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By , on June 20th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> A Chinese astronaut orbiting more than 300 kilometres above the earth’s surface delivered a video class to children across the country on Thursday, state television showed in a live broadcast. Wearing a blue space suit, Wang Yaping, the second Chinese woman in space, demonstrated how a variety of objects – from a bubble of water to a spinning toy – behave in zero gravity. Wang’s class – delivered from China’s orbiting space module Tiangong-1 – was shown in classrooms across China, state broadcaster CCTV said. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Video: China astronaut gulps water, mesmerises pupils from space
By , on June 20th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> An annual US State Department report on Wednesday cited China and Russia among the world’s worst offenders in fighting forced labour and sex trafficking, which could lead to US sanctions. The US designation drops China and Russia, which already often are at odds with Washington, in the same category as North Korea and Iran. The State Department ranks countries according to the efforts they make to fight human trafficking and China, Russia and Uzbekistan all fell to the lowest level, Tier 3, in the new report. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading China among world’s worst in human trafficking, may lead to US sanctions
By , on June 20th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said on Wednesday that he had been in contact with representatives of Edward Snowden to discuss his possible bid for asylum in Iceland following his disclosure of US surveillance programmes. In a conference call with reporters, Assange said he had been in contact with representatives of Snowden, who has been based in Hong Kong since May 20, to discuss a potential attempt at securing asylum. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Assange ‘brokering’ Snowden asylum bid in Iceland
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> A consultant advising the government on housing policy says that to meet growing demand it will need to build 221,800 public rental flats over the coming decade. That’s almost 25 per cent more than the current construction target. The consultant forecast demand for new private flats in the range of 128,700 to 191,000 over the same period. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Target for construction of public rental flats too low, adviser says
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Hong Kong can learn from South Korea, where local industry has had a hand in developing its aspiring universities, says an editor of a new list ranking young universities worldwide. The annual list, inaugurated last year by London-based Times Higher Education magazine, ranks the world’s 100 best universities that are not yet 50 years old. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Hong Kong universities can learn lesson from South Korea
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> A series of events celebrating Hong Kong’s comics and animation will be held this and next month to mark the opening of the city’s first site dedicated to the popular culture. But while fans will enjoy a feast of exhibitions and film screenings, the reality is not as rosy as it seems. While welcoming the opening of the Comix Home Base at the Green House in Wan Chai next month, local comics and animation veterans say the small domestic market has made their lives difficult. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Comics fest hides the grim reality of animation world
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Short-term help for tenants of subdivided flats is on the agenda of the new chief of urban renewal as he acknowledged the “big social problem” the housing phenomenon posed. Options being explored included providing interim housing to people who were ineligible for public flats, said a source close to the Urban Renewal Authority. New URA chairman Victor So Hing-woh, meeting the media yesterday for the first time, also dismissed public worries that his close ties with developers might result in a conflict of interests. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading New URA boss looks into interim help for tenants of subdivided flats
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Canada, among the 10 least corrupt countries in the world the past six years, according to rankings by Transparency International, is mired in scandals. Montreal Mayor Michael Applebaum was arrested by Quebec’s anti-corruption task force on Monday over fraud allegations, adding to controversies rocking political circles in Toronto and Ottawa that have taken the shine off Canada’s image as a squeaky-clean nation. Applebaum quit on Tuesday, saying he plans to focus on defending himself against the “unfounded” accusations. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Canada reels from corruption scandals
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> President Dilma Rousseff sought to defuse a massive protest movement sweeping Brazil, acknowledging the need for better public services and more responsive governance. She insisted on Tuesday – the day after more than 200,000 Brazilians marched in cities around the country – that her government remained committed to social change and was listening attentively to the many grievances expressed. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Brazil president Rousseff tries to appease protesters
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Israeli and global leaders, local celebrities and Hollywood superstars celebrated under one roof to honour Israeli President Shimon Peres for his upcoming 90th birthday, reflecting world respect for one of the country’s peace pioneers. Peres is hosting his annual Presidential Conference that brings together artists, thinkers and leaders to discuss issues relevant to Israel and the world. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading All-star party as peace pioneer Shimon Peres prepares to turn 90
