China's new European trade hub: An Irish town of 18,000 - Christian Science Monitor
The Athlone Institute of Technology hosts more than 200 Chinese students – one of the links that helped bring the trade hub to the town, says Prof. Ciaran Ó Catháin, the president of the school and one of the players in the project negotiations. Professor Ó Catháin would not disclose ...
Vietnam’s Problems, Promises - Asia Sentinel/RTÉ World Report
“We tend to lose around 20% of our staff every year after Tet” (the Vietnamese New Year), said Kim Jung Hee, manager of a factory in Binh Duong province, an hour's drive from Saigon's centre. Her Korean company NB Blue employs a thousand workers, in a clean and well-lit factory ...
Thailand sentences American to prison for insulting king - Los Angeles Times
"In Thailand they put people in jail without proof," Lerpong said Thursday, his arms and legs shackled, wearing an orange prison jumpsuit. "I was born in Thailand, but this does not mean I am Thai. I am proud to be an American citizen."
DMZ: Road trip to the world's most heavily armed border - CNNGo
SEOUL - As the tour bus moves from central Seoul to the city outskirts, the seamless transition from one of the world's biggest and most vibrant cities to the world's most heavily armed border is as surreal as it is functional, with roadside bus-stops giving way to military watchtowers even ...
Potent mix for Timor-Leste - Asia Times
DILI - Land, corruption and poverty are all on the table as Timor-Leste gets into political mode ahead of parliamentary and presidential elections scheduled for 2012, with one controversial figure already throwing his hat into the ring.
If Samuel Beckett met Pol Pot - Asia Sentinel/Irish Examiner
TIK PANHAO, CAMBODIA - In some of Cambodia’s thousands of killing fields, the bones of the dead can sometimes be seen, rising to the surface after storms or rain, like grisly emblems of an unburied past. Perhaps 16,000 died at the s-21 Detention Camp in Phnom Penh, or at Choeung ...
Voting ends in southern Sudan referendum - Sunday Tribune
Kyeli, Blue Nile State, Sudan - “Soon after we married, my husband was killed during the war”, says Hawa Abdul-Gadr. Her eyes show a suppressed grief, but her demeanour is purposeful. That said, there is a perceptible sadness - long-kept under wraps but perhaps closer to the surface than she ...
An unbreakable bond? – Asia Times
JERUSALEM – In 'The Great Divorce' C.S. Lewis attempted to allegorise about a reality which he admitted he could not know, but tentatively hoped to suggest. The US-Israeli relationship, to most, seems like an unbreakable bond, and any potential divorce might be regarded as unimaginable. But when Israeli Prime Minister ...
Narcotic use, drought rob babies of food – The Washington Times
DIRE DAWA, Ethiopia | When drought and food shortages hit, it is the very young who suffer first, and most. Weighing only 10 pounds, Ayaan is among nearly 100,000 Ethiopian children whose lives are at risk. Just four days before her first birthday, she is lighter than an average 3-month-old ...
Corruption trumps tribalism – New York Times (IHT)
Kenyans were cynical about their political establishment long before the latest election violence. One wisecrack doing the rounds since last year says "there is more chance of a Luo becoming president of the United States than president of this country" - referring to Barack Obama, whose father hails from the ...
Some relief for Thailand’s freedom of speech advocates – South China Morning Post
February 27th, 2011
Redshirts watch dvd re-runs of events from the March-May 2010 Bangkok protest, pictured at the most recent redshirt rally on Feb. 19 2011 (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
Simon Roughneen in Bangkok - Freedom of speech has long been under scrutiny in Thailand, thanks to the country’s widely criticised lese majeste laws, which are supposed to protect the dignity of the revered monarchy.
Yet recent developments in two high-profile cases have given some cause for optimism among opponents of the laws and their oft-cited use as a tool against dissent. The case of Chiranuch Premchaiporn, head of news website Prachatai, was postponed until September because the slower-than-expected pace of hearings in the case were expected to delay other cases on the judge’s schedule.
Chiranuch stands accused of lese majeste, not over anything that she said herself but 10 anonymous comments – long-since removed from the Prachatai site – singled out by state prosecutors as insulting to the monarchy.
