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Egypt: One Year After the Fall of Mubarak

The World — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:00:04 +0000

Saturday marks the one year anniversary of President Hosni Mubarak’s downfall in Egypt.

Since then the military has controlled the government and members of the Muslim Brotherhood control Parliament.

Marco Werman speaks with the BBC’s Yolande Knell about the power struggle within Egypt.

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New Federal Rules Allow Musicians to Bring Instruments on Airplanes

The World — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 14:40:09 +0000

Congress has approved a bill that among other things, makes it clear that federal rules allow musicians to bring their instruments on airplanes. Anchor Marco Werman explains.

Zambia Soccer Success Tinged with Poignancy

The World — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 14:00:36 +0000

One of Africa’s biggest sporting events is happening Sunday.

It is the final of the Africa Cup of Nations soccer tournament.

The finalists are Zambia and pre-tournament favorites Ivory Coast.

The fact that Sunday’s match is taking place in Libreville, the capital of Gabon is particularly poignant for the Zambian squad.

It was there, in 1993, that a plane carrying the Zambian national soccer team crashed, killing all on board.

Anchor Marco Werman speaks with the BBC’s Farayi Mungazi about how the current team is dealing with the memory of the tragedy.

Backpacker Memories After Hitchhiking Around the World

The World — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:40:08 +0000

The World’s Alex Gallafent tells the story of Naomi Molten, an 82-year-old Englishwoman who hitchhiked around the world in the 1950s.

Molten is a veteran traveler who trained as a PE teacher.

In her youth Naomi wanted to explore the world and spent 18 years hitchhiking around the globe.

She recalls her adventures as a young woman in the 1950s traveling mainly on her own to many countries including New Zealand, Australia, India and Pakistan, Afghanistan and the North West Frontier.

Mindful Eating Comes to America

The World — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:30:38 +0000

There’s a food movement called mindful eating that’s picking up speed here in the US.

The Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hạnh is a leading proponent.

He has a food meditation center in southern France.

Plum Village, as it’s called, attracts visitors who want to learn how to eat more mindfully, among other things.

Plum village winter retreat (Photo: Plum Village Online Monastery/Facebook)

So, for the Geo Quiz, we’re looking for the name of the French department or region where you can find Plum Village.

It lies between the Loire valley and the Pyrénées …

The answer is Dordogne, France. A Buddhist meditation center there called Plum Village attracts vistors from around the world who want to explore mindful eating. Lilian Cheung of the Harvard School of Public Health and co-author of Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life explains the basics of mindfulness to anchor Marco Werman.

Dr. Cheung shared one of the meditations she learned from monks at Plum Village. She says its a grace that’s said before each meal as a way to contemplate and honor the nourishing food:

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Trump Picks Fight with Scotland Over Wind Farm

The World — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:10:44 +0000

American tycoon and TV personality Donald Trump has started a war of words with the Scottish government.

Trump wants the government to stop plans for a wind farm project off the coast of Aberdeen Bay.

The wind turbines would be seen from the luxury golf resort Trump is building in Scotland.

Anchor Marco Werman talks to Scottish parliament member Willie Rennie about the wind farm battle.

PRI’s The World: 02/10/2012 (Spain, Scotland, France)

The World — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:00:07 +0000

Life in Egypt one year after Mubarak’s ouster. There is a power struggle at the top and a growing distrust of foreigners. Then, a conversation with author Katherine Boo, whose latest book chronicles life in a Mumbai slum. Also, music from a Grammy nominee for Best Ensemble Performance.

PRI’s The World Latest Edition Feb 10, 2012 by The World

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Smuggling Routes Bring Guns and Bullets into Syria

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:00:35 +0000

Syrian television has reportedly been showing daily broadcasts of what it says are shipments of arms being smuggled into Syria from Lebanon, Turkey and other border areas.

Although those broadcasts may be fabrications, at least some shipments of arms are being smuggled into Syria, and into the hands of those who oppose the government, reporters say.

Ghaith Abdul-Ahad is a correspondent for The Guardian newspaper based in Istanbul, Turkey. He’s met with arms smugglers in Syria.

