1 .

THAI PROPERTIES NOT ON BRITS' SHOPPING LISTS
The traditional British buyers of Thai properties are not exploring real estate in this country at the moment, with the exception of a submarket of young retirees that remains resilient, says Robert Collins, managing director of Savill's (Thailand) Ltd.

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5 Sep 2010

2 .

TRIPLE PUSH BEHIND STOCK MARKET'S IMPRESSIVE RISE
Among the factors behind the unexpected rise of the stock market in recent weeks are the good signs emerging from the second quarter results of listed companies, says Kongkiat Opaswongkarn, chief executive of Asia Plus Securities, who likened the development to "a ray of sunshine amid continuing global economic gloom".

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5 Sep 2010

3 .

Farmers dig in for a fight
In defiance of Burma's ruling military junta, farmers in the northern state of Kachin are fighting a plantation company they fear will destroy their land and livelihoods.

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5 Sep 2010

4 .

TWO WOMEN, TWO COUNTRIES, NO CHOICES
Illegal immigrants to Thailand have accused officials in the border town of Ranong of selling them by the boatload to people-traffickers and engaging in the sexual enslavement of young women. Two Burmese women have told the Phuketwan news website that local police and Immigration officers in Ranong extort money or sex from their victims, detaining them for lengthy periods or selling them to labour brokers if payments cannot be made.

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5 Sep 2010

5 .

Villagers try experimental defence
It was not the first time that Pachoen Chusaeng and the Tra village committee had led guests into their heavily forested enclave inside the Bantad Wildlife Sanctuary in Palian district of Trang province. The villagers are justly proud of the job they've done to preserve and even enhance the natural environment in the mixed orchards where they cultivate a variety of fruits, as well as pararubber trees. The orchards serve the purposes of supermarket, medical dispensary and place of worship for them and are a sanctuary for humans, wildlife and many types of plants.

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5 Sep 2010

6 .

CRIMINAL LAW IN THAILAND Part XXVI: Search and seizure
This week we'll begin our discussion of search and seizure. This means when and under what circumstances the police are allowed to search your person or your private property such as your car or your house to look for evidence of a crime.

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29 Aug 2010

7 .

SAMUI TAKING FLIGHT AGAIN
The controversy over oil exploration off the coast of Koh Samui does not seem to have dented tourism on the island. The number of visitors increased by 19% in the first half of 2010 compared with last year, which admittedly was a low tide for Samui, said Bill Barnett, managing director of C9 Hotelworks.

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29 Aug 2010

8 .

LET THE VOTERS SORT THINGS OUT
Supavud Saicheua, managing director and head of research of Phatra Securities, says the government's gung-ho implementation of populist policies stems from the belief that they will yield higher political gains than concentrating on pushing up economic growth.

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29 Aug 2010

9 .

Burma's vote to nowhere
In the lead-up to the 2010 elections, the regime has jailed hundreds of political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi. It has also introduced a series of electoral laws and campaign restrictions to stifle the opposition, all while claiming the measures are to make sure the elections are "free and fair".

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29 Aug 2010

10 .

Bangkok's 'cigarette police'
Many foreign tourists in Bangkok have complained they have been "burned" after being fined for littering by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's (BMA) inspectors. An investigation by a Spectrum team lasting several weeks has revealed that foreign tourists appear to be the targets of the city's uniformed inspectors.

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29 Aug 2010

11 .

CRIMINAL LAW IN THAILAND Part XXV: Arrest at Suvarnabhumi airport
What do you do if you're arrested at Suvarnabhumi, Bangkok's main airport? In recent months there have been allegations that tourists have been arrested for shoplifting in duty-free stores, taken to a remote location and forced to pay for their freedom.

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22 Aug 2010

12 .

HUA HIN FEELS BACKLASH FROM UNREST
Hua Hin continues to have a special place in the hearts of Thai people, but the recent political turmoil has chipped away at the total number of visitors in the first half of this year, said Apisit Limlomwongse, managing director of Nexus Property Consultants.

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22 Aug 2010

13 .

GOLD PRICES EXPECTED TO KEEP CLIMBING
Amid the continuing economic and political unease many investors see gold as the ultimate safety net, and while the price does tend to fluctuate, they are looking forward to an expected record high of US$1,300 (41,200 baht) a troy ounce by year's end.

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22 Aug 2010

14 .

MALAYSIAN ECONOMY TRUMPS RACE CARD AHEAD OF POSSIBLE ELECTION
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has planted its foot firmly on Malaysia's political soil and urged the government to move decisively and reform the country's controversial four-decade-old affirmative action policy that favours native Malays.

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22 Aug 2010

15 .

All quiet on the eastern front
It was 9am and the customs checkpoint in the eastern Thai border town of Aranyaprathet was bustling with activity. Long lines of trucks entered the Cambodian town of Poipet with goods and fresh produce, as Cambodian workers pushed carts loaded high with Thai-made products into the city.

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22 Aug 2010

16 .

What is lost when a language dies?
Soda Ritkongpho spoke with pride of his experience using the traditional yao treatment of the So ethnic people to cure his seriously ill wife. "My wife is still alive and well because we used the yao ritual to cure her," he said.

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22 Aug 2010

17 .

