Southeast Asia's seedy reputation Amalee McCoy, Child protection specialist at Unicef in Thailand
Aug. 15 2008 - Even after a number of high-profile arrests of child molesters, Southeast Asia retains its reputation as a haven for pedophiles.
Canadian school teacher Christopher Neil was sentenced for child abuse in Thailand .
He also faces charges in Cambodia.
Christopher Paul NEIL, a Canadian national apprehended in Thailand following INTERPOL’s unprecedented public appeal for help in identifying a man photographed sexually abusing children, has been sentenced by a Bangkok court to 3 years and 3 months in prison. He had pleaded guilty on 12 May to sexually abusing a Thai boy. This is the first of two cases for which Neil was charged.
The court found him guilty of all charges and first sentenced him to 6 years and 6 months, but reduced his sentence on account of his guilty plea. He was also ordered to pay 60,000 Thai Bahts (around 1,800 US dollars) to the family of the victim as compensation. Neil, aged 33, was arrested by the Royal Thai Police on 19 October 2007, just 11 days after INTERPOL launched its global public appeal known as Operation Vico. The appeal was initiated after German police computer experts successfully produced clear images of Neil's face, which had been digitally swirled to disguise his image in more than 200 images of child sex abuse found on the Internet. VIA
Taiwan's former president Chen Shui-bian, 58, faces life imprisonment if convicted on charges of embezzling 104m New Taiwan dollars (£2m) from a special presidential fund, receiving bribes worth at least £6m in connection with a government land procurement deal, and laundering part of the funds by wiring the money to Swiss bank accounts.Thursday 26 March 2009 trial follows two months of pretrial hearings to review key elements in the case against Chen, his wife, Wu Shu-chen, their son, daughter-in-law and several aides and associates. The charges against him and his wife outline a complex scheme in which Chen allegedly allowed Wu to take bribes from businesspeople seeking political favours. Chen has professed ignorance of those alleged transactions, stressing that the former first lady alone managed millions of dollars in political donations and other funds. Unlike America, Hong Kong or Singapore, Taiwan cannot convict a politician simply for failing to prove his wealth has come from legitimate means. The prosecutor must also prove that a deal was struck to hand out political favours in exchange for bribes. Chen has denied the charges against him, saying they are part of an effort by the current president, Ma Ying-jeou, and his Nationalist party to curry favour with rival China. VIA
Update 22 January 2009. Taiwan's former president Chen Shui-bian's son Chen Chih-chung, his daughter-in-law Huang Jui-chin and his brother-in-law Wu Chin-mao all entered guilty pleas Wednesday 21 Jan 2009, in the latest development in a case that has gripped the island since Chen himself was arrested in November. The younger couple promised prosecutors they would send US$21 million back to Taiwan from their Swiss bank accounts and also repatriate another US$17 million from abroad. They also agreed to tell prosecutors the whereabouts of cash and jewellry worth around NT$600 million (US$17.88 million) that was being kept by the former first lady. Some Taiwanese saw the move by the young Chen as an attempt to break ranks with his father, others interpreted it as just part of the family's legal defence strategy aimed at reducing any eventual punishment. VIA
They also agreed to tell prosecutors the whereabouts of cash and jewellry worth around NT$600 million (US$17.88 million) that was being kept by the former first lady.
Taiwan's high court on Wednesday 07 January 2009 rejected an appeal by former president Chen Shui-bian against his detention on corruption charges pending trial. The former president was initially locked up for a month after his November arrest on embezzlement and money laundering charges. He was later released after an appeal from his lawyers and spent two weeks at liberty. Prosecutors twice applied for Chen to be put back in custody, succeeding on the second occasion after claiming he could collude with the other suspects and destroy evidence or flee the island if allowed to remain free. The former president and his wife Wu Shu-chen are accused of embezzling NT$104 million (US$3.15 million) in public funds and accepting a bribe of about US$12 million in a land purchase deal. Prosecutors also allege that Wu took a kickback of US$2.7 million in a construction project. Their son and daughter-in-law have also been charged with money laundering.
A Taiwan court on Thursday 18 December 2008 ruled it would stick to its previous decision to release former president Chen Shui-bian without bail pending trial on corruption charges. Chen, 58, is the island's first former leader to face criminal prosecution. He is charged with corruption and money laundering, with prosecutors alleging he embezzled public funds and took bribes. The court requires the former president to reappear at court whenever needed and his movements are also restricted. The Taipei District Court released Chen without bail on Saturday 13 December 2008 after he had spent more than a month in custody. Prosecutors appealed the decision, saying Chen could flee Taiwan, collude with other suspects and destroy evidence. The prosecutors would have needed more firm evidence against the defendant if they want him to be detained. Thirteen others are charged in connection with the case including Chen's wife, son and daughter-in-law, in a long-running saga which has captivated Taiwan.
Taiwan's detained former president Chen Shui-bian was rushed to hospital on Sunday 16 November 2008, a doctor said, days after he went on hunger strike to protest his arrest on graft allegations. Chen's arrest and detention is the latest development in a long-running corruption probe against the former leader, who has admitted submitting falsified expense forms while in office but said the money was used for "secret diplomatic missions" and not for his personal benefit. Other members of his family have also been implicated in alleged corruption, among them Chen's son-in-law, who last week had his seven-year jail term and a fine of 30 million Taiwan dollars for insider trading upheld by Taiwan's High Court. In a separate money laundering case, prosecutors have alleged that 21 million US dollars was sent to Swiss bank accounts belonging to Chen's daughter-in-law in 2007. The funds have since been frozen. Chen said last week that he was being victimised by the Kuomintang, which succeeded him after eight years in office, because he was the "biggest stone" blocking the island's reunification with the mainland. A court ordered Chen locked up Wednesday 12th Nov 2008, capping 24 hours of high political drama that saw a defiant Chen led away in handcuffs, taken to hospital after saying he had been beaten by police, and then finally put behind bars.
The wheelchair-bound Wu Shu-chen(Taiwan's former first lady) was questioned at her home in an upmarket Taipei district instead of the prosecutor's office due to her frail condition in a corruption probe 15 November 2008. Wu is being questioned on suspicion of graft and forgery over the alleged embezzlement of around 15 million Taiwan dollars (about 450,000 US) during Chen's term in a case which also implicates the former president. Chen's son Chen Chih-chung and daughter-in-law Huang Jui-ching were interrogated on Friday 14th Nov 2008 over the alleged transfer of 21 million US dollars to Swiss bank accounts belonging to Huang in 2007. The funds have since been frozen. The couple have said they were not aware of the source of the funds and were only following the orders of Wu.
TAIPEI - Prosecutors in Taiwan on Tuesday 11 November 2008 sought formal approval to detain former president Chen Shui-bian in connection with a corruption probe, officials said. Chen is accused of money laundering, embezzling government funds, taking bribes and forging documents, a spokesman for the investigation said, adding that the charges carry a minimum five-year jail term. The former president has previously admitted using false receipts to claim money from the state, but insisted those funds were used for "secret diplomatic missions" -- not his personal benefit. The ex-leader, his wife, son, daughter-in-law, and brother-in-law have all been named as defendants in a separate money laundering case. Taiwanese prosecutors say 21 million US dollars was sent to Swiss bank accounts belonging to Chen's daughter-in-law in 2007. The funds have since been frozen. Chen has admitted his wife wired 20 million US dollars abroad from past campaign funds but said she did so without his knowledge. He denies laundering money.
