foreigners

If you are a woman and you are visiting an Islamic nation such as Turkey, Egypt or Morocco - then expect a serious level of sexual harassment – when it comes to women Muslim men are out of control - literally. Unless you're going to net one of these men/toy boys - for the holiday period - the harassment can reach extreme levels. This can involve badgering for sex (after 1 minute of meeting), mar

Real Estate in Sharm is developing a terrible reputation on the net. There are some good stories but unfortunately there are also many forums (see article below) with hundreds of people like us who are desperate and frustrated and totally let down. Not to mention seriously out of money specially for the ones living and working in Sharm. Real Estate Agent are selling you the complex "off plan" giv

"The University for Foreigners Perugia is the oldest and most prestigious italian institution involved in teaching and research activities as well as in the diffusion of the Italian language and civilisation in all expressions" .That is the incipit of Universty for Foreigners' site. Theses words saids to all what means to study here. There are courses very quikly to learn Italian language and cu

Disclaimer: I take responsibility in whatever I said, as per my knowledge, experience and understanding, but I do not take responsibility in any damage in any way at any time to anyone done prior to digesting posts like this. I never advertised, encouraged or hyped anyone to continue reading this -- As I know some elements here may be offensive. I do not endorse such write-ups nor do I promote thi

Businesses in central Khanh Hoa province and neighbouring localities are introducing their products at an exhibition-cum-fair in the beach resort city of Nha Trang – the venue of the Miss Universe 2008 beauty pageant. On display at 50 booths are products made from salangane nests, fish sauce, mineral water, interior decorations, handicrafts and ostrich eggs, which are local specialties. Foreig

As of July 1, around 11,431 foreign investors had joined the stock exchange, including 742 institutes and 10,689 individuals, according to the Viet... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Three foreigners are among 18 passengers and crew who are missing after a military transport plane went down in thick jungle in West Java, the Indonesian Air Force spokesman said Friday."Twelve people are from the military and six are civilians including three foreign nationals from Britain, India and Singapore," spokesman Chaeruddin Ray he told AFP.The Casa C-212 transport plane disappeared from

To continue the TOEFL discussion.. Every once in a while some one would come up to me on the street, usually Taiwanese males in their 30s or 40s, and ask me to give them private English tutoring. I find that extremely peculiar that : They assume, just by looking at me, that I have good [...]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND7.9 billion ($480, 243) of Vietnamese stocks Monday out of a total of VND237 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange said. Volume traded totaled 9.8 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 7.8% of the total, according to the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other conte

The Egyptian authorities have banned a 92-year-old man from marrying a 17-year-old girl, the Egyptian al-Akhbar newspaper has reported. The ministry of justice invoked a law which says the age gap between spouses should not exceed 25 years. Egypt brought in the law prohibiting the marriage of elderly men to very young girls during the [...]

David Fernandez, head of emerging markets research at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in Singapore, comments on Vietnamese stocks. Fernandez spoke in a Bloomberg Television interview today. The VN Index, a measure of 151 companies on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange, fell 1.61% to 373 today, the lowest since Feb. 23, 2006.... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other cont

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND3.7 billion ($231, 350) of Vietnamese stocks Thursday, out of a total of VND36.5 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 1.3 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 30.2% of the total, according to the stock market operator.... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other con

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND17.2 billion ($ 1.07 million) of Vietnamese stocks Wednesday, out of a total of VND45.48 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 1.3 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 33%, the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content,

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND4.4 billion ($275, 600) of Vietnamese stocks Tuesday, out of a total VND32.5 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 1.09 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 28.4% of the total, according to the stock market operator.... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other conten

With the state government ‘banning foreigners from buying properties in the state’, local builders have fine tuned their strategies and are promoting five-year leases among tourists. There are no official figures to prove the trend, but lawyers and builders agree that this is definitely increasing, with several builders from the state organizing road shows and exhibitions [...]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND49.6 billion ($3.1 million) of Vietnamese stocks Friday, out of a total of VND114.5 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 4.7 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 48.9% , the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, an

The investigating officer of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has completed the inquiry and submitted the report to the Adjudicating Authority in 12 cases of foreigners having violated provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) while buying land in Goa. The investigation officer A K Singh, who is the assistant director of Enforcement Directorate, has submitted [...]

