Although the growing crisis in the Middle East is dominating the news, it is taking place in the context of other events happening around the world. This is illustrated both by such reports as massive Indonesian demonstrations outside the US embassy in Jakarta, calling for the US to help resolve the situation. Interconnections extend even further, as can be seen in the intersections of reports on terrorism, political violence and energy, the "invisible web" of the global "war on terror" and how different legal systems address it. Such connections are reported in many other ways throughout this Newsletter, and in more detail in the monthly Monitor publications.

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3. AML/CFT Monitor

The AML/CFT Monitor is a monthly 16-page print publication. News highlights from the past week are provided in this free email update, but detailed analysis, background information and source documents are only available to subscribers. Purchase a subscription at our online store:
TAMNI Publications

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AML/CFT Incidents/Cases
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Ahmed Abdullah, Amir Rashid and Rasheed Qambari, all Kurds who had escaped the Saddam Hussein regime and been granted asylum in the US, were convicted of running an illegal money transfer service which aided fellow Kurds. They were sentenced to probation.
http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD%2FMGArticle%2FRTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149188765648&path=!news&s=1045855934842
Edwin Blinn Jr was sentenced in US court to 16 months in prison and a fine in a plea agreement for money laundering charges connected to falsified sales of used cars to marijuana traffickers. His sentence was lighter because of his support for Hurricane Katrina refugees.
http://www.chronicle-tribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060701/NEWS01/607010304/1002

Daw Meskine, Secretary General of the French Council for Imams, and his son, were arrested on suspicion of terrorism financing via Gulf countries, but were released for lack of evidence.
http://www.islam-online.net/English/News/2006-06/23/07.shtml

Andrea Schwartz has been charged with laundering drug and vice profits through real estate and other methods.
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/426849p-359966c.html
http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/nyc/nyschwartz606ind.html

In Montenegro, police arrested Inpek company director Radivoje Bakic and eight others suspected of money laundering and malpractice.
http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?catid=125&newsid=90937&ch=0

The Central Bank of Kenya has placed Charterhouse Bank under statutory management in connection with a money laundering investigation. Charterhouse is accused of assisting the Nakumatt Supermarket Chain in laundering proceeds of deals in jewels, gems, and other merchandise.
http://www.centralbank.go.ke/downloads/media_releases/charterhouse.pdf
http://www.eastandard.net/print/news.php?articleid=1143954456

Bangladesh Finance Minister M Saifur Rahman informed parliament of suspected militant accounts held in Islami Bank Bangladesh, but no charges have been laid.
http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/06/28/d60628013722.htm
http://www.islamibankbd.com/page/Clarification.pdf

Russia and Uzbekistan report the arrest of 35 people from four countries that were involved in an illegal money transfer operation that financed terrorism.
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AML/CFT Legislation and Regulation
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The International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Executive Board reiterated the importance of AML/CFT to strengthen the integrity of financial systems and deter abuse, as they completed their assessment of the quality and consistency of assessment reports and effectiveness of coordination. An expert panel assessed samples of the reports, finding a high degree of variability in the quality and consistency of reports. Initiatives are underway to address these issues through standardization, peer review, training, and technical assistance. Complete assessments should take place every five years, and assessments should be better coordinated.
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pn/2006/pn0672.htm

The Central Bank of Armenia held a seminar on money laundering. Armenia's major requirement at this time is to build up appropriate capacity.
http://www.arka.am/en/archive/n06/n2706/270601.html

The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry hosted a meeting with banking associations in which they discussed abuse of the Money Laundering Act and its impact on the economy.
http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/06/28/d60628050269.htm

Bulgaria's Parliament has adopted amendments to the Measures Against Money Laundering Act that will bring it in line with FATF recommendations.
http://bulgaria.thebulgarianpost.com/story-read_bulgarian_parliament_adopts_new_laws_against_money_laundering-84.php
http://www.fia.minfin.bg/

The Reserve Bank of India has relaxed customer record-keeping guidelines for small amounts of foreign exchange.
http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=131869

Israel's  Knesset Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee has refused to approve proposed regulations proposed that would allow the Israel Police and General Security Service (GSS) to use Israel Money Laundering Authority data for other law enforcement purposes.
http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/DocView.asp?did=1000103714&fid=1725

Malaysia's High Court overturned a lower court's dismissal of "defective" charges against Datuk V. Alexander Chako Varghese, a company director and property developer, and S. Ganesan, a scrap metal dealer. The two men will now be tried on multiple charges under the Anti-Money Laundering Act in connection with a land deal.
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/6/20/courts/14589548&sec=courts

Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Executive Chairman Mallam Nuhu Ribadu expressed the advantages of being removed from the FATF list of Non-Cooperating Countries, and described the challenges they face to maintain this status. He also revealed that EFCC had recovered $5 billion from fraudsters in the three years since it was established.
http://www.efccnigeria.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=941

The UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) released its annual report, including these statistics on its work in 2005:
* FSA's new responsibilities for mortgage and general insurance business led to an increase in the number of authorized firms from 23,511 to 28,969
* The number of approved persons fell from 165,587 to 164,821
* Approximately 1,600 Listings transactions were approved, a 33 percent increase, especially the number of debt transactions
* The Regulatory Decisions Committee considered 172 new cases, of which four involved civil/criminal proceedings.
* The enforcement division closed 227 investigations during the year. Of these, 81 concluded with the use of powers (such as prohibition, financial penalties and variations of permissions) and 146 without the use of powers. Private warnings were issued in 12 of these 146 cases.
* FSA levied GBP 17.43 million in financial penalties during the year. Of this, GBP 13,960,860 was paid by Citigroup Global Markets Limited and GBP 3,469,140 by 16 other individuals or companies. In 2004/05, the total was GBP 22.25m, of which GBP 17m was paid by the Shell Transport and Trading Company and GBP 5.25m by 30 firms or individuals.
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Library/Corporate/Annual/ar05_06.shtml

FSA also released its Better Regulation Action Plan Progress Report, including supplemental independent research into the incremental costs of compliance , estimated administration costs, and a framework for identifying and measuring benefits of regulation.
* The cost of regulation study
http://www.fsa.gov.uk//pubs/other/deloitte_cost_of_regulation_report.pdf
* A framework for assessing the benefits of financial regulation
http://www.fsa.gov.uk//pubs/other/Oxera_report_20060622.pdf
* Estimation of FSA Administrative Burdens
http://www.fsa.gov.uk//pubs/other/Admin_Burdens_Report_20060621.pdf
* Better Regulation Action Plan Progress Report
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pubs/other/2660_Action_plan.pdf

The US Financial Crimes Network (FINCen) issued Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding the Threshold for the Requirement to Collect, Retain, and Transmit Information on Fund Transfers. They seek to lower the current $3,000 threshold.
http://www.fincen.gov/notice_proposed_rulemaking_funds_transfers.pdf

Response to last week's reports in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Los Angeles Times regarding a US government program to analyze SWIFT records of international financial transactions continued throughout the week. For example:
* Industry experts expressed surprise that the story was news
http://www.banktech.com/swift/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=BWYJLPLPH15V2QSNDLRSKH0CJUNN2JVN?articleID=189602154
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/06/30/opinion/edclarke.php
http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060630/APC0602/606300607/1036
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2006/06/28/BL2006062801268.html
* Congressional Republicans and conservative commentators called for legal action against the New York Times, including the suggestion that editor Bill Keller to be jailed for treason. The Wall Street Journal delivered a half page editorial defending its decision to print the story, and explaining how their approached differed from the Times.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110008585
http://mediamatters.org/items/200607010001
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=50851
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0629/p01s02-uspo.html
http://www.sitnews.us/0606news/062906/062906_shns_terror_media.html
* The US House of Representatives passed Resolution 895, " Supporting intelligence and law enforcement programs to track terrorists and terrorist finances conducted consistent with Federal law and with appropriate Congressional consultation and specifically condemning the disclosure and publication of classified information that impairs the international fight against, etc."
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:HE00895:@@@L&summ2=m&
* Other governments began to investigate whether their data protection and privacy laws were violated.
http://www.privcom.gc.ca/media/nr-c/2006/nr-c_060630_2_e.asp
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1151531412964
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=axyIx_pB4Zas
http://www.privacyinternational.org/article.shtml?cmd[347]=x-347-538978
http://www.privacyinternational.org/article.shtml?cmd[347]=x-347-538985
* Also note the original report and US government reaction:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/23/washington/23intel.html?ex=1151208000&en=5521f14ba35f7ecc&ei=5087%0A
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/06/20060623-4.html
http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/js4332.htm
http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/js4334.htm
http://www.swift.com/index.cfm?item_id=59897
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AML/CFT Modalities
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The US Senate Committee on Finance released a staff investigation providing details of their investigation into former Christian Coalition leader  Reed and lobbyist Jack Abramoff laundering funds through the Nature Conservancy and other non-profit groups.
http://origin.www.gpo.gov/congress/senate/pdf/109cp/21035/

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) 2006 World Drug Report was issued on June 26, the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Among the findings:
* Cocaine production was broadly stable but consumption in Western Europe is reaching alarming levels.
* Global opium production fell five percent in 2005, but could rise again this year
* Trans-shipment of both drugs increasingly flows through Africa.
* Cannabis consumption continued to increase. It remains the most widely used illicit drug.
* Amphetamine-type stimulants remained about the same
* Overall drug abuse is being contained, but efforts to reduce both supply and demand should increase
http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/world_drug_report.html
http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/press_release_2006_06_26_1.html
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sgsm10529.doc.htm

