News Digest
Czech government
ceases Communist
monopoly on power
PRAGUE, Czechoslovakia -
The Communist-controlled Parlia
ment on Wednesday swiftly ended
the party’s 40-year monopoly on
power in a frantic effort to satisfy
the demands of the growing pro
democracy movement
A member of the ruling Com
munist Politburo said the first free
elections in four decades could be
held within a year.
Voting with the somber, me
chanical gestures bom of decades
of rubberstamp approval of Com
munist measures, the 309 deputies
unanimously scrapped Article 4 of
the constitution, which mandated
the leading role of the Communist
Party. They also deleted a clause
that bases all education on Marx
ism-Leninism.
“Th<*. rpvnlntinn ic nr<V'f*p<1ino
much quicker than we expected,”
said Jiri Dienstbier, spokesman for
the Civic Forum opposition, min
utes after the vote was broadcast
live on national television.
The changes were among his
toric concessions the opposition
won from the Communist govern
ment on Tuesday when Premier
Ladislav Adamec also promised to
form a new government, including
non-Communists, by Sunday.
They followed 11 straight days
of huge anti-government demon
strations, which culminated in a
two-hour strike on Monday in
which millions of workers partici
pated.
Adamec went on national TV
and said he had asked Civic Forum
for its suggestions on who to in
clude in the new government. He
also said he would negotiate a reas
sessment of the 1968 Warsaw Pact
invasion that crushed reforms.
The removal of the requirement
that Marxism-Leninism be the
guiding principle of education was
a prime demand of students who
staged the Nov. 17 protest and
have led the pro-democracy move
ment since.
1 j Work at the Net?ralkan this spring. I
There ^P^#
once was 'll 1 \>w
a young “** that’s
girl f e where
named went... k
Lee... to report works...
Who was an<Jt0 ALL DAY
happy write... AND
and -— ALL
stressless NIGHT!
and free..
—I-T-' _ K --- -■
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same.
Rebels invade rich neighborhoods
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador -
Leftist rebels invaded parts of the
capital’s most affluent neighbor
hoods before dawn Wednesday and
dug in after often-fierce combat with
government forces.
How many people had been killed
in the latest guerrilla offensive was
not clear. Eleven bodies of combat
ants were seen lying in the streets.
In Washington, Secretary of State
James A. Baker III said guerrillas
“briefly overran” a U.S. Embassy
officer’s home and “we arc taking
steps to assure the safety of embassy
personnel.”
Embassy personnel were told not
to report to work Wednesday, and the
embassy was closed for the day,
White House spokesman Roman
Popadiuk said. Administration offi
cials said no Americans were injured.
A State Department committee
monitoring events in El Salvador
reported that the home of the em
bassy employee, who was not identi
fied, apparently was seized at ran
dom.
“The family was safely evacuated
by Salvadoran government forces,
and the family was not actually in the
hands of the guerrillas at any time,”
said David Denny, a department
spokesman.
Heavy and sustained fire was re
ported blocks from the residence of
U.S. Ambassador William Walker.
Embassy spokesman Jeff Brown had
said Walker was “fine... working in
his office at the embassy.”
Denny said, “Several families arc
unable to leave their homes because
of fighting in their locations,” which
included the neighborhoods of San
Benito, Escalon and San Francisco.
A statement from the leftist guer
rillas said their fighters had been told
not to attack Americans.
Guerrillas took over the Japanese
Embassy, four blocks from Walker’s
house, an El Salvador Foreign Minis
try source said privately.
U.S. Embassy spokesman Barry
Jacobs said a charter flight might
depart today with embassy de
pendents who want to leave El Salva
dor, and embassy personnel who
planned to go home for Christmas
would leave early.
He said some dependents and
other Americans had moved into the
heavily fortified embassy in down
town San Salvador to get away from
the fighting a few miles away.
A home about a half-mile from
Walker’s house was burned after
having been taken over by rebels, and
unconfirmed reports said a US
Embassy employee lived in it. Thc
Washington officials said nothing of
a fire at the house seized by rebels.
Court hears arguments
on restricting abortions
WASHINGTON - The Supreme
Court was asked Wednesday to rule
that most young girls have no right to
abortions without first telling their
parents.
