Kyrgyzstan

by Vladimir Rozanskij | CENTRAL ASIA

Among the millions of workers abroad in precarious conditions, hundreds die every year. Returning their bodies home is a complex procedure, and local authorities do not always cover the costs. The story of 30-year-old Tajik Džamila, killed in Russia by her employer, went viral, prompting an online fundraiser.

by Vladimir Rozanskij

Over two hundred IT experts discussed the prospects for artificial intelligence and technological entrepreneurship in the region. The ambition is not only to be users, but to develop local skills capable of competing in the innovation market.

| 17/11/2025
| CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

The government in Bishkek is grappling with a Soviet-era system that is no longer viable. The crisis particularly affects the medical profession, with numbers in constant decline: in 2022 there were 18.5 doctors per 10,000 inhabitants, today there are just 15, while in Kazakhstan, for example, there are 40. But the real problem is the lack of resources allocated to healthcare: just per person per year.

| 14/11/2025
| KYRGYSTAN
by Vladimir Rozanskij

According to data from the Kyrgyz Ministry of Labour, at the end of 2024 women accounted for 55% of the more than half a million Kyrgyz working abroad. But the Organisation for Migration denounces their greater exposure to job insecurity, violence and severe psychological pressure.

 

| 12/11/2025
| KYRGYSTAN

The trade agreements signed at the White House on rare earths and other sectors seem to focus more on US economic interests than on geopolitical balances. And even the Kremlin, which in the past had shown some impatience with these contacts, this time expressed great acquiescence.

| 10/11/2025
| USA - CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

One of the consequences of rapid urbanisation is the proliferation of huge landfills in contexts where only a small percentage of waste is recycled. In Tajikistan alone, over 2 million tonnes of waste accumulate every year, occupying a total of over 300 hectares of land.

 

| 20/10/2025
| CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

In June, MPs in Bishkek – in a decision kept secret for two months – decriminalised the offence of marrying multiple wives. When parliament reopened, President Žaparov referred the measure back for review, calling it humiliating. But polygamy remains a far from rare practice, with unions registered only in mosques, even by prominent figures.

| 17/10/2025
| KYRGYSTAN
Editor's choices
 
This is a time to see the lights everywhere in the city and hear questions from young Chinese about the "exotic festival" from the West. Local Catholics show a surprising ability to combine mass culture and evangelisation. “I like to think it is ...
| 23/12/2025
| CHINA
 
by fr. Gabriel Romanelli
The parish priest of the Holy Family shares a video testimony of these days of Advent with AsiaNews. Life has ‘slightly improved’ after the ceasefire, but the war ‘continues’. The humanitarian emergency remains current in a climate ...
| 17/12/2025
| ISRAEL - PALESTINE
 
After five years in prison and a one-sided trial lasting 156 hearings, the “exemplary” sentence was handed down today to the Catholic entrepreneur, publisher of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily. The sentence has yet to be determined, ...
| 15/12/2025
| HONG KONG
 
The border dispute is not the only factor in restarting clashes. Scores of online scam centres operate along the border, run by criminal networks linked to Cambodian elites. Thailand considers them strategic military targets and is using the war to build ...
| 11/12/2025
| THAILAND – CAMBODIA
 
by A priest from China’s underground community
Yesterday's episcopal ordination in Henan is opening new wounds rather than healing old ones. The underground bishop whose resignation Rome accepted is still under strict surveillance, unable to attend "his" ceremony, and not even his family can ...
| 06/12/2025
| CHINA – VATICAN
 
by Mathias Hariyadi
The Ministry of the Environment has launched an investigation into corporate responsibility for the devastation caused by violent floods and landslides. Some 50,000 of the 340,000 hectares of forest have been logged. For Environment Minister Hanif, there ...
| 04/12/2025
| INDONESIA
 
Leo XIV has arrived in Beirut, where he delivered his first address to the authorities, speaking about the resilience of the Land of the Cedars and the challenge of achieving reconciliation that goes beyond a mere balance of interests. “A culture ...
| 01/12/2025
| LEBANON - VATICAN
 
by Giorgio Bernardelli
A mandate entrusted to over 800 delegates to make Jesus present through their lives in their own countries brought to a close the Great Pilgrimage of Hope, which saw the Churches of the continent gather in Malaysia. Cardinal David: ‘Evangelisation ...
| 30/11/2025
| ECCLESIA IN ASIA
“L’Asia: ecco il nostro comune compito per il terzo millennio!” - Giovanni Paolo II, da “Alzatevi, andiamo”