vips

LETTER N° 26

From 24 to 30 June

24
Japan

(Tokyo)

Metropolitan Assembly election. Results :

The Liberal Democratic Party staged a comeback in Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election, winning seats with the most number of votes in 35 of the 41 districts where they fielded candidates. The LDP garnered about 36 percent of votes cast in Sunday's election compared to about 19 percent it received in Tokyo under the proportional representation system in the lower house election held a year ago.

24
Albania

Parliamentary election. Results :

The Socialist Party (PS) has managed to win 46 percent of the votes countrywide, clearly ahead of the opposition Union for Victory coalition, which received only 34 percent. PS candidates appear to have won 35 direct seats in parliament, while the opposition won in only 17 constituencies. Another 47 direct seats will be decided in a second round of voting on 8 July.

24
Germany

(Saxony)

Local elections. Dresden mayor. Results :

Herbert Wagner, the Christian Democratic Union's mayor in Dresden, Saxony's second-largest city, on conceded defeat in a run-off election against Ingolf Rossberg of the Free Democratic Party.

Ingolf Rossberg born to 22. March 1961 in Dresden. 1967-1977 school attendance in Dresden. 1970-1977 " pioneer railroadman " (today park railway in the large garden). 1977-1980 professional training with Abitur with the German National Railroad in Leipzig : " skilled worker for operation and traffic service " 1980 Abitur. 1980-1982 military service at the troops of building of railways 1982-1987 study at the university for traffic " Friedrich cunning " Dresden (today : To faculty traffic sciences to DO Dresden). During the study works as streetcar drivers in Dresden Mickten. 1987-1990 research study at the same university. 23 May 1990 selection to the departmental head (actually: Assigned to one) for town development of the state capital Dresden. 22 October 1994 selection to the 1. Assigned to one (starting from 1 March 1995 first mayor) of the large district town Radebeul, responsible for building, planning, environment, green, care of monuments and kaemmerei. 22. May 2000 selection to the assigning to for town development, building and traffic of the city Wuppertal in North Rhine-Westphalia (370,000 inhabitants). Since 1985 member of the people solidarity.

24
Iraq

Mahmud Dhiyab al-Ahmad is appointed interior minister.

24
Italy

(Sicilia)

Regional elections are held in Sicilia. For the first time, the president is elected directly ; Salvatore Cuffaro wins with 59.1% of the vote, followed by Leoluca Orlando with 36.6% and Sergio D'Antoni with 4.3%. In the parliamentary elections, Forza Italia wins 25.1% against 11.3% for the National Alliance and 10.1% for the Democrats of the Left.

25/27
UN

(HIV/AIDS)

26TH SPECIAL SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON HIV/AIDS

Culminating an historic three-day special session on HIV/AIDS, the General Assembly today adopted a comprehensive Declaration of Commitment containing specific timetables and setting out a blueprint for mobilizing a greatly accelerated response to the pandemic.

MORE

26
Uganda

Parliament election. Results :

The National Electoral Commission said backers of his National Resistance Movement political group won the majority of seats in voting.

27
UN

With no opposition, Secretary-General Kofi Annan was approved for another five-year term by the U.N.

Mr. Annan was born in Kumasi, Ghana, on 8 April 1938. He studied at the University of Science and Technology in Kumasi and completed his undergraduate work in economics at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A., in 1961. From 1961 to 1962, he undertook graduate studies in economics at the Institut universitaire des hautes études internationales in Geneva. As a 1971-1972 Sloan Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mr. Annan received a Master of Science degree in management.

Mr. Annan joined the United Nations system in 1962 as an administrative and budget officer with the World Health Organization in Geneva. Since then he has served with the UN Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa ; the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF II) in Ismailia ; the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva ; and, at UN Headquarters in New York, as Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management and Security Coordinator for the UN System (1987-1990) and Assistant Secretary-General for Programme Planning, Budget and Finance, and Controller (1990-1992). Served as Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations (March 1993 - February 1994) and then as Under Secretary-General (February 1994 - October 1995; April 1996 - December 1996). Kofi Annan of Ghana is the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations. The first Secretary-General to be elected from the ranks of United Nations staff.

