KL told to lift Iban Bible ban

KL told to lift Iban Bible ban

MALAYSIA: Indigenous Iban people in Malaysia's eastern Sarawak
state on Wednesday urged the government to lift a recent ban on
the Christian Bible published in their mother tongue, the
official Bernama news agency said.

Iban parishioners in the state on Borneo island have demanded
that the home ministry of mainly-Muslim Malaysia reverse the
decision on the Iban-language Bible -- Bup Kudus.

Benedict Nawas, 35, who attends Iban services at a local
church, said the ban had caused confusion and anxiety among the
congregation.

"While educated Iban-speaking Christians can refer to English
versions of the Bible, rural parishioners depend on their mother
tongue to understand the scriptures since most of them are
illiterate," he said.

Bup Kudus, the complete bible with the Old and New Testaments
in the Iban language, has been widely used by churches in Sarawak
since its first edition in 1988 and was among 35 books banned by
the ministry last week, Bernama said.

Ibans were previously known as the headhunters of Borneo
island. -- AFP

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Vietnam-corruption
Eight high ranking party officials detained in Vietnam over corru
JP/11/ASEAN2

Party officials held over graft

VIETNAM: Eight party members, including a party chief, head of
police and acting chairman of local commune government in
Vietnam's Central Highlands have been detained over a corruption
scandal, police said on Wednesday.

The eight, all coming from Dak Sin commune in Dak Lak
province, were taken into custody last week, a local policeman
said.

Three other commune officials, including the chairman of the
People's Council, were implicated in the same case and put under
house arrest.

"The case was just opened when local people sent their
complaints to the provincial authorities," the policeman said.

Police said the "elite group," which was made up of top local
authorities, had for many years embezzled public money,
appropriated individual properties and imposed several illegal
taxes on local people which they then pocketed.

Vietnam frequently ranks among the most corrupt countries in
the world in surveys carried out by anti-graft organizations. --
AFP

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WEATHER-PHILIPPINES
Philippines braces for typhoon over Easter holiday
JP/11/ASEAN

RP braces for Easter typhoon

PHILIPPINES: The northern Philippines was bracing for a typhoon
packing winds of up to 180 kph (112 mph) that was expected to hit
land in the middle of this week's Easter holiday weekend.

Bobby Rivero, a forecaster at the government's weather bureau,
said on Wednesday the typhoon -- named Kujira internationally but
called Amang in the Philippines -- was on course for the main
island of Luzon.

"If it will maintain its speed and direction -- it's still at
west northwest at 24 kph -- it could hit the Philippine landmass
by early Saturday or late Friday," Rivero said.

On Wednesday afternoon, the typhoon was about 1,500 km (900
miles) southeast of Luzon over the Pacific Ocean.

Local media said some officials had warned against traveling
by boat around the nation of 7,100 islands over the holidays.

Hundreds of thousands of Filipinos are expected to be on the
move by land, air and sea over the four-day weekend starting on
Thursday as they visit relatives or head to the beach. -- Reuters

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Thailand-drugs
Death toll in Thailand's drug war hits 2,275, say police
JP/11/ASEAN

Deaths in drug war hit 2,275

THAILAND: The death toll in Thailand's brutal 10-week-old war on
drugs has soared to 2,275, or more than 30 killings per day,
police said on Wednesday.

The national police office said of those killed, 51 people
were shot dead by police in self defense while seven police
officers were also gunned down.

Authorities have managed the arrests of just 249 suspects in
connection with the killings, police said.

"(National police chief) Gen. Sant Sarutanond was pleased with
the crackdown and has vowed to carry on with harsh measures
against drug barons for the remaining 15 days of the war on
drugs," police spokesman Pongsapat Pongcharoen said in a
statement.

Since the campaign began on Feb. 1, police have arrested
51,531 drug suspects, of whom 404 were apparent drug producers
and 15,160 apparent traffickers, Pongsapat said.

Police confiscated 14.1 million methamphetamine pills and
seized more than one billion baht (US$23.36 million) in suspects'
assets. -- AFP

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AS-GEN--Thailand-Stolen Buddhas
Buddha statues stolen from holiday shrine in Thailand
JP/11/ASEAN

Buddha statues taken from shrine

steal

THAILAND: About 100 ancient Buddha statues were stolen from a
makeshift shrine erected outside a temple to accommodate Thai new
year worshipers, an abbot said on Wednesday.

The 100 wooden statues, carved about 200 years ago, and a
large sandstone Buddha statue disappeared after being put on
display at the Haunakham monastery, said the monastery's abbot,
Phra Chonchai Akatamo.

He said the sandstone statue was later found dumped with its
head broken off along a road about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from
the temple, in Kalasin province, 430 kilometers (265 miles)
northeast of Bangkok.

Thai Buddhist temples traditionally move what are believed to
be their holiest statues to open-air pavilions during the Thai
new year, or Songkran, to allow worshipers to sprinkle them with
water.

Phra Chonchai said the statues disappeared from the pavilion
on Monday. "I believe the thieves had targeted the sandstone
image for years and took the opportunity of Songkran to steal
it," he said. -- AP