29/03/2026

theSun on Sunday MAR 29, 2026

WORLD 7

Nepal’s ex-PM arrested KATHMANDU: Nepal’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli and ex-home minister Ramesh Lekhak were arrested yesterday over their alleged involvement in a crackdown on protesters in September, police said. Oli denies ordering shootings

Thailand, Iran cut safe transit deal

BANGKOK: Thailand has reached an agreement with Iran to allow Thai oil vessels safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said: “An agreement has been reached to allow Thai oil tankers to transit safely through the Strait of Hormuz.” “With this agreement in place, there is greater confidence that disruptions like those early this month will not recur.” “The government will continue to adapt and adjust measures to minimise the impact on the public,” Anutin told a news conference yesterday. He also said he expected the country to have a new government next week, with a list of new Cabinet members to be submitted for royal endorsement tomorrow. The new government will move quickly to deliver a policy statement to parliament so it can begin its work, Anutin said. Anutin apologised to the public for the turmoil caused by the way oil prices have been managed in the first half of the month. The government initially held prices steady for 15 days to try to ease the burden on the public, but as the war in the Middle East dragged on, it was necessary to adopt more appropriate measures to mitigate the impact, he said. The government is planning an oil tax cut, along with other support measures, to ease the impact of rising oil prices. Anutin said Thailand has oil reserves for 100 days. – Reuters Jakarta enforces teen social media ban JAKARTA: Indonesia began enforcing a social media ban for children under the age of 16 yesterday, after a minister warned digital platforms there was “no room for compromise”. It announced the ban this month citing threats from online pornography, cyberbullying and internet addiction, as concerns grow over the impact of social media on children’s wellbeing. Communications Minister Meutya Hafid told a news conference late on Friday that digital platforms X and Bigo Live have fully complied with the new rules and adjusted their minimum user age. Other digital platforms should “immediately align their products, features and services with regulations,” Meutya said. “We reiterate that there is no room for compromise regarding compliance and every business entity is required to adhere to the laws in force.” TikTok said it was committed to complying with the regulation including “taking appropriate measures related to under-16 accounts”. Indonesia’s ban follows a similar policy in Australia implemented in December. A Los Angeles jury on Wednesday found Meta and YouTube liable for harming a young woman through the “addictive design” of their platforms, ordering the companies to pay US$6 million (RM24 million) in damages. Britain’s upper house of parliament voted this week in favour of banning children from social media, adding pressure on the government to follow suit. – AFP

NAYPYITAW: military leadership is set for a reshuffle following an annual armed forces parade on Friday, state media reported, in a rare public signalling of transition by the secretive institution. The imminent leadership change comes just days before Myanmar’s newly convened parliament is due to meet tomorrow to pick a new president, a role military chief Min Aung Hlaing has long had his eyes on. In a meeting on Thursday with retired officers of the Myanmar military, also known as the Tatmadaw, its deputy chief Soe Win said that “leadership changes” would come after the armed forces day ceremony in the capital Naypyidaw, state media reported. A political transition is underway in Myanmar following a recent election held in stages that was won by an army-backed party, opening the door for Min Aung Myanmar’s The detentions came a day after Prime Minister Balendra Shah and his Cabinet were sworn in after the first elections since the uprising last year that toppled 74-year old Oli’s government. “They were arrested this morning and the process will move forward according to the law,” said Kathmandu Valley police spokesman Om Adhikari. An inquiry commission into the violence found that at least 76 people were killed in the anti-corruption youth uprising on Sept 8 and 9. At least 19 young people were killed in a crackdown on the first day of protests, which began over a brief social media ban but tapped into longstanding fury over economic hardship. The unrest spread nationwide the following day as parliament and government offices were set ablaze, resulting in the collapse of Oli’s government. The government-backed inquiry commission recommended during a caretaker administration that Oli and other officials be prosecuted. Its report said it was “not established that there was an order to shoot”, but added that “no effort was made to stop or control the firing and, due to their negligent conduct, even minors lost their lives”. Oli has denied ordering security forces to open fire on protesters. He told AFP during his failed bid for re election in the March 5 poll that he blamed “infiltrators” for the violence. Kathmandu district police spokesman Pawan Kumar Bhattarai said: “He has been admitted to hospital on doctor’s advice. “They will oversee his treatment. He has issues with his heart and kidney.” Oli’s CPN-UML Marxist party called for supporters to stage a “nationwide protest”. “This is a revengeful act, we urge the government to immediately revoke this decision,” said senior party leader Mahesh Basnet. Oli’s political career stretches nearly six decades, a period that saw a decade-long

Oli (in white) being taken to a hospital in Kathmandu yesterday. – REUTERSPIC

civil war and the 2008 abolition of Nepal’s monarchy. As prime minister, Oli became a lightning rod for protester fury. He resigned on Sept 9 as mobs torched his

house, parliament and government offices. Oli said in his resignation letter he hoped stepping down would help “move towards a political solution and the resolution of the problems”. – AFP

Myanmar military signals unease over transition

He made no mention of the leadership transition in a speech that lasted less than 20 minutes, during which he stressed the military’s vital role, the necessity of its 2021 coup and its continued role in politics “to collaborate in the national interest”. “It must be clearly understood this does not signify ‘leading in politics’ as some pessimists might allege,” he said. It is a highly unusual for Myanmar’s military, which is locked in fighting with rebels, to preemptively disclose a high level leadership change, said Htin Kyaw Aye, an independent analyst. “Such a disclosure suggests there may be underlying anxieties regarding the leadership transition and the redistribution of high-level positions,” he said. A career infantry officer, 69-year-old Min Aung Hlaing, who was handpicked by former military ruler Than Shwe to become the commander-in-chief in 2011, has yet to publicly name a successor. – Reuters

Hlaing to become president. The annual parade featured tanks, missiles, cannon fire and flyovers by neon lit jets and helicopters, with Min Aung Hlaing, adorned in military medals, inspecting troops in an open-top limousine. Min Aung Hlaing inspecting troops on Friday Naypyidaw. – AFPPIC