A pro-democracy protester holds a sign during an anti-government rally in Bangkok on October 26, 2020.
Mladen ANTONOV / AFP
Mladen ANTONOV / AFP
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
The lines are drawn in the streets of Bangkok.
The student-led pro-democracy rallies continue to persist, but across these an equally feisty group also holds its own demonstration. These are ultra-royalists who resent the brickbats being thrown at the Thai royal family.
Be up to date as events unfold in Thailand, as well as across the region, on Dateline Southeast Asia, our dynamic wrap of the latest in the region each week.
Bookmark and refresh this page for updates and analyses of the latest news in Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
LATEST UPDATES
VIETNAM: 21 dead, dozens missing after typhoon brings destruction
Malaysia’s first Roman Catholic Cardinal Anthony Soter Fernandez passed away Wednesday, October 28, at the Little Sisters of the Poor home for the elderly in Cheras. He was 88.
The Star said the death of the cardinal was posted on the Kuala Lumpur Archdiocese website.
Fernandez, the former archbishop of Kuala Lumpur, was diagnosed with tongue cancer in November last year and was cared for at the home after undergoing immunotherapy and radiotherapy.
He retired as archbishop of Kuala Lumpur in 2013 after a 20-year service and was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2016.
Cambodia’s National Committee for Disaster Management reported Thursday, October 29, that deaths due to flash floods in Kampong Thom province, climbed to 44.
The Khmer Times said a total of 149,857 families or 599,428 people have been affected, of them 11,896 families or 47,584 people have been evacuated to the safety ground.
Prime Minister Hun Sen last week visited and distributed relief to some 30,000 flooded-affected families in different districts of the worst flood-hit Banteay Meanchey province.
The Environment and Forestry Ministry denies that they are turning Rinca Island, known for its Komodo Dragon population, into a private, ‘Jurassic Park’-style tourist destination, the Jakarta Post reports.
“The project is run by the government, not the private sector. We want an integrated system that allows [tourists] to view the Komodo dragons in a sophisticated manner,” says Wiratno, the ministry’s director general for natural resources and ecosystems.
There were previous reports that premium facilities were being set up on the island, such as an elevated deck to view the dragons from, and an inn for visitors and staff.
Malaysian doctors test patients for COVID-19 in ‘phone booth’ chamber
Agence France-Presse, Agence France-Presse
Doctors at a Malaysian hospital are using a special chamber to do virus tests, allowing staff to get safely collect COVID-19 swabs without being in the same airspace as their subjects.
