Pakistan PM prays at India shrine

PAKISTAN premier Raja Pervez Ashraf has prayed at a 13th-century Muslim shrine in northern India during a one-day visit in which politics was kept off the agenda.

Indian Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid earlier hosted a lunch for Ashraf at a luxury hotel in the tourist city of Jaipur.

He said he was welcoming the Pakistani leader with "open arms", despite strained relations between the nuclear-armed rivals over recent border clashes.

"It's in our culture to welcome our guests with open arms," said Khurshid.

"Today it was a private visit. There were no official talks. We will do it at the appropriate time," Khurshid said.

On Friday, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told parliament ties between the neighbours could improve only if Pakistan shunned its alleged support to "the terror machine" of cross-border militancy.

Pakistan, which has fought three wars with India since independence from Britain in 1947, rejects New Delhi's charges it supports militant attacks.

After the luncheon meeting, Ashraf, whose government's term ends on March 16, flew to the shrine in Ajmer.

Ashraf and his family prayed at the shrine of Sufi saint Hazrat Khwaja Gharib Nawaz and was slated to return to Islamabad later on Saturday.

Ashraf is the most senior Pakistani to visit India since last April, when President Asif Ali Zardari made a similar pilgrimage and had lunch with Prime Minister Singh.

Some Indians, including the symbolic spiritual head of the Ajmer shrine, Zainul Abedin Ali Khan, objected to Ashraf's pilgrimage.

Khan had said he would refuse to assist Ashraf during the prayers.

His decision did not affect the visit because other shrine members assisted Ashraf, officials at the religious site said.

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Federal Labor weighed on McGowan

FEDERAL Labor's sinking popularity and ailing image has dragged down the party's West Australian leader Mark McGowan, who was heading for a massive defeat in one of the state's most swiftly called elections.

Moments after counting began, ABC commentators said the polls that had pointed to a crushing victory to premier Colin Barnett and his the Liberal/Nationals coalition were proving correct and called the result about an hour into the tallying.

A brutally frank defence minister Stephen Smith said federal Labor had not helped Mr McGowan, who, despite a strong campaign, could not achieve an extremely rare defeat of a first term government.

Mr Smith said Saturday's result in the west proved the Labor party had many issues to work on before the federal election on September 14.

"We've had a tough time federally - you don't need to be a rocket scientist to work that out - and there's no doubt we have been a drag on Mark and there's no doubt that we haven't been helpful," Mr Smith said.

"We have a range of tough political issues to work through between now and September.

"It will go down to the wire."

With 56.7 per cent of the vote counted, the coalition had 58 per cent of the vote on a two party preferred basis, with Labor taking 42 per cent, accounting for a swing of 6.6 per cent to the government.

Deputy federal opposition leader Julie Bishop said the WA election results - which very early in counting pointed to a Liberal/National coalition securing an overwhelming majority in the WA parliament - reflected poorly on Labor's brand.

Independent Liz Constable, who is retiring from the seat of Churchlands, said: "I don't think anyone anticipated such a landslide".

And WA Labor must have known it, with a very small contingent turning out for the party's gathering in Mr McGowan's home of Rockingham, where the atmosphere was decidedly sombre.

"It looks terrible. What a bloodbath," one Labor supporter lamented at the function.

Deputy leader of the Opposition Roger Cook admitted there had been some damage to the Labor brand from the federal government.

"To what extent it had a role to play in the state election is very difficult to say," he said.

WA Treasurer Troy Buswell, who had been attacked by the Labor party in the last week of the campaign, said the tactic had backfired.

"It's pretty un-Australian to play the man - I don't think West Australians have taken too kindly to that," Mr Buswell said.

After calling Mr Barnett to concede defeat, Mr McGowan said he was proud of the values that were reflected in his party's policies, which aimed to support West Australians in the regions as well as in the suburbs.

"I think we did a good job," he said.

"We went out there and we were bold in what we stood for.

"I know that we need to provide those basic core services, those basic facilities where people live in an expanding, growing state like Western Australia, and that was the vision we took to the election.

"That was what we wanted to make sure people understood that we stood for and that we strived to achieve in the course of this campaign.

"All of those ideas are ideas that we will pursue into the future."

Labor had been courageous in putting out its ideas, he said, adding he was proud of the Metronet plan.

WA Labor's election campaign revolved around the Metronet train project but it was seen as an ambitious proposal and competed with the Liberal party's more piecemeal transport plans.

Mr Barnett congratulated his coalition MPs who retained all the seats won at the last election.

"We've also won a further seven seats with a few still up for grabs," he told supporters.

He said the coalition deserved re-election as it had been a "good government", which was strong on the economy, ethical, principled and had introduced "fantastic reforms in education and health."

"This is the moment to enjoy," he said.

"And I promise you a good government for another four years."

Mr Barnett congratulated Mr McGowan on his energetic campaign which he said gave the people of Western Australia a real choice.

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WA's strong economy seals it for Barnett

PERTH'S tradies, contractors and the self-employed are pretty well off compared to workers on the east coast of Australia.

And therein lies the problem for West Australian Labor and the federal Labor party in an election year.

Labor branches in NSW and Victoria can rustle up the support of the unions, primarily in the manufacturing bases outside Sydney and Melbourne.

But WA's already small manufacturing sector is shrinking, and so is the party's traditional support base.

Many people in blue collar WA Labor seats don't really identify with the party anymore.

No more was that evident at this weekend's state election than in the seats of Midland and Balcatta where the Liberal party won convincingly.

Many tradespeople and contractors are essentially small business people looking for tax concessions, simpler operating conditions and a way to keep the money rolling in.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard knows this well.

That's why she stayed well away from WA Labor leader Mark McGowan's hard fought but futile campaign on public transport, health and education.

In the car-loving, privately health-insured suburbs of Perth, it was extremely hard for Mr McGowan to gain traction with anyone other than the true believers.

To the Liberal party's credit, it not only managed to maintain the support of the mining industry and small business, but a good number of mining workers now identify more strongly with the conservatives than Labor.

It's a funny place, WA.

While Victoria's economy is showing signs it could be in recession and jobs in NSW and Queensland are being lost at a rapid rate, things are still pretty good in the resources heartland.

Despite the massive debt the WA Liberals continue to rack up, people want to hear that the resources boom will continue indefinitely and that the state can still afford a flash new football stadium, airport train and a world class arena.

While Premier Colin Barnett annoyed some of his constituents with generous spending and projects like transforming the city's waterfront, it was not enough to alter the widespread belief that life is best in the west.

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McGowan gracious in WA election loss

IF he was listening to political commentators and polling before the election, WA Labor leader Mark McGowan knew defeat was coming but he handled the loss with optimism and grace.

The Opposition leader conceded defeat on Saturday night just three hours after polling closed in the state election.

In his speech, Mr McGowan said he was proud of the values that were reflected in the party's policies, which aimed to support West Australians in the regions as well as in the metropolitan suburbs.

"I think we did a good job," he said.

"We went out there and we were bold in what we stood for.

"I know that we need to provide those basic core services, those basic facilities where people live in an expanding, growing state like Western Australia, and that was the vision we took to the election.

