Southeast Asian - First thoughts about

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For other uses, see Basil (disambiguation). "Selasih" redirects here. For the Indonesian author, see Sariamin Ismail. This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters. Basil Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Eudicots (unranked): Asterids Order: Lamiales Family: Lamiaceae Genus: Ocimum Species: O. basilicum Binomial name Ocimum basilicum L. Basil, or Sweet Basil, is a common name for the culinary herb Ocimum basilicum (pronounced /ˈbæzɪl/ or, in the US, /ˈbeːzɪl/), of the family Lamiaceae (mints), sometimes known as Saint Joseph's Wort in some English-speaking countries. Basil, originally from India,[1] but thoroughly familiar to Theophrastus[2] and Dioscurides, is a half-hardy annual plant, best known as a culinary herb prominently featured in Italian cuisine, and also plays a major role in Southeast Asian cuisines o ...

Since Myanmar threw open its doors to international tourists several years ago, the Southeast Asian dictatorship has been a huge draw for travelers looking to take a step back in time and explore the country's phenomenal landscape. Though the corrupt government running the country formerly known as…

Here's an article I wrote ~10 years ago. It has resurfaced a few times recently and, much to my surprise, has been promoted by other people. Pretty awesome to receive an e-mail from a friend telling me that he got a copy of my article from his instructor (who also sent it out to his whole mailing list). I love it when a plan comes together. World domination by degrees :D = The terms "play" and "player" are used a lot in the Southeast Asian martial arts of Kali and Silat … but what do they really mean? If you walk up to an old-school Kali or Silat practitioner and ask to "play," you're likely to end up bruised and bloodied in short order. Most Americans don't think of this as "play." To the average American mindset, the term "play" is something that kids do and that adults don't have time for. Many Americans think that martial arts should be a "labor of love" … with an emphasis on "labor." They feel that it should be approached with the utmost seriousness. Is this wrong? Not as such. Many fine martial ...

Lots of bargain at the PSE yesterday with many property developers raising funds for various projects and to pile up on land inventories by selling shares on huge discounts. ALI (Ayala Land), for example, dropped about 5% as it sold shares at discounted price. The index, as a result, dropped 1.66% at the final bell, registerting the biggest drop among Southeast Asian indeces many of which also skidded down, albeit, ending with a lot less in terms of losses than the Philippine index. Philippine companies that went on the fund-raising drive ended up with more than 25 billlion pesos in fresh capital. Meantime, Globe Telecom also ended in the red, but not because it went on discounted sale but because it borrowed money from a syndicate led by a Japanese bank.

Beneficial Brews Drinking tea Enlarge Image Picture this: a dismal winter day, a comfy chair, a snuggly sweater, and a steaming mug of tea. Sounds relaxing, sure. But tea is more than just a de-stressing drink -- it's got potent power to protect against some of the deadliest diseases. Although tea doesn't quite rank with fresh fruits and vegetables as a health food, scientists are finding that drinking tea may keep your heart healthy, protect you from cancer, boost your body's ability to fight off germs, strengthen your bones, prevent cavities, and sharpen your concentration. We're talking about the real thing -- tea made from Camellia sinensis, a Southeast Asian evergreen shrub. The leaves used to make black, green, and oolong teas all come from this same small tree, as does pale and pricey white tea, prized in China for its delicate taste and fragrance. (Herbal teas come from other plants.) "White, black, oolong, and green teas have different aromas and flavors, but they're all healthy," says Jeffrey Bl ...

AirAsia may kick off India operations in June !!! Kuala Lumpur-headquartered airline AirAsia has brought forward the start of its domestic operations in India to May-June, a person with knowledge of the development said. The largest Southeast Asian discount carrier had earlier planned to launch its operations in the country towards the end of the current calendar year. "AirAsia is currently preparing a ground so that as soon as the FIPB ( Foreign Investment Promotion Board) clearance comes they should be able to launch operations," the person who did not want to be named, said. In February, AirAsia had announced a tie-up with the Tata Group and Arun Bhatia's Telestra Trade place for a scheduled domestic airline. Approval for the joint venture proposal is pending before the FIPB, which approves proposals that require government permission. The matter is likely to come up for a hearing on March 6. The Tata Group will hold 30 % in the company and AirAsia will have a 49 % stake. The rest will be held by Bhati ...

Between a fluid region and a hard state ― Farish A. Noor MARCH 04, 2013 MARCH 4 ― Allow me to begin by stating categorically that I am a committed Southeast Asian-ist and a committed ASEAN-ist. In my work as a lecturer I have constantly reminded my students of the constructed nature of Southeast Asia today, the relative newness of our political borders, and the newness of our nation-states. I have also emphasized the shared overlapping histories of the many diasporas that populate this complex and sometimes confounding archipelago of ours. I long for the day when the people of Southeast Asia can see themselves as ASEAN citizens, but despite the fact that the ASEAN Community is almost upon us (by 2015), many of us in the region are still driven by primordial attachments to place, identity, language and culture. It can be summed up thus: We, Southeast Asians, are caught between a fluid region and a hard state. No matter how hard some of the hyper-nationalists among us may try, they cannot deny the fact ...

CPA NEWS FLASH!!! Sami Labs launches fully vegetarian lycopene wellness pill Sami Labs has introduced the total vegetarian lycopene wellness pill on March 1, 2013 beginning with Gujarat. The product contains no animal content. The pill’s outer covering known as soft gelatin which is typically made of various animal by-products now contains only extracts from vegetables, said Dr Muhammed Majeed, managing director, Sami Labs. The company claims that the pill is the first in the world to provide the consumers with the new-found synergy between lycopene and beta-carotene, in place of the traditional use of just the first element found in fruits. Blending beta-carotene (pro-vitamin A), which is a red-orange pigment found in plants and vegetables like carrots, sweet potatoes and pumpkin, catalyses the body by absorbing more lycopene. In fact, lycopene is extracted from a Southeast Asian fruit, generally called Gac and the content is 70 times more than what is found in tomato, said Dr Majeed. Globally, tomatoe ...

Who is Barry Obama II aka Barry Hussein Soebarkah etc. As WND has reported, the Associated Press released Obama’s school registration form from St. Francis Assisi School in Jakarta show him listed officially as Barry Soetoro, an Indonesian citizen. WND has also reported that in a passport amendment submitted Aug. 13, 1968, Ann Dunham, Obama’s mother, identified her son with an Indonesian surname, Barack Hussein Obama II Soebarkah. She asked the State Department to drop him from her U.S. passport, bolstering evidence Barack Obama Jr. became a citizen of Indonesia when he moved to the Southeast Asian nation with his stepmother and stepfather in the late 1960s. Until Dunham’s passport amendment surfaced in State Department documents released July 29, the name “Soebarkah” had never been referenced or documented in any discussion of Obama in the public record. In Obama’s home state, Illinois, Sankey tracked down 16 different addresses for a Barack Obama or a Barack H. Obama, of which all are addres ...

Phuket’s blend of cultures is obviously evident in its people and its architecture – a fusion that is unique in most of Southeast Asian countries. The architectural heritage in Phuket Town, the Island’s capital, is without doubt one of the most sophisticated cities in Thailand. These Sino-Portuguese shop-houses and mansions, with their pastel-colored shutters and doors, bright red Chinese characters embellishing the supporting columns, ornate tiled walls, and red-tiled roofs, are the perfect mixture of Chinese and Portuguese colonial styles. What more impressive here is the diversity of the people living in those remarkable buildings. Wandering around the old town through Soi Rommanee, Thalang, Yaowarat, and Krabi Roads, it’s easy to see the beauty of people of different races, traditions, and religious beliefs living peacefully for almost a century. Just walk through Thalang road alone (approximate distance of a walk through the famous Khaosarn Road in Bangkok); from one end to another, you will ...

Helsinki Cine Aasia brings Asian film to Helsinki On 14.3.–17.3. Helsinki Cine Aasia film festival will be held for the first time. The festival's program focuses on East and Southeast Asian contemporary film. Included are films from Japan, China, South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand and the Phillippines among others. The festival showcases films from well-known directors like Sion Sono, Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Wang Xiaoshuai as well as films from new up-and-coming directors. The whole official program is posted on Helsinki Cine Aasia's website. The opening screening of Flashback Memories 3D (2012) will be held in Bio Rex on Thursday 14.3. at 7pm. The other festival screenings will be held in Orion and Andorra's Kino Hall and Dubrovnik Lounge. Ticket sales will begin on 28.2. on the festival's website (and tickets can also be purchased during the festival at screening locations. Helsinki Cine Aasia will also feature club entertainment, which focuses on Asian music. Club Gundam Style on Friday 15.3. mo ...

mface OPENS NEW FRONTIERS FOR MiTalk Dynamic mobile social network to promote popular social-media based IM application at the Malaysia Social Media Week (MSMW) 2013 Kuala Lumpur, MALAYSIA: Mobile social network mface comes out in full force promoting MiTalk at the Malaysia Social Media Week (MSMW) 2013, which takes place at Berjaya Time Square, Kuala Lumpur, from 26 February to 3 March 2013. MiTalk is the all-in-one communication application developed by Xiaomi, Chinese smartphone maker of the popular MiPhones based on the company’s MIUI, an Android fork. mface has entered into an agreement with MiTalk earlier to help the latter made large strides into Southeast Asia (notably Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand), Japan and South Korea with mitalk for mface, a dedicated application platform for the Southeast Asian and Asian markets. This partnership will see MiTalk developing the customized version for users of mface to accelerate user uptake in the region; mface will help MiTalk push the bo ...

Rohingya Boat People: A Challenge for Southeast Asia By Eliane Coates Synopsis The exodus of many Rohingya over the past year has brought increased international awareness to their plight, as well as Southeast Asia’s inability to deal effectively with forced migration. A regional approach is needed to find a durable solution to the influx of Rohingya boat people. SINCE THE communal clashes began in Arakan State in June 2012, the scale of Rohingya fleeing by boat to neighbouring Southeast Asian countries has increased significantly. According to a reliable source from the human rights organisation The Arakan Project, it is estimated 19,500 registered and unregistered Rohingya, including some Bangladeshis, have fled by boat from Bangladesh and North Arakan State, with an estimated 100 people having drowned during the process. With an estimated 115,000 people in Arakan displaced by the communal clashes, it is not surprising thousands more Rohingya have fled from other parts of Arakan State not only by boat ...

If you've ever thought: "You know what goes great with eggs? A Filipino sausage similar to chorizo", then you're in luck, since you can get exactly that at Southeast Asian, Top Chef-helmed P&G. Plus there's Filipino-style corned beef hash, and French toast with coconut whipped cream and Genesee Crea...

American History Month – Day 28 – Hugh Thompson, a man who chose conscience over orders. Some of the best views of Vietnam are from the air, which is where 24-year-old army pilot Hugh Thomson, Jr. gained his impressions of the country. Looking down from the glass bubble of his OH-23 Raven helicopter, Thompson could see the soul of the beautiful country through the glistening fields of rice, the palm-fringed beaches, and the misty, jungle-clad mountains. From a couple thousand feet, the land resembled a patchwork quilt, stitched together with 2,000 year old rituals that made the 192-year history of Thompson’s own country seem like a blip in comparison. Thompson arrived in South Vietnam in late December 1967, when the U.S. was still optimistic about preventing a communist takeover of the tiny Southeast Asian nation. Born in Atlanta in 1943, he had grown up in Stone Mountain, GA. In 1961, Thompson joined the U.S. Navy. After finishing his 4-year stint, he returned home. Two years later, he joine ...

