Marcos on South China Sea row; anger in Thailand over iron cage beds: 7 Asia highlights
We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Marcos says Philippines ‘resigned’ to managing South China Sea dispute The Philippines is “resigned” to managing its long-standing dispute with Beijing in the South China…
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr of the Philippines expressed his country's willingness to navigate the complex South China Sea dispute with China, opting to avoid any dangerous escalation. In an unexpected turn of events for US military partnerships, F-35 stealth fighter jets from the United States joined Indian warplanes for joint military drills near the Pakistan border.
This marked the inaugural instance of America's state-of-the-art multirole combat aircraft participating in such exercises in India. In Thailand, the public has expressed outrage over a nursing home's use of iron cage beds for elderly and ill residents, with the beds leaving barely a foot of space above the confined heads. The controversy has sparked debate about the use of such "innovative" housing solutions.
Meanwhile, Malaysian doctors have been turning down job offers in Borneo, as public hospitals in the Malaysian state of Sabah and Sarawak extend warm greetings to incoming medical staff on their social media platforms. Singapore's local cafes have found themselves competing with the Chinese coffee chain Luckin Coffee, which recently launched a promotional offer of a single cup of coffee for just S$1 (78 US cents), enticing customers away from independent establishments like Folk Yard.
In Malaysia, actor Chew Kin Wah, known for his role as Kee Tat in the popular sitcom Kopitiam, remains active in the entertainment industry at the age of 61, working on select projects as his schedule allows. Finally, a deeper emotional story from Singapore reveals the profound heartbreak experienced by a Malay individual named Hafeez Hassan, who struggled to overcome his lifelong fear of dogs before eventually losing one he had come to see as a sibling figure.
Written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
