Asian Shares Mixed on Concerns Over Trade, Economic Outlook

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11 December 2018, 16:22

A man walks Tuesday past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 and other country's index at a securities firm in Tokyo. Photo: Eugene Hoshiko / Associated Press

SINGAPORE — Asian markets were mixed Tuesday in narrow trading on doubts that U.S. and China can manage to resolve their festering trade dispute.

Keeping Score

Thailand’s SET dropped to 1,638.07, a 0.7 percent decrease, on Tuesday afternoon. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.3 percent to 21,148.02 while South Korea’s Kospi added less than 0.1 percent to 2,054.48. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was almost 0.1 percent lower at 25,741.07. The Shanghai Composite rose 0.1 percent to 2,587.88. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.4 percent to 5,575.90. Shares rose in Taiwan but fell in Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand.

Wall Street

Buying by technology companies spurred gains for U.S. indexes after steep losses in early trading. China has protested the detention of a Chinese technology executive in Canada, which was carried out at the request of the U.S. The S&P 500 index rose 0.2 percent to 2,637.72 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1 percent to 24,423.26. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 0.7 percent to 7,020.52. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks dropped 0.3 percent to 1,443.09.

US-China Relations

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He have talked about “the promotion of the next economic and trade consultations,” a statement by the Chinese Commerce Ministry said Tuesday. It did not elaborate. This indicates that the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei, in Canada will not derail trade talks. Meng is wanted in the U.S. for allegedly misleading banks about the company’s business dealings in Iran. Still, traders fear a 90-day tariffs cease-fire may not be enough for the countries to resolve deep-seated issues. China has protested the arrest and told the U.S. and Canada that it would take further steps based on their response. A bail hearing for Meng is underway in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Softer Asian Growth

On Monday, revised data showed that the Japanese economy shrank by a worse-than-expected 2.5 percent in the third quarter, partly because of natural disasters. Over the weekend, China reported that its exports and imports slowed in November, adding to concerns that its economy may slow further, sapping regional and global growth.

Analyst’s Take

“Early movers in the Asia region had commenced with a brisker tone following the U.S. lead, although the awareness that the macro picture remains unchanged seems to have tamed some of the delight,” Jingyi Pan of IG said in a market commentary.

iPhone Ban in China

On Monday, U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm said it won an order in a Chinese court banning sales of some Apple phones in China. This is part of a lengthy dispute over two Qualcomm patents allowing users to format photos and manage phone apps using a touch screen. Although Qualcomm said the ban applies to models of the iPhone 6S through X, Apple said all iPhones will remain available for customers in China. Qualcomm shares jumped 2.2 percent to USD$57.24 on the news.

Energy

Oil prices slipped Tuesday following a sharp decline. They have erased their gains from news of a production cut by OPEC countries and other major oil producers. U.S. benchmark crude lost 4 cents to $50.96 a barrel. It gave up 3.1 percent to $51 a barrel in New York on Monday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed 10 cents to $59.87. The contract dropped 2.8 percent to $59.97 a barrel in

Currencies

The dollar weakened to 113.14 yen from 113.34 yen late Monday. The euro rose to $1.1361 from $1.1355.

Story: Annabelle Liang

Election Results to be Declared Within Hours of Polls Closing

By

Teeranai Charuvastra, News Chief

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11 December 2018, 16:10

Prayuth Chan-ocha, who served as army chief at the time, casts his ballots in the Feb. 2, 2014, election in Bangkok.

BANGKOK — Election organizers said Tuesday the public will know which political parties are positioned to lead Thailand’s post-coup government no longer than five hours after polls close Feb. 24.

Election Commissioner Nath Laoseesawakool told reporters the votes will be counted immediately after polling stations close at 5pm, with unofficial results announced by 10pm at the latest.

“If one can manage the calculation, it will be known immediately who the next prime minister would be,” Nath said, referring to the new math behind rules requiring political parties to declare in advance who they will support becoming prime minister.

Nath spoke on the same day regulations governing the election came into effect, and – perhaps more crucially – the junta lifted its ban on political gatherings, allowing contending parties to campaign freely.

The commissioner also revealed other milestones for the upcoming election: Those wishing to run as MPs must register between Jan. 14 and Jan. 18; and advanced voting will take place some time between Jan. 10 and Jan. 24.