The son and daughter-in-law of former Taiwan president Chen Shui-bian pledged innocence upon their return to Taiwan from the United States early Monday 25 Aug 2008. Chen Chih-chung and his wife Huang Jui-ching are suspected of laundering millions of dollars for the ex-president through overseas bank accounts, but Chen said he had only done what his mother had asked them to do. They flew to the United States this month just days before Taiwan authorities launched a probe into money laundering claims implicating the former first family, following similar moves by Swiss authorities.
Under Taiwanese law, false declaration of donations is subject to a fine of $9,670, but money laundering carries a seven-year prison sentence.
Friday, August 29, 2008- Prosecutors are seeking 2 1/2 years' imprisonment for Yeh Sheng-mao, chief of the Bureau of Investigation under Chen, for allegedly concealing documents given to his bureau by the Egmont Group, an international organization that collects data on suspicious financial activity. The Egmont documents expressed suspicion that the money wired into a Swiss bank account belonging to the daughter-in-law involved money laundering. Yeh retired at the end of Chen's second four-year term as Taiwan's president in May. Chen, former first lady Wu Shu-chen and other relatives have been listed as suspects in the case and are barred from leaving the island but have not been formally indicted. VIA
Shui-bian's son Chen Chih-chung and daughter-in-law Huang Jui-ching walk through arrivals at the Taipei International Airport, early Monday morning, Aug. 25, 2008,
Taiwan ex-president quits party over alleged money laundering 15 Aug 2008
The ex-president has openly confessed Aug. 14 that he had lied about his election campaign expenses and that his wife wired surplus funds from the election campaign contributions into overseas bank accounts but denied any illegal activity, that his wife had wired US$20 million abroad from his past campaign funds without his knowledge.Chen, who had immunity from prosecution while in office, was named as a co-offender in the case and was probed as soon as he stepped down from the presidency May 20. Prosecutors say they are trying to determine whether the funds were indeed donations left over from political campaigns - as Chen insists - or whether bribery might have been involved. Several Nationalist lawmakers have alleged that the ex-president took large bribes in connection with a spate of mergers initiated by the government in 2005, when several small banks took over a number of well-established financial institutions. Taiwanese newspapers also have reported that Chen received millions of dollars in bribes from Taiwan's Far Eastern Group. Both the company and Chen have denied those reports.
27 Aug 2008 Reports here said prosecutor Ching Chi-jen would probe claims that the Chen family had transferred funds to Switzerland via the Singapore bank accounts of the ex-president's brother-in-law Wu Ching-mao. The Taiwanese prosecutor flew to Singapore on Wednesday as part of a probe into alleged money-laundering by former president Chen Shui-bian and his family. According to her, US$21 million was sent to Huang's Swiss bank accounts in 2007 and was used to set up companies registered in the Cayman Islands.
Sat Aug 30, 2008-The former first family is suspected of sending at least T$1 billion ($31.7 million) to Japan, the United States, the Cayman Islands, Singapore and Switzerland, among other places, Taiwan newspapers said, citing the Supreme Court prosecutor's office. "In investigating the former first family's secret accounts overseas, the prosecutor discovered that Chen's family assets had been spread to at least four continents, including 10 countries and regions," the United Daily News said. Earlier this month, Swiss justice officials requested Taiwan's assistance in an investigation into suspected money laundering involving accounts held by Chen's son, Chen Chih-chung, and daughter-in-law, Huang Jui-ching. Swiss authorities have frozen $21 million in the couple's accounts.In Singapore, monetary authorities say they are cooperating with Taiwan investigators over another stash of suspicious funds. VIA Chen maintained that he did nothing illegal.
Chen Shui-bian and his wife Wu Shu-jen, on August 15, resigned from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and apologized, thus: “Today I have to say sorry to all of the DPP members and supporters. I let everyone down, caused you humiliation and failed to meet your expectations. My acts have caused irreparable damage to the party. I love the DPP deeply and am proud of being a DPP member. To express my deepest regrets to all DPP members and supporters, I announce my withdrawal from the DPP immediately. My wife Wu Shu-jen is also withdrawing from the party.” DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen also apologized to the public on behalf of the party: “In regard to Chen and his wife’s decision to withdraw from the party and his desire to shoulder responsibility for his actions as well as to undergo an investigation by the party’s anti-corruption committee, we respect his decision and accept it.” Taiwan prosecutors on August 16 interrogated Wu Shu-chen and asked to explain overseas money transactions. A Kuomintang (KMT) party member alleged that Chen's wife bought jewelry to launder money. Hung Hsiu-chu, KMT, charged that Chen's family opened 4 bank accounts in Switzerland, with total deposits of 32 million U.S. dollars, which Chen remitted through his daughter-in-law, Huang Jui-ching.
On August 17, Supreme Court Prosecutor's Office announced Taiwanese investigators took away boxes of documents, after search of Chen's home in Taipei City, his office, and in Tainan, at the home of his wife's brother Wu Ching-mao. Chen was prohibited by prosecutors from leaving Taiwan. Chen has $ 21 million at overseas banks held in the name of family members.Shih Ming-teh, a former leader of Chen's Democratic Progressive Party accused Chen of laundering at least $ 85 million from an entrepreneur bidding for bank ownership in 2005. Coast Guard Administration spokesman Hsieh Ching-chin said: "We received the order from the special investigation unit around 9:20 pm last night saying former president Chen was barred from leaving the country." Chen's probe concerns NT $ 14.8 million (US $ 480,500) in special expenses from the government, while he was president, and his wife is on trial for corruption and document forgery. Prosecutors found at least NT $ 1.5 million had been spent on diamond rings and other luxury items for his wife.Upon his return to Taiwan, Chen's son claimed that he was a mere "figurehead," and was not directly involved in the transfer of money.
Chen commented upon the public's suspicions that he had engaged in money laundering by colorfully stating: "Money is dry, it cannot be washed (laundered); money is clean, not dirty, it does not need to be washed (laundered)." (錢是乾的，是不能洗；錢是乾淨的，沒有髒，是不需要洗).VIA
Family scandals from 2006 In May 2006, Chen approval rating, as determined by the TSU, fell to 5.8%, after a series of scandals centered around his wife and son-in-law. Additional sources showed his approval rating at around 20%. Support from his own party has also dropped with a few members calling for his dismissal as he had a bad influence on his party and has already caused them to lose the Republic of China presidential election, 2008 .On May 24, 2006, his son-in-law, Chao Chien-ming, was taken into custody by the Taipei police on charges of insider trading and embezzlement by the opposition party. This was a setback for the Chen Shui-bian administration. In related charges, there were accusations from the opposition party that Chen Shui-bian's wife was involved in trading stocks and obtaining Pacific Sogo Department Store's gift certificates illegally in exchange for settling the disputed ownership. On June 1, 2006, Chen declared that he was handing control of governmental matters to Premier Su Tseng-chang and announced he would not be involved in campaigning. He also stated that he was retaining authority on matters that the Constitution required him to retain authority over, presumably foreign affairs and defense policy, as well as relations with mainland China.
