Woman admits forging NTU engineering degree to trick 4 companies into hiring her

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SINGAPORE: A woman forged a university degree and deceived four companies into hiring her for editing jobs that paid monthly salaries of between S$4,300 (US$3,200) and S$6,800.

Fonseka Wannerichega Hema Ranjini, a 44-year-old Singaporean woman, pleaded guilty on Thursday (Nov 23) to two charges of cheating and one count of forgery, with another two charges to be taken into consideration.

The court heard that Fonseka had matriculated at Nanyang Technological University in 1998 to study mechanical and production engineering. However, she struggled academically and with tuition fees, so she withdrew from the programme in 2004.

A year later, she forged a certificate and printed it on cardstock paper before laminating it. This gave the impression that she had a Bachelor of Engineering degree from NTU with third-class honours. Her actual highest academic qualification was the A-Levels.

Fonseka then applied for jobs using the forged document, hoping that a university degree would result in higher salaries. In August 2005, she found a job as an assistant managing editor at Marshall Cavendish Education that paid S$4,200 a month.

She later became an acquisition associate with the same company from November 2012 to 2013, earning the same salary.

The Marshall Cavendish job was not included in the list of companies she cheated in court documents, although she had used the forged certificate in her job application.

In June 2015, Fonseka sought to switch jobs and applied for a job at Scholastic Education International (Singapore), a publisher and distributor of books and educational materials. She used the forged certificate again in her application and was hired as an assistant managing editor for S$4,300 a month.

She worked in this role from July 2015 to June 2016, after which she was promoted to managing editor with a pay bump of S$300. However, the company fired her in February 2017 for unsatisfactory work performance. In total, Scholastic Education had paid Fonseka about S$83,800.

A representative from the company later confirmed that there was a minimum qualification requirement of a Bachelor’s degree for the roles Fonseka had held.

This meant that the company would not have employed her if they had known she did not have a degree.

In 2021, Fonseka submitted a job application to The Walt Disney Company (Southeast Asia), which hired her as a learning editor in publishing from June to December that year.

Her monthly salary was S$6,800, with an additional transport allowance of S$1,084 a month, resulting in a total of S$7,884. She received around S$47,300 from the company during her employment there.

After Fonseka started working with The Walt Disney Company, the company sent her certificate to be validated by a third-party vendor specialising in background checks.

The vendor sent a request to the Office of Academic Services in NTU to validate Fonseka’s forged certificate.

When NTU confirmed that they had not issued the certificate, but that Fonseka had withdrawn from the university in 2004, the vendor informed The Walt Disney Company. 

Fonseca was asked to explain herself. She first claimed that she had withdrawn from NTU in her final year but had the certificate issued on her request for paperwork to prove that she had been enrolled at the university.

She said that she was unaware that the certificate was invalid.

An NTU employee lodged a police report over the certificate, and Fonseka tendered her resignation to The Walt Disney Company in December 2021.

A representative from the company similarly said they would not have employed her if they knew about her lack of qualifications.

Apart from Marshall Cavendish Education and The Walt Disney Company, Fonseka had also cheated Cengage Learning Asia and Oxygen Studio Designs into hiring her. They paid her around S$190,500 and S$25,400 during her employment with them.

She will return to court for mitigation and sentencing in December. For each count of cheating, she can be jailed for up to three years, fined, or both. For forgery, she faces a fine and up to seven years’ imprisonment. 

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Rat plague spreads to Australia’s fishing towns

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A rat as long as an a man's palmNormanton Vehicle Hire
By Kelly Ng
BBC News

Thousands of rats – dead and alive – have swept up on beaches in Queensland Australia, overwhelming residents.

The state has been battling a rat and mouse plague for months now.

A surge in the native rodent population has forced the rats to move coastwards in their search for more food, but many do not survive the trip, according to experts quoted in local media.

“Mate, there’s rats everywhere,” Derek Lord, a resident from the town of Normanton, told AFP news agency.

“We have hire vehicles and they literally destroyed a car overnight, taking all of the wiring out of the engine bay,” said Mr Lord, 49.

He added that his pet ducks had been “going mad” as rats broke into their cages.

The rats have also infested the neighbouring town of Karumba in the past few weeks and some residents worry they will have an adverse effect on tourism in the area, Australian media reported. Karumba is well-known as a fishing and birdwatching paradise.

