Two ex-Trump aides charged in Russia probe, third pleads guilty

Sarah N. Lynch, Karen Freifeld


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal investigators probing Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election charged President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, and another aide, Rick Gates, with money laundering on Monday.

A third former Trump adviser, George Papadopoulos, pleaded guilty in early October to lying to the FBI, it was announced on Monday.

It was a sharp escalation of U.S. Justice Department Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s five-month-old investigation into alleged Russian efforts to tilt the election in Trump’s favour and into potential collusion by Trump aides.

Manafort, 68, a longtime Republican operative, and Gates were arraigned at a federal courthouse in Washington.

Both men pleaded not guilty to the charges against them in a 12-count indictment, ranging from money laundering to acting as unregistered agents of Ukraine’s former pro-Russian government.

The judge ordered house arrest for both men, and set a $10 million (7.57 million pounds) unsecured bond for Manafort and a $5 million unsecured bond for Gates. With unsecured bonds, they are released without having to pay but will owe money if they fail to appear in court. There will be another hearing on Thursday.

The developments in the Mueller probe weighed on the U.S. dollar, which slipped 0.5 percent against a basket of currencies.

Mueller’s investigation and others by congressional committees into alleged Russian efforts to influence the election have cast a shadow over Trump’s first nine months in office.

Neither Trump nor his campaign was mentioned in the indictment against Manafort and Gates. The charges, some going back more than a decade, centre on Manafort’s work for Ukraine.

The indictment includes accusations of conspiracy against the United States, failure to report foreign bank accounts to the U.S. government and conspiracy to launder money, a count that carries a 20-year maximum prison sentence.

A White House spokeswoman said the indictment had nothing to do with Trump or his campaign and showed no evidence of collusion between the campaign and Russia.

“We’ve been saying from Day One there’s no evidence of Trump-Russia collusion, and nothing in the indictment today changes that at all,” spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told a news briefing.

Manafort’s attorney, Kevin Downing said in a statement that there was no evidence that the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government. Downing said Manafort’s work for the Ukrainians ended in 2014, two years before he joined the Trump campaign.

Downing accused Mueller of using a “novel” legal theory to prosecute Manafort under a law requiring lobbyists to register with the Department of Justice when they are doing work for a foreign government.

Renato Mariotti, a former federal prosecutor in Chicago, said the charges against Manafort could put pressure on him to cooperate with the Russia investigation.

”If I were the defence lawyer, I’d be looking into cooperating,” he said.
GUILTY PLEA

Former Trump 2016 campaign chairman Paul Manafort leaves U.S. Federal Court, after being arraigned on twelve federal charges in the investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election in Washington, U.S. October 30, 2017. REUTERS/James Lawler Duggan

In a development directly related to Trump’s 2016 election campaign, it emerged on Monday that Papadopoulos, a former campaign adviser, pleaded guilty earlier this month to making false statements to Federal Bureau of Investigation agents.

Mueller’s office said Papadopoulos lied to FBI agents about the timing of contact between him and a professor in London who claimed to have information that would hurt Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

Papadopoulos, a little-known former foreign policy adviser in the campaign, made a plea bargain which stated that he has since “met with the Government on numerous occasions to provide information and answer questions,” according to a court document.

White House spokeswoman Sanders played down Papadopoulos’ campaign role, saying it was “extremely limited” and that he was a volunteer.

“He asked to do things (and) he was basically pushed back or not responded to in any way,” she said.


Slideshow (12 Images)

U.S. intelligence agencies say Russia interfered in the election, by hacking and releasing embarrassing emails and disseminating propaganda via social media to discredit Clinton.

Manafort ran the Trump campaign from June to August of 2016 before resigning amid reports he might have received millions of dollars in illegal payments from a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine.

Trump on Monday reiterated his frustration with the Mueller probe, which he has called “a witch hunt.” Moscow also denies the allegations.

“Sorry, but this is years ago, before Paul Manafort was part of the Trump campaign. But why aren’t Crooked Hillary & the Dems the focus?????,” Trump wrote on Twitter, referring to Clinton.

Mueller has been investigating Manafort’s financial and real estate dealings and his prior work for a political group, the Party of Regions, which backed former pro-Kremlin Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich.

Both Manafort and Gates generated tens of millions of dollars of income from Ukraine work and laundered money through scores of U.S. and foreign entities to hide payments from American authorities, the indictment said.

RELATED COVERAGE
Former Trump adviser Papadopoulos pleads guilty to lying to FBI


Manafort spent millions on homes, rugs, clothes - court filing


Chronology of former Trump campaign adviser Papadopoulos' dealings

They concealed from the United States their work and revenue as agents of Ukrainian political parties and used their wealth to lead a “lavish lifestyle” without paying taxes on the income, it said.

The indictment said Manafort owned properties in Manhattan; Brooklyn; the Hamptons; Arlington, Virginia, and elsewhere.

Prosecutors said Manafort spent almost $1 million on eight rugs in two years and more than $1.3 million on clothes from shops in Beverly Hills, California, and New York City. They also said he had been making payments on four Range Rovers and a Mercedes-Benz.

