#news: Video: Navy Railgun Sets New Record, Launching A Metal Bullet To Mach 7 Speeds

Railgun Test U.S. Navy

The Navy just broke its own record for an awesomely powerful railgun, which can hurl a projectile hundreds of miles at superfast speeds without using explosives.

Today's 33-megajoule shot — powerful enough to launch 33 Smart cars at 100 mph — means the Navy can fire projectiles at least 125 miles, keeping military personnel at a safe distance from their targets, according to the Office of Naval Research.

Rather than using an explosion to fire a bullet, the futuristic weapon uses an electromagnetic current to accelerate a projectile to March 7.5. The video pretty much says it all.

The eventual goal is a ship-mounted railgun that can fire a projectile more than 200 miles at speeds of more than 8,000 feet per second. A kinetic energy warhead would eliminate the use of hazardous explosives on ships and on the battlefield, the Navy says.

Today’s test beats the Navy’s previous record, set in 2008. The old video is still pretty impressive.

By Rebecca Boyle

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#news : WikiLeaks 'rape' victims had hidden agendas

... and I've seen the proof says Julian Assange's lawyer

By Angella Johnson
Last updated at 12:12 AM on 12th December 2010

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Accused: Julian Assange is in a British jail, fighting extradition to Sweden

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange’s lawyer says he has seen secret police documents that prove the whistleblower is innocent of rape claims made against him by two women in Stockholm.

Björn Hurtig, who is representing Mr Assange in Sweden, said the papers, which form part of the official Swedish investigation, reveal both women had ‘hidden agendas’ and lied about being coerced into having sex with Mr Assange, 39.

The freedom of information crusader is being held in Wandsworth jail in London while fighting extradition to face the accusations, which his defenders say are part of a plot to stop him releasing more embarrassing information on his website about governments worldwide.

Australian Mr Assange met both women at a seminar in Stockholm last August. After having intercourse with each, at different times, he faced sex charges – which he strenuously denies – that were withdrawn and then reinstated.

Mr Hurtig said in an exclusive interview from his Stockholm office: ‘From what I have read, it is clear that the women are lying and that they had an agenda when they went to the police, which had nothing to do with a crime having taken place.

‘It was, I believe, more about jealousy and disappointment on their part. I can prove that at least one of them had very big expectations for something to happen with Julian.’

He has asked for Swedish prosecutors’ permission to disclose more ‘sensational’ information.

‘If I am able to reveal what I know, everyone will realise this is all a charade,’ he said. ‘If I could tell the British courts, I suspect it would make extradition a moot point.

‘But at the moment I’m bound by the rules of the Swedish legal system, which say that the information can only be used as evidence in this country. For me to do otherwise would lead to me being disbarred.’

Mr Hurtig, a top sex-crime defence lawyer, is ready to fly to London and present the evidence when Mr Assange appears in court this week – if he is given the all-clear.

Campaign: Supporters of WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, hold posters with his photo during a protest in Madrid, Spain, this weekend. The protesters are wearing masks depicting anti-establishment figure from the movie 'V for Vendetta'

Mr Assange has not been charged yet. Mr Hurtig said that when they met, ‘I was struck by how good-looking he was. He gave off an aura of someone who was very self-assured and comfortable with himself – the way famous people do.

‘He denied vehemently that he had raped or in any way indulged in non-consensual sex. He was very upset. He kept saying, “How can they do this to me? I’ve done nothing wrong. They are trying to destroy my credibility.” He kept saying it was a witch-hunt and we must fight it.’

One of the women, a political activist in her 30s described as Miss A, claims she was unlawfully coerced and subjected to sexual molestation and deliberate molestation. The other woman, Miss B, who is in her 20s, has alleged he had sex with her without a condom while she was sleeping.

Mr Assange told Mr Hurtig he had a brief affair with Miss A – who had organised a seminar for the Centre-Left group Brotherhood Movement – while staying in her flat.

Miss B admitted in her police statement that she sought out Mr Assange after seeing him on TV and, clearly infatuated, attended the seminar he was giving. They had a ‘sexual encounter’ in a cinema on their first meeting and two days later had protected sex at her flat, 40 miles from Stockholm. But the woman told police that she woke up next morning to find him having sex with her without a condom.

‘This is what they are saying is rape,’ said Mr Hurtig. He said Mr Assange and Miss B parted on good terms, with Miss B buying his train ticket back to Stockholm. But Mr Hurtig said that after Mr Assange reneged on his promise to call her and failed to return her phone calls over the next few days, the drama took a ‘bizarre’ turn.

Vatican 'made Irish give immunity in abuse probe'

Ireland succumbed to Vatican pressure and gave church officials immunity in exchange for testifying in an investigation into paedophile priests, it is claimed in the latest WikiLeaks disclosures.

The Vatican had been offended by requests for information from the Murphy Inquiry into the priests, according to US embassy cables released by WikiLeaks.

A US diplomat wrote that, according to the deputy to the Irish ambassador to the Holy See, the Irish government gave in to Vatican pressure and granted church officials immunity in exchange for testifying.

The diplomatic missives claim that some in the Catholic hierarchy believed the Irish government ‘failed to respect and protect Vatican sovereignty during the investigation’.

A cable released on the Wikileaks website was entitled: ‘Sex abuse scandal strains Irish-Vatican relations, shakes up Irish church and poses challenges for the Holy See.’

The Vatican described the leaks as ‘a matter of extreme gravity’. The US ambassador to the Holy See condemned the leaks and said the Vatican and America continued to co-operate in promoting universal values.

Last year’s Murphy Inquiry identified 320 people who complained of child sexual abuse between 1975 and 2004 in the Dublin archdiocese.

Miss B called the office of Miss A, whom she had briefly met at the seminar, asking the whereabouts of Mr Assange. During the conversation they realised that they had both been ‘victims of his charms’.
Mr Assange told Mr Hurtig he refused their request to take a test for sexually-transmitted diseases.

He said Miss B was especially anxious about the possibility of HIV and pregnancy. It was then that
she and Miss A walked into a police station and told their stories.

Mr Hurtig said: ‘I don’t believe Miss B felt she had been raped until she went to the police station. She was encouraged by a policewoman and a junior female prosecutor to think that way. While I don’t think there was any conspiracy, Julian says he is being victimised because of his role with WikiLeaks. The fact that he has a high profile has made him a target for opponents.’

Mr Hurtig said that before leaving Sweden to lecture in Britain at the end of September, Mr Assange tried in vain several times to arrange an interview with Stockholm police.

The strong sense of women’s rights in Sweden means 53 rape allegations are reported per 100,000 people, the highest rate in Europe.

