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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000933

Green architecture brings fresh air

While going green has become an urgent agenda for many industries from retail, fashion to the performing arts and architecture is no exception.

Amid the climate crisis, more individuals, companies and the government are paying attention to sustainable architecture, aware of the impact of the lasting footprint left by construction.

“Green architecture” refers to an approach to architecture which acknowledges the necessity for improvement in both environmental impact and our health.

While more construction companies are taking part in the sustainable architecture movement, going green costs money.

“Builders are aware of the need to pursue sustainable architecture,” an official who works at a major construction company here said, referring to the Green Standard for Energy and Environmental Design, also known as G-SEED. Construction companies are required to meet this standard before a construction project can take off.

“However, the budget for construction is fixed and tight. The builder must save costs in processes and materials to generate maximum profit. But environmentally friendly materials usually cost a lot,” he said. “Insulation sometimes costs more than a million dollars for an apartment building. It is all about money after all.”

As part of the effort to save construction costs and at the same time go green, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has been leading the “green roof” project from 2002, changing building roofs to green gardens.

The SMG announced in February it would support more buildings to add rooftop garden in order to provide green space for residents and improve the cityscape.

For the past two decades, more than 314,000 square meters of roof space has been turned into gardens, spread over 764 structures. This year, the SMG started funding another 10,000 square meters of rooftop gardens on private buildings. Previously, only public buildings were eligible for the funding.

According to the SMG, the average temperature of buildings with green rooftops dropped by 3.1 degrees Celsius, easing the urban heat island effect. Urban heat island effect refers to the urbanized areas become warmer than the surrounding peripheries, as manmade structures absorb and radiate more heat. Air conditioning and heating energy consumption for buildings went down by 12 to 15 percent on average in buildings with green rooftops.

Another example of a green roof is the rooftop garden at the government complex in Sejong City, which was officially recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest rooftop garden in 2016. 

Green architecture brings fresh air

The garden, spread out across the complex and connecting the separate buildings by bridges, measures 79,194 square meters and is home to 1.17 million species of plants. The garden also features three trails.

Though the governments and big firms have been showing interest in green architecture over the past several years, it is still difficult for individuals to consider the environmental effect their housing may have.

“I could not really consider green architecture because of the budget,” Kim Su-yeon, who built a house in 2019 in Paju, Gyeonggi Province said. “There were just so many things to consider when building my house, apart from the environment.” 

There is also the big question of what really constitutes environmentally friendly housing.

“There is a neighbor who often talks about how eco-friendly his house is,” a retired office worker with the surname of Kang who built his own house in the Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province said.

Kang was referring to his neighbor who lives in a “passive house,” an ultra-low energy building that requires minimum energy for heating or cooling.

Pointing out that his neighbor heats his house using a special water reserve heating system installed 150 meters underground, Kang asked, “Is that really healthy for the environment?”

“I think it is more environmentally friendly to occupy a minimum possible space for living,” he said.

Published : May 16, 2021

By : The Korea Herald / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000932

Wildlife violations reduced in Huế, Quảng Nam and Đà Nẵng

CENTRAL REGION — At least 86 per cent of advertisements for illegal wildlife products in hotels, restaurants, bars, pet shops and herbal medicine shops in Thừa Thiên-Huế, Đà Nẵng and Quảng Nam were removed by local authorities in 2019 and 2020.

Asurvey from the Education for Nature Việt Nam (ENV) was recently released from a wildlife violation reduction campaign that took place at 1,369 sites in the three localities in 2019 and 2020.

ENV said Đà Nẵng had the highest rate with 94 per cent of violation cases successfully dealt with, while Thừa Thiên-Huế and Quảng Nam followed with 88 per and 77 per cent, respectively.

It said 81 restaurants and herbal medicine shops out of 1,369 sites had made wildlife-related violations, 5.9 per cent, lower than the figures in Hà Nội (11 per cent) and HCM City (8 per cent).

