Asia / All Themes
Vietnam: New Round of Arrests Target Democracy Activists
11.09.2008 20:09
humanrightswatch.org
Prominent Blogger Sentenced to Prison Human Rights Watch condemned a crackdown on democracy activists in Vietnam this week, coinciding with the visit of US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte for bilateral talks on security issues, economic ties, and human rights.
Vietnam
Human Rights Protection
Uzbekistan: Release Independent Journalist
11.09.2008 20:08
humanrightswatch.org
Trial of Government Critic Begins Uzbek authorities should drop all charges against an independent journalist facing politically motivated prosecution and release him, Human Rights Watch said today. Salijon Abdurakhmanov, a journalist known for his critical reporting of the authorities, goes on trial on September 12, 2008, in Nukus, the capital city of Karakalpakstan, an autonomous republic in Uzbekistan, 1,100 kilometers west of Tashkent.
Uzbekistan
Human Rights Protection
News & Gossip : Shahid Kapoor Selective on Brand Endorsements
11.09.2008 04:22
bollyvista.com
Few stars practice what they preach as a source revealed, "Stars rarely use the brands they so ...
India
Show Business
News & Gossip : Hritik to Endorse Anti-Smoking Gum
11.09.2008 04:21
bollyvista.com
It is learnt that pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is planning to launch a gum in India to help smokers to ...
India
Show Business
Jet Airways chief Naresh Goyal gets UK award
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
The Chairman of Jet Airways, India’s premier private international airline, Naresh Goyal, was honoured with the ‘Business Person of the Year’ award at the prestigious UK Trade and Investment India Business Awards 2008, here on Tuesday. This distinction was conferred upon Goyal for his significant contribution to India-UK business relations and for making the UK a strategic and pivotal destination in Jet Airways’ aggressive international expansion plans. Accepting the award from British High Commissioner Sir Richard Stagg, before an august gathering of senior business leaders from the two countries, Goyal said: “I am deeply honoured and humbled, to receive this award. At Jet Airways, we are committed to re-defining the international travel experience with our acclaimed in-flight product and service standards. UK was our first long-haul venture and continues to be popular with our international travellers, for both business and leisure." Jet Airways currently operates four daily services to London Heathrow from three gateway points in India- twice daily in Mumbai, and daily from Delhi and Amritsar respectively. The UK Trade and Investment India Business Awards are a recognition and celebration of the UK-Indo business partnership, specifically in terms of inward investment, collaborative business partnership, entrepreneurship and innovation. UK Trade and Investment is the UK Government’s international business development agency. Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 85 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 10 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 54 classic and next generation Boeing 737-400/700/800/900 aircraft and 11 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.45 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world. Jet Airways operates over 395 flights daily. Flights to 64 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond, including New York (both JFK and Newark), San Francisco, Toronto, Brussels, London (Heathrow), Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The airline plans to extend its international operations to other cities in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia in phases with the introduction of additional wide-body aircraft into its fleet. (ANI)
India
Economics & Finance
Report: Asia requires urgent U.S. attention
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
The health of the U.S. economy is now tied to Asia in fundamental ways that, if not grasped quickly by the incoming presidential administration, could have unintended, adverse consequences, according to America''s Role in Asia: Asian and American Views, a new published volume of foreign policy recommendations written by 20 distinguished Asian and U.S. experts and released this morning in Washington. Although relations with China are generally constructive, the report states, the U.S. must, in order to minimize threats to American security and prosperity, maintain a constructive response as China continues to rise. Further, the report underscores the importance of responding to the "rise of the rest" by adjusting the membership in various international organizations. Convened and supported by The Asia Foundation, this landmark report is the product of a year of high-level, closed-door discussions across Asia and in the U.S. that addressed critical bilateral and trans-national issues in U.S.-Asia relations, including Korea, Afghanistan, Pakistan, energy security, environmental degradation, Asia''s regional alliances, trade, and investment. Published on a quadrennial cycle, America''s Role in Asia provides U.S. policymakers with concrete recommendations on how to address pressing challenges and opportunities in Asia. Further, in order to put Asia on the party platforms for the 2008 Democratic and Republican conventions, advance summaries of the recommendations were recently hand-delivered to top foreign policy advisors to both candidates. “The region needs urgent attention," agreed Ambassador Michael Armacost and Ambassador J. Stapleton Roy, American co-chairs of America''s Role in Asia. "The most consequential emerging powers--China and India--are casting longer shadows, and America''s relative power is declining. The new administration must accord Asia the attention its intrinsic importance to us demands.” The report is divided into American and Asian views, reflecting the thinking of some of the most accomplished U.S.