Stefano Vecchia

For the third year in a row, the Philippines is the world's leading importer, with domestic production continuing to fall, due, among things, to La Niña. Food absorbs 40 per cent of expenditures among low-income, resulting in greater social inequalities. Consumption has increased from 14.8 million tonnes in 2020-2021 to 17.4 million this year.

The United Nations releases new report on migration in Thailand, five years after the last taking stock of the situation. Despite its ongoing economic crisis, thousands of people continue to arrive from neighbouring countries. While some progress has been made, working conditions and social assistance for migrants remain a problem. People fleeing Myanmar’s civil war are another major issue.

The Pheu Thai-led government wants to amend the Defence Ministry Administration Act. The “anti-coup" law would restrain the country’s military, which has seized power 12 times in the past, the last time in 2014 by General Prayuth Chan-ocha. Pro-military parties are against the proposed law.

The death penalty is again a topical issue in Southeast Asia after a Philippine woman sentenced to death for drug possession is set to go home where the death penalty is not in force. Capital punishment is widely enforced in Indonesia, Singapore, and Vietnam. A call is getting louder for “the protection of vulnerable communities”, with many voices warning that “no justice system is immune to error”.

Special Envoy Alexandra Xanthaki warned at the end of a ten-day visit to a country where together minority ethnic groups make up 47% of the population. ‘Despite progress on human rights, policies of assimilation of indigenous peoples into the dominant Lao group and forced relocation of villages in the name of development continue'.

The feud between the two political dynasties of the Philippines (allies in the last election) have reached an unprecedented level of verbal violence. Vice President Sara Duterte has threatened to have President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. killed if she is herself eliminated. According to experts, the daughter of the former president, whose approval ratings are rising, is already looking ahead to next year’s midterm elections.

Nine people per 100,000 are homeless in the city-state, the crossroad of Southeast Asia, a small number that jars, however, with the country’s widespread well-being and prosperity. The challenge is to go from temporary housing to structural solutions that reduce stigma and ghettoisation. Religious and non-religious organisations, including Catholic Welfare Services, are committed to solving the issue.

Government agencies in the health and demographic sectors are under attack, but also public security data. Disinformation spikes fuelled by artificial intelligence have also been detected at times of heightened tension in the South China Sea.

The issue is front-page news after the states of Sarawak and Sabah decided to promote the use of English in secondary schools. For Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, it is necessary to enhance the skills of students, but critics blame identity politics for electoral advantages.

The Republican Act 12027, which came into force a few days ago, favours Tagalog as the national language (in addition to English, which is already the real lingua franca). The concern of the aboriginal populations in an archipelago of more than 7000 islands that has as many as 182 registered ethnic-linguistic groups.

The incredulous tears of the ‘hibakusha’ in a country that has struggled to recognise their suffering and equal dignity. The movement's role in the campaign to ban atomic weapons. PM Ishiba speaks of ‘extremely saignificant’ recognition, but continues to cite nuclear deterrence as a ‘pragmatic response’.

Despite being granted refugee status by UNHCR, the court granted Y Quynh Bdap's extradition request from Hanoi. The activist has filed an appeal and a new asylum request with the Canadian embassy. The ambiguous attitude of Thailand, which opens its doors to temporary reception but is not a signatory to the UN Convention, offers no real guarantees.