UPDATE 2-Shallow quake hits Indonesia's Sumatra island

Reuters: [2008-05-19 18:01:00]

(Adds details, changes dateline, previous ex-Washington)

JAKARTA, May 19 (Reuters) - An earthquake struck Indonesia's Sumatra island on Monday, a meteorology official said, and while there was no tsunami alert issued there was a risk of damage due to its shallow depth of about 10 km (6.2 miles).

The magnitude 5.9 quake hit in Northern Sumatra, 43 km (27 miles) east of Sibloga, the U.S. Geological Service said.

An official at Indonesia's meteorology agency said the epicentre of the quake, which struck at 1426 GMT, was inland near Tarutung and said there was a potential for damage given its power and its relatively shallow depth.

"We need to find information from there. We haven't received any reports (of damage or casualties)," the official said by telephone.

Indonesia is suffers frequent earthquakes, lying in an area of intense seismic activity where several tectonic plates meet, but it often takes some time to assess damage if the quake hits in remote areas where communications are poor.

Sumatra has been hit by a series of major earthquakes in recent years, including a massive 2004 tsunami whose huge waves caused death and devastation throughout the region, following a quake of more than magnitude 9. (Reporting by Telly Nathalia and World desk, Americas, Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Jon Boyle)

((ed.davies@thomsonreuters.com; Reuters Messaging; ed.davies.reuters.com@reuters.net; tel +6221 384 6364))

Keywords: QUAKE INDONESIA/

Climate change hitting bird species, shows study

Reuters: [2008-05-19 15:32:00]

By Madeline Chambers

BONN, Germany, May 19 (Reuters) - One in eight of the world's birds are at risk of extinction as climate change puts birds under great pressure, a leading conservation group warned on Monday.

The population of rare birds such as the Floreana mockingbird of the Galapagos Islands or the spoon-billed sandpiper, which breeds in northeastern Russia and winters in south Asia, has declined sharply and they could go extinct, the International Union for Conservation of Nature said in a report.

The 2008 "Red List for Birds" report, published on the first day of a May 19-30 U.N. conference about biodiversity in the German city of Bonn, said 1,226 species of bird were now threatened.

The annual report, closely watched among conservationists, added eight of the world's 10,000 bird species to the Critically Endangered category, the greatest level of threat.

"The latest update of the IUCN Red List shows that birds are under enormous pressure from climate change," said Jane Smart, head of the IUCN Species Programme. The IUCN groups governments, conservation groups and scientists.

Long-term drought and sudden extreme weather are putting additional stress on habitats that threatened species depend on, said the report, noting that extinction rates were rising on continents, rather than on islands where, historically, most extinctions have occurred.

Of the 26 species that moved category due to changes in their population size, rate of decline or range size, 24 were moved up to a higher level of threat.

CURLEW, WARBLER

They included the Eurasian curlew and Dartford warbler, which lives in Europe and north-west Africa. Both were previously in the "Least Threatened" category.

"We urge governments to take the information contained in (the report) seriously and do their level best to protect the world's birds," said Smart. The U.N. Climate Panel says that burning of fossil fuels is stoking global warming.

The report showed that Brazil and Indonesia had the highest number of threatened bird species with 141 and 133 respectively.

The group picked out several other species, including the Mallee emuwren in Australia which has suffered from years of drought and is seeing its population shrink sharply.

Its habitat has become so fragmented that a single bushfire could be catastrophic, said the report.

In the Galapagos Islands, the population of the Floreana mockingbird has fallen to fewer than 60 from an estimated 150 in 1996 and is now on the Critically Endangered list because the species is vulnerable to extreme weather.

The report also pointed to some species that had fared better as a result of conservation efforts, including the Marquesan Imperial-pigeon and the little spotted kiwi.

