Latest from Asia

China: 16 percent rise in drug cases last year

One year since his death, fans remember Michael Jackson

Global celebrations of Jackson's brilliant but troubled life kicked off with the unveiling of a memorial in London yesterday.

Blokey mateship hard to match

Ethnic strife hits economy

Quake parents arrested

Dollar dips as global events dominate

Mongolia: A bully at the border

An encounter with a corrupt border guard almost sees the 51st Traverse team stranded in no man's land.

NZ troops blow up 100kg Russian bomb

Call for peacekeepers as Kyrgyz conflict escalates

There are calls for UN peacekeeping forces to intervene as violence between the majority Kyrgyz population and Uzbeks intensifies.

Bemusement in Japan at Bethune's ban

Anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd banning NZ activist Pete Bethune has caused bemusement in Japan ahead of his last day of trial in Tokyo today.

Japan: Eat your heart out

Tokyo rivals Paris as a epicurean paradise so expect more than sushi, says Karyn Scherer.

China lists web no-nos

Bangkok: Shopping up a storm

Up until now I have never managed to be in Bangkok when the Chatuchak Weekend Market is in full swing.

Sea Shepherd ban to help Bethune, wife says

Sea Shepherd banned Kiwi anti-whaling activist Pete Bethune from future protests in an effort to help him avoid jail time.

Detained anti-whaling activist kicked out of Sea Shepherd

Pete Bethune is axed from future Sea Shepherd anti-whaling protests for having a bow and arrows on board the sunken Ady Gil.

Culture clash (+recipes)

Indonesian cuisine presents a feast of flavours as diverse as its history.

Ask Lonely Planet: All that's eco is not green in Vietnam

Eco-tourism in Vietnam is often promoted by companies who either by ignorance or outright unscrupulousness do not adhere to the ethics that would constitute viable eco-tourism projects.

South Korea: The sound of one brain snapping

Soo Bool Sunim smiles broadly and asks: "Can you see your own eyes?"