LOOKEAST REPORT | Union home minister Rajnath Singh has sought to assuage minorities in Assam that all will not be lost for them if their names are not included in the NRC now being updated. “The government wants to make it clear that the NRC to be published on 30th July is only a draft. After…
Read moreLOOKEAST REPORT | Failure to agree on a special arrangement for Nagas living outside Nagaland is delaying an early settlement of the six decade old imbroglio. LOOKEAST has learnt that the NSCN–IM is not happy with grant of educational and cultural rights that the Modi government has so far promised them. They want some political…
Read moreARYEH NEIER | THERE has been a lot of bad news lately on the human–rights front. Syrian President Bashar al–Assad has resumed air strikes on his people, killing opposition fighters and civilians alike. Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party continues to make headway in its quest to destroy judicial independence. The United States Supreme…
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CHIANG RAI, THAILAND | 12 boys and their soccer coach rescued from a flooded Thai cave complex described how they survived on nothing but dripping water, and even tried to dig their way out. The Wild Boars team were making their first public appearance after the long ordeal, waving, smiling and offering Thai…
Read moreCHIANG RAI, THAILAND | 12 boys and their soccer coach rescued from a flooded Thai cave complex described how they survived on nothing but dripping water, and even tried to dig their way out. The Wild Boars team were making their first public appearance after the long ordeal, waving, smiling and offering Thai traditional…
Read moreNAN LWIN | MYANMAR will endeavour to take on no loans from China to complete the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ) but would offer the developer no sovereign guarantees to mitigate risk if it does, said the project’s new chairman, seeking to allay fears of a debt trap. Sean Turnell, an economic adviser to State…
Read moreMRITYUNJOY CHATTERJEE | She is the daughter of a rice farmer in remote Assam. Her name is Hima — daughter of Ranjit and Jomali das. On the fateful day — Ranjit and Jomali sat before a neighbour’s television and watched Hima win the gold. Then they wept…tears of joy, tears of pride. Tears to wipe…
Read moreDHAKA | The sixth Bangladesh–India home minister level talks today decided to work in closer cooperation to ensure a crime free border, training of policemen and combating militancy. Briefing newsmen after the talks with his Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said security issues largely featured their meeting with particular focus on…
Read moreLOOKEAST REPORT | Indian Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh arrived in Dhaka on a three–day official visit. His Bangladesh counterpart Asaduzzaman Khan and Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Harsh V Shringla, welcomed him at the airport. According to officials, Rajnath Singh and his Bangladeshi counterpart will hold talks on various issues including security, border…
Read moreMINXIN PEI | WITH the imposition of 25% tariffs on $68 billion worth of their merchandise trade ($34 billion of exports each), the U.S. and China have fired the first salvos of their trade war. If one were to borrow a military analogy, the first round of the US–China trade war is either a skirmish or…
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