Cease Fire!

Cease Fire!

Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - One Forty Nine

Palash Biswas



Friends, it is no time to celebrate Cease Fire on Nandigram as Capitalist Marxist Chief Minister of West Bengal Buddhadev Bhattacharya steps two seps backward to initiate Peace Process facing nationwide fierce resistance. Indiscriminate Urbanisation and Industrialisation with HINDU ZIONIST CORPORATE IMPERIALIST agenda goes on. We live in a captive polity and economy. Ceasefire means the ruling classes do rearrnge its forces of annihilation! nothing more!

Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh launched the Doordarshan programme ‘Gitanjali’ on the Hindi rendition of select songs of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore today. A DVD containing these five songs of Gurudev was released by the Speaker Lok Sabha, Shri Somnath Chatterjee. UPA Chairperson, Smt. Sonia Gandhi released the Publications Division book ‘Satyagraha’ which is a documentation on Mahatma Gandhi’s Satyagraha, on the occasion. The Event was part of celebrations of 146th birth anniversary of Gurudev.

The Prime Minister in his address said that the Event captures the undying spirit of our freedom struggle. Through this we pay homage to the memory of Gandhiji and Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore. (Full Text of Prime Minister speech available on PIB Website i.e. http://pib.nic.in).


Are you in a mood to celebrate Team India`s five-wicket victory against Bangladesh?
http://www.rediff.com/cricket/2007/may/10india1.htm

Well, you may celebrate. but just be aware, we walk on minefields so dangerously ENTRAPPRED!
It seems that peace is not too far with the CEASE FIRE in Nandigram. Normalcy is slowly returning to Nandigram amid general scepticism that this might be an elusive peace. Let us see!

Bair has stepped down! But there is Bush intact!

And we also have our Bush and Blairs! Khejuri front shows the sign of ceasefire, of course, but then the entire country is being transformed in Iraq and Afganistan!

The 146th birth anniversary of Nobel laureate poet Rabindranath Tagore was celebrated across West Bengal Wednesday with a special gift for the visually impaired - a Braille edition of his complete works that spread into almost all fields of literature.

Celebrating the occasion, Webel MediaTronics Ltd launched a braille version of Tagore's complete works and a collection of short stories and distributed it to all 40 blind schools in the state.
To mark Tagore's birth anniversary, Transport Minister Subhash Chakraborty unveiled a statue of the poet at Calcutta University's College Street campus.

The occasion was also observed with cultural activities by numerous academic institutions, including Rabindra Bharati University and Vishwa Bharati University in Shantiniketan, and numerous social organisations in the state.

Cuba honors Tagore
Weekly Blitz, Bangladesh - 8 May 2007
Indian Ambassador Mitra Vasisht called Rabindranath Tagore 'an icon of humankind' at the unveiling of a statue of the acclaimed poet in the Cuban capital to ...
Tagore statue unveiled in Cuba on birth anniversary Malaysia Sun
Tagore statue unveiled in Cuba Deccan Herald
Tagore statue unveiled in Cuba Earthtimes.org
all 12 news articles »
Tagore: A man of distinction
Weekly Blitz, Bangladesh - 8 May 2007
But as a boy, Tagore — or Robi as he was affectionately called — lived in a different era; an age when oil lamps lit up concert-filled evenings, ...

Tagore works in Hebrew
Weekly Blitz, Bangladesh - 8 May 2007
Stree, a collection of stories by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, would now be available in Hebrew language. Translated into Hebrew and published by ...
Tagore bust unveiled at Berlin Univ Hindustan Times
all 3 news articles »
Rabindranath Tagore - his work will live for generations
PeaceJournalism.com, Nepal - 8 May 2007
Tagore scored in this respect over his other great contemporary, Mahatma Gandhi, for the Mahatma placed a far greater emphasis on the spirit of renunciation ...