There is one key thing that the U.S. Dollar weakness could bring about if the dollar stays where it is. If it continues its slide next year even though our... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

The resolution passed May 22 limits ownership to foreigners who meet specific residence and professional criteria, according to the official Vietnam News Agency. And eligible buyers will be allowed to purchase only apartments, not houses or land.Under the new rules, individuals who qualify include expatriates investing in the country, foreigners married to Vietnamese and those with university degr

Foreign investors showed great faith in Vietnamese stocks, heavily buying shares offloaded by local players this month, brokers said. The VN-Index of 154 listed companies on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange tumbled every day over the past three weeks, losing more than 18 percent, to close at 428.05 points on Friday. So... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other co

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND57 billion ($3.56 million) of Vietnamese stocks Friday, out of a total VND267 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 4.95 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 31% of the total, according to the stock market operator. (Dow... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other co

Members of a Somali community in Johannesburg charge the police fired on them during the course of fighting in Gauteng. At least 42 people have been killed and over 17,000 displaced since violence began against foreigners in South Africa. Tension is mounting among foreigners who believe they have not received suffficient protection from the police [...]

Viet Nam plans to allow foreigners to own apartments, but not houses, in the country, starting from early next year, the communist government said on its official website Friday. The national assembly approved the project on a five-year trial basis for certain foreign individuals and organisations in a vote on Thursday. Foreigners eligible will include those married to Vietnamese citizens,

(Dow Jones)- Foreign investors were net buyers of VND113 billion ($7.07 million) of Vietnamese stocks Thursday, out of a total of VND487 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 2.88 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 36%, the stock market operator said. [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND57.7 billion ($3.6 million) of Vietnamese stocks Wednesday, out of a total VND112.7 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 2.6 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 62% of the total, according to the stock market operator.... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other co

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND64.5 billion ($4 million) of Vietnamese stocks Monday, out of a total of VND146 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 3.5 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 49.7% , according to the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content

  What a damn shame!!!!! And you could think we’ve learned something from Apartheid… Thirteen people were murdered in xenophobic attacks across Gauteng over the weekend, police said on Monday. This after a person was shot dead in Alexandra on Sunday night, said Director Govindsamy Mariemuthoo. This number excludes two more deaths reported in Tembisa on the East Rand, which [...]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND25.6 billion ($1.6 million) of Vietnamese stocks Friday, out of a total of VND325 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 8.1 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 18.7% of the total, according to the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other cont

By-election tactics are backfiring and Marxists are having their names cleared, this week on the blogsBy-Curious The by-election in Crewe and Nantwich was causing a stir this week, whilst candidates were being slotted into place for the contest in the Henley-on-Thames seat vacated by Boris Johnson. Labour desperately need to hold Gwyneth Dunwoody's former constituency, but some activists vented th

Profesor Philip Alson, the UN sspecial rapporteur on illegal killings, belives secret Afghan death squads are operating under the orders of foreign intelligence agencies and they are not frightened by the police or members of the armed forces. Alston said the attacks were beyond the legitimate military chains of command and they were “completely unacceptable” [...]

There are many factors that indirectly support bank share prices. Foreign investors, still believing in domestic banks, continue to buy bank shares. The prices of king shares (a term used to denote bank shares) have been dramatically decreasing on the official stock market since early May with prices now below face... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other cont

From the World Tribune : At least 200 Syrians have reportedly been sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia. Human rights groups said nearly half of all executions in Saudi Arabia during the past year were of foreigners. Some 158 people were executed in 2007. On April 17, Saudi Arabia beheaded two Syrians in Tabouk prison. Both men, identified as Feras Al Aghbar and Feras Al Maktabi, were accused of

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND27 billion ($1.7 million) of Vietnamese stocks Thursday, out of a total of VND57.2 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 1.37 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 44.8% of the total, according to the stock market... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, a

