Card swapping: The Mekong countries’ problem with activist kidnapping
When Thai activist Wanchalearm Satsaksit was bundled into a car in Phnom Penh on June 4, he became merely the latest in a string of forced disappearances in the region. With several authoritarian governments coexisting in close proximity, the peculiarly Mekong country issue of activist kidnapping shows no sign of abating.
Anthony Bourdain and his Southeast Asian love affair
The late, great chef-come-writer Anthony Bourdain travelled and worked extensively throughout Southeast Asia before his sudden passing in 2018. Two years on, the Globe reflects on his enduring legacy in the region.
Grounding of the sea nomads: Virus allows Moken to return to the water
The nomadic lifestyle of the Moken people and their unique relationship with the environment has been encroached upon by governments and the modern world. But as the pandemic has taken hold, space has opened for these seafarers to return to the water.
In the furnace: why is Cambodia’s brick kiln child labour persisting?
Last year, the Cambodian government set out to put a permanent end to child labour in the country’s brick kilns by 2020. But as the problem persists, experts believe the remedy will have to tackle the systemic issues causing children to head to the furnaces.
Child Labour Index: Cambodia highest risk in region for underage workers
Consulting firm Verisk Maplecroft has ranked Cambodia 28th in the world and the highest risk in Southeast Asia for the use of child labour in its 2020 index. The Southeast Asia region as a whole faired poorly, with seven countries deemed at ‘extreme’ or ‘high’ risk.
Far from home: Foreign students reflect on Singapore during the pandemic
Thousands of foreign students choose to study in Singapore for its high-quality universities. Staying in the city-state during the pandemic, unable to leave, they offer their reflections on what recent months have taught them about life and governance in the Republic.
Will COVID-19 shine a light on the importance of early childhood care and education in Southeast Asia?
From our partner Aide et Action, we look at the socio and economic fallout of the current health crisis is already threatening to undo the gains made to address poverty, hunger, education, good health and well-being in recent years. While the pandemic disrupts almost every facet of life around the globe, Aide et Action poses the question if this disruption could in fact propel early childhood education rather than set it back.
As Thailand recovers from Covid-19, its volatile domestic politics returns
While the Covid-19 crisis has placed life on hold in Thailand in recent months, the country’s chronically tumultuous domestic political scene is rearing its head again. Researcher Sek Sophal discusses what the kingdom’s post-virus political landscape could look like.
Sepia-drenched photographs of Vietnam’s colonial past
The work of French photographer Paul Gastaldy provides a rare sepia-drenched insight into the history of Vietnam, with his collection of photos, taken over the course of a decade between 1922 and 1932, depicting daily life for people in the colony.
