Southeast Asia
Malaysia’s minimum wage to go up to 1,700 ringgit from Feb 1
The Malaysian government has agreed to increase the minimum wage rate from RM1,500 currently to RM1,700, with effect from February 1, 2025, said Anwar Ibrahim
Gunmen kill 7 in southwest Pakistan
Gunmen killed seven workers in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan late on Saturday, police said.
Vietnam jails journalist for seven years on 'propaganda' charge
A Vietnam court Tuesday sentenced a journalist who wrote about issues including corruption, land rights and the environment to seven years in jail, his sister said, the latest government critic to be put behind bars.
Malaysia charges ex-PM Muhyiddin with sedition over alleged remarks on royalty, lawyer says
Malaysia has charged opposition leader and former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin with sedition for allegedly insulting the country's former king, his lawyer said on Tuesday
PRESIDENTIAL POLLS / Lanka’s Rajapaksa scion enters race
Sri Lanka’s ruling party nominated a scion of the controversial Rajapaksa family yesterday to challenge the incumbent president in next month’s polls, the first since the country’s unprecedented economic meltdown.
Oli takes oath as Nepal’s fifth PM in five years
Veteran communist politician K P Sharma Oli was sworn in as Nepal’s prime minister yesterday, the fifth in five years, hoping to ensure political stability in the impoverished Himalayan nation that badly needs to woo investors and create jobs.
KP Sharma Oli Nepal’s new PM
Nepal’s president appointed Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli as prime minister for a fourth time yesterday, after his communist party forged a coalition government with the centre-left Nepali Congress.
Eleven dead in Vietnam after landslide buries van
A landslide triggered by heavy rains buried and killed at least 11 people who were travelling in a van in northern Vietnam, the country's disaster management authority said on Saturday
South Korea, Japan birth rates fall to all-time low
South Korea’s birth rate fell to a record low last year, the government said yesterday, despite having poured billions of dollars into efforts to encourage women to have more children and maintain population stability.
Pakistan indicts jailed Imran Khan, wife
A Pakistani court indicted jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his third wife Bushra Bibi yesterday on charges that they allegedly received land as a bribe by misusing his office during his premiership, his party said.
Isolate junta in Myanmar, protect its people: UN rapporteur
Myanmar's military junta is becoming an even greater threat to civilians, even as it shows further signs of weakness and desperation through the imposition of mandatory military service, warned a UN expert
2 killed in crush as hundreds queue for passports in Myanmar
Two people were killed in a crush outside a passport office in Myanmar on Monday, a rescue worker said, as thousands rush to leave the country to escape a junta military service law
Maldives deports 43 Indians for illegal businesses
Maldives has deported 43 Indians who were allegedly found to have committed crimes, Male-based news outlet Adhadhu reported on Tuesday.
New coalition echoes same old problems
Pakistan’s newly declared coalition government echoes the 2022 alliance that ousted Imran Khan, analysts say, demonstrating the military’s enduring influence, but also Khan’s unspent opposition power.
Sri Lanka polls to be held in 2025
Sri Lanka’s general election will be held in 2025 and financial provisions for the polls will be provided in next year’s budget, a statement from President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s office said yesterday.
Pakistan polls disappoint, add to instability
Pakistan’s election has been remarkable in producing a result disappointing to most of its foreign partners and rivals, with little reason for optimism about government that will eventually emerge from it, foreign policy analysts said.
How will Pakistan form its next govt?
Pakistan’s elections last week returned a hung parliament, with no party getting enough seats in the National Assembly to form a government by itself.
Taiwan detects more Chinese balloons
Taiwan’s defence ministry said yesterday it had detected eight Chinese balloons crossing the Taiwan Strait in the previous 24 hours, of which five flew across Taiwan, the second day in a row is has reported a large number of balloons.