China's "go west" strategy woos Central Asian nations

BEIJING, Oct 17: China's ambitious "go west" strategy to develop economic co-operation with its Western neighbours will help cement trade ties with the Central Asian countries, a senior commerce official said.

"Under the western development strategy, China is to improve the investment climate, open more sectors in the region to foreign investment and encourage more domestic firms to go abroad to carry out economic and technological co-operation with Central Asian nations," vice-minister of commerce, Yi Xiaozhun said.

Yi made the remarks yesterday at the two-day Central Asia Regional Economic Co-operation (CAREC) Business Development Forum in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Yi did not spell out specific sectors that the Chinese Government will liberalise in the western region, 'China Daily' reported.

Initiated by the Asian Development Bank in 1997, the CAREC programme aims to improve living standards and reduce poverty in its member states through efficient and effective regional economic collaboration.

CAREC currently groups eight countries China, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Trade volume between China and other CAREC member countries has surged nearly 10-fold from USD one billion in 1997, when the CAREC initiative was established, to 9.8 billion dollars in 2005.

Maintaining the strong growth momentum, the figure has amounted to 8.4 billion dollars in the first eight months of this year, jumping 44 per cent from a year earlier, Yi said. (PTI)

Banking investment in China set to skyrocket

BEIJING, Oct 17: Around 5.7 billion US dollars in insurance capital could flood into China’s banking sector this year after the nation’s insurance watchdog unveiled a package of investment rules.

According to detailed rules issued by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) for insurers’ equity investment in banks yesterday, insurance institutions could invest no more than three per cent of their total assets in State-owned commercial banks, joint-stock commercial banks and city commercial banks.

By the end of last year, the total assets of China’s insurance sector had reached 1.5 trillion yuan (190 billion US dollars), implying that 45 billion yuan (5.7 billion dollars) in insurance capital could be poured into China’s banking sector this year.

"Equity investment in banks is just the first step, and we are considering regulations on investment in fixed-assets projects and State-owned enterprises," a CIRC official was quoted as saying by China Daily.

In guidelines published in late June, the regulator expressed its support for insurers’ investment in banks, part of its efforts to boost insurers’ investment returns.

"We support insurance companies buying into, or even taking controlling stakes in, well-managed, profitable banks that have a strong customer base," CIRC Chairman Wu Dingfu said earlier.

The regulation stipulated that insurers could use their registered capital and provisions over 10 years for the investment.

In terms of purpose and scale, insurers’ investment in banks is divided into two types general and grand investment.

Those accounting for less than a five per cent stake in a bank are classified as general investment, while those greater than five per cent are regarded as grand investment. There are no upper ceilings for the investment.

If an insurer plans to make a grand investment, its total assets by the end of last year should be no less than 100 billion yuan (12.7 billion US dollars).

For any investment taking a 10 per cent stake or above, the insurer should have total assets in excess of 150 billion yuan (19 billion US dollars) by the end of last year.

Meanwhile, those target banks for general investment will have to meet a capital adequacy ratio of up to eight per cent, a non-performing loans ratio lower than five per cent and a return on net assets of up to 12 per cent.

In fact, China’s largest life insurers have been quite investors in banks.

In late July, Ping An Insurance (Group) Company became the controlling shareholder in Shenzhen City Commercial Bank after it bought an 89.24 per cent stake in the lender for 4.9 billion yuan (620 million dollars).

Ping An has also been in talks with Beijing-based China Everbright Bank. Sources said the discussions are at a very early stage and it is uncertain whether they will result in an agreement. (PTI)

Houstonians celebrates Punjab at spectacular Diwali Gala

HOUSTON, Oct 17: A dazzling and a spectacular cultural evening celebrating the festival of lights enthralled Houstonians, who gathered in big numbers wearing their trendy traditional Indian outfits here.

This year, the annual Diwali gala organised by Indo American Forum (IAF) of Fort Bend celebrated Punjab. The event, attended by a cross section of distinguished guests, members and invited dignitaries, enabled them to take a visual ride through the fertile and vibrant land of Punjab.

The evening captivated one and all with the detailed and breath-taking decor, colourful rangoli welcoming the guests in the hallway, soulful dhol beats in the background, elegantly hung multicolour glass bangles from the ceiling, red decorative pots topped with the shimmering array of diyas as the centre pieces on each guest table.

Local dance groups entertained the crowd with memorable and energetic traditional performances like the vigorous and exuberant folk dance 'Gidha' and enacted rhythmic verses called bolis, representing folk poetry at its best, by clapping of hands in unison.

Dressed to kill in gorgeous Punjabi outfits, they danced their night away till they dropped on the fast paced Bollywood Bhangra beats.

The dignitaries present at the function included Consul General of India S M Gavai, Sugar Land Mayor David Wallace, Fortbend Independent School District Superintendent Dr Tomothy Jenney, City of Sugar Land Council Member Tom Abraham and representatives of various Indian American Associations.

In his brief speech, Consul General Gavai commented IAF for showcasing India's diversity by focusing on a different State each year at their Diwali celebrations.

For his role in guiding the IAF since its inception, chairman Harvinder Arora was presented a trophy of recognition.

At another function, thousands of people flocked the famous Meenakshi temple, considered the replica of the Madurai temple, to take part in the annual daylong Diwali mela on Saturday. (PTI)

Malaysian firm apologises for circular on Diwali greetings

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17: A Malaysian Islamic insurance firm has apologised for the advice given by its Shariah department chief to Muslim staff not to extend Diwali greetings to Hindus even as some NGOs complained to the police against the religious head for "inciting" racial feelings.

The company Tafakul Malaysia in a statement said the contents of the e-mail issued by its Shariah department head Mohd Fauzi Mustaffa to Muslim staff did not "in any way" represent its views and wished Malaysians of Hindu faith a "Happy Deepavali".

Several people, including Works minister and President of the Malaysian Indian Congress Say Vellu and senior government officials were upset over the e-mail sent by Mustaffa.

His e-mail said that by wishing "Happy Durga Pooja, Happy Lakshmi Pooja and Happy Deepavali" a Muslim could be deemed as extending greetings to the Hindu gods Durga, Lakshmi and Krishna. He claimed that this was blasphemous and against the teachings of Islam.

Meanwhile, two police reports were lodged against Mohd Fauzi yesterday, one by Sivanesan Achalingam, who acted as legal counsel to a group of non-governmental organisations and another by Angkatan Pelopor India Muslim Selangor dan Wilayah Persekutuan (Apim) chairman Ramli Abdullah, New Straits Times reported.

Sivanesan said the email had incited racial feelings.

He said the NGOs also wanted to know whether disciplinary action would be taken against Mohd Fauzi.

Ramli said the e-mail was sensitive and challenged the tolerance of different races in Malaysia.

Malaysia is a Muslim majority country and has a small percentage of people of Indian ethnicity who are mostly Hindus. There are also Malaysian Chinese people. Hindus, Buddhists, Christians and Sikhs have the freedom to practice their religion in Malaysia.

Last week Malaysia's top Indian origin politician Samy Vellu criticised Fauzi's remarks saying "We cannot ignore extremist elements who always try to propagate their own thoughts to disrupt the peace in the country."

He said "Malaysia's greatest advantage is the unity of the people and stability it enjoys in a multi-racial and multi-religious society."

The minister said remarks by some people may disrupt "national unity". He called on the people to be cautious of attempts by certain groups to thwart the unity among the people.

"But I know for a fact that the majority of the people do not yield to the ideas of these extremists," he said.

