Judge warns against dictatorship

LAHORE – Pakistan’s suspended chief judge told thousands of cheering supporters yesterday that dictatorship was a thing of the past and states that ignored the rule of law and basic rights faced destruction.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry arrived in the city of Lahore on Sunday after tens of thousands of supporters turned out to greet him as he travelled by road from Islamabad. The trip takes four hours but took him more than 20.Speaking in the compound of the Lahore High Court to thousands of lawyers, 17 of Punjab province’s 23 judges, and opposition activists outside on the street, Chaudhry made no direct reference to President Pervez Musharraf or his government.But his message was clear.Brazil bypasses patent on Merck AIDS drug * BRASILIA – President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday authorised Brazil to break the patent on an AIDS drug made by Merck & Co.Inc.and import a generic version from India instead.It was the first time Brazil bypassed a patent to acquire cheaper drugs for its AIDS prevention programme, a step recently taken by Thailand.Other countries, including Canada and Italy, have also used a clause in World Trade Organisation rules to flout drug patents in the name of public health.Talks over the price of Merck’s drug, Efavirenz, broke off on Thursday when the health ministry rejected the New Jersey-based company’s offer to cut its $1,59 per pill price by 30 per cent.Brazil wanted to pay what Merck charges Thailand, or $0,65 per pill.SNP tries to form coalition * EDINBURGH – Newly elected lawmakers from the Scottish Nationalist Party discussed on Saturday how to turn their poll-topping triumph into a stable administration for Scotland.But the Scottish Nationalists, who won 47 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, faced immediate difficulties on the road to finding a parliamentary majority.Their most likely suitor for a coalition government, the Liberal Democrats, unanimously rejected a key SNP campaign promise – to mount a referendum on independence from Britain by 2010.Scottish Nationalist leader Alex Salmond said he expected to open negotiations soon with the Liberal Democrats, who hold 16 seats, and the Greens, who won two.Together, the three parties could form a 65-member bloc, barely sufficient for a majority.But the Liberal Democrat lawmakers, who had their own strategy meeting Saturday, emphasised that most voters had backed British parties favoring continued union with England.Nampa-AP-ReutersThe trip takes four hours but took him more than 20.Speaking in the compound of the Lahore High Court to thousands of lawyers, 17 of Punjab province’s 23 judges, and opposition activists outside on the street, Chaudhry made no direct reference to President Pervez Musharraf or his government.But his message was clear.Brazil bypasses patent on Merck AIDS drug * BRASILIA – President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday authorised Brazil to break the patent on an AIDS drug made by Merck & Co.Inc.and import a generic version from India instead.It was the first time Brazil bypassed a patent to acquire cheaper drugs for its AIDS prevention programme, a step recently taken by Thailand.Other countries, including Canada and Italy, have also used a clause in World Trade Organisation rules to flout drug patents in the name of public health.Talks over the price of Merck’s drug, Efavirenz, broke off on Thursday when the health ministry rejected the New Jersey-based company’s offer to cut its $1,59 per pill price by 30 per cent.Brazil wanted to pay what Merck charges Thailand, or $0,65 per pill.SNP tries to form coalition * EDINBURGH – Newly elected lawmakers from the Scottish Nationalist Party discussed on Saturday how to turn their poll-topping triumph into a stable administration for Scotland.But the Scottish Nationalists, who won 47 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, faced immediate difficulties on the road to finding a parliamentary majority.Their most likely suitor for a coalition government, the Liberal Democrats, unanimously rejected a key SNP campaign promise – to mount a referendum on independence from Britain by 2010.Scottish Nationalist leader Alex Salmond said he expected to open negotiations soon with the Liberal Democrats, who hold 16 seats, and the Greens, who won two.Together, the three parties could form a 65-member bloc, barely sufficient for a majority.But the Liberal Democrat lawmakers, who had their own strategy meeting Saturday, emphasised that most voters had backed British parties favoring continued union with England.Nampa-AP-Reuters