AUTHOR:
TerrorismCentral Editorial Staff

TITLE:
TerrorismCentral Newsletter - November 18, 2007

SOURCE:
TerrorismCentral, November 18, 2007

TEXT:

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the fourth synthesis report, which is based on the assessment carried out by the IPCC's three Working Groups. It finds that warming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice, and rising global average sea level. This topic is covered in many relevant sections below. Recommended Reading this week features UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown's outline of new security plans. You will also find reports on the impact of artisanal mining on local communities, Albania's list of terrorism suspects, and much more.

3. AML/CFT Monitor

Anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism is not simply an issue of compliance with local regulations. It is a global crime that can only be understood by crossing national or regional boundaries. Subscribers to the monthly AML/CFT Monitor receive information and analysis of worldwide incidents, trends, legal and regulatory issues, modalities, and related topics such as financial fraud and narcoterrorism.
http://secure.netsolhost.com/573566.585211/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=TP
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AML/CFT Incidents/Cases
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Algerian special forces killed Abdelhamid Sadaoui ("Abou El Haythem"), considered the treasurer of al Qaeda in the Maghreb, previously the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC).
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/16/africa/AF-GEN-Algeria-Militant-Killed.php

Algeria's Financial Information Treatment Cell (FITC) has submitted a money laundering case to an Algiers court for evaluation.
http://www.elkhabar.com/FrEn/lire.php?ida=86682&idc=52

Former Bangladesh State Minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmood Tuku has been sentenced to seven years' rigorous and two years' simple imprisonment for amassing wealth illegally and concealing information in his wealth statement.
http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=11869

Retired Canadian federal employee Lise Pouliot and her husband Emmanuel Feuerwerkear have been charged for defrauding the federal government employee health plan of more than half a million dollars through a money laundering scheme.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2007/11/16/ot-fraud-pouliot-071116.html

A Chinese court in northwestern Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region has sentenced six people to death or life in prison for separatist and terrorist activities, reportedly supported by the East Turkestan Islamic Movement.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/12/content_7059569.htm

Chiquita Brands International (CQB) admitted it had paid $1.7 million to the United Self Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) over a six-year period ending in 2004.  Last month, a US court accepted a settlement between Chiquita and the Justice Department in which Chiquita was fined $25 million and required to institute an ethics program to prevent future violations. This case has an impact on Congress's decision whether to enter into a trade agreement, and the longer-term fallout is affecting multinational corporations that conduct business in Colombia.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/world/2007-10-29-chiquita-terrorists-colombia_N.htm?csp=DailyBriefing
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/FBE7A0F2-7BD9-4031-80AF-04DE64AF3E4E.htm
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1113/p07s02-woam.html

A money laundering scheme involving a Mexican exchange house and drug trafficking has implicated US banks Wachovia and Harris.
http://www.forbes.com/business/2007/11/15/money-laundering-mexico-biz-wall-cz_nv_1115casa.html

Lawyers for former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto have lodged an appeal in a Swiss inquiry into alleged money laundering by Bhutto and her husband.
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSL1687417220071116

Peru's Interior Minister Luis Alva Castro announced a special battalion will be established to combat narco-terrorism associated with Shining Path rebels that were involved in an assault against police in a drug corridor this week.
http://www.livinginperu.com/news-5030-law-order-peru-authorities-explain-terrorist-attack-police-station-apurimac

In Spain, Juan Martin Seron and his wife have been accused of money laundering in the Caso Troya investigation.
http://www.surinenglish.com/noticias.php?Noticia=11705

Sri Lanka's Financial Investigation Unit (FIU) submitted a money laundering complaint to the Criminal Investigation Department, which has obtained court approval to investigate a case in which United National Party (UNP) member of parliament Ravi Karunanayake sent $3 million to a private bank in Sri Lanka.
http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2007/11/18/pol01.asp

The UK appeals court in London unanimously ruled that Southwark Crown Court erred when it lifted the restraining order on former Niger Delta governor Chief James Ibori's worldwide assets on 1 October 2007. They ordered the $35 million in assets frozen and protected from dissipation. Ibori is suspected of multiple incidents of corruption and money laundering.
http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=95396

Miles Connors was jailed for three years at Northampton Crown Court for allowing the "unexplained" proceeds of crime - some GBP500,000 - to be laundered in his accounts.
http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news/Traveller-jailed-for-500000-laundering.3480145.jp

Abdulla Kasem Ahmed Muthana pleaded to six federal counts of laundering money through his markets although he believed the checks he cashed were the proceeds of fraud or other illegal activities.
http://www.fresnobee.com/263/story/203475.html

John Carl Willy will plead guilty in California court to two counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering as part of a plea deal on federal fraud and money laundering charges related to a Ponzi scam.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_7462684

Francis Reimers was sentenced in California court to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to six counts of mail fraud and one count of money laundering relating to a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme.
http://cbs5.com/local/danville.fraud.laundering.2.570278.html

Emadeddin Muntasser, Muhamed Mubayyid, and Samir Al-Monla are charged in Massachusetts with conspiracy to defraud the US, tax violations, and making false statements in connection with their participation in a nonprofit publications program allegedly used to support Muslim militants overseas..
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/11/13/3_to_be_tried_us_says_men_aided_militants/

William Colwell McNeely and Craig F. Swoboda, both in their 70s, have been charged in Missouri on 16 federal counts of money laundering, investment fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud conspiracy,
http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2007/11/17/former-columbians-get-money-laundering-added-charg/

New Jersey officials arrested 18 people, including four connected to organized crime, in an illegal sports gambling ring. Charges include promoting gambling, money laundering, loan sharking, and other charges.


In New York, former Nassau County Court Judge David Gross was sentenced him to 33 months in prison for participating in a Genovese crime family money laundering conspiracy.
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/ny-ligros1117,0,835694.story?coll=ny-moviereview-headlines

Ohio bank executive Nicole Johnson pleaded guilty of bank fraud, money laundering and falsifying a tax return in connection with embezzling more than $5 million from JP Morgan Chase Bank.
http://cincinnati.fbi.gov/doj/pressrel/2007/ci111407.htm
http://www.daytondailynews.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2007/11/14/ddn111407pleaweb.html

Former Pennsylvania bank president Craig J. Scher, New Jersey attorney Michael Sinko, and developer James Bell Jr. have been charged with bribery and conspiracy to launder $100,000 in the proceeds of fraud.
http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071114/NEWS06/711140389/1006/NEWS01

Curtis Swanson, CEO and president of RTIN Holdings Inc., was sentenced in Texas court to 10 years in prison, and CFO R. Stephen Cavender to five years, for money laundering, conspiracy, and fraud.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/5302840.html

Online discount jeweler Shenoa describes its AML program in this article:
http://www.transworldnews.com/NewsStory.aspx?id=28091&cat=1
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AML/CFT Legislation and Regulation
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Albania has released its list of terrorist suspects, including the financiers of Jemaah Islamiah, and other entities.
http://www.analyst-network.com/article.php?art_id=1180

Bangladesh is planning to sign formal agreements with several governments, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and the UK, to recover funds that it says were illegally deposited in foreign banks by politicians, officials and businessmen suspected of corruption.
http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=11873
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=7e3ac648-5073-4425-9dfa-e35a66f6dfe6

Belarus has issued a formal note of protest to the US ambassador over sanctions the US imposed against state-owned petrochemical company Belneftekhim.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071115/88258693.html
http://www.treasury.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/programs/belarus/belarus.shtml

British Virgin Islands' public prosecutor has written to the US government of overwhelming evidence that Russian telecommunications minister Leonid Reiman is the true beneficial owner of IPOC, a Bermuda-based fund that owns a large part of Russia's telecommunications industry.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/65395272-93cb-11dc-acd0-0000779fd2ac.html

Bulgaria's authorities Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA) director Vassil Kirov reported they have seized financial operations worth 1.6 million leva; 25 people are in the process of being prosecuted; and 15 have already been sentenced for money laundering. Their first convictions only began last year.
http://www.sofiaecho.com/article/high-level-of-money-laundering-prevention-in-bulgarian-banking-sector---head-fia/id_26127/catid_67

Human Rights Watch has called for a program of targeted sanctions from China, Thailand, the US, and other countries that allow the purchase of gems from Burma (Myanmar) that help finance military abuses and keep the junta in power. There are signs that pressure from the US and elsewhere is slowing gem sales.
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2007/11/12/burma17316.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7082943.stm
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/HRW/35edd8741d4069fac5762836024c138f.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/16/world/asia/16myanmar.html
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/eb83b4c0-90c0-11dc-a6f2-0000779fd2ac.html

China is extending AML systems to securities and insurance companies, and non-financial sectors.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/10/content_7042955.htm
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-11/11/content_6245613.htm

Gibraltar's Financial Services Commission (FSC) issued a major revision to AML/CFT guidance, in accordance with the 3rd Money Laundering Directive and in response to recommendations in an IMF review.
http://www.fsc.gi/amlgn/
http://www.gibfocus.gi/details_headlines.php?id=2040

Guyana's President Bharrat Jagdeo, speaking before the Caribbean Association of Indigenous Banks, condemned double-standards imposed against Caribbean countries whose offshore banking industries have long been considered money-laundering hotspots because of their banking secrecy laws. He accused the US and other large nations of failing to enforce the same rules they require of Caribbean countries, placing undue burdens on the economy. Other delegates discussed the relationship between Caribbean and US banks as dependent on meeting the US requirements, particularly related to correspondent banking. Meanwhile, Guyana's revised AML/CFT bill is under parliamentary committee review.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/5298916.html
http://op.gov.gy/stories/071113.html#1
http://www.fin24.co.za/articles/default/display_article.aspx?ArticleId=1518-1783_2220312
http://www.stabroeknews.com/index.pl/article_general_news?id=56533091

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), has issued its first guidance paper on the subject of politically exposed persons (PEPs).
http://www.info.gov.hk/hkma/eng/guide/circu_date/attach/20071113e1a1.pdf

HKMA has also issued Amendments to the Supplement to the Guideline on Prevention of Money Laundering.
http://www.info.gov.hk/hkma/eng/guide/circu_date/20071113e2.htm

The UN Security Council renewed for another year a ban on diamonds and arms trading with Ivory Coast, as well as targeted sanctions restricting the travel of certain individuals.
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2007/sc9158.doc.htm

Turkmenistan has joined the Eurasian Group on combating money laundering and financing of terrorism (EAG) as an observer.
http://www.turkmenistan.ru/?page_id=3&lang_id=en&elem_id=11548&type=event&sort=date_desc

The US Treasury has designated Belarus' largest petrochemical conglomerate, Belarusian State Concern for Oil and Chemistry (Belneftekhim), and its representative offices in Germany, Latvia, the Ukraine, Russia, and China, and its wholly-owned US subsidiary Belneftekhim USA, Inc., under Executive Order 13405 as being controlled by oppressive Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko.
http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/hp676.htm

