Widespread violence in India's schools is hampering the futures of millions of children and costing the country billions of pounds in lost social benefits, says Plan International in a report released this week. “There are serious social implications of the continuation of such high numbers of children experiencing violence. The impact on children is tragic, […]

This is a terrible blow for press freedom in Indonesia. Erwin Arnada, the former editor of Playboy in Indonesia, which is no longer in print, has been jailed for two years for "distributing indecent pictures and profiting from them". Playboy in Indonesia did not even show nudity. From CNN: Arnada's lawyer said on Monday that […]

Wall Street Journal: Obama administration officials have privately warned Pakistani leaders that continued inaction against Taliban and al Qaeda havens bordering Afghanistan could jeopardize some of the large U.S. cash payouts on which Islamabad depends. The Telegraph: The move would be in line with a law known as the Leahy Amendment, which requires the United […]

The Burmese have a new flag that some say is a clear sign of the ruling regime's intentions to "wipe out ethnic armies". The flag has been changed from this… …to this… "Analysts believe that the removal of the 14 stars, which signify the 14 divisions and states in Burma, or indeed their assimilation into […]

When I first started learning Indonesian, I downloaded all of these free lessons. They were a fantastic introduction to the language. The website also has some PDF files that are invaluable. This beginner's E-course also provided a few useful pointers. Now that I'm about a year into my learning, things are starting to fall into […]