Chiang Mai café responds to ‘human zoo’ criticism
Family company run out of a former tobacco factory, delighted to display its heritage, says the owner.
PUBLISHED: 25 Apr 2025 at 17: 28
The masters of a Chiang Mai shop that is housed in an ancient tobacco factory and where customers can see workers sorting cigarette leaves have reacted to criticism that the establishment was staging a “human zoo.”
After a user posted a photo of herself enjoying her day in the Yen, a social media wind erupted. CNX eatery Employees sorting tobacco leaves on the ground next to her on the other side of a crystal walls.
The owner of the café wanted to tell its story and the conventional methods of tobacco production, she wrote. The café was again a cigarette factory.
Suwadee Punpanich, CEO of Thonburi Sermrath, a Bangkok-based health clinic operator, posted the photo on Wednesday’s Facebook page.
By Friday, it had received over 7, 000 opinions, many of which lamented the significant cultural class space, with some calling the presentation a “human zoo.”
” I work in the cafe. But, seeing people working outside as a show in warm weather wouldn’t make me feel at all at ease,” one comment reads.
Ms. Suwadee responded on Friday that she respected native ways of living and was grateful that places like the café helped to showcase standard procedures after the image became the subject of conversation on social advertising.
” I don’t like the appearance “human park.” She said that it demonstrated that the readers have thin thinking and attack the workers who have their respect and dignity.
The café even responded to our question on its Facebook page by noting that the view had” shifted from what we intended to show.”
According to the statement, the cigarette shop was a family-run enterprise that had been passed down through the generations. The user wanted to present the family’s history in a fresh, understandable way while preserving it.
According to them, the room was intended to display the factory’s ancient structures with actual workers demonstrating their skills.
The lecture was not intended as amusement, the statement goes. This is how the real processing of foliage is done, according to the café owners, who live in the area from January to May each year.
They were paid pretty and weren’t hired for a present.
Obstructed views, bad sound at Hong Kong’s new Kai Tak stadium irk Coldplay, Nicholas Tse fans
What do Nicholas Tse and the English rock band Coldplay have in common?  ,
They have all complained about obstructed chairs and step sights as well as professional audio problems while attending new performances at Hong Kong’s newly-opened Kai Tak Sports Park.  ,
Hong Kong’s Consumer Council said it received 17 complaints from Tse’s concert fans in a statement released on Thursday ( Apr 24 ).  ,
One disgruntled concertgoer claimed that his stage view was severely blocked after paying around HK$ 6, 000 ( US$ 773 ) for four tickets.
The buyer claimed that Kai Tak’s standard ticketing system should have at least provided some warnings, adding that he had only realized this after arriving at the venue.  ,
Other people complained about technological noise problems during Tse’s performances.  ,
A lover named Don claimed he” could never discover what Tse was singing” in a post on Meta-owned Fibers. He compared it to hearing people sing from the same room at a music studio. ” I haven’t seen for a sad music in a while.”
Another Threads person just melted wrote,” My seat was a collection on the second floor, and 90 % of the time I couldn’t hear him.” I was very upset.
” I don’t know if he’s really sweet spoken or the audio is only rubbish.”
Jet by jet, US losing Pacific air superiority over China – Asia Times
One cunning aircraft, long-range weapon, and cratered airport at a time are being used by China to overthrow US air dominance in the Pacific.
A senior US official stated this month that China is rapidly developing its capability to issue US air superiority in the Pacific, especially within the carefully important First Island Chain.
Admiral Samuel Paparo, head of US Indo-Pacific Command ( INDOPACOM), testified before the US Senate Armed Services Committee. He alleged that the People’s Liberation Army Air Force ( PLAAF ) is producing more fighter jets than the US at a ratio of 1.2 to 1.
Paparo cited China’s fast-growing warrior ships, advanced long-range air-to-air rockets, and sweeping development across all warfighting domains as “high scars” for its capability to refuse US air supremacy along the First Island Chain.
The US must maintain heat supremacy along the First Island Chain, which extends from Japan to the Philippines.
Paparo warned that the US risks falling on without reliable investments in long-range flames, incorporated air and missile threats, and advanced command and control techniques, saying that total control of the air would not be enjoyed by either side. He warned against using ceeding weather superiority.
