Dear ST reader,
About 205 million Indonesians will head to the polls on Feb 14 to choose the country’s next president, as well as their elected representatives for Parliament, the regional council and legislative councils.
Surveys have consistently shown Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto as the presidential front runner. Overall victory for Mr Prabowo is, however, uncertain because of election rules. He will need to secure more than 50 per cent of total votes cast, and at least 20 per cent of votes in more than half of the country’s provinces. If he fails, he must contest a June runoff with the second-place finisher.
In the United States, which will hold its presidential election on Nov 5, democracy itself will be on the ballot. In the second story under our American Evolution 2024 series, US Bureau Chief Bhagyashree Garekar travelled to Philadelphia – the birthplace of America – to examine if democracy is indeed flickering like a candle in the wind.
Communist China, which sees an increasingly hostile alliance of countries seeking to contain it, appears to have stepped up its outreach to overseas Chinese to help tell its story and advance its power. China’s Foreign Ministry has, however, declined to comment on the case of Singaporean businessman Philip Chan, citing non-interference in the domestic affairs of another country.
Mr Chan, a naturalised Singaporean born in Hong Kong, was served notice on Feb 2 of the Singapore authorities’ intention to designate him as a politically significant person under the Republic’s foreign interference laws, because his activities were directed towards a political end in Singapore.
Meanwhile, some of you may be preparing your hongbaos and struggling over the amount to give. Jeremy Au Yong, Newsroom Transformation Editor, hears you and advises on when it may be okay to just give $2.
For those who are celebrating the Chinese New Year, we wish you a very prosperous Year of the Dragon!
And for the rest of you, enjoy the holidays!
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Australia cracks down on supermarkets amid public fury over soaring prices
‘Hongbao maths’: Is it ever okay to just give $2?
'Kuai Kuai' corn chips that keep Taiwan’s tech devices in good working order
