Author: Mastini Perwira

Copenhagen (17/08 – 78) Kidnapping, intimidation, and blackmail are just some of the means used to hit enlistment quotas in Tajikistan. When conscription season comes around in Tajikistan, military recruiters begin resorting to desperate measures. Scooping young men off the streets in actions tantamount to kidnapping is standard. But that is just for starters. To pressure communities into giving up their sons, recruiters will disconnect the electricity, detain relatives, and shut down mosques. Eligible levees draw lots to decide who will be the one to hand themselves over. The hunting season for men of draft age, which applies to people…

KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia’s economy expanded 2.9% in the April to June period from a year earlier, growing at its slowest pace in seven quarters due to weaker exports, the country’s central bank announced Friday. Malaysia’s gross domestic product grew 5.6% in the January to March quarter, outperforming most of its Southeast Asian peers as the country recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. But the momentum has slowed in recent months. Monthly trade statistics indicate weakening external demand, with June’s exports dropping 14% from the same month a year earlier. A manufacturing hub for electronics and other products, Malaysia relies heavily…

Military enlistment centers across Russia have become the target of renewed attacks, according to Ukrainian and Russian media reports. Those arrested by Russian authorities in connection with the attacks have blamed “scammers.” At least 20 military enlistment offices in Russia were attacked on Tuesday, Mash, a Russian outlet linked to Moscow’s security forces, reported on Wednesday. The previous day, nine facilities were targeted with fire attacks, Ukrainian outlet Strana said on Wednesday. Russian media reported at least 17 cases of arson since Saturday at registration and enlistment offices across Russia, the BBC’s Russian-language service said on Tuesday. “The attacks are apparently…

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is still grappling with the complexity of managing the impact of high household debt, particularly on low-income households, even as the economy is facing increasing headwinds, said an economist. Likewise, businesses are struggling to deal with cost pressures due to elevated inflation levels and the uncertain economic climate, said Socio-Economic Research Centre (SERC) executive director Lee Heng Guie today at the SERC Quarterly Economy Tracker briefing. It is therefore imperative for the government to find the right balance between interest rates and inflation to ensure economic stability and healthy national fiscal standing, he argued. “While the interest…

This commission will act as a body that functions to coordinate and overcome related issues and produce initiatives that are capable of safeguarding the welfare of gig workers. Malaysia is looking to establish its Gig Economy Commission Malaysia (SEGiM) soonest possible. Speaking at a recent national forum on the Gig Industry Framework, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi affirmed Malaysia’s commitment to setting up SEGiM. To drive efforts, DPM Zahid Hamidi said he has since requested the Ministry of Human Resources (MoHR) to submit a memorandum to be presented to the Cabinet, seeking approval for the establishment of the commission. This commission,…

Brussels, Frankfurt (16/6 – 33) The European Union declared late last year that it intended to investigate how Russia acquired so-called “kamikaze drones” from the Islamic Republic of Iran, for battlefield deployment. While the production of these game-changing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) was not reported until after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, numerous media claim the Russian military is deploying Iranian-made Geran-2 drones on the battlefield. This was confirmed through analysis of fragments from Russian Geran-2 drones shot down by Ukrainian forces; experts conclude that these UAVs are identical to the Shahed-136 kamikaze drones produced by Iran. While the West…

An expected result for the Unity government will be survival in its dominated states. Its main rival, National Alliance (Perikatan Nasional; PN), may pick up several rural seats that belonged to the Unity government in the past. The upcoming state elections, which will likely take place around late-July to mid-August in Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Negeri Sembilan, Penang, and Selangor in Malaysia, will be a crucial test for the Unity government to measure its popularity and solidarity. These elections will also decide the future of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his government. The most significant concern is the fracture of solidarity…

KUALA LUMPUR: The government’s recent move in updating the SOP for Covid-19 is practical as it was made after taking into account the current decreasing trend in the number of cases. A lecturer and family medicine specialist at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM), Dr Radzniwan Abd Rashid regarded the move by the government as apt following the declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) that Covid-19 was no longer categorised as a global health emergency. “The government’s action to relax the SOP is timely and dynamic, taking into account the current situation of Covid-19 cases. With this announcement, I am…

KUALA LUMPUR: Iskandar Investment Bhd (IIB), which has reported investments of US$6.8 billion (about RM31.3 billion) since its inception in 2006 until last year, is expected to break new records for Iskandar Malaysia. The company has identified five major verticals in order to attain carbon neutrality in Medini Iskandar (a suburb of Iskandar Puteri), said IIB president and chief executive officer Datuk Idzham Mohd Hashim. The five strategies are green building materials, waste management, water management, energy management, and sustainable transportation.   IIB recently announced a document exchange ceremony with seven partners in the sustainable electric vehicle (EV) business to…

A company director with the title of “Datuk Seri” who is accused of soliciting and accepting bribes amounting to RM15 million to secure projects from the Home Ministry in 2021 has requested the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to clarify details of the charges against him. Lawyer Datuk Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, representing Datuk Seri Sim Choo Thiam told Sessions Court Judge Rozina Ayob that the defence had sent a letter on the matter, dated June 6, to the MACC. “We have yet to receive a response regarding the letter,” he said Deputy Public Prosecutor Abd Muntaqim Abdul Aziz said the…