East Asia

The quake hit the area of Zhaotong: more than 381 dead and 1,800 injured. Premier Li Keqiang travels to area, but the rains and the continuous landslides render any movement impossible. Residents accuse the local government for having allowed the construction of buildings of poor quality

After the tragedy, which killed at least 75 people, analysts and trade unions point the finger at the government - which allows people to overlook laws on safety in the workplace - and investors, who only care for growth and profit. A government official: "We warned of the danger, but they ignored us and we do not have the power to punish those who break the rules."

For Mgr Vincent Zhu Weifang, from the official Church, the campaign of destruction is increasing social instability. It is real persecution against the Christian faith. The bishop apologises for failing to intervene sooner. He was hoping that the campaign would end quickly. Catholics and Protestants suffer injuries as they attempt to defend their sacred buildings. For priests in Wenzhou, the campaign is unfair and touches buildings that have all the right papers. Such "stupid acts" by the government are undermining social harmony.

The small Pema Dorjee, recognized in 2009 as a reincarnation of the head of the Nyingma lineage, took possession of the Palyul monastery in Tibet. His school is the oldest of all the Buddhist world, and presents the ancestral religion of Bon. Beijing does not intervene,

At the Angelus Pope Francis speaks of the "three messages" contained in the "sign" of the multiplication of the loaves: compassion, sharing, Eucharist. Compassion is "identification with the suffering of others to take them upon ourselves. This is how Jesus suffers with us, suffers for us." "How often do we turn away so as not to have to look at the poor. This is another – yellow bellied way to say: Deal with it on your own! This is selfishness". Taking part in the Eucharist "with the Christ’s sentiments".

The explosion was caused by contact between fine metal powder and naked flame. The Zhongrong Plating Company in Kunshan (50 kilometers from Shanghai) manufactures automotive components: its customers include General Motors. The hospitals are requesting assistance from other health care facilities and appealing to public to donate blood.

There are also 270 wounded. Streets ripped apart, with huge craters, cars and people thrown into the air by the explosion. The dead include four firefighters. An eyewitness account.

An editorial in the official Rodong Sinmun newspaper is the latest step in the cooling of bilateral relations. The Kim regime displeased at Xi Jinping’s decision to visit South Korea first. A source on the border: "If things go wrong, so much the better for us. Government will stop trade with China and the plunder of our natural resources .Ordinary people have never benefited from these relations".

Concentrating power in top leader of party, state and army has unleashed a flood of flattery and brought back the cult of personality that had been "abolished" after the death of the Great Helmsman. However, the new leader's style and way of exercising power fails to heed the fact that when one rises above all others, one feels free to make blunders. Here is an analysis by an expert on China, courtesy of the Jamestown Foundation.

Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida announces the gift during a visit to Vietnam, adding that both nations agree on "maintaining peace and stability" in the region. For a Chinese scholar, the action will be "perceived as hostility by China".

The Philippines' Foreign Secretary flew to Tunisia to oversee rescue operations and convince Filipinos who want to stay fearing unemployment at home that they should leave. The beheading of a Filipino worker and the gang rape of a nurse triggered the emergency. China too is sending a ship to repatriate its citizens.

The catalyst that sparked the violence in the province, which killed dozens of people, is still unknown. Military patrol streets and authorities shut down communications with the outside world. Formal charges of "separatism" against Ilham Tohti, a scholar who defends the Uyghur minority.