Victims to testify in Afghan war hearing

JOINT BASE LEWIS-McCHORD, Washington, Nov 10 AP - An Afghan National Army guard who reported seeing a US soldier outside a remote base the night 16 civilians were massacred in March said the man did not stop even after being asked three times to do so.

The guard, named Nematullah, testified by live video from Kandahar, Afghanistan, on Friday night during an overnight session for a hearing in the case against Staff Sergeant Robert Bales.

"I told him to stop," the guard said, through an interpreter. "He came towards me ... and then he went inside."

Bales is accused of carrying out the attacks and could face the death penalty if he is convicted in the March 11 massacre. The preliminary hearing will help determine whether he faces a court-martial.

The hearing was also expected to feature testimony from two victims and four relatives of victims about the pre-dawn attack.

The villagers will speak, by video conference and through an interpreter, to a military courtroom at Joint Base Lewis-McChord during an overnight session to accommodate the time difference.

Bales, a 39-year-old Ohio native and father of two from Lake Tapps, Washington, faces 16 counts of premeditated murder and six counts of attempted murder in the attack in southern Afghanistan.

Prosecutors say that Bales wore a T-shirt, cape and night-vision goggles - no body armour - when he slipped away from his remote post, Camp Belambay. He first attacked one village, returned to the base, and headed out again to attack another village, they say.

In between, he woke a fellow soldier, reported what he'd done, and said he was headed out to kill more, the soldier testified. But the soldier didn't believe what Bales said, and went back to sleep.

Nine children were among the victims, and 11 of the victims were from the same family.

Another Afghan National Army guard who reported seeing a soldier return to Belambay and then leave again was also scheduled to testify.

On Thursday, a US Army DNA expert testified that Bales had the blood of at least four people on his clothes and guns when he surrendered.

The blood of two males and two females was discovered on Bales' pants, shirt, gloves, rifle and other items, said Christine Trapolsi, an examiner at the Army's Criminal Investigation Laboratory.

To preserve the evidence, she said she only tested a portion of the bloodstains, and it's possible more DNA profiles could be discovered through additional testing.

Another forensic expert from the Criminal Investigation Lab, fibre specialist Larry Peterson, testified that a small piece of fabric that matched the cape Bales reportedly wore was discovered on a pillow in one of the attacked compounds.

Prosecutors referred to the cape as a blanket, but Peterson said it was more like a decorative covering for a window or doorway.

Bales has not entered a plea and was not expected to testify. His lawyers, who did not give an opening statement, have not discussed the evidence, but say Bales has post-traumatic stress disorder and suffered a concussive head injury during a prior deployment to Iraq.

A US agent who investigated the massacre has testified that local villagers were so angered it was weeks before American forces could visit the crime scenes about a kilometre from a remote base.

By that time, bodies had been buried and some bloodstains had been scraped from the walls, said Special Agent Matthew Hoffman of the Army's Criminal Investigation Command.

Other stains remained, on walls and floors. Investigators recovered shell casings consistent with the weapons Bales reportedly carried.

Hoffman also said Bales tested positive for steroids three days after the killings.

Bales leaned back in his chair at the defence table and did not react as an Army doctor, Major Travis Hawks, gave clinical descriptions of treating the wounded villagers as they arrived at a nearby forward operating base.

One girl had a large bullet wound in the top of her head, he said. She was unresponsive at first, but survived after treatment.

A woman had wounds to her chest and genitals, but she and her relatives insisted that the male doctors not treat her. Prosecutors showed photos of the victims being treated.

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Bikies say arrest figures exaggerated

Rebels national president says there is no organised criminal elements within the outlaw motorcycle club.

THERE is no organised criminal element in the Rebels outlaw motorcycle club, its national president says, and the police have overstated the arrest figures in a recent crackdown on the organisation.

In a rare move, Rebels head Alex Vella has called an emergency press conference at the club's main clubhouse at Bringelly, in Sydney's southwest.

The club is outraged over figures published this week by the Attero taskforce, comprising 14 law enforcement agencies across Australia.

Attero kicked off last February and announced this week its operations had resulted in more than 330 arrests, leading to more than 500 charges being laid against Rebels members.

"My lawyers tell me it was only 77 of them (arrested)," Mr Vella said on Saturday.

He also said most of the offences were minor traffic violations.

There were no organised criminal operations within the club, Mr Vella said, but individual members had been known to break the law.

"I didn't say we we squeaky clean," he said.

"In every family you've got a black sheep."

Police had been targeting the Rebels for the past the three years, he said, and the club expected a backlash from Saturday's media conference.

"I can assure you, in the weeks to come, we're going to pay for this," Mr Vella said.

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Asylum boat with 48 people aboard stopped

AUSTRALIAN authorities have intercepted a boat carrying 48 suspected asylum seekers.

HMAS Childers stopped the boat northwest of Christmas Island on Saturday morning after it was spotted from the air.

