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South East Asia
Indonesian democracy challenged by local customs
Indonesia is a vast tropical country of sprawling archipelago with extremely diverse cultures and a demographic make-up of over 300 ethnic groups, and more than 700 living languages spoken. Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world and also has a significant Christian Protestant and Catholic population. Hindus mostly…
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East Asia
Japanese lawmakers visit Yasukuni Shrine amid protests from China
About 160 Japanese lawmakers from a nonpartisan group on Friday morning worshipped the war-linked Yasukuni Shrine during its autumn festival, according to local media. Japanese Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Yoshitaka Shindo also paid a visit to the controversial shrine earlier the day, after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday…
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East Asia
Philippine President Aquino III visits S. Korea to discuss trade, investment
Philippine President Benigno Aquino III begins a two-day state visit to South Korea on Oct 17 to discuss trade, investment and defense cooperation. It wasn’t clear on Wednesday whether the trip would even take place, as President Aquino rushed to the central Philippines to inspect heavy damage from Tuesday’s 7.2-magnitude…
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South East Asia
Clash of values over Bukit Brown, Singapore’s ‘Angkor’
In 1860, the jungles of Cambodia yielded a hidden secret when French naturalist Henri Mouhot stumbled upon the ruins of Angkor Thom. Intriguing wall figures and building architecture had led him to the long-lost Bagon at Kampong Thom in the deep forests of the Tonle Sap Lake, of whose grandeur…
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South East Asia
APEC leaders meet on sustainable growth, regional cooperation
The 21st informal economic leaders’ meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) kicked off here on October 7 in Bali, Indonesia, with sustainable growth and regional cooperation high on the agenda. This year’s APEC gathering, themed “Resilient Asia-Pacific, Engine of Global Growth,” highlights such topics as achieving sustainable growth with…
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South Asia
About 6,000 field candidacies for 240 CA seats in Nepal
Nearly 6,000 candidates from over 100 political parties Thursday fielded their candidacies from 240 constituencies to contest the 2nd Constituent Assembly election slated for November 19 in Nepal. With the nomination of the candidates for the 240 First-Past-The-Post seats of the 601-member Constituent Assembly in a peaceful environment, it is…
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East Asia
Xi Jinping visits Malaysia in China’s charm offensive for southeast Asia
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak met here Friday to discuss bilateral ties and further development of China’s relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). They also had an in-depth exchange of views on other major regional and international issues. After the meeting, the…
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South Asia
Indian, Pakistani PMs meet and agree to take steps to ease Kashmir tensions
The prime ministers of India and Pakistan agreed Sunday they need to stop the recent spate of attacks in the disputed Kashmir region in order for peace talks to advance, a senior Indian official said. They also both accepted invitations to visit each other’s countries, but no dates were set.…
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East Asia
US Defence Secretary Hagel in S. Korea for talks on transfer of military control
Amid escalating threats from North Korea, U.S. and South Korean defense officials will meet over the next few days and discuss whether to extend America’s wartime control over the South’s armed forces, 60 years after a truce ended the Korean War. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel flew to Seoul on Sunday,…
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South East Asia
Security tightened in Bali ahead of APEC Summit on Oct.1~10
Security measures are being ramped up in Bali, including in Buleleng regency, ahead of next month’s Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) Summit, local media reported. A total of 13 vulnerable spots have been identified in Buleleng, including a handful of ports, resulting in a series of cargo ships being searched, The…
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