Farming, fishing and raising livestock are the key sources of livelihood on one Southeast Asian island. BGR partners are planning to provide needed training to this area. Quality community development appears to be the key to sustainable success for the future. Many people have the resources availab...

Thai Bankruptcies Rise as Minimum Wage Rolls Out: Southeast Asia Confederate International Co., a Thai family-owned maker of nightwear, lost a German customer of 22 years after last month’s minimum-wage increase in the Southeast Asian nation raised costs. “They stopped talking to us, even though we have done business together for a long time,” said Veerayuth Sookhattako, 57, owner of the Chiang Mai-based company that ships about 80 million baht ($2.7 million) of apparel to Germany and France each year. “I established this company 28 years ago. I don’t want to let it go, but I may need to close down our business by the end of the year if we can’t get new orders.” Veerayuth isn’t alone. Last quarter, 7,221 Thai companies closed down, 27 percent higher than in the same period a year earlier, when the worst floods in 70 years swamped most of the country. The figure is also more than double the average of 3,000 in the previous nine years, according to data from the National Economic & Social De ...

the Western European prostitution market has become increasingly globalized during the past 15 years. The processes by which Eastern European, Southeast Asian, Latin American, and Sub-Saharan African women end up as sex workers in Western Europe are highly varied. The largest group of prostitutes from Sub-Saharan Africa comes from Nigeria, and they are usually recruited through a specific type of trafficking network. The term "trafficking in persons" is restricted to instances where people are deceived, threatened, or coerced into situations of exploitation, including prostitution. This contrasts with "human smuggling," in which a migrant purchases services to circumvent immigration restrictions, but is not necessarily a victim of deception or exploitation. In West Africa, there is widespread trafficking in women and children within the region as well as to overseas locations. Nigeria has signed and ratified the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Wom ...

(Reuters) - Malaysian security forces have surrounded about 100 armed men believed to be from a breakaway rebel faction in the southern Philippines, Malaysian police and a government official said on Thursday, but a Philippine official said they were unarmed Filipinos who had been promised land. The standoff in Malaysia's eastern Sabah state on Borneo island threatened to stir tension between the Southeast Asian neighbors whose ties have been periodically frayed by security and migration problems caused by a porous sea border. "Our firepower is more than enough to arrest them but the government has chosen to negotiate with them so they leave peacefully to return to the south of the Philippines," Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, on a visit to Sabah ahead of national elections, was quoted as saying by state-run Bernama news agency. Malaysian police said in a statement the situation was under control, but did not say whether the men had agreed with a request to surrender. A high-ranking Mala ...

MANILA – Almost 27 years after she and her family were forced to leave the Philippines' presidential mansion, Imelda Marcos, widow of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, does not conceal her desire for another Marcos to take the helm of the Southeast Asian nation: their only son Sen. Ferdinand Marco...

UN experts raise concerns over ‘landmark’ Southeast Asian human rights declaration 16 November 2012 – The largest body of independent experts in the United Nations human rights system today highlighted their concerns about a draft for Southeast Asia’s first ever regional document on human rights protections, which the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is set to consider on Sunday for adoption. In an open letter to ASEAN member states, the experts said that adoption of a “credible” ASEAN Human Rights Declaration would represent a “significant step” by the 10-nation bloc to develop a “regional human rights system.” The letter expresses reservations with the current draft, noting that it is “imperative” ASEAN’s landmark human rights instrument “maintains international standards” if it is to complement the work of the United Nations human rights system. The experts’ key concerns include provisions in the draft addressing the right to life, a so-called “balance” ...

America in the Community: Procter & Gamble e.Studyante Connects Beyond Borders. Jose W. Fernandez, US Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs, visited Oranbo Elementary School in Pasig on February 23 to lend his support to an innovative program that narrows the digital divide by bringing technology to underprivileged public school students. Fernandez, who was in the country as part of a Southeast Asian tour, graced a workshop that taught Grade 6 students about the power of social media, as well as the risks associated with digital engagement. The workshop is part of e.Studyante, an award-winning Procter & Gamble program, supported by e-books from Vibal Publishing, technology from Samsung, internet connectivity from SMART, as well as funding from Robinsons and the Synergia Foundation. Speaking at the event, Fernandez said, " Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton once said that 'talent is universal, but opportunity is not,' and today, a great U.S. company, Procter & Gamble is m .. ...

15. Gulf of Tonkin Never Happened: The Gulf of Tonkin Incident is the name given to two separate incidents involving the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the United States in the waters of the Gulf of Tonkin. On August 2, 1964 two American destroyers engaged three North Vietnamese torpedo boats, resulting in the sinking of one of the torpedo boats. This was also the single most important reason for the escalation of the Vietnam War. After Kennedy was assassinated, the Gulf of Tonkin gave the country the sweeping support for aggressive military action against the North Vietnamese. The outcome of the incident was the passage by Congress of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which granted President Lyndon B. Johnson the authority to assist any Southeast Asian country whose government was considered to be jeopardized by “communist aggression”. In 2005, an internal National Security Agency historical study was declassified; it concluded that USS Maddox had engaged the North Vietnamese on Au ...

Myanmar President to visit five European countries = Xinhua, 22.2.2013 = Myanmar President U Thein Sein will soon pay official visits to five European countries -- Norway, Finland, Austria, Belgium and Italy, according to an official announcement Friday. Thein Sein's tour to Europe will signify his first foreign trips in 2013. Relations between Myanmar and Norway improved in 2012 following Norway's easing of sanctions on Myanmar. The improved bilateral relations brought about a visit to the Southeast Asian nation by Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg in November 2012. A Norwegian Embassy was opened in Yangon on the occasion of Stoltenberg's visit. Meanwhile, Myanmar could reduce international debt of over 6 billion U.S. dollars including the relief of 534 million dollars' debt Myanmar owed to Norway after coordinating with creditor countries of Paris Club in January. In January this year, Finnish Minister of International Development Ms. Heidi Hauta visited Nay Phi Taw, claiming with U Thein Sein t ...

Instead of the same old deli salad or sandwich today, you could head to Bryant Park for the food-centric Malaysian Kitchen Winter Market and get a taste of Southeast Asian cuisine. In addition to exotic dishes from some of the city’s best Malaysian restaurants, there will be cooking demonstrations and dance performances. And who knows, maybe it will even help you warm up since it’s 90°F in Kuala Lumpur today.

Thailand Beating China With Toyota Means Shipping Boom Toyota Motor Corp. (7203)’s success in selling Thai-made vehicles to the Middle East and Latin America is fueling a boom for car carriers. Exports of Hilux pickup trucks and Fortuner SUVs helped the Southeast Asian nation overtake China as Toyota’s third-biggest global production hub last year. That growth helped spur Nippon Yusen K.K., the world’s biggest operator of the roll-on, roll- off ships, to forecast it will carry 3.45 million vehicles this fiscal year, the most in five years. Toyota has three factories in the country and Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. plan to spend a combined $850 million to boost capacity in Thailand. All of them use the country as an export base for other developing countries in contrast to China where they produce predominantly for the domestic market. That has Nippon Yusen, which counts Toyota as its biggest customer, adding ships and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. also predicted record volume for cars. “Thailand ...

Japanese Used Car Exporters Benefits From Myanmar's Import Policy. -*- Myanmar is a Southeast Asian country that has been under military rule in one form or another since 1962. Now after attaining democracy the leaders are planning to help the nation to grow fast and smoothly catch up with other free nations. Myanmar government's policies to enhance the economy and infrastructure for more growth and international trade are already showing great results in the used car industry in Japan and Myanmar. The Government Policy to issue import permit to car owners whose cars have been in service for 40 years or more for surrender of the old cars to the Road Transport Department in Rangoon for smelting along with handing over a vehicle registration book. After surrendering the old car, the owner will be given a car import permit. This is to remove the slow moving, fuel inefficient, pollution spreading vehicle of the road and bringing in better vehicles at a low cost to help improve transport and road systems. Peop ...

Rare Singapore protest against population plan Nearly 3,000 people held a rare rally in Singapore on Saturday to protest a government plan to increase the city-state's population by admitting more foreigners, voicing concerns that it will worsen already strained public services and push up the cost of living. Such demonstrations are rare in the Southeast Asian country, known for its image of political stability and efficient governance, with the ruling People's Action Party stifling opposition voices and placing tight controls on public protests. The chief organizer of the rally, Gilbert Goh, said the protest was a display of citizens' unhappiness over the population plan, which was endorsed in parliament on Feb. 8. "They want to tell the government, please reconsider this policy. The turnout is a testimony that this policy is flawed and unpopular on the ground," he said. According to the plan, the government will bolster infrastructure and social programs to accommodate a projected population of 6.5 mill ...

What a difference a year makes. A functioning ATM at Yangon International Airport; a reporter from Myanmar International Television on prime time; a brand new KIA showroom sparkling with chrome and glass; Italian gelato counters serving raspberry and lime sorbet alongside a sumptuous buffet of Burmese cuisine. On Yangon’s streets, hundreds of new Toyota Land Cruisers and Mitsubishi Pajeros have emerged as clear favorites – even an occasional Porsche sweeps past. These material symbols of Myanmar’s recent transformation indicate rapid progress, but also pose reasons for concern. Growth this year is projected at 6 percent, keeping pace with some of Myanmar’s Southeast Asian neighbors, and possibly overtaking others. While these are welcome changes, runaway economic development produces its own dilemmas: destruction of the environment, displacement of communities, erosion of cultural bonds as creeping consumerism replaces fellowship and camaraderie. Call it Myanmar’s Catch 22. Eleven months ago whe ...

21 June: 5th Southeast Asia Update. Call for presentations. The Southeast Asia Update 2013 will be organized by the Rural Development Sociology Group of Wageningen University and co-organized by the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV). A unique opportunity for researchers, scholars, students and others interested in the region! If you wish to attend, please send an e-mail to Yayah Siegers (kitlvfor registration. If you want to give a presentation, please contact Dik Roth (dik.roth More information:

Graviola Tree & Cancer. Graviola, also known as guanabana and soursop, is a tropical evergreen tree. It produces a tasty fruit that is sold in Caribbean, Southeast Asian, and South and Central American markets. Herbalists treat cancer, diabetes, spasms, anxiety, parasites and other medical condition...

There are a lot of people, especially on eBay, who would tell a customer that the football shirt they're selling is authentic. When the seller is registered in UK or other European countries, most buyers will think that the football NFL jerseys are original. But there are a lot of frauds on the web. When a person finally buys the shirt, receives it and discovers that it is synthetic or fake, it is less likely for that customer to get a refund. To prevent this from happening again, here are some tips on how to spot a fake football shirt on eBay: 1.) If the shirt is priced too low, then the odds of the shirt being original is also very low. No one in the right mind would sell an original, quality shirt for a low price. But if the seller offered a price not too high or not too low, it could be real and that the buyer could just be getting a bargain. 2.) Avoid buying from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and other Southeast Asian countries. Sellers will tell customers anything just to get money. They could tell ...

