1MDB scandal: former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s corruption trial begins

The long-awaited trial of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak over his involvement in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) corruption scandal began on Wednesday.Najib, who arrived at court in a blue suit and white shirt, faces seven charges arising from 42 million ringgit (US$10.3 million) siphoned from 1MDB subsidiary SRC International that wound up in Najib’s personal accounts. He faces three counts of criminal breach of trust, one count of abuse of power, and three counts of money…

Sultan insists Brunei is ‘fair and happy’ country despite stoning coming into effect for gay sex and adultery

Brunei’s sultan called for Islamic teachings in the country to be strengthened as strict new sharia punishments, including death by stoning for gay sex and adultery, were due to come into force on Wednesday.The tough penal code in the tiny country on tropical Borneo island – ruled by the all-powerful Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah – is set to be fully implemented following years of delays.The laws, which also include amputation of hands and feet for thieves, will make Brunei the first place in East or…

Teenage maid Uzma Bibi was found murdered and dumped in a canal, forcing Pakistan to confront brutality of child labour

The battered body of 16-year-old servant Uzma Bibi was found dumped in a canal and her wealthy employer charged with murder, the latest case highlighting the dangers domestic workers – especially children – face in Pakistan.Police said Uzma died after blows to the head with a kitchen utensil. She had been working for the family in Lahore for eight months when she was killed in January this year.Her employer and two other women remain in custody as a police investigation into the murder and…

Chiang Mai’s smog crisis threatens to smother Songkran celebrations and hurt Thai tourism industry

Thailand’s Songkran festival, marking the traditional New Year, is just weeks away but celebrations in Chiang Mai may be muted as the northern city confronts its worst ever smog crisis.Widespread open burning and “man-made” forest fires for agricultural purposes along Thailand’s western and northern borders and in the neighbouring countries of Myanmar and Laos have left the city and other nearby provinces blanketed in a dim orange haze.On Tuesday afternoon, Chiang Mai’s air quality index…

South Korea begins excavating war remains near DMZ after North loses interest in joint operation

Seoul began a unilateral effort to excavate Korean war remains along the border on Monday as silence from Pyongyang stymied a previously agreed joint operation with the North.The joint excavation along the demilitarised zone of remains from the 1950-53 conflict was part of a military agreement signed at a Pyongyang summit in September between the South’s President Moon Jae-in and the North’s leader Kim Jong-un.Under the deal – aimed at defusing military tensions – around 100 personnel from the…

Vietnamese suspect in Kim Jong-nam assassination accepts reduced charge, will be freed in May

A Vietnamese woman accused of assassinating the North Korean leader’s half-brother was sentenced to three years and four months in jail after accepting a lesser charge on Monday and will likely be freed in May, her lawyer said.“In the first week of May, she will go home,” lawyer Hisyam Teh Poh Teik told reporters in the Shah Alam High Court, outside Kuala Lumpur.Doan Thi Huong, originally charged with murder, had pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of causing injury, and the judge sentenced her…