10/10/2024

THURSDAY | OCT 10, 2024

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Thailand floats new plan for Myanmar crisis

Kuan Yew’s daughter dies at 69 SINGAPORE: The estranged sister of former prime minister Lee Hsien Loong died yesterday at 69, after being diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy in 2020. The death of Lee Wei Ling, a doctor, was announced by their younger brother Lee Hsien Yang on Facebook. The siblings are the children of Singapore’s founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew and have been embroiled in a public dispute around what to do with their late father’s house after the elder Lee died in 2015. The former prime minister Lee, now a senior minister in the Cabinet, wrote on Facebook that despite the rift between him and his siblings, “I held nothing against Ling, and continued to do whatever I could to ensure her welfare.” He described his sister as a fighter who was “fiercely loyal to friends, sympathised instinctively with the underdog, and would mobilise actively to do something when she saw unfairness, or suspected wrongdoing”. The late doctor earned the prestigious President’s scholarship and topped her cohort in medical school. Lee never married and stayed with her parents until their deaths. She helped set up Singapore’s National Neuroscience Institute and served as its director for 11 years. She also regularly contributed columns to the national broadsheet The Straits Times . Lee said his sister had diagnosed herself before the doctors did. “She took it with her usual fortitude and stoicism, and posted about it as one of those things in life to be borne and endured. She knew what it meant, and made the most of the time she had even as her health declined,” he wrote. When announcing her illness, Wei Ling wrote: “My immediate reaction to the news was ‘ ren ’, or endure in Chinese, of which the traditional character has a knife above a heart. I have been practising ‘ ren ’ since I was in Chinese school, recognising that life has many unpleasant, unavoidable situations.” – Reuters Thousands watch last horse race in S’pore SINGAPORE: After a more than 180-year history, horse racing in Singapore has come to an end. The Singapore Turf Club held its final horse race in front of a 10,000-strong crowd on Saturday, before it hands back the 120ha racecourse to the government for redevelopment in 2027. The Turf Club is the land-scarce financial hub’s only racecourse. The crowd ranged from focused punters in shorts holding on to race booklets with a cigarette between their lips, to women decked out in hats and fascinators. Eager to witness the end of an era was retiree Lawrence Phua, 75. As a young boy, Phua used to help his brother sell horse racing guidebooks outside the turf club’s former location in Bukit Timah in central Singapore, also set to turn into housing. “I know nothing about gambling, but I am a bit emotional and quite sad that horse racing is no more after more than a hundred years,” he said. Phua said this was his first visit to the Kranji location of the Turf Club in northern Singapore, which opened in 1999 after S$500 million (RM1.6 billion) worth of construction. Horse racing in Singapore has a long history that dates back to its colonial past. The first race in 1843 was held to mark the 24th anniversary of Singapore coming under British colonial rule, according to the club. It later hosted Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II in 1972, seven years after Singapore gained independence, when 26,000 residents came to see the royal family. The land will be handed over to the government to meet housing, leisure and recreational demands as the population grows. Singapore is smaller than New York City and is home to six million people. – Reuters

o Asean low on options as peace process falters

faced many challenges and had its own ways to tackle them. “Laos deems that Asean’s past successes are due to our understanding of each other. We help each other, and cooperate with each other, with an Asean way and principles,” he said. Ahead of Blinken’s trip, the United States’ top diplomat for East Asia, Daniel Kritenbrink, told reporters there had been “virtually zero progress” in efforts to get Myanmar’s government to reduce violence, free political prisoners and talk to the opposition. “The secretary will continue to emphasise to partners in the region that we must keep up pressure,” he said, of Blinken’s visit. Myanmar is represented in Laos by a senior Foreign Ministry official. Nikorndej said Myanmar’s representative urged Asean foreign ministers on Tuesday to understand and sympathise with the military government and use more “moderate language” in discussing the crisis. Asean must not bend to accommodate the government’s demands, including recognising its five-step “roadmap” for what is expected to be a one-sided election, said former Thai diplomat Korbsak Chutikul. “Care must be exercised not to be roped into going along with Myanmar’s five-point plan, like to hold elections next year for a semblance of legitimacy,” Korbsak said. – Reuters

The proposal, floated at Tuesday’s meeting of Asean foreign ministers, comes as the bloc runs low on options to tackle the Myanmar crisis. There has been no progress on its “Five Point Consensus” peace plan unveiled months after the coup, or a drive by Indonesia to persuade anti-government groups to start dialogue. In previous months, Thailand has suggested that Myanmar’s other influential neighbours, China and India, might play a role in the peace effort, but the latest plan is limited to the Asean bloc. Any decision on whether Myanmar’s ruling generals or their opponents would be invited to the informal talks would be up to Asean chair Laos and the other member states, Nikorndej said. Myanmar’s civil war and troubles in the disputed South China Sea are key issues set to dominate the Asean leaders’ meeting, which will be followed by two days of summits with prime ministers and top diplomats from regional and world powers. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are among those set to attend. Opening yesterday’s summit, Laos Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone said Asean

VIENTIANE: Southeast Asian leaders met here yesterday for a summit expected to find ways of tackling a worsening civil war in Myanmar, with Thailand set to propose a new path for a political solution after a regional peace effort made scant progress. Chaos has prevailed in Myanmar since a 2021 military coup sparked a civil war that has ravaged the nation of 55 million. Its government has so far refused to hold talks with its opponents. Thailand offered this week to host an “informal consultation” of the 10 Asean members in December to try to find a way out of the conflict that has displaced millions of people. “We want to see a political solution,” said Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura. “Thailand is ready to coordinate with all other member countries so there would be a concerted Asean effort that could lead to peace in Myanmar.” Thailand’s initiative would complement existing Asean peace efforts, but may not immediately involve countries beyond the region, he said.

Indonesia raises human trafficking red flag JAKARTA: Indonesia has raised concerns about an increasing number of human trafficking victims in Southeast Asia, particularly those coerced into online scams, warning that this trend could hinder regional growth. instead of a hub of growth,” he said. Hadi called for immediate attention to the Asean Leaders’ Declarations on Combating Trafficking in Persons, particularly those stemming from the misuse of technology. Dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the 44th and 45th Asean Summits and Related Summits at the National Convention Centre in Vientiane yesterday. – REUTERSPIC

according to a statement from the ministry. He expressed hope that the Asean Vision 2045 would be realised promptly to equip the region for future challenges. His delegation also emphasised the importance of restraint in the South China Sea to avoid escalating tensions that could lead to open conflict. The republic advocates the urgent finalisation of a Code of Conduct on the South China Sea as a means to maintain peace, while calling for strengthened maritime security through the Asean Maritime Forum (AMF) and the Expanded AMF. – Bernama

While Asean has established agreements on law enforcement cooperation, including the Asean Mutual Legal Assistance, he urged that the Asean Extradition Treaty be finalised quickly to bolster efforts against transnational crime in the region. During the meeting, Hadi commended member states for implementing nearly 100% of the Asean Community Blueprint 2025,

At the 28th Asean Political Security Community Council meeting held in Vientiane on Tuesday, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Hadi Tjahjanto highlighted the urgent need for enhanced cooperation among Asean countries to combat human trafficking effectively. “If this issue is not taken seriously, Southeast Asia risks becoming the ‘epicentre of scams’