Asia Cast for Tuesday 25th March
In this Bulletin
-Iraq Seen as More Stable Than Afghanistan
-Former Advisor to Party General Secretary Claims Regime Staged Lhasa Incident and
-Bhutan Nation’s First Democratic Government Elected
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According to a report published on Tuesday, Iraq has emerged as a more stable country than Afghanistan. Reasons being thanks to lower violence, the presence of a large U.S.-led international force and high oil prices.
The report by the British-based Jane’s Information Group ranked Afghanistan as the world’s third most-unstable country after the Gaza Strip and West Bank and Somalia.
By contrast, Iraq was at number 22 where it appeared among several African countries including Niger, Nigeria, Burundi and Equatorial Guinea.
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Activists protesting China’s onslaught in Tibet momentarily disrupted the Olympic flame-lighting ceremony in Greece on Monday, calling for a boycott of the Summer Games in Beijing later this year.
Broadcast live, the stunt left Greek commentators speechless. But Chinese state-run television cut away to a pre-recorded scene and made no mention of the event.
Other protesters were detained by police for trying to stage a peaceful protest along the torch-relay route.
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The violent riots that the Chinese state-run media have reported as having taken place in Lhasa are not what they seem to be, according to a former highly placed Chinese Communist Party (CCP) official.
Mr. Ruan Ming claims the CCP carefully staged the incidents in Tibet in order to force the Dalai Lama to resign and to justify future repression of the Tibetans.
Since 1997 Ruan has lived in Taiwan, where he has served as a diplomatic advisor to President Chen Shui-bian. He is also the author, among other books, of Deng Xiaoping: Chronicle of an Empire .
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And now for our original SOH news direct from China
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A policeman has been killed as protests continue in the Tibetan-populated areas of China.
Xinhua news agency reported several policemen were also injured in the clash in the western Sichuan province.
The Tibetan government-in-exile says that 130 people died in and around the Himalayan region during clashes that began on the10th of March.
Officials in Beijing have put the death toll at 19.
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Bhutan king’s subjects elected the remote Himalayan nation’s first democratic government.
The landmark vote was proposed by Bhutan’s royal family to peacefully transform the small Buddhist kingdom, wedged in the mountains between massive neighbours, India and China, into a constitutional monarchy.
The Bhutan United Party made an unexpected clean sweep by winning 44 of the total 47 seats for the lower house in what was seen to be a tight two-party race.
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And now for our daily up-date on the NTDTV Chinese Spectacular Show
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Today the Divine Performing Arts Spectacular continues its seven day tour of Stockholm, before continuing on the next leg of the tour of 60 cities worldwide.
Audiences at the Chinese Spectacular say the energy and the awareness of the dancers touches their hearts.
Katarina, an economist who works in the foreign office as a civil servant, was at the show on Easter Monday. She said she felt totally uplifted after seeing the performance.
For information about the show, please visit www.bestchineseshows.com
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This has been Wilma Reynolds for the SOH Radio Network
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