06/01/2012 World News Today


06/01/2012

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This is BBC World News Today. I'm Zeinab Badawi. The Syrian

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authorities say they will strike back with an iron fist, after an

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apparent suicide bombing in Damascus. Syrian media claim dozens

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are dead or injured, and blame terrorists. But how credible are

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those claims? There was a very strong sense that

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the Syrian authorities wanted to display what had happened. There

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were crowds of people chanting pro- regime slogans in support of Bashar

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al-Assad. The British government says there's

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no urgent need to remove sub- standard breast implants but it

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will cover costs for women who had their surgery under the NHS.

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A key moment for Turkey - its former army chief is arrested over

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an alleged plot to topple the government a few years ago.

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Also coming up in the programme: The African National Congress marks

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its centenary. As South Africa's ruling party prepares for a weekend

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of celebrations, we ask where next And the new sound of 2012. We meet

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the winner of the BBC's search for Hello and welcome. It's difficult

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to verify events in Syria, because journalists can not operate

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independently, but according to the Syrian Interior Ministry around two

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dozen people and many more were injured in a suicide bombing in

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Damascus today. The bombing comes two days before the Arab League is

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due to consider the initial report of its monitoring mission in the

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country. The Syrian opposition claim the authorities staged the

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bombing to bolster their claims that terrorists and armed gangs are

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behind the killings in Syria. Mike Wooldridge has more.

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Another scene of devastation in the centre of Damascus. The wreckage of

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a bus said to be carrying a policeman. Other vehicles with

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shattered windows, multiple Syrian state television and

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breaking the news, the reporter says the blast happened in an area

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heavily populated, especially before Friday prayers with people

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going shopping. They were targeted in addition to security personnel.

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The television calls it the work of a suicide bomber, a terrorist

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explosion. Anger at the scene in the aftermath. The interior

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minister said a suicide bomber targetted cars and pedestrians and

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detonated explosives to kill as many people as possible. It comes

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two weeks after the authorities say there was an attack by suicide

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bombers in Damascus on buildings associated with security forces.

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The attack killed 44 people. The government blamed Al-Qaeda,

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opposition say the regime was behind it. It shows the escalation

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of the violence in Syria and its changing nature. Whether today's

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explosion will lead to similar claim and counter-claim is not

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clear. The main armed group fighting the government indicates

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it was not involved. It coincides with increasing controversy over

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the effectiveness of the Arab League observer mission currently

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in Syria. The President's government is accused of misleading

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the Arab League monitors by not taking them to some of the most

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vocal anti- government areas. On Thursday, a group of observers to

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break away from the government minders to visit a suburb in

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Damascus. These pictures filmed by BBC Arabic show the monitors in

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orange vests being encircled as they are here by with his accounts

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from angry grieving citizens. This man has said his son was shot by a

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sniper and stabbed to death as he was leaving a mosque during

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protests. The observers did not witness any violence but these

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pictures seem to show the same suburb later that day with people

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fleeing in panic as gunfire breaks out. Some Arab League countries

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admit the 100 strong mission may have fallen short in its duty and

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agrees to send 40 more observers. Ian Black is the Middle East Editor

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for The Guardian newspaper. He was allowed to visit the scene two

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hours after the blast and he told the BBC a little earlier about what

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he was able to see. The most striking evidence I saw

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were the remains of a man who had blown himself up. There was part of

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a head and some feat, a grisly scene. And other identifiable bits

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of a human body in a plastic bag by one of the buses which was targeted.

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By the time I and other journalists were taken to the place to see it,

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there were no other bodies there, they had been removed, as had to

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the injured. There were other what appeared to be body parts,

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unidentifiable to the non expert eye but human remains which were

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shown to the media to be filmed repeatedly, and there was a strong

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sense the Syrian authorities wanted to do display what had happened.

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There were crowds of people chanting slogans, pro regime

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slogans in support of Bashar al- Assad. Hostility to those traitors

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he carried out the crime. It has to be said it took place in an

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ordinary neighbourhood of Damascus. A Guardian reporter talking about

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the attack in Damascus today. Some of the other news: Binyamin, tens

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of thousands have held street protest putting pressure on the

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President to honour his agreement to step down next month.

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The protesters called on authorities to release prisoners.

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Supporters of the President held a separate protest near by.

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The latest US employment figures showed they are better than

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President Obama might have hoped for. There were 200,000 new jobs to

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bring unemployment down to 8.5%, the lowest in three years.

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Further protests across Nigeria against the controversial removal

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of a fuel subsidy by the government. It has doubled the cost of petrol.

