Michelle Yeoh makes history as first Asian to win best actress Oscar

Michelle Yeoh makes history as the first Asian woman to win the Best Actress Oscar for her role in “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” beating out strong performances from Cate Blanchett, Michelle Williams, Andrea Riseborough, and Ana de Armas. Yeoh’s win is seen as a beacon of hope and possibility for little boys and girls who look like her and a shattering of the glass ceiling for more Asian representation in Hollywood. Yeoh has a busy upcoming slate, including three new installments of “Avatar” and the movie adaptation of the musical “Wicked.”

Malaysia police arrest two SPM students for vulgar rant against history exam paper and Singapore

MALAYSIA— The police have arrested two teenage boys to assist in the investigation of a viral video involving a secondary school student’s dissatisfaction with the History paper in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination. Hulu Selangor District Police Chief, Superintendent Suffian Abdullah, said the two 18-year-old teenagers were detained after receiving a report from a 53-year-old … Read more

Malaysia GE15: PH gained 61 seats as of 2am; BN faces biggest defeat in coalition’s history

MALAYSIA — According to Malaysia Election Commission (EC) official website, as of 2 am Sunday, the country biggest opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan (PH) has already gained 61 seats in the 15th Malaysian General Election (GE15), while BN falls far behind with only 26 seats secured. The three major political coalitions,  Barisan National (BN), Perikatan National (PN) and … Read more

California wildfire now second-worst in state history

The monstrous Dixie Fire in northern California has grown to become the second-largest wildfire in state history, authorities said Sunday, with three people reported missing and thousands fleeing the advancing flames. As of Sunday, the fire had destroyed 463,477 acres (187,562 hectares), up from the previous day’s 447,723 acres. It now covers an area larger … Read more

MOM will resume entry approvals for work pass holders and their dependants with travel history to higher risk countries from 10 Aug

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) will resume entry approvals for work pass holders and their dependants with travel history to higher risk countries/ regions from 10 Aug. This was announced in the press release by Ministry of Health on Friday evening (6 Aug) along with news of the resumption of dining-in and other loosening measures. … Read more

‘They can kiss my ass’: Chantal Liew shuts down critics after making history as Singapore’s first ever Olympic open water swimmer

With water still dripping from her hair, Chantal Liew did not shy away from the media when she was interviewed shortly after her gruelling 10km swim at the Odaiba Marine Park in Tokyo on Wednesday morning (4 Aug). Upon making history as Singapore’s first ever open water swimmer at the Olympics, Liew expressed how proud … Read more

Asatizah online poll issue: Muslim groups call on MUIS to reassess Asatizah Recognition Scheme Certification for those with history of sexist and misogynistic behaviour

Five Muslim groups on Friday (28 May) have urged the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) to consider reassessing the Asatizah Recognition Scheme (ARS) Certification for those with a history of sexist and misogynistic behaviour based on detailed background checks. This call to action was made in a joint statement by Beyond the Hijab, Crit … Read more

Singapore to restrict entry for long-term pass holders and short-term visitors with recent travel history to Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka within last 14 days

The Multi-Ministry Taskforce (MTF) announced on Friday evening (30 Apr) that it will restrict entry for visitors coming from Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, given the sustained increase in cases reported in the regions. In addition, from 2 May 2021, 2359 hours, travellers with recent travel history to Thailand will no longer be able … Read more

China censors Oscars success of history-making Chloe Zhao

Beijing-born Chloe Zhao was scrubbed from Chinese social media on Monday as a nationalist backlash airbrushed out her remarkable achievement of becoming the first woman of colour to win the best director Oscar. Zhao on Sunday night became the second woman ever to win the coveted award at the LA ceremony, as her film “Nomadland” … Read more

Tracing Myanmar’s recurrent history of military takeovers and student-led protests

JAKARTA, INDONESIA — Massive nationwide protests against the Myanmar military coup continued to flare after the Tatmadaw’s takeover earlier this month. The military takeover was purportedly sparked by allegations of vote-rigging in the November 2020 election, when civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party gained a whopping 83 per cent … Read more