Full Coverage: Asia and the Pacific

31.10.2007 While the richest man in the world may boast being Indian, almost half a billion Indians live on less than a dollar a day and are now demanding a bigger share of the country's economic pie.

31.10.2007 The Asian Development Bank’s urban development programme in Indian state of Rajasthan will improve the living conditions of 1.6 million urbanites. Better quality of drinking water, public health, sewerage, drainage and solid waste management systems are expected from the project.

31.10.2007 BangaloreIT.in 2007 - billed as Asia’s biggest ICT event - got on to a slow start on October 30, with few IT enthusiasts participating on the first day.

31.10.2007 Employers are practicing social favouritism by shunning dalits and Muslims with matching qualifications in favour of those with upper-caste Hindu names. A recent study provides sufficient evidence on the discriminatory character of the Indian job market.

31.10.2007 A two-day workshop on “IT for All” is promoting the use of Information Technology for the betterment of all sections of society. The workshop, organised by FTK-Center for Information Technology, Jamia Millia Islamia, opened at its campus in New Delhi.

31.10.2007 To help save vultures from drugged carcasses, Bird Conservation Nepal (BNC) has set up a ‘restaurant’ that will supply the birds with uncontaminated food. The vulture population in Nepal has dwindled sharply in recent times due to eating dead cattle that were administered with an anti-inflammatory drug called Diclofenac.

31.10.2007 Fourteen minors were recently rescued from the clutches of a sub-contractor, working for clothing giant GAP, by a local NGO in Shahpur Jaat area in the Indian capital. But what about the 100,000 child labourers still engaged in embroidery and zari sweatshops in Delhi?

30.10.2007 An Asian rights group has urged former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to stop her Pakistan People's Party's security organisation from displaying guns at public meetings, which it says is encouraging other parties and groups to arm themselves.

30.10.2007 A human rights court has ruled that Turkey must allow students to opt out of religious education, citing that students from a small Turkish religious group should not be forced to take Sunni Islamic lessons.

30.10.2007 The Thai government's policy of compulsory rehabilitation or incarceration for drug users has increased stigma and HIV risk, but local groups representing Thai drug users and HIV-infected citizens are pushing for more constructive programs.

30.10.2007 Buddhist monks are taught to meditate and avoid public skirmishes -- except when people suffer around them, as they have been at the hands of Burma's repressive regime, comments author Andrew Lam.

30.10.2007 Students in Bangalore, India are taking part in discussions, games, and field trips to learn about civic issues like "Government and why we need it," water, and public transportation. It's a far cry from their usual classes.

30.10.2007 At last, the Government of India, under pressure from 25,000 people, agrees to set up a committee to look into the issues related to land reforms. The protestors hope that the minister’s announcement was more than mere playing to the gallery.

30.10.2007 An independent United Nations human rights expert claims brutal torture is routine in counter-terrorism operations in Sri Lanka. Nowak also drew attention to the low conviction rate by criminal courts in torture related cases.

30.10.2007 British MPs pledge not to forget Burma, via a YouTube video.
And following performances at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, OId Vic and Soho Theatre, the dramatised story of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, The Lady Of Burma, comes to London's Riverside Studios from 7 November.
+ Children Bought and Sold by Army Recruiters

30.10.2007 Anything can hog the headlines in Indian media - from fashion to sensex to cricket to corporate extravaganza to Bollywood glitterati - anything but poverty. Ammu Joseph in her incisive piece scans the national press, which has made poverty and the poor invisible and painted a picture of India that shines only in patches.

30.10.2007 The UN Mission in Afghanistan has called on the country's warring factions to allow safe passage and access for humanitarian workers delivering aid to vulnerable families before winter cuts off remote regions.
From: UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan

30.10.2007 New Delhi based Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) invites nominations for a special short training programme on information management and dissemination in the digital age. The course will be held on December 11-14, 2007 at the Delhi CSE premises.

30.10.2007 Female foeticide has reached alarming levels in Asian countries. If China leads in declining sex ratio, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal follow closely. Experts at the on-going Asia Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual Health and Rights warn against this disturbing trend and call for urgent action.

30.10.2007 The Jatropha scrub weed can weather droughts, stop soil erosion, transform barren lands into lush greenery, while providing self-sufficient energy for rural communities – all at the same time. While India has plans to make the plant its chief biofuel source, there is little knowledge on the environmental impact of its cultivation.