COLOMBO, Sri Lanka: A group led by Buddhist monks mobbed a United Nations-run safe house for Rohingya Muslims claiming that they were terrorists and demanding they be sent back to Myanmar, prompting police to relocate them.
Dozens of protesters from Sri Lanka’s majority Buddhist community led a mob that entered a multi-storied house at Mount Lavinia on the outskirts of the Sri Lankan capital on Tuesday.
Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara said about 30 Rohingya Muslims were moved to a safe location following the protest led by monks and lay persons. Sri Lanka’s majority Sinahlese are Buddhists.
Gunasekara said Rohingya Muslims were arrested by Navy in April when they tried to illegally enter Sri Lanka. A court had ordered them be kept at a safe location run by the UN.
Hard-line Sri Lanka Buddhists mob attack Rohingya refugees
Hard-line Sri Lanka Buddhists mob attack Rohingya refugees
Customer preferences shifting toward pret fashion affect tailoring businesses
- Customer preferences shifting toward pret fashion affect tailoring businesses
- Women say they prefer pret for its convenience, affordability and accessibility over custom tailoring
ISLAMABAD: With a measuring tape draped around his neck, Muhammad Shafiq cut through a piece of fabric, expertly following the yellow chalk markings he had made according to the exact size of a client.
Each year, the demand for custom-made clothing skyrockets in the run-up to the Muslim festivals of Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha, with tailoring shops in Islamabad and other cities in Pakistan bustling with women eager to get their dresses made in time.
The exercise requires long shopping trips to malls and bazaars to buy cloth in various fabrics and prints, or ordering them online, and then giving them to tailors to fashion into outfits per customized measurements and styles.
But in the past few years, many tailoring businesses have had to contend with a growing preference for ready-to-wear fashion, chosen for its convenience, affordability, and accessibility, allowing women and men alike to easily find stylish and fashionable garments without the need for custom tailoring or extensive shopping trips.
“It’s not that there is no work at all but earlier we would have advance bookings almost a month before Eid,” Shafiq, 53, who has been a tailor for four decades, told Arab News at his cramped shop in the Pakistani capital earlier this month.
“But now it’s down to about 10 days (of advanced bookings). Many people don’t have the time to get clothes stitched and opt for boutique-made, ready-to-wear outfits.”
Convenience
Ready-to-wear clothing is widely available at Pakistani stores, department stores, and online platforms, making it easier to find and purchase. Pret collections also often reflect current fashion trends, allowing consumers to stay up to date with the latest styles. And instead of scheduling fittings and waiting for custom-made garments, consumers can simply try on and buy ready-to-wear pieces on the go.
Arslan Haider, a designer and store manager, said boutiques and designer brands were certainly reshaping fashion preferences on holidays like Eid.
“During events like Eid, the market sees a surge in business and new fashion trends emerge in stores, which helps businesses flourish,” Haider told Arab News.
But tailoring is still a cheaper option in some cases, he said, and the older generation, more concerned with the perfect fitting, preferred bespoke clothing while younger people were more inclined toward pret.
“Stitched clothes come with stylish designs and they eliminate the need for multiple visits to tailors to provide measurements and other accessories,” Haider said, adding that convenience was a serious consideration for many customers.
“Unstitched clothes require at least seven to eight days with a tailor, and there’s always a risk of error. With stitched clothing, customers get a standardized product, whether they buy online or from a store,” he said.
Farida Qureshi, a UK-based customer visiting Pakistan for Eid, said she preferred ready-to-wear fashion because it saved time and effort. Getting an outfit stitched, on the other hand, did not just require buying the cloth and visiting the tailor, but also purchasing matching accessories such as lace, beads and buttons, which was a time-consuming task.
“Finding everything in one place, ready-made is far easier than visiting different shops and then waiting for a tailor,” Qureshi said.
But there are still those who want the personalized touch of a tailor on their Eid dresses.
“I do buy ready-made clothes, but I often face size issues,” Qureshi said. “With my tailor, I get exactly what I want.”
Which is why business still thrives for many tailors like Shafiq, who work up to 16 hours a day during Ramadan to complete Eid orders.
“Some people want a perfect fit, something that ready-made clothes can’t always provide,” he said.
“I have customers who have been coming to me for years because they know I already have their measurements and can tailor their Eid clothes exactly to their liking.”
Myanmar quake death toll rises to 1,644 as resistance movement announces partial ceasefire
- The figure was a sharp rise compared to the 1,002 announced just hours earlier, highlighting the difficulty of confirming casualties over a widespread region
- In neighboring Thailand, the death toll rose to 17 after the quake rocked the greater Bangkok area, home to around 17 million people, and other parts of the country
BANGKOK: A unilateral partial ceasefire to facilitate earthquake relief efforts was announced on Saturday by Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government, which coordinates the popular struggle against the ruling military. The country’s death toll from the disaster soared to 1,644.
The figure was a sharp rise compared to the 1,002 announced just hours earlier, highlighting the difficulty of confirming casualties over a widespread region and the likelihood that the numbers will continue to grow from Friday’s 7.7 magnitude quake. The number of injured increased to 3,408, while the missing figure rose to 139.
THE NUMBER OF DEAD ALSO RISES IN THAILAND
In neighboring Thailand, the death toll rose to 17. The quake rocked the greater Bangkok area, home to around 17 million people, and other parts of the country. Many places in the north reported damage, but the only casualties were reported in Bangkok.
Of the death toll, 10 were killed in the high rise building near famous Chatuchak market that collapsed, while the rest were killed in seven other sites. Authorities in Bangkok said 83 people were unaccounted for.
On Saturday, more heavy equipment was brought in to move the tons of rubble, but hope was fading among friends and relatives.
“I was praying that that they had survived, but when I got here and saw the ruin — where could they be? said 45-year-old Naruemol Thonglek, sobbing as she awaited news about her partner, who is from Myanmar, and five friends who worked at the site.
AID EFFORTS IN MYANMAR HINDERED BY DAMAGE TO AIRPORTS
In Myanmar, rescue efforts so far are focused on the major stricken cities of Mandalay, the country’s No. 2 city, and Naypyitaw, the capital.
But even though teams and equipment have been flown in from other nations, they are hindered by damage to airports. Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analyzed by The Associated Press show that the earthquake toppled the air traffic control tower at Naypyitaw International Airport as if sheered from its base.
It wasn’t immediately clear if there had been any casualties from its collapse.
MYANMAR’S CIVIL WAR ALSO AN OBSTACLE
Another major complication is the civil war roiling much of the country, including the quake-affected areas. In 2021, the military seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking what has since turned into significant armed resistance.
Government forces have lost control of much of Myanmar, and many places are incredibly dangerous or simply impossible for aid groups to reach. More than 3 million people have been displaced by the fighting and nearly 20 million are in need, according to the United Nations.
The interplay of politics and disaster was demonstrated Saturday night, when Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government announced a unilateral partial ceasefire to facilitate earthquake relief efforts.
It said its armed wing, the People’s Defense Force, will implement a two-week pause in offensive military operations starting Sunday in earthquake-affected areas and it would also collaborate with the UN and international nongovernmental organizations “to ensure security, transportation, and the establishment of temporary rescue and medical camps,” in the areas it controls.
The resistance organization said it reserved the right to fight back in defense if attacked.
EXTENSIVE DAMAGE IN CITIES
The earthquake struck midday Friday with an epicenter not far from Mandalay, followed by several aftershocks, including one measuring 6.4. It sent buildings in many areas toppling to the ground, buckled roads and caused bridges to collapse.
In Naypyitaw, crews worked Saturday to repair damaged roads, while electricity, phone and Internet services remained down for most of the city. The earthquake brought down many buildings, including multiple units that housed government civil servants, but that section of the city was blocked off by authorities on Saturday.
An initial report on earthquake relief efforts issued Saturday by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that it’s allocating $5 million from a Central Emergency Response Fund for “life-saving assistance.”
The immediate planned measures include a convoy of 17 cargo trucks carrying critical shelter and medical supplies from China that is expected to arrive on Sunday, it said.
It noted the severe damage or destruction of many health facilities, and warned of a “severe shortage of medical supplies is hampering response efforts, including trauma kits, blood bags, anaesthetics, assistive devices, essential medicines, and tents for health workers.”
ALLIES BRINGING IN RESCUE CREWS AND RELIEF MATERIALS
Myanmar’s friends and neighbors have already brought in rescue personnel and relief materials. China and Russia are the largest suppliers of weapons to Myanmar’s military, and were among the first to step in with humanitarian aid.
In a country where prior governments sometimes have been slow to accept foreign aid, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, head of the military government, said that Myanmar was ready to accept outside assistance.
China said it has sent more than 135 rescue personnel and experts along with supplies like medical kits and generators, and pledged around $13.8 million in emergency aid. Russia’s Emergencies Ministry said that it had flown in 120 rescuers and supplies, and the country’s Health Ministry said Moscow had sent a medical team to Myanmar.
Other countries like India, South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore are also sending help, and US President Donald Trump said Friday that Washington was going to help with the response.
The ceasefire plan announced by the opposition National Unity Government also proposed to provide health care professionals loyal to its resistance movement to work with international humanitarian organizations to deliver emergency rescue and medical services in areas under the military’s control, if provided with safety guarantees.
