2007 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2007 results, Langley St Mary's
Langley St Mary's (born 1983) is a three-member ward in north Langley, in the eastern part of the Borough. St Mary's is named after the church in Langley. This has been a Labour/Conservative marginal ward, but in 2004 the Independent Langley Residents won two seats and tied for the third (which the Conservative candidate won on a roll of dice, so he was credited with an additional vote). The Conservative Councillor increased his majority to seven in 2006 (over Labour, with ILR in third place), for the only Tory victory of the 2006 Slough election.


2007 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2007 results, Langley St Mary's
In a 2006 by-election the Conservative Party gained a seat from the Independent Langley Residents (with the Labour candidate in second place). This was the seat contested again in 2007. The Tories again won the seat.


2007 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2007 results, Langley St Mary's
Before the 2007 election the remaining ILR Councillor (Neil Arnold) joined The Slough Party and proposed its candidate for that election


2007 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2007 results, Upton
Upton (born 1930), part of the original parish of Upton-cum-Chalvey (in the south of the modern Borough), is a ward which has existed in some form continuously since 1930. It is a three-seat ward. In the early nineteenth century Upton was a village about a mile and a half south-west of the hamlet of Slough (see Central ward). This was the most Conservative area of Slough until demographic change made Labour competitive. Labour won the ward for the first time ever in 1990. In 1997 Labour won two seats and the Conservatives one. At the 2004 election the Conservatives won all three seats, although one Councillor has since become an Independent Conservative. Labour gained a seat from the Tories in 2006.


2007 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2007 results, Upton
The Independent Conservative Councillor received the official Conservative nomination for the 2007 election and was re-elected.


2007 Slough Borough Council election, Ward notes and 2007 results, Wexham Lea
Wexham Lea (born 1983) is a three-member ward in the north of the Borough, to the north-east of Baylis & Stoke and the north of Central ward. It combines Wexham Court parish and an area known as Upton Lea. The ward was formerly safely Labour but is now securely held by Independent Councillors who won all three seats in 2004. The Mayor of Slough for 2005–2006 was re-elected in 2006; as was the 2006–2007 Mayor the following year.


2007 Slovak Cup Final
The 2007 Slovak Cup Final was the final match of the 2006–07 Slovak Cup, the 38th season of the top cup competition in Slovak football. The match was played at the Pasienky in Bratislava on 8 May 2007 between FC Senec and FC ViOn Zlaté Moravce. FC ViOn defeated Senec 4-0.


2007 Slovenian Supercup
The 2007 Slovenian Supercup was a football match that saw the 2006–07 PrvaLiga champions Domžale face off against Slovenian Cup champions Koper. The match was held on 14 July 2007 at the Sports Park in Domžale.


2007 Slovenian presidential election
EU Member State(Eurozone Member State)(Schengen Area Member State)NATO Member StateCouncil of Europe Member StateOECD Member State


2007 Slovenian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Slovenia in October and November 2007 to elect the successor to the second President of Slovenia Janez Drnovšek. France Cukjati, the President of the National Assembly, called the elections on 20 June 2007.


2007 Slovenian presidential election
Seven candidates competed in the first round on 21 October 2007; three entered the race as independent candidates, the other four were supported by political parties. Several political events, as well as tension between the Government and the political opposition, overshadowed the campaign. The front runner Lojze Peterle, supported by the governing conservative coalition, won the first round with far fewer votes than predicted by opinion polls. In the second round, held on 11 November 2007, Peterle faced the runner-up, the left-wing candidate Danilo Türk. Türk won the second round in a landslide, with 68.03% of the vote.


2007 Slovenian presidential election
In a referendum called by the National Council, and held on the same day as the second round, the electorate voted to overturn a law providing for the nationalization of citizens' share in the major national insurance company. Nearly three-quarters of the votes were cast against the law. After both election and referendum results were announced, the Prime Minister Janez Janša announced that he might resign, following what he perceived to be a heavy defeat for the Government. The Government later won a vote of confidence in the National Assembly.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Background
The role of the president of Slovenia is mainly ceremonial. One of the president's duties is to nominate the Prime Minister, after consulting with political groups represented in the National Assembly. The president also proposes candidates for various state offices, as well as judicial appointments to the Constitutional and Supreme Court, which must be approved by the National Assembly. In rare circumstances, the president possesses the power to pass laws and dissolve the National Assembly. The President is also the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. Unlike the majority of the government, which is chosen by the National Assembly and elected through proportional representation, the president is directly elected by the majority of Slovenian voters.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Background
The previous presidential election in 2002 brought major changes to Slovenian politics. The former president Milan Kučan, in office since the first free elections held in the Republic of Slovenia in April 1990 (before the country's independence from Yugoslavia), was forbidden by the constitution from running for president again, and announced his retirement from active politics. Prime Minister Janez Drnovšek of the Liberal Democracy of Slovenia stood for the office, comfortably winning the runoff against conservative candidate Barbara Brezigar.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Background
The 2004 legislative election brought further changes and a political swing to the right. Janez Janša, the leader of a right-wing coalition, formed the new government. In Slovenia, this was the first time after 1992 that the President and the Prime Minister had represented opposing political factions for more than a few months. Between 2002 and 2004, the relationship between President Drnovšek and Janez Janša, then leader of the opposition, were considered more than good and in the first year of cohabitation, no major problems arose.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Background
In the beginning of his term, Drnovšek, who was ill with cancer, stayed out of public view. When he reemerged in late 2005 he had changed his lifestyle: he became a vegan, moved out of the capital into the countryside, and withdrew from party politics completely, ending his already frozen membership in the Liberal Democracy. Drnovšek's new approach to politics prompted one political commentator to nickname him "Slovenia's Gandhi".


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Background
The relationship between Drnovšek and the government quickly became tense. Disagreements began with Drnovšek's initiatives in foreign politics, aimed at solving major foreign conflicts, including those in Darfur and Kosovo. Initially, these initiatives were not openly opposed by the Prime Minister, but were criticized by the foreign minister Dimitrij Rupel, Drnovšek's former collaborator and close political ally until 2004. The disagreements moved to issues of domestic politics in October 2006, when Drnovšek publicly criticised the treatment of the Romani family Strojans.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Background
The neighborhood had forced the Strojans to relocate, which in turn subjected them to police supervision and limitation of movement. The disagreements however escalated when the parliamentary majority repeatedly rejected President's candidates for the Governor of the Bank of Slovenia, beginning with the rejection of incumbent Mitja Gaspari. The friction continued over the appointment of other state official nominees, including Constitutional Court judges. Although the President's political support suffered after his personal transformation, the polls nevertheless showed public backing of the President against an increasingly unpopular Government.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Background
The tension reached its height in May 2007, when the newly appointed director of the Slovenian Secret Service Matjaž Šinkovec unclassified several documents from the period before 2004, revealing, among other, that Drnovšek had used secret funds for personal purposes between 2002 and 2004. The President reacted with a harsh criticism of the government's policies, accusing the ruling coalition of abusing its power for personal delegitimation and labeled the Prime Minister as "the leader of the negative guys". After years of speculation about his health and intentions, Janez Drnovšek announced in February 2007 that he would not run for president again.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Requirements for candidacy
Under Slovenian Election Law, candidates for president require support of either:


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Requirements for candidacy
Each political party can support only one candidate. In the election, the president is elected with a majority of the vote. If no candidate receives more than half of votes, the top two candidates meet in the second round of election.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
The first official candidate was Lojze Peterle, a conservative member of the European parliament and first democratically elected Prime Minister of Slovenia (1990–1992), who announced his candidacy in November 2006. He was endorsed by the three government center-right parties, New Slovenia (NSi), Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS), and Slovenian People's Party (SLS).


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
Drnovšek's announcement that he would not run for president again led to expectations that the Social Democrats (SD) would nominate their leader Borut Pahor and indeed Pahor confirmed that he was ready to run for the office. The Social Democrats had become the most popular party in opinion polls and were considered the likely winners at the next general election in 2008; opinion polls indicated that Pahor would easily win the presidential election. However, after months of mixed signals, Pahor finally announced that he would instead concentrate on the general election and would not run for the mostly ceremonial office of the president.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
The Social Democrats then nominated Danilo Türk, a former Slovenian ambassador and high official in the United Nations, who at the time was a professor at the University of Ljubljana's Faculty of Law. Türk's candidacy was also endorsed by Zares and the pensioners' party DeSUS. Türk also gained support from Active Slovenia (AS) and the Party of Ecological Movements (SEG), two parties not represented in the National Assembly.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
Liberal Democracy of Slovenia (LDS), which had earlier discussed the candidacy with Danilo Türk, subsequently nominated Mitja Gaspari, the former Governor of the Bank of Slovenia. Gaspari had earlier had discussions with the Social Democrats about the candidacy.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
The Slovenian National Party (SNS) nominated its leader, Zmago Jelinčič. Jelinčič had already run for the office at the 2002 election, finishing third with 8.51% of the votes.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
Peterle, Türk and Gaspari all decided to enter the election as independent candidates and all managed to collect enough nominating votes with Peterle reaching the required number within the first 4 hours of the nominating process. Jelinčič was supported by his fellow party members. Early polls indicated that Peterle, who had been campaigning for months and had cultivated the image of a "man of the people", would win the election in a runoff against Türk or possibly Gaspari.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
Lojze Peterle, independent candidate, supported by NSi, SDS and SLS


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Leading candidates
Danilo Türk, independent candidate, supported by SD, DeSUS, Zares, AS and SEG


