JAKARTA (REUTERS) - Malaysia is separated from Indonesia's Sumatra island by just 64km of water, but an ocean has opened up between them over who owns a traditional dance, the latest in a series of disputes between the South-east Asian neighbours.
The feud, one of many over issues as diverse as culture, pollution and borders in the region of 600 million people, adds to the difficulties leaders face in trying to turn South-east Asia into a unified economic community by 2015.
Malaysian efforts to promote the Tor-tor folk dance and Gordang Sambilan drum performance - both with origins in Sumatra - as its own cultural heritage sparked protests this month in
Jakarta, where a group torched Malaysia's flag and threw stones at its embassy. The violence was a sharp contrast to the Tor-tor itself - a gentle, traditional dance featuring a mix of subtle hand and leg movements.
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Manila says Chinese boats back in disputed lagoon
MANILA (AP) - Chinese fishing boats have returned to a lagoon in a disputed South China Sea shoal despite an agreement to clear the area of all vessels, dashing hopes of an early resolution of a territorial rift with the Philippines, officials in Manila said on Wednesday.