World News
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Sponsored Do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?
Thailand’s healthcare system is well-regarded across Southeast Asia, with options ranging from public hospitals to world-class private facilities. But when it comes to foreign residents or tourists, healthcare access isn’t as straightforward. So, do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?...
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Hanoi to ease Covid restrictions this week
Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, is going to ease Covid restrictions currently in place as new cases decrease and most of the adult population is at least partially vaccinated, says the government of Vietnam. The restrictions will ease this week and the majority of construction projects will be able to start up again by Wednesday. More restrictions will be cut…
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Opinion: Culinary ignorance can breed racism
One would think that a man who has two Pulitzer Prizes under his belt would be judicious enough to do some research before writing an opinion piece in The Washington Post. But not only did Weingarten have the audacity to club anchovies and blue cheese together as foods that didn’t suit his palate, he decided to club all “Indian food”…
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Manny Pacquiao to run for president of the Philippines
Manny Pacquiao, the Philippine boxer and politician, has announced that he will run for president in next year’s election. He has been nominated as a presidential candidate by a faction of the ruling party, PDP-Laban. The 42 year old boxer currently serves as a senator in the Philippine parliament. The incumbent, Rodrigo Duterte is prevented from running for another term…
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‘Hotel Rwanda’ hero awaits verdict on terrorism charges
The verdict on Paul Rusesabagina, a long-time critic of Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame, is scheduled for Monday, September 20. His trial attracted international attention due to his role in rescuing hundreds of people during the 1994 Rwandan genocide against the Tutsis. President Kagame, in early September, defended the trial of Rusesabagina saying the 67-year-old former hotelier was in court not…
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Belarus men holed up in Swedish embassy one year on
“If we had known it would take this long, we would have considered a different option, though you don’t know if that would have been an improvement,” says Vladislav Kusnetshik. For the past year, he and his father Vitalij have been hiding out in Sweden’s Minsk embassy to avoid persecution by Belarus authorities. The two men arrived at the embassy…
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Uncertainty still shrouds Haiti presidential killing
On July 7, 2021, Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry received a nighttime call from a secret service agent with the country’s interior ministry — mere hours before the assassination of President Jovenel Moise. Henry, a politician and trained neurosurgeon, had been appointed to the post by Moise only a few days prior. The details of said phone call are unknown…
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AfricaLink on Air — 17 September 2021
What next for Guinea after ECOWAS leaders imposed sanctions on coup leaders, among them holding elections in six months? +++ Gambia’s President Adama Barrow finally defends his alliance with former dictator Yahya Jammeh ahead of the December elections+++Zambians are divided on the fate of the expensive presidential jet. SOURCE: DW News
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South Korean students embrace ‘niche’ learning alternatives
As a teenager, Young-chae Song studied German at his South Korean high school and had to pass an exam in the language to enter university. During that time, in the early 1980s, most high school students in South Korea would study English, plus another foreign language, typically German, French or Japanese. But today, young Koreans are turning their backs on…
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COVID: How is India tackling a surge in fake test reports?
Indian officials are reporting a surge in the use of fake negative COVID-19 test reports across the country. Last week, police from the eastern state of Odisha busted a racket in which fake PCR test reports were being provided to devotees who wanted to visit the auspicious Jagannath Puri temple. Police arrested 12 people, including the mastermind of the well-organized…
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Greece tightens its border with Turkey amid ‘tough but fair migration policy’
The river Evros forms the land border between Greece and Turkey. The waters of this river and its tributaries have made the Evros region one of the most fertile in Greece. Here, on both sides of one of Europe’s most controversial external borders, rolling green hills lined with small deciduous forests stretch as far as the eye can see. “Refugees…
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African Swine Fever: China’s other pandemic
During a teleconference more than two years ago, Chinese Vice-Premier Hu Chunhua urged health authorities to step up efforts to rein in a growing pandemic despite initial “positive results,” and suggested that “enhancing quarantine and monitoring” measures would help prevent the spread of the virus. Hu’s comments came before the discovery of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Instead, he…
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Osmani: If Kosovo delivers, the European Union should also deliver
In an interview with DW, the president of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, confirms her commitment to EU integration and NATO. She also emphasizes the country’s full support of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers war crimes court. SOURCE: DW News
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Texas lawyer dressed as Halloween’s Michael Myers to spread hurricane cheer
As southeast Asia was recently battered by a super typhoon and a massive tropical storm, this story may serve as a reminder of exactly what not to do in order to weather a storm. A lawyer in Galveston, Texas thought he’d bring some cheer to the doom and gloom of Hurricane Nicholas barreling down on the coastal town by dressing…
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Lebanon: Influencers join together to fight hate speech
Lebanon has no shortage of thorny issues sparking controversies that are often carried out on social media. The country has a tech-savvy population: Internet penetration is close to 80% — which translates to 5.3 million people — 4.37 million of whom are active on social media, according to datareportal.com. Seeing as the small country has a population of just 6.8…
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Foreign Minister Don to US for meetings with UN, ASEAN, more
An anonymous source has reported that Thailand’s Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai will be in the United States next week for several high profile meetings. The trip will see Minister Don attending the United Nations General Assembly as well as meetings in Washington DC and New York related to ASEAN matters. Numerous bilateral meetings with US counterparts and Thailand’s friends are…