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Italy’s top court said it had ordered a retrial of American Amanda Knox and her ex-boyfriend in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher because their acquittals contained “shortcomings, contradictions and inconsistencies”. Knox and Italian Raffaele Sollecito were initially found guilty of killing the 21-year-old Leeds University student in 2007 during what was described as a drug-fuelled sexual assault, but both were cleared on appeal in 2011. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Knox retrial due to acquittal flaws
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Under the watchful eye of stern-faced American advisers, hundreds of US-trained Jordanian commandos fanned across the dusty desert plain, holding war games that could eventually form the basis of an assault in Syria. With the recent deployment of Patriot missiles near the Syrian border, and the mock Syrian accents of those playing the enemy, the message was clear: there is fear of spillover from the Syrian war in this US-allied kingdom, and the potential for a Jordanian role in securing Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles should Bashar al-Assad’s regime lose control. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading War games in Jordan send a signal to Syria
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> In November 2008, Abid Naseer, a Pakistani student living in Manchester, England, began to e-mail a Yahoo account ultimately traced to his home country. The young man’s e-mails appeared to be about four women – Nadia, Huma, Gulnaz and Fozia – and which one would make a “faithful and loving wife”. Investigating terrorism is not an exact science. It’s like a mosaic SEAN JOYCE, FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR British investigators later determined that the four names were code for types of explosives. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading US defends surveillance tactics in war on terrorism
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Physician and superstar microblogger Dr Yu Ying announced her resignation from the Peking Union Medical College Hospital last week <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading China’s ‘Dr House’ resigns from post at public hospital
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> A car crashed into the entrance gate of Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s home in Ho Man Tin in the early hours of Wednesday morning. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Car rams front gate of Apple Daily boss Jimmy Lai’s home
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Authorities in central China executed a former Communist Party official for raping 11 underage girls, state media said on Wednesday, following an online uproar about the latest case of abuse of power. Li Xingong, who was the party’s deputy head in Yongcheng city in Henan province, was found guilty of assaulting the girls during police interrogations starting from the second half of 2011, the official Xinhua news agency reported. Li appealed against the guilty verdict, but was rejected by the Supreme Court, Xinhua said. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading China executes party official for child rapes after online uproar
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Edward Snowden would not be given preferential treatment if he were to apply for asylum in Hong Kong, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. “We would prioritise older cases,” said Nazneen Farooqi, a protection officer at the UNHCR office in Hong Kong, at a press conference on Wednesday ahead of World Refugee Day on Thursday. Farooqi added that she was speaking hypothetically as the UNHCR has a strict policy to neither confirm nor deny the existence of an individual asylum claim. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading No special treatment for any Edward Snowden asylum claim, says UNHCR
By , on June 18th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. foiled a plot to bomb the New York Stock Exchange because of the sweeping surveillance programs at the heart of a debate over national security and personal privacy, officials said Tuesday at a rare open hearing on intelligence led by lawmakers sympathetic to the spying. The House Intelligence Committee hearing provided a venue for officials to defend the once-secret programs and did little probing of claims that the collection of people’s phone records and Internet usage has disrupted dozens of terrorist plots. Few details were volunteered. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading US spy chief: plot against Wall Street foiled
By Yaakov Katz, on June 18th, 2013 Don’t be fooled by the widespread interest in Israeli military hardware at this week’s Paris Air Show. Israel needs to find new customers—and Turkey might be its top contender.
Continue reading Who Will Buy Israel’s Military Hardware?
By , on June 18th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> The Fire Services Department has decided to shelve a controversial programme that would have allowed teenagers to go out with ambulance crews on duty as observers. Responding to concerns that the youngsters could be exposed to dangerous or gruesome scenes the department has decided to conduct a training camp instead of the proposed “ambulance pioneers on-car attachment scheme”. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Ambulance ride too rough for teenage observers
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Video: China astronaut gulps water, mesmerises pupils from space
<!– google_ad_section_start –> A Chinese astronaut orbiting more than 300 kilometres above the earth’s surface delivered a video class to children across the country on Thursday, state television showed in a live broadcast. Wearing a blue space suit, Wang Yaping, the second Chinese woman in space, demonstrated how a variety of objects – from a bubble of water to a spinning toy – behave in zero gravity. Wang’s class – delivered from China’s orbiting space module Tiangong-1 – was shown in classrooms across China, state broadcaster CCTV said. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Video: China astronaut gulps water, mesmerises pupils from space
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