"That was what we wanted to make sure people understood that we stood for and that we strived to achieve in the course of this campaign.

"All of those ideas are ideas that we will pursue into the future."

Labor had been courageous in putting out its ideas, he said.

"You may have heard of one of them, Metronet," he said, drawing laughter from the crowd.

"I'm proud of that plan."

WA Labor's election campaign revolved around Metronet but it was seen as an ambitious proposal and competed with the Liberal party's more piecemeal transport plans.

Mr McGowan said the premier was gracious during their "chat" on the phone.

It was a hard fought campaign and hard to win, but they did their best and WA Labor would come back stronger, he said.

Mr McGowan thanked his family for their support and joked that his daughter Amelia, who was already in bed, had been a star in the campaign and would be premier one day.

"She will be the first premier of Western Australia in ponytails I'm sure," he quipped.

The Labor leader also thanked his staff who he said made him "look good".

Earlier, deputy leader Roger Cook, who won his seat of Kwinana, admitted there had been some damage to the Labor brand from the federal government.

"To what extent that had a role to play in the state election is very difficult to say," he said.

Labor MP Paul Papalia, who won his seat of Warnbro, struggled to hide his disappointment, telling reporters that the Liberals were clearly struggling with a lack of talented leaders since they had to appoint controversial MP Troy Buswell as treasurer.

"What we're going to have is an even bigger pool of people who are incapable of performing at an appropriate level for the state," he said.

However, the result would suggest the public has no such problem with Mr Buswell or the Liberals.

As the crowd of about 100 Labor supporters drowned their sorrows in food and drinks, Mr McGowan took the time to thank people individually, maintaining an optimistic smile all the way.

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WA election loss adds to Labor woes

FEDERAL Labor's woes played a significant role in tainting the party's West Australian election bid, helping to deliver a crushing defeat to state opposition leader Mark McGowan.

The polls had pointed to a landslide win on Saturday for the WA Liberals, but even Premier Colin Barnett, dubbed the Emperor for his decisive and autocratic approach, appeared taken aback by the magnitude of his sweeping victory.

The Liberals, who will once again form a coalition with the Nationals, kept all of the 24 seats they won at the 2008 election, secured a further seven seats and a few were still up for grabs, Mr Barnett said in his victory speech.

With three quarters of the vote counted late on Saturday night, the Liberals had enjoyed a swing of 8.5 per cent which could translate into many as 40 seats for the coalition to Labor's 19.

It was one of the state's - and perhaps the nation's - most swiftly called elections.

Also swift was a comment by deputy federal opposition leader Julie Bishop that the WA election results reflected poorly on Labor's brand.

So too was a brutally frank admission by defence minister Stephen Smith that federal Labor had not helped Mr McGowan, who, despite a strong campaign, could not achieve an extremely rare defeat of a first term government.

Mr Smith said Saturday's result in the west proved the Labor party had many issues to work on before the federal election on September 14.

"We've had a tough time federally - you don't need to be a rocket scientist to work that out - and there's no doubt we have been a drag on Mark and there's no doubt that we haven't been helpful," Mr Smith said.

"We have a range of tough political issues to work through between now and September.

"It will go down to the wire."

Mr Barnett said the resounding result was a combination of his good government and a distaste for Labor federally.

"I think Labor is on the nose to a lot of people, and that was a factor," Mr Barnett said.

"I think the message, if there is one, is that you need to make decisions, for the good of the economy and the good of the people."

The Liberals were poised to claim the previous safe Labor seat of Perth, along with winning Joondalup, Forrestfield, Balcatta and Belmont from Labor.

Deputy Opposition leader Roger Cook admitted there had been some damage from the federal government.

"To what extent it had a role to play in the state election is very difficult to say," he said.

Ms Bishop also said state Labor had put all of its eggs in one basket with its ambitious Metronet suburban rail plan, whereas the government ran local campaigns seat by seat.

But Mr McGowan said he was proud of the values that were reflected in his party's policies, which aimed to support West Australians in the regions as well as in the suburbs.

"I think we did a good job," he said.

"I know that we need to provide those basic core services, those basic facilities where people live in an expanding, growing state like Western Australia, and that was the vision we took to the election."

WA Treasurer Troy Buswell, who had been personally attacked by the Labor party in the last week of the campaign, said the tactic backfired.

"It's pretty un-Australian to play the man - I don't think West Australians have taken too kindly to that," Mr Buswell said.

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Barnett celebrates resounding WA poll win

TRIUMPHANT West Australian premier Colin Barnett says the Liberals' landlside state election victory was an endorsement of an ethical and principled government - and proved the Labor party was "on the nose" in Australia.

Mr Barnett's Liberal party annihilated their WA Labor opposition in a result that even surprised blue-blooded onlookers, with predictions of a Liberal/National alliance which could hold as many as 40 seats in the WA's Lower House on Monday.

Speaking to hundreds of delirious onlookers in his electorate of Cottesloe, who chanted "four more years" on his arrival, Mr Barnett said the result was "resounding".

"I think Labor is on the nose to a lot of people, and that was a factor," Mr Barnett said.

"I think the message, if there is one, is that you need to make decisions, for the good of the economy and the good of the people.

"Get the policy right, make the decisions - don't play politics."

After polling suggested a massive victory for the incumbent Liberals, the voters duly delivered, with huge swings away from Labor in dozens of seats.

The sight of Labor veteran and former minister Michelle Roberts battling to hold on to her seat in Midland was beyond the wildest dreams of even the most die-hard Liberal supporter.

The Liberals were also poised to claim the previous safe Labor seat of Perth, along with winning Joondalup, Forrestfield, Balcatta and Belmont from Labor.

Mr Barnett, who arrived at his celebration party minutes after WA Labor leader Mark McGowan conceded, said he had been called and congratulated by his Rockingham rival.

"Fundamentally there was not a mood for change," Mr Barnett said.

"Mr McGowan did run an energetic campaign, he gave people a choice on major issues and I genuinely congratulate him.

"It is not easy for an opposition ... but I think the last two weeks getting down to some personal issues, I think the perhaps took away some of his support."

The night was made even sweeter with the convincing win of Nationals leader Brendon Grylls in the Pilbara, who secured his own double figure swing.

Mr Barnett said he would govern alongside the Nationals, despite the Liberals winning an overall majority in their own right.

"We will govern in partnership with the National Party," Mr Barnett said.

"That was a remarkable result in the Pilbara, a gutsy move and congratulate Brendon for that.

"I would be hopeful the Liberals and Nationals would have the numbers (in the upper house) as well."

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Man charged over Vic double hit and run

A 21-YEAR-OLD driver has been charged over an alleged double hit and run that injured two men, one of whom was dragged 40 metres in Melbourne's north.

Jordan Kostopoulas, of Preston, was charged with conduct endangering life, dangerous driving causing serious injury and other traffic offences at an out of sessions hearing late on Friday.

Police believe two men were struck by a car in Heidelberg West around 10pm (AEDT) on Thursday after an argument.

The driver allegedly sped off following the crash.

A man aged 31 was critically injured after being dragged by the car. A 32-year-old man was admitted to hospital with less serious injuries.

