News confidingly

There is scope for more opposition voices in Parliament: WP

SINGAPORE - The Workers' Party (WP) held its second rally for the Punggol East by-election on Tuesday evening.

Several WP members including party MPs Png Eng Huat and Chen Show Mao as well as NCMP Yee Jenn Jong took to the stage.

Party leaders Low Thia Khiang and Sylvia Lim as well as WP candidate for Punggol East, Lee Li Lian, were the last few to speak.

The speakers told the audience that there is scope for more opposition voices in Parliament.

Several also countered comments by the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) that it is a fallacy to believe residents can have the best of both worlds.

MP Png shared the experience of Hougang, where he said the PAP grassroots adviser has the machinery of the PAP's grassroots activists behind him.

Several speakers defended the WP's performance in Parliament, saying the party's MPs have made a difference - for example, moving a motion on the childcare sector and questioning the ethnic integration quota policy for rental flats.

The speakers added that opposition MPs too work closely with government agencies to solve residents' problems.

Ms Lee addressed a variety of issues faced by residents in Punggol East, including the state of Rivervale Mall and a lack of feeder buses and coffeeshops.

"We need more facilities and amenities in Punggol East. These were highlighted in 2011 - did PAP listen? We will push on issues that matter until we see policy changes that serve you," she said.

She also said that Singapore must take care of the elderly, to "serve them like they served us". Public transport for those above 80 should be free and more elderly-friendly, she said.

Ms Lee wrapped up the rally, saying: "I am filled with hope for Punggol East. Let's work together to create a Punggol with character."

WP chairman Sylvia Lim raised the controversial issue of the sale of computer software by PAP town councils to the Action Information Management, or AIM, a company fully owned by the PAP.

She said: "In other words, if a PAP ward is lost to an opposition party, the contract may be terminated within a short time. Let us pause for a moment and ponder: why is there such a clause in TC (town council) contracts? I have been cracking my head over this. Will the service provider be unable to perform just because the MPs have changed? Or, is the clause there - in case constituencies are lost by the PAP - to trip up the incoming opposition MPs?"

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has since asked the National Development Ministry (MND) to review the transaction. He also said MND will take a broad-based approach, including re-examining the fundamental nature of town councils, with a view to ensuring high overall standards of their corporate governance.

Ms Lim said: "This episode illustrates the way Workers' Party works. We will press the government on matters of public interest using all tools available including the parliamentary process. At the same time, if the government recognises the problem and takes some action, we will want to allow it the opportunity to put things right. This also illustrates the values of political competition in furthering the public interest."

- CNA/ir

Prince Harry: I killed Taliban

Labels: Lifestyle

Prince Harry serves in Afghanistan

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Britain's Prince Harry says he killed Taliban militants during tour in Afghanistan

Harry, known to comrades as Captain Wales, had served for four months in Helmand province

Harry: "We fire when we have to but we're more of a deterrent than anything else"

(CNN) -- Britain's Prince Harry has acknowledged that he killed Taliban insurgents on his latest tour of duty in Afghanistan as a crew member of an Apache attack helicopter.

Harry has been serving for four months as a co-pilot gunner (CPG) in southern Helmand province -- considered a Taliban heartland -- and flew on scores of missions with the trigger to rockets, missiles and a 30mm cannon at his fingertips.

No one is saying how many insurgents Harry might have killed but toward the end of his deployment, the 28-year-old, known to his comrades as Captain Wales, shared some of his feelings about combat with reporters while on duty in the massive military base known as Camp Bastion. He said it was sometimes justified to "take a life to save a life. That's what we revolve around, I suppose."

More: How 'soldier prince' tore up royal rule book

Harry through the years

HIDE CAPTION

Now, yes we fire when we have to but essentially we're more of a deterrent than anything else
Prince Harry

Harry explained how the roles of Apaches and CPGs have changed since his previous deployments in 2007 and 2008. "It used to be very much: front seat, you're firing the whole time.

