Business Archives - Page 37 of 39

17Jun

By Desk TeamNo Comments

Thailand to end ban on alcohol sale

As Thailand moves to relax restrictions on the people’s movement due to coronavirus pandemic, the ban on the sale of alcohol would come to end soon.The ban has been in effect since April 10 in a bid to discourage social gatherings. "The new order, which will take effect on Sunday, means you can buy and sell liquor, beer, wine. You can buy from restaurants but only as takeaways. You can buy at convenience stores, supermarkets, anywhere in the country," Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam told Reuters. Bangkok Metropolitan Authority spokesman Pongsakorn Kwangmuang also told Reuters the ban would be lifted in Bangkok on Sunday, and that he will make a formal announcement on Saturday. The change came just a day after the government's Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration said the ba

Amnesty International slams Myanmar for failing to change repressive laws

17Jun

By Desk TeamNo Comments

Amnesty International slams Myanmar for failing to change repressive laws

Amnesty International has come down heavily on the Myanmar under Aung San Suu Kyi saying that not enough has been done to change military-era laws, which are used to repress and punish critics.The London based human right organisation Amnesty International called Myanmar a place “where the slightest criticism of authorities can land you in jail.”“After campaigning for human rights for decades and paying a high price for their own activism, it is shocking that Aung San Suu Kyi and her colleagues have done so little to change military-era laws that are still being used to repress and punish critics,” it said. Two months ago the city of London voted to revoke the honour of “freedom of the city” granted to Ms. Suu Kyi three years back for her non-violent struggle for democracy and justice in h

Modi’s popularity soars as India weathers COVID-19 pandemic

15Jun

By Online DeskNo Comments

Modi’s popularity soars as India weathers COVID-19 pandemic

NEW DELHI—Just before the coronavirus arrived in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi faced serious challenges, perhaps the biggest of his tenure. Anti-government protests roiled the country. Hindu-Muslim riots exploded in the capital just as U.S. President Donald Trump was visiting. And India’s once-hot economy was slumping, shedding millions of jobs and casting a pall over the entire country. Since then, as the world has been walloped by the coronavirus pandemic, many of these problems in India, especially the economic ones, have only got worse. But once again, India has rallied around Modi. Recent opinion polls show that in the past few months Modi’s already high approval ratings have soared even higher, touching 80 per cent, even 90 per cent. Unlike two of the populist leaders to who

Philippine protesters rally over controversial anti-terror bill

14Jun

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Philippine protesters rally over controversial anti-terror bill

Braving the fear of Coronavirus, thousands of protesters rallied in the capital of the Philippines, Manila on Friday against anti-terrorism legislation that critics fear would give Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte sweeping powers to stifle dissent.The Bill, which has been approved by Congress and is expected to be signed into law by Duterte, would create a council of presidential appointees that could order warrantless arrests of people it deems are terrorists.It also allows for weeks of detention without charge. Activists fear the legislation could open the door to a crackdown on Duterte's opponents."They (authorities) shouldn't fool us that this terror Bill is for terrorists. It's for all of us," said Neri Colmenares, an activist and lawyer.“Groups such as the kidnap-for-ransom gang

Tibet, Taiwan key in reforming India policies towards China: Experts

14Jun

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Tibet, Taiwan key in reforming India policies towards China: Experts

Amidst the stand-off between India and China on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), strategic experts and intellectuals said that to counter Xi Jinping’s ‘One China Policy’, India should support Tibet and Taiwan, and give Dalai Lama more visibility in India’s political circles.“India should be supporting Tibet and try that the Dalai Lama should be given a higher position and more visibility in India’s political circles. Along with this, we must begin economic and technological engagements with Taiwan, besides supporting it politically,” Director of Vivekananda International Foundation Dr. Arvind Gupta said.He was speaking at webinar titled, "Revisiting One China policy: Economic and Political Options for India: Hong Kong, Tibet, Taiwan, and Xinjiang" jointly organized by the Law and Society

