Stories by Marwaan Macan-Markar / IPS Inter Press Service

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Tuesday, February 09, 2010 21:36 GMT

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Rural Thailand Simmers with Anti-gov’t Rage
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
SRANG KHOM, Thailand - Meal by meal, a political feast is being laid out under the night sky to nourish a wave of anti-government protests rapidly spreading across this rural heartland. The diners come dressed in their signature red shirts.
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This Time Around, Thailand Targets Karen Refugees
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - Thailand’s attempt to repatriate over 3,000 ethnic Karens who fled the conflict in military-ruled Burma last year has triggered strong local and international objections, including from 27 members of the United States Congress.
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Talk of the Next Coup Raises Political Temperature
Analysis by Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - A Thai national habit of openly speculating if this South-east Asian kingdom is on the verge of its next coup d’etat is in full flight.
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Ethnic Women Expose Opium Fields in Junta Strongholds
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - A report exposing the spreading opium fields in the north-eastern corner of the military-ruled Burma has brought to light an equally revealing story. It was produced by a team of ethnic women who risked their lives to document the heroin-filled world they inhabit.
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Future of China’s Tiger Farms in the Balance
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - The road to the world’s first tiger summit in Vladivostok later this year will have to be paved with answers about the future of tiger farms in China and other East Asian countries, said conservationists.
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Migrant Domestic Workers’ Rights Next on ILO’s Agenda
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - Po Po has been enduring long hours of hard work, poor pay and abuse within the confines of her employer’s home for the past seven years. Poverty forced her to leave her family in eastern Burma and abandon a university education to work as a domestic helper in Thailand.
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As Economy Turns, Turning Off Stimulus Tap Is a Challenge
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - As the global financial crisis triggered alarms across Asia, Singapore responded with a government programme to aid its vulnerable workforce. The affluent city- state pumped in three billion U.S. dollars in an employment protection programme.
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‘Saving Tigers is Good for Ecosystems, Biodiversity’
Marwaan Macan-Markar interviews JAMES COMPTON, Asia director of a global wildlife trade monitoring group
BANGKOK - The first Asian ministerial meeting to protect the tiger, one of the world’s most storied animals, is poised to test a new commitment between government leaders, the World Bank and the global conservationist movement.
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World Bank Aims to Earn Stripes Through Tiger Summit
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - An international campaign to save the tiger, one of Asia’s iconic wild animals, is proving to be fertile ground for the World Bank to earn its stripes as an institution keen on joining the ranks of conservationists.
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‘Commissions for Human Rights Violations Have Failed’
Marwaan Macan-Markar interviews KISHALI PINTO-JAYAWARDENA, Sri Lankan human rights advocate
BANGKOK - Sri Lanka’s nearly three decades of civil war may be over, but questions about war crimes and gross human rights violations committed during the final stages of that battle in 2009 continue to haunt the South Asian nation.
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China-ASEAN Free Trade Area Sparks Cautious Optimism
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - The world’s largest free trade area that became a reality at the start of the year is being billed as a welcome shot in the arm for the countries comprising it, namely, China and six South-east Asian countries. It offers a route out of the global financial crisis, analysts said.
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For PM, Leading a Divided Nation Is a Sisyphean Struggle
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK - A year after coming into office, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva is finding some parallels between the challenges of governing this divided South-east Asian kingdom and one of his favourite books, the ‘Myth of Sisyphus’ by French existential novelist Albert Camus.
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Ecological Crisis: Next Challenge for World Social Forum
Marwaan Macan-Markar interviews NICOLA BULLARD, member of the World Social Forum’s international council
BANGKOK - Ten years after its founding, the World Social Forum (WSF) has come to represent a rallying point for activists and grassroots groups committed to shaping an alternative world view.
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Marwaan Macan-Markar - IPS's Bangkok correspondent provides essential reading on human rights, development, environment and politics in a dynamic region

Credit: Sayan Cheunodomsavad/Thailand for the Imaging Our Mekong programme

ENERGY-MEXICO: Big and Small Firms Harness Sun's Rays

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CANADA: Khadr Case Raises Broad Questions on Child Combatants

CHILE: Stop Treating Community Broadcasters as Criminals, Say Activists

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POLITICS: Malaysia Faces Severe Test as Anwar Stands Trial

MIDEAST: Gaza Energy Crisis Averted - For Now

RIGHTS: Sri Lanka’s Election Aftermath – Media Under Attack

INDIA: Lay-offs from Recession-hit Gulf Lead to New Lives at Home

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DEVELOPMENT: Crisis Could Open Doors for Change, Says UNCTAD

PAKISTAN: Community Midwives Gain Recognition But Concerns Remain

PERU: Women Combine Invention, Tradition to Improve Rural Diets

ETHIOPIA: Dam Critics Won't Go Away

DEVELOPMENT: South-South Cooperation Key to MDGs

CUBA: Women Knitting for Change

ENVIRONMENT: Keeping Wetlands from Becoming Wastelands

U.S.: Bill Pledges a Billion Dollars to Fight Gender Violence

RIGHTS: EU Faults U.N. for Slowdown in Gender Empowerment

KENYA: Insuring Pastoralists Against Increasing Risks

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