Politics

Lawyers for ex-PM Najib Razak say they will submit a fresh application for a full pardon at the ‘right timing’. File photo: Reuters

Malaysian watchdog warns of protests over leniency for Najib, ‘political elite’

Critics have accused PM Anwar of abandoning his reform agenda as anger grows over the reduced sentence for ex-leader Najib for corruption linked to the 1MDB scandal.

52 minutes ago
Marsha Siagian campaigning for PSI in Jakarta alongside new party chairman Kaesang Pangarep, President Joko Widodo’s younger son. Photo: Handout

Indonesia election 2024: calls for dual citizenship heat up amid ‘brain drain’

Jakarta should also look at improving domestic economic opportunities to avert a brain drain, analysts say.

3 hours ago
Presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto (left) and his running mate Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the son of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, arrive for the presidential candidates’ debate in Jakarta on February 4. Photo: AP

Indonesia election 2024: will Gibran be hurt by poll body’s scandal?

The head of the General Elections Commission has been found guilty of not amending a rule before accepting Gibran’s election registration.

3 hours ago
People in the Sydney central business district. Photo: Shutterstock

Why confusion over Australia’s ‘golden visa’ is causing ‘widespread panic’

Canberra says the business visa programme remains open despite widespread reports in the past weeks saying it had been ‘axed’.

4 hours ago
A British Royal Air Force aircraft prepares to take off from Cyprus to conduct further strikes against Houthi targets on February 3. Photo: MoD Crown/EPA-EFE

Is New Zealand risking ‘reputational damage’ by sending troops to Red Sea?

New Zealand is sending a small defence team to the Middle East to join an international alliance against Houthi militants targeting civilian ships in the Red Sea.

6 Feb 2024 - 11:42PM
A woman holds a placard during a ‘Free Palestine’ rally near the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur on December 22, 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE

Malaysian boycotters hail win as FamilyMart says it does ‘not deal with Israel’

FamilyMart’s parent company says it has ended a deal with Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems, adding it is against ‘supporting violence or killing’.

6 Feb 2024 - 5:02PM
Protesters rally outside the Chinese consular office in Manila to condemn China’s harassment of Filipino fishermen in the South China Sea. Photo: EPA-EFE

Filipino bishops urge Manila to ‘defend what is ours’ in South China Sea

While the Catholic leaders stood with the Philippines’ fishing folk, they stressed that armed conflict over the hotly-contested sea was not a “moral option”.

6 Feb 2024 - 4:19PM
A South Korean-made KF-21 fighter jet. Indonesia is a partner country in the project. Photo: EPA-EFE/Yonhap

South Korea lawmakers urge tougher laws after alleged theft of warplane secrets

Indonesian engineers are under investigation for allegedly trying to remove a USB device containing information on the South Korean-made KF-21 fighter jet.

6 Feb 2024 - 2:17PM
Former Sarawak governor Taib Mahmud with his wife Raghad Kurdi. Photo: Instagram/raghadtaib

Mystery deepens as wife of Sarawak ex-governor denies taking him from hospital

Raghad Kurdi has refuted allegations that she forcibly removed the state’s longest-serving chief minister from a hospital ICU against his doctor’s orders.

6 Feb 2024 - 1:36PM
Seoul’s official stance remains that Dokdo, which Japan claims as the Takeshima islands, is the “inherent territory” of South Korea. Photo: AP

Is South Korea ‘adopting Japanese narratives’ on disputed islets under Yoon?

Critics have accused the South Korean government of playing into Japan’s narrative on Dokdo, which Tokyo claims as the Takeshima islands, amid pressure from Washington for the two to set aside their historical quarrels.

6 Feb 2024 - 12:22PM
Taib Mahmud arrives at the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly on May 21, 2013. File photo: AFP

Malaysia police probe claims ex-governor was taken from hospital amid legal row

A police report alleges that Taib Mahmud’s wife, Ragad Kurdi Taib, had forcibly removed him from a hospital in Sarawak over the weekend.

5 Feb 2024 - 7:46PM
(From left) Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos, wife of President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, President Marcos Jnr, his sister Imee and their mother, former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos attend a wreath-laying ceremony at a monument to late dictator Marcos Snr. Photo: AFP

Philippines’ indigenous groups question dam in president’s political stronghold

The row over an irrigation project is also throwing up allegations that authorities have other hidden agendas behind the development, which is set to be built on ancestral tribal land.

5 Feb 2024 - 8:46PM
Najib Razak leaves a court in Kuala Lumpur in 2019. Anger has poured out across Malaysian social media at the 70-year-old disgraced former leader’s perceived preferential treatment. Photo: AFP

Anwar seeks to soothe Malaysians’ outrage over Najib Razak’s reduced punishment

The decision to halve Najib’s sentence and cut his fine for corruption linked to the plunder of the 1MDB state fund enraged the public and reopened wounds on all sides of Malaysia’s festering political divide.

5 Feb 2024 - 7:57PM
Prabowo Subianto speaks during the final presidential debate in Jakarta on Sunday. Photo: Bloomberg

Indonesia’s Prabowo takes flak for ‘slow brains’ remark in final election debate

The presidential front runner denied making a ‘very cruel’ comment on voters’ intelligence, as he fended off questions about women’s rights and his multibillion-dollar plan to provide free meals.

5 Feb 2024 - 11:31AM
A Japanese Self-Defence Force P-3C Orion surveillance plane flies over the disputed islands in 2011. Photo: AP

Tokyo ‘extremely concerned’ over rising tensions with Beijing in East China Sea

Japan deployed airborne early warning aircraft and at least one marine destroyer in response to Chinese vessels sailing near disputed islands in the East China Sea.

5 Feb 2024 - 1:27PM
Under the SEPP, only those who commit serious violent offences can be sentenced. Photo: AFP

Will Singapore law to keep serious offenders beyond jail terms infringe on rights?

Some experts say the proposed law infringes on ‘open justice’ and raise concerns over how assessments of offenders would be conducted.

4 Feb 2024 - 12:15PM
Indonesian presidential hopeful Ganjar Pranowo speaks to reporters at a rally in Jakarta on February 3. Photo: Vemmy Widowati

Can Indonesia’s Ganjar force a run-off as bid for ‘total victory’ dries up?

With days to go before the February 14 polls, a clear win for the ruling party’s presidential pick appears all but impossible.

4 Feb 2024 - 12:23PM
Chinese President Xi Jinping shakes hands with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong in Hanoi. Photo: Xinhua

Hanoi’s low-key approach may be central to muted confrontations with Beijing

Vietnam also has the ability to isolate maritime issues from bilateral ones, analysts say, ensuring fewer confrontations with China compared to the Philippines.

4 Feb 2024 - 9:35AM
Malaysia’s former prime minister Najib Razak leaves a court in Kuala Lumpur in 2019. Photo: AFP

‘Don’t take us for fools’: Malaysians slam Najib’s reduction in jail time

Najib will be freed in August 2028 after his 12-year jail term was halved by Pardons Board led by King Sultan Abdullah, in one of his final acts in office.

3 Feb 2024 - 6:39PM
Philip Chan Man Ping will be designated as a “politically significant person” under Singapore’s anti-foreign interference law. Photo: Instagram/@Philip Chan

Is Singapore ‘warning’ others by hauling up businessman for foreign interference?

Analysts said Philip Chan’s case highlighted alleged Chinese political interference in Singapore, and the government’s readiness to tackle it despite concerns about repercussions.

3 Feb 2024 - 8:35PM