Life

Putting people at the heart of the story.

Life • STORY OF THE DAY • Dec 11, 2020 • 8 min read

Covid-19 Filmmaker casts light on Singapore’s sex workers under lockdown

By Ashley Tan • Dec 11, 2020
In squeaky clean Singapore, the reality of life for the city-state's thousands of sex workers remains an under-told story. As part of this year's FreedomFilmFest, director Jessica Lee hopes to shed light on the lives sustaining this murky industry under lockdown

Life • STORY OF THE DAY • Dec 10, 2020 • 3 min read

Covid-19 Burying the dead: Myanmar’s Muslim Covid volunteers

By Lapyae Ko/AFP • Dec 10, 2020
Unable to rent apartments, a team of volunteers in virus-ravaged Yangon live in a cemetery isolated from their families. They provide a crucial funeral rite to the city's Muslim community, as they lay coronavirus victims to rest each day

Life • STORY OF THE DAY • Dec 10, 2020 • 4 min read

Opinion Recover better: Stand up for human rights

By Pauline Tamesis • Dec 10, 2020
On International Human Rights Day 2020, global celebrations are focusing on ensuring that all efforts to rebuild after the pandemic have human rights at their core. In Cambodia, the United Nations is calling for young people to be placed at the heart of that

Life • STORY OF THE DAY • Dec 09, 2020 • 2 min read

Covid-19 Singapore ‘cruise to nowhere’ cut short after virus case

By Agence France-Presse • Dec 09, 2020
Singaporean officials said that a "cruise to nowhere" off the city-state was cut short after a passenger tested positive for Covid-19, in the latest blow to efforts to revive the hard-hit tourism industry

Life • Dec 08, 2020 • 3 min read
Covid-19

Disabled delivery rider on ‘frontline’ of Malaysian virus war

Employers repeatedly rejected Muhammad Sidek Osman for full-time roles due to his disability, leaving him with little other option than to become a self-employed rider with delivery app Grab. But when on his bike, Sidek becomes a different man
By Patrick Lee/AFP • Dec 08, 2020

Life • Dec 08, 2020 • 9 min read
Covid-19

[Photos] Covid-19 in Southeast Asia: A year in pictures

Exactly one year on from the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in Wuhan, it goes without saying that 2020 has been a year unlike any other. In a series of photos, the Globe revisits some of the key moments from this year in Southeast Asia, as the virus turned lives and livelihoods upside down
By Alexi Demetriadi • Dec 08, 2020

Life • Dec 04, 2020 • 6 min read
Analysis

Moving the Rohingya to Bhasan Char was inevitable

Attempts have been made to sell the idea of Bhasan Char, the remote flood-prone island that looks set to become home to thousands of Rohingya refugees, as a paradise of sorts. But documentary filmmaker Shafiur Rahman sees more sinister forces at play in the plan
By Shafiur Rahman • Dec 04, 2020

Life • Dec 04, 2020 • 9 min read
Cambodian democracy

‘An awkward situation’: UN rights expert Rhona Smith reflects on Cambodia role

As Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, Rhona Smith has faced criticism for being too strong in her assessments by some, while labelled too weak by others. Entering the final six months of her mandate, Smith reflects on the evolution of democracy and human rights in the Kingdom during her tenure
By Alastair McCready and Andrew Haffner • Dec 04, 2020

Life • Dec 03, 2020 • 4 min read
Prisons

Philippine gangs ink over tattoos to combat jail violence

Heavily-tattooed Philippine inmates are using improvised tattooing machines to cover up symbols identifying their gang affiliation in a skin-deep effort to reduce jail violence
By Ron Lopez/AFP • Dec 03, 2020

Life • Dec 01, 2020 • 8 min read
Analysis

Cambodia is an AIDS success story, but Covid-19 risks undermining that

As the world marks World AIDS Day 2020 amidst a novel pandemic, health consultant David Wilkinson warns against complacency as Cambodia's successful fight against HIV/AIDS in recent decades risks coming undone as healthcare is stretched and the economy slows
By David Wilkinson • Dec 01, 2020

Life • Nov 27, 2020 • 2 min read
Vietnam history

[Photos] A collection of illusory Saigon nightscapes from 1938

While there remain no shortage of photos documenting Vietnam as it has evolved over the past century, this collection of images from 1938 provides a rare and striking glimpse into colonial Saigon after sunset
By Saigoneer • Nov 27, 2020