Warning: Some readers may find the following image and details disturbing.

One video posted on social media shows heaps of dead rats piled up by the water, while flies and other insects swarm around them. Another clip shows a large number of them floating in the river.

Thousands of dead rats have overrun the beaches in Australian's north

Jo Devow

The surge in the rat population has been caused by a combination of ideal wet weather conditions for breeding and a bountiful harvest.

With more wet weather expected for Queensland, some people believe the worst is as yet to come.

Parts of Queensland and New South Wales – a south-eastern Australian state – have been experiencing a boom in rodent numbers, Australia’s national science agency said in a 2021 article.

Mouse populations have reached plague conditions not seen since 2011, it said.

“We’ve heard there are still more that are coming,” Jemma Probert, a fishing charter owner in Karumba, told AFP.

“It’s not a good thing to leave Karumba remembering,” she said.

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EU erecting a green wall against Asia’s textiles

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The European Union has released new trade policies and requirements for exporting textiles to the EU market, policies that have been accused of trade protectionism. 

Among them, the June 2022 EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles (EUSSCT) is likely to significantly impact East Asian textile makers, who supply over 70% of the European Union’s textiles.

Within the EUSSCT, a series of environmental regulations stipulate that by 2030, companies trading clothing and apparel with the European Union must adhere to standards regarding durability, the absence of hazardous substances and the predominant use of recyclable materials. 

This strategy is expected to serve as the foundational plan for the evolution towards more sustainable consumption of clothing and apparel by EU member states. In doing so, the European Union could be a pioneer in enforcing its commercial partners to adopt sustainable manufacturing.

Garment, textiles and footwear sectors remain a critical contributor to Asian economies, generating around 60 million jobs for the region and indirect employment for millions more. 

The textile industry is still growing in most East Asian countries, with the fastest growth rates recorded in China, Indonesia, Vietnam and Cambodia. 

The region is the production hub for heavyweights of the European fast fashion industry like Nike, Zara, C&A and H&M. Textiles are the fourth largest burden on the environment stemming from European consumption.

An H&M store in Shanghai. Photo: WeChat

The East Asian region is the main garment producer in the world – playing a key role in the textile and garment supply chain. In 2019, the region made up around 55% of global textiles exports. 

For example, Vietnam exported apparel, garment and textile products valued at US$37.6 billion to the global market in 2022. Out of these exports, 5.4 billion euros ($5.8 billion) went to the European Union.

The industry is seeing rapid growth, which is partly attributed to increased engagement in Southeast Asia driven by the EFTA–Singapore Free Trade Agreement and the EU–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). The EVFTA has led to an increasing reliance on the EU market by Vietnamese goods.

Yet since the Covid-19 pandemic, the East Asian garment and textile industry has struggled due to lower demand in key markets, including the European Union and the United States. Textile exports from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam also fell in 2020. 

In light of this, the EUSSCT’s new regulations may impact East Asian garment and textile manufacturers more significantly than previously anticipated.

The EUSSCT is expected to pose challenges and potentially increase costs for the East Asian apparel sector. Enterprises operating within this sector should be proactive in adapting to these forthcoming regulations to ensure exports continue. 

The European Union has set 2030 as the target year for full circularity. This places pressure on textile and clothing businesses to comply with different aspects — including circularity, traceability and decarbonization.

Vietnam is angling to strike a delicate trade balance between the US and China. Photo: Reuters
A clothing boutique in downtown Hanoi. Photo: Asia Times Files / AFP / Hoang Dinh Nam

East Asian clothing and apparel producers who do not utilize recyclable materials may face heightened scrutiny. Also, this sector’s heavy water and chemical usage contributes to severe water pollution as it discharges substantial volumes of wastewater containing hazardous substances into rivers and waterways. Reducing carbon emissions will require changes to the sector’s business models and technological and process innovations.

But opportunities abound. The domestic transformation required to meet EU standards could make the region better prepared if other developed markets implement similar policies. 

Embracing green production practices can have a positive impact on the local environment and the quality of life of East Asian people. It can also open up new sustainable production and business opportunities. In turn, this could attract more foreign investment from developed countries.

Despite the challenges caused by these new regulations, companies in the region are proactively addressing them. Singapore-based Ramatex has already made strides in sustainability by researching how to create clothes that do not shed microfibers. 