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Other candidates
Other candidates, none of whom were expected to win a significant share of votes, were Darko Krajnc of the formerly parliamentarian Youth Party of Slovenia, the disabled rights activist Elena Pečarič, and Monika Piberl, supported by the Women's Voice of Slovenia party. Pečarič was supported by non-aligned Majda Širca, independent Slavko Gaber and Roberto Battelli, representative of the Italian minority in Slovenia. Krajnc and Piberl were supported by non-parliamentary political parties so they only needed to collect 3,000 support votes.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Candidates, Other candidates
Several other candidates publicly announced their intention to run for the office. Jože Andrejaš, Jožef Horvat, Matej Sedmak, Marjan Beranič, Marko Kožar and Pavel Premrl failed to gather sufficient public support or later decided to withdraw from the race. Artur Štern, after leading a spoof campaign, announced that he was in fact performing a hidden camera experiment. The footage was used by Franci Kek and Vojko Anzeljc in a film Gola resnica, airing in early 2009 and addressing objectivity of media, problems with election legislation and reactions from Slovenes.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round campaign
The official election campaign began in late September 2007. The campaigns of the three front runners were based mostly on the personal appeal of the candidates, with few concrete statements about political issues. Zmago Jelinčič led an aggressive campaign, focusing on denouncing the three front runners, the Government, the ethnic and religious minorities, the Roman Catholic Church, and demanding an aggressive policy towards neighbouring Croatia.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round campaign
The candidates appeared in televised debates during which they discussed various topics. One of them were the rules governing the voting of non-resident nationals, which had been changed by the National Electoral Commission during the campaign. Before the campaign, non-resident nationals who wanted to cast their votes as absentee ballots had been obliged to request voting materials, but the commission had introduced a new system in which such materials were sent to all non-residents entered in the electoral register, whether they had asked for them or not.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round campaign
Opposition parties, representing the left-wing of Slovenian politics, disliked this move because the record of voters' addresses was not always reliable, and also because the rules had been changed after the campaign had already started. They particularly opposed the change because voters from abroad seemed to favor right-wing parties, so that in the event of a very close ballot, votes from non-residents could tip the scale in favour of Peterle.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round campaign
Other events overshadowed the campaign. During the summer, journalists Matej Šurc and Blaž Zgaga launched a Petition Against Censorship and Political Pressures on Journalists in Slovenia, alleging government interference with journalism. The petition was signed by hundreds of Slovenian journalists from the mainstream media. It was sent to the heads of state, prime ministers and parliamentary speakers of all EU member states during the campaign. Following the petition, the International Press Institute (IPI) sent a fact-finding mission to Ljubljana in November, to discuss the claims made in the petition with members of the Slovenian media. The contents of the mission's report remain confidential, but IPI called for the establishment of an independent commission to investigate the claims further.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round campaign
Another event which attracted much debate was the Supreme Court's annulment of the 1946 war crimes conviction of Gregorij Rožman. Rožman was the Catholic bishop of Ljubljana who had been found guilty of war crimes and treason during World War II as a result of his collaboration with Italian and German occupation forces. Several attempts during the 1990s to review the trial had failed. This had led to Janša's government changing the law, enabling the religious communities to request a review of trials of their deceased members, something which had previously been reserved only for close relatives.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round campaign
After the Archdiocese of Ljubljana initiated the review, the Supreme Court annulled the 1946 trial on procedural grounds, effectively rehabilitating Rožman, a decision that caused much controversy. This proved harmful for Peterle's campaign, as he was closely associated with the Catholic Church. When asked about the Rožman case in a TV debate, Peterle confined himself to remarking that he was a supporter of the rule of law, that the war had divided the nation and that Rožman had played some part in that.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round campaign
The last opinion polls published before the first round predicted a runoff between Peterle, who would win 40%, and either Türk or Gaspari. The latter were each predicted to receive 20–25%; most polls predicted a substantially larger share for Türk.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, First round result and reactions
The first round, held on 21 October, brought unexpected results. Contrary to predictions, Peterle won less than 29% of the vote, with Türk and Gaspari finishing a close second and third, respectively. Jelinčič, who according to opinion polls was expected to win around 12% of the vote, actually won almost 20%, finishing first in two of Slovenia's eight electoral units. Prime Minister Janez Janša blamed Peterle's poor showing on certain topics that were brought up during the campaign by "hidden centres of power". This was a reference to the journalists' petition, the timing of the Supreme Court's decision on the Rožman case and misinterpretation of Janša's and Minister of Economy Andrej Vizjak's remarks on reasons for Slovenia's high inflation in 2007.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff campaign
Following the unexpected results of the first round, new opinion polls showed major changes, giving Türk a large lead over Peterle. Liberal Democracy of Slovenia, which supported Gaspari in the first round, announced it would support Türk in the second.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff campaign
After the surprise gains of the flamboyant Jelinčič in the first round, the campaigns of both candidates opted for more concrete political statements in public campaigning and debates. Peterle replaced the head of his campaign, and concentrated on questioning Türk's role in the 1991 secession from Yugoslavia. Peterle alleged that at the time when he, as Prime Minister, struggled for Slovenia's independence, Türk continued to act as an official representative of Yugoslavia in international institutions.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff campaign
The campaign was backed by the Prime Minister Janša and the Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel who went so far as to confirm Peterle's claims on the Foreign Ministry's official website. Türk denied the allegations, pointing to his opinion piece in the International Herald Tribune advocating international recognition of Slovenia, and the fact that it was Rupel himself who in 1992 appointed Türk as the Ambassador to the UN and praised him for his service to the country. Peterle's new strategy appeared to backfire, and the polls before the runoff predicted that Türk would win between 63% and over 70% of the vote.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff result and reactions
The runoff was held on 11 November 2007. Exit poll results published at the closing of the vote predicted a victory for Türk, with 69% of the vote. "I'm very happy with the results as they appear now. I want to be a president who is uniting people. I believe that conditions here are such that people have a strong desire for something new," Türk told reporters.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff result and reactions
Peterle conceded immediately. In his first statements, Peterle said his defeat was a vote against the ruling Janša government, and that he had expected a better result. He added, however, that he would have regretted it if he had not decided to run for the office. By midnight, unofficial results from the Electoral Commission gave Türk a lead of 68% vs. 32%. Türk won in all eight electoral units, with Peterle narrowly winning in only four of 88 electoral districts. Together with the second round of the election, a referendum on a law providing for the nationalization of citizens' share in the major national insurance company was held as well. Nearly three-quarters of the votes were cast against the law.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff result and reactions
The ballots from abroad that were considered potentially contentious before the election proved to have very little effect on the result. While Peterle received more votes from abroad than Türk, both the total number of votes and the difference was smaller than expected (3693 for Peterle and 3040 for Türk).


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff result and reactions
Two days after the election, Prime Minister Janša announced that he might resign following what was perceived as a heavy defeat for the Government: "We will analyze the situation further, but all possibilities are open, including a resignation of the Government." He said that "it is particularly worrying that a lot of energy was invested in blackening the Government abroad," claiming his opponents portrayed Slovenia "as Belarus" or some other authoritarian country.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff result and reactions
The opposition parties said that talk of resignation just weeks before Slovenia took over European Union presidency was irresponsible and unwise, but the Prime Minister called a vote of confidence for 19 November 2007. The Government won the confidence vote, but support for the ruling SDS subsequently reached an all-time low, with only 18% of voters intending to vote for it in the fall 2008 election.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff result and reactions
Reactions to Türk's victory from international media were positive. The Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung described him as "more or less the ideal man for the job". The media focused on the landslide victory that was perceived to be a severe defeat for Janša's centre-right coalition. Since the EU presidency was closing, Türk's diplomatic background was put forward. "Slovenia is your solid, faithful and credible partner. Rely on us, and we'll be a good president of the European Union next year," Türk said. Türk was also expected to maintain Slovenia's alliance with the United States even though he was highly critical of the war in Iraq, as Al Jazeera reported.


2007 Slovenian presidential election, Runoff result and reactions
On 22 December, Türk was sworn in as the President of the Republic of Slovenia. In his inaugural address, he thanked his predecessor Janez Drnovšek for his contribution to success and respect of Slovenia. Later, he also stated that he would work closely with Janša's government during Slovenia's six-month EU presidency.


2007 Slovenian privatisation referendum
EU Member State(Eurozone Member State)(Schengen Area Member State)NATO Member StateCouncil of Europe Member StateOECD Member State


2007 Slovenian privatisation referendum
A referendum on further privatisation of Zavarovalnica Triglav was held in Slovenia on 11 November 2007. The referendum would approve the Amending the Ownership Transformation of Insurance Companies Act, which would allow Kapitalska družba to sell its shares in Zavarovalnica Triglav. The proposal was rejected by 71.1% of voters.


2007 Sobeys Slam
The 2007 Sobeys Slam was held from November 29 to December 2 at the John Brother MacDonald Stadium in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. It was the fourth of five women's Grand Slam events during the 2007–08 season. It was the first season where the event was a Slam. The total purse was $54,000 with $14,000 going to the champion Sherry Middaugh rink.


2007 Sobeys Slam
Sherry Middaugh won her first Grand Slam event by defeating Marie-France Larouche 6–4 in the final. Middaugh lost her first two games before racking off seven straight wins to claim the title. Larouche went undefeated up until the final before losing to Middaugh.


2007 Sokoto State gubernatorial election
The 2007 Sokoto State gubernatorial election occurred on April 14, 2007. PDP candidate Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko won the election, defeating DPP Muhammed Dingyadi and 8 other candidates.


2007 Sokoto State gubernatorial election, Results
Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko from the PDP won the election. He defeated Muhammed Dingyadi of the DPP and 8 others.


