CHINA: 2 Falun Gong Lawyers Face Permanent Disbarment

April 21, 2010

By EDWARD WONG

BEIJING — Two Chinese lawyers who represented a follower of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement could have their licenses permanently revoked in an administrative hearing on Thursday. The action against the lawyers is the latest move in an increasingly harsh government crackdown on lawyers who take on human rights cases.

The lawyers, Tang Jitian and Liu Wei, said in a written statement that they were accused by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Justice of having “disrupted the order of the court and interfered with the regular litigation process.” The charge against the lawyers is based on accusations from the Luzhou Municipal Intermediate People’s Court of Sichuan Province, where the lawyers defended Wang Ming, the Falun Gong practitioner, nearly a year ago.

Lawyers in China are usually barred from practicing for life only if they are convicted of a crime. If Mr. Tang and Ms. Liu have their licenses permanently revoked, then this would be a rare occasion, perhaps the first of its kind, when a disruption-of-court charge has led to such harsh punishment, said Eva Pils, a law professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

The two lawyers said in their written statement that the justice bureau’s charge “is obviously factually unsound and lacks legal basis.” The lawyers said it was in fact the judge in the court in Sichuan who was a disruptive element during the trial on April 27, 2009. The judge, Li Xudong, interrupted statements made by the defense lawyers or by Mr. Wang, the lawyers said, “so that the defense was extremely difficult to carry out.” The judge also allowed people to film the lawyers in the courtroom, even though this is usually prohibited.

“As an organ with public power, the Luzhou Municipal Intermediate People’s Court should examine its own unlawful acts,” the lawyers said.

The Chinese government has been relentless about quashing any defense of Falun Gong, which is considered one of the most sensitive topics in China, along with independence for Tibet and Taiwan and the Tiananmen Square crackdown in 1989. The movement was banned as an “evil cult” in 1999 after followers staged a silent protest at the Chinese leadership’s compound in Beijing. Since then, practitioners have been subjected to imprisonment and torture.

The government has been clamping down on rights lawyers over the past year. In July 2009, the Beijing authorities, citing tax issues, shut down the office of Gongmeng, also known as the Open Constitution Initiative, a prominent legal research organization.

In May 2009, the licenses of 53 lawyers in Beijing were not renewed, making it impossible for the lawyers to work legally. Mr. Tang and Ms. Liu, who were among them, still have not received the proper stamp that would allow them to resume practicing but have so far managed to avoid having their licenses permanently revoked.

Last month, Gao Zhisheng, an outspoken rights lawyer who had defended Falun Gong practitioners, resurfaced at a Buddhist monastery after being held in custody for a year. He said in news interviews that he wanted to lead a quiet life for now. Last year, Mr. Gao’s wife and two young children fled to the United States a month before Mr. Gao was detained. Previously, Mr. Gao had had his law license permanently revoked after being convicted on a charge of subversion and being sent to prison.

Human Rights in China, an advocacy group, called on the Chinese authorities to conduct a fair investigation of what took place in the Sichuan court during Mr. Yang’s trial.

“Instead of the progressive strangulation of rights defense work, the Chinese authorities need to demonstrate their commitment to respect the professionalism and independence of the legal profession, a critical requirement for a true rule of law,” said Sharon Hom, the group’s executive director.

Xiyun Yang contributed research.

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RUSSIA: Russia bans texts by Scientology founder

AFP/File – A picture taken in 2009 shows books in the window shop of Paris's scientology "celebrity center", …

Wed Apr 21, 11:31 am ET

MOSCOW (AFP) – Russian prosecutors said Wednesday that dozens of texts and recordings by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard had been ruled "extremist" and would be banned in Russia.

"Materials on Scientology by Ron Hubbard have been found extremist and will be banned from distribution in Russia," the Russian prosecutor general's office said in a statement.

The ban relates to 28 books and audio-video discs containing lectures by Hubbard, a US science fiction author who founded Scientology in 1954, the statement said.

The ruling was the latest blow to the Church of Scientology, an organisation that some countries treat as a legitimate faith but that others consider a cult designed to trick members out of large sums of money.

The ban on the Scientology materials was imposed by a court in the city of Surgut in eastern Siberia, which decided they should be added to a list of literature banned in Russia for extremist content, the statement said.

The list of extremist literature includes numerous texts by Islamist groups and Russian ultranationalists, as well as some brochures distributed by Jehovah's Witnesses.

Local transport prosecutors in Surgut confiscated the Scientology materials after they were mailed there from the United States, then asked the court to declare them extremist, the statement said.

The materials contained calls "to commit crimes motivated by ideological and religious hatred" and "ideas justifying violence in general and in particular any methods of resistance against critics of Scientology," it said.

"This is some kind of mistake or misunderstanding," Yury Maksimov, a Moscow-based spokesman for the Church of Scientology, told AFP. "The materials cited are distributed all over the world."

The Church of Scientology, which says it is seeking a world free of "war, crime and insanity" and counts Hollywood stars Tom Cruise and John Travolta among its members, won the status of a religion in the United States in 1993.

But it is regarded with suspicion in many European countries, including France, Germany, Belgium and Greece, where opponents accuse it of manipulating members for financial ends.

It has repeatedly encountered problems with Russian officials. Russia has twice been fined by the European Court of Human Rights for refusing to register Scientology churches as religious organisations.

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CHINA: Mass mourning as China honours quake dead

Click here to view BBC Slideshow...

TAIWAN & CHINA: Silenced

AP

Wednesday, Apr. 21, 2010

Taiwan's ruling Nationalist party legislator Chao Li-yun is gagged during a parliament session. Arguments raged during the session over allowing students from Mainland China to attend universities in Taiwan.

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THE KOREAS: South Korea Arrests 2 From North in Alleged Assassination Plot

Published: April 21, 2010

By CHOE SANG-HUN

SEOUL. South Korea — South Korean security officials said Wednesday they had arrested two North Korean agents who posed as defectors in a plot to assassinate the highest-ranking North Korean defector by slitting his throat.

The defector, Hwang Jang-yop, a former North Korean Workers’ Party secretary, has bitterly criticized the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, since he defected in 1997. Mr. Hwang formerly tutored Mr. Kim and helped create the country’s ruling philosophy of juche, or national self-reliance.

Mr. Hwang, now 87, lives at a secret address in South Korea under heavy police protection. He occasionally emerges to give a speech or a lecture, as he did recently in Washington and Tokyo, and his talks are typically replete with biting assessments of Mr. Kim and the North Korean regime.

North Korea has called Mr. Hwang a traitor and “human scum.” He has received several death threats, including a package sent anonymously in 2006 that contained an ax stuck to his picture and splashed with red paint. The package was sent to a South Korean radio station that carried Mr. Hwang’s speeches.

On April 5, Uriminzokkiri, a Web site run by the North Korean government, warned Mr. Hwang:

“You must not forget that traitors have always been slaughtered with knives.”

The two alleged North Korean agents, identified by officials as Kim Myong-ho and Dong Myong-gwan, arrived in South Korea in January and in February, respectively, traveling through China and Thailand pretending to be defectors, according to Oh Se-in, a deputy chief prosecutor in Seoul who oversaw the joint investigation with the National Intelligence Service, the main government spy agency.

Each year, thousands of North Koreans arrive in the South after fleeing hunger in their homeland.

Mr. Oh said the two agents, both 36, were army majors attached to the General Bureau of Surveillance, the North’s main army intelligence agency. Their mission, he said, was to track Mr. Hwang’s whereabouts and “cut his throat because he was a thorn in the eye of the North.”

“They said they were ready to commit suicide once their assassination mission was completed,” Mr. Oh said. “This case shows that North Korea is still plotting terrorism while giving lip service to exchanges and cooperation with the South.”

South Korean officials said they caught the men during routine debriefings of defectors from the North. But the formal arrests on Tuesday and the timing of their announcement were notable.

The South Korean authorities briefed local news outlets about the arrests late Tuesday, only hours after President Lee Myung-bak, a member of the conservative ruling party, delivered unusually harsh criticisms of the North Korean leaders. On Wednesday morning, the major South Korean daily newspapers carried nearly identical articles on the arrests.