Giving voice to cultural diversity
Unlike many young people who have little knowledge of their cultural heritage, Yupin Morlido is happy to still be farming after finishing Grade 12, and working in the rice fields does not make her feel inferior.

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22 Aug 2010

18 .

Will an aerial assault save the cassava crop?
The young cassava plants look green and lush on the hills of the large plantations in the country's Northeast, but on the undersides of their leaves mealybugs are quietly multiplying and preparing to mount a lethal attack.

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22 Aug 2010

19 .

CRIMINAL LAW IN THAILAND Part XXIV: Obtaining a gun licence
As we discussed last week, the first official step in buying a gun is form Por.1. For Bangkok, this has to be filed at the Department of Provincial Administration. In the provinces, it has to be filed with a nai amphur.

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15 Aug 2010

20 .

GOOD PROFITS TO BE HAD AT THE LOW END
The trend among consumers to seek more value for money is becoming apparent in the property industry, causing some upper-end players to drift toward the budget condominium segment dominated by LPN Development.

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15 Aug 2010

21 .

DECORATORS LOOK FOR COST-EFFECTIVE IDEAS
Few businesses have been spared the lingering effects of the global economic downturn, and interior design professionals are feeling the pinch as well as they attempt to find more cost-effective solutions for clients.

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15 Aug 2010

22 .

The new frontier
It was a Chinese-style welcoming dinner. In a sumptuous compound surrounded by plush banquet rooms in central Kunming, members of a foreign delegation sipped wine and dined on Yunnanese delicacies such as braised pork, sauteed beef with pepper and spicy noodles. Their hosts were local officials, eager to lure new investors to the capital of southern Yunnan province. Outside, the streets were lined with Toyota and BMW dealerships and boutiques for luxury goods by Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Cartier. Teenagers with dyed hair and mobile phones mingled around mini squares, as Hollywood and Hong Kong movie stars stared down from giant posters.

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15 Aug 2010

23 .

The orthodox approach to Thailand
Pattaya has long been known as Thailand's sin city by the beach _ teeming with prostitutes, massage parlours, brothels, foreign mafia, pubs and bars _ not a place one goes to seek spiritual enlightenment.

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15 Aug 2010

24 .

Chulalongkorn and Thammasat activists, then and now
At first glance, there is nothing strikingly different about Suluck Lamubol. Like many of her fellow Chulalongkorn students, her spare time is often taken up with activities as ordinary as idly surfing YouTube, practising yoga, browsing flea markets or watching reality TV and Gossip Girl. But unlike Ms Suluck, the vast majority of her classmates cannot say they were summoned by the Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation (CRES) in early May to answer questions regarding an alleged conspiracy to topple the monarchy.

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15 Aug 2010

25 .

Forgotten ecosystem
Last month man-made fires consumed about 15,000 rai in the Kuan Kreng peatlands in Nakhon Si Thammarat province to pave the way for palm oil plantations. While many people might think this is a good use of land that has little or no intrinsic value, many scientists and conservationists would beg to differ.

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15 Aug 2010

26 .

DECORATORS LOOK FOR COST-EFFECTIVE IDEAS
Few businesses have been spared the lingering effects of the global economic downturn, and interior design professionals are feeling the pinch as well as they attempt to find more cost-effective solutions for clients. Niwat Aunprueng, a senior partner at PIA Interior Company, says he noticed a big difference in interior design displays at a recent show in Spain, where most participants had considerably reduced the use of various materials.

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15 Aug 2010

27 .

PESSIMISM IN ASIA DESPITE STRONG EARNINGS
Profit for Samsung Electronics surged 83% in the latest quarter. Toyota and Sony both swung to profits after wretched quarters a year earlier. Asian companies have been on the up, but this may be as good as it gets. Despite a stellar round of earnings for the last quarter, the outlook for many of the region's companies _ household names around the world _ is dimming. The headwinds are manifold. The US risks a double-dip recession, and possibly even an era of deflation, and Europe's debt crisis continues to nag.

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15 Aug 2010

28 .

THE ACTRESS WHO BROUGHT DOWN A WALL STREET STAR
With her model good looks and a blonde-bombshell style that leaves people stunned when she admits to being 50 years old, Jodie Fisher looks every part the Hollywood leading lady. But through two decades of trying _ half a lifetime of bit-parts, reality TV try-outs and an early detour into soft core pornography _ she has never generated as many column inches or as much on-camera time as she has over the last week. But now everything is different, as Ms Fisher has landed the unexpected role of femme fatale in a drama that has captivated an unexpected audience, an audience not in tinseltown but on Wall Street and in the Silicon Valley home of the technology industry.

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15 Aug 2010

29 .

THE AGE OF AUSTERITY A THREAT TO STONEHENGE
The prehistoric stone circle of Stonehenge stands tall in the English countryside as one of the last remnants of the Neolithic Age. Recently it has also become the latest symbol of another era _ the new fiscal austerity. Renovations _ including a plan to replace the site's run-down visitor centre with one almost five times larger and to close a busy road that runs along the 5,000-year-old monument _ had to be mothballed in June.

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15 Aug 2010

30 .

--No Title--
FOR MUSLIM CENTRE SPONSORS, EARLY

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15 Aug 2010