Taiwan's new president

Mar. 23 - After a convincing election victory, president-elect Ma seen boosting relations with mainland China

Ma is more in favour of holding peace talks considered by the Chinese government. But the president-elect has said he would only consider signing a peace deal with China, if it stopped aiming missiles at Taiwan.

Taipei Times Editorial: Ma faces many challenges

President-elect Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) faces a tough challenge: How to boost the economy by delivering on his campaign promises.

Ma says he will focus on economic ties

President-elect Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) pledged yesterday to seek closer economic ties with China and resuscitate the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) as a communication channel on cross-strait issues.

Taiwan Elects a Supporter of Closer Mainland Ties

Ma Ying-jeou will be Taiwan’s first president who had campaigned for closer economic relations with Beijing.

On the menu: Rat-a-chewy

Feb. 5 - A 58-year-old Taiwan eatery offers rat meat as winter tonics to welcome the Year of Rat.

Rat meat, also eaten in China, became popular in rural Taiwan in the 1940s and 1950s among people who could not afford chicken or pork. Ho-la, a rural eatery at Taiwan's Chiayi county, serves 10 rat-themed dishes, including rat soup, black pepper-dipped and deep-fried rat. The diner goes through around 18 kg (40 lb) of rat meat per day.

Editor's Note: Viewer discretion advised.

Tibet issue big among Taiwan voters

Mar. 21 - Candidates make last minute appeal for votes ahead of election day

Reviving the economy remains a top priority for voters along with Taiwan's relationship with mainland China.

Free Tibet movement spreads

Mar. 21 - Students march in India as the Free Tibet movement spreads - to the embarrassment of China.

Last week a group of about 100 marchers were detained by police on orders of the Indian government, but a second group, which picked up the route from where the first group was stopped, has been allowed to go ahead. The marchers are planning to get to Tibet via New Delhi, where they hope to coincide with the arrival of the Olympic torch as it passes through the Indian capital.

Tibet campaign gains ground

Mar. 21 - U.S. politician lends political support to Tibetan campaign against administration from Beijing.

Hours after U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Pelosi met the Dalai Lama, about a dozen Tibetan protesters stormed the Chinese embassy in New Delhi, jumping over a spiked fence and then running around the high-security compound. They waved Tibetan flags and held up posters.

NY Times Video: House Speaker Meets With Dalai Lama

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, met with the Dalai Lama in India Friday and called on the world community on Friday to denounce China in the wake of its crackdown in Tibet, calling the crisis "a challenge to the conscience of the world." (March 21)

Tourist films Tibet riots

Mar. 20 - An Australian tourist has released a dramatic video he shot after getting caught up in the recent violence in Tibet.

Mike Smith, a twenty-four year old creative director from Sydney, joined a guided tour of Tibet in mid-March hoping to witness the culture and natural beauty of the region. Instead he witnessed the largest outbreak of protests against Chinese rule in decades.

US deploys two aircraft carriers close to Taiwan

Two US aircraft carriers, the USS Kitty Hawk and the USS Nimitz, have been sent to the Taiwan region for training exercises during tomorrow's election, a US defense official said on Wednesday.

China Tensions Could Sway Vote in Taiwan

Suppression of protests in Tibet has hurt the Nationalist Party, which aims for closer relations with mainland China.

China Admits to Wounding 4 Tibetan Demonstrators

It was the first admission from China that it had used deadly force against protesters, with official media indicating the police opened fire only in self-defense.

Some Tibetan Exiles Reject ‘Middle Way’

The Dalai Lama’s refusal to call for independence from China more forcefully has sharpened disagreement with younger exiles.

Economic woes in Taiwan

Mar. 20 - Presidential election takes place on Saturday. Residents want to see more investment and trade with rival mainland China to boost sagging economy.

Political ties with mainland China might be a hot button issue, but residents are more focused on finding economic opportunity.

Taipei Times Editorial: It's use it or lose it on Saturday

How can Taiwan ask its allies to speak for it if the nation doesn't stand up for itself on Saturday?

Christensen slams DPP referendum plan

A top US State Department official, taking a last-minute swipe at Saturday's planned referendum on UN entry under the name "Taiwan," on Tuesday called the plebiscite alternately "pointless and destabilizing," "unnecessary and unhelpful" and "not a positive policy initiative."

Olympic organizers release list of banned items

Editor's Note: I'm surprised Tibetans aren't on the list.

