Southeast Asia

18 Stories

Thailand Overwhelmingly OKs Same-Sex Marriage

Bill sailed through both houses in a first for Southeast Asia

(Newser) - Thailand's Senate voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to approve a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage, clearing the last legislative hurdle for the country to become the first in Southeast Asia to enact such a law. Thailand has a reputation for acceptance and inclusivity but has struggled for decades to...

Taylor Swift, Singapore Cut Deal and Neighbors Aren't Happy

Enter the growing industry of event tourism

(Newser) - We know Taylor Swift concerts generate billions in consumer spending . And now we know countries are willing to pay big for the advantage, at the cost of their neighbors missing out. Earlier this week, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong confirmed the country's tourism board paid an undisclosed sum—...

World's Largest 'Corpse' Flower Is on the Brink
World's Largest
'Corpse' Flower
Is on the Brink
NEW STUDY
Sep 29, 2023 2:00 PM CDT

World's Largest 'Corpse' Flower Is on the Brink

All 42 species in Rafflesia genus can be considered threatened: study

(Newser) - Rafflesia arnoldi is the world's largest single flowering plant, with a bloom more than three feet wide. Dubbed "corpse flower" or "stinking corpse lily," it's also incredibly smelly due to the foul odor—something like rotting flesh—it emits to attract carrion flies for pollination....

A Painkiller Made From the 'Killer of Killers'?
Beautiful 'Freak'
Snake May Ease
Your Pain One Day
NEW STUDY
Oct 31, 2016 9:49 AM CDT

Beautiful 'Freak' Snake May Ease Your Pain One Day

If scientists can harness the power of the long-glanded blue coral snake's venom

(Newser) - Ibuprofen for your splitting headache, or venom from the "killer of killers"? Scientists say that poison from one of the rarest, most "beautiful" snakes in the world—a creature that devours king cobras for breakfast and boasts "freaky" long venom glands that run a quarter of...

Scientists Find Amphibious Centipede—and It's Horrible

At least it keeps to Southeast Asia

(Newser) - It's eight inches long with a painful bite, long legs, and "a horrible dark, greenish-black color." It's also bound to make you avoid all lakes and streams for the near future. Gregory Edgecombe of London's Natural History Museum says he's discovered a new species...

Obama Attends East Asia Summit Amid Sea Feud

China at center of multiple territorial disputes

(Newser) - President Obama is in Cambodia today, meeting with East Asian leaders amid a contentious territorial dispute over the South China Sea . Speaking publicly, neither Obama nor Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao responded to reporters' shouted questions about the tensions, the BBC reports. Instead, Obama referred to a "cooperative and constructive...

Asian Airline Offers No-Baby 'Quiet Zone'

But don't expect the idea to catch on in the US

(Newser) - An airline that serves Southeast Asia is adding a free perk for long-distance travelers who like their quiet time: AirAsia will keep part of the plane devoid of kids 12 and younger, reports NBC's Overhead Bin blog, which then talked to travel experts in the US to see if...

Suu Kyi Leaving Burma on Historic Trip

President Thein Sein's reforms have obviously convinced her

(Newser) - Burma's most popular political activist is leaving her country for the first time in decades, a sure sign of confidence in the nation's fledgling steps toward democracy, Reuters reports. Aung San Suu Kyi plans to arrive in the Thai capital of Bangkok tomorrow to give a speech at...

Pocket of Asia Yields 208 New Species—in 1 Year

Mekong region's amazing biodiversity under threat, WWF warns

(Newser) - It's a region that produces a new species every other day: Carnivorous plants that can eat mice, birds, and lizards. An all-female species of lizard that reproduces by self-cloning. Brightly colored geckos bathed in orange, yellow, blue, and green markings. A noseless monkey that looks like it's wearing...

Vietnam Discovers Own 'Great Wall'

79-mile wall was built to keep tribes separated

(Newser) - In 2005, a professor found a reference to "Long Wall of Quang Ngai" in a 19th-century Vietnamese document. Five years later, Dr Andrew Hardy and his team have uncovered that nearly 200-year-old—and 79-mile long—wall, reports CNN . Up to 13 feet high in places, the scale is much...

7 Ways to Get Jailed (or Killed) While Traveling

Forget your ID in Japan, and end up in the pokey

(Newser) - An African safari is likely to be a bit more exciting than a day at Disney Land, but there comes a point where enough is enough. Turner Wright, writing in Vagabondish , runs down seven travel ideas that'll get you killed—or at least some quality time in the local clink:...

Obama to Myanmar: Free Suu Kyi

First direct appeal for pro-democracy leader's release

(Newser) - President Barack Obama today abandoned decades of Western avoidance and told Myanmar's prime minister to free opposition leader and fellow Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in a rare face-to-face meeting. The strong message, delivered during his summit with leaders of 10 Southeast Asian nations, signals a further thawing in...

A Quarter of World Is Muslim
 A Quarter of World Is Muslim 
Oct 8, 2009 5:31 AM CDT

A Quarter of World Is Muslim

Asia, not Middle East, is center of the world of Islam

(Newser) - A quarter of the world's population is Muslim, and nearly two-thirds of the religion's adherents live in Asia, according to an extensive new study mapping the world of Islam. Indonesia is the largest Muslim nation, and India, a majority-Hindu country, has the world's third-largest population of Muslims—more than twice...

Cool and Weird Places to Swim
 Cool and Weird Places to Swim 
travel
Sep 19, 2009 5:51 AM CDT

Cool and Weird Places to Swim

(Newser) - If you love swimming but tire of the ordinary and the chlorine-scented, consider these "unusual or cool places" uncovered by WebUrbanist :
  • The Dead Sea: Lie back and read a good book in the world's saltiest body of water, which will likely keep you afloat while delivering "an
...

Taiwan Bridles Foreign Wife Brokers
Taiwan Bridles Foreign Wife Brokers
Jul 31, 2009 7:45 PM CDT

Taiwan Bridles Foreign Wife Brokers

Lawmakers angry over unions built on 'weak foundations'

(Newser) - Taiwan is clamping down on companies that arrange quicky foreign marriages for male customers, the BBC reports. Many Taiwanese men say they fly to Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia and Vietnam for brides because women in Taiwan are putting off marriage for career. But officials say cross-border weddings are built...

In Myanmar, Soccer Offers Relief

But is it just an opiate for the masses?

(Newser) - Myanmar has had something to cheer about lately, the Wall Street Journal reports. In a country where gatherings of more than five people are officially illegal and free speech is nonexistent, the Myanmar National League has been drawing huge crowds of screaming fans. Launched in May, it’s the country’...

Thailand, Cambodia in Firefight Over Temple

Border dispute escalates as both sides accuse other of aggression

(Newser) - Thai and Cambodian troops fought an hourlong battle today, leaving two Cambodian soldiers dead and several wounded by rocket fire in the most serious incident since the start of a border dispute. At issue is just 1.8 square miles of land next to a Hindu temple that an international...

One-Quarter of Mammal Species Imperiled: Survey

Deforestation, climate change among culprits threatening 1,141 types of beasts

(Newser) - Nearly 25% of the world’s mammal species face extinction, the Guardian reports, and 3% are critically endangered. The stark conclusion, based on research conducted over 5 years in 130 countries, paints an especially bleak picture for marine mammals, the highly regarded Red List says. "We are threatening the...

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