Royal Crematorium Design Unveiled (PHOTOS)

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28 November 2016, 17:27

BANGKOK — Designs for a crematorium, royal chariot and other facilities situated around the royal funeral pyre for King Rama IX were unveiled Monday.

Designed by the government’s Fine Arts Department, the design features nine spires and was inspired by the King’s words, according to Deputy Prime Minister Thanasak Patimaprakorn. It will accommodate 7,400 people and may undergo further revision, he said.

Before ground is broken in the Sanam Luang for the cremation complex, a spirit-appeasing chariot ceremony will be held Dec. 19, with the central column for the crematorium to be installed before year’s end.

The area of the crematorium complex will be fenced in after Jan. 10. The crematorium site is expected to be finished by September. The Royal Ploughing Ceremony in May will go on as usual outside the crematorium area.

Culture Minister Vira Rojpojchanarat said his ministry would be in charge of the operation. It plans to publish 10,000 copies Tuesday of a royal glossary explaining vocabulary that will be used during ceremonies, as royal rituals are conducted in the Pali-Sanskrit royal tongue.

After the central column is erected, the ministry will publish a book about the history of royal cremations back to the Ayutthaya Kingdom, along with documentaries and animated films about the facility’s construction and the traditions rituals.

“Citizens can learn about important royal rituals which are the honorable royal rituals of Thai Kings,” Vira said.

The ceremony will follow earlier cremations in the Rattanakosin era, because there is no reliable record from the Ayutthaya era, according to culture minister Anan Chuchote.

The last royal cremation was in 1950 for Rama VIII, Ananda Mahidol.

The design is based off of the Traiphum Phra Ruang’s Buddhist cosmology, with the main peak of Mount Sumeru (Meru in Hindu cosmology) at center and eight other peaks signifying the levels of the universe. The crematorium will be decorated with mythical creatures such as garuda, angels, and Himmapan Forest creatures.

Lantern columns will be decorated with garuda, which are the vehicle of Vishnu (aka Phra Narai), one of whose avatars is considered the King of Thailand.

The pyre structure will sit on 60sqm and stand just over 50 meters tall.

Holocaust-Themed Ice Dance Sparks Controversy

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Associated Press

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28 November 2016, 17:23

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.”

Story: Nataliya Vasilyeva

North Korea Calls 3-Day Mourning Period for Castro

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Associated Press

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28 November 2016, 17:05

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.

Junta Weighs Emergency Cyber Committee With Censorship Powers

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Sasiwan Mokkhasen, Staff Reporter

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28 November 2016, 16:32

sample2 — Original background photo : yohki/ flickr

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 power to 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.

New Cybercrime Regs Would Open Back Door to Censorship

Website Shutdowns Soar After King’s Death

Why Thailand Should Worry About an Improved(?) Computer Crime Act

Thailand’s Draconian Cyberlaws Tipping Toward Totalitarian

Computer Crime Act Has Issues, Google Tells Censorship Committee

Online Freedom to Slide Further, Online Activists Predict

Demolition of Ratchayothin Overpass Delayed to Wednesday

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Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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28 November 2016, 12:35

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.

Chiang Mai Bar Closed After Brawl Over Bathroom, Soap Stars

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Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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28 November 2016, 12:21

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.

Swedish Christmas Goat Burns on 50th Anniversary

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Associated Press

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28 November 2016, 12:00

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:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRWFYwEtVIQ

Raid of Online Shop Nets 4M in Brand Name Shoes, Bags

By

Asaree Thaitrakulpanich, Staff Reporter

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28 November 2016, 11:57

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.

16 Tourists Injured in Samui Bus Crash

By

Teeranai Charuvastra, News Chief

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28 November 2016, 11:35

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.

1 Rescued, 4 Missing as Indonesia Helicopter Wreckage Found

By

Associated Press

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28 November 2016, 10:27

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.

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