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South Asia
Media in Pakistan – A Slippery Road
By Nasir Aijaz The AsiaN Representative Islamabad: Freedom of Press in Pakistan had always been a hot topic to discuss but on February 4, 2021, certain stunning remarks by Justice Qazi Faez Isa, a judge of Pakistan’s Supreme Court, unleashed the debate afresh when he criticized the state of media…
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Culture
FOUR SPACES: Poems from Asia, Africa and Europe
By editors CAIRO: The Silk Road Literature Series has recently published a poetic anthology written by four poets: Eva Petropoylou Lianoy (Greece), Mbizo Chirasha (Zimbabwe), Santosh Kumar Pokharel (Nepal) and Ashraf Aboul-Yazid (Egypt). Entitled “Four Spaces”, the anthology joins series in its digital form, following the printed version in paper.…
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Society
Noisy neighbors a growing headache for South Koreans who stay home amid pandemic
SEOUL: Annoying neighbors are a universal issue. But in South Korea, where 80 percent of all homes are apartments or villas, where several families live in individual flats in a shared building, having a noisy neighbor can be more painful than you think. For Kim Ha-jung, things began when…
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Culture
Parinirvana of Kyabjé Tsikey Chokling Rinpoche
By Pemba Sherpa KATHMANDU: Kyabje Tsikey Chokling Mingyur Dewey Dorje, Rinpoche born in 1953 in Eastern Tibet as the second son of Kyabje Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche who was recognized and enthroned as the 4th authentic incarnation of the great 19th century treasure revealer, Terchen Chokgyur Dechen Shikpo Lingpa by His Holiness…
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Culture
BTS earns five nominations for 2021 Korean Music Awards
SEOUL: Superstar BTS has earned five nominations for the 2021 Korean Music Awards with its record-breaking albums and songs released last year. BTS has been named in the Musician of the Year, the Album of the Year, the Song of the Year, the Best Pop Album and the Best Pop…
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Society
South Korea to include unmarried couples in family definition
SEOUL: The South Korean government is seeking to change the legal definition of family to embrace increasingly diverse family models, including unmarried couples cohabiting, the family affairs ministry said Tuesday. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on Monday announced its basic policy plan for 2021-2025 to recognize unconventional types…
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Culture
In Malaysia, Cheng, Azizah connect through Chinese calligraphy
KULAI: Chinese New Year is a busy period for Chinese calligrapher, Cheng Ho Chung, 83, because there will be numerous orders for couplets and such with wishes for success, health and wealth. But this time he has Azizah Mokhsan, 38, to help him fulfil the hundreds of orders. Cheng…
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Culture
The Hill We Climb: Amanda Gorman’s poem at the inauguration of Joe Biden highlights unity
WASHINGTON: Amanda Gorman became the youngest person to deliver a poem at a U.S. presidential inauguration, with the 22-year-old reciting her poem “The Hill We Climb” after Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were sworn in as president and vice president. The writer and performer, who became the country’s first National…
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Culture
Unesco culture heritage honour for Singapore hawkers
By Ivan Lim Former AJA President, Contributor to AsiaN SINGAPORE: For India it is yoga, Thailand it is traditional massage, and South Korea it is kimjang, or the art of kimchi making and sharing. In the city-state’s case, the Unesco honour has to do with its hawker culture finding a place…
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Society
K-pop celebs a growing force for tourism in pandemic-hit South Korea
SEOUL: On a chilly January afternoon, four young men are at a white and wooden kitchen studio set up at a traditional Korean house, cooking up a street-meets-royal Korean dish. They are Woobin, Hyeongjun, Seongmin and Allen — members of nine-piece rookie boy band Cravity — who are making gungjung…
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