the dam will begin filling up in january taking eight months to submerge all
hectares square miles
details of the mega dams envisaged by state body sarawak energy berhad are
scant map of proposed locations of dams purportedly to be built by was
published on the internet and seized on by campaigners
sarawak rural development minister james masing said that all dams may not
make it off the drawing board
that is masterplan that we have the potential to build they may not be built
for years he told afp earlier this year
masing who is helping formulate the murum relocation said it is likely to
happen in three to four years time but that first there should be careful
study of the people involved
there are some areas we have to refine the settlement project must be done
properly what was done in bakun may not be one of the best we may have been
ignorant of some of the issues he told afp earlier this year
we want to change them for the better said masing an anthropologist by
training they have good reason not to trust us but we are not there to
destroy them we are trying our best to assist them
indonesia religious police on hemline frontline
banda aceh indonesia jan afp
she wears helmet and drives her scooter slowly through the capital of
indonesia aceh province but yuli is still stopped by the sharia police her
crime wearing tight jeans and blouse deemed un islamic
the year old lowers her eyes and doesn argue with the khaki clad male
officers who summon her to the side of the road
promise to buy more muslim outfit she says showing enough contrition for
the police to wave her on her way
in one hour women are pulled over because the guardians of morality decide
their slacks are too tight or their shirts reveal too much of their feminine
curves
only three men receive the same treatment for wearing shorts
we have to respect sharia islamic law which has been adopted by the
provincial government and which stipulates that women can only show their faces
and their hands sharia police commander hali marzuki told afp
perched at the end of sumatra island about kilometres miles
northwest of the indonesian capital jakarta aceh is one of the most
conservative regions in the mainly muslim archipelago
most muslims in the country of million people are modern and moderate and
indonesia constitution recognises five official religions including buddhism
and christianity
but aceh has special autonomy and one of the ways it has defined itself as
different from the rest of the country is through the implementation of sharia
law and the advent of the religious police
the force has more than officers including women but unlike their
fearsome counterparts in saudi arabia the local sharia police do not seem to
cause too much concern among citizens
officers are relatively cheerful they carry no weapons and they almost always
let wrongdoers off with warning
punishment is not the objective of the law we must convince and explain says
iskander the sharia police chief in banda aceh who goes by only one name
he has the power to order floggings but has found no need to do so since he was
promoted to his current position year ago
less than dozen people have been publicly caned since for drinking
alcohol gambling or having illicit sexual relations
advocates say the force is having good effect on society
the message is getting around and there are less and less violations says
senior officer syarifuddin adding that most of the people arrested under sharia
law had been denounced to the police by fellow citizens
it was thanks to one such tipoff that police busted group of men gambling over
dominoes in cafe earlier this month
another preoccupation for the sharia police is the sin of khalwat when man
and woman are found alone in an isolated place such as beach
young acehnese lovers or any man and woman for that matter need to watch their
backs if they want to sit together with the sand between their toes and take in
one of aceh beautiful seaside sunsets
you have to learn quickly with these police around said year old student
fira who says she likes to have fun
we know how to take precautions to avoid the checks and anyway if you re
caught you only risk being reprimanded
but this game of cat and mouse could take an ugly turn if new regulations
allowing the stoning to death of adulterers and the flogging of homosexuals is
signed into law by the provincial government
the law was enacted by the outgoing aceh legislative council on september
but it has been under review by the newly elected assembly and has not been
signed into effect by governor irwandi yusuf
lawmakers in jakarta have expressed their opposition to such draconian
punishments which could be declared unconstitutional by the supreme court and
re open old wounds about aceh hard won autonomy
we have to be very careful in the face of such radical pressures said
khairani arifin an activist for acehnese women rights
aceh could look like pakistan one day she warned
hanoi tube dwellers vow to stay in ancient quarter
hanoi jan afp
she stands in the narrow doorway dark tunnel stretching behind her until it
ends at patch of light half block away
inside the tunnel are tiny rooms the old woman and her family call home
enjoy living here and will die here says the year old her mouth
stained the colour of red wine from chewing betel nut she declined to be named
the stream of tourists passing her tunnel in hanoi old quarter could easily
miss it along with the many similar dark spaces throughout this neighbourhood
whose roots go back almost years
as much as life in the old quarter is lived on the noisy crowded streets it
also takes place unseen by casual visitors inside these long narrow homes