The military has heavily restricted much-needed aid efforts to the large population already displaced by war even before the earthquake. Sympathizers of the resistance have urged that relief efforts incorporate aid freely transported to areas under the control of the resistance, so it can’t be weaponized by the army.
There was no immediate comment by the military to the announcement.
Military forces continued their attacks even after the quake, with three airstrikes in northern Kayin state, also called Karenni state, and southern Shan — both of which border Mandalay state, said Dave Eubank, a former US Army Special Forces soldier who founded the Free Burma Rangers, a private aid organization.
Eubank told the AP that in the area he was operating in, most villages have already been destroyed by the military so the earthquake had little impact.
“People are in the jungle and I was out in the jungle when the earthquake hit — it was powerful, but the trees just moved, that was it for us, so we haven’t had a direct impact other than that the Burma army keeps attacking, even after the quake,” he said.
Earthquakes are rare in Bangkok, but relatively common in Myanmar. The country sits on the Sagaing Fault, a major north-south fault that separates the India plate and the Sunda plate.
Brian Baptie, a seismologist with the British Geological Survey, said that the quake caused intense ground shaking in an area where most of the population lives in buildings constructed of timber and unreinforced brick masonry.
“When you have a large earthquake in an area where there are over a million people, many of them living in vulnerable buildings, the consequences can often be disastrous,” he said in a statement.
South Korea, China, Japan to strengthen regional trade as Trump tariffs loom
- South Korean, Japanese economies rely on auto exports to the US
- East Asian neighbors to speed up negotiations for a trilateral free trade pact
SEOUL: South Korea, China and Japan agreed to expand trade cooperation on Sunday, ahead of US President Donald Trump’s plans to impose reciprocal tariffs.
South Korean Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun met with Japanese Trade Minister Yoji Muto and Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Seoul for the first trilateral meeting among the three countries since 2019.
They agreed to speed up negotiations toward a trilateral free trade agreement, which have not progressed since talks first began in 2012.
“We will continue discussions to accelerate trilateral FTA negotiations with the goal of realizing a fair, comprehensive and high-quality FTA that is mutually beneficial,” the ministers said in a joint statement issued after the meeting.
Ahn said cooperation among the three countries was necessary amid “the rapidly changing global economic and trade” environment.
“There is a need for the three countries to cooperate on the basis of mutual respect and trust, in order to create a more stable environment for global trade and investment,” Ahn said during his opening remarks at the meeting.
Ahn and his counterparts also agreed to strengthen the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a trade framework among 15 Asia-Pacific countries aimed at lowering trade barriers, and to expand collaboration in rising industries, including renewable energy and digital transformation.
Sunday’s trilateral meet comes ahead of Trump’s expected announcement of “reciprocal tariffs” on April 2. US officials have previously cited China and South Korea as countries with whom Washington has had “persistent trade deficits.”
On Wednesday, Trump unveiled a 25 percent tariff on all cars and auto parts shipped to the US that is set to take effect on April 3. The move could deal a heavy blow to South Korea and Japan’s economies, which rely on auto exports to the North American country.
After Mexico, South Korea is the world’s largest exporter of vehicles to the US, followed by Japan, according to data from S&P.
“South Korea and Japan in particular are trying to decrease pressures from the US by increasing trade volume with China and Japan,” Park Duck-bae, an economics adjunct professor at Sungkyunkwan University, told Arab News.
“Since they are all facing similar threats from the US, they are getting together to pool their response to the US tariff policies.”
By increasing cooperation with South Korea and Japan, Beijing will be able to strengthen its position in the region, said Moon Heung-ho, an expert on China and honorary professor at the Graduate School of International Studies in Hanyang University.
“China is trying to exert its influence in the Middle East and Central Asia, but it is difficult due to the presence of the US and Russia. They are trying to cozy up with their neighbors first … The fact that the statement stresses norms like multilateralism and free trade is part of China’s strategy to claim the upper hand in its power struggle with the US,” Moon told Arab News.
“Increasing cooperation and driving a wedge between the US and its traditional allies, like South Korea and Japan, is an important win for China.”
China, Japan and South Korea are among Asia’s five largest economies, with the first two holding the top positions, as per gross domestic product. The three countries make up about 20 percent of the world’s population.
Thailand, Myanmar race to find earthquake survivors as death toll tops 1,700
- China, Malaysia among countries dispatching rescue teams to Myanmar
- Bangkok authorities are still trying to rescue survivors from a collapsed building
BANGKOK: Thai and Burmese rescue teams were racing against time on Sunday in a desperate search for survivors, two days after a massive earthquake struck Myanmar and killed more than 1,700 people.
