Russia fired and detains 36 Chinese fishermen poaching the East

As the tension of the Philippine Versus China heated up for Chinese poaching the waters of the Philippines; China also faces embarrassment for the same conflict with Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Vietnam, and their close ally Russia.

The Russian coast guard seized two Chinese vessels and detained 36 fishermen Tuesday (July 18, 2012) after they were allegedly found fishing in Russian-controlled waters in the Sea of Japan, according to state media.

The consulate said it was notified by the coastal service in Russia's far eastern Primorsky region the two ships were seized because they had entered Russia's exclusive economic zone.

Warning shots were fired at one vessel during a three-hour pursuit by Russian Coast Guard, which eventually rammed the vessel and soldiers fired directly on the ship when sailors resisted being boarded, according to Russia's state-run RIA Novosti news agency.

Russia's RIA-Novosti news agency, quoting a spokesman for the local border guards services, said a coast guard boat was forced to open fire to stop a poaching fishing vessel in the Sea of Japan. The spokesman said the vessel, flying the flag of China, refused to stop on demand from the coast guards and tried to escape, resulting in a three-hour chase.

The news agency said the vessel carried about 25 tons of squid and quoted the spokesman as saying 17 Chinese nationals failed to present documents allowing them to fish. The report said no one was injured.

One Chinese fisherman fell overboard during the seizure of one of the vessels and is missing, according to Russia's Coast Guard. The other 36 sailors are being detained in Russia.

The two vessels were detained for entering an exclusive economic zone in Russia's far eastern Primorsky region, the Chinese agency Xinhua said.

In a sign that Beijing is taking the incident seriously, conciliatory remarks by a Chinese consular official in the Russian border town of Khabarovsk were swiftly disavowed by Beijing, according to Chinese wire services. He had said that China "would not seek to politicize the incident."

The Chinese foreign ministry said the official who made the comment had been sent home in January and could not have made the remark, according to Interfax.

During Monday's incident one of the Chinese vessels tried to ram the Russian ship according to a Russian Coast Guard spokesman quoted on Russian news agency Interfax.

The Russian ship fired warning shots and then opened fire on the Chinese vessel, though no one was killed or injured from the shelling. The Russian spokesman said the Chinese sailor fell overboard during the collision between the two ships.

He also said that the Chinese sailors at first "resisted" Russian boarding attempts but surrendered after being fired upon.

The two ships were from the city of Weihai in China's eastern Shandong province, Chinese agency Xinhua said.

It was not the first time the Russian Coast Guard had fired on Chinese trawlers and detained them for poaching fish in Russian waters. Earlier incidents put a strain on relations between the two countries, who fought a brief border war in 1969.

Relations between Beijing and Moscow have steadily warmed since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 but the two countries maintain an uneasy partnership and Russia fears Chinese attempts to assert regional hegemony.  

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Philippines: who you calling "Mongoloid"?

Miriam Defensor-Santiago, a senator and veteran lawmaker in the Philippines..

Photographer: 

 AFP 

"Stop molesting me, you Mongoloids!"

That zinger has forced an apology from a firebrand Philippine senator better known for standing her ground than conceding mistakes. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, whose own bio calls her a "dragon lady," was slamming critics who've urge her to leave the senate, according to the Manila-based Inquirer.

The problem is not so much the molestation but the use of "Mongoloid." Her quip has attracted a new cast of detractors: the Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines. The Philippines' GMA News and other outlets have reported that the association is castigating Miriam for using "insensitive" language.

Just what is a Mongoloid anyway?

The word derives from "Mongols," the ethnic group that conquered vast stretches of Asia during the 13th century. "Mongoloid" was coined by 19th-century European anthropologists who, in a worldview that now seems crude and outdated, used the term to describe every native ethnic group from Mongolia down to Southeast Asia.

The term took a nasty etymological turn in the 1800s when it was used to describe people with Down's Syndrome. Why? Because British doctor John Langdon Down likened the skin folds common in the eyes of those with Down's Syndrome to the folds common in the eyes of North Asians. (Surprise: English guys born in 1828 were not terribly sensitive.)

Unfortunately, the word is also shorthand for "idiot." Despite her rhetorical gifts, Miriam probably did not have the full, foul baggage of "Mongoloid" in mind when she used the word to trash her political enemies.

That's why she apologized.

In apologizing, Miriam at least managed to show off her excellent taste in books. She told ABS-CBN News that she lifted the casual use of "Mongoloid" from the slovenly, self-aggrandizing lead character Ignatius J. Reilly in the cult classic "Confederacy of Dunces," which earned its author a posthumous Pulitzer Prize in 1981. Though brilliantly composed, Ignatius is probably not the best person to quote on the Philippine senate floor.

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The Attack of the Senator (Mongoloid)

July 12, 2012

Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago on Thursday branded her enemies "mongoloids" and challenged them to a fistfight.

"I tell all my enemies who just want to get of me, stop molesting me, you mongoloids!" Santiago said at a regular forum in the Senate.

