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☆ Malaysian Navy Helicopters Collide Midair, Killing All 10 People Aboard
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Two Malaysian Navy helicopters collided midair during a training session in the northwestern state of Perak on Tuesday, killing all 10 people on board, at least the second accident involving government aircraft in the Southeast Asian country in as many months. The two helicopters were rehearsing for Saturday’s 90th anniversary celebration of the Royal Malaysian Navy when they crashed into each other at 9:32 a.m., the navy said in a statement. The 10 people on board the two helicopters were all crew and died at the scene, at the naval base in Lumut, the navy said. Videos published by Malaysian news media showed the two helicopters crashing in midair and then various aircraft parts spiraling out of the sky.

Organizations: Malaysian Navy, Royal Malaysian Navy, Malaysian Locations: Perak, Lumut

☆ What Can ‘Green Islam’ Achieve in the World’s Largest Muslim Country?
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-17 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | Ulet Ifansasti | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The faithful gathered in an imposing modernist building, thousands of men in skullcaps and women in veils sitting shoulder to shoulder. “Our fatal shortcomings as human beings have been that we treat the earth as just an object,” Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar said. Like fasting during Ramadan, it is every Muslim’s Fard al-Ayn, or obligation, to be a guardian of the earth. Like giving alms, his congregants should give waqf, a kind of religious donation, to renewable energy. Dismayed by the trash sullying the river that the mosque sits on, he ordered a cleanup.

Persons: Nasaruddin Umar, Nasaruddin Organizations: World Bank Locations: skullcaps, Istiqlal, Jakarta, Indonesia

The temblor set off at least nine landslides, collapsing hillsides onto the Suhua Highway in Hualien, according to local media reports. The quake was centered in the waters off Hualien, according to the United States Geological Survey. The epicenter was about 10 miles under the earth’s surface, according to Taiwan. Here is the latest: In Japan, tsunami waves as high as 30 centimeters hit the shore on Yonaguni Island at 9:14 a.m. local time. People in China took to social media saying they felt the tremors as far as away as Hangzhou, Xiamen, and Shanghai.

Persons: Tobin, Motoko Rich Organizations: Rail, United States Geological Survey, Weather Administration, U.S . Pacific, Warning Locations: Taiwan, Japan, Hualien, Taiwan’s, Taipei, People, China, Hangzhou, Xiamen, Shanghai

☆ Standing Up to China, Philippine Leader Courts New Network of Partners
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | Camille Elemia | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

With China aggressively asserting its claims on the South China Sea, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. of the Philippines spent his first year on the job beefing up Manila’s alliance with its oldest ally, the United States. Mr. Marcos is adding a new intensity to his muscular foreign policy at a critical moment in his country’s territorial dispute with Beijing. In January, Mr. Marcos and the leaders of Vietnam, another country fighting off Chinese claims to the crucial waterway, pledged closer cooperation between their coast guards. This month, Mr. Marcos clinched a maritime cooperation deal with Australia. “It has to be recognized that the South China Sea handles 60 percent of the trade of the entire world.

Persons: Ferdinand R, Marcos Jr, Marcos, it’s, Mr Organizations: Maritime, Australia, South China, ASEAN, Association of Southeast Asian Nations Locations: China, Philippines, United States, Beijing, Vietnam, Europe, South, Berlin

☆ Which Version of an Ex-General Did Indonesia Just Vote For?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A loyal acolyte of a popular president with few achievements of his own. Prabowo Subianto has been called all of these over the years he has sought power in Indonesia. Unofficial tallies from Wednesday’s election show him winning a decisive victory, with nearly 60 percent of the vote. During the campaign, Mr. Prabowo repeatedly promised that he would continue on the path and policies charted by Joko Widodo, the popular departing president. But it remains unclear what kind of leader Mr. Prabowo, 72, will be.

Persons: apparatchik, Prabowo Subianto, Prabowo, Joko Widodo, Joko, Probowo, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Prabowo’s, Mr Locations: Indonesia

☆ A Popular Leader’s Surprising Turn Shadows Indonesia’s Election
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | Muktita Suhartono | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

More than 100 million people are voting on Wednesday in one of the biggest elections in the world. The contest for the top prize — the presidency of Indonesia — is a three-way race. But looming large is someone not on the ballot. That person is Joko Widodo, the incumbent president, who is not allowed to seek a third five-year term and will step down in October. A decade after Mr. Joko presented himself as a down-to-earth reformer and won office, he remains incredibly popular.

