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1.  The Minister for Law and Foreign Affairs says minority communities must note that multi-racial harmony requires all sectors of society to work hard to ensure that it endures. Professor S Jayakumar says the continuation of multiracialism, tolerance and harmony is not dependent on the majority Chinese community alone. He added an equal responsibility rests on minority communities to ensure they continuously foster these concepts; and to never let chauvinism and extremism take root.

2.  Minister for Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng says he's fully confident new MPs, like their older counterparts, will abide by the code of conduct issued by the Prime Minister yesterday. Although this is standard procedure before every new parliamentary term, Mr. Wong says the guidelines have been made public this time so that Singaporeans will know of the high standards the PAP sets for its MPs.

3.  At the same event, the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Law and Home Affairs called on the Workers' Party's Mr Tang Liang Hong to return to Singapore and make a formal police report, if he really believes his life is in danger. Associate Professor Ho Peng Kee, made the same point during an interview with BBC Radio this morning.

4.  The Criminal Investigations Department Director says the Police will consider providing Mr. Tang with protection after he comes back to Singapore and presents himself for an interview. Mr. Chua Chin Kiat was responding to the interview given by Mr. JB Jeyaretnam to the BBC's " East Asia Today' programme, on Monday. In it Mr. Jeyaretnam made a public call to the police Commissioner to provide adequate 24-hour protection to Mr. Tang and his family. Mr. Chua said the police have earlier said that they've been trying to contact Mr. Tang since the 4th of January to find out about the threats Mr. Tang allegedly received.

5.  The Workers' Party has accepted the offer of a Non-Constituency MP seat in parliament and its Secretary General JB Jeyaretnam will be the NCMP. The Party informed the Returning Officer of its decision today. Mr. Jeyaretnam was a member of the Workers' Party team, which lost in Cheng San GRC polling about 45 percent of the valid votes. Since 1984 the party had objected in principle to the provision of the NCMP under the constitution. The party said it accepted this time because it felt voters in Cheng San did not have the chance to vote in the election.

6.  Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew will have medical tests on his bladder tomorrow, at the Singapore General Hospital. This will be done by Associate Professor Foo Keong Tatt, a senior consultant in the Department of Urology. On two previous occasions, Professor Foo had removed inflammatory tissue from the bladder wall. The Prime Minister's office says SM Lee's stay in hospital will depend on the tests, which may include a procedure to remove tissue from the prostate.

7.  In World news. It's been revealed that Hong Kong's Beijing appointed provisional legislature will pass laws before the territory's handover to China in July. The announcement by a senior Chinese official has been criticized by several groups in Hong Kong including the Democratic Party, the territory's biggest pro-democracy group.

8.  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US peace negotiator Dennis Ross have held further talks on Israeli troop withdrawals from Hebron. But radio reports say that made no progress. The talks were overshadowed by a series of bombings in Tel Aviv last night, which wounded 13 people.

9.  29 people died in the US when a commuter plane crashed southwest of Detroit in a snowstorm.

10. A striking South Korean worker is in critical condition after setting himself on fire outside the Hyundai Company. The attempted suicide came just as a Seoul court issued arrest warrants for 7 union chiefs accused of leading massive labour strikes. The warrants were issued after strike leaders defied orders to appear in court for questioning without giving justifiable reasons. All seven are being charged with obstruction of official duty, which carries a maximum five-year jail term. Internationally, pressure on Seoul has also intensified.

The Director General of the International Labour Organisation, prompted by complaints from international labour groups, has written to President Kim Young Sam about the new law, that makes it easier for management to fire workers. These groups have also threatened strikes at South Korean embassies worldwide.

11. Japan and Indonesia have agreed to exchange information on ways to combat terrorism and pledge to enhance economic and cultural ties with each other. Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, who is currently in Indonesia, met President Suharto for talks today. Mr. Hashimoto leaves for Vietnam tomorrow and will be making his first official visit to Singapore on Sunday. During his 3-day visit here, he will call on Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong and President Ong Teng Cheong, and deliver the Singapore lecture. Mr. Hashimoto is on a five-nation Southeast Asian tour. The tour has been overshadowed by continuing hostage crisis in Peru, in which rebels are holding hostages in the Japanese embassy.

12. In the latest, on the hostage situation. Four shots were heard today, near the home of the Japanese ambassador, where leftist rebels are holding 74 people. Police immediately tightened security around the compound. But there were no reports of injuries. It's the third time since the crisis began that blasts have been heard from the residence. President Alberto Fujimori has ruled out giving in to the rebels who want their jailed comrades freed. But his cabinet chief said Peru might be willing to let the rebels leave the country if the hostage crisis ended peacefully.

13. Radio reports from Russia say President Boris Yeltsin has relatively serious pneumonia in both lungs. The radio was quoting a medical source at the clinic where Mr Yeltsin is being treated for the third day. His chief doctor has said he'll only be able to resume his full workload in 3 weeks.

14. Asean's national tourism organisations have agreed to set up a joint body to combat negative portrayals of their countries that affect the industry, like natural disasters. At the end of the Asean tourism forum held in Kuala Lumpur, the Asean Crisis Team for Tourism was set up. The first meeting is to be held in Singapore in April.

15. In other travel news. Singapore Airlines has been named Airline of the Year for 1997 by Executive Travel magazine. The carrier also won 8 other individual awards at a ceremony in London yesterday.

16. In South Africa, a horrific incident on board a plane. A nine-year-old girl had to have surgery, after being sucked into the plane's toilet bowl.

17. Trade and Industry Minister Yeo Cheow Tong says Singapore's gross domestic product is expected to grow by between five and seven percent this year. Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong made the same forecast in his New Year message. Speaking to reporters at the launch of the National Science and Technology Board's new Data Storage Institute, Mr. Yeo said although the electronic sector will remain volatile over the next few months, he expects a recovery to be in full swing by the mid-year.

18. It's back to work for twelve retrenched workers but to an entirely different line. The ex-pharmaceutical workers today completed their training as bakers, and three have already found jobs. This is the first time a retraining centre has also secured jobs for its trainees.

19. Central Narcotics Bureau officers have smashed a major drug syndicate. They've seized 10.2 kilogrammes of heroin and arrested 15 Singaporeans.

20. The largest fine ever imposed for local marine pollution was handed down by the courts today. A shipping company, its agents and a ship's master were fined a total of 1.25 million dollars for illegally discharging oil into the sea near Sentosa in August. Dong Sheng tankers, owners of the vessel the Song San, which faced 125 charges, pleaded guilty. They were fined 450 thousand dollars. The ship's agent, ocean tankers, was fined 400 thousand dollars. The ship's master, an Indian national was jailed 5 months and 2 weeks and fined 400 thousand dollars.


21. Muslims in Singapore today began their annual, month long fasting, abstaining from food and drink from sunrise till sunset. Mosques all over the republic will be hives of activities during this month called Ramadan in the Muslim calendar. And special nightly prayers attract larder than normal attendance.

22. Giant killer, Jan Kroslak has advanced to the semi finals of the Honda-Kah Singapore Men's tennis Open.

23. Now a look at the financial markets. Barely two weeks into the New Year and already shaky times for Asian bourses. Seoul's been plagued by nationwide strikes while impending property curbs in Hong Kong are making investors jittery. And Tokyo stocks were in a nosedive all week, on renewed fears over the state of the economy.