The Malaysian Hindu Sangam last week called for the dismissal of Takaful Malaysia's religious department head for issuing the circular. It also lodged a police report on the matter.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Abdullah Md Zin had said the circular was a personal view and that it was a narrow interpretation of Islam. (PTI)

Sony recalls 90,000 batteries in Its Vaio notebook computers

TOKYO, Oct 17: Sony, the world's second- largest maker of consumer electronics, is recalling 90,000 batteries used in its Vaio notebook computers.

About 60,000 of the power packs will be replaced in Japan, and the rest in China, company spokesman Daichi Yamafuji said today. He declined to say how much the recall will cost.

Sony is replacing more than 8 million lithium-ion batteries worldwide for Dell, Apple Computer and six other companies on concern some cells overheat and become fire hazards. (AGENCIES)

For German filmmaker cinema brings humanity to N Korean people

BUSAN, Oct 17: When German filmmaker Uli Gaulke travelled to the back blocks of North Korea, he found the magic of cinema was being kept alive by one very determined woman.

Gaulke trained his cameras on projectionists plying their trade in North Korea, Burkina Faso, India and North America while making "Comrades in Dreams," but it is the story of 48-year-old Han Jong-sil that plays as most poignant.

And it has been made more so as recent events -- Pyongyang's claim to have tested a nuclear device and the UN Security Council's decision to impose sanctions on the rogue regime of Kim Jong-il -- have trained the world's focus on isolated and impoverished North Korea.

Working in a collective outside Pyongyang, Han has run the state-sanctioned cinema since the 1970s.

"Comrade Projectionist," as Han is known, remains passionate about her role in the local community and the part cinema can play in helping her neighbours escape, however fleetingly, the drudgery of their daily lives.

"A friend of mine had lived in North Korea for one year and she told me of this woman who lives in the middle of nowhere," Gaulke told AFP who is here for the 11th Pusan International Film Festival where "Comrades in Dreams" had its world premiere. (AFP)

UK to review control orders after suspects escape

LONDON, Oct 17: Britain said today it would review controversial ''control orders'' used to limit the movement of terrorism suspects after it was revealed that two men held under the system had gone on the run.

Media reports said one man, accused of wanting to go to Iraq to fight, had been missing for two weeks after escaping from a London mental health unit, while another had disappeared some months previously.

Control orders were rushed through parliament under last year's Prevention of Terrorism Act after judges threw out emergency post-September 11 powers to jail foreign terrorism suspects indefinitely.

The measures, which form a key plank of Prime Minister Tony Blair's government security policy, allow the Home Secretary to order suspects to be placed under a range of measures from electronic tagging, surveillance and even house arrest.

They are applied to terrorism suspects that Britain is unable to deport due to concerns about possible mistreatment in their homeland and cannot put on trial because there is not enough admissible evidence to use in UK courts.

In June Britain's High Court ruled that the orders imposed against suspects were too severe and broke the European Convention of Human Rights because it deprived them of their liberty without trial.

The Home Office was forced to issue less stringent orders but vowed to appeal to Britain's highest court, the House of Lords, to review the decision.

Home Office minister Tony McNulty said control orders were always a ''second best'' option.

''We'll keep this under review, we have provision in the law for a different form of control orders and at this stage we don't rule either in or out,'' he told BBC television.

Civil rights campaigners said news of the men's escape showed the system was flawed.

''They are both unsafe and fundamentally unfair,'' said Shami Chakrabati, the director of Liberty. ''If someone is truly a dangerous terrorist suspect why would you leave them at large?

''On the other hand it is completely cruel and unfair to label someone a terrorist and to subject them to a range of punishments for years on end without ever charging them or putting them on trial.''

The BBC said the most recent escapee, who cannot be named for legal reasons but is in his twenties, had climbed out of a window from the mental health unit.

It said he was arrested in Pakistan last year where he was held for seven months before returning to Britain in January.

In March a control order was imposed, requiring him to report to police every day and surrender his passport.

Opposition Conservatives said the escape was ''extraordinary''.

