5 The Daily Collegian
~Ata.glance~
A brief look at our world
Shte
State acknowledges
more tax form errors
HARRISBURG (AP) The
Pennsylvania Revenue Depart
ment has acknowledged more
errors on individual, corporate
and estate tax forms.
It is the second time in recent
weeks that the state said it found
mistakes in tax forms. Last
month, the state said it had noti
fied 500,000 taxpayers that their
1994 overpayments had been
sent to the Wild Resources Con
servation Fund, rather than
applied to 1995 tax bills, as the
taxpayers requested.
The latest errors on individual
forms were the omission of a sig
nature line for tax preparers and
later deadlines for taxpayers
who make quarterly estimated
payments, said Revenue spokes
woman Deb Snyder.
20-month-old survives
fall from seventh story
MCKEESPORT - It seemed
like a miracle when 20-month-old
David Markotan survived a
seven-story fall from a window.
His doctor agreed.
"I kept looking in his room for
an Angel," said Dr. Edward
Barksdale Jr., David's surgeon.
"It's incredible that he is alive."
David was in fair condition
yesterday at Children's Hospital
of Pittsburgh.
Several ribs on his right side
were broken, his pancreas and
liver were bruised and he had a
concussion.
Officials said the boy appar
ently fell through a torn screen
in a seventh-floor apartment at
Harrison Village in McKeesport,
about nine miles southeast of
Pittsburgh.
The boy's father was working
on his car at 8 p.m. Tuesday in
the parking lot outside the build
ing when he noticed a child on
the ground nearby. He walked
over and realized it was his son,
said Jim Brewster, a Housing
Authority official.
'3"7 asnag
Surgeon infects 19
with hepatitis B virus
BOSTON (AP) A young
heart surgeon unknowingly
infected at least 19 of his
patients with the hepatitis B
virus, despite wearing gloves
and carefully following all of the
other usual operating room pre
cautions.
While this virus can be
extremely infectious, the high
rate of spread startled experts,
especially since they could not
find that he had done anything
wrong.
About 1 percent of U.S. sur
geons are believed to be infected
with hepatitis B, which can be
fatal. Most of them, like the doc
tor in the newly described case,
apparently caught it from their
patients during operations.
The outbreak occurred four
years ago at two Los Angeles
hospitals where the physician
trained in thoracic surgery. Over
12 months, he passed hepatitis B
to 13 percent of his surgical
patients, mostly during heart
operations.
World
Epidemics killing
thousands in Nigeria
LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) At
least 15,000 people have died in
the last month from epidemics
sweeping northern Nigeria,
according to news reports yes
terday.
Health Minister Ikechukwu
Madubike told the Lagos
Guardian newspaper that in the
last week, SO people had died
every hour in Kano state, on the
northern border with Niger.
The home state of Nigerian
military ruler Gen. Sani Abacha
is suffering from acute epi
demics of spinal meningitis, gas
troenteritis, cholera and
measles.
It is the height of summer in
West Africa. Temperatures can
easily reach 100-105 with stifling
humidity, causing food to spoil
and sanitary conditions to wors
en.
There is also a serious lack of
trained doctors in the region.
Clinton:
By MARCY GORDON
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON, D.C. Presi
dent Clinton asked Congress yes
terday to amend a bill outlawing a
type of late-term abortion to per
mit the procedure when a woman's
life or health is at risk. He said he
had "studied and prayed" about it
for months.
The measure seeks to outlaw a
rare procedure known as an intact
dilation and evacuation, which is
performed after 20 weeks of gesta
tion and is called by abortion oppo
nents a "partial birth abortion."
The White House has said previ
ously that Clinton would veto the
bill in its current form, but it was
the first time he personally
addressed the controversy.
"I have studied and prayed about
this issue, and about the families
who must face this awful choice,
for many months," Clinton said in a
letter to Senate Judiciary Commit
tee Chairman Orrin Hatch and
other lawmakers.
Clinton to
The delay of billions of dollars, which
comes after accusations that Beijing
provided nuclear technology to
Pakistan, allows the administration to
further examine the situation.
By BARRY SCHWEID
AP Diplomatic Writer
WASHINGTON, D.C. President Clinton has
decided to delay billions of dollars in loan guarantees
for U.S. business investments in China, based on accu
sations that Beijing has provided dangerous nuclear
technology to Pakistan, a senior administration offi
cial said Tuesday.
Clinton's request to the Export-Import Bank to
delay for several weeks up to $lO billion in such cred
its "sends a signal to Beijing" but without making a
final determination, said the official.
The president's action effectively gives the Chinese
more time to persuade the United States it did not vio
late the 1994 Nonproliferation Act aimed at deterring
the spread of atomic weapons. It also gives the admin
istration more time to evaluate the Chinese claims.
If China dot not make a persuasive case, Clinton
could still find some sanction other than a suspension
of loan guarantees, which imposes the brunt of any
Ireland, Britain agree to summer date for peace negotiations
By SUE LEEMAN
Associated Press Writer
LONDON Britain and Ireland set a date
for Northern Ireland peace talks yesterday,
and waited to see whether the IRA chooses
to continue bombing or have its allies take
seats at the negotiating table.
