Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 27, 1988)
% Inside Texas A&M [The Battalion M hursday, October 27,1988 College Station, Texas Vol. 88 No. 44 USPS 04536012 Pages Inside Texas A&M folklore I ■ Soviets to release all political prisoners this year, Kohl says IMdOSCOW (AP) — The Soviet Union will release all people regarded in the West as political prisoners by the end of the year. Chancellor Helmut Kohl of | |West Germany said Wednesday after iiijUlk with President Mikhail S. Gorba- ; ches Buch a dramatic move would be one of the boldest signs yet from Gorbachev ' that he seeks a clear break with past I Hmlin human rights practices that have included imprisonment of dissenters | porn Communist Party policy. in M. Eber 1 : “I am skeptical because we’ve heard for a long ime that the Soviets are going to obey the obliga tion to let everyone leave the country who wishes to leave. And that’s just not happened.” — Morris Abram icsp iif Bowever, Foreign Ministry spokes- mar Gennady 1. Gerasimov refused to crptirm or deny that a release of political Brners is imminent. jHe told reporters there are about two n such prisoners. Estimates from Iran rights groups abroad vary from Il50 to more than 500. Berasimov said the fate of the prison ers was not on the agenda of the Soviet- ;Wc t German negotiations that brought Kol 1 to Moscow. Kohl’s announcement was welcomed by Soviet human rights activist Andrei D. Sakharov, the Reagan administration and Amnesty International. But a leader of a group seeking emi gration of Soviet Jews said he remained skeptical. “Certainly we await the release of all of them (prisoners) and their rehabilita tion,” Sakharov, the 1975 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said. In the past three days. Kohl held 10 hours of talks with Gorbachev and also met with other top Kremlin officials. At a news conference called to sum up his visit, Kohl said: “The Soviets con firmed that they will release before the end of the year all political prisoners as we understand it in the West.” Kohl would not say whether the prom ise came from Gorbachev, only that it was made during the talks. Asked how many people may be freed, Kohl’s foreign minister, Hans-Di- etrich Genscher, said: “We are not in a position to give final figures.” Neither Kohl nor Genscher identified prisoners who might be released. It was not clear how many Soviets classified in the West as political prisoners might be freed, since some have been sentenced on criminal charges, including espio nage. Amnesty International, the London- based human rights group, says it knows of 150 Soviets “imprisoned solely for their non-violent exercise of their funda mental human rights.” It put their num ber at 10,000 a few years ago. Amnesty’s list includes about 30 reli gious believers, 30 conscientious objec tors to military service, and about 20 people held for anti-Soviet propaganda and other offenses, said spokeswoman Carline Windaii. Kronid Lubarsky, editor of Country and World, the respected emigre publi cation in Munich, said there are at least 167 Soviet political prisoners. A West German group, the Interna tional Society for Human Rights, said 503 Soviets are imprisoned on political or religious grounds. Many of those sent to labor camp or prisons for political offenses have been convicted under two clauses of the So viet Criminal Code. Article 70 outlaws “anti-Soviet agita tion and propaganda. ” Article 190 for bids “anti-Soviet slander.” “The only number we know is (those held under Article) 70, and only those in camps,” Sakharov said in a telephone interview. He put the total number of those prisoners at 25. “We don’t know who is in psychiatric hospitals . . . We can’t in any way say how many,” said Sakharov, who was kept almost seven years in internal exile for condemning the 1979 Soviet military push into Afghanistan. Sakharov said it was also not known how many of his countrymen were im prisoned for violating laws that regulate the practice of religion. In Washington, State Department spokesman Charles Redman said the United States welcomes the report by Kohl “as evidence the Soviet Union rec ognizes the importance of releasing all political prisoners” and said U.S. offi cials are looking forward to their actual release. Roman Popadiuk, deputy White House press secretary said: “We are awaiting further details. If true, it is something we would look forward to.” In New York, the chairman of the Na tional Conference on Soviet Jewry, Mor ris Abram, said he was skeptical. “One will have to wait