Asean morning news for June 10

Asean morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

Outcry over Asean report predicting Rohingya’s ‘smooth’ return to Myanmar
An Asean report predicting half a million Rohingya refugees will return to Myanmar in two years has left observers incredulous for glossing over army atrocities, ignoring an ongoing civil war in Rakhine state and failing to mention the persecuted Muslim minority by name.
— The Straits Times

South China Sea: World War 3 fears as Beijing deploys troops and weapons on islands
China has vowed to protect what they see as their territory following accusations of aggressive militarisation in the area. General Wei Fenghe, China’s minister of national defence said the county is within its right to build defence facilities.
— Spratly Islands

Rohingyas slam UN, ASEAN repatriation plan without consulting them
A Cox’s Bazar-based organisation of Rohingyas has issued a warning to the United Nations and the ASEAN that there would be no repatriation to Myanmar without consulting the Rohingyas staying in Bangladesh.
— Newage

Lorenzana pushes for ASEAN template in managing South China Sea dispute
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana is pushing for an ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asia Nations) template of managing territorial dispute in the wake of overlapping maritime claims in the vast South China Sea, the Philippine side known as the West Philippine Sea.
— Mania Bulletin

Asean at critical point in journey to clean energy: US expert
Increasingly foul air from rapidly growing cities and industry could force South-east Asian nations to speed up the switch to cleaner sources of energy and to meet UN climate goals, says a leading energy specialist.
— The Straits Times

China begins South China Sea military training exercises
China began two days of military training in the South China Sea yesterday, as its Defence Minister warned that China’s armed forces would “resolutely take action” to defend Beijing’s claims over the area.
— Spratly Islands

Carpio calls for South China Sea ‘truth movement’
As the Chinese government uses propaganda to bolster its claim over the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio called for a truth movement to push back against China.
— Rappler

South China Sea fisheries collapse to hurt entire Southeast Asia — expert
The collapse of fish stocks in the South China Sea, part of which is the West Philippine Sea, would not only affect the Philippines but the entire region.
— The Philippine Star

With right policies, SE Asia can take digital economy to next level – WB
While the digital revolution has already brought many benefits to Southeast Asia (SE) , the region has a unique opportunity to achieve even faster progress by reinforcing the foundations of its growing digital economy.
— Manila Bulletin

Depa to entice non-Asean partners
The government through the Digital Economy and Society (DE) Ministry plans to attract non-Asean countries for partnerships and investment in smart city infrastructure as part of an Asean initiative to to develop 26 smart cities in 10 countries.
— Bangkok Post

Worst place in ASEAN for children
With the exception of Singapore, none of the ASEAN countries are doing so well in terms of providing a great place for their children to live in.
— The Asean Post

Why Asean must be wary of the Chinese tourist ‘weapon’
Asean member states must take note as trade tensions grow and China hints that it could well “weaponise” rare earths, restricting if not ending their export to the United States.
— The Straits Times (paywall)

Short of labor, Japanese companies vie for Southeast Asian workers
A revised immigration law that took effect in April has brought Japanese restaurant operators and other labor-crunch-challenged employers to Southeast Asia.
— Nikkei Asian Review (paywall)

Vietnam ready to act as bride to connect EAEU, ASEAN: official
Vietnam, as an active ASEAN member and the first nation to sign a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), is willing to work as a bridge to help the EAEU and Russia to expand trade and investment ties with the ASEAN, a Vietnamese trade official said.
— Vietnamplus

ASEAN lacks freedom of religion
From January’s church bombings in southern Philippines which killed at least 20 and wounded scores more, to the decades-old persecution of Myanmar’s Rohingya population which has seen a mass exodus of 1.2 million people fleeing for their lives, religious freedom isn’t exactly one of ASEAN’s strong points.
— The Asean Post

Collateral Advantage: Opportunities for Asean nations in the trade war
Optimism about a potential trade deal between the United States and China faded in late May when President Donald Trump accused Beijing of backtracking on agreements.
— ANN

Swift growth of transport sector drives energy demand in APEC
The 21 economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) are expected to witness a 21 percent surge in energy demand over the subsequent three decades, partially owing to population and economic growth in Southeast.
— Antara News