Canadian and US officials announced the results of Operation Frozen Timber, in which they broke up an aerial drug smuggling ring.
http://www.rcmp.ca/bc/home/news_e.htm

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4. Emerging Threat Monitor

For detailed analysis, background information and source documents consider subscribing. Subscriptions to Emerging Threat Monitor can be purchased at our online store:
TAMNI Publications

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ETM Corruption and Transnational Crime
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The European Court of Human Rights has rejected an appeal by three British bankers against their extradition to the US. Gary Mulgrew, Giles Darby and David Bermingham face charges of wire fraud connected to the collapse of Enron.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8209-2246765,00.html
http://www.usdoj.gov/dag/cftf/chargingdocs/berminghamindictment.pdf

Spanish police have arrested 25 people in Marbella, including nine former councilors. They join the mayor and town planner, previously arrested in connection with corruption involving property seizures.
http://www.eitb24.com/portal/eitb24/noticia/en/life/corruption-and-real-estate-fraud-police-arrest-30-people-in-marbe?itemId=D40058&cl=%2Feitb24%2Fsociedad&idioma=en

Bank of Japan governor Toshihiko Fukui has provided details of his personal assets to attempt to overcome an investment scandal, but his links with indicted fund manager Moshiaki Murakami fuel demands for his resignation.

The Center for Law Enforcement Education (CLEEN) documented corruption in the Nigerian police, but the police rejected charges that it was one of Nigeria's most corrupt institutions.
http://www.cleen.org/apo%20killing.pdf
http://www.cleen.org/launching%20of%20opportunity%20for%20justice.pdf

UK Attorney General Lord Goldsmith ordered an inquiry into the collapse of the Jubilee Line. In connection with that case, six men had been accused of fraud and corruption, but the complex case failed, partly due to problems with the jury. The report cites lack of a clear strategy to deal with such cases, which is now being rectified, including establishment of a special fraud division. A law permitting complex fraud cases to be heard without a jury has been passed but not introduced into law.
http://www.hmcpsi.gov.uk/reports/JubileeLineReponly.pdf (Report)
http://www.hmcpsi.gov.uk/reports/JubileeLineAnnexesonly.pdf (Annexes)
http://www.hmcpsi.gov.uk/reports/JubileeLineExecSummary.pdf (Executive Summary)
http://www.cps.gov.uk/news/pressreleases/138_06.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/5121626.stm

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Working Group on Bribery praises Denmark's legislative efforts towards the OECD Convention on Combating the Bribery of Foreign Public Officials, but the review recommends tougher enforcement mechanisms. A similar review of the Netherlands called for a more proactive approach to investigation and bribery. OECD called on Japan to be more proactive in enforcing foreign bribery offenses.
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/14/21/36994434.pdf
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/14/49/36993012.pdf
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/54/23/37018673.pdf

Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa (the "Mafia cops") conviction was overturned in US District Court, which called the government's racketeering case stretched to the breaking point after the statue of limitations had expired. There will be an appeal, and likely a new trial.
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/431605p-363723c.html
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ETM Economies and Financial Systems
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World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations have failed. Despite the urgent need for reform, the gap between developed and developing countries has proven irreconcilable, and the brief attempt to achieve a breakthrough collapsed in deadlock on Saturday.
http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news06_e/mod06_summary_01july_e.htm http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/01/AR2006070101020.html

These two reports echo the major issues in the WTO talks:

"Economic Growth in South Asia: Promising, Un-equalizing, ... Sustainable?" is a new report from the World Bank. Co-author Shantayanan Devarajan says, "South Asia's decade-long economic expansion has raised the possibility that the sub-continent could eliminate poverty in our lifetime. But to realize this dream, South Asians must create the conditions and incentives necessary to sustain and accelerate growth that benefits all. The economic well-being of several hundred millions of people depends on it". Impressive growth of as much as eight percent last year has already contributed to poverty reduction, but has also led to growing income inequality. This constraint as well as persistent conflict, corruption, and high fiscal deficits could inhibit future growth.
http://www.worldbank.org/sar

The UN Development Program released the 2006 Asia-Pacific Human Development Report, "Trade on Human Terms". The report calls for bold new domestic policies to benefit from free trade, supported by fair trade rules from industrialized countries to give the region a chance to compete in the global market. Although cheap, labor-intensive manufacturing and high-tech goods have made the region the "factory of the world", this has also exacerbated inequalities between countries and within national borders.
http://content.undp.org/go/newsroom/june-2006/asia-hdr-20060629.en
http://www.undprcc.lk/rdhr2006/rdhr2006new.asp

