Michael Sullivan

In Jakarta, special police units have guarded burial processions for COVID-19 victims, after protesters blocked streets to prevent the dead from being transported to cemeteries.

The outgoing U.N. monitor for human rights says Myanmar's military has attacked civilians in Rakhine and Chin states, including children. Myanmar is also accused of genocide against Rohingya Muslims.

In the past few months, China has been asserting its sovereignty in the South China Sea through small incidents. Is China taking advantage of a world distracted by COVID-19 to advance its interests?

Singapore reported 1,426 new cases on Monday and now has the highest number of reported cases in Southeast Asia. Most of those recently infected are foreign workers staying in cramped dormitories.

With nearly 100 million people, Vietnam has 268 confirmed cases. Experts say experience with prior pandemics and aggressive social distancing have helped, as has the muscle of an authoritarian state.

Thailand has nearly 3,800 domesticated elephants, most kept in camps. There are fears that many will suffer during what is expected to be a time of prolonged severe economic hardship.

Authorities in Thailand's capital are prohibiting alcohol sales for 11 days in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19 during the Thai New Year. Instead, it caused long lines at liquor outlets.

Online sexual abuse is rising as countries close schools and impose various shutdown measures to contain the new coronavirus pandemic, children's rights advocates in Southeast Asia warn.

As governments in Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar move to mitigate the spread of the virus, they are also enacting measures that stifle journalists and dissent.

An online campaign recommended business attire and makeup while working at home, and to avoid sarcasm when asking for help with housework. The women of Malaysia were not amused.

Tourists are being banned outright after many countries on the continent reported a sharp increase in the number of cases this past week.

"It's like a wine," says a grower. "You can taste it like a wine, and then you can keep the taste in your mouth for a very long time." White peppercorns can cost up to $100 per ounce.

A building boom in the Southeast Asian country has pushed up demand for sand in a river that 60 million people rely on.

Indonesia calls them a national security risk. But that decision has sparked criticism from some, who say most of the refugees are actually the wives and children of former ISIS militia.

There are many ways to kill a river. With Southeast Asia's storied Mekong, China's upriver damming is taking a heavy toll, but downstream neighbors share the blame. The No. 1 threat: sand mining.

The coronavirus has spread to Thailand and Southeast Asia. There are at least five cases in Thailand and two in Vietnam.

The International Court of Justice in the Hague on Thursday approved emergency measures to protect Myanmar's Muslim minority Rohingya. Gambia has accused Myanmar of genocide against the Rohingya.

In Thailand, a popular new political party opposed to the military's continued role in politics faces possible dissolution on Tuesday for its alleged ties to the Illuminati. Yes, that Illuminati.

Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi defended her country from charges of genocide in a court case bought by Gambia at the International Court of Justice on Wednesday.

Aung San Suu Kyi is defending Myanmar before the International Court of Justice in a complaint of genocide conducted against the minority Muslim Rohingya.