Radio Free Asia
COVID-19 Cases Surge in Southeast Asian Countries, as Officials Call for Renewed Attention to Prevention
With COVID-19 infections and deaths rising in Myanmar and its neighbors, deposed national leader Aung San Suu Kyi has called on citizens in the military-ruled country to strictly observe all precautions aimed at preventing the pandemic’s spread, her lawyers said on Monday. Following a court hearing ...
Reported by RFA’s Myanmar, Lao, Vietnamese, and Khmer Services. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane, Max Avary, Viet Ha, and Sok Ry Sum. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Justice Delayed For Jailed Activists, RFA Journalists in Cambodia
Family members and colleagues of detained labor and border activist Rong Chhun and youth activist Sar Kanika said they are disappointed that the Phnom Penh Municipal Court denied their bail requests following a hearing on Tuesday. The two activists did not appear at their hearings because ...
RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
Hundreds of Families Forced to Move for Lao Coal Plant Expansion
Authorities in northwestern Laos are forcing hundreds of families to relocate to make way for the expansion of a lignite power plant, setting the stage for a dispute over compensation with residents who say they will be shortchanged by the communist government’s ambitious development plans. A ...
RFA’s Lao Service. Translated by Max Avary. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Vietnamese Mother, Son Draw Eight-Year Prison Terms for Land-Rights Activism
A court in northern Vietnam’s Hoa Binh province on Wednesday sentenced land-rights activist Can Thi Theu and her son Trinh Ba Tu to eight years in prison each for posting online articles and livestream videos criticizing the government for its handling of a deadly land-rights ...
Reported by RFA’s Vietnamese Service. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Richard Finney.
UN Envoy Meets Thai PM, Asks for Help in Ending Myanmar Crisis
The U.N.’s special envoy on Myanmar met behind closed doors with Thailand’s leader Friday, trying to find solutions to the Burmese crisis, as ASEAN dithered on naming its emissary to the coup-ridden country, which has already blocked the proposed visit. Christine Schraner Burgener, the United Nations ...
BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
Cambodian Unions and NGOs Call for Workers’ Safety to Combat COVID-19
Cambodian NGOs and trade unions called on Phnom Penh Wednesday to improve health and safety for workers in the country to combat its recent coronavirus outbreak, while the governments of neighboring Vietnam and Laos took precautions Wednesday to keep the virus from spreading within its ...
RFA’s Khmer, Lao and Vietnamese Services. Translated by Samean Yun, Max Avary and Chau Vu. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Human Rights Law NGO Hits Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand for Using Coronavirus to Control Media
An international human rights law NGO Thursday criticized the governments of Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam for using the COVID-19 pandemic to enact new laws that would allow them to more tightly control the media. The Switzerland-based International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) submitted a report to The Office ...
Eugene Whong
Chinese Dams Unleash Mekong Waters on Laos During ‘Dry’ Season
Chinese dams on the Mekong River have begun releasing water during the river’s normal dry season, causing trouble for wildlife, farmers and fishermen in Laos, sources in the Southeast Asian country told RFA. “The Mekong River water level is up 12 centimeters [4.7 inches] from yesterday,” ...
RFA’s Lao Service. Translated by Max Avary. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam See Continued Rights Abuses, Restrictions on Free Expression: Report
Lao, Cambodia, and Vietnam imposed serious restrictions on freedom of expression and the press over the last year, with all three countries also holding political prisoners and interfering with the rights of citizens to peacefully protest, according to an annual State Department report released on ...
Richard Finney
Green Group Records 100 Cases of Illegal Logging in Protected Cambodian Forest in Three Days
An environmental watchdog group in Cambodia has recorded at least 100 cases of illegal logging in the country’s protected Preah Roka Wildlife Sanctuary over the course of just three days, prompting it to call on the government to strengthen enforcement and allow activists to carry ...
RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Sok Ry Sum and Samean Yun.
