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By Syed M.Aslam
 July 02 - 08, 2001

*** "IN THE LAST 100 years, industrialised countries, with 20 per cent of the world's population were responsible for 60 per cent of the net carbon emissions that are driving global warming."

(Findings of a study published by US environmental group, World Resources Institute, saying that the US is, and will remain, the world's biggest climate polluter being the leading producer of carbon dioxide- one of the main greenhouse gases blamed for global warming)

*** "WHY DON'T YOU think of a question that is your business."

(Tennis star Andre Agassi retorting to a reporter who asked him whether he had proposed to former German tennis star Steffi Graf)

*** "WE DON'T BUCKLE to pressure from anyone. There was no pressure. It was our own decision."

(Spokeswoman of Indian external affairs ministry denying reports that the decision to invite Pakistan's President General Pervez Musharraf to summit with premier Atal Behari Vajpayee was dominated by the US pressure)

*** "IN JAIL he was a very good dad. He wouldn't miss a birthday, he'd always send you a card . . . than when he came out he was swung into the middle of things and he didn't have enough time to spend with his family."

(Eldest daughter of former South African president Nelson Mandela, Dr Maki Mandela, describing her relationship with her famous father saying that it was the strongest when he was in incarcerated)

*** "A BURNT-OUT work force is an unproductive work force, and it is in no one's interests to find themselves in this situation."

(Findings of UK government body, Health and Executive, showing that work-related stress is costing 6.5 million working days and over Pound Sterling 370 million loss to employers every year)

*** "TO SAVE FACE, Washington might commit a new stupidity against Iraq and provoke a crisis which, whatever form it'll take and whatever its results, will not be worse than the adoption of the evil U.S. proposal."

(Iraq's Al Jumhuriya newspaper calling the international community to oppose the US and UK backed 'smart sanctions regime' by the UN)

*** "THIS PREPOSTEROUS notion that Americans are innocent when this country is based on land grabs, slavery and slaughter of indigenous people. Are you insane?"

(US novelist James Ellroy's comment on 'American innocence')

*** "IT IS EASY, I JUST DECLARE AN EMERGENCY."

(Beleaguered Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid refusing to appear before a special parliamentary session on August 1 and instead resort to declare a state of emergency and call in the military to save his presidency)

*** "THIS MARKS a very important moment in the life of this institution."

(Spokesman for UN war crimes tribunal, Jim Landale, on the handing over former Yugoslavian dictator Sloboban 'the butcher' Milosevic to the UN court. He is the first head of the government to be tried before the war crimes court)

*** "IT'S KITE FLYING. What have I got to do with (Pakistan) cricket. My hands are full in India. I have no plans to perform in Pakistan."

(Indian melody queen Lata Mangeshkar denying reports in the Pakistani media that she will perform in music concerts to raise funds for Pakistan Cricket Board)

*** "OUR MAJOR CRITICISM on the financial front is that the whole of royals' finances are shrouded in secrecy."

(Leading UK Republican Stephen Haseler commenting on $ 4.2 million spending cut by the Britain's royal family last year)

*** "I'D LOVE TO DO the same work, but I feel bad the government has put me in jail."

(Indian hangman Mammu Singh who was jailed for the non-payment of $ 65 loan from the government-owned bank. Singh was unable to pay the loan as the government has not paid his salary of $ 391.30 for last 15 months)

*** "DELHI IS A MARKET for both re-export and local consumption, but the former is much more significant in terms of scale and size of trafficking."

(UN report terming the Indian capital as the major transit point for global drug trafficking)