Opposition politicians raised concerns that the arrests would stir fears of North Korea as a way to rally conservative votes ahead of June mayoral and gubernatorial elections. In the past, conservative governments have been accused of stoking such fears during election years. Prosecutors said their investigation had nothing to do with domestic politics.

Mr. Lee’s comments came as suspicion grows that a South Korean Navy ship, which sank near the disputed border with the North, may have been hit by a North Korean torpedo. Mr. Lee tearfully vowed this week to find the culprits, and North Korea has denied any involvement. The plot against Mr. Hwang, if confirmed, would not be the first such attempt by the North to eliminate a prominent defector. South Korea said that Lee Han-young, a nephew of a former wife of Kim Jong-il who defected to Seoul through Switzerland in 1982, was shot and killed by North Korean agents near his apartment south of Seoul in 1997. Mr. Lee was a bitter critic of the North and had revealed embarrassing details of Mr. Kim’s secretive family life.

During recent lectures and interviews in Washington and Tokyo, Mr. Hwang reportedly called Mr. Kim “a dictator 10 times worse than Kim Il-sung,” Mr. Kim’s late father and the founder of the modern North Korean state. Mr. Hwang has said the regime abused the principles of the juche philosophy to drive the North into isolation and poverty.

“They call me a traitor, but the real traitor is Kim Jong-il, who let his people starve and die,” Mr. Hwang said in an interview with the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun.

In a lecture in Washington on March 31, Mr. Hwang said that Mr. Kim — during a drinking party — once ordered his military to attack a South Korean guard post because he was “bored by the silence along the border,” the South Korean newspaper JoongAng Ilbo reported. Such provocations were aimed at increasing Mr. Kim’s leverage in negotiations with the South, Mr. Hwang said.

The case brought fresh attention to the North’s General Bureau of Surveillance, which was created in February last year through a merger of three party and military spy agencies. The two accused spies told prosecutors that the bureau’s chief, Kim Yong-chol, personally assigned them to the assassination mission last November, throwing them a dinner party.

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CRUISING: Deal watch: Princess launches sale on 2010 cruises around the globe

Photo of Ruby Princess courtesy Princess Cruises

It's sale time again at Princess Cruises, which is marking down rates for voyages around the globe by up to $1,000 per couple.

The line's new World of Savings promotion, announced late Tuesday, encompasses select 2010 voyages to many of the line's worldwide destinations, including Asia and Africa; Canada and New England; the Caribbean; Europe; Hawaii and the South Pacific; and the Panama Canal. The promotion runs through May 31.

Examples of World of Savings starting fares include 15-night Asia and Africa cruises from $1,599 per person; seven-night Canada and New England cruises from $549 per person; and seven-night Caribbean cruises from $499 per person.

Sale fares for Europe cruises start at $1,099 per person for seven nights. Ten-night Hawaii and South Pacific cruises start at $1,099 per person.

Princess says the promotion is available to residents of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. Additional information about the promotion is available at princess.com/worldofsavings.page.

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JAPAN: Japan says 'sayonara' to Tokyo's kabuki theatre

People crowd outside of Tokyo's Kabukiza, the iconic home of Japan's traditional kabuki drama, in Tokyo on April 21, 2010. (Photo courtesy: AFP)

TOKYO, April 21 (AFP) - The curtain is coming down on Tokyo's Kabukiza, the iconic home of Japan's traditional kabuki drama, which is set to be demolished next month to make way for a skyscraper.

Women dressed in their finest kimonos and crowds of tourists have flocked to the venue, a landmark that evokes ancient Japanese castles and temples, to catch the final shows before its date with the wrecking ball.

Nestled amid the glass and steel of the upscale Ginza shopping district, the four-story playhouse, with its curved roofs and red paper lanterns, is a reminder of a quieter past beloved by many in the bustling metropolis.

For more than half a century it has been the premiere venue in Tokyo to see kabuki, the stylised classical dance-drama whose all-male actors perform in extravagant costumes and mask-like facial makeup.

The theatre's owner, movie and entertainment company Shochiku, plans to take down the building sometime in May and build a 49-story office tower on the site by 2013 at a cost of 43 billion yen (467 million dollars).

The company, which says the old structure fails to meet earthquake-safety standards, has said it will rebuild the theatre, using some original facade ornaments, on the bottom floors of the new building.

In contrast to the half-century old structure, the new version will boast elevators and the latest energy saving technology.

In the meantime the show must go on and daily plays will continue to be staged at several other venues in the city, including the nearby Shimbashi Embu theatre, and elsewhere in Japan.

Still, for many the Kabukiza demolition will mark the end of an era.

"When the Kabukiza closes, I will close my shop," said Kazushi Nishii, 80, who sells roasted chestnuts outside the theatre. "My girlfriend called the Kabukiza will be gone. I don't want to see a new one."

Kikuko Murakami, 79, a nearby kiosk owner, said: "I am very sad, and it's difficult to buy tickets this month ... There are a lot of people visiting."

Crowds have been queuing outside the theatre, which is listed as a cultural property and has been decorated with blue and red drop curtains with the farewell message "Kabukiza. Sayonara performance."

People crowd outside of Tokyo's Kabukiza, the iconic home of Japan's traditional kabuki drama, in Tokyo on April 21, 2010. (Photo courtesy: AFP)

Artists have been drawing and painting the theatre, while foreign and Japanese tourists have posed for photos in front of an electronic countdown board showing the days left until the final show on April 30.

The Kabukiza was originally built in 1889 and has since been reconstructed repeatedly following fires, the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, and US air raids at the end of World War II.

The current theatre was built in 1950, using some materials from the bombed site, with an audience capacity of 2,000.

"It is a symbol of rebirth after the war, so this is a very important building for us," Nobuyuki Suzuki, 66, said, painting a picture of the theatre from the sidewalk.

"I don't think it's right to break it down," Suzuki said. "I think this building should remain as a treasure of Japan."

Kana Kashima, a 21-year-old university student, said: "I feel very sad. It is historic and doesn't look so old, so tearing it down is unfortunate."

The firm, however, says reconstruction is unavoidable.

"We also feel very sad as we have an emotional attachment to the current building, but it is our duty to offer a safe environment to our audience," said Ippei Noma, a Shochiku official in charge of the reconstruction.

"And many of our audience members are complaining about the inconvenience and unfriendly facilities for the elderly, such as the absence of elevators or escalators," Noma said.

The company plans to set up a "Kabuki" gallery in the new building to pass on the 400-year-old tradition to younger generations, as well as an information centre to help foreign visitors better understand the art form.

"Theatre can't exist without an audience," Noma said. "It is our mission to take measures to maintain our traditional art."

"In kabuki, we have long maintained old things while embracing the challenge of the new," Noma said. "The concept of kabuki is exactly the same as our reconstruction concept." (By Shingo Ito/ AFP)

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RUSSIA: On this day: 21 April

St. Sergius Lavra

On April 21, 1946, the St. Sergius Lavra, the stronghold of the Russian Orthodox faith and a source of pride and inspiration for the Russian people, was given back to the Russian Patriarchy after a twenty-year-long secular spell.

Sergius, the founder of the Lavra and a saint already in his lifetime, started his hermitage in 1337 by building a shelter and a small church in a clearing in the middle of the thick forest. Over centuries, this tiny complex had grown into the spiritual center of Russia and a unique architectural site.

Despite the distance of his hermitage, word of St. Sergius soon spread, and people started coming to him for advice or to join him. So great was his work that Patriarch Filofey of Constantinople gave Sergius his blessing to open a monastery.

Before the great battle on the Kulikovo field on September 8, 1380, Prince Dimitry Donskoy of Moscow came to seek St. Sergius` blessing before leading his army against the Tatar-Mongol troops. After a major victory had been won, Moscow Princes became the patrons of the Trinity monastery. St. Sergius was canonized patron saint of the Russian state in 1422 and declared “Russia’s advocate before Lord.”

In the XV century, Ivan the Terrible, having a particular veneration toward St. Sergius, was baptized in the monastery and sponsored the construction of a church there. The abbots of the monastery were favored by the royalty, and they accepted novices from nobility.

