Jokowi to S. Koreans: Invest in Indonesia

SEOUL • Indonesian President Joko Widodo has invited South Korean businessmen to invest more in his country, promising to improve the investment climate.

He said among projects being built were 35,000MW of power plants, 163 new ports, new toll roads, new railways, an irrigation system for one million hectares of land, and 49 dams to support the irrigation system. "I will continue to simplify licensing, I will make the Indonesian economy more open," he told a business forum in Seoul.

THE JAKARTA POST/ASIA NEWS NETWORK

Bersih leader 'blocked from leaving Malaysia'

KUALA LUMPUR • Malaysia's government faced fresh allegations of trampling rights yesterday after the leader of a massive demonstration last year calling for the ouster of Prime Minister Najib Razak over a graft scandal said she was prevented going abroad to accept an award.

Ms Maria Chin Abdullah, who heads the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections, or Bersih, said she was stopped on Sunday from travelling to South Korea to accept the Gwangju Prize for Human Rights on behalf of her group.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Similan Islands to get respite from tourists

BANGKOK • The Thai government said it will close the southern Similan islands to tourists for five months, and one, Koh Tachai, will stay out of bounds after the annual closure.

Mr Thanya Netithammakun, director-general of Thai Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, said on Sunday that the scenic islands in the Andaman Sea, will be closed until Oct 15 to allow its natural resources to recover. Koh Tachai will remain closed afterwards as it needed more time to recover.

XINHUA