Also, under Swedish law there are gradations of rape. There is the most serious kind, involving major violence, ‘regular rape’, which could include a degree of violence, and ‘unlawful coercion’, which might involve putting emotional pressure on someone.

The case may turn on whether consensual sex turned into non-consensual sex – and whether a man’s decision not to use a condom can amount to a crime.

But Mr Hurtig remains confident that Mr Assange will get a fair hearing in Sweden.

‘This is not a banana republic,’ he said. ‘It’s just that when it comes to sex crimes, the police and prosecutors and members of the court seem to lose their ability to think logically. That said, I’m convinced that as soon as the case is heard in Sweden it will be thrown out.’

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#news The Prince of Cuddles: The touching embrace that shows the love between William and Kate... and a refreshing departure from Royal protocol

By Laura Collins
Last updated at 1:06 AM on 12th December 2010

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If there were any lingering doubts over just what sort of a man Prince William is – or just how determined he is to do things his way – this is the picture that dispels them.

In contrast with previous generations of Royal husbands-to-be and with scant concern for traditional reserve, William wraps Kate Middleton protectively in his arms, cherished and embraced for all the world to see.

It is not so much a formal portrait as a remarkable public declaration of love to herald a new Royal age.

Hands-on prince: Shunning the traditional Royal reserve, Prince William proudly holds Kate in a protective, loving and close embrace - to her obvious delight

For much of their eight-year courtship they abided by a pact not to touch in public, conscious that their every move was subject to scrutiny and speculation.

Now, nearly a month after Prince William and Kate announced their engagement, we see them for the first time just as they wish to be seen: a young couple bursting with happiness and love; intimate and at ease and unlike any R Royal couple before.

And where his father Charles and uncle Andrew were both stiffly formal in official photographs with their fiancees, William is as easy, tactile and affectionate as the woman he is about to marry.

It is one of two very different portraits released today in which William and Kate reveal their acute awareness of the formal public role that they must play, while offering, with gentle insistence, a charming reminder that they are, at heart, a couple in love.

And in this striking departure from conventional Royal portraits, the less formal of the two is further evidence that William is determined that he and his bride will be the driving force behind this wedding – not Prince Charles and his staff at Clarence House, and not the Queen and her retinue at Buckingham Palace.

The official engagement photo¬graphs were taken by Mario Testino on November 25, nine days after the couple, both 28, made their announcement.

Traditional: Even in this more formal portrait, which was taken in the Council Chamber at St James's Palace, William and Kate appear tactile and happy in their evident love for one another

According to Testino: ‘They are in their prime and brimming with happiness. I have never felt so much joy as when I see them together.’

Certainly joy and light suffuses the less formal of the pictures taken that day at St James’s Palace. William wears jeans and a beige cashmere jumper by Brunello Cucinelli. Kate snuggles into him in cream Whistles blouse and jeans.

The soft tones and flawless complexions may owe something to the photographer’s skilful lighting, but the sentiment is real enough.

Testino has been the photographer of choice for many significant Royal occasions. It was Testino to whom Prince Harry turned to mark his 20th and 21st birthdays, when he photographed the third in line to the throne laughing with his older brother and father.

But it is his portraits of Diana with which the Peruvian photographer will always be most closely associated, a fact of which both William and Kate would have been keenly aware. Yet again her son’s desire to include his late mother in his current happiness is clear and, set against all that beige and cream, the deep blue of her former engagement ring draws the eye.

For all the echoes of the past, this picture is all about William and Kate as they cuddle into each other in the Cornwall Room, part of the private quarters at St James’s Palace.

The more formal of William and Kate’s two portraits is notably crisper in style and shot in a setting steeped in history. Fittingly the Council Chamber in which William and Kate stand is one of the palace’s State apartments, designed by Sir Christopher Wren in 1703.

More...

• Could Kate Middleton choose Coleen Rooney's designer?

Portraits of William’s ancestors hang on the walls: William III, Mary II and Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel.

William is dressed in Turnbull & Asser suit, shirt and tie while Kate wears a cream Reiss dress and Links earrings.
Even here they are a couple at ease, naturally turning their bodies in towards each other while looking out at us; a thoroughly modern couple, aware of their past, but clearly determined to shape their own future.

What a contrast with the rest of the family

Official photographs of Royal engagements haven't always been so informal...

Defensive: Prince Charles crosses his arms, leaving Diana to hug him in their 1981 official engagement picture

Formal pose: Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson show little affection

Smiles: But with Sophie and Edward the bride-to-be seems more at ease

Stand firm: Formality was the watchword when the Queen and Prince Philip stood, ram-rod rigid, staring into the distance with little contact

Couple plan to take over 71-room hotel

By KATIE NICHOLL

William and Kate hope to take over a five-star hotel for their wedding weekend – at a cost of hundreds of thousands of pounds.

They are in talks to hire the Goring Hotel, which is 400 yards from Buckingham Palace, where their reception will be held after the wedding on Friday, April 29.

Kate is particularly keen for her family and the couple’s friends who are travelling to London to be somewhere close to the Palace.

The hotel has 71 bedrooms, 17 of which are ‘queen doubles’ costing £345-a-night. A suite costs £850-a-night.

The near £30 million cost of the wedding is being picked up by the Queen and Charles.

Kate’s parents, Michael and Carole Middleton, are giving £100,000 but much of this will go towards the bridal gown.

Sources say Kate was at the hotel two weeks ago, meeting its general manager, Graham Copeman, to discuss taking it over for the weekend.

Mr Copeman refused to comment yesterday but a source at the hotel said staff had been told to be available to work over the wedding weekend, including the bank holiday Friday.

‘They have been told they will be required to work around the clock and that the hotel is being locked down for the long weekend of the 29th,’ said the source.

St James’s Palace said that Kate is considering ‘a number of options for accommodation for her family but nothing is confirmed’.

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#news : We are ready for war, warns North Korea's Peace Commission

By Mail On Sunday Reporter
Last updated at 12:54 AM on 12th December 2010

North Korea warned yesterday that it was ready for an all-out war.

The news came as it sent its top diplomat to Russia amid efforts to defuse tensions over its deadly artillery attack on neighbouring South Korea.

The North’s official news agency said foreign minister Pak Ui Chun had left for Russia but declined to give details.

On Friday, Pak accused South Korea and the US of pursuing a policy of confrontation and said that North Korea needed its nuclear programme to fend them off.

