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This Week in Asia /

Health & Environment

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Coronavirus pandemic
Climate change
Wellness
Indonesian customs and environmental enforcement officers inspect discarded electronic equipment seized from containers at Batu Ampar port in Batam in October. Photo: Batam Customs
Indonesia

‘No other option’: Indonesia begins returning toxic e-waste to US

Four containers of electronic waste deemed hazardous have been shipped out from Batam, following the government’s hardline warning.

The Philippines

Did shelved anti-disaster scheme lead to Philippines’ flood control woes?

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Malaysia

Malaysia’s Johor books 5 Singaporeans for littering under new enforcement regime

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Japan

Long and short of it: why Okinawa lost crown as Japan’s island of longevity

Okinawan men fell from first to 43rd while women slipped to 16th in the last life expectancy survey, a slide that is expected to continue.

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Japanese women in Okinawa show off vegetables freshly picked from their garden. Photo: Getty Images
Japanese women in Okinawa show off vegetables freshly picked from their garden. Photo: Getty Images
Japan

Japan snaps into action as alligator weed chokes waterways

The seemingly innocuous alligator weed, or Alternanthera philoxeroides, poses a real problem, especially to rice farmers.

Malaysia

How a crop of young farmers is reshaping agriculture in Southeast Asia

Young people across Southeast Asia are using city spaces and new technologies to improve on traditional farming methods to grow produce.

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The Philippines

Philippines’ Cebu residents cry foul over mounting garbage, health risks

The fatal collapse of a garbage landfill in Cebu has also exposed lax enforcement and poor waste management.

Family members of missing workers react as rescue operations continue at a collapsed landfill in Binaliw, Cebu, Philippines, on January 11. Photo: AP
Family members of missing workers react as rescue operations continue at a collapsed landfill in Binaliw, Cebu, Philippines, on January 11. Photo: AP
Thailand

Thai PM moves to strip scandal-hit firm of contracts after second deadly accident

Amid public anger, PM Anutin issued an order to end two contracts and blacklist Italian-Thai Development after two crane disasters killed 34 people.

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Indonesia

Indonesia hails ‘99.9% successful’ free meals scheme amid food safety concerns

Critics have called for a ‘temporary halt’ to the programme to allow for further evaluation as food poisoning cases continue to grow.

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South Korea

Fury erupts over ‘mound of death’ in South Korea’s worst air disaster

Opposition MPs accuse officials of trying to bury a report that blames a known design flaw for the nation’s deadliest crash.

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The wreckage of the Jeju Air aircraft that crashed at Muan International Airport, South Korea, in December 2024. Photo: Reuters
Malaysia

‘Who can we trust?’: Nestle formula recall rattles Malaysian parents

Despite assurances that local stocks are safe, wary parents are scouring ingredient lists and doing their own ‘due diligence’.

Health warnings related to baby milk formula recall have been issued by dozens of governments, from Europe and Australia to Brazil, South Africa, Hong Kong and Singapore. Photo: Shutterstock
Health warnings related to baby milk formula recall have been issued by dozens of governments, from Europe and Australia to Brazil, South Africa, Hong Kong and Singapore. Photo: Shutterstock
Japan

As the crow flies: how Tokyo’s 25-year pest purge ended in triumph

A mix of civic discipline, careful waste management and a willingness among Tokyo residents to change their habits helped rein in the crisis.

Japan

‘Easier targets’: is Japan safe for foreigners if disaster strikes?

Rising xenophobia, ‘vigilante’ patrols and memories of 1923 have rights advocates concerned that history could repeat itself.

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Singapore

Singapore takes stock of lessons from Hong Kong’s Tai Po blaze

The city state will study and incorporate into policy frameworks relevant observations made by the Hong Kong authorities about the fire.

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The Tai Po blaze in Hong Kong, which broke out on November 26 last year, killed 161 people, injured 79 and displaced nearly 5,000 residents. Photo: AFP
The Philippines

Soaring healthcare costs in the Philippines: are doctors’ fees to blame?

Doctors have hit back, saying that they are being unfairly blamed for deeper systemic failures in healthcare financing.

Medical professionals attend to a patient at the government-run National Kidney and Transplant Institute in Quezon City, Metro Manila, the Philippines. Photo: Getty Images
Medical professionals attend to a patient at the government-run National Kidney and Transplant Institute in Quezon City, Metro Manila, the Philippines. Photo: Getty Images
Human rights

Ageing Asia needs domestic helpers, but can it keep them safe?

While the region cries out for care, top source nations the Philippines and Indonesia have tightened controls to curb exploitation and abuse.

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Malaysia

Malaysia’s new year revelry sees less waste as tougher littering laws kick in

Some 42 litterbugs caught in a nationwide operation face fines and community service amid stringent enforcement of waste laws.

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Malaysia

‘Less than friendly’: Malaysia’s tourism minister flags visitor complaints

Authorities have also called for a major clean-up ahead of Visit Malaysia 2026 in response to reports of dirtiness in tourist areas.

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Tourists take pictures with Malaysia’s Petronas Twin Towers in the background in Kuala Lumpur. The country aims to attract 47 million international visitors during the Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign. Photo: AFP
Tourists take pictures with Malaysia’s Petronas Twin Towers in the background in Kuala Lumpur. The country aims to attract 47 million international visitors during the Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign. Photo: AFP
India

In India, New Delhi’s smog crisis exposes the high price of clean air

The winter smog has widened the affordability gap among residents, with many lower-income families lacking the means to buy an air purifier.

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Extreme weather

Asia’s year of costly climate disasters spurs calls for ‘decisive action’

With Asia accounting for four of the world’s six costliest weather disasters in 2025, experts urge investment in climate resilience.

Japan

‘Built on tofu’: safety fears as Japan prepares to restart nuclear plant

While Fukushima operator Tepco says it is ‘committed to safety’ at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, critics believe it is a disaster waiting to happen.

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The No 5, 6 and 7 reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear complex operated by Tepco. Photo: Kyodo
Indonesia

Power, protests and policy shake-ups shape Indonesia’s 2025

President Prabowo Subianto asserts his authority as he navigates the global stage and domestic challenges in his first full year in office.

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Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto closed the year on firm footing despite challenges in his first full year in office. Photo: Reuters
Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto closed the year on firm footing despite challenges in his first full year in office. Photo: Reuters
Indonesia

Seeking climate justice: Indonesian fishermen’s case against Holcim to proceed

The lawsuit states that Holcim has ‘significantly contributed to climate change with its massive CO2 emissions’.

2025 Cambodia-Thailand conflict

Thai marines rescue starving lions, bears from Cambodian border casino

Officials say the two lions, two Asiatic black bears and one sun bear suffered from underfeeding and prolonged neglect at Thmor Dar Casino.

Indonesia

‘Worse than the tsunami’ – Indonesia’s Aceh residents traumatised by flooding

A month after the disaster, residents are still struggling to recover as anger against Jakarta’s slow rescue response mounts.

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A staff member works to clean a submerged medical equipment after a flash flood at a hospital in Aceh Tamiang, northern Sumatra, on December 16. Photo: AFP
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