Straits Times Interactive - NEWS

More land for homes soon, so don't rush

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

There is no need to rush to buy homes, now that a slew of land parcels will be released to private developers in the first half of next year.

That was the assurance given yesterday by National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.

Yudhoyono replaces military chiefs

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Jakarta: Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono yesterday replaced the heads of the three services of the Indonesian armed forces, TNI, in a surprise move.

It began with a mumble - then the blood flowed

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

In the end, the shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, came down to a gunfight: two army police officers toting standard sidearms versus an army psychiatrist armed with a .357 Magnum and a pistol equipped with laser sighting and extra bullets.

Counsellor 'who needed help himself'

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

As if going off to war, Major Nidal Malik Hasan cleaned out his apartment, gave leftover broccoli to one neighbour and called another to thank him for his friendship - common courtesies and routines of the departing soldier.

Woman cop confronts killer with gun blazing

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Sergeant Kimberly Munley was a worried mother, praying that the H1N1 virus would skip her three-year-old daughter.

A bunch of eager, idealistic soldiers

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

They were soldiers preparing to go to war - for some, the second or third time. They were also sons, daughters and fathers, and among them was a mother-to-be.

Immigrants can become like us: SM

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

When he attended a Deepavali event recently, Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong was struck by how several young children of permanent residents (PRs) from India could easily pass off as Singaporeans.

Allow immigrant enclaves here?

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

At a grassroots event last night, Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong mused aloud about whether ethnic enclaves should be allowed to be formed by new immigrants here.

Hello Kitty, Barney coming to Johor's Iskandar

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Nusajaya (Johor): Several more leisure parks are set to come up in the Iskandar Malaysia economic zone, officials said yesterday at the announcement of another new attraction.

Pregnant? You're fired

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

The tough economic times - and more generous maternity benefits - appear to be prompting increasing numbers of firms to fire pregnant women or deny them their full entitlements.

The New Rules

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

To shore up Singapore's flagging fertility rates, maternity benefits were enhanced last year to include:

Bosses told her to take a break - which she did not need

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

When customer service officer Joanne Ho, 33, discovered she was pregnant shortly after joining a well-known tourism-services firm last year, she told her bosses right away.

CapitaLand praised for plan to restore pay cut

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Property giant CapitaLand's decision to restore wage cuts for its executives and management staff has the thumbs up from Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong.

Early start to Christmas in Orchard Rd

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

The annual Orchard Road Christmas light-up kicked off yesterday - a week earlier than usual, but no one was complaining.

Thumbs-up for Obama's Asia trip

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Washington: Mr Barack Obama is making his first foray to Asia this week as Presidentof the United States, even though he is at a critical juncture on two policy fronts at home - Afghanistan and health-care reform.

US-Asean summit to cap year of engagement

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Washington - The United States will cap a year of markedly increased engagement with Asean with the first-ever leaders' summit next Sunday.

All in place

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

The Penthouse Squeeze

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Mention penthouses and one immediately thinks of big, luxurious bungalows in the sky, with wraparound views and a multimillion- dollar price tag.

Cinema exit: The long and short of it

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Walking down four flights of bare cement steps was not the way Madam Daisy Tan and her two friends expected to end their movie at Junction 8 in Bishan.

After the credits roll

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

The Sunday Times visited four cinemas. Here's what we found at the exits:

High-stakes battle on the high seas

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

A tense game of wits is on to secure the release of Singapore ship Kota Wajar and its 21 crew members.

S'pore terrorist linked to Abu Sayyaf

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Muaiya. Manobo. Muawiyah.

Tampines hawker centre is tops again

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Last year's champion has been voted the yummiest again.

Top Picks

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Best hawker centre

Want to publish a novel? Just click

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

The word is out on the Internet - put your novel up for sale on a website, and you might just be the next Dan Brown or J.K. Rowling.

