News on Political, Economic, Law and Social Issues

A government minister has blamed Indonesia’s recent string of natural disasters on
people’s immorality.
Communication and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring said that there were many
television programmes that destroyed morals.
Therefore, the minister said, natural disasters would continue to occur.
His comments came as he addressed a prayer meeting on Friday in Padang, Sumatra,
which was hit by a powerful earthquake in late September.
He also hit out at rising decadence – proven, he said, by the availability of
Indonesia-made pornographic DVDs in local markets – and called for tougher laws.
According to the Jakarta Globe, his comments sparked an angry reaction on the
internet, particularly among those who followed him on social networking site
Twitter.
Why focus on public immorality when there was so much within the government, one
respondent reportedly asked.
More than 1,000 people died in the Padang earthquake, which toppled hundreds of
buildings in and around the city.
Padang lies to the south of Aceh province, which was devastated in the December
2004 Asian tsunami.
Indonesia lies across a series of geological fault-lines and is prone to frequent
earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

A Chinese court is hearing the first civil compensation claim by a parent whose
child fell ill during last year’s tainted milk scandal.
Ma Xuexin of Henan province is suing collapsed dairy group Sanlu and a supermarket
for $8,000 (£4,860).
His young son is one of hundreds of thousands of infants who became sick after
drinking baby milk formula laced with the industrial chemical melamine.
Two people were executed on Tuesday for their part in the scheme.
Nineteen other people have been jailed in connection with the case, which resulted
in the deaths of at least six children.
Melamine is used in the making of plastics and fertilisers. If ingested it can
cause kidney failure and kidney stones.
Investigations have shown that dairy producers watered down their milk to make
supplies go further, then added melamine so that it appeared to have a higher
protein content.
In December 2008, the government ordered 22 firms implicated in the scandal to pay
a total of 1.1bn yuan ($161m; £97.5m) to the hundreds of thousands of families
involved.
But some families say the compensation is inadequate and are turning to the
courts.
According to state-run China Daily, Mr Ma told the hearing that his 20-month-old
son had developed a kidney stone after being fed hundreds of packets of Sanlu-
brand milk formula.
As well as the compensation, he wants his son’s medical expenses to be paid by the
state-administered milk compensation fund until the boy reaches adulthood, the
daily said.

Two giant pandas from China have received a VIP welcome in Australia at the start
of a 10-year stay.
Wang Wang, four, and his female companion Funi, three, arrived at Adelaide airport
to be met by state and zoo officials.
An 18-vehicle refrigerated convoy then travelled to central Adelaide for a parade
and public party.
It is hoped that the two pandas will become the first breeding pair in the
southern hemisphere.
The pair went straight into quarantine at Adelaide Zoo, munching on specially
delivered bamboo from their home in Sichuan Province.
“They’re doing really well. They’ve been off-loaded and are just sitting now,”
said zoo spokeswoman Emily Rice.
“They’re in the quarantine area and are very happy and relaxed.”
Their purpose-built enclosure includes refrigerated rocks to keep them cool during
what is expected to be a summer of record-breaking temperatures.
The zoo has a successful record of breeding endangered animals.
Wang Wang and Funi’s first public appearance is scheduled for 14 December.
Officials estimate the pair could generate more than Aus $600m ($544m; £330m) for
the South Australian economy during their decade-long stay.
China uses payments from zoos that host loaned giant pandas to help fund its own
research programmes.
Chinese President Hu Jintao offered the pandas as a goodwill gesture during a 2007
visit to Australia.

US singer Al Alberts, a former member of the hit 1950s pop group The Four Aces,
has died at the age of 87.
Alberts led the quartet to success with number one singles Three Coins in the
Fountain and Love is a Many Splendored Thing.
Both songs were written for Hollywood movies and won the Academy Awards for best
song in 1955 and 1956.
The group had other US million-selling singles with their debut (It’s No) Sin and
Tell Me Why.
Alberts, born Al Albertini, was also known as the host of a long-running TV talent
show host in Philadelphia.
The show helped launch the careers of performers such as Sister Sledge and Teddy
Pendergrass, according to Alberts’ website.
Chris Alberts told the Associated Press news agency his father died on Friday at
his home in Arcadia, Florida.
The apparent cause of death was complications from kidney failure, he said.

