SPECIAL REPORT: Blood-hued Phayung almost gone as corrupt officials pave way for logging
BY KAENG E-KHIEW Waterfall in northeastern Buntrik-Yod Mon Wildlife Sanctuary a mature male elephant lay dead, with traces of a highly volatile bullet left in its mouth and its bud. Another AK47 bullet was found buried in its ribs. A check of camera traps installed one ...
PIYAPORN WONGRUANG
Vientiane Bans Sale of Alcohol before 4pm
In a drastic move to promote health and safety among members of Lao society, the Mayor of Vientiane has taken measures to ban the sale of alcohol or alcoholic beverages in the capital before 4pm.According to a Decision issued 21 December 2018 by the Office ...
Lao Post
Mekong Water Level at Record Low amid Deficient Rainfall
The Mekong River, which flows through Laos, is experiencing a record low water level amid deficient rainfall.In Vientiane, the water level of the Mekong is 0.7 meters, or 5.54 meters below its long-term average water level measured over 57 years (1961-2018). It is about 1.36 ...
The Laotian Times
Vientiane: Tanmixay-Sikeuth road upgrade delayed by nine months
The upgrade of the 9.4-kilometre road from the Tanmixay crossroads in Xaythany district to Sikeuth junction in Naxaithong district, Vientiane, is likely to require a nine-month extension as work is running behind schedule.The project is one of the capital’s priorities in terms of infrastructure development ...
Phomphong Laoin
Thousands of devotees give alms at That Luang festival
VIENTIANE (Vientiane Times/ANN) – Buddhists from all walks of life gave alms to monks at the That Luang esplanade on Monday morning on the last day of the traditional annual festival to honour the grand stupa.High ranking officials, people from across the country and foreign ...
Visith Teppalath
Mekong River Commission stations not operational
Less than half of the monitoring stations set up by the Mekong River Commission in Cambodia are operational due to a lack of financial commitment from the Cambodian government, officials said yesterday, jeopardising the collection of important environmental and hydrological data.Though the stations were set ...
Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon and Rinith Taing
Southeast Asia remains world rice bowl as pockets of region suffer crop disasters
Rice crops in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar have taken a hit from flooding and conflict this year, casting a shadow on a mostly sunny outlook for Southeast Asia’s output of the key grain as the region deals with other potential longer term supply troubles, farm ...
RFA Burmese, RFA Khmer and RFA Lao
Vientiane Hit by Water Shortage amid Drought
Vientiane’s water utility company, Nampapa Nakhone Luang, is currently installing a new pump to draw water up from the Nam Ngum river as some areas of the capital are facing water shortages.In particular, parts of Xaythany, Xaysettha and Chanthabouly districts do not have sufficient water, ...
Latsamy Phonevilay
NA’s extraordinary session opens for national agenda debate
The first extraordinary session of the National Assembly (NA)’s ninth legislature kicked off on Thursday to debate measures to address financial and economic difficulties and suppress the use of narcotic drugs. The premier pledged that the government would be decisive, transparent and professional in implementing ...
Souksakhone Vaenkeo
The real importance of Japan’s new strategy for the Mekong
On July 4, the leaders of Japan and the five countries in the Mekong subregion – Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam – convened for the Seventh Mekong-Japan Summit in Tokyo. True to form, much of the media focus was on the dollar amount that Japan ...
Korea-Mekong Peace Forum puts Vietnam-RoK cooperation in spotlight
Scientists, experts, and policymakers from the Republic of Korea (RoK) and five Mekong nations of Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, and Vietnam gathered at the 2018 RoK-Mekong Peace Forum held in Hanoi on May 10. The event was jointly held by the Institute for Northeast Asian ...
Renewable Power in Southeast Asia: Will the Legal Regime Catch Up with the Opportunities?
Southeast Asia offers rich renewable sector opportunities, recently exemplified by Chevron’s multibillion-dollar sale of its Indonesian and Philippines geothermal projects, and the purchase of Equis Energy for $5 billion. However, industry players and their lawyers face several challenges in developing a responsive and bankable legal ...
Sean Prior and Benjamin Thompson
Chiang Mai gains from lure of CLMV markets
Half of the economic growth in Chiang Mai has been driven by businesses from other regions that want to cash in on the opportunities opening up in the CLMV countries, according to the Federation of Thai Industries’ chapter in the northern province. Businesses from the Central region ...
Enhancing regional water cooperation
Water management in the Mekong region is, in practice, dominated by energy objectives. In Cambodia, the priority is to substitute domestically produced hydropower for expensive diesel and electricity imports. In Laos, the priority is to generate revenue by drawing in foreign investment in dams and ...
PhnomPenh Post Reporters
ASEAN and the logic of collective action
The ten member states of ASEAN aspire to “One Vision, One Identity, One Community.” Their foreign ministers meeting in Laos this July demonstrated again how far the distance is between goal and reality. Like the European Union, the regional organization of Southeast Asia is pulled ...
LMC exhibition concludes in Cambodia, attracting thousands of visitors
The 11-day Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) exhibition came to an end successfully here on Saturday, attracting approximately 15,000 visitors, an organizer said. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen as well as leaders of Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar visited the ...
Nguon Sovan, Mao Pengfei
China proposes 6 programs with Lancang-Mekong countries despite ‘customary’ Western provocation of ties
China on Monday proposed six programs which will benefit the Lancang-Mekong countries aside from China, namely Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, including cooperation plans in agriculture, water resources, digital economy, aerospace, education, and public health, as Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi ...
Fan Anqi and Cui Fandi
Living Planet: The curse of clean energy — hydropower on the Mekong
The Mekong River in Southeast Asia flows for 4,350 kilometers from China to Vietnam through Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia. China’s construction of large hydropower dams to feed the country’s growing energy needs is causing problems downriver, including dire impacts on the waters and fertile ...
Japan charts road to industrialization for Mekong region
Japan and the five Southeast Asian countries bordering the Mekong River adopted a blueprint on 24 August to boost industrialization in the subregion. The blueprint, known as “The Mekong Industrial Development Vision,” got the thumbs-up during a meeting between Japan’s Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry Yoichi ...
China eyes its next prize – the Mekong
Beijing’s islands-building in the South China Sea and their militarisation, replete with surface-to-air missiles, is near complete. With guile, threat, and coercion, China can now seize control of one of the main transport arteries of Southeast Asia, making a mockery of international laws and norms. ...