Cable briefs

Press, 25 January 1988, Page 6

Cable briefs

Whaling continues

Japan has no plans to recall its whaling fleet now operating in the Antarctic, despite stern objections from the United States, a Fishery Agency official said. “We have explained our research whaling plan to the United States in detail and I can’t understand why the United States served such a warning abruptly,” said the official, who requested anonymity. Japan also consulted the International Whale Commission (1.W.C.) scientific committee about the expedition, the official said. — Tokyo. Soviet offer

The Soviet Union would “take appropriate steps” to ease super-Power tension in the Pacific if the United States removed its big military bases from the Philippines, the Soviet ambassador, Oleg Sokolov, said in an interview. He told the “Manila Chronicle," “We have already indicated that if the presence of the military

bases is ended, we’ll not leave that matter unanswered and we will certainly take appropriate steps.” — Manila. Barnard marries Professor Christiaan Barnard has married for the third time. Professor Barnard, aged 64, married Karin Setzkorn, aged 24, at his restaurant in the Cape Town suburb of Newlands. His first wife, Louwtjie, divorced him in 1970. He married a 19-year-old socialite Barbara Zoellner in the same year but they were divorced 12 years later. — Cape Town. Seven killed Sikh gunmen shot dead seven members of a Sikh family on Saturday in Punjab, where security forces were already on maximum alert after a mass killing of Hindus on Friday. The killing of the family followed the shooting of 10 Hindus in a public park, . which spiked a major alert by

security forces ahead of tomorrow’s Republic Day celebrations. — Chandigarh. Bush victory Vice-President George Bush has won a big victory in Michigan, dealing a setback to former televison evangelist, Pat Robertson, in the first State in which Republicans will pick Presidential nominating delegates. The Robertson campaign said an agreement on party rules between supporters of Mr Bush and the New York Congressman, Jack Kemp, could give Mr Bush 35 of Michigan’s 77 national delegates, Mr Kemp 30 and Mr Robertson the remaining 12. — Detroit. Govt sought King Baudouin has asked the outgoing Minister of Social Affairs, JeanLuc Dehaene, to seek a workable coalition as Belgium faced its seventh week without a Government. Elections were held on December 13. Mr Dehaene, aged 47, a

member of the Flemishspeaking wing of the Christian-Socialist Party (CSP) had held the Social Affairs portfolio since December, 1981. Before that, he was chief aide to Prime Minister Wilfred Martens who headed eight Governments from 1979 until 1988. — Brussels. Bomb kills 2 Two people were killed and 10 injured when a bomb exploded in a busy market in the south-west-ern Pakistani city of Quetta. — Islamabad. Appeal to media Pope John Paul has asked the media to observe a “code of honour” based on truth, justice and the transmission of complete and unbiased information. In his message for the Roman Catholic Church’s World Communications Day — to be celebrated on May 15 — the Pope also said communicators should contribute to “a new world order of information.” — Vatican City.