Banner Graphic, Volume 22, Number 106, Greencastle, Putnam County, 7 January 1992 — Page 3

Tense trade talks looming Nissan agrees to sell up to 3,000 Fords in Japan

TOKYO (AP) President Bush, firing another salvo in a tough-talk trade mission to Asia, said today he is determined to “increase access for American goods and services in these Japanese markets.” On his first day in Japan, Bush shifted his tone to emphasize that Japan as well as the United States would reap benefits from a lowering of its trade barriers to U.S. imports. “IN THE CAUSE OF free and open trade, we want agreements that produce permanent improvement in access and in U.S. sales to Jpaanese markets and permanent improvment in the lives of Japanese consumers,” he said at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new Toys R Us store in Kashihara. Earlier, speaking to a group of U.S. and Japanese students in historic Kyoto, Bush foreshadowed his crucial talks Wednesday with Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa and other Japanese officials. “I come as a friend, I come with some ideas that we’re going to be discussing with the government in Tokyo starting tomorrow,” he said. ‘T WANT TO increase access for American goods and services in these Japanese markets,” he said repeating the goal he set before leaving on his 12-day trip to Australia and Asia. “Open markets lift the technical progress to new heights, and they raise everybody’s standards and benefit consumers ... through the expanse of the global marketplace.” Bush and his entourage arrived here at the dinner hour of a day the president began with a low-key tour of the Imperial Palace in Kyoto, the ancient capital. He had an official arrival ceremony scheduled Wednesday morning, followed by a visit with Emperor Akihito and talks with Miyazawa. Unprecedented security surrounded Bush’s visit his first to this country since he attended the funeral of Emperor Hirohito in the spring of 1989. THE NATIONAL Police Agency said about 26,000 policemen were mobilized in the Kansai region that includes Kyoto and Nara and a similar number were assigned to Tokyo.

Mideast peace talks could resume after vote at U.N.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) After the U.N. Security Council strongly condemned Israel’s planned deportation of 12 Palestinians, a PLO official said today the move would open the way for resumption of Mideast peace talks in Washington. The 15-member council voted unanimously Monday night to condemn the expulsion orders, calling them a violation of international law and asking Israel to halt all deportations and allow expelled people to return. The United States pointedly refused to use its veto power to shield Israel. NASSER AL-KIDWA, Palestine’s U.N. observer, told the council before the vote that a strong rebuke of Israel could encourage the Palestinian delegation to attend peace talks in Washington this week. The talks were to resume today, but while the Israeli delegation traveled to Washington, the deportation order prompted the Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian delegations to stay home. Early today, Jordanian and Palestinians and Israelis and we intend to

today, but while the Israeli delegation traveled to Washington, the deportation order prompted the Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian delegations to stay home. Early today, Jordanian and Palestinians and Israelis and we intend to

Troops fire on pro-Gamsakhurdia rally

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) Fighters loyal to the military council that drove President Zviad Gamsakhurdia from Georgia opened fire today on thousands of people rallying in support of the deposed leader. Several people were wounded. The rally began at the train station, with people shouting “Zviady! Zviady!” and holding pictures of Gamsakhurdia and waving red, white and black Georgian flags. Eventually the crowd grew to about 4,000. AS DEMONSTRATORS began to march through the capital, several onlookers waved and cheered from balconies. At one point, someone threw a smoke bomb into the crowd and fired into the air. The marchers continued. After the marchers passed a

bl * jbl

PRESIDENT BUSH Wants Increased access

In advance of Bush’s official greeting by government leaders, there were indications of imminent trade concessions from the Japanese. A government official confirmed media reports that 23 major Japanese companies will set targets to boost imports of manufactured products by more than $lO billion with about half coming from the United States. THE ELECTRONICS, machinery and automobile companies plan to import a combined total of $26.44 billion in fiscal 1993, up $lO.lB billion from fiscal 1990, said the official, who spoke on grounds of anonymity Nissan Motor Co. announced today that it planned to sell up to 3,000 Ford minivans and other autos a year in Japan, if consumers here cooperate. Japan’s second largest automaker also said it had raised its target for buying U.S.-made auto parts in the fiscal year ending March 31, 1995, to $3.7 billion from an earlier $3.3 billion. AND NOBORU Hatakeyama, vice minister of the powerful Ministry of International Trade and Industry, announced that 88 Japanese companies plan to increase their annual world imports by $lO billion by fiscal year 1993. But he said the government had no power to

