Asia-Cast

Asia Cast for Saturday 30th January

In this Bulletin …

- Shen Yun defamed on student mailing list;
- North Korea fires arms for third day; and
- Presidential candidate’s office raided by Sri Lankan police.

But first we have our Shen Yun quote of the day

[audio]

For more information, please visit www.shenyunperformingarts.org.

Our SOH focus on China is next

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The recall of Toyota vehicles in China is not as big compared to the recalls that happened in the United States in recent months.

However the long-term effect of the recall in China, which is now the world’s largest auto market, may affect Toyota sales as it tries to grow a foothold there.

Thursday’s recall in China of 75,500 sport utility vehicles because of possible accelerator pad problems is part of a global recall that includes 5.3 million cars in the United States. However this is Toyota’s fifth vehicle recall in China since January 2009.

Michael Dunne, president of Dunne & Co. based in Hong Kong says the recall is almost like a hex has descended on them in China and it makes Chinese consumers begin to doubt the quality  of a Toyota product.

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Just prior to Shen Yun Performing Arts opening in Philadelphia in the US, the show was defamed on an academic mailing list.

Mr Sun, an alumnus of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, sent an email through the Chinese Scholars and Students Association mailing list about Shen Yun’s upcoming performances.

Within minutes of the posting, a person sent a reply containing slanderous articles about Shen Yun to the mailing list .

The articles were directly copied from the Chinese Consulate’s Web site, defaming Shen Yun and urging recipients not to attend. The person had opted not to use a university email address, and no such person was found to have an association with the school.

You can read more on this story on The Epoch Times website.

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast

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According to the South Korean military, the North has continued to fire artillery along their disputed sea border. Seoul said Friday was the third consecutive day North Korea had fired shells into the sea towards a South Korean island.

A spokesman for the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the communist state fired 20 shells.

Seoul’s defence ministry said it is considering shipping more artillery and advanced radar to two border islands in response to the shelling, which began Wednesday near the tense frontier in the Yellow Sea.

The North maintains it is holding a routine artillery drill. Seoul and Washington said the North’s actions were provocative.

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In Sri Lanka, the office of presidential candidate General Sarath Fonseka’s was raided by police on suspicion he was plotting a coup.

General Fonseka lost Tuesday’s presidential election to incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa by 1.8 million votes.

Soldiers surrounded the luxury hotel where General Fonseka and other opposition leaders went after polling finished and vote counting was ongoing on Wednesday.

The military alleged they had gone there to arrest army deserters with him that may have been planning a coup.

General Fonseka, a former army commander and hero to many in the Indian Ocean nation, said he feared arrest, but later walked out a free man.

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

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A journalist has been sentenced to 13 years in prison by a military court in Burma for working illegally for foreign media organisations, his lawyer has said.

Ngwe Soe Lin, who reported for the Norway-based Democratic Voice of Burma, was found guilty of breaking immigration laws and the Electronics Act.

Aung Thein, his lawyer, said there was no proof he had broken any law and would make an appeal.

In Burma most foreign journalists are banned and the state controls all media.

Ngwe Soe Lin was arrested and interrogated for two months. He was then sent to the city’s notorious Insein prison, where his sentence was handed down on Wednesday.

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Plans to hold talks with the Taliban may be happening soon, with Afghanistan inviting members to a peace council and reports of a secret UN meeting.

In London at a key Afghanistan summit, President Hamid Karzai swore to reach out to let down brothers.

A UN official told news agencies that  UN special envoy Kai Eide had met Taliban members in Dubai on January 8 after they had asked for talks.

Mr Eide denied meeting on that date and refused to comment on other dates.

The one-day conference in London saw world leaders pledge $140 million to win over low-level Taliban fighters.

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