China :: Asia

Najib must realise that the 'ball is now in the rakyats court' and they are no longer in a mood to witness any more rhetoric from the BN. COMMENT Prime Minister Najib Tun Razaks move to punish supporters of a rally supporting the call for clean and fair elections has brought him tremendous shame. Still, the premier continues to remain oblivious to the July 9 misdeeds committed and goes on pleading for the rakyats support. International human rights agencies did not mince their words in condemning Najib for abusing the tenets of human rights and using the police to pulverise Bersih 2.0 Walk for Democracy rally supporters. More recently, stinging criticism against the heavy-handed approach used by Najib to quell the rally supporters has come from LawAsia, a global organisation of lawyers, judges and legal experts. LawAsia president Lester Huang hit the nail on the head when he said the government of the day appeared to make political survival a priority inste...

Weekend unrest in Kashgar, in China's western Xinjiang region, has left at least 15 people dead, state media say. The violence began on Saturday when two men killed a truck driver, then drove his lorry into pedestrians and attacked them with knives, killing six. One of the attackers also died. On Sunday an explosion killed three people and police shot dead "four suspects", the Xinhua agency said. Xinjiang has a Muslim Uighur minority and has seen serious ethnic tension. The BBC's Martin Patience in Beijing says there are reports of further clashes in the city on Sunday. Migration dispute A local official was quoted as saying that both of Saturday's attackers were Uighurs. According to tianshannet.com, a Xinjiang government-run website, the assailants hijacked a truck waiting at traffic lights, stabbing the driver to death before ploughing the vehicle into bystanders. They then got out of the vehicle and started ...

JULY 31 I have watched from afar how the prime minister and his administration have squirmed and twisted and justified their handling of Bersih 2.0 and shown their reluctance to discuss meaningful electoral reform. Very little has surprised me about an administration that is bereft of principle and function on the basis of spin and half-truths. It is quite obvious that the government believed that it could kill off Bersih by tough action and threats of intimidation. When this did not happen, Najib tried a different tack: that the government was reasonable but Bersih was bent on causing havoc on the streets. His administration also spread the word that if the electoral system was skewed, there is no way the Opposition could have snared five states. Today, while speaking to student leaders, Najib added to the spin, saying that if the government really controlled the Election Commission, it could have easily won Kelantan in 2004 where a few seats were lost by a few vote...

Terror attack on Amarnath pilgrims foiled. Zeenews Bureau||Saturday, July 30, 2011 Jammu: The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Saturday foiled a terror plot to attack pilgrims undertaking Amarnath yatra. CRPF personnel defused three IEDs (improvised explosive devices) that were kept in a bus. The incident occurred in Kazikund on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway when a bus with around 45 Amarnath pilgrims was returning to Jammu. The bus conductor noticed some suspicious bags and immediately alerted the security officials. The area was immediately cordoned off by CRPF personnel and a bomb squad was called in. The IEDs were placed inside three pressure cookers and were remote controlled. It is suspected that RDX was used to make the three bombs. Courtesy : Zee News || Times of India || Times Now. 85% Hindus in India have to run their pilgrimage intheirown land within heavy military protection due to 15% Muslim counts maximum here. What will be the situation of Hindus in Ind...

by Janith Aranze - thesundayleader.lk In an exclusive interview with The Sunday Leader via email, the Channel 4 journalist featured in the new footage released this week, Jonathan Miller, has steadfastly stood by the credibility of the eye-witnesses featured in the film. Miller who conducted the interviews with the two eye witnesses is in no doubt of their credibility. We do not air allegations from witnesses, (particularly allegations of this nature) without first authenticating their bona-fides to the high standards expected of us by our lawyers, and the British broadcasting regulator, Ofcom, Miller told The Sunday Leader. He went onto explain that it is now up to others to judge the credibility of the eye witnesses. My editors and I are more than satisfied with the credibility of the eye-witnesses. It is up to you to decide whether to trust the integrity of our journalism when it comes to your judging their credibility, he said. Miller also stated that he simply cannot reveal how h...

Jakarta (ANTARA News) West Nusa Tenggara or NTB province near Bali Island will soon see the completion of its Lombok International Airport that can also accommodate Air Bus 330 or Boeing 767 aircraft. Lombok International Airport (BIL), located in Tanah Awu, Pujut sub-district, Central Lombok district, is about 40 kilometers south of the old [...]

