September 2004
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A new war is needed - a war on poverty
29 September 2004
One of the root causes underlying modern terrorism is simply the fact that so many people still live in abject poverty. They do not have, and they see, all to easily, those who do. Hunger drives people to extremes.
The war on terrorism is dealing with a symptom and not a cause; it is a way of shoring up the self confident west.
It is time for a real, concerted and global war on poverty.
U2's Bono founded an organisation called DATA (debt, AIDS, trade, Africa). DATA calls on the governments of the world's wealthy nations — the United States, Europe, Canada and Japan — to put more resources towards Africa, and to adopt policy that helps rather than hinders Africa in achieving long-term prosperity. We also call on Africa's leaders to strengthen Democracy, Accountability and Transparency toward their own citizens- to make sure that support for African people goes where it's intended and makes a real difference.
If you really need to understand how shocking poverty can be look at www.first8.org; these are pictures from a Dutch photographer which have been sent as a book to heads of state and other people of influence. The book has no answers; but it will pose many questions.
2046 - four reasons to love this film
29 September 2004
Wong Kar-wai's film "2046" will hopefully arrive in Bangkok soon. The film opens in Hong Kong today. Time magazine describes the film as "wonderful - a rich, glamorous and acutely human work with superb performances.
How could he fail; his four actresses are the wonderful Gong Li and Maggie Cheung, the talented Zhang Ziyi and the ethereal Faye Wong.
Zhang Ziyi's official web site
Faye Wong - on rascott.com
The West Wing's unlikely fan club
29 September 2004
My loyal reader knows that I am a great fan of the American TV series "The West Wing". An unlikely ally in the UK is former Tory party leader, Ian Duncan-Smith.
In this excellent commentary, in the Guardian, he explains why he is a fan.
Bartlet, CJ and me
The West Wing depicts an idealistic White House where everyone
tries to make the world a better place. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith
doesn't fall for the politics, but still loves the show
Wednesday September 29, 2004
The Guardian
A couple of years ago I was waiting in the West Wing of the White House to talk to President Bush about the post-9/11 world. The mission to overthrow Saddam Hussein was already on the administration's agenda. My head was full of thoughts about the meeting, but my assistant was looking distracted: an avid fan of television's The West Wing, she was comparing the real thing with the scenes from the programme. We were a few yards from the most powerful man on the planet but it was the world of Josiah Bartlet that was exciting her.
Initially, most of my knowledge of The West Wing came second-hand from others, but in the past year I've had more time to enjoy it. In West Wing World everyone is glamorous. There's not a beer belly in sight. Even after a long night of speechwriting the shirts are barely crumpled; the stubble is rough but carefully ordered. Endless quantities of coffee are consumed but none is ever spilt on keyboards. The interns are as pretty as in Bill Clinton's dreams. Every speech is like the Gettysburg address. There is never a hair out of place - one of the few West Wing phenomena that I can match.
Then there's perfectly manicured CJ Cregg, the president's press spokeswoman. Always elegant and calm, her effect on men of a certain age is electrifying.No need for an Alastair Campbell-like put-down for her (just imagine the scene: the press corps assembled, CJ stands at the podium, some hack makes an allegation, her retort: "Bollocks on stilts"!) No, no. Somehow you can't see it.
Every politician would give his eye-teeth for some of that West Wing glamour in their team. Yet if I'd been visited by a political fairy godmother and offered one West Wing feature I know which one it would have been. Sam Seaborn's wordsmithery, Leo McGarry's crisis management skills and CJ's ability to charm the press pack would all have been tempting, but what I'd have taken from my political genie would have been The West Wing music score. When Bartlet has a difficult message for the American people his carefully scripted words are supported on a rising tide of rousing music: wonderful music that tugs at the heart strings. So powerful is the effect that frankly he could be reciting the telephone directory and you would be moved to tears. (Who knows, maybe that's what New Labour plan next.)
