- IV.
International
. Authorities in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia said
they have in custody 11 alleged Islamic militants who were being
groomed as the next generation of leaders of a regional terrorist
group (Jemaah Islamiyah, al Ghuraba, Lashkar-i-Taiba)
. China is falling well short in lowering trade barriers and
putting in place reforms promised when it joined WTO, according to
Office of US Trade Representative.
. Chinese
authorities have detained more than 17 senior provincial and city
officials, e.g., judges, senior police officials, prosecutors, tax
collectors, etc. in Fuzhou for gambling, prostitution, illegal
bank loans and laundering of drug money, officials said.
. China’s
Communist Party leaders proposed amendments to the nation’s
constitution that would enshrine a legal right to private property
while broadening the focus of the party to represent private
businesses.
. China assailed US for launching dumping
investigation of about $1 billion worth of Chinese bedroom sets
from complaints of American furniture manufacturers that the goods
are being sold at below market price, a practice known as
“dumping.” The said they have been unfairly harmed by a surge
of such goods.
. eBay has announced a new member in the launch of eBay
Hong Kong. The new service provides online trading in
Chinese and prices in Hong Kong dollars.
. A Chinese official (Li Zhi) in Hong Kong,
who exposed govt. corruption on the Internet, was convicted of
subversion and sentenced to 8 years in prison, a HK human rights
group said.
. Taiwan has never been part of China, and more
than 85% of Taiwanese people are ethnically, culturally and
historically distinct from the Chinese. China never claimed Taiwan
as its own before 1945, when the Allies defeated Japan in World
War II.
. PRC
is developing a massive arsenal of missiles target at Taiwan, and
Taiwan is the provocateur for holding a referendum to oppose such
a buildup? While the Bush Adm. may not see the point of such a
vote, it has brought the world’s attention to the military
threat Taiwan faces.
.
In his State of the Union address last January 2003, Pres. Bush
said that “freedom is not America’s gift to the world; it is
God’s gift to humanity.” When did God attach a proviso
granting freedom “unless it doesn’t benefit American interests
in a strategically sensitive part of the world?”
.
Taiwan’s national legislature approved 2 separate resolutions
that call on China to remove nearly 500 missiles pointed at the
island as Taiwan’s VP described the missiles as
“state-sponsored terrorism.”
.
A medical researcher in Taiwan tested positive for SARS or severe
acute respiratory syndrome. It was the island’s first case since
it was dropped from a global list of infected areas in July.
. Japan’s govt. expects the economy to expand by 1.8% in next
fiscal year starting in April, reflecting an ongoing recovery,
strong demand at home & abroad and eased concerns over
deflation.
. Although
3G has been promised for years, it has only really begun to
fulfill that promise in Japan. Better handset technology
and falling prices has finally made the prospect of 3G more
attractive, and industry watchers think that success in Japan will
lead to adoption worldwide.
. NTT DoCoMo has ended its joint venture with
America Online, selling its shares to its former partner. The move
reflects difficulties AOL has been having in retaining customers.
. US beef & veal exports to Japan were
valued at $843 million in 2002. US beef businesses may be hit hard
by a ban of US beef exports not just to Japan but to other
countries as well.
. The conservative opponent who lost to Roh Moo Hyun in
presidential elections last year said his campaign had received
$42 million in illegal funds and he was willing to take
responsibility and go to prison.
.
A confidant of Kim Dae Jung (Park Jie Won) was convicted and
sentenced to 12 years for taking $12.5 million in bribes from a
major conglomerate and illegally remitting money to North Korea
before a summit meeting in 2000.
. North Korea announced complex
regulations for those who would do business in its heralded Kaesong
Industrial Zone.
. The
World Food Program will likely be forced to cut off aid to 3
million North Koreans in coming weeks because it has received only
60% of the food needed for its goal of feeding 6.5 million.
. Singapore released restrictions in the latest SARS scare,
lifting mandatory quarantine orders on 75 people who had contact
with an infected Taiwanese scientist.
. Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT) hopes to spin off 30%
of its wholly owned Smart Communications unit to help reduce its
debt. Per licensing regulations, Smart is required to go public by
8/2004.
. The
persistent rise in the country’s debt is a nagging problem that
the government must address immediately, said the IMF.
.
Terrorist attacks and kidnappings have dropped to zero in RP, said
President GMA, protesting a travel advisory issued by Canada.
.
RP does not suffer from a fiscal or economic crisis but an
education crisis, said an economic professor at the University of
the Philippines (Solita Monsod). She said the country’s 2
greatest needs were good governance and poverty alleviation.
. Philippine Foreign Secretary Blas Ople died
2 weeks ago of a heart attack while aboard a plane en route to
Bangkok, officials said.
.
Thailand has the largest number of confirmed AIDS cases in
SE Asia. It faces the challenge to leave 300k children orphaned by AIDS.
. Vietnam
still
expects to join WTO by 2005, the government said, after a round of
talks in Geneva in which the country was told it was behind
schedule.
. In Bangalore, India where American companies are on
huge hiring spree for software enggrs., the starting salary for
top electrical engg. graduates is $10k vs. $80k in US, said Business
Week.
. Pakistan’s president (Gen. Pervez Musharraf) narrowly
escaped an attempt on his life 2 weeks ago when a powerful bomb
ripped up a section
of a bridge in the city of Rawalpindi seconds after his motorcade
crossed it, officials said.
. Evidence
discovered in probe of Iran’s secret nuclear program points
overwhelmingly to Pakistan as source of crucial technology that
put Iran on fast track toward becoming a nuclear weapons power,
according to US & European investigators.
. With one eye on India, Pakistan launched its
finest homemade submarine in what the navy called a quantum leap
toward military self-reliance.
. Arlington-based electric producer AES completed the
sale of 2 power plants in Bangladesh to CDC Group of London
for $144 million in cash.
