The Guardian World News

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• Syrian troops shoot dead protesters in day of turmoil
• Cable: AV will end Tory dominance
• Misrata strikes back against snipers
• Coalition attacked over environment
• BNP faces meltdown at local polls
• Eight police injured in riot over Tesco
• Florida suspect 'wrongly released'
• Green activists occupy Arctic oil rig
• Japan suffering leaves pope stumped
• Senator John Ensign to resign
• Jerusalem wins praise on Broadway
• A wedding send-off fit for a queen
• Crucifixion rite: 24 nailed to crosses
• Memoirists who 'embellish'
• The Tea Party and Ayn Rand
• Manning protesters serenade Obama
• 2012 Olympic tickets in high demand
• Buy-to-let bounces back

Syrian troops shoot dead protesters in day of turmoil Posted: 22 Apr 2011 08:06 AM PDT Dozens reportedly killed as live bullets and teargas used against rallies after Friday prayers Syria endured its bloodiest day yet of the Arab Spring as protests against President Bashar al-Assad brought turmoil to dozens of towns and cities across the country and security forces reportedly gunned down dozens of people. Despite a string of government concessions earlier in the week, including the lifting of the hated 48-year-old emergency law, tens of thousands of demonstrators demanding greater political freedom and an end to Ba'ath party rule took to the streets after Friday prayers. Security forces around Damascus and other key cities ignored appeals to eschew violence, opening fire with live rounds and using teargas against several pro-democracy protests, activists and witnesses reported. Although information was difficult to obtain, at least 88 people were reported killed, including two in Douma, one in Homs, and at least six in the southern town of Izraa, and others in Moudamiya, outside Damascus, the activists said. With more casualties being reported by the hour, there were fears the final toll would be significantly higher. The White House urged Damascus to follow through on promised reforms. Barack Obama called on the Syrian government to stop using violence against demonstrators and accused Assad of seeking help from Iran. "This outrageous use of violence to quell protests must come to an end now," Obama said. "Instead of listening to their own people, President Assad is blaming outsiders while seeking Iranian assistance in repressing Syria's citizens through the same brutal tactics that have been used by his Iranian allies." Foreign secretary William Hague condemned the "unacceptable killing of demonstrators" and called on Syrian security forces "to exercise restraint instead of repression". He said the authorities should respect the "people's right to peaceful protest". More than 280 people are believed to have been killed since the unrest began six weeks ago. Twenty-one protesters were killed this week in Homs. Activists and observersin Damascus who described today's events as a watershed moment, said their impression was that protests had been bigger than on the past seven Fridays and more bloody. The protesters' demands varied from place to place. In Kisweh, near Damascus, people called for freedom. In the Mediterranean city of Banias, they chanted: "The people want to topple the regime." Other protesters directed their anger directly at members of the ruling family. "God, freedom and Syria only. God is greatest!" was another rallying cry. In some Damascus neighbourhoods, statues and posters of Assad and his late father, the former president Hafez al-Assad, were torn down, and there was chanting against Maher al-Assad, Bashar's younger brother, who commands the army's elite 4th division. Its soldiers, regarded by many Syrians as a private militia, have been reportedly responsible for shootings in Deraa and elsewhere. In the Damascus district of Midan, 2,000 people chanted: "Zanga zanga, dar dar, Maher is a bigger moron than Bashar!" Another Assad family member, Rami Makhlouf, a business tycoon who is the president's cousin, was also a target of the protesters' wrath. Fulfilling an earlier vow to step up the protests on what they called "Great Friday", demonstrators also rallied in the eastern towns of Deir al-Zor and Qamishli. In the city of Hama, where Hafez al-Assad ruthlessly crushed an armed Islamist uprising nearly 30 years ago, a witness told Reuters that security forces opened fire to prevent protesters from reaching the Ba'ath party headquarters. "We saw two snipers on the building. None of us had weapons. There are casualties, possibly two dead," the witness said. After prayers finished in Deraa, where the protests first began on 15 March, several thousand protesters gathered, chanting anti-Assad slogans. "The Syrian people will not be subjugated. Go away doctor [Assad]. We will trample on you and your slaughterous regime," they shouted. Unrest was also reported in Raqqa, close to Damascus, Sayda Zeinab, Harasta and Barzeh in Damascus, Tartous, a coastal town, the western port city of Latakia, and the north-eastern towns of Ras al-Ayn, Amouda and al-Hassakeh. The scale and nationwide reach of Friday's protests suggested Assad's concessions, far from defusing popular discontent, may have been seen as a sign of weakness by demonstratorsnow doubly determined to achieve their aim. But there is as yet no clear agreement on what their aims are: accelerated democratic reform, greater economic opportunity, an end to corruption among Syria's wealthy elite, or all-out regime change. In a sign of improving opposition organisation, activists co-ordinating the protests demanded the abolition of the Ba'ath party monopoly on power and the establishment of a democratic system. They did not call for Assad to stand down. In their first joint statement, seen by the Guardian, the self-styled "local co-ordination committees", representing provinces across Syria, said that "freedom and dignity slogans cannot be achieved except through peaceful democratic change". "All prisoners of conscience must be freed. The existing security apparatus has to be dismantled and replaced by one with specific jurisdiction and which operates according to law." On Thursday, Assad signed a decree lifting the emergency law, imposed by his Ba'ath party when it took power in a coup 48 years ago. He also replaced the cabinet and approved new rights of peaceful protest. But other laws still give security forces sweeping powers. But the first application to protest under the new law ended in the temporary detention of the applicant. Fadel al-Faisal from Hassakeh was held for several hours after filing a request to hold a demonstration. Joe Stork of Human Rights Watch said the reforms "will only be meaningful if Syria's security services stop shooting, detaining, and torturing protesters". Syria officials have blamed armed groups, infiltrators and Sunni Muslim militants for provoking violence at demonstrations by firing on civilians and security forces. Earlier, Reem Haddad, spokeswoman for the ministry of information told al Jazeera: "I think if the people protest peacefully, if they cause no harm, if they don't burn or destroy, I think [security forces] will allow them to do so [protest], and I think after a certain time they will actually disperse them, tell them to go home." Asked at what point forces would open fire on protesters, she said: "If they are shot at, which has been the case previously." While calling for an end to the violence and democratic reform, western and other Arab countries have mostly muted their criticism of the killings and repression in Syria for fear of destabilising the country, which plays a strategic role across the Middle East. Katherine Marsh is a pseudonym for a journalist living in Damascus Syria Middle East Protest Katherine Marsh Peter Walker Simon Tisdall guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Cable: AV will end Tory dominance Posted: 22 Apr 2011 04:47 PM PDT Business secretary calls for 'progressive majority' of Lib Dem and Labour voters Vince Cable today calls for a "progressive majority" of Labour and Liberal Democrat voters to join together and say yes to the alternative vote to prevent the next century being like the last one and "dominated by Tory governments". In a marked escalation of Lib Dem language about their coalition partners in the runup to the AV referendum on 5 May, and talking for the first time about the effect a yes vote could have on the next general election, the business secretary explicitly raises the prospect of an anti-Conservative coalition victory in an effort to boost the Yes to AV campaign and shore up Lib Dem support in the local elections. Cable says the moment has come to end the dynamic in which votes for Labour, the Lib Dems and Greens are split. Appealing to Labour voters more clearly than any of his Lib Dem colleagues, he says the "progressive majority" accounts for 50% of the electorate but their votes are shared between the three parties, which has allowed the Tories to win overall majorities on a minority of the vote. If the supporters of all three parties can be persuaded to vote yes in the referendum the next election would be run under AV, and supporters of one party could vote for the others as second and third preferences, the business secretary points out. In his interview, Cable – who hit out in the strongest terms yet against the Tories for attacks on Nick Clegg during the campaign – says: "It's been largely forgotten that Liberal and Labour MPs voted AV through the House of Commons but in 1931 the reform was never completed. Conservative governments have dominated ever since without securing a majority of the popular vote. It's time for the progressive majority in the country to rise above this narrow tribalism and support this reform because we need to make sure the progressive majority wins elections in this century and not the Conservatives as they did, by the back door, for two-thirds of the last century." Cable's intervention marks a hardening of Lib Dem language in the last weekend before the royal wedding, when they fear people will have switched off. During the campaign so far, Lib Dems have refrained from pointing out how their coalition partners would fare in an AV system but the Tories have not held back from charging that their supporters should vote down the reform to punish the Lib Dems, launching personal attacks on Clegg. The intervention comes after a week in which David Cameron hit the road for a no vote and dismissed accusations he had reneged on a deal with the deputy prime minister that he would take a back seat in the debate. Lib Dems have also been struck that Cameron appears to take no responsibility for the attacks on Clegg. He undermined Clegg further by saying he defended the allocation of internship placements to the children of friends and colleagues, undermining one of Clegg's policies for improving social mobility. Cable says he does not believe the prime minister's excuse that the no campaign is independent from him. He says a no campaign leaflet came through his own letterbox encouraging people to punish Clegg for "breaking promises" in government. It is promoted by William Norton, a Tory councillor in Redditch, Worcestershire. "AV leads to broken promises," it reads. "Nick Clegg is unpopular because he broke his promises: job cuts, VAT increase, tuition fees, public