-Asia relations experts in the world. The project''s American task force was led by Armacost, who is Shorenstein Senior Fellow at the Asia Pacific Center at Stanford University, former Undersecretary of State, and former U.S. Ambassador to Japan and the Philippines; and Roy, who is Vice Chairman of Kissinger International Associates, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, and former U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, China and Singapore. The Asian task force was chaired by Ambassador Han Sung-Joo, chairman of the Asan Institute in Seoul and former Foreign Minister of South Korea; Ambassador Tommy Koh, chairman of the Institute of Policy Studies, Ambassador-at-Large in Singapore, and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York; and Dr. C. Raja Mohan, professor at the Rajanthan School of International Studies in Singapore and former member of India''s National Security Advisory Board. “This report was prepared with the expressed intent to inform and influence future American foreign policy for the Asia-Pacific region so that sound, workable solutions to common problems are found,” said Douglas Bereuter, president of The Asia Foundation and 26-year veteran of Congress, where he chaired the Asia-Pacific Subcommittee. “A major objective of The Asia Foundation is to foster greater understanding between the United States and Asia, and we''re very pleased that our extensive relationships and unique access to a wide range of U.S. and Asian leaders has resulted in these important, timely perspectives.” Among the findings and recommendations of the American task force: -- Trade-related issues need to be high on the agenda of the new administration: namely, the restoration of fast-track negotiating authority, the completion of the Doha round, the ratification of the U.S.-ROK Free Trade Agreement, and determination of the weight to be attached to Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in pursuing Asian trade initiatives. Neglect of these issues will deal a body blow to U.S. global economic leadership. -- (The) approach to counter-terrorism in the Middle East and South Asia requires new strategic footing that neither overshadows nor underrates a host of other foreign policy challenges. The Global War on Terror was an unfortunate misnomer. It encouraged excessive emphasis on military force. It persuaded some that the enemy was Islam, rather than a few misguided groups within Islam''s ranks disposed to a permanent jihad against the "infidels." We should not lump potential Islamist enemies together; the goal is to divide them, and deal with them in a discriminating way. -- Energy cooperation. The high cost of energy is becoming a major threat to the continued growth and prosperity of Asia, just as it is elsewhere in the world. The United States can make a major contribution to containing these incentives for rivalry by encouraging policies that foster cooperative approaches to energy security. Most Asian countries are major consumers of imported fuels. All would benefit from expanded cooperation with the United States in efforts to persuade OPEC and other producers to expand exploration for oil and natural gas, to accelerate the commercial development of alternative environmentally-friendly fuels, to utilize existing sources of energy more efficiently, and to stockpile reserves for emergencies. Among the findings and recommendations of the Asian taskforce: -- The United States would be well advised to set a good example of upholding the very values it espouses. U.S. allies in the region are acutely aware of America''s poor image among their own publics and want the next administration''s foreign policy to pay special attention to public diplomacy. Both Americans and Asians will benefit if the political, intellectual, and cultural bridges are strengthened. -- The U.S. should actively support a regional architecture in Asia. Bilateral relations are important, but greater emphasis should be placed on multinational diplomacy around political, economic, and security issues. This includes signing the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC), which, at a minimum, would allow the United States to be an effective dialogue partner with members of the East Asia Summit. -- The new administration should work with Asian regional institutions to begin a dialogue on energy security and climate change -- particularly in the area of curbing greenhouse gas emissions - and to bring the post-Kyoto negotiations to a successful conclusion. The United States must share its expertise in energy efficiency, including clean and renewable energy, carbon capture and sequestration. The full report is available to download at www.asiafoundation.org, as are overviews of the reports and executive summaries. (ANI)
India
Economics & Finance
Supreme Court extends ban on SIMI for four weeks
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
The Supreme Court today extended the ban on the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) for four weeks. Earlier, on August 25, the Supreme Court had extended the ban on SIMI by six weeks. A Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan also fixed September 24 as the date for next hearing in this case. The Centre had challenged the decision of the Special Tribunal headed by Justice Geeta Mittal to lift the ban on SIMI. On August 6, a bench headed by the Chief Justice Balakrishnan stayed a special tribunal order that had earlier ordered lifting restrictions on its activities. The apex court had also issued notice to SIMI and posted the matter for hearing after three weeks. The Centre has complained to the apex court that the tribunal set up under the Unlawful Activities (prevention) Act had not expressed anything on the merits of the case. However, in its 263-page order the government had provided Intelligence Bureau reports pointing towards members of SIMI indulging in terrorist activities. The tribunal headed by Geeta Mittal, had on August 5 quashed the February 7 notification of the Centre extending the ban on SIMI till 2010 saying no new evidence was placed against the organisation to justify the ban. SIMI, banned since 2001, has been under the scanner of security and intelligence agencies for terror attacks in various parts of the country including the recent blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad. The ban was first imposed on SIMI in 2001 under the Unlawful Activities (prevention) Act and since then it has been extended after every two years. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Jayalalithaa takes Centre to task on US-India nuke deal
