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Wassup
Issue 8   March 2012
The cultural trends magazine from
Ogilvy & Mather Asia Pacific

Edited & designed by Kunal Sinha
Editorial assistant: Lara Farrar

Correspondents:

Astrid Savitri (Jakarta)
Tari Rusbianti (Jakarta)
Inke Kurniawan (Jakarta)
Elaine Dai (Beijing)
Timothy Sarker (Dhaka)
Naima Hamid (Dhaka)
Nirav Parekh (Mumbai)
Donnah Alcoseba (Makati City)
Wine Chua-Leonardo (Makati City)
Tania Chan (Singapore)
Grace Aik (Singapore)
Naoko Ito (Tokyo)
Azusa Fukai (Tokyo)
Natalie Gruis (Ho Chi Minh City)
Siddharth Roy (Colombo)
Mei Wu (Taipei)
Caryl Heah (Kuala Lumpur)
Beatrice Yong (Kuala Lumpur)
Josephine Phang (Kuala Lumpur)
Serena Park (Seoul)




© Ogilvy & Mather Asia Pacific, 2012
Spring is in the air. It is celebrated in different ways in different parts of Asia. In India, it
is the festival of Holi – where everyone throws colored water on each other. The
Japanese observe Sakura Matsuri, the Cherry Blossom Festival, when the color of pink
brightens the moss green hills. In China, it is the time to go home to one’s family,
resulting in the largest annual migration of humanity. But on the outskirts of Shanghai,
there’s a tulip park that is bigger than Keukenhof – acres of blooming tulips that draw in
the crowds.
In this issue, we celebrate a group of people who are in the spring of their lives:
Tweens. At the threshold of teenage, with a mind that is keen to explore and express,
they are a sweet spot for many marketers. Read about their daily routines, marvel at
how tech-savvy they are.
We also speak to a breed of small business owners: those who run convenience stores,
and continue to find relevance despite the relentless advance of modern retailing
chains. These family run businesses have adapted with the times, yet the personalized
service they offer keeps them relevant. Think how you can serve them better: whether
it is from a logistics perspective, or with packaging that doubles up as display, or by
capitalizing on the relationships they have with their customers.
But common people remain worried. For every new opportunity, there’s a threat. The
times are uncertain, and being interconnected across cultures means that what’s
happening in a distant land may affect us sooner than later. Think of how you can play a
role in alleviating that tension.
And when you’re done reading this eighth issue of Wassup, do tell us how you have
applied some of the trends and insights to your work. We’re all ears !
14 countries.

20 correspondents deeply immersed in
popular and leading edge culture bring you
Cultural Insights that will make a world of
difference to your business




                                                                                                  SOUTH KOREA
 BANGLADESH




                                                                        PHILIPPINES

                                                                                      SINGAPORE
                              INDONESIA




                                                                                                                SRI LANKA



                                                                                                                                     THAILAND
                                                  MALAYSIA

                                                             PAKISTAN




                                                                                                                                                VIETNAM
                                                                                                                            TAIWAN
                                          JAPAN
              CHINA

                      INDIA
Look who’s talking:
Convenience Store Owners in Asia

      Knowing me, Knowing you:
                      Tweens

              Playing on my iPod

                     Rage against

        Everyone is talking about

                     Tense about

Top Valentine's Day gifts for 2012
Look
who’s
talking




Convenience Store Owners in Asia
Look who’s talking …

                                                                                                             BEIJING




Compared to other modern metropolises in Asia, it is
difficult to a find a 24-hour convenience store in Beijing. If
you don't live near busy streets, you may not have such a
convenience. Li Jie, the store owner of a local 24-hour            Brands that are popular include Orchard Farmer and
convenience store franchise called Hi-24 explains why              Ddchu. “Dry fruits and nuts are considered as healthy
most convenience stores are unwilling to open in some              snacks in China. They provide nutrition that is good for
communities."The operational costs of a 24-hour                    brain work; Orchard Farmer offers small packaged dry
convenience store are very high. Such costs include water          fruits and nuts with competitive prices, which make
bills, electricity fees and labor costs; the rent is also higher   them very popular among working adults; Ddchu
on busy streets. Therefore, we would not choose a                  makes soybean milk, which is also considered as a
location which is not commercially thriving and populous.”         healthy beverage. A lot of young professionals don’t
                                                                   have time to cook or to buy breakfast, they drink black
Li’s store is located at a busy area called Dongzhimen             soybean milk instead. They can use microwave in the
where office buildings, shopping malls and residential             office to heat it up, which is good for winter, Li said.
complexes are located. Li’s frequent customers are 20 to
35 years old working adults whose incomes are higher               Promotions that are working well lately is buy 10 yuan
than average. “Saving time is the highest priority for my          and add 2 yuan to get a free Nestle coffee. Young
customers, quality is their biggest concern. So we are             professionals don’t mind to spend 2 extra RMB for a
trying to bring them good quality products; having new             coffee that is much cheaper than Starbucks but also
products every one or two weeks on the shelf is one of our         gives them energy to make it through the whole
advantages,” Li explained.                                         afternoon.

Cookies, milk, juice and instant food such as noodles are          Since foreign convenient stores such as 7-11 and
selling very well at Li’s store. Young working adults,             Family Mart are expanding their business in China,
especially female professionals, like to shop for few snacks       local stores owners are feeling pressured. Li said:
during lunch break or working hours. Brands that are               “Foreign convenient stores’ biggest advantage is fresh
popular include Orchard Farmer and Ddchu.                          food and hot food. Their business license is allowing
                           Cookies, milk, juice and instant        them to set up a kitchen in the store and make fresh
                           food such as noodles are selling        food for customers. In winter, hot food is very popular
                           very well at Li’s store. Young          and competitive, customers want to eat something
                           working adults,        especially       warm in a cold weather.” However, Hi-24 also have
                           female professionals, like to           their own advantages. They provide self-service
                           shop for few snacks during              terminals for repayment, payment, recharge and e-
                           lunch break or working hours.           business service which is very popular among their
                                                                   customers.
Look who’s talking …

KUALA LUMPUR




Pasar Mini (Mini Market) Petaling Store is a small bustling
convenience store, tucked away in a friendly residential area
of Petaling Jaya. Victor, the owner, has run Petaling Store
with his brother for over 20 years. They work 7 days a week,
12 hours a day, taking turns to man the store. Petaling Store        Front of the convenience store
usually enjoys a steady stream of customers throughout the
day. However, Sundays are the busiest days for Victor,
followed by Saturdays and after-work hours on weekdays.

Most of Victor’s customers live around the area, frequenting
his shop several times a week to stock up on their weekly
provisions, or to make impulse purchases such as beer or
cigarettes. Customers are a mixture of ages, demographics
and races. 90% of his customers are regulars and many have
become his friends over the years. Most don’t spend more
than a few minutes in-store.

The top 3 selling products at Petaling Store are: bread (a
large choice of brands are available, sold at a slightly lower
prices), beer (Carlsberg and Tiger are the most popular
brands) and biscuits. A new bread brand, Massimo, has            Inside the store- the main section stocking beer,
recently taken the Malaysian market by storm; delivering                         snacks and goods
wholesome goodness at affordable prices. Victor has also
noticed an increase in demand for value items over the past
few years, with Malaysians becoming less brand conscious
and more price conscious.

Seeing other hypermarkets around the area, such as
Speedmart as direct competitors, Victor ensures Petaling
Store remains competitive with pricing that is on par, or
slightly lower than hypermarkets and also through building
strong relationships with his customers.

With such long working hours, Victor feels there is “no time
to have a life” in this business. He wishes that he could take
a break and go on holiday, but man-power is limited and it is
hard to trust other people with his business.
                                                                                                8
                                                                   Inside the store- the back section stocking
                                                                        household non-perishable items
Look who’s talking …
                                                                                                      JAKARTA




                                                       Lyla is 30. She runs a small shop in front of her house
                                                       where she sells products for daily needs. The shop is
                                                       located just behind the wall of the biggest national
                                                       university in Indonesia. University students are her most
                                                       frequent customers who live in nearby dorms. Lyla earns
                                                       between $50 and $90 per day, which she uses to
                                                       replenish her stock for the following day’s business.

                                                       Over the past couple of years, life has been getting
                                                       harder. The shop is not as profitable as it once was. Mini
                                                       marts with free internet access and places for people to
                                                       hang out are hurting Lyla’s business.
                                                       Cigarettes and drinks are the most popular products.
                                                       Drinks cost around 50 cents and are promoted or bundled
                                                       with other items. Tough business conditions haVE forced
                                                       Lyla to be more creative. She has promoted her shop
                                                       door-to-door in female dormitories and offers free
                                                       delivery to small food stalls on campus, providing free
                                                       delivery for minimum orders of products.




                                                                                                        DHAKA

27 year old Sobuj Islam runs a corner store with a grand name:
“Save Mart Department Store.” His customers range from
elderly people to domestic helpers. The popular brands he
sells are Maggi noodles (Nestle), Ruchi Chanachur (Square
Consumer Foods), Arong Milk. Mentos and Big Babol Triply
(Perfetti). They are favorites among children and adults alike.
Sobuj says that brands that tend to do well are those with
innovative packaging. For example, Maggi has been popular
because of the design of its packaging. Coca-Cola has also
been making a comeback (the brand has been absent in the
market), now occupying 83 percent of corner stores in
Bangladesh. Sobuj says his stores rarely offer any promotions.                                  9
Look who’s talking …




COLOMBO
Barnes Corner is a local grocery shop located in           Another fast-moving brand is Elephant House Twist ice
Colombo. It has been open since 1991. Over the years, it   cream, which offers flavors “twisted together” --
has increased its products from basic household items      vanilla with mango, chocolate or orange. The novelty
to a host of almost every possible FMCG product            of enjoying their favorite flavors combine together in a
needed by families. The store has a steady flow of both    single scoop of ice cream is driving demand from
loyal and new customers throughout the day.                consumers, especially children. Elephant House
Housewives from the neighborhood visit in the morning.     Wonderbites is another new brand that is doing well.
During the day until late afternoon, items such as rice,   Wonderbites are bit-sized cubes filled with vanilla ice
flour and vegetables are in high demand. During            cream covered with a chocolate outside, which makes
lunchtime, the store sells “baath packet,” which is        it easy for instant consumption.
cooked rice and curry, to customers working at nearby
offices. When school ends, children and their mothers      While brand promotions are a common phenomenon,
come in to purchase soft drinks and frozen dairy           Barnes Corner has not resorted to offering any special
products.                                                  deals to their customers to boost sales. The owner says
                                                           their largest customer base are those who have been
Recently, dengue has been a concern in Sri Lanka as        loyal to them for a long time. The store always
numerous people on the island were reportedly              responds to special requests from customers to stock
infected with the disease and hospitalized. Mosquitoes     specific brands. Even if the brands are not the most
are the primary carrier of the disease. As a result, a     popular, the storekeeper says he knows they will sell.
brand called Mortein mosquito repellant has been           There are more stores opening up nearby; however
popular. The shop owner says customers prefer the          Barnes Corner says they are not concerned because
vaporizer over mosquito coils since it is a smoke-free     they have never had to work hard to attract and retain
                                                                                                10
product and more convenient.                               their loyal shoppers.
Look who’s talking …


                                   BANGKOK



    Ananda Supakrit’s family has been
    running a local convenience store on
    Bangkok’s busy Chan Road for more than
    50 years. have established for 50 years
    ago. “As a family business, we are much
    more passionate about traditional
    trading, which can lead to the
    sustainable relationships in Thai society,”
    he tells us. In the morning, the store is
    packed with office-goers. For a typical
    snack, they buy a small carton of soy
    milk or juice, a packet of shredded pork
    with salad cream sandwich or a packet
    of dried seaweed or squid.

    Drinks are the hottest selling item. The
    weather in Bangkok is hot and humid –
    and Ananda sells bottled water, Coke,
    Pepsi, Singha beer, green tea and Thai
    lemonade. Mama noodles are popular
    and a good deal for a quick lunch. In the
    evening, many youngsters pick up frozen
    dinner, typically Thai, dim sum, or bread
    stuffed with red bean or custard. For
    the equivalent of 35 cents, you can buy a
    box of noodles – add hot water from a
    dispenser in the store, rip open the pack
    of chillies and spices, and you’ve got a
    meal!

    Borrowing an idea from the 7-Eleven
    stores, Ananda offers his customers
    loyalty cards. Every time you make a
    purchase, he stamps it, and when the
    card is full, they can get something for
    free, or a discount on future purchases.
    Some of his customers donate their
    stamped cards to one of the Buddhist
    temples nearby, so that the monks may
    buy anything they need.

    Charity, customer loyalty and business
    do go hand-in-hand in 11
                          Thailand!
Look who’s talking …
TOKYO

                                                                     MANILA




In July 2001, Lawson Inc. began a new convenience store chain        Aling Ging has been operating her ‘sari-sari’
called Natural Lawson that emphasizes health, beauty and a           store for more than 20 years, and it has
comfortable lifestyle as key messaging to reach consumers.           become a go-to store for her neighbors.
Their target demographic is women in their twenties and              Even when new sari-sari stores pop up on
thirties. Natural Lawson uses the appeal of both quality             every street of the village, she is confident
products and a modern atmosphere to create a convenience             that she will survive because she has learned
store that targets a tough, female niche market. All products        to keep a good relationship with her
are advertised as having no artificial additives or preservatives.   customers, which she calls “suki” (loyal
Particular touches such as organic wine, aroma oil and skincare      customer). Aling Ging is very hands-on in
products cater perfectly to a consumer base of young,                running the store because she relies on the
metropolitan women. Many stores also have bakeries called            earning from the store to cover for many of
“LOHAS Kitchens” and in-store cafe seating as well as dim            the household expenses. She takes pride in
lighting and isles wide enough for strollers and wheel chairs.       having sent her daughter to vocational school
                                                                     with her earnings from the store and her
Lawson has also started a new dessert line called “Uchi Cafe         husband’s modest income over the years. In
Sweets” that have been a big hit. “Uchi cafe” means “Home            the 20 years that she has been in the
Cafe” and refers to the type of desserts shoppers can buy at         business, she has experienced the rise and
convenience stores and enjoy at home. The dessert line has           invasion of sachets in her store as she
been expanded due to its popularity. There are now over 30           observed her customers trying to extend
types of desserts along with a premium line. The desserts are        their moneys harder and harder. She also
popular among both young men and women. A Cross                      observed how the price cap of customer
Marketing survey revealed that 44.7 percent of people buy a          spending went lower over the years. With
bottle of tea at a convenience store and 43.9 percent buy            the difficult economic times, even she started
desserts. There is obviously a need for a little treat after work    to augment her grocery selling by also
or school!                                                           offering snack items such as banana-cue and
                                                                                                 12
                                                                     other native desserts.
Look who’s talking …
TAIPEI

This convenience store in Taipei was opened by Wang’s father
over 60 years ago. Things are not easy. The store is located in a
quiet neighborhood yet faces fiercer and fiercer competition
from other stores opening around the city. Those stores are
more modern, with bright lights and a wider variety of
products. Wang says he is lucky that he does not need to pay
rent and has no mortgage on his house and shop otherwise he
might be in real trouble as profits have been steadily declining.

Wang says most of his clientele are older residents living in the
area. Younger parents tend to drive further away to
supermarkets. Wang helps deliver goods to the elderly who
have a hard time coming to his store. Blue collar workers who
are unaccustomed to going to more modern markets aimed at
the middle class also frequent Wang’s shop. They come in
wearing tank tops and flip flops. “Maybe it is because what I
wear is just like them,” Wang said.

Wine and cigarettes are also cheaper here compared to chain
convenience stores and supermarkets. For Wang, the
government has thankfully not established any policy to create
a uniform price. Except for wine and cigarettes, Wang says he
does not like to sell new brands. His old clients are set in their
ways and like to buy products they know. “They can barely
change their taste, so it is common for new products to turn
into over-stocked goods,” he said.

Since he knows his neighborhood well, Wang finds opportunity
in selling some seasonal products, such as glutinous rice balls
during Lantern Festival, gold paper and incense during Chinese
New Year, and barbecue utensils for Moon Festival.