Bahraini Football Player Moved to Jail Before Extradition Hearing (Video)

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Asaree Thaitrakulpanich, Staff Reporter

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11 December 2018, 15:43

Hakeem Ali Mohamed Ali AlAraibi led in handcuffs at the Thai Criminal Court. — Hakeem Ali Mohamed Ali AlAraibi in December led in handcuffs at the Thai Criminal Court.

BANGKOK — A Bahraini football player and political refugee has been placed in prison after the Criminal Court extended his detention another two months in anticipation of a drawn-out battle over an extradition request by his homeland.

Court proceedings to weigh Hakeem Ali Mohamed Ali AlAraibi’s extradition to Bahrain, where he alleges past torture and persecution if returned, could drag on for months. Today, the court authorized 60 days of custody in the Bangkok Remand Prison for the man who just over a year ago was granted political asylum by Australia.

Bahrain says the Pascoe Vale Football Club player is a fugitive from justice.

Two weeks after he was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport on his way home to Australia with his wife, AlAirabi appealed for help as he was led into the courtroom today.

“Please stop them. I don’t want to go to Bahrain, I want to go to Australia. I didn’t do anything in Bahrain,” AlAlraibi said. “I am refugee in Australia.”

Human rights watchdogs say he was tortured by Bahraini authorities in 2012 due to his brother’s political activities and public criticism of the Bahrain royal family’s alleged involvement in sports scandals. He fled to Australia in 2014 after he was sentenced to a decade behind bars for vandalizing a police station – a crime he denies committing.

The conviction was the basis for Bahrain’s extradition request.

Read: Thailand Begins Extradition of Bahraini Football Player

“The big question is, what is Bahrain offering to Thailand and senior officials to make them want to favor Bahrain? There’s no transparency around the decision making. Something doesn’t look right,” said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch. “This is going to be an ongoing tug-of-war between Bahrain and Australia.”

Nuttasiri Berkman, an attorney with Thailand’s Human Rights Lawyers Association who is representing AlAraibi, says there was no legal basis for his arrest at the airport and therefore his ongoing detention.

AlAraibi faces charges back home for arson, illegal political gatherings that disturbed the public, carrying explosives and destroying private vehicles.

Calls to the Embassy of Bahrain in Bangkok were not immediately returned Tuesday. The embassy tweeted Dec. 1 that the AlAraibi was a “suspect is wanted for security cases” and that they would be “following up with the relevant security authorities in this regard.”

The Embassy states that the suspect is wanted for security cases which the Embassy is aware of. It adds that it is following up with the relevant security authorities in this regard.

— Bahrain Embassy – Thailand (@BahrainEmbTH) December 1, 2018

Yahya Alhadid, president of the Gulf Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, said that the court proceedings were “unfair” and the detention “illegal.” Adams said that the case Bahrain is bringing against Hakeem is “completely bogus. There are no facts there.”

Sayed Alwadaei of the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy said the evidence Bahrain will submit to the Thai court is based on a confession from Hakeem’s brother, Emad AlAraibi, that was coerced through torture.

“The Thai Court should deny Bahrain’s request to extradite Hakeem, as it is in violation of legal principles, and instead must allow him to return safely back to Australia. Hakeem was already unfairly persecuted and subjected to torture in Bahrain,” Alwadaei said. “Sending him back to Bahrain will place him at risk of further torture.”

The 25-year-old footballer was granted refugee status by Australia in November 2017, which allows him to live there.

He had been set to depart Thailand after a vacation here with his wife when he was detained Nov. 27 at the airport. He was later moved to a downtown immigration detention center until a warrant was issued for his arrest this past Friday.

FIFA Supports Bahraini Football Player Detained at Suvarnabhumi

BKK Departure of Bahraini Refugee Footballer Blocked

Bangkok to Get Greasy with Aussie Reggae Act ‘Sticky Fingers’

By

Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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11 December 2018, 13:23

BANGKOK — Music fans already have things to look forward to 2019, a year expected to be bigger than ever in terms of the live concert scene.

Bangkok is now a destination for Australian reggae fusion outfit Sticky Fingers’ world tour, announced Monday night The Very Company, local promoter who earlier this year organized an appearance by Oasis’ Liam Gallagher.

Soulful reggae-dub Srirajah Rockers will play as an opening act.