Russia has lifted currency controls, making the ruble fully convertible.
--------------------------------------------------
ETM Environment and Climate Change
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Several European states missed a deadline to set caps on industry pollution for 2008-12. Estonia met the deadline, and Germany's plan was submitted but showed a plan to cut carbon emissions by less than one percent. The UK threw down the gauntlet with a promise to cut emissions by 12.5 percent.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L30241995.htm
http://www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp?id=11651&channel=0
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/climat/emission_plans.htm

Japan plans to bury its carbon dioxide.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/japan/story/0,,1806713,00.html

Dell announced free recycling of any of its products around the world, regardless of where it is purchased.
http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/corp/pressoffice/en/2006/2006_06_28_rr_001?c=us&l=en&s=corp00000000000000000000
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ETM Human Rights
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Institutional racism is blamed for the avoidable murder in UK prison of Zahid Mubarek, killed by a racist cellmate.
http://www.zahidmubarekinquiry.org.uk/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3198264.stm

The International Day in Support of Victims of Torture was observed on 26 June.
http://www.un.org/events/torture/

The Convention Against Terrorism and the Optional Protocol came into force on 22 June.
http://www.unhchr.ch/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/72D3BC54EE12C1E0C125719400569512?opendocument

The month of June is Torture Awareness Month.
http://denouncetorture.amnestyusa.org/site/c.huITL9MVJxE/b.1678543/k.BE00/Home.htm?sid=105948704

The UN Human Rights Council adopted by consensus the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and voted in favor of a resolution on the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.
http://www.unog.ch/unog/website/news_media.nsf/(httpNewsByYear_en)/BE82C77003776B9EC125719C005D5994?OpenDocument
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ETM Infectious Diseases
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The World Health Organization (WHO) has released analysis of the epidemiological data on the 205 laboratory-confirmed human infections of H5N1 avian influenza. Despite data limitations, they were able to conclude:
*  The number of new countries reporting human cases increased from 4 to 9 after October 2005, following the geographical extension of outbreaks among avian populations.
* Half of the cases occurred in people under the age of 20 years; 90 percent of cases occurred in people under the age of 40 years.
* The overall case-fatality rate was 56 percent. Case fatality was high in all age groups but was highest in persons aged 10 to 39 years.
* The case-fatality profile by age group differs from that seen in seasonal influenza, where mortality is highest in the elderly.
* The overall case-fatality rate was highest in 2004 (73 percent), followed by 63 percent to date in 2006, and 43 percent in 2005.
* Assessment of mortality rates and the time intervals between symptom onset and hospitalization and between symptom onset and death suggests that the illness pattern has not changed substantially during the three years.
* Cases have occurred all year round. However, the incidence of human cases peaked, in each of the three years in which cases have occurred, during the period roughly corresponding to winter and spring in the northern hemisphere. If this pattern continues, an upsurge in cases could be anticipated starting in late 2006 or early 2007.
http://www.who.int/entity/wer/wer8126.pdf

The Asian-European Conference on Avian Influenza in Humans was held 29-30 June.
http://www.isanh.com/avian-influenza/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/5132910.stm

The US Department of Agriculture released its 180-day report on avian influenza efforts.
http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/!ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB?contentidonly=true&contentid=2006/06/0228.xml

The US House Committee on Financial Services held an oversight hearing on Pandemic Influenza Preparedness in the Financial Services Sector, overall finding that significant steps had been taken to meet this and other challenges.
http://financialservices.house.gov/hearings.asp?formmode=detail&hearing=486

The World Health Organization has issued new guidelines to reduce the risk of possible airborne transmission of tuberculosis and other infectious diseases among aircraft passengers and crew. In particular, it emphasized the need for those with multi-drug resistance TB to postpone any air travel.
http://www.who.int/tb/publications/2006/who_htm_tb_2006_363.pdf
http://www.who.int/tb/features_archive/aviation_guidelines/en/index.html
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ETM Legal Systems
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The House Magazine, a publication for Members of Parliament, writes in the 26 June issue of the impact of boundary changes in the next election, suggesting advances for the opposition Conservative party, and the increased possibility of a hung parliament.
http://www.epolitix.com/EN/Publications/House/1181_31/home.htm
http://www.epolitix.com/EN/Publications/House/1181_31/home.htm