                                               TAN BINH

                                               Tap is the owner of a local convenience store in Tan Binh district in
                                               Vietnam. His store has been around for quite some time hence his
                                               regular clients are the people who live in the same neighborhood that
                                               want to support his business. Tap was particularly excited to talk
                                               about the different products that were the best sellers at his store.
                                               “Since there are a lot of kids in this neighborhood, snacks and candies
                                               are probably the two most popular items at my store. Kids tend to
                                               buy brands that have been around for quite some time such as Thai
                                               Shrimps, or Crab. Some newer brands such as Cheetos and Lay’s are
                                               doing quite well too, and I really see an upward trend in their sales. I
                                               think the reason is because these new brands are willing to pay for
                                               advertising to promote their products where as those “traditional”
                                                                                                     13
                                               brands – Thai Shrimps and Crab – rely on word-of-mouth for sales.”
Look who’s talking …




                                                                     You get to meet all kinds of people in Shankar’s shop.
MUMBAI
                                                                     Kids, housewives, elderly people, and even household
                                                                     help from the nearby housing societies come and buy
                                                                     their emergency requirements from the shop. “Pant
27-year-old Shankar Patel defies the image we have in our
                                                                     pehen ne wali bhi aati hai; ghaghra-wali bhi aati hai [We
minds of an average owner of a provision store. And he also
                                                                     have women buyers wearing western clothing, as well as
defies the image of the marketing-savvy, new-age shopkeeper
                                                                     those wearing traditional dresses stepping in to our
that we would expect as first-time entrepreneurs. However,
                                                                     shop],” he says. The shop is open 6 days in a week.
after a short chat with him, things start to make sense. In India,
                                                                     “Sometimes we do not feel like working, so we down the
most businesses can be closely linked to communities. The
                                                                     shutters for a day”, he smiles sheepishly. The 250-square-
famous dabbawalas (tiffin carriers) in Mumbai are all from the
                                                                     feet shop is unbelievably loaded with groceries and food
same community hailing from in and around a specific village in
                                                                     products of all kinds – from packaged meals, to fresh
Maharasthra. The same is true for diamond traders and
                                                                     bread and milk in polythene bags, to grains and cereals
labourers. General and Provision stores are no different either –
                                                                     stocked in open and sold in loose packs. Part of the small
they are largely owned by members of the Marwari community,
                                                                     space outside the shop is given to a vegetable vendor.
and operated by family members and relatives. After studying
                                                                     Ask him on the number of products he stocks, and very
till the 10th grade, Shankar started out as a helper in a general    nonchalantly, he shrugs his shoulders and says that he
store in suburban Mumbai. About 3 years ago, he gathered             doesn’t know. He only re-stocks what he sells, and that
enough courage (and support from his employer), to start his         too is taken care of by the weekly trips of salesmen from
own provision shop, ‘Shree Dhanlaxmi Stores’.                                                              14
                                                                     different companies.
Look who’s talking …




So how much money does he make? Daily sales clock about              Any new products that got him excited? For the focus he has
INR 15,000 ($300) and he gets a margin of about 8-10% on             on business, this too had to be something that helped him
that. “The new, big stores (referring to the modern retail           earn more. A chocolate cream biscuit brand launched in the
stores) have halved my business”, he says. “[Customers] go           premium segment, and having a high turnover is what he
in their cars and buy in bulk from there, and come to me for         recalls first. Next is a heat-and-eat packaged meals brand that
smaller purchases.” The biggest impact to him is on the high-        added more dishes to its range, and has been getting buyers
margin food grains and provisions that he sells in loose             without much effort. With the high number of customers
packs. These items are now bought in packaged form, and at           steeping into his shop, Shankar doesn’t have much time to
discounted rates from the stores.                                    convince them to change their preferences. He picks his
                                                                     opportunities well, and just says “Achcha hai, le lo (take it, it’s
To boost his sales further, Shankar has started offering free        good!)” with great conviction, to make people change their
home delivery to customers living nearby. It doesn’t incur           brand. He does not go into details, and doesn’t seem to care
any extra cost to him, but make it a bit convenient for his          to know much too. Companies, brands, variants and the top
customers, he reasons. Unfortunately for him, this service           features is all he can manage to remember. So what keeps
now has become part of base expectations, since every shop           him and his shop going? One would get the same brands in a
in the area offers the same benefit. From earnings of about          departmental store at probably better discounts, and from
INR 40,000 ($800) per month, Shankar’s big expenses are the          salespeople probably more informed than him. Around this
shop’s rent, salaries for his 3 helpers and the electricity. His 3   same time, a housewife enters the shop, picks something up
helpers are his roommates too, so his monthly rent for the           and asks for clearing up past dues. This is when we see him
flat is an added expense he has to bear. A part of the               open his notebook of “accounts” maintained for regular
remainder goes to his family living in the village.                  customers, and we realize the importance of personalized
                                                                     short-term credit he offers to his customers.What does he do
What gets him interested? Not much, it seems, except for             with the savings? “I plough it back,” he says. No indulgent
retailer schemes. ‘Everest’, a maker of spices, recently ran a       spending on self? “Nothing”, he says, a bit embarrassed. And
scheme for retailers, where they got scratch cards and may           adds matter-of-factly, “I don’t make that much money.”
get win prizes from a draw of lottery. It made him order a full
carton rather than only a few packs. Similar promotional             “Surely he is being modest”, I think, looking at the heaps of
schemes for end consumers that help him sell a premium               products all around me, and immediately realize that he
product in more quantities are his favorite. A detergent             might have said the truth. For a shopkeeper who earns that
brand gave away liquid hand-wash and toothpastes free with           kind of money, he doesn’t have a cell-phone. Yes, he does a
its variants for washing machines, while a juice brand gave          landline connection and an intercom for the society where
smaller SKUs free with its large packs.                              the shop is, but for the purpose of business. No personal
                                                                     indulgences.                             15
.
Tweens
Knowing me, Knowing you

                                            DORA, 9

                                            Dora is the “Little Princess” in her family. Not only because she
                                            looks like a little princess by wearing the new Barbie dress that her
                                            mom just bought for her, but also because the amount of freedom
                                            that she is allowed to have at home. The wall of her bedroom is
                                            covered by Dora’s cute paintings of animals, people and trees. Her
                                            mother smiled and said: “We can paint the wall again but we can’t
                                            kill child’s creativity. I want her to be happy in her childhood with
                                            the freedom to do things she enjoys to do.”

                                            Dora is 9 and lives in Beijing. Her parents are both working for
                                            foreign companies, and they are occupied with work most of the
                                            time. In order to better take care of Dora, her grandparents live
                                            with them in the same house. They pick up Dora from school
                                            everyday and prepare dinner for her. Monday to Friday Dora has
                                            regular classes from 8am to 3:30pm. Every Tuesday afternoon, she
                                            goes to English supplementary classes until 5pm, and every
                                            Thursday afternoon, she has painting lessons. Dora’s mom
                                            explained that she and her husband want Dora to explore and
                                            develop some interests when she is young but meanwhile they
                                            don’t want Dora’s time to be filled with extra lessons. They think
                                            having a balance between learning and playing is one of the most
                                            important things for a child.



At home, Dora’s favorite activities are watching
animation, painting and playing with her dad’s iPad.
Her favorite stars are not normal people. They are
animated characters such as Pleasant Goat from
“Pleasant Sheep and Big Big Wolf” and Dora from
“Dora the Explorer.” Dora’s mom indicated that she
obviously prefers clothing and stationeries with
graphics of animation characters that she likes.
“Pleasant Sheep is very beautiful and good at a lots of
things. For example, putting on make up, cooking and
nursing; Dora always goes to new places, she is so
brave. My English name is Dora as well,” Dora told us
proudly. After finishing her homework, Dora
sometimes plays with her dad’s iPad. She likes visiting
Tencent Children and Beva.com for mini games and
Sohu Comic for animation videos.
Knowing me, Knowing you

On weekends, Dora’s favorite activity is spending time with her friends at Beyou World (www.beyou.cn), the
biggest children’s indoor profession-experiencing entertaining center in Beijing. The center was tailor-made
based on the physiological and psychological characteristics of Chinese children. Meanwhile, Beyou World also
cooperates with many international and local brands to build a more realistic simulated city for children such
as Coca Cola, Air China and Mengniu. Inside the 10,000-square-meters play space, there are blue skies,
streets, houses and gardens. There are also facilities including hospitals, air plane, TV station and firehouse
where kids can adopt careers as doctors, pilots, cameramen and firefighters. The money that the children earn
can be also used at the restaurants and theaters or can be stored in the bank where it will earn interest.
Dora’s favorite roles at the park are flight attendants and nurses. She can spend a whole day in the center
until her parents ask her to go home. Dora’s parents also take her to parks during weekends where she can do
exercises with her dad such as roller skating and riding bikes. “It is important to let the kid be close to nature
and do some exercise; it is also a good way for us to interact with her,” Dora’s mother said.

Although Dora is only 9 years old, she has been aware of brands through TV advertising, parents and
classmates. However, the main reason for her to choose one brand over another one is purely based on
animated characters that she is familiar with. Dora’s favorite brands are Disney, Barbie, and Pleasant Goat and
Big Big Wolf. “She watched a lot of Disney cartoons and Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf; she is attracted to the
main animated characters through the stories behind. Her dad and I also took her to the Disneyland in Hong
Kong and Barbie flagship store in Shanghai. By visiting those places, her connection with those brands is
becoming stronger, because she had so much fun playing with the animated characters in real life,” Dora’s
mom explained.




                                                                                                  18
Knowing me, Knowing you



KIEW YING TI, 12

This is Kiew Ying Ti, a gregarious 12- year-old Malaysian girl who
has just entered her first year of high school. A cheerful girl by
nature, she prepares for the day ahead by reminding herself
every morning that “today is going to be an awesome day.”

She describes her weekdays as “crazy” – her day is chock-a-
block full with classes from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., after which she
attends Choral Speaking practices, Lidra (Literature) Club
sessions and her Christian Fellowship gatherings. Her homework
adds to her stressful and busy days as she has trouble
understanding subjects like math. The weekends are her
downtime and she uses this time to watch TV, Facebook, and
laze around her house with family. She also plays badminton
because she enjoys it and because , she says, “it’ll help me to
grow taller.”

An avid writer and public speaker, her penchant for storytelling
has led her to put up videos of herself and her friends on
Youtube (watch her videos at http://bit.ly/AEGlh9). Her videos
are mostly of herself and her friends, with content ranging from
her singing Lady Antebellum songs to spoofing chocolate
commercials. She also learns how to play the piano using
Youtube tutorials, reads manga on MangaFox, discovers and
contributes stories to Wattpat and is also an avid follower of
NigaHiga’s channel on Youtube. Her favorite singers are Adele
and Taylor Swift.

She always has fun where ever she goes and attributes her
happiness to being able to be herself around her friends.




                                                                     19
                                                                     11
Knowing me, Knowing you

DIO CHEWEI, 13

On a typical school day, Dio wakes up at 6:30 in the morning.
He showers and has breakfast with his mother. “I eat what
my mom prepares for me. It can be bread, porridge, cereal or
noodles,” he said. Dio then goes to school at Global
Nusantara, a national school in Jakarta, where he has to
complete both the Cambridge exam and National exam to
graduate from primary school.

He has lunch as school and goes home around 2:30 pm. His
busy day does not end then. He will then attend a mandatory
extra class to prepare for the upcoming National exams.

By 3:30, Dio goes home where more tutors are waiting to
teach him English and science (Monday, Wednesday and
Friday) Bahasa Indonesia (Monday and Wednesday) and
Chinese (Tuesday and Thursday). By around 6:30 pm he is
free. Dio then has dinner with his family and then spends the
evening watching Supa Stikas on the Disney Channel. Supa
Stikas is a show about soccer.




Dio loves soccer and basketball. He spends time browsing
NBA.com, looking at matches, teams and players. “My favorite
team is the Celtics, but there is this new great player named
Jeremy Lin. He plays for he New York Knicks,” Dio said. Nike is
Dio’s favorite brand. He is also curious about history,
particularly World War II. “I don’t know why,” he said.

He searches for whatever he has heard from his friends or
teachers on Google and also has Facebook where he plays
Tetris or responds to people’s comments. Since he is so young,
he had to make up a profile on Facebook, which requires
members are a certain age before they join.

By 10 at night, he goes to sleep. On weekends, Dio will play
either soccer or basketball with is friends.                      20
Knowing me, Knowing you




URIM EOM, 8
Urim Eom studies in the third grade. Outside of normal
schooling, she has extra classes at a private education institute
and also at home with an English tutor. She already is preparing
for the Korean college entrance exam.

Going to school is the toughest thing for Urim. She says she
wishes she could lie in bed and be lazy, but her mother scolds
her to get up and get going. She is also nervous about meeting
new teachers. Sundays are her favorite days when she can play
with friends and not worry about studying. “Maybe this is my
happiest moment,” she said.

“My mom always manages my schedule with a strict daily
timetable. She always checks when to go to school and when to
go to private institutes. She never stops nagging. Satisfying all
of her demands is the toughest,” Urim said. “Those are the
challenges in my life.”

Urim said she wishes she could be free from the pressures of
school; but that she is also worried about falling behind.

When she has time to browse the Internet, Urim visits NAVER
Junior (www.jr.naver.com) or Yahoo Kids (kr.kids.yahoo.com)
where she plays games. Her mother does not allow her to visit
other websites.

Her favorite brands are Nike sneakers and any other sports
brand. “I think Nike looks hip,” she said. Urim’s favorite star is
IU, a popular singer.

When she has time, Urim practices inline skating, a sport she
recently became interested in learning.   21
Knowing me, Knowing you




SORUSHAEN, 8
                                                             Then, he has time to watch TV. His favorite channels
                                                             are Cartoon Network, Boomerang and Disney TV. At
Sorushaen is 8. He attends Asian International School,
                                                             10, he goes to sleep.
which is one of the best international schools in Sri
Lanka and attended by children from rich families. He
                                                             Sorushaen is very happy when his father buys him
world revolves around school, studying, sports, games
                                                             toys. “This year for my birthday, Appa (what he calls
and expensive toys, like iPhones. His day starts at 5:30
                                                             his father) is buying me an iPhone 4!,” he said. He also
in the morning when he gets ready for school by
                                                             collects battle guard cards as a hobby and enjoys
himself and is off to class by 6:30. Before school starts,
                                                             eating chocolates. Toblerone is one of his favorite
he hangs out with his friends. He also eats breakfast
                                                             chocolate brands. He visits the websites of Cartoon
there, enjoying food his mom makes him such as
                                                             Network, Disney, Moshi Monsters and Penguin Club.
“Bombay toast” or Kiribath with spicy chicken or fish
                                                             He also plays online games and says he learns new
curry and chili relish. Aside from swimming and
                                                             things when he visits websites, he says. His favorite
athletics, Sorushaen studies 12 subjects. Each day has
                                                             sports are swimming as well as badminton and karate.
eight class periods that are 45 minutes long. During
                                                             “I am a small guy, but bit people know I can bring them
breaks, he plays with friends, making paper rockets for
                                                             down in one strike thanks to karate,” he said.
fun. After school ends around 1 in the afternoon, he
                                                             Sorushaen loves to break toys and put them back
practices sports. Usually his mom picks him up around
                                                             together again. He likes to create small sculptures and
5 o’clock.
                                                             plants also interest him a lot. He says Nestle is one of
                                                             his favorite brands because of their delicious
Once Sorushaen is back home, he has a mini lunch.
                                                             chocolates. .
Then he takes a bath and starts his homework. Dinner
is served at 8:30.




                                                                                                 22
Knowing me, Knowing you

                                                                                                   His daily routine …
                             JOJO, 10              Jojo’s day is consumed by studying for over 10 hours both at school
                                                                             (Bangkok Christian College) and at home.




                                                     4 p.m.




                                             He has more leisure time during
                                             weekends when he enjoys cycling,
                                             gaming, cartoons and movies.


