Chinese students face uncertain future as US imposes visa crackdown

Chinese students who account for about one quarter of overseas students in the United States voiced anxiety Thursday as the Trump administration paused visa interviews and announced tougher screening of applicants to American universities. In the U.S., Chinese students expressed worries they may not be able to travel freely, and one student who is a human rights activist said she now felt pressure both from the Chinese government and U.S. government. “The current situation in the U.S. feels increasingly uncertain — even dangerous,” Mary, who graduated from an American college…

Relatives of exiled Hong Kong actor-turned-activist questioned

Read coverage of this topic in Cantonese. Hong Kong police have questioned two relatives of actor and journalist Joe Tay in the latest case of authorities targeting the family of wanted overseas pro-democracy activists. Tay, who lives in Canada, is among six pro-democracy campaigners that the Hong Kong government in December accused of violating a national security law, offering rewards of HK$1 million (US$130,000) for help in arresting them. The six were accused of crimes including incitement to secession, subversion of state power, and collusion with foreign forces. Tay has…

Rohingya groups condemn ‘global neglect’ after 427 refugees feared drowned at sea

Rohingya rights groups on Thursday decried “regional inaction and global neglect” over the plight of the Muslim minority from Myanmar after more than 400 refugees were feared drowned when two boats sank this month after setting sail from Bangladesh. Last week, the U.N. refugee agency said that while details remained unclear, it had collected reports from family members and others about two separate boat tragedies on May 9 and May 10 in which 427 people may have died. It said both boats left from Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, where about 1…

Tibetan resistance veterans offer legacy of unity, defiance in their twilight years

In the tranquil hills of Nepal’s Gandaki province, where the land rises in its northern district of Mustang toward the border with Tibet, the pace of life has slowed for the last legion of the Tibetan armed resistance. Now in their twilight years, these are the warriors who mounted a united campaign from the 1950s through to the mid-1970s against the Chinese occupation of their homeland. They live quiet, spiritual lives far removed from the days of gathering intelligence and ambushing Chinese military convoys. Many of these fighters were trained…

Thai prime minister urges calm after Cambodian soldier killed in border clash

View RFA Khmer reporting on this topic here. Updated May 28, 2025, 11:40 a.m. ET BANGKOK – The Thai prime minister said Wednesday she spoke to her Cambodian counterpart to reduce tensions after Cambodia said one of its soldiers was killed in a brief gunfight with Thai troops at a sensitive border region. The 10-minute shootout at Hill 496 comes after weeks of mounting tension. The neighbors have a history of armed confrontation at disputed border areas. Cambodia said one of its soldiers, Sgt. Suan Roan, 48, was killed during…

Developing nations face ‘tidal wave’ of debt repayments to China in 2025: report

China’s role in developing countries’ finances has transformed from capital provider to chief debt collector as a “tidal wave” of repayments due on loans Beijing extended under its Belt and Road Initiative far outstrip new disbursements, a new report by an Australian think tank showed. Under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Beijing has disbursed over $1 trillion in loans to more than 150 countries to build a network of roads, airports, railways, telecommunication networks, and seaports to connect China to the rest of the world. Critics have accused China…

Cambodia police seek Thai extradition of critic of the govt’s trade negotiators

See reporting on this topic in Khmer here. A Cambodian woman who criticized Phnom Penh’s inconclusive efforts to negotiate with Washington over trade tariffs is in the cross-hairs of Cambodian police who accuse her of trying to overthrow the government and say they’ll ask Thailand to extradite her. The woman, identified by police as Chhin Chou from Battambang province, had posted audio over video footage of Cambodia’s commerce minister on Facebook under the user name “Overseas Woman.” In it, she claimed that the first round of tariff negotiations between Cambodia…

Vietnam to block messaging app Telegram over ‘anti-state’ contents

Updated May 23, 2025, 6:00 p.m. ET Vietnam’s government has instructed telecommunications companies to block the Telegram messaging app after the Ministry of Public Security concluded it was being used to disseminate “anti-state” contents, state media reported Friday. The Telecommunications Department under the Ministry of Science and Technology issued the order on Wednesday. Telecommunications service providers were instructed to take measures to block the app and report to the ministry by June 2, Vietnam News Agency said. If nothing changes, Telegram will become the first encrypted messaging app to be…

Developing Asia’s laggard Laos faces economic headwinds

BANGKOK – Xay, an auto mechanic from Laos, has been working in Thailand for three years. A combination of rising prices and falling purchasing power back home mean that he is one of 286,000 documented workers who have left Laos for better opportunities over the border. “Here I receive 550 baht (US$17) per day, compared to a bit over 100 baht (US$3) in Laos which barely made ends meet. I can learn new technology with better equipment here,” said Xay, who asked to use a pseudonym so he could speak…

US lawmakers press hotel giants over ‘Taiwan, China’ label

Two U.S. lawmakers are taking aim at three major U.S. hotel chains for using the term “Taiwan, China” on their websites and promotional materials, saying it implies that the self-ruling island is part of China and undermines Taiwanese democracy. Rep. John Moolenar, Republican chairman of the U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, wrote Wednesday to the CEOs of Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt, demanding to know whether they were using the term at Beijing’s request. china-taiwan-hotels Hilton, Marriott, and Hyatt’s official…