Asia in 3 minutes: animal-sex suspect heads to China and a plague of rats in Myanmar
Indian farmers killed in Madhya Pradesh while rallying for loan forgiveness, New Zealand admits letting animal-sex suspect out on bail was a mistake
Military to curb riots after Indian police kill protesting farmers
One thousand paramilitary troops have been deployed in the Mandsaur region of Madhya Pradesh in central India to curb spreading riots after five farmers were shot dead by police officers. Video showed crowds chanting “Long live freedom” as the bodies of the farmers shrouded in Indian flags were paraded through the streets. Internet and mobile services were suspended in the region and a curfew imposed as buses and lorries were set on fire and toll booths looted. Sixty-two farmers were arrested by police and top district officials have been removed from their posts.
What next? The protests started after the debt from loans to farmers was waived in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh state where the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party recently won a landslide victory based on campaign promises to help farmers. Now, farmers in Madhya Pradesh and in other parts of the country want the same aid. Truckloads of produce have been dumped in the middle of roads or burned as farmers call for higher crop prices.
Does influx of thousands of rats portend disaster on Myanmar island?
Thousands of rats have descended on villages on an island in southern Myanmar, a local official said, in what some have taken to be an omen of impending disaster. Residents of Haingyi, one of the larger islands in the Irrawaddy Delta, have been battling the plague of rodents since the critters scurried into their villages last weekend. Short of pied pipers, desperate authorities have resorted to paying residents 50 kyat (HK$0.30) for each dead animal in a bid to contain the outbreak. A villager in Than Cho Tan village told local media residents were killing the animals with “sticks, slingshots, and rocks”.
What next? “More than 4,000 rats have been killed since they tried to enter the villages,” regional MP Phyo Zaw Shwe said. “According to traditional beliefs, these animals can predict bad weather. So people here are also worried about floods or earthquakes.” Studies by Japanese scientists have shown mice and rats are sensitive to electromagnetic waves similar to what often occurs before a major earthquake, although there was no notable seismic activity in Myanmar last week.
Woman accused of cruel animal-sex acts flees New Zealand for China
New Zealand police have requested help from Interpol and China after a woman facing charges of making sex videos with animals fled the country. Zhu Yingchun, 31, is facing nine charges of cruelty or ill treatment of an animal and 11 counts of making objectionable publications. Court documents say kittens and rabbits were often killed in the videos. Zhu was due to appear in an Auckland court on Tuesday but didn’t turn up.
