The cost of Laos' quest to be Southeast Asia's 'battery', and the World Heritage town at risk - CNA

“We have to use our natural resources to bring more prosperity,” he said, adding that hydropower development has also “helped directly” to increase the electrification rate from about 30 per cent before 2000 to about 95 per cent of households.

The country’s National Assembly has approved a strategy of deriving 75 per cent of electricity from hydropower and 14 per cent from coal by 2025, with the remainder coming from sources like solar and biomass, he said.

On why coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, has crept into the energy mix — only since 2015 — he said: “We don’t have any oil, any gas, but we have quite a large amount of coal.

“It’ll help to stabilise the (electricity) supply.”

During the dry season, when Laos experiences an energy deficit, it buys back what it has exported to Thailand. But this is at about twice the initial sale price, which does not make economic sense, said Lee.

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2022-10-29 22:00:00Z
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'It's truly horrific': South Korea's Yoon declares national mourning period over crush - The Straits Times

SEOUL – South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol on Sunday declared a national mourning period over a crush during Halloween festivities, saying it was so miserable to see such a disaster happening in the heart of Seoul, the Yonhap news agency reported.

“It’s truly horrific,” Mr Yoon said, saying Saturday’s “tragedy and disaster should never have happened.”

“As president, who is responsible for the people’s lives and safety, my heart is heavy and I struggle to cope with my grief,” he said.

“The government will designate the period from today until the accident is brought under control as a period of national mourning and will place top priority in administrative affairs in recovery and follow-up measures.”

Mr Yoon expressed his condolences over the deaths and wished a speedy recovery for the injured, say the government will support funeral preparations and fully mobilise emergency medical services to treat patients, including by assigning public servants individually to those requiring assistance.

“The most important thing is to determine the cause of the accident and prevent similar accidents,” he said. “We will thoroughly investigate the cause of the accident and make fundamental improvements so that similar accidents do not happen again in the future.”

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2022-10-30 01:13:41Z
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At least 146 people dead, 150 injured in South Korea Halloween stampede - The Straits Times

SEOUL - At least 146 people were killed in a stampede when a huge crowd celebrating Halloween crammed into an alley in a night life area of the South Korean capital Seoul on Saturday night, emergency officials said.

A further 150 people were injured in the crush in Seoul’s Itaewon district, Choi Sung-beom, head of the Yongsan Fire Station, said in a briefing at the scene.

Many of the injured were in serious condition and receiving emergency treatment, the officials said.

The incident took place at about 10.20pm (9.20pm Singapore time).

A large number of people fell down in the alley during the festivities, Choi said. Many of the party-goers were wearing masks and Halloween costumes.

Many of the victims were women in their twenties, Choi said.

Witnesses described chaotic scenes moments before the stampede, with the police on hand in anticipation of the Halloween event at times having trouble maintaining control of the crowds.

Social media footage showed hundreds of people packed in the narrow, sloped alley crushed and immobile as emergency officials and police tried to pull them free.

One woman heard on a social media post cries out in English: “Oh my God, oh my God, Jesus f***ing Christ.”

Other footage showed chaotic scenes of fire officials and citizens treating dozens of people who appeared to be unconscious.

A witness quoted by JoongAng Daily said he tried to leave Itaewon’s main pedestrian entertainment street via a small side street next to the Hamilton Hotel.

He escaped before the crush turned deadly but said that other people were already panicking, with some in tears.

“It was people fighting to leave and people fighting to get in,” he said.

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2022-10-29 19:34:52Z
1632462040

Mahathir says willing to forget 'betrayal' to cooperate with PN but Muhyiddin refused - The Straits Times

ALOR SETAR – Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad says his new coalition is willing to work with Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s Perikatan Nasional (PN) alliance to defeat Umno in Malaysia’s Nov 19 general election, Bernama reported, but the latter has refused to meet him.

Tun Dr Mahathir said his Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA) coalition is willing to work with PN despite being “betrayed” by Mr Muhyiddin in February 2020, when Mr Muhyiddin led a group of lawmakers to defect and join up with Umno, causing the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) federal government.

“I thought it is okay, even though he had stabbed me in the back before; for the sake of our people, country and religion, we are willing to humble ourselves to cooperate with Muhyiddin, even after he had betrayed me. I am willing to forget about it.

“But... he said he did not want to cooperate with anyone. How arrogant,” Dr Mahathir said, when speaking at the GTA rally in Alor Setar, the capital of Kedah state, on Friday night, as quoted by Bernama.

The Mahathir-led GTA is the fourth coalition in Malaysia’s crowded election space and is the smallest political bloc.

Dr Mahathir, 97, is pro tem chairman of GTA, whose four MPs are from his new party, Parti Pejuang Tanah Air.

The other members of GTA are even smaller political parties with no seats in Parliament.

The biggest electoral battles are expected to feature Umno-led Barisan Nasional, which has 42 MPs; PH (90 MPs), which is led by opposition chief Anwar Ibrahim; and PN (49 MPs).