In Vietnam, the Spectre garment factory relies on renewable energy to power its operations, while South Korea’s Hansae Group and the Hanoi Textile and Garment Joint Stock Corporation have collaborated to produce recycled textiles for exports to the European Union.

To some extent, opportunities for environmental progress depend on existing capabilities and other facilitating factors, including policy frameworks and infrastructure. Mitigating the environmental impact of textile manufacturing requires a systemic shift towards a circular economy. 

This transition should encompass green public procurement, eco-design, labeling and standards, and increasing producers’ responsibility. It is imperative to adopt a new development approach that is both net-zero carbon and environmentally restorative.

A substantial challenge in the sustainability transformation of the textile industry in East Asia is the limited knowledge and technical know-how regarding environmental sustainability. 

Workers supervise embroidery machines working on fabrics for wedding dresses at a small factory on the outskirts†of Islamabad on September 2, 2020. Photo: Asia Times Files / AFP / Farooq Naeem

To make the East Asian textile and apparel industry greener, key projects must be set in motion. They include investing in research and development and providing comprehensive education and training programs to increase expertise in environmental sustainability.

Governments should also enact supportive policies and incentives for sustainable manufacturing in the textile sector, including tax incentives and subsidies. These incentives should encourage the adoption of eco-friendly technologies and promote green supply chain practices.

International and domestic collaborations to share best practices and strategies for sustainability are also vital. By addressing these issues, East Asian textile and apparel manufacturers can better position themselves to meet the evolving standards of the European market and improve their sustainability.

Associate Professor Dr Hoang Hai Ha is Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of History, Hanoi National University of Education.

This article was originally published by East Asia Forum and is republished under a Creative Commons license.

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China: WHO seeks data on ‘pneumonia clusters’ in children

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Schoolchildren wearing masks walking up stairsMayur Kakade
By Phelan Chatterjee & Fergus Walsh
BBC News

The World Health Organization (WHO) has asked China for more information on “clusters of undiagnosed pneumonia” reportedly spreading among children in the north of the country.

Non-state media reports say paediatric hospitals in parts of the country are overwhelmed with sick children.

Chinese authorities have attributed a spike in flu-like illnesses this winter to the lifting of Covid measures.

The WHO is urging people in China to take measures to reduce transmission.

In a statement, the UN health agency says it wants more information on reports in the media and from ProMed – a global outbreak surveillance system – of “clusters of undiagnosed pneumonia in children in northern China”.

After the WHO statement was released, state-run Xinhua news agency published an article on Thursday which quoted officials of the National Health Commission as saying they were paying close attention to the diagnosis and care of children with respiratory illnesses.

While mentions of China and a wave of infection can get people jittery as it brings memories of the coronavirus pandemic, it’s good practice for the WHO to ask for clarity. But until Beijing responds, there is no way of knowing why this spike of infections has come.

Since October, northern China has reported an “increase in influenza-like illness” compared to the same period over the past three years, the WHO adds.

Last week, China’s National Health Commission said there had been a rise in several respiratory diseases across the country – in particular influenza, Covid, mycoplasma pneumoniae – a common bacterial infection affecting younger children – and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Officials attributed the rise to the lifting of Covid restrictions.

Other countries, including the UK and the US, saw similar surges in flu-like illnesses once pandemic restrictions were lifted.

“China is likely experiencing a major wave of childhood respiratory infections now as this is the first winter after their lengthy lockdown, which must have drastically reduced the circulation of respiratory bugs, and hence decreased immunity to endemic bugs,” said Prof Francois Balloux of the University College of London Genetics Institute.

The WHO says it is unclear if the reported pneumonia outbreak and overall increase in respiratory infections reported by Beijing are linked – and has made an official request for more detailed information.

It has urged people in China to take basic precautions like getting vaccinated, wearing masks and hand-washing.

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Former secret society headman jailed over 1988 riot that left teenager dead

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SINGAPORE: Some 35 years after fleeing Singapore following a fatal riot involving his gang, a former headman of a secret society returned to Singapore to surrender for medical reasons.

Lee Koh Yong, 65, was sentenced to three years’ jail on Wednesday (Nov 22) for one count of rioting.

The court heard that Lee was 30 at the time of the riot in 1988, and the headman of a triad society.

The fight was sparked by an argument between two groups at a chalet near East Coast Park in August 1988.

On Sep 3, 1988, Lee was asked by a gang member to head down to a discotheque around Stadium Road as they had spotted members of a rival gang.

Lee wanted to head down to help fight and called others to join him before he proceeded to the location with three others in a van.

When they got to Stadium Road, Lee’s group formed a plan to attack the rival gang members when they left the disco.

At around the same time, the 17-year-old victim arrived at the location in a taxi with two friends, intending to meet a friend at the disco.

As they were walking, the victim’s friend recognised Lee’s gang member from the argument in August.

The victim’s friend told the victim about this and they decided to turn around and walk away.

However, Lee’s gang went to confront the victim and his friend, as they had recognised them.

Several gang members began attacking the victim and his friend, who was 16. Some of the attackers used wooden sticks and poles from nearby construction works in their assault.

As the attack was taking place, Lee stood a short distance away, observing. He did not personally inflict violence on the victims as he felt his group was already winning.

The attack lasted three to four minutes, with the victim and his friend being knocked unconscious.

The gang then fled.

A passer-by called the police, who found the victim lying unconscious on the pavement. The victim’s friend had woken up and left the scene in a taxi earlier.

The victim was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy found that he had died of a contused brain due to a fractured skull.

Later that day, Lee found out that the victim had died. He decided to go into hiding in Malaysia and went to Johor Bahru with three others.

Lee remained in Malaysia for more than 30 years, until returning to Singapore on Mar 17.

His intention in returning to surrender was to get a medical check-up, as he was not able to visit a doctor overseas, the court heard.

Several of Lee’s then-gang members have been sentenced to jail over the fatal incident.

The prosecution called for three years’ jail for Lee, with another three months in lieu of caning as Lee is above 50 and cannot be caned.

She said Lee had chosen to run away and returned only after living out his life.

Defence lawyers Josephus Tan and Cory Wong of Invictus Law asked for three years’ jail with no additional jail term in lieu of caning.

Mr Tan said it was not a case where Lee strategically waited until he turned 50 to surrender himself in order to avoid caning.

This was “never a consideration operating in his mind”, said the lawyer.

In fact, Lee said he could have simply not chosen to return to Singapore, with his family being Malaysians to begin with.

Mr Tan said his client chose to do “the right thing” to face the music, and was hoping to receive medical treatment in Singapore for his deteriorating health.

The lawyer quoted Lee’s daughter, who said her father was suffering from cataracts, gout, cardiovascular disease and frequently has blood in his stools.

Mr Tan noted that Lee did not personally lay a finger on anyone on the day of the riot.

He included a letter by Lee’s daughter in his mitigation plea, in which she wrote that her father wants to put the case behind him and focus on rebuilding his life.

She wrote that her father has carried guilt for not visiting his parents and later their graves since 1989, and sought leniency so her father could “mend the broken pieces of his life”.

For rioting, he could have been jailed for five years. Caning would also have been possible, if he were below 50.

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Ambulances on standby as Indian rescuers near 41 trapped workers

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SILKYARA TUNNEL, India: Ambulances were on standby Thursday morning (Nov 23) as Indian rescuers dug through the final metres of debris separating them from 41 workers trapped in a collapsed road tunnel for nearly two weeks.

Emergency vehicles and a field hospital stood ready, AFP journalists at the site said, preparing to receive the men who authorities hope will soon be freed from the tunnel in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.

Engineers have been digging for days to drive a steel pipe through some 57m of earth, concrete and rubble that has divided the trapped men from freedom since a portion of the under-construction tunnel caved in on Nov 12.

After days of painfully slow progress, engineers with a powerful drilling machine made a sudden rapid advance on Wednesday, before being slowed with just 12m to go after metal rods blocked the route.

“WAR FOOTING”

But after workers through the night crouched in the narrow area cut through the metal rods, the route was reopened for the earth-boring machine to drill the final section, Praveen Yadav, one of the rescue team told reporters on Thursday morning.

“We have cut and cleared the way,” he said, adding the drill would restart to make the hoped-for final push.

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Teacher praised for protecting pupils from mentally ill attacker

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PUBLISHED : 23 Nov 2023 at 13:18

Teacher praised for protecting pupils from mentally ill attacker
Teacher Thawatchai Duangtham shows scratches on his elbows after the incident. (Photo: Makkawan Wannakul)

The government praised a teacher at a primary school in Chaiyaphum province for protecting about 100 young children from an attack by a mentally ill man during their morning assembly on Wednesday. The teacher sustained minor injuries.

