On Southeast Asia

China: “make Philippines pay” for US military ties

Conflict

State-run Global Times paper suggests showing countries that “siding with the US is not a good choice”

IMF: Burma desperately needs currency reform

Thais may isolate bribery-prone drug bosses in prison

Khmer Rouge tribunal too broke to pay Cambodian staff

Politics

Papua unrest: separatists charged with treason

Conflict

Mistaken killing in Thailand’s deep south riles Muslims

Conflict

Army fesses up: old man, teenager shot at checkpoint were civilians

Burma refugees: could reforms lead them home?

Politics

Will Burma reforms lead refugees home?

The Philippine president’s new girlfriend is a wacky radio DJ

Confirmed: Korean-born morning zoo host dating bachelor president

Philippines kidnapping: European birdwatchers possibly sold to Islamic militants

A pair of birdwatchers — one Swiss, one Dutch — appear to be in the hands of Filipinos hoping to sell them off to Islamic militants, according to the AFP. The Tawi Tawi archipelago, the scene of the kidnapping, is not the safest place to scan the skies for rare birds: the waters lie close […]

US kills three top Islamic terrorists in the Philippines

Conflict

A joint US-Philippines raid on Thursday knocked off three of the most-wanted Islamic terrorists in the Philippines, the AFP reports. This is a major success for the controversial anti-terror mission in the Philippines, where a sizeable contingency wants all American troops off the Philippine islands. China's state-run media also recently vowed to make the Philippines […]