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China Bombards Taiwan With Fake News Ahead of Election

China uses fabricated polls and outlandish claims on social media to bolster its camp in Taiwan’s election.

Politico | 10 Jan 2024

The Chagossians Want Their Home Back

In the Sixties the British government expelled them from their island. Exiled to the UK, they’ve never given up hope of returning to their island. ‘As more and more of our elders are dying, it is important to preserve our culture.’

New Statesman | 6 Jan 2024

News Jammu & Kashmir

India’s supreme court upholds decision to strip Kashmir of special status

Chief justice says government did not overreach its powers when it revoked autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.

The Guardian | 11 Dec 2023

News Taiwan

Chinese weather balloon spotted near Taiwan

Chinese military aircraft including 12 fighter jets also detected in Taiwan’s air defence zone in past 24 hours.

The Guardian | 8 Dec 2023

News Spratly Islands

Vietnam ‘ramps up’ island building in South China Sea

New report says Hanoi created over 133ha of new land in 2023 with dredging tools it had not used before.

Radio Free Asia | 17 Nov 2023

News Jammu & Kashmir

India Charges Novelist Arundhati Roy Over a 2010 Speech

The Indian authorities have charged the renowned novelist and Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy over public comments she made 13 years ago about the restive Kashmir region, the latest step in an intensifying crackdown on free speech by the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The New York Times | 11 Oct 2023

Asia
Books

News Spratly Islands

Philippines accuses China of water cannon attack in Spratly Islands

Latest in long history of nautical intimidations by Beijing, which lays unrecognized claim to almost all of the South China Sea.

The Guardian | 6 Aug 2023

Interview Hong Kong

‘I don’t know if I can ever return’

Wong Chung-Wai’s images of the home he had to leave behind forgoes stereotypes for intimate portraits of the unseen.

The Guardian | 27 Jul 2023

News

US Soldier Held By North Korea After Crossing Border

North Korea is reported to have detained a serving US army soldier who crossed the heavily-fortified border from South Korea without permission. The man was on an organised tour of the UN-run zone dividing the two countries.

BBC | 18 Jul 2023

News Paracel Islands

Studio defends Barbie movie after controversial map prompts Vietnam ban

Warner Bros says map is ‘child-like’ after Vietnam accused film-makers of depicting China’s nine-dash line in South China Sea.

The Guardian | 7 Jul 2023

News Taiwan

Taiwan Taekwondo Medalist Celebrates with Chinese Flag

A Taiwanese taekwondo athlete who waved a Chinese flag after winning a bronze at the Asia-Pacific Masters Games (APMG) in South Korea was not officially registered with Taiwan’s team, the Sports Administration stated in a reaction to the incident.

Taiwan News | 20 May 2023

News

Sikh Separatist Arrested after Weeks on the Run

Self-styled preacher Amritpal Singh, whose calls for Sikh independence riled India’s authorities, has been arrested in Punjab state. The 30-year-old had been on the run for more than a month after evading arrest in Punjab on 18 March.

BBC | 23 Apr 2023

Asia

Investigation Chagos Archipelago

That’s When the Nightmare Started

The forced displacement of the entire Chagossian people by the United Kingdom and United States governments and the UK’s racial persecution, and continued blocking of their return home, are crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch said in a report and video released today.

Human Rights Watch | 15 Feb 2023