GTA’s overtures to work with PH have also been rebuffed.

Dr Mahathir claimed that Mr Muhyiddin, 75, is confident that PN can win the election without cooperating with any party and is still interested in becoming prime minister for the second time.

Dr Mahathir said GTA has never refused to cooperate with any party to defeat Umno.

“I know people like to see opposition parties unite so that we can defeat Umno, but when we asked them (PN) to cooperate, they refused. We are ready, even in GTA, we have four parties, we are united, but they don’t want to (cooperate),” he said.

Meanwhile, GTA pro tem deputy chairman Mukhriz Mahathir said the coalition planned to contest about 120 parliamentary seats, and the candidates will be announced on Nov 2.

He said the actual number of seats would be finalised later, adding that it would field candidates in no less than 10 parliamentary seats in Kedah, Dr Mahathir’s home state.

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2022-10-29 09:16:05Z
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Biden calls attack on US Speaker Pelosi's husband 'despicable' - CNA

PHILADELPHIA: US President Joe Biden called Friday's (Oct 28) attack on US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband "despicable."

An intruder attacked Paul Pelosi with a hammer, fracturing his skull in the early hours after breaking into the couple's California house in search of the speaker, according to officials.

Addressing a campaign rally in Philadelphia, Biden said political violence had "no place" in the United States, adding "Enough is enough is enough."

Biden also referenced media reports that the assailant was chanting "Where is Nancy," the same chant used during the deadly Jan 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

"I am not making this up," Biden said. "This is reported."

Paul Pelosi was "attacked at home by an assailant who acted with force, and threatened his life while demanding to see the speaker," Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill said earlier on Friday.

Paul Pelosi, 82 - who underwent surgery and is recovering in hospital - was at home alone, as his wife was working in Washington.

With less than two weeks to go before the crucial US midterm elections, members of both parties have sounded the alarm about the potential for political violence.

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2022-10-29 01:03:00Z
1626482009

Taiwan invites Chinese veterinary experts as beloved panda nears death - CNA

Tuan Tuan and his breeding mate Yuan Yuan were given to Taiwan by Beijing at a time when relations between the two neighbours were more cordial.

In a nod to the Chinese Communist Party's goal of one day taking Taiwan, their names combined mean "reunion" or "unity".

The couple became huge stars in Taiwan and Yuan Yuan has since given birth to two female cubs.

"He (Tuan Tuan) was small and so cute when he first got here," said Heng Ling-lin, who brought her children to Taipei Zoo to sign get-well notes.

"He was like everybody's baby," she told AFP.

"It breaks my heart now to see him like this."

"PANDA DIPLOMACY"

China only loans pandas to foreign zoos which must usually return any offspring within a few years of their birth to join the country's breeding programme.

But Taiwan was granted an exception as part of a brief charm offensive China launched in the late 2000s and was fully gifted both Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan and any offspring they had.

Vets first noticed Tuan Tuan, 18, was ill in August when he began suffering seizures and appeared increasingly unsteady and lethargic.

Subsequent scans showed he had a brain-lesion and he was placed on anti-seizure medication.

Earlier this week Taipei Zoo said they suspected Tuan Tuan had a brain tumour and he was moved into palliative care.

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2022-10-28 08:53:47Z
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Forgotten Uyghurs locked up in Thailand face 'hell on earth' - CNA

DIPLOMATIC BALANCE

"What's a life, in this kind of prison cell for almost 10 years?" asked Thai senator Zakee Phithakkumpol, one of the leaders of the Islamic Central Council, which represents the kingdom's eight million Muslims.

Support for the detainees has stepped up in recent months, with eight Thai human rights organisations urging authorities in July not to send them to China.

The renewed attention comes as Thailand prepares to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit next month, with China and the US both increasingly vying for influence in Southeast Asia.

Thailand's junta cosied up to Beijing after seizing power in 2014, but in recent years it has sought to tread a path between China and the US, the kingdom's oldest ally.

"Lately, Bangkok has been rebalancing its relations between Washington and Beijing, rather moving closer to the US," political professor Thitinan Pongsudhirak at Chulalongkorn University told AFP.

The massive diplomatic and security fallout from the 2015 deportation may also contribute to the government's hesitancy, but it is keeping mum about its next moves.

Contacted by AFP, a ministry of foreign affairs spokesperson said the position of the kingdom "remained the same", without giving further details.

Sami, who was in communication with a number of the men held, says their fears will not have changed.

Every time they spoke, he said, "I tell them with sorrow that there is no news, there is nothing about them."

Phil Robertson, Asia deputy director at Human Rights Watch, said the Uyghurs' treatment was "absolutely shocking" and Thailand should release them immediately.

"Thai Immigration is acting like it will hold these men indefinitely, for the rest of their lives if need be, to avoid offending China," Robertson told AFP.

"If there is a hell on earth, Thailand has created it for these Uyghur detainees."

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2022-10-28 06:40:19Z
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