Men talk about sex From the K-pop factory Travelling with a partner

CHANGING ASIA
POPASIA
Men talk
about sex
From the K-pop
factory
TRAVEL BITES
Travelling with a
partner
APRI L 8-21, 2011
Emerging
Getaways
US$3 / Bt100
ISSN 19052650
9 771905 265009
10111
10111
At work I don’t have a choice of where I sit
But with Star Alliance Upgrade Awards
Across 20 of our member airlines worldwide
Now I do.
I’ve earned it.
Tak u m a Sato
I n ternat ional raci ng d ri ver and Star A l l ian ce Gol d Statu s
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PHOTO COURTE SY O F TOURIS M AUTHO RIT Y O F THA ILAND
No Longer
The Backwater
W
ith rising
incomes and
burgeoning
middle class,
Asia is no
longer a cheap destination. The
phenomenon of Asians travelling in their own backyard is
fuelled by the proliferation of
low-cost carriers in the region
and lower costs, which translate
to more luxe dollars for travellers. The hospitality sector in
the region has tremendously
upgraded services and resorts
catering to high-end travellers
have sprung up. Luxury shopping is no longer the monopoly
of the West as major cities like
Singapore, Bangkok, Hong Kong
and Kuala Lumpur offer just the
same with more flair. We offer a
glimpse of Asia as a new luxe
playground—with The Princely
India Tour, an eight-day tour
from Mumbai to Delhi, which
starts from US$7,160 a person—
among other luxurious trips.
But given these changes in the
travel landscape, there are still
hidden gems in Asia. There are
many emerging Asian getaways
like Phu Quoc Island in Viet
Nam or Surakarta in Indonesia.
We also have a feature on
community-based tourism where
you don’t only appreciate nature
at its finest but also help local
communities while vacationing.
Whether you travel in style or in
simplicity, Asia is always the
destination of choice.
Asia News Network
asianewsnet@gmail.com
PH OTO BY JEREMY VI LLASI S/CONTRI BU TOR
APRIL 8-21, 2011 • Vol 6 No 7
COVER STORY
Rising Asian Getaways
P8
Destinations in
Asia have evolved
from backpackers’
haven to luxury
playgrounds. But
fresh destinations
abound, making
the region a
distinct travel
hotspot
TRAVEL BITES P18
CHANGING ASIA P22
ENTERTAINMENT P42
Coupling
Travelling with a partner
isn’t always easy
Let’s Talk About Sex
Should men care about
reproductive health?
Tired Of Being Macho
Male bonding and
friendship is not making
a comeback in Bollywood
THE VIEW P7
ENVIRONMENT P24
Affecting Nuke Power Worldwide
The Fukushima nuclear
crisis is not Japan’s
problem alone
The Disappearing Tuna
The relentless hunt for
the tasty fish
POLITICS P20
LIFESTYLE P32
Escape From North Korea
The international
community has to stand
up to the reclusive state
Thinking Out Of The Coffee
Cafés need to stand out in
a crowded market
F E AT U R E S
LIFE P36
POPASIA P44
Straight From The K-pop Factory
K-pop songs all sound
the same, and K-pop
groups all look the same
PEOPLE P47
Freida’s Coming Of Age
Will Miral Give Freida
Pinto a strong foothold in
Hollywood?
No Money, No Honey
Why some Singaporean
singles can’t be hitched
COVE R photo | courtesy of j eremy villasis/contributor
Copyright © 2006 of Asia News Network. All rights reserved. AsiaNews (ISSN 1905-2650) is a weekly magazine. Printed by WPS (Thailand) Co, Ltd Subsidiary of Nation Multimedia Group Plc.
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The View
By The Nation (Thailand)
Without The Dalai Lama
The spiritual leader’s decision to retire from political life sets
the stage for a new leadership to fight for Tibet’s independence
v Bangkok
March 8-21, 2011
tion to establish rapport and mutual
trust with the Chinese leaders. Judging from Beijing’s past handling of
the Tibetan issue, some harsh words
can be expected to test the new Tibetan leadership.
For decades, debate has raged
within Tibetan communities about
whether they should fight for their
independence via armed resistance
or continue to pursue peaceful means.
The former approach, advocated by
the Dalai Lama, has not yet produced
any positive result. As China’s economic and political clout grows,
many countries that host Tibetans in
exile have given in to persistent Chinese demands. In Nepal, the Tibetan
communities have been harassed,
and election of Tibetan leaders has
not been carried out due to strong
Chinese pressure. It is interesting to note that there
are some among the Tibetan people, both inside and
outside Tibet itself, who
want to go underground
and take up arms to fight
against China. They have
yet to succeed in making
the idea widely accepted.
In the long run the Dalai
Lama’s departure from the
political scene will not affect
overseas Tibetans or their
government-in-exile. In fact,
it will further rejuvenate the
exiled communities. The Dalai Lama will continue as
the spiritual head of Tibetan
Buddhism and will always
remain as the symbolic figurehead of the struggle for
independence. Despite his
advanced age, he will continue to travel the world, doing what he has always done
best - preaching, calling for
world peace and publicising
the Tibetan cause. For decades he has been not only a Tibetan
but an international icon, attracting
worldwide attention and admiration,
much to the chagrin of the Chinese
mandarins.
It is hard to predict the future of
Tibet. The best way out, of course,
would be for China and Tibet to reach
a negotiated settlement. A fully autonomous Tibet would be ideal.
Allowing Tibetans to practice their
language and culture unhindered will
not put the tiniest dent in the dominant Han culture. China is no longer
a poor country. No longer does it feel
vulnerable against the West. It now
has enormous power in the international arena. A modern China that
can coexist peacefully with Tibet
would boost its reputation and its
overseas image.
•5
PHOTO by ATTILA KIS BE NE D E K/AFP
F
or over five decades, the Dalai
Lama has been
a divine figure
head in the lives
and culture of Tibetans in
exile in Dharamsala, India
and the rest of the world.
Now that the spiritual leader has declared his firm intent to step down as the
head of the Tibetan government-in-exile, Tibetans
will have the opportunity to
democratically elect their
next generation of political
leaders to continue the
fight against Chinese domination. Although the new
leader will not be known
for some time, it is clear
that whoever wins the premiership contest will usher
in a new democratic era for
the 6 million Tibetans.
Like it or not, China will
have to negotiate with the
newly elected Tibetan leader, and that person will be
well educated and articulate. Tibet
under its new leadership will be different from the Dalai Lama’s time.
One important element in this era of
change is that the younger generation
of Tibetan leaders—brought up
abroad, educated and mobile—will
greatly affect future negotiations with
China. For one thing, they will be
more assertive in pushing for a more
autonomous Tibet.
At this juncture the Chinese communist leaders still have a very hardline attitude toward Tibet. This is in
part because of their attitude toward
the Dalai Lama himself, who has
been perceived by them as a menace
since he fled Tibet in 1959 after the
Chinese invasion and colonisation. It
will take some time for the new
Tibetan leader and his administra-
The View
By Philippine Daily Inquirer
China’s Message
China has allowed a public spectacle on its execution of three
Filipino drug mules because it is not afraid to flex its muscles
v Manila
P HOTO BY JAY D IRE CTO/AF P PH OTO
T
he Filipino public’s consum- considered a dangerous menace in vulnerable to economic pressure,
ing interest in the execu- China and the target of relentless from becoming witting or unwitting
tion of Sally Ordinario- crackdowns. And executions in Chi- drug mules. Victimisation may come
V i l l a n u e v a , R a m o n na, by far the world’s biggest execu- directly through monetary induceCredo and Elizabeth tioner according to Amnesty Interna- ments, or through the back door of
Batain was both melodramatic and tional, are often unannounced.
ignorance. We can all help in the
inevitable. The three drug mules were
That China allowed such a public work of prevention, by spreading the
the first Filipinos to be executed by spectacle to happen must mean it is word about the sometimes fatal conChina, and their personal narratives deadly serious about the drug prob- sequences of drug smuggling, by formirrored the stories and the self- lem attacking its cash-rich, transi- warding any information we may
image of millions of Filipinos, as tional society—and is not afraid to have about drug trafficking operahardy but unfortunate creations to the authorities, by
tures of circumstance. Little
supporting much stricter prewonder, then, that the news
departure security checks to
from China proved riveting,
flush out contraband drugs.
and the response of many
Breaking the chain also
Filipinos so personal.
means identifying those imThe punishment imposed
migration, customs or airport
was also as final as it could
officials who enabled drug
get. The death penalty does
syndicates large and small to
not only assume that the
victimise travelling workers.
convicted are incapable of
Does it seem likely that many
being rehabilitated; it brooks
pieces of luggage containing
no appeal. This irrevocable
illegal drugs continue to pass
nature of a state-sponsored
through Philippine internaexecution helps explain the
tional airports without the
event’s grip on the public EXECUTED: A friend holds a photo of Ramon Credo, one of the connivance of certain offithree Filipinos executed in China for drug trafficking. Credo, 42,
imagination.
cials? The authorities must
Sally Villanueva, 32, and Elizabeth Batain, 38 were arrested
But something else about separately in China in 2008 for smuggling heroin and sentenced
conduct this investigation exthe executions strikes us. The to death.
peditiously and thoroughly,
three Filipinos were caught
and then either remove erring
in different cities and on separate use its geopolitical influence and re- officials or file the appropriate chargdays three years ago, and convicted gional ambitions to flex its muscles. A es against them.
on drug trafficking charges separate- total of 224 Filipinos remain in ChiNot least, breaking the chain of vicly the following year. They were all nese jails, on various charges involv- timisation means running after the
executed, however, on the same day. ing illegal drugs. We can only expect syndicates themselves. For instance,
Villanueva, 32, and Credo, 42, died the muscle-flexing to continue.
Villanueva named the person who alby lethal injection in Xiamen; Batain,
The same-day execution of Sally legedly recruited her to travel to Chi38, was executed in Shenzhen.
O r d i n a r i o - V i l l a n u e v a , R a m o n na with what turned out to be a bag
This does not seem to be a quirk of Credo and Elizabeth Batain ought with illegal drugs hidden in it. Crejudicial schedule, but a deliberate de- to serve as a wake-up call for both do’s alleged recruiter has also been
cision. Deliberate not only in the Filipinos travelling overseas and the identified. It does not seem likely that
sense of China’s rather ruthless bu- Philippine government. The most these victimisers were one-time drug
reaucratic efficiency but also in the important task, to use presidential traffickers; it is more likely that they
sense of the Chinese government’s spokesperson Edwin Lacierda’s form part of an international network
policy intentions. Beijing wanted to precise phrasing, is to break the of drug traffickers. Aided by leads
send a message.
“chain of victimisation”.
and tip-offs from vigilant citizens, the
The Philippines has been identified
This means, concretely, preventing government can crack down hard on
as a key source of the illegal drug traf- more Filipino workers who are travel- these syndicates. That would be the
fic into China. Drug use has long been ling overseas, especially those highly best way to break the chain.
6•
March 8-21, 2011
By The Yomiuri Shimbun
Affecting Nuke Power Worldwide
The Fukushima nuclear crisis is not Japan’s problem alone;
it has now become more imperative to ensure nuclear safety
v Tokyo
T
he crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power
plant is, of course, not
just a problem for Japan
alone.
The future of the peaceful use of
nuclear energy around the world
rests with how effectively Japan can
cope with the situation.
Because of a nearly unimaginable
natural disaster—a devastating
earthquake and ensuing colossal
tsunami—the Fukushima plant’s reactors, which were credited as among
the world’s best in terms of safety, are
now in a wretched condition.
oriented party, made major headway
against a backdrop of a surge in antinuclear public opinion.
At the time of the 1979 Three Mile
Island nuclear crisis and also after the
1986 Chernobyl disaster, misgivings
about the safety of nuclear power
plants became widespread in the
United States and European countries, forcing them to put construction plans for new nuclear power
∫∫ Bright image tarnished
March 8-21, 2011
∫∫ Nuke power still necessary
NO TO NUKES: A member of a civic group
holds a placard in Tokyo denouncing the use of
nuclear power during a rally in front of the
headquarters of Tokyo Electric Power Co, the
operator of the crisis-hit nuclear power plant in
Fukushima prefecture.
plants on hold.
From the standpoint of protecting
energy security and fighting global
warming, however, nuclear power
plants, as long as they are managed
safely, are certain to remain an important source of electric power.
About 30 countries now have
nuclear power plants in operation, and about a dozen more have
them under construction or on the
drawing board.
Many countries, including such
emerging economies as China and
India, would find it extremely difficult to meet fast-growing demand
for energy without making use of
nuclear power plants.
Under the circumstances, it is imperative for the international community to firmly ensure the safety of
nuclear power generation.
Should the release of radioactive
material from the Fukushima No. 1
nuclear power plant continue, the
problem could develop into a profoundly grave international issue.
Japan must bring the nuclear crisis
under control as quickly as possible
by sharing relevant information with
other members of the international
community and asking for cooperation from nuclear experts from
around the world.
Making utmost efforts in this regard is the sole way for Japan to
maintain international confidence in
the viability of nuclear power.
•7
PHOTO by Toru YAM ANAK A /AF P
Up until the current crisis, nuclear
power was undergoing a positive
reevaluation globally as a clean energy source emitting no greenhouse
gases, and construction work on new
nuclear plants was under way in
many parts of the world.
The trouble at the Fukushima nuclear
power plant has thrown cold water
on what was being called a “nuclear
energy renaissance”.
In the aftermath of the disaster, the
European Union decided to put all
nuclear plants within its jurisdiction
under review to check their earthquake resistance and other safety arrangements.
In Germany, where 17 nuclear
plants are in operation, seven that
were built in 1980 or earlier have suspended operations for three months.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government previously had decided to extend the lifetime of the existing nuclear reactors, in a reversal of
the previous administration’s policy.
But now the possibility has arisen
that Germany may once again reverse
its nuclear energy policy.
In a regional election in the western German state of Saarland last
month, the Greens, an ecologically
In the United States, which has
more nuclear power plants than any
other nation, some members of
parliament have called for a freeze
on the construction of new nuclear
power plants.
US President Barack Obama, however, has remained committed to his
policy of encouraging nuclear power
generation, saying Washington needs
to “take lessons learned from what’s
happening in Japan”.
France, which has the second
largest number of nuclear power
facilities, has vowed to go ahead
with its construction plans for
new facilities. Its sale of reactors
to other countries also is continuing as scheduled. South Korea
also has kept its posture of encouraging nuclear power generation unchanged.
COVER STORY DESTINATION ASIA
By The Star
AFP PH OTO
Travellers’
Top Picks
Phu Quoc Island
Destinations in Asia have evolved from backpackers’ haven to luxury
playground. Travellers HAVE LONG BEEN ENTICED to this diverse region
where old civilisation and modernity blend. AND THERE ARE STILL
EMERGING TRAVEL HOTSPOTS THAT PROVIDE FRESH PERSPECTIVES
B
❖ Kuala Lumpur
ased on real customer
feedback and travel
trends, the Fresh Destinations list by hotel booking
site Agoda.com names
Asia’s emerging travel hotspots.
These places aren’t yet mainstays but
provide a fresh perspective on some
of Asia’s most travelled regions.
Agoda.com president Robert
Rosenstein commented: “Agoda has
been making online hotel reservations in Asia for many years, and
many of our customers are classic
trailblazers. We watch where they are
going to get ideas for fresh destinations, and this year’s list shows that
you don’t have to sacrifice style or services when trailblazing.”
8•
This year’s list covers a range of
landscapes, moods and cultures.
Some destinations are bustling cities,
while others are remote islands, but
all have distinct personalities and
unique cultural offerings.
The destinations and properties below stood out for the praise they received from Agoda.com customers.
◆ Phu Quoc Island, Viet Nam
Phu Quoc is on the Gulf of Thailand, off the south coast of Cambodia,
west of Viet Nam.
It is Viet Nam’s largest island
with mountainous terrain covered
in thick tropical jungle. In July
2010, Phu Quoc National Park became a part of the Unesco World
Biosphere Reserve for its plant spe-
cies and marine ecosystems.
Phu Quoc has been likened to
Phuket, pre-development. It offers
idyllic tropical beaches with solid
tourist infrastructure, while maintaining a rough, edge. The main town
of Duong Dong has a sleepy fishing
village ambience. Seafood is a highlight of Phu Quoc, and the island is
renowned for its fish sauce made
from anchovies.
Agoda.com saw an increase in
travellers to Phu Quoc of nearly 97
per cent from 2009 to 2010, and with
plans for an international airport underway, Phu Quoc won’t be much of a
secret for much longer. Phu Quoc
was popular with northern Europeans, North Americans and Australians. Domestic tourism, while less
March 8-21, 2011
Takayama
prolific, is growing.
The best time to visit is between
December and May, the dry season,
with April and May being the hottest
months (up to 35 °C). The easiest way
to get there is to fly from Ho Chi
Minh City to Phu Quoc Airport, a
journey that takes one hour and costs
around US$60 on Vietnam Airlines.
Demand for rooms in Phu Quoc
outweighs supply during the high
season, so book early. One reviewer
remarked on the “commando mosquitoes” and another recommended
visiting during the hot months.
A UK traveller remarked: “Touring the island gave us a great thrill
and sense of adventure. Some roads
do not yet have tarmac and really
give a sense of how life used to be,
both simple and fulfilling. You must
visit this gem before commercialism
takes over.”
◆ Takayama, Japan
Takayama is west of Tokyo, in the
mountains of Gifu prefecture. Commonly referred to as Hida-Takayama,
this is a historic, high-altitude city
with crisp mountain air and bright,
clear days.
Hida-Takayama hosts a quaint,
meticulously preserved Japanese
township—Hida Folk Village. Loved
March 8-21, 2011
Surakarta
by nostalgic tourists, its narrow medieval streets, old-fashioned stores,
sake houses and high-quality ramen
are drawing an ever-increasing
number of travellers, particularly
from Australia.
Castle ruins, ancient houses and
temples pepper the city, while hot
spring (onsen) villages and ski resorts
beckon a short train trip away.
Aside from Asian tourists, Australians, Spanish, Swedish, Italian
and French travellers are discovering Takayama.
The best times to visit are during
the spring festival (Sanno Festival,
April 14-15) and the autumn festival
(Hachiman Festival, October 9-10).
Cherry blossom trees (sakura) bloom
during the second half of April. Temperatures range from -5°C in winter
to 30°C in the summer (August).
To get there from Tokyo, you can
take a bullet train to Nagoya, then
catch the special Wide View Express
train to Hida-Takayama. The trip
takes four to five hours and the Wide
View trains offer panoramic views.
One traveller noted, “It’s important
to spend time walking around the
small streets, exploring the restaurants and bars that cater for the
locals. There are plenty of small
izakaya (Japanese pubs) to be found,
which is the place to go to get away
from the crowds and to experience
the real Takayama.”
◆ Surakarta (Solo), Indonesia
Surakarta is located in central Java,
60km from Yogyakarta. More commonly known as Solo, this metropolis
is home to 800,000 people.
Solo is culturally rich, with myriad
opportunities for visitors to delve into
Javanese history and tradition. Batik
is so entrenched in Solo culture that
it has its own event (Solo Batik Carnival), while just outside the city, the
Unesco-listed Hindu site Prambanan
allows tourists to explore 9th-century
temple ruins.
This protected archaeological park
also sets the scene for cultural performances and Hindu ceremonies.
Solo is by far most popular with
savvy domestic travellers but is
also perfect for international tourists looking for an authentic Indonesian experience.
April to October is the driest time
of year in Indonesia, with December
to March being the wettest. Temperatures range from 25°C to 33°C, and
days are typically hot and sunny.
Even during monsoon season, there
are long stretches of sunshine. One of
the cheapest ways to get there is to fly
•9
COVER STORY DESTINATION ASIA
Baguio
Nuwara Eliya
Jeju Island
to Solo airport on Air Asia, which operates out of Kuala Lumpur.
Many traveller tips on Agoda.com
for Solo are to do with shopping:
“Make sure you bargain well for your
goods bought in local markets” and
“Visiting Kampoeng Batik Laweyan
is a must when you visit this city” are
just two pieces of travel advice.
◆ Baguio, Philippines
Baguio is 730km north of Manila.
It’s a cool mountain city of pine
forests, universities, mines and
winding roads.
Baguio offers escape from the heat
and humidity of the lowlands. The
city hosts historic landmarks, stately
colonial architecture and great shopping with malls and markets offering
locally made handicrafts. The surrounding pine forests offer quaint
tourist villages, plus the opportunity
to trek, bike and camp.
Domestic travellers are the most
familiar with Baguio, but US and Canadian tourists are also coming in
droves. The best time to visit is between November and April, which
marks the dry season. Visitors should
avoid going during Holy Week (the
week preceding Easter Sunday),
when the city’s population swells
with domestic travellers and hotel
rates rise.
10 •
The most popular way to travel is
by bus. It’s a six-hour journey.
A UK traveller noted: “SM Mall is a
good-sized mall with plenty to do
there, like shopping or eating out. It
has all the well-known takeaway
places and a wide variety of stalls.”
from Colombo, with the best seat being in the observation carriage (seats
should be booked in advance).
Tea factory tours in Nuwara Eliya
are a must, while a solo traveller from
the Netherlands suggested, “Go for a
hike up the hills!”
◆ Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka
◆ Jeju, South Korea
Nuwara Eliya is in central Sri Lanka, at an altitude of around 1,900m.
It’s a former colonial hill town in the
middle of Sri Lanka’s tea country,
40km from Kandy and 180km by
road from the capital, Colombo.
The cool highland climate is the
Nuwara Eliya’s chief attraction. The
town retains its colonial charm and
offers tours of tea plantations, plus
hiking around Pidurutalagala, Sri
Lanka’s highest peak.
Travellers wanting serenity,
breathtaking scenery and wildlife
snapshots can take an eco-trek
through Horton Plains National Park
or experience the dizzying altitude of
World’s End.
People who visit are mostly British,
Sri Lankan and Indian tourists, with
Australian and US travellers increasing in numbers.
April offers the most events, ranging from sports carnivals to summer
fairs, to go-kart races.
The best way to get there is by train
Jeju island is in the Korea Strait,
south of Korea and west of Japan.
Jeju is a volcanic island with a subtropical climate, evergreen forests,
lava tubes, waterfalls, the country’s
only crater lake and Korea’s highest
peak, Halla Mountain.
Its unique geography and warm
weather make it an appealing spot for
travellers seeking a getaway with the
option of cultural exploration and adventure. Aside from its sandy beaches, Jeju hosts a variety of festivals,
museums and the Unesco-listed lava
tubes and limestone caves that are a
fascinating diversion.
South Koreans love Jeju, but the
biggest jump in international tourists
last year came from mainland China.
Americans, Japanese and Singaporeans are also frequent visitors.
Jeju has mild weather and is suitable for travel year-round. Spring
marks the high season and is also
when the cherry trees blossom (February). Autumn, around September,
March 8-21, 2011
Photo by A F P
photo by The Nation(Thailand )
Chanthaburi
Zhuhai
is also a temperate time.
The best way to get there is to fly to
Jeju International Airport or catch
an overnight ferry from mainland
Korea. Flights from Narita and
Fukuoka in Japan are also frequent.
An American couple said, “If
you’re on a trip as a couple, a visit to
Love Land is definitely unmissable”,
while one UK couple pointed out
that “Waterfalls, the beach and several other attractions are all within
walking distance.”
◆ Chanthaburi, Thailand
Chanthaburi is on the Gulf Of
Thailand, bordering Cambodia and
wedged between Rayong and Trat
provinces, 650km south of Bangkok.
It is a topographically diverse and
mineral-rich province with fruit orchards, waterfalls, limestone hills
and caves, dense rainforest and long
stretches of beach. Complementing
its natural attractions are gem markets and dealers, temples, chedi and
many other places of historical and
religious interest.
Chanthaburi’s primary attraction
are its beaches. Chao Lao Beach is
the province’s most popular. There
are also eco-trails through the rainforest, glass-bottom boat cruises to
coral reefs, plus colonial relics left
over from the French occupation in
March 8-21, 2011
the 19th century, including the
country’s largest and oldest gothic
cathedral.
Thai travellers dominate the tourist market, with a small but growing
number of German, Swedish, Australian and Americans also discovering its charms.
When is the best time to go? For
beaches, it’s best to visit Chanthaburi
during the cooler dry season (November to January), but for waterfalls,
the wet season is best (May to October). February to April is the hottest
time of year.
Chanthaburi is easily accessed by
road. From Bangkok, it’s a four-hour
drive on the highway.
Travellers complimented Chanthaburi on being a great place for
family travel due to its affordability
and quiet beaches.
As one Thai reviewer noted, “The
location is great for travellers to use
as a base for hopping to other areas in
eastern Thailand, e.g. Trad, Koh
Chang and Koh Kud.”
◆ Zhuhai, China
Zhuhai is in the Pearl River Delta,
on Macau’s southern border. It’s a
clean and picturesque coastal town
with an attractive waterfront promenade, beaches, islands and an exciting after-hours scene.
Zhuhai is a modern city with a
laid-back, beach-side feel and
balmy subtropical temperatures.
Attractions include golf, hot
springs, temples, shopping and
beach activities, while the surrounding islands provide excellent
diving opportunities.
Zhuhai is regarded by the Chinese
as a romantic destination and
boasts a great evening ambience
with night markets, food stalls and
scenic coastal views.
Seafood here is fresh and
abundant.
Apart from domestic tourists,
Zhuhai also attracts visitors from
Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia
and Japan. It’s also becoming popular with people from the United
States, UK, Canada and Australia.
January and February are the
coolest months (around 20°C),
while May to October bring the
likelihood of typhoons.
Zhuhai is easily accessible. Enter
via ferry from Macau or Hong Kong,
or fly via its domestic airport.
Haggling at the markets is a must.
A Malaysian traveller advised,
“Great bargains galore—learn the
art of negotiation,” while another
traveller cautions, “For electronics
and watches, bargain to less than
half, or you will regret it!”
• 11
COVER STORY DESTINATION ASIA
By Huang Huifen
The Straits Times
photo by AFP
TRAIN LUXURY: An
Indian train assistant
arranges a table setting in
the restaurant of the
Maharajas’ Express, the first
pan-India super luxury train.
The New Luxe Playground
A
❖ Singapore
sia, with its booming economy
and burgeoning middle class,
has become a new luxury travel
destination.
The phenomenon of Asians
travelling in their own backyard is fuelled by
the proliferation of low-cost carriers in the
region and lower costs, which translate to
more luxe dollars for travellers.
James McBride, president of YTL Hotels, the
hospitality arm of Malaysian conglomerate
YTL Corporation, says: “There is a huge demand from Asians, particularly Chinese and
Indians, to explore the region. Hence, more
luxurious properties have sprung up in Asia.”
The number of Singapore travellers who
visited YTL resorts in the region, which include beach resorts Tanjong Jara Resort and
Pangkor Laut Resort, the historic The Majestic Malacca, tranquil Cameron Highlands
Resort and Japan’s new scenic ski resort The
Green Leaf Niseko Village, has doubled, from
12 •
2009 to last year. YTL declines to give figures.
As a testament to the local demand, YTL
opened a travel centre last November in Wisma Atria to service the local market. About
70 per cent of the clientele are locals, the rest
being expatriates residing in Singapore.
Another luxury hotel brand, the Small Luxury Hotels of the World, made up of more
than 520 hotels in more than 70 countries, is
also seeing a growing appetite for luxury
travel among Singaporeans.
Last year, it saw a 44 per cent increase in
revenue from bookings made through its
channels compared to 2009 for its properties
worldwide from the Singapore market.
Places such as Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan
and India were among the top destinations.
A survey conducted last year by luxury
travel exhibition organiser International
Luxury Travel Market Asia and regional
trade publication TTG Asia showed that 60
per cent of the 382 luxury travel operators
March 8-21, 2011
PHOTO COURTE SY O F TOURIS M AUTHO RIT Y O F THA ILA ND
SHOPPING IN STYLE: Tourists shop
in upmarket Gaysorn Mall in Bangkok.
and suppliers polled experienced an
increase in luxury bookings in the
first quarter last year compared to the
same period in 2009.
About 88 per cent expected the
Asia Pacific luxury travel market to
have a 5 to 20 per cent growth within
the next 12 months.
Last June, Brian Yim, a magazine
editor, and his wife went on a six-day
wellness programme at The Banjaran
Hotsprings Retreat in Ipoh, a onehour-plus flight away from Singapore. The retreat opened last year.
During the trip, he recharged in the
hot springs, detoxed at the thermal
steam cave and enjoyed healthy
meals prepared with ingredients
from local organic markets and from
the retreat’s own vegetable and fruit
garden. He paid about US$3,145 a
person, excluding airfare.
Yim is no stranger to luxury travel.
Last December, his family of four
went on a personalised vacation in
Finland, where they learnt cooking in
a forest and rode on sleighs pulled by
huskies and reindeer.
March 8-21, 2011
But nothing beats the convenience
of having luxury at his doorstep.
“Instead of travelling so far to Europe, it is good to have luxury choices
of the same quality nearby. But just
don’t ask for snow,” says Yim.
◆ TRAVEL/CRUISE
What: Maharajas’ Express
Highlights: Travel India on Ma-
harajas’ Express, a 23-coach train
which has a capacity of 84 guests.
True to its name, which means
great king in Sanskrit, the interior of
the train is decked out in royal fashion—expect elegant tapestry, plush
bedding and cushions and stately
wooden interiors. Besides visits to the
iconic Taj Mahal, guests will also
dine at Laxmi Vilas Palace, the residence of the Royal Family, as well as
watch an elephant polo match.
Price: The Princely India Tour, an
eight-day tour from Mumbai to Delhi,
starts from US$7,160 a person, and
includes accommodation, meals and
tours. Check in at The Taj Mahal Palace & Tower before departure.
What: Orion II expedition cruises
Highlights: The Orion II, the
second ship in the Orion fleet, will
be sailing to Asian destinations in
June. The first Orion ship conducts
expeditions to Antarctica and the
Oceania region.
Orion II will be making three stops
this year in Singapore for its expedition to Thailand, Borneo and Bali.
Unlike the mass-market cruises, the
Orion II can accommodate only 100
guests in 50 ocean-view suites measuring 215 to 285 sq ft each. The ship
is furnished with rich fabrics, polish
brass, rare antiquities and fine art.
New expeditions include destinations such as the Russian Far East, a
remote region of volcanoes and abandoned Cold War military bases guided by geologists and volcanologists,
and inland sea of Japan.
Price: From A$8,150 (US$8,462)
a person for a 10-night Russian Far
East expedition, or 10-night Borneo
voyage from Singapore. Includes accommodation, meals, lectures, shore
excursions, port charges and gratui• 13
COVER STORY DESTINATION ASIA
ties. Visit www.orionexpeditions.
com for more information.
◆ BESPOKE EXPERIENCE
What: Urbane Nomads Great Wall
Of China dive, part of an 11-day tour
Highlights: For the diving enthusiast. The Panjiakou section of the
Great Wall was submerged when the
government flooded and dammed
the area to provide a reservoir of
drinking water for the nearby cities of
Tianjin and Tangshan. Now, visitors
can dive 35m down the greenish water to view the section of the wall built
during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644)
to see treasures such as Ming-era
stone carvings and a guard tower.
On land, they will visit Chonghua
Gong, a palace in the Forbidden City
usually closed to the public. Guided by
conservationists, they will find out how
Emperor Qianlong, fourth ruler of the
Qing dynasty (1644-1912), used the
palace to entertain friends and ministers over poems and tea banquets.
Price: US$2,500 a person, includes accommodation, selected
meals, dives and tours. Requires a
minimum of eight to travel. To book:
Call Urbane Nomads on 6728-8614
◆ WELLNESS RETREATS
What: Two-day Wellness Prog ramme a t T he Ban ja r a n Ho t14 •
beachfront sanctuary will also include a four-hour Bing Lang Gu Cultural Tour where guests will meet the
indigenous Li and Miao minority
groups. Guests will travel in a private
limousine.
P rice : F r o m 1 2 , 9 0 0 y u a n
(US$1,965) a person, includes accommodation, spa treatments,
meals, yoga and taiji sessions, tour
and TCM consultation. Excludes 15
per cent taxes.
◆ SAFARI
What: Three-night stay at Orange
County Luxury Resorts, Kabini, India
Highlights: The resort, on the
PH OTO COU RTESY OF TOU RI SM AU TH ORI T Y OF TH AI LAND
What: YTL seven-night package at
the private estates of Pangkor Laut
Resort, Malaysia
Highlights: Nestled in a secluded
cove on the 121ha Pangkor Laut island, the eight private estates are the
most luxurious accommodation in
the five-star Pangkor Laut Resort,
which also has 142 villas. The private
estates come with an infinity-edge
pool, pavilions and personal butler.
Besides full-day spa treatments,
guests can also spend a day out at sea
fishing or go on a private yacht cruise
at no extra cost. Nature-lovers can
venture into the two-million-year-old
rainforest on the island with a resident naturalist.
Price: US$35,000 an estate for up
to six guests. Includes food and beverage, private bar and use of all facilities at the resort
springs Retreat, Ipoh
Highlights: Soak in hot springs
and meditate in a natural limestone
cave in Ipoh in west Malaysia. The
new five-star Banjaran retreat located
in a 6.7ha valley in Tambun has,
among other things, geothermal hot
spring dipping pools, a thermal steam
cave, a crystal cave and Garra Rufa
fish pool for feet rejuvenation therapy.
The 25 villas are furnished with
feather-topped mattresses and cotton
linens, and fitted with a private outdoor rain shower and jacuzzis pumped
with geothermal spring water.
Price: From US$385 a person, includes accommodation, breakfast,
ON THE LAP OF LUXURY:
Most resorts in Asia offer full-day
spa treatments amidst serene and
luxurious environment.
massage and admission into the Lost
World of Tambun theme park.
What: Three-night Retreat For
The Senses programme at Banyan
Tree Sanya on Hainan Island
Highlights: Recharge in Hainan
Island, dubbed Asia’s Hawaii for its
year-long tropical weather. Guests
will get a consultation with a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) master, do yoga and tai-chi sessions, enjoy spa treatments and eat healthy
meals such as barley risotto with
grilled seabass fillet.
A three-night stay in the 30ha
fringe of Karnataka’s Nagarhole and
Bandipur National Parks, has 37 tribal-inspired cottages. The jacuzzi huts
have private outdoor jacuzzis. The
pool huts have a shared plunge pool
overlooking River Kabini. Visitors can
go on a safari to Nagarhole National
Park to spot elephants or book a boat
safari tour to see marsh crocodiles.
Price: 14,933 rupees (US$330) a
night. Includes accommodation,
meals, nature activities with a choice
of vehicle or boat safari, one spa session and elephant ride. Offer valid till
March 31 next year. Visit www.slh.
com for more information.
March 8-21, 2011
“A new regional model of climate-compatible
architecture.”
Ashok B. Lall, Architect, Professor at the GGSIU in New Dehli and Head
of the Holcim Awards jury 2008 for Asia Pacific, on the prize-winning
Energy-efficient office complex, Hyderabad, India.
Develop new perspectives for our
future: 3 rd International Holcim
Awards competition for projects
in sustainable construction.
Prize money totals USD 2 million.
www.holcimawards.org
In partnership with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
(ETH Zurich), Switzerland; the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Cambridge, USA; Universidad Iberoamericana,
Mexico City; and the Ecole Supérieure d’Architecture de Casablanca,
Morocco; Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, India. The
universities lead the independent juries in five regions of the world.
The Holcim Awards competition is an initiative of the Holcim
Foundation for Sustainable Construction. Based in Switzerland,
the foundation is supported by Holcim Ltd and its Group companies
and affiliates in more than 70 countries. Holcim is one of the
world’s leading suppliers of cement and aggregates as well
as further activities such as ready-mix concrete and asphalt
including services.
COVER STORY DESTINATION ASIA
By Phoowadon Duangmee
The Nation (Thailand)
Snuggling
Up To
Mother
Nature
NATURE’S BEST: A couple takes a
romantic cruise along the Salak Khok
in Trat province.
C
PH OTO S BY TH E NATIO N (TH AI LAND )
❖ Bangkok
ities are drowning, islands
are vanishing, wildlife is
disappearing. The culprit,
the experts tell us, is global warming but you don’t
have to be a tree hugger to realise that
travellers are part of the problem too.
Phatharaporn Aphichit, a smalltime blogger and big-time traveller,
recently released the Green Guidebook: Green Life, Green Communities, which points the way to eco-conscious destinations. From a small
Muslim fishing village on the Andaman Sea to an organic farm in Thailand’s north, here are the some of the
greenest places to lay your head.
◆ Tacomepai Organic Farm
Pai, Mae Hong Son
As crowds of tourists persist in
turning Pai into the Ubud of Thailand’s north, this once peaceful valley
is now packed with chic and stylish
resorts selling pricey drinks. Sitting
quietly amid the rapid change is San16 •
dot Sukkaew, a Pai native, who is trying to turn the clock back. He quit his
engineering job and has adopted the
Permaculture approach to agriculture on his organic farm.
Bamboo cottages, mud houses, a
kitchen garden and rice paddies are
part of this farmhouse. Here, you’ll
live without large supermarkets, as at
Tacomepai they grow everything they
eat, and eat everything they grow. A
few things are off-grid: the chemical
dishwasher is replaced by ashes and
the eating utensils are made from
bamboo. You’ll learn how to weave
basketry as well as to make a thatched
house from bamboo. To thank the
fertile earth, the farm often celebrates
the rice harvesting with tribal and
folk music.
Tacomepai Organic Farm has become known among young and environmentally conscious Western
backpackers. With basic bed and
mosquito net, hot shower and
restroom, a bamboo cottage goes for
100 baht (US$3) per night. Info:
+6686 112 3504, www.Tacomepai.
com.
◆ Kiriwong Valley
Nakhon Si Thammarat
The folks in Kiriwong love Mother Earth, and she loves them back.
Tucked away in a remote Nakhon
Si Thammarat valley, people here
live at the mercy of nature rather
than being slaves to modern life.
Durian, mangosteen and rambutan
trees blend in with the surrounding
evergreen forest.
Much of the food here is homegrown, and half the electricity is
generated from the community’s
own hydro-electric power plant. The
valley runs community-based tourism, with small eco-lodges for hikers
exploring the lush peak of Khaoluang Mountain. You can also stroll
around the villages, or learn to make
naturally dyed textile. Kiriwong is
good to visit in any season though
fruit lovers are advised to travel
there in July and August, when
March 8-21, 2011
VILLAGE CRAFT: Locally
produced crafts are displayed in
Baan Wang Nammok.
durian, mangosteen and other
tropical fruits are abundant.
A small eco-lodge costs around 100
baht ($3) per night. Info: +6675 533
113, +6686 788 8718, +6689 589
6998, www.kiriwonggroup.com.
◆ Koh Por
Lanta, Krabi
Koh Por, a small island off the Krabi coastline, may only be five minutes
by boat from Koh Lanta Yai, but the
two islands are an ocean apart. While
Koh Lanta Yai is busy and vibrant
with heaps of young backpackers,
reggae pubs and world-famous DJs,
Koh Por retains its low-profile with
fishermen and small Muslim communities. Billed as ‘The Last Pearl of
Andaman Sea’, the communities ban
bikini-clad culture from the island.
There is no pub, no restaurant and
not a single stylish guesthouse—but
the villagers still welcome the visitors
with open arms. You can stay at a villager’s house, eat their food and ride
in a fisherman’s boat for your catch of
March 8-21, 2011
the day, as Koh Por runs its own community-based programme. Info: Call
Pracheep Mudnui at +6687 126
0082.
◆ Baan Wang Nammok
Sri Chiang Mai, Nong Khai
The United Nations declared 2011
as the International Year of the Forest
to promote a greater sense of community forest and sustainable living.
Here, at Baan Wang Nammok in
Nong Khai’s Sri Chiang Mai district,
the villagers can tell you how. The
pioneering community-based Walking Mount of Demon Forest is organised by local people. Trips are only for
small numbers of visitors who hike
through 1,400 acres of community
forest. On the nature trail, the local
guides will teach you how the forest
becomes a “supermarket”, as different kinds of plants contribute food,
medicine and other essentials to sustainable living.
At the end of the day, the visitor
can sample forest produce, for exam-
ple, wild mushroom soup, bamboo
shoot curry, and wash it down with
fruit wine. The rainy season (May to
August) is the best time to visit Baan
Wang Nammok, when the forest bear
much of its fruit. Info: +6642 423
783, +6686 232 5300.
◆ Salak Khok
Koh Chang, Trat
The simplest way to escape the
tourist trail and share the rustic life of
a fisherman on Koh Chang, Trat
province, is to opt for a homestay on
the island’s eastern side. Salak Khok
community runs one of the country’s
best-organised programmes, placing
visitors in homes on a rotational basis
to spread the benefits around the villages in the small bay. Activities include mangrove and firefly tours,
snorkelling and romantic cruising on
‘Reu Mard’, a restored sampan, along
the canal before returning to the host
family in the evening for freshly
caught seafood and home-cooked
curries. Info: +6687 748 9497.
• 17
TRAVEL BITES
PH OTO BY JOFELLE P. TESORI /ASI A NEWS NET WO R K
By Jofelle P. Tesorio
Asia News Network
COUPLING
Travelling with a partner isn’t always easy but it
can test how strong your relationship is. some
tips for couples travelling especially to Asia
Y
❖ Bangkok
ou have decided that it is
time to go on
travelling with
a partner after
years of backpacking solo.
And you don’t mind being
with someone this time because travelling as a couple
could be double the fun.
However, if you decide to
travel with another person,
whether with a friend or a
partner, expect that it’s not
going to be as smooth as
you think.
Many seasoned travellers
say if you want to know
18 •
your partner more, you
have to leave your comfort
zone and travel as a couple. Travelling can change
people. They shed off their
skin and show their colours. It’s the ultimate test if
your relationship is made
of rock. I’ve heard a lot of
stories of couples breaking
up or friendships getting
awry after their travel because they found out they
can’t even agree on simple
things. Travelling has made
them realised that they
cannot be together, at least
on an island.
It’s always been a hard
decision for couple to travel
together especially when
one or both are used to a
solo flight. It is even harder
when one or both of the
couple have not travelled
outside their home. I’ve
heard of horror stories
about honeymooners instantly wanting to get a divorce because their ‘coupling’ (couple travelling)
didn’t go as planned. They
realised getting married was
a mistake because they had
so much differences—from
food choices to idea of
fun—and thought they
should have taken the honMarch 8-21, 2011
eymoon first before the
marriage to get to know
each other better. Seriously,
this is not fun. Take the
story of a young American
couple who went to the
lovely islands of Thailand
for their honeymoon. The
woman was a control freak
and the man wanted an
easy-going island life. At
the end, the man decided to
stay behind for an extended
holiday in Koh Pangan (for
the monthly full moon party) while the wife went
back to the US by herself.
But there are also good
stories coming out from
‘coupling’. Many couples
have attested that their relationship became stronger
because of the unusual
bond they had while travelling. They discovered new
things about each other and
complimented each other’s
shortcomings. A British
couple who were too bored
in their London flat decided to go to Bali, Indonesia
to recharge and get a much
needed vacation. Together
they discovered they both
enjoyed biking around the
winding roads of Ubud and
amidst rice paddies. They
enrolled together in meditation classes and found renewed love in Bali.
A successful ‘coupling’
depends on the couple. But
these tips could sweeten
the deal:
Whether going solo or as
a couple, planning is crucial. You need to agree on a
destination that appeals to
both. Thailand and Indonesia appeal to couples because of diverse interests
these destinations offer.
Your budget should also
be taken into consideration.
When you’re married, it’s
March 8-21, 2011
Compromise
In any relationship, compromise is the best solution
to any problem. You have
to remember that it isn’t
solo travelling anymore.
While you really want to
ride the back of an elephant
in Thailand while your
partner has a fear
of the mammal,
you just have to
compromise. You
could agree to let
the other ride the
elephant while you
stay behind your
hotel enjoying
yo ur s e l f i n t h e
pool. But the best
way to avoid fighting is to plan the
things you both
want to do and the
places you want to
visit.
Who’s in charge
Always remember that it’s ‘coupling’. While one is
a natural leader
who takes all the
d e c i s i o n s wh a t
kind transportation
to use, where to go and
where to sleep, the other
should not just blindly follow. If only one makes the
decision, the other partner
gets annoyed and feels underappreciated. As a rule of
thumb, men are generally
better in reading maps so
better leave this task to the
man. But you can take
turns in deciding what to
do next and allow the partner to choose. One good tip
I got from a couple is dividing the tasks and focus on
them. For this American
couple, communicating,
finding ATM machines and
doing most of the driving
are left with the husband
while keeping track of the
itinerary (hotel information, places to see, restaurants) and navigation are
the wife’s responsibilities.
Luggage issues
Don’t fret over small stuff.
An argument over who gets
more luggage space is one of
these. Better have separate
luggages which contain only
the most essential. The key
is always pack light so you
have more space for souvenirs. If you are going to
Southeast Asia during the
dry months and summer,
you practically don’t need
much. Clothes are also
cheap to buy so it’s better to
get some of the clothes you
need in your destination.
Patience
T h e r e a r e a n n o y i ng
things that your partner
will do during the trip that
you don’t see back home.
You have to exert extra patience in dealing with one’s
quirkiness unless you want
to end up fighting.
Relaxed mind, positive
attitude
There will be unexpected
events that will happen
during your travel such as
flight cancellations due to
volcanic eruption or flooding in your paradise island. Havi n g a p o s i t iv e
attitude coupled
with a sense of
humour will make
things bearable for
both of you. If
one of you gets
impatient for
waiting hours at
the airport, one
should remain
calm. If you can
make fun out of
the dire situation,
t h e b e t t e r. I t
means you can
weather all storms
in your relationship. Travelling
should be a wonderful and enriching experience.
travelbites.asia@gmail.com
• 19
PH OTO BY J E R EM Y V IL LAS IS/contributor
Planning
probably easier to discuss
the budget but for dating
couples, it can pose a problem. Both should agree on
money allocation on how
you are going to split costs.
Going to Asia might be
more economical than, say,
Latin America. It pays to
have a good research about
your destination, the
weather and places to see.
It’s also worthwhile to
check out language barriers.
Language is not much of a
problem in most of Asia.
Even if English is not widely spoken in many countries, it is easy to find
someone who speaks the
language.
POLITICS
By Bruce Gale
The Straits Times
Escape From
North Korea
North Korean defectors will
continue to face problems as
long as the international
community refuses to stand
up to the reclusive state
W
❖ Seoul
Photo by A F P
hile the world focused on
the horror of the earthquake in Japan and the
developing civil war in
Libya earlier this month,
another chapter in a decades-long human calamity began to unfold along the
border between North and South Korea.
And while not on quite the same scale
as the devastation in Japan or the afflictions facing Libyans, recent developments have underlined a darker point
about the tragedy the international
community would rather forget.
“Father, I miss you. Please come back
now!” wails a teenage girl in a video
posted on the North’s official website
earlier this month.