Enlarge

Antagonising: South Korean military veterans demonstrate against North Korea in a the destroyed neighborhood on Yeonpyeong Island amid fears the country will be attacked again

The country’s National Peace Committee added yesterday: ‘The army and our people are ready for both an escalated war and an all-out war.’

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il met China’s top foreign policy official in Pyongyang last week after Beijing came under pressure to rein in its ally.

The artillery attack on November 23 killed four people.

It was the first such attack on civilians on South Korean soil since the end of the 1950-53 Korean war.

Analysts say the attack was was an attempt to force the resumption of international negotiations that could bring it aid, or could be seen as an attempt to boost the militaristic credentials of the country's leader-in-waiting, Kim Jong-un.

Won said the attack on Yeonpyeong island came as 'internal complaints are growing about the North's succession for a third generation (of Kim family rule), and its economic situation is worsening'.

Shells: Terrified South Korean civilians watch artillery fire hit Yeonpyeong island last Tuesday in attacks that killed four people

And despite international outrage, China steadfastly stood by North Korea, refusing to condemn its actions at the United Nations. Beijing said it would not favour any side but wanted to help resolve the dispute as a 'responsible great power'.

'Our general goal is for all sides to exercise calm and restraint and to make every effort to avoid such incidents recurring,' Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said as South Korea planned further military drills for next week.

'Since the exchange of fire between North and South Korea, China has made a series of efforts to prevent the situation from escalating and deteriorating. China decides its position based on the merits of each case and does not seek to protect any side,' Yang said.

An attempt by France and Britain to push the U.N. Security Council to condemn North Korea's nuclear programme and the attack on Yeonpyeong was on the verge of collapse because of China's unwillingness to apportion blame, envoys said.

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#news : Car explosions kill 1 in central Stockholm, capital of Sweden

STOCKHOLM, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Two cars exploded at the downtown of Stockholm on Saturday, killing one person and injuring two others.

The first explosion happened near the Queens street, one of the busiest shopping streets in the city, and the second car exploded on an other street only 200 meters away several minutes later, the local police said.

One man was killed and the other two persons suffered with minor injuries in the explosions, according to the police.

Petra Sjoelander, a spokeswoman from the police, said that they don't know if the two explosions were linked and what caused the explosions.

A police bomb team has been sent to the site, she added.

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#news : Prince William, Kate release official engagement portraits

Britain's Prince William and Catherine Middleton pose in one of two official engagement portraits, taken by photographer Mario Testino in the Cornwall Room at St James's Palace in London on November 25, 2010. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)




Britain's Prince William and Catherine Middleton pose in one of two official engagement portraits, taken by photographer Mario Testino in the Cornwall Room at St James's Palace in London on November 25, 2010. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

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#noticias : 10 revistas desta semana

Open publication - Free publishing - More noticias

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Partidários do WikiLeaks manifestam em todo o mundo

AE - Agência Estado

Manifestações contrárias à prisão do editor do WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, e ao fechamento de sua conta bancária na Suíça estão programadas para hoje em várias cidade do mundo. Segundo o site espanhol Free WikiLeaks (http://freewikileaks.eu/) os protestos serão realizados em Madri, Barcelona, Valência, Sevilha e em outras três cidades da Espanha. Há manifestações planejadas também para acontecer em Amsterdã (Holanda) e nas capitais da Colômbia, México, Argentina e Peru.

"Nós queremos a libertação de Julian Assange no território britânico", diz a organização em seu site, que convoca os manifestantes a se reunirem às 18 horas (horário espanhol, 15 horas em Brasília) nas cidades da Espanha.

O portal também pede o "restabelecimento do domínio de internet do WikiLeakas (wikileaks.org)" e a retomada dos serviços dos cartões de crédito Visa e MasterCard para permitir a "liberdade de circulação de dinheiro", já que ninguém provou a ligação de Assange" ou do WikiLeakscom com qualquer tipo de crime.

Muitas empresas de internet sediadas nos Estados Unidos romperam suas ligações com o WikiLeaks, dentre elas Visa, Master Card, PayPal e EveryDNS, medidas que prejudicaram a capacidade do site de receber doações e, dessa forma, manter a divulgação de documentos secretos.

Isolamento

Assange, que está detido numa prisão britânica desde 14 de dezembro, foi transferido na sexta-feira para uma cela isolada, enquanto novos telegramas diplomáticos norte-americanos eram publicados pelo WikiLeaks.

O australiano de 39 anos foi transferido para uma unidade isolada do presídio de Wandsworth, disse Jennifer Robinson, que faz parte do grupo de advogados de Assange. "Supostamente, as autoridades prisionais tomaram a medida para garantir sua segurança", disse ela à agência France Presse.

Assange deve comparecer a um tribunal de Londres, pela segunda vez, na terça-feira. Ele foi detido por causa de um mandato de prisão expedido pela Suécia, onde é acusado de ter molestado sexualmente duas mulheres. As informações são da Associated Press e da Dow Jones.

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#CHINA #NEWS : Decision of Norwegian Nobel Committee does not represent wish of majority of people

BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- China's human rights experts said here on Saturday that the decision of the Norwegian Nobel Committee could not represent the wish of the majority of the people in the world and Liu Xiaobo does not represent the Chinese people.

The head of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Thorbjoern Jagland, insisted during an earlier press conference that "this is not a prize against China. This is a prize honoring people in China."

Professor Zhang Xiaoling, director of the human rights research center of the Party School of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said, "Liu Xiaobo is an imprisoned Chinese criminal and Chinese courts handled Liu Xiaobo's case according to the law. Therefore, how could Liu represent the Chinese people?"

If the committee really wanted to honor people in China, why wouldn't they select China's workers, farmers and scientists? It is they who make contributions to China's development, and international society has widely acknowledged this point of view, she said.

China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Jiang Yu, said Friday night "We are firmly against attempts by any country or individual to use the Nobel Peace Prize to interfere in China's internal affairs and infringe on China's judicial sovereignty."

Jiang said that China's position "has won the understanding and support of over 100 countries and major international organizations."

Further, China's human rights experts said China was pushing forward its human rights cause in all respects, along with progress in reform and development while maintaining social stability. In the future, China would unswervingly stick to a development road that is in accordance with China's national conditions.

China is a vast and populous country, and its stability has a direct bearing on world order. Responsible international organizations and institutions should weigh their actions against the interests of a peaceful world order, rather than confine themselves to a Cold War mentality, said China's human rights experts.

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#NEWS : Fire reported in Moscow's TV station

MOSCOW, Dec. 11 (Xinhua)-- A fire broke out Saturday in one of the studios of television station Ostankino in Moscow, the city's emergency service told media.

