Showing 1 - 10 of 20
Hope for the marginalised in India
Asia focus, Nareerat Wiriyapong, Published on 25/07/2022
» While the final no-confidence debate targeting Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and his crew was under way at home last week, my focus was on India's presidential election. The result was widely welcomed as veteran tribal politician Draupadi Murmu made history.
Don't isolate Myanmar
Asia focus, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 01/03/2021
» Directly or indirectly, the military has always called the shots in Myanmar. And now that it has removed the decade-old façade of gradual democratisation by detaining civilian leaders and seizing power, Western calls to punish the country with sanctions and international isolation are growing louder. Heeding them would be a mistake.
Dark cloud over Myanmar
Asia focus, Nareerat Wiriyapong, Published on 08/02/2021
» My first feeling after waking up last Monday and hearing about the military takeover in Myanmar is hard to explain, but it was certainly disappointing to see such a setback for Thailand's next-door neighbour.
'Love jihad' law threatens women's freedoms in India
Asia focus, Roli Srivastava, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Published on 01/02/2021
» MUMBAI: When Mehak's parents found out she was having a relationship with a Muslim man, they locked her in her bedroom, seized her phone and bank cards and installed security cameras at their home in northern India.
New challenges for Asean
Asia focus, Nareerat Wiriyapong, Published on 01/06/2020
» This year marks the midpoint of the 10-year journey toward the realisation of the Asean Community Vision 2025. The journey began with the formal establishment of the Asean Economic Community (AEC) in 2015, and envisions deeper regional integration in terms of political and security dimensions over the next five years.
The trade cure for the global economy
Asia focus, Victor K Fung, Published on 25/05/2020
» The Covid-19 pandemic has sent the world into perilous, uncharted territory from which no country will emerge unscathed. All economies, rich and poor, are falling into recession and can limit the fallout only by working together.
Shot in the foot
Asia focus, Narendra Kaushik, Published on 06/01/2020
» A new citizenship law that the Indian government pushed through the two houses of Parliament early last month continues to cause more trouble than its proponents could ever have imagined.
Asia's century, China's year
Asia focus, Asia Focus team, Published on 30/12/2019
» Way back when 1999 was winding down, pundits were telling us that the Asian Century was about to dawn. That prediction has not yet been fully realised, but few would disagree that 2019 belonged to China. Over the past 12 months, the top headlines have been about the bruising trade war with America, defiant protests in Hong Kong against Beijing's tightening grip, and the rise of a surveillance state that is herding hundreds of thousands into "re-education" camps on its western fringes. Below, the Asia Focus team looks back on a busy and sometimes troubling 2019.
Plans take shape for Hindu mega-temple in Ayodhya
Asia focus, Narendra Kaushik, Published on 23/12/2019
» Emboldened by a Supreme Court decision that came down on the side of Hindus, the Indian government is pressing ahead with plans for a major temple complex and tourist attraction at a long-disputed site in Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh state.
RCEP causing rifts in India
Asia focus, Narendra Kaushik, Published on 28/10/2019
» As talks for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) enter their final stages, opposition to the 16-country Asian trade pact is growing among the Hindu nationalist groups that the government counts on for support.