Asia-Cast

Asia Cast for Monday 15th February

In this Bulletin…

- Chinese police chief’s questionable crime prevention measures;
- Beijing working to increase travel across Asia-Pacific; and
- Bangkok wary after two incidents involving explosives.

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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Police in northern China say they have developed a large enough network of informants to take care of criminals before they have even committed an offence.

A police chief from Inner Mongolia told Chinese state media that in his Kailu County jurisdiction more than 12,000 informants had been recruited.

Police said they have moved from punishing people after the crime is committed to ‘resolving the problem before the fact.’

Residents who create what police term ‘conflicts’, and people who might petition to higher authorities are being targeted in particular.

Petitioning is legal in China. But local officials who are pressured to minimise complaints, often harass or detain petitioners.

You can see more on this on NTDTV.

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The Lunar New Year has already brought a huge boost to Taiwan’s economy. Some 40,000 Chinese have applied to travel to the island over the nine-day Spring Festival holiday.

The Year of the Tiger began on February 14. And over 10,000 Chinese tourists were expected to visit Taiwan on the first day of the holiday alone.

Tourism officials said the number of Chinese applying to visit the island had tripled from 2009.

Taipei said tourism grew in Taiwan faster than anywhere else in Asia in 2009.

In July 2008 Taiwan’s Beijing-friendly government trebled the average daily quota of Chinese tourists allowed to visit Taiwan.

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And tourism also looks set to increase between China and Australia. On Sunday, Australia’s transport minister said the two countries had agreed to increase flights between them. The agreement is a stepping stone towards talks on an ‘open skies’ accord.

Canberra said that under a new air services agreement there will be a 70 per cent increase in the number of seat available by the end of 2010.

The Australian transport minister said the latest agreement would make the airlines of both countries more able to compete within the rapidly growing Asia-Pacific region.

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

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast

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An Australian woman has survived a ferocious shark attack despite losing over a third of her blood volume.

The woman suffered deep bite wounds. But fought the shark off by repeatedly punching and kicking it.

She was snorkelling with a group of people, including her husband, near Queensland’s Whitsunday Islands on Saturday.

She said she felt an almighty tug and instantly knew what it was. Turning to face the shark she started punching it on the nose and then kicking it in the neck as it tried to pull her under.

She was pulled on board the charter boat that had taken them out and was airlifted to hospital where she underwent surgery.

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Increased security measures in Thailand ahead of anticipated political tensions have not prevented two incidents involving explosives.

A court decision on the fate of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra is due later this month.

Thai police said Sunday they had defused a bomb near Bangkok’s Supreme Court. Also on Sunday, a grenade exploded near government offices.

There were no casualties. But both incidents occurred despite an extra 20,000 security personnel being deployed around Thailand ahead of the court’s verdict on Thaskin.

Despite living in exile, Thaskin remains a prominent,and divisive, figure in Thai politics.

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Twelve civilians in southern Afghanistan were accidentally killed Sunday when a NATO rocket attack missed its intended target.

The incident happened in Helmand province. It was the first reported loss of civilian life since Operation Moshtarak was launched on Saturday.

It comes as the Taliban showed stiff resistance to the massive assault by coalition forces who are trying to force the Taliban from their southern stronghold. The operation involves an international coalition of 15,000 troops, including Afghans.

NATO announced the offensive before it started so that citizens could get out of harm’s way.

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