Wildlife-related crimes agencies in the three central localities had effectively punished and seized wildlife products in 23 of total 38 violation cases, saving 27 living animals from restaurants and pet shops.

ENV also said wildlife-related crime agencies had received 51 calls from local residents on wildlife violations in the localities in 2019 and 2020 and 49 cases were then arrested or destroyed, saving living animals in 22 of 38 cases.

The successful prevention of wildlife violations in the region resulted from the efforts of wildlife-related crime agencies during the two-year campaign.

Đà Nẵng was the first city in central Việt Nam to launch the campaign ‘Say No to wildlife consumption’.

Đà Nẵng’s location and traffic connections make it a hub of wildlife trafficking routes from the Central Highlands region to northern provinces.

Thừa Thiên-Huế, Đà Nẵng and Quảng Nam are the richest biodiversity sites in Việt Nam with two conservation centres of saola – the Vũ Quang ox, spindlehorn, or Asian bicorn, the saola – one of the world’s rarest large mammals found only in the Trường Sơn Mountain Range of Việt Nam and Laos.

The region is home to the national parks Bạch Mã in Thừa Thiên-Huế and Sông Thanh in Quảng Nam Province, while Đà Nẵng has Sơn Trà and Bà Nà-Núi Chúa reserves with the largest population of the endangered red-shanked douc langur in Việt Nam. — VNS

Published : May 16, 2021

By : Vietnam News / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000931

CECC pushes epidemic warning to Level 3 in Taipei, New Taipei

TAIPEI (The China Post) — The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC, 中央流行疫情指揮中心) announced that the epidemic warning of Taipei and New Taipei City will be raised to Level 3 from May 15 to 28. 

The upgraded warning level means that all entertainment venues, including but not limited to exhibition centers, movie theaters, gyms, activity centers, music halls, museums, indoor ice-skating arenas, indoor swimming pools, and amusement parks, will be closed for the next two weeks. 

The same is true for education-related venues, study halls, training centers, classes for the elderly, social education institutes, and more.  

Wearing face masks is mandatory outdoors and all unnecessary activities and gatherings should be canceled. 

Indoor gatherings should not exceed five people (not accounting for family members) and outdoor activities should not exceed 10 participants. 

In addition, citizens are asked to monitor their health and seek medical help immediately should virus-related symptoms appear. 

All necessary businesses must control the number of people in their store at all times, requiring that customers wear face masks and maintain social distance. 

In addition, businesses are advised to provide options such as working from home or allow more flexibility in working hours. 

Restaurants that do not provide take-outs, should follow regulations and collect customers’ personal information as well as set up partitions in dining areas and maintain social distance. 

Published : May 16, 2021

By : The China Post / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000930

Japan to donate $4 milion in food aid for crisis-hit Myanmar

Japan will extend $4 million in emergency food aid to Myanmar in response to a humanitarian crisis triggered by the Feb. 1 military coup, according to the Foreign Ministry.

The aid, to be channeled through the UN World Food Program, is expected to cover delivery of food to about 600,000 impoverished people in Yangon, where food supplies have sharply deteriorated following the ouster of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her democratically elected government.

“The latest aid is part of our country’s provision of assistance for humanitarian purposes and is urgently required following the coup,” Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told reporters Friday in Tokyo.

Japan is seeking dialogue with the junta while remaining cautious about joining the United States, Britain and the European Union among others in imposing sanctions on individuals and groups involved in the coup.

Japan believes such punitive measures may drive Myanmar closer to China, a strategic competitor to the United States and its allies in the Indo-Pacific.
 

However, Tokyo has condemned the Myanmar military’s violent crackdown on peaceful protesters and called for a halt to violence, the release of Suu Kyi and other detainees and a return to the democratic process.

The government has put on hold new official development assistance for the Southeastern Asian state in response to the coup.

Meanwhile, the UN agency has warned that up to 3.4 million people will go hungry, especially in urban townships, within the next six months as the current political crisis has added to the hardships of pre-existing poverty and the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are already signs of families in urban centers being pushed to the edge because of serious food shortages.

The average price of cooking oil has increased by 18 percent since February in Yangon and across the country, according to the Rome-based WFP. 

Published : May 16, 2021

By : The Jakarta Post / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000929

Series of bomb blasts hit Mandalay, at least 15 bombs went off: locals

According to locals, there were several bombs that exploded along widely used roads on May 14s evening. They say that blasts occurred along 26th, 35th, 66th, 62nd and 84th roads and that those blasts could be heard from all over the city.

Initial reports say that while some damages to buildings and public property were sustained, no one was hurt. 

Those blasts allegedly occured from between 7pm to 8pm with at least 15 bombs going off, according to a Mandalay local on Facebook. The Daily Eleven was unable to make independent confirmations.

“Even before 7, I heard 3 consecutive bombs going off and more after that. I think there were at least 15 explosions,” said another local.

Photo Credit – CJ

Even before the series of explosions in the evening, locals also claim that there were several explosions in the morning and afternoon at the juvenile court located between 30th and 70th street as well as Mya Yadanar affordable housing complex, which injured two.

Photo Credit – CJ

Photo Credit – CJ

Published : May 16, 2021

By : Eleven Media / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000928

Myanmar army battles anti-coup rebels in north-western town

YANGON (REUTERS) – Myanmars army battled local militia fighters in the north-western town of Mindat on Saturday (May 15), residents said, to try to quell a rebellion that has sprung up to oppose the junta that seized power in the South-east Asian country in February.

The fighting in Mindat, Chin state, underlines the growing chaos in Myanmar as the junta struggles to impose authority in the face of daily protests, strikes and sabotage attacks after overthrowing elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

“We are running for our lives,” one resident told Reuters from Mindat, a hill town just over 100km from the border with India. 

“There are around 20,000 people trapped in town, most of them are kids, old people,” the resident added. “My friend’s three nieces were hit by shrapnel. They are not even teens.”

The junta imposed martial law in Mindat on Thursday and then stepped up attacks on what it called “armed terrorists”. 

A spokesman did not answer calls requesting comment on the fighting on Saturday.

Fighters of the Chinland Defence Force retreated as military reinforcements advanced with artillery bombardments and helicopter attacks, a member of a local administration set up by the junta’s opponents told Reuters by phone. 

There had been civilian casualties, he said, but could not confirm the number. 

Five civilians had been killed in Mindat in the past two days, said Dr Sasa, minister of international cooperation in a shadow National Unity Government set up to rival the junta.

Myanmar already had some two dozen ethnic armed groups, who have waged war for decades against an army dominated by the Bamar majority.

The Chinland Defence Force was set up in response to the coup. 

Reuters was unable to reach the group for comment on Saturday. 

At least 788 people have been killed by the junta’s security forces in crackdowns on protests against its rule, according to an advocacy group. 

The military, which disputes that number, imposes tight restrictions on media, information and the Internet.

Reuters cannot independently verify arrests and casualty numbers. 

Junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun told a news conference that 63 people had been killed recently in what he described as various “terrorist attacks” by the administration’s opponents, appealing to people to inform on the attackers. 

Anti-junta protests were held in the main city of Myanmar and many other towns on Saturday. 

A poet who had criticised military rule had been soaked in gasoline and burned to death in the central town of Monywa on Friday, residents said.

Mr Sein Win was the third poet to be killed in the town, a stronghold of opposition to the junta. 

The army took power alleging fraud in an election won by Suu Kyi’s party in November.

Its claims of irregularities were rejected by the electoral commission. 

At least 788 people have been killed by the junta’s security forces in crackdowns on protests against its rule, according to an advocacy group.

The military, which disputes that number, imposes tight restrictions on media, information and the internet. Reuters cannot independently verify arrests and casualty numbers.

Published : May 16, 2021

By : The Straits Times / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000927

Muhyiddin: UN must act now

PETALING JAYA: The government has expressed regret and disappointment that the international community, especially the United Nations Security Council, has been unable to stop the Israel regime’s violence against the Palestinians.

