AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Tuesday 22nd September

In this Bulletin…

- China bans herbal drug injections after deaths;
- South China Sea piracy at five-year high; and
- Bhutan earthquake kills eight.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China
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In Beijing, some major retailers are removing knives from their shelves after two separate knife attacks near Tiananmen Square, reports NTDTV.

The first incident, on Thursday last week, left two dead and 14 others injured.

Beijing police say they’ve arrested a man from Jilin Province. But some state media is saying three men, not one, were involved.

And the most recent attack, on Saturday, left a French woman slightly injured. Authorities say a man from Jiangxi Province was arrested on the spot.

Both attacks took place close to where preparations are being made for the 60th anniversary celebrations of communist rule in China.

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China’s State Food and Drug Administration and Ministry of Health made a joint have suspended the the sale and use of a Chinese herbal drug administered by injection after three deaths this month.

The two agencies made a joint announcement on Thursday 17, says The Epoch Times.

Three patients from Anhui, Yunnan and Jiangsu Provinces died on September 7, 12 and 15 respectively after injections of Shuang huang lian in association with various other medications, according to state-run media.

Shuang huang lian is commonly used for treating respiratory infections. It is often administered in pill form.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the deaths.

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast

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Monday was the International Day of Peace. It was also the second anniversary of the so called Saffron Revolution, the uprising against Burma’s military junta led by Buddhist monks.

Around two hundred exiled monks, nuns and dissidents traveled from Thailand’s capital to the streets of Mae Sot, near the Thai-Burmese border, reported NTDTV.

Saw San Nyrein Thu from the Women’s League of Burma said they wanted to see peace in Burma. She added that the ruling junta needed to free all political prisoners and detained political leaders in order to pave the way for the upcoming election.

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According to an international monitoring agency, piracy in the South China Sea has hit a five-year high.

The monitoring centre for the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia said there have been 10 reports of sea attacks so far this year. The previous high was nine in 2005.

The latest attack was on Saturday, when six pirates boarded a tanker off Indonesia and robbed the crew.

Most of the incidents involve pirates robbing the crew and stealing stores from ships, unlike in the waters off Somalia where ships and their crews are often held for ransom.

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

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A magnitude 6.1 earthquake rocked Bhutan on Monday, blocking access roads in the mountainous Asian kingdom and killing at least eight people.

The strong quake destroyed many homes. Monasteries and other buildings were also damaged.

Bhutan’s home minister, Minjur Dorji, said the quake sent boulders down the hillsides, blocking access to some of the remote, hilly regions. Rescue teams face delays in reaching the affected areas due to the closed roads.

The quake also was felt in India’s northeastern Assam state, bordering Bhutan. There were no immediate reports of damage there, however.

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Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has called for a new, sustainable growth model for the future.

He said there was a need to reduce massive financial imbalances between consumer-driven economies in the West and developing economies in the East.

Speaking ahead of the G-20 meeting later this week, Rudd said the G-20 nations had an important responsibility to tackle the issues

He added that Australia was the only major developed economy that has not yet slipped into recession.

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