World digest 7/29/03

Alarmed Vatican rallies against same-sex unions

VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican hopes to rally public opposition to gay marriages in a worldwide campaign spurred by its alarm over growing legal acceptance of same-sex unions in Europe and North America.

Pope John Paul II has been speaking out for months against legislative proposals to legalize same-sex marriages. But instructions to be released this week go a step further by outlining a course of action for politicians to oppose extending the rights accorded to traditional couples, Vatican officials said.

The document is titled "Considerations Regarding Proposals to Give Legal Recognition to Unions Between Homosexual Persons."

One official familiar with the document called it a "practical reflection" for both Catholic and non-Catholic politicians and public opinion in general.

WTO brings trade talks, protests to Montreal

MONTREAL -- Cocooned inside a luxury hotel while protesters rampaged through the streets outside, trade ministers from 25 countries sought to find compromises Monday to disputes over agricultural trade, investment and reducing the prices of vital drugs.

The ministers were in Montreal at the invitation of Canadian Trade Minister Pierre Pettigrew to try to find solutions to problems negotiators and diplomats have so far failed to resolve at the Geneva-based World Trade Organization.

A small group of protesters, opposed to what they consider the enrichment of developed countries at the expense of poor nations, rampaged through downtown Montreal, smashing store windows and attacking capitalist symbols.

"Capital is moving across borders with increasing frequency on the backs of the poorest and most marginalized people of the world," declared one protester, Tony Tracy, who works for the homeless in Toronto.

Negotiators attending the three days of talks expressed confidence progress could be made in bridging differences before a meeting of all 146 members of the WTO in Cancun, Mexico, in September.

Rights group: Warlords endanger Afghan election

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Warlords are creating "a climate of fear" in Afghanistan that is threatening efforts to draft a new constitution and could derail national elections expected next year, a human rights group said.

In a report released Monday night, Human Rights Watch accused soldiers and police loyal to powerful warlords -- many of whom are in the government -- of kidnapping, extortion, robbery and the rape of women, girls and boys. The group also detailed numerous death threats against Afghan journalists and low-level politicians.

"If allowed to continue with impunity, these abuses will make it impossible for Afghans to create a modern, democratic state," the group said.

Most of those now in power were backed by the United States and its allies in the war that toppled the Taliban in late 2001 and many still work as allies alongside American troops now in the country.

-- From wire reports