Current Affairs

Today India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi begins a three-day visit to China. He is expected to meet top Chinese officials and business leaders in Beijing, Shanghai and Xian in an attempt to attract more investment for manufacturing and infrastructure. Reports note that bilateral trade is reported around RM250 billion. He is said to be trying to forge a closer bond with President Xi Jinping, who visited China in September last year. Are the two Asian giants friends or rivals?

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Even with the negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement expected to be concluded soon, it is dogged by another controversy. This has added pressure on the talks, now seemingly stymied by the failure of the US President to get a Fast Track facility from Congress. The controversy involves a seemingly innocuous provision known as the certification process which equips the US Congress and industries with extra leverage over member countries when it comes to enforcement of the TPP agreement. We explore the use of certification provision and its legal ramifications for member countries.

This is a report by Sherilyn Goh.

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Indonesian activists have for decades called for their government to address human rights abuses in the province which has a small but resilient secessionist movement. With the recent election of President Jokowi Widodo pressure has mounted on Indonesian  to open up the West Papua province to the media amidst years of reported human rights violations. We explore the reasons behind the isolation of the resource rich region.

This is a report by Sharyl Kaur and Melanie Abraham

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Today was to be one of several deadlines for the Federal and Selangor governments to finalise the agreement to restructure the state's water industry. There has been no information revealed regarding the terms and conditions of the deal, which has been at a stalemate. This time Selangor is facing the possibility of another water crisis but with serious long term effects.

This is a report by Nadiah Aziz.

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On Tuesday, Thai authorities discovered five graves in a remote southern jungle not far from the border of our two countries. The graves were believed to contain corpses of ethnic Rohingyas from Myanmar, who were victims of human trafficking. The suspected ringleader of the labour smuggling network, a Myanmar national, as well as Thai officials have been arrested while over 50 policemen reprimanded over suspected links to the illegal trade. But what has happened on our side of the border especially since allegations surfaced that trafficking victims were being sold to Malaysian farmers? We explore.

This is a report by Wong Yu Han.

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Yesterday’s Barisan Nasional victory in the Rompin by-election is still giving pause for UMNO because it was obtained with a reduced majority. While UMNO Deputy President calls for a post-mortem, another leading figure is already defending the party President from suggestions that attacks by Tun Dr Mahathir have gained traction in this rural stronghold. And will tomorrow’s by-election in Permatang Pauh, where Pakatan Rakyat is the incumbent, also give the leading players there a pyrrhic victory? We explore.

This is a report by Sharaad Kuttan.

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The massive earthquake which hit Nepal on April 25th, has killed thousands and caused immense infrastructural and economic damage to the landlocked South Asian nation. The quake was however not unexpected as scientists have identified the Himalayas as one of the world’s hot zones for earthquake risk, due to its high tectonic activity, large human population and poor building construction standards. The question that needs to be asked is could the government and people could have been better prepared.

This is a report by Jason Lim and Melanie Abraham.

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Last week, former employees of British American Tobacco were charged for picketing against their employers over allegedly unfair dismissal. And it has been almost a year into the Railway Union workers' protest which saw KTMB going on a sacking spree. So just how does our relatively competitive economy rank in terms of labor practices? In conjunction with Labour Day, we take a closer look at the country's trade union movement, the practice of union busting in industries and the issue of fundamental worker rights.

This is a report by Aziff Azuddin and Sherilyn Goh. 

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Last Saturday a civil society group calling itself the Association of Peace, Conscience and Reason held a forum discussing the constitutional democracy in Malaysia. The dialogue titled “G25: Upholding the Principles of the Federal Constitution” saw an array of issues raised by participants, which included calls for greater autonomy for state governments, as well as the recent controversy over hudud laws.

This is a report by Wong Yu Han.

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Despite the Malaysian football team's recent slump in the FIFA rankings, the players' market in the sport had never been hotter. With players paid up to RM80,000 per month, we ask if Malaysian footballer salaries in the domestic league are commensurate with their performance. We also look at how the dynamics set in the domestic league might impact the progress of the national team.

This is a report by Shawn Tanis.

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