Burkina to open trial of alleged killers of left-wing idol SankaraFormer president Blaise Compaore is one of 14 men accused of assassinating Burkina Faso's revolutionary hero, Thomas SankaraOUAGADOUGOU - The trial of 14 men, including a former president, was set to begin in Burkina Faso on Monday over the assassination of the country's revered revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara 34 years ago. He and his former right-hand man, General Gilbert Diendere, who once headed the elite Presidential Security Regiment, face charges of complicity in murder, harming state security and complicity in the concealment of corpses. He tossed out the country's name of Upper Volta, a legacy of the French colonial era, and renamed it Burkina Faso, which means "the land of honest men". Burkina Faso has long been burdened by silence over the assassination -- during Compaore's long time in office, the subject was taboo -- and many are angry that the killers have gone unpunished. But the trial will not be able to restore our dream," Halouna Traore, a comrade of Sankara and survivor of the putsch, said in a TV interview.

Blackmail and scandal: former police chief on trial in SpainFormer police commissioner José Manuel Villarejo, in June 2017, at the entrance of the Plaza de Castilla (Madrid) courts. MADRID: Notorious former police chief Jose Manuel Villarejo, whose revelations have shaken Spain's political and business elite to the core, goes on trial this week for blackmail and corruption. The trial, which will be held in San Fernando de Henares, near Madrid, at the Audiencia Nacional, Spain's top criminal court, is expected to continue until January. "This first trial will be important for establishing the credibility of the Spanish judicial system," said Manuel Bravo Perez, who co-wrote a book on the Villarejo case. But the ex-police chief will attend the trial as a free man since the court lifted his pre-trial detention in March, after serving three years behind bars at a Madrid prison.

Key UN biodiversity summit to open in ChinaAround one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction amid human encroachment on habitats, over-exploitation, pollution, the spread of invasive species, and climate change. BEIJING: A key UN summit tasked with protecting biodiversity officially opens in China and online Monday, as countries meet to tackle pollution and prevent mass extinction weeks before the COP26 climate conference. China has not yet committed to the "30 by 30" plan. - Division over targets -China said on Friday it has "given high priority to the protection of biodiversity by establishing a network of protected areas and national parks." The biodiversity discussions at COP15 are separate from weightier COP26 summit set to begin next month in Glasgow, where world leaders are under pressure to act on the climate crisis.

Economics Prize wraps up unpredictable Nobel seasonEsther Duflo, who won the economics prize in 2019, was the second woman to be awarded the prize, after Elinor Ostrom in 2009. STOCKHOLM: The Nobel Economics Prize on Monday wraps up a Nobel season characterised by surprising picks, with a number of women in with a chance of scooping the traditionally male-dominated prize. According to Clarivate, which maintains a list of potential Nobel Prize winners, other potential macroeconomists that could be honoured are Japan's Nobuhiro Kiyotaki and his at-times writing partner John Moore of the UK. The economics prize was the only prize not among the original five set out by the will of Alfred Nobel, who died in 1896. The chemistry prize went to Germany's Benjamin List and Scottish-American David MacMillan for their work on catalysts.

Climate: Rich nations have dodged finance pledgeThe promise to gradually ramp up aid for the Global South to $100 billion per year by 2020 was first make at the 2009 UN climate summit in Copenhagen. But rich countries have not delivered on that pledge, a failure that could undermine a critical COP26 climate summit in Glasgow next month already riven with tensions, experts say. "If we can get a good perspective regarding the $100 billion, that would ... give us the means to make progress on some other issues." "The $100 billion target therefore needs to be seen as a floor and not as a ceiling," the added. The failure of rich nations to honour their pledge is especially galling in light of a separate track in the negotiations over "loss and damage", meant to cover the costs of climate-enhanced damages that have already occurred.

Facebook needs a serious fixOver the years, we have seen an increasing number of people worldwide becoming hugely reliant on Facebook, using the platform of the social media giant to connect with loved ones or reconnect with lost ones. Millions more people under threat -- be they refugees or those affected by natural disasters -- rely on social media to let loved ones know they are okay. Using social media during the pandemic was a great way for small businesses to keep selling products when stores were closed. That explains why the whole world freaked out last Monday when Facebook services went offline for six hours. Add to that Facebook Marketplace: with a billion users buying and selling goods, ProPublica found a growing pool of scammers and fraudsters exploiting the site, with Facebook failing "to safeguard users".

A new chancery replaced it in the 1990s, allowing the original site to be reused to increase functional space. US embassyHowever, the design of the new building is challenging because it must reflect American and Thai culture. Architects explored inside and outside the city many times to develop a sense of place, which is crucial for the design. Nadine Berger, the associate principal of SHoP Architects, said that the design of the building must address many complex issues at the same time. "You don't necessarily see them right away but they are incorporated into the design to achieve resilience and a sustainable environment," she said.

FTI wary of oil price surge, bahtA car refuels at a Bangchak petrol station on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road. (Photo: Apichit Jinakul)The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) has asked the government to carefully deal with two key economic issues -- the global oil price surge and baht depreciation -- to avoid a greater burden on the pandemic-plagued economy. "Global oil prices are on the rise, which affects retail prices for oil and gas. The rise in oil prices will affect the prices of commodities, including sugar and rice, as their production processes and transport require oil as a fuel. "The FTI is concerned the baht will continue to weaken during the oil price surge and the Covid-19 outbreak," said Mr Supant.

