[LINK] "Moon mission takes India's space program in new direction"

This Christian Science Monitor article caught my attention.

India's 39-year-old space program is perhaps unique. In a country of great need, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has long prioritized the practical uses of space science over the prestige it so often brings.

The Chandrayaan-1 lunar probe marks an evolution of this tradition, signaling the new scope of the country's ambitions while at the same time rooted in the ISRO's modest beginnings – built solely with Indian know-how and for one-sixth the cost of a similar NASA mission.

"It is now a mature-enough space program to start doing these sorts of things," says Jeff Foust of The Space Review, an online magazine.

Chandrayaan is India's entry into an emerging Asian space race. China and Japan have also recently sent spacecraft to the moon, as well. South Korea is building its own space program. Following in China's footsteps, India is expected to begin a manned space program, too, though the decision has yet to be made.

Chandrayaan is scheduled to reach the Moon after five days and spend two years in orbit, mapping the surface and looking for water ice deposits among other tasks. Two of the 11 instruments were designed by NASA, four are European, and five are Indian – including a small "impactor" probe that will be shot into the moon's surface to analyze its composition.

The author argues that India's space program traces its ancestry not to military projects but rather to a government push to integrate Indians into a progressively wealthier and healthier environment. I don't know enough about this to judge its accuracy, but it sounds like something I'd like to believe.

[LINK] "French Hand Seen in Western Sahara Impasse"

Over at Inter Press Service, Haider Rizvi tackles the question of why the Western Sahara, occupied by Morocco in defiance of international law.

"The main reason behind the U.N. failure to address this issue is the French support for Morocco," said Ahmed Boukhari, Western Sahara's ambassador to the U.N., in an interview with IPS. "France is behind Morocco. It finances Morocco."

Western Sahara is the last decolonisation case in Africa, and has been on the U.N. list of Non-Self Governing territories since 1963 when it was under Spanish colonial rule. Saharans lost much of their territory as a result of the Moroccan invasion in 1976.

Saharans argue that the Moroccan occupation is in violation of numerous U.N. resolutions as well as the 1975 ruling of the International Court of Justice that affirmed their right to self-determination.

Following the court's decision, Spain was due to organiae a referendum, but failed to do so as Morocco deployed its army in Western Sahara. In response, the Saharans established a resistance group known as Polisario in 1976. In 1991, the U.N. Security Council devised a plan to end fighting between the two sides and a free and fair referendum on self-determination in which Saharans would choose between independence and integration. The plan never worked.

After holding a series of discussions, the U.N. General Assembly's political committee, which considers matters related to decolonisation, passed another resolution in which it reaffirmed the right of "all peoples" to self-determination in line with the U.N. Charter.

Those who support the Saharans' quest for freedom are critical of the text of the resolution because it overemphasises the role of the Security Council. The Council is currently pushing the two sides for talks for an "acceptable solution". The increased Security Council role in bringing the conflict to an end seems more desirable for Morocco because then its backer, France, can exert its influence in decision-making process as one of the five permanent members who enjoy veto power.

During discussions at the General Assembly's political committee meeting, Morocco and its supporters argued that the question of Western Sahara needs to be addressed with "realism", which means Rabat might be willing to offer an autonomous status to Western Sahara, not the choice for independence.

"Which kind of realism they are talking about? Kosovo or Abkhazia? We are not going to renounce our right to self-determination. We want a free and fair credendum. If people do not want independence, we will accept that," said Bukhari, who sees French backing as a major factor behind Morocco's attempts to bury the issue of Western Sahara's independence.

As the author notes, the Western Sahara is rich in natural resources, so rich that Morocco isn't likely to relinquish its hold on the territory. Worse, unlike Kosovo or Abkhazia, the Western Sahara has no great-power patron with the dubious exception of Algeria.

[BRIEF NOTE] Depeche Mode on top of the World Trade Center (South Tower)

Again idly surfing YouTube this Tuesday just past, I decided to look for some Depeche Mode to play in the background. Their 1990 international hit single "Enjoy the Silence" appealed to me particularly, and so I looked and found the below video.

"Toronto Police controlling the situation that seemed out of hand!" (Watch on YouTube)

This video, shot at the filmed at the Top of the World observatory on top of the South Tower, was apparently created in 1990 for French television.

I look at the video and wonder at the almost unbelievably low railings and the immense heights that erase entire neighbourhoods.