https://www.scmp.com/rss/325567/feed Latest news, analysis and opinion on the law and legal issues, including Hong Kong extradition law. Follow the latest on trials, court cases and justice. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A South Korean appeals court reduced the sentence of former prime minister Han Duck-soo on Thursday by eight years for crimes relating to ex-president Yoon Suk-yeol’s martial law declaration. Yoon’s decree in December 2024 briefly suspended civilian rule and plunged South Korea into chaos, but only lasted around six hours as opposition lawmakers moved quickly to overturn it in a vote. A lower court had sentenced Han in January to a heavier-than-expected jail term of 23 years for engaging in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3352689/south-korean-court-cuts-former-prime-minister-han-duck-soos-jail-term-15-years?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3352689/south-korean-court-cuts-former-prime-minister-han-duck-soos-jail-term-15-years?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 May 2026 02:40:52 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysia’s anti-corruption agency is seeking to charge two unnamed individuals over a 1.1 billion ringgit (US$278 million) semiconductor deal with British chip designer Arm Holdings, as former economy minister Rafizi Ramli returned for a third day of questioning in the same probe. The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said the investigation was nearing completion after officers recorded statements from 22 witnesses, including Rafizi and his former aide, political analyst James... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352636/malaysia-seeks-charge-2-over-us278-million-arm-semiconductor-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352636/malaysia-seeks-charge-2-over-us278-million-arm-semiconductor-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 May 2026 10:42:47 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong A South Korean appellate court judge who presided over a high-profile case involving former first lady Kim Keon-hee was found dead early Wednesday morning, police said. Shin Jong-oh, who had overturned a lower court’s not guilty verdict and imposed a harsher sentence on Kim, was discovered with severe injuries in a flower bed near the Seoul High Court building in Seocho district, southern Seoul. He was pronounced dead upon arrival at a nearby hospital. Police suspect the 55-year-old died after... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3352562/south-korean-judge-who-handed-kim-keon-hee-4-year-term-found-dead-days-after-verdict?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3352562/south-korean-judge-who-handed-kim-keon-hee-4-year-term-found-dead-days-after-verdict?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 May 2026 03:39:55 +0000 Alan Robles Alan Robles Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa was once one of the most visible faces of Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly war on drugs, a tough-talking national police chief who was seen as the hatchet man carrying out the former Philippine president’s crackdown against alleged criminals of the narcotics trade. Now a senator, Dela Rosa has somewhat fallen off the radar – for six months, he has not appeared for work after reports circulated that he could face arrest in connection with the International Criminal Court’s crimes... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352535/icc-fugitive-duterte-allys-paid-philippine-senate-vanishing-act-draws-fire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352535/icc-fugitive-duterte-allys-paid-philippine-senate-vanishing-act-draws-fire?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 May 2026 03:00:08 +0000 Raissa Robles Raissa Robles The Philippine House of Representatives has moved Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio’s impeachment closer to a decisive vote, the first step in a week-long process that will test whether allies of President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr have enough support to send the case to a Senate trial. The House placed the impeachment on its plenary agenda on Tuesday, a day after its justice committee endorsed the case, setting up a possible vote by all lawmakers on whether Duterte-Carpio should stand trial in the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352525/philippine-vp-sara-dutertes-impeachment-case-heads-plenary-vote-amid-coercion-claims?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352525/philippine-vp-sara-dutertes-impeachment-case-heads-plenary-vote-amid-coercion-claims?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 12:25:33 +0000 CNA CNA Singapore schools used caning as a disciplinary measure only when all other options were inadequate, given the gravity of the misconduct, Minister for Education Desmond Lee said on Tuesday. Responding to more than 20 parliamentary questions on the Ministry of Education’s (MOE) updated efforts to tackle bullying, Lee acknowledged that studies linked poorly administered and frequent corporal punishment – particularly in unregulated settings such as the home – with negative outcomes. “We recognise... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352461/caning-singapore-school-bullies-only-last-resort-education-minister-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352461/caning-singapore-school-bullies-only-last-resort-education-minister-says?