The African National Congress came out with a strong message of support for foreigners living in their nation. Due to unsettled conditions in many parts of the African continent, thousands have come to South Africa in search of safety and work. During the past several months there have been a series of xenophobic attacks on [...]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND3.9 billion ($244, 540) of Vietnamese stocks Tuesday, out of a total of VND39.9 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 1.06 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 23.4%, said the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and mo

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND51.6 billion ($3.2 million) of Vietnamese stocks Friday out of a total VND127 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 2.78 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 37.1% of the total, according to the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND121.2 billion ($ 7.58 million) of Vietnamese stocks Thursday out of a total VND304 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 5.4 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 57.7% of the total, the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND108 billion ($6.8 million) of Vietnamese stocks Tuesday out of a total VND253 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 5 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 50% of the total, the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND44.3 billion ($ 2.77 million) of Vietnamese stocks Monday out of a total VND227.4 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 4.8 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 24.4% of the total, the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Driving in Japan legally has recently afforded new challenges to foreigners from China, Brazil and the United States. Released in November 2002 and updated in February 2003, Traffic Act Article 107-2, has begun to create many problems for foreigners. Until June 2002, Foreigners driving in Japan (who held a valid drivers license from their home country) could apply for an international driving permit (IDP) and drive in Japan permanently. Since that time however, IDPs are only valid for one year. If a foreigner stays in Japan for more than one year and decides to reapply for an IDP, they would have to leave Japan for at least 90 days in order for the IDP to be legal upon their return. Those visiting Japan for a short time, of course IDPs are the way to go. They are quite cheap (around $10

With a strong economy comes great expansion and an improved life style. This concept has remained true throughout history, countries with strong financials are able to remain a float and offer its citizens a good life style compared to countries where the economy is weak and under-developed. Countries such as China are highly developed and have strong financials mostly due to the massive production of goods which are exported to several countries across the globe. From candles all the way to cars, China manufactures every single part needed to make things work and to ensure jobs within its domain which is why this country has experienced an increase in the amount of foreigners who travel there in order to get a better job compared to the ones they got at their home country. If you already

Send away foreigners and jobs for locals go too: Singapore PM  He says foreigners let businesses offer better service, add value to economy By Sue-Ann Chia  THE simmering discontent on the part of some locals towards foreign workers got an airing from none other than Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday. ‘They are not here to steal our jobs, [...]

The case on the kidnapping of Chinese nationals in Gayo district of Indonesia's Aceh province may pose an obstacle to investment in that region, a local senior official said. "I think the law needs to deal with the kidnapping case as it will disrupt investment and the economy in Aceh," Antara news agency Wednesday quoted Aceh Vice Governor Muhammad Nazar as saying in Banda Aceh, capital of Aceh province. Last Saturday, seven workers from a Chinese company were kidnapped by gunmen in Gayo district, and they all were released on Tuesday. To prevent such incident from recurring in the future, Nazar proposed that any investor interested in doing business in Aceh needs to hire security guards or officials of the security agencies when carrying out a field survey. "From the very the begi

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND131 billion ($8.2 million) of Vietnamese stocks Monday, out of a total of VND289 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 8.9 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 32.9%, according to the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

The answer is Yes and No but before I explain the law , it is importanat to understand that here foreigner means a person not domiciled in India .The answer is NO in case of following persons?Those persons who are not domiciled in India and who come to India on tourist visa or for any purpose other than business,employment or who have no source of income in India , They are not required to obtain a tax clearance certificate from income tax department before leaving India.The answer is YES in case of following persons?The answer is Yes in case the person not domiciled in India visits India for any business purpose or employment or has any source of income in India . Subsection 1 of Section 230 of the I T Act is very clear on this which is given as under :no person,(a) who is not domiciled

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND131.2 billion ($ 8.22 million) of Vietnamese stocks Monday, out of a total VND262 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 5.2 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 45% of the total, according to the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

The Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HOSE) today April 21 opened a new week by seeing another fall on the stock market when the VN Index slipped another 2.39 points or 0.44% to end at 534.92 pts with the total matching order trade of 5,289,080 shares and fund certificates worth nearly 261.659 billion dong, decreasing... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

A reportr fo the Prague Post recently accmpanied a friend who came abroad to the Foriegner’s Police headquarters in Pragu. The collegue set down her child for a moment to get something and the child was accidentally pushed causing her to cry. A police officer came over to her friend and threatened if she ever [...]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND173.3 billion ($ 10.86 million) of Vietnamese stocks Friday, out of a total VND499 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 9.9 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 38.8% of the total, according to the stock market operator. (Dow... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

The free Swiss tabloid 20 Minuten ran an article yesterday titled “Umzug in die Schweiz: Geld is nicht in her Hauptgrund (Moving to Switzerland: Money is not the Main Reason)” published on page 11. Here’s the English translation of the article, courtesy of my translator-husband: BERN. The beautiful country, better job prospects and the nice people are [...]

The majority of the National Assembly’s Economic Committee agreed with the NA’s draft resolution on allowing foreigners to purchase homes in Viet Nam. The Committee examined the resolution at its plenary session in Hanoi on April 10. Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Tran Nam said the figure of 80,000 foreign nationals entering Viet Nam to work and live between 2004 and 2007, pointed out

Many Viet Kieu in the US have found a new type of business: they borrow money in the US and remit the money to Viet Nam to their relatives, who deposit the money in Vietnamese banks to enjoy profit from the interest rate gaps. However, this kind of business is still not protected under Vietnamese laws. Across-border... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND147.8 billion ($ 9.26 million) of Vietnamese stocks Wednesday, out of a total VND536 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 10.9 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 26.5% of the total, according to the stock market operator. (Dow... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND1.65 billion ($ 103,340) of Vietnamese stocks Friday, out of a total of VND40.6 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume was 832,740 shares, with foreigners accounting for 5.2%, the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Up to April 1, there were 10,251 foreign investors with securities transaction codes in Viet Nam's stock market including 646 organisations and 9,606 individuals, according to the Viet Nam Securities Depository Centre (VSD). Particularly in March, there were more 46 foreign organisations and 387 foreign individuals... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net sellers of VND8.05 billion ($ 504,670) of Vietnamese stocks Tuesday, out of a total VND72.7 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 1.46 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 17%, according to the stock market operator. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Dorchester based offshore company incorporation and banking specialist Amanda J Molyneux and Company have greeted the news of the governments change of heart regarding taxing non domicile residents with approval.(BBC story )Charles Farran Sales Director says “It would appear that someone with half a brain in the UK Government has woken up to the fact that many wealthy ‘Non Doms’ living in Britain would probably have left on the next flight had they cancelled the tax breaks these people get by living in the UK.”“The UK government said it will stick by its current policy of not taxing the wealthy from overseas on the income from offshore trust a common way for the wealthy to hold assets. And the government won’t ask what is held in the Trust!”“This must all be disappointing f

The number of international visitors to Viet Nam rose by 15.7% with 1.3 million tourists in the first quarter of the year, the General Statistics Office said. The Office reported that 490,000 Chinese, American and Korean visitors accounted for nearly one-third of the quarterly arrivals. Meanwhile, holidaymakers from Sweden , Finland , Australia and Hong Kong were reported to spend more money in

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND28.2 billion ($ 1.76 million) of Vietnamese stocks Friday, out of a total VND480 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 11 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 6.5%, the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Goa government on Friday, amending a 100-year-old act, decided to ban the sale of land to foreigners in the state. The state law minister Mr. Dayanand Narvekar said “It’s a policy decision that foreigners will not be allowed to purchase land in Goa. Earlier, there were no proper powers (given) to the registration authorities in Goa [...]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND62.5 billion ($3.9 million) of Vietnamese stocks Friday, out of a total VND555 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 9.2 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 13.4% of the total, according to the stock market operator.... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND69.1 billion ($4.3 million) of Vietnamese stocks Thursday, out of a total of VND593 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 9.6 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 13.4% , the stock market operator said. (Dow Jones) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Foreign investors were net buyers of VND111.7 billion ($ 6.97 million) of Vietnamese stocks Wednesday, out of a total VND513 billion traded, the Ho Chi Minh Securities Trading Center said. Volume traded totaled 9.87 million shares, with foreigners accounting for 23.5% of the total, according to the stock market... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

There was a recent report sometime ago about an upsurge of foreigners applying for work visas in my birth republic. More Toms, Dicks & Harrys are flocking to the Philippines taking top jobs whereas the likes of Andres, Teresa & Ronaldo are joining the massive exodus overseas to take jobs from low to mid-level posts. [...]

I’m a xenophile. I get excited when I hear a foreign accent. Something about it makes the person seem more exciting, more intelligent, or more mysterious, sometimes dangerous; all depends on the country or ethnicity. I love that joke about heaven, hell, and all the different cultures. It's cheesy, but you've got to admit it's funny.I called a customer service line today and no doubt was connected to a call center in Bangalore. An Indian female with a British-tinged accent answered. After she politely (with impeccably timed elocution) asked me my name, she referred to me as “Miss Milena” for the duration of the call. Swoon. I felt like I was on that Spaceship Earth ride at Disney World, seeing the electric synapses firing all the way to India and I feel like I’m part of the global r

Today is a good day. I just turned one year wiser, and I received my first readers question in my Snail Inbox. Stephen is a foreigner living in Singapore, and is looking to invest in the Malaysia property market. He ask the following question: I hope you don’t mind my writing to you directly like [...]

Around a month ago, I posted a list titled The Top Ten Observations Foreigners Living in Japan Make About the Japanese. I've decided to examine the flip side, by listing ten stereotypes that the... Funny and insightful top ten lists. Updated Daily.

The Star - 28/12/2007KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has to be more aware of the people coming into the country, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said.He said this was because foreigners were behind all cases of Malaysian women being detained overseas for drug trafficking.“The syndicates, all headed by foreigners, are operating out of here. We must not allow our people be made use of in this manner.“We want to encourage tourism but we have to be aware of these people,” he said.He was speaking to reporters after opening the Bumiputra Factory and Industrial Services Association's annual general meeting.Syed Hamid said many of the women involved in the cases did not know what they were getting themselves into and were blinded by the promise of making lots of money.“Some who did kn

Indonesian islands cannot be sold to foreigners but they can be managed jointly with foreigners in accordance with certain regulations, a senior Home Affairs Ministry official said. "No island in Indonesia can be sold to foreigners. However, it is possible to manage an island in collaboration with foreigners in line with existing regulations," the ministry`s director general for public administration, Sodjuangan Situmorang, said here on Monday. About Meriam Besar and Panjang Isles in West Nusatenggara (NTB) which were recently reported to have been sold to foreigners, Situmorang said the isles were sold to an Indonesian national who had already obtained an ownership certificate on the isle. However, according to reports from the head of the district in which the isles were located , the buyer`s certificate proved to be legally defective, he said.Indonesia News Blog: http://indosnesos.blogspot.com

The Department of Tourism (DOT) is now beefing up efforts to promote Cebu and the rest of the country to international markets, especially with the entry of big ticket hotels and resorts in the country. "Even with the entry of new hotels and increase in room accommodations for Cebu, we want these hotels to enjoy high occupancy rates," said DOT Secretary Joseph Durano. He said that with the opening of big ticket hotels and resort projects, such as the P3-billion Imperial Palace Waterpark Resort and SPA by Philippine BXT Corp. and the SM-developed Sofitel Hotel, Cebu will have 1,000 additional hotel rooms that need to be filled up by 2009. Durano said the completion of these hotels alone will bring in more international conventions to the province, thus the need for tourism stakeholders to now intensify its marketing approaches for Cebu being the tourism gateway of the Philippines. (more…)

BEIJING - For many foreigners, investing in property in China isn't easy. Just ask Tom Luckock.Luckock, a 32-year-old Australian lawyer who has lived in Beijing for six years, owns two siheyuan - or four-sided courtyards - tucked away in Beijing's historic hutong alleyways. He bought the first 190-square-meter home two years ago after four years of searching and several collapsed deals.