Leading intellectuals of Kolkata made an appeal to both the state government and the Opposition to work together so that peace and normalcy is restored at Nandigram. They feel that people in Nandigram have been living in an atmosphere of fear and normal life has come to a standstill.

The appeal was signed by intellectuals, including poet Shankha Ghosh, author Mahasweta Devi, danseuse Amala Shankar, film makers Aparna Sen and Gautam Ghosh, theatre actors Rudra Prasad Sengupta and Shaonli Mitra, to name a few.

Film-makers give SEZ saga a gory spin
http://www.livemint.com/2007/05/10000627/Filmmakers-give-SEZ-saga-a-go.html

Communist Party of India (Marxist) leadership has swallowed its pride and authorised its allies like Forward Bloc, Revolutionary Socialist Party and Communist Party of India to open a line of communication with opposition parties to break the deadlock in Nandigram.It is hoped that the protracted Nandigram crisis may soon be resolved with Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee agreeing on Wednesday to attend an all-party meet to discuss the issue. The date and venue are yet to be decided. This all-party meeting with a difference, will be convened by veteran Forward Bloc leader Ashok Ghosh and not state chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. However, CPM politburo member Jyoti Basu may attend along with other senior CPM leaders. Mamata has not attended a single all-party meeting called by the district administration of East Midnapore. She had made it clear that she was ready to attend such meetings only if West Bengal governor Gopal Krishna took the initiative. It is learnt that Mamata had contacted the ailing Bloc leader at the SSKM Hospital over phone on Tuesday evening and urged him to take the initiative of holding an all-party meeting to bring an end to the Nandigram violence. Mamata had also told Mr Ghosh that she had no objection to attending the meeting once it is convened by the veteran Bloc leader.

Giving a clean chit to Maoists, West Bengal government clarified yesterday that ultra-left guerrillas are not fishing in Nandigram's troubled waters.The administration's volte-face caught everybody by surprise because West Bengal government had repeatedly accused Maoists, or Naxalites, of providing leadership and arms to farmers fighting land acquisition in Singur and Nandigram.

"The state government has no specific evidence about Maoist infiltration into Nandigram, though there have been intelligence reports in this regard for the past three months," Home Secretary, P. R. Roy, told reporters at Writers' Buildings.
The Board of Approvals (BoA) today gave formal approval to 16 Special Economic Zones (SEZs), prominent among which were those of DLF, Suzlon and Vedanta. It, however, deferred a decision on the Navi Mumbai zone promoted by Reliance Industries (RIL) chief Mukesh Ambani and his associate Anand Jain.
The Board considered 23 cases, which had in-principle approval, for formal approval. Among others, it approved DLF’s SEZs and Vedanta Alumina in Orissa, Suzlon’s two zones in Gujarat and Karnataka and Unitech’s IT SEZ in West Bengal.
Despite intense lobbying and a presentation to the commerce ministry yesterday, the Navi Mumbai SEZ failed to get clearance as the revenue department wanted more details on measures proposed by the promoters to plug revenue leakages, officials said. “A railway line and a road pass through the 1,250 hectare SEZ and the revenue department wanted to confirm if the steps proposed by the company to prevent possible revenue loss through these transit routes were adequate,” they said.
As per the SEZ Rules, in case a road or railway line passes through a zone, the developer can build an underpass or an over bridge to secure clearance.
Revenue department officials could also visit the site of the SEZ and the proposal could be taken up at the next meeting of the board on 31 May, they said.
Reliance Industries has also been pressing for a review of the cap of 5,000 hectares on the size of SEZs, imposed by the Empowered Group of Ministers on 5 April. Even the commerce minister, Mr Kamal Nath, has indicated government “may in future” take a re-look at the rules limiting the size of SEZs, “if circumstances change”.
At its the next meeting, the Board will take up 40 fresh proposals for SEZs that already have land. “As they have land, they will be given formal approval straight away. There are as many as 369 SEZ proposals pending before the board of which 160 have land,” the sources added.
Apart from Navi Mumbai, the other SEZs that came up for formal approval were deferred because of land issues.

Pranab Mukherjee, the Kuleen Brahmin from West Bengal seems to be front runner as proposed UPA Presidential Candidate as he also belongs to World bank IMF ADB order like the PM and FM!
I have often written about this gentlemen who hates the Dalit Bengali Refugees most. He never tries to escape his hatredful emotions against underprevileged SC, ST, BC, OBC,Tribal and minorities. He has clarified to sustain the Deportation drive against so called illegal migrants, the dalit refugees once again on the floor of Parliament! One the other hand , a total of 1,23,310 Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) have been granted overseas citizenship of India till now, Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday. All these individuals belong to the ruling class. They enjoy dual citizenship for large scale Capital Inflow from abroad to destroy Ruarl India and Indigenous people while the dalit partition victims of 1947, who paid for your Freedom and sovereignity so dearly are deprived of citizenship, human rights and even sympathy!

The new name that has surfaced is of Exterrnal Affairs Minister Pranab Miukherjee. He along with Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and Dr Karan Singh are believed to be the three names proposed by the Prime Minister from the Congress. Pranab Mukherjee is one of the senior most Ministers in the Union Cabinet and is seen to be widely accepted by both the Left and other supporting partners of the Congress. There were reports of Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee being backed by the left as a possible Presidential candidate, however no confirmation of that has come from the left parties. Though,The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on Thursday rubbished media reports that Manmohan Singh has recommended the names of External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and Dr Karan Singh as the possible candidates for the post of President of India.

The term of President APJ Abdul Kalam is ending in July and the left parties have not shown any willingness to support his re-election. Kalam himself has remained non-committal on seeking a second term. The BJP is seen to be leaning towards Vice-President Bhairon SIngh Shekhawat, however they could back Kalam if he seeks a second term.


CPI leader A B Bardhan doesn't rule out Pranab's name for President. According to Bardhan, "A number of names for President were discussed with Prime Minister. President Kalam's name also came up during the meeting. PM Manmohan Singh has suggested Pranab Mukherjee's name to the Left."

For the first time in many years, a Congress Minister at the Centre albeit reluctantly admitted to presence of illegal Bangladeshi migrants in the country.External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told parliament Wednesday `,India has taken up the issue of infiltration with Bangladesh and initiated a slew of steps, including border fencing, to curb illegal influx of migrants from that country’.Main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party - that is known for its hardline stand on illegal immigration from Bangladesh, however, claimed that the number of illegal migrants could be as high as 50 million. In a reply, the Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi said it is expected that around one lakh Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) would be granted overseas citizenship every year.The minister also said all eligible PIOs can apply for the overseas citizenship and this would be granted as an when they apply.So far PIOs from 39 countries have been issued with OCI documents which include an OCI registration booklet and a life-long multiple entry, multiple-purpose visa sticker.

In another reply, the minister said the summer programme on Hindu studies introduced in America's Rutgers University has highly qualified and eminent people as faculty and members of the advisory council of the programme. The course covers different elements and approaches to Hindu philosophy and culture, including sessions on Hinduism through its narrative tradition, Hindu rituals, festivals and symbols, Hindu philosophy and Hinduism and modernity.


'The number of illegal Bangladeshi migrants in India is estimated to be around 15-16 lakh -. Illegal infiltration is taking place,' Mukherjee told Lok Sabha during Question Hour.However, provoked the BJP to condemn Mukherjee for cutting down the figures of Bangladeshi migrants. Successive Home Ministers at the Centre have given out figure much higher than what was quoted by the External Affairs Minister,” said BJP spokesman, Vijay Kumar Malhotra.
“In 1990, the then Home Minister gave a figure of 1.50 crore and now the External Affairs Minister says, it is only 15-16 lakh. This is what even the Bangladesh Prime Minister had been claiming. It is nothing but a white lie,” charged Malhotra.

