The riddle of the Scarborough Shoals

What’s the standoff between China and the Philippines over an atoll in the South China Sea all about? Is it a matter of seafood and sovereignty … or gas fields and gambling? To an outside observer, the antics of China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Japan, Taiwan and Malaysia over conflicting territorial claims smack of farce auditioning for tragedy, and ridiculous claims abound. Most notorious is the infamous Chinese nine-dash line, a scrotum-shaped outrage that extends from Hainan Island to brush the shores of Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines, and encompasses almost the entire South China Sea. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/NE19Ad03.html

Indigenous Australians struggle for indigenous sovereignty

Brisbane, May 19: Indigenous Australians will maintain a vigil at a sacred Aboriginal site only metre from Musgrave Park, South Brisbane, from where they were evicted last Wednesday.
Hundreds of police dismantled their tend embassy in the park to enforce a council-ordered eviction ahead of this weekend’s Greek Paniyiri Festival. Marquis and amusement rides now stand where more than 30 people were arrested three days earlier. http://www.southeastasiantimes.com/

Police arrest members of the Aboriginal tent embassy in Musgrave Park, South Brisbane, – the latest site in the battle for recognition of Aboriginal sovereignty in Australia

Uncle Ho’s birth celebrated

Uncle Ho’s birth celebrated http://www.southeastasiantimes.com/
From News Reports:
Ho Chi Minh City, May 20: An exhibition titled “President Ho Chi Minh and the task of building, re-organising the Communist Party” has opened in the Ho Chi Minh Museum, Ho Chi Minh City, to honour the 122nd anniversary of the president’s birth on May 19, 1890.
The three sections of the exhibition are titled: President Ho Chi Minh-founder of Vietnam Communist Party; President Ho Chi Minh and the task of building, re-organising the Communist Party; Vietnam Communist Party follows President Ho Chi Minh’s thinking.
Almost 100 photographs and 50 books about Ho Chi Minh’s life are on display at the exhibition.
The exhibition coincides with a nationwide campaign titled, “Study and follow late President Ho Chi Minh’s moral examples.”
Diverse other cultural activities mark the anniversary.
For example, more than 2,000 publications about Ho Chi Minh are on display at an exhibition which opened in the northern-highland Thai Nguyen province.
Celebrations were also held in New Delhi and Moscow.
The Southeast Asian Times

‘US, allies step up plans to secure Syria’s chemical weapons’

Washington: The United States is accelerating its plan with Middle Eastern allies to secure Syria‘s vast stockpile of chemical weapons as that crisis in that country continues to worsen, according to a report.  http://zeenews.india.com/news/world/us-allies-step-up-plans-to-secure-syria-s-chemical-weapons_776550.html

Up to 200 UK soldiers to stay in Afghan after 2014

Up to 200 British special force soldiers could remain deployed in Afghanistan to help combat terrorism after troops withdraw in 2014, a senior government official has said. http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/up-to-200-uk-soldiers-to-stay-in-afghan-after-2014_776546.html

France’s unwed First Lady joins G-8 First Ladies’ at WH

he girlfriend of France’s new President, Francois Hollande, made her first official appearance at the G-8 First Ladies’ club as she toured the White House in a pair of towering heels. http://zeenews.india.com/news/world/france-s-unwed-first-lady-joins-g-8-first-ladies-at-wh_776552.html

Valerie Trierweiler 

Madonna wants to be US President

Queen of Pop Madonna wishes she could be President of the United States because she would stop the country from splashing cash on weapons of mass destruction. http://zeenews.india.com/entertainment/celebrity/madonna-wants-to-be-us-president_111715.htm

Madonna

Veena Malik a stain on women, says Dolly Bindra

Lahore: Dolly Bindra of ‘Bigg Boss’ fame has dubbed Pakistani actress Veena Malik as a stigma for not only Pakistan and India but also on womanhood. Bindra who is visiting Pakistan, while addressing a press conference at the Lahore Press Club on Saturday, insisted that the controversy queen was bringing shame to both Pakistan as well as India. http://zeenews.india.com/entertainment/celebrity/veena-malik-a-stain-on-women-says-dolly-bindra_111707.htm

Dolly Bindra

IPL molestation row: Police records Sahil Peerzada’s statement

New Delhi: Police have recorded the statement of Sahil Peerzada, the fiancée of Zohail Ahmed who was allegedly molested by Australian cricketer Luke Pomersbach. http://zeenews.india.com/sports/cricket/ipl-2012/ipl-molestation-row-police-records-sahil-peerzada-s-statement_742512.html

IPL molestation row: Police records Sahil Peerzada’s statement

New Delhi: Police have recorded the statement of Sahil Peerzada, the fiancée of Zohail Ahmed who was allegedly molested by Australian cricketer Luke Pomersbach. http://zeenews.india.com/sports/cricket/ipl-2012/ipl-molestation-row-police-records-sahil-peerzada-s-statement_742512.html