In a minor victory, the judge permitted the supposedly offending statements to be read aloud – though this was undermined somewhat by poorly functioning microphones in the room. (more…)
Stirring the pot or letting off steam? – Asia Sentinel
February 23rd, 2011
http://www.asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3009&Itemid=185
Recent court decisions in Thailand could reduce political tensions, but there are other complicating factors that could make for a tense election year.
Redshirts at Democracy Monument, February 19 2011 (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
BANGKOK – The release on bail by Thailand’s Criminal Court of seven detained leaders of the anti-government United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) — the Red Shirt movement – is regarded by observers as a move that could possibly ease tensions in advance of elections scheduled for sometime before the end of this year. (more…)
Tensions remain between Thailand and Cambodia – RTÉ World Report
February 20th, 2011
A thousand year old temple on the Thailand-Cambodia border is in the firing line as soldiers from both countries square-off over a tiny, disputed patch of land around the building.
http://www.rte.ie/news/av/2011/0220/worldreport.html#&autoplay=true – audiostream
Yellowshirts vent their spleen at Cambodia's PM Hun Sen, while camped out in Bangkok (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
Preah Vihear was built as a Hindu temple by Khmer rulers between the 9th and 11th centuries, and according to a 1962 ruling by the International Court of Justice, belongs to Cambodia. However a 1.8 square mile area of land around the compound is contested, and the latest flare-up, which cost the lives of at least five soldiers, was the latest skirmish since UNESCO deemed the temple a World Heritage site in 2008. (more…)
Changes to Thai electoral rules may help PM’s side – Sydney Morning Herald
February 18th, 2011
http://www.smh.com.au/world/changes-to-thai-electoral-rules-may-help-pms-side-20110218-1azlm.html
Simon Roughneen in BANGKOK - Nine months after the Siege of Bangkok, Thailand continues to struggle with competing colour-coded political factions, against a backdrop of court-endorsed controls on freedom of expression.
Yellowshirts camped-out near Thailand's seat of Government in Bangkok (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
The past two weekends, separate red and yellow-shirted demonstrations took place in Bangkok, highlighting the fractious, yet vibrant, nature of political debate in Thailand. Recent history shows that vibrant can easily spill over into violent, and Thailand remains divided. On Thursday Prime Minister Abisit Vejjajiva confirmed he would call an early general election, before the end of June.
As the country’s political classes, wrestle for control, two recent high profile court cases have thrown a spotlight on Thailand’s onerous lese majeste laws, that relate to offending the Thai king. (more…)
Ghosts of Panglong May Haunt Parliament – The Irrawaddy
February 15th, 2011
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20761
BANGKOK—The anniversary of the Feb. 12, 1947 Panglong Agreement is focusing some minds on the prospects of reform in Burma, days after the meeting of the new Parliament and the emergence of Thein Sein as the new President.
While the National Democratic Front (NDF) and other small, like-minded parties in Burma’s new government may try to discuss issues such as political prisoners and press freedom, it remains to be seen how far they will be able to push these measures.
With the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) dominant in the legislature—backed by a 25 percent bloc representation from the country’s army—it will be numerically impossible to pass any laws that the USDP and its allies do not agree with.
However the challenge facing Burma’s reform-minded parliamentarians is not just to try to get legislation passed, but to get motions discussed in Parliament in the first place. (more…)
Dunkley Arrest Stokes Sanctions Debate – The Irrawaddy
February 14th, 2011
http://irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20749
BANGKOK – While speculation continues about the real reasons for last week’s arrest of Australian Ross Dunkley in Rangoon, the detention of the media entrepreneur could influence the ongoing debate about Western sanctions on the military-ruled country.
Dunkley, who is the editor of The Myanmar Times, a weekly news journal based in Rangoon, was arrested upon returning to Burma from a business trip to Japan, according to David Armstrong, a business partner of Dunkley’s.