Treasury also designates the Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) charity as a financier of designated terrorist group the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
http://www.ustreas.gov/press/releases/hp683.htm
http://www.dailynews.lk/2007/11/17/main_Editorial.asp

Thailand's Legislative Assembly approved in principle an amended AML Act to widen powers to freeze assets gained from abuse of natural resources, foreign exchange, stocks, gambling, arms, contract fraud, and excise taxes.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/151107_News/15Nov2007_news11.php
http://www.amlo.go.th/

The US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has released Frequently Asked Questions for Casinos.
http://www.fincen.gov/Casino_FAQs_Final.pdf

The House Committee on the Judiciary held a hearing on Establishing Consistent Enforcement Policies in the Context of Online Wagers.
http://judiciary.house.gov/oversight.aspx?ID=396
http://www.pokerlistings.com/poker-advocates-respond-to-congressional-hearing-20276
http://www.safeandsecureig.org/

Yemen's cabinet has referred an AML/CFT bill to parliament.
http://www.yobserver.com/business-and-economy/10013229.html
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AML/CFT Modalities
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Counterfeiting and remittances are the tools fueling the Muslim Brotherhood in Senegal.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4272999a19716.html

4. Emerging Threat Monitor

Climate change, pandemics, and global economic imbalances are just a few of the threats emerging in this 21st century. Subscribers to the Emerging Threat Monitor stay a step ahead with monthly analysis of trends and responses worldwide. It offers executives a heads-up of new risks, and details of the policies and best practices gleaned from every country around the globe.
http://secure.netsolhost.com/573566.585211/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=TP
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ETM Corruption and Transnational Crime
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Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Tuesday that corruption among Afghan officials is rife and government must be reformed to help end 30 years of war, misery and oppression. Corruption is fueled through large opium profits, reconstruction skimming, bribery, and lack of public confidence in government, while support increases for Taleban insurgents.
http://ca.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2007-11-13T133512Z_01_ISL211509_RTRIDST_0_NEWS-AFGHAN-CORRUPTION-COL.XML
http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/11/cdf49b54-8aa7-4536-9e14-7e682ed57e3d.html

Bangladesh Bar Council, a regulatory body of the lawyers, yesterday urged the government to immediately initiate a drive to purge inefficient and corrupt judges, including those at higher courts, to revive the lost image of the judiciary.
http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=11418

This article discusses the culture of corruption in the Philippines and efforts to change it.
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/dav/2007/11/17/news/fighting.corruption.html

Newly retired director of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA), Graeme Pearson, said current asset recovery legislation is too restrictive and tougher powers were needed to isolate organized crime and prevent the Mr Bigs of cash lest their mafia-style activities spreading further into legitimate businesses and spheres of public life, engendering corruption in Scotland's police, judiciary, and government systems.
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1790132007

Corruption investigations in the US state of Alaska over the past year have led to four indictments, three convictions, three guilty pleas, and widespread public attention.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/11/AR2007111101585.html

The US Justice Department, Securities and Exchange Commission, and several other federal agencies uncovered evidence that Chevron Corp. may have indirectly paid kickbacks to the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq through the UN Oil-for-Food program. Chevron recently agreed to pay $30 million to settle allegations in the matter.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/5303068.html

Seven former public officials were sentenced in Arizona court for their roles in a bribery and extortion conspiracy.
http://phoenix.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/2007/ph111507.htm
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ETM Economies and Financial Systems
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Between 50 and 80 percent of adults in many developing countries have inadequate access to financial services. In "Finance for All? Policies and Pitfalls in Access", the World Bank says that failure to provide more households and small and medium enterprises with the financial services they need hinders development. Although the microfinance industry has made progress in delivering credit to poor people, this report calls for a broader financial strategy that delivers services to all excluded people and firms. Inclusive financial systems ultimately benefit the poorest people and the smallest firms the most, by creating more jobs and opportunities, and raising incomes. The report calls for government policies in the financial sector to focus on prioritizing institutional reforms, promoting cost-effective technologies, promoting competition and stability, and reaching the poorest.
http://www.worldbank.org/financeforall

Many African economies appear to have turned the corner and may be moving to a path of faster and steadier economic growth needed to reduce high levels of poverty. The World Bank Africa Development Indicators 2007 (ADI) reports that solid economic performance across Africa 1995-2005 contrasts sharply with the economic collapse of 1975-1985 and the stagnation experienced in 1985-95. ADI indicates that going forward, spreading and sustaining growth can be achieved by accelerating productivity and increasing private investment.  This will require improving the business climate and infrastructure in African countries, as well as spurring innovation and building institutional capacity.
http://www.worldbank.org/afr

East Asian economies are likely to remain robust in 2008 despite growing concerns about the US sub-prime crisis and increasing global oil prices. The World Bank's latest East Asia and Pacific Update finds that for the first time, the number of poor people living below $2 a day in East Asia has fallen below 500 million - down from 1 billion in 1990.
http://www.worldbank.org/eapupdate

Bankers from Citigroup, J.P. Morgan Chas and Bank of America agreed on the format of the $100 billion structured investment vehicle: the super-SIV, designed to help thaw portions of frozen credit markets. Although the banks stand to profit from the fees they could charge if the fund is used, it is more symbolic than meaningful.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/12/business/12siv.html
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119482805957289567.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/11/business/11bank.html
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b5c914f2-9097-11dc-a6f2-0000779fd2ac.html

A Wall Street Journal poll revealed that economists are confident in the Federal Reserve's ability to steer the US through the ongoing credit crisis. Over 50 percent said the credit crunch was nearly half over, 25 percent said it is just beginning and 15 percent believed the problems were either over or mostly over.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119497127210791495.html

The Congressional Joint Economic Committee heard evidence from US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke regarding the economic outlook. In his testimony, he proposed allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase and securitize jumbo mortgages, since lawmakers have done nothing to increase the $417,000 conforming-loan limit. The subprime crisis over the summer has moved companies from capital markets to banks for their lending needs.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119455499562686966.html
http://www.jec.senate.gov/Hearings/11.08.07EconomicOutlookHearing.htm
http://www.investors.com/editorial/IBDArticles.asp?artsec=5&issue=20071113

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced that, as part of its ongoing commitment to improve the accountability and public understanding of monetary policy making, it will increase the frequency and expand the content of the economic projections that are made by Federal Reserve Board members and Reserve Bank presidents and released to the public.
http://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/press/monetary/20071114a.htm

The Treasury Department released a study on income mobility of US taxpayers from 1996 through 2005. Key findings include:
* Income mobility of individuals was considerable in the U.S. economy during the 1996 through 2005 period with roughly half of taxpayers who began in the bottom quintile moving up to a higher income group within 10 years.
* About 55 percent of taxpayers moved to a different income quintile within 10 years.
* Among those with the very highest incomes in 1996--the top 1/100 of one percent--only 25 percent remained in the group in 2005.  Moreover, the median real income of these taxpayers declined over the study period.
* The degree of mobility among income groups is unchanged from the prior decade (1987 through 1996).
* Economic growth resulted in rising incomes for most taxpayers over the study period:
* Median real incomes of all taxpayers increased by 24 percent after adjusting for inflation;
* Real incomes of two-thirds of all taxpayers increased over this period; and
* Median incomes of those initially in the lower income groups increased more than the median incomes of those initially in the high income groups.  
http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/reports/incomemobilitystudyfinal.pdf

Treasury released the second in a series of papers on Social Security. Issue Brief No. 2 is entitled Social Security Reform: A Framework for Analysis.
http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/reports/treasssissuebriefno2.pdf

Hedge fund Amaranth filed suit against JP Morgan Chase in New York State Supreme Court accusing the bank of misrepresenting the value of the hedge fund's energy trading assets.  Amaranth collapsed in 2006 with $6 billion in losses related to natural gas trades. It seeks $1 billion for JPMorgan's alleged role in the fund's collapse.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/business/15hedge.html
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ETM Environment and Climate Change
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the fourth synthesis report, which is based on the assessment carried out by the IPCC's three Working Groups. It finds that warming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice, and rising global average sea level. Other findings include:
* Observational evidence from all continents and most oceans shows that many natural systems are being affected by regional climate changes, particularly temperature increases
* Other effects of regional climate change on natural and human environments are emerging, although many are difficult to discern due to adaptation and non-climatic drivers.
* Global greenhouse gas emissions due to human activities have grown since pre-industrial times, with an increase of 70 percent between 1970 and 2004.
* Global atmospheric concentrations of CO2, methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) have increased markedly as a result of human activities since 1750 and now far exceed pre-industrial values determined from ice cores spanning many thousands of years.
* Most of the observed increase in globally-averaged temperatures since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic global greenhouse gas concentrations. It is likely there has been significant anthropogenic warming over the past 50 years averaged over each continent except Antarctica.
* Advances since the Third Assessment Report show that discernible human influences extend beyond average temperature to other aspects of climate.
* Anthropogenic warming over the last three decades has likely had a discernible influence at the global scale on observed changes in many physical and biological systems.
* There is high agreement and much evidence that with current climate change mitigation policies and related sustainable development practices, global greenhouse gas emissions will continue to grow over the next few decades.
* Continued greenhouse gas emissions at or above current rates would cause further warming and induce many changes in the global climate system during the 21st century that would very likely be larger than those observed during the 20th century.
* There is now higher confidence than in the Third Assessment Report in projected patterns of warming and other regional-scale features, including changes in wind patterns, precipitation, and some aspects of extremes and sea ice.
* Anthropogenic warming could lead to some impacts that are abrupt or irreversible, depending upon the rate and magnitude of the climate change.
* A wide array of adaptation options is available, but more extensive adaptation than is currently occurring is required to reduce vulnerability to climate change. There are barriers, limits, and costs, which are not fully understood.
* Adaptive capacity is intimately connected to social and economic development but is unevenly distributed across and within societies.
* Both bottom-up and top-down studies indicate that there is high agreement and much evidence of substantial economic potential for the mitigation of global greenhouse gas emissions over the coming decades that could offset the projected growth of global emissions or reduce emissions below current levels. While top-down and bottom-up studies are in line at the global level there are considerable differences at the sectoral level.
* A wide variety of policies and instruments are available to governments to create the incentives for mitigation action. Their applicability depends on national circumstances and sectoral context.
* Many options for reducing global greenhouse gas emissions through international cooperation exist. There is high agreement and much evidence that notable achievements of the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol are the establishment of a global response to climate change, stimulation of an array of national policies, and the creation of an international carbon market and new institutional mechanisms that may provide the foundation for future mitigation efforts. Progress has also been made in addressing adaptation within the UNFCCC and additional international initiatives have been suggested.
* In several sectors, climate response options can be implemented to realize synergies and avoid conflicts with other dimensions of sustainable development. Decisions about macroeconomic and other non-climate policies can significantly affect emissions, adaptive capacity and vulnerability.
* Determining what constitutes "dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system" in relation to Article 2 of the UNFCCC involves value judgments. Science can support informed decisions on this issue, including by providing criteria for judging which vulnerabilities might be labeled "key".
* The five "reasons for concern" identified in the Third Assessment Report remain a viable framework to consider key vulnerabilities. These "reasons" are assessed here to be larger or to occur at lower increases in temperature. Understanding about the relationship between impacts (the basis for "reasons for concern in the Third Assessment Report) and vulnerability (that includes the ability to adapt to impacts) has improved.
* There is high confidence that neither adaptation nor mitigation alone can avoid all climate change impacts; however, they can complement each other and together can significantly reduce the risks of climate change.
* Many impacts can be reduced, delayed or avoided by mitigation. Mitigation efforts and investments over the next two to three decades will have a large impact on opportunities to achieve lower stabilization levels. Delayed emission reductions significantly constrain the opportunities to achieve lower stabilization levels and increase the risk of more severe climate change impacts.
* There is high agreement and much evidence that all stabilization levels assessed can be achieved by deployment of a portfolio of technologies that are either currently available or expected to be commercialized in coming decades, assuming appropriate and effective incentives are in place for their development, acquisition, deployment and diffusion and addressing related barriers.
* The macro-economic costs of mitigation generally rise with the stringency of the stabilization target. For specific countries and sectors, costs very considerably from the global average.
* Responding to climate change involves an iterative risk management process that includes both adaptation and mitigation and takes into account climate change damages, co-benefits, sustainability, equity, and attitudes to risk.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon becomes the first UN head to visit Antarctica, and see for himself the impact of climate change.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7088435.stm