Deputy government spokeswoman Kenika Oonjit said on Thursday that the government praised Thawatchai Duangtham, the teacher at Ban Namphu Hinlard School in tambon Thung Na Lao of Khon San district.

“He protected students, fought the deranged intruder at the school and was himself wounded in his hand and arms,” Ms Kenika said.

“The government praises the courage and dedication of this teacher. Without him, schoolchildren and other people might have been harmed or there could have been greater damage,” the spokeswoman said.

After the incident on Wednesday, Mr Thawatchai, the 32-year-old physical education teacher, said the deranged man entered the school on his motorcycle, wielding a large knife and shouting, as the morning assembly was about to end.

At that moment, he said, he was aware that he had to save the young kids.

“He ran after children. Teachers rushed the minors to their building to take shelter. I stepped in his way while two children remained at the scene and could not make it to the building,” the male teacher said.

He pulled the kids behind his back and dodged when the attacker tried to slashi him with the long knife.

“The knife narrowly passed my nose. I pulled the kids away and fell. I got up and pushed his hand away,” the teacher said.

The newly-recruited teacher said his right hand suffered a tiny cut and his elbows were grazed when he fell to the ground.

Villagers shouted loudly from the school fences before the deranged man escaped on his motorcycle, the teacher said.

Seconds before the attack, Mr Thawatchai said he mistook the man for a visiting parent until the moment he saw the knife. At that moment, about 100 children and 10 teachers were present.

Then the man shouted at him, the teacher said, telling him to resign and leave the school. Mr Thawatchai said he had never seen him before.

“I was afraid and felt sorry for the children because they were crying, screaming and running in all directions,” the teacher said.

The incident happened when the school opened its gate to receive pupils and parents in the morning, he said.

Sombat Traisak, acting governor of Chaiyaphum, said there were more than 500 mentally ill people in the northeastern province and officials concerned would have to find out if their families regularly brought the patients for treatment.

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Chiang Mai airport adjusts 160 flights for Loy Krathong

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PUBLISHED : 23 Nov 2023 at 12:47

Chiang Mai airport adjusts 160 flights for Loy Krathong
Lanterns of various shapes are on display at the Airports of Thailand (AoT) shop at Chiang Mai airport, Chiang Mai province, ahead of the Loy Krathong Festival. (Photo supplied)

There will be 160 changes to flights at Chiang Mai airport after 7pm during the Loy Krathong Festival on Nov 27-28, airport deputy director Wisut Khamyod said on Thursday.

The changes comprise 101 cancelled and 59 rescheduled flights, accounting for 47% of the normal flights. Of the 101 cancellations, 77 are domestic flights and 24 are international. Rescheduled flights include 51 domestic and eight international flights.

Mr Wisut said the cancellations and the rescheduled flights are unlikely to disrupt air services for travellers and tourists, as airlines have informed passengers well in advance, allowing them to plan their trips accordingly.

During the Loy Krathong Festival, Chiang Mai airport will step up security measures within the passenger building and surrounding areas. Vehicles entering the airport and travellers’ belongings will be randomly checked in line with international standards. Parking in front of the passenger terminal will be prohibited.

Travellers are advised to leave for the airport early before the scheduled departures as traffic is expected to be heavy during the festival, he said.

Moreover, the airport has sent a letter to public and private organisations, local administrations, temples, educational institutes and communities in the air safety zone to remind them of a provincial announcement on safety measures.

The announcement prohibits flying of lanterns, balloons, makeshift rockets, drones and other objects within the aviation safety zone of the airport. The zone covers a 4.6-kilometre area on both sides of the runway and a distance of 18.5km between both ends of the runway on Nov 27-28.

Under the announcement, airborne lanterns are banned in six districts of the northern province. The ban covers Muang, Hang Dong, Saraphi (tambons Khua Mung, Don Kaew, Tha Wang Tan, Nong Phueng and Sansai), Mae Rim (tambons Don Kaew, Rim Tai, Mae Sa, Muang Kaew and Rim Nuea), Sansai (tambon Nong Han) and San Pa Tong (tambon Tung Tom).

A worker collects a floating lantern near Chiang Mai airport during the Loy Krathong Festival in 2017. (File photo)

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