What makes him happy?
                                                                                          Additional
                                                 Playing computer game i.e.               learning/tutorial subjects
                                                 Halo, Sewer Run (skateboard)             are math for 2 hours,
                                                 Playing game application on              guitar for 2 hours, and
                                                 iPod i.e. Infinity Blade.                finishing weekend
                                                                                          homework.
What makes him anxious?
Most of the things that make him anxious are school-related. He loves to go to
school but there is anxiety when…
• There are lazy friends in group study/assignment. Most of them always keep
saying without doing which makes the work turn out bad or late.
• Bully friends that keep taunting and teasing.
                                                                                                    Star he loves …
• Too much homework.                             Brands he loves…
 Websites he goes to…




                                                                                              Bird Thongchai McIntyre
                                                                                                 Singer, Entertainer

                                                                                               Sports he plays…
  • Y8.com or Y3.com, actually there is up to Y100+ but he likes
  Y8 and Y3. He enjoys cartoon fighting as 2 players, in the mean
  time, he can tease his friend/companion by shooting laser gun
  • YouTube, in order to study games i.e. Halo, animator vs.
  animation                                                              Swimming – fun, not aggressive like other
  • Madoocartoon.com (meaning come-to-see cartoon), the                                           23
                                                                         sports. I have to study football, taekwondo
  favorites are Doraemon, Mask Rider, Avatar                             which are fun but can hurt each other.
Knowing me, Knowing you
HIROTO, 11

Hiroto is an elementary school student in Yokohama city in Kanagawa
prefecture. He goes to school by 8:10 in the morning and finishes
around 3 in the afternoon. He goes to another school twice a week to
study to pass the entrance exam for private junior high school next
year. He is most happy when he is playing football on the weekends.
Hiroto is a big fan of Maya Yoshida, one of the players of Japan’s
national football league. A manga called “One Piece,” is his favorite. He
has collected nearly all the books in the series.

Hiroto has his own mobile phone. The mobile has restrictions that bar
him from accessing online gaming sites so he often uses his home
computer to surf the web. His favorite websites are Nico Nico Doga
(Japanese YouTube + Ustream site http://www.nicovideo.ip).




                                                TRUNG NGUYEN,12

                                                Trung Nguyen studies in the sixth grade in Ho Chin Minh city. Since
                                                he attends afternoon school, Nguyen spends most of his morning
                                                doing homework or taking on extra classes.

                                                After school, Nguyen plays soccer with his friends. It’s his way to
                                                make new friends and to stay active. Nguyen enjoys surfing the
                                                web as well. His most visited websites are bongda.com.vn or
                                                bongda24h.vn – to keep up with all the soccer news, and
                                                kenh14.com or yeah1.com – for all the teens news. “My favorite
                                                soccer star is Cristiano Ronaldo,” he says.

                                                Nguyen finds lots of enjoyment in simple things. For example, you
                                                can easily spot him smiling ear to ear when he eats his favorite
                                                snack – Poca (potato chips), or when he drinks Sting with
                                                Strawberry flavor. Yet, he gets really anxious when he has to show
                                                his parents his report card or a test that he didn’t24 well on.
                                                                                                     do
Knowing me, Knowing you


JOEY, 9

Joey, a resident of Taipei, has been in
elementary school for about two years, and
her schedule is quite routine. She wakes up at
7:00, goes to school at 8:00, and has piano
class twice week or she goes to the Children's
Care Center three times a week before her
mom gets off work.

“I like to play piano, but also I like to have
more time to stay at home,” she said.

Also Joey enjoys school life, not only because
she has fun with her classmates, but she also
likes learning. She doesn’t see school as a
burden; she finds it an interesting activity.

She especially likes classes such as foreign language where she can express her feelings. She says she likes math
because it is practical and science because it gives her knowledge about the world. One thing she does not like
is physical education: “I am scared I may get hurt or fall if I play dodge ball or run in a relay race,” she said.
Some say that this generation needs more time to deal with failure because most kids are the only child in their
family, so it is common for their parents to say “no” and force them into doing things the kids don’t want to do.
Joey’s mom lets her play online games in her leisure time, Joey says: “I like to play Popkart (a race game) with
my classmates, and we usually chat on Facebook”.

But the thing that makes her the happiest is when she can eat MOS Burger and talk to her father who only
comes home on the weekends. Sometimes her father cannot say no, so Joey has too many toys and Hello Kitty
products. Joey’s mom says; “We even had to prepare a room just for Hello Kitty.”



ARRCHI SHAH, 12 AND ARYAN JAIN, 9

Living in the same city - Mumbai, Archi Shah and Aryan Jain couldn’t be more different. Archi, 12, comes from a
conservative Gujarati joint family, while Aryan, 9, comes from a more westernized, nuclear family.

Archi’s father, who owns and operates his jewelry shop at the city centre, is the primary earning member in the
family. And her mother is a homemaker. In sharp contrast, Aryan’s father works in alternative shifts as he
manages his team of executives at a technology BPO, to handle service requests coming in from European
clients. Aryan’s mother tries to keep herself busy by organizing cultural events held in their housing society. Archi
goes to a nearby school affiliated to the state education board, while Aryan studies at what is a larger chain of
schools, and is affiliated to the IB curriculum. Archi is very introverted and doesn’t like mingling a lot. She even
refused to share a photograph of hers with me. On the other hand, Aryan was very excited to give me his
photograph, and searched for a while through his father’s Facebook albums before choosing this image.
                                                                                                  25
Knowing me, Knowing you




However, this is where the differences end, and the similarities pop up. Both Archi and Aryan start their days early
in the morning, go to their schools and come back by lunch time, spend the afternoon doing their homework, and
play for some time in the evening. On weekends, they are up late in the morning, study for an extra hour compared
to the weekdays, and have fun for the remaining part of the day.

Both are good at outdoor games. Aryan loves playing badminton and football, and Angry Birds on the PC. Archi
plays volleyball at school. Since she doesn’t have girls of the same age group residing in and around her society, she
spends her time at home reading books and drawing. Their parents aren’t over-obsessed with studies and exams,
so both Aryan and Archi get multiple opportunities to explore their interests. Aryan recently joined skating classes,
while Archi has completed a course in dance.

What makes them happy? One would expect kids of this age group to be happiest with and among their peers.
However, quite unexpectedly, it is their personal activities and the time they spend with their parents that they
look forward to, the most. Aryan loves playing computer games with his dad, and also wants to be around when his
father plays badminton with his friends on weekends. For Archi, the time she spends every evening with her father,
and the outings with her parents on weekends are the most joyous moments for her.

Are they exposed to the Internet, yet? Yes, but in very limited ways. Aryan surfs the net primarily to access his
account, and updates from his school on the website www.myschool.in.com, and when his father is around, plays
games on a gaming website. Interestingly, he isn’t able to recall the name of the gaming website, when asked. He
doesn’t have a Facebook account. Archi’s surfing is mainly for Google search. Sometimes, she accesses her
Facebook account too. She doesn’t share much on it, though, and she hasn’t yet posted a photograph of hers on it.

So which medium influences them? Mainly TV channels. Aryan loves watching Ben 10, Chhota Bheem, and other
cartoon series on Pogo and Cartoon Network, while Archi loves watching movies and sports. Actor Shah Rukh Khan
and badminton player Saina Nehwal are stars she adores. Primarily though, it is the peer group that influences
them. Aryan is of a competitive mindset, so the need to be better than his friends is very high on his list, while for
Archi it would be the friends she makes at school, on the volleyball court, and in the dance classes, from whom she
will learn and adopt various behaviors and brands.
                                                                                                  26
Knowing me, Knowing you




TANZILA, 8

Little Miss Tanzila Tabassum Kabir lives in Dhaka. She has
a pretty good routine for her daily life. Her morning starts
at 7am when she wakes up. Then she goes to school and
her school ends at 1pm. Then she comes home, takes A
shower and then starts watching TV. Her favorite TV
show is a cartoon called Doremon. She also watches
cooking shows with her elder sister on TLC,. She has her
lunch at 2pm. That is followed by a short nap. When she
wakes up she has to play her Barbie dolls. After that she
goes to tuition for 1.5 hours.

She gets ecstatic when she gets pretty dresses and toys;
good marks at exams and “When my mother loves me
more than my elder sister”, her exact words.

She gets anxious about when she gets scolded by her
teachers at school, her friends stop talking to her for any
reason. She gets mad when someone ruins her dolls.

She visits many websites. Mostly games websites such as
bonniegames.com, didigames.com, barbiegames.com,
rainbowgames.com and girlsgames.com etc.

She loves Johnson & Johnson, Follow Me, Bubble Gum
and Cadbury chocolates.

Her favorite stars are Hannah Montana, Selina Gomez
and Lady GaGa.

She plays basket ball pretty well considering her age and
height. She also skates for fun.ca




                                                                      27
Playing on my iPod*




      * or at my favorite KTV parlor
Playing on my iPod*

 CHINA                                                                                          INDONESIA

                     Wanting                                           Kesepian
                     You Exist In My Song                                 Vierra
                                                     http://www.youtube.com/watch
                     http://v.youku.com/v_show/                   ?v=UAw7rnNJvLM
                     id_XMzMzMzcwNjc2.html




                      Mayday
                      Starry Night                                                                SINGAPORE
                      http://v.youku.com/v_show/i
                      d_XMzUwNDQ3MzI4.html               One Thing
                                                         One Direction

                                                         http://www.youtube.co
                                                         m/watch?v=Y1xs_xPb46
                          Soda Green                     M&ob=av2e
                          Love on Credit




                                                          Bubble Pop
 http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMzMzMjU4NDY4.html
                                                          Hyuna
 MALAYSIA                                                 http://www.youtube.com/watc
                                                          h?v=bw9CALKOvAI
                       Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris

                       We Found Love

                                                                                                   SRI LANKA


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg00YEETFzg&ob=av3e
                                                                         A Hetha
                      6ixth Sense feat. Saujana
                                                                         Iraj & Delon, Feat.
                      Penerang Hati                                      Shani
                      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v                     http://www.elakiri.com/forum/downloads.
                      =JBU56r9jjpc                                       php?do=file&id=1524
Playing on my iPod*
JAPAN




                                                                                VIETNAM


                                                                    Gui Ngan Loi Yeu
                                                                    Tuan Hung
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu
Tsukema tsukeru                                                     http://mp3.zing.vn/bai-hat/Gui-
                                                                    Ngan-Loi-Yeu-Tuan-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLy4cvRx7Vc                          Hung/ZWZAEW97.html

http://kyary.asobisystem.com/?page_id=7


TAIWAN


                                          International Love
                                          Pitbull featuring Chris Brown

                                          http://mp3.zing.vn/bai-hat/International-Love-Pitbull-ft-Chris-
                                          Brown/ZWZCZ7C6.html


Cheers
Mayday
                                                       BANGLADESH
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLy4cvRx7V
c
                                                                                      Lamb of God
http://kyary.asobisystem.com/?page_id=7                                               Ghost Walking

                                                                                      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o
                                                                                      -hn32fyic4
THE PHILIPPINES


                           Adele

                           Someone Like You

                           http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLQl3WQ
                           QoQ0
Rage against …




What’s making people really angry,
                        and why?
Rage against
CHINA

On February 1, 2012, there was a full-page Hong Kong
newspaper advertisement decrying Chinese Mainland
visitors as “locusts” who invade Hong Kong and drain
its resources. The text asks: “Are you willing for Hong
Kong to spend one million Hong Kong dollars every 18
minutes to raise the children born to Mainland
parents? Hong Kong people, we have endured enough
in silence.” The ad, picturing a giant locust perched
atop a mountain overlooking Hong Kong, invoked the
locally-coined locust label used to describe
Mainlanders, reflecting a concern among some
residents in Hong Kong that Mainland Chinese are
"taking over" the city. The advertisement was
published in Hong Kong's widely-read Apple Daily by
an anonymous group of internet users who raised
more than US$12,000 advertising fee within a week.

There are many reasons that tensions between Hong Kong residents and Mainland visitors have ratcheted up. A
surge in the number of pregnant Chinese women crossing into Hong Kong to give birth has put a growing burden
on the resources of local hospitals. According to the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department, the number of
live births in Hong Kong by mainland mothers went from 26,838 in 2006 to 40,875 in 2010 - a 52% increase. In
Hong Kong, Mainland visitors are also known for spitting and littering, which does not meet the manners and
etiquette standards set by the local Hong Kong residents. The advertisement has generated huge public anger in
Mainland China. Netizens are criticizing Hong Kongers by only seeing mainland visitors draining resources but
ignoring the contribution that Mainland shoppers have made to Hong Kong’s economy. On Sina Weibo, China’s
largest micro-blogging website, neitizens are expressing their anger towards the ad: “How dare Hong Kong
people say we are locusts. No one should go to Hong Kong and shop in the future!”


MALAYSIA

The latest issue that has caused Malaysian netizens
to erupt in rage comes in the form of seemingly
“racist” golf membership rates at one of the
country’s most prestigious golf clubs, Kelab Golf
Negara Subang (Subang National Golf Club). A
photograph of the golf club’s official newsletter,
circulated around Facebook, clearly depicts golf
memberships being sold at disparate prices
according to race.

This led to an outcry among Facebook users with reactions ranging from disappointment to disgust. According to
the golf club’s spokesperson, however, these membership rates are merely indicative of the club’s racial quotas
to ensure a good mix of races among its members, rather than a discriminatory practice. However, in a country
where race remains a sensitive issue that permeates many aspects of life, Malaysians viewed this disparity in
pricing as a blatant attempt at racial discrimination.
INDONESIA
                                                                                 Rage against
There has been a recent spike in accidents in Indonesia largely caused
by more people driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs.

A woman named Apriani, 29, was driving her car after a night of drug
use. She hit 12 pedestrians, killing nine. Two were children and three
were a family who had come to Jakarta to see relatives.

The families of the victims were outraged when Apriani was sentenced
to prison for 15 years for killing nine people, arguing she should have
received life in jail. “Don’t let the easy be too easy. He was my only         Source:
child. My friends and I are protesting because the sentence is too light.      http://www.suarapembaruan.com/home/sop
The minimum should be life in prison,” said the father of one of the           ir-maut-apriani-jalani-tes-darah-di-bnn/16388

victims.




Not long after the Apriani tragedy, police caught two Lion Air pilots using drugs. Their license was taken away.
Many people became worried about using the airline after the incident and were angered the pilots were sent
to a rehab center rather than prison. “I cannot imagine flying on Lion Air with a pilot high on drugs. Thank God I
am safe so far,” a mother commented as she heard the news.

There is a public sentiment that the government is not handling drug use with tough enough action. People
have the impression that the lives of the victims were not important to lawmakers and that lawmakers do not
                                                                                                      33
really care that more lives could be at risk. This does not give a sense of justice in the hearts of Indonesians.
Rage against




                                                     SRI LANKA


                                                     Protests by the public transport and fisheries sectors over a
                                                     fuel price hike crippled Sri Lanka a couple of weeks ago.
                                                     Private bus operators went on strike saying the increase in
                                                     the price of diesel would mean their expenses will go up.
                                                     Thousands of passengers rushing to work were left stranded
                                                     without adequate buses. The Sri Lankan government
                                                     announced a sudden fuel price hike on Saturday saying it
                                                     was in line with the world market prices. A majority of
                                                     passenger buses operating in Sri Lanka are owned by the
                                                     private sector and said private bus operators will not put
                                                     their buses on the streets till the government gives them
                                                     some sort of concession.

                                                     Fishermen in north western Sri Lanka also refused to go out
                                                     to fish yesterday morning as the fuel price hike affected
                                                     their operations as well. Hundreds of fishermen staged a
                                                     demonstration on the streets of Kalpitiya and Negambo
                                                     demanding the government to reconsider the fuel price
                                                     hike.

