BURMA

June 3 2015

Myanmar’s ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) is getting ready for the forthcoming elections amid increased internal tension and uncertainty over its political future. “There is a very real danger of the party splitting,” said a USDP MP on condition of anonymity.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/576267/ruling-party-prepares-to-go-to-polls

‘The Future of Burma Lies In Educating Our Young People’, Says Aung San Suu Kyi

June 3 2015

Burma’s young people hold the key to the country’s success, opposition leader and Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has said.

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/06/01/aung-san-suu-kyi-burma-future-educate-young-people_n_7483742.html

CAMBODIA

June 8 2015

Rights groups want Cambodia’s parliament to hold a consultation with civil society about a controversial draft law on nongovernmental organizations approved Friday by the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen, which has long demonstrated animosity toward organizations outside of state control.

http://www.rfa.org/english/news/cambodia/rights-groups-seek-consultation-with-parliament-on-ngo-draft-law-06052015162612.html

HONGKONG

June 8 2015

Over 200 people attended a candlelight vigil in Taipei on Thursday to commemorate the Tiananmen Square massacre and to voice support for political dissidents in China.

http://focustaiwan.tw/news/asoc/201506040034.aspx

EU Consulates Favor Reform Package in Meeting With Pan-Democrats

June 8 2015

Representatives from the consulates of 11 European Union countries met pan-democratic legislators Wednesday, two weeks before the Legislative Council is to vote on the government’s electoral reform proposal.

http://www.ejinsight.com/20150604-eu-consulates-favor-reform-package-meeting-with-pan-democrats/

Hong Kong Remembers Tiananmen After Year of Battles With Beijing

June 5 2015

Tens of thousands of Hong Kong residents marked the anniversary of China’s Tiananmen Square crackdown Thursday while reflecting on recent street protests that caused rifts in the city’s own democracy movement.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-04/hong-kong-remembers-tiananmen-after-year-of-battles-with-beijing

INDONESIA

June 3 2015

Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri chose Pancasila Day, which falls on June 1, to inaugurate the party’s new headquarters on Monday.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/06/02/megawati-inaugurates-new-pdi-p-headquarters-pancasila-day.html

PHILIPPINES

June 8 2015

Message of Sec. Neric Acosta, Presidential Adviser for Environmental Protection and General Manager of Laguna Lake Development Authority

http://opaep.com.ph/117th-philippine-independence-day/

Aquino gets Japan’s Highest Honor from Imperial Family

June 4 2015

The imperial family welcomed President Benigno Aquino III at the historic Imperial Palace here on a rainy Wednesday morning, according the Philippine leader with Japan’s highest honor.

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/123907/aquino-gets-japans-highest-honor-from-imperial-family

P-Not to Meet Japanese Emperor, Empress Anew

June 3 2015

President Aquino will be meeting for the second time since he assumed the presidency Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko this morning at the Imperial Palace here as part of his four-day state visit.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/06/03/1461653/p-noy-meet-japanese-emperor-empress-anew

SRI LANKA

June 2 2015

Six years after Sri Lanka’s bloody civil conflict ended and a few months into the presidency of Maithripala Sirisena, this small island state in the Indian Ocean has entered a complex, transformative era. In four months, Sirisena has met Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian President Narendra Modi, and United States Secretary of State John Kerry. India and China, and to a lesser extent Japan and the US, are competing for influence and economic opportunities in the country.

http://theglobalobservatory.org/2015/05/sri-lanka-sirisena-tamil-tigers/

TAIWAN

June 8 2015

Opposition leader Tsai Ing-wen has said her party would co-operate with any “progressive” forces, supporting their candidates in next year’s legislative elections if it is a necessary move for taking control of parliament.

http://news.asiaone.com/news/asia/taiwans-dpp-leader-vows-work-progressive-coalition

Taiwan Opposition Leader Vows to Keep Up Stability

June 4 2015

Washington (AFP) – Taiwan’s main opposition leader sought to assure Washington on Wednesday that if she wins next year’s presidential elections she would work to maintain stability with China amid regional volatility.

http://news.yahoo.com/taiwan-opposition-leader-vows-keep-stability-233512754.html

Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan reassures U.S on Relations ahead of Vote

June 4 2015

As China continues to build up artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea, defying concerns by the Obama administration that it could result in conflict, the leader of Taiwan’s main pro-independence party was keeping a low profile on her Washington visit Wednesday.

Tsai Ing-wen, the likely presidential candidate of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the January 2016 vote, is on a 12-day tour of six cities in the U.S., hoping to assure Americans that she will not destabilize cross-strait relations if she wins. The reassurance effort was evident in her circumspect presentation at a gathering for reporters and analysts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jun/3/tsai-ing-wen-of-taiwan-reassures-us-on-relations-a/ – ixzz3c3UxGqWy

Taiwan Can Build on U.S. Ties

June 3 2015

For more than three decades, the U.S.-Taiwan relationship has served as a cornerstone of peace and stability in Asia. There is no question that the United States will be Taiwan’s most important strategic partner. But Taiwan must also expand our contributions toward a more promising future for the region.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/taiwan-can-build-on-u-s-ties-1433176635

THAILAND

June 5 2015

Political figures and activists from the Pheu Thai and Democrat parties took part in the second round of the reconciliation talks under the theme “The Future of Thailand”, organised by the Centre for Reconciliation and Reform.

http://news.asiaone.com/news/asia/political-parties-call-changes-new-thailand-charter