Perhaps only in Hollywood could America be governed by someone so liberal. An American right-of-centre magazine ran a cover article that dubbed the Emmy-winning series The Left Wing. Series one was first beamed into America's living rooms in 1999, when Clinton was still president, and many of the characters were allegedly based on the Clinton White House. Rob Lowe's Sam Seaborn was said to be modelled on George Stephanopoulos; Allison Janney's CJ on Dee Dee Myers; and Stockard Channing's first lady on Hillary Clinton.
The show's brilliant creator, Aaron Sorkin, is an active supporter and fundraiser for the Democrats. From the earliest episodes of series one, Bartlet was nominating the "most liberal judge in the country" to the supreme court and supporting reparations for the ancestors of enslaved black Americans. But the chances of Americans voting for his liberal policies are about as high as CJ becoming my press officer. Martin Sheen, who plays Bartlet, has clauses written into his contract that permit him to undertake political campaigning. This didn't prevent the series' ratings suffering when he campaigned against the Iraq war and was allegedly asked by Warner Bros to ease off. Equally, when he showed up at a rally for Howard Dean in Iowa, the then pro-war John Kerry bested the Vermont governor by 20%.
One of The West Wing's weaknesses is a tendency to caricature: the only Brit to appear in it, Lord Marbury, is an upper-class, whisky-drinking, womanising, bow-tie-wearing eccentric; strangely, the only obese guy is the Republican Speaker of the House with the awkward name of Glenallen Walken; and surprise, surprise, the stupidest, meanest person we meet is Bartlet's Republican challenger - Governor Robert Ritchie. He is conservative, folksy and favours a tough approach to crime. Behind the scenes he's very unpleasant. "All Republicans Are Mean Like This" doesn't actually flash across the screen, but the viewer gets the idea.
And yet, I enjoy the programme very much. I don't watch it for political re-education. Its agitprop has certainly failed on me. I enjoy The West Wing because of its intelligence, its pace, its interwoven plotlines; for its superb camerawork, magnificent sets, perfect casting and terrific humour. The last series may have lost some of the edge of the earlier ones, in the same way Friends and Frasier lost theirs by series 143. But like so much of American television, the writing is sharp and funny. From Sheen to Lowe the acting is Hollywood-class. The panoply of issues the series covers - war, kidnapping, abortion, gun control, poverty, women's rights, drug abuse, hate crimes - is as wide and fresh as the embrace of modern politics.
But there's something deeper than all of these qualities. My guess is the real secret of The West Wing's success is the idealistic image it portrays of public life. From President Bartlet down, the West Wingers are always trying to do the right thing. Unlike the politicians impersonated by Rory Bremner or invented in Michael Dobbs' House of Cards, Josh, Toby, Sam, Charlie et al are good people. They really believe things can get better. They want to make a difference and in each episode they do.
After being pounded by a cynical media in real life, with every politician cast as a pantomime villain, the public find in The West Wing a refreshing dose of optimism: compare the sunlit optimism of the West Wingers with the grey despondency of the EastEnders. The West Wing is almost Capra-esque in its optimism. When Sam exits the series he's replaced by Will Bailey. Will is an incurable idealist - perhaps named after the George Bailey of Frank Capra's It's A Wonderful Life.
Progress has historically been an idea monopolised by liberals and has made drama - and its raw need for challenging of the status quo - a liberal medium. But I wonder if the times are a-changing. The left is now the defender of much of the status quo. It has built the one-size-fits-all welfare state of its dreams and enacted its criminal-is-the-victim-too beliefs into law. In America conservatives are the new idealists. Unhappy with the left's failed approaches to crime, welfare and international development, it is Giuliani in New York and Schwarzenegger in California who are the agents of change. Ironically, in The West Wing the most prominent African-American is the president's personal aide, Charlie. It takes a real-life Republican administration to appoint America's first black national security adviser and secretary of state.
So, Bartlet is now in his second term and that means the end of his presidency is approaching and, probably, the end of the road for the programme. It would be interesting to see a Republican occupy TV's West Wing, but would Sorkin accept the contract? That possibility would be too optimistic even for The West Wing, I fear.
The first Virgin in space
28 September 2004
Richard Branson has revealed plan for "Virgin Galactic" to launch flights into space by 2007.
On each flight there will be up to five passengers, paying approximately US$200,000 each for a three hour flight up to altitudes of more than 100 kilometres.
Branson is investing up to US$100,000 and will build up to five of the re-usable spaceships. The project is being developed with designer Paul Rutan and Micosoft co-founder Paul Allen, the two men who created SpaceShip One which in June this year became the first private manned spaceship.
The future exploration of space requires private and corporate sponsorship; it is not the role of the long suffering tax payer. So Branson is taking the lead and given his past adventures he will likely succeed. Now where do I find US$200,000; sign me up - I want to be a space virgin !
Impotent Blair is at a loss
24 September 2004
The fate of Kenneth Bigley is still not known.
But the fate of Tony Blair looks certain should Bigley be executed. Bigley and other foreigners are in Iraq trying to rebuild a nation devastated by an unnecessary war. And this could be the end for Bair. The voters have had enough.
Bigley's captors have used the Briton to show just how impotent the coalition governments are. The terrorists have shown great awareness of the power of pictures and the internet. They made Bigley plead directly to Blair. Blair cannot do anything. And he knows he will get no help from the Bush Administration.
When the USA said categorically that it could not consider releasing two high profile incarcerated Iraqi women it became clear to all (who doubted it) that it is the USA that makes the decisions; and we are all hostage to the USA.
The Iraq crisis seemed remote in Britain until a very ordinary Briton became the focal point of the drama.
From the Guardian
24 September 2004
"Small wonder that Iraqis feel humiliated and impotent. They are trapped between different sets of foreigners. On one side they face the barbarity of outside Islamists, who use Iraq as the latest and most convenient terrain for jihad against America. On the other, they see the stubbornness of Bush and the arrogance of Blair, who refuse to admit that their adventure was wrong, has become a disaster, and needs to be ended. Every Iraqi is a hostage now."
Jonathan Steele
In any God's name this cannot be justified
22 September 2004
In Iraq yesterday kidnappers released on the Internet a video of their latest execution of U.S. civil engineer Eugene Armstrong. They appear to have executed Jack Hensley today.
Yesterday in Georgia, USA, Patty Hensley, the wife of captured Jack Hensley, had pleaded with his captors to open lines of communication and spare his life.
"I understand their political agenda, but what I need them to understand is the man who I have been with for 23 years, who is the father of our 13-year-old daughter, who does not understand this situation, why someone would want to hurt her father," Patty Hensley said in an interview with CNN. "I would plead with them to please realize this man does not deserve this fate."
And in London Craig Bigley appealed to British Prime Minister Tony Blair to meet the captors' demands.
"I ask Tony Blair personally to consider the amount of bloodshed already suffered. Please meet the demands and release my father — two women for two men. ... Only you can save him now. You have children and you will understand how I feel at this time."
The beheadings are terrifying. There is nothing in my world or any reasonable world that can justify this shocking brutality. And there is nothing in this world that can explain the pain of the captives and their families. To claim that this is done in the name of any God is insane. At the heart of any faith is a basic respect for human life and individual dignity.
Giving in to the kidnappers is not the solution. Pulling out of Iraq is. The US and UK troops quite clearly were there under false pretenses and quite clearly should not stay there. They are not welcome there. Why stay where you are not welcome?
It is the only realistic option. The troop presence in Iraq is too small to fight the war and neither the US or the UK will commit to sending more troops. It is a safe bet that whoever is elected in the USA would pull US troops out of Iraq in the new year after Iraq's national elections (which will be held whatever the circumstances). The only difference is that with only six weeks to go to the US election GW Bush will not commit to withdrawing until after the election.
Getting out now will not end the costly reconstruction. And civil war is probable resulting in rule by the Shiite Muslim majority seeking revenge after long oppression by the Sunni-controlled Baathist Party. The Kurds would remain in their current semiautonomous state. The neo conservative dream of democracy in Iraq and the ARab world is almost dead. It has taken too many lives to achieve so little.
A draft report on the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq has been leaked to the New York Times and is expected to conclude that Saddam's government had an intent to produce nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.
