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Beetles Housefly Larvae Show Great Potential for Animal Feed Sector

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:15:12 -0400

PARIS French start-up company Ynsect has identified a cheap, nourishing and locally produced alternative to soybeans as a vital source of protein in animal feed. The clue is in its name. Ynsect is not alone in looking to invertebrates to meet a jump in demand for meat and fish, and so for feed, in coming decades. Black soldier flies, common housefly larvae, silkworms and yellow ...

US Congressional Human-Rights Panel Condemns Sudan

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:15:07 -0400

CAPITOL HILL Members of a U.S. Congressional human-rights panel are calling on Sudan to stop alleged state-sponsored violence and abuses against civilians. The government is fighting rebel movements in the western Darfur region and two southern states, and stands accused of a long string of rights violations, including alleged "scorched earth" tactics against villages in Blue Nile State. At a ...

American Medical Association Obesity is a Disease

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:15:06 -0400

The largest U.S. doctors' group said obesity is a disease. The decision, announced this week by the American Medical Association at its annual meeting, could lead to increased funding for obesity research and help people obtain insurance coverage for treatment for obesity. The AMA said obesity requires a range of medical interventions for treatment and prevention. Most insurance companies ...

Tourism Protests Keep New Luxor Governor Away in Egypt

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:15:05 -0400

LUXOR A hardline Islamist appointed governor of Luxor stayed away from his new office on Wednesday as protesters barred access and demanded Egypt's president revoke a nomination they fear will hurt local tourism. Adel Mohamed al-Khayat, appointed by President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, is a member of al-Gamaa al-Islamiya, the movement accused of killing 58 foreign tourists ...

Africa Must First Tackle Poverty Says Ex-Malawi President

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:15:02 -0400

Malawi's former president says democracy and independence alone are not the ultimate answer to addressing the growing poverty levels in Africa. But Bakili Muluzi also says the democratic strides Malawi has achieved will remain meaningless if citizens continue to live in abject poverty. "Independence alone is not enough. Democracy alone is not enough People don't eat democracy,rdquo; ...

Rescue chopper crashes in Nepal one killed

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:30:01 -0400

At least one person was killed and three others were injured Wednesday when a chopper, sent for rescuing people affected by landslides and floods, crashed on the banks of the Karnali river on the Nepal-Tibet border, officials said. The ill-fated helicopter with six people onboard crashed on the banks of the river in Humla district, the district administrative office said. Three people were ...

Team India would not focus on individual Lankan players Dhoni

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:20:02 -0400

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Wednesday said Sri Lanka is a dangerous side, and hence his team would not focus on individual players. "They are a dangerous side, hence we cannot focus on individual players. If you look at their top six or seven, they are good. But yes, the duo has done really well and will always pose a threat," he said, when asked whether Kumar Sangakara and Mahela ...

Infiltration bid foiled in Poonch sector

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:00:02 -0400

Pakistani troops opened fire on Indian posts on the Line of Control (LoC) in the Krishna Ghati Sector, near here today. Apparently, the firing was resorted to to give cover to a group of four armed persons from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to enable them to infiltrate across the Line of Control. The infiltrators were seen moving towards an Indian forward post near Line of Control in the ...

Sri Lanka calls for Tamil refugees in Australia to return

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 06:30:01 -0400

Sri Lankan external affairs minister has asked the Tamil refugees in Australia who fled the nation's bloody civil war to come home. The Tamils had quietly slipped into Canberra for talks on combating people smugglers. According to the Age, G.L. Peiris said Sri Lanka was now in a perfectly stable condition, with an economic boom in the once devastated northern Tamil regions. He, however, warned ...

Dhonis men practice ahead of semi-final clash against Sri Lanka

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:50:02 -0400

The Indian cricket team with a clean record in the preliminary stages of the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy in England had a strenuous session at the nets in Cardiff ahead of Thursday's semi-final clash against Sri Lanka. With this practice session yesterday, the in form Indian players are confident of facing the Sri Lankan team. The players were busy in enhancing their skills at Glamorgan County ...

Pak offended by Karzais statement implying Pakistani institutions opposed to promoting peace

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 02:40:02 -0400

Pakistan has expressed concern over remarks made by Afghan President Hamid Karzai against a Pakistani state institution. Karai had said that some institutions in Pakistan are opposed to promoting peace and stability in Afghanistan. While commenting on Karzai's statement, the Foreign Office spokesperson said the government of Pakistan and all its institutions have unanimity of views on issues of ...

India delivers indelible ink for Cambodian polls

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 02:30:03 -0400

Some 40,000 bottles of indelible ink, donated by the Indian government, were delivered to Cambodia's National Election Committee (NEC) Wednesday for use in general elections July 28. The poll panel accepted the ink from Indian Ambassador to Cambodia Dinesh K. Patnaik. NEC's chairman Im Suosdey said the ink cost $877,800, and each bottle contains 70 cc, reported Xinhua. "The Indian government ...

Zardari gets clean man stamp following Swiss refusal to re-open $60 mln money laundering case

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 01:30:03 -0400

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has become a 'clean' man in a 60 million dollars money-laundering case after the Swiss Government refused to re-open the case. The Swiss Government had sent a letter to the PML-N Government informing about the development after the case was closed by a Swiss court after lapse of a specific period. In February this year, the Swiss Government told the PPP-led ...

India clears Pakistani panels Mumbai visit to probe 2611 attacks

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 01:30:03 -0400

India has given consent to Pakistani authorities probing the Mumbai 26/11 terror attacks to visit the country and cross-examine witnesses. A dossier of related documents has also been sent by the Indian Government to the National Crisis Management Cell (NCMC) of the Ministry of Interior. An eight-member panel from Pakistan had visited Mumbai in April 2012 to cross-examine four key witnesses of ...

Failure to address discrimination could undermine reforms in Myanmar - UN official

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:02 -0400

19 June 2013 150 The United Nations human rights chief today urged Myanmar's Government to tackle continuing discrimination against ethnic minorities, warning that failure to act could undermine the reform process in the country. "Myanmar today can act as a source of inspiration by showing how governments can be transformed by a renewed commitment to human rights," said the High ...

Analysts Assess Impact of Military Attack on Iran

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:15:08 -0400

The United States and the European Union believe Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons, but Tehran says its program is for peaceful, civilian purposes. The international community has been trying for years to persuade Iran to end its uranium-enrichment program, but to no avail. Low-enriched uranium can be used for civilian nuclear-power plants, but highly enriched uranium is an ...

Pakistan expresses concern over US drone attacks at UNSC

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 02:40:02 -0400

Pakistan has expressed concerns over drone attacks to the United Nations Security Council. Pakistan told the UNSC that armed drones were violating country's sovereignty, causing civilian casualties, and putting communities at risk of reprisal attacks. According to the Daily Times, Pakistan said drone strikes radicalised disaffected communities and increased the number of terrorists, adding that ...

Star of Acclaimed TV Series The Sopranos Dies

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:49:50 -0400

U.S. film and television actor James Gandolfini, who portrayed an emotionally vulnerable crime boss on the groundbreaking television drama "The Sopranos," has died at the age of 51. Statements issued by the actor's managers and U.S. cable television network HBO, which aired the series from 1999 through 2007, said Gandolfini died while on vacation in Italy from a possible heart ...

Singapore Indonesia to hold talks on smog crisis

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:48:17 -0400

SINGAPORE (AFP) - Singapore and Indonesia were scheduled to hold emergency talks on Thursday after thick smog from forest fires on Sumatra island reached unprecedented levels in the city-state.Singapore said it was sending the chief executive of the National Environment Agency (NEA), Andrew Tan, to attend an emergency meeting to be hosted by Indonesia's foreign ministry in Jakarta on the ...

Jaya Suprana Searching for Indonesia’s philosophy

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:47:38 -0400

Asked about his greatest concern for the nation today, Jaya Suprana replied: "We only lack an appreciation of what we own. This attitude makes me feel anxious." He observed that the nation at all levels appreciated something from the outside far more than being proud of local values."It seems as if all things of external origin, especially the West, are superior to our own, but ...

Analysis Plantations sector Still standing

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:47:36 -0400

Why is that?Our sensitivity analysis shows that CPO companies have the propensity to benefit from the weakness of the rupiah and higher interest rates (exhibit 5). This allows for the popularity CPO companies among investors to increase in this risk-averse market, particularly given the sector's defensive exposure toward the food industry.Additionally, with the advent of the largest Muslim ...

