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International News
Sayonara, yakuza; neighbors oust Japanese gangs
***
From The Asian Reporter, V19, #25 (June 30, 2009), page 2.
Man tries to steal ATM using forklift
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysian newspapers said a man tried to steal an automated teller machine (ATM) using a forklift truck, but abandoned his efforts when the alarm went off. The reports said closed-circuit television footage shows the suspect dressed in an all-white jumpsuit and a full-face helmet. He repeatedly rams the forklift into the ATM booth at a gas station in Malaysia’s biggest city, Kuala Lumpur, before abandoning the vehicle and fleeing. The Star and the New Straits Times reported the incident. The gas station was closed at the time. Police declined to comment on the reports.
Thousands donate hair to fix Myanmar pagoda road
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Thousands of faithful in Myanmar have donated 1,750 pounds of their hair in a money-raising campaign to repair the route to a sacred Buddhist pagoda, reports said. About 30,000 women and more than 100 long-haired men from the central city of Mandalay and nearby towns donated the hair, Kumudra magazine quoted a Buddhist monk as saying. Some of the locks measured four feet, said Shin Wayama Nanda, the chief abbot of Mandalay’s Naga monastery. The campaign — led by the Buddhist monks overseeing the upkeep of the remote Alaungdaw Kathapha pagoda — will use proceeds from the sale of hair to repair sections of a road and build bridges leading to the popular pilgrimage site which is said to contain the remains of one of Buddha’s disciples. The hair will be used for wigs or dolls, or it can be sold to traders from China for similar purposes. The campaign has spread to the country’s largest city, Yangon, Popular magazine reported. Access to the pagoda in the country’s northwest is difficult. Some sections of the route can be reached only by foot or on elephant. "With the money acquired from the sale of hair, sections of the 25-kilometer (15-mile) road (will be repaired) and 15 small- and medium-length bridges will be built," Shin Wayama Nanda said. One span will be called the "Shwe Hsan Nwe bridge," or the "Bridge of Golden Tresses."
China to mark anniversary coin with two more coins
BEIJING (AP) — China’s central bank says it will mark the 30th anniversary of its first commemorative coin with two more coins. The central bank said the coins would be issued June 30 to mark the first gold commemorative coin in 1979, which was issued for the 30th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The bank said on its website it would issue 10,000 gold coins worth 100 yuan ($14.70) and 300,000 silver coins worth 10 yuan ($1.40). On one side they will feature the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest in the Temple of Heaven — a popular tourist spot in Beijing — and a panda on the other.
Khmer Rouge prosecutor submits resignation
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — The international prosecutor for the genocide tribunal trying Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge has announced he is resigning, citing family reasons. Robert Petit of Canada said in a statement that his resignation will become effective September 1, three years after he joined the U.N.-backed tribunal, which is currently holding its first trial. "It has been the greatest privilege of my career to have the opportunity to bring some justice to the victims of the crimes of the Khmer Rouge," Petit said. "I remain convinced that Cambodia’s hopes for a better future lie, in part, on true accountability for crimes." The Khmer Rouge is believed responsible for the deaths of 1.7 million people from forced labor, starvation, medical neglect, and executions when it held power in 1975-78. It was not clear how Petit’s resignation will affect the tribunal’s work. The statement said the process of finding his replacement had already begun. The tribunal is currently trying Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, who commanded the communist group’s S-21 prison in Phnom Penh. He is charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes, murder, and torture. Four other senior Khmer Rouge leaders are in custody of the U.N.-backed tribunal awaiting trial. Lars Olsen, a tribunal spokesman, said Petit’s resignation was purely for the sake of his family and had nothing to do with politics or disagreements with his Cambodian co-prosecutor. Petit did not elaborate. Petit said he would like to see as many as six more former Khmer Rouge charged, but his co-prosecutor, Chea Leang, has opposed the idea, saying it would violate the agreement between Cambodia and the U.N. that established the tribunal, and could endanger peace in the country.
Edison Chen not ready for lead roles after scandal
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Hong Kong actor-singer Edison Chen says he is not yet ready for a high-profile return to show business after a sex scandal last year that shocked the Chinese entertainment industry. "I still don’t know if I am comfortable with that. Honestly, I don’t know if people are comfortable with me doing that," The Sunday Star quoted him as saying during a visit to Kuala Lumpur. Last year, sexually explicit photos of Chen and female stars were widely circulated on the internet. A Hong Kong computer technician was sentenced to more than eight months in jail in May for stealing the photos from Chen’s laptop during repairs. Chen said he’s still producing some films and albums for other artists. "I’m there but not really there. Maybe I’m there in the background instead of being in the front now ... but at this point I love my job," the 28-year-old Chinese Canadian said at the launch of his first Juice streetwear store, which he co-owns, outside of Hong Kong. Chen appeared in the 2002 hit Hong Kong police thriller Infernal Affairs and in the 2006 horror movie The Grudge 2. He had a cameo in the Hollywood blockbuster The Dark Knight and plays a young police officer in The Sniper, filmed before the scandal but released this year.