■ Australia
Asylum plea rejected
A Chinese dissident said Australia rejected her application for political asylum yesterday, leaving her facing a lengthy jail term if she is forced back to her homeland. Zhao Jing said she was "deeply disappointed" by the decision, which her supporters in Australia suggested was a result of Canberra caving in to pressure from Beijing. "If I go back to China, there is political persecution waiting for me," she said. Zhao said she had 28 days to appeal the rejection and called on Foreign Minister Alexander Downer to reverse the decision. Zhao travelled to Australia as part of a tour group on July 21 and applied for asylum over four politically-sensitive books.
■ Indonesia
Separatists die in clashes
Indonesian troops shot dead three separatist rebels and captured 13 others in the latest violence in the restive province of Aceh, the military said yesterday. The three were killed on Saturday during clashes between government troops and separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) guerrillas, Aceh military spokesman Asep Sapari said, according to the state Antara news agency. Thirteen other rebels were captured in four raids Saturday, he said. Military and police figures show about 2,200 rebels have been killed, and human rights groups say many of the dead are civilians.
■ India
Poor offered circumcisions
Charity workers plan to circumcise thousands of Muslim boys in India, saying that many of them are foregoing the ritual surgery due to financial constraints or displacement, a report said yesterday. The Royal Education Society, a Muslim-led private group in Bombay, plans to circumcise 3,000 boys in a low-income area. "A number of parents do not circumcise their children because of financial crises or lack of knowledge," the Society's Rehana Undre told the Asian Age newspaper. "Since circumcision is compulsory among Muslims, I thought we should take the initiative," she said.
■ Hong Kong
Pro-China pol has cancer
The leader of a major political party announced yesterday that he has colon cancer but will continue to campaign for re-election in legislative council polls. Ma Lik, head of the pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance since its previous leader resigned last year following a slump in ratings, broke the news of his cancer diagnosis in a public announcement. He said he had only recently had the cancer confirmed and that it was in its early stages. "I spoke to my colleagues and they said I should have treatment as soon as possible," he said.
■ Nepal
Maoists protest pageant
Supporters of Maoist rebels fighting to turn Nepal into a secular republic joined forces with Hindu activists to picket the kingdom's premier beauty pageant. The activists, mostly women, tore down a ceremonial archway leading to a Kathmandu convention center where Miss Nepal was to be crowned, but police sealed off the area before the pageant opened Saturday evening. "Down with the exploitation of women and Nepalese culture!" hundreds of pro-Maoist and Hindu demonstrators chanted under close watch of police. Payal Shakya, 18, was crowned Miss Nepal after competing against 17 other candidates and will represent the Himalayan state at the next Miss World and Miss Asia-Pacific pageants.
■ South Africa
Ostriches contract bird flu
South Africa will tomorrow begin a cull of some 30,000 ostriches in the Eastern Cape following an outbreak of bird flu that prompted the government to halt all poultry exports, the agriculture ministry said. Traces of the mild H5N2 strain of bird flu were found in samples taken last week from two ostrich farms in the Somerset East area, north of the city of Port Elizabeth, said agriculture ministry official Segoati Mahlangu. The cull will target the ostriches at the two affected farms and those from an additional 15 farms located within a 30km radius, he said. "The effect will be quite minimal" on the ostrich industry in South Africa, Mahlangu said, adding that the cull represented a small percentage of South Africa's total exports of 300,000 ostriches per year.
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