新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 08:00 2015/02/27
时间：2015-05-13 07:38:16
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It's Paul James with you on this Friday, February 27, 2015.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on our program this morning...
A new series of
judicial1 reforms are being put forward to make this country's court system more fair and accountable.
Chinese political observers have been
lining2 up to back the new development strategy from President Xi Jinping.
The Ukrainian military has begun pulling back its heavy weapons from the front lines in eastern Ukraine.
In business... Sinopec moving to quash
rumors3 of its possible forced
merger4.
In Sports... Liaoning with a key away victory to open its CBA playoff semi-finals.
In Entertainment... a Mongolian writer taking issue with the film "Wolf Totem."
First, let's check in with what's happening with the weather...
Weather
Beijing will be cloudy today with a high of 3, tonight will have snow with a low of minus 2 degrees
Celsius5.
Shanghai will be rainy with a high of 7 and a low of 4 degrees Celsius.
Chongqing, also rainy, with a high of 14.
Elsewhere in Asia.
Islamabad, sunny, with a high of 27.
Kabul, cloudy, with a high of 4.
Over to North America.
New York,
overcast6, with a high of 1 degrees Celsius.
Washington, also overcast, with a high of minus 1 degree Celsius.
Honolulu will see shower, with a high of 28.
Toronto, cloudy, with a high of minus 8.
Finally, in South America,
Buenos Aires, sunny, 29.
And Rio de Janeiro, rainy, with a high of 33 degrees Celsius.
Top News
China's
Supreme7 People's Court introduces court reform measures
Anchor:
China's Supreme People's Court is
undertaking8 a new round of reforms to ensure independent trials and better protect the rights of the
defendants10.
CRI's Luo Wen has the details.
Reporter:
For those who have been inside a Chinese court, the uniforms with prison logos on the defendants are hard to miss.
However, the practice of having defendants stand before the court in prison
outfits11 is coming to an end.
Under new judicial rules being drafted, authorities are no longer allowed to bring
defendant9 to trial in prison gear in a bid to avoid prejudicing the legal
proceedings12.
He Xiaorong is the head of the Supreme People's Court's legal reform office.
"Just because a person charged, it doesn't mean they're guilty. Only through debate during the trial can the defendant be found guilty or not. To better protect human rights, we are hopefully to proceed with this reform soon."
The move by the Supreme People's Court is one of 65 different legal reforms authorities are working on in seven areas.
One of the main goals of the changes is to create more judicial independence to try to eliminate official interference in court cases.
Li Shaoping is the
vice14 president of the Supreme People's Court.
"Some officials
interfere13 into cases by presenting materials, making phone calls or passing along messages. The courts need to set up a system to record the information and archive it."
The reform plans also include an emphasis on the principal of "
judgment15 by evidence."
It's expected that by the end of next year, the courts at all levels across China will
abide16 by a system where only legally-allowed evidence will be presented during trial.
He Xiaorong, chief executive of the Supreme Court's legal reform office.
"Any evidence obtained by illegal means should never be allowed to be presented to the court. In this way, we can further protect human rights. We believe that establishing a system like this should go a long way toward creating more judicial fairness."
At the same time, the judges themselves are going to come under more
scrutiny17.
A new
mechanism18 is going to be set up to hold judges more accountable to their actions.
The Supreme People's Court is also
promising19 to make trials more
transparent20 via live broadcasts or updates on social networks.
For CRI, I'm Luo Wen.
Political Observers
Laud21 President Xi's "Four Comprehensives"
Anchor:
Chinese political observers are
standing22 up to throw their support behind Chinese President Xi Jinping's new strategic
blueprint23 for the country's future development under his
tenure24, which is being
dubbed25 the "Four Comprehensives."
The details from CRI's Yin Xiuqi.
Reporter:
The catchphrase "Four Comprehensives" refers to China "comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society, comprehensively deepening reforms, comprehensively
implementing26 the rule of law, and comprehensively strengthening Party discipline."
Observers say the "Four Comprehensives" are tasks raised at Communist Party of China meetings over the last two years, since President Xi Jinping came to power.
The concept was first mentioned by Xi Jinping in December.
Li Tuo, a politics professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, says the concept carries great significance.
"The concept answers the question of how to practically achieve the great
renewal27 of the Chinese nation. In my own opinion, it is the latest theoretical fruit of the sinicization of Marxism."
The CPC has already recognized Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the "Three Represents" and the Scientific Outlook on Development as the fruits of the sinicization of Marxism, which has been the Party's theoretical guidance.
