Twenty-six Asian governments pledged Friday to work towards reducing disparities within their countries in a bid to improve the lives of the region’s 600 million children. In a declaration, the countries pledged to "find ways to guarantee free or affordable services to all members of society. We recognise that the survival, growth and development of…
Read moreUNICEF head calls for more investment in Asia-Pacific youth
Asian governments are spending much less on public health than the global average, the head of the UN children’s agency said Wednesday in an appeal for more investment in the region’s youth. UNICEF head Carol Bellamy also said the fruits of unprecedented economic growth in the East Asian and Pacific region have not been shared…
Read moreThailand’s deficits spark wariness but outlook remains upbeat: analysts
The announcement of Thailand’s largest current account deficit since before the Asian financial crisis has sparked unease among analysts but they are still largely upbeat about economic prospects this year. Central bank figures released last Monday showed a 942-million-dollar current account deficit in January, the highest in nearly eight years. The figure dominated headlines as…
Read moreThais head to polls with Thaksin tipped for landslide re-election
Polling began in Thailand’s elections Sunday with Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra poised for a sweeping victory which would deliver the premier an unprecedented second term in power. Voting booths in the kingdom’s 400 constituencies opened at 8:00 am (0100 GMT) and will close seven hours later, with projected unofficial results by television stations expected late…
Read moreSri Lanka’s property market to withstand tsunami onslaught: analysts
The tsunamis that ravaged Sri Lanka are unlikely to dampen the island nation’s booming property market in the months ahead as foreigners hopefully sniff out bargains and aid floods in, analysts said. Property prices on the palm-fringed island nation have risen dramatically in the past three years, due partly to a February 2002 truce in…
Read moreHeritage of Sri Lankan fort town emerges mostly unscathed by tsunami
Security guard G.A. Nimal stands on the broken fort wall, the sea pounding below, and stretches an arm skyward to show the height of the tsunami that pounded the historic Sri Lankan city of Galle. But while new Galle city outside was pulverised by the force of the waves, killing thousands, the people inside the…
Read moreBrick by brick, US marines undertake gut-wrenching” clean up in Sri Lanka”
Despite their training and combat experience, the US marines working in tsunami-hit Sri Lanka admit that picking through the shattered remains of peoples’ lives has been a heart-rending exercise. A few dozen of around 400 marines stationed in or off the southern city of Galle pick up brick after broken brick, the pieces left behind…
Read moreAs Sri Lankan schools resume, teachers brace for emotional roll call
As students traumatised by the Asian tsunami return to school in Sri Lanka Monday, teachers braced for an emotional rollercoaster and the beginning of a long process of psychological recovery. Vice-principal of Sudhamma College S.K. Weerasuruya, standing among dump trucks and volunteers frantically clearing debris ahead of school opening, told AFP that the focus of…
Read moreTeachers compile lists of the living as Sri Lankan schools resume
Tears swell in student Fathima Farha’s eyes as she waits, on edge, for her friends to arrive for their first day back at school. She already knows some are dead, but she’s not sure about the rest. "I’m very sad. I lost my friends and my neighbours. Today my friends are not here. I wish…
Read moreDespite its own disaster, India’s navy quietly helps Sri Lanka clean up
When Indian naval Captain T. K. Ashokan was at sea during exercises on December 26, he felt an unusual sudden swell. Five days later, the INS Sarvekshak dropped anchor outside Sri Lanka’s debris-strewn Galle harbour with an urgent mission: to clean it up, allowing relief to reach the survivors of the country’s worst-ever natural disaster….
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