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and president of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) J. Jayalalithaa has charged the Central Government with compromising the country''''s sovereign right to conduct further atomic tests. Reacting to the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group’s (NSG) decision on Saturday to lift a 34-year-old ban on nuclear trade with India, she said: "It is very clear that it is a sellout on the part of Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government. It is quite clear that according to this agreement there will be no more nuclear tests. It means, India has bargained its sovereign right." Eminent space scientist U.R. Rao, however, said the deal is good for India despite the fact that further atomic tests could invite wrath of the international community. "Yes, we do have a capability and some people feel that we don''''t need the tests. I am not sure of that because any time a new technology comes that will require some tests, but not withstanding. If you look at totality of the nuclear system, it has seen rather as deterrent and therefore we have the minimum deterrent that we have built up. Because nuclear things are there people are afraid. Therefore in a way it has acted as a deterrent and that would continue…," he said in Bangalore. On Tuesday, Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith clarified that Canberra would not sell uranium to India even after the NSG waiver since New Delhi had not acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). Rao said the NSG could still deny India critical technologies but added that the deal is the best New Delhi could have hoped for, given its security interests and stated position on total disarmament. "Only five nuclear powers are the members of the Security Council. And unfortunately having come late, we are not in the definition of a nuclear power. Even the de-facto we have, but we are not a nuclear power. So, we have this problem but at least things have opened up and we can receive certainly technology, even though much has been said about technology and I don''''t think that very sensitive technology would be ever given," Rao said. The NSG waiver paves the way for the controversial U.S.-Indian atomic energy deal that is still to be ratified by the U.S. Congress. Washington says the fuel and technology deal would forge a strategic partnership with the world''''s largest democracy, help India meet rising energy demand in an environmentally sound way and open a nuclear market worth billions of dollars. (ANI)
India
Social Life
BJP felicitates Olympic bronze winner wrestler Sushil Kumar
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) felicitated Olympic bronze winner wrestler Sushil Kumar on Wednesday. Sushil Kumar is only the second Indian wrestler to win a medal at the Olympics, claiming the bronze in the men''s 66kg freestyle wrestling event at the Beijing Olympics. BJP president Rajnath Singh said the government should nurture talent at an early stage to achieve better results. India finished with its best ever medal haul at the Olympics by claiming one individual gold in shooting and two bronze – one each in boxing and wrestling. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Major fire reduces part of Assam''s Janata Bhawan to ashes
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
A devastating fire that broke out in Dispur has reduced to ashes a part of the Janata Bhawan on Wednesday evening. According to information, the fire broke out at around 6 p.m. in the evening from a room and it later spread to other rooms. Fifty fire tenders were needed to douse the flames out. According to the RTI Commissioner, Dr. B K Gohain, the Right to Information cell has been completely ravaged and not a single file has been spared. Sources said that the chambers of Nurjamal Sarkar, Assam Law Minister Pranab Gogoi and Parliament Secretaries Sarat Saikia and Bidya Singh Inglng were also reduced to ashes. The authorities are yet to ascertain the reasons behind the fire. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Manipur students protest dope charge against wrestler Monika Devi
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
Hundreds of students took to the streets here on Wednesday to demand a fair probe into the doping charges against weightlifter Monika Devi, who was denied a berth in the Indian squad for the Beijing Olympics. Carrying placards, the protesters shouted slogans against the Sports Authority of India (SAI) charging it with discrimination against people hailing from the remote regions. "We hope that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will enquire in a right manner. We hope to do some good things but, the main thing is that we want to stand united and we want to struggle against this kind of discrimination, especially sportspersons. We want to have full dignity," said Ashirjit, the president of the Democratic Students Alliance of Manipur. The protesters felt that Monica was denied an opportunity to display her talent before the world. "We feel very sorry for Monika because she was discriminated against in front of the world stage. She wasn’t given a chance to participate or show her talent on the world stage. So, we feel discriminated against by the Government. That is why we are here to show that we don''t agree with what the Government is doing with her," said Kanchana Laishram, a protestor. Monika Devi was withdrawn from the Beijing Olympics after she failed to pass a dope test at home. The lifter pleaded her innocence. The Indian Weightlifting Federation also criticised the SAI, claiming that the doping test was faulty. The Sports Ministry has ordered an internal inquiry to ascertain the truth and the CBI has registered a case following a demand to this effect by Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Using antibiotics for cough and cold ‘increases superbug resistance’
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
