Corruption

Thaksin's Daughter Takes Shinawatra Brand To Thais

She has half a million followers on Instagram, leads a glamorous lifestyle and describes herself as the "little girl" of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra – one of the most influential and controversial figures in modern Thai history.The 35-year-old Paetongtarn Shinawatra, youngest of billionaire tycoon Thaksin's three children, is now launching herself into the country's deeply divided political scene ahead of a national election due by March 2023.The move brings the Shin

13 June 2022
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Imelda’s Dream Fulfilled As Family Regains Power

Decades after fleeing the Philippines with bags and boxes stuffed with jewels, gold and cash, former first lady Imelda Marcos has achieved her ultimate ambition: her son winning the presidency.The frail but flamboyant 92-year-old matriarch has been the driving force in the family's comeback from exile to the peak of power in the 9 May polls.President-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos has described his mother as "the supreme politician in the family", one who wields a

27 May 2022
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Presidential Runner-Up Robredo To 'Fight Lies'

Philippine presidential runner-up Leni Robredo vowed Friday to focus on "fighting lies" as she urged supporters to accept election results showing the son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos had won by a landslide.Robredo was the last obstacle to the Marcos family completing a decades-long climb back to the peak of power in the country they left impoverished when they were ousted in 1986.After narrowly beating Ferdinand Marcos Junior in the 2016 vice presidential race, Robredo, 57,

14 May 2022
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Junta Jails Suu Kyi For 5 Years For Corruption

A Myanmar junta court on Wednesday sentenced Aung San Suu Kyi to five years in jail for corruption, part of a barrage of criminal cases that could see the deposed civilian leader jailed for decades.Suu Kyi has been in military custody since a coup ousted her government in February last year and plunged the Southeast Asian nation into turmoil.In the latest case, the Nobel laureate was accused of accepting a bribe of US$600,000 in cash and gold bars.After two days of delays, the special court i

28 April 2022
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Philippine Dynasties Tighten Grip On Power

If the son of former Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos wins the 9 May presidential election, he will not be the only Marcos currently in power – and will almost certainly not be the last.Elite families have long ruled the poverty-ravaged nation, holding on to positions of power for generations by dishing out favours, buying votes or resorting to violence.Analysts say the system has become more pervasive in the decades since a popular uprising deposed Marcos and forced the family into exile

25 April 2022
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1MDB Scandal: Ex-Goldman Malaysia Boss Guilty

The former head of Goldman Sachs in Malaysia has been convicted for helping to orchestrate one of the world's biggest financial corruption scandals.A United States (US) jury found Roger Ng guilty on all charges in the trial, which concerned the looting of billions of dollars from Malaysia's 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.He is the only Goldman Sachs banker to face a jury over the scandal, which rocked Malaysian politics and forced the bank to pay billions in fines.He had pleaded not gui

9 April 2022
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Malaysians Demand Anti-Graft Chief Resigns

Hundreds of Malaysians rallied in the capital Saturday, demanding the country's powerful anti-graft chief resign over a stock trading controversy where he owned millions of shares.Wearing masks and shouting "reject corruption", the mostly black-clad crowd of about two hundred called for immediate action against Azam Baki, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) top official.Protests in the Southeast Asian nation have been rare since the beginning of the pandemic

23 January 2022
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COVID-Powered Challenges Of 2022

After a year in which people longed to get back to “normal,” it is now clear that COVID-19 will not make this possible. The pandemic, now heading into its third year, has profoundly affected individuals, communities, countries, and international cooperation, creating four tough challenges for 2022. Rebuilding trust will be critical to confronting all of them. The first challenge is that people’s relationship to work has changed.

3 January 2022
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Will The US Democracy Summit Divide The World?

United States (US) President Joe Biden will host a virtual democracy summit for leaders from government, civil society, and the private sector on 9-10 December 2021 with the themes defending against authoritarianism; addressing and fighting corruption, and promoting respect for human rights as per the statement released on the website of the US State Department. The invitations for the US Democracy Summit are out and more than half of the world was invited while the rest were left ou

31 December 2021
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Biden Touts US As Democracy Champion, China Scoffs

President Joe Biden said Friday that democracy "knows no borders" as he closed a two-day summit on democratic freedoms while fending off a storm of criticism from China and domestic critics alike.Biden's presidency has focused on restoring America to what Ronald Reagan liked to call a "shining city on the hill," or a beacon for freedom that other nations look up to.But the Washington summit, held by video link because of COVID-19, underlined difficulties facing the Un

11 December 2021
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Myanmar Junta Jails Suu Kyi For Two Years

Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi was jailed for two years on Monday after being found guilty of incitement against the military and breaching COVID rules - in a ruling that drew swift international condemnation.A special court initially sentenced the 76-year-old Nobel laureate to four years in prison, but she was partially "pardoned" hours later by the junta chief, who halved the sentence to two years.Suu Kyi has been detained since the generals staged a coup and ousted

7 December 2021
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Will The US Democracy Summit Divide The World?

United States (US) President Joe Biden will host a virtual democracy summit for leaders from government, civil society, and the private sector on 9-10 December 2021 with the themes defending against authoritarianism; addressing and fighting corruption, and promoting respect for human rights as per the statement released on the website of the US State Department. The invitations for the US Democracy Summit are out and more than half of the world was invited while the rest were left ou

5 December 2021
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