known as tube houses
civic authorities have deemed many of these homes unsuitable they are seeking
approval to move about one third of old quarter residents to highrises to
improve their living conditions state media reported
we share the same toilet with dozens of others says tran dinh nam who has
spent all of his years in one old quarter house and is proud of his
neighbourhood
he and other tube dwellers vow to stay put
don want to move anywhere else even to the next street says the old
woman who has lived in her house for years
her quarters were not always as cramped as they are now she said the tunnel is
relatively recent addition dividing her family space from that of others
whose entry doors open onto the dark corridor
such renovations are typical says booklet based on research by hanoi
ancient quarter management board and japanese universities
if there is an empty space dwelling will be built on it the booklet says
almost every available space between existing buildings has been developed or
infilled
the vietnamese capital in will celebrate its th anniversary and the
old quarter has been its heart throughout the district developed around
streets named for the goods once made and sold there
hang bac where the old woman lives became known for its silversmiths
jewellers still ply their trade on hang bac but are now side by side with all
manner of other businesses bakeshop small hotel travel agencies and
cafe offering western food for passing backpackers
it is scene repeated throughout the old quarter where pedestrians weave past
sidewalk vendors selling drinks and snacks the narrow streets are filled with
motorcycles and the ear splitting sound of their horns
the density in here is too high says one old quarter resident familiar with
the redevelopment plan they want to move people out make better life he
said adding that the plan has been proposed but not yet approved by civic
officials
there are households in an area of less than hectares acres
the ancient quarter research booklet says citing census
in many houses an entire family may occupy no more than single room it
says
nguyen thai hau has lived almost years at house on hang ca street
named for the fish once sold there
she says her house built in the originally belonged to one wealthy man
and his wives
now there are six households here with about people she says
reached through short tunnel the two storey structure rises from courtyard
where hau washes rice for cooking in small kitchen
of course the living conditions are not good but we are used to it says
hau whose family sells clothes from the sidewalk in front
her square metres of space square feet is small but like others in the
old quarter is extremely valuable
it may reach nearly billion dong one million dollars this year guess
did not sell it as my elder son refused to go anywhere else he said it easier
living here at the centre of hanoi
others agree the convenience of old quarter living compensates for the lack of
amenities
tradition is also factor says the old woman on hang bac she says some
residents have bigger houses elsewhere but still no one wants to sell because
these are the houses of the ancestors
the state vietnam news said the plan calls for moving of the area
residents beginning late next year when households will go to
new development called viet hung across the red river
with its wide streets and broad sidewalks devoid of almost all people and
vehicles the mix of high and low rise apartments certainly has something the
old quarter lacks feeling of space
that is not enough to entice nam the life long old quarter inhabitant with
shared toilet
we don want to live in high rise block nam says we are not used to it
nobody will be forced to go said the other local resident who is familiar with
the plan authorities will take time to find out what people will need to make
them feel comfortable in their new neighbourhood he said
this is very difficult project we have to spend lots of time to study he
said
as first step after two years of negotiation several families who squatted
inside hang bac temple have been moved to new accommodation and given
compensation he said
the overall relocation plan should not affect the old quarter character he
added countering the fears of some foreign tourists
it would destroy it said jean kennedy an australian archeologist this
is living city
cha so yeon of south korea said the area street activity appealed to
her
we want to see the lives of the people she said
but polish visitor paul paanakker making his second trip to the old
quarter said he is unlikely to return
it too crowded compared to saigon he said
afp features
paris jan afp
we will shortly move the following stories
highlights
hanoi tube dwellers vow to stay in ancient quarter
indonesia religious police on hemline frontline
lifestyle vietnam history housing feature
hanoi
she stands in the narrow doorway dark tunnel stretching behind her until it
ends at patch of light half block away
inside the tunnel are tiny rooms the old woman and her family call home
words by ian timberlake picture
indonesia islam police rights aceh feature
banda aceh indonesia
she wears helmet and drives her scooter slowly through the capital of
indonesia aceh province but yuli is still stopped by the sharia police her
crime wearing tight jeans and blouse deemed un islamic
words by jerome rivet picture
malaysia environment dams feature
kuala lumpur
massive tract of borneo jungle an area the size of singapore will soon
disappear under the waters of the bakun dam multi billion dollar project
nearing completion after years of controversy
words by sarah stewart picture
