The Asian reporter., June 06, 2016, Page Page 2, Image 2

Page 2 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
ASIA / PACIFIC
June 6, 2016
Japan equestrian, 75, loses shot at being oldest Olympian
TOKYO (AP) — A 75-year-old Japanese equestrian rider will not be able to
become the oldest competing Olympian of all time in Rio de Janeiro because of an
illness to his horse. Hiroshi Hoketsu was unable to meet the criteria to join the
qualifying trials for the Japanese team, Kyodo news agency reported. “I don’t
want to push the horse, so unfortunately I have given up upon the dream of
competing in the Rio Olympics,” Hoketsu said. “There’s nothing decided about
the future. First I’d like to prioritize getting the horse well again.” Hoketsu, who
made his Olympic debut in Tokyo in 1964 and at age 71 was the oldest athlete to
compete at the 2012 London Games, has been training in the Netherlands and
Germany, but hadn’t been able to take part in competitions after his horse fell ill.
Hoketsu would have become the oldest athlete to compete at the Olympics had
he qualified for Rio, overtaking Swedish shooter Oscar Swahn, who participated
in the 1920 Antwerp Games at age 72. Hoketsu was aiming for his fourth Olym-
pics after also appearing at the 2008 Beijing Games, where he finished ninth in
team dressage and 35th in individual dressage. In 2012, Hoketsu competed in
individual dressage, finishing 40th. Hoketsu also qualified for the 1988 Seoul
Olympics, but was unable to compete when his horse was quarantined.
Indonesia to punish child rapists with chemical castration
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia’s president has issued a regulation
that provides tougher penalties for child rapists, including chemical castration.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo says the administrative order is a response to
increasing sexual violence against children. The president earlier declared that
sexual offenses against children are a particularly serious crime because they
endanger the child’s life and wellbeing. Demands for harsher punishments have
grown following the rape and murder of a teenage girl by 14 men in western
Indonesia.
Filipino population growth slows as contraceptives spread
MANILA, The Philippines (AP) — Officials say population growth in the
Philippines has slowed amid an increased use of contraceptives in the
predominantly Roman Catholic country. The Commission on Population said
the 2015 census results show the population grew 1.72 percent last year, down
from the 1.9 percent rate during the previous census in 2010. The commission’s
executive director, Juan Antonio Perez III, said the country’s population of
100.98 million recorded last year was half a million lower than what was
forecast in 2010. Perez said the use of modern contraceptives — which the
Catholic Church opposes — has increased to 45 percent of couples as of last year,
up from 38 percent recorded by a national survey in 2013.
Fiji pulls some peacekeepers amid security fears
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Fiji says it’s bringing home about 65 of
the 300-plus peacekeepers it has stationed in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula and has
closed remote bases there as the security situation deteriorates. Commander
Humphery Tawake, who heads the South Pacific nation’s foreign peacekeeping
force, said Fiji was asked to scale down its presence by the leaders of the
international peacekeeping force stationed in Egypt. Tawake said the U.S. and
Colombia are also planning to reduce troop numbers as the peacekeepers find
themselves increasingly caught amid fighting between Egypt’s armed forces
and militants. He said the decisions on troop numbers were made at the
headquarters of the Multinational Force and Observers group. Tawake said five
of Fiji’s seven or eight remote Sinai outposts were closed in the past several
weeks.
‘Oppenheimer Blue’ diamond sells for more than $51M
GENEVA (AP) — The ‘Oppenheimer Blue’ has sold for a hammer price of 50.6
million Swiss francs ($51.3 million), setting a new record for a diamond sold at
auction. The 14.62-carat stone, billed as the largest Vivid Blue diamond ever put
up for auction, obliterated Christie’s pre-sale estimate range of between 38
million and 45 million Swiss francs. The sale rounded out a two-day run of
big-ticket jewelry auctions in Geneva. The rectangular-cut diamond has been
set in a ring and flanked by two smaller trapeze-shaped diamonds. The previous
record sale for any diamond was $48.5 million for the 12.03-carat polished “Blue
Moon” diamond in Geneva last year. The diamond got its name from the late Sir
Philip Oppenheimer, who long oversaw De Beers mining and had given the
stone to his wife.
