Fans of Indonesia's Radio Erabaru outside the headquarters of Sing FM performing a re-enactment of the September 13 forced shutdown of Radio Erabaru by government authorities as fellow protesters hold placards and banners calling for the station's restoration. (Radio Erabaru)

In this bulletin:

- Another train crash dents China’s rail safety record,
- Discontent growing over land expropriation ,
- Fans rally for silenced Indonesian broadcaster, and
- Asia increasing IT competitiveness.

But first our SOH focus on China.

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ET-Hundreds of passengers were injured in a rear-end train collision on a one-year-old Shanghai subway track Tuesday September 27. State-owned media first said that a signal malfunction was to blame for the collision; but then published a statement on Sept. 28, attributing the accident to a power failure and operator error.

An engineer familiar with subway safety has characterized the system as unreliable and profit-driven. The accident called further attention to China

[caption id=”attachment_3657″ align=”alignleft” width=”250″ caption=”Jiang Tianyong (pictured) and another Chinese rights lawyer, Teng Biao, were recognized for this year

Participants in a march in Washington, DC in July celebrate 100 million withdrawals from the Chinese Communist Party and its affiliated organizations. (Edward Dai/The Epoch Times)

In this bulletin:

- Facing restrictions Chinese journalists blog news instead,
- Movement to quit CCP reaches 100 million participants,
- New Tibetan political head sworn in, and
- Taiwan’s population rapidly ageing.

But first our SOH focus on China.

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ET-Faced with restrictions on permissible reports, Chinese journalists have turned to Sina.com and other blogs to make important stories known.

In the wake of last month

Native forest, South Esk, Tasmania. An agreement to protect Tasmania's forests was recently reached. (Courtesy of Environment Tasmania)

In this bulletin:

- Chinese media break reporting restrictions over train crash,
- China now cloning entire stores,
- Independent broadcaster safely aboard new satellite, and
- Thailand elects first female prime minister.

But first our SOH focus on China.

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NTD-Since the high-speed train crash in Wenzhou July 23, the Chinese regime

The snubfin dolphin (Orcaella heinsohni), just one of the 1,060 new species recorded in New Guinea by the WWF. (Isabel Beasley/Wikimedia)

In this bulletin:

- China slammed for extending journalist’s detention,
- Beijing tested by torrential rain,
- Support keeps independent Taiwan broadcaster on-air, and
- World’s largest tropical island yields new species.

But first our SOH focus on China.

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NTD-Press freedom advocates have criticised the Chinese regime for sentencing a journalist to eight more years in jail. Qi Chonghuai was expecting to be released Saturday June 25 after having served a four-year sentence.

But on June 9th authorities in northeastern Shandong Province extended his term. They found him guilty of the same charges he was accused of four years ago.

After Qi Chonghuai exposed local corruption in 2007, he was convicted of extortion and blackmail. While in prison, he also wrote articles about the ill treatment of inmates, which were published on overseas news services. Qi himself was beaten in prison and forced to do hard labour.

On June 9th, authorities accused him again of extortion and blackmail, plus an additional charge of stealing advertising revenue from a former employer. They found him guilty and extended his sentence to eight more years.

International media advocates have condemned the move.

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NTD-Torrential rains left much of Beijing paralysed Thursday June 23. Residents struggled to make it home, with parts of the subway system closed and treacherous road conditions.

Now Beijing

Three Gorges Dam infographic. (Created by GDS Inforgraphics for Infrastructure MENA)

In this bulletin:

- No justice for China’s toxic-milk victims,
- Three Gorges Dam should be dismantled,
- Talks stall on independent Taiwanese TV broadcaster, and
- Retirees volunteer for Japan nuclear clean-up.

But first our SOH focus on China.

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Following the recent revelation of a secret compensation fund set up after the 2008 melamine tainted milk scandal, SOH spoke to some victims’ families.

Under the regime’s guidance, China’s dairy industry association established a medical compensation fund managed by China Life Insurance Company. But this fund was deemed a state secret.

The parent of one victim told SOH they got to know a lot of families whose children developed kidney stones from the toxic milk. They said none of them had heard about this multi-million dollar compensation fund.

Several parents of affected children told our Chinese reporters all the authorities had offered them was 2000 yuan, about $300 US dollars. And only then if they agreed to waive their right to sue those responsible.

SOH also learned that children with small kidney stones were being given the all clear to keep the number of victims as low as possible.

