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.



cincinnati.com The fish many Cincinnati Catholics devour during Lent might have been caught by a slave worker thousands of miles away in Indonesia. A year-long Associated Press investigation looked into the Thai fishing industry, parts of which use slaves.

japantimes.co.jp/ap Here, in the Indonesian island village of Benjina and the surrounding waters, hundreds of trapped men represent one of the most desperate links among companies and countries in the seafood industry. This intricate web of connections separates the fish we eat from the men who catch it, and obscures a brutal truth: Your seafood may come from slaves.



AP The men the AP interviewed on Benjina were mostly from Myanmar, also known as Burma, one of the poorest countries in the world. They were brought to Indonesia through Thailand and forced to fish. Their catch was then shipped back to Thailand, where it entered the global stream of commerce.



channelnewsasia.com General Prayuth has confirmed he will attend Mr Lee's State Funeral on Sunday, but it remains unclear whether Mr Thaksin will do so as well. While political intrigue is fuelling plenty of local interest, there is also genuine interest in Mr Lee's life, legacy and achievements in Thailand.

sg.news.yahoo.com More than 415,000 people, equivalent to over 12 percent of Singapore's citizens, have visited parliament to pay their respects to former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, lying in state, officials said. VIP visitors at the public wake included Lee's old friend former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger.

Singapore Zoo Mr Lee was a frequent visitor to the Singapore Zoo, Jurong Bird Park and Night Safari with his family. As with every aspect of Singapore, Mr Lee always wanted to know more and see where he could help make improvements. He would ask questions about the animals, their husbandry and genetics, and even the trees.



blabbermouth.net According to The Star Online, British extreme metallers CARCASS have upset some of their Malaysian fans by posting picture of the Malaysian flag upside down after the band failed to get visas for a show in the country.



reuters An international judge at a war crimes court in Cambodia charged another former Khmer Rouge member with crimes against humanity. The charges against the former member, Ao An, or Ta An, cover allegations of ''extermination, persecution on political and religious grounds, and other inhumane acts'' at detention centers under Pol Pot's bloody rule in the 1970s.



globalresearch.ca This Spring marks 40 years since the end of the Vietnam War. At least that's what it's called in the US, the Vietnam War. In Vietnam, it's called the American War to distinguish the phase involving the US from those involving other aggressors and colonizers - China, France and Japan most notably.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/looking-back-at-the-vietnam-war/5439233

defensenews.com Vietnam's national security and economic development are tied up in a risk-laden dispute over the South China Sea with China, the neighboring giant whose policies are hard to predict, said Hoang Anh Tuan, director of the Vietnamese Institute for Foreign Affairs and Strategic Studies.



inquirer.com The Philippines shot back at Beijing's criticism of its activities in the South China Sea, saying they were ''in no way comparable to China's massive reclamation activities'' in the waters.