Mukherjee, interestingly is the second Minister of the UPA Government to give out an estimate of the illegal Bangladeshi population in the country and his figures are much lower than those given by Minister of State for Home, Sriprakash Jaiswal in 2004, when he had given an estimate of 50 lakh illegal migrants in the Rajya Sabha. Later, he withdrew his reply.

The External Affairs Minister, however, tried to set at rest all speculation about the figures by asserting that the illegal migrants do not stand in a queue to be counted. Therefore they are all estimate. It is an estimate because nobody can give you an accurate figure. If we know the figure then perhaps we could prevent them from entering,” he told Mohan Rawle of Shiv Sena.

“There are 15-16 lakh illegal migrants staying in India,” he said amidst a ruckus by the opposition.

About the anti-India activities by Indian insurgent groups read ULFA and other North-east-based militants, Mukherjee said that during his visit to Dhaka he had been assured by the highest in Bangladesh that they would not allow forces inimical to India to operate out of the country. “I hope they keep their word,” he said.

Adding further, he disclosed that during his meeting with the former Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia he impressed upon her to take note of the existence of the problem. “Once you recognise, perhaps a way to solve the problem will be found out,” he said.

The External affairs Minister further confirmed that the issue was also taken up with the caretaker regime of Bangladesh. Government of India have emphasised to them the need for concrete and sustained action towards fulfilling its assurances.

On being asked why India was not demolishing the camps operated by the militants, the External Affairs Minister said since it involved a sovereign country India had to depend on that country to take action. “ I have to depend on them,” he said.

Asserting that India continued to take up these issues with Bangladesh, Mukherjee said during the last DG level talks between BSF and BDR, a list of 176 camps and 339 wanted criminals was handed over to Dhaka. Similarly they have also handed over list of criminals some of whom are holed up in Kolkata. “We are taking action whenever we can,” he said.

About Nepal, the Minister said there was no issue of illegal migration because of a treaty with that country. For more than a decade the Maoists had taken up arms and spread their activities. But now the armed Maoists have been quarantined and weapons are under supervision of the UN. The Maoist have joined the Government.

Meanwhile, in a Rajya Sabha reply, Minister of State for Home Affairs, S Reghupathy said that BSF has not submitted any specific proposal for creation of ‘No Habitation Zone’ within 150 yards from Indo-Bangladesh border. They are providing effective surveillance along the international border up to ‘Zero Line’ irrespective of the presence of habitation within 150 yards.

LS adjourned for the day over Sheila Dikshit's remarks

Going into damage control mode after her statement on migrants from Bihar and UP snowballed into a controversy, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Thursday offered her apology and said the capital was home to people from every part of the country.On the other hand, Revisiting the memories of the historic 1857 uprising and the famous march of the rebel sepoys, around 30,000 youths from all over the country on Thursday reached Delhi in a rally completing a 60-kilometre journey from Meerut. The rally was received at the Delhi border by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and members of her cabinet. "The uprising of 1857 is a source of inspiration for today's youth too," she said in a speech welcoming the rallyists.As her remarks on migrants from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar settling in Delhi disrupted proceedings in Parliament, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Thursday met External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee to explain her position.

Dikshit met Mukherjee, the Leader of Lok Sabha, in the Parliament House and is understood to have offered a clarification on the remarks.

Dikshit's remarks on the presence of people from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in the national Capital led to a furore in Lok Sabha as SP and RJD trooped into the well raising slogans against her and demanding her resignation. Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee's repeated pleas to allow normal business went unheeded as members continued the slogan-shouting in the well, forcing him to adjourn the House till noon.

The function at the red fort will be attended by President A P J Abdul Kalam, Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

Pl understand the farce! She welcomes the Freedom rally and promotes National Disintegration ata the same time!

"I have already clarified my position. I have no intention of hurting the sentiments of anybody," Dikshit told a hurriedly called press conference here. She said she was fully aware of the contribution made by people coming from outside, especially from UP and Bihar, in the development of Delhi, adding her statement had been distorted in a section of the media.

