Asia-Cast

Asia Cast for Wednesday 21st January

In this Bulletin…

- Chinese experts say more cases of bird flu in humans likely;
- UN Chief calls for Israeli and Palestinian leaders to reach political reconciliation; and
-Obama speech censored in China.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China
***********************************

A blind Chinese human rights activist has recently been refused release from prison, despite suffering deteriorating health, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency.

Chen Guangcheng, was arrested in 2006 after exposing cases of forced abortion in Shandong Province. He was sentenced to 4 years and 3 months imprisonment under tenuous charges of “damaging property and organizing a riot.”

Yuan Weijing, Chen’s wife, said neglect and poor conditions in the prison had caused her husband’s poor health, describing his appearance the last time she saw him as, “thin and shrunken up with a sickly yellow face.”

Officials told Yuan that the case was out of their hands after she made several appeals to have Chen released on parole due to receiving medical treatment.

Click link for Epoch Times coverage.
**********************

China will probably see an upsurge in the number of people infected with bird flu over the next month or two, according to one of the country’s health experts.

Shu Yuelong, from the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said China needed to work harder at preventing outbreaks of bird flu.

The warning came after the health ministry said a 16-year-old boy had died in central Hunan Province.

Spring is a time when migratory birds can carry the virus over great distances. Millions of Chinese people are also heading home for the Lunar New Year celebrations, further increasing the chances of infection.

Authorities in Hong Kong are concerned by the latest cases in China and have announced that poultry brought in from the Chinese mainland should not be eaten.

***********************************
And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast
***********************************

The UN Secretary-General chief, Ban Ki-moon, this week urged both Israeli and Palestinian leaders to achieve political reconciliation after what he said was the “heartbreaking” violence of the last three weeks.

Ban Ki-moon said that he condemned the outbreak of the conflict and the excessive use of force by Israeli forces in Gaza. He views the rocket attacks into Israel as completely unacceptable and said they needed to restore basic respect for civilians.

While his trip through the region is aimed largely at pushing all players to avoid a resumption of the violence, it is also to press for an investigation into Israel’s shelling of a UN Compound, which he described as, “outrageous and totally unacceptable”.

It could take Gaza’s economy a year to recover from the 22 day conflict.

*************************************************
You’re listening to Asia Cast on the SOH Radio Network
**************************************************

Parts of the new US president’s inauguration speech have been censored on a number of websites in China.

State television broadcasting live footage of the event also cut away from Barack Obama when communism was mentioned.

Obama’s references to facing down communism and silencing dissent appear to have upset China’s leaders.

On the internet English-language versions of the speech have been allowed, but many of the Chinese translations have omitted sensitive section.

**********************

The 6th Annual Dr Martin Luther King Jr. Anti-Hunger “Serve-a-Thon” was recently held by the New York City Coalition Against Hunger (NYCCAH), reports The Epoch Times.

During the three-day event volunteers prepared and served hot meals, cleaned and painted facilities, and helped with outreach work at over thirty food pantries and soup kitchens throughout New York City.

The Dr King Day Serve-a-Thon is part of President Barak Obama’s “Renew America Together: A Call to Service” initiative that honours Dr King’s legacy.

The event also drew the support of some of the city’s elected officials who joined together with volunteers to both work and to draw attention to the soaring level of hunger in New York City.

**************************************************
And now for our Divine Performing Arts quote of the day
**************************************************

Our Divine Performing Arts quote of the day is from Mr. Tom Cormies who works as a Vice President in a bank in Montreal, Canada.

Mr. Cormies has been to China before and was very impressed with the show and thought it was worth seeing again:

“The show was fantastic, fantastic. If we have a chance we’ll see it again.”

Experience true Chinese culture like never before as Divine Performing Arts presents classical Chinese dance and music in gloriously colorful and exhilarating shows.

The Divine Performing Arts world tour is coming to a city near you.

Don’t miss out, visit www.divineperformingarts.org today.

**********************

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