Written by:
Amber Butler-Davis

Edited by: James Kelly
On February 20 -22, nearly 1,000 people from civic groups in Southeast Asian countries that are part of ASEAN will gather to discuss their input in the regional summit which concludes at the end of next week.

The groups will hold over 30 workshops at the ASEAN People’s Forum at Chulalongkorn University for the three days and they will discuss matters that include peace, human security, human rights, social, culture, disaster and the economic crisis.

The groups will also meet with ASEAN secretary general Surin Pitsuwan and Thai foreign minister Kasit Piromya on the final day of the gathering. This will then give them the opportunity to voice key issues that are concerning them.

Representatives of the groups hope to discuss outcomes of their meetings with ASEAN leaders at the summit in Hua Hin the following weekend.

The National in Thailand spoke to one of the organisers, Supawadee Petrat and stated them saying, “As ASEAN aims to be a people-centred organisation, so it’s time to listen to people in civil society.” She also added, “We will follow up every issue of concern submitted to the leaders to see if member states take any action.”

Pokpong Lawansiri from Forum-Asia expressed his concern about how the civic groups doubt the seriousness of ASEAN leaders and that the organisation does in fact care about people.

He also explained how the Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva had stated that ASEAN would be a group that cared about people but wonder’s why Thailand pushed Rohingya boat people back to the sea.

Wilaiwan Saetia, the president of the Thai Labour Solidarity Committee, strongly encouraged ASEAN to provide better care for their workers, notably the ‘illegal’ migrants who travel through the region searching for work.

She told The National that “ASEAN has never paid attention to labour welfare especially migrant workers who get less than other people.”

Montree Chantawong, from the Foundation for Ecological Recovery, urged Thailand to review their many dam projects which are along the Mekong and Salween Rivers. It was expressed that the projects could seriously damage the natural environment.

He also added that the dam projects will also harm the many communities which are along the rivers, plus the ones that are on the borders of Burma, Thailand and Laos.

Written by: Amber Butler-Davis

Edited by: James Kelly
It was mentioned that the mid-market brands would be the first to suffer in the recession, well Italian leather goods house Furla is certainly not showing any evidence that is has been.

Their spring collection is as bright and bubbly to match the company’s optimism.

Adrien Hiver, the young Hong Kong-based Frenchman who is also the area manager of Furla told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that the company is doing fine, and has not really suffered in Japan as expected.

According to April Grace Reyes, the merchandise manager of the brand, stores Specialists Inc is the exclusive local distributor, explains that Furla is still a strong brand in the Philippines, especially since more and more women are now shopping locally. Another point to be made is the price; it is nearly the same in Hong Kong as it is in the Philippines.

The company is now trying to update and increase its profile by designing collections that will appeal to fashionable consumers at a fraction of the cost of luxury brands. Some on the items in the new collection include handbags that look like they are made from ostrich leather but obviously it is now ostrich as this would cost possibly an arm and a leg. However the geranium red leather handbag is also available in blue and shades of cream.

Women can now own the next best thing with this stamped calfskin leather. In the price range of nearly 45,000 pesos (US$950) the cowhide undergoes a technical process that duplicates the distinct surface nubs of the real bird hide.

By printing calfskin to look like exotic skins such as ostrich and reptiles is Furla’s own way of allowing women to have the alternative within a modern budget. Reyes explains how Furla does generally appeal to the career women but they would like to think that any woman could be happy with a Furla item.

Hiver is to quick to add that all the company’s leather goods or at least still 95 percent of the business is still made in Italy.

Hiver also comments that Furla is not like Coach, which is the American competitor. All of Coaches leather goods are made in China, the only other items such as resin jewellery is outsourced.

However, because of these efforts to stay truly Italian the brand has had to increase the prices but nearly 10 percent but they believe it is a small price to pay to offer high quality goods.
For this coming season, Furla has also experimented with some lightweight materials for its more casual style. These materials include what is known as “rubberised” linen, which is resin-coated and gives off an iridescent effect.

The creams, coffees and blacks which can be found in any collection are lightened up by deep plums, emeralds, ceruleans, and reds. The shapes are all rounded and largely unstructured with most having a high-gloss finish.

Written by:
Amber Butler-Davis

Edited by: James Kelly
Mothers only son dies in fire while helping a friend.