"Now, yes we fire when we have to but essentially we're more of a deterrent than anything else.

"Our job out here is to make sure the guys are safe on the ground and if that means shooting someone who is shooting at them, then we will do it," said the prince, third in line to the British throne.

"It's not the reason I decided to do this job. The reason to do this job was to get back out here, and carry on with a job."

Away from his helicopter, the prince mixed freely on base, eating in the canteen with everyone else and relaxing by playing video games with others in the 130-strong 662 Squadron, 3 Regiment Army Air Corps (AAC). With those comrades, he was just "one of the guys."

More: Harry named world's most eligible bachelor

In contrast to his privileged upbringing in palaces and an education at Eton College, the prince lived in a shared room within shipping containers converted into an accommodation block. He said he was free to stroll around the base, to visit the gym or the laundry. "It's completely normal," Harry added.

But he said he still received unwanted attention in more public places. "For me it's not that normal because I go into the cookhouse and everyone has a good old gawp, and that's one thing that I dislike about being here," he said.

Opinion: Cheeky Harry vs. dull brother William

"Because there's plenty of guys in there that have never met me, therefore look at me as Prince Harry and not as Captain Wales, which is frustrating.

"Which is probably another reason why I'd love to be out in the PBs (patrol bases), away from it all.

"But yeah, it's completely normal. It's as normal as it's going to get. I'm one of the guys. I don't get treated any differently."

His deployment meant he could step back from the public eye, although he said his father, the heir to the British throne Prince Charles, often reminded him of his position. Harry admitted he had "let himself and his family down" when he was photographed naked at a party in a Las Vegas hotel last year.

Harry on Vegas romp: 'I let my family down'

He also expressed frustration about the media. Referring to the TV producer whom he was addressing, he said: "I never wanted you guys to be out here, but there was an agreement made to invite you out on the deal that the media didn't speculate before my deployment. That's the only reason you guys are out here."

Harry appeared happier talking about his military role: building up the Afghan National Army, the ANA, so it can eventually take over.

"It's great to see the ANA taking more of a lead in things as well. And the professionalism is definitely shining through."

That's something his superiors in the army might say of the prince himself.

What do you think about Prince Harry's comments? Leave your comments below.

U.K. grandma gets death sentence in Bali

Labels: Health

BALI An Indonesian court sentenced a British grandmother to death on Tuesday for smuggling cocaine worth $2.5 million in her suitcase onto the resort island of Bali — even though prosecutors had sought only a 15-year sentence.

Lindsay June Sandiford, 56, wept when judges handed down the sentence and declined to speak to reporters on her way back to prison, covering her face with a floral scarf. She had claimed in court that she was forced into taking the drugs into the country by a gang that was threatening to hurt her children.

Indonesia, like many Asian countries, is very strict on drug crimes, and most of the more than 40 foreigners on its death row were convicted of drug charges.

Sandiford's lawyer said she would appeal. Appeals take several years, and the country has not carried out an execution since 2008, when 10 people were put to death.

A verdict is expected in the trial of Sandiford's alleged accomplice, British man Julian Anthony Pounder, on Wednesday. He is accused of receiving the drugs in Bali, which has a busy bar and nightclub scene where party drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy are bought and sold between foreigners. Two other British citizens and an Indian have already been convicted and sentenced to prison in connection with the bust.

In its verdict, a judge panel at the Denpasar District Court concluded that Sandiford had damaged the image of Bali as a tourism destination and weakened the government's drug prevention program.

"We found no reason to lighten her sentence," said Amser Simanjuntak, who headed the judicial panel.

Prosecutors had been seeking a 15-year prison sentence for Sandiford, who was arrested in May when customs officers at Bali's airport discovered 8.4 pounds of cocaine in the lining of her luggage.

State prosecutor Lie Putra Setiawan told reporters that the verdict was "appropriate," explaining that prosecutors had been demanding 15 years because of Sandiford's age.