I am prowling the aisles of Angkor Market desperately trying to find a brand of coffee that will both work with my $4 French coffee press and not be of Cambodian or Vietnamese origin. Southeast Asian brands of coffee tend to have a natural sweetness and since I like my coffee black without any sugar, I’m in dire need of bean with more hints of bitter. Mind you, I don’t dislike the Cambodian version enough to not drink it in the morning. I’ve been told on more than one occasion I am a bad “waker upper” and could probably use all the sweetness I can get before inflicting my presence on other people. Pheakdey, our physical therapist, once happily prepared me a mug of the Cambodian brew she likes to drink, laced with extra sugar and condensed sweetened milk and I wasn’t sure if my heart was going to race right out of my chest or if I was going to fall into a diabetic coma. I spot a package of Melitta, pounce on it with more eagerness than is possibly appropriate in public and gently care ...

A product of the Cold War, the Southeast Asia War (1961-1973) began with communist attempts to overthrow non-communist governments in the region. United States participation in the Southeast Asia War resulted from the policy of "containment," which aimed to prevent communism from expanding beyond its early Cold War borders. The containment strategy seldom led to major combat, but as with the Korean War (1950-1953), the US committed large military forces to protect an allied, non-communist government. The main U.S. goal in the Southeast Asia War was to protect South Vietnam -- initially from a local communist insurgency and later from conquest by communist North Vietnam. The U.S. also hoped to prevent the spread of communism to other nearby countries. Although popularly known as the Vietnam War, U.S. efforts included military action not only in South and North Vietnam, but also in neighboring Southeast Asian countries. For many years in the early 20th century, the people of Southeast Asia struggled for ind ...

Australia pursues Malaysian explanation for senator's deportation PERTH, Australia (Reuters) - Australia is seeking further explanation from Malaysia about why an Australian senator, who went to politically sensitive Malaysia to discuss electoral reform, was denied entry and deported, Prime Minister Julia Gillard said on Sunday. Malaysia refused entry on Saturday to independent Senator Nick Xenophon, with an immigration official saying the decision was made because he had participated in an illegal street rally for electoral reform in the Southeast Asian country last year. Malaysia Migration Australia Julia Gillard... ~puffin

Lee Kuan Yew: Race, Culture and Genes By Michael D. Barr (Department of History, University of Queensland) "Three women were brought to the Singapore General Hospital, each in the same condition and needing a blood transfusion. The first, a Southeast Asian was given the transfusion but died a few hours later. The second, a South Asian was also given a transfusion but died a few days later. The third, an East Asian, was given a transfusion and survived. That is the X factor in development." Racism is rarely far from the surface of Asian societies, and this is especially true of those multiracial societies that feel the need to promote racial tolerance as part of official ideology. Yet even in these cases, promoting racial tolerance does not necessarily imply the promotion of racial indifference. Singapore's ultiracialism, for instance, encourages a high consciousness of one's race even as it insists on tolerance. Further, it has been considered by many as a covert form of discrimination in favour of th ...

Thursday, 14 February 2013 13:45 Victoria Bruce / MZINE+ The distant South Pacific island nation of New Zealand is making its mark on Myanmar soil and looking to transfer its agricultural prowess in milk production and dairy manufacturing to farmers in the Southeast Asian country. New Zealand’s Prime Minister John Key recently toured Myanmar’s major cities of Yangon and Naypyitaw and pledged NZ $6 million in development funding for a model dairy farm, the first of its kind in Myanmar. Mr Key, the first ever New Zealand prime minister to visit Myanmar, met with high-ranking officials including President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi during his three day visit in November 2012. His entourage included New Zealand’s Ambassador to Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia, Tony Lynch and Trade Commissioner Karen Campbell. M-ZINE+ Senior Reporter Victoria Bruce sat down with Ambassador Lynch and Ms Campbell in their Bangkok headquarters to discuss the commercial significance ...

Asean Military Defense Review Japan plans to give patrol boats to Manila - report TOKYO - Japan plans to donate patrol boats costing $11 million each to the Philippines, ramping up regional efforts to monitor China's maritime activity in disputed waters, a newspaper said Monday. The Japanese government plans to finance the deal in its fiscal 2013 budget starting in April and hopes to officially sign it early next year, the Nikkei business daily reported. Japan will then provide the Philippines with the newly built patrol vessels, which will cost more than one billion yen ($11 million) each, the newspaper said, without specifying the number of boats on offer. Both countries are locked in separate territorial disputes with China. Japan's dispute is over a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea known as the Senkakus in Japan and the Diaoyus in China. The Philippines is one of several Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, that are rowing with China over claims to parts of the South China S ...

Officials call for probe of sale of bulletproof vests An L.A. County supervisor wants an audit into whether officials broke laws by shipping the equipment to Cambodia. And a Gardena official wants a probe into why the city was used as an intermediary. Local officials Tuesday called for investigations into the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department funneling hundreds of bulletproof vests to Cambodia through the city of Gardena. Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas requested an audit to determine whether officials violated the law in shipping the vests a decade ago to the Southeast Asian country. A Gardena official also said she would be asking for an investigation into her city being used as an intermediary for the unusual transaction. The announcements Tuesday were prompted by a Times investigation published over the weekend that found that sheriff's ballistic vests were shipped to Cambodia and not declared to customs officials, as required by federal law. Instead, they were stuffed inside one of a number of pa ...

FDI leaving China for Asean, India The Brunei Times/Asia News Network Bandar Seri Begawan February 11, 2013 1:00 am Rising costs pushing multinationals to relocate: report India and Asean are tipped to benefit from China's struggle to keep foreign direct investors (FDIs) in the country, according to the China-Asean Business Council Chinese Secretariat. Citing a report from The International Business Times, the trade body, through its newsletter, said that China has been the major recipient of foreign direct investment in the developing world over the past 20 years. This has played a big part in China's rise from being a poor rural backwater to an economic powerhouse, but rising costs due to higher wages and the phasing out of super-preferential tax policies are pushing multinationals, mainly labour-intensive manufacturers, to relocate, it added. "And China's neighbours India and Southeast Asian countries stand to benefit the most as they have large pools of labour and strong domestic markets," the report ...

BOLD WITNESS NOT IN VAIN Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:58 Lung Singh was a spirit worshipper and opium addict for forty-five years in the little Southeast Asian country of Laos. When he turned to Christ, he became a powerhouse for the Lord. Dr. Jan Pit shares about the day he baptized Lung Singh: “I’ll never forget how, after coming up out of the waters, he began singing, ‘I have decided to follow Jesus,’ Then he pointed to the ripples spreading out in the water and said, ‘Brother Jan, there goes my old life. All the old things have passed away. It’s gone. Everything now is new.’ “Still soaking wet, he clambered onto the bank on the side of the famous Mekong River and knelt down. ‘Devil,’ he shouted. ‘I’ve been your servant for 45 years. Now I belong to Christ. Now I only serve him.’ “I’ve never met a man so on fi ...

Opera Siam’s “Otello” celebrates both Verdi and King Vajiravudh In its first production of a “top twenty” opera since last year’s Tosca, Opera Siam will mount the Southeast Asian premiere of Verdi’s masteripece Otello, celebrating the 200th anniversary of Verdi’s birth and the 100th anniversary of HM King Rama VI’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s Othello. “This will be the kind of production that continues to demonstrate why Opera Magazine in London and Opera News in New York have called us the operatic hub of the region,” said artistic director Somtow Sucharitkul who will both conduct and direct this production. “We not only use the stars from major opera houses like Covent Garden, New York City Opera and English National Opera in this production, but give the production the kind of perspective that is only possible in Bangkok.” Verdi’s Otello is extremely true to Shakespeare, its libretto translating much of the text literally into Italian. King Rama VI’s version is also fait ...

Last Friday night, I stood by the corner windows of Herschel Walker’s new restaurant on Clayton Street, pork fat and barbecue sauce rolling from ribs to my face, and missed Noodlehead, that quirky Southeast Asian-style noodle shop now replaced by some bar across the street and down a block.

Did Filipino Martial Arts Revolutionize Boxing? The stunning footwork of today's greatest fighters, including Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson, may have been the product of Filipino fighting principles honed on the island of Hawaii. This was originally published in Inside Karate. By Lilia I. Howe Over the years, there have been many valiant attempts to link Asian fighting arts to modem spoils and/or forms of combat. Most of these can be charitably described as "reaches" or pure speculation. However, in one case, there is strong historical evidence that a Southeast Asian fighting system may have had a profound effect on Western boxing specifically the Filipino martial arts, known variously as kali escrima and arnis. Background Despite the aura of mysticism an "ancient" lineage gives a fighting art, Western boxing predates most Asian martial arts. Pugilism was practiced in a refined art form in ancient Greece several hundred years before the birth of Christ, whereas most classical Asian systems evolved after the ...

Thanks "Toto" Ludalvi Vista for this. This is a must read. Let's see ourselves in the eyes of a great Southeast Asian leader. [The following excerpt is taken from pages 299 – 305 from Lee Kuan Yew’s book “From Third World to First”, Chapter 18 “Building Ties with Thailand, the Philippines, and Brunei”] The Philippines was a world apart from us, running a different style of politics and government under an American military umbrella. It was not until January 1974 that I visited President Marcos in Manila. When my Singapore Airlines plane flew into Philippine airspace, a small squadron of Philippine Air Force jet fighters escorted it to Manila Airport. There Marcos received me in great style – the Filipino way. I was put up at the guest wing of Malacañang Palace in lavishly furnished rooms, valuable objects of art bought in Europe strewn all over. Our hosts were gracious, extravagant in hospitality, flamboyant. Over a thousand miles of water separated us. There was no friction and little trad ...

I've constantly looked for Southeast Asian role models to believe in, to show me the way, to help me fully understand the Southeast Asian American experience. I wanted leaders with an unapologetic, grassroots analysis to help me shape mine. I wanted elders to tell me I'm not crazy, that my passion and anger are justified, that everything I am now is result of imperialist, colonial racism combined with our people's warrior spirit. I didn't think to look to Kabzuag Vaj, to Eddie Chhaya, to myself. Decades later, I've realized that we are the organizers, the community caretakers, the healers, the movement builders we've been seeking. We are the ones paving the way for our parents, our siblings, our children. And we're not going anywhere. After searching my whole life, I've finally found a leader I believe in. I've finally found myself.

By: OurAmazingPlanet Staff Published: 10/16/2012 02:25 PM EDT on OurAmazingPlanet An enormous, new, leggy arachnid with a leg span is just over 13 inches (33 centimeters) has been found lurking in the caves of the Southeast Asian nation of Laos. The creature is a type of harvestmen, a group of ara...

