Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 5, 2000)
Aprii 5, 2000 Page A2 — (Tljv ^Jnrtlanò (iDhseruer B Police News/Vancouver Mayor Pollard accepts gift Smith and Wesson firearm agreement from Matsuhita Kotobukl is good - but does not go far enough Elian's Dad Gets U.S. Visa W A SH IN G T O N - C u b an diplomats are preparing for the arrival here o f Elian G onzalez’s father as negotiators attempt to work out the detai Is o f ho w he wi 11 be reunited with his son. The State Department issued a visa to the Juan Miguel Gonzalez. It was unclear where or when the father would meet his son, who has been living with relatives in Miami since he was rescued off the Florida coast more than four months ago. Officials said one possibility was that Elian’s reunion with his father would take place in Miami. J a p a n ese Volcano Emits Ash and Smoke H O K K A ID O , Ja p a n - T he volcano o f Mt. Usu in Hokkaido, northern Japan has been emitting ash and smoke for several days now. T housands o f residents living near Mt. Usu have been evacuated and transportation and tourist facilities have been shut down. Scientists warned o f the possibility o f a violent eruption at the 732-meter mountain. Ugandan Cult Deaths Rise to 924 KABUM BA,Uganda - Ugandan police revised the num ber o f deaths linked to a C hristian doomsday sect to 924, surpassing the 1978 Jonestown tragedy and making it one o f the largest cult- related killings in history. The death toll rose after police re- estimated the deaths in the March 17 church fire that first revealed th e d ead ly a c tiv itie s o f the Movement for the Restoration o f the Ten Commandments o f God. Authorities initially reported at least 330 died in the blaze, but said they had confirmed that at least 530 people perished in what was believed to have been a gasoline- fueled fire. lUMHlHULUHUitt eor T he P ortland O hseryer On March 28,2000, Clark County ChairCraig Pridemore and City o f Vancouver Mayor Royce Pollard, presented Matsushita Kotobuki Electronics Industries o f American, Inc. (MKA) with the first o f six awards from the Business Recycling Award Group( BRAG). In return, M KA’s Vancouver Plant President Kenzo Hayashi, presented the City o f Vancouver with the first 27” TV/VCR/ DVD unit manufactured in Vancouver, WA. Mayor Pollard accepted the gift on behalf o f the City. The set will be housed in City Hall and will be used for a variety o f purposes including viewing the internal City training channel, Clark-VancouverTelevision (C VTV), and training tapes. MKA is located at 2001 Kotobuki Way, Vancouver, WA Established in 1986, MKA manufactures combination TV/VCR and TV/VCR/DVD units for M atsushita’s Panasonic and Quasar brands and employs 500 people locally. MKA received the BRAG award after implementing an environmental management system that resulted in a variety o f waste reduction practices throughout the facility. Most notably, MKA reduced the amount o f waste material per unit from one pound to less than one-half pound for a total reduction o f over 50 percent. The reduction translates to almost two million pounds o f waste diverted per year and savings o f nearly $65,000. MKA achieved the reductions by including em ployees with environm ental performance standard improvements. “Rarely does a business show such commitment to waste reductions to the community and I thank them for the generous gift they presented to the City ofV ancouver.” For more information regarding waste reduction, visit the City web site at http://www.ci.vancouver.wa.us/solaswaste/index.html CONTRIBUTED STORY Kweisi Mfume, President & CEO o f the National Association for the Advancement o f Colored People (N AACP) today said firearm manufacturer Smith and W esson’s settlement agreement with the Clinton Administration is encouraging, but does not go far enough to reduce illegal trafficking in m any communities. The U.S. D epartm ent o f H ousing and Urban Development (HUD) reached the agreement, the Department ofTreasury and several cities with pending litigation against the industry. About half o f the 30 cities that have lawsuits against the gun industry have refused to sign an agreement dropping their claims against Smith & Wesson. “While the agreement contains certain key safety provisions designed to greatly reduce the occurrence o f child firearm injury and death, it lacks teeth with regard to multiple gun sales which is attributed as a leading source o f firearm in the underground market,” said Mfume. Last year, the NAACP initiated litigation against the Police