In a report for the Center for Strategic and International Studies ( CSIS ) in March 2024, Seth Jones and Alexander Palmer point out that while China’s fighter production capacity is impressive, it still trails the US in terms of aircraft numbers, with the US still benefiting from a significant increase in fifth-generation aircraft, particularly the F-22 and F-35.
Jones and Palmer do, however, point out that China is bridging the output gap with the US. They point out that China is reported to produce 100 fifth-generation J-20 soldiers periodically, tripling the production of additional aircraft types, including the J-10C and J-16, which indicates a high output level. Jones and Palmer attribute China’s great warrior output to its consolidated, whole-of-government strategy to defense manufacturing.
Tyler Rogoway mentions that China’s new PL-17 is most likely a very long-range air-to-air missile with an estimated 300-kilometer range in a December 2023 article for The War Zone ( TWZ ).
Rogoway points out that the PL-17 may be targeted at ground-based radar or satellites, as well as airborne early warning and control ( AEW&, C ) aircraft. He mentions that China’s J-16 or J-20 combatants may be unable to carry the PL-17 directly due to its size.
According to Aquilino, the US Department of Defense’s ( DOD ) 2024 China Military Power Report ( CMPR ) states that the PLAAF and PLA Naval Aviation make up the Indo-Pacific’s largest air force, with 3, 150 aircraft, including 1, 900 fighters, an increase of 400 in the last three years.
Aquilino warns that China could quickly surpass the US in full airpower if trends continue, bolstering its position on land and sea.
In an article from the April 2023 Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs content, Matthew Revels mentions that the Army had probably large air assets over Taiwan in order to achieve localized, military air superiority rather than fighting to establish proper air dominance.
Beyond the large number of fighter jets, China’s weapon capabilities present a greater threat to US airstrikes there.
In a December 2024 article for the American Foreign Policy Council, Eamon Passey mentions that the PLA Rocket Force ( PLRF ) has a significant hardware advantage over the US when it comes to conventional missiles.
Passey notes that China has developed a large number of ballistic and cruise missiles, which are frequently more numerous and powerful than their American counterparts. He claims that while the US invests in fast weapons systems, it is less successful in developing and deploying them because of the difficulty and high costs involved in integrating those weapons into US military systems.
Passey points out that China may invest a lot of money in its missile skills, primarily because there are no restrictions on arms control agreements. He also makes note of the fact that the PLARF runs an broad, intelligent missile system that has quickly developed into a single command structure.
China’s anti-intervention strategy in local conflicts depends heavily on the PLARF. In a 2021 Military Review content, Christopher Mihal mentions that China currently has 2,200 conventional ballistic missiles and ample anti-ship missiles to attack every US area fighter in the South China Sea with enough power to defeat each ship’s weapon defenses.
Additionally, Kelly Grieco and other authors mention in a Stimson Center report from December 2024 that the PLARF is expected to launch coordinated missile attacks to destroy US aircraft on the ground and crater runways to render them unusable.
These missile capabilities pose a threat to the US’s forward-deploying air force, which is still highly vulnerable as a result of poor base fortifications, according to Greico.
In a worst-case scenario, according to Thomas Shugart III and Timothy Walton, the majority of US aircraft losses will occur on the ground because its Pacific airbases lack hardened aircraft shelters ( HAS ) and individual aircraft shelters ( IAS ).
They mention that US operational concepts pretended primarily that its aircraft would operate from forward airfields without being contested and that minor threats to those facilities would vanish once hostilities were over.
They claim that this thinking disregards China’s expanding ability to launch missiles, aircraft, and special forces against those troubled facilities. According to Shugart and Walton, dispersal by itself is ineffective because China has enough firepower to warrant dispersal.
In the event of a Chinese assault on Taiwan, a quick US response would be essential for deterrence and defense.
In a June 2023 RAND report, Timothy Heath and other authors mention that Taiwan is least likely to lose in the first 90 days following an invasion, with that period being the minimum requirement for the US to mobilize enough forces for military intervention.
In contrast, Bonny Lin and other authors mention in an August 2024 CSIS report that China can launch major combat operations against Taiwan for six months as part of a larger blockade, with the option of starting with additional missile and air attacks if Taiwan continues to resist.
Lin and others claim that those more frequent attacks are also intended to stop Taiwan from rebuilding damaged equipment and deploying additional weapons systems. The next air-surfing battle could be over before its aircraft even start to take off if the US doesn’t act quickly.
