AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Sunday 27th July

In this Bulletin……….

- Algae outbreak in the Three Gorges Dam;
- Newspaper tabloid withdrawn from all Newsstands in China;and
- Bomb attack on Indian hospitals.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China
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Since mid June this year, large areas of blue algae have appeared in sections of the Yangtze River tributaries in the Three Gorges Reservoir area.

The infestation is over 25km long, stretching from Xiangxi River in Hubei’s province’s Sanxi county to Zigui County.

Tens of thousands of residents along the waterline have been told not to drink from the river or eat any seafood from the infested area.

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast
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A tabloid newspaper has been taken away from all newsstands in China after running a photograph from the 1989 crackdown on Tienanmen Square protesters.

The photo – of two wounded young men being taken away on a rickshaw – was carried in Thursday’s Beijing News. Observers suggest newspaper staff could face further punishment for broaching what remains a taboo subject.

China’s ruling Communist Party initially tolerated the student-led pro-democracy protests, but finally sent in soldiers to put them down on the night of 3-4 June 1989. Hundreds of people are thought to have been killed, though there has been no public disclosure of the death toll or investigation into what happened.

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Chinese Communist authorities continue to deny claims made by a militant Islamist group who declared they were responsible for recent explosions on buses.

The Turkestan Islamic Party said that it had blown up buses in Shanghai and Yunnan, killing five people.

Although China denies the explosions were acts of terrorism, it has recently arrested alleged militants it says were planning attacks on the games.

Critics say China has been exaggerating such threats to justify repressive measures in the mainly Muslim Uighur region of Xinjiang in the north-west.

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You’re listening to Asia Cast on the SOH Radio Network
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At least 29 people died in an Indian city in a coordinated wave of bomb attacks which hit medical facilities including hospitals across the city.

The attacks began with a dozen bombs, all small, crude devices, which had been left at public locations around the older, eastern part of the city.One blast happened on a city bus, another near a railway station, several more in crowded market places.

It is thought that some of the devices were hidden in bags or boxes, strapped to bicycles and packed with ball bearings.
Police said a second series of bombs then hit the hospitals 20 to 25 minutes later.

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Millions of Cambodians are preparing to vote in an election widely expected to return Prime Minister Hun Sen to office, who has gained huge approval for taking tough stance in an ongoing dispute with neighbouring Thailand.

For a long time the two countries have continued to argue over land surrounding an ancient monument.
Both nations have massed troops near the 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple – which belongs to Cambodia.

Cambodia is due to hold talks with Thailand on the issue on Monday.

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“Asia Cast… keeping you across the top headlines from Asia and the World.”