When a mother of the Bangkok pub fire victim Lu Weiye sent him an SMS just after midnight on New Year’s Day wishing him ‘Happy New Year’ she thought nothing of it when she did not get a reply back. It wasn’t until she read the newspaper reports the next day on the blaze at the Santika pub; she frantically tried to reach him again but still had no success.

When she called his flat mate and close friend Jeremy Lu, 25, later that day, her fears were confirmed. Lu told her that he was not sure what happened to Weiye, he is missing.

The two boys have been friends for more than 10 years and were studying business administration at the Assumption Business Administration College in Bangkok. Last June Lu had left Singapore to join his friend Jeremy in Bangkok.

Lu, 26, was among three Singaporean men killed in the blaze. His badly charred body, along with air traffic controller Leslie Yeo Bee Soon, 40, were identified New Years Day through matching with his mothers DNA which was sent from Singapore.

When the fire broke out on the second floor of the pub Lu was among seven friends. It has been told that they all held on to one another as they tried to make their way down to the first-floor entrance but Lu, who has holding onto Jeremy’s hand suddenly lost his grip in the darkness.

Moments after Jeremy made it out, the ceiling came crashing down which blocked the entrance back into the pub. Jeremy told Madame Lu that it is possible that a friend who was behind her son fell down and he went to help them. Lu’s body was found next to a friend who had also lost their life.

A total of 64 travelers died and more than 229 were injured when a fire raced through the popular Santika Club shortly after midnight on New Year’s Day.

When Madam Lu arrived at the Police General Hospital morgue in Bangkok, on the Monday, she insisted on seeing her badly-charred son’s body even after being advised not to by accompanying relatives. She strongly told them that he is my son, no matter what happened.

Lu’s body was flown back from Bangkok on the Tuesday night in a sealed coffin and was taken directly from the airport to the wake, which was held in the void deck of his block of flats at Bedok Reservoir Road. On the Wednesday morning of Lu’s wake, a handful of relatives were seen preparing offerings to be burnt.

Madam Lu, who refused to give her full name, told the China Daily how a blue butterfly had flown into her bedroom on Sunday afternoon and how she thought that maybe he had returned home. Madame Lu explained how blue, grey and black were Lu’s favourite colours.

Written by: Amber Butler-Davis

Edited by: James Kelly
South Korean and North Korean decide to try and stick together

South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak has vowed to stick to his tougher line on North Korea despite a move from Pyongyang to remove agreements for easing tensions between the military.

North Korea, accused Seoul on Friday January 30 for pushing their relationship to the brink of war, they said that all political and military agreements will be nullified, including the one covering their Yellow Sea border, the scene of bloody naval clashes in 1999 and 2002.

However, in a TV discussion that was aired late on the Friday night, Lee said he was optimistic that inter-Korean ties will be repaired, but he failed to explain how.

Lee said on TV that in the six decades of division of the Korean peninsula, one year of tension is affordable in order to put inter-Korean ties right. He continued by explaining that even if it took some time in the beginning, it will be better to off in the correct direction instead of rushing towards the wrong one.

Lee also mentioned that South and North Korea will eventually resume negotiations in the near future, but he did not elaborate any further.

Lee took to the office a year ago and immediately rolled back the “sunshine” engagement policy of his liberal predecessors. He said he would review the summit pacts that have been reached between the two nations in 2000 and again in 2007.

Lee also warned Washington to be aware of Pyongyang’s strategy to drive a wedge between the conservative South Korean government and the current Obama administration.

Lee stressed in the TV interview that he believes that the United States is well aware of the progress for US and North Korea ties but neither will be able to be made unless they have full cooperation from Seoul.

He continued saying that North Korea must realise that South Korea is in fact the only country that really cares for the North and are the only ones that can provide help with affection.

Lee’s remarks came only hours after Pyongyang mentioned it was throwing out all political and military agreements with South Korea.

South Korea has now stepped up its border monitoring and has vowed to respond firmly to any violation, but also noted that no unusual activities has been detected yet.

State Department acting spokesman Robert Wood told reporters that Washington called North Korea’s comments “distinctly not helpful,” but they would however, not “deter us from continuing our efforts to achieve denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.”