India blows up homes of two Kashmir attack suspects
SARAB, India: On Friday ( April 25 ), soldiers in Indian-administered Kashmir blew up the families of two men who police claim were members of a gang that carried out the region’s most deadly attack on civilians in decades. On Tuesday, American security forces launched a massive manhunt for theContinue Reading
Trump pushing China toward AI processor self-sufficiency – Asia Times
According to several market analysts, China’s stockpile of Nvidia H20 artificial intelligence ( AI ) processors is likely to run out in about a year given that the Trump administration has prohibited sales to Chinese customers.
Huawei, a Chinese tech company, therefore, had increase production of its fresh Ascend 910C solution as quickly as possible while other Chinese AI device designers make more effort to avoid a chip shortage in the years to come.
According to several sources, Alibaba, ByteDance, Tencent, and another Chinese companies placed orders for H20 processors for between US$ 12 billion and US$ 16 billion, or even more, in the first quarter of this year. At least one million of the cards apparently arrived before the shipping were stopped.
An unnamed Chinese business executive told Japan’s Nikkei Asia news that the new US punishment “didn’t come as a surprise because it was commonly anticipated across the market.”
Every big Chinese tech firm had prepared H20 stocks in advance. After all, it wasn’t banned at the time, so why not, given its impressive efficiency?
The US has placed a cap on the performance of AI processors that can be exported to China for the next time, and it was then lifted after new, down-to-earth versions turned out to be bestsellers.
The Da Vinci style infrastructure, which was introduced in 2018 as a platform for AI processing and a replacement for Nvidia in data centers, cloud, edge devices, and other programs, is where Huawei’s Ascend collection of AI processors came from. The Ascend 910 computer was introduced the year before.
After the US ordered Taiwan’s TSMC to stop providing Huawei with device casting service, the Ascend 910B was released in 2022. The Nvidia A100, which was released two years earlier, is rated as performing about 20 % below the H100 if it is produced in China by SMIC using non-sanctioned 7nm DUV printing. In 2022, imports of those two Nvidia bits were halted.
Alibaba, Baidu, Tencent, speech recognition provider iFLYTEK, AI application provider SenseTime, regional universities and nationwide facilities, as well as Huawei itself, officially adopt the 910B.
Within the next few weeks, large shipments of the Ascend 910C are anticipated to started. The growth was revealed final August. It is the most cutting-edge Foreign solution to Nvidia, which is already being used by China’s DeepSeek, DeepSeek.
Similar to Nvidia’s cutting-edge Blackwell computer’s structure, the 910C consists of two 910B cards connected in a single package. The 910C performs well on its own, exceeding the H20 and coming close to the H100.
The 910C, which is used in Huawei’s fresh CloudMatrix 394 rack-scale AI data center answer, a complete system that includes 384 Ascend 910C processors, servers, marketing, store, energy management, and cooling, is more impressive.
The CloudMatrix 394″ competes immediately” with Nvidia’s premium GB200 Grace Blackwell Superchip, according to scientist Dylan Patel and his SemiAnalysis colleagues.
With technology at the pedal, networking, optics, and technology layers, Huawei is a technology behind in chips, but its scale-up solution is probably a generation back of Nvidia and AMD’s current products on the market, according to them.
Huawei’s solution uses significantly more electricity than Nvidia’s, but according to the report,” the power imbalances are a relevant but not a limiting factor in China.” Although this is the best thing China can do right now under the current US sanctions, that won’t always be the case.
SemiAnalysis points out that Huawei still relies on imported Samsung for its high-bandwidth memory ( HBM ) and that its AI processors are produced using imported machinery. However, attention is also being paid to those two flaws.
Hyundai Motor Securities, a Korean stockbroker, reports that Chinese DRAM manufacturer CXMT is “targeting deployment in Huawei’s Ascend AI chips within two to three years.”
In addition, China’s semiconductor equipment and materials industry has advanced to the point where, in spite of US sanctions, SMIC and other foundries, as well as CXMT and other Chinese memory chip makers, can upgrade their process technology and increase capacity.
Naura, China’s largest producer of semiconductor production equipment, is now rated by some as being in the top ten on the global scene.