The People's Daily, the CPC's official newspaper, has published two commentaries
endorsing28 the new concept of "Four Comprehensives." And another three opinion pieces by the newspaper are to follow.
Shortly after President Xi Jinping took helm of the CPC in November 2012, he put forward the concept of "the Chinese Dream," or "the great renewal of the Chinese nation".
Professor Li Tuo says building "a moderately prosperous society" is "a crucial step towards the Chinese dream of great
rejuvenation29."
"Although China has become the second largest economy in the world, there are still many
impoverished30 areas across the country. To build a comprehensive and moderately prosperous society requires the government to give more support to these areas."
The "Four Comprehensives" come as China pays greater attention to improving governance following its decades-long economic miracle.
Observers agree that the concept,
acting31 as a strategic blueprint, will ensure China continues
steadily32 on its path of development.
For CRI, I'm Yin Xiuqi.
Chinese military to further promote rule of law
China's Central Military Commission has put a call out to the People's Liberation Army to promote the rule of law in all areas of the military.
In a new document issued on Thursday, the commission headed by Xi Jinping, says China's military can only achieve its
modernization33 goals if it respects the law.
Investigations37 have already been launched into more than a dozen senior military officials.
Many of them are said to have possible ties to the scandal involving former top military officer Xu Caihou.
Xu Caihou stepped-down as vice-chair of the Central Military Commission in 2013.
He has been under a probe for
graft38 since last year.
China maintains zero
tolerance39 stance on illegal elephant hunting: FM
The Chinese government is putting forward a pledge to continue to maintain its zero-tolerance stance on the illegal ivory trade.
"As a country that has signed the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Fauna42 and
Flora43, China has
abode44 by relevant treaty and conducted extensive global cooperation for a long time. We have also
actively45 cooperated with countries where African elephants live, strengthened personnel training and provided financial support for elephant protection,"
China's State
Forestry46 Administration announced a one-year ban on the imports of African ivory acquired after 1975.
The sale of Ivory
carvings47 are still legal in China, provided they conform to certain regulations.
However, opponents note that it's very difficult to date the age of ivory, which makes China a target for illegal ivory traders.
The illegal trade in ivory has led to warnings that Africa's wild elephant population is facing possible
extinction48 within the next 10 to 15-years.
China asks Philippines to be fair on national
grid49
The Chinese government is calling on authorities in the Philippines to be fair to Chinese firm operating in the country.
The Philippine government has gone on-record this week saying it plans to end State Grid Corporation's involvement in the Philippines' power grid.
Chinese state-owned State Grid holds a 40-percent stake in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.
Philippines' Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla is on-record saying that most Chinese technicians working for Manila will be sent back to China by July.
He's citing national security concerns for ending China's involvement in Philippines' national grid operation.
However, the move is being viewed as a response to the Philippines' dispute with China over the South China Sea.
Ukraine starts heave weapons pullout
The Ukrainian military says it's begun withdrawing heavy weapons from eastern Ukraine as per the Minsk accords.
It comes after the rebels in eastern Ukraine announced a pull-out of their heavy weapons from the battlefield earlier this week.
Andriy Lysenko is a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military.
"For the second day in a row we've been seeing significantly less shelling, so we're approaching the goal of fulfilling the first article of the Minsk accords - the cease-fire. Now we are creating all the necessary conditions to start implementing the second article -
withdrawal50 of heavy weaponry."
Ukrainian authorities say their withdrawal of heavy weapons is being monitored by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
EC plans
negotiation51 to resolve gas supply dispute with Russia and Ukraine
Tensions connected to gas supplies from Russia to Ukraine are starting to peak.
Russian gas giant Gazprom is warning Kiev that it's prepared to cut off gas supplies to Ukraine within the next couple of days if it does not get pre-payments for its supplies.
Gazprom spokesperson Sergei Kupriyanov.
"At current supply levels, prepaid gas will last only until the end of the week. And if a new payment does not come from Kiev, we will naturally not be able to continue supplying gas to Ukraine. Therefore, the main problem that Naftogaz needs to solve now is to look for money to make a new prepayment."
The warning from Russia has raised concern from the Europe that its gas supplies from Kremlin could be disrupted.
One-third of the natural gas that European countries use comes from Russia.
Around 40 percent of those supplies go through Ukraine.
The European Commission says it has invited Russia's and Ukraine's energy ministers for talks.
However, those talks in Brussels aren't scheduled until Monday, which is after Russia's deadline to cut off supplies to Ukraine.
The new threat to cut gas supplies to Ukraine comes amid word Kiev has been cutting power to a number of areas controlled by rebel forces in the east.
Credit rating agency calls for breaking western rating monopoly
A
coalition52 of credit-rating agencies are blasting the recent decision to downgrade Russia by the world's 'big-3' global ratings agencies.
Universal Credit Rating Group is a coalition of China's Dagong, Russia's RusRating and US-based Egan-Jones.
The group is suggesting the recent move by Moody's to downgrade Russia to "Junk" status has been driven by
ideology53.
Alexander Zaitsev is with Russia's RusRating.
"The ratings by Standard & Poor's and Moody's on Russia lacks objectivity. For example, China's Dagong's rating on Russia's sovereign credit rating is much higher than the junk status they gave us."
Guan Jianzhong is the head of China's Dagong Global Credit Rating.
"Russia still hopes that Dagong can play a positive role in Russia's ratings market. They approved Dagong's ratings, in particular, Dagong's recent actions. They think we are fair and objective, believing that we do not apply
ideological54 means when interpreting risks."
Standard & Poor's has also cut its rating on Russia.
Both Moody's and S&P expect the Russian economy to go into recession this year.
While credit ratings for national economies are done without payment and are for
investor55 information only, many investment funds contain default triggers which don't allow them to invest in economies which have "junk" ratings.
This can lead to serious reductions in bond investments, forcing national economies into major cash-flow problems.
The Islamic State militant with a British accent seen in videos showing the beheading of Western hostages has been identified.
A number of news organizations are identifying the masked militant, who has become known as "Jihadi John," as Mohammed Emwazi, a Kuwaiti-born British man in his mid-20s from west London.
He's reportedly been on a watch-list by British Security.
London-based Muslim advocacy group, CAGE, also says there are "some striking similarities" between Emwazi and the man seen in the execution videos.
Asim Qureshi is with the Muslim advocacy group.
"When are we going to finally learn that when we treat people as if they're outsiders they will
inevitably59 feel like outsiders and they will look for belonging elsewhere? Our entire national security strategy for the last thirteen years has only increased
alienation60, has only increased people feeling like they don't belong. Why? Because the
narrative61 of
injustice62 has taken root."
"Jihadi John" first appeared in a video in August, when he
apparently63 killed US journalist James Foley.
Earlier this month, the militant was also featured in a video showing the apparent beheading of Japanese journalist Kenji Goto.
There have been reports suggesting Emwazi was approached at one point by British intelligence service MI5 in an effort to recruit him.
British authorities have declined to comment on the matter, citing
ongoing64 investigations.
It's believed he's been part of the Islamic State since 2012.
Israel's
opposition65 leader urges Netanyahu to cancel planned speech to U.S. Congress
The main Israeli opposition has launched a political attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of his controversial planned speech before the US Congress next week.
The head of the coalition Zionist Union, Isaac Herzog, along with coalition partner Tsipi Livni, are pleading with Netanyahu not to go ahead with his March 3rd address to US lawmakers.
Herzog says if Netanyahu goes ahead with the speech, it will cause "strategic damage" to Israel's ties with the United States.
Netanyahu has been invited by the Republican leadership in Congress to deliver a speech before lawmakers, where he's expected to take a hard-line stand against Iran.
The speech itself has been
coordinated66 behind the US government's back by the new Republican leadership in Congress.
US National Security
Advisor67 Susan Rice is warning Netanyahu's speech is likely to have a "destructive" role in the ties between the US and Israel.
The White House has been pleading with both US lawmakers and the Israeli side to refrain from
partisan68 political moves as Iran and the world powers try to negotiate a solution to the Iranian nuclear dispute.
Netanyahu's planned speech before the US Congress will come just two-weeks before the Israeli elections.
FCC Approves Net Neutrality Internet Rules
U.S. regulators has approved the toughest rules yet on Internet service providers, brining in rules to ensure the fair treatment of all web traffic through US networks.
The Federal Communications Commission has approved new "net neutrality" rules that prohibit broadband service providers from control download speeds or offering faster service in return for payment.
FCC chair Tom Wheeler:
"The action that we take today is an irrefutable reflection of the principal that no one -- whether government or
corporate69 -- should control free and open access to the internet. The internet is the most powerful and
pervasive70 platform on the planet. It is simply too important to be left without rules and without a
referee71 on the field."
The new regulations come after a year of jostling between cable and telecom companies and net neutrality advocates, which have included web startups.
