Security tightened for ASEAN summit
Security tightened for ASEAN summit
CAMBODIA: Cambodian officials assert that there are no terrorists in the country. But they are not taking any chances, and have prepared an unprecedented security blanket for next week's Southeast Asian summit.
Intelligence agents supported by 2,000 police and soldiers will patrol the streets during the Nov. 3-5 summit to ensure the safety of more than 1,000 delegates from 14 countries, Phnom Penh Gov. Chea Sophara said.
Schools will remain closed Monday and Tuesday to reduce traffic so that delegates can be ferried to the conference venue unhindered.
Most of the capital's night clubs and karaoke bars will be shut, pushcart vendors will be kept off the streets and prostitutes off the sidewalks, Chea Sophara said. --AP
;REUTERS;KOD; ANPAu..r.. AGLANCE-THAILAND-ATTACKS New bomb blast in southern Thailand JP/11/ASEAN
New bomb blast in southern Thailand
THAILAND: A bomb blast rocked a hotel in southern Thailand, the latest in a spate of arson and bomb attacks in the Muslim- majority region, but no one was hurt, police said on Wednesday.
The attack followed warnings from several Western governments to their citizens about travel in the region, including some southern parts of mostly Buddhist Thailand, in the wake of the Oct. 12 blasts on Bali.
The bomb, hidden in a stolen motorcycle, exploded just before midnight on Tuesday in the car park of the 60-room My Garden Hotel in Pattani province, 1,400 km south of Bangkok. It shattered windows in the hotel and damaged several vehicles.
Police told reporters they defused a similar homemade time- bomb in the Pattani provincial capital on Wednesday about 10 km from the hotel. The device was hidden in the fuel tank of another stolen motorcycle abandoned near a school and a cafe. --Reuters
;AP;KOD; ANPAu..r.. Aglance-Malaysia-Transvestite Malaysian transvestite contest raided by religious JP/11/ASEAN Transvestite contest raided MALAYSIA: Religious authorities raided a beauty contest for transvestites in southern Malaysia, arresting about 80 people including men wearing evening gowns, high heels and makeup, a newspaper reported on Wednesday.
About 200 transvestites attending the "Queen of the Paper Dolls" pageant at a lounge in Johor state on Monday fled when police and religious authorities entered, the Star newspaper reported.
Some people escaped through a backroom toilet while others hid in a secret compartment in the lounge, the paper reported. Authorities seized the prizes, including hampers.
A photograph in the paper showed police leading away several people dressed in glamorous gowns with fancy hair styles. One clutched a feather boa and a silver stiletto-heeled shoe.
Malaysia has secular criminal and other legal codes that apply to all residents, but Islamic sharia laws apply to the predominant Muslim population. --AP
;AP;KOD; ANPAu..r.. Aglance-S'pore-Maid Abuse S'pore begins imposing standards on maid agencies after surge in JP/11/ASEAN Standards on maid agencies imposed SINGAPORE: The government of Singapore began accrediting maid agencies on Wednesday following a surge in complaints over unethical and unprofessional behavior.
The Labor Ministry accredited 19 of the city-state's 700 maid agencies as a first step toward bringing a "greater level of professionalism" to the industry, said Ng Eng Hen, a minister of state for education and manpower.
The ministry said in a statement that it expects to have all of the agencies registered by 2004.
The accreditation scheme was announced a few months ago after a string of brutal beatings sparked a debate over the treatment of maids in Singapore. --AP