Initial indications suggest there are 48 people aboard. The passengers will be transferred to Christmas Island for security, health and identity checks.

On Friday, the government announced two boat arrivals, one carrying 75 people and the other carrying 54 people.

About 950 people have arrived on 18 boats in the first 10 days of November.

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Bouncers regret bashing at Sydney club

BOUNCERS who bashed a teenage patron at Sydney's Ivy club have told a court they were angered a colleague had been punched but now regret their actions.

Jason Mendelow, 25, Paul Fenukitau, 42, and Emmanouil Ntaras, 30, have pleaded guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm in company over the bashing on August 28 last year.

Nicholas Barsoum, 19, was forced onto the ground and beaten at the George Street venue in the early hours of the morning, leaving him with internal bleeding and serious facial injuries.

The offenders lost their jobs and their security guard licences after the bashing.

At a sentencing hearing in the NSW District Court on Friday, Ntaras denied placing his security vest over Mr Barsoum's face or throwing him down the stairs to the club's basement.

But the trained cage fighter did admit to sitting on Mr Barsoum, striking him twice on the side of his body and later pushing him off a stool and kicking him.

Ntaras said he was angry with Mr Barsoum for punching Fenukitau, whose eye was swollen and bleeding.

But he admitted his anger did not give him the right to assault Mr Barsoum.

"It's absolutely wrong. It's a very bad thing," Ntaras said.

"I'm really sorry for what I caused to him ... I don't know what I can say to make him feel better."

Under questioning, Mendelow denied that Mr Barsoum had been taken to the basement to teach him a lesson for hitting Fenukitau.

He said he was taken there to wait for police over his alleged assault on Fenukitau, as that was standard practice at the Ivy.

Mendelow said Mr Barsoum was agitated and swearing at bouncers, threatening to come back and get them and harm their families.

He admitted kicking Mr Barsoum in the head when he was in the basement.

"He was spitting blood at me ... I was upset that he had threatened my family and had a go at me," Mendelow said.

"I shouldn't have done it ... I'm very ashamed."

Fenukitau, a father of six children, said the loss of his job had been tough on his family.

He will be sentenced on an extra charge of common assault over his part in the bashing.

The crown is seeking jail terms for the offenders.

The sentencing hearing resumes on November 23 before Judge Leonie Flannery, who continued bail for the men.

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Childcare molester urges boys to move on

TWELVE young boys molested by a Sydney childcare worker have been transformed into scared, anxious and angry children who now fear being left alone, a court has been told.

They also resist the most important men in their lives and hold the highest fear that their friends may find out what happened.

Former YMCA childcare worker and private babysitter Jonathan Luke Lord, 25, wept when the parents of some of his 12 victims read impact statements in Downing Centre District Court on Friday.

"I wish I was older when it happened," one father said when quoting his son.

"I would kick him and run and scream and tell my parents straight away.

"I hope he feels alone inside like he made me feel."

The mother of another victim quoted someone who interviewed her son about the attacks.

"You have the most beautiful boy," she said.

"He's worried because he didn't want you to cry."

Another mother said her son wakes six times a night and comes into his parents bedroom.

The youngest victim, aged six, refused to admit being molested even after Lord told police he attacked him, his mother said.

The boy now resists his father and other male family members.

Lord has previously pleaded guilty to 29 child sex and indecent assault offences on 12 boys aged from six to 11 that took place between 2009 and 2011.

He worked at a YMCA in southern Sydney, participated in before-and-after school care programs and worked privately as a babysitter.

Lord wept during Friday's sentencing proceedings before Judge Michael King and at times nodded off.

Six sheriffs and Corrections officers created a barrier between Lord in the dock and the parents of the victims who sat in the gallery.

He wrote a letter intended for families, urging them to get on with their lives.

"I don't think I've stopped praying, not for myself ... but for the boys," his barrister Craig Smith read in court.

"Just move forward and hopefully their slate can be wiped clean."

Mr Smith said Lord was likely to rehabilitate from his behaviour.

"If there was ever going to be a sex offender that could turn it around ... it is likely to be this young man," he said.

Crown prosecutor Kara Shead said Lord earned the trust of his victims and their parents and then molested the boys.

"He breached that trust in the most gross way imaginable on repeated occasions," she told the court.

She acknowledged Lord was entitled to a 25 per cent discount on his sentence for pleading guilty.

His father, Roger Lord, gave evidence to the court, saying his son refers to the attacks as a "dark secret".

Judge King adjourned the matter to January 18 next year for sentencing.

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Tokyo shares close 0.90% lower

TOKYO stocks have closed 0.90 per cent lower, hit by a still-strong yen, while concerns about Europe and the US economic recovery also weighed.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Friday ended down 79.55 points at 8,757.60 in thin trading, while the broader Topix index of all first-section issues fell 0.63 per cent, or 4.61 points, to 730.74.