spending cuts. That's why he's pushing for AV to save his party." Cable said: "I was surprised and alarmed to see a leaflet from the No to AV campaign put through my door with a brutal personal attack on Nick Clegg for his having loyally supported coalition policies including difficult public spending cuts. The claims that he promised not to embark on tough economic policies are simply false. I find it difficult to reconcile this leaflet attacking coalition economic policy with the fact that Mr Cameron is personally leading the no campaign and the leaflet is produced by a leading Tory donor. He [Cameron] may not directly control what his supporters are up to. But he must make it clear that he doesn't condone and will endeavour to stop personal attacks on his deputy for loyally supporting coalition policy. "To stand by and let this happen is dangerous and puts considerable strain on the coalition. I haven't really reacted to this spat. But that leaflet was absolutely dreadful. It does take it on to a different level." Senior Lib Dems believe a TNS poll published today gives them cause for hope after previous polls have suggested leads for the no campaign of as much as 16%. The new poll found that 34% of people oppose AV but 32% support it. After breaking down voting intention by party, most analysts believe the support of Labour voters – nearly evenly split – will be crucial to whether the change to the voting system goes through. press over the remaining 12 days to Asked if things can be the same again after May, Cable said: "If normal is working in a professional and businesslike way to deliver an agreed agenda then we can, but that doesn't mean ideological alignment or an absence of policy disagreement and I am not into lovey-dovey stuff either." Alternative vote AV referendum Electoral reform Vince Cable Liberal Democrats Labour Conservatives Allegra Stratton guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Misrata strikes back against snipers Posted: 22 Apr 2011 11:50 AM PDT Libya rebels seize tallest buildings, favoured by pro-Gaddafi snipers Rebel fighters in the besieged city of Misrata have won a significant victory by retaking key buildings that had been occupied by Muammar Gaddafi's forces for more than a month. The Tameen office block, the city's tallest building, with a view across Misrata, was captured after bombardment by rebel forces. Numerous snipers were either killed or captured. Several other buildings nearby were also cleared, leaving the rebels in control of the northern end of Tripoli Street, the city's main thoroughfare, which Gaddafi's forces have been desperate to capture. Snipers had caused havoc in the city after they were sent in on 19 March, picking off civilians and rebels at will, as well as firing missiles from the roof of the buildings into civilian areas. On Friday morning, rebel forces were moving freely around the area near the Tameen building, which is littered with abandoned tanks. Firefighters were cleaning the streets. "In this area, all the families had to leave because of the threat of the snipers," said Hadi Tantoun, a journalist and rebel. "Capturing this building was very important." The snipers had been cut off from the rest of Gaddafi's forces for a week or more, unable to receive supplies. Entering the Tameen building through the reception, strewn with debris, it was possible to get a glimpse of how they had been living. Mattresses and blankets indicated that several snipers had been sleeping in the stairwell on the first floor, relatively safe in the centre of the building. Their cooking pots still stood in the atrium area nearby. The once-smart offices on the sides of the building, whose tenants were mostly insurance agents, had been trashed by the snipers, with files on the floor and upturned sofas. In some offices, cabinets had been pushed against windows for protection. Many glass panes had been shattered by rebel fire. "Every night we attacked them with our RPGs [rocket-propelled grenades] and Kalashnikovs," said Abdullah Hafiz, 24, a member of the "City Centre" rebel cell that finally liberated the building. "They killed a lot of civilians." On higher floors there were empty tins of tuna and tomato paste, blankets, mattresses and sandals, and a few discarded green uniforms. According to rebel fighters, the few dozen snipers that still occupied the building this week had changed into civilian clothes before trying to escape down Tripoli Street on Thursday, towards their main base in the vegetable market. A sniper's chair had been placed under a small window, which offered a view down the main street. Dozens of spent bullet shells and cigarette butts littered the floor around the chair. In an office that had belonged to an architect there were graffiti written in green ink-– Gaddafi's colour – in Arabic. It read: "If we survive, we are warning you gays and dogs. We will not forgive anybody from Misrata. We will fuck your daughters and your wives." One of the rebels had already penned a riposte: "Misrata is strong. We will win in the end." On the top floor, several Gaddafi soldiers had been sleeping on dirty mattresses next to the elevator works. A torn photograph of a woman – a wife of one of the snipers perhaps – lay on the floor. On the roof there were thousands of spent bullet shells, and numerous discarded cases of anti-tank missiles that had been fired into the city. Up here the snipers would have had a clear view of the city, and everything that moved down below. They would have seen the destruction in the area nearby – buildings pockmarked by gunfire, featuring gaping holes where shells had struck, blackened by smoke. Glass and tyres and twisted metal on the streets. At the foot of the building lay the body of a sniper, covered with a blanket. It had been burned. One of the rebels said that if Gaddafi's forces could not get their dead back to base, they set them on fire. A few civilians ventured cautiously on to Tripoli Street, which housed some of the city's best coffee shops, several banks and the Italian-built hotel where Mussolini once stayed. A rebel with a loudhailer warned them not to try to enter any of the shops: "This is not your property. Even if it is government property, it is for all the people." He then cleared the area, saying it was still dangerous. The rebels had learned their lesson on Thursday night. After taking over the Tameen building, they dropped their guard while celebrating. Several fighters were killed, prompting scenes of grief at the main hospital, where brothers, fathers and colleagues of the victims wept and swore to avenge them. In a sign that the regime was giving up on Misrata, the Libyan deputy foreign minister, Abdul Ati al-Obeidi, said yesterday that the army may withdraw and let surrounding tribes deal with the rebels. He also said the use of Predator drones – announced by US defence secretary, Robert Gates, on Thursday – would be a crime against humanity. John McCain, the US senator who arrived in Benghazi yesterday to meet rebels, called for increased military support for the opposition, including weapons, training and stepped-up airstrikes, in a full-throated endorsement of the opposition in its fight to oust Gaddafi. A day after the US began flying armed drones to bolster Nato firepower, the top Republican on the Senate armed services committee said the US and other countries should recognise the opposition's political leadership as the "legitimate voice of the Libyan people". The White House disagrees, saying it is for the Libyan people to decide who their leaders are. Libya Middle East Muammar Gaddafi Arab and Middle East unrest Xan Rice guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Coalition attacked over environment Posted: 22 Apr 2011 02:00 PM PDT David Cameron's dramatic promise to lead the greenest ever government has been followed by U-turns and delayed policies Business leaders, investors and campaigners have delivered a thumbs down to the government's record on green issues, less than a year after David Cameron announced his aspiration to lead "the greenest government ever". One investor said the coalition's actions threatened to "choke off the lifeblood of the green economy" and another said he was "bitterly disappointed" by the coalition's performance. Penny Shepherd, chief executive of UKSIF, the UK's leading organisation representing financiers specialising in green investments, warned that the chancellor, George Osborne, had not lived up to his promise of "greening" the Treasury. "Until the Treasury is firmly and visibly behind the low carbon transition, and the shift to a green economy and green financial services, then the rest of government will inevitably struggle," she said. The comments – after a series of U-turns and watered-down or delayed green policies – come as the government braces itself for a report next week from the CBI which is expected to criticise its record on supporting green business. Five years ago this week, Cameron's photogenic husky ride across the snowy Norwegian island of Spitzbergen was intended to give voters a glimpse of a different kind of Tory leader and was part of his strategy of detoxifying the brand. And just three days after forming the coalition he declared that he would be the "fourth minister" at the Department of Energy and Climate Change, adding: "I mean that from the bottom of my heart." In that speech he said that the government would back green industries to drive economic growth, adding that the UK needed to "make sure we have our share of the industries of the future". Now, though, many of the business leaders and investors whom the government is relying on to deliver that growth are becoming increasingly frustrated. Mark Shorrock, founder of Low Carbon Group, which invests in solar, tidal and wind power, said: "The government has been shortsighted on green issues, and is threatening to choke off the lifeblood of the green economy." Green entrepreneurs were also critical. Jeremy Leggett, founder of Solarcentury, said: "I am bitterly disappointed. I was impressed by the promise to be the greenest government ever. The coalition could have created a really convincing narrative of genuine job creation but they have failed to do so." Shepherd said: "One area of particular concern has been the changes to feed-in tariffs [subsidies for renewable energy]. It wasn't the proposal itself, but the sudden revision that sent out the wrong signal – investors need confidence that policy will remain stable." A recent report from respected US thinktank the Pew Environment Group appears to bear out these views. From being third in the world in green investment, the UK has tumbled to 13th place, well behind developing countries such as China, India and Brazil in the race to create green jobs and become a leader in green technology. Last year, only £2bn was invested in alternative energy and clean technology in the UK, compared with £7bn in 2009. Germany spent £26bn and the US £21bn last year. Jonathon Porritt, whose Sustainable Development Commission was axed within months of the coalition coming to power, described government performance on green issues as "really thin". "All the possible good things are in the future. If you have to rely on [the Natural environment] white paper as an example of what is good, that's pretty desperate. What