Yes, its now official all non-Japanese nationals or persons with special privileges and permission inside of or visiting Japan are all suspected terrorists. I've never been off this beautiful tropical island rock called Jamaica, not because I couldn't but because I refuse to travel to another persons country and feel like a second rate human and the visa and paperwork requirements were too much for me and I couldn't be bothered. I am having trouble swallowing the terrorism prevention measure excuse been offered up by Japan and my plans for visiting Japan just got more complicated. I have nothing to fear and to the best of my knowledge I am not a terrorist but if this is not discrimination I don't know what is and if I were a terrorist Japan would be extra attractive right now, can you imagine the publicity bomb the first terrorist attack in japan after these new rules are implemented will get now? Even if you have lived and worked in Japan for years you are not exempt - image sou

Western nations share some responsibility for the destruction of Indonesia's forests and must pay compensation to put the damage right, the vice president said Friday. Indonesia's forests are being cut down faster than anywhere else in the world to meet global demand for cheap timber and to plant palm trees to make biofuels. The deforestation has made the nation the third-highest emitter of carbon dioxide behind China and the United States. "Foreigners always go on about Indonesia's high emissions, but don't forget they are also behind this," Jusuf Kalla told reporters. "Who first cut down the trees in Kalimantan (province)? It was developed countries like America and Japan, they are enjoying the wood." "Developed countries must pay to improve it all," he told reporters, an apparent reference to a demand by Indonesia and other nations to be paid by wealthy countries to preserve their forests to help combat climate change.Indonesia News Blog: http://indosnesos.blogspot.

From November 20th, foreigners entering Japan (including permanent and non-permanent residents) will have to submit to being digitally fingerprinted and photographed.The government stance is summed in the following quotes."This will greatly contribute to preventing international terrorist activities on our soil," Naoto Nikai: Immigration Bureau."It is vital we take fingerprints (from foreigners) in order to prevent terrorist attacks": Kunio Hatoyama, Justice Minister.Groups such as University Teachers Union Japan, Amnesty International Japan, and Solidarity Network with Migrants Japan are fighting the implementation.Open a petition protesting the above.The petition aims to abolish the re-establishment of fingerprinting for all foreigners entering Japan - including residents - as introduced by the revised Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act to take effect from November 20th, 2007, in Japan.It will be sent to:General Affairs Division, Immigration Bureau, Ministry of Justice1-

The New York City real estate market is seeing an influx of investors from abroad, helping to keep the market going strong. Many of these overseas property buyers have no intention of living on Manhattan, where most of the property is being purchased. Rather, they see it as a good opportunity for rental income and a long term investment that will appreciate.

Luckock, a 32-year-old Australian lawyer who has lived in Beijing a total of six years, owns two siheyuan - or "four-sided courtyards" - tucked away in Beijing's historic hutong alleyways. He bought the first 190-sq-m home two years ago, after four years of searching and several collapsed deals.The second, a 326-sq-m siheyuan, Luckock bought last year, after negotiations with five different owners and a title dispute involving illegal squatters. He was forced to buy the property in his fiance's mother's name to get around a new law restricting to one the number of properties foreigners can own.

When overseas citizens move to a foreign country, life can be a bit challenging, certainly at first. Having a support group or some source of information on life in that country is one way to help expats settle down and feel more at home. For those who move to Brazil, there is often quite a bit of culture shock. Fortunately, there is at least one source of information, a website called gringoes.com.

