AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Tuesday 24th March

In this bulletin …

-Chinese military surrounds Tibetan town;
-UN says Burma’s detention of Aung San Suu Kyi ‘illegal’; and
-Cargo plane crashes at Japanese airport.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China
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Following a Tibetan protest on Saturday, Eastern Tibet is under siege by the Chinese military forces sent from Xiling Province, The Epoch Times quoted Students for a Free Tibet as saying.

The protests began in Ragya, Tibet, after Tashi Sangpo, a 28-year-old Buddhist monk from the Ragya monastery drowned himself in the Yellow River rather than face being arrested by the authorities

According to Students for a Free Tibet, Sangpo was being held by Chinese police under suspicion that he raised a Tibetan flag over the monastery and also passed out leaflets calling for independence. He made an excuse to leave the monastery and jumped into the river. His body has not yet been recovered

Lhadon Tethong, Executive Director of Students for a Free Tibet said the troop presence was, “causing more tensions and ultimately leading to more Tibetan suffering and Tibetan loss of life”.

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A FedEx cargo plane landing at Japan’s Narita airport has skidded off the tarmac in a wind gust, flipping over and bursting into flames, killing its two-man crew.

Airport officials said strong winds caused the plane from Guangzhou, China, to skid and tip on its left wing, before flipping over and bursting into a fireball.

Rescue teams at the Japanese gateway pulled the bodies of the pilot and co-pilot from the wreckage, but a hospital official later confirmed their deaths.

Firefighters sprayed foam onto the broken fuselage of the MD-11 aircraft, as black smoke engulfed the plane.

Some international air traffic was diverted to other airports from Narita, the capital’s main international airport, while some Narita check-in services there were halted.

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast

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A three month ban imposed on two opposition party newspapers in Malaysia has been condemned by press freedom group Reporters Without Borders.

Just days ahead of the expected installation of Najib Razak’s as Malaysia’s new prime minister the two papers, Suara Keadilan of the Keadilan party and Harakah of the Islamic party PAS, were notified of the bans in fax messages that gave no reason.

The general secretary of PAS said the party would appeal against the ban. “This is a violation of press freedom and a violation of the right of every political party to be able to freely publish its own newspaper.”

Most Malaysian media is tied to the government. Tens of thousands of copies of the papers were seized by the authorities last month, preventing their messages from reaching the electorate.

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The UN working group on arbitrary detentions called for Burmese opposition leader, Ms Suu Kyi’s immediate release saying her detention violates both international legislation and the laws of Burma.

Ms Suu Kyi has spent 13 of the last 19 years under house arrest, and many of her democratic allies have been jailed.

Analysts said it is unusual for a UN body to accuse a member state of violating its own laws.

The panel said that under Burmese law only people who pose a security risk can be detained without charge.

It called for Ms Suu Kyi’s immediate release without any condition, in a ruling issued in November but made public only this week.

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And now for our Shen Yun quote of the day

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Marion Shacklett attended the Shen Yun performance in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and felt that parts of the show touched on the meaning of life. This is what she had to say:

“So, we all are seeking truth and I was glad that this production brought to the forefront the issues of life that we are all searching for, why are we here?”

Experience authentic Chinese culture like never before; visit www.shenyunperformingarts.com to find out when this amazing show will be coming to your local city.

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“Asia Cast … Keeping you across the top headlines from Asia and the world.”