Channel News Asia

Having lived in Singapore for several years before returning to the United States, I decided to visit the major news outlet of the region to draw a comparison between the types of stories that are broadcasted back home and here in the United States.

I was immediately drawn into the article that was placed center-stage of the Channel News Asia website titled, “IN FOCUS: Alleged ‘double standard’ treatment of Palestinian, Rohingya refugees stirring debate, concerns in Malaysia”. Malaysia is Singapore’s neighboring country and is comprised of thousands of tiny islands on the Malay Archipelago. Additionally, much of the population is Muslim. The article documented the frustration and xenophobic tendencies directed towards the large refugee groups that have escaped into Malaysia and how their respective treatments differ. While both Palestinians and Rohingya refugees are from Muslim nations, the public, according to documented online discourse and studies, views one favorably while the other almost lesser in a sense. One of the Rohingya community leaders, Mr. Rafik comments on this phenomenon attributing, “the differing treatment of Rohingya and Palestinian refugees to how the latter’s conflict is covered widely in mainstream and social media, as opposed to the patchy flow of information coming from Myanmar.”

I found it intriguing how the news on this side of the world brought up examples and current events that many American news sources rarely cover. In this news article, it tied together events such as the aftermath of the Rohingya genocide, the socio-political climate of the Malay Archipelago, and the ongoing events of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In my opinion, it is important to read internationally accredited news outlets like these to gain a better picture and build awareness on the ongoings of the world around us.

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