Xinhua Asia-Pacific News Summary at 0600 GMT, Feb. 8

YANGON -- Spring Festival, or better known as Chinese Lunar New Year, will be celebrated on a grand scale for the second time in several decades in Chinatown here.

According to local Myanmar-Chinese community, Yunnan Natives Association has been set as the main event organizer involving all walks of life to erect a big stage in the center of the Chinatown where various entertainment programs including songs and dances will be performed. (Myanmar-Chinese Lunar New Year)

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CANBERRA -- The Australian government has been accused of abandoning its Closing the Gap policy, a strategy to reduce disadvantages faced by the nation's indigenous population.

The policy, which was created in 2008 with the aim of delivering health parity between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians by 2030, delivers a report card every year assessing the government's performance on key measures relating to indigenous people including life expectancy, child mortality, employment outcomes and educational achievement.(Australia-Indigenous Population)

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ISLAMABAD -- Pakistani military will soon starting building fences along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area in the country's southwest Balochistan province, officials said.

A meeting was held between the officials of paramilitary troops frontier corps (FC) and tribal elders in Chaman area of Balochistan along the border, the FC officials said Wednesday.(Pakistan-Afghanistan-Fences)

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TOKYO -- Japan booked a current account surplus in December of 797.2 billion yen (7.28 billion U.S. dollars), the government said in a report on Thursday.

According to the Finance Ministry, December marked the 42nd straight month the nation's current account was in surplus.(Japan-Surplus) Enditem