She added the recent call for her to step down from the Senate in preparation for her taking up post at the International Criminal Court, was masterminded by the same person who she claimed started a black propaganda against her during the impeachment trial of former Chief Justice Renato Corona.

She also claimed that a person, who she did not identify, was also behind this. Santiago said that this person was the same group who filed a petition calling for the revocation of Santiago's appointment to the ICC, citing her alleged "mental instability."

"Hindi pa nga ako nakaka-upo, papaalisin na ako (I haven't taken the appointement and they want me out already)," Santiago said.

Earlier, Commission on Elections Chairperson Sixto Brillantes asked Santiago to resign so they will be able to determine how many vacancies there will be in the Senate in time for the 2013 elections next year.

Santiago said she is friends with Brillantes but said it is possible that the Comelec commissioner is being pressured by her political enemies.

Santiago added some people are calling for her resignation to give way to senatorial wannabes who have a very low chance of winning.

"Kagagawan ito nang mga taong gustong maging senador pero alanganin sila. Gusto nilang umalis ako ng maaga pa (This is a plot of people who aspire to be senator but know they couldn't. They want me to leave early)… I was one of the top winners of the last elections. They want to pick a winner out to give way to these losers," Santiago said.

Fistfight

"Kung gusto nila suntukan na lang, wala naman akong ginagawang masama a (If they want a fistfight, I'll give them what they want)," she added.

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile earlier hinted why Santiago should step down saying that there are issues and treaties that need the decision of 24 senators. He cited the last impeachment trial of Corona wherein there were only 23 senators and it was automatically a vote less in favor of the accused.

However, Santiago said that there will be no problems with only having 23 senators since the Senate needs 2/3 vote to make a decision.

She added there is no legal basis for the request for her to step down in office.

Santiago also reiterated that there is no need for her to resign since she is still waiting for the ICC to call her to duty and that she requested she may still be able to finish her term by 2016.

AFP/ Inquirer

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Investors Look to Thailand, Philippines as Indonesia Love Affair Fades

 

JAKARTA – As the Indonesia story seems to be souring, countries like Thailand and the Philippines are soaring.

Not long ago, Southeast Asia's largest economy – Indonesia – was considered to be the golden boy of the region, with investors pouring money into the country to capitalize on its recent consumer and commodity-led boom. More recently, investors have been taking some of their money out because they're worried that rising inflation, falling commodity prices and policies seen by foreigners as protectionist could knock the wind out of the archipelago's sails. Foreigners have pulled some $2 billion out of the government bond market and have helped push the Indonesian rupiah down.

As they reconsider Indonesia, though, some investors seem to be rediscovering other parts of the region — especially Thailand and the Philippines, which are generating more business buzz than any time in recent memory.

Over the last 12 months, Indonesia's benchmark index has edged up only 1% in contrast to the close to 20% jump in the Philippine stock market and a 13% rise in Thailand's bellwether index.

"To some extent, the euphoria baton has been passed to Philippines and Thailand and away from Indonesia," said Robert Prior-Wandesforde, the Singapore-based director for Asian economic research at Credit-Suisse. "Foreigners are becoming a little bit more nervous about the Indonesian story."

Investors are excited about the Philippines in part because they believe President Benigno Aquino III is making headway in his campaign to battle corruption, boost efficiency and increase tax revenues – some of the same initiatives that helped get Indonesia on track in recent years. Those initiatives have also helped lead the country to a series of credit-rating upgrades, boosting investor confidence.

In Thailand, meanwhile, investors have been buoyed by a strong rebound in the economy following last year's devastating floods, which temporarily shut down much of the country's industrial production. Thailand is on track to post 5.5% growth this year versus 0.1% last year, according to HSBC.

There also is a lot of interest in Malaysia these days, though mainly from government-backed funds, as investors eagerly follow a series of high-profile initial public offerings there. Those offerings include plantation firm Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd., which raised $3.3 billion on the local stock exchange in June in the world's second-largest IPO this year.

Indonesia's economy, to be sure, is still cruising along at a respectable clip. After expanding 6.5% last year, most economists think it can at least clock another 6% this year even with the persistent problems in Europe.

However, the country has seen a surge in imports – a common phenomenon in countries with fast-growing middle classes getting their first taste of more expensive imported goods. Some analysts fear a trade deficit powered by surging imports could be a sign that Indonesia's economy is overheating as an inability to serve local demand forces more imports.

The country could also be heading towards an inflation problem, economists warn. While inflation is less than 5% currently, analysts fear further growth could eventually trigger hard-to-control price increases as outdated and overstretched infrastructure adds to costs and an increasingly-emboldened labor force demands more raises.

Of course, it's not as if Indonesia's big competitors don't have some problems of their own. Among other issues, the Philippines is still struggling to improve its crumbling and overloaded infrastructure – a key demand of many investors before committing more money to the country. Thailand is grappling with seemingly insoluble — and potentially violent — divisions left over from the 2006 ouster of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is living in exile. And Malaysia is facing an election by early next year that could be the most competitive and divisive in its history.

All of that may serve as a reminder:  There just aren't a lot of super-safe places to park money these days.

Written By Eric Bellman - Wall Street Journal

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