Gates was a longtime business partner of Manafort and has ties to Russian and Ukrainian oligarchs. He also served as deputy to Manafort during his brief tenure as Trump’s campaign chairman.

Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer called for the Trump administration to avoid interfering with Mueller’s probe.

“The rule of law is paramount in America and the investigation must be allowed to proceed unimpeded. The president must not, under any circumstances, interfere with the special counsel’s work in any way,” Schumer said.

Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Karen Freifeld; Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu, Susan Heavey, Steve Holland and Mark Hosenball in Washington and Jan Wolfe and Megan Davies in New York.; Writing by Alistair Bell and Caren Bohan; Editing by Frances Kerry, Jonathan Oatis and Howard Goller
Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Bali volcano update: Mount Agung eruption threat has cost Bali £112 MILLION so far

BALI’s economy has taken a hammering over the past month, as tourists seek to avoid the threat of a Mount Agung eruption.

By JOE TAMBINI
PUBLISHED: 22:31, Mon, Oct 30, 2017 | UPDATED: 22:41, Mon, Oct 30, 2017


GETTYBali volcano update: Mount Agung has severely dented Bali's economy

Official estimates suggest uncertainty around the Bali volcano has cost the island a staggering Rp2 trillion (£112 million) since the alert was first raised on September 22.

Unsurprisingly, Bali’s tourism sector has been particularly damaged by the volcano, suffering losses of about Rp264 billion (£14million) alone.

However, it is the island’s banking industry that is expected to bear the brunt of the losses, according to Purwo Nugroho of Bali’s Disaster Mitigation Agency.

He explained that Balinese locals have lost jobs and income and will no longer be able to repay their debts, costing banks in the region of Rp1.05 trillion (£61 million).
RELATED ARTICLES
Bali volcano news: State of Emergency EXTENDED as Mount Agung rumbles
Bali volcano update: Mount Agung alert lowered but threat remains

Bali officials downgraded Mount Agung’s alert status to level three yesterday (October 29), after a sustained drop in seismic activity beneath the volcano - a move that will be welcomed by hotel owners on the island.

Despite the reduction, Bali’s Volcanology Centre (PVMBG) has warned that the threat of an eruption has not yet passed.

“The volcanic activities have not completely calmed down and there is still a potential for an eruption,” a spokesperson said.

An exclusion zone around the volcano has been reduced from 12km to 7.5km, allowing thousands of refugees to return home.

Mount Agung latest pictures: Volcano on brink of eruptionWed, October 25, 2017
Authorities have raised alert levels for a volcano on the Indonesian resort island of Bali after hundreds of small tremors stoked fears it could erupt for the first time in more than 50 years.
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AFP/GETTY IMAGES
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Mount Agung volcano spews steam and smoke into the air as seen from Bangli on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on October 23, 2017


GETTYBali volcano news: People photograph Mount Agung

There are now only six villages in the danger zone - down from the previous 28.

The volcanic activities have not completely calmed down.
Kasbani of the PVMBG

The decision prompted the UK Government to update its travel advice for Britons planning on visiting Bali.

An new statement reads: “On 29 October 2017, the National Disaster Management Authority for Indonesia reduced the volcanic alert level for the Mount Agung volcano in north east Bali from the highest level, level 4 to level 3 due to a reduction in seismic activity.

“If the current level of seismic unrest continues there is still potential for an eruption.

Selamat Galungan dan Kuningan to all of our Balinese Staff, Clients, Friends, Associates and Readers

From All of Us at PT. Bali Affordable Lifestyles Int, Pt. Bali Luxury Villas and Best Asia Real Estate.

Editors Note : Every day is a holiday in Bali

As I have said many times before "every day is a holiday in Bali" not only for the tourists but also the Locals.  


Today Oct 30 th. will be the start of a 10 day holiday period for the Bali Hindus, Galungan and Kuningan.

For  businesses it is one of the very few problems that we face in Paradise as we try to schedule our employees to maintain high quality services with 80% + occupancies.






Galungan is the most important feast for Balinese Hindus, a celebration to honor the creator of the universe (Ida Sang Hyang Widi) and the spirits of the honored ancestors.

The festival symbolizes the victory of good (Dharma) over evil (Adharma), and encourages the Balinese to show their gratitude to the creator and sainted ancestors.

Offerings to the Ancestors

Galungan occurs once in the 210-day cycle of the Balinese calendar, and marks the time of the year when the spirits of the ancestors are believed to visit the earth. Balinese Hindus perform rituals that are meant to welcome and entertain these returning spirits.

The house compounds that make up the nucleus of Balinese society come  alive with devotions offered by the families living within. Families offer bountiful sacrifices of food and flowers to the ancestral spirits, expressing gratitude and hopes for protection. 

These sacrifices are also offered at local temples, which are packed with devotees bringing their offerings.

The whole island sprouts tall bamboo poles called "penjor" - these are usually decorated with fruit, coconut leaves, and flowers, and set up on the right of every residence entrance. At each gate, you'll also find small bamboo altars set up especially for the holiday, each one bearing woven palm-leaf offerings for the spirits.

• Read more about the culture of Bali.

Intensive Preparations

The preparations for Galungan begin several days before the actual feast day.