On July 20, 2006, Opposition politicians accused that Chen used a total of NT$10.2 million (US$310,000) worth of "fake invoices" to claim expenses after the National Audit Office found irregularities in Presidential Office accounts. The Taiwan High Court Prosecutors' Office is currently investigating over this accusation. In a press release issued by the Presidential Office responded that the president assured the investigators that he did not pocket a single cent of the fund. During questioning at the Presidential Office on the afternoon of August 7, 2006, the president detailed to the prosecutor how he spent the fund and presented relevant receipts and bank remittance statements.
President Chen also lost a libel case brought on successfully by PFP Chairman James Soong. Soong sued the President after Chen repeatedly accused him of secretly meeting the director of the People's Republic of China's Taiwan Affairs Office. Soong successfully sued Chen for NT$3 million.
On November 3, 2006, Chen's wife Wu Shu-chen (吳淑珍) and three other high ranking officials of the Presidential Office were indicted of corruption of NTD 14.8 million (USD$450,000) of government funds using faked documents. Due to the protection from the Constitution against prosecution of the sitting president, Chen could not be prosecuted until he left office, and he was not indicted, but was alleged to be an accomplice on his wife's indictment. The prosecutor of the case has indicated that once Chen leaves office, his office will start the procedures to press charges against Chen. His wife Wu becomes the first sitting First Lady of the Republic of China to face criminal charges since the foundation of the Republic in 1911. In a press conference November 5, 2006, Chen rebutted the charges against his wife and members of his Presidential office. He said that Taiwan government offices advised him to prepare the receipts in such a fashion, and that after 6 years of doing so, it is strange that they would never mention an irregularity if it wasn't the right way to do it. He promised that all of the money actually went to diplomatic missions and did not go into any private pockets. Furthermore, he mentioned that when he took office, he thought his salary was so excessive that he cut his own salary in half, and that reduction is more than the amount he is accused of embezzling, so there is no need for him to take those money. In addition, he said that if the charges against his wife were proven in a court of law just as they were charged, then he would at that time step down as President of the Republic of China. VIA
Copies of Swiss documents obtained by a Taiwan ese lawmaker showed Chen Chih-chung and his wife had transferred US$31 million to Swiss bank accounts in 2007.
Chen is already being investigated for allegedly embezzling US$480,500 in special expenses while president, and his wife is on trial for corruption and document forgery in the same case.
Questioned by prosecutors Friday, the former first lady said the US$21 million in overseas bank accounts under the name of her elder brother, Wu Ching-mao and daughter-in-law was the balance of political contributions for the campaigns of her husband in two mayoral elections and two presidential elections from 1993 to 2004.
The former president denied the money had any connection with the "state affairs fund" case, in which the former first lady was charged with corruption and forgery in November 2006 for using receipts provided by others to claim reimbursements totaling NT$14.8 million from the president's "state affairs fund" between July 2002 and March 2006. VIA
The airport closures that culminated in an eight-day blockade only ended after a court on December 2 dissolved the ruling People Power Party over electoral fraud charges and forced then-premier Somchai Wongsawat from office, creating the opening for the Democrat Party.
Monday 01 December 2008 - Recent grenade attacks which have killed two protesters and wounded dozens more have lead Thai anti-government protesters Monday to end a three-month sit-in at the prime minister's offices, redeploying to help demonstrators tighten their paralyzing grip on Bangkok's airports. Suriyasai Katasila,a PAD spokesman said the movement hoped to hand over the site to the government on Tuesday morning. Their departure from the premier's offices could ease the risk of clashes with protesters from a rival pro-government group who camped out in Bangkok for a second day just a few kilometres from Government House.
Thaksin and his allies draw huge electoral support from Thailand's largely rural northern poor, while the PAD is backed by the Bangkok business elite and middle classes, along with elements in the military and the palace.
New trouble sparks ahead where Government's supporters threatened a blockade of Thailand's Constitutional Court, which is due Tuesday to wrap up a vote fraud case that could disband the ruling party and bar Somchai from politics. Protesters say they will not disperse from the airports until Somchai steps down.
350,000 travellers stranded are stranded and several nations stepped up emergency flights to evacuate frustrated holidaymakers.
02 November 2008 -Four men from Samut Prakan province south of Bangkok who had not attended the pro-government rally had an argument with PAD guards and when they drove away and crashed with a taxi, a gunfire was heard. One man in his early 20s received a gunshot wound in his right shoulder. They were in the capital for a night out and were returning home in the early hours of Sunday morning when they drove past the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protest camp. Ten of the volunteer PAD security guards were injured last week when a grenade was hurled at their protest camp, heightening fears that political tensions in Thailand were again spiralling towards increased violence. A man was also shot dead last week near the PAD protest site, while a grenade was thrown at the home of a judge. Source:CNA
Video-Thai man shot after row with anti-govt protesters
22 October 2008-Somchai told reporters that he escaped unscathed from the attack on Wednesday, but a bodyguard was hit by a group of angry anti-government protesters pelted Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat with shoes and bottles. The premier nevertheless insisted he would not step down. The powerful army chief last week appeared on television to say that if he were in Somchai's position, he would step down and dissolve parliament to take responsibility for the street violence. Somchai has been in his post for just over a month, but has been under increasing pressure to resign after bloody street battles between police and protesters in Bangkok on October 7 left two people dead and nearly 500 hurt.
17 October 2008-Thailand's powerful army chief, Anupong , on Thursday said that if he were in the premier's position, he would resign as protests against his rule drag on. Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat later told reporters that he planned to remain as prime minister until he had overseen amendments to the constitution - a plan with no timeline and one of the prime reasons for the protests.
16 October 2008-Members of the National Counter Corruption Commission said Somchai was wrong to suspend a corruption investigation into two senior officials while he was a permanent secretary at the justice ministry in 2000. As it is a civil case which can only refer to the justice minister to administer punishment.
12 Oct 2008 -Director of the Central Institute of Forensic Science, Porntip Rojanasunan said police used Chinese tear gas canisters on demonstrators blockading parliament.The Chinese canisters explode when they hit an object before releasing their tear gas. "The way they shoot at the people, they aim the gun directly at people so there could be serious injury," such injuries do not happen with Australian or US-made tear gas, she added. Porntip was originally called in by the army to investigate PAD claims that the police used bombs, but is now doing so for the independent National Human Rights Commission of Thailand . The bloody clashes that followed saw two people killed and 478 injured with published graphic photos of people lying on the ground with their feet or lower legs blown off, while The Nation reported Sunday that one woman was in a vegetative state after suffering head injuries.
10 Oct 2008-Thai protest leaders bailed as turmoil looks set to continue
10 October 2008-Leaders of Thai anti-government protests were swiftly granted bail unconditionally on Friday after surrendering to police but have vowed new rallies, raising fears of mounting turmoil days after deadly street clashes.
The Court of Appeals quashed treason charges against the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leaders on Thursday and freed two already in custody on bail for the lesser offence of inciting unrest, which still carries up to seven years in jail
Chavalit Yongchaiyudh who resigned as deputy prime minister on Tuesday said that The problem can be solved by three institutions -- the monarchy, which remains politically neutral, the military, which appears to be not interested in intervening, and the government, which stays above the problem. And has view the answer is in a putsch.
