Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Oct. 4, 1988, edition 1 / Page 3
Part of Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
The Daily Tar HeelTuesday, October 4, 19883 Speaker urges U.; to stop :eodlnni By HELLE NIELSEN Staff Writer Traveling with pictures of muti lated and dead bodies and stories of oppression, Philippine anthroplpgist Zenaida Uy hopes to convince Amer icans to campaign for a halt to U.S. military aid to the Philippines. The Philippine army, supported by U.S. military aid, has increased attacks on the unarmed political opposition, Uy said in an interview last week after she spoke at the School of Public Health. She is on a four month tour of the United States. The arms (supplied by the United States) are used to kill leaders and members of the open opposition," Uy said. The bleeding of my people is an offshoot of American military aid, all used in counter-insurgency programs." Uy is the secretary general of Bayan, an alliance of 1,000 organzi ations uniting geographic and social groups that was formed in June 1985 to oppose former President Ferdi nand Marcos. The alliance advocates a change in economic, social and political structures in the Philippines, she said. Independent fact-finding teams concluded recently that human rights abuses have increased in the Philip pines during the last eight months, Uy said. Five human rights lawyers . ... , , .it.. were killed during the last two years, she said. Leftist political organizers, auto- ' matically suspected of supporting the communist guerillas, have been killed i or disappeared, she said. She pulled out a picture of the body of her ! predecessor as secretary general, who " was killed in September 1987. His '. face was shot beyond recognition. Demonstrating workers and pea- sants often encounter the "full force of the military" and are arrested, she said. "The Philippines is not a restored democracy. Some analysts say we have a military junta without declar ing it or a police state." Following the overthrow of Mar cos in the spring of 1986, Filipinos had great expectations of "swift and decisive change" under the new president, Corazon Aquino, Uy said. But many, including Bayan members, Sharimi By SANDY WALL Staff Writer Developed nations should share their knowledge of highway safety with less developed countries to .reduce their increasing traffic fatal- ities, said B.J. Campbell of the UNC '.Highway Safety Research Center in :a recent international report. Developing nations are suffering j ;higher traffic fatality rates because j:they are motorizing without proper '.safety measures, Campbell said. Campbell was a member of an international group that studied I 'highway deaths in developing coun tries. The three Americans, three I; Australians, a Canadian, and a Briton iiWomen's :By THOM SOLOMON I Staff Writer I An out-of-court settlement for a lawsuit challenging the 1987 special ise rezoning of the Orange County . Women's Center is being negotiated, ;but representatives from both sides I are mum about what the negotiations might be. The women's center is located at ; . 210 Henderson St. :. Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos said the lawsuit, filed bv Cobb Terrace resident John Akin and 25 neighbors against the town of Chapel Hill, was left open on Sept. 19 by joint request. "It was left open in order for the parties to talk about an out-of-court settlement," Karpinos said. Karpinos would not comment on ' the possible settlement, but he said 1 there had been no new developments ' since the case was left open. Robert Epting, an attorney for the The DTHis looking for Sales Interns interested in selling newspaper advertising! Come by the ID7IK1, Room 104,' Carolina Union 12 noon on Tuesday, Oct. 4 tfosr a Sales Meeting. Ask for Chrissy! aid! to Pihilippiinies - k - " , 'vW.:-:-:.:.:-:.:;:v:':':;:r:'::-:' i w & v . Zenaida Uy . have become increasingly critical of Aquino. "It is true that the people have ousted Marcos," Uy said. "But there is no basic change in the structures, therefore there is no fundamental change." Socio-economic structures, deve loped when the Philippines were a U.S. colony, favor a small national bint, oiiu iiiutmiaiiuiKU vuiuuiauuiu, y saj(j The country's most important An4 miiUinn4iAnn1 -rii--o industries are controlled by multina- tional but primarily American corporations. Of the top 1,000 cor porations, less than 50 are owned by Filipinos, she said. "That deprives our own local businesses from developing. It keeps our nation from truly developing and becoming progressive.' A "debt swap" program, whereby a company can assume a piece of the Philippines' foreign debt in return for cash and first choice on public building contracts lor instance, benefits only those who control the country's resources, she said. . Economic policies, such as eight year "tax holidays" for foreign investors, also opened the country to multinational corporations while neglecting the welfare of the majority iway safety with other nations recently published their findings and recommendations in a book titled "Reducing Traffic Injury A Global Challenge." Countries have been rapidly mo torizing since World War II because using more cars more frequently is Ma key to their economic develop- ment," Campbell said. These coun- tries, including China and Egypt, have primitive roads and few safety measures in place, creating high traffic fatality rates. Campbell pointed to the U.S. highway system as a model of safety, citing 2.4 fatalities per hundred million miles driven. In developing countries where there are fewer center settlement negotiated plaintiff, said, "We are still waiting for a response from the town and the people of the Women's Center." Epting also declined to comment on further negotiations. .The case, heard in Orange County Superior Court, complains that the special-use rezoning contradicts a state-required land-use plan. The plan, revised in 1986, states the purpose of the plan is to preserve existing neighborhoods "while accommodating quality