continue the battle during negotiations,” the PLO official quoted Arafat as saying. LATER, ABED RABBO said a decision would be issued after consultations with Syria and Lebanon. He said he and Farouk Kadoumi, the head of the PLO’s political department, would travel to Damascus immediately for consultations. Anwar Khatib, a senior member of an advisory committee to the 14man Jordanian negotiating team, said in an interview: “We do not see what could block Arab participation in the peace talks after the U.N. vote.” Earlier today, Hanan Ashrawi, a spokeswoman for the Palestinian delegation, told BBC radio the U.N. vote was “encouraging and will help the PLO take the appropriate decision. We expect it to be a positive decision.” Israel says the 12 Arabs to be expelled helped foment attacks that have claimed the lives of four Israeli settlers in the occupied territories since the peace talks were launched in October.

hotel, a group of armed men loyal to the ruling military council some wearing masks appeared and formed a line across the street. They fired into the air and then some fired at the crowd. People panicked and started running wildly. This Associated Press correspondent witnessed the assault. A pro-Gamsakhurdia rally at the train station was broken up Friday by masked gunmen, and two people were killed and 25 were wounded. The military council has banned demonstrations in Tbilisi and has never denied responsibility for Friday’s assault THE AP REPORTER saw one wounded man being rushed to a nearby house, where people bandaged his leg. In addition, two women were seen being carried away. It was impossible to im-

B

LEE lACOCCA Change the relationship

enforce those targets for import increases set by the companies because they were “voluntary.” But fresh sales reports from the United States together with statements by U.S. automobile executives accompanying Bush raised the stakes of these politi-cally-charged talks. In Detroit, the Big Three automakers confirmed their worst sales year since 1983. Ford Motor Co. said its 1991 sales dropped 13.6 percent from the year before, and Chrysler Corp, reported a 14.7 percent drop. General Motors Corp., the world’s largest automaker, was still to report its figures. JAPAN HAS Aroughly s4l billion annual trade surplus with the United States. About three-fourths of the gap is auto-related. The chairmen of Chrysler Corp, and General Motors, talking to reporters at their hotel here, angrily dismissed suggestions that ailing U.S. automakers were looking for handouts from Tokyo. “We don’t have to apologize to anybody,” Chrysler Chairman Lee lacocca said. “TO SAY WE are coming to Japan to get a souvenir or we’re going to sit around and accept whatever favors they can bestow on us, that’s not the game,” he said. “The game is, you’ve got to change the basic trading relationship bet-

“The resolution is part of an open battle between the Palestine Liberation Organization officials in Amman issued a positively worded statement about the U.N. condemnation after a meeting between Prime Minister Zeid Bin Shaker and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat. It said after reviewing Security Council Resolution 726, “the Jordanian and Palestinian sides find it an expression of the responsibility fell by the international community ... toward the Palestinian people and their national legitimate rights.” “THE U.N. resolution also reflects the international community’s concern for the success of the Middle East peace process,” Jordanian Foreign Minister Kamel Abu Jaber and Yasser Abed Rabbo, a member of the PLO’s ruling Executive Committee, said in the statement A senior PLO official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Arafat told his aides the Palestinians would travel to Washington for talks because he considered the U.N. resolution “satisfactory.”

mediately determine the total number of casualties. The violence came as Georgians took stock of the devastation from 16 days of fighting that subsided Monday when Gamsakhurdia fled the Parliament building where he and his supporters had been pinned down and took refuge in Armenia. The military council formed by opposition leaders controls Tbilisi and has promised to try to form a civilian coalition government. GAMSAKHURDIA, a poet and former dissident who was overwhelmingly elected in a popular election in May, had been accused by his opponents of acting like a dictator. He jailed many critics, closed newspapers and provoked the clash that toppled him by demanding that his opponents disarm.

ween these two countries.” Commerce Secretary Robert Mosbacher, appearing on NBC’s “Today” program, said the United States wants free and fair trade to be “a two-way street ... We’re asking for a shot at the business.” The visit to Toys R Us, an American chain that waged a three year battle against Japanese barriers to break into the Japanese market, was the highlight of Bush’s first day. HE WAS GREETED when his helicopter landed about a mile from the store by thousands of waving Japanese who lined the streets of his motorcade and gathered in front of the toy store to hear him speak. Those who could not squeeze in front of the store watched his remarks on a giant screen placed on the lot next door on the other side of a high fence. The huge toy store, located next to a McDonalds and a Haagen Dazs, is the second Toys R Us built in Japan since Tokyo gave into U.S. pressure to relax its law on foreign retailers. After touring the store and examining its array of U.S .-and Japanese-made toys more than 8,000 items Bush told the audience that the store is an example of a successful battle to eliminate trade barriers. HE DID NOT mince words in criticizing the Japanese philosophy that led to the now-repealed permit law that had blocked large retail outlets from breaking into a marketplace dominated by mom and pop stores. The president expressed hopes that the toy store would be “the first in a long line of America retailers to locate in this great country.” Bush said Japanese consumers “are increasingly demanding wider choices for themselves and their families, lower prices, and certainly uncompromising quality.” While the president and his wife Barbara saw only friendly faces on their visit to Kashihara, farmers protested his visit, by taking out a newspaper advertisement in a Tokyo newspaper protesting U.S. demands that Japan lift its ban on rice imports.