is a white paper - just paper," he said. The coalition's own MPs have also expressed concern on key policies. Tim Yeo, the Conservative former minister and chair of the cross-party environmental audit committee, said: "They are making progress but there is a very long way to go. The changes to feed-in tariffs unsettled investors, undoubtedly. I think David Cameron remains committed, but there is a lot of sucking and seeing to do." But the government strongly rejected the criticism. One Whitehall insider said: "Investors are reacting positively and recognise we're acting for the long term." He pointed to a survey of more than 300 UK clean technology companies, from the government-funded Carbon Trust, that found increasing confidence about their growth prospects, with more than three-quarters looking to recruit in the next 12 months and 37% planning to expand into new export markets in the next two years. Benj Sykes, director of innovations at the Carbon Trust, said: "Our research shows that cleantech innovators are feeling optimistic about their prospects and have ambitious plans for the future. However, access to finance, along with a stable policy environment, will make or break these growth prospects." Bob Wigley, the ex-investment banker and chairman of Yell, who drew up the blueprint for the green investment bank, told the Guardian that even in its watered down form it was a significant achievement: "I think the chancellor deserves credit for finding £3bn during this challenging period of austerity to fund a green investment bank. I guess we all look forward to hearing the detail of its mandate. But assuming the right mandate, funding and governance structure, it could be one of the coalition's really substantive legacies, and another world-leading project that other countries will want to emulate." Renewable UK, the trade body for the wind industry, also said it was "encouraged" by the government's support for offshore wind. "We are hoping that the positive commitments that have been made are followed up with the right level of financial support," a spokesman. His views have been echoed in a series of reports from parliamentary committees, which have criticised the government over the green investment bank, flood defences and air pollution. David Cameron Liberal-Conservative coalition Fiona Harvey Damian Carrington guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

BNP faces meltdown at local polls Posted: 22 Apr 2011 11:54 AM PDT Party to field 450 fewer candidates than in 2007 as leader Nick Griffin comes under pressure over organisation's finances The British National party is facing political meltdown in next month's local elections after a string of defections and growing concern over its finances. Dozens of prominent BNP figures have either been suspended or have resigned and in the past few weeks several former members have announced they are to stand for rival far-right and nationalist organisations. The BNP is standing around 250 candidates in next month's elections, compared with approximately 700 in the equivalent polls in 2007. The turmoil comes as the Electoral Commission announced this week that the party had "failed to comply with the legal requirement to keep adequate financial records" for the second year running, further increasing the pressure on the BNP leader, Nick Griffin, who fought off a leadership challenge last year. "The position of the party is extremely dire," said Professor Matthew Goodwin, from Nottingham University, an expert on far-right politics. "The defections and rebellions are going strong and we have seen a whole host of key figures leave to join other far-right groups … Nick Griffin is becoming increasingly isolated." The BNP says it is focusing on the elections to the Welsh assembly, where it claims it could secure two seats, but anti-Griffin rebels say the BNP should be making more progress in England as cuts bite and economic instability increases. "There is growing anger within the party because there was a period when it looked like Nick Griffin may have been able to force the BNP into the political mainstream," said a spokesman for the anti-racist campaign Hope not Hate. "But it is clear Nick Griffin will himself be the BNP's nemesis. His mismanagement, arrogance and dictatorial leadership have dragged his own party off a political cliff." The BNP's election prospects took a blow earlier this month when it emerged that around 15 former members, including some key figures such as former Yorkshire organiser Chris Beverley, had defected and are standing for the English Democrats in next month's elections. On his blog Beverley said it had been a "huge decision" and blamed the actions of Griffin and his leadership team for the party's problems. Goodwin said: "There are just over 200 BNP candidates but there are 390 far-right candidates in total so what we are seeing quite clearly is that the far right is splintering, not just among one or two parties but among a whole host of groups and factions … it is the classic case of far-right parties in the UK shooting themselves in the foot." Analysts say BNP infighting has allowed other far-right and nationalist groups to come to the fore. Organisations such as the English Defence League, the English Democrats and the British Freedom party are now challenging the BNP, but perhaps its biggest threat is a resurgent UK Independence party, which beat both the Conservatives and Lib Dems to come second in a byelection in Barnsley last month. "The activists that are frustrated with the incompetence of the BNP are going to the EDL or other rightwing factions and many [former voters] are going to Ukip if they want something more respectable," said Goodwin. "The BNP are being outflanked on all sides." Opponents say the defections and wider splits mean the party is struggling to stand candidates in some of its core areas. BNP spokesman Simon Darby dismissed the defections, saying: "People have gone, that is it … but wait and see about that, I think they are going to regret that, just wait and see." He defended Griffin, insisting he was still a popular leader and that it was "a miracle" the party was still operating following what he said was a relentless campaign to undermine it by the media and the state. "I am just pleased we are still here putting up a campaign in seats we may win … we are still in the game and are looking to regroup after all the dust has settled on this election," he said. Griffin has come under growing pressure since the BNP's poor showing in last year's general and council elections, when it lost all but two of the 28 councillors up for re-election and was wiped out in its east London stronghold of Barking and Dagenham. It now has 23 councillors, compared with 54 a year ago, and several senior figures, including election co-ordinator Eddie Butler and London assembly member Richard Barnbrook, have come out against Griffin. The rebels' anger is focused on Griffin's leadership style and concern about the party's debts which were exacerbated this week when the Electoral Commission said the BNP had failed to keep adequate financial records for the second year running. "We have sought an urgent meeting with the party to discuss the steps they need to take to comply with the law," said a spokesman for the commission. The party is reportedly £500,000 in debt although Darby said that the figure was "coming down". "We are making good progress on that, that debt will be serviced," he added. Although a poor showing in next month's elections would increase the pressure on Griffin to stand down, Goodwin said that remains unlikely. "Griffin will hang on because the BNP constitution means it is almost impossible to oust him... [He] is doing the party in, it is not connecting with voters, they are running out of money but he is not going to go anywhere... they truly are a fading star and it is almost entirely because of Griffin's incompetence." BNP The far right UK Independence party (Ukip) English Defence League Local elections Local government Local politics Matthew Taylor guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Eight police injured in riot over Tesco Posted: 22 Apr 2011 05:11 AM PDT More than 160 police raid squat occupied by opponents of new Tesco Metro in Stokes Croft area Police were guarding a severely-damaged Tesco Express store in Bristol as local residents complained that heavy-handed tactics had provoked a night of violent rioting. A tense atmosphere persisted in the Stokes Croft area of the city after a raid on a squat occupied by opponents of the newly opened supermarket outlet left eight police officers and several protesters injured. More than 160 officers in riot gear, reinforcements from neighbouring forces and officers on horseback were involved in the operation, which began shortly after 9pm. Four people have been arrested, Avon and Somerset police said, because they posed "a real threat to the local community" in Stokes Croft. Reports had been received that petrol bombs were being assembled in the squat – known locally as Telepathic Heights – for, it was alleged, an attack on the Tesco store. The force confirmed that petrol bombs had been recovered from the house and were being examined. "There have been several significant incidents in this building during the past few days, which have caused serious concerns to police and local residents," Superintendent Ian Wylie said. "The safety of the public is paramount in a situation of this kind and we took the decision to carry out a robust and swift operation, following intelligence received about the criminal intentions of those who were occupying the building." Officers secured the area on a warm night as locals were heading off to bars and clubs at the start of the Easter holiday. A rumour went round that police were evicting the squatters. Clashes began when lines of officers closed off Cheltenham Road, a main route into the city centre, and protesters began throwing bottles at them. The disturbances continued through the evening to 4am on Friday. At one stage an abandoned Wiltshire police car had its windows smashed and doors ripped off, a scene captured on a YouTube video. The origins of the confrontation lie in objections to the opening of the new Tesco store on Cheltenham Road; the shop was severely damaged in the riot. The area is close to the St Paul's area, where the first Thatcher era, inner-city riots erupted in 1980. Assistant Chief Constable Rod Hansen said: "When 300 people congregated and a small minority from that group started small fires and throwing bottles, stones and other items at officers, we used well-rehearsed plans which involved the use of officers from neighbouring forces to control what had become a volatile situation." None of the injuries are believed to be serious. Kerry McCarthy, the Labour MP for Bristol East, was on the scene later in the evening. The disturbances were just outside her constituency. "It's a very hippyish, counter-culture type of area with lots of arts shops," she said. A Banksy artwork decorates one wall. "One group were laying their bicycles down on the street and most of it seemed fairly good-natured but the police response was heavy-handed. "There were two people playing saxophones on top of a bus shelter and a photographer was taking pictures. A police officer walked