Passport Card Convenience for Americans Heading to Mexico and Canada

The new U.S. rule that all Americans must possess passports for travel to neighboring countries such as Mexico and Canada has irked plenty of people, but help is on the way with the new "Passport Cards" that permit travel across these borders (land only, not good for air travel) without lugging around your passport. This cool new service will probably most appeal to Americans making frequent trips over the border to Tijuana for weekend binges, but shoppers may also find it convenient for quick runs to Vancouver. No, it won't help with vacations to Thailand or Bali.

U.S. citizens may begin applying in advance for the new U.S. Passport Card beginning February 1, 2008, in anticipation of land border travel document requirements. We expect cards will be available and mailed to applicants in spring 2008.

The passport card will facilitate entry and expedite document processing at U.S. land and sea ports-of-entry when arriving from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda. The card may not be used to travel by air. It will otherwise carry the rights and privileges of the U.S. passport book and will be adjudicated to the exact same standards.

The Department of State is issuing this passport card in response to the needs of border resident communities for a less expensive and more portable alternative to the traditional passport book. The card will have the same validity period as a passport book: 10 years for an adult, five for children 15 and younger. For adults who already have a passport book, they may apply for the card as a passport renewal and pay only $20. First-time applicants will pay $45 for adult cards and $35 for children.

To facilitate the frequent travel of U.S. citizens living in border communities and to meet DHS’s operational needs at land borders, the passport card will contain a vicinity-read radio frequency identification (RFID) chip. This chip will link the card to a stored record in secure government databases. There will be no personal information written to the RFID chip itself.

U.S. Passport Card News Release

Tech Rec: Google Blog Search

Everyone knows that Google does damn near everything, but did you know there's a relatively new blog search function that makes Technorati look like chopped liver? I've been using this feature to find new and interesting blogs about my favorite subjects, but just noticed that they also index blog posts such as yours truly...the formerly-known-as-FriskoDude, but now known as Carl Parkes. Really, I never intended to be FriskoDude, it was just something I picked up on the spur of the moment.

Google Blog Search for "Thailand" at friskodude.blogspot.com

Thailand: How Risky is Property Investment?

Thailand's real estate market is volatile to say the least, with speculative fever followed by spectacular crash, but determined investors and potential residents will find something to chew on in this recent story from the IHT. The good news is that property developers in Thailand are improving their track record and dependability, but you still need to examine your options closely before throwing your money at your piece of paradise.

Resort housing developments in Thailand typically have fancy Web sites, catchy slogans, glossy magazine ads and even celebrity sponsors and launch parties at five-star hotels.

What they often lack, however, is money to construct the actual buildings.

Many non-Thai developers operating in the country rely heavily on customer deposits to fund construction because banks are prohibited from lending to foreign companies and even are wary of lending to foreigners operating through a locally established company. So if developers fail to sell enough units off-plan, buyers can find their cash sitting on the sidelines for a year or two - or, in rare cases, lost forever.

"A lot of projects never get started because of funding difficulties," said Larry Cunningham, managing director of Phuket One Real Estate. "First-time developers often just have enough money to buy the land with no construction. When they don't get sufficient sales, it never gets built. In the future, this could be quite a negative for the market."

When the economy sours, as happened in Thailand after the army seized power in September 2006, buyers tend to dry up and projects get delayed or dropped altogether. Investors usually can recover their money but, by the time they come back to the market in search of a home, construction costs and other expenses may have jumped significantly.

Internatioanl Herald Tribune

Thailand: The Man Behind the Smuggling

Los Angeles police recently raided several small museums and art galleries on allegations of international art theft from Southeast Asia countries such as Thailand and Cambodia. It appears to be a big story, and the Thai government is now clamouring for return of its looted Ban Chiang artefacts, but the chief smuggler behind the whole racket is surprisingly small potatoes, as related by this fascinating article in today's Los Angeles Times. A few of his statements are, ahem, pretty controversial, especially about his sources for some of the Thai antiques.

White-haired and missing several teeth, a 79-year-old retired steel salesman sat barefoot in a stained undershirt at his modest Cerritos home Wednesday, trying to explain how he had ended up at the center of a major federal smuggling investigation.

It all started when Robert Olson took a trip in the 1970s to Thailand, where he said he picked up an ancient bronze ring and was required to buy it after it broke in his hand.

After learning that collectors and curators back home in Los Angeles were interested in such objects, he made acquiring them his life's work, buying ancient pottery, huge marble sculptures and lacquered Buddhas from Thai middlemen (including, he says, an uncle of the Thai king). He sold them to people who sold them to museums, movie stars and dignitaries.

Los Angeles Times

Thailand: Another Book Banned for Lese Majeste

Thailand's king may have said a few years ago that he could handle criticism of the monarchy, but apparently the government censors haven't got the word, as shown by the apparent banning of the book pictured above.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - An academic book critical of Thailand's 2006 military coup and raising questions about the political role of the monarchy has been banned, police said on Monday, the latest book to run afoul of tough lese majeste laws.

"A Coup for the Rich", by political scientist Giles Ungphakorn, was ordered off the shelves at Thammasat University's bookstore last week, the only shop in Thailand that sold the 144-page book.

"The book has been banned and is under investigation concerning charges of lese majeste," police lieutenant Santi Piwtongkam told Reuters.

The book, which criticises the bloodless 2006 coup against Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, "included material on the Thai monarchy and references to the 'The King Never Smiles', which is also banned," Santi said.

'The King Never Smiles', by U.S. journalist Paul Handley, was banned in January 2006 because it "could disrupt public order and the good morals of society".

It portrays King Bhumibol Adulyadej as an austere and deeply political monarch whose overarching desire for stability and unity during 61 years on the throne has stifled Thailand's democratic development.

Many of Thailand's 63 million people regard King Bhumibol as semi-divine and credit him with steering the country through huge political and social turbulence, including more than a dozen military coups.

Even though the King himself made it clear in 2005 that he should not be above criticism, draconian lese majeste laws make any insult or threat to the monarchy punishable by up to 15 years in jail.

Ungphakorn, a political scientist at Chulalongkorn University which refused to sell the book, said he had not been contacted by police. "The first inkling I received was when Thammasat returned the unsold copies today," he told Reuters. "Given that the print run was almost sold out, it's a bit late to be cracking down".

Reuters India

After the story broke via Reuters, the author sent the following message to New Mandala with links to downloading the short book in PDF format.

I have just been informed today by Thammasart University bookshop, the only bookshop to agree to sell my book, that the Thai special branch have issued a letter to the shop banning the sale of “A Coup for the Rich”.

This book, which was published in January 2007, has sold over 900 copies, almost its entire print run. Mostly the book was sold directly by myself or by Thammasart University bookshop. This is because my own university bookshop refused to sell the book, citing “incorrect procedure”.

“A Coup for the Rich” criticises the military coup and the liberals who supported the coup. It discusses the role of the Thai Monarchy, citing the work of Paul Handley (The King Never Smiles). There is a chapter on the politics of the Peoples’ Movement. The final chapter deals with the crisis in the South.

I shall provide updates of the situation as they become clearer. Anyone wishing to obtain copies of the book can do so by sending me 200 baht. Alternatively people can download this book for free in pdf file form from: www.pcpthai.org, or http://wdpress.blog.co.uk/, or http://www.isj.org.uk/ .

The banning of academic books by governments or bookshops is a gross infringement of democracy and academic freedom. Unfortunately this practice has become more frequent under the junta. The emergence of a PPP government lead by Samak Suntarawej is not encouraging either. As Interior Minister in 1976, Samak banned around 100 academic books and ordered their removal from libraries throughout the country.

[UPDATE from Ji:] Bangkok Metropolitan Police, acting under an appeal from the Special Branch to investigate my book, have issued a letter to the Thamasart bookshop banning the sale of “A Coup for the Rich”. According to the letter, dated 18 January 2008, the book is currently under investigation concerning charges of lèse majesté. The letter, signed by deputy police chief Chutti Tamanowanij, states that the continued sale of the book risks creating a “misunderstanding” about the Monarchy among the Thai population. The book is on sale at the New Internationalist bookshop in Melbourne and Bookmarx in London.

New Mandala Posts a Message from the Author

New Mandala posted a short review of A Coup for the Rich in April 2007, which drew over 40 comments about the book and freedom of the press in Thailand.

A Coup for the Rich: Thailand’s Political Crisis by Giles Ji Ungpakorn is a blistering 144 page analysis of contemporary Thai politics that is both readable and refreshingly frank. Offering a non-doctrinaire Marxist approach, Ungpakorn blames a profound weakness in Thai civil society for its political immaturity and vulnerability to being manipulated by the rich and powerful. The analysis demonstrates that this weakness is positively cultivated by the political elite for its own advantage. In this account the most cherished myths of contemporary Thai society are directly challenged in a style likely to offend some readers, so the author warns in his introduction: “Dear Reader, if you are expecting a mainstream analysis of Thai politics and society, you need read no further. Close the book and toss it away.” (ISBN: 9748822559)

New Mandala Review of "A Coup for the Rich"

Sandals as Scandals

National symbols are sensitive issues in Southeast Asia and woe be to those who mock landmarks, religions, or deeply revered icons with insensitive merchandise, such as the rubber sandals above. The competitive rift between Thailand and Cambodia goes back centuries, but still comes to the forefront whenever any slightly perceived affort is provided, even if it's just a damned pair of slippers believed to have been produced in either Vietnam or Thailand but sold in the markets of Phnom Penh. Details are Sketchy examines the controversy.

It’s easy to see how some Cambodians might find these sandals — with outlines of Angkor Wat on the insoles – offensive. People can be quite sensitive about their culture. Cambodians are no exception. But to the average foreigner — and it seems likely to many Cambodians as well — the randomness with which the Angkor-Wat-is-holy edict gets enforced makes following the rules ridiculously difficult.

Beer and cigarettes and t-shirts seem okay. Food blogs not so much. Playing cards with images of Angkor Wat will get you arrested. The latest sandal scandal does nothing to help clear the confusion: Walking on Angkor Wat in your sandals is not only allowed, but requires a $20 ticket. Walking in sandals with a mere outline of Angkor Wat, however, prompts the outrage of the khlogosphere and a visit from the local coppers. Somebody please explain.

Details are Sketchy

Border Crossings from Cambodia

Photo by Phil at Last Appetite and Phenomenon

Thailand may appear to be the crossing point for travelers within Southeast Asia, but Cambodia is a key route for anyone overlanding between Thailand and Vietnam with possible connections into Laos. While the legal border crossings seem to change with the seasons, and even TravelFish probably has a tough time keeping track of the current conditions, Cambodia expert Andy Brouwer has just provided what appears to be the most accurate listings of possible land routes in and out of the country.

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you'll know that I now work for Hanuman Tourism in Phnom Penh. One of our more mundane tasks is to try and keep track of the myriad number of international border crossings that seem to open up almost on a monthly basis in recent times! It sounds easy enough but believe me, it ain't. Cambodia shares a border with Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. Cambodian visas are available at all land borders with Laos and Thailand, but only two of the land borders with Vietnam. They are not currently available at Phnom Den. Here's a look at the international border crossings currently in operation. There are dozens of 'locals-only' border crossings between all the countries.

From Laos:

The only border crossing with Cambodia is at Voen Kham (L). Confusingly there are two Cambodian posts that service this crossing, which connects Si Phan Don in southern Laos to Stung Treng (C): one on the river (Koh Chheuteal Thom) and one on the new road to Stung Treng (Dom Kralor). The river route is rarely used these days, as minibuses ply the road.

From Thailand:

There are now as many as six land crossings between Thailand and Cambodia, but only two are popular with travellers. The border at Aranya Prathet (T) to Poipet (C) is frequently used to travel between Bangkok (T) and Siem Reap (C). Down on the coast, crossings can be made from Hat Lek (T) to Cham Yeam (C) by road, which connects to Koh Kong (C) and on to Sihanoukville (C) or Phnom Penh (C).

There are also three more remote crossings, which see little traffic: Chong Jom (T) in Surin Province to O Smach (C), connecting with Samraong (C); Choam Sa-Ngam (T) to Choam (C), leading to the former Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng (C); and Ban Pakard (T) to Pruhm (C) leading to Pailin (C). Bear in mind that road conditions on the Cambodian side are pretty poor.

There is also a border at Prasat Preah Vihear (C), the stunning Cambodian temple perched atop Phnom Dangkrek mountain range. This is currently just a day crossing for tourists wanting to visit the temple from the Thai side, but may open up as a full international border in the near future.

From Vietnam:

Andy Brouwer on Cambodia Border Crossings

Amazing Shark Photos

At first, I thought these were Photoshop oddities since I've never seen images of sharks actually jumping this high out of the water, but these are the real thing and almost beyond belief. Next time I visit South Africa, I think I'll enjoy the ocean view from the beach.

These shots capture the splendour and horror of a great white shark weighing two tons leaping 10ft from the water as it closes inevitably on its victim.

After reaching speeds of up to 35mph on its ascent from the depths, the shark uses serried ranks of razor-sharp teeth to tear into the seal. The wildlife photographer Chris Fellows spends over half of each year waiting off the coast of South Africa to capture the sharks at their grisly work.

These dramatic pictures, taken near Seal Island, in False Bay, are part of a decade-long campaign to promote positive awareness of great white sharks, which are classed as "endangered" largely due to being hunted by man. It is the ultimate predator, nature's most efficient killing machine which can hunt and kill its prey with remarkable ease.

The Telegraph

Best. Arrest. Photo. Ever

Billy Joel may have once sang about Allentown, but even Billy would never have imagined that a resident would be booked and photographed in the outfit photographed above. A classic, but note that this guy was driving his car when he was arrested...

Torres was driving on Turner Street Friday afternoon when he was pulled over by police and arrested. He was wearing a hooded sweatshirt with a skull-head pattern on it, pajama bottoms and fuzzy lion-faced slippers at the time. He was still wearing the get-up when he was arraigned after midnight at Lehigh County prison.

He is being held without bail on the homicide charges and two charges of conspiracy to commit homicide. In a separate matter, he was charged Saturday with two counts of possession of a controlled substance, two counts of possession with intent to deliver and conspiracy.

Allentown Morning Call

Reefer Men by Tony Thompson

Here's another book for those interested in the drug trafficking legacy of Southeast Asia, to go along with the other recommendations I've made on this blog. I remember when this deal went down and an entire freighter packed with Thai sticks was captured just off the coast from San Francisco, and half the residents of this city just went "hot damn."

The story line could hardly be juicier. A couple of accomplished British smugglers, an aging American hippie-turned Bangkok bar owner, two former US Special Forces servicemen, a Vietnam War veteran, a former helicopter pilot, a corrupt Thai politician, and assorted drifters all came together as members of a Bangkok-based, international drug smuggling ring.

They smuggled marijuana from Thailand to North America, Australia and Europe, some of it through Laos and out over the Vietnamese coast. They ran dope for more than a decade until in 1988 they put together their biggest ever consignment, most of them planning to retire off the anticipated profits.

But then it all went wrong. The ship was seized and the hunt for the members of the ring began. It was a hunt that spanned over 15 years, and, in the end, the ringleaders received long prison sentences in the United States.

Among them was Brian Daniels, the ex-hippie who ran the Superstar Bar in Bangkok's most famous - or rather infamous - red light district, Patpong. His projected release date is May 5, 2010 - a bitter end for someone who once ran a successful business and was married to a high-society Thai woman with connections to the military and the police.

Two brothers, former Green Beret William and Christopher Schaffer, a yacht captain, were released from prison in 1998 and later launched their own entertainment company in Santa Monica, California.

According to Reefer Men author, Tony Thompson, "In 1999 they allegedly sold the film rights to their story for US$1 million. Brad Pitt was lined up to play Bill Schaffer and the project, provisionally titled Smugglers Moon, was due to begin filming immediately after Ocean's Eleven." The project has, however, stalled at the "development stage and no progress has been made since the original announcement", Thompson writes.

But now at least there is a book about the "reefer men" who supplied pot smokers all over the world with so-called "Thai sticks" throughout the late 1970s and 1980s. The book describes in great detail how the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) managed to infiltrate the organization and eventually busted the last, and most massive, shipment of 72 tons of marijuana.

One by one, the members of the ring were nabbed in various parts of the world. Daniels was arrested in Switzerland, trapped in a sting operation where special DEA agents had posed as Mafia bosses. Daniels was later extradited to the US. Others were arrested in the US, Canada and Thailand.

And to anyone familiar with the "Superstar affair" in the late 1980s, some important actors in the drama are curiously missing in the book's narrative. They include another bar owner and a former US intelligence official, both of whom, it has been alleged, became crucial witnesses for the DEA investigation when details first began to emerge about the drug-smuggling ring. It is uncertain whether this is an oversight, or if Thompson perhaps wants to protect some of his sources, which is understandable and defensible.

Needless to say, The Superstar, has since then changed hands and is now doing brisk business under a new management, which is not in any way connected with the old drug smuggling ring. Besides, its present go-go-dancers are probably too young to even remember Patpong in the days of Brian Daniels and his motley crew of adventurers, ex-spooks and con men.

Asia Times Online

The Bottle Temple of Wat Lan Kuat

The endless creativity of Thai artists is also reflected in their religious architecture which ranges from temples made of marble, steel, and the beer bottle temple near the Issan town of Si Saket. If you're in the region and heading toward Preah Viharn, Wat Lan Kuat makes for an unusual sidetrip, as pointed out by the guy who started the essay website Thailand Stories.