Around 4,000 delegates at the U.N. meeting of the Convention on Biodiversity will discuss ways to safeguard the range of species and try to slow the rate of extinctions among plants and animals. (Editing by Ibon Villelabeitia) ((madeline.chambers@reuters.com; +49 30 2888 5230; Reuters Messaging: ann.chambers.reuters.net@reuters.com))

Keywords: BIODIVERSITY BIRDS/

Brave young Myanmar doctors head to disaster zone

Reuters: [2008-05-19 14:29:00]

YANGON, May 19 (Reuters) - The young doctors of Myanmar treating cyclone survivors may see things many doctors never see.

Hundreds of doctors barely out of Yangon medical schools are taking crash courses on how to treat people in a disaster, choosing to work independently instead of going to camps run by a military government that has shut out many foreign aid workers.

At a one-day seminar organised by a Malaysian charity, an American psychologist talked about traumatized patients and two Swedish doctors told them what they would face.

"They are young, eager and brave," said Charles Randquist, who runs a plastic surgery clinic in Sweden. "And they'll see things most doctors have never seen."

They warned of the danger of bites from vipers that follow rats to food stores, rasping skin burns from wind and waves, infections and respiratory problems from water polluted faeces, mud and fungus.

They drew up a rough plan of how to establish a medical station with toilets kept well away from water and food in an attempt to prevent cholera outbreaks in the Irrawaddy Delta, which was devastated on the night of May 2 by Cyclone Nargis.

"When we found we couldn't do surgery in the delta, we tried to help train as many people as possible," said the other Swedish doctor, Stefan Amer.

The pair, who worked in Thailand in the days after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, have given talks to 300 doctors in the past week as the toll of dead and missing rose to 134,000, with about 2.4 million believed to be destitute.

The World Health Organization says the health system is "highly under-resourced" in the impoverished Southeast Asian country of 53 million formerly known as Burma.

'SHAM' ARMY-RUN CAMPS

Some of the 150 doctors in the seminar at Myanmar Medical Association headquarters said army-run treatment camps were a sham. With foreign aid workers barred, the military has bussed young doctors into the area, according to diplomats on an official tour over the weekend.

"It's all just for show," according to one 21-year-old junior doctor, who said some colleagues from his Yangon hospital had gone to work in army-run hospitals.

"There are few medicines, and all they do is put their house coats on and pose when officials go to visit."

The doctor, who has a year of internship left of six-year medical studies, had bought medicines with donated money and led a convoy of eight vehicles to Bogalay, one of the towns hardest hit by Nargis. Private relief groups and charities were also taking groups of doctors to the disaster zone.

While the United Nations and people around the world are eager to help survivors, the generals ruling Myanmar have at times appeared indifferent to the plight of the sick and needy.

Some of the doctors interviewed said they are sceptical they would ever have the chance to use their skills properly because of harassment by the feared military intelligence.

A week after the cyclone, a group of 20 junior doctors treated some of the hundreds of homeless people crammed into Bogalay's monastery and primary school.

"There was a lot of diarrhoea and bad cuts," said another 21-year-old junior doctor. "But we couldn't stay long because military intelligence people kept photographing and asking us what we were doing there." (Writing by Grant McCool; Editing by Darren Schuettler and Valerie Lee) ((Bangkok newsroom, darren.schuettler@thomsonreuters.com; +66 2637 5610)) Keywords: MYANMAR CYCLONE/DOCTORS

TAKE A LOOK-Myanmar cyclone

Reuters: [2008-05-19 14:18:00]

    Southeast Asian nations will take the lead in an 
international aid effort for cyclone-hit Myanmar, but the 
military junta will not give Western relief workers unfettered 
access to disaster areas, Singapore said on Monday. 
    The details were to be worked out with the United Nations, as 
well as a proposed donor conference to be held in the cyclone-hit 
former capital, Yangon, on May 25, the ASEAN foreign ministers 
said in a joint statement. 
    Cyclone Nargis that slammed into the southern Irrawaddy delta 
region is estimated to have left at least 134,000 people dead or 
missing. 
    Humanitarian agencies say the death toll from Nargis, already 
one of the most devastating cyclones to hit Asia, could soar 
without a massive increase of emergency food, water, shelter and 
medicine to the Irrawaddy Delta. 
     
