Asia

by Jasmine LEUNG / Sean GLEESON Hong Kong’s embattled leader warned the United States on Tuesday not to “interfere” with her government’s response to the city’s pro-democracy movement, after fresh protests called on Washington to ramp up pressure on Beijing. Millions of people have demonstrated over the last 14 weeks in the biggest challenge to […]

North Korea on Tuesday fired projectiles toward the sea, South Korea’s military said, hours after Pyongyang said it is willing to hold working-level talks with the United States in late September. Negotiations between Pyongyang and Washington have been gridlocked since a second summit between the North’s leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump […]

Reports say China is in the frontline for investment prospects in Indonesian President Joko (Jokowi) Widodo’s push for the establishment of a new capital city in Kalimantan, Borneo. In early September, the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs, Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, said China was interested in investing in the public transportation sector in the new capital […]

Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong said he was making his way to Germany on Monday after he was released from a brief spell in custody following a mistake in his bail conditions. Wong, 22, was among multiple prominent democracy advocates who were detained late last month in a roundup by police as the semi-autonomous […]

Five state universities are collaborating to develop a national electric car known as Molina in a bid to spearhead a new era in Indonesia. Minister of Research Technology and Higher Education Mohamad Nasir said the University of Indonesia (UI), Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), Gajah Mada University (UGM), Sebelas Maret University (UNS) and the Sepuluh November Technology Institute (ITS) […]

A suicide bomber dressed in a traditional Muslim woman’s gown died after detonating a bomb outside a military camp in the restive southern Philippines, but no other casualties were reported, authorities said. Suicide attacks were once very rare in the Philippines, but since July 2018 there have been four, including the latest explosion on Jolo […]

by Jerome TAYLOR / Yan ZHAO Pro-democracy activists jammed Hong Kong streets in a march to the United States consulate on Sunday in a bid to ramp up international pressure on Beijing, but hardcore protesters later clashed with riot police across the city’s core. Millions have demonstrated over the last 14 weeks in the biggest challenge […]

Muslim rebels in the mainly Catholic Philippines began handing over their guns to independent foreign monitors Saturday, as part of a peace treaty aimed at ending a decades-long separatist insurgency that has left about 150,000 people dead. Just over a thousand guerrillas are turning in 940 weapons in a single day, in a graduated decommissioning […]

The co-writer of the Crazy Rich Asians screenplay, Malaysian writer Adele Lim has quit the planned sequels due to a dispute over disparity in pay. Her representative confirmed her departure from the Warner Bros projects. The representative declined to comment further and Warner Bros did not respond to a request for comment. The movie was […]

Mimi Kung Tse-Yan, a Hong Kong actress has recently split with her husband and is one of the latest celebrities to have ended their relationship. She is splitting up with her husband actor Wei Lin. According to Sin Chew Daily, Kung’s manager said that the couple had been staying apart for some time and was […]

by Poornima WEERASEKARA From penalising irresponsible dog owners to blacklisting dissenters, critics warn China’s social credit system enables authorities to define “desirable and undesirable behaviour” and could allow unprecedented control of citizen’s lives. The fledgling initiative has sparked fears the authoritarian state is tightening its grip on an already heavily monitored public, ensuring that only […]

The relocation of the capital of Indonesia to Borneo Island is a hot topic in the country with many attacking the President and his government for the move. But the latter is also getting support from various groups saying it is perfectly legal to move the capital city, as long as the Parliament in Indonesia […]

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday accused Beijing of using “arbitrary detentions” as a tool in pursuit of political goals — the latest broadside in a diplomatic and trade row with China. Western allies, he said, have expressed concerns about the tactic that observers described as “hostage diplomacy.” Canada’s relations with China soured after […]

South Korean actress Ku Hye Sun shared two photos on Instagram on Sept 3, around 8pm, KST. She added the caption “Become a human” later on and then changed it to, “All I really want is an apology.” The first photo showed two pieces of paper, one titled “Things that Ahn Jae Hyun should be […]

by Jerome TAYLOR / Yan ZHAO Hong Kong’s leader on Thursday urged pro-democracy protesters to end their demonstrations after her surprise decision to bow to one of their key demands was condemned as too little, too late. Carrie Lam, the city’s pro-Beijing chief executive, surprised many on Wednesday when after three months of rallies she […]