On a trip to the Si Saket area by the Cambodian border with my family to go to the many waterfalls in that area I was told by my wife's sister about this funny Wat (temple) named Wat Lan Kuat in the city of Khun Han about 15 kilometers from the waterfalls we were visiting. She told me about this monk who was sick of all the bottles littering the nearby countryside and his ingenious way of getting the locals to clean up the litter they made.

What he did was decide to build a temple with the old bottles. He got the people to bring the bottles to him and his acolytes and they built this huge and very beautiful temple complex, out of, ... mostly green Heineken beer bottles and brown glass Thai beer Chang bottles. This place was great. Well worth the visit on our way back from the waterfalls.

As you can see partially in the picture above the glass was set in concrete, whole bottles, to make the buildings in this complex. What is very strange is every building in the place is done like this. The temples, the water tower, the monks quarters, even the crematorium and the many bathrooms they have for the many tourists visiting there!

Thailand Stories

Bahasa Indonesia Learned From a Motorbike

Suharto may have died yesterday, and is probably now just discovering that his looted billions won't get him past the pearly gates, but a far cuter story is provided by an expat resident of Bali who cheerfully recounts how she learned the basics of the Indonesian language from the backseat of her boyfriend's motorcycle. Very funny stuff,

I learned most of my Indonesian on the back of a motorbike. It’s absolutely the most exciting place to study a language. But result was that my Indonesian was, quite literally, street Indonesian. A form of sign language, so to speak. I was soon fluent in rattling off anything that would normally appear on a road sign, such as “Hati Hati, Ada Proyek” (Be Careful, Roadworks Ahead) or “Ada Upachara Agama” (Religious Ceremony Taking Place).

While most foreigners would respond to apa kabar? (how are you?) with the pedestrian and mundane “bagus,” (good), I, on the other hand, could respond with “slippery when wet,” or “awas!” (look out!).

How my vocabulary flourished! If someone asked me “Mau ke mana?” (Where are you going?), rather than using the old standby “internet,” I could now say with confidence, “Potong rambut” (to get a haircut) or “Ganti oli” (to change the oil).
If someone asked me my hobbies, I could claim “cuci motor” (cleaning cars).

I could tell them I liked to tinker with cars by throwing out a few mechanical terms in a row: “Pres ban, benkel, knalpot!” So what if it wasn’t true? I could speak Indonesian. After all, communication is the first step to fluency, right?

If a Balinese offered me something to eat while I was visiting his house, I’d say, “Masakan Padang” (food from Padang) or sometimes “Warung Muslim” (Muslim restaurant) or, if it was a special occasion, I’d show my eagerness to try Balinese food by saying, “Lawar Bali di jual” (Lawar Bali for sale). And at the end of the meal I would graciously thank my hosts by saying, “Bersih itu sehat” (clean is healthy).

If an Indonesian asked me, “Where do you stay in Bali?” I could respond with “Di kontrakan” (house for rent).

I also found that with my new road-sign vocabulary, it was much easier to strike up conversations with the locals. I could just throw out certain phrases to start communications, such as “mau sewa truk?” (would you like to rent a truck?) or “mobil murah?” (how about a cheap car?). Kursus Bhs. Jepang, anyone? (Japanese classes?)
Or if I wanted to turn to more serious conversation, I could ask, “Mau cari uang? (Want to find some money?) Makro is just 1 km ahead.”

I found the long wait at the traffic lights at Simpang Siur (the big roundabout in Kuta) a particularly convenient place to practice my newly acquired Indonesian phrases. And since all roads in Kuta eventually lead to Simpang Siur, I had opportunities daily to hob-nob with the locals.

Such experience has taught me that a family on a motorbike is always keen to communicate with a foreigner, especially if you make eye contact or say hello to the youngest child on board. A wave of the hand and “Halo!” does wonders. But why stop there? Those traffic lights are a long time changing and you’ve got all that time you could be communicating with a 2-year-old about road signs that he or she cannot yet read. It’s your duty as an adult to lean over and whisper in her ear something instructive like “Dilarang membua sampah” (No littering).

The Bali Times

Is Barak Obama Still a Muslim?

Obama may have been going to church for over 20 years, but his father was a Muslim and according to most Muslim theologists: born a Muslim, always a Muslim. This is the commonly accepted position in Malaysia, where it is illegal to convert from Islam to Christianity, and also in Indonesia, where Barak Obama spent some of his early days studying in a madrassa in Jakarta. No matter the interpretation, it's probably as useless as this rumor.

U.S. Senator Barack Hussein Obama’s Muslim past had emerged as an issue in the Democrat presidential campaign. The candidate is born of a Black Muslim father from Kenya and a white non-Muslim mother from Kansas.

His father deserted the family when Barack Jr. was two and returned to Kenya. His mother then married another Muslim, Lolo Soetoro from Indonesia.

Barack moved with his mother and stepfather to Jakarta when he was six where he attended a madrassa (national Muslim school) for two years in addition to the two years he spent in Catholic schools.

Barack claims he follows the Christian faith and attends with his wife, Michelle, the United Church of Christ in the state of Illinois. In a speech he gave in June 2006, Barack Obama admits his birth of a Muslim father, he says: “My father, who returned to Kenya when I was just two, was Muslim but as an adult became an atheist…”

Is Barack Hussein Obama a Muslim?

Muslim theologians define Muslims as those who were born as such or became Muslims later, (See Al Ahkam Al Sultaniyya fi Al Wilaayaat al diniyya by Abi Al Hassan Al Mawardi, Dar Al kutub Al ‘Ilmiyya, Beirut, Lebanon, p. 67). The Quran allows a Muslim to marry a woman who belongs to the ‘People of the Book’, that is Christian or Jew, but does not force the wives to change their religion (Quran 5:6). As for women who are pagans, the Quran insists that they must convert to Islam if they have to marry a Muslim man (Quran 2:222). In other words, a Muslim man is allowed to get married to a woman belonging to any religion. Based on a provision from the Quran (60:11) which reads: “The women (i.e. Muslims) are not lawful for them (disbelievers)…,” Muslim theologian prohibit a Muslim woman to marry a non-Muslim.

It is further understood by Islamic laws that the children born of a Muslim man must be raised as Muslims, which means that the religion of the children born of a Muslim man must be Islam. Therefore, it is obvious that Barack Obama is considered, according to Islamic Shari’a, a Muslim regardless of whether he practiced the religion of Islam in dedication to the prayers, paying the ‘zakat’ (alms giving), or going to Mecca for pilgrimage, or any of the other conditions prescribed by the Quran for Muslims to follow.

Those conditions are important for any Muslim to be in good standing within his religion, but they do not cause a Muslim to be considered an apostate if he decides not to follow these conditions. Under these circumstances, Barack Hussein Obama is, without any doubt, a Muslim because he was born of a Muslim father. Obama claims that his father became atheist later in life; that creates more problems to the father, because the Islamic Shari’a considers a Muslim who becomes atheist (Arabic, zindeeq) as bad as is the apostate, and subject to the death penalty.

Apostasy in Islam (Al Radda)

All Muslim theologians agree that a Muslim who converts to any other religion (Arabic, murtadd), is subject to the death penalty. This is based on what the prophet of Islam said: “Kill he who changes his religion.” The death penalty for apostasy in Islam is supported by all four schools of thought in the Sunni traditions: Maliki, Shafi’i, Hanafi, and Hanbali, (see Kitab al Fiqh according to the four traditions by Abdul Rahman Al Jaziri, Dar Al Irshad, Egypt, vol.5, pp. 333-342).

Muslim theologians disagree on whether an apostate should be sentenced to death immediately or be given a three-day’s grace period, during which he may reverse his conversion. Some theologians argue that an apostate should be executed as soon as change of religion becomes known; others allow a three-day grace period during which an apostate has a chance to change his mind and recant his apostasy. According to Abi Alhassan al Mawardi, a prominent theologian (mentioned earlier), the method of execution varies from beheading by the sword or by beating up the defendant with wood stick until he meets a slow death, or by any other method of execution.

After the apostate is executed, his body should not be washed in accordance with the Islamic traditions, and fellow Muslims should not pray for him during the burial procession; he is not to be buried in a Muslim cemetery and his assets, which were acquired during his apostasy, are confiscated and distributed among the Muslim community.

Furthermore, Islamic laws allow the Imam (religious head of the Muslim community) or the religious judge to nullify the marriage between an apostate and his Muslim wife; his children will then be taken away from him, and the wife is forced to divorce him and be given a permission to remarry to someone else. If both, husband and wife declare their apostasy, they are both subject to the death penalty, and their children will be taken away and given to a custody of the parent’s family or to a Muslim family designated by the judge.

Seattle IndyMedia

The Teenage Trannies of Thailand

Even the conservative and staid MCOT (a government news service) is getting into the act with a recent article complaining that too many young boys are getting sex change operations, often without a thought or professional consultation. Well, this is Thailand and it will be a cold day in Korat before anyone does anything about this situation, and the trannie bars of Nana, Cowboy and Pattaya will continue to prosper with new recruits.

Sex-change operation: The earlier, the better?

Kun is now 28 years old. She is scheduled to undergo a male-to-female sexual operation on Valentine’s Day. Before reaching decision, Kun spent six years looking for information and seeking advice from different experts.

Today her story is considered a very rare case, because many teen Thai transvestites believe the earlier they get the operation, the more beautiful they will become. As a result, a growing number of Thai transvestites undergo an operation of no return before coming of age.

“Doctors of some hospitals agree to do an operation because they want money. Some patients are referred to a psychiatrist who promptly signs a recommendation after a brief conversation with the patients.”, said Kun.

Kun urged there should be a certain regulation to control the medical practitioners concerned with sex-change operations. She cited in Europe and America, a patient requiring a sex-change operation needed to undergo a psychological test ranging from 1 to 3 years in duration before receiving green light.

To prevent any regret after an operation, experts said, a teenage transvestite should wait until the age of 25 when their mental status was more stable. “A teenager is easy to convince. When surrounding people say the operation is good, they just go for it without bothering to ask if they really need a sex-change or not.”, said Dr. Phanphimol Lotrakul.

With the international medical service business becoming tougher, Thailand is being promoted as an ideal place to have a sex-change operation. Legal provisions to regulate the operation – especially among teenagers – should be in place to ensure a higher standard in the sex-change operation service.

MCOT

Lights Out at Suvarnabhumi Airport

Do not adjust your goggles. Yes, that's the new Bangkok international airport ahead, but you can't see the runway through the rain since more than 2000 runway lights are burned out, and the pilot will be landing with a hope and a prayer.

Does anyone remember the horrible plane crash in Surat Thani a few years ago, largely because the runway lights were burned out or missing, and the radar system wasn't working? The plane made two failed attempts at landing in a rain storm, then just went for it. And now the lights have gone out at Suvarnabhumi, and you won't believe the excuses given by airport officals.

2,000 lights out at Suvarnabhumi
Visibility at night a problem, say pilots

One-third of the lightbulbs at Suvarnabhumi airport are not working, causing visibility problems at night, and Airports of Thailand (AoT) has sought special procurement approval to improve lighting on the taxiways.

AoT president Chana U-sathaporn said the airport is speeding up a process to acquire almost 2,000 more lightbulbs, which are expected to reach it as soon as next month. He said the problem occurred before he took office and is related to the procurement, which is monopolised by one company. An amendment would be introduced to allow AoT to choose from other companies, he said.

The damaged lightbulbs account for one-third of the total system. International standards demand that damaged or dysfunctional lightbulbs should not exceed 10% of the total number, which is 7,600, an AoT source said.

Many of the lights, which are supposed to last for 1,000 hours, have expired while others were hit and broken by aircraft because, according to the source, the lights are larger than normal. The problem started when the airport opened in September 2006.

In April last year, the number of damaged or expired lightbulbs was put at more than 700 and the airport asked for a budget for the replacements, which cost 70-80 million baht. But faced with a procurement problem as well as a budget cut, the number has escalated to almost 2,000, the source said.

The source said the AoT initially responded to the problem by taking lightbulbs from non-operational runways to replace the damaged or expired ones. Lights along the taxiways have also been switched on alternately. The source played down concerns over safety, saying each good lightbulb is within 60 metres of another, meeting international standards.

Civil Aviation Department chief Chaisak Angsuwan acknowledged the problem. Mr Chaisak said the issue was raised during an Airports of Thailand board meeting when he was still a member. The delay in fixing the broken lights occurred because AoT placed an order for many lightbulbs at one time, he said.

Mr Chaisak said he had once suggested AoT change its buying method. Instead of ordering a large number of lightbulbs at the same time, he said, AoT should buy smaller numbers of replacement stock periodically, when only some bulbs were not functioning.

''We have to quickly solve the problem,'' said Mr Chaisak.

''The more we delay, the more damage it may cause.''

ACM Chana said he would quickly solve the problem, also adding the present contract between the AoT and a lighting producer required the airport company to buy the bulbs from one contractor. However, the source said the monopoly was deemed unavoidable as there are only two airport lighting firms, the US-based Crouse Hinds company and the Belgium-based ADB. Besides, the procurement was made through IOT Joint Venture. The source said the monopoly was not a problem _ it was a management problem as the agency did not stock spares due to budget cuts.

Pilots have said there is no problem during the day, but they have to be careful when taking planes in and out of parking bays at night and during heavy rain. Thai Airways International pilot Thanit Promsathit said the present condition was not considered dangerous, but asked AoT to solve the problem to ensure safety. ''Their actions will reflect the image of our country,'' he said.

Since it opened, Suvarnabhumi has been plagued with troubles including cracks on runways and leaking roofs. These problems have been thoroughly examined by a special AoT committee to see if there are irregularities.

The investigation has made AoT staff reluctant to continue their routines, including the process to buy new lightbulbs, said the source.

Bangkok Post

Mia Farrow in Cambodia

Mia Farrow recently visited Phnom Penh on a mission to call attention to the victims of Darfur, but her entourage was stopped by government officials from their intended ceremony at Tuol Sleng. It was a hot topic issue this week, though it's pretty easy to understand why the Cambodian government doesn't want anyone offending the Chinese and their support for the Darfur rebels.

Farrow was interviewed by the local English language newspaper which provides limited free coverage, mostly paid content (like the WSJ), a terrible website, and will fortunately soon have new owners who hopefully are much more enlightened about the wonders and possibilities of the internet.

American actress Mia Farrow, known predominantly for her film career involving over 50 films such as Rosemary's Baby and a handful of Woody Allen classics, was in town last week on a campaign to raise awareness about the atrocities that have been on-going in the Darfur region of Sudan in Africa. Her Dream for Darfur campaign has been stopping in places where mass murder has taken place to honor victims and survivors. She spoke to Post publisher & editor-in-chief Michael Hayes about why she was in Cambodia.

Post: Why are you here in Cambodia?

Farrow: We came to Cambodia as it was the last on our list of countries or communities that has experienced genocide or mass atrocities.

We lit a symbolic torch on the Darfur-Chad border several months ago and then took it to Rwanda and there the Rwandan survivors participated and really shaped a ceremony there that was meaningful to that. It was extraordinarily powerful. The US ambassador attended and Congressman Donald Payne, one of our finest, spoke as did the head of the survivors group there. Hundreds of Rwandans were there and they passed the flame from survivor to survivor all the way from the school where a massacre occurred-I think 5,000 people were killed-to a grave site which had been a garbage dump where perhaps a 100,000 died.

We went to Armenia, Sarajevo, Berlin and here we are in Cambodia.

I'll speak for myself. I gave up on governments addressing the issue of genocide. My government, the United Nations and all the nations of the world abandoned the Rwandans, abandoned the people of Sarajevo, abandoned the people of Cambodia in their darkest hours. They were abandoned. And so we were hoping to gather a constituency of... what more powerful civic base could there be in the world then that of the survivors....We wanted to journey into communities that have experienced genocide to gather a civic base to position itself towards ending the on-going genocide in Darfur.

Post: Was this your idea?

Farrow: It wasn't my idea...we conspired to do this. Last March, together with my son, I wrote a piece called "Genocide Olympics" and that sort of triggered a lot of things. Among those things was Dream for Darfur because "Genocide Olympics" seemed a very provocative title and perhaps misrepresented what we really hoped for...

The piece "Genocide Olympics" made the link, I think, for the American public between what is happening to the people in Darfur and China's complicity on that-the fact that China is basically underwriting the atrocities in Darfur to the tune of roughly $2 billion a year going into Khartoum's coffers. Some 70 percent of that, according to Human Rights Watch, is used in the expensive business of genocide's unique style-the purchase of Antonov bombers, attack helicopters, the steady flow of arms and ammunition, all of which is used against a civilian population in Darfur. And this for a country that has no self-defense need for any armed force.

Post: How has your experience been here in Phnom Penh? I understand you had some problems this morning.

Farrow: First of all, the people of Phnom Penh have been extraordinarily supportive in all kinds of ways...The trouble we experienced this morning...none of it come from the people themselves. Our intention was to have a ceremony which is again is to light the flame. Each time we say this prayer...It's intended to represent those who perished, all those who were lost but also to celebrate the courage of those who survived, and the commitment that we share for an end to mass atrocities everywhere. So far our flame lighting ceremonies have gone very smoothly and very movingly. The reasons are best known to themselves. Our permission to have this ceremony on the sight of the memorial was revoked. Yesterday we found that out....

So we restructured our ceremony to eliminate the flame and make the flame a flower. As we were not allowed on the premises of the genocide museum we would leave our flowers just to honor the victims and the survivors, but then the streets were cordoned off so it was impossible to get anywhere near the genocide museum. ...

So, I don't know, there were 60-80 armed police everywhere. So we came with our flowers and we had thought that we would just put them at the feet of the soldiers but Theary [Seng], I mean it is after all her family that was lost here, [she] did not want to put the flowers on the ground, did not want to see them trampled, so we stood there for perhaps 40 minutes while she spoke to the officers, the policemen saying 'Look then, we just want to put our flowers outside the memorial. We were forbidden to go within the memorial but we won't we will leave them at the gate. I don't want flowers to honor my parents left trampled on the ground.'

And then she said 'Could just Mia and I , two women, go? You can escort us if you like to leave our flowers there and we would gather them in a bouquet and take them there.' But all of this was denied and in the end we gathered the flowers-a big handful-and gave them to one of the policeman and we left.

There was a press conference afterward and someone said 'Did you feel you failed?' And Theary most openly said 'No'. And I think all of us shared this, not at all, because it isn't about success or failure. We came to honor the victims and the survivors and that is a matter of the heart and we did that. We did that.

Singapore: The Last Kampung

It's a sad statement on government priorities that the last traditional Malay village in Singapore may soon be only a memory, a travesty that will tug at the heart of anyone who has appreciated the cartoons of Lat over the years. Looks like those who want to experience a kampong will soon need to cross the bridge and head up the eastern coast of Malaysia to see the real deal.

Chillis and limes grow in a lush garden between colorful cement houses with leaking metal roofs in Kampong Buangkok, a village with no roads or computers.

The sight would be nothing out of the ordinary in much of southeast Asia. But Singapore's last village, nestled in a forest clearing, is an oddity in the sophisticated city-state where skyscrapers and high-speed Internet are the norm.

Simple kampongs -- the Malay word for village -- were synonymous with disease and poor sanitation when they went out of style as Singapore introduced government housing in the 1960s.

Mass relocations to tower block Housing Development Board (HDB) flats saw the number of kampongs dwindle. Once home to 40 families, sole survivor Kampong Buangkok now houses only 28, who fiercely guard community bonds among arching banana trees.

"I know all my neighbors, we meet every day, doors open. It's not like the HDB flats, where you can live and not know anyone," said Ramlah binte Kamsah, a secretary in her mid-forties who has lived in the kampong for 40 years.

Of course we want to preserve the kampong -- sentimental fools like us. These are the last traces of old Singapore, everything old has been torn down," said Victor, 51, a blogger who writes about life in old Singapore.

However, a government plan aims to turn the kampong into schools and housing.

"Given the need to optimize the use of land in land scarce Singapore, it may not be viable to retain the kampong in its current state," said a spokeswoman from the government redevelopment agency.

Sng has made it clear to private developers that she does not intend to sell her land. But the reality is she would have to sell the land to the government if required, based on the state's laws. Some villagers fear they may only have a year left.

Reuters UK

Singapore: Heading South for Sex

Prostitution may be legal in Singapore, but that doesn't mean that it's cheap, unless you're a talented bargainer at Orchard Towers or willing to haggle with the girls in Geylang. For some randy but moneywise Singaporeans, a weekend sojourn to the Indonesian islands of Batam or Bintan makes sense. Plus, the beer is cheaper.

Living like kings

Working-class Singaporeans travel to Indonesia’s Riau Islands in search of a fantasy built around sex. Karimun, Batam and Bintan are the main islands in the Riau Archipelago, located just kilometres from Singapore and Malaysia. The northern part of Bintan and some parts of Batam attract middle-class Singaporeans and Europeans in search of sun, sand and pampering. But most Singaporean tourists who come to the islands are working-class men in search of sex.

Bargain-basement prices in the islands allow these men to escape from the grinding reality of life for the Singaporean working poor. Indonesian sex workers charge about the same for a whole night as Singaporean sex workers charge for an hour. Other luxuries, like seafood and entertainment, are much more affordable too.

According to popular wisdom, these men come to the islands to ‘live like kings’. For some, it’s enough that the sex is cheap and plentiful. But others come in search not just of sexual gratification, but in search of intimacy and a sense of power.

Inside Indonesia

From Thailand to Vietnam

When travel guidebooks finally bite the dust (ahem), then it will be websites such as TravelFish which will carry on to provide the latest tips and recommendations for the wired traveler. Guidebooks will probably always be the choice for many visitors to Southeast Asia, but amazing suggestions such as the route below either won't make the book or will be outdated by the time of publication. The guys at TravelFish are really on to something big.

With the 2007 opening of the Prek Chak / Xa Xia border crossing between Cambodia and Vietnam it's now possible to travel from Ko Chang in Thailand all the way along the Cambodian coastline and into Vietnam. For beach and boat lovers, this is a great trip as from Ko Chang you're able to visit Ko S'dach, Sihanoukville, Ko Russei, Kampot, Kep, Ko Tonsay, Ha Tien and Rach Gia, before finishing off on the glorious Phu Quoc Island. Here's a step by step guide taking you through the entire trip, commencing in Trat and finishing on Phu Quoc.

In summary

Trat to border: 1.5 hours by minibus, leaves hourly throughout the day.
Ko Kong to Ko Sdach: 3 hours, one departure daily.
Ko Sdach to Sihanoukville: 2-3 hours, one departure daily.
Sihanoukville to Kampot: 2 hours by bus, a couple of departures daily. Share taxi also available.
Kampot to Kep: 1 hour by bus, a couple of departures daily. Share taxi also available.
Kep to border: 30 minutes by motorbike, tuk tuk or taxi.
Ha Tien to Rach Gia: 2-3 hours by bus, regular departures in the morning, less in afternoon.
Rach Gia to Phu Quoc: 2.5 hours, one or two depatures daily. 20 minutes by plane, one flight a day.

See -- it's easy!

TravelFish

Volunteer in Kampot, Cambodia

Cambodia is almost certainly the best place in Southeast Asia to be a volunteer. Hardly a day passes without another article about an opportunity to help, mostly in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, but the need also extends to villages elsewhere, such as the sleepy port town of Kampot, pictured above.

Welcome to Kampot Interact

Want to volunteer or enjoy a unique cultural experience in Cambodia?

Look no further than beautiful, laid back Kampot. Kampot is a small, friendly town on the Tuk Chhou River south of Phnom Penh, 5km inland from the sea. Fishing and farming are the main activities.

Kampot offers a variety of volunteer opportunities that would welcome your support. Kampot Interact, a self funded information centre helps to link visitors with local projects. They include helping to teach English to local children and young adults, visit the local orphanage and much more.

Every 3-4 months, the Kampot Dar-laing newsletter is published with information and updates on volunteer projects, community enterprises and local cultural events.

There are also many tourist attractions and tours on offer in and around Kampot, including Bokor National Park, and nearby Rabbit Island.

If you are interested in coming to Kampot and may have a few hours, days, or months to volunteer, we'd love to hear from you.

For further information about Kampot Interact email info@kampotinteract.org.

Kampot Interact

Singapore Airport: Tom Hanks Redux?

Singapore's excellent Changi Airport is so plush and comfortable that for years many high school and university students have used its lounges as study spaces, and places to get away from the parents for some much appreciated privacy. No one seems to mind the students with their books and laptops, but it was surprising to hear that a middle-aged couple has apparently been living somewhere in the complex and spending time at Starbucks for several months now. Fortunately, most of the commenters think the couple should just be left alone, though the eerie resemblance to the Tom Hanks movie can't be missed.

SINGAPORE may have its own version of Tom Hanks in the 2004 Steven Spielberg-directed comedydrama, The Terminal. This time though, it's an Asian-looking pair apparently living and camping out at Changi Airport Terminal 2.

And in the day, the two - an elderly man and a middle-aged woman - can usually be found at the Starbucks outlet there. They both dressed well and the woman had make-up on.

The Terminal is about a traveller, played by Tom Hanks, who got stranded at John F. Kennedy airport after a coup in his home country. Unable to enter the US and unable to fly home because his passport is no longer valid, he waits out the war in the terminal.

Student Michelle Seah, 19, snapped a picture of the Terminal 2 couple and e-mailed it to the online news portal, Stomp. She said in her e-mail yesterday: "I started noticing them when I was studying there with my friends in October last year. "They usually hog the seats in the middle and they are there 24 hours, every day."

Michelle told Stomp that she saw the couple again when she was at the Starbucks outlet two days ago - that would mean the couple could have been 'living' there for about three months.

Asia One Travel

The Forgotten Train Museum of Bangkok

Richard Barrow of Thai-Blogs has once again made a wonderful discovery during his wanders around the back alleys of Bangkok, only this time it was a simple walk down the tracks at the now-closed Thonburi train station. And lo and behold, a collection of marvelous steam engines almost completely overlooked by guidebooks, but a lost goldmine for lovers of antique trains. Photo above by Richard Barrow.

While walking along the canal I came across the Thonburi Locomotive House. This is tucked behind the Thonburi Train Station near the banks of the Chao Phraya River. If you are a steam enthusiast then you will love this place. In the sheds were five steam trains that looked in good working order. I wandered around taking some pictures. No-one seemed to mind.

Thai-Blogs

Bangkok: Gentleman's Clubs Explained

The latest wrinkle in Bangkok's nightlife is the rising popularity of so-called "Gentleman's Clubs" (or "G-Clubs"), which provide a more upscale option to the go-go bars of Patpong, Nana and Soi Cowboy. The prices are higher but the classier environment and better quality girls make these clubs the current choices of many local expats and, of course, the wealthier visitors such as the Japanese who are long accustomed to buying full bottles and hiring hostesses to their tables.

Apparently, you can join the club and enjoy some discounts if you intend to spend time in Bangkok, or just pay slightly higher prices as a non-member, though it makes economic sense to visit these clubs in a group to share the costs.

The St. Mortiz has tables next to the stage, tables where you sit on stools, and also semi-private cabanas along the back wall.

The show alternates between an excellent band, a short stage production by the dancers, and all the dancers coming out in a kind of lineup where they slowly circulate across the front of the stage, dancing, and trying to interest customers in calling them over.

The stage is impressive, with Las Vegas quality lighting and the sound system including control and monitoring of the overall volume and sound balance is first class.

The club is very opulent and must have been decorated by the same designer used by The Soprano House-dark wood, red velvet, and low key neon mood lighting. Overall the club has a very classy and elegant feel—an order of magnitude classier than The Resort or The Pent.

Comment:

Except for the girls, these places are not that expensive. It costs the most if you go by yourself or with only one friend.

When you have 4 or 5 friends out for the evening, it is actually quite cost effective. You spend 3000 THB for a bottle and shared between 5 people it comes out to only 600 THB for alcohol for the evening. If your friends are not lushes or pounders there will probably be liquor left over you can drink on a future night.

Most of us easily spend this much buying a single drink at multiple GoGo bars on SC or Nana in an evening.

If you go Japanese Style and get 3 or 4 girls for each guy you can blow off a big wad,but this just isn’t the style of any farangs I know.

If you have some Japanese friends you should definitely consider wheedling your way into their party when they visit one of these places. There is nothing more fun than being with a group of free spending Japanese perverts with two or three girls for every guy and all the girls doing the best they can to down as much alcohol as they can stand while doing everything within their power to keep all the men happy.

If you go in a party of 4 or 5 and rent a girl for the evening, it will cost around 2000THB–expensive by BKK standards but very reasonable compared to the cost of a night out in a large city back in the USA-without the pleasure of decent female company.

2theBigMango

Bugis Schooners for Sale

How could I resist? Tired of your routine and want to sail around the remote islands of Indonesia on a traditional Bugis schooner? You could take a short cruise from Bali eastward through Nusa Tenggarra, but real nomads may prefer to purchase their own boat or have one custom constructed by a firm located in Jakarta. Songline Cruises has all the options to fulfill your fantasies.

Pojaman Molested, Pleads Not Guilty, Hubby Back in May

The wife of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has returned to Thailand, only to be molested by the evil looking stranger in the above photo. This may be Thailand, where all kinds of strange behavior is tolerated, but isn't this a bit too much? Her hubby in Hong Kong is expected back in May to take over the government, and certainly kick that guy's ass all the way to Buriram.

Khunying Pojaman Shina-watra pleaded not guilty in the Supreme Court yesterday to abuse of power in the Bt722-million purchase of a prime block of land on Bangkok's Ratchadaphisek Road. Pojaman said her husband and fellow defendant Thaksin would return to face trail in May.

"The defence requests 90 days to gather evidence and await the readiness of the co-defendant to jointly fight the charges, expected some time in May," Pojaman said in a prepared statement when she entered her plea.

The Nation

Ko Phangan Full Moon Party Disaster Report

The monthly full moon party on Ko Phangan is not without its perils, as reported today by an innocent bystander who experienced a nightmare attempting to get back to Ko Samui after a night of partying. She made it, but it's a fair warning to other travelers who expect to make the party a one-night affair rather than reserving a bungalow on the island.

Thats when the nightmare began! We got to the tiny marina which had seemed so calm when we arrived to see literally hundreds, if not thousands of people all waiting to get on to boats back to Samui both on the beach and lined up on the street above. You got down to the beach (easily a 20 foot drop) by means of a narrow, ricketty ladder not unlike you would find on the side of a swimming pool and really hard to manouver when you were sober, never mind drunk. There were sharp rocks across the beach which the tide had brought in with it, which made it impossible to get out to the boats. There were police, Thais and tourists all panicking, pushing, falling over in the water and hundreds wading out to get to the boats chest deep in water, fully clothed with bags held above their heads. The majority of the boats couldnt dock due to the vast amounts of people clambouring to get on them and many looked as though they could capsize at any moment due to them being mobbed.

People were screaming, crying for help, falling under the water, many with blood pouring from their feet due to cutting them on the rocks, fights were breaking out and I saw at least two people fall the 20 foot drop onto the beach, injuring themselves on the sharp vast rocks below. It was terrifying....there was no sign of our boat and even if there was we had no hope of getting on it. We considered trying to get booked into a place for the night on Koh Pha Ngan but the chances of that were remote as the island usually sells out weeks ahead around the Full Moon Party.

We got talking to these two Aussie couples who were also stranded and desperate to get back to Samui as they had a flight to catch later that morning. There were loads of Thai fisherman offering to take us on their boats for the princely sum of 6000 baht (a hundred quid) but we told them to get on their bikes. The Aussie couples had been speaking to one guy who said he would take the 6 of us back to Samui for 2500 baht (about 40 quid between us) which seemed more reasonable and by now it was nearly 5am and the panic on the beaches showed no sign of dying down. So we agreed and left expecting to get into a speedboat.....wrong, it was a longtail fishing boat, slightly larger than a rowing boat with a poxy little engine that got us to about 10mph! So amid crashing waves, the salt water stinging our sunburnt skin, we set off for ther journey across the choppy ocean to Samui which had taken just 20 minutes on the way over.

An hour and a forty five minutes later, bedraggled and drenched from head to toe in fishy seawater and nursing the worst hangovers in history, we arrived on Big Buddha Beach on Samui, stone cold sober and in silence. One Aussie girl had passed out and I found the only way to deal with the feeling of seasickeness was to put my head in my hands and try not to cry. One of the Aussie blokes started to sing Happy Birthday to me but the look on my face shut him up in seconds. It was nearly 6am and we were supposed to be checking out of our bungalow at 11am to travel on to the next island on our hitlist, Koh Tao. No chance!

Travelpod Report on Ko Phangan Full Moon Party Disaster

Maverick's Surf Stories and Images

While I missed (again) the Maverick's surfing contest last week, the SF Chronicle features a page with current and past stories about the fabled contest, as well as images from the 2008 event.

Thousands of big-wave surfing fans straggled onto a small beach north of Half Moon Bay on Saturday morning to watch - or try to watch - the greatest surfers in the world battle the worst that the Pacific Ocean can throw at them.

Watching the fabled Maverick's contest from the beach seemed nearly as challenging as riding the waves themselves, as close-in breakers blocked the view of the waves that the competitors were riding about a half-mile offshore.

When it was all over, the judges awarded first place to Greg Long, 24, of San Clemente (Orange County), largely on the basis of one superb ride on which he and his 9 1/2-foot-long blue board seemed to descend nearly straight down the face of a gigantic wave. He got a 10, a perfect score.

SF Chroncile Link to Maverick's Stories and Images

Aussie Croc Story

While Bigfoot has apparently been spotted on Mars, the Aussies are making their own fun with the recent incident of an attempted croc murder muddled by poor shooting.

The crocodile seized the man's arm and shook him
A man has been accidentally shot by a rescuer who was trying to free him from the jaws of a crocodile in northern Australia.

The victim, in his late 20s, was attacked by the reptile near a popular tourist spot on the Mary River south-east of Darwin. Crocodile attacks and shootings are rare in Australia.

To suffer both at once is - to say the least - unfortunate.

Jason Grant was collecting crocodile eggs at a remote reptile farm when he found himself locked inside a giant set of jaws. For a few terrifying moments the animal wildly shook its victim before the intervention of a fellow worker. He fired two shots at the saltwater crocodile. One hit the target, while the other struck the arm of his stricken colleague. It was enough though to bring the drama to an end.

BBC

Bigfoot on Mars?

Bigger than the demise of Heath Ledger is the apparent spotting of Bigfoot in a NASA image taken on the surface of Mars, but only spotted by a sharp eyed Bigfoot lover this week. Cover up? Another NASA conspiracy? Have men really been to the Moon or was the whole thing faked? Here's the scoop:

Is it Bigfoot? A Tusken Raider from the first "Star Wars" movie? Or just a rock?

British newspapers went crazy Wednesday morning about an image from Mars that appears to show a humanoid figure descending a shallow hillside.