There is no casualty reported so far, and about 15 persons have been rescued from the building, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.

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Turn $20 into $100 today for #charity

Jonathan Ellis • jonellis@argusleader.com • December 11, 2010

Each $20 bill that ends up in Salvation Army kettles today will add up to $100.

It's thanks to an anonymous donor who has pledged up to $10,000 to turn $20 into $100. The Salvation Army's advisory board has put up another $7,500 for the effort. All told, the charity group is hoping for a big day today with a goal of raising $35,000.

But there's a catch: The donations, in order to qualify for the match, must be $20 bills, Maj. Mike Mills said. Two tens, or four fives, or whatever, don't qualify

"It's a unique fundraiser - it really is," Mills said. "I think it's great. But what can I say? I'm biased."

The Salvation Army has several programs, and requests for assistance are up by 30 percent over this time last year, said Steve Cook, chairman of the advisory board. The group feeds 175 to 200 people on Friday and Saturday nights, distributes clothing to children and adults, including coats, hats and gloves, and has a Christmas toy program for children whose parents don't have the resources for gifts.

A similar event last year was a success, said Cook, owner of Advertising Arts. Then, a donor pledged up to $8,000 for each $20 bill. The Salvation Army easily reached that goal.

This year the goal of hitting $17,500 is more ambitious. Weather reports could hinder that, with snow and wind expected in Sioux Falls.

"With the weather coming in, we're still hoping people will get out there and put their $20 bill in the kettles," Cook said.

Last year's overall Christmas campaign raised $475,000 for the Sioux Falls Salvation Army. This year officials are hoping to raise $500,000.

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#news : BHP lobbied to scuttle Rio-Chinalco deal

Updated: 18:32, Saturday December 11, 2010

BHP is refusing to comment on reports that the mining giant lobbied the Australian government hard to bring down a proposed $A21 billion deal between its rival Rio Tinto and China's Chinalco.

According to a confidential US embassy cable obtained by WikiLeaks and released to Fairfax newspapers, the chief of staff to Treasurer Wayne Swan told US embassy officials BHP had outmanoeuvred its rival to orchestrate the collapse of the Chinalco deal.

The June 7, 2009 cable said Swan's chief of staff 'has told us on several occasions that BHP has played its cards with consummate skill, in part due to the increasing marginalisation of BHP CEO Marius Kloppers as BHP chairman Don Argus has taken the lead in lobbying the GOA (government of Australia).'

'BHP has been lobbying extensively to block the deal, highlighting concerns about Chinese investment and the possibility that seats on the Rio board would give the Chinese representatives important insights into the producer side of the annual iron ore price negotiations,' it said.

The deal's collapse 'spared' Canberra from having to make a difficult decision on whether to approve the proposal, but left then prime minister Kevin Rudd to face 'an unhappy China', the cable said.

'We noticed a very glum Chinese ambassador Zhang Junsai waiting outside Rudd's office with the Chinalco CEO Xiong Weiping,' it said.

US officials said BHP's lobbying caused the Rudd government to delay its decision on the bid and that in the intervening time global commodity prices recovered to an extent that Rio no longer needed China's cash injection.

'Chinalco has made clear that it considers the Rudd government's reluctance to approve the deal (as) one of the major reasons for its collapse,' the cable from the US Embassy in Canberra said.

The cable adds weight to earlier reports that BHP executives had targeted Canberra over the deal and an assessment to China's State Council which reportedly said the collapse exposed China's lack of experience and political acumen related to its foreign investments.

This undated photo, provided by Rio Tinto, shows company's ships at Cape Lambert port in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Mining giant BHP Billiton lobbied the Australian government hard to bring down a proposed 19.5 billion US dollar deal between its rival Rio Tinto and China's Chinalco, according to a leaked US cable.

On Saturday 11 December 2010, 3:52 EST

Mining giant BHP Billiton lobbied the Australian government hard to bring down a proposed 19.5 billion US dollar deal between its rival Rio Tinto and China's Chinalco, a leaked US cable shows.

BHP refused to comment on the US diplomatic cable released by whistleblowing website WikiLeaks and published in The Sydney Morning Herald on Saturday.

But the confidential document reveals that the chief of staff to Treasurer Wayne Swan had told US Embassy officials that BHP had outplayed Rio and that US officials believed this had helped ensure that Chinalco's planned multi-billion dollar cash injection into Rio Tinto collapsed in early June 2009.

The June 7, 2009 cable said Swan's chief of staff "has told us on several occasions that BHP has played its cards with consummate skill, in part due to the increasing marginalisation of BHP CEO Marius Kloppers as BHP chairman Don Argus has taken the lead in lobbying the GOA [government of Australia]."

"BHP has been lobbying extensively to block the deal, highlighting concerns about Chinese investment and the possibility that seats on the Rio board would give the Chinese representatives important insights into the producer side of the annual iron ore price negotiations," it said.

The deal's collapse "spared" Canberra from having to make a difficult decision on whether to approve the proposal, but left then prime minister Kevin Rudd to face "an unhappy China", the cable said.

"We noticed a very glum Chinese ambassador Zhang Junsai waiting outside Rudd's office with the Chinalco CEO Xiong Weiping," it said.

US officials said BHP's lobbying caused the Rudd government to delay its decision on the bid and that in the intervening time global commodity prices recovered to an extent that Rio no longer needed China's cash injection.

"Chinalco has made clear that it considers the Rudd government's reluctance to approve the deal [as] one of the major reasons for its collapse," the cable from the US Embassy in Canberra said.

The cable adds weight to earlier reports that BHP executives had targeted Canberra over the deal and an assessment to China's State Council which reportedly said the collapse exposed China's lack of experience and political acumen related to its foreign investments.

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#NEWS: North Carolina teen may have fallen from plane in Massachusetts

By the CNN Wire Staff

December 11, 2010 1:40 a.m. EST

(CNN) -- Authorities are trying to determine what happened to a North Carolina teenager whose body was found underneath a flight path in Massachusetts with "trauma that was consistent with a fall from a significant height," a Massachusetts district attorney said Friday.

The mystery started on November 15, when 16-year-old Delvonte Tisdale was last seen by a sibling at their home in Charlotte, North Carolina, according to William R. Keating, district attorney Norfolk County, Massachusetts.

Later that day, his family discovered Delvonte wasn't home and reported him missing.

"About 7 p.m., a Boeing 737-400 aircraft was boarded and took off from North Carolina's Charlotte Douglas International Airport, en route to Boston's Logan Airport," Keating told reporters.

"At approximately 9:30 p.m. that same evening, a group of area college students came upon a severely injured body" in the town of Milton, Keating said. "This was directly below a flight path."

