GM to shed 21,000 U.S. workers by 2010

The file photo taken on April 15, 2009 shows the GM logo outside the GM headquarters in Detroit, the United States. General Motors announced restructuring plans on April 27, 2009, to cut 23,000 U.S. jobs by 2011, drop its storied Pontiac brand and slash 40% of its dealer network in its latest bid to stay out of bankruptcy.

CHICAGO, April 27 (Xinhua) -- General Motors presented on Monday an updated viability plan that will lay off more U.S. workers.

GM's hourly workers will be shed by 7,000 more than outlined in the February plan, from 61,000 to 40,000 by 2010. Salaried employees are also expected to be cut further.

The file photo taken on April 15, 2009 shows the GM headquarters in Detroit, the United States.

GM, surviving on 15.4 billion dollars in U.S. loans and seeking more, launched a very dilutive debt-for-stock exchange offer for 27 billion dollars of its unsecured bonds. If the swap is successful, bondholders will own about 10 percent of the company. If not, it will file for bankruptcy protection.

As part of the revised viability plan, GM in the U.S. will focus its resources on four core brands, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. The Pontiac brand will be phased out by the end of 2010.

The file photo taken on April 14, 2009 shows a "GM next" board inside the GM headquarters in Detroit, the United States.

Chrysler talks break down, bankruptcy looms

A walking stop sign is seen in front of the logo of Chrysler at a car dealership in New York, the United States, April 7, 2009. The U.S. Treasury will provide a further five billion dollars in loans to General Motors and 500 million dollars to Chrysler as the automakers work on their viability plans, officials said Tuesday.

CHICAGO, April 29 (Xinhua) -- Talks between the U.S. Treasury Department and Chrysler LLC lenders over the automaker's debt broke off late Wednesday, leaving bankruptcy the automaker's all but certain option, news agencies reported.

Chrysler will file for bankruptcy after the talks broke down, since its 80 percent of stocks are controlled by private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP, Reuters reported, quoting the Wall Street Journal.

The Associated Press also reported that the talks "have disintegrated," citing its own sources.

"After allowing talks to continue late into the night Wednesday, the Treasury Department finally ended negotiations after the hedge funds were unable to come to an agreement," the AP report said.

The U.S. government had set an April 30 deadline for Chrysler to strike a deal with Fiat after concluding that the struggling automaker would not be viable on its own.

The talks between Chrysler LLC's lenders and the Treasury Department was aimed at reducing the automaker's 6.9 billion dollars in secured debt and keep it out of bankruptcy protection.

The breakdown also means further emergency government aid for Chrysler will be withheld.

Chrysler officially files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

CHICAGO, April -- Chrysler LLC officially announced on Thursday that the once auto giant will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy shortly after U.S. President Barack Obama made a midday speech, in which he indicated that the troubled automaker will form an alliance with the Italian carmaker Fiat Group SpA.

In a statement, Chrysler said it was not able to obtain the necessary concessions from all of its lenders, which would have avoided the need for a bankruptcy proceeding. As a result, under the direction of the U.S. Treasury, Chrysler and 24 of its wholly owned U.S. subsidiaries filed voluntary petitions under Chapter 11of the Bankruptcy Code in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

A Chrysler 200C is shown during the International New York Auto Show in New York, the U.S., in this file photo taken on April 8, 2009. U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday that he supports the nation's third largest automaker Chrysler LLC to file for bankruptcy protection, saying he believes Chrysler will emerge quickly from bankruptcy as a stronger, more viable company.

At the same time, Chrysler announced that it has reached an agreement in principle to establish a global strategic alliance with Fiat SpA to form a vibrant new company. It will allow Chrysler and Fiat to fully optimize their respective manufacturing footprints and the global supplier base, while providing each with access to additional markets. Fiat power trains and components will also be produced at Chrysler manufacturing sites.

"While I am excited about the creation of the global alliance, I am personally disappointed that today Chrysler has filed for Chapter 11. This was not my first choice," said Bob Nardelli, chairman and CEO of Chrysler.

An employee works in a Chrysler dealer in New York, the U.S., in this file photo taken on April 24, 2009.

Chrysler also will file a motion under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code requesting the swift approval by the court of the agreement with Fiat and the sale of Chrysler's principal assets to the new company. The benefit of this type of filing is speed. It should allow a leaner new company to emerge in a matter of 30 to 60 days, well positioned for long-term viability.

To push the Chrysler forward, the U.S. government will provide sufficient debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing to allow continuation of "business as usual."

Chrysler also reached an agreement in principle with GMAC to become the preferred lender for Chrysler dealer and consumer business. GMAC will be able to offer the best long-term finance options for Chrysler dealers and customers with standard rate installment products.

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks about the Chrysler Chapter 11 filing and its partnership with Fiat from the White House in Washington April 30, 2009.

Under the plan the Obama administration outlined Thursday, the Treasury Department will provide Chrysler with up to 3.5 billion U.S. dollars in DIP financing, and the Canadian government will provide around 800 million dollars and get 2 percent of Chrysler's equity. The United States has transferred 280 million dollars to a Chrysler warranty guarantee program.

The government will loan GMAC LLC additional money so it can take over financing of Chrysler vehicles from Chrysler Financial. The government already has infused nearly 6 billion dollars into GMAC.

After the partnership deal is completed, the Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA) will own 55 percent of the new company and the U.S. and Canadian governments will own proportionate shares of a 10 percent stake. Fiat will initially hold a 20 percent ownership stake in Chrysler. Fiat can conditionally increase its ownership stake by an additional 15 percent in three increments.

U.S. President Barack Obama (C) speaks about Chrysler and the auto industry, as he stands with his auto task force at the White House in Washington April 30, 2009.

Chrysler also indicated that most manufacturing operations will be temporarily idled from next Monday. Normal production schedules will resume when the transaction is completed, which is anticipated within 30 to 60 days.

Nardelli, who is going to leave the company and return to Chrysler's biggest stockholder Cerberus Capital Management as an advisor after the transaction, assured that the new Fiat-Chrysler company will produce and support quality vehicles under the Jeep, Dodge and Chrysler brands as well as parts under the Mopar brand. Chrysler dealerships remain open for business serving customers. All vehicle warranties will be honored without interruption and consumers can continue to purchase Chrysler vehicles with complete confidence.

Chrysler's official bankruptcy announcement came after President Obama's speech about the Chrysler's future on Thursday ,after talks between the Treasury Department and the Auburn Hills automaker's creditors failed to reach an agreement on late Wednesday night.

The president harshly scolded the group of investment companies and hedge funds that balked at a debt restructuring. "I don't stand with those who held out when everybody else is making sacrifices," Obama said, calling them "speculators" who sought to endanger Chrysler's future for their own benefit.

The bankruptcy "will be quick, it will be efficient, it is designed to deal with those last few holdouts," Obama said.

He emphasized filing for bankruptcy "is not a sign of weakness, but rather one more step on a clearly charted path to Chrysler's revival."

50% turnout in third phase of Indian general elections

NEW DELHI, April -- India held the third phase of its general elections Thursday in a relatively peaceful atmosphere with an estimated 50 percent turnout, lower than that in the previous two phases of polling, said Indian election commission officials.

Heat in some parts of the country apparently affected the turnout rate although millions braved 40-plus degree high temperature to go to the polls.

Voters wait in line at Lucknow montessori school polling station in Lucknow, India, April 30, 2009. India held the third phase of its general elections Thursday in the month-long polling which started in mid-April.

This phase's poll, joined by half of 144 million voters, would determine the fate of 1,567 candidates for members of parliament, including Congress party president Sonia Gandhi and L.K. Advani, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) prime ministerial candidate.

The 14 constituencies in West Bengal recorded the highest turnout of 64 percent, followed by the southern state of Karnataka with 57 percent, Gujarat with 50 percent and Maharashtra, where Mumbai is located, with 45 percent, said election commission officials.

Indian voters wait in line for their turn outside a polling booth in Lalgarh, some 175 km southwest of Kolkata, capital of eastern Indian state West Bengal, April 30, 2009. India held the third phase of its general elections Thursday in the month-long polling which started in mid-April.

The turnout rates in the previous two phases were 57 percent and 55 percent, respectively, according to official estimates.

The lowest turnout Thursday was in India-controlled Kashmir's Anantnag constituency with only a 26 percent turnout due to separatists' calls for boycott.

With the completion of the third phase, 372 out of 543 parliament members should have been elected, while the remaining two phases of the voting would be held on May 7 and 13 and counting of votes is due to be made on May 16.

Kashmiri Muslim voters wait in a queue to cast their votes at a polling booth during the third phase of Indian general elections in Veer Anantang parliament constituency, some 40 km south of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian controlled Kashmir, April 30, 2009.

Two civilians were killed and a paramilitary trooper was injured when a landmines planted by suspected extreme-left rebels went off in West Bengal, said police.

