European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 13, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 the stars and stripes saturday May 13,19b9 Ito refuses to Lead Japan Tokyo a senior politician Masayoshi Ilo on Friday officially turned Down a ruling party request that he take Over As prime minister in an Effort to restore Confidence in the government shaken by an influence peddling scandal. Leaders of the governing Liberal democratic party had wanted Ito one of a handful of experienced leaders untainted by the recruit co. Scandal to replace prime minister Noboru Takeshita to improve the party s image before the sum Mer elections for half the scats in parliament s upper House. Ilo rejected a series of appeals by party Secretary general Shintaro Abe Ryutaro Hashimoto said adding that Ilo s refusal left the party at a loss. Hashimoto the party s Deputy Secre tary general said Ito s reasons for reject ing the Post were his health and Dis agreement with party leaders on the Way it was taking responsibility for the scan dal and on measures for party Reform. The 75-year-old Ito is a diabetic. The Kyodo news service said Ito had told Takeshita All party figures linked to the scandal should resign from parliament but the prime minister had rejected it As an impractical idea. Whoever is chosen to head the ruling party becomes prime minister because of the party s Large majority in parliament. Ito s formal denial has left the party without a Strong candidate to replace Takeshita who has said he will step Down after this year s budget is passed by parliament. Parliament is expected to Vole on the budget this month. Party sources said Abe intends to re sign his party Post after failing in his assigned Job of persuading Ito to become prime minister. Takeshita. Who has admitted receiving More than  million in donations from recruit an information services conglomerate announced on april 25 that he would resign to take responsibility for Public outrage Over the scandal. Three of his Cabinet ministers have resigned Over the scandal and 14 businessmen and sex bureaucrats have been arrested on bribery or other charges in connection with sales of unlisted bar gain priced shares in a recruit subsidiary. On thursday Takeshita wined and dined Ito As the party sought to convince him to Lake the Job. After his dinner meeting with Takeshi la late thursday however Ito said he had not changed his mind. Masayoshi Ito chinese austerity program posts some results but prices keep rising Beijing a although China is achieving some results in harnessing out of control economic growth prices still Rose 27 percent through april compared with the first four months of 1988, a government spokesman said Friday. Spokesman Yuan my also acknowledged that an austerity program launched last september to slowdown growth and Price increases had done Little to solve Basic imbalances in Supply and demand and that in some areas the nation s economic performance was deteriorating. Yuan speaking at a news conference said the government was proving it could slow Down the Economy without creating recession or stagflation in which inflation continues while business activity declines. He said Industrial production Rose by 11.3 percent in the first four months of the year compared with a jump of almost 20 percent in 1988. Yuan cited some positive results the production of Energy and raw materials took a favourable turn helping to relieve severe shortages the summer Grain crop could set a record if the Good weather holds and More people arc saving Money. Savings deposits at the end of april totalled 421.1 billion Yuan $113.8 billion40.9 billion Yuan $11 billion More than at the beginning of the year. Yuan said about 2,000 foreign involved joint Ven Tures were formed through april up 88.6 percent Over the same period in 1988. He said this showed that the economic slowdown and recent protests by students seeking political re form have not affected our policy of opening to the outside  said that while prices through april were up 27 percent the Price Index Rose Only 0.9 percent from february to March and stayed the same in april. The inflation rate in Many chinese cities was More than 30 percent in 1988, sparking panic buying and shortages of some goods. In september the government announced a two year austerity program to combat inflation and excessive growth.  