The News Review:

- … news and business from Indonesia Philippines Thailand…
- Insider’s guide to Bangkok
- Enticing locales beckon with… transplants
- Bye Bye NRI-INDIASPRA-Chidanand Rajghatta-Columnists-pinion-The…
- Philippines: The islands less travelled

… news and business from Indonesia Philippines Thailand…
Asia Times nline – Feb 16, 2008
The military has been implicated of complicity in several of the extrajudicial killings that have been reported across the country. Arroyo-backed and United Nations-led investigations have uncovered damning evidence against certain senior ranking officers who could one day stand trial on charges of crimes against humanity. Factional disgruntlement inside the military towards Arroyo’s administration was on prominent display last November when a senator and group of 30 military officers farcically attempted – and failed – to launch a coup from a Manila luxury hotel. What is more clear is that Arroyo’s government has a well-worn history of obfuscation and subterfuge when her administration is under threat including during the course of two failed impeachment motions against her including allegations of vote-rigging in the 2004 election she narrowly won. This is why this week’s revelations of an alleged al-Qaeda-inspired assassination attempt against Arroyo have so far failed to capture the popular imagination or national headlines. Joel D Adriano is an independent consultant and award-winning freelance journalist. He was a sub-editor for the business section of The Manila Times and writes for Asean BizTimes Entrepreneur Philippines Masigasig and People’s Tonight.

Insider’s guide to Bangkok
Guardian – Feb 16, 2008
It has extraordinary ruined temples. I like to take the boat there which takes twice as long but you see how life used to be. ·David Thompson runs Nahm (+44 (0)20-7333 1000.

Enticing locales beckon with… transplants
Toronto Star – Feb 16, 2008
All this and world-renowned tourist sites within walking distance. Not that you’ll be doing much walking. You’ll be recovering from surgery in India Africa or Thailand where hospitals tempt patients with amenities usually aimed at tourists. "I showed some pictures to my son and he said `h so that’s your hotel’" Josef Woodman author of the guidebook Patients Beyond Borders remembers about a recent trip to Singapore. "So I said `No that’s the hospital. ‘ He couldn’t believe it. These places are like five-star hotels… Not that you’ll be doing much walking. You’ll be recovering from surgery in India Africa or Thailand where hospitals tempt patients with amenities usually aimed at tourists. "I showed some pictures to my son and he said `h so that’s your hotel’" Josef Woodman author of the guidebook Patients Beyond Borders remembers about a recent trip to Singapore. "So I said `No that’s the hospital. ‘ He couldn’t believe it. These places are like five-star hotels. "As the website MediThai.

Bye Bye NRI-INDIASPRA-Chidanand Rajghatta-Columnists-pinion-The…
Times of India – Feb 17, 2008
Apparently our bharat mahaan is rolling in so muchlolly and such is the attention being lavished on it by the world that NRIsare being told to take their depreciating dollar and dafa ho jao. Dirhams andeuros are still okay but the dollar is definitely in the doghouse. Heck eventhe Taj ? the hotel not the monument ? is reportedly telling folksthey would rather be paid inpesos. People it?s PoxAmericana time and the American NRI is bearing thebrunt. As a long-sufferingitinerant who straddles the world of NRIs RNIs IRNs etc i can attest to thehardship the poor NRI is going through with my $0. 02 of insight the equivalentnaya paisa being too unaffordable. It?s a terrible chore these days toshop in the US for the family in India… For one there is hardly anything thatis ?Made in USA?; and what is available is already outdated inIndia. The horrible moment oftruth laughed me in the face when i handed out a nice T-shirt i had bought for abrat only to be thanked with “Chee! It?s Made-in-Bangladesh. ” Thesneakers it turned out were made in Thailand and the baseball cap in Vietnam. The nadir came when the gang espied my cellphone a model that was apparentlydiscarded in India in the 20thcentury. So where does thatleave the NRI? Word is that they are pressing for a change in nomenclature. They?d now like to be known as INRs ? IndianNon-Residents.

Philippines: The islands less travelled
Telegraph.co.uk – Feb 16, 2008
It has five-star establishments such as the luxurious Discovery Shores and a Shangri-La due to open in the early autumn. Set back from the waterfront are dozens of low-rise restaurants bars and cafés serving every cuisine from Greek to Mexican Italian to Chinese. Favourites along this stretch include Calypso – a dive centre by day buzzing sports bar by night; Summer Place which draws the bright young things for sundowners; and Fridays hotel at the northern end of the beach with the softest sand and the best views of the Panay hills. Strong winds on the other side of the island have made Boracay a hub for kitesurfing with excellent conditions for sailing parasailing and windsurfing too. There is an 18-hole golf course as well as well-regarded dive centres offering boat trips to nearby reefs and advanced-level certification. Throughout the day massage therapists wander along the beach offering hilot treatments the ancient Filipino massage. For all its unchecked development Boracay still reminds me of Thailand before The Beach was even conceived… There is an 18-hole golf course as well as well-regarded dive centres offering boat trips to nearby reefs and advanced-level certification. Throughout the day massage therapists wander along the beach offering hilot treatments the ancient Filipino massage. For all its unchecked development Boracay still reminds me of Thailand before The Beach was even conceived. Bohol I flew into Cebu smack in the middle of the Philippines to travel by boat to Bohol a sleepy tropical island across the Camotes Sea. It was almost midnight when I boarded the ferry which looked more like a motorised banana boat than a hydrofoil. As we chugged out into the inky darkness The Lord’s Prayer flashed on to the television screens followed immediately by brief emergency instructions. I instinctively looked for the nearest lifejacket and then joined in as the entire cabin sang along to two hours of karaoke.

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