Malaysian Deputy Minister Marhamah Rosli said that the government is opting to replace references to LGBT persons with the term “deviant culture.”
The remarks represent a dangerous escalation of state-sponsored misinformation and hostility towards LGBT people.
I am a 15-year-old girl. Let me show you the vile misogyny that confronts me on social media every day
Objectification, hate, rape threats: the politicians debating online abuse mean well, but to truly understand, they need to see what I see.
Bombay High Court Allows Child Raised by Single Mother to Drop Father’s Name
In a significant judgment, Indian judges emphasised that recognising a single mother as a complete parent for determining a child’s civic identity is rooted in constitutional principles rather than sympathy.
Bhikshuni Lineage Restored in Bhutan
265 Tibetan Buddhist nuns took ordination vows in Thimpu. The event marks a great victory in the struggle for gender equality in Buddhist monastic communities.
At 85, South Korea’s oldest college graduate this year proves it’s never too late to learn
Kim Jeong-ja received an associate degree in social welfare from Sookmyung Women’s University. Her 7 years of study began when she first picked up a pencil at age 78 to learn how to read and write.
Single women plan community home in Osaka to age together
Their vision is simple but, in today’s Japan, still radical: if the kind of home they need does not exist, they will create it themselves.
Molestation cases on the rise in Singapore as physical crimes increase 4.4% in 2025
More than half of the molestation cases reported last year in Singapore involved offenders who are known to the victims.
New Taliban penal code puts husbands on par with ‘slave masters’ and legalises domestic violence
A Kabul-based legal adviser says it is now ‘impossible for women to get any justice’ in the Taliban-run courts.
Malaysia blocks same-sex dating sites Grindr and Blued, mulls legal measures to curb LGBTQ+ dating apps
www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysi...
The Japanese Justice Ministry is moving toward revising Japan's anti-prostitution law to punish the sex buyers, addressing a legal imbalance that has only targeted the sellers for 70 years, according to government sources.
Pregnancy becomes a death sentence in Nepal
172 women have died in 9 years in Karnali province due to delayed maternal care. Staff shortages have left most specialist posts vacant and ICU equipment unused.
Corinna Lim, former leader of women's rights NGO Aware Singapore, reflects on her journey, fighting for gender equality, and the importance of succession.
www.singaporelawwatch.sg/Headlines/iv...
Can confirm the book is adorable
'Two Women Living Together' suggests a new kind of family
Co-written by Kim Ha-na and Hwang Sun-woo, two friends who decided in their 40s to buy a home together rather than marry, the book chronicles their decision to grow old together under one roof.
www.koreaherald.com/article/1067...
From teen burnout to Olympic gold: Figure skating champion Alysa Liu ‘looking to inspire others’
Newly crowned Olympic women’s figure skating champion Alysa Liu says she wants her story to “inspire others” after the golden return of a former child prodigy who suffered burnout.
Women from Syria's Alawite minority tell of kidnap and rape
The Syrian Feminist Lobby (SFL) says nearly all those reported missing are members of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam that makes up about 10% of Syria's population and to which the ousted president belongs.
South Jeolla Province has apologized after the Jindo County head said South Korea should "import young virgins from Sri Lanka or Vietnam."
koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2026-02...
Philippine top court says same-sex couples can co-own property
Applying a provision of the country's Family Code for the first time, the Philippine Supreme Court said same-sex couples can be recognised as co-owners if it is proven that both parties contributed to acquiring a property.
Young Muslims have created an inclusive Ramadan that works for everyone. Now that’s in danger
Led by women, queer-friendly, diverse: this model can break so many boundaries. But if we lose spaces to meet in, it can't happen.
“They want our daughters and granddaughters to have zero information about their bodies and sex, no ability to protect themselves from pregnancy, limited choices for an intellectual and professional life, and—once our girls have been corralled into early marriages—few opportunities to leave.”
China cracks down on anti-marriage social media content during Lunar New Year holiday
The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) listed “inciting gender antagonism and exaggerating ‘fear of marriage’ and ‘anxiety about childbirth'” as primary examples.
hongkongfp.com/2026/02/13/c...
Transwoman in Malaysia to be taken to court for undergoing gender reassignment surgery
According to queer human rights group Justice for Sisters, this is the first ever case of its kind since the Kelantan law was penned in 2020 & that Kelantan is the only state in Malaysia which has this provision.
Expand assisted reproductive services to unmarried women, Hong Kong lawmaker says amid record low births
In Hong Kong, assisted reproductive services, such as in-vitro fertilization (IVF), are restricted to heterosexual married couples.
LGBT organisations navigate Indonesia’s two homophobias
Despite the widely-covered crackdown since 2016, Indonesian official homophobia is not monolithic. One homophobia aims to eradicate ‘deviant’ sexualities, but another paternalistically casts queer people as victims.
Pushed to margins, women vanish from Bangladesh's political arena
Despite helping to spearhead the uprising that led to the upcoming Bangladeshi elections, women are poised to be largely excluded from the South Asian country's political arena.
‘In the end, you feel blank’: India’s female workers watching hours of abusive content to train AI
Women in rural communities describe trauma of moderating violent and pornographic content for global tech companies.
www.theguardian.com/global-devel...
‘We had sex in a Chinese hotel, then found we had been broadcast to thousands’
Thousands of recent spy-cam videos have been found filmed in hotel rooms and sold as porn, on multiple sites. Much of the material is advertised on the messaging and social media app Telegram.
How the men in the Epstein files defeated #MeToo
The emails show the “anti-woke” crusaders are afraid of accountability.
Japan’s conservative leader bets big on Takaichi mania with snap election. Will her gamble pay off?
Since taking power in October, the motorbike-riding heavy metal drummer with a savvy social media game has shaken the dust off the traditional male-dominated image of Japanese politics.
Despite recognising the pitfalls of AI, young adults and children across South Asia continue to use it for emotional, academic, and professional support. But experts worry that without sufficient guardrails, this reliance could have a negative impact.
www.asiandispatch.net/why-are-chil...
