Press digest

The following are the top stories in the local and international press today.

The Sunday Times says that foreigners are being overcharged when buying identical products. The newspaper interviews outgoing Chief Justice Vincent de Gaetano who says that the private life of members of the judiciary should not give rise to gossip.

The Independent on Sunday says that no death has been reported following an earthquake in New Zealand. It says that Maltesee registered the second highest increase in shop prices from among the EU countries.

Malta Today says that it was MP Robert Arrigo who had recommended the removal of Sliema mayor Nikki Dimech. It claims that sentenced prisoners are being allowed on the streets without an escort.

It-Torca says that Malta was among the worst countries in Europe when it came to social expense. In an interview, the father of the late 46-year-old prisoner Benny Muscat, claims that his son’s death is shrouded by mystery.

Il-Mument refers to corruption by the Labour government in the 1980s when businessmen used to borrow from Mid-Med Bank guarantee free. It says that more than 800 people have found employment in past three years with the help of EU funds.

Illum says that home owners have been charged €4.5 million following inspections by government architects.

Kulhadd likens the police behaviour in the case of Sliema mayor Nikki Dimech to that in China. It says that Birkirkara mayor Michael Fenech Adami declared in a private meeting for PN mayors that if Mr Dimech is removed from office, he will take down an MP with him.

The overseas press:

Le Journal du Dimanche says some 100,000 of protesters have attended rallies in Paris and 130 other French towns to protest at the government's policy of deporting Roma people. There were also solidarity rallies in Spain and Belgium, as well as more distant states with significant Roma minorities such as Hungary and Serbia. The European Parliament will debate the Roma situation in Europe next week. Some 11,000 Roma were expelled from France last year.

Aljazeera quotes President Karzai of Afghanistan saying he has formed a national peace council to persue negotiations with the Talibans, who have been fighting for over nine years to overthrow the government. Reports suggest that significant elements within the rebels had indicated their willingess to negotiate.

Kabul Weekly says nervous Afghans have continued their sun on the nation’s largest bank, despite assurances from the country’s leaders that their money was safe. Crowds gathered at Kabul Bank branches around the capital to withdraw funds, saying they had lost faith in the bank’s solvency following reports that tens of millions of dollars were lent to members of the political elite for risky property investments.

Jakarta Post reports that soe 3,000 members of an Indonesian hard-line Islamic group rallied outside the US Embassy in Jakarta to denounce a US church’s plan to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks by burning copies of the Koran. Florida officials have denied a permit to the Dove World Outreach Centre in Gainesville for the bonfire on the church’s grounds, but the centre – which made headlines last year by distributing T-shirts that said “Islam is of the Devil” – insisted it will go ahead with its plan.

El Diario says Chile’s trapped miners got an uplifting visit from four of the 16 survivors of a 1972 Andes plane crash, who endured extreme elements for 72 days before being rescued. The four Uruguayan men said they had brought a message of hope for the 33 men trapped in the San Jose mine since an August 5 cave-in. The four survived in the Chilean Andes for 72 days after their plane crashed en route to Santiago, where they were scheduled to play a rugby match.

Dublin’s Sunday Tribune reports Tony Blair has faced the wrath of around 200 anti-war protesters and an attempted citizen's arrest during the first public signing of his rapidly-selling memoirs in the Irish capital. Shoes and eggs were hurled at the former British Prime Minister and scuffles broke out upon his arrival at Eason's bookstore despite heavy security.

MSNBC says the American official in charge of cleaning up the huge oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico says the BP well at the centre of the disaster now poses no further risk to the environment. Admiral Thad Allen made the anouncement after engineers replaced a damaged valve at the seabed.

Barbados’ Daily Nation says armed robbers set fire to a clothing shop in Bridgetown killing six people. Police said two men with machettes burst ito the shop and demanded money before starting a blaze trapping three staff members and three customers inside the building.

Pravda reports Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin has urged Russians to support the country – by drinking and smoking more. Russia, noted for its high consumptions of both cigarettes and alcohol, has among the lowest duties on cigarettes in Europe. The minister’s comments seemed to contradict recent government moves to control Russia's excessive nature and improve its life expectancy rates.

Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani, the Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning for adultery, has been sentenced to 99 lashes for a photo published in The Times of London of her without a headscarf. In an interview with the French magazine La Regle du Jeu, Mohammadi-Ashtiani's son Sajjad said a prison judge confirmed that she was to be lashed for spreading "corruption and indecency". However on September 3 The Times said the attribution of the photo, which it received from one of her lawyers that has fled Iran, was incorrect. Mohammadi-Ashtiani, a 43-year-old mother of two, was given the death penalty for an extramarital relationship.

Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has suggested that stewardesses should be taught to land planes in an emergency. The Irishman told Bloomberg he believed that cabin crew could take over duties from the second pilot, a position he felt should be scrapped. Jim McAuslan, general secretary of the British Airline Pilots' Association, said that the businessman's suggestion would simply not fly. Kate Hanni, the founder of FlyersRights.org, insisted Mr O'Leary insulted the dignity of the flying public every time he opened his mouth.