for questions email nancy shields afp com or call
danish police arrest man trying to kill mohammed cartoonist
copenhagen jan afp
danish police said saturday they shot and arrested an axe wielding somali man
who tried to kill cartoonist whose depictions of the prophet mohammed
infuriated muslims
the year old who lives in denmark but was not identified broke into the home
of kurt westergaard in the western city of aarhus late friday police guards
shot and wounded the intruder before arresting him
the somali national had terrorist intent and was close to the radical somali
shebab movement and leaders of al qaeda in east africa the internal security
service pet said in statement
westergaard who has received several death threats since danish newspaper
five years ago published his drawing featuring mohammed wearing turban in the
shape of bomb was at his home with five year old granddaughter when the
intruder tried to get in
locked myself in our safe room and alerted the police he tried to smash the
entrance door with an axe but he didn manage westergaard told danish
news agency ritzau
he used insults don remember which but it was bad language he spoke poor
danish and he wound up saying he be back said the badly shaken cartoonist
bent preben nielsen chief police inspector for east jutland told afp that
police fired at the aggressor who was threatening them with an axe and knife
hitting him in the hip and the right hand
the somali who was taken to hospital but whose injuries were not life
threatening would be charged with attempted murder of kurt westergaard and
policeman east jutland police chief mikael larsen said in communique
pet said in its statement the attempted murder of cartoonist kurt westergaard
is linked to terrorism the person arrested has close links with the somali
terrorist organisation al shebab as well as with the heads of al qaeda in east
africa
he is also suspected of being implicated in terrorist activities when he was in
east africa the individual arrested has also been member of terrorist
network implanted in denmark that has been under surveillance by pet for long
time
westergaard is one of cartoonists whose drawings of the muslim prophet were
first published in danish newspaper jyllands posten in september
the cartoons were considered offensive by many muslims and their publication
sparked violent protests worldwide in january and february
two tunisians were arrested in denmark in on suspicion of planning to
murder westergaard and later released without trial after they appealed
government order for their expulsion on national security grounds
demonstrators burned danish flags in protests that culminated in february
with the torching of danish diplomatic offices in damascus and beirut and dozens
of deaths in nigeria libya and pakistan
internet hackers last april attacked website run by denmark free press
society selling prints of westergaard controversial cartoon the group
director lars hedegaard said
despite the hacking hedegaard said close to of the one thousand signed
prints had been sold over half of them to foreign buyers for dollars
apiece
denmark muslims make up percent of the population and are the
country second largest religious community after the state run lutheran
church
dead after suicide car bomb at pakistan volleyball game
peshawar pakistan jan afp
investigators sifted through rubble saturday after suicide car bomber
detonated his explosives filled vehicle in crowd watching volleyball game in
northwest pakistan killing at least
friday bombing marked bloody start to for pakistan which has seen
surge in attacks blamed on the taliban in recent months as islamist fighters
avenge military operations aimed at crushing their northwest strongholds
the huge blast was pakistan deadliest in more than two months triggering the
collapse of more than houses some with families inside in village
bordering taliban stronghold officials said
the attack was condemned by britain and the united states with secretary of
state hillary clinton vowing the us would continue supporting pakistani people
in their efforts to chart their own future free from fear and intimidation
the bomber detonated his explosives packed vehicle as fans gathered at
volleyball court to watch two local sides face off in the village of shah hasan
khan in bannu district bordering taliban stronghold south waziristan
the villagers were watching the match between the two village teams when the
bomber drove his double cabin pick up vehicle into them and blew it up
district police chief mohammad ayub khan told afp
the death toll has risen to and others were wounded khan said
six children and five paramilitary soldiers were among the dead he added
the tournament was organised by the local peace committee who had supported
government operation to expel militants from the area khan said
it was the highest death toll from suspected militant strike since massive
car bomb on october killed people in crowded market in the northwestern
provincial capital peshawar
ramzan bittani year old driver told afp by telephone from local
hospital that he had left the match to take call
as was listening saw huge blue and white flash followed by an ear
piercing blast when was able to figure out what had happened saw bodies
and smoke all around my hand was fractured he said
anwer khan student said that he had just stepped out of his house and he
saw black pick up speeding up towards the spectators
giant flame leaped towards the sky there was bright light everywhere just
like flash and then very huge blast shook everything two pellets hit my
forehead and blood started flowing khan said
district police chief khan blamed the bomb on islamist extremists who were the
