World News joined 6

[OMEN]

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf pledged to hold free elections as he began a four-country European trip aimed at winning international support.

Musharraf's popularity has slumped over recent months in Pakistan, which has been racked by militant attacks and faces a parliamentary election on February 18 that is meant to complete a transition to civilian rule.

"We are determined to hold free, fair and transparent elections, and peaceful elections ... There is no possibility of it being rigged," he told reporters at an event in Brussels, where he will meet European Union and NATO officials.

Asked how he would handle any victory at the polls by political opponents, he replied:

"Whoever wins, obviously power will be handed over ... There is no question at all that we will deny forming a government to which ever party forms a majority," he said.

Fears for nuclear-armed Pakistan's stability were heightened by the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto in a bomb and gun attack on December 27.

A surge of attacks by al Qaeda-linked militants based on the Afghan border has raised concern about prospects for the country and its efforts to support NATO and U.S. forces struggling to subdue Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan.

Musharraf will meet Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in Brussels.

He will go on to Paris to meet French President Nicolas Sarkozy and then attend the World Economic Forum in Switzerland before talks in London with Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

While Musharraf may get the backing he seeks from European leaders, the former army chief who seized power in a 1999 coup can also expect them to tell him that he must do more to promote democracy and curb the activity of militants.

Speaking to members of Belgium's Pakistani community after arriving late on Sunday, Musharraf said the goal of his trip was "correcting perspectives" in Europe and lauded what he said were improvements in the economy and security under his rule.

Ahead of the trip, former foreign secretary Tanvir Ahmed Khan said he expected Musharraf to seek to impress on Europeans that he was Pakistan's best hope of stability.

"He's trying to establish his credentials with the key Western powers with the same old message: that he's indispensable, they don't have a better friend than him, without him the war on terror would unravel and Pakistan's economic progress would collapse," Khan said.

On Sunday, Pakistan villagers said army helicopter gunships launched strikes in the remote South Waziristan tribal region regarded as a stronghold of a Taliban commander linked with the assassination of Bhutto.

Reuters

[OMEN]

Beijing has denied a report that 10 workers had died during the construction of the showpiece stadium for the 2008 Olympics, which start in 200 days.

A British newspaper reported on Sunday that China had covered up the accidental deaths of at least 10 workers since construction of the $400-million (205 million pound) National Stadium, nicknamed the Bird's Nest, began in 2003.

"The report by the Sunday Times that 10 people have died in the construction of the National Stadium is not true," said Sun Weide, spokesman for the Beijing Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG).

Sun referred questions as to whether there had been any fatalities on the site of the National Stadium to the 2008 Construction Office. No one at that office was available for comment.

"At the moment construction has been going well and according to plan," Sun added. "The Beijing municipality and BOCOG attach great importance to safety in the construction of the venues."

The 91,000-seater stadium is the only one of the 36 Olympic venues in China not completed by the end of last year and is scheduled for completion by the end of March.

It will host the opening and closing ceremonies as well as athletics and soccer at the August 8-24 Games.

Sunday's report said the "conservative estimate" of 10 deaths "was reached by comparing numerous accounts of witnesses who worked at the site in different periods".

The stadium earned its nickname because of the interwoven steel trusses that encase the concrete bowl of the arena. The design means many of the construction crew often have to work at great heights.

The building of a big stadium without any fatalities is unusual and at least one worker has died during the construction of the main arenas at the last three Summer Games.

"We have taken into account safety, quality, timeline, function and cost in the project," he said. "We have taken resolute measures to ensure the quality of the project."

Some 17,000 workers, mainly migrants from poorer provinces outside the Chinese capital, were working on Olympic projects at the height of construction.

Reuters

[OMEN]

Seventeen people drowned in a man-made lake in Zambia when their canoe capsized due to heavy rains, officials have said, adding that flooding in the country was expected to get worse.

Ackimson Banda, junior minister for Zambia's Central Province, said 13 of the victims were members of one family who were canoeing to a village to attend a funeral on Friday night.

"Seventeen people were confirmed dead after a canoe capsized on the man-made lake (Lusiwasi) where water has risen abnormally because of the heavy rains," Banda told Reuters.

Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi have been lashed by heavy rains for several weeks. Swollen rivers have burst their banks, killing dozens and forcing thousands of villagers to flee flooded homes.

Jacob Nkomoki the deputy director of Zambia's Meteorological Department said more flooding was expected from heavier rains forecast in traditionally higher rain belts in the country's northern region.

Nkomoki said three of Zambia's nine provinces were expected to receive heavier rains.

"We are forecasting heavier falls in the Northern, Luapula and Copperbelt provinces. The expected heavy rains can bring flash floods ... it will then flow downstream to southern parts where there is likely to be floods caused by water flow," Nkomoki said on state ZNBC television.

Zambia declared a national disaster last week and officials said they feared the outbreak of waterborne diseases such as cholera.

The government has appealed for $13 million ($NZ17.38 million) in emergency funds from Western donors to cope with the crisis and the Road Development Agency (RDA) said it planned to spend about $15.6 million to construct new roads after the flood damage.

Zambian authorities have closed schools, converting them into shelters for those displaced. Some refugees are living in tents provided by the government and relief agencies.

Anthony Mwanaumo, the head of the state-run Food Reserve Agency (FRA), speaking on the same televised programme, said 50,000 tonnes of maize had been set aside to feed people who had lost their crops.

"We have an immediate relief programme and 50,000 metric tonnes has been set aside. The food will be provided on a demand basis," Mwanaumo said.

In Malawi, authorities said the death toll from the floods had risen to four on Monday after one person was swept away by swelling flood waters while trying to cross a river.

"The last four days have seen four people dead and 520 more families left homeless as the Shire and Mwanza rivers continue to rise," Lawford Palani, the District Commissioner for Chikwawa told Reuters.

Malawi's biggest and longest river, Shire is rising in the district and officials, along with the Red Cross, have asked people to move to higher ground in the areas affected.

Reuters

[OMEN]

Major flooding continues on the Nogoa River after more than 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes in the central western Queensland town of Emerald.

The town is preparing for major flooding today.

The Queensland government yesterday declared Emerald a disaster zone as the Nogoa continued to slowly rise, closing the main route into the town and forcing homes in low-lying areas to be evacuated.

The Bureau of Meteorology said the water level at Emerald was 14.88 metres at 7.30pm (AEDT) last night.

Further rises were expected in the Nogoa River at Emerald overnight and this morning, with the river expected to peak at 15.5 metres this afternoon.

However, forecasters were unable to confidently predict the exact height because of the amount of water still flowing into the river and nearby Fairbairn Dam from a number of tributaries.

At 8pm, the level of Fairbairn Dam at the spillway was 4.10 metres and continuing to rise.

The bureau said major flooding was expected at Charleville last night and this morning.

Major flooding is extending downstream along the Warrego River from Charleville to the Wallen area.

Moderate flooding was recorded at Charleville on the Warrego River at 7pm.

Further flood level rises are expected last night with the final peak expected to be under 6.5 metres around midday on Tuesday.

At Wyandra, downstream of Charleville, the peak reached 9.26 metres at 7pm.

Major flooding is expected to continue this week with further rises on Thursday

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AAP

[JohnCenaFan28]

Thanks for the read, hope it turns out OK.

[OMEN]

CARRIED AWAY: Sir Edmund Hillary's casket is carried from St Mary's Church in Parnell.
In a state funeral that shared the Hillary family warm moments with the nation, Nepalese, Indians, New Zealanders and others gathered at St Mary’s Church in Parnell, Auckland.

Each eulogy was rich in thanks for his life.

Son Peter Hillary delighted in telling of life with a famous father.

"I think dad was a real people’s hero. That was because he really was, he was the genuine article."

Laughter broke out as daughter Sarah told of the way in which when, at primary school, she could not come up with a description of what her father’s job was.

The son of Tenzing Norgay, Sir Edmund’s climbing partner in the 1953 scaling of Mt Everest, spoken of his "friend, dearly missed".

Norbu Tenzing spoke of the "staggering" achievements and unconditional love for the Sherpa people.

"Sir Ed opened our eyes to a world of possibilities," he said.

Sir Edmund epitomised the true meaning of giving and never asked for anything in return.

"The changes he brought to the Sherpas over the past half century are profound….

