Will Asia rise to the Papal throne?
March 12, 2013 -- Updated 0545 GMT (1345 HKT)
Hong Kong (CNN) -- "Habemus papam!"
From the grand, central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, that proclamation will soon be announced to the world once again.
"We have a pope!"
But when Benedict XVI's successor and new shepherd of the global Catholic Church steps into the light, it's seen as unlikely that he will come from Asia.
The College of Cardinals, also known as the princes of the church, counts 207 members among its red-robed ranks, according to the Holy See Press Office. Of those, just 115 are expected to vote. Any cardinal over 80 years of age cannot.
Among them, Europe boasts the largest voting bloc with 61 cardinals, followed by North and Latin America for a combined 33. Africa has 11 cardinals eligible to vote, Asia has 11, while Oceania has just one, says the Holy See.
RELIGION
Cardinals begin the conclave to elect the new pope
Cardinals convene in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican this Tuesday to begin their conclave to elect the next pope. There's no front-runner or indication how long voting will last.
115 cardinals from 48 countries - all under the age of 80 - are taking part in the elaborate ritual, which continues until one of them receives a two-thirds majority, or 77 votes necessary to become the 266th pope.
In the early morning, the cardinals moved into St. Martha's Residence located behind St Peter's Basilica. From there they will ride to the Sistine Chapel each day in a bus with blacked-out windows.
Chinese villagers at war with army over land deal
March 12, 2013 - 10:32AM
Beijing
Chinese soldiers cut off power and phones, fired tear gas and stun grenades, and beat protesters in a southern village to try to end an 18-day rebellion on Sunday.
Dozens of villagers in Shangpu were admitted to hospital and six people were arrested, according to witnesses on Monday.
"They came at about midnight, or maybe half an hour later. They cut off the power first," said one villager involved in the fracas.
About 60 people were injured, mostly older people. Some of them had broken bones, one had a stun grenade explode in his face and may need to go to the provincial hospital.
ICC drops charges against Kenya's Muthaura
The ICC has dropped charges against Francis Muthaura, who was accused alongside Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta of sponsoring 2007 election violence.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) dropped charges on Monday against Muthaura – accused alongsidenewly elected Kenyatta of sponsoring election violence five years ago.
Court prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said the decision would not affect similar cases against Kenyatta, nor his running mate William Ruto.
Presiding Judge Kuniko Ozaki however said the collapse of the prosecution did have implications for the Kenyatta case, but did not elaborate. Ozaki may explain further in an afternoon court session on Monday.
Brazil's top court to rule on effort to spread oil wealth
Most of Brazil's oil revenues benefit Rio, São Paulo, and Espirito Santo states. But now the Supreme Court will determine if a Congressional vote to spread oil royalties into other states will stand.
By James Bosworth, Guest blogger
Most of Brazil's oil output benefits the states of Rio de Janeiro, Espirito Santo, and São Paulo. Brazil's Congress voted to spread an increased amount of oil royalties across all the other states, raising the amount from 7 percent to 21 percent, cutting royalties to the three states and the federal government in the process. Presidenet Dilma Rousseff issued a partial veto so that the law would only affect new production, but the Congress overturned her veto last week. The law will now go to the Supreme Court to determine if it is constitutional.
As I wrote last year, this is a different take on the local vs. national debate that is seen throughout the region. Should oil and mineral wealth go to the local communities, the federal governments, or be spread around to the entire country's population?
12 March 2013 Last updated at 00:10 GMT
Marwa's story: 10 years since the bomb fell
As the US military fought their way into Baghdad 10 years ago, the life of one Iraqi girl was changed forever when she was gravely injured in an air raid. Marwa's story, and charitable efforts by outsiders to rebuild her life, reflect the wider struggle of millions of Iraqis over the past decade.
On 9 April 2003, at about the time that the statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad was coming down, Marwa Shimari was waking up.
The first thing that came into focus was her mother's face looking down on her in her hospital bed. She was trying to look reassuring, but you could see that she was frightened.
Marwa's brothers and sisters were there too. They were too young to understand what was really happening but she knew they were frightened too - their lively, mischievous big sister had been asleep for more than a day. They had been scared she was never going to wake up.
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