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Human rights

Human rights
Latest news, features and analysis on human rights, with a focus on civil liberties in Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia.
Migrant workers listen to Singapore officials speak about the measures to help those who have not been paid wages for months. Photo: Facebook/Ng Chee Meng
Singapore

Singapore’s migrant worker wage saga spotlights potential loopholes

Analysts point to laws that empower employers over migrant workers, who could face job loss and repatriation in any wage dispute.

Bangladesh

Sheikh Hasina vows to return to Bangladesh ‘this year’ despite death sentence

Vietnam

Vietnam dissident arrests double under leader To Lam, report says

Serbia

Serbians keep up protest after president says he will step down in weeks

Protesters express satisfaction with Aleksandar Vucic’s resignation, but fear he may not fully relinquish power.

People gathering for an anti-government protest in Kraljevo, Serbia on Sunday. Photo: Reuters
Turkey

Turkish police detain dozens at Istanbul Gay Pride event held despite ban

Since 2015, the annual Pride march has been almost systematically banned and suppressed.

China-Africa relations

Coffee, chillies and cashews: a new recipe to rewrite China-Africa trade

Blanket relationship with all African nations is viewed as a precedent for partners like the EU.

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United States

Controversial US migrant detention facility dubbed ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ has closed

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said the facility, which had been denounced as inhumane by civil rights groups, fulfilled its role.

Workers installing the ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ sign near the facility in 2025. The centre in the Florida Everglades has now been closed. Photo: TNS
Science

China ‘on track to surpass United States’ in goals for human, planet health: UN

Report showing global progress on 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals shows gap between Chinese and US closed significantly since 2015.

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Malaysia

Bangladesh urges Malaysia to ease labour hiring curbs amid exploitation concerns

Both sides seek to ensure that the hiring process for Bangladeshi workers is transparent to protect their interests.

Americas and the Caribbean

Colombians vote for president amid corruption fears, polarisation

Conservative businessman Abelardo de la Espriella and leftist senator and heir to the outgoing president Iván Cepeda have traded insults and accusations of election fraud.

Colombia’s presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella of the ultraconservative ‘Defenders of the Homeland’ movement raises his fist as he leaves a meeting outside the Cubo de Cristal building in Barranquilla, on Saturday. Photo: AFP
Food and agriculture

Opinion | Asia excels at tracking fishing vessels but fails those on board

As demand for sustainable seafood grows, the gap between the ability to monitor vessels and protect workers in the fishing industry must be addressed.

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Workers load flash-frozen fish onto a truck from a longline vessel at the Benoa fishing port near Denpasar, on Indonesia’s Bali island, on March 16, 2025. Photo: AFP
Myanmar

Son hails Aung San Suu Kyi’s spirit in moving 81st birthday tribute

In a video, Kim Aris notes it is the sixth birthday in a row he has been unable to see his mother in person, as calls for her release continue.

Poland

34 fetuses found in Polish doctor’s garden

The 57-year-old medical pathologist is suspected of using the fetuses to perform experiments and now faces up to 12 years in prison.

Americas and the Caribbean

Armed men in Haiti’s capital seize top official in rare high-level abduction

Security expert James Boyard was cabinet director of the defence ministry and also inspector general of Haiti’s police.

Residents flee their homes to escape clashes between armed gangs in Port-au-Prince, Haiti last month. Photo: AP
Bangladesh

Bangladesh, India pledge closer border cooperation amid migration row

Dhaka has accused Indian authorities of attempting to ‌force migrants across the border without due process.

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Border Guard Bangladesh personnel patrol near the Benapole-Petrapole frontier crossing between Bangladesh and India in Benapole on June 3. Photo: AFP
Malaysia

‘We’re not going anywhere’: indigenous people in Malaysia rally for land rights

The protesters want Kuala Lumpur to recognise their claims, stop encroachment and seek consent before approving projects on ancestral land.

China-Latin America relations

US targets Cuba oil giant as Beijing and Havana deepen party ties

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announces sanctions on Union Cuba-Petroleo after Havana and Beijing hold positive bilateral talks.

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Crime

Video | Indonesian soldiers guilty of acid attack on activist

The court ruled that the soldiers acted on their own initiative out of revenge, but critics called the verdict ‘a blatant whitewash’.

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Indonesia

Indonesian soldiers jailed for up to 3 years over acid attack on activist

Amnesty International called the trial for the attack, which left Andrie Yunus blind in one eye, ‘a blatant whitewash’.

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Pakistan

Acid attack on female doctor forces Pakistani women to reconsider medicine

The attack on Mahnoor Nasir at her hospital has shown the risk of violence and social disparities women face in Pakistan.

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International Criminal Court

ICC chief prosecutor suspended over sexual misconduct allegations

Karim Khan, facing allegations of misconduct with a female aide, denies any wrongdoing.

International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Karim Khan. Photo: Reuters
US-China relations

Nationals from China, India among 17 new US denaturalisation cases

Chinese-born Georgia resident among 17 people accused of obtaining citizenship through fraud or concealing serious crimes.

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US prosecutors say a Chinese-born resident of the American state of Georgia hid a prior deportation order and immigration history under a different identity before becoming a US citizen in 2006. Photo: Shutterstock
Americas and the Caribbean

US sanctions over 100 Nicaraguan officials and relatives after activist death

Marco Rubio announces sweeping visa restrictions, pointing to the death of imprisoned Indigenous leader Brooklyn Rivera.

Africa

Kenya police fire tear gas, arrest ex-chief justice at national park protest

Hundreds of activists join protest against plans to build on part of a national ‌park in Kenya’s capital.

Middle East

Gunman opens fire in central Israel, killing 1 and wounding 5

Palestinian attacker shot dead by police after targeting several locations close to the boundary with the occupied West Bank.

Israeli security forces at a petrol station following a shooting near the town of Kokhav Yair in central Israel. Photo: AFP
United States

US to send third-country deportees to Central African Republic

Amid demonstrations across the US against Trump’s immigration policies, the impoverished African country has agreed to take deported migrants from other countries.

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Protesters shout at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents outside Delaney Hall, which is being used as an ICE detention center, in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday. Photo: AFP
US-China relations

How Chinese drink chains are testing the limits of soft power

New tea and coffee brands from China are winning customers across America, but their broader influence remains unclear.

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Myanmar

Deformed fish in river, pollution from rare earth mines in Myanmar fuel fears

Russian and Chinese firms are also competing to be the first to reach a tungsten mine in a conflict zone, sparking concerns of NGOs.

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