Persons: Joko Locations: Indonesia

The young women and men moved from booth to booth, asking questions about the political hopefuls’ track records and visions for the country. A few steps away, first-time voters practiced casting their ballots in pretend voting booths. And onstage, talk show guests discussed how to make an informed choice in backing a candidate. This gathering of more than a thousand people one recent Sunday in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, was a prelude to a celebration that is widely known here as “Pesta Demokrasi,” or Democracy Party. After voting for presidential, parliamentary and local legislative candidates, people camp out near their polling places with food as they wait for early counts to trickle in.

Organizations: Democracy Party Locations: Jakarta, Indonesia

☆ What to Know About Indonesia’s Election
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

And within hours, if history is any guide, the world will know the outcome of the biggest race of the day: the one for Indonesia’s presidency. Indonesia, the world’s third-largest democracy, will hold its general election on Wednesday. Election Day is a national holiday, and on average, about 75 percent of eligible voters have turned out. In addition to the president, voters are choosing members of Parliament and local representatives. As one of the world’s biggest exporters of coal, nickel and palm oil, Indonesia has a large role to play in the climate change crisis.

Persons: Joko Widodo Locations: Indonesia, United States, China, Asia, Washington

☆ Thai Court Rules That Opposition Party Proposal Violated the Constitution
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | Muktita Suhartono | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But on Wednesday the Move Forward Party and its push for change were dealt a severe blow. Thailand’s Constitutional Court ruled that the party’s proposal to scale back the royal defamation law violated the Constitution because it was an attempt to overthrow the monarchy. The verdict, in effect, lays out explicitly that the royal defamation law is sacrosanct for Thailand’s conservative establishment, a nexus of royalists, military officials and wealthy elites. Wednesday’s ruling leaves Move Forward vulnerable to more legal challenges, which could pave the way for its eventual disbandment. It could also set the stage for a showdown between Thailand’s progressive opposition and the establishment.

Persons: Pita Limjaroenrat Organizations: Party Locations: Thailand

☆ Popular Thai Opposition Politician Wins Election Law Case
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Pita Limjaroenrat, the popular politician who was blocked from becoming Thailand’s prime minister, cleared a legal hurdle on Wednesday after the country’s Constitutional Court found that he was not guilty of violating election law, allowing him to be reinstated as a lawmaker. A decision against them could lead to a ban on Mr. Pita from politics and the dissolution of the party. Mr. Pita and his party stunned Thailand’s royalist-military establishment last year by winning first place in the general election, as voters sent a clear signal that they wanted an end to nearly a decade of military rule. But the establishment prevailed in preventing Mr. Pita from becoming the prime minister, using legal maneuvers that his supporters say were part of a broader effort to roll back the results of the election. On Wednesday afternoon, after the verdict was read out, supporters of Mr. Pita who had gathered outside the Constitutional Court broke out in cheers and chanted repeatedly: “Prime Minister Pita!”

Persons: Pita Limjaroenrat, Pita, Thailand’s Organizations: Party, Constitutional, “ Locations: —, Thai

☆ Why This Presidential Front-Runner Is Stirring Fears of the ‘Death of Democracy’
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Even so, Prabowo Subianto has spent the past two decades trying his hand at democratic politics, donning different personas in multiple attempts to become Indonesia’s leader. Now, a month before the next election, nearly every poll shows Mr. Prabowo, 72, leading in the first round of voting. A victory for Mr. Prabowo, his critics warn, would revive a dark past. “What will happen is the death of democracy,” said Hendardi, the director of the Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace. “We have long been against Prabowo,” he added, “and with our limited power, we were still able to prevent him from moving forward.

