Today's Story Line

The fall of the Berlin Wall marks one of the most significant events in this century. Ten years later, in the first of two parts, we look at how former Soviet-bloc nations - and individuals - are faring.

You can mark the progress of political reformers in Iran by the number of newspapers forced to close, or allowed to stay open.

The investigation into journalist Sander Thoenes's murder points to Indonesian military involvement.

- David Clark Scott, World editor

REPORTERS ON THE JOB

*CZECH-ING IN: While in the Czech Republic working on the story about Gypsies, reporter Lucian Kim took a nostalgic side trip. He visited some old friends in a nearby town where he taught English in 1992. The high school had no Romas as students; they were all "white" Czechs. But when Lucian told his friends what he was doing, they were insulted. "They didn't consider it a problem. They were barely conscious of their prejudice," says Lucian. "They pointed to the racial inequities in the US and the institutionalized ghettoes there as being far more glaring examples of prejudice."

FOLLOW-UP ON A MONITOR STORY

*YES TO QUEEN, No TO ABORIGINES: As polls predicted in our Nov. 5 story, Australian voters rejected, 55 to 45 percent, a proposal to turn their country from a constitutional monarchy into a republic with a president chosen by Parliament. A second referendum question asking about adding a new constitutional preamble acknowledging the prior occupation of Australia by indigenous peoples, was also defeated: 60.6 percent to 39.3 percent, despite bipartisan support.

CULTURAL SNAPSHOT

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