VIF Neighbourhood News Digest - January 03, 2023

Afghanistan

Defense Ministry Rejects Pakistan Official's Remarks on TTP in Afghanistan: Tolo News

The Ministry of Defense reacted to recent comments by Pakistan’s interior minister about the presence of Tehreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the possibility of a raid on them by Pakistan in Afghanistan, saying that the Islamic Emirate is prepared to protect the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Ministry of Defense in a statement called the remarks provocative and baseless and said that any issues or problems should be resolved through understanding. Click here to read... [2]

Taliban (IEA) to Prosecute Afghan Media Outlets Operating from Abroad: The Khaama Press

The Taliban courts will soon announce its decision regarding the media outlets whose executives have fled the country and run the outlet from outside the country Afghanistan International reports. Abdu Haq Hemad, director of media assessment at the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s ministry of information and culture has accused the media organizations of spreading propaganda against the ruling regime. “A decision has been made regarding these media outlets. It is expected that the court’s decision will be announced in the near future,” Hemad said. He further stated that “no law allows the executive of media outlets to operate from outside and promote propaganda against the regime.” Click here to read... [3]

Bangladesh

6 youths remanded on charge of being radicalised by al-Qaeda ideology – New Age

A Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Court on Monday placed six youths, who have allegedly been radicalized by the ideology of al-Qaeda and were planning to stage armed jihad in the country, on five-day remand each in a case lodged under the Anti-Terrorism Act…According to the CTTC, the arrested in primary interrogation confessed that Abdur Rab was working as the organizer and gathered the group together with the help of social networking sites. They were planning to go to Teknaf to train in extremism. Click here to read... [4]

Bangladesh envoys asked to respond anti-Bangladesh propaganda spontaneously - TBS

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has directed all Bangladesh envoys abroad to respond "spontaneously" against all sorts of anti-Bangladesh propaganda in their respective host countries without waiting for Dhaka's permission. Click here to read... [5]

Between the hammer and the anvil – Dhaka Tribune

The US and Russian embassies have engaged in a Twitter spat, commenting and counter-commenting on each other's viewpoints towards Bangladesh, particularly with regard to the topic of non-interference in domestic matters like the upcoming national election and human rights issues. Click here to read... [6]

Bhutan

Residents complain of inflation – Kuensel Online

Despite the recent measures, many residents complain that after the pandemic, goods and services prices have been soaring, forcing them to compromise on their consumption. The enactment of the Tax Act of Bhutan, 2022 last month, sales tax and customs duty of close to 142 goods have been reduced. Taxes were reduced with the aim of easing inflationary pressure in the market. Click here to read... [7]

Maldives

Maldives assumes membership of UN Human Rights Council for 2023-2025

The Maldives has begun its membership of the United Nations Human Rights Council for the term 2023-2025. Maldives won a seat on the Human Rights Council following the elections held on 11 October 2022, in New York. The election saw 17 countries competing for 14 vacant seats. The Maldives competed in the Group of Asia-Pacific States, for one of the 4 vacant seats. Click here to read... [8]

Export container fees decreased by nearly 75 percent

Maldives Ports Limited (MPL) has decreased fees taken from containers that are being exported from Maldives. MPL started implementing the change from 01 January, 2023 onwards. The company highlights that the change was brought to help Maldivian businesses who export their goods. MPL notes that with the changes, the fees have been decreased by nearly 75 percent. As such, the fee of MVR 4,419.03 taken from 20 feet containers has been decreased to MVR 1,132.08 and fee of MVR 8,767.51 taken from 40 feet containers has been decreased to MVR 2,264.14. Click here to read... [9]

Myanmar

Acting President: 2023 Will Mark Turning Point for Myanmar’s Revolution - The Irrawaddy

Acting President Duwa Lashi La of Myanmar’s civilian National Unity Government (NUG) said in his new year’s speech that 2023 will mark the turning point in the war against military rule and called for continuous revolution. “When we are fighting against the brutalities of the terrorist military regime, resilience is really important. The regime is waiting for the time when the people and the revolutionary forces are exhausted, so all of us must continue to work hard and speed up the revolution,” Duwa Lashi La said in his state of the union address. Click here to read... [10]

Revolutionary Armies Demand Unified Attacks on Myanmar Junta - The Irrawaddy

Myanmar’s powerful ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) have vowed to uproot the country’s military dictatorship, despite junta promises of peace talks and a general election. In his new year’s speech on Sunday, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing promised greater opportunities for ethnic minorities if the armed conflict is resolved. Click here to read... [11]

Thailand temporarily closes a Thai-Myanmar border trade gate - Mizzima

Thailand is reported to have temporarily closed a border trade gate temporarily where Myanmar fishery and aquatic products are being exported and traded. This gate is the Mawtaung-Sinkhun Thai-Myanmar border in Myeik District, Tanintharyi Region. This border trade gate was opened on 1 August 2022. The border trade gate closed for three days in New Year holiday from 30 December to 1 January 2023. Click here to read... [12]

