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About The Asian reporter. (Portland, Or.) 1991-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 19, 2018)
Page 2 n THE ASIAN REPORTER ASIA / PACIFIC November 19, 2018 U.N. report finds 486 million in Asia still hungry BANGKOK (AP) — A United Nations report says some 486 million people are malnourished in Asia and the Pacific and progress in alleviating hunger is stalling. The report by the Food and Agricultural Organization said more than half of all children in the world who are malnourished live in the region. It said hunger-related stunting that causes permanent damage is being worsened by food insecurity and inadequate sanitation, even in big cities in relatively affluent countries. It said the main reason people still go hungry is poverty and unequal access to good food, clean water, and toilets. Many who go hungry work in agriculture or other informal jobs and cannot count on social services for help in times of crisis or afford to buy enough nutritious food for their children. Wenshan curbs dog walking, bans dogs in parks, stadiums BEIJING (AP) — A city in southwestern China has banned dog walking during the daytime and banished the pets entirely from parks, shopping centers, sports facilities, and other public spaces. The ordinance issued by the city of Wenshan in Yunnan province in late October has been called the most restrictive in a nation where dog ownership has long been subject to tight regulations. Under communist China’s founder Mao Zedong, pet ownership was considered a bourgeois affectation but it has revived over recent decades with Chinese being more affluent but having smaller families. Many cities, however, still maintain rules on what size dogs can live in what areas, with the capital of Beijing banning large dogs from the city center. Dog parks are rare and canines are almost always required to be on leash. However, Wenshan’s ban appears to go well beyond that by saying dogs can only be outside before 7:00am and after 10:00pm. It also says dog leashes cannot be longer than three feet and dogs can only be walked by adults. Despite the newfound popularity of keeping dogs, many Chinese remain wary over the presence of wild or unleashed dogs. Rabies spread by unvaccinated dogs also accounts for a substantial number of the roughly 2,000 deaths from the disease that the World Health Organization counts in China each year. Navy warplane down in second crash from U.S. carrier TOKYO (AP) — A warplane from the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan crashed into the sea northeast of the Philippines, but its two aviators were rescued safely. The U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet said the F/A-18 Hornet had a mechanical problem during routine operations in the Philippine Sea. A rescue aircraft plucked the aviators from the water immediately and brought them back to the ship, the Navy’s statement said. They are both in good condition and the aircraft carrier has since returned to normal operations, the Navy said. The cause of the crash is under investigation. The crash was the second involving aircraft belonging to the USS Ronald Reagan in less than a month. In mid-October, a MH-60 Seahawk crashed shortly after takeoff, causing non-fatal injuries to a dozen sailors. The aircraft carrier participated in a joint exercise known as “Keen Sword” with Japan and Canada from October 29 to November 8 in waters around Japan and near Guam in the Pacific. Hotels apologize after video shows how they clean BEIJING (AP) — At least four major international hotel chains apologized after hidden camera video of their room cleaning practices in China was posted online. Hilton and Marriott group properties were among the 14 luxury hotels included in the video. The 11-minute video shows cleaners wiping cups and sinks with dirty towels and sponges. Some use the same towel to wipe the toilet seat. The Shangri-La Hotel in Fuzhou said the actions in the video violate its hygiene standards, while the Park Hyatt in Beijing called it an isolated occurrence. The Waldorf Astoria in Shanghai and the Sheraton in Guiyang city also apologized and said they were reviewing their procedures. An activist blogger who uses the pseudonym “Huazong” posted the video on his verified account on Weibo, a Chinese version of Twitter, before Chinese media shared it. Beijing tourism authorities issued a statement requiring hotels to check and rectify their practices. It also said it asked the Beijing health commission to conduct sanitary inspections of four of the hotels in the video. Bangladesh delays national elections to December 30 DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Authorities in Bangladesh have agreed to delay snap national elections by a week because of opposition demands for more time to prepare. Chief election commissioner K.M. Nurul Huda said officials decided to shift the date to December 30 in response to proposals by the opposition parties. The new deadline for filing nominations is November 28. The ruling Awami League party, its allies, and some opposition parties welcomed the decision, but a major opposition alliance was unhappy because it wanted the elections to be deferred by a month. The alliance, called the National