27
Canada

(British Columbia)

Prime Minister Jean Chretien announced the appointment Iona Campagnolo, a former federal Liberal cabinet minister, has been named British Columbia's lieutenant governor, the first woman to hold the post in the province.

Born in October 18, 1932 on Galiano Island and raised in northern B.C., Iona Campagnolo's public service began in Prince Rupert in 1966 as a school trustee. A stint in radio saw her named B.C. Broadcast Citizen of the year for 1972. The same year she was awarded the Order of Canada. Serving in parliament during much of the 70s, her name became synonymous with the Liberal Party of Canada. She served in Pierre Trudeau's cabinet. She was the first woman president of her party. Since 1993, she has been the director of the Montreal based International Center for Human Rights and Democratic Development. Recently completing a six-year term, she was the first chancellor of the University of Northern British Columbia. She continually pursues social justice. As chair of the Fraser Basin Council, she is committed to the economic and environmental sustainability of the Fraser River. She is director of The Arctic Institute of North America based in Calgary.

29
Portugal

Premier Minister Antonio Guterres Reshuffles Cabinet.

Finance Minister Joaquim Pina Moura announced his resignation a few hours after Health Minister Manuela Arcanjo announced hers. Deputy Prime Minister Guilherme de Oliveira Martins was to take over the finance portfolio, while Antonio Correia de Campos was replacing Arcanjo.

SEE GOVERNEMENT COMPOSITION NEXT WEEK

29
Yugoslavia

Prime Minister Zoran Zizic leader of the Montenegrin faction in the Yugoslav government resigns.

A former lecturer at the Faculty of Law in his home town of Podgorica, the capital of the coastal republic of Montenegro, Zizic, 49, entered politics in 1988 and was previously a close ally of Slobodan Milosevic's Socialist Party of Serbia. When Montenegro's ruling party broke up in 1997, Zizic joined the pro-Milosevic faction, the Socialist People's Party (SNP) and became its deputy president. He has been a prominent critic of Montenegro's pro-Western government. The SNP decided to end its old alliance with Serbia's Socialists at federal level following Milosevic's downfall and Zizic emerged as the party's strongest candidate for premier. Under Yugoslavia's constitution, the prime minister should be from Montenegro if the president is a Serb.

29
Australia

Peter Hollingworth is sworn in as governor-general.

Archbishop Peter Hollingworth was born in 1935. He became a priest and tried to encourage the church to do more to improve people's lives. He trained as a social worker as well and took a job with the Brotherhood of St Lawrence. This is a group that helps people who are in trouble or in need. Hollingworth believes that poor people should have more control over their own lives and that people should respect different ideas and ways of life from their own. He has also worked to help Aboriginal people and young people who have no jobs. His ideas have caused some arguments with other people in the church, but he was made an archbishop in 1990. In 1991 he was made Australian of the Year.

29/30
Socialist International

The Socialist International Holds Council in Lisbon on 50th Anniversary

The Council of the Socialist International holds its first meeting of the year in Lisbon with the participation of more than 400 delegates representing member parties from throughout the world.

The SI Council, to be chaired by Prime Minister António Guterres, President of the Socialist International, will open by addressing the theme, 'Social Democracy in the World Today', on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the reestablishment of the Socialist International in 1951. Other main themes for discussion are : the Kyoto Protocol and the urgent task of saving the environment ; initiatives for peace, focusing on the current situation in the Middle East and conflicts in Africa ; and globalisation and the reform of the World Trade Organisation, WTO.

Participants will include leading socialists and social democrats, among them a number of presidents and prime ministers, as well as numerous party leaders, ministers and other officials, together with specially invited guests.

VIPS-GOV.

ITALY - Berlusconi's Government

VIPS-FEDS

SOUTH AFRICA - The 9 Provinces

June 26, 1945
U.N. CHARTER SIGNED

In the Herbst Theater auditorium in San Francisco, delegates from 50 nations sign the United Nations Charter, establishing the world body as a means of saving "succeeding generations from the scourge of war." The Charter was ratified on October 24, and the first U.N. General Assembly met in London on January 10, 1946.