The British Government’s Health Protection Agency is urging people not to seek antibiotic treatment for cough and cold problems that are caused by viruses, warning that this may increasingly make bacteria resistant to drugs. The agency said that a step to over-the-counter antibiotics could make the problem worse, for doctors are running out of medications for potentially deadly infections. And rising resistance levels mean that some bugs are treatable only with antibiotics previously used as a ‘last defence’, the agency added. The number of potentially fatal E.coli blood poisoning cases, which are resistant to a ‘last’ antibiotic have tripled in the last six years, and now make up 12 per cent of all cases. In these cases, doctors are left able to use only less effective antibiotics, which can be toxic, and raises the prospect that a strain could become entirely resistant to antibiotics. Dr David Livermore, the agency''s top scientist, warned that the problem posed a major public health threat. He suggested that patients should not request antibiotics from their GPs when they are simply suffering from a cough or a cold, for which the drugs are useless. "Most common cough and colds are caused by viruses and therefore patients should not be asking their doctor for an antibiotic," the Telegraph quoted him, as saying. "The doctor should also know that they are not necessary and the patient should know that they are not appropriate," he added. Livermore also said that there was a concern that providing an antibiotic over the counter could increase resistance. He also called for action to increase the amount of research into new antibiotics. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
Bleeding gums ‘up heart attack risk’
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
Poor dental hygiene and bleeding gums can put you at an increased risk of suffering a heart attack, according to a new research. According to the study, which was presented at the Society for General Microbiology''s Autumn meeting, revealed that people with poor dental hygiene and those who don''t brush their teeth regularly end up with bleeding gums, which provide an entry to the bloodstream for up to 700 different types of bacteria found in our mouths. As a result, the risk of having a heart attack increases, according to microbiologists from the University of Bristol and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. "The mouth is probably the dirtiest place in the human body," said Dr Steve Kerrigan from the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, Ireland. "If you have an open blood vessel from bleeding gums, bacteria will gain entry to your bloodstream. “When bacteria get into the bloodstream they encounter tiny fragments called platelets that clot blood when you get a cut. By sticking to the platelets bacteria cause them to clot inside the blood vessel, partially blocking it. This prevents the blood flow back to the heart and we run the risk of suffering a heart attack,” he said. The only treatment for this type of disease is aggressive antibiotic therapy, but with the increasing problem of multiple drug resistant bacteria, this option is becoming short lived. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
Immaturity of the brain can cause schizophrenia
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
The underdevelopment of a specific region in the human brain may be an underlying cause for schizophrenia, according to a new study published in BioMed Central''s open access journal Molecular Brain. According to the study, dentate gyrus, which is located in the hippocampus in the brain and thought to be responsible for working memory and mood regulation, remained immature in an animal model of schizophrenia. Professor Tsuyoshi Miyakawa of Fujita Health University, National Institute for Physiological Sciences (NIPS), and Kyoto University led a research team in Japan, with support from the CREST program of Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST). First, the team investigated behaviors by conducting a systematic and well-defined behavioral test battery with alpha-CaMKII mutant mice, an animal model of schizophrenia. These mice showed abnormal behaviors similar to those of schizophrenic patients. Next, the team found the dentate gyrus neurons in hippocampus of the brain of these mice were not matured morphologically and physiologically. By a gene expression analysis, changes of gene expression related to the maturation of dentate gyrus neurons were also found in the brains of schizophrenic patients. Taken together, the immaturity of the dentate gyrus may be an underlying cause for schizophrenia. Among their findings, mice heterozygous for a null mutation of the alpha-isoform of calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II show profoundly dysregulated behaviors, including a severe working memory deficit and an exaggerated infradian rhythm (cycle of increases and decreases in locomotor activity in their home cage; 2-3 weeks/cycle), which are comparable to the symptoms observed in patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and other psychiatric disorders. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
‘Dodgy dossier'' partly to blame for losing war against malaria in the tropics
11.09.2008 02:32
b4uindia.com
A ‘dodgy’ intelligence dossier is being blamed for failure of war against malaria, because it had argued that methods to tackle the disease in temperate countries would also work in the tropics. The efforts to eradicate the disease failed in almost every tropical and sub-tropical country, because tactics that had been proven to work in countries such as the USA, Greece and Italy were also deployed in tropical countries, despite the existence of evidence that they would not work, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. “Previous efforts to eradicate malaria, if considered, only succeeded in countries where the plasmodium parasite was weak and its mosquito vector was vulnerable, particularly where populations were wealthy enough to afford the best tools available,” said Colin Sutherland, a senior lecturer at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. “The failure to eradicate malaria in tropical countries, where the parasite is now at its strongest, and the mosquitoes are doing very well, thank you very much is, in part, due to the miscalculation that a one-size-fits-all approach would be effective in every setting – a miscalculation that could have been avoided if we had heeded the evidence from Africa over half a century ago,” he added. Sutherland has warned against the obsession among the western media with the ‘scientific breakthrough’, a concept that consequently dominates popular notions of science. It is the careful synthesis of incremental advances in knowledge, and the dissemination of that knowledge to key decision-makers, health ministries and governments that will help us win the war against malaria, he said. “In the war against malaria, knowledge is the most powerful weapon we have,” said Dr Sutherland. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
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