The new policy reclassifies broadband, both
fixed72 and mobile, as more heavily regulated "telecommunications services," which is more like a traditional telephone service.
Broadband in the US had been classified as a more lightly regulated "information service".
The shift gives the FCC more authority to police various types of deals between service providers and content companies.
Cable and telecom providers have argued the stricter measures will discourage investment and
stifle73 innovation.
It is expected they plan to battle the new "net neutrality" regulations through
lawsuits74.
Biz Reports
Stocks
Anchor:
First, a quick look at the closing numbers across North America and Europe.
Joining me on the desk, Luo Wen.
Reporter:
U.S. stocks close mixed amid roughly downbeat economic data on Thursday with energy shares dragging on the Dow and S&P, while the Nasdaq gets a lift from merger news.
The S&P 500 energy index dropped 1.8 percent as U.S. crude oil
futures75 fell 5.5 percent to settle at about 48 U.S. dollars a barrel, pressured by rising
inventories76 in the United States.
Among the top boosts for the Nasdaq and S&P 500 were shares of Avago Technologies, which jumped nearly 15 percent.
The company reached a deal to acquire Emulex for 8 dollars per share.
Emulex shares surged almost 25 percent on the news.
Also among the day's top performers, Salesforce.com shares climbed about 12 percent.
The cloud software company reported quarterly
earnings77 and raised its full-year revenue forecast.
At close,
The Dow Jones ended down slightly.
The Nasdaq trimmed about a fraction of a percent.
While the S&P 500 finished up about two fifths of a percent.
Over in Europe,
Stocks there posted modest gains as the German unemployment rate stayed at a record low in February.
At the closing bell,
The UK's FTSE 100 edged up a fifth of a percent.
Germany's DAX gained one percent.
And France's CAC 40 rose about half of a percent.
Sinopec Denies Rumors of Merger
Chinese oil giant Sinopec is refuting reports of a possible merger with either the China National
Petroleum78 Corporation or China National
Offshore79 Oil Corporation.
Media reports have been circulating the Chinese government has been considering a merger of its state-owned oil and gas companies to cut costs and
streamline80 operations.
It's widely believed Chinese authorities are working on
structural81 reforms in the oil and gas
sector82, which are expected to be released sometime in the next few months.
However, Sinopec says there are currently no plans in-place for a merger with either CNPC or CNOOC.
Structural reforms in the oil and gas sector has been high on the Chinese government's agenda since last year.
Policy-makers have been calling for changes in both energy production and consumption, given the changing global energy market.
Anchor:
New stats are suggesting the high-tech industry in China appears to be
helping84 drive the country's economic restructuring.
New analysis shows the high-tech industry grew 12 percent year on year last year,
accounting85 for 10 percent of the country's overall industrial value-added output.
The rising expansion of the high-tech and modern service industries is leading some to suggest China's economy is now in a "middle to high end" stage of development.
For more on China's high-tech development, we're joined on the line by Gao Shang,
analyst86 with Beijing-based Guantong Futures.
RMB Second Most Used Documentary Credit Currency
A report by SWIFT, or the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications, shows the renminbi has strengthened its position to become the world's second most used currency for documentary credit transactions.
Letters of credit and documentary collections are widely used instruments to finance trade across Asia.
The Chinese currency's share of documentary credits has increased from 7.3 percent to 9.4 percent the past 2-years.
This puts Renminbi 2nd behind the U.S. dollar.
However, the US dollar makes up nearly 80 percent of all SWIFT transactions.
The Chinese government has outlined its plans for Internet infrastructure construction for this year.
Authorities say an additional 80-million Chinese homes will be hooked up to
fiber88 optic connections through 2015.
More than 600-thousand base stations are also going to be built in an attempt to extend the existing 4G network to all counties and developed towns.
Network improvements and price reductions are also part of the plans, with authorities saying this should help generate new business in areas such as e-commerce and Internet financing.
The information consumption sector generated revenues of around 450 billion U.S. dollars in China last year.
This is up 18 percent from a year earlier.
China Spends Big Reviving Northeast
New figures show the Chinese government has poured in more than 60-billion U.S. dollars in the country's northeast since the government announced an action plan to assist the area's
sagging89 economy in August.
The money has been directed toward 60 different projects, two of which have already been completed.
Another 63 projects are said to be in the
pipeline90 for this year.
The northeast of China was once this country's industrial base.