Three days before Galungan - "Penyekeban" - families begin their preparations for Galungan. "Penyekeban" literally means "the day to cover up ", as this is the day when green bananas are covered up in huge clay pots to speed their ripening.

Two days before Galungan - "Penyajahan" - marks a time of introspection for Balinese, and more prosaically, a time to make the Balinese cakes known as jaja. 

These colored cakes made of fried rice dough are used in offerings and are also eaten specially on Galungan. This time of the year finds a glut of jaja in every village market.

Today Oct 30th. 
A day before Galungan - "Penampahan", or slaughter day - Balinese slaughter the sacrificial animals that will go into the temple or altar offerings. Galungan is marked by the sudden surplus of traditional Balinese food, like lawar (a spicy pork and coconut sauce dish) and satay.


Galungan Day Oct 31st.
 On Galungan day itself, Balinese devotees pray at the temples and make their offerings to the spirits. Women are seen carrying the offerings on their heads, while men bring palm fronds.



The day after Galungan, Balinese visit their kinfolk and closest friends.
The tenth day after Galungan - "Kuningan" - marks the end of Galungan, and is believed to be the day when the spirits ascend back to heaven. On this day, Balinese make special offerings of yellow rice.

Ngelawang - Dance of the Barong

Ngelawang: During Galungan, a ceremony known as Ngelawang is performed in the villages. Ngelawang is an exorcism ceremony performed by a "barong" - a divine protector in the form of a mythical beast.

The barong is invited into houses as he makes his way through the village. His presence is meant to restore the balance of good and evil in a house. The residents of the house will pray before the dancing barong, who will afterwards give a piece of his fur as a keepsake.

After the barong pays a visit, it is important to make an offering of a canang sari containing money.

A Treat for the Senses

While the actual festivities are open to Balinese only, tourists who visit Bali during this holiday get an eyeful of the local color.

It isn't every day you see richly-dressed women crossing the street to make food offerings to the local temple - and there's something festive about the penjor swaying in the wind everywhere you look!

During Galungan, some local restaurants ride the rising demand for Balinese food by offering specials on all sorts of native dishes. This is a great time to try Balinese food for the first time!

On the downside, many places will be closed for Galungan, as their devout Balinese employees will likely be going to their respective villages to celebrate.

As the Balinese calendar follows a 210-day cycle, Galungan happens twice a year roughly every six months. 





You might want to reserve a Bali Luxury Villa  in Bali early for these days, as holiday-goers from all over are making Galungan plans of their own!

Bali's Mount Agung alert status lowered -Even safer now for tourists

Published: 1:30 pm, Monday, 30 October 2017




Indonesian authorities have lowered the alert status of Bali's Mount Agung volcano from the highest level, following a significant decrease in activity in recent days.

More than 140,000 people fled the area around the mountain after its alert status was raised to the highest level on September 22, indicating an eruption may be imminent.

The region has been rattled daily by hundreds of tremors from the volcano. Mount Agung, located about 70 kilometres northeast of Bali's tourist hotspot of Kuta, last erupted in 1963, killing about 1,100 people.

Kasbani, a government volcanologist who uses just one name, said the decision to downgrade Agung's status was made after several scientific indicators showed its activities were decreasing drastically. Tremors from the 3,031-metre volcano, which indicate rising magma, have reduced in number f


Kasbani said the radius of the volcano's danger zone declined from 12 kilometres to 7.5 kilometres from Agung's crater.

The government volcano agency said the downgrade means villagers who evacuated but do not live in the new danger zone could return home, but should not venture close to the crater, which was still emitting smoke.

Agung is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes because of its location on the so-called 'Ring of Fire' - a series of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and southeast Asia.

Another volcano, Mount Sinabung on Indonesia's Sumatra island, has been erupting sporadically since 2010, sometimes blasting volcanic ash several kilometres into the air and forcing more than 30,000 to evacuate their villages.

S'pore is second-largest Asian investor in the US

Bali news and views editor's comments.

This headline and this article is very scary because it means a large portion of Singapore's money is invested in America, which I believe is one of the most dangerous markets in the world after one of the longest running bull markets in history. 

America's bull market will eventually end. It's not a matter if but when it crashes after one of the longest bull markets in history.

It will take a large portion of Singapore's investors money with it which could also add to a continued downturn in Singapore's real estate market.

PUBLISHED5 HOURS AGO
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Republic has pumped in $100b in investments across more than two dozen states, ranging from tech to F&B
Nirmal Ghosh US Bureau Chief In Washington


It might come as a surprise to many but Singapore is a major investor in the US, with investments ranging from banking to agriculture and telecoms.

Singapore has made US$73 billion (S$100 billion) in investments cumulatively across more than two dozen US states, making it the second-largest Asian investor in the United States after Japan.

"Did you know that Singapore is the second-largest Asian investor in the US?" Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on his Facebook page last week, posting a picture of a map of Singapore's investments in the US produced by International Enterprise (IE) Singapore.


Successful Singaporean investments run the gamut from technology, retail, banking, hospitality and logistics, to F&B, he wrote. "Our trade and economic ties with the US will continue to grow, with both economies set to benefit," he said.

