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Tuesday, April 21, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
HEALTH-THAILAND: Threats to Generic Drugs Policy Alarm Activists
A behind-the-scenes tussle between the pro-business, free trade wing of the Thai government and the country’s public health activists is raging over the fate of a national programme to supply cheaper generic drugs.
Q&A: ‘Young People Should Not Be Sitting in Classrooms’
Having shaken up the conventions of banking by arguing that credit is a fundamental right to help the poor in his native Bangladesh get loans for small business ventures, Muhammad Yunus has set his sights on another shake-up: university education.POLITICS-BURMA: Pro-democracy Camp to U.S. Senator: What Success?
A rare visit by a United States senator to Burma – billed as "successful" in some quarters – is winning little applause from sectors critical of the military regime that rules the country.POLITICS-THAILAND: Army Drives Muslim Rebels to the Hills
The Blackhawk helicopter flies fast and relatively high above an endless expanse of hills, some gentle and rolling, some with sharp peaks, in this southernmost tip of Thailand, where an insurgency has been raging for over five years.POLITICS: LTTE’s End Game in South-east Asia
Sri Lanka’s vanquished Tamil Tiger rebels suffered another major blow with the arrest of their new leader on August 5.BURMA: Suu Kyi’s Trial Gives Rare Glimpse into Burma’s Judicial System
A political trial in Burma that could prolong its pro-democracy icon’s isolation by five more years has opened a rare window for the international community to judge the quality of justice in the military-ruled country.POLITICS-BURMA: U.S., E.U. Mull New Burma Policy
They may be far from ditching the sanctions imposed on Burma, but there are emerging signs that U.S. and European nations might be open to reviewing a new approach to tackle one of the world’s most oppressive dictatorships.POLITICS: Clinton Heralds Deeper U.S. Ties with South-east Asia
The United States government is attempting to deepen its ties with South-east Asia this week when Washington finally throws its weight behind a regional peace and security treaty.HEALTH-THAILAND: As H1N1 Spreads, Thais Take Cover Behind Surgical Masks
Pattadol Piboonsak was gripped with fear last week when he fell ill with a high fever, displaying the usual symptoms of influenza.BURMA: UN Chief Speaks Out Against Lack of Human Rights
Using the power of his office, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon achieved a rare diplomatic feat during his recent visit to military-ruled Burma. He broke a taboo by delivering a public speech about the lack of democracy and human rights in the country.BURMA: U.N. Chief Comes Calling with Politics on His Mind
The return this week of U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to military-ruled Burma gives the mission an air of a high-stakes gamble. On the line is the world body’s credibility to make headway in a country where outside pressure to break a political deadlock is frequently ignored by the military junta.SOUTHEAST ASIA: Regional Rights Body Dismissed as “Toothless”
Southeast Asia is weeks away from getting its own regional human rights body, but not everyone is cheering the birth of this new mechanism due to be approved at a foreign ministers’ meeting here. Least of all the region’s vibrant human rights community, spread across the 10 countries that belong to the Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN).ASIA: Dams Across the Mekong Could Trigger a ‘Water War’
For now, the lower stretches of the Mekong River remain a symbol of peace and tranquillity in a region that was once bloodied by war. But for how long?ASIA: Regional Railway Links Aim to Boost Trade, Cooperation
A train journey from Singapore to Shanghai may not be the stuff of dreams anymore. So too the prospect of travel by rail from Seoul to Samarkand.HEALTH: Tobacco Companies Have a Field Day in Indonesia
When it comes to smoking, Indonesia remains the last paradise for a puff in Southeast Asia. Those addicted to cigarettes can openly light up in public places without worrying about tough anti-tobacco penalties found in the rest of the region.BURMA: Jurists Want Security Council to Open War Crimes Probe
Thanks to support from China and Russia, Burma’s military regime has escaped harsh criticism at the U.N. Security Council. But this diplomatic deal could come under pressure following the release of a report commissioned by leading international jurists, accusing the regime of committing "war crimes."THAILAND: Courts to Military, ‘Deaths in Custody’ Are Okay
A verdict by a provincial court is poised to deepen the sense of injustice felt by Thailand’s Malay-Muslim minority in the country’s southern provinces, where an insurgency has been raging for over five years.ASIA: Parliamentarians Turn Heat on Burma for Suu Kyi Trial
In a move reflecting growing anger towards Burma, parliamentarians from across Southeast Asia want the military-ruled country suspended from a 10-member regional bloc for the unjust treatment of Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma’s pro-democracy leader.THAILAND: New Probe into ‘Drug War’ Killings Takes a Stab at Impunity
A special investigative arm of Thailand’s criminal justice system is set to mount a fresh probe into a massacre of civilians during a brutal ‘war on drugs’ launched six years ago, when the authoritarian Thaksin Shinawatra was the country’s prime minister.ASIA: Burma Gives ASEAN a Black Eye with Suu Kyi Case
By pushing ahead with a sham trial to prosecute the country’s pro-democracy icon, Burma’s military regime appears set to shatter the credibility of the new, rules-based Southeast Asian regional bloc, of which it is a member.BURMA: Nature Conspires Against Cyclone Victims, Denying Them Clean Water
A year after powerful Cyclone Nargis tore through Burma’s Irrawaddy Delta and southern Rangoon, killing tens of thousands of people, nature continues to play a cruel trick on survivors.« Previous Page — Next Page »
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