According to the website, the girl is
the daughter of Hong Yong Hak, a
44-year-old man who is among the
four fishermen who chose to stay in
20 •
DEAR LEADER: This undated picture
released by North Korea’s official Korean
Central News Agency (KCNA) on January 7,
2010, shows North Korean leader Kim
Jong-Il (C) visiting the construction sites
of Ryesonggang Youth Power Station No. 2
in North Hwanghae province. Hwanghae
province, located on the North-South
border area, is
experiencing severe food shortage.
South Korea after their fishing boat
reportedly drifted across the border in
thick fog on February 5.
But while Pyongyang had feigned
concern about the fate of the fishermen,
accusing Seoul of detaining the four
against their will, it had initially refused
to take back 27 others who had crossed
the border in the same vessel, maintaining that all 31 must be returned together. However, it softened its stance
on March 15 and agreed on the partial
return of its citizens. The remaining 27
were finally repatriated to North Korea
on March 27.
Arguments in South Korea against
sending back defectors have always
hinged on the fact that they would face
harsh treatment on their return.
In February 2008, when 22 North
Koreans sailed across the Northern
Limit Line, the de facto maritime border in the Yellow Sea, the South Korean
March 8-21, 2011
military reacted by sending them
back. Some reports said that several
were subsequently executed by the
North Koreans.
Now that South Korea has shown
that it will give North Koreans, who
travel across to the South, a choice to
stay or return, the humanitarian situation could become much worse as
large numbers of malnourished
North Koreans attempt to make their
escape by sea.
Hwanghae province, located on
the border area from which the
fishermen came, is experiencing
severe food shortage. The province
suffered from a serious typhoon last
year, and much of the surviving rice
crop has reportedly been confiscated by the military.
The North Korean authorities can
be expected to do everything they can
to stop these defections. And those
March 8-21, 2011
who do make it across the border may
find that they are not very welcome.
Many South Koreans believe that
the authorities should not have given
any of the fishermen the choice to stay
in the first place. “They said they arrived by mistake,” says Kim Sang Hun,
who runs the North Korea Human
Rights Database Centre. “Now they’ve
eaten good food and seen the sights.”
Many South Koreans complain
that the government policy of giving priority to North Korean defectors when applying for permanent
rental apartments places poor and
underprivileged South Koreans at
a disadvantage. Each North Korean defector household also receives a housing subsidy of 13
million won (US$11,560) after
undergoing three months of mandatory resettlement training.
According to South Korea’s uni-
fication ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, only
about 20,000 North Korean
defectors have arrived in South
Korea since the end of the
1950-53 Korean War.
Unable to cross the heavily
fortified land border in the
south, most slip across Pyongyang’s northern frontier instead.
An estimated 300,000 North
Koreans now live in China, almost all of them without legal
status. Some subsequently enter
South Korea via Mongolia, Viet
Nam and Thailand.
Many thousands, most of
them women, took this route
during the famine of the 1990s,
only to find that China regarded them as illegal economic migrants.
Human rights groups say that
forced marriage, threats of deportation and a life without access to
basic services have become the
norm for most female defectors
and their children.
One solution to the problem
would be to follow the precedent
set in the 1970s, when Indo-Chinese refugees were initially met
with hostility after they attempted to reach other Southeast Asian nations. The situation was resolved when the United
States, Australia, Canada and France
agreed to allow the refugees to resettle in their countries.
Sadly, South Korea, the US and
other major players are reluctant to
antagonise North Korea by coming to
such an arrangement, particularly
when relations remain tense.
A North Korean submarine allegedly torpedoed a South Korean corvette in March last year. And in November, North Korean artillery
shelled Yeonpyeong Island, the first
artillery strike on South Korean soil
since the 1953 ceasefire.
China is also concerned about the
potentially destabilising impact any
move to provide assistance to North
Korean defectors would have on its
unpredictable ally.
The wailing, it seems, is set to go on
for a long time yet.
• 21
CHANGING ASIA
By Rupak D. Sharma
Asia News Network
Let’s Talk
About Sex
Should men care
about reproductive
health?
F
v Bangkok
ew days ago, I received a
rather unusual invitation. It
was for an event on men
and their reproductive and
sexual health.
“Indeed, mention reproductive
and sexual health and it is the
women who usually come to mind,
because many health programmes
and advocacy campaigns are often
focused on them,” read the invitation. “But what about men?”
It was a valid question as men play
an equally important role in sexual
behaviour and have great impact on
women’s reproductive health. Yet in
many countries in Asia, where most
of the societies are dominated by
males, men seem to take many
things for granted just because of
their gender. On top of that, discussions on sex are usually a hush-hush
22 •
thing, which they consider should
not be talked about openly.
“But we say ‘let’s talk about sex’,”
says Dr Anna Klinken Whelan,
International Planned Parenthood
Federation (IPPF) regional director
for the East and Southeast Asia and
Oceania. “This is the only way we
can save men and women from risks
of sexually transmitted infections
and other diseases.”
But the issue is not only about
protecting people from STDs. It is
also about providing basic information to people to clear up confusions
in society.
“For instance, many people are
not aware of simple scientific fact
like who is responsible for generating a male or a female fetus,” says
Kiran Bhatia, regional adviser for
United Nations Population Fund.
“That’s why women, who are not
able to bear sons, face so much of
discrimination, abuse, violence and
shame, even though they have
nothing to do with it.”
Bhatia says she has also come
across many men in many Asian
countries who have no idea on
simple reproductive health processes like how babies are born and why
do women die of bleeding. And
there are also men who are not
aware that one and half inches of
penis is enough to have satisfactory
sex, adds Dr Whelan.
This is because the social norms
prevalent in our society do not
provide access to these basic
scientific information, says Bhatia.
To clear up these confusions and
generate awareness about men’s
sexual and reproductive health,
IPPF recently worked with government agencies in China, Thailand
March 8-21, 2011
photo by Warisara Wuthikul/The Nation (Thailand)
DO THEY CARE?
Men these days are
better informed and
breaking controversial
social norms.
and Vanuatu.
In China, IPPF worked in partnership with China Family Planning
Association, where male taxi drivers
were roped in to conduct projects
aimed at improving their sexual and
reproductive health awareness. In
Thailand, IPPF supported Planned
Parenthood Association of Thailand
to educate Burmese migrants and
ethnic groups of the northern Thai
province of Chiang Mai on reproductive health and sexuality. And in
Vanuatu, the Vanuatu Family
Health Association was approached
to make reproductive health
services and education accessible to
out-of-school boys and men living
in Port Villa and Luganville.
When the projects were first
introduced in many countries, most
of the men kept quiet without
engaging in discussion or laughed
March 8-21, 2011
when topics on sex and sexuality
were discussed, field reports say.
This was because of shyness. But
gradually they opened up and
started taking the discussions and
lectures seriously.
Sutthida Malikaew, a freelance
journalist who observed Burmese
migrants living in Thailand’s
northern Chiang Mai province, says
the attitudes of some men changed
after taking part in the project.
“For instance, after attending the
classes they knew why women
refuse to have sex during the time
when they have periods,” she says.
“After understanding the problem,
they also started showing interest in
helping women when they had
menstruation cycles.”
In other words, the classes not
only educated them about sexual
and reproductive health but made
them better human beings, husbands and fathers.
This is a very long process and
should not be limited to some
projects in certain communities,
says Bhatia. “On a broader sense we
are talking about enabling men and
women to reflect on the way in
which they think and behave that
may be detrimental to their own
health and those of their families
and communities. We are talking
about creating space for men,
women, boys and girls where they
can reflect on their lives and raise
questions they can’t ask, and
understand the negative effects of
some of their behaviour and
practices,” she adds.
In other words, it’s about reaching out and breaking the controversial social norms that are preventing
us to create a better world.
• 23
ENVIRONMENT
By A’an Suryana
The Jakarta Post
The Disappearing
Tuna
People’s insatiable appetite
for tuna has triggered
a relentless hunt for the tasty
fish, which is now threatening
its very existence. This
plundering of the ocean’s
riches is also threatening the
sustainability of its biodiversity, as modern fishing
methods endanger species
such as turtles and other
marine biota
O
Photo by G IF F J O HN SO N/AF P PHOTO
❖ Bitung, North Sulawesi
ur love affair with tuna
started aeons of years
ago. The Greeks salted
and pickled it. The Romans succumbed to the
flavour of the Mediterranean bluefin tuna, turning it into a staple food.
Thousands of years later, tuna is
still as popular as ever. It has become part of many people’s diet,
across the world. Even Americans
have added it to their lunch box,
while the Japanese have developed
countless sophisticated ways of enjoying tuna.
The rare hon maguro or bluefin
tuna is one of Japan’s most coveted
delicacies, with a Pacific bluefin
fetching as much as US$100,000
per fish. In Indonesia, tuna, especially the yellowfin or bigeye tuna,
is often served in Padang restaurants across the country.
Some say tuna is popular because it is easier to eat and less
24 •
smelly than other fish.
“I like tuna because it has a thick
texture and not many bones,” said
Budi Yanthi, a woman in her 30s.
Rizki Amaliah (Kiki), a professional
in the oil and gas industry, said tuna
was easier on the nose.
“Tuna meat does not smell putrid,” she said.
Yanthi and Kiki are just two of
many millions of Indonesians who
enjoy eating tuna on a regular basis.
So far, they have been able to eat
tuna to their heart’s content, as the
oceans’ stocks have kept replenishing. Waters in the eastern part of
Indonesia remain rich in yellowfin,
skipjack and bigeye tuna. But if the
country doesn’t tackle over-fishing
seriously, these species may suffer
the same fate as the bluefin tuna,
which has now joined the growing
list of endangered species.
Over-fishing has been a growing
issue of concern for stakeholders in
the tuna industry and of course,
conservationists.
The high demand for tuna, especially from Japan, has drawn fishing fleets from across the globe to
waters rich in tuna, including the
Gulf of Tomini, Sulawesi and the
Maluku seas.
According to a senior official at
the maritime affairs and fisheries
ministry, the Arafura Sea has become a hotspot for fishing fleets
from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Fishermen from the Philippines
prefer to hunt tuna in Sulawesi,
Maluku, Halmahera, and the northern part of Papuan seas.
“They have modern fleets. We often fail to catch them as our fleets
are aging,” said Johnny Banjarnahor,
the head of the ministry’s eastern
Indonesia fishing monitoring fleet
based in Bitung. The fleet has only
10 boats and ships, too small a number to cover the vast expanses of
eastern Indonesian waters.
A significant number of local
March 8-21, 2011
fleets also contributes to over-fishing, therefore the government
should also be held responsible for
failing to regulate the number of local ships or boats operating in the
country’s waters.
Local and central authorities are responsible for granting fishing licenses.
The central government issues permits for ships with a fishing capacity
of 30 gross tons, while the local government looks after licensing for ships
that capture below 30 gross tons.
“The problem has emerged because local governments don’t limit
the number of licenses they issue,
on the grounds that issuing permits
helps fatten local government coffers,” said Purwito Martosubroto,
chairman of Indonesia’s tuna commission. The body has been tasked
with helping the government draft
better policies to protect tuna in the
country’s waters.
Tuna catch figures have stalled in
recent years, according to data reMarch 8-21, 2011
corded in Bitung seaport.
Between 2007 and 2010,
the amount of fish caught
and traded through Bitung seaport, mostly tuna,
was as follows: 135,272
tons in 2007; 142,377 tons
in 2008; 145,053 tons in
2009 and 146,940 tons in
2010. Some blame these
stagnating numbers on
over-fishing.
This is not an isolated
case either. In Cilacap,
central Java, the amount
of fish caught has been
decreasing since 2008.
While fishermen there
were able to catch 5,600
tons in 2008 and 3,900
tons of fish in 2009, the
figure dropped to 2,700
tons in 2010.
Local fishermen confirmed that catching tuna
was getting harder nowadays. In the 1980s, local
fishermen in Bitung could
catch yellowfin tuna 3km
away from the coast, but
now they have to sail as
far as 64km off Bitung
coast to catch the fish.
“We can’t compete with foreign
vessels and their modern equipment so we have to find tuna in high
seas,” said Bitung fisherman, Buang
Jusuf Tamara, who has been catching tuna for 20 years.
Maritime affairs and fisheries
ministry data showed that the country had apprehended 186 foreign
vessels for fishing illegally in Indonesia in 2008, compared to 184 the
previous year.
The failure to manage overfishing has not only taken its toll
on local tuna catch, but has also
damaged biodiversity in the country’s eastern waters.
Indonesia’s eastern waters are part of
the renowned Coral Triangle region.
The Coral Triangle—a geographical
term referring to a triangular area in
the tropical marine waters of Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea,
Philippines, Solomon Islands and
Timor Leste—contains at least 500
species of reef-building corals in
each eco-region. It covers an area of
5.4 million sq km of ocean across six
countries. More than 3,000 species
of fish live in the Coral Triangle, including the largest fish — the whale
shark, and the coelacanth. It also
provides habitat to six out of the
world’s seven marine turtle species.
The Coral Triangle comprises the
highest coral diversity in the world:
76 per cent (605) of the world’s coral species (798).
Trawling, a method of fishing that
involves pulling a f ishing net
through the water behind one or
more boats, threatens the region’s
rich biodiversity. Bottom trawling,
which involves dragging huge,
heavy nets along the sea floor,
crushes nearly everything caught in
the process. Trawling is unselective
and indiscriminate, catching tons of
unwanted fish and other sea creatures, also called bycatch. Global
environmental group WWF estimates that at least 40 per cent, or 38
million tons, of annual global marine catch is bycatch.
To help address over-fishing
problems stemming from this
relentless hunt for tuna, the Indonesian government needs to improve
its fishing monitoring activities.
“The government has to improve
its method of collecting fishing
data. The government now has a
logbook in which all fishermen
have to declare the volume of their
catch, so that based on the data in
the logbook, the government can
draft the right policy to control its
tuna population. But the implementation has been far from perfect,” said Purwito.
In order to avoid paying tax, many
fishermen under report the amount
of fish caught, which means fish
catch data isn’t reliable.
“The government needs to work
out solution to tackle this problem,”
said Purwito.
The other issue the government
needs to address is the growing
number of foreign vessels fishing
illegally in Indonesian waters.
“The government needs to upgrade our fleets so we can chase and
arrest foreign vessels fishing illegally
(in our waters),” said Banjarnahor.
• 25
AD V E R T O R IAL
AD V E R T O R IAL
HEALTH
By Ika Krismantari
The Jakarta Post
From Teens To Vegan
Indonesia expects more teens to aspire for a more
healthy lifestyle in the future
U
❖ Jakarta
PH OTO S BY TH E NATIO N (T HA ILA ND)
ncle Ronald McDonald
and Colonel Sanders will
soon be bidding farewell
to a growing number of
young customers who
are increasingly shunning meat and
chicken, opting for grain- and beanbased food instead.
Society’s growing awareness of
what constitutes a healthy lifestyle is making more people selective about the kind of food they
put on their plate.
Th e ve ge t a r i a n co m m u n i ty,
which seeks healthy food alternatives to meat, includes a small
30 •
fraction of the younger generation. These youngsters chose not
to eat meat and chicken, which
goes against the mainstream for
people in their age bracket.
Some even refuse to consume
milk- and egg-based foods like
Shanti Paramita, 16.
Believing that eggs and milks are
also a part of the animal, Shanti chose
to become vegan four years ago.
“Consuming those (eggs) means
we have to kill animals as well,” said
the eleventh grader.
But what exactly makes these
youngsters opt for such extreme
diets? The Jakarta Post surveyed
March 8-21, 2011
a number of teen vegetarians, who
mostly cited religious principles,
which forbid them from eating
animal-based foods since they
were born, as the reason for not
eating meat.
Sixteen-year-old vegetarian Billy
Oktananda, who was born Buddhist,
says his parents had a strong influence on his diet.
“I was a vegetarian since I was in
my mother’s womb. That triggered
something inside me, which made
me not want to eat meat,” said the
first son in the family.
Shanti also became a vegetarian
for the same reasons as Billy. But as
she was growing up, she also realised there were many benefits to being vegetarian.