Indonesia has 114 prisoners on death row, according to a March 2012 study by Australia's Lowy Institute for International Policy. Five foreigners have been executed since 1998, all for drug crimes, according to the institute.

Obama's Inauguration: A Night to Remember

Labels: Business

President Barack Obama dances with first lady Michelle Obama at the Commander-in-Chief Ball, Jan. 21, 2013, in Washington, DC. Pres. Obama was sworn-in for his second term as president during a public ceremonial inauguration earlier in the day. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

How Obama made opportunity real

Labels: World

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

LZ Granderson: Specifics of Obama's first term may not be remembered

He says his ability to win presidency twice is unforgettable

Granderson: Obama, the first black president, makes opportunity real for many

He says it makes presidency a possibility for people of all backgrounds

Editor's note: LZ Granderson, who writes a weekly column for CNN.com, was named journalist of the year by the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association and is a 2011 Online Journalism Award finalist for commentary. He is a senior writer and columnist for ESPN the Magazine and ESPN.com. Follow him on Twitter: @locs_n_laughs.

(CNN) -- In his first term, President Barack Obama signed 654 bills into law, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by about 70% and the national debt by $5.8 trillion.

And in 10 years -- maybe less -- few outside of the Beltway will remember any of that. That's not to suggest those details are not important. But even if all of his actions are forgotten, Obama's legacy as the first black president will endure.

And even though this is his second term and fewer people are expected to travel to Washington this time to witness the inauguration, know that this moment is not any less important.

For had Obama not been re-elected, his barrier-breaking election in 2008 could have easily been characterized as a charismatic politician capturing lightning in a bottle. But by becoming the first president since Dwight Eisenhower to win at least 51% of the vote twice, Obama proved his administration was successful.

And not by chance, but by change.

A change, to paraphrase Martin Luther King Jr., that was not inevitable but a result of our collective and continuous struggle to be that shining city on a hill of which President Ronald Reagan spoke so often.

Best of 2013 inauguration

HIDE CAPTION

For much of this country's history, being a white male was a legal prerequisite to being president. Then it was accepted as a cultural norm. Because of that, we could not be the country we set out to be.

But today, somewhere in the Midwest, there is a little Asian-American girl with the crazy idea she could be president one day, and because of Obama, she knows that idea is not very crazy at all.

That's power -- the kind of power that can fade urgent numbers and debates of the day into the background of history.

Gergen: Obama 2.0 version is smarter, tougher

Few remember the number of steps Neil Armstrong took when he landed on the moon, but they remember he was the first human being who stepped on the moon. Few can tell you how many hits Jackie Robinson had in his first Major League Baseball game, but they know he broke baseball's color barrier. Paying homage to a person being first at something significant does not diminish his or her other accomplishments. It adds texture to the arc of their story.

I understand the desire not to talk about race as a way of looking progressive.

But progress isn't pretending to be color blind, it's not being blinded by the person's color.

Or gender.

Or religion.

Or sexual orientation.

Somewhere in the South, there is an openly gay high schooler who loves student government and wants to be president someday. And because of Obama, he knows if he does run, he won't have to hide.

That does not represent a shift in demographics, but a shift in thought inspired by a new reality. A reality in which the president who follows Obama could be a white woman from Arkansas by way of Illinois; a Cuban-American from Florida; or a tough white guy from Jersey. Or someone from an entirely different background. We don't know. Four years is a long time away, and no one knows how any of this will play out -- which I think is a good thing.

For a long time, we've conceived of America as the land of opportunity. Eight years ago, when it came to the presidency, that notion was rhetoric. Four years ago, it became a once in a lifetime moment. Today, it is simply a fact of life.

Ten years from now, we may not remember what the unemployment rate was when Obama was sworn in a second time, but we'll never forget how he forever changed the limits of possibility for generations to come.

Somewhere out West, there is an 80-year-old black woman who never thought she'd see the day when a black man would be elected president. Somehow I doubt Obama's second inauguration is less important to her.

