General Politics

NDA takes on UPA on the issue of Terrorism in NIC

Prime Minister Dr.

New Zealand politicians kick off election campaign

Wellington - New Zealand politicians kick off election campaignThe state of the economy in New Zealand, which is officially in recession, was the key issue when the main parties formally kicked off their campaigns for next month's general election on Sunday.

Prime Minister Helen Clark, whose Labour Party has led minority coalition governments for the last nine years, moved to calm fears about the global financial crisis by announcing that she would guarantee deposits in bank savings accounts.

Canada could again elect minority Conservative government

Canada could again elect minority Conservative governmentMontreal - Canadians are expected to elect another minority Conservative government as they head to national polls on Tuesday, the latest opinion polls show.

"We're not talking about a majority," Prime Minister Stephen Harper, leader of the Conservative Party, conceded during a last ditch campaign effort Saturday in southern Ontario.

"There's a million polls. Don't be fooled by any of them. This is a close election," Harper said at a rally in London, Ontario.

Official Austria remembers Haider as divisive figure

Vienna - Austrian political and religious leaders expressed shock about the death of far-right Joerg Haider in a car accident on Saturday morning, but many pointed to the divisive nature of his politics.

"He was a politician of great gifts and talents," President Heinz Fischer told national broadcaster ORF.

"He sparked intense approval as much as intense criticism," the social democratic president said about Haider, who was leader of the Alliance of the Future of Austria and governor of the province of Carinthia.

From the 1980s, Haider turned Austria's small right-wing movement into a force to be reckoned with by often denigrating political opponents, and by tapping into revisionist and anti-immigrant sentiments.

Austrian far right leader Joerg Haider dies at 58

Vienna - Austrian far right leader Joerg Haider dies at 58Austrian politician and populist Joerg Haider, 58, the man behind the resurgence of the country's right wing parties, died in a car crash on Saturday.

With his death, Austria's right loses its most important figurehead, a man both reviled and admired by many Austrians.

The crash occurred near Klagenfurt in the province Carinthia, where Haider was a popular governor.

North Korea airs footage of Kim Jong Il

Seoul - North Korea airs footage of Kim Jong IlNorth Korea's state-run Central Television Saturday released pictures of leader Kim Jong Il inspecting a miliary unit in an attempt to refute speculation over his alleged illness, a South Korean media report said.

Kim, who is said to be recovering from a stroke or brain surgery, was shown in 10 photographs inspecting a women's army unit and watching them undergo weapons' training, the Yonhap news agency said. The images were the first of Kim shown in 58 days.

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