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TOPIC: singapore

In The News

U.S. Soldier Crosses DMZ, Taj Mahal Flooding, Latvian Sand Castles

👋 Bonghjornu !*

Welcome to Wednesday, where tensions run high after a U.S. soldier reportedly crossed the DMZ into North Korea, countrywide protests reignite in Israel amid judicial reform, and Latvian sand castle artists are having a whale of a good time. Meanwhile, Yuri Fedorov in Russian independent news outlet Important Stories looks at why Washington may be pushing a “Korea solution” to the war in Ukraine.

[*Corsican]

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Zelensky-Xi Call, Pope Gives More Power To Women, Ya Ya Goes Back Home

👋 Wĩmwega!*

Welcome to Thursday, where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Chinese President Xi Jinping speak on the phone for the first time since the start of the Russian invasion, Pope Francis announces that women will be allowed to vote for the first time at an important bishops meeting, and Ya Ya the giant panda is headed back home to China. Meanwhile, Dankwart Guratzsch in German daily Die Welt marvels at 19th-century poet and scientist Goethe’s uncanny predictions about today’s tech revolution.

[*Kikuyu, Kenya]

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Sudan Prison Break, Taliban Kill ISIS Leader, Bye Bye Belafonte

👋 Allegra!*

Welcome to Wednesday, where a war crime suspect has been freed in Sudan after a prison break-out, the Taliban report the killing of the Islamic State leader believed to be behind the 2021 Kabul airport bombing, and we mourn the death of “Calypso King” Harry Belafonte. Meanwhile, in Ukrainian news website Livy Bereg, Oleksandr Kalinichenko looks at Ukraine’s expectations ahead of the July NATO summit.

[*Romansh, Switzerland]

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Which Countries Have The Best Paternity Leave

Leave policies for new fathers differ widely around the world — and some men still worry they'll be perceived as less masculine if they take time off after having a kid. But change iis coming, and in some places where you might not expect.

PARIS — When we think of the countries worldwide which offer the best paternity leave, the Nordic countries immediately come to mind: Finland, Sweden, Norway. There's a good reason for that: after the birth of their child, Finnish fathers can take paternity leave for a maximum of 54 working days — one of the best paternity leave allowances around the world.

But since the beginning of 2023, other countries seem to be catching up — and there are various reasons for it. Of course, paternity can be considered a feminist policy and an improvement for women’s conditions, as women too often are stuck with the majority of a family’s chores and mental workload.

But that is not the only reason why, around the world, some governments are now establishing or extending paternity leave.

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Economy
Shaun Lavelle, Riley Sparks, Ginevra Falciani

Why More Countries Are Banning Foreigners From Buying Real Estate

Canada has become the most recent country to impose restrictions on non-residents buying real estate, arguing that wealthy investors from other countries are pricing out would-be local homeowners. But is singling out foreigners the best way to face a troubled housing market?

PARIS — It’s easy to forget that soon after the outbreak of COVID-19, many real estate experts were forecasting that housing prices could face a once-in-generation drop. The logic was that a shrinking pandemic economy would combine with people moving out of cities to push costs down in a lasting way.

Ultimately, in most places, the opposite has happened. Home prices in the U.S., Canada, Britain, Germany, Australia and New Zealand rose between 25% and 50% since the outbreak of COVID-19.

This explosion was driven by a number of factors, including low interest rates, supply chain issues in construction and shortages in available properties caused in part by investors buying up large swathes of housing stock.

Yet some see another culprit deserving of particular attention: foreign buyers.

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Society
Yann Rousseau

Play And Pay: Why Singapore's Education System Is Top Of The Class

For years, Singapore has topped education rankings and inspired other school systems. Among the keys to its success is a playful approach to education and highly paid teachers. But many worry about the pressure the system places on children.

SINGAPORE — Every year in mid-October, social networks are set ablaze in Singapore. Upset parents attack the Ministry of Education on Facebook, Twitter and other forums, accusing it of having organized tests that were too complicated for their children. They say their children came home from the math section of the PSLE – the Primary School Leaving Examination – in tears. The results come in late November.