Ascend 910C yields remain low, but they are rising, indicating that SMIC’s production capacity could reach 400, 000 chips per month later this year, according to industry sources. Additionally, Huawei has already revealed that the Ascend 920, which will be made using SMIC’s 6nm process, will be 30 % to 40 % more effective than the 910C.
The US sanctions ‘ failure to enact a ban on China from using AI processors are demonstrated by the 910C production estimate and Ascend 920 specifications. As for Nvidia, if those restrictions are not lifted, it will likely see its once dominating share of the Chinese market disappear.
Follow this writer on , X: @ScottFo83517667
Rankings of Thai universities dip in latest Asian survey
PUBLISHED: 25 Apr 2025 at 16: 05
In the most recent Times Higher Education ( THE ) rankings, the top universities in Thailand saw a drop in rankings, which also highlights how far behind their leading competitors in Singapore and Malaysia.
The positions for Chulalongkorn and Mahidol universities, which were released on Thursday, showed that even though their ratings have decreased compared to last year, they still hold their jobs as the top two primary institutions in the nation.
In the study, Chulalongkorn University ( CU) placed 132nd- the best in Thailand - , down from 117th next month. Mahahidol University ( MU) placed second at 199th overall, down 60 positions from 139th.
The top 200 universities in Thailand, including King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi ( KMUTT), have since dropped into the 201-250 group. Seventeen other countries, including Thailand, placed somewhere between 251 and 600 or lower.
The British-based newspaper categorizes institutions in bands of 50 rather than giving precise positions to those below the 200-position.
Nevertheless, Chulalongkorn received a report of 49.3, while Mahidol received a score of 43.9.
Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University school. ( File image )
Tsinghua University in China, which received a score of 93, barely edging its long-time foe Peking University, which was also the best school in Asia this year, who came in second with a score of 92.9.
According to our research, THE  found that China’s school superiority initiative has contributed to its outstanding and expanding efficiency.
Singapore’s position as the hub of higher learning in Southeast Asia was cemented by the National University of Singapore, which came in third place, and Nanyang Technological University, which came in third.
Malaysia is the only Southeast Asian nation with stronger jobs than Thailand. Six universities in the southeastern neighboring nation are ranked above Thailand, with the University of Malaya and Universiti Teknologi Petronas, which are 43rd and 64th. Chulalongkorn and University Putra Malaysia both held the same place.
Best in Thailand, but…
- Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University is ranked 132nd.
- Singapore: Third Edition of the National University of Singapore
- Malaysia: 43rd Universiti Teknologi Petronas
- Indonesia: 201-250 at the University of Indonesia
- Philippines: 501-600, University of the Philippines, and Ateneo de Manila University
Based on research, teaching, knowledge exchange, and global perspective measures, THE ranked 853 institutions from 35 countries/territories for 2025.
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In Singapore’s political argument, housing has once again taken center stage, leading to the release of a number of proposals designed to ease public problems. CNA examines the main policy initiatives from the major opposition parties that have released their manifestos, including how they intend to address issues like theContinue Reading
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Immigration continues to be a hot-button problem for some Singaporeans, as it has become over the years. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that the political events organizing the May 3 General Election are offering a variety of coverage options. CNA examines the key ideas made by the fiveContinue Reading
Former Singapore Zoo director who took over S$2.4 million in bribes gets 6 years’ jail, to pay similar amount in penalty
SINGAPORE: A former director at the Singapore Zoo, who accepted bribes in a scheme spanning more than a decade and involving at least eight companies, was sentenced to six years’ jail.
He was also ordered to pay a penalty of more than S$2.4 million (US$1.8 million).
Barry Chong Peng Wee, also known as Danial Chong, 58, had pleaded guilty to 19 charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act and a charge of buying property using his criminal proceeds in February.
Another 88 charges of a similar nature were taken into consideration for sentencing.
If Chong does not pay the penalty, he will have to serve 55 months and 743 days in jail, which is roughly around six years and seven months.
On Friday (Apr 25), Deputy Public Prosecutor Kelvin Chong sought a sentence of between 68 and 78 months’ jail and a penalty order of more than S$2.4 million, arguing that Chong was a “central orchestrator of the offences”.
To this, defence lawyer Mervyn Tan said that the term imposed would be “arduous” on the 58-year-old due to his advanced age and health. He urged the court to consider a lighter sentence of 50 months’ jail.
