs Australia $3.5b

A new study shows fraud costs the Australian community $3.5 billion each year.

And Justice Minister Amanda Vanstone says the community would be $1.75 billion better off
if some simple fraud control strategies were widely adopted.

Senator Vanstone, who launched the Australian Institute of Criminology study on best
practice in fraud prevention, says effective fraud control should be a New Year's resolution
for all businesses.

She says the report highlights how fraud can be prevented by simple techniques which don't
impose unrealistic burdens on legitimate business activity.





[A][PLANE][QLD]

Plane makes emergency landing

A Qantas plane with 130 people aboard was forced to make an emergency landing in Cairns
yesterday.

A spokeswoman for Air Services Australia says the Boeing 767 was on a flight from Brisbane
to Port Moresby when the pilot reported a code-three emergency and was diverted to Cairns.

Airport emergency personnel were called in but the plane landed without incident shortly
after noon (AEST).

Cairns Airport Fire Service spokesman Ron Lett told Channel 10 the pilot reported the
aircraft's brakes had failed and that he was concerned for the safety of the plane.

The plane's hydraulic system was repaired and the aircraft continued its flight to Papua
New Guinea.





[I][CHINA DISSIDENTS][CHN]

China jails activist for 10 years

China has kept up its drive against dissent, when a local court jailed a veteran labour
activist for 10 years for passing information on rural unrest to a US-backed radio station, a
human rights group said.

The court in central Hunan province yesterday sentenced Zhang Shanguang to 10 years and
stripped him of his political rights for five years for telling Radio Free Asia about farmers'
protests, said the New York-based Human Rights in China.

The Huaihua Intermediate Court took 30 minutes after a trial lasting two hours and 20
minutes to sentence Zhang, who was escorted to the court building by a convoy of 20 police
vehicles, the group said.

On Friday, court officials confirmed that Zhang would undergo a closed-door trial on
Sunday, a day when public offices are normally closed.

Zhang, 45, had been held in police custody since he was detained in July 21 after he tried
to set up a pressure group to help laid-off workers. He was formally arrested on August 28,
the rights group said.

According to Human Rights in China, Zhang was accused of "illegally providing intelligence
to overseas enemy organisations and people".

In an interview with the US-funded Radio Free Asia in March, Zhang spoke of a demonstration
in Hunan's Xupu county by some 80 farmers against excessive taxes and another protest which
resulted in deadly violence.

Beijing, which views the US government-funded radio network as hostile to communist rule
and blocks its broadcasts, in June refused to grant visas to its reporters to cover President
Bill Clinton's visit to China.

Zhang, who served seven years in prison for a prior conviction based on his role in
pro-democracy demonstrations in 1989, is the fourth opposition figure to receive a lengthy
sentence in one week in a year-end crackdown on dissent.

Veteran activist Xu Wenli was sentenced to 13 years in prison on December 21 for trying to
set up the opposition Chinese Democratic Party to challenge communist rule. Party activist
Wang Youcai received an 11-year term on the same day.





[I][CHECHNYA BODIES][CIS]

NZ hostage's body found

The sister of New Zealander Stan Shaw, decapitated by Chechen kidnappers, said tonight she
was she "absolutely thrilled" at reports that his body had been found.

Joan Shivas, of Ashley, North Canterbury, said the discovery would allow her brother to
have a decent burial.

A Moscow news service today quoted a Chechen official as saying that the bodies of Shaw and
the three other Western hostages, whose severed heads were found in Russia's rebel region
earlier this month, had been discovered.

Itar-Tass news agency Tass quoted Chechen presidential spokesman Mairbek Vagachev as saying
the beheaded bodies of Shaw and Britons Darren Hickey, Rudolf Petschi, and Peter Kennedy had
been found late on Friday on the outskirts of the regional capital Grozny.

Tass quoted Vagachev as saying that someone had deliberately dumped the bodies in the
Grozny suburb at night. He gave no further details.

Vagachev said that the remains of the four would be sent to their countries in the next few
days.

Russian officials could not confirm the Tass report and Chechen officials could not be
immediately reached for comment.

The men, employees of British telecommunications firm Granger Telecom, were seized in
October in Grozny, where they were installing a mobile telephone system. Their severed heads
were found on December 8 on a road in western Chechnya.

Chechen officials have accused renegade guerrilla commander Arbi Barayev of leading the
band that kidnapped the four men.

Mrs Shivas said that after the "nightmare" of her brother's capture and then murder,
reports that his body had been found were wonderful.





[A][BLAST][SA]

Police investigate house firebombing

South Australian police have appealed for public help after the Christmas Day firebombing
of a house in Adelaide.

It will be several days before forensic tests determine the exact nature of the flammable
liquids used to destroy the $200,000 southern suburbs house.

Police have appealed for public help in identifying at least two people seen running from
the house just after the blast and then driving off in a small, late-model red car.

No-one was injured in the blast, which shattered windows in neighbouring houses.

The house belonged to a family of five, none of whom were home at the time.





[A][WHALES][TAS]

Rescuers keep watch for whales

Rescuers have kept watch on King Island off Bass Strait to ensure six pilot whales that
beached on the island yesterday don't return.

Tasmania police say the six pilot whales beached on King Island in Bass Strait today have
been successfully returned to the sea.

A rescue operation was mounted by a policeman, a vet and a couple of volunteers on the
island, which lies north-west of Tasmania.

Sergeant GEOFF FLETCHER says the whales were refloated within an hour and a half of reports
that they'd become beached on the eastern side of King Island, at Sea Elephant Bay.

The policeman and the vet remain at the site in case the whales return.

Director of Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife MAX KITCHELL says pilot whales are easier to
refloat than the larger sperm whales.





[T][YACHTING MELHOB][VIC]

Bad weather postpones race start

Organisers of the Melbourne to Hobart and Melbourne to Devonport yacht races will decide
this morning whether to start the race today after bad weather postponed the event yesterday.

The decision to delay the races was made just after noon due to strong winds.

Derwent Sailing Squadron organisers say the races is expected to start at 3pm (AEDT) today
off Portsea, at the tip of the Mornington Peninsula, south-east of Melbourne.

But the decision to start the races will be reviewed this morning.

The postponement drew no complaints from crews, with many grateful for the extra time.

Ocean Racing Club of Victoria commodore David Burton says some of the 47 Melbourne to
Devonport and 22 Melbourne to Hobart crews had already decided not to start today.



[I][INTERNET POISON]

Internet poisonings investigated

Seven people apparently ordered cyanide on the Internet from a man who offered suicide
consultations and later took his own life, Japanese police and media reports said yesterday.

Police said they were investigating two other suicides.

The cyanide suicide reports are the latest in a year of bizarre poisoning cases that have
raised anxiety levels in Japan, which once prided itself on relative freedom from
indiscriminate crime.

A police spokesman in Tokyo who gave only his surname, Fujii, said the seven people who
ordered cyanide transferred money to the bank account of the man.

His body was discovered at his home in the city of Sapporo on Japan's northernmost main
island of Hokkaido on December 15.

Media reports said the man offered suicide consultations on the Internet under the name "Dr
Kiriko," a character who carried out euthanasia in a popular series of comics titled "Black
Jack."

Quoting police sources, Kyodo News agency identified him as a 27-year-old pharmacist with a
history of mental illness. Media reports said he committed suicide.

"At the close of a dark year yet another poisoning incident symbolic of it has occurred,"
lamented the Yomiuri newspaper, Japan's largest daily said in an editorial.

"It was the Internet that brought together people who wanted to commit suicide with a
person who had poison," editorialised the influential Asahi newspaper.

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