GUANGZHOU, July 31 (Xinhua) -- Twelve people, including six from Hong Kong and three from Macao, were injured after their bus overturned in south China's Guangdong Province Friday afternoon, confirmed local sources on Sunday. The accident happened at 2 p.m. Friday on the No. 105 state highway, when a bus with 12 on board steered and braked to avoid bumping into a car. Among the 12 people aboard the bus, the driver, surnamed Fang, and a 66-year-old lady from Hong Kong were seriously injured. Others suffered minor injuries. The six Hong Kong passengers, accompanied by local doctors, had returned. They were all described as in "stable conditions" and were to be treated in Hong Kong. The three from Macao, from one family, are still receiving medical treatment at the Sanxiang Hospital in the Zhongshan city, Guangdong. Local police are probing into the cause of the accident. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, July 31 (Xinhua) -- China's quality watchdog said Sunday that over 4,000 escalators and elevators have been suspended over safety concerns during a nationwide safety-check campaign. By the end of July, more than 10,000 escalators and elevators had been identified by local quality authorities as having potential safety problems, according to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ). "After repairs and maintenance, more than 4,000 escalators or elevators remain suspended for use," said the AQSIQ. The safety checks came after an ascending escalator on Beijing subway Line 4, an Otis 513 MPE, suddenly reversed, and killed a 13-year-old boy and injured 30 others earlier this month. (Xinhua)

Jakarta After beating other four Indonesian band participants on Sunday (16 / 7) night at Fame Station, Bandung, finally grunge band from Bandung, Cupumanik, was selected to represent Indonesia performing in the international alternative music festival named Envol et Macadam in Canada on 29 September to 1 October later. Previously, Cupumanik also had excelled [...]

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Indonesia is gearing up as of this month to work toward realizing long-term programs drawn up in the countrys economic master plan, known as the MP3EI. Under this master plan, aimed at the acceleration and expansion of the Indonesian economy to boost investment, the country is set to spend Rp 190 trillion this [...]

The Indian government's refusal to officially recognise enforced disappearances has left families in perpetual limbo, promulgating stress and psychological trauma for parents, spouses and children, the report says [EPA] More than 1,500 women whose husbands have disappeared but have not yet been declared deceased are in a precarious and dangerous position in Indian-administered Kashmir, according to a new report. The 48-page report titled "Half Widow, Half Wife" released on Thursday by the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), argues that although "direct violence is disproportionately inflicted on males" in Kashmir, women and children whose husbands or fathers "disappear" are caught in a legal conundrum that does little to compensate or protect them. The report says that the fact that the men have disappeared and have not been declared dead, has left thousands of women, known as "half-widows", and their children in a precariou...

SEOUL, July 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks are expected to face volatile sessions next week mainly due to the political standoff in the United States over its debt ceiling, analysts said Saturday. The KOSPI, the country's key stock index, shed 1.75 percent, or 38.02 points, this week to close at 2,133.21 on Friday, weighed down by an escalating political battle over raising the U.S. debt ceiling. "The ongoing talks over the U.S. debt ceiling may further spook investors," said Lee Seung-woo, an analyst at Daewoo Securities. Default on U.S. debt payments, at least in the short term, would send a shock through global credit markets, analysts said. The continuing political impasse in Washington has pushed the world's largest economy closer to risking a default on U.S. government debts if the limit is not raised by the August 2 deadline. The Republican-led House passed legislation Friday night, but it was voted down later by the Democratic-controlled Senate. Meanwhile,...

TOKYO, July 30 Kyodo - The number of foreign residents in the three disaster-hit prefectures of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima dropped 10.5 percent to 30,092 as of the end of March compared with that at the end of last December, the Ministry of Justice said Friday. The number of such people dropped 1.9 percent nationwide during the same period, underscoring the decline in number of foreigners in the three prefectures hit hard by the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami. ''Many foreigners returned to their countries after the disaster and have not come back to Japan as they are concerned about the aftermath of the nuclear crisis'' at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi power plant, said an official in the ministry's Immigration Bureau. In the three prefectures, the number of foreign residents also dropped 944 as of the end of June compared with that at the end of March. By status, the number of foreign trainees at companies and other entities at the end of June fell 6...