The body was later determined to be Delvonte's.

The autopsy on Delvonte's body "did not reveal any knife or gun wounds, but did show trauma that was consistent with a fall from a significant height."

Investigators examined two airlines that had originated in Charlotte and followed a similar flight path, Keating said. They found "what appeared to be physical evidence of someone having been in a left wheel well of one of the planes was located and documented -- including hand prints visible in greasy areas and scuff marks in the area that would accommodate a person."

During the investigation, Keating said, one local resident described hearing a loud, crashing noise shortly before 9 p.m. the night Delvonte's body was found.

State police have ruled out motor vehicle homicide as a possible cause for Delvonte's injuries.

"The theory that the death may have involved a fall from a passing airplane -- as has happened in other parts of the country and other parts of the world -- began to be explored," Keating said.

Fingerprints lifted from Delvonte's body were run through a national database, but no matches were found.

"But investigators released a handwritten note found in the pocket of the jeans he was wearing, and a member of the family recognized the name and made contact with Milton police," Keating said.

Last week, Massachusetts state and local police traveled to North Carolina to take samples of grease used in maintaining aircraft to see if the grease found on Delvonte's pants could be matched to that grease, Keating said. Forensics tests are still pending.

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#news :#WikiLeaks : Activists target Dutch website after boy arrested

Protesters hold signs and yell out in support of WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange during a demonstration in front of the Federal building in New York, December 9, 2010.
Credit: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

By William Maclean

By William Maclean

LONDON | Sat Dec 11, 2010 2:38am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - Cyber activists attacking organizations seen as foes of WikiLeaks briefly blocked a Dutch prosecution website on Friday after a 16-year-old suspected of involvement in the campaign was arrested in the Netherlands.

The activists also tried to block the website of online payment firm Moneybookers, but denied their attacks were intended to create business turmoil or badly disrupt online Christmas shopping.

Several companies have ended services to WikiLeaks after it published thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic reports that have caused tension between Washington and several of its allies.

The website continued its release of U.S. cables on Friday, with the latest reports including a prediction by the U.S. ambassador to Cairo that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak would "inevitably" win 2011 elections and stay in office for life.

U.S. authorities said they had not pressured companies to stop working with WikiLeaks.

"We have not pressured anybody to do anything," Attorney General Eric Holder told reporters in San Francisco, where he was attending a financial fraud conference.

Holder said authorities were aware of the attacks and looking at them, pointing to a computer crimes section of the Justice Department that can "trace back" where the attacks originate.

A lawyer for Julian Assange, the founder of the WikiLeaks website, told ABC News in London she expected U.S. prosecutors would indict her client soon for espionage, but the report offered no further details or comment.

A U.S. Justice Department spokeswoman declined to comment on the lawyer's prediction.

Dutch prosecutors said activists targeted their website with "denial-of-service" attacks that slowed it for several hours and briefly made it unavailable. The incident was probably related to the teenage boy's arrest, they said.

INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION

"We have been investigating this with international authorities and we are working together with the FBI," Dutch prosecution service spokesman Wim de Bruin said.

A Rotterdam judge ordered the boy, who was arrested in The Hague on Thursday, to spend 13 days in custody while the investigation continues, the prosecution service said.

The maximum prison sentence in the Netherlands for distributed denial-of-service attacks is six years, de Bruin said.

The suspect, whose identity was not disclosed, told investigators he participated in the attacks on the MasterCard and Visa websites, authorities said.

Protestors hold signs and shout in support of WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange during a demonstration in front of the Federal building in New York, December 9, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Brendan McDermid

By William Maclean

LONDON | Sat Dec 11, 2010 2:38am EST

The attack on Moneybookers froze the site for about two minutes. Activists said they picked Moneybookers because it informed WikiLeaks in August it had closed its account. They promised to continue their attacks, and spoke of MasterCard and Interpol as fresh targets.

Some participants in a chat room used by the "Operation Payback" campaign were defiant, but others voiced despair at what they considered a lack of discipline.

"The whole thing is getting out of control, people are attacking local police websites and giving us a bad reputation. This was supposed to be to help WikiLeaks and not an excuse for kids to crash random websites," one wrote.

"SYMBOLIC ACTION"

Online retail and web-hosting powerhouse Amazon stopped hosting WikiLeaks' website last week, and on Thursday it briefly became the pro-WikiLeaks campaigners' main target -- before they admitted it was too big for them, for the moment.

The statement by the activists, who collectively call themselves "Anonymous," added that a lack of firepower was not the only reason the attack on Amazon had not succeeded. They felt "attacking a major online retailer when people are buying presents for their loved ones, would be in bad taste."

The Anonymous statement followed one by WikiLeaks, which said the website had no links to the cyber attacks, and neither supported nor condemned them. It quoted WikiLeaks spokesman Kristinn Hrafnsson as saying the attacks were "a reflection of public opinion on the actions of the targets."

Some freedom of information campaigners sympathetic to WikiLeaks say its cause cannot be furthered by denying freedom of information to others. On an online chat service used by the campaign, participants debated whether to end the attacks and focus instead on discovering more embarrassing material in the leaked documents.

(Additional reporting by Georgina Prodhan in London, Marius Bosch in Johannesburg, Greg Roumeliotis in Amsterdam, Dan Levine in San Francisco and Jeremy Pelofsky in Washington; Writing by William Maclean and Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Eric Walsh and Peter Cooney)

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#news: UN Guards Beat Reuters Photographer At Cancún Climate Talks (video)

Democracy Now! videotaped UN security guards Friday beating a Reuters photographer who was arrested while covering a protest at the UN climate conference in Cancun. Guards seized Jorge Silva's press credentials and then beat him while he was detained on a bus. The incident sparked a protest by other Mexican photographers. Jorge Silva had been covering the UN Climate Change Conference COP16 for Reuters. (Video shot by John Hamilton)

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WikiLeaks: "Cataluña es el mayor centro mediterráneo de radicales islamistas"

Estados Unidos considera a Cataluña, en el noreste de España, como "el mayor centro mediterráneo de actividad de radicales islamistas" según se desprende de uno de los documentos de la embajada estadounidense en Madrid filtrados por WikiLeaks y publicados por diario español El País.

Un informe secreto del ex embajador Eduardo Aguirre fechado en octubre de 2007 asegura que "la alta inmigración, legal como ilegal, desde el norte de África, así como de Pakistán y Bangladesh, hace de esta región un imán para reclutar terroristas".

