KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia has banned a nearly 40-year-old sex education book written by a British author following complaints by Muslim activists that it is obscene. The Home Ministry says Peter Mayle’s Where Did I Come From? contains "elements that undermine societal morals and public interests." The book contains cartoons that narrate the reproductive process. It was first published in 1973 and is listed on some international websites on books as being intended for children between four and eight years old. Members of the youth wing of Malaysia’s ruling party who recently noticed it at a bookstore complained. The Home Ministry said in a statement that people caught distributing the book could be jailed for three years.

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam’s high court has reversed rulings approving the attempted eviction of a fish farmer whose armed standoff with police galvanized the nation and earned him widespread sympathy. The state-run Laborer newspaper said the Supreme People’s Court has ruled that courts in the northern port city of Hai Phong erred by upholding a district order to evict Doan Van Vuon and his family from their land. Vuon sued the government in 2009, protesting the order. The supreme court’s move came five days after Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said the attempted eviction of Vuon’s family in January was illegal. The family battled more than 100 police in the standoff, wounding six officers. Vuon and three relatives are awaiting trial for attempted murder.

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia’s prime minister has banned spit-roasting cows in front of restaurants, calling it too cruel a sight. Hun Sen said he is ordering the ban after Buddhist monks told him the activity runs contrary to Buddha’s teachings on the sanctity of life and encourages violence. The practice is also unhygienic, Hun Sen said during a "clean city" forum in the capital. He said restaurants may still grill and sell spit-roasted beef, but must cook it out of the sight of customers. He added that they can advertise it with signs or pictures. Cows are treated with respect in Buddhist Cambodia, which is influenced by Hindu culture. The government issued a directive in January banning the practice, but it was widely ignored.

MANILA, The Philippines (AP) — Increasing the number of holidays in the Philippines would make the country less competitive than its Southeast Asian neighbors and may turn away much-needed foreign investment, according to a top labor official. Labor secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said she opposes legislative proposals to add up to 10 national holidays to the 18 non-working holidays already observed in the country. She said local non-working holidays and work stoppages caused by natural calamities already hamper productivity and increase costs. The foreign Chambers of Commerce complained in 2010 that the many paid holidays plus the country’s high labor costs compared with others in the region have "adversely affected" the Philippines’ business competitiveness. The country has for years lagged behind other Southeast Asian countries in attracting foreign direct investment that could boost industry and jobs, partly due to widespread corruption in government. The country attracted less than $2 billion of foreign direct investment in 2010 compared with nearly $9 billion for Malaysia, some $12 billion for Indonesia, and about $39 billion for Singapore.

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Qatar says it will send women athletes to the Olympics for the first time at this year’s London Games. Sheik Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the general secretary of the Qatar Olympic Committee, says the International Olympic Committee has offered Qatar wild card invitations for two female athletes to compete in London — swimmer Nada Arkaji and sprinter Noor al-Malki. Al Thani says the number of female entrants from Qatar could rise to four. Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Brunei have never sent women athletes to an Olympics. Qatar made its announcement as it released details of Doha’s bid to host the 2020 Games.