Six people die as blizzards hit northern Japan

TOKYO: At least six people died in a spate of snow-related incidents as blizzards swept across the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido over the weekend, police and news reports said Sunday.A 40-year-old woman and her three teenage children were found dead late Saturday in a car buried under snow in the town of Nakashibetsu, eastern Hokkaido, a local police spokesman said.They are believed...

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Sydney set to sparkle for gay pride parade

SYDNEY: Up to 300,000 spectators were Saturday expected to brave the rain to watch Sydney's annual Mardi Gras gay pride parade, with an emphasis on the political as the nation prepares for elections.The event, which bills itself as the world's biggest night parade, is celebrating the theme "Generations of Love", focused on its origins in 1978 as a gay rights protest march that ended with...

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Higher fines, longer jail term for animal abusers proposed

SINGAPORE: The Animal Welfare Legislative Review Committee is calling for heavier penalties for animal abuse and abandonment. After a year-long review, the committee has submitted its recommendations to the National Development Ministry for consideration. The current penalty for animal abuse is a fine of up to S$10,000, one year in jail, or both. The Committee calls for a more detailed...

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Basketball: Knicks withstand Curry's 54 points to beat Warriors

NEW YORK: The New York Knicks withstood a dazzling 54-point display from Golden State's Stephen Curry on Wednesday to post a 109-105 NBA victory over the Warriors at Madison Square Garden.Curry's points total was the highest in the league this season, surpassing the 52 of Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant against Dallas last month.But his individual effort was not enough against a Knicks team...

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Ferrari goes up in flames at Teban Gardens

SINGAPORE: A red Ferrari went up in flames near Teban Gardens Road on Wednesday.A Channel NewsAsia viewer was having his lunch at a coffee shop in the vicinity when he heard an explosion.According to the viewer, the red Ferrari had stopped in front of block 54 Teban Gardens Road, along Penjuru Road. The Chinese male driver had gotten out of the car before the explosion. The driver did...

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SDP to address Budget 2013 "shortcomings" in its own "Shadow Budget"

SINGAPORE: The opposition Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) said it'll address the "shortcomings" of the government's Budget 2013 and propose a more efficient way of prioritising Singapore's expenditure estimates in its own "Shadow Budget".The party said on Tuesday that the measures in Budget 2013 have failed to address Singapore's long-term needs.It said while the Budget attempts to address...

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Putin signs law banning smoking in public places

  MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin signed a law banning smoking in public places in Russia from June, a cornerstone of the government's bid to improve public health, the Kremlin said Monday. The law, called "On protecting the health of citizens from the danger of passive smoking and the consequences of the use of tabacco," makes smoking illegal in restaurants, cafes, hotels, trains...

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Apple, Samsung face onslaught at mobile fair

BARCELONA - Chinese handset makers will lead an onslaught on smartphone titans Samsung and Apple when the world's biggest mobile fair opens on Monday in Barcelona, Spain.Offering big-screen, slick, slim smartphones at lower prices, Chinese manufacturers Huawei, ZTE and Lenovo will leverage the Mobile World Congress to chip away at the mighty duopoly, analysts say.The handset battle is...

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Tennis: Nishikori beats Cilic to reach Memphis semis

MEMPHIS, Tennessee - Fifth-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan cruised past top-seeded Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-2 on Friday to reach the semi-finals of the US National Indoor Tennis Championships.Croatia's Cilic had saved three match points in his previous match against Igor Sijsling, but could not find the answer against Nishikori, who had just four aces compared to a dozen for Cilic but won 69 percent...

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Wilmar International's Q4 net profit falls 4.7%

SINGAPORE: Wilmar International's net profit in the fourth quarter fell 4.7 per cent, weighed mainly by lower palm oil prices.Fourth-quarter net profit was US$476.8 million (S$590 million), down from US$500 million recorded in the same period in 2011. A decline in crude palm oil prices hit profits in the firm's plantations segment, which were down 23 per cent compared to the previous year.Fourth-quarter...

