Set against the backdrop of June and August riots between majority Rakhine Buddhist and minority ethnic Muslim Rohingyas that had caused exodus of the latter out in to the sea, there has been a fresh spate of violence on the Rohingyas triggering their displacement out of their own country.Going by the United Nation’s statistics, 22,587 people have been displaced with 67 lives lost as Muslim survivors flee bullets and burning homes to escape on fishing boats floating on the sea. According to one

Viewpoints Nov. 1, 2012

China, the United States and, quite likely Japan, face leadership changes at a moment of rising tension in the East China Sea.Even in the best of times, the transitional coincidence would make it challenging for them to manage their strategic relations smoothly. With the dispute between China and Japan over the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands touching off confrontations at sea and protests on land, the risk of miscalculation is higher ― with potentially dangerous consequences for the region and beyond.Ev

Viewpoints Nov. 1, 2012

Laos is set to become fully integrated with the global economy after the World Trade Organisation accepted the “least-developed” country’s application for membership. Laos’s entry to the world trade-governing body is welcomed: it paves the way to transition for one of the world’s least-developed countries onto the stage of global trade.The communist country was finally accepted as a member 15 years after it first applied to join the WTO. “Laos has come a long way since it embarked on the road to

Viewpoints Nov. 1, 2012

The National Assembly has started deliberations on the 2013 budget bill. The government has proposed to spend 342.5 trillion won out of the expected gross revenue of 373 trillion won, using the remainder for debt repayment. This year, the government is expected to face fierce attempts by both the ruling and opposition parties to expand welfare spending and increase taxes on the rich in their bid to gain more votes in the coming presidential election.The government should rein in these populist m

Editorial Oct. 31, 2012

Although less than 50 days are left before the Dec. 19 presidential election, major candidates have not yet presented comprehensive and detailed manifestos that show what their key policies are and how they are going to implement them. Last week, six major candidates, including the big three ― Park Geun-hye of the ruling Saenuri Party, Moon Jae-in of the main opposition Democratic United Party and independent candidate Ahn Cheol-soo ― did disclose their top 10 election pledges through the Nation

Editorial Oct. 31, 2012

The parallels are inescapable. When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, they stoned fornicators, demolished shrines they considered idolatrous, and gave sanctuary to foreign jihadists. The Islamic extremists in control of northern Mali are doing the same things. The fear that rebel-held northern Mali has become the new Afghanistan figured in the last presidential debate, in which Mitt Romney said the country’s name four times. The deteriorating situation has provoked calls for swift military action,

Viewpoints Oct. 31, 2012

The process for administering the death penalty in the United States is broken beyond repair, and it is time to choose a more effective and moral alternative. California voters will have the opportunity to do this on Election Day.Although our government has a fundamental responsibility to protect its citizens, there is little evidence that the death penalty acts as a strong deterrent to murder and other violent crimes. One recent study found that 88 percent of the nation’s leading criminologists

Viewpoints Oct. 31, 2012

The parallels are inescapable. When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, they stoned fornicators, demolished shrines they considered idolatrous, and gave sanctuary to foreign jihadists. The Islamic extremists in control of northern Mali are doing the same things. The fear that rebel-held northern Mali has become the new Afghanistan figured in the last presidential debate, in which Mitt Romney said the country’s name four times. The deteriorating situation has provoked calls for swift military action,

Viewpoints Oct. 30, 2012

Australia’s Asian century white paper, released on Sunday, has sent an unmistakable message to the outside world that it wants to shift away from the “old countries” of Europe toward broader and deeper engagement with its neighbors in Asia, especially China and India. Given Asia’s rising significance in the world’s economic and security landscape, it is no surprise that the biggest country in the Southern Hemisphere seeks to benefit more from Asia’s economic and social progress. In fact, Canberr

Viewpoints Oct. 30, 2012

I used to say, during doctoral examinations in theoretical physics, that the stakes were a bit more relaxed than passing or failing a medical student. After all, granting a doctorate was unlikely to result in life or death for anyone.Well, an Italian court decided this week that I was wrong. Six scientists were convicted of manslaughter because their data did not allow them to predict a 6.3-magnitude temblor in the city of L’Aquila in 2009 with enough certainty to issue a safety warning. More th

Viewpoints Oct. 30, 2012