Asian News that affected the world in 2017

Japan to keep reduced tariffs on

imports from China, Brazil-The
expansion would cover roughly 600 items to
prevent a spike in export levies in the
aforementioned economies, excluding goods
that could harm domestic industries.
Thai former PM Yingluck gets 5-year
jail term for negligence-Thailand's
ousted former prime minister Yingluck
Shinawatra was handed a five-year prison
sentence in absentia after the country's highest
court found her guilty of negligence in the
management of a rice subsidy scheme.
ASEAN to consider admitting East
Timor as new member-Six years after
applying for admission in ASEAN,East Timors
wish of becoming a member might soon be
turning true
Singapores foreign minister warned
Philippines that there can be no compromise on
human rights as Duterte continued his high
 pitched calls for violent punishments to be
meted out to suspected drug traffickers.
Japan: Dentsu head to quit in
January over employees death by
overwork-This after a huge outcry over the
employees suicide shed new light on the often
excruciating working conditions and scant
disregard for dignity of labour in the island
nation
Japan fleet returns after killing 333
whales in annual Antarctic hunt-This
after Japan resumed whaling in 2015 despite
suggestions by ICJ against the practice
Japan, US to expand North Korea
sanctions White House - US President Donald
Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to expand
sanctions against North Korea over its continued development of nuclear
weapons and ballistic missiles, the White House said.

South Koreans reject deal on wartime

sexual slavery SOUTH KOREAs government
has said the countrys citizens widely disapprove of
a deal intended to end a feud with Japan over the
latters enslavement of women during World War II,
revealing its new presidents position on the issue.
 Japans PM Abe eyes legacy with
proposed change to pacifist
constitution- Abe, in a surprise move on the
70th anniversary of the US-drafted charter last
month, made a proposal to revise its
war-renouncing Article 9 by 2020 to clarify the
ambiguous status of its military, known as the
Self-Defense Forces (SDF).
Toshiba raises 600 billion yen by
selling off its flash memory business
Azerbaijan launches investment
offensive as cheap oil looms- The
sovereign wealth fund and state oil company
diversify their assets by investing abroad and lift
their cap on investment in stocks.
Mongolia signs agreement with IMF
on $5.5bn aid package- The fall in
commodity prices since 2011 has dealt a severe
blow to the economy of the resource rich
country, exacerbated by a massive outflow of
investment. Together with a fall in the value of
 its currency, the government racked up debts
worth nearly 90% of gross domestic product by
the end of 2016.
Nuclear fuel bank opens in
Kazakhstan- The world's first
internationally managed nuclear fuel reserve
opened in August in eastern Kazakhstan.
Proponents have championed the reserve as a
vital safety measure at a time of heightened
international tensions over the spread of
nuclear technology.
Tajikistan has raised $500 million
with its first international bond
issue to help fund the construction
of the world's tallest dam- After years of
failed attempts to attract foreign investment for
the project,The move by Central Asia's most
impoverished country could encourage
neighboring countries into the debt markets
Drastic Uzbek devaluation whets
appetite for wider reform- Uzbekistan's
moves to devalue and partly float its currency
mark the country's first step toward
 much-anticipated reforms to wipe out the black
market in foreign exchange and liberalize the
economy. On Sept. 4 the central bank suddenly
devalued the som by 48%.
Vietnam sentences blogger to 10 years
prison for defaming govt- A VIETNAMESE
court on Thursday sentenced a prominent blogger
and rights activist known by her pen name Me Nam
or Mother Mushroom to 10 years in prison for
criticising government policies and defaming the
Communist regime on Facebook and in foreign
media interviews.
Indonesia: Christian governor Ahok
jailed two years for blasphemy-
JAKARTAs immensely popular Christian governor
was found guilty of blasphemy against Islam and
sentenced to two years in jail on Tuesday after a trial
that was seen as a test of religious tolerance in
Indonesia, the worlds largest Muslim-majority
nation.
Malaysia: Anti-graft officials conduct
corruption probe at giant palm oil
company- MALAYSIAN anti-graft investigators
began collecting documents at the headquarters of
Felda Global Ventures Holdings (FGV) on Thursday
in their probe of corruption and abuse of power at
the worlds third-largest palm oil company.
 Halimah Yacob is set to be Singapores
first Malay president in more than 47
years -SINGAPORE named its first female
President on Monday following a controversial
election campaign that ended without a single vote
being cast after all other contenders were
disqualified. The move has split public opinion and
raised questions over the ruling partys dominance
in the notoriously strict state.
Malaysia bans citizens from travelling
to North Korea-MALAYSIA said that it will ban
its citizens from traveling to North Korea due to
escalating tensions in the Korean peninsula and
related developments arising from missile
tests.Relations have been strained since the murder
of Kim Jong Uns half-brother, Kim Jong Nam, at a
Kuala Lumpur airport earlier this year.
Number of wealthy Chinese has grown
9 times in a decade survey-THE number
of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) in China has
risen nearly 9 times since a decade ago, a private
survey released on Tuesday showed, as strong
growth in the worlds second-largest economy has
spurred wealth creation.Chinese with at least 10
million yuan ($1.47 million) of investable assets hit
1.6 million in 2016, up from 180,000 in 2006.
 according to the 2017 China Private Wealth Report
by Bain Consulting and China Merchants Bank.

