Indian Leader Looks to Expand Family of 39 Wives, 94 Children

After marrying 39 women and fathering nearly 100 children, a tribal Christian cult leader in India said he wants to expand his family by walking down the aisle a few more times, the Hindustan Times reported Monday, citing the Indo-Asian News Service.

Zionnghaka Chana, 67, from the eastern city of Mizoram, has 94 children, 14 daughters-in-law and 33 grandchildren.

The family forms part of the "Channa" cult, named after Zionnghaka's father, who had 50 wives.

Zionnghaka said he would like to push toward his father's tally of wives. "I can travel beyond the borders of Mizoram or even India to marry, as that would help me to expand my family," he said.

Other Christian leaders in the region have decried the cult's ways, saying that true Christianity does not allow polygamy.

But Zionnghaka's family members and wives -- who share his bed on a rotational basis -- said they are happy with their lives.

"We are all happy, and like any other church, we believe in the existence of God, but the only distinctive difference is that our denomination allows us to marry more than one wife," according to Nunparliana, one of Zionnghaka's sons.

Floods reach Bangkok airport

Flood waters in Bangkok have reached Don Muang Airport, one of the Thai capital's two main airports and home to the flood relief operation command, which may have to move to another location, according to the governor.

In addition to Don Muang, residents in five other areas should prepare for floods, move their belongings to upper floors and take shelter at evacuation centers, Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said in a news conference on Monday.

Thammasat University's gymnasium, which has been used as an evacuation center, is also flooded and without electricity and is itself being evacuated, the governor added.

As a remedy, about 4,000 people will be bused to Rajamangala Stadium in central Bangkok with the help of 300-400 volunteers, according to the governor.

In the east, the industrial estates of Lat Krabang and Bang Chan remained under threat, and volunteers were sought for help with sandbagging.

The governor urged the public not to panic and to follow his reports closely.

In an interview with CNN on Sunday Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said authorities were trying to control the water levels by using all the dams and dikes to cope with an unusually heavy rainy season.

Protecting Bangkok was a priority because it comprises the economic heart of Thailand, she said. "But it doesn't mean we have no concern for the people who are suffering from the flooding," she added.
The decision to divert water through canals in Bangkok means parts of the city and its surrounding suburbs, such as Rangsit, are flooded.

Residents have resorted to moving out of flooded homes by boat or anything that could float -- or wading through water with plastic bags of belongings balanced on their heads or pets tucked into clothes.

The government has called the flooding the worst to afflict the nation in half a century and said some areas might require more than a month before waters recede.

More high tides are expected in the coming week, which could cause rivers to back up, further raising water levels, according to Thailand's Flood Relief Operations Command.

The government has set up more than 1,700 shelters nationwide, and more than 113,000 people have taken refuge.

Many residents waded through dirty water in the capital in recent days, as they made a desperate attempt to save their belongings.

The flooding has already killed 356 people, with nearly 9 million others affected, authorities said.

Overall damage from the floods have risen and could top $6 billion, with the worst yet to come as the waters destroy shops and paralyze factories nationwide, the Thai Finance Ministry said.

Thailand derives a significant portion of its revenue from tourism.

Floodwaters Displace Families in Thailand

 Supanee Pansuwan has already picked up and moved four times since fast-rising floodwaters began swallowing her home in central Thailand a month ago. Now, as the murky waters threaten the shelter on the outskirts of Bangkok where she's lived for the past two weeks, she's being asked to flee again.

"I believe the water is chasing me," she said Monday, sitting on the floor of a dark university gymnasium that has served as one of Thailand's main evacuation centers since the worst floods in half a century swamped many people's lives. "Anywhere I go, the water will follow me. So if I make another move, I think the water will follow me again."

Supanee's fears and confusion over where to go and how bad the flooding is going to get are shared by many Thais. Since the floodwaters began inundating areas north of the capital of 9 million two weeks ago, Bangkok residents have been on edge while watching the waters creep closer to the city center each day.

Bangkok Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra warned residents in a televised address late Sunday that a large volume of water is surging forward faster than expected and is threatening six districts as it moves closer to the city's more developed areas, including neighborhoods near Chatuchuk weekend market, a popular shopping stop for tourists.

Sukhumbhand said the waters also are expected to swamp the Don Muang area just north of the city proper. The area is home to Bangkok's old airport, which is now being used as the headquarters for the anti-flood effort and as a shelter for evacuees.

Facing public pressure and scrutiny from the media, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra tried to downplay any notion that her government was not being upfront with information, following a number of upbeat statements that have conflicted with Sukhumbhand's more menacing assessments. The conflict has a political tinge since Sukhumbhand is a prominent member of the opposition Democrat Party, which was ousted from power by Yingluck just a few months ago.

"This is the third month that water came into Thailand, since July, in the form of four consecutive storms," Yingluck told reporters Monday. "Normally, if one storm hits, the runoff will be drained off from the dams and there will be a break. We've never hidden anything from the people. We've informed them about every solution we've taken."

Yingluck said over the weekend that the waters may take up to six weeks to recede to manageable proportions around Bangkok, while the flood response agency said the threat that floodwaters will inundate the capital could ease by early November as record-high levels in the rivers carrying torrents of water from the country's north begin to decline.

On Monday, cars were double-parked on parts of an elevated highway near Don Muang to escape the water. The smell of raw sewage mixed with the swift currents sweeping across parts of the main highway a bit farther north in Pathum Thani province near Thammasat University, where the military was helping to evacuate hundreds of flood victims who carried their few belongings slung across their backs in garbage bags.

Of the 4,000 people who had sought refuge at the university -- now surrounded by water 5 feet (1.6 meters) deep -- 700 headed for Bangkok's National Stadium on Monday. More than 100,000 others have been left homeless nationwide since heavy monsoon rains began overpowering the country's network of rivers and canals, submerging an area roughly the size of the U.S. state of Connecticut.

More than 100 patients from hospitals in Bangkok, including Thammasat University Hospital, were moved over the weekend to regional facilities, the government said Monday.

The flooding began in August in northern Thailand and has killed 356 people and delivered an economic blow to industry and agriculture. Damage is already estimated at $6 billion, but that could double if Bangkok is badly hit.

Anxiety is high, as nervous Bangkok residents scramble to build sandbag barricades around their homes and businesses, not sure if or when the water will come. Drinking water, rice, canned food and toilet paper is hard to find in many supermarkets as shoppers race to hoard supplies.

Those like Supanee, who is from the old capital of Ayutthaya, which has been submerged for more than two weeks, are no longer worried about will come, but now fear what they will find when they finally go home. The water came so fast that Supanee's family didn't have time to move their car, and although they managed to drag most of their furniture and electronics upstairs, it still wasn't high enough. The floodwater surged chest-high on the second floor.

From there, the extended family of seven fled to a Buddhist temple until it was overrun with water, and then were forced to leave a tent at city hall. They later bounced from one gym to another at Thammasat University, and are now determined to ride it out there, despite risking food and water shortages to stay put. Electricity has already been cut.

"It's quite hard to move to another place," Supanee said, smiling, while trying to stay positive about the fact that her family will now have more room. "I'm tired of moving."

North Korea seek to restart six-party talks

U.S. officials held a "positive" meeting Monday with a North Korean delegation in an effort to restart talks with the reclusive nation over ending Pyongyang's nuclear program, the U.S. special representative for North Korea policy said.

The decision by the United States to launch the two days of discussions in Geneva, Switzerland, stems in part from recent meetings between North Korea and South Korea, a senior State Department official told reporters traveling with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Afghanistan last week.

"We are moving in a positive direction," U.S. Ambassador Stephen Bosworth said from the Kempinski Hotel in Geneva after the meeting concluded. "We have narrowed some differences but we still have differences that we have to resolve."

The day started with both nations presenting their positions on the resumption of talks. Clifford Hart, U.S. special envoy to the six-party talks on North Korea, called the presentations "useful."

The groups also dined together for dinner before adjourning for the night, said Bosworth, who is leading the U.S. delegation. The North Korean delegation is led by First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan, Hart said.

Discussions will continue Tuesday.

"As you know our goal is to find a solid foundation on which to launch a resumption of discussions both bilateral and multilateral and we will continue to work hard to bring that about," Bosworth said.

At a previous meeting between the two countries in July, Washington laid out a list of things it was looking for from Pyongyang to demonstrate its seriousness about abandoning its nuclear ambitions, the State Department official told reporters last week.

One of the things the United States was seeking is North Korean engagement with South Korea, the official said, adding that a recent "constructive meeting" between the two countries helped get the parties to this point.

The official said there is concern that if the United States or South Korea do not engage with North Korea, it could lead to miscalculation or provocations on the part of North Korea.
The official said the meeting in Geneva would give the United States an opportunity to see how the North Koreans absorbed what the Americans laid out in July, and what North Korea's intentions are.

Deputy State Department spokesman Mark Toner called the meetings "exploratory" in nature.

"We are not seeking to have talks for talks' sake," Toner said. It's "safe to say we are looking for concrete actions" by North Korea before resuming the six-party talks, which have been dormant since 2008, Toner said.

The six-party talks are a vehicle launched under former President George W. Bush to negotiate an end to Pyongyang's nuclear program. They involve both Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia. At various points, progress seemed to be made, only to have North Korea either pull out over disagreements on verifiable declarations of their nuclear program or engage in what some U.S. officials described as belligerent behavior that scuttled the talks.

The United States has been in contact on a regular basis with all sides involved in the six-party talks, Toner said.

Washington has called repeatedly for Pyongyang to undertake a series of prerequisite steps, such as halting missile and nuclear tests, and further development of nuclear weapons, to show it is interested in coming back to talks.

At a news conference this month with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, U.S. President Barack Obama said, "If Pyongyang continues to ignore its international obligations, it will invite even more pressure and isolation. If the North abandons its quest for nuclear weapons and moves towards denuclearization, it will enjoy greater security and opportunity for its people."
After taking office in 2009, Obama was met with a set of provocations. North Korea test-fired missiles and conducted a new round of nuclear tests. A small opening toward the resumption of talks was reversed after North Korea was accused of sinking a South Korean naval vessel in the Yellow Sea, followed by their artillery shelling of a South Korean island in November 2010 in which two civilians were killed.

Bosworth will step down from his position after the meetings and will be succeeded by Glyn Davies, the U.S. ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, diplomatic sources said.

The State Department did not give a specific reason for Bosworth's decision to step down, but Toner said he believes it is a "personal" decision. In addition to his role at the State Department, Bosworth has also maintained his position on the faculty at the Fletcher School of Diplomacy at Tufts University outside Boston.

Hart, a foreign policy adviser to the U.S. Navy and an expert on China and Taiwan, will become the new chief U.S. negotiator to the six-party talks and will report to Davies in his new role.

A woman rescued bleeding toddler left for dead

Money rewards are coming in for a woman who rescued a bleeding toddler left for dead last week by multiple passersby in southern China.
Two hit-and-run drivers rammed into Wang Yue, 2, one after another, as she walked on a narrrow street in Foshan.
More than a dozen people walked, cycled or drove past as she lay bleeding in a busy market, sparking a global outcry on the state of morality in a fast-changing society.
Wang is in critical condition, her brain showing little activity despite earlier subtle movements in the lower body, said her mother, Qu Feifei.


But despite the many villains in the story, it has also turned the spotlight on an unlikely hero: A 58-year-old scavenger.
In the video that has sparked outrage globally, Chen Xianmei moves the baby to safety, becoming an instant symbol of understated decency in a nation analysts say is obsessed with climbing the economic ladder.


"I didn't think of anything at the time," Chen said Sunday. "I just wanted to save the girl."
Two government offices in Guangdong province, where the hit-and-run occurred, offered the Good Samaritan a total of 20,000 yuan (US $3,135), according to state-run Xinhua news agency.
Wang's mother has said she does not understand the behavior of the passersby, but wants to focus on the positive.


"Granny Chen represents the best of human nature," she said of her daughter's rescuer. "It's the nicest and most natural side of us."
On Sina Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, the story continued to be the No. 1 topic after generating more than 4.5 million posts along with a "stop apathy" online campaign.
As the outrage over morality continues, a steady procession of well-wishers pours in, offering gifts, money and support to the toddler's family.

Britain's queen on 10-day visit to Australia

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II arrived in Canberra Wednesday for her 16th -- and possibly last -- official visit to Australia.
The 85-year-old monarch will open the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth on October 28 as part of a 10-day visit to the country with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh.
The reaction in the media and among most Australians has been warm and respectful, despite the lingering issue of republicanism in a country where the queen is the official head of state -- though this is largely ceremonial.


