Asia News Weekly Network: This week's regional news

For the past year, I’ve been discussing the South China Sea. This week, both Obama and China confirmed what I had to say, Facebook comes to the rescue,  and Korea remembers the Sewol tragedy. These stories and more are on the April 17th edition of Asia News Weekly.

The South China Sea (0:55)

This past week, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said, "We are building shelters, aids for navigation, search and rescue, as well as marine meteorological forecasting services, fishery services and other administrative services'' for China and neighboring countries.” Hua also noted the new islands would be used for China’s defense.

Then US President  Barack Obama said Washington was concerned China was using its "sheer size and muscle" to push aside smaller nations with claims to areas of the South China Sea.

To answer if a diplomatic solution could still be viable and if the US might have to choose sides in the dispute, Scott Harold, Political Scientist and Deputy Director for the Center for Asia-Pacific Policy at the RAND Corporation joins the podcast.

The Sewol Tragedy One Year Later and Trouble for President Park (8:33)

This week marks the one year anniversary of the sinking of the South Korean ferry, Sewol. It also marks an ever growing bribery scandal right President Park’s administration. Has the government done enough following this tragic event? What will happen next to ruling Saenuri Party? Lee Tae-hoon from the Korea Observer discusses.

Facebook to the Rescue (15:08)

There perhaps is no greater time suck on the planet than Facebook. By some estimates, people spend as much as 40 minutes a day or nearly 7 hours a month posting pictures, checking stats updates, and playing games. But not once, but twice, it’s been used to save someone from slave-like conditions.

The Weekly Brief

Taking a look at some other stories from the region, Japan and South Korea held their first security talks in five years. The Land of the Rising Sun also submitted plans to resume whale hunting in the Southern Ocean. South Korea’s Constitutional Court considers legalizing prostitution, the younger brother of China’s last Emperor passed away, and a nun self-immolates in Tibet.

Keep up with news from the region by following Asia News Weekly on Facebook or Twitter. You can also send an email to the show with your comments, questions, and feedback. Just drop a line to podcast@asianewsweekly.net.

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