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Vietnam

LGBTQ+ International: Good And Bad News From Singapore, Great Gatsby Makeover — And The Week’s Other Top News

Welcome to Worldcrunch’s LGBTQ+ International. We bring you up-to-speed each week on a topic you may follow closely at home, but can now see from different places and perspectives around the world. Discover the latest news on everything LGBTQ+ — from all corners of the planet. All in one smooth scroll!

This week featuring:

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In The News
Lisa Berdet, Chloé Touchard and Lila Paulou

New Crimea Blast, Heat Forces China To Close Factories, Academy Apologizes To Littlefeather

👋 Kamusta!*

Welcome to Tuesday, where Crimea has been hit by the latest in a string of unexplained blasts, China orders 6-day closure for factories to combat record temperatures, and Native American actor Sacheen Littlefeather receives a belated apology from the Academy. Meanwhile, writing for Hong-Kong-based The Initium, Lee Yee On looks at the parallels between Taiwan and North Korea.

[*Filipino]

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In The News
Lila Paulou, Lisa Berdet and Anne-Sophie Goninet

Putin’s “Invincible” Missile, Pelosi’s Asian Plans, K-pop Special Treatment

👋 Kumusta!*

Welcome to Monday, where the first Ukrainian grain ship leaves Odessa since the start of Russia’s invasion, while Putin previews a new “hypersonic” missile. Also, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi starts her high-profile Asian tour in Singapore as the K-pop band BTS gets special attention from South Korea’s defense minister. Meanwhile, even as much of the world loosens its pandemic-related restrictions, we have a warning about the growing risks of long COVID.

[*Cebuano, Philippines]

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Coronavirus
Meike Eijsberg

COVID-19 Lessons From Singapore, Facing Its First Crisis So Late In The Pandemic

Its Zero-COVID strategy has mostly worked, and vaccinations are going well. Now a breakout spread is raising multiple questions for the Asian nation and global financial hub.

-Analysis-

When it came to COVID-19, Singapore had seemed to do everything right. Back in March 2020, the wealthy Asian city-state didn't hesitate to impose a strict lockdown. Indeed, Singapore officials took the risk so seriously, that they opted for a Zero-COVID strategy similar to the one countries like China and New Zealand used to stop the spread at virtually all costs.

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food / travel
Gwendolyn Ledger

How Asia's High-End Demand Fuels South American Coffee Exports

Amid post-pandemic trade distortions and changing consumer habits, Latin American countries seeking to boost coffee exports should eye a growing specialty market in prosperous Asian countries.

SANTIAGO — Like many sectors of the economy, coffee production has suffered the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. But COVID-19 and a consequent change of habits that include working from home have also boosted consumption of hot and caffeinated drinks. Now, cultivators of a crop grown around the Tropic of Capricorn are striving to meet this global demand of around three billion cups of coffee per day.

As marketing consultants Euromonitor observed in a recent study, coffee is an eminently social drink and global lockdowns distorted social habits. At the same time, consumers are also seeking out drinks thought to boost the immune system and provide comfort during this troubling era.

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Japan
Yann Rousseau

Regional Immunity? Why Asia Has Avoided The Worst Of COVID-19

East Asia is home to 30% of the world's population but has recorded only 2.4% of the COVID-19 global death toll. Scientists are looking at possible immunity from past epidemics or even genetics.

TOKYO — This is one of the great mysteries of the COVID-19 pandemic. Countries in East Asia were affected by the spread of the virus several weeks before Europe and the United States and yet they were notably able to get through the health crisis and to disclose, despite several waves of infection, much lower death tolls than those in the West.

Cumulatively, the ten members of ASEAN (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia) and the developed countries of North-East Asia (China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan) have recorded only 44,000 deaths linked to COVID-19 since January 2020, i.e. barely ... 2.4% of the 1.8 million fatalities worldwide. This is fewer than the 65,000 deaths recorded in France. To put this in perspective, with 2.3 billion inhabitants, East Asia is home to 30% of the entire world population.

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