Afghanistan
UN Calls for Afghan Reconciliation Dialogue: Tolo News
Speaking at a UN conference held to assess the Afghan situation, UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan Deborah Lyons called on the Islamic Emirate to initiate an intra-Afghan dialogue for national reconciliation. Click here to read...
Afghan women protest for release of Afghanistan’s frozen funds: The Khaama Press
Hundreds of women took to the streets in Kabul and demanded the release of Afghanistan’s frozen funds in the western banks. Click here to read...
IMF review put off to allow passage of SBP bill: Shaukat Tarin: Dawn
“The IMF board was kind enough to accept our request and postpone the review until February 2,” he said at a news conference. He said the government was required to get the SBP bill passed by the Senate on Wednesday so that the IMF board could consider completion of the sixth review at its meeting slated for Jan 28, but this could not be done. Click here to read...
Bangladesh
PM Hasina: Bangladesh marching forward belying pessimists- Dhaka Tribune
The development of Bangladesh is advancing at an irresistible pace, the PM said. Click here to read...
Dhaka air pollution: Tejgaon industrial area tops the list- Daily Star
The air quality of 10 significant areas in the capital scored below standard throughout 2021, according to a study of the Centre for Atmospheric Pollution Studies of the Department of Environmental Science at Stamford University. Click here to read...
Businesses weighed down by graft, inefficient bureaucracy- Daily Star
Corruption, inefficient bureaucracy and limited access to finance are among the dominant problematic factors affecting businesses in Bangladesh, according to a new survey of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD). Click here to read...
BD to work with India for prosperous region- Asian Age
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said Bangladesh looks forward to working together with India in the next 50 years and beyond towards realizing the shared vision of building a peaceful and prosperous region. Click here to read...
Bhutan
Tsirang reports first Covid-19 case- Kuensel
The Tsirang Dzongkhag Covid-19 Taskforce has imposed a 72-hour lockdown in the dzongkhag after a driver and his daughter tested positive for the virus at a flu clinic yesterday. Click here to read...
How COVID positive foreign workers, a more infectious variant and laxity caused the Wangdue outbreak- Daily Bhutan
There is no official explanation for the outbreak yet, but it was caused due to a combination of pressure factors, like getting on with hydro project works, and situational issues, like laxity and the entry of Omicron positive labourers in large numbers. Click here to read...
Govt. orders vaccine for children below 12 years- Bhutan Times
The rollout program of the booster dose for the general population scheduled for 24 January has been deferred until the restrictions are relaxed. Click here to read...
Maldives
"55th anniversary of Maldives-Japan diplomatic ties is an opportunity to boost relations to greater heights” - Raajje
The 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Maldives and Japan in 2022, is an opportunity to further boost the relations to greater heights, says Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Ahmed Khaleel. Click here to read...
The Maldives is taking steps to eliminate plastic waste - Sustainability Times
The damage chemical pollution wreaks on the environment has been well documented and it is bound to get worse before it gets better. The production of chemicals, which has increased 50-fold since the middle of the last century, could triple by the middle of this century with much of it ending up as waste in the environment. Click here to read...
Myanmar
Resistance to the Myanmar regime in Chin state – a photo essay - The Guardian
Myanmar’s states are not merely geographical divisions, they also demarcate the distinct ethnic differences found across the country. As somebody from Chin state, it means that Mawi is also ethnically Chin. Click here to read...
ARSA After the Myanmar Coup: Between a Rock and a Hard Place - The diplomat
In Rakhine State, in the country’s west, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) continues to engage in sporadic skirmishes with security forces. Recent clashes involving ARSA are, however, more indicative of the group’s current weakness than its strength.Click here to read...
Myanmar's military junta seeks ban on VPNs and digital currency - The Register
Myanmar's military junta has floated a cyber security law that would ban the use of virtual private networks, under penalty of imprisonment and/or fines, leaving digital rights organisations concerned about the effects of further closing the country off digitally to the outside world. Click here to read...
Burma Army Planning Large Scale Offensive Against Combined Karen Forces – Displaced People Fear Forced Return from Thailand - Karen News
Despite Thailand’s reassurances to the United Nations that it would not force villagers displaced by fighting to return to Burma, recent meetings between local border officials from both countries has raised concerns among displaced villagers seeking temporary safety in Thailand.Click here to read...
Myanmar Resistance Raids Two Sagaing Police Outposts - The Irrawaddy
Two Myanmar junta police outposts were seized and burned down and at least eight police officers, including a captain, were captured by the People’s Defense Force in Paungbyin Township, Sagaing Region, on Saturday, according to the civilian National Unity Government (NUG). Click here to read...
ICG includes Myanmar to its list of 10 world hotspots- Mizzima
The International Crisis Group has included Myanmar in its list of 10 crisis areas in the world to watch in 2022. Their list of 10 includes the tensions over Ukraine, US-China relations, Yemen, Ethiopia and the Israel-Iran standoff. Click here to read...
Twin blasts bring number of bombings to 121 in Yangon since Myanmar coup - RFA
Two bombs detonated in Myanmar’s commercial capital Yangon on Saturday, bringing the total number of explosions set by prodemocracy militias in the city since the February 2021 coup to 121, according to an investigation by RFA’s Myanmar Service. Click here to read...
Nepal
CIAA books dept of mines DG for graft- Himalaya
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority has filed a corruption case against 18 persons, including Director General of the Department of Mines and Geology Ram Prasad Ghimire and directors of nine companies for their alleged involvement in corruption. Click here to read...
Five-party ruling alliance wins 18 of 19 National Assembly seats- Himalaya
The five-party ruling alliance led by the Nepali Congress has won 18 out of 19 National Assembly seats. Click here to read...
UML the main sufferer yet a winner in National Assembly elections- Kathmandu Pots
The main opposition continues to be the largest party in the upper house despite losing seven seats. The ruling alliance wins in all provinces except Province 1. Click here to read...
Nepal struggles to balance nature and industry- Nepali Times
Companies exploit natural resources for profit, but the environment and people lose out. Click here to read...
Madhesh Province issues order to book violent Janamat Party cadres- Republica
Madhesh Province has issued an order to book the unruly cadres of the Janamat Party who resorted to vandalizing the vehicles of the people’s representatives in the province headquarters, Janakpurdham. Click here to read...
Pakistan
Editorial: Corruption index: Dawn
The report punches a hole in the self-righteous façade of a party that has long beaten the drum of accountability, whose leader — the country’s chief executive — will not deign to meet senior opposition leaders on the pretext of their alleged corruption. Click here to read...
Civil-military huddle finalises agenda for PM’s China visit: The Express Tribune
This will be the fourth visit of the prime minister to China but the latest trip comes against the backdrop of multiple developments including dip in Pak-US ties and reports of the Chinese unhappiness over the slow or no progress on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects. Click here to read...
Sri Lanka
SL addresses drug shortage despite forex crisis: Daily Mirror
Despite speculations that Sri Lanka would plunge into a drug shortage in about two months, the Treasury has released adequate funds enabling commercial banks to open Letters of Credit (LCs) in a bid to overcome the impending drug shortage. Click here to read...
’Nurdles are everywhere’: how plastic pellets ravaged a Sri Lankan paradise: Guardian
When Adnan Sheikh took his family on holiday to Sri Lanka last October, he booked them into a hotel for two weeks in Sarakkuwa beach, just off the coast from where the X-Press Pearl cargo ship caught fire and sank five months previously. Click here to read...