Beijing has mastered the art of geopolitical posturing to such an extent that it’s keeping her smaller Southeast Asian neighbors guessing what to do next. Nowhere is this more evident than the relationship between Beijing and Manila. While Sino-Japanese relations continue to worsen over the (Diaoyu…

ESPN is reporting that no charges will be filed against alleged match fixer, Dan Tan. Revelations that a Singapore-based crime syndicate has been involved in fixing soccer matches around the world has put extra pressure on authorities in the Southeast Asian city-state to take action against the alleged ringleader. The Singaporean businessman known as Dan Tan has been placed on Italy's wanted list and has been implicated in various investigations into soccer corruption, including Monday's revelations in The Hague by the European police agency Europol. He has avoided arrest in his homeland. The Singapore Police Force said over the weekend it was assisting the Italian authorities through Interpol and has given information requested by the National Central Bureau in Rome, but had not charged Tan. The Football Association of Singapore on Tuesday said it is continuing "to work closely with the relevant authorities, both at the domestic and international levels." The 18-month review by Europol uncovered 380 sus ...

To all my mates in & around Melbourne, do your damndest to get to this seminar. I guarantee you'll get a clear idea of why I entrusted Squealie as a godson to Sifu Nino Pilla! If you want to have a stronger grasp of Southeast Asian martial arts & Jeet Kune Do, few people are better than Nino at breaking down those arts into digestible chunks that you can learn, practice, and retain long after the seminar!

Holly Hill chef exchange brings Thai dinner to Midway Nope, that’s not a typo. A Thai dinner is scheduled for both nights of February 8 and 9 as part of Holly Hill Inn’s Holly Hill Inn’s (426 North Winter Street in Midway, Ky.) Winter Dinner Club 2013. Chef-owner Ouita Michel has invited Toa Green and her mother, Suda Veerasethakul, operators of the renowned Thai Orchid Café in Lexington (1030 South Broadway), to her kitchen prepare a Royal Thai Dinner. Consider it American southern cuisine giving way to Southeast Asian “southern” cuisine. The food alone is good enough to make the 60 minute drive, but the price is a steal: $40 (tax, gratuity and optional wine parings not included). Reservations can be made by calling Donna at (859) 846-4732. Check out the menu below: Hors d’oeuvre: choice of Veerasethakul Family Crispy Prawn Cakes With cucumber relish, or Fresh Spring Roll with shredded carrots, cucumber strips, bean thread, shredded lettuce and crunchy bean sprouts in a rice paper wrapper, . ...

Myanmar Opening to Foreigners Draws Best Western Hotels By Nichola Saminather - Feb 3, 2013 10:37 PM PT via Western International Inc., the world’s second-largest closely held hotel chain, will open its first Myanmar property in 2013, taking advantage of friendlier investment rules and a shortage of rooms in the country. The Phoenix-based group is considering locations including Yangon and Mandalay, the nation’s two largest cities, for the hotel, Glenn de Souza, Bangkok-based vice president of international operations for Asia and the Middle East, said in an e-mailed response to questions on Jan. 31. Myanmar’s President Thein Sein is seeking to transform the Southeast Asian nation into a democracy and modernize its financial and private infrastructure after five decades of isolation. He signed a foreign investment bill in November that cleared the way for multinationals to spend more in the formerly military-run nation. “There are huge opportunities in the country, following new investment regulat ...

South China Sea: interesting move of the Philippines to submit the overlapping claims to the UN for arbitration. This caught the Chinese by surprise. An article by Ian Storey for Jamestown Foundation. Manila Ups the Ante in the South China Sea In a surprise move on January 22, the Philippine government informed the Chinese embassy in Manila that it unilaterally would submit the two countries’ overlapping jurisdictional claims in the South China Sea to international legal arbitration at the United Nations (UN). Manila’s audacious move is a major development in the long running dispute as it marks the first time one of the Southeast Asian parties has resorted to legal means to challenge China’s expansive claims. If the UN tribunal decides to hear the case, any ruling it issues will have wide-ranging legal, political and strategic implications. While a final decision by the tribunal is likely to be several years away, in the short term, the Philippine gambit almost certainly will provoke an indignant r ...

Honda developing CBR400R for India That headline is sure to give Honda’s Japanese competitor Kawasaki some jitters. Honda Japan has officially unveiled a 400cc engine based on the new CBR500R’s architecture specially for the domestic and Southeast Asian markets. The 470cc parallel-twin liquid cooled motor retains its 67mm bore but downsizes the stroke to 56.6mm for the new 400. Though power figures haven’t been released yet, it is expected that the CBR400 will make around 40-42PS, similar to the Ninja 400. The engine while being visually identical to the 500 will also share cases, clutch and generator covers with its bigger brother. Honda claims that they have focused on getting a linear power band for the 400 which means like the 250R, performance will be user friendly and easily accessible. Which also brings to fore the fact that the 400cc engine may also be plonked into different body styles just like the 500. How is this of any significance to the Indian market? You see, the trend is now shiftin ...

Star Fruit/Crambola Origin: native in Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka: and also popular in many countries in Southeast Asia, South Pacific and parts of East Asia. It is now cultivated in Latin America, Caribbean and Southern United States. General information: Scientific name: Averrhoa Carambola Star fruit also known as “belimbing manis” in many Southeast Asian regions and “kamrakh” in India. It is a five-angle fruit which has shapes like a star, has a color of green or yellow, has a sour or be sometimes has a slight sweet flavor. Content: star fruit is low in calories, has a good amount of dietary fiber which helps protect the mucous membrane of the solon from exposure to toxic substances binding to cancer-causing chemicals in the colon. Also contains Vitamin C a natural anti-oxidant which develops body resistance against infectious agents and scavenges harmful, pro-inflammatory free radicals from the body. Also contains: Anti-oxidant Phyto-nutrients Polyphenoli ...

List of foreign films shot in Thailand * Chang (1927) – Directors Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack were assisted by Prince Yugala Dighambara in the production of their silent docudrama about a family of subsistence farmers living in the jungle, battling elephants, tigers and other animals. Among the cast is a gibbon named Bimbo. * Around the World in Eighty Days (1956) – Director Michael Todd was able to borrow one of the royal barges of King Bhumibol Adulyadej when the production was in Bangkok. * The Ugly American (1963) – Thai statesman Kukrit Pramoj appeared on screen with Marlon Brando, portraying the prime minister of the fictional Southeast Asian country of Sarkhan. He was later elected Prime Minister of Thailand, serving in office in 1975-76. * The Big Boss (1971) – Bruce Lee portrays a young fighter from Guangdong who comes to Thailand to sort out his life and finds a job working in an icehouse. He tries to be peaceful, but they just keep pushing him. * Duel of Fists (1971) – D ...

Louis Vuitton Core Values campaign celebrity endorsement Looking lovely as ever, peaceful, and what People magazine calls, "serene while taking in the sights and sounds around her," actress Angelina Jolie was the star of a a new video to promote the "Core Values" campaign for fashion designer Louis Vuitton. "In 2000, Angelina Jolie made her first trip to Cambodia," the entertainment journal touts the charity benefit literature caption reads. According to the urban legend history about Angelina Jolie, "[The trip to Cambodia] was a journey that would change her life forever." Angelina Jolie fans know the Hollywood actress made her first visit to the Southeast Asian nation of Cambodia while she was working on filming Louis Vuitton Bags Outlet the cult classic action adventure movie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. Since that time, Jolie has very Louis Vuitton Bags publicly expressed she was "overwhelmed by the beauty of its landscapes and the warmth and generosity of its people." Saying that visiting the third ...

We all have ogled at the really fancy and exotic chickens online or at a show, but have you ever gotten any? Some of my most favorite birds are the wacky (if it's frizzled, somehow naked, or appears to be on stilts, I'm in) and the exotic (my landraces). However, my experimentation hasn't always gone as planned... let's not bring up my little foray into Southeast Asian game fowl, OK? Went a little TOO exotic on that one! How about you? Do you prefer the tried and true favorites or do you like to experiment? ~ Poe

OUTLOOk-India wheat futures to recover on export demand Wheat futures in India, the world's second-largest producer of the grain, fell on profit-taking on Tuesday but are likely to rise this week on strong demand from exporters amid limited supplies. "Attractive overseas prices, surplus availability in the country and the government's decision to allow unrestricted exports have boosted prospects of higher exports from India. And it is supporting the prices in local market," said Prasoon Mathur, senior analyst with Religare Commodities. The key February contract on India's National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) rose nearly 4 percent in the previous five trading sessions. Demand for Indian wheat, particularly in Southeast Asian countries, is very strong due to concerns over dry weather in the United States and lower harvesting in Australia, both key suppliers of the grain, traders said. At 0808 GMT the key March contract on CBOT was trading down 0.1 percent at $7.78-1/2 per bushel. The most tra ...

Qatar to invest US$5b in Pengerang project January 29, 2013Kuala Lumpur, Jan 29 — Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund plans to spend half of the US$10 billion (RM31 billion) it expects to invest in Malaysia on a petrochemicals complex aimed at transforming the Southeast Asian nation into a global hub for the oil and gas trade. The Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex in Johor is expected to help Malaysia compete with neighbouring Singapore to become the region’s top petrochemical hub. “We are in discussions about this. We may invest up to US$5 billion in the next three to four years into petrochemical projects here (in Pengerang),” Qatar Holding LLC vice-chairman Hussain Ali al-Abdulla told reporters here today. “Qatar Holding’s total investment exposure to Malaysia will eventually exceed US$10 billion in various sectors,” he added. Pengerang is expected to accumulate RM170 billion in investments by the time it begins operations in 2016. The complex includes the RM60 billion Petronas Refinery ...

Information about Asian Cuisine which you should know Asian cuisine styles can be broken down into several tiny regional styles that have rooted the peoples and cultures of those regions. The major types can be roughly defined as East Asian with its origins in Imperial China and now encompassing modern Japan and the Korean peninsula; Southeast Asian which encompasses Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Viet Nam, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines; South Asian states that are made up of India, Burma, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan as well as several other countries in this region of the continent;[1] Central Asian and Middle Eastern. "Asian cuisine" most often refers to East Asian (Chinese, Japanese, and Korean), Southeast Asian cuisine and South Asian cuisine. In much of Asia, the term does not include the country's native cuisines. For example, in Hong Kong and mainland China, Asian cuisine is a general umbrella term for Japanese cuisine, Korean cuisine, Filipino cuisine, Thai cuisine, ...

between China and the Philippines in the Scarborough Shoal... For more than a decade, China has pursued a strategy in Southeast Asia that relied heavily on economic carrots to increase the stake of the Southeast Asian countries in maintaining good relations with China. The China-ASEAN FTA, Chinese foreign direct investment, foreign assistance, and trade have all been used to encourage countries to consider Beijing’s interests when formulating policies and eschew actions that China would view as objectionable. In the past few years, however, China has directly used economic relations to compel target countries to alter their policies. And this growing trend is worrisome. The most recent target of the employment of economic measures by China for coercive purposes was the Philippines, which on April 10 sent a navy frigate to investigate the sighting of Chinese fishing boats in the lagoon of Scarborough Shoal, well within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone. After an armed boarding ...

