55 killed in Bangladesh floods in August: Officials

Refugee Commissioner Mizanur Rahman said four Rohingyas were killed, including a child and her mother who were buried under a landslide. “We have relocated around 2,000 people to safe places who are at risk of landslides in the camps,” he told AFP. Hundreds of villages were swamped in Chittagong, Bangladesh’sContinue Reading

Safeguarding reserves ‘not easy to understand’, George Goh and Tan Kin Lian yet to prove they do: Ng Kok Song

He said that his 45 years’ experience in helping to build the reserves thus qualifies him to understand the “intricacies of the reserves”. “I think Minister Tharman also understands, but it is something which I think other candidates will have to prove, that they have a sufficient grasp of theContinue Reading

Protesters slam Pheu Thai, Bhumjaithai for alliance with military parties

Protesters slam Pheu Thai, Bhumjaithai for alliance with military parties
A protestor splashes paint in front of the Bhumjaithai Party headquarters on Phahon Yothin Road in Bangkok on Sunday evening. (Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)

A group of protestors, mostly on bicycles and motorcycles, rallied in front of Pheu Thai and Bhumjaithai party headquarters on Sunday evening to denounce their efforts to form the next government with military-linked parties.

People using about 50 vehicles first gathered at the BTS Mo Chit station on Phahon Yothin Road at about 1.30pm. Rally leaders criticised both parties for potentially teaming up with political parties connected to the May 2014 coup d’etat.

About an hour later they moved to the Bhumjaithai Party headquarters on the same road.

The protesters arrived at the head office at about 3pm. It was closed and guarded by police.

Protesters there criticised Bhumjaithai’s policies related to Covid-19 and cannabis decriminalisation. They scattered leaftlets, splashed paint and attached glue traps normally used to trap mice. Bhumjaithai leader Anutin Charnvirakul is also known by his nickname “Noo” (mouse in Thai).

The demonstrators then moved to the Pheu Thai headquarters on Phetchaburi Road at about 4.45pm. The place was also closed.

There they dumped and destroyed Pheu Thai souvenirs including stickers, cups, calendars and shirts. They also demanded Pheu Thai restore its coalition partnership with the election-winning Move Forward Party.

Pheu Thai came second in the May 14 general election with 141 House seats and Bhumjaithai came third with 71 seats. Both announced their joint effort to form the next government after Pheu Thai withdrew from its previous coalition alliance with Move Forward which won 151 House seats.

Demonstrators move towards the headquarters of the Bhumjaithai Party on Phahon Yothin Road on Sunday evening. (Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)

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Miss Universe Organisation cuts Indonesia ties over sex abuse claims

Miss Universe IndonesiaMISS UNIVERSE INDONESIA

Miss Universe Organisation (MUO) has cut ties with its Indonesian franchise after several contestants alleged sexual abuse days before the pageant’s crowning ceremony in Jakarta.

Contestants said finalists were unexpectedly asked to strip for “a body check for scars and cellulite” and some said they were photographed topless.

The US-based MUO said it was clear the franchise had not lived up to its brand standards, ethics, or expectations.

Jakarta police are probing the claims.

MUO also said it was also cancelling this year’s pageant in Malaysia which is run by the same company, PT Capella Swastika Karya.

Miss Universe Organisation thanked the women that filed the complaints for their bravery and reiterated “providing a safe place for women ” was its priority.

It said it was evaluating its policies and procedures to avoid similar occurrences and said there were no measurement or body dimensions requirements to join its pageants worldwide.

“In light of what we have learned took place at Miss Universe Indonesia, it has become clear that this franchise has not lived up to our brand standards, ethics, or expectations,” MUO posted on Saturday night.

Miss Universe, which is now on its 73rd edition, is popular in South-east Asia, especially in Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, where winners go on to become celebrities and social media influencers.

Its owner Anne Jakrajutatip, a Thai transgender woman and media mogul, has sought to revamp the brand to make it more inclusive by allowing married women, transgender women and single mothers to compete.

Poppy Capella, Indonesia’s franchise director said on Instagram that she had “never known, ordered, requested or allowed anyone who played a role and participated in the process of organizing Miss Universe Indonesia 2023 to commit violence or sexual harassment through body checking”.

She also added that she was against “any form of violence or sexual harassment.”

Indonesia’s Ms Fabienne Nicole Groeneveld who who won the contest to represent her country in the 2023 Miss Universe finals in November will compete with the organisation’s support, MUO said..

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Russian woman falls to death in Jomtien

CHON BURI: A 32-year-old Russian woman naked from the waist down fell to her death from a seventh-floor condominium room in Sattahip district on Sunday morning.

Local police were informed of the death at about 7am on Sunday. It happened at a condominium building on Soi Na Jomtien 4 Road in tambon Na Jomtien.

The body of the Russian woman was found lying face down in a pool of blood on the ground in front of the condominium building. She was wearing a green T-shirt and a jean jacket, while the lower parts of her body were exposed.

Police assumed she fell from the room of her 30-year-old Russian boyfriend on the seventh floor of the building. In the room, a window next to a bed was found with its curtain open. The boyfriend said the woman had accidentally fallen.

When police arrived, the boyfriend was holding a glass of an alcoholic beverage and appeared uncontrollably drunk. He initially refused to cooperate with police under his state of intoxication.

Police said the room was untidy and strewn with leftover food and drinks, but there were no traces of a struggle. 

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China State Council issues guidelines in bid to increase foreign investment

BEIJING: China’s State Council issued guidelines on Sunday (Aug 13) that it said would further optimise the country’s foreign investment environment and attract more foreign investment. The State Council said in a document containing 24 guidelines that authorities should increase protection of the rights and interests of foreign investors, includingContinue Reading

Bread & Kaya: 2022 Cyberlaw cases of interest..Pt 1

Challenges to Constitutionality of s. 233 Communications and Multimedia Act 1998
Discovery of WhatsApp messages and marital privilege of the Evidence Act 1950

2022 saw the final appeal and incarceration of our former Prime Minister, Najib Razak. The result of his case caused effects on various laws including cyberlaw. One of them is the reliance of…Continue Reading

Typhoon Lan set to crash Japan holiday week

TOKYO: Japanese authorities on Sunday (Aug 13) warned residents in much of the country to prepare for a strong, slow-moving typhoon set to hit during the peak summer travel week. Typhoon Lan is on course to make landfall on Tuesday on Japan’s main island of Honshu, bringing heavy rain andContinue Reading