Word: malaysian
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...trade was dominated by a ruthless and well-connected élite. Now, fueled by insatiable demand from prospering China, a regional boom in farming nests in purpose-built birdhouses - "swiftlet condos," as they're sometimes called - is democratizing the business. "It's recession-proof," enthuses Harry Kok, a retired Malaysian engineer who owns or has shares in five birdhouses and writes a blog on the subject from his Kuala Lumpur home. "The overheads are minimal. You don't have a factory with so many workers. Right now, those who have birdhouses are smiling...
...business has expanded so fast, and with such little oversight, that reliable numbers are hard to come by. There are perhaps 10,000 swiftlet buildings in Malaysia alone, which each year produce 144 metric tons of nests worth $160 million, reports the Malaysian government news agency Bernama. Nests from Thailand's 600 or more condos could be worth another $60 million, according to a 2007 Thai study, "Swiftlet Birds' Nests: Power, Conflict and Riches," by independent researcher Kasem Jandam. Judging by the number of swiftlet condos appearing in many Thai towns, these figures are probably gross underestimates. In Indonesia...
...authorities in Southeast Asian countries have not been able to control the building, never mind collect taxes on the profits. But the industry is growing too big to ignore, and there are signs that it might not stay lightly regulated for much longer. Last year Malaysian forestry officials and police raided more than a dozen illegal swiftlet farms across Sarawak, a state where only two of an estimated 1,500 birdhouses have licenses. The rest contravene local wildlife-protection laws that forbid swiftlet farms in urban areas. Sarawak's once profitable industry is grounded for now. But with unflagging demand...
...police and security-analyst speculation has linked the latest bombings with a possible splinter group of JI run by Malaysian-born Noordin Top. The former accountant-turned-explosives guru has been on the run for years. Over the past few weeks, an anti-terrorist task force had been tracking Noordin's network across the island of Java, arresting several of his alleged contacts. On July 14th police uncovered a cache of bomb materials at a home owned by a man they believe is Noordin's father...
...turns out to be a skeleton - a tough-guy newspaperman stops in a small town that seems to be under the curse of a female ghost and is certainly teeming with oddballs. It's the old story of the city slicker out-crazied by the remote rubes. Unfamiliarity with Malaysian film conventions may leave you wondering whether the tone is comic or melodramatic or simply extraterrestrial. No matter: enjoy the gorgeous neo-primitive imagery and the inexplicable shenanigans. We'll bet that even Malaysians were pleasantly baffled...