The Appeals Court on Thursday quashed treason charges against the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leaders and revoked arrest warrants on the serious charges of insurrection, paving the way for the seven men, including PAD co-founder Sondhi, to give themselves up. Also Thursday, the Criminal Court freed two other PAD leaders, Chamlong Srimuang and Chaiwat Sinsuwong, on bail for the lesser offence of inciting unrest, which still carries up to seven years in jail, in a ruling greeted by jubilant PAD supporters at Government House as a victory.
The original arrest orders for treason were issued on Aug. 27, the day after PAD protesters armed with golf clubs, stakes and machetes stormed a state television station, broke into ministries and overran the prime minister's official compound. Police have denied PAD claims that they fired explosives into the crowd this week, insisting they only used teargas.
Meanwhile Thailand's Attorney General Friday seeks dissolution of ruling party, asked the country's Constitutional Court to rule on whether or not to dissolve the ruling People Power Party (PPP) follows the Supreme Court's conviction of deputy PPP leader Yongyut Tiyapairat, then House Speaker, for electoral fraud in July. Under Thai law Yongyut's party must take collective responsibility for his wrongdoing. Thanapich Mulpruek, the Attorney General's spokesman referring to all those implicated in the vote-buying scheme seek In the petition to asked the court whether to either dissolve PPP and revoke the political rights of 37 party executives for five years or just revoke the rights of those executives involved in fraud.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia
Video:Thailand protests spark troop deployment - 07 Oct 08
Riots in Thailand force Deputy PM to resign - 07 Oct 08
07 October 2008 Anti-government protesters on Tuesday trapped hundreds of Thai lawmakers and senators inside the parliament building, a minister said, forcing the prime minister to scale a fence to escape the mob. Police fired tear gas early Tuesday and were able to clear a road to allow the lawmakers access to the house for the special session but protesters regrouped and blocked parliament exits as the session went on. The gas disperse attempt injured 190 people as months of political turmoil boiled over into clashes. Angry mobs overturned police vehicles and fired guns. One man had his left foot amputated after it was injured in the chaos. A journalist was among the 190 people who received treatment. One female protester was killed during clashes, an official from a Bangkok hospital said, but did not reveal the cause of death. Eight police officers were shot or stabbed in the unrest, police said. A man was killed in a car bombing near the protest site, although police said it was unclear if the blast was linked to the violence. Attempts by ministers and MPs to negotiate with protesters from the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) group were met with jeers from the crowd near the entrance to the building. Somchai was airlifted away by police helicopter and taken to army headquarters, an official inside the parliament building said. One of Thailand's five deputy prime ministers, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, resigned over the crackdown, saying his role as chief negotiator with the protesters had been compromised. Government medical officials said 394 people had been injured, with 49 hospitalised. Army spokesman Colonel Sunsern Kaewkumnerd told AFP that unarmed troops from the army, navy and air force were being deployed "across Bangkok, not just at the flash points, to maintain law and order". He also said the army was "concerned'' about the violence against unarmed protesters and that any serious injuries should be investigated. The protest alliance claims Thailand's rural majority _ who gave strong election victories to the ruling People's Power Party _ is too poorly educated to responsibly choose their representatives and says they are susceptible to vote buying. Chamlong, an ascetic Buddhist, is one of nine PAD leaders formally accused of inciting unrest and trying to overthrow the government after the PAD broke into various ministries and a state television station on Aug. 26. He was arrested after he left Government House, where he and thousands of anti-government protesters have been barricaded since late August, to vote in an election for the governor of Bangkok. Another PAD leader, Chaiwat Sinsuwong, remains in custody after being arrested on Friday. However, the remaining seven are still defying arrest behind their barricades inside the compound and vowing not to leave Source Channelnewsasia
17 Sep 2008 Somchai Wongsawat, brother-in-law to ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra, won a majority of votes in parliament Wednesday to become Thailand 's next prime minister, the house speaker said. Somchai won 298 votes in the 480-seat House of Representatives. Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva took 163 votes. Somchai Wongsawat, 61, married to Thaksin's politically powerful sister Yaowapa, called for reconciliation with the protesters who have occupied the prime minister's offices for the last three weeks in a bid to topple the government. The Stock Exchange of Thailand composite index was down 0.77 per cent after Somchai's election. Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva urged Somchai to step out of Thaksin's shadow and hold urgent talks with the anti-government protesters. The PAD protesters accuse the ruling party of acting as a proxy for Thaksin, whom they accuse of widespread corruption. Calling for a parliament where 70 per cent of seats would be appointed whichwould weaken the influence of rural voters still loyal to Thaksin for delivering universal health care and low-interest loans to areas long ignored by Bangkok's elite. Thaksin allies in the PPP are fighting their own separate battles, including a vote fraud case that could result in the disbanding of the party. Source Channelnewsasia
14 September 2008 Thailand's acting prime minister, Somchai Wongsawat(brother-in-law of Thaksin Shinawatra), lifted the state of emergency in the capital Sunday amid an ongoing political crisis, as the ruling party holds talks to choose a new candidate to become premier. The ruling People Power Party (PPP) and its coalition partners now plan to nominate a new candidate among the 3(Sompong Amornviwat, deputy leader of the PPP, co-deputy PPP leader Somchai Wongsawat and secretary-general Surapong Suebwonglee. ) ahead of a vote in parliament on Wednesday by lawmakers for a prime minister. The demonstrators, representing Thailand's traditional elite, rejects all three (candidates from the PPP), claim that Samak and the three candidates to replace him are proxies for ousted premier, billionaire businessman Thaksin Shinawatra. Despite his exile, Thaksin still casts a long shadow over Thai politics with his supporters winning elections in December last year and the tycoon consulted about Samak's renomination last week for the top job. The activists are also pushing a broader agenda to scale back Thailand's democracy by reducing the influence of poor, rural voters, who gave Thaksin steadfast support for providing universal health care and low-interest loans. VIA
09 September 2008 The Constitutional Court ruled that Samak had violated the charter by receiving money for his "Tasting and Grumbling" and "All Set at 6 am" cooking programmes, ordered Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to resign but the governing coalition said it was ready to vote him back into office. Despite the ruling by the nine judges, Samak is not barred from standing again for prime minister, and his People Power Party (PPP) said its six-party coalition was prepared to elect him back to the premiership. Somsak Kosaisuk, one of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD)leaders said the protest will continue the protest in doubt of whether the cabinet will listen to the law. They also want to curtail Thailand's democracy so that only 30 percent of seats in parliament would be elected, which they say would restrict the influence of poor rural voters who have widely supported Samak. VIA
Rationale of PAD wanting only 30 per cent of seats in parliament should be elected, with the rest appointed is to curtail Thailand's democracy so that only 30 per cent of seats in parliament would be elected, which they say would restrict the influence of poor rural voters in places like Udon Thani, who have widely supported Samak. PAD supporters say the change would ensure that Samak's allies cannot return to power.