Moving on from the risk of global warming, scientists are now looking for ways to pinpoint the areas to be affected by climate change, to help countries plan everything from new crops to hydropower dams.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L05671126.htm

"Truly Inconvenient: Tackling poverty and climate change at once" is a new report from Christian Aid that says rich industrialized nations have grown rich in part by polluting without facing the consequences, and must now pay the billons necessary to fix the global climate change crisis. The annual carbon debt for the UK alone could amount to at least EU35.6 billion, with EU countries collectively paying EU235 billion, and the US $414 billion each year. The massive payments are needed to help emerging economies cut greenhouse gas emissions and focus their resources instead on sustainable development.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L09306997.htm
http://www.christianaid.org.uk/stoppoverty/climatechange/Truly%20Inconvenient.pdf

In "Biofuels: An Important Part of a Low-Carbon Diet", the Union of Concerned Scientists says that expanded use of biofuels could cut global warming pollution, enhance our energy security, and strengthen local economies, but not all biofuels are created equal. Any expansion of alternative fuel production must be accompanied by standards that account for each fuel's full global warming impact—in other words, the total heat-trapping emissions associated with a fuel over its entire life cycle (from the oil well, coal mine, or farm to the vehicle engine).
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_vehicles/vehicles_health/biofuels-low-carbon-diet.html

Australia's contribution to global warming may be much greater than first thought. New research shows its power stations are the world's highest per capita producers of carbon dioxide. Australians each produce more than 10 tons of CO2 emissions for every person just through generating power, compared to 9 tons for each American and 2 tons for each Chinese.
http://carma.org/
http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/greenhouse-gases-proof-we-are-up-with-the-worst-polluters/2007/11/14/1194766770267.html

GFI Group has launched EnergyMatch, an electronic trading platform for over-the-counter energy derivatives, in North America.
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=180959&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1077829&highlight=

Scotland is on the verge of meeting its 2008 target on recycling, more than a year ahead of schedule.
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1794522007

Businesses from several industries are supporting the state of California in its litigation against the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). California needs a waiver from the EPA to put in place an ambitious plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent. California applied for  the waiver two years ago, and is using the lawsuit to force the agency to speed up their decision process.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119457199542987414.html
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ETM Human Rights
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In China, a death sentence means a bullet in the back of the head. In Iran, it means death by hanging. In Saudi Arabia, the victim is beheaded with a sword. World public opinion has been so outraged by the continued use of the death penalty in the 25 countries that carried out executions last year, that a petition carrying five million signatures has been presented to the UN, where yesterday a small group of countries were attempting to block the historic vote on a global moratorium that could lead to an all-out ban.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/article3160630.ece
http://english.nessunotocchicaino.it/

This article asks whether the entrepreneurial zeal, innovation and super-size budgets of private foundations can succeed where a sclerotic and undisciplined international aid industry has failed, or if the "New Philanthropy" is simply executive arrogance, vanity and naivete.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75248

Swiss Senator and Council of Europe rapporteur Dick Marty said sanctions on individuals or groups are generally better than against entire countries, but current blacklisting procedures often violate basic human rights: "Targeted sanctions against individuals or specific groups are, in principle, preferable to general sanctions imposed on states. General sanctions often have dire consequences for vulnerable population groups in the countries concerned, and generally not for their leadership".
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,2900056,00.html?maca=en-bulletin-433-html
http://assembly.coe.int/ASP/APFeaturesManager/defaultArtSiteView.asp?ID=717

China's propaganda officials are increasingly, but less predictably, intervening in investigative reporting, as illustrated in the case of Pang Jiaoming, who lost his position after reporting use of substandard coal ash on a high speed railway, and the risks this poses.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/11/AR2007111101455.html

On Monday Israel's High Court has ordered the State to reexamine its decision regarding the transfer of seven Palestinian patients from Gaza into Israel for treatment, and issue a decision on the matter within one week. This ruling follows a petition by Physicians for Human Rights filed last week, which asked how a dying person could pose a security threat.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3470695,00.html
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/RMOI-787MSN?OpenDocument

Indonesian human rights lawyers are questioning the commitment to religious freedom after recent arrests of several unorthodox Islamic leaders, and banning of their organizations.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/15/asia/indo.php

Neutrality is often said to be a "pragmatic" principle: in order to gain access to communities affected by war, humanitarians should not engage publicly in matters of political controversy. However, as "Humanitarian Advocacy in Darfur: the challenge of neutrality" argues, the strict notion of neutrality has been much eroded in recent years.
http://www.odi.org.uk/hpg/papers/hpgbrief28.pdf
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ETM Infectious Diseases
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report warns that climate change will increase deaths from heart attacks, strokes, respiratory disease, heat, and infectious diseases.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

Biologist Dr Robert Baker explains why the world's next global epidemic is coming.
http://news.independent.co.uk/sci_tech/article3158122.ece

World Health Organization (WHO) and Angolan officials are attempting to identify a disease of unknown etiology for which 370 cases have been treated in hospital, with no common source or route of exposure yet found.
http://www.who.int/csr/don/2007_11_16/en/index.html

Australia's Equine Influenza Inquiry, known as the Callinan inquiry, has heard persistent breaches of hygiene requirements up to the first horse falling ill on 17 August, and this breach of requirements may be the most likely cause of the spread of the virus.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/work-instructions-unseen-in-runup-to-flu-outbreak/2007/11/14/1194766770285.html
http://www.equineinfluenzainquiry.gov.au/

Avian flu has re-emerged in Bangladesh after four months, with five reported new outbreaks in poultry farms across the country since October.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75318

Indonesia has confirmed its 113th case of human H5N1 avian influenza, which resulted in the country's 91st death. Of all 335 laboratory confirmed cases reported to WHO through 12 November, 206 have proven fatal.
http://www.who.int/csr/don/2007_11_12/en/index.html
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/country/cases_table_2007_11_12/en/index.html

Through 14 November 2007, 329 human cases of Rift Valley Fever have been reported in Khartoum state of Sudan. Nearly a third of these have been fatal.
http://www.who.int/csr/don/2007_11_14/en/index.html
http://www.oie.int/eng/press/en_071105.htm

Here is the World Organization for Animal Health's latest update on highly pathogenic avian influenza types H5 and H7 in animals.
http://www.oie.int/downld/AVIAN%20INFLUENZA/A_AI-Asia.htm

Bahrain has banned poultry imports from Saudi Arabia.
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=200299&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30243

A recent outbreak of bird flu in Saudi Arabia has forced the culling of tens of thousands of birds. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal has formed a committee to undertake field inspections and keep a close watch on the Makkah region, where the Ministry of Agriculture has declared a state f emergency.
http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1&section=0&article=103682


With cold weather approaching, Thailand is taking precautionary measures to prevent human H5N1 infections.
http://nationmultimedia.com/2007/11/18/national/national_30056517.php
http://etna.mcot.net/view.php?id=1365

British officials are searching for the source of the country's fourth outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza among birds. The outbreak on Tuesday at Redgrave park farm was confirmed and more than 5,000 turkeys, a thousand ducks, and 500 geese have been culled. Protection and surveillance zones have been established, and poultry farmers have been told to house their birds.  Today culling on the four sites suspected of infection has ended, after more than 28,000 birds were slaughtered.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/birdflu/story/0,,2210100,00.html
http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/latest/2007/animal-1112.htm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/birdflu/story/0,,2211280,00.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7100572.stm
http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/latest/2007/animal-1112.htm
http://www.economist.com/world/britain/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10134231

Meanwhile, Marsh UK has issued a bulletin that analyzes the threats from the latest H5N1 outbreak.
http://www.marsh.co.uk/mediacentre/2007/pr20071113.php

Note the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Influenza Pandemic Operation Plan, and a new plan for H5N1 preparedness in Africa.
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic/cdcplan.htm
http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/13/10/1453.htm

A rare strain of adenovirus (serotype 14) that can cause severe respiratory disease outbreaks is becoming more common in the US. This virus can cause severe respiratory disease in people of all ages, including healthy young adults. If a medical provider sees a patient with severe or worsening respiratory symptoms, they might want to test for adenovirus. If the patient does have adenovirus, the provider might want to closely monitor the patient in case their condition worsens and requires more aggressive care. Ten healthy young adults have died in four states over the last 18 months.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5645a1.htm

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ETM Legal Systems
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Human rights organization Liberty released a comprehensive study of terrorist pre-charge detention powers in 15 countries, finding that terror suspects in the UK can already be held for longer than in any comparable democracy, including countries that have also suffered al Qaeda inspired attacks as in the US, Spain, and Turkey. The maximum detention period in Spain is five days, 7.5 in Turkey, and two in the US. The report was released amid debate over government proposals to extend the current 28-day holding period.
http://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/issues/pdfs/pre-charge-detention-comparative-law-study.pdf

US military tribunals in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, are not subject to US criminal law or the Military Justice code. Defense lawyers cite multiple reasons for believing that the "trials" are heavily weighted in favor of the prosecution, including evidence and witnesses brought late or not at all.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-gitmo13nov13,0,4390127.story
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ETM Natural Resources
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The Afghanistan Ministry of Mines and the US Geological Survey (USGS) collaborated on a new Assessment of non-fuel minerals in Afghanistan. The preliminary assessment outlines and describes areas in Afghanistan with greatest potential for not yet discovered deposits of valuable mineral materials including copper, gold, gemstones, mercury, iron ore, and marble.
http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=1819
http://washingtontimes.com/article/20071117/FOREIGN/111170030/1003
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ETM Populations
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report describes some of the projected regional impacts on Polar Regions as follows
* The main projected biophysical effects are reductions in thickness and extent of glaciers and ice sheets and sea ice, and changes in natural ecosystems with detrimental effects on many organisms including migratory birds
* For human communities in the Arctic, impacts, particularly those resulting from changing snow and ice conditions are projected to be mixed
* Detrimental impacts would include those on infrastructure and traditional indigenous ways of live
* In both polar regions, specific ecosystems and habitats are projected to be vulnerable, as climatic barriers to species invasions are lowered
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