target of military operation in bannu district last year
security has plummeted over the past two and half years in pakistan where
militant violence has killed more than people since july
the northwest has suffered the brunt of the militant campaign with suicide
bombings increasingly targeting civilians
the military is now locked in its most ambitious assault yet on taliban
strongholds in south waziristan sending troops into battle in the
district on the afghan border on october
washington however is urging pakistan to do more to also stamp out al qaeda
sanctuaries and dismantle havens of militants who cross the border and attack us
and nato troops stationed in afghanistan
officials friday confirmed that at least four militants were killed in us
missile strike on compound in machikhel village kilometres miles east
of miranshah the main town in north waziristan tribal region on the afghan
border
such us strikes in pakistan have killed at least people since august
and greatly inflame anti american sentiment in the muslim nation
nine dead in china fireworks factory blast state media
beijing jan afp
nine workers have been killed and eight others injured after an explosion in
fireworks factory in northern china state run media reported saturday
the blast happened friday afternoon at the xinping firecrackers co ltd in
shaanxi province destroying all seven workshops producing festive explosives
xinhua news agency said citing statement from the local work safety bureau
police have launched search for the factory boss qu pingxin who fled after
the explosion xinhua said
china has huge fireworks industry that is notorious for its lax safety
standards
the central government has announced number of campaigns in recent years to
make the industry safer but accidents mostly at illegal or poorly run
workshops continue to occur due to the drive for profits
danish police shoot man trying to break into cartoonist home
copenhagen jan afp
danish police late friday shot and wounded an axe wielding man who tried to
break into the home of cartoonist whose depictions of the prophet mohammed
infuriated muslims
the year old somali national had terrorist intent and was close to the
radical somali shebab movement and al qaeda which was responsible for the
attacks in the united states the internal security service pet said in
statement
kurt westergaard who has received several death threats since danish
newspaper four years ago published his drawing featuring mohammed wearing
turban in the shape of bomb was at his home near the western city of aarhus
the house was guarded by police when the intruder tried to get in
locked myself in our safe room he tried to smash the entrance door with an
axe westergaard told danish news agency ritzau
he was in the building with five year old grandson at the time
the security alarm was set off when the man tried to enter the house before
being shot by the guards the daily politiken reported online the intruder
wounded in the arm and leg was hospitalised
pet said in its statement the attempted murder of cartoonist kurt westergaard
is linked to terrorism the person arrested has close links with the somali
terrorist organisation al shebab as well as with the heads of al qaeda in east
africa
he is also suspected of being implicated in terrorist activities when he was in
east africa the individual arrested has also been member of terrorist
network implanted in denmark that has been under surveillance by pet for long
time
politiken had earlier reported there were three intruders before saying there
was just one
ritzau said dozen police vehicles were at the scene while sappers were sent in
to look for bomb that might have been laid
westergaard is one of cartoonists whose drawings of the muslim prophet were
first published in danish newspaper jyllands posten in september sparking
controversy among muslims worldwide
the cartoons were considered offensive by many muslims and their publication
sparked violent protests worldwide in january and february
two tunisians were arrested in denmark in on suspicion of planning to
murder westergaard and later released without trial after they appealed
government order for their expulsion on national security grounds
demonstrators burned danish flags in protests that culminated in february
with the torching of danish diplomatic offices in damascus and beirut and dozens
of deaths in nigeria libya and pakistan
internet hackers last april attacked website run by denmark free press
society selling prints of westergaard controversial cartoon the group
director lars hedegaard said
despite the hacking hedegaard said close to of the one thousand signed
prints had been sold over half of them to foreign buyers for dollars
apiece
denmark muslims make up percent of the population and are the
country second largest religious community after the state run lutheran
church
nba arenas scoffs at report of wizards wild west scene
los angeles jan afp
gilbert arenas and javaris crittenton teammates on the nba washington
wizards drew guns on each other in locker room argument over gambling debt
the new york post reported on friday
arenas who has acknowledged having unloaded firearms in container in his
locker at the team arena denied pulling gun on his teammate and in twitter
postings friday scoffed at the report
understand this is serious but if ever met me you know dont do serious
things im goof ball this story today dont sound goofy to me arenas said in
one tweet
washington dc police said last week they were investigating report that
weapons were found in locker room at the venue and the team and arenas said