Persons: Indonesia’s, Subianto, Prabowo, Joko Widodo, Suharto, Prabowo’s, ”, Hendardi Organizations: Setara Institute for Democracy Locations: East Timor

☆ In a Rare Move, Singapore Charges a Government Minister With Corruption
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It was an unprecedented set of events in Singapore: a government minister charged with corruption and then hauled to court. Allegations of impropriety involving Mr. Iswaran became public in July. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong ordered him to take a leave of absence while the authorities investigated Mr. Iswaran’s dealings involving a billionaire who helped bring the Formula 1 auto race to Singapore. The charges unveiled against him include two counts of corruption and one charge of obstructing justice. He is also facing 24 counts of “obtaining, as a public servant, valuable things” worth more than hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Persons: Hamilton, Iswaran, Lee Hsien Loong Locations: Singapore, Britain

☆ Fireworks Factory Explosion in Thailand Kills at Least 20
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A fireworks factory exploded in central Thailand on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people and injuring many others, according to the Thai police. After the blast, the factory, in the middle of a field in Suphan Buri Province, collapsed, leaving nothing but rubble, photographs posted online by Thai media outlets showed. “Nobody could get out. Nobody could get out,” said a distraught female resident, who was weeping as she spoke into her mobile phone, in a video posted by Channel 7, a Thai broadcaster. Another resident who was interviewed by Channel 7 said the blast was so loud that it could be heard almost a kilometer away.

Persons: ” Organizations: Thai, Channel Locations: Thailand, Suphan Buri Province, Thai

☆ Kissinger’s Legacy Still Ripples Through Vietnam and Cambodia
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Mike Ives | More About Mike Ives | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

Mr. Kissinger, who died on Wednesday, shared the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the peace accords that ended American involvement in the Vietnam War. The fighting between North Vietnam and U.S.-backed South Vietnam did not end until the North’s victory in 1975. Mr. Kissinger defended his wartime decisions for years afterward. Within Vietnam, Mr. Kissinger’s role in the war was contentious well before the fighting ended. When President Barack Obama visited in Hanoi in 2016, he said the United States would rescind a decades-old ban on sales of lethal military equipment to Vietnam.

Persons: Henry A, Kissinger, Mr, Lyndon, Richard M, Le Duc Tho, Duong Quoc, Hun Sen, ”, “, Pen, Sok, Hun Sen’s, Barack Obama, Biden’s, Chau Doan, Sun Narin, Lee Wee Organizations: Communist, Johnson Library, Museum, Thunderbird School of Global Management, Arizona State University, Vietnamese Foreign Ministry, U.S, Cambodian People’s Party, Vietnam’s Communist Party Locations: Cambodia, Vietnam, U.S, China, Southeast Asia, North Vietnam, Saigon, United States, America, Austin , Texas, Vietnamese, Hanoi, “, Khmer, Khmer Rouge, ” Vietnam, Washington, United, Russia

☆ Vietnam Relied on Environmentalists to Secure Billions. Then It Jailed Them.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The nine nations had announced in December that Vietnam would receive $15.5 billion in grants and loans in exchange for a commitment to renewable energy. Ms. Nhien, 48, never got the chance to see Vietnam present the plan. While two activists have since been released, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights said in September that the “prosecutions and the arbitrary application of restrictive legislation are having a chilling effect” on environmentalists in Vietnam. Activists and academics say that Vietnam appears to be emboldened by its growing importance to the West and has taken the opportunity to clamp down, knowing there will be few repercussions. President Biden visited Vietnam in September, elevating ties to a new strategic relationship that he said would “be a force for prosperity and security in one of the most consequential regions in the world.”

Persons: Nhien, Biden, ” Organizations: Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment, United Nations Locations: United States, Japan, Vietnam, China

Twelve of those newly released were among the roughly 75 people who had been kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7. Ruth is a retired hairdresser and seamstress, according to Kibbutz Nir Oz. Danielle Aloni; Amelia Aloni, 5Danielle Aloni and her daughter Amelia were taken hostage while visiting Ms. Aloni’s sister, Sharon Cunio, a resident of Kibbutz Nir Oz. She was kidnapped from her safe room in Kibbutz Nir Oz after her husband, Sa’id Moshe, was killed during the Hamas assault. Hanna Katzir, 76Ms. Katzir helped oversee child care in Kibbutz Nir Oz for many years, according to a niece, Dalit Katzenellenbogen, who lives in Tel Aviv.

