16/03/2012 BBC World News

Belgium has observed one minute's silence for the 22 children and six

adults who died in a school bus crash in Switzerland.

With rising numbers of Syrian refugees crossing their border, the

Turkish government says a security zone may have to be declared.

After 10 years in office, the head of the Anglican communion,

Archbishop Rowan Williams, is to resign.

Welcome to BBC World News. Also in this programme: The Indian batsman

Sachin Tendulkar has become the first player in international

cricket to score 100 centuries in Test and one day internationals.

The 4th and, one lucky dog saved And Belgium is holding a national

day of mourning. Flowers have been flying at half mast, church bells

rang out as the country observed a minute's silence for the victims.

Some of the survivors have arrived home. 22 children and six adults

died in the coach crash ended tunnel.

They across Belgium, in minute's silence this morning, a chance to

reflect on a single terrible accident which left so many dead,

so many injured. It's been a declared a national

mourning, in a country heartbroken by this crash. At the two schools

where tributes to the children have been piling up, this was a

particularly personal tragedy for many. A government plane arrive

back in Brussels last night, carrying parents who had gone to

see the place where their children had died. The dead have now been

identified, and their bodies have been brought back to Belgium. Then

the 28 funerals will get under way. From the Swiss authorities are

still not sure why this happened on a dry road in clear conditions. The

focus is on whether the driver who died in a crash may have been

distracted, or whether he was suddenly taken ill. These are

questions which will take some time to answer. For now, the focus is on

remembering the dead and comforting the bereaved.

A memorial has been created to the victims of the bus crash at St

Lambertus School, in the Belgian town of Heverlee, where some of

them were from. Hugh Schofield is near the area in

Leuven. It was a very poignant moment. Warren Leuven, in the

centre -- we were in. A stillness descended on the main square, in

advance of the 11am chimes. For a moment, we stood in silence,

everything stopped. The workers, the police, stood there, everything

stopped. One minute later, all of the church bells across the nation

burst out in a peal of Unison. -- unison. Poignancy, the children

letting go of the white balloons into the sky, essentially for their

friends. For them, a moment of excitement in the middle of this

terribly sad day. Yes. Here, at the school, they had their moment as

well. It is one of those moments, in any nation's lifetime, it

becomes something people will never forget. The other aspect is the way

it has brought the nation together. Belgium is not very good at being a

nation, but this was a moment when all of the divisions between

Flemish and French speakers, Brussels and the rest of the

country, were completely forgotten, and people remembered they belong

to a single community and that matters. So many things still to

work through, as the bodies of the victims come back to Belgium. Not

least how funeral ceremonies will take place. Is it clear whether

there will be burials and funerals together? We do not know. Until the

parents of the dead are all back and have had time to consult their

communities, I do not think there will be a decision. The parish

priest here, who has been a great help to us, to the families, he

says that he suspects there will be some kind of joint patrol. Nothing

will be decided until the parents have had time to speak to their

families, to the school, then there will be a collective decision.

Turkey is urging its citizens in Syria to leave, and says some

consular services will be halted in Damascus. A statement just released

by the Turkish Foreign Ministry says developments in Syria have

brought about serious security risks for Turkish citizens, and

they are "strongly urged to come home." With more on this, the BBC's

Jonathan Head is on the line from the Turkey/Syria border.

A suggestion of a need for a security zone, what does this

amount to? It allows it to Turkey and is bidding a serious

deterioration in the situation. -- anticipating. 1000 more refugees

are expected every day. Journalists from Turkey are reported to being

the house of the Syrian security forces but reports they may have

been tortured. There is talk of a safe zone, something taught about

behind the scenes but never publicly acknowledged by the

Turkish government because it would involve troops going over the

border and securing an area where people fleeing from the forces of

President Assad could be secured. Yesterday, the Deputy Prime

Minister have brought it into the opening saying they are considering

it. The Prime Minister who has a decisive say has said he wants to

see a safe area. They still haven't spelt out how they could do that.

Realistically, for Turkey to send its troops over the border to

Secure and area is a very big step. Until now official government

policy has been they won't do that unless they have international

support. Briefly, they know if they do that

the Syrian government will say that is an act of aggression? They well,

there is no doubt they would expect a hostile reaction. While they talk

about it is not a step they may not be ready for. Even if there wasn't

an international mandate they were on the clear support of the US and

Western European countries and the Arab League.

The business news now. India's Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee

has unveiled the country's annual budget, and says the economy is

turning around. During the last three months of 2011, the economy

grew at its slowest pace in three years. The main measures in the

budget include: Reducing subsidies of goods such as fuel, food and

fertiliser, from 2.5% of gross domestic product, or the size of

the economy, to 1.7% from 2013. Plans to bring down the budget

deficit, from 5.9%, to 5.1% of the GDP, in the next financial year.

And a host of initiatives to increase spending on farmers and

the rural poor. Nitin Desai is a former chief

economic adviser to the Indian government.

