Myanmar 'still keen to work with UN'

YANGON • Myanmar wants to continue working with the United Nations on human rights but its investigator must be fair, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday, a day after special rapporteur Yanghee Lee was barred from visiting the country.

"Myanmar is still cooperating with the special rapporteur mechanism," said ministry spokesman Kyaw Moe Tun. Ms Lee had been due to visit Myanmar next month to assess human rights across the country, including alleged abuses against Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state.

REUTERS

Thai zoo prods tiger for tourists' photos

BANGKOK • A Thai zoo has sparked outrage after a video of staff repeatedly prodding a tiger to elicit roars for tourist photos went viral, renewing criticism of the kingdom's notorious animal tourism industry.

The clip, which has garnered over a million views since it was posted on Monday, shows the Pattaya zoo attendant jabbing the animal in the face with a stick as tourists take turns posing with it. A zoo spokesman said the attendant has since been transferred to another job.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE