Showing 1 - 10 of 39
Asean needs a Middle Path
Asia focus, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 17/01/2022
» Despite the economic downturn during the Covid-19 pandemic, China-sponsored infrastructure, trade and cooperation initiatives with Southeast Asian nations have been moving forward consistently -- amplifying the presence of Beijing in one of the world's fastest growing regions.
Sharing the Mekong
Asia focus, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 29/03/2021
» "The Mekong River is the source of prosperity," an old saying goes, and it was once true for Pongsak Saitongmart. The 69-year-old former fisherman and his family of five largely depended on income from fishing and a vegetable farm fed by water from the Mekong.
The unseen human cost of cheap power
Oped, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 29/07/2020
» On July 23, 2018, the villagers of Attapeu, a sleepy town in southern Laos, suffered their worst nightmare when the Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy hydropower dam suddenly burst, unleashing massive torrents of water that swallowed local villages, killing 71. More than 7,000 were made homeless.
Keep missing activists in public memory
News, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 15/06/2020
» Nearly two weeks into what is believed to be the forced disappearance of self-exiled activist Wanchalearm Satsaksit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the investigation into the case seems to be going nowhere.
Lust for power drying up local communities
News, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 22/07/2019
» Some fishermen in Loei province once told me that Buddhist Lent Day was a mark for the rainy season and the time to enjoy high water on the Mekong River. But last week gave a starkly different picture. Water levels on the river were at their lowest in 57 years.
Region's businesses lag on rights issues
News, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 24/06/2019
» Even though economic development was one the key agenda items at the 34th Asean Summit held in Bangkok last week, human rights protection in the context of business operations seemed to not get sufficient attention from Asean leaders.
Reckless development sows seeds of disaster
News, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 09/08/2018
» As monsoon rains have struck the Mekong region recently, some countries have been hit hard by flooding. These disasters reflect the fact that the region's development projects have not fully recognised climate change impacts and so lack plans to deal with them.
Strong cities needed
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 15/07/2018
» Bangkok has attracted millions of migrants seeking economic opportunity. They will be forced to handle the impacts of climate change in coming decades.
Migrants face changing climate
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 01/07/2018
» The arrival of May once reminded Lin Na that the first rain of the year was on its way. The ground in her small village of Prey Veng province in southern Cambodia would start to soften, dampened by rainfall. This time each year, she would help her family cultivate a two-hectare rice field, the main source of food and income for them throughout the year.
Vietnam locals reap little from tourist boom
News, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 28/06/2018
» Scenes of visitors crowding around a dozen local fishermen on a beach to watch them pull their fishing nets out of the water may sound strange but it has become a daily ritual in the tourist-magnet city of Danang, Vietnam, as I found out during a recent trip there.