En el documento se sugiere que el Consulado estadounidense en Barcelona se convierta en una plataforma para una multiagencia que coordine la lucha antiterrorista, el crimen y la información de inteligencia para combatir la creciente amenaza yihadista y las actividades criminales en la región "en colaboración con nuestros anfitriones españoles".

Aguirre aseguró también en uno de sus cables que España es objetivo de la yihad y "un gran centro logístico para los grupos islamistas".

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Bolivia reduce la edad de jubilación a 58 años

Redacción

BBC Mundo

El gobierno aún no ha explicado cómo financiará el nuevo sistema.

El presidente de Bolivia, Evo Morales, promulgó una ley que reduce la edad de jubilación a 58 años, invirtiendo la tendencia global a aumentar la vida laboral.

Hasta ahora la edad de jubilación era 65 años para los trabajadores bolivianos y 60 años para las trabajadoras. Ellas se podrán retirar en adelante a los 55 años, a condición de que sean madres de tres hijos.

Los mineros que hayan trabajado bajo tierra, unos 70.000, podrán retirarse a los 51 años.

La nueva ley también nacionaliza los fondos de pensiones que hasta ahora eran controlados por dos entidades financieras, el banco español BBVA y el grupo suizo Zúrich Financial.

Además extiende el beneficio de la jubilación al 60% de los bolivianos que se estima que trabajan en la economía sumergida, unos tres millones de personas.

"Elaborada por los ciudadanos"

Hasta ahora la edad de jubilación era 65 años para los trabajadores bolivianos y 60 años para las trabajadoras. Ellas se podrán retirar en adelante a los 55 años, a condición de que sean madres de tres hijos. Los mineros que hayan trabajado bajo tierra, unos 70.000, podrán retirarse a los 51 años.

Morales destacó en un acto en la sede de la Central Obrera Boliviana (COB), el mayor sindicato del país que el contenido de la norma fue elaborado por los trabajadores por primera vez en la historia del país:

"Es una prueba de que Bolivia vive una nueva era de fortalecimiento democrático en la que los ciudadanos son protagonistas de las decisiones", dijo el mandatario, cuyo gobierno pactó la ley con la COB.

"Estamos cumpliendo con el pueblo boliviano. Estamos creando un sistema de pensiones que incluye a todos", afirmó y se refirió a la época en que Bolivia "seguía los dictados de organismos internacionales para elaborar sus leyes", en alusión indirecta a la ley de pensiones anterior, elaborada durante la presidencia de Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada (1993-1997).

Aquella ley privatizó los fondos de pensiones después de que el sistema estatal entrara en bancarrota.

Los críticos, en particular los líderes empresariales, dicen que Bolivia tendrá dificultades para financiar el sistema a largo plazo.

El gobierno aún no ha explicado al detalle cómo financiará el nuevo sistema, pero Morales ha insistido en ocasiones en que usará la riqueza del gas natural boliviano para ayudar a los desfavorecidos.

Esperanza de vida

Los mineros que hayan trabajado bajo tierra, unos 70.000, podrán retirarse a los 51 años.

Recientemente, otros países, sobre todo en Europa, retrasaron la edad de jubilación con el objetivo de hacer frente a unas sociedades más envejecidas como resultado del incremento de la expectativa de vida.

La Unión Europea (UE) se enfrenta a una "bomba demográfica", según el especialista en temas económicos de BBC Mundo, Marcelo Justo, que agrega que se ha agravado con la difícil situación que atraviesan algunos de ellos.

Francia elevó en noviembre la edad mínima para retirarse de 60 a 62 años, lo que generó numerosas protestas sociales. Reino Unido y España también tienen planes similares y la Comisión Europea propuso que los 27 países de la UE la retrasen hasta los 70 años.

clic Lea: Europa propone jubilación a los 70

Otras regiones han hecho modificaciones similares. Incluso Cuba la incrementó en 2009 de 60 a 65 años para los hombres y de 55 a 60 para las mujeres.

Pero el gobierno de La Paz aduce que el de Bolivia es un caso especial, ya que la mayoría de los bolivianos desempeñan duros trabajos manuales difíciles de sobrellevar a una edad avanzada.

La expectativa de vida en Bolivia es de 63 años para los hombres y 68 para las mujeres, según datos de la ONU, que sitúa la esperanza de vida global en 68 años para ambos sexos, una media que asciende a 73 años en Latinoamérica y a 80 años en Europa occidental.

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#lula #dilma :Liberdade de imprensa, porém...

AE - AE

A história da obstinação de setores do atual governo pela concretização de um novo marco regulatório das comunicações eletrônicas que permita algum tipo de "controle social" de conteúdos viveu mais um capítulo esta semana. O jornal Folha de S.Paulo teve acesso ao anteprojeto do governo de uma tal Lei Geral da Comunicação Social, destinada a regular o funcionamento do setor por meio da criação de um novo órgão, a Agência Nacional de Comunicação (ANC), que substituiria a Agência Nacional do Cinema. Caberia a essa nova agência, entre outras atribuições, regular o conteúdo veiculado pelas emissoras de rádio e televisão. A notícia provocou reação negativa tanto na área política quanto na empresarial. Com a mesma presteza, o principal responsável pela elaboração do projeto, o ministro da Secretaria de Comunicação Social da Presidência, Franklin Martins, tentou minimizar a importância da notícia, alegando que existem várias versões de anteprojeto sobre o assunto. E a presidente da Empresa Brasil de Comunicação, Tereza Cruvinel, subordinada ao ministro, tentou desconversar: "Ouvi dizer que a versão publicada não é a definitiva." Mas não resistiu à oportunidade de reiterar o que pensa sua turma: "Como jornalista, acho que precisamos de alguma regulação. A liberdade de imprensa é sagrada, porém outros direitos precisam ser preservados." Há sempre um "porém".

O anteprojeto, elaborado por um grupo de trabalho criado há seis meses e coordenado pelo ministro Martins, prevê, por exemplo, que a agência a ser criada terá poderes para multar empresas que, a seu critério, veiculem programação ofensiva, preconceituosa ou inadequada ao horário. Não tem nada a ver com censura, garantem fontes do governo, pois a punição resultará sempre de um julgamento a posteriori. Que bom!

Já o líder do PSDB na Câmara, deputado João Almeida, não é tão otimista: "Esse julgamento implicará sempre uma manifestação ideológica em relação ao tema. Isso é uma coisa sempre muito perigosa, pode acabar descambando para a censura pura e simples." Essa é também a opinião do senador José Agripino, líder do DEM: "Qualquer tentativa dessas tem que ser vista sempre com muito cuidado. A liberdade de imprensa é uma conquista da democracia. Esse governo tem o cacoete de flertar com o cerceamento da liberdade."