Malaysia Popular sports in Malaysia include soccer, badminton, field hockey, bowls, tennis, squash, martial arts, horse riding, sailing, and skate boarding.Badminton matches attract thousands of spectators, and since 1948 Malaysia has been one of three countries to hold the Thomas Cup.The Malaysian Lawn Bowls Federation was registered in 1997.Squash was brought to the country by members of the British army, with the first competition being held in 1939. The Squash Racquets Association of Malaysia was created on 25 June 1972.Malaysia has proposed a Southeast Asian football league.The men's national field hockey team ranked 15th in the world as of August 2010.The 3rd Hockey World Cup was hosted at Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, as well as the 10th cup. The country also has its own Formula One track–the Sepang International Circuit. It runs for 310.408 kilometres (192.88 mi), and held its first Grand Prix in 1999.

Singapore’s Art Stage is luring the growing pool of wealthy Southeast Asian collectors with Damien Hirst’s butterflies, canvases by Indonesian artist Nyoman Masriadi and paintings by singer Bob Dylan.

Goodman Theatre - The Jungle Book - Youth Performers This is a headshot and resume submission request. Category: Equity/Non-Equity - Pay: Yes From the imagination of Tony Award winner Mary Zimmerman comes a dazzling new musical adaptation of a timeless favorite that's sure to enchant audiences of all ages. The jungle springs to life in a kaleidoscopic song-and-dance-filled spectacle that chronicles young Mowgli's adventures growing up in the animal kingdom. Based on Rudyard Kipling's time-honored children's tales and featuring music from the classic Disney film, this spellbinding world premiere is the theatrical event of the season. Accepting submissions for the following roles: YOUTH PERFORMERS: Mowgli (Male, Indian or Southeast Asian. Also will consider other actors of color. Should read 6-8 yr old) Small, spunky, independent, stubborn, unafraid, thinks he can manage when he really can't. A live wire, sparkly, charming, young boy. Singing is not required for this role. European Boy/Ensemble (Male, White ...

The Kampung Kling Mosque, built in 1748, is one of the oldest mosques in Malaysia. The mosque is located on Malacca's busy north-south running Jalan Hang Lekiu, on the corner of Jalan Tanjong, or Temple Street, both filled with Chinese shop-houses. However, when Kampung Kling Mosque was erected, the neighborhood of Kampung Kling, which runs along the coast to the west of the Melaka River, was still primarily inhabited by South Indians or Klings. The multiple styles revealed in this mosque attest to the synchratic building tradition that flourished in Melaka, a major trading port in the fourteenth through the eighteenth centuries. Like most Southeast Asian mosques, Kampung Kling Mosque is built on a square plan rather than the rectangular or hexagonal plan of most Middle Eastern mosques. Corinthian columns both define the arcaded verandah that wraps around the prayer hall and also separate the minbar space from the central prayer hall within the mosque. Supported by timber post-and- ...

Google Philippines will be the search giant's fifth representative office in the Southeast Asian region, following consecutive establishment of bases in Malaysia, Thailand, and most recently Indonesia over the past several years, aside from its regional Singapore office.

Kuala Lumpur (Reuters) – Malaysian state-owned oil and gas firm Petronas said on Friday it has made an onshore oil and gas discovery in the country after 24 years, adding to the Southeast Asian nation’s efforts to lift slowing output.

Japan-China dispute: Why India should follow middle path As Chinese and Japanese surveillance ships and aircrafts shadow each other around Senkaku/Diaoyu islands tension is rising. But both the powers are also engaged in smile diplomacy to woo India, creating diplomatic openings for the country. Preoccupied with territorial disputes with Japan and its Southeast Asian neighbours, and concerned about the US pivot China is showing unusual warmth towards India. Coincidentally, the newly-elected Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a long-time friend of India, has issued a thinly veiled call for an anti-China alliance. By steering a prudent course between competing suitors India could significantly improve its position in the region. Any misstep, however, could hurt India`s economic progress and endanger its long-term security. In December, Liberal Democratic Party under Abe won a landslide victory fighting on a nationalist platform. Within weeks of becoming prime minister he published an unusually blunt editor ...

Abe’s Japanese Stimulus Seen Boosting Southeast Asia: Economy Jan. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Japan’s drive to revive growth may boost Southeast Asian nations as rising demand in the world’s No. 3 economy spurs orders and Japanese companies take advantage of cheap funding to invest in the region. Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia are identified by HSBC Holdings Plc and Credit Suisse Group AG to be among the biggest beneficiaries of Japanese monetary easing and a 10.3 trillion yen ($115 billion) stimulus plan by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who wrapped up a tour of Southeast Asia on Jan. 18. In contrast, South Korea may suffer as a weakening yen makes its rival’s automotive and electronics exports more competitive, say Credit Suisse and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. The wave of cheap funds “will drive Japanese companies and banks to raise investments and expand in Southeast Asia,” Frederic Neumann, co-head of Asian economics research at HSBC in Hong Kong, said in an interview. “This will spu ...

US pivot sparks Asian arms race By Richard Heydarian MANILA - Against the backdrop of renewed large-scale US military sales to Asian allies, and with newly re-elected US President Barack Obama choosing the region as his first official foreign destination, regional maritime disputes between China and Southeast Asian states are poised to intensify in the months ahead. Under the new leadership of Xi Jinping, China has progressively buttressed its maritime claims across the South and East China Seas on both diplomatic and military fronts. Other Pacific powers, namely Japan and India, have also begun to deepen their strategic engagements with Southeast Asian partners, including through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' (ASEAN) multilateral mechanisms. The Obama administration signaled the formal commencement of the US's "pivot", or what officials in Washington commonly refer to as a "rebalancing" towards Asia, in November 2011 when the president stated to the Australian parliament: "As a Pacific nati ...

Let me give you a clue . . . "It is the first week of August, 1964, and U.S. warships under the command of U.S. Navy Admiral George Stephen Morrison (JIM MORRISON'S DAD, Folks) have allegedly come under attack while patrolling Vietnam’s Tonkin Gulf. This event, subsequently dubbed the ‘Tonkin Gulf Incident,’ will result in the immediate passing by the U.S. Congress of the obviously pre-drafted Tonkin Gulf Resolution, which will, in turn, quickly lead to America’s deep immersion into the bloody Vietnam quagmire. Before it is over, well over fifty thousand American bodies – along with literally millions of Southeast Asian bodies – will litter the battlefields of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia." Ill bet you Rosie never told you that ...

Clinton demands safety of missing Laos activist (AFP)–3 hours ago WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday urged Laos to ensure the safety of a prominent activist, whose mysterious disappearance a month ago has sent chills through civil society. Clinton, who in July became the first US secretary of state to visit the Southeast Asian nation since the communist victory in 1975, said the United States was deeply concerned for activist Sombath Somphone. "We call upon the Lao government to pursue a transparent investigation of this incident and to do everything in its power to bring about an immediate and safe return home to his family," Clinton said in a statement. "His disappearance has generated a tremendous amount of concern from his family, friends and colleagues around the world. We urge his immediate return home and send our thoughts and prayers to his family and loved ones," she said. The US-educated Sombath, who headed a non-governmental organization campaigning for sustaina ...

The Eastern Palace opened on the 1st of December 2011 inside The 4 Star Urban Chic Boutique Hotel. Distinguished by impeccable service and stylish, contemporary decor, Eastern Palace serves a variety of mouth-watering Thai food, sushi and seafood and some of the Cape's finest wines. The restaurant boasts large glass-fronted views of Table Mountain and the bustling Long Street. The cuisine is fresh and light with each individual ingredient upholding its own identity yet blending superbly into the overall flavour. Combining elements of several Southeast Asian traditions, Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with strong fragrant components. Balance, detail and variety are of great importance to Eastern Palace’s Thai chefs. The spiciness of Thai cuisine is notorious, and it is also known for its enthusiastic use of fresh herbs and is considered by many to be among the best in the world. Sushi is fast becoming the cuisine of choice in Cape Town due to its fresh and healthy concept in a so ...

After seven anxiety-filled years, the Southeast Asian nation is awash with optimism. Populist fiscal policies are stuffing citizens’ pockets with cash, which they aren’t coy to spend. But inflation pressures are rising, and government mollycoddling is hurting competitiveness.

Why Retire in the Philippines? “Smile at Life in the Philippines.” This is our invitation to our former Filipino citizens and foreign nationals to choose the Philippines as their second home. Famous for our vibrant culture, hospitality, friendly English-speaking population, natural attractions, and tropical climate, retirees can expect the good life in the Philippines at an affordable cost. GEOGRAPHYThe Philippines is an archipelagic nation made up of 7,107 islands spanning 1,840 kilometers north to south. It is part of the Southeast Asian region, and is bordered by Taiwan to the north, Indonesia and Malaysian Borneo to the south, the South China Sea to the west, and the Pacific Ocean to the east. The Three main Philippine Island groups are Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao. The Capital is Manila. Time Zone is GMT +8 hours. CLIMATEGenerally, Philippines has a tropical climate. March to May is hot and dry. June to October is rainy, November to February is cool. Average temperatures: 78F/25C to 90F/32 ...

BANGKOK, Thailand — For Southeast Asian drug syndicates, meth is king. Trading opium, the region’s former narcotic of choice, requires vast poppy fields that can be monitored by anti-drug agents from space. Coke — expensive, sourced an ocean away — only sells to a relatively small, well-off party crowd. Marijuana, Southeast Asia’s most-used illegal drug, is simply less profitable per kilo. Methamphetamine, however, is cooked up in mobile, indoor labs. It’s craved by college students, white-collar workers and poor laborers alike. And at roughly $8-9 per tablet, a bundle of lavender or pink meth pills can sell for tens of thousands of dollars. The result? Methamphetamine consumption is soaring in Asia. Just five years ago, well into the late 1990s explosion of methamphetamine use across the region, Southeast Asian authorities reported 14.6 meth pills seized. Last year, they nabbed 70 million pills, according to a new United Nations report. Meth-related arrests in the region have tripled in those ...

Debate over ‘Allah’ reflects Malaysia’s growing religiosity The Malaysian Insider - 3 hrs ago By Dina Zaman Editor-at-Large Kuala Lumpur, Jan 15 — Malaysia woke up to a growing religiosity among its citizens a week ago when the Selangor Sultan’s edict reaffirming who can use “Allah” to describe God reignited an issue that has divided politicians and religious leaders. It began when DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Engappealed in a Christmas Day message last month for Christians in Sabah and Sarawak to be allowed to use the Malay-language Bible that contained Allah, the Arabic term for god. Politicians have joined the debate but as The Malaysian Insider found out in a recent poll, Malaysians are growing to be more religious, be it among Muslims and Christians, and this is fuelling the national discourse over practising one’s faith in the Southeast Asian country. Muslim, Christian and Malaysian Suddenly, almost every young professional who’s a Muslim or Christian is rushing off to an usrah/k ...

