The New Nation - Internet Edition

Obama victory sparks cheers worldwide

AP, Tokyo

In concert halls and ballrooms, in plazas and at beach parties, people across the globe hailed Barack Obama's election as a stroke for racial equality and voiced hopes his presidency would herald a balanced, less confrontational America.

Throngs crowded before TVs or listened to blaring radios for the latest updates. In Sydney, Australians filled a hotel ballroom; in Rio, Brazilians partied on the beach. In the town of Obama in Japan, dancers cheered in delight when their namesake's victory was declared.

Observers - many in countries where the idea of a minority being elected leader is unthinkable - expressed amazement and satisfaction that the United States could overcome centuries of racial strife an elect an African-American as president.

"It shows that America truly is a diverse, multicultural society where the color of your skin really does not matter," said Jason Ge, an international relations student at Peking University in China.

In an interconnected world where people in its farthest reaches could monitor the presidential race blow-by-blow, many observers echoed Obama's own mantra as they struggled to put into words their sense that his election marked an important turning point.

"I really think this is going to change the world," said Akihiko Mukohama, 34, the lead singer of a band that traveled to Obama, Japan, to perform at a promotional event for the president-elect. He wore an "I Love Obama" T-shirt _

Many acknowledged that - for better or worse - America's economic, military and cultural might made the election globally important.

Australian Phil Keeling was plastered head-to-toe in a red, white and blue outfit with both Obama and McCain buttons as he crowded into a hotel ballroom in downtown Sydney, Australia to watch election results on two giant TV screens.

"There's a chance the image of the U.S. may change dramatically, and it's nice to be part of it," he said. He refused to say which candidate he preferred. Around him, Australians and Americans stood under a cloud of red, white and blue balloons and snacked on American treats like mini hamburgers and hot dogs.

Hopes were also high among many critical of President Bush's policies that an Obama victory would herald a more inclusive, internationally cooperative U.S. approach. Many cited the Iraq war as the type of blunder Obama was unlikely to repeat.

At a party in Rio de Janeiro, where Brazilians and Americans watched the returns, a 33-year-old music producer said an Obama win would show that "Americans have learned something from the bad experiences of the Bush administration.

"Choosing Obama is a great opportunity for Americans to show the world they can change, be humble and learn from their mistakes, which were not small," said Zanna, who uses only one name.

Umang Khosla, a senior marketing manager in Mumbai, India, with a multinational shipping company, said Obama would be widely welcomed after Bush, who he said "was hated the world over."

"With Obama, the world will see the Americans as having more sense, being more receptive to change," Khosla said on his way to work. "If Obama even remotely changes things, perceptions will change."

Obama's victory capped a campaign that many millions around the world had watched with rapt attention.

In Germany, where more than 200,000 people flocked to see Obama this summer as he burnished his foreign policy credentials during a trip to the Middle East and Europe, the election dominated television ticker crawls, newspaper headlines and Web sites.

Obama-mania was evident not only across Europe but also in much of the Islamic world, where Muslims expressed hope that the Democrat would seek compromise rather than confrontation.

The Bush administration alienated Muslims by mistreating prisoners at its detention center for terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and inmates at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison - human rights violations also condemned worldwide.

Nizar al-Kortas, a columnist for Kuwait's Al-Anbaa newspaper, saw an Obama victory as "a historic step to change the image of the arrogant American administration."

Yet McCain had enjoyed a strong current of support in Israel, where he was perceived as tougher on Iran than Obama. Taking a cigarette break on a Jerusalem street corner, bank employee Leah Nizri, 53, favored McCain.

"He's too young," she said of Obama. "I think that especially in a situation of a world recession, where things are so unclear in the world, McCain would be better than Obama."

Not everyone expected Obama to follow through on his promise to change U.S. policies. In Iraq, where the Bush government ignited a war in 2003 that has yet to end, some were skeptical of American intentions in the Middle East.

"I think Obama's victory will do nothing for the Iraqi issue nor for the Palestinian issue," said Muneer Jamal, a Baghdad resident. "I think all the promises Obama made during the campaign will remain mere promises."

Still, many around the world found Obama's international roots - his father was Kenyan, and he lived four years in Indonesia as a child - compelling and attractive.

In Jakarta, hundreds of students at his former elementary school gathered around a television set to watch as results came in, erupting in cheers when he was declared winner and then pouring into the courtyard where they hugged each other and danced in the rain.

"We're so proud!" said Alsya Nadin, a spunky 10-year-old in pink-framed glasses as her classmates chanted "Obama! Obama!"

42 dead, 9 missing in Philippine ferry accident

AFP, Manila

The death toll from a ferry accident in the central Philippines rose to 42 Wednesday with nine people still missing, officials said.

The wooden inter-island ferry overturned Tuesday when it was hit by a freak whirlwind just 20 minutes after leaving port, where weather conditions were described as calm and clear.

Local civil defence chief Raffy Alejandro said the ferry was carrying 151 passengers and crew, well in excess of the 119 people listed on the manifest.

Of those on board, 100 have been rescued, 42 are dead and nine are still missing. "This will be subject of an investigation by the coast guard since apparently it was overloaded," said Alejandro.

It is a common practice for inter-island ferries to be overloaded with last-minute passengers who board without being listed on the manifest.

The captain of the vessel, Dante Bumbales, has been found and turned over to coast guard officials investigating the incident, said local police chief Senior Superintendent Ruben Sindac.

The ferry had just left the port town of Dimasalang on the northeast coast of Masbate for Sorsogon port 80 kilometers (50 miles) away when it was hit by a sudden gust of wind and flipped over.

The accident came four months after the 23,000-tonne "Princess of the Stars" capsized during a typhoon off the central island of Sibuyan carrying 850 passengers and crew.

Only 57 people survived the accident, which was the worst maritime disaster in the Philippines for 20 years.

Mishaps involving ferries are common in this archipelago where many poor people rely on small, poorly-maintained vessels to travel between islands.

Mexican interior minister dies in plane crash

Reuters, Mexico City

Mexican Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino, an ally of President Felipe Calderon, died on Tuesday when a small plane he was traveling in crashed into evening rush hour traffic in Mexico City.

The reason for the crash was not clear but a civil aviation disaster expert told Reuters that sabotage could not be ruled out, along with other possible causes like engine failure.

Seven other people were killed and 40 injured when the government Learjet smashed into the street in an upscale business district of the capital, setting several cars ablaze.

Calderon, who is waging a high-stakes war on Mexico's powerful drug cartels, mourned the loss of a close aide and friend who had worked with him for years.

"Mexico has lost a compatriot who worked for the service of his country," Calderon said in a televised speech.

"The federal government, under my charge, in coordination with the relevant institutions, will carry out all necessary investigations in order to check in depth what caused this tragedy," he said.

Jose Luis Santiago Vasconcelos, the deputy attorney general until recently and a key player for years in Mexico's army-led war on drug cartels, was among other government officials who died in the crash.

More than 4,000 people have been killed this year, mainly drug traffickers but also police and soldiers, by drug gang hitmen lashing back at Calderon's anti-cartel campaign and fighting new turf wars with each other.

Drug gangs appeared to take their feud with the government to a new level in September when a grenade was lobbed into a crowd of civilians celebrating a national holiday. Authorities are holding three men charged with carrying out the attack for the Gulf cartel's armed "Zetas" wing.