In a statement carried in The Phnom Penh Post, a sister newspaper of The Myanmar Times which Dunkley has also invested in, Armstrong said that “a key point about the arrest is timing,” as the arrest coincides with “tense and protracted discussions Mr Dunkley and the foreign ownership partners in The Myanmar Times have been conducting with local partners.” The main local partner in question is Tin Tun Oo, who is close to Burma’s ex-Information Minister Brig-Gen Kyaw Hsan. (more…)
Speaking to “The People’s Loudspeaker” – The Irrawaddy
February 12th, 2011
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20742
BANGKOK — Maung Thura, known and loved throughout Burma as Zarganar, was jailed in 2008 for 35 years after criticizing the government’s response to Cyclone Nargis, which left at least 140,000 people dead. The year before, British filmmaker Rex Bloomstein met Zarganar in Burma, never using the footage he shot. Later, upon hearing about his arrest and imprisonment, Bloomstein returned to Burma with German comedian Michael Mittermeier. As expected, their attempts to meet Zarganar came to nought, and the pressure-cooker, paranoid atmosphere inside the country meant that none of Zarganar’s friends would agree to be interviewed for the documentary. On at least one occasion, the team came close to arrest.
“The Prison Where I Live” was screened in Bangkok over the past week at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand and the Bangkok Art and Cultural Centre. Irrawaddy correspondent Simon Roughneen caught up with Rex Bloomstein, who was in town to discuss the movie and the challenges of filming under the nose of one of the world’s most repressive regimes. (more…)
Cambodia seeks U.N. help to halt battle with Thailand at ancient temple – Los Angeles Times
February 7th, 2011
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has asked for a U.N. ‘buffer zone’ at the disputed 11th century temple where fighting is in its fourth day and at least five people have died. Thai officials deny ‘bullying an inferior neighbor.’ Both sides say the other shot first.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-thailand-cambodia-20110208,0,2254769.story
By Simon Roughneen, Special to the Los Angeles Times
Reporting from Bangkok, Thailand — Cambodia asked U.N. peacekeepers on Monday to intervene and help end fighting along the Thai-Cambodia border following a fourth day of gunfire that had killed at least five people near a disputed 11th century temple.
The wrangling over the 2-square-mile complex, a World Heritage site, has fueled fears of a protracted border conflict between the wary neighbors.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen requested a U.N. “buffer zone,” adding that the conflict threatened regional stability as United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on both sides to exercise maximum restraint.
But Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of Thailand, the regional powerhouse, resisted U.N. intervention or a mediation offer by the 10-member Assn. of Southeast Asian Nations, calling instead for direct negotiations. (more…)
Thailand: Media trial to resume tomorrow – The Irrawaddy
February 7th, 2011
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20683
BANGKOK – Tuesday is Day Two in the trial of Chiranuch Premchaiporn, in what is being described as a landmark case for freedom of expression in Thailand.
Chiranuch Premchaiporn outside Bangkok’s Criminal Court last Friday, after receiving flowers from a well-wisher (Photo: Simon Roughneen)
Ms Chiranuch, who executive director of the self-described independent news-site Prachatai, is accused of 10 different violations of Thailand’s 2007 Computer Crime Act (CCA), each of which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
However she is not accused of writing or saying anything defamatory herself, as the case stems from comments posted by users of the Prachatai Web board that authorities say are defamatory of the Thai monarchy–a criminal offense under Thai law. She has been charged under the CCA’s Article 15, with the prosecution making the case webmasters are liable for comments posted by third parties on their websites.
Interest from local and international media, as well as NGOs and international organisations, meant that the hearing had to be moved from the smaller courtroom 703 to the larger 701 down the hallway at Bangkok’s Criminal Court, where the judge sat, as is the norm in a Thai courtroom, under a framed photograph of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyedej, Thailand’s monarch since 1946. (more…)
Political Burlesque Follows Economic Chaos in Ireland – ISN
February 3rd, 2011
Ireland’s economy has shrunk by over 20 percent since the Celtic Tiger’s heyday, and a February 25 election could see the country’s political map redrawn.
For the birds? Ireland's politicians have come under relentless attack in recent months. (Photo, Dublin city centre Jan 2001, taken by Simon Roughneen)
The echo-chamber that is Irish political punditry has seen an over-used acronym get another airing in the past few weeks: “GUBU”, coined by the late Conor Cruise O’Brien, former UN diplomat, Irish Government Minister and editor of The Observer, stands for “Grotesque, Unbelievable, Bizarre and Unprecedented”. Whenever something controversial or unusual takes place in Irish politics, GUBU is the shorthand of choice, irrespective of hyperbole or appropriateness. (more…)
