ASEAN IN FOCUS
Thousands evacuated following Indonesia volcano eruption
MAUMERE, Indonesia, Jan 2, 2024 (AFP) – More than 2,000 residents have been evacuated to temporary shelters amid heightened volcanic activities in a volcano in eastern Indonesia, a local official said Tuesday. Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki in East Nusa Tenggara province has erupted several times in recent weeks, including an eruption on Monday that spewed volcanic ash 1.5 kilometres (4,800 feet) above its peak, according to the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG). The […]
High-impact ‘drop bombs’ retaking the sky from Myanmar junta
NAMHSAN, Myanmar, Dec 30, 2023 (AFP) – A squad of Myanmar pro-democracy fighters works quickly to ready drones for an attack on a nearby military base, the latest target in a wave of aerial assaults that has helped turn the war against the junta. The team stood back as one contraption named “Bomber VIII” carrying a new six-kilogram explosive soared over a line of trees. “The military position is four kilometres away from us,” said […]
China tensions rising, US revives WWII-era Pacific airfield
WASHINGTON, Dec 30, 2023 (AFP) – In the middle of the Pacific ocean, an abandoned US airfield once key to dropping the nuclear bomb on Japan — and nearly lost to history amid encroaching forest — is being revived. But as the Americans hack away at the jungle overgrowth at Tinian island airfield and other old, World War II-era bases across the region, it won’t be with Japan on their mind. Rather, it’s Beijing’s growing […]
China asks citizens to leave Myanmar border district, citing security
YANGON, Myanmar, Dec 28, 2023 (AFP) – China’s embassy in Myanmar on Thursday asked its citizens to leave a northern district along the countries’ shared border, citing heightened security risks as ethnic minority armed groups battle the junta. Fighting has raged across Myanmar’s northern Shan state since October, when the so-called “Three Brotherhood Alliance” of ethnic minority groups launched an offensive against the military. The alliance has seized several towns and border hubs vital for […]
Living in extraordinary times! ASEAN in Focus – December 27, 2023
Living in extraordinary times! ASEAN in Focus – December 26, 2023
Indonesia nickel plant explosion death toll rises to 18
JAKARTA, Dec 26, 2023 (AFP) – The death toll after an explosion at a Chinese-funded nickel-processing plant in eastern Indonesia over the weekend has risen to 18 with dozens still being treated in hospital, a police official said Tuesday. The island of Sulawesi is a hub for the mineral-rich country’s production of nickel, a base metal used for electric vehicle batteries and stainless steel, and Beijing’s growing investment has stoked unrest over working conditions at […]
Thai progressives confident in royal insult policy case
BANGKOK, Dec 25, 2023 (AFP) – Thailand’s progressive Move Forward Party, which won this year’s election but was shut out of government, said Monday it was confident about a court case probing campaign pledges to reform royal insult laws. MFP won most seats in the May poll, but then-leader Pita Limjaroenrat was blocked from becoming prime minister by conservative forces in the upper house of parliament. The party’s vow to reform Thailand’s tough lese-majeste laws […]
Tens of thousands affected as floods hit Thai south
BANGKOK, Dec 25, 2023 (AFP) – Floods caused by intense rainfall have affected tens of thousands of people in Thailand’s deep south, officials said Monday, with some roads and railway lines forced to close. At least a dozen schools in the provinces of Yala and Narathiwat have been forced to close, while footage from the region showed homes and shops inundated with murky brown waters and residents taking refuge on upper floors. The heavy rains […]
13 killed, 46 injured in Indonesia blast
JAKARTA, Dec 24, 2023 (AFP) – At least 13 people were killed and 46 injured in eastern Indonesia on Sunday in an explosion at a Chinese-funded nickel-processing plant, the owner of the industrial park that hosts the facility said. The island of Sulawesi is a hub for the mineral-rich country’s production of nickel, a base metal used for electric vehicle batteries and stainless steel, and Beijing’s growing investment has stoked unrest over working conditions at […]
UN urges rescue of 185 Rohingya adrift in Indian Ocean
GENEVA, Dec 23, 2023 (AFP) – The United Nations called Saturday for the urgent rescue of 185 people, mainly women and children, on a distressed boat last heard to be near the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Indian Ocean. Around 70 of those onboard are children and 88 are women, the UNHCR refugee agency said in a statement. “At least a dozen are feared to be in critical condition with one individual reported to […]