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 06:28:15 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A German woman convicted of keeping her young daughter locked up at home for years was sentenced to five years in prison on Monday. The woman, who had kept her daughter confined to the home of the girl’s grandparents, was found guilty of kidnapping, abduction of a minor and mistreatment of a vulnerable person, according to a court spokeswoman. The grandmother was given a two-year suspended sentence for the same charges, while the grandfather also received a suspended sentence as an... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352410/germany-jails-mother-locking-daughter-7-years?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3352410/germany-jails-mother-locking-daughter-7-years?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 16:00:11 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Supreme Court on Monday restored broad access to the abortion pill mifepristone, blocking a ruling that had threatened to upend one of the main ways abortion is provided across the nation. The order signed by Justice Samuel Alito temporarily allows women seeking abortions to obtain the pill at pharmacies or through the mail, without an in-person visit to a doctor. Those rules had been in effect for several years until a federal appeal court imposed new restrictions last week. Most abortions... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352406/us-supreme-court-restores-access-abortion-pill-mifepristone?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352406/us-supreme-court-restores-access-abortion-pill-mifepristone?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 15:13:57 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysia’s anti-corruption agency on Monday questioned former economy minister Rafizi Ramli over a billion-ringgit semiconductor deal with British chip designer Arm Holdings, escalating a politically sensitive inquiry that has swept up ministers, senior officials and one of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s most outspoken former allies. Rafizi, the Pandan MP and a former senior figure in Anwar’s reformist People’s Justice Party, arrived at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC)... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3352310/malaysia-anwars-former-ally-rafizi-ramli-grilled-over-us278-million-arm-chip-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3352310/malaysia-anwars-former-ally-rafizi-ramli-grilled-over-us278-million-arm-chip-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 03:23:53 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones In India, cuddly and colourful animals are paraded across Instagram, Facebook and YouTube channels, where free advice is shared on how to raise a lemur – or what to feed an iguana – in congested megacities far from forest habitats. Cuteness has become a commodity in Asia’s social media world, with Thailand’s main airport emerging as a reluctant hub for wild animal smuggling. On Wednesday, a 19-year-old passenger bound for Taipei tried to evade security at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport with... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3352169/how-thailand-transit-hub-feeds-indias-exotic-pet-craze-its-organised-crime?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3352169/how-thailand-transit-hub-feeds-indias-exotic-pet-craze-its-organised-crime?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 May 2026 04:00:09 +0000 Reuters Reuters A trial beginning ⁠in New Mexico on Monday could prompt a judge to order sweeping changes ⁠to how Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp operate – a move Meta Platforms has warned could force it to withdraw from the state. The case, which will be tried before a judge in Santa Fe, stems from a lawsuit filed by New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, a Democrat, accusing the social media giant of designing its products to addict young users and failing to protect children from sexual exploitation on... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352224/new-mexico-trial-citing-public-nuisance-laws-against-meta-social-platforms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352224/new-mexico-trial-citing-public-nuisance-laws-against-meta-social-platforms?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 May 2026 10:31:24 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The long-term health concerns raised by vaping continue to unfold. The latest example comes from cancer researchers in Australia, who warn of a likely link to lung and oral cancer and urge governments to act now. Hong Kong health authorities, rightly, are not waiting for definitive evidence of the risk to emerge as this may take many years. Thursday was the first day of a new ban on the use of tobacco alternatives in public areas, including the first penalties against vaping offenders. Anyone... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3352148/hong-kongs-new-vaping-ban-healthy-step-forward?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3352148/hong-kongs-new-vaping-ban-healthy-step-forward?