SEE

ALSO SEE

Chiefs of State and Heads of Government Foreign Affairs World Parliaments Federated States and Provinces World Governments International Organizations

24 Japan (Tokyo)		Metropolitan Assembly election. Results : The Liberal Democratic Party staged a comeback in Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election, winning seats with the most number of votes in 35 of the 41 districts where they fielded candidates. The LDP garnered about 36 percent of votes cast in Sunday's election compared to about 19 percent it received in Tokyo under the proportional representation system in the lower house election held a year ago.
24 Albania		Parliamentary election. Results : The Socialist Party (PS) has managed to win 46 percent of the votes countrywide, clearly ahead of the opposition Union for Victory coalition, which received only 34 percent. PS candidates appear to have won 35 direct seats in parliament, while the opposition won in only 17 constituencies. Another 47 direct seats will be decided in a second round of voting on 8 July.
24 Germany (Saxony)		Local elections. Dresden mayor. Results : Herbert Wagner, the Christian Democratic Union's mayor in Dresden, Saxony's second-largest city, on conceded defeat in a run-off election against Ingolf Rossberg of the Free Democratic Party. Ingolf Rossberg born to 22. March 1961 in Dresden. 1967-1977 school attendance in Dresden. 1970-1977 " pioneer railroadman " (today park railway in the large garden). 1977-1980 professional training with Abitur with the German National Railroad in Leipzig : " skilled worker for operation and traffic service " 1980 Abitur. 1980-1982 military service at the troops of building of railways 1982-1987 study at the university for traffic " Friedrich cunning " Dresden (today : To faculty traffic sciences to DO Dresden). During the study works as streetcar drivers in Dresden Mickten. 1987-1990 research study at the same university. 23 May 1990 selection to the departmental head (actually: Assigned to one) for town development of the state capital Dresden. 22 October 1994 selection to the 1. Assigned to one (starting from 1 March 1995 first mayor) of the large district town Radebeul, responsible for building, planning, environment, green, care of monuments and kaemmerei. 22. May 2000 selection to the assigning to for town development, building and traffic of the city Wuppertal in North Rhine-Westphalia (370,000 inhabitants). Since 1985 member of the people solidarity.
24 Iraq		Mahmud Dhiyab al-Ahmad is appointed interior minister.
24 Italy (Sicilia)		Regional elections are held in Sicilia. For the first time, the president is elected directly ; Salvatore Cuffaro wins with 59.1% of the vote, followed by Leoluca Orlando with 36.6% and Sergio D'Antoni with 4.3%. In the parliamentary elections, Forza Italia wins 25.1% against 11.3% for the National Alliance and 10.1% for the Democrats of the Left.
25/27 UN (HIV/AIDS)		26TH SPECIAL SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON HIV/AIDS Culminating an historic three-day special session on HIV/AIDS, the General Assembly today adopted a comprehensive Declaration of Commitment containing specific timetables and setting out a blueprint for mobilizing a greatly accelerated response to the pandemic. MORE
26 Uganda		Parliament election. Results : The National Electoral Commission said backers of his National Resistance Movement political group won the majority of seats in voting.
27 UN		With no opposition, Secretary-General Kofi Annan was approved for another five-year term by the U.N. Mr. Annan was born in Kumasi, Ghana, on 8 April 1938. He studied at the University of Science and Technology in Kumasi and completed his undergraduate work in economics at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A., in 1961. From 1961 to 1962, he undertook graduate studies in economics at the Institut universitaire des hautes études internationales in Geneva. As a 1971-1972 Sloan Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mr. Annan received a Master of Science degree in management. Mr. Annan joined the United Nations system in 1962 as an administrative and budget officer with the World Health Organization in Geneva. Since then he has served with the UN Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa ; the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF II) in Ismailia ; the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva ; and, at UN Headquarters in New York, as Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management and Security Coordinator for the UN System (1987-1990) and Assistant Secretary-General for Programme Planning, Budget and Finance, and Controller (1990-1992). Served as Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations (March 1993 - February 1994) and then as Under Secretary-General (February 1994 - October 1995; April 1996 - December 1996). Kofi Annan of Ghana is the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations. The first Secretary-General to be elected from the ranks of United Nations staff.
