Cable Briefs

Press, 13 July 1979, Page 5

Cable Briefs

Arms stopped

An American transport plane, grou. Jed when its crew discovered their cargo was not medical supplies but an arms shipment, has taken off again after the arms were unloaded, the official Tunisian news agency. T.A.P. has reported. The agency, quoting an authorised source, said the arms had come from the Palestine Liberation Organisation. The plane was on route from Euirut to Costa Rica, a neighbour of Nicaragua where civil war is raging. A spokes:, .an for the plane’s American owners, Global International Airways, said, “It is our assumption that t' arms were meant for Nicaragua.” — Tunis. Aust, deficit down Australia has finished the 1978-79 financial year with the lowest balance-of-pay-ments deficit for six years and official reserves at their highest level since Novembi 1973, but with a sharply reduced trade surplus, figures jqst released show. Statistics Bureau figures show the balance-of-pay-ments deficit was down to sAustl26M from sAusts42M in the previous year. The Statistics Bureau trade figures showed the visible trade surplus was slashed from sAustllO3M in 1977-78 to sAust446M last year. — Canberra. Janata defections More defections from India's ruling Janata Party has left the Prime Minister (Mr Morarji Desai) in a minority in Parliament only Id . before a no-confidence vote. Twenty-four more mambers of Parliament have resigned from the party, bringing the total to 51 in' three days and cutting Janata’s strength to 255 in the 544-seat Lok Sabha (Lower House). But Mr Desai appeared confident that his C avernment would survive next Monday’s vote on a noconfidence motion from the Opposition Congress Party - New Delhi.

‘Tranquilliser fad’ Thousands of Australians are taking the tranquilliser Serepax which has now replaced Valium as the country’s No. 1 drug, a top Melbourne psychologist has said. Dr R. B. Montgomery said that Serepax. usually prescribed for. emotional stress, had become a fad. “It’s meant to give a patient a relaxed feeling, and is now the No. 1 pill for common living problems.” Dr Montgomery was speaking after giving evidence in Melbourne to a Senate standing committee on social welfare, which is examining drug abuse. — Melbourne.