Haze update Some kindergartens closed in Muar due to hazardous air quality

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:46:23 -0400

Haze woes in Malacca, air pollutant index (API) reading heightened in Malacca. The air quality in Muar is now hazardous with the Air Pollutant Index (API) reading hitting 337, prompting several private kindergartens to send their pupils home. -- FILE PHOTO: STAR PUBLICATION SDN ...

$A does little to deter Asian travellers

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:45:28 -0400

A growing influx of travellers from Asia are flying into Sydney, with Chinese and Singaporean visitor numbers surging during May. The Australian dollar still held above parity with the greenback until last month, but this did little to deter overseas visitors, with international air travel volumes taking off by 5.9 per cent. Meanwhile, Chinese visitor numbers surged by 29.4 per cent in May ...

Asian stocks down as Fed sees slower bond buys

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:40:44 -0400

A visitor is seen at Tokyo Stock Exchange during a morning trading in Tokyo Monday, June 17, 2013. Asian stocks edged up Monday amid hopes that the U.S. Federal Reserve will put off plans to wind down its stimulus program. Tokyo's Nikkei 225, the regional heavyweight, jumped 2.2 percent to 12,960.81, extending Friday's 2.4 percent ...

Opposition to impeach Thai govt over water project

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:36:54 -0400

Thai opposition Democrat Party will file a petition to remove the Cabinet on suspicion that the government colluded with four large companies in the bidding for the 350-billion-baht (US$11.34 billion) water-management scheme. Democrat Bangkok MP Atthavit Suwannapakdee, also a shadow Cabinet spokesman, said his Cabinet had decided to solicit 120 MP signatures to file impeachment proceedings ...

101000 Singapore millionaires in 2012

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:36:40 -0400

The share market rally sharply increased the ranks of Singapore's wealthy last year. New figures out yesterday show that there were 101,000 millionaires by the end of 2012 in Singapore, a jump of 10.3 per cent over 2011. Their total wealth went through the roof as well and was estimated to have hit US$489 billion (S$615 billion), up 11.5 per cent on the 2011 level. The report by Capgemini ...

Indonesia dodges haze blame game

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:36:36 -0400

Amid criticism from its neighbours, Malaysia and Singapore, over the cross-border haze and deteriorating air quality affecting the two countries, Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa talked tough on the issue, saying that Asean members should collaborate to address the situation rather than lay blame. "The approach must be one of collaboration and partnership, not one of apportioning blame ...

Thailands first-car scheme has hit people also trying to buy cheaper homes

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:36:31 -0400

Up to 10 per cent of Thais who try to buy homes at prices up to 2 million baht (US$65,000) from Pruksa Real Estate Plc have suffered knockbacks for mortgages because of "substandard" credit scores after they bought a vehicle under the government's first-car scheme. Pruksa chief business officer Piya Prayong said the company had tried to help customers by suggesting they find ...

Mango season in full swing in Pakistan

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:36:12 -0400

Season of mangoes, the king of fruits, is now in full swing as the fruit has made it to the market in big quantity. The season of the delicious fruit will last until the end of July. There are varying assessments of stakeholders as to size of crop and rates in the market. Wholesale fruit market is brimming with buyers, exporters and traders on a daily basis as truck loads of the fruit start ...

Advice for Thai politicians

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:35:37 -0400

Politicians forget too quickly about the people who put them in power, as Pheu Thai and the government were rudely reminded last weekend. The by-election in Bangkok's Constituency 12, Don Muang district, last Sunday was not just another insignificant poll. It was widely followed and closely watched, not just by people in the constituency itself, but also by many observers around the ...

Asian firms need to understand politics to succeed experts

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:35:04 -0400

Asian companies will have to reinvent their business strategies and develop long-term plans in order to be able to take the advantage of the surge in the region's economy, experts have said. In addition to the improvement of marketing strategies, companies should also understand the highly dynamic local political situation in the region to achieve success. Takumi Shibata, ...

Race is on for Southeast Asias tech breakthrough

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:25:45 -0400

SINGAPORE - Technology start-up companies in Southeast Asia are building momentum but need more funding and success stories to really take off, three entrepreneurs told the Reuters Global Technology Summit on Wednesday. With 600 million people, Southeast Asia has some of the world's fastest-growing economies, a rapidly rising middle class and an enormous hunger for smartphones and other ...

Smoggy Singapore struggles to get to grips with pollution takes aim at companies and neighbors

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:23:51 -0400

(30 mins ago) Singapore and Indonesia were scheduled to hold emergency talks today after thick smog from forest fires on Sumatra island reached unprecedented levels on the island. Parts of Malaysia have also been severely affected by the smog. Singapore said it was sending the chief executive of the National Environment Agency, Andrew Tan, to attend an emergency meeting to be hosted by ...

Singapore Airlines finalizes order for up to 50 more A350 XWBs

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:17:48 -0400

Singapore Airlines (SIA) has increased its orders for the A350 XWB with an additional 30 A350-900s, plus options for a further 20 aircraft. The agreement firms up a commitment announced last month. Under the terms of the agreement, Singapore Airlines will be able to select either the baseline A350-900 or the larger A350-1000 when exercising the options. This is the third order from Singapore ...

US bus owner faces charges in crash that killed 17 from Vietnamese Catholic community

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:16:51 -0400

DALLAS - The owner of a U.S. bus company has been indicted on federal charges over a crash that killed 17 people from a Vietnamese Catholic community, authorities said. Angel de la Torre and an associate, Carlos Ortuno, are charged with making false statements and other offences. The indictment was returned on May 30, authorities said Wednesday, and de la Torre and his associate were taken into ...

Helicopter crash in remote northwestern Nepal kills 1 passenger injures 5 people on board

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:16:51 -0400

KATMANDU, Nepal - A helicopter has crashed in remote northwestern Nepal, killing one passenger and injuring five other people on board. A police official said the helicopter belonging to local Fishtail Air crashed Wednesday evening near Muchu village. That's about 400 kilometres (250 miles) north west of the capital, Kathmandu. The injured were flown by a rescue helicopter to the nearest ...

STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Index headed for biggest daily drop in a year

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:59:40 -0400

Wed Jun 19, 2013 11:59pm EDT Singapore shares were headed for their biggest one-day decline in more than a year, tracking weaker global markets after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank would start to reduce its stimulus measures later this year. The benchmark Straits Times Index dropped nearly 2 percent on Thursday. The broadest MSCI's index of Asia-Pacific shares ...

S. Sudan Uganda to Step up Border Road Patrols

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:45:04 -0400

JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN -- South Sudan and Uganda have agreed to step up security patrols on their common border and on the highway linking Juba to Kampala after a spate of attacks against motorists, officials said Wednesday. "They agreed to proceed to enforce the deployment of more security forces to provide security on the border areas," South Sudan police spokesman James Monday Enocka ...

PMs Indonesia visit a cover-up Abbott

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:41:21 -0400

Julia Gillard's planned visit to Indonesia is a desperate attempt to cover up the prime minister's failure to stop asylum-seeker boats, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says.Ms Gillard will meet Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for bilateral talks early in July.The visit is being seen as part of a last-ditch effort to stem the flow of would-be refugees ahead of the September ...

Asian Markets Trade Sharply Lower

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:39:50 -0400

markets are mostly trading sharply lower on Thursday, tracking cues from Wall Street where stocks tumbled overnight after the U.S. Federal Reserve hinted at winding up its stimulus program by mid-2014.The Australian stock market is trading sharply lower with investors pressing heavy sales almost across the board.Financial, mining, energy, industrial, consumer discretionary and property trusts ...

STOCKS NEWS THAILAND-Thai stocks drop 3 pct after Fed hints at slowing bond buying

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:39:29 -0400

Thai stocks fell as much as 3 percent to their lowest in one week amid global share selloffs after the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled a slowing of the stimulus program by this year end. At 0327 GMT, the Thai benchmark SET index was down 2.5 percent at 1,401.88, in line with others in Southeast Asia. Indonesian shares slid 2.6 percent and Philippine shares plunged almost 3 percent. "We ...

Cambodia - Marked deterioration in human rights in Cambodia

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:34:04 -0400

Human rights defenders in Cambodia are less safe than they were a year ago according to a report published on 19 June 2013 by ARTICLE 19 and the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR). The risk assessment survey shows the security situation in the country deteriorated significantly in 2012 as the government crackdown on fundamental human rights intensified ahead of July's elections. The ...

Top Asian companies more optimistic but sentiment in Thailand sags

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:34:04 -0400

Asia's top companies have become more optimistic about their business outlook with the retail and shipping industries rebounding sharply in the second quarter of this year, according to the latest Thomson Reuters/Insead Asia Business Sentiment Survey. Thailand's sentiment index dropped to an all-time low of 42 from 60 in the survey. The Asia Business Sentiment Index climbed 6 points ...