27 Canada (British Columbia)		Prime Minister Jean Chretien announced the appointment Iona Campagnolo, a former federal Liberal cabinet minister, has been named British Columbia's lieutenant governor, the first woman to hold the post in the province. Born in October 18, 1932 on Galiano Island and raised in northern B.C., Iona Campagnolo's public service began in Prince Rupert in 1966 as a school trustee. A stint in radio saw her named B.C. Broadcast Citizen of the year for 1972. The same year she was awarded the Order of Canada. Serving in parliament during much of the 70s, her name became synonymous with the Liberal Party of Canada. She served in Pierre Trudeau's cabinet. She was the first woman president of her party. Since 1993, she has been the director of the Montreal based International Center for Human Rights and Democratic Development. Recently completing a six-year term, she was the first chancellor of the University of Northern British Columbia. She continually pursues social justice. As chair of the Fraser Basin Council, she is committed to the economic and environmental sustainability of the Fraser River. She is director of The Arctic Institute of North America based in Calgary.
29 Portugal		Premier Minister Antonio Guterres Reshuffles Cabinet. Finance Minister Joaquim Pina Moura announced his resignation a few hours after Health Minister Manuela Arcanjo announced hers. Deputy Prime Minister Guilherme de Oliveira Martins was to take over the finance portfolio, while Antonio Correia de Campos was replacing Arcanjo. SEE GOVERNEMENT COMPOSITION NEXT WEEK
29 Yugoslavia		Prime Minister Zoran Zizic leader of the Montenegrin faction in the Yugoslav government resigns. A former lecturer at the Faculty of Law in his home town of Podgorica, the capital of the coastal republic of Montenegro, Zizic, 49, entered politics in 1988 and was previously a close ally of Slobodan Milosevic's Socialist Party of Serbia. When Montenegro's ruling party broke up in 1997, Zizic joined the pro-Milosevic faction, the Socialist People's Party (SNP) and became its deputy president. He has been a prominent critic of Montenegro's pro-Western government. The SNP decided to end its old alliance with Serbia's Socialists at federal level following Milosevic's downfall and Zizic emerged as the party's strongest candidate for premier. Under Yugoslavia's constitution, the prime minister should be from Montenegro if the president is a Serb.
29 Australia		Peter Hollingworth is sworn in as governor-general. Archbishop Peter Hollingworth was born in 1935. He became a priest and tried to encourage the church to do more to improve people's lives. He trained as a social worker as well and took a job with the Brotherhood of St Lawrence. This is a group that helps people who are in trouble or in need. Hollingworth believes that poor people should have more control over their own lives and that people should respect different ideas and ways of life from their own. He has also worked to help Aboriginal people and young people who have no jobs. His ideas have caused some arguments with other people in the church, but he was made an archbishop in 1990. In 1991 he was made Australian of the Year.
29/30 Socialist International		The Socialist International Holds Council in Lisbon on 50th Anniversary The Council of the Socialist International holds its first meeting of the year in Lisbon with the participation of more than 400 delegates representing member parties from throughout the world. The SI Council, to be chaired by Prime Minister António Guterres, President of the Socialist International, will open by addressing the theme, 'Social Democracy in the World Today', on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the reestablishment of the Socialist International in 1951. Other main themes for discussion are : the Kyoto Protocol and the urgent task of saving the environment ; initiatives for peace, focusing on the current situation in the Middle East and conflicts in Africa ; and globalisation and the reform of the World Trade Organisation, WTO. Participants will include leading socialists and social democrats, among them a number of presidents and prime ministers, as well as numerous party leaders, ministers and other officials, together with specially invited guests.