Até onde se sabe, Dilma Rousseff não pretende manter em sua equipe o ministro Martins, ideólogo do "controle social" da mídia, e sua turma. Coerente com as reiteradas manifestações que tem feito de repúdio ao controle de conteúdo na mídia, a presidente eleita parece disposta a mudar o tom do discurso da Secretaria de Comunicação Social da Presidência. O que implicará contrariar a tendência que predomina nas entidades "de esquerda" que deram o tom, por exemplo, da Conferência Nacional de Comunicação (Confecom), realizada um ano atrás em Brasília por iniciativa do ministro Martins. Essas entidades, na verdade, estão sempre mais à esquerda do que o próprio governo e frequentemente manifestam insatisfação com a "falta de avanços" tanto na regulação da tele e da radiodifusão quanto no controle dos conteúdos da mídia em geral.

Claro exemplo dessa situação é a posição de uma dessas entidades, a Associação Brasileira de Canais Comunitários, manifestada por seu presidente, Paulo Miranda, a propósito da cláusula do anteprojeto da Lei Geral de Comunicação que prevê a criação da ANC. Miranda defende a criação não de uma agência, mas de um Conselho de Comunicação, integrado por representantes da sociedade e das empresas do setor: "Uma agência não nos interessa. Tivemos a promessa do ministro Franklin Martins de que seria prevista a criação de um Conselho de Comunicação." A razão: um conselho permitiria a participação "mais ativa" da sociedade no controle das comunicações, enquanto uma agência reguladora seria apenas "mais um organismo burocrático". O que se almeja, portanto, é algo assim como a "democracia direta". De fato, e não por acaso, a criação de um conselho, e não de uma agência, foi uma das propostas aprovadas por unanimidade na célebre Confecom do ministro Martins.

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Clientes de plano do Hospital Nove de Julho perdem direito ao atendimento

Empresa que comprou a carteira informou que, a partir do dia 20, internações, consultas e exames serão feitos em rede que não inclui o hospital. Cerca de 500 beneficiários com mais de 60 anos serão afetados. Para advogados, há margem para ação judicial

11 de dezembro de 2010 | 4h 19

Karina Toledo

Beneficiários de um antigo plano de saúde mantido pelo Hospital Nove de Julho não poderão mais ser atendidos na instituição a partir do próximo dia 20. A carteira, que foi vendida para outra operadora, é composta de aproximadamente 500 pessoas - todas com mais de 60 anos. Boa parte delas se associou ao hospital na década de 60, quando a instituição buscava dinheiro para expansão. Em troca, receberam garantia de assistência médica.

O aposentado Iser Fligenblatt, de 78 anos, é uma dessas pessoas. Ele está em tratamento contra um câncer de próstata e ficou sabendo da novidade pelo médico que o acompanha. "Comprei um título do hospital em 1965. Nesses anos todos, usei muito pouco o serviço. Agora que mais preciso eles me viram as costas", diz ele.

Marc José Farhi, de 90 anos, está na mesma situação. Ele sofre de leucemia e precisa de transfusões de sangue quinzenais e, às vezes, semanais. Sua filha Danielle Farhi conta que recebeu recentemente uma carta da operadora Prevent Senior, especializada em planos para a terceira idade, na qual ela revelava ter comprado a Assistência Medica Nove de Julho e afirmava que seriam mantidas "todas as garantias contratadas pelos beneficiários, com estrita observância das regras estabelecidas na legislação reguladora".

Mas nem todas as garantias foram mantidas. No mês passado, Farhi foi informado pela equipe do hospital que, a partir de dezembro, os atendimentos passariam a ser feitos apenas por meio da rede da Prevent Senior, que não inclui o Nove de Julho.

"Não cabe no nosso bolso", explica a responsável pelas relações institucionais da empresa Prevent Senior, Cristina Mello. "Há muitos beneficiários dessa carteira que pagam mensalidades de R$ 20 ou R$ 30. Alguns não pagam nada. Nós pudemos fazer essa aquisição porque temos uma rede de hospitais e laboratórios próprios que nos permite absorver esse custo."

Cristina afirma ainda que a rede credenciada da Prevent Senior conta com hospitais localizados na mesma região do Nove de Julho e boa parte dos geriatras dessa instituição também foi contratada. "O que não conseguimos superar é o vínculo afetivo que algumas pessoas têm com o hospital", avalia.

Mas Danielle revela que, ao pesquisar na internet, encontrou várias reclamações sobre o atendimento da Prevent Senior. "Gente falando sobre a dificuldade de marcar consultas, exames, cirurgias e da baixa qualidade dos hospitais. Eles têm alguns próprios desconhecidos e usam alguns outros mal cotados", afirma a filha do beneficiário.

Ainda que a mudança fosse para um hospital de primeira linha, diz Danielle, ela não seria tranquila. "Meu pai tem um estado de saúde muito frágil, e a equipe já conhece bem o caso. Imagina ter de refazer todos os exames, ter de começar do zero."

O Hospital Nove de Julho informou, por meio de sua assessoria, que os pacientes que estiverem em tratamento continuarão a ser atendidos até sua completa reabilitação. Afirmou ainda que a transferência do controle da empresa Assistência Médica Nove de Julho "resultou de uma transação comercial revestida de todas as formalidades legais em vigor."

"O que eles estão fazendo é legal, pois segue as regras, mas é imoral", afirma a advogada Rosana Chiavassa, especialista em defesa do consumidor.

Para Tiago Farina Matos, também advogado, o descredenciamento do Nove de Julho contraria os princípios do Código de Defesa do Consumidor e dá margem a uma ação judicial.

Essa também é a opinião de Daniela Trettel, do Idec. "Somente pode haver substituição de hospital credenciado se a troca for por um equivalente. E não precisa ser conhecedor do mercado para saber que os hospitais da Prevent Senior não têm a mesma qualidade do Nove de Julho."

A família Farhi entrou com mandado de segurança para garantir o atendimento e pretende entrar com ação judicial. A família Fligenblatt estuda fazer o mesmo.

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Di Thiene : Ex-beneficiários ficam desamparados

Meses após a falência do extinto plano Di Thiene, em São Caetano, ex-clientes não são aceitos por operadoras

11 de dezembro de 2010 | 4h 38

Fabiane Leite

Clientes do extinto plano de saúde Di Thiene, na Grande São Paulo, ficaram desamparados apesar de a Agência Nacional de Saúde Suplementar (ANS) ter determinado que operadoras recebessem os usuários sem novas carências (período de restrição de atendimento).