Oikya Front, consists of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and other parties. Woman fights with driver, causes bus to fall in China river BEIJING (AP) — Police say a brawl between a passenger and a bus driver was the cause of a bus plunging off a bridge in southwestern China. An eight-second surveillance video posted by Chongqing police on its social-media account showed the two got into a fight before the bus veered into the wrong lane and fell off the bridge. A police statement said a female passenger quarrelled with the driver after she missed her stop. The official Xinhua News Agency said none of the 15 aboard survived. The bus collided with an oncoming car before smashing through the guardrail and into the Yangtze River. RISING STAR. Masao Tsutsumi, general manager in charge of Osaka-related marketing at Nissan Motor Co., stands near a Leaf electric vehicle in front of a giant poster of Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka at the company’s showroom in Yokohama, south of Tokyo. Osaka is headed for big money with both Japanese and global appeal. Nissan signed Osaka as its three-year “brand ambassador” in September. Although the deal was in the works for a while, the timing couldn’t have been better, coming right after the U.S. Open, when she beat Serena Williams of the United States. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama) On page one, Osaka is seen in early September returning a shot during a match at the U.S. Open tennis tour- nament in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File) Naomi Osaka headed for big money with Japan, global appeal By Yuri Kageyama The Associated Press OKYO — Naomi Osaka used a power- ful forehand and a matching serve to win the U.S. Open against Serena Williams. Off the court — on the marketing front — experts say she could have the same potential as Williams, and maybe more. “It’s very, very rare to find a Japan-born female athlete who appeals to an international audience,” said Bob Dorfman, a sports marketing expert and creative director at Baker Street Advertising in San Francisco, California. Serena Williams topped the Forbes list of the highest-earning female athletes this year at $18 million, almost all endorsements. Experts say Osaka could be the right woman in the right sport at the right time with the draw to overtake her. “What’s more, tennis, especially women’s tennis, is a sport that lends itself to a broad variety of sponsors: sporting goods, health and beauty, fashion, lifestyle, travel, personal care, you name it,” Dorfman said. “And the sport’s international following brings with it a large, loyal, and affluent fan base. All the more reason why so many companies are lining up to sign her up.” The big question is: Can she keep this up? Much has happened very quickly for her, notes former tennis star Chris Evert. “You know, it’s going to be life-changing for her and very, very important,” Evert said. “From what I see, she is very humble and from what I see, her parents are very humble people. Hopefully they won’t go Hollywood on us. We don’t want that to happen.” T Osaka’s multicultural background — Japan-born but raised in the U.S. by a Haitian-American father and a Japanese mother — adds to her wide appeal, endearing her to fans in Japan and elsewhere. Her disarming charm, off and on the court, including how she handled the turmoil surrounding her win over Williams, is also winning people over. “She appeals to the young and old, men and women, everyone,” said Shigeru Tanaka, advertising manager at Citizen, her sponsor since August. Tokyo-based Citizen Watch Co.’s 80,000 yen ($700) Naomi Osaka watch is selling out at stores in Japan, thanks to the exposure it got on her wrist at the U.S. Open. Citizen was quick to take advantage of her Grand Slam win, taking out a one-third page ad in the Yomiuri newspaper’s extra edition report of her win. Companies won’t say how much her con- tracts are worth, but they tend to be written so that if she keeps winning, her earnings will keep going up. If one company won’t pay, another will just snatch her up, marketing experts say. Although Japanese baseball players like Ichiro and Shohei Ohtani are superstars, that sport doesn’t have the global appeal of tennis. There are Olympians, but their appeal tends to come and go every four years. Japan is “just starving for a star,” Evert said. Osaka has been wearing various Citizen watches in matches and in photo ops and has told reporters the first watch she got from her mom was a Citizen. She has also said her Continued on page 7 PROTECT YOUR FAMILY AND SAVE MONEY Asian Currency Exchange Rates Units per U.S. dollar as of 11/16 Tu Phan Branch Manager, NMLS #7916 Call about refinances & purchases Offering FHA/VA/Conventional Mortgages Kelaiah Erickson (Key-lay or Mrs. Erickson) (503) 268-7865 (mobile) (971) 246-4251 (office) Kelaiah@RiverviewCemetery.org River View Cemetery River View Cemetery Funeral Home 8421 S.W. 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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 · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 83.713 4040.0 6.9363 2.1068 7.8299 71.981 14619 42025 112.55 8549.8 4.1913 115.74 133.88 3.3619 52.559 66.063 3.7527 1.3735 1126.4 176.75 30.866 32.825 23489