Six people were injured in violent clashes between supporters of the BJP party and its rival party SJP in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, also according to the police.

Obama says he supports Chrysler's filing for bankruptcy protection

WASHINGTON, April -- U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday that he supports the nation's third largest automaker Chrysler LLC to file for bankruptcy protection, saying he believes Chrysler will emerge quickly from bankruptcy as a stronger, more viable company.

Necessary steps have been taken to give Chrysler, one of America's most storied automakers, "a new lease on life," Obama said in brief remarks at the White House.

The president said he believes the bankruptcy filing will put the struggling company back on its feet and that the process for recovery will be relatively fast.

Obama also announced a merger between Chrysler and Italy automaker Fiat.

"Today, I am pleased to announce that Chrysler and Fiat have formed a partnership that has a strong chance of success," Obama said. The deal will help Chrysler emerge from a swift and "controlled" bankruptcy as a stronger company, he added.

To help quickly restructure Chrysler, the government will provide aid of up to another 6 billion dollars to the struggling U.S. auto giant, according to news reports. Chrysler has been living off 4 billion dollars in government funds since the start of the year.

Chrysler has to file for bankruptcy protection after talks broke down with a small group of the automaker's creditors, who rejected a final opportunity to restructure Chrysler outside of bankruptcy in negotiations with the U.S. Treasury Department.

Obama blasted the group of investment firms and hedge funds, who he said were holding out for the prospect of an unjustified taxpayer bailout.

A

"I don't stand with them," he said.

Chrysler has been hard hit by the economic downturn and the worst decline in auto sales in decades. It got 4 billion dollars in emergency loans from the government in December last year on the condition that it would develop a plan to restructure.

It nears a deadline of 11:59 p.m. Thursday to have deals in place with labor, creditors and Italian automaker Fiat.

Two of the government's requirements are in place. Fiat is expected to sign on as a Chrysler partner sometime Thursday. And the United Auto Workers (UAW) union ratified a cost-cutting deal on Wednesday night.

A bankruptcy filing doesn't mean Chrysler will shut down. Under the bankruptcy law that Chrysler would file under, a judge would decide how much creditors would get, but is likely to go with any settlement agreed to by the majority of the creditors.

"No one should be confused about what a bankruptcy process means," Obama said on Thursday. "This is not a sign of weakness but rather one more step on a clearly chartered path to Chrysler's revival."

Long Beach woman helped create library in Cambodia

Emi Caitlin enjoying a local snack in Cambodia while performing her Peace Corps Volunteer work

Children of all ages in rural Takeo Province, Cambodia now have a library and books to call their own. (Photo courtesy of Caitlin Ishigooka)
Students at the school where Peace Corps volunteer Emi Caitlin Ishigooka raised funds for a new library decorated the space with a large mural of the world. (Photo courtesy of Caitlin Ishigooka)

04/28/2009
By Greg Mellen, Staff Writer
Long Beach Press Telegram
LONG BEACH - One sign came when she couldn't enter the existing library because the floor was covered with six inches of rice that had been put there to dry during harvest season.

Another was the selection of volumes, such as the organic chemistry textbooks, in English, that a well-meaning but obviously clueless charity donated to the rural school in the poor farming community.

Still another was the abundance of books in French and English, but the paucity of books in Khmer.

So, Peace Corps volunteer Emi Caitlin Ishigooka from Long Beach jumped at the opportunity to create a new library when approached with the idea by the director of the Cambodian school where she was teaching high school English.

A 26-year-old UCLA and Poly High graduate who will attend USC graduate school in public administration in the fall, Ishigooka recently returned from a two-year stint as one of the inaugural group of Peace Corps volunteers assigned to Cambodia.

While she has come back to the U.S. with the usual bucketful of stories about life in a village with no running water, strange encounters with the local fauna and edible delicacies such as fried tarantulas, it is the library she built in her second year abroad that has the most meaning.

In the truest of the people, by the people and for the people tradition, Ishigooka says that from the outset she wanted the students to be the driving force.

"From the beginning they had a major say," Ishigooka said. "They gave me the titles and subjects that interested them. I did keep one Norton Anthology, though."

Ishigooka applied for a grant from the Peace Corps, eventually raising about $3,500, including $300 or $400 from the students and the families themselves.

Once a new non-produce storing building was found, students began cleaning and decorating the new facility, including painting a large mural of the world on the wall.

"With the grant money, we were able to get books for all grade levels," Ishigooka said. And they were able to get them in Khmer: novels, history, poetry, even an edition in translation of Harry Potter.

