The picture depicts a bald plainclothes policeman grabbing the hair of a naked woman and forcefully pulling her head upwards.

It has set off huge blasts of criticism among Chinese netizens over his excessive use of force against the alleged prostitute.

One netizen with a nickname of “Zhonghuare’er” asked whether it was necessary for police to treat a suspected prostitute like a murderer. Another netizen nicknamed “Yitiandajian” questioned if it was legitimate to take photos of prostitutes and publish them.

Some netizens have even threatened to dig out the identity of the bald cop through so-called “human-flesh searching”, or having someone acquainted with the person disclose his identity online.

“You cannot insult suspects’ dignity because they break the law,” said Wang Lei, a professor from the law school of Peking University. “Law enforcement units should protect suspects’ privacy while allowing media reports.”

The publicity department of the Bureau of Public Security of Zhengzhou has held a meeting on the issue, an officer surnamed Wang at the bureau said on Tuesday, though the outcome of the meeting was not immediately available.

Calls to the city’s publicity department went unanswered.

An unnamed official from the police department in Henan said on Monday that the department had started to search the Internet for relevant photos after receiving interview requests on the issue, according to a report posted on a news website affiliated with China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate.

Wu Changzheng, a professor from China University of Political Science and Law, said that the alleged prostitute should file an administrative lawsuit against the police for severe violations of her human rights and ask for an apology or damages. – China Daily/ANN

IN the world of fiddler crabs, the best form of protection is, apparently, prostitution, according to an Australian study published Wednesday.

Researchers from The Australian National University in Canberra found that male fiddler crabs will happily defend a female neighbour against intruders – partly because the females will dole out sex in return.

“The fact that the neighbour comes over and helps to defend another territorial individual is pretty unusual,” said Michael Jennions, who helped conduct the study, the results of which were published in the journal Biology Letters.

Jennions and fellow ANU researchers Richard Milner and Patricia Backwell studied the behaviour of fiddler crabs living in mud flats off the African country of Mozambique in October and November 2008.

Male fiddler crabs have giant claws to defend themselves, but the researchers wanted to see how female crabs – which only have two small feeding claws – protect their homes.

Fiddler crabs are territorial and live in burrows. The researchers gathered crabs from distant parts of the mud flats and tethered them near new, occupied burrows.

In 21 trials involving male intruders, the researchers found that male crabs would scuttle over to fight off the invaders on a female neighbor’s territory 95 per cent of the time. But in 20 trials involving female intruders, the males crabs only fought off the invaders 15 per cent of the time.

That suggests the male crabs preferred to keep females nearby, largely because they will almost always have sex with their male neighbours, Jennions said.

Most of the time, female fiddler crabs are selective about their partners and choose to mate in the male’s burrow. But the researchers also found females mating on the surface – and 85 per cent of the time the surface sex was with a neighbour.

The researchers speculated the female crabs were having the neighbourly sex in exchange for some sort of benefit. In this case, that benefit appeared to be protection, Jennions said.

Orpha Bellwood, a lecturer of marine and tropical biology at James Cook University in Townsville, said she was particularly interested in the motivations behind the crabs having sex on the surface, which is unusual and makes them vulnerable to predators.

Bellwood wonders whether it might just be the proximity of the crabs to their own homes that allows them to feel safe enough to mate in the open, or whether the females are indeed gaining some sort of protective advantage by doing so.

“It opens up a lot of those questions,” she said.

Peter Davie, senior curator of the Queensland Museum in Brisbane, said the males are known to use their claws to protect themselves.

“But to have that sort of encompass the territories of the females as part of his sexual territory sounds quite interesting,” said Davie, who has spent 30 years studying crabs.

Swapping sex for favours is not unheard of in the animal kingdom. Antarctica’s Adelie penguins exchange sex for highly coveted stones used for nest building.

Another reason the crabs might help fight off their neighbours’ intruders is to keep a familiar comrade next door, Jennions said. Even for crabs, he said, sometimes it’s a case of “better the devil you know than the devil you don’t.” – AP

Rumour has it that a China corporation had made an offer to the pop queen to return to singing and acting next year.

The company has offered Wong an astronomical fee of RMB180mil (RM90mil) for a three- to five-year contract.

