Archive for November, 2013

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08/11/2013

India negotiating to bring back stolen antiques: ASI – India Insight: Reuters

India plans to step up its efforts to bring back Indian artefacts from other countries after the recent repatriation of a 10th century “Yogini” stone sculpture from Paris.

Illegal trade in paintings, sculptures and other artefacts is one of the world’s most profitable criminal enterprises, estimated at $6 billion a year, according to Global Financial Integrity, a Washington-based advocacy group. India is one of the biggest targets for smugglers, who ship stolen antiques and other culturally important artefacts abroad to sell to art dealers and museums.

India Insight spoke to R.S. Fonia, Director (Antiquity) at the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), about the black market for Indian artefacts and what the ASI is doing to bring Indian antiques back home. This interview has been lightly edited.

Are you seeing an increase or decrease in smuggling of Indian artefacts?

Awareness has increased about the antiquities, so it has decreased. Certainly there is decline of smuggling.

How big is the market for smuggled Indian artefacts?

We don’t have figures.

What initiatives are you taking to bring back Indian artefacts from abroad?

We are trying hard. That’s why we have retrieved 16-17 artefacts from abroad. We are directly interacting with all concerned agencies, but it takes some time. There are so many processes involved.

via India Insight.

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08/11/2013

China to loan Pacific island nations $1 billion | Reuters

Having woo-ed all the large countries, China is now wooing the smaller ones too.  See – https://chindia-alert.org/2012/12/31/question-who-did-china-woo-in-2012/ (We have been tracking China’s wooing in 2013 and will post the list in early 2014).

“China will provide a concessionary loan of up to $1 billion to Pacific island nations to support construction projects, state media on Friday cited Vice Premier Wang Yang as saying, a part of the world where Beijing and Taiwan compete for influence.

Political map of Oceania

Political map of Oceania (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Wang made the announcement at a forum with Pacific island nations in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, the official Xinhua news agency reported. It provided no other details on the loan.

China will also build medical facilities in the region and send medical teams as well as invest in green energy projects, Xinhua cited Wang as saying.

The meeting was attended by representatives from Micronesia, Samoa, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, the Cook Islands, Tonga, Niue and Fiji, the news agency added.

The Pacific has traditionally been a site of competition for diplomatic recognition between China and Taiwan, the self-ruled island China claims as its own.

In the region, Taiwan maintains formal ties with Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, the Marshall Islands, the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu. Taiwan has also supported development projects and provided loans.

However, China and Taiwan have maintained an unofficial diplomatic truce and not tried to court each other\’s allies in the developing world since they signed a series of landmark trade and economic deals in 2008, ushering in improved ties.”

via China to loan Pacific island nations $1 billion | Reuters.

Posted in China alert, Economics, GeoPolitics, Politics | Leave a Comment »

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08/11/2013

China to build huge super nuclear bomber carrying over 200 nuclear bombs

Another innovation in military hardware. See:

Posted in China alert, innovation, Military, Technology | Leave a Comment »

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06/11/2013

Japan targets China as islands dispute threatens to boil over

Oh dear, brinkmanship often turns out to trigger real conflict. Hope this one doesn’t.

Posted in China alert, Defence, GeoPolitics, History, Military, Neighbour conflict, Politics, Territorial dispute | Leave a Comment »

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06/11/2013

Interview – Jairam Ramesh: Narendra Modi has marginalized his own party – India Insight – Reuters

Jairam Ramesh, the rural development minister in the Congress-led government, told Reuters on Tuesday that Narendra Modi’s career reminded him of the rise of the Third Reich, the strongest comments yet by a minister of his rank on the Bharatiya Janata Party leader.

(Click here for main story)

Here are the edited excerpts from the interview:

Where do you feel public sentiment is at the moment?

If you look at the social media, the sentiment is in one way. If you travel like the way I do to remote parts of the country where social media footprint is very very inconspicuous, the sentiment is some other way. We are going through the noise phase of the election campaign … Sentiments change, by the way; there is no such thing like a permanent sentiment.

The Modi campaign has got a lot of momentum and the perception is that the Congress campaign lacks that momentum.

Modi-entum, not momentum. The BJP is a master of hype. I have seen them now for 20 years closely and they are the world’s greatest experts at hype. And very soon they come down to earth because they begin to take their hype very seriously. When you start believing that hype, then you run into serious trouble. This is what happened to the BJP in the past. India Shining was a good example of that hype.

