this is news coming to you live from berlin change on the horizon for one of nature's most visible gay community same sex couples in thailand get ready to exercise their rights as a civic partnership they say a new law being introduced early next year on shore of the polity they want with heterosexual couples. also coming up in tunisians struggled to get back to daily life after last weekend's devastating tsunami we meet the fisherman with no boat left and no tourists to sell his catch to anyone. and it's football but

not as we know it professional players and gals bone are going hungry and don't even have proper team jerseys it's a world away from the massive wealth shaping the game in europe. hello i'm terry martin good to have you with us thailand's government has given its backing to a groundbreaking bill on same sex relationships under the proposed legislation that could become the first asian country to legalize same sex unions that would be a big step forward for the country's gay community but some say the law doesn't go far enough in meeting their demand for equality with heterosexual couples. these two want to be in perfect union not only in they were. routine. and.

more than just training buddies to pay for their love twelve years ago and they've been together ever since. three times a week they start their day with a workout i say it helps their bodies and their relationships stay in shape. i mean my partner always on the go all the time working. i think the only time we actually get. together quality time is during morning workouts like. woody is a well known t.v. presenter in thailand for more than a decade he's been in the public eye when he came out four years ago it might be headlines not all of them current. feels thailand still has a long way to go towards full acceptance of sexual minorities. he welcomes the new build as an awakening fatah society. people just

started talking about this seriously over the past year i thought proof. ok we're civil partnership ok so do gays really need to get married in the conversations out there. has never talked about this. not. activist she acknowledges that a civil union would bring some improvements to same sex couples for example when it comes to succession at the same time like many activists she feels the move could entrenched this status a second class citizens. by its our. my. mind. is that. so. because you cannot adopt. such. a huge. so instead of taking

baby steps to take some it's. full rights with woody and take a different view of what they feel thailand isn't ready for a full marriage equality demanding all much just result in achieving nothing if you push too hard. you might be aggravating the people that are living here now so it's about knocking the doors opening the doors one by one it's a first step i think it's a very important first step and if we if we manage to get this first step right we will still be the very first in asia or in southeast asia to get that and i think that. it's on its own is such an achievement both for thailand for the region it's something we can be proud of most of the heavy lifting is done what's left now is the vote in parliament should the civil union bill pass would you want to be among

the first same sex couples in thailand to legally taught the not. at our correspondent joins us now from bangkok hi florian getting same sex unions legally recognised as a big step for any country how difficult has this process been fertile and. it has been very difficult in the house been a yearlong effort there had been plans for such a law already about four years ago before the military coup in two thousand and fourteen then this whole project basically. fell apart and it was especially difficult because there is not really an open debate now that's very typical thai things so you don't voice your opinion openly especially not if it's a controversial one so there has been a lot of negotiating behind closed doors by bt activists like the one we have seen

in the report and certain members of the government and now here we are now understand that upon a decision on the same sex union bill is expected early next year is it sure to be approved. it is not sure we will probably see democrats. or almost democratic elections by the end of february of next year as i said we're still ruled by the military regime and the legislative assembly is not elected there are just appointed members there is a chance that it will actually pass before new elections but even if it doesn't the likelihood that it will pass with a new legislative assembly. is also quite likely so i think thailand will actually see this law by next year their critics say this bill

doesn't go far enough what they regard as its main short commons. well basically everything that would involve money so social welfare for partners is not part of the deal and the other very important thing is adoption so obviously it is possible for any person to adopt as an individual but there is no such thing as joint adoption for gay couples that is not mentioned in this law and this is one of the major sticking points that especially those activists are criticizing the assuming the bill does pass how significant will this be in regional terms for southeast asia. very significant like we have heard one of the protagonists in the in the film say it will be the first in asia taiwan tried to have this law but there was