    (Double click on the codes in brackets to see the stories. If 
only a headline appears, double click on the headline) 
 ---------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
  LATEST STORIES 
> ASEAN to coordinate Myanmar aid effort               [nSP291449] 
> ASEAN medical workers to be allowed into Myanmar     [nSP322353] 
> Turning point near on Myanmar aid - UK minister      [nSP286965] 
> Myanmar death toll soars, devastation "huge"        [nBKK265679] 
> France, Myanmar in talks on aid to cyclone victims  [nL17476661] 
> Worried Myanmar migrants chip in aid from Thailand  [nBKK268181] 
> News-starved Burmese snap up grim cyclone videos    [nBKK300521] 
 
 FROM THE DISASTER SCENE 
> Myanmar's Buddhist monks fill cyclone aid void      [nBKK264590] 
> Some cholera confirmed in cyclone-hit Myanmar        [nSP243073] 
> Cyclone victim prefers ruins over government camp[ID:nMAN161147] 
> Cyclone alters Yangon's tree-lined streets       [ID:nBKK171222] 
> Wrecked Myanmar leaves India aid pilot speechless[ID:nDEL140385] 
> Corpses dot waterways of Myanmar's stricken delta [ID:nBKK51570] 
  
  POLITICS & DIPLOMACY 
> UK condemns Myanmar's cyclone response as "inhuman" [nL17411961] 
> Cyclone-hit Myanmar says 92 percent back charter [ID:nBKK178457] 
> U.N. frustration grows at Myanmar junta over aid [ID:nN12299081] 
  
 RELIEF OPERATION 
> France, Britain send aid for Myanmar cyclone victims[nL15728615] 
> Tsunami-style aid waits Myanmar green light      [ID:nBKK259227] 
> Impromptu charities aid Myanmar cyclone survivors [ID:nSP271124] 
> WFP says food aid to delta 20 pct of needs       [ID:nBKK203535] 
> Myanmar's port reopens for foreign aid - Thailand[ID:nBKK237286] 
                  *********************** 
 FACTBOXES 
> Why Myanmar's generals stand firm                    [nBKK63422] 
> FACTBOX-Aid offers for cyclone-ravaged Myanmar       [nSP288733] 
> Asia's worst natural disasters since 2004 tsunami   [nL18557393] 
> Major health risks face Myanmar cyclone survivors [ID:nBKK29726] 
> Key facts about Myanmar's constitutional vote     [ID:nSP150032] 
> Breakdown of needs in UN appeal for Myanmar      [ID:nN09498131] 
> Myanmar's cyclone-hit Irrawaddy delta             [ID:nSP235930] 
> Key facts about Myanmar                           [ID:nSP183492] 
> Chronology of major Asian cyclones                 [ID:nB635562] 
 ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
 UP-TO-THE-MINUTE HEADLINES 
 Myanmar News            [MY-LEN]   Myanmar General News [MY-G] 
 Grains News             [GRA-LEN]  Southeast Asia     [SI-LEN] 
 Asian Stock Markets     [ASIA-STX] Asia Forex       [ASIA-FRX] 
 Asian Rice benchmarks   <RICE/ASIA1> 
 HOW TO FIND INFORMATION YOU NEED 
 <REUTERS>   <NEWS>   <PHONE/HELP> 
 <EQUITY>    <BONDS>    <MONEY>     <COMMODITY>  <ENERGY> 
................................................................. 
Page editor: Valerie Lee, World Desk, Singapore +65 6870 3017 
................................................................. 
Keywords: MYANMAR CYCLONE/  
    

DIARY - Asian holidays to December 2008

Reuters: [2008-05-19 12:38:00]

REUTERS DIARY OF ASIAN HOLIDAYS

Details below represent the latest information available and will be supplemented later, particularly with updated entries for Muslim holidays.

Market holiday - Markets and exchanges closed.

Public holiday - Government offices, banks and ordinary businesses closed.

