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This Week in Asia /

Lifestyle & Culture

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K-pop, Mandopop and other Asian pop
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Fame and celebrity
Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan speaks at a joint press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday. Photo: AFP
Singapore

Human intelligence remains critical in AI era: Singapore minister

Foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan cautions against overdependence on large-language models to solve every problem.

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Japan

Japan’s ‘ibasho’ sense of belonging helps disaster survivors heal, study finds

Indonesia

Why Indonesia is expanding under-16 social media ban to e-commerce

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South Korea

‘Like whale bones’: South Korea’s war memorial sparks conflict over symbolism

Critics argue the Korean war memorial should not be in a space in Seoul long associated with pro-democracy protests and its imperial past.

A row of 23 stone monuments in central Seoul representing South Korea and 22 other countries that fought alongside one another during the 1950-53 Korean war. Photo: Park Chan-kyong
A row of 23 stone monuments in central Seoul representing South Korea and 22 other countries that fought alongside one another during the 1950-53 Korean war. Photo: Park Chan-kyong
Singapore

Singaporeans refute lack of hunger stereotype, warn of ‘self-fulfilling bias’

A recruiter’s comment on Singaporean workers supposedly lacking drive has sparked a fierce debate on evolving career goals and pay.

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Japan

Divorced from reality? Japan’s joint custody reform divides parents

Critics call the legal change a ‘cosmetic’ fix for a system that still allows one parent to simply disappear.

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South Korea

‘She was just a human’: the world forgot K-pop’s suicides. These fans never did

Years after three high-profile K-pop suicides shook South Korea’s idol machine, the grief – and guilt – remains.

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Tearful K-pop fans gather to mourn their idol at a hospital in Seoul in 2017. Photo: AFP
Tearful K-pop fans gather to mourn their idol at a hospital in Seoul in 2017. Photo: AFP
The Philippines

‘Foreigner won’: Filipinos divided over pageant winner’s US roots

Some social media users have questioned Bea Millan-Windorski’s win, while others say being Filipino is about ‘culture, history and belonging’.

Thailand

How RedNote, WeChat are reviving Thailand’s Chinese tourism market

Thai businesses are asking online experts to help reel in young big spenders who prize authenticity over heavily advertised content.

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Japan

Japan’s hikikomori recluses are growing old. So are their carers

What happens to more than 1 million social recluses in the world’s fastest-ageing society when the last person who cared for them is gone?

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A Japanese government survey estimated that 1.46 million people were living as shut-ins as of 2023. Photo: Shutterstock
Malaysia

Art of the steal: Malaysia unveils recovered 1MDB masterpieces

A Picasso and a Miro are among four works on show, representing a fraction of the US$4.5 billion looted from Malaysia’s 1MDB fund.

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Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief Azam Baki (second from right) inspects Joan Miro’s “Composition” (1953) at the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya on Wednesday. Photo: Iman Muttaqin Yusof
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief Azam Baki (second from right) inspects Joan Miro’s “Composition” (1953) at the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya on Wednesday. Photo: Iman Muttaqin Yusof
Japan

Japan army unit’s gun-toting AI-generated elephant logo gets trampled by critics

Officers created the logo using ChatGPT based on the ‘elephant’, ‘cool’, ‘blue flame’, and ‘mammoth’ keywords, a media report says.

Malaysia

Penang’s cemetery tours spur interest in pioneers, colonial history

While the state receives millions in conservation funding, it faces challenges in preserving the Protestant cemetery due to its climate.

Thailand

The cost of cute: how ‘petfluencers’ are driving Asia’s wildlife crime

Thailand is a key pipeline in a lucrative global trade that animal activists warn risks spreading zoonotic diseases and erasing biodiversity.

Indian star tortoises confiscated from a woman attempting to travel with them at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok on Wednesday. Photo: Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation / AFP
Indonesia

Indonesia’s aim to lure more K-pop concerts spurs chorus of doubts

While Indonesian K-pop fans applaud Jakarta’s intention, they cite safety, venue capacity and bureaucracy as some of the key hurdles.

Indonesian K-pop idol Carmen poses for photos alongside Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and his South Korean counterpart Lee Jae Myung at a state luncheon in Seoul on April 1. Photo: Instagram/2_jaemyung
Indonesian K-pop idol Carmen poses for photos alongside Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and his South Korean counterpart Lee Jae Myung at a state luncheon in Seoul on April 1. Photo: Instagram/2_jaemyung
Malaysia

‘Moral harm’: Malaysia’s culture war brigade tries to hose down water festival

Kuala Lumpur’s Rain Rave Water Music Festival faces backlash from critics who argue that such vulgar imports hurt conservative values.

Japan

Japan’s higher education sector faces reckoning as student pool shrinks

The potential abolition of so many universities is a ‘dramatic move’ that analysts warn will affect thousands of students and teachers.

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The Philippines

Filipino male pageant contestant’s viral swimsuit walk sparks body image debate

Observers said RJ Perkins’ viral moment shows beauty pageants might be ready to move beyond their traditional ideals.

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RJ Perkins during his viral appearance in the swimsuit round of the Mister Pampanga pageant. Photo: Facebook / Mister Pampanga
RJ Perkins during his viral appearance in the swimsuit round of the Mister Pampanga pageant. Photo: Facebook / Mister Pampanga
Japan

Zoo in Japan’s Hokkaido delays reopening over search for body in incinerator

One of the employees reportedly told police he burned his wife’s body in an incinerator on the zoo’s grounds.

Singapore

Singapore firm sorry after airport baggage handler caught tossing luggage

Ground-handling company SATS pledged to improve service standards and staff training after a video of the incident went viral.

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Singapore

More Singaporeans are choosing jobs below their qualifications. Here’s why

A new survey shows 19.4 per cent of Singapore’s resident workforce had academic qualifications beyond what was required for their job in 2025.

Office workers in Singapore’s Central Business District. Photo: Shutterstock
Japan

Why Japan’s travellers are rushing abroad for ‘golden week’ despite falling yen

The operator of Narita airport anticipates that 1.59 million travellers will pass through the airport over the two-week holiday season.

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People depart Japan from Haneda airport in Tokyo on April 18. Photo: Kyodo
People depart Japan from Haneda airport in Tokyo on April 18. Photo: Kyodo
Japan

In hot water: Japan’s bathhouses struggle to stay afloat as oil prices spike

“Sentos” have cut operating hours and welcomed fewer customers, with some deciding to fold amid the energy crisis.

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Singapore

Singapore’s answer to school bullying? The cane … and counselling

With student safety under the microscope, Singapore unveils a new framework in a bid to knock bullying on the head.

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South Korea

Iconic South Korean district on the brink in divisive urban renewal fight

Conservationists worry that reshaping Seoul’s Sewoon District risks erasing both heritage and livelihoods.

Sewoon Plaza in Seoul. Built in 1968, the plaza was South Korea’s first mixed-use residential and commercial complex. Photo: David D. Lee
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