Asean members approve new charter

Written by VONG SOKHENG AND AFP

Tuesday, 16 December 2008

But local and international rights groups lament its failure to include sufficient provisions to protect and promote human rights AFP Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Surin Pitsuwan delivers his speech during the ceremony of “Welcoming the Entry into Force of Asean Charter” in Jakarta on Monday. JAKARTA THE Association of Southeast Asian Nations took a major step towards becoming an EU-style community Monday with the passing into force of a new charter setting benchmarks for democracy. The charter sets out rules of membership, transforms Asean into a legal entity and envisages a single free trade area by 2015 for the region of 500 million people. It came into force with a meeting of Asean foreign ministers at the bloc's Jakarta secretariat, 30 days after Thailand became the last member to deposit its ratifying documents.

"This is a momentous development when Asean is consolidating, integrating and transforming itself into a community," Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said.

"Southeast Asia is no longer the bitterly divided, war-torn region it was in the 1960s and 1970s."
The charter was supposed to have been activated at a summit in Thailand this month, but that meeting was postponed by the domestic political crisis. Thai Information Minister Mun Patanotai presided over the presentation ceremony as representative of the bloc's current chair, as the country lacks a foreign minister to do the job.

"In spite of the political setback in Thailand, which is now the ... chair country, I believe Asean will not and cannot be slowed down," the bloc's Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan told reporters.

The charter will give the bloc, often dismissed as a talking shop, greater clout in international negotiations, but critics argue that some member states will continue to get away with gross human rights abuses.

The bloc's proposed new rights body has no teeth, and the charter has no provision to sanction members such as Myanmar, where the junta has kept democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest for most of the past 18 years.

"[We] have long been calling for Asean [to] include human rights protection into their charter," said Kek Galabru, president of local rights group Licadho.

"We, human rights NGOs, want to see the Asean Human Rights Body become real and independent within their charter ... but this is not easy for Asean to accept because some of the countries would not approve."

No date has been set for the creation of the planned rights body, but a first draft of its terms of reference will be handed over to a meeting of foreign ministers in Thailand in July, officials said.

Read more!

Asean members approve new charter

Written by VONG SOKHENG AND AFP

Tuesday, 16 December 2008

But local and international rights groups lament its failure to include sufficient provisions to protect and promote human rights AFP Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Surin Pitsuwan delivers his speech during the ceremony of “Welcoming the Entry into Force of Asean Charter” in Jakarta on Monday. JAKARTA THE Association of Southeast Asian Nations took a major step towards becoming an EU-style community Monday with the passing into force of a new charter setting benchmarks for democracy. The charter sets out rules of membership, transforms Asean into a legal entity and envisages a single free trade area by 2015 for the region of 500 million people. It came into force with a meeting of Asean foreign ministers at the bloc's Jakarta secretariat, 30 days after Thailand became the last member to deposit its ratifying documents.

"This is a momentous development when Asean is consolidating, integrating and transforming itself into a community," Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said.

"Southeast Asia is no longer the bitterly divided, war-torn region it was in the 1960s and 1970s."
The charter was supposed to have been activated at a summit in Thailand this month, but that meeting was postponed by the domestic political crisis. Thai Information Minister Mun Patanotai presided over the presentation ceremony as representative of the bloc's current chair, as the country lacks a foreign minister to do the job.

"In spite of the political setback in Thailand, which is now the ... chair country, I believe Asean will not and cannot be slowed down," the bloc's Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan told reporters.

The charter will give the bloc, often dismissed as a talking shop, greater clout in international negotiations, but critics argue that some member states will continue to get away with gross human rights abuses.

The bloc's proposed new rights body has no teeth, and the charter has no provision to sanction members such as Myanmar, where the junta has kept democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest for most of the past 18 years.

"[We] have long been calling for Asean [to] include human rights protection into their charter," said Kek Galabru, president of local rights group Licadho.

"We, human rights NGOs, want to see the Asean Human Rights Body become real and independent within their charter ... but this is not easy for Asean to accept because some of the countries would not approve."