2007 Sokoto State gubernatorial election, Results
The total number of registered voters in the state was 1,109,337.


2007 Solheim Cup
The 2007 Solheim Cup was the tenth Solheim Cup, held 14–16 September at Halmstad GK in Halmstad, Sweden. It was a three-day contest for professional female golfers, pitting the 12 best players born in the United States against the 12 best players born in Europe. The U.S. team won the competition, 16 to 12, to retain the Solheim Cup.


2007 Solheim Cup, Format
The Solheim Cup is a match play event, as opposed to the more common stroke play format. A total of 28 points are available, divided among four periods of team play, followed by one period of singles play. The first period, on Friday morning, consists of four rounds of foursomes. This is followed in the afternoon by four rounds of four-ball. This schedule is repeated on Saturday morning and afternoon. The four periods on Friday and Saturday account for 16 points. During these team periods, the players play in teams of two. The captain of each team can play a player as many or as few times as she desires. The final 12 points are decided in a round of singles match play, in which all 24 players (12 from each team) take part.


2007 Solheim Cup, Teams
The European and United States teams were selected by different methods.


2007 Solheim Cup, Teams
The European Team was selected by taking the top five players from the LET Solheim Cup standings, followed by the top four European LET members on the Rolex Women’s World Rankings at the agreed cut off date who were not already qualified via The Solheim Cup standings, and three captain’s selections. Qualifying points for the European Team are awarded weekly to the top-10 finishers at official LET events.


2007 Solheim Cup, Teams
The U.S. Team qualified by earning points for wins and for top-20 finishes on the LPGA Tour over a two-year period. Points were earned beginning with the 2005 State Farm Classic and concluding with the 2007 Safeway Classic. The ten players with the highest points were automatically selected for the Team. Two additional players were selected by captain Betsy King after the Safeway Classic on August 26, 2007.


2007 Solheim Cup, Teams
*Residence/Hometown according to official Solheim Cup designation. LET rankings as of August 19, 2007Rolex rankings as of August 20, 2007


2007 Solheim Cup, Teams
*Residence/Hometown according to official Solheim Cup designation. Rolex rankings as of August 20, 2007. Rolex ranking does not factor into US Team selection. Shown for comparison purposes only.


2007 Solheim Cup, Individual player records
Each entry refers to the Win–Loss–Half record of the player.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election
The 2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 4 May 2007 to elect members of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council in the West Midlands, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party lost overall control of the council to no overall control.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
Before the election there were 25 Conservative, 15 Liberal Democrat, 7 Labour, 1 British National Party and 2 independent councillors. 1 seat was vacant after Conservative councillor of Knowle ward, Les Kyles, died in January 2007. Five councillors stood down at the election, Liberal Democrats Olive Hogg, Barbara Harber and Susan Reeve and Conservatives Theresa Tedd and David Elsmore.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
In total 72 candidates stood in the election for 17 seats, including candidates from the 3 leading parties and 5 candidates from the British National Party, after the British National Party won a seat at the 2006 election for the first time. The Green Party stood in all 17 wards and there were 3 candidates from the United Kingdom Independence Party and 2 independents.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
The Conservatives pledged to build on their record on recycling which had gone up 26% from 7% over 3 years. They also were confident of their record on education and wanted to get a fairer financial settlement from the national government. The Liberal Democrats said improving transport links in Solihull was a priority, along with better services for the elderly and improving recycling. Meanwhile, Labour wanted to ensure the regeneration programme for the north of Solihull worked and to deliver cost effective services. All 3 parties pledged to address anti-social behaviour as a priority.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
Before the campaign began, as in 2006, the leaders of the Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Labour parties on the council signed a charter to promote good race relations.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election result
The results saw the Conservative party lose 2 seats to the Liberal Democrats, meaning that no party had a majority on the council, but the Conservatives remained the largest party with 24 seats. The Liberal Democrats gained Shirley South and Silhill wards from the Conservatives to hold 17 seats, with the winner in Silhill, Tim Hodgson, becoming the youngest councillor in Solihull at the age of 21. Labour held onto the seats they were defending, including Chelmsley Wood where they defeated the British National Party by 192 votes in a ward the British National Party had won in 2006. This meant Labour remained on 7 seats, compared to 1 for the British National Party and 2 independents. Overall turnout was 36.5%, down from 38.4% in 2006.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election result
Following the election the leader of the council for the past 8 years, Ted Richards, resigned as leader of the council and Conservative group, after what he described as "disappointing" election results. However the Conservatives continued to run the council as a minority administration.


2007 Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election result
This result had the following consequences for the total number of seats on the council after the elections :


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake
The 2007 Solomon Islands earthquake took place on 2 April 2007, near the provincial capital of Gizo on Ghizo Island, in Solomon Islands. Its magnitude was estimated at 8.1 on the Mw scale, and 7.8 on the Ms scale. The tsunami that followed the earthquake killed 52 people. According to the USGS, the earthquake was recorded around 7:39:56 a.m. local time (UTC+11). The focus was 10 km (6 mi) deep and 40 km (25 mi) South South-East of Gizo township on New Georgia Islands in Western Province. There were numerous aftershocks, the largest of which had a magnitude of 6.2.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Tectonic setting
The Australia, Woodlark, and Solomon Sea plates converge to the east-northeast or northeast against the Pacific plate with velocities of 90–105 millimetres/year. Along much of the plate boundary between the Pacific plate and the Australia/Woodlark/Solomon Sea plates, relative plate-motion is accomplished principally by subduction of the Australia/Woodlark/Solomon Sea plates beneath the Pacific plate.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake
The earthquake's location and focal mechanism are consistent with the earthquake having occurred as underthrusting of the Australia/Woodlark/Solomon Sea plate beneath the Pacific plate, as part of the broader northeast-directed subduction process. The length of faulting was estimated to be about 260±50 km. The Solomon Islands arc as a whole experiences a very high level of earthquake activity, and many shocks of magnitude 7 and larger have been recorded since the early decades of the twentieth century. The 2 April earthquake, however, nucleated in a 250 kilometre-long segment of the arc that had produced no shocks of magnitude 7 or larger since the early 20th century.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake, Warnings
A tsunami warning was issued for the South Pacific Ocean, and advisories issued for Japan and Hawaii. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology issued a warning for Australia's eastern coast, from Queensland's Barrier Reef to Tasmania, and beaches along the coast were closed, while many evacuated to higher ground. However, as the epicenter was close to the Solomon Islands, the tsunami hit before the Hawaiian Pacific Tsunami Warning Center released the warning.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake, Warnings
As high-magnitude ocean waves propagate at high speeds close to 25 meters per second, they traversed the 55-kilometer distance from the epicenter to Gavo in less than 20 minutes. The S-waves from the earthquake shook the ground and alerted the population, allowing many to flee to high ground before the wave struck.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake, Warnings
From Honiara, one of the first warnings came from the People First Network's Simbo email station, situated close to the epicentre. PFnet's Technical Advisor David Leeming relates that 20 minutes after the earthquake, Nickson Sioni from Simbo came on the (HF) radio and announced the arrival of a huge wave that had washed away several houses and come inland about 200m. This information was passed on by telephone to the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center who then upgraded their warning to an "expanding regional alert". This was achieved before the 35-minute arrival time of the wave for the capital Honiara, which in the event proved non-destructive.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake, Tsunami
At least fifty-two people were reported to have been killed and sixty reported missing when a tsunami triggered by the earthquake struck the Solomon Islands, wiping out thirteen or more villages. Thousands were left homeless, and damage is estimated in the millions. The largest waves were reported on the northern tip of Simbo Island, where maximum tsunami run-ups were 12 m, completely washing away two villages, Tapurai and Riquru, and killing 10 people. In South Choiseul, waves 10 meters high swept away villages, gardens and a hospital. About 900 homes were destroyed.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake, Tsunami
The tsunami reached Papua New Guinea, with a family of five reportedly missing from a remote island in Milne Bay Province, which was in the tsunami's path. The beaches and ferry services at Sydney were closed due to tsunami alert. C


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake, Tsunami
Aid workers reported that an outbreak of diarrhoea emerged among the survivors. However, the UN reported that the outbreak and other diseases were under control as of 12 April. On 18 April, a measles outbreak was reported and an immunisation program was underway.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Earthquake, Tsunami
The island of Ranongga in the New Georgia Group was lifted three meters by the earthquake, causing its beaches to shift outwards of up to 70 meters. Large coral reefs in the area are now largely above the surface and local fishermen are worried that the fishing grounds have been destroyed. However, Australian scientists said the exposure of the reefs are a normal part of island building and that careful wildlife management can preserve the reefs that remain.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Response
Australia committed to contribute an initial 3 million AUD in emergency aid, later increased to 5.7 million as of June 2007. New Zealand gave 950,000 NZD during the initial relief period, and committed 7.5 million NZD over two years to reconstruction, as of July 2007. The United States contributed US$250,000 in aid. Taiwan contributed US$214,000 and shipment of 1,000 kg of rice. France has also airlifted supplies via New Caledonia.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Response
The United Nations established a field hospital in Gizo, with a total of eight planned for the entire country, and also established three camps for internally displaced persons. Australian and Canadian medical teams have also been deployed across the islands. Papua New Guinea, itself affected by the tsunami, has contributed US$340,000 and a light plane that can better access smaller, more remote airstrips. UNICEF issued an appeal for US$500,000 for both the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. Separately, the Red Cross has issued an appeal for US$800,000.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Response
The remoteness of some villages meant that aid did not reach them until several days after the tsunami occurred. However, the Associated Press reported on 6 April that Gizo's airport had reopened, easing the delivery of supplies. A Taiwanese fishing boat ran aground on coral reefs while delivering supplies, but it was successfully evacuated by a United States Navy helicopter. The boat's crew managed to free the vessel from the rocks a few days later.