Pope Urges Restraint by Both Sides in Tibetan Violence

Pope Benedict XVI appealed for an end to the violence in the Tibetan regions of China, saying that the government and protesters must choose a “road of dialogue and tolerance.”

In Tibetan Areas, Parallel Worlds Now Collide

Tibetans and Han Chinese live in close proximity, but their relations are marked by distrust and prejudice.

Editor's Note: Again, the last quote is the best.

NY Times Video: Olympic Torch Will Go Through Tibet

China says that the Olympic torch will pass through Tibet despite protests.

China Won’t Alter Olympic Torch Path

Despite violent protests in Tibet, China remains steadfast in its plan to take the Olympic torch to Tibet and Mount Everest.

Editor's Note: The quote at the end of this article is hysterical.

Heparin Discovery May Point to Chinese Counterfeiting

A blood thinner linked to deaths may have been tainted with a chemically altered form of chondroitin sulfate, a dietary supplement made from animal cartilage.

100 rioters surrender in Lhasa unrest

More than 100 rioters have surrendered to police in Tibet as of late yesterday for their involvement in three days of unrest that has killed 13 civilians in Lhasa, Chinese state media reported today.

Ma won't rule out Olympic boycott over Tibet

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday reiterated his call for China to end its suppression of Tibet, and said that, if elected, he would not rule out boycotting the Beijing Olympics if the situation in Tibet deteriorated.

People's Daily Commentary: Violence under the cloak of religion

If the Dalai Lama really wanted to be worthy of his self-proclaimed title of spiritual leader, he should at least have stopped abusing the power of religion.

Editor's Note: This the government's view of Tibetan uprising.

China Steps Up Its Accusations Against the Dalai Lama

China accused the Dalai Lama of masterminding the violent Tibetan protests spreading across China, but the Tibetan religious leader denied those claims.

In India, Balancing Refugee Care and Relations With China

India has long tried to strike a delicate balance between maintaining good relations with China and allowing the Dalai Lama and his followers, who are based in the country, to keep their cause alive.

China Tries Rights Advocate; Verdict Expected in Week

One of the most prominent human rights advocates in China stood trial on Tuesday on subversion charges.

Tibetans in India Enraged by Details of Crackdown

Dharamsala, the seat of the Tibetan government in exile as well as a popular destination for spiritual tourism, has become the high-energy hub of the Tibetan uprising.

Simmering Resentments Led to Tibetan Backlash

The only surprising thing about unrest in Tibet may be that Beijing managed to keep things stable for so long.

China Tries to Thwart News Reports From Tibet

For the past few days, several major international news outlets have been blocked or have faced service disruptions in some parts of China.

NY Times Editorial: China Terrorizes Tibet

Whatever gain China may have gotten from being elevated above the likes of North Korea, Myanmar, Iran and Sudan was lost by the crackdown on Tibet.

Thirteen civilians killed in Tibet unrest

The government chairman of Tibet said the victims were all "innocent civilians" and were either burned or stabbed to death.

Editor: Note the dramatically different tone and perspective in this article from those of the NY Times below.

Curbs on Protest in Tibet Lashed by Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama accused China of waging “cultural genocide” against his followers in Tibet.

China Blocks YouTube After Videos of Tibet Protests Are Posted

Internet users in China were blocked from seeing YouTube.com on Sunday after dozens of videos about protests in Tibet appeared on the Web site.

Taiwan takes to streets in huge rallies

Senior members of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) led their supporters in giant rallies across the country yesterday, canvassing votes on Super Sunday for their respective presidential tickets as the election race entered its final week.

Dalai Lama condemns China as protests spread

Tibetan spiritual leader in exile the Dalai Lama condemned a "rule of terror" in his native Tibet yesterday as Chinese forces blanketed the region's capital in security and pro-independence protests spread elsewhere in China.

Tibet capital returns to normal after violence

Government agencies and schools will resume normal operations in Lhasa today as the city gradually returns to calm after Friday's unrest.

11th Panchen Lama condemns Lhasa riot

The 11th Panchen Lama Gyaincain Norbu condemned on Sunday the lawless riot in Lhasa, saying the sabotage acts run counter to the Buddhism tenets.

NY Times Slideshow: Protests in Tibet and Nepal

Violent protests erupted in a market area of Lhasa, the Tibetan capital, as Buddhist monks and other ethnic Tibetans clashed with Chinese security forces.

Tibetans Clash With Chinese Police in Second City

The new clashes came as authorities said they had regained control of Tibet’s capital, Lhasa, where at least 10 people were killed.

