Page 2 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
ASIA / PACIFIC
November 7, 2016
Wanda lures Hollywood to China with rebate offer
BEIJING (AP) — Chinese entertainment giant Wanda is offering producers a
rebate of 40 percent to promote its upcoming $8 billion movie studio in eastern
China in an ambitious bid to establish the complex as a major production base in
Asia. The 408-acre Qingdao Movie Metropolis is due to open in the port city in
August 2018. Not just a movie studio, it is slated to include four indoor theme
parks and even international schools to encourage foreign filmmakers to live
there with their families. In an announcement in Los Angeles, Wanda said the
next installments of Pacific Rim and Godzilla, made by Wanda-owned
Legendary Entertainment, would be filmed in Qingdao, as well as unspecified
films by Lionsgate. Wanda said it and the Qingdao city government established
a film and TV industry development fund to enable Chinese and international
producers to receive a rebate of 40 percent of their Qingdao production expenses.
The announcement is the latest by Wanda to promote its growing entertainment
brand on the global stage, even as U.S. lawmakers raise concerns about the
company’s investment in Hollywood.
Nepal drains dangerous glacial lake to safe level
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Nepalese officials have reported that army
soldiers and local villagers dug through rocks and boulders to drain a glacial
lake just south of Mount Everest, bringing the water to a safe level and possibly
preventing an outburst that could have flooded several villages. Lt. Col. Bharat
Lal Shrestha, who led the team of soldiers, said they were able to lower Imja
Lake’s level of water by 11 feet, making it safe and for now averting the risk of
outburst. The 40 soldiers working with 100 villagers dug through boulders and
rocks to build an outlet to drain out as much as 1 million cubic liters of water. The
lake, at 16,400 feet altitude, is considered one of the most likely glacial lakes to
have an outburst.
Abu Sayyaf received $7.3 million from kidnappings
MANILA, The Philippines (AP) — A Philippine government report says Abu
Sayyaf militants pocketed at least 353 million pesos ($7.3 million) from ransom
kidnappings in the first six months of the year and have turned to abducting
foreign sailors as military offensives restrict their mobility. The confidential
military and police threat assessment report seen by The Associated Press said
the offensives have taken their toll on the Abu Sayyaf, slightly reducing the
number of the militants although they remain capable of launching attacks.
President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered troops to destroy the notorious Muslim
extremist group, which has been blacklisted by the U.S. and the Philippines
following more than two decades of bomb attacks, raids on civilians, mass
kidnappings, and beheadings.
Woman mauled by tiger at park demands compensation
BEIJING (AP) — A woman who was mauled by a tiger after getting out of her
car at a Beijing safari park, reportedly because she felt carsick, is demanding
compensation of more than 2 million yuan ($300,000) from the facility. Her
mother was killed in the incident after also leaving the vehicle to come to her
assistance. The attack happened in July in the enclosure of the animals at
Beijing Badaling Wildlife World near the Great Wall of China. The park
confirmed media reports that the survivor, identified only by her surname,
Zhao, is requesting 1.5 million yuan for her “serious injuries,” including nerve
damage, scarring of her face, and psychological trauma, along with 1.24 million
yuan as compensation for the death of her mother. Spokesman Cao Zhijie said
that even though a district government investigation found the park was not to
blame, they were willing to pay some compensation “out of our humanity.” No
figure has been decided. Media reports cited Zhao as saying that she got out of
the car because she felt carsick and thought they had already driven out of the
enclosure.
In Dubai, a showdown on shawarma is reportedly coming
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A showdown over shawarma has come
to Dubai. A state-owned newspaper has reported that nearly half of all
shawarma stands in Dubai either will be shut down or have stopped selling the
popular Mideast street food. The National newspaper of Abu Dhabi quoted
Sultan al-Tahir, head of food inspection in Dubai, as saying the city-state’s more
than 570 shawarma stands had six months to update their operations to comply
with new hygiene regulations. Al-Tahir says 113 stopped making the meat
wraps, while another 141 took no action and will be shut down. The others
followed the rules or are in the process of complying. Shawarma is typically
cooked outdoors, with spiced chicken, lamb, and beef shaved off a vertical spit.
