QUINN MCGANNON WRITES — Recent years have seen an explosion of protests across Asia, most stemming from a frustration with oppressive governments and lack of freedoms. An increasing number of young people in Asia are participating in their countries’ affairs, and they’re not being subtle about it. While protests generally…
Full Article ASIA: HOW THE ‘HUNGER GAMES’ SALUTE BECAME A SYMBOL OF SOLIDARITY ACROSS RECENT PROTESTS
LIAM ROGERS WRITES — The Thai Prime Minister, Prayut Chan-o-cha, was acquitted Wednesday, December 3, on conflict-of-interest charges. In 2014, he was accused of this by the Pheu Thai party, as he remained living in Army housing after his election. But in a unanimous decision by the constitutional court, he…
Full Article THAILAND: IS THE COUNTRY’S DESTINY PRE-DETERMINED BY POLITICS?
MARY SANDRINE BERNOS WRITES — The Thailand protests are caused by three things: resignation of the prime minister, rewriting of the military-drafter constitution, and reform of the monarchy’s absolute power. Citizens of Thailand are angered at the fact that their current prime minister was still appointed despite causing a military…
Full Article THAILAND: PROTESTS IN A CONTINUING BATTLE TOWARDS DEMOCRACY
DANIEL ZAND WRITES- Thailand is known for its delicious street foods at cheap prices, yet this is changing. Food vendors have been forced to relocate to designated areas due to a government ban attempting to“return order to the capital city”. The ban was established shortly after the Thai military coup…
Full Article THAILAND: MILITARY GOVERNMENT COOKS UP A DUMB COLD DISH
TALIN DEROHANESSIANS WRITES – QR Codes in Asia are a hit! This could be attributed to an increase in mobile devices sold with built – in QR Code readers as well as the overall increase in smartphone sales. Quick review: Quick Response codes were first invented in the 1990’s, by…
Full Article CHINA, THAILAND AND VIETNAM: QUEING UP FOR QR CODES
LAMA AL TAHER WRITES– Thailand has been hailed as a “must” tourist destination in Asia for its unparalleled location, food, and cost effectiveness. Unfortunately, Bangkok, the country’s capital and one of the most visited destinations, is faced with a major threat– dust pollution, an environmental hazard that began early in…
Full Article THAILAND: Disruptive Haze Over Bangkok Hurts the Tourism Industry
TALAL BUKHAMSEEN WRITES– The gaming industry is quickly becoming a lucrative part of the Southeast Asian economy. As the region continues to benefit from a growing digital user-base, traditional tech companies that previously made video games have branched into online gaming, incorporating players from all over the world and improving…
Full Article ECONOMICS: MOVEOVER ENTERTAINMENT, GAMING IS THE NEW IT-THING
KHON KAEN, THAILAND — When business started to sag a year ago at the shoe factory where she and her husband work, Nui Kalathai began to borrow money from relatives in her village in Khon Kaen, one of the largest provinces in Thailand’s northeastern plateau. She has been careful to…
Full Article THAILAND: WHY LOYALTY TO THAKSIN REMAINS SO STRONG
ROBERT BORN WRITES– Sunday, March 24, marked the first time in five years that the Thai government allowed an election years after promising one. In 2014, a military coup removed the government of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s party–then headed by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Since then, the military junta…
Full Article THAILAND: Free and Fair Elections? Not So Fast – OR TOO SLOW?
ALBUS WANG WRITES– East West Players, the oldest theatre group representing racial minorities, has a new play: “Man of God.” Inspired by the “Me Too” movement in 2017 and the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the show emboldens sexual assault survivors and supports the vow of the…
Full Article PLAY REVIEW: “Man of God”
TOM PLATE WRITES — Watch Thailand carefully. It may be that the only major element in the country that truly understands one-person, one-vote democracy is the Pheu Thai Party and its former elected Prime Ministers Thaksin (2001-2006) and younger sister Yingluck Shinawatra (2011-2014). Their political formula is simplicity itself: get…
Full Article THAILAND: THAKSIN-ISM RISES YET AGAIN AMONG THE THAI PEOPLE
DYLAN RAMOS WRITES— On Monday, October 2nd, the leader of Thailand’s military junta, General Prayut Chan-o-cha, came to Washingto to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump. While the president was honoring yet another authoritarian leader with an invitation to the White House, the junta’s Attorney General was charging former Prime…
Full Article THAILAND: PRAYUT DIGS AT SHINAWATRAS, EMBRACES TRUMP
WRITES PETER OLSZEWSKI (courtesy of Mediaweek magazine) – When veteran Aussie editor David Armstrong began working the Southeast Asian beat in the early 1990s, he confronted a regional phenomenon – the non-media-savvy media owner. “In Australia, I was working with people who had been in media all their lives,” he…
Full Article THAILAND: MEMORIES OF A STAR EDITOR ABOUT NEWSPAPER PROPRIETORS IN ASIA
SPECIAL TO AMI FROM PAVIN CHACHAVALPONGUN – The other day, it was to be a judgment day for former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Throughout the past few months, Thailand’s political temperature has been rising following the heated court case of Yingluck, who is accused of mismanaging Thailand’s rice subsidy program.…
Full Article THAILAND: COMMENTATOR PAVIN ON THAILAND ‘JUSTICE’ AND THE FLIGHT OF YINGLUCK
KATRINA CROSBY WRITES- Thailand’s political stability may be rocked in the upcoming week. With the trial of former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra awaiting its final verdict, the nation’s Supreme Court decision could lead to to a divisive emergence of the current political forces swirling under the surface of this otherwise…
Full Article THAILAND: THE TRIAL OF YINGLUCK
TARN SANGPRASERT WRITES – A turtle in Thailand has died after a team of surgeons spent seven hours removing 900-plus coins from its belly. On March 6, veterinarians at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University operated on the 25-year-old sea turtle, which appeared to be suffering stomach pains and was swimming oddly. A…
Full Article ‘LUCKY’ COINS PROVE FATAL TO THAI TURTLE