MOSCOW — Tatiana Navka, a former Olympic ice dancer, and her on-ice partner have caused controversy by dressing up in concentration camp uniforms for a dance routine on a popular television show.
Navka, who is the wife of Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, and dancing partner Andrei Burkovsky appeared in Saturday’s episode of “Ice Age” dressed in striped uniforms bearing yellow six-pointed stars and heavily made-up to look bruised and frail.
Their routine, which aired on state-owned Channel One, was based on “Life is Beautiful,” the Academy Award-winning Italian movie about a Jewish father who pretends for the sake of his small son that their internment in a Nazi camp is just a game.
Navka’s Instagram account soon was flooded with indignant comments.
Navka and Burkovsky told Russian media on Sunday that it was their way of paying homage to Holocaust victims.
Their dance sparked outrage in Israel.
“Motifs from the Holocaust are not for parties, not for dance and not for reality (TV),” Israeli Culture Minister Miri Regev told Israeli Army Radio on Sunday.
“Not one of the 6 million danced and a concentration camp is not a summer camp,” Regev added, referring to number of Jewish dead.
While some Russians were indignant at what some saw as mockery of the memory of the dead, others posted messages of support on Navka’s Instagram account, saying that the dance brought tears to their eyes.
The routine was choreographed by 2002 Olympic silver medalist Ilya Averbukh, who is Jewish.
Averbukh, who said in a 2012 interview that he “had problems” in his childhood because of his Jewish name, stood by the Holocaust-themed dance.
“This routine is my idea,” Averbukh, who is also Ice Age’s chief producer, told Komsomolskaya Pravda on Sunday. “I have done a lot of routines on the war and Jewish themes, there were very different characters.”
Russia’s top officials including President Vladimir Putin have honored Holocaust victims and have spoken against attempts to justify the crimes of Nazis or their allies.
The Holocaust-themed routines are not new to sports.
In 1996, France’s synchronized swimming team had to scrap its program which depicted the arrival of Jewish women in the death camps and their final march to the gas chambers, following an intervention by the French sports minister. The routine was also based on a movie and set to music from Steven Spielberg’s “Schindler’s List.”
Workers on Sunday hang a giant Cuban flag on a government building in Havana, Cuba, two days after the death of Fidel Castro. Cuba is observing nine days of mourning for the former president who ruled Cuba for half a century. Photo: Ramon Espinosa / Associated Press
TOKYO — North Korea is observing a three-day period of mourning for Fidel Castro, seen by the North as a rare comrade-in-arms against the common enemy of the United States.
The North has ordered flags outside official buildings be flown at half-staff to honor Castro, the country’s state media reported Monday. The iconic Cuban leader died Friday at age 90.
Reports from Pyongyang said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a wreath to the Cuban Embassy and that a delegation of senior North Korean officials has left for Havana to attend Castro’s memorial services.
According to a Japanese agency that monitors North Korean media, Castro is the first foreign political figure to be honored in such a manner since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.
Besides flying flags at half-staff, it was not immediately clear what the mourning period, which ends on Wednesday, would entail.
Shortly after receiving news of Castro’s death, Kim Yong Nam, head of the North’s parliament, and Premier Pak Pong Ju sent a message of condolence to Castro’s brother Raul, who assumed power after Fidel became too weak to continue as leader in 2008.
In it, they said that although Fidel Castro has died, “the feats he performed for the Cuban revolution and the fraternal relations of friendship between the two countries would remain forever.”
But Fidel Castro’s passing could well be the end of an era for North Korea-Cuba relations.
Because of their common enmity toward the United States and similar authoritarian power structures, Cuba and North Koreahad maintained very close diplomatic ties throughout the years. The two countries established ties in 1960 and Castro visited the North in 1986 to meet with Kim Il Sung, the country’s founder and Kim Jong Un’s grandfather.
Such fraternal sentiment toward Havana and Raul Castro, however, appears to have dimmed in Pyongyang amid a rapprochement between Cuba and the U.S., who agreed to normalize ties in 2014.
BANGKOK — Citing urgent cyberthreats, a junta-appointed body Monday considered a proposal to create a temporary authority to police online content before supporting legislation is passed.
