01/05/2026

FRIDAY | MAY 1, 2026

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Myanmar announces blanket prison sentence cut

N. Korea faces severe drought SEOUL: North Korea is facing an “unusual” and “severe” drought this year and is working to protect crops, state media said yesterday. Natural disasters tend to have an outsized impact on the diplomatically isolated country due to its weak infrastructure and economy. In February, United Nations special rapporteur on human rights in North Korea Elizabeth Salmon said food shortages were already a key concern. “An unusual drought has recently persisted across much of the country, a phenomenon rarely seen in previous years,“ Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. “Workers across various regions are concentrating all efforts on protecting early season crops from the drought.“ KCNA also said Premier Pak Thae Song carried out on-site inspections at farms in South Pyongan and North Hwanghae provinces to discuss “countermeasures to minimise drought damage”. He called for fully identifying and efficiently using all water sources, adding that a successful harvest hinges on overcoming this year’s “severe drought”, KCNA said. South Korea also endured a prolonged drought last year that hit the eastern coastal city of Gangneung. That dry spell forced authorities to implement water restrictions, including shutting off 75% of household meters across the city. KCNA said North Korean cities and counties are carrying out “repairs to the gates of reservoirs and waterways”. Workers are also implementing “technical measures”, boosting the drought resistance of wheat and barley and striving to ensure the stable growth of early season crops, it added. South Korea recorded its hottest summer last year while both countries also saw their warmest June. Climate change is making heatwaves more frequent and intense, and experts say the seasonal El Nino weather phenomenon will likely return this year. The weather pattern could bring drought and heavy rain to different parts of Asia. North Korea has long endured power shortages, and experts say most residents have no access to air conditioning. – AFP BENGHAZI: At least 17 migrants died and nine are missing after their boat broke down and drifted for eight days in the Mediterranean Sea, Libya’s Red Crescent and Libyan security sources said on Wednesday. The Red Crescent said volunteers in cooperation with naval forces and coast guards of the Libyan National Army rescued seven survivors during recovery operations off Tobruk city in eastern Libya, near the border with Egypt. Libya is a transit route for migrants, many of them from sub-Saharan Africa, who risk their lives to flee to Europe across desert and sea in the hope of escaping conflict and poverty. – Reuters TRAFFIC COLLISION IN CENTRAL INDIA KILLS 15 HYDERABAD: At least 15 people were killed in a road crash in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday evening. The collision happened in the Dhar district, about 250km from the state capital Bhopal. The victims, including women and children, were travelling in a pick-up van, which overturned on the Indore-Ahmedabad National Highway, local media reported. Fifteen people were killed and about 20 others injured, according to local media. The injured were taken to Dhar’s district hospital, with many sustaining serious injuries. – Bernama SEVENTEEN MIGRANTS DIE AT SEA: RED CRESCENT

BR I E F S

Suu Kyi’s sentence handed down inside Myanmar’s opaque court system is by now considered served, and therefore by how much her term will be trimmed. Suu Kyi was first convicted in closed-court trials and handed a sentence of more than three decades on charges ranging from corruption to breaching Covid-19 regulations. A 2023 pardon of some crimes saw the Nobel Peace Prize laureate’s sentence reduced to 27 years. In one of his first acts as civilian president, Min Aung Hlaing issued another public holiday blanket order nearly identical to yesterday’s, trimming more time off Suu Kyi’s sentence. He also pardoned Suu Kyi’s top aide Win Myint, who served as her ceremonial president, prompting speculation that her detention may be significantly relaxed next. Suu Kyi is very popular in Myanmar, but has been held almost completely incommunicado as her family warn of her ailing health. – AFP

government five years ago, taking her into detention on a host of charges that rights groups say were confected to sideline her, triggering a civil war. Since then, Myanmar has been led by Min Aung Hlaing, first as military chief before he was last month sworn in as civilian president after a restricted election, excluding the NLD. Democracy monitors described the process as a rebranding of military rule, and have likewise dismissed rollbacks of some post-coup curbs as lip-service measures designed to reform the image of the government. A statement from Min Aung Hlaing’s presidential office said to mark a public holiday yesterday, prisoners will “have their remaining sentences cut by one-sixth”. It did not mention any prisoners by name, but the NLD source said 80-year-old Suu Kyi “will also get one-sixth reduction of her remaining sentences”. However, it remains unclear how much of

YANGON: Myanmar’s president cut all prisoners’ sentences by one-sixth yesterday, a blanket measure that a source close to deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi said would further shorten her detention. Suu Kyi has been sequestered since a 2021 military coup, but the senior member of her dissolved National League for Democracy (NLD) party said while her term had been reduced, her remaining sentence is unclear. “We also do not know exactly how many years she has left,” the source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons. The military toppled Suu Kyi’s elected o Term of Suu Kyi reduced but time left to be served unclear: Anonymous source

ALLURING ACT ... Performers on Wednesday using fans in a show during Solo Menari, an annual dance festival held to mark the International Dance Day in Surakarta, Central Java. – AFPPIC Cambodian ex-opposition leader loses appeal

PHNOM PENH: A Cambodian court rejected an appeal yesterday by detained opposition leader Kem Sokha against his nearly three-decade sentence for treason, his lawyer said, a conviction that rights groups say is politically motivated. The 72-year-old politician was convicted for trying to topple the government of long-ruling former prime minister Hun Sen, who is father of the current leader and remains an influential figure in national politics. He was sentenced in 2023 to 27 years’ prison for treason but was ordered to serve the time under house arrest in the capital Phnom Penh. Co-founder of the dissolved opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) Kem Sokha has repeatedly denied the charge since his 2017 arrest. He asked the Phnom Penh appellate

or anyone who is not a family member. Rights advocates say the prosecution of Kem Sokha was designed to bar him and his popular opposition movement from politics after the party made electoral gains against Hun Sen’s entrenched Cambodian People’s Party. Hun Sen, who ruled Cambodia for nearly four decades, stepped down in 2023 and handed power to his eldest son, current leader Hun Manet. Scores of political opponents have been convicted during Hun Sen’s time in power while CNRP co-founder Sam Rainsy, Hun Sen’s long-time rival, lives in self-exile in France. Rights groups have long accused Cambodian authorities of using legal cases as a tactic to silence opposition voices and legitimate political dissent. – AFP

court to drop the charges against him, with his lawyer saying his client is ready for a “political resolution” to end his case. But the Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling yesterday, said his lawyer Pheng Heng. The judges also added a five-year international travel ban to his sentence, he said outside the courthouse. “The verdict is contrary to what we expected, which was that the government would bring about reconciliation and strengthen national unity.“ He said he would discuss the matter with Kem Sokha whether to appeal further. Kem Sokha’s appeal proceedings resumed three weeks ago following a more than 18-month delay, according to his lawyers. A lower court also stripped him of his political rights and banned him from meeting foreigners