BRITAIN

BRITAIN
The Times, London, March 9: The humiliating defeats in the Lords on the Prevention of Terrorism Bill are not only an extraordinary setback two months before an expected general election; they are also a telling indictment of the muddle, incompetence and myopia that have characterized the sloppy handling of this vital issue. The defeats are too resounding to be brushed aside by a government desperate to enact legislation to replace the current detention powers that expire on Monday. The moral weight of opposition makes it clear that Labor is facing its sternest test of how to handle the whole issue of terrorism.
The government is now almost certainly obliged to accept most of the Lords amendments -- in particular the involvement of a judge in any initial decision to impose any type of control order, not just the most severe form of house arrest.
Sunset clause
The sticking point, however, is the call for a sunset clause, which the government will not accept. The inept handling of this Bill -- largely a result of indecision in the Cabinet, where (Prime Minister Tony) Blair has shown less willingness to compromise than Home Secretary Charles Clarke -- has had the worst possible effect. As a result, opportunism and point-scoring have made agreement all but impossible.
In the short term, the government must find a way to supervise, oversee or incarcerate terrorist suspects, involving judges at the initial stage and, if possible, bring charges quickly. In the long term, it must work out a more coherent legal framework for dealing with the terrorist threat. The government's confusion was wholly unnecessary; its defeats were fully deserved.
LEBANON
Daily Star, Beirut, March 9: In a massive rally that drew the support of hundreds of thousands of Lebanese, Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah issued two proposals for moving out of the impasse the country is facing. The first is to form a national unity government that would begin tackling pressing national issues, including the investigation into the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri. Second, Nasrallah urged all parties to discuss our differences so that we can decide together on the future of Lebanon.
At the same time that Nasrallah was speaking, U.S. President George W. Bush issued a call for freedom in Lebanon. But Bush also spoke of the need for the "rule of law."
Freedom
Ironically, despite our ideological differences, Nasrallah, the opposition and the Americans are all saying the same thing at the same time: Give Lebanon its freedom, sovereignty and independence.
We hope we won't be led into another situation like 1990, when America's strategic interests outweighed Lebanese democratic aspirations, and Syria was given carte blanche in Lebanon in exchange for its support of the U.S.-led Gulf war.
This is the only way for the Lebanese to move forward. We have all the right tools to form a national unity government that will address the demands of all factions in Lebanon. We need only the space and the freedom to do so.
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Khaleej Times, Dubai, March 9: The Lebanon crisis appears to be far from over. Even as the Syrian troops began withdrawing from Lebanon (and) moving back from Beirut to eastern Lebanon yesterday, the West led by the United States further stepped up the pressure on Damascus. Full withdrawal, not half-measures, warns Washington.
And quite right, too. Syria must demonstrate in action rather than words that it is serious in its commitment to withdraw from Lebanon. The Syrian leadership would do well to read the writing on the wall and wake up to the seriousness of the situation.
Full withdrawal
As a well-wisher of Syria and its people, we would advise Damascus to go ahead with the full withdrawal plan today rather than tomorrow in its own interest. There is no time to lose. It's only a 30-minute drive from Beirut to (the) Syrian border. It wouldn't take much time to pull all Syrian troops out of Lebanon.
Any more delay or reluctance on Damascus' part in getting out of Lebanon would have serious ramifications for both Syria and the Middle East. The already volatile region could do without any more escalation of tensions.
TAIWAN
Taipei Times, March 9: Infamous for its impotence and self-importance, China's National People's Congress (NPC) seems to exist in an imperial haze. Ignoring protests from the rest of the world, it will do as it is told and pass the "anti-secession" law treating Taiwan as part of China's territory and the Taiwanese people as a mob to be intimidated or killed if need be. But Beijing has yet to learn the lesson from the failure of verbal attacks and military threats in the past.
The reasoning behind the bill mentions "non-peaceful" means to resolve the Taiwan question -- a frightening phrase that points to an intensifying threat to invade as well as the use of any number of other obnoxious strategies.
Ugly political game
But the most unacceptable part of the proposed law is this: The right of interpretation rests solely with the Chinese government. This means that Chinese officials are both the players and the referee in this ugly political game, increasing insecurity both in military terms and in terms more relevant to Taiwanese businesspeople in China.
If Washington does nothing and other countries refrain from strong reaction to Chinese aggression, then China may escalate its threats of military action to frighten Taiwan away from adopting any domestic reforms and create the impression that Taiwan is already in the bag.