AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Saturday 12th January

In this bulletin ….
-U.S. tells North Korea to fully declare nuclear activities
-Musharraf rejects UN Bhutto probe and
-Suharto health improves slightly

The United States urged North Korea on Friday to give a full declaration of its nuclear activities after Pyongyang missed an end-2007 deadline for presenting the inventory under a disarmament-for-aid deal.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill held talks with Russia’s chief negotiator in Moscow after a tour of Asia to discuss the deal, which would award fuel oil or aid for making the declaration and dismantling its nuclear facilities.

North Korea says it has accounted for its nuclear programmes as required.

The United States says none of the countries party to the deal—a result of six-party talks between the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia—has seen the final declaration.

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Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has ruled out a United Nations investigation into the assassination of the opposition leader, Benazir Bhutto.

Musharraf told the French paper, Le Figaro, that Pakistan had its own institutions to investigate the killing and that they were being assisted by the UK.

The president said he hoped the results of the investigation would be published before February’s parliamentary vote.

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Doctors treating the former Indonesian leader, Suharto, say he is showing signs of improvement, a day after he suffered multiple organ failure.

The Pertamina hospital in Jakarta said the 86-year-old’s consciousness was increasing, his blood pressure stable and fluids in his stomach reduced.

But he is still on a ventilator and shows signs of infection in his lungs.

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And now for our original SOH news direct from China
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Farmers at Sangui Village of Shi Ping Township, Sichuan, have revealed that the local mine‘s illegal exploitation of coal mines is not only seriously damaging the local ecological environment, but it is also contaminating their farmland, leaving their land useless.

Radio Free Asia reported on the 11th of January that the villagers said that the local government colluded with merchants, injuring hundreds of farmers. So far the authorities are still detaining nine.

Rights advocate of Sichuan, Huang Xiaomin, expressed that the local government had a news blackout on the matter. He has appealed to the public for their help in this incident.

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Along with the new labour contracts implemented on the New Year, on top of the Communist authorities series of actions against the export processing trade, over 10,000 enterprises in the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong are facing closure and relocation tide.

The Hong Kong capital investment, and Taiwan funded enterprises engaged in the processing trade have started to close down and relocate elsewhere.

The latest research by Mainland official bodies shows that, in June 2007, 499 enterprises have already relocated at Lo’hu, Nanshan, Bao’an and Longgang District 4.

Hong Kong businessmen who once invested in Shenzhen believe that foreign business relocation roots in the failure of justice in Mainland China.

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And now for our daily update on the NTDTV Divine Performing Arts “New Year Spectacular” show.
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Yet another U.S. elected official has made public a letter that appears to be part of a nationwide effort by the Chinese Consulates in this country to put pressure on U.S. government officials in an attempt to discredit and interfere with an American business enterprise: the global Chinese Spectacular Show.

On January the 4th, Councilwoman Donna Frye of San Diego emailed The Epoch Times a letter she had received from the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Los Angeles.

In the letter, dated December the 17th, the Chinese Consulate asks that the Councilwoman make sure that no congratulations, recognition letters, no attendance or support in any form be given by her to the Chinese New Year Spectacular show to be performed at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido, January 15-17.