SOUTH AMERICA

BOLIVIAN PRESIDENT OFFERS RESIGNATION IN MIDST OF PROTESTS

President Mesa announced yesterday he would submit his resignation, in a nationally televised speech that came amid growing protests and frustration with his government. Mr. Mesa took office in October 2003, succeeding President Sanchez de Lozada, who resigned in the wake of bloody street protests that took the lives of at least 56 people. Mr. Mesa’s government has struggled with a growing push for greater political autonomy in Bolivia’s most prosperous region.

“Tomorrow, I will submit my resignation to the president of Congress, so Congress can make a decision,” Mr. Mesa said in a nationally broadcast address.

In February, he shuffled his Cabinet after massive street protests calling for regional autonomy and objecting to a planned increase in the price of fuel oil.

An autonomy drive by Santa Cruz, the nation’s richest province, had earlier forced Mr. Mesa to grant concessions clearing the way for provinces to elect their own governors, who are now appointed by the president.

– Associated Press

MIDDLE EAST

TURKISH POLICE BEAT WOMEN’S RIGHTS PROTESTERS

Riot police yesterday used truncheons and tear gas to break up a group of leftist demonstrators who refused to disperse during an unauthorized demonstration marking the upcoming World Women’s Day. Police were seen chasing and beating demonstrators with clubs, according to footage from APTN. One woman demonstrator was knocked to the ground by police officers, then kicked in the face by another officer.

Policemen in gas masks could also be seen spraying tear gas directly onto demonstrators’ faces. There were no immediate reports of serious injuries.

Police at first called on the group of about 300 demonstrators to disperse, and all but a group of about 100 left peacefully. The demonstrators had been chanting: “Equal pay for equal work,” and “We won’t be intimidated, we will resist.” A few thousand demonstrators, mostly women, took part in an authorized demonstration in Istanbul on Saturday to draw attention to women’s rights ahead of the March 8 World Women’s Day. Police did not intervene.

– Associated Press

EASTERN EUROPE

EXIT POLL: COMMUNIST PARTY AHEAD IN MOLDOVA ELECTIONS

An exit poll showed the ruling Communist Party in the former Soviet republic of Moldova held an 11-point lead in parliamentary elections yesterday in a vote shaping up to be another blow to Russia’s waning influence in its former empire.

Moldova’s Communists, once allied with Russia, have switched loyalties in recent years and now favor closer ties to the European Union. In the exit poll based on 90% of voters, the Communists won 40% of the vote, the centrist Democratic Moldova Bloc 29%, and the center-right Popular Christian Democratic Party 14%. The poll, which had a margin of error of 2 percentage points, was carried out jointly by the Institute for Marketing And Polls and two other groups, Opinia and Civis. The Communists and the two centrist parties were the only parties out of the 15 to win enough votes to gain seats in the 101-member Parliament, according to the poll. There was no breakdown on seats won.

– Associated Press

EAST ASIA

SUSPECT WHO FIRED SHOT AT TAIWANESE PRESIDENT IDENTIFIED

Investigators said today they’ve identified the “most likely suspect” who fired a shot that slightly injured President Chen one day before he was narrowly re-elected last March. But the suspect, Chen Yi-hsiung, died shortly after the March 19 shooting and police thought it was a suicide because the man prepared a will just before his death, said Hou You-yi, head of the Criminal Investigation.

“We investigated 119 suspects …and Chen Yi-hsiung was the most likely suspect,” Mr. Hou told reporters. Mr. Hou said video footage shot before the shooting put Chen Yi-hsiung at the scene and an extensive investigation of the weapon used traced it back to the suspect, who purchased his handgun shortly before the shooting

– Associated Press