Reported by Qin Yue and Yu Ming for Sound of Hope Radio.

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ET-According to a hydrology expert quoted by the Epoch Times, China’s Three Gorges Dam is a huge failure and should be dismantled.

The massive 17-year project on the Yangtze River displaced at least 1.4 million people. It was intended to control and harness China

An Australian wildlife park has recovered a stolen koala after a tip off led them to a trash bin containing the animal. (By brian.gratwicke/Flickr)

- Democracy Party targeted in eastern China,
- Lin Zhoa remembered,
- Independent media under threat in Taiwan, and
- Stolen koala found in trash bin.

But first our SOH focus on China.

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Recently SOH has received several reports from eastern China’s Zhejiang Province of Democracy Party members being arrested. Zhu Yufu was detained February 19 and Xue Mingkai April 23, both on charges of inciting subversion of state power, a rather poorly defined charges often levelled against dissidents.

The Democracy Party told our Chinese reporters it was being targeted by the Zhejiang authorities because they have been very active in the province and the regime has not been able to silence them.

Relatives of the two activists have been harassed and at least one local lawyer has been scared off from defending Zhu Yufu. The Democratic Party said they were trying to find a lawyer from out of the province to take the case on. Part of the problem is that China’s judiciary, including the body granting lawyers licenses to practice, is not independent from the regime.

Interviewed and reported by Tian Xi for Sound of Hope Radio.

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Dozens of people in China spontaneously visited the tomb of famous dissident Lin Zhao April 29 on the forty-third anniversary of her death.

SOH spoke to some of those who went to pay their respects to Lin Zhao. They said about forty people, mostly from Shanghai and Suzhou, were at the outspoken dissident’s tomb. Adding, there were also several car loads of plain-clothes police by the roadside monitoring those inside.

Lin Zhao, like many intellectuals, became a victim of Mao Zedong’s 1957 Hundred Flowers Movement. Arrested in 1960 for being a counter-revolutionary she continued to pen critical commentary about Mao while imprisoned, famously using her own blood write with. Many in China regard her as a heroine who fought for dignity, freedom and democracy.

Interviewed and reported by Fu Ming and Tang Li for Sound of Hope Radio.

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NTD-Sand and dust storms hit a large portion of northern and northeastern China for the second consecutive day Thursday May 12. Cities have been blanketed in yellow clouds, disrupting transportation.

The sandstorms hit Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces in the northeast Wednesday May 11, bringing with them huge amounts of dust. The local weather bureau rated the air quality hazardous and advised people to stay inside.

In Inner Mongolia, sandstorms covered some of its cities in orange clouds of dust Wednesday May 11, reducing visibility and causing two airports to cancel all flights .

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SOH takes a look across the wider Asia-Pacific region.

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ET-A Taiwanese government-controlled telecommunications company has decided to shut down the satellite broadcasts to China of a TV station providing independent, uncensored China news.

Critics say this decision was meant to curry favour with the Chinese regime and represents a threat to Taiwan

Scientists in Inner Mongolia recently unearthed the largest spider fossil ever found. Dating to 165 million years ago the find extends the fossil record back by another 130 million years than previously suspected.

In this bulletin:

- Hundreds brawl in Guangzhou over commercial property,
- Chinese comedians break new ground,
- China slammed by independent internet freedom report, and
- Inner Mongolia yields largest fossilised spider discovery.

But first our SOH focus on China.
**********************
A well known dissident from Zhejiang Province has been charged with inciting subversion of state power despite being under house arrest since mid-February.

Zhu Yufu, was taken to the Shangcheng District Detention Center April 5, it was not until almost a week later he was formally arrested and his wife informed. His current whereabouts are unknown.

Zhu’s wife said he hadn’t done anything wrong, and moreover couldn’t have even if he’d wanted as he had been closely monitored by police around the clock.

Friends of Zhu from the Democratic Party he helped establish said Zhu occasionally wrote a few articles and spoke a few words in the media. Adding, if speaking a few words can subvert a state, then the state is too fragile.

Reported by Tian Xi for Sound of Hope Radio.

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A huge fight erupted between hundreds of security guards in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province in a dispute over the ownership of a prime commercial property.

Trouble started when the new owners of the New China Building in Guangzhou tried to take possession of the building. The building’s previous owner claimed the lease was not due for renewal and paid their security guards to prevent the new owners from taking possession of the business.

