Bombing at southern Philippine cathedral kills at least 20 during Sunday Mass

Abstract: MANILA - Two bombs minutes apart tore through a Roman Catholic cathedral on a southern Philippine island where Muslim militants are active, killing at least 20 people and wounding 81 others during a Sunday Mass, officials said. Witnesses said the first blast inside the Jolo cathedral in the provincial capital sent churchgoers, some of them wounded, to stampede out of the main door. Army troops and police posted outside were rushing in when the second bomb went off about one minute later near the main entrance, causing more deaths and injuries. The military was checking a report that the second explosive device may have been attached to a parked motorcycle. The initial explosion scattered the wooden pews inside the main hall and blasted window glass panels, and the second bomb hurled human remains and debris across a town square fronting the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, witnesses said. Cellphone signal was cut off in the first hours after the attack. The witnesses who spoke to The Associated Press refused to give their names or were busy at the scene of the blasts. Police said at least 20 people died and 81 were wounded, correcting an earlier toll due to double counting. The fatalities included 15 civilians and five troops. Among the wounded were 14 troops, two police and 65 civilians. Troops in armored carriers sealed off the main road leading to the church while vehicles transported the dead and wounded to the town hospital. Some casualties were evacuated by air to nearby Zamboanga city. “I have directed our troops to heighten their alert level, secure all places of worships and public places at once, and initiate pro-active security measures to thwart hostile plans,” said Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana in a statement. “We will pursue to the ends of the earth the ruthless perpetrators behind this dastardly crime until every killer is brought to justice and put behind bars. The law will give them no mercy,” the office of President Rodrigo Duterte said in Manila. It said that “the enemies of the state boldly challenged the government’s capability to secure the safety of citizens in that region. The (Armed Forces of the Philippines) will rise to the challenge and crush these godless criminals.” Jolo island has long been troubled by the presence of Abu Sayyaf militants, who are blacklisted by the United States and the Philippines as a terrorist organization because of years of bombings, kidnappings and beheadings. A Catholic bishop, Benjamin de Jesus, was gunned down by suspected militants outside the cathedral in 1997. No one has immediately claimed responsibility for the latest attack. It came nearly a week after minority Muslims in the predominantly Roman Catholic nation endorsed a new autonomous region in the southern Philippines in hopes of ending nearly five decades of a separatist rebellion that has left 150,000 people dead. Although most of the Muslim areas approved the autonomy deal, voters in Sulu province, where Jolo is located, rejected it. The province is home to a rival rebel faction that’s opposed to the deal as well as smaller militant cells that not part of any peace process. Western governments have welcomed the autonomy pact. They worry that small numbers of Islamic State-linked militants from the Middle East and Southeast Asia could forge an alliance with Filipino insurgents and turn the south into a breeding ground for extremists. “This bomb attack was done in a place of peace and worship, and it comes at a time when we are preparing for another stage of the peace process in Mindanao,” said Gov. Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. “Human lives are irreplaceable,” he added, calling on Jolo residents to cooperate with authorities to find the perpetrators of this “atrocity.” Security officials were looking “at different threat groups and they still can’t say if this has something to do with the just concluded plebiscite,” Oscar Albayalde, the national police chief, told ABS-CBN TV network. Hermogenes Esperon, the national security adviser, said that the new autonomous region, called Bangsamoro, “signifies the end of war for secession. It stands for peace in Mindanao.” Aside from the small but brutal Abu Sayyaf group, other militant groups in Sulu include a small band of young jihadis aligned with the Islamic State group, which has also carried out assaults, including ransom kidnappings and beheadings. Abu Sayyaf militants are still holding at least five hostages — a Dutch national, two Malaysians, an Indonesian and a Filipino — in their jungle bases mostly near Sulu’s Patikul town, not far from Jolo. Government forces have pressed on sporadic offensives to crush the militants, including those in Jolo, a poverty-wracked island of more than 700,000 people. A few thousand Catholics live mostly in the capital of Jolo. There have been speculations that the bombings may be a diversionary move by Muslim militants after troops recently carried out an offensive that killed a number of IS-linked extremists in an encampment in the hinterlands of Lanao del Sur province, also in the south. The area is near Marawi, a Muslim city that was besieged for five months by hundreds of IS-aligned militants, including foreign fighters, in 2017. Troops quelled the insurrection, which left more 1,100 mostly militants dead and the heartland of the mosque-studded city in ruins. Duterte declared martial law in the entire southern third of the country to deal with the Marawi siege, his worst security crisis. His martial law declaration has been extended to allow troops to finish off radical Muslim groups and other insurgents but bombings and other attacks have continued.


South Korea defense chief lambastes Japan for alleged flybys near naval ships and orders stern action

Abstract: SEOUL - South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo has denounced recent alleged flybys of Japanese patrol planes near South Korean naval vessels as a “serious provocation,” according to Yonhap news agency. Jeong made the remarks Saturday during an unscheduled visit to the Republic of Korea Fleet headquarters in Busan, where he also ordered stern naval action against Japan over the matter, the report said. South Korea alleges Japanese patrol planes deliberately flew at low altitudes near ROK naval vessels three times this month. The accusations follow a spat between the two sides over whether a South Korean destroyer locked its fire-control radar on a Japanese patrol plane in the Sea of Japan last month. The defense chief called the flybys “very threatening behavior that no navy of any country can tolerate,” according to Yonhap. He also condemned Japan for not admitting to its actions, saying that making false accusations against South Korea instead is “preposterous words and deeds,” he was quoted as saying. Japanese Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya last week denied South Korea’s claim that Japanese patrol planes have flown near ROK Navy ships multiple times, calling the information “not accurate.”

military
south korea-japan relations
jeong kyeong-doo


Flu viruses resistant to new drug Xofluza uncovered in Japan

Abstract: Mutated influenza viruses resistant to baloxavir marboxil, a new flu drug sold as Xofluza, were detected in patients last month, the National Institute of Infectious Diseases has said. This was the first confirmation by a national research institute of such mutations in flu viruses since the drug was put into practical use last March, the health ministry said. According to the NIID, Xofluza-resistant viruses were found in two of four primary school students in Yokohama in generic screenings in December conducted after they developed flu symptoms earlier the same month. The mutated viruses were 76 to 120 times more resistant to the new anti-flu drug developed by Shionogi & Co. than unmutated ones detected in the other two children. In clinical trials of baloxavir marboxil, resistant viruses were detected in 23.4 percent of participating patients younger than 12 years old. The NIID said that it will continue to keep an eye on mutated flu viruses and provide related information swiftly. Sales of Xofluza have been increasing because only one dose of the drug is enough for treatment, according to the drug maker and other sources. The health ministry said last week that the number of influenza patients per medical institution in Japan in the week through Jan. 20 had hit the second-highest level since the survey started in 1999. The average number of flu patients at some 5,000 medical institutions across the country that are regularly monitored grew by 15.37 from the previous week to 53.91, following the record high of 54.33, marked in the previous year, the ministry announced Friday. The total number of flu patients during the week is estimated at some 2.13 million, up by some 495,000 from the previous week.


Cabinet to keep Diet bills to a minimum with apparent eye on July Upper House election

Abstract: Facing a critical Upper House election this summer, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appears to be laying the groundwork for a controversy-free five-month Diet session, which starts Monday. Abe’s Cabinet now plans to submit only 58 government-sponsored bills to the session, which is reportedly the second-least number for any ordinary Diet session since 1945. The bills do not include any major controversial measures that would spark heated political battles between the ruling and opposition lawmakers. However, the prime minister’s strategy has already hit a snag as major turmoil appears to be in the pipeline. Massive scandals involving numerous errors in 22 of the government’s 56 basic statistics reports — including those involving key wage data — emerged earlier this month, which is expected to continue plaguing Abe’s administration as the opposition parties prepare to grill him and other key officials over the matter. “I deeply apologize to the public for causing trouble like this,” said Takumi Nemoto, the health, labor and welfare minister, during a special out-of-session meeting at the Lower House on Thursday. “It is most unfortunate that such a mishap should occur for government statistics that help in making informed decisions on public policy, academic research, and business matters — which require the utmost accuracy,” he added. When surveying nominal wages across the nation every month, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry is obliged by rules to check wages and salaries at all businesses with 500 employees or more. But after facing questions from economists, the ministry admitted it had only surveyed a third of such firms in Tokyo from 2004 through 2017, a possible violation of the statistics law. This resulted in the average wage appearing lower than the actual level because major firms in Tokyo usually pay higher salaries than those in other regions. The impact was huge. As a result, more than ¥50 billion in job-related public insurance benefits for about 20,000 people were not paid because they are decided based on the results of the monthly wage survey. This also forced the Cabinet to revise its fiscal 2019 budget draft on Jan. 18, a humiliating event for the Liberal Democratic Party-led government since it has rarely revised a budget draft — even during budget committee sessions. “This problem has stemmed from a lack of governance, caused primarily by the lack of statistical expertise among higher-ranking officials within the ministry,” said Nobuo Iizuka, a professor specializing in economics at Kanagawa University. He added there seemed to be no structure in place for senior officials to check the reliability of the research, referring to the findings of a third-party committee that concluded on Tuesday that the data-crunching was left to more junior members of the ministry. The data scandal has also raised grave questions over the credibility of one of the key statistics that help gauge the success of Abenomics, the prime minister’s economic policies. In January 2018, the labor ministry secretly started correcting wage data that had been based on the sampling survey. As a result, the wage data — which had been kept lower than actual levels — started recording sudden surges last year. For example in June, it registered a 3.3 percent jump from the same month the previous year, the highest surge in more than 21 years. The Abe administration was able to use the faulty data — knowingly or unknowingly — to make the claim that Abenomics was working. The prime minister had pledged to bust deflation, with higher overall wages seen as a prerequisite to spark sustainable inflation. “This is fake Abenomics,” said Kazunori Yamanoi of the Democratic Party for the People, the second-largest opposition force, in reference to the wage increases logged in the 2018 surveys. He made the comment while speaking at a special Lower House session on Thursday. Meanwhile, the report released by the third-party committee concluded it could not find any evidence that government officials deliberately turned a blind eye to the data errors and instead laid blame on mismanagement and an environment where the importance of rigorous statistical analysis was taken lightly. However, opposition lawmakers have criticized the probe by the so-called independent panel, saying it was a de facto internal investigation because labor ministry officials carried out the interviews with government employees involved in the matter for the members of the committee. The wage scandal has also prompted all other major ministries to check their own statistical data collection and methodologies in gathering such information. The internal affairs ministry announced that it has found a total of 31 cases where data had been mishandled in the 56 main government statistics reports. Those include surveys on wide-ranging issues, from the state of commerce and dairy products to teachers and education. On Friday, the Cabinet Office announced it has revised upward its estimates of the total remuneration Japan’s employees received for fiscal 2017 by ¥700 billion, to ¥276.3 trillion. The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the largest opposition force, has made clear it will scrutinize the debacle during the Diet session. “How can the government maintain the public trust in a situation like this?” said Michihiro Ishibashi, an Upper House CDP member, during a party meeting on Tuesday. “We want (the government) to provide an explanation that will satisfy the people.”

shinzo abe
statistics
diet
scandals
wages
takumi nemoto


Seoul reportedly rejects proposal for joint fund to support Korean wartime laborers taken to Japan

Abstract: SEOUL - The South Korean presidential office has vehemently opposed an internal plan to set up a fund to support people who were requisitioned from the Korean Peninsula by Japanese companies to work in Japan during World War II, the Chosun Ilbo has reported. The major South Korean daily reported Saturday that the country’s diplomatic authority had made a proposal to the Blue House that Seoul swiftly resolve the wartime labor issue by establishing such a fund jointly with not only the Japanese companies concerned, but also with South Korean firms that benefited from an accord to settle property claims that was signed along with the 1965 Japan-South Korea treaty to establish diplomatic relations. But the Blue House rejected the idea, saying it is not a matter the government should get involved in, the newspaper said. The Chosun Ilbo also reported that before the plan was shown to the Blue House, diplomatic authorities from the two countries had held talks on the fund and formed some consensus. It quoted a Japanese source as saying that if Seoul made the fund proposal, Tokyo could have considered it. Meanwhile, presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom categorically denied the newspaper report. The two countries’ diplomatic authorities have been communicating with each other on the wartime labor issue but there have been no fund-related discussions at all, he said, adding that the idea of creating such a fund itself is ridiculous.

wwii
history
wartime labor
south korea-japan relations
moon jae-in


Blaze at home in Tokyo suburbs leaves four dead

Abstract: Four people were killed Sunday in a fire that burned down a house in the suburbs of Tokyo, according to police. A nearby resident in the city of Hino made an emergency call at around 2:45 a.m. to report the fire at the two-story wooden house. Authorities identified two people who were taken to a hospital and later confirmed dead as Minae Ichikawa, 71, and her husband’s mother, Chisato Ichikawa, 98. The remaining two, who were found dead at the scene, were believed to be Ichikawa’s husband, who was in his 70s and the couple’s eldest son, who was in his 40s. The blaze was extinguished about 2½ hours after the call, with 23 fire engines, police cars and rescue vehicles arriving at the scene. The house where the fire occurred is in a residential area located about 200 meters west of Mogusaen Station on the Keio Line. “I came out after I heard the sirens blaring and saw and smelled the smoke coming from the house,” a 66-year-old neighbor said. “I was surprised by the number of fire trucks.”


Japanese Catholics urge Pope to send anti-nuclear message when he visits

Abstract: Japanese Catholics are asking Pope Francis to send an anti-nuclear message from Hiroshima and Nagasaki when he travels to the country this year. The Argentine pontiff said this month he will come to Japan in November for what will be the first papal visit since John Paul II traveled here nearly 40 years ago. During his stay, Francis reportedly plans to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki to pray for the victims of the 1945 atomic bombings, which killed some 220,000 people. “I believe he will have sympathy for the movement to abolish nuclear arms,” Keiko Ichikawa, 77, said after attending Mass recently. “I hope the pope’s visit will be an opportunity to encourage the movement.” Pope Francis has repeatedly voiced a desire to visit Japan, which is home to an estimated 450,000 Roman Catholics, and wanted to work as a missionary here in his youth but abandoned the plan after a lung operation. In January of last year, Francis issued a harrowing photograph taken in 1945 showing a young Japanese boy carrying his dead brother. The child on the boy’s back was killed when the United States A-bombed Nagasaki. Francis, who has often spoken of the dangers of nuclear weapons, had written just four words on the back of the image: “The fruit of war.” According to reports from local media outlets, there is a possibility that the pope will also visit the Tohoku region, which in 2011 suffered massive damage in the deadly Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami that also triggered the Fukushima nuclear crisis. The disasters left around 18,000 people in the Tohoku region dead. “We have great suffering in Fukushima due to the nuclear reactor accident,” said Yuko Honma, a 82-year-old Roman Catholic nun. “I hope he will have a chance to visit there too” and encourage the victims. Authorities have been working to rebuild the region, although areas near the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant remain uninhabitable because of high radiation. During his trip to Japan in 1981, John Paul II visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He also celebrated Mass at the old Korakuen Stadium in Tokyo for some 35,000 people.

nagasaki
hiroshima
nuclear weapons
pope francis


Threatening letters possibly containing toxic materials and demanding money sent to Japanese firms

Abstract: Nine firms, including drugmakers and a newspaper publisher, have received threatening letters demanding money and containing a white powdery substance believed to be highly poisonous cyanide, police have said. The letters, sent under different names, such as Shoko Asahara, the executed Aum Shinrikyo cult leader, and others linked to organized crime, warned of potential indiscriminate killing using the toxic material, authorities said Saturday. The police are investigating the case as attempted blackmail. Suspicious envelopes arrived at six pharmaceutical companies and the headquarters of The Mainichi Newspapers in Tokyo on Friday. They each had a message on an A4-size sheet of paper saying, “I will make fake medicine containing potassium cyanide and distribute it. Send 35 million won ($31,300) in bitcoins by Feb. 22. If not, a tragedy will happen,” the police said. Two other companies — a pharmaceutical firm in Osaka and the Hokkaido branch of a Tokyo-based food company — also received similar letters the same day. The police declined to name the companies. An official at The Mainichi Newspapers said the company had voluntarily submitted the letter to the police and that it will fully cooperate in the investigation. The letters were also sent under the names of former senior members of Aum as well. Asahara, whose real name was Chizuo Matsumoto, was executed last July along with 12 former members of the cult after being convicted of numerous murders, including the 1995 deadly sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway system. The letters also carried different addresses, such as detention facilities in Tokyo. The case follows a similar incident last year in which some pharmaceutical companies in Tokyo and Osaka Prefecture received threatening letters.

media
violence
aum shinrikyo
drugmakers
police


The week ahead for Jan. 28 to Feb. 3

Abstract: Monday 150-day ordinary Diet session to convene. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will deliver policy speech ahead of key events later this year, including the Group of 20 summit in June in Osaka, an Upper House election in July and a consumption tax hike in October. Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, to visit Japan through Jan. 30. Tuesday Cabinet Office to release monthly economic report for January. The government is expected to declare that Japan’s economy is expanding for the 74th consecutive month, the longest period since the end of World War II. Wednesday Diet to hold question-and-answer session attended by leaders of political parties through Feb. 1. Thursday Fukuoka District Court to hand down ruling on man accused of stealing 160 kilograms of gold in the city of Fukuoka in 2016. Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to release preliminary industrial production index for December. Bank of Japan to release summary of opinions from Jan. 22-23 policy meeting. Friday Japan-EU free trade pact to come into force. Under the deal covering roughly 30 percent of global economic output, Japanese consumers will benefit from cheaper imports of wine, cheese and pork from the regional bloc, but domestic farmers may take a hit due to increased competition with European rivals. Unemployment rate and ratio of job offers to job seekers for December, as well as 2018 as a whole, to be released. Japan Automobile Dealers Association to release data on new motor vehicle sales in Japan for January. Discount store operator Don Quijote Holdings to change name to Pan Pacific International Holdings. Sony, Hitachi, Honda Motor and JFE Holdings to release earnings reports for April-December. Saturday International animated film society ASIFA-Hollywood to announce the winners of the Annie Awards in Los Angeles. Japanese filmmaker Mamoru Hosoda’s “Mirai” is among the nominees in two categories — the best animated independent feature and outstanding achievement for writing in an animated feature production. Sunday Aichi gubernatorial election to be held.