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Afghanistan: Pakistan braces for more ‘Islamization’ after Taliban victory
The Taliban’s capture of Kabul in 1996 gave impetus to Islamist militant groups across the world, but the country that was most affected by the rise of fundamentalism in Afghanistan was its neighbor, Pakistan. Not only did the victory of the “students” (the Taliban in Arabic) embolden extremist and militant groups in Pakistan, some people in the South Asian country…
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Ghana’s children scavenging on rubbish dumps
These children are eking out a living picking through rubbish. They are scavenging for plastic and metal. From tin containers to iron bars and zinc. Children are at the frontlines of the scrap business. Plastic is harder to sell than the scrap metal. They sell it to the dealers who roam the streets. Dealers melt down the tin and aluminum.…
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Why COVID cases are rising again in some Indian states
After India’s deadly second wave in April and May, cases declined all over the country, even as restrictions eased. The past couple of months have seen a spike again in the western state of Maharashtra and the southern state of Kerala. Maharashtra on Wednesday reported 3,783 new coronavirus cases and 56 fatalities, taking the infection tally to 65,07,930 and the…
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ICC opens investigation into Philippines President Duterte
Draconian laws in the Philippines’s war on drugs may be catching up with President Rodrigo Duterte as the International Criminal Court just approved a formal investigation into possible crimes against humanity under his regime. The ICC reviewed materials and announced the decision to pursue Duterte yesterday. Judges have approved the request by prosecutors to look into possible crimes against humanity…
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American general defends “clandestine” phone calls with China
The American General, Mark Milley is defending himself following a revelation in a book that he had “secret” calls with China during concerns about former President Donald Trump. The calls date back to last October and January and were meant to reassure the Chinese military, says Mark. Former President Trump says the claims were made up and Republicans have demanded…
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Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani: Principled, yet willing to take risks
Vjosa Osmani was born on May 17, 1982, in Mitrovica to Kosovo Albanian parents. At the time, the town on the Ibar was still part of Yugoslavia, as was the whole of Kosovo. Even before the breakup of the multiethnic state in 1991, Serbian nationalists led by Slobodan Milosevic had succeeded in subjecting Kosovo’s Albanian majority population to an oppressive…
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Will Russia swallow up Belarus?
Some events are long in the making. Back in 1999, the leaders of Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on creating a “union state.” For the past three years, Moscow has been pushing Belarus to move toward greater integration on the basis of that treaty. The leader of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, made repeated trips to visit Russian President Vladimir Putin,…
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Bali eyes wealthy tourists, while considering a ban on backpackers
Travellers visiting Bali on a budget may have to haul their backpacks elsewhere if one Indonesian government official gets his way. Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, who serves as the country’s Maritime and Investment Coordinator Minister, has put forward a controversial proposal to ban backpackers from Bali once the hugely popular tourist island re-opens. His comments are captured in a Bali Sun…
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Afghan journalists ‘have to get out of the country’
It was an almost clandestine press conference that the organization Reporters Without Borders (ROG) held this Wednesday at its headquarters in Berlin. Only 20 journalists were allowed in, and unlike the normal routine since the coronavirus pandemic began, there was no live video transmission on the internet. The reason: In the room, there were journalists from Afghanistan who fear for…
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Tanzania: Unlocking Lake Tanganyika’s economy
The women fishers of Kigoma want to increase their income. Annually, fishers catch more than 53,000 tons of fish from Lake Tanganyika. The volume could be higher if proper equipment were available. Fish spoil due to lack of proper storage. Fishers need basic items and guidelines for the business. Hundreds work in seafood processing that lacks refrigerators, processing facilities, and…
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Rwanda: The mysterious deaths of political opponents
The death of former Rwandan lieutenant Revocant Karemangingo, a critic of President Paul Kagame, is the latest addition to a list DW has compiled of Rwandan opposition voices that have died under suspicious circumstances. The regime of President Kagame, who has effectively ruled Rwanda since 1994, is accused of suppressing dissenting views. International rights groups claim opposition politicians, journalists, and…
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What does the end of the Merkel era mean for Southeast Asia?
Germany’s federal elections this month are unlikely to dominate the headlines in Southeast Asia. But experts agree that the outcome of the ballot will be important for the region nevertheless. The elections mark the end of Merkel’s 16 years as chancellor. Pundits think there is also a chance that the new government will be formed without Merkel’s once-dominant alliance of…
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German Africa Prize 2021 goes to Ethiopian rights activist
Daniel Bekele, currently Chief Commissioner of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC), will receive the German Africa Award for his fight for democracy and human rights. The prize is the highest award of its kind in Germany. It honors outstanding personalities from the African continent who are committed to peace, reconciliation, and social progress. “I am delighted that the independent…
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Romania: The new mayor looking to clean up local politics
It’s a sunny Monday morning and the mayor, Zoltan Soos, is in a good mood as he walks into the conference room. A few members of the planning team are already there and the rest arrive in dribs and drabs until all 15 are present. The key officials from the municipal administration greet each other warmly. No one is subservient,…
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Nearly 40 border officials quarantined for testing after 9 migrant workers they arrested test positive for Covid
Nearly 40 officials in Songkhla, a southern Thai province, are quarantined for testing after 9 out of 14 illegal Burmese migrant workers, whom the officials arrested previously, tested positive for Covid. The migrant workers were arrested by immigration police and administrative officials at a border section near Ban Rai Tok, opposite the Kedah State of Malaysia, on Saturday. The workers…
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