The Tan Hoa – Lo Gom Canal in HCMC remains garbage-filled and malodorous despite a cleanup eight years ago at a cost of VND5 trillion (US$211.5 million). On Wednesday afternoon Hoang Dung had to shut all the doors and windows in her house to keep out the unpleasant smell wafting …
Read More »Driver fined for going wrong way on Nha Trang expressway
A pickup truck driver was fined VND17 million ($720) on Saturday after she was captured driving on the wrong side of the Nha Trang-Cam Lam expressway in central Vietnam. Driver fined for going wrong way on Nha Trang expressway Bị phạt 17 triệu đồng vì chạy ngược chiều …
Read More »Nightclub fire kills six people in Cambodia
At least six people were killed in a nightclub fire in Cambodia’s capital on Saturday, police said. Four men and two women died in the inferno, which broke out in the early evening, Phnom Penh Municipal Police spokesman San Sok Seiha told AFP. It took a few hours for firefighters …
Read More »South Korea LGBT festival proceeds, bumped from prime spot by Christian group
Tens of thousands attended South Korea’s largest annual LGBT festival on Saturday, vowing to continue fighting for gay rights after the Seoul city government denied them a prime spot and gave it to an anti-LGB Christian group. The Seoul Queer Culture Festival, staged outside city hall in the nation’s capital …
Read More »Musk says Twitter will limit how many tweets users can read
Twitter is limiting how many tweets per day various accounts can read, to discourage “extreme levels” of data scraping and system manipulation, Executive Chair Elon Musk said in a post on the social media platform on Saturday. Verified accounts were initially limited to reading 6,000 posts a day, Musk said, …
Read More »Five wanted for terrorism in deadly Dak Lak attacks
Five fugitives are currently on the lam after being charged with terrorism for their involvement in the killing of nine people at government offices in Dak Lak last month. Police in the Central Highlands’ Dak Lak Province announced on Saturday that five fugitives currently at large – Y Khing Lieng, …
Read More »Suicides in Singapore rise to 22-year high: report
Suicides in Singapore rose nearly 26% last year to their highest level in more than two decades, reflecting the “unseen mental distress” in the city-state, according to a local NGO. The suicide rates among young people aged 10-29 and elderly people aged 70-79 were particularly concerning, the prevention center Samaritans …
Read More »Salary hiked for state workers
The base salary for state workers increases to VND1.8 million (US$76.32) from this month. The total salary of civil servants, public employees and military personnel is then calculated by multiplying this base salary by a coefficient. The salary coefficient is based on the rank of the employee. The minimum total …
Read More »$42M bridge to be built over central Vietnam lagoon
A bridge over a lagoon in central Thua Thien-Hue Province will be built at a cost of over VND1 trillion ($42.4 million), as approved by the provincial People’s Council. The bridge, which will connect Phu Da Town and Vinh Xuan Commune in Phu Vang District, will span around 3 km. …
Read More »Activists hail Nepal ruling allowing same-sex marriage
Same-sex couples in Nepal said on Friday they were preparing to register their marriages after the Supreme Court issued a temporary order clearing the way for gay marriage for the first time in the largely conservative country. The Supreme Court has been considering a petition on the issue filed by …
Read More »