Sunday, April 14, 2013
INVESTIGATORS are trying to work out how an Indonesian passenger plane overshot the runway at Bali airport before crashing into the sea.
All 101 passengers and seven crew on the Lion Air flight survived, although dozens were said to be injured and at least seven were taken to hospital with head wounds and broken bones.
The new Boeing 737-800 had been trying to land at Denpasar's Ngurah Rai International Airport about 3.30pm local time (1730 AEST) on Saturday when it crashed.
No Australians were on the plane, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra said.
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Saturday, April 13, 2013
DUBAI, UAE - Parul Shah is one step away from realizing a childhood dream,
and she dearly wants her beloved parents to be there when she faces the
ultimate challenge. Dubai-born Shah, 24, is one of the 50 candidates in
the finals of this year’s 50th edition of the Binibining Pilipinas
pageant, the country’s biggest beauty pageant.
Being the golden
anniversary of the prestigious brain and beauty competition, this year’s
Binibining Pilipinas is one of the grandest events in the pageantry’s
history.
However, Shah, the daughter of Dubai-based expatriates, is unlikely to
get the opportunity to enjoy the morale-boosting presence of her parents
on Sunday.
- Her parents, an Indian family driver and a Filipina domestic
helper-turned-housewife, can hardly make both ends meet and could not
afford the cost of the return tickets from Dubai to Manila to see their
daughter go for gold the Binibining Pilipinas 2013 on April 14 at the
Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Philippines. The winner of the
contest goes on to the Miss Universe competition.
Shah is second of four siblings of Luzie Shah and Pramod Kumar
Ramniklal Shah. In an emotional interview with tabloid! Luzie said her
biggest wish is to be able to watch and support her daughter on pageant
night. “I wish we will be there to support Parul.
She’s been away since
she went to the Philippines to attend college. When she graduated
nursing school, we were also not there to enjoy the moment with her.
- We
could barely make both ends meet and do not have the luxury to buy the
airline tickets,” says Luzie, who along with Pramod has been residing in
Dubai for more than 30 years.
- “We don’t have credit cards and my
husband’s income does not make him eligible for a loan. We just go with
the money we earn – we prioritize the needs of our children, especially
for school and food.”
Shah, on the other hand, says it would be her dream to see her parents
during coronation day. “I wish to see them during the pageant night but I
do understand why they can’t make it. I’ve been doing this for them. I
love my parents so much – who I am today is because of them. I’m so
proud of them. I want them to see me now – a grown up lady. Even if they
will not be around during pageant day, I know that their support, love
and prayers are always there,” the beauty queen said.
Source: Gulfnews
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Thursday, April 11, 2013
DHAKA, Bangladesh - A protester from Bangladesh's Jamaat-e-Islami party has been shot dead and 15 others injured during fresh clashes between police and opposition activists.
The protester was shot in the chest on Thursday in the southern town of Dumuria on the fourth day of a nationwide strike.
Police said they fired live rounds at 500 supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami during protests to demand the release of the head of its student wing.
The violence is the latest to hit Bangladesh stemming from a continuing war crimes tribunal, at which almost the entire Jamaat leadership is on trial for crimes committed during the 1971 war of independence against Pakistan.
The latest killing brought the overall death toll from clashes triggered by the trials to 98 since January 21 when the court handed down its first verdicts.
Source: Al Jazeera
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Wednesday, April 10, 2013
PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia ― Malaysians will go to polls on May 5, the
Election Commission (EC) announced today, starting the official
countdown to when voters decide whether to keep the Barisan Nasional
(BN) in government or usher in a new administration under Pakatan Rakyat
(PR).
The election regulator, which met today, also set April 20 as the
nomination date, which will signal the start of formal electoral
campaigns that will last 15 days.
“On this day, the EC that
comprises seven panel members... has held a special meeting and is
announcing the important dates for GE13,” Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof,
the EC chairman, said in a live broadcast on national television, using
the acronym for the 13th general election.
“The date for
nomination is on April 20, which is a Saturday, early voting is on April
30 and polling is on May 5, which is on a Sunday.”
- Yesterday,
the commission chief had hinted it may depart with tradition and fix
polling for Election 2013 to take place on a weekday.
- The commission decided today, however, to stick with custom and allow Malaysians to cast their ballots on Sunday.
- The commission has also been given RM400 million to carry out the
elections, Abdul Aziz said, adding that it was the biggest budget to
date.
- The EC has appointed 379 officers to enforce the election rules and
another 222 officers and 1,088 assistants to monitor the polls during
the formal campaign period.
- A total 8,789 voting centres will be set up, the EC chairman said.
- The commission will also be using the electoral roll last updated
in the fourth quarter of 2012, which will be gazetted tomorrow, he said.
- A total 13,268,002 Malaysians registered on the roll and are eligible to
vote in the 13th general elections, touted to be a tight race between a
stronger three-party opposition pact and the BN coalition for federal
power.
Source: The Malaysian Insider
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Tuesday, April 09, 2013
KOTA KINABALU, Sabah, Malaysia - According to The Philippine STAR, An extra 1,000 gunmen from the
southern Philippines have broken through the sea blockade into Sabah to
add muscle to Sulu rebel leader Agbimuddin Kiram’s fight against
Malaysian security forces.
A representative
from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), Emmanuel Fontanilla,
told the daily the fighters had been readying for battle since the onset
of 
the conflict and managed to slip past the Philippine and Malaysian
navies by moving in small groups.
“As per information, the armed men arrived in small batches,” he was quoted as saying.