Thousands of demonstrators have taken to the streets outside Bahrain's capital to call for greater reforms. The protests Friday came as government and opposition groups considered reforms proposed by a committee set up by the kingdom's Sunni rulers. The national dialogue committee was set up to investigate the kingdom's suppression of anti-government protests that left more than 30 people dead. However, its mandate was undercut when the country's largest Shi'ite party, Al Wefaq, walked out of the talks, arguing that the government wasn't committed to real change and dialogue. King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa Thursday accepted the panel's recommendations which include giving more power to the lower house of parliament and making human rights improvements. The committee also voiced support for an independent judiciary. Bahrain launched the talks earlier this month a...

The Web site of Tower Presbyterian Church in Grove City, Pa., was one of 18 across the nation that were hacked this week and revised to promote conversion to Islam. All of the church Web sites affected by the cyber attack are hosted by Ryan Leisure, a Perrysburg Web designer whose company hosts and designs Web sites for about 60 churches. Enlarge A computer hacker took control of more than a dozen church Web sites hosted by a Perrysburg designer this week, replacing their regular content with an appeal that Christians convert to Islam. The Rev. Vinnie! Dauer o f Fallen Timbers Community Church in Waterville said he received a text message from a church member at about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday telling him someone had posted "Muslim propaganda" on the church's Web site. The cyber attack surprised church leaders there, who wondered why anyone would target their small congregation's Web site. "It was unnerving, but I think also it was an indic...

(Malaysiakini) Election Commission (EC) deputy chairperson Wan Ahmad Wan Omar reiterated that the EC is just a "management body" under the law to manage elections, rather than an enforcement agency. "We are guided by the Attorney-General's Office. The laws given to us are management laws," he said. He was speaking today at a forum 'The Election Laws, Election Commission and Electoral Reform' organised by the Association for the Promotion of Human Rights (Proham). Delivering the opening address at the forum, Wan Ahmad said that issues relating to money politics, vote-buying and dirty politics are under the purview of the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). "The EC can be called as a respondent or witness in court, but never in the history of the country has the EC taken a person to court over corruption," he said. His remark appeared to be a blow to many of those who attended the forum, including one lady who ridiculed the EC as an event...

I wanted to jump and yell with delight when the news broke that the PSM 6 had been freed. A freed Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj is reunited with his father, Dato' Seri Dr T Devaraj, and his mother, Datin Elizabeth Devaraj (centre) - Photograph: Nashita M N Celebration time! The released PSM activists addressing a crowd tonight - Photograph: Bersih 2 But its kinda hard to do that when you are in a packed bus during a five-hour journey to KL. SMSes started flooding in. I contacted Kumars wife Rani and she sounded overjoyed. She said the six had been released unconditionally. Then I called Kumar. And you know what? He sounded the same and as calm as ever, though of course the joy was palpable. Its good to be out, he said, in what must be the understatement of the year. Syabas to all of you who played a part in securing the release: those who attended vigils, those who signed petitions, those who attended forums, those who wore yellow, those who left comments Of course, Kumars decision to go ...

Nissan Motor Company plans to invest at least US$300 million to expand its existing factory in Indonesia, and was also scheduled to build a new engine plant to boost annual production capacity to 180,000 units, up from just 50,000 units. The workforce was also expected to nearly triple to 2,500, from the current 900 personnel. [...]

This is another achievement from Indonesias young generation. Facultyof Law Universitas Padjadjaransent five students to participatein the 12thInternationalMaritimeLawMootArbitratian2011held inSingapore, 1 to 5 July2011, and the UNPAD participants successfully bagged home The Sarah Derrington Best Encouragement Award.This event is annually held by MurdochUniversity,Australia. This year, 20 universitiesfromvariouscountries around theworld sent their delegations to participate in this [...]

by The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR - The Malaysian government has agreed to compensate the woman who was videotaped performing nude squats while being held for drug possession in a Petaling Jaya police station six years ago. A settlement was reached between the government and Ms Hemy Hamisa Abu Hasan Saari, 28, at the Kuala Lumpur High Court yesterday. However, the amount agreed upon by the government, the constable who recorded the video and the mother of three was not disclosed. Ms Hemy initially sought RM10 million (S$4.1 million) in damages when she filed her civil suit in 2005. The widely-circulated video resulted in a royal commission of inquiry, which called the practice a violation of human rights and Islamic principles. Although the government said that it would ban the practice, two Singaporean women were subjected to nude squats in June this year after they had crossed the Johor border without going through immigration. T...

