https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/rss/325567/feed Latest news, analysis and opinion on the law and legal issues, including Hong Kong extradition law. Follow the latest on trials, court cases and justice. en https://assets-v2.i-scmp.com/production/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg CNA CNA A Singaporean behavioural therapist who was repeatedly hit in the face by a four-year-old boy with special needs grabbed his hand and dragged him off his chair and onto the floor. Tricia Lee Hsien, 29, was fined S$5,000 (US$3,900) by a court on Wednesday. She pleaded guilty to one charge of voluntarily causing hurt to a minor. The prosecution sought only a fine, saying this was an “exceptional case” as the harm caused was low and the woman’s culpability was low in this isolated act of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3372397/singapore-court-fines-behavioural-therapist-hurting-autistic-boy-who-hit-her https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3372397/singapore-court-fines-behavioural-therapist-hurting-autistic-boy-who-hit-her Wed, 28 Oct 2026 05:50:33 +0000 The Star The Star A total of 2,097 Malaysian police officers and personnel have been arrested for drug-related offences, robbery and corruption between 2021 and August this year, according to Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail. Of the total, 1,551 were arrested for drug offences, 64 for robbery and 482 by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). Saifuddin Nasution said in a written parliamentary reply to Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng on Tuesday that the drug-related arrests were made under the Dangerous... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3372385/over-2000-rogue-malaysian-police-officers-arrested-past-5-years https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3372385/over-2000-rogue-malaysian-police-officers-arrested-past-5-years Wed, 28 Oct 2026 04:06:56 +0000 Ishani Sarkar Ishani Sarkar Two years after her death, Roslyn Loveless, the former wife of Meghan Markle’s father, Thomas Markle Snr, is making headlines over a letter sent to London’s Metropolitan Police in 2019, accusing her ex-husband of sexual offences against minors. According to The Telegraph, it was Loveless who wrote the letter, claiming Markle Snr, now 82, spoke to her about travelling to the Philippines and Thailand “because 12-year-olds are legal there”. Earlier this year, Markle Snr came under investigation... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3372301/all-about-late-roslyn-loveless-ex-wife-meghan-markles-father-thomas-snr https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3372301/all-about-late-roslyn-loveless-ex-wife-meghan-markles-father-thomas-snr Tue, 27 Oct 2026 11:00:07 +0000 Reuters Reuters A court in India has ordered the ⁠takedown of an online documentary posted by Hotmail co-founder Sabeer Bhatia accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and billionaire Gautam Adani of cronyism, after Adani Enterprises sued, calling it defamatory. Adani’s flagship firm, Adani Enterprises, told the High Court in the eastern city of Kolkata that the documentary, which garnered millions of views on social media in recent days, was riddled with false content and had prompted ‌inquiries from some... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3372312/indian-court-orders-documentary-modi-tycoon-adani-removed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3372312/indian-court-orders-documentary-modi-tycoon-adani-removed Tue, 27 Oct 2026 10:55:27 +0000 Reuters Reuters US singer Chris ⁠Brown was spared an immediate prison sentence in Britain on Monday for attacking a producer with a tequila bottle in a London nightclub in 2023, with his fans cheering as the musician walked free from court. Brown, 37, was given an eight-month suspended sentence at London’s Southwark Crown Court ‌after he admitted a charge of affray over the attack on Abraham Diaw at the Tape nightclub in February 2023. Diaw was hit twice in the head with a bottle, which was then swung twice... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3372197/us-singer-chris-brown-avoids-jail-after-guilty-plea-uk-nightclub-incident https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3372197/us-singer-chris-brown-avoids-jail-after-guilty-plea-uk-nightclub-incident Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:48:25 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof A Malaysian ruler is demanding accountability over the mismanagement of a pilgrimage fund, after a government rescue package, criminal proceedings against former officials and half-hearted reforms have fuelled concerns about political influence in an institution entrusted with the savings of millions of the country’s Muslims. Tabung Haji holds the savings of more than 9.8 million depositors and helps Malaysian Muslims finance and undertake the pilgrimage to Mecca, a religious obligation for... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3372160/fed-malaysian-sultan-rebukes-scandal-hit-pilgrimage-fund-demands-accountability https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3372160/fed-malaysian-sultan-rebukes-scandal-hit-pilgrimage-fund-demands-accountability Mon, 26 Oct 2026 08:28:02 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele The death of a 21-year-old delivery rider at an underground gig in Malaysia, now being investigated as murder, has highlighted concerns over crowd safety and regulatory flaws in the country’s independent live music scene, industry players say. Police reclassified the case on Sunday, four days after the man died from head injuries sustained at the gig in the southern state of Melaka, where the event was reportedly held without the necessary permits and local authority approval. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3372143/suspected-murder-man-malaysian-underground-gig-raises-safety-concerns https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3372143/suspected-murder-man-malaysian-underground-gig-raises-safety-concerns Mon, 26 Oct 2026 06:53:49 +0000 Jess Ma Jess Ma An international arbitration body in Hong Kong is exploring business opportunities in the Middle East and Africa, citing the city’s neutrality and predictability as key draws for new markets amid rising geopolitical tensions. Domitille Baizeau, co-chairwoman of the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre, said the city had benefited from an overall shift in global business growth from Europe to Asia, with overseas businesses increasingly choosing Hong Kong to arbitrate disputes. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3372084/hong-kong-arbitration-body-eyes-mideast-africa-prospects-amid-global-tensions https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3372084/hong-kong-arbitration-body-eyes-mideast-africa-prospects-amid-global-tensions Mon, 26 Oct 2026 03:00:18 +0000 David D. Lee David D. Lee “How can South Korea’s law be this weak? Twenty-three people died!” Those were the words of Chinese mother Li Shun-ji after South Korea’s Supreme Court upheld a reduced four-year prison sentence for Aricell CEO Park Soon-kwan over a 2024 factory fire that killed 23 workers, including Li’s then 24-year-old daughter, Yan Jing-jing. The blaze at the lithium battery manufacturer’s factory in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi province, killed 17 Chinese nationals, one Laotian national and five South Koreans,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/people/article/3372044/south-korean-ceos-4-year-jail-term-over-plant-fire-killed-23-spurs-anger https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/people/article/3372044/south-korean-ceos-4-year-jail-term-over-plant-fire-killed-23-spurs-anger Mon, 26 Oct 2026 00:00:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Philippine police are investigating a laptop found alongside images of child abuse at the former home of Meghan Markle’s estranged father, with “full results” expected in a week, the country’s interior minister has said. Thomas Markle, whose daughter is married to Britain’s Prince Harry, had been living in Cebu in the Philippines until reportedly returning to the US earlier this year. Philippine interior minister Jonvic Remulla said the country planned to take “appropriate legal actions” against... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3372089/philippines-plan-appropriate-legal-action-against-thomas-markle https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3372089/philippines-plan-appropriate-legal-action-against-thomas-markle Sun, 25 Oct 2026 15:26:17 +0000 Faye Bradley Faye Bradley Mariah Carey has just won a dismissal in a US$20 million defamation lawsuit filed by her brother, Morgan Carey, over her 2020 memoir, The Meaning of Mariah Carey. The “Emotions” singer’s estranged brother sued her back in 2021, claiming that she lied about him in her book where she alleged that Morgan – whom she refers to as an “ex-brother” – was violent in the family and dealt drugs in the 1980s. “More often, I felt I had to protect myself from him, and sometimes I would find myself protecting... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3371587/mariah-carey-wins-dismissal-us20m-defamation-lawsuit-filed-brother-morgan-so-who-he https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3371587/mariah-carey-wins-dismissal-us20m-defamation-lawsuit-filed-brother-morgan-so-who-he Wed, 21 Oct 2026 06:58:34 +0000 CNA CNA A Singaporean couple who regularly abused their first child after he was born, resulting in his death at the age of eight months, were sentenced to jail on Wednesday. Chloe Gan Ci Xuan, 23, and Neo Jia Ming, 27, were sentenced respectively to 15 years and three months’ jail and 16 years’ jail for various charges over the death of their son, Trevor Neo Yu Hin. Gan pleaded guilty to three charges comprising causing the death of a child, ill-treating a child and permitting such ill-treatment. Neo... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3371579/singapore-parents-jailed-after-8-month-old-son-dies-severe-abuse https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3371579/singapore-parents-jailed-after-8-month-old-son-dies-severe-abuse Wed, 21 Oct 2026 03:12:12 +0000 Jess Ma Jess Ma A Hong Kong-headquartered intergovernmental mediation body has successfully settled an infrastructure dispute in Malaysia and received “more than a dozen” inquiries, its head has revealed on the organisation’s first anniversary. Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah, secretary general of the International Organisation for Mediation (IOMed), told a reception marking the body’s first anniversary that it had wrapped up a case on Tuesday and was handling another. “Our ambition is not simply to build a successful... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3371552/hong-kong-based-iomed-settles-second-dispute-body-marks-its-first-year https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3371552/hong-kong-based-iomed-settles-second-dispute-body-marks-its-first-year Tue, 20 Oct 2026 14:42:52 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Two Singaporean men lost their positions in the armed forces after they were convicted of having sex with a 15-year-old boy. Former army captain Chaw Chia Jun, 41, was sentenced to 17 months’ jail on Tuesday, while his co-accused Owen Toh Wei Song, a former navy cook, was jailed for 12 months on September 22, according to CNA. Singapore’s Ministry of Defence has confirmed that both were suspended after their arrest in 2024 and were no longer in the military. “The Singapore Armed Forces holds its... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3371490/ex-army-captain-singapore-jailed-17-months-sex-15-year-old-boy https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3371490/ex-army-captain-singapore-jailed-17-months-sex-15-year-old-boy Tue, 20 Oct 2026 08:31:37 +0000 Reuters Reuters A woman told police that British actor and comedian Russell Brand had grabbed her breasts before dragging her into a toilet at a bar and orally raping her, a London court heard on Monday. Brand, once one of Britain’s most high-profile broadcasters and the former husband of US singer Katy Perry, is on trial accused of three counts of rape, three of ‌sexual assault and one of indecent assault against six women between 1999 and 2009. The 51-year-old denies the allegations, and told police after his... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3371433/woman-tells-uk-court-comedian-russell-brand-raped-her https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3371433/woman-tells-uk-court-comedian-russell-brand-raped-her Mon, 19 Oct 2026 22:17:55 +0000 Reuters Reuters Starvation cult leader Paul Mackenzie and 28 others were found guilty of murder by a Kenyan court on Monday over the deaths of 190 children and an adult in one of the world’s worst cult-related tragedies in recent history. The preacher was arrested in 2023 after police received a tip-off, and weeks later authorities began uncovering bodies in shallow graves in the Shakahola Forest near the coast in southeastern Kenya. Prosecutors say ‌Mackenzie and his Good News International Church organised a... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/africa/article/3371417/kenyan-starvation-cult-leader-found-guilty-murder-191-children-1-adult https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/africa/article/3371417/kenyan-starvation-cult-leader-found-guilty-murder-191-children-1-adult Mon, 19 Oct 2026 15:51:17 +0000 C. Uday Bhaskar C. Uday Bhaskar The awarding of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize to South African jurist Navanethem “Navi” Pillay matters for reasons that go well beyond the laureate herself. The award does three things at once. First, it restores credibility to the prize. Second, it rejects in unambiguous terms the Thrasymachian doctrine that might is right, which has become the operating philosophy of major powers. Third, it highlights a warning of what happens when a hegemon decides it is above the law. The correction was... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/world-opinion/article/3370866/nobel-peace-prize-message-behind-navi-pillays-win https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/world-opinion/article/3370866/nobel-peace-prize-message-behind-navi-pillays-win Fri, 16 Oct 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Phoebe Zhang Phoebe Zhang Beijing has invited White House press secretary Katie Zacharia to visit the country more often after she said in an interview that China “doesn’t even have proper toilets”. The newly appointed spokeswoman for the Trump administration made the controversial remarks in an interview on Thursday with conservative commentator Jack Posobiec, when talking about the perception around 2016 that “the gold days, the glory days of the US were over and China was on the horizon”. “I remember this very... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3371184/china-invites-trump-press-secretary-katie-zacharia-visit-after-proper-toilets-slur https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3371184/china-invites-trump-press-secretary-katie-zacharia-visit-after-proper-toilets-slur Fri, 16 Oct 2026 10:53:29 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado Teresa Elena Frontado White House press secretary Katie Zacharia has acknowledged that she never passed a bar exam, days after telling reporters she had passed one “when I moved to China”. In an interview with the conservative commentator Jack Posobiec on right-wing streaming channel Real America’s Voice on Thursday, Zacharia said she sat the California bar exam after graduating from Pepperdine University’s law school in 2011 but did not pass. She said the results were “somewhat inconsequential, because I knew I... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/diplomacy/article/3371066/white-house-press-secretary-never-passed-bar-exam-wrongly-claims-china-has-none https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/diplomacy/article/3371066/white-house-press-secretary-never-passed-bar-exam-wrongly-claims-china-has-none Thu, 15 Oct 2026 21:52:59 +0000 Alan Robles,Raissa Robles Alan Robles,Raissa Robles Philippine officials want a new anti-foreign interference law ahead of the 2028 presidential election, as a raid on a suspected online scam centre near the country’s military headquarters and reports of Chinese-linked money transfers to a company tied to Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio’s family fuel national security concerns. On Monday, immigration and military operatives arrested 76 foreigners at a facility in Quezon City suspected of being linked to Philippine offshore gaming operators... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370898/philippine-law-targeting-foreign-agents-spurs-fears-free-speech-curbs https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370898/philippine-law-targeting-foreign-agents-spurs-fears-free-speech-curbs Wed, 14 Oct 2026 13:00:11 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado Teresa Elena Frontado Katie Zacharia, US President Donald Trump’s newly appointed White House press secretary, faces questions about her legal credentials after telling reporters on Tuesday that she passed a bar exam “when I moved to China”, without identifying the jurisdiction. Zacharia, who has repeatedly described herself as a lawyer, made the remark after her first official White House press briefing. According to her LinkedIn profile, she worked as an associate at Zhong Lun Law Firm, one of China’s largest, in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/politics/article/3370787/trumps-new-press-secretary-faces-questions-over-over-claim-she-passed-bar-exam-china https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/politics/article/3370787/trumps-new-press-secretary-faces-questions-over-over-claim-she-passed-bar-exam-china Tue, 13 Oct 2026 20:43:06 +0000 Cliff Buddle Cliff Buddle The visit by star-studded Manchester City, the most successful English football team of recent times, was a highlight of Hong Kong’s football festival this summer. Supporters, sporting the club’s colours, flocked to Kai Tak Stadium, turning it into a sea of blue. Now, the club has plumbed the depths, found guilty by an independent tribunal of systematic breaches of the English Premier League’s financial rules over almost a decade. The affair has, with justification, been described as one of the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/world-opinion/article/3370382/manchester-city-scandal-test-britains-commitment-rule-law https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/world-opinion/article/3370382/manchester-city-scandal-test-britains-commitment-rule-law Mon, 12 Oct 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Agencies Agencies Jury selection took place on Monday for the ⁠trial of British actor ⁠and comedian Russell Brand over alleged ⁠historical crimes including rape and other sexual offences. Brand, 51, once one of Britain’s most high-profile broadcasters and former husband of US singer Katy Perry, faces three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and ‌one count of indecent assault relating to six women from 1999 to 2009. Brand has denied all the accusations. He arrived at London’s Southwark Crown Court... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3370619/uk-comedian-russell-brand-london-court-rape-trial-start https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3370619/uk-comedian-russell-brand-london-court-rape-trial-start Mon, 12 Oct 2026 11:10:16 +0000 Reuters Reuters Pakistan’s president declared a state of emergency and suspended the provincial government of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan on Sunday, the president’s office said, following allegations it had failed to tackle Islamist militancy. The constitution allows the federal ‌government to take over some or all provincial government functions during an emergency. The provincial governor will take charge with an advisory council, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar told a news conference in Islamabad,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370508/pakistan-imposes-emergency-rule-over-ex-pm-imran-khans-provincial-government https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370508/pakistan-imposes-emergency-rule-over-ex-pm-imran-khans-provincial-government Sun, 11 Oct 2026 13:53:51 +0000 Edith Lin Edith Lin The Hong Kong Bar Association has suggested capping the number of proxies a person can hold at homeowners’ meetings, without restricting who may act as a proxy, stressing that improving transparency and introducing an electronic voting system could help to deter abuse in large-scale maintenance procurement. Speaking to the South China Morning Post, association chairman Jose-Antonio Maurellet expressed reservations about a government proposal to restrict an owner’s representative to a relative or... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370457/bar-association-urges-proxy-cap-electronic-voting-curb-building-bid-rigging https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370457/bar-association-urges-proxy-cap-electronic-voting-curb-building-bid-rigging Sun, 11 Oct 2026 01:00:18 +0000 Joseph Sipalan Joseph Sipalan The dust has yet to settle in Malaysia’s Negeri Sembilan, where a royal row has led to the fall of a state government and left the public wondering who, exactly, is in charge. Observers warn that the months-long constitutional crisis could create ripple effects well beyond the state’s borders, testing the entire nation’s systems of monarchy and government. The dispute centres on which of two men: the incumbent, Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir, or his intended replacement, Tunku Nadzaruddin Tuanku... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370365/who-rules-negeri-sembilan-royal-row-tests-malaysias-constitutional-order https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370365/who-rules-negeri-sembilan-royal-row-tests-malaysias-constitutional-order Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:10 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Indonesia officially barred under-16s from using “high-risk” social media earlier this year. But that hasn’t stopped the son of one Jakarta-based writer from using it. Aged 14, he already had accounts on Instagram and TikTok – among the platforms Jakarta said children would be banned from using – as well as popular video game Minecraft and gaming platform Roblox. To register, he simply lied about his age. “He can access everything,” Inne Abidin said of her son. “His friends use everything... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370362/childs-play-southeast-asia-takes-big-tech-protect-kids-online https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3370362/childs-play-southeast-asia-takes-big-tech-protect-kids-online Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:25 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald Trump’s administration imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court on Friday, hours after one of its former judges won the Nobel Peace Prize, putting Washington on a diplomatic collision course with European allies. The court denounced the move as an “assault on the rule of law and on the very foundations of the international legal order” and called on its 125 member states to take action to defend it. “The court cannot stand alone. Its fate now rests also in the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3370403/us-slaps-sanctions-icc-hours-after-ex-judge-wins-nobel https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3370403/us-slaps-sanctions-icc-hours-after-ex-judge-wins-nobel Fri, 09 Oct 2026 14:51:06 +0000 Fiona Chow Fiona Chow A Hong Kong news commentator accused of violating the national security law has denied exposing police intelligence operations, telling a court that details of his meeting with officers were already public knowledge before he posted them online. Wong Kwok-ngon, 72, who ran a YouTube commentary channel under the pen name Wong On-yin, stood trial at the District Court on Friday. He is the first person in Hong Kong to be prosecuted for allegedly prejudicing an investigation into national security... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370378/news-commentator-denies-unlawfully-revealing-police-meeting-details-online https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370378/news-commentator-denies-unlawfully-revealing-police-meeting-details-online Fri, 09 Oct 2026 11:35:52 +0000 Jess Ma Jess Ma Hong Kong national security police have arrested two people, including an insurance broker, on suspicion of publishing seditious posts on social media. A police spokesman said on Thursday that officers from the National Security Department had arrested a man and a woman, both 38, on Tuesday on suspicion of doing an act with a seditious intention under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance. “The two arrested people, including a male licensed insurance broker, were suspected of operating... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370185/national-security-police-arrest-2-over-alleged-seditious-social-media-posts https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370185/national-security-police-arrest-2-over-alleged-seditious-social-media-posts Thu, 08 Oct 2026 09:09:42 +0000 Kristen Cheung Kristen Cheung Psychological abuse can be hard to detect, Hong Kong welfare experts have warned, urging social workers and teachers to look for subtle changes in children’s behaviour amid outrage over a viral video showing a girl carrying heavy bags of beer as her stepfather called her “useless”. Welfare groups said on Thursday that emotional and verbal abuse were among the most common yet least recognised forms of child abuse. Signs often emerged through changes such as social withdrawal and anxiety, they... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370183/hong-kong-child-abuse-case-prompts-calls-watch-signs-psychological-harm https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3370183/hong-kong-child-abuse-case-prompts-calls-watch-signs-psychological-harm Thu, 08 Oct 2026 09:04:26 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Sri Lanka’s anti-corruption authority arrested former first lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa on Wednesday over allegations that her charity misused donations collected for a children’s hospital. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government has revived long-dormant corruption investigations involving members of the once-powerful Rajapaksa family, which dominated Sri Lankan politics for nearly two decades. The 73-year-old wife of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa was arrested in Colombo and driven to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370082/sri-lankas-ex-first-lady-arrested-charity-corruption-probe https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3370082/sri-lankas-ex-first-lady-arrested-charity-corruption-probe Wed, 07 Oct 2026 13:00:08 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji Bhavya Gupta was a Grade 4 student when the 2012 horrific gang rape and murder of a medical college intern who was on a private bus in New Delhi, which sparked nationwide outrage and led to the execution of four attackers, prompted her teacher to mention the case in class to raise awareness about women’s safety. “My teacher gathered all the girls in the classroom and told us about it, and after that our school uniform changed from skirts to pants. I also remember adults around me talking about... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3370079/14-years-after-nirbhaya-gang-rape-horror-has-india-progressed-womens-safety https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3370079/14-years-after-nirbhaya-gang-rape-horror-has-india-progressed-womens-safety Wed, 07 Oct 2026 12:03:42 +0000 Edith Lin Edith Lin The owners of 14 subsidised sale flats have applied for a grace period to comply with Hong Kong’s new regulatory regime for subdivided homes, the housing minister has revealed, raising concerns that public resources were being abused. The cases were disclosed on Monday at a Legislative Council housing panel meeting when lawmaker Mark Chong Ho-fung asked Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho Wing-yin about the use of subsidised sale flats as subdivided units for renting. Chong said flats sold under the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3369830/bid-turn-14-subsidised-sale-flats-subdivided-homes-raises-abuse-concerns https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3369830/bid-turn-14-subsidised-sale-flats-subdivided-homes-raises-abuse-concerns Mon, 05 Oct 2026 15:08:29 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A march protesting against the imprisonment of former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan kicked off in northwest Pakistan on Sunday after talks to avoid the demonstration stalled. Authorities have been preparing for weeks for the possible arrival of demonstrators in Islamabad, with the march planned by supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party originally slated for September 27 and then postponed until Sunday. Videos posted on PTI’s official social media showed supporters... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3369723/supporters-imran-khan-begin-long-march-islamabad https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3369723/supporters-imran-khan-begin-long-march-islamabad Sun, 04 Oct 2026 15:23:05 +0000 Jess Ma Jess Ma Hong Kong authorities have launched a one-month consultation on proposed reforms of arbitration laws, as part of efforts to enhance the city’s competitiveness as an international dispute resolution hub and advance an objective laid out in its first local five-year plan. The Department of Justice said on Monday that the one-month stakeholder consultation on amendments to the Arbitration Ordinance, which governs the use of the alternative dispute resolution mechanism, would cover four key areas to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3369093/hong-kong-launches-one-month-consultation-arbitration-law-reforms https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3369093/hong-kong-launches-one-month-consultation-arbitration-law-reforms Mon, 28 Sep 2026 12:40:14 +0000 Reuters Reuters India’s Supreme Court on ⁠Monday pushed for ⁠accountability over a recent spate of rape cases in the national capital and neighbouring districts, saying they reflected a “failure of law enforcement”, local media reported. Hundreds of students protested in Delhi last week demanding better safety for women after a teenager said she was gang-raped by three men at a city park. Protesters, most of them female, held placards and shouted slogans while marching near the crime scene. “Our body is our... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3369069/indias-supreme-court-urges-accountability-over-rapes https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3369069/indias-supreme-court-urges-accountability-over-rapes Mon, 28 Sep 2026 09:36:18 +0000 CNA CNA Six Singaporeans, including journalist Kirsten Han and Phua Chu Kang actors Lim Kay Siu and Neo Swee Lin, were charged on Monday with taking part in public assemblies. The assemblies were held in prohibited areas, with one held outside the State Courts in support of abolishing the death penalty, as well as candlelight vigils held outside Changi Prison for death row inmates. The six charged are Annamalai Kokila Parvathi, 38, Ten Leu Jiun Jeanne-Marie, 56, Howe Wen Khong Rocky, 31, Kirsten Han,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3369030/singaporean-tv-actors-charged-over-death-penalty-protests https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3369030/singaporean-tv-actors-charged-over-death-penalty-protests Mon, 28 Sep 2026 06:22:05 +0000 The Korea Times The Korea Times A proposal to upgrade meals for foreigners awaiting deportation at Incheon International Airport has divided immigration officials, with frontline officers raising safety concerns and some questioning whether better food is appropriate for those ordered to leave South Korea for violating the law. According to immigration authorities on Sunday, the Incheon Airport Immigration Office under the Ministry of Justice is considering providing in-flight meal boxes to foreign nationals awaiting... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/east-asia/article/3368987/south-korea-plan-serve-deportees-airline-meals-splits-officials https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/east-asia/article/3368987/south-korea-plan-serve-deportees-airline-meals-splits-officials Mon, 28 Sep 2026 01:55:05 +0000 Simpson Cheung Simpson Cheung Hong Kong authorities will delay a proposed legal amendment to protect copyrighted works from being used to train artificial intelligence (AI) models and will issue operational guidelines first, the South China Morning Post has learned. The Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2025, which aimed to introduce an “opt-out” mechanism for text and data mining to support AI technology development, was originally scheduled to be submitted to the Legislative Council in the first half of last year. The item was... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3368913/hong-kong-delays-ai-copyright-law-focus-guidelines-first https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3368913/hong-kong-delays-ai-copyright-law-focus-guidelines-first Sun, 27 Sep 2026 08:00:16 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof A veteran Malaysian politician pleaded not guilty on Friday to a sedition charge over remarks backing a rival claimant to the Negeri Sembilan throne amid the months-long royal crisis. Rais Yatim, 84, a former cabinet minister and president of Malaysia’s Senate, was charged at the Sessions Court in Ayer Keroh, Melaka, for his comments on June 5, during a ceremony proclaiming Tunku Nadzaruddin Tuanku Ja’afar the state’s 12th ruler. Rais is accused of uttering seditious words at the Parkroyal... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/people/article/3368760/ex-malaysian-minister-charged-sedition-over-negeri-sembilan-royal-crisis https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/people/article/3368760/ex-malaysian-minister-charged-sedition-over-negeri-sembilan-royal-crisis Fri, 25 Sep 2026 05:03:55 +0000 Jess Ma Jess Ma An intergovernmental mediation body headquartered in Hong Kong is poised to play an important role in resolving cross-border disputes within the Greater Bay Area, as well as multinational disagreements tied to countries in the Belt and Road Initiative, former and incumbent justice ministers have said. The secretary general of the International Organisation for Mediation (IOMed), Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah, highlighted the organisation’s role in handling disputes within the bay area at a forum... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3368714/hong-kongs-iomed-poised-play-key-role-resolving-greater-bay-area-disputes https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3368714/hong-kongs-iomed-poised-play-key-role-resolving-greater-bay-area-disputes Thu, 24 Sep 2026 15:44:27 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was at the centre of abuse allegations that spurred the #MeToo movement, was resentenced Wednesday to 15 years in prison for sexually assaulting a former production assistant. Weinstein, 74, forcibly performed oral sex in 2006 on Miriam Haley, one of dozens of women who have made accusations against the Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love producer. Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in 2020 for the sexual assault, but it was overturned on appeal in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3368557/harvey-weinstein-gets-15-years-jail-2006-new-york-sex-crime https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3368557/harvey-weinstein-gets-15-years-jail-2006-new-york-sex-crime Wed, 23 Sep 2026 16:04:14 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk The lawyer for an Indonesian businessman arrested in Singapore for allegedly using counterfeit S$10,000 (US$7,830) notes at a casino has said his client was a victim of fraud himself. The businessman, identified only as Steven, is accused of exchanging 34 fake S$10,000 notes for chips over three visits to the Resorts World Sentosa casino in June. The notes were accepted but later found to be counterfeit. His lawyer, Dosma Sijabat, told Tempo news magazine on Tuesday that the fake bills did not... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/people/article/3368499/indonesian-arrested-singapore-over-fake-banknotes-was-victim-fraud-lawyer https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/people/article/3368499/indonesian-arrested-singapore-over-fake-banknotes-was-victim-fraud-lawyer Wed, 23 Sep 2026 08:32:41 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Sri Lanka’s High Court has found 15 of the 24 men accused of being directly involved in the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings guilty. The attacks killed 279 people and wounded around 500. The three-judge bench found that 14 of the accused were guilty on all charges, which included murder, conspiracy to commit terrorism and possessing firearms and explosives under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. A 15th defendant was found guilty of only some of the charges, while nine others were acquitted. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3368385/sri-lanka-trial-2019-easter-sunday-bombings-set-finish https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/south-asia/article/3368385/sri-lanka-trial-2019-easter-sunday-bombings-set-finish Tue, 22 Sep 2026 09:26:58 +0000 CNA CNA A fierce 30-minute bidding war for a rare Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama pumpkin bag – seized in Singapore’s S$3 billion (US$2.35 billion) money laundering case – sent its final price soaring on Sunday night. The limited-edition yellow monogram leather piece, which was a collaboration between the luxury fashion house and the Japanese artist who recently died at 97, eventually went under the hammer for an eye-watering S$87,000. A flurry of 42 last-minute bids pushed the closing price to more than... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3368197/singapore-nets-us862000-first-auction-money-laundering-case https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3368197/singapore-nets-us862000-first-auction-money-laundering-case Mon, 21 Sep 2026 03:33:21 +0000 Ng Kang-chung Ng Kang-chung The professional body for Hong Kong barristers has dismissed as “premature and largely academic” calls by solicitors for legal changes so fellow lawyers can gain recognition as senior counsel and rights to represent clients in higher-level courts. The Law Society, the governing body for the city’s solicitors, is calling for the higher status for its members as lawmakers scrutinise the latest round of omnibus legislative updates in Hong Kong. But the Bar Association, the body for barristers,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3368150/barristers-dismiss-calls-solicitors-gain-senior-counsel-status-hong-kong https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3368150/barristers-dismiss-calls-solicitors-gain-senior-counsel-status-hong-kong Sun, 20 Sep 2026 23:00:13 +0000 Lo Hoi-ying Lo Hoi-ying Hong Kong will begin recruitment for an artificial intelligence (AI) commissioner in the second quarter of next year to assist in drafting policies for the technology and risk governance, with authorities confident the city does not lack suitable talent. Tech authorities on Friday revealed details of the new post under the Digital Policy Office, which will pay between HK$262,125 and HK$278,200 (US$33,414 to US$35,436) a month. Permanent Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry Kevin... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3368048/hong-kong-recruit-ai-chief-mid-2027-confidence-local-talent-pool https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3368048/hong-kong-recruit-ai-chief-mid-2027-confidence-local-talent-pool Fri, 18 Sep 2026 11:50:59 +0000 Raissa Robles Raissa Robles As Rodrigo Duterte’s crimes-against-humanity trial looms, an international tribunal faces the challenge of managing a sprawling prosecution case around the health of an 81-year-old former president of the Philippines, on top of shielding the proceedings from a highly charged media environment. Those pressures came into focus at an International Criminal Court (ICC) status conference on Wednesday, when Presiding Judge Joanna Korner urged prosecutors to trim their witness list and evidence ahead... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3368014/why-icc-cracking-down-fake-news-duterte-trial-looms https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3368014/why-icc-cracking-down-fake-news-duterte-trial-looms Fri, 18 Sep 2026 09:26:41 +0000 Danny Mok Danny Mok Hong Kong authorities have hit out at a US congressional commission for colluding with “anti-China politicians” to hold a hearing on jailed former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and introducing a bill to “intimidate” local national security officials with sanctions. The government issued the condemnation on Thursday night after the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) held a hearing the previous day on Lai, founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper. During the hearing,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3367906/hong-kong-hits-out-us-panel-over-jimmy-lai-hearing-and-sanctions-bill https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3367906/hong-kong-hits-out-us-panel-over-jimmy-lai-hearing-and-sanctions-bill Thu, 17 Sep 2026 16:59:15 +0000