a referendum against it so thailand will probably be a front runner in terms of the rides in the whole region for him thank you so much our correspondent for you know if there in bangkok. rescuers in indonesia are searching for over one hundred fifty people still missing after saturday's tsunami. this after officials warned of fresh danger from the crocodile volcano and the possibility of another title wave saturday's deadly waves killed at least four hundred thirty people for the survivors returning to normal life has not proved easy. has this report. sometimes the sea is a friend sometimes a phone jack says he's a fisherman and loved one with java who has looked to the sea for his livelihood and as a source of food. i could make as much as fifty euros

a week from fishing curing the monsoon season we depend on our store it's where we sell food to tourists for our income this used to be my store the tsunami swept along by now it's gone. to max still has his home and his family is science but without their livelihood the future is uncertain. they used to be many people on the beach every die. they came from nearby cities and even from chicago. now there is no one. it is the waves rolling into the beaches of west java that bring in many local tourists indonesians who want to escape the crowded and frenetic pace of nearby jakarta come here for a quick break especially during the holiday season a few days ago these waves turned into a giant tsunami and fears of a second one are keeping vacationers away turning this once tourist spot into

a ghost town. all month long the government gave us some food and water but no money to rebuild our store and that will not be enough unless we receive regular assistance. out of. the obvious things that the tsunami took away lives and times but the waves have also lift people in limbo uncertain about what tomorrow will bring for now to some of the other stories making headlines around the world today election campaigning has ended in bangladesh ahead of a boat where prime minister shaikh is expected to secure a record fourth term a campaign that has been marred by allegations of foul play critics say opposition figures have been jailed for political reasons ahead of sunday's poll. in chile protesters have attacked police amid growing controversy over the recent shooting

of a young indigenous man police allegedly shot the unarmed man while he was driving a tractor on thursday chile's president the country's police chief to resign over the killing. and in new york residents were stunned when the sky over manhattan started to glow a bright neon blue the eerie sight prompted fears on social media of an alien invasion but the explanation proved more mundane a transformer fire at a local power plant. to sailing now where the wild oats boat crew are savoring a particularly sweet victory after winning the prestigious sydney hobart yacht race last year wild oats crossed the line first as well but they were stripped of the title following a near collision early on this time there were no such problems for the australian

vessel as it racked up a night's win in the seventy fourth edition of the event but it ended up being one of the closest races in years while those completed the route in one day nineteen hours seventeen seven minutes and twenty one sec. tennis great serina williams was in action against her sister venus on thursday the match. exhibition tournaments in abu dhabi was her first outing since losing the us open final in september and in the end serena proved to be a little rusty. serena williams started off stronger winning the first set six four she's preparing for the upcoming australian open where women could see her equal margaret courts recalled tally of twenty fool grand slam singles titles. in the second set the siblings were neck and neck this twelve bull rally eventually

going old a sister venus his way. the thirty eight year old veteran drew level by winning the second set before coming out on top in the deciding super tired break a shortened set to determine the match winner it was a rare triumph for venus in competitive outings serena has won four of the last five. if you follow european football you know the sport generates billions of dollars with first division players earning huge salaries but that is not the reality for the rest of the footballing world in the african nation of gab on for example trying to make ends meet is a daily struggle even for professional players. whose this is gavin nice football club f.c. . at tryst glance it's hard to find anything out of place just a bunch of professional footballers training. but imagine playing on an empty

stomach. these play is fast fighting what can i say i fight sometimes to come to train without having eaten they tell us yes coach we're hungry we didn't eat. living off football is increasingly difficult in cup on even for professional playoffs many teams knock the basics and pass go months without payment. i've been playing football and go bowling for at least three as it is really hard we can no longer live without the salary and as you can see we don't even have a jersey because i think. the country's economic problems have had a trickle down effect the lack of funding and poor organization have created a chaotic situation. the real problem is that the state is putting money into sports not severe right places it does and it doesn't necessarily go to

a right person for most of these playoffs football is the only source of income that they continue to play even if their next paycheck is hanging by a thread. they're watching d.w. news coming to you live from berlin don't forget you get the latest news and information on our website at e.w. dot com i'll be back at the top of the next hour with more thanks for watching. nico is in germany to learn german. english can be. why not learn with him online on your mobile and free stuff from the w z learning course nikos speak.