Follow us on Twitter @CNNOpinion.

Join us on Facebook/CNNOpinion.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of LZ Granderson.

Japan PM confirms 7 deaths in Algeria crisis

Labels: Technology

TOKYO: Japan's prime minister on Monday said seven Japanese deaths had been confirmed in the Algerian hostage crisis, the first official confirmation from Tokyo that any of its nationals had died.

"I was informed by vice foreign minister (Minoru) Kiuchi that as a result of identifications of bodies at a hospital in In Amenas, seven were confirmed to be Japanese employees of JGC," Shinzo Abe told his ministers.

The Japanese firm had earlier said it did not know the fate of 17 of its employees, ten of whom were Japanese.

The prime minister said so far it had not been possible to confirm what had happened to the other Japanese nationals who remain unaccounted for.

"There are still three more Japanese people whose safety has not been confirmed. I want all of you to do everything possible to continue gathering information and confirm their fate," he told his ministers.

"Japanese people who work at the world's frontiers, the innocent people were victimised. It is extremely painful," Abe said.

A witness at the desert gas plant told AFP he was aware of nine Japanese deaths over the extended siege, which began on Wednesday and ended in a bloodbath on Saturday when the Algerian military moved in.

Abe was speaking as his Algerian opposite number, Abdelmalek Sellal, was giving his first full account of the crisis, which brought an initial backlash against what some world leaders hinted was a too-hasty military response.

Sellal said Algiers had confirmed the deaths of 37 foreigners of eight different nationalities after the gas plant was overrun by Islamist gunmen.

He also said that the 32 militants who staged the dramatic siege, taking hundreds of workers hostage, came from northern Mali. Twenty-nine of them were killed and three arrested.

He added that some hostages had been executed with a "bullet to the head".

- AFP/fa

Algeria: Grim tolls, mounting questions

Labels: Lifestyle

Freed Norwegian hostage Oddvar Birkedal is escorted at a police station in Amenas, Algeria, on Saturday.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

NEW: Sixteen Filipinos are accounted for and confirmed alive

No known French hostages are unaccounted for, defense ministry says

At least one American is among the dead

Algerian prime minister to provide more details Monday

(CNN) -- After a fiery end to an Algerian hostage standoff that transfixed the world last week, more casualties piled up Monday as world leaders added up the grim tolls.

The Philippines reported six new deaths, raising the preliminary overall total to 29.

Read more: Bloody Algeria hostage crisis ends after 'final' assault, officials say

The number is certain to go up as more information trickles in, Algerian officials said.

The crisis began Wednesday when militants in pickup trucks struck a sprawling natural gas complex in In Amenas, gathered the Westerners who worked there into a group and tied them up.

Read more: Nations scramble to account for missing after Algeria hostage crisis

The plant in eastern Algeria is run by the state oil company, in cooperation with foreign firms such as Norway's Statoil and Britain's BP -- and as such, employed workers from several foreign countries.

Algerian special forces stormed the complex twice -- Thursday and Saturday -- to free hostages held by Islamist militants for four days. The government said it did so because the militants were planning to blow up the installation and flee to neighboring Mali.

Read more: Algerian forces seek 'peaceful' settlement of dramatic, deadly hostage crisis

Dozens of militants and hostages died in the raids. But security forces were able to free about 800 workers, including more than 100 foreigners.

One-eyed veteran Islamist fighter Mokhtar Belmokhtar has claimed responsibility for the hostage-taking on behalf of his al Qaeda-linked group, according to Mauritania's Sahara Media news agency.

He said it was in retaliation to Algeria for allowing France to use its airspace to battle Islamist militants in Mali. But regional analysts believe it was too sophisticated to have been planned in days

As world leaders work to return their citizens back home, more questions remain.

Read more: Algeria attack may have link to Libya camps

What did the Algerian government find after securing the scene of the standoff?

Exactly how many people are dead and unaccounted for?

Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal is expected to provide an update at a news conference at 8 a.m. ET Monday.

Meanwhile, here is the latest breakdown on the international hostages:

Colombia

Colombia's president said a citizen was presumed dead.

France

No known French hostages are unaccounted for, the defense ministry said.

A man identified as Yann Desjeux died after telling French newspaper Sud Ouest that he and 34 other hostages were treated well. It was unclear what led to his death.

Japan

Ten Japanese remain unaccounted for, according to JGC, a Yokohama-based engineering firm. Japan is sending a second team that includes doctors to the scene of the standoff. Other government officials have been at the site since last week.

Malaysia

Three hostages were on their way back home, state media reported. There is a "worrying possibility" that another is dead while a fifth is unaccounted for, the agency said.

Norway

Five Norwegians are missing, while eight are safe, according to the Norwegian Prime Minister.

Philippines

Six Filipinos are confirmed dead and four are missing, the nation's foreign affairs ministry said. In addition, 16 Filipinos are accounted for and confirmed alive, according to a ministry spokesman.

Romania

One Romanian lost his life while four others were freed, the country's foreign ministry said.

United Kingdom

Three British citizens were killed, the Foreign Office said Sunday. Three other British nationals and a UK resident are also "believed dead," he said. Twenty-two other Britons who were taken hostage have safely returned home.

United States

At least one American, identified as Frederick Buttaccio, is among the dead, the State Department said. Six freed Americans left Algeria and one remained.

Read more: Algeria attack may have link to Libya camps

CNN's Yoko Wakatsuki contributed to this report.

Inside the heightened Inauguration Day security

Labels: Health

(CBS News) More than 2,000 police officers from around the country were sworn in as deputy U.S. marshals Sunday in Washington. They'll be patrolling Monday alongside the D.C. police force, Secret Service, FBI, and other agencies, reports national security correspondent Bob Orr.

At Union Station, Transportation Security Administration VIPER security teams are checking trains and passengers, in a show of force designed to be a deterrent.

"If someone were to walk in and see a group of officers and turn around immediately and leave Union Station, that's a good indication to us that perhaps they have something to that they're trying to hide," Assistant Supervisory Air Marshal Jeffrey Buzzi said.

Not all security is so obvious. Two men with backpacks are undercover behavioral detection officers, working in tandem with uniformed patrols at rail stations and airports.

Along D.C.'s waterfront, Coast Guard fast boats are increasing surveillance runs. The cutter Cochito is a floating command center.

For 48 hours surrounding the inaugural time frame, the waters around Washington will be closed as more than 20 Coast Guard and police boats conduct patrols along 22 miles of shoreline.

At the edges of the restricted zone, the Coast Guard is watching for any "suspect" boaters -- "If they're in key specific areas or near critical infrastructure, if they're lingering there longer than normal, maybe if they're taking photographs from a certain angle," Coast Guard D.C. Commanding Officer Lt. Celina Ladyga told Orr.

A guide to today's inaugural events
2,000 cops from around country join D.C. force to handle expected masses
Behind-the-scenes security for the presidential inauguration
Complete CBSNews.com coverage: President Obama's second inauguration

A group of National Guard Soldiers and Airmen from more than 25 U.S. States, hold their right hands up as they take a legal oath to officially make them deputized "special police officers" for the 57th Presidential Inauguration, at the D.C. National Guard Armory January 18, 2013, in Washington, D.C.

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PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images

A large swath of downtown Washington, from the Capitol to the White House, is cordoned off -- accessible only through metal detectors at checkpoints.

In all, more than 10,000 police officers, federal agents and National Guardsmen are on duty.

The Secret Service is coordinating the effort from its operations center, where analysts are monitoring surveillance cameras and real-time threat streams.

"Based on what we're hearing and seeing from our partners and what we're seeing internally, we feel that we are prepared," said Deborah Evans Smith, who runs the FBI's Washington field office. "No credible threat at this moment."

But nothing is being left to chance.