“I don’t fall sick easily. I am comfortable with my weight too,” says
the 50-kilogram girl who measures
more than 1.60 metres.
Billy also says he rarely suffers
from any serious diseases.
“Meat is the source of many diseases, so when you don’t eat it, you
just don’t get sick that easily,” he said.
Health experts have found a number
of other benefits from not eating meat.
Vegan expert Susianto for instance, believes plant-based diets
can increase children’s immunity
and also make them smarter.
Susianto, Shanti’s father,
cited his daughter as a proof
supporting his claims.
At the age of 16, Shanti has
an IQ of 131, way above the average teenager.
B i l ly h a s a n I Q o f 1 2 5,
which is deemed one of the
March 8-21, 2011
highest in his class.
Given these all benef its, Susianto, also the chief operation
officer of Indonesia’s Vegetarian
Society (IVS), believes more and
more young people will become
vegetarians, starting a new trend
in Indonesia.
According to data from IVS, the
number of young vegetarians in the
country has grown significantly
over the past few years.
It is believed there are more than
600 vegetarian teenagers across the
country nowadays, which may not
seem like much, but it is still 10
times more than 10 years ago.
The existence of vegetarian restaurants in malls and other popular
spots has also contributed to this
new trend.
Twenty-year-old Jeremia John
said his decision to become a vegetarian had a lot to do with passing a
veggie restaurant every day on his
way to school.
“I discovered this vegetarian restaurant near my high school. The
food is delicious and inexpensive.
That’s when I started becoming
vegetarian,” said the young man,
now a third-year student at a
private university in Jakarta.
Nutritionist Saptawati Bardosono
also predicts there will be more
vegetarian teens in the near future,
as people increasingly aspire to lead
a healthy lifestyle.
Some parents, however, are concerned with this trend, as they
fear their children will not eat
enough nutritious food when they
turn vegetarian.
Young teenage boys need a daily
calorie intake between 1,600 and
2,400, and young girls between
1,600 and 2,000.
Responding to this, Saptawati
said parents needn’t worry so
much, as their children could easily get this calorie intake from
non-meat foods.
“Parents can also add vitamins
and supplements to their teenagers
vegetarian diets,” she said.
Saptawati also advises parents to
ensure their vegetarian teenagers
still get the necessary vitamins to
ensure a healthy growth, while not
eating meat.
Supporting Saptawati’s remarks,
Susianto alluded to a 2003 report
from the American Dietetic Association, which highlights that a
well planned vegetarian and
vegan diet can be adopted by people from all
age brackets, including pregnant women, breastfeeding
mothers, children
and teenagers.
“It has been
proven that vegetarian diets can
make your children healthier
and smarter,” he
added.
And not just
that, says 41-year
old mother Susi
Herman.
“Your children tend to have
purer heart, that’s what teachers
say about my (vegetarian) children.
They don’t get angry easily and
tend to be more sensitive,” said the
mother of Billy and 12-year old
Yolanda Oktavalery.
• 31
LIFESTYLE
SOUTH KOREA
By Kim Ji-hyun
The Korea Herald
Thinking Out Of The Coffee
From book
cafÉs to
costume
or beauty
ones, COFFEE
SHOPS need
to stand
out in A
crowded
market
32 •
I
❖ Seoul
t takes more than just money and a
good place on the map to make
money out of a café considering the
number of coffee shops everywhere.
For this reason, café owners in
South Korea are thinking out of the box
to attract more customes.
“You need to cultivate an area of unique
expertise and target a strong niche,” advises Kim Tae-jung in his guidebook for
café start-ups.
Kim, who heads an academy for training potential café owners, emphasises that
without a meticulous plan, it would be
quite easy to strike out.
When competition was less fierce,
a shop on a busy intersection and
maybe a good, strong cappuccino could
have been the ingredients for a lucrative café business.
These days, it is impossible even to
count how many cafés are in the country,
especially in Seoul, where cafés and coffee
shops dot every street.
Foreign brands like Starbucks and The
Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf are dominant,
but local brand cafés have also hit the
scene, making it increasingly difficult to
break into the market.
Caffe Bene is one popular homegrown brand, along with Hollys Cof-
fee, both of which have been energetically expanding their territory.
The evident saturation has prompted
newer entrepreneurs to wrack their brains
for new ideas.
“It’s gotten to a point where good
food and drinks aren’t enough to bring
in the crowds,” says Choi Hwa-nee,
owner of a coffee shop in Bundang who
is considering giving her store a facelift.
“All around me, there are cafés focused
on some sort of specialty, and I feel like
I am falling behind.”
Latest cafés have unheard of features;
one café is dedicated to offering studying space to salaried workers, while
another allows only English to be spoken. Others lure the health-conscious
consumer to ditch the lattes for some
comforting traditional tea promising to
be cleaner on the palate.
Another one of the new rages are socalled “kid cafés” where moms can come
to chat with friends while their children
are safely playing in a nearby area. On the
weekends, whole families come to relax
with their kids.
“Families really like this place because
it’s a chance for them to relax and let their
kids loose in a safe place,” says Yoo Jaeseung, a spokesman for Little Orchard, a
popular kid’s café in Seocho-dong.
March 8-21, 2011
By Park Min-young
The Korea Herald
The sales on the weekends
rise about 20 per cent from sales
during the week, he adds.
The do-it-yourself craze has
also evidently hit the café scene,
as there are now those where
customers can walk in to create
his or her own cake.
At Dan Hana, at about
18,000 won (US$16), customers can create unique cakes
of their own.
“Business is not yet as fast as
we hoped, but I think making
cakes is not an idea that will
grow old, because there is always demand for celebrations
and cakes,” says Lee Mi-jin,
manager of the Konkuk University branch of Dan Hana.
There are even beauty cafés,
where customers can do their
hair while being served food
and beverages. Others promise
customers a good time with
their pets, which are rarely allowed indoors.
But as Kim and other experts note, truly good
niches are those that do not
go out of vogue.
Book-reading cafés and costume-wearing cafés were hugely
popular a couple of years ago
but they started to decline.
Cafés for board games also
were “in” circa 2005, but many
have died out.
“It’s important to think about
the type of customers you target and try to create a café that
can really interact with them to
survive for the long term,” advises Kim.
March 8-21, 2011
A Crocus With Your Cappuccino
❖ Seoul
I
nstead of the expected scent
of coffee and waff les, the
fresh fragrances of spring
f lowers greet visitors at the
door of Blute, a f lower café in
Hannam-dong, central Seoul.
On a Saturday afternoon, surrounded by bundles of flowers and
plants, a barista made hot Americanos while a nearby florist skillfully
created hand-tied bouquets. In case
you are still wondering, a ‘flower
café’ is a combination of a flower
shop and a café.
A couple got up from their table
and went to the cashier where the
man bought a small bouquet of
flowers. His girlfriend was
busy snapping pictures of
the café with her cell phone.
“This is my first time
here, and I found new
interest in flowers. You
know how hard it is to find
a place in the city where I
can be surrounded by
nature. I am happy to have
found such a great place
where I can enjoy both
coffee and flowers,” the girl
in her 20s says.
Cafés, which are in fierce competition in the overcrowded café
market, have been coming up with
new themes such as ‘book café’ or
‘pet café’ to attract customers.
Flower cafés are just one of the
latest trends.
Many flower cafés have sprung
up during the past few years in
popular café streets such as those in
Myeong-dong and Hannam-dong in
central Seoul, and Sinsa-dong in
southern Seoul.
Such cafés are also a breakthrough
for small flower shops which are
having a hard time with fewer
people buying flowers.
Flower cafés also offer beverages
and various desserts just like any
other café. Some run florist classes,
hold small exhibitions and rent out
their premises for parties as well.
“Desserts and flowers are both
handicrafts which do not last a long
time and are difficult to sell. They
cannot be mass produced and are
usually custom-ordered. Having
them together in one shop could
bring a synergy effect in the long
term,” says Gang Min-ju, co-CEO of
TORCH, a flower café located in
Itaewon-dong, central Seoul.
Gang, who is dessert specialist,
opened the cafe with her sister, a
florist, last year. They grew up
in the US where they were used
to seeing cakes decorated with
flowers, says Gang.
“About 30 per cent of our
customers visit the café just to pick
up some flowers. But most of the
visitors know how to make the best
use out of our café—they come here
for both flowers and cookies, or
cakes, which make great gifts
together,” she says.
Mixing two different kinds of
shops could be a shortcut to success
but also a risky choice without
proper preparation, warned Song
Jin-hwa, florist and owner of Blute.
“It would be better to focus on
one thing than to manage a flower
café in an awkward manner. It is
not as easy as it seems you are
going to need a bigger space,
because regular flower shops are not
large enough to accommodate many
tables and all the supply you need
to open a regular café,” says Song.
“Although flowers are our main
theme, we still work hard to make
our food and beverages tasty. Some
underestimate the importance of
taste because they focus too much
on flowers, but there are so many
themed cafés nowadays that you
could immediately fall behind if you
neglect even the slightest detail.
Opening a flower café requires both
the effort of opening a caféand a
flower shop.”
• 33
LIFE
By Wang Yan
China Daily
China’s School-drifters
EXAM BLUES: A graduate from
Minzu University of China prepares
for the national post-graduate
examination in a crammed rented
apartment in this file photo taken
in April 2010.
months later. “The 2,400-yuan
($360) a month salary was high
among my classmates, but the job
was too tiring. I had only one day off
every week and the working hours
were too irregular,” he said.
“Entering society made me feel
hollow.”
Not ready to take a job for now—
he has some savings and has borrowed some money from friends—
Ye and two other school-drifters
decided to try their luck in this
year’s post-graduate exam. Ye’s goal
is Jinan University in Guangzhou,
where he failed to get in last year. “I
want to be a teacher in the future, so
I have to pursue higher degrees.”
Hu said most of the school-drift-
Chinese college graduates are setting
up camps near campuses
G
Photo by Y i Yafei for C hina Daily
❖ Beijing
et a college degree and
you’ll go far? Ye Dong
made it to a 10-sq-m
room, at 60 yuan (US$9)
a month, next door to his
old college in Shaoguan, China’s
southern Guangdong province.
Now 23, Ye earned his diploma
in June 2010. But he has barely left
the campus. He still eats in the
canteens and studies in the classrooms. Living close is convenient
and familiar, he said.
Around almost every college and
university in China are cheap apartments and bungalows for rent, where
lots of graduates like Ye live, according to Hu Jiewang, a sociology professor at Jiaying University in Guangdong province. They live and look
like enrolled students, but they aren’t.
Hu published his first research
paper on these graduates in 2003,
naming them “school-drifters”. It
became a popular search keyword
and triggered wide media coverage
and further academic research.
34 •
“The number is increasing
over the years,” Hu said. “A
simple reason is that each
year the number of graduates rises, while the employment rate remains basically
the same. A large portion of
the unemployed become COLLEGE DRIFTER: This file photo taken in 2010
school-drifters. Some previ- shows Jiao Wenjun, a college graduate from Shanxi
in China. He has rented a room outside
ously employed also come province
Tsinghua University in Beijing.
back after a short, unsatisfying, work experience.”
In 2005, researcher Shi Xu of Nan- ers aim to enter grad school. Some
jing University of Aeronautics and hope to find a better job; some want
Astronautics said in a published pa- to stay in big cities; and some are
per that the number of school-drifters simply fearful of the intensely comin China had reached 100,000. Hu petitive job market.
Living on school resources, Hu
said, “It’s hard to calculate an accurate total”, but he thinks the current said, “is a way of cutting living
costs. But they do have some renumber has far exceeded that.
source conflict with currently
◆ A hollow feelinG
enrolled students.”
Ye sees himself as a school-driftUniversities are enrolling more
er. He said the real world is different and more students, resulting in
from his ideal.
crowded campuses, full libraries and
He landed a job as a production self-study classrooms, and dining
assistant in a local jewelry company halls as jammed as farmers markets.
in March last year but quit two School-drifters add to that pressure.
March 8-21, 2011
Hu also said, from his student
management experience, that it’s
hard to trace school-drifters on
campus. Universities are managed
by departments, and it’s unclear
which departments should be responsible. “The fact is the schools
now are pretty much neglecting this
group,” he said.
Why don’t drifters return home?
“From ancient times the Chinese
have had the notion that ‘going out’
and ‘going to colleges’ were good.
Anybody coming back home without achievements is a loser,” Hu said.
“High expectation from parents
could be a burden on students, and
could prevent them from returning
home after graduation. Many would
not tell parents their real situation.”
In Ye’s case, his mother died in
2009 and his father is essentially estranged. His married sisters occasionally support
him, but they want him to
get a job.
“They thought a bachelor’s degree should be
enough to get a decent
job,” Ye said.
school—for further education, for better opportunities, or for the comfort—
increased. Add that to layoffs by
state-owned companies and the
usual flood of migrant workers, the
number of school-drifters reached a
new peak.
A state policy issued in March
2002 said unemployed graduates
could keep their hukou (household
registration) in the schools for two
more years. And many did, choosing to drift.
lieved to lead to higher pay.
◆ A different drift
Ji Xiang, 27, drifted from one
school to another for five years before achieving his goal of entering
grad school.
He started drifting in 2004, just
one year after being admitted to a
local university in his hometown of
Dong-ying, Shandong province. “I
quit because the university and the
major (engineering) were not good.”
Ji then headed to Shandong Uni◆ Unrealistic?
versity in Jinan and took English. In
Hu listed score-oriented education late 2005, he drifted up to Peking
as one cause of school-drifting. “It University to learn more about inis not doing well in connecting with ternational politics.
the real world. Moreover, career
Like many other school-drifters,
education is not yet treated with Ji settled in the cheapest place he
high importance. Many just think could find, a 190-yuan-a-month
it’s not a big deal compared to aca- ($29) bungalow near the campus.
For living expenses, he
depended on tuition refunds from the school he
had left, plus part-time
work as tutor.
Free classes, though,
were not easy to get, for
the curriculum schedules
are not open to the public.
◆ Fewer job options
Ji started by wandering
Based on Hu’s research,
the classroom building,
school-drifters appeared
sitting in every class he
as early as the 1980s. The
caught up with and noting
state still allocated jobs for
the dates and places.
college graduates then, but
“It was a busy and rich
it wasn’t enforceable: The
time. I listened to everygraduate or the employer OLD NEIGHBOURHOOD: This file photo shows students buying
thing and almost became
could decide not to sign food outside Tsinghua University’s western gate in Beijing.
an expert in the field,” Ji
the contract. If that hapsaid, showing a smile with
pened, most of the unemsatisfaction. But he also
ployed graduates returned to their demic education.”
realised that knowledge doesn’t imStudents, however, should also take mediately bring butter and bread.
colleges and waited for the next
round of allocation. But there weren’t some responsibility, Hu said.
He said many of his ideal employMany hope their first jobs will ers wouldn’t even look at his resume.
many who did this, and they stayed
bring everything, and some unrealison campus for just a few days.
He then decided to get into grad
An upsurge occurred in 1997, tically compare themselves with their school—but the country sets a bachwhen the country launched the re- peers. Once unsatisfied, they look for elor’s degree as a prerequisite for
form of state-owned enterprises. ways out, and pursuing further stud- postgraduate exams. By the end of
Those enterprises had been the first ies becomes a popular option.
2007, he completed the task by takStatistics from the ministry of ed- ing higher-level exams for the selfchoice of many career-starters, but
they were hiring fewer graduates. ucation show that the number of ap- taught. And after a failed attempt in
Plus, the doorsills of foreign compa- plications for the postgraduate 2008, he finally became a grad stunies were still too high for new exam in 2011 reached 1.5 million, a 7 dent at China University of Petrolegraduates, and private Chinese per cent annual increase.
um in Beijing in September 2009,
Competition is fierce, though; only majoring in international politics.
companies were still of low status.
As a result, many graduates felt about one in three will make the cut.