InterConnect Winter 2007 Report on Logistics (PDF Report here) Based in Clevland Ohio, Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP has just released a 6 pager on the status of logistics in China. At 6 pages, this report was written from the copilot seat of a B52, however where their report gets interesting (and why I have included it) is on the 2 pages they devoted to the security regualations related to the Security and Accountability for Every Port Act (“SAFE Port Act”) and Container Safety Initiative. For those of you who don’t know, these two policies will have a massive impact on frieght as ports exporting containers to the U.S. will be required to scan the contents of the container before being put on the boat…. and regardless of whether or not the deadlines are met, and/ or foreign governments actually make the investments, these are policies that will affect everyone as the investment required to meet the requirements of SAFE and CSI will be shared by por

Japan is to fingerprint and photograph foreigners entering the country from next month in an anti-terrorism policy that is stirring anger among foreign residents and human rights activists. "This will greatly contribute to preventing international terrorist activities on our soil," Immigration Bureau official Naoto Nikai said in a briefing on the system, which starts on November 20. Read full story In these modern times and with globalization I must say that I am against the plans by Japan to document all foreign citizens inside and outside the country. I thought the days of the Tokugawa shogunate were gone? With Japan's role as a global leader, it's sad that they have decided to treat all non-Japanese people as suspected terrorists.

Are you ready Starting November 20th 2007 Japan will start to fingerprint and photograph people entering Japan. The fingerprints, photographs and other biometric data of foreign visitors will be stored in a computer for cross-checking with a list of wanted criminals and people who have been deported in the past. Investigative authorities will have access to the data. The prints will remain on record for 70 years. According to the new procedures, if requested, the Justice Ministry will turn over the data to the police and other government agencies. This excludes ethnic Koreans and other permanent residents with special status, those under 16, those visiting Japan for diplomatic or official purposes, and those invited by the state. Japan Times said an estimated 6-7 million foreigners entering Japan every year will be covered by the ordinance.

入国するとき指紋と写真をとるA new immigration law supposedly targeting terrorism, which comes in to effect from November 20, 2007, will mean that all foreigners, including foreign residents with re-entry permits, will be fingerprinted, photographed and interviewed by immigration officials as they enter Japan at the country's airports and ports.Children under the age of 16 and a few other exceptions including diplomats, visiting bigwigs and long-term Korean and Taiwanese residents of Japan, tokubetsu eijusha are excluded from the new law.People refusing to cooperate with the new procedures will be denied entry.Further information is available on the Immigration Bureau's websiteBook a hotel in Japan with BookingsJapanese FictionJapan Book Shop Amazon UKHappi CoatsTagsJapan fingerprint immigration Japan News

Writes: Molly E. Moore Grisly Attack on African Underscores Race Issue In a Harsh Campaign ZURICH — At 1:30 a.m., Antonio da Costa heard a knock at the back entrance of the McDonald’s restaurant where he worked as a janitor after-hours. He opened the door, he recalled in an interview. There stood two men, each gripping a chain [...]

After taking on an imperial robe and sitting on an imperial chair, Basil Bernstein asked his Chinese friend to take a picture of him at a temple fair.    ”My wife said I am very handsome when wearing the imperial robe,” said Bernstein, a free-lance American photographer, at a Spring Festival temple fair in southwest China’s Chongqing.     The temple fairs, or “Miaohui” in Chinese, are usually held during China’s Spring Festival holidays to celebrate the arrival of the Chinese Lunar New Year, which fell on Feb. 18 this year.     Held at ancient temples, these colorfully decorated fairs usually feature folk arts performances, including stilt-walking and dragon and lion dances, and sale of snacks.     Two years ago, Bernstein attended a temple fair in Beijing and has since been deeply attracted by this centuries-old event.     ”To me, everything at temple fairs is wonderful,” said Bernstein, who had visited three temple f

The pilot scheme allowing foreigners to buy houses in Vietnam will need more time before it is implemented because the Land and Housing Law doesn’t permit foreigners to own land and houses in Vietnam. Last July the Ministry of Construction submitted to the government a scheme on permitting foreigners to buy houses in Vietnam on a trial basis. If this scheme had been implemented, around 21,000 foreigners who are living in working in Vietnam would have been eligible to buy houses.