pollution Accord signed Moscow a the United states and soviet Union have agreed to help each other fight pollution emergencies in Northern Waters like the Oil spill that has fouled Alaska s coastline. Secretary of stale James a. Baker Iii and soviet foreign minister Eduard a. Shevardnadze signed the Accord on thursday the last Day of Baker s two Day visit to Moscow. It pledges superpower cooperation in combating spills of Oil or other pollutants in the Bering and Chuck acc seas Between Alaska and Siberia. The official soviet news Agency Tass said the agreement Calls for for the development of a joint plan of drastic measures by the superpowers in the event of a spill. The signing of the agreement is a major step to Ward developing soviet american cooperation in Deal ing Wilh the consequences of ecological disaster at sea olog Khalim nov an official in the soviet Mer chant Marine ministry told Tass. Tass said the cooperation envisioned by the agreement began to function even before Baker and Shevardnadze signed the document. A soviet ship de signed to skim pollutants from the surface of the sea was hired to help clean up the Oil spilled by the Exxon Valdez Tanker which ran aground in Prince William sound on March 24. However Exxon officials who were paying the so Viets $15,000 a Day for the Vaid Gubsky said tuesday the ship was being sent Home because it was not de signed to handle the hardened Taffy like mass the spilled Oil has created. World today deaths from heat wave illness climb in Bangladesh Dhaka Bangladesh a a heat wave and Diar Rhea in drought stricken Bangladesh have killed As Many As 160 people in the last two weeks newspapers said Friday. As temperatures hovered around 102 degrees fahrenheit the health ministry broadcast warnings that people should drink More water and mix it with Salt to stave off dehydration. It also cautioned people against unsafe drinking water that was causing diarrhoea. The government has Given no statistics on heat and diarrhoea deaths but the state owned Bangladesh times said 100 people in the Northern drought hit re Gions had died of diarrhoea in the past two weeks. It quoted local health officials As recording 3,000 cases of people seeking treatment for diarrhoea. Land disputes in Mexico take toll in shootouts san Luis Potosi Mexico a shootouts be tween police and peasants involved in land disputes in Central Mexico have left nine people dead and 57 wounded the past two Days authorities said. Four peasants and a policeman were killed thurs Day when officers tried to dislodge 400 peasants Ille Gally occupying three ranches in this state about 200 Miles North of Mexico City said Octavio a Crodia Aranda assistant attorney general in san Luis Potosi. A Day earlier four people were shot to death in san Martin Chalco Cuautla when officers who went to the Home of peasant Leader Hector Castillo Sanchez were surrounded by 350 peasants wielding guns and machetes a Crodia said. He said the peasants opened fire wounding three officers. A Crodia said 24 peasants also were injured in the fighting. Violent confrontations Over land disputes in Mexico arc common. Shamir re eased from Hosp a Jerusalem a prime min ister Yitzhak Shamir was released from Jerusalem s Hadassah Hospital on Friday after two Days of tests for fatigue Shamir s office said. Or. Shamir is feeling Well and is in an excellent mood a spokeswoman said. He will rest at Home Dur ing the  officials at Hadassah confirmed that Shamir 73, intended to attend a crucial Cabinet debate on his Middle East peace plan. A Hospital spokesman would not say what tests he underwent or provide details of his illness. He Only complained of fatigue the spokesman said adding that Shamir had been working very  Yitzhak Shamir German woman who spied for Kab Lover sentenced Dusseldorf West Germany a a former Secretary in the Chancellor s office who said love for a Kab agent led her to spy for the soviet Union has been sentenced to 6vj years in prison. Elk Falk 44, was found guilty of passing More than 200 confidential documents to soviet intelligence agents be tween 1975 and 1985. The documents included West Ger Man intelligence reports government and Cabinet minutes and information on nato Maneu vers. Falk who pleaded guilty said she signed spying after falling in love with a Kab agent who recruited her. In passing sentence thursday chief judge Klaus Wagner said Falk was a willing  but Wagner also praised Falk s cooperation with investigators after her arrest in March 1988, saying she gave new and important information about the Kab  Falk told the court she met the spy Gerhard thimme in 1973 through a lonely hearts advertisement. Falk worked in several government offices including the chancellery and the ministries of transport and economic co operation. Wagner said the most valuable Intelli gence material Given to the soviets came after Falk moved to the ministry of eco nomic cooperation in 1979. They were not state secrets but they contained the government s assessment of the International situation be said