By Shihana Mohamed* NEW YORK | 6 November 2026 (IDN) — “Outside these walls, people are not asking whether the United Nations still exists. They are asking whether it works.” Khalilur Rahman of Bangladesh, President of the United Nations General Assembly, warned the international community in his opening remarks at the 81st Session of the United Nations General […]
OPINION: Protecting the Sacred City of Anuradhapura
By Dr. Asoka Bandarage* COLOMBO. Sri Lanka | 27 October 2026 (IDN) — Buddhism was first introduced to Sri Lanka in Anuradhapura in the 3rd century BCE by Arahant Mahinda, the son of the Indian Emperor Asoka. For nearly 1500 years, Anuradhapura remained Sri Lanka’s capital and the intellectual and spiritual centre of Theravada Buddhism […]
The Old Bus Was an Adventure. Will the New One Last?
A schoolboy commuter’s memories of Sri Lanka in the 1980s and 90s — and a look at the country’s new Metro Bus service. By Feroz Deen* COLOMBO | 24 October 2026 (IDN) — In the 1980s and 90s, catching a bus in Sri Lanka was an adventure. Getting on was a struggle, never mind getting […]
Renewing the Momentum for Rights-based Poverty Reduction in Asia and the Pacific
By Katinka Weinberger and Mizuho Okimoto-Kaewtathip* BANGKOK | 23 October 2026 (IDN) — Eradicating poverty in all its forms is one of the most pressing development challenges across Asia and the Pacific. While the region has made remarkable progress in reducing poverty over recent decades, multiple and overlapping crises have exposed the fragility of these achievements […]
Asia, Africa and the Struggle for a New Global Order
By Kester Kenn Klomegah* MOSCOW | NEW YORK | 3 October 2026 (IDN) — The 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations, brought world leaders and delegations to New York in late September 2026. Their speeches addressed political governance, economic development, conflicts, inequality, […]
South Pacific: As Small Islands Battle Climate Change, Debts Should Not Be Weaponized
By ANTONIA BHAGWAN* SUVA, Fiji | 28 September 2026 (IDN|Wansolwara) — The South Pacific region with its many vulnerable island nations may have moved beyond the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, but its economic consequences continue to weigh on governments across the region. Once again, countries are facing rising debt levels. In its 2026 Pacific […]
Reading The Tealeaves in Hong Kong
By Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden | 16 September 2026 (IDN) — In 1995, in a little-remembered event, Li Ruthuan, a member of the Chinese Politburo (containing the top seven in the government), made a speech likening the Chinese takeover of Hong Kong to the case of a lady who had agreed to sell a 100-year-old […]
Earthquakes and Japan: Does Preparedness Truly Equal Prevention?
By Kadhija Mohamed TOKYO | 8 September 2026 (IDN) — This past couple of months, our planet has seen a seemingly significant rise in the number of higher magnitude earthquakes in regions near tectonic fault lines all over the world. Last month alone there were devastating earthquakes with a magnitude of five or higher in […]
Wars, Inequality, And Poverty No Longer Confined To Faraway Places
By Alon Ben-Meir* NEW YORK | 16 August 2026 (IDN) — Fragmented power, deepening inequality, climate stress, dying democracies, and weaponized information have fused into one global crisis; we can break the cycle if we only summon the will We are living through a moment in time of cascading disorder. Wars, inequality, and poverty are […]
UN Report Warns Organised Crime Networks Biggest Threat to Asia And Beyond
By Kalinga Seneviratne BANGKOK, Thailand | 28 July 2026 (IDN) — Speaking at the launch of the report ‘Transnational Organized Crime Threat Assessment for South-East Asia’ by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Bangkok on Wednesday (22 July), New Zealand’s ambassador to Thailand, Raylene Liufalani noted that these criminal networks are […]