2007 Solomon Islands earthquake, Aftermath
Francis Billy Hilly, the MP for Simbo Island where 10 people died, said on 8 April that those who had previously resisted resettlement away from the island's active volcano were reconsidering their options. The national government may also relocate islanders away from low-lying areas pending a review of long-term rehabilitation and disaster preparedness plans. The Australian government announced that a network of five tsunami warning buoys will be deployed along its Pacific coast, with two buoys stationed in the Papua New Guinea/Solomon Islands area.


2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference
The 2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference was held from 15 July 2007 until 30 August 2007 in Mogadishu; it was announced on 1 March 2007 by Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, the President of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG).


2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Preparations
More than 3,000 people from all of Somalia's regions and clans as well as from the Somali diaspora participated. The United States had announced their support for the conference. Moderate Islamists in exile in Eritrea had also been invited, but had refused to attend.


2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Preparations
It was originally planned to be held from 16 April until mid-June, but was postponed thrice, first to 15 May 2007, then to 14 June 2007 and finally to 15 July 2007.


2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Events
When the conference finally opened on 15 July 2007, it immediately adjourned until 19 July 2007 to allow for more delegates to arrive, since the moderate Islamists had not yet ended their boycott of the conference. The conference building was being attacked with mortars on that date, as well, and again on 17 July 2007.


2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Events
The conference eventually opened for real on 19 July 2007; however, moderate Islamists and Hawiye clan elders still boycotted it, claiming that the venue were not neutral. Islamists have scheduled a conference in Asmara instead.


2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Events
There was an 11-point program to be discussed at the conference, including the holding of elections. According to commentators, little was achieved at the conference.


2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Further reading
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2007 Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Further reading
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2007 Songkhla bombings
The 2007 Songkhla bombings took place in Songkhla Province, Thailand on 27 and 28 May 2007, and are believed to be part of the ongoing south Thailand insurgency. At least four people were killed and 36 were injured.


2007 Songkhla bombings
The explosions started in Hat Yai when a string of seven bomb blasts that injured 13 people in Hat Yai. Most of the bombs were hidden in garbage bins and detonated nearly at the same time starting at 21:00. But one bomb was hurled into JB Hat Yai Hotel and another exploded in front of Hat Yai Garden Hotel.


2007 Songkhla bombings
The following day, a bomb exploded in front of a busy market in the Saba Yoi. The bomb, which exploded shortly after 16:00, was hidden in a motorcycle parked in front of the market next to a railway station. The motorcycle was destroyed by the blast, and a nearby car damaged, as were dozens of stalls belonging to fruit and vegetable vendors. The bombs were the first terrorist attacks in Songkhla since the south Thailand insurgency reignited in November 2004.


2007 Sony Ericsson International
The 2007 Sony Ericsson International was a Tier 3 Women's WTA Tennis Tournament held in Bangalore, Karnataka, India from 12 to 18 February 2007.


2007 Sony Ericsson International, Finals, Doubles
Chan Yung-jan /  Chuang Chia-jung defeated  Hsieh Su-wei /  Alla Kudryavtseva 6–7(4–7), 6–2, [11-9]


2007 Sony Ericsson International, WTA entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2007 Sony Ericsson International – Doubles
This is the current revision of this page, as edited by 122.57.243.2 (talk) at 08:53, 25 June 2020. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this version.


2007 Sony Ericsson International – Doubles
Sania Mirza and Liezel Huber were the defending champions, but Huber chose not to participate this year.


2007 Sony Ericsson International – Doubles
Mirza played alongside Mara Santangelo, but they lost in the semifinals Hsieh Su-wei and Alla Kudryavtseva.


2007 Sony Ericsson International – Doubles
In the final, Chan Yung-jan and Chuang Chia-jung defeated Hsieh and Kudryavtseva to win their title 6–7(4–7), 6–2, [11–9].


2007 Sony Ericsson International – Singles
Yaroslava Shvedova won the title, beating defending champion Mara Santangelo 6–4, 6–4 in the final.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open
The 2007 Sony Ericsson Open was the 23rd edition of this tennis tournament and was played on outdoor hardcourts. The tournament was part of the ATP Masters Series of the 2007 ATP Tour and was classified as a Tier I event on the 2007 WTA Tour. The tournament took place at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park in Key Biscayne, Florida, from March 21 through April 1, 2007.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open, Summary of tournament
Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams were the singles champions. Djokovic won his first Masters Series event of his career; whilst the resurgent Williams beat Henin for the only time in 2007.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open, Summary of tournament
Guillermo Cañas' ascent also continued, defeating Roger Federer for the second time in 6 days, and in two consecutive tournaments, making him the only man apart from Rafael Nadal to achieve this feat since 2003. Fellow Argentine David Nalbandian also completed a double over Federer later in the year, beating him at the Madrid and Paris Masters.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open, Summary of tournament
The event also featured boys and girls junior singles tournaments, which were won by Kei Nishikori and Sorana Cîrstea respectively.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open, Summary of tournament
From 2007 and onwards, for both men's and women's doubles, instead of a normal third set, it is replaced with a third set match tie breaker, where the first team to ten wins the match. Should it be 9–9, the first team to lead by two wins the match.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open, Finals, Men's doubles
Bob Bryan /  Mike Bryan defeated  Martin Damm /  Leander Paes 6–7(7–9), 6–3, [10–7]


2007 Sony Ericsson Open, Finals, Women's doubles
Lisa Raymond /  Samantha Stosur defeated  Cara Black /  Liezel Huber 6–4, 3–6, [10–2]


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Boys' Singles
The boys' singles event at the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open was won by Kei Nishikori of Japan.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Girls' Singles
The girls' singles section of the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open (also known as the "2007 Miami Masters"), a tennis tournament, was won by the first seed Sorana Cîrstea of Romania.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Men's Doubles
Jonas Björkman and Max Mirnyi were the defending champions, but lost in the quarterfinals this year.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Men's Doubles
Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan won the title, defeating Martin Damm and Leander Paes 6–7(7–9), 6–3, [10–7] in the final.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Men's Singles
Roger Federer was the two-time defending champion, but lost in the fourth round to Guillermo Cañas.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Men's Singles
10th seed Novak Djokovic won the title, defeating Cañas 6–3, 6–2, 6–4 in the final for his first Masters 1000 victory.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Men's Singles, Seeds
All thirty-two seeds received a bye to the second round.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Women's Doubles
Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur were the defending champions at the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open. They successfully defended their title by beating Cara Black and Liezel Huber 6-4, 3-6, [10-2] in the final.


2007 Sony Ericsson Open – Women's Singles
The women's singles competition at the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open was won by 13th-seeded and former world number one Serena Williams, who beat the second seed Justine Henin 0–6, 7–5, 6–3, to win the title.


2007 Souk El Had bombing
The 2007 Souk El Had bombing occurred on February 13, 2007 when a car bomb filled with explosives detonated against the headquarters of the Gendarmerie Nationale in the town of Souk El Had, Boumerdès Province, Algeria destroying buildings and injuring 8. The Al-Qaeda Organization in the Islamic Maghreb is suspected as being responsible.


2007 Soul Train Music Awards
The 2007 Soul Train Music Awards were held on March 10, 2007 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California and it was hosted by LeToya Luckett and Omarion. The awards ceremony was televised on March 17 and 24 on cable TV.


2007 Soul Train Music Awards
The ceremony included a performance by Jennifer Hudson, Hudson also received the Entertainer of the Year award. Other performers included, were Robin Thicke, LeToya Luckett, Rick Ross and Ronald Isley, also a special tribute to the God Father of Soul, James Brown.


2007 South Africa Sevens
The South Africa Sevens is played annually as part of the IRB Sevens World Series for international rugby sevens (seven-a-side version of rugby union). The 2007 competition, which took place on 7 December and 8 December at Outeniqua Park in George, Western Cape, was the second Cup trophy in the 2007-08 IRB Sevens World Series.


2007 South Africa Sevens
In a rematch of the Cup final from the first event in the 2007-08 series, the Dubai Sevens, New Zealand successfully defended their South Africa title by defeating Fiji. The second-level Plate final matched two surprise finalists, with Kenya narrowly defeating a USA team boosted by the presence of emerging 15s star Takudzwa Ngwenya. The Bowl was won by Wales who came from behind to win 21-19 against England. Canada took home the Shield.


2007 South Africa miners' strike
The South Africa miners strike was a one-day strike by the National Union of Mineworkers of South Africa over working conditions and safety in the country's mining industry. It was the first ever industry-wide miners' strike in South African history.


2007 South Africa miners' strike, History
On 27 November 2007, the National Union of Mineworkers announced that South African mineworkers would go on strike to protest unsafe working conditions.


2007 South Africa miners' strike, Strike
On 4 December 2007, the strike affected over 240,000 workers in 60 of the nation's mines. The strike was spurred on by a rise in worker fatalities from 2006 to 2007, despite a government plan in October to reduce fatalities. Between 5,000 and 30,000 people showed up to a rally in Johannesburg to protest the dangerous working conditions.


2007 South Africa miners' strike, Strike
Less than 5% of mineworkers came to work on that day.


2007 South Africa miners' strike, Reaction
AngloPlat announced it had slashed yearly production goals by 9,000 ounces due to the strike.