Moon Jae-in doubles down on his unpopular economic agenda for South Korea

Abstract: SEOUL - Moon Jae-in began his second full year as South Korea’s president with a reminder of what didn’t work in the first — namely his economic policies. The message came in an unusually blunt question from a local television reporter, who used Moon’s New Year’s news briefing Thursday to ask why he stuck with an agenda that appeared to be failing. The president dug in, saying he needed to better persuade South Koreans his policies were right, not change course. “I’ve explained why we need our government’s economic policy basis, and why it’s impossible to have sustainable growth without changing the imbalanced structure of our polarized society,” Moon said. “So, I don’t think I need to reply with a new answer.” The episode underscored how South Korea’s slowing economy has emerged as a political liability for Moon, even as he’s enjoyed the global spotlight from playing peacemaker between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The self-styled “jobs president” has seen his once sky-high poll numbers tumble, raising the prospect that he could face the same popularity problems that dogged his predecessors. Moon, a progressive, was swept into office in 2017 promising a reversal from the conglomerate-focused economic agenda of ousted President Park Geun-hye. But his plan to raise the minimum wage 11 percent disappointed both workers who didn’t think it was enough and businesses who said it stifled growth. More than three-quarters of the 30 experts surveyed by Bloomberg News last month predicted that employment growth would slow this year, in part because of the wage hike. Moon axed his finance minister and his policy chief after criticism that his administration was sending mixed signals on the policy. Choi Pae-kun, an economics professor at Konkuk University in Seoul, said that the president and his lieutenants weren’t considering how their wage moves hurt their related push to encourage entrepreneurship. “Moon and his economic aides seem like they’re in denial of what actually must be done,” Choi said. In a speech at his news conference Thursday, Moon outlined an economic agenda that was largely unchanged. He pledged to improve the safety net, promote new technologies and fix what he described as “the worst forms of polarized wealth and economic inequality in the world.” Still, that may provide little relief to people feeling the pressure now. South Korea last month lowered its growth forecast for 2018 to 2.6 percent — the slowest pace in six years. The slowdown has been exacerbated by trade tensions and softening global demand. At the same time, Moon’s approval rating slid to a record low of 44 percent last month, according to a Gallup Korea poll released Dec. 21. That’s down from 83 percent after his groundbreaking meeting with Kim last year. More than half of South Koreans surveyed in another Gallup poll last month said that the administration needed “to focus on economic growth, rather than income distribution.” Moon’s support improved in a Gallup poll released Friday, rising 3 percentage points to 48 percent. Some 44 percent disapproved of his performance. “If my approval ratings are low, that means I am not giving hope to our citizens,” Moon said Thursday. “I will make an effort to be a government that gives young people hope, and that communicates well.” South Korean presidents, who are elected to a single, five-year term, have a history of seeing their support crumble the longer they are in office, making it more difficult to achieve policy objectives because they’re seen as lame ducks. Choi, the economics professor, said Moon had allowed political pressure to sway his decisions. “He’s made this bid for a fair economy, as well as an innovative one, which are supposed to be mutually supplementary,” Choi said. “But he’s too quickly shifted his focus from the former to the latter because he’s getting criticism from the labor unions.”

taxes
trade
jobs
south korea
moon jae-in


Election handouts and other sweeteners threaten to upset India's plan to curb budget deficits

Abstract: MUMBAI/NEW DELHI - Less than a month before India’s budget, risks are growing that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government will miss fiscal targets for a second year in a row as it gives into populist pressures before a high-stakes election. Speculation is mounting of possible cash handouts to farmers and tax exemptions to shore up voter support ahead of polls due by May. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party lost control of key states in provincial elections last month. Economists at Nirmal Bang Equities Pvt. and Kotak Securities Ltd. predict a fiscal gap of 3.5 percent of gross domestic product in the year through March, compared with a targeted 3.3 percent. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is scheduled to give a budget speech on Feb. 1. “Increased spending on direct benefits to farmers would make achieving fiscal deficit targets even more challenging,” said William Foster, a senior credit officer at Moody’s Investors Service in New York, citing the limited scope for the government to increase its revenue resources in the near term. Moody’s handed India a rare upgrade in 2017, hoping reforms such as the introduction of a countrywide sales tax and bankruptcy code will pay off in the long term. The government, which had already exceeded its annual deficit target in October, faces a huge shortfall in indirect taxes, while revenue from asset sales and dividend payments from state-run companies are subdued. Investors are already pricing in weaker fiscal numbers. Yields on the 10-year benchmark have shot up in the past few weeks, while the rupee has slid. The rupee has gone from being Asia’s best-performing currency to the worst in just two weeks. A rebound in prices of oil, the nation’s top import, and concerns about the bailout for farmers has caused the rupee to miss out on a revival in emerging currencies. Funds are instead piling into the Indonesian rupiah and Chinese yuan on optimism over trade talks and signs of a Federal Reserve rate hike pause. India relies on imports to meet about 80 percent of its energy needs and higher costs may unsettle the government’s fiscal math. Every $10 rise in oil prices widens the current-account gap by $12.5 billion, or 43 basis points of the gross domestic product, and bumps up inflation by 49 basis points, according to a central bank study. The rupee’s decline is also accentuated by deepening bond losses, triggered by worries that the ruling party may bust its fiscal deficit target. Teresa John, an economist with Nirmal Bang in Mumbai, says the handouts to farmers are unlikely to happen this financial year. And while some initial estimates peg the cost at over 2 trillion rupees ($28.3 billion), or 1.2 percent of GDP, she said it’s unlikely to be that high as states may share the cost. “Such a direct benefit transfer scheme may subsume some of the existing food and fertilizer subsidies,” John said. Assuming some cost is shared by states, the additional net expenditure may be around 1 trillion rupees, or 0.5 percent of GDP, she said. She sees a fiscal deficit of about 3.5 percent of GDP in the next financial year as well. Investors will be keen to know where the additional funds will come from. While the government’s small savings pool is likely to make up for some of the shortfall, there are chances that the Reserve Bank of India may come to New Delhi’s rescue. “An interim dividend from RBI is the only way for them to cover these incremental expenses,” said Indira Rajaraman, a professor at the National Institute of Public Finance and a former board member at the RBI. “So the fiscal deficit will be higher than 3.3 percent but not a whole lot higher.”

india agriculture taxes elections budgets


Japan household spending falls for third straight month in November

Abstract: Japanese households cut spending for the third straight month in November as unseasonably warm weather reduced the need for heating and winter clothing. Spending by households with two or more people fell 0.6 percent in real terms from a year earlier to ¥281,041, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. The average temperature in Tokyo during the month was 14.0 C, about two degrees warmer than the same month the previous year, according to the Meteorological Agency. That led to a relative reduction in spending on electricity as people felt less need to turn up the heating, and to a fall in spending on clothing items such as sweaters, scarves and gloves, the ministry said. Spending on food items such as seafood and meat fell, possibly because the warm weather discouraged people from cooking hot pot dishes at home, a ministry official who briefed reporters said. Expenditures on cars and travel packages were also down, while figures rose for home renovations and education. The ministry maintained its assessment that household spending is “pausing in its recovery” for the third straight month. Private consumption, which accounts for more than half of gross domestic product, has been slow to pick up amid tepid wage gains. Companies remain reluctant to pass on record-high earnings to workers despite repeated calls by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for them to do so. The average income of salaried households with at least two people edged up 0.1 percent to ¥455,644 after adjusting for inflation, the data showed, the first rise in five months.

retailers
consumers
economic indicators
household spending


Abe and Theresa May agree to create new economic partnership to rival Japan-EU free trade treaty

Abstract: LONDON - Japan and the U.K. agreed Thursday to make a new economic partnership that is as ambitious as the Japan-EU free trade treaty, as the U.K. is scheduled to leave the European Union soon after the pact takes effect on Feb. 1. After talks with her Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe, who was visiting London, British Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed the envisioned bilateral arrangement, which would build on the Japan-EU deal, saying, “This gives businesses the stability and confidence to plan for the future, supports jobs and gives more choice and lower prices to consumers.” During the talks, Abe told May that the world did not want to see a disorderly Brexit and that he fully supported May’s withdrawal deal from the European Union, which is now facing defeat in Parliament. Some of Japan’s leading companies in Britain have warned that a no-deal Brexit could be a disaster. Abe said it was scenario no one wanted to see. “It is the strong will of Japan to further develop this strong partnership with the U.K., to invest more into the country and to enjoy further economic growth with the U.K.,” Abe said through an interpreter at a joint news conference with May. “That is why we truly hope that a no-deal Brexit will be avoided and, in fact, that is the wish of the whole world.” Japanese firms have spent more than £46 billion ($59 billion) in the U.K., encouraged by successive administrations dating back to Margaret Thatcher promising them a business-friendly base from which to trade across Europe. The future of Brexit remains deeply uncertain — with options ranging from a disorderly exit from the EU to another membership referendum — because British lawmakers are expected on Jan. 15 to vote down the deal May struck with the EU in November. Abe has been one of the strongest international supporters of May’s Brexit deal since it was reached in November. When the two met at a Group of 20 meeting in Buenos Aires in December, he asked for May’s support to avoid a “no deal” and to ensure transparency, predictability and legal stability in the process. “Japan is in total support of the draft withdrawal agreement worked out between the EU and Prime Minister May, which provides for transition to ensure legal stability for businesses that have invested into this country,” he said. However, investors fear that if her deal is defeated as is expected, then the world’s fifth-largest economy could be plunged into a chaotic no-deal exit from the world’s biggest trading bloc, which would severely disrupt supply chains. Britain’s business minister Greg Clark also said a no-deal Brexit would be a disaster and partners such as Japan need assurance that it will be avoided. May told reporters that the only way to avoid such a scenario was for lawmakers to support her deal. Carmakers Nissan, Toyota and Honda build roughly half of Britain’s cars and have warned about the loss of any free and unfettered trade with the European Union after Brexit. Carmakers have warned that their factories, which rely on the constant delivery of parts to enter production cycles, would be severely damaged if Britain leaves the EU without a trade deal, forcing the need for customs checks at borders. In a sign of such concerns, Honda said on Thursday it would shut its British operations for six days in April to help it counter any disruption. “This is to facilitate production recovery activity following any delays at borders on parts,” Honda said in a statement. “These contingency provisions have been put in place to best mitigate the risk of disruption to production operations at the Swindon factory.” Japan’s ambassador to Britain, Koji Tsuruoka, issued a blunt warning about Brexit last February when he said Japanese companies would have to leave Britain if trade barriers made them unprofitable. Abe and May said they had discussed strengthening post-Brexit economic opportunities for both nations, with the Japanese leader welcoming Britain’s interest in joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership trade bloc.


Dollar higher around ¥108.30 in Tokyo as stocks climb

Abstract: The dollar was firmer around ¥108.30 in late Tokyo trading on Friday, backed by higher stock prices and demand from Japanese importers. At 5 p.m., the dollar stood at ¥108.33-33, up from ¥107.92-92 at the same time on Thursday. The euro was at $1.1525-1526, down from $1.1540-1540, and at ¥124.86-86, up from ¥124.57-57. The dollar briefly topped ¥108.50 in overseas trading overnight, as expectations for further monetary tightening by the U.S. Federal Reserve grew after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the U.S. central bank’s balance sheet would become substantially smaller, traders said. In Tokyo, the dollar rose above ¥108.40 in the midmorning on real demand-backed buying by Japanese importers. The Nikkei stock average’s rebound also underpinned the dollar. But the greenback broke the ¥108.30 line in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s remarks indicating his continued eagerness to construct the Mexican border wall by declaring a state of emergency. In late trading, position-adjustment buybacks emerged ahead of the three-day weekend in Japan, a Japanese bank official said.


Tokyo stocks rebound on extended U.S. rally and weaker yen

Abstract: Stocks bounced back on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Friday, aided by the continued advance in U.S. equities and a pause in the yen’s appreciation against the dollar. The 225-issue Nikkei average rose 195.90 points, or 0.97 percent, to end at 20,359.70. On Thursday, the key market gauge lost 263.26 points. The Topix index of all first-section issues ended up 7.72 points, or 0.51 percent, at 1,529.73. It slumped 13.10 points the previous day. The Tokyo market opened higher, after the Dow Jones industrial average extended its winning streak to a fifth session on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday. Investors were also encouraged by the dollar turning higher against the yen, brokers said. The market maintained strength for the rest of Friday’s trading, thanks in part to active buying of Fast Retailing, a heavily weighted component of the Nikkei average, which helped push the price indicator up by over 100 points, they noted. “Investor sentiment improved after the Dow’s five-session rally to retake 24,000,” said Yoshihiko Tabei, chief analyst at Naito Securities Co. Hiroaki Hiwada, strategist at Toyo Securities Co., also observed signs of improvement in market sentiment. For instance, Yaskawa Electric fared well although the company said the previous day it had revised down earnings estimates for the current business year ending next month, he pointed out. But he added that some players retreated to the sidelines ahead of the three-day weekend in Japan. The market will be closed on Monday for a national holiday. Rising issues slightly outnumbered falling ones 1,033 to 1,003 in the TSE’s first section, while 92 issues were unchanged. Volume edged down to 1.295 billion shares from Thursday’s 1.308 billion shares. Major realtors attracted purchases on an industry report released Thursday that the business district office vacancy rate in Tokyo dropped in December. Noticeable gainers included Mitsui Fudosan and Mitsubishi Estate. Hitachi jumped 8.64 percent after media reports on Friday that the electric machinery giant is in final talks to suspend a British nuclear plant project. Among other major winners were game maker Nintendo and Toyota. On the other hand, Shochiku dived 6.82 percent due to the entertainment company’s downward earnings estimate revision on Friday. Yoshinoya Holdings plunged 5.79 percent on its sluggish March-November business results. Also sold were mobile phone carrier KDDI and cosmetics maker Shiseido. In index futures trading on the Osaka Exchange, the key March contract on the Nikkei average added 210 points to end at 20,320.

stocks
nikkei
tokyo stock exchange
topix


Hitachi preparing to suspend Anglesey nuclear power project in U.K.

Abstract: Hitachi Ltd. is in the final stages of preparations to suspend a project to build a nuclear power plant in the U.K., it was learned Friday. The major heavy machinery-maker will confirm the move at a board meeting that could be held as early as next week, sources with knowledge of the matter said. Hitachi is settling on the suspension as it is unclear whether the company will be able to receive additional assistance from the U.K. government, the sources said. It has had difficulty finding investors for a subsidiary that will operate the plant amid concerns over profitability. The firm is expected to book up to about ¥300 billion in related losses in the business year through March, the sources said. The focus of the project is the construction of a nuclear power plant on the island of Anglesey in north Wales, which had been scheduled to go into operation in the early 2020s. Due to the growing likelihood that the project’s costs will far exceed the initial estimate, reaching ¥3 trillion, the company had proposed to London a review of the project including the level of financial assistance that would be available to the firm. At a news conference on Thursday after a meeting with her Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May said that whether or not the project would go ahead was a commercial decision for Hitachi, leaving the future course of the project unclear. The firm plans to suspend the project and reduce the related workforce, the sources said. The company said in a statement that there has been no decision on the project, although it is closely examining a possible suspension and the potential financial impact from the perspective of economic rationality.

u.k .
wales
nuclear energy
hitachi
brexit


Nissan widens boardroom powers in wake of Ghosn scandal

Abstract: Nissan Motor Co.’s board, whose lapses in oversight were revealed by the arrest of former Chairman Carlos Ghosn for alleged financial improprieties, has taken on expanded powers. The board widened the scope of decisions that require its approval and decided on an interim process to set compensation for directors and executives, according to a statement Thursday. Nissan has come under fire for internal rules that provided little oversight over Ghosn, a globe-trotting business icon who once led a rescue of the automaker, in directing his own pay. Chief Executive Officer Hiroto Saikawa, a former Ghosn protege, has pledged to address corporate governance shortcomings that ensnared the company in the scandal involving the former chairman, who was accused of underreporting his income. The Japanese carmaker is rushing to regain credibility as questions swirl over its relationship with French partner Renault SA and the future of their automotive alliance. Nissan said the decision on who decides compensation would remain in effect until a committee on improving governance hands down its proposals. The company also updated its corporate governance code last month to clarify its policy on cross-shareholdings, which has direct bearing on its partnership with Renault. The board “re-emphasized its commitment to its alliance partnership with Renault and Mitsubishi Motors,” according to the statement. Ghosn held pivotal roles in Japan and France as chairman of Nissan and chief of Renault, as well as head of the alliance that binds together both carmakers. Nissan, where allegations of wrongdoing surfaced, moved swiftly to remove him from his post after his arrest on Nov. 19, while Renault nominally kept him in place as it awaits more evidence of misconduct. Renault’s board, meeting Thursday, won’t make any decision on Ghosn’s role at the carmaker, Agence-France Presse reported. Ghosn has disputed the allegations, though prosecutors in Japan have doubled down, re-arresting the executive last month and bringing new accusations that range from asking Nissan to backstop investment losses to misusing company funds. In a court appearance Tuesday, Ghosn said that he had been wrongly accused and unfairly detained, calling the allegations “meritless and unsubstantiated.” The following day, he lost an appeal against his continuing detention, diminishing the prospects of an early release on bail. His arrest came after a monthslong investigation by Nissan into his conduct, a probe that was kept from its French partner. If proven, each of Ghosn’s alleged offenses may carry a sentence of as much as 10 years, prosecutors have said. Renault is the largest shareholder in Nissan, and the Japanese company in return is the second-largest investor in Renault after the French state.

scandals
nissan
carmakers
carlos ghosn
corporate governance


Next Nippon Steel chief Eiji Hashimoto aspires to secure top global spot

Abstract: Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp.’s Executive Vice President Eiji Hashimoto expressed his ambition to make his company the world’s top steel-maker after being appointed to become the next chief of the Japanese steel giant on Thursday. “There is a fair chance that we can become the world’s No. 1 comprehensive steel-maker” with our vast range of products, high level of skills and grasp of the market through our global network, Hashimoto, a 63-year-old executive with ample experience in overseas operations, said at a news conference. Hashimoto, a graduate of Harvard Kennedy School, will replace the current president, Kosei Shindo, 69, as of April 1, the day when the company — currently ranked third in the world by crude steel production — will start afresh under a new name, Nippon Steel Corp. Shindo will assume the post of chairman and representative director. The announcement of the leadership shuffle came as the steel giant faces imminent seizure of its assets in South Korea due to compensation disputes with forced Korean laborers, an issue that has created tensions in relations between Japan and South Korea. Hashimoto declined to comment on the matter when asked by reporters after the news conference. A South Korean district court said Tuesday it has approved a request for the seizure after Nippon Steel refused to comply with an earlier court order to pay compensation to four South Koreans who were recognized as having been forced into labor during Japan’s 1910 to 1945 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. The Japanese company owns a 30 percent stake, or about 2.34 million shares, in Posco-Nippon Steel RHF Joint Venture. Some 81,000 shares, worth about 200 million won ($178,000) — which is on a par with the amount of compensation ordered by the South Korean top court for two plaintiffs — are subject to the seizure. The company said Wednesday in a statement the notification of the seizure by the court was “extremely regrettable” and that it will “consult with the Japanese government and take appropriate responses.” On trade frictions between the United States and China, Hashimoto expressed concerns that the dispute could push down the global demand for steel and the economy as a whole. “I presume that (the market situation) will be extremely difficult but … I hope to enhance competitiveness globally by focusing on emerging markets such as India where demand is expanding,” Hashimoto said.

nippon steel & sumitomo metal
wartime labor
eiji hashimoto


Ghosn charged with aggravated breach of trust over Nissan allegations; lawyers launch long-shot bail bid

Abstract: Tokyo prosecutors on Friday charged former Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn with two additional counts of financial misconduct, a move that prompted his lawyers later in the day to seek his release on bail following his arrest in November. The 64-year-old was charged with aggravated breach of trust in relation to the alleged transfer of private investment losses to Nissan amid the 2008 global financial crisis, and for understating his remuneration in the three fiscal years through March last year. The prosecutors also indicted former Nissan Representative Director Greg Kelly and Nissan itself for the alleged misstatement of Ghosn’s remuneration. Ghosn, who denies the allegations, has shown no signs of backing down. He declared his innocence at an open hearing at the Tokyo District Court on Tuesday that was held at his request to seek an explanation for his prolonged detention. Following the latest indictment, Ghosn’s defense counsel filed a request to the court to seek his release on bail. But his hopes of being granted bail appear dim, with his chief lawyer admitting at a recent news conference that his client could stay in detention for at least another six months until his trial begins, citing the complexity of a case involving documents in both Japanese and English. Ghosn has remained in custody at the Tokyo Detention House since Tokyo prosecutors arrested him on Nov. 19 along with close American aide Greg Kelly, who has been released on bail, for allegedly understating his remuneration in Nissan securities reports submitted to Japanese regulators during a five-year period through March 2015. He was then served a fresh arrest warrant on the same charge that covered the three years through March 2018. The sum of the remuneration that was allegedly underreported totals about ¥9 billion ($83 million). He was served a third arrest warrant on Dec. 21 for allegedly shifting a currency swap contract with losses worth ¥1.85 billion to Nissan in 2008 and causing damage to the company by having it pay $14.7 million to a Saudi businessman, who guaranteed credit for Ghosn, in the following years. Ghosn admits the contract was temporarily transferred but said Nissan incurred no losses. He also said the payments to the businessman, Khaled Al-Juffali, via a Nissan subsidiary, were compensation for taking care of difficult business problems in the Middle East. The prosecutors, meanwhile, believe Ghosn committed aggravated breach of trust the moment he transferred the contract to Nissan. The arrest and detention of Ghosn, once among the most celebrated executives in Japan, has sparked international criticism of Japan’s justice system, which effectively allows suspects to be held indefinitely and questioned without a lawyer present. Friday marked the last day of Ghosn’s most recent detention period approved by the Tokyo District Court, and prosecutors had to decide whether to indict or release him. According to one of his lawyers, Ghosn developed a high fever earlier this week while in detention, but his health has improved. Ghosn fell ill Wednesday evening, and his family in Paris issued a statement the following day expressing their concern and asking Japanese authorities to provide information on his health. “I recently learned that my husband is suffering from a high fever at the detention center in Tokyo, but my information is limited to news reports as no one in his family has been allowed to contact him since November 19,” the statement by Ghosn’s wife Carole said. “I am pleading with the Japanese authorities to provide us with any information at all about my husband’s health. We are fearful and very worried his recovery will be complicated while he continues to endure such harsh conditions and unfair treatment,” it said. Ghosn’s lawyers are now able to meet him. They were unable to do so on Thursday as a doctor at the Tokyo Detention House said he needed some rest. Kelly, in contrast, was released on bail on Dec. 25 and his lawyer said Friday he has since undergone surgery for spinal stenosis at a hospital in Ibaraki Prefecture and moved to a residence approved by the court. Before his arrest, he had been scheduled to undergo surgery on Dec. 7 in Tennessee, according to his family.

courts
corruption
scandals
nissan
carmakers
carlos ghosn
greg kelly


Saudi woman's bid to flee family rallies opposition to male guardianship

Abstract: RIYADH - An 18-year-old Saudi woman’s flight from what she said was an abusive family has rallied opposition to the kingdom’s male guardianship system, still a major constraint on women despite the conservative Muslim country’s efforts to open up. Some freedoms have been granted under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who ended a ban on women driving, eased restrictions on gender mixing and championed firsts such as allowing women to serve in the armed forces. Yet those changes have been accompanied by a crackdown on dissent, including the arrest and alleged torture of some of the activists who campaigned for decades to improve women’s rights — as well as Muslim preachers who opposed them. Many activists are calling for an end to the guardianship system, which has been chipped away at slowly over the years but remains in force. Under the system, every Saudi women is assigned a male relative — often a father or husband but sometimes an uncle, brother or even a son — whose approval is needed if she is to marry, obtain a passport and travel abroad. The plight of Rahaf Mohammed al-Qanun, who slipped away from her family last weekend during a holiday in Kuwait, recalls the cases of other Saudi women who fled mistreatment, only to be forcibly returned to the kingdom and never heard from again. Amid global outrage at Saudi Arabia over last year’s murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, al-Qanun’s tweets from Bangkok airport sparked an online campaign. She barricaded herself inside a hotel room for hours until the Thai government reversed its decision to send her home. In some countries, her adult age would have prevented the authorities from telling her family anything about her. In Saudi Arabia, her gender meant she was her father’s ward. “Remove guardianship and we won’t all migrate” trended this week on Twitter in Saudi Arabia. Mai, who identified herself as a 36-year-old physician, said she was embarrassed to have two children and a degree from Harvard University but still be viewed as a minor. “I am trusted to make life and death decisions for patients, trusted to raise kids … but not trusted to make my own decisions regarding MY life. The irony! #EndMaleGuardianship,” she tweeted. Al-Qanun was also attacked on social media for shaming her family and renouncing Islam, highlighting the delicate balance Crown Prince Mohammed must strike in reforming Saudi society without destabilizing it. Guardianship’s status between law and custom makes it a thorny issue for Prince Mohammed, who indicated last year he favored ending the system but stopped short of endorsing its annulment. “If I say yes to this question, that means I’m creating problems for the families that don’t want to give freedom for their daughters,” he told U.S. magazine The Atlantic. Without a codified system of law to go with the texts making up Shariah — Islamic law — the Saudi police and judiciary have long cited social customs in enforcing certain prohibitions on women. Many aspects of guardianship stem from informal practice rather than from specific laws. Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s most gender-segregated nations, is ranked 138th of 144 states in the 2017 Global Gender Gap, a World Economic Forum study on how women fare in economic and political participation, health and education. Activists launched the I Am My Own Guardian campaign in 2016 demanding legal representation. King Salman issued an order the following year allowing women to benefit from services such as education and health care without the consent of a male guardian, though rights groups say this is being implemented only on a limited basis. Other challenges remain. There is no formal bar on women buying or renting property, but it can be difficult for them to do so without a male relative, according to rights groups. Authorities have removed restrictions on women in the labor code and ended formal requirements for them to obtain a guardian’s permission to work, but some employers still demand this and are not penalized for doing so. The kingdom also ended requirements that a woman bring a male relative to identify her in court, and women can obtain a license and drive cars without their guardian’s approval. Mohammed al-Issa, a former justice minister who sits on the kingdom’s top clerical body, said last year there was no reason why women should be barred from obtaining a passport or traveling without the consent of a male guardian, but it may take time for society to accept that. Some Saudi women do not want to wait. “We have the right (to) be treated as adults since we’re above 18 years,” a woman named Fatin wrote online. “This guardianship is no more than modern enslavement system!”

immigration
australia
saudi arabia
rights
women
refugees
tradition
rahaf mohammed al-qunun


Is Saudi Arabia on the road to ending the scourge of child marriage?

Abstract: BEIRUT - Saudi Arabia is trying to ban child marriage through new regulations, but loopholes are leaving young girls in the deeply conservative kingdom unprotected, campaigners said Thursday. The Shura Council, a top advisory body to the government, approved regulations on Wednesday to prohibit marriage for girls and boys under 15, and those under 18 will need approval from a specialized court, according to council member Lina Almaeena. Currently, the conservative Muslim country does not have a minimum legal age for marriage, and women live under a guardianship system where they must have permission from a male relative to marry, work and travel. Almaeena said the approval by the council, which does not have legislative powers but can propose laws to the king and the cabinet, is a “great accomplishment” for the kingdom in protecting its young citizens. “There were no marriage limitations before, so for this to be passed and prohibit marriage for a child under 15 is a huge accomplishment because you will be protecting young boys and girls,” she said by phone. Globally, 12 million girls marry before age 18 every year, according to Girls Not Brides, a coalition working to end child marriage. The United Nations regards the practice as a human rights violation. Heather Hamilton, deputy director of Girls Not Brides, said it is “encouraging” that the kingdom is setting age limits for marriage, but the rules are a “far cry” from protecting children under 18, who can still marry with court approval. “Girls are still at risk of being forced into marriage if their parents can persuade a court to agree,” she said in an emailed statement. “We know that even in countries like the U.S. and U.K., courts offer little protection to girls who don’t want to marry but risk alienation or retribution from their families if they tell court officials their real feelings.” Child marriage — defined internationally as marriage under 18 — remains legal in Britain. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, teenagers can wed at 16 with parental consent. In Scotland, they do not need consent. The majority of U.S. states do not lay out a minimum age for marriage if statutory exceptions are met, such as parental or judicial consent or in case of pregnancy. Campaigners say children married young are more likely to leave school, get divorced, experience domestic abuse and mental health problems and live in poverty than those who marry later. “There needs to be a complete ban on child marriage — with no exceptions. You have to make it clear to society that this is a negative social phenomenon and it should be stopped,” said Adam Coogle, Middle East researcher at Human Rights Watch.