''The government justified control orders on the basis of protecting the public from potentially dangerous terrorists,'' said opposition Conservative home affairs spokesman David Davis.

''It is therefore hard to understand how this man was allowed to escape, especially while undergoing psychiatric assessment.'' (AGENCIES)

Australian race-riot board game may be banned

CANBERRA, Oct 17: A board game glorifying race riots that gripped Sydney's beaches nearly a year ago might be banned to prevent further violence, Australian authorities said today.

The game called ''Cronulla Monopoly'' invites players to ''Win back Australia'' by buying and selling land in the southern beach suburbs hardest-hit by clashes last December between white Australian youths and ethnic-Lebanese Australians.

A far-right Web site promoting the game said it was ''dedicated to all those who stood up for the freedoms of all fair dinkum (real) Aussies''.

''The board game for Aussies, commemorating the efforts of all those who had the guts to come along to the rally at Cronulla on 11th December 2005 to defend the Aussie way of life,'' it said.

A ''reclaim the beach'' rally on December 11 last year sparked days of racial attacks by demonstrators wearing slogans such as ''We Grew Here, You Flew Here'' and ''Aussie Pride''.

Cars, shops and churches were damaged in the violence, which followed an attack on a pair of beach lifeguards.

Police later identified members of far-right organisations in the crowds, including the Australia First Party and the Patriotic Youth League, which has links to the US-based skinhead group Volksfront and the British National Party.

The Australia First Party today carried an internet link to the board game, but denied responsibility for designing it, warning the game could breach national anti-discrimination laws.

The game, which can be downloaded free or printed from the Web site, asks winners to donate to right-wing political parties who would enter parliament and ''win back Australia''.

Almost a quarter of Australians were born overseas.

''One would not want to be arrested for playing a board game (surely these laws have the smell of the KGB and Gestapo about them),'' the Australia First Party said on the Web site.

New South Wales state Premier Morris Iemma said he wanted the game banned because it glorifies violence.

''It promotes acts of violence against members of the community, simple as that, and not only promotes it, glorifies it, encourages, incites people to engage in acts of violence,'' Iemma told Australian Broadcasting Corp. Radio.

The game's release came as Sydney police investigated a gang attack on a group of ethnic Asian and Middle Eastern Australians at a beach just north of where last year's violence took place.

Police have mounted special summer patrols of Sydney's beaches, including dog units, roadside vehicle checks and aerial surveillance, to prevent a recurrence of last year's violence.

''Our beaches are there for everyone to enjoy, regardless of their creed or colour,'' police minister Carl Scully said. (AGENCIES)

Google to convert its headquarters to solar power

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 17: Google Inc is converting its renowned headquarters to run partly on solar power, hoping to set an example for corporate America.

The Internet search leader announced what is believed to be the largest solar project undertaken by a US company during a solar energy conference in Silicon Valley yesterday. Google believes the sun eventually can deliver as much as 30 per cent of the power at its 1-million-square-foot campus in Mountain View, a suburb about 56 kilometers south of San Francisco.

The ambitious project will require installing more than 9,200 solar panels on a high-tech mecca nicknamed the "Googleplex". After leasing the offices for several years, Google bought the campus for USD 319 million earlier this year.

Once they are in place next spring, the solar panels are expected to produce about 1.6 megawatts of electricity, or enough power to supply about 1,000 homes.

The job is being handled by Pasadena-based EI Solutions, part of a high-tech incubator run by entrepreneur Bill Gross, whose idea to link ads to search engine requests during the 1990 inspired the business model that generates most of Google’s profits.

Google wouldn’t disclose the project’s cost, but it won’t strain a company with nearly USD 10 billion in cash.

The anticipated savings from future energy bills should enable Google to recoup the solar project’s costs in five to 10 years, estimated David Radcliffe, the company’s vice president of real estate.

"We hope corporate America is paying attention. We want to see a lot of copycats" of this project, Radcliffe said. (AP)

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