I think it makes me sick to my stomach of what happened to Seal Team 6. They went on a mission to take out Bin Laden and were told as what they needed to do as in assignment. Later on, they'll helicopter gets shot down by the Talibans using our own American missiles that we provided for them during when Afgan was fighting with the Soviet Union. Our country is full of hypocrisy, such as the cover up of those many POWS abandoned in Southeast Asian countries. Let truth be known do not allow our government shut us out from the truth. Semper Fi. -Sas

PHILIPPINES - The second-largest archipelago in the world, with over 7000 tropical islands, one of the great treasures of Southeast Asia. A place of natural wonders; string of coral-fringed islands strewn across a vast expanse of the western Pacific. Below sea level, boasts some of the world’s best diving and snorkelling. Long poised at the centre of Southeast Asian trade, colonized by a succession of world powers, a vivid tapestry that reflects its varied cultural inheritance and scape of great beauty that expresses the harmony between humankind and the environment.

Suoi Tien Cultural Theme Park is a Vietnamese water-filled fantasy land, located rather unromantically next to a rubbish dump 15 kilometres South of *** Chi Minh City. Suoi Tien, or "the fairy stream," is the world's first water park devoted to Buddhism, specifically the Southeast Asian animistic form of Buddhism. The animism works well for the theme park; instead of Mickey and Daffy, Suoi Tien has chosen the Dragon, Unicorn, Tortoise, and Phoenix as its sacred animals, used thematically throughout the massive water park. Furthermore, workers in golden monkey outfits roam the park taking pictures with visitors and causing "mischief."

Malaysia offers Saudis MM2H program JEDDAH: More and more foreigners are now making use of the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) program as over 20,000 expatriates have settled in the Southeast Asian country since its launch 10 years ago, said Malaysian Consul General Mohammed Khalid Abbasi Abdul Razak. He called on Saudis to consider this impressive program, saying it is affordable and worthwhile. “The government has approved 2,387 MM2H applications in 2011, and last year it had targeted 3,000 approvals,” Razak said while giving his keynote speech at an MM2H seminar here Sunday that was attended by representatives of travel agencies, airlines, businesses and the media. He said Malaysia’s warm climate, political stability and modern economy were attracting more foreigners to settle in the country. “With the re-branding of the MM2H since 2009, the new direction of the program is to attract not only foreigners looking to stay long-term or retire in Malaysia, but also high net-worth individuals looking ...

Thais commonly use the word sanuk when talking about their Southeast Asian kingdom, which means "fun." Yes, within Thailand's tropical terrain lies a sensory sojourn for travelers -- the eye candy of ornate gilded palaces, rich coral reefs, and many varieties of wild orchid; the hypnotic rhythms of Buddhist mantras; the palate-pleasing platters of spicy cuisine; the tactile allure of rustling Thai silk; and the aromatic odyssey of bustling bazaars. Before You Go: Need-to-know info Entry requirements: Valid passport Language: Thai Currency: Baht Flight time: 19 1/2 hours from NYC, 17 hours from L.A., 19 hours from Dallas When To Go Best weather: November to January is the "dry and cool" season, though the rest of the year can be just as fair. Be prepared for hot, humid weather any time of year, though there are three recognizable seasons: summer from February to May; rainy from June to September; and cooler from November to February. Best prices: Mid-May to mid-October, exact dates vary by hotel What To Do ...

A search team led by a British aviation enthusiast arrived in Myanmar on Sunday to begin a dig they hope will unearth dozens of rare British Spitfire fighter planes said to have been buried in the Southeast Asian country at the end of World War II. The 21-member team, led by …

Why JAPAN want to invest in MYANMAR. - 1. JAPAN's FDI in MYANMAR was 'US$ 211.90 million' compare with China's 'US$ 13,947.15 million.' (as of End 2011) 2. MYANMAR is Asia's last frontier market. JAPAN already invested significant amount all over asia. 3. Japan's domestic market has been shrinking as the birthrate declines and the population ages. 'JAPAN government saw Myanmar's population of 62 million a chance to create production centers with a cheap work force,' which would then channel Southeast Asia's growth potential to Japan. Tsutomu Murasaki, an official in charge of strategic export negotiations at Japan's trade ministry, mentioned another goal: "To strengthen the competitiveness of Japanese companies." _ [Asahi Shimbun _ November 23, 2012] 4. Japan has also been thrown by shifts in 'the regional balance.' Southeast Asian diplomacy used to be one of Japan's strengths, and the government would disburse generous amounts of foreign aid to create closer political partnerships. _ [Asahi Shimbun _ Nov ...

This report was produced by The Rockefeller Foundation and Global Business Network. May 2010: "Devastating shocks like September 11, the Southeast Asian tsunami of 2004, and the 2010 Haiti earthquake had certainly primed the world for sudden disasters. But no one was prepared for a world in which large-scale catastrophes would occur with such breathtaking frequency. The years 2010 to 2020 were dubbed the “doom decade” for good reason: the 2012 Olympic bombing, which killed 13,000, was followed closely by an earthquake in Indonesia killing 40,000, a tsunami that almost wiped out Nicaragua, and the onset of the West China Famine, caused by a once-in-a-millennium drought linked to climate change." This was a mere "example" used by the Rockefeller Foundation to illustrate what the near future "could" look like, and was meant to not be taken so literally. There's a couple of interesting facts, however: There really was a "bomb" situation at the 2012 Olympics. Nothing went off, but one of the speculations i ...

TO THE INQUIRING PUBLIC: I know that there are issues about me on how I conduct the training. Several doctors, Rope Rescue orgs, EMTs and the significant others are also questioning my protocols and procedures as to the run-down of the training. I just do hybrid programs on the technical and medical rescue operations. The things i learn employing the American, British, Australian, Japanese, Israeli, Indian, NZ, Canadian styles are all best and fitting in so many respects. I only adjusted some aspects of the program and funnel them into what is culturally amenable for the Filipino and the local communities. I let them fit into what is freindly to our physical configuration, logistical availability, disaster/hazard set up, terrain, and climate. I do not bring to the Filipino a Santa Clause when it is not part of the Southeast Asian culture, where reindeers are but wall decors and snow/winterland happen only in bedtime story. If you ask me of standards, I will only answer you which styles will adjust to th . ...

This Day In History~January 04 1948: Burma granted independence. On this day in 1948, the Southeast Asian nation of Burma (Myanmar) formally gained independence, completing the transfer of power negotiated by Burmese leader Aung San and British Prime Minister Clement Attlee in 1947. More events on this day 1965:American-English author T.S. Eliot died in London. 1935:American professional boxer Floyd Patterson was born in Waco, North Carolina. 1809:French educator Louis Braille, who developed a system of printing and writing that is extensively used by the blind and that was named for him, was born near Paris. {Encyclopædia Britannica}

I'm expecting indeces in Southeast Asian bourses to be mixed in today's trading. And, that's being hopeful. We could be seeing a lot of red on the boards today. S & P, Dow and NASDAQ sunk in the US while Europe's CAC and DAX slid. Only London's FTSE (both the 100 and the MIB) was in green territory. Investors have read the small print on the "fiscal cliff" agreement and do not like what they have read. The euphoria went out the door pretty quickly and that's going to be reflected in Asia's indeces when bourses open today. Already the S&P Asia 50 CME is in red, albeit, marginally (minus 0.06%) and MSCI asia apex 50 is in green but barely so (plus 0.02%). By the close yesterday, Australia's ASX had retreated 0.39% while Korea's KOSPI sunk 0.57%. The question, it seems, is not whether equities would retreat today but by how much.

Illegal drug trade India is located between two major illicit opium producing centres in Asia - the Golden Crescent comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran The Golden Triangle comprising Burma, Thailand and Laos. Because of such geographical location, India experiences large amount of drug trafficking through the borders. India is the world's largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical trade. But an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets. India is a transhipment point for heroin from Southwest Asian countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan and from Southeast Asian countries like Burma, Laos, and Thailand. Heroin is smuggled from Pakistan and Burma, with some quantities transhipped through Nepal. Most heroins shipped from India are destined for Europe. There have been reports of heroin smuggled from Mumbai to Nigeria for further export. In Maharashtra, Mumbai is an important centre for distribution of drug. The most commonly used drug in Mumbai is India ...

Iran’s first shipment of humanitarian aid was delivered to Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims in the state of Rakhine after weeks of delay due to the Southeast Asian country’s critical conditions, specially in border areas.

Brussels (Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN) - The territorial disputes between China and its Southeast Asian neighbors have reached the point of a "dangerous evolution," according to a member of the European Parliament.

Art Stage Singapore is proposing a sturdy stepping stone for the interaction of the global art sphere by taking this locality as a starting point for the art fair and a goal to widely introduce Southeast Asian contemporary art at the same time.

Well, there is next year, I'd rather you are thinking of spring travel, Do not you come to Cambodia in April? I say why . Events "Bisakabochia" April 28, will be held in front of Angkor Wat Buddha's Birthday. The Buddha's Birthday is April 28 Big event takes place every year in Cambodia, Southeast Asian countries gathered monks at Angkor Wat area! ! Morning of July 28 more than 2554 monks gathered from all over Cambodia Angkor Wat before and therefore, I received a donation from the people. Namdaemun Bayon temple in the afternoon - the vehicle will be closed to traffic, Ceremony is performed monks gathered around Bayon than 17 hours. In addition, there is a pattern (Bayon temple - Namdaemun), please pay attention to tourism as well as regulation of vehicle 29 Do you come to Cambodia beggar in saying that? In Cambodia, April 13, 14 and 15 days and I sleep walk around the town singing and dancing children dressed up in the New Year with this also April in Cambodia is the hottest season, it is easy to spend ...

Japan bank giant buys $743 mn stake in Vietnam lender: AFP Japan's biggest bank Mitsubishi UFJ on Thursday bought a 20 percent stake worth $743 million in state-owned VietinBank, the largest-ever foreign investment in Vietnam's banking sector. The deal aims to boost "support for Japanese companies operating in Vietnam", Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ president Nobuyuki Hirano said Thursday, and to tap Southeast Asian markets after seeing its profits tumble this year. The Japanese bank last month reported profit in the six months to September dived 58 percent year-on-year to $3.6 billion, due partly to declines in stock holdings. VietinBank, or Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade, said the majority of its shares will still be owned by the State Bank of Vietnam but it described the deal as "the largest ever M&A (mergers and acquisitions) transaction" in Vietnam's banking sector. After a decade of rapid and chaotic bank liberalisation, Vietnam now has 42 domestic banks. Many are overloa ...

India, ASEAN finalize FTA in services, Targeting an ambitious two-way commerce of USD 200 billion by 2022, India and the 10-member ASEAN finalized a free trade agreement in services and investments, a move which would give Indian professionals access to the 800 million Southeast Asian markets. India and ASEAN also elevated their dialogue partnership to a strategic level. Following implementation of FTA in goods last year, both the sides were engaged intensely to widen the base of the pact by including services, an area of key interest to India, and investments. At present, trade between India and ASEAN stands at $80 billion. As ASEAN investments into India have multiplied, ASEAN countries too have emerged as major destinations for Indian companies. From energy resources to farm products, from materials to machinery, and from electronics to information technology, Indian and ASEAN companies are forging new partnerships of trade and investment. The free trade pact after its implementation is expected to fa ...