He tells host Marco Werman many of the weapons are coming across the border from Iraq, Lebanon and Turkey.

Spain’s Judge Baltasar Garzon Convicted For Wiretapping

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:40:44 +0000

Spain’s Supreme Court has found the country’s best-known judge, Baltasar Garzon, guilty of authorizing illegal recordings of lawyers’ conversations.

He has been banned from the legal profession for 11 years. The court said he could not appeal against the ruling.

Garzon is best known for helping to secure the arrest of the former Chilean leader Augusto Pinochet in London.

Marco Werman speaks with The World’s Gerry Hadden.

Ukraine’s Big Freeze

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:35:51 +0000

Ukraine is in the grips of an really cold winter with several steady weeks of temperatures down around zero. Residents of Kiev are weary of the cold and snow, authorities have put up warming tents around the city, and some schools are closed. Anchor Marco Werman has details.

A Three-Pronged Presidential Race in Mexico

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:00:41 +0000

This is a big election year not just in the US, but also in Mexico where the stage is now set for a three-way showdown in the presidential vote in July.

Voters in Mexico have some interesting choices.

They could pick the leftist candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who claims he was robbed of the presidency in 2006, or they could bring back the Institutional Revolutionary party (the PRI), the party which ran the country for seven decades, by electing Enrique Peña Nieto, or they could elect Mexico’s first woman president in Josefina Vázquez Mota, who has recently been chosen by her party to run for the presidency.

Anchor Marco Werman talks to reporter Franc Contreras, who is in Mexico City, about the three candidates vying for the presidential elections.

Canadian Aboriginal Groups Oppose Pipeline

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:40:18 +0000

Canada’s Prime Minister Stephen Harper is in China this week.

He is heading a delegation of Canadian business leaders aimed at forging closer economic ties.

Those business leaders signed nearly $3 billion worth of deals with Chinese enterprises Thursday.

China has a particular interest in Canadian energy, which is worth many more billions.

This includes a proposed Canadian pipeline to the Pacific Ocean.

It would move sludge-like oil known as bitumen from Alberta’s oil sands to the West Coast, where it could be shipped to China.

But not all Canadians are on board with the proposal.

This week, aboriginal groups from British Columbia sent an open letter to Chinese President Hu Jintao asking China to raise the native community’s concerns about the pipeline with President Harper.

Anchor Marco Werman talks to Chief Jackie Thomas, one of the signatories of the letter, about why native communities do not want the pipeline.

Former Maldives President Calls for New Elections

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:30:14 +0000

Anchor Marco Werman speaks with the BBC’s Andrew North about the latest developments from the Maldives.

The former president Mohamed Nasheed left office earlier this week.

He now claims he was the victim of a coup.

Indonesian Women to Get Husbands’ Salaries

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:10:58 +0000

Indonesia is the destination for today’s quiz.

More specifically the Province of Gorontalo. That’s where Governor Rusli Habibie is implementing a new policy, diverting the pay of married men who work for the provincial government.

From next month, their money will go directly to their wives. This follows petitions from women who say they’re not getting enough money from their menfolk to feed their families and pay the rent.

Gorontalo lies on one of the great islands of Indonesia. Can you name it?

From the air, the island looks a bit like an octopus on its side, with several long peninsulas extending into the sea, like tentacles. Due north is the Philippines. Go west and you hit Borneo.

The answer is Sulawesi.

Anchor Marco Werman gets details from the BBC’s Jakarta reporter, Karishma Vaswani.

Gorontalo, highlighted in green on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia (Map: Wiki Commons)

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PRI’s The World: 02/09/2012 (Ukraine, Maldives, Indonesia)

The World — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:00:12 +0000

Is a civil war brewing in Syria? Also, the Spanish judge who tried to bring Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet to justice now finds himself on the wrong side of Spanish law. And a look at Mexico’s top presidential elections, one of whom will become the country’s first female president.

PRI’s The World Latest Edition Feb 9, 2012 by The World

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