News Digest Edited by Diana Johnson
Court to rule on drug practices
) WASHINGTON - The Su
preme Court agreed Monday to
decide whether taking a hallucino
genic drug as a religious practice
can be made a crime.
The justices voted to review a
ruling that Oregon officials vio
lated religious freedom by denying
unemployment compensation to
two men fired for using peyote at
religious ceremonies.
In their decision, expected
sometime next year, the justices
necessarily must resolve whether
any state may criminally prosecute
someone for the religious use of
peyote.
In other matters, the court:
• Cleared the way for the partial
merger of Detroit’s’ two daily
newspapers.
• Agreed to let the Bush admini
stration, through the solicitor gen
eral’s office, participate in the
April 26 oral argument scheduled
for an abortion-regulation case
from Missouri.
State officials are asking the
justices to use the case to reverse or
limit the court’s 1973 decision
legalizing abortion.
• Let stand the criminal convic
tions of 10 people who participated
in a 1985 protest demonstration at
a Philadelphia abortion clinic.
• Refused to revive libel law
suits, one in Oregon and one in
Wyoming, against Hustler maga
zine and its publisher, Larry Flynt,
by two women active in righting
pornography.
• Turned down the appeal of
California death row inmate Wil
liam George Bonin, the “Freeway
Killer” of four teen-age boys in
Orange County.
• Refused to bar Oklahoma
prosecutors who seek incriminat
ing evidence from forcing the sur
gical removal of a bullet from a
murder suspect’s arm.
• Left intact decisions thwarting
a Florida-based company’s re
quirement that all its employees
attend weekly Christian devo
tional services. Lower courts said
the mandatory services violated an
atheist's rights.
In the peyote case, the Oregon
Supreme Court last year ruled that
its state’s criminal law makes no
exception for the religious use of
peyote, a cactus “button” con
taining the hallucinogen mesca
line.
But the state court ruled that the
federal Constitution’s First
Amendment, which protects reli
gious freedom, bars state officials
from denying unemployment
compensation to two members of
the Native American Church.
In effect, the state court said
Oregon criminal law must make an
exception for “good faith reli
gious use of peyote by adult mem
bers of the Native American
Church.”
The two men, Galen Black and
Alfred Smith, had been fired from
their Douglas County, Ore., jobs
counseling people who suffer from
drug or alcohol addiction.
There is no dispute that both
men are members of the Native
American Church and sincerely
believe that peyote is part of the
church’s religious practices.
Lawyers for the two men said
using small quantities of the drug
in that church is comparable to
sacramental use of small quantities
of wine in Christian religious cere
monies.
The case was before the na
tion’s highest court last year, and
the justices voted last April to send
it back to the Oregon Supreme
Court.
The April decision held out the
possibility that states in which
peyote is outlawed may deny un
employment benefits to workers
fired for using it during religious
ceremonies.
But Justice John Paul Stevens,
in writing for the court then, noted
that the federal government and f
some states exempt the religious
use of peyote from criminal prose
cution.
Cristiani wins
Salvadoran vote
. lfSA.N SALVADOR, El Salvador
Alfredo Cnstiam, who has tried ta
end memories of his righi-wirw
party s links to death squads ihj
killed thousands of his coundvmcn
was recognized as the victor Mondav
in the presidential election. y
Fidel Chavez Mena, candidate of
the incumbent Christian Democrats
conceded and told a news confer
ence, I have called him personally
to congratulate him and express my
desire that God illuminate him in
governing the country.”
Cristiani, of the Republican Na
tionalist Alliance, or Arena, will take
over from President Jose Napoleon
Duarte on June 1. Although Duarte
was one of the United States’ top
allies, he was unable toend nine years
of civil war with leftist rebels that left
70,000 dead.
In Washington, the State Depart
ment said it was prepared to support
the new Salvadoran government, but
only if it protects democracy and
protects human rights.
r our detainees escape, all seek refuge
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa
— Four black detainees on a hunger
strike escaped Monday from a Johan
nesburg hospital, fled 38 miles to
Pretoria and sought refuge at the
West German Embassy there, offi
cials said.
The four men, who have been held
without charge for between 10
months and 23 months, demanded the
South African government guarantee
they and all other political detainees
will be freed.