The justices, who have allowed
limits on the availability of abortions
for minors in the past, questioned
lawyers defending and attacking pa
rental-notification laws in Minnesota
and Ohio.
In two hours of relatively narrow
arguments, they gave no sign they arc
considering the broader possibility of
scrapping the court’s 1973 Roe vs.
Wade decision that legalized abor
tion - an idea much discussed outside
the court whenever they take up any
abortion case.
“The court showed no interest in
overturning a woman’s constitu
tional right to abortion,” Cleveland
lawyer Linda Sogg said after the ar
gument session in which she attacked
the Ohio law.
Minnesota Chief Deputy Attorney
General John Tunheim agreed. “I
don’t think Roe should be on the table
in this case,” he told reporters after
defending his state law before the
court.
Last July, the court voted 5-4 to
give states more authority to regulate
abortions for all women. Four jus
tices appeared ready to go even fur
ther and overturn Roe vs. Wade, but
Justice Sandra Day O’Connor re
fused.
Groups on both sides of the abor
tion issue had looked to the court this
term to help clarify its allegiance to
the 1973 decision.
Bui settlement of an Illinois dis
pute over regulating abortion clinics
- a case that was to be argued before
the justices next month - may have
eliminated the greatest immediate
threat to Roe vs. Wade. The Illinois
settlement still must be approved by a
federal judge.
O’Connor is expected to play the
pivotal role again in the Minnesota
and Ohio cases, to be decided by July.
At issue in both arc laws requiring
parents to be notified before abor
tions are performed on unmarried
girls under 18 who arc still supported
by parents.
About half the states have laws
requiring parental notification -- or
even parental consent — in such
cases, but most of the laws have been
invalidated after court challenges.
Nationwide, about 40 percent of
the nearly 1 million teen-agers who
become pregnant each year seek
abortions.
urriciais order trees sprayed
to dissuade potential thieves
MONROE, Conn. — Chopping
down a Christmas tree from
Monroe’s town parks is a foul idea,
and town officials plan to make
sure everyone agrees.
All the evergreens in the town’s
three parks arc being sprayed with
a foul-smelling mixture to dis
suade people from robbing the
parks for Christmas trees.
“You can’t smell it outdoors,
but when you bring the tree inside
and it warms up, bang. You have a
pungent, slinky odor,’’ said park
ranger David Solek.
Parks director Ron Walissa said
even trees too tall for use as Christ
mas trees arc vandalized when
thieves cut off the lops.
Solek said anyone caught steal
ing a tree will be fined S25 to S30
per fool of tree.
“Taking one of these trees is a
horrible thing,” he said. “It goes
against the spirit of the holiday.
How can anyone be proud of a tree
they stole from a park?”
Prime Minister Gandhi resigns
NEW DELHI, India -- Prime
Minister Rajiv Gandhi resigned
Wednesday, and for only the second
lime since independence in 1947 his
Congress Party did not claim the right
to lorm the next government.
Opposition parties began trying to
assemble a coalition.
Gandhi submitted his resignation
to President RamasVamy
Vcnkataraman and said he was ready 1
for the role of opposition leader. '
‘ The people have given their ver
dict, he said in a televised speech
Wednesday night. “In all humility,
we respect the verdict.”
‘‘A new government will be
formed. We extend to them our good (
wishes and offer them our construe- (
live cooperation,” said the 45-year- |
old former airline pilot, who won his |
ownParliamcntseaiovcrwhclmingly .
for a third time. '
Congress won more Parliament I
scats in last week’s elections than any
Dlher party, but was far short ol a
majority.
Vcnkalaraman asked Gandhi to
remain in office as caretaker prime
minister. The resignation cleared the
way for the National Front alliance to
form the next government for the
world’s most populous democracy.
The Congress Party has been out
3f office only once since independ
ence from Britain, for 29 months alter
osing the 1977 elections.
National Front leaders predicted
Wednesday they would choose the
text prime minister, but differences
trose among the five parties.
Congress legislators met Wcdnes
iay night and unanimously re
sleeted Gandhi as parliamentary
eadcr, putting him in the position ol
xscoming prime minister again it the
ipposition should fail and President
/enkataraman asked Congress to
orm a government.__
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