Life

Putting people at the heart of the story.

Life • STORY OF THE DAY • yesterday • 9 min read

Covid-19 Pandemic creating conditions ripe for human trafficking, experts fear

By Gerald Flynn and Andreas Schloenhardt • yesterday
As Southeast Asia remains locked down, efforts to prevent human trafficking are slowing. But the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic poses particular threats to vulnerable communities across the region, as it heightens the appeal of a better life elsewhere

Life • STORY OF THE DAY • 2 days ago • 8 min read

Analysis The importance and power of the arts during a global pandemic

By Ashley Tan • 2 days ago
Art is so often regarded as non-essential and frivolous, an indulgence reserved for times of ease and comfort. But for Singaporean student Ashley Tan, this global pandemic has highlighted the importance and centrality of the medium in all of our lives

Life • 4 days ago • 3 min read
Covid-19

First Rohingya refugee dies from coronavirus in Bangladesh

A Bangladeshi health official confirmed that a 71-year-old Rohingya refugee is the first recorded person to die from Covid-19 in the country's crowded refugee camps in Cox's Bazar
By Shafiqul Alam/Agence France-Presse

Life • 5 days ago • 5 min read
Tales of the Pandemic

Photos: Night-time cycle rides through locked down Singapore

Singapore's partial lockdown under "circuit breaker" mode has made the simple act of leaving the house a luxury for its citizens. For writer Toh Ee Ming, her long-ignored bicycle has become her lifeline, casting the city-state in a new light on her night-time rides
By Toh Ee Ming

Life • 5 days ago • 3 min read
Myanmar cuisine

‘Little Chef’ charms Myanmar with lockdown cooking classes

From boiled catfish soup to spicy fried frog, an eight-year-old in pyjamas and a chef's hat is delighting Myanmar with her culinary prowess in online classes to a nation still told to stay at home due to the coronavirus pandemic
By Lapyae Ko/AFP

Life • 6 days ago • 7 min read
Refugee rights

Across Indonesia, latest Covid-19 surge adds to woes of refugees in limbo

Indonesia's sizeable population of refugees – living in limbo awaiting resettlement without healthcare, employment, nutrition and social distancing – now fear what effect Covid-19 could have on their community following a confirmed case in mid-May
By JN Joniad

Life • May 28, 2020 • 12 min read
UXO victims

In Laos, survivors of US bombs rebuild their lives – and limbs

A nine-year US campaign from 1964-73 made Laos the most bombed nation on earth, contaminating millions of hectares of land with explosives. Five decades on, thousands of UXO victims, some recent and some from decades past, work to piece their lives together
By Michael Hart

Life • May 28, 2020 • 2 min read
Covid-19

Thailand enters global race for vaccine with trials on monkeys

Thailand has joined the global race to find a vaccine for Covid-19 as it has begun conducting tests on macaque monkeys this weekend, the National Primate Research Center of Thailand has announced
By Dene-Hern Chen and Anusak Konglang/AFP

Life • May 26, 2020 • 7 min read
Migrant rights

Taipei station becomes protest focal point, sparking migrant rights debate

A recent proposed ban on gatherings in Taipei Main Station has sparked anger in Taiwan, with the terminal's main hall holding a rich history of hosting protests and gatherings, as well as serving as a community space for many Southeast Asian migrant workers in the city
By Ying-Yu Alicia Chen

Life • May 26, 2020 • 9 min read
Human trafficking

Cracks widen during virus for Vietnam’s most vulnerable – trafficked women

In northern Vietnam, hundreds of thousands of workers cross the Chinese border each year in search of work, among them women lured on false pretences and trafficked into marriage or sex work. As Vietnam's economy has slowed in recent months, these women are more vulnerable than ever
By Ashley Lampard