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Thousands March Through Karachi To Protest Against Charlie Hebdo

Thousands of people marched through Pakistan’s largest city on Thursday in the country’s biggest protest yet against French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo for publishing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.

The march through the streets of Karachi is the biggest in a series of demonstrations against the magazine, whose Paris offices were attacked on January 7 by Islamist gunmen, killing 12 people.

An intelligence official overseeing the rally told AFP that the protesters numbered in the “thousands”, still a relatively small turnout in a city of 18 million people.

Protesters carried green flags printed with the prophet’s mausoleum and chanted anti-Charlie Hebdo slogans as they marched.

“Down with Charlie Hebdo, down with the blasphemers,” they shouted.

Many carried placards demanding blasphemers be killed.

One of the protest leaders, Sarwat Ejaz Qadri, demanded the Pakistani government cut diplomatic ties with France.

“Their ambassador should be declared persona non grata and must be expelled from the country,” Qadri said.

In the southwestern city of Quetta, some 400 activists of Markazi Jamiat-e-Ahl-e-Hadith, a Sunni Muslim organisation, held a demonstration in front of the press club and burned a French flag.

The demonstrators, many of them children, carried placards condemning the satirical magazine and shouted slogans including: “Let blasphemers be hanged, we will not tolerate anyone ridiculing our prophet.”

Across the border in Afghanistan, around 50 people gathered outside the French Embassy in Kabul to protest against the magazine, chanting “France you are the devil”.

Charlie Hebdo last week published a “survivors” issue with an image of the Prophet Mohammed weeping on the cover. The issue quickly sold out before more copies of an eventual print run of five million hit newsstands.

Under Pakistan’s strict blasphemy laws, insulting the prophet can carry the death penalty, and the country’s prime minister and parliament last week strongly condemned the publication of the cartoons.

At least three people were injured on Friday when protesters and police clashed at an anti-Charlie Hebdo demonstration outside the French consulate in Karachi.

They included AFP photographer Asif Hassan, who was shot in the back and is now recovering in hospital.

Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com

January 23, 2015
Singapore Is Most Liveabe City In Asia For Expatriates

Singapore remains the most liveable city in Asia and the world for expatriates while Hong Kong slips to the 33rd place from 17th in the global ranking of expatriate living conditions published by ECA International.

In Asia, Kuala Lumpur and George Town both ranked 16th in Asia and 118th in the world, while Johor Baharu 21st in Asia and 126th in the world.

In 2014, Kuala Lumpur was 16th, George Town (17th) and Johor Baharu (21st) in Asia.

ECA International regional director – Asia Lee Quane said: “Good air quality, solid infrastructure, decent medical facilities, low crime and health risks have contributed to Singapore maintaining its position at the top of the global ranking for quality of living for Asian assignees.

“The fact that Singapore comes out top time and time again does make it a very attractive proposition for companies looking to set up in offices the region, particularly when conditions in Hong Kong (Singapore’s archival for the past few years) have deteriorated a little.”

Updated annually, ECA assesses 450 locations worldwide on the quality of living based on climate; availability of health services; housing and utilities; isolation; access to a social network and leisure facilities; infrastructure; personal safety; political tensions, and air quality.

Singapore is followed by Sydney and Adelaide in the ranking for Asian assignees.

In mainland China, Shanghai, ranked 110th globally, is China’s most liveable city followed by Beijing (122nd).

Scores have remained steady across most Chinese locations but Chongqing and Shenzhen saw the highest improvement over the year.

In India, Bangalore, ranked 171st globally scores most favourably followed by Mumbai and Chennai. New Delhi (204th) is the least liveable.

Along with Beijing, Delhi has the worst score for air quality not just in Asia but globally.

In Thailand, the declaration of martial law has led to a worsening in socio-political scores for locations there, plummeting Bangkok and Chang Mai both to the 112th spot, down from last year’s 108th.

Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com

January 23, 2015
200 Complaints Lodged With Regard To The English-Speaking Competency Of Bus Captains

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has received around 200 complaints regarding the language abilities of bus captains, most of which were on their ability to converse in English.

Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew revealed this in a written reply to MP for Aljunied GRC Muhamad Faisal’s parliamentary question on the number of public feedback received with regard to the language abilities of bus captains.

Mr Lui added that all bus captains are required to have a basic competency in conversational English before being deployed. Once LTA has received legitimate feedback, they will then inform the relevant public transport operators, who will send the bus captain for a refresher course.

The bus captain will only be redeployed once he has passed a language test.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

January 23, 2015
King Abdullah Of Saudi Arabia Has Passed Away

RIYADH (AFP, REUTERS) – Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, 90, died on Friday and Crown Prince Salman was named king, the royal court said in a statement on Friday.

The late monarch’s half brother Moqren was named crown prince, according to the statement.

Saudi television cut to Quranic verses early on Friday, which often signifies death of a senior royal.

King Abdullah had been in hospital since December because of pneumonia.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

January 23, 2015
Blogger Alex Au Wai Pang Guilty Of Contempt Of Court

Blogger Alex Au Wai Pang was on Thursday (Jan 22) found guilty of scandalising contempt over a blogpost in which he discussed challenges of the constitutionality of Section 377A.

However, High Court judge Belinda Ang found that a second post by Au was not in contempt of court.

The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) took action against Au, 61, over two articles on his Yawning Bread blog in October 2013, arguing that the articles were not fair criticism and risked undermining public confidence in judiciary. The AGC also charged that the articles were baseless attacks against the authority of court and crossed the legal line.

Justice Ang found that Au’s first article, 377 Wheels Come Off Supreme Court’s Best Laid Plans, had imputed judicial partiality and impropriety on the part of the Chief Justice, and risked undermining public confidence in the administration of justice in Singapore.

However, she ruled that the AGC failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the charge of scandalising contempt on the second post titled Church Sacks Employee and Sues Government – on one ground right, on another ground wrong.

In this post, Au wrote that he did not have high hopes that former Robinson & Co employee Lawrence Wee’s application for a court declaration that Article 12 of the Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, “mostly because my confidence in the Singapore judiciary is as limp as a flag on a windless day”.

Justice Ang disagreed with the prosecution that Au’s graphic description of his lack of confidence in the judiciary “stems from the judiciary’s inadequacies, incompetence and/or partiality against cases which relate to issues of sexual orientation”.

Sentencing for Au’s conviction in relation to the first article will proceed at a later date.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

January 23, 2015