                                                     Meanwhile school van drivers said they will be forced to
                                                     increase the van fees for school children as a result of the
                                                     fuel price hike. School van operators were expected to hold
                                                     discussions with the Sri Lankan government transport
PHILIPPINES                                          authorities on Monday over the issue

The end of the prosecution of Chief Justice Renato Corona,
the Philippines judicial leader suspected of tax evasion and
preferential treatment of cases related to former president
Gloria Arroyo, has almost come. Corona’s bank accounts
and assets and liabilities make it apparent that there is great
discrepancy between stated and actual assets worth
millions of dollars. People are enraged by the blatant
deception and angry that there is a possibility for his
acquittal given that senior judges responsible for the verdict
may have erroneous records and therefore may not want a                                         34
thorough examination of their own conduct.
Rage against
THAILAND

                                 Recently, Block B, which is a famous Korean band, had an interview on a
                                 television program broadcast in Thailand. While the interview was going on,
                                 Block B showed a careless attitude during the questions, The members played
                                 and goofed around, and even lay down on a table during the interview.




The situation got worse when the interviewer asked their thoughts
related to the recent floods in Thailand. Band member and leader
Zico said, "I know about it. I was pretending I didn't, but I do." Then,
they said, "We wish Thai people would recover the damage in their
hearts through financial donations, and all we have is money" while
another member claimed, "How about 7000 won?" (6.00 USD). After
that, they all laughed.

The controversy surrounding their comments stems from the fact
that members were actually making too much fun of the situation by
saying that they could only help with $6. They were being
disrespectful and rude about the situation by pretending they didn't
know anything. Therefore, these comments made Thailand people
                                                                            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pZvHq-j_9E
upset and offended.
                                                 Block B’s actions outraged two members of parliament who
                                                 expressed their feelings on the situation. One, Nickhun, said on
                                                 his Twitter account: “As a Thai person, I feel offeded by those
                                                 who speak about the Thailand floods without thinking.” Fans also
                                                 expressed their feelings towards the situation, calling Zico’s
                                                 attitude “irresponsible.” The fan said, “They forgot to act in an
                                                 interview,” and “where is their professionalism?” The incident has
                                                 definitely raised questions about Block B’s ability to handle or be
                                                 involved in controversies. The band later apologized for their
                                                 actions.
VIETNAM

There’s anger in Vietnam towards pork suppliers who feed their pigs banned
and hazardous chemicals so that those pigs can produce extra lean meat
around their shoulders and buttock. The chemicals are so toxic that when
feeding them to the pigs, these suppliers have to wear rubber gloves and
masks to prevent intoxication.

Those pigs, if not sold within the 2 week time since the first time of consuming
these chemicals, will automatically develop bone brittleness. Their legs will
break easily and their body will have lesions that ooze fluid. Since Vietnamese
consume lots of pork, it is no wonder why this is becoming one of the top
issues in the news.                                                                               35
Rage against                                              BANGLADESH


JAPAN




                                                          Bangladesh recently witnessed a gruesome killing of a
                                                          journalist family. The motive of the killings is unknown.
The Okinawa prefecture and the Japanese government        They were stabbed to death. Police officer Imam
have been at odds over a U.S. military base in the        Hossain said authorities are investigating the killings of
prefecture for quite some time. In Feburary, Japanese     Sagar Sarwar and his wife, Mehrun Runi. Sarwar was
Prime Ministry Noda visited Okinawa to talk about         news editor of private TV station Maasranga and Runi
how to relocate the base elsewhere. The government        worked as a reporter at another private television,
would like to move it somewhere else in the               ATN Bangla. Both were in their late 30s..
prefecture; yet Okinawa wants it to be relocated
somewhere else. There are plans to talk with local        People are very angry about it. It seems that anyone
officials and brief them on discussions with the U.S.     can walk into a house whenever they want and kill
regarding to adjustments to American military bases in    someone at any time. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
the country. Noda is expected to reiterate the new        has offered condolences to the family and ordered
policies discussed by Japan and the U.S. and how they     police to find the killers. The couple had a 5 year old
will deal with the military presence in Okinawa. Tokyo    son.
and Washington have revamped the 2006 bilateral
agreement; delinking the Futenma relocation from the
transfer of U.S. marines from Okinawa to Guam and
the return of lands to Japan. When Noda arrived in
Okinawa, there were many citizens protesting the
government’s policies.

TAIWAN

Taiwanese-Japanese singer-actress Makiyo and her Japanese friend, Takateru Tomoyori, have indirectly admitted
that they had lied about what really happened in their recent taxi driver assault case.The truth came out that
they both attacked the 55-year-old cab driver which resulted in the cabby having to be admitted to intensive care
with severe head injuries and rib fractures.After days of public outcry and outrage, the Taipei prosecutors were
seeking a four-year jail term for Makiyo and six years for Takateru. The anger of the Taiwanese public had been
provoked, mainly because the taxi driver was almost beaten to death, and the "actress" lied about what really
happened. Also, the local media sensationalized their reports, which further aggravated public outrage.Lots of
local entertainers also slammed her behavior. Famous entertainer Pai Ping-ping said that Makiyo's failure to
deter the violence perpetrated by her friend on the driver was simply wrong. Obviously, Makiyo had seen her
popularity plunge in the wake of the incident, with over a million netizens joining an "Anti-Makiyo" Facebook
page within two days after the page was set up.                                               36
Rage against




INDIA

Two major events dominated emotions during these
weeks in India. One is the debacle of the Indian Cricket      Slack-tivism in metropolitan politics
team in all forms of the game on its tour of Australia. Its
performance in the tour was one of its worst in 45 years.     The other series of events was the elections for
                                                              state assemblies in 5 states – including Uttar
Miserable performance in cricket                              Pradesh, India’s most populated state – and for
                                                              Mumbai’s Municipal Corporation.
First, in the Test series against Australia, it was
whitewashed 0-4. Then, in a One-Day International tri-        Again, the backdrop of the events was high
series with Australia and Sri Lanka, it won only 3 matches    expectations. All the last few years, Mumbai was
out of 8. While the Indian media and public is known to       witness to terror attacks, inefficient infrastructure
blame everything they can whenever the Indian team            management and hooliganism by political parties,
doesn’t win, their rage against this performance is           and India in general saw the unfolding of huge
particularly high because the same team won the Cricket       scams in almost every possible area of governance.
World Cup less than a year ago.                               In the last few months, the rage against corruption
                                                              had led to the hitherto-inactive middle class
At the end of the disastrous tour, even the ‘God’ wasn’t      springing into action, and backing a team of
spared. Sachin Tendulkar, who has scored 99 centuries in      activists led by a Gandhian – Anna Hazare. All
international cricket and has failed to score the             forms of media – individual and broadcast – had
hundredth for some time now, didn’t perform too well          been tapped into, to build the movement against
either on the tour. As a result, he had veteran cricketers,   corruption.
sports reporters and commentators all questioning his
commitment to the team; and some even dishing out             While the movement received a lot of
advice of retirement to him.                                  participation and contribution, it did not translate
                                                              into political action in the city of Mumbai. Only
                                                              about 46% of voters turned up to vote in the
                                                              elections for the country’s richest municipal
                                                              corporation.

                                                              In comparison, Uttar Pradesh, one that’s much
                                                              more prone to incidence of violence during
                                                              elections, saw a voter turnout of 60%, one of the
                                                              highest in the history of the state.
                                                                                                37
Wassup march 2012 final
Tense about




In China : Extreme Parenting: “Eagle Dad Forces Son To Run Naked In The Snow”

A 4-year-old boy from the city of Nanjing accompanied
his parents to the United States on vacation during the
2012 Chinese New Year. A video of him running naked in
a snow storm in New York was posted on the internet by
his family. In the video, the child was only wearing
yellow underwear and sports shoes while the outdoor
temperature that morning reached as low as -13 degrees
Celsius. The child can be heard whimpering and asking for
his father to hold him while the father encourages him to
keep running forward. The child also turn to his mother
whose voice can later be heard encouraging him as he
does some push-ups on the snowy ground.

“Naked Running Boy” quickly attracted the attention of
netizens, becoming one of the hottest discussion topics
on China’s largest micro-blogging service Weibo.com. The
number of views reached over 260,000 within first few
days.

Netizens started calling the child’s father “Eagle Dad”: When young eagles have grown large enough, eagle
mothers will ruthlessly push a young eagle off the cliff, when the young eagle is falling into the valley below, it
learns its basic ability of flying.

Since the video caused huge public criticism on the intense parenting method, the “Eagle Dad” stood out and
defended himself for making his son to run in snow without clothing. According to him, the boy had severe health
problems after a premature birth. The parents said they think their intense parenting methods are responsible for
his improved health. “This child has received all sorts of forms of training since he was little. When he was one
year old, he started swimming in water that was 21 degrees Celsius.” The father said he is trying to help his son
develop a “masculine temperament” through activities like mountain climbing, dancing and cycling. Challenging
him to run around in near-zero temperatures is just one of his tactics.

Netizens’ reacted differently to the extreme education and raising methods. The majority of commentators
criticized the parents for being too cruel. “ The poor little kid! Is being exposed to the cold good for him? The
parents are heartless!” one commenter wrote. Some people think the dad is just trying everything to help his
child: “His father is cruel, but what he did is for the boy’s good.”
Tense about
 Tense about
CHINA
In Malaysia: The new healthcare plan




                                                               Information on 1 Care circling the internet


 Tensions are rising in Malaysia due to the tentatively proposed 1 Care health care plan. Leaked onto the
 internet by prominent healthcare professionals, sources allege that if this health scheme comes into effect, all
 wage-earners in Malaysia will be forced to pay 10% of their income to the government-run insurance scheme.

 Adding to the citizens’ growing concern on the issue, the details of the scheme, such as benefits or mechanics,
 have not yet been made clear due to differing reports from various politicians and professionals. Furthermore,
 this lack of transparency and information from the government further adds to the citizens’ fear that this will
 be another government scheme to try and rip money off them. Institutions and professional bodies alike have
 criticized this scheme – from the current sketchy detail, the public would only receive limited benefits but be
 forced to fork out a hefty sum for basic healthcare.

 Thus far, the government has tried to reassure the public that the scheme is still in the proposal stage, and that
 any policies leaked are not concrete. We won’t know much until the blueprint for the plans are finalized in
 2013, but until then, the citizens wait with skepticism and bated breath for more information on 1 Care.


 In Japan: University entrance exams

 January and February are very stressful months for students as
 it is a time for entrance exams for schools.

 Last year there were several scandals in major universities for
 cheating. Some of the students used mobile phone to post
 questionnaires on Yahoo’s question-and-answer site to get an
 answers. This year, each university has made stricter rules for
 examinees to avoid same kind of situation.

 Some of the examinees were even told to turn their clothing
 inside-out because there were some words secretly written on
 what they were wearing.
                                                                                                    40
Tense about



In indonesia: Security on the roads

In 2011, road accidents in Indonesia increased by 457
compared to the year before. The number of fatal
accidents have decreased; however the number of
people injured on roadways went up by over 15,000.
Material losses from the accidents doubled to 286
billion Rupiah.

Of the accidents this year, more than 9,000 involved
motorbikes while 1,000 involved passenger cars and
over 200 involved buses, according to a national
police report. More than 2,500 people suffered
serious injuries and 7,564 had minor injuries, the
report said.

The accidents are often caused by public transport or
trucks. Recently, a bus crash killed 14 people and left
57 others injured. The bus, en route to Jakarta,
smashed into four cars and several motorcycles
before swerving across the highway and hitting
another bus and minivan. It then swerved into a
ravine after smashing into a food stall, killing one
employee.

With already 1,547 fatalities from 9,884 road
accidents this year, authorities and transport exports
are blaming weak traffic laws and implementation of
the laws as the main culprit.

“The number [of deaths due to traffic accidents] will soar to 65,000 in 2020 if the problem is not dealt with
seriously,” warned lawmaker Abdul Hakim, who drafted the 2009 Road Traffic Law. “The losses inflicted are
estimated at 2.9 percent of gross domestic product.” The government has said transportation inspectors are
also to blame, not doing due diligence with their work. Either way, the public is growing increasingly skeptical
and afraid of Indonesia’s roadways where it seems like no matter how safe people try to drive, there is still a
pretty good chance of getting hit.




                                                                                               41
Tense about
In Sri Lanka: US Sponsored UN resolution against alleged war crimes

                                                                       Sri Lankans staged massive demonstrations
                                                                       across the country against a U.S. sponsored
                                                                       resolution scheduled to be presented at the
                                                                       19th session of the UN Human Rights
                                                                       Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. Another
                                                                       demonstration was also staged opposite the
                                                                       U.S. Embassy. Several government ministers
                                                                       attending and speaking against the
                                                                       proposed resolution included the Sri Lankan
                                                                       Prime Minister who declared that people
                                                                       are ready to sacrifice their lives to prevent
                                                                       any moves by some countries to violate Sri
                                                                       Lanka's sovereignty. These protests are
                                                                       slated to continue until the alleged
                                                                       resolution against Sri Lanka is defeated at
                                                                       The     UN     Convention       in    Geneva.

The resolution to be presented at the UNHRC aims to pressure the Sri Lankan government to take prompt
measures to implement the recommendations made by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission which
was appointed by Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa to look at some of the incidents which took place during
the war between the military and Tamil Tiger rebels. If the resolution is passed, it’s bound to affect the economic
development & political stability of the nation.Presenting a resolution against Sri Lanka by the UNHRC session in
Geneva is perceived as an undue meddling in the sovereignty and integrity of Sri Lanka by the western world –
esp. by the US. Eminent social observes in Sri Lanka who opine that even if Sri Lanka doesn’t have oil (unlike in the
Middle East – which is high up the radar of the US), it’s the strategic location of the island in the rapidly growing
economic hemisphere which is attracting acute interest from Western world. Perhaps to an extent also
accentuated by the ‘cooperation’ being meted out to the nation by the Chinese in terms for infrastructure
development.
In Taiwan: Imported Beef

The United States had been pressuring Taiwan to relax its ban on
imported beef containing Ractopamine, a feed additive to make animals
grow faster in the final weeks before slaughter. But several groups
reiterated that the government should maintain its ban on imports of
U.S. beef that contain Ractopamine, saying there are still concerns over
a proper control mechanism and the safety of the feed additive, such as
some reports that say it may cause health risks."Without a
comprehensive control mechanism, the public will be exposed to serious
health risks if the government decides to allow controlled levels of
Ractopamine in meat," The Consumers Foundation said. The
Homemakers Union and Foundation also expressed safety concerns,
citing an incomplete assessment of the health risks of Ractopamine, a
leanness enhancing drug used in livestock feed in America. Furthermore,
local cattle and pig farmers have been threatening to stage a protest in
Taipei, amid speculation that the Taiwan government might ease its
Ractopamine ban to resolve the U.S. beef issue.                                                  42
Tense about




In Thailand: Terrorism



Thais are tense about terrorism after bombs exploded
on Sukhumwit Road on Valentine’s Day.

The Attack :
The incident occurred around 2.20 pm in a section of
Sukhumvit Road called “Pridi Panomyong Avenue.” A
loud explosion destroyed the roof of a house that was
reportedly rented by three foreign men. A search of the
house later revealed the bombs used in the blast were
made from C4 explosive materials.

The investigation :
Following the blast, the police arrested some of suspects
involved and found that they carried Iranian passports.
After the blast day, a number of stickers with the word
“SEJEAL” were glued on several bus stations and pillars
around Bangkok. The word means “soar to the highest
point.” Several people assumed that the stickers may be
related to the explosion. Currently, the main reason
causing the blast and the motivation of the suspects are
still unclear. Thai police say they are still trying to figure
out what happened and why.

After the blast :
The incident has infused worries about security into the
daily lives of Thai people. Some fear that there will be a
wave of terrorism in Bangkok. People are particularly
concerned about tourist areas. There are also fears the
bombing will harm the country’s tourism industry if
there is a sense of insecurity in the capital or elsewhere.
Already, some countries, such as Australia, are warning
travelers to Thailand to exercise caution.
                                                                     43
Tense about
In India and Bangladesh,: Inflation                          In Philippines: Hazing




There are growing concerns about money as prices
continue to go up due to inflation or other factors and
wages remain stagnant. In Bangladesh, it seems
everyone from a the rickshaw driver on the street to
the business man in the corner office is worried.

