• Bush Announces Reductions in Military Tours After Recently Vetoing Similar Measure
• Constituent Assembly Election in Nepal
• 54 Migrant Workers Die After Suffocating in a Trailer Truck En Route to Thailand
• Members of Pro-Peace Radio Station Under House Arrest
• Mexico Commemorates the Anniversary of the Assassination of Emiliano Zapata

Bush Announces Reductions in Military Tours After Recently Vetoing Similar Measure
President Bush has announced plans to reduce combat tours from 15 months to 12. Bush vetoed a measure to do this very thing just a few months ago. FSRN's Leigh Ann Caldwell has more.

Following 2 days of Congressional testimony by his top US general and diplomat in Iraq, Bush promised shorter tours for a strained military. (Bush): "We'll also ensure army units will have a year home for every year in the field." Shorter tours won't begin until August. John Stolz, votevets.com: (Stolz): "It's a political dog and pony show. If you deploy soldiers in august in 2008, he will not be around in August of 2009 to guarantee that they come home for twelve months." Democrats in Congress want to pass a law to assure the time frame is upheld. Something they tried several times last year, but Senate Republicans blocked the measures. The President also said he will halt all further troop withdrawals until Iraq security becomes more stable. House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi (Pelosi) "He is just dragging this out so he can put it at the doorstep of the new President." Bush also demanded the remaining 100 billion dollars for this year's emergency war funding. For FSRN, I'm Leigh Ann Caldwell.

Constituent Assembly Election in Nepal
Nepal held historic elections today to rewrite the constitution. The vote is seen as spelling the end to the power of the country's monarchy. PC Dubey reports.

Turnout was at over 60 percent today for the historic vote to elect figures to rewrite Nepal's constitution. The Constituent Assembly will be the result of massive anti-monarchy protests in 2006 and will likely lead to the end of a deadly, 12 year long Maoist insurgency. But perhaps the most remarkable thing about today's election is that it was overwhelmingly peaceful. Many feared massive bloodshed today - something that did not happen. However, there were some isolated incidents of violence and irregularities. Two people died and 20 were injured in poll-related violence involving firearms and explosive devices. Both Maoists and other political parties reportedly stole 33 ballot boxes out of over 20,000 nationwide. The stolen boxes are not likely to affect the final outcome. From Birganj in Nepal, I am PC Dubey for FSRN.

54 Migrant Workers Die After Suffocating in a Trailer Truck in Thailand
Fifty-four Burmese migrants have died from suffocation in an airless truck container while on their way to seek work in Thailand. Sixty-seven others survived with 20 needing hospitalization. The driver reportedly abandoned the truck along a coastal road in Thailand before returning to release survivors from the sealed container. Thai immigration authorities are expected to deport the non-hospitalized survivors back to Burma.

Members of Pro-Peace Radio Station Under House Arrest
Seven employees of a pro-peace Palestinian radio station are under house arrest after Israeli police raided the station's Jerusalem offices and seized transmission equipment earlier this week. The Israeli communications ministry says the West Bank-based broadcasters were operating without a license. They're under house arrest for a week and are only permitted to speak to family members. Zack Baddorf reports from Tel Aviv.

RAM-FM is an independent English-speaking radio station that plays Western music and aims to bring a "peaceful dialogue" between Palestinians and Israelis to the divided area's airwaves. Broadcasting from the West Bank into Israel, the station's slogan is "Music has no boundaries." The Israeli communication ministry claims the content was not a factor in the decision to raid RAM FM on Monday, jail overnight seven employees, and put them under house arrest yesterday. A ministry spokesman said their radio transmitters were "illegally" interfering with air traffic communications. But the RAM FM staff says they have permission to broadcast, from the Palestinian Authority with Israel's agreement. Reporters Without Borders called the response "disproportionate" and the Tel Aviv-based Foreign Press Association denounced the decision, saying the arrests raise "particular concern" about the issue of freedom of expression in Israel. For Free Speech Radio News, I'm Zack Baddorf in Tel Aviv.

Mexico Commemorates the Anniversary of the Assassination of Emiliano Zapata
Small farmers and indigenous organizations across Mexico today marked the 89th anniversary of the assassination of revolutionary leader and land reform champion, General Emiliano Zapata. Public school teachers in Oaxaca canceled classes and marched through the streets with social organizations to commemorate Zapata's life and to protest the assassination of two community radio hosts from the Triqui region. Vladimir Flores has more.

Hundreds of of social organizations, campesino groups, a students carried out demonstrations all over Mexico today. Protestors called on the federal government to renegotiate the agrarian chapter of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which many farmers blame for the deteriorating economic situation in the countryside. In Oaxaca, thousands of teachers, activists and indigenous organizations marched to condemn a deadly ambush that killed two community radio reporters on Monday. The two young women worked with a radio called "Rompiendo el Silencio" - or "Breaking the Silence" radio. The station broadcasts in the self-declared autonomous municipality of Copala in the Triqui region. The two women - both in their early 20s - were killed in a hail of automatic rifle fire as they traveled to Oaxaca City to participate in a community media conference organized by Oaxaca's Section 22 teachers union. Four other people were wounded in the ambush - including 2 children. For FSRN, I'm Vladimir Flores in Oaxaca.

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