to see whether or not the promise is confirmed by the practice,” Abram told the Associated Press. “I am skeptical because we’ve heard for a long time that the Soviets are going to obey the obligation to let everyone leave the country who wishes to leave. And that’s just not happened,” he said. Last year, authorities freed at least 300 prisoners being held on charges includ ing Articles 70 and 190. A&M establishes crime ‘tip’ fund By Sherri Roberts Staff Writer Texas A&M and the Association of Former Students have established a reward fund for people who give the University Police Department information leading to the solving of campus felonies. “We hope that the establishment of this new fund will send a clear signal that we’re serious about com mitting both human and monetary resources to appre hending individuals who engage in criminal activities on our campus,” Robert Smith, vice president for fi nance and administration, said. Bob Wiatt, A&M’s director of security and Univer sity police, said that rewards of up to $10,000 will be given to individuals who give relevant information to police. The value of the information, he said, will be deter mined by representatives from UPD. The crimes to which the rewards apply must be publicly announced, he said, or rewards cannot be given. Information about misdemeanor crimes will not be eligible for the re wards. The abduction and stabbing of an A&M student last week from a campus parking lot is the first case to which the fund will apply, he said. Financed by $5,000 contributions from both the For mer Students’ Association and the president’s office, the fund was approved by A&M President William Mobley shortly after he took office in August. Smith said the fund will accompany, rather than compete with, the successful Crimestoppers program operating in the Brazos Valley and throughout the United States. The rewards will offer an additional in centive for people to come forward with information about campus incidents. Wiatt was optimistic about the program’s potential for success, noting that other law enforcement agen cies have found reward programs to be effective in en couraging people to bring forth information about a crime. Although other universities may offer rewards for information about particular crimes. Smith said he be lieved the fund is the first permanent and on-going uni versity fund of its kind. Establishment of the fund is one of several security measures being adopted by the University. New lighting will be installed at points along the jogging track and around the Commons dormitory complex, Smith said. Studies to determine other areas needing additional lighting are underway, he said. The University also will install emergency telephone call boxes outside of each residence hall next month and in other locations in December and January. Call boxes will be installed at several Parking An nexes, the jogging track, the Research Park, Hensel Park and near Wisenbaker Engineering Research Cen ter. ' -^father tells daughter of baby swap (jandrewtsB^ASOTA. Fla. (AP) — A man ^ uo , sail Wednesday that his 9-year-old moV|r; idati^htcr pleaded, “Daddy, 1 don't want to move away,” after being told of a _ «nnsylvania couple's legal fight to UBve they're her rightful and legal par- 'enF tiff,askediiliB 0 ' 3crt Mays, who had been silent for socialist,sad‘ n hopes of protecting his daugh ter, Kimberly Michelle, stepped forward for the first time Wednesday to reveal his identity. He promised to fight any attempts to take her away, not oi ly because he says his daughter is happy and does not want to move, but because he does not want to give his only daughter up to what he calls strangers. “I wouldn’t care if they traced her heritage to Cabbage Patch U.S.A., she is my daughter,” Mays said at a news con ference, which was held at his attorney’s office. Regina and Ernest Twigg of Lang- home, Pa., claim the girl was born to them but was swapped with another child soon after birth in 1978 at a Florida hos pital. The girl they raised as a daughter died in August of a heart defect, which caused them to suspect foul play. It was ikine t was in Peoe and tauntiii ikIe"a™T out sitortitl lion wjscffl ic spring® i of Ate failing to S ie. Hedisag* ed the Demoa ils and said. ' of televisioi i the orm constructions still auses closing of streets ormitory modules arc still being de livered, causing Houston and Hogg Beets to remain closed intermittently until the end of next week. Bom Williams, director of Parking, Titiffic and Transit, said the construction workers