India Second Asian Nation To Get Google Store

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:32:56 -0400

Android bites a MacBook. Tastes like chicken. Not to be outdone by smartphone rival Apple, Google has taken to create their own stores and will have a foot in one of the biggest mobile markets in the world -- India -when it partners with Singapore-based Spice Global to open Android Nation in New Delhi's Select Citywalk Mall later this ...

Singapores Air Quality Turns Hazardous

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:30:36 -0400

Singapore's air quality deteriorated to "hazardous" levels late on Wednesday as smoke from slash-and-burn land clearing in Indonesia enveloped the city-state, inflaming tensions between the Southeast Asian neighbors. Singapore, a major financial centre, will send a delegation to Jakarta on Thursday to discuss the smog that has turned its usually clear skies grey, Environment ...

Pakistan bus bombing shocks survivors

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:24:02 -0400

Pakistani paramilitary soldiers take positions after militants attacked a hospital in Quetta, Pakistan, on Saturday, June 15. Several militants held hundreds of people hostage inside the Bolan medical ...

Six killed in attack on Pakistani army convoy

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:24:01 -0400

The Pakistani army convoy was ambushed by heavily armed militants, sources said Another army convoy in the same area was attacked in ...

Intrepid Mines board survives ouster vote over lost Indonesia mine

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:19:02 -0400

MELBOURNE, June 20 | Wed Jun 19, 2013 11:19pm EDT MELBOURNE, June 20 (Reuters) - Shareholders of Intrepid Mines on Thursday backed their board to try to win back rights to a $5 billion copper and gold project in Indonesia that the company lost last year, defeating a plan to oust the board, spokesmen for both sides said. "There is a single point that a majority of shareholders that ...

REPEAT-GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks tumble on weak China PMI Fed policy plan

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:03:09 -0400

Wed Jun 19, 2013 11:03pm EDT * MSCI Asia ex-Japan slides 2.8 pct to 9-month low * U.S. Treasury yields hit 15-mth high, underpin dollar * China "flash" PMI hit 9-month lows * Asian credit market spreads widen 23 points By Chikako Mogi TOKYO, June 20 (Reuters) - Asian shares tumbled to nine-month lows on Thursday as slowing Chinese manufacturing activity exacerbated sentiment already ...

Singapore demands action from Indonesia on haze

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:46:42 -0400

By Kevin Lim SINGAPORE, June 20 | Wed Jun 19, 2013 10:46pm EDT SINGAPORE, June 20 (Reuters) - Singapore called on Thursday for "definitive action" from Indonesia as air quality stuck at very unhealthy levels for a second day because of forest fires in its neighbour, disrupting businesses in the prosperous city-state. Work at several Singapore construction sites slowed with few ...

Yau Yau Ready for Peace Talks Murle Delegation

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:38:24 -0400

United Nations troops protect civilians in Jonglei state, where David Yau Yau's rebels have finally called for peace talks with the South Sudanese ...

US Scrambles to Salvage Afghan Peace Talks

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:38:24 -0400

Top U.S. diplomats scrambled Wednesday to salvage plans for preliminary peace talks with the Taliban, after Afghan President Hamid Karzai refused to participate in the U.S.-led talks in Qatar. Mr. Karzai, apparently irked by the opening of a Taliban political office in Doha, Qatar, also canceled negotiations with Washington on a troop pact governing U.S. presence in the country after NATO ...

Hary Tanoe in talks to buy Bakrie’s TV station

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:36:03 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 13 After taking over its toll roads and a property unit, media mogul Hary Tanoesoedibjo's MNC Group will likely buy one of the Bakrie Group's television stations.Sources said that publicly listed Visi Media Asia (VIVA) which is controlled by the Bakrie family, would sell its majority stake in PT Cakrawala Andalas Televisi, which operates ANTV television ...

Swedish HM to open two stores in Jakarta this year

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:36:02 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 13 H&M, a Swedish fashion and lifestyle retailer, is in preparation for the opening of its two stores in Jakarta this year in a bid to capitalize from the middle class market in the country.Here, the retailer known also as Hennes & Mauritz AB, will be working with PT Hindo which serves a franchise operator.PT Hindo country manager Sanveer Gill said H&M is ...

Bureaucracy delays monorail project

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:36:01 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 9 The construction of the Monorail project has been pushed back to the end of this year due to outstanding documents, an executive of PT Jakarta Monorail (JM) said on Wednesday.JM technical director Bovananto said the company needed more time to finish the financial closing document required by the city's administration, which reviewed the project's legal, ...

Competition between taxi firms heats up

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:36:01 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 9 The operation of taxis based in satellite towns has tightened up competition between taxi firms in the capital, according to a member of the Jakarta Transportation Council."The Jakarta administration will no longer issue licenses for new taxi companies. Some companies, therefore, have registered their businesses in towns adjacent to Jakarta like Bekasi, Bogor and ...

Australia asylum seekers find peace and some joy in Jakarta

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:36:00 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 9 Dozens of young men started their Saturday morning by cleaning the area surrounding their home in Kebon Baru Village, South Jakarta, jabbering in an unintelligible language. Smiling and laughing, some of them swept the floor and porch of the mosque while others picked trash from sewers.They are Rohingya Muslims who fled Myanmar, seeking asylum in Australia.Hasan, 17, ran ...

Impoverished women first to be hit by price rise

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:35:59 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 9 A group of female activists voiced their rejection on Wednesday of the planned fuel-price hike, which they said would put more burden on low-income women workers and homemakers.The activists, who represent different organizations and communities, have joined the Women's Action Committee (KAP).Siti Kholifah from Tanah Baru in Depok, West Java, said women, who ...

Editorial Another 15 years

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:35:57 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 6 Indonesia was the proud recipient of an award from the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for its persistence in reducing hunger and malnourishment. Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa accepted the award on Sunday during the 38th FAO conference in Rome, along with several other countries, for halving the proportion of hungry people ahead of the UN ...

Coalition sceptical on PM Indonesia visit

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:33:52 -0400

The federal opposition doubts that Prime Minister Julia Gillard's upcoming visit to Indonesia will result in any new action to stop asylum seeker boats.Ms Gillard will meet Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for bilateral talks early in July.The visit is being seen as part of a last-ditch effort to stem the flow of would-be refugees ahead of the September 14 election.But ...

Psychological distress may explain ‘ghost’ sighting at Bangladeshi garment factory

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:29:11 -0400

As AFP reports , 3,500 workers stopped work at the plant in Gazipur, north of Dhaka on Tuesday. They smashed furniture as they protested and demanded action to remove the ghost. "The agitating workers refused to join duty and vandalised the factory after the management did not take any steps to drive out the ghost," Gazipur industrial police inspector Showkat Kabir told AFP. ...

Asia Roundup Mostly down ahead of US Fed decision

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:27:33 -0400

Asian markets were mostly lower yesterday, Wednesday June 19 2013 with focus on the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting later in the trading day, but Tokyo enjoyed another rally as data showed a surge in exports thanks to a weaker yen. Wall Street again provided a healthy cue, with investors betting the Fed will stop short of reeling in its ';quantitative easing'; bond-buying ...

Xi China Vietnam should follow path of friendly cooperation

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:26:22 -0400

Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) and Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang wave during a welcoming ceremony in Beijing, capital of China, June 19, 2013. Photo: XinhuaChinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday urged China and Vietnam to "unswervingly march together along the path of friendly cooperation" despite distractions.Xi made the comments during his three-hour-long talks with ...

Nepal to earmark over $1b for hydro power development

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:26:15 -0400

The government of Nepal is likely to allocate more than 20 percent of resources in its upcoming national budget 2013/14 for the development of hydro power projects, Finance Minister Shankar Prasad Koirala said on Wednesday.As the main priority of Nepal is to tackle energy crisis prevailing in the country, the government will probably allocate more than 20 percent of the expenditures for the ...

Indonesia to campaign on Papua progress in regl forum

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:22:41 -0400

The Indonesian government has invited foreign ministers from Melanesian nations grouped under the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) to Jakarta to receive briefings on development in Papua and West Papua provinces, a move that could be seen as a campaign to obtain international support for the country's sovereignty over its easternmost region. Coordinating Political, Legal and Security ...

