| International |
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| Myanmar’s cyclone death toll soars above 133,000 |
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 Myanmar's junta took diplomats on a tour of the storm-ravaged Irrawaddy delta today as the toll of dead and missing from Cyclone Nargis soared above 133,000 people, making it one of the most devastating ever to hit Asia. In the last 50 years, only two Asian cyclones have exceeded Nargis in terms of human cost -- a 1970 storm that killed 500,000 people in neighbouring Bangladesh, and another that killed 143,000 in 1991, also in Bangladesh. |
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| One-child policy brings extra pain to quake-hit parents |
 After their daughter was born, Bi Kaiwei and his wife Meilin decided to adhere to China's one-child policy and its slogan, ''Have fewer kids, live better lives.''
For them and other couples who lost an only child in the past week's massive earthquake, the tragedy has been doubly cruel. Robbed of their sole progeny and a hope for the future, they find it even harder to restart their shattered lives, haunted by added guilt, regret and gnawing loss. |
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| Progress of gay rights movement to be center stage..... |
 The California Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay marriage in the state will not be the last word.
California voters will almost certainly hold a referendum on a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in November, and for the first time anywhere in the United States, the vote will have a direct and immediate effect on gay couples waiting to tie the knot. |