The "alien" is actually a blurry detail in a huge panoramic photograph snapped on the edge of Mars' Gusev crater by NASA's Spirit rover in early November, and posted on NASA's Web site on Jan. 2.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,324800,00.html

New Government Announced for Thailand

Samak announced a new Thai government to be led by a coalition of six parties, with the prime minister and cabinet as pictured above during his news conference yesterday. Samak, as usual, lost his temper with the press and picked a fight with several reporters after inquiring about their sexual escapades. Hold on folks, it's going to be a wild ride.

Samak Sundaravej, leader of the People Power Party, yesterday pledged to unveil the PPP-led Cabinet in 15 days after he introduced his six-party coalition backed by a solid majority of 315 MPs.

However, the euphoria at the press conference called at Bangkok's Sukhothai Hotel to showcase the coalition was ruined by coalition leader Samak when he became testy after he was asked about becoming the prime minister.

"Why raise an inappropriate question? If I don't answer, I'll be picked on non-stop, though I think the question is quite annoying," he said, while managing to evade saying how confident he was in securing the top job.

Sources close to Samak suggested the new government's priority was amending the 2007 Constitution. Then it would likely dissolve the House and call a snap election, which meant it might be in office just one year, the sources said.

The excitement over the coalition announcement dissipated when Samak returned to the podium to answer questions. His mood turned sour after reporters asked him about his plans in lining up his Cabinet and about his chances of getting elected by the House to lead the government.

He abruptly ended the press conference after saying he would be in a position to comment on his leadership after the six coalition members met to nominate him as premier.

The Nation

Rambo Burma Flick

Sylvester Stallone finished his Rocky series with his sixth installment, and now retires Rambo with the latest epic filmed on the borderlands of Thailand and eastern Burma. I saw him this morning on Good Morning America where he passionately emphasized the terrible situation in Burma, and defended his use of human growth hormones to keep up his physique.

After much fanfare, the Hollywood movie “He is Back” premieres on January 25. The movie features action hero Rambo on a rescue mission to Burma and was filmed on location around Chiang Mai in Thailand.

The British newspaper, Daily Mail, quoted leading actor Sylvester Stallone as saying: “I witnessed the aftermath [in Burma]—survivors with legs cut off and all kinds of land mine injuries, maggot-infested wounds and ears cut off.

“We saw many elephants with blown-off legs. We hear about Vietnam and Cambodia, but this was more horrific," he reportedly said. "This is a hellhole beyond your wildest dreams," Stallone said. "All the trails are mined. The only way into Burma is up the river."

The fourth in a series of “Rambo” films, this time the Hollywood action hero heads into the Burmese jungle to rescue Western missionaries abducted by the Burmese military. Many Burmese are planning to watch the movie; but several have different expectations.

The Irrawaddy

Vietnam: Snakes on a Plane

Never a dull moment with the animal smugglers in Southeast Asia, who perhaps have seen Samuel Jackson in action. But labeling the shipment "fresh fish" won't make the grade.

Ton of snakes on a plane to Vietnam

A Vietnam Airlines flight to Hanoi arrived from Bangkok with a tonne of live grass-snakes, Vietnam Net news agency reported on Friday. Sixty bags marked “fresh fish,” marked for a fake address in Hanoi were inspected by customs officers who discovered the snakes on Thursday, the agency said.

Snakes are banned from being transported across regional borders into Vietnam; they were transferred to the Soc Son Wildlife Rescue Centre. The agency quoted an official from the Noi Bai Goods Service Joint Stock Company as saying this is the first time live snakes have been discovered. Related agencies are seeking the snake senders and receivers.

Last Dec 19, Thai Airways transported more than 700 dead snakes from Indonesia to Vietnam, also registered as fresh fish. Customs officers didn’t discover the sender or receiver’s identities. The dead snakes were destroyed.

Bangkok Post

And on a more serious note:

Vietnamese authorities again found hundreds of illegally smuggled snakes on a flight from Bangkok. This incident makes it the fifth time in the last 12 months that a Thai Airways plane has been found to have a huge quantity of protected wildlife on board. We all have been told many times that our capital Bangkok is the city that houses the head office of the Asean Wildlife Enforcement Network (WEN) that was set up three years ago to stop the illegal wildlife trade. Now three years later you can order as much illegal wildlife as you wish at the Chatuchak weekend market and get it shipped by plane to any international location of your choice; it will leave Suvarnabhumi Airport undetected. Let's just face it: we can keep the name "Asean-WEN", but until we finally see some action we will just call it the Asean Wildlife Export Network.

Edwin Wiek
Director and Founder
Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand
www.wfft.org

The Nation

Al Qaida in Thailand?

Who's behind the Islamic jihad of southern Thailand? Many believe the jihadists are an independent group whose roots of unrest go back almost a century, but some insist that the tactics are increasingly similar to those used by Al Qaida operatives elsewhere in the world. It's a controversial call sidesided by Thai government officials until yesterday, when government spokeman Chaiya Yimvilai speculated about the possible connection. The hot button topic was almost immediately denied Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, who probably hasn't seen the horrific images posted
here.

Thailand's military-installed government said Friday that the violent Islamic insurgency in the country's south had intensified due to an influx of funding from local drug traffickers and many international supporters.

Government Spokesman Chaiya Yimvilai said the foreign funding could have come from terrorist groups, but he refused to name any such groups or say where they might be based.

Analysts have long been divided over whether Thai insurgents are plugging into a broader Islamic movement or would rather be on their own in their four-year rebellion
Chaiya's assertions are the latest indication that the separatist rebellion, which has already killed more than 2,800 people, is tapping support from abroad to support its campaign of bombings and killings.

Responding to reporters' question about a possible link to Al-Qaida, Chaiya said it was "possible that there may be some links" with the insurgency in Thailand's south.

However, the claim was promptly shot down by Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont when asked about the assertion. "We don't have such information but I believe they may be linked ideologically. We don't know for a fact if they are connected," Surayud said.

Over the years, the militants themselves and the government have suggested that the rebels were training in nearby Indonesia, attending religious schools in the Middle East and receiving funding from across the border in Muslim-majority Malaysia — or as far away as Saudi Arabia

International Herald Tribune

YouTube - Achmed the Dead Terrorist

International Conference on Thai Studies Update

The 10th International Conference on Thai Studies concluded last week, and several of the lectures in PDF format have been released. More information can be found at New Mandala and Fringer (see below), a bilingual blog on Thailand.

Papers about the Thai Monarchy
ศ.ดร. นิธิ วิจารณ์
“The King Never Smiles”

Most papers relating to the Thai monarchy presented at the 10th International Conference on Thai Studies (3 sessions) can now be downloaded from this blog:

Celebrating Kingship, Worrying about the Monarchy by Irene Stengs [PDF, 9 pages]

Princes, Politicians, Bureaucrats, Generals: The Evolution of the Privy Council under the Constitutional Monarchy by Paul Handley [PDF, 20 pages]

How the Crown Property Bureau Survive the 1997 Economic Crisis? by Porphant Ouyyanont [PDF, 1 page - abstract only]

Lese Majeste Law and Mainstream Newspapers’ Self-Censorship: The Upward Spiral Effect and its Counter Reaction by Pravit Rojanapruk [PDF, 12 pages]

Ramification and Re-Sacralization of the Lèse Majesté Law in Thailand by Somchai Preechasilpakul and David Streckfuss [PDF, 22 pages]

In addition, here is the full review of Paul Handley’s book “The King Never Smiles” by Prof.Dr. Nithi Eoseewong, which he didn’t have time to finish presenting at the seminar (it’s in Thai, but I can translate it into English if any non-Thai reader is interested; please leave your comments below this post):

Fringer Link with PDFs of International Conference on Thai Studies

Pai Murder Update: The CBC Video

Canadian backpacker Del Pinto was buried today in Calgary, attended by over 600 mourners. The excellent CBC video link below includes footage of the reenactment of the crime by the police officer, as well as comments from the father of Del Pinto.

CBC Video of Funeral and Reenactment of the Murder>

More than 600 mourners packed a Calgary church Thursday morning for the funeral of Leo Del Pinto, who was shot to death in northern Thailand last week.

Family members wept as Del Pinto's coffin, draped in a white cloth, was carried into Our Lady of Grace Church in northeast Calgary. Mourners overflowed into the church's foyer for the hour-long funeral mass.

There was no eulogy as Del Pinto's two sisters spoke during visitation on Wednesday night, but the 24-year-old is being remembered as a hero for coming to the aid of his friend Carly Reisig.

Reisig, who is still recovering in hospital in Thailand, said a man — later identified as an off-duty Thai policeman — punched her in the face as she and Del Pinto were leaving a restaurant in the town of Pai on Jan. 6. She said Del Pinto stepped in to defend her.

"The man fell down, he came back up with a gun in his hand," Reisig said in an interview with CBC News on Wednesday. "Leo tried to grab the gun and they had their hands in the air.

Carly Reisig, who is still recovering in a Thai hospital, said a man attacked her and Leo Del Pinto without warning. "The police officer got the gun, swung it around, pointed it not even a foot from Leo's head, shot him in the head. He fell down, shot him in the chest, moved the gun over to me and shot me right in the chest."

Sgt. Uthai Dechawiwat has been charged with premeditated murder and attempted murder. He is back on the job.

CBC on Del Pinto Funeral

Tonic Rays Tonight in Bangkok

Unless there's a snap election and liquor sales are suspended, Joe Cummings and his Tonic Rays will play this Friday, Jan. 18, at the Roadhouse at Rama IV and Suriwong. It's a CD release party plus a warm up band, and within walking distance of a few cocktails on Patpong.

Helping Out in Cambodia

Cambodia may be among the poorest countries in the world, but the wonderful nature of the people seems to bring out the volunteer spirit in a surprising number of young foreigners, who display an inordinate amount of self motivation to help in every way possible. I previously mentioned the American high school lady to raised money to construct a school near Siem Reap, and here's a pair of other examples of selfless humanitarian work which deserves everybody's support.

Project Enlighten was developed by two passionate individuals who were sparked by a chance encounter with a very young landmine survivor, begging on the sweltering streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Originally formed as the Landmine College Fund in 2006, the Founders recognized the need for a professional, accountable non-profit organization to facilitate educational opportunities in Southeast Asia, or wherever the call may come from.

In this way, Project Enlighten aims to provide self-sustainable educational and humanitarian assistance to those who need it most, our most cherished resource for the future, the children of the world. Together with your support we can make a difference one child at a time.

Project Enlighten

Deborah Groves sat down with a magazine recently and read about how some in our western society are now bleaching their eyeballs to match their sparkling whitened teeth.

Surrounded by extreme poverty in the Cambodian home she has lived in since 2005, the Coast photographer was at a loss to reconcile the two realities. “I couldn’t understand it,” Deborah, 42, said. “I just couldn’t believe it. I rarely get to see a women’s magazine and someone had brought a couple over for me to Cambodia.

“In the past I had always enjoyed reading magazines but I just put that one down and went back to work.”

Work for Deborah now focuses on helping to empower her new neighbours in the Prasat Char village in Siem Reap province in the mid-north-west of Cambodia with her charity Helping Hands Cambodia.

In less than two years she has helped them to build a bridge, which improves work opportunities for the villagers; build a school, which gives 300 children a rudimentary education and which features the only toilet in the village; as well as constructing water pumps to provide clean drinking water.

Much of the last 12 months has been focussed on establishing a new eye treatment program which has saved the sight of numerous villagers, a “full bellies” breakfast program for students at the school and the “work for a bicycle” program.

“Every household in the village has now earned a bike,” Deborah says, brimming with pride. “We don’t just give them a bike; they have to work for it. It costs them $5 and they have to work for Helping Hands for a day doing things in the village. If they can’t afford the $5 they can earn the bike by working for four days.

“The effect of a program like this is not only that they get a bike which they can use to go to work or high school in Siem Reap, but it also enhances their dignity and I am proud of that.

“We are not turning them into beggars. We want to facilitate them helping themselves. We want to help train up the younger people so they can become leaders in their village, because they are the hope for the future of the country.

“It would be so easy to just go in there and see a family needs some new clothes and give them to them, but that doesn’t give them dignity because they then come to feel they have to rely on other people.”

The Daily on Helping Hands Cambodia

Phuket Yacht Murder Mystery Update

Aside from a pair of mentions in the Phuket Gazette, and speculation on the Thai Visa Forum, there's little word on progress in one of strangest murder incidents in recent years in Thailand. And that's saying a lot, but at least the alleged scuba diver/intruder has been identified, though his relationship with the yachtie and his female companion remains a mystery, and that may be the key to understanding the case.

After days of intense speculation, Chalong Police investigating the bizarre death of a frogman who attacked a Swiss yacht owner and a Thai woman on the night of January 9 have finally identified the attacker as German national Peter Michael Schmid, aged 35.

The investigation by Chalong Police included showing pictures of the deceased frogman to hotel employees in Kata-Karon and Rawai. Chalong Police Superintendent Col Samarn Chainarong told the Gazette that police still believe the attack was a botched robbery because Schmid had a gun, knife and black electrical tape with him when he boarded the vessel, a 10-meter sailboat named Maria.

Schmid was also thought to have been suffering from stomach cancer at the time of his death, Col Samarn added.

Most of the details of the attack, as provided to the media at a press conference on January 10, are based on the eye-witness account of 25-year-old Trat native Porntip Pradit. (Click here for original report.)

After the attack, Schmid’s body was recovered by police and rescue workers about 70 meters from Maria. He had sustained two large wounds: one to under his left eye and the other to his left wrist, inflicted by a gaff, or boat hook, kept aboard Maria.

Doctors at Vachira Phuket Hospital confirmed that the cause of death was blood loss from the wound to his wrist, Col Samarn said. The victim Mr Orberson, 50, was rushed to Phuket International Hospital, where he was initially kept in the Intensive Care Unit for a gunshot wound to his shoulder. He was released on Saturday, before he could be questioned by police.

Chalong Police say they know where Mr Oberson is and that they plan to question him soon. They will have to file murder charges against him as a matter of procedure, though they expect the charges to be dropped eventually because all of the available evidence indicates that he was acting in self-defense.

Mr Oberson had come to Thailand with his wife and two young children, a boy and a girl, all three of whom were staying at a resort on Koh Racha Yai when the incident took place, Col Samarn said.

Col Samarn confirmed reports that Schmid had previously taken a dive course with local dive operator Dive Asia. A spokesperson for Dive Asia confirmed that a man named Peter Michael Schmid completed a dive course with the operator within the past three years, but declined to give additional information.

Phuket Gazette

Discount Prostitutes in Singapore

Many people are surprised to hear that squeaky clean Singapore has legal prostitution, albeit limited to certain neighborhoods and closely regulated by the government. A few short streets in Chinatown are designated for the working girls, while there's a disgusting alley in Little India and the widest selection in the traditional Malay neighborhood of Geylang.

As the festive Chinese New Year season approaches, the girls in Chinatown have gotten a bit aggressive about their sales spiel with discounts for the wandering male. Not sure if Westerners are welcome, but there's always Orchard Towers ("four floors of whores") on Orchard Road, where most of the freelance Thai and Filipino ladies hang out.

Towards the end of the Chinese lunar year, Chinatown is crowded with people and stalls selling festive goods. Everyone there is trying to make as much money as they can during this festive period, even the Chinese prostitutes in the area are "working hard".

They have now started looking for customers along the streets even before it gets dark, in the hope of earning a little more money before returning to their hometowns to celebrate the New Year.

Shin Min Daily News readers told the Chinese paper that these prostitutes from China were seen along the overhead bridge garden in Chinatown in the afternoon soliciting men. When a reporter visited the scene, besides the crowd shopping for New Year goodies, she noticed there were also a number of Chinese women loitering in the area. They were scantily-dressed and on the look out for potential customers.

Throughout the three hours that the photographer was there, the women would smile and even wave, acknowledging the reporter's presence. They often appear in pairs and upon finding their "quarry", would start chatting the men up.

According to reports from Shin Ming Daily News, these China prostitutes have reduced their fees from the original $70-$80 to a mere $50. The reporter also overheard one woman asking her customer to look her up at the overhead bridge. Some people have mentioned that they are appearing earlier than ever - sometimes as early as one in the afternoon.

These women are believed to have arrived in Singapore on tourist visas, and thus have a limited two to three weeks to 'earn as much as they can' before returning to China.

Asia One News

China: Citroen Removes Ad, Apologizes

Citroen withdrew the above ad from a Spanish advertising campaign and has made a formal apology. But why? China is full of colorful and often humorous Mao images used to sell everything from t-shirts to watches, and the Chinese public seems to take it all with a grain of salt and acceptable humor. So why would Citroen cave in? Whatever the reason, it's generated them a great deal of worldwide publicity, but also made them the butt of more than a few barbs.

French car-maker Citroen has apologized to China for running a full-page advertisement in several Spanish newspapers featuring a poster of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong pulling a wry face at a sporty hatch-back.

Under the Biblical quotation "Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's", the text talked up Citroen's position as a car sales leader in a bombastic tone.

"It's true, we are leaders, but at Citroen the revolution never stops," the advertisement said. "We are once more going to put in motion all the machinery of our technological ability, in order to repeat in 2008 the successes obtained in previous years," it added.

The Mao poster is similar to the huge painting of the Great Helmsman gazing out over Beijing's Tiananmen Square, except that it has been distorted to show lips screwed up and eyes squinting.

"The image has been wantonly distorted by the ad's designers. Mao looks very strange," Chinese state newspaper the Global Times observed on Tuesday. The scowling Mao had infuriated Chinese Internet users who saw it as a slight, it said.

