• Indonesia - ‘Little People’ of Indonesia Seem to Be Distinct Tribe [NY Times]
  In the continuing debate over the origin of the extinct “little people” of Indonesia, a team of scientists says it has found evidence in three wrist bones that these people were members of a distinct species rather than humans with a physical disorder.


• Putrajaya, Malaysia - Malaysia lawyers hold rare demonstration for reform [Reuters]
  About 800 Malaysian lawyers marched on the prime minister's office on Wednesday to demand reforms to the country's judiciary after a scandal erupted over claims of political meddling in the appointment of judges.


• Yangon, Myanmar - Police beat protesters with batons [Channel News Asia]
  Police baton-charged a crowd of around 700 anti-military protesters including students and some Buddhist monks who gathered near a pagoda in Myanmar's main city Yangon in defiance of a ban, witnesses said.


• Tokyo, Japan - New PM heads for showdown with opposition [Channel News Asia]
  Japan's new Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda was ceremonially sworn into office Wednesday as he headed toward a showdown with the resurgent opposition amid growing calls for snap elections.


• Zamboanga, Philippines - Two soldiers dead in assault on Muslim extremists [AFP]
  Two soldiers were killed and nine wounded in a clash with Al-Qaeda-linked Muslim extremists on the southern Philippine island of Basilan.


• Kabul, Afghanistan - Abducted Italian soldiers freed in Afghanistan [Reuters]
  Two Italian soldiers kidnapped in Afghanistan were freed on Monday during a raid by NATO-led troops.

Photo of the 'Little People' of Indonesia from Asian Offbeat

• Bangkok, Thailand - Backpacker blues on Khaosan Road [Asia Times]
  For years, Bangkok's venerable Khaosan Road has been a welcome, low-priced respite for the throngs of backpackers crisscrossing Southeast Asia. But changing times are pushing out the street vendors and budget inns in favor of upscale establishments that are also attracting another element - more of Bangkok's notorious sex trade.


• Ulaanbataar, Mongolia - School represents a slice of North Korea [Eurasianet]
  There is little that strikes one as extraordinary about Kim Jong-suk kindergarten in Ulaanbaatar. In the midst of a makeover during the summer holiday, the school looks very similar to others in Mongolia’s capital. That is, until one considers its name: Kim Jong-suk was the mother of North Korea’s Dear Leader, Kim Jong-il.


• Singapore - Foreigners will not be allowed to interfere in Singapore's domestic affairs [Channel News Asia]
  Foreigners will not be allowed to interfere in Singapore's domestic political scene and this includes support for or against the gay cause.


• Sepang, Malaysia - AirAsia X eyes 25 Airbus A350 aircraft [Reuters]
  AirAsia X, a Malaysian budget long haul carrier that counts British billionaire Richard Branson as a shareholder, is considering buying up to 25 Airbus A350 planes.


• Pyongyang, North Korea - DPRK becoming tourist spot for young Chinese [Chosun Ilbo]
  As the economic gap between China and North Korea widens, more and more young Chinese people are traveling to North Korea to see the sort of poverty their parents endured.

Photo of the Arc of Triumph in Pyongyang, North Korea, which was purposefully built 3 metres higher than its counterpart in Paris.

From Southern Weekend via the Bokee blogs we learned that the controversial Shanghai high school history textbooks—the very ones that were the subject of a New York Times article last year (Sept. 1, 2006)—have been banned.

In that article, Joseph Kahn claimed that China's decades old Marxist template was being abandoned and that class struggle and other mainstays of Marxist theory were being downplayed. Instead, world history and civilization figured more prominently. Bill Gates was mentioned. The times they were a-changing.

It started off well, for the editors of the Shanghai textbooks—everyone came to their defense against the 'biased' reporting of the Times, lauding the new books as a step in the right direction not only for Chinese education but for society as a whole.

However, since the last time we touched upon the issue, the history textbooks here in Shanghai have been subjected to severe scrutiny by history experts up in Beijing, who concluded that the Shanghai textbooks did indeed have problems—they deemphasized the notion of class struggle and were to weak on ideology.

Professor Su Zhiliang of Shanghai Normal University, who was the main editor of the new history books, learned as of May of this year that his books were getting the ax, and that new books would have to be made in time for the beginning of the school year in September. However, neither he nor his team were allowed to be part of that process, and, seeing the writing on the wall, he resigned as chief editor.

Writing history books for high school students is not something you can normally do in two months, and so high school students this year have found their textbook divided into part one and part two, with part two being furiously written at this very moment.

Su seems bewildered by the turn of events, saying that his superiors had always reminded him that "these books are not your individual scholarly work in history, they are expressions of the will of the government." That said, Shanghai was supposedly designated as one of the places where they would do experiments in historical pedagogy, trying out different types of textbooks and ways of teaching.

Joe Kahn, when reached for comment on the latest turn of events, expressed regret that his article in some sense lead to Su's resignation and the suspension of the use of his books in Shanghai classrooms. Kahn said that his original motivation in writing that article was a sense that the erstwhile textbooks were a positive signal that things were changing for the better.

Photo of Su Zhiliang from Sohu News

• Seoul, Korea - Police shut down group sex website, arrest participants [Asian Sex Gazette]
  Korean police have arrested a 42-year-old website operator identified as Kim who they say arranged 20 group sex parties in and around Seoul and collected participation fees. They also booked 53 male members who had group sex and 11 females who prostituted themselves through Kim's website.


• Tokyo, Japan - Retired Japanese porn star Ai Iijima needs sex [Asian Sex Gazette]
  Even months into retirement, porn star-cum-celebrity advisor and IT explorer Ai Iijima can't stay out of the news, with Shukan Asahi reporting that now she's moaning about her insatiable urge to break a sex drought.


• Bangalore, India - The dark side of Hyderabad's success [Asia Times]
  The twin blasts that tore through an amusement park and an eatery in Hyderabad on August 25 marked the second time in three months that the city had been targeted by terrorists. A high-tech hub that is second only to Bangalore for its booming information-technology (IT) and biotechnology sectors, Hyderabad appears to be emerging as a terror hub.


• Singapore - US space tourism company to build spaceport in Singapore but has run short of funds [IHT]
  A year after U.S. company Space Adventures Ltd announced it would build a US$115 million spaceport in Singapore to launch sub-orbital flights, it has said it doesn't have enough financing.


• Bangkok, Thailand - Pen-spinning craze [Asian Offbeat]
  The latest craze to hit Thailand is pen-spinning, and the Thai pen-spinning fan club claims 200,000 enthusiasts who say they have mastered over 200 moves.

Video of Thai pen-spinning club in action [h/t to Asian Offbeat]

• Indian Ocean / Malacca Straits - Five-power naval exercise gives China the jitters [New Zealand Herald]
  Are the warships from the United States, India, Japan, Australia and Singapore that are exercising together this week off the east coast of India harbingers of a new military alliance in Asia to contain China?


• Singapore - Pair of seats on inaugural A380 flight go for $100,000 [USA Today]
  Singapore Airlines, the first carrier in the world to fly the new superjumbo A380, said Tuesday a pair of premium seats on the jet's inaugural flight were auctioned for more than $100,000 on eBay.


• Pyongyang, North Korea - DPRK closer to being struck off US terror list [AFP]
  North Korea is closer to being removed from the US state sponsors of terrorism list following its commitments to end its nuclear weapons program, a US official said Tuesday.


• Bangkok, Thailand - Thaksin to face new charges [The Times]
  The controversy surrounding Thaksin Shinawatra, the Manchester City owner, deepened yesterday when another set of warrants were issued for the arrest of the former Prime Minister of Thailand and his wife.


• Kathmandu, Nepal - Tricky transition to democracy [WSJ]
  With parliamentary elections set for Nov. 22, tensions are rising between the Maoists and the democratic Seven Party Alliance, and within the Maoist party itself.


• Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Malaysia celebrates 50 years of nationhood [AFP]
  As Malaysia celebrates its 50th birthday, the unity of the nation has shown cracks along racial and religious divides. Meanwhile, former premier Mahathir Mohammed is recovering after heart surgery

Photo of Indian naval ships from Azgar Khan: India has joined up with the US, Japan, Australia and Singapore in a naval exercise that is widely construed to contain China.