Asia braces for spill-over of new bird flu strain

BANGKOK, 8 April 2013 (IRIN) - Officials throughout Asia are implementing measures to protect people from a new strain of bird flu - H7N9 - that has so far infected 24 people in China, killing seven. full report

Myanmar’s landmines hinder return of displaced

BANGKOK, 3 April 2013 (IRIN) - Landmines in Myanmar's southeastern Kayin and Kayah states and Bago division, and in the northern Shan and Kachin states, threaten the return of more than 450,000 refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs). full report

Rohingya in Thailand - safe for now

KHAO LAK, 29 January 2013 (IRIN) - The future of more than 1,500 recent Rohingya boat arrivals in Thailand is unclear, despite a government reprieve allowing them to stay for another six months. full report

Jakarta flooding highlights prevention gaps

JAKARTA, 24 January 2013 (IRIN) - Recent widespread flooding in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, highlights the need for more effective flood management. full report

In Brief: Forced labour in Thai factory

BANGKOK, 22 January 2013 (IRIN) - Up to 700 Burmese migrant workers in a pineapple factory in Thailand’s southern Prachuap Khiri Khan Province are victims of forced labour, according to a recently released report by Helsinki-based corporate watchdog Finnwatch. full report

In Brief: UNHCR concern over reported Rohingya deportations

BANGKOK, 4 January 2013 (IRIN) - The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has expressed concern over reports that more than 70 ethnic Rohingya have been deported to Myanmar from Thailand. full report

Urban water woes

NEW YORK, 2 January 2013 (IRIN) - In Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare (population 3,000,000), a man relieves himself in the dirt next to his tin shack, holding his nose to ward off the stench of a nearby overflowing latrine. In Ramallah (population 300,000) in the occupied Palestinian territory a 14-year-old girl wakes with menstrual cramps - and skips class because her school lacks a washroom where she can clean herself in private. In Bangladesh’s mega-capital (population 12 million), a monsoon-season flash flood leaves thousands with cholera. full report

DISASTERS: Slow-onset disasters take toll

DHAKA/BANGKOK, 7 December 2012 (IRIN) - In southwestern Bangladesh, recent large-scale water-logging - stagnant flood water that fails to recede - threatens agriculture and public health for years to come. It is a crisis in the making, highlighting the risks slow-onset natural disasters pose to poor countries, and how ill-prepared officials are to respond - even with ample early warning. full report

Analysis: Assessing Southeast Asia’s aid coordination during crises

JAKARTA, 6 December 2012 (IRIN) - Governments and aid groups in Southeast Asia, the most natural-disaster prone region in the world, say more coordination is needed to prepare for and respond to emergencies. full report