No date has been set for the creation of the planned rights body, but a first draft of its terms of reference will be handed over to a meeting of foreign ministers in Thailand in July, officials said.

Read more!

Thailand's turmoil delays border work

Written by Cheang Sokha

Tuesday, 16 December 2008

ONGOING political turmoil in Bangkok has obliged the Thai-Cambodian Joint Border Commission - charged with marking the neighbouring countries' 805 kilometres of shared border - to delay demarcating and de-mining the contested area near the Preah Vihear temple, officials said.

"We cannot do anything right now until we receive approval from the Thai parliament," the head of the border committee, Var Kimhong, told the Post on Monday. "We do not know when the approval will be made."

On November 12, Foreign Minister Hor Namhong and his Thai counterpart agreed during a meeting in Siem Reap to reduce the troop buildup along the shared border and allow the JBC to commence its work in the area by mid-December.

"The current situation in Thailand does not in any way affect Thailand's firm commitment to pursuing peaceful settlement of the matter through the existing bilateral framework and boundary mechanism," said a December 9 statement issued by the Thai Foreign Ministry through its embassy in Phnom Penh.

Meas Yoeun, deputy military commander stationed at Preah Vihear, told the Post that he had received no recent orders pertaining to the work of the JBC.

"The situation along the border near the temple is normal, and troops on both sides have reduced [levels] to 30 troops each at the front line near the temple," Meas Yoeun said.

Phay Siphan, a secretary of state at the Council of Ministers, said there is no schedule set for the next meeting of the JCB and this will not change until newly appointed Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva takes office

Read more!

Thailand's turmoil delays border work

Written by Cheang Sokha

Tuesday, 16 December 2008

ONGOING political turmoil in Bangkok has obliged the Thai-Cambodian Joint Border Commission - charged with marking the neighbouring countries' 805 kilometres of shared border - to delay demarcating and de-mining the contested area near the Preah Vihear temple, officials said.

"We cannot do anything right now until we receive approval from the Thai parliament," the head of the border committee, Var Kimhong, told the Post on Monday. "We do not know when the approval will be made."

On November 12, Foreign Minister Hor Namhong and his Thai counterpart agreed during a meeting in Siem Reap to reduce the troop buildup along the shared border and allow the JBC to commence its work in the area by mid-December.

"The current situation in Thailand does not in any way affect Thailand's firm commitment to pursuing peaceful settlement of the matter through the existing bilateral framework and boundary mechanism," said a December 9 statement issued by the Thai Foreign Ministry through its embassy in Phnom Penh.

Meas Yoeun, deputy military commander stationed at Preah Vihear, told the Post that he had received no recent orders pertaining to the work of the JBC.

"The situation along the border near the temple is normal, and troops on both sides have reduced [levels] to 30 troops each at the front line near the temple," Meas Yoeun said.

Phay Siphan, a secretary of state at the Council of Ministers, said there is no schedule set for the next meeting of the JCB and this will not change until newly appointed Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva takes office

Read more!

WHAT ARE GEL NAILS?

WHAT ARE GEL NAILS?
If you are new to making gel nails, follow these steps carefully, and you should come up with a perfect result.
They are a new, more natural looking alternative to Acrylic Nail extensions. Unlike acrylics, the UV gel used to create the nails has no discomforting odors. There is no glue involved in the process, eliminating unnecessary nail damage caused by lifting. Gel Nails are created with a layer of base gel, brushed into a mold then cured by a UV Lamp. Gel nails are limitless in their design capabilities, and can even be reinforced with fiberglass for extra strength and repairs purposes.



Cautiously scoop a little of gel onto your gel brush, make sure to keep one side clean by swiping it on the edge of the can.

Apply a thin layer of gel over the full nail plate starting in the center of the nail and working the gel toward the cuticle. Apply the gel same way as applying nail polish, pulling the brush to the free edge. Seal the free edge by swiping your brush lightly across the leading edge.















