Japan to pay travel costs for nuclear attack ‘storytellers’

The Japanese government will fund from April the travel costs of storytellers, both within Japan and abroad, who will share the testimonies given by ageing victims of America’s nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The cities, devastated by the 1945 bombings in the final phase of the second world war, began training such storytellers 2012 and have dispatched them to other areas in Japan with recipient entities covering the costs.
To alleviate the financial burden, the Health, Labour…

Three bombs rock capital of Myanmar’s Rakhine state, one police officer injured

Three bombs exploded in different locations around Rakhine’s state capital Sittwe early on Saturday morning, including at the home of a high-ranking official, Myanmar police told AFP, adding that no deaths were reported.
It is the latest violence to hit Rakhine, which is festering with ethnic tensions and has been roiled by communal violence in the north against the Rohingya and insurgencies in other parts of the state.
Bombings in the state capital are rare however.
“Three bombs…

‘They’re just waiting for someone to speak with them’: meet the 73-year-old who has saved hundreds from Japan’s suicide cliffs

Almost no one jumps on rainy days. They jump when the sun returns and the masses step outside, reminding them of their misery. They jump during financial crises and in the early spring, when Japanese schools open and the pressures of life converge.
Yukio Shige’s routine, though, is the same regardless of the weather.
Nearly every day, he clambers across the high basalt columns of the Tojinbo cliffs, the Sea of Japan thrashing 80 feet below. He peers into binoculars, seeking hunched…

Malaysian police arrest ethnic Chinese rapper Wee Meng Chee for insulting Islam with latest music video

Malaysian police said a popular ethnic Chinese rapper has been detained over complaints that his latest music video featuring dancers wearing dog masks and performing “obscene” moves insulted Islam and could hurt racial harmony.
It was the second time in two years that Wee Meng Chee, popularly known as Namewee, has been investigated over his music videos.
Police said in a statement that Wee was detained Thursday after they received four public complaints that his video marking the…

Pakistan PM says court ‘hinders democracy’ by banning deposed premier Nawaz Sharif from leading own party

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said a court order that barred former premier Nawaz Sharif from leading the ruling party and placed the timing of Senate elections into question hinders democracy and relieved past “dictatorial decisions”.
The Senate ballot will go ahead as scheduled on March 3 after the Supreme Court nullified decisions made by Sharif in his capacity as president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, including candidate tickets in his name, Abbasi…

Joko Widodo pays US$805 to redeem Metallica album given to him by Danish Prime Minister

By Jessica Lin
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (also known as Jokowi) has proven himself to be a true Metallica fan.
The 56-year-old leader reportedly paid 11 million rupiah (US$805) to redeem a limited-edition boxed set of Metallica’s Master of Puppets presented to him by Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen last year.
According to Jakarta Post, Jokowi had declared the gift to Corruption Eradication Commission which decided the double-vinyl album was a part of state…