Observe Asia

ADB has welcomed the United States as the newest member of the Pacific Region Infrastructure Facility (PRIF) during a PRIF agency member leaders meeting today. Source: Asian Development Bank Read More: United States Joins Pacific…

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen kept the bar low in a statement marking the 70th anniversary of International Human Rights Day, asserting that under his 33-year rule Cambodia’s people now enjoy more freedoms and rights…

Authorities in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) have arrested a prominent Uyghur scholar in a case believed linked to the publication of a book deemed “problematic” following its translation and release five years…

Washington has imposed sanctions on three men accused of involvement in the death of 22-year-old student Otto Warmbier. The sanctions make it illegal for any US entity to conduct financial transactions with them. Source: Deutsche…

The mother of Chinese rights activist and website editor Huang Qi has been detained by official ‘interceptors’ in Beijing, who shoved her to the ground after she tried to take her calls for his release…

Source: US Pacific Fleet Read More: First integrated air and missile defense trainer opens in San Diego

Police in Hong Kong on Monday arrested two pro-democracy lawmakers who staged a loud protest in the city’s Legislative Council (LegCo) last June, the latest in a string of prosecutions of prominent opposition figures. Democratic…

China’s government has restored heat to hundreds of frigid households after an “improper” ban on burning coal highlighted problems with anti-smog policies for the second year in a row. In early November, an inspection…

Religious interpretations are slowing down the implementation of the UN human rights charter, which marks its 70th anniversary today. The UN is also part of the problem, writes Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi. Source:…