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This Week in Asia

Illustration: Huy Truong

Politics

By all memes: why Asia’s Gen Z are revolting

From India to Indonesia, satire and pop culture symbols are mobilising a generation that fears its future is slipping away.

In Malaysia, Najib’s house arrest pits palace against prosecutors

Japan targets viral ‘Shorinji racing’ social media pranks harassing police

Health & Environment

A doctor was murdered in South Korea. 8 years on, ‘nothing has changed’

With assaults hitting 1,200 a year, doctors want metal detectors and an end to rules requiring victims to press charges.

Medical staff walk into a hospital in Seoul, South Korea, in 2024. The woman arrested in connection with a recent attack allegedly brought the kitchen knife she used into the hospital in a shopping bag. Photo: AFP
Medical staff walk into a hospital in Seoul, South Korea, in 2024. The woman arrested in connection with a recent attack allegedly brought the kitchen knife she used into the hospital in a shopping bag. Photo: AFP

Health & Environment

Why child abuse cases are rising in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore

Higher caseloads point to better reporting, but advocates say stigma and patchy follow-up can leave victims struggling.

Economics

AI pulls up the civil service ladder to Southeast Asia’s middle class

Mass lay-offs are off the table, but slower recruitment could freeze out university leavers, observers say.

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Politics

Philippines seeks bespoke BrahMos missiles from India for island defence

A deal worth up to US$800 million to double its batteries could help Manila erect a coastal ‘missile wall’, analysts say.

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Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnrs shakes hands with India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh before the Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus in Cebu last month. Photo: AFP
Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnrs shakes hands with India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh before the Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus in Cebu last month. Photo: AFP

Politics

Why Indonesia’s death penalty lives on, even with executions halted

No one has faced a firing squad since 2016, yet the number of prisoners on death row has more than doubled since 2019.

Politics

India questions US ‘double standards’ as Pakistan secures F-16 upgrade deal

Although the package does not include nuclear weapons, analysts say that it could boost Pakistan’s nuclear strike capabilities against India.

16

Health & Environment

Southeast Asia’s green push brings solar power, but who pays to keep it on?

As Cop31 targets billions in green finance, remote communities across Southeast Asia struggle with the recurring cost of power.

Solar-powered lights illuminate homes in Kampung Bertang, Pahang, Malaysia, after a rural electrification project brought power to the remote Orang Asli village in April 2026. Photo: Handout

Health & Environment

Japan rethinks its stalking laws after Pokemon store murder

A restraining order failed to protect her. Now a Tokyo shop worker’s murder has prompted calls to fit convicted stalkers with GPS tags.

Illustration: Huy Truong
Illustration: Huy Truong

Economics

‘There could be anarchy’: Bangladesh’s garment sector unrest threatens disaster

Striking garment workers want their wages doubled, imperilling an industry that brings in 80 per cent of export earnings.

6

Lifestyle & Culture

Worth a shot? In Malaysia, a shadow trade in DIY weight-loss jabs takes hold

Priced out of official prescriptions, Malaysians are buying unregulated slimming jabs online – with no guarantee of what’s inside.

Politics

Myanmar’s will to fight money laundering questioned as tougher curbs loom

The Financial Action Task Force has warned of further measures unless the regime remedies failing safeguards by February.

Myanmar President Min Aung Hlaing reviews an honour guard during a welcoming ceremony in Bangkok in August. Photo: EPA

Politics

Will Russia’s asset takeover finally push Japan into retaliation?

Analysts say Takaichi will need to mount a ‘more assertive’ response after Moscow seized Japan Tobacco assets.

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to reporters at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo on Friday. Photo: Reuters
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to reporters at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo on Friday. Photo: Reuters

Politics

What’s next after airlines? Asia data breach raises wider cyber fears

The breach has highlighted the region’s dependence on shared platforms, and analysts warn other critical sectors may soon be affected.

Politics

Diploma dispute fuels speculation of growing Prabowo-Widodo rift in Indonesia

Political factions are proposing using parliamentary oversight powers to investigate Gibran after his high school diploma was ruled ‘invalid’.

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Politics

By all memes: why Asia’s Gen Z are revolting

From India to Indonesia, satire and pop culture symbols are mobilising a generation that fears its future is slipping away.

Illustration: Huy Truong
Illustration: Huy Truong

Economics

‘I’m terrified’: AI comes for Southeast Asia’s graduate jobs

From Bangkok to Singapore, AI dread grips young jobseekers as the bottom rung of the career ladder starts to buckle.

8

People

Big dreams, growing pains in Indonesia: Prabowo’s turbulent 2 years in power

The president says he sees a ‘bright future for Indonesia’ even as citizens worry about rising costs and a lack of job opportunities.

7

Economics

Malaysia’s shoppers love Chinese e-commerce. But is the bargain worth it?

Pinduoduo’s arrival has thrilled bargain hunters, even as direct e-commerce shipments price out local firms and waste chokes landfills.

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Illustration: Dennis Yip
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LATEST Asia NEWS

South Asia

Ex-Bangladesh leader Hasina moves closer to homecoming by applying for passport

Sheikh Hasina takes oath as Bangladesh’s prime minister at the Bangabhaban in Dhaka on January 11, 2024. Photo: Reuters

Southeast Asia

Indonesia mulls palace bug sweeps after presidential wiretaps

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto speaks at the parliament building in Jakarta in August. The wiretapping scandal comes at a time when Prabowo faces growing public pressure over his costly social programmes and his administration battles to restore investor confidence. Photo: AP

Southeast Asia

Singapore minister says Cop31 has ‘enough to work on’ without new targets

Singapore’s environment minister Grace Fu delivers a statement during Cop29 in Azerbaijan on November 19, 2024. Photo: Reuters

East Asia

Thousands flock to South Korean border park for rare view of North Korean weapon

Visitors use binoculars to look at the North from a South Korean observation deck at Aegibong Peace Ecopark in Gimpo on November 2. Photo: AFP

Politics

Philippines seeks bespoke BrahMos missiles from India for island defence

7
Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnrs shakes hands with India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh before the Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus in Cebu last month. Photo: AFP
MORE Asia NEWS
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OPINION
Wannaphong Durongkaveroj

Asian Angle | Thailand once had an economic miracle. It needs another

Wannaphong Durongkaveroj
4
Arnold Puyok

Asian Angle | In Malaysia’s largest state, ‘Sarawak First’ faces a Dayak election test

Arnold Puyok
Le Hong Hiep

Asian Angle | Can Vietnam sustain its high-growth ambitions amid capital constraints?

Le Hong Hiep
Hirokazu Omatsu,Kyi Sin

Asian Angle | Why Asean’s Myanmar peace push needs Japan’s ‘silent diplomacy’

Hirokazu Omatsu
Kyi Sin
Michael Vatikiotis

Opinion | Truth needs a treaty in this age of AI disinformation

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MULTIMEDIA
Video

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters
03:09
Video

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji
02:34
Video

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport
02:02
Video

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail
04:27
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