Indonesia fuel hike likely to hit tourism hard

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:22:38 -0400

As the intended increase in fuel prices nears its deadline, people in Indonesia's tourist industry expressed deep concern as the hike would certainly affect their businesses. Bagus Soediana, chairman of the Bali Tourism Transportation Association (Pawiba), said transportation rates had remained the same since 2005, despite rocketing prices for vehicle parts and fuel. "We have not ...

Philippines mending ties with Taiwan

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:22:30 -0400

After the outburst of public anger, amplified by official outrage orchestrated by an unpopular government, Taiwan is sounding less bellicose these days. Perhaps President Ma Ying-Jeou and his advisers think they have forced the Philippines into a corner. They would be wrong. After the shooting death of Taiwanese fisherman Hung Shih-chen on May 9, in Philippine waters, it was incumbent on the ...

White elephant tests Thailand-Myanmar relations

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:22:24 -0400

The Myanmar government has turned down an offer made by Thailand to lease a white elephant for a celebration of the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The Thai delegation made the offer on June 13 during the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation held in Bali, according to an announcement published on the President's Office website on Tuesday. The ...

Rockets Lazada gets $100 million in bid to be Southeast Asias Amazon

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:10:57 -0400

(Reuters) - Lazada, the Southeast Asian online retail company founded by Germany's Rocket Internet Gmbh, has secured another $100 million from investors in its bid to lift the region from its status as an e-commerce ...

Asia Markets Australia Korea lead Asian stock fall after Fed

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:09:06 -0400

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Asian stocks fell Thursday after the Federal Reserve signaled it may gradually wind down its bond purchases if the U.S. economy continued to improve, weighing down shares on Wall ...

Gillards trip to Indonesia and gay marriage - parliamentary video highlights

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:08:12 -0400

Labor's Craig Emerson, the Liberal Scott Morrison, Greens Christine Milne and Adam Band, Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce and Democratic Labor party man John Madigan discuss the prime minister's visit to Indonesia, asylum seeker policy and gay marriage ...

Vietnam to lower ceiling on dollar deposit rates - paper

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:40:26 -0400

HANOI, June 20 | Wed Jun 19, 2013 9:40pm EDT HANOI, June 20 (Reuters) - Vietnam will lower the 2-percent ceiling banks pay for dollar deposits between now and the end of 2013, but any downward adjustment may be incremental, a state-run newspaper quoted the central bank governor on Thursday as saying. "The interest rates on U.S. dollar deposits will be adjusted down," State Bank ...

Sopranos Actor James Gandolfini Dead at 51

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:32:45 -0400

LOS ANGELES -- James Gandolfini, the burly actor best known for his Emmy-winning portrayal of a conflicted New Jersey mob boss in the acclaimed HBO cable television series "The Sopranos," died on Wednesday while vacationing in Rome, the network said. Gandolfini, 51, who began his career in theater in New York, making his Broadway debut in a 1992 revival of "A Streetcar Named ...

Human Rights Film Fest Highlights Abuses Conflicts in US and Abroad

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:32:43 -0400

NEW YORK -- Ninety-nine Percent--The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film, a portrait of the protest movement that began in 2011 in New York’s financial district, is one of the more unusual of 20 new offerings at this year’s Human Rights Watch Film Festival in New York. It was shot by teams around the United States, and anyone who wanted to participate could do so. "We thought ...

UGM-made extensometer applied in China Myanmar

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:30:18 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 4 A landslide early warning device, known as an extensometer, created by lecturers from Gadjah Mada University (UGM) school of engineering, has reportedly been utilized in Myanmar and China. But unfortunately it has not yet been widely used at home despite the device's affordable price and Indonesia's vulnerability to landslides.A lecturer of the school, Teuku ...

Hardline groups still active recruiting

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:30:16 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 5 As a number of terror suspects remain at large across Central Sulawesi residents have been warned about the possibility of further orchestrated attacks by organized cells.Central Sulawesi Police chief Brig. Gen. Ari Dono Sukmanto acknowledged that although only a few people were involved in hardline network activities in Poso, they were intent on carrying out violent ...

So many cases against Nazaruddin with little result

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:30:15 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 4 Antigraft watchdogs urged the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to deliver on its promise to resolve cases involving former Democratic Party treasurer and graft convict Muhammad Nazaruddin.The watchdogs, including the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), the Indonesia Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) and the Indonesian Legal Roundtable (ILR), blasted the KPK its "lack ...

Experts warn of e-ID chaos for poll

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:30:14 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 4 Election experts have warned that the ongoing transition from paper to electronic identification (e-ID) cards could wreak havoc with poll registration for the 2014 election."The government considered using national e-ID cards as the only database for eligible voters but, so far, not all Indonesian citizens have been registered with e-ID cards," said Kurniawan ...

Agents of change gather for small enterprises movement

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:30:13 -0400

Paper Edition | Page: 4 The Dayakan Indonesia (Empower Indonesia) movement was launched on Wednesday to enable agents of change across the country to gather and assist micro entrepreneurs and lower-middle income families to improve their livelihoods.Empower Indonesia comprises 17 institutions and individuals, including health movement Pencerah Nusantara, the Asgar Muda Foundation, Selamatkan Ibu ...

Indonesia - Market factors to watch on June 20

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:21:47 -0400

JAKARTA, June 20 (Reuters) - Following is some company-related and market news that could affect the local market. ---------------- MARKET SNAPSHOT AT 0020 GMT -------------- INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P ...

Fake Vietnam veteran admits 30-year lie

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:20:56 -0400

Tweed man Christopher John Bayliss has admitted he has been misrepresenting himself as a returned Vietnam veteran for 30 years. Pic: supplied A TWEED Heads man has admitted falsely claiming to be a Vietnam veteran for almost 30 years.Christopher John Bayliss, 61, of Bilambil Heights, yesterday confirmed to the Bulletin he had not served in the Australian Defence Force during the Vietnam War, ...

Huawei unveils worlds thinnest smartphone Ascend P6 in Singapore

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:20:39 -0400

A model shows Huawei Ascend P6 smartphone at Huawei's booth during the CommunicAsia in Singapore, on June 19, 2013. International telecommunications giant Huawei unveiled its latest flagship device Ascend P6 in Singapore on Wednesday, marketing it as the thinnest smartphone in the world. (Xinhua/Chen ...

Garuda Indonesia Named The Worlds Best Economy Class By SkyTrax At Paris Airshow

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:19:29 -0400

Garuda Indonesia, the airline of Indonesia, was named "The World’s Best Economy Class" at the SkyTrax 2013 World Airline Awards at the Paris Air show yesterday. In addition to being voted "The World's Best Economy Class", Garuda was also named "The World’s Best Economy Class Seats" by SkyTrax – a result of Garuda Indonesia’s continuous ...

AirAsia spreads its wings further into Indonesia

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:19:28 -0400

AirAsia, the World’s Best Low-Cost Airline awarded by Skytrax for the fifth year running, today announced direct flights to two additional destinations within Indonesia, Medan and Surabaya. This announcement comes shortly after its previous direct flight launch to Makassar, another city within the archipelago. With the new routes, AirAsia now flies direct from Singapore to 17 other ...

China Vietnam establish fishery hotline

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:17:15 -0400

Agricultural authorities from Beijing and Hanoi agreed on Wednesday to establish a fishery emergency hotline, as the leaders of the two countries vowed to prevent disputes from derailing ties. On his first official trip to China, Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang and President Xi Jinping also witnessed the signing of another nine agreements in areas including defence, economy and public ...

World Briefing | Asia Muslim Women Sentenced to Hard Labor in Myanmar

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:12:43 -0400

A court in Myanmar has found two Muslim women guilty of setting off a recent outbreak of sectarian violence, one of them by bumping into a Buddhist novice monk. Myint Thein of the pro-government National Unity Party, who attended their trial, said Wednesday that the two women in the central township of Okkan were convicted of ...

Asylum detention and Indonesia politics live blog

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:03:31 -0400

10.31am Good morning and welcome to our live coverage from Canberra. Apologies for our late start this morning: I was unavoidably delayed. Last night was the Parliamentary Press Gallery’s mid-winter ball. We’ve got some lovely photos of that event thanks to Mike Bowers, who scrubbed up a treat. One attendee - national senator Barnaby Joyce - evidently thought a walk round the ...

US State Department Says Indonesia Failing to Protect Religious Minorities

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:02:04 -0400

Indonesian youths gather outside the church that was attacked by Muslim hardliners in Temanggung, Central Java, Indonesia, Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2011. Hundreds of Islamic hard-liners stormed a courthouse and set two churches on fire Tuesday in central Indonesia to protest what they considered a lenient sentence for a Christian convicted of blaspheming ...

Asian mkts fall on Bernanke comments China data eyed

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:59:29 -0400

US stocks tumbled more than 1 per cent on Wednesday and benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield surged 17 basis points to 2.355 per cent, its highest in 15 months, while the dollar advanced broadly on the back of rising yields. Bernanke said on Wednesday the US economy is expanding strongly enough for the Fed to begin slowing the pace of its $85 billion monthly purchases of Treasuries and ...

U.N. official Myanmar must deal with anti-Muslim violence

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:55:08 -0400

Myanmar's failure to deal with violence against the Rohingya, an ethnic and religious minority, threatens its transition to democracy, a U.N. official ...

Former Investigators Want New Probe of 1996 TWA Crash

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:27:12 -0400

Six former investigators want the U.S. government to reopen its probe of the 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800. The plane went down shortly after takeoff from New York City, killing all 230 people on ...

US Criticizes China Russia in Fight Against Human Trafficking

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:27:11 -0400

The United States has declared China and Russia among the worst countries in fighting human trafficking, a designation that could lead to sanctions against both nations. In its annual report on human trafficking released Wednesday, the U.S. State Department downgraded China and Russia, along with Uzbekistan, to the lowest possible U.S. rating, known as Tier Three. Iran, North Korea, Cuba, ...

Numbers at 18-Year High as UN Observes World Refugee Day

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:27:11 -0400

LONDON -- Thursday is World Refugee Day - and the United Nations says the number of refugees worldwide is at its highest in 18 years, at over 45 million people. The Syrian conflict is a major driver behind the increase. Four-year-old Shahad laughs and jokes with her older sister in their makeshift home. She appears a happy, young girl; but the scars and burn marks on her smiling face tell the ...

Protests Continue in Turkey But Methods Changing

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:27:11 -0400

ISTANBUL -- Anti-government protests continue in Turkey, but the methods have changed. The two weeks of clashes in which four people died and about 5,000 were injured drew increasing numbers of supporters. Istanbul's Taksim Square. These "standing man" protests, as they are called, began Monday after the government quashed mass demonstrations, which it said were fomenting ...

NY City University Immigration Program a Success

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:27:10 -0400

NEW YORK -- While the United States Congress continues to wrestle with an immigration reform bill, every day more people become American citizens. In fact, last year the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service swore in almost 700,000 new citizens, including 84,000 in New York State. The immigration bill is the big issue on the minds of those seeking information about citizenship. The ...

Former Hungarian PM Who Breached Iron Curtain Dies at 80

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:27:10 -0400

Former Hungarian prime minister Gyula Horn, who played a key role in ending communism in eastern Europe, has died in Budapest after a long illness. He was ...

Transjakarta gets new boss

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:25:00 -0400

Pargaulan Butar-Butar, the head of the transportation office and of the school bus unit in North Jakarta, has been appointed the new head of Transjakarta, replacing M. Akbar who is to lead the land transportation subagency.Butar-Butar was one of 51 echelon III officials rotated in the city administration. Reliable sources asking for anonymity said Akbar was rotated because of frequent fires that ...

Residents allowed using ID for mayoral race

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:24:58 -0400

Bandung administration will allow its residents, who are apparently not registered in the voters' list for the upcoming mayoral election, to cast their votes by showing their ID (KTP) to officials at polling stations.They must go to polling stations located near the address registered on the IDs.Bandung General Election Committee (KPU) applies the ruling of the Constitutional Court No. 85 ...

Haze update Singapore Indonesia officials to discuss how to prevent haze

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:23:42 -0400

Villagers burning the waste from oil palm kernels after removing the fruits at Kandis, 82km north of Pekanbaru. Much of Riau province was blanketed by haze yesterday, which also spread to Pekanbaru. -- ST PHOTO: AZIZ ...

UPDATE 1-HK investigates HSBC other banks for inappropriate market conduct

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:17:07 -0400

Hong Kong’s de facto central bank said on Tuesday that its investigation into possible benchmark rate manipulation has been extended to include HSBC and a number of other banks. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced in December that it was investigating UBS about possible misconduct relating to its submissions for the Hong Kong Interbank Offered Rate (Hibor). ';Apart ...

Inside business HK fears cooling of hot money flows

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:17:06 -0400

How hot is Hong Kong? Ed Snowden has fuelled a media firestorm by hiding here while he lobs out explosive revelations about US internet snooping. But locals should have their eyes on a different kind of American-generated heat. Hong Kong has been one of the biggest repositories of hot money created by the ultra-low interest rates of the US Federal Reserve since the financial crisis. Now, it is ...

Apple hopes to dominate Taiwan’s tablet market

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:55 -0400

The Taiwanese tablet market is set to grow exponentially this year, nearly doubling the hardware sales of 2012. Executive VP and Chief Sales and Marketing Officer Maxwell Cheng of Far EasTone Telecommunications (FETLF), told DigiTimes that 70 percent to 80 percent of those tablets will fall within the seven-inch range. Cheng’s company alone hopes to sell roughly 300,000 units this year. ...

Trade alliance plans mission to Taiwan

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:55 -0400

The Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Trade Alliance this week announced its first trade trip to Taiwan. The trade mission will connect New Mexico companies with like-minded businesses in Taiwan, said Randy Trask, director of the alliance. ';It’s going to be centered around a semiconductor trade show. Anything from LEDs to semiconductors, this would be a fit,'; Trask said. ...

sign of closer links for China Taiwan

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:54 -0400

The governments of China and Taiwan are set to open their first representative offices in each other’s countries. The new Chinese leadership has been taking a more stridently nationalist approach towards other neighbours, with whom arguments about the sovereignty of islands in the South China and East China Seas remain ...

Taiwan’s EVA Air joins world’s biggest air alliance

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:52 -0400

Taiwan’s EVA Airways on Tuesday joined Star Alliance, the world’s biggest airline grouping, in a move that could give it an edge over regional rivals like China Airlines. ';EVA Air has successfully completed all joining requirements and I can confirm that our chief executive board has now unanimously accepted EVA Air into our alliance,'; Star Alliance CEO Mark Schwab ...

Swish Systex bring mPOS payments to Taiwan

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:52 -0400

Mobile point-of-sale services provider Swish has signed a partnership agreement with Taiwanese IT service provider Systex. Swish and Systex will offer a chip and swipe mobile point-of-sale service to Taiwanese merchants. Under the terms of the deal, Systex will serve as Swish’s technical and customer service support arm for the entire Taiwanese market. Swish provides the app, card reader, ...

N Korea wades into NSA spying scandal branding US ‘kingpin of rights abuse’

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:51 -0400

The North even argued that the revelations of mass surveillance operations demonstrated the United States was the ';kingpin'; of rights abuse. The secretive state’s horror at the NSA’s actions, conflicts slightly with rights groups and defectors who have long accused the North of brutal totalitarian practices. These include suppression of dissent, the operation of a ...

StanChart plans 1 billion yuan bond in Taiwan -sources

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:51 -0400

Standard Chartered is planning to sell a 1 billion yuan bond in Taiwan, two brokerage sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in the second such bond to be issued by a global bank. The Asia-focused bank is set to apply for approval for the issue from Taiwan regulators later this month, targeting retail investors, the sources said, who asked not be identified as the matter is yet to ...

Kim Jong-un ‘pictured with luxury yacht’ in N Korea

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:50 -0400

Kim Jong-il loved his yacht so much he was apparently buried with it. Now Kim Jong-un has shown he shares his father’s penchant for a luxury cruiser, reportedly displaying a gleaming GBP 4.5 million vessel in spite of international sanctions. The North Korean leader recently used a 95-foot Princess yacht to navigate the country’s east coast during a 10-day official tour, according ...

N Korea leader ‘gives Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’ to officials’

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:49 -0400

North Korean ruler Kim Jong-Un has reportedly given copies of Adolf Hitler’s ';Mein Kampf'; to his top officials, urging them to study it as a leadership skills manual. Kim handed out translations of the German dictator’s manifesto to select officials at the time of his birthday in January, reported New Focus International, an online news portal run by North Korean ...

Phillip Lim creates new logo for China

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:49 -0400

The New York City-based designer has produced a brandmark as part of an ongoing dispute over the brand’s name in China. Winner of this year’s CFDA award for Accessories Designer of the Year, designer Phillip Lim’s 3.1 Phillip Lim label has unveiled a new brandmark for the collections sold in China. According to the company, it’s part of a strategy to fight a ';a ...