Wall Street and European markets fell on Thursday on jitters over slowing European growth and the so-called US fiscal cliff, a combination of spending cuts and tax hikes due to come into effect on January 1.

US President Barack Obama's re-election has raised the spectre of a continued deadlock in Washington on the issue that could ultimately reverse the country's recovery and send the world's largest economy back into recession.

"Fiscal cliff worries continue to linger. Obama's re-election is seen as a sign that the political standoff may continue without resolution for the time being," said Yoshihiro Okumura, general manager at Chibagin Asset Management.

"US stocks most likely have room to fall further," he told Dow Jones Newswires.

On Wall Street, the Dow fell 0.94 per cent on Thursday, a second day of losses after Obama's victory.

The Tokyo market was taking a "reflexive beating" after Wall Street's tumble with all eyes on Obama's announcement of his plan to tackle the problem due later on Friday, said Kenichi Hirano, market analyst at Tachibana Securities.

Investors also digested news of a possible delay in Greece's new austerity package, a deal necessary for the debt-hit nation to receive the next tranche of its international bailout.

In Tokyo trade, exporters fell as the yen remained stubbornly high, despite losing some ground in Friday's session.

Honda Motor was off 0.29 per cent at Y2,388 and Sony was down 0.90 per cent at Y879, after the electronics giant said on Thursday that the head of its software division was leaving.

Market heavyweight Fast Retailing, operator of the cheap chic Uniqlo clothing chain, was down 1.6 per cent at Y16,870.

On currency markets, the dollar bought Y79.50 from Y79.43 in New York late on Thursday, while the euro was higher at $US1.2761 from $US1.2748.

Against the Japanese currency, the euro bought Y101.45 from Y101.28.

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Burma says Obama to visit this month

A GOVERNMENT official in Burma says US President Barack Obama will visit the Southeast Asian country later this month.

It would be the first-ever visit to Burma by an American president.

The official speaking from the capital Naypyidaw said on Thursday that security for a visit on November 18 or 19 have been prepared, but the schedule is not final. He asked not to be named because he is not authorised to give information to the press.

US officials have not yet announced any plans for a visit.

Obama's administration has sought to encourage the recent democratic progress in Burma by easing sanctions applied against its previous military regime.

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PC maker Lenovo says profit up 13 per cent

PERSONAL computer-maker Lenovo Group says its quarterly profit has risen 13 per cent as mobile and cloud-based businesses expanded.

The company earned $US162 million ($A156.20 million), or 1.6 US cents per share, in the three months ended September 30. Global revenues rose 11 per cent to $US8.7 billion.

Lenovo is vying with Hewlett-Packard Co to become the world's biggest personal computer maker but faces a market in which the fastest demand growth is for mobile devices. Research firm Gartner said last month Lenovo outsold HP in the latest quarter but IDC still had HP on top.

Lenovo said sales at its two-year-old mobile internet group rose 155 per cent to $US718 million.

"Our global PC market share reached another historic high, moving us closer to our dream of becoming the worldwide PC leader," said chairman Yang Yuanqing in a statement on Thursday.

He said emerging markets outside China have reached "the profitable growth stage", improving the prospects for future earnings.

Still, profit growth was lower than the previous quarter's 30 per cent, reflecting cooling demand for PCs as customer interest shifts to tablets, smartphones and other wireless devices.

PC shipments in Lenovo's home China market grew by 8 per cent over a year earlier, down from the previous quarter's 59 per cent. Sales in North America grew 7 per cent to $US1.2 billion in a market in which Lenovo said overall sales contracted by 12 per cent.

Lenovo released a new version of its ThinkPad notebook computer, the X1 Carbon, in August that it said was lighter and quicker to appeal to customers who want the convenience of a tablet. Lenovo acquired the ThinkPad brand with IBM Corp's personal computer unit in 2005.

Lenovo said its acquisitions during the latest quarter included Stoneware, an Indiana software company focused on cloud computing.

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Good job news amid Qantas cuts: Baillieu

VICTORIAN Premier Ted Baillieu has welcomed the addition of 7000 new jobs as good news amid gloom over Qantas' job cuts in the state.

The Qantas move to axe 250 jobs at Avalon in coming months was in line with the airline's previous announcements but still disappointing, Mr Baillieu said.

There was positive news, however, as the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed on Thursday the state's jobless rate had fallen from 5.6 per cent to 5.4 per cent in October.

"It is clear that Qantas' maintenance needs are changing. With new aircraft, new technology, there is less maintenance needed, so that work doesn't exist in the longer term," Mr Baillieu told reporters in Melbourne.

"We're disappointed, obviously, for the families and the workers, in particular at Avalon, whose jobs will not exist after these next few months.

"But on the other hand, more than 7000 additional jobs generated in Victoria over the last month - that's a positive."

Mr Baillieu said he had spoken with Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce and would work with the airline, workers and unions to assist with the transition.

He said the government worked hard with the airline to retain facilities at Avalon, but there was nothing more that could have been done.