But the report, written by Charles Duelfer, the head of the Iraq Survey Group, apparently finds no evidence that Iraq had begun any large-scale program for weapons production by the time of the U.S. invasion last year.
The draft report is now circulating within the US government.
The Bush administration and the British government stated categorically that Iraq's weapons of mass destruction were the reason for going to war.
The report will also conclude that Iraq only had small research and development programs for chemical and biological weapons. Much like most other countries on the planet.
What we are faced with is a monumental cock-up by the intelligence services on both sides of the Atlantic. Intellignece services who appear to have been manipulated to serve political aims and which lacked the balls, knowledge and influence to stop a war which should never have started.
Worse still
if defies belief people in the US and the UK do not see a need to hold the decision makers accountable. And the joy of a democracy is that we the people can hold our leaders accountable.The events of this week, the horrific executions of people that are trying to help rebuild Iraq and the definitive report on Saddam's lack of WMD take away any credibility from Bush, Blair and Howard.
All are facing elections between now and next spring. None have admitted error. All were wrong
Bush and Howard need to be voted out of office in their November and October elections. Blair needs to be removed as Labour Party leader in the UK and the voters can then make a decision next spring between the Tories and a newly led Labour Party.
A message needs to go out loud and clear that we need leaders who admit and correct their mistakes. If they dont do it we will do it for them
*********************
Chris Patten spoke recently on the EU's policy towards Iraq and on the divisions between the US and Europe. His speech can be found here. As always he is one of the most thoughtful and sensible of public servants.
Farewell Brian Clough
21 September 2004
Brian Clough, the best English football manager never to manage England died yesterday; too young, at the age of 69.
Always outspoken, often controversial, intimidating and dictatorial he understood the game, the players and the fans better than most. He was a man of his times, his own boss and no respecter of inflated egos; modern day teams run as big business would not have suited him.
It was Clough who made Trevor Francis Britain's first £1million footballer in February 1979
Maybe the best tribute is simply to remember his two European cups won with Nottingham Forest in 1979 and 1980 and some of his best one liners.
"At last England have appointed a manager who speaks English better than the players." On the appointment of Sven Goran Eriksson as England manager.
"I want no epitaphs of profound history and all that type of thing. I contributed - I would hope they would say that, and I would hope somebody liked me," On how he would like to be remembered.
"I like my women to be feminine, not sliding into tackles and covered in mud." On women's football.
''That Seaman is a handsome young man but he spends too much time looking in his mirror, rather than at the ball. You can't keep goal with hair like that." On England goalkeeper David Seaman.
Weak Kofi
17 September 2004
The United Nations secretary general, Kofi Annan, declared explicitly for the first time yesterday that the US-led war on Iraq was illegal.
In an interview with the BBC Mr Annan said that the invasion was not sanctioned by the UN security council or in accordance with the UN's founding charter.
He then added unequivocally: "I have indicated it was not in conformity with the UN charter. From our point of view and from the charter point of view it was illegal."
Inevitably this puts Annan and the UN into confrontation with the governments of the USA, Britain and Australia.
If Mr. Annan had greater credibility he would be worth listening to. But he is so focused upon consensus that he is impotent and so is the UN. The UN ends up looking pathetic; sitting by while genocide continues from Rwanda to the Sudan.
The existence of the UN Security Council is used by some countries as an excuse for inaction. One simple fact, countries do not want to do what is necessary to prevent large-scale loss of life in messy, complex Africa.
Crises such as Darfur require urgent action, but the UN Security Council is incapable of acting urgently.
Governments will throw the problem into the labyrinth of UN deliberations; so that they can appear to be good international citizens, while the Security Council with its built-in vetoes from Russia, China and the USA and its built-in opposition from rotating members such as Pakistan and Algeria, prevents any serious action against sovereign nations.
The UN's international forum is broken, particularly when it comes to the Middle East and Africa. It is no surprise then that countries will take action on their own.
Mr. Annan could do so much more by making the UN work in the way that it should, rather than berating countries for not playing by his feeble rules.
Beijing won, the democrats nil
13 September 2004
Well done Beijing; the hearts and minds of Hong Kong are Chinese, and Hong Kong's future is tied to China.