Reuters

Bangkok: Dean Barrett Newsletter

I didn't realize that famed author Dean Barrett put out a twice monthly newsletter with updates and photos of the local nightlife, including both of the weird and wonderful images above. His newsletter won't win any awards for graphic design, and there's no way to subscribe and of course no RSS feed, but there's a wealth of good reading and some intriguing links for further exploration.

Links You Might Enjoy

A video of a five-minute walk down Soi Cowboy. Click here and then click "preview videos."

http://www.pbar.info/videos.html

Like to check out some bars in Thailand? Try http://www.bangkokbarfun.com.

Like to know what music is playing where in Bangkok each week? Try http://www.bangkokgigguide.com.

Like to know more in depth about what music is playing where in Bangkok each week? Try this great site: http://www.bangkokjungle.com.

Tired of shoveling snow? Check out Bangkok's sunshine. Bangkok's weather report.

A great site for listening to Thai Morlan music and other folk music of Southeast Asia. www.monsoon-country.org

Like to learn a bit about retiring in Asia? http://www.retiredexpat.com

Maps of all the provinces of Thailand: http://www.thailand-guide.org/maps/index.htm

Listen to RadioBangkok.net: mms://wma.radiobangkok.net/bangkok32?MSWMExt=.asf

Links You Might Not Enjoy

T-Shirt Hell: for lovers of very black humor only: http://www.tshirthell.com.

Politically incorrect rants and raves from Uncle Fred: http://www.fredoneverything.net

Girlfriends looking for Taliban boyfriends: Taliban Singles Dating Page

Dean Barrett January Newsletter

Indonesia: Suharto's Final Days

Suharto probably won't last but a few more days, but regional leaders are arriving in Jakarta to pay their last respects, including the other elder patriarch of the region, Lee Kuan Yew. Also in his last years, Lee had nothing but kind words for the old dictator, perhaps hoping he'll receive the same benevolent treatment when he also finds himself hooked up to ventilators with the world's press looking on. Asia Sentinel offers a less than rosey look at the Singaporean's comments about the wise and gracious ways of one of the world's most despicable dictators.

Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew provided the hypocrisy. This is the “minister mentor” who has virtually created a leadership cult from his aversion to corruption, a man of famously high morals who encouraged pursuit of an opposition leader to bankruptcy for his alleged abuse of $140 worth of university postage. And yet here he was rushing to the deathbed of a political contemporary regarded as the 20th century’s biggest thief, who the World Bank and UN said stole as much as $35 billion, more than $1 billion for each of his 32 years in power in one of the world’s poorest countries.

"I feel sad to see a very old friend with whom I had worked closely over the last 30 years not really getting the honours that he deserves,” said Lee, who at 84 to Suharto’s 86 is perhaps sensing his own mortality. “He deserves recognition for what he did,” he told the Singapore media at the republic’s embassy. “That's why I came here to visit him.”

After visiting the old man’s bedside, Lee clarified his position on the morality of theft: “What’s a few billion dollars lost in bad excesses?” he told reporters, comparing Suharto favorably to Ne Win of Burma, who took power three years before Suharto and drove his country to absolute penury. “He built hundreds of billions of dollars worth of assets.”

Lee, a member of JP Morgan Chase’s international advisory board, earlier had a unique take on Indonesia’s economic ills.

"From '67 when he became president right up to '97, the economy grew and Indonesia was on the point of taking off the economy. (That) it didn't take off (is) not because of his fault (but) because Bank Indonesia's interest rate was too high, and so the companies borrowed in US dollars for low interest rates.”

“When confidence was lost after the Thai baht crisis and people wanted to pull their money out, the whole thing collapsed. It was not his fault."

Much of that is nonsense. Suharto’s legacy was a collapsed economy, utterly dysfunctional state institutions, a putrid judiciary, radicalized mosques, a nation in an advanced state of break-up and a culture of corruption so deeply inculcated, indeed so normal to many Indonesians, that it will take generations to properly cleanse. It is bizarre to suggest that the mid-1990s financial crisis was caused by Bank Indonesia’s interest rate policy as if it was somehow independent of the palace.

Economic policy in Suharto’s Indonesia, particularly in its wildly-grasping latter days (remember the Bre-X mining scandal?), was led by his closest cronies and his avaricious family, some of whom he’d placed in his cabinet, presiding over ministries directly related to their business empires, which were broad. Rates responded to the mismanagement of the day, and the bank’s – and for this read every prominent institution ‑ powers as a regulator of the economy were neutered by the pillaging palace.

Suharto ran it all as a mafia don, by fiat. Indeed, it is notable that the primary civil case against Suharto being pursued by the government centers on $1.55 billion being channelled through the central bank and ending up, unaccounted for, in a Suharto-related “charity.” The Asian financial crisis simply exposed what a corrupt mismanaged mess it all was, and to some extent still is, and that things were not at all what they had appeared when Suharto and family were courting big international money through the 1980s and into the 1990s.

In attempting to set the tone of eulogies for his old friend and occasional sparring partner, the octogenarian Lee showed how out of touch he is, if, charitably, that’s what it is. He seems to have forgotten that Suharto’s corruption also cost his beloved Singapore billions after Indonesia’s economy collapsed in 1997-98. Singapore was hammered by the contagion, falling into recession but it also committed US$5 billion to the IMF-led bailout.

Asia Sentinel

Philippines: Cebu's Dancing Prisoners

While almost everyone has seen the YouTube video of the prisoners dancing to Michael Jackson's "Thriller," few articles have looked at the wider ramifications of what appears at first to be a superficial exhibition. Apparently, the prisoners love the exercise routine and the administration enjoys the worldwide publicity, to the point where dance exhibitions by prisoners are now taking place near city hall in Cebu City, and they might even perform in the upcoming Cebu Sinulog festival this weekend. There's the small matter of security, but it seems like everyone wants the prisoners to join in one of the wildest and most colorful festivals in Southeast Asia.

YouTube footage, uploaded in mid-July, shows the prisoners dancing to the Michael Jackson song "Thriller." It has been viewed more than 10 million times and become one of the most popular clips ever on the video-sharing Web site. The skit features Niere, playing Jackson, and Resane, as the "girl," along with more than 1,500 other inmates performing in the background.

This month, the prison authorities tried to take their show, in a manner of speaking, on the road. Byron Garcia, a security consultant for the prison, tried to enter a troupe of 100 inmates in the Sinulog festival this Sunday, a lavish street-dancing festival in honor of the child Jesus and the biggest tourist event in Cebu.

International Herald Tribune

Gem Warnings from U.S. Govt.

The U.S. Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs has revamped their website and updated most of their listings, including Thailand which dates from November 2007. Along with the boilerplate information are travelers warnings about gem scams, problems with tuk tuk drivers, and knock out drugs which sometimes make an appearance in Bangkok and Pattaya.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) receives over 1,000 complaints each year from visitors who have been cheated on gem purchases. Gem scams usually follow a predictable pattern. Someone will approach a tourist outside of a well-known tourist attraction such as the Grand Palace or the Jim Thompson House and will say that the attraction is closed. The friendly stranger will quickly gain the tourist’s confidence, and will suggest a visit to a temple that is supposedly open only one day per year; the stranger will then mention in passing that a special once-a-year government-sponsored gem sale is going on, and will direct the tourist to a waiting tuk-tuk.

At the temple, another stranger – sometimes a foreigner – will engage the tourist in conversation and will, by seeming coincidence, also mention the “special” gem sale. The tourist agrees to go look at the gem shop, and is soon convinced to buy thousands of dollars worth of jewels that can supposedly be sold in the U.S. for a 100% profit. When the tourist actually has the goods appraised, they turn out to be of minimal value, and the shop’s money-back guarantee is not honored. No matter what a tout may say, no jewelry stores are owned, operated, or sponsored by the Thai Government or by the Thai royal family.

Lists of gem dealers who have promised to abide by TAT guidelines are available online at http://www.tatnews.org/special_interest/shopping/979.asp, while detailed information on gem scams can be found on numerous Internet websites. A traveler who has fallen victim to a gem scam should contact the local branch of the Tourist Police, or call their country-wide toll-free number: 1155.

Although most bars and entertainment venues operate honestly, some, especially in tourist areas such as Patpong, at times try to charge exorbitant amounts for drinks or unadvertised cover charges, and threaten violence if the charges are not paid. If victimized in this fashion, travelers should not attempt to resolve the problem themselves, but should instead pay the price demanded and then seek out a nearby Tourist Police officer for help in getting restitution. (If no officer is nearby, the Tourist Police may be contacted toll-free by dialing 1155.)

There have been occasional reports of scopolamine drugging perpetrated by prostitutes or unscrupulous bar workers for the purpose of robbery. (Scopolamine is a powerful sedative.) Tourists have also been victimized by drugged food and drink, usually offered by a friendly stranger, sometimes posing as fellow traveler on an overnight bus or train. In addition, casual acquaintances met in a bar or on the street may pose a threat. Travelers are advised to avoid leaving drinks or food unattended, and should avoid going alone to unfamiliar venues. Some trekking tour companies, particularly in Northern Thailand, have been known to make drugs available to trekkers. Travelers should not accept drugs of any kind, as the drugs may be altered or harmful, and the use or sale of narcotic drugs is illegal in Thailand.

U.S. State Dept Thailand Sheet

Thailand Videos from Thailand Travel Q&A

A new blog from Thailand features a page of videos from Thailand, including Bangkok traffic, a nighttime tuk tuk ride, the full moon party on Ko Phangan, a train through the Samut Prakan market, and a stroll down Khao San Road.



YouTube Video of Bangkok Traffic



YouTube Video of Nighttime Tuk Tuk Ride in Bangkok

Thailand Travel Q&A Videos

Long-Necks: Political Refugees or Tourism Resource?

The famous long-neck Padaung people from Burma have served as tourist attractions near Mae Hong Son for almost 20 years now, and some are anxious to move on to greener pastures, but local Thai officials keep moving the goalposts in an apparent effort to protect this lucrative tourism enterprise. Are these people "Thai hilltribes" or political refugees who should be granted emigration rights to other countries such as New Zealand? Thai government officials and tourism authorities refuse to let these people go, or even integrate into Thai society, and so they remain stranded on the tourism trail of northern Thailand.

Zember, also called Mu Lon, has not rejected her culture, but she now sees her rings as a weapon of exploitation by powerful local Thai authorities. Long-neck tourism is big business in Mae Hong Son, but little of the money returns to the Kayans — the operations have always been run by Thais.

"It is the No. 1 attraction in this area. It's why tourists come here," said Wanchai Thiansiri, a Chiang Mai-based tour guide. "They may go to see caves as well, but the long-necks are the attraction."

About 100 Kayans (also known by the Burmese name Padaung), fled across the Burma border to Thailand from Kayah state in the late 1980s when civil war between Karenni separatists and the Burmese army became too intense.

The Australian Age

Helping Out in Cambodia

One of the most inspiring stories I've read in some time, the amazing efforts of Rachel Rosenfeld, 17, only prove that individuals can truly make a difference on this planet.

Hundreds of Cambodian villagers welcomed the arrival of a new school Wednesday, a gift from an American teenager who raised $52,000 after reading about the hardships of growing up in Cambodia.

Rachel Rosenfeld, 17, made her first visit to the Southeast Asian country for the opening of the R.S. Rosenfeld School, which brings five computers and Internet access to 300 primary school students in a small village of Siem Reap province, a poverty stricken area that is home to the country's famed Angkor Wat temple complex.

Rosenfeld, of Harrison, New York, said she learned about the village of Srah Khvav after reading a newspaper article last year that discussed the plight of poor Cambodian children who often have no access to education

To raise money, Rosenfeld sent out hundreds of fundraising letters, sold T-shirts and offered naming rights for several structures in the school, a statement said. The $52,000 she raised was supplemented by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, which contributed $10,000 and $13,000, respectively, said her mother, Lisa Rosenfeld.

"It makes me feel great to know that I was able to help so many people," the teen said when contacted by telephone. "Just seeing everyone so happy (today). It meant a lot to me."

She was accompanied by her parents, grandparents and her brother and sister.

Children in white shirts and navy pants, the Cambodian school uniform, stood in two neat lines and clapped as Rosenfeld and her family arrived. The students pressed their palms together in a sign of respect and thanks.

"Going to school is very important to everyone's future," Rosenfeld said at the opening ceremony, according to a statement. "If I can build this school, then each of you can set goals for yourselves that you can reach."

MSNBC

Volunteering in Thailand: Recent Links

A recent story in the Washington Post relates some familiar stories about volunteer work in Thailand, then provides some timely links and contacts for those who wish to do good while enjoying the country. Most of us assume that Khao Lak and other regions devastated by the tsunami are now fully recovered, but there's still plenty of work to do and people to help.

Helping Tsunami Victims

VOLUNTEERING AT THE ORPHANAGE: Volunteers at the Duang Prateep Foundation orphanage are asked to commit at least one month of their time; there is no charge to volunteer. The orphanage also welcomes groups for as little as a day to organize such activities as a sports day, a trip outside the orphanage or a party with games and crafts; groups are asked to submit their proposals.

Longer-term volunteers may stay for free at the orphanage, but "you have to be a very simple person; there is no pizza or McDonald's," said orphanage director Rotjana Phraesrithong. Alternately, volunteers may stay in nearby hotels or resorts and work during the day.

To volunteer, send a resume to the foundation (http://dpffound@ksc.th.com) and the orphanage director (rotjanadpf@hotmail.com).

FINANCIAL SUPPORT: Visitors should seek out the Than Nam Jai restaurant and gift shop, operated by the foundation. They are in the village of Bang Muang, near Takuapa, opposite the PTT gas station.

To donate to the orphanage, follow the instructions on the foundation's Web site, http://www.dpf.or.th (click on "English"). Donations are tax-deductible for U.S. citizens if funneled through the Flame of Hope Foundation (608-637-7710, http://www.flameofhope.org). Either way, note that you wish your donation to go to the orphanage and 100 percent of the funds will be sent there.

TSUNAMI VOLUNTEER CENTER: Jobs vary depending on when you visit, but they can include painting, building and teaching English. The center asks for at least one week of your time and charges a registration fee of about $96. (The fee is waived for returning volunteers.) For applications and more information: http://www.tsunamivolunteer.net.

COMMUNITY-BASED TOURISM: A brochure about visiting Baan Tha Din Daeng village is available through the Kenan Institute Asia (011-662-229-3131 in Bangkok; or the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise in North Carolina, 919-962-8201; or e-mail Nakorn Amornwatpong (nakorna@kiasia.org). You can find general information about the organization and its post-tsunami work at http://www.kiasia.org; click on "Tsunami Recovery," then "Community-based Tsunami Recovery." A one-day visit, including activities and lunch, costs about $97 per person.

Prices have not yet been set for guesthouse and home-stay visits in Baan Num Sai village, which plans to begin operations in early 2008. Contact the Kenan Institute or e-mail Nakorn for updates.

Contra Costa Times

The Angkor Wat Admission Fee Scandal

Admission to Angkor Wat archaeological park is $20 per day, and I suspect that most visitors consider this a reasonable fee to experience one of the world's great wonders, especially since some of the fee is supposedly earmarked for preservation efforts. Then you notice that many of the monuments are in poor condition, and that those under reconstruction are often signposted as supported by grants from various international organizations, with little evidence that your $20 was involved in the restoration efforts.

Well, guess what? Most of it apparently disappears into the black hole of Cambodian corruption, in this case controlled by one of the country's largest economic consortiums. Cambodia Mirror translates a document that uncovers the scandal that is Angkor Wat admission fees.

“Parliamentarian Son Chhay wrote a letter to Prime Minister Mr. Hun Sen, asking him to reconsider the rights granted the Sokimex company to administer Angkor Wat. In a letter to Prime Minister Mr. Hun Sen on 10 January 2008, Mr. Son Chhay pointed out that the rights granted to Oknha Sok Kong’s company to administer Angkor Wat makes the state lose not less than $50 million each year.

“In 2007 alone, the income from tourists visiting Angkor Wat was approximately US$50 million, but the government gave a contract to Oknha Sok Kong’s company to manage Angkor Wat, through which the state gets every year only US$10 million from the company. As a consequence, Angkor Wat, which is the most important Khmer heritage, easily benefits Sok Kong’s company not less than $50 million each year.

Therefore, Mr. Son Chhay asked the government, especially Prime Minister Mr. Hun Sen, to reconsider the contract given to the Sokimex Company to administer Angkor Wat; otherwise, the government will continue to lose benefits while the company does not do anything to protect or maintain Angkor Wat. This means that the Sokimex Company of Oknha Sok Kong can sleep and still wait to easily receive benefits from the historical heritage of all Khmers.

“But will the government take Angkor Wat away from being managed by the businessman Sok Kong or not? By retaining Sok Kong’s company to manage Angkor Wat, officials get much money into their own pockets, but the government gets little. When the government has little money, it cannot spend much on various services. At the end, only high ranking officials and businesspeople live comfortably from the heritage of our Khmer ancestors who are the ancestors of all.”

Cambodia Mirror

International Conference on Thai Studies Update

The International Conference on Thai Studies has now concluded, and there hasn't been much reporting in the Thai English-language press aside from a few brief mentions. The Sentinel and New Mandala will probably provide more details at some point, but for now there's a good summary of the "hot topics" at FACT, Freedom Against Censorship in Thailand.

For the first time, panels were held discussing the Thai monarchy, a topic which has been firmly rejected when proposed to previous Conferences. Many Thai and foreign journalists were in attendance.

The three panels were grouped into “The Monarchy, Lese Majeste, and One Book”, organised by FACT signer Dr. Thongchai Winichakul of the University of Wisconsin and had indisputably the highest numbers of participants..