According to figures released by the US Department of Commerce last month, Singapore is one of the fastest-growing sources of foreign direct investments in the US in recent years, Singapore's The Business Times reported.

From 2011 to last year, investments by Singapore companies in the US increased at a compound annual growth rate of 36.9 per cent, behind only Thailand (55.5 per cent), Argentina (46.4 per cent) and China (44.7 per cent).







MORE GROWTH AHEAD

Our trade and economic ties with the US will continue to grow, with both economies set to benefit.

PRIME MINISTER LEE HSIEN LOONG


A MAGNET FOR START-UPS

The vibrancy, breadth and depth of the tech ecosystem and the presence of the world's largest and fastest-growing tech giants make it a natural magnet for international tech companies, including our home-grown start-ups. Singapore companies of all sizes across industries are plugging into these ecosystems and scaling through co-creation and partnerships with US tech companies.

MS NATALIE CHOO, IE Singapore's group director for North America and Europe.

"Compared to five years ago, we see much more interest in the US," New York-based Natalie Choo, IE Singapore's group director for North America and Europe, told The Straits Times.

"While investment in traditional sectors such as manufacturing and real estate continue, we also see increased interest from our small and medium-sized companies, especially in the consumer and technology sectors," she added.

A significant proportion of Singapore's interests are on the east and west coasts. But companies like Singapore-based AC Global Energy (ACGE) are helping to extend the Republic's footprint across the US.

A drop in local demand for paper, triggering a surplus of pulp wood, presented an opportunity for ACGE to set up a 7.5 million gallons-a-year biodiesel plant in Tennessee, to convert the pulp into fuel. Production started last month.

The plant also makes biochar - a soil enhancing additive - and wood-based vinegar pesticide.

The company has invested more than US$40 million in the Tennessee project and will commit another US$40 million to a second plant in Alabama.

"It's an exciting story to us because it's a relatively new space for Singapore companies to play in," said Ms Choo, noting that the US is a leading hub for technology and innovation, and "home to four of the top five start-up ecosystems in the world".

She said: "The vibrancy, breadth and depth of the tech ecosystem and the presence of the world's largest and fastest-growing tech giants make it a natural magnet for international tech companies, including our home-grown start-ups.

"Singapore companies of all sizes across industries are plugging into these ecosystems and scaling through co-creation and partnerships with US tech companies."

Mr Calvin Lim, chief executive officer of ACGE, noted that its Tennessee plant is located near Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

"There is a lot of talent in terms of engineering, so finding the right people with good skills sets is easy, considering within one square mile, you have the highest number of PhDs anywhere in the world," he told ST.

Singapore is also the US' largest trading partner in Asean. Underpinned by a US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement in 2003, the US had a trade surplus of over US$18 billion with Singapore last year. Together, Singapore's investments and the US' exports to Singapore support over 250,000 American jobs, said IE Singapore, citing the US Department of Commerce.

"In an inoffensive and unassuming way, this shows that we are relevant," Mr Charles Phua Chao Rong, a National University of Singapore Lee Kong Chian Scholar, told ST.

"Singapore's good offices, hard work and enterprising people have brought benefits to the US as well."

 A snapshot of some S

For Third Time, Mount Agung Emergency Status is Extended Again

Bali news and views editor's comments- 

It's very important to note that although the government has once again maintained it's emergency status for Mount Agung that it only involves a 12 kilometer radius of Agung.

This means that 80 to 90% of Bali is out of the danger zone. 

Therefore all of Bali's major resort  areas in southern Bali including our Hall of Fame award-winning Bali luxury villas which are located 50 km away are completely safe, providing the volcano does not erupt any worse than 1963.

Sunday, 29 October 2017 | 03:25 WIB

Emergency status for Mount Agung evacuees handling is extended.


JAKARTA, NETRALNEWS.COM - The emergency status of Mount Agung (Gunung Agung) evacuees handling is extended over the next 14 days from October 27 to November 9, 2017.

Head of Information Data Center and Public Relations of National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) Sutopo Purwo Nugroho in a written statement Netralnews.com received in Jakarta, Saturday (10/28/2017), said the extension of the emergency period is imposed by the Provincial Government of Bali to provide easy access in handling Mount Agung eruption threat.

The extension of emergency status is also to facilitate access in mobilizing personnel, utilizing budget, procuring and distributing logistics, administration and others.

"This extension of the emergency period is the third time since Mount Agung's status has been raised to Warning (Level 4) by the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) on September 22, 2017," Sutopo said.

Sutopo explained that until now there remain about 133,457 people displaced in 385 evacuation points whose basic needs in evacuation must be fulfilled.

"Up to 37 days from the date of the status of Warning Mount Agung has yet to show any signs of eruption. The amount of seismicity continues to decline. Deformation is relatively stable. PVMBG still set Warning Status up to now with a recommendation at radius of nine kilometers plus sectoral 12 kilometers from the peak of crater there should be no activity from society," Sutopo said.

In the near future, Sutopo explained that PVMBG will evaluate Mount Agung's volcanic status based on the latest condition.

