Asia-Pacific

Traumatised Rohingya Women Bear the Brunt of Persecution

By Naimul Haq

COX’S BAZAR, Bangladesh (IDN) – Shefali Aktar, mother of three, fled her home in Thaphanbin, a tiny village overlooking the Arakan Mountains in Rakhine state in Myanmar.

The 22-year-old pregnant woman escaped near death when her neighbour helped her and her children to hide in the nearby forest the night after the entire population of about 600 families in her village was wiped out.

“I went back to my village the next evening to find my husband. Instead, I found dead bodies,” says Shefali, breaking down in tears as she continues to narrate the horror.

: Naimul Haq; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 21 December 2017

Photo: UN General Assembly and the Security Council re-elected Justice Dalveer Bhandari to the World Court on November 20, 2017.

Re-election of India's Nominee to the World Court 'Historic'

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – India has scored a "historic" victory over Britain, one of the five permanent members (P5) of the Security Council, with the re-election of Justice Dalveer Bhandari to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), principal judicial organ of the United Nations. The win is historic because it’s the first time since 1946 that no judge from a P5 member is a part of the ICJ, which has its seat in The Hague, the Netherlands.

After Britain pulled out its candidate Christopher Greenwood before the 12th round of voting on November 20, Justice Bhandari won the last of five seats for which elections were held. He received 183 votes in the 193-member General Assembly and secured all the 15 votes in the Security Council after separate and simultaneous elections were held at the UN headquarters in New York.

: J Nastranis; UN INSIDER; 11 December 2017

Photo: Monks and nuns taking a Buddhist Volunteer Spirit for Communication training course at the BDP’s Training Center, Wat Nakhoun Noi, Nasaythong District, Vientiane Credit: Toung Eh Synuanchanh.

Village Buddhist Monks in Laos Initiate Environmentally-Aware Development

By Toung Eh Synuanchanh

This article is the 19th in a series of joint productions of Lotus News Features and IDN-InDepthNews, flagship of the International Press Syndicate.

BEUNGSANTHUENG, Laos (IDN) – A quiet revolution is taking shape in rural Laos, where environmentally-conscious village Buddhist monks are teaching people morality and meditation to spearhead a movement mobilising the people to economically develop their communities for living in harmony with nature rather than destroying it in the name of development.

At the Ban Beungsanthueng community, in Nongbok District in Khammouane Province of Laos, about 400 km south of the capital Vientiane, monks educate the villagers in Sila (Buddhist morality) and the way to live a good life (Right Livelihood), while protecting the environment. In this nominally communist country, the monks explain the linkage between humans and nature to villagers, and its importance to their livelihoods and well-being.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 07 December 2017

Photo: People in Pyongyang watch Kim Jong-un on North Korean TV, 2015. Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

No More Bluster, A Way Out of North Korean Nuclear Crisis

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*

LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) - When, soon after the election, President Barack Obama invited Donald Trump to the White House we didn't learn much about their conversation. But we were briefed on one thing: Obama had told Trump that North Korea would be the most pressing and difficult issue on his agenda.

How right that was. But the Americans have missed the boat. It's as simple as that. What’s done is done. While Washington has dithered and dithered through three successive presidencies, missing opportunity after opportunity, North Korea has gone from zero nuclear weapons to an arsenal of at least 20. Its test of an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile, in the early hours of November 29, is said to be capable of striking the U.S. It doesn't have a nuclear tip yet but that will come sometime in the next two or three years.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 05 December 2017

Photo: WANG Shouwen, China’s Vice-Minister of Commerce. Credit: The Chinese Ministry of Commerce.

China and UNIDO Have Engaged in Substantial Cooperation

By WANG Shouwen

WANG Shouwen is China’s Vice-Minister of Commerce. Following are extensive excerpts from his address at the 17th session of the UNIDO General Conference 'Partnering for Impact: Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals' in Vienna on November 27, 2017 – after Li Yong was re-appointed for a second term (2017-2021) as the Director General of the Organization. – The Editor

VIENNA (IDN) – China appreciates the significant achievements UNIDO has made during the past 4 years under the guidance of DG Li Yong. ISID [Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development] was incorporated into 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. PCP [the Programme for Country Partnership] received full recognition of member countries. UNIDO becomes the leading agency in UN System of implementing the Third Industrial Development Decade for Africa. With its active participation in mechanisms such as G20 and the BRICS, UNIDO has remarkably increased its influence and visibility.