During application, make sure the hairs of the brush do not split out. If they do, it means that you are putting too much pressure and not enough gel will be left on the nail to allow for shrinkage during cure, and the result will be tiny 'craters' where the gel has pulled away during the curing process. If this occurs, you need to brush a new thin layer of gel over again, with of course less pressure. Do not over-work the gel because it will result in air bubbles and possibly an uneven cure.

Repeat this procedure on all of the fingers on the same hand. Prior to curing, look carefully at your work one more time and make sure the entire area of the nail is equally covered with a thin layer of gel. Check to see if any gel is touching the skin near the cuticle and sidewall lines of the nail. If so, very carefully get rid of it with an orangewood stick. Be sure your have left a tiny margin all around the cuticle and sidewall line free of product to allow for proper shrinkage and to avoid repeated and prolonged contact with sensitive skin.

Put the hand into the UV lamp. Keep it there for approximately three minutes, that's how long it takes for gel to fully cure. After that you can put on a second layer of gel and cure it again.



















After removing the hand from the UV lamp, you need to clean all nails with a lint-free nail wipe soaked with cleanser. This will get rid of the sticky uncured layer, even though the nails will still feel slightly tacky which is normal. Scrutinize nails for an even surface, and if craters are visible, apply one more thin layer of gel and cure.


Apply gel to the other hand following the previous procedures. Should you find that some gel has touched the sides or the cuticle area, remove with a 240-grit file and then buff until smooth. Finish by applying a sealer (Shine and Seal Glossing Gel) and the nail enamel color of your choice. If the client prefers a permanent French Manicure, use a white color gel to the free edge.

Read more!

WHAT ARE GEL NAILS?

WHAT ARE GEL NAILS?
If you are new to making gel nails, follow these steps carefully, and you should come up with a perfect result.
They are a new, more natural looking alternative to Acrylic Nail extensions. Unlike acrylics, the UV gel used to create the nails has no discomforting odors. There is no glue involved in the process, eliminating unnecessary nail damage caused by lifting. Gel Nails are created with a layer of base gel, brushed into a mold then cured by a UV Lamp. Gel nails are limitless in their design capabilities, and can even be reinforced with fiberglass for extra strength and repairs purposes.



Cautiously scoop a little of gel onto your gel brush, make sure to keep one side clean by swiping it on the edge of the can.

Apply a thin layer of gel over the full nail plate starting in the center of the nail and working the gel toward the cuticle. Apply the gel same way as applying nail polish, pulling the brush to the free edge. Seal the free edge by swiping your brush lightly across the leading edge.















During application, make sure the hairs of the brush do not split out. If they do, it means that you are putting too much pressure and not enough gel will be left on the nail to allow for shrinkage during cure, and the result will be tiny 'craters' where the gel has pulled away during the curing process. If this occurs, you need to brush a new thin layer of gel over again, with of course less pressure. Do not over-work the gel because it will result in air bubbles and possibly an uneven cure.

Repeat this procedure on all of the fingers on the same hand. Prior to curing, look carefully at your work one more time and make sure the entire area of the nail is equally covered with a thin layer of gel. Check to see if any gel is touching the skin near the cuticle and sidewall lines of the nail. If so, very carefully get rid of it with an orangewood stick. Be sure your have left a tiny margin all around the cuticle and sidewall line free of product to allow for proper shrinkage and to avoid repeated and prolonged contact with sensitive skin.

Put the hand into the UV lamp. Keep it there for approximately three minutes, that's how long it takes for gel to fully cure. After that you can put on a second layer of gel and cure it again.



















After removing the hand from the UV lamp, you need to clean all nails with a lint-free nail wipe soaked with cleanser. This will get rid of the sticky uncured layer, even though the nails will still feel slightly tacky which is normal. Scrutinize nails for an even surface, and if craters are visible, apply one more thin layer of gel and cure.


Apply gel to the other hand following the previous procedures. Should you find that some gel has touched the sides or the cuticle area, remove with a 240-grit file and then buff until smooth. Finish by applying a sealer (Shine and Seal Glossing Gel) and the nail enamel color of your choice. If the client prefers a permanent French Manicure, use a white color gel to the free edge.

Read more!