People and government

Vietnam’s Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has asked the Commission for Inspection of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Central Committee to closely co-ordinate and regularly share experience in inspections and anti-corruption work. Keep reading ...

Aiming to one day become a major manufacturing base in Cambodia, Sihanoukville faces an uphill battle in attracting workers, provincial officials have said. Yow Khemara, director of the Department of Labour and Vocational Training at Preah Sihanouk province, said Sihanoukville currently lacks about 4,000 workers in ...

Thai authorities destroyed more than 2 tons of seized and smuggled ivory on 26 August, in the latest move by the government to avoid possible economic sanctions over a perceived failure to tackle the illicit trade. Tusks from more than 200 dead African elephants and other ...

The ASEAN regional forum mulls over issuing international driving licenses that will be valid in each of the 10 member countries, an official stated on 26 August. Keep reading ...

Myanmar’s  opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has warned armed ethnic minority groups not to rush into signing a nationwide ceasefire, a top party colleague said 26 August, a position that pits her against President Thein Sein, who has made reaching a deal before November ...

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Dr Phet Phomphiphak has been appointed Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, replacing Mr Vilayvanh Phomkhe, as approved by the government. A ceremony to hand over the position took place at the ministry on 24 August, attended by Deputy Prime Minister ...

A Chinese oil rig at the center of last year’s standoff between China and Vietnam will continue drilling not far from Vietnam’s coast, China’s maritime safety authorities said on 25 August. The deployment of the $1 billion deepwater rig last year about 120 nautical miles off ...

Japan and four Southeast Asian nations along the Mekong River Basin – Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand – have approved a plan to speed up industrial development in the region. Keep reading ...

Investigations into a scheme in Laos in which private companies cashed government bonds issued in promise of payment for work they never performed have revealed the involvement of senior government officials who will never be brought to trial, a state auditor says. The auditing of the ...

Cambodia’s young internet users are thinking twice before discussing politics online, say prominent bloggers, after the third case of government punitive action sparked by Facebook comments within a month. On 22 August, student Kong Raiya, 25, was charged over a Facebook post linked to him for ...