Can Cambodian Deal End Year-Long Standoff?

Published on Jul 27, 2014 by Luke Hunt

The Cambodian government and opposition have struck a deal to end a year of post-election political fighting that has left at least seven people dead and many more injured, in jail, and before the courts.But analysts are warning the agreement – reached shortly before seven senior figures from the Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) were released on bail – was vague, lacked substance, and could offer no more than a lull in the protests that have dominated the political landscape.Read more from Luke Hunt in The Diplomat.

Malaysia Airlines Emotional Trauma

Published on Jul 27, 2014 by Luke Hunt

Many Malaysia Airlines staff are arriving at work with tears in their eyes. “Some of our members cannot fly because they have been affected mentally,” says the president of Malaysia Airlines’ flight attendants’ union Ismail Nasaruddin.Back-to-back disasters that killed six pilots and 21 flight attendants have had a devastating impact on the morale on thousands of air crew and employees of Malaysia’s national carrier.Read more from Lindsay Murdoch in The Age  .

Indonesia Polls: Early Count Suggests Widodo Wins

Published on Jul 13, 2014 by Luke Hunt

Early counting today suggested that former furniture salesman and governor of Jakarta Joko Widodo has won Indonesia’s presidential election; however, analysts said there were widespread fears the final vote could be rigged against him.Read more from Luke Hunt in The Diplomat..

OPCC Takes the Helm

Published on Jun 29, 2014 by Luke Hunt

Written by Luke Hunt for The Phnom Penh Post.The FCC had a legendary name by the time I arrived as bureau chief for Agence France-Presse in 2001, but it was in name only. Journalist numbers had dwindled, and a chorus of reporters complained it was no longer a real club.Indochina Assets had seized control, the names and contents on the premises, amid one spurious claim that permission had been granted by the board. FCCs exist in Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan and South Korea alongside like-minded groups around the world, all non-profit with elected boards and paid-up memberships.Our FCC had none of this and had morphed into a theme bar for tourists arriving by coach.The constitution was changed. The FCC no....

China Lets Its Oil Rigs Do the Talking

Published on Jun 29, 2014 by Luke Hunt

It passed with barely a word. A two-day meet in Bali this week was supposed to improve relations between China and the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). It was touted widely in the Chinese-friendly press but in the end not even the sycophantic scribes of Beijing had much to say.Read more from Luke Hunt in The Diplomat..