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Hundreds gathered in the capital but were prevented from entering

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eagle square by armed police and soldiers.

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The World Boxing Association will investigate the ringside appearance

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of an unknown man who seemed to speak to officials during Amir

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Khan's defeat. He pasted photographs of the incident on his

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Twitter feet. He said it took a long time to announce a fight after

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the fight was finished. Britain's government says there is no

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evidence to recommend the urgent removal of faulty breast implants

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given to thousands of women in the UK. However, it says it will cover

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the costs of removal for the small minority of women who had their

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surgery under the National Health Service but not if was done

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privately. Our medical correspondent Fergus Walsh reports.

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These breast implants are being filmed with medically tested

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silicone, a company in North Lanarkshire is the only British

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firm which makes them. The French Poly Implant Prothese implants had

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industrial grade silicone and were banned. Health officials in the

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Czech Republic followed France's lead recommending women have the

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implants removed as a precaution. The official line is there is no

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need for removal but the NHS will pay for replacement implants if

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cancer patients are suffering anxiety. It's important not to

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exaggerate the reasons to be worried but if women are worried we

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will support them. I expects and the expert group want to see

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private providers offer the same standard of care. It's thought

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40,000 or more UK women have Poly Implant Prothese implants. 95% done

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privately for breast enlargement. 5% were done by the NHS for breast

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reconstruction after cancer. Karen is desperate to have her Poly

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Implant Prothese implants removed, one has ruptured. Ministers say

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private clinics are morally obliged to help patients like her but there

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are no legal powers to force them. I don't know where it has left me.

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I do not have the funds to have them removed. I must walk around...

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It could get worse. The issue comes down to an assessment of risk.

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Every woman undergoing implant surgery is told there is a danger

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of complications and that increases the longer the implants stay in.

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Eventually, they may need to be replaced. The government review

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group considered whether the Poly Implant Prothese implants carried

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additional an acceptable risks that would require the removal. They are

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very robust. This surgeon says private clinics should pay for

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replacements but women must not be abandoned by the NHS. They did not

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know the risk that they would be implanted with non-medical great

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implants, the NHS picks up the bill for smoking and alcohol related

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diseases. We all know smoking and alcohol can cause problems and yet

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the NHS picks up the bill. Government's decision means women

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who cannot persuade private clinics to help them will have to pay for

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replacements like bees or simply live with their Poly Implant

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Prothese implants. The former head of the Turkish

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armed forces has been arrested as part of an investigation into an

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attempt to overthrow the government. A prosecutor said he should be

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remanded in custody after he testified in court in Istanbul.

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General Ilker Basbug is the highest ranking of to be linked to the

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investigation. Prosecutors say the network plan to topple the Islamist

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government in a 2003. There are carry 400 suspects on trial over

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several alleged anti- government plots by the military and the

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secular establishment. A London- based Turkish analyst and research

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associate at the Foreign Policy Centre in London. He joins me. So,

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this is quite a key moment for Turkey when you have a former head

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of the army being asked by a civilian court to undergo these

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charges. Yes, no matter what angle we look at it, it's a historical

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moment. Just as any historical moment, the glass is half full or

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half empty. It signifiers the normalisation of democracy in

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Turkey when an accusation can be brought against a leading military

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officer and they do have to stand before the law. It raises serious

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questions though about Turkish judiciary and how the cases handled

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and put questions. It will be a key test for the Turkish government as

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to whether the trial will be conducted properly if Turkey wishes

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to impress upon its critics it is a modern secular state. Indeed. A lot

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of the problems with the court case or the prose is issues are not

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necessarily the problems relating to A E K A. It needs reform and the

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EU has been critical on various occasions. Effaces criticisms not

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only at international level in showing the ultimate goal is

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democracy but also at the domestic level. There are questions and

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certain parts of Turkish society that see the court case as a

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punishment. With the recent issue with the bombings and listed by the

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military and did it apologise for the bombings. In Turkey, the

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military are the custodians of the secular nature of the state and the

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president with his roots, it is not a him of trying to undermine his

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secular opponents? It really isn't. They have spent enough time in

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office for us to be able to assess the agenda and attitude and

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political theology. The critics would raise questions whether or

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not the case symbolises a making it more like Russia. A strong party

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and a strong ruler. Even that would be a dubious reading of the

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situation. He denies all the charges and says Huckerby accused

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by the government which appointed me head of the military in Turkey.

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Yes, the accusation is not that he was necessarily trying to overthrow

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the government but that he gave permission to misinformation

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campaigns being run by the Office against the government. The

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accusations a quite specific and manageable. The overall case

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involving hundreds of people includes serious allegations

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including organisation of armed groups to overthrow the government.