Mount Agung`s alert status inflicts Rp2 trillion in losses

Bali News Views Editors Comments:

  

It is very hard to hear that false news headlines from the ignorant press and a misunderstanding of the real news has caused such economic losses to my fellow tourist professionals. 

Fortunately we have not noticed little or no decrease in rentals at PT, Bali Luxury Villas where we have averaged the same occupancies as last year in the same month .

Bali Luxury Villas Staring at $99 ++ per night.

Maybe it is because our guests tend to be middle to upper class who have read the real news and are not scared . 

In fact many have expressed they would see an eruption as a once in a lifetime event .

9 hours ago | 571 Views

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Bali province has suffered an estimated Rp2 trillion in economic losses since the alert status of rumbling Mount Agung was raised to the highest level on Sept 22, an official said.

The losses cover many sectors, including tourism and banking industry, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, chief of the data and information center and public relations of the National Disaster Mitigation Board (BNPB), said in a press statement released on Thursday.

The banking industry is likely to suffer the greatest losses as affected people would be unable to repay debts due, estimated at Rp1.05 trillion, he stated.

"The losses in the tourism sector are expected to reach Rp264 billion as evacuees have lost jobs, estimated at Rp204.5 billion," he noted.

The losses may also come from the agricultural, husbandry, and handicraft sectors, estimated at Rp100 billion, and other sectors, estimated at Rp200-500 billion, due to suspended construction and mining jobs.

As of Oct 26, the Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation (PVMBG) still maintains the alert status of the volcano at the highest level.

After all, the volcanic activities of the mount have decreased.

A total of 134,500 people are currently taking refuge in eight districts and one municipality city in Bali.

Sutopo remarked that many residents are still staying in dangerous zones.

"Thousands of people have returned home in red zones. Some of them are at home only in the afternoon," he revealed. (*)

IMF-World Bank Meeting Still on the Books Despite Looming Eruption From Nearby Mount Agung

Jakarta. The 2018 annual meeting between the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Nusa Dua, Bali, is still on the books despite troubling signs that Mount Agung, a volcano on the resort island, might soon erupt, a minister said on Sunday (24/09).

Still, the government is preparing contingency plans and an alternative venue for the meeting should the volcano erupt and cause significant damage on the island, said Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, the coordinating minister for maritime affairs, as quoted by Antaranews.com.

"We are still waiting on Mount Agung's condition at the moment and we have not been able to say whether the IMF-World Bank's [annual meeting will be changed] because the time left is still rather long," Luhut said.


Luhut is the chairman of a national committee in charge of organizing the annual meeting, which will be attended by more than 15,000 delegates, businesspeople and journalists from 189 countries on Oct. 12-14 next year.

The minister and representatives from the national committee visited evacuation sites on Sunday and provided the local administration with funds to help pay for water, food and other sanitation items for people relocated from around Mount Agung. The Coordinating Ministry of Maritime Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, Bank Indonesia and official bank partners of the IMF-World Bank meeting all reportedly donated to help those in need.

Mount Agung is located more than 80 kilometers away from Nusa Dua.

According to a statement by the National Disaster Management Agency, nearly 35,000 people have been evacuated from locations near the volcano as of Sunday.

A separate statement by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources said Mount Agung's seismic energy is increasing and has the potential to erupt but no expert can predict when the eruption will happen.

The Bali Tourism Board said in a statement on Sunday that I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar is operating normally.

North Korea could be secretly mining cryptocurrency on your computer

Bali news and Views Comments: Just one more reason I think Cryptocurrencies are very dangerous .

(Reuters/File photo)

October 24, 2017

North Korea has a cryptocurrency infatuation. Its government has been accused of unleashing a global ransomware attack to raise bitcoin, mining the cryptocurrency within its borders, and hacking South Korean bitcoin exchanges. Now, research firm Recorded Future says there’s a strong chance Kim Jong-un’s regime is experimenting with malware that secretly mines currency using other people’s computers.

Malware crypto-mining is a new global trend among hackers, says a new report (pdf) from Recorded Future, which monitors discussions among “the criminal underground” on the so-called dark web. Starting this year, hackers seem to be shifting away from high-intensity, widespread ransomware attacks, towards “long-term, low velocity” crypto-mining in the background.

Recorded Future has not detected specific instances of North Korean malware mining, but believes that the regime has the knowhow, motive, and interest in cryptocurrencies to execute similar attacks. “North Korean threat actors have prior experience in assembling and managing botnets, bitcoin mining, and cryptocurrency theft, as well as in custom altering publicly available malware; three elements that would be key to effectively creating and managing a network of covert cryptocurrency miners,” Recorded Future’s report reads.

Incidences of chatter about cryptocurrency mining among criminals on the dark web.(Recorded Future)

Recorded Future says hackers are shifting to malware mining because ransomware attacks became too egregious, attracting law enforcement’s attention instead of generating the steady stream of income attackers had grown to expect since the method became fashionable in 2015. “Outrageous attacks on healthcare facilities and municipal transit systems culminated in the unprecedented WannaCry and NotPetya campaigns,” according to Recorded Future’s report. “Overnight, ransomware was recognized as an act of cyberterrorism.”