2007 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
The 2007 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe were a series of rugby union matches played in November and December 2007 in Europe featuring the 2007 Rugby World Cup winners South Africa. Although the matches had been arranged well in advance of the World Cup, the mini-tour was seen as an opportunity for South Africa to showcase their talents and to say farewell to their outgoing coach, Jake White, who retired after the second game.


2007 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
In the event, several members of the World Cup squad were unavailable for either game, because of retirement (Os du Randt), injury (Percy Montgomery, Fourie du Preez, Bakkies Botha), club commitments (Butch James), or other reasons (Victor Matfield), and the captain, John Smit, who had just joined French club ASM Clermont Auvergne, was released to play only in the first match.


2007 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe, Week 1
The first match, and the only one with full Test status, was against Wales, on 24 November 2007, at the Millennium Stadium. Although Wales had more possession and dominated territorially, they managed to score just two tries, both from kicks. The first was scored by Welsh full-back Morgan Stoddart, who was making his Test debut. The second, the result of a bad mistake by Springbok full-back Ruan Pienaar, was scored by Colin Charvis; it was his 22nd Test try, a new record for a forward in Test rugby. South Africa made better use of their more limited possession, scoring five tries, including one by Ryan Kankowski, also a Test debutant, as the world cup winners won the match 34–12.


2007 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe, Week 2
The second match, at Twickenham on 1 December 2007, saw a Springbok XV facing a Barbarians side that included such big names as Jerry Collins, Martyn Williams, Matt Giteau, and the retiring Jason Robinson. The Barbarians' plans were disrupted when the English Premier clubs decided not to allow players to be released, and the Irish provinces followed suit.


2007 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe, Week 2
As a result, Brian O'Driscoll, who had been named to captain the side, had to withdraw, as did Andrew Sheridan of Sale Sharks, but Mark Regan of Bristol defied the ban and led the Barbarians, an act for which he was later sanctioned by his club. The match itself proved to be somewhat one-sided affair, the lacklustre Springboks, who included just five World Cup final starters, losing 22–5 to a Barbarians side that played with flair and creativity. The Barabarians scored three tries, the South Africans only one, scored by Barend Pieterse, who was making his first appearance in a Springbok jersey in place of Schalk Burger, who had broken his nose in the game against Wales.


2007 South African Figure Skating Championships
The 2007 South African Figure Skating Championships were held in Cape Town from 24 through 28 September 2006. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's and ladies' singles at the senior, novice, and pre-novice levels. There was also a junior and juvenile ladies' competition.


2007 South African floor-crossing window period
The 2007 floor crossing window period in South Africa was a period of 15 days, from 1 to 15 September 2007, in which members of the National Assembly and the provincial legislatures, and municipal councils were able to cross the floor from one political party to another without giving up their seats. The period was authorised by the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution of South Africa, which scheduled regular window periods in the second and fourth September after each election. The previous general election had been held on 14 April 2004, and a previous window period had occurred in September 2005.


2007 South African floor-crossing window period
In the National Assembly and the provincial legislatures, the changes were minor, with the most significant development being the creation of the African People's Convention by departing members of the Pan Africanist Congress.


2007 South African floor-crossing window period
The tables below show all the changes; in those provinces not listed there was no change in the provincial legislature.


2007 South African floor-crossing window period, Tables, National Council of Provinces
The National Council of Provinces was reconstituted as a result of the changes in the provincial legislatures. Its reconstituted makeup was as follows:


2007 South African public servants' strike
The 2007 South African public servants' strike was a general strike of workers in the public sector of South Africa. It was led by the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), which is currently in a labour/political alliance with the governing African National Congress (ANC) party of Thabo Mbeki (since succeeded by Jacob Zuma).


2007 South African public servants' strike, Dispute
The strike arose out of demands by South Africa's trade unions to raise the pay for civil servants by no less than 12%. The government offered a 7.25% pay raise, which the trade unions refused to accept.


2007 South American Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The 2007 South American Artistic Gymnastics Championships were held in Villavicencio, Colombia, October 10–14, 2007. The competition was organized by the Colombian Gymnastics Federation.


2007 South American Championships in Athletics
The 2007 South American Championships in Athletics were held at the Estádio Ícaro de Castro Mello in São Paulo, Brazil from 7 June to 9 June 2007. A total of 44 events were contested, of which 22 by male and 22 by female athletes. Continuing in their traditional dominant role, the hosts Brazil easily topped both the medal and points tables, having won 28 gold medals and 61 medals in total. The next best team was Colombia who had a haul of seven golds and 26 overall, while Argentina took third with 13 medals of which 4 were gold.


2007 South American Championships in Athletics
In addition to the seven Championship records which were broken during the three-day event, two South American records were broken: Keila Costa jumped 14.57 m in the women's triple jump while Fábio Gomes da Silva broke the men's pole vault record with a clearance of 5.77 m. A total of thirteen national records in athletics were broken by medal winning athletes.


2007 South American Championships in Athletics
Lucimar de Moura of Brazil was the stand out performer in the medals, winning the 100/200 metres double before taking the national team to a gold in the 4×100 metres relay. Felipa Palacios of Colombia took three silver medals in the same events, finishing behind de Moura each time, and also won silver in the 4×400 metres relay. Germán Lauro won both the men's shot put and discus throw events while Elisângela Adriano completed the same feat on the women's side.


2007 South American Championships in Athletics
Hugo Chila won silver in the long jump and triple jump, and Keila Costa scored a long jump silver as well as her triple jump gold. In one of the more dramatic moments of the championships, Rosibel García looked set to complete an 800/1500 metres double but she fell in the last 50 m of the 800 m race, allowing 1500 m silver medallist Marian Burnett of Guyana to win the gold.


2007 South American Championships in Athletics, Records
•  NR — National record. In addition, 15 national records were set.


2007 South American Championships in Athletics, Participation
According to an unofficial count, at least 249 athletes from 13 countries participated.


2007 South American Championships in Athletics – Results
These are the results of the 2007 South American Championships in Athletics which took place from June 7 through June 9, 2007 in São Paulo, Brazil. The list was compiled from various sources and is still incomplete, especially concerning details of the field events.


2007 South American Cross Country Championships
The 2007 South American Cross Country Championships took place on February 25, 2007. The races were held at the Centro de Treinamento da Marinha in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. A detailed report of the event was given for the IAAF.


2007 South American Cross Country Championships
Complete results and results for junior and youth competitions were published.


2007 South American Cross Country Championships, Participation
According to an unofficial count, 86 athletes (+ 1 guest) from 10 countries participated.


2007 South American Junior Championships in Athletics
The 37th South American Junior Championships in Athletics (Campeonatos Sudamericanos de Atletismo de Juveniles) were heldat the Estádio Ícaro de Castro Melo in São Paulo, Brazil from June30-July 1, 2007. The Champions formen's 10,000m, both Race Walking and Combined Events were extracted from theclassification of the 2007 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships held at thesame site one week later from July 6 to July 8, 2007. A detailed report on the results was given. Best performances were the two South American Junior records by Alonso Edward from Panamá in 10.28s in the men's 100m competition, and Jorge McFarlane from Perú who achieved 13.76s (0.0 m/s) in the first heat in 110m hurdles men.


2007 South American Junior Championships in Athletics, Participation (unofficial)
Detailed result lists can be found on the CBAt website, and on the "World Junior Athletics History"website. An unofficial count yields the number of about 224athletes from about 12 countries: Argentina (20), Bolivia (3), Brazil (72),Chile (34), Colombia (28), Ecuador (17), Guyana (3), Panama (3), Paraguay (9),Peru (10), Uruguay (2), Venezuela (23).


2007 South American Junior Championships in Athletics, Medal summary
Medal winners are published on the CACAC website, on the IAAF websiteComplete results can be found on the CBAt website, on a session by session baseand on the "World Junior Athletics History"website.


2007 South American Junior Championships in Athletics, Team trophies
The placing tables for team trophy (overall team, men and women categories) were published.


2007 South American Junior Championships in Athletics, Team trophies, Individual
The trophies for the most outstanding performance were awarded to Juan Pablo Maturana (Colombia), gold medalist in the men's 400m, 400m hurdles,and 4 × 100 m relay events, and to Giselle Marcolino de Albuquerque (Brazil),gold medalist in the women's 100m hurdles and triple jump events.


2007 South American Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships
The 2007 South American Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships were held in San Cristóbal, Venezuela, October 4–7, 2007. The competition was organized by the Venezuelan Gymnastics Federation.


2007 South American Rugby Championship "A"
The 2007 South American Rugby Championship was the 29th edition of the now multi-divisional rugby competition involving the top rugby nations from South America.


2007 South American Rugby Championship "A"
Division A consisted of three teams and was played on a home and away basis. Two points are awarded for a win and one for a draw.


2007 South American Rugby Championship "A"
The competition wasn't completed, because of the difficulties of finding a date for the match between Argentina and Uruguay, as it was the first time they participated in the final phase of the Rugby World Cup.


2007 South American Rugby Championship "B"
The 2007 South American Rugby Championship "B" was the eight edition of the competition of the second level national Rugby Union teams in South America.


2007 South American Rugby Championship "B"
Division B consisted of four teams and was played in Peru. Two points are awarded for a win and one for a draw.


2007 South American Ski Mountaineering Championship
The 2007 South American Ski Mountaineering Championship (Spanish: Campeonato Sudamericano de Esquí de Montaña) was the second edition of a South American continental championship of competition ski mountaineering,


2007 South American Ski Mountaineering Championship
The event was sanctioned by the International Council for Ski Mountaineering Competitions (ISMC) and organized by the Federación Chilena de Andinismo (FEACH). The event was held in Termas de Chillán from 22 to 23 September 2007. 62 racers participated in the event, 28 came from Argentina and two from Venezuela.


