Asian

Taliban order Afghan shop owners to behead mannequins

The Taliban have ordered shop owners in western Afghanistan to cut off the heads of mannequins, insisting the human figures violate Islamic law. A video clip showing men sawing the plastic heads off women figures went viral on social media. Since returning to power in August, the Taliban have increasingly imposed their harsh interpretation of […]

Cardinal Bo under fire for meeting Myanmar coup leader

Cardinal Charles Maung Bo’s meeting with Myanmar coup leader Min Aung Hlaing has sparked outrage among the Catholic community in the predominantly Buddhist nation. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing visited the archbishop’s house in Yangon on Dec. 23 for a Christmas event hosted by Cardinal Bo and two auxiliary bishops. The archbishop of Yangon and […]

South Korea pardons disgraced ex-president Park Geun-hye

South Korea’s ex-president Park Geun-hye received a pardon today, cutting short a jail term of more than 20 years for corruption with her successor saying he granted it in the interest of national unity. Park became South Korea’s first female president in 2013, but less than four years later she was impeached and ousted after […]

India-Bangladesh ties are no more refugees of the past

The agony and ecstasy associated with the birth of Bangladesh in 1971 still hold the message that religion cannot bind a nation together for long. Sheikh Mujibar Rahman and his Mukti Bahini firmly believed that the Bengalis in the east were different from West Pakistanis and thus Pakistan was splintered and Bangladesh came into being. […]

Celebrating Christmas in Muslim-majority Pakistan

The international community fed by biased news tends to presume that all Muslim-majority nations ban any kind of celebrations, which is false. Only a few among the 50 or so Muslim majority countries in the world, among them the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Tajikistan, Brunei, Morocco and Afghanistan, disallow celebrations like Christmas. Speaking for […]

Catholics caution Philippine govt against Chinese aid

Catholics in Bacolod Diocese in the Visayas region have cautioned the Philippine government against accepting China’s aid to help victims of Super Typhoon Rai. Chinese ambassador Huang Xilian on December 22 offered US$1 million as cash aid and 4,725 tons of rice to the typhoon-hit Southeast Asian country. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte accepted the aid […]

Blasphemy laws lead to bloodbath in Pakistan

As factory workers took selfies with the burning corpse of their manager, Farhan Idrees proudly spoke to local media about the alleged blasphemy. “Priyantha Kumara tore a paper from the wall. It was inscribed with the name of Hussain [grandson of Prophet Mohammad]. He threw it in the basket,” said Idrees, who appeared to be […]

Philippines bans fireworks again at Christmas

The Philippine government has banned traditional firework celebrations over Christmas and New Year for a second straight year due to Covid-19 and safety fears. The ban was based on the recommendation of the Health Department to avoid firework-related accidents during a time when medical services were being stretched because of the pandemic, national police chief […]

Eviction-facing Indian Catholics to fight Muslim charity’s claims

Goans oppose tourism project near 16th century basilica