The two victims had been part of a group who were involved in a heated argument over the car at a home earlier that evening, police say.

Two people were injured before the group left the home.

The car was found at an Ivanhoe shopping centre on Friday morning.

Kostopoulas was granted bail and will face court at a later date.

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Tokyo shares set to continue upward run

JAPANESE shares are expected to make further gains next week, with sentiment remaining positive after stocks hit levels not seen since before the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers, brokers say.

Over the week, the benchmark Nikkei 225 index jumped 677.24 points, or 5.84 per cent, to 12,283.62, topping levels it last held before the financial crisis.

The broader Topix index of all first section shares rose 36.17 points, or 3.67 per cent, to 1,020.50.

"There may be some profit taking at some point, but the overall upward trend is likely to continue for now," said Hirokazu Fujiki, a strategist with Okasan Securities.

An equity trading director at a foreign brokerage told Dow Jones Newswires: "The market looks overbought, but the upward momentum is too powerful for many players to stand in the way."

Japanese exporters, a key driver of the economy, are likely to continue to benefit from the weak yen, which makes products more competitive overseas and swells the value of repatriated profits.

The yen is expected to slide further in anticipation of more aggressive monetary easing from the Bank of Japan, which will likely be headed by Haruhiko Kuroda, an advocate of such policies, at its next rate-setting meeting in April.

The central bank left its policy unchanged on Thursday, the last meeting for current governor Masaaki Shirakawa.

Kuroda, a finance veteran, has in the past criticised the bank for not doing enough to boost the world's number three economy and is a supporter of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's plan of ratcheting up spending to drive growth.

"The yen will remain under selling pressure ahead of next month's policy meeting, which will sustain the current buying sentiment in the Tokyo stock market," Okasan's Fujiki said.

Among key economic indicators scheduled for next week are the US consumer price index for February and US industrial output for February, both to be released on Friday.

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Five Vic 'bikies' nabbed over kidnap plot

FIVE men with links to bikie gangs have been arrested in Melbourne over an alleged kidnapping conspiracy.

Special Operations Group officers helped arrest the men as part of a drug operation in Greensborough, in the city's northeast, around 9pm, police said.

Police confirmed the men had ties to motorcycle gangs, but would not reveal which.

The arrests come amid a crackdown on bikie gangs through a series of raids, which police hope will prevent a potential all-out war spilling onto the city's streets.

Four of the men were taken to Heidelberg police station for questioning, while another was being treated at the scene of the arrests for a medical condition, police said.

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Man escapes from NSW police for 30 minutes

A MAN who was in police custody has managed to escape and was on the run for half an hour before being caught again.

Police say the man escaped from Cessnock police station about 5pm (AEDT) on Friday.

He was seen running down a side street near the station and tried to flee through several storm drains.

But vigilant members of the public informed police of his location and he was nabbed about 5.30pm.

A police spokesman was unable to tell AAP what the man had initially been charged for.

After he was caught, the man was charged with escaping lawful custody.

Bail was refused and he is due before Maitland Bail Court on Saturday.

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US jobless rate falls to 2008 level

THE US has announced better-than-expected jobs data, with the unemployment rate falling and solid jobs growth in February.

The jobless rate fell to 7.7 per cent, from 7.9 per cent in January, and a net 236,000 jobs were gained, the government said on Friday.

The last time the jobless rate was as low as 7.7 per cent was in December 2008.

The numbers were much better than analysts expected. The average estimate was for the jobless rate to remain stuck at 7.9 per cent for the second month in a row and additional jobs to total 165,000.

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US stocks open higher

US stocks have opened higher as a surprisingly strong jobs report suggests the economic recovery is on track.

The monthly jobs report said the unemployment rate fell to 7.7 per cent from 7.9 per cent, while the net number of jobs gained came in at 236,000, according to the Labor Department.

Both numbers were better than expected.

Five minutes into trade on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial average gained 71.21 (0.5 per cent) to 14,400.7, climbing to a new intra-day record.

The broad-based S&P 500 added 6.79 (0.44 per cent) to 1,551.05. The index was about 14 points below its all-time closing high.

The tech-rich Nasdaq composite index increased by 22.57 (0.7 per cent) to 3,244.93.

Analysts hailed the strong jobs report.

"American companies are hiring again in greater numbers," said Sal Guatieri, senior economist of BMO Capital Markets.

"Employment should strengthen further as the fiscal fog clears and companies see sustained strength in consumer spending and housing activity."

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ECB keeps rates on hold amid crisis fears

THE European Central Bank has held its main refinancing rate at a historic low of 0.75 per cent, despite concerns that political gridlock in Italy could trigger a resurgence in the debt crisis.

ECB watchers had not expected the central bank to ease borrowing costs in the euro area this month, but analysts said they would wait to hear whether central bank chief Mario Draghi had anything to say about the political situation in Italy and the possible repercussions for the euro area as a whole.

Draghi believes that with interest rates currently at a record low of 0.75 per cent, an unprecedented amount of liquidity pumped into banks and a key bond-purchase program in place, the central bank has already done its utmost to help resolve the long-running crisis.

However, the gridlock in last week's elections in Italy, where a centre-left coalition won the most votes, but not enough to form a majority in parliament, has focused market attention back on whether the ECB might have to step in again to stamp out fears of a resurgence in the crisis.

Italian-born Draghi is unlikely to let himself be drawn into making any comment on domestic political issues in his home country.

But political developments there are likely to be a topic in the question-and-answer session of the traditional post-meeting ECB news conference, analysts said.

Also on the agenda of the meeting will be the ECB's updated staff projections for growth and inflation.

In the last round of forecasts published in December, the ECB had foreseen a contraction in the eurozone economy of 0.3 per cent this year followed by growth of 1.2 per cent in 2014.

Analysts said they do not expect significant revisions to the forecasts.

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US weekly jobless claims fall

NEW claims for US unemployment benefits fell last week to 340,000, suggesting continued modest strength in the jobs market on the eve of steep federal spending cuts.

Claims, an indicator of the pace of layoffs across the country, fell by 7,000 in the week to March 2, holding below the four-week rolling average, according to the Department of Labor.

It was the last week of reporting before the start of the "sequester" spending cuts, officially launched on March 1: $US85 billion ($A83 billion) in broad-based budget reductions required over the next seven months, which mean furloughs for government workers, cutbacks in temporary hiring and cuts to government contracting.

The weekly figure pulled the four-week moving average of claims down to 348,750, compared with the 367,500 average of a year earlier.

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Insurer Aviva posts huge 2012 loss

BRITISH insurer Aviva says it tumbled into a net loss of STG3.0 billion ($A4.4 billion) last year and slashed its shareholder dividend, sparking a slump in the group's share price.

The loss after tax, owing mainly to a massive writedown following the sale of its US business, contrasted with a net profit of STG60 million in 2011, Aviva said in a results statement on Thursday.

The company meanwhile reported underlying operating profit - an indicator of its day-to-day business - of STG1.78 billion.

However, shares plunged in value after Aviva cut its full-year shareholder dividend by 27 per cent to 19 pence a share, as it sought to cut debt and improve performance.

