CNN’s senior international correspondent (for Asia) is based in Taiwan.

Was walking across the canal in the heavy rain when I heard a familiar sound. #Photography #Singapore

Damn. This is a heart rending documentary of a mixed American and Vietnamese man trying to find and reunite with his American dad. Keep a box of tissue paper at hand. www.youtube.com/watch?v=0obO...

Happy Holidays!

For many, M Ravi was the last hope for those on death row. He took on unpopular cases that no lawyers would. RIP. #Singapore www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/m-...

In #HongKong, the authorities are using the blanket term of force majeure to stifle events and voices which they find uncomfortable. Journalist @krislc.bsky.social reports ⬇️ www.indexoncensorship.org/2025/12/in-h...

A timely focus on an organisation that serves rough sleepers in #Singapore www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/ho...

For hire (dis)info operations in the Philippines have been hired by the Chinese embassy to shift the negative perceptions of the CCP in PH according to documents seen by @rappler.bsky.social

This is awful. www.taiwannews.com.tw/news/6269161

When China’s rulers ordered tens of thousands of soldiers to crush pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing in 1989, Gen. Xu Qinxian was the commander who famously said no. Now, leaked video from his court-martial was posted online. nyti.ms/48Ho706

Someone just shared a video clip (from last Nov) on Facebook of Avie Sheck and his mom doing a mashup of Radiohead's Creep and an Indian classical Raag Bilawal and I have to say that it's beautiful.

1/Beijing is using an increasingly powerful tool to control and monitor its own officials: Surveillance technology, much of it originating in the U.S., an @apnews.com investigation has found. Buckle up for a twisting ride through China's corruption crackdown... apnews.com/article/whis...

“An increasing number of “crazy rich” clients are commissioning dozens, or even hundreds, of U.S.-born babies with the goal of “forging an unstoppable family dynasty,” he said.” www.wsj.com/us-news/chin...

Terror attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney Australia. news.sky.com/story/bondi-...

One word: evil

I’ve noticed that #Singapore is like a popular catch-all example for any one of any political persuasion to use on social media these days. It’s like it’s enough of a concept that’s far removed from ppl that they can call up & use as both bad & good examples.

📢 The incident in Australia comes after the man was jailed for nine days and deported from Singapore for public nuisance.

The lesson is clear: No matter how idealistic they are, if traditional political parties & politics as usual can't solve ppls' real & pressing problems, an opportunistic right-wing extreme party will come along to harness ppl's anger & dark impulses to get political power.

Japan’s latent xenophobia is well known, so this isn’t a surprise. But what’s new is that while previous right-wing parties have always been fringe groups, a new party inspired by western far-right groups has risen & is quite successful in courting voters. Things will get ugly.

This is the real face of Singapore: a country that values profits over people to the point where we allowed fucking awful shit like this to happen.

Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) has suspended its student union’s operations, a day after they hid a student message urging accountability for the Tai Po fire. In full: buff.ly/weCw7sD

The masked burglar broke into the closed Virginia liquor store early on Saturday and hit the bottom shelf. The bandit was something of a nocturnal menace: bottles were smashed and alcohol pooled on the floor. The suspect acted like an animal because, in fact, he's a raccoon.

No words to add to this.

An ASUS worker living in #Taiwan as a Chinese #spouse is discovered to run a pro-unification Facebook group. Has repeatedly reported her Taiwanese colleagues for violating *Chinese laws* to ASUS management, and reported the CEO for being pro-independence to the CCP. www.taisounds.com/news/content...

Kathrina Mohd Daud's "The Witch Doctor's Daughter" is a coming of age story of a woman in Brunei in the 1990s. Unlike her supernatural adventure "The Fisherman King", this is more mundane, yet beautiful. Kathrina drew me in with her beautiful & descriptive writing that moves me emotionally. #booksky

Seeing how the community of LGBTQ+ folks & allies in Malaysia came together to fight for the release of those caught in the police raid of a sauna in KL fills me with great respect & admiration. 🫡🏳️‍🌈 www.facebook.com/share/p/17Um... I hope those men can recover from this traumatic ordeal.

