Thailand, Laos to sign labor accord

Thailand, Laos to sign labor accord

THAILAND: Thailand and Laos have agreed to sign a labor accord in
November to regulate thousands of Lao workers seeking jobs in
Thailand, according to a media report on Sunday.

The two countries will sign the accord in the sidelines of the
annual ASEAN summit in Phnom Penh, Thai foreign minister
Surakiart Sathirathai was cited by the Nation newspaper as
saying.

The neighboring countries spent three days from Thursday
holding a bilateral meeting in the Lao capital of Vientiane
hosted by Surakiart and his Lao counterpart, Somsavat Lengsavad.

Surakiart reportedly said that the accord -- which Laos wants
to see protect thousands of Lao migrant workers in Thailand --
was not signed after the meeting as earlier planned because the
two sides could not reach common ground on legal technicalities.

The issue of Lao dissident groups using Thailand as a base for
their struggle against the communist-ruled country was also
raised during the meeting. --AFP

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Aglance-Myanmar-internet
First internet cafes to open in Myanmar: report
JP/9/ASEAN

First internet cafes to open

MYANMAR: The first cyber cafes in military-ruled Myanmar are set
to open from November, with five slated for the capital and
another five for the northern city of Mandalay, according to a
media report here.

Full access to the Internet will not however be permitted, the
Myanmar Times reported in its edition to be published Monday.

The local Myanmar intranet provides access to a limited number
of websites.

Bagan Cybertech, a semi-government organization established
last year, is to be the internet service provider (ISP) for the
cafes.

Prior to its establishment, Myanmar's state-owned Post and
Telecommunications was the country's only ISP and provided e-mail
services only. --AFP

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Aglance-Malaysia-Canada-Visas
Malaysia's Mahathir slams Canada's new visa requirement
JP/9/ASEAN

Mahathir slams Canada's visa rule

MALAYSIA: Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Sunday slammed
Canada's decision to require visas for Malaysian visitors as
illogical and discriminatory.

The visa requirement, announced by Canadian immigration
officials last week, has sparked condemnation from authorities in
this predominantly Muslim Southeast Asian country.

Ottawa has said the change was due to concern that Malaysian
passports were vulnerable to abuse by people trying to enter
Canada illegally.

Mahathir said the reason given for the decision seemed flimsy.
If Malaysian passports were easy to abuse, "it has been so for a
long time, and they have not discriminated against us (until last
week). Why now?" Mahathir was quoted as saying by the national
news agency, Bernama.

The Canadian government announced similar visa requirements
earlier this month for Saudi Arabian travelers, for the same
reasons. Citizens from 145 other countries need visas to enter
Canada. --AP

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Aglance-Thailand-Military
Prime minister's favorites to get top military jobs: report
JP/9/ASEAN

PM's buddies for top military jobs

THAILAND: Two cousins and a number of former classmates of Prime
Minister Thaksin Shinawatra will be stepping into senior military
posts in a controversial reshuffle of the ranks, newspapers said
on Sunday.

The annual reshuffle, which takes effect Tuesday, involves 504
generals, including Gen. Chaiyasith Shinawatra and Gen. Uthai
Shinawatra who are related to the prime minister, The Nation
said.

In an unprecedented promotion, Chaiyasith was moved from a
relatively minor position to that of an army assistant commander.
Uthai will get a key job in the Defense Ministry.

A number of former classmates from Thaksin's days in the
military pre-cadet school are also slated for major positions in
the armed services, the newspaper said.

Critics say loyalty to the prime minister rather than
professional competence is being used as a yardstick for
promotion. --AP

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Aglance-Malaysia-robbery
Notorious crime gang pulls off jewelry heist at Malaysian
shopping
JP/9/ASEAN

Notorious gang pulls off jewelry heist

MALAYSIA: Armed robbers stormed two jewelry stores in Malaysia's
largest shopping mall on Sunday, firing shots in the air before
escaping with 2.5 million ringgit (US$658,000) worth of gold
trinkets, police said.

Two groups totaling seven men - believed to be members of the
notorious M-16 Gang - burst into both stores in the Mid-Valley
Megamall simultaneously Sunday morning, less than 15 minutes
after the outlets opened, said Kuala Lumpur Police Chief Dell
Akbar Khan.

The robbers wore ski masks and wielded three M-16 rifles and
two pistols, Dell was quoted as saying by the national news
agency, Bernama. They fired 15 warning shots during the raid,
which took about four minutes. No one was injured.

The men, believed to be responsible for at least 10 robberies
totaling 27 million ringgit (US$7.1 million), fled in a getaway
van parked outside the mall. The vehicle was later found
abandoned on a nearby street. --AP

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Aglance-Cambodia-AIDS
Official: Over half a million Cambodians to be AIDS victims by
2010
JP/9/ASEAN

0.5m to succumb to AIDS by 2010

CAMBODIA: More than half a million Cambodians will suffer or die
with AIDS by 2010 in what a senior health official on Sunday
described as the country's new "killing field."

Tia Phalla, secretary-general of Cambodia's National AIDS
Authority, said every Cambodian, from villagers to the prime
minister, had to help fight the disease.

Diseases related to AIDS, first discovered in Cambodia in
1991, have killed about 90,000 people in this country of 12.5
million. Another 160,000 people are currently believed to be
infected.

Tia Phalla made his comments ahead of Cambodia's second
national AIDS conference, scheduled to begin Monday. --AP