Amid geopolitical tensions, can new Indonesian president Prabowo refresh its ageing military?

By:
On:
In: Asia

Indonesian defense planners are “most concerned about” this multilateral construction, Ridzwan says, “because it has opened up another entry in this fight between great capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region.”

Should a war break out between China and the US, he added,” some of the fighting, if not ( the bulk ) of the fighting, is going to happen within Indonesian waters because of how the positions of the hotspots are based”.

Indonesia was concerned that it” could lead to an arms competition in the region” when Aukus was initially announced in 2021, according to Storey.

Some observers perhaps think Indonesia’s individual defense build-up could be a reason, too, for such an arms race. ” However, there are no symptoms among Indonesia’s present officials that they’re adopting aggressive politics like in the previous”, said Khairul.

Continue Reading

Is politics behind the difficulties of Malaysia’s education reform?

By:
On:
In: Asia

CRITICISM OVER POLICY Swings

The DLP’s apparent reset is not the first for change in policy regarding the language of teaching used in schools.

In 2003, the next PM, Mahathir Mohamad, introduced the use of English for teaching mathematics and science, amid fears about Malay ‘ poor standard of English.

By 2012, the next education minister, Muhyiddin Yassin, abandoned the trial owing to a shortage of teachers qualified to teach in English. Additionally, there was concern that children ‘ understanding of the national language may be hampered by English’s dominance.

With the DLP, this was reversed. Out of around 10, 000 national institutions, a quarter— mainly in Sarawak — have adopted the program. ” Sarawak knows the importance of the DLP”, said Noor Azimah.

However, only 8.4 % of major schools in the island and Sabah offered it in the previous year. ” And in most situations, only one school”, she added. ” To me, that’s a fail on the part of the government”.

Continue Reading

Gen Z Filipinos, the loneliest youths in Southeast Asia, are struggling. This is how and why

By:
On:
In: Asia

Clinical counselor Violeta Bautista claimed that parents who do not travel overseas often leave their children in the provinces to function in cities and then return to see them occasionally.

” I’ve met some younger people who talk about a sense of never being supported, … of longing for network, because they grew up not having kids to link them, to take care of their cultural requirements”.

MENTAL AND PHYSICAL Effects

Loneliness can have a devastating effect. And those affected are getting younger.

” When loneliness gets to be your accompanying experience day in and day out, when it keeps you from studying well, working in the office, if it makes you stay away from social relations to the point ( where ) you find yourself unable to experience satisfaction, … then it’s no longer normal human loneliness”, said Bautista.

” It does move towards major depressive disorder”.

Continue Reading

Thailand ‘getting old before it gets rich’ — is it because children are becoming too expensive?

By:
On:
In: Asia

These aversions are reflected in Thailand’s fertility charge, which stood at 1.08 next year, the next lowest in South- East Asia after Singapore’s 0.97 next year.

Deputy Prime Minister Somsak Thepsutin warned that if the country persisted on this path, its inhabitants may be doubled, from its present 66 million to 33 million, within 60 times.

Thailand will face unheard of problems in the wake of declining fertility rates, a worldwide phenomenon.

HOW THAILAND IS AN Oddity

Thailand currently stands out from its neighbors with comparable levels of development. Places such as Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia have fertility rates close to or hovering around the alternative levels of 2.1 births per woman.

Unfortunately, what laid the foundations for Thailand’s economic expansion could have precipitated its present difficulties.

View:” Kids are also costly”! How Thailand came to be one of the nations with the fastest-aging population ( 47: 07 )?

Continue Reading

As the Gulf builds a post-oil future, this is how its Asian expats are seizing opportunities

By:
On:
In: Asia

“One disadvantage of being part of a running group is that it ’s community-led. There are no taxes; we’re all participants. At the resting place, we’ll share food and other supplies. We help each other and share our experiences, ” he said.

“We promote tips on preventing injury. We suggest nice boots and where to find them for less money. We train for tribes up. We encourage carpooling if there’s place in someone’s vehicles. … It’s truly entertaining. ”

As for Ang, the UAE’s metropolitan hub of activity has allowed him to show his Peranakan personality, which furthermore serves as a marketing tool.

In 2021, he and his family established Rumah Peranakan, a private dinner knowledge. The couple may connect with fellow residents by opening up their kitchen area to visitors from all walks of life and across countries.

“Being Singaporean, particularly Peranakan, we’re quite into meals. … You tell the stories about Peranakans through food, ” he said. “ I get to meet new people, learn new nations from them.

“Importantly, I make new friends. And some of my new acquaintances turn into company. ”

Continue Reading

Faced with overtourism, is Bali becoming a paradise lost?

By:
On:
In: Asia

However, Bali wants to have more customers to make up for lost time, and lost hospitality receipts, when the crisis laid waste to its business. In 2021, just 51 international travellers visited the island, compared with 6.3 million in 2019.

Last season, that amount was near to 5.3 million, exceeding the goal of 4.5 million. This time, Indonesia’s Tourism and Creative Economy Minister, Sandiaga Uno, has raised the standard to seven million, cited Bali tourism key Tjok Bagus Pemayun.