Most politicians got elected because of votes-buying and return their investments by selling themselves to pass biased resolutions or corrupt budget bills. To win an election, an MP may have to pay about 10 to 30 million bahts for a price of one to five hundred bahts (10-15USD) per head. Unavoidably, military coup returned as vicious cycle. This vicious cycle is a never-ending story. During a relatively more democratic period, middle-class in the cities ignore the poor in the rural areas. Media accept bribes. Corruptions among buraucrats and politicians have been well accomodated in practices of businesses. When it is just over the limit, military would step in. Via
04 Sept. 2008 Thai PM refuses to resign or call elections
02 September 2008 Thailand declared a state of emergency on Tuesday, banning gatherings of more than five people in a bid to clamp down on anti-government protests that erupted into deadly clashes overnight, just hours after street fights broke out between thousands of supporters and opponents of embattled Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, who has resisted mounting pressure to step down. One person was killed and dozens injured in the violence near the main government complex occupied for a week by activists who want Samak to resign, claiming he is merely a puppet for ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra. The state of emergency also allows the authorities to detain suspects for seven days and would prohibit people from making illegal entries into government offices. Samak appointed the powerful army commander General Anupong Paojinda to head a special team tasked with enforcing the emergency decree, with the national police chief and Bangkok's regional army commander as his deputies. PAD gathers most of its support from Bangkok's traditional elite and a portion of the middle class. Its leaders openly disparage the merit of votes cast by the nation's rural poor, who have thrown their support behind Thaksin and now Samak.In addition to demanding that Samak resign, PAD wants an overhaul of Thailand's system of government, saying only 30 per cent of seats in parliament should be elected, with the rest appointed.VIA
The opposition forced a no-confidence vote while citing amendment of the Constitution to launder Thaksin[2], a failure to address rising food and gas, and a temple dispute with Cambodia. The street protest & disobedience by the PAD has their objective to block the amendment of constitution which has also been one primary way of Thaksin to launder himself and his TRT members from serious corruption charges. Another of PAD's objectives is to back up the courts and the justice system to justly carry out the judging of Thaksin's cases. While PM Samak has been successful to get the police and civil servants under control, various courts remain independent and have issued several verdicts. Constitution court judged that PPP's second-in-command head Yongyuth Tiyapairat, bought votes which would subject the party for resolving soon. Whereas constitution court and administrative court both ruled that his government seriously violated the constitution and might have affected the national soveriegnty in negotiating Preah Vihear Temple with Cambodia. The case brought a termination of his first foreigm minister, Nopadol Patama. Several other ministers found wrongfully informed the Anticorruption Board or Election Governing Board of important info, were discharged when got caught. PM Samak Sundaravej , through the majority in the house of parliament, has finished the budgeting bills for megaprojects. The deals cost so much that the King of Thailand for the first time spoke out to protect and to thank the head of the national bank of Thailand (under threats from the government) that the country was on the brink of disaster because of too high careless expenditures. PM Samak Sundaravej tried using hands of laws through civil charges, criminal charges and police force with violence to remove PAD from the government office on August 29. However, PAD managed to get tempory reliefs from courts enabling them to legally continue the seige of the government office. Some more violence and a fatality clash with 40 people wounded occured when red NoPoKo supported by PPP party moved toward PAD at about 3am of September 2 without adequate police intervention. By the second of half of September 2008, PM Samak Sundaravej would be judged by several courts for his past actions. An appeal court verdict upon a several-years-ago criminal charge of slander could jail him. A constitutional court will return verdict upon a conflict of interest of him being a private employee while holding a PM position. Board of Anti-corruption may fire a charge of abuse of power in Preah Vihear case to Constitutional court. These all could instantaneously terminate PM Samak's political role. While fugitive ex-PM Thaksin and Pojaman would also face verdicts from supreme courts.
Thailand Worse than a coup Sep 4th 2008 Source: The Economist An authoritarian rabble should not be allowed to turf out a deeply flawed but popularly elected government
STANDING up for democracy sometimes entails standing up for some unappealing democrats. Thailand’s pugnacious prime minister, Samak Sundaravej, is an especially hard man to defend. A ferocious rightist, Mr Samak was accused of inciting the policemen and vigilantes who slaughtered dozens of unarmed student protesters in Bangkok in 1976. On becoming prime minister following the election last December that restored democratic rule after a 2006 coup, Mr Samak chose for his cabinet some of the most unsavoury figures linked to the government of Thaksin Shinawatra, the prime minister deposed in the coup. But with the army on the streets of Bangkok again, Mr Samak is for once, if not in the right, then at least less wrong than those calling for his head. His government is deeply flawed. But it would be wrong and dangerous if the authoritarian rabble who have seized Government House in Bangkok forced it out of office. After violent clashes between supporters and opponents of the government, Mr Samak this week declared a state of emergency in Bangkok (see article). The army chief backed his decision, but by mid-week was still ruling out the use of force to clear the squatters out. If the protesters, the woefully misnamed People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD), do succeed, democracy in Thailand—not so long ago a beacon, by Asian standards, of pluralistic politics—will be in grave danger. Some in the crowds at PAD rallies are liberals, appalled both at the abuses of power in Mr Thaksin’s government and the sad signs that Mr Samak’s is no better. The PAD’s leaders, however, are neither liberals nor democrats. A gruesome bunch of reactionary businessmen, generals and aristocrats, they demand not fresh elections, which they would lose, but “new politics”—in fact a return to old-fashioned authoritarian rule, with a mostly appointed parliament and powers for the army to step in when it chooses. They argue that the rural masses who favour Mr Thaksin and Mr Samak are too “ill-educated” to use their votes sensibly. This overlooks an inconvenient electoral truth: the two prime ministers had genuinely popular policies, such as cheap health care and credit.
The palace and a Burmese road to ruin. As in the build-up to the 2006 coup, PAD leaders are trying to oust a popular government on the bogus pretext of “saving” Thailand’s revered King Bhumibol from a supposed republican plot. Some of the PAD protesters reportedly believe their sit-in has the crown’s tacit backing. Almost anywhere else, the police would have removed them, forcibly if necessary, by now. But it is whispered that the PAD has protectors “on high”—hardline army generals and possibly figures in the royal palace (though not the king himself).
This may be nonsense; but by preventing the discussion and hence refutation of such royal rumours, Thailand’s harsh, much-abused lèse-majesté law has the ironic effect of helping them spread. In the official version of modern Thai history, the king is the great defender of peace and democracy, who comes to the rescue at moments of crisis. Now would seem to be one such moment: some wise words from the king could do much to defuse tension. Thais like to believe they are good at seeking compromise to avoid conflict. But there has been little sign of compromise in the past three years, and there is now the risk of a bad one. The elected government might be forced out of office to pacify the PAD’s demagogues, it might be made to share power with the undeserving opposition Democrat party, which has shown little leadership while waiting for power to be handed it on a plate, or, as in Bangladesh, a civilian front might provide a cloak for de facto military rule. It is just possible to imagine a decent compromise in which Mr Samak gives way to a more emollient figure from the ruling coalition—and the PAD and its supporters in the army, the bureaucracy and (if they exist) the royal palace accept the verdict of the people. But the PAD’s leaders may well not stop until they have imposed their own, undemocratic vision of Thailand. In this sense they are even more pernicious than the coupmakers of 2006, who at least promised to restore elected government and, under popular pressure, did so. Prosperous, modern and open, Thailand has so far inhabited a different era from the dark ages in which its dismal neighbour, Myanmar, languishes under a thuggish, isolationist junta. Thailand’s foreign friends should make clear to the Thai elite that toppling elected governments would be a step backwards. As Myanmar has found, it might also court sanctions. Foreign tourists, seeing the unchecked disorder on their television screens, including blockades of some airports, may soon be imposing a boycott of their own.
Video in reverse Chronological order
04 Sept. 2008 Thai PM refuses to resign or call elections
Unions failed Wednessday,Sept 03, to act on calls for a general strike to cut Bangkok electricity and water supplies, apparently fearing it would do more harm than good in a battle to depose Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej. After declaring a state of emergency by Mr Samak, the army refused to act to get protesters out of his office compound. Thitinan Pongsidhirak, political scientist at Chulalongkorn University said Samak may not able to hold his position on much longer.
02Sept2008 Thailand declares state of emergency in Bangkok. Source: Channel NewsAsia
No one was injured when a small bomb went off near Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej's compound on Monday 01 Sept. Source: france24.com
Defiant protesters scuffled with riot police in Bangkok on Friday 29thAug. Source: france24.com
27thAug,2008 Thailand tries to put end to anti-govt protests. Despite government pleas, the threat of arrest, and even the onset of a tropical rain storm, protest leaders refused to budge. Hundreds of protesters briefly formed a human shield around the PAD's most vocal leaders -- media tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul and retired general Chamlong Srimuang -- who sat on the ground in t-shirts reading "Fight for the king." Small scuffles broke out between police and protesters early Wednesday, but for most of the day the police deployed to the compound, some armed with batons and shields, kept away from the demonstrators.
Thai protesters seize state TV, surround govt buildings Tuesday 26thAug2008
7th Sept 2008-Students mass protest for Mr.Samak to step down.
Samak Sundaravej,a well-articulated politician, accepted being the proxy head of fugitive Mr.Thaksin Shinawatra, is a life-long right-wing extremist. In 1973, he ran a prominent several-month-long propaganda, accusing democratic students' movements of being communist rebellious traitors and spies. The event ended in a massacre of hundred of students at Thammasat University in October 1973 and a millitary coup whereas he was awarded an interior minister position in the junta.
Thousands of Thai protesters broke through a barricade and spilled into the main government compound on Tuesday in their campaign to force out the prime minister, police and witnesses said. A coalition of anti-government groups claiming allegiance to the revered monarchy brought about 20,000 protesters onto the streets of Bangkok on Tuesday.
The People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) claim Samak is running Thailand on behalf of ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup and is barred from holding office.Samak's People Power Party, which is made up of former allies of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra, is being investigated for electoral fraud which could see the Constitutional Court dissolve the party.
Thailand's Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej accused protesters who stormed the seat of government on Tuesday of trying to provoke bloodshed and instigate another military coup. Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej told the nation he would only resign if a court ordered him to.
He reminded people that he was comfortably elected in polls last December which returned democracy to Thailand, and said he will seek arrest warrants for at least five of the key protest leaders.
Police will surround Government House, he said, and allow no one to enter until all the protesters have left.
Deputy national police spokesman Major General Surapol Tuanthong said they had been gathering evidence against five PAD leaders since May 25, and would seek arrest warrants on charges of illegal assembly and inciting unrest.
Since taking office, Samak has faced his own series of setbacks. Court decisions forced three top government officials to resign, while the ongoing PAD protests have helped push the stock market down nearly 18 percent since May. The Thai stock market has fallen nearly 18 per cent since late May, and official figures released Monday showed economic growth had fallen from 6.1 per cent in the first quarter to 5.3 per cent in the second quarter. VIA Related Post: 8/07/08thaksin-goes-on-trial-for-corruption
So the majority of Singaporeans still like their local food!
Of the 1320 people who voted, the majority (68.5%) said they still prefer Singapore food. What was surprising though was how popular Japanese food is (53%), surpassing Chinese/Cantonese Cuisine (32.2) by quite a significant margin. Of the European cuisine, Italian cuisine (13.5%) was the most popular. More people would choose Thai (10%) over French/European (5%) cuisine.
ieat.ishoot.ipost is a popular website for Food Directory on where & what to eat in Singapore.
Some of my favorites in Singapore since 9/19/2006: 1) Min Jiang Restaurant-Rochester park -Peking Duck(Goodwood Park hotel) 2) Humble House Restaurant in Esplanade Mall 3) Lei Garden Restaurant in Chijmes_Double-boiled soups. 4) Hawker Food- Boon Tong Kee chicken rice & Cheng Mun Kee pig's organ soup 1 Foch road
Guide 2:Singapore,Malaysia & Indonesia
Makansutra TV brings you a world of gastronomic delights. Join KF Seetoh as he takes you to school on how and where to find the best "Die Die Must Try" eating spots in Singapore! All the outlets reviewed on the TV show have been listed at its website for your eating pleasure. Makansutra Raw a TV show in Singapore is on every Tuesday at 9pm on Ch 5 from the 6th of November 07.
Currently is being rebroadcast on the Asian Food Channel on Cable TV.
Seetoh comes unplanned, unscripted, unannounced and raw! Each week, he''ll descend on five hawkers and a restaurant unannounced and catch the chefs, cooks and restaurateurs totally off guard and with a spoon in the mouth. Seetoh will, in his usual inimitably frank and uncompromising style, review the eateries in their natural best, or not so. What you see is what you'll get and no hostages are taken.
The old retro street food carts concept from the Orchard carpark to its present premises at the Esplanade by the balmy alfresco Marina Bay area is re-opened on the 23rd of May 2008. Makansutra Gluttons Bay 01-15 Esplanade Mall daily 6pm to 3am. Tel: 6336 7025
It portrays the original Singapore supper culture in her purest form- with all the noise, smells, cheerfulness, uncompromisingly authentic and interesting flavours, its laid back no-frills character and her friendly open-sky attitude to foodies of all ages, creed and race.
How to get there?
* MRT (alight at Cityhall MRT Station, walk towards Esplande linkway) * Buses numbers: ( 36, 56, 70, 97, 111, 133, 162, 174M, 195, 502, C1, C2, C3, 75, 77, 106, 171, 700A, 857, 960, 961, NR 1, NR 2, NR 5, NR 6, NR 7 & NR 8. * Taxi ( by informing the friendly taxi driver “Esplanade Mall Taxi Stand, please!”)
Thursday August 21, 2008 The lost humpback whale calf swims around the Pittwater, north of Sydney Harbour Wednesday, Aug 20, 2008. The 1- to 2-month-old calf was first sighted Sunday in waters off north Sydney, and on Monday tried to suckle from a yacht, which it would not leave.
The animal was given an anesthetic in the water before a lethal drug was administered on shore. Roger Bell, spokesman for the National Parks and Wildlife Service said it died around 9 a.m.
Officials believe the 1- to 2-month-old calf was abandoned by its mother, possibly because it was ill. Wildlife officials said it appeared the whale had also been attacked by a shark.It spent days among the yachts and other boats in the waters off north Sydney, swimming back to the boats each time officials lured it out to sea in the hope it would attach to a passing pod of humpback whales.