"There is an enormous amount of respect and goodwill [towards the queen], regardless of political views," said Phillip Coorey, chief political correspondent at the Sydney Morning Herald.
"Even people who are republicans like the queen. She's a person who's hard to dislike. She's been present throughout their lifetimes and their parents' lifetimes."
Coorey said he expects this visit to be far more emotional, given that this is widely considered to be her last.
Since a landmark 1999 referendum when more than half of all Australians polled voted against republicanism, the issue has been mostly sidelined on the nation's political agenda.
A recent opinion poll revealed that 55% of Australians support the monarchy, while 34% support a republic-- the lowest percentage in 23 years.


Coorey suggested the issue of republicanism was "very much on hold," with republicans unlikely to press their agenda while Queen Elizabeth is on the throne.
He suggested the "best time for [republicans] to make their move" would be when Prince Charles, who is not as popular among ordinary Australians, inherits the throne, compared with his hugely popular son, Prince William, who is next in line.
William's marriage to long-time girlfriend Catherine Middleton earlier this year revitalized popular interest and affection towards the monarchy around the world. One Australian newspaper -- The Advertiser -- said the live broadcast of the royal wedding "forc[ed] Friday night football to second television status in most households."


"I know Prince William's visit really gave people a shot in the arm after the terrible disasters we had and I'm sure that people will feel the same when they see Queen Elizabeth here...," Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told the Australian Associated Press, referring to the floods that devastated much of the state at the start of the year.


Ultimately, the throne's occupant is but one factor in determining the viability of a republic.
Coorey noted that both Australia's prime minister and opposition leader would need to be republicans in order to carry enough votes for a successful referendum. Tony Abbott, the current opposition leader who is widely expected to become the next prime minister, is a staunch monarchist.


But even if Australia becomes a republic, there is no agreement among republicans about what kind of republic to have. "I think it's going to be a long long time [before Australia becomes a republic]," predicted Coorey. "Australia is a very conservative country; people here don't like change."

More than 700 dead as flooding hits countries of southeast Asia

At least 745 people have died in flooding in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and the Philippines since July, the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific said.


Thailand has been hit the hardest, with 315 people killed in that time frame, officials said.
Monsoon rains across Thailand have affected millions of people in 61 of its provinces, the country's Flood Relief Operation Command reported.
Cambodia, meanwhile, reported 247 dead since July.

Earth Quake shakes Papua New Guinea

A magnitude 6.7 earthquake rattled Papua New Guinea early Friday afternoon, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The quake was centered about 200 miles north-northeast of Port Moresby and had a depth of 28 miles.
No tsunami warning was issued, according to the Tsunami Warning Center.
Papua New Guinea is on the so-called Ring of Fire, an arc of fault lines circling the Pacific Basin that is prone to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

The African dictators warned: 'Your time is up'

Sudanese billionaire and communications mogul Mo Ibrahim has issued a warning to African leaders clinging to power, saying people are no longer prepared to put up with bad governance on the continent.
Ibrahim says the face of Africa has changed and the Arab Spring has shown the world that the younger generation are not afraid to demand change.
"There's a lot of African people who are educated and well informed and that's a better generation than ours and those people wont take nonsense," he said.
"These are the people that went out in Tahrir Square, Tunis and Libya and bred havoc," he added.


The businessman's remarks come as his foundation awards its annual prize for good governance and leadership in Africa.
It has been two years since the Mo Ibrahim Foundation has awarded the accolade, which goes to candidates based on their "exercise of leadership and the performance of their country during their time in office," according to the Mo Ibrahim Foundation website.
The committee, made up of former leaders and Nobel Prize winners, said that there had been no worthy candidates in the previous two years.
"They have a strict criteria, this is not a pension, this is a prize for excellence in leadership, it's not easy," said Ibrahim.


Former Cape Verde President, Pedro Verona Pires, who stepped down in August after 10 years in power, was recognized this year.
The group said that the leader had turned the cluster of islands off the West African coast into "a model of democracy, stability and increased prosperity."
The chair of the prize committee, Salim Ahmed Salim, said. "Under his 10 years as president, the nation became only the second African country to graduate from the United Nation's Least Developed category and has won international recognition for its record on human rights and good governance."
The Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership is one of the world's most valuable individual prizes. Ibrahim made a fortune in the cell phone industry, established the foundation bearing his name in 2006.
Previous winners include Mozambique's former President, Joaquim Chissano and Botswana's President, Festus Mogae.


The $5 million award is paid over 10 years and $200,000 annually for life thereafter. The Foundation will also consider funding good causes supported by the laureate.
Ibrahim says the prize is needed as leaders in African countries can sometimes be tempted to hang on to power for monetary reasons.
He says he had to start the foundation because leaders were not doing the job they were supposed to do.