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 May 2026 23:15:10 +0000 Reuters Reuters Hundreds of protesters clashed with Australian emergency services workers in a remote town following the arrest of a man suspected of murdering a five-year-old indigenous girl, police said on Friday. Australia’s prime minister, the Northern Territory’s police commissioner and a spokesperson for the victim’s family all appealed for calm after an angry crowd of roughly 400 indigenous people gathered on Thursday night at the hospital where ‌the suspect was taken after being beaten unconscious by... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3352139/riot-erupts-over-australian-indigenous-girls-suspected-killer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3352139/riot-erupts-over-australian-indigenous-girls-suspected-killer?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 May 2026 08:10:27 +0000 Bernard Chan Bernard Chan After winning legislative backing for the Hong Kong Jockey Club to offer basketball betting – an initiative aimed at drawing punters away from illegal online bookmakers and capturing additional tax revenue – the government has now paused the roll-out. Officials say the rise of prediction markets has altered the landscape and warrants closer examination. So, what is it about prediction markets that unsettles officials? Prediction markets are online platforms where the menu stretches far beyond... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3351875/why-governments-beyond-hong-kong-are-wary-prediction-markets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3351875/why-governments-beyond-hong-kong-are-wary-prediction-markets?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 May 2026 01:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A Ugandan-American man was sentenced to death on Thursday over the murders of four young children he stabbed to death at a kindergarten in Uganda’s capital. Christopher Okello Onyum was arrested on April 2 as he tried to flee the day care centre in Kampala where he murdered the children aged 15 months to two-and-a-half years. Prosecutors said Onyum, who holds Ugandan and US citizenship, confessed to the crime, believing the “human sacrifice” would help him become rich, though he eventually... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3352076/uganda-kindergarten-murderer-sentenced-death?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3352076/uganda-kindergarten-murderer-sentenced-death?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 14:44:44 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Roblox, a gaming platform popular with kids, announced Thursday that children under 16 in Indonesia will be required to undergo facial scans to verify their age to comply with new restrictions on minors’ use of social media and digital platforms in the country. Nicky Jackson Colaco, Roblox’s vice-president and global head of public policy, announced the changes in a press conference in Jakarta, describing them among the strictest that the company has implemented anywhere in the world. She said... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352066/gaming-platform-roblox-require-facial-scans-users-under-16-indonesia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352066/gaming-platform-roblox-require-facial-scans-users-under-16-indonesia?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 13:00:28 +0000 Reuters Reuters Australian police ⁠said on Thursday they have found a ⁠body believed to be that of a missing five-year-old indigenous girl and were searching for the man who allegedly murdered her. The girl, now referred to by her family as Kumanjayi Little Baby in line with Indigenous customs, was reported missing from her home in ‌a remote community in central Australia late on Saturday. Police said they located a body of a young Indigenous girl they believed was hers shortly before midday on Thursday about... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3352021/australian-police-find-body-search-missing-indigenous-girl-5?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3352021/australian-police-find-body-search-missing-indigenous-girl-5?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 09:25:32 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk A 24-year-old Malaysian woman has been jailed for two years for throwing her newborn out of her 38th-floor flat in Kuala Lumpur. The court on Wednesday convicted Lua Mei Zhu of causing the death of her baby girl on February 26, 2025, the New Straits Times reported. Lua, who is not married, tossed her daughter out of the bathroom window shortly after giving birth between 1.30pm and 9pm. A resident on the ninth floor called police at about 10.20pm after finding the baby with severe head injuries... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351981/malaysian-woman-jailed-2-years-throwing-baby-daughter-38-floor-flat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351981/malaysian-woman-jailed-2-years-throwing-baby-daughter-38-floor-flat?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 07:33:16 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysia’s system for tracking repeat domestic abusers is under scrutiny after police said a man accused of assaulting his pregnant wife until she miscarried had been married nine times and was free on bail while appealing a 10-year jail sentence for attacking another spouse who was previously expecting. The 43-year-old suspect, named in local media as Rosmaini Abd Raof, was remanded for seven days in Kedah on Wednesday after police arrested him at a homestay in Alor Setar, the northern state’s... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351970/malaysian-man-who-was-married-9-times-faces-wife-assault-case-again?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351970/malaysian-man-who-was-married-9-times-faces-wife-assault-case-again?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 06:43:46 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Philippine authorities have introduced a new national playbook for raiding and prosecuting online scam centres, as criminal networks once tied to the country’s offshore gaming industry splinter into smaller and harder-to-detect operations. The rules aim to close gaps exposed during earlier raids, when agencies struggled to coordinate evidence, freeze assets, identify trafficking victims and build cases against operators who often left few physical traces. Analysts and former officials said the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351903/can-philippines-new-anti-pogo-playbook-rein-fast-moving-scam-hubs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351903/can-philippines-new-anti-pogo-playbook-rein-fast-moving-scam-hubs?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 02:00:12 +0000 Alexander Tang Alexander Tang Almost everyone has heard of OpenClaw, the late-2025 agentic AI release which takes artificial intelligence technology one step further. Rather than leaving the user to turn answers given in a dialogue box into real life action, the latest AI iteration promises to take the final leap of executing tasks autonomously. Users have raved about the productivity gains, likening the tool to employing a tireless secretary. Equally, there are horror stories of raised “lobsters” – the nickname for OpenClaw... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351855/should-law-treat-autonomous-ai-agents-legal-persons?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351855/should-law-treat-autonomous-ai-agents-legal-persons?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 01:30:13 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Sweden’s government said on Wednesday it planned to introduce legislation requiring social media platforms like TikTok and Snapchat to take down criminal gangs’ ‘murder adverts’ within an hour or face hefty fines. Criminal gangs active in Sweden increasingly use social media to recruit people to commit murders and other violent acts amid a surge in “crime as a service”. The recruits are often children under the age of 15, Sweden’s age of criminal responsibility, meaning the youngsters cannot be... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351902/sweden-targets-social-media-giants-over-murder-adverts-recruiting-children?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351902/sweden-targets-social-media-giants-over-murder-adverts-recruiting-children?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 15:42:19 +0000 Joseph Sipalan Joseph Sipalan Being a Malaysian Indian is apparently a good indication that you are unlikely to fall for a scam. Police have found that potential victims from the ethnic group are more than likely to frustrate scammers with a barrage of questions. Malaysians lost an estimated 2.7 billion ringgit (US$684 million) to online scams last year alone, according to data from cybersecurity firm Fortinet Malaysia – a 76 per cent increase from the previous year – as syndicates adopt increasingly sophisticated methods... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351807/malaysian-indians-least-likely-be-scammed-they-ask-too-many-questions-police?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351807/malaysian-indians-least-likely-be-scammed-they-ask-too-many-questions-police?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 06:13:12 +0000 Fiona Sun Fiona Sun Hong Kong’s anti-corruption watchdog has charged a police superintendent over allegedly accepting a HK$1 million (US$127,599) bribe from a businessman, disclosing internal information and arranging for his younger brother to act as a scapegoat in speeding cases. The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on Tuesday revealed the charges against Leung Ka-man, 52, as well as his girlfriend and younger brother. According to the commission, Leung faces four charges: conspiracy for a public... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351723/hong-kongs-icac-charges-police-superintendent-over-hk1-million-bribe-misconduct?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351723/hong-kongs-icac-charges-police-superintendent-over-hk1-million-bribe-misconduct?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:09:07 +0000 Raissa Robles Raissa Robles As impeachment looms, Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio and her spouse are firing back at allegations of ill-gotten wealth, with the couple’s combative responses seen as damage control over what critics say will be “smoking gun” evidence to be presented to the Senate. A handful of lawmakers are expecting the House of Representatives to submit Articles of Impeachment against Duterte-Carpio to the Senate soon. “I think she will be impeached by the first week of May. My guess is 160 to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351660/philippines-sara-duterte-hits-back-against-wealth-allegations-impeachment-looms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351660/philippines-sara-duterte-hits-back-against-wealth-allegations-impeachment-looms?