I think a time will come when Mr Modi will begin to get judged differently. But India right now in 2013, I would say, we are going through what Germany went through in 1932. The classic symptoms, I am beginning to read all my old books about how the Third Reich came into being, how fascism overtook parts of Europe. Because, look at Mr Modi’s — what are the three principles of his ideology? Political autocracy, social divisiveness and economic liberalism. This is sort of Mr Modi reduced to three dimensions, the 3D Mr Modi. This is exactly what created the autobahns and Volkswagens in the 30s but also created the disaster of Germany.

Don’t you think it’s a bit over-the-top to compare Modi to Hitler?

It’s not. It’s certainly not. I didn’t compare him to Hitler, by the way. I never took the word Hitler anywhere. Mr Modi has demonstrated in 12 years that he’s been in power. He runs a one-man show in Gujarat. It’s a one-man political party. He has marginalized not only us, he’s also marginalized his own party. Yes, he is industry friendly. But whether he is crony-friendly or market-friendly, I don’t know. Mr Modi has demonstrated a singular incapacity to abide by rules.

via India Insight.

Posted in Economics, India alert, Internal politics, Politics | 1 Comment »

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06/11/2013

Blasts at China regional Communist Party office kill one – BBC News

A series of small blasts have killed at least one person outside a provincial office of the ruling Communist Party in northern China, state media report.

The blasts in Taiyuan in Shanxi province appeared to have been caused by home-made bombs, Xinhua reported.

It said eight people had been injured and two cars damaged.

Photos posted on social media showed smoke and several fire engines at the scene of the incident, which happened around 07:40 local time (23:40 GMT).

No immediate explanation has been given for the incident. There have been occasions in the past where disgruntled citizens have targeted local government institutions.

They do not often make the headlines but explosions in China\’s cities are not unheard of. Earlier this year, in another part of Shanxi Province, Chinese media reported that a bomb exploded outside the house of a local law official, killing his daughter. The culprit was a pensioner enraged by a court ruling against him.

Last year the BBC reported on a suicide bombing in Shandong, carried out by a disabled man upset by lack of compensation for an industrial accident. Every year there are examples of attacks with crude weapons or explosives, carried out by the desperate, the dispossessed and the disturbed, usually triggered by a dispute with some arm of local government or a local official.

It\’s too early to say whether the explosions on Wednesday follow the same pattern. But some details will worry the authorities: the ball bearings apparently placed inside the bombs, increasing their destructive power; the fact that witnesses reported several explosions over a period of time. And the bombs were placed outside the local Communist Party headquarters – was the party itself the target, or was this just the product of a local dispute?

The authorities will especially be nervous after last week\’s apparent suicide attack outside the gates of the Forbidden City, especially as the capital also prepares to host a meeting of China\’s Communist Party elite on Saturday.

Tensions are also high in the wake of last week\’s incident in Beijing. A car ploughed into a crowd in Tiananmen Square in what the authorities said was a terrorist attack incited by extremists from the western region of Xinjiang.

Later this week, the Communist Party\’s top officials will meet in Beijing to start a major economic planning meeting.

via BBC News – Blasts at China regional Communist Party office kill one.

Posted in China alert, Dissident, Inequalities, Instability, Insurgency, Internal politics, Politics, public protest, unrest | Leave a Comment »

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05/11/2013

China, India begin joint anti-terrorism drill | South China Morning Post

China and India began a joint anti-terrorism drill on Tuesday, the first such exercise by the Asian powers – which have a sometimes-fraught relationship – for five years.

china_india_drill.jpg

The world’s two most populous countries each sent one company of soldiers to Chengdu, in the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan, for the “Hand-in-Hand 2013” drill, according to Chinese state media reports.

The joint training exercise comes even as the two remain embroiled in a border dispute that has been unresolved for decades and has occasionally led to military standoffs.

In April, India accused Chinese troops of intruding into Indian-held territory, a row that was only resolved three weeks later when troops from both sides eventually pulled back.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Beijing two weeks ago, signing an agreement with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to step up co-operation on border defence and counter-terrorism training.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters on Tuesday that the drill showed “enhancing political-military trust between the two countries”.

“Since the beginning of this year, China and India relations have scored new progress,” he said.

Indian officials said the country’s contingent for the 10-day-long drill was 162 strong and led by a brigadier.

“The joint training exercise is a counter-terrorist exercise with a purpose of exploring useful experience and thoughts, advance pragmatic co-operation, promote friendly environment and enhance mutual trust,” an Indian defence ministry statement said.

The first such exercise was held in China in 2007, with another in India the following year.

