Asia-Cast

Asia Cast for Sunday 30th December

In this Bulletin…
- Kenya’s election count halted amidst chaos;
- Benazir Bhutto’s party to consider new leader; and
- China’s and Japan’s leaders enjoy a game of ball with each other.

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Election officials in Kenya have halted the election count as violent protests cause chaos at the offices of the electoral commission.

Officials suspended the count until Sunday. The delays have already sparked violence and looting across Kenya, with at least three deaths reported.

Latest figures suggest that President Mwai Kibaki is now neck and neck with his opponent Raila Odinga.

The European Union’s election observer, Alexander Lambsdorff, said there was a massive question mark over the tallying of votes.

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Pakistan’s opposition party is due to meet to discuss a successor to their leader, Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated last Thursday.

Members of the Pakistan People’s Party will gather at Ms Bhutto’s family home in Naudero to decide on a leader to contest January’s election.

Correspondents say her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, is a possible contender.

Some 38 people have died in the violence that has broken out since Ms Bhutto was killed after attending an election rally in Rawalpindi on Thursday.

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The leaders of China and Japan have partaken in a game of baseball during landmark talks to improve Sino-Japanese relations.

Japan’s Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao also played a ball game last April, when Mr Wen visited Japan.

Correspondents say the talks have been hailed as a success by both sides, although there is still no agreement on a disputed East China Sea gas-field.

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According to a spokesman, Afghanistan’s Taliban have dismissed a senior regional commander for insubordination.

The spokesman said Mullah Omar, the group’s supreme leader, had dismissed Mansoor Dadullah as a commander and expelled him from the hardline Islamic movement.

The spokesman said the action had been taken for insubordination and disobeying orders.

No further details of Mansoor’s expulsion or reaction from foreign forces were immediately available.

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And now for SOH original news direct from China
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Last week a fifty years old farmer, Hao Jinan, from China’s Henan province, left the jail where he was held for nearly 10 years on false charges.

At the beginning of 1998, Hao Jinan was a suspect in a robbery and murder case. He confessed under inquisition by torture, and was sentenced to death with a postponed execution.

He was finally released one year after the police arrested the real killer.

While in jail, Hao Jinan unknowingly underwent surgery. Not until several days ago, after his release, and after undergoing a health check-up in a hospital that he was told by the doctor that his spleen had been removed.

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In news just in from China’s Hubei Province, on the 28th December, nearly 100 workers of the Wuhan city vacuum factory blocked the road outside the factory to protest against the authorities forcefully relocating them and demolishing their houses before any agreement for relocation was signed.

So far, more than 50 households have lost their homes, and another 30 more families are facing the same fate.

We are awaiting news on the outcomes of the protests which are becoming commonplace in many rural communities in China.

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And now for our daily update on the NTDTV Divine Performing Arts “Holiday Wonders” show.
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Today marked the final days of the Holiday Wonders shows in St Petersburg, Florida and Atlantic City, New Jersey. Next week the shows will open in Atlanta and Philadelphia on the next leg of the tour of 60 cities worldwide.

The shows delighted audiences who gave it rave reviews on each of its nights in the major cities. One audience member explained how fortunate they felt to learn more about traditional Chinese culture and to learn that truthfulness and faith are customs in China.

The spectaculars depict traditional Chinese values that have been suppressed in China over decades of communist rule and have received rave reviews from audiences of previous shows.

For show information please visit http://holidaywonders.net/index_at.php