Chief executive Mark Wilson insisted in the earnings release that the group had achieved major progress in its turnaround program.

"2012 was a year of transition at Aviva. There has been solid progress against the turnaround plan set out last year. Our capital strength has improved materially and we have completed the vast proportion of the disposal program. We have made progress reducing costs and we also have a strong new management team in place," he said.

Wilson added: "The STG3 billion loss after tax is driven principally by writedowns we have previously announced due to the agreed sale of our US business.

"Operating profit levels were healthy across our major businesses, especially in the UK, France and Canada."

Aviva - Britain's second-biggest insurer after Prudential - said last July it would withdraw from 16 non-core business areas following a major strategic review of the group.

The review was launched after the shock resignation of chief executive Andrew Moss in May 2012 amid shareholder revolts over pay for top managers viewed as underperforming.

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Berlusconi sentenced to jail over wiretaps

AN Italian court has sentenced former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi to a year in prison over the publication of leaked transcripts from a police wiretap in a newspaper he owns.

Berlusconi, who faces two more verdicts this month for tax fraud and having sex with an underage prostitute, can appeal the conviction, which would suspend the sentence under Italian law.

"It is impossible to tolerate this kind of judicial persecution that has lasted for 20 years," Berlusconi said in a statement.

Berlusconi said the decision was unfair since he himself had been the victim of "thousands" of leaks in newspapers and television broadcasts and had filed lawsuits that had never come to trial.

Italian sentencing guidelines indicate that people aged over 75 and with sentences of less than two years do not have to actually go to prison.

Berlusconi, a billionaire media tycoon, is 76.

"I am disappointed and concerned because I am convinced that the proof was insufficient, contradictory or missing," Berlusconi's lawyer Piero Longo told reporters after the hearing on Thursday.

"I was not expecting a conviction," he said.

Fabrizio Cicchitto, a leading member of Berlusconi's People of Freedom party, said: "The plan to eliminate Silvio Berlusconi through the justice system is now so obvious that it is dangerous for democracy."

The party is preparing a demonstration later this month against a justice system that Berlusconi frequently portrays as left-wing and biased.

Berlusconi stood accused of violating secrecy laws after his Il Giornale newspaper published transcripts in 2005 that were widely seen as an attempt to discredit a senior member of the centre-left Democratic Party ahead of elections in 2006.

The leaks were about the attempted takeover of BNL bank by insurance giant Unipol.

Berlusconi's brother Paolo, editor of Il Giornale, was sentenced to two years and three months.

Silvio Berlusconi also faces a verdict possibly this month in a trial in which he is accused of having sex with a then 17-year-old prostitute when he was prime minister and then abusing the power of his office by putting pressure on police to release her from custody.

A verdict in his appeal trial against a tax fraud conviction from last year in which he was also sentenced to a year in prison is also expected this month.

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US trade gap widens in January

THE US trade deficit grew sharply in January after a plunge in December, government figures show.

The Commerce Department reported the trade gap rose to $US44.4 billion ($A43.5 billion), up from a revised $US38.1 billion in December.

Exports fell by $US2.2 billion to $US184.5 billion, led by declines in exports of industrial supplies and materials as the United States beefed up its imports of those goods.

Total imports rose about $US4.1 billion to $US228.9 billion.

The increase in the trade shortfall came in larger than the average analyst estimate of $US43.0 billion.

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Employers must modernise workplace: ACTU

EMPLOYERS must modernise workplaces and make conditions more flexible to help single mothers and carers stay in their jobs, the ACTU says.

Friday is International Women's Day and Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) President Ged Kearney has used the event to ask employers to "open their minds to different working hours and conditions".

"This International Women's Day we call on employers to modernise their view of work and women's caring responsibilities," Ms Kearney said in a statement.

"Employers are missing out on a lot of talented workers when they don't attempt to accommodate those employees who have to carry, sometimes alone, the responsibilities of caring."

A group of equality organisations say female homelessness is rising faster than that of men and a "tsunami" of housing stress is confronting Australia.

This is brought about by the pressures of balancing work with family responsibilities and gender inequalities in the workplace, the Equality Rights Alliance (ERA) and the Australian Woman Against Violence Alliance (AWAVA) said in a joint statement.

"Housing stress is fundamentally an issue of poverty and Australian women face significant financial disadvantage when compared with men," ERA manager Helen Dalley-Fisher said in a statement.

"The high number of women in low paid jobs, heading single parent families, and the high rates of poverty among ageing women means women are disproportionately affected when it comes to housing."

The gender inequality, including a pay gap of 17.5 per cent between men and women, must be resolved to prevent other women from joining the 45,813 homeless females across the country, the groups said.

Investment and education is needed to bring about change, they added, like dropping the number of women who experience violence.

Violence happens to one in three women, a statistic which has remained static over decades, AWAVA chief Julie Oberin said.

"We know greater investment is needed in early intervention and prevention as these are proven to be the most effective tool to bring about real social change," Ms Oberin said.

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GPs quicker and cheaper in some areas

THE number of Australians who say they have had to wait too long for a GP can be up to three times higher in some areas than others.

The National Health Performance Authority (NHPA) released its inaugural report on Thursday on the country's 61 Medicare Locals regions - and found the experience of patients fluctuated wildly across parts of the country.

Medicare Locals were set up by the federal government as part of its wider national health reforms.

They're charged with improving the coordination and integration of services within particular regions.

The New England area in northern NSW recorded the worst result when it came to waiting too long for a GP, with 28 per cent of patients complaining of a lengthy delay.

That was three times higher than the best performing Medicare Local, the Metro North Brisbane region, where only eight per cent of people said they had waited too long.

The number who thought cost was a barrier to seeing a GP also varied between the regions.

In the ACT, 15 per cent complained of the problem, while the South West Melbourne region recorded the best figure of just three per cent.

NHPA chief executive Diane Watson said because the statistics were taken from 2011, the year Medicare Locals were introduced, it was too early to determine the success of the new health organisations.

The statistics would instead be used to drive local improvements, she said.

"We'll be monitoring this information across time to see the degree to which the clinicians and Medicare Locals are making a difference in these measures over time," Dr Watson told AAP.

"The purpose is to help drive change by putting local information in the hands of local decision makers, and the areas that should draw our attention are the ones where we have largest variation across the country, for example the cost and the wait times."

Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek used the release of the NHPA report to attack the coalition over its plan to scrap Medicare Locals.

"While the data in this report pre-dates the establishment of Medicare Locals, it reminds us that access to primary health care varies from place to place and we need to continue improving the system," she said in a statement.

"At a time when patients require better access to primary care, the Liberals want to slash around 3000 jobs from Medicare Locals.

"That is a cut of $1.2 billion out of primary health care over three years."

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Libya interim head's car comes under fire

THE car of Libya's interim leader has come under fire in Tripoli as he left a chaotic session of the national assembly disrupted by protesters, without causing casualties, the interior minister says.

"The car of the General National Congress speaker (Mohammed al-Megeryef) came under fire as assembly members left in a state of total confusion" on Tuesday night, Ashur Shwayel told a press conference.

The demonstrators who disrupted the session of the General National Congress, the highest authority in Libya, in effect making Megeryef the country's interim leader, were armed and some carried explosives, said the minister.