“In most cases, you’ve got to have
lost, and the number who stayed in A higher degree is commonly be- a degree to fit into society.”
March 8-21, 2011
• 35
LIFE
By Yen Feng
The Straits Times
No Money,
No Honey
Some singles in Singapore actually do not
mind getting hitched. The only hitch? They
cannot find a mate
I
P hoto by AF P
❖ Singapore
f not for his meagre salary, Ko
Guan Chui is convinced he
would have married by now.
Two years ago, the 37-yearold Singaporean warehouse
assistant was set up on a blind
date with a woman from China,
but she ceased all contact after
learning he earned only S$1,200
(US$945) a month.
Recently, he went on a date with a
Malaysian woman arranged by his
parents at McDonald’s. “The same
thing happened,” he said. “After she
heard what my job was, she stopped
talking. She was more interested in
her fish burger than in me.”
The number of singles in Singapore has been on the rise for more
than three decades and it has become common to defer marriage
into the late 20s or even 30s.
But bachelors like Ko—lowincome, lowly educated and pushing 40—actually do not mind getting hitched. The only hitch? They
cannot find a mate.
Since the issue of educated men
marrying down, rather than their
educational equals, was first discussed openly in 1983 by then prime
minister Lee Kuan Yew, the situation has changed. About two-thirds
of graduate men now marry graduate women, compared with 37 per
cent in 1983.
But women continue to have little
desire to marry down. Many echo
what Helen Chiang, 33, a sales ex36 •
ecutive and diploma-holder who is
single, said: “If I make more money,
then why marry? I want to marry
someone to take care of me, not the
other way around.”
While the latest census found that
the proportion of single men grew
across all sectors of society, the rise
was more pronounced for those
aged 35 to 44 and who did not go to
university.
Last year, singlehood was most
prevalent among men with below
secondary school qualifications. In
the 40 to 44 age group, 24.1 per cent
of these men were single, compared
with 12.9 per cent who had degrees.
For men aged 35 to 39, the rise in the
proportion of singles was sharper
among the non-tertiary-educated,
compared with those with diplomas
or college degrees.
In this age group, among the men
with only secondary school education, the proportion of singles rose
nearly eight percentage points last
year, from 18.3 per cent to 26.1 per
cent, over a 10-year period.
The proportion of university
graduates who were single grew
o n ly 3. 5 p e rce n ta ge p o i n t s i n
comparison.
In other words, the less-educated male is finding it tough to
attract a partner.
It is a phenomenon that will continue, said demographers, pointing to
problems ahead concerning single,
elderly males without family support and care.
Yet, little is known of this group in
the national dialogue of getting Singaporeans to mate and make babies.
In interviews with 25 men who
fall into this category, almost all said
it is their financial situation that
makes them not a prime asset to the
Singapore woman.
The 25 are aged 35 to 44 and work
in mostly unskilled jobs, driving
trucks, packing boxes or checking
supplies at warehouses and factories.
Many do not take home more
than S$2,000 (US$1,585) a month.
A chunk of their salary goes to
supporting their elderly parents,
with whom they live.
Their courting arena is limited to
KTV lounges, hawker centres, foodcourts and fast-food restaurants, where
affordability trumps atmosphere. Or
the Internet—though this medium
tends to attract undesirable candidates, said the men. A few have
turned out to be adulterous housewives, or even ‘lady boys’.
“No, it is not difficult to find a
girlfriend,” said Lim Xi Yang, 40, a
technician. “Not if you have cash.”
March 8-21, 2011
LOOKING FOR LOVE: This
photograph shows a student
chatting with a girl he met at a
local bookstore, after learning tips
on how to approach and date
women in Singapore.
His last relationship was when he
was in his early 20s. The Institute of
Technical Education graduate earns
about S$1,300 (US$1,030) a month.
“If you don’t have money, how to
be a good husband, a good father?
“There is a lot of pressure on men
to pay the bills.”
Local women scorn them, they
said, because most are in betterpaying jobs than they are.
“They want LV, they want Gucci,
they can buy (these brands) themselves. They don’t need us,” said
Paul Wong, 37, a cook.
Others have turned to foreign
women, who they believe have
more modest needs, but the prospect of securing their residency
here can be daunting.
Latest official figures released
last year showed that eight out
of 10 marriages in 2009 between
a citizen and a foreigner involved a local man.
In all, about 7,000 Singaporeans
married foreign brides, most of
whom are Asians.
Matchmaking agencies have
March 8-21, 2011
sprung up to help local men source
for brides in places such as China
and Viet Nam.
A successful match can cost as
much as S$10,000 (US$7,925).
But that is only the start.
Members of parliament said they
usually encounter a handful of men
in each weekly meet-the-people
session who say they need help extending their brides’ stay here.
“Occasionally, I will have a case of
the man exhausting his life savings
on a marriage that unfortunately
fails,” said Grace Fu of Jurong GRC,
adding though that this has happened in some local marriages too.
The fear of having what little savings they have depleted by opportunistic wives makes Anthony Toh,
42, wary of the dating game.
The customer service operator
described the strategy employed by
some foreign women here as “seduce and slaughter”.
“Even if you have not much money, they still want you to pay for
everything,” he said.
Steven Low, 37, who is unem-
ployed, had this advice for bachelors: “Overseas girls have fewer expectations. But if you meet the girl
at a disco, better run.”
His girlfriend from China, whom
he met at a pub, dumped him after
he lost his job in 2007. They had
been dating for seven years.
For Dr Tan Ern Ser, the issue is
about sustainability.
“While romance is not about dollars and cents, most people do need
to consider the costs of settling
down, setting up home and bringing
up children before they take the
plunge,” said the assistant professor
of sociology at the National University of Singapore.
Ta n a n d M P s s u g g e s t e d
changing social attitudes to
h e l p m e n a n d wo m e n e s c a p e
the lonely hearts club.
“Persuade women to lower their
expectations, and encourage men to
upgrade themselves,” said Tan.
“There are some who would argue that love conquers all, including
stigma and poverty.”
Chan Soo Sen, MP for Joo Chiat,
agreed. “I don’t believe that it all
comes down to your paper qualifications—there is also yuan fen or
fate,” he said.
“If both sides are prepared to give
and take, there will be opportunities. Men, you have to be confident
to overcome your personal issues.”
The men may be more likely to
take relationship advice from Tan
Kiat Keang, 36, who has been dating
someone in Malaysia for two years.
Last year, the construction site
manager bought a small house in
Johor Baru for his girlfriend.
He stays with her on weekends;
she visits Singapore during the
week on her days off.
“Find a house you can afford. If
Singapore is too expensive, find (it)
somewhere else. Women want to
know you can give them a stable
home,” he said.
What about marriage and kids?
“Maybe someday, who knows,”
said Tan.
“For now, if it’s just companionship, I don’t mind it too.”
• 37
LIFE
By Theresa Tan
The Straits Times
Bride & Gloom
A new study, believed to be the first of its
kind, has highlighted the multiple stresses
foreign women married to low-income
Singaporean men face
M
PH OTO I LLUSTRATIO N: D E SM O ND W E E / THE STRAITS TI ME S
❖ Singapore
ay, 26, a salesgirl from
China, thought she had
found a cosy partner
for life while holidaying in Singapore, but
matrimony in Singapore turned out
to be anything but blissful.
Her 47-year-old Singaporean husband—
old enough to be her father—unleashes vulgarities and rains punches on her when he is in a foul mood,
according to a disturbing newly released study, believed to be the first
of its kind here.
May (not her real name) had accepted his marriage proposal, hoping
he would treat her well, even though
she hardly knew him. He turned out
to be a gambler who peddles illegal
VCDs for a living.
But May fears that if she leaves
him, she will never see their fouryear-old son again. Her husband
could cancel her long-term visit
pass and she would be sent home to
China, without her son.
So she tolerates the abuse for her
son’s sake.
She is one of a growing number of
foreign brides marrying low-income
Singaporean men, often with heartbreaking consequences.
Her plight is highlighted in the
new study by Beyond Social Services, which found that these foreign
brides are often poor, isolated from
the rest of the community and live
in fear of being deported back home
and separated from their children,
should their husbands decide to
cancel their long-term visit passes.
What aggravates their situation is
that these brides cannot work to
support their families, when their
38 •
husbands are unable to, unless they
can find a boss willing to apply for a
work permit for them.
According to the National Population Secretariat, in 2009, of all marriages involving at least one Singapore citizen, 41 per cent involved a
foreigner, up from 31 per cent in 1999.
Of these marriages that year, 78
per cent—about 6,900—were between local grooms and foreign
brides, most of whom were Asian.
The men marrying foreign women also tend to be older.
In 2008, the proportion of local
men aged 40 and above who wed
foreign women was 35 per cent, almost double the 18 per cent in 1998,
the National Population Secretariat
has reported.
Observers say one reason could
be the mushrooming of commercial
matchmaking agencies promoting
Vietnamese and Chinese brides,
which started organising whirlwind
matchmaking tours to Viet Nam
around 2000.
Another is that the price of procuring a foreign bride has fallen
sharply in recent years, making it a
more affordable option for more
men in Singapore.
Mark Lin, 49, the boss of Singapore Viet Nam Brides Matchmaker,
has matched at least 200 Vietnamese women with local husbands
here since he set up shop in 2002.
He used to charge a S$16,000
(US$12,680) fee, which included a
six-day tour to Viet Nam to find a
bride, but has since slashed his fee
by half to S$8,000 (US$6,340).
The reason: He started flying Vietnamese women to his office in
Singapore to make it easier for the
men to pick a wife.
Price-cutting and competition are
intense, he says. Besides the more
than 10 agencies offering matchmaking services with Vietnamese
brides, he says an untold number of
Vietnamese women have jumped
into the fray, arranging such unions
from their homes.
◆ Uncertain status
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) told The
Straits Times that marriage to a
Singaporean does not automatically qualify a foreigner for longterm stay, permanent residence or
citizenship.
An ICA spokesman said: “Among
other things, the ability of the sponsor to support his or her foreign
spouse financially, whether the
marriage is legally in order and
good conduct records of both applicant and sponsor are important
considerations.”
In the past five years, 14 per cent
of such applications by foreign
spouses were rejected, deputy
prime minister Wong Kan Seng revealed in parliament last year.
But the government has quietly
put some safety measures in place.
With the growing number of local
people marrying foreigners, in
2007, the ministry of community
development, youth and sports
(MCYS) started printing brochures
listing agencies these brides can
turn to for help, in four languages—English, Chinese, Bahasa Indonesia and Vietnamese.
Last year, the MCYS also roped in
three agencies to run marriage
preparation courses for couples
where one half is a foreigner.
◆ Cut off and afraid
This could prevent future heartache for foreign brides like Jane, a
heartbreaking case recorded by Beyond Social Services.
The 29-year-old from the Indonesian
island of Batam met her first Singaporean husband—14 years her senior—through a matchmaker. He
turned out to be an alcoholic and
drug addict who could not hold
March 8-21, 2011
UNCERTAIN
FUTURE: Foreign
brides on long-term
visit passes in
Singapore live in fear
of being deported
home any time and
separated from their
children if their
abusive husbands
apply to cancel their
passes.
down a job. When he was jailed for five
years for drug use, she divorced him,
taking their two children with her.
She then stayed with friends, as
her husband had sold their flat when
he could not keep up with payments. Jane is on a long-term visit
pass, which means she can neither
work nor rent a flat from the stateowned Housing Board (HDB) at
highly subsidised rates on her own.
She married another Singaporean,
hoping he would provide for her, but
he too was jailed for 14 years for
drug-related offences, but not before
fathering another child with her.
The frequent moves to find shelter affected her three children’s education as she could not always
send them to school. They also
lacked proper meals.
Down and out, she succumbed to
drugs to relieve her stress and was
caught by the police. She is now
awaiting sentencing and worries
what will happen to her children if
she is sent to jail.
According to the study, children
add another layer of stress and
complexity to these cases of
marital misery.
Many foreign brides live in dread
of being deported, and separated
from their children, in the event
that their husbands cancel their
long-term visit passes. Some also
worry incessantly about what would
happen to them and their children
if their husbands die, or get jailed
and no one sponsors their stay in
Singapore.
It does not help that many of
March 8-21, 2011
these women feel all alone in Singapore—socially and culturally.
◆ New social underbelly?
Other social service agencies interviewed also report a growing
number of foreign brides asking for
financial aid and legal assistance after being abused or abandoned by
their husbands.
Last year, 32 foreign wives called
women’s advocacy group, Association of Women for Action and
Research (Aware), for help, more
than treble the number—10—who
did so in 2009.
The Archdiocesan Commission
for the Pastoral Care of Migrants
and Itinerant People (ACMI), a
Catholic group that assists distressed foreigners, saw 11 new cases
of foreign brides approaching them
for help in the first two months of
this year alone. It saw 20 such cases
last year and 37 in 2009.
Social workers say many of these
problems start because of the short—
and in some cases, non-existent—
period the couples dated before
they wed. And the mismatch in
expectations—the husbands usually want obedient, submissive
wives, while foreign women expect
good providers—often lead to disastrous endings.
Many of the men who seek foreign
brides are blue-collar workers in
their 40s and 50s, with little earning
power. Many of their wives, who
married for a meal ticket out of poverty, realise too late that they have
ended up with deadbeat husbands
who are struggling just to feed themselves, much less their families.
But increasingly, those helping
foreign brides here are appalled by
the callous way some Singaporeans
treat their foreign wives.
ACMI’s chairman, Mark Goh, 44,
says many husbands exploit the fact
that the brides are all alone here
and totally dependent on them.
These men take their wives as “maidscum-sex partners-cum-caregivers for
their elderly parents”, ACMI’s Elizabeth Tan, 58, notes.
Some foreign women also arrive
here to immediate disillusionment
and humiliation. Upon arrival, they
find their ‘husbands’ are already
married to another woman, says
Madam Fatimah Eunos, senior social worker at Young Women Muslim Association, who has come
across some brides in this situation.
Above it all, the collateral damage
caused to the children born in these
rocky marriages is of the utmost
concern to those helping distressed
foreign wives here.
What can be done to ease some of
the suffering of these women and
their children?
In its study, Beyond suggests that
the government provide foreign
wives with children with some
much-needed assurance that they
can remain in Singapore to care for
their children, even if their husbands
cancel their long-term visit passes.
Aware, which is preparing a
report on the plight of foreign
brides, also has a host of ideas to
help these women.
They include strictly regulating
matchmaking agencies and making
it mandatory for Singaporeans marrying foreigners to attend premarital counselling with their
prospective spouses.
But for starters, Goh suggests that
the government set up an interagency taskforce to look into the
problems foreign brides face. He
said: “Foreign wives are a group left
out in the cold now.”
And if nothing gets done, he
and others fear their children
will form the new underbelly
of society here.
• 39
Arts
By Nasa Maria Entaban
The Star
In Pursuit Of
Perfection
The movie ‘Black Swan’ isn’t
just an inspiration for young
and talented gymnasts and
ballet dancers in Malaysia.
It is their way of life
L
photos by The Star
❖ Kuala Lumpur
izzy Ramayah stands
with her heels together
and toes pointing outward in the most basic
of ballet positions, as we
converse casually in the hall of
her dance studio.
This is not a natural standing
position for most people, but for
Lizzy it is a pose she has ingrained
into her graceful bearing since she
was very young.
Lizzy had her first ballet lesson
when she was 3. She is 20 now,
has completed a diploma in dance,
and still dances every day while
teaching part time. For years, she
has worked at perfecting her
technique, so much so that it has
become a part of who she is.
“Dance is in everything I do. Even
when ballerinas are just walking
around casually, they look like
they’re dancing,” says Lizzy, from
Malaysia’s Selangor. “It becomes a
part of us.”
Many young people take up a
performing art at some point in their
lives, but few actually pursue the
40 •
endeavour well into their teenage
years and adulthood.
