AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Thursday 1st January

In this Bulletin…

- Chinese executives on trial over poisoned milk scandal;
- Joblessness could affect China’s social stability in 2009; and
- Thailand’s political crisis set to continue.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China
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The chairwoman of the now bankrupt Sanlu Group has gone on on trial over the Chinese tainted milk scandal known to have killed at least six children and made thousands ill.

Tian Wenhua, the company’s 66-year-old former general manager, pleaded guilty to charges of “producing and selling fake or substandard products”, state-run media reported.

News of Chinese children developing kidney stones and other complications from drinking milk adulterated with melamine was covered up for months before the scandal broke in September.

Another 17 people involved in producing, selling, buying and adding melamine in raw milk have gone on trial in the last week.

The scandal exposed how deadly the combination China’s lack of regulation and widespread corruption have become under the communist regime.

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Following on from poisoned milk, lead poisoning has become the latest health issue the Chinese authorities have been confronted over

Residents of four villages in Jiangsu Province are suffering from lead poisoning, believed to have originated from alloy producer Jiangsu SembCorp Chun Hing Company, says New Tang Dynasty (NTD) TV.

But, authorities in Beijing are seemingly not prepared to face another health scandal. They have refused any of the medical assistance and have had anyone who traveled to the capital forcibly removed.

Mr Zhou, a villager from Xinsanhe, told NTD, “People are poisoned from the drinking water. But because of the taxes the plant pays, the government is on their side.”

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast
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Chinese officials have admitted that the impact of the current global financial crisis on China’s economy has been underestimated, reports The Epoch Times.

By next year, the number of those out of work in China will reach 24 million, including migrant workers and college graduates.

The falling economy has become China’s biggest problem as joblessness is set to become a major issue for social stability.

One critic believes this is mainly because the regime’s economic development policies have long been focused on exports and ignored domestic demand.

“Exports can not improve the domestic living standard,” said economic analyst Cao’an Jushi to Voice of America. “When the rich buy expensive imported goods and the poor can’t even afford products made in China, unless they are the cheapest, it involves a problematic political system,” he added.

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Financial experts are uncertain what 2009 holds for global markets. But it looks likely that things will get worse before any kind of recovery.

The financial turmoil and economic slowdown of 2008 ended the stock market boom as prices plummeted to record lows.

In many cases, markets that had benefited most during the previous bull-run were the worst affected as it ended.

Asia’s export-driven economies were hit hard by the slowdown.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closed the year 48 per cent lower.

Shanghai was one of the worst-hit major markets, ending the year 65 per cent lower, a record loss.

Asia’s fortunes could depend greatly on the mood of overseas consumers whose demand for consumer goods has been the driver of regional growth.

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You’re listening to Asia Cast on the SOH Radio Network
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It looks as if Thailand’s long-running political crisis will continue as the country enters into recession.

Supporters of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra have vowed to resume their street campaign for new elections in 2009.

Leaders of the pro-Thaksin camp warned they may target a regional summit in Bangkok during February to pile pressure on the new government led by former opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva.

Thai newspapers said the outlook for political stability remained bleak as long as the rift between Bangkok’s royalist and business elite, who accused Thaksin of corruption, and rural voters who loved his populist policies, remains unresolved.

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Israel’s offensive against Palestinian militant group Hamas will continue officials say, despite international calls for a humanitarian truce in conflict-stricken Gaza.

Around 150 aid trucks have reached the region in the last 24 hours but the head of the U.N.-led relief effort said the situation remained desperate.

The exiled leader of Hamas is ready to stop the fighting with Israel in exchange for an end to the blockade on Gaza, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.

But Israeli President Shimon Peres has said”Israel will not accept a ‘Strip of Terror’ alongside us”.

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is growing as Israeli air strikes have pounded the territory since Saturday in an effort to halt the firing of rockets into southern Israel.

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