the player had stored unloaded weapons in his locker
on friday the wizards released brief statement regarding the latest
allegation
the washington wizards take this situation and the ongoing investigation very
seriously the team said we are continuing to cooperate fully with the proper
authorities and the nba and will have no further comment at this time
nba rules allow players to legally possess firearms but prohibits them from
bringing guns to league facilities or when traveling on league business
mayon volcano alert lowered philippines
manila jan afp
philippine volcanologists on saturday lowered the alert level around the mayon
volcano indicating that dangerous eruption was less likely three weeks after
it began spewing ash and lava
the lowering of the alert level means that thousands of people who were
evacuated from an eight kilometre five mile danger zone around mayon can
return home the philippine institute of volcanology and seismology said
however the institute warned that the overall state of unrest remains
relatively high and said that people should still remain outside six
kilometre permanent danger zone around the volcano
around people around the area were evacuated after the institute raised
the alert level to four on scale of five on december signalling that
major eruption could be imminent
however the institute said in statement saturday that lowering the alert
level to three meant that there is less probability of hazardous explosion
mayon which is about kilometres miles southeast of manila has
erupted times in recorded history in more than people were
killed when lava flows buried the town of cagsawa
rugbyu french top table
paris jan afp
french top standings ahead of sunday matches played won drawn lost
points for points against bonus points points
castres
clermont
racing metro
perpignan
toulon
toulouse
stade francais
biarritz
brive
montpellier
montauban
bourgoin
bayonne
albi
rugbyu suffering stade under microscope
paris jan afp
struggling stade francais face tricky away game against montauban on sunday
with the players under pressure to step up gear after slipping to midtable in
the top
stade last week suffered heart breaking loss to montpellier after
leading on the hour mark and coach jacques delmas was scathing in his
review of the game
when you lead by points you cannot hide behind the referee delmas said
we just let everything go we simply lacked ambition and the boys refused to
play
we gave away too much ball there were too many bad choices made by us
to make matters worse for the parisian giants for whom victory is essential to
remain on course for european cup qualification they will be without
influential south african scrum half noel oelschig
the third highest scorer in the top oelschig broke his hand in the defeat to
montpellier and is expected to be out for six weeks
stade parisian cousins racing metro are sitting in an all together more
comfortable position having notched up wins in their games so far this
season for third place in the table
racing on the back of win over bayonne host bourgoin struggling third
from bottom after losing to biarritz
surprise top leaders castres could consolidate their position atop the table
when they host bottom club albi
castres put montauban to the sword on wednesday with coach laurent labit
praising his side for the patience they showed in building their game
second placed clermont fresh from crushing brive host fifth placed
toulon and international winger julien malzieu said
we wanted to finish the year in style and think we did that said malzieu of
the seven try demolition of brive
we ve been trying to play bit in our last three matches malzieu told la
montagne newspaper and when we put it all together it really causes trouble
for teams
it creates space and we can use that to score tries we have to continue in the
same vein
in other games bayonne host toulouse biarritz welcome montpellier and
perpignan travel to brive
fixtures
bayonne toulouse biarritz montpellier brive perpignan castres albi
clermont toulon montauban stade francais racing metro bourgoin
colombian warplanes raid rebel camps defense minister
bogota jan afp
colombian warplanes bombed two leftist rebel camps in the southern meta region
friday in new year day raid that killed rebels and resulted in the
capture of others the country defense minister said
in separate incident soldier and year old girl were killed in an
attack by the revolutionary armed forces of colombia better known as the farc
in the southwestern region of huila the military said
defense minister gabriel silva said the raid on the rebel camps in meta war were
carried out by air force planes which bombed the camps and special
operations forces on the ground
while colombians celebrate the end of year holidays with their families our
soldiers maintain their commitment to confront narcoterrorism in the country
jungles he said
silva said the operation was part of response to the kidnapping and
assassination of governor luis francisco cuellar days ago in the southern
region of caqueta
authorities also said that on new year eve farc guerrillas opened fire against
an army patrol in the southwestern region of huila killing soldier and
year old girl who was caught in the crossfire
four other people were hurt in the incident according to military
spokesperson
the armed forces have offered reward of dollars for information leading
to the capture of the perpetrators
the farc which is thought to number to fighters has been at war
with the colombian government for around years
clinton condems pakistan suicide attack
washington jan afp
us secretary of state hillary clinton denounced the suicide car bombing friday
