Cable Briefs (Press, 2 June 1980)

On 2 June 1980, a federal court jury in the United States ruled that a six-year-old girl who survived the tragic Saigon crash of an Air Force plane would receive $1 million in civil damages. The crash occurred on 4 April 1975 while the aircraft was transporting Vietnamese orphans to new homes. The girl, who has American adoptive parents, is the second young survivor to be awarded damages, while another survivor's case was dismissed without compensation. The incident claimed the lives of 135 individuals, including 76 orphans, following the failure of a cargo door mid-flight, leading to the crash of the world's largest aircraft. In Connecticut, three individuals were injured, two critically, when a passenger opened fire with a rifle on a passenger train in New London. Among the victims were a conductor, a female passenger, and a railway policeman who responded to the situation. A suspect was apprehended, although the motive behind the shootings remains unclear. Meanwhile, a special conference of the British Labour Party adopted a document proposing radical left-wing policies aimed at future governance. The paper suggested extensive government control over industry, nationalisation of North Sea oil resources, and reductions in defence expenditure. While the document does not obligate a future Labour government, members on the left hope it will steer the party towards more socialist principles. In Massachusetts, Aaron Fricke, a homosexual high school student, made headlines by attending a school dance with his male partner, supported by enhanced security measures. The Cumberland High School in Sutton hired additional police to ensure their safety against potential threats from other students. Fricke had previously won a Federal court case that granted him this right, and the school's principal warned that strict consequences would follow any disruptive behaviour. Lastly, tension appeared to be brewing between Europe and the United States over Middle East policy. After a meeting between French Foreign Minister Jean François Poncet and American Secretary of State Edmund Muskie, Poncet asserted that Europe must engage in efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East and address Palestinian autonomy. However, a senior State Department official indicated that the U.S. was not prepared to abandon the Camp David accords. In response, nations within the European Economic Community expressed a desire to resolve the stalemate in Palestinian discussions potentially by inviting the United Nations to mediate.

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