Qantas would offer some positions to those who were prepared to move interstate and had generous redundancy packages, said Mr Baillieu.

State opposition employment spokesman Tim Pallas said the Qantas job cuts came despite the premier's assurance he would protect Victorian jobs from going interstate.

"If Ted Baillieu was serious about saving these 263 jobs, his government would have supported investment in new hangar facilities here in Victoria," Mr Pallas said in a statement.

He said the number of unemployed Victorians had climbed by 18,000 since Mr Baillieu took office.

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World leaders welcome Obama win

LEADERS across the world have congratulated US President Barack Obama on winning a second term.

In Canberra, Prime Minister Julia Gillard offered Australia's congratulations to Obama after he triumphed over Republican challenger Mitt Romney to win a second four-year term.

Gillard said she looked forward to continuing to work with the Obama administration.

"On behalf of the government and people of Australia, I offer warm congratulations to President Barack Obama on his re-election and wish him every success for his second term in office," she said in a statement on Wednesday.

"Australia has worked closely with President Obama and his administration over the past four years.

"I look forward to continuing this friendship."

British Prime Minister David Cameron said he was looking forward to working again with his "friend".

"Warm congratulations to my friend @BarackObama," Cameron wrote on his Twitter account. "Look forward to continuing to work together."

Europe will find it easier to work with a re-elected US president than with a new leader in Washington, the head of the Eurogroup of finance ministers said on Wednesday.

Jean-Claude Juncker, who is also the prime minister of Luxembourg, told journalists in Singapore that "it's always easier to establish a closer work relationship with a US president when he's starting his second mandate".

Juncker was speaking shortly before President Barack Obama emerged as the winner of the bitterly contested election.

"During his first mandate, the president normally is focusing on turbulent domestic issues. The second mandate, US presidents normally are rediscovering the entireness of the European identity, and we need for the US and for Europe to be close, to work closely together," Juncker added.

European Union President Herman Van Rompuy on Wednesday expressed joy at Barack Obama's re-election to the White House.

"Very happy about the reelection of President Obama," Van Rompuy wrote in Dutch on his Twitter account.

German Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere predicted there would be "no changes" in German-American relations. The Christian Democratic Union politician is one of the biggest experts on trans-Atlantic relationships in the cabinet.

De Maiziere also predicts no change in the relationship between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the president, who have both worked well together and share mutual consideration and respect. Merkel was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year.

There have been some strains between the two, however. The slight of Merkel forbidding Obama to appear in front of the Brandenburg Gate during his first presidential campaign, in 2008, has not been forgotten. He hasn't visited Berlin since.

In Ramallah, the Palestinian Authority said on Wednesday it hoped that Obama's second term would see an end to the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

"We hope his second term will be a term for peace, stability and democracy during which the two-state solution will be implemented and Israel will withdraw to the 1967 borders," Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat told Voice of Palestine Radio.

"Our decision remains to go to the UN and we hope Obama will stand by this Palestinian right and on the side of the two-state solution."

The US and Israel oppose the Palestinian bid to become a non-member observer state at the United Nations.

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Jubilant Obama says 'best is yet to come'

PRESIDENT Barack Obama has told cheering supporters that "the best is yet to come" for the United States as he stormed to a second term by defeating Republican Mitt Romney.

After taking the stage at a raucous Chicago victory party early on Wednesday with wife Michelle and daughters Sasha and Malia, Obama returned to the themes of his re-election bid, vowing to fight for the middle class and the American dream.

"In this election, you, the American people, reminded us that while our road has been hard, while our journey has been long, we have picked ourselves up. We have fought our way back," Obama told hundreds of cheering supporters.

"We know in our hearts that for the United States of America the best is yet to come."

Obama said he had spoken to Romney, congratulating him and his running mate Paul Ryan on a "hard-fought campaign" and vowing to sit down with the former Massachusetts governor to discuss the way forward.

"We may have battled fiercely but it's only because we love this country deeply and we care so strongly about its future," Obama said.

"In the weeks ahead I also look forward to sitting down with Governor Romney to talk about where we can work together to move this country forward."

Obama reached out to those who supported his opponent in the closely-fought race, saying: "Whether I earned your vote or not, I have listened to you. I have learned from you. You've made me a better president.

"With your stories and your struggles I return to the White House more determined and more inspired than ever about the work there is to do and the future that lies ahead," he said.

"Despite all the hardship we've been through, despite all the frustrations of Washington, I've never been more hopeful about our future. I have never been more hopeful about America."

Obama thanked the army of campaign workers and volunteers whose efforts secured his re-election to a second four-year term, calling them the "best campaign team and volunteers in the history of politics".

Near the end of his speech Obama hinted at a more far-reaching agenda in his second term despite the lingering partisan gridlock in Washington, calling for a future that "isn't threatened by the destructive power of a warming planet".