Dozens of protesters insisting the national assembly adopt a bill banning from politics associates of former dictator Muammar Gaddafi blocked MPs from leaving the meeting room in a southern suburb of Tripoli.

The official news agency LANA, quoting an assembly official, said Megeryef's car came under heavy gunfire.

It was unclear if the attack was "an assassination bid or a collateral incident," the official said.

The bill is controversial because it could put more than 30 members of the General National Congress out of office, including al-Megeryef and even Prime Minister Ali Zeidan.

Proposed in December, the bill would ban from politics all officials of the Gaddafi regime and their associates.

Only earlier on Tuesday, the national assembly building was returned to its members after a month-long occupation by former rebels demanding compensation for injuries in the 2011 revolution that ousted Gaddafi, a security official said.

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US to hand over last Afghan prisoners

PRESIDENT Hamid Karzai says the United States will hand over a final group of Afghan prisoners held at a controversial jail, signalling a breakthrough in a long-running dispute with Washington.

Last September, the United States passed the Afghan authorities control of more than 3,000 detainees at Bagram, a sprawling detention centre north of Kabul which has in the past been dubbed the Guantanamo Bay of Afghanistan.

But the Americans continued to guard 50 foreigners not covered by the agreement and hundreds of Afghans arrested since the transfer deal was signed in March 2012.

In November, Karzai accused the United States of breaching the deal, saying that prisoners found innocent by courts were still being held and more people had been captured by American forces against the provisions of the agreement.

Kabul made control of the prison a condition for signing a long-term agreement and agreeing to possible legal immunity that would allow some US troops to remain in the country after the bulk of Western combat forces withdraw next year.

But implementation of the transfer process has been beset by disagreements, and negotiations over the fate of detainees have often ground to a halt.

"Our efforts for the transfer of the US-run prison, years-long efforts, have eventually paid off and next week the transfer will at last take place," Karzai told the opening of a new parliamentary session.

"This transfer of prison will take place on Saturday."

Details of the final agreement have not been released.

The US-led military coalition in Kabul declined to comment, except to confirm that the final handover would take place on Saturday.

Human rights campaigners have regularly criticised Bagram prison, 50 kilometres north of Kabul.

They say it fails to comply with international norms because some inmates are detained without trial or knowledge of the charges against them.

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Venezuela begins Chavez farewell, era ends

VENEZUELANS have begun to bid farewell to late President Hugo Chavez, whose body is to lie in state for three days to honour the firebrand leftist who ruled the oil-rich nation for 14 years.

The body of the 58-year-old former paratrooper was to be escorted by a four-horse cortege from the Caracas military hospital where he died from cancer to a military academy he considered his second home.

Venezuela, still deeply divided after an acrimonious election in October, declared a week of national mourning, and a senior minister said a new vote would be called within what are sure to be 30 tense days.

Vice President Nicolas Maduro, who tearfully broke the news to the nation on Tuesday that his mentor had lost his battle with cancer, was poised to take over as interim president and campaign as Chavez's chosen successor.

The death brought thousands of Venezuelans to public squares across the nation, weeping and celebrating the life of a divisive figure whose oil-funded socialist revolution delighted the poor and infuriated the wealthy.

Hundreds of people spent the night in front of his hospital, waving Venezuelan flags and chanting "we are all Chavez!" A banner was hung the hospital fence, reading "Chavez lives, the battle continues!"

"I love him," said Iris Dicuro, 62, who came from the northeastern city of Puerto La Cruz and wore a shirt with the words "Forward Comandante."

"I want to bid farewell because he was a good man who gave everything to the poor."

Schools were closed and huge crowds were expected along the capital's streets to see his remains taken to the military academy.

The armed forces were to fire a 21-gun salute and "there will be a salvo every hour until his burial," Defence Minister Diego Molero said.

Some of Chavez's closest allies had already arrived on Wednesday ahead of a state funeral on Friday, including Argentine President Cristina Kirchner, Uruguay's Jose Mujica and Bolivia's Evo Morales.

Chavez will be mourned by many of the country's once-neglected poor, who revered the self-styled revolutionary for using the country's oil riches to fund popular housing, health, food and education programs.

And like-minded Latin American leaders like Cuba's Raul Castro, Ecuador's Rafael Correa and Bolivia's Morales lost a close friend who used his diplomatic muscle and cheap oil to shore up their rule.

Chavez died five months after winning re-election, overcoming public frustration over a rising murder rate, regular blackouts and soaring inflation.

The opposition had accused Chavez of misusing public funds for his campaign and dominating the airwaves while forcing government workers to attend rallies through intimidation.

He missed his swearing-in for a new six-year term on January 10, but the Supreme Court approved an indefinite delay.

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Maldives ex-president freed, 81 arrested

FORMER Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed has been freed after his overnight detention sparked anti-government protests that led to the arrest of more than 80 opposition activists, police say.

The release of Nasheed, the country's first democratically elected leader, came after he was taken before a magistrate on charges of abusing his authority when he was in power between 2008 and 2012.

"We produced him (before a judge) in court today as instructed by the magistrate and after today's hearing he was free to go," police spokesman Hassan Haneef said.

Nasheed's Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said the case had been put off for another four weeks.

But there was no ruling on Nasheed's demand to postpone the case until after the September 7 presidential election in which he is a candidate, the MDP said.

The 45-year-old Nasheed says the charges are politically motivated and aimed at disqualifying him from contesting the September presidential elections.

Police detained Nasheed on Tuesday, defying pressure from regional power India which had called for him to be free to campaign for the elections.

During Wednesday's one-hour hearing, two women were arrested for causing "disturbances", police spokesman Haneef said, adding that a total of 81 people had been detained since protests erupted on Tuesday.

India had appealed for calm following Nasheed's arrest that breached an informal understanding he would be free to campaign.

Male has been racked by violence and political infighting since February 2012 when Nasheed was ousted following a mutiny by security forces and street protests.

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Indefinite strike called in Karachi

KARACHI has gone on an indefinite strike, with businesses, shops, schools and transporters ordered to shut down until police arrest those responsible for the city's worst bomb attack in years.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), which controls most of Pakistan's largest city, ordered the strike three days after a powerful car bomb killed 50 people and wounded around 140 others in Shi'ite Muslim neighbourhood Abbas Town.

Sunday's bomb was the fourth in a series of major attacks on the minority Shi'ite community since January 10 that have killed more than 250 people.

While there has been no claim for the Karachi bombing, the banned extremist Sunni outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi said it carried out the previous attacks.

There has been widespread outrage at the government's apparent powerlessness in the face of rising sectarian violence, which has raised alarming questions about the security of general elections due to be held by mid-May.

"We are starting a peaceful movement right now against the terror attack on Abbas Town and the government's failure in arresting the terrorists despite the lapse of three days," Raza Haroon, an MQM leader, told a news conference.

"We appeal to all traders, businessmen and transporters to suspend their activities during our protest."

The MQM last month withdrew from the main ruling coalition in a move interpreted as a way of jockeying for political advantage as parliament prepares to dissolve in mid-March.

