Asia – The Singapore Post

India bank is required to provide donor and beneficiary details for electoral bonds.

18Mar

By Yusara AskariNo Comments

India bank is required to provide donor and beneficiary details for electoral bonds.

India’s Supreme Court has ordered the State Bank of India (SBI) to submit all the details of electoral bonds, including the unique codes linking donors to political parties, just a month before the country’s general election. The seven-year-old election funding system, called “electoral bonds”, allowed individuals and companies in India to donate money to political parties anonymously and without any limits. In its order on Monday, the Supreme Court gave the SBI until Thursday to provide the Election Commission of India with the unique identification numbers of the bonds, so as to allow donors to be matched with recipients. “You have to disclose all details … we must have finality to it,” Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said. Last week, the commission made public some data on don

18Mar

By Nectar GanNo Comments

Asia, World

Pakistan’s election did not bring political stability back; rather, it increased polarization. US specialist

United Nations/Islamabad, Mar 18 (PTI) A leading US expert in South Asian affairs has emphasised that the recent election in Pakistan did not restore political stability but instead resulted in the rise of polarisation in the cash-strapped country. A seminar on the political situation in Pakistan was organised at the United Nations last week by the Muslim American Leadership Alliance, the Dawn newspaper reported on Monday. During the post-seminar media session, Michael Kugelman, a leading expert in South Asian affairs associated with the prominent Washington-based think tank Wilson Centre, provided his insights on the political situation in Pakistan. Following the February 8 election marred by allegations of vote rigging, the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) headed by

<strong>Muizzu’s legacy will be negative for Maldives</strong>

17Mar

By Grace TsoiNo Comments

Asia

Muizzu’s legacy will be negative for Maldives

It is ironic that former President of the Maldives Mohammed Nasheed is apologising for the actions of the incumbent Muizzu administration that too on behalf of the Maldivian people. Maldives' former president Mohammed Nasheed has said the “people of Maldives are sorry” for the anti-India narrative in the country and urged President Mohamed Muizzu to “put a stop” to anti-India discussions under his government. Voicing his concerns over the impact of India's boycott on Maldives and its economy, Nasheed urged Indian tourists to continue to visit the island nation. The Nasheed statement comes President Muizzu shifted blame onto the previous Solih administration, accusing them of treacherously “selling off” Maldivian maritime territory to Mauritius. Asserting Maldives’ rightful ownership of th

<strong><u>Terror stalks Hindu community in Sindh</u></strong>

12Mar

By Stuart WhiteNo Comments

Asia

Terror stalks Hindu community in Sindh

In Sindh, Pakistan, Hindu community lives under constant fear of being accused of blasphemy by radical Muslims and extremist groups like Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), all of which enjoy patronage from the Islamic state. Even for those who have been discharged by the court for being wrongly accused of blasphemy, there is constant danger of being lynched. Take the case of Notan Lal, Principal of a private school and a resident of Ghotki, Sindh. In 2019, some of his students accused him of blasphemy. It was not an ordinary accusation--the charges would lead to life imprisonment or even a death sentence under the most heinous penal clauses in the world. Pakistan, over the years, has made the law against blasphemy so retrogressive that more often than not people charge others, especi...

The once-powerful Hong Kong film industry struggles with shifting political and commercial realities.

10Mar

By Nectar GanNo Comments

Asia, World

The once-powerful Hong Kong film industry struggles with shifting political and commercial realities.

As Filmart gets underway, Hong Kong’s major production companies, including Edko Films, Emperor Motion Pictures (EMP), Media Asia, One Cool Group and Universe Entertainment, will be unveiling their new titles in enormous booths at the front of the trade show floor, some of which will be as elaborate as film sets. Many of the films they are launching are big-budget Hong Kong-China co-productions, featuring top Hong Kong stars and directors, and aimed at audiences in both China and Hong Kong. EMP has Derek Kwok’s Raging Havoc, starring Andy Lau and Nicholas Tse; Mandarin Motion Pictures has The Prosecutor, starring and directed by Donnie Yen; and Media Asia is launching four new titles headed by Behind The Scene, produced by Infernal Affairs director Andrew Lau. One Cool’s slate includes

