This Week in Asia

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A food stall in Tanjung Uma next to a trash-strewn waterway. Photo: Ken Kwek

Health & Environment

Toxic tides: life in Indonesia’s most polluted village

Once a pristine fishing hamlet, Tanjung Uma is now drowning in garbage and disease as it bears the brunt of unchecked waste and environmental collapse.

South Asia after USAID: can India rise to the challenge?

‘Wilful pollution’: China’s space debris puts Philippines on edge

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Politics

Duterte’s ‘kill senators’ quip ignites controversy in Philippine midterms

Former president Rodrigo Duterte jokes that the candidates backed by him can win the May elections by way of “a bomb” aimed at their rivals.

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Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte delivers a message during the proclamation rally for his political party PDP-Laban’s senatorial candidates ahead of the midterm elections in Metro Manila, Philippines on February 13, 2025. Photo: Reuters
Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte delivers a message during the proclamation rally for his political party PDP-Laban’s senatorial candidates ahead of the midterm elections in Metro Manila, Philippines on February 13, 2025. Photo: Reuters

Politics

Japan’s 2035 tipping point looms as cities set to shrink amid population ageing

Japan faces urban population decline by 2035, with ageing societies challenging city sustainability and prompting calls for immigration reform.

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Lifestyle & Culture

‘Boy sober’ and loving it: why Asia’s young women are swiping left on romance

More young women are opting out of traditional dating and marriage, prioritising career and personal freedom over societal expectations.

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Politics

No more a ‘fixed-deposit account’: do Singapore’s GRCs need a rethink?

Large multi-seat constituencies like Sengkang have become a high-stakes gamble for the ruling PAP, analysts say.

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Workers’ Party MPs Louis Chua, He Ting Ru and Jamus Lim pictured on a Lunar New Year banner in Sengkang, Singapore. Photo: Jean Iau
Workers’ Party MPs Louis Chua, He Ting Ru and Jamus Lim pictured on a Lunar New Year banner in Sengkang, Singapore. Photo: Jean Iau

Politics

Japan’s embassy in Hungary slammed for not protecting murdered Japanese woman

The case of the woman who was allegedly murdered by her Irish husband in Budapest has sparked outrage in Japan over how it was managed.

Politics

Kim Jong-un sister’s marriage, children unveiled by former North Korean diplomat

A former North Korean diplomat revealed details about Kim Yo-jong’s marriage and children, shedding light on the secretive life of the powerful sister of Kim Jong-un.

Politics

Trump’s tough talk with Modi on tariffs signals India is not off the hook

During the two leaders’ meeting in Washington, Narendra Modi calls for a rise in trade between India and the US to US$500 billion by 2030.

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US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a press conference in the White House on Thursday. Photo: dpa

Economics

Young Indonesians yearn to ‘run away’ overseas for work as frustration grows

There is rising unhappiness over what these Indonesians see as few job opportunities and inadequate government policies in their country.

A man looks at residential buildings in Jakarta. Photo: AFP
A man looks at residential buildings in Jakarta. Photo: AFP

Politics

‘People can die’: US funding freeze decimates Mekong demining work

Demining advocates argue the US has a moral obligation to solve a problem it helped create.

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Politics

Can Philippines’ Rodrigo Duterte stage Trump-style presidential comeback?

Former House speaker Pantaleon Alvarez says the country’s constitution allows Duterte to run in a presidential election again.

People

Outrage in India as jilted man threatens to set woman on fire after rejection

Incident in Telangana highlights the rising extreme violence against women in the country.

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Doctors at a protest demanding justice following the rape and murder of a healthcare worker in India last year. Photo: Reuters

People

South Korean woman punished for biting off would-be rapist’s tongue gets retrial

Review of 78-year-old Choi Mal-ja’s case more than 60 years ago marks the country’s evolution in women’s rights.

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People attend a rally as part of the #MeToo movement in Seoul in 2018. Photo: Reuters
People attend a rally as part of the #MeToo movement in Seoul in 2018. Photo: Reuters

Politics

Why South China Sea row is an election hot-button issue for Philippines

China issue ‘will play well’ among voters as more candidates adopt maritime row as part of their platforms.

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Politics

‘Pogo personalities’ still linger in Philippines despite ban, critics warn

Despite a ban on Pogos, high-profile figures linked to the industry remain, raising concerns about a growing network of criminal syndicates in the Philippines.

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Health & Environment

Toxic tides: life in Indonesia’s most polluted village

Once a pristine fishing hamlet, Tanjung Uma is now drowning in garbage and disease as it bears the brunt of unchecked waste and environmental collapse.

A food stall in Tanjung Uma next to a trash-strewn waterway. Photo: Ken Kwek
A food stall in Tanjung Uma next to a trash-strewn waterway. Photo: Ken Kwek

Politics

Analysis | ‘Chindia’ returns as India and China prepare for a Trump earthquake

With Donald Trump back in the White House, India and China are forging a quiet detente that could have seismic implications.

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People

In Asia’s forgotten war, reluctant rebels mark 4 years of bloody chaos

For thousands of guerilla fighters, the dream of a free Myanmar still burns bright – even after four years of ruinous civil war.

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Economics

China’s Himalayan mega dam deepens India’s water worries

Just as ties seemed to be on the mend, a US$137 billion hydropower behemoth on the Yarlung Tsangpo River threatens to muddy the waters.

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The Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon in Tibet. Photo: AFP
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LATEST Asia NEWS

Blockchain

Consensus building: crypto conference arrives in Hong Kong amid Web3 changes

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An illustration featuring US President Donald Trump holding bitcoin outside a cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong on December 5. Photo: Reuters

East Asia

South Korean actress Kim Sae-ron found dead at her home in Seoul

Kim Sae-ron at the Mnet Asian Music Awards in Hong Kong in 2017. The South Korean actress was found dead at her home in Seoul on Sunday. Photo: Reuters

South Asia

Sri Lanka’s first elephant orphanage celebrates 50 years

Visitors feed fruits to elephants at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage on Sunday. Photo: AFP

Economics

South Asia after USAID: can India rise to the challenge?

A USAID officer watches as a US military cargo plane taxis to a stop at an airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, in 2015. Photo: AFP

Politics

‘Wilful pollution’: China’s space debris puts Philippines on edge

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A Long March 8A rocket, carrying a group of low-Earth orbit satellites, launches from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province on Tuesday. Photo: CNSPhoto via Reuters
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OPINION
Su Mon Thazin Aung

Asian Angle | Trump’s aid freeze will hit Myanmar hard

Su Mon Thazin Aung
Nuurrianti Jalli

Asian Angle | Why Malaysia’s new social media licences are disconcerting

Nuurrianti Jalli
Biman Mukherji

My Take | India’s Congress needs to change course or face oblivion

Biman Mukherji
Paul Chambers

Asian Angle | Why Trump 2.0 ignoring Thailand would be a mistake

Paul Chambers
Alessandro Arduino

Asian Angle | North Korean soldiers: the future protectors of China’s belt and road?

Alessandro Arduino
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MULTIMEDIA
Video

Japan rushes to stop 82% surge in rice prices

02:28
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Pakistan woman MMA fighter breaks barriers... and arms

01:00
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Deadly blast at department store in Taiwan

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Hundreds rescued from Myanmar scam centres

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MOST POPULAR
1

Kim Jong-un sister’s marriage, children unveiled by former North Korean diplomat

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Miss Pacific Islands hit by fraud row after Samoa beauty queen wins title

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No more a ‘fixed-deposit account’: do Singapore’s GRCs need a rethink?