Violence in Tibet as Monks Clash With the Police

The most serious demonstrations China has faced in Tibet since the late 1980s brought reports of at least 10 deaths.

Nepal Puts Everest Off Limits During China’s Olympic Torch Relay in May

Both routes to the world’s highest peak are scheduled to be off limits this spring, as Beijing strives to inaugurate the summer Olympic Games free of pro-Tibetan protests.

Tainted Blood Drug to Face Import Tests

The FDA said last week it found evidence of a contaminant in an ingredient of a blood-thinning drug, heparin, at a Chinese plant that supplied it to much of the U.S. market.

Australia Mine Operator Gets Bid From China

Sinosteel, the Chinese metals giant, made a hostile bid Friday for an Australian iron ore producer.

Tibetan Marchers Arrested in India

A group of Tibetan exiles in northern India who began a six-month march this week to protest China’s control of their homeland were arrested on Thursday.

Monk Protests in Tibet Draw Chinese Security

Chinese security forces were reportedly surrounding three monasteries after what are believed to be the largest protests in two decades.

In China, a Patriotic Death Reeks of Alcohol

When an official in the city of Xinyang died on Feb. 27, no one mentioned he had died not on the job but at a karaoke bar after an evening of drinking with other officials.

Taiwan’s Independence Movement Likely to Wane

Both candidates in Taiwan’s presidential election want closer ties with Beijing, differing only in how quickly and to what degree they would strengthen relations.

China Retools Its Government in Efficiency Push

The plan is intended to streamline an overlapping array of government agencies, commissions and ministries.

U.S. Drops China From List of Top 10 Violators of Rights

The State Department no longer considers China one of the world’s worst human rights violators, a decision that immediately earned the ire of human rights groups.

Rising From Obscurity, Asian Art Reflects New York Success

Several major museums have broadened their contemporary Asian art efforts, while others have established new departments.

China Sticking With One-Child Policy

China’s top population official has ruled out changing the country’s one-child family planning policy for at least another decade.

China’s Rate of Inflation Is Highest in 11 Years

Food prices were the biggest contributor, up 23.3 percent from February of last year.

China Says Plane and Olympic Plots Halted

Terrorism is not usually a significant threat in China but officials have become concerned as Beijing prepares for the Olympic Games.

Chinese Lawyer Says He Was Detained and Warned on Activism

Teng Biao’s detention was the latest example of how China is moving against some of its more outspoken dissidents, lawyers and human rights advocates.

Take Aid From China and Take a Pass on Human Rights

When the West cites abuses, Sri Lanka may not have to listen.

Look Out Below. The Arms Race in Space May Be On.

America is committed to having the capacity to wage war in space. What do others do?

4 Executives Are Charged Over Tainted Toothpaste

Criminal charges were filed on Thursday against four executives who imported toothpaste from China that contained a poison used in some antifreeze.

China to Focus on Reducing Inflation, Prime Minister Says

Prime Minister Wen Jiabao’s emphasis on inflation reflects public anxiety over rising domestic prices for food and other items, as inflation hit an 11-year high of 7.1 percent in January.

China's big boost in arms spending

Mar. 4 - China has announced a 17.6 percent increase in military spending ahead of the annual meeting of the National People's Congress.

A spokesman for the National People's Congress, or parliament stressed that China adhered to a path of peaceful development but U.S. officials have claimed that China's growing might is aimed at Tawian. The National People's Congress opens its annual session on Wednesday (5th March).

China Plans Steep Increase in Military Spending

Sustained increases in its annual defense outlays put China on track to become a major military power.

U.S. and Europe Protest a Chinese News Regulation

The United States and the E.U. are protesting China’s requirement that foreign financial news services operate through a government-designated distributor.

Review of Book on Murdoch Is Killed

The Far Eastern Economic Review, a Murdoch-owned publication, drops plans to review “Rupert’s Adventures in China: How Murdoch Lost a Fortune and Found a Wife.”

China to Reconsider One-Child Limit

Any changes would come gradually and would not mean an elimination of family planning policies, a senior official said.

Twists in Chain of Supplies for Blood Drug

Differing statements from the factory owner and traders highlight the difficulty of tracing the supply chain in China for the blood-thinner heparin.

To G.E., a Chinese Olympics Is Just Made for a Global Message

General Electric is hoping to make a big splash at the Olympics and prove that the company’s creativity is translating into big sales in the developing world.