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 05:54:12 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A French teenager has been charged with mischief and public nuisance in Singapore for licking a straw and putting it back in an orange juice vending machine, court documents showed on Monday. Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 18, allegedly filmed himself “licking a straw and placing it back at the vending machine”, uploaded the video on Instagram knowing that it “would or would probably cause annoyance to the public”, according to the documents. The teenager is studying in Singapore, according to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351585/french-teen-singapore-faces-jail-licking-and-returning-vending-machine-straw?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351585/french-teen-singapore-faces-jail-licking-and-returning-vending-machine-straw?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 10:37:58 +0000 Lo Hoi-ying Lo Hoi-ying Including clear, comprehensive definitions of consent in Hong Kong’s reform of sexual offence laws will provide greater clarity for all parties and better protect victims, experts and a survivor have said. Barrister Stephen Keung Pit-chun said on Saturday current interpretations of consent relied on “common sense”, creating legal loopholes. Establishing a statutory definition of consent would also be key to sentencing in future cases, he said. Keung was speaking at a forum at the University of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351433/hong-kong-urged-clarify-consent-reforms-close-sexual-offence-loopholes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351433/hong-kong-urged-clarify-consent-reforms-close-sexual-offence-loopholes?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Apr 2026 13:04:08 +0000 dpa dpa German prosecutors have charged a 46-year-old man on suspicion of serious sexual abuse of children via live streaming. The man, from the district of Heidenheim in southwestern Germany, is alleged to have paid female accomplices in the Philippines to carry out sexual abuse against girls aged between four and 13 in six instances, the Cybercrime Centre of the Karlsruhe Public Prosecutor’s Office said on Friday. Videos of the sexual abuse were reportedly streamed live to the man, while he directed... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351352/german-man-accused-live-streaming-child-abuse-philippines?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351352/german-man-accused-live-streaming-child-abuse-philippines?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:24:26 +0000 Aisyah Llewellyn Aisyah Llewellyn Indonesia’s blasphemy law has once again come under scrutiny after former vice-president Jusuf Kalla was reported to police over remarks linking past Muslim-Christian conflicts to beliefs about martyrdom. The case is unusual because it involves Christian complainants against one of the most senior Muslim figures in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation and reflects what critics have long called the law’s central flaw: its susceptibility to politicised use. Kalla, a career politician... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351325/indonesias-blasphemy-law-religious-protection-or-political-purpose?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351325/indonesias-blasphemy-law-religious-protection-or-political-purpose?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:54:11 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow India’s agreement to review Dhaka’s request for Sheikh Hasina’s extradition could hint at more flexibility over a deeply political issue, but observers warn that does not mean New Delhi is ready to hand the former Bangladesh ruler over just yet. The ex-prime minister fled to India in August 2024 after her regime fell to protesters. India’s Ministry of External Affairs confirmed on April 17 it was conducting a formal review of Dhaka’s extradition request. The announcement – a significant shift... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351243/india-opens-door-sheikh-hasina-extradition-talks-delhi-dhaka-thaw?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351243/india-opens-door-sheikh-hasina-extradition-talks-delhi-dhaka-thaw?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 03:46:34 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Potentially millions of Americans suddenly have a much easier path to Canadian citizenship, prompting a rush of people to explore their ancestry and file paperwork seeking dual citizenship. For people like Zack Loud of Farmington, Minnesota, it was a surprise to learn that under a new law, Canada already considered him and his siblings citizens because their grandmother is Canadian. “My wife and I were already talking about potentially looking at jobs outside the country, but citizenship pushed... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351206/millions-americans-may-now-also-be-considered-canadian-under-new-law?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351206/millions-americans-may-now-also-be-considered-canadian-under-new-law?