ISSUE 11 17th April – 23rd April 2011

CURRENT AFFAIRS 2011

1. Thai and Cambodian soldiers fought on their disputed __________ yesterday in a clash that killed six
soldiers in the first major flare-up since a shaky ________ __ in February. Both countries evacuated
thousands of villagers and accused each other of firing first in the thick disputed jungles 150km south-
west of the 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple. According to Thai officials, the fighting began after
Cambodian troops altered a bunker in the area and moved closer in ______________ of a ceasefire pact.
The fighting is the most severe since three Thais and eight Cambodians were killed and dozens of people
wounded over February 4-7 in the bloodiest fighting in nearly two decades. Thailand has declined the
help of international _______________, insisting that the two countries should resolve the issue
bilaterally. However, Cambodia’s foreign minister, Mr Namhong, has claimed that Thailand’s refusal is a
“pretext for using its larger and materially more sophisticated armed forces against Cambodia”.

Link/ Contrast/ Compare this with:

• Other territorial disputes like China and Japan’s dispute over the Senkaku Islands or Diaoyu Dao
and Singapore and Malaysia’s dispute over Pedra Branca.
• Evaluate why disputes over territories can escalate to the point of armed conflict.

2. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong opened a US$3 billion wafer fab facility, taking the opportunity to
reiterate to Singaporeans, the importance of __________ workers in Singapore. According to him, for
every one foreign worker employed by IM Flash Singapore, 1.5 local jobs were created. In remarks
acknowledging that foreign workers were taking good jobs away from them, Mr Lee cited statistics to the
contrary. He said that Singaporeans and ______ ____ make up two-thirds of the company’s employees
and that two-thirds of those jobs are managerial and professional positions. Mr Lee also said that the
semiconductor industry was the fastest growing segment of the electronics cluster, expanding 64 percent
last year. Electronics underpins Singapore’s __ __________ sector, which is a key pillar of the economy.
Mr Lee said that Singapore’s ability to ride the ups and downs is a key survival trait for a small country.
To meet future ______________, it must “stay nimble, resilient, and cohesive to ride the storms”.

Link/ Contrast/ Compare this with:

• Claims that foreign talents in managerial positions only hire foreign talents.
• The view that local talents are capable enough to do without foreign talents.

3. Five massive bombs set to detonate at 9am on Good Friday near a ___________ church were defused in
Jakarta yesterday after 19 men were rounded up by police in anti-terror raids. Security Minister Djoko
Suyanto said he believed Islamic ________ ___ had been plotting an attack ahead of Easter celebrations.
National Police Chief General Timur Pradopo said the suspects picked up yesterday include six men who
were wanted in connection with a series of mail bombs sent last month to ___________ Muslim activists
and a former anti-terror chief. The arrested men eventually led police to a gas pipeline 100m from the
church large enough to hold 3000 people in Serpong. They discovered five bombs that together weighed
150kg and were rigged to be detonated by cellphone. The discovery of the explosive devices, along with
reports of other suspicious items, sparked panic across Jakarta and outlying districts on the eve of Good
Friday. Indonesia, the world’s most populous ____________ nation, has been battling militants since the
devastating 2002 Bali bombings. Experts have warned of a new disturbing trend where small bands of
militants have shifted their focus to local “enemies”.

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ISSUE 11 17th April – 23rd April 2011

Link/ Contrast/ Compare this with:

• The burning of Korans by Floridian pastor Terry Jones.
• The need for wiretapping in Indonesia.

4. Apple is facing questions about the ____________ of its iPhone and iPad products after a report that a
hidden file on the devices tracks and stores their locations. The report came from a technology
conference in San Francisco, where two computer programmers presented research showing that the
iPhone and 3G versions of the iPad began tracking users’ locations a year ago, when Apple updated its
mobile operating system, iOS4. British security researchers said that after customers upgraded their
software, a new, hidden file began storing data from cellphone towers and from nearby WiFi locations
along with the current time. The data remains on a person’s phone or iPad, but when the device is
synced to a computer, a file is created on the hard drive in the iTunes application. This means that every
place the user has been to is stored locally. To some ____________ advocates, the storing of the data
was a clear breach. But to others, the discovery of the hidden file was unlikely to have a major practical
impact on security and privacy. Some privacy experts also said that the issue was not the ___________
of storing this information but whether Apple was playing fair with its customers.

Link/ Contrast/ Compare this with:

• Privacy issues with regards to the inability to terminate Facebook accounts.
• The selling of the =personal data of varsity students in Singapore to companies.

Write-Up
5. Mourners bowed their heads at vigils to mark the first anniversary of the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster
which unleashed the biggest ____________ oil spill in history and blackened beaches from Texas to
Source of picture:
Florida. Relatives flew over the Gulf of Mexico waters on Wednesday where 11 oil rig workers died a year
ago and President Barrack Obama vowed to “hold BP and other responsible parties fully ____________
Brief background information of incident/person:
for the damage they’ve done and the painful losses that they’ve caused”. The disaster began on the night
of April 20 last year when the Deepwater Horizon rig burst into flames and killed the 11 men. The rest of
the crew evacuated, but two days later, the rig toppled into the Gulf and sank to the sea floor. By the time
the well was ___________ 87 days later, 4.9 million barrels of oil had gushed out of the runaway well.
Hundreds of miles of fragile coastal wetlands and beaches were contaminated, and the economic costs
have reached into the tens of billions. The spill exposed the industry’s shocking lack of _____________,
weak safety culture and dangerously lax government oversight. The Obama administration’s solution – a
temporary moratorium until new safety rules could be implemented – was slammed by residents and
politicians for dealing Louisiana a bigger economic blow than the spill. But activists said the disaster
should be a catalyst for moving the country towards greater use of ______________ energy sources.

The significance behind this incident/person and the issue(s) raised:

6. Making use of the clue given, source for the picture which you think best fits the clue and insert the picture
in the box below. The picture is to be accompanied by a short write-up explaining the significance of the
event and/or person.
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ISSUE 11 17th April – 23rd April 2011
The clue for this week’s issue is:
“This is one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”

-Insert picture here-

Write-Up

Source of picture:

Brief background information of incident/person:

The significance behind this incident/person and the issue(s) raised: