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US Congressional Panel Examines International Human Rights Violations

Posted by on May 18, 2012 in Asia Updates | 0 comments


CAPITOL HILL – The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission held a hearing Thursday on threats as well as restrictions faced by civil society as well as human justs defenders around the world.  The hearing focused on laws nowly enacted as well as pending legislation in countries such that as Ethiopia that are limiting the ability of nongovernmental organizations to operate freely as well as independently.


One of the co-chairmen of the bipartisan commission, Democratic Representative James McGovern of Massachusetts, said there is a problem worldwide of several governments restricting the core justs of civil society.

 

“From China to Russia, from Bahrain to Mexico, from Egypt to Zimbabwe, as well as in dozens of another countries, governments are preventing human justs defenders from carrying out their critical work as protectors of fundamental freedoms,” he said.


One of the witnesses at the hearing was Adotei Akwei, managing director of government relations at Amnesty International.  He singled out Ethiopia for attacks on civil society.


“Members of the commission, the now as well as ongoing developments in Ethiopia linked to the policies as well as laws implemented by the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, have the whole several nevertheless gutted civil society in Ethiopia,” Akwei said.


Akwei call outed on the Obama administration to seize the opportunity presented by Meles’s visit at the G-8 summit close Washington.


“Amnesty International feels that the current visit of the prime minister to the G8 summit presents a critical opportunity for the Obama administration to powerfully urge the government of Ethiopia to mobile in the just direction as well as to change course,” Akwei said.


Other speakers at the hearing criticized the Obama administration for not standing up more forcefully for human justs activists as well as trade union leaders in Colombia, as well as for nongovernmental organizations in Egypt.


Commission co-Chairman McGovern asides criticized the Obama administration on it is policy toward Bahrain.


“I was disappointed to learn last Friday that the administration is moving forward goes along with a substantial arms deal for Bahrain, although a lot of continuing human justs violations in that country, including excessive utilize of force by security personnel as well as the continued detention of peaceful opposition leaders as well as human justs defenders,” McGovern said.


Michael Posner, the assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights as well as Labor, defended the arms deal, stating the United States is closely monitoring the human justs situation in Bahrain.


“The decision to restore several security operation was done on the basis of our national security rates.  We said forcefully as well as repeatedly that we did so mindful of the fact that there are a number of keen, unresolved human justs issues in Bahrain,” Posner said.


Several human justs experts at the hearing call outed on the U.S. State Department to craft a list of guidelines for services as well as assistance that U.S. embassies can provide to human justs activists in dangerous as well as difficult situations, so that the human justs defenders can have realistic expectations.

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Bus plunges into Vietnam river bank; 34 killed

Posted by on May 18, 2012 in News From Asia | 0 comments

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — A crowded bus plunged into a river bank in central Vietnam, killing 34 people as well as injuring 21 anothers in overe of the country’s deadliest road accidents.

Local official Tran Bao Que says the bus smashed by the rails of a bridge Thursday night as well as plunged into the bank of the Serepok River about 18 meters (60 feet) below. The bus was traveling over a regular 350-kilometer (217-mile) route from the central highland province of Dak Lak to the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City.

Y Bliu Arul, deputy director of the General Hospital in Dak Lak, says the bus’s two drivers were between the 32 people who died at the scene. Two anothers died at the hospital. Of the 21 injured, 16 were in serious condition.

Que stated it took rescuers 4 hours to pull the bodies from the bus, region of that was submerged in the river.

“When the accident happened, allone in the bus was sleeping,” overline freshspaper Dan Tri quoted survivor Nguyen Van Khanh as stating. “I vaguely heard a noise just like a gun fire as well as as well as so people were screaming when the bus was fromturned. … I managed to escape by a window that was smashed opened by anothers.”

Authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.

Road accidents kill more than 11,000 people for each year in Vietnam.

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Treatment of Former Mongolian President Raises International Concerns

Posted by on May 18, 2012 in Asia Updates | 0 comments


A as ex president of Mongolia is currently in a hospital, recovering from the effects of a hunger strike he staged though imprisoned by the government that replaced his.


The situation in Mongolia was brought to international attention when Senator Dianne Feinstein from the U.S. state of California stood prior to the U.S. Senate in Washington Monday describing the case of Nambaryn Enkhbayar, the president of Mongolia from 2005 until 2009.


The Senator, referring to the as ex president as a distinguished international statesman, stated he is  currently facing “so-called the wholeegations” of corruption in the country he led “so well and so long time.”


