AJA Newsbites is a curated roundup of major news and developments from across Asia, brought to you by members of Asia Journalist Association (AJA)
Lee Sang-ki, THE AsiaN, Korea
Jeon Jae-soo, South Korea’s Minister of Oceans and Fisheries, resigned on the 11th amid allegations that he received cash and luxury gifts from the Unification Church. His departure marks the first resignation of a sitting minister under the Lee Jae-myung administration. Jeon denied all accusations but said he stepped down to avoid placing a burden on the government. The presidential office immediately accepted his resignation.
The controversy has since expanded to two additional high-ranking officials—Unification Minister Jeong Dong-young and National Intelligence Service Director Lee Jong-seok—both of whom firmly deny any involvement. With no concrete evidence of bribery against them so far, the presidential office is expected to respond based on the progress of the investigation. The unfolding inquiry may shape the broader political landscape in the coming weeks.
Norila Daud, Malaysia World News, Malaysia
A total of 20 Malaysians involved in online scam syndicates in Myawaddy, Myanmar, were repatriated on Wednesday with assistance from the Malaysian embassies in Bangkok, Thailand, and Yangon, Myanmar.
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said the group arrived safely at the Bukit Kayu Hitam Immigration, Customs, Quarantine and Security Complex at 7:20 p.m. and was subsequently handed over to the police to assist with further investigations.
According to the statement, the Malaysians were among several foreign nationals rescued by Myanmar authorities during recent operations targeting online scam syndicates in the Myawaddy area.
“With coordination between Myanmar, Thailand, and Malaysia, officials from the Embassy of Malaysia in Bangkok traveled to Myawaddy via the Mae Sot–Myawaddy Second Friendship Bridge to verify their identities and receive the Malaysians. The group was then escorted back to Thailand in close coordination with Thai authorities in Mae Sot, Tak Province, to arrange for their repatriation by land,” the statement said.
The Embassy of Malaysia in Yangon and officials from the Embassy of Malaysia in Bangkok provided comprehensive consular assistance, including notifying family members, issuing temporary travel documents, arranging transportation, supplying essential items such as food and face masks, and accompanying the victims throughout their 26-hour journey from Mae Sot to Bukit Kayu Hitam. The repatriation effort follows earlier operations by the ministry to facilitate the return of Malaysians trapped in job scam syndicates abroad.
Bhanu Ranjan Chakraborty, Asia Journalist Association, Bangladesh
Voting for the 300 seats in Bangladesh’s 13th parliamentary election will be held on 12 February 2026, with a referendum taking place on the same day.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) A A M Nasir Uddin announced the election schedule in a televised address to the nation on the evening of December 11. The last date for filing nominations is December 29, and the CEC stated that the scrutiny of nominations will take place from December 30 to January 4.
This time, the referendum will be held concurrently with the parliamentary election on February 12, marking the third referendum in the country’s history. In his address, the CEC not only highlighted the context of the upcoming election but also discussed the various challenges the Election Commission faces in organizing the vote.
The CEC urged all political parties and candidates to participate and called on voters to go to the polling stations without fear. The total number of registered voters in the country is now about 127.6 million.
Kuban Abdymen, Centralasianlight, Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan’s Constitutional Court has ruled that President Sadyr Japarov’s proposal to reinstate the death penalty for particularly grave crimes, including the rape and murder of children, violates the country’s Constitution. The court reviewed the initiative on 10 December after the president called for capital punishment in response to the widely publicized murder of a 17-year-old girl in the Issyk-Kul region in September.
In its official statement, the court declared that restoring the death penalty through a constitutional amendment is “inadmissible and legally impossible,” stressing that the draft law cannot be submitted to a referendum and that all related procedures must stop immediately. The judges emphasized that human rights and freedoms are the highest constitutional value and that the abolition of capital punishment is a core principle of Kyrgyzstan’s legal system.
The court also underscored the country’s binding international obligations under the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR, which requires the complete and irreversible abolition of the death penalty.
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