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.



metro.co.uk Ten western tourists who stripped naked on a sacred Malaysian mountain have been blamed for an earthquake that killed at least 16 people - as a result they have been prohibited from leaving Malaysia. Mount Kinabalu in Borneo is held as sacred by the local Sabahan people and the Malaysian Tourist Minister has said the tourists are being detained in the country for ''disrespecting the mountain,'' according to the Digital Journal.

theweathernetwork.com Canadians, Germans and Dutch are among a group of tourists who have been barred from leaving Malaysia. Local authorities blame the tourists for causing the violent earthquake that rocked the Malaysian island of Borneo.

ctv.ca The Department of Foreign Affairs says it is assisting two Canadians barred from leaving Malaysia, amid reports that the pair could be charged after allegedly posing naked atop the country's highest peak. Malaysia's foreign affairs ministry identified them as Lindsey Petersen and his sister Danielle Petersen.

brisbanetimes.com.au As the death toll rises to 16 in Malaysia where a 6.0 quake ripped through Mount Kinabalu, European tourists who disrespected local customs by previously stripping naked near to the site are being blamed for the tragedy.

boingboing.net Mount Kinabalu is the country's highest mountain, and considered a sacred site by indigenous people who believe the Borneo landmark is where spirits reside after people die. The tourists' naked selfies angered the ancestral spirits of Borneo, said a Malaysian official.

theaustralian.com.au Australian climber Vee Jin Dumlao said the rescue effort was a farce, and had it not been for guides travelling with her group, they may not have made it out.



bbc.com Monday will be a day of mourning in Singapore after eight of its citizens were confirmed killed in Friday's earthquake on Mount Kinabalu. Most of the Singaporean victims were children on a school trip. The quake sent rocks careering down the mountain, killing at least 16 people.

bangkokpost.com Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha is scheduled to make an official visit to Singapore on June 11-12, deputy government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said.



AP Thailand is eager to show its newfound toughness on human trafficking, taking reporters on patrols and tours of former camps, cooperating with neighboring countries and the US, and arresting dozens of officials - including a high-ranking officer in the military that now controls the country. The junta even had a 'National Anti-Human Trafficking Day.'

Phuket Update The fact that the Royal Thai Navy is continuing its farcical criminal defamation pursuit of two Phuketwan journalists who exposed the shoddy treatment of Rohingya boatpeople in Thailand over many years demonstrates change is not coming in a hurry, says the Australian editor of the award-winning online news site, Alan Morison.



khaama.com The government of Afghanistan strongly condemned sectarian violence against Muslims in Burma where score of people have been tortured and killed and tens of thousands of others displaced.



newsmax.com The American Embassy in Indonesia celebrated the founding of America one month early to avoid conflict with the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, The Jakarta Post reports.



PTI Cambodia has lodged a protest with India over a private trust's plans to build an Angkor Wat replica in Bihar, saying it ''seriously violates'' the 12th century Hindu temple and a world heritage property which holds exceptional and universal value.



latimes.com The sheer number of Vietnamese boatpeople rescued gained worldwide attention, and Congress that year made it mandatory for naval officers to ''render assistance, aid and offer to embark'' to any refugees a commanding officer deemed to be in a life-threatening situation.
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ff-sea-rescue-20150607-story.html



thetimes.co.uk Brunei is an absolute monarchy on the north coast of Borneo which is soon to introduce amputation for thieves and stoning to death for homosexuals - so I shouldn't have been surprised, when I arrived last week, that no one wanted to talk to me.



nationmultimedia.com China's foreign direct investment in Asean has been growing strongly and in Laos, it has been skyrocketing. In 2003, Chinese investment contributed just under 1.5 percent of Laos' FDI. By 2013 China had become the biggest country investing in Laos, at over US$5 billion (Bt170 billion).



abs-cbnnews.com With the Asean integration looming, the Philippines has to keep up with the rest of its Asean counterparts in all aspects of development. Despite this, it has been said recently that the Philippines can very well be the alternate trade hub in Asia.