"When Sherpas heard of his death their grief spiralled to a level only matched by the loss of a parent. Among Sherpas he was revered."

Sherpas placed his photo alongside those of their religious leaders, he said.

He hoped in the spirit of Sir Ed’s life, “we will see today not only as his passing, but the opportunity to continue to expand his work.”

The day began with the flag draped casket of Sir Edmund being moved from the Holy Trinity Cathedral to the smaller adjourning St Mary’s Cathedral.

Three Sherpas, all friends of Sir Edmund, placed their yellow khata on the casket.

Also on it was roses and an ice axe and carved walking stick.

The ship’s bell from HMNZS Endeavour which took Sir Edmund to Antarctica in 1956 was rung.

Lady June Hillary and family, accompanied by Prime Minister Helen Clark and her husband Peter Davies, sat close to the casket.

The simple service featured a number of tributes from family and friends.

Sarah Hillary said they had recently seen the results of her father’s work.

"My father was always so strong and able to solve any problems."

He was happy in his last days. "He could look back at a good life."

Sarah spoke of how Sir Edmund suffered when in early 1975 his wife Louise and youngest daughter Belinda died in a plane crash at Kathmandu airport.

"My father was always so strong and able to solve any problems, so it was a terrible shock to realise he was also very fragile,'' Sarah told mourners.

"When I saw him in Kathmandu after my mother and sister died it was as if everything had been sapped out of him...but again it was his sheer determination and his wonderful friends that eventually pulled him out of it.''

Peter Hillary also spoke of the tragedy. He was in India when the accident occurred and hurried to Nepal where the family was then living.

"I was shattered, I felt the world had dropped away beneath me, but I felt sure my father, that great pinetree of a man, that conqueror of Everest, would be able to put his arms around me and get us through."

He caught up with his father and sister Sarah in a street.

"I will never forget standing in the middle of a lane in Kathmandu, oblivious to the traffic going around – Dad, Sarah and I, the remnants of our family, with our arms around another, weeping and hanging on to each other.

"It was then that I realised that in spite of Dad's incredible strengths, he was frail too, he was human, in many ways I think that was one of the most endearing and rather wonderful parts to what Ed Hillary was.

"There was great honesty about it and this was a very honest time."

Despite that tragedy, Sir Ed's " irrepressible energy and restlessness" led to more amazing adventures.

Peter Hillary said such adventure was compulsory in the Hillary family.

Every year the family faced excitement, fear and apprehension “about where dad was going to take us in the school holidays.”

But they got to go all over the world.

"It's not so much the places we go to, but the people we go with."

He told of how he shared the family home later with his father, cooking lamb chops and boiled spuds.

June Hillary, he said, came to the rescue.

"The most important thing I learned from him is not to be afraid to stand alone,” Peter said.

He spoke of continuing Sir Ed's work in Nepal saying it was a great opportunity to "keep the commitment and the love alive''.

"He really loved the people, he felt he could make a difference for them.''

Sam Mulgrew, spoke of a "very close" relationship with his step-grandfather.

"He was a real family man."

He loved having a "gang of people all around him. He was the embodiment of modesty, kindness and warmth."

He said in his last days at Auckland Hospital Sir Edmund had a cover name,"“Vincent Stardust". Sir Edmund found it funny.

"He laughed with a glint in his eye."

Prime Minister Helen Clark thanked the Hillary family for sharing this moment with the nation.

"We mourn as a nation because we know we are saying goodbye to a friend."

She said Sir Edmund’s Everest achievement could not be under-estimated.

"It made him an inspiration and a role model for generations of New Zealanders... He was a colossus, he was our hero."

She said the nation loved Sir Edmund for what he represented; determination, humility and an innate sense of fair play.

"Sir Edmund Hillary's extraordinary life has been an inspiration to us as a nation, and to so many beyond our shores too,'' Miss Clark said.

"As individuals we may not be able to match Sir Ed's abilities or strength, but surely we can all strive to match his humanity.''

He was a man of strong and timeless values.

Long-time friend Jim Wilson touched on Sir Ed's singing "ability''.

Sir Edmund would accept nothing less than the best from his companions, but was able to accept failure if they gave their best, Mr Wilson said.

