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The Fifth Floor

Factual: Life Stories

Global stories from the BBC’s 40 Language Services, with Faranak Amidi

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services.

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services

The Fifth Floor: 25/08/2012

25/08/2012

BBC World Service - The Fifth Floor, 25/08/2012

On the ground in Assam - a despatch from one of India's most under-reported conflicts

Reporting Assam - a despatch from one of India's most under-reported conflicts; a correspondent back home in Beirut; a quick dash to Addis; and has Gu Kailai got a body double?

A fresh look at the week's global news from the World Service's 27 language sections, with David Amanor.

REPORTING ASSAM
India's north-east region is often considered one of the country's most under-reported areas - with long-running tensions between the indigenous tribal Bodo community and Muslim settlers, chronic under-development, and deep poverty. Last month saw some of Assam's worst ethnic riots - 70 people dead. What followed later was of the biggest mass migrations in India since partition, with migrants from the north-east fleeing other Indian cities for fear of reprisal attacks. As a result trains carrying thousands of north-eastern migrants began pouring into Assam - and now over 300,000 refugees are in relief camps. BBC Bangla's Suvojit Bagchi was in Assam and spoke to both communities.

"Assam has not received the coverage it deserves." Discuss. From our South Asia hub Kumar Malhotra and Sabir Mustafa delve into the messy politics of India's north-east. Why has Assam remained so under-reported?

ONLINE GREATEST HITS
Marco Silva gives the lowdown on the big-hitting stories across the World Service language sites this week - including a Simian Jesus, psychedelic Iranian twins, and escorts for Chinese tax collectors.

BACK HOME IN LEBANON
BBC Arabic has a new correspondent on the ground in Beirut, although Carine Torbey isn't really a newcomer, she's reported from Iraq and other places but not from Lebanon her home country which she left seven years ago. Her family are pleased to have her back but avoid watching her on television... Now why is that?

SCRAMBLED TO ADDIS
He hadn't been seen for weeks but last week (it was last week wasn't it?) it was announced that the Prime Minister of Ethiopia Meles Zenawi had died and there was no BBC reporter in the country (that's true isn't it?), come in Noel Mwakugu from Kenya. He's reported on Ethiopia before but was in our Nairobi studio as the news broke. So Noel's task was to pick up his papers, pack a bag, negotiate the city traffic, and fly to Addis Ababa as soon as possible. What he didn't account for was the showcasing of a new aeroplane....

HAS GU KAILAI GOT A DOUBLE?
A new twist in the Chinese courtroom drama of Gu Kailai. Some China watchers are suggesting the woman who appeared in court was not her but a body double. Yuwen Wu takes up the tale.

(Image: Migrants fleeing to India's north-east region. Credit: Reuters)

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