Mr Wood is referring to the six-party negotiations which involved North Korea, South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia, which all aimed at dismissing Pyongyang’s current nuclear weapons programmes.

In 2007, Pyongyang signed a deal with its five partners calling for its nuclear weapons to be thrown out in return for aid assistance, normalised relations with the United States and Japan and also a formal peace pact on the Korean peninsula.

However, the negotiations are now deadlocked as North Korea is hesitating over a written agreement which details the ways to verify nuclear disarmament.

Written by: Amber Butler-Davis

Edited by: James Kelly
Financial Crisis doesn’t ruin festive plans

Bai Meng, a Beijing citizen, did not receive her usual holiday bonus from her boss this year. But Bai, who is a researcher with an American-owned chemical firm in Beijing, said she would still spend the last day before the Spring Festival at the capital’s largest supermarket and indulge on ingredients which will help prepare the traditional family reunion feast on the eve of the Lunar New Year.

Bai, 26, told China Daily how the dinner on the Spring Festival eve is very important for every member of the family and she will shop and prepare the feast herself this year.

The China Daily quoted her saying “I didn’t get the bonus this year because of the global financial crisis, and that’s why we decided not to celebrate in a restaurant.”

Beijingers like Bai are extremely busy with last-minute preparations to celebrate for the Spring Festival. Even with the global financial crisis and job security looming large people rushed from supermarkets to shopping malls.

All the shops displayed red lanterns and ox-motif paper-cuts as customary decorations of joy and hope.

A marketing manager at Joy City in Xicheng district, one of Beijing’s main shopping areas explained how they gave a 70 percent discount on some products and arranged various entertainment shows in the mall to attract younger shoppers.

The marketing manager explained how over 200,000 people came to their shops at Christmas last year, and he expected the number to be much higher during the Spring Festival.

Airports and railway stations across the country also remain packed, with travellers eager to return to their hometowns for family reunions.

Bo Changyin, a migrant worker from Mingguang, in the Anhui province, told the Chian Daily how he managed to buy only railway tickets, which allowed his family of three to stand for the 14 hours of their journey home.

The 47-year-old told how his boss paid him his salary yesterday which is why his family are leaving Beijing so late. In total he is taking home 20,000 yuan he was able to save throughout the year while working on a construction site.

The China Daily quoted him saying, “I am thrilled to be able to arrive home tomorrow. My father is waiting for me and we six brothers will together celebrate his 70th birthday. Standing 14 hours on the train is nothing.”

On the Friday before the Spring Festival, workers are preparing red lantern decorations for the Spring Festival Temple Fair at the entrance to Ditan Park in Beijing. Also on Friday, sculptures, a roller coaster, Ferris wheels and a carousel will turn Beijing’s Olympic Park into a sea of joy and fun for the holiday season.

A total area of 15,000 sq metres in the forest park has already been turned into an artificial snow world wonder. Visitors can enjoy skating, skiing, making snowmen and throwing snowballs while ten penguins from Qingdao Ocean Park will be welcoming the visitors.

Besides the Bird’s Nest and Water Cube, the grand Olympic Square between the two buildings will attract a number of visitors over the Spring Festival with a grand carnival, covering a total area of 40,000 sq metres.

Written by: Amber Butler-Davis

Edited by: James Kelly

As China tries to crack down on Internet pornography over 80 photos of well known Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi appears online sun baking topless and having fun on a beach, sending the citizens into a wild spin.

The photos first appeared on the Internet on January 5, which happened to be the same day the Chinese government sent out their stern warnings over issues dealing with pornography and vulgarity to the top 19 websites.

The photos, taken by a Los Angeles-based paparazzi agency, showed Zhang on the Caribbean island of St Barts with her fiance, Israeli investor Vivi Nevo. The Hollywood star from Memoirs of a Geisha was captured taking her red bikini off and lying face down, with her buttocks exposed.

Nevo was also captured stroking and nuzzling her buttocks, while other photos showed Zhang lying on her back, with her breasts visible to the public eye.

However, most of the photos revealed her strolling along the beach with Nevo, who is known to have a private beach on the island.

The pictures were posted on a number of Chinese websites, and attracted a flood of comments on the star. Zhang was recently named by The Beijing News as China’s most beautiful person in 2008.