It has cost; and it has required some spectacular incentives; from the Chinese space man to the Buddha's finger. But the task is finished and the battle is won. The Democrats did not do as well as they hoped, and no where near as well as others wished, in Hong Kong's Legco election.
The Democrats will call foul at bungling officials and their half sized ballot boxes. But they miss the point. In the end the Democrats looked self serving and as scandal tainted as the other parties. They offered nothing new. And since the mainland Chinese hate the democrats why vote for them? For Hong Kong to remain prosperous the people need harmonious relations with Beijing.
The people voted for stability; they voted for the path of least resistance. And frankly, why not?
Bangkok Subway Guide Update
13 September 2004
From a reliable source:
Kamphang Phet is the most interesting station on the route. Once getting out, you'll face one of the most famous markets, Or-Tor-Kor, where you can find everything from delicious ready-made foods and Thai deserts to fresh vegies and fruits, etc. Note that it's bit pricey but worth the quality. A marvelous noodle place is also there (get off the station, face the market, turn right and go straight).
The other side of the street is the Chatuchak Sunday Market. A more convenient access than Mor Chit station.
The problem for Hong Kong's democrats
12 September 2004
The problem for Hong Kong's democrats is that the greater the vote the democrats receive the less Beijing will move in a direction that supports change.
The stakes in Mainland China are simply too high.
Hong Kong votes today. The only city or region governed from Beijing that has any sort of democracy. There are 3.2 million registered voters. But in the end the turnout may only be 50%. After all there is shopping to do and money to be made. And voting is a distraction.
The Economist summed this all up neatly in this commentary.
Beware Beijing’s
backlash
Elections for Hong
Kong’s pseudo-parliament, the Legislative Council, will be held this weekend.
The authorities in mainland China are worried that the result may not go their
way. But the bigger the vote for Hong Kong’s democrats, the smaller the chance
of real democracy
AS BEFITS a place more
interested in money than ideals, Hong Kong has never set much store by
elections—this weekend’s poll is only the seventh ever to be held in the former
British colony. This time, however, will be different. The significance of
Sunday’s vote lies less in who is being elected—the 60 members of the
Legislative Council (Legco), Hong Kong’s pseudo-parliament, have little real
power—than in the message it will send China about the desire of the territory’s
7m-odd people to preserve, and indeed increase, their political freedom. It may
not be a democratic vote, but it will be a referendum on democracy.
The reason is that the political climate in Hong Kong has changed out of all recognition since the last election four years ago. Under the Basic Law, the constitution drafted in the run-up to the colony’s 1997 handover to China, Hong Kong was to move towards full democracy, while its current political rights were preserved—an arrangement summarised by the slogan “one country, two systems”. In practice, the population cared little about politics as long as everyone continued to get richer.
But following a long economic slump, the local government (instructed by Beijing) last year made a clumsy and ultimately unsuccessful attempt to force through an anti-subversion bill, known as Article 23, which would have given it the power to search without a warrant. That sparked a groundswell of democratic feeling culminating in huge demonstrations in July 2003 and again this year. Hong Kong people have woken up to the fact that their rights, far from being augmented, are in danger of eroding—and this new-found political consciousness appears to be outlasting the current economic recovery.
China’s response has been club-footed. On the one hand, Beijing has taken a softly softly approach. In the wake of last year’s protests, it offered economic support, including lifting restrictions on mainland tourists visiting Hong Kong, while distancing itself from its own appointee in the territory, the unpopular chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa. In the run-up to these elections, China has also allowed some of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy legislators to visit the mainland. And this week it tried to stir up patriotic fervour by having its Olympic gold medallists parade through the territory. If the excited teenagers watching were anything to go by, this particular ploy is working: many said they felt proud to be part of China.
Still, the mainland authorities have little overall progress to show for their generosity, and they have thus increasingly resorted to hardline tactics and direct intervention in the elections—which is starting to worry international observers as well as locals. In April, Beijing—without warning—ruled out the possibility of direct elections of all of Legco and the chief executive until at least 2012. Pro-government newspapers have recently justified China’s interference in Hong Kong politics by quoting the late Chinese leader, Deng Xiaoping, as saying: “Intervention is sometimes necessary. It depends on whether the intervention serves the interest of Hong Kong.”