Voting standards in the US have faced great scrutiny since the notorious "hanging chads" of the 2000 presidential election, in which the majority vote went to the defeated candidate. The outcome of that election was ultimately decided in the Supreme Court, but the lack of standards in Florida served to point out similar problems in other states, causing many to look at alternative voting systems. Even before that election, Florida's use of public records to clean voter registration records led to widespread disenfranchisement. Recently, Florida's Auditor General released a review of the new voter registration system. He found that systematic vulnerabilities in information security policies and procedures left the voter registration system vulnerable to theft, corruption, unauthorized access and alteration, and that security systems including virus protection, patch management, maintenance and system recovery policies must be implemented.
http://www.state.fl.us/audgen/pages/summaries/2006-194.htm
http://www.state.fl.us/audgen/pages/pdf_files/2006-194.pdf

The US Supreme Court upheld Arizona's restrictive limits on an insanity defense, ruling that states are not required to permit that mental illness prevented an individual from forming intent to commit a crime. The four dissenters to the opinion found the categorical exclusion of such evidence was irrational and unjustified.
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/05pdf/05-5966.pdf
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ETM Populations
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Japan's preliminary census figures show that 21 percent of the population are over 65, overtaking Italy as the country with the largest proportion of elderly people.

An Environics survey finds that more than half of Canadian employees fail to strike a balance between work and personal life, largely because of the influence of technology.
http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/business/article.jsp?content=20060619_128973_128973
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ETM Social Responsibility
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Material living standards are usually measured in terms of the level and growth of gross domestic product (GDP). A new Brief from the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) describes "Alternative Measures of Well-being"/ This complex concept takes into account additional monetary indicators such as leisure time, household size, and income distribution, as well as non-monetary measures of self-sufficiency, the state of the environment, well-being and happiness.
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/26/61/36967254.pdf

The Norwegian Government Pension Fund's Council on Ethics was established in November 2004 to ensure ethical investment. Earlier this month, they published their Annual Report 2005. The report explains its mandate, which includes making recommendations against investments based on unacceptable risk of serious of systematic human rights violations and other serious violations, severe environmental damages, gross corruption, and other particularly serous violations of fundamental ethical norms. As of the beginning of this year, the following companies had been excluded: Alliant Techsystems, BAE Systems, Boeing, EADS NV, Finmeccanica, General Dynamics, Honeywell International, Kerr-McGee, L3 Communications, Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grunman, Raytheon, Safran, Thales, and United Technologies. The recommendations for each exclusion are discussed in full, in accordance with the Council's transparency mandate.
http://odin.dep.no/etikkradet/english/documents/0/dok-bn.html

Billionaire investor Warren Buffet will pledge most of his fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/donate/webdonat.html
http://www.gatesfoundation.org/AboutUs/Announcements/Announce-060625.htm
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ETM Technology
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France has launched Geoportail, a rival to Google Earth and Google Maps. It uses satellite images and maps with resolutions accurate up to half a meter.
http://www.geoportail.fr/
http://www.ogleearth.com/2006/06/ceci_nest_pas_u.html
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060626-7136.html

The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report on Export Controls and High Performance Computers. They find that the President's justification of a 3-tier computer threshold does not fully address requirements of the 1998 National Defense Authorization Act.
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-754R
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ETM Weapons (WMD, Proliferation)
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The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) released "The North Korean Plutonium Stock Mid-2006". The assessment concludes that Pyongyang has moved from possessing sufficient plutonium for no more than two nuclear weapons to having enough for up to 13, and predicts that it could have enough for more than 17 by 2009. A reactor currently under construction could increase plutonium production tenfold.
http://www.isis-online.org/publications/dprk/dprkplutonium.pdf
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N26166867.htm

The UK House of Commons Defense Committee issued its eighth report on the UK's Strategic Nuclear Deterrent, calling for "genuine and meaningful" public debate on whether the UK should keep its nuclear arsenal.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmselect/cmdfence/986/98602.htm

The US House Armed Services Committee held a hearing on weapons of mass destruction findings in Iraq. Here are links to the opening statement, summary, and testimony:
http://www.house.gov/hasc/schedules/6-29-06WeldonOpeningStatement.pdf
http://www.house.gov/hasc/schedules/6-29-06hearingsummary.pdf
http://www.house.gov/hasc/schedules/6-29-06GaffneyTestimony.pdf
http://www.house.gov/hasc/schedules/6-29-06KayTestimony.pdf
http://www.house.gov/hasc/schedules/6-29-06TaylorTestimony.pdf

The Arms Control Association has posted online the full transcript of their 20 June meeting on the proposed US-India nuclear cooperation agreement.
http://www.armscontrol.org/events/20060620_India_Roundtable.asp

The UN Small Arms Review Conference opened with the warning that the world is "awash with small arms", with an illegal trade each year in excess of $1 billion. The conference runs until 7 July.
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sgsm10537.doc.htm
http://www.un.org/events/smallarms2006/

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5. Critical Infrastructure Monitor

Critical Infrastructure Monitor gives you the background and analysis missing from these news briefings. Subscriptions can be purchased from our online store:
TAMNI Publications