Al-Tahir said Dubai’s high heat can cause bacteria to spread.
Sony Music apologizes for Japanese band’s Nazi-like outfits
TOKYO (AP) — Sony Music Japan apologized after a popular Japanese
all-girls band came under fire for performing in outfits resembling Nazi-era
German military uniforms. The members of Keyakizaka46 appeared at an
October 22 concert in black knee-length dresses that looked like military
overcoats, and black capes and officer caps with a Nazi-like eagle emblem. Sony
Music Entertainment (Japan) is the group’s label. “We express our heartfelt
apology for causing offense ... because of our lack of understanding,” Sony Music
Japan said in a statement posted on its website. “We take the incident seriously
and will make efforts to prevent a recurrence of a similar incident in the future.”
Sony Music spokesman Yasuyuki Oshio said there had been no intention to link
the performance to Nazism.
OLDEST-EVER PANDA. Giant panda Jia Jia eats bamboo next to her birthday cake made with ice and vegetables
at Ocean Park in Hong Kong while celebrating her 37th birthday, in this July 28, 2015 file photo. A Hong Kong theme park
reported that the world’s oldest panda in captivity was euthanized because her health was deteriorating. Ocean Park said
a veterinarian euthanized 38-year-old Jia Jia on Sunday, October 16, 2016 to prevent further suffering and for ethical rea-
sons. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)
Jia Jia, world’s oldest-ever
captive panda, dies at age 38
HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong theme
park says the world’s oldest-ever panda in
captivity has been euthanized because her
health was deteriorating.
Ocean Park said a veterinarian euthanized
38-year-old Jia Jia to prevent further suffering
and for ethical reasons.
Guinness World Records recognized Jia Jia
as the oldest giant panda to live in captivity.
The average lifespan for a panda in the wild is
18 to 20 years, while in captivity it’s 30 years,
according to Guinness.
Born in the wild, Jia Jia was taken to live at
a breeding center in China’s Sichuan province
in 1980, when she was around two. She and
another panda were given to Hong Kong as a
gift from Beijing in 1999, two years after China
took control of the city from Britain.
Self-driving car hits truck in Singapore; no injuries
By Annabelle Liang
The Associated Press
S
INGAPORE — A self-driving car with
two engineers on board was switching
lanes in Singapore when it hit a truck,
according to authorities. No one was hurt.
The vehicle was operated by autonomous
vehicle software startup nuTonomy, which
made headlines when it offered free rides in its
self-driving taxis in a Singapore district.
The Land Transport Authority said the car
was “involved in a minor incident” on a public
road designated for testing.
“The test vehicle was changing lanes when it
collided with a lorry at a low speed. There were
no injuries,” it said in a Facebook post. The
transport regulator said it is working with
police to investigate.
NuTonomy,
a
spinoff
from
the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology which
has offices in Massachusetts and Singapore,
said in a statement that it is cooperating with
the authorities and conducting an investiga-
tion of its own.
The company’s six cars — modified Renault
Zoe and Mitsubishi i-MiEV electrics — have a
safety driver in front who is prepared to take
the wheel if necessary and a researcher in back
who watches the car’s computers.
Its self-driving vehicles were tested in a
2.5-square-mile business and residential
district of Singapore called “one north.” The
official test area has since been doubled by the
government, nuTonomy CEO Karl Iagnemma
said.
In September, nuTonomy began allowing
the Singapore public to take trips in its
self-driving vehicles for free. The company’s
previously invitation-only trial was launched
in August, beating ride-hailing service Uber,
which began offering autonomous car rides in
Pittsburgh weeks later.
NuTonomy was formed in 2013 by
Iagnemma and Emilio Frazzoli, MIT
researchers who studied robotics and autono-
mous vehicles for the Defense Department.
The company expects its fleet of self-driving
cars to grow to a dozen by the end of the year. It
plans to make its Singapore taxi fleet fully
self-driving by 2018.
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78.457
4036.0
6.765
2.0455
7.7552
66.751
13102
31805
102.9
8155.0
4.1927
106.79
104.75
3.169
48.425
63.632
3.7504
1.3844
1141.5
148.32
31.503
34.947
22505