SEA OFFERS GROWTH PROSPECTS TO APP MARKETERS THAT CAN SHOULDER REGION’S DIVERSITY CHALLENGES
MOBILE app marketing and retargeting platform Liftoff revealed in a report that publishers operating in the region can find significant growth opportunities, mainly due to the region being home to the world’s most engaged mobile users.
— DNA

Ideas to transform cities and transcend into a new era
SOUTHEAST ASIA has historically been a complex antithesis of colonial trade hubs alongside rural agriculture that supported villages and its communities.
— BusinessWorld Online

Coworking is reshaping the workplace
Coworking has turned into a global industry. According to Coworking Resources, which studied the growth of the trend, there are currently an estimated 19,000-office spaces and 1.7 million members around the world.
— The Asean Post

Oceans under increasing stress
Oceans play an essential role for life on earth by generating most of the oxygen we breathe, providing us with food, regulating our climate, cleaning the water we drink and delivering a variety of valuable ingredients for medicinal uses.
— The Asean Post

Cambodia morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ

EU, US pressing towards Cambodia trade reprisals
A United States Trade Representative (USTR) and Department of State delegation wrapped up a five-day mission to Cambodia on June 7, a visit that could ultimately have major ramifications for the Southeast Asian nation’s economy.
— Asia Times

Over US$500 Million Investment Projects Approved
The Council for the Development of Cambodia has licensed four investment projects worth US$532.8 million, according to the body’s recent notification.
— AKP

EU demands must not cross ‘red line’: gov’t
A high-ranking government official reiterated on Thursday that EU demands regarding Cambodia keeping its access to the bloc’s “Everything But Arms” (EBA) agreement must not cross the “red line” of sovereignty and independence.
— The Phnom Penh Post

See here for more of today’s Cambodia morning news

Indonesia morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

Democracy shields Indonesia from Belt and Road fallout
Beware the debt trap. Chinese workers are invading us. We are losing our sovereignty.These are some of the warnings that have emerged in the past month after Indonesia announced that it would go after the billions of dollars offered under China’s Belt and Road Initiatives (BRI) to finance the government’s ambitious massive infrastructure program.
— The Jakarta Post

Susi to sink 30 more ships after Idul Fitri
Maritime Affairs and Fisheries minister Susi Pudjiastuti plans to sink 30 foreign ships intercepted for illegally fishing in Indonesian waters.
— Intellasia

MHPS delivers gas turbine for 500MW GTCC power plant in Indonesia
The turbine forms the core of the 500MW natural-gas-fired gas turbine combined cycle (GTCC) power generation system in Indonesia.
— Utilities

See here for more of today’s Indonesia morning news

Lao PDR morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

1,285 people involved in corruption with 999 billion kip lost
Some 1,285 people have been found to be involved in corrupt practices, defrauding the government of 999 billion kip, a government inspection carried out in 2018 revealed.
— Vientiane Times

Towards Zero Hunger-Japan Contribution Nourishes School Children
The Ambassador of Japan to the Lao PDR, Takeshi Hikihara on Jun 7 handed over his government’s donation of canned fish and rice to the World Food Programme (WFP).
— KPL

Tourism minister calls for joint effort to protect tourist sites
The Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Prof. Dr Bosengkham Vongdara, has asked for cooperation from the relevant state agencies to protect and maintain tourist attractions in Vangvieng after learning that they are under threat from the growing number of manufacturing plants.
— Vientiane Times (paywall)

See here for more of today’s Lao morning news

Malaysia morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Ministry to work with telcos to improve coverage in rural S’wak – Dr Rundi
The Ministry of Utilities will be collaborating with telecommunication service providers in an effort to improve coverage in rural Sarawak, said its Minister Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom. Dr Rundi said collaboration with the telecommunication service providers was very important as poor.
— The Borneo Post

62 M’sian companies hold APs to import plastic waste
A total of 62 Malaysian companies currently hold approved permits (AP) to import and process plastic waste. The permits are issued by the National Solid Waste Management Department (NSWMD) within the Housing and Local Government Ministry.In July last year, the Ministry announced a …
— The Borneo Post

From hobby to analytics: Malaysia’s dronetech companies scale up for the future
In the office of Aerodyne Group in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, a drone designer was giving his full attention to fine-tuning a set of propeller guards on his computer.
— Channel NewsAsia