Robbie Williams has said he is not engaged to his girlfriend, despite his mother
appearing to confirm the news.
Under the heading “Robbie And Ayda: Are They Or Aren’t They?” on his official
website, Williams simply wrote: “Hey all. We are not engaged. Rob.”
Speculation began when the singer made an off-the-cuff proposal to Ayda Field on
an Australian radio show.
His spokesman said it was a joke, but his mother Jan later told BBC 5 live he had
been planning to pop the question.
After Williams published his denial on Saturday, his spokesman said: “We have no
more comment on this apart from to confirm that they are not engaged.”
On Friday, Mrs Williams told 5 live that her son had revealed his proposal plans
to her “a week ago”.
She said she was “really pleased” for the couple, adding: “I’ve always wanted a
daughter-in-law.”
Asked when she thought the wedding would be, Mrs Williams said: “I don’t think it
will be that far in the not-too-distant future, but that’s all I’m going to say on
that.”
She added: “I’m very excited. I’m really pleased. They’ve been together for nearly
three years, so it’s about time.
“She’s a great mate, as well as a lover. She’s got all the qualities that he needs
in a girl. It’s a lovely match.”
Williams had appeared on Australian radio station 2Day FM, where breakfast show
host Jackie Henderson told him that Sydney had a reputation for celebrity
proposals.

European shares have been hit by concerns over Dubai’s financial health, after a
government-owned company asked for an extension on repaying its debts.
The UK’s FTSE 100 index lost 3.2%, its biggest one-day fall since March, after
Dubai World asked creditors to postpone upcoming repayments until May 2010.
Banks were hit particularly hard on concerns over Dubai’s ability to pay back its
debts.
Share indexes, however, are trading at their highest levels for over a year.
“Certainly the Dubai debt debacle and the uncertainty that it has created has had
a severe knock on effect,” said David Buik at BGC Partners.
The FTSE 100 finished Thursday trading at 5,194, which in points terms is a
decline of 170.7.
Barclays was the biggest faller, down 8%, followed by Royal Bank of Scotland,
which lost 7.8%.
French and German shares also declined, with France’s Cac index ending down 3.2%,
and Germany’s Dax losing 3.4%.
A senior Dubai government official, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum, chairman of
Dubai’s Supreme Fiscal Committee, said he understood the concerns in the markets,
but that “decisive action” was needed to address Dubai World’s debt problem.
The government is spearheading the restructuring of this commercial operation in
the full knowledge of how the markets would react,” he added.
“Dubai could not undermine itself any further as a place not to do business in at
the moment,” said Manus Cranny at MF Global.
“It is the much longer term implications on funding, confidence and capital
raising that will take a decade or more to re-establish,” he added.
Analysts say the Dubai government has paid the price for a flamboyant economic
model centred on foreign capital and giant construction projects.
Dubai World, which has total debts of $59bn (￡35bn), has asked for a six-month
extension on debt repayments.

Germany’s top soldier has resigned over allegations of a cover-up related to a
deadly Nato air strike in Afghanistan.
Wolfgang Schneiderhan’s move followed reports that key information about the 4
September action was withheld, the defence minister said.
The strike, which was ordered by a German commander, targeted two fuel tankers
hijacked by Taliban militants.
But dozens of civilians were also killed in the attack, which happened in the
northern province of Kunduz.
Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg told parliament that Gen Schneiderhan
had failed to provide proper information about the incident and had “released
himself from his duties at his own request”.
Another senior Defence Ministry official, Peter Wichert, has also resigned.
The announcement came as Germany’s parliament debated whether to extend its
military mission in Afghanistan, amid growing domestic opposition to involvement
in the conflict.
Taliban fighters had seized the tankers while they were being driven from
Tajikistan to supply Nato forces in Kabul.
Reports said that villagers were taking fuel from the tankers when the strike
happened.
For several days after the 4 September attack, the defence minister at the time,
Franz Josef Jung, maintained that no civilians had been killed. Today’s edition of
the mass circulation Bild newspaper claims the German defence ministry did know
about civilian casualties.
Now, on the day the German parliament is debating whether to extend the troop
mission in Afghanistan, we see the first political casualties. The German chief of
staff and a deputy defence minister have resigned.
But there is little doubt that German troops will remain in Afghanistan.
Chancellor Merkel’s Christian Democrats and their coalition partner the Free
Democrats have already called for an extension of the Germany military mission –
and their parties enjoy a clear majority in parliament.
It is not clear exactly how many civilians died. The independent Afghanistan
Rights Monitor group put the number of civilians deaths at 70. The Afghan
government later said that at least 100 people died, of whom 30 were civilians.
The resignations were announced hours after a German newspaper, Bild, published a
report alleging key information over the incident had been withheld.