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the UN Security Council has yet to issue any statement on the current situation in Palestine due to opposition from the United States.“Nevertheless, Malaysia will continue to work to call on the international community, especially the UN Security Council, to act immediately to force Israel to stop its attacks on the Palestinian people, ” he said yesterday during a special televised address on the Palestine-Israel conflict.

He reiterated the Malaysian government’s stand that was always consistent in its strong support of Palestine and the struggle of its people, whether in terms of politics, economics, or morals.

“The best solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict can only be reached through negotiations to ensure lasting regional peace, security and stability, ” he said.

He said that Malaysia is all for a fair and equitable settlement through the two-state solution based on the pre-1967 borders, with Jerusalem the capital of Palestine as the only viable solution to the conflict.

“Malaysia will continue to support all efforts for a just and lasting solution, in particular, through negotiations involving all the relevant parties based on international laws and the relevant UN resolutions, ” he said.

Muhyiddin added that he had spoken with Indonesian President Joko Widodo regarding the current situation in Palestine, where both of them agreed that the regime’s actions should cease immediately.

“We were of similar views that the international community, especially the UN Security Council, should act swiftly to cease all forms of violence committed by Israel, and save the lives of Palestinians.”

Malaysia, together with Indonesia and Brunei, will issue a joint statement to strongly condemn Israel’s oppressive attacks, he said.

He also said that the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will hold a virtual emergency meeting at the foreign ministers’ level to discuss the latest developments today.

Malaysia, he said, would continue to make bilateral contributions towards Palestine in addition to making contributions to other international bodies.

Muhyiddin said that through the Humanitarian Trust Fund for People of Palestine supervised by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Malaysia has contributed US$10,000 (RM41,250) to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in 2020, with the contribution channelled to the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs.

He said that in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, the government has provided one million face masks, 500 face shields and 500,000 rubber gloves to Palestinians, with the products sent via a specially chartered plane to Amman, Jordan in May last year.

He also said that last year, Malaysia contributed US$120,000 (RM495,000) to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in the Near East (UNRWA) for its operations and programmes for the year.

“Malaysia has been consistently providing strong support and contributions to UNRWA since 1978. Since 2015, Malaysia has contributed US$600,000 to UNRWA, ” he added.

He also thanked NGOs in Malaysia and Malaysians on the whole who have always been supportive of the Palestinian people.

“I hope you will continue making contributions to the Palestinians through legitimate charitable funds created for this purpose. All your efforts and contributions are very meaningful for them.

“Let us all pray for the well-being of Palestinians who are now being victimised and oppressed by the Zionist regime, ” he said.

“May the Palestinians be protected from cruelty of this tyrannical regime and Israel’s occupation of Palestine land will soon end.”

To date, more than 130 Palestinians have been reportedly killed with hundreds more injured as a result of the violence.

The Al-Aqsa mosque has been attacked since May 7 while Gaza has been bombarded by military airstrikes since May 10.

Published : May 16, 2021

By : The Star / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000926

Chinese FM expounds on Chinas position on Palestinian-Israeli conflict

BEIJING – Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday expounded on Chinas position on the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict during a phone talk with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

In recent days, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has continuously escalated, causing huge casualties, which is distressing, said Wang, before presenting China’s views and proposals on the issue.

First, Wang said, the root cause of the deterioration of the situation is that for a long time there has not been a just solution to the Palestinian issue.

Especially, in recent years, the Middle East peace process has deviated from its original track, the UN Security Council resolutions have not been earnestly implemented and, in particular, the Palestinian right to build an independent state has been continuously violated, adding to the plight of the Palestinian people, which has led to the intensification of the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation and repeated conflicts, Wang said.

As has been proven, Wang noted, without a just settlement of the Palestinian issue, Palestine and Israel as well as the Middle East will not be able to achieve true peace.

