Defence of democracy
"In extreme situations some rules have to be broken." — Georgy Kuznetsov, dean of the television and radio department of Moscow State University's journalism faculty, justifying media distortion and if necessary falsification of voting results to prevent Communist candidate Gennady Zyuganov from winning the Russian presidential election.
Oops, sorry
"We have made one or two mistakes." — Brian Anderson, head of Shell's operations in Nigeria, on a 1990 demonstration by villagers. Shell asked for riot police to intervene and they did, killing 80 people.
News from the black hole
"Proposals to curtail tax breaks worth $600 million would penalise business and should be totally reconsidered, companies and tax consultants said yesterday." — Financial Review, May 24.
Wasted
"He [a burglar] drank one of my specially imported bottles of Portuguese port wine. A great pity." — Portuguese consul Dr Manuel Samuel, on a robbery at the consulate in Durban, South Africa.
And you can't prove it
"There was no understanding entered into, there was no secret deal, there was no conspiracy, there were no promises." — PM John Howard on his October 1994 meeting with business people promoting a second Sydney airport at Holsworthy Military Reserve, during which nothing was discussed except the weather.