Asia - South China Morning Post

A spiritual medium who sexually assaulted a teenage girl under the pretext of giving her one-to-one wushu lessons in Singapore was sentenced to nine years and four months’ jail on Wednesday.

Tan Beng Kwee, 63, had earlier been convicted of sexual offences against the victim, who was then between 14 and 15 years old.

The charges are one count of attempted sexual penetration of a minor under 16, one count of sexual penetration of a minor under 16 and one count of procuring an indecent act from a...

A multibillion-dollar contract signed by Seoul this week to supply arms to Poland has underscored the strength of South Korea’s defence industry.

Observers, however, warn that a growing global trend involving bloc-based arms trade could cast a shadow over the country’s future as a major weapons exporter.

The consortium of Hanwha Aerospace and Hanwha-WB Advanced System (HWB) on Monday signed a 5.6 trillion-won (US$4 billion) contract with Poland’s arms procurement agency, the Polish Armament...

Auckland was the first major city to ring in 2026 with a fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, followed by a defiant celebration in Australia in the aftermath of a horrific mass shooting.

South Pacific countries were the first to bid farewell to 2025.

Clocks struck midnight in Auckland 18 hours before the famous ball drop in New York’s Times Square. The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks.

Australia’s east coast welcomed 2026 two hours after New...

Nearly 60 women lawmakers in Japan, including Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, have submitted a petition calling for more toilets in the parliament building to match their improved representation.

Although the number of women politicians rose at the last election and despite Takaichi becoming the first female prime minister in October, Japanese politics remains massively male-dominated.

This is reflected by there being only one lavatory containing two cubicles near the Diet’s main plenary session...

The Philippines is adding a dash of star power to next year’s Asean summit by tapping Filipino-American singer Jessica Sanchez, and one famous fan of hers is said to be looking forward to her performance: Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

While meeting with Sanchez on Tuesday in Manila, President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr said that he had invited the America’s Got Talent season 20 winner to the bloc’s May diplomatic gathering in Cebu.

Speaking during the meeting, first lady Liza Marcos said...

Thailand on Wednesday released 18 Cambodian soldiers held for five months as prisoners of war, days after a fresh truce between the nations ended weeks of deadly fighting along their contested frontier.

A decades-old border dispute between the Southeast Asian neighbours erupted into military clashes several times this year, with the latest round of fighting in December killing dozens of people and displacing more than a million.

Some of the 18 soldiers, with closely cropped hair, smiled, waved...

The resignation of a second commissioner from a Philippine presidential fact-finding body investigating alleged corruption in flood control projects has left the panel with only its chair, raising fresh doubts about the state’s ability to hold powerful interests to account amid the sprawling scandal.

The exits come as the investigation has become a focal point of public anger over billions of pesos spent on poorly constructed or non-existent flood control infrastructure that critics say failed...

The death of Bangladesh’s three-time former prime minister Khaleda Zia just days after her son Tarique Rahman returned from a 17-year exile has created a groundswell of sympathy for the family, with analysts saying Zia’s legacy may tilt the country’s February election in favour of her party.

With the polls set to be the first since student-led protests toppled the government of Zia’s long-time rival, Sheikh Hasina, and the Awami League barred from contesting, analysts said Zia’s death on Tuesday...

What began as an overseas job opportunity turned into a year-long nightmare for a 26-year-old Malaysian who was forced to work for an online scam syndicate in Myawaddy, Myanmar.

The victim, who wanted to be known only as Chew, said he was among 31 Malaysians safely repatriated on December 20 after being rescued from a scam compound during a security raid by Myanmar authorities.

Chew, who works as a ground staff member for an airline company at Singapore’s Changi Airport, said his ordeal began on...

Smoke from charcoal grills hangs over rows of food stalls as vendors at a Kuala Lumpur mall skewer lamb and pull long strands of noodles by hand, with the smell of cumin and chilli filling the evening air.

At an outdoor area of 1 Utama Shopping Mall, dishes from China’s Muslim heartlands – Lanzhou beef noodles, Xinjiang lamb skewers, hand-grabbed lamb and others – are drawing steady crowds at a Chinese Muslim food festival, now in its third year.

The growing popularity of the festival is a sign...