Viewpoint by Calvin Cheng* KUALA LUMPUR (IDN) — After two years of alternating between tense escalation and fleeting periods of calm, the United States and China reached a preliminary phase one trade deal in December 2019. Government spokespersons in both countries promptly cheered the signing of the agreement — but observers around the world remain […]
Epidemic of Domestic Violence Shocks Australia
By Kalinga Seneviratne SYDNEY (IDN) —The gruesome murder of a 31-year-old mother Hannah Clarke and her three small children aged 6, 4 and 3 years, by her estranged 42-year-old husband Rowan Baxter, a former footballer, has shocked the nation and brought into the spotlight an epidemic of domestic violence in Australia that has gone largely […]
Sri Lanka Committed to Non-Proliferation and Disarmament
By Jaya Ramachandran GENEVA | COLOMBO (IDN) – In an exceptional move, Germany has granted funds to Sri Lanka’s Forum on Disarmament and Development (FDD) for the translation of the texts of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban-Treaty (CTBT) to the island state’s official languages Sinhala and […]
Australia Battling Devastation Wrought by Worst Ever Bushfires
By Kalinga Seneviratne SYDNEY (IDN) – Australia’s worst summer in living memory has burnt over 18 million hectares. The UN Environments Programme (UNEP) estimates that more than 5,900 buildings including over 2,800 homes have been destroyed as of mid-January. In addition to a death toll of 33 people so far, about one billion animals, and […]
World Powers Come to Woo Sri Lanka
By Kalinga Seneviratne COLOMBO (IDN) – Two months after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa assumed office on November 18, 2019, the Indian ocean island republic of Sri Lanka has had the unique distinction of hosting top diplomats of three world powers – the United States, China and Russia. One of the president’s first significant announcements was that […]
Globalization of Job Market Riles Singapore Locals
By Kainga Seneviratne SINGAPORE (IDN) – The small Southeast Asian island republic of Singapore has been praised by both global business leaders and the international media for its openness to global trade and professional talent movements. It has made this nation of just over 4 million people – 1 million of who are foreigner – […]
Australia Burns Furiously but Still Remains an Attractive Destination to Sri Lankans
By Dr Palitha Kohona The writer is former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, and former Foreign Secretary. COLOMBO (IDN) – Summer temperatures continue to establish new records. The capital clocks up an unprecedented 44 degrees Celsius, a more familiar figure in Middle Eastern cities. Bush fires have continued to […]
The Fate of Indo-British Relations in The Aftermath of BREXIT
Viewpoint by Manish Uprety F.R.A.S. and Jainendra Karn * NEW DELHI (IDN) – Will Uncle Christmas fulfill Nicola Sturgeon’s wish this year? In the aftermath of the British elections that painted England blue, Nicola presented her formal request for a fresh referendum on Scottish independence and has called for the Scottish parliament to be given […]
India No More A Refuge for The Persecuted
Viewpoint by Shastri Ramachandaran * This article is the 11th in a series of joint productions of South Asian Outlook and IDN-InDepthNews, flagship of the International Press Syndicate. NEW DELHI (IDN) – India has no refugee policy. It is not a signatory to the UN’s 1951 Refugee Convention, which defines a refugee. Now, India avowedly […]
Hindu Nationalist Govt. Leading India to the Edge of a Cliff
Viewpoint by Dr. Ram Puniyani This article is the 10th in a series of joint productions of South Asian Outlook and IDN-InDepthNews, flagship of the International Press Syndicate. NEW DELHI (IDN) – Citizenship Amendment Bill, while passed in both houses of Parliament has elicited diverse and negative responses all over India. On one hand we […]