"I believe we can seize this future together because we are not as divided as our politics suggest. We're not as cynical as the pundits believe. We are greater than the sum of individual ambitions," Obama said.

"Together with your help and God's Grace we will continue our journey forward and remind the world just why it is that we live in the greatest nation on earth. Thank you, America. God bless you. God bless these United States."

Earlier Romney conceded defeat in a short and simple address, telling his supporters he had called Obama to congratulate him on his victory.

"His supporters and his campaign also deserve congratulations," Romney said in Boston.

"I wish all of them well but particularly the president, the first lady and their daughters."

It was a quick, underwhelming end to an 18-month campaign that began on a farm in New Hampshire, survived brutal Republican infighting during the party primaries early this year, and a barrage of negative attack ads by the Obama camp, and rose to give the incumbent a serious scare weeks before the election.

Romney was neck-and-neck with the president for a considerable part of the campaign, but despite repeated trips to swing states like Colorado, Ohio, Florida, and Virginia, Obama held on to leads in the battlegrounds, which eventually became the challenger's undoing.

"This election is over, but our principles endure," said Romney, who said he believed smaller government, limited regulations and lower taxes could create more jobs and bring a speedier economic recovery.

"I so wish that I had been able to fulfil your hopes to lead the country in a different direction, but the nation chose another leader, and so Ann and I join with you to earnestly pray for him and this great nation," Romney said to cheers and applause.

Several members of Romney's senior staff stood next to the stage, many stony-faced and sombre, as the Republican nominee addressed his supporters.

Romney returned to a theme that he began injecting into his stump speeches in the closing two weeks of the campaign: the need for greater bipartisanship in Washington.

"At a time like this, we can't risk partisan bickering and posturing," he said.

"Our leaders have to reach across the aisle to do the people's work and we citizens have to rise to the occasion."

Romney also thanked his running mate, congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, as well as wife Ann Romney, his tireless surrogate on the campaign trail whom he called "the love of my life".

"She would have been a wonderful first lady," he mused, to loud applause.

Romney's comments were brief and basic, and it was not immediately clear if he had written a concession speech.

Earlier in the day, when asked by reporters on his campaign plane whether he had two speeches ready to go for Tuesday night, he said he was confident of defeating Obama and had penned an 1118-word victory speech.

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Treasury boss defends dept over costings

A TREASURY investigation into the leaking of coalition policy costings, sparked by a complaint from shadow treasurer Joe Hockey, has found "no breach" of professional standards by department officials.

Treasury boss Martin Parkinson on Wednesday revealed the findings in a written response to Mr Hockey's letter sent earlier this week questioning the department's non-partisanship and asking how the "unsolicited" analysis came to be made public.

Treasurer Wayne Swan's office had commissioned the treasury costings of three opposition tax policies, which showed they would cost business $4.57 billion in the first full year of a coalition government and $17.2 billion over four years.

Dr Parkinson agreed that was the case, telling Mr Hockey he could "assure you that there has been no breach of the professional and apolitical ethos of the Treasury".

"It has long been the case that Treasury is periodically asked by the government of the day to cost or analyse alternative policies, some of which are already in the public domain," he wrote.

"In such cases, we draw, to the maximum extent possible, on publicly available information, in part due to the confidentiality we observe in responding to requests from ministers."

Dr Parkinson was adamant treasury did not provide the advice to anyone outside of government, effectively confirming it was leaked by Mr Swan's office.

"Any suggestion that we would be complicit in questionable practices is without foundation," Dr Parkinson said.

Opposition finance spokesman Andrew Robb said Mr Swan could not be trusted.

"The take home message is you cannot have any trust or faith in the integrity of any costings process that Wayne Swan and his office are involved with," Mr Robb told AAP.

Earlier on Wednesday, Prime Minister Julia Gillard said it was "very common" for treasury to conduct such analysis.

"I actually think the Australian people are entitled to know what the policies of every political party are and what they would cost," she told ABC radio.

It's believed the leaked material comprised a series of dot points put together by Mr Swan's office, rather than an official treasury minute.

Mr Hockey said Dr Parkinson had proved that treasury was being used as a "tool to score political points".

Mr Swan on Wednesday argued the former Howard coalition government had requested similar information on the policies of the Labor opposition.

In September 1998, then treasurer Peter Costello released costings from the department that found Labor had made $18 billion of election promises. Four years later he had the department cost Labor's superannuation changes.

In April 2004, Mr Costello released a minute from treasury officials costing Labor's proposed baby care payment.

In June 2007, Mr Hockey, who was then workplace relations minister, revealed his department had sought consultants to model the "economic costs" of Labor's industrial policies.

While Mr Hockey described it at the time as "standard economic research", the tender brief called for the consultants to look specifically at "the loss of flexibility and the ability to negotiate mutually beneficial outcomes" under Labor's plan.

Comment was being sought from Mr Hockey.

Anthony Albanese told AAP in Perth on Wednesday that Mr Hockey was living up to his "Sloppy Joe" nickname.