across and pushed him over; there was no reason to do it. My colleague Ben Mosley [a Labour council candidate] was hit by a truncheon and I was shoved out of the way by a policeman at one stage. "I had a conversation with the chief constable. It seems the police had received reports that petrol bombs were being carried in and out [of the squat]. "It was anti-establishment protest: against capitalism and corporations, similar to what we saw in the march against the cuts in London where Starbucks and banks were targeted." Duncan Birmingham, an arts lecturer who lives nearby, told the Guardian he had seen lines of police in riot gear. "There were people going to nightclubs, dressed up in party gear, mingling with police horses and police vans from Wales," he said. "One crowd had put rubbish bins across the road and were throwing bottles. "Tesco has been trashed. The windows have been put in and there's paint everywhere. There's been massive opposition to Tesco opening. The store had been hidden behind hoardings until it opened last week. There's another Tesco about half a mile away in each direction." Clare Milne, who lives nearby, said she had not been told why there was a police raid on the squatted building. She said she witnessed from her bedroom window an unprovoked attack on a man walking along the street with a woman. "An officer whacked him around the lower back with a baton." Another witness, Nick Jones, a primary school teacher, said that groups from other parts of Bristol joined in. "It turned into a running battle up and down the street for two hours. Between 2.30am and 4.30am there were bottles thrown and rocks. I saw a police officer get hit in the face and go down – he was taken away in an ambulance. "People had weapons. They had saws and shields themselves. It turned from interesting to scary very quickly." Lewis Clapham, 22, a customer services worker, said: "I wasn't involved in the protest or the squat. I just happened to be down there and I went up to the police and said I was just passing through, but one of them came and hit me really hard with a baton. I've got bruising all down my side now with massive swelling on my elbow." Asked about allegations of officers hitting those not involved in the violence, a spokesman for Avon and Somerset police said: "The whole operation will be reviewed by the force. Each complaint made to the police is thoroughly investigated." Public spaces, Bristol and the riot "Banksy and Massive Attack didn't come out of nowhere – there's a reason why they are from Bristol," says sociologist and Bristolian David Goldblatt. He believes the latest riot is part of a larger history of the public taking over open spaces in the city, which dates back 700 years to the St James's fair. The fair, held on free ground close to Stokes Croft, attracted people from all over Europe but was banned in 1837 after the drinking, gambling, bear baiting and prostitution became too much for the local aldermen. In 1831, three days of rioting erupted in Queen's Square after the House of Lords rejected voting reform and in 1909 suffragette Theresa Garnett attacked Winston Churchill with a riding crop at Bristol Temple Meads station, shouting: "Take that in the name of the insulted women of England!" More recently, riots exploded over racial tensions in the neighbourhood of St Pauls in 1980. Shiv Malik Police Protest Tesco Supermarkets Retail industry Owen Bowcott Shiv Malik guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Florida suspect 'wrongly released' Posted: 22 Apr 2011 11:56 AM PDT Sarasota paper says Florida police failed to attend court hearing – Shawn Tyson was freed hours before James Cooper and James Kouzaris were murdered A Florida judge warned that a teenager was "a danger to the community" and should remain in custody, only for a colleague to free him hours before he is alleged to have shot dead two British tourists in Sarasota. Shawn Tyson of Newtown, Sarasota, was arrested for killing James Cooper, 25, and James Kouzaris, 24, the day after their bodies were found with multiple gunshot wounds on a street in the crime-plagued neighbourhood. But it has emerged that the 16-year-old, who had dropped out of school and is believed to have had a troubled home life, should not have been back on the streets at all after an earlier arrest for gun crime. Detectives failed to appear as ordered at a 15 April hearing into an episode in which Tyson fired a weapon during a fight, and juvenile bench judge Deno Economou – unaware of the concerns of Sarasota's chief judge Lee Haworth at an earlier hearing – released him from jail into the custody of his mother. It was the last in a number of "prosecutorial missteps and a series of communication problems" cited by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune newspaper that led to the fatal confrontation between Tyson and the British friends, who had been enjoying a night out in the early hours of Saturday during a three-week holiday in Florida. Tyson was charged with aggravated assault and remanded as an adult over the earlier incident, which means there is now no chance he can be sent to a juvenile facility to await his formal indictment on the two murder charges in two weeks' time. Detectives are still trying to work out what brought Cooper, of Warwick, and Kouzaris, from Northampton, into an area of town notorious for gang activity at 3am, but are working on several theories, including that they took a wrong turn as they looked for food after leaving a bar, or were ordered there at gunpoint before being robbed and killed. According to the Herald-Tribune, Tyson was first arrested on 7 April for firing a gun into a car at another youth with whom he had been engaged in a feud. A Newtown resident told the paper that Tyson and her brother had fallen out and Tyson waved a revolver at them and threatened to kill them, shortly before firing. "There's continuing potential escalation between these alleged victims and [Tyson will remain in custody] … to help defuse this situation, but particularly because of the danger it presents to the community with a young 16-year-old handling a firearm," Judge Haworth said at Tyson's initial hearing on 8 April. He ordered that detectives appear at the hearing before Judge Economou a week later, but they failed to do so and prosecutors did not pass on Haworth's warning. The Sarasota Police department announced it was no longer talking to reporters, and nobody was available for comment at the Sarasota courthouse, which was closed for the Easter holidays. Meanwhile, the bodies of the Britons are believed to be back in the UK after their release by a coroner. An announcement about funeral arrangements is expected soon. Gun crime Florida Crime United States Richard Luscombe guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Green activists occupy Arctic oil rig Posted: 22 Apr 2011 06:02 AM PDT Environmental groups fear oil industry is not prepared for potentially catastrophic impact of oil spills in the Arctic The fight to stop the global oil industry exploring the pristine deep waters of the Arctic has been dubbed the new cold war, and early on Friday it escalated as environmental activists from 12 countries occupied the world's second largest rig on its way from Turkey to Greenland to drill among the icebergs. The protesters found the 52,000-tonne semi-submersible platform Leiv Eiriksson at around midnight, steaming due west at a stately six knots in the sea of Marmara, heading for the Dardanelle straits and the open Mediterranean. It took four more hours for Greenpeace to bring in its inflatables and a further 50 minutes in the choppy moonlit sea to intercept it. Even from three miles away, the Chinese-built mobile rig, which specialises in drilling in extreme environments, looks huge. From 100ft away in the pale dawn light it is a 15-storey industrial castle, bristling with cranes, derricks, gangways, chains, spars, girders, pipes, helipads and radar. Just 10 years old, it is already rusting and its paintwork is streaked from years of drilling in harsh west African, north Atlantic and Asian waters. The Greenpeace boats approached the vessel cautiously in the three foot swell, like fleas to the backside of an elephant. At exactly 5.31am, the 11 climbers began to leap on to its hull and headed for a ladder. The plan was to stop the vessel in its tracks not by taking over the bridge, but by radioing the captain and asking politely. Fat chance. "This is Greenpeace, this is Greenpeace. I'm informing you that we have put climbers on your rig. I ask you stop your vessel", asked Korol Diker, a Turkish campaigner, on a VHF channel. But the elephant barely registered. "I do not recognise you", came the captain's cutting reply and the Leiv Eiriksson steamed on. Undaunted, the climbers made it to a gangway 80ft over the vessel's starboard stern. As four crewmen peered over the side from 30ft above them, and two more ambled over, seemingly unconcerned, the climbers made a cat's cradle of rope to hang banners and a tent from. You can understand why the captain did not want to stop. The Scottish oil company Cairn Energy has hired the Leiv Eiriksson for around $500,000 a day and the company, run by Sir Bill Gammell, the former international rugby player, plans to spend more than $500m (£300m) in the next few months looking for oil in some of the most dangerous and coldest waters in the world. Any major delay could cost it millions and set back its plans for the Arctic by a year, because drilling is only possible in the July-October "summer window" when the ice has retreated. Cairn, which will be the only company to drill deep wells offshore in the Arctic this year, holds 11 licences in Baffin Bay covering over 80,000 square kilometres. It plans to drill four exploratory wells to depths of around 5,000ft, the deepest ever attempted in the Arctic. It is taking the Leiv Eiriksson and the Ocean Rig Corcovado – a drill ship now stationed near Aberdeen – as well as a fleet of backup vessels. Last year the company claimed it had discovered a "working hydrocarbon system" or possible signs of oil in Baffin Bay after drilling several 300ft wells. But it later said that the oil was not present in recoverable quantities. Cairn Energy said in a statement: "Wherever it is active, Cairn seeks to operate in a safe and prudent manner. The Greenlandic Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum has established some of the most stringent operating regulations anywhere globally, which mirror those applied in the Norwegian North Sea. Cairn respects the rights of individuals and organisations to express their views in a safe manner." But the Arctic venture, say environmentalists, is just the start of what is planned to be a risky offshore oil rush. Shell, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and others have licences to explore in Baffin Bay, mostly above the Arctic circle. Others, including BP and Rosneft, plan to extract oil offshore from Siberia, Alaska and elsewhere in the Arctic. The US government estimates there are 90bn barrels of oil, around 13% of the world's undiscovered reserves. But for Greenpeace and others the risk of a devastating spill is too great, raising the spectre of the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska in 1989 when more than 1m barrels of oil were spilt, and