BASPORTS.COM | ASIAN & PACIFIC NEWS

1. In Old Tradition, China Races to Erase Bo Xilai’s Legacy

In seeking to airbrush Bo Xilai, the disgraced leader of Chongqing, out of public life, party officials in Beijing have dusted off a strategy perfected during the Cultural Revolution.

2. Last Reactor of 50 in Japan Is Shut Down

Public distrust created by last year’s nuclear disaster forced the nation to at least temporarily do without atomic power for the first time in 42 years.

3. Clinton Urges Bangladeshis to End Strife

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived in Dhaka to urge feuding political parties to work together in one of the world’s most impoverished nations.

4. India Ink: When Hillary Meets 'Didi'

What will the most powerful women in India and the United States discuss on Monday.

5. India Ink: Living in the New Metropolis

A photographer captures the megacities of our time in his worked titled "Metropolis."

6. India Ink: Newswallah: Bharat Edition

Round-up of news from across the country.

7. India Ink: Indian State Carrier Fined $80,000 by American Authorities

Air India has been fined by the U.S. Department of Transportation for failing to post adequate customer service information on its Web site.

8. Economic View: Economic View: Forget Europe. Worry About India.

India’s growth is slowing and uneven, it is a difficult place to do business and it is risking another generation of millions of poor people as it fails to enact market reforms.

9. China Opens Way for Dissident to Come to U.S.

Chinese officials will allow Chen Guangcheng to travel to the United States with his family, American officials said, but Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton cautioned that this case still unresolved.

10. For China, Chen Guangcheng’s Exile Is One Less Headache

Once exiled, nettlesome prisoners of conscience, like Chen Guangcheng, almost invariably lose their ability to grab headlines in the West and to command widespread sympathy both in China and abroad.

11. Japan’s Leaders Fret as Nuclear Shutdown Nears

Japan on Saturday will become a nuclear-free nation for the first time in more than four decades, but leaders are worried about power shortages, the economy and widespread opposition against turning the plants back on.

12. Indonesia Imposes New Taxes on Metal Exports

The duty is likely to affect less than a third of Indonesia's metal exports but is a precursor to a ban on raw material exports by 2014.

13. Third Brother Arrested in Inquiry Into Hong Kong Developer

Walter Kwok, the former chairman of Sun Hung Kai Properties, was arrested by the city’s anti-corruption agency. His younger brothers and a former city official were arrested in March.

14. Briefly: Education: Japanese Universities Asked to Increase Study Abroad

The Japanese Education Ministry plans to give funds to 40 Japanese universities to start study-abroad programs.

15. In-Laws Sentenced in Afghan Girl’s Torture Case

Three of Sahar Gul’s in-laws were each sentenced to 10 years in prison for inflicted painful injuries on the girl, including burning her scalp and pulling out some of her nails.

16. Suicide Attack in Khar, Pakistan, Kills at Least 26

An apparent Taliban suicide attack in a tribal district along the Afghan border killed 26 people and wounded 75, hospital and government officials said.

17. China Agrees to Measures to Ease Trade

Prime Minister Wen Jiabao of China said the areas of agreement included “some important breakthroughs.”

18. World Briefing | Asia: Nepal: Baburam Bhattarai Plans New Government

Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai will dissolve his cabinet and form a new coalition government that includes members of the main opposition parties, an aide said Thursday.

19. Released From Embassy, Dissident Now Says He Wants to Leave China

“I want to come to the U.S. to rest,” said the dissident lawyer Chen Guangcheng, speaking from Beijing to members of Congress by way of a cellphone held up to a microphone.

20. Chen Guangcheng’s Plea for Protection Deepens a Crisis

Facing criticism amid fraying relations with China, American officials privately acknowledged missteps in the handling of the Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng.

21. Chen Guangcheng Case Much Discussed in China, but Cautiously

Chinese citizens have had to tread carefully in discussing Chen Guangcheng, the dissident who sought refuge at the United States Embassy.

22. Methodists Vote Against Homosexuality Rule Change

The United Methodist Church at its convention voted against changing language in its book of laws and doctrines that calls homosexuality “incompatible with Christian teaching.”

23. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Takes Her Seat in Myanmar’s Parliament

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi recited the oath of office in Myanmar’s parliament on Wednseday, marking a watershed in national reconciliation after decades of military rule.

24. Bin Laden Raid Fallout: Aid Groups in Pakistan Are Suspect

Humanitarian work that helped millions of Pakistanis was compromised after it emerged that Dr. Shakil Afridi ran a vaccination scheme to help the C.I.A. locate Osama bin Laden.

25. Suicide Attackers Kill at Least 8 in Kabul

Less than two hours after President Obama left Afghanistan on Wednesday, a large bomb exploded at the gates of the Green Village, a compound used by foreigners.

26. Seoul Says North Korea Tries to Disrupt Air Navigation

North Korea has sent out jamming signals since Saturday in an apparent attempt to disrupt civilian and military air and ground traffic in South Korea, officials said.

27. World Briefing | Asia: South Korea Accused North Accused of Jamming Signals

The South Korean government accused North Korea on Wednesday, of sending out jamming signals, forcing 252 commercial flights to switch off their GPS devices.

28. U.N. Group Puts 3 North Korea Companies on Blacklist

The North Korean state companies were put on a blacklist of firms banned from international trade in response to the country’s launching of a rocket last month.

29. Chinese Dissident Leaves U.S. Embassy but Disputes Deal

While the blind lawyer Chen Guangcheng gave varying reasons for leaving American protection, he maintained that he did not feel that he and his family would be safe in China.

