Showing 1 - 10 of 77
Thaksin chapter closes, another opens
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 19/09/2025
» In yet another dramatic twist in Thai politics, erstwhile anti-establishment political juggernaut and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra accepted a one-year jail sentence and began serving his time behind bars on Sept 9. After his return from a 15-year self-imposed exile in August 2023 and a concomitant royal pardon that reduced his eight-year imprisonment on corruption convictions to just one year, Thaksin cited his gravely ill health and spent the time comfortably at the Police General Hospital before being released on parole. The Supreme Court's ruling that his get-out-of-jail health card was invalid means Thaksin's renewed imprisonment and its aftermath are likely to reshape and realign Thailand's political landscape ahead of the next election, due by mid-2027.
Forgetting what democracy is for and all about
Oped, Antara Haldar, Published on 10/07/2025
» On June 2, I got a sense of history coming full circle in the Polish town of Sopot, on the Baltic Sea just a few kilometres from the Gdańsk Shipyard. Sharing a stage at the Plenary Session of the European Financial Congress with Lech Wałęsa, the legendary trade unionist who led the 1980 Solidarity strike at the Lenin Shipyard and later became Poland's first post-communist president, I felt I was witnessing the end of an era.
When films speak louder than missiles
Oped, Kong Rithdee, Published on 26/06/2025
» Jafar Panahi tells it as he sees it: "An attack on my homeland, Iran, is in no way acceptable," the Iranian filmmaker wrote on Instagram last week. "Israel has violated Iran and should be tried in an international trial as a war aggressor."
Censure theatrics
Oped, Postbag, Published on 29/03/2025
» Re: "Political experts split on censure outcome", (BP, March 26).
Foreign policy needs to be democratic
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 11/10/2024
» To the extent that foreign policy starts at home, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra's latest diplomatic forays should be supported because Thailand has become a regional laggard with its international standing at an all-time low. Elected civilian leaders by the people, as opposed to unelected appointees from military-conservative elites, are the way ahead to regain Thailand's international profile and forward movements. Ms Paetongtarn is evidently not the first-best elected outcome, but she is all Thailand has to work with for now.
Rohingya crisis merits reconciliation
Oped, Alan Clements, Published on 28/09/2024
» As Bangladesh's interim chief adviser, Nobel Peace Laureate Muhammad Yunus has captured global attention with his impassioned call for the urgent repatriation of over 1.2 million Rohingya refugees. The scale of this humanitarian tragedy -- displacement on a near-unimaginable level -- is undeniable. Bangladesh's commitment to maintaining peace and stability within the camps is commendable. But in the rush to repatriate, we must not lose sight of the harsh realities on the ground in Myanmar's Rakhine State, where violence and devastation continue to unfold.
2011 all over again?
Oped, Postbag, Published on 31/08/2024
» Re: "Chao Phraya River basin raises flood risk", (BP, Aug 26).
Dhaka's role in Myanmar's crisis
Oped, Alan Clements, Published on 23/08/2024
» As Bangladesh ushers in a new era of leadership under Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, the world watches with hope and anticipation. His leadership, emerging from a period of student-led protests and political upheaval, symbolises a triumph of democracy and justice in a region long plagued by strife. But as Bangladesh looks inward to heal and rebuild, there is an urgent call for its new leadership to turn its gaze toward a neighbour in dire need -- Myanmar.
The deepening political turmoil in South Asia
Oped, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 15/08/2024
» Violent student-led, Islamist-backed protests in Bangladesh have toppled Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government, and mob attacks targeting those viewed as supporters of her secular Awami League party -- in particular, the country's dwindling Hindu minority -- are proliferating. At a time when neighbouring Myanmar is engulfed in violence and the Pakistan-Afghanistan belt remains fertile ground for cross-border terrorism, political upheaval in Bangladesh, two years after the overthrow of Sri Lanka's government, is the last thing India, the regional power, needs.
Double standards
Oped, Postbag, Published on 03/08/2024
» Re: "Srettha defends integrity in court", (BP, July 31).