Showing 1 - 8 of 8
Year of Turbulence
Asia focus, Published on 27/12/2021
» Pandemic drags on recovery: In the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, many Asian countries had enviable success, avoiding large-scale outbreaks and mass deaths. But the arrival of the more transmissible Delta variant this year and sluggish vaccine rollouts compounded by low availability sent cases surging. Combined with poor monitoring and easy movement among countries, often unofficially, Southeast Asia became a virus hotspot. The ballooning health crisis collided with churning political discontent in the case of Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia. Economically, the new wave of infections, and attendant restrictions imposed to curb the spread, stalled recoveries. After nearly two years of strict border controls, many countries started to loosen up and live with Covid. But the rise of the Omicron variant now threatens to scuttle those tentative reopening plans and usher in a third year of economic anxiety.
Myanmar moves step closer to new bids on China-backed belt and road project
Published on 09/09/2020
» Myanmar is a step closer to allowing companies to challenge a bid from China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) to build the behemoth New Yangon City project, after hiring German consulting firm Roland Berger to oversee the tendering process.
Forging an ever-deepening bond, 45 years on
Oped, Published on 01/07/2020
» On July 1, 1975, Premier Zhou Enlai and Prime Minister Kukrit Pramoj signed the Joint Communique on the establishment of diplomatic relations in Beijing, opening a new chapter in China-Thailand relations. Over the past 45 years, the two countries have made remarkable achievements in their respective development paths and bilateral relations have always maintained such sound and stable progress that China-Thailand relations today have become more comprehensive, pragmatic and dynamic.
Don't call AI bigoted
Life, James Hein, Published on 06/11/2019
» Despite what some claim, Artificial Intelligence is not racist. Google built a system to detect hate speech or speech that exhibited questionable content. Following the rules given, it picked out a range of people with what some try to claim was a bias toward black people. Wrong. The AI simply followed the rules and a larger number of black people and some other minorities, as defined in the US, were found to be breaking those rules. It didn't matter to the machines that when one group says it, it isn't defined as hate speech by some; it simply followed the rules. People can ignore or pretend not to see rules, but machines don't work that way. What the exercise actually found was that speech by some groups is ignored while the same thing said by others isn't. As the saying goes, don't ask the question if you're not prepared to hear the answer.
Year of turbulence
Asia focus, Published on 31/12/2018
» Two unpredictable men with weird haircuts and access to nuclear weapons had a friendly chat in Singapore -- and that was just one of the many noteworthy stories of 2018. Elsewhere in Asia, we witnessed some surprising political developments (Malaysia) and not-so-surprising ones (Cambodia), along with what seemed to be a disturbingly high number of natural disasters. Many see the latter as a manifestation of the growing impact of climate change, and it's a debate that is bound to intensify in the year ahead. Below, Asia Focus looks back on the eventful year now ending.
China is blowing an opportunity with Meng's arrest
News, Published on 21/12/2018
» China is blowing the geopolitical opportunity of a lifetime. There has probably never been a better moment to undo America's greatest strategic advantage by dividing the US from its global network of democratic allies, many of which are horrified by President Trump's rhetoric and policies and deeply worried about Washington's staying power. Yet, Beijing is doing its best to remind that democratic world that it has far more to fear from a hegemonic China than from an erratic America.
Tablets still a distant dream
Terry Fredrickson, Published on 01/05/2012
» The new school term is about to start and one thing primary students will not have is their promised tablet computers. The education minister still says they will get them, but, at best, they will be two months late.
One Tablet (From China) Per Child
Jon Fernquest, Published on 30/01/2012
» Chinese IT & mobile powerhouses (ZTE, Huawei, Lenovo) are competing to supply low-priced tablet computers to Thai school children.