Indonesia Tourism Promotion Fiascos

Jack at Bali Discovery usually just presents the news with his free weekly newsletter, but sometimes he goes out on a limb and pencils an opinion piece that hits hard at tourism promotions that fall short, such as the ongoing fiasco of the Indonesian tourist office. I have followed their failings for over a decade, and have no hope they will ever change their ways, but we all need to keep some pressure on the Jakarta tourism officials who consistently find new ways to embarrass the nation and make a laughing stock of one of the world's most fascinating destinations. Way to go, Jack.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced last week that the slogan "Visit Indonesia 2008 – Celebrating 100 Years of Nation's Awakening" is going to be quickly revamped. No doubt, this decision is accompanied by no small amount of panic as airplane fuselages must repainted, letterheads reprinted, brochures reformatted and republished, and television adverts re-edited before January 1, 2008 when President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is scheduled to officially inaugurate the Visit Indonesia Year 2008 (VIY 2008) promotion.

Meanwhile, the international press, together with many members of Indonesia's tourism industry, are wondering how Indonesia managed to find itself in such an embarrassing and potentially expensive position.

The current imbroglio of "bad advertising copy" traces back to a decision to link VIY 2008 with the 100th anniversary of Boedi Oetomo - a movement deemed by the program's innovators as the start of Indonesia's "national awakening.".

While the sense of nationalism behind the current promotional program is laudable, the suggestion is that the creator's of the VIY 2008 tourism promotion logo may be ill-informed and inexpert on matters, both grammatical and historical.

Some Indonesian historians point out that Boedi Oetomo was, in fact, an elitist movement restricted to East Javanese and Madurese aristocrats dedicated to seeking personal parity in educational rights and privileges then enjoyed by Dutch colonialists. With Boedi Oetomo judged not to be nationalistic in its platform and goals, these same historians point to the founding of Syarikat Islam (1905) and the Sumpah Pemuda movement (1928) as points in history more appropriately signaling nationalistic aspirations for a future Indonesian Republic.

Against this background, quickly announced plans by Thamrin Bachri, the Director General of Marketing for Indonesian tourism to change the sloppy slogan to "Celebrating 100 years of national awakening" is wrought with danger in failing to address the historical debate surrounding linking "national awakening" and the year 1908.

There is No Easy Fix

No less than former head of the Indonesian Tourism Promotion Board and a retired official of Ministry Tourism and Telecommunication, Wuryastuti Sunario, told Balidiscovery.com: "the term 'national awakening' is also wrong, because in 1908, the Boedi Oetomo movement was aimed at fighting for equal education for ethnic Indonesians as given to Dutch citizens. At that time there was no concept as yet to create the Indonesian nation...It was only in 1928 with the 'Sumpah Pemuda' that Indonesians envisaged the birth of the Indonesian 'nation' through the Youth pledge: 'Satu Nusa, Satu Bangsa, Satu Bahasa' : One Country, one nation, one language'".

Given these historical and grammatical obstacles, it will be extremely problematical to "fix" the current VIY 2008 logo, also raising questions on how much of the Nation's precious tourism promotion budget will have to be spent to correct this error.

Perhaps the most effective solution offered to date is to consider losing the by-line completely and going solely with "Visit Indonesia Year 2008."

Ouch!

The current fiasco surrounding this poorly executed tourism marketing campaigns has drawn widespread criticism in the international and national media on how Indonesia promotes its tourism fortunes, including rebukes from the Financial Times (who broke the story), Associated Press, and International Herald Tribune.

Speaking to the Jakarta Press, Bachri defended the work of his team and advertising agency saying: "Our colleagues tried their best not to be reckless in creating the slogan, I'm sure. But we have been advised by several people to change the slogan."

Because the historical link between "national awakening" and the 1908 Boedi Oetomo movement is, at very best, tenuous and that little fanfare or ceremony accompanies the commemoration of the movement's founding; the linking of VIY 2008 to what is largely a little celebrated and largely not understood historical date is surprising.

Equally telling, an official brochure from the Ministry listing all the year-long events for Visit Indonesia Year 2008 - 100 Years of Nation's Awakening show no special event on May 20th, the anniversary of the Boedi Oetomo movements which supposedly provides the organizing theme for the VIY 2008.

TV Commercials Questioned

This latest faux pas in promoting national tourism has also given the press pause to question the wisdom of the country's tourism TV marketing. The Financial Times said: "The accompanying television adverts are equally incomprehensible. They feature young men jumping over a stone altar on the island of Nias, horsemen riding through an unidentifiable quarry and a Papuan tribesman paddling down a jungle river at night: activities that 99 per cent of tourists are unlikely to experience."

Does Indonesia Tourism Need a New Ad Agency?

These latest embarrassing chapters in tourism promotion comes on the heels of a series of full page display advertisements from the Ministry which have been placed in the international media that contained grammatical discrepancies and poorly conceived selling messages.

One ad carried an emotive message showing a picture of the earthquake-damaged Central Javanese Hindu temple of Prambanan, proclaiming a national commitment to "someday" rebuild the monument, no matter how many years it takes. That message prompted one foreign travel agent to quip: "Give me a call when you are once again open for business."

Another full page advert in the Australian edition of Time Magazine tried to persuade surfers to come to Indonesia, saying surfers will encounter "the same wave everywhere," cryptically tossing in the grammatically suspect non sequitur, "all the islands that have coastlines facing in those directions(sic) get waves."

A more recent full-page advertisements used the device of asking a rhetorical question, but somehow omitted the mandatory question mark.

All of which prompts us to rhetorically ask: "Are we being too finicky?

In the private sector such glaring mistakes in product presentation, branding and campaign execution would almost certainly result in the advertising agency being shown the door. Given the fact that public funds and the nation's reputation are at stake in the current instance, should the standards applied by Minister Wacik be any less rigorous?

The business of Indonesian tourism is too vitally important to the national economy to be left in the hands of bumblers and amateurs. Hopefully, Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik will exercise his mandate and get the national tourism marketing house quickly back in order.

Bali Discovery Link

Cheap Charlie's in Bangkok

Finally, a mention about one of the most popular expat cafes in Bangkok, to go along with all the bars and nightclubs I usually mention. Cheap Charlie's is a legend among locals but rarely grabs the limelight, but do note this place for your next visit to the Big Mango. You'll find other, um, interesting places on this small soi near the major nightlife centers of the city.