China’s Xi in ‘thorough clean-up’ of party media

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:48 -0400

President Xi Jinping is to launch a ';thorough clean-up'; of the ruling Communist Party, state media reported Tuesday, the latest strongly-worded anti-corruption drive to be enacted by China’s new leader. The ';upcoming year-long campaign'; will target what the Xinhua news agency described as ';undesirable work styles such as formalism, bureaucratism, laxity and ...

China Swaps Surge as Cash Squeeze Sees Demand Wane at Debt Sale

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:48 -0400

China’s one-year interest-rate swap rose by the most in 22 months as the central bank refrained from adding funds to the financial system to ease a cash squeeze, causing demand to fall at a government debt auction. The finance ministry’s sale of 30 billion yuan ($4.9 billion) of 10-year bonds today drew bids for 1.43 times the amount on offer, the least since August 2012. The ...

China N Korea holding strategic talks following tensions North’s offer of talks with US

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:47 -0400

A top North Korean negotiator has arrived at China’s Foreign Ministry for strategic talks following a rough patch in relations between the communist allies and Pyongyang’s surprise weekend call for dialogue with the US North Korean First vice Foreign minister Kim Kye Gwan was expected to discuss bilateral relations and the situation on the Korean Peninsula with Chinese vice Foreign ...

GM Says China Luxury Vehicle Demand Slower Than Expected

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:47 -0400

General Motors Co. (GM), which broke ground on a new Cadillac assembly plant in China today, forecast demand for luxury autos will grow at a slower pace than the total vehicle market this year. Sales of premium cars in China will probably increase about 4 percent this year, or about half the pace that the automaker had expected at the start of the year, Bob Socia, GM’s China head, said in ...

China’s Dalian Wanda to buy UK yacht maker and hotel

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:46 -0400

Dalian Wanda Group, a Chinese property developer, said it will spend GBP 1bn ($1.6bn) to buy a British yacht maker and property in London. Wanda will pay GBP 320m for almost 92 percent of Sunseeker International, famous for providing yachts for James Bond movies. It will also invest GBP 700m pounds to develop a five-star hotel in London It is the first step into the luxury market for Wanda, ...

Phl China stand firm on territorial claims

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:45 -0400

The Philippines and China are standing firm on their respective positions on maritime territorial disputes but are committed to keeping peace in the region and improving bilateral relations. This was stressed by delegates of the two countries to the 19th Philippines-China Foreign Ministry Consultations (FMC) in Beijing held last June 14. In the meeting, Philippine and Chinese representatives ...

China’s Military Buildup Worrisome Japan’s US Ambassador Says

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:45 -0400

China’s ';spectacularly active'; naval posture and ';massive'; military buildup in Asia are part of a pattern of belligerent behavior toward Japan and other neighbours over maritime disputes, according to Japan’s ambassador to the US Speaking at a Bloomberg government breakfast in Washington yesterday, Japanese Ambassador to the US Kenichiro Sasae described ...

From Cheney to China 7 things we learned about Obama

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:42 -0400

As his popularity has dropped to 45 percent, the lowest in a year and a half, President Barack Obama talked with PBS’ Charlie Rose. The president covered a world of issues, including how some critics now liken him to a particular Republican adversary. Here are his thoughts on seven of the topics he discussed on Monday evening. Obama as the new Dick Cheney? When asked if there is ...

China says Ghana’s arrest of its miners will not harm relations

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:40 -0400

China is determined that its relations with Ghana will not be undermined by the arrest of some 200 Chinese illegal gold miners in a crackdown by Ghanaian authorities, a senior Beijing Foreign Ministry official said on Tuesday. The arrests are a sensitive issue for China, which would want to defuse any issue that could stoke popular resentment against its citizens doing business in Africa or ...

China’s fastest-growing cities for millionaires

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:40 -0400

Make room for some new up-and-coming Chinese cities where multi millionaires are taking over. But the thing is, most Westerners have probably never heard of these cities. How about Chongqing? Or maybe Hangzhou? New research from WealthInsight shows Chongqing was the fastest growing city for multi millionaires in China between 2007 and 2012. Chongqing’s multi millionaire population ...

Huawei launches world’s slimmest smartphone

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:39 -0400

China’s Huawei unveiled its flagship smartphone, the Ascend P6, at its first standalone launch event on Tuesday, underlining its ambitions to compete with Apple and Samsung in the top tier of mobile technology. The company says the device, at 6.18 mm thick, is the world’s slimmest. It has a 5 megapixel front-facing camera, designed for taking ';selfies';, or pictures of ...

Japan May exports rise 10.1 pct yearyear – MOF

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:37 -0400

Japanese exports rose 10.1 percent in May from a year earlier, up for a third straight month, Ministry of Finance data showed on Wednesday, in a sign that a weaker yen and a moderate pickup in global demand are supporting a recovery in shipments. The rise in exports was stronger than a median forecast for a 6.5 percent increase in a Reuters poll of economists, and followed a 3.8 percent rise in ...

Japan drifting away from becoming a ‘normal country’ says Xinhua

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:36 -0400

Japan is edging further away from its goal of becoming a ';normal country'; in the post-war world, China’s state news agency Xinhua said in a scathing editorial published on Tuesday. The piece slammed Japan’s leadership, under hawkish prime minister Shinzo Abe, for making revisionist comments about the country’s past war crimes and turning a ';blind eye'; ...

Japan watchdog formally OKs new safety requirements at nuke plants paves way for resumption

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:35 -0400

Japan’s nuclear watchdog has formally approved new safety requirements for atomic plants, paving the way for the reopening of facilities shut down since the Fukushima disaster. The new requirements approved Wednesday by the Nuclear Regulation Authority will take effect on July 8, when operators will be able to apply for inspections. If plants pass inspection, they can reopen. All but ...

Japan’s exports pick up pace give economy momentum in rough markets

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:16:35 -0400

Japan’s exports rose in May at the fastest annual rate in more than two years with the help of a weak yen and a moderate pick-up in global demand, boding well for the government’s efforts to steer the economy through market turbulence. The faster-than-expected rise is welcome news for prime minister Shinzo Abe after recent a sell-off in stocks, volatility in bonds and a spike in the ...

Airline Special Wonders of Malaysia and its national airline

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:13:32 -0400

Family fun on the beach in Malaysia. The country's national airline has opened air routes to more than 150 countries and promises award-winning service to passengers. Provided to China ...

Navy cargo ships prove their mettle

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:12:25 -0400

DESPITE perhaps being less glamorous than a destroyer or an aircraft carrier, navy cargo ships are an invaluable asset in disaster relief efforts, said the captain of the US Navy Ship Matthew ...

Biang overcomes water scare

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:12:23 -0400

utilised from June 19. These facilities ensured that troops and villagers had safe and clean water for their daily needs.Republic of China Armed Forces ...

Nursing students off to the Philippines for educational visit

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:12:20 -0400

) left yesterday for a seven-day educational trip to Manila.The group, comprising 13 nursing students and five lecturers, will visit the Far Eastern University, St Luke's Medical Centre and the National Mental Health Centre.This visit aims to expose the students to healthcare settings and cultures outside Brunei and to international standard of healthcare management ...

Building a happy family based on Islamic teachings

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:12:18 -0400

Ismuhadi said parents, as the heads of the family, play an important role in shaping the development of their children from infancy to adulthood."Both husband and wife should make sure their home is a place where Allah ...

Potential to expand virgin coconut oil in local intl market

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:12:15 -0400

PRODUCTION of virgin coconut oil could be expanded to meet the demands of both the domestic and international market, a local entrepreneur said yesterday."In the ...

Bruneian firms urged to invest in Myanmar

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:12:12 -0400

(L-R) The outgoing British High Commissioner to Brunei HE Rob Fenn, SCB Brunei CEO Lai Pei-Si, Myanmar Ambassador to Brunei HE Daw Yin Yin Myint and Dato Paduka Timothy Ong during the panel discussion on investing in Myanmar at the Radisson Hotel. Picture: BT/Leo ...

Observe piety during Ramadhan says HRH

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:12:06 -0400

Chairman of the Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Committee of Governors, HRH Prince 'Abdul Malik (L) presents the dates to a recipient during the distribution of His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam's personal contribution for Ramadhan at Universiti Brunei Darussalam's (UBD) Chancellor Hall. Picture: BT/Md Asdeny ...

MALAYSIA PRESS-Kulim to take New Britain Palm Oil Ltd private-The Star

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:59:31 -0400

Wed Jun 19, 2013 7:59pm EDT ---- NOTE: Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their ...

