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News Digest Japanese express outrage over accident ■ Secretary of State Colin Powell will investigate whether civilians caused the U5.Navy submarine crash. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS UWAJIMA, Japan - People in this remote village were angered Thursday to hear that a civilian was at the controls when a U.S. Navy submarine shot up from the sea and into a Japanese fishing boat off Hawaii The USS Greeneville rocketed into the boat carrying Japanese high school stu dents on a two-month training trip and sent it to the bottom of the sea Feb. 9. TWenty-six aboard were rescued with in an hour; nine remain missing. “It’s outrageous and unforgivable," said Hirofumi Takeda, who was walking home late Thursday after a night out with friends in Uwajima. “It sounds like they were fooling around. It's very upsetting, especially for the people in this town.” In Tokyo, a Foreign Ministry official said the government could not comment on a civilian’s televised remarks about what happened aboard the submarine because it had not received an official report from Washington. But earlier Thursday, Foreign Minister Yohei Kono spoke to Secretary of State Colin Powell and demanded information on exactly what the civilians did at the controls. Kono said in a ministry statement that it would be an “extremely grave situation” if the participation of the civilians led to the accident Powell was quoted as saying in the 20 minute conversation that there was not yet any evidence of that. Kono also asked Powell why U.S. offi cials did not directly inform Japan that civilians were taking part in the sub's maneuvers, the ministry said. In Washington, State Department officials confirmed that Kono called Powell to express his concerns. , Powell promised to work with Japan and to provide information in a timely manner, the officials said. Powell told Kono the Pentagon was the best channel for information, the offi cials added. Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori sent an official to Washington to convey the strong wishes of relatives of the missing for a continued search, Mori spokesman Kazuhiko Koshikawa said. John Hall - one of 16 civilians aboard the submarine - told NBC's “Today” show that he pulled control levers just before the emergency surfacing drill, with a crew member at his side. “It sounds like the operation lacked professionalism,” said Uwajima taxi driv er Mutsumi Makino. “It’s incredible to do such a thing in an area filled with dozens of civilian boats.” Japan’s media expressed disbelief that civilians had been at the helm. "Why were the controls left to civil ians?” the conservative Nihon Keizai Shimbun asked in an editorial. “Every time new information emerges, our doubts and anger are stirred up.” U.S. and Japanese officials were eager to make sure the sinking does not damage relations. 7f sounds like they were fooling around. It’s very upsetting, especially for the people in this town.” Hirofumi Takeda Japanese civilian The U.S. military bases in Japan form the backbone of Washington's strategic presence in Asia and allow Japan to keep down its own military expenditures. But tension was already high over the U.S. military presence on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa, where a municipal assembly called Thursday for the withdrawal of all Marines from the island and the resignation of its com mander. The civilian tour aboard the USS Greeneville was arranged by a former commander of U.S. military forces in the Pacific, retired Adm. Richard Macke, said Cmdr. Conrad Chun, a Pacific Fleet spokesman. Mexico s drug certification questioned THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON - President Bush is open to ending the annual U.S. evaluation of Mexico’s drug-fighting efforts, officials said Thursday, in a goodwill gesture on the eve of Bush’s trip to visit newly installed Mexican President Vicente Fox. “Mexico has seen a new birth of freedom," Bush said at the State Department as he prepared for die first foreign trip of his presidency. Fox and other Mexican leaders have railed against the congressionally mandated drug certifi cation process, which could result in economic penalties. Talks between the two leaders are expected to trace a wide range of issues, including immigra tion, trade, energy and drugs. But no major devel opments are planned for the scheduled session at San Cristobal, the site of Fox’s dusty ranch 210 miles northwest of Mexico City in the state of Guanajuato. Bush and Fox - both ranch owners who favor Western wear and enchiladas - plan to stress their personal ties, not their nations’ differences. As they meet, there will be a series of picture-taking sessions showing them in cozy, casual settings. “President Fox and I met as governors, and I look forward to deepening our friendship," said Bush, a former two-term Texas governor. “But I look forward even more to forging a deeper partnership between our two great nations.” One sticking point in U.S.