For the past few years, Sukhumvit Soi 11 has become a prime nightlife destination in Bangkok. Thanks to high-end clubs such as Bed Supperclub, Q Bar and the newbie Twisted Republic, the strip is a vibrant playground for big-spending clubbers and electronic music lovers. But hanging out in Soi 11 does not have to be pricey and frilly. About 100 metres from Sukhumvit Road there's Cheap Charlie's, a long-standing bar offering drinks at super-low prices in an easygoing atmosphere.

For nearly 25 years, Cheap Charlie's has been a watering hole for clubbers to warm up their alcoholic appetite for the long night. Some expats gather with their friends for a few drinks after work, and tourists just couldn't help but drop in for a few drinks after seeing the bar.

You would do the same if you saw how rustic and funky the "bar kiosk" is.

Cheap Charlie's is nothing more than a bar on the street, with a few stools lining the length of a wooden cart that serves as a bar, and a few tiny wooden tables close by. There's no air conditioning and no big stereo system. There're just a couple of wall fans to blow away heat and street fumes, and a dusty CD player and a small speaker softly sending out oldies rock 'n' roll music from the '60s and the '70s.

The charm no one can resist is the memorabilia and knickknacks and occupying almost every inch of the bar. There's a buffalo head, all sorts of animal miniatures made of wood, licence plates from pretty much all over the world, bamboo lamps, souvenirs, coins and banknotes of different currencies. One side of the bar is a "wall of fame", onto which guests are welcome to staple their business cards. Look close and you might see a card of someone you know.

It looks and feels like a friendly bar, but ladies without companions, especially Thai ladies in scanty, revealing outfits, are not here. There is a sign in Thai asking Thai ladies not to sit alone at this bar, and another one addressing male foreigners not to make out with Thai girls. Positively speaking, without a sense of being sexually discriminated, Cheap Charlie's is just trying to make clear that it is not a "pick-up joint", unlike many other bars in the area. Another good thing about this is that local female drinkers can go down there, in proper clothing of course, and have fun without being misinterpreted with a certain business agenda.

There's only one person in charge, 55-year-old Satit Bootkrajang is the owner and barman. The Saraburi native moved to Bangkok 25 years ago and opened this bar with his brother whose nickname is Charlie. When they started off, the bar was simple and there were a few knick-knacks. Travellers from around the world came to drink and gave the brothers souvenirs while Satit got some items by himself when he went upcountry. At the time it was mainly Charlie running the bar as Satit was working on and off in the Middle East. Charlie passed away 10 years ago and Satit has been running the bar by himself ever since.

Knick-knacks have piled up over the years, in contrast with the prices, which have been kept as low as possible. The simple selection of beers include Heineken, Tiger, Chang and Singha at Bt60 for a small bottle. Easy cocktails such as whisky and soda or coke or gin tonic are also Bt60. The most luxurious drink here is probably red and white wine, at Bt100 a glass. No snacks or food is served here.

Though it is just a shack by the street, Cheap Charlie's has a tiny toilet to accommodate the guests. Just don't go down there with an urgent bowel problem, as you can only pee there.

Cheap Charlie's
Sukhumvit Soi 11 (BTS: Nana)
Monday to Saturday, 7pm to 1am

The Nation

ESL Jobs in Thailand, Kuwait and Iraq

"Mekong Kurt" is a longtime resident of Asia with English teaching jobs in Korea, China and Thailand, where he works and publishes a weekly email newsletter with information on local happenings, especially at his beloved Washington Square in Bangkok. Last week he mentioned a pair of unusual English teaching jobs in exotic Kuwait and the Green Zone of Iraq, and offered some insider advice on the ESL life in the Big Mango.

Saturday I cruised around the Internet some exploring for teaching jobs that might actually be interesting, and came up with a few. Two of them I put on the BangkokAtoZ.com homepage; here's that message:

Jon Announcements for Qualified English Teachers: I don't normally run this sort of announcement, but due to the relatively high pay offered, I thought I would pass them along. I ran across both on the excellent Dave's ESL Cafe website. One is at a university in Kuwait, with starting pay of at least KD975-1,066 [about US$3,412.50-3,731.00) per month plus other benefits. The other pays substantially more, starting at a minimum of US$7,500.00 per month -- but it's in the Green Zone in Baghdad -- with other benefits.

My passing these links along in now way constitutes an endorsement of either employer, nor, in the case of the Baghdad posting, the recruiting agency, Cameron Halifax Associates, about whom I know nothing. I also have no way of knowing if the positions will be open when you decide to apply. I have no connection of any type with any of these folks. All that legal yada-yada said, here are the links:

Kuwait: http://www.eslcafe.com/joblist/index.cgi?read=16284

Baghdad: http://www.eslcafe.com/joblist/index.cgi?read=16290

In the case of U.S. citizens, a salary earned overseas is exempt from income taxes up to around US$80,000 -- not sure of the current amount. And last I knew, if an employee is required to live in specified housing, that, too, is exempt.

Teaching in Baghdad's Green Zone teaching sure sounds rather exciting. Among preferred qualifications are previous military experience and a secret clearance.

Guess part of the benefits is getting your own M-16 (with a bayonet, just in case???), maybe a couple of grenades, and a pistol! And the secret security clearance? -- well, the heavens know we have to keep English grammar rules secret, or at least incomprehensible to non-native speakers. (Come to think of it, I found in my teaching they're incomprehensible to a whole bunch of very intelligent native speakers!)

Ran across a few other interesting jobs as well, if only because of their locations: Central Asian republics that don't spring to mind, usually, exotic locations in places such as Africa, even an intriguing place in south-central Chile. Just think; if you're from well north of the equator, you could finally see the other half of the sky, a sort of Celestial Antipodes, as it were!

Perhaps the most interesting post I read about was for a major international ocean-cruise line teaching English, onboard, to crew members, for up to three months at a go.

The English language is exploding in popularity as more and more people decide, for whatever reason, it's a language they need to learn. As demand has grown, so has demand. But there are pitfalls.

I'm best familiar with the situation in this part of the world, so I'll talk about that.

Here in Thailand, salaries are problematic, at best, except for a lucky few. (Hens' teeth are positively abundant in comparison to the number of English teachers who hit the big time here.) Got a family? -- forget supporting them on a standard sort of teaching income here. Even in Bangkok, where the highest salaries are available, generally speaking, we're talking universities paying a total (salary plus housing allowance) of around 30,000 baht per month (about US$900).

Shady operators are another concern. I don't know how many stories I've read and heard (sometimes first-hand, in the case of hearing) about folks getting what seemed to be a reasonable offer, only to travel all the way from, say, Canada to South Korea then finding out the salary isn't really guaranteed, or that the housing isn't a one-bedroom apartment with Western furnishings but a shared studio with no real amenities and a cold-water restroom down the hall. Or some such. It's a good idea to ask for references from people who used to work there, and to go to the numerous online discussion forums where folks discuss their experiences.

Miscomprehension of costs is a common problem. I tried to guard against that when I left Macau to come here years ago, but even with assurances from my new employer, the Thai consulate in Hongkong, and a guy who worked at the U.S. consulate in Hongkong who had worked in Thailand, I flat walked down the primrose path, actually believing I could live better in Bangkok on a straight salary of 22,000 or so baht per month than I did in Macau with a package worth, all told, maybe 708 times that. (A fool was I.) I didn't know anyone who had lived here, and that was before the Internet took off in these parts, so I was limited in information sources.

Curiously, there are plenty of people who haven't been further than maybe the next county who believe it's an easy matter to hop on an airplane, fly to some remote destination which has a different culture, language, religion, etc. etc. etc. -- and fit right in with the hometown folks. No, it's not. Ideally, you'll have the opportunity to visit your potential destination, for long enough to get some sort of genuine impression. And if you're married, both of you will benefit from such an advance visit.

Closely related to the last paragraph is the phenomenon of citizens of the industrialized democracies going to a place that falls in another category thinking the legal system will be, in the important stuff, the same.

Well -- no.

I've cringed a number of times when a fellow Yank has made a scene at Immigration, loudly proclaiming (or, more often than not, screaming)) "I KNOW MY RIGHTS!!!" Well, Amigo, the Miranda warning applies in Podunk, Texas -- but not in Nakhon Nowhere, Thailand. And so on. (I mention my fellow countrymen because we seem to have a disproportionate number of folks willing to magically impose the U.S. legal system on a sovereign nation.) Fact is, if the government decides we ought to be gone, period, and don't come back -- then we're outta here, like it or not.

Of course, there are plenty of teachers who've made a veritable career out of globe-trotting, and no, I don't mean just low-end tourists who take jobs teaching conversational English in private language schools; several full-blown professors I've known and in some cases still know with highly respected academic credentials have done so. If anyone reading this is such a person, you know what I'm on about.

By all means, if you're a novice but have the bug -- go for it, but do try to look after your own best self-interest. If you have to have tacos for your sole diet, I don't suppose that somewhere like, say, the Russian Far East up by the Arctic Circle is likely to be a spot you need to consider going.

Bangkok A To Z by Mekong Kurt

Boxing Day Tsunami Remembered: Sri Lanka

Ceremonies have been taking place to mark the third anniversary of the devastating Asian Tsunami. More than 200,000 people in 13 countries died in the 26 December 2004 disaster, which was triggered by an undersea earthquake.

BBC Asia Pacific

Boxing Day Tsunami Remembered: Thailand

Public and private sectors held a tsunami remembrance ceremony to mark the third anniversary of the December 26 disaster that hit Thailand's six Andaman coastal provinces killing more than 5,000 persons three years ago today.

Phuket deputy governor Tri Akkaradecha presided at a ceremony marking the disaster and paid tribute to the victims of the giant tidal waves that hit the southern provinces on Boxing Day. The ceremony was held at Loma Park of Patong Beach, Kratu district and families of the victims and tourists attended the rite.

At Mai Khao Cemetery in Thalang district, where unidentified bodies are being kept, religious ceremonies – Buddhist, Christian and Muslim -- were held.

Thailand's six Andaman coastal provinces -- Phang-nga, Krabi, Phuket, Ranong, Trang and Satun -- were hit by the unprecedented tsunami of Dec 26, 2004, with over 5,000 local residents as well as Thai and foreign holidaymakers losing their lives in the tidal waves.

During the evening, a "Light Up Phuket" activity will be held to let the victims relatives and general public to join the candle-lit ceremony to pay tribute to the dead and other victims. Meanwhile, the ceremonies in Phang-nga were held in three locations in the morning: at the grounded police patrol vessel Tor 813 at Tambon Kikkak in Takua Pa district, in Ban Nam Khem Tsunami Memorial Park, and Bang Maruan Cemetery for the unidentified victims. Wednesday evening, religious services will take place at Chong Fah Beach, Bang Niang in Takua Pa district and Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya will preside.

Thai News Agency

Boxing Day Tsunami Remembered: Indonesia

Google News Tsunami Remembered

Xmas Greetings (Part Four)

Those serious minded dudes over at New Mandala don't spend all their time on political commentary, especially when it comes to the dancing duo of Thaksin and "Hog's Breath" Samak. With clowns like this running the country, what could possibly go wrong?

New Mandala

Samak Sundaravej Profile

"Pig Nose" Samak won't win any prizes for good looks, pleasing personality, or a tactical disposition, but as leader of the Thai Rak Thai pseudo party (People's Power Party), he convinced the rural poor in Issan and the North that he was their man to provide damn near everything for free, ala Thaksin: free medical, free community grants, debt forgiveness, a free buffalo for every farmer, etc. etc. etc.

It worked and he's probably going to be the next despised, arrogant, demanding, isolated, pig-headed sycophant to continue to screw the Thai people and the Thai nation. Thaksin is expected back in Bangkok next month, but it seems unlikely that he will take back his old job unless he can work out a compromise with Samak, the military and the royal family. But then, this is Thailand, so who knows?

Bangkok - Samak Surndaravej, who is likely to become Thailand's next prime minister, is a politician with a colourful past and a history of changing principles.

Samak's People Power Party (PPP) won the most seats in Thailand's parliamentary election Sunday, making him the likeliest candidate to become the country's 25th premier.

During an October 6, 1976, military-led crackdown on students in Bangkok, Samak played a key role in stirring up a ring-wing frenzy against a purported communist plot to seize power that resulted in the massacre of hundreds of Thais and the return of military rule.