arc delivering the modules as qttiekly as possible. ■‘Rieht now. we're havimz to store the modules on Hogg Street, and we've had closed for parking at that time, to partially block Houston Street during “The modules will conic in from Jcr- the delivery.'' Williams said. “But the sey Street,” Williams said. "We'll have deliveries arc on schedule, and we’d like to block off some of the parking in the to reopen the streets as soon as we can.” area during that time. Wc weren't sup- Williams said delivery of modules for posed keep Mosher Lane open for park- south side dormitory construction will ing this semester, but we've kept it open begin as soon as Northsidc delivery is as long as we possibly could. That area complete. He said Mosher Lane will be will be only a loading area for the halls. D other passtfl red. BJlimate plays an indirect and subordi- s werebeli^|nate role in social and political changes s, the officiuthroughout history, a University of lid not reksjsxas professor said Wednesday as part lilitiesoftbl of a Texas A&M conference to deter- policesaiL mine a single driving force of history, feigners. | Liberal arts professor Karl W. Butzer ecauseoftk told A&M students and participants at mined.APdBe conference titled, “What is the En- .eropeni#Bine of History?” that although climate i explosion ; doe^ affect historical changes, it is not thejdominating factor. number of s I Climate affects plant and animal pro ductivity through such factors as grow- , VictorUrl)® inglseasons, Butzer said. $pokeinai»f|j In the late Middle Ages, 40,000 Euro- ting the cDi 1 i pear settlements out of 170,000 were stoflima. abandoned as a result of short growing nas,chie!pU seasons, cooler winters and heavy rains pital, where! causing soils to lose a significant amount said asm®! of nitrogen. Butzer also cited the extinction of set- esidentoflk tlemcnts in Greenland in the 14th century [he plane# due. in part, to shorter and wetter sum- 9 people at*!.' mers and sharply colder offshore waters vhichoccuisHfusing a decrease of contact with Eu- nilt Fokkerf! Tope airport a! win-jetplaitf’®Extinction occurred because people pa, Peru A [continued to practice agricultural and miles soi 1 hunting strategies from hundreds of lyeais earlier when the climate was dra- take the t matically different. tea, inBoli'ImSociety did not keep pace with cli matic changes, he said. -nanypasse^l A famine in the early 1800s in the Up- jms whenif jperRhine Valley, including France, Ger- md thereat jmany and Switzerland, set into motion a massive immigration to the New World, Butzer said. “You can’t minimize the role of cli- matic^-produced famine,” he said. “Such stress didn’t affect political structures, just social changes,” Butzer said. In the long run, however, climate is a minor factor in economic and demogra phic factors, he said. Climatic changes play a part in his tory, but do not function as a real engine of history because of the relationship ru ral societies have with food resources. Throughout history, the rural popula tion has had methods of reducing famine stress through diversification of crops, Butzer said. Farmers plant crops in different sea sons and crops that can survive under different climatic factors. Another factor combating famine’s ef fects on populations is food storage fa cilities, including protection of grain from rodents and mold and pasteurizing milk, he said. Another factor reducing famine stress has been a network of social and eco nomic contacts that redistributed food in communities during crises, he said. Other strategies mitigating the impact of food stress throughout history have in cluded consumption of food not nor mally eaten (like horses, rodents and wild plants), the sale of material goods and property (sometimes including chil dren) and increasing mobility of families to search for food, Butzer said. Additional sessions planned at conference Other sessions that will take place are as follows: • Environmental and Geo graphic Engines held fodav at 9 a.m. in 206 MSC • Demographic Engines held to day at 2 p.m. in 206 MSC. • University Lecture held today at 7:30 p.m. in Rooms A and B of Clay ton Wtiiium* Aiunuu c enter. • Technological and Economic- Engines to be held Friday at 8:30 a.m. in 206 MSC. • Social and Political Engines to be held Friday at 2 p in. in 206 MSC. • Intellectual and Cultural En gines to be held Saturday at 9 a.m. in 206 MSC. -Jimate plays indirect role ,Hit-in social, political changes conference continues for 3 days >) —AnW people crask ifter takeoff si 19 peopk 