Asia’s Muslims on ‘Eid’ exodus
Millions head for home towns marking end of Ramadan
JAKARTA, June 14, (AFP): Millions of Asia’s Muslims were on the move Wednesday as they headed for home towns to celebrate with relatives the Eid al-Fitr holiday marking the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan.
From Karachi to Kuala Lumpur, highways, airports and train stations were jam-packed in an annual exodus that made Indonesia’s usually trafficclogged capital Jakarta look like a ghost town.
Some 70 percent of its residents — about eight million people — headed for other cities and villages across the vast archipelago, home to the world’s biggest Muslim-majority population.
About 32 million Indonesians were estimated to be on the move this week, while some 50 million in Bangladesh were thought to be heading home.
“This year some 11.5 million people will leave the capital Dhaka to go back to their villages to celebrate Eid,” said Mozammel Hoque Chowdhury, general secretary of the Passengers Welfare Association.
bribes directly and through an associate and “showed repentance” at Changzhou Intermediate People’s Court, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The court has not yet issued its verdict.
The most senior financial regulator to be targeted in President Xi Jinping’s ongoing corruption crackdown, Xiang was accused of taking advantage of his official positions from 2005 to 2017.
He allegedly provided assistance in project contracting, approvals, loan issuance, and other tasks in exchange for compensation.
Xiang was appointed to the top job at the regulatory commission in 2011, following stints as deputy governor of the central bank and head of the state-owned Agricultural
Afghans, meanwhile, were hoping for a peaceful Eid after the Taliban announced their first ceasefire since the 2001 US invasion.
The group agreed to stop attacking Afghan security forces for the first three days of the holiday, overlapping with the government’s week-long halt to hostilities against the militants.
In the capital Kabul, traffic was worse than usual as families defied the threat of suicide attacks ahead of the holiday to stock up on dried fruits, nuts, sweets and cookies.
Pakistanis were also complaining of congestion as authorities said they expect road traffic to more than double ahead of the holiday.
The country’s railways have announced special “Eid trains” with extra carriages and discounts to tackle the rush.
In Malaysia, traffic slowed to a crawl on major roads out of Kuala Lumpur, with traffic expected to soar by some 70 percent over the usual volume.
India, which has a 180 million-strong
Bank of China.
He was put under investigation in April last year by the Communist Party’s anticorruption watchdog for suspected “serious disciplinary violations”, a phrase that usually refers to graft. (AFP)
Boost for Australian PM:
A defection from Australia’s most prominent right-wing political party, Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, on Thursday robbed it of its ability to block Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s legislation, raising the prospect he can introduce tax cuts.
Brian Burston, who will now sit in the upper house Senate as an independent, resigned Muslim minority population, does not see a huge annual mass migration.
But Delhi bank clerk Shakir Khan is among those who will be headed home for the holiday.
“We live in a very fast-paced world and Eid is always special as it gives you a chance to reconnect with your family and friends,” the 29-year-old told AFP.
Eid, which is expected to begin from Thursday, comes at the end of Ramadan, when Muslims abstain for a month from activities including eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours.
Safety will be a big factor in some countries.
Some 276 Bangladeshis died in road accidents during Eid last year, while the number in Indonesia was an eye-watering 740 people.
The Southeast Asian nation’s often dangerous roads were clogged with thrifty travellers who packed whole families onto one motorcycle — plus luggage — for gruelling trips that can last upwards of 15 hours.
from One Nation over infighting, the latest blow to the party that re-emerged as a force in Australian politics in 2016.
Turnbull had often needed the support of One Nation to get legislation passed although the third-largest party in the Senate had recently blocked plans for corporate tax cuts, and threatened to block income tax cuts.
“Turnbull will now not run into a situation where Hanson rejects the government legislation,” said Nick Economou, senior lecturer in politics at Monash University in Melbourne.
Burston has said he would support both tax cuts, although a vote is still likely to be very tight with widespread opposition from left-leaning lawmakers. (RTRS)