China's family planning authorities report the number of males in China at marriage age is 18 million more than that of females due to a long period of high sex birth ratio since the 1980. The sex ratio at birth in rural areas was 122.85:100, higher than the national average of 119.58:100, as compared with the normal sex ratio of 103 to 107:100. By 2020, males aged between 20 and 45 are forecast to be 30 million more than females in the country. Rural family planning administrations are under-resourced, and do not provide basic free contraception control services in some areas.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/14/content_7068872.htm

In "The Impact of Extractive Industries on Rights of Local Communities" Groundwork considers the role of Anvil Mining on the lives or rights of the local populations. Since Anvil has been adhering to relevant national and international norms and standards, it has been less harmful than other mining companies. Key findings include:
* the social projects developed by Anvil Mining are not sustainable in that, to this day, they are conceived and managed by the company with no involvement by the communities in the actual mechanics of their management, neither during nor after the mining is completed
* currently, Anvil Mining has no program which could allow it to contribute in any coherent manner to the development of the communities of Dikulushi
* due to certain social projects, some rights of the community have been improved (health, employment, clean drinking water, and a secure working environment) while other rights have been negatively affected, or have not seen much improvement (housing, ownership of property, healthy environment)
http://www.groundwork.org.za/Publications/ZCTU.pdf

US Native American tribes living around Lake Superior have eaten fish, including walleye, trout and sucker, for centuries. In 2004, 98 percent of the fish harvested by Chippewa tribes in Northern Wisconsin lakes and 83 percent of the catch by tribes in Minnesota lakes were walleye. This presents a risk to the populations, as walleye has been heavily contaminated with mercury.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-10-29-mercury-cover_N.htm?
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ETM Social Responsibility
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In "Corporate Social Responsibility Practices in Small-scale Mining on the Copperbelt" Groundwork discusses copper and cobalt practices in Zambia, using three case studies. It explains that "small-scale mining companies operate in very uncertain conditions and circumstances. Many of them operate in areas where geological surveys have not been done and so they are not sure of what they will find underground. They operate by sheer luck. This is compounded by the problem of lack of access to finances leading to lack of appropriate equipment...." Few of these companies are successful, so few are not involved in tangible corporate social investments. The investments made so far have been in health, transport, and schools. The report makes three recommendations:
* The Ministry of Mines and Minerals Development needs to carry out sensitization programs to educate the mine operators on the need to work harmoniously with the local district to reduce unnecessary litigation. This education can center on understanding the rights and obligations of mine owners.
* The study also sees the need to strengthen the Environmental Council of Zambia and the Ministry of Mines so that they can carry out regular inspections to ensure that standards on the environment and mine safety are adhered to
* There is a need to bring on board the other operators through the Emerald and Semi Precious Stones Mining Association of Zambia (ESMAZ)
http://www.groundwork.org.za/Publications/ASHADHO English.pdf

Wal-Mart released what they called a comprehensive report on its sustainability efforts since they were announced two years ago. It included charitable giving, diversity, corporate governance, and health plans. Sustainability was addressed through selling compact fluorescent bulbs, and commitments.
http://walmartstores.com/GlobalWMStoresWeb/navigate.do?catg=217
http://us.ft.com/ftgateway/superpage.ft?news_id=fto111520071500453710
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/16/business/16walmart.html
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ETM Technology
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Time magazine named the iPhone the Best Invention of the Year.
http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/0,28757,1677329,00.html

China launched a national science and technology project to boost international cooperation on new and renewable energy, by developing new patterns for international exchange and cooperation, encouraging countries to complement each other with respective technological strengths and setting up a platform for technological cooperation.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/12/content_7059675.htm

Experts at the UN University's Institute of Advanced Studies said it would only be a matter of time before scientists manage to clone a human if governments do not impose a ban. The world faces a stark choice between banning cloning of humans or preparing ways to protect them from potential abuse or discrimination. Their report on Human Reproductive Cloning suggests that a ban on reproductive cloning, coupled with restricted therapeutic research, is the global compromise most likely to succeed.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L11272433.htm
http://www.ias.unu.edu/resource_centre/Cloning_9.20B.pdf
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ETM Weapons (WMD, Proliferation)
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French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Monday that he agrees with German Chancellor Angela Merkel that Iran must not acquire a nuclear weapon. Both leaders agree on the need for a democratic solution, and that additional sanctions to prevent further uranium enrichment may be necessary. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said that he would lead a tough strategy. Iran says that it will not stop enrichment as a condition to resume talks with the US. It has handed nuclear weapons and other documents to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), four years after they were requested.
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,2900482,00.html?maca=en-bulletin-433-html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,2209956,00.html
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071113/87848387.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,2211169,00.html

Soon after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad denounced critics of his hardline nuclear policy as traitors, moderate Hossein Mousavian, who favors compromise, was accused by the country's intelligence chief of supplying classified information to the UK embassy in Tehran.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,2211176,00.html
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article3160633.ece

The crisis over Iran's nuclear programs hit a peak on Thursday night when IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei released the new assessment of Iran, which revealed that 3,000 centrifuges for enriching uranium have been installed and are sufficient to begin industrial-scale production or nuclear fuel: enough for a warhead within a year. Iran has generally been telling the truth about its nuclear program, but this finding has not resolved longstanding issues of Iran's level of cooperation. Sanctions remain on the table, including China's participation.
http://www.isis-online.org/publications/iran/IranIAEAreportNov15.pdf
http://vienna.usmission.gov/_unvie/speeches_and_related_documents/Iran/1723.php
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/14/AR2007111401521.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,2212071,00.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/16/world/middleeast/16nuke.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/16/AR2007111600431.html

The Nuclear Suppliers Group reports that over the past nine years, Iran has been denied purchases of nuclear-related materials at lest 75 times over suspicions they would be used for bomb building.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/16/world/middleeast/16nations.html

The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission's annual report expresses concern over China's exports to North Korea of dual-use material that could be used in missiles.
http://www.uscc.gov/annual_report/2008/opening_remarks_bartholomew.php
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2007/11/16/26/0301000000AEN20071116000200315F.HTML

A German court has ordered a new trial for Gotthard Lerch, a German engineer who allegedly helped provide uranium enrichment equipment to Libya.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/14/europe/EU-GEN-Germany-Libya-Nuclear.php

Last weekend North Korea began providing evidence to the US that shows they never intended to produce highly enriched uranium for nuclear weapons.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/09/AR2007110902364.html

Pakistan insists that its nuclear weapons are secure and that multiple layers of command and control eliminate the risk they would be seized by Taleban or al Qaeda-linked militants.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/12/AR2007111200062.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/10/AR2007111001684.html

Government experts and intelligence officials say the threat of a suitcase nuke - which would be highly complex to produce, require significant upkeep and cost a small fortune - is greatly overblown.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/11/10/national/w082358S94.DTL&type=politics

The UN's Iraq inspectors - UNMOVIC - are packing up their mid-town Manhattan office and preparing to disappear. The Security Council terminated their mandate earlier this year. Now they need to determine a secure home for items ranging from the engine of an Iraqi Scud missile to WMD cookbooks.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7087865.stm

In "Landmine Monitor Report 2007: Toward a Mine-Free World" the International Campaign to Ban Landmines says that 14 countries are likely not to meet their mine clearance deadlines under the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production, and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction ("Mine Ban Treaty"), which entered into force in March 1999. They are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Chad, Croatia, Mozambique, Niger, Peru, Senegal, Tajikistan, Thailand, the United Kingdom (for clearance of the Falkland Islands/Malvinas), Venezuela, Yemen, and Zimbabwe. In addition, France, Niger, the UK and Venezuela have not even begun clearance operations, another obligation under the Treaty. In 2006 landmines claimed the lives of more than 5,700 people, of which three-quarters were civilians. Worldwide there are at least 473,000 landmine survivors - many requiring lifelong care. However, Government use of anti-personnel mines declined further in 2006, with only Russia and Burma (Myanmar) continuing to lay landmines.
http://www.unidir.ch/bdd/fiche-activite.php?ref_activite=357
http://www.icbl.org/lm/2007/

China on Tuesday responded to a recent US announcement of plans to sell three sets of Patriot II anti-missile upgrades and equipment to Taiwan, by urging the nearly $1 billion arms deal be cancelled. The Foreign Ministry also called on the US immediately to end arms sales and military links with Taiwan.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/13/content_7066829.htm

Following a unanimous parliamentary vote, Russia's Armed Forces General Staff chief General Yury Baluyevsky says that a moratorium on Russia's Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty obligations will take effect on 12 December. He added that missile defense elements the US plans to deploy in Central Europe are directed against Russia.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/16/europe/EU-GEN-Russia-Arms-Treaty.php
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071114/88118482.html
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071113/87816955.html

5. Critical Infrastructure Monitor

The 21st century is the interdependent century. Understanding the implicit and explicit networks on which we rely, and the interdependencies among the sectors of the critical infrastructure is essential for business continuity, economic success, and our very survival. The Critical Infrastructure Monitor, published monthly, analyzes these sectors, regulatory frameworks, and issues of enterprise risk management in global supply chains.
http://secure.netsolhost.com/573566.585211/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=TP
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CIM Agriculture and Food
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report offers adaptation options/strategies for Agriculture such as adjustment of planting dates and crop variety; crop relocation; and improved land management, e.g. erosion control and soil protection through tree planting. The necessary underlying policy framework would involve research and development policies; institutional reform; land tenure and land reform; training; capacity building' crop insurance; and financial incentives such as subsidies and tax credits. Key constraints to implementation include technological and financial constraints; access to new varieties; and markets. Opportunities include longer growing season in higher latitudes; and revenues from new products.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

Afghanistan has expanded its pomegranate exports, a profitable crop that offers an alternative to opium.


