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by Carole Landry Agence France Presse UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) — The UN Security Council will pay a visit to Bangladesh and Myanmar beginning Saturday as it weighs next steps to address one of the world’s worst refugee crises, stemming from the forced exodus of Muslim Rohingya. Myanmar has come under international scrutiny since a military campaign launched in August drove more than 700,000 Rohingya from their homes in northern Rakhine state and into […]
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — Southeast Asian leaders are expected to rally against protectionism at a summit in Singapore this weekend amid fears that tit-for-tat tariffs between the US and China could escalate into a global trade war. A region of around 650 million people, Southeast Asia is home to some of the world’s fastest growing economies, thanks largely to the benefits of free and open trade. But officials and analysts have warned that an escalation of trade tensions between […]
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte arrived on Thursday night, April 26, at the Changi Airport in Singapore to attend the 32nd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related Summits. Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Joseph Del Mar Yap and Singapore Minister of State, Ministry of Manpower, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sam Tan Chin Siong welcomed President Duterte upon his arrival.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Eight Taiwanese drug smugglers were sentenced to death by an Indonesian court Thursday after being nabbed with around a ton of crystal methamphetamine in a country that has some of the world’s toughest anti-drug laws. The men were arrested during raids last July, when the drug network’s suspected leader was killed in a shootout with Indonesian police. “The defendants have been found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of colluding and […]
BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AFP) — Ten people have been killed and dozens injured in a huge blaze at an illegal oil well in Indonesia, authorities said Wednesday. Several homes were also destroyed after an oil spill sparked a huge fire at about 1:30 am (1830 GMT Tuesday) in a residential area on Sumatra island’s Aceh province. It was still burning by early afternoon. “There was a group of people digging in the old well but suddenly […]
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Indonesia’s former parliament speaker was handed a 15-year prison term on Tuesday in a victory for an ongoing clamp-down on widespread corruption. Setya Novanto, once among the country’s most influential politicians, had been accused of taking millions in kickbacks and bribes linked to the national roll-out of government ID cards. His months-long trial came after a string of maneuvers — including allegedly faking an injury in a car crash — that […]
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AFP) — Inflammatory stories masquerading as real news pose a particularly toxic threat in Asian countries with long-standing religious and ethnic divides, but promises by some regional leaders to tackle the problem carry equal menace. Borrowing from US President Donald Trump’s political playbook, government heads with an authoritarian streak are using the mantra of “fake news” to shield themselves from negative media coverage, and push legislation that critics say is aimed more […]
(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte conferred the Order of Sikatuna to outgoing Ambassador of the Kingdom of Thailand to the Philippines Thanatip Upatising on Tuesday, April 17, during the latter’s farewell call in Malacanang. President Duterte expressed his gratitude to Ambassador Upatising for his contributions in strengthening the relations between the Philippines and Thailand, as he conferred upon him the Order of Sikatuna with the Rank of Grand Cross (Gold distinction) for his […]
(Eagle News) — Tinalakay sa isinasagawang dalawang araw na Asian Forum on Enterprise for Society ang ukol sa social innovation, governance at corporate responsibility sa ASEAN. Sa opisyal na pagsisimula ng forum naging panauhing pandangal si Vice President Leni Robredo at dito tinalakay ng bise presidente ang ilang mga suliranin ng bansa lalo na sa usaping kahirapan. Tinalakay rin ni Robredo ang ukol sa mga platform at teknolohiya na nagiging dahilan kadalasan anila ng mga […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — Myanmar’s president on Tuesday announced pardons for more than 8,500 prisoners, including three dozen jailed in political cases, as part of an annual amnesty marking the country’s traditional new year. President Win Myint, who took office last month after his predecessor suddenly resigned, said the pardons would be granted on humanitarian grounds during the Buddhist new year festival known as Thingyan. The amnesty was extended mostly to drug offenders, as […]
by Athens Zaw Zaw with Sam Jahan in Dhaka © Agence France-Presse YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — Myanmar’s government said it has repatriated the first family of Rohingya refugees, among the 700,000 who fled a brutal crackdown, but the move was slammed by rights groups as a publicity stunt which ignored warnings over the security of returnees. The stateless Muslim minority has been massing in squalid refugee camps across the border in Bangladesh since the Myanmar army […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — Myanmar has expressed “serious concern” over an attempt at the International Criminal Court to open a probe into mass deportations of Rohingya Muslims, dismissing the claims and saying the court has no jurisdiction. Some 700,000 people from the stateless Muslim minority fled Myanmar’s Rakhine state to Bangladesh following Rohingya insurgent attacks on border guard posts in August last year. Myanmar says it was defending itself from the rebel Arakan Rohingya Salvation […]
