KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – A Malaysian man Thursday (Feb 25) won the country’s first legal challenge against Islamic laws banning gay sex, a victory hailed as “monumental progress” in combating persecution of the LGBT community. He was charged in an Islamic court in 2019 with attempting to have “intercourse against the order of nature”, and […]
SINGAPORE – The abuse suffered by Myanmar domestic helper Piang Ngaih Don must never happen again, and the Government is reviewing three key areas to ensure this. Speaking to the media at a virtual doorstop on Thursday (Feb 25), Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said the three areas are safeguards against abusive employers, the reporting system […]
SEOUL (REUTERS) – South Korean politicians will not be the first in line when the county kicks off its coronavirus vaccination drive on Friday (Feb 26), despite calls from the opposition party for the president to roll up his sleeve and take a shot to reassure vaccine sceptics. Leading political figures spent the week trading […]
SYDNEY (REUTERS) – Australia will receive above-average autumn rains in its grain-growing eastern regions, helped by La Nina, although the weather phenomenon has passed its peak, the weather bureau said on Thursday (Feb 25). Summer has been wetter than usual due to La Nina, which typically brings more rainfall and cooler temperatures than average in […]
SINGAPORE – Nearly 400 animals, including some critically endangered and threatened species, were born in local wildlife parks last year, Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) said on Thursday (Feb 25). Among the brood from 107 species – of which 29 are threatened in the wild – were two critically endangered Malayan tiger cubs, the first successful […]
BEIJING (REUTERS) – China has promised to dedicate its new “five-year plan” to tackling climate change, but concerns about economic growth and energy security are expected to temper the country’s green ambitions. Vice-premier Han Zheng said in October that the 2021-2025 plan, due to be delivered to Parliament in March, would be “dedicated to addressing […]
BEIJING (REUTERS) – China has promised to dedicate its new “five-year plan” to tackling climate change, but concerns about economic growth and energy security are expected to temper the country’s green ambitions. Vice-premier Han Zheng said in October that the 2021-2025 plan, due to be delivered to Parliament in March, would be “dedicated to addressing […]
Foo Mee Har (West Coast GRC) Tax those who profited big from Covid-19 Ms Foo noted that Argentina imposed a one-time levy on millionaires in December, and that an independent Wealth Tax Commission in Britain has recently proposed a similar policy in a report. She said: “When you consider that selected entities or individuals may […]
SINGAPORE – Researchers looking at ways to reduce the risk of Covid-19 transmission have found that plants, natural fibre ionisers and air filters are effective in reducing aerosol concentrations in the air. However, they must be combined with safe management measures such as mask wearing. In a release on Thursday (Feb 25), Temasek Foundation said […]
HONG KONG (BLOOM BERG) – After sitting on the sidelines as the US and Europe plowed headlong into vaccinating against Covid-19, the part of the world that contained the coronavirus most successfully is finally starting to administer shots. Hong Kong began its programme in the Asian financial hub on Monday (Feb 22), with Chief Executive […]