A state-aligned publication claimed the owner of the account is a 35-year-old activist from the former Cambodian National Rescue Party named Voeun Veasna, who is based in Thailand. The CNRP, the main political opposition party, was dissolved by the courts ahead of elections in 2018 when Hun Sen’s long ruling Cambodian People’s Party won every seat contested at the poll.
Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen gestures during a press conference at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh on Sept. 17. (Photo: AFP)
Since then, the CNRP’s exiled leader Sam Rainsy has threatened to return and stage a popular rebellion to oust Hun Sen. In response, police rounded up more than 100 CNRP supporters and charged them with incitement and treason.
Rights groups have accused Hun Sen of rights violations and turning Cambodia into a one-party state.
An interfaith body and minority groups have demanded punishment for a radical Muslim cleric in Malaysia for defaming religious and ethnic minorities.
Ustaz Syakir Nasoha, based in Kedah state, released a video that went viral on social media where he called Buddhists, Hindus and indigenous Dayak community as kafirs or infidels who are swarming Muslims like people swarm on a tray of food. He claimed that Buddhists and Hindus are bombing mosques and killing Muslims in Thailand, India and Pakistan.
Malaysian Muslim cleric Ustaz Syakir Nasoha is accused of making a controversial and hatred-inciting sermon on social media (Photo: Ar-Rahman TV/YouTube)
Religious minorities and Dayak communities have strongly protested the sermon in various parts of the country and thousands of police cases have been filed demanding strict action against Syakir.
An interfaith forum, the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism, has also condemned the cleric and urged the authorities for actions against him. The council said Syakir should be punished for violating Malaysia’s Penal Code and the Communication and Multimedia Act.
Catholic priests in Sri Lanka joined civil society groups, environmentalists and media organizations to call on the government to compensate fishermen and clean up the coast after a shipwreck caused widespread pollution.
During the demonstration at Sarakkuwa beach on Tuesday, the protesters decried the government’s silence on the damage to the ocean and the lack of fair compensation for the fishing community.
Fishermen and activists led by Catholic priests demonstrate at Sarakkuwa beach on Oct. 12 to demand speedy compensation for people affected by the burning and sinking of a container ship in June. (Photo: AFP)
In May, Singapore-registered ship X-Press Pearl exploded after catching fire off the coast of Colombo. It was transporting around 1500 chemical containers from the Middle East on its way to Singapore. In the containers were 25 tons of nitric acid along with other chemicals and cosmetics.
The accident polluted more than 700 kilometers of the coast with plastics and other debris. Fish and marine animals such as sea turtles have died and washed up on the beach.
South Korea’s Archdiocese of Seoul has published a textbook on sex education for adolescents and their parents to impart in them positive views on human dignity and the body. The archdiocese’s committee for life has published the book titled Our Growth Story: A Journey into Adolescence.
The book has been translated from an Italian book published by Italy-based Association of Pioneer Projects, a coalition of organizations dedicated “to form a sex education culture based on importance of life, responsibility and sincere love.”
The cover of the book ‘Our Growth Story: A Journey into Adolescence’ published by Seoul Archdiocese. (Photo: Catholic Times)
The Korean Church aims to fill gaps in sex and gender education in the country by helping young people and their parents with lessons on human sexuality.
It also teaches how young people should view issues like abortion and homosexuality, use of natural family planning rather than contraception, and that sex only for pleasure without love is undesirable.
The military in conflict-torn Myanmar has burned down a Baptist church and four civilian homes in predominantly Christian Chin state. Christian sources and media reports say the destruction in Falam township on Wednesday came during intense fighting between the military and ethnic rebel group Chin National Army.
The violence forced hundreds of residents from at least five villages to flee their homes and take shelter in nearby jungles. The army offensive came after the rebels attacked a military convoy on the highway from Falam to Chin state capital Hakah. The military has reinforced hundreds of soldiers with heavy weapons and armored vehicles in major townships.
An armed policeman stands guard at a checkpoint on a roadside in Yangon, Myanmar, on Oct. 13. (Photo: AFP)
Renewed fighting in Chin state has left more than 20,000 people displaced since May. The military targeted Catholic and Baptist churches in July and August when soldiers camped in churches and destroyed church property.
In September, the soldiers shot dead a young Baptist pastor during violent attacks in Thantlang town. About 1,200 people have been killed by the junta since the coup in February.
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