A report prepared by members of the National Reform Steering Assembly indicated that computer and internet systems were in such peril that a proposed body, the National Cybersecurity Committee, must be urgently empaneled by the authority of Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, who heads the ruling junta and serves as prime minister.
“Waiting until the cybersecurity draft is approved by the National Legislative Assembly and goes into effect may cause damage to national security and the government’s digital policy,” said the report prepared by the steering assembly’s mass communications committee.
The Cybersecurity Act is among eight laws being drafted as part of what the government brands a “digital economy” policy but thus far seems preoccupied with expanding online censorship. Also in the package of supporting laws is amending the controversial Computer Crime Act, which digital rights activists say looks set to give more powerto the authorities.
The military government launched its new Ministry of Digital Economy and Society in September, which it has presented as supporting economic innovation by creating soft infrastructure. Critics say it’s opening the door wider for suppression of speech online.
Thailand is in the midst of a delicate transition time following the passing of His Majesty the Late King Bhumibol, whose Oct. 13 death precipitated and explosion in online censorship.
Insulting the monarchy is a crime punishable by up to 15 years in jail, and the junta has made defending the institution a matter of national security.
The Thursday report suggested Prayuth or one of his deputies should lead the temporary committee, with the heads of the digital and defense ministries serving as vice presidents.
It also offered many suggestions for the final Cybersecurity Act, which is expected to enter into effect by March.
One was to order the National Cybersecurity Committee step aside and grant full authority to the military in cases of severe threat.
The latest draft authorized officials to access any information in any system for the sake of cybersecurity with court approval. The steering committee suggested that, in cases which could result in damages, officials could get approval from the cybersecurity committee and notify the court later.
The report also suggested penalties for private sector actors such as hosts and ISPs who do not comply with the authorities. There was none in the current draft.
BANGKOK— A busy overpass remained open early Monday after the beginning of its demolition was postponed to Wednesday.
To make way for a new overhead rail line, one of Bangkok’s busiest traffic flyovers, the Ratchayothin bridge, will be demolished beginning at 1am on Wednesday after the project, originally planned for Saturday, was postponed.
The overpass remains closed between 8am and 5pm today and Tuesday.
Issarajnuwat Wankawisan, at right, on Saturday at a hospital.
CHIANG MAI — A Chiang Mai rooftop bar was permanently closed by police Sunday after a customer was badly beaten in a brawl there by guards over his use of a restroom.
Issarajnuwat Wankawisan was assaulted and seriously injured by security at Malin Sky Bar on Friday night after he attempted to use a washroom but was denied entry by four guards who told him some celebrities were using them.
Thanomsak Pipatkitjakarn, one of the guards subsequently charged with assault, told police that Issarajnuwat was trying to enter a women’s restroom, which led to the fight.
Issarajnuwat, who is the son of regional army commander Maj. Gen. Witthaya Wankawisan, was hospitalized with a broken nose, broken jaw, fractured teeth and injury to his left eye. The 23-year-old student told police that after he complained about the incident, the guards beat him on the order of one of the actors.
Celebrities at the scene included Channel 3 soap opera actors Prin “Mark” Suparat, Nattapohn “Taew” Tameeruks, Nittha “Mew” Jirayungyurn, Benjasiri “Bow” Wattana, Lakana “Aum” Wattanawongsiri and her boyfriend Kritsana “Ball” Amitsoon.
Most actors at the scene stepped up to tell reporters that while they were at the bar Friday night, they were not involved with what happened.
“We went there for dinner. We don’t know what really happened there because we sat at a table which was really far from [Issarajnuwat’s] table,” Lakana said at a press conference last night in Chiang Mai.
The CCTV cameras at the venue were broken, according to owner Thanin Loedamrungkul. Maj. Gen. Montri Samboonnanon, chief of Chiang Mai city police, said justice would be served equally for both sides.
The incident overwhelmed traditional and social media and was widely debated over the weekend. Most of the blame went toward the celebrities, whose Instagram accounts were flooded with harsh comments.
Malin Sky Bar’s contract with Chiang Mai Complex Project was reportedly terminated, and its Facebook page was no longer available Monday.
A traditional Christmas goat is unveiled Sunday in Gavle, Sweden. Pernilla Wahlman / Associated Press
STOCKHOLM — Sweden’s Christmas Goat – a giant decorative goat made of straw and wood – didn’t last long on its 50th anniversary.
The straw goat, an annual Yuletide tradition in the city of Gavle since 1966, went up in flames just hours after it was inaugurated on Sunday.
Arsonists just cannot stay away from the giant decoration, which seldom survives the season without someone trying to burn it down.The local newspaper Gefle Dagblad said it was set on fire late Sunday.
A webcam run by the local tourist office showed the frame of the goat was still standing but all the straw was gone.
There was no immediate word on possible suspects.
Here are some videos of the burning goat from previous years:
Police with goods seized Sunday from Prisanan Pongpipatwet’s tax-free Instagram shop.
BANGKOK — Police got a late start to the online shopping season Sunday night, but still came back with a haul of 4 million baht worth of untaxed shoes and bags sold by an Instagram shop.
The bust was made after an undercover officer contacted Instagram seller “Brandnamemafia,” a popular shop with more than 40,000 followers, to inquire about a Hermes handbag selling for 549,000 baht. The seller, 30-year-old Prisanan Pongpipatwet, agreed to meet at her home, where police took her into custody and seized her goods at about 11:30pm.
Inside Prisanan’s townhouse in Bangkok’s Suan Luang district, officers found 280 pairs of Nike, Adidas and Reebok shoes and 23 luxury brand name bags and accessories with an estimated total worth over four million baht.
Police Maj. Gen. Surachet Hukpal, who led the raid, said a customs investigation led them to Prisanan, who like other sellers importing and selling goods tax-free, frequently traveled in and out of the country to buy goods for the online shop or asked friends to carry the goods with them.
He said some sellers were graduates who had studied abroad and did this instead of finding a regular job.
Prisanan will be charged with importing goods illegally, which is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of no more than 200,000 baht.
Rescue workers at the scene of a bus accident Sunday night on Koh Samui.
SAMUI — Sixteen tourists from China were injured Sunday night when their bus overturned on the popular island of Samui, police said.
The tourists were from a tour group that had just landed at an airport on the mainland and was en route to their hotel on the island, according to a police report.
Santi Hankhwa, the 24-year-old driver for the bus, which was operated by a company called Samui Sunshine Holiday Tour, told reporters he lost control of the vehicle as he approached a turn, which toppled as it slid into a roadside ditch.
Police said they would question Santi and ascertain the cause of the accident before filing charges against him.
Indian model of a Bell 412 EP Variant helicopter similar to the one that was recovered in Indonesia Sunday. Anil Singhal / Flickr
JAKARTA — A search team on Sunday found the wreckage of an Indonesian army helicopter and rescued an injured pilot three days after the aircraft disappeared on Indonesia’s part of Borneo island. Four people are still missing.
The Bell 412 EP helicopter was carrying five soldiers, including two pilots, to Long Bawan, a remote town near the border with Malaysia, when it lost contact with its base in North Kalimantan province minutes after taking off on Thursday.
Army spokesman Brig. Gen. Sabrar Fadhilah said the wreckage of the 3-year-old helicopter was spotted Sunday in a remote area of Malinau district in the same province.
He said rugged, forested terrain and bad weather made it difficult to reach the site. Rescuers are searching for the four missing soldiers.
“We hope we can rescue the rest of the victims safely,” Fadhilah said. “An investigation is underway to find what caused the crash.”
The helicopter was carrying about 400 kilograms (880 pounds) of supplies to deliver to border patrol troops.
Indonesia, a sprawling archipelagic nation of more than 250 million people, has been plagued by transportation accidents in recent years, from plane and train crashes to ferry sinkings. Overcrowding, poor infrastructure and unenforced safety rules are often to blame. The military, which suffers from low funding, has also regularly suffered airplane and helicopter crashes.
In 2013, a MI-17 amy helicopter carrying seven soldiers and 12 civilians crashed during a mission to build a border post in North Kalimantan, killing 13 people on board.
Songsit ‘Note’ Phraephet, 23, the 2016 Catan Thailand Champion, at Board Game Academy in Bangkok.
BANGKOK — Settlers of Catan is more than just a resource-management board game for Songsit “Note” Phraepet, the Thailand Catan Champion of 2016 and owner of the Board Game Academy cafe in Thonburi.