the $40bn disaster in the Gulf of Mexico last year. "Any Arctic spill would be very difficult, if not impossible, to contain and clean up. The company has not released a detailed spill response plan for the Arctic waters. Its latest environmental impact assessment says it has not been possible to model oil behaviour on ice. Failing to consider the impact of ice on a potential Arctic oil spill renders the EIA [environmental impact assessment] unfit for purpose," said Greenpeace campaigner Ben Ayliffe.Other leading environment groups, including the respected US thinktank Pew, plus NGOs Oceana and WWF, have all said that the oil industry is not prepared for a major pollution incident. "This is the most controversial rig in the world because it is the only one destined to begin risky offshore drilling in the very deep waters of the Arctic this year. We have stopped it because it's blazing a trail for other major oil companies and sparking the start of a dangerous new Arctic oil rush." Cairn says it has prepared comprehensive oil spill plans, and has put up a bond of $2bn. Activists are now expected to dog the progress of the slow-moving Leiv Eiriksson as it passes Greece, Italy, France and Spain on its passage through the Mediterranean and into the Atlantic. It is scheduled to stop in Britain to pick up supplies before the last leg of its journey to Greenland in June. Twelve hours after boarding the Leiv Eiriksson, the 11 activists who had occupied a gangway 80 ft above the water were forced down by a gale as the vessel entered Greek waters. No arrests were made. Oil Energy Oil spills Fossil fuels Oil Greenpeace Activism Arctic Cairn Energy Energy industry Royal Dutch Shell Exxon Mobil Chevron BP John Vidal guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Japan suffering leaves pope stumped Posted: 22 Apr 2011 09:33 AM PDT The pope answers questions on Italian TV, but cannot explain the devastation caused by the tsunami Pope Benedict ventured where no pope has gone before on Friday when he answered questions on an Italian television programme – and was stumped by the first. A Japanese girl asked the pope, who, she said, "speaks with God", why she was having to suffer so much as a result of the earthquake and tsunami that had struck her country. "I am very frightened because the house where I felt safe really shook a lot and many children my age have died. I cannot go to play in the park. I want to know: why do I have to be so afraid? Why do children have to be so sad?" said seven-year-old Elena. Benedict admitted: "I also have the same questions: why is it this way? Why do you have to suffer so much while others live in ease? "And we do not have the answers, but we know that Jesus suffered as you do, an innocent, and that the true God who is revealed in Jesus is by your side." Whether Elena was satisfied with that answer was unclear. But the studio audience gave the pope a hearty round of applause. The Japanese girl's question was one of seven fielded by Benedict in an unprecedented exercise. His predecessor, John Paul II, once made a surprise call to a television programme on the 20th anniversary of his papacy. And Benedict himself broke new ground with a Thought for the Day broadcast by BBC Radio 4 last Christmas Eve. But no pope has ever before submitted himself to questioning on television, or indeed radio, in the way Benedict did for a special Good Friday programme on the first channel of the state-owned RAI network. The presenter, Rosario Carello, initially addressed the pope as "holy father" and told him his presence on the programme "fills us with joy". But thereafter, the reverential tone Italian broadcasters usually employ for papal occasions was wholly lacking. The atmosphere was briskly professional as the show cut between the pope's answers – pre-recorded in his study in the Vatican – and comments from a panel of three studio guests who also replied to other questions from viewers. The pope's fellow guests added to the air of informality: one was a poet and columnist in an open-necked shirt; another, the founder of a charity for young runaways who sported a leather jacket and spiky hair. The usually retiring Benedict's participation was the latest sign of an apparently growing willingness to co-operate with the media. Carello told viewers the pope had initially agreed to answer only three questions, but so many were submitted that the programme-makers asked – and Benedict agreed – that the number be doubled. Then, he said, they received a question from a Muslim woman in the Ivory Coast that was so topical and moving that they were loth not to include it. So the number was raised to seven. Bintu, who greeted the pope in Arabic, asked him for his advice on how to put an end to the violence in her country. Benedict said he was "saddened that I can do so little", but said he had asked a senior Vatican official to try to mediate. Most of the other questions were about issues of Catholic faith, including one from an Italian woman who wanted to know if her son, who had been in a vegetative coma for two years, still had a soul. "Certainly," the pope replied. He urged her to keep up her vigil at his side, saying that her "presence enters into the depths of that hidden soul". Pope Benedict XVI Italy Japan disaster Television Japan Religion Catholicism Christianity Europe John Hooper guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Senator John Ensign to resign Posted: 22 Apr 2011 10:34 AM PDT John Ensign's decision to resign means he will avoid awkward questions about pay-off that followed festering sex scandal The life-cycle of the modern political scandal can be sketched in the recent career of John Ensign, the Republican senator from Nevada who abruptly announced that he was resigning. When he was first found to have been having an affair with the wife of his office's chief of staff, Ensign's response two years ago was to fight on as senator. Then as more details emerged and accusations multiplied, including the payment of $96,000 by Ensign's parents to the former staff member, the Senate Ethics Committee launched the latest in a long line of investigations last month. Shortly afterwards, Ensign announced that he wouldn't be running for re-election in 2012. The final act came on Thursday, when Ensign bowed to the inevitable by issuing a statement saying that he was stepping down on 3 May – one day before he was due to be questioned under oath about the $96,000 payment. "Senator Ensign has made the appropriate decision," the Senate Ethics Committee said in a terse statement [pdf]. With Nevada a volatile swing state, Ensign's early departure slightly improves the chances of the Republican party retaining the seat in the 2012 election. Nevada's Republican governor is certain to appoint congressman Dean Heller, the leading Republican candidate for the seat, to serve as senator of the remainder of Ensign's term, thus making Heller the incumbent. The Democratic opposition to Heller in 2012 is expected to be representative Shelley Berkley, a highly competitive candidate. In his mawkish yet combative statement, Ensign still maintains that he did nothing wrong: While I stand behind my firm belief that I have not violated any law, rule, or standard of conduct of the Senate, and I have fought to prove this publicly, I will not continue to subject my family, my constituents, or the Senate to any further rounds of investigation, depositions, drawn out proceedings, or especially public hearings. For my family and me, this continued personal cost is simply too great. Ensign noted in his defence that "both the Department of Justice and the Federal Election Commission saw no grounds on which to charge me with improper conduct". Ensign's resignation means the Senate Ethics Committee's 22-month-long investigation will be terminated. The resignation may be good news for Tea Party hero Sharron Angle. With Dean Heller taking Ensign's US Senate seat, Angle can run in the special election for Heller's congressional district, only months after her disastrous and hugely expensive loss to Democratic majority leader Harry Reid in the election for Nevada's other senate seat. Nevada Republicans US Congress US elections 2012 United States Richard Adams guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Jerusalem wins praise on Broadway Posted: 22 Apr 2011 02:07 PM PDT Jez Butterworth's play, set in Wiltshire woodland and rooted in rural Englishness, is likely to become a smash hit in America Hang out the red-cross flags, round up the morris dancers: a play so rooted in rural Englishness that some feared it might need subtitles even for Londoners looks likely to be a smash hit on Broadway. Jez Butterworth's Jerusalem, a transfer of the Royal Court production, has received a rave review in the New York Times which reads like a publicist's dream. Although the newspaper's reviews are seen as deal-breakers for Broadway, its write-up has proved only part of a roar of critical acclaim for the show. Entertainment Weekly said "Jerusalem triggers goosebumps", and New York Time Out wrote: "Anyone who cares about thrilling, world-class theatre must see Jerusalem." Audience members were equally overwhelmed; tweets about the show include: "Go worship at the feet of Mr. Rylance. Run don't walk"; "Mark Rylance in Jerusalem is probably the best stage performance I have ever witnessed"; "grand scale theater, mark rylance a force of nature"; and "a thrilling, mind-blowing, gorgeous reminder of why theatre rocks harder than anything else". Dominic Cooke, artistic director of the Royal Court, was overwhelmed at the news. "We could never have predicted when Jerusalem opened in 2009 that it would go on such an incredible journey, from the Royal Court to the West End to Broadway," he said. "Jez's play has captured people's hearts, and we are just thrilled for … the whole Jerusalem team that it has translated to Broadway so well." The play, with echoes of Shakespeare's greenwood comedies, where social norms are ripped to shreds, is set in a Wiltshire woodland where Johnny "Rooster" Byron, a swaggering, mesmerising and thoroughly unreliable dropout holds a druggy, drink-sodden and anarchic court. A Prince Hal for outcasts and Glastonbury new agers, well beyond the fringes of Middle England decencies, he defiantly claims his share of Englishness. Although the Royal Court production proved a sellout hit in London – Michael Billington called it "a perfectly judged production" in his Guardian review – and swept up awards by the armful, many worried that the play, set on St George's Day, might prove baffling to an American audience. It would be a foreign-language play even in Berkshire: "I leave Wiltshire, my ears pop", as one of the characters remarks. Billed as "a comic contemporary vision of rural life in England's green and pleasant land", the transfer to Broadway's Music Box, with half the original cast (including Mark Rylance as Rooster and Mackenzie Crook as his sidekick), looks likely to be the hit of the season, in a run currently due to end in July. In his New York Times review of Jerusalem – headed "This Blessed Plot, This Trailer, This England" – Ben Brantley, who also gave the play a rave review when it opened in London, admitted he had had doubts about the transfer. "I was apprehensive about the show on Broadway. Jerusalem, you