The library was also outfitted with a listening center to help students with languages and other learning areas.

For Ishigooka, as important as getting the actual volumes, was giving the students a sense of ownership and responsibility for the library.

This included students volunteering to staff the library, setting schedules and actually be there during operating hours, along with maintaining the facility.

"This was built by an incredible group," Ishigooka says.

The best part, was "to see students make it their own. Now the student librarians are leaders and role models. And in the process we were promoting volunteerism, which for a Peace Corps volunteer is pretty phenomenal."

As she sits at a Starbucks near the Traffic Circle and begins to renew her relationship with coffee, finds a job, visits with friends, checks text messages, prepares for graduate school and negotiates with her mom for use of the car, the 26-year-old is very much back into the hectic flow of life of an young American woman on the upward career and educational track.

But a part of Ishigooka will always be in Cambodia, beyond the retainer a rat absconded with.

When Ishigooka looks back, she hopes she left something lasting and tangible.

"The kids are are so proud and took such good care of (the library) that I'm confident years from now it will still be there and be a big part of the school and community," Ishigooka says.

Hun Sen proposes emergency meeting of ASEAN to deal with swine flu

Cambodia PM proposes emergency meeting of ASEAN to deal with swine flu

By Xia Lin, Long Heng

PHNOM PENH, April 29 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen Wednesday proposed to hold an emergency meeting of ASEAN countries to seek measures against the deadly swine influenza outbreak.

"We should have an emergency meeting among the ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries, if possible, to take actions against the deadly swine flu," he told a student graduation ceremony of the National Institute of Education in Phnom Penh.

Thailand has to play the role of chairman for this meeting, he said, adding that currently Thailand is the chair country of ASEAN.

"We have to find measures to prevent and fight against this fast spread of pig flu," he said.

We also need to seek ways to prevent this epidemic from affecting bilateral trade among the regional countries, if it occurs in one of them, he added.

Meanwhile, the premier appealed to the local people not to panic over swine flu, as pork is still edible if properly cooked.

However, people with high body temperature must wear masks and rush to hospital, he said, adding that "Cambodia has weak facilities, but our spirit is strong."

The Ministry of Health (MoH) will require any citizen or foreign visitor, who are suspected of catching this illness, not to fly to other countries, he said.

"We will take him to hospital for treatment," he added.

In addition, the premier confirmed that there is no sign of swine flu occurrence among pigs and human beings in Cambodia, adding that the government has not adopted any ban on pork importation from its neighboring countries.

Also on Wednesday, Sem Sovan, secretary general of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries, told Xinhua that the ministry has been closely tracking the development of swine flu since it was first found in other countries.

"We selected some samples from the pig farms across our own country to test for swine flu, but up to now, we don't spot any sign of it. There are no suspected cases of swine flu on pigs in Cambodia at all," he added.

In the mean time, Ly Sovan, deputy director of the Anti-communicable Disease Department of MoH, also testified this updated information made public by the premier and the secretary general.

"At the airports, our unit is monitoring the passengers who traveled here from the affected countries," he added.

The government installed a thermal scanner at the Phnom Penh International Airport on Tuesday and another one at the Siem Reap International Airport on Wednesday.

These two terminals are the only international airports in the kingdom. A third airport is situated in Sihanouk province, but only serves domestic flights.

In 2007, over two million foreign visitors arrived in Cambodia.

On Monday, The World Health Organization (WHO) and MoH issued a joint statement late Monday, saying that "medical clinics are asked to immediately report any unusual influenza like illness cases to MoH. WHO Western Pacific Regional Office is closely monitoring the situation in the region and has activated its outbreak and emergency management protocols," it said.

In addition, "Cambodia has increased its surveillance for unusual respiratory illness in hospitals, health centers and airport," it said.

"While there is no vaccine against this type of influenza, there are a range of possible treatments although it is not yet clear which will be most appropriate," it said.

"Cambodia has prepared stockpiles of various resources, including medication to treat viral illness, and has access to additional regional supplies if required," it added.

Meanwhile, according to Sok Touch, director of the Anti-communicable Disease Department of MoH, the ministry will use the existing equipment and system nationwide for combating bird flu to monitor swine flu.

The ministry will cooperate with WHO to take actions on the pig-farming industry if necessary, but the very next step will focus on travelers from the infected areas, he added.

So far, swine influenza has killed 159 people in Mexico, led to68 human contamination cases in U.S., and affected altogether 23 countries in the world.