-Mexico relations is die 14-year-old law requiring the U.S. president to certify annually which of nearly 30 countries are cooperating in the fight against drug trafficking. Those considered not to be doing enough can be “decertified” and face possible sanctions. The next deadline for State Department decisions on certi fication is March 1. The process has infuriated many countries, most notably Mexico, that view it as a condescend ing and hypocritical exercise by the nation that is the world’s largest consumer of illegal drugs. Mexico has never failed to be certified. Previewing the trip, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said Bush wanted to work with Mexico to reduce drug trafficking and had noted “some questions that have been raised on Capitol Hill about whether the current certifica tion regime is, indeed, the most appropriate way to do so." TODAY TOMORROW Partly cloudy Partly cloudy high 28, low 12 high 22, low 17 Darren McCoJIester/Newsmakers CHILLING OUT: firefighters ride the ski lift Thursday at Wadiusett Mountain in Princeton, Mass, firefighters from Massachusetts, and neighboring states, took part in the annual ski that benefited the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Democrats offer tax-cut plan THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON - Congress’ top Democrats announced their party’s budget priorities on Thursday, includ ing a tax cut less than half the size of President Bush’s $1.6 trillion, 10-year plan. As they did, Republican leaders downplayed the defections of the first two GOP senators, a pair of New England moderates who said they could not back Bush's proposal because it would be too costly. With the Senate’s 50-50 partisan balance and just one Democrat so far voicing support for the plan - Sen. Zell Miller of Georgia - every senator’s vote may be crucial to the fate of the tax plan, the heart of Bush’s economic program. “I've got a lot of work to do,” Bush told reporters before meeting with GOP members of the House and Senate budget committees. “But I'm convinced that when the American people hear our plan, they will support it. And I think we got a very good chance of getting the tax package through.” “This is not the beginning of any crack” in Republican support, said Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R- - Miss., who predicted eventual passage of tax cuts “in the range” of $1.6 tril lion. The dissenting Republicans were Sens. James Jeffords of Vermont and Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island. “I'd like to see a few more years go by with a good economy before I could embrace such a large tax cut,” Chafee told a reporter. Jeffords is on the tax-writing Senate Finance Committee that, like all Senate committees this year, has a membership split evenly between the two parties. House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, D-Mo., and Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., threw their support behind $750 bil lion in tax cuts over the next decade. They provided no details - in part reflecting disagreements among Democrats on precisely which taxes to cut - but said their plan would be aimed more at lower- and middle income Americans than Bush’s. They also said their plan would devote more money them Bush’s plan to debt reduction and spending for schools, a new Medicare prescription drug benefit and other priorities. “We base our plan on one simple principle: Cut taxes but in the context of an overall budget that's good for all families,” Gephardt said. “Instead of favoring those at the top as the Bush plan does, we want a plan that’s fair to all Americans.” Bush and his supporters have said “We base our plan on one simple principle: Cut taxes but in the context of an overall budget that’s good for all families.” Dick Gephardt House minority leader his tax cut would help people of all income levels and would leave plenty of money for debt reduction, schools and other initiatives. Daschle and Gephardt said they would set aside $2.9 trillion for debt reduction over the next decade. That is the portion of the projected overall $5.6 trillion, 10-year federal surplus that comes from Social Security and Medicare. Of the remaining $2.7 trillion in estimated surpluses, Democrats would divide it into thirds: one-third for tax cuts, one-third for additional debt reduction and one-third for new spending for education and other pro grams. Their $750 billion tax cut would cost the government $150 billion in added interest costs because using the money to reduce taxes means there would be less debt reduction. The Associated Press ■ California CBS to scout for future 'Survivor' applicants LOS ANGELES - CBS is look ing for a few good survivors. The network announced Wednesday it is accepting appli cations for future installments of “Survivor.” CBS planned to make application forms available on its Web site. The third version of the reality show will air this fall, again set in a remote area and with a $1 million prize for the winning contestant among 16 players. Applicants must submit a three-minute videotape demon strating why they believe they can prevail in the game, CBS said Hie deadline is April 13. After paring down the sub missions, producers will inter view at least 800 semifinalists in 16 U.S. cities. ■ Delaware University of Delaware receives art collection NEWARK - An Atlanta man who devoted himself to collecting African-American modem art “to fill the gap” left by museums has donated his 1,000-piece collec tion to the University of Delaware. In announcing the gift Wednesday, 72-year-old Paul Jones said he wanted his collec tion - amassed on a government worker’s