The first session, titled “The Accessories of the Monarchy as an Institution” included a fascinating, if circumspect by necessity, examination of the Crown Property Bureau after the 1997 economic crisis by Dr. Porphant Ouyyanont of Sukhothai Thammathirat University; a look at the cult following of Thai citizens venerating the fifth Chakri king, King Chulalongkorn, and Thailand’s present monarch by Dr. Irene Stengs of the Meertens Institute in The Netherlands; and a paper written by Paul Handley, author of The King Never Smiles on the development of the Privy Council to the modern day. Of course, Mr. Handley is persona non grata in Thailand due to accusations of lese majeste which led to the banning of his book in Thailand before its publication and his paper was read by the chair.

Special Branch officers of the Royal Thai Police requested attendance from the Conference organisers and this panel was the first one they attended. Perhaps they thought they might catch Paul Handley!

The second panel in the monarchy series concerned “The Lese Majeste Law: How It Works and How It Fails”. Its first paper by Dr. Somchai Preechasilpakul of Chiangmai University and Dr. David Streckfuss of the University of Wisconsin concerned the misuse and abuse of the law and gave consideration to its abolition by comparison to similar laws in other monarchies.

FACT signer and reporter for The Nation, Pravit Rojanaphruk then discussed “Lese Majeste Law and the Thai Print Media” in the context of the Rodolf Jufer case last year. Using this case as a springboard, discussion was generated about Thai culture of self-censorship, patriotism and the taboo for any public critical discussion of the monarchy. Khun Pravit mentioned that his editors had put pressure on him even several days previously for writing about the closing of Fah Diew Kan’s website over alleged lese majeste.

The final panel, “Critical Comments on Paul Handley’s The King Never Smiles”, chaired by Dr. Michael Herzfeld of Harvard University, was far and away the best-attended panel of the entire Conference. 350-400 people were accommodated in one lecture hall, a separate room, the hallway, the stairs and another lecture hall upstairs to which the panel was televised. At least three Special Branch police officers were also in attendance.

FACT signer and Midnight University founder, Dr. Nithi Eoseewong, discussed the impact of the book on Thai society as the first biography of King Bhumiphol to be published. FACT signer Dr. Craig Reynolds of the Australian National University spoke about the book’s critical intellectual commentary. Dr. Annette Hamilton of the University of New South Wales commented that freedom of speech does not deny loyalty and love for the King. Only Dr. Kobkua Suwannathat-Pian of Malaysia’s Universiti Perguruan Sultan Idris seemed restrained in the lively discussion and many questions from the floor.

The book, its successes and failings, were critically examined during this panel. It is undeniable that The King Never Smiles is a valuable contribution to scholarship on Thailand and opens up a field of enquiry long closed by law and by social convention.

It is at least partly due to the book’s publication that panels on the monarchy were held during the Thai Studies Conference. Perhaps discussion of this vital part of Thai life will be expanded during the next Conference three years from now, to be held at Mahidol University.

Freedom Against Thai Censorship

Britons in Thailand: Trouble in Paradise

The news about foreigners murdered in Thailand over the last few years has brought out some soul searching by journalists who believe that the real risks are not being addressed by their governments. It's a damned-if-you-do and damned-if-you-don't situation. When foreign governments post warnings about travel to foreign countries, many will protest that the risks aren't any greater than back home and that Thailand, for example, feels much safer than London or New York. But what are the real risks? Should governments provide warnings or is this just fear mongering? The author of Footprint Thailand reports.

With so many Britons murdered in Thailand, why does our Government not warn of the dangers faced there? At least 17 Britons have been murdered in Thailand since 2003 – including Toby Charnaud, brutally slain by his Thai wife. Now, his family want to know why our Government is so reluctant to warn that the 'Land of Smiles' is one of the most dangerous places on earth for its British residents

By Andrew Spooner

Thailand has one of the world's highest per-capita murder rates – when the UN last counted it in 2000, it stood at 5,140 per year, though the annual total is now speculated to be more than 6,000. In the years 2003 to 2006, 17 of these victims were UK nationals, according to the FCO. These murders include a sexually motivated killing of a young British woman; a Thai police officer executing two backpackers in a crowded street; shootings, throat cuttings and two cases of other Westerners murdering UK nationals; and, more pertinently, several cases of Thai wives or their family members slaying British husbands.

On average, about 50 civilian UK nationals are murdered around the world each year (excluding terrorist attacks). This means that almost 10 per cent of all murders of Britons abroad are committed in Thailand – a chilling figure, given that Thailand comprises only 0.6 per cent of all foreign travel from UK shores.

At present FCO information regarding deaths in Thailand is limited. Andy Pearce, the deputy head of mission at the British Embassy in Bangkok, admits that the murder rate of Britons resident in Thailand is about the same as the domestic Thai rate – roughly five times higher than in the UK – but adds that this is only an estimate. (There are thought to be about 50,000 British resident in the country at present.) "To create the kind of advice needed on murder rates would require a greater statistical base and more research," he says.

In early 2006, just after the brutal rape and murder of the young British backpacker Katherine Horton on a deserted Koh Samui beach, and following an 18-month period in which nine Britons were murdered, the FCO had a revealing internal debate about what safety advice they should give to British nationals travelling to Thailand, as an email obtained by the BBC under the Freedom of Information Act testifies: "The trouble with [giving advice about the murder rate]... is that it would effectively highlight the number of murders over the past year or more here, which in the current circumstances could have a disproportionate impact on Thailand's reputation and legitimate commercial interests."

The Independent

Thailand Artists at StartDrawing.org

Thailand as well as Southeast Asia features a wealth of talented artists whose work is rarely seen outside their countries, and so the following website provides a much needed service by noticing these oft neglected individuals. Links lead to individual countries and categories such as fashion, illustration and architecture.

Born in 1958 in Bangkok, Woraset Nop-Apirakkul is an artist from Thailand. Graduating with a fine art degree from Silpakorn University, Woraset first worked as an illustrator for a magazine, then at Ogilvy & Mather Thailand, eventually moving to Railay Krabi to follow his dreams of working and painting in his coffee shop.

In his art, Woraset try to highlight people’s relationships with each other and nature along with the unique balance it can create. His artworks are rich with symbolism in order to convey the progress of the human mind as it attemps to harmonise with its surrounding environments. Woraset chose to work with bright colours are they are encouraging and uplifting for others.

Start Drawing

Monitor Lizards in Bangkok?

Attack of the monitor lizards in Lumpini Park? In Bangkok? I never would have thought such things possible, but an Australian lady English teacher has spotted several monitor lizards in the famous jogging park in the center of town, and managed to capture a few photos of the lovers in action. She recently respotted the lizards being attacked by an old Chinese man, who only managed to kill a nearby turtle.

For once I remembered to take my camera to the park in the morning and got some shots of the water monitors in the lake at Lumpini Park.

Normally it’s hard to get close to them; they tend to scoot - or amble, really - away when you come near, but I was told that this one, which was unusually mellow about being approached, had just laid her eggs and was tired and therefore disinclined to move:

It’s Dukat and Damar! The female above would have mated 4-6 weeks ago, but the mating season isn’t over yet. I made a couple of mpeg movies but am having trouble uploading them, so until I get that figured out, some dodgy photos of lizardly love:

KJ Bishop in Bangkok

Thailand: Pai Murder Update

Uthai Dechawiwat



Andrew Drummond had his letter posted today in The Nation in which he largely admits it was a mistake to naively assume that reporting both sides of the story would help balance his journalism. His contact in Pai was told by a few locals that Carly Reisig was a known troublemaker with previous run-ins with the Pai police, and those stories have been spread around the internet to somehow justify the murder by the policeman pictured above. The photo below is a reenactment of the crime, a traditional Thai approach to figuring out the case and always a good excuse for incriminating photos in the local press.

Facts reported in Canadian shooting story used to malign survivor

Last week The Nation newspaper published an account by myself in the aftermath of the shooting of two young Canadians in Chiang Mai.

Published on January 13, 2008

This article included some of the history of Carly Reisig during her stay in Mae Hong Son's Pai district. This included the facts that she had hit a policeman in the past and had also been involved in some other fracas.

I included those facts because in the Thai context they could be relevant. I also had to ensure the story was even-handed. I was writing on the basis that Carly Reisig would be given a fair and level playing field.

I now of course realise that despite an extensive background covering similar cases in Thailand I was being rather optimistic, perhaps even naive.

While the facts presented were true, they have been wrongly taken in a malicious way by many, including "long-term resident expert foreigners", as a reason to justify the attack on the two young Canadians.

As a journalist one is compelled to give both sides of the story. So I also included statements from witnesses interviewed by a colleague, who claimed Reisig started the fight. What the journalist cannot convey sometimes is his opinion of whether the witnesses are telling the truth or show immediately what links these witnesses have to the police.

I am reminded that no witnesses would go to court and testify that they saw Police Sergeant Somchai Wisetsingh shoot two British tourists dead in 2004. I am also reminded of the vicious stories put about concerning Vanessa Arscott.

I am very concerned at several aspects of this case:

1) The police claiming that Reisig was pregnant and this had angered a jealous foreign boyfriend.

2) The claims by the police shooter that he had been out of town before the shooting, when other witnesses were saying the officer was drinking heavily that night in Pai.

3) The threats to prosecute Reisig for assault on police.

4) The automatic bail for the police gunman.

5) The fact that local police are investigating themselves.

6) The claims that the gun had discharged three times accidentally.

Reisig has not asked me to apologise, nor would she, but I would like to tell Carly publicly that, having seen how this case is progressing, I am sorry for including facts which are being used against her and which after all have not helped her in what will by a very trying battle to come and which certainly do not give anyone justification for these atrocious shootings.

Andrew Drummond
Bangkok

The Nation - Letters to the Editor

Andrew Drummond Website

CBC News Report via Andrew Drummond

The Nation - Pai Murder Report by Andrew Drummond

Chiangmai News - CityLife Forum

The Phuket Yacht Murder Mystery

The Phuket yacht murder hasn't been covered by the Thai English press yet, but an article has just appeared in the Swiss press with the above photos and perhaps some new insight into this mystery. My Swiss is fairly lame but perhaps some reader can provide a translation, if it's not just a translation from a wire service. Also, more discussion over at Thai 360 Forum.

As with the confusing story about the recent murder in Pai, conflicting versions of this story will cloud the actual events, including the above murder weapon (a signal pistol) which hardly resembles the homemade shotgun shell device pictured below in my previous post.

Pierre-Alain Oberson ankert am Mittwochabend vor der Kata Beach in Phuket. Zusammen mit seiner Thai-Freundin Ponthip Jansom. Gegen 22 Uhr hören beide jemand «Hello» rufen. Ein Mann im Taucheranzug. Er schwimmt im Wasser. «Ich lud ihn auf mein Boot ein», erzählt Oberson BLICK.

Nach einem Kaffee und einem Bier verabschiedet sich der Fremde. «Er stellte sich lediglich als Michael vor», sagt Oberson. Doch kurz danach kommt der Mann zurück. Mit Waffe und Klebeband. «Er befahl meiner Freundin, mich zu fesseln», sagt Oberson. Der Schweizer aus Cully bei Lausanne wehrt sich. Dann drückt der Fremde ab. Eine Art Gummigeschoss traf mich an der Schulter.

Blick Link

Thai 360 Forum

Philippines: Angeles City Newsletter

It's not quite Stickman in Bangkok or the late, lamented Mango Sauce, but Harry in Angeles City is putting out a decent monthly newsletter with updates on nightlife, scandals, complaints, scams and whatever else seems worthwhile. No RSS or email subscription, but this newsletters seem to go back several years, so Harry's probably here to stay.

It looks like Mo is trying to turn Kokomo’s into a mini-Nana Plaza. Last month he opened King of Diamonds and next week work begins on another bar on the A. Santos St. side of the building and later this year he will be replace 8 hotel rooms with 3 or 4 more bars and, perhaps, a Thai style massage on the balcony level. He’s advertised these bars as turnkey operations for sale for $20,000 including everything except staff and permits. They will have 5 year leases. Considering that small bars on Lower Fields Ave are selling in the $100,000 range, this might be a good deal. The question is if 2nd floor bars can attract enough customers to be profitable? Personally I think it will depend on who runs each bar. Remember, in Thailand those 2nd floor bars had some very interesting "shows" that attracted customers. Here, in AC, those shows are a definite no-no! If the Thai massage duplicates a REAL Thai massage parlor I believe Mo might make some money out of it and even this Horse might be a customer once in a while.
It’s now being widely reported that the long awaited highway between Clark and Subic will be open mid-March. One of the locals drove his ATV from Clark to Subic and reported that it is 95% complete. This might be one of those typical Filipino things. The highway was scheduled for completion in November, but the contractors ran into delays and asked for 300 additional days. Of course, the Philippine government said no, but agreed to 6 months (May). If it opens in March, the press will tout ‘completed 6 weeks ahead of schedule’ and the contractor will ask for an early completion bonus. Only in the Philippines!

Harry the Horse January Newsletter

Phuket, Yacht, Midnight Visitor, Attempted Murder, Homemade Gun

That's the homemade gun used recently in an attempted murder onboard a private yacht anchored in Kata Bay on Phuket, and it's one helluva gun with a switch instead of a trigger and some evil looking shotgun shells behind the device. The whole tale is rather incredible; nighttime on Kata Bay, a mysterious man in a wetsuit swims up to the yacht and is invited up for cocktails, things go wrong, the yachtie is injured while the suspected assailant is dead, his homemade gun discovered at the bottom of the bay. Folks, you can't make this stuff up. Only in Thailand.

He explained that under questioning K. Porntip had told police that she and Mr Oberson were aboard the yacht that night when they noticed a man with a bag swimming toward the vessel.

Intrigued, they began to talk with the man and then invited him aboard. The man said he enjoyed swimming and diving at night, he said.

The man remained aboard for about one hour, during which time the group drank beer and coffee together while the man inspected the vessel. “He stayed about one hour and then said, ‘I have to go.’ Then he said goodbye,” Col Samarn quoted the woman as saying.

Rather than leave, the man reached into his bag and pulled out a homemade gun and a knife. With the gun in one hand and the knife in the other, the man ordered K. Porntip to tie up Mr Oberson with rope and gag him with black electrical tape, said Col Samarn.

As she began to do so, both she and Mr Oberson exchanged glances before simultaneously charging at the man. In the ensuing fight, the man was hit twice by Mr Oberson with a boat hook, he added.

The man then fired his gun once, hitting Mr Oberson in his left shoulder, before jumping overboard.

Police are still seeking leads to discover the identity of the intruder and are especially interested in his homemade gun, recovered from the seabed by Marine Police around noon yesterday.

As the gun was unlike any they had seen before – it fired with a switch rather than a conventional trigger – they suspect the man may have been a weapons expert and will contact Interpol to see if his description matches the profile of a known international terrorist, Col Samarn said.

Phuket Gazette

A380 Rolls off Singapore Airport

It must be tough driving one of these planes and avoiding the high-capacity CBD runway surcharges.

A Singapore Airlines A380 superjumbo jet rolled partly off an airport runway in Singapore in an accident that caused superficial damage to the aircraft, the airline said Friday.

The plane was getting ready to depart to Sydney late Thursday. It was carrying 446 passengers who disembarked, and no injuries were reported, the airline said.

MSNBC

Breaking News: More Oui the Frog Photos

An important funeral for a Thai princess is planned in Bangkok. Suharto is kept alive with machines. The "swirly faced" pedophile pleads innocent. Yet all the world wants is more photos of Oui the Frog, the multi-talented performer in Pattaya.

Reuters Slideshow

Tea Drinking with Dancing

Tea drinking and exercise tips spotted at I Spy Shanghai.

Korea Photography by Robert Koehler

Robert Koehler at The Marmot's Hole provides not only great commentary on Korea, both South and North, but he's also a wonderful photographer whose work I've featured several times in the past.

The Marmot's Hole by Robert Koehler

International Conference on Thai Studies Update

While not as fascinating as Oui the Frog in Pattaya (see post below), two new reports surfaced this morning about the monarchy discussions going on now in Bangkok. I just wish Paul Handley had shown up at the conference and let the powers be damned.

Banned royal book stirs rare debate in Thailand
Fri Jan 11, 2008

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's banning of a rare "warts and all" biography of revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej only stokes interest in the book and risks an eventual explosion of pent-up political tension, an academic said.

"Banning books is usually something we associate with fascist and repressive regimes," Australian anthropologist Annette Hamilton told a seminar on "The King Never Smiles" at an international Thai studies conference in Bangkok on Thursday.

"When silence is enforced for a long time, noise -- when it comes -- is deafening."

The book, by U.S. journalist Paul Handley, portrays King Bhumibol as an austere and deeply political monarch whose overarching desire for stability and unity during 61 years on the throne has stifled Thailand's democratic development.

Many of the southeast Asian nation's 63 million people regard the king as semi-divine and credit him with steering Thailand through huge political and social turbulence, including more than a dozen military coups.

However, critics say this perception is propped up by draconian lese majeste laws, which make any insult or threat to the monarchy punishable by up to 15 years in jail.

Even though the King himself made it clear in 2005 that he should not be above criticism, the government banned the book in January 2006 under its 1941 Printing Act, arguing it "could disrupt public order and the good morals of society".

This was clearly not the real reason, Hamilton said.

"The main issue is that it challenges the agreement to silence, or the agreement not to disagree, which is a main strategy in Thailand for maintaining harmony. But we've seen this method does not guarantee peacefulness," Hamilton said.

