Once confined to history classes, an indigenous script used before Spanish colonisation, is making a comeback among the Philippines’ millennials, young professionals and diaspora.Online clips of calligraphy and digital fonts for Baybayin – a 17-character indigenous script last used hundreds of years ago – have gripped the digital generation and now it is appearing on everything from tattoos and T-shirts to mobile apps.Proponents hail the curvilinear text as a crucial part of Philippine identity…
India outlaws triple talaq and makes it punishable by three years in jail
India’s parliament passed on Tuesday a law against the controversial Muslim practice of “instant divorce”, making it a criminal offence punishable by up to three years in prison.Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist government pushed through the bill despite stiff resistance from several opposition parties and a previous failed attempt to move the bill in the upper house.“An archaic and medieval practice has finally been confined to the dustbin of history,” Modi tweeted after the…
Indonesia’s opposition leader Prabowo will ‘mediate’ if authorities ban radical group Islamic Defenders Front
Indonesian opposition leader Prabowo Subianto will play a “mediatory role” between the government and the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) if authorities refuse to renew the operating licence of the hardline group, which campaigns for a caliphate in the secular Muslim nation.The offer, which was made through his spokesman on Tuesday, follows hints by the country’s President Joko Widodo over the weekend that the FPI could be banned in an effort to tackle a growing wave of conservatism that has seen…
Five soldiers among 17 killed in Pakistani military plane crash in Rawalpindi
Seventeen people were killed when a small military plane crashed early Tuesday into a residential area in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi near the capital Islamabad, a rescue official said.Five soldiers, including two army pilots, and at least 12 civilians were killed, the military said in a statement.Farooq Butt, an official at the state-run emergency service, said an additional 15 people were injured. Rescue officials said the death toll could rise since some of those injured were critical…
Robert Lighthizer warns Vietnam over trade deficit with US
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Doug Palmer on politico.com on July 29, 2019.Vietnam must take steps to reduce its trade deficit with the United States and open its market to more US goods and services, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in comments released on Monday.“US businesses face a host of unfair trade barriers in Vietnam,” Lighthizer said in written responses to questions from the Senate Finance Committee.“The…
Indonesia looks to cut reliance on foreign funds with bonds sale to citizens living overseas
Indonesia is planning to sell bonds to its citizens living overseas as Southeast Asia’s largest economy seeks to expand its funding pool and reduce the dependence on foreign fund inflows for financing a budget deficit.The government is studying so-called diaspora bonds, which will target non-residents from migrant workers to students, according to Luky Alfirman, director general for financing and risk management at the finance ministry. Most of the details are still being discussed, he said.The…
Illegal Chinese-run gambling ring smashed in massive raid by Vietnamese police: state media
More than 380 Chinese nationals have been detained during a massive raid on a gambling ring in Vietnam, according to state media.Some 500 police officers in Hai Phong, a northern port city, broke up the Chinese-run network in a raid late on Saturday, in what police claim was the biggest-ever betting operation run by foreigners.The raid took place at a gated community where rooms were used to transact online bets worth more than US$400 million, state-run Vietnam Television said.“This case is…
Taiwan’s 2020 election candidates? It’s the US vs China
Since their debut in 1996, Taiwan’s presidential elections have been a showdown between the self-ruled island’s independence-leaning camp and those favouring unification with China.There will be no exception this time as incumbent president Tsai Ing-wen faces off with Han Kuo-yu, the popular mayor of Kaohsiung, in January 2020, when legislative elections will also take place. The presidential races offer choices that divide the electorate along multiple lines – idealism or reality,…
Indonesian President Joko Widodo insists Jakarta’s giant sea wall ‘must be done quickly’ to protect sinking capital
Indonesia’s president said in an interview that he wants to see the speedy construction of a giant sea wall around Jakarta to prevent the low-lying capital from sinking under the sea, lending renewed backing and a sense of urgency to a slow-moving and politically contested mega project.President Joko Widodo and his government are up against a tight timetable, including a forecast by experts that at the current rate, one-third of Jakarta could be submerged by 2050.The existential crisis facing…
2 dead, at least 10 injured in South Korean nightclub collapse near World Aquatics Championships
Two South Koreans died and at least 10 others were injured – including athletes attending the World Aquatics Championships – after part of a nightclub collapsed early on Saturday near the Athletes’ Village in Gwangju, according to reports. Witnesses said there were around 370 people inside the Coyote Ugly nightclub when part of the upper deck above the bar collapsed at about 2am local time. The deck area had been illegally constructed to accommodate more customers, Yonhap news agency said. …