Myanmar constitution likely to dash Suu Kyis presidential hopes

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:20:53 -0400

Reuters © Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi waves to supporters as she leaves the National League for Democracy party headquarters after attending her 68th birthday ceremony in Yangon June 19, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya ...

Politician pleads ignorance on Lapindo funds

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:20:21 -0400

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Pramono Anung Wibowo of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has claimed that most lawmakers were caught off guard with the inclusion of a Rp 155 billion (US$ 15.6 million) earmark in the revised state budget to pay for the mitigation effort in the Lapindo mudflow disaster in Sidoarjo, East Java."Honestly, I only found out about ...

Emerson says Indonesia talks long planned

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:18:38 -0400

Trade Minister Craig Emerson had defended the timing of talks between Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Indonesian president Susilo Bambang ...

Thailand Skal visits South Korea

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:51:35 -0400

Skal International (SI) National President for Thailand, Mr. Andrew J. Wood, recently visited Seoul and took the opportunity to meet executives of SI Korea. South Korea successfully hosted the Skal Asian Area Congress in 2009 and the Skal World Congress in 2012. South Korea has 2 Skal Clubs - Incheon and Seoul. Skal International will hold its 74th World Congress in New York this year from ...

Writings from Israel Nepal and Myanmar included in UNESCO world register

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:15:39 -0400

Print 19 June 2013 &#150 Documentation on Holocaust victims, a collection of Buddhist scriptures written on stones from Myanmar, two rare manuscripts from Nepal and diaries belonging to Ernesto Che Guevara, are among 54 ...

Ottawa’s Shopify partners with Singapore telecom firm

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:14:35 -0400

The Next Web reports . Co-founder and CEO Tobias Ltke launched the e-commerce platform in 2006, enabling other companies to use it to create their own online stores. Shopify now has tens of thousands of customers in more than 80 countries. The deal with SingTel covers four countries: Singapore, India, Malaysia and Indonesia. Services in the first two are already online, with the latter two ...

Brazil officials reverse subway bus fare hike

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:07:30 -0400

A demonstrator holds up a Brazilian flag in front of a group of protestors gathered in the main plaza of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. Some of the biggest demonstrations since the end of Brazil's 1964-85 dictatorship have broke out across this continent-sized country, uniting multitudes frustrated by poor transportation, health services, education and security despite a heavy ...

Gillard announces trip to Indonesia to discuss asylum seekers with SBY

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:00:38 -0400

Australia Prime Minister Julia Gillard has announced she will travel to Indonesia next month for talks on how to stem the flow of asylum seekers travelling to Australia by boat. The visit follows a challenge by the Coalition in Question Time to go to Indonesia to discuss the issue, although the PM's office says the trip has been planned for some time. However, her plan to travel overseas ...

NZ needs to keep up its commitment to Southeast Asia

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:53:19 -0400

New Zealand has been highly successful in engaging with Southeast Asia - but is competing with more countries for attention in the region, according to a new report from the Asia New Zealand Foundation.The report, "Mind the Gap: New Zealand and Regional Institutions in Southeast Asia" says new initiatives are needed to sustain New Zealand’s relationship with the region.Author Dr ...

Julia Gillard to travel to Indonesia

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:47:19 -0400

Julia Gillard will travel to Indonesia next month to discuss ways of combating people-smuggling and terrorism.The prime minister will meet President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on 5 July to discuss a number of political, security and commercial issues.The talks, which are part of the annual ...

Pakistan to benefit fromChinese hybrid rice technology

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:33:10 -0400

BEIJING, China - Pakistan wants to benefit in the field of agriculture and particularly in enhancing rice production by employing Hybrid rice technology developed by an expert from Hunan province, said Pakistans Ambassador to China, Masood Khan. Pakistan largely benefited from the Hybrid rice seeds developed by Professor Yuan Long Ping, who is popularly known as Father of Hybrid Rice, said ...

Turkish Government Wont Condemn Silent Protests

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:07:53 -0400

Turkey's deputy prime minister Bulent Arinc says he does not object to the silent anti-government protests that have sprung up across the ...

Militants kill six Pakistani soldiers in attack on convoy

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:07:30 -0400

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A senior police official said militants attacked a military convoy with rocket-propelled grenades and other heavy weapons in northwest Pakistan, killing six soldiers.Shafiullah Khan says two soldiers were wounded in the attack Wednesday, 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of the main northwest city of Peshawar. Two vehicles were destroyed.Khan says the soldiers ...

Why Asian greens are red-hot with gardeners

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:05:44 -0400

Dave Hames discovered tatsoi, an Asian salad green, on a trip to Hawaii a few years ago. Many of the vegetables at the farmer's markets he visited there were new to him. Southern Indiana, where he lives, doesn't offer a great variety of the foods of the world. But the taste of tatsoi inspired Hames: "I had one of those 'I can grow that' ...

New MERS virus spreads easily deadlier than SARS

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:03:40 -0400

LONDON -; A mysterious new respiratory virus that originated in the Middle East spreads easily between people and appears more deadly than SARS, doctors reported Wednesday after investigating the biggest outbreak in Saudi ...

Asian stocks mixed ahead of Fed announcement Nikkei rallies on exports

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:59:16 -0400

Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday ahead of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s speech later in the day. The U.S. Federal Reserve two-day meeting ends today and investors are looking for clues on the outlook for ...

Asian stocks advance ahead of this week`s Federal Reserve meeting

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:59:16 -0400

Asian stocks advanced with the start of the week, ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve two-day meeting that covenes on Tuesday. Market participants will focus on this meeting as it might show the direction of the central bank stimulus ...

LA to give every student an iPad $30M order

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:58:02 -0400

The Los Angeles Board of Education on Tuesday approved the purchase of $30 million worth of iPads as the first part of a multi-year commitment. It found that the iPad was the least expensive option that met its specifications. The initial order is for more than 31,000 iPads, Apple said. The Los Angeles Unified School District has more than 640,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade. ...

Filipino chef making waves in Singapore–for Japanese food

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:42:24 -0400

Duo of Tomato My culinary experience in Singapore was so great that I don't even know where to start. Imagine: Sakizuke (appetizer) made of tofu skins from Kyoto topped with uni from Hokkaido, capped with freshly grated wasabi from Shizuoka near Japan's Mt. Fuji; Chlorophyll, a vegetable dish as satisfying as a tender juicy steak; Mazusoba, a dry ramen with noodles that are ...

Royal Bangkok in St. Paul serves good food at great prices

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:31:13 -0400

Royal Bangkok is hidden in the back of a building full of mostly empty storefronts in a mall of sorts on St. Paul's University Avenue. It looks closed, but numerous signs assured us that it was "Open for Business!" and "Now Open!" We pressed on, and we were glad we did. Royal Bangkok, which replaced Bangkok Thai Deli after it moved into a former Burger King next door, ...

Pakistan election-monitoring group pulls back on some claims

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:28:17 -0400

A Pakistani election-monitoring group has backpedalled on some claims it made of voting irregularities in the aftermath of the country's May 11 ...

Report Immigration Reform Would Boost US Economy Finances

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:59:08 -0400

CAPITOL HILL -- A congressional report estimates that reforming America's immigration system and legalizing 11 million undocumented immigrants would boost U.S. economic growth and shrink the federal deficit. The report was seized upon by senators debating an overhaul to federal immigration laws. Legalizing millions of unauthorized immigrants would have an almost entirely positive effect ...

Malaria Risk Spikes for Worlds Poorest Children

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:59:07 -0400

LONDON -- The poorest children in the world's most impoverished communities are twice as likely to contract malaria as the least poor, according to ...

Monsanto exec other biotech pioneers win World Food Prize

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:58:06 -0400

Wed Jun 19, 2013 3:58pm EDT * Winners include Syngenta executive, Belgian researcher * Laureates say award validates biotech as food source * Prize regarded as the Nobel of agriculture * U.S. still searching for source of biotech wheat in Oregon By Charles Abbott WASHINGTON, June 19 (Reuters) - An executive with Monsanto Co and two other pioneers in agricultural biotechnology said their selection ...

Bangladeshs pioneering bank faces increasingly foggy future

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:44:18 -0400

DHAKA -- Bangladesh's pioneering microlender faces an uncertain future after a commission proposed the government take over or break up the Nobel-award-winning bank, analysts said ...

Malaysias 1MDB plans US$1 bil. initial public offering Dow Jones

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:44:16 -0400

KUALA LUMPUR -- Sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Bhd plans to raise about US$1 billion through a public listing of its power assets in Malaysia next year, Dow Jones Newswires has ...