"I am sorry to learn that the Lok Sabha was agitated over my alleged statement and the house could not discharge its functions," Dikshit said.

"Delhi is the national capital and is a home for people from every part of the country," she added.
The director of international economics at the Council of Foreign Relations has launched a scathing attack on sovereignty and national currencies. Benn Steil says "the world needs to abandon unwanted currencies, replacing them with dollars, euros, and multinational currencies as yet unborn." Find out more and take the related poll at WorldNetDaily. com now!
CPI takes exception to President`s statement

Meanwhile, President A P J Abdul Kalam's suggestion for evolving a two-party system in the country today drew strong criticism from the CPI, which termed it "unwarranted and harmful". In strong reactions, the Left party said the first citizen should not have made such a statement on the eve of his retirement. At a function to mark the 150th anniversary of the 1857 uprising, the President spoke about the need for rapidly evolving a stable two-party system in the country.


"We take strong objection to it. It is unwarranted, harmful and not in tune with the democratic traditions of the country," CPI leader Gurudas Das Gupta told reporters here.

"He (Kalam) is occupying the highest seat and on the eve of his retirement he should not have made such a statement," Gupta added.

How our polity treats national integrity and unity, pl see another instance!

Dam over Brahmaputra river; India says no cause for alarm

New Delhi, May 10: India on Thursday said there is no cause for "alarm" over China's plans to construct a dam on the Brahmaputra river in Tibet on which Bangladesh has expressed concern.

"We are seized of the matter. There is no situation of alarm," Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz told reporters when asked about reports that Dhaka had expressed concern over the proposed dam by Beijing.

Observing that china wanted to produce 40mw of power from the project, he said both India and china exchange information on hydrology regularly and "I think it is not a situation of alarm".

Reports from Dhaka had quoted environmentalists as saying that china's plan would lead to a major ecological disaster for Bangladesh within the next few years.
http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=370586&sid=NAT
India and China are in the second stage of exploring the framework of a final package settlement covering all aspects of the India-China boundary dispute, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told parliament Thursday.

This will be followed by 'the last stage which will involve actual delineation and demarcation of the boundary on map and ground by the civil, military and survey officials from the two sides', the minister said in reply to a question in Rajya Sabha.

The three-stage process began with the signing of an agreement on political parameters and guiding principles for the settlement of the India-China Boundary Question on April 11, 2005, during the visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to India, the minister said.

Special representatives of both countries will hold the 11th round of talks to resolve the border row in Beijing later this year to arrive at a framework for a final package settlement.

China illegally claims approximately 90,000 sq km of Indian territory in Arunachal Pradesh and 38,000 km in Jammu and Kashmir, the minister had told parliament Wednesday.
China's occupation of approximately 38,000 sq km in Jammu and Kashmir is besides the 5,180 sq km illegally ceded by Pakistan in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) under the so-called Sino-Pakistan Boundary Agreement of 1963, the minister said.

In response to another question, Mukherjee said the Chinese government, in a case against Huseyin Celil, an ethnic Uyghur, has stated that Celil was involved in recruiting several people for the East Turkistan Liberation Organisation and sending them to terrorist training camps in the Pamir plateau in Pakistan.

The minister said the Indian government has been consistently reminding Pakistan of its commitment of not allowing any territory under its control to be used to support terrorism.



Forty years ago, the Indian nation was convulsed by fear and eventual humiliation as its army was vanquished by the Chinese People's Liberation Army in a bitter and cold battle in the Forty years later, India has repaired its relationship with the Chinese to some extent, but those wounds have not been forgotten. Excuses have been thrown up for the military debacle. India was ill prepared; it believed in non-violence; it trusted the Chinese and in 'Hindi-Chini bhai bhai'. Fingers have been pointed, most famously at then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, defence minister Krishna Menon, and Lieutenant General B N Kaul, who was in charge of the army on India's eastern frontier.