“We have committed no crime,’’
the escapees said in a statement. ‘ ‘We
have been kept in detention for so
long that we felt we had to embark on
a life-and-death hunger strike to
dramatize our plight in detention and
to ultimately secure our immediate
release.”
West Germany’s Foreign Ministry
said the four are in ‘‘administrative
custody.” The embassy in Pretoria
said no decision has been made about
them.
The men said through the De
tainees Aid Center that they belong to
organizations affiliated with the
banned United Democratic Front, the
country’s largest anti-apartheid coa
lition.
They escaped from Hillbrow Hos
pital in Johannesburg, where they had
spent five weeks being treated for
fasting, according to the South Afri
can government and their statement.
Hundreds of detainees have taken
part in hunger strikes since January,
demanding their freedom or to stand
trial. The government says it has
freed more than 400 detainees in the
past month and that about 350 remain
in custody.
Some 30,000 people have been
held without charge for varying
lengths of time since a state of emer
gency was imposed 33 months ago.
South African Foreign Minister
Pik Botha said his government is in
contact with the West Germans and
“the matter was receiving atten
tion.” Botha did not elaborate on
what actions his government plans.
The men identified themselves as
Job Sithole, 21; Ephraim Nkoe, 28;
Mpho Lekgoro, 24; and Clive
Radebe, 28. All are from black town
ships around Johannesburg and Pre
toria, and have been active in youth
and student organizations.
They did not disclose how they
escaped the hospital and got to the
West German Embassy.
Journalists were not allowed in
side the embassy, but from the gates
four black men clad in T-shirts and
jeans could be seen standing in the
foyer of the building.
The embassy, surrounded by 13
foot high walls, is less than a half
mile from Union Buildings, South
Africa’s administrative capital.
People have escaped from South
African custody and taken refuge in
foreign diplomatic missions several
times in recent years.
Most recently, three detainees
escaped from a hospital in September
and holed up in the U.S. Consulate in
Johannesburg for more than 40 days
be fore'deciding to leave. The South
African government promised the
three men, all United Democratic
Front members, would not be de
tained or restricted once they left the
consulate. The three have spoken
regularly on behalf of the organiza
tion in recent months.
In another incident, Klaas de
Jongc, a Dutch citizen accused of
smuggling weapons for the African
National Congress guerrilla move
ment, took refuge in the Dutch Con
sulate in Pretoria for more than two
years before he was returned to the
Netherlands in September 1987 in an
exchange involving prisoners in four
countries.
Transport sector gives
warning on bomb ploys
LONDON — The Transport
Department told airlines and air
ports Monday there is a “high and
continuing risk” of more devices
like the bomb in a radio-cassette
player that destroyed Pan Am
Flight 103, killing 270 people.
The department said it sent a
telex as a reminder of its previous
warnings, which have been the
subject of controversy, and to sug
gest new safety measures. Trans
port officials would not elaborate
on the statement.
Pressure grew for the govern
ment to explain whether the Flight
103 disaster on Dec. 21 could have
been averted with better dissemi
nation of warnings and informa
tion about bombing equipment
found before the explosion over
Lockerbie, Scotland.
Opposition politicians have
demanded Transport Secretary
Paul Channon resign because of
how he handled events before the
bombing, which killed all 259
people on the Boeing 747 and 11
on the ground.
The Evening Standard newspa
per said police believe the bomb
contained only one or two pounds
of explosives, but its location near
a weakened seam in the baggage
hold increased its effect
Inspector Tom McCullough of
the Lockerbie police, who are
conducting the investigation, re
fused comment beyond saying the
report was “most likely specula
tion by the press.”
A source the Evening Standard
did not identify was quoted as
saying: “If the bomb had been
almost anywhere else it might
have killed half a dozen people or
maybe even just shredded some
bags.”
In Washington, a member of
Congress said Pan Am still is not
following many anti-terrorism
measures an Israeli security firm
suggested to it more than two years
ago.
Rep. Cardiss Collins, D-Ill.,
said in a letter to the Federal Avia
tion Administration the security
consultant concluded the airline
was not careful enough in check
ing baggage, did a poor job of
questioning passengers boarding
planes and was slow in reacting to
warnings of possible terrorist ac- ,
tivity.