Karachi, a city of 18 million people, contributes 42 per cent of Pakistan's GDP, but is rife with murder and kidnappings, plagued for years by ethnic, sectarian and political violence, and campaigners warn the situation is getting worse.

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US rocker acquitted over Czech fan death

A PRAGUE court has acquitted the frontman of US heavy metal group Lamb of God, Randy Blythe, of charges of involuntary manslaughter over the death of a Czech fan in 2010.

Blythe, 42, went on trial on February 4 after pushing a 19-year-old fan off the stage on to a concrete floor during a concert at a Prague club in May 2010.

The fan, who had reportedly tried to climb on to the stage several times, died of head injuries two weeks later.

Judge Tomas Kubovec said on Tuesday the fan had tried to get onstage because he had misunderstood Blythe's call for greater applause which would have been "absolutely understandable for English speakers," the DNES broadsheet daily said on its website.

Blythe, who pleaded not guilty and attended all the hearings in the trial, admitted to having pushed the young man off the stage, but insisted he saw him stand up again in the crowd.

He apologised to the dead fan's family, who had demanded damages worth 10 million koruna ($A501,000).

Czech police first detained Blythe upon his arrival at Prague airport in June 2012.

He was freed without charge in August, but had to post 237,000 euro ($A305,235) bail. He left the country after committing to return for the trial.

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Saudi postpones executions of 7 men

SAUDI Arabia has postponed the scheduled executions of seven Saudis, a local official says, as rights groups said the men were condemned for crimes committed when they were minors.

The official did not say when the executions, in the southern region of Aseer, would now be carried out.

"Following a request by Aseer governor Faisal bin Khaled al-Saud, it has been decided to postpone the execution to improve preparations for applying the verdict," said the official, who is close to the governor.

The planned executions raised alarm among rights groups, with Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW) separately appealing to the Saudi authorities for stays.

The two groups said in separate statements that the men were juveniles when they were convicted of armed robbery, a crime punishable by death in the kingdom which applies a strict interpretation of Islamic sharia law.

"All seven men were between 16 and 20 when authorities arrested them in 2006 for allegedly committing a robbery in 2005," HRW said.

"There is strong evidence suggesting that the trials of all seven men violated basic principles of the right to a fair trial."

HRW Deputy Middle East Director Eric Goldstein said in a statement late on Monday that "it will be outrageous if the Saudi authorities go ahead with these executions."

"It is high time for the Saudis to stop executing child offenders and start observing their obligations under international human rights law."

Amnesty International said the men were "tortured to make them confess" and sentenced to death following a "summary trial that was grossly unfair."

So far this year, the Saudi authorities have executed 17 people.

In 2012, the kingdom executed 76 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Human Rights Watch put the number at 69.

Rape, murder, apostasy, armed robbery and drug trafficking are all punishable by death under Saudi Arabia law.

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Ikea pulls cakes after bacteria found

SWEDISH furniture giant Ikea has pulled a batch of almond cakes from its restaurants in 23 countries after Chinese authorities said they contained coliform bacteria, normally present in faecal matter.

The Swedish-made cakes had failed tests "for containing an excessive level of coliform bacteria, according to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine," the Shanghai Daily website wrote.

Ikea said 1,800 Taarta Chokladkrokant cakes - described on its website as an almond cake with chocolate, butter cream and butterscotch - were destroyed in December after being intercepted by Chinese customs.

"These cakes never reached our stores," said Ikea spokeswoman Ylva Magnusson.

"There are indications that the levels of bacteria found are low, but we obviously have to know the exact amount, and find out how this happened," she added.

A microbiologist at the Swedish National Food Agency, Mats Lindblad, said coliform bacteria "could be an indication of faecal contamination, though not always".

He said the bacteria were normally not dangerous for consumers.

Ikea last week pulled its trademark meatballs off the shelves in 25 countries after Czech authorities found traces of horse DNA in a batch of one-kilogram bags of frozen meatballs.

"It's very important to us that the products our customers buy are safe and secure to use and to eat," Magnusson said.

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Arson bid as Israel starts separate buses

A DAY after Israel began running separate West Bank bus lines for Palestinian workers, vandals have tried to set fire to several of the vehicles, police say.

"Two buses were apparently set on fire, but we are looking into all possibilities," police spokeswoman Luba Samri told AFP, saying the incident took place in the Arab-Israeli town of Kfar Qassem which lies close to the Green Line.

Police sources quoted by army radio said the buses had been torched as a protest against the new transportation system which came into effect on Monday.

The incident took place just hours after Israel began running separate bus lines for Palestinian workers and Jewish settlers, in a move which was bluntly denounced by an Israeli rights group as "segregation" and "simple racism".

But Israel's transport ministry denied the charge, saying Palestinians with a permit to work in Israel were allowed to travel "on all public transport lines".

The controversy over the separate bus lines continued to draw sharp criticism from Palestinian officials on Tuesday.

"This is a racist policy of segregation," said deputy labour minister Assef Said.

His remarks were echoed by the Palestinian Workers' Union which also denounced it as "a racist measure" and said the buses would become an easy target for attacks by settler extremists.

The new bus route ferries Palestinian workers from the Eyal checkpoint just north of the West Bank city of Qalqilya to several cities in Israel where they have permits to work.

The transport ministry says the new line are to serve Palestinian workers entering Israel in a bid "to replace the pirate operators who transport the workers at inflated fares."

But Israeli media reports said the service was launched after Jewish settlers complained that forcing them to share public transport with Palestinians was a security risk.

Until now, the workers have been reaching Israel by catching buses which run from outside Jewish settlements which they would ride alongside settlers travelling to Israel.

Ron Nahman, the late mayor of Ariel settlement, had in November said he was in talks with the army, the police and the transport ministry to find ways of "stopping Palestinians from boarding the buses that go to Ariel."

"All of them are working on this problem, and we hope that they will soon find a solution to the reality that is bothering our people," he wrote on his Facebook page.

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Kabul Bank bosses jailed for five years

AN Afghan court has sentenced 20 people, including two senior Kabul Bank executives, for their roles in a staggering $US900 million ($A888 million) fraud that caused the country's largest bank to collapse in 2010.

Judge Shamsul Rahman Shams jailed the executives for five years and ordered them to repay $US808 million of the total, stolen in a sophisticated operation that saw cash used to buy homes in Britain, Dubai, Switzerland and the United States.

The bank's former chairman, Sher Khan Farnoud, and its former CEO Khalilullah Ferozi, were both in court to hear the verdicts.

Eighteen other former Kabul Bank and central bank officials were ordered jailed for between six months and four years.

It was the first time anyone has been sentenced for the scandal, but anti-corruption campaigners immediately criticised the verdicts and said it was unclear how much time those convicted would actually spend behind bars.

The scandal also touched a brother of President Hamid Karzai and a brother of Vice-President Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim.

Both the brothers were shareholders in the bank and there has also been criticism that neither of them were charged.

"In comparison to the depth of the crisis, five years is far too little," former deputy foreign minister Mahmoud Saikal said.

"This cost Afghanistan its credibility, caused enormous losses, and the court verdicts only came after huge international pressure."

