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About The Asian reporter. (Portland, Or.) 1991-current | View Entire Issue (June 19, 2017)
Page 2 n THE ASIAN REPORTER ASIA / PACIFIC June 19, 2017 Pole banned from Nepal mountains after illegal entry KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A Pole who illegally traversed Mount Everest has been banned from climbing in Nepal for 10 years and faces deportation, according to an official. Janusz Adam Adamski, 49, had scaled Everest from the Chinese side in May and descended on Nepal’s side, said Durga Dutta Dhakal, an official with Nepal’s Mountaineering Department. Adamski had no visa to enter Nepal or permit to scale Everest, he said. Dhakal said the Mountaineering Department imposed the ban and handed him over to the Immigration Department, which is likely to deport him. Adamski is the second climber who was banned this year, after South African Ryan Sean Davy was caught attempting to scale Everest without a permit. Hundreds of climbers and their guides scaled Everest during the spring mountaineering season from both the Nepal and Chinese sides of the peak. Climbers must pay the $11,000 fee to obtain a permit from Nepalese authorities. NET GAIN. An Indian fisherman pulls back his fishing net with his early morning catch at a beach in Goa, India, in this October 14, 2016 file photo. Two years after switching nets, Indian fishermen say local fish stocks are recovering since they adopted a square-shaped mesh that allows small fish to escape to maintain a breeding population. The project was one of many showcased at a major conference on oceans in early June at U.N. headquarters, where the United Nations pleaded with countries to help halt a global assault on marine life and ecosystems threatening jobs, economies, and even human lives. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath, File) Indian fishermen try new nets for healthier oceans Cambodia charges Australian with spying for using drone PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — An Australian filmmaker in Cambodia has been charged with espionage after being arrested for flying a camera drone over an opposition party campaign rally. James Ricketson was charged with collecting information prejudicial to national defense, which is punishable by five to 10 years in prison, Phnom Penh Municipal Court spokesman Ly Sophana said. Ricketson, 68, was arrested on June 3 after filming the last day of campaigning for local elections a day earlier. The ruling party of long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen won a majority of the commune council seats. It had been unclear whether Ricketson was arrested for flying a drone without official permission, breaking immigration laws, or violating the national security statute. The article under which he was charged defines his offense as “receiving or collecting information, processes, objects, documents, computerized data, or files, with a view to supplying them to a foreign state or its agents which are liable to prejudice the national defense.” The government has been critical of media it considers sympathetic to the opposition, and Ricketson was known for filming the activities of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party. Elephant in Sri Lankan Buddhist procession kills monk COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — An elephant that was part of a Sri Lankan Buddhist procession has attacked and killed a monk, according to police. Police spokesman Priyantha Jayakody said three elephants were walking in the procession when one suddenly went on a rampage and attacked the monk in the coastal town of Kochchikade, about 26 miles north of Colombo. The 25-year-old monk died at a hospital. Colorfully decorated elephants are an important part of Buddhist religious processions and festivals. Temples and wealthy families often own the animals and rent them out for such events. However, animal- rights activists say the elephants are often kept in inhumane conditions and receive insufficient food. Authorities say there are about 127 tamed elephants that are used for processions and other religious ceremonies by Sinhalese Buddhists, who make up 70 percent of the island’s 20 million people. Having an elephant in the backyard has long been a sign of wealth, privilege, and power. For hundreds of years, elephants have been used for such religious activities as well as for battles by ancient kings. Sri Lanka has about 6,000 elephants, but those in the wild are threatened by habitat loss and degradation. An estimated 200 elephants are killed every year, mainly by farmers trying to protect their crops. In the 19th century, there were believed to be up to 14,000 elephants. Police say Filipino casino attacker was indebted gambler MANILA, The Philippines (AP) — The lone suspect behind a deadly attack on a casino and shopping complex in Manila was a heavily indebted Filipino gambling addict, according to police, bolstering their claim that the assault was not related to terrorism. The man’s immediate family confirmed his identity as Jessie Carlos — a married father of three and former finance department employee who owed more than $80,000. The revelations confirm that “this is not an act of terrorism,” Manila police chief Oscar Albayalde told a news conference. “This incident is confined to the act of one man alone as we have always said.” The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack on Resorts World Manila, where 37 patrons and employees died, mostly from smoke inhalation as they tried to hide in one of the casino’s VIP rooms on the second floor. Authorities have rejected the claim of the militants, saying there is no evidence to back it and pointing out the assailant shot no civilians during the two-hour ordeal despite being heavily armed. They also used video footage of the attack to bolster the argument that it was a botched robbery attempt by one man with no known link to terrorism. By Vineeta Deepak The Associated Press S INDHUDURG, India — The fishermen were dubious when ocean experts sug- gested they could save their dwindling marine stocks just by switching to new nets. It took years for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to convince the fishing communities along India’s tropical western coast that the diamond-mesh nets they were using were trapping baby fish, while a square-shaped mesh could allow small fish to escape to maintain a breeding population. But two years after the new nets were fully adopted, fishermen insist they’re making a difference. “This square net is a blessing for us,” said John Gabriel Naronha, who runs six trawlers in the area. “When the small fish grows up, the fishermen can really benefit ... we can get good prices for big fish. And the small fish gets a chance to grow.” The project, launched in 2011, was one of many showcased at a major conference on oceans where the United Nations pleaded with countries to help halt a global assault on marine life and ecosystems threatening jobs, economies, and even human lives. “The oceans of the planet are in dire need of urgent action,” said Marina Walter, deputy director for UNDP in India. That action is even more urgent now that climate change is causing ocean temperatures to rise while waters also become more acidic, causing widespread destruction of coral reefs that sustain a quarter of all marine species. But conservation efforts work best when they’re linked with local livelihoods, Walter said. “You cannot work on biodiversity or life underwater in isolation, without looking at the livelihoods of people, the bread and butter.” No one in 80 or so fishing villages of Sindhudurg district expected to have problems fishing, after centuries of their families relying on the sea. Located in one of India’s 11 eco- logically critical coastline habitats, the area is teeming with life from more than 350 marine species including Indian Ocean dolphins and Olive Ridley turtles. Colorful corals span the shallows, while tangles of mangrove forests protect the land from water erosion. But that bounty has suffered against the twin assaults of overfishing and pollution, which caused a steady decline in local fish stocks and forced fishermen to push further out to sea. Since switching to the new nets, fishermen say fish stocks are recovering, though there is no data collected yet to prove it. Surveys of fish populations may be conducted at the end of this year, when the UNDP finishes its six-year project in the area. The struggles of India’s fishermen are hard- ly unique. About one out of every 10 people in the world relies directly on the ocean to sur- vive. Most of those are among the world’s poor- est and most vulnerable, meaning they have few substitutes when marine life declines. And it is declining rapidly, thanks to in- creased fishing for an expanding global popu- lation and unchecked runoff of industrial chemicals, sewage, and other pollutants. Already, about 90 percent of wild fisheries around the world are over-exploited or col- Continued on page 3 GRASS-FED BEEF FOR SALE Singapore police arrest first female Islamic State suspect SINGAPORE (AP) — Police in Singapore have detained a preschool assistant who shared pro-Islamic State materials online and intended to travel to Syria, their first arrest of a female alleged sympathizer of the radical group. The Home Affairs Ministry said in a statement that 22-year-old Syaikhah Izzah Zahrah Al Ansari was arrested in early June under the country’s Internal Security Act, which allows for indefinite detention without trial. The statement said she had been radicalized in 2013 by online propaganda related to the Islamic State and in turn posted materials on social media supporting the group. It said she had expressed a willingness to go to Syria, take military training, and marry an Islamic State member. Singaporean authorities have detained 14 male suspected Islamic State sympathizers since 2015. Call (503) 980-5900 for details GRASS-FED & GRASS-FINISHED BEEF Raised in Newberg, Oregon Beef available as: q Quarter cow q Half cow q Whole cow Beef is processed by a Portland butcher. Pickup available in June at N.E. Sandy Blvd. location. Asian Currency Exchange Rates Units per U.S. dollar as of 6/16 Bangladesh Taka· · Cambodian Riel · · China Renminbi · · Fijian Dollar · · · · Hong Kong Dollar · Indian Rupee · · · · Indonesian Rupiah · Iranian Rial · · · · Japanese Yen · · · Laos New Kip · · · Malaysian Ringgit · Nepal Rupee · · · · Pakistani Rupee · · Papua N.G. Kina · · Philippine Peso· · · Russian Ruble · · · Saudi Riyal· · · · · Singapore Dollar · · South Korean Won · Sri Lankan Rupee · Taiwan Dollar · · · Thai Baht · · · · · Vietnam Dong · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 80.866 4053.8 6.8105 2.0659 7.8008 64.427 13299 32470 110.88 8245.8 4.2762 103.08 104.85 3.2764 49.933 57.63 3.7499 1.3829 1134.2 152.82 30.349 33.936 22814