Why the US Supreme Court nominee matters

President Barack Obama has nominated a new judge to sit on the US Supreme Court - one of nine who have tenure for life, together exercising the highest legal power in the land. The BBC's Philippa Thomas in Washington reflects on the institution and its impact.

The nine US Supreme Court justices are appointed for life

It is a choice some US presidents never have a chance to make. Now Barack Obama has his second opportunity.

Last May he named Sonia Sotomayor to serve as the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice. Now he has nominated another woman - Solicitor-General Elena Kagan - who would become only the fourth female judge in the court's 220-year history.

The US Supreme Court operates in relative quiet and privacy. Its grand marble facade might face directly on to the US Capitol but its atmosphere is a world away from the political sound and fury of Congress.

Nonetheless, it wields immense power. This is the legal body which can decide who goes to the White House - as it did in 2000, with Bush v Gore.

This is the court which can fundamentally change the rules of the game - as in this January's judgement giving corporations more freedom to fund political campaigns.

Nominations scrutinised

And this is the court which has, in recent decades, changed the very contours of American society. Think of Roe v Wade, legalising abortion, or Brown versus the Board of Education, effectively desegregating schools.

It is both above politics and intensely politicised. Each nomination is heavily scrutinised, each presidential "pick" facing intense and sometimes hostile scrutiny from the Senate opposition. Mr Obama's new choice may relish life on the bench - but first comes a summer in the firing line.

Supreme Court analyst Nina Totenberg on the importance of the nomination

What is at stake? The very nature of the court. In the past five years, under Chief Justice John Roberts, it has shifted to the right. On that, liberal and conservative alike can agree. Ask whether this is good for America, and the argument begins.

Asked to sum up the shift in outlook, Washington's best known court-watcher, Nina Totenberg of National Public Radio (NPR), described today's court as "quite far right in its interpretation of the constitution and the law".

"We have now by a narrow five to four majority, a dramatically more conservative court than we have seen in, I would say, more than 60 years," she said.

Take January's campaign finance decision. It clearly offended Mr Obama, to the extent that a week later, he lashed out in the most high profile of settings - his annual State of the Union speech.

Here's how he put it: "Last week the Supreme Court reversed a century of law that I believe will open the floodgates to special interests to spend without limit in our elections. I don't think American elections should be bankrolled by America's most powerful interests."

John Roberts has been chief justice for the past five years

The president's decision to go public in that way clearly offended at least one justice - the conservative Samuel Alito - who was caught on camera, while sitting in the audience, shaking his head, mouthing "that's not true".

And there are potentially more battles to come between Supreme Court and White House.

What if the judges decide to take on Mr Obama's key policy initiative? NPR's Totenberg believes they could vote to invalidate key provisions of the new health bill. That would be a battle royal fought out in the court - and the watching media.

So what's the thinking behind Mr Obama's latest nomination? He knows he cannot significantly shift the court's political outlook. He is seeking, after all, to replace a liberal, in retiring Justice John Paul Stevens.

But Mr Obama can influence the panel's judicial outlook. And that is where his opponents are gearing up for a fight, concerned at the prospect of an "activist" judge.

Asked what that means, influential Republican Senator Orrin Hatch told me he wants jurists "who respect the constitution, abide by the constitution, and do not substitute their own personal views for the constitution".

SUPREME COURT LINE-UP Sonia Sotomayor - nominated by Barack Obama 2009 Samuel Alito - George W Bush 2006 John G Roberts (Chief Justice) - George W Bush 2005 Stephen Breyer - Bill Clinton 1994 Ruth Bader Ginsburg - Bill Clinton 1993 Clarence Thomas - George H W Bush 1991 Anthony Kennedy - Ronald Reagan 1988 Antonin Scalia - Ronald Reagan 1986 John Paul Stevens (retiring) - Gerald Ford 1975

And that is the long-running struggle that lies behind this week's headlines.

To put it rather simplistically, conservatives are satisfied that the court's recent trend to the right is essentially a rebalancing act that better reflects the outlook of the nation, after the "culture wars" of the 1960s and beyond.

Liberals believe the court should do more to reflect society's evolving views, as it has done in recent decades on race relations, sexual equality and matters of religion and state.

And on similar lines, how far do you go in arguing that the individual justices should reflect today's society?

Historically, they have been white, male and mainly Protestant - fine legal minds of course, but drawn narrowly from America's educated Eastern elite.

Today, the panel includes one African-American and one Hispanic judge. There are two women and may soon be three.

What about religion? Currently, there are six Catholics, two Jews and only one Protestant - the retiring Justice Stevens. And even geography? With only one westerner on the bench, is there enough attention paid to issues like water rights and Indian affairs that loom so large in the West?

I think that since the country owns the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court ought to open itself up a little more Tom Goldstein ScotusBlog

And as Americans consider whether the Supreme Court can fairly be said to speak for the nation, the question arises: should the voters have the chance to hear - and see - that speech for themselves?

Today, if voters want to witness the legal arguments, they have to come to Washington to queue for limited seating. In the nation which brought us Court TV, is it time to fling wide the doors of this historic institution?

Lawyer Tom Goldstein, publisher of the influential ScotusBlog, says yes.

"That's the next step, for the justices to let America see them in action. I think that since the country owns the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court ought to open itself up a little more."

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Inside China's hybrid capitalism model

Reporter Mukul Devichand was given a tour of ZTE's factory.

By Mukul Devichand Presenter, Tiger v Dragon, BBC Radio 4

High up in the skyscraper that houses the ZTE company's headquarters in Shenzhen, southern China, I was treated to a rare "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" moment.

ZTE was founded in 1985 by a branch of China's aerospace ministry

Although it is not yet well known in the West, ZTE is one of China's new multinationals.

What confuses outsiders is that, like many Chinese firms, it has a background as a "state-owned enterprise": a uniquely Chinese mix of the Communist government and the market.

These firms are part of China's hybrid model of "state capitalism", which some fear is too unaccountable. They are under pressure to be more transparent, but I hadn't realised how literally they would take that at ZTE.

"Would you like to see the production line?" asked my tour guide Andy as we made our way through the display on corporate history.

I nodded, and he signalled to his colleague. Suddenly a golf cart pulled up next to us and I was told to get in.

An experience reminiscent of Roald Dahl's famous children's book, in which Willy Wonka leads a fantastical guided tour of the inner workings of his chocolate factory, was about to begin.

We drove off, straight over the posh office floor panels. We sped through a mysterious doorway and emerged, blinking, into a brightly lit room that held a specially constructed mini factory.

State roots

Instead of chocolate, of course, we saw microchips. A prim army of showcase workers in green overalls barely noticed us zip by as they assembled the microchips that go into mobile phones.

But the instant immersion in a film-set factory environment, just seconds after being in a corporate boardroom, was, in its way, as magical and bizarre as the children's tour.

I was told this fully operational product line had been moved into the office tower for "convenience," designed so that visitors would not even have to leave the building.

We think ZTE is like a private company Senior executive David Dai Shun

In its way, ZTE is like a Chinese version of Finland's Nokia or South Korea's Samsung in years gone by: you may not have heard of it today, but it could be a household name tomorrow.

The technology designed and manufactured by the Zhong xing Telecommunication Equipment company, to give it its full name, now sells in 140 countries.

Revenues jumped 36% this year, despite the recession.

And although the company is now publicly listed, it was started by a branch of the Communist state.

Back in 1985, its founder Hou Weigui was working as an engineer in a factory run by China's aerospace ministry in Shaanxi province.

The factory and other state-owned enterprises wanted to profit from the boom being unleashed by Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping's economic reforms, which began in southern China.

So they assigned Mr Hou to set up a small factory. The rest is history.

Speed

ZTE is at pains to emphasize that it has moved on from its state background.

"We want to be transparent, we want to be listed," explained senior ZTE executive Mr David Dai Shun. "We think ZTE is like a private company."

The firm is now also listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, which means the market too has a say in what it does.

