Today Around Southeast Asia
PHUKETWAN recognises the importance of Asean with the Economic Community approaching and marks what's happening around the region with a new column, Asean Today.
Thailand
mirror.co.uk Walking barefoot over razor-sharp knives may not sound like the best way to good health. But in Thailand that's exactly what they do as part of the annual Vegetarian Festival.
Cambodia
Indonesia
reuters Hardline Muslims in Indonesia's conservative Aceh province demanded the local government close 10 Christian churches just days after a mob burnt down a church, leaving one person dead and several injured. Tensions are high among the ethnically and religiously diverse population of Aceh Singkil district, raising the risk of further religious violence in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.
Brunei
ANN Five flights on the Tawau-Kota Kinabalu route have been cancelled due to the haze, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded in airports. Two of the flights, Tawau-bound MH2121 and Kota Kinabalu-bound MH2122,were cancelled on Sunday morning .
Singapore
bloomberg Singapore's air quality worsened, reaching the higher end of the ''unhealthy'' range as wind carried smoke haze from forest fires in neighboring Indonesia. The three-hour gauge pollutant index was at 161 as of 10pm local time on Sunday, after rising to as high as 183 in the late afternoon, according to data published by the National Environment Agency. An index reading between 101 and 200 is deemed ''unhealthy.''
Malaysia
straitstimes.com After several days of good air, many areas in Malaysia endured smog-filled skies on Sunday as the Air Pollutant Index (API) readings breached the unhealthy level. More areas recorded unhealthy air at 1pm Sunday compared to earlier in the day.
Vietnam
huffingtonpost.com LGBT people face widespread abuse and discrimination, particularly in their homes. And though the country abolished a ban on same-sex marriage earlier this year, gay couples are neither recognised nor protected by law.
Burma
theglobalist.com In terms of making significant inroads into Myanmar, India is way behind not just China, but also other countries such as Thailand and Singapore. They have engaged in investment activities not just in infrastructure, but also in the services sector.
Philippines
AP Typhoon Koppu has weakened after blowing ashore in the north-easternPhilippines, but not before it left at least two people dead, displaced 16,000 villagers and knocked out power in entire provinces, officials said.