Hey! I thought it was real!!!Heard a great story today via my wife and some of her clients on Le Sportsac, fake goods and not so smart foreigners in China. A lady heads to West Nanjing Road and Chengdu Road to check out the fake market, it's a building full of fake goods: t-shirts, jackets, watches, belts, shoes -- and especially BAGS. This one lady was in for it and here's how laowai (foreigners) screw up the barganing process in China.Lady gets a Le Sportsac bag (like the one above, I'm not really into these bags, but apparently, some people are.). If you know anything about Le Sportsac bags, then you know they are expensive (Like 150 USD -- about 1,600 RMB). Lady gets a Le Sportsac for 30 USD (350 RMB) at the fake market and thinks she makes a steal. Of course, like any real sales person/hustler at the fake market, the sales person says: IT'S REAL!! NO LIE!! Lady belives hustler... ahem -- sales person.Key words: FAKE MARKETLady takes bag to REAL Le Sportsac store about 5 blocks

Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi said no island in Indonesia was owned by foreigners although a number were under foreign management. "They only cooperate with us in developing the islands` economic potentials. None of our islands is onwed by foreigners," the minister said on the sidelines of a working meeting here on Thursday. He said his ministry could not prevent or ban foreign investment from developing the economic potentials of small and outlying Indonesian island.The ministry had earlier found indications that the Pulau Bawa islands in the southern waters of Natuna district, Riau Islands province, had been sold to a foreign party for Rp1 billion. In the meantime, Natuna District Head Daeng Rusnadi said five of the Pulau Bawah islands had been bought by a United States citizen, under the name of his driver, Tasfinardi, at the price of Rp1 billion.Indonesia News Blog: http://indosnesos.blogspot.com

Four foreigners feared missing in Indonesia have been found safe in Singapore, Indonesian police said today. Police had been investigating reports that the four - an American, Singaporean, Japanese and one other national - had gone missing from Indonesia's second largest city of Surabaya. "The news is false ... The four missing people are now in Singapore," said East Java police spokeswoman Puji Hastuti.Earlier Indonesia's Foreign Ministry spokesman Kristiarto Legowo had told AFP that police were investigating reports that the four language school workers may have gone missing. A Japanese Foreign Ministry official in Tokyo had said there were concerns the four may have been kidnapped.

The eligible groups include foreigners directly doing business in Vietnam in accordance with the law, foreigners recognized by the president and other relevant agencies as contributing to national development, foreign culturists and scientists working in Vietnam, foreigners recognized by the president as honorary citizens, foreigners married to Vietnamese currently living in Vietnam, and foreign-invested real estate trading enterprises operating in Vietnam.

While Israelis are investing in income-producing real estate overseas, foreign investors have continued to purchase luxury properties in Israel. Foreign investment in Israeli residential properties and income-producing properties totaled $683 million in January-May 2007, the Bank of Israel reported today. Of this, $209 million worth of property was purchased in May alone. This represents an annual investment of rate of a record $1.64 billion, compared with $1.44 billion in 2006 and $1.22 billion in 2005.

An Indonesian joint police-immigration service team on Thursday arrested nine foreigners allegedly involved in a money forging syndicate, an immigration official said. The nine foreigners were caught in a rented house in the Kemanggisan area of West Jakarta, Director for Investigation and Immigration Violation Affairs Saiful Rahman said. "Two of the nine foreigners did not have passports and immigration documents and one of them said he was a Nigerian. The others have passports," he was quoted by national Antara News Agency as saying.

SummaryBecause of Globalization and continued improvement of technology, more and more Filipinos are marrying foreigners. There was an increase of 18% from last year's 21,100 Filipinos who have married foreigners. Most of these marriages resulted from on-line dating and personal ads. The number of inter-racial marriages of Filipinos to other nationals is expected to increase every year due to mass migration and increase of foreign nationals in the Philippines.Read The Complete ArticlePasay City, Philippines -- Over the last three years, more Filipinos have married foreigners, data obtained by INQUIRER.net from the Commission on Filipinos Overseas shows.Last year, 24,904 Filipinos married foreigners, up 18 percent from the previous year's 21,100. The 2005 figure is an 11.4 percent increase from the 2004 figure of 18,933.Minda Valencia, director of CFO's Migrant Integration and Education Office, attributed the steady increase in inter-marriages to globalization and technology. "With m