During the Time of Troubles (1598 – 1613) the monastery provided protection for Russian troops and they successfully withstood a 16-month-long Polish-Lithuanian siege (1608-1609). The monastery also donated many of its valuables to the army and allowed to use its facilities as a hospital. In the later XVII century, Peter the Great, the Russian Emperor-to-be at the time, took refuge behind the monastery’s walls, hiding from his enemies.

In 1919, regardless of the protests, the holy relics of Saint Sergius were exposed, and on April 20, 1920, Lavra was closed per the decree of the Soviet of People’s Commissars, with all the brothers dismissed. The authorities assigned the monastery’s buildings to various civic institutions – a common practice of the Soviet regime.

A unique monument of the fortress architecture, with four centuries of making, the Lavra saw much damage and destruction in the 1930s. Many of its valuables had been stolen by the Soviet authorities, and it was in need of an extensive restoration which did start in the 1940s and lasted for several decades.

Following Joseph Stalin's temporary tolerance of the church in the years of World War II, part of the Lavra was returned under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church; the monastery life revived, and the holy relics of St. Sergius returned home. The first service after reopening was conducted on the Easter night on April 21, 1946.

In 1993, the St Sergius Lavra was included on the UN World Heritage List.

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CHINA: Music Bridges the Political Divide in China

April 21, 2010

By CINDY SUI

DALIN, TAIWAN — When a Taiwan music ensemble performed its reconstruction of Chinese imperial court music last year in Beijing, it marked not just a cultural milestone, but a political one.

The concert provided a rare opportunity to hear ancient sounds salvaged from a nearly vanished musical tradition. The 3,000-year-old genre known as yayue, or “elegant music,” faded with the collapse of dynastic rule in 1911, and nearly succumbed to the later Maoist assault on “feudalistic” elements of China’s past.

But it was also a chance for people from both sides of the long-divided Taiwan Strait to compare notes on which parts of their joint Chinese heritage have been preserved, or not.

“The audience response was quite strong. Many were hearing this music for the first time,” said Xie Jiaxing, director of the China Conservatory in Beijing, which had invited the Yayue Ensemble of Nanhua University to perform in the capital.

“For political reasons, we haven’t done enough to research yayue,” Mr. Xie said. “Taiwan’s Nanhua University has done a really good job in this respect. Afterwards, our students wrote to the school saying how happy they were to discover such a great treasure in ancient Chinese culture, even though they don’t really understand it.”

The Communist victory in the Chinese civil war in 1949 and the flight of the defeated Kuomintang forces to Taiwan was followed by decades of tense separation. Taiwan considers itself a self-governed island, while China regards it as a renegade province.

A détente, first taking the form of economic ties, gathered strength beginning in 2008 with the election in Taiwan of President Ma Ying-jeou, who has made improved relations a hallmark of his administration. Direct flights, tourism and, increasingly, cultural exchanges have blossomed.

While Taiwan has long prided itself on being the keeper of Chinese tradition, until recently it had been distanced from its cultural roots on the mainland. The Communist mainland, by contrast, had in many regards cut itself off from its own past. The exchanges are allowing both sides to fill in the gaps. The past year has seen exhibits and performances unimaginable not long ago.

Last October, the Palace Museum in Beijing and Taiwan’s National Palace Museum held their first-ever joint exhibition in Taipei, displaying paintings and other treasures from a long-splintered imperial collection.

The two museums are also stepping up cooperation, coordinating their catalogs and Web sites, and sharing their expertise in storing and restoring artifacts.

In March, the internationally renowned Chinese director Zhang Yimou staged his production of the Puccini opera “Turandot” in Taiwan, performed by mainland singers and Taiwanese instrumentalists.

Mainland provincial governments have been sending delegations to Taiwan to promote investment, trade and tourism, and each brings examples of local culture, some of which had never been seen in Taiwan.

Henan Province brought monks from the Shaolin Temple who demonstrated their martial arts skills. Guizhou Province displayed one of its most famous products — Maotai grain liquor, which is still barred from sale in Taiwan — but also the clothing, crafts and dances of its many ethnic minorities.

Chou Ju-mu, 20, a Taipei fashion design student who visited the recent Guizhou exhibit, expressed amazement at the intricate embroidery, batiks and paper-thin silver ornaments.

“We’ve only learned about the mainland from books,” she said. “Only today are we able to see these things in reality.”

Joseph Lee, a businessman who was also at the exhibit, agreed, saying many aspects of China’s culture remained foreign to ordinary Taiwanese.

“We’ve seen more of the culture of Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the United States or Canada than we have of mainland China.”

That is changing. Banners on the main boulevards of Taipei that once were more likely to promote Western or Japanese performers now advertise coming performances by the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra or a Kunqu opera troupe.

Even a singer from the People’s Liberation Army has given a concert here.

These events are not happening without controversy or criticism, especially from Taiwan’s main opposition party and others who suspect that China’s overtures, even cultural exchanges, may all be aimed at eventually bringing the island under its rule.

However, Chen Huei-ying, director-general of the cultural and education affairs department of the Mainland Affairs Council, the Taiwan government body in charge of policies toward China, sees benefits.

“Cultural exchanges are helpful to peaceful development of cross-strait relations,” he said.

“They increase understanding and appreciation for each other and especially feelings people on each side have for one another.”

They are also allowing mainland Chinese visitors to see how their culture evolved on Taiwan, shielded from the Communist campaigns against many traditional practices.

Some folk customs — such as the worship of Mazu, the sea goddess — thrive here in ways they no longer do on the mainland. Chinese temples are seeking help from their Taiwanese counterparts on how to revive Mazu festivals.

In the case of yayue, the classical court music, the exchanges are generating lively discussion, if not always agreement.

The yayue performance presented in Beijing last autumn was the culmination of 15 years of research by Chou Chun-yi, head of the Yayue Ensemble at Nanhua University here in Dalin.

Such was the influence of imperial China over its neighbors that variants of its musical forms and instruments had made their way into the courts of Korea, Japan and Vietnam. Mr. Chou traveled to those countries in search of clues to what instruments should be played and how, what the music should sound like and what the accompanying dance steps might have been. But he also made numerous trips to the Chinese mainland, where he studied ancient instruments unearthed from tombs and had replicas made.

“A people cannot be without its history,” said Mr. Chou. “Japan and South Korea can perform something from 1,000 years ago. Why can’t we?”

The mainland’s state-run China Central Television broadcast a special program about the concert and interviewed Mr. Chou. He maintains that this was the first time many Chinese had heard this music of their own ancestors.

Peng Qingtao, director of the materials research committee of the Cultural Relics Bureau of Qufu, the hometown of Confucius, acknowledges that much of what passes for ancient music in China today may not be genuine. But he wondered how authentic even Mr. Chou’s painstakingly researched renditions could be.

“There are no recordings of the music,” Mr. Peng said. “Even the musical scores were notated under a different system than the one we use now. So it’s impossible for any interpretation to be completely authentic.”

He said China also has much to offer Taiwan in terms of traditional culture.

“We’ve held ceremonies to honor Confucius here for 2,000 years, without interruption until 1949, so it’s not correct to say that all Chinese culture disappeared from China,” Mr. Peng said, referring to the year that Mao Zedong founded the People’s Republic of China.

“We still have documents that show exactly where the musicians stood, and the notices sent out before the ceremonies where yayue was played,” Mr. Peng said.

“These were not all destroyed in the Cultural Revolution,” he said, referring to the 1966-76 political campaign, when Red Guards defaced the tombs of Confucius and his descendents.

Meanwhile, the two sides are sharing their respective understandings of yayue. Partly because of the Beijing performance, the China Conservatory plans to set up its own yayue research center later this year and has invited Mr. Chou to help.

“Yayue is really worth studying and reviving. It’s one of the treasures of our ancient culture,” said Mr. Xie, the conservatory director. “These exchanges are good. They will deepen our understanding of Chinese traditional culture.”

