21.   President Robert Mugabe on Thursday named a constitutional reform commission, but critics called the move an empty gesture because Mugabe can reject its findings.

22.   Pro-abortions groups dismissed the offer as an empty gesture.

23.   Samper did not mention any date for an early exit and indicated his offer would be an empty gesture because drug trafficking was a problem before his tenure.

24.   Some see the gacacas as an empty gesture.

25.   The Clinton administration concluded that the offer, which was communicated through a third party and never officially negotiated, was an empty gesture.

26.   Yegorova since has undergone blood and urine tests that came out clean, and Szabo decided to compete, saying her protest would amount to an empty gesture.

27.   The draft however was dismissed by French diplomats as an empty gesture and similar measures have been rejected by Baghdad in the past as a violation of Iraqi sovereignty.