■ THAILAND
Martial law for two districts
The government imposed martial law in two Muslim-dominated districts in the south yesterday, a day after Islamic separatists staged a new show of strength with bombings that blacked out a provincial capital. General Khwanchart Klaharn said announced that martial law was being declared in two districts of Songkhla province, which is next to the three provinces where an insurgency has flared since January last year. ``Now, the insurgents have used the districts of Chana and Thepha in Songkhla to hide weapons used to instigate violence and also extend violent attacks to the area,'' he said.
■ JAPAN
US wants relocation funds
The US has asked Japan to provide more than ?320 billion (US$3 billion) to cover the costs of relocating thousands of US Marines from Okinawa to Guam, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported yesterday. The newspaper said the US gave Japan a cost estimate of US$3 billion to US$3.5 billion to move the troops and construct new facilities in Guam. Japan has promised to try to meet the US funding request, the paper said, with negotiations between to continue over the exact amount.
■ SOUTH KOREA
Activists barred for summit
Authorities will bar about 1,000 foreign activists from the country and keep 350 under close surveillance during APEC meetings to prevent protests, police said yesterday later this month in Pusan."We are taking these steps as a security precaution for APEC," a police official said. There are still likely to be heated protests. Thousands of farmers plan to stage rallies against measures to liberalize agricultural trade, representatives said.
■ THAILAND
Dutch gangster murdered
A Western man gunned down a well-known Dutch underworld figure in the resort of Pattaya, police said yesterday. John Mieremet died after being shot in the neck on Wednesday by two Western men who walked into his office, said police Colonel Waratchai Sriratanvuth. The two men were identified as Westerners by Mieremet's Thai wife, the officer said. He said the killing may have been because of a personal or business conflict.
■ JAPAN
Blog poisoner caught
A 16-year-old girl was arrested for trying to kill her mother with rat poison and keeping an Internet blog narrating how her condition deteriorated, news reports said on Wednesday. The girl reportedly kept animal body parts in her bedroom. "Mother has been sick since yesterday, having a rash all over her body," the Asahi Shimbun newspaper quoted the girl as writing on August 19. Police found that the blog matched the illness of her 47-year-old mother, who was in critical condition at a hospital, the reports said.
■ CHINA
Graft list to be published
A list of names of people who give bribes will be printed and made available to the public starting from next year in a move to fight corruption, a newspaper said yesterday. It will provide details of people who have offered bribes since 1997, the China Daily said, citing a report in the Procuratorial Daily. The move follows a pilot scheme begun last year that banned building contractors who appeared on the list from bidding for new projects. The maximum penalty for taking bribes is death. Last year prosecutors charged 1,952 people with offering bribes, the report said. Government officials are required to report any gifts they receive worth over 50 yuan (US$6).
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