"Joe Hockey has been very sloppy in his performance as shadow treasurer," Mr Albanese said.

"The question Australians will ask themselves is why is the alternative treasurer of the nation so hostile to proper costings being held.

"We know the costings conducted prior to the last federal election were a complete farce and that indeed there's been prosecutions on the basis of that, and findings against the company that provided those costings."

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China's next PM has mixed record

LI Keqiang, a bureaucrat with an easy smile but a mixed record, will step up China's Communist hierarchy at this week's congress on his way to becoming prime minister of the world's second-largest economy.

Vice Premier Li is expected to take over the reins of day-to-day government from his boss Wen Jiabao in March.

For the past decade, Wen has cultivated an image as the friendly face of the Communist Party, voicing qualified support for political reform, condemning corruption and comforting disaster victims.

Wen has also railed against the rampant official corruption that infuriates many ordinary Chinese - though a New York Times report last month said his relatives had amassed $US2.7 billion ($A2.62 billion) in "hidden riches" since 1992.

Li, 57, is a politician with a similarly affable manner, fluent English and a more youthful bearing than his stiff party peers and has voiced support for the kind of economic reforms many experts say China sorely needs.

But his efficacy has already been questioned after an endless stream of health scandals - the vice premier heads a national commission set up to prevent such abuses.

As party boss in Henan province, Li took flak for the handling of an HIV/AIDS epidemic stemming from a tainted government-backed blood donation program. Entire villages were infected, but his provincial government responded with a clampdown on activists.

A native of eastern China's poor Anhui province, Li rose up the ranks of the conservative Communist Youth League, gaining a valuable patron in current President Hu Jintao, who ran the organisation in the 1980s.

With a law degree from the prestigious Peking University and a doctorate in rural economics, Li has nurtured an image of a careful administrator focused on developing a Chinese middle class.

He became the party leader in Henan, in central China, and Liaoning province in the northeast, both of which prospered under him, before being promoted to Wen's deputy.

As premier, a top priority for Li will be to boost China's economic growth, which is currently export-led and sagging because of weak demand for manufactured goods in Europe and the United States.

Analysts say Li has been at the forefront of efforts to wean China towards more balanced development, with domestic consumption playing a greater role.

But the record so far has been mixed, and analysts say that with no wide power base of his own it remains to be seen whether Li will be able to effect significant change in the face of the party's consensus-driven leadership style, vested interests and provinces addicted to growth.

"(Li) has a good understanding of the economy. That's for sure. But he may lack the strength of character or charisma," said Willy Lam, a China politics analyst at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

"Some people in Beijing express worry that he might be like Wen Jiabao and he might not be able to enforce his policy through the ministries and the provinces," said Lam.

"Grandpa Wen", as he came to be known for his personal touch, travelled the country to put his arm around China's downtrodden, most famously visiting SARS patients in 2003 and victims of a devastating 2008 earthquake.

In addition to stewarding China's economy into the world's number-two spot, Wen publicly urged political reform, though details were scant and oppression and human rights abuses persisted, raising doubts about his sincerity.

As with other top officials in the highly secretive Communist Party, little is known about Li's personal life - although his family's assets are likely to come under scrutiny after the Wen allegations.

Chinese press reports have said Li is married to Cheng Hong, a literature professor at a Beijing university, and that they have a daughter, who is believed to be pursuing postgraduate studies in the United States.

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Men charged over white powder haul

NSW Police have charged two men after finding over 150 kilograms of white powder believed to be methamphetamine and more than $100,000 in cash.

The men, aged 62 and 28, were stopped on Pyrmont Road in Pyrmont in central Sydney and were taken to Surry Hills police station after 148 kilograms of the drugs and $70,000 in cash were discovered during a search.

Both have been charged with supplying an indictable quantity of prohibited drugs and dealing with the proceeds of crime.

While the men were in custody, police searched the 28-year-old man's home in Ultimo and found another 14kg of the powder and a further $30,000.

Bail was granted for both men, who will appear in the Downing Centre Local Court on November 26 and 27.

Investigations into both men are continuing, police said.

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S. Korea decorates Psy for Gangnam Style

SOUTH Korea has awarded one of its highest cultural honours to the rapper Psy for taking the world by storm with his Gangnam Style hit.

The culture ministry announced on Tuesday that the 34-year-old singer, whose real name is Park Jae-Sang, would receive the Okgwan Order of Cultural Merit, awarded for "outstanding meritorious services" to the arts.

"Psy has been chosen to be decorated for not only being a long-term artist, but also for advertising Gangnam widely and increasing the world's interest in Korea," a culture ministry official told AFP.

Psy has rocketed to international fame since his Gangnam Style video - in which he performs his now famous horse-riding dance - went viral after being posted on YouTube in July.

Gangnam Style, which is a tribute to an upmarket neighbourhood in Seoul, has since racked up more than 654 million views, making it the second most-watched YouTube video of all time, behind Canadian teenage heartthrob Justin Bieber's Baby, on 796 million.