1 By Sharon Maberry Staff Writer at this time they had a blood test run that they say proved the child was not their genetic child. Mays, 43, said he told his daughter of the Twiggs’ months-long battle to re quire the fourth-grader to submit to ge netic blood tests to prove her who her natural parents were. About a week ago, he said, he sat his only child down and told her, “We live in America and we are free and we do have a right to make allegations,” which are then processed through the courts. At one point, she grew wide-eyed, he said of the young girl. “She wanted to know if it meant she would have to go live with these peo ple,” he said. “She said ‘Daddy, I don’t want to move away. ’ ’ ’ Mays, who has refused to allow ge netic test and said he is certain he took his own daughter home from the hospi tal, assured her nothing would change as far as he was concerned. “She’s confident Daddy’s taking care of the situation,” he said of his only child. “She is intelligent. I thought she could handle it and she did. She under stood as well as any 9-year-old child would in a situation as completely dev astating as this one.” Kimberly, who has blond hair and blue eyes, looks like her mother and aunt and has some of the same characteristics and mannerisms, he said. Mays has been raising Kimberly alone since his first wife died of cancer in 1981. He is divorced from his second wife. Mays’ name has been known to the news media but had been voluntarily withheld to protect the child, not himself he said. Mays said he has remained silent to protect his daughter, a happy, healthy well-adjusted child, and to ward off any disruption in her life. But he said he feared that she would be told by someone else who might frighten her or cause her mental anguish. Mays said he also had hoped the Twiggs might abandon their fight, but the couple has pressed on. The Twiggs have said their daughter, a healthy girl, was switched in a baby selling scheme at Hardee Memorial Hos pital in Wauchula for a sickly child. Hos pital workers then altered records to hide the swap, they allege. Kimberly was bom at the same hospi tal in late 1978, at about the same time as the daughter the Twiggs raised, Arlena. The couple said genetic tests this sum mer proved Arlena was not their biologi cal daughter. The Twiggs filed a $100 million suit against the hospital and some of its em ployees and persuaded the FBI to inves tigate. The FBI failed to find sufficient evidence that federal law had been vio lated. Mays said the Twiggs have presented no evidence to show Kimberly could be their daughter. And even if genetic tests supported their claim. Mays said he would not surrender her regardless of what means the Twiggs went to. “I would fight to the ends of the earth for her.” Sheriff claims assasin hired to kill Hefner LOS ANGELES (AP) — Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt allegedly offered a hitman $1 million to kill Play boy magazine founder Hugh Hefner, Frank Sinatra, publisher Walter Annen- berg and Penthouse publisher Bob Guc- cione, it was reported Wednesday. The $1 million was never paid, how ever, and the purported hitman, Mitchell WerBell, has since died of a heart attack, KNBC-TV news reported. “Larry Flynt one evening called an in dividual by the name of WerBell to his home and allegedly offered him $1 mil lion if he would arrange for the death of these four individuals,” Sheriff Sherman Block said to KNBC. Sheriff’s officials did not immediately release the names of all the individuals purportedly targeted in the alleged mur der solicitation, but KNBC reported that they were Annenberg, Guccione and Si natra. The station then displayed a photo copy of a $1 million check allegedly signed by Flynt, made out to WerBell. “He did in fact give WerBell a $1 mil lion check, which, immediately upon leaving, we were told, that Flynt’s busi ness manager stopped payment on that check so it never was negotiated,” the sheriff of Los Angeles County said in the broadcast interview. The alleged hitman, who reportedly described himself as a soldier of fortune and founder of a paramilitary organiza tion, died a short time later at UCLA Medical Center, KNBC said. There was no immediate report on whether any charges or investigation were pending against Flynt. No charges have been filed. Photo by Dean Reflections The Academic Building and a passerby are reflected in a puddle after Wednesday afternoon’s showers. There was . 11 inches of rain recieved yes terday, and it is expected to continue through Friday, clearing up on Saturday.