The concert will take place at 8pm on Feb. 9 at Moonstar Studio. Tickets are 2,000 baht and available online from Dec. 19.

Describing itself as a “melting pot of psych, rock, reggae and bourbon,” Sticky Fingers consists of Dylan Frost, Paddy Cornwall, Seamus Coyle, Beaker Best and Freddy Crabs. Their popular songs are “How to Fly,” “Cyclone,” “Gold Snafu” and “Australia Street.”

After going on hiatus in late 2016, the band released a comeback single “Kick On” this past April.

‘Mafia Elephant’ Searches Trucks for Goodies in Khao Yai (Video)

By

Pravit Rojanaphruk, Senior Staff Writer

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11 December 2018, 12:43

PRACHINBURI — A foraging male elephant was filmed removing belongings from the back of two pickup trucks in the Khao Yai National Park.

The footage of the pilfering pachyderm has been shared 6,500 times and watched more than 740,000 times as of noon Monday since it was first posted.

“I pray they don’t attack the car … Once he gets food he will leave,” a man can be heard commenting as the male elephant uses its trunk to search for food in the pickup truck ahead of him before approaching his vehicle.

At one point the elephant uses its trunk to fetch a plastic bottle and stuff it into its mouth before spitting it out. Then what appears to be a plastic bag filled with uncooked rice is removed from the first truck.

“Shall we go?” the man says as the elephant approaches his vehicle. A woman can be heard telling him to wait, fearing it could anger the free-roaming, wild elephant.

They also tell two children in the back of the truck to lie low to not anger the animal.

The second truck driver manages to slowly pass after the elephant rummages through their belongings.

“This is a mafia elephant,’ wrote one comment in reply to the video.

Deliverymen Fall to Death After Speeding Benz Plows Into Truck

By

Asaree Thaitrakulpanich, Staff Reporter

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11 December 2018, 12:24

A relative cries over the body of Caris Waraklan, who fell to his death Tuesday morning from the Si Rat Expressway.

Update: Elderly Benz Driver Charged For Fatal Expressway Wreck

NONTHABURI — Two furniture deliverymen fell to their deaths Tuesday morning after an elderly motorist crashed her Mercedes-Benz into their stalled vehicle on an elevated highway in northern metro Bangkok.

Woothichai Suracha, 32, and Caris Waraklan, 22, both employees of SB Design Square furniture company, were examining their stalled truck on the Si Rat Expressway at 8:30am near Wat Bua Kwan when 72-year-old Surang Supornsuk struck their vehicle. The pair were reportedly forced to leap over the guardrail and died from the fall.

“I can’t believe he’s dead. He’s the breadwinner of the family. I don’t know how life will go on. Our 3-year-old daughter will grow up without a dad,” said Thida Suracha, Woothichai’s 30-year-old fiance.

Thanathorn Poolprasert, a rescue worker on the scene, said that Woothichai and Caris had parked the truck after it overheated. Panunart Kamakklang, Caris’ girlfriend, was waiting in the cab of the truck.

That’s when Surang rammed into the truck at a high speed, forcing Woothichai and Caris to jump out of the way, Thanathorn said. They fell six meters and died on impact. The front driver’s side of Surang’s car was caved in from the impact. Both Surang and Panunak were taken to Pranangklao Hospital with injuries.

“I want to ask Surang, why did she have to drive so fast and hit them? How can he say that he didn’t see the truck as an excuse? It’s two-meters tall!” Thida said.

Both vehicles were being taken to the Rattanathibet Police Station to be impounded as evidence, since emergency responders at the scene said there would be a criminal case due to the fatalities. Two lanes of the highway remained closed as of 11am, and commuters were warned to be aware of the impact on traffic.

At noon, the police Lt. Capt. Kamapant Oatngarm said police would investigate the fatal accident as a potential crime.

Thida said usually Woothichai leaves the home at 7:30am for his deliveries after buying breakfast for his daughter and kissing the both of them goodbye.

“Usually he trims his beard, but today I remarked that his beard was growing long and told him to shave, and he did. I didn’t think that was an unlucky sign,” she said.

Panunart and Caris were set to be married next month, Thida said.

Thida Suracha cries at the scene of her husband's death. — Thida Suracha cries at the scene of her husband’s death.

A Khaosod live interview with Panunart Kamakklang.

