Government
China-South Korea competition grows in Vietnam
TAIPEI, TAIWAN — A Vietnamese delegation’s visit to China last week has underscored increasingly close economic ties between the territorial rivals, which analysts say is posing a challenge to the dominance of South Korean investment in Vietnam. Vietnam’s National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue led the high-level ...
Peh Hong Lim
Ousted Myanmar leader Suu Kyi moved from prison to house arrest
BANGKOK — Myanmar’s jailed former leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been moved from prison to house arrest as a health measure due to a heat wave, the military government said. On Wednesday it also granted amnesty for over 3,000 prisoners to mark this week’s ...
Associated Press
Dance moves and deepfakes: Indonesia presidential candidates duke it out on TikTok
JAKARTA, Feb 12 (Reuters) – At an Indonesian presidential campaign event, 22-year-old voter Irene Putri Aisyah was busy uploading everything she saw – from cute dances to cooking demonstrations – to short video app TikTok. To court young voters like Irene, all three candidates in the Feb. ...
Stanley Widianto
Hundreds of Myanmar anti-junta protesters rally in Bangkok
Bangkok – Hundreds of protesters screamed and wept as they demonstrated against Myanmar’s junta in Thailand’s capital on Thursday, the third anniversary of an army coup that ended the country’s brief spell of democracy. Young and old gathered outside the United Nations headquarters in Bangkok, wearing T-shirts showing ...
Agence France-Presse
Far-Reaching Threats a Worry for Cambodian-American Journalist
WASHINGTON — Paranoia has become something of a way of life for Sarada Taing, ever since the journalist received violent threats from a pro-government social media personality in Cambodia in June. In one audio message sent via Facebook Messenger on June 19, Pheng Vannak, a former police ...
Liam Scott
China vows closer security ties with Mekong states as cyber scams, Myanmar unrest have cross-border impact
China and its five Southeast Asian neighbours along the Lancang-Mekong River have agreed to focus on security cooperation, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. “We will resolutely combat cross-border crime in the [region], especially cyber fraud and gambling,” Wang said after the annual Lancang-Mekong Cooperation foreign ministers’ meeting with ...
Zhao Ziwen
Vietnam jails fifth climate activist on tax charges
One of Vietnam’s best-known climate activists has been sentenced to three years in prison over tax evasion. Hoang Thi Minh Hong is the fifth Vietnamese activist to be jailed over the charge. Campaigners say it is part of a state-authorised move to silence criticism of the country’s ...
Jonathan Head
China welcomes Cambodian and Zambian leaders as it forges deeper ties with Global South
BEIJING (AP) — China and Zambia upgraded their relationship to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership on Friday, the latest move by America’s chief global rival to forge deeper ties with the Global South. Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Zambian counterpart announced the agreement shortly after Xi ...
KEN MORITSUGU
Vietnam Joins ASEAN Neighbors in Denouncing Chinese Map
Vietnam has joined three other Southeast Asian governments in denouncing a new map published by China’s government, which depicted the country’s expansive claims in the South China Sea. The so-called “new standard” map, which was published by China’s Ministry of Natural Resources on August 28, has ...
Sebastian Strangio
New Thai government must show more responsibility with the Mekong
Around this time of year when the rainy season begins, people living on the banks of the Mekong River along the Thai-Lao border always feel a little less stressed because rising water levels mean more fish and food to support their survival. Until the mid-1990s, these ...
Titipol Phakdeewanich