China's unique mix of the state and capitalism is, for many onlookers, one of the reasons it has grown so fast.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAMME Tiger v Dragon, BBC Radio 4, Monday 10 May and 17 May at 2000 BST Or listen again via the BBC iPlayer

At the Boao Forum for Asia in tropical Hainan Island last month, business leaders and politicians gathered behind closed doors for a high-powered discussion of the country's future direction.

The state-owned enterprises and their future were hotly debated.

Outsiders praised some of what they do.

"China is faster in the execution," said N Chandrasekharan, chief executive of Tata Consultancy Services, neighbouring India's biggest software firm.

"If they get an idea they just go after it immediately, because it's state driven."

State capitalism is one reason China has been able to build so rapidly 30,000 miles of expressways and an infrastructure that dwarves that of other developing countries.

"The state-owned enterprises have dominated the building of infrastructure," explained Xiang Bing, Dean of Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business in Beijing.

Pressure

The profits made by state companies can be rapidly ploughed into big government building projects.

The firms also contribute heavily to China's high savings rate which has helped the Beijing government to bail out Western countries in the financial crisis.

ZTE was founded in 1985 by a branch of China's aerospace ministry

"But they do have a disadvantage," said Professor Xiang. The curious mix of officialdom and business gives plenty of room for inefficiency, he said.

"You have this misallocation of resources, time and money.

"Maintaining a good relationship with the government may be more important for your success."

This is one reason there is now so much pressure for these firms to be more transparent.

Another is the sheer power of China's growing economy. China's state-owned enterprises are now among world's largest companies, and foreign trading partners want to be reassured about what they represent.

These reassurances are definitely forthcoming from ZTE. The firm has been praised as a cutting edge example of how Chinese business is following international norms.

It was not just the golf-cart and the Willie Wonka-style magical mystery tour. After the drive was over, Mr David handed me reams of publicly available financial data.

"We will do everything the stock market requires, and that will make ZTE more transparent in its public image," he says.

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Meeting Millenium Development Goals

Meeting Millenium Development Goals

Asma knows no other way of life, says Unicef spokesman Syeedul Milky

As part of a series assessing whether Bangladesh is on track to meet the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015, the BBC's Alastair Lawson visits a safety pin factory in the capital, Dhaka, which employs children.

The electricity supply in the sweatshop in the crowded part of old Dhaka where Asma, 10, makes safety pins for a living is so dangerous that the foreman can only turn on the lights using a broomstick.

"If I use my hands I may get an electric shock," he explains.

Asma is one of about 10 workers in the dingy factory - in the heart of the crowded and maze-like alleyways of this part of the city - who are under 14.

Sitting on a bench alongside her co-workers, Asma operates a powerful cutting device in the poorly-lit premises for up to 12 hours a day.

The safety pins are thinly cut and the machine she operates is cumbersome, heavy and dangerous.

Despite being blessed with nimble fingers and remarkable manual dexterity, if Asma makes one mistake she could easily lose a finger to the gigantic metal puncher she handles so professionally.

Isolated

There is no first aid in the factory and no lunch break. None of the children know what happens to the pins one they have been made and none knows exactly who is employing them.

Like many other child workers in Bangladesh, she does not complain of her plight, remaining resolutely cheerful throughout the morning I spent with her.

THE EIGHT MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS Eradicate extreme hunger and poverty Achieve universal primary education Promote gender equality and empower women Reduce child mortality Improve maternal health Combat HIV/Aids, malaria and other diseases Ensure environmental sustainability Develop a global partnership for development

Asma usually arrives at work at eight in the morning and leaves at eight in the evening. She often works six days a week and is paid about $2 a day.

"I used to study in school then all of a sudden my mum took me out and put me into work. I want to go to school but my mum said I would go again after Eid [the Muslim religious festival].

"So far that has not happened."

Asma explains that as one of six children in her family she and her siblings have no choice but to work. Her father is a bicycle rickshaw puller and does not earn enough money to feed his family. Her mother runs the family's home.

