People

A Lion Air passenger jet of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 series at Jakarta Airport. The same type of aircraft belonging to the airline crashed into the Java Sea off Jakarta on October 29, 2018 with 189 people on board. Photo: Kyodo News Stills via Getty Images

‘Probably for the best’: Lion Air crash families welcome Boeing resignations

Victims’ families say few lessons have been learned since the 2018 crash, with Boeing aircraft continuing to suffer serious safety malfunctions.

28 Mar 2024 - 5:53PM
Clive Williams (right) with Sigit Harjojudanto, Suharto’s eldest son, in 1976. Photo: TEMPO/Tuti Kakialatu

Suharto’s Australian mate and a secret emissary: just who was Clive Williams?

Clive Williams’ role as an unofficial cultural broker in Indonesia’s ties with foreign governments has been ‘very much obscured and underrated’ says his biographer

27 Mar 2024 - 12:00PM
The logo of ChatGPT, developed by OpenAI, is seen on a smartphone screen next to a graphic with the letters AI.  Tordecilla created a program built atop OpenAI’s ChatGPT to summarise the audit reports of Philippine government agencies. Photo: AFP

Filipino journalist’s AI tool for in-depth reporting challenges industry fears

Jaemark Tordecilla has created an AI tool to help investigative reporters uncover wrongdoing in Philippine government audit reports, in what could mark a sea change for journalism in the Global South.

25 Mar 2024 - 2:12PM
A delivery worker of Zomato, an Indian food-delivery startup, prepares to pick up an order from a restaurant in Mumbai. Photo: Reuters

Why India food app Zomato’s green-only vegetarian fleet has users seeing red

Online users slam Zomato for being ignorant of divisions over food preferences along caste and religious lines in India.

21 Mar 2024 - 11:34PM
Members of the LGBTQ community carry a giant rainbow flag at a pride march at a sports complex in Marikina City, east of Manila on June 30, 2018. Photo: AFP

Video of Philippine LGBTQ student given forced haircut sparks calls for change

The video shows a transgender student having the haircut in school after she was threatened with a denial of enrolment.

21 Mar 2024 - 6:58PM
A vendor sells vegetables at a night market in Langkawi, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock

In a pickle: worker shortfall could mean Malaysians pay more for vegetables

The country’s farms rely on millions of workers from Bangladesh, Indonesia and Nepal, who return home every year to observe Ramadan with their families.

21 Mar 2024 - 12:00PM
Kobe-based academic Hu Shiyun has been missing for months, his employer said. Photo: Shutterstock

Chinese academic’s disappearance sparks concerns among compatriots in Japan

Hu Shiyun, a professor of Chinese literature and linguistics in Japan, went to China last August on what was meant to be a short trip. He hasn’t been heard from since.

19 Mar 2024 - 7:05PM
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks during a cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Seoul on Tuesday. Photo: Yonhap/via EPA-EFE

‘Outrageous’ nostalgia for journalist’s stabbing puts Korean media on notice

A chilling warning from a senior presidential aide about possible terror attacks against dissenting journalists has put President Yoon Suk-yeol’s war on ‘fake news’ under the spotlight.

19 Mar 2024 - 7:02PM
Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh. Photo: Reuters

Singapore opposition chief pleads not guilty to charges of lying to parliament

Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh was charged with two counts of lying to a parliamentary committee in hearings involving his party’s former MP Raeesah Khan.

19 Mar 2024 - 2:02PM
An elderly Malaysian woman waits to cast her vote at a polling station in Kuala Lumpur during the general election in 2018. Photo: AFP

Poverty looms over Malaysia’s elderly as low pay bites back in retirement

Left unchecked, more than 6 million Malaysians could be left with less than US$9 a month to survive on in their old age, according to government estimates.

19 Mar 2024 - 12:40PM
A Filipino activist yells during a protest in Manila on International Women’s Day earlier this month. Photo: Reuters

In Philippines, alarm over mail-order bride scheme that trafficks women to China

Filipino women escorted by Chinese nationals posing as their husbands have been intercepted at the border, immigration officials say. Anti-trafficking experts suspect organised crime groups are involved.

18 Mar 2024 - 2:13PM
An activist holds a placard during a protest against the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act in Bengaluru, India, on March 13. Photo: AFP

India’s citizenship law slammed as anti-Muslim and Modi’s election ploy

New Delhi announces the long delayed implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act, which sparked violent protests in 2019 when it was unveiled.

17 Mar 2024 - 11:50PM
A groom puts a face mask on his bride before their wedding ceremony in Jakarta. Indonesia recorded only 1.79 million marriages in 2020. Photo: AFP

Shrinking families in Indonesia spark concern about impact on economy

Young people are putting off marriage due to ‘structural challenges’, as demographers say data shows fertility rates are likely to continue declining.

17 Mar 2024 - 9:30AM
Japanese primary school pupils on a field trip in Osaka. Photo: Shutterstock

Japan teachers demand end to ‘excessive’ hours as many are pushed to the brink

Some 900,000 Japanese educators have signed petitions calling for the government to address long hours of unpaid work and poor pay.

16 Mar 2024 - 6:00PM
The online ad for Kirin’s alcoholic drink featuring economist Yusuke Narita.  Photo: Handout/Kirin Brewery Co

Japan drink promotion axed over economist’s past remarks on ‘elderly suicides’

The promotion quickly fell apart after social media users resurfaced his past comments that senior people are a drain on Japan’s society and should ‘kill themselves’.

15 Mar 2024 - 6:15PM
Fans have flooded K-pop singer Huh Yun-jin’s Instagram page with critical comments after a photo of her sipping the brew was widely shared online. Photo: Instagram/jenaissante

Netizens slam K-pop singer for drinking Starbucks coffee: ‘educate yourself’

Some commenters said the episode could haunt her for the rest of her career and urged Huh to apologise and take accountability for endorsing the brand.

18 Mar 2024 - 5:56PM
A Kuala Lumpur vendor displays a variety of dates ahead of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, on July 31, 2011. Photo: AFP

‘Brands that fatten them up’: Israeli dates under Muslim boycott in Southeast Asia

Chat groups are warning Muslims to be alert when buying dates – a sweet fruit eaten to break fast during Ramadan – after some were repackaged in Malaysia to hide their origin.

15 Mar 2024 - 10:44PM
Doctors in Seoul chant slogans during a rally on March 3 to protest against government plans to increase medical school admissions. Photo: Reuters

South Korea doctors ask ILO to intervene as strike shows no signs of ending

The issue isn’t likely to be settled soon as President Yoon’s party has large public backing for the plan to increase medical school places, senior doctors say.

14 Mar 2024 - 7:17PM
A view of a relief camp in India’s northeastern state of Mizoram, where people who fled Myanmar stay. File photo: Reuters

‘Irresponsible’: India urged to stop deporting refugees to chaos-ravaged Myanmar

India is sending back thousands of Myanmar refugees, whom they blame for ethnic violence erupting in Manipur state.

12 Mar 2024 - 7:30PM
A woman feeds her baby at a Singapore park. Photo: Shutterstock

One and done: why more Singapore couples are saying ‘no thanks’ to big families

The trend means couples can ‘experience parenthood’ while maintaining a preferred lifestyle that includes work-life balance, holidays and date nights.

15 Mar 2024 - 2:11AM