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Friday, September 18, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
TSUNAMI-IMPACT: For Sex Workers, the Show Must Go On
Clad in skimpy black bikini and knee-length boots, the young Thai woman gyrated around the silver pole and blew kisses at the mainly European patrons of the go-go bar she was performing in.CHALLENGES 2005-2006: Website Opens Tsunami Aid to Public Scrutiny
As survivors in Asia struggle to rebuild after last December's devastating tsunami, a new window of hope has opened in cyberspace for four affected countries.POLITICS-BURMA: Suddenly, Suu Kyi the Key
In a delicious twist of irony, Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi holds the cards that will determine if the rare political courage shown by South-east Asian governments towards the rogue state is indeed a fact or another game of deception.ENVIRONMENT: Thai-Burma Dam Planned Over Troubled Waters
By agreeing to help build a large dam in military-ruled Burma, Thailand's state-run power utility has laid the groundwork for a potential water war in an area already troubled by ethnic conflict and human rights abuses.POLITICS-ASIA: Human Rights Has a Chance in Revamped ASEAN
If pious political intentions are a mark of virtue, then Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi deserves praise for comments made as South-east Asian countries embark on a new chapter in the history of their 10-member regional bloc.WTO-SPECIAL: Dispute Settlement Body Offers Forlorn Hope
Two successful rulings secured by developing countries in their battle for a free and fair trade environment are being seen as offering hope for the future, should this week's World Trade Organisation (WTO) ministerial meeting in Hong Kong fail.ENVIRONMENT: Climate Change Hits Thai Farmers
Prolonged droughts pushed Piyaphum Kanchanacharoen, from being a dairy farmer in north-eastern Thailand to joining the ranks of environmental activists, raging against the impact of climate change.RIGHTS: China Awarded ‘Housing Raspberry’
Just how many people have to be thrown out of their homes in the name of 'economic progress' to arouse the interest of a regional United Nations body that claims to care for Asians living marginal existences?BURMA: Ban on Marriages, Another Yoke on Rohingya Muslims
In Burma's remote west, young men and women are subject to a form of discrimination, considered harsh, even for the military regime in this country. They are banned from getting married.RIGHTS: Thai Courts Still Defend Press Freedom
A handful of recent judgements delivered by Thai courts is helping to push the country's judiciary into a new realm of respect, as one of the only remaining institutions prepared to defend media freedom and journalists under siege.BURMA: Political Reforms Sans Suu Kyi
With hardly a skip in their beat, Burma's military rulers have extended the detention of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and continued to talk of political reform, through a new constitution, in the same breath.POLITICS-THAILAND: Talking About a Coup
Judging by the language of the independent press, this week, and the chatter among the capital city’s political class, anyone would be led to believe that Thailand is teetering on the brink of a coup d'etat.RIGHTS-THAILAND: Battered Women, No Longer Alone
The frequent telephone calls that a women's rights group in Bangkok receives are one of the many indicators of a dark side of this country known for its smiling, hospitable people.TSUNAMI-IMPACT: Burmese Migrant Victims Remain Invisible
The death of his 26-year-old sister and three nephews in last December's tsunami gives Maung Newe Win a narrative of grief that entitles him to an invitation to official events being planned to mark the disaster.BURMA: Forced Labour Pangs Hit Junta
Burma's military regime faces new hurdles, courtesy the International Labour Organisation (ILO), even as it desperately tries to redeem a record of extensively using forced labour.HEALTH-ASIA: Farmers, Fowl or Flu?
A summit meeting of Asia-Pacific leaders in South Korea, this weekend, will help clarify where in the pecking order East Asia's poultry farmers stand, as new commitments are made to fight the deadly bird flu virus.RIGHTS: ‘Information Society Must Block Paedophiles’
A major U.N. conference that aims to bridge the gap in information technology between the world's affluent and poorest societies is in danger of inadvertently catering to the needs and fantasies of the world's paedophiles.ECONOMY: Thai Power Utility Privatisation Awaits Court Ruling
A master plan that the Thai government has drawn up to privatise the country's state-run power utility faces its litmus test in a Bangkok court room next week.MEDIA: Telling the Burma Story, in Exile
Few journalists are better equipped to reveal the inside story of the narcotics trade in Burma than Khuensai Jaiyen, a 57-year-old editor who wears thick glasses and has an impish sense of humour.HEALTH: World Bank Gets Cold Feet on Bird Flu Drug Patent
Suddenly, in the face of a possible global pandemic of bird flu, the World Bank is developing signs of cold feet. It is choosing to distance itself from the role it has carved out over decades as an advocate of policies to ''help'' developing countries.BURMA: Poppy Cultivation Down But Growers Starve
Burma, the world's largest producer of opium after Afghanistan, has succeeded in drastically slashing poppy cultivation but tens of thousands of erstwhile cultivators now face starvation.« Previous Page — Next Page »
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