--------------------------------------------------
CIM Banking and Finance
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Morgan Stanley has been charged with failure to enforce policies to deter insider trading.
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2006/2006-103.htm

Raytheon reached a settlement for improper disclosure and accounting practices.
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2006/2006-104.htm

The South Korea Financial Supervisory Commission and the US Securities and Exchange Commission have agreed to terms of reference for regulatory discussions.
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2006/2006-102.htm

The US House Committee on Financial Services held an oversight hearing on Pandemic Influenza Preparedness in the Financial Services Sector.
http://financialservices.house.gov/hearings.asp?formmode=detail&hearing=486

The US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released guidance on managing risks in foreign outsourcing arrangements.
http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/financial/2006/fil06052.html

Speaking at the 2006 conference of the Association of Lloyd's Members, Chairman Lord Peter Levene addressed three key areas: performance management, an optimal global trading platform, and a strategic plan.
http://www.lloyds.com/News_Centre/Briefings_and_speeches/The_Future_of_Lloyds.htm

Google has launched an online payment system, Google Checkout, which will compete with auction giant eBay.


The Securities Industry Association and the Bond Market Association have merged, creating the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association.
http://www.sia.com/press/2006_press_releases/27971185.html
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CIM Chemical
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The US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) released detailed trailer blast damage information developed during the ongoing investigation of the explosions at the BP refinery in Texas City, Texas. The 23 March 2005 incident killed 15 workers and injured 180 when flammable liquid and vapor overfilled a blowdown drum during the startup of the refinery's isomerization unit.
http://www/csb.gov
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CIM Commercial Facilities
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The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends that the US Secretary of State and an interagency working group develop written guidance for providing security support for future Olympic games, and develop a finance subgroup to help planning and preparations for future support. This and more detail is in "Olympic Security: Better Planning Can Enhance U.S. Support to Future Olympic Games".
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-753
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CIM Cybersecurity
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Microsoft has issued a warning of unpatched systems open to a critical vulnerability of the Remote Access Connection Manager (Rasman) service, used by Windows to create network connections over the telephone.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/911280
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/921923.mspx

Independent researcher Yash Kadakia has described application security flaws in Amazon and Microsoft web sites, among others.
http://blogs.hackerscenter.com/dcrab/

Websense reports on phishing frauds that use spoof phone messages to persuade people to visit a bogus web site, where confidential data could be stolen.
http://www.websense.com/securitylabs/alerts/alert.php?AlertID=534

A survey of the UK healthcare sector finds that the National Health Service is failing to secure mobile devices.
http://www.bjhc.co.uk/news/1/2006/n606012.htm

Vulnerabilities in electronic voting systems used in the US are described in new reports from the Brennan Center and Common Cause.
http://www.brennancenter.org/presscenter/releases_2006/pressrelease_2006_0627.html
http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/{FB3C17E2-CDD1-4DF6-92BE-BD4429893665}/MALFUNCTION%20AND%20MALFEASANCE%20REPORT.PDF

HSBC customers have had money stolen from accounts compromised through a call center scam operated from its Bangalore operation. A suspect has been arrested.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9558-2247201,00.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/india/story/0,,1809559,00.html
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1038934

The laptop and external hard drive stolen from a US Department of Veterans' Affairs employee has been recovered, and the database it contained, with millions of records, is intact and was not accessed.
http://www1.va.gov/opa/data/Data_Security_Issue_Update.asp

A new research center, the Center for Identity Management and Information Protection (CIMIP), has been formed by a group of government agencies, corporations, and educational institutions.
http://www.utica.edu/academic/institutes/cimip/

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada commissioned a poll from EKOS Research Associates regarding their opinions on privacy. Key findings include:
* The proportion of Canadians reporting that they have a good or very good understanding of their privacy rights has doubled since 2001, rising from 13 to 26 per cent, which suggests that Canadians may be taking more control over of their personal information. Perhaps this explains why more than 85 per cent of them want to be informed by companies about the privacy implications of products or services they buy.
* Approximately 8 in 10 Canadians believe their country should be equipped with strong laws to protect their personal information. The inability to have strong privacy legislation will continue to undermine trust in their government to protect their personal information seriously.
* Although Canadians are among the most technology savvy in the world and they understand that processing personal information is core to a modern and competitive economy, only 50 per cent of those polled agree they have enough information to know the privacy implications of new technologies. In response to this need and to better serve Canadians, the Office is developing information and guidance to help individuals better understand the privacy risks and implications of new technologies such as radio frequency identification devices (RFID).
http://www.privcom.gc.ca/media/nr-c/2006/nr-c_060630_e.asp
http://www.privcom.gc.ca/information/survey/2006/ekos_2006_e.asp

