Reporters on the Job
鈥� Citizen Judges: Sitting in the Paris studio audience awaiting the start of "For You to Judge," correspondent Susan Sachs took a good look around (see story). "The two teenagers to my right were in torn jeans, their shirts untucked. A friend at the station got them their invitations. On my left were two black women in business suits, employees of Radio Outre-Mer, the state radio that broadcasts to French territories in the Pacific. They pointed out that one of the 'citizen-judges' had been on the program before. There were a few political heavyweights wandering about and slapping shoulders. But once the cameras rolled, all the back-and-forth stopped. For more than two hours, the 130 people in the studio stayed absolutely focused on what candidate S茅gol猫ne Royal was saying. I never imagined I'd see such concentrated interest on politics."
鈥� Citizen Protesters: Political opposition in Pakistan has snowballed ever since the "sacking" of the country's chief justice (see story), says correspondent David Montero. There's been lots of upheaval 鈥� protesters are out in the streets clashing with police, and some television channels have been shut down. "In a meeting of reporters and government officials Sunday, one reporter referred to the events as the 'biggest hot potato to affect the Musharraf regime,' " says David. He adds that there's increased security in the capital 鈥� even his quiet street has seen protests. "But one of the biggest mysteries 鈥� and challenges 鈥� is semantics," says David: the government refuses to call the action a "sacking" or a "dismissal." "It likes to say the Chief Justice's position has been 'put into abeyance,' " he says. "That's a mouthful, and you can sort of feel the press trying to work around that one."
Amelia Newcomb
Deputy world editor
鈥� Monday, March 19
Berlin 鈥� German Chancellor Merkel meets Afghan President Karzai.
Istanbul, Turkey 鈥� Iraqi officials and international donors gather for fifth round of Iraq Reconstruction Forum.
鈥� Wednesday, March 21
Washington 鈥� Prime Minister Helen Clark of New Zealand meets President George W. Bush.
Sydney, Australia 鈥� Australian magistrate to rule on extradition request by Croatia for Serbian war-crimes suspect Dragan Vasiljkovic.
鈥� Friday, March 23
Rabat, Morocco 鈥� Trial starts of more than 50 alleged terrorists, including members of the Moroccan security services, accused of plotting attacks.
鈥� Sunday, March 25
Aswan, Egypt 鈥� Secretary of State Rice meets foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
