by the bbc's daniel lak, december 2001 [...] Nepal's worst disaster of its horrible year was the massacre of eight members of the royal family on 1 June.... A government inquiry later found that he had turned a gun on himself soon after shooting his father King Birendra, his mother Queen Aishwarya, his sister and brother, uncles and aunts.... No one who was in Nepal at the time will ever forget the sense of doom and grief that seethed through a shocked population on the morning of 2 June. [...]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/1729511.stm

october 20, 2005 […] North Korea, Eritrea and Turkmenistan are the world’s ‹black holes› for news… North Korea once again comes bottom of the Reporters Without Borders fourth annual World Press Freedom Index, released today. It is closely followed in the 167-country list by Eritrea (166th) and Turkmenistan (165th), which are other ‹black holes› for news where the privately-owned media is not allowed and freedom of expression does not exist.
Journalists there simply relay government propaganda. Anyone out of step is harshly dealt with. A word too many, a commentary that deviates from the official line or a wrongly-spelled name and the author may be thrown in prison or draw the wrath of those in power. Harassment, psychological pressure, intimidation and round-the-clock surveillance are routine. […]

http://www.rsf.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=20

abc 7 news, bangkok, by ap, october 19, 2005: An ice cream vendor attacked a Bangkok dentist with a small sword, breaking his arm and badly cutting his face, police said Wednesday.Somboon Saisida, 43, stormed Pornpoj Suriwong's dental clinic in Bangkok on Tuesday, assaulting the man because three years ago he mistreated Somboon - by leaving an infected tooth in his mouth and pulling a healthy one, police Lt. Prapas Yongsatar said.
Somboon claimed this alleged error led to weakness in his left arm and leg, and eventually he lacked the strength to paddle his ice cream tricycle cart, forcing him to stop working. Somboon was charged with attempted murder. Police were holding him in custody pending trial.

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1005/269917.html

lilu, October 3, 2005 [...] 37 Bauern wurden am 18. September in Lombok, Indonesien, einer Insel Nähe Bali während eines Treffens der Via Campesinavon der Polizei erschossen und verletzt. 15 internationale Delegierte wurden unerwartet daran gehindert an dem Treffen teilzunehmen. Die Delegierten waren Teil der Mission die Verletzung der Bauernrechte aufzudecken die sich ereigneten, als sie ihre Existenz verteidigten, nachdem die Zentralregierung Jakartas ihnen die Bauernlizenz entzogen hatte. [...]

http://www.indymedia.org/or/2005/10/825357.shtml

By Reuben Staines, september 21, 2005 [...] Defense and communications technicians will team up to develop a mobile combat robot to fight alongside human soldiers on the battlefield, the government said Wednesday. Officials heading the project said they have requested 33.4 billion won ($32.4 million) in funding between 2006 and 2011 to develop the horse-like robot for deployment. According to design blueprints released during a meeting of science-related ministers, the robot will have six or eight extendable legs with wheels allowing it to move like an insect over uneven terrain....
...In addition to the combat robot project, the two defense and communications ministries will work together to design small, easily deployable sensors that will be linked up in a electronic detection and control network.... [...]

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200509/kt2005092118400211960.htm

september 12, 2005 [...] ... Thailand has become the place to go for crooks, fugitives, and terrorists looking for fake and altered passports.
According to authorities, the most common counterfeited passports are Belgian, French, Portuguese and Spanish, because passports from those countries are easiest to work with. Many of the passports being altered are stolen or even purchased from tourists, who can pick up a quick $500 by selling their passports.
One reason that Thailand is so popular among counterfeiters is its relatively light penalties for faking Thai government documents or possession of stolen property — five years in jail and a $240 fine. [...]

http://japundit.com/archives/2005/09/12/1175/

september 2, 2005 [...] "Anti-Japan War Online" is being sponsored by the Communist Youth League, the power base of president Hu Jintao, in order to foster greater patriotism among the fast-growing internet game community....

...To distinguish the two sides, developers said they had made the appearance of Japanese soldiers more ugly, but they have scaled down the battle scenes so that the fighting is not excessively bloodthirsty.

...The party, which is essentially the government, has sponsored a racist, anti-Japanese videogame designed by people who “hate Japan”, with the likely result that it will inculcate among players the feeling that Japanese are inhuman monsters to be mown down. [...]

http://imagethief.com/china/archive/2005/09/02/4467.aspx

jakarta, 20. Juni 2005 [...] Hunderttausende Mädchen, die als Haushaltshilfen arbeiten, werden sexuell missbraucht und ausgebeutet, erklärte Human Rights Watch in einem neuen Bericht. Die indonesische Regierung biete keinen Schutz für diese Mädchen. [...]

http://hrw.org/german/docs/2005/06/20/indone11197.htm

Heute bin ich ziellos durch die Stadt geschlendert und habe einige Kuriositäten mit meiner Kamera festgehalten.
Später ging ich in ein Museum – an den Namen kann ich mich schon nicht mehr erinnern – das die von den Japanern begangenen Gräuel am koreanischen Volk in Form von Wachsmodellen veranschaulicht. Es war grausam. Ich hoffe sehr, dass sich die Situation nicht wieder zuspitzen wird. Trotz der hasserfüllten Tags, die immer wieder auftauchen, und der Hiobsbotschaften am Fernseher. Es ist mir schleierhaft, wie Menschen, die mir liebenswürdig erscheinen, zu Monstern mutieren können, und dies beiderseits der Fronten.
Ob mir das auch passieren könnte, wenn ich in einem konfliktreichen Land aufgewachsen wäre?
Wenn ich den Menschen hier die Schweiz beschreibe, staunen sie immer wieder.
Die Politik hierzulande ist schon ein Sonderfall... im Guten wie im Schlechten.

Ich hatte mir ein Herz gefasst und bin doch zum DMZ gefahren. Unheimlich fand ich es schon. Vor allem weil ich vor einigen Jahren einen Koreaner geheiratet hatte, den ich in der Schweiz kennen gelernt hatte. Einer der Gründe für die Heirat war, dass er dringend eine Aufenthaltsbewilligung brauchte, ohne zurückgehen zu müssen, da er sonst im besten Alter gewesen wäre, um für die drei Jahre obligatorischen Militärdienst eingezogen zu werden.
Aber das ist eine alte Geschichte, auf jeden Fall bin ich zum ersten Mal in Korea und ich finde das Land verwirrend.
Auf der einen Seite steht da «Welcome to the Ministry of Unification», auf der anderen Seite sind doch alle Soldaten immer noch bis auf die Zähne bewaffnet.