The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) released two reports on managing sensitive information:
"DOD Can More Effectively Reduce the Risk of Classification Errors"
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-706
"Managing Sensitive Information: Actions Needed to Ensure Recent Changes in DOE Oversight Do Not Weaken an Effective Classification System"
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-785
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CIM Emergency Services
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The Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) has approved a new standard, the Emergency Data Exchange Language Distribution Element (EDXL-DE) Version 1.0. This provides a way for emergency system vendors to create systems that will make information contained in proprietary systems readily available to first responders. EDXL-DE is part of the overall Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) for data interchange.
http://www.oasis-open.org/news/oasis-news-2006-06-20.php
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CIM Energy
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The International Energy Agency reports that a global switch to efficient lighting could reduce electricity costs by nearly ten percent.
http://www.iea.org/Textbase/press/pressdetail.asp?PRESS_REL_ID=182

Oil production in Iraq has risen to 2.5 million barrels per day, the highest level since 2003.

The UK Sustainable Development Commission's submission to the Energy Review finds that nuclear power alone cannot solve the UK's energy and climate change crisis.
http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/publications.php?id=373

The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) released "Energy Security: Issues Related to Potential Reductions in Venezuelan Oil Production". The report explains that Venezuela is the world's largest oil exporter and has among the top ten greatest reserves. It owns five refineries in the US and provides about 11 percent of current US imports of crude oil and petroleum. These facts make it a key player in US energy security. But this energy security is threatened by discontinuation of US government programs that had aided Venezuelan production, lack of ready alternatives, and faltering political conditions.
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-668
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CIM Information Technology
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Gartner's research report, "Market Share: Anti-virus (Enterprise and Consumer), Worldwide 2005", finds that global revenues from anti-virus software reached $4 billion in 2005, a 13.6 percent increase over 2004, almost evenly divided between enterprise and consumer sales.
http://www.gartner.com/press_releases/asset_154006_11.html
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CIM Public Health and Healthcare
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The Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released OECD Health Data 2006. It warns that from 1990-2004 healthcare spending has grown faster than GDP in every OECD country except Finland, putting growing pressure on public finances. Accounting for 8.9 percent of GDP in 2004, most publicly financed, is likely to increase further as the population ages and expensive new medical technologies are implemented.
http://www.oecd.org/health/healthdata

The World Health Organization (WHO) issued the first ever international guidelines for safe recreational bathing areas.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/notes/2006/np15/en/index.html

Kenya's High Court has suspended the ban on smoking in public places indefinitely.

The US House Committee on Government Reform, Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy and Human Resources, held a hearing on "Clinical Lab Quality: CMS and Survey Organization Oversight Should Be Strengthened". Testimony addressed a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that found insufficient oversight to ensure laboratory quality.
http://reform.house.gov/CJDPHR/Hearings/EventSingle.aspx?EventID=46310
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-416

A new report finds that violations reported to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have grown, but enforcement actions have declined.
http://www.democrats.reform.house.gov/story.asp?ID=1074
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CIM Transportation
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The US Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) is completing a report on the threat of man-portable air defence systems (Manpads) that will oppose the installation of countermeasures systems on board civil aircraft as threats to onboard systems integrity that may be obsolete at inception. They will suggest alternatives.
http://www.flightglobal.com/Articles/2006/06/27/207433/US+pilots+union+takes+aim+at+missile+launcher+defences+calling+countermeasures+unsafe+and.html

The US House Committee on Transportation held an oversight hearing on Baggage Screening and Explosive Detection
http://www.house.gov/transportation/
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-875T

The Public Police Institute of California released "Protecting the Nation's Seaports: Balancing Security and Cost", which points to continued vulnerabilities including lack of agency coordination.
http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=698

The US Senate Committee on Housing and Transportation held a public transportation oversight hearing on SAFETEA-LU Implementation.
http://banking.senate.gov/index.cfm?Fuseaction=Hearings.Detail&HearingID=223
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-910T
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/safetealu/

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6. Disaster Reduction Monitor

News highlights from the past week are provided in this free email update, but detailed analysis, background information and source documents are only available to subscribers. Disaster Reduction Monitor subscriptions and other titles can be purchased here:
TAMNI Publications

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DRM Incidents
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Flooding in South Sulawesi, Indonesia has killed more than 200 people, with at least 135 still missing, and left heavy property damage.

A passenger bus in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh plunged into a deep gorge, killing 17 and injuring 18 passengers.

Heavy rains and flooding in the eastern US killed at least
People dead and closed a number of government facilities along the coast, including the Internal Revenue Service and a number of financial institutions.

Sudan's Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) has reported a total of 2007 cases of cholera between 21 April and 18 June. Of these, 77 were fatal.
http://www.who.int/csr/don/2006_06_21a/en/index.html

Flooding in Honduras has left four dead and more than 1500 displaced.