Persons: —, Kibbutz Nir Oz, Keren Munder, Munder, Ruth Munder, Ohad Munder, Ruth, Abraham Munder, Nir Oz, Abraham’s, Roee, Ohad, Abraham, Keren, Danielle Aloni, Amelia Aloni, Amelia, Aloni’s, Sharon Cunio, Sharon, David Cunio, Emma, Yuli, ”, Aloni, Adina Moshe, Moshe, Sa’id Moshe, Naama Ben, Moshe’s, ” Yaffa, Adar, Tamir Adar, Hanna Katzir, Katzir, Katzenellenbogen, Elad Katzir, Rami, Hanna Peri, Peri, Ms, Margalit Moses, Moses, Doron Katz Asher, Raz Asher, Aviv Asher, Katz Asher, Raz, Efrat Katz, Katz, Yoni Asher, Asher, Khan Younis Organizations: Nirim Locations: Tel Aviv, Gaza, Israel, Kfar Saba, Palestinian, Nirim, South Africa, Norway, Mozambique

☆ Israel-Hamas War Indonesia Calls for More Pressure on Israel After Deadly Hospital Attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

Retno Marsudi, the Indonesian foreign minister, in Beijing this week. Indonesia’s foreign minister condemned on Tuesday an attack on a hospital in the Gaza Strip as a “violation of international humanitarian law” and called on other nations to step up pressure on Israel. The attack on the Indonesian Hospital killed at least 12 people and wounded dozens, according to two members of the hospital staff and the Gaza health ministry, which blamed Israel. The strike on the Indonesian Hospital dominated the front pages of the country’s newspapers and news sites on Tuesday. The Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza, was built in response to the Gaza war of 2008.

Persons: Retno Marsudi, ”, Israel, Joko Widodo, Biden, Mr, Rofiul Haq, Reza Aldilla Kurniawan, Farid Zanzabil Al Ayubi, Sarbini Abdul Murad, Basem Naim, Retno, ” Hasya Nindita Organizations: Indonesian Hospital, Emergency, Indonesian, Israel Locations: Beijing, Gaza, Israel, Indonesia, Jakarta, Washington, United States, Beit Lahia, Malaysia

☆ A Dying Anticorruption Crusader Considers His Life’s Own Misdeeds
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

His anticorruption crusade has made him a household name in Thailand, but Chuwit Kamolvisit would be the first to tell you that his own life has been neither admirable nor one others should emulate. A self-professed “super pimp” — and known to others as “the godfather of sex” — Mr. Chuwit, 62, once owned six massage parlors in Bangkok where 2,000 women worked for him. And he got his start as a whistle-blower, some two decades ago, by relying on his insider’s knowledge of bribery schemes. Prostitution is illegal in Thailand, and to get the authorities to look the other way, he says he gave police officers cash delivered in black bags, as well as Rolex watches and free services in his establishments.

Persons: Chuwit, ” — Organizations: Rolex Locations: Thailand, Bangkok

Mr. Joko, who arrived in Washington fresh from a summit in Saudi Arabia where he condemned the war, has been vocal in criticizing Israel’s role. After Mr. Biden welcomed him to the Oval Office by celebrating a “new era of relations between the United States and Indonesia,” Mr. Joko ended his own set of remarks by calling for an end to the conflict. “Indonesia also wishes our partnership contributes to regional and global peace and prosperity,” Mr. Joko said. “So Indonesia appeals to the U.S. to do more to stop the atrocities in Gaza. On Monday, Mr. Biden and other officials called for the protection of hospitals in Gaza from attack.

Persons: Biden, Joko Widodo, Joko, Israel’s, Mr, ” Mr Organizations: White Locations: Indonesia, Gaza, United States, Washington, Saudi Arabia, “ Indonesia

She remains in limbo because divorce — and the possibility of a new marriage and a clean slate in life — is forbidden by her country’s laws. Thousands of people like Ms. Nepomuceno are trapped in long-dead marriages in the Philippines, the only country in the world, other than the Vatican, where divorce remains illegal. Partly because of their growing numbers and plight, attitudes in the country, where nearly 80 percent of the population is Catholic, have changed. Even the president has signaled openness to the idea, and the Philippines is the closest it has ever been to legalizing divorce. The powerful Catholic Church has deemed pro-divorce activism to be “irrational advocacy.” Conservative lawmakers remain steadfast in their opposition.

Persons: Mary Nepomuceno, —, Nepomuceno Organizations: Catholic, Conservative Locations: Philippines

The attacks prompted Israel to launch an intensive bombing campaign against the Gaza Strip, which is governed by Hamas. “I cannot remember a time when Israel’s struggle for security was not at the forefront of my mind,” Mr. Lew said. If confirmed, I will uphold President Biden’s commitment to deny Iran a nuclear weapon.”But his declarations did little to deter Republican senators. Senator John Barrasso, Republican of Wyoming, accused Mr. Lew of acting as the Iranian government’s banker by negotiating deals to release funds in exchange for American prisoners. “Preventing this from becoming a multifront war is hugely important for Israel, for the region, for the world,” he said.

