Environment and land
Vietnamese arrested in Mondolkiri smuggling timber
Two Vietnamese nationals were arrested in Cambodia’s Mondolkiri province as they attempted to cross the border back into Vietnam on 8 October in a tour bus loaded with high-grade timber, authorities said 11 October. Keep reading ...
Laos SEZs prove to be major job generators
Sixty-five companies from Laos and foreign countries including Thailand at the Savan-Seno Special Economic Zone have created over 4,500 jobs for local people. According to Thongsay Sayavongkhamdy, a senior official from the Savannakhet provincial authority, from now until 2020, both local and overseas companies are expected to ...
Two Vietnamese vessels seized by Thailand
Two Vietnamese fishing vessels, equipped with destructive fishing gear, were seized and 11 crewmen arrested for illegally fishing in Thai waters off Narathiwat on 10 October. Keep reading ...
Laos faces the unknown as elephants walk from logging into tourism
Walk down any street in Luang Prabang, Laos, and you will be presented with any number of opportunities to interact with elephants. Some are more ethical than others. Indeed, at the Elephant Village, 15 kilometres outside town, the motto is: “Saving elephants is our mission.” Keep reading ...
Thai Government offers to help Jakarta fight haze hazard
The government is ready to help Indonesia tackle the haze pollution problem which has spread over large parts of the region after its envoy admitted the country’s efforts are not enough to stop the fires, Foreign Ministry deputy permanent secretary Vitavas Srivihok said. Keep reading ...
Xayaboury dam 50% completed
After beginning in 2012, the construction of the US$3.5 billion Xayaboury dam is now about 50 per cent complete, according to a report by Vientiane Times. When it becomes operational in 2019, about 95 percent of the 1,285-megawatt electricity produced will be sold to Thailand. The dam, ...
Dam threat to Mekong River’s last few dolphins
The fate of the last surviving Irrawaddy river dolphins on the Laos-Cambodian border hangs in the balance after a Laos government official was reported as saying this week that construction of the dam would begin by the end of the year.Keep reading ...
Jailed Myanmar fishermen arrive home from India
More than 120 Myanmar fishermen arrested by the Indian navy for illegally plying India’s waters were returned to Myanmar last week, a government official said. U Aung Kyaw, deputy director of the Department of Relief and Resettlement, said on 10 July that the return of the ...
