Asian Legal Review

Last month, Canada sent a warship through the Taiwan Strait alongside the US for the very first time, amid an increase in Chinese military exercises in the self-ruled island’s air defence identification zone.The appearance of the Canadian frigate HMCS Winnipeg in waterways that are increasingly the staging ground for competition between major powers is one of several indications that just weeks after the release of two Canadians held by China – the ‘two Michaels’ – Ottawa is ready to join a…

Netflix has removed two episodes of an Australian spy show from its streaming service in the Philippines after Manila objected to scenes showing a map with Beijing’s claims to the disputed South China Sea.China has long used its so-called nine-dash line to justify its claims over most of the resource-rich South China Sea, where the Philippines has rival claims.The Department of Foreign Affairs said Monday it had lodged a complaint over the map which included the line – shown briefly in the…

China’s State Council issued the country’s action plan to ensure carbon emissions peak by 2030.

A 24-year-old man dressed in Batman’s Joker costume attacked passengers on a Tokyo train line on Sunday night, injuring about 10 people as many party-goers headed into the city centre for Halloween gatherings, media reported.Police arrested the suspected attacker on the spot, media reported.A man in his 60s was unconscious and in critical condition after being stabbed, while witnesses also said the attacker had spread fluid around the train and started a fire, according to media.One video…

Come Monday, the world’s second-oldest military pact will turn 50.The Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) was formed in 1971 after the British withdrawal east of the Suez Canal, with the primary aim of protecting former colonies Malaysia and Singapore in a region that was fraught with conflict.The two Southeast Asian countries are grouped with Britain, Australia and New Zealand, and members are obliged to consult one another in the event of an armed attack.Much has changed since then…

It was late in the afternoon on October 17 when Sarinah (not her real name) heard a knock on the back door of the home she shares with her mother and younger sister in a village in Indonesia’s ultraconservative Aceh province.Home alone and still new to the neighbourhood, the 19-year-old wondered who would be visiting. When she opened the door, a strange man grabbed her, covered her mouth so she could not scream and tried to rip off her clothes.What happened next was a bit of a blur as Sarinah…

If there were a climate policy equivalent of an oven-ready casserole for world leaders to take to this week’s climate talks in Glasgow, it has to be their carbon-pricing strategies.While a handful of experts continue to caution against an over-reliance on market mechanisms to slow climate change, that has not stopped governments from hailing carbon pricing as the single most important way of reducing emissions.Whether through a carbon tax, where a fixed price is paid per tonne of greenhouse gas…

Large UK companies and limited liability partnerships (LLPs) will have to make climate-related financial disclosures after a consultation showed strong support for the move.

Malaysia on Friday unveiled its biggest ever budget with Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz indicating the government was well aware that businesses and residents required continued state aid with the battle against Covid-19 “still raging”.Analysts said the large spread of beneficiaries across social groups under the spending plan showed the government was seeking to boost a rising nationwide “feel good” factor as the economy – roiled for months – picks up following a phased reopening…

The City of Edinburgh Council has laid out plans for the city’s development over the next decade, with environmental policies at the heart of the document.