As soon as the website operators learnt about the stern warning they quickly deleted many of the revealing pictures and some forums even took down comments left by citizens on the issue.

But these photos could still be found on some of the less popular websites which is a clear indication of the government’s difficulties as it attempts to get tough on adult content in cyberspace.

Sichuan province’s Huaxi City newspaper explained how its reporter had in fact exchanged text messages with Zhang’s representatives and the actress was furious and shocked when she learnt of the pictures. The Beijing-born star is now living in the United States.

However, Zhang’s manager did not dispute the authenticity of the pictures in her statement to the media. It is quoted she said: “Ziyi and her fiancé were holidaying on a beach as a part of normal life and as a matter of personal privacy.”

“I sympathise with all celebrities whose privacy is invaded. It is difficult for them to enjoy vacations and ordinary, everyday life,” She said.

It is believed that Zhang is the first major star to be caught undressed by the paparazzi. While many mainland actresses have appeared nude in films, they include Joan Chen, Bai Ling and Tang Wei.

Zhang’s exposure comes a year after the Edison Chen photo scandal hit the news. When the Hong Kong based actor’s collections of intimate shots with various female stars were leaked last January, it shook the Chinese entertainment industry.

However, the citizens of China have not been sympathetic towards Zhang in any way, with many accusing her for her modest assets and for being a shameless exhibitionist. Some citizens have even accused her of bringing shame to China and saying that she herself staged the shoot to generate publicity for herself.

One citizen expressed her disgust saying that Zhang’s figure is poor and that the photos highlighted her weaknesses. She should be more considerate towards the public’s feelings.

But luckily Zhang does have a fan base and many spoke on behalf of the actress saying that it is very normal for Western magazines to shoot actresses sunbathing nude on beaches. Zhang is not the first. She is just the first Chinese actress to get captured.

Written By: Amber Butler-Davis

Edited By: James Kelly

Teen invited to play Masters.

The Masters Tournament committee has announced that teen pro golfer Ryo Ishikawa has in fact received a special invitation to play.

Ishikawa just turned 17 four months ago so he will be the second youngest player to compete in the Masters. This is only one of the four Grand Slam tournaments that Tommy Jacobs played in as an amateur in 1952 at 17 years, one month and 21 days.

Tournament Chairman, Billy Payne, said on the Masters’ Web site that even at such a young age, Mr Ishikawa has shown the skill and competitiveness which makes him a deserving recipient of this invitation.

Mr Payne is optimistic and believes that Mr Ishikawa’s participation in the Master’s will inspire other young players to succeed while hopefully increasing the interest of golf in Asia and beyond.

Ishikawa turned pro on January 10 of last year, he has however already won two Japan tour titles, but he does not rank among the world’s top 50 players, who automatically receive invitations to play in the Masters Tournament.

Competing along side Ishikawa will be Japan’s tour money king, Shingo Katayama, and US PGA Tour regular Ryuji Imada. These players have already earned their spots to play in the Masters Tournament.

Bangkok Bureau

Edited by: James Kelly
Thai Protestors make it difficult for new PM
For a second day in a row crowds are rallying outside parliament because they are opposed to Thailand’s new Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. On Monday, Mr Abhisit was due to make his first policy speech but had to abandon the attempt.

The building was blocked off by demonstrators who are remaining loyal to the ousted former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said that the police had been ordered not to use violence to clear the protesters which would then allow Mr Abhisit access in the building. He explained how the government didn’t want to start of their work with violence.

However, one of the leaders of the protest said that Mr Abhisit was free to enter the building when he felt like it.

Chakrapob Penkhair told the Associated Press news agency that they still insist that the Prime Minister and parliament members should walk through us to get in. HE continues by explaining how the protesters guarantee the PM’s safety and by walking through us it gives us an opportunity to talk with him.

The protesters strongly believe that Mr Abhisit, the third prime minister in four months, has no authorization to lead and should therefore resign.

Mr Abhisit was elected to be PM in a parliamentary vote two weeks ago, after a court dissolved the former government. He now stands in front of red-clad protestors on the street who all strongly object to his route of power.

Many reports are now suggesting that if the protest continues to grow, the expected speech which was to outline the measures in an attempt to boost Thailand’s economy could be put off for months.

Surprisingly, under the constitution, a new Thai government can not start work officially until he delivers its policy statement to a joint sitting of the House of Representatives and Senate.