Persons: Jacob J, Lew, Biden’s, Biden, Obama, Jim Risch of, Lew of, Lew’s, —, Chuck Schumer, Israel, Thomas R, Nides, Schumer, “, Mr, ” Mr, fides, Marco Rubio, John Barrasso, Barrasso, ” Organizations: Senate Foreign Relations, Israel, Hamas, Republican, Foreign Relations, Mr, Jewish, Investigations, State Department Locations: Israel, Gaza, Jim Risch of Idaho, Iran, United States, Florida, Oman, Tehran, Wyoming, Iranian, U.S, Saudi Arabia

☆ Biden in Vietnam Biden Visits Hanoi on Mission to Forge Deeper Ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( Katie Rogers | Peter Baker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Mr. Biden’s trip to Hanoi, which includes a news conference scheduled for Sunday, is centered on signing a “comprehensive strategic partnership” with the Vietnamese, a symbolic but significant status long coveted by the United States. Since taking office, Mr. Biden has sought to enhance relations with several Southeast Asian nations because of their tactical value as a bulwark against rising Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific region. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken accompanied Mr. Biden to the presidential palace, where honor guards marched to martial music before the meeting with Mr. Trong began. Earlier on Sunday, Mr. Biden concluded an eventful trip to New Delhi by joining the Group of 20 leaders at the memorial of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the champion of nonviolent struggle. The G20 summit managed to produce a surprise consensus declaration before the end of its first day.

Persons: Biden, Jon, ”, Nguyen Phu Trong, Antony J, Blinken, Mr, Trong, Narendra Modi, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Lee Wee Organizations: Air Force, U.S ., Communist Party of Vietnam, Group Locations: Vietnam, Russia, Hanoi, United States, New Delhi, U.S, China, India, Ukraine

☆ Vietnam and U.S. Forge Deeper Ties as Worries Rise About China
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

During his state visit to Vietnam on Sunday, Mr. Biden is expected to oversee the signing of a “comprehensive strategic partnership” with Hanoi, a symbolic but significant status long coveted by the United States. Vietnam has until now reserved this status for only four countries: China, Russia, India and South Korea. For years, it had resisted granting this distinction to the United States out of fear of offending China. But as Beijing continues to encroach on waters claimed by Vietnam and as the United States looks for more partners to counter China in the Indo-Pacific, the former enemies have found common ground. “Whenever they try to upgrade any significant bilateral relations, they normally tend to do it step by step because of the fear that it may cause some concern, especially from Beijing.”

Persons: Biden, ”, Nguyen Khac Giang, Yusof Organizations: Institute Locations: Vietnam, Washington, Hanoi, United States, China, Russia, India, South Korea, Beijing, Singapore

☆ From Rock Star to Bodyguard to Resisting Myanmar’s Coup in Film
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Long before he became an award-winning filmmaker, Lynn Lynn was already a star. His voice was ubiquitous on the radio, belting out rock songs, and he played sold-out shows in stadiums across the country. But all that fame was confined to Myanmar, a country he had to flee after a February 2021 military coup. He was also close to the country’s now-imprisoned civilian leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, having once served as her bodyguard. Now living in the Thai city of Mae Sot, bordering Myanmar, the 39-year-old rocker has taken on a new identity: refugee.

Persons: Long, Lynn Lynn, selfies, Daw Aung, Suu Kyi Locations: Myanmar, Suu, Thai, Mae Sot

☆ A Global Cyber-Scam Industry Is Booming in Plain Sight in Cambodia
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | More About Sui-Lee Wee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Around the world, reports of cyber-scam schemes targeting unsuspecting victims online have proliferated rapidly. Southeast Asia has become a center of gravity for those criminal syndicates, often in remote and war-torn corners. But in Cambodia, the scam industry has been flourishing well within the reach of officials. Instead, they were forced to work for online scam mills while under intense surveillance in nondescript compounds, part of a multibillion dollar industry that has entrapped victims on both sides. Despite the crackdown and well-documented evidence linking well-known Cambodian officials to the mills, the country has not arrested any major figure.

Organizations: New York Times Locations: Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Cambodian

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