Senior correspondent John Miller, a former assistant director of national intelligence, told "CBS This Morning" that in addition to behavioral detection teams, security will also be deploying equipment monitoring the air to detect chemical, biological and radiological threats. "You also have teams of people moving through the crowd -- and they'll be moving all day -- who have that detection equipment, and more sophisticated stuff."

Miller also said a "render safe" team, comprised of agents from various agencies, will be on stand-by -- "sitting around playing cards, reading their BlackBerries" -- who have the capability to dismantle a nuclear device if one were found.

Miller said there are no credible threats on the radar, unlike Inauguration Day 2009, when there were two: "One was a major credible threat from al Qaeda that a group from Somalia was going to attack the inauguration," said Miller. "The other had to do with a guy coming down from Boston with a suicide vest, and both of those ended up washing out. But they certainly brought up the tension level. This time it's a little calmer."

Miller said the major concern is for the "lone wolf" threat, who may not have surfaced in the screens of intelligence analysts. "When you're looking at the international threat picture, what you're focusing on is networks, and there's sources and there's collection and there's intercepts. With the lone wolf, that's the guy who's going to end up in the crowd -- it's the John Hinckley, it's the Lee Harvey Oswald, it's the one who's probably spoken to no one, 'cause the conversation is going on in his mind. That's where you have a zero intelligence base and that's where the Secret Service really, really earns its money."

The president's security team -- the counter-sniper teams and counter-assault teams -- will also be put through their paces during the motorcade. "The dicey moment for the protectors, and the best moment for the president, is on the parade route when he pops out of the car," Miller said. "That thrills the crowd. I know the president enjoys it. But if you're one of the Secret Service agents, that's the time when the hairs all jump to attention on the back of your neck."

LIVE UPDATES: President Obama's Big Day

Labels: Business

Four years and one day after President Obama first took his first oath of office, America is once again celebrating his Inauguration. This time the schedule includes performances by Beyonce and Katy Perry, a parade with more than 2,000 members of the military and two Inaugural balls.

Refresh here for updates throughout the day.

Tune in to the ABC News.com Live page on Monday morning starting at 9:30 a.m. EST for all-day live streaming video coverage of Inauguration 2013: Barack Obama. Live coverage will also be available on the ABC News iPad App and mobile devices.

Read Obama’s first Inaugural address here.

All times are in Eastern Standard Time.

8:27 a.m. – 2013 Inaugural Schedule

For all the day’s events, click on the image below.

inaugural schedule wblog LIVE UPDATES: Inauguration Day 2013

(Image Credit: ABC News)

9:42 a.m. – Obamas on the Move

The Obama family has left church services at St. John’s Episcopal Church and headed back to the White House.

To see where the president will go next, check out ABC’s interactive map here.

Pastor Andy Stanley from the North Point Community Church in Alpharetta Georgia delivered the sermon, according to pool reports, calling the president “pastor in chief.”

This tweet from the president posted while the Obama family was still in church.

9:15 a.m. – Obama’s View

ABC’s Jonathan Karl is on the platform at the West Front of the Capitol Building where Obama will give his inaugural address later today. He’s got the best view of the crowds, which won’t come close to the 1.8 million of four years ago, but which already number hundreds of thousands.

9:11 a.m. – Members of Congress Honor MLK on Twitter

Today America remembers the legacy of another great leader: Martin Luther King, Jr. Members of the House and Senate are taking to Twitter to express their admiration for King this morning.

9:04 a.m. – On the Ground with Good Morning America.

9:03 a.m. – Best and Worst Inaugural Addresses

gty Abraham Lincoln nt 120918 wblog LIVE UPDATES: Inauguration Day 2013

(Image Credit: Getty Images)

ABC’s Chris Good reports on the best and worst inaugural speeches of all time:

Inaugural addresses, it is said, are usually not very good. Most have been long forgotten, and historians themselves point to few as memorable.