"I was not forced to work here," she says shyly. "The trouble is that if I didn't my family would not have enough money to buy vegetables and we cannot live only on rice."

Asma is one of thousands of Bangladeshi children who work in the informal sector - which includes factories, workshops, home-based businesses and domestic employment.

She and others like her are are mostly outside the reach of labour controls, being isolated in the factories and households where they work.

This isolation, combined with the child's dependency on their employer, lays the ground for abuse and exploitation for which they are so poorly protected.

To make matters even more complicated, many children in this sector do not have birth certificates, making it harder to validate their ages.

'Unending problem'

UN children's fund spokesman Syeedul Milky says that Asma is part of the 1.3 million children in Bangladesh who work full-time to support their family.

Asma daily risks her fingers in poorly lit hazardous conditions

"For her work is just a way of living - she doesn't know any other kind of life," he said.

"I don't think she understands the safety part of her work - neither she nor her workmates wear any safety gear and she seems totally unaware of the hazards.

"It's very saddening to see her working in such terrible conditions, it's also sad that she doesn't know of any alternative life. She has now spent at least a quarter of her life doing this."

The government of Bangladesh and Unicef are at pains to point out that 90% of children of primary school age in the country are in education even though 1.5 million have never enrolled in school.

They say 66,000 poor urban children are now attending a basic education programme run jointly by the two agencies.

Yet Mr Milky concedes that the numbers of children working in the country still remains so large that the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education for all is unlikely to be reached by 2015.

"The problem is that employers like to take on children because they can pay them less. The parents like children to work because their earnings can help pay household bills. It's a vicious cycle from which it's very hard for children to be extricated."

The UN says that the most common reason for a child not to be enrolled in school is an inability to bear educational expenses. The second most commonly cited reason is the child's participation in household economic activities.

"Until this problem is dealt with, child labour in this country is never going away," Mr Milky says.

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Science vs Humanities: Still "Two Cultures"?

Born in Gaza

Doctors 'cause blood pressure to rise'

Doctors can cause blood pressure to rise

The 'white-coat' effect - where blood pressure rises during a check by a doctor - is even worse in someone whose level is already high, researchers say.

The effect is due to patients becoming stressed by being in a doctor's surgery or a hospital.

Writing in the British Medical Journal, an Australian team say giving people a cuff to wear for 24 hours is a better way of checking blood pressure.

A UK expert said it showed clearly that external factors affected readings.

Many people feel slightly anxious when going to see a doctor Professor Graham MacGregor, Blood Pressure Association

High blood pressure affects about 40% of adults in the UK and is a major risk factor for heart attack, heart failure, kidney disease and stroke.

In 2001, 90 million prescriptions for blood pressure lowering drugs were issued by the NHS at a cost of £840 million.

It can either be measured in a clinical setting, or by the patient wearing a cuff as they go about their daily lives - known as ambulatory blood pressure checks.

The researchers monitored over 8,500 patients who were being assessed at 11 blood pressure clinics around Australia.

They compared ambulatory blood pressure measurements with those taken by doctors and nurses and found that there can be a difference of as much as 29 units if a doctor checked it, compared with a rise of 17 units if a nurse took the measurement.

The differences also varied depending on the sex and age of the patient.

However, the study also found that the closer the patient's blood pressure to normal levels, the less of a difference between measurements taken by ambulatory monitoring and those taken by a nurse or doctor.

No 'one size fits all'

Professor Arduino Mangoni, who recently joined the University of Aberdeen from Flinders University in Adelaide, said: "Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is the tool of choice to correctly diagnose high blood pressure.

"Clearly, if you're going to be treating a person for the rest of their life, you want to get the readings right, and often the reading in the doctor's office is much higher."

Professor Mangoni said the fact there was a difference between doctors' readings and ambulatory measurements was already known - but the surprise finding was how big the gap was for those with high blood pressure.

He said the team's findings should be used to help shape new blood pressure monitoring guidelines.

"Current guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension don't pay enough attention to the role of ambulatory monitoring, often adopting a one- size-fits-all approach which doesn't properly address different patient groups."

