Neighborhood News Digest – 6 July 2023

Afghanistan

SCO Member States Call For Inclusive Government In Afghanistan – NDTV

Expressing concern about the situation in Afghanistan, leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Member States (SCO) called for an establishment of inclusive government in Afghanistan with the participation of representatives of all ethnic, religious and political groups in Afghan society and pledged to continue to assist the Afghan people.click here to read… [2]

Afghanistan: Campaign launched to reopen schools, universities for girls – The Print

University professors, women’s rights activists and religious clerics in Afghanistan have launched a campaign — ‘Education of Afghan Girls’, with the goal of reopening schools and universities for girls in the country, TOLO News reported. According to the campaign’s organisers, despite their requests to reopen the nation’s schools and universities in the past two years, no action has been taken.click here to read… [3]

Next chapter of the Great Game unfolds as terror outfits find new home in northern Afghanistan – Daiji World

The shifting of the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) fighters to the northern areas of Afghanistan from the Af-Pak border districts by the Taliban administration has caused both confusion and fear. The decision to relocate the TTP fighters, also called the Pakistani Taliban, and their families is mired in mystery. Many analysts have said the US persuaded the Taliban to relocate the fighters while others point out that Beijing is behind the shift of the fighters in a bid to bring peace to Pakistan, where it has invested billions of dollars in rail, road, power, infrastructure and port projects.click here to read… [4]

Bangladesh

Bangladesh tops the wrong ranking, again - Asia News Network

More than Tk 5,000 crore is laundered annually through drug trade out of the country, putting it at the top of the list of drug money laundering nations in Asia. Globally, Bangladesh ranks fifth, according to a report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The UNCTAD estimates account for trafficking of drugs including methamphetamine tablets (yaba), heroin, buprenorphine, and phensedyl.click here to read… [5]

Bangladesh's general point-to-point inflation drops to 9.74% in June - Fibre2Fashion

Bangladesh’s monthly inflation rate fell slightly by 0.2 percentage points from May’s 9.94 per cent to 9.74 per cent in June, according to fresh data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). May’s figure was the highest in a decade. Non-food inflation hit 9.6 per cent during the month, down from 9.96 per cent in the previous, acoding to media reports in the country. The new monetary policy effective from July 1 hiked key policy rates to make loan costlier to tame runaway inflation.click here to read… [6]

Bhutan

Declining foreign reserves cause of concern – Kuensel

Members of both the National Assembly (NA) and the National Council (NC) have expressed growing apprehension over the dwindling foreign reserves in Bhutan. The current budget report for the fiscal year 2023-24 reveals a decline in reserves from USD 833 million in the previous fiscal year to USD 689 million, which is now sufficient to cover only 14 months of essential imports.click here to read… [7]

MoIT considers two options to reconstruct the Kuri-Gongri bridge – Kuensel

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MoIT) will soon reconstruct the same bailey bridge at Kuri-Gongri confluence which connects Gyalpoizhing to Nganglam or consider a modular bridge over the Drangmechu. MoIT Minister, Dorji Tshering at the recent meet-the-press said that the ministry is yet to decide whether to go ahead with the reconstruction of the same bailey bridge with new sets of bridge parts or explore another bridge design called modular.click here to read… [8]

India permits potato imports from Bhutan without any license till June 2024 – Deccan Herald

India on Monday permitted imports of potatoes from Bhutan without any license for one more year till June 2024. Earlier, it was allowed till June 30 this year. "Import of potatoes...is allowed from Bhutan without any import license, up to June 30, 2024," the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification. Imports of fresh or chilled potatoes stood at $1.02 million in 2022-23.click here to read… [9]

Maldives

Reclamation works enter second phase at Maldives Gulhifalhu Island - Maritime.com

Boskalis has begun the second phase of ongoing land reclamation activities on the island of Gulhifalhu in Maldives. The second phase will entail dredging and reclaiming to further develop the island. This phase will also enable housing as well as the further development of the port. To mitigate possible adverse effects of the reclamation, Boskalis is implementing various measures including coral relocation and measures to limit the spreading of sediments in the water in combination with regular monitoring of the water quality.click here to read… [10]

Myanmar

Myanmar-based NSCN-K (YA) orders breakaway faction to surrender - East Mojo

Just days after the newly-formed NSCN-K elected its chief, Myanmar-based NSCN-K led by Yung Aung rejected the creation of the new faction formed by expelled members, directing them to disband and surrender themselves. Former personal secretary of SS Khaplang and self-styled major general (Rtd) Ang Mai was recently elected as the chief of the new NSCN-K, which parted ways with the NSCN-K (YA).click here to read… [11]