Tournament sells parking assets

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:35:04 -0400

In Auckland, Wilson operates carparks in 59 buildings. Photo / APN Many of the carparking assets of New Zealand-owned and operated Tournament Parking have been sold to Southeast Asia's biggest player Wilson Parking. But Tournament's owners will keep their properties. James Brown, who established Tournament with Simon Roundtree 14 years ago, yesterday confirmed the deal. ...

Pakistani girl killed in Kashmir border firing officials

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:28:21 -0400

An Indian army soldier looks towards the Pakistani side on the Indian side of Line of Control (LOC) near Kaman post on October 9, 2008. A Pakistani girl was killed Wednesday when Indian troops opened fire across the de facto border that divides disputed Kashmir between the two nuclear-armed rivals, officials ...

Brazil protests proceed as smaller cities join the fray

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:27:33 -0400

1 of 6. Members of the Brazilian law enforcement troops confront protestors ahead of the Confederations Cup soccer match between Brazil and Mexico outside the stadium of Fortaleza June 19, ...

Pakistani Bishops Decry Discrimination in Textbooks

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:17:53 -0400

Curriculums Continue Despite Ongoing Appeals to Foster PeaceBy StaffROME, May 30, 2013 (Zenit.org) - The Pakistani bishops are reiterating an appeal to their government to form young people in a mentality of justice and peace and remove religious discrimination from textbooks.According to the Fides agency, the episcopal conference's Justice and Peace Commission submitted a report on ...

Gabon nets US$1.7bn Singaporean investments

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:15:23 -0400

Gabonese authorities have managed to secure investments worth a total of US$ 1.7 billion from Singapore, including a new fertilizer plant to be set up outside Port Gentil and palm oil ...

Thailand cuts rice subsidy price after $4.4B loss

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:43:33 -0400

BANGKOK -- Thailand will pay farmers 20 percent less for rice to stem losses from a much-criticized subsidy program that dislodged the country from its spot as the world's No. 1 exporter of the grain, a government minister said Wednesday.Cabinet minister Warathep Rattanakorn said the government will pay 12,000 baht ($389) per ton of rice, compared to the current price of 15,000 baht ($486), ...

Singapores air turns hazardous as Indonesian fires rage

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:33:24 -0400

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore's air quality deteriorated to "hazardous" levels late on Wednesday as smoke from slash-and-burn land clearing in Indonesia enveloped the city-state, inflaming tensions between the Southeast Asian ...

Southeast Asia growth accelerated via robust demand

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:27:21 -0400

KUCHING: Southeast Asia as a whole achieved a high economic growth rate of 5.3 per cent in 2012, up from 4.5 per cent in 2011, despite weakening external demand.According to the United Nation's Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific's (UNESCAP) Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2013, growth was driven by buoyant domestic demand backed by supportive ...

China Vietnam agree to set up hotline to resolve fishing incidents in South China Sea

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:18:49 -0400

BEIJING, China - China and Vietnam agreed on Wednesday to set up a hotline to resolve fishing incidents in disputed South China Sea waters that have been a frequent source of tensions between the two ideological allies. The two countries' agriculture ministers signed the agreement in Beijing. No details were immediately available. China claims virtually the entire South China Sea and its ...

Myanmar court sentences 2 Muslim women over sectarian violence

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:18:08 -0400

YANGON, Myanmar - A court in Myanmar has found two Muslim women guilty of sparking a recent outbreak of sectarian violence, one of them by bumping into a Buddhist novice monk. Myint Thein of the pro-government National Unity Party, who attended their trial, said Wednesday the two women in the central township of Okkan were convicted of "insulting religion." Both were sentenced to two ...

Seven people were killed and four others were wounded following night-long ethnic clashes in Karachi…

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:14:22 -0400

Seven people were killed and four others were wounded following night-long ethnic clashes in Karachi ISLAMABAD - Ethnic violence killed seven people in Karachi province of Pakistan on Tuesday.Mirza Adem, a senior police officer, stated that seven people were killed and four others were wounded following night-long clashes in ethnic-sensitive areas of Karachi.Police staged operations on some ...

Indonesia to raise subsidized fuel prices

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:12:02 -0400

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono 's governing coalition pushed through this week. Because of its heavy subsidies, Indonesia the end of 2012 had the lowest fuel prices of any net oil-consuming nation in the world, the World Bank said. While the United States was ranked second-lowest, U.S. gasoline is nearly twice as expensive. The budget approved Monday calls for prices to increase 44 percent per ...

Fujairah Crown Prince receives Sudanese Ambassador and Consuls General of Algeria Tajikistan Singapore

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:07:58 -0400

WAM FUJAIRAH, June 19th, 2013 (WAM) -- H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi, Crown Prince of Fujairah, has received in his office at the Emiri Court, the Sudanese Ambassador to the UAE, Ahmed Sadeeq Abdul Hai, who paid a courtesy visit at the end of his tenure in the country. Sheikh Mohammed wished the Sudanese Ambassador success in his new assignment. Sheikh Mohammed also ...

AIRSHOW-With Russian help Europe prepares to search for life on Mars

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:52:55 -0400

Wed Jun 19, 2013 1:52pm EDT * First of two missions to launch in 2016 * First direct search for life since NASA's 1970s Viking probes * Russia to provide launchers, landing system By Irene Klotz PARIS, June 19 (Reuters) - The European Space Agency signed final contracts with Thales Alenia Space Italy for work on a pair of missions to assess if the planet Mars has or ever had life, officials ...

Singapore in smog alarm as Indonesia forest fires rage

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:42:19 -0400

SINGAPORE (AFP) - Smog levels in Singapore hit a record high on Wednesday as raging forest fires from neighbouring Indonesia triggered a major health alarm and sent residents of the densely populated city-state scrambling for face masks.Singapore's air pollutant index soared past the government-designated "hazardous" level of 300 before midnight as officials in both countries ...

Conquering Everest begins with safe landing at a tiny Nepal airstrip

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:41:40 -0400

LUKLA, Nepal // As soon as the decades-old Twin Otter landed at Lukla airport, passengers burst out in applause. They do that for nearly every safe landing at the often terrifying airport at the gateway to Mount Everest. At an altitude of 2,843 metres, the small airstrip here has earned a reputation as one of the most extreme and dangerous airports in the world. The single runway is narrow, ...

Fuel consumption up ahead of price rise

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:41:24 -0400

State-owned oil and gas company PT Pertamina's corporate communication vice president Ali Mundakir in Jakarta on Wednesday described significant increases in premium and diesel fuel consumption ahead of price rises expected later this week.On Tuesday, consumption of premium reached 90,000 kiloliters, up by 12.5 percent from the normal 80,000 kiloliters.Meanwhile, the diesel fuel consumption ...

Gyula Horn former Hungarian prime minister dies

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:39:28 -0400

BUDAPEST, Hungary -; Gyula Horn, a former Hungarian prime minister who played a key role in opening the Iron Curtain, has died at the age of ...

FIFA suspension could hit exhibition games

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:35:47 -0400

Football Association of Thailand (FAT) president Worawi Makudi has warned Thailand may not be able to host the coming exhibition matches featuring four European clubs - including English and Spanish league champions Manchester United and Barcelona - if Fifa suspends the Thai FA's membership. The world soccer governing body threatened to suspend the association following the cancellation of ...

Singapore chokes in smoke from Indonesian blazes

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:30:06 -0400

Singaporeans rolled back military training, kept cough-stricken children indoors and considered wearing protective masks to work after a smoky haze triggered by forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia caused air pollution to briefly hit its worst level in nearly 16 years. Singapore's main measurement of air quality has hovered in the "unhealthy" classification as smoke from roaring blazes on ...

Indonesia Military tribunals being used to shield human rights violators

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:26:58 -0400

The trial of 12 Kopassus (Special Forces Command) soldiers accused of the extrajudicial execution of four detainees is likely to be little more than a sham warned Amnesty International as the military hearing opens on Thursday."These courts should never be used to try those accused of human rights violations. They are biased, and they create an intimidating environment for witnesses to ...

Indonesia To Make Rain To End Sumatra Fires

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:20:48 -0400

Indonesia is to use weather changing technology to try to produce rain to put out raging fires on Sumatra island that have cloaked neighbouring Singapore in thick haze. The city-state, home to 5.3 million inhabitants, has been pressing Jakarta to take action over the fires which have pushed air pollutant levels on the island to a 16-year high. The government planned to use a technology ...

Singapore smog reaches record high govt

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:15:02 -0400

SMOG levels in Singapore from Indonesian forest fires have hit the highest level on record as the air pollutant index approached the "hazardous" ...