It’s a way to exercise one’s analytical and strategic skills, and a way to bring family and friends together.
“Once, a man over 50 brought his wife and children to play Catan at the shop. The kid, no older than a third-grader, even beat me!” the 23-year-old champion player chuckled.
With his game cafe in Soi Prajadhibok 6, Note is at the fore of the burgeoning board game scene which has seen dozens of similar cafes pop up in the capital in recent years. Apparently, he’s one of the best Settlers of Catan players in the country as well.
Note placed 16th out of 60 contestants from 33 countries at the 2016 USA Catan World Championship in Durango, Colorado, held in September. He was the first Thai national to reach the semi-finals.
In the days leading up to the tournament, he often logged six hours of daily practice with other Catanheads. Whenever he was free during the day, he would practice on an app as well.
“I lost because one guy got all the 9s and hogged all the rice and rock,” he laughed. In one apparent localization of the game, he calls Catan’s “grain,” one of the main resources in the game, “rice.”
Rise of the Champion
Note’s trip to Colorado was sponsored by Ninive Games, a game seller and distributor, which obtained the exclusive rights to print Catan in Thai. Ninive, which has another board game cafe in the Phra Khanong area, held a qualifying tournament in July.
“[Ninive] paid for my ticket, and Mayfair, the company that makes Catan, paid for my food and lodging there,” Note said. “So it was pretty much an all-expenses-paid trip where I got to meet skilled, friendly people from all over the world.”
Catan is a 20-year-old German board game in which players compete to develop territory by obtaining and trading resources. It’s easy to pick up and learn, but the strategy runs deep.
Note’s Thailand championship award.
“I didn’t even like the game at first,” he laughed, setting up the board game’s hexagons. However, a friend dragged him to Ninive’s storefront to play the game with other enthusiasts, and he became hooked by its demanding mix of strategy, psychology and memory.
“This game requires so much from you: speaking skills, memory, bluffing and manipulation skills, even luck,” Note said.
After graduating from Mahidol University in Business Economics, Note decided to open his own board game cafe after returning from graduate school last year in the United Kingdom, where they are found everywhere.
“At first, my mother didn’t understand why I wanted to open a game shop. But then she saw that board games are beneficial and educational to the players,” he said. “Like chess, but more exciting.”
For the Children
Playing board games is not yet mainstream among Thais. Note said that sometimes people peer into the window of his shop and walk away confused, or enter, intrigued. “I really respect people who take the plunge to try something new,” he said.
Board Game Academy mostly attracts students from the nearby Taweethapisek and Suankularb Wittayalai schools. The shop charges a 20-baht hourly fee or 100 baht flat fee for students and university students, and 40 baht hourly or 150 baht flat fee for adults.
“I very strongly support Thai kids playing more board games,” he said, tousling the hair of a nearby child returning a game to the shelf. “Unlike online games, you don’t really get addicted to it. You finish after a game, and each time playing it is different. I see kids in the US and UK playing board games and it improves their mental faculties and helps them to express their individuality.”
Board Game Academy, in Prajadhipok 6.
While most Thai kids are open to playing board games, some have yet to make that transition.
“Sometimes, when I’m explaining to them how to play Catan or another strategy game, they sigh and say, ‘P, can we just play a game that doesn’t need to use our brains?’ When I hear this, I think to myself, ‘hey, is this what it’s like?’ But I’m not shocked.”
He said he hears that schoolgirls utter that phrase more often than boys.
“Girls prefer to play speed-based games such as Halli Galli, or imagination-based games such as Dixit.” Boys, however, will gladly connect three tables together for a massive game of Catan.
Note holding Halli Galli, a speed-based fruit-matching game, and surrounded by Settlers of Catan.
He tries to get people hooked then lead them to more advanced games.
“If a group has played Halli Galli for a while, for example, I suggest Splendour to them. Some people take the dive and love it, while other stick to simple, fun games,” he said.
The adults who come in later at night however take up hours playing “heavy” games such as Game of Thrones or Terra Mystica.
“From midnight till morning, there are some business entrepreneurs or even musicians who like to come and play time-consuming games. One guy broke our shop record of playing here for 27 hours,” he said.