Double-click in brackets for Americas holidays diary [HOL1/DIARY], European holidays [HOL3/DIARY], Middle East and African holidays [HOL4/DIARY].

Alternatively click on <HOLIDAY> to retrieve dates by country.

************************************************************

2008 MARKET HOLIDAYS

************************************************************

** MORE COUNTRIES WILL BE ADDED AS AND WHEN THE DATES ARE CONFRIMED

MAY

MONDAY, MAY 12

HONG KONG - The Buddha's Birthday - Market Holiday

SOUTH KOREA - Buddha's Birthday - Market Holiday

MONDAY, MAY 19

MALAYSIA - Wesak Day - Market Holiday

SINGAPORE - Vesak Day - Market Holiday

THAILAND - Wisakha Bucha Day - Market Holiday

TUESDAY, MAY 20

INDIA - Buddha Purnima - Delhi Exchange Closed.

INDONESIA - Birthday of Buddha - Market Holiday

JUNE

MONDAY, JUNE 2

NEW ZEALAND - Queen's Birthday - Market Holiday

FRIDAY, JUNE 6

SOUTH KOREA - Memorial Day - Market Holiday

SATURDAY, JUNE 7

MALAYSIA - King's Birthday - Market Holiday

SUNDAY, JUNE 8

TAIWAN - Dragon Boat Festival - Market Holiday (No addition day off for it's falling on weekend)

MONDAY, JUNE 9

CHINA - Dragon Boat Festival - Market Holiday

AUSTRALIA - Queen's Birthday - Market Holiday

HONG KONG - The day following Tuen Ng Festival - Market Holiday

MONDAY, JUNE 16

PHILIPPINES - Independence Day Celebration - Market Holiday

JULY

TUESDAY, JULY 1

HONG KONG - Hong Kong Special Administration Region Establishment Day - Market Holiday

THAILAND - Mid Year Closing Day - Market Holiday

THURSDAY, JULY 17

THAILAND - Asarnha Bucha Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, JULY 21

JAPAN - Ocean Day - Market Holiday

WEDNESDAY, JULY 30

INDONESIA - Isra Mi'raj - Market Holiday

AUGUST

TUESDAY, AUG 12

THAILAND - H.M. the Queen's Birthday - Market Holiday

THURSDAY, AUG 14

PAKISTAN - Independence Day - Market Holiday

FRIDAY, AUG 15

INDIA - Independence Day - All Exchanges Closed.

SOUTH KOREA - National Liberation Day - Market Holiday

SUNDAY, AUG 17

INDONESIA - Independence Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, AUG 18

INDONESIA - Holiday Following Independence Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, AUG 25

PHILIPPINES - National Heroes's Day & Ninoy Acquino Day Celebration - Market Holiday

SUNDAY, AUG 31

MALAYSIA - National Day - Market Holiday (Whenever a public holiday falls on a designated rest day, the next day shall be a public holiday)

SEPTEMBER

WEDNESDAY, SEPT 3

INDIA - Ganesh Chaturthi - Bangalore and Mumbai Exchanges Closed.

SUNDAY, SEPT 14

TAIWAN - Mid-Autumn Moon Festival - Market Holiday (No addition day off for it's falling on weekend)

MONDAY, SEPT 15

CHINA - Mid-Autumn Festival - Market Holiday

HONG KONG - The day following Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival - Market Holiday

JAPAN - Respect for the Aged Day - Market Holiday

SOUTH KOREA - Chuseok, Korean Thanksgiving Day - Market Holiday

TUESDAY, SEPT 23

JAPAN - Autumn Equinox - Market Holiday

MONDAY, SEPT 29

CHINA - National Day - Market Holiday

TUESDAY, SEPT 30

CHINA - National Day - Market Holiday

OCTOBER

WEDNESDAY, OCT 1

CHINA - National Day - Market Holiday

HONG KONG - The National Day - Market Holiday

INDONESIA - Idul Fitri Festival - Market Holiday

MALAYSIA - Hari Raya Puasa - Market Holiday (TENTATIVE DATE)

SINGAPORE - Hari Raya Puasa - Market Holiday

THURSDAY, OCT 2

CHINA - National Day - Market Holiday

INDIA - Gandhi Jayanti - All Exchanges Closed.

