Thaksin Shinawatra - Top-Crook lands Top Job

Criminal fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra was appointed senior governmental adviser for economics in Cambodia. Thaksin, responsible also for vast environmental destruction, the persecution of the Akha people and sick ventures like the Chian-Mai Night-Zoo for which he wanted to steal wildlife from Kenya must be attractive to the Cambodians because the economy of the crooks seems to rule today's world.

Thailand on Monday accused ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra of offending the country's monarchy, stepping up pressure on the fugitive tycoon as he prepares for a provocative trip to neighboring Cambodia. The Thai government also said it was preparing a formal extradition request for Thaksin, who was toppled in a 2006 coup, when he visits Phnom Penh this week in his new capacity as economics adviser to the Cambodian leadership.

ASEAN said on Monday that the conflict between Thailand and Cambodia has triggered anxiety in the organisation. ''This is not just a border dispute any more because it has caused anxiety in ASEAN and could affect the image and profile of the body,'' the Secretary-General of ASEAN Surin Pitsuwan told ambassadors for the organisation in Jakarta.