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.



afp Rice wine brewed with a toxic level of alcohol has killed at least 19 people and left 172 more in hospital in northeast Cambodia, the health ministry said.



reuters Malaysia's key electronics sector has been winning more overseas orders, but there is no sign of a sustained surge to lift an economy growing at its slowest pace in more than two years. Like other commodity producers, Malaysia is suffering from sliding oil and gas prices, and its best hope for recovery may rest with its manufacturing sector, especially electronics firms clustered on the tech-island of Penang.



voanews.com Myanmar's leader of the National League for Democracy, which dominated national elections last month, was picking up garbage in her home district Sunday. Noble laureate Aung San Suu Kyi was setting an example for her fellow, newly-elected NLD lawmakers after having told them they are literally responsible for keeping their constituencies clean.



channelnewsasia.com Two people were sent to hospital and two cars damaged when part of the roof over the driveway of Hilton Singapore hotel collapsed on Sunday.



bangkokpost.com Asian studies scholar Benedict Anderson died in his sleep in Batu, Indonesia, Sunday. He was 79. He was banned from entering the country after criticising the regime of the late Indonesia strongman Suharto. Only after Suharto fell from power was Anderson able to return to Indonesia.



khmertimeskh.com As economic growth accelerates, Vietnam's cities are struggling to cope with the huge numbers of people abandoning the grind of country life, while only the elderly and the young are left in the villages. For a country where the phrase ''go home'' translates literally to ''go back to the countryside,'' this is a major transformation.



weather.com Typhoon Melor, known as Nona in the Philippines, rapidly intensified Sunday and poses a significant threat to that country early this week. In an 18-hour time span between 2am and 8pm Sunday, Melor rapidly intensified from a tropical storm to the equivalent of a Category 4, according to the US Military's Joint Typhoon Warning Center.



yonhap South Korean Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-Ahn said that he will push to help South Korean firms expand their presence in Laos. During a meeting with Koreans residing in Vientiane, Hwang said Laos has emerged as South Korea's fourth-largest investment destination.