INDONESIA - Idul Fitri Festival - Market Holiday

MALAYSIA - Hari Raya Puasa - Market Holiday (TENTATIVE)

PAKISTAN - Eid-ul-Fitr - Market Holiday (TENTATIVE)

PHILIPPINES - Eid al Fitr - Market Holiday

FRIDAY, OCT 3

CHINA - National Day - Market Holiday

PAKISTAN - Eid-ul-Fitr - Market Holiday (TENTATIVE)

SOUTH KOREA - National Foundation Day - Market Holiday

TUESDAY, OCT 7

HONG KONG - Chung Yeung Festival - Market Holiday

FRIDAY, OCT 10

TAIWAN - National Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, OCT 13

JAPAN - Health-Sports Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, OCT 27

MALAYSIA - Deepavali - Market Holiday

NEW ZEALAND - Labour Day - Market Holiday

TUESDAY, OCT 28

SINGAPORE - Deepavali - Market Holiday (TENTATIVE)

NOVEMBER

SATURDAY, NOV 1

PHILIPPINES - All Saint's Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, NOV 3

JAPAN - Culture Day - Market Holiday

SUNDAY, NOV 9

PAKISTAN - Iqbal Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, NOV 24

JAPAN - Labour Thanksgiving Day - Market Holiday

DECEMBER

MONDAY, DEC 1

PHILIPPINES - Bonifacio Day Celebration - Market Holiday

SATURDAY, DEC 5

THAILAND - H.M. the King's Birthday - Market Holiday

MONDAY, DEC 8

MALAYSIA - Hari Raya Haji - Market Holiday

SINGAPORE - Hari Raya Haji - Market Holiday

TUESDAY, DEC 9

PAKISTAN - Eid-ul-Azha - Market Holiday (TENTATIVE)

WEDNESDAY, DEC 10

PAKISTAN - Eid-ul-Azha - Market Holiday (TENTATIVE)

THAILAND - Constitution Day - Market Holiday

TUESDAY, DEC 23

JAPAN - Emperor's Birthday - Market Holiday

THURSDAY, DEC 25

AUSTRALIA - Christmas Day - Market Holiday

HONG KONG - Christmas Day - Market Holiday

MALAYSIA - Christmas Day - Market Holiday

NEW ZEALAND - Christmas Day - Market Holiday

PAKISTAN - Quaid-e-Azam's Birthday - Market Holiday

PHILIPPINES - Christmas Day - Market Holiday

SINGAPORE - Christmas Day - Market Holiday

SOUTH KOREA - Chritmas Day - Market Holiday

FRIDAY, DEC 26

AUSTRALIA - Boxing Day - Market Holiday

HONG KONG - The first weekday after Christmas Day - Market Holiday

NEW ZEALAND - Boxing Day - Market Holiday

MONDAY, DEC 29

MALAYSIA - Awal Muharram - Market Holiday

PHILIPPINES - Rizal Day Celebration - Market Holiday

WEDNESDAY, DEC 31

PHILIPPINES - Last Day of the Year - Market Holiday

SOUTH KOREA - Market Holiday - STOCK, KOSDAQ, FUTURES, FOREX, KSE, BOND MARKET closed

THAILAND - New Year's Eve - Market Holiday

--------------------------------------------------------

RT users double-click on [IND/DIARY] for an index of all diaries.

--------------------------------------------------------

Enquiries to Customer Help Desks -- double-click on <PHONE/HELP> for telephone numbers.

Reuters Diary Desk tel +44 207 542 7992, or e-mail

diaries @reuters.com or sai.bhatt@reuters.com, or via Reuters Messaging at sai.bhatt.reuters.com@reuters.net

NOTE: The inclusion of diary items does not necessarily mean that Reuters will file a story based on the event.