A Vietnamese activist was jailed for nine years on Tuesday for “anti-state activity”, her lawyer said, the second such heavy sentence handed down by the authoritarian state in less than a month. Dissidents, rights lawyers and bloggers are routinely jailed in the communist country but rights groups and activists accuse the new government in place … Read more
A prominent Vietnamese blogger known as ‘Mother Mushroom’ went on trial Thursday for anti-state propaganda, a court clerk said, as rights groups decried the charges as “outrageous” and demanded her immediate release. Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, whose penname derives from her daughter’s nickname “mushroom”, was arrested in October 2016 for critical Facebook posts about politics … Read more
Myanmar authorities must investigate a video showing men in military uniforms viciously beating handcuffed detainees suspected of being ethnic rebel fighters, rights groups said Sunday. The video’s emergence comes as negotiators from the civilian-led government of Aung San Suu Kyi and the military hold peace talks with more than a dozen ethnic rebel groups in … Read more
A third Turkish national has been arrested in Malaysia, his lawyer said Friday, after two others were taken into custody this week on suspicion of funding the Islamic State group. Turkish academic Ismet Ozcelik was arrested Thursday, his lawyer Rosli Dahlan told AFP, adding that no official reasons were provided by authorities. Local media reported … Read more
Two Turkish nationals who went missing in Malaysia have been arrested as a security threat, the police chief announced on Wednesday, but a rights group raised concerns of possible pressure from Ankara for the detentions. National police chief Khalid Abu Bakar tweeted that Turgay Karaman and Ihsan Aslan were arrested “because they threatened the security … Read more
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly drug war is part of a worrying assault on human rights and democracy across Southeast Asia, activists said as regional leaders gathered in Manila on Friday. Duterte has been condemned in the West for the crackdown, which has claimed thousands of lives since he took power last year, but he … Read more
Firebrand Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is set to enjoy much-wanted foreign support for his deadly drug war when he hosts Southeast Asian leaders at a Manila summit this week, observers say. Duterte’s unpredictable foreign policy is also expected to be in focus at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) event, with confusion surrounding his … Read more
China should immediately reveal the whereabouts of eight North Koreans it detained last month, Human Rights Watch said Monday, adding they risk severe torture if they were returned to the North. Most North Korean refugees begin their escape by crossing into China and then try to make it to third countries — often in Southeast … Read more
A Singaporean teenager who was jailed twice after insulting the island’s late leader Lee Kuan Yew and religious groups has been granted political asylum in the United States, his US lawyer said Saturday. Amos Yee, 18, shocked Singaporeans in March 2015 after posting an expletive-laden video attacking Lee as the founding prime minister’s death triggered … Read more
Cambodia’s parliament passed a law Monday giving judges sweeping powers to dissolve political parties, a move seen as a brazen attempt by premier Hun Sen to checkmate his opponents ahead of next year’s polls. Hun Sen, who for three decades has led the country with force and political guile, has used the kingdom’s pliant courts … Read more