In sorting through the minefield of “Asian” and “Oriental,” it’s useful to know that Oriental (Latin: oriens, “east, rising”) was originally used in contrast to Occidental (Latin: occidens, “west, setting”), indicating the movement of the sun in relation to the center of power. By the early 19th century it meant the Exotic Other of the Middle East, then the Exotic Other of East Asia. Today in the U.S., using the term “Oriental” is pejorative (“Asian” or the specific country of origin is preferred). Note that in British English, “Oriental” means East or Southeast Asian, and “Asian” means exclusively South Asian. All you writers: don’t ever use “little” in the same phrase as ANY of these terms.

Flashmob Shortly after 7 p.m. 200 people suddenly assemble on the mezzanine level of the Grand Hyatt Hotel next to Grand Central Station, in Manhattan, sit on the floor, then clear their throats loudly twice at intervals of 2 minutes. After exactly 4 minutes, they get up, disperse. Invoke a system that assigns terrorist scores to airline passengers; the system tracks what passengers eat and drink, their seat assignments, how often they go to the restroom to perform which function, how many smartphone calls they make and how many text messages they post when the aircraft lands at its destination. Passengers must not be apprised of their scores. Gas or otherwise poison your own humans and blame the Crusaders / Zionists / Jihadists. Taunt and abuse the deposed tyrant as he is being hanged; nonetheless he dies bravely. Purchase (at discount) enormous quantities of opium from an Southeast Asian country, sell it to organized crime in the inner cities of your own country, use the profits to buy munitions for a M ...

A senior Iranian legislator says a parliamentary delegation will visit Myanmar in early 2013 to study the situation of the ethnic Rohingya Muslims and violence against the minority in the Southeast Asian country.

India Tightens Links to China’s Rivals, Escalates Game of Thrones As the Game of Thrones intensifies in Asia, India and the Southeast Asian countries are banding together against China. Japan is thrilled, China annoyed, and the United States is hoping the tensions stay under control. India and the ASEAN nations vowed closer economic and security ties at a meeting on Indian soil yesterday. With leaders from Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, and China’s other rivals in ASEAN, Indian PM Manmohan Singh hailed a new free trade agreement and a more prominent role for India in South China Sea disputes as important milestones. Said Singh: “As maritime nations, India and the ASEAN should intensify their engagement for maritime security and safety, for freedom of navigation and for peaceful settlement of maritime disputes in accordance with international law.” As Reuters reports, China recently announced a plan to detain and search ships that “illegally” enter what Beijing considers Chinese territory ...

India to See Decline in Malaria Cases India, the country most affected by malaria in the Southeast Asian region, is projected to see a decrease of 50 percent to 75 per cent in malaria case incidence by 2015, a report by the World Health Organisation said.

What Is Guyabano (Soursop, Graviola) Scientific Name:Anona Muricata Linn. Common Names: guanábana (Spanish), graviola (Portuguese), Brazilian pawpaw, guyabano, corossolier, guanavana, toge-banreisi, durian benggala, nangka blanda, sirsak, and nangka londa, mullaatha, shul-ram-fal and hanuman fal. Guyabano tree, or soursop in English (Scientific Name : Anona muricata Linn.) is a small tree, usually about 5 to 7 meters high. Guyabano is a fruit bearing tree, broadleaf, flowering, and evergreen that is native to Central America, the Carribean and South America. Guyabano can be found in Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Peru, and Venezuela. Guyabano or Soursop are also native in sub-Saharan African countries. Guyabano or Soursop is adaptable to tropical climate and are currently cultivated for its fruit in most Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines. Guayabano fruit is a green, pear-shaped fruit covered with soft spines. Matured guyabano or soursop fruit weighs about 2 to 5 kilograms. ...

For our first dinner in Chiang Mai, Thailand, we chose a restaurant specializing in northern Thai cuisine and got to try our first Burmese curry. As a bonus, the place was overflowing with beautiful Southeast Asian antiques. If you find yourself in Chiang Mai, you should definitely add Huen Phen restaurant to your must-try list!

Living in Metro Manila cheaper than neighboring Asian cities Metro Manila remains a relatively cheap Southeast Asian urban center to live in, a new survey of expatriates showed. The Philippines' capital region placed 187th in a global ranking based on the latest Cost of Living survey by employer consultant ECA International. Related story: PH slides down in global tax ranking The study, which ECA said may help employers determine appropriate salary levels for expatriates, compares a standard basket of goods commonly purchased by expatriates in more than 400 locations worldwide. "Living costs for assignees are affected by inflation, availability of goods and exchange rates, all of which can have a significant impact on assignee remuneration packages," ECA said. Among the 49 Asian urban centers in the survey, Metro Manila kept its 2011 ranking as 32nd most expensive. Also read: PH eyes more Indian tourists Cost of living in the national capital was lower compared to the Southeast Asian cities of Jakarta,whi ...

Janine Mari in her swimwear during the Miss Universe 2012 Preliminary competition. It looks like the Philippines will continue its winning streak... it's gonna be a threepeat TOP 5 for this Southeast Asian beauty powerhouse!

The Philippine economy grew 7.1% last quarter -- the fastest growth in two years and the fastest pace in Asia next to China -- a strong sign that the Southeast Asian economy is building domestic-growth rather than relying on exports.

Some ESD Projects of different SEAMEO Centres: BIOTROP Collaboration with Karawang International Industrial City in a project wherein 3 hectares of the City's land were allotted for growing of agricultural products SEARCA Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Program Towards Food Security and Poverty Alleviation; offering grants to Southeast Asian national to pursue graduate studies in agriculture and natural sciences and contribute through their research SPAFA Umbrella Program: Managing the integration of culture to development programs; letting the youth deliver development-oriented messages through the arts SEAMOLEC Campus clean-up projects involving 42 partner universities; distance-learning training initiatives for teachers RECSAM Rainwater Harvesting and integrating its concept to Math and Science subjects SEAMEO SECRETARIAT 3-year Project: ESD Awards for SEAMEO-member countries

NQAPIA joined members of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA) at a meeting with key White House policy staff to discuss immigration and the Asian American, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.

India-China Map Row: India’s *** for-Tat China started issuing new passports depicting two areas along the 4,000-km border as part of China. One of the areas was Arunachal Pradesh while the other was Aksai Chin, a remote part of Jammu and Kashmir that Beijing had occupied after the 1962 war. Much to the consternation of Vietnam and the Philippines, the passport also shows shoals and archipelagos in the South China Sea that Beijing claims almost entirely, but which is contested and, in some areas, patrolled by a number of other Southeast Asian nations. The move was interpreted as yet another crude attempt by China to keep its neighbours on tenterhooks and aggressively display its hegemonistic designs. New Delhi felt that stamping visas to its holders could amount to endorsing China’s stand. India went in for a *** for-tat response, covering up the controversial map that appears as a watermark on the pages of the latest Chinese passports with a specially redesigned visa that displays India’s version o ...

Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival (Reel Asian) is Canada's largest pan-Asian film festival showcasing films and videos by East and Southeast Asian artists from Canada, US and around the world. This year Reel Asian celebrates its 16th year with 8 days of film screenings, industry panels,...

For his work as “a true industry pioneer,” for “transforming the Manila skyline with quality developments,” and for “drawing the global spotlight not only on the Philippines but also on the entire Southeast Asian region with notable brand collaborations,” Jose E.B. Antonio, founder and chairman of C...

Citing 'scheduling problems,' the proposed Philippine meeting this month among four Southeast Asian claimants to territories in the West Philippine Sea has been postponed, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Friday.

Finish dinner early and make sure you keep your remote control close! Tonight on Fox International Channels: The Southeast Asian premiere of Bench Universe 2012 with exclusive behind the scene footage, 9:00pm only on STAR WORLD! Mid-season finale of The Walking Dead 3 at 8:55pm exclusively on FOX! AFF Suzuki Cup, Philippine Azkals VS Singapore Lions on STAR SPORTS!

Was Iron Dome defense system actually built for Singapore? Paris-based online magazine reports that Singapore helped finance the Iron Dome anti-rocket system. By Yossi Melman | Mar.25, 2010 | 3:26 AM (Paris-based online magazine covering intelligence and security issues this week called Singapore one of the most important customers of Israel's defense industry, laying bare the active, though secret, relationship between Israel and Singapore that began more than 40 years ago - a statement that comes after years in which Israel censored all local articles on the subject. Intelligence Online, which is published in English on a bimonthly basis, states that the Southeast Asian island state helped finance the Iron Dome system designed by Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems to intercept short-range missiles and rockets, in exchange for which it is supposed to receive several Iron Dome systems to deploy on its territory. Even more interesting is the possibility the article raises that Iron Dome was designed ...

Where was Atlantis? Sundaland fits the bill, surely! by Dr. Sunil Prasannan Dr. Sunil Prasannan takes a brief time-out from his NMR spectroscopic studies to suggest a Southeast Asian location for Atlantis as described in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias. OK, so I'm an orthodox scientist, but don't let that bother you - I'm really an OK guy! As I have already explained on the Mysteries message board, I don't intend this to be an exhaustive essay, but as I have been asked for more detail, I will gladly provide it. Neither do I wish to pretend I am the first to hypothesise a Southeast Asian location for Atlantis [1]. In the first instance, I think it pertinent to remind readers of the passage in Graham Hancock's best-selling Fingerprints of the Gods, where a research assistant of his resigns over not being able to find a suitable candidate location for a lost civilization, given certain criteria that such a civilization would have needed to be viable. I will reproduce the passage, quoted in the resignat ...

WHAT'S ON IN SINGAPORE. Jersey Boys Date: Running until 17 February 2013 Venue: Grand Theatre, Marina Bay Sands Don’t miss the Southeast Asian debut of this famous musical about one of legendary 1960s band, Frankie Valley and the Four Seasons. The show comes to Singapore having won the Tony Award for best musical on Broadway, with classic songs like "Big Girls Don't Cry", "Can't Take My Eyes off You", "Dawn", "My Eyes Adored You" and many more. Christmas on Orchard Road Date: Running until 6 January 2013 Venue: Orchard Road Enjoy the festive season on Singapore's world famous Orchard Road. This year, the 2.2km stretch of shops and malls will once again be lit up in a spectacular festive display. Apart from the light display, there will also be a series of shopping promotions and street festivities to make your trip worthwhile. Fantastic Mr Fox Date: Running until 9 December Venue: Singapore Repertory Theatre Catch this witty adaptation of Roald Dahl’s popular classic at the Singapore Repertory Theatre ...

E-vehicle usage in Philippines slowly growing by Administrator Ronron Calunsod, Kyodo Posted at 10/21/2012 1:04 AM | Updated as of 10/21/2012 1:04 AM MANILA – The usage of electric vehicles in the Philippines has been growing since they were introduced in 2007, albeit slowly due to cost and the unavailability of key parts in the local market. Yvonne Castro of the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines is optimistic, however, there will be a boom in the industry because of support from the government and the growing consciousness about clean energy and climate change. After the introduction of e-jeepneys five years ago, e-tricycles began plying some streets of the capital Manila and some other cities. The country’s first e-bus was launched a few months ago and early this month traffic constables in Manila were equipped with e-scooters. According to Castro, the Philippines is leading among other Southeast Asian countries when it comes to actual usage of e-vehicles. “The government is now more ...