There has also been a rash of conveniently timed political scandals involving pro-democracy legislators who, along with journalists and non-governmental organisations, claim they have been threatened in a variety of ways. There are reports that some voters are being pressured by triad gangsters working for Beijing to photograph their ballot slips as proof of how they voted, or risk harm to their family or the loss of their job. New York-based Human Rights Watch published a 42-page report on Thursday, concluding that the past year has been the worst climate for civil and political rights in Hong Kong since the 1997 handover.
The report accuses
Beijing of manipulating the election to favour pro-China candidates. It
highlights the detention without trial (for six months of “re-education”) of a
Democratic party candidate, Alex Ho, for allegedly hiring a prostitute in
southern China. Explicit photographs of a scantily clad Mr Ho were released by
mainland police and widely published this week, raising cries about dirty
campaigning. Emily Lau, an outspoken democrat who upset China by visiting the
renegade island of Taiwan last year, has received death threats, had excrement
smeared on her office door and her house broken into. Three outspoken
broadcasters have resigned after receiving threats.
Despite all these shenanigans, there is no guarantee of a huge turnout on Sunday in support of the pro-democracy parties. The University of Hong Kong’s Public Opinion Programme predicts a turnout of only 49-53%—no higher than the 1998 record (which was largely achieved because the government handed out sets of souvenir cards to voters).
In any case, the pro-democracy groups are very unlikely to get a majority of Legco seats due to the skewed electoral system. Only half of the 60 seats are elected in the way most people in the West would recognise: via (proportional representation) voting in geographical constituencies. The other 30 are chosen via so-called functional constituencies, where limited groups of voters—mostly with business interests and so pro-government—have the right to select MPs. For example, the territory’s professions, such as teachers, accountants and doctors, each get to elect one legislator. And even among normal voters, there are many who see an increasing need to stay on Beijing’s good side, given the territory’s increasing integration with the mainland.
But even if the Democrats and their allies fall short of a majority, most polls predict that they will win 26 or 27 seats (a gain of some five) and possibly a majority of the total votes cast—which is why the Chinese authorities are so worried this time. Their reaction to such a result would most likely be a continuation of their good cop, bad cop tactics—they are too smart to risk outright repression. While they may try to win over hearts and minds by replacing Mr Tung, they will be doubly determined to reintroduce the shelved anti-subversion bill at an opportune time.
More importantly, success for the pro-democracy camp would reaffirm the view in Beijing that further political concessions would cause Hong Kong to slip away on a path to independence, just as Taiwan has. And that is something the current regime in China can never allow, because it could, Mao forbid, spill over into calls for freedom on the mainland itself.
Your Bangkok subway guide
12 September 2004
Bangkok's clean, efficient and Singapore like subway system only has one line at present but it can take you to some of the city's more interesting sites.
Start at HUA LAMPHONG. One exit goes directly into Bangkok's main railway station. You are also a few minutes ride from Chinatown. SAM YAN the next stop gets you to Chulalongkorn University and to the Wat Hua Lamponh temple. Onto SILOM which is a short walk to the Saladaeng BTS station. Plenty to eat around here on Silom, Saladaeng and Convent. Also close to Patpong but why would you want to go there? At LUMPINI you can jump out and watch the boxing; go to the splendid park, or jump on a motorcycle taxi down Wireless Road to the embassies and All Seasons Place. There is also access from the station to the night market at Suan Lum Night Bazaar.
At Klong Toey there is little to mention beyond a late night market. So go onto the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre. The next stop SUKHUMVIT gives access to the BTS at Asok. Soi Cowboy is close by. The Westin and Sheraton are nearby. Heading north now the next stop is PETCHABURI. I really do not know what is here. Though the Amari Atrium is not far away and Petchaburi has a variety of soapy to get a good bath and massage.
The RAMA IX stop lets you exit to the Fortune Hotel and to the IT Mall and the Tesco/Lotus store. The THAI CULTURAL CENTRE is in fact thirty minutes walk away from the centre. Nearby are Jusco, Home Pro, Carrefour and Robinson.