2007 South American Ski Mountaineering Championship, Results
Event was held on the Cerro Bayo on September 23, 2007.


2007 South American Ski Mountaineering Championship, Results
The male youth class competitors had to run the same course as the senior racers. The results were added in the "International Open" ranking. (italic in the men's ranking list below)


2007 South American U-17 Championship
The 2007 South American Under-17 Football Championship was played in Ecuador from 4 to 25 March 2007. The seven venues of the competition were the cities of Ambato, Azogues, Cuenca, Ibarra, Latacunga, Quito and Riobamba. The tournament provided four berths to the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup and six to the 2007 Pan American Games.


2007 South American U-17 Championship, First round
The ten national teams were divided in two groups of five teams each. The top three teams in each group qualified for the final round and for the 2007 Pan American Games.


2007 South American U-17 Championship, Final round
The final round was played in a round robin system, with the top four teams qualifying for the 2007 U-17 World Cup.


2007 South American U-17 Championship squads
Players name marked in bold have been capped at full international level.


2007 South American U-20 Championship
The 2007 South American Youth Championship (Sudamericana sub-20) is a football competition contested  by all ten U-20 national football teams of CONMEBOL. The tournament was held in Paraguay between 7 January and 28 January 2007. It was the 23rd time the competition has been held and the fourth to take place in Paraguay. Brazil finished undefeated, winning their ninth trophy.


2007 South American U-20 Championship, Format
The teams are separated in two groups of five, and each team plays four matches in a pure round-robin stage. The three top competitors advance to a single final group of six, wherein each team plays five matches. The top four teams in the final group qualify to the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, while the top two also qualify for the 2008 Olympic tournament (U-23).


2007 South American U-20 Championship, Squads
For a list of all the squads in the final tournament, see 2007 South American Youth Championship squads.


2007 South American U-20 Championship squads
Below are the rosters for the 2007 South American Youth Championship tournament in Paraguay.


2007 South American U-20 Championship squads
Players name marked in bold have been capped at full international level.


2007 South Asian floods
The 2007 South Asian floods were a series of terrible floods in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. News Agencies, citing the Indian and Bangladeshi governments, place the death toll in excess of 2,000. By 3 August approximately 20 million had been displaced and by 10 August some 30 million people in India, Bangladesh and Nepal had been affected by flooding.


2007 South Asian floods
UNICEF said that the situation "is being described as the worst flooding in living memory".


2007 South Asian floods, Background
Rajpal Yadav of the Indian Meteorological Department reported that "we've been getting constant rainfall in these areas for nearly 20 days" due to abnormal monsoon patterns. Flooding in Pakistan began during the landfall of Cyclone 03B in June 2007. Pakistani states Balochistan and Sindh were particularly affected. Melting snow from the Himalayan glaciers increased the water levels of the Brahmaputra River.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bangladesh
On 1 August, there was flooding on the Padma and Brahmaputra rivers. By 3 August, the main highway connecting Dhaka to the rest of the country was impassable, many districts were flood-affected and 500,000 people had been marooned. By 7 August an estimated 7.5 million people had fled their homes. By 8 August more than 50,000 people had diarrhoea or other waterborne diseases and more than 400,000 people were in temporary shelters. By 11 August, flood deaths were still occurring in Bangladesh, the number of people with flood-related diseases was increasing and about 100,000 people had caught dysentery or diarrhoea. By 13 August, the confirmed death toll in Bangladesh was 405.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bangladesh
By 15 August, five million people were still displaced, the estimated death toll was nearly 500, and all six of Bangladesh's divisions were affected.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bangladesh, Dhaka
Districts in Dhaka that were affected by flooding on 21 July include Dhaka, Munshiganj, Rajbari, Madaripur, Shariatpur, Manikganj, Netrakona, Jamalpur and Tangail.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bangladesh, Khulna
Districts in Khulna that were affected by flooding on 21 July include Magura and Narail.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bangladesh, Rajshahi
Places in Rajshahi that were affected by flooding on 21 July include Sirajganj, Rangpur, Gaibandha, Bogra and Kurigram. Besides, Belkuchi, Enayatpur too.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bangladesh, Sylhet
Districts in Sylhet that were affected by flooding on 21 July include Sylhet, Sunamganj and Sherpur.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bhutan
In Bhutan, the rain had led to landslides across the country, disrupting a number of major roads.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Bhutan, Samdrup Jongkhar and Sarpang
By 5 August water was still above the warning level in the foothills of Bhutan.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India
By 7 August in India, an estimated 13.7 million people had fled their homes. According to the Indian government, the total cost of the monsoon this year, of which these floods are a part, is in excess of ₹1.3 billion (US$18 million) since 1 June The full extent of the damage and number of lives lost may never be known. president Pratibha Patil has condoled the loss of lives due to the floods.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Arunachal Pradesh
Places in Arunachal Pradesh that were affected by flooding on 12 July include Lakhimpur, Chamuah Gaon, Nowboicha and Bharaluwa Gaon.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Assam
In Assam, approximately 100,000 sought shelter in 500 government-sponsored relief camps. Millions of dollars' worth of crops were also destroyed. 500,000 residents in Assam were displaced, and nineteen have been killed. On 1 August 2007, a teenage boy from Assam was shot by a police officer after a flood as survivors attacked a group of aid workers.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh
Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were the hardest hit states due to their high population density. By 3 August, the estimated death toll was 41 people, and 48 schoolgirls were marooned in a school in the Darbhanga district. By 8 August, an estimated 10 million people in Bihar had been affected by flooding. Army helicopters delivered food packets to Bihar residents and 180 relief camps were set up. By 10 August, aid workers in Bihar said the number of people with diarrhoea had jumped dramatically and by 11 August, flood deaths were still occurring.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Gujarat
On 8 August, Jamnagar reported 269 millimetres (10 inches) of rain and fresh flooding was reported in Gujarat. By the next day, nine people had been killed and more than 400 villages were cut off. By 10 August, more than 22,000 people were displaced and health workers were disinfecting the worst-hit areas.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Himachal Pradesh
On 14 August in Himachal Pradesh, a cloudburst caused a landslide that buried an entire village, killing an estimated 60 people.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Jammu and Kashmir
Parts of Jammu and Kashmir, the part of Kashmir administered by India, that were affected by flooding on 12 August include Jammu city, Udhampur, Nikki Tawi, and lower Satwari.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Jharkhand and West Bengal
While relief efforts have been concentrated elsewhere in India, the plight of the traditional region of Bengal (the flood plains of the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna river delta and its tributaries) has been less reported. The Damodar and Kangsabati rivers overflowed their banks in late June, but levels finally began to fall as of 6 August. The Durgapur Barrage and Kangsabati Dam (near Bankura) may be partly responsible. In North Bengal, the floods have caused economic damage also estimated in the millions of U.S. dollars (at least Rs.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Jharkhand and West Bengal
500 million); and in Siliguri, flash floods have wiped away at least 100 houses on a single night (28 July 2007). The state government of West Bengal has set up facilities to house 50,000 refugees. As the flood has affected parts of the East Midnapore (Purba Medinipur) district, long-standing political divisions and conflicts have flared in the wake of the floods.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Maharashtra
By 3 August most streets were flooded in Mumbai and parts of Maharashtra were waterlogged. On 7 August there was extensive flooding in the Gadchiroli district.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Meghalaya
Places in Meghalaya that were affected by flooding on 12 July include the West Garo Hills district, the Tura and Rishipara areas.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Tripura
Places in Tripura that were affected by flooding on 12 July include Udaipur, Amarpur and Sonamura.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in India, Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand, which was known as Uttaranchal until 2006, was affected by flooding on 12 August.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal
In Nepal, eighty-four people were killed by the floods and resulting landslides and 9,700 families were displaced. Twenty-eight of the country's seventy-five districts were affected, in eleven of Nepal's fourteen zones and all five of Nepal's regions. Nepali officials were concerned about the spread of waterborne diseases. By 7 August an estimated 333,500 people in Nepal were affected by flooding.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, Central Region, Janakpur Zone
Districts in the Janakpur Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Dhanusha, Mahottari, Sindhuli, Sarlahi and Ramechhap.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, Central Region, Narayani Zone
Districts in the Narayani Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Chitwan and Rautahat.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, East Region, Koshi Zone
Districts in the Koshi Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Sunsari and Morang.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, East Region, Province No. 1
The Jhapa District in the Province No. 1 was affected by flooding from 23 July.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, East Region, Sagarmatha Zone
Districts in the Sagarmatha Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Udayapur, Okhaldhunga, Saptari, Solukhumbu and Siraha.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, Far West Region, Mahakali Zone
Districts in the Mahakali Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Baitadi and Darchula.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, Far West Region, Seti Zone
Districts in the Seti Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Kailali, Bajhang and Bajura.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, Mid West Region, Bheri Zone
Districts in the Bheri Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Banke, Bardiya and Surkhet.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, Mid West Region, Rapti Zone
The Dang district in the Rapti Zone was affected by flooding from 23 July.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, West Region, Dhawalagiri Zone
The Baglung District in the Dhawalagiri Zone was affected by flooding from 23 July.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Nepal, West Region, Lumbini Zone
Districts in the Lumbini Zone that were affected by flooding from 23 July include Nawalparasi and Gulmi.