The steady increase in cereal prices is likely to elevate the level of household food insecurity in Djibouti’s rural and urban areas. The price increases have been more substantial in rural areas, where they are further influenced by increases in local transportation costs. In urban areas, these price increases coincide with a decline in income-earning opportunities.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/FEWS/64bd7749c6deeeef155c20a83d0790eb.htm

The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) plans to help small-scale farmers growing local crops to lead a belated "green revolution", producing higher output of foods such as cassava, sorghum and yams to reduce imports of rice, wheat and maize.
http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=324852
http://www.agra-alliance.org/

As the main rainy and agriculture season is now starting in much of Mozambique, attention must immediately be directed to ensuring farmers have adequate access to agricultural inputs, particularly in the drought affected areas of the south, where households have not been able to retain seed from the previous season and seed shortages are widespread.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/FEWS/003916b6c4f554a814bed412e790dfd4.htm

With little information on this year's harvest in northern Nigeria available market traders are using rumors of imminent food shortages to push prices beyond most people's reach.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75269

International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) director general Dr William Dar is pushing for sustainable agriculture practices in the Philippines region of Cordillera, where land degradation is fast becoming a problem.
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/bag/2007/11/15/news/farmers.told.to.practice.sustainable.agriculture.html
http://www.icrisat.org/

UK farmers face new levies to help pay for soaring costs of animal diseases, including avian influenza, bluetongue, and foot and mouth.
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/homeaffairs/story/0,,2212892,00.html

US farmers have appealed to federal court to dissociate hemp production from marijuana. Farmers in 30 countries grow hemp for making fabric, food, carpet backing, and car door panels. It belongs to the same genus as marijuana, and growing it in the US requires federal licensing, difficult to achieve. The active ingredient in marijuana is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Hemp typically contains 0.3 percent THC - insufficient for a narcotic effect - while the leaves and flowers used by pot smokers have 5-30 percent.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/11/AR2007111101451.html

Venezuelan supermarkets offer gourmet delicacies, but milk, eggs, sugar and cooking oil are scarce. Food shortages are plaguing the country at the same time that oil revenues are driving a spending splurge on imported luxury goods, much to the dismay of President Chavez.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/venezuela/story/0,,2210473,00.html

In Zimbabwe, Seed Co Ltd has a $16 million foreign debt through 30 September. Although they say they will be able to pay off the debt, this is not certain.
http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=27040&cat=8
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CIM Banking and Finance
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The UK Association of Insurance and Risk Managers (AIRMIC) has warmly welcomed Law Commission plans to reform the way insurance is governed in the UK, particularly the concepts of a "reasonable insured" and "reasonable expectation of the insured" plus a move away from implicit warranties. Under the new proposals policyholders who have behaved "reasonably" would be protected even though they may have failed to grasp the legal nuances of the small print.
http://www.airmic.com/en/Library/detail/index.cfm/news/1ADDC95C-96CB-4E21-8E4748F1406FA45F
http://www.lawcom.gov.uk/docs/cp182_web.pdf (Law Commission Consultation Paper)
http://www.lawcom.gov.uk/docs/cp182_summary.pdf (Summary)
http://www.lawcom.gov.uk/docs/cp182_response_sheet.pdf (Response sheet )
http://www.lawcom.gov.uk/docs/cp182_press_sheet_with_examples.pdf (Press release)

The US Treasury recently published a notice for comment regarding federal regulation of insurance and foreign business entities. The National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) this week responded, saying the proposal is biased in favor of federal regulation. They support state regulation and oversight, and reject European-style systems of principles-based regulation.
http://www.pianet.com/doc/Comm/treasury_101707.pdf http://www.pianet.com/doc/Comm/LettertoSecPaulson.pdf

The FDIC has amended its regulation governing the reporting of personal securities transactions by bank officers and certain employees. The amendment extends the deadline for providing quarterly reports of personal securities transactions from ten business days to 30 calendar days after the end of the calendar quarter. The final rule will become effective on November 26, 2007.
http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/financial/2007/fil07099.html

Zimbabwean non-governmental organizations (NGOs) claim their operations have been paralyzed since the Reserve Bank raided their foreign currency accounts (FCAs).
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75335
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CIM Chemical
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The UN Environment Program (UNEP) Chemicals Branch sponsored a global meeting to explore options on how best to reduce environmental sources of mercury, from voluntary measures to legally binding treaties. There are growing concerns that increased burning of coal, which is naturally contaminated with mercury, is leading to releases to the air in some parts of the world from where it can spread around the globe. Soaring gold price may also be increasing mercury pollution locally and worldwide, since mercury is used to extract gold from ore in many artisanal mining operations that involve millions of workers and their families. UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner  pointed out that scientists have been warning about the dangers to human health, wildlife and the wider environment for well over a century, and called for governments and experts to urgently provide a comprehensive and decisive response . Mercury is linked with a wide range of health effects including irreversible damage to the human nervous system including the brain and scientists have concluded there is no safe limit when it comes to mercury exposure.
http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=521&ArticleID=5702&l=en

Despite decades of US government attempts to regulate it, ban it and erase it from household use, the poisonous metal mercury remains a threat to the environment and public health, especially to children and to women of childbearing age. Up to 600,000 babies born in the US each year face irreversible brain damage because pregnant mothers ate mercury-contaminated fish. Across the country, more than 8,000 lakes, rivers and bays are compromised by mercury's toxic effects.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-10-29-mercury-cover_N.htm
http://www.epa.gov/mercury/report.htm

From 2008 chemical plants around China's Taihu Lake will be asked to pay $1.4 for each kilogram of chemical oxygen demand (COD), a major index to measure pollution. The decision to make factories pay high fees to discharge pollutants stems from a serious algae outbreak earlier this year. High prices will force polluting companies to upgrade their treatment facilities and reduce waste, and will force more than 1,000 small chemical factories to shut down.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/12/content_7059281.htm

Philippines National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales said that the government would review its policies on explosives for private use.
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/cag/2007/11/17/news/gonzales.monitor.explosive.materials.html

Military installations operated by the Department of Defense (DOD) can generate hazardous waste during routine operations, such as the repair and maintenance of weapon systems and equipment, or during an environmental cleanup related to past operations. DOD primarily relies on private contractors to handle the off-site disposal of hazardous waste generated by its installations and has procedures aimed at ensuring that its contractors select appropriate transporters and treatment, storage, and disposal facilities. In "Hazardous Waste: Information on How DOD and Federal and State Regulators Oversee the Off-Site Disposal of Waste from DOD Installations" the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) describes procedures for selecting contractors, the role of the Environmental Protection Agency and state agencies, and the information that facilities and regulators must publicly report regarding a release of hazardous waste and the enforcement actions taken against facilities found in violation of the applicable laws and regulations.
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-08-74

A Marsh webcast on "Chemical Industry Security Risks" finds that risk managers may find it difficult to comply with new Department of Homeland security regulations. Those falling under the terms of the new regulations will have 60 days to write risk management policies or face a $25,000 per day fine. Doing this is a particular challenge, particularly for peripheral installations such as agriculture and universities.
http://global.marsh.com/news/press/pr20071102.php
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CIM Commercial Facilities
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report offers adaptation options/strategies for Infrastructure/Settlement, including coastal zones, such as relocation; seawalls and storm surge barriers; dune reinforcement; land acquisition and creation of marshlands/wetlands as buffer against sea level rise and flooding; and protection of existing natural barriers. The necessary underlying policy framework would involve standards and regulations that integrate climate change considerations into design; land use policies; building codes; and insurance. Key constraints include financial and technological barriers; and availability of relocation space. Opportunities include integrated policies and managements; and synergies with sustainable development goals.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

US Representatives Doris Matsui and Mario Diaz-Balar are cosponsoring the Safe Building Codes Act of 2007 that would create incentives for states to adopt and enforce heightened construction standards to help protect communities against damaging natural disasters. States with a mandatory statewide building code with enforcement measures would be eligible for an additional 4 percent disaster relief funding, and could utilize existing pre-disaster mitigation grants to administer building code programs prior to the occurrence of a disaster.
http://matsui.house.gov/Newsroom.asp?ARTICLE2939=9909
http://www.disastersafety.org/newsroom/view.asp?id=11506&Mode=List

Nearly three decades after the US banned lead in paint and gasoline, it continues to harm more than 300,000 children. As windows are opened and closed, lead paint deteriorated and the dust and chips collect around the window, on the windowsill, and on the floor. More than 20 million windows need to be replaced to make homes safe from lead poisoning.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-10-28-lead-cover_N.htm
http://www.leadsafe.org/
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CIM Cybersecurity
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Apple released a software update with at least 54 security fixes.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=306907

Microsoft released a critical IE7 patch to guard against domain name spoofing.
https://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms07-nov.mspx
http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=3642

Even though cybercrime costs U.S. firms and the economy billions of dollars annually, individuals, corporate executives, and government officials have done little to stop thieves and hackers.
http://www.mercurynews.com/fdcp?1194608902566

Wolfgang Selzer, head of security at Exponant, said that in 2005, white-collar crime in South Africa was running in excess of R40-billion a year, with cyber criminals responsible for a significant portion.
http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=324899

MySpace.com has been crippled due to a severe phishing virus spreading in recent weeks. It involved a fake free gift card that completes the transaction by asking for confirmation of the user's name and password, which then spreads through a botnet.
http://wcbstv.com/topstories/MySpace.phishing.epidemic.2.564643.html

The European asylum seekers' fingerprint database Eurodac has security weaknesses that need to be addressed to ensure proper data protection.
http://www.edps.europa.eu/EDPSWEB/webdav/site/mySite/shared/Documents/Supervision/Eurodac/07-11-09_Eurodac_audit_summary_EN.pdf

The UK Foreign Office will take steps to keep data safer in the future following an incident in which personal data of visa applicants was exposed to the public.
http://www.ico.gov.uk/upload/documents/library/data_protection/notices/foreign%20_commonwealth_office.pdf

Australian Federal Police led a multi-agency operation to break up a Hong Kong identity crime syndicate.
http://afp.gov.au/media_releases/national/2007/hong_kong_identity_crime_syndicate_arrests

Terry Lee Parker was sentenced in California court to 75 months federal prison for his execution and coordination of a scheme to manufacture checks with account numbers of others, using stolen identification and account number information from the US Mail and elsewhere to create fraudulent checks.
http://sacramento.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel07/sc110907b.htm

The American Hospital Association is calling for standardized privacy rules to ensure that healthcare providers can access needed data at the point of care and facilitate adoption of information technology, giving priority to federal privacy laws as outlined in the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
http://corporate.lexisnexis.com/news/corporate-counsel,compliance/cat200001_doc687996034.html

Islamic militants are getting better at targeting specific online audiences, and international efforts to combat such misuse of the Web must be better coordinated.
http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-30541820071116
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/15/europe/EU-GEN-OSCE-Targeting-Terrorists.php
http://www.osce.org/atu/item_1_27955.html
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CIM Dams and Bridges
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In Nigeria's commercial capital Lagos bridges carrying tens of millions of vehicles have not been maintained for more than three decades.
http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=324789
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CIM Defense Industrial Base
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German daily Handelsblatt reports that over half of Germany's Transall military transport planes are unsuitable for long hauls.
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,2871918,00.html?maca=en-bulletin-433-html

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) inquiry into the September Blackwater shooting that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead has found that at least 14 were killed without cause.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/14/world/middleeast/14blackwater.html