accountability D o You campaign files challenge Have tU.MRIBL ItasIQ R I eor T he P p r t ia n d O bserver The Police Accountability Campaign 2000 (P AC 2000) filed a formal legal challenge on March 14,2000, to the ballot title language assigned their in itiativ e by the P ortland C ity A tto rn ey . A h e a rin g has been scheduled before Circuit Court Judge Marcus on April 13. The initiative, which would appear on the Ballot this November, would strengthen civilian oversight o f the Portland Police. PAC 2000 representatives argue that the City Attorney’s language is contusing and misrepresents their initiative. It’s totally misleading,’ said PAC 2000 V olunteer C oordinator Adrienne Ratner. “The City Attorney overstates the powers o f the current review system, and that makes it nearly impossible to understand the changes w e’re proposing.” PAC 2000 members charge that the sum m ary overstates the current board’spow erto review police policy. Currently the review board cannot carry out its own investigations o f pol ice mi sconduct or take complaints directly from the public, but the suggested ballot language implies that it does. The City Attorney’s summary makes no mention that the in itia tiv e w o u ld le a v e the responsibility for discipline in the hands o f the chief. “W e’d like to have this settled as soon as possible,” states Adrienne Ratner, “We need 25,000 signatures by July 7 so that the voters will have a chance to decide this issue.” The motion filed Friday by Attorney Paul Loney was the first step toward having the ballot language reviewed by a judge. Once that happens, and the final language is in place, PAC 2000 will begin gathering signatures to place the initiative on the November ballot. Farmers Insurance Group is looking for a few motivated individuals. If you are: Stimulated by challenge Willing to invest in yourself And seek unlimited earning potential Then Farmers Wants You! A Zest We provide training, support, and a subsidized income for the first two years. For Interested? Success? Cohen: Taiwan Can Defend Itself W A SH IN G T O N - D e fe n se Secretary William Cohen said he feels Taiwan could defend itself against china should Beijing use force as threatened to try to unify the countries. China still claims Tai wan as part o f its territory even though they have been governed separately since splitting 51 years ago. However, Cohen would not comment on a published report that the Pentagon believes Taiwan has a “host o f problems” that make it vulnerable. The Washington Post re p o rte d th at a h ig h ly c la s s ifie d P e n ta g o n re p o rt concludes Taiw an could have trouble defending against air and missile attack from China. N o r w a y C o o p e r a t in g With OPEC Boost OSLOW , Norway - Norway will increase its oil production to help control prices that soared after oil p ro d u c in g n a tio n s re d u c e d supplies. Norway, the w orld’s second largest oil exporter, will raise production by 100,000 barrels per day. The decision came a fte r th e O rg a n iz a ito n o f Petroleum Exporting Countries p ro m ise d to in c re a se its production by about 7 percent, or 1.7 million barrels aday. » firearm industry to address the negligent distribution o f firearm and its disproportionate affect on minority communities. Today’s agreement does not substantially affect the pending litigation, which does not seek any monetary award. Mfume said: “ I would urge the public to be cautious in viewing today’s agreement as a cure-all for this country’s need for greater gun control. Much more must be done to cut down the number of handguns in our society. With that goal in mind, we intend to pursue down the number o f handguns in our society. With that goal in mind, we intend to pursue our litigation for more comprehensive change. Hopefully, the other gun manufacturers will follow Sm ith and W e sso n ’s lead in accepting responsibility for their role in gun violence.” Founded in 1909, The National Association for the Advancement ofColored People(NAACP) is the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization. It’s half-million adult and youth members throughout the United States and the world are he premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter registration drives and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private sectors. 1 Call Steve Witt at (503)248-0202 for a confidential Interview. You can fax or email your resume to (503) 248-0214 or switt@district33 .com. We are equal opportunity employer encouraging diversity in the workplace