The Revenue Department has considered lowering the personal income tax for foreign experts to 17% as part of measures to woo highly skilled professionals to work in Thailand, says director-general Ekniti Nitithanprapas. Thailand's personal income tax rate is progressive, varied by salary level. Those with annual income from 150,001 baht to 300,000 baht are subject to 5% tax, while those with annual income above 5 million baht are subject to the top tax rate of 35%. Mr Ekniti said the foreign experts who would qualify for this lower tax must work in fields in which Thailand has a shortage. The department is still prepared to cut the duties if the ministry believes it would work, said Mr Patchara.

This year's event features more than 100 international brands. photos courtesy of CentralThe Event Hall on the third floor of Central Chidlom has been turned into an exciting display zone for the "Central International Watch Fair 2021", which brings a huge collection of timepieces from over 100 famous international brands, until Oct 31. The virtual visit can be made via Central Department Store's Facebook page where representatives from leading brands will rotate to present highlighted watches. The fair is also running at all branches of Central. Up to 30% discounts and special privilege discounts are being offered.

Restaurants are also allowed to remain open until 9pm, which means I have more time for supper if I'm away from home. That was the first time I realised how inconvenient it is to not have a convenience store open 24 hours. Last week, I persuaded my friends to arrange a walking trip to the Charoen Krung neighbourhood and go cafe hopping. She worked for one of Thailand's leading men's magazines before teaming up with her close friend to open this cafe three months ago. For me, it's the charm of travelling to be able to observe local life and interact with folk.

Thais pray for good fortune during an online spiritual tour at a famous temple in Hong Kong via video conference. Current circumstances make travel difficult, said Chananrrat Budsaya-Arunvidhya, assistant managing director of Miramar Services (Thailand), a wholesale travel agency. Miramar Services adjusted its operations by replacing physical tours with online spiritual tours via a video conferencing application, with support from the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the Taiwan Tourism Bureau. She said the Hong Kong Tourism Board approved the idea and assisted with live broadcasts in temples and marketing campaigns to remind Thai tourists about Hong Kong. She said people in both destinations are ready to travel as tourists from Hong Kong also want to visit Thailand, but international travel depends on the virus situation and quarantine policy in both locations.

More than 125 dishes are available at Paragon's Gourmet Eats Market Hall. photo courtesy of The Mall GroupGourmands have four days left to enjoy vegetarian dishes or shop for vegetarian ingredients during the "Vegetarian Food Festival 2021", which is running at the Gourmet Market and Gourmet Eats at Paragon, Emporium, EmQuartier and all branches of The Mall, until Thursday. The "Best Of J Legendary" is serving over 300 delicious dishes from 80 famous street-food shops at Gourmet Eats Food Court. The "Best Of J Ingredient", meanwhile, is offering more than 500 fresh and hygienic raw materials and ingredients for vegetarian cooking at all branches of Gourmet Market. They include dried Chinese bamboo from Yaowarat market, white and yellow tofu from Saphan Mai market, ghanachai (pickled cabbage) from Baan Hin Gong market, and pickled baby ginger from Bang Khla market.

Green energy springs from abandoned UK coalmineLandmarks around Seaham like a mural by artist Cosmo Sarson remind of the town's coal-mining pastSEAHAM (UNITED KINGDOM) - Dawdon coalmine in northeast England was abandoned three decades ago, but is being brought back to life as the unlikely setting for a green energy revolution. Dawdon has long since flooded with water because part of the mine is below sea level, and is heated by geothermal energy. Authorities now want to capture and harness this valuable and unlimited green energy source to power a new garden village development. - Industrial revolution turns green -"We are taking what was from the industrial revolution -- and we're using it for the green revolution," Wilkes told AFP. The Dawdon green energy project will cost between pound sterling12 million and pound sterling15 million, funded via government, the plant's future operating company and property fees.

40% say Prayut should quit as PM next year: pollPrime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha talks to students while presiding over the kick-off of the vaccination campaign for young people aged 12-18 at Pibool Upphatham School in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao district last Monday. (Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)Forty percent of people polled by the National Institute of Development Administration say Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha should declare he will quit as prime minister by August next year, while a slightly smaller number say he should seek a Constitutional Court ruling on the controversy over when his tenure as premier should end. The poll was conducted on Oct 5-8 by telephone interviews on 1,311 people aged 18 and over of various levels of education and occupations throughout the country to compile their opinions on three political issues -- Gen Prayut's tenure as prime minister, dissolution of the House of Representatives to make way for a general election and a cabinet reshuffle. Others say his tenure as premier should begin from Aug 24, 2019 after the March 24, 2019 general election under the 2017 constitution. Asked to comment on the controversy, 40.73% of the respondents said Gen Prayut should declare he will remain in the position only until the end of August 2022; 38.37% said he should seek the Constitutional Court's ruling on this matter as soon as possible; 15.03% said he need not do anything; and 5.87% had no comment or were not interested.