In the aftermath of the March 1992 general election, Samak and his Thai Citizens Party threw their support behind the appointment of General Suchinda Kraprayoon, the leader of a 1991 coup, as prime minister.

Samak's recent transformation into a champion of democracy and staunch enemy of coups has understandably been greeted with some scepticism. When confronted with his pro-military past in a recent television interview, Samak said, 'Principles can change with the situation. That was then, this is now.'

Samak is also well-known for his combative communication style, especially with the press. In a notorious recent interview with the local press, Samak - when persistently pestered by one reporter on a sensitive political issue - countered, 'Did you have sinful sex last night?' leaving the roomful of journalists dumbfounded.

A bigger threat to his political credibility as a national leader is several pending corruption scandals, including an agreement to buy a fleet of unusually expensive firefighting trucks from an Austrian company when Samak was Bangkok governor from 2000 to 2004. The purchase is still under investigation, and Samak's case is pending.

'The mobsters are back,' Kraisak Choonhavan, a rival politician in the Democrat Party, said of Samak's pending premiership. 'The next government is going to have an image problem, but the Thai people have asked for it.'

Political observers opined that the electoral victory of the PPP had a lot more to do with its promise to fight for the safe return of Thaksin to Thailand than with the popularity of Samak.

After his stint as Bangkok governor, Samak had seemingly retired from politics and was devoting much of his time to hosting a popular television cooking show and taking care of his cats.

When popular opinion turned against Thaksin in 2006, Samak became a vocal defender of the embattled prime minister. His loyalty to Thaksin reportedly earned Samak the PPP leadership. During his campaigning for Sunday's election, Samak had no qualms about calling himself a Thaksin 'nominee.'

Monsters and Critics

And more Samak background from a Time article last week:

How can Samak, voted the most hated civilian in a newspaper poll after Black May, retain such solid support? Chris Baker, co-author of Thaksin: The Business of Politics, says Samak is a hit among lower-middle-class citizens — they admire his strong persona and see him as someone who gets things done. Small shopkeepers, taxi drivers and day laborers love tuning in to Samak's television and radio political talk shows — and his immensely popular cooking programs — to hear him sound off and bash others. "He's entertainment," Baker says.

Time on Samak

Here's what Samak had to say to a reporter who bugged him too much during a news conference in November 2007:

Samak hits back below the belt

People Power Party leader Samak Sundaravej skirted around an embarrassing query on Thursday by asking right back with a naughtier question.

"Who did you fornicate with last night?" Samak asked a female reporter from Nation News Agency, an affiliate of The Nation.

Samak appeared to have lost control after he was asked to comment on his party's infighting between two powerful factions led by Sudarat Keyuraphan and Newin Chidchob. The two factions reportedly disagreed over the naming of two partylist candidates vying for proportionate votes in Bangkok.

Samak threatened to come up with indecent rejoinders for every question he saw as aiming to subvert his party, saying it was his way of refusing to comment.

The Nation

Somebody needs to seriously update and expand the Wikipedia entry for Samak since we're probably going to have to deal with this character for quite a while.

Wikipedia on Samak

Xmas Greetings (Part Three)

More Xmas cheer with Santa images to make your day, and Xmas dancing elves with Evil Santa, Anna Nicole and Pamela.

FriskoDude Xmas Elf Dance with Evil Santa, Anna Nicole and Pamela

Xmas Greetings (Part Two)

More cute Xmas images to get you in the mood for the holidays season, plus a classic clip below of the final scenes in the Rob Zombie landmark flick The Devil's Rejects. Very Christmasy and sure to get your fired up for that upcoming visit with all your relatives.

YouTube - The Devil's Rejects Final Scene plus "Free Bird" Soundtrack

Xmas Greetings (Part One)

Getting in the holiday mood is easier with some wonderful Xmas cards, with thanks for Jack in Bali and Madame Chiang in Bangkok. And do click the YouTube link below for an hilarious, short clip. More to come...

Merry Christmas on YouTube

Stickman's Best and Worst for 2007

Stickman in Bangkok may have retired over a year ago, but his popular weekly column continues under Stick Mark, who may or may not be another incarnation of the original Stickman. Mark today provides his winners and losers for 2007, plus the weekly comments from readers and a handful of links and the advice column.

2007's Winners

Pattaya Whether the location of the new airport has anything to do with Pattaya's revival, I don't know, but more and more Bangkok die-hards are making the 2-hour journey to the seaside city of sin to enjoy their weekends to the fullest. Pattaya needs no introduction and to say it has got better wouldn't really be accurate. With the debacle at some of Bangkok's bar areas killing the fun factor, Pattaya has affirmed itself as the choice not just for the serious monger, but those who just want a good old-fashioned boys' night out. Pattaya is Pattaya and so long as it does not try too hard to be anything else, it'll do just fine.

Soi Cowboy Soi Cowboy has been the main beneficiary of Nana Plaza's demise to become Bangkok's preferred bar area for many locals. It might not have the sheer number of girls and no Cowboy bar could compete with Rainbow 1 or Rainbow 4 for number of pretty girls, but Cowboy makes up for it in other ways. Friendly girls, a fun atmosphere and generally cheaper prices have not gone unnoticed. Most Cowboy bars have had a very good 2007.

2007's Losers

Nana Plaza The column of 28 October said it all. Nana Plaza is on the way down and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Bar owners may claim that business is good but it's not what our eyes are telling is. A handful of bars do very well, but the rest are hurting. Increased prices, forced early closures, vacant premises, no showing, questionable policies by many bar owners resulting in bad attitudes from the girls, a Mafioso atmosphere (those tough looking Thai guys loitering in the shadows around Nana would love the chance to rearrange your features) have all contributed to Nana's demise.

The Tourist Police Many feel a certain comfort in knowing that there is a section of the police whose responsibility it is to help foreigners. We are told that if a foreign tourist has a problem the tourist police are there to assist, to communicate in English and to liaise with the "regular" police. The reality is that the tourist police nationwide are getting a dreadful reputation. Phone calls to the tourist police go unanswered, and even if they are answered, it is often by a non-English speaker who hangs up as soon as things get difficult. In Bangkok and Pattaya I have received countless reports of the tourist police providing virtually no assistance at all. To make matters even worse, despite receiving complaints on a daily basis they do nothing about the ongoing scams, like the gem scam, where many crooks are into their third decade of profiting from the sale of fake gems. It remains that if you get into trouble in Thailand - even as a victim - you're very much on your own.

Stickman Bangkok

Thailand Elections 2007 Update

Bangkok Pundit Live Blogging the Thai Election 2007
PPP will be disappointed by their performance in Bangkok, but will be pleased by their performance in the Central Region and their dominance in the Northeast. The Democrats will be pleased by their performance in Bangkok and on the party vote. All the other parties will be disappointed. I think the PPP's poor performance in Bangkok is a problem for both Chalerm and Samak as they were expected to increase the PPP vote. Polls suggested they would too. While the votes were quite close in many constituencies, a loss is a loss.

Actually, Samak sounds quite articulate in English. A Samak-hater has passed on a message to me that the are surprised as to who good Samak sounds when talking in English.

The Dems see the writing on the wall on their chances of being in government, but I don't think they should be too disappointed as they have done much better than expected. They could even top PPP on the party vote. After 2005, PPP didn't form a coalition government. This timed they are forced to, but it might help them anyway.

The Farang Speaks 2 Much
Election time. Vote now - vote often. Also, don’t drink and vote. However - this is not the important news of the day. What is really important right now is sorting out if McDonald’s has really ceased their recently kicked off breakfast menu. Yes. Only 4 months ago we broke the lead that McDonald’s was beginning to serve a limited but real breakfast menu. Not the Big Breakfast. Not the coveted Bacon, Egg and Cheese Biscuit but at least a proper Sausage McMuffin with Egg. A tasty morsel that when timed with the onset of a proper hangover can help make life here in Thailand just a little more perfect than it already is. I can’t confirm if the destruction is citywide but based on early morning spot checks it seems that coupled with the ushering in of democracy, Thailand has bid farewell to breakfast the Golden Arches way.

Jotman on the Elections and the Rural Poor
The names of the two most powerful and popular figures in Thailand will not be on the ballots today. Yet the outcome of the election will largely be determined by the one segment of the population which is most loyal to both these men.

Although it could well be argued that the popularity of HM the King is incomparably vaster, the core constituencies of the deposed prime minister and the reigning sovereign overlap considerably.

I'm talking about the rural poor.*

The two most powerful men in Thailand approach this group -- which comprises the vast majority of the Thai population -- very differently; their respective visions for rural Thailand differ immensely.

The first vision, espoused by Thai royalists, is the notion of the happy peasantry -- uncorrupted by global consumerist culture, absolutely loyal to the monarchy which protects them. This view of the Thai countryside is captured by the term "Sufficiency Economy." It's a philosophy espoused by HM the King. The path to this ends is sometimes referred to as "Thai-style democracy."

The second vision, that of the deposed populist Prime Minister, views Thailand's poor as future consumers and entrepreneurs. It sees them as members of a rudimentary welfare state which extends to them low-interest loans and medical insurance.

The basic question of Thailand today, underlying the coup -- underlying today's election -- is whether poor rural voters are full and equal participants in government. Shortly after the 2006 coup, University of Michigan historian Thongchai Winichakul wrote:

New Mandala on Samak's Political Amnesty via The Manager
One hundred and eleven ex-executives of the dissolved Thai Rak Thai party will be granted amnesty Samak Sundaravej announced two and a half an hour after the election votes have been counted. Samak told CNN that he plans to grant amnesty to the executive members of the TRT party and allow the ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to fight against the lawsuit in Thailand.

When asked why his People Power party earnt fewer votes in Bangkok, Samak refused to answer. He pointed out that according to the poll, his party acquires majority vote from all over the country. ‘The voters are confident in the capability of the ex-PM former staffs to help recover the economic downfall,’ said Samak. He also added that the military will accept the election result and denied the rumours of another coup if the PPP party wins the election.

Samak refused to give any details about the parties to join the coalition government saying that the discussion will be pursued after the formal announcement of the election result.

Red and White at Real Life Thailand on the Samak Victory
"You smack me and I'll smack you back"
To corruption investigators

"Did you have sinful sex last night?"
In the holy language of Sanskrit, to a journalist

After the Thammasat Massacre of 1976, Samak happily ordered the banning of some 200 plus books that were a ....yep, you guessed it......."threat to national security".

One of his close aides in the party is Chalerm Yoobamrung.

The thoughts of Anek Laothamatas ring loudly in my ears. I find it hard to keep hope, but it is the rape of democracy that got us here in the first place.Now the people have given the biggest possible middle finger to the military and their aides (hidden or not) , but in doing so, have given the military a perfect incentive for another ku. they have elected the most arrogant, incompetent and "allegedly" corrupt proxy possible. Thaksin without any of the intelligence.

So Thailand faces four years under this man - as well as Thaksin getting away scot free for his crimes and being welcomed back as a hero - or the army and other forces (who cannot be named despite their role in this farce) wait for the PPP to show their corruptness and incompetence and then stage another coup to take us back to stage one.

Is there any way out? Only if a coalition is formed between ALL the opposition parties.

Thailand Election 2007

Here's the latest news and links on the Thailand elections, December 23, 2007.

The Nation Election Report
Refresh often for current results.

Bangkok Post Election Special
Both current and past articles about the election.

2Bangkok Election Special
Updates, links and plenty of colorful campaign posters.

New Mandala Live Coverage
New Mandala’s live coverage of Thailand’s 2007 general election began at 6 pm (Canberra time) on Sunday, 23 December. We are providing:

Latest count: Up-to-date information on results as they come to hand. Analysis: New Mandala commentary on the election and its implications. Throughout the night we will be discussing the implications of the results for the country. Do check back from time-to-time as new analysis is posted.
Local views: Reports from throughout Thailand from our team. Resources: A selection of important and useful information on Thailand’s election, including key party and official resources. Oddspot: Funny, off-the-wall and just plain out there…

New York Times
A political party that supports former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra appeared headed for a victory Sunday over a party backed by the military junta that ousted him in a coup 15 months ago, exit polls showed.

Two independent polls showed the People Power Party ahead by a wide margin in a strong repudiation of the generals, who had worked hard to discredit Mr. Thaksin and to neutralize his supporters.

The strong result means that Mr. Thaksin and his supporters will remain a force in Thai politics whether or not they form a government and ensures that a struggle for power will continue in this deeply divided country.

