The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, February 24, 1989, Page 2, Image 2
News Digest Edited by Diana Johnson Kidnappers vow revenge, presses to print >> Cologne! |f 6ft\ I Pro-Iranian militants. noiuing American hostages in Lebanon today vow.cd revenge for the publication of “The Satanic Verses,” but publish ers in France and West Germany reversed decisions not to put out the book, and two U.S. bookstores re turned it to the shelves. Former pop singer Cat Stevens, who gave up a successful music ca reer in 1977 after becoming a Mos lem, supported Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s execution order on the book’s author, Salman Rushdie. Rushdie, 41, bom into a Moslem family and living in London, was in hiding for the ninth day along with his wife, American novelist Marianne Wiggins. Islamic Jihad for the Liberation of Palestine released a statement threat ening to take revenge against Rushdie, the book publishers and their supporters. The statement was accompanied by photographs of the hostages but it did not specifically threaten the men or any of the 12 other foreign hostages in Lebanon. Some say “The Satanic Verses” insults' Islam by portraying the prophet’s wives as prostitutes and Mj^gcauiifc, nt wiuic uic rvuian ratner than receiving it from God. Iranian clerics offered $5.2 million to anyone who killed Rushdie. In West Germany, the prominent Kiepenheuer and Witsch publishing house of Cologne said today it will publish the German-language edition of “The Satanic Verses.” The publishing house last week said it would not publish the novel because it feared reprisals against its employees, but it changed its stance after West German writers and other cultural institutions appealed for the book to be published. In London, Stevens, whose hits included “Peace Train” and “Wild World,” endorsed Khomeini’s death sentence, telling Moslem students: “The Koran makes it clear - if some one defames the prophet, then he must die.” The U.S. bookstore chains of B. Dalton and Barnes & Noble, which last week pulled the book from their shelves, both reversed themselves after nationwide rallies by writers and said Wednesday they would have “The Satanic Verses” in stock in about 10 days. Immigration drops after jailings begin, few refugees apply B AYVIEW, Texas - The flood of Central Americans applying for refugee status slowed to a trickle Wednesday, and imm ig ration offi cials said their get-tough policy of immediately jailing those denied asylum appeared to be working. Only 12 people showed up at the asylum-processing center at an immigration jail when it opened Wednesday morning, compared with hundreds who had camped overnight since processing was 1 moved iicre from Harlingen a week ago. 1 Fewer than i percent of the im migrants applying were granted refugee status, and at least 100 denied asylum were jailed. Immigration and Naturaliza tion Service officials said it was too early to declare a trend but that the sharp drop in applicants indi cated the plan to speed up process ing was deterring frivolous ampli cations, as it was intended to do. “Evidently the message is get ting out,” said Mario Ortiz, chief regional spokesman for the INS. “Maybe we can pul ourselves out of business,” said Omcr G. Sewell, Harlingen District director for the INS. “I hope so,” But immigration attorney Linda Yanez said immigrants have merely gone underground. “My guess is that most people are probably going to just take their chances and set appre hended,*” said Ms. Yanez, who helped organize attorneys to pro vide free representation for those denied asylum under the new pro gram. “If diey get apprehended,'' she said, “then they re before an im migration Jt4go (to submit asylum applications): where they're going to gel a fair hearing, as opposed to this kangaroo court that they’re conducting over there.” Ortiz agreed that some people may have decided to avoid the sys tem. Of 233 applications submitted Tuesday when a new one-day ad judication procedure began, the INS granted asylum to only two people, said spokeswoman Vir ginia Kice. The exact number of people applying was not immediately known because minors applied jointly with parents. A total of 215 applications were rejected after State Department and INS officials working until 2 a.m. Wednesday determined the applicants were not fleeing perse cution in their countries, a require ment for political asylum. Sixteen other applicants were issued notices of ‘ ‘intent to deny,’ ’ released and told to obtain further documentation for their cases. The new procedure calls for immediate arrest and detention of unqualified applicants, who are set for deportation and scheduled to appear before immigration judges, where they may resubmit ineir asylum claims. Previously, processing of appli cations took weeks and involved relaying information to and from Washington; immigrants who were denied asylum were freed on their own recognizance while awaiting appeals or deportation. The lNS has added extra staff arid brought in State Department officials lo issue on-the-spot asy lum decisions. Those dented refugee status included 103 Nicaraguans, $1 £1 ^v^ffs«38 HoXansand 13 Girl’s death linked to Mandela JOHANNESBURG, South Africa - Police said today that a 13-year-old girl was killed m an attack on a Soweto home that may be linked to the controversy surrounding Winnie Mandela. The killing late Wednesday was the fourth in the past two months that has involved people connected di rectly or indirectly to Mrs. Mandela and her unofficial group of body guards known as the Mandela United soccer club. Police said gunmen fired on the house with an AK-47 rifle and set