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 13:57:59 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones The jailing of two Vietnamese men who brokered a sale of 900kg (2,000lbs) of pangolin scales from Africa destined for the Chinese market has returned the spotlight to the illicit trade in an animal that has been poached to the edge of extinction. Prized for its meat and scales, the pangolin has almost disappeared from forests and their hilly habitats of Africa and Asia. Conservationists estimate around 1 million have been trafficked over the last decade, triggered by demand for traditional... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3351159/conservationists-hail-jailing-vietnamese-pangolin-scale-smugglers-900kg-haul?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3351159/conservationists-hail-jailing-vietnamese-pangolin-scale-smugglers-900kg-haul?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 09:45:00 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Turkish lawmakers passed a bill late on Wednesday that includes restricting access to social media platforms for children under 15, state media reported. The legislation is the latest in a global trend to protect young people from dangerous online activity. Its passage comes a week after a 14-year-old boy killed nine students and a teacher at a middle school in Kahramanmaras, southern Turkey, in a gun attack. Police are investigating the online activity of the perpetrator, who also died, in a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351147/turkey-passes-bill-restrict-social-media-access-under-15s?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351147/turkey-passes-bill-restrict-social-media-access-under-15s?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 08:59:42 +0000 Martin W H Wong Martin W H Wong The law of tort, from its Latin and Old French origin meaning “wrong”, saw a major development in Hong Kong at the beginning of this year. After years of debate in the lower courts, Hong Kong’s top court has made it clear that, with Sir Elly Kadoorie & Sons Limited v Samantha Jane Bradley [2026] HKCFA 2, harassment is now a recognised tort under common law. While it is described as a development, this was the last step of a recognition that was more than a decade in the making. The first High... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351055/being-annoying-not-just-annoyance-its-harassment-under-tort-law?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351055/being-annoying-not-just-annoyance-its-harassment-under-tort-law?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 01:30:11 +0000 Raissa Robles Raissa Robles Families of victims of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs hailed as a “vindication” on Wednesday the International Criminal Court Appeals Chamber’s refusal to throw out the crimes against humanity case against him. Duterte has been held by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague since March 2025 over killings linked to his anti-drugs campaign while he was in office. His lawyers argued that the court had no authority to try him because the Philippines... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351050/icc-chamber-rules-case-against-rodrigo-dutertes-war-drugs-killings-proceed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351050/icc-chamber-rules-case-against-rodrigo-dutertes-war-drugs-killings-proceed?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:37:40 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The United Nations voiced alarm on Wednesday at the number of people being executed in Singapore for drug-related offences, saying it was incompatible with human dignity. UN rights chief Volker Turk said there had been a general shift away from the use of capital punishment in Asia, and Singapore was one of only a few countries imposing the death penalty for drug-related crimes not involving intentional killing. The death penalty is mandatory in Singapore for drug trafficking above certain... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351031/un-alarmed-singapore-executions-drug-related-offences?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351031/un-alarmed-singapore-executions-drug-related-offences?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 11:21:43 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A French campaign group said on Wednesday it has sued companies selling nitrous oxide – also known as laughing gas – using what the activists alleged was “deceptive” marketing targeting young people, despite the health impacts. The Antoine Alleno Association – a road safety group headed by Michelin-starred chef Yannick Alleno, whose son was killed in 2022 by a speeding driver – said it had filed the legal action against the companies behind Cream Deluxe, which markets colourful canisters of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351016/french-activists-sue-deceptive-laughing-gas-suppliers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351016/french-activists-sue-deceptive-laughing-gas-suppliers?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 09:34:48 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korean police have moved to detain Bang Si-hyuk, the founder of K-pop giant Hybe – the entertainment company behind groups including BTS – in a case that has spilled beyond finance and into the politics of Seoul’s uneasy alliance with Washington. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it had requested an arrest warrant for Bang through the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office, citing alleged fraudulent stock trading in violation of the Capital Markets Act. The case took on a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3350898/south-korean-police-seek-arrest-warrant-hybe-founder-bang-after-travel-request?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3350898/south-korean-police-seek-arrest-warrant-hybe-founder-bang-after-travel-request?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 11:09:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Indonesia’s parliament passed a law on Tuesday to protect the rights of domestic workers after more than two decades of deliberations and multiple delays. The bill was first introduced in 2004 to protect the country’s 4.2 million domestic workers, almost 90 per cent of them women, according to data from the Ministry of Manpower. They were previously not legally classified as workers, meaning they were forced to operate in an informal and unregulated economy, exposed to exploitation and... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350894/indonesia-passes-law-protect-domestic-workers-after-wait-over-20-years?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350894/indonesia-passes-law-protect-domestic-workers-after-wait-over-20-years?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 10:34:41 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong There is a tendency to portray the global artificial intelligence (AI) landscape as consisting of two bitter rivals – China and the United States. The remaining 80 per cent of the world’s population, by virtue of their supposed dearth of scale, research and other critical overheads, are purportedly followers with no agency. The reality is more complex. The emerging global AI order is neither unipolar nor strictly bipolar. Instead, it is characterised by a swathe of middle powers hedging their... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3350129/hong-kong-can-advance-ai-beyond-confines-geopolitical-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3350129/hong-kong-can-advance-ai-beyond-confines-geopolitical-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 01:30:09 +0000 Reuters Reuters Indonesia’s National Human Rights Commission strongly criticised the military ⁠on Monday as it ⁠investigated the killing of 12 civilians ⁠last week during an operation against rebels in Papua province. The military said it had no information about the deaths, but the state-run rights commission said over the weekend that 12 people including women and children had been ‌shot dead during an operation against separatists in central Papua on Tuesday. Dozens of others sustained serious injuries, it... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350688/indonesian-rights-body-military-clash-over-reports-papua-civilian-killings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350688/indonesian-rights-body-military-clash-over-reports-papua-civilian-killings?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Apr 2026 06:17:14 +0000 Mike Rowse Mike Rowse Many Hongkongers would have been surprised last week that the government was postponing the introduction of basketball betting. It was only months ago that the bill had been enacted by the Legislative Council. So clearly it was a matter that fell within our high degree of autonomy. And the Hong Kong Jockey Club was known to be hard at work preparing for implementation. But listeners to RTHK’s Backchat programme in early February may have come away with an inkling that all might not be well.... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3350322/why-hong-kong-hitting-pause-basketball-betting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3350322/why-hong-kong-hitting-pause-basketball-betting?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Apr 2026 21:30:09 +0000 Lam Ka-sing Lam Ka-sing Hong Kong customs has arrested seven people in a citywide crackdown on party rooms offering suspected illegal karaoke sets with songs that infringed copyright. The operation, code-named “Magpie”, took place between March 16 and Wednesday this week and involved more than 100 officers, who raided 14 party rooms, a bar and the homes of two online sellers. Ng Ka-chun, divisional commander of customs’ intellectual property technology crime investigation, said on Friday that authorities seized 28... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3350419/7-arrested-crackdown-party-rooms-offering-copyright-infringing-karaoke-sets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3350419/7-arrested-crackdown-party-rooms-offering-copyright-infringing-karaoke-sets?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Apr 2026 06:02:16 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar Indonesia’s push to bring thousands of unlicensed tourist stays into the legal fold is running into a familiar administrative obstacle in Bali, with operators saying the government wants faster compliance than the bureaucracy could allow. In December, the Ministry of Tourism said unlicensed accommodation providers in Bali, Yogyakarta, West Nusa Tenggara and West Java had until March 31 to register their hotels, guest houses, villas and homestays, in a move meant to improve service quality,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3350328/indonesias-bali-wants-illegal-rentals-be-legitimate-operators-flag-red-tape?