However, years of mis-management and a lack of industrial upgrades has turned the area into the so-called rust-belt, where many large-scale industrial facilities first put into operation in the 1950's remain
obsolete91 or shut down.
Bright Food Eyes over 70% in Israeli Firm
China's Bright Food Group is negotiating to raise its stake in Israel's largest food company, Tnuva, to over 70 percent.
The deal is expected to be concluded in April.
The exact amount Bright Food is investing, and what stake it will hold in the end, will only be revealed after the contract is signed.
Bright Food originally planned to buy a 56 percent stake in the Israeli company from Apax Partners, a London-based private
equity92 firm.
The delayed deal is reportedly to be worth nearly 1.3 billion U.S. dollars.
Headline News
Chinese military to further promote rule of law
China's Central Military Commission has put a call out to the People's Liberation Army to promote the rule of law in all areas of the military.
In a new document issued on Thursday, the commission headed by Xi Jinping, says China's military can only achieve its modernization goals if it respects the law.
Xi Jinping is vowing to eradicate corruption within the 2.3 million-strong armed forces.
Investigations have already been launched into more than a dozen senior military officials.
Many of them are said to have possible ties to the scandal involving former top military officer Xu Caihou.
Xu Caihou stepped-down as vice-chair of the Central Military Commission in 2013.
He has been under a probe for graft since last year.
China asks Philippines to be fair on national grid
The Chinese government is calling on authorities in the Philippines to be fair to Chinese firm operating in the country.
The Philippine government has gone on-record this week saying it plans to end State Grid Corporation's involvement in the Philippines' power grid.
Chinese state-owned State Grid holds a 40-percent stake in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.
Philippines' Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla is on-record saying that most Chinese technicians working for Manila will be sent back to China by July.
He's citing national security concerns for ending China's involvement in Philippines' national grid operation.
However, the move is being viewed as a response to the Philippines' dispute with China over the South China Sea.
China's population tops 1.36 billion
New stats show China's population topped 1.36-billion at the close of last year, an increase of 7.1 million people compared to 2013.
The new figures have been outlined in a National Economic and Social Development study.
It shows the urban population is nearing 750-million, accounting for over 54 percent of the total.
The number of migrant workers came in at 253 million as of the end of last year.
A former aide to Osama Bin Laden has been found guilty of plotting the al-Qaeda bombing of US embassies in east Africa in 1998 that killed more than 200 people.
Khalid al-Fawwaz, a Saudi national, has been convicted by a US Federal Court in New York.
He's likely facing life behind bars at his sentencing.
The 52-year-old, described as Osama Bin Laden's spokesperson in London, was extradited from the UK to the US in 2012.
The bombings of the US embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar Es
Salaam96 in Tanzania in 1998 officially put al-Qaeda on the United States' national
radar97, prompting then-US President Bill Clinton to launch the first attacks against the group through cruise missile attacks into Afghanistan, 3-years before 9/11.
Newspaper Picks
SHANGHAI DAILY
Headline
China tops global art sales
Summary
New data shows China has maintained its top place in the global art sale market through last year.
Works worth more than 5.6 billion dollars were sold at
auction98 during through 2014 in China.
CHINA DAILY
Headline
New fighter jets
Summary
Military observers have released several pictures of the J-10B fighter jets, suggesting that they will soon be delivered to the Chinese air force.
The J-10B fighter jets are an improved
variant99 of the J-10A, which are also Chinese-built.
SHENZHEN DAILY
Headline
Summary
Authorities in Shenzhen are considering linking the amount of money drivers have to pay taxi companies each month to their income.
The city's transportation commission says its looking into a profit-sharing scheme between taxi companies and drivers.
THE BEIJING NEWS
Headline
Changdian temple fair in Taiwan
Summary
The famous Beijing Changdian temple fair is being held in Taipei later on this Friday.
The Changdian Temple Fair is said to be an
authentic101 Beijing event.
It's mostly known for paintings and
calligraphy102, as well as antiques, children's toys and food.
BEIJING TIMES
Headline
New energy parking fees
Summary
Beijing authorities are planning to issue a new policy to allow new-energy vehicles may pay fewer parking fees and
tolls103.
The idea is to provide more
incentives104 to get more people behind the wheel of greener cars in China.
Special Reports
HKIFF announced opening and closing films
Anchor:
It's been announced the film "
Murmur105 of the Hearts," directed by Taiwan actress and director Sylvia Chang, is going to kick off this year's Hong Kong International Film Festival later next month.
The festival itself is set to run for 15 days and close with Hong Kong filmmaker Philip Yung's "Port of Call."