The subway has been nicknamed the soapy express and the next couple of stops explain why. The HUAI KWANG stop is next to the Emerald Hotel and to an assortment of massage houses and Chinese seafood restaurants.
SUTTHISAN is the stop for the one stop service center for visas and work permits. Plenty of male oriented entertainment here as well.
RATCHADA is close to the Chaophya Park Hotel. There are Korean BBQ restaurants here.
LAT PHRAO and PRAHON YOTHIN are residential areas and also offer park and ride access to the subway. Then MORCHIT's exit one takes you into the park at Chatuchak; it is a short walk to the weekend market. There is also nearby BTS access. This station gets very busy at the weekend. Two more stops at KAMPHAENG PHET and BANG SUE.
Wait till the rainy season stops and then go our and explore....
England should not tour Zimbabwe
12 September 2004
Putting commercial interests ahead of simple decency England have agreed to a November cricket tour of Zimbabwe. This is wrong.
Players appear to be under unreasonable pressure to comply with this tour; their professional livelihoods and careers are at stake.
The players are being sent a document from a human rights organisation which refers to arrest, torture and rape in custody and can be viewed at www.zwnews.com in the Exclusives section at the bottom of the home page. There is little to add.
The players are being told that they can refuse to tour in their conscience so decides but the pressure to tour is huge. They have, again , been let down by a weak English Cricket Board and a conflicted ICC.
Thailand's airport greed
7 September 2004
One of the most worrying aspects of living and working in Thailand is seeing how unregulated short term greed drives away the country's longer term growth prospects.
Increases in landing fees at Bangkok are a great example of short term profiteering. It cost airlines 75 per cent less overall to fly to Singapore than to Bangkok, IATA (the International AIrline Transport Association) said. Landing a Boeing 737 in Bangkok currently costs US$549, compared with US$313 in Singapore.
After the Bangkok airport's Oct 1 hike, it will be US$603. From Oct 1, the government intends to raise by 20 per cent the fee that international airlines must pay every time one of their planes lands at Bangkok.
Another 15 per cent hike is planned for next year, in what the IATA fears is to prepare the industry for another fee increase when Suvarnabhumi opens for business.
Meanwhile the Association has publicly said what many people in Bangkok have long known, that Bangkok's delayed US$3.7 billion (S$6.3 billion) new airport has little chance of opening in September next year as scheduled. IATA said the opening of the Suvarnabhumi airport, designed to handle up to 45 million passengers a year, was likely to be delayed for 12 to 18 months.
The association also claims that 13 airlines had stopped flights out of Bangkok during the past four years because of costs it said were significantly higher than those of key airport competitors in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
Because of the high costs of doing business in Bangkok, British Airways has moved its hub operations to Singapore. Italy's Alitalia also suspended operations, as did South African Airways.
Thai had a dream
7 September 2004
In another bold bid to distract the nation form more pressing
issues The Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) announced
at the weekend that it was launching round-table discussions aimed at developing
the nation's space operations, with the eventual aim of sending Thailand's first
astronaut up into space within the next ten years. Do I hear the ghost of JFK?
Mr. Kraisorn Pornsutee, Deputy Permanent Secretary for ICT, said that the
ministry's 10-year plan would focus on the development of both technology and
personnel.
The ministry, which hopes to see Thai astronauts participating in international
space missions, will also propose the establishment of the National Space
Operations Development Committee, to be chaired by the country's prime minister.
Members of the Committee would be drawn from a variety of bodies, including the
Ministries of ICT, Defence, Agriculture and Cooperatives, Science and
Technology, and Foreign Affairs.
.
The Committee's work would include the amendment of legislation to facilitate
Thai space operations at home and abroad.
This sounds like another fine way to create a lifetime of paper work for civil servants without having a commitment to deliver anything. A true space oddity!
Saying sorry for a bad whiff
7 September 2004
In this week's The Economist
the magazine apologises and agrees to pay Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew damages for defamatory statements made in its
article, "Temasek, first Singapore, next the World."