Those who do lead a structured
life of schedules, routines and rules,
many of which they set themselves.
Perfection is the end goal.
However, the journey is not for
everyone.
People who have never taken up a
discipline like music or dance may
not fully understand the lifestyle
these young people lead, having only
a glimpse into their “world” through
television and movies.
Anyone who has seen Black Swan,
in which Natalie Portman plays a
ballerina who strives for perfection at
the expense of her sanity, may
wonder if this actually happens to
young people in real life.
In Perfect Body, a movie about an
Olympic gymnast, the protagonist
develops an eating disorder, succumbing to the pressures of attaining
the perfect physique.
Dancers who have watched
Portman’s potrayal of a ballerina can
relate to her challenges to a certain
extent, but emphasise that striking a
balance is important.
Emma Shu-Ern Tan has
been doing rythmic
gymnastics since she
was seven.
“The pressure can get to be too
much, you have to know when to
take a step back,” shared Lizzy. “At
the same time, you can’t stop
learning or practising, it is a constant
challenge to improve yourself but
also not lose yourself in the art.”
At Aurora Dance School in Subang
Jaya, Selangor, where Lizzy is
studying to get her teaching certificate, she does stretches in one studio
while children as young as five dance
on their toes to piano music in the
next studio.
“These days, you can start lessons
as young as two years of age,”
comments Lizzy as we watch the
little ones in their tutus and leotards.
This was the case for 14-year-old
Jeremie Wen-Jian Gan, who started
ballet pretty much as soon as he
could walk, encouraged by his
mother who runs Serena Ballet
School in Klang, Selangor.
“I was two-and-a-half years old
when I started. My life was all about
ballet as my mother taught classes, so
I came along and took it up,” said
Jeremie, whose nine-year-old brother
also does ballet.
March 8-21, 2011
When he jumps and splits, he
is as graceful as his female
counterparts, and just as hardworking. Sometimes, he practises
for two to three hours a day.
Being a male ballet dancer, he
gets a lot of questions from his
peers, but he says he has gotten
used to it over the years.
“Ballet is my life, and even though
it can be stressful, I don’t ever want
to stop,” said Jeremie.
Years of repeating the same moves,
making dance techniques a part of
their daily movements, and having a
fixed routine to stick to also make
Sue-Ann Lim
Boon Yen says
she feels like she
becomes a
different person
when she dances,
but she doesn’t
lose herself.
right, but also taking on a role and
telling a story.
“Ballet is a very disciplined form
of art. If you stop even for a few
weeks, it will take months to regain
your flexibility and agility,” said
Sue-Ann. “You need control, patience, discipline and structure.”
Twelve-year-old Emma Shu-Ern
Tan spends three hours every
Saturday and Sunday at rhymic
gymnastics training, and goes for
fitness training for two hours on
Tuesdays and Thursdays.
She has been a gymnast since she
was seven, and has recently started
Ballet is
Jeremie
Wen-Jian Gan’s
passion and he
hopes to travel
the world as a
dancer when he
finishes school.
for disciplined teens.
competing in
“I know if I have to
inter-school
finish my homework, I
tournaments.
have to finish my home“I enjoy it very
work,” says Jeremie’s
much. I wanted to
ballet classmate, Tan Jade
do gymnastics
Xi, 17. “Pushing myself to
because I watched
excel in dance from a
competitions on
young age has taught me
TV and wanted to
to push myself in school
learn how to do all
and exams as well.”
the moves and
Nineteen-year-old
become really
Sue-Ann Lim Boon Yen
flexible,” said
says that she feels like she
Emma, who also
becomes a different person
goes for swimming
when she dances, but that
classes and piano
Lizzy Ramayah has
been a ballerina
she doesn’t lose herself.
lessons.
since she was three
“If anything, I think
Pianist and cellist
years old and still
ballet has made me more
Jasmine Phang Li
practises every day
expressive, and definitely
Shun is currently
to perfect her art.
more disciplined,” says the
pursuing a diploma
pharmacology student,
in piano perforwho has been learning ballet since
mance while attending school and
she was seven years old.
studying for the SPM examination.
Sue-Ann loved Black Swan, saying it
She attends music classes
inspired her; and gave a deeper
several times a week at Internameaning to ballet, which to her is
tional Music House Academy in
more than just getting the technique
Kuching, Sarawak, where she
March 8-21, 2011
scores top grades and is a regular
fixture at concerts and events.
Although taking up music was
initially her parents’ idea, Jasmine has developed a strong
passion for the art.
“My parents suggested that I
either take up music or go for
tuition classes to occupy my free
time. So, I chose music and I am
glad I made the right choice,” said
Jasmine, who has been playing the
piano since she was nine. She
practises her piano and cello for at
least an hour a day, and up to three
hours when exams draw near.
“I will never stop playing the
piano because of my love and
passion for music.”
Apart from having to perfect
their technique, dancers also adhere
to a strict lifestyle to keep their
figures lean.
Having lived her teenage years
and early 20s as a competitive
gymnast, Sarina makes sure that
the girls who go into the field
know what they are getting into.
“These are sacrifices they have to
make, things you have to forgo to be
the best in gymnastics, and they
know that. Only very few girls are
passionate enough about being a
gymnast and can deal with the
pressure and sacrifices they have to
make,” she said.
Being light on your feet in ballet is
a must, and Lizzy says she doesn’t
eat anything after 8pm.
“I’m hungry all the time, so I
snack a lot throughout the day on
muesli bars, and I’m consistent with
my meal times,” says Lizzy, who also
goes to the gym regularly.
She stresses, however, that she
doesn’t know of any extreme dieting
cases among her friends in Malaysia,
unlike the ones she encountered in
Australia during ballet camps while
she was pursuing her diploma.
“The dancers there are under
immense pressure, and many were
bulimic and anorexic because they
were obsessed with being thin and
light,” Lizzy noted. “There isn’t
much of that here though, ballet isn’t
a huge thing in Malaysia, not yet.”
• 41
ENTERTAINMENT
INDIA
By Arpa Ghosh
The Statesman
Tired Of
Being
Macho
Akshay
Kumar
Male bonding and
friendship is not yet
making a comeback in
Bollywood movie plots
I
❖ Mumbai
ndian action star Sanjay Dutt’s
good-humoured drawl caught
my attention on FM. In an
inter view, Dutt was saying,
yes, Dutt’s bond with actor
Arshad Warshi was pretty awesome,
something that none of his screen
characters had ever shared with
another man. Dutt’s comment reminded me that male friendship—
such a strong and popular theme
in literature and film—has perhaps
had its day.
The feel-good factor of two muscular, able-bodied men clasped in a
bond of brotherhood, commitment
and trust, inseparable in good times
and bad, celebrating life and ready to
die for each other, and renewing
viewers’ confidence in humanity, was
an affirmative screen experience in
the ‘70s and early ‘80s.
Strangely, the superstar with the
longest career, Amitabh Bachchan,
built his career on movies about male
42 •
bonding. Frankly, where would Amitabh be without Pran (Zanjeer) Rajesh
Khanna (Anand, Namak Haram), Dhramendra (the inimitable Sholay and the
also ran Ram Balram), Shashi Kapoor
(Do Aur Do Paanch) and Amjad Khan
(Yarana)? Here, Bachchan’s co-stars Vinod Khanna, Shashi Kapoor, Randhir
Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor were his
brothers. But even then, audiences
will concede, the interaction between
screen characters spoke of comradeship rather than kinship.
Bachchan’s looks and personality facilitated the repetition of the theme of
male bonding in film after film. The
swarthy, rugged six-footer with the
exciting baritone was a delicious audio-visual foil for the fair-skinned,
aristocratic (in mainstream cinema,
aristocracy is all about fair-skin), softspoken, cultured demeanour of Rajesh
Khanna and the Kapoors (Rishi,
Shashi and Randhir).
In Zanjeer, Amitabh is a police officer who is befriended by a Pathan
March 8-21, 2011
MALE FRIENDSHIP: In the movie ‘Dostana’, the friendship
between John Abraham (left) and Abishek Bachchan (right) was
threatened when they fell in love with the same woman.
adventurer inhabiting the twilight
zone of law and lawlessness. In Anand,
he is the stiff-martinet doctor moved
by the joie de vivre of dying cancer
patient Rajesh Khanna. In Namak Haram he is a rich man’s spoilt son indulged by his bosom pal who ultimately dies for his whim.
In Sholay, Ram Balram and Do Aur Do
Paanch, Amitabh and friends are smalltime criminals replete with warm humanity inhabiting the fringe of civil
life. This holds good for Qurbani also.
In Dostana, Yarana and Bemisal, on the
other hand, the friends are educated
professionals whose careers clash with
friendship for a while, but in the long
run friendship wins.
Notably, the women in these movies are on the fringe of the bustle
zone. Their function, leaving aside the
pomp and glamour that has always
been the mainstay of feminine screen
presence, is that of caregiver and comforter. The “real work” is a man’s
work, whether it belongs to the grey
zone of crime or the sombre province
of professional jealousy or rapport:
entrepreneur versus union leader
(Namak Haram), lawyer versus police
inspector (Dostana), or doctor versus
patient (Anand). Women inhabit the
periphery of such worlds, as secretary
to boss, nurse to doctor, and muse to
knight in shining armour.
In the ‘80s, women were never
in the middle of action, given their
delicate constitutions (toned bodies
were not an option) and the stereotyped ideal of Indian womanhood as mother, sister, daughter,
wife and sweetheart. If anything,
March 8-21, 2011
MEN’S WORLD: Does male bonding
have a place in macho Bollywood?
they prepare themselves for familiar
roles ahead, taking time off to dance
round trees and romance the hero
in his free time, generally cooling
their heels till the action culminates
in death or reunion.
The Hindi movie of late ‘70s to ‘80s
specialised in wholesome family entertainment with dollops of violence.
The tickets were low-priced and unemployment rampant (a fact that had
metropolitan youth queue for tickets
and watch the films many times).
Community life was bound by the
unities of time, place and action as
global citizenship was not yet a reality. And television was monochrome
in its technology and appeal. The
35mm screen had a mesmeric appeal
impossible to resist.
The late ‘70s and early ‘80s were
the time when women were portrayed as passive, sensuous and
weak, in need of male protection
a n d g u a rd i a n s h ip . T h e wo m a n
evoked love but not comradeship
that could only be sought in another member of the same sex.
Contemporary gay studies have
queered the pitch by inserting the
question of sexual love between
Socrates and his disciples, Shakespeare and his fair friend, and even
Sherlock Holmes and his poker-faced
friend Watson! From what we hear,
Jay-Veeru (Sholay) is a composite gay
icon of certain gay groups, and
Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali received
congratulatory messages from gay
clubs after their perfectly innocuous
portrayal of good friends in Main
Khiladi Tu Anari.
This is a comparatively new development. The firm belief of the cusp
movies was platonic, that is, what a
man could share with another in the
way of macho companionship, male
jocularity and antifeminist criticism,
he could never share with a woman.
A number of recent slapstick comedies have endorsed the theme of male
friendship in which erring males are
out for each other, make love by proxy
and draw veils over others’ peccadilloes,
examples being the Golmaal series and
No Entry, among a rash of sex-coms.
Male friendship in these movies is a far
cry from the lofty ideals of the seventies-eighties cusp. It is in line with the
new F-word—a threat to be combated
by stout feminine intelligence and resourcefulness. Gone is the idealism and
self-sacrificing large-heartedness associated with male friendship.
What has emerged in recent times
is a farcical ganging up of weak-kneed
pleasure-loving males for the purpose
of indulgences related to sex and good
life. The combined battle against evil
and healthy companionship has given
way to an acquisitive, egotistic give
and take. Male friendship in recent
movies is an evil entente to be feared
rather than cherished.
Does this bode well for the woman?
Surprisingly, yes. The millennium
heroine is a force to reckon with in
these insipid comedies. The woman is
a queen-bee with power, beauty, status and influence and has to be humoured by her drone-like male partner. We have indeed come a long way
since the Bachchan starrers. But then,
times have changed too.
• 43
By Yasminka Lee
Asia News Network
2AM
After School
4Minute
Straight E
From The
K-pop
Factory
❖ Bangkok
To the unINITIATED
ear and eyes, K-pop
songs all sound
the same, and K-pop
groups all look
the same
44 •
veryone’s into Korean pop, except me it
seems.
Last month, I got a crash course on
K-pop at a Korean Wave concert with
practically almost all the big names
accounted for: CNBlue, Girls’ Generation, Wonder
Girls, FT Island, 2PM, 2AM, Beast, Miss A, Son
Dambi, After School, SG Wannabe, Brown Eyed
Girls, Secret, Sistar, 4Minute, MBLAQ , Norazo
and TVXQ (Yunho and Changmin).
Of course, to a non-K-pop fan like me, these
names didn’t mean anything but to the teenagers
who flocked to the Rajamangla stadium in
Bangkok, they were everything. Many of them
even paid 6,000 baht (US$198) just to see their
favourite stars up close. And only for an average
of three numbers each group.
The seated and standing zones that were closest to the stage were filled with teens waving
either light sticks or pictures of their pop idols.
I tried to identify them but failed miserably,
and the only time I empathised was when they
started the show with an introduction of the
dramas that Korean TV network MBC—one of
the sponsors—has produced.
All right, I may not be hopeless when it
comes to Korean pop culture after all. I know
some of the drama stars, but the thing is,
none of them were there that night except for
that dude who played a support role in the
recent modern royal love story drama My
Princess. And even then, I don’t know his
name and wasn’t sure if he was from 2AM or
2PM (a check showed he’s from B2ST).
And that’s one beef I have with all these K-pop
groups. What exactly is the difference between
2AM and 2PM, aside from 12 hours in between
them? And why make spelling their names that
March 8-21, 2011
Girls’ Generation
complicated when you can just say
BEAST (for B2ST) and TO ANYONE (for 2NE1). Don’t even get me
started on why TVXQ is sometimes
known as DBSK, not that it matters
when the group has already disbanded and all that’s left in the original
group are Yunho and Changmin (so
perhaps they can consider a name
change too?).
The show started with B2ST and I
would have been proud to tell my
immediate teenage neighbours—who
at that time were screaming their
heads off—I know one of them
because he appeared in this drama, if
only they didn’t look all the same to
my untrained eyes. I was trying to
spot the guy all through the group’s
three numbers but it was an epic fail.
Thank goodness there was a short
video introduction before each
segment, perhaps for non-fans like
me though it wasn’t really necessary
since I must have been the only
clueless soul in the gigantic stadium
that night. But even with the
introduction, I still had to tap my
pink sisters, I mean, the teens seated
next to me in their pink dresses with
the Lady Gaga-inspired headbands,
to ask who was performing onstage.
“SISTAAH!” one screamed at my
ear. “WHO? TIARA?” I thought I
was smart to remember a Korean
group named “Tiara” (of course it’s
Kara, the only no-show in the
line-up that night).
She shook her head and wrote on
March 8-21, 2011
MBLAQ
my iPad, as if not trusting I would
be able to spell the name correctly.
She was right, I would have spelled
it “Sister”.
I found out they were fans of
Girls’ Generation so they wore pink.
Earlier, I was puzzled how come
SNSD was not among the names
being mentioned onstage that night
and I was to learn later that Girls’
Generation also go by SNSD. Sigh, I
never thought K-pop was this
complicated.
Meantime, the teens standing
behind me were all screaming and
waving their light sticks in the air as
another group came onstage:
MBLAQ. It stands for Music Boys
Live in Absolute Quality (OK, I don’t
know which is more funny, this or
Japanese pop’s SMAP, which stands
for Sports Music Assemble People,
but that’s for another column).
The fans sang along to the English
words in the chorus, shouting “Oh
yeah!!!” and “Come back!!!” while I
was thinking, oh no, please don’t.
When CNBlue came onstage, I
paid more attention because many of
my friends are fans of this group.
