LATEST ARTICLES

Racial slights fly in Malaysian political scene

Racial slights fly in Malaysian political scene

Hemmed in by the towering piles of books dominating his Kuala Lumpur living room, Malaysia’s eminent poet-activist snorts with derision. “This government isn’t fair, it isn’t just,” said 77-year-old A. Samad Said. “They use racial tension.”

Too poor for a boat, family stuck in asylum void

Too poor for a boat, family stuck in asylum void

One small family of Burmese refugees living in a dingy tenement on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur has slipped right through the cracks of asylum officialdom, it seems mostly because they wouldn’t abandon their adopted sons in Burma.

Welcome to the people-smuggler frontline: two runabouts, two hours of fuel and 117km to patrol

Welcome to the people-smuggler frontline: two runabouts, two hours of fuel and 117km to patrol

On the beautiful, scalloped coast of southern Java, a battle is raging between determined people-smugglers and a poorly-resourced local police force. It seems the people-smugglers are mostly winning and the police are frustrated.

Afghan’s arrest could break syndicate of people-smugglers

Afghan's arrest could break syndicate of people-smugglers

A massive people-smuggling syndicate in Indonesia could soon be cracked wide open, after police seized two satellite phones, a laptop and financial records belonging to a teenage people-smuggler arrested in Jakarta.

All At Sea

All At Sea

A semi-literate Indonesian hired hand started thumbing the tears from his cheeks in the dock of courtroom LG2 in Sydney’s Downing Centre last April. He faced a roomful of imposing figures: two defence barristers and a crown prosecutor in black gowns, a judge resplendent in black, scarlet and lilac, an Australian Federal Police officer, two …read more