Asia - South China Morning Post

Campaigning for Thailand’s February 8 general election has begun with a frenetic three-way battle defined by corruption allegations, a tense border conflict with Cambodia and the emergence of a new frontman for the once all-conquering Shinawatra political dynasty.

But the caravans of politicians criss-crossing the nation and blitzing social media have so far failed to inspire a public, which has seen its electoral choices repeatedly nullified by courts and coups, as conservatives find ways to...

As the Philippines counts down to the new year, authorities are bracing themselves for another familiar increase in injuries and deaths linked to fireworks, despite decades of regulation, annual warnings and stepped-up police raids.

Health officials say dozens of people have already been hurt in the run-up to December 31, with more casualties expected as Filipinos usher in the new year with explosive celebrations that light up streets, backyards and skylines across the country.

The Department of...

Bangladesh’s three-time prime minister Khaleda Zia, who hoped to lead her nation one last time after the election next year, died on Tuesday aged 80, her party said.

The government declared three days of state mourning, with her funeral to be held on Wednesday.

Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia vowed in November to campaign in the election set for February – the first vote since a mass uprising toppled her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina last year.

Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party...

The ringgit’s surge to a five-year high against the US dollar is prompting Malaysians, especially travellers, to exchange the currency early, keeping money changers busy despite the usual post-festive lull.

“We had expected the crowd to decline this week, but it is still at around 70 per cent,” Malaysian Association of Money Services Business president Jajakhan Kader Gani said.

He said the ringgit’s current level of around 4.04 against the US dollar is among the strongest in recent years,...

Long-rumoured allegations surrounding South Korea’s former first lady, Kim Keon-hee, were laid out in unprecedented detail after a special prosecutor concluded a six-month investigation into her conduct, offering official clarity but leaving key questions unresolved.

The findings, presented to the public on Monday, offered the clearest official account yet of claims that Kim, the wife of ousted former president Yoon Suk-yeol, abused her proximity to power – from accepting luxury gifts to...

Myanmar’s dominant pro-military party claimed an overwhelming victory in the first phase of the elections, a senior party official said, after democracy watchdogs warned the junta-run poll would entrench military rule.

The armed forces snatched power in a 2021 coup, but on Sunday opened voting in a phased month-long election they pledge will return power to the people.

“We won 82 lower house seats in townships which have finished counting, out of the total of 102,” a senior member of the Union...

Malaysia’s anti-corruption agency said on Monday that it has raided ‌several firms alleged to be involved in bribery ‍linked to army procurement projects, days after the country’s army chief was placed on leave pending an investigation into the matter.

Azam Baki, chief commissioner ⁠of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), said the agency had also frozen six bank accounts belonging to a suspect and their family members as part of the probe.

He did not provide ‍details about the...

Bondi Beach shooting hero Ahmed al Ahmed recalled the moment he ran towards one of the attackers and wrestled the gun from him, saying in an interview published on Monday with a US outlet he wanted to protect “innocent people”.

Father and son Sajid and Naveed Akram are accused of targeting a Hanukkah event on Sydney’s Bondi Beach on December 14, killing 15 people and wounding dozens in what authorities have described as an antisemitic terrorist attack.

Despite the tragedy, tales of heroism...

The recent homecoming of Tarique Rahman, the de facto leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and heir to one of the country’s most powerful political families, is widely expected to reshape the political trajectory ahead of February’s national election.

Analysts say his return after 17 years in exile could consolidate the BNP’s position as the dominant electoral force, while tempering a volatile political climate unsettled by unrest and tensions with India following the overthrow of...

In a library in the Philippines, dice rattle on the surface of a board before coming to a stop, putting one of its players straight into the path of a powerful typhoon.

The teenagers huddled around the table leap into action, shouting instructions and acting out the correct strategies for just one of the potential catastrophes laid out in the board game called Master of Disaster.

With fewer than half of Filipinos estimated to have undertaken disaster drills or to own a first aid kit, the game...