How the law caught up with the Philippines’ Imelda Marcos and her stolen millions

When a Philippine court sentenced former First Lady Imelda Marcos to 77 years in jail for corruption, her lawyer was taken ill, but not Imelda. She simply shrugged off the verdict handed down on November 9 and went partying that night. Her daughter Imee was holding her 63rd birthday party with guests that included President Rodrigo Duterte’s politically powerful daughter, Sara, who is also the mayor of Davao, and former presidents Joseph Estrada and Gloria Arroyo.
None of the guests…

Was Cambodia’s US$300m Khmer Rouge tribunal worth it?

After spending nine years and more than US$300 million to prosecute the leaders of Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge responsible for the deaths of 1.7 million of their countrymen, a United Nations-assisted tribunal has ended up convicting only three people for the communist group’s heinous actions.
Was it worth it?
These kinds of proceedings do not run cheap. The longer-running tribunals covering genocide in Rwanda and war crimes in the former Yugoslavia ran up costs of as much as US$2 billion…

Domestic mergers in Ireland

The 2014 Companies Act consolidated Ireland’s previous company legislation into a single act. It also made a number of reforms including introducing the facility for mergers of Irish companies, also known as ‘domestic mergers’.

Irish M&A: domestic mergers vs asset transfers

ANALYSIS: Where a seller and buyer have agreed to enter into an agreement for the transfer of the assets of a target company (an asset transfer) the merits for deciding to do this instead of a share purchase will have been considered at length from a business, accounting, tax and legal perspective.

New Zealand police seize 190kg of cocaine hidden among bananas in country’s largest ever drug bust

New Zealand police and customs officials have seized 190kg of cocaine with a street value of up to NZ$36 million (US$25 million) that was hidden in a shipment of bananas in the country’s largest ever drug bust.
A 41-year-old man was arrested in neighbouring Australia in connection with the seizure, New Zealand authorities said in a statement. .
The haul followed an Australian investigation into an organised crime group. Officials there said a potential shipment of illicit drugs was…

US returning pillaged Philippine church bells, 117 years after they were stolen

The bells tolled on September 28, 1901, to signal an early-morning attack on American troops, just as they were eating breakfast. The attack almost wiped out the company of American soldiers, killing 48 of them in a rare victory in a war that the Philippines would end up losing.
The US commander’s response was swift. He ordered the killing of all Filipino males above the age of 10 who were involved in fighting US forces. The Americans razed the town of Balangiga, which had been abandoned…

Indian safety apps map harassment hotspots for women to avoid and authorities to counter

New web and phone apps in India are helping women stay safe in public spaces by making it easier for them to report harassment and get help, developers say.
Women are increasingly turning to technology to stay safe in public spaces which in turn helps the police to map “harassment prone” spots – from dimly lit roads to bus routes and street corners.
Safety is the biggest concern for women using public and private transport, according to a Thomson Reuters Foundation survey…

Bangladesh scraps plans to repatriate Rohingya after hundreds hold protest refusing to return

A voluntary repatriation of Rohingya Muslim refugees to their native Myanmar was scrapped by Bangladesh on Thursday, after officials were unable to find anyone who wanted to return. The refugees “are not willing to go back now,” said Refugee Commissioner Abul Kalam, adding that officials “can’t force them to go” but will continue to try to “motivate them so it happens.” The announcement came after about 1,000 Rohingya demonstrated at a camp in…