A collapsed roof in Democratic Republic of Congo killed three people among a crowd that had gathered for a campaign rally.

A freak hailstorm in Germany left one man dead and about 100 injured. The hail was the size of tennis balls, and caused property damage and loss of electricity.
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DRM Response and Recovery
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Supplies are being sent to the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi where floods left more than 7,500 people homeless.

China is considering imposing fines on media organizations that breach government reporting regulations.
http://english.people.com.cn/200606/27/eng20060627_277560.html
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DRM Risks
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"Is America's Housing Market Prepared for the Next Natural Catastrophe?" was the topic of a House hearing in which testimony suggested the need for insurers and others to address increased frequency and degree of storms, including new building standards and retrofitting vulnerable structures.
http://financialservices.house.gov/hearings.asp?formmode=detail&hearing=485&comm=5
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DRM Mitigation
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The Indian Ocean tsunami warning system is up and running, but additional work on data exchange and coordination will continue.

The National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC) has adopted a statement on natural disasters including four general principles:
* Market freedom and competitive pricing will lead to innovation in developing solutions to problems relating to disaster insurance and mitigation;
* Competitive pricing and risk-based underwriting are essential to developing and maintaining a viable disaster insurance market;
* Mitigation must be an indispensable aspect of any disaster risk management and insurance initiatives; and
* The National Flood Insurance Program should be maintained, but must be reformed.
http://www.namic.org/newsreleases06/060626nr1.asp
http://www.namic.org/pdf/06CatPrinciplesStatement.pdf.

The US Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorological Services issued a report calling for a multifunction phased-array radar to improve catastrophe and other weather forecasting.
http://www.ofcm.gov/r25-mpar/fcm-r25.htm

In New South Wales, Australian, the city of Sydney has developed a special emergency plan for the central business district (CBD) that incorporates both evacuation plans and plans for waiting in place if necessary, usually at a place of business.
http://www.emergency.nsw.gov.au/content.php/182.html

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7. Recommended Reading

Ahead of the anniversary of the 7 July bombings in London, and following on last week's theme, we are recommending books and reports on the attacks. The spread of suicide terrorism to Western Europe is a seminal moment in the contemporary history of terrorism.

Michael Gove, a Times (London) columnist and Conservative Member of Parliament, has come out with "Celsius 7/7: How the West's Policy of Appeasement Has Provoked Yet More Fundamentalist Terror - And What Has To Be Done NOW" (Weidenfeld and Nicolson)
http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/HB-39087/Celsius-7/7.htm

Here are two exclusive extracts:
"To allow Islamists to direct the post-7/7 debate was a disaster"
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8802-2240635,00.html
"The roots of Islamism"
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8802-2243871,00.html

Melanie Phillips is the author of "Londonistan: How Britain is Creating a Terror State Within", also from Weidenfeld and Nicolson. She comments on Tom Gross and his reaction to her book.
http://www.melaniephillips.com/diary/?p=1268

Related articles, interviews and reviews:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,6-2212130,00.html
http://books.guardian.co.uk/departments/politicsphilosophyandsociety/story/0,,1798994,00.html
http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=22443
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MTAxMWIxMGFmNDExYzBhNjFkMWExNGJiODAwNDhjODU=

If you missed it last week, check out reviews, interviews, and excerpts from Ron Suskind's "One Percent Doctrine". Its disclosures include the allegation that the leader of the 7/7 bombers was known as early as 2003.
https://terrorismcentral.com/Newsletters/2006/062506.html

The government reports are also of great value. "Report of the Official Account of the Bombings in London on 7 July" provides a chronological report. Parliament's "Intelligence and Security Committee Report into the London Terrorist Attacks on 7 July 1005" considered evidence from the security services to conclude that lack of resources was more to blame in not preventing the attacks, rather than any failure of individuals. Also note the government response to that report. The government has ruled out an independent inquiry, such as that conducted in the US by the 9/11 Commission.
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/7-july-report.pdf
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/publications/reports/intelligence/isc_7july_report.pdf
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/publications/reports/intelligence/govres_7july.pdf
http://www.guardian.co.uk/attackonlondon/story/0,,1773194,00.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/leaders/story/0,,1773114,00.html
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,542-2176663,00.html
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/crime/article364330.ece
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/05/11/news/london.php
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2006/05/12/dl1201.xml

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8. Asset Management Network News

Visit our online store to purchase subscriptions to the Monitor series as well as our Special Reports, including our new Special Report "Trends in Terrorism: 2005".

Email info@tamni.com for details about the new products, publications, and information about services, including custom research.

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TerrorismCentral

All Rights Reserved. Copyright 2006 by The Asset Management Network Inc.

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