The last quarter of the financial year is a trying one for   In the same month as the 21st anniversary of
most middle class Indian, as they make their                 fraternity hazing victim Lenny Villa (1991), the
investments to save on paying income tax; in addition        issue of university hazing is again haunting Filipino
to managing their expenses, loan installments and            parents. While laws have been passed (Anti-
summer vacation plans. This year, the pressure gets          hazing Law) to prevent the same tragedy from
added with fuel (both vehicle fuels and household gas)       happening, it did not deter members of the
prices expected to rise further. Not just that, the          fraternity Lambda Rho from inflicting injuries that
overall slump in the economy at this time makes it           led to kidney failure and untimely death of Marvin
difficult to look for the right investments.                 Reglos, law student of San Beda University. The
                                                             news awakened concern of parents on the
And with the GDP growth rate slowing down and                vigilance of the Philippine justice system on such
becoming the lowest in the last years, there are             violence.     Given that many lawmakers are
worries that the current global economic situation           themselves part of such brother/sisterhoods, the
might impact India hard. To the average middle-class         question on whether these acts of violence will be
Indian, that would translate to higher interest              rightfully punished hangs in the air as the search
payments on home and auto loans, higher expenses to          for justice for Marvin continues.
deal with, and a not-so-promising outlook for rise in
salaries.

This worry with the wallet gets heightened a little
more, for the upper middle class. Till now, it had an
option to keep fuel prices in check by opting for the
diesel engine in its car, instead of the petrol engine.
(Diesel is subsidized to a much larger extent in India, as
compared to petrol.) Now, however, with the
government considering a one-time tax on private
vehicles fitted with diesel engines, this advantage will
be lost. The declaration is expected to be made as part
of the budget speech by the Finance minister.                                                    44
Tense about



In Singapore: Protecting Animal Rights
On the 19th of February, Danny Ng updated his status on Facebook expressing his outrage and feelings of disgust
over the actions of a fellow bowler. Earlier that day, he had found a stray dog who was left on the road to die
after being hit by a car, the only clue left behind was the license plate lying next to it. (See picture in middle
below)
Of course, what made it so newsworthy was that the car plate number identified the owner of the car (a Porsche),
as a national bowler and SEA Games coach. He has since issued an apology - although he denies driving off
intentionally, insisting that he thought the dog had been all right.
Although this is not the only incident of road kill, it seems that everyone likes to blame the rich and famous. After
all, public figures are held against higher expectations that they need to live up to. One positive thing that has
resulted from this incident is that it has sparked more public awareness and debate regarding the issue of
protecting animal rights.




Two days later, a photo of a cat caught into a “glue board” uploaded by SPCA also went viral. Images of other
animals that had been caught in glue boards began circling on Facebook and STOMP, with netizens repeatedly
crying out for something to be done to stop such inhuman acts of senseless killing.
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has stepped up, calling for an “immediate ban” on
these glue board traps used by pest control companies to trap rats. Jurong Town Council general manager Ho
Thian Poh said that the trap was "last resort."
The area where the cat was found was facing a rodent problem and measures such as tracking powder did not
work. Furthermore, such traps are placed only within the bin for 24 hours at a time. According to the AVA, there
are not many options for trapping rodents and glue traps are one of the most commonly used methods in many
countries. However, it is highly likely that such pressure from the public would force authorities to look into these
measures to minimize such “collateral damage”.



                                                                                                 45
Everyone’s talking about




   Brands & campaigns generating
                buzz
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final
Wassup march 2012 final