BANGKOK, July 29 -- The Royal Thai Police will dispatch 1,650 police to ensure there is no disruption at the polls during Sunday's by-election in the northeastern province of Nong Khai and in the northern province of Sukhothai, Royal Thai Police adviser Pol-Gen Pongsapat Pongcharoen said on Friday. The Election Commission (EC) ordered a by-election in Nong Khai Constituency 2 and Sukhothai Constituency 3 after giving 'yellow cards' to winning candidates for violating the election law on vote-buying. Gen Pongsapat said following the situation assessment, the by-election in the two constituencies would run smoothly without any disruption. Thailand Post Company and Police's Crime Suppression Division delivered ballots to the local election committees of the two Constituencies, he said, adding that the vote counting for the two constituencies would be completed by 8pm. As for the ballot recount in the southern border province of Yala Constituency 2 scheduled to be carried o...

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) -- Temasek Formation Sdn Bhd (TFSB), a special-purpose company, plans to embark on manufacturing business upon the completion of the acquisition of Jotech Holdings Bhd, AIC Corp Bhd and AutoV Corp Bhd in a deal worth almost RM700 million. Owner Datuk Goh Tian Chuan said the merger would create a larger manufacturing group of diverse customer portfolios in a wide range of industries comprising medical and life sciences, automotive, electrical and electronics. "The execution of the merger will create a larger group in terms of market capitalisation, streamline the multi-tiered shareholding structure as well as unlock potential intrinsic values of the three companies. "The full value of the business potentials of the three firms is expected to be accurately reflected at TFSB's level. "The exercise is expected to be completed by the first quarter of next year," he told a media briefing here Friday. Goh, who is also group executive cha...

Indonesias first social media festival will be held in Jakarta from Sept 22 to Sept. 24, featuring online business, family and youth communities. Organized by Fx mall, SalingSilang.com and Daily Social, the event is expected to be the biggest offline meeting among social media users. We expect 10,000 people to come to the festival, Rahmad [...]

Indonesia outclassed Turkmenistan 4-3 at home at their second leg of the soccer World Cup Qualifiers in the second round of the Asian Zone in Jakarta on Thursday. As expected, Indonesia quickly went on the offensive to the cheers of 80,000 raucous spectators at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta. Indonesia ended the [...]

Anti-Muslim sentiment has become more and more outspoken across the West - especially since they gained a powerful platform through the Tea Party and other far-right groups[GALLO/GETTY] As Norway mourns the loss of at least 76 of its citizens in Friday's bombing of government buildings in Oslo and mass shootings at a Labour Party youth camp, attention here has focused on the US bloggers and groups whose Islamophobic message appears to have fuelled the alleged perpetrator's murderous rage. Their identity was established through the online publication by the alleged terrorist, 32-year-old Anders Behring Breivik, of a 1,500-page manifesto entitled "2083: A European Declaration of Independence" purportedly authored by an "Andrew Berwick". All belong to what Toby Archer, a researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, referred to as a "transatlantic movement that often calls itself 'the counter-jihad'" in an article publ...

WASHINGTON - IMF chief Christine Lagarde warned Thursday that failure to resolve the US debt crisis would likely raise "doubts" about the dollar's status as the world's prime reserve currency. "It would probably entail a decline of the dollar relative to other currencies, and probably doubts in the mind of those people who reserve currencies as to whether the dollar is effectively the ultimate and prime currency of reserve," she told PBS television in an interview. Her comments, excerpts of which were released by the broadcaster, came as Republicans and Democrats remained locked in a showdown over rival plans to raise the US debt ceiling and stave off a looming default. A Republican plan was expected to go to a vote in the House of Representatives later Thursday, but Democrats have warned it would be dead on arrival in the Senate. Lagarde urged politicians on ...

Washington: A study has indicated that women whose breasts appear dense on mammograms are at a higher risk of breast cancer and their tumours are more likely to have certain aggressive characteristics than women with less dense breasts. Mammographic breast density--a reflection of the proportions of fat, connective tissue, and epithelial tissue in the breast--is a well-established risk factor for breast cancer. Women with higher amounts of epithelial and stromal tissue have higher density and higher risk. However, it has not been clear whether breast density was associated with specific tumour characteristics and tumour type. To explore this issue, Rulla M. Tamimi, Sc.D., at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Womens Hospital, Boston, and colleagues, compared breast density in 1,042 postmenopausal women with breast cancer and 1,794 matched control subjects. They found that the risk of ...