See here for more of today’s Malaysia Morning News

Myanmar morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Outcry over Asean report predicting Rohingya’s ‘smooth’ return to Myanmar
An Asean report predicting half a million Rohingya refugees will return to Myanmar in two years has left observers incredulous for glossing over army atrocities, ignoring an ongoing civil war in Rakhine state and failing to mention the persecuted Muslim minority by name.
— The Straits Times

Three locations identified for China-Myanmar Economic Corridor
Three locations have been identified by Myanmar and Chinese officials under a memorandum of understandingfor the border economic cooperation core zones of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor.
— Myanmar Times

Fishery export earns over $564 mln during Oct-May period
Export earnings from fishery sector from 1 October, 2018 to 31 May, 2019 in current FY amounted to about US$564.35 million, which is an increase of $39.5 million compared to that of last FY, according to the statistics released by the Commerce Ministry.
— The Global New Light of Myanmar

See here for more of today’s Myanmar morning news

Philippines morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

Gross international reserves rose to a 31-month high of $85b—BSP
The country’s gross international reserves which serve as a buffer against external risks climbed to a 31-month high of $85.02 billion in May 2019, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas show.
— Manilastandard.net

Philippines President Duterte demands arrests in dead patient dialysis scam
President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the arrest of those involved in a dialysis treatment scam that defrauded Philippine Health Insurance Corp, and plans a revamp of the state-run insurer for losing more than 150 billions pesos (US$2.89 billion) from fictitious claims and abuse.
— South China Morning Post

PH, Japan to sign $202-m loan for Mindanao roads
The Philippines and Japan are expected to sign this month a $202.04-million loan agreement for the road network development project in conflict-affected areas in Mindanao, the Finance Department said over the weekend.
— Manilastandard.net

See here for more of today’s Philippines morning news

Singapore morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ

SDP pushes for reform of immigration policy: Hire S’poreans first, retrench S’poreans last
The Singapore Democratic Party is pushing for changes on the immigration policy saying that the country “allows too many foreign workers into Singapore to displace local PMETs (professionals, managers, executives, and technicians).”
— The Independent

A little tiff over LGBT normalisation in Malaysia
A Malaysian conservative Muslim rights activist called out Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah for his alleged lack of concern regarding the ‘normalisation’ of LGBT in the country.
— The Independent

Singapore will not be seen as a stooge of US or China if it acts on its own interests: PM Lee
In order for Singapore to not become a stooge of any one power, it must work on the basis of what is in its own interest, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Friday (June 7) evening.
— Channel NewsAsia (very annoying popups)

See here for more of today’s Singapore morning news

Thailand morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ

Majority believe PPRP-led govt won’t complete four-year term: Suan Dusit Poll
A majority of people disagree with the Democrat and Bhumjaithai parties joining the government led by the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) and believe the coalition will not survive the four-year term, says Suan Dusit Poll.
— Bangkok Post

Facing headwinds in 2019, Thai economy looks better for 2020
The Thai economy is projected to grow 3.8% in 2019, slightly below last year’s 4.2%. The main reason is slower growth in the global economy. thailand-business-news.com reports that this is likely to lead to a deceleration in Thai exports and tourism, which will impact domestic consumption.
— The Thaiger

Dems to meet over post claim
All eyes are on the Democrat Party on Monday with a meeting planned which could make or break its coalition deal with the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), in the wake of reports the PPRP wants to reclaim a number of key seats in the cabinet that it had promised to its coalition partners.
— Bangkok Post

See here for more of today’s Thailand morning news

Vietnam morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Vietnam’s state budget records surplus of US$3.35 billion YTD
The budget revenue collection in May reached VND110.2 trillion (US$4.74 billion), accumulating to VND628 trillion (US$27.03 billion) in the January – May period, up 13% year-on-year.
— The Hanoitimes

US to investigate Vietnam ‘shrimp king’ for anti-dumping tax evasion
Minh Phu Seafood JSC, one of Vietnam’s biggest shrimp processors, is suspected of selling imported Indian shrimp to evade anti-dumping
— VnExpress

HCM City to get electric bus rapid transit system
Three memorandums of understanding (MoUs) were signed on June 7 in HCM City for setting up an electric BRT (bus rapid transit) system.
— Sggp News

See here for more of today’s Vietnam morning news

The Asean morning news roundup and its individual country morning news round-ups are the most comprehensive hand-curated selection of news reports from around the Asean Economic Community (AEC) published. We scour hundreds of local and international news and websites to find the things that you need to know to start your working week day.

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