Witnesses said fierce brawls broke out between both sides. At least 400 to 500 guards were involved. Some 50 to 60 were wounded, some seriously. Thousands of bystanders were also caught up in the incident when police sealed off the area.

Our SOH Chinese reporter was told the previous owner paid his security guards to injure or even kill the new owner’s men.

Reported by Tien Xi for Sound of Hope Radio.

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ET-Two Chinese comedians, in a recent performance lauded by audiences and immediately censored by communist authorities, have gone where others dared not tread.

The bitterly satirical hour-long performance takes on a variety of social and political issues deemed sensitive by the ruling Communist Party, including the Tiananmen Massacre and the lack of a social safety net in China.

In the videos posted online, live audience members can be heard laughing uproariously. Comments posted by netizens indicate that the performance broke new ground in making fun of the Chinese Communist Party in such a public setting.

As online commentators anticipated in their praise, soon after the video was posted it was scrubbed clean from popular video websites in China.

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SOH takes a look across the wider Asia-Pacific region.

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According to a new study by Freedom House cyberattacks, politically motivated censorship, and government control over internet infrastructure are threatening internet freedom.

The Freedom on the Net 2011 report released April 18 assesses internet freedom in 37 countries. The study says bloggers, online journalists, and human rights activists increasingly face arrest and imprisonment for their online writings.

China was found to remain one of the world’s most restrictive countries with respect to internet freedom. It is also home to the most sophisticated control apparatus.

Internet users in Burma and Thailand were also among those found to lack freedom.

The report also said China’s indirect influence as a model of internet control was evident in the growing restrictions seen in other countries.

**********************

NTD-Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of Taiwan

Cinderella Castle at Tokyo Disneyland. The theme park re-opend this week due to popular request. (By vita/Flickr)

In this bulletin:

- China’s shady medical blackmarkets,
- Vietnamese still held over China shortwave broadcast,
- Petitioners rebut claims China improving human rights, and
- Australian children’s surprising second language.

But first our SOH focus on China.

**********************

An SOH Chinese reporter recently looked into the shady world of China’s illegal trade in kidneys for transplant operations.

Following up on a story about a young man from Hunan Province selling a kidney to pay-off gambling debts the reporter found numerous websites offering transplant organs.

Organ dealers openly operate online sales and advertising and maintain good relationships with hospitals. Due to their cultural beliefs, few Chinese are willing to donate a kidney if a relative needs a transplant. But one dealer said since many people had financial difficulties there was an abundant supply of kidneys.

The organ dealers our reporter spoke to said a donor received around $6,000 US dollars while the recipient would have to pay ten times that amount.

Interviewed and reported by Tang Li with special correspondent Xiong Bin for Sound of Hope Radio.

**********************

According to a survey by Chinese media the shortage of blood donors in China has created a black market in blood stocks ruled over by so called blood lords. Their rampant profiteering is spreading AIDS among China’s poorest.

The lack of blood supplies in Beijing and other populous cities has been a problem for some time. The introduction of reportedly arbitrary donation quotas on local authorities to meet the demand for blood was quickly exploited.

The blood lords took advantage of the fact some village committees were willing to buy blood to meet their donation quotas. They organised college students, migrant workers and even farmers in Hebei Province to sell blood, making a huge profit from it in the process.

One villager who spoke to SOH Chinese reporters said a lot of villagers from his home town had been infected with AIDS from selling their blood. But he said many were still doing it because the are so poor and in urgent need of money.

Reported by He Wen with special correspondent Xiong Bin for Sound of Hope Radio.

**********************

China’s netizens have widely criticised the grand mausoleum built for the former Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee after photographs of it appeared online.

The tomb of Hua Guofeng has been likened to the royal mausoleums of China’s ancient emperors. It took 3 years and around fifteen of million US dollars to build.

Internet users from mainland, China said the tomb was another vanity project, and the officials involved would have been able to garner huge construction commission fees for awarding contracts.

Reported by Tang Li with special correspondent Xiong Bin for Sound of Hope Radio.

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SOH takes a look across the wider Asia-Pacific region.

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ET-There is still no news on when or if the postponed trial of two Vietnamese arrested for broadcasting programmes from the Chinese version of the SOH Network into China.

Both men are Falun Gong practitioners and were broadcasting programming about Falun Gong and its persecution inside China. They were arrested in June 2010 for making their shortwave broadcast from outside Hanoi into China.

