Showing 511 - 520 of 524
Creating a healthier future
Asia focus, Tanyatorn Tongwaranan, Published on 04/06/2018
» In response to the rapid expansion of its greying population, Singapore has introduced compulsory healthcare insurance for elderly citizens. CareShield Life, an enhanced version of the existing eldercare programme, will require all Singaporeans aged between 30 and 40 to be enrolled from 2020. Policyholders who become unable to manage basic daily functions will receive S$600 (14,320 baht) a month, increasing over time to keep pace with long-term care costs.
North Korea and the art of the deal
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 29/05/2018
» The summit is on, it's off, it's sort of on again. It's amateur night every night at the White House, and the fate of the US-North Korean summit scheduled for Singapore on 12 June will be decided by the coin Donald Trump flips each day: heads three days in a row means "yes", tails three days in a row and the meeting stays cancelled.
Convenient amnesia
Life, Apipar Norapoompipat, Published on 28/05/2018
» When the government didn't interfere as protesters read poetry in front of the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC) to rally against Premchai Karnasuta's killing of a protected black panther, it was a pleasant surprise. When they didn't obstruct Thai artist Vassan Sittiket's retrospective that included artworks criticising Thai society, things started to look even more hopeful. The BACC, about to celebrate its 10th anniversary, kept pushing the envelope, and the government didn't react like it normally would.
Mahathir must temper market scorn
News, Andy Mukherjee, Published on 18/05/2018
» Mahathir Mohamad blamed everyone except himself and his policies for his country's entanglement in the 1997 Asian crisis. It appears two decades haven't been enough to mellow the Malaysian leader.
Underwhelming taxis
News, Postbag, Published on 05/05/2018
» Re: "B5 minimum taxi fare hike needed, TDRI finds", (BP, May 1). I approve of the TDRI's suggestion for a five-baht rise in the minimum fare and a surcharge for traffic delays, as proposed by the TDRI's Sumet Ongkittikul, who found that taxi drivers earn just about the minimum wage.
'Disrupters' challenge old power grid
News, Wichsinee Wibulpolprasert, Published on 12/04/2018
» Thailand's electricity production has relied heavily on natural gas for the past several decades. In an attempt to increase energy security, the most recent Power Development Plan (2015) proposed a transition away from natural gas and towards a more diversified portfolio of renewable, hydro and coal.
Campaign of terror
News, Postbag, Published on 07/04/2018
» Re: "Walls close in on free press", (Editorial, April 6).
New tax plan is a real handicap
News, Soonruth Bunyamanee, Published on 04/04/2018
» As it is deliberating a land and buildings tax bill, a National Legislative Assembly (NLA) committee is also considering offering golf course operators tax breaks under the proposed law. This move, however, undermines the spirit of the legislation.
Hungary's Orbanomics leaves some of poorest behind
News, Gergely Szakacs, Published on 03/04/2018
» The pre-election fanfare over Hungary's stellar growth and surging wages hardly registers with Laszlo Reisch, an employee in a government works programme who is stuck on the wrong side of a growing social divide.
How Asia can tackle US trade wars
News, Lee Jong-wha, Published on 02/04/2018
» Over the past five decades or so, Asia's economies have relied largely on an export-oriented development model to support rapid economic transformation and growth. But with US President Donald Trump fulfilling his promise to adopt a more protectionist approach to trade -- an effort that could spur retaliatory measures by other countries -- that model is coming under increasing strain.