In "Defense Acquisitions: Overcoming Challenges Key to Capitalizing on Mine Countermeasures Capabilities" the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) describes significant challenges to Navy plans to capitalize on mine countermeasures systems and the Littoral Combat ship:
* Operational testing plans for four systems in limited production will not provide a complete understanding of how the systems will perform when operated from the Littoral Combat Ship. Other ships will be used in testing to inform full-rate production decisions on the individual systems. While other ships may serve as platforms for the anti-mine systems, the Littoral Combat Ship is their primary platform, and it will have different launch, recovery, and handling systems. In addition, Navy plans call for testing these systems in smooth, uncluttered environments, although operating environments are expected to be less favorable.
* The first two Littoral Combat Ships have encountered design and production challenges. Costs are expected to more than double from initial estimates, and the Navy anticipates lead whip delivery nearly 18 months later than first planned. This may slow the planned transition from current mine countermeasures platforms.
* The Navy has reduced its investments in intelligence preparation of the environment capabilities - including the capability to locate and map minefield boundaries - even though improvements in this area could reduce mine countermeasures mission timelines by 30 to 75 percent. These capabilities are especially important for the Littoral Combat Ship, as it must stand clear of suspected minefields.
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-08-13
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CIM Emergency Services
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New regulations prohibit Chinese fire-fighting officials and their spouse and children from running companies related to fire-fighting facilities and fire protection materials, and from providing fire protection services.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/13/content_7068433.htm

This article discusses trauma training in Pakistan.
http://www.jems.com/news_and_articles/columns/Chapleau/Trauma_Training_in_Pakistan.html

Amtrak police and other local officials are teaching US children how to build emergency kits for their homes, and other disaster preparedness steps.
http://www.co.ho.md.us/News/News_20060925.htm
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/education/stories/111507dnnatterrortots.27a222b.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/13/AR2007111302423.html
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CIM Energy
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report offers adaptation options/strategies for Energy such as strengthening of overhead transmission and distribution infrastructure; underground cabling for utilities; energy efficiency; use of renewable sources; and reduced dependence on single sources of energy. The necessary underlying policy framework would involve national energy policies, regulations, and fiscal and financial incentives to encourage use of alternative sources; and incorporating climate change in design standards. Key constraints to implementation include access to viable alternatives; financial and technological barriers; and acceptance of new technologies. Key opportunities include stimulation of new technologies; and use of local resources.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

High oil prices are fueling one of the biggest transfers of wealth in history. Oil consumers are paying $4 billion to $5 billion more for crude oil every day than they did just five years ago, pumping more than $2 trillion into the coffers of oil companies and oil-producing nations this year alone.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/09/AR2007110902573.html

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, speaking in Brazil, said that biofuels have the potential to cause both good and harm and governments must therefore be careful to balance the costs and benefits of developing them as energy sources.
http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp?nid=1092

Focus on the Global South released "Agroenergy: Myths and Impacts in Latin America". Biofuels (or agrofuels) production has increased dramatically in Latin America over recent years, as global concern over climate change grows and oil prices continue to rise. Recent studies on the negative impacts of fossil fuels have contributed to agrofuels becoming one of the most important issues of the day. There is a need to demystify the positive view of biofuels promoted by corporations and highlight the negative impacts of biofuels production in Latin America, which include the destruction of the environment and the overexploitation of labor. Participants in the seminar that this report covers committed to:
* expand and strengthen the struggles of social movements in Latin America and the Caribbean, through a network among existing workers' organizations and support groups
* denounce and combat any agrarian model based on monocultures and concentration of land and profit, destructive of the environment or responsible for overexploitation of the working force
 * strengthen rural workers' organizations, salaried workers, and farmworkers to construct a new model that is closely cemented to farmworker agriculture and agroecology, with diversified production and prioritizing internal consumption.
http://www.focusweb.org/images/stories/pdf/agro_fuels_in_la_english.pdf

Nigeria's Federal Government is   collaborating with the US and some European countries in an effort to forestall crude oil theft in the Gulf of Guinea.
http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=95290

Gazprom forecasts that the average European natural gas price will be $300 per 1,000 cubic meters in 2008.
http://en.rian.ru/business/20071112/87736586.html

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called on the energy sector to refrain from investing in Iran.
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1794822007

US House and Senate lawmakers are wrestling with tougher Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards for trucks and cars, and a national Renewable Portfolio Standard for utilities that would force them to integrate more green power into their energy mix. An unresolved issue in the energy bill is: who will pay?
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1107/p01s01-wogi.html

Zimbabwe has launched its first biodiesel plant.
http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=27124&cat=1
http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=27129&cat=10
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CIM Government Facilities
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New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has threatened to keep school children from visiting the UN unless it upgrades its fire and emergency plans by early next year. The 17-acre complex has corrected only 20 percent of the 866 violations found during a Fire Department six months ago.
http://www.silive.com/news/advance/index.ssf?/base/news/119513254485430.xml&coll=1
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CIM Information Technology
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The second meeting of the UN Internet Governance Forum tackled issues including critical internet resources, access, openness, and using the web to assist development. Meeting chair Sergio Rezende said that the internet is essential for education, thus the need for universal access. The digital divide is a factor in increasing inequality, while digital inclusion will lead to a fairer and more balanced world.  
http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2859
http://www.intgovforum.org/

Intel has redesigned the transistor to jump from 65 nanometer to 45 nanometer processor technology, ushering in a new era in technology.
http://www.intel.com/technology/quad-core/server/index.htm?iid=homepage+news_htownqc http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1677329_1678130_1678116,00.html

Chinese customs authorities uncovered 1,914 cases of intellectual property rights infringement in the first three quarters of this year, involving goods worth nearly $40 million.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/15/content_7076790.htm
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CIM National Monuments and Icons
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Of all the images by which Scotland's capital city Edinburgh is known throughout the world, that of Princes Street with its magnificent view on to the gardens and Edinburgh Castle is the most iconic, but seemingly small incremental changes are making it less distinctive.
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1762792007
http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1653
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CIM Nuclear Reactors, Materials, and Waste
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China plans to double its nuclear power capacity by 2020.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/15/content_7084258.htm

Scientists appointed by Swedish-owned Vattenfall Europe recommended that two of Germany's 17 nuclear power plants be put back online following a summer fire accident.
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,2878030,00.html?maca=en-bulletin-433-html

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Russian President Vladimir Putin did not signed a deal for four additional Russian reactors at the Koodankulam nuclear power station, although the contract was ready, but their collaboration will continue.
http://www.hindu.com/2007/11/13/stories/2007111353741000.htm

A week after the assault on South Africa's Pelindaba nuclear reactor and research center, no new information has been reported.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/world/africa/15joburg.html

Turkey has taken a major step to join the "peaceful nuclear club" approving a law that set the guidelines to set up a nuclear power industry.
http://www.thenewanatolian.com/tna-29463.html

Cold War-era nuclear weapons workers hope new documentation about their exposure to radiation at Bethlehem Steel will bolster their efforts to receive compensation from the US government.
http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/buffaloerie/story/205121.html
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=dbe433a1-d4a7-4045-9f8a-a52984f15390&k=17603
http://www.eh.doe.gov/advocacy/
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CIM Public Health and Healthcare
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report offers adaptation options/strategies for human health such as heat-health action plans; emergency medical services; improved climate-sensitive disease surveillance and control; and safe water and improved sanitation. The necessary underlying policy framework would involve public health policies that recognize climate risk; strengthened health services; and regional and international cooperation. Key constraints to implementation include limits to human tolerance (vulnerable groups); knowledge limitations; and financial capacity. Opportunities include upgraded health services and improved quality of life.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) reports that the current legal supply of opium, which has a number of medical purposes including pain management, is enough to meet global demand. Narcotic drugs in general, and opiate analgesics, such as morphine or codeine, in particular, are essential in the treatment of moderate to severe pain, but consumption is concentrated in a few regions; Europe and North America accounted for 89 per cent of the global consumption of morphine last year. INCB expressed concern at the low levels of consumption of morphine and other opiate analgesics for treating pain in the other countries, particularly those in the developing world. Concerns about addition and the reluctance to prescribe were among the main reasons for this, as cited in a recent survey among governments. INCB is working with the World Health Organization to address these issues.
http://www.unis.unvienna.org/unis/pressrels/2007/unisnar1014.html

In the Australian state of New South Wales, a parliamentary inquiry into Royal North Shore Hospital heard tales of cockroaches crawling on an operating table during surgery, a doctor catching an unconscious patient when an old table collapsed during an operation, and high-pressure hoses exploding injuring nurses in theatre.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/cockroaches-on-hospital-operating-table/2007/11/12/1194766588884.html

Local opposition to polio eradication efforts in western Pakistan is declining.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75259
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CIM Telecommunications
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Critical internet resources, access, openness and using the World Wide Web to assist development were among the issues tackled at the UN Internet Governance Forum meeting.
http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2859

Time magazine named the iPhone the Invention Of the Year
http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1677329_1678542,00.html

Turkey is ending its dependency on sources abroad in its fight against terrorism and monitoring international drugs and human trafficking by launching the Gokturk Reconnaissance and Surveillance Satellite Systems Project.
http://www.thenewanatolian.com/tna-29464.html
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CIM Transportation
--------------------------------------------------
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report offers adaptation options/strategies for Transport such as realignment/relocation; and design standards and planning for roads, rail, and other infrastructure to cope with warming and drainage. The necessary underlying policy framework would involve integrating climate change considerations into national transport policy; and investment in research and development for special situations, e.g. permafrost areas. Key constraints include financial and technological barriers; and availability of less vulnerable routes. Opportunities include improved technologies and integration with key sectors, e.g. energy.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

The Legal Affairs Committee of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) reports that the procedures the UN Security Council and EU use for blacklisting individuals with suspected terrorist links are unworthy of these international bodies, breaching human rights, and need urgent overhaul. The draft says, "Targeted sanctions against individuals or specific groups ('blacklists') imposed by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the Council of the European Union (EU) are, in principle, preferable to general sanctions imposed on states. General sanctions often have dire consequences for vulnerable population groups in the countries concerned, and generally not for their leadership, whilst targeted sanctions hurt only those found personally responsible for certain wrongdoings".
http://assembly.coe.int/ASP/APFeaturesManager/defaultArtSiteView.asp?ID=717

Australian traveler Rex Chen claims there was a "major security breach" at Vancouver International Airport after he was issued a duplicate boarding pass that let him past two security points this week. The airline had made a mistake, but say such cases are very rare.
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=b624ceaf-4194-4a2b-8782-754a7cd63405&k=25207

Tourism industry leaders complain that Scottish airports are going over the top with safety measures, causing chaos for thousands of passengers every day.
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1789802007

An international panel of former pilots and government officials described their experiences seeing or investigating unidentified flying object (UFO) phenomena, and called on the US to reopen the Project Blue Book inquiry into 12,500 UFO reports.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKN1248419720071112
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article3157771.ece
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7091922.stm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Blue_Book

On Tuesday the US House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform examined whether TSA Airport Security Checkpoints have improved over the last year. A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report again detailed significant vulnerabilities.
http://oversight.house.gov/story.asp?ID=1621
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/14/AR2007111402525.html?wpisrc=newsletter
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-08-48T