Fearful Hong Kongers rush to secure limited British passports

13Jun

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Fearful Hong Kongers rush to secure limited British passports

As China continues with its plan to roll out the new Security Law, Hong Kongers are in a rush to avail the citizenship offered by Britain and leave the troubled territory.Shortly before Hong Kong was handed back to China, Simon Ng applied for a British National (Overseas) passport, a document he never thought he would need.His predicament is not new for the people in that region, as thousands of Hong Kongers rush for British passports with China tightening its grip on the territory.China's plan to impose a sweeping national security law on the city in response to huge pro-democracy protests has Ng mulling the prospect of leaving, the first time he has contemplated such action since Britain returned the former colony in 1997."Back then, like many of my peers, I thought China would reform an...

Thailand: Protesters demand investigation of exiled activists’ kidnapping

12Jun

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Thailand: Protesters demand investigation of exiled activists’ kidnapping

In Thailand’s capital Bangkok, protesters in held a small rally outside the Prime Minister's offices on Friday urging the authorities to investigate the suspected kidnapping of an exiled activist by unknown gunmen last week in Cambodia.Wanchalearm Satsaksit, 37, a previously little-known pro-democracy activist who fled from Thailand following a 2014 military coup, was seized on a street outside his apartment in Phnom Penh on June 4.Cambodian authorities initially said they did not have enough information to investigate, but later said they would. Thailand government officials have denied any role in the disappearance."It has been more than a week since this happened, but there has been no progress in the investigation," Jutatip Sirikhan, president of the Student Union of Thailand, said at

Hong Kong government rejects UK criticism of new security law as “biased”

12Jun

By Yusara AskariNo Comments

Hong Kong government rejects UK criticism of new security law as “biased”

In a sharp response to Britain’s report criticizing China’s imposition of national security legislation, the Hong Kong government said that the report is “inaccurate and biased” and that the legislation will not curb the freedoms of anyone.The British government said the proposed security law was a clear violation of China's international obligations and a breach of the "one country, two systems" formula that has governed the former British colony since its handover to Chinese rule in 1997."There is still time for China to reconsider, to step back from the brink and respect Hong Kong’s autonomy and respect its own international obligations," British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab wrote in the foreword to his government's six-monthly report on Hong Kong.Raab said a solution to the unrest fom

Alleged sexual assault on schoolgirls in Thailand prompts national reckoning on patriarchy

8Jun

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Alleged sexual assault on schoolgirls in Thailand prompts national reckoning on patriarchy

Incessant rapes and sexual assaults on schoolgirls have shocked Thailand leading to social media unrest and intensified calls for severe “capital” punishment for sex offenders in the country.In May, a grandmother reported to the police that her 14-year-old granddaughter had been raped over the course of more than a year. The attacks, according to the child, happened several times at her school in northeastern Thailand, where she was reportedly abused by five teachers and two male alumni.Besides the assaults, the men were also accused of filming the acts and using the video clips to threaten the child, who had kept it a secret since March last year.Shortly after her story made headlines, another student from the same school reported that she too was raped by some of the suspects. She is 16

Malaysia to go into ‘recovery phase’ until Aug 31: PM Muhyiddin

7Jun

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Malaysia to go into ‘recovery phase’ until Aug 31: PM Muhyiddin

Malaysia's movement control order (MCO) imposed to control the spread of COVID-19 will enter a “recovery phase" beginning June 10 until August 31, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said on Sunday.Muhyiddin said the recovery phase is part of the country's exit strategy from the MCO, following a downward trend in the infection rate. "Malaysia has successfully contained the spread of the pandemic and will now enter the recovery phase," he said.Under the recovery, “almost all” social, educational, religious and business activities, as well as economic sectors will reopen in phases, with standard operating procedures to be adhered to, Muhyiddin said.“Interstate travel will be allowed, except for areas placed under enhanced MCO, while the country's borders will remain closed”, the prime minister s