Japan scrambles jets over China

drone flight near disputed Senkaku
islands-Japan and China have long been at
loggerheads over the tiny, uninhabited islands,
called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in
China. They are controlled by Japan but
claimed also by China.
The CIA wanted to kill Indonesias
Sukarno, JFK files reveal- A FILE released
by the United States government last week among
those pertaining to the assassination of former
president John F Kennedy has revealed that the
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) considered
murdering Indonesias founding father Sukarno.

China, Asean approve framework

for South China Sea code of
conduct
China says Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo
cremated and his wife is free- Chinese
 Nobel Peace Prize-winning dissident Liu Xiaobo , 61,
died of multiple organ failure in a hospital in the
northeastern city of Shenyang, where he was being
treated for late-stage liver cancer, having been given
medical parole but not freed.
Malaysian environmentalists call for
halt to Chinese-funded rail project-
ENVIRONMENTALISTS in Malaysia have called on
the government to delay the Chinese-funded US$13
billion rail project linking peninsular Malaysias East
and West amid concerns of massive
deforestation.The planned 688-km East Coast Rail
Link will connect the South China Sea, large parts of
which are claimed by China, at the Thai border in the
east with the strategic shipping routes of the Straits
of Malacca in the west.
Singapore tops global
competitiveness index-HAVING been
named the best city of the future just recently,
Singapore has been named among the most
competitive countries on the planet by the World
Economic Forum (WEF).Its annual G lobal
Competitiveness Index for 2017-18 ranks the
Southeast Asian city-state third in the world, just
under Switzerland and the United States.
In fall from grace, former Hong Kong
leader jailed 20 months - FORMER Hong
Kong chief executive Donald Tsang, the
 highest-ranking ex-official to be charged in the citys
history, was jailed for 20 months on Wednesday for
misconduct in public office, a ruling some said
reaffirmed the financial hubs vaunted rule of law.The
sentence brings an ignominious end to what had
been a long and stellar career for Tsang before and
after the 1997 handover to Chinese control, service
that saw him knighted by outgoing British colonial
rulers.
China blames bans on some imports
on tensions with Taiwan- POLITICAL
tension between China and Taiwan has affected
cooperation on safety standards leading to a large
number of cosmetic and food imports being stopped
from entering China, the head of Chinas quality
watchdog said on Tuesday.
Destruction of democracy in
Cambodia as opposition party
dissolved -CAMBODIAs government faced
international criticism on Friday after a Supreme
Court ruling saw the dissolution of the countrys only
credible opposition party, effectively making
Cambodia a one-party state.

Moon Jae In takes helm of South

Korea amid North Korea tensions-
Final election results showed Moon winning
 decisively, with the highest turnout in 20 years
despite drizzly weather in South Korea.Left
wing Moon won 41.1 percent of the votes
compared with 24 percent for conservative
candidate Hong Joon-pyo and 21.4 percent for
centrist Ahn Cheol-soo.
S. Korea: Ousted presidents friend
Choi Soon-sil gets three years jail - THE
friend of former South Korean leader Park Geun-hye,
who was at the centre of an influence-peddling
scandal that rocked the countrys business and
political elite, has been sentenced to three years in
jail. The court decision was the first ruling against
Choi Soon-sil, a long-time confidante of the ousted
South Korean president, who has been arrested and
is being held in jail over the corruption scandal that
ended her administration.
United States says it is clear that
Rohingya crisis is ethnic cleansing-
THE United States has called operations by the
Tatmadaw army of Burma (Myanmar) against
Rohingya Muslims ethnic cleansing and suggested
possible targeted sanctions because of the
horrendous atrocities in Rakhine State.
Lets kill another 32 every day:
Philippines drug war sees deadliest
days on record - THE PHILIPPINE
 governments war on drugs has seen its bloodiest
days on record in August 2017 since it began in June
last year, with at least 58 alleged drug suspects killed
so far this week.
Duterte makes public university free
in the Philippines - CONTROVERSIAL
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has signed a
bill which grants fully government-subsidised
education at all state universities and colleges
(SUCs), said a member of the countrys Cabinet on
Friday.The decision was made by Duterte despite
advice against the law from the presidents top
economic advisers.
Philippines: Duterte to expedite bill
for self-rule in Muslim region-
PHILIPPINES President Rodrigo Duterte vowed on
Monday to fast-track new legislation for autonomy in
the countrys most volatile region, advancing a
protracted process to end decades of rebellion and
thwart rising Islamist militancy.The Bangsamoro
Basic Law (BBL) submitted to Duterte on Monday is
the culmination of a rocky 20-year peace process
between the government of the predominantly
Christian Philippines and the Muslim separatist Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Philippines: Peace talks with Maoists
hits a snag after attack on Dutertes
bodyguards PEACE talks between the
Philippine government and the Communist Party of
the Philippines (CPP) hit a snag anew, as a result of
the guerilla attack in Mindanao that hurt four
members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG).