Clinton on historic Laos visit

Clinton's landmark visit to Laos is part of a trip signalling growing US interest in Asia

Hillary Clinton is due in Laos as the first US secretary of state to visit the country in 57 years.
She is expected to discuss plans to build a controversial Mekong River dam, which critics say would impact the environment and millions of lives.
The effects of Agent Orange, a defoliant used during the Vietnam war, are also likely to be on the agenda.
Clinton, who arrives in Vientiane from Vietnam, will then head to Cambodia for an Asean meeting.
The last top US diplomat to visit Laos was John Foster Dulles in 1955.
The $3.8bn (£650m) hydro-electric dam project at Xayaburi has caused tension among Mekong region countries - Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.
In April, a multi-billion dollar contract was signed for a Thai company, CH Karnchang, to build the dam.
The Lao government has pledged not to go ahead with the project until environmental issues have been resolved.
However, activists say work on the project has already begun, with reports and photographs emerging of construction vehicles in the area.
'Pivot toward Asia'
Clinton's trip is part of a tour of Asia which analysts say signals the United States' growing interest in the region.
"My trip reflects a strategic priority of American foreign policy today," she told reporters in Mongolia earlier this week.
"After 10 years in which we focused a great deal of attention on the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, the United States is making substantially increased investments - diplomatic, economic, strategic and otherwise - in this part of the world. It's what we call our pivot toward Asia."
At the Asean regional forum later this week in the Cambodian capital, where she will join counterparts from the 10-nation bloc and other Asian countries, including China, tension in the South China Sea is expected to top the agenda.
She had earlier urged progress on a code of conduct for resolving conflict in the disputed waters between China and several South East Asian nations.

Source : BBC Online

Official: Hong Kong drug operation hauls $98 million worth of cocaine

hong Kong drug

A joint drug investigation in Hong Kong hauled a record cocaine shipment worth an estimated street value of U.S. $98 million, customs officials said.

The Customs Drug Investigation Bureau of Hong Kong seized 649 kilograms (about 1,425 pounds) of cocaine from a shipping container that arrived from Ecuador, Lee Cheung-wing, the head of the Custom Drug Investigation Bureau, said in a statement released Friday.

Three people, described by Lee, as “local men” were arrested in connection with the seizure, which occurred Wednesday and was made public Friday.

The drug operation began in April when the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration began tipping Hong Kong authorities to the arrival of containers from South America, Lee said.

The tips that continued through June came as a result of a joint drug investigation, codenamed “Surfing Coke,” that saw Hong Kong customs authorities partner with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and U.S. Customs and Border Protection to combat drug trafficking, Lee said.

Neither the DEA nor Customs and Border Protection released details on the drug operation, and their respective Washington offices did not immediately respond to request for comment early Saturday.

Hong Kong customs officials visited three South American countries where they met with their respective counterparts during the investigation, trips that were aimed at “enhancing the mutual anti-narcotics cooperation and intelligence exchange,” Lee said.

The cocaine was in a shipment that arrived this week in Hong Kong from Guayaquil, Ecuador, according to Lee.

“Customs officials found inside the container 22 nylon bags containing a total of 541 slabs of cocaine,” he said.

“In the afternoon on the same day, a container truck took the container and delivered it to a designated location for collection by two other men.”

The 52-year-old driver and two other men, ages 34 and 37, face charges of drug trafficking. The three men were scheduled to appear in court to answer the charges on Sunday, Lee said.

Source: CNN

Thousands of crocodiles rescued from smugglers in China

CrocodileChinese police intercepted more than 3,600 crocodiles last week that were destined for dinner plates in the country’s Guangdong province.

The Siamese crocodiles were seized Tuesday in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region after they crossed over the China-Vietnam border, according to reports in the Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency.

Officials believe they were headed for restaurants in southern China — known for its exotic dining options.

Several of the crocodiles died from heatstroke during transportation, officials said, while the others are being treated by veterinarians.

The Siamese crocodile, which can grow as long as 13 feet (3.96 meters) is one of the world’s most endangered reptiles, according to the World Wildlife Fund. Hunting and habitat disruption has led the species to near extinction in the wild but they are extensively farmed in Thailand and Cambodia.

Zheng Yuanying of the Green Eye of China environmental protection group told Britain’s The Guardian that a strong black market has persisted in the region despite government efforts to crack down on exotic animal smuggling.

“Although people all know it is illegal to eat these wild creatures, they will still eat them as long as the market sells them. What’s needed is a long-term, stronger campaign to explain to people why they shouldn’t eat crocodile,” he said.

Earlier this month, China met with other Asian countries to enhance collaboration between countries to combat illegal wildlife trafficking, according to a report by TRAFFIC, a wildlife trade monitoring network.

The provinces of Yunnan, Guangxi and Guangdong in southern China accounted for 68.3% of the national trafficking total in 2011, according to the report.

Source: CNN