The official indictment, obtained by The Epoch Times newspaper, indicates that the two were arrested at the urging of the Chinese regime.

The plight of the men has been championed by media watchdog and human rights groups, with Reporters Without Borders and the Falun Dafa Information Center publishing articles about their case. In addition, media around the world have begun to cover the case, with stories by Associated Press, AFP, and Radio Australia.

Vietnam, in prosecuting the two of them, is caught between the conflicting demands of a Chinese regime that has sought to eradicate the practice of Falun Gong and an international community concerned about possible violations of freedom of the press and freedom of conscience.

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Coming up on Asia Cast:

- Australia creates artificial reef despite protests and inquisitive dolphins,
- Taiwan reviews nuclear reactor safety, and
- Tokyo Disneyland gives thousands a reason to smile..

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]]> http://asia-cast.com/2011/04/asia-cast-for-the-week-ending-friday-15th-april/feed/ 0 0:10:17 Cinderella Castle at Tokyo Disneyland. The theme park re-opend this week due to popular request. (By vita/Flickr) In this bulletin: - China’s shady medical blackmarkets, - Vietnamese still held over China shortwave broadcast, - Petitioners r[...] Cinderella Castle at Tokyo Disneyland. The theme park re-opend this week due to popular request. (By vita/Flickr) In this bulletin: - China’s shady medical blackmarkets, - Vietnamese still held over China shortwave broadcast, - Petitioners rebut claims China improving human rights, and - Australian children’s surprising second language. But first our SOH focus on China. ********************** An SOH Chinese reporter recently looked into the shady world of China’s illegal trade in kidneys for transplant operations. Following up on a story about a young man from Hunan Province selling a kidney to pay-off gambling debts the reporter found numerous websites offering transplant organs. Organ dealers openly operate online sales and advertising and maintain good relationships with hospitals. Due to their cultural beliefs, few Chinese are willing to donate a kidney if a relative needs a transplant. But one dealer said since many people had financial difficulties there was an abundant supply of kidneys. The organ dealers our reporter spoke to said a donor received around $6,000 US dollars while the recipient would have to pay ten times that amount. Interviewed and reported by Tang Li with special correspondent Xiong Bin for Sound of Hope Radio. ********************** According to a survey by Chinese media the shortage of blood donors in China has created a black market in blood stocks ruled over by so called blood lords. Their rampant profiteering is spreading AIDS among China’s poorest. The lack of blood supplies in Beijing and other populous cities has been a problem for some time. The introduction of reportedly arbitrary donation quotas on local authorities to meet the demand for blood was quickly exploited. The blood lords took advantage of the fact some village committees were willing to buy blood to meet their donation quotas. They organised college students, migrant workers and even farmers in Hebei Province to sell blood, making a huge profit from it in the process. One villager who spoke to SOH Chinese reporters said a lot of villagers from his home town had been infected with AIDS from selling their blood. But he said many were still doing it because the are so poor and in urgent need of money. Reported by He Wen with special correspondent Xiong Bin for Sound of Hope Radio. ********************** China’s netizens have widely criticised the grand mausoleum built for the former Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee after photographs of it appeared online. The tomb of Hua Guofeng has been likened to the royal mausoleums of China’s ancient emperors. It took 3 years and around fifteen of million US dollars to build. Internet users from mainland, China said the tomb was another vanity project, and the officials involved would have been able to garner huge construction commission fees for awarding contracts. Reported by Tang Li with special correspondent Xiong Bin for Sound of Hope Radio. ********************** SOH takes a look across the wider Asia-Pacific region. ********************** ET-There is still no news on when or if the postponed trial of two Vietnamese arrested for broadcasting programmes from the Chinese version of the SOH Network into China. Both men are Falun Gong practitioners and were broadcasting programming about Falun Gong and its persecution inside China. They were arrested in June 2010 for making their shortwave broadcast from outside Hanoi into China. The official indictment, obtained by The Epoch Times newspaper, indicates that the two were arrested at the urging of the Chinese regime. The plight of the men has been championed by media watchdog and human rights groups, with Reporters Without Borders and the Falun Dafa Information Center publishing articles about their case. In addition, media around the world have begun to cover the case, with stories by Associated Press, AFP, and Radio Australia. Vietnam, in prosecuting the two of them,[...] corruption, democracy, disasters, justice, NTDTV, podcasts, Taiwan SOH Network no no