<strong>The Disastrous Legacy of President Muizzu’s Administration in the Maldives</strong>

8Mar

By Nectar GanNo Comments

Asia

The Disastrous Legacy of President Muizzu’s Administration in the Maldives

Amidst the fallout of the International Tribunal on Law of the Sea's ruling, President Muizzu swiftly shifted blame onto the previous administration, vehemently accusing them of treacherously "selling off" Maldivian maritime territory to Mauritius. Asserting Maldives' rightful ownership of the entire 95,563 square kilometers, Muizzu launched into nationalist rhetoric promising the reclamation of what was purportedly 'lost'.[1] However, despite holding the reins of power for months, Muizzu's administration has conspicuously failed to take any meaningful steps towards recovering this allegedly forfeited Maldivian territory. This glaring inaction casts a dark shadow over Muizzu's leadership, raising serious doubts about his dedication to safeguarding the nation's sovereignty and territorial ...

Why is the PTI of Pakistan battling for parliamentary reserved seats?

7Mar

By zadminNo Comments

Asia, World

Why is the PTI of Pakistan battling for parliamentary reserved seats?

Islamabad, Pakistan — It is the latest setback for former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party. On Monday, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) declared that the PTI-backed Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) could not claim allocated reserved seats in the national and provincial assemblies. PTI, unable to contest recent elections due to a ban on their electoral symbol, instructed its candidates to join the right-wing fringe religious party in order to extend their numerical strength in the National Assembly. In its 22-page judgment issued on Monday, the five-member electoral body decided 4-1 that the SIC failed to submit a party list for reserved candidates before the ECP’s deadline of February 22, two weeks after the February 8 election. Pak

Pakistan’s Generals Are Unable to Stuff the Results

7Mar

By Yusara AskariNo Comments

Asia, World

Pakistan’s Generals Are Unable to Stuff the Results

akistan’s worst-kept secret is that its military dominates its government. Whether to safeguard the nation against chaos or to protect their own privileged access to power and wealth, its generals have manipulated the country’s politics for decades. Pakistan’s voters, like voters elsewhere, want change. February’s ugly election fiasco shows that it’s only getting harder for the army to prevent political disrupters from upending their plans but, unfortunately for Pakistan’s future, they have yet again managed to override public demand for a new direction. A brief recap: The generals and popular leader Imran Khan decided some time ago they could no longer trust one another. The army then removed Khan from his post as Prime Minister and put him in jail, as it has done to many past Prime M

<strong>Due to economic hardships in China, unemployed people are forced to sleep in outdoor sewer pipes</strong>

5Mar

By Grace TsoiNo Comments

Asia

Due to economic hardships in China, unemployed people are forced to sleep in outdoor sewer pipes

The National Bureau of Statistics of the Communist Party of China recently released a series of economic data however there is still no data on the youth unemployment rate which is said to be intentional due to the current situation. Currently unemployment among Chinese youth is widespread to maintain stability and avoid risks from domestic public opinion. The CCP did not publish this data, a recent online video spread on social media highlights the challenging situation in places like Shenzhen Guangdong and KunshanJiangsu where a substantial number of young workers struggle to secure employment resorting to sleeping on the streets and facing eviction by landlords for inability to pay rent on time. Regrettably this scenario is becoming increasingly common in major Chinese cities ...

Asif Ali Zardari becomes President of Pakistan, while Shehbaz Sharif takes over as PM. For India, what does it mean?

5Mar

By Nectar GanNo Comments

Asia, World

Asif Ali Zardari becomes President of Pakistan, while Shehbaz Sharif takes over as PM. For India, what does it mean?

Shehbaz Sharif has returned as the Prime Minister and Asif Ali Zardari as the President of Pakistan after the two old-guard parties, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), reached a power-sharing agreement. The announcement comes after a nearly two-week-long political deadlock in the country following the February 8 elections, which resulted in a hung assembly with no party securing the 133 seats mandated for a simple majority out of 265 contested seats in the Pakistan National Assembly. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz won 79 seats while the Pakistan Peoples Party came third with 54 seats. The Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) has also agreed to support the coalition with their 17 seats. The new government in Pakistan is faced with...

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