A Dusit Poll for Suan Dusit University forecast an absolute majority win for the People Power Party of 256 seats, followed by 162 for the Democrat Party in the 480-seat parliament. Assumption University's Abac poll showed a large plurality for the People Power Party of 202 seats, with the Democrat Party winning 146 seats.

The Dusit poll surveyed 341,000 voters and had a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points. The Abac poll surveyed 500,000 voters and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.

"This is a crucial election because it will determine whether Thaksin will come back or not," said Kavi Chongkittavorn, a political commentator at the daily newspaper The Nation.

The People Power Party said during the campaign that it would bring Thaksin back from his self-exile in London, where he is believed to have remained politically active behind the scenes.

BBC Asia Pacific News
The party allied to Thailand's ousted PM Thaksin Shinawatra has won the general election, initial results from the Election Commission show.
Samak Sundaravej's People Power Party (PPP) won 228 seats in the 480-seat house, short of the 241 needed for an absolute majority.

The election is the first since the 2006 coup that overthrew Mr Thaksin.

Correspondents say the result is a big setback for the military, which has tried to curb Mr Thaksin's influence. The Election Commission said about 93% of votes had been counted and the situation would now not change greatly.

The PPP's main rival, the Democrat Party, is set to win 166 seats and Chart Thai 39.

Mr Samak, 72, claimed victory, saying: "I will be the next prime minister for sure." He added: "I invite all the parties to join our government."

The leader of the PPP's main rival, the Democrats, Abhisit Vejjajiva, said the election had been a "close race". "If the PPP succeeds in forming a coalition, the Democrat Party is ready to become the opposition. If the PPP fails, then the Democrat Party is ready to form its own coalition," he said.

Mr Samak said he had spoken to Mr Thaksin, who is in Hong Kong, by telephone. "Thaksin said 'congratulations'," Mr Samak said.

International Herald Tribune
A party that backed the former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, won a parliamentary election Sunday, defeating a party backed by the generals who ousted him in a coup 15 months ago.

The result was a strong repudiation of the generals, who had worked hard to discredit Thaksin and to neutralize his supporters. But the shape of the next government remained in question.

With 93 percent of the votes counted, the pro-Thaksin People Power Party had won 228 seats in the 480-seat Parliament, fewer than a majority but enough to try to form a coalition government.

The second-place Democrat Party had won 166 seats.

The strong showing means that Thaksin and his supporters will remain a force in Thai politics whether or not they form a government and ensures that a struggle for power will continue in this deeply divided country.

The military and the political establishment oppose the pro-Thaksin party, known by its initials as the PPP, and other parties might come under intense pressure not to join it in a coalition.

"It's quite clear that PPP in the next few days will try to form a government," said Panitan Wattanayagorn, a political analyst at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. "But their legitimacy will be challenged by the Democrats and other parties."

The PPP leader, Samak Sundaravej, said that he had received congratulations by telephone from Thaksin and that he had already approached some smaller parties to discuss forming a coalition government.

One message of the vote, he said, was that if anyone was thinking of staging another coup, "Please think carefully."

The leader of the Democrat Party, Abhisit Vejjajiva, conceded defeat and said, "Now its the duty of the leaders of the PPP to invite other parties to form a government. And its the right of other party leaders to make a decision on what is the best for the country."

He added: "If the PPP is unable to form a government, the Democrat Party is ready to take the lead and form a government."

However, analysts said the win was not as overwhelming as it at first appeared. The Democrat Party appeared to have won in the most crucial area, the capital, Bangkok, they said. And the vote was close on separate slates of candidates listed by their party affiliations.

"This is a crucial election because it will determine whether Thaksin will come back or not," said Kavi Chongkittavorn, a political commentator at the daily newspaper The Nation.

Bangkok Post
The Palang Prachachon (People Power) party loyal to Thaksin Shinawatra won Sunday's election, but appeared to fall just short of a clear parliamentary majority. "I will be the next premier for sure," said PPP leader Samak Sundaravej.

"The coup is dead," Samak told a press conference after unofficial results showed his party had won at least 230 of the 480 contested seats at Sunday's polls.

Samak, 72, is likely to become Thailand's 25th prime minister. "Now the people have had their say. The numbers that came out are an answer to those people," meaning the military.

The PPP has taken 220 of the 400 seats in constituency voting, and has won 35 of the 80 party-list seats. If those results are confirmed in official vote-counting Sunday night and Monday, the People Power party would easily capture more than the 241 seats needed to form a government itself - with no need of a coalition.

Observers cautioned there are several roadblocks ahead, even after final vote-counting is confirmed. For one thing, there are dozens of challenges alleging vote fraud, many against PPP candidates.

It must be stressed the results are unofficial, and based on a combination of exit polls and early vote results trickling in as reported by news media at polling stations. Although Bangkok media agreed that early counting gave the PPP an outright majority, pollsters who conducted exit polls after the Sunday voting showed slight but important differences.

China View (Xinhuanet)
Thailand's People Power Party (PPP) leader Samak Sundaravej said on Sunday night that his party has already become the biggest party in Parliament according to the early voting result of Sunday's general election, and he will be the new prime minister absolutely.

At a press conference in PPP's headquarters, Samak said the initial vote counting result so far showed that the PPP has won 230 of the total 480 parliament seats and the final result is unlikely to be far from it.

"PPP is the biggest party in parliament. We are ready to invite other parties that we could cooperate to form a new government," said the political veteran. When asked if he will become the next prime minister, Samak reaffirmed that nobody else could take the premiership except him since his party has won nearly half of the parliament seats.

Voice of America News
Voters in Thailand cast ballots Sunday for the first time since the coup last year that deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Exit polls show the former leader's supporters are headed for a victory, something analysts say could plunge the country into a new political crisis. VOA's Luis Ramirez reports from Bangkok.

Thaksin Shinawatra watched the poll results from afar in Hong Kong, but his presence was felt here as voters cast ballots for prime minister and members of the new 480-seat parliament on Sunday.

The election pitted the two major parties against each other - the longstanding Democrat Party, implicitly backed by the military, versus the People Power Party, dominated by supporters of Mr. Thaksin. Some of his faithful have called for his return and want him exonerated of the corruption charges he faces.

Thai Rath
Thailand's leading Thai language newspaper.

Thai Tourism Governor Corruption Charges

Juthamas Siriwan may have siphoned off some $2M in bribes, but you must admit the girl's got balls of steel to make these recent statements after her Hollywood partners were indicted by the FBI.

