In one of the worst coronavirus-hit areas in Indonesia there are grassroots campaign that aims to help alleviate a health crisis in the nation where hospitals are struggling to cope as patient numbers increase. Last month, in Yogyakarta, a province in Java, Sonjo, a WhatsApp community organization tapped its personal network to help the district government transform a disused hospital …

Thai pro-democracy demonstrators climbed a huge Bangkok statue, draping it in a crimson cloth and calling for the monarchy to revoke the oppressive rules of royal defamation. Owing to a new outbreak of coronavirus infections in Thailand, support for the youth-led campaign calling for an overhaul of Premier Prayut Chan-o- cha’s government has stalled in recent months. But the latest …

HANOI, Feb 15 — In 2020, exports from six Southeast Asian countries dropped by 2.2 percent from a year earlier to a combined US$1.35 trillion (RM5.45 trillion), a relatively marginal decline amid Covid-19, according to data from the Japan External Trade Organization, the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported (JETRO). Of the six, only Vietnam reported a year-on-year rise in exports, …

PETALING JAYA: Umno Deputy President Mohamad Hasan urged the government to incorporate contract health staff into the public health system to better prepare the nation for the possibility of a Covid-19 pandemic lasting a few more years. Mohamad said Malaysia must plan for this phenomenon and improve the current public health system, citing some global experts who have said developed …

PETALING JAYA: The Sexual Harassment Bill must be tabled urgently at the next session of Parliament, especially after a woman has been harassed by a police officer at a roadblock, say opposition MPs Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and Hannah Yeoh. The Minister of Women, Family and Community Development and Deputy Minister under Pakatan Harapan’s administration, Wan Azizah and Yeoh, …

KUALA LUMPUR: The UN refugee agency said on Friday (Feb 12) Malaysia should not deport refugees after Reuters reported that it was planning to send 1,200 Myanmar nationals back to their country. Malaysia agreed to return them after the Myanmar military, which seized power in a Feb 1 coup, offered to send three navy ships to pick citizens held in …

A shocking revelation has been observed as  total of 121 complaints about alleged counterfeiting and piracy were received by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) last year, as the COVID-19 pandemic opened up opportunities for illegal traders. IPOPHL claimed in a statement that because the agency adopted a new monitoring method to concentrate on counterfeiting and piracy, the …

Valentine’s day is approaching and every single people are anticipating something for this special event but there’s something interesting about this year. Surprisingly, to the most recent survey by private pollster Social Weather Stations, the number of Filipinos who claimed that they had no love life reached an all-time high. In its November 2020 survey, the SWS discovered that 18% …

The Indonesian Ministry of Health has stressed that the recently guided spatial clustering of COVID-19 vaccination by President Joko Widodo will take place by prioritizing people in high-risk areas. In view of this, Tarmizi stressed that the spatial clustering exercise would not include all areas in a province, as health workers would focus only on those at the highest risk …

A declaration condemning a court ruling denying bail to protest leaders has been released by 126 law scholars and legal experts. In view of this, the Academics from Chiang Mai, Thammasat, Chulalongkorn and Walailak universities, lawyers and human rights activists were among the 126 who signed the declaration. The conduct of the four protest leaders: Parit Chiwarak, Arnon Nampa, Patiwat …