• Politics

    [Asia Round-up] Asia accounts for two thirds of modern slavery

    The recently released Global Slavery Index conducted by Walk Free Foundation reveals that there are an estimated 29.8 million people enslaved worldwide. India, China, and Pakistan enslave the highest number of people while Mauritania has the highest prevalence. Out of 22 million people enslaved in the index’s top 10 countries,…

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  • East Asia

    A Tibetan craftman paints a piece of traditional Buddhist Regong art

    A Tibetan craftsman works on a piece of Thangka painting in Tongren County, Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Huangnan, northwest China’s Qinghai Province, Dec. 17, 2013. Huangnan Prefecture is the hometown of Regong arts, which includes Thangka, murals, paintings and other Tibetan Buddhist art forms. The revenue of Regong arts industry…

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  • South Asia

    Makli: Withering necropolis of Sindh

    Maintenance of world heritage sites is an international issue. A great part of history is in danger if we do not make effort to preserve it, even if not in its original form. This is especially true for Pakistan, where there are more important issues economically as well as socio-politically.…

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  • Politics

    Sri Lanka will never sell women to boost tourism

    Commercial sex would never be legalised and Sri Lanka would not sell its women for the sake of promoting tourism, the government says. According to rough estimates, there are about 40,000 sex workers in Sri Lanka. Among the campaigns conducted by the government is to increase awareness on abortions and…

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  • Politics

    [Asia Round-up] Diapers form 12.14% of waste in Malaysia

    Adult and baby diapers now 12.14% of waste in Malaysia Diapers formed 12.14 per cent of the total waste disposed in Malaysia. This shows that Malaysia has an ageing population as more senior citizens are using diapers. This fact stressed the importance of using more environmental-friendly and cost-effective technology such…

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  • West Asia

    How does friendship make our life sweet?

    The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile nor the joy of companionship; it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him. -Ralph Waldo Emerson Friends are an important part…

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  • East Asia

    Mastery of silence and subtle violence

    A review of Stoker directed by Park Chan-wook If we take a look at the world cinema, each country’s has a different trait that defines the industry. It is a whole different set of aesthetics which appeal to the local audience, and often times, to a global audience as well.…

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  • East Asia

    [Books] Meet Malala

    I Am Malala The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban By Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb | Little, Brown and Company | 2013 Malala Yousafzai, the brave Pakistani girl who stood up for education and was shot in the head by the Taliban, writes…

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  • Culture

    Growth vs. Participatory Growth

    [BOOKS] Growth vs. Participatory Growth     An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions By Jean Drèze, Amartya Sen | Princeton University Press | 2013 Two of India’s leading economists, Jean Drèze and Amartya Sen bring to light the neglected, dismal side of India that is not only overlooked in…

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  • South East Asia

    Musings for Miss World 2013

    Miss World 2013, Miss Philippines! The announcement echoed like a giant wave towards me, while I gazed transfixed in front of the TV. It was the Miss World Pageant beamed live from Bali, Indonesia last September 28, 2013. Screaming my heart out, I felt like I was the one sashaying…

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