■ Hong KongNew democracy demands
Hong Kong activists renewed demands for direct elections yesterday, urging the removal of Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa (董建華), whom they called an enemy of democracy. Opposition legislator James To (涂謹申) said Tung was the biggest obstacle to direct elections in Hong Kong. "At the bottom of his heart he hates democracy," To said. "It's not just that he ignores the issue, he doesn't think it's a good thing." Tung's office did not immediately respond to To's comments. An anti-Tung rally was planned for later yesterday.
■ Indonesia
Corrupt people need religion
Indonesia's Vice President Hamzah Haz conceded that there is still too much corruption in the country. Haz's remarks came a week after a global corruption watchdog, Transparency International, named Indonesia as one of the most corrupt countries. "We are a nation still mired in so much corruption, many bomb attacks, drug abuse and is suspected of being a haven for terrorists," Haz was quoted as saying by <
■ Afghanistan
Prisoners on the loose
Authorities were searching for more than 40 Taliban prisoners -- including several commanders -- who escaped from a high-security prison in southern Afghanistan by digging a tunnel, officials said. Several former Taliban commanders and the brother of former Taliban Defense Minister Mullah Ubaidullah were among the escaped convicts who disappeared without detection late Friday from a prison in Kandahar, Kandahar Governor Yousaf Pashtoon said Saturday. "This is a very serious incident," he said, adding that a province-wide search has been launched for the prisoners.
■ China
China, Japan share history
Relations between Asian giants China and Japan have a history of 7,000 years, state media reported yesterday, citing archeologists from the two countries gathered for a symposium in Beijing. Stone-age people from the two areas kept in contact via a route running from northeast China through coastal areas of what is now Russia's Far East, to the Japanese islands of Hokkaido and Honshu, Xinhua news agency said. The link has been established based on archeological evidence suggesting similar styles were used by artisans in both prehistoric China and Japan, according to the agency.
■ New Zealand
Girls close down restaurant
Three New Zealand schoolgirls with expensive tastes ordered pricey wines, including a bottle of French champagne, when they dined in style at one of Auckland's poshest restaurants before admitting they could not pay the bill. The trendy Mikano restaurant on the harbor city's waterfront has been shut down for 11 days from last Monday by the Liquor Licensing Authority as punishment for serving the girls, who were well under the minimum legal drinking age of 18. The girls, aged 14 and 15, ordered a bottle of wine costing US$156, or more than twice the total amount they spent on food, as well as cigarettes, the Sunday Star Times reported. Confessing at the end of their dinner that they could not pay the bill, they then ordered a limousine to take them home, the paper said.
■ United StatesLego tells Bible stories
Anyone who enjoys stories from the Bible in a somewhat unorthodox setting will find The Brick Testament (http://www.thebricktestament.com) to their liking. Here, surfers can click their way through famous Bible scenes made of Lego blocks, set up and digitally photographed by California's Brendan Powell Smith. Among the scenes already put into plastics are the first two books of the Old Testament (Genesis and Exodus) as well as the gospels, acts, and epistles of Paul. Most scenes are built completely out of original Lego blocks, assures the artist and self-proclaimed "Reverend" of his Web site. Only in exceptional circumstances did he reach for the X-acto knife or Sharpie.
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