2007 South Asian floods, Areas affected in Pakistan
By 11 August, 28 people had died in rain-related accidents in Sindh. By 12 August, flood waters were sweeping through villages in southern Pakistan. The Kohistan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was affected by flooding on 12 August. Areas in coastal Balochistan were destroyed, including the village of Solband, which was levelled.


2007 South Asian floods, International response
By 15 August, non-governmental organisations, many with contributions from governments, that were contributing aid includedMalteser International,Deutsche Welthungerhilfe,Direct Relief International,World Concern,Islamic Relief,Church World Service,International Save the Children Alliance,Lutheran World Relief,Medical Teams International,Care International,Catholic Relief Services,British Red Cross Society,World Vision,Diakonie Emergency Aid,David McAntony Gibson Foundation,Caritas Internationalis,Action by Churches Together (ACT),Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA),Baptist World Aid (BWAid),Mercy Corps,and many others.


2007 South Ayrshire Council election
Elections to South Ayrshire Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using eight new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, each ward will elect three or four councilors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 30 single-member wards which used the plurality (first past the post) system of election.


2007 South Cambridgeshire District Council election
Elections to South Cambridgeshire District Council took place on Thursday 3 May 2007, as part of the 2007 United Kingdom local elections. Nineteen seats, making up one third of South Cambridgeshire District Council, were up for election. Seats up for election in 2007 were last contested at the 2004 election, when all seats were up for election due to new ward boundaries, and were next contested at the 2011 election. The Conservative Party gained an overall majority on the council for the first time.


2007 South Cambridgeshire District Council election, Summary
Of the seats being contested at this election, the Conservatives were defending 9 seats, Liberal Democrats were defending 6 seats, and independents were defending 4 seats. Two seats had changed hands at by-elections prior to this election. In November 2004, Liberal Democrats gained Duxford from the Conservatives, while in October 2006 Conservatives gained the Abingtons from the Liberal Democrats. Both by-election gains were successfully defended at this election.


2007 South Cambridgeshire District Council election, Summary
A further three seats were gained by the Conservative Party at this election. Gains from independents in Barton and in Orwell and Barrington as well as from the Liberal Democrats in the Shelfords and Stapleford meant the Conservative Party formed a majority on the council for the first time.


2007 South Carolina Gamecocks football team
The 2007 South Carolina Gamecocks football team represented the University of South Carolina in the Southeastern Conference during the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Gamecocks were led by Steve Spurrier in his third season as USC head coach and played their home games in Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina. The team was bowl eligible at 6–6 but was not selected for a bowl game.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team
The 2007 South Florida Bulls football team represented the University of South Florida (USF) in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Their head coach was Jim Leavitt; they played all of their home games at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The 2007 college football season was the 11th season overall for the Bulls and their third season in the Big East Conference.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team
2007 marked the first year that South Florida had been ranked in any poll. Following Week 3, they were ranked No. 23 in the AP Poll and No. 24 in the Coaches Poll. After a decisive win against UCF in Week 7, the Bulls made their first ever appearance in the BCS rankings, debuting at No. 2 and trailing only the Ohio State Buckeyes. Three straight losses to Rutgers, UConn, and Cincinnati dropped them out of the Top 25, but they won their next three games to improve to 9–3 and climb back up to No. 21 in the BCS poll.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team
USF averaged 53,170 fans in its six home games at Raymond James Stadium in 2007. Prior to this season, USF's single game attendance record for a home game was 49,212 vs. Kentucky Wesleyan in the Bulls' very first game on September 6, 1997. The new single game home record is now 67,012 for the September 28 game against West Virginia. In 2006, USF's average attendance was 30,222, so the Bulls' increase this year was 22,948 over last year.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Elon
The Bulls played a "vanilla offense" in preparation for their next game against Auburn. Plays were limited to a few selections, and there were many substitutions. USF merely wanted to win this game and save their players for the game against Auburn. The attendance was announced at 33,639. Sophomore QB Matt Grothe was 23–39 for 238 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. True freshman Mike Ford was the leading rusher with 83 yards on 6 carries and two touchdowns. Senior Amarri Jackson led the receivers with 63 yards and a touchdown.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Auburn
Even after four missed field goals, the Bulls upset number 17-ranked Auburn 26–23 in overtime. Grothe threw for 184 yards and a touchdown, while Ford again led the running backs with 74 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Sophomore WR Jessie Hester Jr. had 64 yards receiving and caught the game-winning touchdown in overtime.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Auburn
A week after the game, the Bulls entered both polls for the first time in school history, entering the AP Poll at No. 23 and the Coaches Poll at #24.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, North Carolina
The Bulls received their first ever AP/Coaches top 25 ranking with a convincing win over the Tar Heels. Many said that the Bulls would overlook UNC in preparation for the show-down with West Virginia the following week, but the Bulls proved otherwise. Grothe threw for 230 yards and a touchdown and junior Williams led the Bulls with 64 yards rushing and a score. Hester Jr. and junior wideout Taurus Johnson had 3 catches for 34 yards apiece. However, the heroes of the day were the Bulls' defense, who dominated UNC forcing three interceptions and allowing under 180 total yards. The Tar Heels did not score their touchdown until there was less than one minute left in regulation and the Bulls had their second string defense on the field.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, West Virginia
The Bulls beat the No. 5 ranked team in the nation, before their first-ever sold out home crowd, with a total of announced attendance of 67,012. The Bulls are now 2–1 against West Virginia.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Florida Atlantic
Nursing a "West Virginia hangover" from their upset the week before, the Bulls looked sloppy against the Owls. However, Benjamin Williams put the game out of reach with his fourth rushing touchdown with less than 40 seconds to go. Williams finished with 186 rushing yards on 25 carries. In addition, the Bulls helped FAU achieve their highest recorded attendance in either Lockhart Stadium or Dolphin Stadium.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, UCF
The Bulls proved their No. 5 ranking is no fluke by decimating the cross-state Knights 64–12 in front of a home crowd announced at 65,948. The Bulls held the Knights to just 145 total yards and Kevin Smith, who came in as the nation's leading rusher at 172 yards per game, to just 55 yards. South Florida gained 543 total yards—over three times as much as UCF—while holding the ball three fewer minutes than the Knights.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, UCF
After losses by LSU and Cal, South Florida moved into No. 2 in the AP Poll (behind Ohio State) and No. 3 in the Coaches and Harris Polls (behind Ohio State and Boston College), earning first-place votes in all three. When the first BCS rankings were announced, the Bulls were No. 2 behind Ohio State. Even though they were No. 3 in the Coaches and Harris Polls, they swept through the computer rankings, getting No. 1 in all but one of them.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Connecticut
After suffering through the first half of the game, USF overcame a 16-point deficit and nearly won the game. In the end, it came down to whether or not the Bulls could score one touchdown on fourth down with less than one minute remaining in the game. If the touchdown had been successful, the Bulls could have either sent the game into overtime or won by one point with a two-point conversion. Unfortunately for South Florida, the throw was incomplete and Connecticut won the game by 7 points.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Cincinnati
The Bulls put 14 points on the board before the offense even touched the football. Trae Williams ran an interception back 73 yards for a touchdown, and Mike Jenkins took a kickoff return 100 yards for another touchdown in the longest play in USF history. Cincinnati scored 31 points in the first quarter, a school record for the most points in any quarter, and led 38–20 at the half.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Cincinnati
USF shut down the Bearcats' scoring in the second half, and closed the score to 38–33 with 2 minutes to go. After stopping UC on a fake field goal try with less than 30 seconds remaining, the Bulls had one last try for the win. They moved from their own 39 to the UC 18 and had two chances to score the winning touchdown with 8 seconds left, but it was not to be. The first try, to Carlton Mitchell, was broken up by Mike Mickens in the end zone. With 2 seconds remaining, Grothe fired the ball to Jessie Hester and even though the replay clearly showed Hester being interfered by UC's Anthony Williams, Hester still had a shot at the ball but couldn't bring it in, and the officials did not call a penalty.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Cincinnati
The Bulls dropped to No. 28 in the BCS standings after the loss, just 3 weeks after debuting in the BCS Poll at #2.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Syracuse
Looking to end a three-game losing skid, the Bulls recorded a lopsided victory over the Orange. Mike Ford rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns, while the Bulls set a new school record for total offense with 536 yards.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Louisville
In the final game at Raymond James Stadium for the 2007 season, Louisville was looking for their 6th win of the year so that they could become bowl eligible. But, destiny was on the Bulls' side from the very first play. USF kicked off the ball to Louisville and instead of returning the ball, Louisville fumbled it. Nate Allen successfully recovered the ball for South Florida and scored the fastest touchdown in school history (8 game seconds). From that moment on, Louisville simply could not keep up. By the end of the first half, the score was a shocking 41–10. And once the game was over, the Bulls defeated the Cardinals 55–17.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Louisville
The following day, USF did not re-emerge in the Associated Press or Coach's Polls. However, they did rank No. 23 in the BCS standings.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Pittsburgh
Two days after winning the game against Pittsburgh, it was announced that USF would be play in the Brut Sun Bowl against a team from the Pac-10 Conference.


2007 South Florida Bulls football team, Game summaries, Sun Bowl
USF faced the Oregon Ducks in the Brut Sun Bowl on December 31, 2007. The two teams started out playing undisciplined football and easily set a Sun Bowl record for most penalties in the bowl's history for one game. USF trailed by only four, 18–14, at halftime. In the second half, Oregon exploded on offense, leading to a 56–21 rout of the Bulls. With the loss, USF fell to 1–2 in bowl games.


2007 South Hams District Council election
Elections to South Hams District Council took place on 3 May 2007, the same day as other United Kingdom local elections. The whole council was up for election and the Conservative Party retained overall control of the council.


