Channel News Asia
Thailand plans to reopen borders to foreign workers amid shortage
Thailand plans to reopen its borders to workers from neighbouring Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, a government official said on Tuesday (Nov 9), in a bid to ease a labour shortage that is hurting its export and tourism-dependent economy. Pairote Chotikasathien, from the Ministry of Labor, said ...
Reuters/aj
Thailand to allow local flights to resume in COVID-19 risk areas
Thailand will allow some domestic flights to and from Bangkok and other high risk areas for COVID-19 to resume from Sep 1, the country’s aviation authority said on Sunday (Aug 29), to help boost economic activity. The announcement follows the easing of tough restrictions in 29 ...
CNA
Cambodia dam destroyed livelihoods of tens of thousands: Human Rights Watch
A massive China-financed dam in Cambodia has “washed away the livelihoods” of tens of thousands of villagers while falling short of promised energy production, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Tuesday (Aug 10). The 400-megawatt Lower Sesan 2 dam in the kingdom’s north-east has sparked controversy ...
AFP/kg
Mekong River group urges more data sharing on hydropower operations
The inter-governmental Mekong River Commission (MRC) has urged China and Southeast Asian countries to share more data on hydropower operations that can contribute to abnormal rises and falls in water levels on the vital waterway. The changes in water levels have affected navigation, river ecosystems and ...
Reuters/dv
Thailand greenlights quarantine-free travel model for Phuket
Thai authorities on Tuesday (Jun 22) greenlighted a pilot model for quarantine-free travel to ultra-popular beach destination Phuket, a first step towards the tourist-hungry kingdom’s goal of resuscitating its pandemic-battered economy. Thailand has imposed strict restrictions on visitor arrivals in order to stem COVID-19 infections, but ...
Thailand reports daily record of COVID-19 cases, including jail clusters
Thailand’s COVID-19 task force also recorded 25 new deaths, bringing the total number of fatalities to 614 since the pandemic started last year. Excluding the jail clusters, Monday’s new cases of 2,782 are close to a record high of 2,839 recorded late last month. Thailand has administered ...
Reuters/dv
Google helps tackle plastic pollution in the Mekong River, aided by machine learning
The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has partnered with Google to fight plastic pollution in the Mekong River, leveraging citizen science and machine learning to understand the magnitude of the problem impacting the longest river in Southeast Asia. Aided by technical advisory support from Google, the CounterMEASURE ...
James Henderson (Channel Asia)
Locals fear water conflict as new industrial boom arrives along Thailand’s eastern seaboard
A new industrial boom is bringing high-tech investments to eastern Thailand. But in this drought-prone landscape, is there enough water to go around? As Thailand embarks on an ambitious industrialisation drive along its eastern seaboard, local communities and conservationists fear a brewing war over water. The Eastern Economic ...
Jack Board
'Nothing about the Mekong is normal now’: Anger along Southeast Asia’s great river as water levels become unpredictable
From a distance, it is hard to make sense of the small patches of green emerging from the cracking mud flats of the Mekong River. They are not oases, nor sprouts of river grass along dusty channels where water normally flows; they are golf greens. Recently, ...
Jack Board
Myanmar garment workers urge global brands to denounce coup
Tin Tin Wei used to toil 11 hours a day, six days week sewing jackets at a factory in Myanmar. But she hasn’t stitched a single garment since a coup in February. Instead, the 26-year-old union organiser has been protesting in the streets — and trying ...
