· September, 2012

Stories about East Asia from September, 2012

Malaysia: New Lacewing Species Discovered with Online Help

  23 September 2012

Malaysian photographer Guek Hock Ping blogged and posted photos of a lacewing species he found in Selangor, Malaysia. Readers saw it in his blog and Flickr page and eventually scientists confirmed that it's a new species of lacewing. It's now called Semachrysa jade

Brunei: e-Darussalam Government Portal

  23 September 2012

e-Darussalam is Brunei's official web portal which aims to facilitate government transactions and delivery of services. The website also offers the contact details of the country's major government agencies.

Thailand: Historic Cigarette Cards Now Digitized

  23 September 2012

Historically 176 sets of cards, totaling around 9000 individual cards, representing 42 tobacco companies, were made for the Thai market. Of these some 60 sets were Thai specific designs. To many people, these cards are simply beautiful; collectable as artistic or decorative objects… Through its online catalog, New Mandala has...

Chinese ‘Soft Power’ Expands in Africa with CCTV

  23 September 2012

Chinese state-controlled media, China Central Television (CCTV), launched its African regional bureau in Nairobi, Kenya on January 11. While its presence has diversified the media landscape in Africa, some have been rather skeptical of its journalistic independence.

North Korea's Parody of K-Pop Sensation ‘Gangnam Style’

  21 September 2012

North Korea uploaded a video entitled “I'm Yushin style!” in its government website Uriminzokkiri as a parody of South Korean pop sensation, ‘Gangnam Style‘. The parody lambasts Park Geun-hye, South Korean ruling conservative party's presidential candidate. Ms. Park is a daughter of former President Park Chung-hee, whose “Yushin” system brutally suppressed democracy...

Thailand’s Lese Majeste Law: ‘A Strange Legislation that Needs Reform’

  21 September 2012

Article 112 of Thailand’s criminal code is often described as the world’s harshest Lese Majeste (anti-royal insult) law. The controversial law is often invoked to censor web content and shut down websites. A contributor of Global Voices went to Bangkok and interviewed a former staff of the Committee to Investigate Lese Majeste Cases in the Royal Thai Police.

China: Good Englishman in Xian

  21 September 2012

Peter Barefoot from ChinaSMACK translated a local media's feature story of a British engineer, Tony, who founded the “Yellow River Soup Kitchen” in Xi’an in 2005 and has distributed food to the homeless people there regularly since then.

China: Trial of Former Chongqing Police Chief Wang Lijun

  21 September 2012

Samuel Wade from China Digital Times sums up local and overseas report on the two-day trial of former Chongqing police chief Wang Lijun, who seek shelter in the U.S embassy briefly and exposed the murder of British citizen Neil Heywood.

Japan: Film Festival to Celebrate Peace Day

  20 September 2012

On Peace Day, 21 September, the UNITED FOR PEACE FILM FESTIVAL 2012 will be held in Yokohama, Japan. Students from around the globe have entered five minute videos – watch some now.

Japan: Fukushima Nuclear Cleanup Worker Dangers Revealed

  20 September 2012

A citizen media news video has revealed the dangerous conditions that cleanup workers in Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant are finding themselves in. The plant was damaged by last year's devastating earthquake and tsunami.

China: Writer said “I am a Traitor”

  20 September 2012

Sijia Song from Tea Leaf Nation has translated a Chinese prominent writer, Li Chengpeng's latest blogpost: “Confessions of a Traitor”. The post has received more than 200,000 views and 19,000 comments in less than two days on Sina Weibo.

China, US: Anti-Japan Protesters Stop Ambassador's Vehicle

  20 September 2012

A YouTube video uploaded by Weiwei Ai shows how a group of Chinese anti-Japan demonstrators stopped United States Ambassador Gary Locke's vehicle at the back of the US embassy to protest against America's foreign policy. Above is a screen capture of the moment.

China: Cancer Villages

  19 September 2012

Shelley Jiang from Tea Leaf Nation blogs about the painful cost of development in China – the increasing number of cancer villages all over the country: Officially and unofficially, the Chinese media have reported 459 “cancer villages” throughout China… Once a rare disease, cancer is now the biggest killer in...

Porn Star Appeals for China/Japan Friendship

  19 September 2012

Popular Japanese porn star Sola Aoi appealed for friendship between Chinese and Japanese early last week when the tension between China and Japan elevated. But her friendly gesture was not well received.

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.