the dwelling ablaze with a firebomb. A few hours before the attack, an occupant of the house was detained in connection with the killing last week of Maxwell Madondo, a member of Mandela United, police said. A former member of Mandela United, Andrew Ekancng, Was charged with Madondo’s killing. Gorbachev makes a visit to Chernobyl MOSCOW - Mikhail S. Gor bachev inspected the site of the Cher nobyl nuclear disaster for the first time today, and an official said the president discussed safely measures taken since the 1986 reactor explo . sion. The 57-ycar-old Kremlin chief visited the Chernobyl nuclear power plant’s control room and the hall where turbines generate electricity, said Yuri Risovany, a spokesman for Kombinat, the company running the plant. The April 26, 1986 explosion, the world’s worst nuclear power disaster, sent a cloud of radiation around the world and killed at least 31 Soviets. It also shocked many Soviets into rcas scssing the safely of nuclear power. Gorbachev met with plant manag ers and workers and discussed safety measures taken after the explosion, the spokesman said in a telephone interview. Three of the plant’s four reactors were operating during Gorbachev’s visit, Risovany said. The damaged No. 4 reactor, encased in a stccl-and concrcte shell, does not operate. The visit to the plant, 80 miles north of the Ukrainian capital of Kiev, came on the third day of a four day trip to the Ukraine. Gorbachev then traveled to Slavulich, a town 30 miles to the west built to house plant workers after the accident. Workers previously lived in Pripyat, a city just a few miles from the siriken plant. Gorbachev met with Kombinat officials to discuss their work and returned to Kiev, Risovany said. In Kiev, Gorbachev met workers, farmers and Communist Parly activ ists and other Ukrainians, the official news agency Tass reported. The official Soviet media carried no immediate reports on Gor bachev’s visit to Chernobyl and Slavutich. In Kiev on Monday, Gorbachev assured residents concerned about the safely of a nuclear power plant being built on the Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula that Soviet officials arc taking a very cautious approach to nuclear power. Calero: Money not for North s use WASHINGTON - Nicaraguan rebel leader Adolfo Calcro testified Thursday in Oliver North’s criminal trial that he hadn’t expected North to make personal use of any of the $90,000 Calcro gave him to help free American hostages in Lebanon. “I had absolute trust in what Colo nel North was doing so I was not intent in demanding an accounting” for the money, Calcro said. “He said that he had an accounting. We talked about getting it, but I guess I never got around to it. Prosecutor John Keker asked Cal cro if he expected North, who is charged with taking $4,300 of the money, to spend any of it on himself No, said Calcro. Calcro, one of the top leaders of the Nicaraguan rebels, known as Contras, testified that he gave North the funds in traveler’s checks after the White House aide “mentioned the need to help rescue Americans held hostage.” The money came from a Miami bank account that had received $32 million in deposits in eight months after Calero gave North the account number, he testified. The money began flowing in, he said, in June 1984, soon after official United States financial support for the Nicaraguan guerrillas stopped. “I informed Colonel North of everything I did,” Calero said. “He was the one who listened to all our laments, to all our problems.” Calero, who w.is president of the Nicaraguan Democratic Force - FDN ■ was pi second prosecution witness at North’s trial. As he waited to take the witness stand, Calero did not look at the defendant, who was staring at him intently. The leadoff witness. Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind., testified he had not known ai the lime aboul Reagan administration solicitations of help for the Contras from other countries in return for increased U.S. military and economic aid. Hamilton said he didn’t know then that Secretary of State George P. Shultz asked an Asian country to provide communications equipment to the Contras because the rebels’ devices were antiquated. He also said he wasn’t old that Shultz and thcn-Naiional Security Adviser John M. Poindexter knew of a plan by a Central American nation to provide aircraft to help train Con tra fighter pilots. And he didn't recall being told that Poindexter’s predecessor as national security adviser. Robert McFarlunc, authorized North to contact “a senior military official of an Asian country ’ ’ to arrange “the sale of missiles to the resistance.” He said, loo, lhal he was nol told that Gen. John W. Vcssey Jr., then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also met with the Asian official to arrange the sale. None of the countries involved was identified. Hamilton, answering questions from North lawyer Brendan Sullivan, said he was nol told of these and other efforts on behalf of the Contras in the 1984-1986 period when direct U S. military assistance was forbidden by law. “My recollection is that my knowledge of the events came subse quent to the time frame,” Hamilton said repeatedly as Sullivan fired questions. Sullivan’s questions were based on a fought over 44-page admission by the U.S. government that it made deals to gel other countries to support the rebels. Nebraskan Editor Curt Wagner Night News Editors Victoria Ayotte 472-1766 Chrta Canon Managing Editor JaneHIrt librarian AnneMohrt Assoc News Editors lee Rood An Directors John Bruce Bob Neiftoi. Andy Manhart Editorial Page Editor Amy Kdwarde Genera! 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