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The plot thickens. Indeed. Thank you.

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Hungary's centre-right government is continuing to defend the new

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constitution it has introduced which critics claim a roads

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democracy in the country. Alarm is expressed internationally and the

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EU is examining whether the charges -- changes break EU law. With one

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rating agency downgrading Hungary's credit status to junk, the

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government might be forced to renegotiate some or all of the

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changes if it is to get a possible We found little cheer on this tramp

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across the Danube. No wonder, hungry's economy is in a slump and

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some here accuse the government of turning back democracy -- Hungary's.

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So this is all the fuss is about? Ministers are not shy of showing

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off their new constitution, as for the idea it is anti-democratic...

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That is a supposition charge, even the question itself is a bizarre

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one. In the heart of Europe we are finally getting back on track to an

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organic development of the country which was disrupted by communism.

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That is not how they see it. Tens of thousands turned out to protest

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the new laws this week, claiming the independence of the judiciary

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and the central bank are threatened. At the Public TV station some

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journalists are run hunger-strike in protest. They are restricting

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the constitutional Code, the freedom of press, dismantling

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democracy, they are trying to set up a kind of tyranny, a regime

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which is unprecedented in Europe. This row could not have come at a

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worse time, the economy here is in dire straits. The government says

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it needs some 20 billion euros of international loans to help pay its

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bills. But the legal changes the government has just forced through

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put such loans in jeopardy. At Budapest's food banks there is

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concern over what that might mean for Hungary's poor. International

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criticism of the new constitution has put loan negotiations on hold

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at a time when poverty here is increasing. Back over the Danube

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and this once affluent but the higher is heading into the unknown.

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-- empire. Ministers say they will do all they can to satisfy

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international investors but will they have to give up their

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The African National Congress has been the party of some of South

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Africa's most iconic figures, like Nelson Mandela, Oliver Tambo and

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Walter Sisuslu. Well, this weekend the ANC marks its centenary with

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three days of celebrations attended by African leaders along with

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veterans of the anti-apartheid movement. As our Africa

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correspondent Andrew Harding reports, the old liberation party

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:17:59.:18:10.

is now facing an entirely different We have come to fix Burke, a small

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struggling South African town -- Fichsburg. Sewage on the streets,

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one tap shared by a whole neighbourhood. This is raw sewage?

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How long has it been like this? almost 10 years. Anger is growing

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here, people expected more from freedom and the governing ANC.

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Vincent says the ruling party is corrupt, bloated and it is time for

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change. The ANC now has collapsed. They cannot even provide a Amin's

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of services to the people. We want them to lose power peacefully

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because we didn't want to be any situation like happened in both

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Libya and Egypt and Tunisia. It has been a long, momentous journey for

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the ANC, forged during the struggle against racial oppression, the

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greatest liberation movement led years of street protests, armed

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rebellion and negotiation before its leader became South Africa's

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first Democratic president. And now the party is celebrating its 100

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the birthday. Present Jacob Zuma leads the festivities. This is a

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bittersweet moment for the ANC. The party seems to be way -- weighed

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down by corruption, infighting and incompetence. Yet look how popular

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they still are. That is because history and loyalty still count for

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a great deal here. Many have perished, died, collapsed. Not the

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ANC. But is the party of revolution losing its touch? At a golf

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tournament for ANC elite a man in prison with Nelson Mandela

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acknowledges mistakes. There is a bit of corruption, paps it is worse

:20:16.:20:22.

in our country because we have not yet delivered the services fully to

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the people of South Africa. But for all its faults, the ANC keeps

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winning elections. Back in Fichsburg in a shack by a sewer,

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and it says simply they gave us freedom. -- Anna. She said I would

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die voting for the ANC. A new singing talent has been

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compared to soul greats like Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye. High

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praise. He is an unassuming 24 year-old singer from London who has

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won the BBC Sound of 2012 award. Michael Kiwanuka came top of the

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poll of music industry insiders as the most exciting new artist of the

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year. He said he felt honoured and humbled to have one. We went to

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Michael Kiwanuka may have won the accolade of the sound of 2012 but

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his music and its timeless quality will probably feel -- would it feel

:21:27.:21:36.

as at home in the 1970s as it does today -- the BBC Sound of 2012. I

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never expected to win. It will be a great platform for me for as many

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people as possible to hear it, a dream for any musician. I feel so

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honoured, happy and humble to be part of it. Over the past few

:21:55.:21:58.

months the 24 year-old has certainly been winning high-profile

:21:58.:22:08.