And I discovered to my pleasant
surprise—and relief—that this was
not going to be another song-anddance number straight from the
factory. CNBlue is actually a band
and they brought the audience up on
their feet with their rousing numbers
I wouldn’t have minded if they
performed till the end.
But of course they didn’t and I
watched with increasingly glazed
eyes as another generic girl group
with the unimaginative name of
Secret came onstage. By the time
2AM and 2PM performed, I was
seriously lost. Thanks to Nichkhun
though, not exactly totally lost. At
least I could differentiate which was
2AM and 2PM.
I was getting bored I started asking
the people around me if they
understood what they were singing.
They shook their heads but still sang
anyway. At least they were having
fun while all I could think of was to
run as a plethora of pop stars came
onstage one after another, as if on a
factory assembly line.
The music started to sound
monotonous to my K-pop uninitiated
ear and a migraine was coming.
Not only that, an eye strain too,
trying to spot the difference
between all these groups.
I had hopes that things would
improve at the show’s second half
when After School came out performing with drums. But as soon as
they ditched the drums, I could no
longer tell the difference among
them. Girls’ Generation, Wonder
Girls, Brown Eyed Girls—they’re all
like Barbie dolls in a generic mold. I
couldn’t even wait for “old school”
K-pop—TVXQ—and made a beeline
for the factory’s showroom exit.
asianpopdom@gmail.com
• 45
PEOPLE
By Boon Chan
The Straits Times
Photo by KI M JAE-H WAN/AFP
Won Bin with 10-year-old co-star
Kim Sae Ron arrives at the Busan
film festival last year.
Uncle Won Bin
The Korean idol plays guardian
to a little girl in recent movie
E
❖ Singapore
ven heart-throbs have to
turn into uncles someday.
For Korean actor Won Bin,
that day has probably arrived sooner than expected.
In his latest film, the 33-year-old
actor-model plays a highly skilled
ex-special ops agent who is out to
save a little girl, who is his only
friend, from organ traffickers.
The Man From Nowhere has a
more endearing if much less cool
Korean title: Ahjussi (Uncle). For
that is what the little girl Soon Mee
calls her older friend.
Won Bin admits via an e-mail interview: “When she called me ‘Uncle’
for the first time, it was a bit awkward,
but I soon got used to it. I am old
enough to be called an uncle now.”
The poignant relationship between his character Cha Tae Sik and
Soon Mee, played by 10-year-old
Kim Sae Ron, attracted him to the
film. He also liked that Tae Sik is a
46 •
character with a traumatic past,
“who isolated himself from the
world because of that trauma”.
But as this was his first action
movie, he was not cavalier about his
preparatory work for the physically
demanding sequences. In the movie,
he showed off a well-toned body.
Seven months before shooting commenced, he started physical training, which included picking up
“Southeast Asian martial arts”.
He says of the adrenaline-pumping
scenes: “I like moving about and
sweating. I felt like I was playing a
game doing the action scenes. I
hadn’t done this sort of action movie
before, so it was tough for me physically. It also felt like I was learning
something new.”
He points out that the movie with
a vengeance theme did not portray
action for its own sake. He says:
“Tae Sik is a man of very few words
and I thought that he could also use
his body to speak his mind. And I
wanted the action
to seem more than
action and rather be
heard as his words.”
The thoughtful
actor’s breakthrough role was a
rich and spoilt
young man in the
hit weepie TV series Autumn In My
Heart (2000). Subsequently, instead
of coasting along
on idol dramas, he
often defied expectations with his
choice of roles.
He went gritty for
the war film Taegukgi (2004) and in
B o n g Jo o n Ho’s
crime drama Mother
(2009), he played
the role of the mentally unstable son.
For his turn in the
violent actionthriller The Man From Nowhere,
Won Bin was named best actor at
the 2010 Korea Film Awards.
While it certainly seems like he
has a plan when it comes to picking
roles, he says his choices were “never on purpose”.
Upon reflection, he says his roles
are similar in one respect: “The
roles I’ve played till now have been
humane. They have always had an
affinity with other people.”
Asked if being good-looking
makes it harder for him to be taken
seriously as an actor, he responds: “I
used to think that way. While I did
want to seek a new image and make
a change, I chose to do it when I felt
confident enough that I could perform the role successfully. I probably would not have been able to perform this role way back then.”
He is now confident enough in his
craft to be a traditional matinee idol
leading man.
“I would like to take on a role
in a romantic movie, but I haven’t
found anything yet. I’m actually
not the aggressive type. I’m rather the type that does his best at
what he’s been given.”
March 8-21, 2011
By The Daily Star
Freida’s Hollywood Break
Will ‘Miral’
Give Freida
Pinto a
strong
foothold in
Hollywood?
Freida Pinto
in ‘Miral’
March 8-21, 2011
W
❖ Dhaka
ith her riveting performance in her new
film Miral getting
good reviews, Freida
Pinto’s Hollywood
career may get a push.
In the film, Freida plays an orphaned Palestinian teacher growing
up in a war-torn Jerusalem camp.
The movie, which some Jewish
groups claim is “anti-Israel”, is being distributed by Weinstein
Brothers.
The advertisement for the film
boldly declares: “The movie they
tried to stop is coming to New York.
The protestors did not want the
film to have a premiere at the United Nations last week.”
“I saw the film as a cry for peace,”
Freida said at the Toronto International Film Festival last September.
“It will have a special appeal to the
younger generation. Peace is the
way, Gandhi said, and Rula Jabreal
(who looked into her own life for
writing the novel) reiterates
that idea.”
The film is a French, Italian
and Israeli production.
Miral, which Freida signed
soon after Slumdog Millionaire opened, was directed
by Julian Schnabel (Oscar nominated for The
Diving Bell and the
Butterfly) based on Jebreal’s semi-autobiographical novel about
the lives of three generations of women in
Jerusalem.
The film, shown at
festivals in Venice, London and Toronto, has
done small business in
Europe and is not expected, despite the
controversy, to be
a big success in
America. It is,
h oweve r,
raising Frei-
da’s profile. This is her third film
after the smash-hit Slumdog Millionaire (earning US$360 million
worldwide) and You Will Meet a
Tall Dark Stranger.
Julian Schnabel told Variety:
“If (Israel and Palestine) don’t
solve this problem, Israel won’t
exist anymore, and I don’t want
that to happen. The people who
scream the loudest are not necessarily the sanest.”
Freida has said that she did not
look at it as a political film. For her,
it was a story of survival and keeping one’s dignity intact under the
most depressing, humiliating and
violent circumstances.
“Both Schnabel and writer Rula
unanimously decided that I should
do the film,” Freida said. Rula guided her to know Palestinian families
and arranged for her to spend a couple of days with a family.
Having the writer on the sets and
at locations, Freida said, spurred
her determination to give her best
to the film. “I felt I had to do justice
to this amazing woman,” she said.
She told British newspaper The
Independent that she knew of the
Palestine-Israeli conflict from the
newspapers but visiting the occupied areas gave her rare insights.
“One of my friends is a lawyer and
she knew a lot about the conflict, so
I took note of what she said, but until you go there, nobody understands the human side,” Freida said.
“That’s when I decided I’m going to leave the politics of this
alone and am going to work on the
human story.”
She has said that even though
Slumdog’s gritty scenes had prepared her for a tough new film, she
still found the scenes of interrogation of Arab suspects by the Israeli
military unnerving. She asked Jabreal if the script reflected the reality and if the beatings were really
horrendous. She remembered the
novelist saying it happened “but a
lot worse.”
• 47
PEOPLE
By Zhang Haizhou and Zhang Chunyan
China Daily
Hitting The Right Note
Chinese violinist Analiza Ching’s
distinctive style turns heads
V
Photo by C hina Daily
❖ London
irtuoso violinist Analiza
Ching makes heads turn
when she walks into the
room. Not only is her
music captivating, she also looks vivacious and dresses fashi o n a b l y. T h e y o u n g
Chinese musician is redefining the way the violin is
played and giving it a
more contemporary feel.
Ten years ago when Ching first went to London to
study music, she was an
ordinary teenager who
wanted to make a mark in
the world of music.
She joined the Royal
Academy of Music
(RAM), but found the
road was not smooth.
She was alone in an alien
city, with no friends or
family members, and
very little money.
To m a k e m a t t e r s
worse, her language
proficiency was just the
bare minimum.
“I could only speak
words like ‘hi’ and ‘how
are you’. Coming to the
UK was certainly a big adventure,”
Ching says.
B ut d r ive n by t h e d e s i re to
make a mark on the music scene,
C h i n g re f u s e d to give u p and
continued her quest.
Apart from practicing music for
eight hours daily, Ching supplemented her meager earnings
through performances in shows and
by giving private tuition to children
48 •
in her neighbourhood.
That hard work seems to have
paid off. Ten years later, Ching has
given several solo performances.
Sitting in the China Tang restau-
rant in the Dorchester, one of
London’s best-known hotels, Ching
says she plans to launch her first
music album, “The Shadow of
Love”, later this year.
“Shadow lends a bit of mystery,
while love is what everybody wants
and needs,” she says in clear British
accent about the album, sipping a
cup of jasmine tea.
On her left forearm, she wears a
red beaded bracelet, a symbol of
luck in Chinese culture.
Ching says that she co-composed
all the 13 tunes on the album. “The
music is rich and comes with a lot
of passion. It is not just beautiful
and relaxing music, but very beautiful, exciting and relaxing classical
music,” she says.
Ching has performed twice for
the royal family. Her royal connection began after she performed a
classical recital for Prince
Edward and other royal
family members in 2007 at
Windsor Castle. It was a
crowning moment for her
when she was introduced
to Prince Andrew.
“He shook hands with
me, thanked me for my
performance, and enquired about my life at
RA M , a n d sa i d h e h ad
never heard any violinist
who could play as fast as
me,” Ching says.
She has also played on
several important events
like the recent concert to
commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Beatles at
the Royal Albert Hall, the
mecca for musicians. On
that occasion, she played
the legendary Liverpool
band’s classic tune “Yesterday”, in her own distinctive
style, along with the Royal
Philharmonic Orchestra.
Ching also performed at
the opening ceremony of London
Fashion Week 2011 in February.
British magazines and publications consider her “one of the most
outstanding new musical personalities seen for a long time”, while the
audiences who have seen her play
called her an “emerging talent” and
“dramatic violinist”.
“Music was always in my blood,”
she says.
March 8-21, 2011
By Hwang Jurie
The Korea Herald
Park
Is Back
After controversy
forced him out of
boy group 2PM, Park
Jae-beom is back with
a new album
M
❖ Seoul
any reasons have been
suggested as to why he
bolted from 2PM in his
heyday, including “bad
online publicity” and a
“private blunder”. Now the K-pop
singer and b-boy, Park Jae-beom,
has finally spoken up.
In an exclusive interview with
The Korea Herald, he said his abrupt
departure was not caused by one
reason alone. “There is more to it
than the story people know,” he said
during his shoot for the upcoming
music video “Abandoned” at a studio in Gyeonggi province.
The former 2PM leader, 23, left
Korea in September 2009 after bolting the group amid a quarrel that
erupted over his criticism of Korea,
which he posted on his personal
MySpace account four years prior
to their debut.
Six months after the scandal hit in
March 2010, Park Jin-young, CEO of
JYP Entertainment to which Jaebeom belonged recalled that he
could not keep Jae-beom from bolting from the boy band due to his determination to take responsibility
for his behaviour.
Park Jin-young later made a folMarch 8-21, 2011
low-up announcement, stating that
the agency had terminated its exclusive contract with Jay, as Jae-beom
is also called, due to a “personal
wrongdoing”, sealing his departure
from the agency. Since then, he has
been busy with his new album and
movie releases.
“I didn’t really run away... There
was a lot of different ways I could
have handled the situation but that’s
just how I handled it. Maybe I was
wrong, and maybe I wasn’t. I don’t
really regret it,” Park said. “I just
said a lot of stupid things when I
was younger. And, no, I don’t think
they were too harsh. Everything
happens for a reason, people make
mistakes, and I made a mistake. It
just depends on how you learn from
it. If you can grow from it and become a better person; at the end of
the day it’s all good. When I look
back at myself, I was just negative,
ignorant and immature back then.”
Park has left an official apology
message on his Daum online fan
community website to 2PM and his
former agency, JYP, saying he was
sorry for causing trouble for 2PM
and that it was regrettable that he
disappointed his management.
After Park’s apology, the influen-
tial Korean Federation of Pop Culture and Art Industry issued a statement, allowing the singer to appear
on Korean music shows. Up until
now, under SidusHQ Entertainment, Park was unable to promote
his album on Korean TV music
shows due to an apparent ban imposed against him.
The 19 months soon after the
scandal found Park doing fan meetings in Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines and Indonesia.
He also worked at a tire shop in
Seattle for four months for about
US$10 an hour.
“I just didn’t want to live off my
parents’ money. I just chilled with
my friends and was busy with b-boy
battles and things like that. Lately, I
have been working on my new album, and was also busy shooting
the movie, Hype Nation. I’ve participated in b-boy competitions as a
member of a b-boy crew called Art
of Movement (AOM),” he said.
He’s currently working on his album—which will have a lot of hiphop and R&B—slated for release
this month.
“As for my future goal, I don’t really
set goals. I’m just trying to do this for
my fans and do what I want to do.”
• 49
DATEBOOK
JAPAN
Hana Matsuri
T H A I L AND
Songkran Festival
The biggest festival of the kingdom
will leave you wet as Thais celebrate the
Buddhist New Year with buckets of water
to splash on everyone. Thais roam the
streets with containers of water or water
guns. Since this is in the middle of the
summer months, they also put cooling
powder on every passerby. You have to
arm yourself with a water gun or a
bucket of water to get even. Traditionally,
Songkran is a time to pay respects to the
elders, visit temples and families.
When: April 13-15
Where: Throughout Thailand
GOA
SI N GAPORE
Procession of All Saints
Film Fest For Kids
The procession starts out at the
Church of St. Andrew in Old Goa, India.
Thirty-one
life-sized
statues are
borne on the
shoulders of
local devotees
and taken in a
solemn
procession
around the
whole village.
A family party
atmosphre
takes over in the evening as the main
road comes to life with stalls selling
sweets, snacks and toys.
Young film buffs will have
something to look forward
to when the inaugural
Singapore International
Children’s Film Festival rolls
around.
The event is curated
specifically for children and
will showcase a total of
more than 55 kid-friendly short
films.
Organised by media company
Paperbear Productions, it will
categorise all of the films into one
of five programmes according to
recommended age groups.
For children who wish to
showcase their own creativity, the
festival is holding a film-making
competition for five- to 16-yearolds. Budding film-makers stand to
win pocket video cameras.
When: April 11
Where: Old Goa
Info: www.Goa-tourism.com
H ONG KO NG
Entertainment Expo 2011
Featuring key events highlighting Hong Kong’s world of film,
TV, digital entertainment and music, attracting leading players
in Asia’s entertainment industry, this annual expo provides a
platform for screenings, recognition of industry excellence as
50 •
Temples throughout Japan are packed
during Hana Matsuri as people gather to
celebrate the birth of Buddha. Small
halls covered with flowers are built
inside the temples and locals pour sweet
tea on the head of Buddha statue inside.
When: April 8
Where: Throughout Japan
Each work must not be longer than 30
minutes. The event will also have
workshops on scriptwriting and acting.
When: May 15 to 22
Where: The Arts House
Info: www.bigeyesbigminds.com,
hoots@bigeyesbigminds.com
Tickets: US$9 (each film); US$15 to
$35 (workshops)
well as concluding business deals. Topping the list of starstudded attractions is the Hong Kong International Film
Festival and Hong Kong’s version of the Oscars—the Hong
Kong Film Awards Presentation Ceremony on April 17.
When: Until April 17
Info: http://www.eexpohk.com
March 8-21, 2011
ASIA NE W S NET W OR K
21 newspapers in 18 countries—covering Asia for 10 years
W e
K n o w
A s i a
B e t t e r
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