Asia - South China Morning Post

The world’s largest water fight erupted across Bangkok on Monday as the three-day annual Songkran festival drew a surge in tourists to a country whose bruised economy badly needed a reason to celebrate.

Thailand has refused to let a fuel crisis triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran dampen its traditional New Year’s celebrations, even as prices spike for everything from petrol to ice during the hottest month of the year.

The water festival – also known as Thingyan in neighbouring Myanmar and...

There is no necessity to introduce the death penalty into the Road Transport Act 1987 for driving under the influence, according to Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke.

Loke said existing laws were sufficient to prosecute serious offences and that offenders could still be charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder, where applicable.

“As far as the government is concerned, we have already stopped mandatory death penalties,” he told reporters on Monday after a road safety...

In South Korea’s capital, more than one in three people live alone, creating headaches when it comes time to visit hospital or simply move home.

But Seoul has a solution: a “companion service” that dispatches helpers to assist solo residents with tasks that are hard to manage without a second pair of hands.

On Sunday, the city’s government announced that the programme, which began more than four years ago as a hospital escort service, would soon be expanded to cover moving day logistics and...

Australia has pledged A$2.5 million (US$1.7 million) in aid to Pacific neighbours Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, after tropical cyclone Maila caused devastating floods and landslides that killed 11.

Australia stood “shoulder to shoulder” with its neighbours, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Sunday, pledging A$1 million for Papua New Guinea and A$1.5 million for the Solomon Islands, where severe impacts have been felt in remote communities across Western and Choiseul...

Australia said on Monday that a woman would lead ⁠its army for ⁠the first time in history, ⁠as part of a reshuffle of the country’s defence force leadership.

Lieutenant General Susan Coyle, the current chief of joint capabilities, will become chief of army in July, the government said in a statement. She ‌will replace Lieutenant General Simon Stuart.

Coyle’s appointment comes as Australia’s military seeks to boost the number of female officers in its ranks. It faces a wave of allegations of...

Malaysia’s Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said ⁠it detained ⁠two tankers for allegedly conducting ⁠an illegal ship-to-ship transfer of about 700,000 litres (185,000 gallons) of diesel off the island of Penang over the weekend.

Malaysia has been cracking down on fuel smuggling amid mounting shortages and ‌supply disruptions throughout the region caused by the war in the Middle East.

Penang MMEA director Muhammad Suffi Mohd Ramli said authorities carried out checks following an intelligence...

Some foreign residents in South Korea will be eligible for government cash handouts, ranging from 100,000 won (US$67) to 600,000 won, to be distributed later in April under a supplementary budget aimed at offsetting high fuel costs amid the prolonged Middle East conflict.

Non-South Korean nationals were in principle excluded from the subsidy programme, but exceptions would be made for those deemed to have “close ties” to citizens, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety said on Sunday.

Foreign...

Japan and Nato are drawing closer together, with 30 representatives from the transatlantic security alliance’s member states set to visit Tokyo this month amid mounting concern over Washington’s reliability as a security partner.

The Nato envoys will reportedly hold talks on China’s expanding regional influence, Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and the implications of a more volatile global security order, according to Japanese public broadcaster NHK.

“A delegation of this size underlines just...

No Ethiopian, Pakistani, Indian, Brazilian or other serious policymaker believes artificial intelligence will solve corruption or improve governance overnight. National policies such as Digital Ethiopia 2030, Pakistan’s National AI Policy 2025 or other initiatives in Chile, Argentina and Colombia consider AI as a means to enhance service delivery in healthcare, education, agriculture, taxation and disaster management, rather than as institutional reform.

These are practical applications....

Hong Kong and Singapore routinely top global rankings of unaffordable cities. Yet it is the residents of Manila, Colombo and Yangon who are far more likely to tell pollsters they cannot afford shelter.

The Philippines recorded the world’s highest share of people reporting difficulty affording housing in a new survey from US-based firm Gallup, with 55 per cent saying they had struggled to pay for shelter in the past 12 months.

Sri Lanka followed at 54 per cent, Myanmar at 49 per cent and Thailand...