January 10, 2005

American-based private relief agency Mercy Corps starts Cash for Work program in one neighborhood in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, offering men who have lost their homes and livelihoods paid jobs, clearing debris and removing bodies; men clearing debris are paid standard wage for unskilled labor there; those collecting bodies are paid more; it took five days of negotiations before government would sign off on Mercy Corps work program; elsewhere in city, cleanup is being organized by Indonesian military; with shortage of earth-moving equipment and vastness of Aceh Province, job could take months, if not years; this makes Mercy Corps work program useful addition; Mercy Corps hopes to expand program to have 1,000 people in project and expand scope of work to include helping out at local schools; photos (M)

Independent commission investigating United Nations oil-for-food program in Iraq says UN's auditors did not monitor giant aid effort adequately and that its officials in some cases ignored recommendations that auditors deemed crucial to program's success; commission, lead by Paul A Volcker, issues what it terms 'provisional assessment of auditor performance; release of confidential documents shows loose financial controls over sprawling program, which has become major scandal at UN; there are no allegations of bribery or corruption by UN officials, but audits make clear that many of deficiencies were known in late 1990's, at time when indications of corruption of program by Saddam Hussein and others were also reaching UN; commission notes auditors' failure to monitor in depth New York headquarters of office that administered program, or to monitor contracts for oil sales that provided revenue for program or those for purchase of relief and other goods supposed to ease effect of sanctions on Iraqis; commission notes that program suffered from 'chronic shortage' of auditors (M)

1933 double eagle $20 coin, $7.59-million gold piece that is world's most expensive coin, is brought up from deep vault at Federal Reserve Bank in New York and returned to public display in Fed's fortress on Liberty Street; photos; coin has been locked in compartment with $90 billion worth of gold bars since homeland security alert last August; history and litigation surrounding coin recounted (M)

New York City health officials explain how they scounged about for scarce flu vaccine last fall, saying they are now finally ahead of curve as actual cases appear, and have enough vaccine for everyone over age 50; Comr Thomas R Frieden explains (M)

Home Box Office, in first accord of its kind, will let Public Broadcasting Service replay for free three original HBO films after they complete monthlong run on HBO's premium cable channel; HBO chairman Chris Albrecht says aim is to make films on topics of public interest available to much wider audience; PBS will produce panel discussions to accompany films on public stations; films are Dirty War, fictional account of release by terrorist group of so-called dirty bomb, Sometimes in April, which deals with 1994 incidents of genocidal atrocities in Rwanda, and Yesterday, about young African mother with AIDS; photos (M)