People and government
Thai junta picks panel to write constitution after draft rejected
Thailand’s military government, which took power in May last year, appointed a committee to draft the country’s 20th constitution on 5 October after a previous draft was rejected, delaying promised elections until at least 2017. The junta-appointed legislature dismissed the military-backed constitution last month after it was ...
Vietnamese teens busted in Cambodia with endangered animals
Two Vietnamese teenagers were arrested in Kandal province on 2 October after being found illegally transporting 44 endangered tortoises, which they reportedly intended to smuggle into Vietnam for sale. Keep reading ...
Cables detail China-Vietnam strains in ’75 Cambodia
The seeds of China and Vietnam’s bloody rivalry for influence in Cambodia were already apparent to foreign observers in the weeks and months after the April 1975 fall of Phnom Penh, Australian diplomatic cables given last month to the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) show. Born ...
CNRP promises not to remove civil servants if victorious
Opposition leader Sam Rainsy promised supporters in Kampong Cham province on 3 October that if his party comes to power, civil servants and soldiers can be certain that they will keep their jobs, and will be given raises. Speaking to hundreds of supporters in Srei Santhor district, ...
Vietnam's forest protection law falls short
Vietnam’s Law on Forest Protection and Development has become backwards and exposed numerous disadvantages, after more than 10 years of implementation, a senior official from the Vietnam Forestry Administration (VNFOREST) has said. Deputy director of the VNFOREST, Nguyen Ba Ngai, made his comment at a workshop ...
ASEAN, Japan to fight cybercrime, terrorism
Southeast Asian ministers in charge of security held talks with their Japanese counterpart on 1 October in a bid to enhance cooperation in tackling terrorism and cybercrime. Eriko Yamatani, a cabinet minister and also the chairperson of the National Public Safety Commission, led a delegation for the ...
Myanmar youth leaders gather at the Social Good Summit
When 40 Myanmar youth leaders gathered at the Social Good Summit on September 26, it was clear there was one topic on their minds. The main focus of the Yangon summit, organised by the Union Nations Development Programme in partnership with the UN Volunteers and UN ...
Guardians of ‘race and religion’ target NLD
Nationalist monks are stepping up their political activities as Myanmar’s election approaches, with the opposition National League for Democracy feeling the heat as the main target of Ma Ba Tha’s growing reach. The constitution bars monks from voting or forming political parties, but Ma Ba Tha, ...
US report lauds Thai efforts to combat child labour
The US Department of Labour has upgraded Thailand to the “significant advancement” category for child labour after efforts in recent years have made progress in thwarting the harmful practice. The department on 30 September released a report entitled Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour 2014, which ...
Dengue patients overwhelm hospital for tropical diseases
The National Hospital for Tropical Diseases is struggling to cope with a flood of dengue fever patients who insist on getting treated there, instead of local hospitals and clinics. Dr Nguyen Trung Cap, head of the Ha Noi-based hospital’s emergency department, said since the monsoon began ...