Nigeria's Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ganiyu Adekeye, reported that the Navy has arrested 260 ships involved in illegal bunkering. In some cases naval officers had collaborated in the crimes. Additional resources are needed to cope with the 200 nautical mile maritime boundary.
http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=95393

Rail passengers at Britain's largest stations face being searched and having their bags screened as part of a package of national security measures unveiled by Gordon Brown. See Recommended Reading, below, for more
http://www.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,,2211224,00.html

Next week, Japan will begin taking fingerprints and digital photos of foreign visitors.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-screening11nov11,0,378608.story

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is responsible for keeping terrorists and other dangerous people from entering the country while also facilitating the cross-border movement of millions of travelers. CBP carries out this responsibility at 326 air, sea, and land ports of entry. This week the US Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held a hearing on Human Capital Needs of CBP, where a redacted Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, "Border Security: Despite Progress, Weaknesses in Traveler Inspections Exist at Our Nation's Ports of Entry" was reviewed.
http://www.senate.gov/~gov_affairs/index.cfm?Fuseaction=Hearings.Detail&HearingID=502
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-08-192T

South Africa's Home Affairs Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula announced plans for vast improvement in the time it takes to obtain identity documents, passports and other services. It currently takes an average of 127 days to get an ID, but the department aim to reduce this to 60 days within a year and to seven days in five years. They are also closing a loophole that allows illegal aliens to acquire South African birth certificates, identification documents and grants fraudulently, by terminating the privilege of allowing late registration of births.
http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=324893
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CIM Water
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth synthesis report offers adaptation options/strategies for Water such as expanded rainwater harvesting; water storage and conservation techniques; water re-use; desalination; water-use and irrigation efficiency. The necessary underlying policy framework would involve national water polities and integrated water resources management; and water-related hazards management. Key constraints include financial, human resources, and physical barriers. Opportunities include integrated water resources management and synergies with other sectors.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

A record 30.5 billion tons of domestic and industrial sewage was dumped into the Yangtze River last year, an increase of 900 million tons or 3.1 percent higher than 2005. The waste included 9.7 billion tons of domestic sewage and 20.8 billion tons of industrial sewage.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/13/content_7068263.htm

The US drought is now so acute that, in some southern communities, the water supply is cut off for 21 hours a day.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article3160632.ece

The thirstiest US states, notably in the West, cast increasingly covetous eyes on the largest fresh-water reservoir: the five Great Lakes.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-water28oct28,0,7732465.story

6. Disaster Reduction Monitor

Natural and manmade events are inevitable, but they need not become disasters. Subscribers to the monthly Disaster Reduction Monitor learn from past incidents to prevent future disasters. It includes analysis of historical events, emerging risks and risk mitigation, and features new techniques to address disaster reduction, ranging from technical advances to regulatory best practices and micro-finance.
http://secure.netsolhost.com/573566.585211/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=TP
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DRM Incidents
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More than 2,000 people have died in Bangladesh following Cyclone Sidr, which ravaged the southern coast.

A 7.7 level earthquake hit northern Chile, killing two and injuring 20.

A fierce storm hit Russia's Black Sea coast. An oil tanker broke apart, leaving three seamen dead and five missing, presumed dead. Hundreds of tons of fuel oil have hit the coast, causing an ecological catastrophe that has already killed 30,000 birds. The loss of fish is impossible to count. The long-term impact is as yet undetermined.
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DRM Response and Recovery
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Aid agencies in Bangladesh are scrambling to provide relief to thousands of victims of Cyclone Sidr.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75364

China reports that during the May-October flood season in the reaches of the Yangtze River, floods and other natural disasters killed 600 people, and affected 90 million, with direct economic losses of $5.8 billion.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/13/content_7068590.htm

Among the tragedies left behind by fire is the loss of family valuables. Guidelines from Heritage Preservation and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) may help residents and businesses salvage some keepsakes.
http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=41591

The entire crew of the Cosco Busan, which disgorged 58,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay after sideswiping a bridge last week, is being detained on the ship for questioning as part of a criminal investigation. There are also questions regarding the Coast Guard response, including claims that their new homeland security duties have hurt their capacity for tackling other crises. An inquiry into the delayed response is likely.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/11/AR2007111101659.html
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-me-spill13nov13,0,7297249.story
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/11/09/MNVQT8TN3.DTL
http://action.foe.org/pressRelease.jsp?press_release_KEY=288

A long-simmering dispute about whether a leading engineering organization whitewashed the role of the Army Corps of Engineers in the failure of the levee system during Hurricane Katrina has broken into the open with a bitter YouTube spoof and a demand for an ethics investigation of the organization's staff.
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1195021389260630.xml&coll=1


In June, the Army Corps of Engineers announced that new gates and levee repairs meant residents returning to Lakeview and Old Metairie would see floodwaters reduced by up to 5 1/2 feet if the city were hit by a 100-year hurricane. A mathematical error meant this finding was off by 5 feet.
http://blog.nola.com/times-picayune/2007/11/flooding_estimates_are_off_by.html
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DRM Risks
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Aon Global Risk Consulting's survey of global enterprise risk management (ERM) practices finds that even as government regulators and corporate stakeholders demand companies do more to address and mitigate enterprise-wide risks, only one in 10 companies in the Americas and Europe has fully integrated ERM strategy.
http://www.aon.com/grms2007/default.jsp

Over 1,000 poor people living on the steep slopes of a mountain in Badakhshan province in northeast Afghanistan are being urged by aid agencies and authorities to move as they are at risk of being killed in landslides and avalanches.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75247

Marsh UK has issued a bulletin that analyzes the risks from the latest outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza in the UK, including a variety of business continuity management and insurance issues.
http://www.marsh.co.uk/mediacentre/2007/pr20071113.php

AIR Worldwide has released an updated US terrorism model.
http://www.air-worldwide.com/_public/html/newsitem.asp?ID=1359

In California, much of the new development in Los Angeles and Orange counties is occurring on land the state says is at high risk for wildfires
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-me-develop11nov11,0,6739718.story
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DRM Mitigation
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The Food Security Analysis Unit (FSAU) of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) was developed in Somalia and will now be offered as a "common currency to describe the nature and severity of a crisis". The tool makes it possible for humanitarian agencies and donors to analyze a disaster, compare it with another, and establish priorities accordingly.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75303

The Conference Board reports that more corporate boards are driving enterprise risk management (ERM), but despite progress, ERM has yet to become embedded in most companies' day-to-day activities. Other findings include:
* Executives surveyed indicate that in 2006, 34 percent of their corporate boards, up from 29 percent in 2004, believe that ERM is significant or highly significant in carrying out their stewardship roles.
* There are substantial differences in ERM maturity across industries: financial services, energy, and utilities have more developed ERM processes than other industries. However, there has been rapid growth in ERM in the healthcare sector over the past years.
* Companies that are outside of North America have developed processes at a faster pace and have a higher rate that are up and running.
* Implementing ERM in a company generally takes three to five years. And companies often find they start and restart crafting an ERM framework that is viable for their particular organizations.
* Among core business functions (e.g. legal, CFO, CEO, Board), there is general agreement on the importance of ERM; nearly 1/3 of each of these functions consider ERM to be of critical importance to their business.
http://www.conference-board.org/utilities/pressDetail.cfm?press_ID=3259

Scientists studying rare firestorms are hoping to find a pattern that will help them better predict their behavior.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-firestorm9nov09,0,4925686.story

7. Recommended Reading

This week, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown revealed details of a forthcoming national security strategy in a statement to Parliament. It is reproduced below.


In advance of the national security strategy, which will be published in the next few weeks, and following the statement by the head of MI5 about the potential threat from UK-based terrorists, I want to update the House, as I promised in July, on the measures we are taking at home to root out terrorism and strengthen the resilience of communities to resist extremist influences following the incidents of 29 June and 30 June. As everyone in this House knows, to succeed, those measures will require not just military and security resources but more policing and intelligence, and an enhanced effort to win hearts and minds.

First of all, let me thank the police, the security services and the armed forces for their vigilance, their service and their courage in facing up to the terrorist threat. The terrorist attacks in June revolved around an attempted bomb attack on a London venue where hundreds congregated, and a vehicle bomb attack on Glasgow airport. The conclusions today of the review by Lord West on the protection of strategic infrastructure, stations, ports and airports, and other crowded places, identify a need to step up physical protection against possible vehicle bomb attacks. That will include, where judged necessary, improved security at railway stations-focusing first on our 250 busiest stations most at risk-and at airport terminals, ports and more than one hundred sensitive installations.

The report proposes the installation of robust physical barriers as protection against vehicle bomb attacks, the nomination of vehicle exclusion zones to keep all but authorized vehicles at a safe distance, and making buildings blast resistant. While no major failures in our protective security have been identified, companies responsible for crowded places will now be given detailed and updated advice on how they can improve their resilience against attack, both by better physical protection and greater vigilance in identifying suspicious behavior.

New guidance will be sent to thousands of cinemas, theatres, restaurants, hotels, sporting venues and commercial centers, and all hospitals, schools and places of worship, and it will include advice on training staff to be more vigilant. Up to 160 counter-terrorism advisers will train civilian staff to identify suspect activity and to ensure premises have secure emergency exits, that CCTV footage is used to best effect, and that there are regular searches and evacuation drills. From now on, local authorities will be required as part of their performance framework to assess the measures they have taken to protect against terrorism.

We will now work with architects and designers to encourage them to "design-in" protective security measures to new buildings, including safe areas, traffic control measures and the use of blast-resistant materials. For that advice, I am grateful for the recommendations of the hon. Member for Newark (Patrick Mercer), whom I thank for his work.

Following further work, we will report back soon on what more we need to do to strengthen security to protect against the use of hazardous substances for terrorist purposes.

Just as we are constantly vigilant about the ways in which we can tighten our security, we must also ensure that the traveling public can go about their business in the normal way. In the most sensitive locations, for example, some large rail stations-and while doing everything to avoid inconvenience to passengers-we are planning additional screening of baggage and passenger searches.

In the past few months at key airports, there has already been additional investment in new screening capacity and we have been able to review the one-bag-per-passenger rule. The Transport Secretary is announcing today that, as soon as we are confident that airports can handle the additional baggage safely, the restrictions on hand baggage will be progressively lifted. Starting with several airports in the new year, we will work with airport operators to ensure that all UK airports are in a position to allow passengers to fly with more than one item of hand luggage.

The security budget, which is GBP2.5 billion this year, will rise to GBP3.5 billion in 2011. Because of the terrorist threat, the size of the Security Service, which was under 2,000 in 2001 and is 3,300 now, will rise beyond 4,000. That is twice its size of 2001.

I can also report that we have now constituted dedicated regional counter-terrorism units, with, in total, more than 2,000 police and support staff. They are responsible for overseeing investigations into those who recruit terrorists and promote hate.

From the Home Office budget, from now until 2011, an additional GBP240 million will finance counter-terrorism policing, which is focused as much on preventing the next generation of terrorists as on pursuing current targets. That will include additional funding for further training of our 3,500 neighborhood police teams to deal with radicalization in their local communities.

