Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is considering calling a snap election before a mounting fuel subsidy crisis forces him to make spending cuts that would strip him of the conditions needed to win one. A national vote is not due until early 2028, but the political logic of going early is becoming harder to dismiss. Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) alliance is fraying at the edges, coalition partner Barisan Nasional has announced it will contest the coming Johor state poll alone, and two of his...

Sydney, May 15: The Tatmawdaw – the military government in Myanmar – has reportedly expanded a ban on menstrual products from being transported in the country across key routes, as part of the ongoing civil war in the country. This targeting of sanitary pads appears to be an extension of the military’s so-called “Four Cuts” strategy, which seeks to sever resistance forces from food, funds, intelligence and recruits. Menstrual products, it seems, have been added to that logic – and in the process stealing women’s dignity and basic human rights.