saudi arabia
rights
women
marriage
tradition


But is it Nazi art? The business of shedding light on gifts with dark histories

Abstract: BERN - When Georges F. Keller began donating paintings by masters like Henri Matisse and Salvador Dali to the Kunstmuseum in Bern, his reputation was not in doubt. The Swiss-Brazilian national had been a respected art dealer who gifted 116 works to the museum from the 1950s until his death in 1981. But last year, the Kunstmuseum’s provenance researcher came across an archival document linking Keller to Etienne Bignou, a Frenchman now considered a “red flag” dealer because he traded art with Germans in Nazi-occupied Paris. For the Bern museum, the potential fallout of gifts with possible Nazi ties was not new. The museum was the sole heir of hundreds of major pieces left behind by Cornelius Gurlitt, who died in 2014 and whose father, Hildebrand, was tasked by the Nazis with selling art stolen from Jews or confiscated as “degenerate” works. The case captured huge global attention and the arduous process of trying to restore the Gurlitt treasures to their rightful owners is ongoing. But there are signs that the Gurlitt ordeal, with the heavy legal and historical responsibility accompanying the artworks, has changed attitudes across Switzerland about an institution’s duty concerning suspect art. “I clearly see a before and after the Gurlitt case,” Kunstmuseum director Nina Zimmer said. “The climate has changed, the tone has changed, the questions have changed and I think we all agree that it is part of the museum’s task to look at where the collections come from and to deliver answers,” she said. Keller and Bignou worked together in Paris at the Gallerie Georges Petit, which specialized in Impressionist works, until it closed in 1933, according to archives published by the Frick Art Reference Library. Bignou then set up his own eponymous gallery in the French capital with Keller, who also had French nationality, as his partner. Keller later became the director of the New York branch of the Bignou gallery, the archives show. Amelie Ebbinghaus, a provenance researcher at the firm Art Loss Register, said that documents from both the French state and the Allied powers indicate that Bignou traded with German buyers in Paris and was identified at the time as a “collaborator.” “That obviously doesn’t mean that the works came from problematic sources, but it can’t be ruled out,” she said. It is not clear what Bignou’s potentially dubious connections mean for the works Keller gave to the Kunstmuseum, including Matisse’s “The Blue Blouse” (1936), which depicts a young woman in bold, primary colors. Zimmer said that she had her own questions about Keller before the Bignou connection was established, since none of his donations to various Swiss museums had come with documentation. “I was always curious,” she said. “We have almost zero knowledge of where these works came from before he gave them to us.” But once the Keller-Bignou link was confirmed, it was “immediately clear that we need to know more about these works,” she said. The Bern museum has applied for federal funding to conduct a full audit of Keller’s legacy. That approach — and new Swiss government grants for provenance research — point to changing practices in a country with a mixed record on Nazi-looted art. “Switzerland had the position that it was a neutral, free country and that any trade that happened in Switzerland in the period of 1933 to 1945 was not affected by the Nazis,” Ebbinghaus said. But that view was not necessarily shared by other countries, who pointed to artworks sold in Switzerland at cut-rate prices by Jews fleeing the Nazis, she said. In the late 1990s, Switzerland and others came under pressure to probe their World War II-era history, not only in looted art but also bank accounts and gold deposits. A 1998 landmark international agreement on returning art stolen by the Nazis known as the Washington Declaration was drawn up. The question of what constitutes looted art, as well as research suggesting that possibly thousands of works held in Switzerland were sold by Jews under threat, continue to provoke debate. However, Swiss museums and auction houses are increasingly showing caution in handling problematic pieces, Ebbinghaus told AFP. Establishing ownership of a looted piece, let alone identifying a rightful heir, is notoriously tricky. This has been highlighted in prominent cases such as the battle between an American descendant of Jewish Holocaust victims and Austria’s Belvedere Museum over masterpieces by Gustav Klimt featured in the 2015 film “Woman in Gold” starring Helen Mirren. Zimmer said the challenges for Switzerland were a lack of qualified provenance researchers and limited funding. But she identified private archives as a roadblock that threatens all provenance investigations. “Sometimes you make great progress and then you find out that the exact next document you need is in a family archive and you need to convince them to open it for you,” she said. And that can be quite a tall order, she added. She stressed that the Bern museum would continue to push for more provenance research by building ties with universities and creating programs to cultivate a new generation of specialists. “We need to dive deeper in there, and we will,” she said.

wwii history germany art auctions museums switzerland nazis


Ocean temperatures rising faster than thought in 'delayed response' to global warming: scientists

Abstract: LONDON - The world’s oceans are rising in temperature faster than previously believed as they absorb most of the world’s growing climate-changing emissions, scientists said Thursday. Ocean heat — recorded by thousands of floating robots — has been setting records repeatedly over the last decade, with 2018 expected to be the hottest year yet, displacing the 2017 record, according to an analysis by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. That is driving rising sea levels as oceans warm and expand and is helping fuel more intense hurricanes and other extreme weather, scientists warn. The warming, measured since 1960, is faster than predicted by scientists in a 2013 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report that looked at ocean warming, according to the study, published this week in the journal Science. “It’s mainly driven by the accumulation of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to human activities,” said Lijing Cheng, a lead author of the study from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The increasing rate of ocean warming “is simply a signature of increasing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere,” Cheng said. Leading climate scientists said in October that the world has about 12 years left to shift the world away from still rising emissions toward cleaner renewable energy systems, or risk facing some of the worst impacts of climate change. Those include worsening water and food shortages, stronger storms, heat waves and other extreme weather, and rising seas. For the last 13 years, an ocean observing system called Argo has been used to monitor changes in ocean temperatures, Cheng said, leading to more reliable data that is the basis for the new ocean heat records. The system uses almost 4,000 drifting ocean robots that dive to a depth of 2,000 meters every few days, recording temperature and other indicators as they float back to the surface. Through the data collected, scientists have documented increases in rainfall intensity and more powerful storms such as hurricanes Harvey in 2017 and Florence in 2018. Cheng explained that oceans are the energy source for storms, and can fuel more powerful ones as temperatures — a measure of energy — rise. Storms over the 2050-2100 period are expected to be more powerful than storms from the 1950-2000 period, the scientist said. Cheng said that the oceans, which have so far absorbed over 90 percent of the additional solar energy trapped by rising emissions, will see continuing temperature hikes in the future. “Because the ocean has large heat capacity, it is characterized as a ‘delayed response’ to global warming, which means that the ocean warming could be more serious in the future,” the researcher said. “For example, even if we meet the target of Paris Agreement (to limit climate change), ocean will continue warming and sea level will continue rise. Their impacts will continue.” If the targets of the Paris deal to hold warming to “well below” 2 degrees C, or preferably 1.5, can be met, however, the expected damage by 2100 could be halved, Cheng said. For now, however, climate changing emissions continue to rise, and “I don’t think enough is being done to tackle the rising temperatures,” Cheng said.

oceans
fishing
climate change
environment


Study details how high-fiber diets make for healthier lives and lower risk of diseases

Abstract: LONDON - People who eat lots of high-fiber and whole grain foods have lower risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and other chronic diseases than people whose diets are low in fiber, a study commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) says. For every 8-gram increase in fiber eaten a day, total deaths and incidences of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer fell by 5 to 27 percent, the study said. Protection against stroke and breast cancer also rose. A good target for those wanting to reap health gains would be to eat 25 to 29 grams of dietary fiber a day, the analysis found. But the data, published in a series of systematic reviews and meta-analyses in The Lancet medical journal, also suggested higher dietary fiber intakes could give even greater protection. “Our findings provide convincing evidence for nutrition guidelines to focus on increasing dietary fiber and on replacing refined grains with whole grains. This reduces incidence risk and mortality from a broad range of important diseases,” said Jim Mann, a professor at the University of Otago, New Zealand who co-led the research. According to the study, most people worldwide currently consume less than 20 grams of dietary fiber a day. In Britain in 2015, an advisory committee on nutrition recommended an increase in dietary fiber intake to 30 grams a day, but only 9 percent of British adults manage to reach this target. In the United States, fiber intake among adults averages 15 grams a day. Mann said the health benefits of dietary fiber — contained in foods such as whole grains, pulses, vegetables and fruit — come from its chemistry, physical properties, physiology and its effects on metabolism. “Fiber-rich whole foods that require chewing and retain much of their structure in the gut increase satiety and help weight control, He said. “(And) the breakdown of fiber in the large bowel by the resident bacteria has additional wide-ranging effects, including protection from colorectal cancer.”

food
heart disease
diet
diabetes
diseases


What makes female birds swoon? Big brains

Abstract: WASHINGTON - Male birds are often the ones with the most vibrant feathers, or the most elaborate songs, but researchers said Thursday that what lady birds could really appreciate is a male who shows his intelligence. The report in the journal Science aligns with one of Charles Darwin’s old theories, which held that mate choice could contribute to the evolution of intelligence. “Our study demonstrates that direct observation of cognitive skills can affect mate preference,” said the study, authored by researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing and at Leiden University in The Netherlands. Researchers used 34 small Australian parrots, known as budgerigars, to test the notion that a suitor’s smarts could outweigh style or songs. A female bird was exposed to two similar looking males, in a cage in which she could only interact with one at a time. Prior study designs like this have shown that females tend to lean toward males with slightly nicer appearances, or more appealing songs. Researchers could tell which male was preferred by the amount of time the female spent interacting with him. Then, they swept away the lesser male to engage him in a special training session in opening a container filled with seeds. The female — and her preferred male — received no such training, and were given open boxes of seed to eat from freely. Next, the female was placed in a cage with a sealed box of seed, and was allowed to watch the trained male cleverly open his sealed box of seed. She also watched the untrained male — whom she preferred at first glance — being unable to open his container. After that, eight of the nine females changed their minds, apparently, and began spending more time in the cage interacting with the more capable box-opening male than they had before the experiment. “This finding supports hypotheses, starting with that of Darwin, that sexual selection may affect the evolution of cognitive traits across animal species,” said the study. In other words, showing one’s intelligence could help one gain more mates and better spread one’s DNA on to future generations. But experts caution that the notion is difficult to study in the animal world, particularly when complex behaviors like mating rituals are in play. The researchers “offer convincing evidence that female budgerigars modified their mate preference in favor of trained males after observing them perform complex foraging tasks,” wrote evolution experts Georg Striedter and Nancy Burley of the University of California, Irvine, in an accompanying Perspective article in the journal Science. However, it’s not entirely clear that the females appreciated the box-opening as a sign of intelligence, they added. “The fact that females lacked the opportunity to perform the foraging task themselves suggests that they may have had little basis for understanding the exercise as a problem in need of a clever solution,” they wrote. “Instead, they might have attributed male success in opening the containers to superior physical strength.” In any case, the two outside experts praised the approach as having “considerable promise for advancing empirical research on mate choice for cognitive traits” and said it will likely “become an important tool for mate choice research in future studies.”


