Yes, we're civilised

From BBC: Pollution turns Chinese river red:

Water supplies to about 200,000 people in central China have been contaminated by pollution, which has turned branches of a major river system red.

At least three tributaries of the Han river - a branch of the Yangtze - have been affected.

State media reported high levels of chemicals in the water.

A chemical spill is thought be the cause, but the source has not yet been identified and an investigation has been launched.

Gao Qijin, a water company official in Xinguo, Jianli County, told Xinhua that the water in the Dongjing river had become red with large amounts of bubbles.

From BBC: Rice voices regret over rape case:

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has voiced deep regret over a US marine's alleged rape of a girl on the Japanese island of Okinawa.

Thousands of US troops are based in Okinawa, Japan's southern-most island.

Many Okinawans dislike the US presence, and in 1995 there were mass protests after American troops gang-raped a 12-year-old girl there.

"We just regret deeply that this happened," Ms Rice said of the recent case, in which 38-year-old Marine Staff Sgt Tyrone Hadnott is accused of raping a 14-year-old girl in his car.

From BBC: BMW to cut 5,600 jobs this year:

BMW is to cut 5,600 jobs by the end of this year, as it aims to reduce costs.

The carmaker said 2,500 full-time manufacturing positions will go, as will 2,500 part-time factory roles, and 600 sales and distribution jobs.

From BBC: Row over Nigeria nudity picture:

A female Nigerian politician badly beaten by a local MP is standing by the publication of a revealing photograph showing her injuries in a hospital bed.

Habiba Garba told the BBC she wanted people to see the reality of violence against women in northern Nigeria.

But Kano State authorities say they have received complaints the picture breaks Muslim rules about nudity.

From BBC: Melbourne 'refugee camp' opened:

A simulated refugee camp has been set up in Melbourne to show Australians the sort of hardship suffered by millions of people around the world.

"Refugee Realities" is the work of the charity Oxfam, set in a fictitious desert, with
fake landmines and security checkpoints.

Visitors are faced with the realities that confront millions of refugees.

"This is a desert and it's also a landmine field," said the project's director Stephanie Cousins.

"The idea in this space is to give people a sense of how unsettling it would feel fleeing in a dangerous setting where they can't be sure of their footing.

"It's based on the true stories of former refugees now living in Australia."

From The Star: Four thugs nabbed:

KANGAR: Four men believed to have assaulted two reporters when Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim was giving a ceramah at the Beseri Barisan Nasional operation room in Padang Besar yesterday have been detained.

Police said the incident occurred at midnight when Rashidi was told to leave the room by a group of men.

“When I refused, one of them grabbed my shirt and pulled me out of the room,” said Rashidi.

He claimed he was dragged to the roadside in front of a shoplot, outside the hall, surrounded by a group of people who subsequently assaulted him.

From Bloomberg: Japan's Production Falls 2%, Twice as Much as Predicted:

Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Japan's January factory production fell at twice the pace economists predicted as a deepening U.S. slump weakened demand for cars and electronics.

Companies cut output 2 percent from December, when it rose 1.4 percent, the Trade Ministry said today in Tokyo. The median estimate of 47 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 0.8 percent decline.

The yen traded at 106.45 per dollar at 10:51 a.m. in Tokyo from 106.39 before the reports were published. The yield on Japan's 10-year bond fell half a basis point to 1.42 percent.

Companies plan to cut production in February as well, today's report showed. Manufacturers see output sliding 2.9 percent from January and rebounding 2.8 percent in March.

``It's highly likely production will fall in the first quarter, which would signal Japan is a soft patch at the very least,'' said Hiroaki Muto, a senior economist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management Co. in Tokyo.

From The Star: Hunt on for the Tigerman:

ALOR STAR: He was very famous in 2003 – often seen driving around town with a tiger in the back seat of his four-wheel drive.

However, yesterday he became infamous –when Kedah police placed him on the list of most wanted persons in the state.

And his crime is not for driving around with a tiger in the back of his vehicle but for armed robbery involving RM3.19mil.

The “Tigerman” is being sought in connection with an armoured car robbery in Gurun on Feb 5.

In the incident, three masked men staged a daring robbery at the Gurun Rest and Recreation (R&R) stop on the North-South Expressway heading north towards Alor Star, escaping with more than RM3mil.

The robbers struck as the security guards were unloading the cash from an armoured vehicle to replenish an automated teller machine at the rest stop.

Kedah Police Chief Deputy Commisioner (DCP) Datuk Syed Ismail Syed Azizan said police had recovered part of the cash.

“We have so far recovered RM523,750 of the RM3.19mil and believe that “Tigerman” has stashed the remaining cash somewhere else.

“Besides the cash, we also seized a homemade pistol and seven .38 live bullets,” he said.

It is learnt that policemen who went to suspect's house were shocked when they found two tigers and several snakes in the compound.

DCP Syed Ismail said they have informed the state Wildlife and National Parks Department to capture the tigers and snakes.

From NST: Deaf mute students face rape charges:

SHAH ALAM: Three community college students -- all deaf and mute -- were yesterday charged in two Sessions Courts with raping their classmate in her rented apartment.

The accused -- Mohd Anwar Iswah, Mohd Saiful Izzuan Ahmad Saidi and Muhammad Aizad Ariffin -- all 21, were charged separately with raping the 20-year-old woman, also deaf and mute, at an apartment in Selayang Heights, Selayang Baru, Gombak.

They claimed trial to committing the offence between 3pm and 4pm on Feb 14.

Counsel Mohd Faiz Fadzil, appearing for the three, said in mitigation in both courts that the alleged offence was committed in the victim's rented apartment, and that it was unlikely that it was non-consensual.

"The accused and the victim continued going to class together and mingled as usual. It was only five days after the incident that she lodged the police report," he said.

From NST: 21 youths in gang fight freed:

BUKIT MERTAJAM: Police on Tuesday released 21 youths who had been detained since New Year's Day for being involved in a gang fight.

They were detained under the Emergency Ordinance and held at the Jalan Pattani and Butterworth lock-ups.Another 11 youths detained have been placed under restricted residence.

They were picked up from Kampung Manis, Prima Prai and Jalan Baru after a clash near the Prima Prai flats on New Year's eve.

From The Star: Hadi: Character assassination is fine:

BESUT: PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang has given party candidates the green light to engage in character assassination of their opponents during their ceramah.

Yes, we are truly civilised.