After the war, India claimed that China was occupying about 33,000 square kilometres of its territory in the Aksai Chin region of Ladakh. China claimed that India was occupying 90,000 square kilometres; Beijing claims the entire state of Arunachal Pradesh as its territory.

Forty years later, few know the real story
http://in.rediff.com/news/indochin.htm?zcc=rl

http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/may/10china.htm

With India reiterating that China illegally claims approximately 90,000 square kilometres of Indian territory in Arunachal Pradesh and 38,000 km in Jammu and Kashmir, a strange game of statements regarding the Chinese intrusion in the northeastern state is on.
Though officials in Beijing and New Delhi have denied the intrusion, people remember the bloody war in the same region in 1962. In later years though, negotiations on boundary disputes have been initiated between India and China, while engaging each other in trade and cultural exchanges quite vigorously.

The sudden eruption of the territorial dispute has revived bitter memories. It is noteworthy that on September 7, 1993, an accord to reduce tensions along the India-China border and to respect the Line of Actual Control was signed.

The National Democratic Alliance's defence minister George Fernandes had accused China of repeated violations of Indian territory, constructing a helipad on Indian territory in the disputed zone, aiding Pakistan's nuclear and missile programmes and stockpiling nuclear weapons in Tibet. With this background the present controversy assumes significance.

Tarun Vijay spoke to Dorjee Khandu, Arunachal Pradesh's chief minister, at length about the controversy.
See also:
http://in.rediff.com/news/indochin.htm?zcc=rl

http://wnd.com/ news/article. asp?ARTICLE_ ID=55595

India's commemoration of 1857 mutiny overcomes some problems
International Herald Tribune - 58 minutes ago
By Amelia Gentleman. NEW DELHI: So far, India's plans to commemorate the first war of independence against the British - better known in the West as the Indian Mutiny - have not gone quite to plan.
British historian pens new book on 1857 uprising Hindustan Times
Indian 'war of independence' a turning point for subcontinent

"Taking Dhaka did not figure in Manekshaw's plans"

Lieutenant-General (retd.) J.F.R. Jacob
In CNBC's `India Tonight' programme broadcast on April 30, Karan Thapar presented an interview with Lieutenant-General J.F.R. Jacob, who was Chief of Staff of the Indian Army's Eastern Command during the Bangladesh campaign of 1971, in the context of the Government's decision to give Field Marshal S.H.F.J. Manekshaw back pay for the period since his retirement more than 36 years ago. There is a particular focus here on his role, as well as General Jacob's role, in the Bangladesh campaign. An edited version of the transcript was carried by the Hindu on May 4, 2007 and is available at the link below.
http://www.hindu.com/2007/05/04/stories/2007050404131100.htm
http://www.socialcause.org/getarticlefromdb.php?id=605
Hindu Genocide in East Pakistan
By Shrinandan Vyas


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This article deals with slaughter of about 2.5 million Hindus in East Pakistan in 1971.

This article refers to information provided by Dept. of Planning of Government of Bangla Desh, Encyclopedia Britannica, Senator Edward Kennedy's report to the U.S.Senate Judiciary Committee, Newsweek, New York Times,etc. This information and elementary math are used to show that indeed millions of Hindus were killed in East Pakistan in 1971.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ABSTRACT

It is well known that the 1971 army repression in Bangla Desh (former East Pakistan) resulted in an influx of 10 million refugees into India. Most world renowned relief and news agencies put the number of dead at 3 million. However the fact that is glossed over in these statistics is that THE ENTIRE HINDU POPULATION OF EAST PAKISTAN WAS THE PRIMARY TARGET OF PAKISTANI ARMY DURING THE 9 MONTHS OF REPRESSION IN 1971. Using the population statistics from Bangla Desh Government and US Government publications this article PROVES that 80 percent of the refugees from Bangla Desh were Hindus and that 80 percent of the 3 million killed were Hindus. THUS IT WAS A HINDU REFUGEE PROBLEM and IT WAS A HINDU GENOCIDE THAT TOOK PLACE IN EAST PAKISTAN IN 1971.