For 17 months, the Irish Republican Army
had suspended its violent campaign to end
British rule of Northern Ireland. The lull
was shattered Feb. 9 when the IRA, fed up
with the slow progress toward talks, called
off the cease-fire and set off a bomb in east
London, killing two people.
Prospects for peace seemed to collapse
under the renewed violence, but in a dramat
ic turnaround yesterday, Prime Minister
John Major of Britain and Irish leader John
Bruton announced in London that talks
would begin June 10.
Shin Fein, the IRA's political ally, cannot
Dateline
Lift abortion ban
"I have studied and prayed about this issue, and
about the families who must face this awful choice,
for many months."
Reacting to Clinton's proposal,
Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole
said he was "very disappointed"
and urged the president "to rethink
your position so that we can stop
this brutal and indefensible proce
dure."
Dole, R-Kan., who is seeking the
GOP presidential nomination,
wrote Clinton that his argument
about the bill "has already lost on
the Senate floor and for good rea
son.
Anti-abortion groups said Clin
ton's proposal would render the bill
meaningless. A leading abortion
rights' advocate called it "an
important step for the president to
have taken to reassert his support"
delay China's loans
penalty on American businessmen trying to develop a
foothold in what will be the fastest growing economy
of the 21st century.
The official, speaking on the condition of anonymi
ty, said Clinton is still reviewing additional recom
mendations from his National Security Council.
The CIA has concluded that China last year sold the
Pakistanis specialized ring magnets to use in uranium
enrichment plants. China has acknowledged cooperat
ing with Pakistan but has said the program is entirely
peaceful.
Describing the parts as "in a gray area," the admin
istration official said top Chinese officials were
expected to come to Washington for high-level meet
ings aimed at resolving the dispute.
While the administration has moved cautiously on
the magnetic rings, the proliferation problem "needs
urgent attention," the official said.
Enriching uranium involves filtering raw uranium
to separate out the fissionable material needed for a
nuclear reaction. While the step is vital link in pro
ducing atomic weapons, it also is a necessary element
in producing fuel for nuclear power plants.
Both Pakistan and India, which have fought three
wars, are believed to be embarked on nuclear
weapons programs, and many analysts consider the
region the most dangerous in the world in terms of
possible nuclear conflict.
join the talks unless the guerrillas restore
their truce, the two leaders insisted. But
Britain dropped its demand that the IRA
start disarming before Sinn Fein is admitted
to negotiations a key issue that had held
up the talks.
Sinn Fein leaders welcomed the long
sought setting of a date but were upset that
the province would first hold elections to
produce a negotiating team.
"I think that the first duty Sinn Fein has in
all of this is to get clarity in determining
whether the present package contains the
dynamic to reestablish the peace process,"
said Martin McGuinness, the reputed former
IRA commander who leads Sinn Fein's nego
tiating team.
David Ervine, leader of the Progressive
Unionist Party, which is allied with an out
lawed Protestant paramilitary group, saw
possibilities. "This can work," Ervine said.
The elections, first proposed by a Protes-
President Clinton
on late-term abortions
for a woman's right to choose.
In the procedure, a fetus is par
tially extracted feet first and its
skull is collapsed by suctioning out
the brain to make it easier for the
fetus to pass through the birth
canal.
The procedure "is very disturb
ing and I cannot support its use on
an elective basis where the abor
tion is being performed for non
health related reasons and there
are equally safe medical proce
dures available," the president
wrote.
He said there are "rare and trag
ic" circumstances in which the pro
cedure could be needed to save a
woman's life or protect her health.
tant-based party, gained symbolic signifi
cance after IRA supporters dismissed them
as a delay tactic that proved Britain was not
serious about negotiating.
IRA supporters have claimed that Major's
adoption of the elections proposal was the
straw that provoked the IRA's return to vio-
Three people died in IRA bombings in
London this month one of them the
bomber.
Bruton and Major insisted that Sinn Fein
could not join the talks until the IRA rein
states its cease-fire.
"There is no place whatsoever for violence
or the threat of violence in the peace process
or in the negotiations," Major told Parlia
ment.
"Those who advocate violence or do not
dissociate themselves clearly from its use ..
. cannot expect others to go on sitting at the
negotiating table with them," he said.
Sanctions bill
agreed upon
By JIM ABRAMS
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON, D.C. Rushing
to punish Cuba, Congress and Pres
ident Clinton agreed yesterday on
new sanctions that would bridle
foreign investment with the goal of
removing Fidel Castro.
The White House, seeking to
avoid a veto, accepted controver
sial language in a Cuba sanctions
bill that will allow American citi
zens to sue foreign investors who
make use of property in Cuba con
fiscated during the 3 1 / 2 decades of
Castro's rule.
In a compromise, the president is
given the authority to waive that
right to sue but for no more than
six months at a time, when the
national interest is involved.
White House officials, anxious
over the lawsuit provisions that
could antagonize U.S. allies, wres
tled with Republican lawmakers on
the bill's final language but
appeared resigned to quick pas
sage.