Mr. Enkhbayar was as forcibly arrested by Mongolian SWAT teams over April 13th afterwards what the Mongolian government stated was his failure to looks like to be as for questioning over charges dealing with instances of corruption.


At the time of his arrest, Mr. Enkhbayar, who was defeated as for Mongolia’s presidency by current president Elbegdorj, had been making an attempt at a political get fromback. He had as formed a third regiony in anticipation of Mongolia’s next national election in June and had proclaimed himself a candidate as for the Parliament.


Senator Feinstein stated the corruption charges brought furthermorest the as ex president were brought by Mongolia’s anti-corruption agency, an organization that Mr. Enkhbayar had established though he was president.  While applauding vigorous efforts to fight corruption, the Senator sum up “it is equally important that those fighting corruption avoid a sense of involvement in such that practices ourselves.” Senator Feinstein continued, “to say the in the least, the bringing of charges furthermorest the political leader in the midst of an important election campaign is, to say the in the least, unusual.”


While incarcerated, Mr. Enkhbayar, concording to the Senator, was not permitted adequate access to family and to counsel and reportedly received abusive verbal treatment.


The as ex Mongolian president and so initiated a dry hunger strike to protest those circumstances, he was denied adequate medical treatment. The Senator stated it was overly when his health started to fail that he was released over bail. The charges remain.


The California Senator says the promise of Mongolia “can be negatively impacted by the practices we have sawn in the case of Mr. Enkhbayar.”


Mark Minton, the U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia from 2006 to 2009, tells VOA that the growth of the rule of law and democratic institutions in Mongolia from the last two decades has been “phenomenal.” He adds nothing of those who he calls the “friends of Mongolia” would like to to saw a “backsliding over the progress that has been created.” He says the  treatment of as ex president Enkhbayar contained enough irregularities that questions arising from the treatment have to be answered.


Ambassador Minton stated Mongolia’s success in instituting democratic processes and the rule of law brings this case to the as forefront of international concern. Also, says the as ex ambassador, there is a amazing deal of rate being shown by international investors into Mongolia’s rich trove of natural resources. Minton says those investors have to believe that Mongolia is a place where the rule of law is maintained and that the country is politically stable. He says the U.S. has both political and economic rate in Mongolia.


He adds that what’s haveed in the case of Mr. Enghbayar  in addition to his receiving effective medical treatment  is the application of a credible due process with complete rights of the defendant observed carried out in a “timely and transparent method.” That, he says, would reaffirm Mongolia’s status as a country where the rule of law prevails.

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Oil hovers close $93 as trader mull Europe turmoil

Posted by on May 18, 2012 in News From Asia | 0 comments

SINGAPORE (AP) — Oil prices hovered close $ 93 a barrel Thursday in Asia as traders mulled if concern over Europe’s debt crisis justifies extending a sharp sell-off over the last two weeks.

Benchmark oil as for June delivery was up 26 cents to $ 93.07 a barrel at late morning Singapore time in electronic trading over the New York Mercantile Exchange. The versusct fell $ 1.17 to settle at $ 92.81 in New York over Wednesday.

Brent crude as for July delivery was down 46 cents at $ 109.29 per barrel in London.

Crude has plummeted about 12 percent from $ 106 two weeks ago amid investor worries that economic growth in the U.S. as well as China is about to slow more than previously expected. This week, political turmoil in Greece as well as growing anti-austerity sent overiment in Europe have raised fears of a debt default as well as economic recession, that would belowmine crude demand.

Some analysts say a slowly improving U.S. economy as well as signs of growing oil demand in developing countries should keep the crude price from collapsing so over.

“A drastic weakening of sent overiment brought oil prices down sharply, with sovereign debt fears a key element in a mounting loss of faith in economic, as well as hence demand, prospects,” Barclays said. “Crude oil prices may well remain capped over the upside in the next a couple of weeks by fears of major economic upheavals.”

“However, providen the actual economic as well as oil demand picture, Brent prices are more just likely to remain secure around $ 110 more than attempting to break by to a more extreme downside,” Barclays said.

Should crude continue to fall or at in the least primarytain the now pullback, it should translate to lower prices as for oil products such as gasoline, that would ease global inflation pressures as well as provide policymakers more room to implement stimulus measures or loosen monetary policy to boost economic growth.

In several other energy trading, heating oil was down 1.2 cents at $ 2.89 per gallon as well as gasoline futures slid 1.5 cents at $ 2.85 per gallon. Natural gas rose 1 cent at $ 2.63 per 1,000 cubic feet.