10 References - Encyclopedia Britannica, Bangla Desh Government - Ministry of Planning (for statistics), Newsweek, New York Times, Senator Edward Kennedy's report to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.
http://www.hindunet.org/hindu_history/modern/hindu_bangla.html

http://www.thestate sman.net/ page.news. php?clid= 6&theme=&usrsess=1&id=155812

Tony Blair announced on Thursday he would step down on June 27 after a decade as prime minister and told Britons disillusioned by the war in Iraq that he had always done what he believed was right.Blair's popularity has suffered since he sent British forces to join the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and a Labour Party rebellion in September forced him to say he would quit within a year.Blair's resignation triggers a contest to lead the Labour Party which finance minister Gordon Brown is favorite to win.Brown would become prime minister after the departure of Blair who is only the second person in a century to have held the post for 10 years.He will be remembered for helping bring peace to Northern Ireland after decades of violence, winning three straight elections for Labour for the first time and dragging it from its left-wing roots to the centre of British politics.

"Hand on heart, I did what I thought was right," Blair told Labour Party members in his constituency in northern England.

"I may have been wrong, that's your call. But believe one thing, if nothing else, I did what I thought was right for our country."

"I think that's long enough, not only for me, but also for the country and sometimes the only way you conquer the pull of power is to set it down," Blair said.

Blair in his own words
Thu May 10, 2007 8:41AM EDT
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL1037532920070510
Here are some of his memorable quotes:

"Mine is the first generation able to contemplate the possibility that we may live our entire lives without going to war or sending our children to war. That is a prize beyond value" - at a NATO-Russia summit in Paris in 1997.

"We therefore here in Britain stand shoulder to shoulder with our American friends in this hour of tragedy" - after the Sept 11, 2001 attacks.

"A day like today is not a day for soundbites, really. But I feel the hand of history upon our shoulders" - in April 1998 before peace talks in Northern Ireland.

"Ridding the world of Saddam would be an act of humanity. It is leaving him there that is in truth inhumane" - Labour Party rally in 2003.

"My three priorities for government are education, education, education" - after Labour came to power in 1997.

"It is sometimes better to lose and be right than to win and do the wrong thing" - after his first parliamentary defeat in November 2005.

"I can only go one way. I've not got a reverse gear" - Labour Party rally in 2003. Continued...

Moderate Republicans warn Bush Iraq must improve
Thu May 10, 2007 8:12AM EDT
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN0934917220070510
Top News
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Marine says urinated on dead Iraqi at Haditha
CAMP PENDLETON, California (Reuters) - Angered that a beloved member of his squad had been killed in an explosion, a U.S. Marine urinated on one of the 24 dead Iraqi civilians killed by his unit in Haditha, the Marine testified on Wednesday. Full Article

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A group of Republican lawmakers warned President George W. Bush this week at a private White House meeting that conditions in Iraq must improve quickly or he will lose more support from his own party, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.

Eleven moderate House Republicans were unusually candid with Bush in a meeting that lasted more than an hour, telling him public support for the war was crumbling in their swing districts, the Times said, sighting participants in the Tuesday session.

NBC Nightly News quoted an unnamed participant in the meeting as saying that they had an "unvarnished conversation" with Bush about the war.

The delegation, headed by Mark Kirk of Illinois and Charles Dent of Pennsylvania, told Bush: "We need candor. We need honesty," and that the White House had lost its credibility on the war, NBC reported.
The White House declined comment on the discussions.

"I'm not going to comment on what the president may or may not have said in a meeting with members. He meets regularly with members of Congress and asks for their unvarnished opinions and frank advice," said spokesman Tony Fratto.