see, is partly a state-of-the-nation play, the nation being Britain. And the mind-set of its characters is definitely British provincial, or as provincial as the age of television and the internet allows. Yet the New York production – which retains half its original British cast and has been revised for clarity of cultural references – turns out to be rousingly accessible on these shores." Butterworth, whose earlier play Parlour Song was also a New York hit in 2008, credited his reincarnation as a Somerset pig farmer as the inspiration for his recent string of hit plays. He told Mark Lawson: "I think the problem was that, when I lived in London, I was just too distracted. Looking back, I spent a lot of time sitting in pubs when I should have been perfecting my playwriting." British hits on Broadway War Horse: The National Theatre's award-winning adaptation of Michael Morpurgo's children's novel opened a fortnight ago on Broadway to rave reviews. Billy Elliot: The movie about a boy who yearns to dance, set against the backdrop of the 1984 miners' strike, was an even bigger hit as a stage musical, and is still selling out on Broadway after three years. Frost/Nixon: Peter Morgan's 2006 play based on David Frost's interviews with Richard Nixon, originally a London hit at the tiny Donmar Warehouse, was a success on Broadway and then a hit movie. Cats: The musical with no human characters by Andrew Lloyd Webber was the fourth longest running West End musical, from 1981 to 2002, and the second longest Broadway show, from 1982 to 2000. ... and British misses on Broadway Enron: Lucy Prebbles's bitter satire on American capitalism, a major hit for the Royal Court in London, closed after two weeks on Broadway last year. Bombay Dreams: Andrew Lloyd Webber's 2004 Bollywood musical lasted two years in London but only eight months on Broadway despite major rewrites. Chess: The 1986 musical about cold war politics played out in international tournaments, with music by Abba, ran for three years in London but just 37 performances on Broadway. Carrie: A bizarre 1988 RSC musical based on the Stephen King novel and movie had mixed reviews at Stratford-upon-Avon and survived for just five shows after the Broadway reviews. Broadway New York Theatre United States Maev Kennedy guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

A wedding send-off fit for a queen Posted: 22 Apr 2011 04:04 PM PDT Not marrying a future monarch? Then how about a hen party in the woods that's less camp and more camping Kate Middleton apparently had a very low-key hen party – just a quiet evening at home with a few friends. I'm getting married in June and had hoped I would be able to sidestep the event entirely. I'm not a fan of anything that might involve fancy dress. But somehow I found myself agreeing to test out Babes in the Woods, a new venture for hens that offers "Champagne camping with a touch of the wild!", despite the fact I also dislike camping (too much work), organised fun – and exclamation marks. I suspect it was the promise of expensive alcohol, and the fact I could bring five unwitting friends. Things don't start well. One of the girls turned 30 the day before and there has been a blurry evening of tequila in Soho, some very muddled late-night packing and a nauseating minicab ride to Paddington at the crack of dawn. Babes in the Woods is based in south Devon, just north of Dartmouth, and a three-hour train journey from London. The area is a countryside cliche – gently rolling hills dotted with newborn lambs, shady woodlands filled with bluebells – and, it turns out, a far better cure for a hangover than a sofa and a DVD box set. We are met by Hetti Dysch, the founder of BITW and a great one for bushcraft – which is a key element of the weekend. She quickly runs through some of the activities she and her partner, Pip Griffin, have planned for us – fire making, basket weaving. Before we can jump back into our taxi, she dumps our bags into a pick-up truck and takes us on a leisurely stroll towards the camp, with a lesson in foraging as we go. NB: primrose petals do not taste anywhere near as nice as they look. On the way we are told there are no showers, running water or electricity, which feels problematic until we get to the site, which is beautifully tucked away in a small patch of private woodland. Our sleeping quarters are comfy-looking camp beds inside a bell tent, our dining area is a large wooden bench in the middle of a clearing, and another bell tent contains an antique nightstand with mirror, china wash bowl and jugs of hot and cold water. A wood-fired sauna should be up and running by the beginning of May. The setup is charmingly rustic, and so it feels fitting that we have to pee in the bushes and use a compostable toilet for other matters. Well, fitting-ish. Despite a blackboard that has a timetable chalked on it (shelter building 3-5pm, champagne reception 7pm), Hetti and Pip make it clear that nothing should feel regimented. They are immediately likeable, keen to engage with us, but also good at leaving us to our own devices. The weekend has been carefully thought out – the activities are kept short, and everything is broken up with meals. We start with a lunch of nettle soup (who knew those stingers could be so tasty?), wild mushroom risotto, rainbow salad and several bottles of champagne. It is clear that we're going to be well fed. And drunk, which seems the best way to tackle shelter making and is perhaps why we enjoy the afternoon activity so much, though I suspect there is also a pleasure in feeling some sort of connection to nature. The nearest any of us usually gets to that is watching grubby mice scurrying along tube tracks. We are surprisingly efficient at constructing something that withstands rain (I am forced to sit inside it while my friends throw water at me), though aesthetically it does look more like a serial killer's lair than a Ray Mears survival shelter. As evening sets in, we drink more champagne, eat more food (chicken and new potatoes, followed by trifle), laugh at a lot of dirty jokes (I am convinced that six girls together descend far more quickly into toilet humour than six boys, or maybe we're just very immature), and then the storytellers arrive. Now, if I had been asked before I went away whether I wanted someone reciting Sir Gawain and the Green Knight with accompanying songs on a guitar, I think it's safe to say I would have declined. But here, there are times when it feels quite magical – a big crackling bonfire, pitch-black woods, so far away from anything we would normally be doing on a Saturday night – and times, as we try not to collapse into giggles, when it's excruciating. Fortunately our storytellers, Nick and Ollie, seem to feel the same way, and their laughter rescues it from being horribly awkward. We spend the next morning each having a massage to the sound of birds and bleating sheep, and learning that Vaseline is a good fire-starter. There are complaints of being cold in the night, and while Hetti and Pip say they are going to invest in some thick blankets, it's probably advisable to bring thermals and a warm hat. Or a lot of cider, which worked for me. We finish the weekend with scones and clotted cream served on vintage tea sets. The package isn't cheap – the least expensive option is £195 and that doesn't include a massage or entertainment . Plus you have to provide most of your own booze, which along with the train tickets does push up the price. But there was something very special, and very funny, about the experience. Usually when you meet up with your mates, it's in a crowded restaurant or noisy pub, and the memories have been erased the next morning by the vodka shots from the night before. But I don't think any of us will forget the sound of our friend screaming as she discovered a slug on her loo paper, after she had used it. Brilliant. • Babes in the Woods packages start with the White Willow, at £195 per person, which is suitable for groups of between eight and 20 hens, and includes all activities and meals, as well as the all-important camping for one night. Stays can be extended to two nights at a supplement of £35pp. A free "hen" place is offered per group booking of 12 and over confirmed before 31 October 2011. Babes in the Woods is operational between 1 March and 31 October. For more information visit babesinthewoods.co.uk. To book, call 020-7193 8633 or 07850 401759. Group trips United Kingdom Short breaks Weddings Royal wedding Monarchy Nicole Jackson guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Crucifixion rite: 24 nailed to crosses Posted: 22 Apr 2011 12:29 PM PDT • Tourists throng streets to see 'nailings' • Catholic church rejects practice of self harm At least 24 Filipinos were nailed to crosses to re-enact Jesus Christ's suffering in a Good Friday rite rejected by Catholic church leaders but witnessed by throngs of believers and thousands of tourists. Ruben Enaje, a 50-year-old sign painter, screamed in pain as villagers dressed as Roman centurions hammered four-inch stainless steel nails through his palms and set him aloft on a cross under a brutal sun in San Pedro Cutud in Pampanga. It was Enaje's 25th crucifixion. He says surviving nearly unscathed when he fell from a three-story building in 1985 prompted him to observe the rite. "Not a bone in my body was broken when I fell from that building," Enaje said. "It was a miracle." Ahead of the cross nailings, throngs of penitents walked several miles through village streets and beat their bare backs with sharp bamboo sticks and pieces of wood, sometimes splashing spectators with blood. Some participants opened cuts in the penitents' backs using broken glass to ensure the ritual was sufficiently bloody. The gory spectacle reflects Philippines' unique brand of Catholicism, which merges church traditions with folk superstitions. Many of the mostly impoverished penitents undergo the ritual to atone for sins, pray for the sick or a better life and give thanks for what they believe were God-given miracles. The most number of crucifixions were staged beside a rice field in San Pedro Cutud, where 15 men were nailed to crosses, three at a time on a dusty mound as more than 30,000 people, including touristswatched and took pictures. An ambulance stood by and more than 20 tourists fainted or became dizzy in the heat, officials said. Foreigners have been banned from taking part after an Australian comic was nailed to a cross under a false name a few years ago near Pampanga. Authorities also believe that a Japanese man sought to be crucified as part of a porn film in 1996, tourism officer Ching Pangilinan said. "They made a mockery of a local tradition." Church leaders in the Philippines, Asia's largest predominantly Roman Catholic nation, have frowned on the Easter week rituals, saying Filipinos can show their deep faith without hurting themselves. Archbishop Angel Lagdameo said crucifixions and self-flagellations are an "imperfect imitation with doubtful theological and social significance." Pampanga Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said the bloody rites reflect the church's failure to educate Filipinos about Christian tenets. Christianity Philippines Religion guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Memoirists who 'embellish' Posted: 22 Apr 2011 06:35 