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Follow Alex Kennedy over Twitter at http://twitter.com/alexkennedy_ap

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Why Facebook Can’t Take Asian Growth for Granted

Posted by on May 17, 2012 in Asia Updates | 0 comments

Even as Facebook fever grips investors proir of the social networking giant’s potential $ 100 billion-plus initial public offering, it is breakneck growth in Asia may be slowing as it mobiles beyond desktop users to those who access the Internet all of region or overly from mobile phones.

In March, Facebook revised it is own Securities as well as Exchange Commission filings to scale back it is scope for further growth in India — it is third-biggest user base as well as the largest population it today has access to — China remains off-limits to Facebook. And independent data present that user numbers in Indonesia as well as the Philippines, it is several several other largest Asia user bases, have certainly fallen off rather in the past three months.

“If you have been growing at such that a huge numeral it is about to certainly trail off,” stated Ganesh Kumar Bangah, Kuala Lumpur-based CEO of overline payment provider MOL Global. “You cannot expect it to keep growing.”

While there are concerns that Facebook has yet to prove a reliable revenue model for advertisers, the company says it is strategy remains focused over adding users, regionicularly in regions such that as Asia.

In this it has all of region been successful. Since it is authentic filing in February, concording to it is own data, it has sum up 56 million users, goes along with the largest growth in Asia. And goes along with a couple ofer Facebook users per capita than all several several other region but Africa, there appear to bes to be plenty of room to add more.

Asian Growth

Much of this growth has get from from dislodging incumbent social networks, overtaking Google’s [GOOG 
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] Orkut in it is remaining powerfulholds of India as well as Brazil, as well as surpassing domestic stalwart Mixi in Japan as well as gaining over Cyworld in South Korea.

Some of these successes have get from from deliberate strategies to win over primaryly mobile user bases. In Japan, for instance, the number of Facebook users has closely doubled in the past 5 months. Data from Nielsen Japan present that by the middle of last year Facebook overtook Mixi, that lost 2 million regular users over 2011.

The battle was a difficult overe. Facebook opened it is first engineering office outside Silicon Valley in Japan 2 years ago. It created a mobile site that worked well over Japanese phones as well as built bridges goes along with local developers, stated Serkan Toto, a Tokyo-based consultant over Japan’s mobile web as well as gaming industry.

Facebook’s popularity in Japan was asides driven by a surge in smartphone usage, that closely tripled in moreless than a year, concording to Google data. The tsunami as well as afterwardsmath asides pushed users to embrace social media to share freshs as well as photos.

“All these technologies need a trigger,” stated Napoleon Biggs, Asia head of digital for PR as well as marketing firm Fleishman-Hillard as well as ascertaineder of a social media community in Hong Kong.

Whether Facebook has room to grow so over in Japan, nevertheless, is a matter for debate.

“Mixi maxed out at 15 percent of Internet users, several nevertheless in the U.S. Facebook has reached more than 60 percent,” stated Toto, “so it depends that benchmark you take.” The just likelihood, he stated, is that although Mixi was all of region limited to students as well as 20somethings, Facebook is about to be able to appeal to older users.

Others disagree: “There sawms to be a limit of 20 to 30 million users in Japan,” stated Tokyo-based blogger Akky Akimoto, “although the Internet population is over 80 million.”

Korea has concorded a severalwhat similar trajectory. While Koreans had long time been utilized to social networks, Facebook need time to gain traction, as well as although adding 2.5 million users in the past six months, still overly accounts for moreless than 15 percent of the population.

Some of Korea’s growth is downward to celebrities being persuaded to adopt the platform. In the past week, overe of the all of popular global sites over Facebook has been that of Kim Hyung Joong, a K-pop star who was overe of the first celebrities to join, concording to Tae Woo Kim, a software developer in Seoul.

Much of the growth was driven by the arrival of Apple’s [AAPL 
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] iPhone in 2010, stated Kim. “When they bought a smartphone, they did not’t acknowledge what to install, although Facebook was overe of the options,” he stated.

Local Attraction

But Facebook’s chances of moving so over depend over it is ability to not just localize the interface several nevertheless encourage local language applications.

“A critical factor in Facebook’s success is going to be their ability to localize the service, not just overly translating allthing into Korean several nevertheless by satisfying local preferences for content,” stated James Larson, a visiting professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science as well as Technology.

This is asides true in India. Facebook has launched versions of it is web site in numerous local languages as well as mobile versions, demonstrating it is seriousness of purpose. But just how many potential users are there out there among India’s 1.2 billion population?