2007 South Holland District Council election
The 2007 South Holland District Council election took place on 3 May 2007 to elect members of the South Holland District Council in England. It was held on the same day as other local elections.


2007 South Kesteven District Council election
The 2007 South Kesteven District Council election took place on 3 May 2007 to elect members of South Kesteven District Council in Lincolnshire, England. The whole council was up for election and the Conservative party stayed in overall control of the council.


2007 South Kesteven District Council election, Election result
The Conservatives kept a majority on the council making a net gain of one seat to have 35 councillors. The independents and Liberal Democrats also made gains at the expense of Labour who lost five of the seven seats they were defending. Overall turnout at the election was 35%, up from 29.65% at the last election in 2003.


2007 South Kesteven District Council election, Election result
The defeated Labour candidates included the group leader John Hurst, who lost his seat in Grantham St Johns to the Conservatives, and the party's deputy leader Rob Shorrock in Earlesfield, where independent candidates took two of the three seats for the ward. Labour also lost seats in St Anne's ward to an independent and a Conservative, as well as a seat in Isaac Newton ward to the Conservatives, however Labour did gain a seat in Harrowby. Other changes had Conservative council cabinet member Terl Bryant lose in All Saints ward, but a Conservative candidate defeated independent councillor Angeline Percival in Glen Eden.


2007 South Korea oil spill
The MT Hebei Spirit oil spill was a major oil spill in South Korea that began on the morning of 7 December 2007 local time, with ongoing environmental and economic effects. Government officials called it South Korea's worst oil spill ever, surpassing a spill that took place in 1995. This oil spill was about one-third of the size of the Exxon Valdez oil spill.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Background
At about 7:30 local time on 7 December 2007 (2230 UTC on 6 December 2007), a crane barge owned by Samsung Heavy Industries being towed by a tug collided with the anchored Hong Kong registered crude carrier Hebei Spirit (Chinese: 河北精神號), carrying 260,000 tonnes (290,000 short tons) of crude oil. The incident occurred near the port of Daesan on the Yellow Sea coast of Taean County. The barge was floating free after the cable linking it to the tug snapped in the rough seas.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Background
Although no casualties were reported, the collision punctured three of the five tanks aboard the Hebei Spirit and resulted in the leaking of some 10,800 tonnes (11,900 short tons) of oil. The remaining oil from the damaged tanks was pumped into the undamaged tanks and the holes were sealed.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Background
The spill occurred near Mallipo Beach (in Taean County), considered one of South Korea's most beautiful and popular beaches. The region affected by the spill is  home to one of Asia's largest wetland areas, used by migratory birds, and also contains a national maritime park and 445 sea farms.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Effects
It was initially believed the oil spill would not spread due to the cold winter temperatures. However, unseasonably warm weather, combined with strong waves and unexpected wind directions, caused the spill to expand beyond initial expectations.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Effects
On 9 December it was reported that the oil slick was already 33 km (21 mi) long and 10 m (33 ft) wide and 10 cm (4 in) thick in some areas. It was also reported that at least 30 beaches have been affected and over half of the region's sea farms are believed to have lost their stocks due to the spill. Sinduri Dune, a South Korean natural treasure, is reported to have been saturated by the spill.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Effects
Although most migratory birds had not yet arrived in the region, seagulls, mallard ducks and other sea life were found tarred by the oil.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Effects
On 14 December, the oil balls had arrived at Anmyeon-do (安眠島; Anmyeon Island), resulting in at least five beaches being contaminated with large tar lumps. It was believed that the oil belt was not going to go down to Anmyeon-do, but bad, windy weather was responsible for it. On 15 December, the tar lumps had also floated to Boryeong (mostly around Wonsan Island and Sapsi Island of Boryeong) and to Gunsan in North Jeolla province as well.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Response
The South Korean government declared a state of disaster in the region. The cost of cleanup has been estimated at 300 billion South Korean won (US$330 million). The cleanup involved 13 helicopters, 17 airplanes and 327 vessels. It has also been estimated the cleanup will take at least two months. Hundreds of thousands of volunteers and celebrities including South Korean actress Park Jin-hee helped to clean up the beaches in the campaign. As of 4 January 2008, the Navy had deployed 229 vessels and some 22,000 military personnel to help clean up the spill, in addition to civilian aid.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Response
On 10 January 2008, the number of volunteers topped the 1-million mark to reach 1,037,000 people, 33 days after the accident occurred on 7 December, according to the South Chungcheong provincial government. The Taean office for emergency operations reported that the volunteers included 580,000 ordinary civilians, 186,700 local residents, 127,000 soldiers and policemen, and 57,143 public officials. According to the emergency office, an average of 20,000 people volunteered during weekdays and 3,000 volunteered over the weekends.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Response
By January 2008, approximately 4,153 tons of crude oil spilled had been collected by utilizing some 268,710 kilograms of oil absorbents and other cleanup devices. Financial contributions combined to 27.76 billion South Korean won (about 20 million euro) in donations, as well as food and clothing. The Taean emergency center said more than seven billion won in donations have come from about 4,200 organizations and individuals.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Response
Internationally, the Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan under the Northwest Pacific Action Plan (NOWPAP) was activated following a request of the South Korean government. Among the emergency supplies available in the other three NOWPAP members (China, Japan and Russia), South Korean government, taking into account logistical issues, accepted kind offers of 50 and 10 tonnes of sorbents from China and Japan respectively. Japan has also dispatched a team of experts in addition to the teams from the Joint UNEP/OCHA (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) Environment Unit and the European Commission Monitoring Information Center, U.S. Coast Guard and the Autonomous University of Barcelona (AUB).


2007 South Korea oil spill, Responsibility
It has been reported that the regional office of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries had twice tried to warn the barge captain that the barge was too close to the tanker two hours before the incident but was unable to do so. The barge captain is also under investigation for moving through the area in rough weather. The tanker is reported to have been at anchor when it was hit by the barge, which had broken free from its towing lines.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Responsibility
The South Korean Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries and police admitted to having not provided sufficient amount of oil absorbent material to fishermen and residents as well as not having paid enough attention to the wind direction.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Responsibility
According to a recent report, compensation will be mostly paid by China Shipowners Mutual Assurance Association (China P&I) and Skuld P&I, which are insurers for the Hebei Spirit, and some paid by Samsung Fire and Lloyd P&I. International Oil Pollution Funds (IOPC) will be responsible to pay if China P&I and Skuld P&I become unable to pay for the cost or if the damages exceed the shipowners limitation of liability set under an international convention.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Responsibility
On 20 December, the South Korean coast guard completed an initial investigation. According to their conclusions, blame is shared between the tug captains, the barge captain, and the captain of the Hebei Spirit. The tug captains and the barge captain are charged with negligence and violating the marine pollution prevention law. The captain of the Hebei Spirit has been charged with violating marine law.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Responsibility
On 24 June, the trial concluded. The two tug captains were found guilty, while the personnel on the barge and on Hebei Spirit were exonerated. Samsung Heavy Industries was also fined.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Controversy over continued detention of crew
However, the Hebei Spirit's two most senior officers, Master Jasprit Chawla and chief officer Syam Chetan, continue to be detained in South Korea. They were found guilty of criminal negligence and sentenced to serve time in jail for 18 months (Master Jasprit Chawla) and 8 months (C.O. Syam Chetan). South Korea's detention of the crew has generated much controversy and protests from around the world.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Controversy over continued detention of crew
There have been strong protests from the shipping world and demands for the crews release, including from organizations like the International Transport Workers’ Federation, International Group of P&I Clubs, BIMCO, International Chamber of Shipping / International Shipping Federation, International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners (INTERCARGO), International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO) and the Hong Kong Shipowners' Association.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Claims of Samsung, prosecutors collusion in appeal case
According to Lloyd's List and other media reports, South Korean maritime officials, prosecutors and Samsung lawyers have been accused of colluding in the retrial of the two senior officers. Roberto Giorgi, president of management firm V.Ships, visited South Korea to meet with the detained Hebei Spirit crew.


2007 South Korea oil spill, Claims of Samsung, prosecutors collusion in appeal case
He told the press that he is concerned at recent developments "which point to collusion" between the South Korean authorities, prosecutors and Samsung Heavy Industries, operators of a drifting barge that collided with the oil tanker and that efforts of Samsung and prosecutors "look to be designed to ensure that the master and chief officer are found guilty on appeal," Giorgi said. "I am worried that the captain and chief officer may not get a fair trial this time around."


2007 South Korean hostage crisis in Afghanistan
The 2007 South Korean hostage crisis in Afghanistan began on 19 July 2007, when 23 South Korean missionaries were captured and held hostage by members of the Taliban while passing through Ghazni Province of Afghanistan. Two male hostages were executed before the deal was reached between the Taliban and the South Korean government. The group, composed of sixteen women and seven men, was captured while traveling from Kandahar to Kabul by bus on a mission sponsored by the Saemmul Presbyterian Church. The crisis began when two local men, who the driver had allowed to board, started shooting to bring the bus to a halt. Over the next month, the hostages were kept in cellars and farmhouses and regularly moved in groups of three to four.


2007 South Korean hostage crisis in Afghanistan
Of the 23 hostages captured, two men, Bae Hyeong-gyu, a 42-year-old South Korean pastor of Saemmul Church, and Shim Seong-min, a 29-year-old South Korean man, were executed on 25 and 30 July, respectively. Later, with negotiations making progress, two women, Kim Gyeong-ja and Kim Ji-na, were released on 13 August and the remaining 19 hostages on 29 and 30 August.