Correction: An earlier version of the story misidentified the driver of the Mercedes-Benz as a man when in fact it was a woman.

Junta Lifts its Ban on Politics

By

Teeranai Charuvastra, News Chief

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11 December 2018, 12:19

Junta chairman Prayuth Chan-ocha speaks to reporters Dec. 11, 2018, at Government House.

BANGKOK — The junta on Tuesday lifted its nearly five-year-old ban on political activities, ostensibly to clear the way for the Feb. 24 election.

In an order published online by the Royal Gazette minutes after noon, the regime cited the need for the public and political parties to campaign freely for the upcoming election as the basis for its decision. The order was signed by junta chairman Prayuth Chan-ocha.

The document went on to abolish a number of previous orders enacted by Gen. Prayuth in the wake of the 2014 coup, including prohibitions on political assembly and financial activities for political purposes.

Legal actions taken prior to today’s order and ongoing court cases will not be affected.

Tuesday also marks the first day new election laws come into effect.

Lost Souls Rejoice: SoulBar Reopens Next Week in Silom

By

Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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11 December 2018, 11:54

BANGKOK — Four months after its Charoen Krung location went dark, a bar dedicated to live jazz and other music will reopen next week in a new neighborhood.

Moving from the old town area over to the big-hit nightlife zone of Silom, SoulBar is ready to belt it out again in a venue that will be familiar to denizens of the dark.

The ground floor of Whiteline will offer a little more space for the same bevy of talented artists. Hear the stirring vocals of Washington D.C.’s Coco Rouzier while house band the Supergoods (Silpakorn University) will make a comeback with a set of neo-soul, R&B and more. Before and after their performances, audiences will hear DJs Obba and A spin golden grooves.

The jazz bar’s former location closed on its fourth anniversary this past August. Co-owner Romain Dupuy said it would soon reopen at a new, nearby venue. Apparently that fell through, and after some struggles, the bar has settled on Silom. Dupuy said the change follows the “opportunities that made sense to us being in a different corner of Bangkok.”

“Hopefully one day it would come back to Chinatown,” Dupuy continued.

SoulBar will reopen Dec. 19 at Whiteline on Soi Silom 8, which is also home to second-floor, underground music venue Safe Room.

Official Defends New Election Twist: Removing Party Logos From Ballots

By

Teeranai Charuvastra, News Chief

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11 December 2018, 11:53

A 2011 file photo of a sealed ballot box in Bang Rak district of Bangkok.

BANGKOK — The Election Commission is slated to vote tomorrow on a proposal to remove the names and party emblems of candidates from ballots in the upcoming election.

Election commissioner Krit Urwongse said the issue will be discussed at an urgent meeting called by the agency Tuesday in the wake of widespread criticism from political parties and pro-democracy activists who accuse the military government of foul play.

The agency will announce its decision next week, Krit said.

Read: Billboard Praising Prayuth as Next PM Replaced

His colleague Nath Laoseesawakool told reporters that stripping any reference to candidates and their parties on the ballots would make it easier for officials to print the papers and send them to overseas voters.

Pro-democracy campaigner Nuttaa Mahattana accused the Election Commission, supposedly an independent agency, of following the junta’s bidding.

บัตรเลือกตั้ง2554 — A ballot paper for party list candidates in the 2011 general election.

She said she will stage a protest at the commission’s headquarters tomorrow to voice her disagreement with the plan.

The proposal was first made public last week by chief election commissioner Jarungvith Phumma, who gave a similar rationale. Jarungvith said nameless ballots that bear only the numbers of candidates are easier to produce and transport.

But the explanation failed to satisfy politicians and critics of the junta. There has never been a prior issue printing ballots for overseas voters that, like those used domestically, feature the names, logos and names of the candidates’ parties.

The move is the latest in a series of government policies that critics say are meant to diminish the power of traditional civilian parties and disenfranchise voters.

Pheu Thai Party spokesman Anusorn Iamsa-ard said the plan, if implemented, would place a new burden on voters to remember the names and parties they want to vote for, while Panthongtae Shinawatra, son of influential former PM Thaksin Shinawatra, said older voters might mark the wrong box altogether.

Democrat MP Wirat Kanyasiri called the idea “ridiculous.” Democrat deputy leader Nipit Intarasombat also mocked the Election Commission for “trying to rationalize an irrational” proposal.