President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea and Angola's President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos are two of the longest running leaders in Africa. Both have been head of their respective countries for 32 years. While Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has been in power for 31 years since 1980.
The foundation uses an 84-criteria index to grade governance in Africa. The top-governed African nations, according to the index, are Mauritius, Cape Verde, Seychelles, Botswana and South Africa.
But while there may not have been an award in the previous two years, Ibrahim predicts the foundation will be giving out more money in the future.
"I think the quality of leaders coming to Africa now are really improving a lot and what is important in Africa is the rise in civil society," he said.
"The pressure from civil society, I'm sure is going to bring forward and produce more and more wonderful leaders for our future," he continued.
The hope of the foundation is to help the continent move towards greater democracy and peaceful transitions of power.


However, Ibrahim believes that the game is up for leaders who cling to power for 30 to 40-years. His cites Libya's former leader for 41-years, Moammar Gaddafi, as an example.
"The message is clear to all this kind of generation of leadership: gentlemen time is up," he said.
"Please retire, otherwise Tahrir square is coming to your country."

Thailand flooding: Fear makes people stay together

Thailand's rice bowl is now Thailand's nightmare.

The Chao Phraya River delta nourishes the nation's vast rice paddies. But Friday, the river and its many tributaries eyed the capital, Bangkok, like a ferocious animal stalking its prey.
Monsoonal rains have flooded Thailand's plains and now the bursting river threatens to drown Bangkok.
The water has already turned parking lots into marinas, markets into lakes and houses into homes suitable only for fish. It has gushed into houses of the holy -- Buddhist temples stood amid rising water -- and into sanctuaries of the vulnerable.
Fifteen elephants, including seven mothers with babies and a 9-year-old known for its painting skills, are stranded on top of Ayutthaya's Royal Elephant Kraal. The elephants climbed on top of the building last week and are going hungry now that food can only be brought in small quantities on rowing boats. Elephants can swim but the babies might drown in an attempt to escape.


In Bangkok and other deluged cities and towns, the strong carried the feeble on their backs. The young aided the old Everyone helped each other.
It was hard to imagine that last year, Red Shirts battled Yellow Shirts in deadly political street protests that prompted a state of emergency in Thailand and left a nation deeply divided.
Disaster brought them back together this week.
An English Facebook page set up to help foreigners in Thailand saw a frenzy of action Friday.
"Kidney failure patients'd like to get in dialysis process can contact HSRI co. with NE Kidney Medico"
"Free shuttle bus from Dusit Thani hotel to TU DOME available for donation stuffs logistic tomorrow"
"Slippers (foam type) needed for any sizes at Don Muang Evacuation Cent."
"Both lanes of Bangkruy-Sainoi Rd... flooded"


With 283 people dead and another 8 million affected by the flooding, the fears were real in Bangkok.
Workers stuffed sandbags furiously and shored up barriers. Evacuation centers began to fill with people.
Banjong Palim, 43, said he had never seen anything like this in his lifetime. He was forced to flee when his suburban Bangkok home drowned.


Some recalled the devastating 2004 tsunami that wiped out everything with walls of water. And panicked.
Ed White watched the river flow over containment walls in Ayutthaya. He stacked the furniture as high as he could get it in his house in there, and felt lucky it was made of concrete and brick, not wood, like so many traditional Thai homes.
White grew up in Ocean City, Maryland. He was used to hurricanes and the Atlantic's fury. But this was different.
The water was not raging. There weren't torrents.
It just kept inching upward. Slowly, but surely.


At the market where White gets his hair cut, people scurried, spreading rumors born from fear. In two hours, they said, everything would be under water. The flood was coming! The flood was coming!
White moved to Thailand in 2003 to work for a rubber company. Friday, he said he had moved into a second-floor company apartment in Bangkok, confident he would be safe there. Meanwhile, his employer had made a fortress out of the rubber factory, erecting concrete barriers around everything as though it were a war zone.


For many it was a losing battle.
The military helped evacuate them, whisking them away by boat or carrying them through chest-high water.


Just about every day now, rain has come down hard, exacerbating worries. This is already the worst flooding Thailand has seen in decades. Some wondered Friday how much worse it could get.
The government's Flood Relief Centre chief said that Bangkok would be spared. But with a chance of thunderstorms in the forecast for the next few days, reassurances Friday were difficult to swallow.