AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Sunday 29th July

Afhgan leaders join negotiations to free South Korean hostages
The US and India agree to nuclear deal
Japan¡’s Prime Minister faces electoral test of confidence

Several Afghan elders and a former member of the Taliban joined the negotiations with the hardline militia over the fate of 22 South Korean hostages.

No immediate progress was reported by either side, but Afghan officials appeared hopeful that the inclusion of more elders would increase the pressure on the Taliban to release the hostages.

Twenty-three Koreans were kidnapped almost 2 weeks ago. One has been shot dead though the reasons why are not clear. The Taliban are demanding the release of political prisoners in exchange for the release of the hostages.

The United States and India have announced a landmark deal on nuclear cooperation for civil purposes that they said will benefit both countries and strengthen international non-proliferation efforts.

But the deal is drawing criticism as being too conciliatory to India, who refuse to join international non-proliferation agreements, and will lead to the spread of nuclear weapons.

Non-proliferation experts have said the United States’ willingness to allow India to reprocess nuclear fuel it provides to New Delhi is inconsistent with its drive in the international community to stop Iran from doing so. Unlike New Delhi, Tehran is a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

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In the first electoral test for Japan¡’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, polls have opened for the country¡¯s upper house of parliament.

Although the election will not directly affect Mr Abe, correspondents say a heavy defeat for his Liberal Democratic Party could force him to resign.

Mr Abe’s LDP-led ruling coalition currently controls 132 seats. They need to win 64 of the seats that are up for election in order to retain their majority.

The first results are expected later tonight.

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Chinese human rights attorney, Gao Zhisheng, who has previously been found guilty of inciting government subversion and sentenced to three years in prison, faces more charges from China’s State Security Division for his recent involvement in another human rights case.

Gao has consistently caused concern among China’s State Security Division by offering legal council to a human rights defence case.

The new case involves Yu Zheng, a vendor who was beaten by Chinese authorities after refusing to remove his bed from his store. It is thought that the attack was politically motivated because the vendor once offered a job to one of Gao¡¯s family members.

Chinese authorities continue to ensure that Gao remains unable to freely communicate with the outside world or travel outside of China.

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Pakistan’s embattled President Pervez Musharraf sat down with major exiled opposition leader Benazir Bhutto in an encounter designed to increase his power.

The President huddled with former the prime minister Benazir Bhutto in what was the first meeting between the two political rivals since Musharraf took power in a bloodless coup in 1999.

The Associated Press reported that Musharraf and Bhutto talked about a power-sharing deal, but the meeting apparently hit a snag when Bhutto pressed Musharraf to leave the military.

Musharraf is not only the president, but is also the chief of the army — a position he has refused to give up since the coup.

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Officials at Tibet’s Potala Palace in Lhasa have rejected concerns that the thirteen hundred-year-old palace is being hemmed in by ugly, modern Chinese buildings.

The Potala Palace was placed on Unesco’s World Heritage List in 1994 and Unesco has expressed concern that development around the palace is spoiling the site’s unique atmosphere.

Palace director Qiangba Gesang said the Chinese government was working to protect the former winter home of the Dalai Lamas and the surrounding area.

The Potala is just one of six world heritage sites in China that Unesco is worried about. The others include Beijing’s Forbidden City and the old town of Lijiang in southwest Yunnan Province.