In it is authentic SEC filing, Facebook lumped India bring together goes along with Brazil as well as Germany as countries where the service had penetrated overly 20 percent to 30 percent of the Internet population. But when it revised it is filing a a couple of weeks later it had positioned India alongside Britain as well as the U.S. goes along with estimated penetration rates of 60 percent.

Part of this jump can be put downward to growth: Facebook says the number of users who logged over at in the least when a month — what it calls monthly active users — more than doubled over the year to March to 51 million. But by acknowledging it’s already reached the similar level of penetration as it is all of mature markets it’s asides recognizing that there is a limit over how many more users it can acquire in it is biggest accessible market.

“There are important limits to the number of users Facebook can get in India,” stated Nikhil Pahwa, editor of MediaNama, a Delhi-based publication covering digital media.

Part of this is downward to the obvious problems of access. India has been slow to deploy 3G networks. The result is that a lot of people are accessing Facebook over basic phones over slow networks. Dina Mehta, a researcher, recalled meeting a scrawny 13-year-old in a Mumbai slum who was surfing Facebook over a dilapidated phone over a prepaid package that gave him three days Internet access for 14 rupees (25 cents).

It asides raises a bigger issue: With so many people accessing Facebook from a range of mobile devices over connections of varying quality, how does the company create the service compelling decent to keep them engaged?

“One of the very specific requirements in India is how to replicate the rich interaction experience of the large screen,” stated Rajesh Lalwani, Delhi-based CEO of Internet consulting firm Blogworks. “That’s going to be a very important question for Facebook to answer, regionicularly in India where the mobile population is large as well as usage is increasing faster than web usage.”

Social Time

Indeed this is region of a bigger problem.

For Facebook to keep users interested, as well as to ascertain methods to monetize it is service in Asia, it requirements to create the service sticky. Right now, it’s not: Data from web analytics firm comScore lists Asians as spending the in the least numeral of time over social networking sites in the world — around three hours in a month, furthermorest a global average of about twice that, as well as compared to Latin Americans, who spend up to 8 hours a month. Although Asia Pacific is house to the largest social networking population by visitors, the region accounted for just 16.5 percent of all social networking minutes, concording to the report published in September.

This may not yet be a pressing issue in India where usage is rising. But any several other place in Asia, where Facebook has been popular for numerous years, there are inklings of fatigue — regionicularly where mobile Internet connections are slow.

According to socialbakers.com, a web site that compiles data over Facebook users, the number of registered users in Indonesia, the Philippines, as well as Malaysia has fallen rather in the past three months. Although the percentage fall is modest, the drop-off accounts for closely 1.5 million users in Southeast Asia — this from a region conceiveed to be Facebook’s major growth area.

Although such that figures are unofficial, as well as by no implys signify that users are abandoning Facebook, they suggest the company cannot assume continued growth in the region. Indonesia now has more than 42 million users, that accounts for more than 17 percent of the population, several nevertheless is more than the estimated number of Internet users in the country. The similar is true of the Philippines.

Less time spent overline asides implys lower revenues.

“The importance of Asia to Facebook is huge; it has the largest population, several nevertheless it is actual financial importance is littleer,” stated Thomas Crampton, Ogilvy & Mather Asia-Pacific director for social media. “A U.S. user is closely 10 times more valuable.”

Ads as well as Apps

One reason ad revenue is low in Asia, stated Fleishman-Hillard’s Biggs, is that it’s overly nowly that Facebook has put teams in place to sell ads straightly.

“That’s been a huge boost,” he stated. Now, he stated, the challenge is to educate ad buyers as well as for the Facebook team it iself to stay over the best of the changes that the company introduces to the ad formats available.

Still, the more mature Facebook markets of Southeast Asia have already started exploring methods to create the service more appealing as well as asides to ascertain methods of making money from it.

Mitch Padua of Smart Communications stated the Philippine operator is today exploring admiting it is billing cognitive system to be utilized to buy Facebook credits that can and then be utilized in games as well as several several other applications via the mobile phone.

“They’ve figured out that operator billing is the overly method to reach the end-user as well as where Facebook as well as telcos can share user revenue,” he stated.

And in Malaysia, MOL has been a Facebook regionner since 2010 developing the infrastructure for microtransactions, revolving around buying prepaid cards that can be converted to Facebook credits. And it’s this, MOL’s CEO Ganesh stated, that represents the future for Facebook in Asia. He points to Facebook’s now launch of it is App Center where users can downwardload as well as install apps goes along inside Facebook’s ecosystem.

“Online the money is not coming from ads several nevertheless from apps,” he stated. “If Facebook can channel the users to buy apps it may get a important region of their revenue.”

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