· November, 2011

Stories about East Asia from November, 2011

Malaysia: Netizens React to ‘Peaceful Assembly Bill’

  30 November 2011

The Malaysian Parliament has approved the Peaceful Assembly Bill which gives police broad powers to control and even ban street assemblies and protests. Activists described the measure as an attack on civil liberties and freedom of speech. Using the hashtags #walk4freedom and #PA2011, netizens reacted to the quick passage of the bill

Indonesia: Social Media Situation

  30 November 2011

Indonesian netizen @donnybu posts on Slideshare a presentation about the social media situation in Indonesia, including the challenges faced by internet users as they campaign for greater internet freedom

Hong Kong: LGBT Come Out Video

  30 November 2011

“I am who I am”, produced by an activist group, Nutongxueshe, is a series of video for the LGBT community in Hong Kong to come out and speak about their experience, very often painful because of discrimination and bullying. (via acopy.net)

Malaysia: Protesting the Peaceful Assembly Bill

  29 November 2011

The Malaysian Parliament has approved the controversial Peaceful Assembly Bill which critics believe will make it difficult for citizens to organize protest assemblies. Netizens used the #pa2011 hashtag to express their views about this measure

China: Regulation on Entertainment excessiveness

  29 November 2011

Recently the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) has issued another regulation, the prohibition of interruption of dramas with ads, to address the issue of “entertainment excessiveness”. The China media project further discusses how the institutional nature of the television networks that will be impacted by the SARFT...

North Korea Ranked 3rd in Deforestation

  29 November 2011

North Korean Economy Watch blog consolidated current reports on severe deforestation in North Korea. According to one risk analysis firm, North Korea had the third highest deforestation rate among 180 countries surveyed and the UN estimates that North Korea had lost almost one-third of its entire forest mass.

East Timor: Building One Country Out of Many Languages

  28 November 2011

When East Timor became an independent country in 2002, both the Tetum and Portuguese languages were chosen as official for the newborn country. Nevertheless, the number of national languages is up to 16 and dozens of other dialects are used on a daily basis by Timorese citizens.

Thailand: Profile of Lese Mejeste Violator

  27 November 2011

May Adadol Ingawanij links to a Thai article which provides a profile of Mr. Amphon, a 61-year-old Bangkok resident who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for insulting the Royal Family.

Vietnam: Deadly Legacy of Agent Orange

  27 November 2011

De Tran writes about the deadly legacy of agent orange in Vietnam. During the Vietnam War, more than 20 million gallons of herbicide were sprayed over the rural communities and jungles of the country.

Malaysia: Opposition to Peaceful Assembly Bill

  27 November 2011

An online campaign was launched to pressure members of Parliament of Malaysia to reject the proposed Peaceful Assembly Bill which activists believe will curtail freedom of expression and the people's right to organize in the country

About our East Asia coverage

Oiwan Lam
Oiwan Lam is the North East Asia editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.

Mong Palatino
Mong Palatino is the South East Asia editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.