News
Gem miners protest in Ratanakkiri
About 200 villagers gathered in Ratanakkiri’s provincial capital of Banlung town on 26 October, calling for a resolution to a longstanding land dispute in the province’s gem-rich Bakeo district. In 2013, a man named Heng Socheat sued five village representatives from the district’s Keh Chung commune, ...
Ministry puts brakes on Pailin dump plans
Cambodia’s Ministry of Environment has called on local authorities in Pailin province to find a new location for a 34-hectare dumpsite currently planned for a protected forest. Environment Minister Say Sam Al, who led a team to inspect the site on 3 October, wrote to Pailin Governor ...
First bird flu outbreak this year confirmed in Laos
The first avian flu outbreak this year in Laos was reported in ducks and chickens in a farm located in Xayabury. Keep reading ...
New Lao-Thai centre to help tackle trafficking
Thailand and Laos have decided to set up a social development centre to help tackle human trafficking, Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai said on 26 September. After the 20th Thai-Lao Joint Commission meeting at a Chiang Rai hotel, Don told reporters that he had signed a memorandum ...
Lao officials investigate massive increase in illegal logging
A leaked report by an international environmental group revealing huge increases in illegal logging in Laos with an implication of government collusion has prompted officials in the small Southeast Asian nation to take action to examine discrepancies in timber export and import figures with China ...
Myanmar car accidents leave high human and financial toll: police
Deadly carnage on the country’s roads is costing billions, police say. More than 3000 people have died in accidents so far this year, with nearly 20,000 injured in more than 11,000 accidents. The toll of deaths and injuries consumes one-quarter of the national health budget. Keep reading ...
Police investigate alleged attack on NLD candidates
Police are investigating allegations that the son of a prominent ruling-party politician rammed an opposition campaign convoy with his motorbike. The alleged attack took place on 18 October, in Zee Phyu Kone village in Naypyitaw’s Dekkhinathiri township. Keep reading ...
More cash sought for Myanmar pension plan
Myanmar’s Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement is seeking more money for a planned social pension program, according to a senior official. The ministry originally requested K500 million (US$390,000) in 2015-16 to distribute to an estimated 35,000 people aged 90 years and above. However, a final ...
With ASEAN integration come more threats to natural resources
Toek Vannara, director of the NGO Forum, discusses the likely environmental problems Cambodia and other countries could face if they do not act to protect their natural resources. Keep reading ...
Haze eases across Thailand's southern provinces
The haze from wildfires in Indonesia drifting into Thailand has generally improved in the southern provinces due to recent rain and strong winds. Chatchai Promlert, chief of the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, said the level of dust particles measuring less than 10 micrometres, or PM10, had dropped ...