Has the budget lived up to expectations? I would say it

received a lukewarm response. It has made some effort but correction

but not enough to bring interest rates down. A brave attempt to

restore confidence and the idea of high growth which is an incentive

for savers, Investment and in front -- of foreign investors. And a

brave attempt at governance, the promise of measures against tax

evasion, and the proposals on direct delivery of subsidies to

people who are entitled to them. All in all, a middling budget.

mentioned subsidies. They played a significant role in India's economy.

This Budget will cut those subsidies. What reaction will there

be politically and from people on the streets? I would say he has

promised to cut subsidies rather than actually cut them. What he has

done is projected what subsidies would be as a proportion of GDP. I

didn't hear any substantial change in the basis of the subsidies. What

he has promised his we would reduce leakages by making sure it gets to

the people who are supposed to get the subsidies. Down the line, we

will have to look at how we address this, but I wouldn't say he has

actually changed the rules, which would define how much a subsidy has

been paid, as yet. He has just promised to do that. One of the

main focus is of the budget is reducing the budget deficit. With

slowing economic growth, how realistic is that? I would say that

it is reasonably realistic, the aim of 5.1% is still more than the

projected deficit last year was. He needs to get down even further, if

he is to get back to the sort of medium-term targets that the

government had given itself in its fiscal bill. He has still a lot of

work to do in the year ahead. Fiat's car assembly lines are set

to grind to a halt on Friday, as lorry drivers blockade its

factories in Italy. It's part of an ongoing protest by trade unions

against changes to pay and conditions by the motor giant. At

the same time, Fiat bosses will meet Prime Minister Mario Monti.

They'll argue that the changes are essential if Fiat is to keep making

cars at its five plants across Italy. We're joined by Jorn

Madslien, who covers the motor industry for the BBC.

The chief executive of fee and has long said he is happy to make cars

within Italy, as long as Italian plants can be competitive on a

global basis. But he has measured this with what has been perceived

as a threat to move production to the US or Canada where its alliance

partner has plenty of spare capacity Other news on Friday.

European Union leaders have agreed to ban financial money transfers

for hundreds of blacklisted Iranian people and firms. The ban will

start from Saturday, and mainly affect payments via the SWIFT

international settlement system. It's the latest in a new round of

sanctions, intended to persuade Iran to end its development of

nuclear technology. The EU has also banned oil imports from the Middle

East nation. Russian aluminium giant Rusal will

pick a new chairman today. The candidate will be chosen from its

slate of independent directors during a board meetingy. Russian

billionaire Viktor Vekselberg stepped down, following an

acrimonious row with RUSAL's controlling shareholder Oleg

Deripaska. China has detained Wu Yidian Eden,

an employee of Standard Chartered Bank, as part of an investigation

into one of her clients. Ms Wu was detained by police on 6 March, but

has not been charged with any crime. A client of Ms Wu has been accused

of fleeing China, after stealing almost $50 million from a state-

owned bank. Standard Chartered Bank confirmed that Ms Wu has been

detained, but said the bank was not under any investigation.

Let us take a look at the markets. It has been a pretty good at

reading in it Europe. The London market could end the week on a high,

tried to breach that 6,000 mark. Benefiting from a strong

performance in the US. The Dow Jones ending on a high. Pushed up

by those jobless claims figures, now down by 14,000. Plenty more

still to come, including, as the Archbishop of Canterbury announces

he is to resign, we consider his Four months until the Olympics

arrive in London. When the greatest sporting show on earth does get

here, the organisers are keen to make sure the British capital has

that Olympic city feel, which means that some of its most famous

landmarks are in for a makeover. What can we expect London to look

like during the Games? We have an idea of how the Olympic

venues are going to look and feel during the Games and what sort of

atmosphere they will have with massive crowds, but how will the

organisers get this excitement and colour into the rest of the

capital? We have seen how the Olympic rings will travel to

different places along be tense, and this is how they will be

mounted on to Tower Bridge, and how other landmarks will be decorated.

Now we have been given a first look at the flags and banners that will

go up around the capital. It is really important that London shows

the world that we are ready to celebrate the Games. We have

ordered 200 miles worth of bunting. We will have the Olympic rings on

the River Thames. This will be streets dressing that will make

people feel that they are in an Olympic city. All of the boroughs

are getting �50,000 from the mayor to dress up the streets in Olympic

colours, like Kia in Greenwich. But do we really need all of these

decorations? It is a good idea to have banners, but I would imagine

it could be done more cheaply. is a nice touch, but it is not

important. London has lots of interesting things to look at

already. It will make everyone feel like they're part of the Olympics.

It is the more dramatic plans for London's famous buildings that will

be remembered around the world. They will project images of

athletes on to the palaces of Westminster, and they are speaking

about changing those images during the Games to celebrate medal-

winners. This is costing �32 million, and it is coming out of

the money which London council taxpayers have put towards the

Games. Organisers want London to look its best for the Olympic Games.

You're watching BBC World News. The headlines: The people of Belgium

have marked one minute's silence for the 22 children and six adults

killed in a school coach crash in Switzerland. India's cricketing

sensation Sachin Tendulkar has found his way at last into the

record books. He becomes the first to score 100 international

centuries. He reached the milestone against Bangladesh.

Dr Rowan Williams has announced he is stepping down in December this

year as Archbishop of Canterbury. Dr Williams has led to the 18

million strong worldwide Anglican Communion at since 2002. He will be

taking up an academic post as Master of Magdalene College in

Cambridge. Why is he going? He has released a

statement. He said it had been an immense privilege doing this job

for the last decade and it was difficult to choose when to go, but

he does not expressly say why he has decided to leave. It may be

that come December he will have completed one decade in the role.

It seems a bit irreverent that the bookmakers of all people are

already trying to decide who will take his place. Is there any clear

message on that? Dr Rowan Williams says that he

wants the successor that God wants. So there is no guidance from Dr

Rowan Williams on that. We have already had tributes to him at from

one of his possible successors, Dr John Sentamu, the Archbishop of

York. He said that Dr Williams had done a fantastic job but that he

had it been a much maligned during his time here. John Sentamu is

known as the cleric of the people. He was born in Uganda. Dr Williams

said that whoever went on to do the job would need to have the

constitution of an ox and the skin of a rhinoceros, because whoever

comes into the job will get a lot of criticism.

The authorities in Thailand say that in the course of the last six

months they have rescued around 2000 dogs destined for the dare

tables of south-east Asia. From Thailand, here is Jonah Fisher. --

In a tables. The home at last, Tao Tao's

incredible journey has more than a touch of Hollywood about it. A

fireworks display scared Tao Tao and he disappeared. After weeks of

searching, his owner had almost given up. He is like a member of

the family. The first week he went missing, we could not sleep at all.

We would get up in the middle of the night whenever we heard dogs

barking. Weeks later, the owner's hopes rose again when he saw a

television report on a successful operation by the police in Thailand.

A lorry carrying more than 800 batterer dogs in cages was stopped

as it was trying to leave the country. Their destination was

Vietnam, where Dr Mead is considered a delicacy. The last six

months has seen a sharp rise in the number of dog stolen to order. --

dog meat. The animals were brought to this shelter in the countryside.

There are already 2000 rescued dogs year. Some of them were originally

strays picked up off the streets, but looking at the condition and

the callers on some of them, it is clear that at least one quarter are

still in domestic pets. In hope rather than expectation, the owner

of the missing dog travel to the shelter. The manager remembers the

emotion of the visit. He found his dog down there and came back

carrying him in his arms. His wife said, is that Tao Tao, and he could

not answer because he was crying so much. Tao Tao is the only stolen

dog who was found by his owner. Thailand is a Buddhist country and

many people believe in reincarnation between animals and

humans. So these dogs will that be put down, even if no one comes to

claim them. Tao Tao's epic trek is over, but his owner says that fear

of kidnap means that many owners are thinking twice before letting

their pet off the leash. The format UN Secretary General

Kofi Annan will brief the Security Council on his attempts to end the

escalating violence in Syria. We also understand there will be a UN

humanitarian mission to visit some cities in the country, including

Hamas. We can speak to a resident of that city. He cannot get out of

his house. If this nation gets to the city, what will they find

there? After one year of the revelation in Syria, they can see

snipers all around the city. They can see snipers on the roofs of the

hospitals. All across the city there are security forces and

checkpoints. There are tanks in the city. Sometimes the tangs are

shelling the houses of people. Even the schools. -- tanks. Could you

get out of the city, even if you wanted to? Yes. Many people in the

City are wanted, so we cannot move. We hide all the time. Yesterday

there were many shootings. Can you still hear me? I am afraid we have

lost the line. We were getting a sense of what it is like in the

city. There is still fighting going on in the city.

A man who really fought for this, India's cricketing legend Sachin

Tendulkar has finally got his wish and his 100th international century.

He reached the elusive record during the first of four one-day

matches between India and Bangladesh. He has been playing

international cricket for more than 20 years and is a massive hero not

only in his home country but around the world. England captain Andrew

Strauss explained what an achievement it is. He is the

yardstick by which other players have been measured over the last 10

years. It is an amazing achievement without precedent. It shows a rare

combination of amazing skill, massive application and great drive

and desire. But also being able to keep a calm head when there is

massive expectations on his shoulders. It is an amazing feat by

an amazing cricketer. That was Andrew Strauss. Joining me from

Delhi is a commentator on cricket. What does this mean for Indians?

Most of all, a massive sigh of relief. He got his nine her -- he

got century 99 at last year. At every moment, when it appeared he

would cross the hurdle, as he failed. The expectations of

billions of people were perhaps weighing on him. Lots of people

will be relieved and happy for him. Messages of congratulations have

been pouring in from the Prime Minister, the president, and lots

of ordinary Indians. He will probably get lots of runs

now that the pressure is off once again. He is 39, how much longer

can he go on for? Exactly, he has spent more than two

decades playing international cricket which is an amazing

achievement. It is something that that lots of people have been

asking, how much longer can he carry on? The Indian team has not

done very well of late. They did it rather badly in Australia over the

last few weeks. Lots of people recognise that he is coming close

to the end of a fabulous career. That is one reason why lots of

people have been hoping and praying that he would reach this

achievement. Thank you very much. Look at for