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Wassup march 2012 final

  • 1. Wassup Issue 8 March 2012
  • 2. The cultural trends magazine from Ogilvy & Mather Asia Pacific Edited & designed by Kunal Sinha Editorial assistant: Lara Farrar Correspondents: Astrid Savitri (Jakarta) Tari Rusbianti (Jakarta) Inke Kurniawan (Jakarta) Elaine Dai (Beijing) Timothy Sarker (Dhaka) Naima Hamid (Dhaka) Nirav Parekh (Mumbai) Donnah Alcoseba (Makati City) Wine Chua-Leonardo (Makati City) Tania Chan (Singapore) Grace Aik (Singapore) Naoko Ito (Tokyo) Azusa Fukai (Tokyo) Natalie Gruis (Ho Chi Minh City) Siddharth Roy (Colombo) Mei Wu (Taipei) Caryl Heah (Kuala Lumpur) Beatrice Yong (Kuala Lumpur) Josephine Phang (Kuala Lumpur) Serena Park (Seoul) © Ogilvy & Mather Asia Pacific, 2012
  • 3. Spring is in the air. It is celebrated in different ways in different parts of Asia. In India, it is the festival of Holi – where everyone throws colored water on each other. The Japanese observe Sakura Matsuri, the Cherry Blossom Festival, when the color of pink brightens the moss green hills. In China, it is the time to go home to one’s family, resulting in the largest annual migration of humanity. But on the outskirts of Shanghai, there’s a tulip park that is bigger than Keukenhof – acres of blooming tulips that draw in the crowds. In this issue, we celebrate a group of people who are in the spring of their lives: Tweens. At the threshold of teenage, with a mind that is keen to explore and express, they are a sweet spot for many marketers. Read about their daily routines, marvel at how tech-savvy they are. We also speak to a breed of small business owners: those who run convenience stores, and continue to find relevance despite the relentless advance of modern retailing chains. These family run businesses have adapted with the times, yet the personalized service they offer keeps them relevant. Think how you can serve them better: whether it is from a logistics perspective, or with packaging that doubles up as display, or by capitalizing on the relationships they have with their customers. But common people remain worried. For every new opportunity, there’s a threat. The times are uncertain, and being interconnected across cultures means that what’s happening in a distant land may affect us sooner than later. Think of how you can play a role in alleviating that tension. And when you’re done reading this eighth issue of Wassup, do tell us how you have applied some of the trends and insights to your work. We’re all ears !
  • 4. 14 countries. 20 correspondents deeply immersed in popular and leading edge culture bring you Cultural Insights that will make a world of difference to your business SOUTH KOREA BANGLADESH PHILIPPINES SINGAPORE INDONESIA SRI LANKA THAILAND MALAYSIA PAKISTAN VIETNAM TAIWAN JAPAN CHINA INDIA
  • 5. Look who’s talking: Convenience Store Owners in Asia Knowing me, Knowing you: Tweens Playing on my iPod Rage against Everyone is talking about Tense about Top Valentine's Day gifts for 2012
  • 7. Look who’s talking … BEIJING Compared to other modern metropolises in Asia, it is difficult to a find a 24-hour convenience store in Beijing. If you don't live near busy streets, you may not have such a convenience. Li Jie, the store owner of a local 24-hour Brands that are popular include Orchard Farmer and convenience store franchise called Hi-24 explains why Ddchu. “Dry fruits and nuts are considered as healthy most convenience stores are unwilling to open in some snacks in China. They provide nutrition that is good for communities."The operational costs of a 24-hour brain work; Orchard Farmer offers small packaged dry convenience store are very high. Such costs include water fruits and nuts with competitive prices, which make bills, electricity fees and labor costs; the rent is also higher them very popular among working adults; Ddchu on busy streets. Therefore, we would not choose a makes soybean milk, which is also considered as a location which is not commercially thriving and populous.” healthy beverage. A lot of young professionals don’t have time to cook or to buy breakfast, they drink black Li’s store is located at a busy area called Dongzhimen soybean milk instead. They can use microwave in the where office buildings, shopping malls and residential office to heat it up, which is good for winter, Li said. complexes are located. Li’s frequent customers are 20 to 35 years old working adults whose incomes are higher Promotions that are working well lately is buy 10 yuan than average. “Saving time is the highest priority for my and add 2 yuan to get a free Nestle coffee. Young customers, quality is their biggest concern. So we are professionals don’t mind to spend 2 extra RMB for a trying to bring them good quality products; having new coffee that is much cheaper than Starbucks but also products every one or two weeks on the shelf is one of our gives them energy to make it through the whole advantages,” Li explained. afternoon. Cookies, milk, juice and instant food such as noodles are Since foreign convenient stores such as 7-11 and selling very well at Li’s store. Young working adults, Family Mart are expanding their business in China, especially female professionals, like to shop for few snacks local stores owners are feeling pressured. Li said: during lunch break or working hours. Brands that are “Foreign convenient stores’ biggest advantage is fresh popular include Orchard Farmer and Ddchu. food and hot food. Their business license is allowing Cookies, milk, juice and instant them to set up a kitchen in the store and make fresh food such as noodles are selling food for customers. In winter, hot food is very popular very well at Li’s store. Young and competitive, customers want to eat something working adults, especially warm in a cold weather.” However, Hi-24 also have female professionals, like to their own advantages. They provide self-service shop for few snacks during terminals for repayment, payment, recharge and e- lunch break or working hours. business service which is very popular among their customers.
  • 8. Look who’s talking … KUALA LUMPUR Pasar Mini (Mini Market) Petaling Store is a small bustling convenience store, tucked away in a friendly residential area of Petaling Jaya. Victor, the owner, has run Petaling Store with his brother for over 20 years. They work 7 days a week, 12 hours a day, taking turns to man the store. Petaling Store Front of the convenience store usually enjoys a steady stream of customers throughout the day. However, Sundays are the busiest days for Victor, followed by Saturdays and after-work hours on weekdays. Most of Victor’s customers live around the area, frequenting his shop several times a week to stock up on their weekly provisions, or to make impulse purchases such as beer or cigarettes. Customers are a mixture of ages, demographics and races. 90% of his customers are regulars and many have become his friends over the years. Most don’t spend more than a few minutes in-store. The top 3 selling products at Petaling Store are: bread (a large choice of brands are available, sold at a slightly lower prices), beer (Carlsberg and Tiger are the most popular brands) and biscuits. A new bread brand, Massimo, has Inside the store- the main section stocking beer, recently taken the Malaysian market by storm; delivering snacks and goods wholesome goodness at affordable prices. Victor has also noticed an increase in demand for value items over the past few years, with Malaysians becoming less brand conscious and more price conscious. Seeing other hypermarkets around the area, such as Speedmart as direct competitors, Victor ensures Petaling Store remains competitive with pricing that is on par, or slightly lower than hypermarkets and also through building strong relationships with his customers. With such long working hours, Victor feels there is “no time to have a life” in this business. He wishes that he could take a break and go on holiday, but man-power is limited and it is hard to trust other people with his business. 8 Inside the store- the back section stocking household non-perishable items
  • 9. Look who’s talking … JAKARTA Lyla is 30. She runs a small shop in front of her house where she sells products for daily needs. The shop is located just behind the wall of the biggest national university in Indonesia. University students are her most frequent customers who live in nearby dorms. Lyla earns between $50 and $90 per day, which she uses to replenish her stock for the following day’s business. Over the past couple of years, life has been getting harder. The shop is not as profitable as it once was. Mini marts with free internet access and places for people to hang out are hurting Lyla’s business. Cigarettes and drinks are the most popular products. Drinks cost around 50 cents and are promoted or bundled with other items. Tough business conditions haVE forced Lyla to be more creative. She has promoted her shop door-to-door in female dormitories and offers free delivery to small food stalls on campus, providing free delivery for minimum orders of products. DHAKA 27 year old Sobuj Islam runs a corner store with a grand name: “Save Mart Department Store.” His customers range from elderly people to domestic helpers. The popular brands he sells are Maggi noodles (Nestle), Ruchi Chanachur (Square Consumer Foods), Arong Milk. Mentos and Big Babol Triply (Perfetti). They are favorites among children and adults alike. Sobuj says that brands that tend to do well are those with innovative packaging. For example, Maggi has been popular because of the design of its packaging. Coca-Cola has also been making a comeback (the brand has been absent in the market), now occupying 83 percent of corner stores in Bangladesh. Sobuj says his stores rarely offer any promotions. 9
  • 10. Look who’s talking … COLOMBO Barnes Corner is a local grocery shop located in Another fast-moving brand is Elephant House Twist ice Colombo. It has been open since 1991. Over the years, it cream, which offers flavors “twisted together” -- has increased its products from basic household items vanilla with mango, chocolate or orange. The novelty to a host of almost every possible FMCG product of enjoying their favorite flavors combine together in a needed by families. The store has a steady flow of both single scoop of ice cream is driving demand from loyal and new customers throughout the day. consumers, especially children. Elephant House Housewives from the neighborhood visit in the morning. Wonderbites is another new brand that is doing well. During the day until late afternoon, items such as rice, Wonderbites are bit-sized cubes filled with vanilla ice flour and vegetables are in high demand. During cream covered with a chocolate outside, which makes lunchtime, the store sells “baath packet,” which is it easy for instant consumption. cooked rice and curry, to customers working at nearby offices. When school ends, children and their mothers While brand promotions are a common phenomenon, come in to purchase soft drinks and frozen dairy Barnes Corner has not resorted to offering any special products. deals to their customers to boost sales. The owner says their largest customer base are those who have been Recently, dengue has been a concern in Sri Lanka as loyal to them for a long time. The store always numerous people on the island were reportedly responds to special requests from customers to stock infected with the disease and hospitalized. Mosquitoes specific brands. Even if the brands are not the most are the primary carrier of the disease. As a result, a popular, the storekeeper says he knows they will sell. brand called Mortein mosquito repellant has been There are more stores opening up nearby; however popular. The shop owner says customers prefer the Barnes Corner says they are not concerned because vaporizer over mosquito coils since it is a smoke-free they have never had to work hard to attract and retain 10 product and more convenient. their loyal shoppers.
  • 11. Look who’s talking … BANGKOK Ananda Supakrit’s family has been running a local convenience store on Bangkok’s busy Chan Road for more than 50 years. have established for 50 years ago. “As a family business, we are much more passionate about traditional trading, which can lead to the sustainable relationships in Thai society,” he tells us. In the morning, the store is packed with office-goers. For a typical snack, they buy a small carton of soy milk or juice, a packet of shredded pork with salad cream sandwich or a packet of dried seaweed or squid. Drinks are the hottest selling item. The weather in Bangkok is hot and humid – and Ananda sells bottled water, Coke, Pepsi, Singha beer, green tea and Thai lemonade. Mama noodles are popular and a good deal for a quick lunch. In the evening, many youngsters pick up frozen dinner, typically Thai, dim sum, or bread stuffed with red bean or custard. For the equivalent of 35 cents, you can buy a box of noodles – add hot water from a dispenser in the store, rip open the pack of chillies and spices, and you’ve got a meal! Borrowing an idea from the 7-Eleven stores, Ananda offers his customers loyalty cards. Every time you make a purchase, he stamps it, and when the card is full, they can get something for free, or a discount on future purchases. Some of his customers donate their stamped cards to one of the Buddhist temples nearby, so that the monks may buy anything they need. Charity, customer loyalty and business do go hand-in-hand in 11 Thailand!
  • 12. Look who’s talking … TOKYO MANILA In July 2001, Lawson Inc. began a new convenience store chain Aling Ging has been operating her ‘sari-sari’ called Natural Lawson that emphasizes health, beauty and a store for more than 20 years, and it has comfortable lifestyle as key messaging to reach consumers. become a go-to store for her neighbors. Their target demographic is women in their twenties and Even when new sari-sari stores pop up on thirties. Natural Lawson uses the appeal of both quality every street of the village, she is confident products and a modern atmosphere to create a convenience that she will survive because she has learned store that targets a tough, female niche market. All products to keep a good relationship with her are advertised as having no artificial additives or preservatives. customers, which she calls “suki” (loyal Particular touches such as organic wine, aroma oil and skincare customer). Aling Ging is very hands-on in products cater perfectly to a consumer base of young, running the store because she relies on the metropolitan women. Many stores also have bakeries called earning from the store to cover for many of “LOHAS Kitchens” and in-store cafe seating as well as dim the household expenses. She takes pride in lighting and isles wide enough for strollers and wheel chairs. having sent her daughter to vocational school with her earnings from the store and her Lawson has also started a new dessert line called “Uchi Cafe husband’s modest income over the years. In Sweets” that have been a big hit. “Uchi cafe” means “Home the 20 years that she has been in the Cafe” and refers to the type of desserts shoppers can buy at business, she has experienced the rise and convenience stores and enjoy at home. The dessert line has invasion of sachets in her store as she been expanded due to its popularity. There are now over 30 observed her customers trying to extend types of desserts along with a premium line. The desserts are their moneys harder and harder. She also popular among both young men and women. A Cross observed how the price cap of customer Marketing survey revealed that 44.7 percent of people buy a spending went lower over the years. With bottle of tea at a convenience store and 43.9 percent buy the difficult economic times, even she started desserts. There is obviously a need for a little treat after work to augment her grocery selling by also or school! offering snack items such as banana-cue and 12 other native desserts.
  • 13. Look who’s talking … TAIPEI This convenience store in Taipei was opened by Wang’s father over 60 years ago. Things are not easy. The store is located in a quiet neighborhood yet faces fiercer and fiercer competition from other stores opening around the city. Those stores are more modern, with bright lights and a wider variety of products. Wang says he is lucky that he does not need to pay rent and has no mortgage on his house and shop otherwise he might be in real trouble as profits have been steadily declining. Wang says most of his clientele are older residents living in the area. Younger parents tend to drive further away to supermarkets. Wang helps deliver goods to the elderly who have a hard time coming to his store. Blue collar workers who are unaccustomed to going to more modern markets aimed at the middle class also frequent Wang’s shop. They come in wearing tank tops and flip flops. “Maybe it is because what I wear is just like them,” Wang said. Wine and cigarettes are also cheaper here compared to chain convenience stores and supermarkets. For Wang, the government has thankfully not established any policy to create a uniform price. Except for wine and cigarettes, Wang says he does not like to sell new brands. His old clients are set in their ways and like to buy products they know. “They can barely change their taste, so it is common for new products to turn into over-stocked goods,” he said. Since he knows his neighborhood well, Wang finds opportunity in selling some seasonal products, such as glutinous rice balls during Lantern Festival, gold paper and incense during Chinese New Year, and barbecue utensils for Moon Festival. TAN BINH Tap is the owner of a local convenience store in Tan Binh district in Vietnam. His store has been around for quite some time hence his regular clients are the people who live in the same neighborhood that want to support his business. Tap was particularly excited to talk about the different products that were the best sellers at his store. “Since there are a lot of kids in this neighborhood, snacks and candies are probably the two most popular items at my store. Kids tend to buy brands that have been around for quite some time such as Thai Shrimps, or Crab. Some newer brands such as Cheetos and Lay’s are doing quite well too, and I really see an upward trend in their sales. I think the reason is because these new brands are willing to pay for advertising to promote their products where as those “traditional” 13 brands – Thai Shrimps and Crab – rely on word-of-mouth for sales.”
  • 14. Look who’s talking … You get to meet all kinds of people in Shankar’s shop. MUMBAI Kids, housewives, elderly people, and even household help from the nearby housing societies come and buy their emergency requirements from the shop. “Pant 27-year-old Shankar Patel defies the image we have in our pehen ne wali bhi aati hai; ghaghra-wali bhi aati hai [We minds of an average owner of a provision store. And he also have women buyers wearing western clothing, as well as defies the image of the marketing-savvy, new-age shopkeeper those wearing traditional dresses stepping in to our that we would expect as first-time entrepreneurs. However, shop],” he says. The shop is open 6 days in a week. after a short chat with him, things start to make sense. In India, “Sometimes we do not feel like working, so we down the most businesses can be closely linked to communities. The shutters for a day”, he smiles sheepishly. The 250-square- famous dabbawalas (tiffin carriers) in Mumbai are all from the feet shop is unbelievably loaded with groceries and food same community hailing from in and around a specific village in products of all kinds – from packaged meals, to fresh Maharasthra. The same is true for diamond traders and bread and milk in polythene bags, to grains and cereals labourers. General and Provision stores are no different either – stocked in open and sold in loose packs. Part of the small they are largely owned by members of the Marwari community, space outside the shop is given to a vegetable vendor. and operated by family members and relatives. After studying Ask him on the number of products he stocks, and very till the 10th grade, Shankar started out as a helper in a general nonchalantly, he shrugs his shoulders and says that he store in suburban Mumbai. About 3 years ago, he gathered doesn’t know. He only re-stocks what he sells, and that enough courage (and support from his employer), to start his too is taken care of by the weekly trips of salesmen from own provision shop, ‘Shree Dhanlaxmi Stores’. 14 different companies.
  • 15. Look who’s talking … So how much money does he make? Daily sales clock about Any new products that got him excited? For the focus he has INR 15,000 ($300) and he gets a margin of about 8-10% on on business, this too had to be something that helped him that. “The new, big stores (referring to the modern retail earn more. A chocolate cream biscuit brand launched in the stores) have halved my business”, he says. “[Customers] go premium segment, and having a high turnover is what he in their cars and buy in bulk from there, and come to me for recalls first. Next is a heat-and-eat packaged meals brand that smaller purchases.” The biggest impact to him is on the high- added more dishes to its range, and has been getting buyers margin food grains and provisions that he sells in loose without much effort. With the high number of customers packs. These items are now bought in packaged form, and at steeping into his shop, Shankar doesn’t have much time to discounted rates from the stores. convince them to change their preferences. He picks his opportunities well, and just says “Achcha hai, le lo (take it, it’s To boost his sales further, Shankar has started offering free good!)” with great conviction, to make people change their home delivery to customers living nearby. It doesn’t incur brand. He does not go into details, and doesn’t seem to care any extra cost to him, but make it a bit convenient for his to know much too. Companies, brands, variants and the top customers, he reasons. Unfortunately for him, this service features is all he can manage to remember. So what keeps now has become part of base expectations, since every shop him and his shop going? One would get the same brands in a in the area offers the same benefit. From earnings of about departmental store at probably better discounts, and from INR 40,000 ($800) per month, Shankar’s big expenses are the salespeople probably more informed than him. Around this shop’s rent, salaries for his 3 helpers and the electricity. His 3 same time, a housewife enters the shop, picks something up helpers are his roommates too, so his monthly rent for the and asks for clearing up past dues. This is when we see him flat is an added expense he has to bear. A part of the open his notebook of “accounts” maintained for regular remainder goes to his family living in the village. customers, and we realize the importance of personalized short-term credit he offers to his customers.What does he do What gets him interested? Not much, it seems, except for with the savings? “I plough it back,” he says. No indulgent retailer schemes. ‘Everest’, a maker of spices, recently ran a spending on self? “Nothing”, he says, a bit embarrassed. And scheme for retailers, where they got scratch cards and may adds matter-of-factly, “I don’t make that much money.” get win prizes from a draw of lottery. It made him order a full carton rather than only a few packs. Similar promotional “Surely he is being modest”, I think, looking at the heaps of schemes for end consumers that help him sell a premium products all around me, and immediately realize that he product in more quantities are his favorite. A detergent might have said the truth. For a shopkeeper who earns that brand gave away liquid hand-wash and toothpastes free with kind of money, he doesn’t have a cell-phone. Yes, he does a its variants for washing machines, while a juice brand gave landline connection and an intercom for the society where smaller SKUs free with its large packs. the shop is, but for the purpose of business. No personal indulgences. 15 .
