hello again. welcome back to "newsline." i i'm yukio fukushima. the japanese government is partially lifting its ban on the shipment and transportation of beef cattle from miyagi prefecture, northeastern japan. it imposed the restriction after levels of radioactive cesium were detected in beef. the cows had been fed rice straw that became highly contaminated from the fallout of the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant accident.

>> translator: the decision is based on securing safety and ensuring management. we are assuring that only proper cattle whose meat is safe to eat gets to market. >> chief cabinet secretary yukio edano said friday miyagi prefecture now has a system to prevents shipments of cattle with levels of radioactive cesium from exceeding the safety measures of the government. before transport resumes, miyagi will test all cattle that had ate the contaminated feed. blanket testing will be conducted at farms where straw feed has yet to be inspected. other farms are required to test only the first animals they intend to ship out. >> translator: i've waited for the ban to be lifted, so i'm very happy. we want to show that miyagi beef is safe to eat. >> a ban on beef cattle shipments is still in place in three other prefectures

surrounding fukushima daiichi. two governors from japan's devastated northeastern region have visited taiwan in a bid to boost tourism. the tohoku area has seen a major drop in the number of foreign tourists since the march 11th earthquake and tsunami. governor norihisa satake of akita prefecture and mieko yoshimura of yamagata prefecture were at a gathering of taiwan's tourism and airline industries in taipei on thursday on a promotion campaign. the two governors spoke about the frost-covered trees in the winter, the hot springs and the local delicacies. they also proposed new package tours to the tohoku region and asked for taiwan's cooperation in sending more tourists. the number of visitors from taiwan to the two prefectures which totaled 70,000 last year, has dropped significantly. chartered flights connecting taiwan with yamagata and akita have been suspended ever since the earthquake struck.

>> translator: the tohoku area should be reconstructed as a whole. i'm here on behalf of all six prefectures. we want to work together to reinvigorate the region. when the march earthquake and tsunami struck the city of ofunato fishermen were left in dire straits with their fish nets torn they were left with no way to make a living. in a city five kilometers away, fishermen worked nonstop to get the fishermen in the northeastern prefecture back to work. ♪ >> reporter: four months after the disaster, the fishing boats of ofunato in iwate prefecture returned from sea with a big haul. this time, they carry about eight tons of mackerel and salmon.

>> translator: i'm happy to be fishing again and using these nets to do it. >> reporter: when the tsunami came roaring through, it levelled the warehouse that stored the city's nets. they were so badly mutilated, fishing was out of the question. this factory in wajima makes and repairs nets. it's here that the damaged nets from ofunato are to be mended. naoto sakashita manages the factory. he and his workers have special feelings about working in the disaster area. four years ago, a strong earthquake hit the region. its intensity was measured at 6

plus, just short of the maximum reading of 7 on the maximum scale. it dealt the factory a serious blow. the impact shifted the building and scattered nets everywhere. it took two months to get the factory running again. >> translator: at that time, we didn't know what fate had in store for us. this time, iwate experienced disaster. all of us are happy to do something to help the victims. we're going full speed to fix the nets quickly and get them back to the fishermen. >> reporter: the nets are twice the size of the factory. the workers start by giving the nets a thorough going over, looking for tears. by hand, they repair torn strands. all employees work on their days off to get the job done as quickly as possible. the nets are restored to their

original condition by july 4th, only one month after they arrived. >> translator: i hope that the fishermen go out to sea with the nets right away and get a big catch. we would be thrilled. >> reporter: the long-awaited nets arrive back at ofunato. >> translator: it feels great to be ready for work. i want us to get busy by putting these in the water and pulling in a catch. >> reporter: their fixed net season started two months later than usual this year. one black tuna, popular among japanese, turns up in the haul. >> translator: we've made it through the past disaster to see this day. we're so grateful to the manufacturer and so grateful for

everything. this catch is a symbol of our gratitude. >> reporter: and the factory, it's making new nets for fishermen in the disaster area. they sew with their hearts and their feelings are woven into the nets. other news making headlines around the world, chicago knees premier wen jiabao is urging the u.s. government to tackle its debt problem and get its economy back on track. the state run xinhua news agency reported that when met u.s. vice president joe biden on friday at the government's central compound in beijing, known as jong nanhai. the downgrade something of particular concern to china because the country is the largest foreign holder of u.s. treasury bonds.

>> translator: although the united states is going through some economic hardship, i believe it will be able to overcome its difficulties and return to a robust track of development. the prosperity and stability of the united states is favorable for the whole world. >> vice president biden attempted to address china's concerns by pledging that the u.s. government will do whatever it can to pull itself out of its economic slump. a popular anti-corruption activist in india left jail on friday. the government ordered anna hazare's release because of fear of government wide protests. he's demanding that the government act immediately against indemic corruption in the country. his jailing prompted mass protest across india.

the government tried to ease tensions by making concessions and allowing hazare to begin a 15-day hunger strike in the capital. hazare told thousands of flag-waving supporters who greeted him after his release that the protests will continue. he demanded the government enact tougher anti-corruption laws. there are fears the government's standoff with the activist is not over yet. it has shown no sign of responding to his demand for stronger anti-corruption laws. a recent survey said corruption in india has cost billions of dollars and could derail growth. the syrian government continues its use of force on anti-government protesters even after president bashar al assad told the united nations that his security forces had stopped the

crackdown on civilians. since march of this year, assad's administration has been mobilizing military and police to suppress protesters with violence. but the syrian president told u.s. secretary-general ban ki-moon on wednesday over the phone that the military and police operations had stopped. however, a human rights group gathering information in syria said security forces continued bombing and shooting anti-government protesters on thursday in latakia, in the country's northwest and the central city of homs. britain and france said they will push for a u.n. security council sanction on syria. they met to discuss the issue on thursday. >> we believe that the time has come for the council to take further actions to step up the pressure against those who are responsible for the violence against the citizens of syria. >> britain's deputy ambassador

to the u.n. later told reports that european nations will seek to adopt the legally binding resolution. such a move would be stronger than the chairman's statement adopted earlier this month condemning the syrian government. in response, syria's u.n. ambassador bashar gentleman fafie said the security council is acting on misleading reports and he added 9 u.s. is waging a diplomatic war against the country. ja'afari also said syria is ready to accept the u.n. fact-finding team on human rights in damascus this weekend. israel has launched an air raid on the palestinian controlled gaza strip. the retaliatory measure came after a series of attacks in israel. seven israelis were killed on thursday near the red sea resort of eliat in three separate attacks on busses, a car and a military vehicle. the israeli military blamed militants in the gaza strip and bombed southern gaza on thursday

night using unmanned fighter planes. six palestinians including leaders of the militant group were killed. speaking to reporters, israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu said israel would not fail to retaliate against terroris united nations secretary-general ban ki-moon criticized his the attack in a statement. >> the secretary-general strongly condemns today's attack in southern israel. he is concerned at the risk of escalation and calls for all to act with restraint. the u.n. food and agriculture organization is urging the global community to do more to help millions facing starvation in east africa. somalia and other countries are dealing with famine after their worst drought in 60 years. tens of thousands of people have died during the past several months. more than 12 million people require food aid. the fao says it needs at least $160 million to pay for seeds, vaccines for livestock and other

work, but so far only one-third of the funds have been contributed. the fao held a second emergency meeting at its headquarters in rome on thursday to call for more support. fao director general jack duke says it is unacceptable that so many people are at risk of starvation, given the financial resources, technology and expertise available in the world today. >> to save lives, food and water, medicine, all of the basic needs are very important right now. representatives from japan and china's tibetan autonomous region have agreed to work more closely together to build economic and cultural ties. japanese ambassador to china uichiro niwa met the director of the tibetan autonomous region on thursday in the capital lhasa.

he said the re-entry restrictions on foreign tourists has a negative impact on its economy. he also asked for help and cooperation in organizing exchange events. they will commemorate next year's 40th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic ties between japan and china. baima chilin says tibet welcomes more japanese businesses. he also agreed to increase exchanges. niwa's four-day trip to the autonomous region started wednesday. it is the first official visit to the region by a japanese ambassador to china. >> translator: to build good relations with china, we also need to have a good relationship with the people who live in this area, which makes up two-thirds of the country. the world's largest personal computermaker is planning on hitting the refresh button. hewlett-packard says it's going to explore spinning off the pc business into a separate company. hp will evaluate its low profit personal systems group and make the decision on the spinoff within the next 18 months. it acquired compaq computer in

2002 and currently holds a nearly 20% share in the global pc market. but the company is reevaluating things because the growing demand for tablet computers and smartphones is hurting personal computer sales. hewlett-packard apparently plans to shift its focus to higher profit businesses including cloud computing and corporate software services. the company also says it agreed to purchase the british software firm otonomy for $10.3 billion. "newsline" is the place to turn to for the latest on japan post-march 11th. we have two segments offering two unique perspectives on the fallout from the earthquake and tsunami. "nuclear watch" brings you insight and information on the impact of the fukushima daiichi crisis and "the road ahead" requests japan's efforts to recover and rebuild. don't miss "nuclear watch" and "the road ahead" on "newsline."

and here is news just in. the u.s. dollar briefly hit an all-time low against the yen in new york, trading on friday, the dollar dropped below its previous record of 76.25 yen set on march 17th. selling of the dollar and euro for the yen has accelerated over concerns about the outlook for the u.s. and european economies. the dollar is currently trading between 76.08 -- rather 76.13-16 yen. once again the u.s. dollar briefly hit an all-time low against the yen in new york trading on friday, the dollar dropped below its previous record low of 76.25 yen set on march 17th, selling of the dollar, and the euro for yen has accelerated over concerns about the outlook for the u.s. and european economies,s you see there, the dollar is currently changing hands between 76.10-13.

and now we look at an art form from which has its roots in the streets of bangladesh, the art in question is bright and full of social commentary, but the artists, as times change, are seeing their fortunes fade. >> reporter: the people movers of bangladesh, cycle rickshaws are a common sight in dhaka. as many as 300,000 are said to fly the streets of the bangladesh capital. as in other asian cities, these man-powered taxis are a cheap and convenient form of transport, but in dhaka, function takes a back seat to style. the canopy, seats and bodies are a riot of color. the signature piece is the which canshaw painting. it is usually found on a tin plate fixed to the back. the result is a moving art

gallery. the themes of these works are as wide as the colors are bright. this vibrant street art is the work of rickshaw painters. d.c. dust is a veteran. his specialty is fantasy worlds. >> translator: pleasing passengers, drivers and rickshaw owners as a rickshaw artist is my calling. >> reporter: but these are hard times for rick shaw painters. work has been drying up and the number of painters in dhaka is on the decline. one reason is the shrinking fleet of rickshaws, in an effort to ease traffic congestion, the pedal powered vehicles have been banned from the main roads. as a result, side streets are now clogged with the

three-wheelers, all going nowhere fast. >> translator: in addition to traffic jams, the authorities stopped licensing rickshaw businesses. that's why the number of rickshaws continues to decline. >> reporter: what's worse for painters is the emergence of mass production. this rickshaw goods shop handles printed plates, not hand-painted ones. >> translator: printed plates have become mainstream because hand-painted ones cannot be mass produced. printed plates can be made cheaply and on a large scale. >> reporter: fewer orders are not the only problem. this is r.k. das, the most respected rickshaw painter in bangladesh. his favorite subject is rural scene scenery.

however, das says he can no longer paint the types of pictures he likes. tastes have changed in fast modernizing dhaka. pastoral scenes are out. movie stars are in. >> translator: rickshaw owners prefer movie scenes. i have no choice but to paint such pictures to make a living. >> reporter: with orders vanishing and no creative incentive, some painters have given up. ahmed hossain is one artist who hung up his rickshaw brush. he now does suf nair plates for tourists. copying photos, he paints tourists against a background of scenery. business is picking up thanks to word of mouth. ahmed is making a comfortable living but he can't forget his old calling.

>> translator: these are rough sketches from my previous work. i made copies and have kept them. if i receive an order again, i'll be able to trace them. they're like photographic negatives. this one was very popular, a rickshaw shop in a town of animals. >> reporter: ahmed was a special passion for animal themes. his humanized characters have attracted international attention. >> translator: these rough sketches remind me of how eager i was about my work. at that time, i took great pleasure in work. now, i don't. looking at these pictures, i feel somewhat sad. >> reporter: artists like ahmed are having to adjust to the times. as they do so, dhaka's fleet of rickshaws, the canvas for their unique trade, is steadily fading from view.

hi there. time now to take a look at your l conditions around the world. we're going to start in eastern asia. now it has been a day of very heavy storms across much of japan. this is the front that is responsible for those storms. now the worst of it is over, but into saturday and probably sunday as well we will still see that unstable weather across western japan and along the eastern coast of the pacific side, too, so as we head on into the weekend, there will be a risk of flooding as well as landslides and mudslides. as we head back in towards eastern china and south korea, this rain is going to be a lot lighter, probably not causing too much of a problem. above it, we have high pressure in place, because it's going to be fairly dry across northeastern china as well as mongolia. no change here just where we need the rain it will stay very dry and very hot. i'll show you temperatures in a

second. indo china we are going to be seeing more showers and scattered thunderstorms with the southwest monsoon doing its thing. heavier rain in parts of vietnam and laos and that could lead to the potential for flooding over the weekend. let's look at the temperatures, 41 degrees in chongqing, very, very hot in fact anywhere in the orange, southeastern china as well, temperatures are going to be widely in the upper 30s, low 40s, as we head on into the weekend. 26 degrees in tokyo, a cooler day as we have the showers moving in yet again and fairly warm day in ulan ba tour at 30 degrees. this massive cloud is our hurricane greg, moving away and we no longer have any warnings or watches posted for it but this one over here just heading in towards honduras as well as belize, guatemala this one is a tropical depression that could cause a bit of a problem in terms of flooding, rain could reach triple digits, even up to 130 millimeters of rain in the next 24 hours so we'll watch for

the potential of flooding as well. monsoonals moisture up into new mexico wide popping storms could turn severe. most of the nasty weather here along this cold front, we're talking about large hail as well as very strong gusts and i think you are going to see heavy rain moving through kansas as well. one ing that is a cold front so we are going to be seeing temperatures dropping down by a couple of degrees as we head into our saturday. it's not going to be much for you, though, in oklahoma city, 42 degrees on your friday. saturday down to 39. we'd prefer to see it down in the low 30s, even into the 20s if you remember what that's like. 38 degrees in houston. it continues to bake here in the south. 26 really cool today in new york. much cooler in winpeg at 20 degrees and we're in the mid-20s in vancouver as well as as seattle. as we head on into europe a quick moving low just skirting the northern coast of poland and germany, coming into sweden as

well as the baltic states. here now that brings heavy rain as well as some very gusty winds, a little bit unstable along the associated front in toward the alpine region but generally looking hot and fairly dry for much of the rest of the continent here. as for the british isles the lingering low, it's going to be showery as well as seeing good spells of sunshine as well over the weekend. let's take a look at the temperatures. 18 degrees, a little bit on the chilly side for new london compared to what's happening in paris, 13 degrees here, 39 in madrid, 27 a warm day for new vienna as well, 5 in athe35 in athens and stockholm at 16. here's your extended forecast.

. once again our top stories at the this hour the u.s. dollar has hit an all-time low against the yen in new york trading on friday. the dollar dropped below its previous record low of 76.25 yen set on march 17th. selling of the dollar and the euro for yen has accelerated over concerns about e outlook for the u.s. and european economies. the dollar is currently trading between 76.15-18 yen. the japanese government is partially lifting its ban on the shipment and transportation of beef cattle from miyagi prefecture northeastern japan. it imposed the restriction after levels of radioactive cesium were detected in beef. the cows had been fed rice straw that became highly contaminated from the fallout of the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant accident. >> translator: the decision is

based on securing safety and management. we are assuring that only proper managed cattle whose meat is safe to eat gets to market. >> chief cabinet secretary yukio edano said friday that miyagi prefecture has a shipment to prevent cattle with levels of radioactive cesium from exceeding the government safety limit. before transport resumes, miyagi will test all cattle that had ate the contaminated feed. blanket testing will also be conducted at farms where straw feed has yet to be inspected. other farms are required to test only the first animals they intend to ship out. >> translator: i've waited for the ban to be lifted, so i'm very happy. we want to show that miyagi beef is safe to eat. >> a ban on beef cattle shipments is still in place in three other prefectures surrounding fukushima daiichi.

and that is all for now on "newsline." i'm yukio fukushima in tokyo. thanks for watching. have a good day.