Asia-Cast

Asia Cast for Friday 3rd July

In this Bulletin…

- Beijing Olympics most polluted games;
- Contaminated water suspected to reach thousands in Kailuan; and
- Amnesty report claims Israeli attacks were war crimes.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China
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A study conducted jointly by researchers from Beijing University and Oregon University during the 2008 Beijing Olympics found the Beijing games to be the most polluted of all Olympics.

This has raised a storm of protests and denials by China’s state-run press, reported by the Epoch Times.

According to the study, Beijing’s air pollution during the Olympics nearly doubled that of Athens’ 2004 Olympics, tripled that of Atlanta’s 1996 Olympics, and was three and a half times that of Sydney’s Olympics in 2000.

One of five authors of the study, Zhu Tong is being pressured by the Chinese Communist regime to criticize his own work, claiming the study was unscientific and questioning the claims of the scientists from Oregon University.

In an article, Zhu is quoted as saying the air quality during the Olympics was “good to excellent.” Yet the article gave no hint that Zhu worked on any other air pollution study which suggested otherwise.

China expert, Chen Xiaonong says the state-run media response to the pollution study is likely to have been ordered by the Chinese Communist Party’s Propaganda Department. When it comes to international issues, Cheng explained Chinese media cannot express their views independently.

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Hundreds of residents in Northern China’s Kailuan coalmine district, Hebei Province, have suffered from vomiting and diarrhoea after consuming the area’s water, reported The Epoch Times.

According to a Chinese News Net report, on June 30th about 1,000 people from four nearby communities suffered symptoms of poisoning, however, locals claim the number is far beyond that.

Residents say some people showed symptoms a week ago and they suspect the quality of the water supply is due to contamination from the state-owned Kailuan Group Tietuo Heavy Machinery Corp.

The company shares a well with over 4,000 households in 4 communities.

The quality of the water and cause of the incident is now under investigation.

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast
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An independent report by human rights group Amnesty International says Israel committed war crimes and carried out reckless attacks and acts of wanton destruction in its Gaza offensive.

The report says some 1,400 Palestinians were killed in the 22-day Israeli offensive in December of 2008 and January 2009, and more than 900 of those killed were civilians, 300 of which were children.

The Israeli military says its conduct was in line with international law and attributed some civilian deaths to “professional mistakes” and allegedly dismissed criticisms that its attacks were indiscriminate and disproportionate.

However, Amnesty says Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups had endangered Palestinian civilians by firing rockets from residential neighborhoods and storing weapons in them.

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You’re listening to Asia Cast on the SOH Radio Network
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Thousands of U.S. Marines stormed deep into Taliban territory in an Afghan river valley on Thursday, initiating the largest military offensive of Barack Obama’s presidency.

U.S. Marines say Operation Khanjar, or Strike of the Sword, will be critical and is intended to seize virtually the full lower Helmand River valley, the heartland of the Taliban insurgency and the world’s biggest opium poppy producing region.

A senior Afghan Taliban commander told Reuters in Pakistan by telephone from an undisclosed location that thousands of Taliban mujahedeen are ready to fight against U.S. troops in the operation in Helmand province.

About 4,000 Marines rushed forward and thousands more were assembled to assist them in the biggest operation yet by foreign troops in Afghanistan since the 1989 Soviet withdrawal.

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In Australia, Aboriginal social and economic trends have deteriorated according to a national report conducted on indigenous and non-indigenous citizens.

In principle it showed the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous citizens has grown wider in areas like child abuse and domestic violence and that Aboriginal children are six times more likely to be abused than non-indigenous children.

It also revealed the indigenous homicide rate was seven times higher and that Aboriginal people were 13 times more likely to end up in jail.

Having started his office in 2007 with an apology to Aborigines for past injustices and a pledge his government would aim to close the gap, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd called this a devastating report which was unacceptable and required decisive action.

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And now for our Shen Yun Performing Arts quote of the day
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Born in Poland, Argentine actress Ms. Novak totally immersed herself in Shen Yun Performing Arts presentation of China’s divinely-inspired cultural heritage, currently presented in the elegant surrounds of the Belgrano Auditorium in Buenos Aires.

She said that in watching the show, she had not only felt the Chinese understanding of who we all are but had also felt the love, peace and strength that was emanating from everything.

Magnificent heavenly scenes, exquisitely costumed dancers, impassioned arias, rang true in the heart of Ms. Novak, and she said it was all utterly beautiful and so very unforgettable.

SOH is a proud sponsor of the Shen Yun Performing Arts 2009 World Tour, listen to our special coverage at sohnetwork.com.

For more information on the shows please visit www.shenyunperformingarts.org.

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