The
paper said it was unknown if the latest group had joined in fresh
clashes in Lahad Datu last week, when an earlier band of 100 Filipinos
landed on Sabah’s east coast to reinforce the so-called Sulu sultanate
in its renewed bid to reclaim the state.
The
elusive Agbimuddin, who believes himself to be the heir of a defunct
sultanate, has been waging a guerilla battle against Malaysian security
forces since arriving in Sabah on February 9 to stake his clan’s
17th-century ownership of the north Borneo state.
More
than 60 Sulus have been reported killed in the violent conflict
enveloping Sabah’s east coast that have also snuffed out the lives of
eight Malaysian policemen and two soldiers.
Malaysian
security forces have also captured more than 100 Sulus believed linked
to the gunmen, and slapped several with terror charges.
Some
5,000 Filipinos have returned to their homeland since the Sabah crisis
began in February, with tales of human rights abuses that have enraged
fellow Philippine citizens and lawmakers.
The
Philippine Senate has demanded its government hold Malaysia accountable
for the possible human rights violations on the 800,000-strong Filipino
migrant community in Sabah at the hands of local authorities searching
for a ragtag band of Sulu militants claiming ownership of the north
Borneo state.
The
volatile situation in Sabah appears to be election fodder with both the
Philippines and Malaysia readying for national polls this year.
Source: Agency
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Monday, April 08, 2013
MANILA, Philippines - When the body of four-year-old Mark Escarmosa was
found in Metro Manila’s eastern suburban Rizal on April 4, his head was half
cut off from his neck, his knee-cap and internal organs were missing, a radio
report said.
Shocked, his parents, Elena and Marlon Escarmosa, told dzBB the
police claimed that autopsy could no longer be conducted on the decomposing
body of their son; 
that it would look into the possibility that he just met an
accident.
Earlier, they asked the local government of Pililia, Rizal, for an autopsy
and an investigation into the death of their son who went missing on March 19.
A total of 38 cases of child abduction have already
been reported to the police, the government-run Philippine New Agency
(PNA) said.
Majority of the cases involved children in depressed areas. The children
reportedly went missing after being followed by a man with garbage cans, or by
garbage collectors, PNA said.
But PNA did not clarify if the suspected abductors were believed as informal
garbage collectors who privately retrieve recycled materials from garbage bags
left out by homeowners for collection by government-run garbage collectors.
Last week, the Philippine National Police (PNP) officially said there is yet
no evidence to show that a criminal syndicate is behind the growing number
of missing children from Metro Manila’s depressed areas.
Source: Agency
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Saturday, April 06, 2013
At least 72 reported dead as expectations for survivors diminishes, two days after building fell in India's capital.
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Wednesday, April 03, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Parliament is officially dissolved!
After a long wait, Prime Minister Datuk
Seri Najib Razak today announced the dissolution of the 12th Parliament
of Malaysia over a live telecast on national television.
The announcement was made at about 11.35am, paving the way for the 13th General Election.
It
came after Datuk Seri Najib earlier this morning met the Yang
Di-Pertuan Agong at the National Palace to ask for his consent in
dissolving the parliament. The Agong signed his consent and Najib then
made his way to the Prime Minister's Office in Putrajaya to chair the
last cabinet meeting before dissolution.
Upon announcing that the
parliament is now dissolved, Najib urged all Chief Ministers in the
country to meet their respective Heads of State to request for the
dissolution of the State Assembly so that every state's election can run
concurrently.
- However the Negri Sembilan state assembly was
dissolved automatically last week on March 27 while Sarawak had its
state election last year in April.
- Today also marks Datuk Seri Najib's fourth year in office as Malaysia's Prime Minister.
Source: Malaysian Digest
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Tuesday, April 02, 2013
MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine
Embassy in Kuala Lumpur said Monday (April 1) that Malaysia has imposed new
guidelines for barter traders in Sabah and Labuan, notably requiring Filipinos
and other foreigners to have passports or seaman’s books in order to enter
these areas.
The new rules come amid the continuing tension between the Philippines and
its ASEAN neighbor Malaysia, over the case of hundreds of followers of the Sulu
Sultanate whom Malaysian security forces are pursuing for their attempt to
“reclaim our homeland,” Sabah.
The Sultanate claims it never relinquished ownership of the resource-rich
territory, which the British government gave to Malaysia when the latter was
federated. The Sulu sultanate had rented out Sabah to British merchants, and
continues to receive annual rental payments from Kuala Lumpur.
In a report to the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Philippine embassy in
KL conveyed the Malaysian Foreign Ministry’s note verbale to all diplomatic
missions in that country: “With effect from 15 April 2013, all crews of barter
trade ships or 
vessels will be required to produce valid travel documents, i.e
international passport or seaman book at all entry ports in
Sabah. Seaman identification card (SIC) will no longer be issued to
crews of barter trade ships or vessels without valid travel documentation.”
The note verbale added: “Effective from 2 April 2013, permanent Custom and
Immigration Quarantine (CIQ) complexes will be operating at Ports of Kudat and
Lahad Datu as well as an Immigration Control office at Karakit, Pulau Banggi
where all immigration and customs procedures will be enforced at the said entry
points.”
Source: I
nterAksyon...More...
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Shah is second of four siblings of Luzie Shah and Pramod Kumar
Ramniklal Shah. In an emotional interview with tabloid! Luzie said her
biggest wish is to be able to watch and support her daughter on pageant
night. “I wish we will be there to support Parul. 