Clip 1- A starving humpback whale calf sees boat as mother Aug 18 A few people designed feeding mechanisms, many gave advice, and some journeyed to Pittwater Inlet just to watch the lonely calf.
Clip 2- Baby Whale to Be Euthanized August 21, 2008——apparently orphaned and trying to suckle yachts near Sydney, Australia, for the past several days
The National Parks and Wildlife Service determined that the calf is still being breast fed, there is no way of feeding or socializing it, so taking this humpback into captivity is not an option. On Thursday, veterinarians and marine researchers who examined the whale found that its condition was deteriorating quickly and that euthanizing it was the most humane option.
Bei Bei and Huan Huan have been named after two of the Olympic mascot because they were born on the second day of the 2008 Games. The panda's mother, 9-year-old Qi Zhen, gave birth to a twins after over 100 days of pregnancy at a panda breeding research centre near the city of Chengdu in Sichuan province.
Democratic White House hopeful Senator Barack Obama had cnosen on Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, a six-term senator who is a leading authority on foreign policy, as running mate.(according to a cellphone text message and e-mail messages sent by his campaign to thousands of Obama supporters early Saturday) A year ago, when he was himself running for the White House, Mr. Biden said Mr. Obama was “not yet ready” for the presidency.Mr. Biden is up for re-election to the Senate this year. Obama said he was not offended. Mr. Biden was elected to the Senate in 1972 when he was 29 and reached the constitutionally required age of 30 before he was sworn in. Mr. Obama’s notification to the two other candidates — Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana and Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia — was confirmed by senior associates of both men.
Mr. Biden is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and moves easily among foreign leaders and diplomats.Biden, 65, brings decades of national security experience to the Democratic White House ticket, an area where the presumptive nominee is seen as lacking. Biden is also somewhat of an unknown quantity. He has tried hard to tone down his notoriously long winded speaking style -- but is a clear candidate for verbal gaffes on the campaign trail.
Mr. Biden would complement Mr. Obama’s antiwar position in the general election match-up against Senator John McCain, the likely Republican nominee, who has supported the war. Mr. Biden is Catholic, giving him appeal to that important voting bloc, though he favors abortion rights.
Biden has a compelling life story to match that of Obama -- his years in the Senate have been tinged by tragedy -- he has recovered from two brain aneurysms.
He has commuted to Washington daily by train from his state of Delaware, following the death of his first wife and infant daughter in a car crash just before Christmas 1972. VIA VIA
Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia made the announcement on 10am Wednesday, August 27th 2008 that newly-elected Permatang Pauh MP Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will be taking his oath in Dewan Rakyat on Thursday. VIA
Video Clip :Malaysia's Anwar celebrates election win -Source CNA
Malaysia's Anwar heads for parliament after a handsome by-election win.Source:CNA
An elated Anwar, who was accompanied by top leaders from the opposition alliance Pakatan Rakyat, also said the election results should serve as a major lesson for BN to stop making personal attacks against him. Source: Malaysiakini
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has won the Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat with a majority of 15,671 votes.26 August 2008 "This is the people's victory," Anwar said in a victory speech. Election Commission figures said Anwar won 31,195 votes against 15,524 for the candidate from the Barisan Nasional coalition, and 92 for a third candidate from a small Islamic party.
Anwar last won the Permatang Pauh seat in 1995 with a majority of 23,515 votes. There were some 58,459 eligible voters in the constituency of Permatang Pauh in Anwar's home state of Penang. VIA
Polling starts, Anwar tips victory in critical by-election
Parliamentary seat P.44 Permatang Pauh lies in the federal state of Penang, Malaysia. In the 2008 election, Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail of the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (a component party of the Pakatan Rakyat coalition), garnered 30,338 votes, defeating Firdaus Ismail of the United Malay National Organization (UMNO) (a component party of the Barisan Nasional coalition) (16,950 votes).
Permatang Pauh By-Election - Nomination Aug 16, Poll Aug 26
Anwar is escorted by overwhelming numbers Anwar is 'chaperoned' to the nomination centre by thousands of supporters. Some estimate the numbers to be up to 60,000 people ...Source:malaysiakini 18thAug2008
Most political analysts expect Mr. Anwar to comfortably win in the predominantly Muslim Permatang Pauh constituency where he grew up and where his wife previously held the parliamentary seat that is being contested.Once a firebrand Islamic student leader, Mr. Anwar has since nurtured a reputation as a thoughtful moderate, committed to democratic principles and free-market economics.
Every night, thousands of supporters turn out here among the rice fields and industrial parks of northern Malaysia as Mr. Anwar campaigns for a parliamentary seat in a by-election Tuesday. At rally after rally, Mr. Anwar stirs the crowds with vows to topple the National Front government and pursue an agenda of political and economic overhauls.The charismatic Mr. Anwar is widely viewed as the only Malaysian politician who can unite a broad alliance of opposition parties and attract voters who are increasingly alienated from the National Front. In March, the coalition he heads won almost half the total popular vote and came within 30 seats of toppling the government in national elections.That prospect has rattled the National Front, which has ruled Malaysia for almost 51 years, but has seen its popularity wane in recent months amid internal bickering and a slowing economy in this resource-rich Southeast Asian country of 27 million. Mr. Anwar pending prosecution makes it possible that he, who is free on bail while awaiting trial, could win next week's election only to lose his seat if he is later convicted of sodomy.
National Front government-backed opponent, Arif Shah Omar Shah, attracts much smaller audiences at his rallies and spends much of his time in meetings with his entourage of campaign workers.
Mr. Anwar leads a diverse and sometimes fragile opposition alliance that cuts across Malaysia's fractious multiethnic society of Malays, Chinese and Indians. It includes the left-leaning, mostly ethnic-Chinese Democratic Action Party and the Malay-centered fundamentalist Parti Islam, known as PAS, as well as Mr. Anwar's own secularist People's Justice Party. That is a potentially unstable mix in Malaysia, where about 60% of the population consists of Malay Muslims, who are often wary of the country's large non-Muslim minorities.Some PAS members worry that a potential Anwar-led government will be too secular and give too big a voice to non-Malays.
Malaysia's highest court overturned Mr. Anwar's sodomy conviction in 2004. Dr. Mahathir has denied there was a political conspiracy. VIA
Dewan Rakyat: Permatang Pauh by-election, 2008 Party AKIM --------- Candidate Hanafi Hamat
Party Pakatan Rakyat -PKR------- Candidate Anwar Ibrahim Party BN - UMNO --------- Candidate Arif Shah Omar Shah
Datuk Arif Shah Omar Shah speaks Mandarin and Hokkein fluently, a key factor, which Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak must have taken into consideration in the bid to win over the crucial Chinese votes. Arif Shah received his primary and secondary school education in Chinese schools before going to the US to study civil engineering. He also acts as an advisor for Tamil clubs in his constituency, another plus point for him. Arif is known for his constituency work in Seberang Jaya - the state constituency in Permatang Pauh said to have delivered the largest chunk of BN votes. Still, Arif Shah would go into the contest as an underdog. His job is to reduce the opposition majority. His entry into the by-election is already unprecedented in Umno as the party never fields the same person for state and parliamentary constituencies but this is an unprecedented event. Both sides are playing the "underdog" tag in a move to stop any form of complacency in the polls.
