The $2bn dirty-money case that rocked Singapore (April 12, 2024, BBC)
How did these men, some of whom had multiple passports from Cambodia, Vanuatu, Cyprus and Dominica, live and bank in Singapore for years without drawing scrutiny? It has sparked a review of policies, with banks tightening rules, especially around clients who hold multiple passports.
Sri Lanka cultivates sustainable fashion for an economic revival (March 5, 2024, Nikkei Asia) (Subscription Required)
Hosting an International Climate Change Forum last November, Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe spoke of plans to transition to a clean economy and achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2040.
BBC Analysis: Morocco Faces Severe Drought as Al Massira Reservoir Dries Up (April 12, 2024, Morocco World News)
Morocco has been experiencing six consecutive years of drought, exacerbated by climate change, which has led to record temperatures and increased evaporation. This has threatened water supplies across the country and has had a significant impact on agriculture and the economy.
End of the Line? Saudi Arabia ‘forced to scale back’ plans for desert megacity (April 10, 2024, The Guardian)
Dreamed up as a linear city that would eventually be home to about 9 million people on a footprint of just 13 sq miles, the Line is part of a wider Neom project.
Bhutan launches a metaverse gateway to provide a glimpse of country’s art, culture, and architecture (February 21, 2024, Education Times)
Named as Bhutanverse - the platform connects with country with the world through technology.
Turkmenistan: Things that make it so unique and bizarre at the same time (March 1, 2024, Times of India)
Today, Turkmenistan is one of the least visited countries in the world. Those who have visited, are often left flabbergasted by some of the most unusual rules that are in place in the country. It’s these unusual rules and regulations that make Turkmenistan such a unique country to visit.
Babies are starving as Yemen teeters on brink of collapse - while Houthis use Gaza crisis to earn 'hero' status (April 10, 2024, Sky News)
The longer, more costly journey avoiding the Red Sea and going around the Cape of Good Hope has sent the price of goods up everywhere. The outcome is the poorest countries with the poorest populations have been most severely impacted. And that includes Yemen.
Battle of Ain Jalut: unraveling first Mongol defeat in Western Asia (April 7, 2024, The Jordan Times)
The consequences of the Mongol campaign affected both urban and rural centres in Syria and northern Transjordan where Ayyubid-Mamluk economy heavily relied on agriculture. The taxes collected off the cereal production in northern Transjordan represented a significant profit for the state. Due to the Mongol invasion and depopulation of rural areas, the interruption of trade and agricultural production occurred and it had a direct negative impact on the economy of the state.
Bahrain’s king takes activists by surprise with pardon for at least 1,500 prisoners (April 9, 2024, The Guardian)
On social media, joyful scenes of families being reunited in their homes were screened, including some who had not been in their family home for as long as a decade.
Pakistan: New Govt must repeal blasphemy laws to protect Christians (March 11, 2024, Release International)
As Pakistan emerges from its national elections, UK-based Release International calls on the new government to repeal the country’s notorious blasphemy laws and prevent forced conversions.
For China’s Factories, the Paris Olympics Have Already Started (April 9, 2024, Sixth Tone)
Merchants in Yiwu — a city in eastern China famous for its massive wholesale goods markets — are reporting a surge in orders from France, with local factories rushing to churn out everything from tricolored inflatable thunder sticks to novelty Eiffel Tower ornaments.
The Chinese Bible: History, Challenges, and Recommendations (April 10, 2024, ChinaSource Blog)
We can thank God for giving Chinese the Bible in their own language, to strengthen and grow what is now one of the largest Christian churches in the world, and one with the potential to take the gospel to the ends of the earth.
Christian School Education in China (April 9, 2024, ChinaSource Blog)
The suppression of Christian school education, combined with a law that restricts children under 18 from attending Sunday school, severely curtails the ability of the church to disciple its children. This is a strategic space to watch.
How “Runology” Is Changing Ministry to Diaspora Chinese (April 8, 2024, ChinaSource Blog)
We are in the midst of another wave of immigration from China. With all that has gone on in relationship to missions in China this presents a great opportunity to impact China from the outside in. There are several issues that we need to be aware of related to this new wave of immigrants landing on our shores.
China's Xi says nobody can stop 'family reunion' with Taiwan (April 10, 2024, Reuters)
Chinese President Xi Jinping told former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou on Wednesday that outside inference could not stop the "family reunion" between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, and that there are no issues that cannot be discussed. Since the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing a civil war to Mao Zedong's communists, no serving Taiwanese leader has visited China.
Winning Hearts on a Korean Island (April 8, 2024, China Media Project)
A recent series of events on South Korea’s remote Jeju Island offers a glimpse in miniature of China’s vast global media diplomacy campaign to paint the most pleasant picture of Xinjiang, where the country has been accused of serious human rights abuses.
China’s universities just grabbed 6 of the top 10 spots in one worldwide science ranking – without changing a thing (April 2, 2024, The Conversation)
Where once the list of universities with the highest scientific impact would have been dominated by U.S. and U.K. schools including Cambridge, Stanford, Harvard and MIT, the new top 10 list of universities with high scientific impact includes six universities from China.
How China’s People With Disabilities Are Confronting the Future of Work (April 1, 2023, Sixth Tone)
Can a social enterprise dedicated to employing people with disabilities point the way to a better future for all workers?
Official Protestant Groups Plan Next Five Years of Sinicization (April 3, 2024, ChinaSource Blog)
What are we to make of last year’s announcement that the official Protestant group leadership, the national Three Self Patriotic Movement association together with the China Christian Council, gathered to discuss a five-year plan for 2023–2027? Do China’s official churches typically have five-year plans like any other Communist Party organization? What is new about this five-year plan?
Rising Strong: A Journey of Faith and Growth Amidst the Pandemic (April 2, 2024, Chinese Church Voices)
During the pandemic, God had been helping and teaching us. It became a testing ground for the faith of our local church, especially as most of the foreign missionaries had to leave. We realized this as a moment of faith testing.