paycheck - to go to Delaware, rather than to a histori cally black college, as an act of integration. “My major consideration is to see us weave Afro-American art into American art instead of treat ing it as something on a dotted line completely separate and dis tinct,” he said The collection includes paint ings, sculptures and photographs by modem artists such as Charles White, Herman “Kofi” Bailey, Elizabeth Catlett and Romare Bearden. Another artist represented is Selma Burke, who created the image of Franklin D. Roosevelt that appears on dimes. ■ Belgium Belgian police raid homes of Internet musk swappers BRUSSELS -Acting on com plaints from the music industry, police have raided the homes of users of music-sharing Web sites looking for evidence they infringed copyright rules, the prosecutors' office said Thursday. Police searched the home of a first suspect in late December and two more in January, Olivier Bogaert, a prosecution spokesman, told Belgian news media. He said the searches were part of an investigation of the Internet site mp3blast.com, but added four cases against Napster users were currently under review. Marcel Heymans, general director of the Belgium branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, said he warned police of alleged copy right infractions. Heymans said his organiza tion had tracking equipment that could search for users “by the thousands.” At the moment, he said the group was only targeting users “who had been clearly warned yet persevered with the practice.” ■ Israel Israeli army denies using 'poison gas'on Palestinians Questions? Comments? Editor Sarah Baker Ask for the appropriate section editor Managing Editor Bradley Davis at (482) 472*2588 Associate News Editor Kimberly Sweet or e-miil dnduni edu Assignment Editor Jill Zeman Opinion Editor Jake Glazeski Fax number (402) 472-1761 Sports Editor: Matthew Hansen World Wide Web: www.dailyneb.com Assistant Sports Editor David Diehl The Daily Nebraskan (USPS144-080) Arts Editor: Samuel McKewon is published by the UNL Publications Copy Desk Chief: Danell McCoy Board, 20 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., CopyJ?£ C!U8 : »,ef! Bloocm,. Lincoln. WE61S8^04«. Monday ttrou^i EEELi Frxfay dunno the academic yean weekly Photo Chief: Scott McClurg during the summer sessions.The public Design Coordinator Bradley Davis has access to the Publications Board. Web Editor Gregg Stems Readers are encouraged to submit story Assistant Web Editor Tanner Graham ideas and comments to the Daily General Manager Daniel Shattil Nebraskan by calling (402) 472-2588. Publications Board Russell Willbanks Subscriptions are $60 for one year. prnf«cinniihidS fffljST.?226 Postmaster. Send address changes Professional Adviser Don VWdton NESwiT"’ Advertising Manager Nick Partsch 1400 R St, Lincoln NE 68588-0448. (402) 472-2589 Periodical postage paid at Lincoln, NE. Assistant Ad Manager Nicole Woita ALL MATERIAL COPYRIGHT 2001 Classified Ad Manager Nikki Bruner THE DAILY NEBRASKAN Circulation Manager Imtiyaz Khan I i Greece behind in Olympic plans THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ATHENS, Greece -The chief overseer of the 2004 Olympics delivered a sharp message Thursday to organizers facing tight con struction deadlines: Stop talking and start building. The demand by International Olympic Committee Envoy Jacques Rogge reflected the grow ing concern that lack of coordination and Greece's dense bureaucracy could plunge the games back into crisis. “The IOC expects, of course, the start of the con struction pretty soon,” Rogge said as he began a two-day inspection visit I that included meetings with Premier Costas Simitis and other government leaders. “The next six months are critical and decisive,” he said. The warning was not as stem as last year, when IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch told 2004 organizers that an alarm ing lack of progress put the Athens Games in jeopardy. But Rogge’s statement showed a much tougher IOC line after praising Athens for quickly responding to Samaranch’s ultimatum. Rogge reportedly spelled out his concerns to Simitis during a 45-minute discussion that focused on construction of Olympic venues and transportation infrastructure. Rogge made no com ment after the meeting. Greece’s Socialist gov ernment directly controls major Olympic construc tion projects and has rejected complaints of failing behind schedule. Even President Costis Stephanopoulos said Monday it was the Greek style to pull things together “at the last minute.” Other issues under IOC scrutiny include anti-ter rorism measures and mounting environmental opposition to a new rowing center. JERUSALEM - The Palestinian Authority has asked foreign medical labs to investigate its claims - renewed Thursday by Yasser Arafat and strenuously denied by Israel - that Israeli troops are using “poison gas” on Palestinian civilians. The Israeli army denied the charges, saying that its soldiers use “standard tear gas” and smoke bombs against Palestinians. After viewing footage of Palestinians treated for gas inhalation, former Israeli army surgeon-general Eran Dolev said he saw no signs of perspiration, vomiting or skin burns, symp toms of exposure to nerve or mus tard gas. “This resembles more than anything else just a state of anxi ety,” he said. We’re not talking here about poisonous gas.”