Former mining executive released from China jail
BEIJING/MELBOURNE • Mr Stern Hu, the former head of Rio Tinto's China iron ore business, has been released from a Shanghai prison, China's Foreign Ministry said yesterday. Mr Hu served eight years in jail following a 2010 conviction for corruption and stealing commercial secrets.
The Australian citizen was one of four defendants arrested by China and subsequently fired by Rio Tinto for accepting bribes in return for helping private Chinese mills secure access to iron ore from Rio Tinto.
REUTERS
Court upholds New Delhi Chief Minister's powers
NEW DELHI • India's Supreme Court upheld the powers of New Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal yesterday in a win for his political party in a protracted fight with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.
New Delhi has a unique position in which the federal government controls the state police and oversees land issues, while the local government is in charge of the general upkeep.
Yesterday, the Supreme Court said the real power lies with the elected government of New Delhi.
REUTERS
Rohingya testify about killings, persecution: UN
GENEVA • Muslim Rohingya continue to flee Myanmar's Rakhine state, with 11,432 arriving in Bangladesh so far this year and many testifying about violence, persecution, killings and burning of their homes, the United Nations human rights chief said yesterday.
Many Rohingya refugees also report being pressured by the Myanmar authorities to accept a national verification card that says they "need to apply for citizenship", Mr Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein said in a speech to the UN Human Rights Council.
REUTERS
Cambodia-Thailand railway line reopens
PHNOM PENH • Cambodia reopened yesterday the final stretch of a railway running from the capital, Phnom Penh, to the border with neighbouring Thailand, the first time the line has been operational in 45 years.
The Asian Development Bank provided US$13 million (S$17.7 million) in 2009 to rebuild the missing link, which aims to slash travel time between the two countries and boost trade.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