[ U 111111 V>4 Em a e 1 39 Bacon '‘Jf/ Fresh 4 59 ZZ GROUND BEEF I Prices good Wed., Jan. 8 thru Tues., Jan. 14 Hours: Mon.-Fri. 4 a.m.-9 p.m., Sat. 4 a.m.-7 p.m. chuck nh n ROAST £. I y LOTTO AMERICA W* th* ft„ CORtOT OUt right to limit J ***'' l ’■*' l ***** (1(1 HOOSIER LOTTERY tm Pork Chops Z.OO Round Steak 9 5 » Smoked Sausage '2.19* puiri/CMRRFACT 1 Hot -L /jGlazed Q 49 DELI SPECIALS A fc aoz. J Salad S l.B9 P , FCCQ Ham ?3.99 EVJLXQ HOLLAND ;r89 C I 2% MILK PEPSI 1 2.09 * _ 2llter 1.19® fel |TSjIBfcFRESH PRODUCE 12pk , 3.69 Barties & James POTATOES 9" $1 QQ 10 lb - =— • -O'* bag Boones Farm > Dei apples tOla sang " ; 49 ; 1 89

Mrs. Marcos makes bid for Filipino presidency

MANILA, Philippines (AP) her candidacy for president today after pleading innocent in anti-graft court to charges filed by the government of the bitter rival who helped drive her from power. The 61-year-old widow of former President Ferdinand Marcos, speaking on the courthouse steps, called her decision to run in the May 11 elections the result of “months of direct consultations with our poor and oppressed citizens ...” THE FLAMBOYANT former first lady, who is known for an extravagant lifestyle, accused outgoing President Corazon Aquino’s government of failing to deliver basic services to the country’s destitute. “This government would rather spend hundreds of millions to persecute and vilify its own citizens,” said Mrs. Marcos, who left behind 1,200 pairs of shoes in the presidential palace when she fled with her husband in the 1986 popular revolt Mrs. Aquino rode into office. The Aquino government claims the Marcoses looted the treasury of up to $lO billion during 20 years in power. MRS. MARCOS, whose husband died in Hawaii in 1989, returned to the Philippines in November after nearly six years of exile, hoping to revive her late husband’s political network and clear the family name. But she also found 47 criminal charges awaiting her. Today, she pleaded innocent to six charges alleging she controlled and created private companies in Switzerland while governor of Manila. One case accuses her of stashing in Swiss banks S2O million in interest from treasury notes. The others say she created dummy corporations in Switzerland to hide her family’s bank deposits. The government also has filed 33 civil cases against her. MRS. MARCOS fares poorly in public opinion surveys, but those generally reflect the views of the Manila middle and uppermiddle classes. She gets mobbed

January 7,1992 THE BANNERGRAPHIC

r

IMELDA MARCOS Pleads Innocent of graft

when she visits slum areas, but many of the people are asking for money. There was no immediate reaction to the announcement from Mrs. Aquino, who has ruled out a second term. But a spokesman for the president, Horacio Paredes, said he was confident Mrs. Marcos will not be elected. “I do not believe that Filipinos will allow to put back in power the family responsible for making our country poor,” he said. “I don’t think we want to become poorer. Does Mrs. Marcos think she can fool the people again?” Mrs. Aquino’s husband, Benigno, was the country’s leading opposition fiure when he was assassinated in 1983 as he returned from the United States to challenge Marcos. MRS. MARCOS said she wants to run as a candidate of the Nacionalista Party, an opposition party divided among other presidential aspirants including Vice President Salvador Laurel. After her announcement, she traveled to Lucena city, 60 miles southeast of Manila, to campaign. “If I will be given a chance to serve as a leader, you will be assured of dignity, progress and quality of life,” Mrs. Marcos told a crowd of about 4 ,000.

A3