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.



AP The number of foreign fishermen stranded on several remote eastern Indonesian islands has spiraled to 4000, including some revealed in an Associated Press investigation to have been enslaved. Many are migrant workers abandoned by their boat captains after the Indonesian government passed a moratorium on foreign fishing five months ago, according to the International Organisation for Migration in Indonesia.



bbc.com Why Singapore banned chewing gum: ''For many years as a visiting columnist, I too chewed over the puzzle of the chewing gum conundrum, but came to understand that the tendency to stick the remains of the gum in every which place was viewed by the authorities as a palpable attack on Singapore's ambition to be perfect,'' writes Tom Plate, in his book Giants of Asia: Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew.



themalaymailonline.com Seremban police have stirred a controversy over abortion by declaring they will only investigate such termination of pregnancy if it involves unmarried couples. Seremban police chief ACP Muhamad Zaki Harun made the statement when commenting on a recent case involving a married couple who had allegedly paid a clinic here to abort a six-week foetus.



AP Myanmar's powerful military commander pledged to work to support successful elections in November, calling it ''an important landmark for democracy implementation,'' and warned that the army will not tolerate instability or armed threats.



outbreaknewstoday.com One year after Australia, Macao (China), Mongolia and the Republic of Korea were declared measles-free, the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region added Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia and Japan to the list of countries and areas in the Western Pacific Region that have successfully eliminated measles.



worldbulletin.net Cambodia's largest and only Ottoman-style mosque was officially opened by Prime Minister Hun Sen in a ceremony attended by more than 1000 people. Al-Serkal Grand Mosque in Phnom Penh's Boeng Kak neighborhood was funded by Eisa Bin Nasser Bin Abdullatif Alserkal, an Emirati businessman.



wsj.com In the battle between China and Japan for economic pre-eminence in Asia, Vietnam is center stage. Beijing and Tokyo have plied the country with investment and aid, with an eye to building up low-cost manufacturing bases there. Vietnam's strategic location on oil-transport routes also plays a part.



reuters China's Foreign Ministry expressed serious concern after the Philippines said it would resume repair and reconstruction works on disputed islands in the South China Sea, saying Manila was infringing on Chinese sovereignty.



chicagonow.com Laos or Lao? Leave off the 'S' tacked on by French colonists our local tour guide I nicknamed Short Round said.