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Asia Times

Covering geo-political news and current affairs across Asia Asia Times is a pan-Asia online news platform covering politics, economics, business and security from an Asian perspective. It is one of the fastest-growing news sites in the world

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Makepeace Sitlhou

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randy mulyanto

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Abhinash Das

Welcome! My name is Abhinash Das and I am from India. I am a blogger and reseaecher in Global Voices. I am passionate about journalism, endangered languages and digital documentation.

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Elena Owyong

Singapore-based content strategist and copywriter with more than a decade's experience crafting engaging content to help companies achieve their business objectives. Services: content strategy, content creation for annual reports, books, …

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Chris Fitzgerald

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Martin Mulcahey

Fueling a passion for learning through writing.

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Latest Articles

Western hypocrisy gives Taliban a free hand to abuse women - Asia Times

The world came together last week to condemn the Taliban’s repressive policies against Afghanistan’s women and girls, making it clear that the one-time insurgent group’s actions are not just barbaric but criminal. The United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly for a resolution that expressed “deep concern” over Afghanistan’s dire human …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Taliban making steady gains toward global legitimacy - Asia Times

The Taliban’s quest for legitimacy is gaining momentum after Pakistan upgraded diplomatic ties last month, promoting its charge d’affaires in Kabul to the rank of ambassador and accepting the Taliban’s counterpart in Islamabad. At the time, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said the Pakistan-Afghanistan relationship was …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Politics behind Duterte's bombshell arrest in the Philippines - Asia Times

Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was arrested at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Tuesday (March 11) morning, after the government received the official warrant for his arrest by the International Criminal Court. The bombshell arrest comes after months of rumors the ICC was about to move on Duterte, despite …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Taliban's 'gender apartheid' could be its undoing - Asia Times

Last week, the Taliban announced it was withdrawing from the International Criminal Court (ICC), rejecting the court’s authority and accusing it of political bias.In a public statement, the Taliban claimed it had no obligation to the ICC because it was incompatible with the regime’s interpretation of Islam, and that it …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Taliban 2.0 losing its grip on Afghanistan - Asia Times

Afghanistan’s Taliban faces growing opposition to its three-year post-conflict rule, rising threats that are gnawing at the stability the one-time insurgent group has sought to impose on the nation.The Islamist regime appeared to be riding high just recently in celebrating the third anniversary of its second time in power with …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

ICC hands Marcos Jr a ready way to dispose of Duterte - Asia Times

The wheels have turned slowly, but international justice is finally apparently coming for former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte for his alleged lead role in rights abuses and crimes against humanity perpetrated during the previous government’s deadly war on drugs campaign.Duterte has repeatedly denied any culpability for the killing spree that …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Taliban weaker than they look after 3 years in power - Asia Times

It has been three years since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan and the group is flying high, facing no legitimate challenge to its rule and courted by much of the international community. The Taliban’s confidence was on full show celebrating the anniversary with a military parade that included fighter …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Nothing bloodless about Marcos Jr's drug war - Asia Times

As Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr enters his third year in office, the country’s infamous “war on drugs” shows no sign of ending. The extrajudicial killings have continued despite several promises from the president and his administration, including a 2022 election promise that he would take a more holistic approach …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Will new police chief end Philippines war on drugs?

The President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., named Major General Rommel Francisco Marbil as the country’s new police chief last week. Marbil replaces General Benjamin Acorda Jr., who retired at the start of April, only three months after his term had been extended by the president. The appointment has …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Taliban’s latest attempt to punish women could backfire

The Taliban have brought in the new year by stepping up their campaign against women and girls in Afghanistan. Having already banned women from education and employment, the regime is now targeting women on the streets for their appearance. This is a dangerous new phase in the Taliban’s attempts to …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Human rights at stake in Indonesia’s presidential election

Indonesia, the world’s third-largest democracy, will go to the polls next month. The country’s 200 million voters, and 1.75 million members of the Indonesian diaspora, will vote to elect a new president and vice-president. The stakes are high. President Joko Widodo will leave office with a flawed but positive legacy …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Ressa acquittal signals revived respect for Filipinos’ rights

This week’s acquittal of Maria Ressa is the latest in a string of court decisions suggesting that the Philippine judicial system is starting to back human rights in defiance of the government. This comes at a pivotal time, with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr accused of attacking press freedom and continuing …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Outside world doing too little to rescue Afghans’ human rights

Now well into their second stint in power as the rulers of Afghanistan, the Taliban continue to attack the fundamental human rights of Afghans. Afghanistan’s supreme leader, Haibatullah Akhundzada, has publicly ordered judges to fully enforce Islamic law. This reportedly includes public executions, stonings and the amputation of limbs for …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Revisionist Marcos regime a danger to Philippine democracy

The Marcos family is back in power after 36 years. Its return is a dangerous moment for democracy in the Philippines. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr was elected in a landslide victory in May, gathering more than 30.8 million votes and winning almost 60% of the vote. This was the Philippines’ …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Taliban statement on women’s rights calls for caution

The Afghan Taliban’s apparent decision to allow women and girls a right to go to school and work is a positive development. But it should be welcomed cautiously by the international community until there is evidence of meaningful change. After all, the Taliban have made such promises before. Taliban officials …
By Chris Fitzgerald
• Asia Times

Vietnam’s multi-pronged battle against climate change

The outlook for Vietnam’s drive toward climate-change adaptation initiatives are being tested in Hanoi, as the government mulls over plans to rebalance the energy mix between renewables and coal-fired electricity plants. Despite the emerging role of civil society, disagreements on the 10-year Power Development Plan drafts are impeding clean-energy development …
By James Borton
• Asia Times

No consequences for political misdeeds

One of the more fascinating things about Donald Trump’s tenure in the White House is that those four years of outrage, tumult, and perpetual prevarication made us forget just how awful the previous Republican administration had been. While the media was busy amplifying and kvetching over Trump’s non-stop effrontery, the …
By Chris Tharp
• Asia Times

Muslim feminists in India, Sri Lanka push for divorce rights

Laws on divorce vary in different countries, intimately bound with women’s rights and access to justice. In many countries where Muslim communities are the minority, there is gaping inequality between men and women in their access to divorce and release from marriage. “These discriminatory divorce laws don’t come from the …
By Fatima Qureshi
• Asia Times