Idris bin Mahdani. the leader of the pack District court hands out slaps on the wrist for religious fanatics who murdered sect members in February In what Human Rights Watch called a sad day for Indonesia, a court Thursday gave astonishingly light sentences to religious fanatics who led a frenzied mob on that killed three members of the Ahmadiyah sect on video to between three and six months in jail. An estimated 1,000 Muslims descended on the Ahmadiyah compound in the western Java town of Cikeusik in Banten province in February. The videotape, shot secretly, went viral across the world, showing the mob running down three men as they fled for their lives and beating them to death with rocks and sticks. As hundreds of people prayed outside the Serang District Court, the leader, Idris bin Mahdani, was convicted of nothing more than illegal possession of a machete. He was jailed for five months and 15 days. Dani bin Misra, a 17-year-old who was shown in the film smashing a victims skull...

Islamabad: Federal Finance Minister, Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh Thursday directed Communications Ministry and Federal Board of Revenue officials to ensure smooth transportation of perishable items for Afghanistan through Afghan Transit Trade ATT. He was chairing meeting convened for speedy transportation of goods to and from Afghanistan through Wagah land border and Karachi port including vegetables, food, spices, other items. It was decided that report of daily movement of containers carrying perishable items crossing Pak-Afghan border would be submitted to the Minister. Customs authorities, being facilitator of ATT should start working on issuance of guarantee - 60 days for perishable items and file a report so that a regime be incorporated for mutual satisfaction of Pakistan & Afghanistan. It also discussed making more utilization of Dry port at Peshawar, strengthening Customs contro...

LANDIKOTAL: An army vehicle of US forces on board a trailer in a parking lot at Torkham border were set on fire by unknown militants here on Wednesday night in late hours. An armed masked person came and sprinkled petrol on the loaded trailer carrying a US army vehicle and were both set on fire with a bomb blast. Some sources said that the trailer was blown up with explosion while Khasadar sources said the trailer and the US vehicle were set on fire. However, no casualty was reported in the incident. Some of the drivers alleged the Torkham administration for its negligence and carelessness that lead to horrible incident to the NATO goods and transport of the tribal people. Tehsildar Torkham Sheharyar Khan and some of his close aids in clerical staff have focused on collecting money through illegal means, which has encouraged the miscreants to carry out their subversive intentions, the dr...

BANGKOK, July 28 - Key leaders of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD), the Red Shirts, on Thursday threatened to file suit against the Election Commission (EC) for dereliction of duty if the poll agency fails to endorse top Red Shirt leader Jatuporn Prompan as a member of parliament by the end of this month. Natthawut Saikua, now a new Pheu Thai party-list MP, announced the UDD stance after visiting fellow Reds, Mr Jatuporn, now being detained on terrorism charges at Bangkok Remand Prison. Some Red Shirt supporters also turned up at the prison to show their moral support for the detained protest leader. The EC on Wednesday endorsed 94 more MPs-elect, including all elected Red Shirt candidates, except Mr Jatuporn, bringing the total number of endorsed MPs to 496, more than 95 per cent of total 500 seats, to open way to convene the first House session next Monday. Defending the delayed endorsement of MP status for Mr Jatuporn, the No 8 party-list candidate of the Ph...

Hosting some of the best beaches and ocean waves in the world, Lombok is still often overlooked, out-famed by its neighbor, Bali. Nevertheless, its exotic culture and nature sure attract lots of attention. There was once Gavin Birch, or later known better as Husin Abdullah, a New Zealand man who then fell in love with [...]

The Star (Used by permission) KUALA LUMPUR: The Inspector-General of Police and Home Ministry have been urged to review the detention of Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj and five others under the Emergency Ordinance in relation to the July 9 rally. MIC deputy president Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam said the police had not shown any convincing evidence that the six were involved in an armed struggle to overthrow the Government. Dr Subramaniam, who is Human Resources Minister, said there were confusing signals over their arrest. They were arrested much earlier than the Bersih event while many others involved in the rally had not been arrested. Some of those arrested have been released, he said in a statement. Dr Jeyakumar, M. Sukumaran, 50, A.P. Letchumanan, 49, Choo Chon Kai, 33, M. Sarasvathy, 58, and R. Sarat Babu, 25, were arrested on July 2 as they were seen as movers of the rally which was declared illegal by the police. They are Socialist Party of Malaysia members. Dr Subra...

