Southeast Asia

Miss Universe

Cambodia and Laos compete for the first time

With the addition of these two Southeast Asian candidates, the prestigious beauty pageant will now feature 92 countries and territories, smashing the previous record of 89 in 2011
By Johanna Chisholm • Nov 27, 2017

Media censorship

How Trump's press crackdown is emboldening Southeast Asian leaders to follow suit

Southeast Asian leaders are using Trump's bold and combative stance against the US press as fuel to fire their own regional battles with the media
By Tom O’Connell • Nov 27, 2017

Agung eruption

Residents in Bali are on high alert for 'imminent' larger eruption at Mount Agung

A balloon of ash and cloud erupting from Mount Agung volcano in eastern Bali has shifted away from Lombok and toward Denpasar, leading to the evacuation of thousands
By Madeleine Keck • Nov 27, 2017

Cambodia’s Hun Sen calls for closure of main human rights group

The Cambodian Center for Human Rights was established to uphold civil and human rights in a country that is coming under increasing criticism from the international community
By Johanna Chisholm • Nov 27, 2017

Online startups

Co-founder of the Malaysian Uber for truck drivers says startups should go digital

In 2013, Nadhir Ashafiq co-founded TheLorry.com, an online platform that connects people who need to move truckloads of items from A to B with lorry drivers, using algorithms similar to those found under the hood at Uber. Ashafiq broke down TheLorry.com’s success and discussed the state of play for startups in Malaysia
By Euan Black • Nov 27, 2017

Pope Francis warned about using ‘Rohingya’ ahead of first visit to Myanmar

A vocal champion of the poor and refugees, Pope Francis will be forced to navigate a diplomatic and religious minefield ahead of his visit to Myanmar and Bangladesh
By Johanna Chisholm • Nov 27, 2017

Myanmar-Bangladesh agreement

Thousands of fleeing Rohingya could be forced back to Rakhine State

The Myanmar and Bangladeshi governments have announced that they will begin repatriating Muslim Rohingya back to Myanmar within two months, amid concerns of the safety and sustainability of such a scheme
By Madeleine Keck • Nov 24, 2017

World Bank projects Cambodia’s economy will continue growing

Cambodia's economy is projected to grow by 6.9% this year, despite earlier predictions that cited political uncertainty as the cause for it growing at a rate of just 6.8%
By Johanna Chisholm • Nov 22, 2017