AM PDT Accusations against Greg Mortenson highlight how many authors in the genre take a relaxed approach to accuracy The carcass of Greg Mortenson's memoir Three Cups of Tea is being picked over in public as the Pakistani tribesmen he claims kidnapped him prepare to sue him and his publisher, Viking, "carefully review[s] the materials with the author". But Mortenson is far from the first memoirist to fall from grace. From Surviving with Wolves by Misha Defonseca, who admitted in 2008 that her bestselling tale of living with a pack of wolves as she fled the Nazis was nothing more than a tale, to James Frey, who confessed under fire that his hit memoir, A Million Little Pieces, contained embellishments, readers these days would be forgiven for beginning to question the veracity of every memoir they read. "We don't fact-check with memoirs, unless there are elements which could be libellous or damaging to other people," admits Roland Philipps, managing director of John Murray, which publishes Frey. "A memoir is a different beast to an autobiography, which is a factual account, but a memoir is a literary form, in which some parts will be played up or down because it's much more internal, how it felt to the author." But a publisher has to be able, he says, "to trust the author to have a central truth". Literary agent Luigi Bonomi of LBA agrees. "Apart from some basic fact checking, publishers absolutely have to rely on authors telling the truth – particularly if it's a personal narrative, the veracity of which is only known to the author." "There is a publishing assumption that authors warrant they have not plagiarised nor made facts up that are purporting to be facts," says his fellow agent Jonny Geller, who will work to verify stories himself before he sells them as much as possible. "However, we expect fact verifications to be done by the publishers. In reality, this is rarely done. Publishers are willing to spend time and money on libel readings, but I have never had an editor question the premise or individual fact on a non-fiction book." Author Andrew Crofts, who has ghost-written a host of memoirs, believes it's better this way. "It is my experience that British publishers don't tend to check facts in these sorts of emotion-based stories unless (a) there is something that doesn't ring true, or (b) there is a danger of libel," says Crofts. "I am very happy with (a). I tend to like books to be a matter of intuition, colour, emotional power and strong passions. I'm not a great fan of too many 'facts' in a narrative." But with an increasing number of memoirs being discredited – as well as Frey and Defonseca, recent years have seen Kathy O'Beirne exposed for making up parts of her misery memoir, Don't Ever Tell; Herman Rosenblat found to have lied about his romantic experiences during the Holocaust in Angel at the Fence: the True Story of a Love That Survived; and Margaret B Jones inventing a poverty-stricken, drug-ridden childhood in her memoir In Love and Consequences – isn't there a danger the public is going to stop believing in the genre as a whole? Not necessarily: bad news, when it comes to books, can often be good news. Sales of A Million Little Pieces jumped from around 400-500 to around 1,500 copies a week in the UK in the first few months of 2006 when it was revealed that sections were made up, says the Bookseller's charts editor, Philip Stone, while in January 2007, following the Celebrity Big Brother racism row, sales of the late Jade Goody's memoir jumped 71% week on week. "In 2006, overall sales of memoirs were up 12% on 2005, so I don't think that sales of memoirs in general were affected by the fact it was revealed Frey (and perhaps others) embellished, mis-recollected, or all-out lied about certain events," says Stone. It's all a question of degree, believes Philipps. "People respond to James Frey saying 'I don't care which bits you exaggerated or made up, it's still a beautiful book' – they're responding to it as a piece of literature. "In the case of Three Cups of Tea, they are responding more to his external experiences and [the current situation] is potentially damaging for certain books [of that type] – the memoirs of people in extreme situations in extreme places." Stone agrees. "I fully believe that sales of Three Cups of Tea will immediately have gone up following the column inches it has been getting, but [if the rumours are proven to be true] there may well be some much longer-term sales damage to the sort of humanitarian memoir genre in which Three Cups of Tea sits," he says. "The UK public are very sceptical, and some book buyers may well think twice in the future before buying a similar title – especially Three Cups of Tea readers (of which there are many – about 3.5 million in the US, and 130,000 in the UK) who may feel they've been let down." Publishing Alison Flood guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

The Tea Party and Ayn Rand Posted: 22 Apr 2011 07:10 AM PDT Ayn Rand is a cult figure for Tea Party types, but if a bad movie gets them reading, they may be surprised by her ideas If Ayn Rand were alive today, would she be a member of the Tea Party? The controversial writer – whose philosophy, Objectivism, advocates the "virtue of selfishness" – has long been something of a literary hero to American conservatives and the rise of the rightwing populist movement has only worked to increase Rand's popularity. Tea Party members can't get enough: references to the writer's works appear on their protest signs; political favourites such as Rand Paul namedrop her; and they seem staunchly devoted to promoting the first instalment of the three-part film adaptation of her epic tome, Atlas Shrugged, which opened modestly, if not quietly, last weekend in around 300 theatres across the US. The conservative grassroots group Freedomworks took the helm in promoting the film, sharing the online trailer with its mailing list and hyping the movie's opening day – 15 April, America's tax day. The low-budget movie with its cast of nobodies received resolutely scathing reviews – it garnered a dismal 7% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes – yet, through conservative support, it still managed to pull in enough revenue to justify expanding the film to more screens. By the end of April, Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 could be on as many as 1,000 screens. Despite the buzz, rigorous devotees of Objectivism aren't likely to appreciate Atlas's big screen treatment. For the uninitiated, Atlas Shrugged depicts a dystopian US where irrational government officials work with greedy socialist corporate heads to impose draconian regulations and taxes on those who have achieved success through hard work and natural talent. The novel's heroine is Dagny Taggart, an ambitious railroad executive, who teams up with Henry Rearden, an innovative metal manufacturer, to set out to save the country from being crushed by the collectivist government. Along the way, they partake in rambling diatribes about the glory of achievement and the nobility of pursuing greatness. It's rousing stuff – the first time, anyway – until it's belabored again and again throughout the novel. Sound familiar? The sections of the book that made it into Part 1 certainly seem written directly for current conservative interests, namely that a small section of the population must fight against the oppressive restrictions and heavy taxation of a socialist government. Yet, probe beyond the triteness of Rand's plot and the fragmented rendering of her philosophy, and striking discrepancies between her Objectivism and conservative sentiment become apparent. Yes, Rand was a staunch advocate of capitalism and limited government. She was also a staunch advocate of abortion rights and sexual hedonism, and an atheist to boot, which her conservative admirers have largely ignored. Rand and her characters maintained that morality wasn't something that could be imposed by outside institutions, rather should be a consequence from individuals acting in their own rational self-interest. Which, obviously, steps way out of line with the thinking of the Tea Party, which encompasses the religious right . As Jennifer Burns, the author of Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right, has said, today's conservative pundits have found that they "can use the parts of Rand they want to use and not engage the rest". Which is where one of the most glaring incongruities between Tea Partiers and Rand's philosophy appears: Rand, almost above all else, championed the individual over the collective. The notion that a populist movement is using her name and economic philosophies to mobilise their broader political goal is laughable. During her life, Rand was outspoken in her disgust for Republicans, feeling that they were soft on individuals' rights. Today, it is only Randians who can argue that her philosophy is being inadequately promoted. However, there is a silver lining for Rand purists: while the movie's publicity has managed to stir up paltry interest among cinema-goers, it has succeeded in awakening a larger interest in the literary work. Rand's novel has sold around 100,000 copies a year in the US since its publication, and since the financial crisis and the rise of the Tea Party, that number has increased five-fold. The movie's publicity has only propelled sales yet higher – the opening weekend saw the book version of Atlas Shrugged shoot to the No 4 spot on Amazon's bestseller list. So, while the Tea Party's promotion of Rand has made a splash, Objectivists can take comfort knowing that the impact has largely been on book sales. If one has to delve into Randian territory, it's better to go straight to the master's words rather than a choice interpretation of them or convenient soundbites. Tea Party movement Republicans US politics United States Philosophy Megan Gibson guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Manning protesters serenade Obama Posted: 22 Apr 2011 08:08 AM PDT Supporters of Bradley Manning interrupt Barack Obama to sing a song of protest over the WikiLeaks suspect's treatment Barack Obama received an unusual protest in an unlikely location, when a group of supporters of Bradley Manning – the soldiers suspected of leaking classified documents to WikiLeaks – interrupted a $5,000-a-head fund raising event with a song protesting Manning's treatment. Obama was speaking to donors at a private event in San Francisco on Thursday morning when a group of 21 led by Naomi Pitcairn – a member of the satirical action Fresh Juice Party – started singing a song about Manning's plight, and asking Obama: "We paid our dues, where's our change?" "That was a very nice song," Obama is heard replying when the singing ends. "Thank you. we worked hard on it," one of the protesters responds. "You have much better voices than I have," says Obama, "Thank you very much guys." "Thank you for listening, we love you," says another protester politely. "I appreciate that," says Obama. "Now, where was I?" Around 200 Democratic donors were at the breakfast held at the St Regis Hotel in San Francisco. The other attendees appear to have listened politely – this being San Francisco, the liberal stronghold of America, they may have even sympathised – while the protesters held up small "Free Bradley