Asia - South China Morning Post

Thousands of Indonesian free meals kitchens complained on Tuesday they had ⁠been left in the lurch ⁠by the government’s move to scale ⁠down President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship free meals programme to save money.

Jakarta is considering a potential budget cut of more than US$2 billion with reductions in the number of beneficiaries and kitchen operators.

There are currently nearly 28,000 kitchens ‌and the National Nutrition Agency (NNA) plans to temporarily halt the addition of 13,000 new...

An American marine biologist was shot and killed by three men who barged into his house in the central Philippines over the weekend and efforts were underway to apprehend the suspects, police said on Tuesday.

Police said Kent Carpenter, 73, was with his Filipino companion in a house in the coastal town of Sibulan in Negros Oriental province on Sunday night when three men, whose faces were covered, forced their way in.

One drew a gun and shot Carpenter in the head, killing him instantly, police...

Indonesia’s Ministry of Religious Affairs is drafting educational material aimed at discouraging what officials call the spread of “LGBT culture”, after a presidential regulation listed the issue among the country’s non-military security threats.

Officials said the content, which was still under discussion, could be included in religious education in regular and Islamic schools, as well as Friday prayer sermons, family development programmes and other religious events.

The government has said...

India summoned Iran’s senior diplomat in New Delhi on Tuesday to protest against attacks on two commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz that killed an Indian seafarer and wounded several others.

The Indian foreign ministry said it had summoned the deputy chief of mission of the Iranian embassy in the capital to register “a strong protest” against the attacks reported early on Tuesday.

The two vessels had a total of 46 crew members, including 30 Indians, one of whom has “tragically lost his...

Asia’s economies are once again staring down the barrel of the Strait of Hormuz as the latest breakdown of the US-Iran ceasefire and Washington’s decision to impose a blockade-cum-toll threaten to keep energy costs elevated and shipping flows under strain.

But economists and shipping analysts say the region is better placed to absorb the blow this time round.

Oil prices jumped to a one-month high of US$84.78 a barrel on Tuesday morning as renewed fighting between Iran and the US over control of...

Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s first state visit to Malaysia this week comes amid strengthening ties between the neighbours and a greater willingness on both sides to let go of historical “baggage”, analysts say.

Observers add that the new generation of Southeast Asian leaders also possesses a heightened awareness of mutual needs in an increasingly fragmented world order.

Tharman, who was elected president in 2023 after stepping down as senior minister, is on a state visit to Kuala...

The High Court in Singapore has awarded two cabinet ministers S$230,000 (US$177,860) each in damages following a defamation trial involving financial news outlet Bloomberg and one of its reporters over the officials’ property transactions.

In January last year, K. Shanmugam, the coordinating minister for national security, and Tan See Leng, the manpower chief, filed separate suits against Bloomberg and its reporter Low De Wei over a story titled “Singapore mansion deals are increasingly shrouded...

Rosmah Mansor has slapped Malaysian comedian Harith Iskander with a defamation lawsuit over a stand-up comedy routine that allegedly mocked and insulted her.

Rosmah, the wife of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, filed the writ of summons at the High Court on June 9.

According to her statement of claim, the alleged defamation occurred during Harith’s performance, titled “Harith Iskander: The Outspoken Comedy Tour”, at the Swiss-Garden Hotel in Melaka on January 17.

Rosmah claimed that...

If you have been holding out for cheaper durians, you may not want to wait much longer.

Just weeks after a bumper harvest sent durian prices tumbling across Singapore, sellers said the unusually abundant supply has begun easing since last week as Malaysian state Johor’s durian season winds down.

They believe the days of heavily discounted durians and free giveaways have come to an end.

“The supply is still there, but not much,” Alvin Teoh, owner of popular Geylang fruit shop Durian 36, said.

The...

In the fields of central Luzon, farmers who planted their rice in June are watching the sky with worry.

Out over the Pacific, a familiar spectre is gathering strength – and with it, the threat of empty granaries and hungry households.

The Philippines has a plan for this year’s “super” El Nino, on paper at least. But to the Filipinos out actually working the paddies, that plan is barely perceptible.

“We don’t see anything visible, it’s all talk,” said Raul Montemayor, national manager of the...