A government spokesman has denied accusations the regime is meddling in the election, now scheduled to take place in late February. Puttipong Punnakan said the government is not involved in the proposal, which he said was entirely the work of election officials.

https://www.facebook.com/Devil.Magazine/photos/a.211331432243576/2165972386779461/?type=3&theater

A fanpage of Manchester United football team posted a spoof scoreboard result, which removes the names and logos of all clubs, to hide the fact that its rival Liverpool is currently the leading team.

Nearly 85 Percent of UN Nations Back Migration Deal; Not US

By

Associated Press

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11 December 2018, 11:37

Wazzizi, a sub-Saharan migrant from Guinea, sits Thursday outside the tent where he lives at at Ouled Ziane camp in Casablanca, Morocco. Photo: Mosa'ab Elshamy / Associated Press

MARRAKECH, Morocco — Defying fierce opposition from the U.S. and a few other nations, nearly 85 percent of U.N. member states agreed Monday on a sweeping yet non-binding accord to ensure safe, orderly and humane migration.

The debate over the Global Compact for Migration, the first of its kind, has proven to be a pivotal test of the U.N.-led effort to crack down on the often dangerous and illegal movements across borders that have turned people smuggling into a worldwide industry, and give people seeking economic opportunity a chance.

“Unregulated migration bears a terrible human cost: a cost in lives lost on perilous journeys across deserts, oceans and rivers; and a cost in lives ruined at the hands of smugglers, unscrupulous employers and other predators,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told a migration conference in Marrakech, Morocco.

“More than 60,000 migrants have died on the move since the year 2000,” he said. “This is a source of collective shame.”

Migration affects hundreds of millions of people across the globe – farmers coming off the land or forced by climate change to head to cities, families fleeing war or persecution at home, impoverished workers from the developing world looking for jobs in rich countries. It can also involve high-skilled workers from developed nations looking for opportunities beyond their homelands.

Defenders say migration greases the wheels of the world economy by diversifying and rejuvenating workforce in aging rich countries and providing a needed source of cash to poorer countries through remittances sent home by migrants.

Opponents often fear that an influx of migrants can dilute their countries’ character, import poverty or crime, reduce wages and take jobs from tax-paying citizens.

A total of 164 countries among the 193 U.N. members approved the agreement by acclamation Monday. The U.N. General Assembly will meet on Dec. 19 to endorse it.

At the two-day conference, U.N. leaders were hoping to lure in holdouts from mostly Western nations who were not signing: Australia, Austria, the Czech Republic, the Dominican Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Poland and Slovakia along with the United States, which under President Donald Trump did not participate in drafting the accord.

Louise Arbour of Canada, a former U.N. human rights chief, said the issue also has been tied up in parliamentary debates in Belgium, Bulgaria, Estonia, Italy, Israel, Slovenia and Switzerland – although some of them did participate in creating the accord, which has since been ensnared by tough political headwinds.

The conference is the capstone of efforts set in motion two years ago when all 193 U.N. member states, including the U.S. under President Barack Obama, adopted a declaration saying that no country can manage international migration on its own and agreed to work on a global compact.

The U.N.’s International Organization for Migration defines migrants as anyone working or living far from home. It says every refugee – people who flee persecution in places like Myanmar or Syria – is a migrant. Unlike refugees, some migrants can be motivated by economic opportunity, and many of those head to rich, developed countries in the West or the Persian Gulf.

The Trump administration – which is demanding a wall on the Mexican border and has sent U.S. military troops to the border to block a migrant caravan moving toward the U.S. through Central America – pulled out of the accord a year ago. It claimed that parts of the compact clashed with “U.S. immigration and refugee policies.”

Some European Union countries, including Italy, Poland and Hungary, now have anti-migrant populist governments that have reacted strongly after over 1 million migrants – mostly refugees fleeing conflict in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan – poured into Europe in 2015.

Proponents of the compact decried “false information,” such as the claim it will force countries to legalize immigration.

Defenders of the pact simply want to remind some politicians and countries that migrants are people too, and have human rights. The U.N. was also celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights on Monday.

“The easiest fear to stoke up is the fear of the foreigner,” U.N. human rights office spokesman Rupert Colville said.

Story: Amira El Masaiti, Jamey Keaten

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