30. Contradictions After Deal for Chinese Lawyer

Chen Guangcheng seemed to be developing second thoughts after left the American Embassy in Beijing, where he had been holed up for the past six days.

31. A Car Chase, Secret Talks and Second Thoughts

Details of intrigue, heroics and ultimately what some people involved called a betrayal emerged from Chen Guangcheng’s saga.

32. Obama Approach to Diplomacy Faces Test in China

President Obama’s human rights policy faces its most public test as Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrives in Beijing for talks overshadowed by the fate of a Chinese lawyer.

33. U.S. Reaffirms Defense of Philippines in Standoff With China

The standoff under way in a disputed corner of the South China Sea began April 8.

34. Obama Signs Pact in Kabul, Turning Page in Afghan War

President Obama, speaking to an American television audience from an air base in Kabul, said he had traveled there to herald a new era in the relationship between the United States and Afghanistan.

35. World Briefing | Asia: Investigation Ordered in Killing of Chut Wutty in Cambodia

Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered an investigation into the death of a prominent environmentalist during a confrontation with military police.

36. Unease Mounting, China and U.S. to Open Military Talks

With China pressing territorial claims and the United States fortifying its alliances in the region, a day of military talks will precede wider-ranging discussions this week.

37. President Obama Visits Kabul to Sign Partnership with Afghanistan

Speaking near Kabul after a surprise night visit to Afghanistan on the anniversary of Osama bin Laden’s death, President Obama said that “we have a clear path to fulfill our mission in Afghanistan.”

38. News Analysis: President Obama’s Visit to Afghanistan Is a Chance to Ease Tensions

President Obama’s visit to Afghanistan for the first time in 17 months was a chance to make the most of a brief window when relations between the two governments are improving after months of crisis.

39. Scores Missing in Fatal Ferry Sinking in India

Rescuers in eastern India searched for survivors on Tuesday after a ferry with more than 300 passengers capsized during a severe storm.

40. Economic Scene: China’s Vanishing Trade Imbalance

As the Strategic and Economic Dialogue with China convenes this week, the United States will have a harder time proving that its deficit is China’s fault.

41. Malaysia Enacts Minimum Wage

The action is part of a push by the government to attain the status of high-income nation by 2020, but some see an election gimmick.

42. Hamtramck High Holds All-Girl Prom

A dream to take part in an American rite of passage came true for girls whose faith forbids them to date or dance with boys.

43. Aung San Suu Kyi’s Party Yields in Dispute Over Oath of Office

The party of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi backed down on Monday in a dispute over Myanmar’s oath of office, agreeing to enter Parliament for the first time.

44. World Briefing | Asia: Pakistan: ‘Blood Money’ Linked to Widow’s Killing, Police Say

The widow and mother-in-law of a Pakistani man killed by a C.I.A. contractor last year were killed Monday, apparently by the widow’s father, who may have feared that she would remarry and take the money she received as compensation with her, the police said.

45. India Ink: From Bleak Central India, a People's Movement

In the Pati region of Madhya Pradesh, villagers are fighting for their basic rights and entitlements.

46. WORLD: TimesCast | Chinese Dissident Seeks Exit

May 3, 2012 — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner continued economic talks with China, but they were overshadowed by the Chen Guangcheng case.

47. WORLD: Video of Obama's Speech in Afghanistan

President Obama, speaking to an American television audience from an air base in Kabul, said he had traveled there to herald a new era in the relationship between the United States and Afghanistan.

48. WORLD: TimesCast | Dissident Exits U.S. Embassy

May 2, 2012 — After intensive negotiations, American officials said the Chinese government promised that Chen Guangcheng and his family would remain safe and could relocate to Tianjin.

49. WORLD: TimesCast | Diplomatic Tensions In China

April 30, 2012 - The Obama administration tries to contain a growing diplomatic crisis with China.

50. At War Blog: Head of Drill Sergeant School Reinstated

A command sergeant major is vindicated after being suspended under a cloud

51. At War Blog: Remembering the Dead: New Names for a Wall That Keeps Growing

In Florida, a tribute in bronze pays homage to explosive ordnance disposal technicians, a special group within the military that has lost 289 members since 1942.

52. At War Blog: From the Desk of Osama bin Laden

Letters and documents recovered from Osama bin Laden's compound in Pakistan suggest his grip on Al Qaeda was not as tight as the world thought.

53. The Lede Blog: Qaeda Leadership Considered Rebranding

To make Al Qaeda's connection to Islam more explicit, and in response to statements made by Barack Obama, a list of possible new names was offered to the terrorist group's leaders.

54. The Lede Blog: A Chinese Dissident's Smuggled Video Messages

Chen Guangcheng, a self-taught lawyer and advocate for the handicapped, has managed to evade China's attempts to isolate him by posting video messages online.

55. The Lede Blog: Suicide Attack Follow Obama's Afghanistan Visit

At least six people were killed in an attack on a compound in Kabul used by United Nations workers and other foreigners just hours after President Obama's brief visit to the country to sign a security partnership pact.

56. Room for Debate: Are We Headed for a Cold War With China?

Do recent human rights cases and the standoff in the South China Sea point to a larger conflict on the horizon?

57. Letter from China: Questioning Workings of a Rumor Mill

A left-leaning political theorist has suggested that the public drama surrounding Bo Xilai may actually be a piece of political theater whose aim is to distract attention from what has actually happened.