Tag: aseaninfocus
UN probe finds Myanmar army using forced labour
GENEVA, Oct 4, 2023 (AFP) – A United Nations investigation into Myanmar on Wednesday urged the country’s military rulers to end forced labour in the army and to halt all violence against trade unionists. A probe launched by the UN’s labour agency found far-reaching violations of international forced labour and freedom of association conventions in the southeast Asian nation. Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military ousted the democratically-elected civilian leader Aung San Suu […]
Embracing extraordinary times! -ASEAN in Focus – October 4, 2023
Indonesia launches Southeast Asia’s first high-speed rail
JAKARTA, Oct 2, 2023 (AFP) – Indonesia launched Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway on Monday, a delayed, multibillion-dollar project backed by China that President Joko Widodo hailed as “a symbol of our modernisation”. With a top speed of 350 kilometres (220 miles) per hour, the bullet train “Whoosh” can get between the capital Jakarta and Bandung in 45 minutes. The 140 km journey would previously have taken about three hours by train. “The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed […]
UN concerned about arrests of environmental activists in Vietnam
(UN GENEVA, Switzerland) The UN Human Rights Office spokesperson, Jeremy Laurence, has voiced deep concerns regarding the arrest, detention, and sentencing of environmental human rights defenders in Vietnam. Laurence stressed that these concerns encompass both the charges they face and the fairness of their trials. During a recent press briefing, Laurence said, “Yesterday, Hoang Thi Minh Hong became the fifth of six environmental human rights defenders arrested from 2021 to 2023 to be sentenced. She […]
Embracing extraordinary times! – ASEAN in Focus – Full broadcast: September 26, 2023
Chinese tourists get VIP welcome in Thailand as visa-free travel begins
BANGKOK, Sept 25, 2023 (AFP) – Chinese tourists received a personal welcome from the Thai prime minister Monday as they arrived in Bangkok under a new visa-free scheme the government hopes will give the kingdom’s vital tourism sector a boost. Traditional dancers accompanied a smiling PM Srettha Thavisin as he greeted visitors arriving from Shanghai at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport, handing out welcome gifts. “I was shocked by the welcoming ceremony, and I’m very happy. It’s […]
Vietnam executes man despite diplomatic pleas for mercy
HANOI, Sept 23, 2023 (AFP) – Vietnam has executed long-time death row prisoner Le Van Manh, a lawyer confirmed Saturday, despite international pleas to spare his life. In 2005 Manh was charged with robbery, as well as the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl in the northern Thanh Hoa province. The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) said police obtained a confession through torture that was relied upon to convict him. Manh later retracted […]
Jailed Thaksin could be advisor to new Thai govt: deputy PM
BANGKOK, Sept 22, 2023 (AFP) – Thailand’s jailed former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra could act as advisor to the new government, the ruling party said Friday, a move likely to raise hackles among the billionaire’s critics. The 74-year-old, ousted by a military coup in 2006, returned to the kingdom last month and was immediately jailed for historic convictions for graft and abuse of power. New Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, of Thaksin’s Pheu Thai party, […]
Blockbuster movie scares Chinese tourists away from Thailand
BANGKOK, Sept 22, 2023 (AFP) – For millions of Chinese tourists, Thailand used to be a happy land of delicious food. But thanks to social media rumours and a blockbuster movie, the kingdom’s image among many Chinese people is now one of dangerous illegality and seedy scam border compounds — leaving visitor numbers plummeting. Thailand is hugely reliant on tourism, particularly from China. The country welcomed more than 10 million Chinese visitors each year before […]
Embracing extraordinary times! ASEAN in Focus – Sept. 19, 2023
Several ASEAN air force chiefs skip Myanmar meeting
YANGON, Myanmar, Sept 14, 2023 (AFP) – Air force chiefs from several countries around Southeast Asia did not attend a conference in Myanmar this week after the ASEAN regional bloc accused the ruling junta of targeting civilians in its post-coup crackdown. The snub came after the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) accused the junta last week of ignoring a peace plan agreed with the bloc to end violence sparked by the military regime’s coup. […]
