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Politics
UN Sec-Gen Ban visits Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday visited the former Nazi death camp of Auschwitz to pay tribute to Holocaust victims. Ban walked through the infamous “Arbeit Macht Frei” (“Work Makes You Free”) gate to see exhibitions that document the inhumane conditions that the inmates suffered there. Housed in red brick…
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Russia’s interests on the Korean Peninsula
The summit between South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Russian President Vladimir Putin has attracted much attention to Russia’s attitude toward the problems of the Korean peninsula. When it comes to Russia’s attitude to South Korea, there is surprisingly little to discuss. In spite of some misunderstandings and minor frictions,…
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East Asia
Press freedom struggles symbolise ‘Gwangju Spirit’
In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the wily general Tsao Tsao, noted for his one-upmanship, often claims credit for himself whenever his lieutenant comes up with battle plans by declaring, “What you have just said is already in my mind.” I do not see myself doing a Tsao Tsao…
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South East Asia
Six tourists killed as double-decker ferry capsized in Pattaya, Thailand
An overcrowded tourist ferry capsized and sank near a popular Thai seaside town, killing six tourists, including two Russians and a Chinese, police said. The rest of the roughly 200 people aboard were rescued. The double-decker ferry, carrying Thai and foreign tourists, left Lan island for the 30-minute trip to…
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South Asia
Hemant Divate: Poetic butterflies from the garden of India
An email sent from a friend opened a whole new world for me. It happened when Ahmed Al Shahawi, the well known Egyptian poet, sent me his friend Hemant Divate’s poems, to introduce them for Arab readers. Mr. Hemant Divate is an internationally known Marathi poet from India, who lives…
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East Asia
Annual lantern festival under way with 30,000 lamps lighting up central Seoul
The annual Seoul Lantern Festival kicks off in central Seoul on Novemver 1, with 30,000 colored lanterns lighting up Cheonggye Stream in central Seoul. Seoul Metropolitan Government unveiled program details of the lantern festival to be held for 17 days from Friday. The organizing committee of the 2013 Seoul Lantern…
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South East Asia
Thousands of Thais gather in protest against government’s amnesty bill
An estimated 10,000 Thais demonstrated on Thursday near a Bangkok railway station in protest against a bill aimed to grant amnesty to those involved in previous mass protests. Organized by the opposition Democrat Party, the number of the anti-amnesty demonstrators who began to gather since late afternoon might increase twice…
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