Foreign Correspondence

Here Comes the Haze, Again

FAR EAST CORRESPONDENT — Every year, large parts of Southeast Asia are blanketed by a thick dirty smog, unlovingly referred to as the haze. Residents choke, asthmatics remain indoors, children are barred from playing outside […]

No Picture
Foreign Correspondence

Fairfax Guts 1,900 Jobs

FAR EAST CORRESPONDENT — Fairfax Media has announced a major restructure which will see it charge for digital content, close its two major printing presses and move to a new tabloid-size paper. According to an […]

Foreign Correspondence

Vietnam’s Boom is Over

FAR EAST CORRESPONDENT — At one side of the large concrete Hoa Binh Market in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 5 sits an “illegal market,” where vendors set up small light bulbs over their produce […]

Foreign Correspondence

Taiwan and the Mob

FAR EAST CORRESPONDENT — Taiwan’s Coast Guard published a composite of potential disguises for fugitive ex-lawmaker Lo Fu-Chu in late April.  In one picture, he looks like a Dutch leader of a peacekeeping force, complete with beret and […]

Foreign Correspondence

Oi gioi oi!

FAR EAST CORRESPONDENT — A foreigner rapping about the annoyances and joys of living in Hanoi might not sound like the hit of the year. But add one common Vietnamese expression, and strangely enough you have […]