Nepal

China pushes for stronger presence in Nepal, but India can breathe easy – Times Now

China wants a stronger presence in Nepal and one way is by strengthening its embassy in Kathmandu, the capital. Already a strong presence in Nepal, Beijing has asked the government of Nepal for approval to move two additional security officers in its embassy. Both will be Police Liaison Officers — one will be at a counsellor level and the other as secretary. The request is under active consideration by Nepal's foreign and defence ministries. Click here to read... [13]

Concerns in Nepal as Indian Supreme Court validates Modi’s demonetization move – My Republica

Nepal’s banking system holds demonetized Indian currency (IC) worth over Rs 50 million, which the Indian authorities have refused to take back. The government authorities of Nepal at various levels have requested the Indian authorities time and again to take back the banned Indian currency. Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, in his previous stint as the PM, had requested his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during his state visit to India in 2017 to take back the banned banknotes. Nepal had also requested high-ranking officials of the Reserve Bank of India during their visit to Nepal in January 2017, to consider taking back the Indian currency held by the Nepali banks. But all these requests from the highest political level in Nepal have gone unheard. Click here to read... [14]

PM Dahal to take vote of confidence in parliament on January 10 – My Republica

Prime Minister Dahal needs to secure at least 138 votes in the 275-member parliament to continue his term as the prime minister. Prime Minister Dahal has registered a letter to the Federal Parliament Secretariat to put the proposal of taking a vote of confidence on the agenda of parliament on January 10-- a day after the first meeting of the newly-elected House of Representatives (HoR). Click here to read... [15]

Jayanagar-Kurtha trains will keep rolling for now – The Kathmandu Post

The Nepal Railway Company (NRC) that runs the Jayanagar-Kurtha cross-border railway has agreed to a temporary arrangement with India’s Konkan Railways Corporation Limited (KRCL) to continue operating the country’s sole railway service. The railway had come into operation from April 2022 when it was jointly flagged off by then Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It was considered a milestone in strengthening cross-border connectivity between Nepal and India. Click here to read... [16]

Pakistan

The curious case of JUI-F’s sudden rise in Balochistan: Dawn

Recently, several politicians and electables have joined the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (Fazl), and most of them seemed confident that this is the party that would clinch a majority of seats in the upcoming elections. It is said that electables and senior politicians, who are close to the establishment, do not join a political party until prospects of its victory are assured. Despite having a decade-old presence on Balochistan’s political landscape, JUI-F has traditionally found success in the Pashtun belt of the province. However, this time around, Baloch politicians also seem to be migrating towards the JUI-F. Click here to read... [17]

Inflation rate bounces back ahead of IMF talks: The Express Tribune

The Consumer Price Index (CPI), the inflation monitor, rose by 24.5% in December compared to the same period of last year, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Monday. The prices of a majority of consumer goods remained out of the reach of people, and the major surge was in rural areas where income levels were already low. The surge might force the consumers to change their expenditure patterns to spare more money to buy essential foods. Click here to read... [18]

Imran believes establishment still involved in political engineering: The News

PTI leader and Imran Khan’s chief of staff Shibli Faraz when contacted on Monday lamented that the anti-PTI policies of the previous establishment are still continuing. Faraz spelled out the reasons for Imran Khan’s complaint against the present establishment. However, he admitted that their conclusion regarding the establishment’s involvement in political engineering to hurt the PTI is mainly based on circumstantial evidence. Click here to read... [19]

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's new austerity measure: No government jobs – Hindustan Times

Sri Lanka began a fresh austerity drive under which there will be no government recruitment. In the island nations new taxes and higher electricity prices were started as the authorities aim to secure an IMF bailout, news agency AFP reported. As one of the preconditions to securing the $2.9 billion bailout from IMF is achieving debt sustainability, Sri Lanka has been bringing new changes after the country defaulted in April as its economy went into crisis. Click here to read... [20]

Former British PM David Cameron meets President – Daily Mirror

Former British Prime Minister David Cameron, who is on a personal visit to Sri Lanka, met President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday, according to a statement from the President’s Media Division (PMD).
“During a friendly discussion, Mr. Cameron extended his best wishes to President Wickremesinghe for the New Year.
President’s Senior Adviser on National Security and President’s Chief of Staff Sagala Ratnayake, President’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake and Director of International Affairs for the President were also present at this discussion,” the statement said. Click here to read... [21]

Sri Lanka’s ousted president Gotabaya Rajapaksa applies for US citizenship restoration, says report – Indian Express

The former president and his immediate family are currently in Dubai on holiday. Rajapaksa, 73, had made the appeal for the restoration of his US Citizenship after he failed to seek asylum in any country upon fleeing Sri Lanka during the anti-government protests in 2022. An appeal to restore US citizenship previously held is a costly legal process and time-consuming, the report said. Click here to read... [22]