Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Friday urged the country’s newly elected lawmakers to prioritise national stability and the well-being of citizens as he opened the legislature’s first session since the disputed March 24 election.The constitutional monarch’s speech before elected MPs and senators came as a local media report suggested a breakthrough had been made following a weeks-long impasse over who will govern the country as it transits from five years of junta rule to a post-election…
‘Nowhere they can hide’: Malaysia’s new hard-nosed police chief Abdul Hamid calls out 1MDB fugitive financier Jho Low
Come back to face justice because you cannot hide forever – that was the message from Malaysia’s hard-nosed new police chief to fugitive financier Jho Low, believed to be the mastermind behind the country’s multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal.Appointed by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad earlier this month, Abdul Hamid Bador’s comments came amid heightened expectations that efforts would be intensified to complete the investigation and finally deliver justice on the whole notorious affair in coming…
Thailand’s constitutional court blocks Future Forward leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit’s bid for prime minister role
Thailand’s constitutional court on Thursday suspended the MP status of a politician popular with millennial voters after he was accused of breaking an electoral law, a day before parliament was set to reopen.Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of the Future Forward Party and a former business tycoon, is accused of holding shares in a media company when he registered in February to run in the country’s March 24 election.Thanathorn has rejected the accusation, saying he had transferred the…
Indonesia riots: police draw Islamic-State links to deadly Jakarta protests that killed seven
Indonesian police on Thursday said members of an Islamic State-affiliated group had infiltrated into the mobs involved in violent protests that broke out in Jakarta this week.National Police Spokesman Muhammad Iqbal told a press conference on Thursday that among 442 detained protesters, two were members of the radical Islamic Reform Movement (Garis), that had pledged loyalty to IS, and sent almost 200 Indonesians to Syria.“They intended to carry out jihad during May 21 and 22 protests,” Iqbal…
Singapore monetary authority consults on payment services regulations
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has carried out a consultation into proposed payment services regulations that will enable it to carry out its functions under the new Payment Services Act.
Japan’s biggest phone companies mull pulling Huawei handsets
Wireless operators in Japan have begun to drop Huawei mobile phones after the US put the Chinese telecom-gear giant on a blacklist blocking it from buying vital US components.NTT Docomo, Japan’s largest operator, said on Wednesday it stopped taking pre-orders for Huawei’s new P30 handset, while its rival KDDI said it would indefinitely delay introduction of the phone, without elaborating.SoftBank’s YMobile announced a similar move, saying it is looking into concerns over the availability of…
‘Discovery’ decision may make it harder to obtain tax return certainty
It may be harder to obtain certainty that UK tax authority HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) cannot go back and challenge a tax return after comments made by Court of Appeal judges in a UK case relating to ‘discovery’ assessments, a tax disputes expert has said.
‘Raging optimism’ from Imee Marcos, as Duterte’s win in Philippine midterm elections boosts death penalty plan
A landslide victory for Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in midterm polls – confirmed by official results on Wednesday – has cleared the way for the controversial leader to push on with plans to reintroduce the death penalty and introduce a federal system of government.Allies of Duterte won nine of the 12 seats on offer in the senate, the election commission confirmed, meaning he now has support of 20 out of the country’s 24 senators. Previously he controlled just half of the senate members…
Financial regulators focus on climate change risk
ANALYSIS: In early May the UK government became the first in the world to declare an environment and climate change emergency. The impact of climate change will affect every aspect of daily life, and generates a number of significant financial risks.
Frenchman Felix Dorfin’s death sentence adds to list of foreigners who have felt full force of Indonesia’s strict drug laws
Frenchman Felix Dorfin has been handed the death penalty by an Indonesian court on drugs charges, but he is far from the first foreigner to be sentenced to death in the country.Dorfin was arrested last September for carrying a suitcase filled with more than 3kg of drugs, including ecstasy and amphetamines. Indonesia has some of the world’s strictest narcotics laws, and has executed a number of foreigners in the past, often provoking outcry overseas.Here are some of the others to have felt the…