SECTION C NEWS BROADCAST

　　News Item One (18-19)
　　A court in Zimbabwe is due to deliver its verdict today in a trial of a journalist who works for the British newspaper The Guaidian. The trial is seen as a test case for the country’s strict new media laws. Andrew Meldrum, an American who’s lived in Zimbabwe for over twenty years is accused of publishing an untrue story and faces up to two years in prison if found guilty. A dozen other journalists have also been charged with offenses relating to the new laws. In court Mr. Meldrum’s defense argued that his story was published in Britain. It was beyond the jurisdiction of Zimbabwean laws.

　　News Item Two (20-21)
　　Kuala Lumpur-Afghanistan will play soccer at the Asian games. Mongolia’s withdrawal has given the wartorn nation a confidence boost. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced in a statement yesterday that Afghanistan would play in the under-twenty-three tournament at the games in Bussan. Afghanistan’s first match will be against Iran on September 28. The group’s other teams are Qatar and Lebanon. Afghanistan was a founding member of the confederation in the 1950s, before entering long periods of war and factional fighting. The country’s chaos was largely ended after USled forces overthrew the Taliban regime last year in response to the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States.During the Soccer World Cup in June, the President of Afghanistan’s Football Aociation (AFA), Abdul Aleem-Kohistani said he hoped his country would be able to take part in the Asian games.

　　News Item Three (22-23)
　　The expected life span of Beijing residents has gone up to 75.5 years old,compared with 74.4 years old, a decade earlier. While the death rate of middle-
aged residents increased dramatically, according to recent official report. The report made public by the Beijing Disease Control and Prevention Center said the past mortality of people age between 35 to 54 years old had gone up 58.5% during the past ten years, from 158 people per 100,000 in 1991 to 251 people per 100,000 last year. Infant and maternal mortality rates went down 132% and 147% respectively. Health experts said chronic non-infectious diseases were the main causes of death covering 60% of the total number of deaths. The male mortality is higher than that of females and the death rate among rural residents is higher than that of the urban ones.

　　News Item Four (24-25)
　　Islamabad-Pakistani President, Purvez Musherof said yesterday there was no danger of the country going to war with neighboring India but that Pakistani forces would be ready to repel any aggression. There is no danger of war, Musherof told reporters in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad. We should have confidence in ourselves. We are not sitting idle. We are prepared for everything. There should not be any misunderstanding. Tensions were raised this week as the two accused each other of links to killings in the two countries. India suspects the two gunmen who killed twenty-eight at an Indian temple on Tuesday have links to Pakistanbased Islamic militant groups. Pakistan denied any involvement in the temple massacre and police in Karachi said there were indications of India intelligence agents behind the murder of seven Christian charity workers in the city, but India rejects the charges yesterday.