Lee junior and Lee senior are expected to receive $210,000 and $180,000
respectively. All $390,000 will be donated to charity.
The apology — which appears online at economist.com and in this week's print
edition — said that the article published in the Aug 14 — 20 edition had
contained allegations that were "false and completely without foundation".
"We unreservedly apologise to PM Lee and MM Lee for the distress and
embarrassment caused to them by these allegations. We undertake not to make
further allegations to the same or similar effect," it read.
According to the lawyers, the offensive parts were in the first and last
paragraphs of the article. It had noted that Temasek Holdings executive director
Ho Ching was the wife of Singapore's Prime Minister, himself the son of the
city's founding father; alluding, in conclusion, to "a whiff of nepotism".
In its apology, The Economist recognised that the article "meant or was
understood to mean" that, firstly, PM Lee "had appointed, or was instrumental in
appointing, his wife … to Temasek Holdings Ltd not on merit, but for corrupt
nepotist motives for the advancement of the Lee family's interests" — and,
secondly, that MM Lee had "supported or condoned Ms Ho's appointment for like
motives".
Economist editor Bill Emmott told AP the incident "won't affect any of our
operations at all, it's entirely a self-contained issue that's been dealt with".
This is of course nonsense. He will, like all media outlets in Singapore,
practise more rigorous self censorship. Some subjects in Singapore are simply
out of bounds.
One commentator describer Singapore as a "family-run, experimental sheep-breeding laboratory." I could not possibly make the same commentary. It is curious to note that from Hong Kong to Thailand there are many leaders who would like nothing more than to emulate the Singapore experience!
Malaysia gets it right
4 September 2004
It took a while; too long; and it should never have happened; but on Thursday last week the Anwar Ibrahim, once the liberal star of Malaysian politics, was released from jail when the the appeal court over turned his bizarre sodomy conviction citing significant deficiencies in the prosecution evidence.
His release comes as a surprise, albeit a welcome one. The Malaysian courts have long been viewed as puppets of their political masters. The Anwar trial embarrassed many Malaysians, and scared away much investment. But it was widely assumed that he would be left to wither in jail.
What does it mean for the future of Malaysian politics? That is unclear. Ibrahim cannot re-enter parliament until 2008, five years after the end of his first jail term on corruption charges.
For the moment Anwar needs medical treatment. After that we should not expect him to sit passively on the sidelines. He will be a voice and potentially a leader for future political reform.
Bigger, better, brighter, brasher, bolder, Beijing
6 September 2004
I never really doubted that this century will be the Chinese century. But a week in Beijing confirmed that the country is moving very very fast to a position where it will dominate all aspects of our lives.
It is the world's major resource consumer; it is the world's largest exporter; it is the world's fastest growing economy; it is the world's next sporting superpower; It already dominates manufacturing from technology to clothing. But instead of following, China will soon be leading. To date China has produced to instructions. Now China has started to invent, design and build to its own wishes.
It used to be that Shanghai was the fashionable place to go in China. But Beijing has been catching up quickly over the last two years. It is not just the wide streets, smart highways, remarkable new office complexes, bright new malls and hotels. It is new bars, clubs and restaurants. It is the fact that Beijing is the political epicentre of China; it is the new craze for golf; it is the increasing world awareness of its people as they start to travel overseas in ever greater numbers; it is the focussed approach to business; it is a city that seems to be almost buried in cash; it is a new centre for sports and music events; it is the new and controversial opera house; it is a people that increasingly debate controversy and news; it is a people that are learning English to help them succeed internationally; it is a cosmopolitan city that draws people from across China and increasingly from around the world; it is a city that will revel in the 2008 Olympics.
When I was last in Beijng two years ago the city was just opening the fourth ring road; now there are five. The new highways have gleaming new office towers alongside with power boardrooms and action minded leadership.
The bars are now as fashionable as anywhere in the world; Cloud 9 and Bar Blu are two of the current favourites; great jazz in the former and a wonderful room top deck at the latter.
Pick up a copy of "that's beijing" the city's comprehensive English language listings magazine. Find some friends and go and explore.