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Officer in Pistorius case facing 7 attempted murder charges: police

JOHANNESBURG: The lead detective in the Oscar Pistorius murder case is himself facing seven attempted murder charges for shooting at a taxi in 2009 to try to stop it, police said Thursday."We were only informed yesterday that attempted murders charges against Hilton Botha have been reinstated," said police spokesman Neville Malila.Malila said the charges were initially brought against...

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Football: FIFA calls for strict match-fixing laws

KUALA LUMPUR: Football authorities vowed to excise the "cancer" of match-fixing, but said Wednesday tougher laws were needed worldwide to protect the bruised integrity of the world's most popular sport.FIFA director of security Ralk Mutschke told a two-day gathering with Interpol that the world governing body's "zero tolerance" for match-fixing needs to be helped by "the right policies...

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Cricket: Injured Jayawardene out of Bangladesh series

COLOMBO: Former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene has been ruled out of the forthcoming home series against Bangladesh because of a finger injury.Jayawardene, 35, who is Sri Lanka's highest run-getter in Tests, dislocated a finger in his left hand while fielding during a domestic first-class match in Colombo on Sunday.Scans of the injury have been sent to Australia for further analysis,...

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Assange sees freedom in Australia senate seat

SYDNEY: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange believes winning a seat in Australia's upper house would extricate him from his prolonged asylum inside Ecuador's London embassy, a report said Monday.In an interview published on Australian website The Conversation, Assange outlined a scenario that would set him free to return to home.If he takes a senate seat in the September 14 elections, "the...

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Briton survived Outback by drinking contact lens fluid

SYDNEY: A British backpacker who endured three days missing in Australia's punishing Outback survived by drinking his contact lens fluid and urine, his mother said Sunday.Samuel Woodhead, 18, was found Friday on the sprawling remote property Upshot Station, about 130 kilometres (80 miles) from the far-flung central Queensland town of Longreach, from where he had set off on Tuesday.He became...

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Earthquake strikes off New Zealand's North Island

WELLINGTON: A 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck off the North Island of New Zealand on Saturday, the US Geological Survey reported, but there were no reports of any damage.The quake at 6:16pm (0516 GMT) was centred 204 kilometres (126 miles) deep and about 300 kilometres northeast of Auckland.The tremor was not widely felt on the mainland and police said there were no immediate reports of...

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2 chefs fined for receiving bribes from seafood supplier

SINGAPORE: Two chefs from two Chinese restaurants have been fined for receiving bribes from a seafood supplier.Chung Yiu Ming, 54, was fined S$17,000 and made to pay a penalty of about S$21,900 for receiving bribes from Tay Ee Tiong.Between July 2007 and July 2009, the former executive chef at Sheraton Towers Singapore pocketed close to S$21,900 from Tay, who owns Wealthy Seafood Product...

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Ex-CNB chief Ng Boon Gay back in court for verdict

SINGAPORE: Former anti-drugs chief Ng Boon Gay is in court for the verdict of his sex-for-contracts corruption case.Ng, 46, was accompanied by his wife Ms Yap Yen Yen.District Judge Siva Shanmugam started the court session on Thursday afternoon by explaining the grounds for his decision.Ng was charged in June last year with four counts of obtaining sexual favours from 36-year-old Ms Cecilia...

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Boxing: Botha claims offered US$155,000 to throw Williams bout

SYDNEY: Veteran South African boxer Francois Botha on Wednesday claimed he was offered A$150,000 (US$155,000) to throw his fight against Sonny Bill Williams, sparking an angry denial from the New Zealander's manager.Williams, a former World Cup-winning All Blacks rugby star, won the controversial heavyweight bout on points in Brisbane last Friday, which was marred by unsubstantiated reports...

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China support for N. Korea to survive nuke test: analysts

BEIJING: China is unlikely to punish troublesome ally North Korea harshly for Tuesday's nuclear test, analysts say, even though Chinese state media had warned the North of a "heavy price" if it went ahead.There was no immediate official reaction to the test in Beijing -- China is in the middle of its biggest annual holiday, the Lunar New Year.But after the North's rocket launch in December,...

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