In 2006, Mr Thaksin was ousted from the Prime Minister’s job in a military coup, but elections in December 2007 under a new constitution returned his loyalists to power.

Several governments that were led by his supporters unfortunately collapsed under the weight of court rulings against them. Now his supporters are on the streets attempting to blockade parliament to prove that Mr Thaksin should and once again be in power.

Written by: Amber Butler-Davis

Edited by: James Kelly

On Friday February 6, South Korea’s Kim Yu-na won gold at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Vancouver, Canada.

Kim who is a two-time world championship bronze medallist, managed to score 116.83 points at the free skating competition after a world-record short program performance of 72.24 points on the Wednesday, leaving her with a total of 189.07 points in the competition.

Kim was able to hold off the fierce challenger Joannie Rochette, who came in second with 183.91 points, and also last year’s champion, Mao Asada from Japan who settled for the bronze medal with 176.52 points.

Kim’s victory of the championship has now raised an expectation throughout Korea, saying that she will now be able to take the gold medal in the 2010 Winter Olympics, which is being held in the same Canadian city.

Kim told the Korean Herald who she wanted to do a triple loop but I missed it, she however pleased with the rest of the programme and is ecstatic to receive gold in Vancouver.

Kim also explained how she was unable to win last year’s competition because of her injuries. This year she is concentrating on keeping her health in an excellent condition.

Dressed in red, the talented 19-year old skated to “Scheherazade” which is by the Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Kim successfully pulled off a triple flip-triple toe loop combination in the opening moments of her winning performance.

During the performance, the crowd sighed as Kim fell while trying to attempt the difficult manoeuvre, a triple loop jump, but luckily she was able to make up for the lost points by skilfully completing the rest of her jumps which also included a double axel-triple toe combination.

Being the first South Korean to ever win a medal at a senior international figure skating event, Kim has captured and made herself a large fan base while competing in the last five Grand Prix series events since 2006.

Kim recently graduated from high school and gained admission to the top university in Seoul.

Written By: Amber Butler-Davis

Edited By: James Kelly

Girlfriend needed for festival season

Liu Facai, a Chinese citizen, needs to find a girlfriend for the Spring Festival holiday so he has reverted to hiring one for the short period. The 31-year-old sales manager works in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, has posted a notice on a bulletin board of cnool.net, one of the largest Web portals available in the province.

The notice reads:
The offer: 6,000 yuan (US$878) for five days.
The reason: to present her before his parents in his hometown of Xuzhou, Jiangsu province, to stop them from pestering him to find a girlfriend and get married.

Liu explains to the China Daily how his parents have been pushing him to find a girlfriend and they have asked him to bring one home for the Spring Festival. The Lunar New Year holiday is the most important time for family but it can also be the most trying time for those that are single.

Liu has left his personal information and blog address on the bulletin board website. He understands that his price is very competitive, which is why he is trying to be as honest as possible.

Liu would like his ideal ‘girlfriend’ to have a kind heart, a high level of personal integrity, and good communication skills. He has also listed an agreement which includes the “girlfriend project” content, daily schedules, payment method and safety precautions. Liu explains how both parties need to act according to the requirements outlined in the agreement so everything goes smoothly.

Within three days of his ad being posted, nearly 400 applicants have responded. As for his blog page, this has attracted over 20,000 browsers.

Gauging from similar ads like Liu’s, it is clear to see just how desperate the youths are to please their parents when they go home for the festival season. Many internet sites and blog rooms are over flowing with such ads.

But surprisingly the majority of ads are posted by women between the ages of 25-40 years old, not from men. More than 20 similar advertisements have been posted on Tianya.cn, a popular website among youths. Almost the same number of postings can be seen on Xici.net, another very popular youth website.

Xing Yun, who is graduating in history, explains to the China Daily how the Spring Festival can be a nightmare especially for China’s ‘lonely hearts club’. Xing is among the many single men who have to face prying relatives, obviously concerned with their love or marital life.

The China Daily quoted Yang Liang, a teacher of sociology in Zhejiang University saying, “With increasing social pressures and busy work schedules, more and more people are finding it difficult to find a life partner. That’s why some people devise ways (such as hiring a ‘girlfriend’) to ease the worries of their parents.”