Iran has freed a well-known dissident actress from prison following heightened criticism of its crackdown on artists and rights activists. Pegah Ahangarani, an outspoken supporter of Iran's opposition Green Movement, was released Wednesday from Tehran's Evin Prison on $84,000 bail. The popular 27-year-old actress was arrested earlier this month when she was about to leave for Germany to write a blog for the international radio broadcaster Deutsche Welle about the women's soccer World Cup. Deutsche Welle says Ahangarani's relatives told the station it remains unclear what she is accused of and that authorities have warned her not to speak to the media. Another dissident, Mahnaz Mohammadi, a documentary filmmaker, also was released on bail Wednesday. She was detained by security officials in June. Ahangarani's arrest sparked particular outrage among foreign governments a...

American Muslims have urged mosques and Muslim schools to increase security and have demanded an investigation into militant Hindu supremacist groups in the US after it became clear that the suspect in the bombing and mass shooting that killed 76 people in Norway praised nationalist Hindutva elements. Muslim Peace Coalition USA and Indian Minorities Advocacy Network (ImanNet) leaders Seemi Ahmed and Dr. Shaik Ubaid have condemned the heinous terrorist massacres in Norway and expressed their heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families, according to a statement released by the Muslim Peace Coalition USA on Tuesday. Addressing a meeting of civil rights and human rights activists in New York, they expressed alarm over the connection between Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian suspect, and international Hindutva supremacists. They demanded that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Homeland Security investigate militant Hindutva supremac...

Water is one of the most essential elements in life and we cant always rely on rainwater to fulfill our need, especially in the area with a very low rainfall rate. The government of Meranti Island District, Riau Province, has come up with a brilliant idea, they plan to process seawater through a distillation process. [...]

BANGKOK, July 27 - Thailand's rice exports increased to 6.3 million tonnes in the first half of 2011, valued at Bt107 billion, according to the Thai Rice Exporters Association. Association president Korbsook Iamsuri said the expansion was 58 per cent in volume and 37 per cent in value, as Indonesia and Bangladesh needed more rice, after facing natural disasters, and Thailand released the grain from its reserves late last year. Nigeria, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iraq and Iran are the main importers of Thai rice. The average amount of Thai rice exports reached its highest monthly record this year --over one million tonnes, priced at US$535 per tonne. A tonne of white rice 5 per cent currently costs US$545-550 in the world market, according to Ms Korbsook. She was confident that the country's rice supply is sufficient for domestic need and exports, adding that some 10 million tonnes were estimated to be exported this year. However, it also depends on the rice mortgage scheme which wo...

HCM City, July 27 (VNA) Malaysia will join Ho Chi Minh Citys retail market in the coming time with the opening of hypermarkets which will be joined by almost all leading retailers of this country. The information was released by Malaysian Minister of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Dato Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob at a meeting with Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee Le Hoang Quan on July 26. Sabri bin Yaakob highly valued the rapid development and great potential of Ho Chi Minh City, saying that his visit aimed to seek cooperation opportunities for Malaysian investors, especially retailers. At present, Malaysia s WCT Group is implementing the 600 million USD shopping mall project Platinum Plaza. Covering an area of 9 ha in Binh Hung commune, Binh Chanh district, the complex will include a trade centre, entertainment and residential areas. WCT also plans to join a Vietnamese partner in another complex of trade centre and residential areas with a total i...

Solo, C Java, July 27 (ANTARA) - Integrated security command posts will be set up throughout Java to secure all roads on the island during Idul Fitri Muslim festivity 2011. The setting up of the command posts was part of the government efforts to provide good services to the people celebrating Idul Fitri in their hometowns, Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi said here on Tuesday. The minister was in Solo to officially open a technical coordinating meeting on the land transportation field 2011. The three-day meeting was participated in by 305 people including heads of the regional transportation offices throughout Indonesia. Minister Numberi said he had discussed the matter with concerned ministers including about the need to provide food, beverages and fuel for those needing them. "We hope our services next time will be better than the previous ones," he said. "In less than a month, we will coordinate Idul Fitri transportation means and set up integrated command post...