new develop ment that is harmonious with the existing environment." Cobb Terrace residents are con- cerned the rezoning would disturb the residential character of their neigh borhood and would attract other businesses to locate there. A Chapel Hill Town Council vote rezoned the lots owned by the Women's Center from residential to "office institutional." Arthur Jack son, long-range and current planner. u u of the Philippine people, she said. Bayan has proposed a nationalist industrial program, which would allow the Philippines to take advan tage of their resources and generate jobs at locally controlled wages, she said. "We should develop our own industries and become self-reliant. We have all the minerals needed for a society to develop; we have the fertile land and a vast number of trainable people." Uy also criticized Aquino's land reform, under which landowners must sell land exceeding five hectares to landless peasants. However, the reform allows landowners to retain another three hectares for each of their heirs, and a landowner may issue stock in the land to the peasants instead of selling it. Landlessness is a major problem in the Philippines, she said, as seven of 10 farmers are tenants. A genuine land reform, Uy said; would include technical and financial assistance to peasants. And the government should buy the land and distribute it to tenants without charge, she said. "They have paid enough through the work of their parents and grandparents." As a step, toward independence from the United States, Bayan advo cates severance of an agreement that allows two U.S. military bases in the Philippines. The agreement runs out in 1994. Discontent with the bases is grow ing, she said. The bases have not been used for defense purposes, but as "a launching pad" for U.S. attacks against Asian Pacific countries including Korea, Indonesia and Vietnam. There are major social problems in the areas around the bases, she said. At least 3,000 children have been born out of wedlock in recent years to Philippine women and American military personnel, she said. More than 17,000 adult prostitutes have been registered, and there is an unknown number of child prostitutes, some as young as 7 years old, Uy said. "The bases are the tombstone of our lost sovereignty and a legacy of our colonial past." automobiles, the death rate is 10 or more times higher. "China is on the way to having 100,000 fatalities if they dont take action soon," he said. China suffers about the same number of highway deaths as the United States although the Chinese have only 5 percent as many cars, he said. Chinese roads are shared by pedes trians, animal and human-drawn carts, hundreds of millions of bicy cles, and a growing number of automobiles, Campbell said. In some provinces, automobile population increases by 10 to 20 times a year, for Chapel Hill, said "office institu tional" zoning does not necessarily allow other businesses to locate there. "The area is under special-use rezoning," Jackson said. "What this means is the property is considered office instutional' only while the office is in use, in this case the Women's Center." If the Women's Center were to move or cease to exist, the property would return to being zoned residen tial, Jackson said. A memorandum from Town Man ager David Taylor dated July 6, 1987, said if the rezoning proposal was approved, the exterior of the Worn- en's Center would retain its residential (M 800DjMi NOW IN-HOUSE SLIDE PROCESSING WITB3 SAME BAT SERVICE! ECTACHROME SEPTEMBER 'CO At i i ' VAXU J INTRODUCTORY.SPECIAL COUPON J $1.50 OFF ROLL OF E-6 PROCESSING j Coupon pb One Roll per Coupon J c oofroversy yriroyod aici pa By ERIC GRIBBIN Staff Writer A new congressional humani tarian aid package for the contra rebels includes a controversial provision for a series of .unspec ified non-military programs, sources say. The disagreement is over the definition of "non-military aid," because Nicaraguan officials say ' it continues the war and frees up the contras' own funds for military purposes. "The bill specifies non-military training of the recipients with respect to their treatment of civilians in accord with accepted international standards of. human rights," said a staff member for the Senate Appropriations Commit tee who asked to remain anonym ous. "I am sure that it does not mean teaching guys to shoot rifles or anything like that." This bill, signed Saturday by President Reagan, differed from the previous aid bill that expired, Friday which stipulated that its funds be used only for food, 'clothing, medical services and shelter. The word "only" was Carrboro plans towim to be site for .outdoor By CHARLES BRITTA1N Staff Writer Town officials in Carrboro are excited about plans for a town commons which will serve the com munity as a host for outdoor activities and a permanent location for the Carrboro farmer's market. The Carrboro Board of Aldermen recently approved a plan to raise funds to build a town commons near the town hall in an undeveloped area. According to town officials, the commons will include a bandstand and a park and will serve as the new home for the farmer's market. Carrboro Town Manager Robert Morgan said the town is anticipating he said. The safety improvements do not need to be expensive, Campbell said. Encouraging Chinese drivers to use their headlights at night, although-it is considered impolite, is one such improvement. Most of their bicycles are painted black and are not equipped with reflectors, and chang ing that would also reduce the number of traffic fatalities. . The next phase of Campbell's work is to sell the ideas to international officials. He will meet with U.N. officials in Denmark and Sweden this week and try to convince them to implement his suggestions through an established world organization. ' appearance, and any changes would require approval by the Historical District Commission. But residents remain concerned that the value of the real estate in the area will decrease. If no out-of-court settlement is negotiated, the case has