India-China border dispute offers warning for others

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DIPLOMACYIndia-China border dispute offers warning for others

23 May 2013 : A half-century after the Sino-Indian War of 1962, the border between China and India remains undefined and a constant source of friction between the world's two most populous countries. Following three weeks of fighting in 1962, it was agreed to draw a Line of Actual Control (LAC). Five decades later, the map has yet to be delineated. As a result, both sides routinely send patrols up to the point where they believe the LAC should be _ the latest episode being a three-week incursion by Chinese troops into Indian-held territory that began in April.
MIGRANT WORKERSTime to harness the remittance boom

23 May 2013 : For more than a decade, Asia's economies have been on the move _ and so have its people. The scale of migration from rural to urban areas and across international borders is historically unprecedented, and 21st century Asia is its focal point.

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Postbag
Postbag: Saving the dogs
13 May 2013 : Re: ''Putting a price on a dog's life'' (BP, May 11).
United World must act on interview row
13 May 2013 : The prime minister's secretary-general, Suranand Vejjajiva, once said that he did not choose to be born into the Vejjajiva family, but he could choose his friends. That precise statement should provide an insight into his mind and as to how he feels about his cousin, Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva, and their relationship.
SOUTHEAST ASIA
Election fever grips Myanmar, 2 years ahead of time
13 May 2013 : Myanmar's next national elections - more than two years away - are already preoccupying the country's leaders and the opposition. "Everyone is focused on 2015," said a Myanmar government official, who declined to be identified. "All the parties have started to gear up for the next election campaign."
COMMENTARY
Karun should foot bill for fight to replace him
13 May 2013 : The flying-kick man deserved to be floored by the Supreme Court. But Karun Hongsakul's patch is still a difficult one for the Democrats to crack, even as the man himself is forced to watch the by-election for his old seat in Don Muang from the sidelines.
BREEZY MONDAY
A game of clones
13 May 2013 : Is it just Thailand, or is the whole world obsessed with beauty pageants? There was a time when Thailand's only annual beauty contest was the Miss Thailand pageant which took place during the annual Vajiravudh Fair at Saranrom Royal Park. To be precise, this pageant dates back to 1934, two years after the revolution that introduced the constitutional monarchy, and was held as part of the Constitution Day celebrations.
EDITORIAL
French connection a good move
12 May 2013 : Friday's announcement that Thailand and France are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding next month on developing high-speed rail here and modernising the State Railway of Thailand's operations and services was a smart play by a Pheu Thai government anxious to win public support for the controversial 2 trillion-baht infrastructure project. The French have a proven performance record in the field of high-speed rail, and just as important, a reputation for stringent safety standards. France's TGV high-speed rail system was developed in the 1970s. Centred in Paris, it has expanded across France and into neighbouring countries on both high-speed and conventional lines. In April 2007 a TGV test train set the record for the fastest wheeled train, reaching 574.8kph.
Postbag
Democrats lack personal touch
12 May 2013 : The age of talking "to" or "at" voters is passing quickly and we are now in the era of "active listening", without inserting agendas or sales pitches, but it's hard to imagine former PM Abhisit Vejjajiva making a telephone call to an average voter in the Northeast, simply to chat.
POSTSCRIPT
'Thailand's Mr Bean' makes new friends
12 May 2013 : A Thai reader recently asked me the meaning of the expression ''not the full shilling''. He was referring to remarks by Scottish snooker star Stephen Maguire about Thailand's Dechawat Poomjaeng, who beat Maguire in a huge upset in the world championship a couple of weeks ago. A classic underdog, Dechawat won over the crowd, commentators and TV audience with his unintentionally comical behaviour, prompting references to him as ''Thailand's Mr Bean''.
COMMENTARY
Getting over those tribal instincts
12 May 2013 : Thai culture still relies far too much on relationships, rather than ideologies. Time and again we see democratic ideals sacrificed for the sake of relationships on both sides of the political divide. This is why our political structure is often termed a feudal system rather than a true parliamentary democracy.
EDITORIAL
Putting a price on a dog's life
11 May 2013 : Social media critics this week roundly condemned an animal lover pictured dining out with his pet dog at a public restaurant. The clip showed a cute chow chow, seated at a table, being fed morsels of food and lapping from a regular water glass. The critics rightly slammed it as unhygienic and the restaurant has apologised. But if that incident had a satisfactory ending, the week also brought a grim reminder that pampered pooches are in the minority here. Had it not been for quick action by police in Nakhon Phanom, 1,200 other dogs would likely have ended up on the menus of food shops in Vietnam.