CRI's Hong Kong correspondent Li Jing has more.
Report:
The opening and closing films for the Festival has been announced on Thursday in Hong Kong. As one of the most established and largest film festivals in Asia, Hong Kong International Film Festival offers audiences not only
mainstream106 productions but also engaging the public in film culture.
Dr. Wilfred Wong is the Chairman of the Hong Kong International Film Festival.
"Our theme this year is 'The World Comes to Hong Kong", and indeed we will screen over 260 films from 56 countries and regions. 78 of the movies will be international or Asian premieres."
Sylvia Chang is an internationally recognized director, producer and actress, whose latest work Murmur of the Hearts tells a story about growing up and letting go. The cast includes Isabella Leong,Joseph Chang, and Lee Sinjie.
"Isabella Leong has not been filming for a long time, I gave her the script and asked her whether she liked it, she told me she did and agreed to play the role. So I think it is destiny that I could have her in my movie."
The closing film Port of Call is based on a true story, which looks the effects of a crime on the families of both the victim and the perpetrator. It stars popular leading Hong Kong actor Aaron Kwok. The upcoming director Philip Yung says Aaron Kwok is more than handsome in the movie.
"Aaron Kwok has played in many criminal movies before and he always looks handsome. In the past, he played as a hero but he is becoming more low-profile and mature. In this movie, his character is warm and gentle. As a new director myself, I am grateful for his trust. "
Several world-renowned directors will visit Hong Kong for screenings of their films and hold public master class sessions. And a session will be established to encourage young filmmakers to showcase their work internationally.
The festival is Hong Kong's largest cultural event that reaches an audience of over 600-thousand.
For CRI, this is Li Jing in Hong Kong.
Sports
Liaoning opens with CBA playoff win; NBA preview
In basketball,
The first game of the best-of-5 CBA semi-final between Qingdao and Liaoning took place last night in Shangdong.
And it was the Hunters drawing first blood
Liaoning, down by 15 going into the half, turned their play around through the final two quarters, including 31-points in the final quarter, for a come-from-behind 106-95 victory.
Liaoning now takes the 1-0 series back to their home turf for Game 2 on Saturday.
Later on tonight, Game 2 of the other CBA semi-final match-up will take place in Dongguan.
The Guangdong Southern Tigers will be looking to
rebound110 after dropping their opener in Beijing on Wednesday night.
With the next 2 games in the series in Guangdong, the Southern Tigers will be under pressure for home wins, because if Beijing can steal at least one game on the road, the defending champions will be in a great position to defend their title when the series moves back to Beijing for Game-4.
Tip off tonight in Dongguan is at 7:30.
Very light schedule in the NBA this morning, with just 2-games on the
slate111.
It's LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in a tough test at home this morning as they entertain the NBA's best team, the Golden State
Warriors112.
The Cavs, winners of three-straight, currently sit 4th in the Eastern Conference playoff picture, just a half-game back of 3rd place Chicago and 1.5-back of Toronto in 2nd.
Golden State sits strongly in 1st place in the Western Conference, 3.5-games ahead of 2nd place Memphis.
The other match-up has Oklahoma City on the road in
Phoenix113 to take on the Suns.
Oklahoma City currently hold the 8th and final playoff spot in the West, while Phoenix sits in 10th, 3-games back of the Thunder.
Quarter Final action at WTA Qatar Open; ATP Dubai
In tennis,
On the women's side at the Qatar Open in Doha,
Top seed Petra Kvitova has been bounced from the tournament, going down in the quarter-finals to 9th seeded Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain in a 3-set match.
Kvitova took the first set 6-3.
But from there, it was all Suarez Navarro.
The Spaniard blanked Kvitova in the 2nd set 6-love, then took home the victory with a 6-3 third set.
Kvitova's loss wasn't the only upset on the night in Qatar.
The Czech Republic's Lucie Safarova is also into the semi-finals, after easily dumping Germany's Andrea Petkovic 6-2, 6-1.
Venus Williams is also through after getting past 4th seeded Agnieska Radwanksa in a 3-set affair.
And it was Belarrussian Victoria Azarenka surprising 3rd seeded Caroline Wozniaki in straight-sets, 6-3, 6-1.
Over on the men's side, at the Dubai Duty Free event,
A major upset last night in the quarter-finals.
World number-84, 18-year old Borna Coric of Croatia, is into the semi-finals at Dubai after rolling past 3rd seed Andy Murray in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3.
"I was playing really good, I was feeing very good and I am just happy to be in the semi-finals. I just beat Andy Murray. So yeah, I am feeling quite amazing."
Murray made 55 unforced errors.
This is Coric's 2nd ATP tour semi-final appearance, after making into the final-4 last year in Basel after getting past Raphael Nadal in that event.
Coric will next take on defending tournament Champion Roger Federer.
Federer is into the semi-finals in Dubai after his quarter-final competitor, France's Richard Gasquet,
retired114 from their match after going down in the first set 6-1.
The other quarter-final matches have seen top seed Novak Djokovic cruising into the Semi-Finals after a decisive 6-1, 6-1 win over World Number 100 Marcel Ilhan of Turkey.
And 4th seed Tomas Berdych is through after getting past Ukraine's Sergiy Stakhovsky in a 3-set battle.
In football,
Fairly quiet night last night in European football action, save for too many matches to talk about in the Europa League.
However, this weekend should prove to be an interesting one in the British Premier League.
Manchester City, currently second on the table behind league-leaders Chelsea, will have a tough match ahead of them this weekend as they battle Liverpool.
Liverpool, currently sitting in 6th, are among a group of 5 clubs separated by just 4 points right now between 3rd and 7th on the table.
Other matches on Sunday have League-leading Chelsea takes on Tottenham, who currently hold 7th.
Tomorrow, the line-up is a little less exciting near the top of the table, save for Manchester United, currently in 4th, taking on Sunderland.
5th place Southampton will be up against West Bromwich Albion.
It's Burnley hoping to pull itself out of
relegation116 as they take on Swansea.
Its
Hull119 taking on Stoke, while Crystal Palace is up against West Ham United in a pair of mid-table match-ups.
Pair of Honda-sponsored events dominate golf world
In Golf,
An expensive weekend for Japanese carmaker Honda, as its the title sponsor for both the PGA and LPGA stops this weekend.
On the women's side, Round two of the Honda LPGA Thailand event is set to get underway later this morning in Chonburi.
Taiwan's Tseng Yani shares the lead with 2-others after firing an impressive opening round 6-under-66.
The former world number-1, who has been struggling with her play the past couple of years, is tied for the lead with American's Stacy Lewis and Brittany Lang.
Guangzhou-native Feng Shanshan, playing in her 2nd tournament of the year, currently sits in a fairly good position after round-1, carding a 2-under-70 to sit tied for 17th, putting her in a good position to make it into the weekend.
Defending tournament champ Anna Nordquist finished up her first round with an even-par-72.
On the men's side, the Honda Classic's first round is just coming to an end in Florida.
37-year old American Jim Herman holds the first-round lead, firing a 5-under-65 for a one-stroke lead over fellow American Brendan Steele.
American Martin Flores and Irishman Padrig Harrington sit tied for 3rd at minus-3.
World number-1 Rory McIlroy had a very difficult opening round, and now finds himself in a tough spot to even make it into the weekend.
The Northern Englishman fired a 3-over-73 to put him tied for 79th.
He wasn't the only one with a rough day in south Florida.
Tour veteran Ernie Els also struggled.
The "big easy" appeared tense, firing an open round 7-over-77.
Chicago to begin rest of NHL season without Kane
In the National Hockey League,
A fairly busy schedule this morning, with 9-games on the go.
Among them, the Chicago Blackhawks are set to begin the rest of their season without top scorer Patrick Kane this morning when they take on the Florida Panthers.
Kane underwent season-ending surgery on Wednesday to fix a broken collarbone he sustained in a hit in Tuesday night's game against the same Panthers club the Blackhawks are on taking on this morning in Florida.
Alex Petkovic is expected to be in the line-up this morning, saying he isn't worried about what might happen in today's game.
Petkovic is the player who cross-checked Kane into the boards on Tuesday, which will likely make him a likely target for retribution by Chicago, even though he insists the play was unintentional and innocent.
Kane, who was tied for the lead in league scoring with 64-points before going down, might only be available to return to the Chigaco line-up if the Blackhawks end up going deep into the playoffs.
In other action this morning,
The Vancouver Canucks are in
Buffalo120 to take on the Sabres. Vancouver's march to the post-season was also dealt a significant blow this week, with the club confirming that starting goaltender Ryan
Miller121 is going to be out 4 to 6-weeks with a 'lower body injury.'
The Montreal Canadians are on the road in Columbus to take on the Blue Jackets.
The high-flying New York
Rangers122 are at home to the Arizona Coyotes.
Philadelphia is on the road in Toronto to take on the Leafs.
Its St. Louis on the road in Winnipeg.
League-leading Nashville is at home to Minnesota, with the Wild holding on to the final wildcard playoff spot in the West.
And in the later West Coast games, its Los Angeles at home to Ottawa, while San Jose entertains Detroit.
Clarkson, Jagr moved in NHL trades
In off-ice NHL news,
The Florida Panthers have moved to try to
bolster123 their run toward trying to make the playoffs.
The Panthers have acquired veteran forward Jaromir Jagr from the New
Jersey124 Devils.
Florida has picked up the sure-to-be Hall of Fame 43-year old in exchange for a 2nd round draft pick and a
conditional125 3rd rounder.
The Panthers are just on the outside of the playoff picture, but just 2-points back of Boston for the 2nd Wild Card slot in the Eastern Conference.
And the blood-letting continues in Toronto.
The
Maple126 Leafs, which have been on a massive downward spiral since before Christmas, have traded forward David Clarkson to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for veteran Nathan Horton.
Clarkson, acquired by the Leafs two years ago, has been struggling with the Leafs, has just 10-goals and 5-assists in 58-games with Toronto this year.
He is also in the 2nd year of a 7-year contract where he earns an average of 5.25-million dollars a year.
In exchange, Toronto gets veteran Nathan Horton, who hasn't played this year because of a back injury, meaning Toronto frees-up significant salary cap space for additional moves.
Sri Lanka bests Bangladesh at ICC
And in Cricket,
Action from the ICC World Cup yesterday,
It was Sri Lanka getting the better of Bangladesh, going 332-for-1 to take the match by 92-runs.
Entertainment
Writer accuses "Wolf Totem" of misrepresenting his culture
Chinese movie "Wolf Totem" an adaptation of the best-selling novel, has been criticized by a Mongolian writer.
Guo Xuebo, a member of the China Writers' Association, described the movie's use of wolves to
symbolize127 his culture as "against humanity."
He claimed on his blog the history and culture of the
ethnic128 group has been
tampered129 with in both the novel and the movie of Wolf Totem, where wolves are labeled as the totem of Mongolians.
Adding that, wolves have never been the totem of Mongolians.
The film, directed by French director Jean Jacques Annaud is adapted from Chinese writer Jiang Rong's novel that was published in 2004.
"Wolf Totem" was one of the most popular films at the cinema over the Spring Festival holiday, raking in over 38 million U.S. dollars at the box office between February 19th and 23rd.
Season 3 of "House of Cards" premieres today
Season 3 of the highly anticipated Netflix drama "House of Cards" premieres today.
Kevin Spacey returns as master-manipulator politician Frank Underwood, in the hugely popular show.
Season 3 picks up where season 2 left off with Frank in his new role as U.S. President.
To celebrate the launch of the new season, Spacey was in London for a premiere at the Empire cinema in Leicester Square.
At the premiere he
spoke41 of the poularity of the characters.
"These are kinds of characters that audiences are fascinated by, so I don't think Frank is particularly unique in that way, it's a long, long line of audiences being fascinated by these kinds of figures."
The premiere event was also held to help raise money for the Old Vic Theatre in London, where Spacey has been
artistic130 director since 2004.
"House of Cards" Season 3 is released on Netflix today.
Benedict Cumberbatch Pens Letter for Funeral of 'Sherlock Holmes' Superfan
British actor Benedict Cumberbatch has sent a personal letter to the family of a late Sherlock Holmes fan.
The funeral for 14-year-old superfan Eve Shepherd, took place in England earlier this week.
Though the in-demand actor could not attend the funeral because he was "filming the show she loved," he sent her family his heartfelt condolences.
He concluded the letter, which was read aloud to funeral attendees, with "God rest her soul. With all my love and sympathies, Benedict."
Shepherd's parents said she was a longtime fan of the show and would have been elated to know that Cumberbatch wrote her a personalized letter.
160 pianists qualify for International Chopin Piano Competition
The competition line-up for the 17th edition of the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition has been announced.
And a total of 160 pianists from 27 countries and regions will compete in the event.
The majority of participants represent Asia, including 28 from China, 24 from South Korea, and 25 from Japan.
Poland, as the host country, is represented by 21 people.
In April, a public selection will take part in the Warsaw National Philharmonic after which 80 names will make it to the shortlist.
The International Chopin Piano Competition is one of the oldest music competitions in the world.
The finals will be held in Warsaw between October 1st and 23rd.
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