She quoted from reports KPI
Inc. gave Pan Am in 1986 after
reviewing Pan Am security at nine
airports, including Frankfurt and
London’s Heathrow Airport.
Flight 103 originated in Frankfurt
and changed planes at Heathrow.
One of the KPI reports said:
“Pan Am is highly vulnerable to
most forms of terrorist attack. The
fact that no major disaster has
occurred to date is merely provi
dential.”
Opposition lawmakers in Lon
don continued claiming Monday
that the public was not given a full
explanation of events before the
bombing. Channon made no com
ment.
Recession is possible
WASHINGTON - The recent
spurt of inflation is raising fears of a
recession, with some economists
predicting Monday that a downturn
could begin in the second half of
1989.
These analysts believe that the
Federal Reserve, faced with alarming
news of increasing price pressures,
will squeeze credit so tightly that an
economic slump will be all but inevi-,
table.
“Once you get inflation up to the
levels we have right now, it has taken
a recession to cool things off. That is
an unfortunate fact of life,” said
Bruce Steinberg, senior economist at
the New York investment firm of
Merrill Lynch.
Inflation worries were heightened
last Friday when the government
reported that prices at the wholesale
level had shot up a full percentage
point for the second straight month.
It was the worst back-to-back in
flation news in nearly eight years and
it sent stock and bond prices plunging
as investors worried that the Federal
Reserve would be forced to drive
interest rates higher in an effort to
dampen demand.
Markets continued to be battered
by inflation worries on Monday, with
the Dow Jones industrial average of
30 stocks down sharply again after
the 48.57 point drop on Friday, which
had been the worst decline in nearly a
year.
Investors were braced for an even
bigger market drop Tuesday if the
government’s monthly check of con
sumer prices comes in with a worse
than-expected number.
Economists were looking for con
sumer prices to rise by about 0.5
percent in February. They feared that
a figure as high as 0.7 percent could
send markets into a tailspin. Even a
0.5 percent increase would translate
into an annual advance above 6 per
cent, sharply higher than the price
increases of 4.4 percent or less during
the past seven years.
The Bush administration sought to
play down inflation worries on Mon
day with White House spokesman
, Marlin Fitzwatcr telling reporters
that a number of recent business re
ports paint a picture of a slowing
economy which will be enough to
break any inflationary pressures.
But private economists said fears
were now so widespread that the
Federal Reserve will be forced to lake
actions that will likely send a variety
of consumer and business ! terest
rates higher.
“We are looking at potentially the
worst inflationary bout since the late
1970s and early 1980s,” said Allen
Sinai, chief economist of the Boston
Co. “It is a policy problem of im
mense proportions for the Federal
Reserve and it will require sharply
higher interest rates and potentially a
recession to deal with.”
Starting a year ago, the central
bank, under Chairman Alan Green
span, began gradually nudging inter
est rates higher in an effort to keep
inflation from getting out of control
Some economists complained that
the Federal Reserve was too tenta
VoSi>es|XiciaI,y in lhe second half of
iv>88, and now is faced with the need
to slam on the brakes.
The Fed increased the discount
rate to 7 percent on Feb. 24 in a move
widely seen as a signal that it in
tended to move more strongly against
mflauonary pressures.
Nebraskan
Editor Curl Wagner
472- 1766
Managing Editor Jane Hid
Assoc News Editors Lee Rood
Bob Nelson
Editonal
Page Editor Amy Edwards
Wire Editor Diana Johnson
Copy Dosk Editor Chuck Green
Sports Editor Jeff Apel
Arts & Entertain
ment Editor Mlckl Haller
Diversions Editor Joeth Zucco
Graphics Editor Tim Hartmann
Photo Chief Connie Sheehan
N.ght News Editors Victoria Ayott#
Chris Carroll
Librarian Anne Mohrl
Art Directors John Bruce
Andy Manhart
Sower Editor Klrstln Swanson
Supplements Editor Oeanne Nelson
General Manager Dan Shattll
Production Manager Katherine Policky
Advertising Manager Robert Bates
Sales Manager David Thiemann
Circulation Manager Erie Shanks
Publications Board
Chairman Tom Macy
475-9868
Professional Adviser Don Walton
473- 7301
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