Brazil is hosting a regional summit to discuss climate change and ways of tackling
deforestation in the Amazon.
Delegates from eight nations who share the Amazon basin, as well as France which
has an overseas department there, have been holding talks in Manaus.
They are discussing Brazil’s plan on slowing deforestation with the financial help
from rich nations.
The meeting comes ahead of a global summit on climate change in Copenhagen,
Denmark, next month.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is chairing the one-day summit.
Delegates from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Venezuela and Surinam,
are attending, while French President Nicolas Sarkozy is representing French
Guiana.
Presidents Sarkozy and Lula said richer nations must increase their aid to help
the poorer countries fight global warming.
“The poor need to be supported without any country giving up its sovereignty,”
President Lula said.
The BBC’s Paulo Cabral reports from Manaus that for the past few days diplomats
have been negotiating a common position to be presented by the Amazon countries
and France at the conference in Copenhagen.
He says most of the presidents invited did not come to Manaus, though diplomats
say that the ministers and ambassadors sent in their place are in position to
close a deal.
Mr Lula’s spokesman said the Brazilian leader hoped that the talks would yield “an
ambitious message on issues of great relevance to the region”.
“Brazil believes it is crucial for the [Amazon] region to have a converging and
co-operative participation,” AFP news agency quoted the spokesman as saying.
Brazil is proposing to combat deforestation in the Amazon basin with financial
backing from wealthy nations.
“Let no gringo [foreigner] ask us to let an Amazonian starve to death under a
tree,” Mr Lula said in a speech ahead of the meeting.
“We want to preserve [the forest], but [other countries] have to pay for that
preservation.”
At the summit, the Brazilian government was expected to present its efforts to
reduce destruction in the Amazon as a key part of its strategy to combat climate
change.
Earlier this month, Brazil’s government said the rate of deforestation in the
Amazon had dropped by 45% – and was the lowest on record since monitoring began 21
years ago.
It said that just over 7,000 sq km (2,700 square miles) had been destroyed between
July 2008 and August 2009. Brazil is seeking an 80% reduction in the deforestation
rate by 2020.
The environmental group Greenpeace has welcomed the latest drop but says there is
still too much destruction in the rainforest.
Earlier this month, Brazil said it aimed to cut its carbon emissions by at least
36% below 1990 levels by 2020.

Pakistan has warned the US that sending more soldiers to Afghanistan could
endanger its southwest border region.
President Barack Obama is expected next week to order more than 30,000 extra US
soldiers into Helmand province, to battle Taliban insurgents.
But Pakistan prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani fears this would force militants
over the border into Balochistan.
“We want a stable Afghanistan. At the same time we don’t want our country to be
destabilised,” said Mr Gilani.
“This is the concern that we already discussed with the US administration – that
the influx of militants towards Baluchistan should be taken care of, otherwise
that can destabilise Balochistan.”
Security in Pakistan has been deteriorating ever since coalition forces entered
Afghanistan eight years ago.
In Balochistan, which borders both Iran and Afghanistan, hundreds of people have
died in attacks by both separatist insurgents and Taliban fighters.
In wider Pakistan, suicide attacks and bombings have killed more than 2,550 people
in the last 29 months.
President Obama is due to unveil his new Afghanistan policy next week, after weeks
of deliberations.
He is expected to lay out an exit strategy for withdrawing forces.
Mr Gilani said Pakistan should be consulted on any shift in America’s Afghan
policy, because it would be directly affected by it.
He would not say if Pakistan had been consulted on the expected troop surge.
“We have asked US administration to consult us in case of any paradigm shift in
the policy… so that we can formulate our strategy accordingly,” the prime
minister said.
Correspondents say it is unlikely that Mr Gilani seriously believes he can
influence US strategy in Afghanistan. He is more likely trying to win domestic
favour.
Many Pakistanis are angry with their government’s perceived support for the US
military presence in Afghanistan.
Some blame the US for the suicide bombings by insurgents who have been “driven
out” of Afghanistan and over the border into Pakistan.
Mr Gilani may simply be seeking to distance himself from the US announcement next
week on how many new soldiers it will deploy.

Floods in Saudi Arabia have killed 77 people and scores could be missing, after
the heaviest rainfall in years.
None of the casualties had been among the millions attending the Hajj pilgrimage,
said a spokesman for the Saudi interior ministry.
Heavy rainstorms on Wednesday had hampered the start of the annual Muslim event in
the city of Mecca.
The flood deaths were in the port city of Jeddah, Rabigh and Mecca, according to
the state-run Saudi Press Agency.
It quotes officials as saying the deaths had been caused by flooding and collapsed
homes. Witnesses said many of the victims were trapped in cars and buses.
Twenty-one of the dead were Saudis and the rest were foreign immigrants resident
in the country, said Jeddah civil defence chief Abdullah al-Amri, quoted by the
Associated Press.
The floods hit particularly hard in the shantytowns around the city, he added.
The four-day Hajj pilgrimage draws more than three million people to Mecca from
around the world.
After Wednesday’s sudden downpours, the heat on Thursday was scorching as
worshippers travelled to Mount Arafat, the desert plateau where the Prophet
Muhammad delivered his farewell sermon.
Huge crowds climbed the mountain to pray for God’s forgiveness of their sins.
In the evening, they headed toward the next stage of the pilgrimage, the plains of
Muzdalifah, where pilgrims pick stones for the symbolic stoning of the Devil,
which begins on Friday.
Saudi authorities have warned pilgrims to take care in the rain.
Fatal stampedes have marred the pilgrimage in the past.
Correspondents say rains are common at the Hajj, but this year they have been much
heavier than usual.