Kabul Bank was seized by the government in 2010 after the exposure of the fraud, which led the International Monetary Fund temporarily to halt its hundreds of millions of dollars of loans to Afghanistan.

Renamed New Kabul Bank, it was later bailed out by the government.

The criminal proceedings have been watched closely by Western donors for signs that the country is finally tackling rampant government corruption.

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Record 1 in 5 of world politicians women

THE share of women in the world's parliaments has risen to a new high topping 20 per cent, with quotas driving the surge, the International Parliamentary Union (IPU) says.

"Since parliaments exist, this is the first time in history that there's been one woman for every four men," said Anders Johnsson, head of the Geneva-based IPU, which groups 162 national legislatures.

The global average share of women in parliaments stood at 20.3 per cent in 2012, up from 19.5 per cent in 2011, the IPU said, ahead of the UN-sponsored International Women's Day on March 8.

Of the 48 countries which held elections last year, 22 used quotas of some form, including Senegal, Algeria, the Netherlands, France and South Korea.

Where quotas were set down in law, women took an average 24 per cent of the seats, while voluntary quotas produced a rate of 22 per cent.

In countries without a quota, women took just 12 per cent of seats.

"Although quotas remain contentious in some parts of the world, they remain key to progress on a fundamental component of democracy - gender parity in political representation," Johnsson said.

Johnsson said research showed a "critical mass" of 30 per cent was needed for women to influence the legislative process.

"When you have those kinds of numbers, the agenda tends to change. I'm not talking about a women's agenda, but a gender perspective," he explained.

"Women have, without over-generalising, a social awareness that many men don't have. And therefore they tend to bring what we could call a different social perspective.

"When one excludes a large proportion of the population, and doesn't include them in the decision-making process, it's not to the benefit of the country."

Nordic countries, which have long boasted the world's highest proportion of women in their parliaments, had an average of 42 per cent in 2012.

Europe's overall rate was 23.2 per cent, behind the Americas' 24.1 per cent.

Women accounted for 20.4 per cent of Sub-Saharan Africa's MPs, and for 17.9 per cent in Asia.

In the Pacific, the figure was 15.3 per cent - and just three per cent excluding Australia and New Zealand.

Arab states trailed with 13.2 per cent, the IPU noted, saying the region had failed to deliver on the promises of democratic change heralded by the Arab Spring.

The notable exception was Algeria, with 31.6 per cent, thanks to its quota.

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Abbott preferred in western Sydney: poll

VOTERS in Sydney's west would rather have Kevin Rudd as prime minister than Julia Gillard, but Tony Abbott remains their top choice, a poll shows.

The Seven News/ReachTEL poll found Mr Rudd has a clear lead over Ms Gillard as the preferred prime minister - 74.5 per cent to 25.5 per cent - if voters are forced to choose between the two.

Almost 42 per cent of western Sydney residents would be more likely to vote Labor if Mr Rudd was leader of the party.

But the poll found both Ms Gillard and Mr Rudd sank below Opposition Leader Tony Abbott as preferred prime minister.

If given the choice of four prime ministers, 39.2 per cent of voters would choose Mr Abbott, followed by Mr Rudd at 26 per cent, Malcolm Turnbull at 22.1 per cent, and Ms Gillard at just 13.2 per cent.

The poll surveyed 1615 residents from 11 electorates in Sydney's west.

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Kenyans vote after police gunned down

LONG lines of Kenyans have queued from way before dawn to vote in the first election since the violence-wracked polls five years ago, with a deadly police ambush hours before polling started marring the ballot.

The tense elections are seen as a crucial test for Kenya, with leaders vowing to avoid a repeat of the bloody 2007-8 post-poll violence in which more than 1100 people were killed and observers repeatedly warning of the risk of renewed conflict.

Voters standing for hours in snaking lines several hundreds of metres long - and several people thick - crowded peacefully outside polling stations to take part in one of the most complex elections Kenya has ever held.

Tensions were high on the coast including in the port city of Mombasa where six policemen killed in two separate attacks, including an ambush by some 200 youths armed with guns and bows and arrows, hours before the opening of polling stations.

"Six policemen and six attackers were killed during the confrontation," Kenyan police chief David Kimaiyo told reporters, adding that 400 officers were being sent to the coastal province to beef up security.

Kimaiyo said the attackers were suspected members of the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC), a group seeking the secession of the coastal region popular with tourists.

Despite the attack, voters packed the streets in the city.

"We are not worried, we are voting," said architect Said Said, waiting to cast a ballot at a primary school.

Neck-and-neck rivals for the presidency, Prime Minister Raila Odinga and his deputy Uhuru Kenyatta, have publicly vowed there will be no repeat of the bloodshed that followed the disputed 2007 polls.

Crimes against humanity trials later this year at The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) for Kenyatta and running mate William Ruto have raised the stakes: should they win the vote, the president and vice-president could be absent on trial for years.

Kenyans are casting six ballots, voting for a new president, parliamentarians, governors, senators, councillors and special women's representatives, with some 14.3 million registered voters and more than 30,000 polling stations.

Preliminary results are expected within 48 hours but could take up to seven days, officials have said.

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Dutch police arrest woman over art heist

DUTCH police have arrested a young Romanian woman in Rotterdam on suspicion of helping get a haul of masterpieces stolen from the city's Kunsthal museum out of the country, police say.

"Detectives investigating the art heist at the Kunsthal on Monday afternoon arrested a 19-year-old Romanian woman who is suspected of being involved in the handling of the seven stolen paintings," Rotterdam police said in a statement.

The woman is the girlfriend of one of three suspects being held in Romania for alleged involvement in October's swiftly executed theft of works by Picasso, Monet and Gauguin, among others.

The heist gripped the Netherlands and the art world as police apparently struggled to piece the crime together, despite putting 25 officers on the case.

Experts put the paintings' value at between 100 and 200 million euros ($A257 million).

Police said it appeared the paintings had been taken to a home in Rotterdam immediately after being stolen.

"There the frames were apparently removed from the paintings and later taken to Romania," police said.

The 19-year-old was one of several people living in the house at the time.

Dutch police last year released grainy security camera footage of the theft, which took place about 3am.

The footage showed two apparently young males entering and leaving the museum in central Rotterdam within barely 90 seconds.

The works stolen include Picasso's Tete d'Arlequin, Monet's Waterloo Bridge and Lucian Freud's Woman with Eyes Closed.

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At least 50 Islamists killed in Mali

AT least 50 al-Qaeda-linked rebel fighters have been killed in recent days in clashes with French and Malian troops near the town of Gao in northern Mali, a Malian military source says.

"Fighting continues on Sunday morning some 60km north of Gao between Islamists and Malian troops supported by the French army. We have the situation under control," said a Malian military source contacted by phone from the capital Bamako.

"At least 50 MUJAO Islamists have been killed since the day before yesterday (Friday)," he added, referring to rebels from the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa.

Gao, the largest city in northern Mali, was under the control of MUJAO before it was driven from there by the French-backed international offensive that was launched on January 11.

A Malian soldier who had taken part in the fighting on Friday evening near Gao had told AFP on Saturday that the Malian army had destroyed a MUJAO base.

He said the group suffered heavy losses during the fighting, which took place in In-Manas, 60 km east of Gao.

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Chan stars at China political meeting

FILM star Jackie Chan has joined other celebrities at a meeting of China's highest-profile advisory body, a move seen by analysts as an attempt by the ruling Communist Party to cultivate "soft power".

Nobel literature prizewinner Mo Yan and basketball star Yao Ming also attended the annual meeting of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), organised by the party.

The Hong Kong actor's participation in the meeting, as one of 2000 delegates making suggestions to China's government, has been strongly criticised by some in his native city.

The martial arts star provoked a furious fight-back last December after reportedly suggesting that protests in Hong Kong should be restricted. In 2009 he landed in hot water for telling a forum that "we Chinese need to be controlled".

The 58-year-old, famous in the West for the Rush Hour series and Police Story, kept a low profile outside the meeting.

"I have no way of speaking now, we don't have enough time to elaborate," he told a scrum of reporters opposite Beijing's Tiananmen Square, topped by clear blue skies after heavy smog which has blighted the capital in recent months.

Chan, wearing a black shirt and glasses, said merely that he was "very happy" before boarding a bus with Mo Yan.

Photos published by state news agency Xinhua also showed towering basketball star Yao Ming alongside other delegates packed into Beijing's cavernous Great Hall Of The People alongside president-to-be Xi Jinping.

Xi, currently party chief, will be formally appointed president to replace Hu Jintao during a meeting of the National People's Congress, or legislature, which starts on Tuesday.

Professor Sonny Ho, co-director at Hong Kong's Centre for Greater China Studies, has said Chan was selected to attend the CPPCC because it was thought his stardom could help promote ties with Hong Kong.

"Jackie Chan is acting under the soft power and united front of the PRC (mainland) government," Ho said last week.

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Russian officials disrupt Pussy Riot play

RUSSIAN migration officials have disrupted a Moscow play by a Swiss director about the trial against punk band Pussy Riot, as religious activists caused a commotion outside.

The political play The Moscow Trials by director Milo Rau tells the story of last year's trial against three singers of the feminist band - one of whom, Yekaterina Samutsevich, has since been freed and is now taking part in the play.

Russia's migration service confirmed its employees entered the Sakharov Centre, a human rights museum staging the performance, and asked Rau to show his work documents in the middle of the play.

"Mr Rau was warned about the necessity to follow migration regulations," deputy head of the service Sergey Kalyuzhny told RIA Novosti news agency. The director's business visa does not allow "work activity", he said.

Perplexed employees of the Sakharov Centre said at first they were not sure whether the visitors were migration officials or Orthodox activists in fake uniforms.

"It was an attempt to disrupt the play, and they succeeded for two hours," said Yelena Kaluzhskaya, the spokeswoman of the Sakharov Centre, adding the officers had a television crew with them.

The visitors, wearing purple vests emblazoned with the words "Immigration Control" asked the play's creator for his visa documents and questioned the director of the Sakharov Centre in his office, Kaluzhskaya told AFP. Nobody was detained.

Members of Pussy Riot entered the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour last February to stage a short performance in bright-coloured dresses and balaclavas protesting against the increased involvement of the Russian Orthodox Church in politics and Vladimir Putin's presidential campaign.

They were controversially sentenced to two years in jail on hooliganism charges in a closely-watched trial that was slammed by the West and divided Russian society.

Yekaterina Samutsevich was released in October but two other band members are serving their sentences in distant penal colonies.

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Crews begin demolition of sinkhole home

CREWS with heavy equipment have begun the demolition of a Florida home over a huge sinkhole where a man is presumed dead after being swallowed by the earth.

The search for Jeff Bush, 37, was called off on the weekend, and a heavy machine with a large bucket scoop was moved into position on Sunday.

The six-metre-wide opening of the sinkhole was almost covered by the house, and rescuers said there were no signs of life since the hole opened on Thursday.

Jeremy Bush, the man who tried to save his brother, was escorted with a woman by a deputy sheriff to the front of the house early Sunday before equipment moved into position.

He repositioned some flowers from a makeshift memorial to a safer location, where Bush and the unidentified woman knelt in prayer.

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Korean police shoot US soldier after chase

A US soldier has been shot and injured by South Korean police after a dramatic early morning car chase through the capital Seoul.

The 23-year-old private first class, who was not named, was shot in the shoulder shortly after midnight, Yonhap news agency said.

The agency and several other news outlets cited police in Yongsan district near the huge US military base in central Seoul.

Media reports said police approached two soldiers in the Itaewon entertainment district early Sunday after receiving complaints that the pair were apparently threatening passers-by with an air gun.

They reportedly fled, crashing into several other cars in a high-speed escape that continued for about 10km before the pair turned into a dead-end street.

The soldiers reportedly tried to ram their car into a police officer, prompting him to fire three shots at the car. They eventually fled to the US base.

The wounded soldier, who was driving the vehicle, was treated at the base and was said to be in stable condition. The Seoul police officer reportedly suffered a minor injury.

Video from another car - shown on local TV on Sunday night - showed the soldiers' vehicle driving at high speed past police officers.

The US 8th Army in the area reportedly offered an apology and vowed to co-operate in the investigation.

About 28,500 US troops are stationed in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War that ended with a ceasefire instead of a peace treaty.

Crimes or disputes involving the US troops are a sensitive subject in South Korea, even though many see their presence as necessary to deter an attack by North Korea.

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SpaceX capsule arrives at space station

A PRIVATELY owned Dragon capsule has arrived at the International Space Station, delivering a tonne of supplies with high-flying finesse after a shaky start to the mission.

The Dragon's arrival was one day late but especially sweet - and not because of the fresh fruit on board for the station astronauts who snared the capsule.

SpaceX, the California-based company founded by billionaire Elon Musk, had to struggle with the Dragon following its launch on Friday from Cape Canaveral. A clogged pressure line or stuck valve prevented thrusters from working, and it took flight controllers several hours to gain control and salvage the mission.

In the end, the Dragon approached the orbiting lab with its load about as smoothly as could be expected, with all of its thrusters, or little manoeuvring rockets, operating perfectly. The capture occurred as the two spacecraft zoomed 400km above Ukraine.

"As they say, it's not where you start, but where you finish that counts," space station commander Kevin Ford said, "and you guys really finished this one on the mark."

Among the items on board: 640 seeds of a flowering weed used for research, mouse stem cells, food and clothes for the six men on board the space station, garbage bags, computer equipment, air purifiers, spacewalking tools and batteries. The company also tucked away apples and other fresh treats from an employee's family orchard.

The Dragon will remain at the space station for most of March before returning to Earth with science samples, empty food containers and old equipment.

SpaceX - Space Exploration Technologies Corp - has a $US1.6 billion ($A1.58 billion) contract with NASA to keep the station well stocked.

Musk, who helped create PayPal, acknowledged the problem was "frightening", but believed it was a one-time glitch.

The 41-year-old entrepreneur, who also runs the electric car maker Tesla, oversaw the entire operation from Hawthorne, California, home to SpaceX and the company's Mission Control.

The Dragon's splashdown in the Pacific remains on schedule for March 25.

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