Thailand

How tech reshapes ancient animist beliefs

Mass urbanisation and an increasingly interconnected world are pushing animism to embrace the 21st century
By David Hutt • Feb 21, 2017

How ‘routine’ are the new US patrols in the South China Sea?

Recent US Navy patrols in the region have many worried, but the Trump administration’s long game in the South China Sea is unclear
By Logan Connor • Feb 21, 2017

Finance

New platform revolutionises the way Cambodian businesses borrow money

Frustrated by limited funding options for small businesses, Chansamrach Lem launched the country’s first online peer-to-peer lending platform
By Euan Black • Feb 20, 2017

Cambodian parliament passes law that could destroy the opposition

The move gives the government power to dissolve rival political parties and could keep former opposition leader Sam Rainsy from returning to power
By Logan Connor • Feb 20, 2017

New Jolie film recounting horrors of Khmer Rouge premieres in Cambodia

Angelina Jolie’s film adaptation of Loung Ung’s harrowing Khmer Rouge memoir, First They Killed My Father, premiered on 18 February at the country’s famed Angkor temple complex
By Claire Knox • Feb 18, 2017

Assassination of Myanmar lawyer suggests divide between government and military

Though a clear motive has yet to emerge for the assassination of prominent Myanmar lawyer Ko Ni, many are pointing to his work to curtail the military’s power
By Logan Connor • Feb 17, 2017

DPRK and Southeast Asia

Assassination of Kim Jong-nam highlights Malaysia’s close ties to North Korea

The murder of Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korean despot Kim Jong-un, in a Malaysian airport brings into focus Malaysia’s deep ties with North Korea, but also threatens to damage the long-standing relationship between the two countries
By Euan Black • Feb 16, 2017

Sizing up the shadowy leader of the Rakhine State insurgency

As Myanmar’s security forces continue their crackdown on the nation’s Muslim Rohingya minority, foreign-born fighter Ata Ullah is leading a group of insurgents in guerrilla warfare
By Paul Millar • Feb 16, 2017