Manning" signs. The Bay Citizen news site reported: [Naomi] Pitcairn paid for $76,000 of the $105,000 activists spent on tickets to the fundraiser. After several minutes of song, the Secret Service escorted her from the event, questioned and then released her. Jeff Patterson, project director of Courage to Resist, an activist group that took part in the protest, said that Pitcairn "describes herself as a trust-fund brat/artist." After Obama had finished speaking, Logan Price, a member of the Bradley Manning Support Network, engaged the president for several minutes in debate over Manning's charges and the effect of WikiLeaks. "I can't conduct diplomacy on open source, that's not how the world works," Obama can be heard telling Price on video. Here are the lyrics: Dear Mr President we honour you today, Each of us brought you $5,000 It takes a lot of Benjamins* to run a campaign I paid my dues, where's our change? We'll vote for you in 2012, yes that's true, Look at the Republicans - what else can we do? Even though we don't know if we'll retain our liberties, In what you seem content to call a free society. Yes it's true that Terry Jones is legally free, To burn a people's holy book in shameful effigy. But at another location in this country, Alone in a six by 12 cell sits Bradley. Twenty-three hours a day and night, The fifth and eighth amendments say, This kind of thing ain't right. We paid our dues, where's our change? *For non-US readers: a Benjamin is slang for a US $100 note, which bears a portrait of Benjamin Franklin. Bradley Manning Barack Obama WikiLeaks US constitution and civil liberties Human rights United States Richard Adams guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

2012 Olympic tickets in high demand Posted: 22 Apr 2011 12:00 PM PDT Organisers say fears over the ticketing process have not been borne out London 2012 organisers say demand for tickets is high before Tuesday's deadline for applications, although they will not reveal whether the 80% sales target has been met. "We genuinely don't know until we've got all the final data in," said Paul Williamson, Locog's director of ticketing. "We've always said that people who apply on day one should have the same chance as the people who apply on the last day so we want to make sure it's a level playing field for everyone." He confirmed that figures would be released once the applications had been processed. He believes the marketing campaign of the last seven days has resulted in a surge of interest. "We're confident that we're on target. We've had hundreds of thousands of orders come in. We've seen a real lift in applications in the last 48 hours and we expect that to follow through to Tuesday." Williamson said fears over the ticketing process had not been borne out. "We've got the world's most complicated sports event – 650 sessions, 26 sports, 17 days at 35 venues. We've tried to simplify it as much as we can." Tessa Jowell, shadow minister for the Olympics, and Neale Coleman, Boris Johnson's adviser on London 2012, agree that application numbers have been high. "As far as I'm aware it's going really well," said Jowell. "I spoke to Locog just as week ago and I've got no reason to believe that there is any problem." For those buying the tickets the biggest complaint seems to be the pricing and lack of transparency over exactly what each price bracket buys. Jack Miller, vice-president of the British Athletics Supporters Club, said the process compared favourably with the Commonwealth Games in Manchester in 2002. However, he criticised the system for not showing customers what kind of view they can expect – fearing a repeat of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics for he bought an expensive ticket with a terrible view. "I got a grade A ticket for the 100m final in Atlanta ... but it turned out to be located around the 200m start line, which was utterly useless for watching the 100m. I felt robbed. I think that we would very much like to have known the layout of the 2012 stadium and where the different price category tickets begin and end." Olympic Games 2012 London Anna Kessel guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Buy-to-let bounces back Posted: 22 Apr 2011 04:01 PM PDT With rents on the rise mortgage lenders see landlords as a better bet than first-time buyers. Patrick Collinson asks if a worrying bubble is being created in a resurgent market Britain's lenders are turning their backs on first-time buyers and other traditional borrowers, and granting mortgages to landlords instead amid signs of a new buy-to-let bubble. Northern Rock this week joined an expanding list of lenders, including a Lloyds Banking Group subsidiary, pushing out new buy-to-let loans on better terms, while Santander is also preparing to enter the market. In an extraordinary admission, Nationwide – one of the biggest mortgage lenders – says it would rather give mortgages to landlords than first-time buyers. Matthew Wyles, the society's "distribution director", told an industry debate hosted by HSBC: "As a lender, we would rather lend 75% LTV [loan-to-value] on a buy-to-let mortgage to an experienced buy-to-let investor, than to a first-time buyer at 95% LTV." Figures from the data provider Moneyfacts show that the number of buy-to-let loans available to landlords has doubled over the past year, with the pace of new launches accelerating in recent weeks. According to its research, there are 434 different buy-to-let loan offers currently available, compared with 215 at the start of 2010 and 330 just a month ago. Behind the dash back into buy-to-let is the rise in rents in a market fuelled by frustrated first-time buyers who can't find the finance for a home of their own. This week, LSL Property Services, Britain's biggest network of letting agents, said that rents were "powering ahead" in many parts of the country, especially London. David Newnes of LSL, which owns Your Move and Reeds Rains, says: "Landlords are seeing demand for their properties go from strength to strength. First-time buyers simply can't afford the average £25,000 deposit required and, as a result, most are remaining in rented accommodation for nearly a decade. "The growing demand continues to outstrip supply, and this is pushing rents upwards beyond the rate of inflation, and well above wage rises." Big lenders are also easing constraints that were put on borrowing during the credit crunch. According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), £3bn worth of loans were granted to landlords in the last quarter of 2010 – substantially below the peak levels of 2006 and 2007, but up 42% over the year. The CML added that the average loan ceiling for investors – the maximum amount an individual landlord can borrow from a single lender – has risen from £2m to £2.5m over the past year. Separately, maximum LTVs on buy-to-let mortgages have edged up in recent months towards 85%. State-owned Northern Rock, which this week cut rates on buy-to-let loans by 0.4%, will offer landlords mortgages on up to 10 properties, worth up to £3m. Landlords need prove an income of only £25,000 a year to start qualifying for buy-to-let loans. Meanwhile BM Solutions, a division of Lloyds, is promising a "one-minute mortgage" deal for landlords. Some of the specialist lenders that withdrew from the market during the credit crunch have now reopened for business. A name synonymous with the pre-2008 boom, Mortgage Trust, part of the Paragon Group, this week returned to the market three years after closing its doors. It promises cheap and simple mortgages for smaller landlords, starting at 3.99%, and what's called "fast-track" underwriting through mortgage intermediaries. Fast-track underwriting has a controversial recent history. In July last year, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) published proposals to ban fast-track and "self-cert" mortgages, effectively granted without stringent checks on an applicant's income and ability to repay. It also expressed concerns about interest-only mortgages. But unlike conventional residential mortgages, buy-to-let deals are not subject to regulation by the FSA. Interest-only lending to landlords is commonplace, and lenders are free to offer fast-tracking. In a note this week hailing the return of Mortgage Trust, Legal & General's Mortgage Club told landlords that the loans would be subject only to "fast-track, credit score-based underwriting". The revival in buy-to-let has angered critics who argue that lending to landlords has prevented millions from buying a home. Matt Griffiths of the campaign group PricedOut says: "For anyone concerned about maintaining widespread home ownership, this is deeply worrying. Many young people are now being effectively disenfranchised from the property-owning democracy by buy-to-let investors. Buy-to-let benefits from both cheaper mortgage finance (via the use of interest-only mortgages) and tax breaks on interest payments, which means they can easily outgun any first-time buyer for the purchase of lower-end properties. "This has been exacerbated by the growing tendency of first-time buyers to use repayment mortgages (over 90% did in December 2009), and the higher deposit barrier required by cautious mainstream lenders. This is deeply ironic, as buy-to-let activity has been much riskier and more volatile than lending for normal homebuying." Will the re-emergence of buy-to-let be a warning light to regulators and the Bank of England? Eight of the top nine UK buy-to-let lenders in 2007 have since been either rescued by the taxpayer, closed to further business or forced to undergo substantial retrenchment. PricedOut argues that, in the run-up to the financial crisis, buy-to-let disproportionally utilised the new financing opportunities created by investment bank securitisation deals, and was dominated by short-term and speculative behaviour. "It was the main conduit through which excessive credit availability has been transmitted and amplified into the UK housing market," says Griffiths. PricedOut wants buy-to-let to be regulated, but recent government intervention has favoured landlords. In the last budget, the chancellor unveiled a £560m tax giveaway on buy-to-let stamp duty bills. Meanwhile tenants face an uphill struggle to save the large deposits needed to obtain a mortgage, as landlords push through rent rises much in excess of wage rises. LSL predicts that, at the current rate of increase, average monthly rents paid by tenants across Britain will hit £715 this time next year, and top £1,050 in London. Property investment firm Assetz, one of the cheerleaders of the buy-to-let boom, said business had doubled over the past year and that landlords are fast replacing first-time buyers. Its chief executive, Stuart Law, told the industry magazine Mortgage Strategy this week that: "Lenders are making no secret of the fact that they would rather allocate the limited funds they do have to the lower-risk option of buy-to-let loans, with deposits of 25-40%, than first-time buyers loans with 90% LTVs . As a result, the buy-to-let sector is recovering at a remarkable rate." Loans for landlords Buying to let Renting property First-time buyers Property Mortgages Housing market Patrick Collinson guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

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