The song has topped charts from Britain to Australia, and has occupied the number two slot on the US Billboard Hot 100 for six straight weeks.

South Korea sees popular culture as a potent export force providing international exposure for a country that still feels overlooked in comparison to neighbours China and Japan.

The government has spent substantial time and money supporting the so-called Hallyu (Korean Wave) of TV shows and pop music that has swept across Asia in the past decade.

Film director Kim Ki-Duk, who won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival this year with his movie Pieta, will receive the Eungwan Order of Cultural Merit - which ranks higher than Psy's medal.

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Moses Obeid claims plot to destroy family

CLAIMS that former NSW Labor minister Eric Roozendaal received a discounted car in return for political favours are part of a campaign to "destroy" the Obeids, a corruption inquiry has been told.

At the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) in Sydney, Moses Obeid accused a key witness of doctoring evidence against his family, including his father, former Labor MP Eddie Obeid.

The alleged action was part of a vendetta against the family over a soured business deal involving a Sydney marina development, Moses Obeid said.

Panelbeater Peter Fitzhenry, a one-time associate of the Obeids, last week told the ICAC that Moses Obeid had told him to find Mr Roozendaal a car in return for favours done for his father.

On Monday, the flamboyant Mr Obeid repeated his family's version of the story of how Mr Roozendaal in 2007 came to own the new Honda CRV for just $34,000 - $10,800 less than its market value.

He said Mr Roozendaal, who is still a Labor backbencher, bought the Honda after Mr Obeid's friend and associate Rocco Triulcio had paid for the car, but refused delivery after a falling out with Mr Fitzhenry.

Describing Mr Obeid's account as rubbish, counsel assisting the inquiry Geoffrey Watson SC produced contracts and receipts from car dealer Peter Warren showing 'Amanda Rosendale' - a misspelling of the name of Mr Roozendaal's wife - was intended as the original owner.

However, the car was first registered in the name of Mr Triulcio's sister Nata Re, before ownership was eventually transferred back to Mrs Roozendaal weeks later.

In a bizarre outburst, Moses Obeid lashed out at his one-time friend and business associate Mr Fitzhenry, accusing him of doctoring the documents from Peter Warren with the help of "accomplices" at the Warwick Farm dealership.

"Your boy Fitzhenry has motive and he has form in doctoring evidence," Mr Obeid said.

"Peter Fitzhenry had said to a number or people that we both know that he would destroy the Obeids.

"Peter Fitzhenry, as a result of the fallout of Elizabeth Bay Marina, concocted some story. The entire story about the Roozendaal, Triulcio car and CRV, Honda-gate ... has been concocted as a get-square with me."

Mr Watson suggested: "The involvement of the Triulcios and Nata Re was just an elaborate concoction so that you could present a gift to Eric Roozendaal".

"You could suggest it but I don't agree with it," Mr Obeid replied.

"The idea of a gift for Eric Roozendaal - Eric's a great guy. I like him. I thought he was competent minister, but I don't think he did that good a job that he deserved gifts or bonuses."

Also appearing at the inquiry, a belligerent Eddie Obeid denied any knowledge of the car deal, saying he only found out about it when the matter was investigated by a newspaper years later.

The former Labor MP and party heavyweight also dismissed suggestions he had received any favours from Mr Roozendaal when he was roads or ports minister.

"To your personal knowledge did Mr Roozendaal ever make any decision that favoured your family because you asked him to?" Mr Obeid's lawyer Stuart Littlemore QC asked him.

"No," Mr Obeid replied.

Mr Roozendaal will appear before the inquiry on Tuesday.

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New hope for key car parts maker

AUSTRALIA'S carmakers are breathing more easily, with a troubled key component supplier expected to restart production.

Ford and Holden both faced a shutdown later this week if parts maker Autodom Limited could not kick-start production.

The company supplies all three Australian car producers - Ford, Holden and Toyota - but was placed in voluntary administration at the weekend after closing its doors last week and standing down about 400 workers at plants in both Victoria and South Australia.

Talks involving the administrators, the company, car producers and banks centred on resuming operations as soon as possible and details on just how and when that would occur were expected by Tuesday morning.

Ford said it believed a resolution would be finalised and there would be no disruption to its production schedule, set to resume on Wednesday.

The company had already scheduled a down day on Monday and would again be closed on Tuesday for the Melbourne Cup.

Holden said it expected a solution to be announced on Tuesday.

"It's our belief that an industry-led solution will be announced tomorrow that will see (Autodom company) AI employees back at work and the continuation of critical parts supply to Holden with minimal impact on our own employees or operations," a spokesman said.

Toyota was less affected by Autodom's shutdown after previously indicating it had enough parts to last until Christmas.

The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) was also hopeful of a resolution that would minimise the impact on Australia's car industry.

