TAIPEI: Acclaimed Taiwanese director Doze Niu faces prosecution for allegedly using false papers to take a Chinese cinematographer onto a Taiwanese naval base to scout film locations, the military said yesterday.
Niu and award-winning cinematographer Cao Yu are accused of violating a law that bans Chinese nationals from entering military facilities, the navy said.
The navy said it had decided to withdraw all assistance to Niu for his upcoming movie “Military Paradise” and would report the case to prosecutors to start a formal investigation.
China to discuss ‘code of conduct’
MANILA: This week the Association of Southeast Asian Nations appeared to make progress on addressing territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Following meetings in Brunei, the group announced that China had agreed to discuss a set of rules known as the “code of conduct” to avoid conflict in the disputed waters.
Last year’s Asean forum ended without a consensus because of squabbles over the South China Sea. The group concluded its meetings without a joint statement for the first time in its history.
China, Taiwan and Vietnam claim practically the entire sea, while the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have partial claims.
The sea is believed to be rich in oil and natural gas.
Malaysia drafts new crime law
KUALA LUMPUR: A new law to replace the Emergency Ordinance (EO) is being finalised to bring to book ex-detainees who have been found to be partly responsible for the rising crime rate.
It is now with the Attorney-General’s Chambers which is in the process of drafting the legislation that will be tabled later in Parliament.
Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi said the move was necessary in the wake of rising crime attributed to ex-EO detainees who did not fear arrest after the repealing of the ordinance in 2011.
Japan ‘N-rules to be the best’
TOKYO: Japan will have one of the world’s best atomic power safety regimes, the new head of the industry’s watchdog pledged yesterday, but he said the full restart of the nation’s nuclear plants is some way off.
Shunichi Tanaka, Chairman of the Nuclear Regulation Authority, said new and tougher technical standards will come into force on Monday, paving the way for nuclear operators to restart their reactors.
Utilities are gearing up to request that the authority review their facilities, most of which have sat idle since going offline for inspections in the aftermath of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis.
50 die in Nepal landslides
KATHMANDU: Landslides and floods triggered by several weeks of monsoon rains have killed at least 50 people in mainly remote parts of Nepal, a government official said yesterday.
“So far, 50 people from across the country have been killed by landslides and floods,” said Lakshmi Prasad Dhakal, chief of National Emergency Operation Centre, which monitors natural disasters in Nepal.
The death toll is likely to rise, with some 19 people still missing after floods hit mostly farming communities in the country’s southern plains and remote western hills, Dhakal said. AGENCIES