It’s not entirely clear why, but the moment might have something to do with it. Book-ending divisive national campaigns, inaugural addresses offer token unity sentiments, hopefulness but not always specific hopes, and even some good ones sound myopic.

“Most inaugural addresses are not remembered,” said Princeton University professor and noted presidential historian Eric Foner. “Grover Cleveland? I have no idea what he said in his.”

“I have actually read every single inaugural, and it was a really boring experience,” said Robert Lehrman, a former speechwriter for vice president Al Gore, who now teaches the craft at American University in Washington. “Most of the speeches are terrible. Even the ones we remember, I don’t think there is any reporter working anywhere that couldn’t write language as crisp or concrete as the majority of them.”

Read the rest of the worst and the best here.

8:56 a.m. – Outfits of the Inauguration: Obama Style

ABC’s Mary Bruce reports:

The President, First Lady, in a dark blue jacket, and daughters Malia, in a pink overcoat, and Sasha, in dark purple, arrived just after 8:40 a.m. at St. John’s Episcopal Church for morning services.

The First Lady is wearing a navy Thom Browne coat and dress. The fabric was developed based on the style of a man’s silk tie. The belt she is wearing is from J.Crew and her earrings are designed by Cathy Waterman. She is also wearing J.Crew shoes. At the end of the Inaugural festivities, the outfit and accompanying accessories will go to the National Archives.

Malia Obama is wearing a J.Crew ensemble. Sasha Obama is wearing a Kate Spade coat and dress.

The Bidens arrived moments later.

8:47 a.m. – Tailor to the Presidents: Republicans Dress Better

8:45 a.m. – Great American Quotes

Inaugural addresses are an opportunity for presidents on the nation’s front lawn – a place that Americans come to in turns inaugurate their leaders, protest their government and mourn their dead – to place a marker for their legacy.

There have been some weighty and remarkable things said as presidents took the oath of office looking down on the Mall and also, from nearby, as other Americans have looked up and let their voices be heard at gatherings as varied as the March on Washington and the Promise Keepers.

What can Barack Obama say, come Monday, as he begins a second term with lower expectations and less inspiration, to place himself on this list of great American words?

Click below for an interactive look at the competition:

inauguration infographic 640x360 wblog LIVE UPDATES: Inauguration Day 2013

(Image Credit: ABC News: Ma'ayan Rosenzweig)

8:38 a.m. – Aretha Franklin’s Hat Makes a Comeback

8:22 a.m. – Martha Raddatz: Women Rule

8:08 a.m. – Eva Longoria Wakes Up to with the White House

F schedule of events REV 20130117 update 2 LIVE UPDATES: Inauguration Day 2013

Curated by ABC’s Z. Byron Wolf and Sarah Parnass

Mali war turns musicians into military

Labels: World

French-led Mali offensive

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Until recently, Mali was better known for its music, mosques and manuscripts than for conflict

Andy Morgan: Music and culture are Mali's shop-window to the world, its primary asset

Conflict turns musicians, artists and writers into frontline soldiers, says Morgan

Morgan: In Mali they're still singing, still writing, still fighting

Editor's note: Andy Morgan recently ended a seven-year stint as manager of Touareg rockers Tinariwen, leaving the music industry after 29 years to concentrate on writing. He has contributed features and reviews to The Independent, fRoots, Songlines, NME and Rolling Stone, and is currently working on books about the Sahara and West Africa.

(CNN) -- It's safe to assume that most people outside West Africa had never even heard of Mali until a few weeks ago. If they had, there's a good chance it was thanks to some beautifully flowing song or instrumental by one of the country's many world-renowned musicians: Salif Keita, Tinariwen, Oumou Sangare, Toumani Diabate, Rokia Traore... the list is long.

If it wasn't music then it might have been Mali's priceless medieval manuscripts that drew their attention, or its majestic mud-built mosques, its filmmakers, poets, photographers and writers.

Like Jamaica or Ireland, Mali's music and culture are its primary asset, its shop-window to the world, its "gold and cotton" as one famous musician put it.

