PHILIPPINES: Philippine journalist Maria Ressa, less than a year removed from receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for her work to safeguard free speech, is currently fighting to avoid jail time while her news site Rappler faces possible closure. A strong critic of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte and his bloody drug campaign, the intrepid veteran reporter refuses to be intimidated …

ASEAN – From the streets of Tokyo to the highest levels of government, Japan applauded Drive My Car’s Oscar success, hoping that it would raise the popularity of Haruki Murakami, the perennial Nobel Prize nominee who wrote the narrative that the film was based on. The three-hour drama, directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi and premised on a short story by Murakami, …

Philippines – President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration applauded writer Maria Ressa on Monday for receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, describing it as “a victory for a Filipina.” Ressa, the creator of the Philippine news site Rappler, along with Dmitry Muratov received the 2021 award for risking the wrath of the Philippines and Russia’s governments in order to expose corruption and misrule. …