In first, Native American tribe displaced by sea gets land to relocate

Abstract: NEW YORK - A small Native American tribe in Louisiana whose land has nearly vanished into the sea has moved a step closer to relocating its community further inland after authorities acquired new land for the move, part of a first-of-its-kind project. The 515 acres (208 hectares) of farmland will be made available to members of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw tribe and other inhabitants of the Isle de Jean Charles to relocate after their village was nearly wiped by erosion and rising seas. “I’m happy that finally, after three years, we have property bought,” Chantel Comardelle, the tribal executive secretary of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw, said on Thursday. Isle de Jean Charles is a small strip of land in Louisiana’s coastal south that has been home to the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw Indians since the tribe found refuge there in the early 19th century. But since the 1950s it has lost 98 percent of its mass. Its population has shrunk from 400 inhabitants to about a dozen families, officials said. A U.S. Geological Survey study says southeast Louisiana is losing wetlands at the rate of a football field an hour. Pat Forbes, an official with the state of Louisiana, which handled the purchase, said he hoped this first attempt in U.S. history to move an entire community losing its home to water would serve as a blueprint for generations to come. “Lots of people (worldwide) are contemplating moving communities that are going under water,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone. The new site, acquired for nearly $12 million, was chosen because its bayou and wetland would help keep alive the community’s historical ties to water and fishing tradition, Forbes said. The relocation has generated mixed emotions as Isle de Jean Charles families are leaving behind their ancestors’ cemetery and a way of life. Two prior attempts to relocate the village have failed, said Forbes. “We hope that now that we’ve got the land purchased that it’s going to bolster people’s confidence.” Authorities hope to break ground later this year. “I’m glad to see finally something is getting done,” said Comardelle.

oceans
climate change
environment
native americans
louisiana


AI beats doctors at detecting early signs of cervical cancer

Abstract: MIAMI - Artificial intelligence may be poised to wipe out cervical cancer, after a study showed computer algorithms can detect precancerous lesions far better than trained experts or conventional screening tests. According to the World Health Organization, cervical cancer is the fourth-most-frequent cancer in women, with an estimated 570,000 new cases globally in 2018. Despite major advances in screening and vaccination — which can prevent the spread of human papillomavirus, which causes most cases of cervical cancer — those gains have mainly benefited women in rich nations. Some 266,000 women died of cervical cancer globally in 2012, 90 percent of them in low- and middle-income nations, according to the WHO. “Cervical cancer is now a disease of poverty, of low resources,” said senior author Mark Schiffman, a doctor at the National Cancer Institute’s Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics near Washington who has been searching for a cure to cervical cancer for 35 years. “We are trying to find ways that are extremely cheap, extremely easy but very accurate, so that we can attack cervical cancer by vaccine and also a bit later through a simple technique that is cell-phone based or something like it,” he said. Schiffman was part of a team that built an algorithm from an archive of more than 60,000 cervical images collected from Costa Rica. The pictures were taken using just a speculum, small light and camera — no advanced imaging required. The study began in the 1990s, involving more than 9,400 women who were followed for up to 18 years. The AI technique, called automated visual evaluation, found precancerous cells with 91 percent accuracy, according to a report published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. In comparison, a human expert review found 69 percent of precancerous cells, while conventional lab tests like Pap smears found 71 percent. Among women ages 25 to 49, who face the highest risk of cervical cancer, the AI algorithm was even more accurate, finding 97.7 percent of precancerous cells. “It performed much better than humans looking at those same pictures. It certainly performed a lot better than me,” Schiffman said. The goal is to roll out the technology in the next three to five years, enrolling more patients in clinical trials worldwide and eventually making it easily accessible everywhere. Schiffman said a deal has just been struck with a major philanthropic group to assist in the process. The technology has not been patented on purpose, Schiffman said. The aim is to keep costs very low so that women most in need can benefit. “I think now we have a possible tool that can go anywhere and not sacrifice scientific quality but actually offer a medically valid screen,” he said. Jennifer Wu, an obstetrician-gynecologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York who was not involved in the research, called the findings “very exciting.” “This could really cut down on a lot of missed cases of cervical cancer, and allow more patients access to diagnosis and treatment,” she said.


Poland arrests two over spying allegations, including Huawei employee

Abstract: WARSAW - Poland has arrested a Chinese employee of Huawei and a Polish national involved in cyberbusiness on allegations of spying, Polish media reported on Friday, deepening the controversy over Western criticism of the Chinese telecoms equipment maker. U.S. intelligence agencies allege Huawei Technologies Co. is linked to China’s government and that its equipment could contain “backdoors” for use by government spies. No evidence has been produced publicly and the firm has repeatedly denied the claims. But the criticism has led several Western countries and companies to look into whether they should allow Huawei’s equipment to be used in their telecoms networks, straining relations with Beijing. Polish public TV channel TVP said security services had searched the local offices of Huawei, as well as the offices of telecoms firm Orange Polska, where it said the Polish national works. China’s foreign ministry said it was “greatly concerned” by the reports, and urged Poland to handle the case “justly.” “We are aware of the situation, and we are looking into it. We have no comment for the time being,” Huawei said in a statement. “Huawei complies with all applicable laws and regulations in the countries where it operates, and we require every employee to abide by the laws and regulations in the countries where they are based,” it added. Orange Polska said in a statement the security agency had on Tuesday gathered materials related to an employee, whom it did not identify. The company added it did not know if the investigation was linked to the employee’s professional work, and that it would continue to cooperate with the authorities. TVP said the security services also searched the offices of Poland’s telecoms regulator, the Office of Electronic Communications, but the regulator denied this. In December, Canadian authorities arrested a top Huawei executive, Meng Wanzhou, at the behest of U.S. authorities as part of an investigation into alleged violations of U.S. trade sanctions, raising tensions with China at a time when Washington and Beijing are engaged in a broader trade war. The West’s security concerns surrounding Huawei, and fellow Chinese telecoms equipment firm ZTE Corp., centre around China’s National Intelligence Law. Approved in 2017, the law states that Chinese “organizations and citizens shall, in accordance with the law, support, cooperate with, and collaborate in national intelligence work.” This has sparked fears Huawei could be asked by the Chinese government to incorporate “backdoors” into their equipment that would allow Beijing access, for spying or sabotage purposes. Some experts also see a risk that Chinese intelligence may develop an ability to subvert Huawei’s equipment. Norway said on Wednesday it was considering whether to join other Western nations in excluding Huawei from building part of the country’s new 5G telecoms network. “The Chinese national is a businessman working in a major electronics company … the Pole is a person known in circles associated with cyberbusiness,” Maciej Wasik, the deputy head of Poland’s special services, told state news agency PAP. The arrested pair will be held for three months, PAP reported, citing the spokesperson for Poland’s head of special services. TVP said the Polish national was a former agent of the internal security agency. The agency did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.

china
poland
espionage
huawei
meng wanzhou


India launches national program to fight air pollution, but experts are skeptical

Abstract: NEW DELHI - India has launched a program to rein in dangerous pollution levels in more than a hundred cities, an initiative the government expects to significantly improve air quality. But the plan drew immediate criticism from environmentalists, who said it lacked a clear framework to tackle toxicity levels that have led to millions of deaths. India is home to the world’s 14 most polluted cities, according to the World Health Organization. Toxic air claimed 1.24 million lives there in 2017, a study in Lancet Planetary Health showed last month. The National Clean Air Program aims to cut emissions in the 102 most polluted cities by 20 to 30 percent by 2024. During its launch Thursday, Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan said he believed NCAP would substantially improve air quality. “We need to ensure that we give clean air to our children and the generations to come,” he told a news conference. The plan aims to push through cuts in industrial emissions and vehicular exhaust fumes, introduce stringent rules for transport fuels and biomass burning and reduce dust pollution. It will also upgrade and increase monitoring systems. Its launch, put back from last year due to bureaucratic delays, coincides with the annual peak of pollution levels in northern India, including New Delhi. Since October, residents of the capital, home to more than 20 million people, have struggled to breathe under a thick smog. Last week pollution surged to “emergency” levels as the Central Pollution Control Board’s air quality index of poisonous particulate matter hit 440 — more than 12 times the U.S. government’s recommended limit. Sunil Dahiya, senior campaigner with environmental group Greenpeace, welcomed the launch of the program but said it lacked focus and ambition. “We hoped that the NCAP would be much stronger, would provide sector-wise targets, specific targets for the cities and mention a strong legal backing to take action against nonimplementation,” he said. “We hope that the environment ministry shows more seriousness in implementing and strengthening the plan.” As pollution spiked in New Delhi in October and November, the government adopted measures ranging from a temporary ban on construction activities and garbage burning to a clampdown on coal-fired power stations. But the measures were inadequate and poorly implemented, largely because of a lack of resources and political will.