With ransomware a hot potato, hackers turned to installing hidden crypto-miners on others’ machines. This has turned out to be a relatively stable, low-fuss way of getting cash, according to Recorded Future. One hacker on a Russian-language forum expressed surprise at how easy it was to create a network of secret cryptominers: “I’ve used ‘bots’ already under my control to upload 110 miners before going to sleep. By the time I woke up 108 were still alive, which took me by surprise. I expected half would be dead by then.“

The cryptocurrencies most popularly mined in secret are monero, and zcash, says Andrei Barysevich, an author of the Recorded Future report. These cryptocurrencies require less computational resources to mine profitably compared to something like bitcoin. However, one malware mining example obtained by the firm hijacked a computer’s graphics card to mine ethereum.

There’s no blanket way to detect a malware miner on your computer right now because the method is new, and the software keeps changing, Barysevich says. But a noticeable slowdown in a computer’s performance could suggest that it it’s surreptitiously churning out a cryptocurrency—possibly destined for a North Korean digital wallet.

Read next: North Korea may be mining bitcoin in addition to hacking it

Bali: white privilege in paradise

Jeffrey Jay Fowler and Chris Isaacs in Bali. Picture: Daniel James Grant.
The Australian 12:00AM October 24, 2017

VICTORIA LAURIE

Senior reporter
Perth



The holiday island of Bali is an easy target for satire, as is the tawdry behaviour of Australian tourists who flock there for cheap thrills.

Writer-performers Jeffrey Jay Fowler and Chris Isaacs are dab hands at writing comedy, so they conjure up excruciatingly funny scenes in which Val, the Botoxed matron from Perth’s better suburbs, greets her indulged son Corgan and his oversexed gay best mate Jimmy in the lobby of a luxury Kuta resort.

They’re there to celebrate Val’s significant birthday, although a reluctant Jimmy has come along only because his straight friend says he’ll pay his fare if he’ll face the ordeal with him.

The first half of Bali is the distilled essence of all that is nightmarish about a holiday at the Indonesian happy isle. It’s clear the writing pair have sat on banana lounges poolside at an island resort — purely for research purposes, you understand — marvelling at the overweening sense of entitlement of white tourists and the leechlike hold of Balinese touts who make a living off their naivety.

Yet this excellent two-hander is far more than a cabaret-style comedy night of Bali jokes. It takes an interesting stroll around the minds of two 30-something men, one of whom has never cut the Oedipal cord while the other ponders his own unfeeling sexual escapades. And in the heady perfume of Bali nights, Jimmy’s conquests are frequent and — audience alert — fairly graphic.

The writers first created their alter egos Corben and Jimmy for an earlier play, Fag/Stag, which so convincingly pinned down the masculine obsessions of two male mates leaving their 20s that it won awards at the Perth and Edinburgh Fringe festivals.

Isaacs and Fowler are part of a winning Perth theatrical formula, too. As members of the Last Great Hunt they belong to an independent company that reliably produces original plays on tiny budgets.

Bali is typically modest in staging: two actors at a bar table with only deft lighting and sound changes that transform bar into beachfront or nightclub dance floor. The clever way they overlap the narrative between ingenue Corben and Jimmy, the clearer-eyed cynic, allows for pithy commentary about privilege and its abuses.

But the Fag/Stag friends are older now and must confront the personal perils of their delayed adolescence. Either they each take a step into adulthood or remain trapped in a horror antechamber of cheap cocktails and quickie sex.

A few Australian tourists in lurid shirts visiting Bali may like to take note.

Tickets: $32. Bookings: online. Duration: 80min, no interval. Until Saturday.

Is sleeping next to your phone dangerous? Does the radiation really cause cancer?

Renee Hartsook PhD DABT, Science Writer at Takmos LLC

Answered Sep 6 · Upvoted by Matthias Friedrich, Cardiologist for 20+ years, (outpatient clinics, intensive care, ER, research)

First, let’s understand the facts about mobile devices and this perception of risk of harm:

• The type of energy emitted from mobile devices is radiofrequency and it does not have the ability to damage to DNA like ionizing radiation (such as an x-ray).
• Several large epidemiology studies were conducted on mobile phone use and the risk of central nervous system cancers. The studies do not establish an association between mobile device use and the risk of central nervous system cancers.
• The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), part of the World Health Organization, is the predominant public health authority on identifying and labelling carcinogens as such. Their working group concluded that it was possible that radiofrequency exposure from mobile devices is associated with cancer risk.

However, all of US health agencies (Centers for Disease Control, Food and Drug Administration, and National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences) make strong statements for mobile device safety and find no link between radiofrequency energy and cancer risk.

The National Cancer Institute has created a great fact sheet on this topic.

Bottom line: As a toxicologist do I believe that there is a risk? No.

That said, common sense is a good thing. I would not advocate sleeping with your phone next to your head, primarily because you will benefit from uninterrupted sleep.

Indonesia looks to build on recent tourism growth

IndonesiaTourism Economic News 23 Oct 2017

A more diverse product offering and a broadening of the destination base are at the centre of a new campaign to attract investment 
to Indonesia’s rapidly growing tourism sector.



