Cable briefs

Press, 31 October 1983, Page 6

Cable briefs

Manila probe A five-member commission will open its probe into the assassination of the Opposition leader, Benigno Aquino, with a hearing on Thursday in a morgue where the bul-let-riddled body of his alleged killer has been kept for more than two months. The commission’s head, a retired Court of Appeals Justice Corazon Agrava, said that she had summonsed Saturnina and Marilyn Galman — mother and sister, respectively, of the alleged assassin, Rolando Galman — to appear at the hearing to identify the body before the entire commission.—Manila. Laker to wind up The cheap air travel pioneer, Sir Freddie Laker, whose airline collapsed last year, is winding up his travel company after less than a year in business. He set up Skytrain Holidays after Laker Airways crashed with debts of more than SUS4OO million (SNZ6O4 million), but the new venture, backed by the trading group Lonrho, was hamstrung by opposition from other travel firms. Company sources said that Skytrain would cease today, when the last of its summer holiday customers returned home, and the company would then be up for sale.— London. Fifth term Zambia’s President, Mr Kenneth Kaunda, is being sworn in for a fifth term in office after winning a decisive vote of confidence in last week’s Presidential elections. Despite grave economic problems which have meant high unemployment, rising prices, and sporadic shortages of basic goods for the average Zambian, results so far declared gave Mr Kaunda around 90 per cent of the vote. He was unopposed in his quest for a fifth successive five year term— Lusaka. Secret love-child Robin Gibb, one of the “Bee Gees” pop band, has revealed he is the father of a secret love-child. Gibb, aged 33, said the mother was his artist girlfriend, Dwina Waterford. Until recently, only a few close friends knew of the star’s son, Robin John, who is now nine months old, the “Daily Mail” newspaper reports. Gibb said the baby was planned to seal his happiness with Dwina and help him get over the breakup of his 14-year marriage. — London. Sisters freed Leftist guerrillas have released the kidnapped sisters of Guatemala’s head of State and his predecessor, said a Government spokesman. The Rebel Armed Forces freed the sister of the head of State, Brigadier-General Oscar Mejia Victores, after more than a month of captivity. They also released the sister of the former Guatemalan President, Briga-dier-General Efrain Rios Montt. — Guatemala City.