Beijing blames “terrorist” groups for incidents in its far western region of Xinjiang, home to Muslim Uygurs, and has in the past linked clashes to groups trained in Pakistan, which as well as being India’s great rival also shares a border with China.

via China, India begin joint anti-terrorism drill | South China Morning Post.

Posted in China alert, Chindia Alert, Defence, GeoPolitics, Good news, India alert, Military, Openness, peace keeping, PLA, Politics | 1 Comment »

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05/11/2013

Beijing slashes car sales quota in anti-pollution drive | Reuters

China\’s capital, Beijing, infamous for its thick smog and heavy traffic, will slash the city\’s new car sales quotas by almost 40 percent next year, as it looks to curb vehicle emissions and hazardous levels of pollution, the city government website said.

Lines of cars are pictured during a rush hour traffic jam on Guomao Bridge in Beijing July 11, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Lee

The change in policy gives greater support for new, cleaner cars and could strengthen foreign carmakers\’ determination to accelerate growth in China\’s less crowded lower-tier cities.

In the last month alone, high levels of pollution have forced China to all but shut down the northeastern city of Harbin, a major urban center with a population of 11 million.

via Beijing slashes car sales quota in anti-pollution drive | Reuters.

Posted in carbon emission, China alert, Economics, Environment, greenhouse gas, Pollution | Leave a Comment »

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05/11/2013

India launches spacecraft to Mars – BBC News

India has successfully launched a spacecraft to the Red Planet – with the aim of becoming the fourth space agency to reach Mars.

The PSLV- C25 with India's Mars Orbiter on board lifting off majestically at 2.38 p.m on Tuesday from the First Launch Pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. Photo courtesy: ISRO

The Mars Orbiter Mission took off at 09:08 GMT from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on the country\’s east coast.

The head of India\’s space agency told the BBC the mission would demonstrate the technological capability to reach Mars orbit and carry out experiments.

The spacecraft is set to travel for 300 days, reaching Mars orbit in 2014.

If the satellite orbits the Red Planet, India\’s space agency will become the fourth in the world after those of the US, Russia and Europe to undertake a successful Mars mission.

In order for the MOM to embark on the right trajectory for its 300-day, 780-million km journey, it must carry out its final orbital burn by 30 November.

via BBC News – India launches spacecraft to Mars.

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04/11/2013

Florentijn Hofman’s Big Yellow Duck Rakes In $33 Million While on Display in Beijing – China Real Time Report – WSJ

It was a goose that laid golden eggs, according to Aesop. But with a little help from Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, China appears to have changed the storyline.

Anyone living in or paying attention to China in the past six months will be familiar – maybe too familiar – with Mr. Hofman’s big yellow duck. Since May, multiple versions of the inflatable plastic creation, some authorized and some not, have made appearances in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Beijing, and countless malls and souvenir stands across Asia. There’s even been an online commemoration of a certain political anniversary.

The bird’s ubiquity has given rise to an ever-growing population of duck haters. But it has proven to be such a crowd-pleaser in Beijing that officials had to work hard to count all the money it brought in.

Mr. Hofman signed rubber ducks for fans during a farewell ceremony at the Summer Palace.

In just 52 days, more than 3 million people flocked to see the 18-meter tall plastic duck at the Summer Palace and the Garden Expo, according to organizers. Some 70,000 showed up on the last day to say goodbye to their plastic friend, local media reported. And the outsized installation didn’t have to do anything besides float and look photogenic.

When an earthquake struck Taiwan on Thursday, one of Mr. Hofman’s mammoth bath toys stationed in Taoyuan proved to be – well, a sitting duck. Suddenly he had the wind knocked out of him, and when workers tried to reinflate him, his tail-end exploded. A local councilor reportedly called for a moment of silence, though others rejoiced.

Sailing was smoother in Beijing. The yellow plastic fantastic brought in an estimated of 200 million yuan ($33 million) at its two venues in the Chinese capital. Maybe not everyone had gone specifically to see it, but having it there certainly didn’t hurt. At the Summer Palace, there were two million visitors over the duck-viewing period, up 30% from a year ago.

The combined tally of cash brought in didn’t include the 7 million yuan from sales of plastic duck spin-off toys that can fit in your bathtub and don’t need a private lake to display them.

“We were happy with the results,” said Sun Qun, who organized the shows. So was the government, which partnered with him on the duck extravaganza.

Financial details of the deal with the Dutch creator weren’t disclosed.

via Florentijn Hofman’s Big Yellow Duck Rakes In $33 Million While on Display in Beijing – China Real Time Report – WSJ.

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