A opção para a crise, chamada "portabilidade especial", foi decidida depois que a controladora do plano faliu e o único hospital do convênio, o São Caetano, fechou repentinamente, obrigando o Sistema Único de Saúde da cidade a acolher os que estavam internados - uma situação jamais vista no setor de planos, nas palavras do presidente da ANS, Maurício Ceschin.

Das 24 demandas de ex-beneficiários recebidas pela agência, oito foram solucionadas e 16 ainda estão em apuração.

Preços muito altos para a troca de plano, negativa de entrada de usuários do Di Thiene em outras empresas e falta de orientação deixaram clientes perdidos. O convênio tinha 8 mil usuários, a maior parte idosos.

"Chegamos para a primeira sessão de quimioterapia da minha irmã e disseram que não iam mais atender ninguém", relata a professora Maria Luiza Lenzarini, cuja irmã, Mariúza, tratava um agressivo câncer de ovário.

Somente duas semanas após a negativa, com a intervenção da Secretaria da Saúde de São Caetano, Mariúza foi enviada para a Santa Casa de São Paulo onde passou a se submeter à quimioterapia pelo SUS. A paciente, no entanto, morreu. "O plano estava pago. Trataram minha irmã com descaso".

"É muito complicado, não há a quem recorrer", afirma a gerente de marketing Eliane de Martini, de 49 anos, que preparava-se para fazer uma cirurgia contra a sinusite crônica e encontrou o hospital fechado. "A ANS não sabe orientar. Não consegui a portabilidade. Até hoje não pude fazer a cirurgia", diz a ex-usuária.

Segundo o Procon de São Caetano, pelo menos 678 clientes do plano foram ao órgão por causa de problemas com o Di Thiene. O órgão intermediou a passagem de clientes para outras empresas e afirma ter conseguido sucesso na maior parte, aponta. Negativas de acolhimento sem novas carências foram encaminhadas à ANS. "No caso do grupo Amil, enquanto a Medial (empresa da Amil) aceitou a maioria dos casos, a Amil rejeitou quatro de cinco", diz o diretor Alexandro Guirão.

A professora Márcia Marques relata que a mãe, Judith, de 82 anos, só foi aceita pela Amil via ordem judicial. Ambas estiveram pelo menos duas vezes na operadora para negociar a entrada no plano, mas não deu certo. A Amil já recorreu da decisão. "Não estamos seguras", afirma.

Segundo o Procon, o prazo para que os usuários exercessem a portabilidade especial foi muito pequeno - 30 dias.

Dificuldades. O advogado João Galvez Reis, presidente do conselho que gere a Sociedade São Caetano, controladora do plano Di Thiene, afirma que as dificuldades financeiras já vinham de longa data e reconheceu que não tinha profissionais experientes para administrar a carteira de clientes, formada principalmente por idosos.

O problema da controladora se agravou em 2008,com a crise financeira e a falta de crédito. Outro agravante foi o fato de a São Caetano ter perdido o certificado de filantropia, o que a fez não ter mais isenções fiscais.

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#WikiLeaks: Na prisão, Assange terá acesso à internet

Fundador do WikiLeaks, enviado a ala isolada, poderá usar a rede de forma limitada

11 de dezembro de 2010 | 5h 16

THE GUARDIAN e FRANCE PRESSE

Julian Assange, fundador do WikiLeaks, foi transferido para uma ala isolada da prisão de Wadsworth, "para sua segurança", onde as autoridades planejam dar a ele acesso limitado à internet, informou ontem a advogada Jennifer Robinson. Assange, o mais famoso dentre os detentos, reuniu-se com sua equipe de advogados depois de ser reconduzido à prisão no sudoeste de Londres quando seu direito à fiança foi negado na terça-feira.

Acredita-se que Assange teria pedido para ser acomodado longe dos demais prisioneiros, que se mostraram bastante interessados nele quando souberam de sua chegada. Uma fonte disse que outros detentos manifestaram apoio a Assange, acusado pelo governo americano de prejudicar a segurança nacional dos EUA ao divulgar uma grande quantidade de documentos diplomáticos confidenciais.

Na próxima terça-feira, a equipe de advogados de Assange pedirá aos magistrados de Westminster que estabeleçam um valor para a fiança. Um dos advogados dele, Mark Stephens, disse que Assange estava "mais animado". Como parte de um programa chamado "acesso à Justiça", as autoridades da prisão tentam providenciar a ele um computador para que possa trabalhar em sua defesa para a audiência de terça-feira. O computador terá acesso limitado à internet.

Espionagem. A equipe de advogados também se prepara para o caso de os EUA acusarem Assange de espionagem. No entanto, Robinson declarou que uma ação contra seu cliente nesse sentido seria inconstitucional. Seus advogados dizem temer que os EUA tentem extraditá-lo com base em acusações associadas à divulgação de centenas de milhares de documentos secretos, apesar de até o momento Washington não ter anunciado nenhuma medida legal contra ele.

Após a onda de ataques online lançados por hackers pró-WikiLeaks contra diversas corporações, Stephens disse que Assange estava preocupado porque "as pessoas acusaram injustamente o WikiLeaks de ter inspirado ciberataques" e frustrado por não poder responder às acusações de que o WikiLeaks está por trás dos ataques. "Ele me disse que não está envolvido e esta é uma tentativa deliberada de juntar o WikiLeaks, que é uma organização que publica documentos na internet, com organizações de pirataria informática."

Assange, de 39 anos, foi examinado por um médico quando chegou a Wadsworth - todos os presos são avaliados para determinar se são potenciais suicidas. Ele foi mantido durante uma noite no Centro Onslow - prisão que abriga os condenados por crimes sexuais e outros detentos considerados vulneráveis.

Assange também se reuniu com representantes da alta comissão da Austrália. Ele tem sua própria cela e, por causa das visitas de advogados e diplomatas, não teve tempo de se exercitar, mas deve receber uma hora diária para fazê-lo. Promotores suecos querem entrevistar Assange por causa das acusações de abuso sexual feitas contra ele por duas mulheres.

Em carta endereçada ao jornal The Guardian, notáveis partidários de Assange como John Pilger, Terry Jones, Miriam Margolyes e Al Kennedy pedirão sua libertação imediata. "Protestamos contra os ataques ao WikiLeaks e, principalmente, a Julian Assange", escreveram eles.

Hoje, estão previstas manifestações pró-Assange diante de consulados britânicos em várias capitais europeias e da América Latina. Em São Paulo, o protesto ocorrerá às 11 horas.

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