He also urged the court to consider factors for the period that Chong was out on bail, adding that Chong has served as a caregiver for his family while his wife is the sole breadwinner.
“He is paying a heavy price for his 11 years of folly,” the lawyer said, adding that two of Chong’s children “suffer heavily” from autism.
Delivering the sentence, Principal District Judge Toh Han Li said he had considered that the accused was the “focal point” of the scheme and the main receiver of bribes.
He also noted that the duration of offending was long and that significant benefit had been conferred on the accused.
Court documents showed that the corrupt scheme lasted from July 2005 to October 2016, stopping only when the Corrupt Practices Investigations Bureau started investigations.
By then, Chong had obtained no less than S$2,437,862 in gratification. He spent the sum on family cars, stereo systems, food expenses, a coffee machine and shopping for luxury items.
The defence said that it intends to file an appeal against the sentence.
WHAT HAPPENED
The corrupt scheme started around 2005. At the time of the offences, Chong was the director of facilities management at the Singapore Zoological Gardens, a subsidiary of Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), which was renamed Mandai Wildlife Group in 2021.
He managed the upkeep of the zoo premises and procurement requests for rectification works, among other duties.
Chong had the power to approve the awarding of WRS jobs to contractors until 2013, when the job was handed over to a procurement team set up for the same purpose. The procurement team relied heavily on Chong’s recommendations.
Sometime before 2005, Chong and two other people – Toh Siang Bee and Too Say Kiong – entered into an arrangement in which WRS’ jobs would be awarded to Shin Yong Construction in exchange for money.
Under this arrangement, Toh would give money to Chong through Too to ensure that WRS’ jobs were awarded to Shin Yong Construction. Too passed the monies to Chong in envelopes containing cash.
Toh Siang Bee was the founder of Shin Yong Construction, but has since died. His sons Toh Say Yong, 68, and Too, 57, were director and foreman at the company respectively.
After Toh Siang Bee died, Toh Say Yong and Too continued the corrupt arrangement. Chong would send the specifications of each job or project to Too and tell him to bid for a specific price.
Toh Say Yong or Too would ask other contractors to put in bids that were slightly higher to ensure that WRS would award the job to Shin Yong Construction.
After the project or job was awarded to Shin Yong Construction, Chong would put together a handwritten list of jobs for his commission. Toh Say Yong would hand the commission amounts to Too, who then delivered the money to Chong.
The delivery of the money by Chong would occur on a weekly basis.
Sometime late 2013 or early 2014, Chong and Too agreed to look for other contractors to take part in the corrupt scheme.
They roped in two sole proprietors of the companies Katana Engineering and Thiam Lee Tradings Construction, who also began handing money to Chong in envelopes.
The scheme was eventually continued by Toh Say Yong’s son Toh Yong Soon, who began working in Shin Yong Construction between 2010 and 2011.
The son, a project manager, took over Too’s role in operations after Too was removed from Shin Yong Construction due to a dispute.
Toh Yong Soon later roped in various companies Geoscapes, KKS Engineering, Ultron Construction, Hong Power Engineering and KK Iron Engineering, which also paid commission to Chong.
Under this arrangement, Chong would call Toh Yong Soon regularly to inform him of upcoming projects or jobs at WRS for which the five companies and Shin Yong Construction would bid, as well as the specific prices they should bid to be awarded the projects or jobs.
Toh Yong Soon would convey this information to the other five companies.
Chong also met Toh Yong Soon at least once a month for lunch, where he would provide a list of jobs awarded to the companies and indicate the amount of commission he required.
Acting as the middleman, Toh Yong Soon would consolidate the cash from the companies to give to Chong at least once a month.
For their roles in the scheme, Toh Say Yong was sentenced to a year and 10 months’ jail, Toh Yong Soon to three years and three months’ jail and Too to two years and two months’ jail.
Squid Game star Yim Si-wan will be in Singapore in May for Korea travel fair
On Saturday night, Yim may take the stage to share his personal travel tales and tips, as well as food comments and perspectives into his hometown of Busan.
South Korean singer Punch is also present at the fair, having previously made waves with the song Stay With Me, the signature song from the hit 2016 drama Guardian: The Lonely And Great God (aka Goblin ), starring Gong Yoo and Lee Dong-wook.
During the opening ceremony of Korea Travel Fair 2025, Punch may be performing tracks from K-dramas.