India's Rahul Gandhi rebuked for 'misogynistic' remarks about Modi letting female minister face grilling

Abstract: NEW DELHI - Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has come under fire for “misogynistic” remarks made when asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to “be a man” and not field a woman, the defense minister, to defend him in debates over a controversial fighter jet deal. Gandhi, president of the Congress party, on Wednesday mocked Modi for staying away from Parliament as it discussed accusations of corruption against the government in a deal to buy 36 Rafale planes from France’s Dassault Aviation and a decision to pick Reliance Defence as a domestic partner. The government and the companies deny the charges, but the latest controversy has intensified the rivalry between Congress and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of a general election due to be held by May. Gandhi, the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty that has ruled India for decades, often calls Modi a “thief” while the prime minister addresses him as “privileged dynast” in most of his public speeches. “He runs away from the people’s court and asks a woman, Nirmala Sitharaman ji, ‘Defend me, I won’t be able to defend myself,'” Gandhi said at a public rally, referring to Modi and using an honorific for Sitharaman. Gandhi’s comments drew widespread criticism on social media. Some people said Sitharaman — the second woman to run the defense ministry after the late Indira Gandhi, a former prime minister and Rahul Gandhi’s grandmother — deserved an apology. Sitharaman has not commented but her Cabinet colleague, Sushma Swaraj, also a woman, said Gandhi’s comments hit a “new low in the history of Indian politics.” #BeAMan was one of the most trending hashtags on Twitter and some women posted their pictures holding placards that said “Mr. Rahul Gandhi, real men don’t insult women.” Congress rejected the accusations of misogyny, saying Gandhi was a “progressive, inclusive and liberal leader” and that the party believed in gender equality. It added the reference to “woman” by Gandhi was an “innocent figure of speech.” But the National Commission for Women, a statutory body that fights for women’s rights, condemned Gandhi’s comments. “The remarks made are extremely misogynistic, offensive, unethical and show an extreme disrespect towards the dignity and honor of women in general,” the commission said in a notice. “The commission strongly condemns such irresponsible and disparaging views of persons holding responsible positions.” The controversy came a day after Indian cricketer Hardik Pandya apologized for comments made during a high-profile talk show aired on Sunday, when he bragged about “hitting” on women and telling his parents about them. “Honestly, I got a bit carried away with the nature of the show,” Pandya, currently with the Indian team playing in Australia, said on Twitter. “In no way did I mean to disrespect or hurt anyone’s sentiments. Respect.”

gender
rahul gandhi
women
discrimination
narendra modi
nirmala sitharaman


Tsai Ing-wen appoints new premier after Taiwan ruling party's poll defeats spark resignations

Abstract: TAIPEI - Taiwan on Friday appointed the former chairman of its ruling pro-independence party as premier after the incumbent resigned along with the entire Cabinet in response to local election defeats. November’s election losses presented a major challenge to President Tsai Ing-wen, who faced mounting criticism at home over her reform agenda while facing renewed threats from China, which considers the self-ruled island its own. Tsai appointed Su Tseng-chang, a two-term former chairman of her Democratic Progressive Party, saying Taiwan faced challenges amid rising Chinese threats and trade tension between key backer the United States and China. “Taiwan’s democracy and development must face certain challenges,” Tsai said, adding that China was looking to force its “one country, two systems” structure on the island. Su vowed to lead the administration amid the challenges and learn from earlier mistakes. “The situation is difficult and the task is tough,” he said. Su’s appointment followed the widely expected resignation of William Lai, the second premier to quit since Tsai took office in 2016, in line with a practice of leaders quitting when their party loses a major election. “I must resign to take responsibility for the election defeat,” Lai told a Cabinet meeting earlier on Friday. Taiwan’s premier forms the Cabinet and runs the government on a day-to-day basis. New ministerial appointments are expected soon. Just a year ahead of the next presidential election, analysts say Tsai and the new premier must shore up public support for the government’s policy on China ties and further boost the island’s export-reliant economy in a challenging year amid the China-U.S. trade war. Su was appointed premier in 2006 by former President Chen Shui-bian, who infuriated Beijing and strained Taiwan’s relationship with the United States during his tenure from 2000 to 2008. Su, nicknamed “light bulb” by his supporters for his bald head, has led Taiwan’s most populous New Taipei City for years. He was defeated by a candidate from the China-friendly opposition Kuomintang in November. Tsai has said her administration would reflect on the election defeats but would stand firm to defend Taiwan’s democracy in the face of renewed Chinese threats. Chinese President Xi Jinping, who has stepped up pressure on Taiwan since Tsai became president, threatened this month to use force to bring the island under Beijing’s rule and urged “reunification.” “The new premier not only has to focus on domestic matters but must also pay much more attention to cross-Strait and national security issues,” Yao Chia-wen, a senior adviser to the president, said. He said the new premier must deal with issues such as the prevention of swine fever from China and possible election interference. Some from within the embattled leader’s party have urged Tsai not to seek re-election. She has not explicitly said whether she would run for president in 2020 but has warned against Chinese efforts to interfere with elections.

china
taiwan
tsai ing-wen
su tseng-chang


Video shows New Zealand dinghy, adrift with four aboard, in near miss with giant cruise liner

Abstract: WELLINGTON - Dramatic video footage has emerged of a 122,000-ton cruise liner narrowly missing a tiny dinghy with four people on board. The inflatable, carrying two young men and two young women, had run out of fuel when it found itself in the path of the Celebrity Solstice in New Zealand’s Bay of Plenty. Footage shows the dinghy drifting helplessly as the 315-meter (1,033-foot) liner looms down on it, missing by just meters as it manages to veer away at the last minute. The footage, from December, was posted on the Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s Facebook page this week under the heading “very lucky.” A passenger on board the liner, John Scott, wrote that watching the drama unfold “was sickening and everybody I saw was filled with alarm. The ship’s horn was going incessantly.” If the vessel had not been able to veer slightly away “it could have been much worse,” Bay of Plenty harbor master Peter Buell said Friday. As the Celebrity Solstice slides past, a pleasure craft can be seen racing to the aid of the dinghy and towing it away. “There was definitely a look of fear on their faces,” the rescuer, who did not wish to be identified, told the New Zealand Herald. “One girl said to me, ‘We could have died, eh’?”


Myanmar court rejects appeal by jailed Reuters reporters

Abstract: YANGON - A Myanmar court on Friday rejected the appeal of two Reuters reporters sentenced to seven years in jail on charges of breaking the Official Secrets Act, saying the defense had not provided sufficient evidence to show they were innocent. Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were convicted by a lower court in September in a landmark case that has raised questions about Myanmar’s progress toward democracy and sparked an outcry from diplomats and human rights advocates. “It was a suitable punishment,” said High Court Judge Aung Naing, referring to the seven-year prison term meted out by the lower court. The defense has the option of making a further appeal to the country’s supreme court, based in the capital Naypyitaw. “Today’s ruling is yet another injustice among many inflicted upon Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo. They remain behind bars for one reason: those in power sought to silence the truth,” said Reuters Editor-in-Chief Stephen J. Adler in a statement. “Reporting is not a crime, and until Myanmar rights this terrible wrong, the press in Myanmar is not free, and Myanmar’s commitment to rule of law and democracy remains in doubt.” In their appeal arguments last month, defense lawyers had cited evidence of a police setup and lack of proof of a crime. They asserted the lower court that tried the case had wrongly placed the burden of proof on the defendants. The defense also said prosecutors had failed to prove the reporters gathered and collected secret information, sent information to an enemy of Myanmar or that they had an intention to harm national security. Explaining his verdict, Judge Aung Naing said the reporters had behaved in a way that showed they intended to harm the country. The judge cited meetings between reporter Wa Lone and members of the security forces as well as a notebook found at the journalist’s house that contained the phone number of a member of the Arakan Army, an armed ethnic rebel group he had reported on while covering peace negotiations several years ago. Wa Lone had testified during the trial that the phone number did not work and he did not have contact with the rebel group. “Action can be taken against them if, judging by their behavior and characteristics, it appears they will harm the national security and interests of the country,” said Aung Naing. He said the defense had failed to prove the arrests were a set-up by authorities. “I lost all my hope,” said a weeping Chit Su Win, the wife of reporter Kyaw Soe Oo, after the verdict. Britain called on Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi to look at whether due process was followed. Asked about the case by BBC radio, British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt urged the Nobel laureate to “recognize that, as someone who fought for democracy in Burma, she should be taking a personal interest in the future of these two brave journalists.” Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay was not available for comment. Standing outside the court building in Yangon where the judgment was pronounced, Kristian Schmidt, the European Union ambassador to Myanmar, said the ruling was a “miscarriage of justice and it gives us great concern for the independence of the justice system of Myanmar.” Defense lawyer Than Zaw Aung, speaking after the ruling, said his team would discuss the option of a supreme court appeal with the two reporters. “We are very disappointed with the judgment,” he said. Before their arrest, the reporters had been working on a Reuters investigation into the killing of 10 Rohingya Muslim men and boys by security forces and Buddhist civilians in western Myanmar’s Rakhine State during an army crackdown that began in August 2017. The operation sent more than 730,000 Rohingya fleeing to Bangladesh, according to United Nations’ estimates.

myanmar
rights
journalism
aung san suu kyi
wa lone
kyaw soe oo


Japan panel to recommend ordinances mandating use of bicycle insurance

Abstract: A transport ministry panel has agreed on a plan to call on local governments to pass ordinances aimed at obliging cyclists to use liability insurance. The plan was agreed to on Friday at the first meeting of the expert panel, set up for discussion on compensation systems following a series of court rulings that ordered large damages payments over bicycle accidents in which pedestrians died or suffered serious injuries. According to the panel, headed by Kansai University professor Keiji Habara, only six of the country’s 47 prefectures and five ordinance-designated major cities oblige bicycle users to sign liability insurance policies. The number of collisions between cyclists has been increasing in Japan since 2015, rising to 2,749 in 2017. Collisions between cyclists and pedestrians have almost leveled off. In 2017, 2,550 such cases occurred. Of cases in which the pedestrians died or were severely injured, the proportion of the cyclists involved who were confirmed to have bought insurance stood at 60 percent. The proportion of bicycle users with insurance is rising in Saitama and Hyogo prefectures as well as in Nagoya and the city of Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, all of which require cyclists to take out insurance under ordinances, according to the panel. Noting that ordinance-based measures are effective, the panel will discuss related issues, including the scope of coverage of such insurance and the advisability of creating a compulsory liability insurance system for cyclists. In July 2013, the Kobe District Court ordered the mother of an elementary school student to pay some ¥95 million after the child, who was on a bicycle, crashed into a woman and left her with disabilities. The Tokyo District Court issued in January 2014 a ruling for a man, who hit a woman with his bicycle and killed her, to pay some ¥47 million in damages.