"How the Man in Green Saved Pahang, and Possibly the World" by Joshua Kam is a delightful supernatural romp from KL to Pahang. An Orthodox cantor & a divinity postgrad student on holiday gets roped in by an immortal Arab & a Chinese sea goddess for a mission to save Malaysia's soul. #booksky

Fierceland (Omar Musa): I like it. The writing is superb and flowy, the story is gripping, & the themes are current. It's a story of family, nation building, modernisation at all costs, greed, & trauma suffered by those affected directly & indirectly. #booksky www.penguin.sg/book/fiercel...

This is a good documentary of a grandfather who was in the anti-Japanese resistance Force 136 in Malaya during WW2 and the possible PTSD he suffered from. It reminds me of the stories told to me by close relations who lived through it.

One of my favourite things in HK...

"Utama" by Ng Yi-Sheng is a creative imagination of the back story of Sang Nila Utama, the founder of ancient #Singapore who may or may not have existed. TBH, I don't know what to make of this retelling that is in the style of old semi-legendary histories of the region. #booksky

Tight & well written. Kathrina Mohd Daud creates a fantastical tale in the small sultanate of Brunei with spiritual elements drawn from the people in Brunei's immediate vicinity. Its hero is flawed & didn't get all that he wants, but it was a satisfying end. #booksky

HDB in #Singapore is public housing for the masses. All Singaporeans who make up a "family unit" according to government definition can apply for one regardless of wealth status. Hence, you can have residents with multiple luxury cars that can cost over several hundred thousand dollars.

I like the premise of “The Java Enigma” by Erni Salleh. Creating a fantastical back story of Borobudur & the ancient Buddhist monuments in S.E.A., she has created a historical mystery that is engaging. The ending was weak but it felt like a prelude to a part 2. #Booksky

That opening note is like a time machine.

This short lost novel read like a Latin American movie. #booksky

This 3logy by Meihan Boey is a great read. Weaving together spiritual/supernatural traditions from the Malay archipelago (as well as the ancestral homelands of its immigrant communities) and the west, she has created a gripping tale that's hard to put down; weaknesses aside. #booksky #Singapore

Not usual. And thus very newsworthy, and worth reading.

Over 3,000 people and their pets marched in solidarity with the trans community in #Taipei ✨

Marriage equality champion Chi Chia-wei waving a pride flag 🏳️‍🌈 "We stand for Palestine" 🇵🇸 "Abolish the surgery requirement for changing legal genders" 🏳️‍⚧️

#Taipei marches in support of trans rights tonight 🏳️‍⚧️

ACQUITTED! The court found that the three did not know that the route taken to deliver letters to the Istana mailroom was prohibited under the Public Order Act. People have been walking that route to deliver letters to the Istana for YEARS. www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/th...

To all who celebrate, may this Deepavali be a celebration of love, joy, and all the wonderful things that make life special.

Talking with relatives in the US (Asian-American). They've started taking their passports & whatever proof of citizenship with them whenever they leave home. Today it may be Latinos, but tomorrow Trump & ICE may decide to target Asians or some other non-whites and disappear them.

An afternoon at the National Gallery of #Singapore. #Photography 1/2

This video story is 2 years old. OGS (a Singaporean social media channel) interviews and observes a Chinese Taoist spirit medium at work. It's quite enlightening and it helps that the medium is eloquent in explaining his calling and the work he performs without pay.

Mid-autumn moon. I know the full month was supposed to be last night, but it’s really beautiful tonight.

Interesting analysis to read from beginning to end. In other words, despite the high profile returns, one needs to see the bigger and longer term picture vis-à-vis the different nature of research (& funding) impetus & climate in both countries.