AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Friday 9th January

In this Bulletin…

- China braced for cold weather and travel chaos ahead of Lunar New Year;
- Concern as two Asian technology giants shed jobs; and
- “Outrage” of murder of Sri Lankan journalist.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China
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Authorities in central and southern China are preparing for a repeat of last year’s travel chaos as icy weather moves in ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, says The Epoch Times.

Given the current economic problems China is facing, the prospect of millions of migrant workers becoming stuck in Guangdong and other big manufacturing provinces is of particular concern.

State-run media have warned the abrupt economic slowdown could leave crowds of jobless and angry rural migrants milling around cities; a transport shut-down during a major holiday would make a bad situation much worse.

Freezing rains and snow over past days have blocked some roads in the south, and officials have been ordered to brace for spreading harsh weather.
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An official multi-agency report on the socio-economic status of China’s population has revealed that 91 percent of people with assets of more than 100 million Yuan (US$14 million) are children of high ranking Communist Party cadres.

Offshore assets, such as foreign properties, were not considered in the report. But it was disclosed that much of this wealth has been generated from illegal activities.

The families of high ranking regime officials are able to use their power and influence to avoid being held legally accountable for their crimes.

The Chinese Communist Party has generated much rhetoric about addressing corruption, but are unlikely to take action against powerful members at a time when over 47 million ordinary people have declared they’re quitting the Party.

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast
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Elections to North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament will be held this March for the first time in six years.

The North’s supreme leaders will select just one candidate to stand for each seat, making any voting more of a formality.

The last elections recorded a 99.9 per cent voter turnout and 100 per cent level of support for each candidate.

But some analysts suggest the election may be part of a wider shake-up of the country’s leadership.

Earlier this week, South Korea said at least five North Korean cabinet ministers had been replaced in previous months.

Changes in the North Korean governing elite may be a response to the widely rumoured ill health of autocratic leader Kim Jong-il, and the lack of an obvious successor.

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Fears about the magnitude of the economic challenges Asia is facing have been reignited as two large Asian technology firms cut staff due to falling sales.

Electronic components maker TDK said it was cutting 8,000 jobs worldwide as it announced it expected to make its biggest ever annual loss.

And one of the world’s largest computer manufacturers, Chinese-based Lenovo, says it is to cut about 2,500 jobs.

Analysts said that investors had been concerned as companies struggled to cope with falling spending in recession-hit major economies.

Lenovo blamed its job cuts, which amount to nearly 11 per cent of its total workforce, on the global economic downturn and a fall in demand for PCs.

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A scandal over the inflation of company profits with “fictitious” assets and non-existent cash has lead the chairman of India’s fourth-largest software-services provider to resign.

The deception Ramalinga Raju’s, carried out had apparently gone unnoticed for years, but when the truth was uncovered, stocks of the Hyderabad-based Satyam Computer Services plummeted more than 70 per cent within hours.

Satyam employs 53,000 people, operates in 65 countries and serves almost 700 companies, including 185 Fortune 500 companies. More than half of its revenue comes from the United States.

India’s stock market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, said it had started an investigation to examine the selling and dealing of Satyam stock.

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The murder of a Sri Lankan journalist has left rights group Reporters Without Borders “outraged”.

Lasantha Wickrematunga, editor of the Sunday Leader, was shot dead by two men on a motorcycle as he drove to work in Colombo Thursday.

Reporters Without Borders said. “President Mahinda Rajapaksa, his associates and the government media are directly to blame because they incited hatred against him and allowed an outrageous level of impunity to develop as regards violence against the press. Sri Lanka’s image is badly sullied by this murder, which is an absolute scandal and must not go unpunished.”

The organisation called for the international community to do everything possible to halt government critics, including outspoken journalists, being terrorised in a political vendetta.

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

[Recording]

The Divine Performing Arts world tour is coming to a city near you soon. Don’t miss out, visit www.divineperformingarts.org today.

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‘Asia Cast… keeping you across the top headlines from Asia and the World.’