COMMENTS (0)

RECOMMEND (84)

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

PLUSONE

MORE

E-MAIL

PRINT

TEXT SIZE

They included about 100 refugees registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Malaysia.  Zafar Ahmad, president of the Burma Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia, protested against the arrests. Community leaders, pregnant women and children were among the people detained, he said.“The Malaysia government must stop its crackdown on Burmese refugees and migrants, who are really in a vulnerable situation on Malaysia soil,” Zafar Ahman said. “We refugees and undocumented workers do not have any rights when living in Malaysia, but we continue living here because we cannot go back to our country at this time.” Malaysia is a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council, although human rights organizations accuse the Kuala Lumpur government of various abuses. The Malaysian government has also signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, which work for the protection of the rights of children and women in signatory countries.

World Bank Chief Visits Vietnam

World Bank chief Robert Zoellick began a two-day visit to Vietnam on Monday to learn more about the challenges facing the fast-growing communist country. Zoellick, making his first official overseas trip, is to tour several World Bank projects in Yen Bai province, one of the nation's poorest areas, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northwest of Hanoi.

He also was expected to meet with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and other key officials later Monday. He is to visit Japan after leaving Vietnam on Tuesday.

Earlier this year, the bank described Vietnam as having the potential to be one of the great economic development success stories, and said it expected to provide it with more than US $800 million annually over the next five years in interest-free grants and loans.

However, the bank also warned that Vietnam faces challenges in realizing its goal of becoming a middle-income country by 2010. Last year, Vietnam's economy grew by 8.2 percent, making it one of the world's fastest-growing countries. (AP)

Thai Police to Sport Hello Kitty Armbands as Punishment

Thai police officers who break police rules will be forced to wear hot pink armbands featuring "Hello Kitty," the Japanese icon of cute, as a mark of shame, a senior officer said Monday. Police officers caught littering, parking in a prohibited area, or arriving late—among other misdemeanors—will also be forced to stay in the division office with the deputy chief all day, said Police Col Pongpat Chayaphan. The striking armband features Sanrio's Hello Kitty sitting atop two hearts.

"Simple warnings no longer work. This new twist is expected to make them feel guilt and shame and prevent them from repeating the offense, no matter how minor," said Pongpat, acting chief of the Crime Suppression Division in Bangkok. Hello Kitty, invented by Sanrio Co in 1974, has been popular for years with children and young women. The celebrity cat adorns everything from diamond-studded jewelry, Fender guitars and digital cameras to lunch boxes, T-shirts and stationery. Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and Mariah Carey have been spotted with Hello Kitty gear. (AP)

---

Friday, August 03, 2007

Philippine Bishops Call for Prayers to End Drought

Roman Catholic bishops in the Philippines asked the faithful Friday to pray for rain to break a three-month dry spell that has reduced water supplies and caused sporadic electricity blackouts. "Our relief will come from nature," Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales, the archbishop of Manila, said in a circular issued to all parish priests and chaplains who were instructed to include special prayers for rain during Mass. The rain and typhoons that usually hit the Philippines by July have been delayed, leading to low water levels at several dams that feed hydroelectric power plants and causing at least one facility to shut down. The last time the church included prayers for rain was at the height of the El Nino weather distortion syndrome in 1998. (AP)

Giving Money to Beggars Face Hefty fines in Indonesian City

People who give money to beggars in one Indonesian city could be slapped with a US $660 fine, while panhandlers themselves could face up to six weeks in jail under a proposed new law, an official said Friday. The goal of the bill being circulated in Medan, the provincial capital of North Sumatra, is to clear the streets of beggars, some of whom have formed organized gangs to harass tourists and residents, said Nabari Ginting of the Social Services Department.