: UN Bureau; OPINION; 29 November 2017

From Arizona to Bangkok, Determined to Help Thailand

By Jutta Wolf

BERLIN | BANGKOK (IDN) - There is something exceptional about Dr. Thanawan Bhookphan who was born in Min Buri, one of the 50 districts of Bangkok, the capital city of Bangkok, and spent over 30 years in the United States.

He received Mechanical Engineering Degree from the University of Arizona, and Master’s Degree and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the Faculty of Industrial Engineering – and gained expertise in several fields of engineering and international business management.

As a university student, he worked with many big and reputed companies as an apprentice. After graduation, he joined Motorola USA and worked in the engineering section, which supports the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), contributing his share to the success of Apollo 14 and 15 lunar missions.

: Jutta Wolf; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 29 November 2017

Photo: Sri Lanka's Foreign Secretary Prasad Kariyawasam. Credit: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sri Lanka.

In Sri Lanka, Development Begins with Reconciliation

By Prasad Kariyawasam

Prasad Kariyawasam is Sri Lanka's Foreign Secretary. Following are extensive excerpts from his address to the UN's Peacebuilding Commission at the UN Headquarters in New York on November 20, 2017. – The Editor

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) – Sri Lanka is known, perhaps mostly, as the place where Ceylon Tea originates from, or as the land which was torn by conflict for several years, or the country where the famous science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke lived.

But, we are also so much more, and our history also has a bearing on current peacebuilding in our country.

: UN Bureau; OPINION; 28 November 2017

Sri Lanka’s 'Vision 2025' Development Programme Gets Going

By Indrajit Coomaraswamy

Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy is Governor of the Sri Lanka Central Bank. The following, a rather comprehensive view of the state of the Sri Lankan economy, is based on a statement made at the United Nations on 20 November 2017. – The Editor

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) – Sri Lanka has experienced a 27-year separatist conflict in the North and East of the country and two youth insurrections in the South (1971 and 1988-90). Tens of thousands of our people, most of them young, lost their lives. While there was complex causality behind these episodes, arguably the most significant explanatory factor was the mismatch between the expectations of and the opportunities for our young people.

: UN Bureau; OPINION; 24 November 2017

Photo: U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and South Korea's President Moon Jae-in attend a welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Blue House in Seoul Tuesday, November 7, 2017. Credit: Kim Hong-ji/Pool Photo

Trump’s Asian Visit Exposes U.S.-Asia Perception Gap

By Kalinga Seneviratne

BANGKOK (IDN) – It is often said that since the end of the World War II, the United States has been the pre-eminent power in the Asia-Pacific region, providing the stability needed for the economic boom of the past 70 years.

This perception is changing, however, and has intensified especially after U.S. President Donald Trump’s infamous speech at the United Nations in September where he threatened to “totally destroy” North Korea, effectively killing 25 million people and committing the worse war crime in history.

The large “No Trump, No War” demonstrations that took place across South Korea during President Trump’s visit to Seoul earlier in November reflected the South Korean peoples’ different perception to that of United States about the North Korean nuclear threat.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 21 November 2017

Photo: A new road being constructed in Bamyan in 2013. Credit: UNAMA

Religious Scholars Discuss Peace-building in Afghanistan

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – Religious leaders came together in support of efforts to build a culture of tolerance and non-violence in Afghanistan at an event organized by the Bamyan regional office of UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).

More than 30 scholars, including female scholars from different religious institutions attended the event to discuss and review their role in building a peaceful society, UNAMA reported on November 20, 2017.

"Religion is a key factor in peace-building," said Ibrahim Khalili, a scholar, stressing that religious leaders, by virtue of their standing in communities, can be a positive force for building peace among local communities.