Rare rallies in Vietnam say ‘hands off’ to China over sea row
HANOI (Reuters) – Hundreds rallied on Sunday in Vietnam’s biggest cities to denounce China’s setting up of a giant oil rig in the South China Sea, a rare protest likely to prolong a tense standoff between the two communist neighbors.
In Indonesia, moderate Islamic party returns to political centerstage
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian presidential frontrunner Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has joined hands with the country’s most popular Islamic party, cementing the surprise resurgence of Muslim parties in this year’s election and possibly renewing their voice i…
A year on, bitter Italians keep Grillo flying high
ROME (Reuters) – Franco Picini, a schoolteacher in Italy’s capital city, says he has voted for the left all his life, but in this month’s European parliament elections, he will back the 5-Star Movement of comedian Beppe Grillo.
Thai government warns protesters as power struggle deepens
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s beleaguered government on Sunday warned people to stay away from anti-government protests, saying it had to step up security as the two sides in a lengthy political crisis squared off over who is running the country.
Jail, lawsuits cast shadow over Myanmar media freedom
YANGON (Reuters) – Two years after Myanmar scrapped censorship in one of its boldest reforms, its journalists are again living in fear of jail and are convinced a state-sponsored crackdown is under way to limit press freedom.
Chinese factory wall collapses in heavy rain, killing 18
BEIJING (Reuters) – A factory wall collapsed in heavy rain in eastern China on Sunday, killing 18 people working inside, Xinhua news agency said.
Sea row not a problem between China and Southeast Asia group, Beijing says
BEIJING (Reuters) – The South China Sea dispute is not a problem between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China opposes certain member states trying to use it to sow discord, its foreign ministry said.
Chinese elite push for release of jailed Nobel laureate
BEIJING (Reuters) – A group of “princelings”, children of China’s political elite, has quietly urged the Communist Party leadership to release jailed Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo on parole to improve the country’s international image, two sources said.
China says no waste plant without support after protests
BEIJING (Reuters) – A government in eastern China will shelve plans to build a huge waste incinerator if it does not have popular support, in an apparent victory for protesters who had clashed with police saying they feared the plant would damage their…
Indian election front-runner could curb beef exports
NEW DELHI/MUMBAI (Reuters) – India’s main Hindu nationalist party says it plans to clamp down on beef exports if it takes power after general elections that end on Monday, threatening supplies from one of the world’s biggest shippers of the meat.
