WORLD AGENDA OCTOBER 2006

Oct (undated), Punjab: IndiaÕs fight against female foeticide will be highlighted when the results of gender tests on up to 100 foetuses found buried in August are revealed. The incident is one of the subcontinentÕs worst cases of the abortion of baby girls.

Oct (undated), Hollywood: The spotlight will fall on the rape and murder of up to 400 women in and around the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez, when a film based around the so-called maquiladora murders, Bordertown, starring Jennifer Lopez, is launched.

Oct 1, Addis Ababa: EthiopiaÕs 1,700-year-old Axum obelisk, returned to the country 14 months ago after being looted by MussoliniÕs Italy, will be re-erected after the rainy season ends. The 24-metre, third-century granite funeral stela is regarded as a national treasure.

Oct 2, Tokyo: JapanÕs new prime minister Shinzo Abe makes his inaugural address. His first challenges include repairing deteriorating relations with China and South Korea, and maintaining the countryÕs economic recovery after a decade-long slowdown.

Oct 5, New York: Star TrekÕs prolific 40-year history is celebrated as an array of TV and film memorabilia goes up for auction at ChristieÕs.

Oct 6, Stockholm: Fredrik Reinfeldt, the centre-right leader who ended 12 years of Social Democrat rule in SeptemberÕs elections, takes office as SwedenÕs new prime minister.

Oct 8, Kashmir: The first anniversary of the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that killed nearly 75,000, injured 150,000 and left up to three million homeless in Pakistan, India and Afghanistan. The devastation is expected to take a decade to repair.

Oct 9, Scotland: An intensive round of talks between British and Irish politicians will be held on the restoration of devolution to Northern Ireland before the November 24 deadline to reach a settlement. Two previous attempts have ended in failure.

Oct 9, London: The worldÕs top confectionery group, Cadbury, launches Flake Dark, a version of its popular milk chocolate snack. A recent report by Leatherhead found growing demand for dark chocolate in Europe, North America, New Zealand, Australia and Japan.

Oct 13, Italy: RomeÕs first International Film Festival opens with the world premiere of Nicole KidmanÕs new film, Fur. Many see the event as a challenge to Venice where ageing theatres, long queues and over-priced services have left critics disgruntled.

Oct 16, Baghdad: A verdict is due on Saddam Hussein, accused of crimes against humanity over the killing of 148 Shias following a 1982 assassination attempt on the then Iraqi leader.

Oct 22, Brazil: The most successful driver in Formula 1 history, Michael Schumacher, retires from the sport at the end of the Grand Prix season. The career of the 37-year-old seven times champion has been at times controversial with critics questioning his sportsmanship.

Oct 25, Cape Canaveral: NASA will launch two spacecraft observatories on a two-year mission to provide the first-ever stereoscopic 3D vision of the Sun and its coronal mass ejections.

Oct 29, Congo: Incumbent President Joseph Kabila and ex-rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba face a presidential run-off. The polls, the first nationwide elections since 1960, are meant to end a transition process established after five years of war that ended in 2003.
/ENDS