"The bill's got a lot of problems
that we hope can be fixed," White
House press secretary Mike
McCurry said before the agree
ment was reached. He said Presi
dent Clinton "wants to sign that bill
now in light of the incident Satur
day."
Cuba's shooting down of two
small American planes off the
Cuban coast Saturday galvanized
Congress to complete a Cuba sanc
tions bill passed in different ver
sions by the House and Senate last
fall but held up by administration
Congress watchdogs
investigate Shuster
The group will
investigate the
relationship between Rep
Bud Shuster, R-Pa., and
lobbyist Ann Eppard.
By ANICK JESDANUN
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON, D.C. Con
sumer advocate Ralph Nader's con
gressional watchdog group asked
the Justice Department yesterday
to investigate a House committee
chairman's dealings with a lobbyist
who is a longtime associate.
While acknowledging it had no
direct evidence of any criminal
wrongdoing, the Congressional
Accountability Project said in a let
ter to Attorney General Janet Reno
that "strong circumstantial evi
dence" warranted a probe.
Gary Ruskin, the group's direc
tor, said the department should
consider whether the frequent use
by Rep. Bud Shuster, R-Pa., and his
family of transportation lobbyist
Ann Eppard's home constituted
acceptance of illegal gratuities.
Ruskin also said the department
should investigate whether Eppard
obeyed a one-year prohibition
against directly lobbying Shuster,
her former boss and now chairman
of the House Transportation and
Infrastructure Committee.
"We urge the Department of Jus
tice to initiate an investigation into
the interconnected mutual network
of favors, benefits and interests
enjoyed by Representative Bud
Shuster and Ann Eppard to deter
mine whether criminal laws were
violated," Ruskin wrote.
Two months before Shuster
became chairman, Eppard left his
congressional office to become a
full-time lobbyist. She had served
Thursday, Feb. 29, 1996
objections to several controversial
provisions.
In light of the attack on the
planes flown by Cuban-American
pilots, House and Senate negotia
tors say they will insist on the
tougher House version. It gives
Cuban-Americans and others the
right to sue in the United States
foreign companies investing in
Cuban property confiscated during
Castro's rule.
Last September, the State
Department recommended a Clin
ton veto when the House passed
the bill with that provision.
White Hulse and congressional
staffers struggled yesterday to
work out a compromise on the law
suit provision that would give the
president authority to waive for a
limited period that right to sue.
Also at issue was a provision
mandating the State Department to
deny a visa to a foreign company
president or other individual who
made use of confiscated property.
The United States is the only
major Western country that main
tains a trade embargo on Cuba.
Canada and other countries have
voiced displeasure at the idea of
unilateral U.S. action to restrict
their rights to invest in Cuba.
Backers of the bill, which has
strong congressional support,
insist it could provide the pressure
finally to bring down the Castro
government. Rep. Benjamin
Gilman, R-N.Y., chairman of the
House International Relations
Committee, contended it would
"bring an early end to the Castro
regime by cutting off capital."
for 22 years as his 'chief of staff
and still is a paid employee for his
campaign.
In a statement, Shuster blasted
the group for "repeating false innu
endo which previously has been
published."
Eppard did not immediately
return a telephone call seeking
comment.
Both Eppard and Shuster have
said they took precautions to sepa
rate their personal and profession
al dealings.
In an earlier interview, Eppard
said she had not discussed any
pending issues with Shuster during
the one-year prohibition period fol
lowing her Nov. 9, 1994, departure
from his staff.
Eppard and Shuster, who have
known each other since 1970 when
she worked for his computer com
pany, said they have had periodic
discussions with House ethics com
mittee officials for guidance on
complying with House rules.
However, a Justice Department
investigation would be independent
of any action by the ethics commit
tee and would focus on criminal
law rather than House rules.
Complying with House rules
would not necessarily exempt a
person from criminal prosecution,
Ruskin said.
Ruskin said the Congressional
Accountability Project also was
working to find a lawmaker willing
to file an ethics committee com
plaint on the group's behalf.
He said he has been in touch with
more than a dozen Democrats but
has received no commitmentsfrom
any of them.
Ruskin said Shuster's "frequent
presence as an overnight guest in
Eppard's home . . . and her excel
lent access to Shuster" call into
question whether Eppard obeyed
the one-year ban.
The two governments said consultations
with all Northern Ireland parties would start
Monday on the arrangements for elections
and the ensuing negotiations.
No election date was announced.
While government ministers refuse to
meet Sinn Fein until the IRA cease-fire is
restored, British officials indicated that Sinn
Fein could be involved in consultations with
civil servants.
The agreement met some of the demands
of all the principal parties: an election for
pro-British unionists, and a firm date for
talks demanded by Sinn Fein and Social
Democratic and Labor Party, which are sup
ported by the Catholic minority in Northern
Ireland.
The Social Democratic and Labor Party
has also called for a referendum on nonvio
lence in both parts of Ireland an idea the
Protestant unionists dislike because they
think it smacks of a united Ireland.