  • 17. Knowing me, Knowing you DORA, 9 Dora is the “Little Princess” in her family. Not only because she looks like a little princess by wearing the new Barbie dress that her mom just bought for her, but also because the amount of freedom that she is allowed to have at home. The wall of her bedroom is covered by Dora’s cute paintings of animals, people and trees. Her mother smiled and said: “We can paint the wall again but we can’t kill child’s creativity. I want her to be happy in her childhood with the freedom to do things she enjoys to do.” Dora is 9 and lives in Beijing. Her parents are both working for foreign companies, and they are occupied with work most of the time. In order to better take care of Dora, her grandparents live with them in the same house. They pick up Dora from school everyday and prepare dinner for her. Monday to Friday Dora has regular classes from 8am to 3:30pm. Every Tuesday afternoon, she goes to English supplementary classes until 5pm, and every Thursday afternoon, she has painting lessons. Dora’s mom explained that she and her husband want Dora to explore and develop some interests when she is young but meanwhile they don’t want Dora’s time to be filled with extra lessons. They think having a balance between learning and playing is one of the most important things for a child. At home, Dora’s favorite activities are watching animation, painting and playing with her dad’s iPad. Her favorite stars are not normal people. They are animated characters such as Pleasant Goat from “Pleasant Sheep and Big Big Wolf” and Dora from “Dora the Explorer.” Dora’s mom indicated that she obviously prefers clothing and stationeries with graphics of animation characters that she likes. “Pleasant Sheep is very beautiful and good at a lots of things. For example, putting on make up, cooking and nursing; Dora always goes to new places, she is so brave. My English name is Dora as well,” Dora told us proudly. After finishing her homework, Dora sometimes plays with her dad’s iPad. She likes visiting Tencent Children and Beva.com for mini games and Sohu Comic for animation videos.
  • 18. Knowing me, Knowing you On weekends, Dora’s favorite activity is spending time with her friends at Beyou World (www.beyou.cn), the biggest children’s indoor profession-experiencing entertaining center in Beijing. The center was tailor-made based on the physiological and psychological characteristics of Chinese children. Meanwhile, Beyou World also cooperates with many international and local brands to build a more realistic simulated city for children such as Coca Cola, Air China and Mengniu. Inside the 10,000-square-meters play space, there are blue skies, streets, houses and gardens. There are also facilities including hospitals, air plane, TV station and firehouse where kids can adopt careers as doctors, pilots, cameramen and firefighters. The money that the children earn can be also used at the restaurants and theaters or can be stored in the bank where it will earn interest. Dora’s favorite roles at the park are flight attendants and nurses. She can spend a whole day in the center until her parents ask her to go home. Dora’s parents also take her to parks during weekends where she can do exercises with her dad such as roller skating and riding bikes. “It is important to let the kid be close to nature and do some exercise; it is also a good way for us to interact with her,” Dora’s mother said. Although Dora is only 9 years old, she has been aware of brands through TV advertising, parents and classmates. However, the main reason for her to choose one brand over another one is purely based on animated characters that she is familiar with. Dora’s favorite brands are Disney, Barbie, and Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf. “She watched a lot of Disney cartoons and Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf; she is attracted to the main animated characters through the stories behind. Her dad and I also took her to the Disneyland in Hong Kong and Barbie flagship store in Shanghai. By visiting those places, her connection with those brands is becoming stronger, because she had so much fun playing with the animated characters in real life,” Dora’s mom explained. 18
  • 19. Knowing me, Knowing you KIEW YING TI, 12 This is Kiew Ying Ti, a gregarious 12- year-old Malaysian girl who has just entered her first year of high school. A cheerful girl by nature, she prepares for the day ahead by reminding herself every morning that “today is going to be an awesome day.” She describes her weekdays as “crazy” – her day is chock-a- block full with classes from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., after which she attends Choral Speaking practices, Lidra (Literature) Club sessions and her Christian Fellowship gatherings. Her homework adds to her stressful and busy days as she has trouble understanding subjects like math. The weekends are her downtime and she uses this time to watch TV, Facebook, and laze around her house with family. She also plays badminton because she enjoys it and because , she says, “it’ll help me to grow taller.” An avid writer and public speaker, her penchant for storytelling has led her to put up videos of herself and her friends on Youtube (watch her videos at http://bit.ly/AEGlh9). Her videos are mostly of herself and her friends, with content ranging from her singing Lady Antebellum songs to spoofing chocolate commercials. She also learns how to play the piano using Youtube tutorials, reads manga on MangaFox, discovers and contributes stories to Wattpat and is also an avid follower of NigaHiga’s channel on Youtube. Her favorite singers are Adele and Taylor Swift. She always has fun where ever she goes and attributes her happiness to being able to be herself around her friends. 19 11
  • 20. Knowing me, Knowing you DIO CHEWEI, 13 On a typical school day, Dio wakes up at 6:30 in the morning. He showers and has breakfast with his mother. “I eat what my mom prepares for me. It can be bread, porridge, cereal or noodles,” he said. Dio then goes to school at Global Nusantara, a national school in Jakarta, where he has to complete both the Cambridge exam and National exam to graduate from primary school. He has lunch as school and goes home around 2:30 pm. His busy day does not end then. He will then attend a mandatory extra class to prepare for the upcoming National exams. By 3:30, Dio goes home where more tutors are waiting to teach him English and science (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) Bahasa Indonesia (Monday and Wednesday) and Chinese (Tuesday and Thursday). By around 6:30 pm he is free. Dio then has dinner with his family and then spends the evening watching Supa Stikas on the Disney Channel. Supa Stikas is a show about soccer. Dio loves soccer and basketball. He spends time browsing NBA.com, looking at matches, teams and players. “My favorite team is the Celtics, but there is this new great player named Jeremy Lin. He plays for he New York Knicks,” Dio said. Nike is Dio’s favorite brand. He is also curious about history, particularly World War II. “I don’t know why,” he said. He searches for whatever he has heard from his friends or teachers on Google and also has Facebook where he plays Tetris or responds to people’s comments. Since he is so young, he had to make up a profile on Facebook, which requires members are a certain age before they join. By 10 at night, he goes to sleep. On weekends, Dio will play either soccer or basketball with is friends. 20
  • 21. Knowing me, Knowing you URIM EOM, 8 Urim Eom studies in the third grade. Outside of normal schooling, she has extra classes at a private education institute and also at home with an English tutor. She already is preparing for the Korean college entrance exam. Going to school is the toughest thing for Urim. She says she wishes she could lie in bed and be lazy, but her mother scolds her to get up and get going. She is also nervous about meeting new teachers. Sundays are her favorite days when she can play with friends and not worry about studying. “Maybe this is my happiest moment,” she said. “My mom always manages my schedule with a strict daily timetable. She always checks when to go to school and when to go to private institutes. She never stops nagging. Satisfying all of her demands is the toughest,” Urim said. “Those are the challenges in my life.” Urim said she wishes she could be free from the pressures of school; but that she is also worried about falling behind. When she has time to browse the Internet, Urim visits NAVER Junior (www.jr.naver.com) or Yahoo Kids (kr.kids.yahoo.com) where she plays games. Her mother does not allow her to visit other websites. Her favorite brands are Nike sneakers and any other sports brand. “I think Nike looks hip,” she said. Urim’s favorite star is IU, a popular singer. When she has time, Urim practices inline skating, a sport she recently became interested in learning. 21
  • 22. Knowing me, Knowing you SORUSHAEN, 8 Then, he has time to watch TV. His favorite channels are Cartoon Network, Boomerang and Disney TV. At Sorushaen is 8. He attends Asian International School, 10, he goes to sleep. which is one of the best international schools in Sri Lanka and attended by children from rich families. He Sorushaen is very happy when his father buys him world revolves around school, studying, sports, games toys. “This year for my birthday, Appa (what he calls and expensive toys, like iPhones. His day starts at 5:30 his father) is buying me an iPhone 4!,” he said. He also in the morning when he gets ready for school by collects battle guard cards as a hobby and enjoys himself and is off to class by 6:30. Before school starts, eating chocolates. Toblerone is one of his favorite he hangs out with his friends. He also eats breakfast chocolate brands. He visits the websites of Cartoon there, enjoying food his mom makes him such as Network, Disney, Moshi Monsters and Penguin Club. “Bombay toast” or Kiribath with spicy chicken or fish He also plays online games and says he learns new curry and chili relish. Aside from swimming and things when he visits websites, he says. His favorite athletics, Sorushaen studies 12 subjects. Each day has sports are swimming as well as badminton and karate. eight class periods that are 45 minutes long. During “I am a small guy, but bit people know I can bring them breaks, he plays with friends, making paper rockets for down in one strike thanks to karate,” he said. fun. After school ends around 1 in the afternoon, he Sorushaen loves to break toys and put them back practices sports. Usually his mom picks him up around together again. He likes to create small sculptures and 5 o’clock. plants also interest him a lot. He says Nestle is one of his favorite brands because of their delicious Once Sorushaen is back home, he has a mini lunch. chocolates. . Then he takes a bath and starts his homework. Dinner is served at 8:30. 22
  • 23. Knowing me, Knowing you His daily routine … JOJO, 10 Jojo’s day is consumed by studying for over 10 hours both at school (Bangkok Christian College) and at home. 4 p.m. He has more leisure time during weekends when he enjoys cycling, gaming, cartoons and movies. What makes him happy? Additional Playing computer game i.e. learning/tutorial subjects Halo, Sewer Run (skateboard) are math for 2 hours, Playing game application on guitar for 2 hours, and iPod i.e. Infinity Blade. finishing weekend homework. What makes him anxious? Most of the things that make him anxious are school-related. He loves to go to school but there is anxiety when… • There are lazy friends in group study/assignment. Most of them always keep saying without doing which makes the work turn out bad or late. • Bully friends that keep taunting and teasing. Star he loves … • Too much homework. Brands he loves… Websites he goes to… Bird Thongchai McIntyre Singer, Entertainer Sports he plays… • Y8.com or Y3.com, actually there is up to Y100+ but he likes Y8 and Y3. He enjoys cartoon fighting as 2 players, in the mean time, he can tease his friend/companion by shooting laser gun • YouTube, in order to study games i.e. Halo, animator vs. animation Swimming – fun, not aggressive like other • Madoocartoon.com (meaning come-to-see cartoon), the 23 sports. I have to study football, taekwondo favorites are Doraemon, Mask Rider, Avatar which are fun but can hurt each other.
  • 24. Knowing me, Knowing you HIROTO, 11 Hiroto is an elementary school student in Yokohama city in Kanagawa prefecture. He goes to school by 8:10 in the morning and finishes around 3 in the afternoon. He goes to another school twice a week to study to pass the entrance exam for private junior high school next year. He is most happy when he is playing football on the weekends. Hiroto is a big fan of Maya Yoshida, one of the players of Japan’s national football league. A manga called “One Piece,” is his favorite. He has collected nearly all the books in the series. Hiroto has his own mobile phone. The mobile has restrictions that bar him from accessing online gaming sites so he often uses his home computer to surf the web. His favorite websites are Nico Nico Doga (Japanese YouTube + Ustream site http://www.nicovideo.ip). TRUNG NGUYEN,12 Trung Nguyen studies in the sixth grade in Ho Chin Minh city. Since he attends afternoon school, Nguyen spends most of his morning doing homework or taking on extra classes. After school, Nguyen plays soccer with his friends. It’s his way to make new friends and to stay active. Nguyen enjoys surfing the web as well. His most visited websites are bongda.com.vn or bongda24h.vn – to keep up with all the soccer news, and kenh14.com or yeah1.com – for all the teens news. “My favorite soccer star is Cristiano Ronaldo,” he says. Nguyen finds lots of enjoyment in simple things. For example, you can easily spot him smiling ear to ear when he eats his favorite snack – Poca (potato chips), or when he drinks Sting with Strawberry flavor. Yet, he gets really anxious when he has to show his parents his report card or a test that he didn’t24 well on. do
  • 25. Knowing me, Knowing you JOEY, 9 Joey, a resident of Taipei, has been in elementary school for about two years, and her schedule is quite routine. She wakes up at 7:00, goes to school at 8:00, and has piano class twice week or she goes to the Children's Care Center three times a week before her mom gets off work. “I like to play piano, but also I like to have more time to stay at home,” she said. Also Joey enjoys school life, not only because she has fun with her classmates, but she also likes learning. She doesn’t see school as a burden; she finds it an interesting activity. She especially likes classes such as foreign language where she can express her feelings. She says she likes math because it is practical and science because it gives her knowledge about the world. One thing she does not like is physical education: “I am scared I may get hurt or fall if I play dodge ball or run in a relay race,” she said. Some say that this generation needs more time to deal with failure because most kids are the only child in their family, so it is common for their parents to say “no” and force them into doing things the kids don’t want to do. Joey’s mom lets her play online games in her leisure time, Joey says: “I like to play Popkart (a race game) with my classmates, and we usually chat on Facebook”. But the thing that makes her the happiest is when she can eat MOS Burger and talk to her father who only comes home on the weekends. Sometimes her father cannot say no, so Joey has too many toys and Hello Kitty products. Joey’s mom says; “We even had to prepare a room just for Hello Kitty.” ARRCHI SHAH, 12 AND ARYAN JAIN, 9 Living in the same city - Mumbai, Archi Shah and Aryan Jain couldn’t be more different. Archi, 12, comes from a conservative Gujarati joint family, while Aryan, 9, comes from a more westernized, nuclear family. Archi’s father, who owns and operates his jewelry shop at the city centre, is the primary earning member in the family. And her mother is a homemaker. In sharp contrast, Aryan’s father works in alternative shifts as he manages his team of executives at a technology BPO, to handle service requests coming in from European clients. Aryan’s mother tries to keep herself busy by organizing cultural events held in their housing society. Archi goes to a nearby school affiliated to the state education board, while Aryan studies at what is a larger chain of schools, and is affiliated to the IB curriculum. Archi is very introverted and doesn’t like mingling a lot. She even refused to share a photograph of hers with me. On the other hand, Aryan was very excited to give me his photograph, and searched for a while through his father’s Facebook albums before choosing this image. 25
  • 26. Knowing me, Knowing you However, this is where the differences end, and the similarities pop up. Both Archi and Aryan start their days early in the morning, go to their schools and come back by lunch time, spend the afternoon doing their homework, and play for some time in the evening. On weekends, they are up late in the morning, study for an extra hour compared to the weekdays, and have fun for the remaining part of the day. Both are good at outdoor games. Aryan loves playing badminton and football, and Angry Birds on the PC. Archi plays volleyball at school. Since she doesn’t have girls of the same age group residing in and around her society, she spends her time at home reading books and drawing. Their parents aren’t over-obsessed with studies and exams, so both Aryan and Archi get multiple opportunities to explore their interests. Aryan recently joined skating classes, while Archi has completed a course in dance. What makes them happy? One would expect kids of this age group to be happiest with and among their peers. However, quite unexpectedly, it is their personal activities and the time they spend with their parents that they look forward to, the most. Aryan loves playing computer games with his dad, and also wants to be around when his father plays badminton with his friends on weekends. For Archi, the time she spends every evening with her father, and the outings with her parents on weekends are the most joyous moments for her. Are they exposed to the Internet, yet? Yes, but in very limited ways. Aryan surfs the net primarily to access his account, and updates from his school on the website www.myschool.in.com, and when his father is around, plays games on a gaming website. Interestingly, he isn’t able to recall the name of the gaming website, when asked. He doesn’t have a Facebook account. Archi’s surfing is mainly for Google search. Sometimes, she accesses her Facebook account too. She doesn’t share much on it, though, and she hasn’t yet posted a photograph of hers on it. So which medium influences them? Mainly TV channels. Aryan loves watching Ben 10, Chhota Bheem, and other cartoon series on Pogo and Cartoon Network, while Archi loves watching movies and sports. Actor Shah Rukh Khan and badminton player Saina Nehwal are stars she adores. Primarily though, it is the peer group that influences them. Aryan is of a competitive mindset, so the need to be better than his friends is very high on his list, while for Archi it would be the friends she makes at school, on the volleyball court, and in the dance classes, from whom she will learn and adopt various behaviors and brands. 26
  • 27. Knowing me, Knowing you TANZILA, 8 Little Miss Tanzila Tabassum Kabir lives in Dhaka. She has a pretty good routine for her daily life. Her morning starts at 7am when she wakes up. Then she goes to school and her school ends at 1pm. Then she comes home, takes A shower and then starts watching TV. Her favorite TV show is a cartoon called Doremon. She also watches cooking shows with her elder sister on TLC,. She has her lunch at 2pm. That is followed by a short nap. When she wakes up she has to play her Barbie dolls. After that she goes to tuition for 1.5 hours. She gets ecstatic when she gets pretty dresses and toys; good marks at exams and “When my mother loves me more than my elder sister”, her exact words. She gets anxious about when she gets scolded by her teachers at school, her friends stop talking to her for any reason. She gets mad when someone ruins her dolls. She visits many websites. Mostly games websites such as bonniegames.com, didigames.com, barbiegames.com, rainbowgames.com and girlsgames.com etc. She loves Johnson & Johnson, Follow Me, Bubble Gum and Cadbury chocolates. Her favorite stars are Hannah Montana, Selina Gomez and Lady GaGa. She plays basket ball pretty well considering her age and height. She also skates for fun.ca 27
  • 28. Playing on my iPod* * or at my favorite KTV parlor
  • 29. Playing on my iPod* CHINA INDONESIA Wanting Kesepian You Exist In My Song Vierra http://www.youtube.com/watch http://v.youku.com/v_show/ ?v=UAw7rnNJvLM id_XMzMzMzcwNjc2.html Mayday Starry Night SINGAPORE http://v.youku.com/v_show/i d_XMzUwNDQ3MzI4.html One Thing One Direction http://www.youtube.co m/watch?v=Y1xs_xPb46 Soda Green M&ob=av2e Love on Credit Bubble Pop http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMzMzMjU4NDY4.html Hyuna MALAYSIA http://www.youtube.com/watc h?v=bw9CALKOvAI Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris We Found Love SRI LANKA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg00YEETFzg&ob=av3e A Hetha 6ixth Sense feat. Saujana Iraj & Delon, Feat. Penerang Hati Shani http://www.youtube.com/watch?v http://www.elakiri.com/forum/downloads. =JBU56r9jjpc php?do=file&id=1524
  • 30. Playing on my iPod* JAPAN VIETNAM Gui Ngan Loi Yeu Tuan Hung Kyary Pamyu Pamyu Tsukema tsukeru http://mp3.zing.vn/bai-hat/Gui- Ngan-Loi-Yeu-Tuan- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLy4cvRx7Vc Hung/ZWZAEW97.html http://kyary.asobisystem.com/?page_id=7 TAIWAN International Love Pitbull featuring Chris Brown http://mp3.zing.vn/bai-hat/International-Love-Pitbull-ft-Chris- Brown/ZWZCZ7C6.html Cheers Mayday BANGLADESH http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLy4cvRx7V c Lamb of God http://kyary.asobisystem.com/?page_id=7 Ghost Walking http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o -hn32fyic4 THE PHILIPPINES Adele Someone Like You http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLQl3WQ QoQ0
  • 31. Rage against … What’s making people really angry, and why?
  • 32. Rage against CHINA On February 1, 2012, there was a full-page Hong Kong newspaper advertisement decrying Chinese Mainland visitors as “locusts” who invade Hong Kong and drain its resources. The text asks: “Are you willing for Hong Kong to spend one million Hong Kong dollars every 18 minutes to raise the children born to Mainland parents? Hong Kong people, we have endured enough in silence.” The ad, picturing a giant locust perched atop a mountain overlooking Hong Kong, invoked the locally-coined locust label used to describe Mainlanders, reflecting a concern among some residents in Hong Kong that Mainland Chinese are "taking over" the city. The advertisement was published in Hong Kong's widely-read Apple Daily by an anonymous group of internet users who raised more than US$12,000 advertising fee within a week. There are many reasons that tensions between Hong Kong residents and Mainland visitors have ratcheted up. A surge in the number of pregnant Chinese women crossing into Hong Kong to give birth has put a growing burden on the resources of local hospitals. According to the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department, the number of live births in Hong Kong by mainland mothers went from 26,838 in 2006 to 40,875 in 2010 - a 52% increase. In Hong Kong, Mainland visitors are also known for spitting and littering, which does not meet the manners and etiquette standards set by the local Hong Kong residents. The advertisement has generated huge public anger in Mainland China. Netizens are criticizing Hong Kongers by only seeing mainland visitors draining resources but ignoring the contribution that Mainland shoppers have made to Hong Kong’s economy. On Sina Weibo, China’s largest micro-blogging website, neitizens are expressing their anger towards the ad: “How dare Hong Kong people say we are locusts. No one should go to Hong Kong and shop in the future!” MALAYSIA The latest issue that has caused Malaysian netizens to erupt in rage comes in the form of seemingly “racist” golf membership rates at one of the country’s most prestigious golf clubs, Kelab Golf Negara Subang (Subang National Golf Club). A photograph of the golf club’s official newsletter, circulated around Facebook, clearly depicts golf memberships being sold at disparate prices according to race. This led to an outcry among Facebook users with reactions ranging from disappointment to disgust. According to the golf club’s spokesperson, however, these membership rates are merely indicative of the club’s racial quotas to ensure a good mix of races among its members, rather than a discriminatory practice. However, in a country where race remains a sensitive issue that permeates many aspects of life, Malaysians viewed this disparity in pricing as a blatant attempt at racial discrimination.
  • 33. INDONESIA Rage against There has been a recent spike in accidents in Indonesia largely caused by more people driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs. A woman named Apriani, 29, was driving her car after a night of drug use. She hit 12 pedestrians, killing nine. Two were children and three were a family who had come to Jakarta to see relatives. The families of the victims were outraged when Apriani was sentenced to prison for 15 years for killing nine people, arguing she should have received life in jail. “Don’t let the easy be too easy. He was my only Source: child. My friends and I are protesting because the sentence is too light. http://www.suarapembaruan.com/home/sop The minimum should be life in prison,” said the father of one of the ir-maut-apriani-jalani-tes-darah-di-bnn/16388 victims. Not long after the Apriani tragedy, police caught two Lion Air pilots using drugs. Their license was taken away. Many people became worried about using the airline after the incident and were angered the pilots were sent to a rehab center rather than prison. “I cannot imagine flying on Lion Air with a pilot high on drugs. Thank God I am safe so far,” a mother commented as she heard the news. There is a public sentiment that the government is not handling drug use with tough enough action. People have the impression that the lives of the victims were not important to lawmakers and that lawmakers do not 33 really care that more lives could be at risk. This does not give a sense of justice in the hearts of Indonesians.
