These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
Get up to speed with what’s happening in the fastest growing region in the world.
Hong Kong protesters clash with police, angry at lack of prosecutions after July subway mob attack
Thousands of jeering Hong Kong residents held a raucous anti-government protest on Wednesday (Aug 21) at a suburban subway station that was attacked by a mob last month, angry that nobody has yet been prosecuted for the violence.
Some masked protesters clashed with police in the sub-tropical heat, spraying fire extinguishers from the inside of Yuen Long station as others smeared the floor with cooking oil to stop the police advancing.
Some demonstrators blocked station exits and sealed roads outside the station, aiming green laser beams at the lines of shield-bearing officers. Others threw empty fire extinguishers at police lines from overpasses. – Straits Times
Bike ride-sharing service 'not safe, will kill local business'
Road safety experts, public transport advocates, taxi operators and even the mainstream e-hailing service sector have rallied against the green light given to motorcycle e-hailing service Gojek to operate in Malaysia.
Traffic engineering specialist Dr Law Teik Hua voiced his objection to the move, saying up to 60 per cent of annual road deaths in the country involved motorcyclists and pillion riders.
“The public must find a way to discourage this (Gojek’s operations) chiefly due to safety,” said Law, a professor at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. – New Straits Times
Early Sanchez release sparks fear, anguish
Fear, disbelief and painful emotions gripped the family of murder victim Allan Gomez when media reports came out that the man responsible for his death and the rape-slay of his college sweetheart 26 years ago might soon walk out of prison.
“It’s like my heart is being crushed,” OJ Gomez told the Inquirer in an online interview on Wednesday. – Philippine Daily Inquirer
4am pub closing suggestion draws fire
A debate is raging over the idea floated by Tourism and Sports Minister, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, to allow night entertainment venues to stay open for an extra two hours until 4am.
Academics and activists are advising the government to study the possible negative impacts of the proposal, although it has been widely welcomed by business establishments. – Bangkok Post
Loss-making, low-profitability agriculture firms to be eliminated
Loss-making, low-profitability State-owned agriculture firms should be dissolved and made bankrupt, said Deputy Prime Minister Vương Đình Huệ on August 21.
Special regulations are needed for those loss-making, low-profitability firms to stop operating, he told a meeting on the restructuring of agriculture and forestry businesses.
He asked the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) to hasten and complete re-arranging State-owned firms by 2020 to improve their performance and efficiency. – Vietnam News
Telco voices concerns over internet blackout
A major telecommunications company in Myanmar has issued a statement regarding the government shutdown of internet services in nine townships in Rakhine and Chin states.
In statements released earlier this month, Telenor Telenor Myanmar said it was worried about the blackout of internet and data services, as the government had set no time limit, and it could cause public confusion.
Telenor said the internet shutdown had restricted the right to access information, which is important for the livelihood of locals in these areas, and had seriously affected thousands of civilians. – Myanmar Times