Cable Briefs

Press, 7 March 1978, Page 8

Cable Briefs

Lab.-baby book The publishers of a book j which makes the astounding claim that a human being has been successfully created in a laboratory says that it is putting the work out as non-fiction based on the author’s credentials as a respected science writer. But J. P. Lippincott, the publishers. added in a statement that they did not know if the claims made by former “Time” magazine medical writer, David Rorvik, were true. The California-based Rorvik was the first winner of the Pulitzer travelling fellowship and is a 1967 honours graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism. According to his publishers, he was “Time” magazine’s, first free-roving science and! medicine reporter, and since] 1970 has been a freelance] writer. — New York.

Uranium decision Waterside workers at all : Australian ports will load uranium, as a result Of a series of Waterside Workers’ Federation meetings. The Federation’s federal secretary (Mr Charlie Fitzgibbon) said] the federation had endorsed the Australian Council of Trade Unions policy on uranium mining and export, lifting bans imposed last year. Last month in Sydney, a special meeting of unions; affiliated to the A.C.T.U.] voted to allow existing contracts to be honoured, but to withold labour on new projects until talks could be held on safety procedures and Aboriginal land rights.] — Sydney. Beirut flare-up Rightist and Leftist gun-j men have fought in Beirut | again, and the Arab peace- ] keeping force has threatened] to use artillery to stop the] clashes in which a woman is ] reported to have been killed.] Informed sources say four] persons were also wounded! in the battles, in which mor-, tars, rockets, and heavy machine-guns were used. The sources say it appears to have been the worst upsurge of fighting between the two sides in the Leba-| nese capital since the 19-1 month civil war ended in] November, 1976. — Beirut. I Blasphemy vote After a day of heated debate, a packed House of Lords has rejected a bill abolishing the offence of I blasphemy. The debate came after a court case last year when “Gay News,” a homosexual magazine, was fined £lOOO for blasphemous libel. The prosecution, instigated by the antipornography campaigner, Mary Whitehouse, related toi a poem about a centurion’s] homosexual love for Jesus] Christ at the Crucifixion. Iti was the first prosecution for] ] blasphemous libel since] 1921. The proposed bill] I would have prevented any] ]more such prosecutions. —] I London.