■ Malaysia
Bush victory `a disaster'
Malaysia's outspoken former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad said it would be "a disaster" if US President George W. Bush was re-elected. Urging US Muslims to back Democrat challenger Senator John Kerry, Mahathir said Kerry was unlikely to repeat Bush's mistake of alienating Muslims if he won. "I feel that if you vote Bush in, then it means you are approving all the things he has done," Mahathir said. "That would be a disaster." At the last US election and while he was still in power, Mahathir told Americans to support Bush against Al Gore, the man he accused of supporting former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim.
■ Japan
Fischer hoping for Kerry win
Bobby Fischer, the US chess legend turned critic of his country, was closely watching yesterday's presidential election from detention in Japan, believing his fight against deportation will get a boost if George W. Bush loses, his lawyer said. The maverick chess giant could be imprisoned for up to 10 years in the US for playing in Yugoslavia in 1992 against Boris Spassky in violation of US sanctions against Belgrade imposed over the Balkan wars. "If Bush wins, things may not change, but things may get better" if John Kerry becomes president, lawyer Masako Suzuki said, calling the Fischer case "very much politically affected."
■ United States
Singers lend weight to Kerry
Motown legend Stevie Wonder on Monday became the latest pop superstar to line up behind Senator John Kerry, on the eve of his showdown at the polls with US President George W. Bush. Wonder played a set before Kerry's rally in Detroit, Michigan, including a rendition of America the Beautiful on his harmonica. Kerry was later due to link up with another superstar backer, Bruce Springsteen in Cleveland, Ohio, and earlier in the day, rocker Bon Jovi opened a gig for him in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
■ JAPAN
Acupuncturist bets on Kerry
A British acupuncturist in Tokyo has promised to treat everyone who walks into his clinic for free today if US President George W. Bush loses the election -- even the would-be ex-president himself. Edward Obaidey, who treats about 20 people a day, said he stood to lose about
?120,000 (US$1,130) if Senator John Kerry wins. Obaidey said he decided to make his offer after hearing widespread anger about Bush from his patients, even ones who tend to be apolitical. Obaidey, who has worked in Tokyo for nearly 20 years, said he would consider making a similar offer when Britain holds its next general election. "If [Prime Minister Tony] Blair is out, maybe I'll do another campaign for that."
■ Australia
Howard stumps for Bush
The government has defended its open support for President George W. Bush in the US election, saying it was inevitable center-right governments would back one another. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer denied Prime Minister John Howard's comment that he was hoping for a Bush win had damaged the allies' close relationship. Downer said the Howard and Bush governments "have been very closely entwined" for four years, a period that included Australia's support and participation in the US-led war in Iraq.
ELECTION DISTRACTION? When attention shifted away from the fight against the militants to politics, losses and setbacks in the battlefield increased, an analyst said Recent clashes in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Jubaland region are alarming experts, exposing cracks in the country’s federal system and creating an opening for militant group al-Shabaab to gain ground. Following years of conflict, Somalia is a loose federation of five semi-autonomous member states — Puntland, Jubaland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle and South West — that maintain often fractious relations with the central government in the capital, Mogadishu. However, ahead of elections next year, Somalia has sought to assert control over its member states, which security analysts said has created gaps for al-Shabaab infiltration. Last week, two Somalian soldiers were killed in clashes between pro-government forces and
Ten cheetah cubs held in captivity since birth and destined for international wildlife trade markets have been rescued in Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia. They were all in stable condition despite all of them having been undernourished and limping due to being tied in captivity for months, said Laurie Marker, founder of the Cheetah Conservation Fund, which is caring for the cubs. One eight-month-old cub was unable to walk after been tied up for six months, while a five-month-old was “very malnourished [a bag of bones], with sores all over her body and full of botfly maggots which are under the
BRUSHED OFF: An ambassador to Australia previously said that Beijing does not see a reason to apologize for its naval exercises and military maneuvers in international areas China set off alarm bells in New Zealand when it dispatched powerful warships on unprecedented missions in the South Pacific without explanation, military documents showed. Beijing has spent years expanding its reach in the southern Pacific Ocean, courting island nations with new hospitals, freshly paved roads and generous offers of climate aid. However, these diplomatic efforts have increasingly been accompanied by more overt displays of military power. Three Chinese warships sailed the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand in February, the first time such a task group had been sighted in those waters. “We have never seen vessels with this capability
‘NO INTEGRITY’: The chief judge expressed concern over how the sentence would be perceived given that military detention is believed to be easier than civilian prison A military court yesterday sentenced a New Zealand soldier to two years’ detention for attempting to spy for a foreign power. The soldier, whose name has been suppressed, admitted to attempted espionage, accessing a computer system for a dishonest purpose and knowingly possessing an objectionable publication. He was ordered into military detention at Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch and would be dismissed from the New Zealand Defence Force at the end of his sentence. His admission and its acceptance by the court marked the first spying conviction in New Zealand’s history. The soldier would be paid at half his previous rate until his dismissal
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