(Washington, DC—November 1, 2009) Radio Free Asia broadcast the following stories, and more, in October:

• Wave of arrests in Burma
• Xinjiang still offline
• Late Chinese activist’s writings donated
• Chinese school expels Christian student
• Bloggers map China’s worst-polluted areas
• Three Tibetans executed
• Cambodian factory targeted for health regulations
• N. Korean child refugees at risk
• Banned writers slam China’s role at book festival
• H1N1 fears fuel anxiety in Lhasa
• Deal continues with Chinese tech company amid probe
• Vietnamese activists’ convictions spur concern
• U.S. citizen charged in Burma
• Five dead in Shanxi mine attack
• Uyghurs sentenced to death
• New restrictions target migrant workers in China
• Standoff at Chinese chemical factory
• Graft mars North Korean foreign trade
• Chinese bloggers avoid censors via Bluetooth

RFA Reports on wave of Burmese arrests

Oct. 29 – RFA Burmese aired story [text in English/Burmese] on Burma’s military junta stepping up detentions of its political opponents and social activists in recent weeks. As many as 50 people have been arrested and taken into custody in the last month.

RFA Reports on Xinjiang ‘still offline’
Oct. 29 – RFA Uyghur and Mandarin aired story [text in English/Uyghur/Mandarin] on Chinese authorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) still maintaining tight controls on the Internet and long-distance phone calls, almost four months after ethnic clashes that left nearly 200 people dead.

RFA Reports on late Chinese activist’s writings saved

Oct. 28 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on the writings of an executed Chinese political activist being donated to an American university for further study. Peng Lingfan, sister and only living relative of the late Lin Zhao, donated Zhao’s writings to Stanford University’s Hoover Institution during a ceremony on Oct. 27.

RFA Reports on expelled Chinese Christian student

Oct. 28 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on a Chinese high-school student who was expelled from a Han Chinese military production corps school in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) for refusing to renounce Christianity.

RFA Reports on online map showing worst-polluted sites in China
Oct. 26 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on a map pinpointing the exact location of some of the worst-polluted parts of China making the rounds on the Chinese Internet. The map, compiled by Chinese bloggers, is inspired by the recent online publication of a series of photos by prize-winning Chinese photographer Lu Guang detailing horrific scenes of industrial pollution around the country.

RFA Reports on Tibetan executions
Oct. 24 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on Chinese authorities executing at least three people convicted of rioting during last year's widespread uprising against Chinese rule. These would be the first reported executions in connection with rioting that erupted in March 2008 in the Tibet Autonomous Region capital, Lhasa.

RFA Reports on Cambodian health and safety violators targeted

Oct. 23 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodian officials vowing to crack down on safety violations that endanger factory workers. The move comes after an incident in which toxic fumes in a garment factory in Phnom Penh sickened hundreds of workers.

RFA Reports on struggle of N. Korean child refugees
Oct. 22 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on the problems often faced by North Korean refugee children. After spending a few years in China, many of these younger people face an uphill battle completing their schooling and forging a new identity as they resettle in South Korea.

RFA Reports on Chinese authors slamming Frankfurt book fair

Oct. 21 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on two dissident Chinese authors, both banned from making speeches at the prestigious Frankfurt Book Fair’s closing ceremony, lashing out at China’s leading role in the event this year.

RFA Reports on growing fears in Lhasa over H1N1

Oct. 16 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on claims by residents of the Tibetan capital Lhasa of a sharp spike in H1N1 influenza cases. Meanwhile, Chinese authorities have declined to make public the numbers of people who have been infected with H1N1 in the city and region.

RFA Reports on Nuctech deal continuing amid probe

Oct. 16 – RFA Cantonese aired story [text in English/Cantonese] on Namibian officials saying they are re-opening negotiations for a loan and technology import contract with China’s Nuctech despite concerns of corruption surrounding the deal. Beijing-based firm Nuctech was run until last year by the son of Chinese president Hu Jintao, whose name was left out of official Chinese news coverage of the Namibian corruption probe.

RFA Reports on sentencing of Vietnamese democracy activists
Oct. 14 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the recent convictions of nine Vietnamese democracy activists raising concerns among the international community. The activists were sentenced for up to six years for peacefully criticizing the government – the latest court-sanctioned actions in a series of moves against dissent.

RFA Reports on U.S. citizen being detained in Burma

Oct. 14 – RFA Burmese aired story [text in English/Burmese] on the detention of a U.S. citizen born in Burma. Kyaw Zaw Lwin is being held by authorities for allegedly plotting to incite unrest in the military-ruled country and could face up to 14 years in jail.

RFA Reports on Shanxi mine attack leaving five dead

Oct. 13 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on attacks by armed gangs on villagers gathered at a coal mine in northern China which left five dead and more than a dozen hospitalized. The attack occurred in Shanxi province when more than 100 club-wielding attackers stormed into the mine near Baijiamao village in Lin county, attempting to expel villagers who were allegedly disputing the mine’s ownership.

RFA Reports on Uyghur death sentences

Oct. 13 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on authorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of northwest China sentencing to death six more people over bloody ethnic unrest in July, bringing the total number of death sentences to 12.

RFA Reports on Chinese migrant workers targeted by new rules
Oct. 10 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on Chinese authorities imposing a new regulation, launched on the 60th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China, requiring all migrant workers in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) to carry a police-issued statement verifying that he or she is a “law-abiding citizen.”

RFA Reports on standoff at Chinese chemical factory
Oct. 7 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on scores of peasants blocking a chemical fiber factory in southern Zhejiang for two days during China’s Oct. 1 National Day celebration. They gathered to protest heavy noise, dust, and water pollution caused by the plant, and called on local authorities to shut down operations.

RFA Reports on graft marring North Korean mineral trade
Oct. 6 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on North Korea launching a crackdown on widespread official corruption in its mineral export sector, which accounts for the country's largest area of foreign trade.

RFA Reports on Bluetooth as way to avoid censors in China
Oct. 1 – RFA Cantonese aired story [text in English/Cantonese] on Chinese netizens turning to an existing form of mobile technology to exchange information, as Beijing redoubles its efforts to censor Internet content during sensitive National Day celebrations. Many netizens have been making use of Bluetooth, an open wireless protocol for exchanging data, to create personal area networks with a range of up to 10 meters on their mobile devices and to share information.