News
Carbon credit schemes, concessions slashed
The Ministry of Environment has cancelled seven carbon credit schemes and reduced the leases of six economic land concessions as part of an ongoing reform effort, according to a 16 October announcement. Keep reading ...
Reconstruction promises exchanged for votes
In landslide-ravaged Chin State, displaced residents say the election has fallen to the bottom of their priority list, causing some parties to fear opportunist electioneering may be in the works. “I have to vote for whoever will give me a house to live in,” said Pu Lung ...
Mandalay farmers battle municipal committee
Angry farmers in Mandalay have hit back at local officials by launching a court action against those they say destroyed huts and signboards on their land. A private company, Phwit Phyo Thit, has signed an agreement with Mandalay City Development Committee to build a golf resort ...
In Laos, an invisible minority is finding its voice
If there is one word to describe the LGBT community in Laos, the landlocked nation sandwiched between Thailand and Vietnam, it might just be “invisible.” This is the ninth part of a 10-part series on LGBT rights in Southeast Asia, which uncovers the challenges facing the LGBT ...
Laos to adopt public-private partnership in poverty reduction
Officials from the Laos government and autonomous organizations have pledged to involve the private sector in poverty reduction programs to ensure its effectiveness and efficiency. The officials were speaking at the 4th ASEAN Forum on Rural Development and Poverty Reduction, which began on 15 October in ...
NGOs push for postponement of Don Sahong dam on Mekong
The lower three Mekong Countries, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam as well as environmental groups, have expressed concern about the Don Sahong dam’s impact on the environment, movement of fish and water quality and flow. The project has yet to be approved by the Mekong River Commission, ...
Lao officials to inform neighboring countries about dam construction schedule
A delegation of Lao officials will visit two neighboring countries to inform them about the commencement of construction work on a controversial 260-megawatt hydropower dam on the Mekong River, a Lao official with knowledge of the issue said on 14 October. Three lower Mekong countries – ...
Thailand scraps unpopular Internet 'Great Firewall' plan
Thailand’s military government has scrapped a plan to create a single Internet gateway, a deputy prime minister said on 15 October, putting paid to a system aimed at allowing authorities to monitor content. Keep reading ...
New rules aim to stop crocodile escapes
Crocodile farms will need walls at least 1.5 metres high around their pits under planned government guidelines, an official said on 16 October, after 28 crocodiles escaped in early October. Keep reading ...
LFTU's seventh congress concluded in Vientiane
The Seventh nationwide Congress of the Lao Federation of Trade Unions (LFTU) concluded on 15 October with the election of 49 members as the new Executive Committee to further oversee the tasks of the union. The congress elected Mr Pan Noymany as the President of the LFTU ...