"The best-case scenario is obviously all our members back at work and the company is able to trade out of this current administration," AMWU Victorian sectary Leigh Diehm said.

The problems with Autodom emerged just a day before Holden's announcement on Friday that it would cut 170 jobs at its assembly plant in Adelaide in response to falling demand for locally produced cars.

The company said the job losses were necessary to ensure its manufacturing operations in Australia remained viable over the next decade in the face of a high Australian dollar and a highly competitive domestic car market.

Official sales figures released on Monday highlighted the problem facing Holden and Ford, with demand for their Australian-produced vehicles falling this year in a total market that rose almost 10 per cent.

The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries said to the end of October this year sales of Ford's locally built cars were down by 10.1 per cent, while Holden had suffered a 5.6 per cent slide.

Toyota bucked the trend, posting a 13.3 per cent rise in demand for its Camry and Aurion models produced in Melbourne.

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Adelaide boy struck by lightning

A TEENAGER has been taken to hospital after being struck by lightning as thunderstorms sweep across South Australia.

The SA Ambulance Service said the incident occurred at a Hallet Cove property in Adelaide's southern suburbs on Monday.

A spokeswoman said the 15-year-old boy was conscious and in a stable condition when he was taken to the Flinders Medical Centre.

Earlier emergency authorities warned people to take precautions with thunderstorms, heavy rain and strong winds forecast to hit the state.

The State Emergency Service (SES) said the wild weather would impact large parts of the state, including metropolitan Adelaide and the Adelaide Hills and by Monday afternoon more than 17,000 homes and businesses were without power.

The worst hit areas were Kangaroo Island where power was down for about 3800 users while about 6000 were also without power across the Adelaide Hills.

Wind speeds of more than 90km/h were forecast along with large hail.

"Some of these (thunderstorms) are likely to be severe with damaging wind gusts and very heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding," the SES said.

Among the areas expected to be hit by the storms were the lower Eyre Peninsula, eastern Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula, Kangaroo Island, the Flinders Ranges, the mid-north district, the north west pastoral district and parts of the state's west coast.

The forecast rain and storms came as firefighters continued to battle a series of fires across SA including a number on Eyre Peninsula.

The Country Fire Service said most had been started by lightning strikes.

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Aust, Philippines bolster military drills

THE Philippine defence chief says his Australian counterpart plans to visit early next year to discuss ways to bolster security co-operation and the entry of Australian forces for military exercises under a new pact.

The Philippine Senate in July ratified an accord that would allow Australian troops to train in combat exercises with Filipino forces in the country.

It was a long-delayed pact that got backing from MPs alarmed by Manila's recent territorial spats with Beijing.

Defence Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said on Sunday he and Australian Defence Minister Stephen Smith would discuss how to enhance joint exercises, including those that would help their forces better deal with natural disasters, terrorism and other threats.

Washington is the only other country with a similar visiting forces agreement with the Philippines.

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More Sri Lankan asylum seekers return home

ANOTHER 11 Sri Lankan men have abandoned their refugee claims and opted to return to their homeland, the immigration department says.

This brings the total number of Sri Lankans who have returned home in 2012 to 126.

Five of the men left Perth on Friday while the other six departed Christmas Island on Saturday.

"Regular transfers to Nauru and more Sri Lankans returning home is further proof that there is no advantage engaging with people smugglers," an immigration department spokesman said on Sunday.

People arriving by boat without a visa since August 13 have run the risk of being transferred to processing centres in Nauru or Papua New Guinea.

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Wildlife safe passage plan launched

WILDLIFE corridors stretching across state borders could be given funding priority under a federal government plan to help Australian fauna adapt to climate change.

The corridors will help connect the dots between protected areas, including national parks, according to Environment Minister Tony Burke.

Mr Burke on Sunday unveiled the National Wildlife Corridors Plan, which outlines processes for communities to nominate areas to become part of a national network of wildlife pathways.

"An area that meets the criteria and is declared as a National Wildlife Corridor may be eligible for priority funding under a range of Australian government funding programs," Mr Burke said in a statement.

"This is about setting priorities for conservation funding. The plan does not, of itself, lock up any land."

Greens leader Christine Milne welcomed the initiative as crucial to saving Australian native animals.

"As the world warms, species are going to have to move or else they are going to go extinct, and already some of our alpine species are faced with extinction because they can't go any higher," Senator Milne told AAP.

"We need to make sure we've got wildlife corridors right from the coast to the mountains, the north to the south, so species can move over time."

She challenged Opposition Leader Tony Abbott to commit to funding wildlife corridors under a coalition government, adding that the price on carbon was a logical funding option.

"It's actually the polluters paying for the consequences of their action," she said.

"They're the ones driving global warming, so now, part of the money raised from carbon pricing is to go to set up a capacity for adaptation for wildlife."

The Gillard government said its plan would help guide future government investment through initiatives such as Caring for our Country and the Biodiversity Fund.

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