Read more of our most recent coverage of Covid-19 and its impact on the region.


COVID-19

On the tail of a virus

Miriam Deprez and Andrew Haffner

COVID-19

Isolation blues? Myanmar’s ex-political prisoners share survival tips

Richard Sargent and Su Myat Mon

COVID-19

Tales of the Pandemic: The endless sirens of Kuala Lumpur

Syahiirah Junaidi

06 April 2020
THIS WEEK IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

Hunkering down.

This week we’ll be looking ahead to the trial of Rappler CEO Maria Ressa, who we interviewed recently about press freedom in the Philippines and the country’s response to Covid-19. Also on offer is a piece of analysis from Cambodian think-tank Future Forum, looking at how the country’s chronically underfunded healthcare system is set to cope with a potential influx of patients. As always, we’ll also be publishing a personal essay from across Southeast Asia as part of our Tales of the Pandemic series, illustrating how life has been impacted in recent weeks. If you’d like to submit your own personal essay – whether that be about life under quarantine or positive tales of your community banding together – reach out to a.mccready@globemediaasia.com. We’d love to hear from you! Read last week’s editorial here.

Catch our most-read stories from last week

STATELESSNESS IN THAILAND

The state of being

Magdalena Rojo

COVID-19

Tales of the Pandemic: Evicted from Harvard, returning to Singapore

Yong Han Poh

COVID-19

Running down the clock

Andrew Haffner

DEMINING IN CAMBODIA

Every dog has its day

Miriam Deprez

GENDER IN SINGAPORE

Breaking up the boys’ club

Amanda Oon

Into the future
In 20 years time, Cambodia will be as unrecognisable to us as our present would have been to our parents. Join us every Wednesday for a glimpse of what that future could look like – and what we have to do to make that happen.

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Power

Political reporting and analysis on the big questions facing the region.
Cambodia has once again ranked the lowest in Southeast Asia on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index. Read our recent coverage of the Kingdom’s struggles with corruption, nepotism and consequently international sanctions.

Power • STORY OF THE DAY • Jan 10, 2020 • 13 min read

Cambodia’s rich and powerful So you’ve been sanctioned, now what?

By Gerald Flynn • Jan 10, 2020
Oknha Try Pheap and General Kun Kim were the latest high-profile Cambodians to face the wrath of US sanctions in December. But what does this really mean in practice for the two men, and are targeted sanctions more ethical and effective than punitive trade measures like withdrawing the EU’s EBA?

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Money

Business insights and innovation, from industry to entrepreneurs.
With countries across Southeast Asia hit hard by the economic fallout of coronavirus, Vietnam in particular is making efforts to get its economy moving again as raw materials from China dry up. Read our recent coverage of Vietnamese economic growth and diversification.

Money • STORY OF THE DAY • Feb 25, 2020 • 13 min read

FDI in Vietnam Rise of the north

By Samantha McCabe • Feb 25, 2020
A long-term, export-driven vision has handed Hai Phong the title of Vietnam’s fastest-growing city in terms of GDP since 2015. Deep C is one firm that has contributed to the industrial city’s transformation in recent years with their vision of creating a sustainable, environmentally friendly economic hub

Money • STORY OF THE DAY • Aug 27, 2019 • 11 min read

Vietnam economy Winning the battle, losing the war?

By Simon Roughneen • Aug 27, 2019
Trade-oriented Vietnam has benefitted from the US-China stand-off, pulling in more investment. But growing exports are dominated by a few big foreign players, leaving Vietnam vulnerable to global market swings

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Life

Putting people at the heart of the story.
In the wake of the US killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in Iraq, Phillippine President Rodrigo Duterte has alerted his military to a potential rescue of Filipino workers in both west Asian countries. Though more than 1 million Filipino workers reside in the Persian Gulf states, the island nation counts thousands of its citizens in the conflict area. We’re taking a look at the ties in both work and conflict between the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

Life • STORY OF THE DAY • Nov 04, 2019 • 8 min read

ISIS al-Baghdadi blowback

By Zachary Abuza • Nov 04, 2019
The ISIS leader’s death and fallout from Turkey’s invasion of Syria have fuelled concerns that jihadists could open a home front

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Earth

How environmental change is shaping Southeast Asia.
Southeast Asians are turning against single-use plastic bags. In line with a new regulation signed by the Jakarta governor in late-2019, Indonesia’s sprawling capital city will ban the bag by the middle of this year. Thailand has also done the same, with that country’s ministry of environment reporting that Thais already cut back 2 billion bags last year. Check out our coverage of the fight against plastics pollution to learn more about what’s being done for a cleaner tomorrow.

Earth • STORY OF THE DAY • Aug 22, 2019 • 13 min read

Waste pickers A brief history of Cambodia’s plastic crisis

By Kathrin Eitel • Aug 22, 2019
Cambodia’s plastic waste is kept in balance thanks to an army of waste pickers, who represent the only functioning infrastructure. We look back at how plastic conquered the Kingdom

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