The Victorian state government has announced plans to hold an auction for offshore wind farms in August, ending a year-long delay and continued uncertainty for the industry in Australia.
Malaysian man arrested after illegal sea crossing to see pregnant second wife in Indonesia
A 46-year-old man from Perak in Malaysia sneaked out of the country to visit his pregnant second wife without his first wife’s knowledge.
He landed in hot water when he was arrested while returning from Indonesia via an illegal route. His passport was being held by his first wife.
The man, a lorry driver, who just arrived from Tanjung Balai in Indonesia, told officers he had travelled to Medan to visit his pregnant second wife.
“My second wife was pregnant and in critical condition, which is why…
Philippines steps up patrols around ‘significant’ gas find amid security concerns
The Philippine military and coastguard have stepped up security around a newly announced natural gas discovery off Palawan, treating the operation as a test case for protecting future offshore energy projects in contested waters, according to officials familiar with the deployment.
The expanded patrols cover Malampaya East-1, a fresh gas and condensate find about 5km from the existing Malampaya gas field, the country’s most important domestic energy source, which supplies fuel to power plants on…
Recent statistics reveal arbitration in India is ‘maturing’
Increased caseloads, faster awards and improved gender balance of arbitrators are all signs that India’s institutional arbitration ecosystem is maturing and increasing in both trust and credibility.
K-drama star Cha Eun-woo faces scrutiny, life expectancy in Okinawa: 7 Asia highlights
We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.
1. Malaysian badminton player threatened with knife attack online over performance 2. K-drama star Cha Eun-woo’s ad campaigns pulled amid tax scrutiny in South Korea 3. Malaysia’s expat salary rules dubbed ‘ridiculous’, stoking talent drain fears 4. Groomed at 15:…
Chinese boy at Islamic preschool in Malaysia wins hearts, stokes debate
A Chinese mother enrolling her toddler in an Islamic preschool, a move that remains uncommon in Malaysia, has sparked widespread attention and debate on social media.
Chan Zhu Er, 31, said she enrolled her three-year-old son, Low Zi Kang, at a Pusat Asuhan Tunas Islam in Chaah, Johor, when she returned to her hometown in November to attend to personal matters.
“I brought my son along while my husband remained in Perak, so I needed temporary childcare support while I handled my commitments,” Chan…
How the Creative Content Exchange plays into UK AI policy
A UK project has the potential to help AI developers access the high-quality data they crave for training their models while ensuring content creators are fairly remunerated for that activity.
South Korea mourns ‘kingmaker’ Lee Hae-chan after fatal heart attack in Vietnam
South Korean former prime minister Lee Hae-chan, a veteran politician and influential fixture on the country’s road to democracy, died during an official visit to Vietnam’s southern hub of Ho Chi Minh City, both governments said.
Lee died on Sunday, after emergency medical aid for a heart attack, a South Korean presidential advisory panel said in a statement.
The 73-year-old reportedly complained of flu-like symptoms before his departure to Vietnam and decided to return home one day after his…
Thailand releases first aquarium-bred leopard sharks to rewild endangered species
After a brief countdown by conservationists, a young Indo-Pacific leopard shark glided into the blue waters off Maiton Island in southern Thailand, released in the country’s first efforts to “rewild” the endangered species.
Once a familiar sight for snorkellers and divers, the spotted sharks have sharply declined in the wild over the past decade due to overfishing and habitat loss, even as they flourished in private aquariums.
“Why not take the breeding population that is doing well in the…
Did a shelved anti-disaster scheme lead to Philippines’ corrupted flood control projects?
The Philippines is reviving a popular disaster monitoring and simulation programme that was defunded nine years ago by then president Rodrigo Duterte – a move that some have blamed for resulting in a swathe of corrupted construction projects now plaguing the country.
Last month, Congress said it would allot 1 billion pesos (US$16.9 million) in the 2026 General Appropriations Bill for the Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (NOAH) project, a clutch of programmes that identifies risk…