Industries
Rubber firm excavated land, Kratie families say
More than 160 families in Kratie province’s Snuol district have alleged that the Memot Rubber Plantation company has been using excavators to clear their land. The families from Pi Thnou commune filed a complaint to the provincial office of local rights group Adhoc on 23 December, ...
Foreign arrivals in Laos expected to increase in 2015
Total foreign arrivals recorded in Laos are expected to reach 4.33 million for the year, compared to a total of 4.15 million the previous year, according to new statistics released on 23 December. Keep reading ...
Something in the water: The dark and deadly secret behind Saigon cheap coffee
A market of industrial chemicals in Ho Chi Minh City is having a new product on sale. And it has quickly become a bestseller. The black liquid, coming in big plastic cans, works magic. Just add a few drops into water and you can turn it ...
Vietnam's garment exports forecast to top $27 billion
Vietnamese textiles and garment exports will possibly hit US$27.1 billion this year, an increase of more than 10 percent from 2014, local media reported. Local producers shipped $20.63 billion worth of textile and garment products in the first 11 months, up 8.9 percent from the same ...
Violent protests boil over in Bavet
Ongoing protests by striking garment workers in the Svay Rieng province town of Bavet spiralled into “anarchy” on 22 December after protesters pelted police with rocks, aggravating an already volatile situation and spurring national authorities to begin mediation efforts. Two military police were injured in the encounter, ...
Rent control law being ignored
The government is failing to enforce, or even make landlords and tenants aware of, the new rent-control law, even as rents begin to creep up in anticipation of garment workers receiving their annual wage raise next month, labour advocates say. The legislation, which went into effect ...
Starbucks opens doors in airport
The long-awaited Starbucks coffee chain opened its doors to passengers on 22 December in the Phnom Penh International Airport’s new terminal. Keep reading ...
Lao, Kuwait visa exemptions come into force
Visa exemptions for diplomats and officials / special passport holders of Laos and Kuwaiti came into force on 28 October after the two sides signed an agreement in Vientiane in June. However the passport holders of Lao and Kuwaiti nationality are allowed to stay in one ...
Garment workers protest unpaid wages
More than 200 workers at Htate Tan Myanmar garment factory in Hlaing Tharyar township’s industrial zone 4 have been protesting in support of a demand for unpaid wages since 14 December. Ma Moe Sandar, a clerk from the factory, told The Myanmar Times the factory had not ...
Bagan hotels in limbo as government blocks licences
More than 40 hotels in one of the country’s prime tourist attractions cannot accept a single guest – because the authorities refuse to grant them licences. The “limbo hotels”, some of which are still under construction, are located in the protection zone declared by the Ministry of ...