Three-Corner Fight In Permatang Pauh By-Election
Electoral campaigns heat up in Malaysia 22ndAug2008
Police step up security at Malaysia's by-elections 22ndAug2008
RECAP:Anwar released on bail On July 17, 2008 Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim speaks to CNN after he was released on bail.Source: CNN
Anwar video photo clip recaptured through the years
On July 27, 2008 Anwar said that he aims to return to parliament for the first time in a decade later this year if a court orders a by-election near his home town. The seat mentioned would probably be Kulim-Bandar Baharu constituency next to his hometown of Permatang Pauh in Penang. Anwar Ibrahim on July 31, 2008 said he would contest a by-election for the parliamentary seat of Permatang Pauh vacated by his wife in order to expedite his return to political office. His wife Wan Azizah said she handed her letter of resignation to the parliament speaker on Thursday 31 July. Party officials said the by-election must be held within 60 days. The Election Commission (EC) has fixed the nomination day for the Permatang Pauh by-election on Aug 16, with polling to be held ten days later on Aug 26. Some 58,459 voters in the Permatang Pauh constituency would be eligible to vote on Aug 26, a working Tuesday, adding that the figure also include 490 postal voters.
Anwar Ibrahim was charged on August 7, 2008 for sodomy under Section 377B of the Penal Code, fueling speculations over a possible conspiracy on the part of the Malaysian government to derail his election campaign.
Barisan Nasional candidate Arif Shah Omar Shah today(: August 20, 2008) refuted suggestions that his campaign machinery was a disaster and expressed quiet confidence of slim win. VIA Malaysiakini
23rd Aug 2008-PKR candidate for Permatang Pauh, Anwar Ibrahim meets the Seberang Jaya Chinese community to re-assure them that he is a leader for all Malaysians. .He asks for their support on August 26 for him to affect change in the country. VIA Malaysiakini
Update Friday August 22, 2008 After Hong Kong immigration officials who refused him entry , Glitter arrived back in Bangkok on Thursday, he was again denied entry under a law that allows those convicted of child sex abuse in a foreign country to be barred. Glitter was finally on his way to London after two days of shuttling, the Foreign Office spokesman said. In Britain, Glitter will be met at the airport by police officers and be placed on a sex offenders' registry, which already lists about 30,000 people.
Shamed British glam rocker Gary Glitter, 64, is considering making a musical comeback on his realease after finishing a jail sentence for child sexual molestation in Vietnam.Glitter was convicted in March 2006 of committing "obscene acts with children
On Tuesday 19th August, 2008, night , Glitter, whose real name is Paul Francis Gadd, was taken from his prison cell to a flight out of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam (after serving two years and nine months of a three-year sentence, which was reduced for good behavior for molesting two young girls ages 10 and 11.). He had been booked to change planes in Bangkok en route to London.
He refused to board a flight to England, however, complaining of an complained of a heart ailment. Glitter flew to Hong Kong on Wednesday 20th August,2008, night after staying in the transit area of Bangkok's international airport for several hours.
But Hong Kong immigration officials refused him entry on arrival after interviewing him, a British Foreign Office spokesman said.Gary Glitter arrives at Hong Kong and is escorted by immigration officials.
He was arrested in Britain in 1997 after he took his computer to a repair shop, where hardcore child pornographic material was found on its hard drive.He was sentenced in 1999 to four months in prison, of which he served two.
He rose to fame in the 1970s with a bouffant hairstyle, make-up, high heels and "glam rock" stage performances.
His hits included Rock and Roll (Parts 1 & 2), I Love You Love Me Love, Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah) and I'm the Leader of Gang (I am).His most successful song, the crowd-pleasing anthem "Rock and Roll (Part 2)," cracked the top 10 in the United States.
He sold 18 million records and recorded a string of British top-10 hits and has a personal fortune of £5million.
Paul Gadd, who is 44 and shares Glitter's real name tried to cut all ties with him. Mr Gadd is Glitter's oldest child. He was born a year after Glitter married Ann Murton in July 1963. In 1966 a daughter, Sarah, followed who also said to have turned her back on him. The marriage lasted only another four years. There is another child, Gary Jr, the son from his relationship with Yude-nia MartÍnez, a Cuban. She too has severed all contact with her former lover.
Glitter mirrors a fractured and unhappy early existence. Born Paul Francis Gadd in Banbury, Oxfordshire, Glitter was the illegitimate son of a cleaner and a father that he never met. He was brought up by his grandmother and his mother, who could not always cope, and at the age of 10 he and his brother were put into care. He would run away constantly to London, performing in clubs when he was 12 and recording an album when aged 14. For years - and through a succession of stage names, including Paul Russell, Paul Raven and Paul Monday - success eluded him until at 28 he finally discovered the right formula.
He was arrested in November 2005 at Ho Chi Minh airport as he tried to leave the country and sentenced to three years in jail following a one-day trial where he pleaded not guilty.
He seemed determined to avoid returning to the one country where he will certainly be admitted - Britain. At least 19 countries have said they will refuse him entry.
If Glitter ever returned to Britain,he will be kept in to which BBC was broadcasting that paedophiles would never be allowed to travel again. British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said he should not be allowed to leave once he returns.
Glitter is now back at Bangkok airport, in which the Thai authorities were determined to throw him out.
BEIJING, Aug. 12, 2008 Lin Miaoke (林妙可)，the sweet nine-year-old girl who sang, lip-synched(in flawless voice of Yang Peiyi (杨沛宜) ) “Paean to the Motherland” 《歌唱祖国》when the Chinese national flag entered the Bird’s Nest Stadium during the Olympics Opening Ceremony, is now the hottest child star in China.
The real voice behind the tiny, pigtailed girl in the red dress who wowed 91,000 spectators at the National Stadium on opening night really belonged to 7-year-old Yang Peiyi. Peiyi is a first-grader at the Primary School affiliated to Peking University. Her tutor, Wang Liping, wrote in her blog that Peiyi is both cute and well-behaved, with a love for Peking opera.
Many are not amused to learn that the nine-year-old whose coy smile and pigtails won the hearts of the world during Friday night’s opening extravaganza was chosen more for her cuteness than her talent.
Miaoke, however, ws a minor celebrity even before the opening ceremony. The third-grader appeared in a television ad last year with China's biggest gold medal hope, hurdling champion Liu Xiang, and she was in an Olympics ad just before Chinese New Year, China Daily reported.Lin Miaoke's blog Other moments of Olympics Ceremony diverged from reality: a) The opening fireworks were computer graphics of the “footprints of fire” inserted into coverage. b) Deploying "cheer squads" to create atmosphere and disguise blocks of empty seats in the sports venues.
It was the second straight Olympics where the opening ceremony involved lip-synching. RECAP: Luciano Pavarotti's performance at the 2006 Winter Games in Turin was prerecorded. The maestro who conducted the aria, Leone Magiera, said earlier this year that the bitter cold made a live performance impossible for Pavarotti, who was in severe pain months before his cancer diagnosis. Pavarotti died in September 2007 at age 71.
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