Myanmar’s top court hears Suu Kyi’s appeals to cut jail term - Indian Express

Myanmar’s Supreme Court heard on Wednesday the latest in a series of appeals by former leader Aung San Suu Kyi against a slew of convictions, a source familiar with the case said, as she seeks to reduce her 33 years of jail time. The 78-year-old Nobel peace laureate has been convicted of offences ranging from incitement and election fraud to corruption since the military arrested her during a February 2021 coup against her elected government.click here to read… [12]

Humanists UK urges UN to address ethnic violence in Sudan and Myanmar - Humanists

In an intervention delivered during the 53rd session of the Human Rights Council, Humanists UK called for the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide to work with other UN bodies to address the violence from the viewpoint of her mandate. In light of the recent escalation of ethnic violence and oppression in Sudan and Myanmar respectively, Humanists UK welcomes the calls for action from UN bodies addressing these atrocities.click here to read… [13]

Nepal

Opposition parties obstruct House meetings over prime minister’s remarks – The Kathmandu Post

The meetings of the House of Representatives and the National Assembly have been deferred following obstruction from opposition parties. Soon after the National Assembly meeting commenced on Wednesday, CPN-UML lawmakers obstructed the meeting, demanding that Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal resign for his recent remarks.click here to read… [14]

Chinese shadow over Dalai Lama’s birthday celebrations among Tibetans in Nepal – Daiji World

Karma Gyaltsen, secretary of the Tibetan Refugee Welfare Office (TRWO) is still not sure whether the Nepali government would allow them to celebrate the 88th birthday of the Dalai Lama on July 6. Nepal has a history of obstructing the Tibetans from celebrating the birthday of their spiritual leader who lives in exile in Dharamshala, India.click here to read… [15]

Pakistan

Pakistan Government Announces Protests Over Quran Desecration In Sweden – NDTV

The Pakistan federal government will observe Yaum-e-Taqaddus-e-Quran on Friday to hold countrywide protests against the desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden and convene a joint parliamentary session a day earlier, ARY News reported on Tuesday. The decision was made during a meeting that Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif presided over to talk about the problem of the Holy Quran's desecration in Sweden.click here to read… [16]

Pakistan army runs out of fuel, calls off all military exercises as economy bleeds - Firstpost

With the nation plunged into an economic crisis and mounting debt, Pakistan Army has called off all scheduled military drills and war exercises until December this year due to the shortage of fuel. Recent intelligence reports obtained by EurAsian Times from neighbouring sources indicate that the Director General of Military Training of the Pakistan Army has issued a letter to all field formations and headquarters, ordering the suspension of all war games until December.click here to read… [17]

Pakistan ranks up in IMF list, but as 4th largest borrower after fresh loan – Hindustan Times

Other countries ahead of Pakistan in terms of top three biggest debtor are Argentina ($46 billion), Egypt ($18 billion) and Ukraine ($12.2 billion). Pakistan has become the fourth-largest borrower from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) amid the country is expecting to receive a fresh loan of $3 billion within the next nine months. However, the loan is currently subject to approval by the IMF's board.click here to read… [18]

Debt-trapped Pakistan slashes trade deficit by 43 per cent in FY 23 – The Economic Times

Cash-strapped Pakistan has slashed its trade deficit by a staggering 43 per cent to USD 27.55 billion in the fiscal year 2023, according to a media report on Wednesday. The government's stringent control over imports played a vital role in this significant reduction, as it aimed to stabilise the country's critically low foreign exchange reserves and mitigate the risk of default.click here to read… [19]

Sri Lanka

Colombo gears up for the largest Indian tourism conference - Hindustan Times

The convention of the Travel Agents Association of India, after an 18-year hiatus, is scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo from July 6 to 9 with over 700 participants primarily from India, RRM Lilani wrote the report. The historical connection between India and Sri Lanka, spanning thousands of years, adds to the significance of the 67th Convention of the TAAI. TAAI's 2022 Convention, originally planned for April 19 to 22 in Colombo, was postponed due to political unrest and economic crisis but today, as Sri Lanka is on its revival path, the Convention has been brought to Sri Lanka to promote a regional tourism network.click here to read… [20]

A year later, Sri Lanka's tentative economic recovery eludes the poor - Reuters

A year after angry Sri Lankans stormed the president's residence and forced his ouster during a meltdown of the economy, the island's streets are calm, there are no serpentine queues at fuel stations and hours-long power cuts have ended. The central bank expects the economy to resume growth this quarter after six quarters of contraction - faster than expected by many economists - while overseas remittances are surging and tourist numbers are rising.click here to read… [21]