PHUKETWAN recognises the importance of Asean with the Economic Community approaching and marks what's happening around the region with a column, Asean Today, that will cease when Phuketwan closes on December 31.



AP World Sailing said it will investigate reports that two Israeli windsurfers and their coach have been refused visas to compete at the Youth Sailing World Championships in Langkawi, Malaysia, saying all international sailors should be allowed to compete.



bangkokpost.com Four Myanmar migrant workers arrested over the murder of a 17-year-old female student in September claim they were tortured into confessing by Ranong police.



ft.com Diageo has been forced to change tack in the world's biggest Muslim-majority country with the introduction of alcohol-free Guinness Zero after Indonesia's government clamped down on beer sales this year. A local production facility is planned.



afp Rescuers in northern Myanmar said they were confident only a handful of people are missing in a jade mine landslide, refuting local reports that as many as 50 miners might have been buried.



reuters Around 50 Philippine protesters have camped on a disputed Philippine-held island in the South China Sea, taking a stand against Beijing's claims over the waters.

afp Muslim guerrillas killed 10 civilians in the majority Catholic Philippines over Christmas, the military said, with some Christians in the affected areas now too scared to sleep in their homes.



straitstimes.com A former lounge singer who offered to help fellow Chinese nationals and performers remit money back home at cut-price rates has allegedly disappeared with more than $10 million of their savings. Ms Li Xia, 38, offered to convert $1 to 5.1 yuan, compared with market rates of $1 to 4.6 yuan, according to Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao.




More threatened than even elephants or rhinos, pangolins are the most heavily trafficked mammal in the world. The biggest consumer demand comes from China, where dried pangolin scales are used for traditional medicine, as a cure for afflictions ranging from arthritis and rheumatism to asthma and cancer. Eating pangolin meat is also said to revive men's virility.

Cambodia

khmertimeskh.com Police say that an elderly man who fell sick after attending a wedding on December 21 in Pursat's Bakan district died at the district hospital. Yim Vin, 83, was one of 46 villagers to have fallen sick after being poisoned during the wedding ceremony.

Laos

nationmultimedia.com The year of 2016 will be the ''Year of Laos'' as the country takes the Asean chairmanship, US President Barack Obama visits the nation and the ruling party holds its 10th congress to select a new leadership.