No Valentine’s Day Mass Marriage Event This Year
BANGKOK — The annual event of Valentine’s Day marriage registration across the 50 district offices of Bangkok was cancelled for the first time this year due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Crime in Japan Drops To Lowest Postwar Level Amid Pandemic
TOKYO (Kyodo) — The number of crimes recorded in Japan in 2020 hit the lowest level in the postwar era for the sixth straight year, with a sharp decline in street crime as people stayed home during the coronavirus pandemic, police data showed Thursday.
Moscow’s Jails Overwhelmed With Detained Navalny Protesters
MOSCOW (AP) — The video, shot by a man detained in a Moscow protest, shows a group of people jammed into a police minibus. One of them says on the recording that they had already been held there for nine hours, with some forced to stand because of overcrowding and no access to food, water or bathrooms.
Resistance To Myanmar Coup Grows Despite Block of Facebook
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar’s new military government blocked access to Facebook as resistance to Monday’s coup surged amid calls for civil disobedience to protest the ousting of the elected government and its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
Police to Summon 9,800 People Over Travel Subsidy Fraud
BANGKOK — Nearly 10,000 people were implicated in a massive scheme to defraud the government through an aid program to revive domestic tourism amid the pandemic, police said Thursday.
No Charge Filed Over Celeb Party Virus Cluster, Despite Gov’t Orders
BANGKOK — Police on Thursday said charges have yet to be filed in the ongoing investigation into a celebrity’s birthday party responsible for one of the largest clusters of coronavirus infections in the recent outbreak.
Tokyo Games Chief Says ‘Women Talk Too Much’ at Meetings
TOKYO (Kyodo) — Yoshiro Mori, president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee, on Thursday apologized for remarks he made that have been widely criticized as sexist and outdated but insisted he has no plan to step down.
China Reserve Shows off 10 Panda Cubs To Mark Lunar New Year
BEIJING (AP) — Ten panda cubs made their public debut in China’s leading panda reserve Wednesday morning to mark the coming Lunar New Year.
Myanmar Charges Suu Kyi, Giving Legal Basis To Detain Her
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar authorities charged the country’s deposed leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, with possessing illegally imported walkie-talkies, her allies said Wednesday, a move that gives the generals who overthrew her legal grounds to detain her for two weeks.
Health Officials Can’t Even Agree on COVID Vaccine Launch Date
BANGKOK — A health official on Wednesday contradicted health minister Anutin Charnvirakul on the potential date when the vaccination against COVID-19 will begin, the latest sign that the country’s inoculation drive is far from ready.
