IN ASIA

Thailand’s March 24 parliamentary election is still playing out, and uncertainty about the results is likely to continue for weeks. At the time of this post, the Election Commission of Thailand (ECT) has announced a preliminary tally giving the Pheu Thai Party 135 seats, or 38.6 percent, and the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) 98 seats, or 28 percen… Read more

The law is an overwhelmingly male profession in Pakistan. While women are now a significant presence in the nation’s law schools, female lawyers are rare, and judges even rarer. The patriarchal culture that prevails in the country generally deems women “unsuited” for the rough and tumble of legal practice, and they are routinely discouraged, in way… Read more

Celebrated CNN and PBS journalist Christiane Amanpour talked with InAsia this week about why she’s so committed to shining a spotlight on women’s lives. On April 3 in New York City, The Asia Foundation’s Lotus Circle will honor celebrated journalist Christiane Amanpour and pioneering social enterprise SafetiPin with its annual Lotus Leadership Awar… Read more

Cambodia has a very high rate of labor migration to other countries, and a dramatically changing economic landscape. It also has very high drop-out rates in secondary schools. Cambodia’s state education system has been slowly but steadily improving under a set of ambitious, long-term reforms by the Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport…. Read more

Women account for almost 52 percent of Nepal’s population, and as a new generation of young women comes of age, they are eager to take their places in Nepal’s changing economy and society. Perhaps nothing defines these social changes as much as the growing importance of data in daily life, whether for choosing a college, finding a job, or starting… Read more

Garment and textile workers are among the most vulnerable populations in China, with difficult working conditions, insecure jobs, and low wages exacerbated by a culture of gender-based discrimination and harassment with few institutional protections. A study by China’s Sunflower Women Workers Centre of 134 women workers in China’s Guangzhou garment… Read more

As former State Department officials, we have had the opportunity to witness Afghanistan and its citizens up close during momentous times. These include the turbulent period leading up to the brutal Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, in 1979, and the years of repressive rule under the Taliban before 9/11. We believe another momentous time may be appro… Read more

In South Asia, rice security is synonymous with food security. Particularly in Bangladesh, India, and Nepal (BIN), rice is a staple food, constituting approximately 50 percent of total cereal production and providing 30 percent of the total caloric requirements of the population. This requires that the market price of rice be kept low, and one way… Read more

More than 40 million people are victims of modern-day slavery. Two-thirds of them are in Asia, and most of them toil in industries deeply embedded in global supply chains. But a growing international movement is calling businesses to account for human rights, and supply-chain transparency is the new frontline in this ongoing battle. Supply-chain sl… Read more

The first news that militants had taken to the streets of the Islamic City of Marawi on May 23, 2017, came from Facebook. Pictures of masked men carrying assault rifles and waving the black flag of the Islamic State were swirling across social media well before Philippine and international news channels picked up the story. By the time the military… Read more