Road to Myanmar and beyond. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's announcement of an agreement between India, Myanmar and Thailand for setting a timeframe to complete the trilateral highway project, during his inaugural speech in the 10th India-Asean Summit at Phnom Penh in Cambodia, will have come as a boost for the Northeast. Reportedly, the Trilateral Highway Project Task Force, in its earlier meeting in New Delhi, had resolved to establish connectivity from Moreh in Manipur in India to Mae Sot in Thailand by 2016. Hence, if the timeframe holds good and teething problems such as the issue of transit visas by Myanmar are resolved, one will in a few years time be able to take a leisurely drive from Guwahati and elsewhere to Myanmar and beyond. The feasibility of forging land connectivity between the Northeast and Southeast Asian countries will be tested by the Asean-India car rally scheduled for later this year. The occasion will also witness the meeting of dignitaries from Southeast Asian nations, including m ...

New Delhi (Reuters) - India is stamping its own map on visas it issues to holders of new Chinese passports that contain a map depicting disputed territory within China's borders, the latest twist in tension in Asia over China's territorial claims. China's new microchip-equipped passports contain a map that marks its claims over disputed waters and also show as its territory two Himalayan regions that India also claims. The map means countries disputing the Chinese claims will have to stamp microchip-equipped passports of countless visitors, in effect acquiescing to the Chinese point of view. In response, India is issuing visas stamped with its own version of the borders, sources with knowledge of the dispute told Reuters. "The correct map of India is stamped on to visas being issued on such passports," said one of the sources, who declined to be identified. China's long-standing territorial disputes with Japan and Southeast Asian neighbours have grown heated in recent months. On Thursday, the Philippines ...

Azkals' 2012 Suzuki Cup campaign: All you need to know BY ICKO DE GUZMANPOSTED ON 11/23/2012 10:22 PM | UPDATED 11/24/2012 9:32 AMNo Comments 88BANGKOK, Thailand - After two years of preparation and countless training sessions and matches, the men’s Philippine football team embark on a new journey as they begin their AFF Suzuki Cup 2012 campaign Saturday, November 24.In the past, most Southeast Asian countries viewed their match against the Philippines as a foregone conclusion, marking the match as an automatic victory for their side even before kickoff.That all changed with the 2010 edition when the Philippines drew Singapore 1-1 before winning a memorable match against defending champions Vietnam 2-0 that paved the way to the rise of the sport.The Philippines then went on to qualify for the semi-finals for the first time in history, after a scoreless draw against Myanmar.Even though the Philippines bowed to Indonesia in the semi-finals, there was no turning back for the Philippines.Following the com . ...

Friday's Quiz Wandering around downtown Hanoi I come across a queue of people. Being British I immediately join the end and find myself in what I thought was the *** Chi Minh Museum. I am disappointed to discover that *** Chi Minh is the only exhibit, until informed by the locals that it is, in fact, a mausoleum, not a musueum. Uncle *** himself looks distinctly glassy and unreal, more like a waxwork. Consequently, there are all sorts of ideas that he is really still alive. After all his sidekick, Vo Nguyen Giap (pronouced Vo Nwin Zap, incidently), is still knocking around at the age of 102. This has given rise to speculation that *** along with Giap and Madaeme Tussard's are engaged in a secret conspiracy to foment revolution in the heart of Western imperialism. All of which neatly leads on to Friday's Quiz, which this week is a multiple choice teaser: Which of the following theories contains the most plausibility: *** Chi Minh is, currently: a) a part-time model for the Southeast Asian franchise of Kent ...

Comparison and analysis about the styles and qualities of two notorious Southeast Asian autocrats - Lee Kuan Yew and Mahathir Mohamad - are bound to be reignited with the release of two books published this year to coincide with the 25th anniversary of Singapore's infamous Operation Spectrum that saw 22 social activists, lawyers, journalists and church workers detained without trial in May 1987. One of the books 'Prelude to the Post-Lee Kuan Yew era' written by political exile Tan Wah Piow, who was thrown into jail for allegedly "masterminding a Marxist plot", will be launched on Saturday 24 November at the Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall in Kuala Lumpur. According to Wah Piow, "Many Malaysians do not see "the other side of the moon", and, especially the Chinese Malaysians such as those in the DAP thinks Lee Kuan Yew is the alternative". The former student leader, who was forced to flee to the United States, was referring to the Democratic Action Party - one of the three parties that form Malaysia's main . ...

The United States is warning that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' recently adopted human rights declaration does not meet international standards and could be misused by repressive governments in the region. Southeast Asian leaders on Sunday adopted the non-binding declaration with the a...

When U.S. President Barack Obama visits Myanmar, he will encounter a country undergoing one of the most dramatic - and positive - transitions in recent memory, but one which also now faces an unfolding crisis of deeply disturbing proportions. The flare-up of mass violence in the western region of Rakhine State, in part a by-product of the country's ongoing transformation, represents a backward step that hands the Southeast Asian nation's government and its opposition leaders their toughest challenge yet.

Thailand, other Southeast Asian nations and countries that have established a regional presence should take steps to kick-start development of the Dawei megaproject, says the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

As the show of unity among Southeast Asian leaders appeared to crumble over differences in the approach to South China Sea (West Philippine Sea) tensions, President Aquino pointedly asked the United States on Monday to be involved in the discussions, a move likely to anger China.

YANGON (Reuters) - It won't be mistaken for a Nixon-goes-to-China kind of moment. But President Barack Obama's visit to Myanmar on Monday sometimes felt like a return to an earlier era of presidential diplomacy - and his aides were determined to make sure that no one missed its historic significance. The trip was carefully choreographed to highlight what the White House sees as a first-term foreign policy success for a newly re-elected president whose record on the world stage shows few triumphs so far. There was the cautious first meeting with reformist President Thein Sein to keep him on track, landmark talks with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and a speech to the Burmese people at a university steeped in the country's turbulent political history. But there were also a few unscripted parts that underscored how strange it was for Obama to be feted by cheering crowds lining the streets of Yangon little more than a year after ordering aides to explore rapprochement with the long-shunned Southeast Asian ...

It's programs like Batibot and all the other Tagalized movies, cartoons and foreign telenovelas which are responsible for literally wiping out succeeding generations of good English speakers in the Philippines. I can understand the point of view of the networks (they say that their signals reach neighboring Southeast Asian countries making it unprofitable for them to offer channels thru cable service in those countries because the local already enjoyed the programs on free TV aired in English). It was programs like Sesame Street, G.I. Joe, Transformers, Macross, Care Bears, My Little Pony, Dragonball Z, M.A.S.K., The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, Sailor Moon, Daimos, Galaxy Express 999, Ranma 1/2, Smurfs, Looney Tunes, Gobots, Super Friends, Voltes V, Voltron, He-Man, She-Ra, Thundercats, English sitcoms, etc. that were responsible for making it easy for English to be our 2nd language. Heck, that's why I got a job in a BPO and doing home-based work. Make quality programs both in Filipino and English as well ...

Vietnamese in Hanoi protest against China's claim to disputed islands in the South China Sea (Reuters file) Southeast Asian leaders have decided to ask China to start formal talks "as soon as possible" on crafting a legally binding accord aimed at preventing an outbreak of violence in dispu...

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) adopted its controversial human rights declaration in Phnom Penh on Sunday, despite overwhelming criticisms by civil society groups. Marking the first day of the 21st ASEAN summit, leaders of the ten Southeast Asian member states ratified the document, which Human Rights Watch (HRW) has described as the “flawed result of a flawed process”. ASEAN chief Surin Pitsuwan told reporters on Sunday that members had agreed to include a new paragraph at the last minute committing signatories to universal human rights standards. “I think that is a major development and member states feel quite ready for this.” But Phil Robertson, Deputy Director of HRW’s Asia Division slammed the amendment as “political theatre”. “As members of the UN, all these governments were supposed to follow the Universal Declaration on Human Rights anyways,” he told DVB. “What we have here is an effort by ASEAN to try and deceive the international community to give them a ...

Diplomats say Southeast Asian leaders have decided to launch a human rights declaration despite last-minute calls for a postponement by critics, including Washington, who say the pact contains loopholes that can allow atrocities to continue.

Al Jazeera English shared the following link and had this to say about it: Southeast Asian leaders have begun annual talks in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh that will focus on bruising territorial rows, a controversial declaration on human rights and deadly ethnic unrest in Myanmar. regional leaders to discuss territorial...

"The newest "It's more fun in the Philippines" |DOT official AVP" Our ASEAN Community page doesn't own this video, the Department of Tourism of the Philippines owns this video, we only use this video to help promoting the Philippine tourism in our dynamic Southeast Asian region (ASEAN).

Renewing ties to Myanmar Cathy Shufro Burma was an up-and-coming democracy in 1954 when Johns Hopkins established its Rangoon-Hopkins Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Rangoon University. Burma had been independent from Britain for only six years, but it had already emerged as a leader in the Non-Aligned Movement, and Rangoon University’s medical school was perhaps the best in Southeast Asia. Founded by the newly established Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, the Rangoon-Hopkins Center was staffed by a professor and a handful of Johns Hopkins graduate students who taught English, ran a library, and did research. But the center only survived eight years. It closed in March 1962 when Gen. Ne Win seized power. That July, after Rangoon University students protested against the coup, the military dynamited the student union, killing as many as 100 students inside. Those explosions became the overture to five decades of violent military repression and isolation. And so the arrival of Johns ** ...

UN welcomes Myanmar’s move for Rohingya November 18, 2012 United Nations - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed Myanmar’s president pledge to consider new rights for the stateless Rohingya Muslims ahead of a landmark visit by President Barack Obama, but stopped short of a full commitment that citizenship and other new freedoms would be granted. In a letter sent to the UN chief on Friday, President Thein Sein made conciliatory remarks that condemned the “senseless violence” in western Rakhine State between Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims. Almost 200 people have died and more than 100,000 have been displaced since June in fighting between the two communities, an eruption of longstanding hatred that highlights the fragility of Myanmar’s transition toward democracy. Analysts noted that Thein Sein made no promises in his letter and offered no timeline for resolving the tensions, but it marked an overture to the international community and to Obama, who arrives Monday for the first vis ...

SIEM REAP, Cambodia, Nov. 16, 2012 – Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta met here today with his counterparts from 10 countries that are part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, during his first visit to Cambodia since taking office.

Mier leads riders in Cebu Challenge By Iste S. Leopoldo Friday, November 16, 2012 CEBU’s top junior cyclist John Mier of team LBC will lead some of the country’s highly-regarded cyclists in the Cebu Challenge tomorrow from Talisay City to the Municipality of Tuburan and back. It will be a one-day race, but will be packed with action as it will test the best of the best, divided into two stages. The day will open with an early morning race from Talisay to Tuburan via Balamban, which will cover 70 kilometers and will end with another 70K race from Tuburan back to Talisay. Mier, 20, recently joined the Tour of Brunei and took the 7th place in the juniors division. Mier said his experience was tough as he competed mostly against continental riders. “It was a good experience, especially competing against continental riders, which means the level of competition is really very high. Continental riders are very experienced and are exposed to a lot of big races and they are already close to qualifying for th ...