Neighborhood News Digest – 20 September 2023

Afghanistan

Taliban urged to uphold Afghan girls’ right to education – UN News

The international community must ensure that every girl in Afghanistan has an opportunity to learn, the head of the UN fund for education in emergencies said on Monday – the second anniversary of the Taliban’s edict banning secondary education for girls.Click here to read… [2]

Over 800 Afghan Refugees Detained in Pakistan in 1 Week – Tolo News

The consulate of the Islamic Emirate in Karachi, Abdul Jabar Takhari, said that more than 800 Afghan refugees including children have been detained in Sindh province of Pakistan within one week. The detention of the Afghan refugees comes as the Pakistan Prime Minister said that a new policy was going into effect based on which foreign nationals without legal documents will be deported.Click here to read… [3]

Bangladesh

Demagogic politics pushes Bangladesh to Islamization - UCA News

An election is looming in Bangladesh with the country set to go to the polls in January 2024, the 12th election since the South Asian nation gained independence from Pakistan in 1971, following a brutal war. Bitter experience with past elections, demagogic politics, and betrayal of the poor by political parties have taught the masses to expect nothing from another election.Click here to read… [4]

Why China's expanding footprint in Bangladesh and beyond is a strategic concern for India - First Post

The recent statement made by China regarding protecting Bangladesh from any sort of external interference in the context of the US making statements on the fairness of elections in Bangladesh holds significance for India. Such acts on the part of China have been repeatedly occurring, whether in the form of the invalid claim of including Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin as part of its own territory. Additionally, China has exerted its economic control through initiatives like the Belt and Road Initiative in India’s neighbours such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh by establishing projects like the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor, which aim to integrate the economies of these countries through regional connectivity. These projects fit within the Chinese notion of the Silk Road and Economic Belt and the 21st century Maritime Silk Road.Click here to read… [5]

Bhutan

RCSC rates about 17 executives and P1M for need improvement – Kuensel

The Royal Civil Service Commission (RCSC) completed the annual performance assessment of fiscal year 22-23 for around 22,230 civil servants in August this year. The performance evaluation, including the moderation exercise, was carried out aligned to the bell curve introduced.Click here to read… [6]

Maldives

Maldives’ Presidential Elections: What’s Next?

The first round of the presidential election in Maldives brought disappointment for President Ibrahim Solih. He is seeking a second term and was the favorite to win the elections but failed to even top the results of the first round, much less secure the majority needed to prevent a run-off. Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, the candidate for the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM)-People’s National Congress (PNC) coalition, took a surprise lead with 46 percent of votes, followed by Solih with 39 percent.Click here to read… [7]

Myanmar

India In Myanmar: Limits Of Pragmatism – Eurasia Review

In a ‘successful secretive operation’ in August 2023, the Assam Rifles (AR) facilitated the return of over 400 Meitei civilians from Myanmar. [1] These people had fled Manipur across the India-Myanmar border to escape the ethnic violence between the Meiteis and the Kukis in the state that started on 3 May and had taken refuge in a monastery in Tamu. The AR Public Relations Officer (PRO) said that civil society groups on both sides of the border were involved in the operation.[2] Although no details regarding the involvement of the Myanmar authorities were provided, it is unimaginable that the relocation of the civilians in multiple batches could have occurred without the cooperation of the former. This incident can be cited as an example of India’s ability to elicit seamless and timely cooperation from Myanmar.Click here to read… [8]

Indonesia hosts first-ever Asean military drills - NST

Militaries from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations began their first-ever joint exercises on Tuesday in Indonesia, with a Myanmar representative present despite the bloc's ban on its junta leaders. Asean countries have participated in multinational defence drills before, but these are the first featuring just the bloc, which is battling perceptions of irrelevance on major regional issues such as the turmoil in Myanmar and disputes in the South China Sea.Click here to read… [9]

Nepal

Least developed countries are seriously off-track in achieving sustainable development goals, says PM Dahal – The Kathmandu Post

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Monday stressed more investment in people, support for structural transformation and achieving rapid and sustainable recovery from the Covid pandemic for achieving the sustainable development goals. “Halfway to the 2030 deadline, we are seriously off-track in achieving the SDGs,” said Prime Minister Dahal while addressing the 2023 SDG Summit as the Chair of the Group of the Least Developed Countries at the UN Headquarters in New York.Click here to read… [10]

Dahal’s party ready to drop ‘Maoist Centre’ tag for unity with communist parties – The Kathmandu Post

In a new twist, the CPN (Maoist Centre), which is led by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, has said that it can change the name of the party and remove the Maoist tag. At present, the party’s official name is CPN (Maoist Centre) and if the other communist parties and forces are ready to come together, it would be ready to drop the tag, Maoist Centre, according to a party decision that has been circulated to various party committees.Click here to read… [11]

Pakistan

Pakistan Begging Before The World While India Reached Moon: Nawaz Sharif – NDTV

Pakistan's self-exiled former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has said that his country is begging money from the world while India has reached the moon and hosted the G20 summit, blaming the country's former generals and judges for its economic mess. Pakistan's economy has been in a free fall mode for the last many years, bringing untold pressure on the poor masses in the form of unchecked double-digit inflation.Click here to read… [12]

Pakistan rejects report claiming it sold arms to Ukraine to secure crucial IMF funding – The Hindu

Pakistan has rejected a report claiming that it sold arms and ammunition to Ukraine in order to secure a crucial bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch on September 18 rejected as “baseless and fabricated” the Intercept report saying that cash-strapped Pakistan provided arms to the U.S. to get its support to clinch a $3 billion deal with the IMF towards the end of June to avoid default.Click here to read… [13]

Sri Lanka

“If We Raise Our Voice They Arrest Us” - HRW

Countless thousands of Sri Lankans await justice and accountability for serious human rights violations and war crimes committed during decades of civil unrest and armed conflict. They are the victims or family members of victims of arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, enforced disappearance, and unlawful killings by government security forces, the successionist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) or other non-state armed groups.Click here to read… [14]

South Korea pledges support Sri Lanka’s economic recovery - FT

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has pledged his support for President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s economic recovery plan for Sri Lanka when the two Heads of State met on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly at the South Korean Permanent Resident Mission to the UN in New York Monday.Click here to read… [15]