been resche- duled for Oct. 24. Carol Burnett, executive director of the Women's Center, said if no settlement was reached and the town lost the case, the Women's Center could appeal, sell the house and relocate or reapply. "But whether we would do this is another question," Burnett said. "It was a long process." ckage for dropped from the new package, which includes $27.14 million for all that the previous bill provided plus non-military training But the committee source, who worked on the bill, said it was unlikely that the government might seek to expand the scope of its contra aid to military aid. The law does allow the president to request Congress' approval to send an additional $16.5 million in military aid to the rebels. SuGh aid is available now, the staffer said, but cannot be sent because of a congressional ban on it. Even non-military aid will not make the contras self-sufficient, said Sarali Porta, press officer for the Nicaraguan' Embassy in Washington, D.C. "From the contras point of view, this package is a very positive thing, because it keeps them alive and it allows them to use other funds for military purposes," she said. "This is a continuation of the war even if it is not specifically labeled military aid." The new bill provides more than humanitarian aid, she said. a timetable of two years to complete the project, but raising funds for construction may alter this estimate. The architect's estimated cost for the project is $400,000, Morgan said. The town government is hoping to raise the funds for the project through donations from the private sector," he said. Eddie Mann, president of Orange rederal savings ana Loan, was chosen to head the task force estab lished to raise the funds necessary to complete the project. "The town is not. able to include the cost of construction of a town commons in its budget because the project is aimed more toward com munity beautification, and this is not considered an urgent enough need to just another grab-it-and-go super receive town funds," Mann said. market then it will lose the personal Since the town could not include relationship between the farmers and the commons' cost in its budget, the the shoppers and will not be any mayor formed a special committee to different from all the other grocery seek the assistance of the local private sector through a fund-raising cam- - a1 ne saia. Mann said he is "very excited and enthusiastic" about his recent appointment and believes the town commons will be a valuable and popular addition to Carrboro. The addition of the farmer's market is of particular importance to the community, he said. "The farmer's market is very popular in Carrboro, and the fresh produce it provides is an important service to the community, he said. Relocating the market to the town commons would help local farmers by giving them an opportunity to sell their goods in a positive, stable environment, Mann said. "The present location of the farmer's market is not very secure," he said. , The reason for this is a clause in the market's present lease which requires the owner of the property to give only 90 days notice before eviction, he said. Moving the farmer's market to the town commons would help secure its future for local farmers and would provide a convenient location to serve the town, Mann said. TmETORN8TEETORNsTRETORN8PRESENTS i ? " All ' p 1 jiilf 1 ?v Q jU--aMICHAEL W. SMITH j GARY CHAPMAN 1 WED.y0CT.5 8PIVI DEAN SMITH CENTER Reserved Seat Tickets $16.50 Each NOW ON SALE! At Smith Center And Ail Tickctron Outlets Or By Calling 1-800-543-3041 For Group Discount Information Call 962-2296 Produced by Cellar Door Concerts cooitras "Even if this is called human itarian aid, it is not what is defined by international organizations, such as the Red Cross, as human itarian aid," she said. "It is totally different ..... Any aid to the contras contributes to the conti nuation of the killing of Nicara guan citizens,, children in particular." . "We are not sure what non military training means," said Mary Purcell, contra-aid coordi nator for the Nicaraguan Net work, a non-profit organization that deals with U.S.-Nicaraguan relations. "Any aid to the contras does irreparable damage to the Central American peace process. The cease-fire signed on March 23 (stipulated) that the contras could receive aid only when they were in cease-fire areas and then only for the use of resettlement. .... The fact that it is not military aid is ho longer an issue." The problem with the continua tion of aid, even non-military, is that Congress is giving the contras money after they dropped out of peace talks with the Sandinistas, she said. commons activities But Chester Copeland, manager of the farmer's market, said he is concerned that the planned amount of parking for the town commons will not be adequate and this may damage the market's business and reputation. Copeland said Morgan assured him the parking will be sufficient, because customers will leave once they have completed their shopping and this will keep the traltic con stantly moving. But Copeland said he is skeptical. "The farmer's market is like an extended family," he said. "People come to browse, enjoy the atmo sphere, and talk with friends, not just to shop. ' 'i "If the farmer's market becomes u Mann said the commons will be beneficial in many other ways as well. "The construction of a bandstand on the grounds of the commons will provide an area for outdoor concerts drama productions, civic functions and church activities," he said. Carrboro and Chapel Hill are both supportive of projects focusing on the advancement of the arts, Mann said, and the town commons will provide a location dedicated to this purpose! Mann said he is also excited about the town commons providing "a place for people to take their kids, a blanket and a picnic themselves." lunch and enjoy I Enlargements V Photuicli VBQ8-1377 I printed everyday J
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Oct. 4, 1988, edition 1
3
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75