Writing in the BMJ, Professor Richard McManus, a cardiovascular expert from the University of Birmingham, said a patient's care should be managed using clinic-based and ambulatory measurements, taking into account where the test was done and by whom.

Professor Graham MacGregor, chairman of the Blood Pressure Association, said: "This is interesting research which clearly illustrates how external factors such as environment and who is checking blood pressure can have a significant impact on blood pressure readings.

"Many people feel slightly anxious when going to see a doctor, which is why we have always encouraged blood pressure measuring at home as well as in the clinic, and promotes the use of home blood pressure monitors and ambulatory testing where indicated.

"This research may well be considered as part of the review of the NICE [National Institute of health and Clinical Excellence] guidelines for the treatment of hypertension which is currently being conducted, and will be released next year."

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The distraction society

Waiting for the next e-mail or internet "hit" means we are constantly distracted from our everyday tasks. But don't blame technology because the causes are human, says author Damon Young.

I put down my pen, opened my laptop to write this, and instantly received two e-mails.

Then my smartphone rang - it had the e-mails too. Without thinking, I clicked the inbox: one e-mail about a conference I'm organising, another from my father.

I automatically replied to my colleague, and clicked on my dad's embedded link - photographs from the Hubble space telescope. Breathtaking glowing spirals, vibrant gaseous pillars, and...

Wait. What was I doing? Oh, right. Writing for the BBC on technology and distraction.

Instead of focusing on our work or home life, we're waiting for the next 'hit'

I'm not alone in my diversions. According to a 2007 study by Loughborough University academic, Thomas Jackson, most of us reply to e-mails immediately - many within six seconds. Then it takes at least a minute to recover our thoughts. Not long after, more e-mails arrive, with more checking, and so on.

As a result of this constant stimulus, we can become habituated. Instead of focusing on our work or home life, we're waiting for the next "hit": clicking on "new mail" every few minutes. King's College research commissioned by Hewlett Packard suggested that this e-mail preoccupation was reducing the mental sharpness of volunteers.

This combination of distraction and addiction also occurs with the internet. Psychologists call it a "variable interval reinforcement schedule".

'Gratifying buzz'

As with gambling, the internet doesn't always lead to a "hit" - the predictable pleasure of novelty, recognition or humour. So we keep chatting, typing and trawling until it's two in the morning, our lunch break's finished or we realise dinner's burning. And we still haven't enjoyed the gratifying buzz we sought.

Harmless entertainments like gaming can also slide from distraction to pathology. Counsellor Peter Smith, from Broadway Lodge rehabilitation unit in Somerset, said some gamers "get so obsessed… they forget to eat and drift towards an anorexic and undernourished state".

It's tempting to conclude that technology is to blame for all this; that we're being assimilated by malicious machines, like Star Trek's Borg. And today's technologies certainly can deplete our psychological resources.

Is YouTube a respite from the mundane?

But distraction is nothing new. Over a century ago, philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche described his harassed peers. "One thinks with a watch in one's hand," he wrote in 1887, "even as one eats one's midday meal while reading the latest news of the stock market".

Yet Nietzsche didn't blame clocks or markets. "We labour at our daily work more ardently and thoughtlessly than is necessary to sustain our life," he wrote in his Untimely Meditations, "because it is even more necessary not to have leisure to stop and think. Haste is universal because everyone is in flight from himself."

In other words, the technologies were certainly aiding distractions - but they weren't providing the urge. This, said Nietzsche, was human, all-too-human.

Centuries earlier, philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal put this very succinctly. "The sole cause of man's unhappiness," he wrote, "is that he does not know how to stay quietly in his room."

For Pascal, like Nietzsche, man was a restless, jittery creature, always looking for distractions from life. If we've no smartphones and online social networking, there's gossip, gambling or booze.

Confusion

At distraction's heart aren't silicon chips, but an unwillingness to confront very human issues: pain, boredom, anxiety. Distraction certainly has neurophysiological underpinnings - physical bottlenecks of sense, response and cognition. But these often work because we allow ourselves to be managed by machines' rhythms and logic.

