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Thai crisis deepens as Oppn MPs resign
South Africa unites in prayer for Mandela
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S Korea expands air defence zone to overlap China’s
Blasts kill 33 in Iraq
Violence in Singapore's
Little India
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Thai crisis deepens as Oppn MPs resign
Bangkok, December 8 "I'm ready to resign and dissolve Parliament if that is what majority of the Thai people want," she said in a special televised programme to defuse the over two-week long crisis. She, however, warned that the political crisis would prolong if the protesters reject her offer. "We should conduct a referendum so that people can decide what we should do," said the 46-year-old prime minister who came to power in 2011. Unmoved by Yingluck's proposal, Sathit Wongnongtoey, a core rally leader, told a cheering crowd that the Democrat Party MPs reached the decision to resign and join the anti-government protests at a meeting today. Sathit challenged Yingluck to dissolve the lower house of Parliament right away. Sathit suggested Yingluck should set up a People's Council to reform politics. Nine Democrat MPs had already resigned when the massive protests against the government began last month. Suthep Thaugsuban, a former deputy prime minister and the leader of the anti-government protesters, has called for a final "blow" tomorrow to force Yingluck out of power. Commenting on the proposed protests, Yingluck said she was ready to listen to the protesters' demands in order to find acceptable solutions, the Nation online reported. "I'm willing to listen to proposals from the protesters. I'm not addicted to this title," she said. Authorities are planning to deploy hundreds of police personnel tomorrow to protect key state buildings. Suthep, who is facing an arrest warrant for anti-government activities, has said he would turn himself in if the protesters could not topple the government. — PTI 'D-Day' rally today
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South Africa unites in prayer for Mandela
Johannesburg, December 8 The ‘National Day of Prayer and Reflection’ started off an official programme of mourning, including a memorial service at a Johannesburg stadium on Tuesday, culminating in a state funeral on December 15 at Mandela's Eastern Cape ancestral home of Qunu, expected to be one of the biggest gatherings of world leaders in decades. At the Bryanston Methodist Church here, President Jacob Zuma, Mandela's ex-wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and other members of the Mandela family, including his grandson Mandla, attended a service for Mandela. “We should pray for us not to forget some of the values that Madiba stood for, that he fought for, that he sacrificed his life for," Zuma said. — PTI Hindu deities gave Madiba company in jail
Johannesburg: When Nelson Mandela spent almost three decades locked in jail on Robben Island, he was not alone — he had the
pictures of a few Indian deities for inspiration. |
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S Korea expands air defence zone to overlap China’s
Seoul, December 8 Seoul's defence ministry said its new zone, which will take effect on December 15, would cover Ieodo -- a submerged rock in waters off its south coast, which China calls Suyan. The airspace above the Seoul-controlled rock -- long a source of tension between South Korea and China -- is also covered by Beijing's zone. China last month unilaterally declared an Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea, asking foreign planes to identify themselves. But the zone -- which encompasses some areas currently controlled by South Korea or Japan -- has drawn intense protests from the two neighbours and objections by their key allies and the United States. "We will coordinate with related countries to fend off accidental military confrontations and to ensure safety of airplanes," defence ministry spokesman Kim Min-Seok said. Seoul had notified its neighbours in advance about its new air zone. — AFP
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Blasts kill 33 in Iraq
Baghdad, December 8 The attacks are part of a wave of violence that has washed across Iraq since a deadly security crackdown on a Sunni protest camp in April. Since then, the bloodshed in the country has reached heights unseen since the country teetered on the brink of civil war in 2006 and 2007. — AP |
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Violence in Singapore's Little India Singapore, December 8 A police statement said the disturbance started in the congested Little India district when one person was killed after being hit by a bus. The victim's identity was not immediately disclosed. About 400 people on the scene began attacking police vehicles after officers responded to the accident. Pictures and videos on social media showed at least two vehicles including an ambulance on fire, while two police vehicles were seen being overturned by a cheering mob. The situation was brought under control after the elite Special Operations Command and Gurkhas working for the police arrived on the scene. The rare outbreak of public disorder in strictly governed Singapore took place in an area normally packed with thousands of workers, mostly from the Indian subcontinent, on their day off. Teo Chee Hean, the deputy prime minister and minister of home affairs, said in a statement that "this is a serious incident which has resulted in injuries
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