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3350328/indonesias-bali-wants-illegal-rentals-be-legitimate-operators-flag-red-tape?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 09:48:22 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A leading Indonesian university suspended 16 law students on Thursday after a sexually explicit group chat about their female peers went viral, sparking a debate about gender violence in the Muslim-majority country. Screenshots of a conversation among 16 male students at the University of Indonesia were posted on social media this week, eliciting shock and anger from female peers and a wider societal discussion. The university said in a statement on Thursday it had suspended the young men for... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350283/university-indonesia-suspends-16-law-students-sexually-explicit-group-chat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350283/university-indonesia-suspends-16-law-students-sexually-explicit-group-chat?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 07:08:26 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof In Malaysia, artificial intelligence is already causing harm to content creators through deepfake nudes, cloned voices, scam advertisements and stolen likenesses, experts have warned. They shared the view at the Freedom Film Network’s second International Conference on Film & Society in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday, where creators, researchers and advocates from across Southeast Asia gathered under the theme “Cultivating Artistic Freedom in a Volatile World”. Melissa Lim Shi Hui, a lawyer and legal... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3350193/malaysias-content-creators-battle-ai-abuse-deepfakes-scam-ads-spread-online?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3350193/malaysias-content-creators-battle-ai-abuse-deepfakes-scam-ads-spread-online?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Apr 2026 11:30:10 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Hong Kong’s move to legalise basketball betting has suffered a setback. The government suspended the plan on Monday pending further study, citing the emergence of prediction markets which it says may prompt more people to turn to illegal gambling. Embarrassing as it is, the U-turn is a prudent step to ensure that the plan proceeds in the right direction. Prediction markets are platforms where people buy and sell contracts on the outcomes of future events, with the prices directly reflecting the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3350029/hong-kongs-u-turn-basketball-betting-prudent-move?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3350029/hong-kongs-u-turn-basketball-betting-prudent-move?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 23:15:13 +0000 Theodora Yu Theodora Yu Hong Kong landlords who fail to fix water seepage affecting flats below face a minimum inspection bill of HK$17,000 (US$2,170) if they take no action within 28 days of notification under a pilot scheme designed to fast-track such cases. The plan, launched by a joint office under the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) and Buildings Department, shifts the responsibility of shouldering inspection costs from the government to flat owners who fail to address water seepage... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3350088/hong-kong-landlords-face-hk17000-inspection-bill-over-ignored-water-seepage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3350088/hong-kong-landlords-face-hk17000-inspection-bill-over-ignored-water-seepage?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 14:40:38 +0000 Kyodo Kyodo A Japanese court on Tuesday sentenced a former teacher to two years in prison for taking indecent images of pupils and sharing them on social media, making him the first among members of an alleged teachers’ voyeurism ring to receive a prison sentence in a high-profile case that came to light last year. The Nagoya District Court handed down the sentence to Katsuya Ishikawa, 28, who was a teacher at a junior high school in Hayama, Kanagawa Prefecture, at the time of his arrest in September. Judge... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3350058/japan-jails-ex-teacher-sharing-voyeuristic-student-images?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3350058/japan-jails-ex-teacher-sharing-voyeuristic-student-images?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 10:14:01 +0000 Natalie Wong Natalie Wong A statutory advisory body in Hong Kong will be given new powers as early as June to investigate government department heads over “serious, widespread or systemic” problems, as part of a broader push to institutionalise accountability for top officials. A Civil Service Bureau spokeswoman stressed that the new system targeted “implementation failures” by senior officials, but a union representative argued that major scandals often stemmed from flawed policy designs in which bureau chiefs and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3350052/advisory-body-be-given-power-probe-government-department-heads-serious-offences?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3350052/advisory-body-be-given-power-probe-government-department-heads-serious-offences?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 09:47:19 +0000