  • 34. Rage against SRI LANKA Protests by the public transport and fisheries sectors over a fuel price hike crippled Sri Lanka a couple of weeks ago. Private bus operators went on strike saying the increase in the price of diesel would mean their expenses will go up. Thousands of passengers rushing to work were left stranded without adequate buses. The Sri Lankan government announced a sudden fuel price hike on Saturday saying it was in line with the world market prices. A majority of passenger buses operating in Sri Lanka are owned by the private sector and said private bus operators will not put their buses on the streets till the government gives them some sort of concession. Fishermen in north western Sri Lanka also refused to go out to fish yesterday morning as the fuel price hike affected their operations as well. Hundreds of fishermen staged a demonstration on the streets of Kalpitiya and Negambo demanding the government to reconsider the fuel price hike. Meanwhile school van drivers said they will be forced to increase the van fees for school children as a result of the fuel price hike. School van operators were expected to hold discussions with the Sri Lankan government transport PHILIPPINES authorities on Monday over the issue The end of the prosecution of Chief Justice Renato Corona, the Philippines judicial leader suspected of tax evasion and preferential treatment of cases related to former president Gloria Arroyo, has almost come. Corona’s bank accounts and assets and liabilities make it apparent that there is great discrepancy between stated and actual assets worth millions of dollars. People are enraged by the blatant deception and angry that there is a possibility for his acquittal given that senior judges responsible for the verdict may have erroneous records and therefore may not want a 34 thorough examination of their own conduct.
  • 35. Rage against THAILAND Recently, Block B, which is a famous Korean band, had an interview on a television program broadcast in Thailand. While the interview was going on, Block B showed a careless attitude during the questions, The members played and goofed around, and even lay down on a table during the interview. The situation got worse when the interviewer asked their thoughts related to the recent floods in Thailand. Band member and leader Zico said, "I know about it. I was pretending I didn't, but I do." Then, they said, "We wish Thai people would recover the damage in their hearts through financial donations, and all we have is money" while another member claimed, "How about 7000 won?" (6.00 USD). After that, they all laughed. The controversy surrounding their comments stems from the fact that members were actually making too much fun of the situation by saying that they could only help with $6. They were being disrespectful and rude about the situation by pretending they didn't know anything. Therefore, these comments made Thailand people http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pZvHq-j_9E upset and offended. Block B’s actions outraged two members of parliament who expressed their feelings on the situation. One, Nickhun, said on his Twitter account: “As a Thai person, I feel offeded by those who speak about the Thailand floods without thinking.” Fans also expressed their feelings towards the situation, calling Zico’s attitude “irresponsible.” The fan said, “They forgot to act in an interview,” and “where is their professionalism?” The incident has definitely raised questions about Block B’s ability to handle or be involved in controversies. The band later apologized for their actions. VIETNAM There’s anger in Vietnam towards pork suppliers who feed their pigs banned and hazardous chemicals so that those pigs can produce extra lean meat around their shoulders and buttock. The chemicals are so toxic that when feeding them to the pigs, these suppliers have to wear rubber gloves and masks to prevent intoxication. Those pigs, if not sold within the 2 week time since the first time of consuming these chemicals, will automatically develop bone brittleness. Their legs will break easily and their body will have lesions that ooze fluid. Since Vietnamese consume lots of pork, it is no wonder why this is becoming one of the top issues in the news. 35
  • 36. Rage against BANGLADESH JAPAN Bangladesh recently witnessed a gruesome killing of a journalist family. The motive of the killings is unknown. The Okinawa prefecture and the Japanese government They were stabbed to death. Police officer Imam have been at odds over a U.S. military base in the Hossain said authorities are investigating the killings of prefecture for quite some time. In Feburary, Japanese Sagar Sarwar and his wife, Mehrun Runi. Sarwar was Prime Ministry Noda visited Okinawa to talk about news editor of private TV station Maasranga and Runi how to relocate the base elsewhere. The government worked as a reporter at another private television, would like to move it somewhere else in the ATN Bangla. Both were in their late 30s.. prefecture; yet Okinawa wants it to be relocated somewhere else. There are plans to talk with local People are very angry about it. It seems that anyone officials and brief them on discussions with the U.S. can walk into a house whenever they want and kill regarding to adjustments to American military bases in someone at any time. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina the country. Noda is expected to reiterate the new has offered condolences to the family and ordered policies discussed by Japan and the U.S. and how they police to find the killers. The couple had a 5 year old will deal with the military presence in Okinawa. Tokyo son. and Washington have revamped the 2006 bilateral agreement; delinking the Futenma relocation from the transfer of U.S. marines from Okinawa to Guam and the return of lands to Japan. When Noda arrived in Okinawa, there were many citizens protesting the government’s policies. TAIWAN Taiwanese-Japanese singer-actress Makiyo and her Japanese friend, Takateru Tomoyori, have indirectly admitted that they had lied about what really happened in their recent taxi driver assault case.The truth came out that they both attacked the 55-year-old cab driver which resulted in the cabby having to be admitted to intensive care with severe head injuries and rib fractures.After days of public outcry and outrage, the Taipei prosecutors were seeking a four-year jail term for Makiyo and six years for Takateru. The anger of the Taiwanese public had been provoked, mainly because the taxi driver was almost beaten to death, and the "actress" lied about what really happened. Also, the local media sensationalized their reports, which further aggravated public outrage.Lots of local entertainers also slammed her behavior. Famous entertainer Pai Ping-ping said that Makiyo's failure to deter the violence perpetrated by her friend on the driver was simply wrong. Obviously, Makiyo had seen her popularity plunge in the wake of the incident, with over a million netizens joining an "Anti-Makiyo" Facebook page within two days after the page was set up. 36
  • 37. Rage against INDIA Two major events dominated emotions during these weeks in India. One is the debacle of the Indian Cricket Slack-tivism in metropolitan politics team in all forms of the game on its tour of Australia. Its performance in the tour was one of its worst in 45 years. The other series of events was the elections for state assemblies in 5 states – including Uttar Miserable performance in cricket Pradesh, India’s most populated state – and for Mumbai’s Municipal Corporation. First, in the Test series against Australia, it was whitewashed 0-4. Then, in a One-Day International tri- Again, the backdrop of the events was high series with Australia and Sri Lanka, it won only 3 matches expectations. All the last few years, Mumbai was out of 8. While the Indian media and public is known to witness to terror attacks, inefficient infrastructure blame everything they can whenever the Indian team management and hooliganism by political parties, doesn’t win, their rage against this performance is and India in general saw the unfolding of huge particularly high because the same team won the Cricket scams in almost every possible area of governance. World Cup less than a year ago. In the last few months, the rage against corruption had led to the hitherto-inactive middle class At the end of the disastrous tour, even the ‘God’ wasn’t springing into action, and backing a team of spared. Sachin Tendulkar, who has scored 99 centuries in activists led by a Gandhian – Anna Hazare. All international cricket and has failed to score the forms of media – individual and broadcast – had hundredth for some time now, didn’t perform too well been tapped into, to build the movement against either on the tour. As a result, he had veteran cricketers, corruption. sports reporters and commentators all questioning his commitment to the team; and some even dishing out While the movement received a lot of advice of retirement to him. participation and contribution, it did not translate into political action in the city of Mumbai. Only about 46% of voters turned up to vote in the elections for the country’s richest municipal corporation. In comparison, Uttar Pradesh, one that’s much more prone to incidence of violence during elections, saw a voter turnout of 60%, one of the highest in the history of the state. 37
  • 39. Tense about In China : Extreme Parenting: “Eagle Dad Forces Son To Run Naked In The Snow” A 4-year-old boy from the city of Nanjing accompanied his parents to the United States on vacation during the 2012 Chinese New Year. A video of him running naked in a snow storm in New York was posted on the internet by his family. In the video, the child was only wearing yellow underwear and sports shoes while the outdoor temperature that morning reached as low as -13 degrees Celsius. The child can be heard whimpering and asking for his father to hold him while the father encourages him to keep running forward. The child also turn to his mother whose voice can later be heard encouraging him as he does some push-ups on the snowy ground. “Naked Running Boy” quickly attracted the attention of netizens, becoming one of the hottest discussion topics on China’s largest micro-blogging service Weibo.com. The number of views reached over 260,000 within first few days. Netizens started calling the child’s father “Eagle Dad”: When young eagles have grown large enough, eagle mothers will ruthlessly push a young eagle off the cliff, when the young eagle is falling into the valley below, it learns its basic ability of flying. Since the video caused huge public criticism on the intense parenting method, the “Eagle Dad” stood out and defended himself for making his son to run in snow without clothing. According to him, the boy had severe health problems after a premature birth. The parents said they think their intense parenting methods are responsible for his improved health. “This child has received all sorts of forms of training since he was little. When he was one year old, he started swimming in water that was 21 degrees Celsius.” The father said he is trying to help his son develop a “masculine temperament” through activities like mountain climbing, dancing and cycling. Challenging him to run around in near-zero temperatures is just one of his tactics. Netizens’ reacted differently to the extreme education and raising methods. The majority of commentators criticized the parents for being too cruel. “ The poor little kid! Is being exposed to the cold good for him? The parents are heartless!” one commenter wrote. Some people think the dad is just trying everything to help his child: “His father is cruel, but what he did is for the boy’s good.”
  • 40. Tense about Tense about CHINA In Malaysia: The new healthcare plan Information on 1 Care circling the internet Tensions are rising in Malaysia due to the tentatively proposed 1 Care health care plan. Leaked onto the internet by prominent healthcare professionals, sources allege that if this health scheme comes into effect, all wage-earners in Malaysia will be forced to pay 10% of their income to the government-run insurance scheme. Adding to the citizens’ growing concern on the issue, the details of the scheme, such as benefits or mechanics, have not yet been made clear due to differing reports from various politicians and professionals. Furthermore, this lack of transparency and information from the government further adds to the citizens’ fear that this will be another government scheme to try and rip money off them. Institutions and professional bodies alike have criticized this scheme – from the current sketchy detail, the public would only receive limited benefits but be forced to fork out a hefty sum for basic healthcare. Thus far, the government has tried to reassure the public that the scheme is still in the proposal stage, and that any policies leaked are not concrete. We won’t know much until the blueprint for the plans are finalized in 2013, but until then, the citizens wait with skepticism and bated breath for more information on 1 Care. In Japan: University entrance exams January and February are very stressful months for students as it is a time for entrance exams for schools. Last year there were several scandals in major universities for cheating. Some of the students used mobile phone to post questionnaires on Yahoo’s question-and-answer site to get an answers. This year, each university has made stricter rules for examinees to avoid same kind of situation. Some of the examinees were even told to turn their clothing inside-out because there were some words secretly written on what they were wearing. 40
  • 41. Tense about In indonesia: Security on the roads In 2011, road accidents in Indonesia increased by 457 compared to the year before. The number of fatal accidents have decreased; however the number of people injured on roadways went up by over 15,000. Material losses from the accidents doubled to 286 billion Rupiah. Of the accidents this year, more than 9,000 involved motorbikes while 1,000 involved passenger cars and over 200 involved buses, according to a national police report. More than 2,500 people suffered serious injuries and 7,564 had minor injuries, the report said. The accidents are often caused by public transport or trucks. Recently, a bus crash killed 14 people and left 57 others injured. The bus, en route to Jakarta, smashed into four cars and several motorcycles before swerving across the highway and hitting another bus and minivan. It then swerved into a ravine after smashing into a food stall, killing one employee. With already 1,547 fatalities from 9,884 road accidents this year, authorities and transport exports are blaming weak traffic laws and implementation of the laws as the main culprit. “The number [of deaths due to traffic accidents] will soar to 65,000 in 2020 if the problem is not dealt with seriously,” warned lawmaker Abdul Hakim, who drafted the 2009 Road Traffic Law. “The losses inflicted are estimated at 2.9 percent of gross domestic product.” The government has said transportation inspectors are also to blame, not doing due diligence with their work. Either way, the public is growing increasingly skeptical and afraid of Indonesia’s roadways where it seems like no matter how safe people try to drive, there is still a pretty good chance of getting hit. 41
  • 42. Tense about In Sri Lanka: US Sponsored UN resolution against alleged war crimes Sri Lankans staged massive demonstrations across the country against a U.S. sponsored resolution scheduled to be presented at the 19th session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. Another demonstration was also staged opposite the U.S. Embassy. Several government ministers attending and speaking against the proposed resolution included the Sri Lankan Prime Minister who declared that people are ready to sacrifice their lives to prevent any moves by some countries to violate Sri Lanka's sovereignty. These protests are slated to continue until the alleged resolution against Sri Lanka is defeated at The UN Convention in Geneva. The resolution to be presented at the UNHRC aims to pressure the Sri Lankan government to take prompt measures to implement the recommendations made by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission which was appointed by Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa to look at some of the incidents which took place during the war between the military and Tamil Tiger rebels. If the resolution is passed, it’s bound to affect the economic development & political stability of the nation.Presenting a resolution against Sri Lanka by the UNHRC session in Geneva is perceived as an undue meddling in the sovereignty and integrity of Sri Lanka by the western world – esp. by the US. Eminent social observes in Sri Lanka who opine that even if Sri Lanka doesn’t have oil (unlike in the Middle East – which is high up the radar of the US), it’s the strategic location of the island in the rapidly growing economic hemisphere which is attracting acute interest from Western world. Perhaps to an extent also accentuated by the ‘cooperation’ being meted out to the nation by the Chinese in terms for infrastructure development. In Taiwan: Imported Beef The United States had been pressuring Taiwan to relax its ban on imported beef containing Ractopamine, a feed additive to make animals grow faster in the final weeks before slaughter. But several groups reiterated that the government should maintain its ban on imports of U.S. beef that contain Ractopamine, saying there are still concerns over a proper control mechanism and the safety of the feed additive, such as some reports that say it may cause health risks."Without a comprehensive control mechanism, the public will be exposed to serious health risks if the government decides to allow controlled levels of Ractopamine in meat," The Consumers Foundation said. The Homemakers Union and Foundation also expressed safety concerns, citing an incomplete assessment of the health risks of Ractopamine, a leanness enhancing drug used in livestock feed in America. Furthermore, local cattle and pig farmers have been threatening to stage a protest in Taipei, amid speculation that the Taiwan government might ease its Ractopamine ban to resolve the U.S. beef issue. 42
  • 43. Tense about In Thailand: Terrorism Thais are tense about terrorism after bombs exploded on Sukhumwit Road on Valentine’s Day. The Attack : The incident occurred around 2.20 pm in a section of Sukhumvit Road called “Pridi Panomyong Avenue.” A loud explosion destroyed the roof of a house that was reportedly rented by three foreign men. A search of the house later revealed the bombs used in the blast were made from C4 explosive materials. The investigation : Following the blast, the police arrested some of suspects involved and found that they carried Iranian passports. After the blast day, a number of stickers with the word “SEJEAL” were glued on several bus stations and pillars around Bangkok. The word means “soar to the highest point.” Several people assumed that the stickers may be related to the explosion. Currently, the main reason causing the blast and the motivation of the suspects are still unclear. Thai police say they are still trying to figure out what happened and why. After the blast : The incident has infused worries about security into the daily lives of Thai people. Some fear that there will be a wave of terrorism in Bangkok. People are particularly concerned about tourist areas. There are also fears the bombing will harm the country’s tourism industry if there is a sense of insecurity in the capital or elsewhere. Already, some countries, such as Australia, are warning travelers to Thailand to exercise caution. 43
  • 44. Tense about In India and Bangladesh,: Inflation In Philippines: Hazing There are growing concerns about money as prices continue to go up due to inflation or other factors and wages remain stagnant. In Bangladesh, it seems everyone from a the rickshaw driver on the street to the business man in the corner office is worried. The last quarter of the financial year is a trying one for In the same month as the 21st anniversary of most middle class Indian, as they make their fraternity hazing victim Lenny Villa (1991), the investments to save on paying income tax; in addition issue of university hazing is again haunting Filipino to managing their expenses, loan installments and parents. While laws have been passed (Anti- summer vacation plans. This year, the pressure gets hazing Law) to prevent the same tragedy from added with fuel (both vehicle fuels and household gas) happening, it did not deter members of the prices expected to rise further. Not just that, the fraternity Lambda Rho from inflicting injuries that overall slump in the economy at this time makes it led to kidney failure and untimely death of Marvin difficult to look for the right investments. Reglos, law student of San Beda University. The news awakened concern of parents on the And with the GDP growth rate slowing down and vigilance of the Philippine justice system on such becoming the lowest in the last years, there are violence. Given that many lawmakers are worries that the current global economic situation themselves part of such brother/sisterhoods, the might impact India hard. To the average middle-class question on whether these acts of violence will be Indian, that would translate to higher interest rightfully punished hangs in the air as the search payments on home and auto loans, higher expenses to for justice for Marvin continues. deal with, and a not-so-promising outlook for rise in salaries. This worry with the wallet gets heightened a little more, for the upper middle class. Till now, it had an option to keep fuel prices in check by opting for the diesel engine in its car, instead of the petrol engine. (Diesel is subsidized to a much larger extent in India, as compared to petrol.) Now, however, with the government considering a one-time tax on private vehicles fitted with diesel engines, this advantage will be lost. The declaration is expected to be made as part of the budget speech by the Finance minister. 44
  • 45. Tense about In Singapore: Protecting Animal Rights On the 19th of February, Danny Ng updated his status on Facebook expressing his outrage and feelings of disgust over the actions of a fellow bowler. Earlier that day, he had found a stray dog who was left on the road to die after being hit by a car, the only clue left behind was the license plate lying next to it. (See picture in middle below) Of course, what made it so newsworthy was that the car plate number identified the owner of the car (a Porsche), as a national bowler and SEA Games coach. He has since issued an apology - although he denies driving off intentionally, insisting that he thought the dog had been all right. Although this is not the only incident of road kill, it seems that everyone likes to blame the rich and famous. After all, public figures are held against higher expectations that they need to live up to. One positive thing that has resulted from this incident is that it has sparked more public awareness and debate regarding the issue of protecting animal rights. Two days later, a photo of a cat caught into a “glue board” uploaded by SPCA also went viral. Images of other animals that had been caught in glue boards began circling on Facebook and STOMP, with netizens repeatedly crying out for something to be done to stop such inhuman acts of senseless killing. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has stepped up, calling for an “immediate ban” on these glue board traps used by pest control companies to trap rats. Jurong Town Council general manager Ho Thian Poh said that the trap was "last resort." The area where the cat was found was facing a rodent problem and measures such as tracking powder did not work. Furthermore, such traps are placed only within the bin for 24 hours at a time. According to the AVA, there are not many options for trapping rodents and glue traps are one of the most commonly used methods in many countries. However, it is highly likely that such pressure from the public would force authorities to look into these measures to minimize such “collateral damage”. 45
  • 46. Everyone’s talking about Brands & campaigns generating buzz