He recalled once sinking one of Sir Ed's two jet-boats on an expedition in Nepal, nearly drowning a Sherpa.

When he slunk back to apologise, he was surprised when Sir Ed did not rip him apart, as he had feared.

"'C'est la vie,' is all he said, not a word of reproach,'' Mr Wilson said. "His little-boy enthusiasm for life and adventure was irresistible, he loved to laugh, even if it was at his own expense.''

Ang Rita Sherpa, chief administrative officer of the Himalayan Trust, said he was in New Zealand to pay his last respects to "a man with a big heart''.

"He is our true guardian and our second father, but he has left us behind today,'' he said.

"His loss to us is bigger and heavier than Mt Everest.''

As the casket was borne from the church at the end of the State Funeral New Zealand Alpine Club members made an arch of ice axes. Teenagers from Otara’s Hillary College performed a special haka, He Maunga Teitei (the Lofty Mountain).

The funeral procession went through the city, including the Auckland Domain where thousands had watched on large screens. The crowds clapped and tears flowed as Sir Edmund’s casket was driven through the Domain.

Thousands lined the park’s streets, all eager to get their last glimpse of the great man. Newmarket came to a standstill and shops closed as people watched on.

The sight of grieving family members following behind the hearse saw emotion replace the silent respect the crowd had shown throughout the service and many could be seen wiping tears from their faces.

As the procession passed, the heavy rain that had drenched the 4000 mourners at the domain eased and the sun came out once more, prompting a number to fall in behind the procession and follow it as it wove its way through the park.

Katrina Robbie and Dave Egan believed rain was all part of the day, saying Sir Edmund Hillary endured much worse during his many adventures.

The family simply hunkering down under an umbrella, which evoked peals of laughter from their pushchair-bound nine-month-old daughter, Elizabeth.

"She loved it,” Ms Robbie said

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- With NZPA

[OMEN]

A commonwealth public servant used his work computer to groom a fictitious 14-year-old New Zealand girl for sex, a Canberra court was told today.

Murray Collin Stubbs, 43, of Higgins, has been refused bail in the ACT Magistrates' Court on charges of using a carriage service in a way that reasonable people would regard as offensive and providing a false name to police.

The father of four is accused of using the name "moderately interesting guy" on a Yahoo internet site to engage in sexually explicit chat with a 14-year-old girl named "Roxanne" between August 21, 2007 and January 18 this year.

The former school teacher arranged to meet her at a newsagency near the Canberra city bus-interchange yesterday but "Roxanne" was actually New Zealand police officer Detective Steve Waugh.

Australian Federal Police (AFP) arrested Stubbs yesterday at The Barracks LAN Games and Internet Cafe on Alinga Street, Civic, and seized his work computer at the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR).

AFP officer Detective Sergeant Elias Petropoulos said Stubbs used several internet cafes and his DEEWR computer to engage in sexually explicit chat with Roxanne, ask her for naked photos of herself and advise her on masturbation.

"The defendant was worried Roxanne's parents might see the internet chat and advised her to delete her emails," he told the court.

Last week, Stubbs told Roxanne they must stop contacting each other and that he was scared they might get caught, Det Sgt Petropoulos said.

"However the defendant continued to chat and groom Roxanne," he said.

After he was arrested, Stubbs told police he had no intention of participating in sexual activity with Roxanne.

"I am still of the belief that he intended to engage in some sexual activity with her," Det Sgt Petropoulos said.

He said Stubbs had previously engaged in sexual activity with girls aged under 16 he had met online.

Det Sgt Petropoulos said Stubbs had previously sought counselling for his problem.

"By his own admission he has got a bad habit."

Magistrate John Burns, concerned Stubbs could interfere with online evidence, refused bail.

"To my mind there is simply too greater risk of interference with evidence if released at this time," he said.

Mr Burns remanded Stubbs in custody and ordered him to reappear in the same court for a mention on February 5.

Det Sgt Petropoulos said he believed Stubbs was suspended from the department today.

AAP

[OMEN]

President George W Bush's drive for peace between Israel and the Palestinians by the end of his term in office is unlikely to succeed unless the Jewish state stops building in the West Bank, the Palestinian premier said.

"If Israel does not stop extending Jewish settlements immediately, there will be no peace deal in 11 months. The expansion of Jewish settlements puts at risk the continuation of the peace talks," a German newspaper on Monday reported Prime Minister Salam Fayyad as saying.

"Theoretically, the talks could succeed by December. Whether that is probable is another matter. It depends on the implementation of the peace road map," Fayyad told Germany's Sueddeutsche newspaper.

The interview was distributed late on Monday but was conducted on Sunday.

Israeli and Palestinian officials began peace negotiations last week, the result of a US-sponsored conference in Annapolis, Maryland, but there is deep public scepticism as to whether they will reach a deal.

Fayyad attacked Israel for failing to stick to the part of the 2003 peace "road map" by building Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

"While we are talking about the main areas of dispute, Israel is extending its settlements in the West Bank. That is the biggest problem," Fayyad was quoted as saying.

Pressed by the United States, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has ordered an effective halt to new construction in settlements. However, Israel does not view building on West Bank land it has annexed to Jerusalem as "settlement building"

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Reuters

[OMEN]

Trevor Rees, the sole survivor of the car crash that killed Princess Diana, will tomorrow front the inquest into her death to reveal his memories of her final moments.

Mr Rees has for years insisted he remembers little about the night Diana and her boyfriend Dodi Fayed died when their Mercedes limousine crashed in Paris on August 31, 1997.

But he will face a new round of questions about whether his memory has improved in the past decade when he appears in the witness box at the inquest tomorrow.

Diana and Dodi were both killed in the crash, along with their driver Henri Paul.

Mr Rees was working as Mr Fayed's bodyguard at the time and suffered massive injuries to his face, chest and brain as a result of the crash.

In the past Mr Rees has spoken publicly on only a few occasions about the crash, telling a British newspaper in 1998 that he remembered Diana calling Dodi's name shortly after the Mercedes hit a concrete post in the Pont dAlma tunnel.

"I have had flashes of a female voice calling out in the back of the car," he told The Mirror newspaper.

"First it's a groan. Then Dodi's name is called. It could only have been Princess Diana. I was conscious and so was she."

Mr Rees, who took a security job in Iraq last October, is expected to be questioned at the inquest about how paparazzi photographers were chasing the Mercedes shortly before the crash.

Diana and Dodi had been dining at the Ritz hotel, owned by his father Mohamed Al Fayed, and left with Mr Rees to be driven by Henri Paul back to Dodi's apartment.

Mr Rees, 38, has previously said he believed two cars and a motorbike were following the Mercedes after it left the Ritz but was unable to recall much about the actual crash.

He has been able to tell police that he believed the car was white, but unable to say for certain whether it was a Fiat Uno like the one investigators believe could have hit the Mercedes in the tunnel.

Mr Rees, a former paratrooper, was initially hired as a bodyguard in 1995 by Mr Al Fayed.

Mr Al Fayed, who believes Diana and Dodi were murdered, splashed out hundreds of thousands of dollars to help Mr Rees recover from his injuries.

He has also claimed in the past that Mr Rees had been pressured by secret service agents in Britain not to speak about the crash.

However Mr Rees published a book, The Bodyguard's Story, in 2000 when he tried to piece together what he could remember about the crash.

He was cleared of any blame for the crash during an inquiry by French investigators in 1999.

Reuters

[OMEN]

A prominent Tongan businesswoman has been killed after a man walked into her home and shot her in the head, the Matangi Tonga website reports.

It said Mosimani Helu was in her home when a man arrived at the doorway and shot her and then walked into the back yard where he turned the gun on himself and shot himself dead.

Sosefo 'Otutaha told Matangi Tonga Online that he was walking toward the Mosimani shop as the gunman entered the gate of Mosimani's house located next to the shop.

He said the gunman walked toward Mosimani who was standing on the side steps of her house.
Sosefo said that at close range the gunman fired what appeared to be a .22 rifle shooting Mosimani in the head.

"She fell and it did not look good because blood was coming out at the back of her head.

"The gunman then kept walking to the back yard of the property and shot himself."

Soefo said that things happened so fast that some of the people in Mosimani's house found out what happened only after the police arrived.

Fairfax Media