Asia-Cast

Asia Cast for Sunday 7th March

In this Bulletin…

- Shocking claims of abuse under China’s One Child Policy;
- Hong Kong-Taiwan plan closer ties; and
- Tsunami warnings reviewed after Aussies wait on the beach.

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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An SOH report has uncovered the inequalities in China’s One-Child Policy. Our reporters also learned of the inhumane methods being used to enforce the controversial measures.

A villager from Zhejiang Province on China’s east coast said village told SOH about the impact of the One Child Policy on his family. The villager said local Party officials were using criminal gangs to threaten and force women to undergo forced abortions. He claimed his sister-in-law died, and his wife had developed serious complications, after undergoing forced abortions.

But it seems that if you can afford to pay the fines, the policy is not enforced. The man we spoke to said whoever has higher status has more children.

Listen to our Inside China Today podcast to hear the full interview.

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The Epoch Times said a recently released report on China’s ‘rule-of-law’ unveiled a large jump in crime rates and mass protests in 2009. The report also apparently reveals that one in ten of China’s mafia groups is headed by a Communist Party official.

The report attributes the rising crime rate and the number of mass protests to rising social conflicts and the gap between rich and poor. It predicted that lawlessness will only get worse in 2010.

Local to efforts to enforce Beijing’s policies on ‘maintaining social stability’ were blamed as one of the factors leading to an increase in mass protests.

Read The Epoch Times for the background on the report and details of Party members’ involvement in organised crime.

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And now for the rest of today’s Asia Cast

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Hong Kong and Taiwan are hoping to boost trade and cooperation between themselves.

Hong Kong’s Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs said a trade and economic cooperation committee would be established to coordinate with a similar one being proposed by Taiwan.

The Secretary said a group of officials and businessmen would visit to Taiwan after the two committees had been set up.

Officials said the two committees would meet to discuss a host of issues. And both sides would conduct a wide range of activities via the bilateral platform.

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A spokesman for the Philippine military said 11 of its soldiers were killed when their patrol was ambushed by rebels.

A statement said that around 60 guerrillas ambushed a reconnaissance platoon that was on patrol.

The troops had been sent to the area on Mindoro island to stop communist rebels of the New People’s Army extorting money from candidates ahead of May’s elections.

The Philippine military said reinforcements supported by helicopter gunships were tracking down the rebels.

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

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Australia is reviewing its tsunami warnings after the public largely ignored alerts issued after the Chilean earthquake.

Lifeguards in Queensland and New South Wales struggled to clear beaches as people either returned to the water or came down to watch the tsunami arrive.

States in the Pacific went on alert following the quake. But as it occurred in shallower waters, most areas did not see any big waves. The waves that hit Australia’s east coast were hardly noticeable.

Australia’s Attorney-General has asked for a review of the public’s reaction to the warnings to look at ways of educating people about tsunamis.

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Australia might have recently escaped being battered by a tsunami, but severe weather has caused chaos in parts of the country.

In Melbourne, Victoria, golf ball sized hailstones brought the city to a standstill on Saturday. Streets were flooded and sporting events cancelled as 19 millimetres of rain fell in just 18 minutes. The weather bureau said it had been an unusual and very dangerous thunderstorm.

Meanwhile, emergency services in the north-eastern state of Queensland were warning of the worst floods in over 100 years. There are fears that around 80 per cent of the rural town of Saint George could be inundated with flood waters.

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