And the north London singer- songwriter is already earning

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favourable comparisons to artists like Bill rivers and Marvin Gaye. -

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- Bill Withers. He uses recording equipment to create a classic,

:22:20.:22:25.

vintage sound. The list is put together by asking more than 180

:22:25.:22:30.

people, ranging from music writers to DJs and bloggers, to name their

:22:30.:22:33.

favourite new artists. Recent winners who have gone on to become

:22:33.:22:43.
:22:43.:23:00.

Some have said it has become too mainstream at the cost of more

:23:00.:23:06.

independent music. One panellist disagrees. The record companies are

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aware this could help and it gives an enormous boost to an artist's

:23:11.:23:15.

career in the early stages. But to get the top of the list, people do

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not vote for anything, they vote for what is good and if you get to

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the top of the list you have to be pretty good. With so many convinced

:23:23.:23:26.

of Michael's potential great things are now expected from him over the

:23:26.:23:36.
:23:36.:23:41.

I am sure you will hear a lot more from Michael. Let's get more from

:23:41.:23:46.

BBC Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens. You know so much more about these

:23:46.:23:51.

performers so don't show me up! I have enjoyed listening to some of

:23:51.:24:01.
:24:01.:24:06.

them. Do you think the right person I think he is brilliant, the top

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five is eclectic and hopefully people will listen to these artists

:24:08.:24:13.

for the first time. He was the only Brit in that top the list, wasn't

:24:13.:24:18.

he? The rest were American and Swedish. Very much reminiscent of a

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bygone era, he almost looks a bit like Al Green, doesn't he? Otis

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Redding, Marvin Gay kind of tradition... A strong, vintage

:24:27.:24:34.

sound. People like that. Sometimes people do not need forward-thinking

:24:34.:24:39.

of music. Skrillex does forward- thinking dug step, he is in the

:24:39.:24:49.
:24:49.:24:59.

list. He came No. Two? Frank ocean? That was an explosive song. I like

:24:59.:25:05.

him. He is established, isn't he? Quite popular already. The rules of

:25:05.:25:09.

getting in this list is you cannot have had a Top 20 single but they

:25:09.:25:14.

are all signed, they are tipped for great things for the year ahead.

:25:14.:25:19.

Who was your favourite? Mine was Nikki and the dove, a Swedish duo

:25:19.:25:29.
:25:29.:25:37.

who were around number five. -- Let's see why you like to them... -

:25:37.:25:47.
:25:47.:25:47.

They are raised Swedish duo and the Swedes do pop very well, don't

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they? ABBA, yes! They are my favourites, I think. Do you think

:25:54.:25:59.

this list tells us about how a taste in music might be changing?

:25:59.:26:03.

People seem to like the voice. Adding that is why Michael Kiwanuka

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did so well, I am sure we will hear a lot more from him -- I think.

:26:10.:26:16.

There is forward-thinking hip hop from Azealia Banks, forward-

:26:16.:26:20.

thinking soul music, dub step, it is an interesting list. Between all

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of these five artists there is a 1000 other brilliant musicians who

:26:24.:26:30.

why am sure we will hero over the next year. I look forward to it. I

:26:30.:26:38.

have learned a lot from you just now. Thank you! That is all from us.

:26:38.:26:48.
:26:48.:27:03.

Today we saw some sunshine and much lighter winds. It felt quite

:27:03.:27:06.

pleasant and it will be more at the same tomorrow. Decent spells of

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sunshine with the breeze picking up as we head through the day. Through

:27:10.:27:14.

the night, a weather front will sink southwards and introduce

:27:14.:27:20.

patchy cloud and outbreaks of rain and drizzle. The winds tomorrow

:27:20.:27:23.

will bring scattered showers into northern areas of Scotland with a

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few of those feeding into north- west England and the Midlands lated

:27:26.:27:34.

in the day. They will be really isolated but not too heavy. Through

:27:34.:27:37.

eastern England and southern counties of England as well breezy

:27:37.:27:45.

conditions through the day but a lot of dry weather and sunshine. If

:27:45.:27:50.

you are heading out it should be very nice. South-west England and

:27:50.:27:54.

Wales, sunny spells, maybe some a road showers for northern areas of

:27:54.:27:57.

Wales through the afternoon. A bright, breezy afternoon for

:27:57.:28:01.

Northern Ireland with highs of seven to 80 degrees. It is in

:28:01.:28:05.

Scotland where the winds will continue to strengthen perhaps

:28:05.:28:08.

touching gusts of gale force and some of the showers and the North

:28:08.:28:12.

and the Northern Miles could be on the B-side. As we had do Saturday

:28:13.:28:16.

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