Rather than cultivating our faculties, these distractions can weaken them, leaving us unproductive, muddled or fettered.

Work is alienating, and silly YouTube links provide respite. Marriage is stressful, and internet forums offer reprieve from embarrassing conversations. We're exhausted, and television gives our minds familiar, pre-programmed idling. In each case, we're seeking some consolation, asylum or easy pleasure.

Unfortunately these diversions are less rewarding than they appear. As we've seen, unrestrained internet browsing, e-mail and gaming can encourage compulsion or confusion.

In 2002, psychologist Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi also noted the dangers of excessive television. "Survey participants commonly reflect," he wrote in Scientific American, "that television has somehow absorbed or sucked out their energy, leaving them depleted." Other research reported by Csikszentmihalyi suggested diminished attention, problem-solving and patience.

Rather than cultivating our faculties, these distractions can weaken them, leaving us unproductive, muddled or fettered. They are truly distractions, from the word's Latin root: to "draw away" or "pull asunder". They wrench us from what's best in ourselves.

Switch technologies

To avoid this, we needn't ditch technology (a romantic pipe dream). Instead, we can remind ourselves of what it's for: enriching and amplifying our potencies.

Happily, the solution isn't always radical. It might require timetabling: I'm trying to avoid e-mail in the workday, only checking in the morning and at night. I set my own cadence, rather than obeying the inbox's beeps.

Switching technologies can also help. I use a blog for creative writing, rather than Twitter for quick updates. As philosopher RG Collingwood argued, expressive writing can aid emotional clarity - something hard for me to achieve in 140 characters.

Instead of lethargically play-fighting with Tekken 6, I prefer real martial arts, like Judo or Karate. As Csikszentmihalyi noted, sports lead to "improvements in mood" missed with sedentary playing.

These might not work for everyone - there's no one-size-fits-all solution. Some of us require new jobs or relationships, others a little more patience or willpower. But we should do what technology cannot, that is to honestly, lucidly decide what's most valuable for life.

For me right now, this means turning off my gadgets, and grabbing my silent, unhyperlinked fountain pen. Alone with ink and paper, I can stay quietly in my room.

Distraction, by Damon Young, will be published by Acumen in May

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Russian president asked to investigate alien claims

Richard Galpin BBC News, Moscow

Mr Ilyumzhinov made the claims in a TV interview

A Russian MP has asked President Dmitry Medvedev to investigate claims by a regional president that he has met aliens on board a spaceship.

Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, the leader of the southern region of Kalmykia, made his claim in a television interview.

MP Andre Lebedev is not just asking whether Mr Ilyumzhinov is fit to govern.

He is also concerned that, if he was abducted, he may have revealed details about his job and state secrets.

The MP has written a letter to Mr Medvedev raising a list of his concerns.

In his letter he says that - assuming the whole thing was not just a bad joke - it was an historic event and should have been reported to the Kremlin.

He also asks if there are official guidelines for what government officials should do if contacted by aliens, especially if those officials have access to state secrets.

Mr Ilyumzhinov said in an interview on primetime television that he had been taken on board an alien spaceship which had come to planet Earth to take samples - and claims to have several witnesses.

He has been president of Kalmykia, a small Buddhist region of Russia which lies on the shores of the Caspian Sea, for 17 years.

The millionaire former businessman has a reputation as an eccentric character.

As president of the World Chess Federation, he has spent tens of millions of dollars turning the impoverished republic into a mecca for chess players - building an entire village to host international tournaments.

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Nigeria's Goodluck Jonathan sworn in as president

The ceremony took place in the presidential villa in Abuja

Nigeria's acting President Goodluck Jonathan has been sworn in as head of state following the death of President Umaru Yar'Adua after a long illness.

Mr Jonathan, in charge since February, will appoint a deputy and serve out the rest of the current presidential term until elections due next year.

Mr Yar'Adua died late on Wednesday in the capital Abuja.

Thousands attended the funeral in his home town of Katsina. Nigeria has declared seven days mourning.