Peace Corps coming to Vietnam for first time
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — The Peace Corps is at last coming to Vietnam.
President Barack Obama announced during his visit to Vietnam that the Peace
Corps will be invited to establish operations in the country, the volunteer
organization said. The volunteers will focus on teaching English to students and
training Vietnamese colleagues to teach English. It’s a striking turnaround
from the years when some young men joined the Peace Corps in an effort to avoid
serving in the military during the Vietnam conflict. The Peace Corps has been
working on gaining entry to Vietnam for years. In 2012, then-Peace Corps
director Aaron Williams made a three-day visit to the country to explore the
possibility of an invitation to establish a program. The Peace Corps was estab-
lished in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to promote world peace and friend-
ship. Since then, more than 220,000 Americans have served in 141 host coun-
tries. Currently, volunteers work in 63 countries. Peace Corps volunteers live in
host communities overseas for 27 months and work in areas such education,
environment, health, agriculture, youth, and community development.
DUNG DAMAGE. The sun rises over the Taj Mahal in Agra, India, in this November 18, 2009 file photo. Archaeologi-
cal experts say insects proliferating in a polluted river near the Taj Mahal are marring the intricate marble inlay work by
leaving green and black patches of waste on the walls of the 17th-century monument of love. (AP Photo/Gurinder Osan,
File)
Insect poop threatens to damage
marble at India’s Taj Mahal
By Biswajeet Banerjee
The Associated Press
UCKNOW, India — Swarms of insects
breeding in a polluted river near the
Taj Mahal are threatening the
intricate marble inlay work at the 17th-
century monument of love, by leaving green
and black patches of waste on its walls,
according to archaeological experts.
Workers scrub the walls clean every day, but
the regular scrubbing can damage the floral
mosaics and shiny marble surface, said
Bhuvan Vikram of the Archaeological Survey
of India.
“A series of marble panels depicting plant
motifs on the walls or reflective tiles used in
this part of the monument are becoming
disfigured,” Vikram said.
Authorities are looking for a permanent
solution to the problem created by the insects
from the genus Goeldichironomus, a type of
elongated fly that resembles a mosquito, that
are proliferating in the polluted Yamuna
River. The river has stagnated to the point
that it no longer supports fish that once kept
the insects in check, environmentalist Yogesh
L
Sharma said.
In addition, heavy algal growth and deposits
of phosphorus from ash dumped by a nearby
cremation ground “are the primary source of
food for this particular species of insect,” said
Girish Maheshwari, who heads the
Department of Entomology at St. John’s
College in the northern city of Agra.
The highest elected official of the state of
Uttar Pradesh, where the Taj Mahal is located,
called the insect menace a matter of “serious
concern.”
The Taj Mahal, one of India’s most cherished
tourist attractions, brings millions of visitors
to Agra every year. Archeologists are also
struggling to protect the monument from air
pollution, which turns the marble yellow and
brown.
“Officials have been asked to investigate
why there is sudden increase in number of
these insects and how to control their
population,” Uttar Pradesh state spokesman
Navneet Sehgal said.
The Taj Mahal was built by Mogul Emperor
Shah Jahan between 1632 and 1654 for his
favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, and houses
their graves and a mosque.
Filipino Jaclyn Jose is best actress at Cannes Film Festival
MANILA, The Philippines (AP) — Jaclyn
Jose has become the first Filipino to win the
best actress award at the prestigious Cannes
Film Festival.
Jose won for her performance as a mother
who falls prey to corrupt police after being
forced to sell drugs to survive in Ma’ Rosa.
The movie was directed by Brillante Men-
doza, who in 2009 became the first Filipino to
win best director at the festival for Kinatay.
In accepting the award, Jose said she was
surprised to win, and that she went to Cannes
primarily for a red carpet walk with her
daughter, actress Andi Eigenmann, who also
played a role in the movie.
Jose thanked the jury and shared the
recognition with all Filipinos, including the
cast of the film.
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78.325
4095.8
6.5492
2.107
7.7683
67.26
13594
30439
106.53
8115.0
4.145
107.7
104.62
3.1646
46.507
63.305
3.7505
1.3573
1183.6
147.68
32.599
35.365
22412