■JAPAN
Smoking toilets recalled
A toilet-maker has pledged to repair nearly 82,000 electric bidet toilets after several units overheated and emitted smoke. Inax Corp made the announcement on Tuesday after receiving six reports that covers on toilets with electric bidets melted and began smoking, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said. No injuries were reported from the faulty DV-200 series, manufactured between March 2004 and June 2005.
■AUSTRALIA
Bogus engineer jailed
A bogus aircraft engineer accused of putting thousands of Qantas passengers’ lives at risk was jailed for more than three years yesterday. Timothy McCormack forged his qualifications and posed as a licensed aircraft engineer for nearly nine months, checking planes leaving Sydney Airport, before being exposed in July last year. The 27-year-old, described by his defense lawyer as a pathological liar, pleaded guilty — and then faked four character references for the court as it considered his sentence.
■PHILIPPINES
ADB approves justice loan
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said yesterday that it had approved a US$300 million loan to help the government improve the integrity and efficiency of its justice system. The Manila-based bank said the loan would be used to increase budget resources, improve public expenditure management and introduce new internal controls in the judiciary. “By supporting more competitive salaries and higher budgets, the loan is expected to reduce vacancies among judges and prosecutors, improve information and case management systems and help cut delays in the justice system,” the bank said.
■SOUTH KOREA
Actress sentenced for affair
Actress Ok So-ri, 40, who challenged a law that criminalizes adultery, was given a suspended eight-month jail term yesterday for her affair.In October the Constitutional Court rejected her petition against the decades-old law. Ok had admitted having an affair with a pop singer but blamed it on a loveless marriage to actor husband Park Chul. She had argued that the law infringes the right of individual choice.
■NDIA
Government to keep cash
The government will keep 10 million rupees (US$213,000) waved around in parliament in July by opposition lawmakers protesting against what they said were government attempts to bribe members of parliament (MPs) to abstain from a no-confidence vote, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said on Tuesday — unless it receives a request for the money in one month.
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