Mr Jonathan took the oath of office in front of government ministers and other officials in Abuja almost 12 hours after Mr Yar'Adua died. The ceremony was performed by Chief Justice Alloysius Katsina-Alu.

AT THE SCENE Ahmed Idris, BBC News, Katsina Tens of thousands of men shoved and pushed their way into the stadium in Katsina to pay their respects to Nigeria's later President Umaru Yar'Adua. Chants of "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) began as his body - on a bamboo stretcher and wrapped in a Nigerian white and green flag - was carried in by military men. Former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari and Ibrahim Babangida were among the mourners. Other dignitaries included Niger's interim prime minister. There was also a government delegation, but Mr Yar'Adua's deputy, newly sworn-in President Goodluck Jonathan, was not among them. Security was tight during the prayers, which lasted about 30 minutes in the 40 degree heat; and the mood was sombre as the body was removed to the cemetery for a burial mainly attended by those close to the late president. Presidential race is now on Reactions in quotes In pictures: Nigeria mourns Nigerians on Yar'Adua's death

Afterwards he made a brief address, saying his administration was committed to pursuing electoral reform and the fight against corruption "with greater vigour".

"While this is a major burden on me, and indeed the entire nation, we must - in the midst of such great adversity - continue to gain our collective efforts towards upholding the values which our departed leader represented," Mr Jonathan said.

He added: "One of the true tests will be that all votes count, and are counted, in our upcoming presidential election."

The BBC's Karen Allen says that all eyes will now be on the figure President Jonathan - who is from the largely Christian south - appoints as his deputy.

By tradition the presidency alternates between the mainly Muslim north and the south, and whomever he selects is likely to be seen as the presidential candidate for the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP), she says.

The north is due another presidential term, however some analysts believe that Mr Jonathan could still strengthen his political power base, defy political convention and run for office himself.

Condolences paid

Mr Yar'Adua, who was 58, was buried in a Muslim ceremony in Katsina state.

Businesses and shops closed down as a sign of respect.

UMARU YAR'ADUA Born in northern Katsina state in 1951 University chemistry professor before entering politics Married, with nine children Elected president in 2007 promising reforms Fell ill repeatedly while in office Obituary: President Umaru Yar'Adua Profile: Goodluck Jonathan Yar'Adua dead: Your comments

Soldiers and police officers accompanied his body on the flight to the northern town of Katsina.

There, mourners carried his body on their shoulders on a bamboo stretcher into a football stadium for a service.

Among chants of "God is great", the body - in a simple coffin - was buried at a cemetery near his home.

Mourners carried Yar'Adua's body, covered by Nigeria's green and white flag, on a bamboo stretcher to the open field for prayers and then burial at a nearby cemetery.

"The death of President Yar'Adua is a great loss to democracy and a loss to the country and the whole of Africa in general," Ibrahim Ahmed told Reuters news agency.

Political limbo

Mr Yar'Adua's election in 2007 marked the first transfer of power from one civilian president to another since Nigeria's independence in 1960.

He promised a string of reforms in Africa's most populous nation, including tackling corruption and reforming the inadequate energy sector and flawed electoral system.

Analysts say he made the most progress in tackling unrest in the oil-rich Niger Delta by offering amnesties to rebels.

Yar'Adua buried in home town

His long absence and the lack of detailed information about his health led to a political limbo in Nigeria, which was only filled when Mr Jonathan was named as acting president.

However, there was constant tension between supporters of Mr Yar'Adua and Mr Jonathan and in March the acting president dissolved the cabinet and later put his own team in place.

During Mr Yar'Adua's absence, Nigerian Nobel prize-winning author Wole Soyinka was involved in the campaign to resolve the power vacuum.

On Thursday he said Mr Yar'Adua's illness had been manipulated by politicians who had concealed the fact he was in a vegetative state while making arrangements for the forthcoming election.

He told the BBC the late president had been a victim of a macabre game over his succession and not been allowed to be ill in dignity.

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Battle for Canada oil