Briefly

THAILAND

Fugitive ex-leader urges reconciliation

BANGKOK | Thailand’s fugitive former leader, who called for revolution earlier this week as his supporters’ riots paralyzed Bangkok, urged the protests’ leaders Thursday to join government reconciliation talks.

The government’s call for parliament to meet to resolve the political crisis came a day after Thai authorities announced they had revoked ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s passport for inciting the protesters with his rhetoric.

The former leader told the Associated Press during an interview in Dubai that the move would not restrict his movement because he has multiple passports, including a diplomatic one issued by Nicaragua.

Current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who returned to his government offices for the first time Thursday since demonstrations began three weeks ago, said a special joint session of parliament would begin the process of political healing next week.

INDIA

Monthlong elections begin

NEW DELHI | It takes a month to elect a new leader in the world’s largest democracy.

In remote farming villages and sprawling concrete cities, tens of millions of Indians voted Thursday amid a deeply fractured political scene largely empty of national issues.

The election won’t wrap up until mid-May - and there may not be a new government selected until early June - but a series of bloody guerrilla attacks and blazing summertime temperatures failed to keep voters away from the polls.

Early estimates indicated a fairly heavy turnout, with most states reporting more than 60 percent of eligible voters casting their ballots.

INDONESIA

Top court clears Time magazine

JAKARTA | Indonesia’s top court cleared Time magazine of charges it defamed ex-dictator Suharto by purporting in a cover story that his family amassed a huge fortune during his rule. It said Thursday the publication did not have to pay $106 million in damages.

The ruling, which marks the end of the appeals process, was hailed as a victory for press freedom.

“We have been struggling to find justice for a decade now,” said Todung Mulya Lubis, the magazine’s lawyer, adding that he hoped the decision would give journalists the courage to do their jobs. “It has been a long road.”

Time ran a cover story in its Asian edition in May 1999 saying Suharto family members had pocketed billions of dollars during his 32-year reign - the bulk of it from oil and mining, forestry, property, banking and petrochemicals - and that they’d stashed much of the money overseas.

CHINA

Bishop seeks religious freedom

HONG KONG | The new head of Hong Kong’s Catholic church pledged Thursday to unite Chinese Catholics and work toward ensuring religious freedom on the mainland.

Hong Kong and Macao are the only places in China where the Roman Catholic Church is allowed. Beijing severed ties with the Holy See in 1951 after the Communists took power and set up a church outside the pope’s authority.

Faithful on the mainland are allowed to worship only with the state-sanctioned church, the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, which recognizes the pope as a spiritual leader but appoints its own priests and bishops. But a thriving underground following remains loyal to the Vatican.

Bishop John Tong assumed his role as head of Hong Kong’s diocese on Thursday. He replaces the long-serving Cardinal Joseph Zen, an outspoken champion of religious liberty who was mistrusted by Beijing.

From wire dispatches and staff reports