Siriwan held a press conference Wednesday in Bangkok to face down the accusations.

"I have made an inquiry into the company in L.A. and was informed that the issue of bribery was raised by staff who were fired from the firm, so I believe this is an internal conflict of the company," she said.

"This is not directly involved with Thailand, and I'm not worried since it is only an accusation and the investigation is still under way. But if the US agency finds me being guilty I will counter-sue them since it's a case of mud-slinging and a groundless accusation".

Asked whether the scandal will have a negative impact on her newly launched political career, Siriwan said: "I don't think so, because it was something that happened many years ago and it was about internal conflicts between the company and staff who were fired. It has nothing to do with my running for parliament''.

The TAT has now set up a committee to look into the scandal. The Foreign Ministry has also been informed of the FBI allegation and said it will coordinate with the investigation.

Variety Asia Online

Charles Sobhraj: Asia's Most Notorious Mass Murderer

Asia's most notorious mass murderer is Indian-Vietnamese Charles Sobhraj who, back in the 1960s and 70s, carved out his reputation in Thailand, Vietnam, India and Nepal, where he remains in prison and has once again been denied release. If you have an affinity for Charles Manson and the flick "The Devil's Rejects," then you will love the true-life gripping novel about his wicked ways, Serpentine, by the late Thomas Thompson. A real classic.

Charles Sobhraj, convicted of murdering an American woman here in 1975, on Wednesday failed to get any reprieve from Nepal's Supreme Court which ruled that the status quo will be maintained in the matter and ordered reopening of another fake passport case against him.

Also known as "serpent" for his skills of deception and evasion, 63-year-old Sobhraj had filed an appeal in the apex court against the life sentence given to him by the Kathmandu district court over the murder of American backpacker Connie Bronzich. He is suspected to have killed at least 12 travellers in India, Thailand and Nepal in 1970s.

A two-member Supreme Court bench decided to maintain the status quo in the Connie Bronzich murder case. It also ordered reopening of a fake passport case against the notorious criminal, which was earlier dismissed.

It said both the cases will be heard simultaneously. Sobhraj, a half-Vietnamese and half-Indian, is a French national. He was arrested from Casino Royale in Kathmandu in August 2003.

Earlier Sobhraj, an international fugitive, had sent a written statement to the Nepal Supreme Court claiming that his conviction by the district court was based on false news reports and documents without any eyewitness account being produced by the prosecution.

Times of India Link

Google Search "Charles Sobhraj"

The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia

Alfred McCoy in Laos 1971

The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia by Alfred McCoy may not be the lightest reading in the world, but if you're interested in the history of heroin smuggling and the role of the Golden Triangle and Khun Sa, then this is your book. The entire book has been posted online in the event you can't find a copy at your local bookstore.

Drugtext.org Link

Visit Indonesia 2008 Slogan: Bad Engrish

Tourism Indonesia has once again messed up their use of the English language, although this isn't much of a surprise to those expats who follow mangled English in the archipelago. Is it a lack of money to hire qualified English editors, or do the big poohbahs who run the tourist office just assume they have a perfect command of the language? Whatever their excuse, they really should swallow their pride and have professionals go over their copy before they make fools of themselves.

Indonesia's latest campaign to lure tourists got off to a rocky start after embarrassed officials acknowledged that a key slogan was ungrammatical and ordered it corrected.

"Visit Indonesia 2008. Celebrating 100 Years of Nation's Awakening" has been printed on billboards, government Web sites and emblazoned on the sides of aircraft belonging to the national carrier, Garuda.

To be grammatical, the phrase "Nation's Awakening" should be made specific, for example by preceding it with the definite article 'the' or the possessive pronoun 'our.' Another option would be to replace "nation" with the adjective "national."

"Our colleagues tried their best not to be reckless in creating the slogan, I'm sure," said Thamrin Bachri, director general for marketing at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. "But we have been advised by several people to change the slogan."

The 1908 event referred to in the campaign is the founding of Indonesia's first nationalist group, a development hailed here as a key step in the country's eventual independence from Dutch rule in 1945.

Many people have questioned the wisdom of referring to the anniversary at all, given that few people outside the country have ever heard of it and would unlikely be interested in attending events to mark it.

"Just delete the subtitle, tourists won't understand it anyway. Even Indonesians don't understand it," said a comment posted on one unofficial local tourism Web site.

Washington Post Link

A few more points were made in a recent article in the Jakarta Post:

The tag line, which previously said "celebrating 100 years of nation's awakening", was criticized as "grammatically incorrect" and "incomprehensible" by John Aglionby in his article Catchy slogan, published on Dec. 18 in The Financial Times.

"We made the decision way before the article was published," Thamrin said, "so that's not the reason behind the change".

Benjamin J. Otto, 33, an American who has been in Indonesia for a year, said the Visit Indonesia Year 2008 slogan was difficult to relate to. "I don't know how many people would visit a country just because it has been awake for 100 years," he said.

Referring to his experiences in Indonesia and interactions with its people, he said the slogan narrowed the experience of "tolerance and acceptance" of Indonesia into a "non descriptive phrase". "Many Americans have no idea what Indonesia is. So I think highlighting the social dimensions of Indonesia's diversity would attract more people," Otto said. He said the slogan seemed to be directed more toward the citizens of Indonesia than tourists, "except, of course, those who are history buffs".

Ministry of Culture and Tourism Link

Coyote Girls in Thailand

Many years ago, Thai politicians would buy votes with a simple 100 baht note, but recently a bit of creativity has entered the picture with the news that elderly voters were being bribed with viagra. The latest twist is attracting voters to otherwise dull political rallies with scantily clad go-go dancers known locally as "coyote girls" after the famous Hollywood flick. Actually, dancing girls are very common everywhere in Thailand and seem to bring few objections from both potential voters and the local expat community. Ah, Thailand.

Scantily clad dancers were hired to spice up a political rally ahead of Thailand's weekend general election, prompting the Election Commission to declare Wednesday that "sexy shows" are inappropriate campaign events.

Five dancers dressed in bikini tops, hot pants and stilettos gyrated on a stage, as loud music blared between speakers.

The rally in Ratchaburi province, 80 kilometers (50 miles) west of the capital, Bangkok, was organized by a provincial branch of the Election Commission on Tuesday evening. Local candidates from all political parties were invited to speak.