Second, Wang said, what is pressing now is the ceasefire and cessation of violence, and the Security Council has the responsibility to seek early de-escalation.

China, as the president of the Security Council for May, has pushed the Council to hold two emergency consultations on the Palestine-Israel conflict, and has drafted a press statement, in a bid to guide the Council to take actions, he added.

But regrettably, the Council has so far failed to reach an agreement, with the United States standing on the opposite side of international justice, Wang said, urging all members of the Council to shoulder their due responsibilities and make effective efforts to maintain regional peace and security.

Third, Wang said, an ultimate way out of the Palestinian issue lies in the implementation of the two-state solution. China will host an open debate on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict at the UN Security Council Sunday, and expects all parties to make a unified voice on this issue.

China holds the opinion that the Security Council should reconfirm the two-state solution and urge Palestine and Israel to resume peace talks on the basis of the two-state solution as soon as possible, Wang added.

China will continue to firmly support the just cause of the Palestinian people to strive for the restoration of their legitimate national rights, support a just solution to the current issue through political dialogue, and support the UN, the League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in playing a constructive role in this regard, Wang said.

For his part, Qureshi said that Pakistan agrees with China’s position on the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict, supports the two-state solution and the just cause of the Palestinian people, and advocates promoting a solution through dialogue and negotiation between the Palestinian and Israeli sides.

Noting Pakistan highly appreciates China for upholding justice in the Security Council, Qureshi said his country is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with China to find ways to achieve a ceasefire and cessation of violence as well as to cool down the situation.

Published : May 16, 2021

By : China Daily / ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000904

Giant thermometer set up in ‘Japan’s hottest city’

KUMAGAYA, Saitama — “Japan’s hottest city” has again installed a 4-meter-tall thermometer for the summer.

The famed thermometer, installed Friday in front of Yagihashi department store in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture, has been displayed every summer since it was first set up 14 years ago. It is scheduled to remain there through the end of August.

After the local weather bureau announces the temperature at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., the thermometer is adjusted manually to reflect the reading.

Many people came to take photographs of the thermometer when the temperature hit 41.1C in 2018, the highest temperature ever recorded in Japan, matched in 2020 by Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture.

“Please be more careful than last year about the coronavirus pandemic and heat stroke due to the wearing of masks,” said an executive officer of the department store.

Published : May 15, 2021

By : The Japan News/ANN

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40000902

S. Korea, US seek talks with Japan amid new NK policy

Senior South Korean and US defense officials agreed to hold three-way minister-level talks with Japan in the coming days, potentially to discuss security issues involving the Korean Peninsula, at a two-day dialogue that ended Thursday in Washington, DC.

The trilateral talks, which last opened at an expanded meeting of ASEAN defense ministers in 2019, are expected to resume at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on June 4-5.

The gathering is coming at a critical time for the US seeking to engage North Korea with a new policy on the back of a coalition of its two top Asian allies. Seoul-Tokyo relations are at their worst in decades over long-simmering disputes involving Japan’s 1910-1945 occupation of Korea.

North Korea, which has rebuffed diplomatic entreaties from the US, insists on easing sanctions over its nuclear and weapons program, making “practical progress” the US is looking to find at fresh nuclear talks more elusive.

At the biannual dialogue, Seoul and Washington also agreed that their joint military drills are key to ensuring a robust readiness against North Korean aggression, with the US reaffirming its commitment to providing “extended deterrence,” reinforcements such as nuclear weapons and latest defense systems.

The two allies said they will seek a conditions-based transfer of wartime operational control. Korea is planning to retake it from the US that has been responsible for it since the 1950-53 Korean War, which still leaves the two Koreas at war.

Seoul, which first demonstrated its readiness in 2019 and has to do the same two more times to assume the command, was planning to do so during the August drills this year and March drills next year, but Washington has reservations. The US is reluctant since the biannual drills do not involve mobilizing troops on the ground.

The next meeting opens later this year in Seoul.

Published : May 15, 2021

By : Choi Si-young/The Korea Herald/ANN