Bomb Bomb...Car bomb explodes near US diplomats September 23 2002 A vehicle packed with explosives blew up near a building housing US embassy officials in Jakarta early today, police said. There was no immediate confirmation of any casualties or damage. But Jakarta police Chief Anton Bachrul Alam said one suspect was shot dead at the scene by police after the explosion. He said another suspect was detained and two others managed to escape. Alam said it was too early to know whether the explosion was linked to recent truck bomb threats against the US embassy in the Indonesian capital. Amerika,your screwed.Kryg me a river...Australia is implicated in propping up a corrupt and oppressive Central Asian regime, writes Craig Skehan. One of the few international-standard hotels in Bishkek, capital of Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia, is distinguished by magnificent hand-woven carpets and fine, melancholic music in the foyer. The carpets are courtesy of an ethnically diverse culture, including a long nomadic tradition. And much of the music played by two guitarists and a violinist is a legacy of Tsarist Russian annexation in 1864 and subsequent rule by the Soviet Union until 1991. Long ago Josef Stalin imposed murderous political repression on the central Asian republics, and now it is making a comeback. The authoritarian government of President Askar Akayev has begun what international human rights groups say is a savage assault on basic rights. In the name of cracking down on Islamic fundamentalism - which is being pushed across the border from Uzbekistan into the landlocked country of 5million people - Mr Akayev's state security apparatus has arrested many Muslims and restricted their religious freedom. Many politically active Muslims in Kyrgyzstan who previously campaigned peacefully are becoming radicalised by the Government's actions. And Australia, in a modest way, has entered the complex local political matrix by joining the United States-led international force stationed at Manas airfield on the edge of Bishkek. Two RAAF 707s, used to refuel coalition war planes over Afghanistan to the south, are part of Australia's contribution to stemming the spread of militant Islam in the region. But this also leaves Australia open to charges that it is helping Washington to prop up a corrupt and increasingly oppressive regime. Mr Akayev granted permission for the international force to be based in his country as a hoped-for insurance policy against externally backed internal revolt. A trip to the Uighur produce market in Bishkek gives an insight into the regionalism of this mountainous country, which lacks the oil and gas riches of some of its neighbours. Amid tables piled with goats' heads and carcasses, neat stacks of dried apricots and boxes filled with walnuts, the traders range from very European-looking Russian-speakers to Kyrgyz descended from nomadic tribes. Here there has been a spate of violent incidents by Islamic militants, including the shooting recently of a South Korean businessman and his wife, that reveals the complex and potentially explosive ethnic mix of the region. Although Russia still has a dominant influence here, it gave its approval for the US to set up military bases in the region, including Kyrgyzstan, to conduct the war in Afghanistan. But the crackdown on dissent in Kyrgyzstan, including on members of the broader non-Islamic opposition, is helping to fuel opposition to the presence of the US, Australian and other foreign military forces. There have been protests over the killing by security forces in March of at least five protesters. A fortnight ago a grenade was thrown at the acting chief of the presidential administration, Misir Ashirkulov, and he remains in a serious condition in hospital.
