People and government
Traffic Law enforcement to step up
The Cambodian government has announced several amendments to the troubled Traffic Law which, according to National Police spokesman Kirt Chantharith, will be fully enforced starting 15 March. Keep reading ...
Ho Chi Minh City toughens penalties for street food safety violations
The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health instructed relevant agencies to severely penalise small food stores and vendors on streets who continue to flout safety and hygiene regulations. Speaking at a workshop on this issue in Ho Chi Minh City on 13 January, its deputy ...
Court of Justice says cyber attacks will not change verdict
The Court of Justice (CoJ) has insisted that the cyber attacks taking Thai court websites offline on 13 January would not force the court to change the guilty verdict in the Koh Tao murders case. The attackers also got away with cyber-theft of extensive legal records, including ...
Rakhine villagers flee Tatmadaw attacks
Rakhine residents in two northern townships say they are living in fear and do not dare go out after dark after government troops forced locals to work as porters during ongoing operations against Arakan Army militants. Relief workers say more than 300 civilians, mostly Rakhine Buddhists, ...
Tea brews female empowerment in Lai Chau
Lo Thi Thom is happily looking forward to moving with her family into their new spacious house before the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday. She is a 30-year old Thai woman from Kun Ha Commune in Tam Duong District. Her new two-storey house, which is near ...
Lack of ethnic party MPs ‘serious weakness’ in parliament
During the 8 November election, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) won by a landslide, crushing the army-linked Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) and surprising many by also winning big in ethnic minority-dominated areas where ethnic political parties had expected ...
Japan provides grant for bridge reconstruction
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has provided a grant of over 4.6 billion kip (70 million Japanese yen) for the detailed design component of the reconstruction of two bridges on National Road No. 9. The project will be carried out under a cooperation agreement between JICA ...
Trash pact in crosshairs
City Hall has warned Phnom Penh’s sole waste management firm that it has just one more opportunity to lift its game before its oft-criticised contract comes under threat. Following a meeting on 12 January between Cintri and local authorities to review the firm’s performance, Ieng Aunny, deputy ...
Labour agencies mull boycott of Malaysia
A tenfold increase in visa fees has prompted employment agencies to consider boycotting Malaysia, long a favoured destination of Myanmar migrant workers. The threat, which could be backed up by demonstrations, followed an announcement by the Malaysian embassy to raise visa application costs from US$6 ...
Conflicting calls mark peace conference
Key ethnic armed groups are boycotting the talks and more than 100 civil society organisations called for their postponement, but nonetheless President U Thein Sein’s government on 12 January launched the first round of a political dialogue aimed at bringing a permanent end to over six ...