However, the 40-year-old celebrity has yet to respond to the speculation.

She appears to be enjoying her role as a housewife and is concentrating in bringing up her two daughters – Dou Jingtong and Li Yan.

Jingtong, 12, was of Wong and her singer husband Dou Wei while Yan, three, is from her current marriage with actor Li Yapeng.

Wong, who is currently residing in Beijing, was seen happily shopping with her family.

Wong has taken an indefinite break from the entertainment industry since she married Li in 2005.

After giving birth to Yan, Wong has spent all her time seeking medical treatment for her daughter’s cleft lip.

She and Li had also set up the Smile Angel Foundation to help children with clefts. Although she made a public appearance at the foundation’s fund-raising event in 2006, she had opted not to speak or sing.

At the same event the next year, Wong had mentioned that she would not return to the musical scene in 2008.

Now that the first stage of Yan’s cleft lis operations has been completed, numerous movie moguls and music companies are eyeing her for a comeback.

Early this year, Wong had done a shampoo advertisement for RMB20mil (RM10mil).

Her manager Chan Ka-ying said Wong would return when she has rested enough.

Plans for a Disney theme park in Shanghai have been approved by China's planning agency, the Walt Disney Co. said Wednesday.

The approval by the National Development and Reform Commission will allow Shanghai, China's biggest city, and Disney to work on final details for the amusement park, to be located in the city's eastern Pudong district.

"China is one of the most dynamic, exciting and important countries in the world, and this approval marks a very significant milestone for The Walt Disney Company in mainland China," Robert A. Iger, president and CEO of The Walt Disney Company, said in a statement.

It said the initial phase of the project would include a "Magic Kingdom-style theme park with characteristics tailored to the Shanghai region." Amenities will be consistent with other Disney resorts in the world, it said.

Shanghai's city government issued a brief statement announcing the approval, AP reported.

Disney has gradually expanded its presence in mainland China after opening a theme park in Hong Kong in 2005 and now has offices in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou.

The park will be a major showcase for Shanghai, the mainland's main financial and commercial center.

Last weekend, Shanghai's mayor, Han Zheng, told reporters the central government had issued the required approval and that the city would be making an announcement soon.

The timing of the breakthrough is handy as it comes less than two weeks before President Barack Obama's planned Nov 15-16 visit to Shanghai.

Shanghai's leaders are keen to develop this former bastion of Chinese industry into a global services and financial center, and building a Disney park would create jobs and be a key draw for tourism.

Residents were long ago moved off farmland in Chuansha, a part of Pudong district near the city's main international airport, to make way for the theme park.

Speculation over progress on the Disney park has become a frequent theme for stock market players. Han's comments over the weekend prompted rallies in shares in local property companies and others likely to benefit from its construction.

Disney's theme park in Hong Kong has won disappointing attendance, raising questions over the prospects for success of the Shanghai park.

But the plan is popular among local residents, especially those who might end up profiting from its construction.-DC

A 55-year-old woman in central China marched a total of 2,000km in seven months to lose weight and save the life of her son, China's Xinhua news agency reported Wednesday.

Chen Yurong walked about 10km a day after being told her 31-year-old son, Ye Haibin, needed a liver transplant but her liver was not suitable because it had accumulated too much fat, doctors told her in February, Bernama reported.

In an effort to get her liver into shape, Chen marched along a dyke near her home in Jiang'an District, Hubei Province, everyday. She also went on a diet, only eating rice and vegetables. She eventually lost 8kg.
On Oct 19, doctors said her liver had reached the standard for the transplant.

In a 14-hour operation at the Tongji Hospital under Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, the provincial capital, on Tuesday, Chen gave part of her liver to her son.

Chen had decided in December last year to donate her liver to her son, who for 18 years had suffered Wilson's disease, a genetic disorder caused by accumulation of excessive amounts of copper in the body that can lead to liver degeneration.

"The operation went smoothly," said surgeon Chen Xiaoping, an organ transplant expert. "We left part of Ye's liver, which will function together with the transplanted part.

"Theoretically speaking, Ye's life can be prolonged for a long time," he said. "She is a great mother."
Chen and her son are both described as in a stable condition in hospital. The hospital decided to waive all its fees for the operation. -DC