The 7.7-magnitude quake hit midday Friday with an epicenter near Myanmar’s second-largest city, Mandalay, destroying scores of buildings and cultural sites and damaging other vital infrastructure, including the local airport.
The extensive damage in a country ravaged by civil war was hampering relief efforts, as the death toll in Myanmar rose to around 1,700 people on Sunday, according to a statement issued by the ruling junta, with about 3,400 others injured and 300 more missing.
“What we’re seeing right now is unexpected, and I cannot imagine what that means for people who are living in those areas,” Marie Manrique, acting head of delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross in Myanmar, said in a video statement.
Mandalay, Sagaing, Naypyidaw and Bago are the hardest-hit areas, she said, but impacts of the earthquakes were also felt in Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon.
“Many people in the city of Yangon … have not had electricity or running water since the day of the earthquake. So that just gives us a good impression on what the situation is on ground zero in Mandalay and Sagaing,” she said.
Local news outlet Myanmar Now said that crematoriums in Mandalay were “struggling to cope” due to a surge in fatalities.
“Major cemeteries … are overwhelmed, with bodies piling up as families seek to cremate their deceased,” a report from the publication reads.
Foreign aid and international rescue teams have started arriving in Myanmar after the military issued a rare plea for help as the nation grappled with the deadliest natural disaster to hit the country in years.
In neighboring Thailand, authorities said the tremors had killed at least 18 people, with videos posted on social media showing water surging from pools atop high-rise hotels and apartments, while one clip showed a dramatic collapse of a 30-story structure that was under construction.
At least 10 people died on that site alone, which is near the city’s Chatuchak Park.
Bangkok authorities were concentrating their rescue operation on that location, as 78 people remain unaccounted for.
“I would like to confirm that we are doing our best because I believe that there is still a chance to find survivors inside,” Bangkok Gov. Chadchart Sittipunt said at a press conference.
There is a critical 72-hour window to reach those trapped, with some thought to be meters underground.
Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said in a statement that the operation is being expedited “by utilizing international tools and experts to scan for vital signs.”
The statement read: “The height of the debris is approximately 20 meters, and the tools are capable of accurately scanning positions and relaying information to experts stationed on a crane basket … The search and rescue operation is now focused on the top, with officers racing against time.”
Friday’s earthquake was a shock for Bangkok residents like Paiboon Auengkongkatong, 34, who had never experienced such tremors.
“I never experienced this before … I’ve always stayed in Bangkok my whole life. This is the first time,” he told Arab News.
Auengkongkatong was at a restaurant on the seventh floor of the Central Rama 9 mall when the quake hit. With a group of friends, he then began running toward the fire escape.
“When we were going down, the building was shaking and the walls were cracking,” he said. “Some stones were falling down; that was really, really scary because I didn’t know if it was going to collapse.”
Taliban leader says there is no need for Western laws in Afghanistan
- The Taliban leader says there is no need for Western laws in Afghanistan and that democracy was dead as long as sharia laws are in effect
- Hibatullah Akhundzada made the remarks Sunday in a sermon marking the Islamic holiday of Eid Al-Fitr in the southern city of Kandahar
The Taliban leader said Sunday there was no need for Western laws in Afghanistan and that democracy was dead as long as sharia laws are in effect.
Hibatullah Akhundzada made the comments in a sermon marking the Islamic holiday of Eid Al-Fitr, in the southern city of Kandahar’s Eidgah Mosque. The 50-minute audio of his message was published on X by the Taliban government’s chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.
“There is no need for laws that originate from the West. We will create our own laws,” Akhundzada said, speaking in Pashto, while emphasizing the importance of Islamic laws.
The Taliban’s interpretation of sharia has led to bans on Afghan women and girls, who have been excluded them from education, many jobs and most public spaces. Such measures have isolated the Taliban on the world stage, although they have established diplomatic ties with countries including China and the United Arab Emirates.
Akhundzada has taken a stronger hand in directing policy since the Taliban seized control of the country in 2021, despite some officials initially promising a more moderate rule.
Akhundzada on Sunday criticized the West, saying non-believers had united against Muslims and that the US and others were united in their hostility toward Islam, citing the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Democracy had come to an end in Afghanistan and sharia was in effect, he said, adding that supporters of democracy were trying to separate the people from the Taliban government.
The Taliban have no credible opposition inside or outside the country, but some senior figures within the administration have criticized the leadership’s decision-making process and concentration of power in Akhundzada’s circle.
Some Taliban want greater engagement with the international community and scrapping harsher policies to attract more outside support. In recent months, however, there has been increased engagement between the Taliban and the US under President Donald Trump, mostly because of prisoner exchanges and releases.