"Instead, it results in a situation where fears, hopes, dreams and interpretations are bottled up for years and decades, circulate through rumor and gossip and may come out in terrible, violent confrontations."

WHAT'S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT?

The book also contains lots of rumor and gossip about the royal family, in particular heir apparent Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, who does not enjoy the almost unquestioning respect accorded to his 80-year-old father.

Handley, declared persona non grata in Thailand, did not attend the conference, one of the few times the monarchy has ever been debated critically in public inside Thailand.

But his paper on the role of the King's advisory council was read out on his behalf.

Australian scholar Craig Reynolds said much of the underground hype about the book might be overblown as studies in Thai have already pointed to Bhumibol's overtly political reign, backing various democratic and military regimes.

Thai journals have also questioned how the monarchy has become such an important totem for the generals who staged the September 2006 coup against Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

"His political neutrality has been exposed time and again for what it is -- namely, the mere appearance of political neutrality. In reality the King is not neutral," Reynolds said.

Instead, he said, much of the offence seemed to stem from outrage at an outsider, in particular a journalist, trying to lift the lid on the central pillar of Thai society.

"Who is he to comment on the sacred institution which has held the country together during crisis after crisis?," Reynolds said of the prevailing view of Thai critics of the book.

(Editing by Darren Schuettler and Alex Richardson)

Reuters

Scholars Debate Biography of Thai King
DENIS D. GRAY , Thailand King Biography
Jan 10, 2008

BANGKOK, Thailand An American journalist whose critical book on Thailand's king is banned took the limelight at an international academic conference Thursday even though the author didn't appear in person.

One participant read out a paper written by journalist Paul Handley and others debated the accuracy and relevance of his "The King Never Smiles," while taking swipes at the tough stance of censors when dealing with perhaps the most sensitive issue in Thailand - the role of King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

In tracing the life of the 80-year-old monarch, Handley alleges that Bhumibol has proved a major stumbling block to the progress of democracy in Thailand as he consolidated royal power over a long reign.

This view is shared by some Thai academics, but the king remains greatly revered by the majority of the population, in part because of a lifetime of effort to alleviate the plight of the have-nots.

"This book raises in a dramatic way some of the most important matters concerning the past, the present and the future of the kingdom," said Annette Hamilton, an anthropologist who has worked in Thailand for more than two decades.

While questioning some of his sources, noting inaccuracies and even questioning his conclusions, both Thai and foreign participants at the 10th International Conference on Thai Studies credit Handley with stimulating debate on the issue within the country.

"Banning books is something we associate with fascist regimes," said Hamilton, but added that suppression of information has been practiced in recent years in a number of democracies, including her native Australia.

"Handley's book presents such a profound challenge to a prevailing Thai world-view that we can see that many people would respond with fear and negativity," she said.

The conference itself has been controversial, since open critical discussion of the monarchy is rare in Thailand, even in academic circles. There are three panels covering the subject.

"Coverage of the monarchy (in Thailand) is a mixture of genuine praise, mixed with excessive flattery and laced with a heavy dose of propaganda," said Pravit Rojanapruk, a reporter at the English-language daily The Nation. "It hides and blurs a complex reality with this one-sided coverage."

Handley, who now lives in Washington, published his book in 2006. He had earlier worked in Thailand with the Hong Kong-based news magazine Far Eastern Economic Review.

The import of Handley's book into Thailand was banned by police order even before its publication, but bootleg copies - both the legitimate Yale University Press version, and photocopies, as well as partial translations - have circulated widely though discreetly.

Handley is not known to be officially banned from entering Thailand, but it is widely assumed he would be liable to arrest under the country's broad and tough lese majeste law making it a crime to insult the monarchy.

"I don't like it. The nation doesn't like it," Prem Tinsulanonda, the former prime minister who heads the Privy Council body of advisers, said in a 2006 interview with Far Eastern Economic Review. "It's a hearsay book and is not based on the fact. We are worried (about) the foreigners who read it. My suggestion is please ignore that book. It's useless."

Associated Press via Examiner

Oui the Frog in Pattaya

In my efforts to provide you with the latest political developments from Thailand, I present Oui the Frog in Pattaya. Oui, not Samak, for PM!

Oui the frog sits on the shoulder of its owner Tongsai Bamrungthai in the eastern beach town of Pattaya January 10, 2008. Tongsai says Oui loves playing with human toys and posing for photographs.

Yahoo News Photo

Camels? In Bali?

I am speechless. Bali Camel Safaris for that authentic Balinese experience.

Camel Train: The deserts of the Middle East morph to the tropical sands of Bali as Egyptian camels ferry tourists around Sawangan and Geger beaches. The attraction, comprising three camels, is operated by Hotel Nikko and Bali Camel Safaris.

The Bali Times

International Conference on Thai Studies Update

Andrew Drummond reports from the International Conference on Thai Studies and invites others to comment on the seminars and presentations.

Day 2 of the International Conference on Thai Studies here in Bangkok featured the keenly anticipated panels on the Thai monarchy. The first panel discussed some of the monarchy’s key supporting institutions - the abundantly rich Crown Property Bureau, the politically influential Privy Council, and the symbolically potent cult of King Chulalongkorn. The second panel discussed the lese majeste law. And the third, exceptionally crowded, panel discussed Paul Handley’s path-breaking biography of the king, The King Never Smiles.

I am happy to open the forum to others to comment on the content and effectiveness of these three panels.

From my point of view, like yesterday’s panel on sufficiency economy, they provided a relatively open forum for the expression and discussion of ideas about the role of the monarchy in the contemporary political system. Though the discussion was, at times, rather more restrained than some may have hoped the panels did represent an important breakthrough in international Thai studies. The key message of the panels was that the persistent self-censorship imposed by the international academic community can now be cast aside. The sky will not fall in if we talk freely and frankly about the king’s role in contemporary Thai politics. Let’s make sure this is a starting point for ongoing frank and public discussion.

As I did yesterday I invite others attending the conference to submit their comments, reflections and reports.

New Mandala

Singapore Protester Speaks

When Burma exploded last year in the "Saffron Revolution," a few brave souls in Singapore staged a small protest on Orchard Road in solidarity with the Burmese people and as a statement against the close relationship between the Burmese junta and the Singapore government. One of the three protesters recently granted an interview to her student newspaper, explaining her motives and her opinions of the state of political protest in the country.

Campus Observer: Have you ever protested in England before?

Dawson: Yes, but not very much. I don't have much history of activism. It's only recently that I've been inspired to participate in protests, specifically regarding education in the UK, anti-war, the occupation of Palestine, and the gradual erosion of our civil liberties in England.

Campus Observer: What inspired you to protest that day?

Dawson: First and foremost, the continuing political repression in Burma, the strong links between Singaporean elites and Burmese military rulers and drug barons, and the relative silence in Singaporean media on both these issues.

It would have been awful if the Burmese junta could be seen to just turn up in Singapore and not be held accountable for their actions -- especially given the recent violent crackdown on monks and others.

Secondly, the repressive environment in Singapore, which restricts free speech, free assembly and free press. With the government silent and civil society groups facing massive restrictions, we thought that we could use our status as international students to highlight this issue.

Thirdly - and I am speaking for myself here -- it is becoming increasingly clear to me that protest and political participation are vital to maintaining any semblance of democracy and political accountability. This is something that one generation of Singaporeans knew well, but has been stifled in contemporary Singapore. Knowing full well that a public assembly of more than four people does not necessarily degenerate into violence and chaos, we wanted to demonstrate this in Singapore.

Campus Observer: What do you think has been the effect of the protests on Singapore's political scene?

Dawson: I don't know. I think it's important to highlight that the next day, 40-50 Burmese residents of Singapore were able to stage a rally, even holding banners and placards. I hope this will encourage even more Singaporeans to become active in civil society. I know that there are many Singaporeans who feel disillusioned with politics, seeing it as a sphere outside and above their control. For me, politics is something everyday and ubiquitous, and I believe we can empower ourselves without the permission of those who are supposedly in authority.

Campus Observer: Describe your opinion of NUS students in three words.

Dawson: Overworked, competitive, and de-politicised!

The Campus Observer

Meteor Slams into Bali!

While not quite as devastating as the Russian event, it's still pretty rare for a meteor to hit a Balinese ricefield, especially in Gianyar province. And thanks to the Balinese guy pointing toward the evidence, somewhat similar to the incriminating police photos found weekly in the Pattaya Gazette and now daily in the Pattaya City News.

The YouTube video (below) of Pizza Hut Dancing Waiters in India is worth a quick look.

YouTube Video of Dancing Waiters in India

Tiger Trafficking in Vietnam

When your pet tigers get a bit too large and you need to haul them across town to the tiger merchant, what's a fellow to do? Put a leash on the beasts and walk them through Old Town Hanoi? Hire a panel van and transport the kitties in secrecy? Nah, best to just toss the animals in the back of the car. But watch out for the cops!

Vietnamese police came face-to-face with two live tigers they found in a passenger car in central Hanoi when they busted an illegal wildlife trafficking gang this week, media reports said Wednesday.

The wild cats had been sedated by the animal smugglers but awoke after the police raid and started chewing up the seats and interior of the car that the traffickers had used to take the tigers to a client in the capital.

Officers from the Hanoi Environmental Police had to knock the 50-kilogram (110-pound) carnivores out again with drugs to take them to a wild animal rescue centre after the bust Monday evening, state media said.

When they searched the traffickers' homes on the outskirts of Hanoi, police found four more tigers cut up in a freezer, seven live bears and bear parts, rhinoceros horns and elephant tusks, the An Ninh Thu Do newspaper said.

Two people were detained by police, reports said. One of them told police that he had in the past bought two tiger carcasses from a Hanoi zoo, the Thanh Nien daily reported.

Vietnam, where poachers have decimated wildlife in most forests, is a major trafficking hub for the illegal trade, linking supplier countries such as Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar with consumers in China and elsewhere. With rising affluence, Vietnam has also become a growing destination for wildlife meat and the wines and medicines made from the animals which have traditionally been believed to have healing and tonic properties.

"It just illustrates that the trade is going on unabated," said Sulma Warne, regional coordinator of the wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC.

A tiger's skin, meat and bones can fetch up to 25,000 dollars, Warne said.

AFP Google

Ha Noi police on Monday busted a trafficking gang moving wild animals, seizing two live tigers and frozen pieces from four others along with a large quantity of various animal parts, according to a police source.

A senior officer at Unit 2, the Environmental Protection Division of the Ha Noi Police, who wished to remain anonymous, told Viet Nam News yesterday that two suspects: Nguyen Kim Mui and Nguyen Quoc Truong, along with three others, were detained.

The officer said that the two living tigers weighed 50kg each and were found sedated in the back of a car. Mui was caught selling them to Truong at 6pm on Monday at a price of VND320 million (US$20,000).

"This was the first time that living tigers were found being trafficked through an urban area. It indicated that those traffickers were very professional, and it’s possible that they have done this before." he said.

According to the officer, Mui and her accomplices were very aggressive toward police when their house in Ha Dong City, 10km west of Ha Noi, was searched.

The police also found at the two suspects’ houses frozen pieces of four other large tigers, which weighed at least 100kg each, 11 living bears, limbs of bears and a hefty quantity of solid cakes from rendered animal bones used for traditional medicinal purposes. The police yesterday handed the two living tigers over to the Ha Noi Wild Animals Rescue Centre, an affiliate of the Ha Noi Forestry Division.

The division’s director, Nguyen Cong Duc, said that the two big cats were in good health and being taken care of.

Vietnam News

International Conference on Thai Studies

The International Conference on Thai Studies is primarily a gathering of woolheads who lecture each other on all things exotica, but this year's event promises to spice up the package with a limited number of discussions and seminars about the place of the royal family in the Thai political landscape. This is an explosive subject and some doubt that anything severe or even slightly critical will be said about the royal family, but if you have some time on your hands, you might see about getting into the hot topic events. The best ones take place on Thursday, though Paul Handley, author of the above book, isn't expected to show.

International Conference on Thai Studies Home Page

Conference Program

Groundbreaking monarchy debate defies traditional Thai deference

Bangkok - A debate on the hitherto taboo subject of the role of the monarchy in Thailand starts behind closed doors Wednesday at Bangkok's Thammasat University, at a time of great political uncertainty and an outpouring of national devotion for the revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

The prestigious International Conference on Thai Studies, held every three years, has included several potentially explosive seminars that plainly deal with the role and future of the palace in Thai society - a discussion that normally only takes place privately in Thailand for fear of legal and social sanction.

The boldest - in Thai terms - discussion could take place when a panel of foreign and Thai professors debate the merits of a generally hostile and highly controversial recent biography of King Bhumibol, The King Never Smiles, that is banned in Thailand.

The book views the monarchy as an anachronism. The author, a former correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review, trashes the king's life to the extent of criticising his painting and saxophone playing.

The American author of the book, Paul Handley, who may never again be allowed into Thailand, will nevertheless present a paper about the powerful Privy Council at the conference, read in absentia by the chair.

The role of the Privy Council in Thailand is delicate because its chief, retired general and former prime minister Prem Tinsulanonda, is thought by many Thai analysts to be the main instigator behind a September 2006 coup that ousted controversial prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Another presentation will consider abolishing the century-old lese majeste laws that are used to squash debate about the role of monarchy and have frequently been used as weapons in political squabbles.

These debates will take place over three days during the mourning period of the king's respected elder sister Princess Galayani, who died last week, reminding the nation that the late princess's brother is also an increasingly frail 80 years old.

The king is widely seen in Thailand as having played a vital restraining, correcting role for most of the time since his coronation in 1950. His son and heir, Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, is said by analysts to have little of his father's popularity, experience or dedication in the eyes of ordinary Thais.

This extraordinary examination of the role of the monarchy comes after some foreign academics proposed last year a boycott of the conference if its organisers rejected any papers that grappled with Thailand's contemporary political problems, alluding to a military and older elite contending for power with a ruthless and allegedly corrupt former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin.

This year's conference is officially themed around transnationalism and the erosion of borders in the modern world. Chris Baker, a Thai-based historian, wrote recently of the conference 'One border that may be swept away is the thick black line between what can be said inside the country, and what already is being said outside it.'

The boycott call appears to have fizzled out and popular Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn is scheduled to open the conference. All participants have been requested to wear black in memory of Princess Galayani.

Monsters and Critics

Andrew Walker at New Mandala has posted a reminder about a planned boycott of the event, due to the long-standing reluctance of scholars to publically talk about the monarchy, but it's a comment submitted by Thailand Jumps the Shark that reminds everyone of what might be the reality of this conference.

Identity politics reigns supreme. The program is dominated by race, class and gender post-modern bullshit. I think the world of tertiary education would shrivel up and die if the word “discourse” was eliminated from the lexicon.

But hey, guess what, a major conference on Thailand and nothing on the military and the coup, as if the coup didn’t happen at all. Maybe these professors and graduate students have deconstructed the military right out of existence.

No discourse on the multi-million dollar assets of Thai generals.

No discourse on martial law being implemented(in pro-Thaksin areas) during a vote for a constitution and an election for parliament.

No discourse on military generals in charge of major state corporate assets.

No discourse on how the military handpicked the courts and committees to go after their political enemies.

No critical discourse about how General Sonthi, the head of the junta, became the civilian deputy prime minister in charge of the election.

No discourse on military procurement.

No discourse on massive corruption in the bureaucracy.

No discourse on how the Thai media rolled over for the coup.

No discourse on how the top brass, the capitalist billionaires, the bureaucratic elite and the remnants of the ancien regime are never accountable to rule of law for fleecing the state while the poor and powerless rot in jail for petty crimes.

No discourse on the mafia-like police force.

No discourse on how the Thai media and the academy ignore the corrupt power structures at the top so that they can protect their own power and feudal privileges.

No discourse on why the Thai public school system is a national disgrace.

No problem, just have 5 more seminars on queers and katoeys to make up for the lack of discourse on real issues that affect real people.

And the seminars on the monarchy are a joke.

This is my prediction: Handley’s book will be nitpicked for insignificant factual errors in order to discredit the entire thesis. And the monarchy’s role in politics will not be discussed the way it should be discussed.

Everybody will be dressed in black and bow down to the emperor who has no clothes.

And it is shocking that there will be no clear and comprehensible discussion about a post-Bhumibol Thailand. His passing will have enormous repercussions on Thailand, which will impact all Thais in the future. You would think that a Thai Studies conference would have that topic up for discussion. Nope. Ignore the pink elephant standing the middle of the room. That is the responsible thing to do.

I wish I was there, I really do. I would have done a Hunter S Thompson live blogging of the conference.

New Mandala

Internet Censorship in Thailand

The Thailand government currently bans over 10,000 websites and blogs, and even goes after big hitters such as YouTube when they feel the royal family has been insulted. And so yet again another website has been banned, but this one is getting international attention from publications such as The New York Times. Even Drudge put the story up this morning, as well as my local rag, the San Francisco Chronicle.

Thailand shuts political Web site that carried comments critical of the monarchy

The Associated Press
Published: January 6, 2008

BANGKOK, Thailand: Thai authorities have shut down a political Web site that spoke out against the monarchy, the site's operator said Sunday, in another move to punish critics of Thailand's most revered institution.

Visitors posted comments on the sameskybooks.com bulletin board, questioning claims in the Thai media that the entire country was in mourning over the death Wednesday of Princess Galyani Vadhana — King Bhumibol Adulyadej's older sister — and criticizing official calls for the public to wear black as a sign of mourning, said Thanapol Eiwsakul, who operated the site.

The Information and Communication Technology Ministry threatened local Internet provider Netservice with closure unless it took the action against sameskybooks.com, which was closed Friday, Thanapol said.