"We wanted something exciting to draw people to the event," said Chavalit Bunyeun, head of the commission's provincial office, which organized the event. He noted that the plan didn't really work: "Even though we had dancing girls, there were less than 100 people who came to hear the candidates."

Election laws prohibit political parties from offering entertainment at rallies, but Chavalit said he didn't think the law applied to events organized by the Election Commission itself.

International Herald Tribune Link

Moon Handbooks Collectibles

While there's almost nothing as sad as an outdated travel guidebook, if you're interested in what I've written over the years, and don't want to spend a ton of cash, you might pick up one of these classic tones at close-out prices from Amazon. Damn cheap, and shipping per book within the U.S. is about three bucks. Then dodge the crackheads and dealers and drop by my place in the Tenderloin for an autograph.

Amazon Link to the Classic Guidebooks by Carl Parkes

Not the Nation Satire

The Onion comes to Thailand with the arrival of the brilliantly satirical website Not the Nation, rumored to be penned by disgruntled former editors at The Nation. Do read the posts about Thai election posters being spotted from space, and the rumor that Samak plans to double the national income by killing off half the population. And Steven Segal recently spotted in Bangkok.

ADDICTION Are you an alcoholic? Me too. Normally I can be found at Molly Malone's from 11am to 5pm, Cheap Charlies at 6pm and Nana Plaza to close. Ask the bartenders for Tony.

HELP WANTED Deputy Finance Minister, full time. Must be able to depreciate baht without sinking SET. No previous political office held 2000-06. No financial office held 1995-97. Contact Surayud.

FOR SALE Water buffalo. 7 years-old. Always sick, never work, always need operation. Never work hard enough. Work no good.5,000B or best offer. Call mother of Nok, 96 Moo 3, Buri Ram.

Not the Nation

Thailand's Failed Health Care System

While chieftains at the meteorological agency worry about Typhoon Durian, and Thai officials keep foreign tourists out of bars during Thai elections, the Thai health care system remains in a deplorable condition, among the worst in the world, as pointed out today in a Bangkok Post editorial.

I was seriously ill the other week. Not because of some virus, but because I realised that I, and probably millions of others like me, have been fed a terrible diet of junk information about our healthcare system. For so many years I had been comfortable in the knowledge that Thailand's health system, for all its shortcomings, was still one of the world's better ones. Then I read a series of full-page information ads citing data from the United Nations World Health Organisation showing that, in fact, our country is ranked behind countries like Cambodia, Mongolia, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka in the percentage of its GDP being spent on healthcare. And that we had fewer doctors as a proportion of our population than Laos, Vietnam and the Philippines! What a shocking eye-opener it was!

The strangest thing is that our standing is not just behind advanced, developed nations, but behind even the least developed nations! I went into the WHO's website to find out more. I saw that, in fact, while the most developed nations such as the US, France and Germany were spending around 10-15% of their huge GDPs on health, even Bangladesh and Afganistan, as well as countries in Africa, like Liberia, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sudan and Senegal, were allocating a higher proportion of their GDP to health than Thailand's meagre 3.3%. It's even worse than what the advertorial indicated!

Countries like Pakistan, Malaysia and Iraq did not just have more doctors as a proportion of their population than Thailand; they had almost twice as many!

Algeria, Ecuador, and Mexico had more than three times as many! We were there on the list shamefully sitting on a par with Burma, Botswana, Tonga and Yemen at fewer than four doctors per 10,000 people. And our political leaders still keep nurturing pipe-dreams of Thailand becoming a medical hub. What medication have they been taking?

It's time for us, as individuals, to actively care about our health because it's clear that our politicians do not. We have been fooled by them for years and people need to speak up and demand better healthcare.

The universal healthcare scheme has done a lot to extend the reach of healthcare. You only need to look at the political popularity of the people who introduced the scheme to know that it provided something important to the public. What we need to do next, though, is improve the quality of the services and medicines provided. We need to improve our country's infrastructure so that the neediest in the remotest parts of our country can find a doctor, and that those doctors are supported by a high quality healthcare infrastructure to provide quality treatment.

I am tired of taking bad prescriptions from wayward politicians. So, today, for a change, I want to be the one writing a prescription for them:

During your tenure in office, you have to move Thailand up the rankings to be among the top 25 countries in the world in terms of the proportion of GDP being spent on healthcare.

Bangkok Post Link

Durian Typhoons Banned

Various agencies of the Thai government sometimes do stupid things, but few can compare to the recent actions of the meteorological folks who have successfully banned the use of "Typhoon Durian" in the official list used by agencies around Asia. Why? They have somehow convinced the authorities that durians are a unique Thai product that will only be insulted if used to name any destructive typhoon. Durians are now a Thailand trademark? Gimme a break.

While durian may be a tasty if odorous fruit for most people, in the Philippines the name is associated with a tropical storm which brought mudslides and death last year. This connotation does not sit well with the people at the Meteorological Department.

Durian is not only a tropical fruit, it is a famed product of Thailand.

So they asked that durian be withdrawn from the list of names which can be given to tropical storms in the Asian region and proposed a replacement. The World Meteorological Organisation's Typhoon Committee accepted the change last month. Durian has been replaced with ''mungkut'', which is the Thai word for mangosteen.

Suparerk Tansriratanawong, chief of the Meteorological Department, said yesterday the new name will come into use next year.

''The name durian brings back bad feelings about the damage that Tropical Storm Durian caused to the Philippines. We wanted to change this,'' said Mr Suparerk.

A team was set up to chose an alternative name. They came up with mungkut, a tropical ball-like fruit with translucent flesh inside a reddish-brown skin. ''If a storm of this name hits some place very hard in the future, we can always look for another name to overcome any bad feelings which may be linked to its use,'' said Mr Suparerk. The list of tropical storm names, which now totals 140, has been in use since early 2000.

Bangkok Post Link

Time Magazine 10 Best Architectural Models

Beijing Olympic Stadium


San Francisco Federal Building


Beijing CCTV Headquarters


Beijing Linked Hybrid


New York AC Headquarters

Time magazine will soon announce their 10 favorite architectural models, both new and upcoming, in their Dec. 23 issue, including three in China and others in New York, San Francisco and even the 1st place nominee in Kansas City. All 10 images in China View (Xinhua.net)