Under a plan first mooted in 2016, Indonesia is ramping up efforts to develop regional destinations as major tourist centres under its 10 New Balis programme. The scheme seeks to replicate the success of the resort island of Bali, which currently attracts some 40% of all inbound tourist arrivals.

Australia, one of Indonesia’s key tourism markets, is supporting the project, committing $2.3m in funding in August through the World Bank to assist in advancing several destinations on the list.

Indonesia is also seeking to involve the Australian private sector in the programme. To this end, in August Indonesian officials conducted a five-city investment roadshow across Australia showcasing opportunities in tourism and infrastructure development.

Looking to engage other regional investors, at the Singapore-Indonesia Investment Forum in September, Arief Yahya, Indonesia’s minister of tourism, spoke of the ministry’s aim of adding 120,000 hotel rooms, thousands of eateries and up to 100 recreation parks to existing stocks in the regions.

Three of the 10 locations have been earmarked as developmental priorities: Lake Toba, Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara province, and Borobudur-Yogyakarta-Prambanan in Central Java province and the Special Region of Yogyakarta.
Broader goals for tourism development

The 10 New Balis effort falls within the broader Indonesia Tourism Development Programme (ITDP) being undertaken with assistance from the World Bank, which, in a draft document published in June, outlined proposals to provide a $180m loan to support the initiative and a further $570m using a Programme-for-Results financing instrument. The implementation of the latter involves “monitoring the performance of the institutional arrangements, and monitoring and verifying results”.

There are four “results areas” under the broader plan: improving the sustainability and tourist capacity of selected destinations; promoting domestic participation in the sector; creating an environment conducive to private sector investment; and increasing the capacity of institutions to facilitate tourism development.
Regional competition and sector fundamentals

Currently, Indonesia lags behind some of its South-east Asian neighbours in regards to tourism, ranking 42nd of 141 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index 2017. By comparison, Malaysia was 25th and Thailand 34th.

Nonetheless, Indonesia’s position in the latest report represented an eight-place improvement on the previous year’s index, and it is likely to move further up the index in future thanks to improvements under the ITDP to tourism service infrastructure, where it ranked 96th, and the supply of hotel rooms, where it placed 93rd.

The fundamentals of the sector have strengthened significantly in recent times, with arrivals rising by 7.2% in 2016 to 11.5m, according to data issued by the Central Statistics Agency. The upward growth trajectory continued this year: in the January-July period, 7.81m tourists entered the country, an increase of 23.53% on the same period last year.

Inbound traffic also rose in July, when it hit 1.35m, representing increases of 30.8% year-on-year and 21.5% month-on-month.
Challenges to development

However, several obstacles could weigh on progress towards the ultimate vision of 10 New Balis. First and foremost among these concerns Bali itself, with recent seismic activity at the island’s Mount Agung widely predicted to be indicative of an impending volcanic eruption.

Thousands have already been evacuated from the exclusion zone that stretches 12 km from the crater, and regardless of the severity of any eruption, the tourism industry will certainly be impacted at least in the near term.

Diversification of tourism offerings – as per the government’s goals – would certainly help the country weather similar circumstances in the future, but some industry insiders have also stressed the need for differentiation in the pursuit of the initiative.

“While Bali can be a source of inspiration for other regions across Indonesia, the challenge for each of the new tourism hubs will be to identify each destination’s uniqueness, thereby differentiating their tourism products,” Talef Rifai, secretary-general of the World Tourism Organisation, told OBG “This will allow each to stand on its own merits and attract a specific market.”
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Perth woman proposed to on plummeting AirAsia flight to Bali

Bali News and Views - An amazing human interest story. We wish the couple a long a prosperous marriage.

Simon White Saturday, 21 October 2017 4:20PM

Chris Jeanes and his now fiancee Casey KinchellaPicture: Chris Jeanes, Facebook.


Much has been made of the chaos and fear on an AirAsia flight forced to return to Perth last weekend - but it has emerged that at least one couple got off the plane with the story of a lifetime.

AirAsia flight QZ535 was 25 minutes into its flight to Bali on Sunday when cabin crew announced there was an emergency and oxygen marks dropped from overhead compartments.

A dramatic descent from cruising altitude ensued...but also a dramatic proposal for London lawyer Chris Jeanes and his girlfriend Casey Kinchella, who is from Perth.

NBC News reported Mr Jeanes had been planning to propose to Ms Kinchella when they got to Bali but the mid-air drama sped the process up.

"Luckily she said, 'yes,'" the network quoted Mr Jeanes as saying.

"We both reconfirmed with each other when we were on the ground."

Mr Jeanes is a an associate in the London office of US firm O'Melveny & Myers, while Ms Kinchella is an associate with Ashurst in London.

Her LinkedIn profile lists her as having studied law at the University of Western Australia from 2006 to 2011.

While the couple had a happily memorable story to tell from the dramatic flight, not all their fellow passengers exited the plane in as good a spirits.

Air Asia under fire for third incident in less than five months.

Play VideoAir Asia under fire for third incident in less than five months.

Merv Loy told The West Australian the only instructions he received in English were to put their seatbelts on and “Brace”.

“We didn’t understand a word they were saying. It was pretty scary,” he said.

