Guangzhou resident Jacky has plans to buy a two-bedroom condominium in Singapore when he visits the city state over the Lunar New Year break in January.With a S$2 million (US$1.48 million) budget, the businessman in his 30s intends to add the Lion City to the list of places he has invested in, which now includes the southeastern Chinese city of Shenzhen and Hong Kong.Jacky is among a new wave of “mid-tier” wannabe investors from mainland China’s burgeoning middle class who are looking to park…
Typhoon Phanfone slams into Philippines on Christmas Eve, stranding thousands
Typhoon Phanfone smashed into the central Philippines on Tuesday, ruining Christmas plans as thousands were left stranded at ports or told to leave their homes.The tropical storm was upgraded to a typhoon shortly before it made landfall on Christmas Eve in the mainly Catholic nation, with no immediate reports of casualties.It struck the southern tip of the impoverished island of Samar in the afternoon, packing gusts of up to 150 kilometres (90 miles) an hour.Officials said the region’s coastal…
At Malaysia’s KL Summit, the Muslim world’s most pressing concerns got no mention
Last week’s Kuala Lumpur Summit may have been interpreted as an attempt by non-Arab Muslim countries to offer a viable alternative to the Saudi-dominated Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), even though Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad insisted otherwise. Either way, it was not to be. Although the leaders of Iran, Turkey and Qatar attended, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan were no-shows. Khan was pressured by the Saudis to withdraw from…
Jay-Z, Serena Williams invest in Indonesian coffee chain Kopi Kenangan
Rapper-turned-mogul Jay-Z and tennis star Serene Williams are among the two celebrities who have thrown their weight behind Indonesian coffee chain Kopi Kenangan’s expansion plans, pumping in an undisclosed amount into the second round of the start-up’s Series A funding.Founded in 2017 by school friends Edward Tirtanata, James Prananto and Cynthia Chaerunnisa, Kopi Kenangan raised US$20 million from Sequoia India in June. Last year, Kopi Kenangan pulled in US$8 million in seed funding from…
Maguindanao massacre: how a manservant, a backhoe and a flurry of texts helped convict the Ampatuans
When a Philippine court last week sentenced dozens of police officers, militia men and two political warlords of a powerful Muslim clan to life imprisonment for a 2009 massacre in Maguindanao province, it did not use bullets or guns as evidence.This despite authorities recovering more than 100 empty shells from a variety of assault rifles at the scene of the crime, alongside 57 mutilated, bullet-ridden bodies.Which must have come as a shock to the legal team of Andal “Unsay” Ampatuan Jnr,…
India’s Narendra Modi defends citizenship law, says it is not anti-Muslim
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday led a rally for his Hindu nationalist party, following days of violent, sometimes deadly protests across India against a new citizenship law that critics say discriminates against Muslims.New Delhi’s state election early next year will be the first major electoral test for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party in the wake of the mass demonstrations seen after parliament cleared the Citizenship Amendment Act on December 11.Several thousand people took part…
Data of 100,000 Singapore defence personnel possibly ‘compromised’
The personal data of about 100,000 Singapore defence personnel may have been leaked in yet another cyberattack in the city state.Sensitive information held by two security force vendors, including full names, identification details, and a combination of contact numbers, email and residential addresses could be included in the potential data exposure, according to a statement published on the ministry’s website on Saturday.ST Logistics’ systems, which suffered a malware attack, held the personal…
Star Wars gay kiss: Singapore reportedly cuts scene from The Rise of Skywalker
A brief kiss between two women in the new Star Wars film was cut from the version released in Singapore, local media said.The Rise of Skywalker , the conclusion to the nine Star Wars films that stars Daisy Ridley, was released in Singapore on Thursday.The film contains a brief scene where two minor female characters share a kiss – but the moment is omitted in the version screened in Singapore, according to Yahoo Lifestyle SEA. The news site reported on Friday the women were seen embracing but…
Tsunami from Anak Krakatoa eruption in Indonesia was 100 metres high, say scientists
The tsunami unleashed by the eruption of Indonesia’s Anak Krakatoa volcano on December 22 last year towered at least 100 metres high and possibly even reached a height of 150 metres, according to a new study by scientists in Tokyo and London. More than 400 people on surrounding islands were killed by the tsunami, which was triggered by the volcanic eruption and the collapse of a section of the crater wall, but the death toll could have been significantly higher if the island closest to the…
Philippines arrests 342 Chinese workers in online gaming crackdown
The Philippines said on Friday it has detained hundreds of Chinese workers in a continuing crackdown against unlicensed online gaming businesses catering to mainland customers.Philippine offshore gaming operators, or Pogos, are the country’s fastest-growing industry. They have caused friction because of allegations of widespread tax evasion and the influx of tens of thousands of immigrant workers.A total of 342 Chinese without working visas were arrested on Thursday in a raid of a Manila-based…