Be a good old sport

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

From older weekend runners to older athletes, there are more of such folk these days, despite recent news of veteran footballers collapsing on the field.

Getting a kick out of football

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

He has a physique that a soccer player half his age would die for.

'It's all about knowing your limit, not your age'

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Madam Jenap Said celebrated her 50th birthday this year by running a full marathon.

Smashing times for 9 seniors

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

They are 'drop shot' agile and the oldest is 73; the youngest, 56.

Maid rescued from burning flat

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

As flames engulfed a fourth-storey maisonette in Balestier, a panic-stricken maid trapped within screamed for help while neighbours tried in vain to free her.

Worker pulled to safety from gondola

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

For 15 minutes yesterday, a construction worker dangled precariously from a gondola seven storeys up. One of the cables holding it up had gone slack.

Restraint urged in Thaksin row

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Bangkok - Asean Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan yesterday urged Thailand and Cambodia to show 'maximum restraint' amid tensions over Phnom Penh's job offer to fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

'Ninja' cops patrol Johor streets

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Johor Baru - Johor police have formed a special squad, dubbed the Ninja Squad by the public, to curb roadside robberies such as snatch thefts in the city.

'Godmother' to thugs and cops

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Beijing - Thugs and policemen alike were once at the beck and call of Xie Caiping. She could even call on the services of 16 gigolos whenever she desired.

Indian town gears up for Dalai Lama's visit

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

New Delhi - Indian police stepped up security in the border town of Tawang on the eve of Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama's trip to Tawang, where he first crossed into exile 50 years ago.

Heavy flooding hits parts of S-E Asia

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Kuala Lumpur - Continuous rain has caused flooding in parts of South-east Asia.

PAS will stay in Pakatan Rakyat

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Kuala Lumpur: Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) leaders yesterday met to thrash out a rift that has split the party and decided that they would stay with the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) alliance.

PAS under fire for 'loyalty or divorce' oath

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Kuala Lumpur - The government has slammed Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) for requiring all its elected representatives to divorce their wives if they quit or join another political party.

Bollywood stars' live-in choice causing a stir

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

New Delhi: When Bollywood stars Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor stepped on stage at a so-called Leadership Summit here last week, old-timers shook their heads in disapproval.

In Brief

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Orlando - A man who said he was so broke that he did not have the money to visit his son 30 minutes away in Orlando opened fire last Friday at the engineering firm that sacked him two years ago, killing one person and wounding five, the authorities said.

Britain pushes for global financial tax

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

St Andrews (Scotland) - Britain called for consideration of a global tax on financial transactions to insure against another crisis and urged world finance officials meeting yesterday in Scotland to agree on bearing the cost of fighting climate change.

This wall is made for toppling

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

As the highlight of a 5 million euro (S$10.3 million) celebration marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall on Nov 9, a 1.5km-long segment of the wall will stand for two days along its original route in front of the Brandenburg Gate to Potsdamer Platz. The row of 1,000 20kg dominos standing 1.5m apart - painted in bright colours by schoolchildren and rising 2.5m high - will be toppled at the end of a gala ceremony as a symbolic tribute to the collapse of the wall 20 years earlier.

Obama promises extra job stimulus

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Washington - The jump in unemployment above 10per cent for the first time since 1983 will pressure United States President Barack Obama to find additional stimulus to keep a fragile economic recovery on track, analysts say.

Wall Street rally enjoys second wind

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

New York - Wall Street's gravity-defying rally found new life over the past week, providing optimism for investors heading into what has historically been one of the best periods of the year.

In Brief

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

Plan to cut JAL pensions

Stop hiring on the cheap

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

An office cleaner quit last month after she had enough of pay cuts, longer working hours and loss of benefits in four of the five times a new cleaning firm took over the contract.

Govt Subsidy

7 Nov 2009 22:00 GMT

A government scheme to promote best sourcing was launched in July. A total of $5 million has been set aside for the Best Sourcing Early Adopter Scheme.