Glenyce Regan started praying as the woman next to her scribbled in a notepad through tears.

“I could feel (the loss of pressure) from breathing because I’ve not long ago had a heart operation,” Ms Regan said. “Then the masks dropped and it frightened the s... out of me.

“It (the advice) was all in Asian or Thai or something. We couldn’t understand anything that was coming over the loudspeaker.

“I instantly grabbed my rosary beads and put them around my neck.

“I thought we were gone. I really, really thought we were gone. My life flashed in front of me.”

Mark Bailey said some on the plane assumed the worst because of the crew’s “hysterical” reaction.

One woman told The West Australian she thought they were about to “crash-land in a paddock”.

Passengers rushed to put on lifejackets despite the lack of water below them.

AirAsia has since apologised for the incident, which is being investigated by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

The scare comes four months after another AirAsia flight was forced to return to Perth because of an engine failure.

During that incident the pilot urged passengers to say a prayer.

Indonesia opens arms to tourism investments

By Mimi Hudoyo/ Posted on 20 October, 2017 10:11

Projects with a total investment value of US$2.9 billion were presented to delegations of investors at the Regional Investment Forum, which took place in Padang, West Sumatra from October 15 to 17.

Thomas Lembong, head of Indonesia Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), said there were five projects with an estimated value of US$2.3 billion around Lake Toba (Sumatra), 10 projects in the Borobudur area (Central Java) with an investment value of US$562 million and two hotel projects totalling an investment value of US$60 million in Tanjung Kelayang (Belitung).Identified priority development areas include Lake Toba

Apart from these three development areas, BKPM and the Ministry of Tourism also brought to the table five other destinations that were part of the 10 New Bali development areas plus two areas in West Sumatra, namely Gunung Padang integrated resort in Padang City and Mandeh Beach marine tourism development in Pesisir Selatan Regency.

Lembong said: “Tourism is a sector with 30 to 35 per cent growth rate, way above the average national investment which is (around) 12 to 14 per cent annually.”

Arief Yahya, tourism minister, also revealed projections that tourism would become the biggest foreign exchange earner for Indonesia in future. “Preparing the attractions and amenities (facilities and infrastructure) as well as accessibility is our priority, especially for the 10 priority destinations,” he said.

Speaking on the importance of events such as the Regional Investment Forum, Arief said investment in the tourism sector is key as a sign of investor confidence and could change the game for Indonesia in the face of competing destinations.

Data from BKPM showed investment in the tourism sector is growing. In 2013, investment in tourism was US$602 million, contributing 1.5 per cent to the total national investment.

“In the first half of this year, the investment on tourism reached US$929 million, or 3.8 per cent of the total national investment,” Arief said, explaining that the growth rate in terms of contribution to the total national investment more than doubled.

The Regional Investment Forum 2017 was attended by dignitaries from government agencies, the senior deputy governor of Bank Indonesia (Central Bank), foreign diplomats, as well as investors from 13 countries in Asia, the UAE, Europe and the US.

One of Bali's Award Winning Successful Large Companies Celebrates 13th, Anniversary

Operating a successful Bali business is the most difficult things to do in the world.

Haveing a successful award-winning company for 13 years is near impossible.

 PT Bali Affordable Lifestyles International (PT, B.A.L.I.) who manage very successful PT Bali Luxury Villas has managed to do grow and become more successful for the past 13 years.

Their combined 135 other staff have managed four luxury complexes on  Bali's East Coast that obtained Tripadvisor's highest accolade their Hall of Fame award which is presented to less than 10 % of the hotels and villas world wide.

The party was not only for management but for all staff  including sales, concierges, security, housekeeping, pool man, engineers and gardeners

Company owner and President, 21 year Bali Resident Lawrenc Bellefontaine provided an audio visual presentation on the companies past present and future

He described how he, his current sales manager, three other Indonesians started PT. B.A.L.I. with only $2,500 in a small rental home in Sanur 15 years prior.

He reflected on the fact that the first beachfront property they sold was $1,000 per hundred square square. The same property now is $20,000 per hundred square meters.

The first Villa three-bedroom villa on the border of the  Bali Hyatt sold was $176,000 is now around $300,000 pounds.

Then he revealed the latest division of PT Bali which is "Best Asia Real Estate" B.A.R.E.

The B.A.R.E.  website was designed to mirror the most successful and largest website in America which utilizes high tech searching capability that avoids the need to enter any information and anyone can find properties with the click of a mouse.

Long time 25 year Bali resident Jimmy Roland has joined the team to head up this division.

Jimmy Roland and Wife Azizah

He took a few minutes to discuss the current situation in regards to Mount Agung which is threatening to erupt. 

He recommended staff should make sure that they have emergency kits available should there be a Volcanic dust fall out although he explained based on the 1963 eruption our villas, which are 50 km away, should not be in jeopardy.

Then there was a short quiz with cash prizes

Finally best employee of the year cash awards were delivered to the best Employees.

Final -photo with mu Azizah Bellefontaine Notaris and co-owner of PT. B.A.L.I. and Sales manager/ Interpreter Yanhi

A group photo with approximately 50% of total staff.

Finally a delicious buffet supplied by Emerald Villas Restaurant.