A macabre political thriller recently unfolded in the Philippine province of Palawan, an island known mostly for its rich biodiversity and pristine beaches. On 9 May, Joel T Reyes, the alleged mastermind of the 2011 murder of well-known radio broadcaster Gerry Ortega, ran again for governor.

The Davos summit of global political and business elites returns Monday after a COVID-induced two-year break to face another momentous crisis: Russia's invasion of Ukraine.The theme of the World Economic Forum (WEF), "History at a Turning Point", sets the tone for the four-day meeting in the glitzy Swiss mountain resort that will be dominated by the political and economic fallout from the conflict.When the WEF last took place in Davos in January 2020, the coronavirus was just b

Since going public in 2013, Twitter has only occasionally turned a profit, even if it has a commanding role in politics and culture worldwide.The company's announcement on Monday that it had reached a deal for Tesla boss Elon Musk to buy it outright raises the question of whether this will lead to a brighter financial future for Twitter?Musk has downplayed economic considerations as a motivation for his purchase, saying earlier this month at the TED2022 conference that, "This is not

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

As the May 2022 Presidential Election draws near, with the impending change of administration in the Philippines, there have been different views and perspectives on how Philippine foreign policy should adjust to the changes in the strategic environment underpinned by the United States (US)-China geopolitical competition in the Indo-Pacific region and the US-Russia geopolitical tussle in Eastern Europe amid the Ukraine crisis. Indeed, the rivalry and competition of major powers, more

In a recent survey, 52 percent of French citizens cited their purchasing power as a major concern. Only 29 percent mentioned the environment, putting this issue roughly on a par with the health system (30 percent) and immigration (28 percent).

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.

“The Ugly American,” the title of a novel published in 1958 by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer, entered the language to refer to boorish American officials abroad who sought to improve the lives of natives without taking the trouble to learn their language, culture, or needs. A long line of ugly Americans, mostly politicians and government officials from both parties, have believed that applying simple formulas based on idealised versions of US institutions – democracy, markets, a

Bad news travels. Good news doesn’t. When Afghanistan’s government collapsed recently, the whole world watched. But when Indonesia, the most populous Muslim-majority country, produces the world’s most effective democratically elected leader today – President Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi – almost no one outside the archipelago knows the story. That story is all the more remarkable because Jokowi has succeeded in one of the world’s most difficult countries to govern.

Singapore's parliament late Monday passed a law aimed at preventing foreign interference in domestic politics, which the opposition and activists have criticised as a tool to crush dissent.The law, approved after a marathon session that stretched to near midnight, would allow authorities to compel internet service providers and social media platforms to provide user information, block content and remove applications used to spread content they deem hostile.Groups and individuals involved