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West Asia
Five years to stay or leave
The new minister of social affairs is trying to offer solutions for restricting, organizing and controlling the visa trade in Kuwait by limiting the duration of expatriates’ residency in Kuwait to five years. When I first read about it, I thought it was a joke and a waste of time…
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West Asia
A gateway for Syria solution
The Homs truce could be the gateway for a solution in Syria, despite some skepticism expressed by some people as opposition fighters make their way out of the troubled city following the deal brokered under United Nations sponsorship. Most skepticisms are fueled by questions about what is going to happen…
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West Asia
Qatar to end sponsorship system for expat workers – Doha unveils labor reforms but no timetable
DOHA: Qatar, host of the 2022 football World Cup, said yesterday it will abolish its controversial sponsorship system for foreign workers, whose treatment in the energy-rich state has stirred mounting international criticism. FIFA chief Sepp Blatter described the move as a “significant step,” but Amnesty International said it lacked substance…
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West Asia
President renames excellence award; VP says march towards Vision 2021 will continue
The President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has ordered that the Emirates Government Service Excellence Award be renamed the Mohammed bin Rashid Government Excellence Award as a tribute to the outstanding role played by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of…
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West Asia
Yemen’s dire need for WOMENOMICS
In his speech at the 68th session of the U.N. General Assembly, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe talked about many key issues that matter to the world, but what was more interesting for me personally was the interest he showed in empowering women in the economic sector―let’s call it, “womenomics.”…
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West Asia
Saudi Arabia’s desire to hold talks with Iran
Saudi Foreign Affairs Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal made an important announcement Tuesday when he said that he invited his Iranian counterpart and that he is ready to negotiate with him. This announcement signaled a change in Saudi Arabia’s policy toward Iran and came during US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel’s…
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East Asia
Kimono-clad woman at Yushima Tenjin shrine
A kimono-clad woman strolls along a wall enclosure to Yushima Tenjin shrine in Tokyo, Thursday, May 15, 2014. The shrine is devoted to the “god of learning” so many students visit for prayers during the country’s high school and college entrance examinations every February.
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tobechecked
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East Asia
[Asia Round-up] It pays to be cautious about digital cash
The collapse of the bitcoin exchange MtGox tells a lot about both entrepreneurs and cyber buyers. Some US$450 million is said to have been lost from the debacle. The vision of inflation-less currency that can move easily and without cost between sender and receiver is an attractive one. But, one…
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South Asia
Indian man near a railway station
An Indian man stands at the doorway of a train at a railway station in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, May 14, 2014. Indian railway network is one of the world’s largest, with some 14 million passengers daily and some 64,000 kilometers (40,000 miles) of railway track cut through some of…
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