Andy Morgan is a world music journalist and former manager of Touareg band Tinariwen.

Certainly, very few people would have included the words "Mali" and "Islamism" in the same sentence before April last year, when Islamist militia took control of over two thirds of the country and started amputating the hands of thieves, stoning adulterers and whipping women who happened to venture out into the streets 'improperly' dressed.

With the arrival of French forces and the mass hostage seizure at the Algerian oil facility of In Amenas, Mali and Islamism are two words that now appear not only to be inextricably linked but on the front page.

Six reasons why Mali matters

Of course, the association goes back much further than April 2012.

Al Qaeda and the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) moved south from Algeria and into Mali's remote northern deserts over a decade ago. It proceeded to amass a fortune from kidnapping, smuggling and money laundering whilst undermining the local economy, disrupting social relations and destroying the local tourist industry.

It brought along a hardcore form of Islam inspired by Wahabism and a hatred of the West that was previously almost unheard of in Mali, a country which has long contented itself with gentler and more tolerant brands of Sufism richly tinted by local pre-Islamic beliefs.

AQIM also managed to hijack a rebellion against the central government in Bamako by the nomadic Touareg people of the north that had been grinding on and off for the best part of fifty years.

This conflict, which first erupted in 1963, was always about power, influence and the self-determination of a marginalized people. It was also about preserving the Touareg's unique Berber culture. It had never been about imposing hard line Islam on anyone. But from round 2006 onwards, Touareg nationalism and Islamic terrorism became inextricably confused with each other.

Why Africa backs French in Mali

Indeed, there's a widespread theory, confirmed by the word of just a few bit-players in the drama but lacking any more conclusive evidence, that certain parties who were utterly averse to the idea of an independent Touareg state -- the Malian government, Algeria and others -- either deliberately implanted AQIM in the region, or at the very least tolerated its presence there.

It was hoped that the strategy would attract military aid and doom the Touareg nationalist project to failure. The theory might seem strange given the damage that terrorism has wrought in both Mali and Algeria but most Touareg I know accept it as gospel. We'll probably never know the whole truth.

What's certain is that the Sahara is one of the hardest places on earth for an outsider to understand. Its interlocking cogs of power and influence -- geopolitical, regional, governmental, tribal, mineral, criminal, spiritual, clan and family -- are fiendishly complex.

No foreign intervention can hope to achieve any long-term benefits if it cannot get to grips with the underlying political and social mechanism of this vast region.

2011 brought the Arab Spring and the end of Muammar Gadhafi, who had long been a stabilizing force in the Sahel, and both a promoter and a hinderer of Touareg nationalist ambitious. His weapons arsenals were opened up to armed groups of every stripe and in January 2012, the Touareg used this opportunity to reignite their rebellion in northern Mali. But it was al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb who eventually took control, either directly or through a network of alliances.

Now Mali's hopes lie with the French, who intervened on Friday January 11, after months of diplomatic wrangling at the U.N. and elsewhere.

France 'not a pacifist nation'

So the world has a new front on the global war on terror and France has a new battle to fight in Africa.

Within northern Mali itself, however, and throughout the Muslim world, this is not seen as a war on terror but as a cultural conflict, one that pits a group of people who feel that the future of their society will be best served by rejecting Western liberal values and returning to the core tenets of Islam against another group who believe in religious tolerance, secularism, democracy and music.

This conflict turns musicians, artists and writers into frontline soldiers.

Saudi Arabia destroyed its mausoleums and silenced its musicians decades, even centuries, ago. In the Algerian civil war of the 1990s, many musicians, writers and cultural figures were killed, prompting others to flee overseas.

In Mali they're still singing, still writing, still fighting, for the time being at least.

In this new battleground in the cultural wars of the Muslim world, a distant mirror of the religious wars that shook Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries, Malian musicians are taking a stand. That's why music matters. That's why Mali matters.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Andy Morgan.

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