The scale of our international effort is such that around GBP400 million in the next three years will be invested through the Foreign Office, the Department for International Development and the British Council to tackle radicalization and promote understanding overseas. The Government will report back on action overseas with other countries to counter extremism when we launch the full national security strategy. I can also confirm that £70 million is being invested in community projects that are dedicated to countering violent extremism. So, in total, we are now investing nearly three times as much in security compared with six years ago.

In line with the measured way in which we responded to the terrorist incidents in June, we will seek only new powers that are essential to the fight against terrorism. The forthcoming counter-terrorism Bill, which will be introduced shortly, will include stronger sentences for terrorist-related offences and, where terrorists have served sentences, new powers for the police to continue to monitor their activities.

Asset-freezing is an important tool in the fight against terrorists buying weapons or using money for terrorist purposes. Sophisticated evidence gathering of financial transactions can both deny terrorists finance and locate the sources of terrorist plots. Current legislation makes it difficult for us to take preventive action, so the new Bill is intended to give new powers to ensure that we can use all available information to pursue those who finance terrorist attacks.

In addition to measures to process terrorist cases more efficiently and reduce the time between arrest and trial-including 14 new specially protected courtrooms-a single senior judge has been nominated to manage all terrorism cases. There will also be a single senior lead prosecutor in the Crown Prosecution Service responsible for cases relating to inciting violent extremism.

To ensure that we protect our borders and detect possible terrorist suspects, members of the new UK border agency will have the power, from January next year, to detain people not just on suspicion of immigration offences or for customs crime but for other criminal activity, including terrorism. Powers will also be given to airline liaison officers to cancel visas when justified.

In line with the statement that I made in July, there will be one single primary checkpoint for both passport control and customs. The UK border agency, which will have 25,000 staff in total, will now apply controls at points of entry and exit on people and goods, into and out of the UK, as well as working throughout the world. The new agency will enable us to transfer intelligence from UK operations overseas to those making visa decisions, and to check biometrics taken from visa applicants against criminal and counter-terrorism records. Further details of the new UK border agency, which has been welcomed by the Association of Chief Police Officers, are published in the Cabinet Office report issued today. This will go hand in hand with what is increasingly necessary: biometric visas for all applicants from March next year, biometric ID cards for foreign nationals introduced from the end of 2008 and a strengthening of the e-borders program, with the contract to incorporate all passenger information awarded today.

With repatriation arrangements for foreign terrorist suspects agreed with Jordan, Lebanon and Algeria, work is under way with a number of additional countries, with a view to signing new agreements for deportations. In addition to the nine foreign nationals recently deported under immigration powers on grounds of national security, a further 24 foreign nationals are currently subject to deportation proceedings on national security grounds and 4,000 foreign prisoners are likely to be deported this year.

All faith communities in the UK make a huge contribution in all spheres of our national life. They are integral to our success as a society. And as we found, listening to all communities in and after June, the vast majority of people of all faiths and backgrounds condemn terrorism and the actions of terrorists. But the objective of al-Qaeda and related groups is to manipulate political and humanitarian issues in order to gain support for an agenda of murder and violence, and deliberately to maim and kill fellow human beings, including innocent women and children, irrespective of their religion. We must not allow anyone to use terrorist activities as a means to divide us or isolate those belonging to a particular faith or community.

To deal with the challenge posed by the terrorist threat we have to do more, working with communities in our country, first, to challenge extremist propaganda and support alternative voices; secondly, to disrupt the promoters of violent extremism by strengthening our institutions and supporting individuals who may be being targeted; thirdly, to increase the capacity of communities to resist and reject violent extremism; and fourthly, to address issues of concern exploited by ideologues, where by emphasizing our shared values across communities we can both celebrate and act upon what unites us. This will be achieved not by one single program or initiative and it will not be achieved overnight. It is a generational challenge that requires sustained work over the long term, through a range of actions in schools, colleges, universities, faith groups and youth clubs, by engaging young people through the media, culture, sport and arts, and by acting against extremist influences operating on the internet and in institutions from prisons and universities to some places of worship.

As part of our intensifying measures to isolate extremists, a new unit bringing together police and security intelligence and research will identify, analyze and assess not just the inner circle of extremist groups, but those at risk of falling under their influence, and share their advice and insights. Building on initial roadshows of mainstream Islamic scholarship round the country, which have already attracted more than 70,000 young people, and an internet site which has reached far more, we will sponsor at home and then abroad, including for the first time in Pakistan, a series of national and local events to counter extremist propaganda. The next stage will draw upon the work commissioned by the Economic and Social Research Council, King's College and the Royal Society for Arts on how best to deal with radicalization at home and abroad.

One central issue is how to balance extremist views supporting terrorism that appear on the internet and in the media. The Home Secretary is inviting the largest global technology and internet companies to work together to ensure that our best technical expertise is galvanized to counter online incitement to hatred. I also welcome the decision by the Royal Television Society and the Society of Editors to hold a conference on how to ensure accurate and balanced reporting of issues related to terrorism in the media. To ensure that charities are not exploited by extremists, a new unit in the Charity Commission will strengthen governance and accountability of charities.

A specialist unit in the Prison Service will be tasked with stopping extremists from using prison networks to plot future activities. And because young people in the criminal justice system are especially vulnerable to extremist influence, we are making further funding available through the Youth Justice Board, the National Offender Management Service and the many voluntary agencies that work with young people to support young people who may be targeted for recruitment by extremist groups. Following evidence that some of those involved in promoting violent extremism have made use of outdoor activity centers and sports facilities, we are working with Sport England to provide guidance for the sector to ensure that, where possible, these facilities are not abused. Backed up by a new website to share best practice, a new board of experts will advise local authorities, local councilors and local communities on tackling radicalization and those promoting hate.

We have had mosques in the UK for more than 100 years, serving local communities well. These communities tell me that mosques have a much wider role, beyond their core spiritual purpose, in providing services, educating young people and building cohesion, and the majority already work very hard to reject violent extremism. As the newly constituted Mosques and Imams National Advisory Body recognizes, however, the governance of mosques could be strengthened to help to serve communities better and to challenge those who feed hate. Our consultations with Muslim communities emphasize the importance of the training of imams-including English language requirements-and the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government will be announcing an independent review to examine, with the communities, how to build the capacity of Islamic seminaries, learning from other faith communities as well as from experience overseas.

In addition to updated advice for universities on how to deal with extremism on campus, the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills and the Minister for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education will invite universities to lead a debate on how we maintain academic freedom while ensuring that extremists can never stifle debate or impose their views. We will also consult on how to support further education colleges as well as universities.

The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport is working with the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council to agree a common approach to deal with the inflammatory and extremist material that some seek to distribute through public libraries, while also of course protecting freedom of speech.

We know that young people of school age can be exposed to extremist messages. The Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families will be convening a new forum of head teachers to advise on what more we can do to protect young people and to build bridges across communities. To ensure that young people have the opportunity to learn about diversity and faith in modern Britain, we will work in partnership with religious education teachers to promote the national framework for teaching religious education in schools, including making sure that children learn about all faiths. An advisory group will work with local communities to support the citizenship education classes run by mosque schools in Bradford and elsewhere. I can announce that one essential part of this will be to twin schools of different faiths through our £2 million school linking program, supported by the school linking network.

I am also announcing today a youth panel to advise the Government, learning from youth projects in different parts of the country which all enable young people to debate and discuss issues of concern, as does the work of the Youth Parliament, which has been running debates.

We are sponsoring and encouraging a series of national and local mentoring programs for young people, including a business in the community Muslim mentoring program, new leadership training, and local youth leadership schemes in Blackburn, Waltham Forest, Leeds, and in partnership with Tottenham in Haringey. After discussion with Muslim women, a new advisory group has been set up by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which will advise on the access of women to mosques and their management committees.

It is by seeking to build on shared interests and shared values that we will isolate extremists and foster understanding across faiths. Following the recent remarkable letter by 138 Muslim scholars from a diversity of traditions within Islam, which paid tribute to the common roots of Islam, Christianity and Judaism and called for deeper dialogue, we stand ready to support new facilities for multi-faith scholarship in Britain. A Green Paper will be published to encourage inter-faith groups to come together in every constituency of the country. I am also inviting the Higher Education Funding Council to investigate the idea of setting up in Britain a European centre of excellence for Islamic studies.

We will have joint work with the French and German Governments on building an appreciation of the Islamic and Muslim heritage across Britain and Europe. Arts Council England, the Tate gallery, the Victoria and Albert museum and the British Library will all be taking forward projects to promote greater understanding. And, just as the British Council is connecting young people across the world through school twinning and volunteering exchanges, I am announcing that we will finance a rising number of young people from all faith communities to volunteer overseas.

The intercept review will report in January. We believe that consensus now exists on post-charge questioning, and the Home Secretary is beginning a new round of consultations with parties and communities on detailed proposals on pre-charge detention, on which we believe that we can establish an all-party consensus. There is no greater priority than the safety and security of our people, and building the strongest possible relationships across all faiths and communities. I believe that it is possible, through the actions that we are proposing, to build a stronger consensus in Britain that will both root out terrorist extremism and build more vibrant and cohesive communities.

I commend this statement to the House.

SOURCE:
http://www.number10.gov.uk/output/Page13757.asp

FURTHER READING
* Bags to be screened on trains in plan to create fortress Britain
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article2872802.ece
* British PM outlines measures to strengthen security in public areas
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/14/content_7076101.htm
* Brown announces new security measures
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,,2210917,00.html
* Brown steps up fight against terror
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7095183.stm
* Brown unveils anti-terrorism strategy
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-terror15nov15,1,6054926.story
* Commons Home Affairs Committee Oral Evidence
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmselect/cmhaff/uc43-ii/uc4302.htm
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmselect/cmhaff/uc43-i/uc4302.htm
* First duty is to protect the British people - PM
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0711/S00586.htm
* Fortress Britain: Brown unveils tough new laws
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/fortress-britain-brown-unveils-tough-new-laws/2007/11/15/1194766868451.html
* Gordon Brown reveals 'Fortress Britain' plan
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/11/15/nfortress115.xml
* Home Office statement
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm071114/wmstext/71114m0001.htm#07111429000003
* Tackling Terrorism
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/74d06752-93b2-11dc-acd0-0000779fd2ac.html
* Terror defenses bolstered in response to heightened terror threat

* UK unveils new anti-terror plan
http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2007/nov/15/national-15-11-2007-007.htm
* UK to sponsor events to counter-extremist propaganda in Pak
http://www.dailyindia.com/show/191628.php/UK-to-sponsor-events-to-counter-extremist-propaganda-in-Pak

8. Asset Management Network News

On 5 December we are sponsoring an event on "Cooling the Data Center". TAMNI Monitor subscribers are entitled to attend this thought-provoking program at the Mass Technology Leadership Council's member rate. If you are traveling from out of town, email [email protected] to inquire about guest admission.
http://function.masstlc.org/programs_new/event_single.cfm?eventid=803

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