"I received a letter from Netservice that the ministry pressured them to shut down our Web site or it would shut down Netservice," he said.

No one from the ministry could be immediately reached for comment Sunday, and sameskybooks.com remained inaccessible. Netservice could not be contacted. Thanapol said he did not know if he would face charges or if he would be allowed to reopen his site. He said he was considering legal action against the government because it had not sought a court order before closing the site. He said he hoped to find a foreign Internet provider that would allow him to continue operating the site.

"I think we're one of the few sites posting remarks against the monarchy," Thanapol told The Nation newspaper. "This is the price we are paying."

The Thai government routinely blocks Web sites, mostly because of offensive sexual or political content deemed sympathetic to former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra who was ousted in a coup in September 2006. Police say some 32,000 Web sites have been blocked to Thai Internet users since 2002.

It also takes a hard line against anyone who criticizes Bhumibol, who celebrated his 80th birthday in December and is the world's longest serving monarch.

Last year, Thailand blocked the popular video-sharing Web site YouTube for four months because of clips it deemed offensive to the king. The ban was lifted after YouTube's owner, Google Inc., agreed to not allow videos that break Thai laws or offend the Thai people.

In March, a Swiss national Oliver Rudolf Jufer became the first foreigner convicted in at least a decade for offending the monarch, under Thailand's strict lese majeste laws. Surveillance cameras caught Jufer spraying black paint across five posters of the king in the northern city of Chiang Mai where he lived. He was sentenced to 10 years in jail, but was deported to Switzerland in April.

International Herald Tribune

The website for Same Sky Books, publisher of Fah Diew Kan, a magazine of Thai contemporary criticism, has been shut down by Thailand’s Ministry of Information and Communication Technology. The reasons given were lese-majeste comments posted to Same Sky’s public Webboard.

The ICT Ministry has previously asked Fah Diew Kan to self-censor such comments on its Webboard and Same Sky has complied. However, on this occasion no warning was given.

On the evening of January 4 Same Sky’s Internet service provider, Netservice Ltd., sent an email to FACT signer Thanaphol Eawsakul, Same Sky’s owner, to inform him that they would shut down the server hosting Same Sky and contracted to the server’s owner, Otaro Co. Limited. This server also hosted other websites which were also shut down.

This also meant that all Fah Diew Kan’s files, the company’s personal data and private property, on the server were gone.

Otaro also refused to host Same Sky in future with reason given to protect its company and the other companies for which it provides Web hosting.

This is not the first time Fah Diew Kan has been accused of lese-majeste. Sections of several issues of the magazine were considered critical of Thailand’s monarchy. Copies of Fah Diew Kan were seized under the censorship provisions of Thailand’s 1941 Printing Act. Court proceedings are still active.

The Fah Diew Kan case is remarkably similar to the closure of Midnight University by the ICT Ministry following Thailand’s military coup d’etat on September 19, 2006. Online Midnight University in Thai language concurrently petitioned the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand and successfully applied for a temporary restraining order by the Administrative Court to prevent further arbitrary censorship.

This court order is still in effect but applies only to Midnight University and not other Websites.

Freedom Against Censorship Thailand (FACT) believes the closure of Fah Diew Kan to be illegal under Thailand’s new Computer-Related Crimes Act. All such censorship must occur solely by court order and no application was made for one. Court application must be preceded by a letter of inquiry, not immediate closure.

Furthermore, should an entire business be shut down because of private individual posts to its Webboard? Are the other Websites hosted on the same server merely unimportant collateral damage?

Two cyberdissidents were already prosecuted in 2007 under the cybercrime law for alleged lese-majeste comments they posted anonymously to Thai public Webboards. The dissidents were identified and located by police tracking their IP addresses to conduct the raid.

In these cases, the prosecution declined to proceed but can reinstate charges against them for ten years. It is widely speculated that the reason for this is there may well be crucial legal flaws in the Computer Act which render it ineffective. This may also be why the much-touted, highly-publicised Act was not used against Fah Diew Kan.

The coup’s Order No. 5 promoting Internet censorship was repealed in July 2007. The Ministry’s actions directly violate sections 14-14.5 of the Computer Act.

Freedom Against Censorship Thailand (FACT) is considering joining court action against the Ministry over the closure of Fah Diew Kan.

MICT’s order caused Otaro to violate the terms of its contract with Net Service and Net Service to violate its contract with Same Sky.

Same Sky is now planning to seek a Web host abroad to avoid further disruption to its business. Does MICT promote the Internet in Thailand by driving Thai companies overseas?

Once again, citing reasons of national and economic security, MICT’s actions are fit for dictatorship not democracy. MICT, the Ministry which can’t seem to keep a minister, again acts with impunity outside and above the law.

Closing Fah Diew is nothing short of cyberterrorism. Free Fah Diew Kan NOW!

FACT - Freedom Against Censorship Thailand

Website shut down over royal content

A website containing content critical of the monarchy was shut down on Friday. The site's Web host was threatened with being closed unless it withdrew the site.

Published on January 6, 2008

Thanapol Eiwsakul, editor of the Fah Diew Kan political magazine website sameskybooks.org, told The Nation yesterday it was no longer accessible. "It was like shutting down a printing house that prints a magazine. This is the price we're paying," said Thanapol, who insisted he always cooperated with the authorities and deleted material considered offensive to the monarchy.

He believed the posting of critical remarks following the death of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana on Wednesday might have led to the shutting down of the site by the Information and Communications Technology Ministry.

Ministry spokespeople were unavailable yesterday.

Some visitors to the site posted critical remarks to the effect that the news media generalised when it said the whole country was in grief following the death of the Princess. One correspondent expressed refusal to follow the mourning dress code.

"I think we're one of the few sites posting remarks against the monarchy," Thanapol explained.

Reaction was quick at another website, prachatai.com, an online alternative newspaper, after it reported the shutdown yesterday. Correspondents both supported and criticised the closing.

Thanapol said he was considering legal action against the ministry and the host company, Internet Service. It sent him an e-mail explaining the site had been shut as a result of offensive content. He added, however, that he had no faith in the judicial system. "The interpretation of the law will never side with human rights; it will likely endorse unjust use of power, but we insist on the principle of human rights and that we're innocent and open about expressing critical views. We don't see the government as acting in the open when it pressures private companies," he said.

Thanapol said he had received no warning from the ministry.

Freedom Against Censorship Thailand, a free Internet campaign group, released a statement yesterday saying it believed the closing to be illegal under the Computer Related Crimes Act.

"Such censorship must be by court order only, and no application was made for one. This must be preceded by a letter of inquiry, notimmediate closure. Furthermore, should an entire business be shut down because of private-individual posts to its site? Are the other websites hosted on the same server merely unimportant collateral damage?" the group said.

Pravit Rojanaphruk

The Nation

Bangkok Pundit

Prachatai

Visions Media Activism Theory

Bangkok Post via Baan Jochim

Asian Human Rights Commission

Wordpress Cases Analyses

Hello Siam Thai Language Web Board

Google News - Thailand Bans Political Website

Google Search -Fah Diew Kan

Same Sky Thai Language Web Board

Google Search - Same Sky Books

2Bangkok - Website Censorship in Thailand

Canadian Murdered by Thai Cop

Two years ago, a young farang tourist was murdered by a Thai cop in Kanchanaburi. The policeman fled to the Burmese border where he was eventually arrested, and later sentenced to life in prison without parole. Now, an off-duty cop in Pai has murdered a young Canadian tourist and shot his former girlfriend point blank in the chest. The cop has admitted his guilt but nevertheless been released on bail, despite his claim that he "accidentally" fired the three lethal shots.

Cop 'executed my best friend'
Officer 'hit me, shot Leo twice, then fired at me'

A young Canadian woman told yesterday how a Thai policeman shot dead her best friend in Pai in the North, then shot another bullet into his heart as he lay on the ground.

Carly Reisig, 24, said the policeman had no grounds at all for the attack - and that after he shot fellow Canadian John Leo del Pinto, the officer turned his gun on her and shot her in the chest.

Speaking from her bed in hospital in Chiang Mai, Reisig, from Chilliwack, British Columbia, rejected a police statement that suggested Sgt-Major Uthai Dechawiwat, 37, had intervened to break up a fight and his gun had discharged in a struggle. She pointed to her chest where the bullet was lodged close to her own heart.

"There never was a fight. That is not true," she said. "John was my ex-boyfriend, but still my best friend. We had nothing to argue about. We had been drinking in the Be-Bop Bar in Pai and were heading for a last drink at the Bamboo Bar near the bridge.

"We were walking together. My Thai boyfriend Fuen was walking slightly behind. "A man came up to me on the road near Pee Dang's Restaurant and hit me for no reason. "My face was painted with face paint, for fun, but I don't know why he hit me. We had never met him before, never seen him before. We were unarmed and walking down the road after a good night out.

"He was dressed in plain clothes, a white T-shirt. Leo shouted at him, 'You can't hit her!' and pushed him away from us. Then the man went to his motorbike and got his gun, and Leo tried to get it away from him.

"They had a struggle for the gun, then the man got control of the gun and stepped back and shot Leo directly in the face. Leo fell to the ground and the man pointed the gun at his heart and fired a second shot. Then he turned around to me and aimed for my heart and shot me in the chest."

"I blacked out and when I came to I saw Leo lying dead on the road beside me. My lungs filled up with blood and I couldn't breathe. I went to Pai Hospital and then to a hospital in Chiang Mai. They had to put a tube into my lungs to drain the blood so that I could breathe again. I can't believe that my best friend is dead and I've got a bullet right beside my heart."

"I have never been married, I am not pregnant. Leo was my ex-boyfriend from Canada. He had arrived in Pai a few days before to see me."

Sitting by her bed was her boyfriend Rattaporn Vara-wadee, an artist nicknamed Fuen.

He said: "Nothing we did gave this man the right to take lives. We are angry now and we need help and a good lawyer. We are shocked to hear that the policeman is already out on bail." Asked again if they had been fighting, she replied: "Not at all, he was my best friend." She had spoken to del Pinto's family and said: "They are not doing well."

Suchart Pantai, the owner of Be-Bop Bar, said he saw the couple and Fuen leave his bar at about 1am. "There was no fighting. But I heard from other sources that they were play-fighting as they walked."

Reisig has been in Thailand for a year, leaving occasionally on visa runs. She has worked in Canada with physically and mentally handicapped people. John Leo del Pinto, also 24, from Calgary in Alberta in west Canada, was a former music student who earned a living as a promoter and concert organiser.

Uthai Dechawiwat has been charged with murder, manslaughter and attempted murder, but the version of events issued by police in Pai is at total variance with Miss Reisig's story.

Case investigator Pol Lt-Colonel Sombat Panya said the couple had been drinking in a local pub and had become involved in a drunken brawl after del Pinto, who recently arrived in Thailand, found that Reisig was pregnant to a Thai man known as Fuen.

The couple continued arguing after they left the pub when Uthai arrived at the scene, near a bridge, on personal business. Uthai approached them and asked them to be calm but both foreigners turned to attack him.

The officer said Uthai was beaten to the ground by the couple. After managing to get up, Uthai pointed his service pistol to threaten away both foreigners, but del Pinto tried to snatch the pistol from him. After a scuffle, shots were fired and the couple went down.

Last night Graham Arscott, the father of Vanessa Arscott, 23, who was gunned down in Kanchanaburi with her boyfriend Adam Lloyd, 24, by Police Sgt-Major Wisetsingh said: "So sad. I feel so terribly sorry for this young man's family."

In the River Kwai case, Wisetsingh shot the couple dead in a fit of rage after being beaten to the ground by Lloyd, who it is believed thought the policeman was trying to hit on his girlfriend. Like the Kanchanaburi case, the killing in the idyllic tourist village of Pai has the semblance of another police "loss of face" execution.

Andrew Drummond

The Nation

The Calgary Sun

CBC News

UPDATE: More details from the website of Andrew Drummond:

Canadian Carly Reisig, who witnessed her best friend being shot to death by a Thai policeman before being shot herself, last night defended herself from reports that she had been a ‘troublemaker’ in the murder village.

But she admitted that she had been involved in heated rows in the past in the picturesque hill tribe village of Pai near the Burma border – and had herself struck a Thai policeman.

Reisig, 24, from Chilliwack, British Columbia, who has stars tattooed in her left eyelid, said that two months prior to the arrival of one time boyfriend Leo del Pinto, also 24, from Calgary, she had intervened after a scuffle broke out in a bar involving an Israeli tourist and a former Thai boyfriend called ‘Nui’.

“The Israeli guy hit my Thai boyfriend and I tried to break it up but I couldn’t. Then the police came and took them outside and they circled around Nui and were pushing him, so I got involved.

“I went in there and hit one of the cops. I was very drunk that night. The cops took us both to the police station and made us give urine samples. The test came out clear and they let us both go.”

On another occasion she said she was involved in a fight at a regular party at a nearby arts market called Pittalew with her current boyfriend Rattaporn Varawadee nicknamed Fuen.

“We had our first fight. We were sitting on the bench together, and then I started crying and walked off. I was walking around crying but neither of us touched anyone else.”

Ms Reisig adamantly stuck to her claim that Police Sergeant Major Uthai Dechawiwat was the one who struck the first blow outside P.Daeng’s Restaurant early last Sunday morning as she was walking from the Be–Bop bar in Pai to the Bamboo Bar. She said she was ‘not a troublemaker’

Andrew Drummond Update

Bangkok Airport Complaints Pile Up

Bangkok's new international airport has been open just a year, but complaints continue to pile up about everything, from the shortage of bathrooms and extortionate duty-free shops, to cracked runways and dearth of immigration officials. Not to mention that the airport is now filled to capacity and no one seems to know what to do. Open a new runway? Divert some international arrivals over to old Don Muang? You'd think that after four decades of planning, the knuckleheads in charge of this project would have anticipated some of this mess, not to mention the ongoing scandal of public transportation from airport to city center. It's a repeat of the sad situation at Don Muang, where problems of corruption and ineptitude were never addressed.

First World airport, Third World hassles

Could someone please explain to me the taxi situation out at Suvarnabhumi Airport? Why, pray tell, must I get in line for a taxi and then pay a surcharge of 50 baht for the luxury of having someone write down a destination on a slip of paper?

I could just as easily go to the departure level and catch one that has just dropped off passengers coming from the city. Just as easily, that is, if it were not for the Taxi Nazis preventing the drivers from doing this.

This is for my protection, I'm told, because a record of my trip is kept at the airport. But in six years of riding taxis in Bangkok, I can't remember a single time that I have been robbed, raped or murdered. And anyway, that record shows ''a destination'', not necessarily the one that I am actually going to, because the people at the taxi stand can't speak English well enough to understand where you want to go if it isn't one of about six destinations that they are familiar with. They just write down some hotel and send you off. You're left to work out with the driver where you really want to go.

Then there is the question of the phalanx of limousine touts that are free to hassle and cajole and annoy every pale-face coming out of the arrivals hall, for trips at roughly three times the meter rate. Why am I not ''protected'' from these people like I'm protected from drivers who could pick me up at departures?

And what else do you get for your 50 baht and long wait in line? You get put into whatever car is next. So if it's one of those old, cramped, filthy, bone-jarring wrecks that still rattle through the streets of Krung Thep, then that's what you get.

If it breaks down in the No-Man's Land between the airport and town, well, that's just your tough luck. Because if you protest back at the taxi stand and demand a new taxi, they give you a ration of grief and tell you that you must take that taxi because it's next in line, and if you don't like it you can go back to the touts and pay 900 baht for your ride into town.

First World airport, Third World hassles.
KENNY KROOT

Bangkok Post

Moustache Brothers Perform Again in Mandalay

Good new news for lovers of political theater who also despise the Burmese junta: the Moustache Brothers are once again performing in Mandalay, as recently reported by Don Gilliand, the bookstore owner and Burmese sycophant in Bangkok. Don's blog lacks a RSS feed, but it's worth the occasional visit to hear his reports about Burma and the book business in Thailand. All of the above photos belong to Don, who hopefully won't mind me borrowing them for this post.

He’s back! Whenever someone gets arrested in Myanmar, there is no telling how long he or shee will be “in the klink,” as Lu Zaw of the Moustache Brothers is fond of saying. Fellow Moustache Brother and comedian extraordinare Par Par Lay found himself in the jailhouse again (this is arrest number three) back in late September. His crime: leading a group of “opposition party members” to give alms to monks in Mandalay. Of course, this happened during the height of the monk-led protests in Yangon and Mandalay, a particularly troubling time for everyone in the country. Over the past decade, Par Par Lay and the Moustache Brothers have been quite critical of the current military regime. In fact, telling off-color jokes about the generals, at an outdoor show in 1996, is what landed Par Par Lay in jail the first time. That cost him six years.

Par Par Lay was released from his latest incarceration on October 30, and the Moustache Brothers have resumed evening shows at their home on 39th Street in Mandalay. The government prohibits them from performing in front of local audiences, so they now hold shows specifically for tourists: “demonstrations” of traditional Burmese song and dance forms, spiced with plenty of humor (Lu Maw is the master of ceremonies---and master of nearly every clichéd slang phrase you can think of: “She let me off the hook!”) and a bit of subtle political commentary. An 8,000 kyat (about $6.50) donation per person is requested. They also sell a variety of colorful Moustache Brothers t-shirts (I now own three styles!) for 5,000 kyat each.

Bangkok Dazed by Don Gilliand

Happy New Year's Eve 2008

Happy New Year to everybody out there!

Click Here for New Year's Eve 2008 Message