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RUSSIA: Multinationals pledge no corruption in Russia

By Lidia Kelly

MOSCOW (Reuters) - More than 50 international companies are pledging zero-tolerance of bribery in Russia under a fresh Kremlin-backed effort to improve the business climate in one of the world's most corrupt countries.

Anti-graft legislation initiated by President Dmitry Medvedev in late 2008 had yet to be effective, according to Transparency International, an independent global group which monitors business corruption.

The new Corporate Ethics Initiative for Business in the Russian federation stems from political signals by the government and its growing recognition of the problem, according to Michael Harms, executive director of the German-Russian Chamber of Commerce in Moscow, which initiated the pact.

"The political background is very good now in Russia, with the Russian government fully supporting anti-corruption efforts," Harms said.

Transparency International last year ranked Russia a lowly 146 for corruption out of 180 countries. Medvedev has described corruption as "public enemy number one."

According to INDEM, the Moscow-based Information Science for Democracy foundation, a non-government organization, more than $300 billion is paid in bribes each year in Russia, more than a quarter of the country's GDP in 2009.

The 56 mainly German companies which will sign the pact on Wednesday include carmaker Daimler. engineering group Siemens, Deutsche Bank, publishing and media company Axel Springer AG and German state rail company Deutsche Bahn.

"Corruption is an obvious problem in Russia," said Frank Schauff, chief executive officer of the Association of European Businesses in Russia.

"But in the past few years the government has increased its efforts in fighting corruption."

ANTI-CORRUPTION PRINCIPLES

The agreement is based on a World Economic Forum initiative from 2004 and obliges each signatory to implement or improve existing anti-bribery and anti-corruption practices and report any incidents.

Schauff said the pact was not connected to a recent spate of bribery probes.

The world's top personal computer maker Hewlett-Packard is being investigated over whether it paid $11 million in bribes to win business in Russia.

Siemens agreed in 2008 to pay $1.3 billion to end corruption probes in the United States and Germany. Last month, Daimler agreed to pay $185 million to settle U.S. charges it showered foreign officials with money and gifts to win contracts, including in Russia.

"Multinational companies are particularly challenged in emerging markets, since they have to abide by more stringently applied regulation in their home countries, while trying to compete in rapidly growing, but inconsistently regulated markets such as Russia," said Brook Horowitz, IBLF's executive director for Russia.

Transparency International said in a statement the excessive role of government in the economy and business sector helped spur corruption and aggravated the problem.

(Reporting by Lidia Kelly; Editing by David Cowell)

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TRAVEL: Developments in volcanic ash affecting air travel

April 20, 2010 10:00 a.m. EDT

By the CNN Wire Staff

(CNN) -- Weather conditions aren't set to change over Europe until Friday, meaning the volcanic ash may linger over the continent until then, a spokeswoman from Britain's weather service, the Met Office, said Tuesday.

Starting Friday, southwesterly winds will start taking the ash away from the United Kingdom, the spokeswoman told CNN.

About 14,000 flights were expected to operate in European airspace Tuesday -- half of scheduled air traffic, according to Eurocontrol, the intergovernmental body that manages European air travel.

Some flights resume as new ash cloud forms

Latest travel picture by country:

China
- Air China said it will resume flying from Beijing to Moscow, Rome, and Stockholm. Flights to London, Paris, and Frankfurt are still suspended, it said.

Japan
- Japan Airlines said it planned to run a round-trip flight between Tokyo and Rome. It added an extra flight from Tokyo to Rome to help stranded passengers get home. Since Thursday JAL has canceled 55 flights, which has affected 14,000 passengers, the airline said.

Russia
- Twelve Russian airports were suffering flight delays and cancellations Tuesday because of the flight disruptions in Europe, the Russian Transport Ministry said. Moscow's international Sheremetyevo Airport has been affected far more than others, with 308 canceled flights and 127 delayed, the ministry said.

- Countrywide, 531 flights were cancelled and 177 were delayed, it said.

JAPAN: Ash halts some Nissan production

Nissan's Kyushu factory will be shut

Nissan has said that it will suspend production of three models in Japan on Wednesday because supply of parts has been disrupted by the volcanic ash.

The carmaker said it was unable to import air pressure sensors from the Irish Republic.

The sensors are used in Nissan's Cube, Murano and Rogue vehicles.

It will halt production of 2,000 vehicles in two plants. It has not yet decided whether a further suspension is needed on Thursday and beyond.

One of two production lines will be shut down at its Oppama plant in Yokosuka outside of Tokyo, while both lines at its southern Kyushu factory will be suspended.

The move comes as the spread of volcanic ash from Iceland continues to disrupt European airspace.

Businesses affected

Meanwhile, other Asian businesses have also been hit by the disruption to flights.

Factories in China's Guangdong province have seen air shipments of clothes and jewellery delayed.

In South Korea, Samsung and LG said they were unable to air-freight more than 20% of their daily electronics exports.

And the Federation of Hong Kong Industries said hotels and restaurants in Hong Kong were facing shortages of French cheese, Belgian chocolates and Dutch fresh-cut flowers.

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N. KOREA: North Korea readying for 3rd nuclear test: report

North Korean soldiers applaud during a visit by their leader Kim Jong-il at the 1224 military unit at an undisclosed place in North Korea, in an undated picture released in November 2009. Credit: Reuters/KCNA

Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:18am EDT

By Jack Kim and Jon Herskovitz

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea is preparing for a third atomic test that may come in May or June, South Korean broadcaster YTN reported on Tuesday, an act that could further isolate Pyongyang and complicate already troubled nuclear diplomacy.

South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan dismissed the report, saying Seoul had seen no evidence.

"If North Korea was making such preparations, there would be related circumstances that can be detected ... there is no intelligence on such circumstances," Yu told a news briefing.

The preparations began in February and involve a level of technical proficiency that is significantly upgraded from the first two tests, considered partial successes at best, YTN quoted an unnamed diplomat as saying.

North Korea has boycotted international nuclear disarmament talks for over a year and put conditions on its return that include ending U.N. sanctions imposed after its last test in May 2009 that dealt a severe blow to its feeble economy.

North Korea, scrutinized by U.S. spy satellites, can easily signal it is preparing for a test by moving equipment but that does not mean a blast is imminent, analysts said.

A third test would improve North Korea's ability to make nuclear weapons but also decrease its supply of fissile material, thought to be enough for six to eight nuclear bombs, experts say.

Factbox

• Factbox: A look at North Korea's nuclear arms program

HEDGING ITS BETS

Destitute North Korea may be trying to hedge its position, experts said. It needs the aid that comes with making progress in nuclear disarmament talks but also wants the world know it can rattle the region with another nuclear test if discussions fail.

"The North is likely to first show that it may conduct a test and then try to prod China and the United States (into making concessions)," said Lee Jong-won, an expert on the North at Japan's Rikkyo University.

Leader Kim Jong-il is expected to soon go to China, his state's biggest backer and closest thing it can claim as a major ally, where he may try to win sweeteners for returning to the six-country talks hosted by Beijing, experts said.

Kim's leadership has been tested by a failed currency move late last year that exacerbated food shortages among an impoverished public and sparked rare civil unrest.

This raised questions about his ability to anoint his youngest son as heir to the state his family has ruled for more than 60 years.

Previous nuclear tests, trumpeted at home, have boosted Kim's stature with his country's powerful armed forces and rallied the masses around his guiding military-first rule.

A German former aid worker in North Korea told reporters in Beijing that farmers had been resisting accepting the new currency following the reform which, she said, was threatening already precarious food supplies.

"Some people thought that after some time everything will be fine again. But then when they said at the beginning of January that nobody could use any foreign currency, then people became really unhappy," said Karin Janz, who until February 1 was North Korea country director for German NGO Welthungerhilfe.

Market players, who have grown used to the North's saber rattling, said the report had no major market impact. The North's two previous nuclear tests caused brief, and quickly reversed, falls in local shares and the Korean won.

Investors said markets would move on acts that raise the chance of war, shaking the export-based economies of North Asia that are responsible for about one-sixth of the global economy.

"North Korea should come to its senses. The people are suffering and they spent 6 billion won ($5.37 million) in fireworks on founder Kim Il-sung's birthday. Imagine how much corn that could buy," South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said.