” That’s rather high”, Tjok told the project Insight. ” Finally, we can reach the target because many airlines have added planes to Bali”.

Cement CANGGU

The influx of tourists is not just giving rise to occurrences of misbehaviour, yet. It is putting a burden on tools and tarnishing Bali’s picture because of prevalent development, overcrowding and chaos.

WATCH: Bali’s love- hate relationship with tourism on Indonesian island paradise ( 46: 24 )

Continue Reading

‘We can’t just forget about them’: Pain of loss haunts families of missing MH370 passengers

By:
On:
In: Asia

He woke up in the morning and headed for the airport. When he arrived, her flight information was not displayed. The Malaysia Airlines staff there “didn’t have any information on … what time the flight was coming in” either.

“I was already feeling a bit apprehensive that something had gone wrong. Then I sat there, by which time I was already very emotional because …,” he trailed off.

It has been 10 years since MH370 vanished into thin air. It is still one of the world’s most baffling mysteries after the largest, most expensive search in aviation history.

On board the aircraft were 227 passengers and 12 crew members, from 14 countries. For their family members, the pain of loss persists.

Can they find closure? Will the missing plane ever be found? These questions, and more, are covered in the documentary MH370: A Decade On, which airs tomorrow. (Watch it on CNA at 9pm.)

VARIOUS THEORIES, FRUSTRATION FOR FAMILIES

One of the earliest theories about the missing plane was that it was the work of terrorists, as two Iranian passengers were found to be travelling on stolen European passports.

While this theory was debunked, more conspiracies emerged. One conspiracy suggested the plane had flown towards a restricted American military base on the island of Diego Garcia and was shot down.

Others believe hostile parties had targeted the plane, intent on preventing a cargo of sensitive electronic equipment from reaching its destination.

Aerospace expert Jean-Luc Marchand and pilot Patrick Blelly have since combined their technical and operational backgrounds to try to make sense of the disappearance from the facts available and more accurately depict the events that led up to it.

Continue Reading

On the Thai island of Phuket, sun, sea and Russians making waves

By:
On:
In: Asia

According to the Centre for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-Term Forecasting, a Moscow-based think-tank, Russia saw a record nett outflow of US$239 billion in 2022 alone, four times the outflow in 2021.

In this flight of capital to investment opportunities outside the Russian economy, which has been hobbled by sanctions, Phuket has “emerged as one of the target destinations”, said Phuket Real Estate Association general secretary and vice-president Phattanan Phisutvimol.

“The luxury sector boom is astonishing. About 4,000 units of luxury villas are being developed in Phuket this year, which is a lot, as the number doesn’t include luxury condominiums.”

The top five foreign investors in property on Phuket are the Chinese, Russians, Americans, Germans and other Europeans, he cited. In 2022, Russians were the largest group of foreign buyers in terms of condominium transfers, reported the Bangkok Post.

WATCH: Thailand’s ‘Little Russia’ — Why rich tourists are rushing to buy Phuket’s luxury houses (8:26)

Continue Reading

As both US, China de-risk, this is how India, Indonesia stand to gain

By:
On:
In: Asia

Setting up shop now in Indonesia is BYD, which joins fellow Chinese EV maker Wuling, while US company Tesla continues its investment discussion with the Indonesian government.

In the foreseeable future, nickel could be processed in Indonesia by Chinese companies, then assembled into EV batteries by South Korean and, potentially, Australian firms there, for cars made in Indonesia by American and Chinese manufacturers.

In a world grappling with geopolitical tensions, Jakarta sees such global partnerships as the way forward.

“We should avoid a concentration of the supply chain (in the hands of) one single party. But I think in an effort to diversify the supply chain, … we can’t just say, ‘Oh, I don’t want China,’” said Septian.

“Western countries would be 10 to 15 years behind … Chinese technology in terms of the nickel processing, so we can’t exclude.

“We can have co-operation that’s beneficial and mutual for every party, because … no single country, even no single region, can fulfil all the critical minerals that we need for this energy transition.”

Continue Reading

The China-US factor (and other issues) in Taiwan’s polls, and why it weighs on voters

By:
On:
In: Asia

Wang explains,” This is because Ko is fairly simple. ” From the typical stereotypes of a political character, he’s quite different from other social characteristics.”

The main point is that Ko’s mannerisms and likeability are admired by some young people. ”

Many voters also have private issues on their thoughts, particularly in light of Taiwan’s weak economy. For instance, they are dealing with an increase in the cost of living.

Taiwan’s inflation rate is comparatively low by international standards, but the 2. The island’s price increase of 95 % in 2022 was the highest since 2008. Lately, rates increased by 3. 5 % in October, a 15-month increase.

According to Kristy Hsu, director of the Taiwan Asean Studies Centre at the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research,” the government attempted to manage the price ( of ) public utilities ( as ) the majority of public utility companies are state-owned.”

” For instance, we’ve frozen the price of gas and electricity, which helped stabilize the prices. “”

Continue Reading