(Additional reporting by Christine Kim in Seoul, Yoko Kubota in Tokyo and Ben Blanchard in Beijing, editing by Jonathan Thatcher and Ron Popeski)

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CHINA: The Geography of Chinese Power

Published: April 19, 2010

By ROBERT D. KAPLAN, I.H.T. Op-Ed Contributor

China’s blessed geography is so obvious a point that it tends to get overlooked in discussions of the country’s economic dynamism and national assertiveness.

Yet it is essential: It means that China will stand at the hub of geopolitics even if the country’s path toward global power is not necessarily linear.

Today China’s ambitions are as aggressive as those of the United States a century ago, but for completely different reasons. China does not take a missionary approach to world affairs, seeking to spread an ideology or a system of government. Instead, its actions are propelled by its need to secure energy, metals and strategic minerals in order to support the rising living standards of its immense population.

Within the Chinese state, Xinjiang and Tibet are the two principal areas whose inhabitants have resisted China’s pull. In order to secure Xinjiang — and the oil, natural gas, copper, and iron ore in its soil — Beijing has for decades been populating it with Han Chinese from the country’s heartland.

The mountainous Tibetan Plateau is rich in copper and iron ore and accounts for much of China’s territory. This is why Beijing views with horror the prospect of Tibetan autonomy and why it is frantically building roads and railroads across the area.

China’s northern border wraps around Mongolia, a giant territory that looks like it was once bitten out of China’s back. Mongolia has one of the world’s lowest population densities and is now being threatened demographically by an urban Chinese civilization next door.

Having once conquered Outer Mongolia to gain access to more cultivable land, Beijing is poised to conquer Mongolia again, albeit indirectly, through the acquisition of its natural resources.

North of Mongolia and of China’s three northeastern provinces lies Russia’s Far East region, a numbing vastness twice the size of Europe with a meager and shrinking population and large reserves of natural gas, oil, timber, diamonds and gold.

As with Mongolia, the fear is not that the Chinese army will one day invade or formally annex the Russian Far East. It is that Beijing’s demographic and corporate control over the region is steadily increasing.

China’s influence is also spreading southeast. In fact, it is with the relatively weak states of Southeast Asia that the emergence of a Greater China is meeting the least resistance.

There are relatively few geographic impediments separating China from Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar, and China continues to develop profitable relationships with its southern neighbors. It uses Asean (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) as a market for selling high-value Chinese manufactured goods while buying from it low-value agricultural produce.

Central Asia, Mongolia, the Russian Far East and Southeast Asia are natural zones of Chinese influence. But they are also zones whose political borders are not likely to change. The situation on the Korean Peninsula is different. No one really expects China to annex any part of the Korean Peninsula, of course, But although it supports Kim Jong-il’s Stalinist regime, it has plans for the peninsula beyond his reign.

Beijing would like to eventually dispatch there the thousands of North Korean defectors who now are in China so that they could build a favorable political base for Beijing’s gradual economic takeover of the region.

China is as blessed by its seaboard as by its continental interior, but it faces a far more hostile environment at sea than it does on land.

The Chinese Navy sees little but trouble in what it calls the “first island chain”: the Korean Peninsula, the Kuril Islands, Japan (including the Ryukyu Islands), Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia and Australia.

China’s answer to feeling so boxed in has been aggressive at times — for example when, in March 2009, a handful of Chinese Navy ships harassed the U.S. surveillance ship Impeccable while it was openly conducting operations in the South China Sea.

Beijing is also preparing to envelop Taiwan not just militarily but economically and socially. How this comes about will be pivotal for the future of great-power politics in the region. If the United States simply abandons Taiwan to Beijing, then Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia and other U.S. allies in the Pacific will begin to doubt the strength of Washington’s commitments. That could encourage those states to move closer to China and thus allow the emergence of a Greater China of truly hemispheric proportions.

So can the United States work to preserve stability in Asia, protect its allies there, and limit the emergence of a Greater China while avoiding a conflict with Beijing?

Strengthening the U.S. air and sea presence in Oceania would be a compromise approach between resisting a Greater China at all cost and assenting to a future in which the Chinese Navy policed the first island chain. This approach would ensure that China paid a steep price for any military aggression against Taiwan.

Still, the very fact of China’s rising economic and military power will exacerbate U.S.-Chinese tensions in the years ahead. To paraphrase the political scientist John Mearsheimer, the United States, the hegemon of the Western Hemisphere, will try to prevent China from becoming the hegemon of much of the Eastern Hemisphere. This could be the signal drama of the age.

Robert D. Kaplan is a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security and a correspondent for The Atlantic. A fuller version of this article appears in the May/June issue of Foreign Affairs.

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CHINA: Three pulled out of debris alive five days after quake

Updated: 2010-04-19 21:49

(Xinhua)

YUSHU, Qinghai - Three Tibetan women were pulled out alive from rubble Monday, five days after a 7.1-magnitude quake hit northwest China, rescuers said.

At about 11:00 a.m., Sichuan Mining Rescue Team rescued the 68-year-old Urgyan Tsomo and 4-year-old Tsering Belkyi, who had been buried for more than 123 hours. Their family had managed to send water and rice to the two buried under their collapsed house. Luckily, they had a bedboard overhead for protection.

Another saved was an unidentified Tibetan woman, who was rescued out of rubble 130 hours after the quake occurred.

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CHINA: Weather poses fresh misery over quake-hit region

Updated: 2010-04-19 07:53

By Zhang Jin and Zuo Likun (China Daily)

XINING - Snow, rain and strong wind, coupled with a drop in temperature, will descend on quake-hit Yushu county in the coming days, aggravating the misery endured by survivors and rescuers, a weather forecaster said on Sunday.

The temperature will fall by 4 to 6 C from Monday to Wednesday, chief weather forecaster Wei Shuxia, of the Qinghai Meteorological Bureau, told China Daily.

The temperature varies greatly by hours, she said. The mercury could be 15 C at noon, but fall below zero at night.

Wei said the lowest recorded temperature in Yushu in April once hit -12.8 C.

To make matters worse, the weather can vary within minutes.

"It could be sunny one minute, followed by snow and then hailstones," she said, suggesting that the variation in weather, along with the altitude of 4,000 meters above sea level, hampers outsiders from adapting to Yushu's climate.

Altitude sickness and harsh weather were the biggest challenges to rescuers and quake victims, Li Wenzhong, who heads a rescue team from Xi'an, Shaanxi province, said in a phone call from Yushu.

"I woke up at night feeling cold," he said, referring to Saturday night.

Meanwhile, Qinghai has banned the use of advertising balloons to ensure the safety of flights that deliver aid to, and ferry victims from, Yushu county.

"We have suspended accepting applications to use hydrogen balloons, especially those for commercial use," said Yuan Zhaosen, director of the policy and regulation department of Qinghai Meteorological Bureau.

These advertising balloons, with a diameter of one or two meters, are usually tied with huge banners and fixed to the ground. They could pose a threat to flights if the balloons break free, Yuan said.

"In the worst cases, a flying balloon could cause a plane to crash," he said.

"Severe punishment" will be imposed on those who violate the ban, Yuan warned.

As of 11 pm on Saturday, a total of 226 planes have flown to and from Yushu, carrying 4,470 people and delivering 547 tons of aid, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

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CHINA: China quake death toll climbs to more than 2,000

Ethnic Tibetan women rest amid the ruins of their destroyed house in the earthquake-hit Gyegu town in Yushu County, Qinghai province April 18, 2010.  Credit: Reuters/Stringer

BEIJING (Reuters) - The official death toll from an earthquake on China's remote Tibetan plateau has climbed to 2,039, state media said on Tuesday.

Another 195 people are still listed as missing following the quake, which struck Yushu county in the western province of Qinghai last Wednesday, the official Xinhua news agency said.

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CHINA & TAIWAN: Ancient festival

Millions of people are expected to visit the temple in Dajia for the festivities

Page last updated at 23:20 GMT, Monday, 19 April 2010 00:20 UK

As Taiwan celebrates one of its most important religious occassions, the Mazu festival, an interesting interaction between China and the island that separated from it in 1949 is also taking place, the BBC's Cindy Sui reports.

A record number of celebrants from mainland China - more than 2,000 people from about 40 Mazu temples - are in the town of Dajia to witness the beginning of the Goddess of the Sea's 330km (205 miles) tour to bless adherents in more than 20 townships.

Centuries-old festivals such as this one organised by the Dajia Jenn Lann Temple have nearly disappeared in China. But they have been kept alive in Taiwan, which did not undergo the anti-feudal or anti-religious campaigns that China did.

Mazu originated in China, but thrives in Taiwan like nowhere else. In recent years, Chinese officials have sought help from Taiwan to help them rebuild destroyed or neglected Mazu temples.

Increasing wealth and openness have made many ordinary Chinese people curious about their cultural and religious history, with many turning to China's traditional religious faiths to help them cope with the challenges of life.

Many are now coming to Taiwan to explore their religious roots, especially after relations between the two rivals improved when Taiwan's China-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou entered office in 2008.

Common heritage

Mazu, a fisherman's daughter who was widely worshipped in coastal areas of East and South-East Asia as a protector of fishermen and sailors, was born in Fujian province in China in AD 960.

For years China's communist government banned worship of her, along with other religions. Only in recent decades has Mazu worship begun to re-emerge in China.

Worshipping Mazu was banned for decades by China's communist rulers

Zheng Huan-qiang, an official from a Mazu temple in China's Fujian province, is one of the people in Taiwan this month to see how Mazu is worshipped here.

"I've believed in Mazu from a young age, along with my mom and dad. But when I was young, my parents didn't tell me much about Mazu and during the Cultural Revolution, we couldn't worship her," said Zheng.

He later rediscovered his faith in Mazu. "Taiwanese people's belief in Mazu is very strong. They put a lot of effort into the celebrations. Their ceremonies, processes, the rules they go by are all very elaborate," he said.

Even President Ma Ying-jeou joined in the ceremonies last week. Hundreds of people thronged the temple, with many eager to place incense in the burner and to see the traditional performances on the temple square.

But for China, sending its temple representatives here to join in the celebrations is not without its political motivations.

The Chinese government has placed great emphasis on reviving Mazu in China - seeing it as an important way to underscore its insistence that Taiwanese people and culture came from China - and that Taiwan is a part of China.

Beijing hopes to reunify with the island one day and has not renounced the use of force to do so.

"They're doing this to show both sides believe in Mazu and have a similar heritage," said Tsai Ming-hsien, a volunteer Mazu celebrations organiser who has had many dealings with Chinese temple officials.

Celebrants from mainland China have been instructed to not give interviews, according to their Taiwanese tour guides.

Zheng, who reluctantly gave an interview to the BBC, echoed the official line. Despite showing admiration for how Mazu festivities had been kept alive for a millennium in Taiwan, he emphasised that "the roots of Taiwan's Mazu beliefs lie in mainland China".

'Religion, not politics'

Another motivation for Chinese temples is tourism.

Taiwanese adherents over the years have given large amounts of money to help rebuild China's Mazu temples, but they have noticed that China's temple officials see Mazu differently.

            The colourful festival attracts many mainland visitors to Taiwan

"They're reviving the temples to make money. They're running the temples like enterprises, not based on faith," said Tsai. "They hold the festivals like a carnival, for tourism. They're always asking us how to make it run so that it makes money."

Some temples in mainland China charge entrance fees and the incense sold there can be expensive, Tsai said. In Taiwan, temples are open to all and there is no need to make donations.

Nevertheless, officials from both sides said the fact that both sides were stepping up cultural exchanges was a sign of improving relations.

"It's about religion, not politics. What's most important is doing things that are good for the economy of both sides' people," said the Dajia Jenn Lann Temple's vice chairman, Cheng Ming-kun.

He said that the increased number of Chinese visitors to Dajia had helped the town and nearby scenic areas.

"Mazu brings together the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and brings peoples' feelings closer," Mr Cheng said.

This year, Dajia is expecting more than seven million celebrants over the three-month festival period, with about one million over the most important nine days, he said.

Besides China, celebrants come from Australia, Hong Kong, Macau and Singapore.

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JAPAN: Ministry aims to build over 14 new atomic power plants by 2030

TOKYO, April 19 (AP) - (Kyodo)—The industry ministry said Monday that Japan should build more than 14 new atomic power plants by 2030 as part of its effort to fight global warming.

Japan currently has 54 nuclear power plants nationwide. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry also proposed that the country raise the operating rate of the facilities to the world's top level of some 90 percent in 20 years' time, while the rate has been declining to around 60 percent in recent years due partly to safety checks at some plants.

The proposals are in a set of recommendations submitted by the ministry to the Advisory Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, an advisory panel to the METI minister discussing long-term energy policies the government should take in the next 10 to 20 years.

A draft guideline, unveiled last month, fell short of mentioning those numerical goals for 2030.

As for the 2020 target, the ministry said Monday that Japan should construct nine new atomic power plants, up from eight proposed by the earlier draft, adding that the operating rate should be raised to around 85 percent by the year.

While Japan has pledged to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent from 1990 levels by 2020 in the fight against climate change, the ministry says the country should achieve the goal by taking measures including promoting the use of nuclear energy.

But the proposal for wider atomic power use has been facing opposition from some lawmakers and conservation groups expressing concerns over radioactive toxic waste that poses disposal problems.

The advisory panel will work out Japan's new basic energy plan in early June after soliciting public opinions and discussing with ministries and agencies concerned.

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JAPAN: Japan's Uniqlo to open giant New York store

Posted: 19 April 2010 2138 hrs

A Uniqlo store

TOKYO: The operator of Japan's low-cost clothing chain Uniqlo on Monday said it planned to set up its biggest store in the world in New York as it ramps up new openings.

Fast Retailing said its US subsidiary had signed a lease contract for the 8,300 square metre (90,000 square feet) space on Fifth Avenue in New York, which would be the firm's second in the city. It gave no other details other than to say it saw a "minimal" impact on its financial results for the year.

Uniqlo's first outlet in New York opened in 2006.

The retailer is expected to open its fourth global flagship in Shanghai in May, boasting 1,100 square metres on three floors with a sleek design by the architects behind Apple's stores.

The firm recently reported net profit jumped 55.7 per cent to 55.4 billion yen (594 million dollars) in the six months to February.

The casual-clothing empire, founded by billionaire Tadashi Yanai -- Japan's richest person according to Forbes Magazine -- is seen as a rare success story in a domestic retail sector battered by deflation and weak demand.

Uniqlo has continued its expansion across Asia as well as Europe and the United States, despite tough competition from foreign rivals such as Gap, Zara and H&M.
- AFP/jy

Tadashi Yanai

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TRAVEL: Injured? Sick? Volcano? Travel insurance can help

By Eileen AJ Connelly, AP Personal Finance Writer

NEW YORK — The cloud of volcanic ash from Iceland that has shut down airports all over Europe is just the latest event to disrupt travel.

Hurricanes and other natural disasters, along with political unrest and personal problems, ruin vacation and business travel plans all the time.

One way to hedge against such events is travel insurance. For a relatively small fee — typically 4 to 8% of the cost of the trip — you can buy protection for your trip.

Typical policies cover costs for delays, like extra hotel stays or the price involved in changing plans; the nonrefundable costs for interrupted or canceled trips; lost or stolen luggage; medical emergencies and even medical evacuation. Older travelers and those who take more expensive vacations can expect to pay the higher prices.

But you can no longer get coverage for next week's planned trip to Europe.

The travel insurance industry has designated the eruption of the volcano beneath an Icelandic glacier as a "known event," explained Jill Rosenberg, manager of group and executive travel for AAA New York. That means you won't be able to buy coverage for trips that may be canceled or otherwise impacted by the volcano.

"It's sort of like buying homeowner's insurance while your house is on fire," said Jim Grace, president of Insuremytrip.com, which sells policies from 24 companies online.

Similar rules apply to a hurricane once it has a name, said Carol Mueller, a spokeswoman for the insurer Travel Guard.

Mueller said about 75% of claims in the industry are related to canceling trips, usually because of illness for the traveler or a family member.

Here's some tips for buying travel insurance:

• Purchase your policy within seven to 14 days of booking your trip to get the most comprehensive coverage.

• Ask questions to make sure you're getting the coverage you need. Grace said about 90% of the companies that sell policies through his website are covering volcano-related cancellations.

• Adventure travel and high-risk activities may require extra insurance on top of the standard policy.

• Extra protection is available through policies with "cancel for any reason" riders, which are more expensive. Some of these policies may not reimburse the full cost of a trip, so make sure you know how much coverage you're buying.

• Theft or damage of personal property is usually covered, but there are typically price limits. Homeowner's or renter's insurance may provide backup for expensive items like electronics or jewelry, but check before you leave home.

• Many booking websites offer travel insurance at the time you make a reservation, but you can also buy it separately through an aggregator like insuremytrip.com or directly from company sites. Prices vary, so it makes sense to shop around.

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RUSSIA: 'Returned' Russian Adoptee Stirs Debate On International Adoption

April 19, 2010

TRANSCRIPT

MICHEL MARTIN, host:

I'm Michel Martin and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News.

Coming up, my weekly commentary. I'll share my thoughts about the Tea Party movement and what I think their anger is really all about.

But now it's time to go Behind Closed Doors. That's the part of the program where we talk about things that are often difficult to discuss, often because of stigma or shame. And I'm thinking there are few things that would cause a parent more shame than to admit that you just cannot cope with a child whom you have committed to raise and love forever.

Of course we're talking about that story out of Tennessee last week where a woman put her 7-year-old adopted son on a plane back to his native Russia. She says the boy's behavioral problems were too severe for her family to address, and that she had been misled about their severity by the orphanage from which he came.

Russia has since said it will suspend adoptions by American families. But as you can imagine, this has also raised questions and pushed a lot of people's buttons in the U.S. To talk more about this, we called Dr. Jane Aronson. She's the pediatrician specializing in adoption medicine. She's an adoptive parent herself. She's also the founder of the Worldwide Orphans Foundation, and she joined us from Maplewood, New Jersey.

Thomas DiFilipo is the president of the Joint Council on International Children's Services. That's an advocacy organization that works to protect the right of children to live in families around the world. He joined us here in our Washington, D.C. studio.

Also with us, James Blue. He is the father of two adopted children from South Africa. He's also a veteran journalist who's covered much of the world. He is actually en route to South Africa, and he's joining us now from Doha, Qatar. I welcome you all. Thank you all so much for joining us.

Dr. JANE ARONSON (Pediatrician, Adoption Medicine): Thank you.

Mr. THOMAS DIFILIPO (President, Joint Council on International Children's Services): Thank you, Michel.

Mr. JAMES BLUE: Thank you.

MARTIN: So, Dr. Aronson, can we start with you and ask about this specific kind of situation? It's been reported, for example, in a piece that aired earlier on NPR, according to Chuck Johnson, who's the acting CEO of the National Council for Adoption, the number of failed foreign adoption parallels studies of failed domestic adoptions. And it says it's about 15 percent, which I think is a number that surprises me. Can I just get your perspective on that?

Dr. ARONSON: I'm not surprised at all. In fact, I wasn't surprised by the story because in my 20 years of doing adoption medicine, there have been many stories that have been quite similar. I can tell endless stories about families who were not able to continue parenting their child and abandoned the child, actually, in different settings all around the world because the kids were adopted from different countries. So, these are dramatic moments, but there are many stories like this.

MARTIN: Mr. DiFilipo, the focus of this particular case has been Russian adoptions but children come to the United States from all over the world. Can you just give us a sense of, are there any patterns to where difficulties arise? It makes you wonder whether there's something about the circumstances in some parts of the world versus others that make it particularly challenging.

Mr. DIFILIPO: Well, in this year alone there'll be about 10,000 children that come into the United States through international adoption. It was a high of 24,000 a few years ago but because of government policies, it's cut, well, more than in half. Gyegu

And whether or not there's a predisposition for one type of a problem in one region, I would say that fetal alcohol syndrome is certainly more prevalent in Southeast Asia and also in eastern Europe, not so much in Africa or South America. Other than that, it really seems to go towards how long the child's been institutionalized, whether or not there was prenatal care, child's birth weight. And Dr. Aronson can certainly speak to all of this better than I can. But it's really the institutionalization piece, which is universal. Institution in one country is generally the same as another.

MARTIN: Dr. Aronson, can I pick up on a point that you started our conversation with, which is to say the idea that a parent saying, well, this child is too difficult for me, therefore I can't cope - do you think that within the context of adoption, people feel more free to say that than they might if they had given birth to the child? Because, I mean, in this country, it seems to me the result would probably be the same, would probably be foster care, whatever it is. But I do wonder what you think in terms of what's going on with the families and how they process whatever it is they're dealing with.

Dr. ARONSON: Birth parents and parents through adoption have a hard time expressing any feeling of disappoint in their role as a parent and in their child. I think it just goes with the territory. You've been waiting a long time. You put a lot of energy and hope. Your dreams are about being a parent and then you have a baby either by birth or adoption and you’re supposed to be happy. And so it becomes exceedingly difficult to express those feelings.

Frequently, people have postpartum depression after birth. There's something called post-adoption depression and it's a very common feeling that people have but people don’t feel free to discuss it, and they should feel free to discuss those feelings because if you do express them then you get help.

MARTIN: Have you noticed any difference between people who adopt domestically and people who adopt internationally? Because one of the things I've from people who have international experience - international adoption - is that sometimes people feel free to challenge them about it. They feel free to say well, why did you choose a child from there when there are many children here?

Dr. ARONSON: I think that's a very - I mean I think all of us agree, that's a very unfair comment.

MARTIN: Mm-hmm.

Dr. ARONSON: I think there are children available all over the world. They're all equally in need, and there are many reasons that...

Mr. BLUE: Why is that an unfair comment?

Dr. ARONSON: There are many, many reasons why people choose to adopt.

MARTIN: Well no, but that's my point. My question is...

Mr. BLUE: I mean that's a perfectly reasonable question.

MARTIN: ...that people sometimes feel free to say things that they wouldn’t feel free to say in other context. And that's why I was just wondering was there any additional element to it.

James, do you want to speak to that?

Mr. BLUE: I disagree with Dr. Aronson. I think that's a perfectly reasonable question. I do wonder why people go to such great lengths to adopt foreign kids when there are so many available in the U.S. And I don’t believe I'm a hypocrite. I have adopted children internationally but at the time we did the adoption, we weren't able to adopt in the U.S. So I do think that's a valid question.

MARTIN: Do you think though that people challenge you on that?

Dr. ARONSON: No, but it's usually a criticism, James.

MARTIN: Mm-hmm.

Dr. ARONSON: That's the problem is that people often, you know, take people to task. They get angry at them. Why are you going to China when you could adopt in New York City? And there are really very important reasons why people may go to a country. And they may not be satisfying to someone else, but if you have an interest in your roots for instance, in Eastern Europe or South America, Central America, that can drive people.

Mr. BLUE: Sure it can drive people, but as the other guest just said, the leading countries where we're getting kids from are China, Russia, Ethiopia and Korea. And I can guarantee you most of the people adopting there don’t have attachments or roots in those countries.

MARTIN: James, can I ask you as a - both as a journalist who's traveled widely and as an adoptive parent yourself, we talked about the role of institutionalization there and whether agencies in orphanages overseas disclose a lot about the children and their circumstances and the kind of care they receive. Can I just ask what your experience was?

Mr. BLUE: Well, you know, I think it's a really good question and I think it has a lot to do with the sort of pre-adoptive services that are available. In our example, we were living in London and, you know, this agency said okay, we have a kid available for you in Johannesburg. And, you know, we were thinking, oh my gosh, this is great because the U.S. requires several medical measures and all sorts of medical records.

And so we got all of his medical records, gave it to an independent doctor, our physician in London, and said would you look at this? What do you think the issue is? But we were very, very impressed with the orphanage that we worked with because when we asked for additional testing that we paid for ourselves, they were more than willing to take them to sort of local experts in Johannesburg. They were really able to get to the bottom of some of the outstanding questions that we had. And, you know, hats off to them for providing those services.

MARTIN: Can I ask you how you’re reacting to this story?

Mr. BLUE: I'm reacting to this story in two ways because in addition to being an adoptive parent, I'm also an adoptee. And the thing that I find so tragic, I mean it's so extreme to put a child on a plane and send them back sight unseen. And what I don’t understand is how she didn’t have the tools to sort of work through. But it just seems to me there has to be some interim step between things aren't working out at home and putting him on a plane back to Russia.

I'm just saddened by the fact that she didn’t have support services, information or know-how to figure some other route because, you know, regardless of her sending her kid back to Russia, it still is her kid.

Mr. DIFILIPO: It actually get's a little more complicated than that...

MARTIN: Tom. Go ahead. Mm-hmm.

Mr. DIFILIPO: ...as well. This child's a U.S. citizen. Our understanding in looking at the situation is that the agency she used has a history of placing children with special needs or who are older, so she had developed plan so if this happens, if this type of behavior happens what do you do? If the child becomes violent what do you do? And that plan had to be submitted and approved by the placing agency.

MARTIN: So what do you think this is about Dr. Aronson, do you think this is about adoption or do you think this is more about parenting and the isolation that some parents feel?

Dr. ARONSON: As a pediatrician again, I take care of both children who are from birth and from adoption and I find that parenting is really what we're looking at here. It's a reflection of parenting and how we look at the responsibility as parents, what we do to prepare for it, how we learn to be better parents.

Most important to me at this point is that in my work as the CEO of Worldwide Orphans Foundation, we're many different countries providing services for orphans in their communities. And I do believe that this is a point for us to look at how children are living in the world.

You’ve got kids with no prenatal care as already been noted, exposure to alcohol, malnutrition, etcetera, etcetera, exposure to toxins, smoking, drugs and I think we have an obligation now to look at what do orphanages look like. That's what I do in my other, you know, hat is try to help orphans be the best people they can be, to get a good education, good medical care and good mental health care.

MARTIN: Charles, lets hear from you. What do you think we should learn from this?

Mr. DIFILIPO: Well, I think it is an issue of parenting and not just international adoption, because take a look at the United States, we have 500,000 children at any given time in U.S. foster care system and the majority of them are there because of abuse or neglect. And our goal is to protect children from any type of abuse or neglect, but it happens and it happens whether the child is born into the family or adopted into the family.

So I think one of the most important things that we can learn and that families can learn from this is that there is help available. There are alternatives to hurting your child, to neglecting your child, or to putting them on a plane. I mean whether it's your local church community or your extended family starting there, or going to mental health professionals. So there are options.

MARTIN: Are you worried that this will give adoption a bad name, as it were? Or perhaps, is it appropriate for people to stop and think about whether they are emotionally prepared to address whatever challenges come down the line?

Mr. DIFILIPO: I think it's very important for families to stop and think before they charge ahead with an adoption. Make sure they have the capacity and that they're willing to get help if they need it, and that's a sign of good parenting. Reaching out to get help is what is normal. You know, when people come back and they say, we just want to live a normal life. Well, if your child has problems, that's normal for you.

Mr. BLUE: Right, I mean I also think...

MARTIN: James, final thought from you?

Mr. BLUE: Yeah, I think we're right to focus on, you know, this is a parenting problem. And, you know, in some ways putting the kid on a plane is a symptom of her inability to cope. And sure, the kid has issues, but I think its right that we shouldn’t blame the kid for her shortcomings.

MARTIN: Dr. Aronson, do you want to give us a final thought about what we should learn from this going forward?

Dr. ARONSON: Yeah, I think what James just said just now is very critical and that is to not blame the child, when you asked will adoption be hurt. I think a lot of times people do, you know, look at adopted children in a very negative way and we really just in general should learn all the victims of adult decisions. Government decisions, parent decisions, community decisions and I think that that's really important things for us to take responsibility as a world community. We’ve got to be better caretakers of our children around the world.

MARTIN: Dr. Jane Aronson is a pediatrician specializing in adoption medicine. She's an adoptive parent and founder of the Worldwide Orphans Foundation. Thomas DiFilipo is the President of the Joint Council on International Children's Services. That's an advocacy organization that works to protect the right of children to live in families around the world. And James Blue is the father of two adopted children from South Africa, a veteran journalist, and I should disclose, also a friend.

And I thank you all so much for speaking with us.

Mr. BLUE: Thank you, Michel.

Mr. DIFILIPO: Thank you.

Dr. ARONSON: Thanks, Michel.

Mr. BLUE: Thanks.

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S. KOREA: South Korea president vows to pursue those responsible for naval disaster

April 19, 2010 | 1:21 p.m.

By John M. Glionna, Los Angeles Times, Reporting from Seoul

In a televised speech to the nation, an emotional President Lee Myung-bak pledges to follow up on an inquiry into last month's deadly ship sinking, though he does not mention North Korea.

In an emotional speech televised live to a grieving nation, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Monday vowed to pursue those responsible for last month's deadly sinking of a naval warship.

Without mentioning North Korea, the conservative leader said he would "resolutely and unwaveringly cope with the results" of the investigation into one of South Korea's worst naval disasters.

Pledging to make South Korea's military stronger to prevent a similar episode, Lee broke into tears as he read the names of 46 crewmen who are presumed to have died when the Cheonan sank after a mysterious nighttime explosion.

The March 26 blast sank the 1,200-ton corvette as it patrolled near the contested sea border between North and South Korea. South officials have said they have not ruled out a possibility that the vessel may have been downed by a mine or torpedo.

The leader of the inquiry, which includes experts from the United States and other countries, has linked the cause of the sinking to an external blast, rather than exploding ammunition aboard ship.

North Korea on Saturday responded angrily to suggestions it was responsible for the disaster, accusing Seoul of spreading false rumors for political gain before upcoming elections.

On Sunday, however, South Korean officials suggested they would take the matter to the United Nations Security Council if the investigation found North Korean involvement.

South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-young on Monday turned up the heat on the government in Pyongyang, telling a parliamentary hearing that the South Korean military had "judged that it was a North Korean act as soon as the incident occurred."

Wearing a black suit and tie, Lee for the first time addressed the nation on TV concerning the Cheonan's sinking. Previously he had spoken about the sinking during his regular radio addresses, and he has flown to the scene to console family members of crewmen.

"I promise you that as the president I will uncover all details of the cause of the Cheonan's sinking to the end," he said in a 10-minute speech. Later in the address, he added, "I will make the military stronger."

Fifty-eight crewmen, including the captain, were rescued as the ship sank. In the ensuing weeks, 38 bodies have been found, most of them last week when the vessel's stern was raised from the water. Eight crew members remain unaccounted for.

One South Korean newspaper reported Monday that a senior U.S. intelligence official had visited Seoul this month to help determine whether North Korea had engaged in any suspicious activity around the time of the Cheonan's sinking.

Researcher Ju-min Park of The Times' Seoul Bureau contributed to this report.

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CHINA: Hope Amidst the Rubble

NI YUXING / EPA

A photograph of the Dalai Lama lies amidst the rubble of a collapsed building in the town of Jiegu in Qinghai province, China. Jiegu was the hardest-hit in last week's earthquake that devastated the region.

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CHINA: Buddhist Monks Cremate Quake Victims' Remains

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SHANGHAI, CHINA: World Expo song halted by plagiarism row

Monday, April 19, 2010

SHANGHAI (Kyodo) Use of the theme song for the World Expo in Shanghai has been suspended amid allegations that it is a plagiarized version of a Japanese song from 1997, according to the expo's Web site.

The expo's secretariat said it is concerned about potential copyright conflicts and that a final decision will be made after its investigation into the matter concludes, the secretariat said.

Japanese media reports and Chinese Web sites have focused on the melody of the expo theme song, which is said to be identical to "Sono Mama no Kimi de Ite," a song released in Japan in January 1997 by pop singer Mayo Okamoto.

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