Max Walden
@maxwalden.bsky.social
Journalist with the ABC’s Asia Pacific Newsroom. PhD from Melbourne Law School. Bad opinions are my own
Indonesia has awarded former authoritarian leader Suharto the title of national hero, in a move that has sparked accusations of historical revisionism in the world’s third-largest democracy. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
Fury as Indonesia declares late authoritarian ruler Suharto a national hero
Suharto presided over a period marked by rampant corruption, nepotism, censorship and allegations of mass human rights abuses
www.theguardian.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:09 AM
Indonesia has awarded former authoritarian leader Suharto the title of national hero, in a move that has sparked accusations of historical revisionism in the world’s third-largest democracy. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
Reposted by Max Walden
Done! Well done 🎉🎉🎉
Timor-Leste officially admitted to Asean, becoming its 11th member
www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia...
Timor-Leste officially admitted to Asean, becoming its 11th member
www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia...
Timor Leste becomes Asean's 11th member
Timor-Leste is the first country to join the grouping since Cambodia’s admission in 1999. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.
www.straitstimes.com
October 26, 2025 at 1:22 AM
Done! Well done 🎉🎉🎉
Timor-Leste officially admitted to Asean, becoming its 11th member
www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia...
Timor-Leste officially admitted to Asean, becoming its 11th member
www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia...
What is happening over there in Brunei
October 12, 2025 at 8:47 AM
What is happening over there in Brunei
Reposted by Max Walden
Palestinians stream north and hostage families wait anxiously as Gaza ceasefire begins
📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4-x...
📱 www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...
📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4-x...
📱 www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...
Thousands of Palestinians return to Gaza's north as the ceasefire begins | ABC NEWS
YouTube video by ABC News (Australia)
www.youtube.com
October 11, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Palestinians stream north and hostage families wait anxiously as Gaza ceasefire begins
📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4-x...
📱 www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...
📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4-x...
📱 www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...
Reposted by Max Walden
In August we reported on the story of 12 year old Huda, suffering extreme malnutrition. Her hair was falling out, and she didn't have enough energy to get out of bed.
We're hearing reports that Huda died in recent days.
Here's our story from August:
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...
We're hearing reports that Huda died in recent days.
Here's our story from August:
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...
Malnourished Huda needs treatment outside of Gaza — but she can't leave
Hospitals in Gaza are having to divert resources to treating surging cases of malnutrition as starvation takes hold across the strip. Meanwhile, children who need treatment are waiting to be evacuated...
www.abc.net.au
October 11, 2025 at 9:20 AM
In August we reported on the story of 12 year old Huda, suffering extreme malnutrition. Her hair was falling out, and she didn't have enough energy to get out of bed.
We're hearing reports that Huda died in recent days.
Here's our story from August:
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...
We're hearing reports that Huda died in recent days.
Here's our story from August:
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...
Reposted by Max Walden
Robin Williams’ daughter Zelda hits out at AI-generated videos of her dead father: ‘Stop doing this to him’
Robin Williams’ daughter Zelda hits out at AI-generated videos of her dead father: ‘Stop doing this to him’
Film-maker tells the public to stop sending her videos, saying: ‘You’re not making art, you’re making disgusting, over-processed hotdogs out of the lives of human beings’
Zelda Williams, the daughter of the late actor and comedian Robin Williams, has spoken out against AI-generated content featuring her father.
“Please, just stop sending me AI videos of Dad,” Zelda wrote in an Instagram story on Monday. “Stop believing I wanna see it or that I’ll understand, I don’t and I won’t. If you’re just trying to troll me, I’ve seen way worse, I’ll restrict and move on. But please, if you’ve got any decency, just stop doing this to him and to me, to everyone even, full stop. It’s dumb, it’s a waste of time and energy, and believe me, it’s NOT what he’d want. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
October 7, 2025 at 2:39 AM
Robin Williams’ daughter Zelda hits out at AI-generated videos of her dead father: ‘Stop doing this to him’
Under a presidential regulation Prabowo signed in late June, but made public only in September, Nusantara has been reclassified as Indonesia’s “political capital” – a phrase absent from existing legislation www.scmp.com/week-asia/po...
Indonesia’s grand capital plan gets a downgrade as Nusantara is redefined
A new regulation calls the city a ‘political capital’, fuelling uncertainty over the future of Joko Widodo’s legacy project.
www.scmp.com
October 7, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Under a presidential regulation Prabowo signed in late June, but made public only in September, Nusantara has been reclassified as Indonesia’s “political capital” – a phrase absent from existing legislation www.scmp.com/week-asia/po...
Reposted by Max Walden
Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar especially smashed by deforestation in 2024 - new article by @geraldrflynn.bsky.social @mongabay.com
news.mongabay.com/2025/10/prot...
news.mongabay.com/2025/10/prot...
Protected areas hit hard as Mekong countries’ forest cover shrank in 2024
BANGKOK — The Mekong countries of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam lost a combined area of tree cover of nearly a million hectares in 2024, or an area almost the size of Lebanon. That’s a...
news.mongabay.com
October 6, 2025 at 7:25 AM
Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar especially smashed by deforestation in 2024 - new article by @geraldrflynn.bsky.social @mongabay.com
news.mongabay.com/2025/10/prot...
news.mongabay.com/2025/10/prot...
Reposted by Max Walden
Sarah Mullally becomes the female leader of one of last areas of British public life to have been led by men.
First woman appointed leader of Church of England
Sarah Mullally becomes the female leader of one of last areas of British public life to have been led by men.
www.abc.net.au
October 3, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Sarah Mullally becomes the female leader of one of last areas of British public life to have been led by men.
Reposted by Max Walden
Ambitious Asian students have made a beeline for universities in America, Australia, Britain and Canada. Yet lately the “big four” Anglophone countries have been losing their shine econ.st/42VP5xv
Photo: Getty Images
Photo: Getty Images
September 30, 2025 at 1:00 AM
Ambitious Asian students have made a beeline for universities in America, Australia, Britain and Canada. Yet lately the “big four” Anglophone countries have been losing their shine econ.st/42VP5xv
Photo: Getty Images
Photo: Getty Images
Reposted by Max Walden
The family of vanished Yolŋu leader Dhakiyarr Wirrpanda is calling on the Northern Territory coroner to pursue an ABC investigation's lead on his mysterious disappearance.
Vanished Aboriginal leader's family call for probe into alleged killer
The family of vanished Yolŋu leader Dhakiyarr Wirrpanda is calling on the Northern Territory coroner to pursue an ABC investigation's lead on his mysterious disappearance.
www.abc.net.au
September 27, 2025 at 11:18 PM
The family of vanished Yolŋu leader Dhakiyarr Wirrpanda is calling on the Northern Territory coroner to pursue an ABC investigation's lead on his mysterious disappearance.
Reposted by Max Walden
'Humanity's fate cannot be left to an algorithm': UN chief on threat of military AI.
"Humans must always retain authority over life-and-death decisions," says UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, arguing that AI systems cannot be allowed to run free in the military field
"Humans must always retain authority over life-and-death decisions," says UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, arguing that AI systems cannot be allowed to run free in the military field
September 26, 2025 at 3:23 AM
'Humanity's fate cannot be left to an algorithm': UN chief on threat of military AI.
"Humans must always retain authority over life-and-death decisions," says UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, arguing that AI systems cannot be allowed to run free in the military field
"Humans must always retain authority over life-and-death decisions," says UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, arguing that AI systems cannot be allowed to run free in the military field
“The ABC’s capitulation in the face of political pressure means that a penalty of sufficient weight must be imposed to deter the ABC ... when it is confronted with similar pressures in the future.”
The ABC has been ordered to pay a penalty of $150,000 to Antoinette Lattouf for unlawfully terminating her Sydney radio contract after a judge found it “let down the Australian public badly” by capitulating to pro-Israel campaigners www.theage.com.au/national/jud...
Judge reveals ABC’s penalty in Antoinette Lattouf unlawful sacking case
The six-figure sum is in addition to the $70,000 compensation the broadcaster has already been ordered to pay.
www.theage.com.au
September 24, 2025 at 3:34 AM
“The ABC’s capitulation in the face of political pressure means that a penalty of sufficient weight must be imposed to deter the ABC ... when it is confronted with similar pressures in the future.”
The ABC has been ordered to pay a penalty of $150,000 to Antoinette Lattouf for unlawfully terminating her Sydney radio contract after a judge found it “let down the Australian public badly” by capitulating to pro-Israel campaigners www.theage.com.au/national/jud...
Judge reveals ABC’s penalty in Antoinette Lattouf unlawful sacking case
The six-figure sum is in addition to the $70,000 compensation the broadcaster has already been ordered to pay.
www.theage.com.au
September 24, 2025 at 3:28 AM
The ABC has been ordered to pay a penalty of $150,000 to Antoinette Lattouf for unlawfully terminating her Sydney radio contract after a judge found it “let down the Australian public badly” by capitulating to pro-Israel campaigners www.theage.com.au/national/jud...
Reposted by Max Walden
Corruption scandals at Indonesian startups have eroded investor confidence in the country's startup ecosystem, further deepening the ongoing funding winter.
trib.al/uF4tEeI
trib.al/uF4tEeI
Indonesian startups face funding fallout from corruption scandals
Experts urge better governance and more hands-on investor oversight to revive ecosystem
trib.al
September 23, 2025 at 4:28 AM
Corruption scandals at Indonesian startups have eroded investor confidence in the country's startup ecosystem, further deepening the ongoing funding winter.
trib.al/uF4tEeI
trib.al/uF4tEeI
Australia has recognised Palestine as a sovereign state, becoming one of more than 150 countries to do so www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...
Australia formally recognises state of Palestine
The historic decision foreshadowed last month has now become a reality, as Australia moves with Canada and the United Kingdom to join the growing list of countries to recognise Palestinian sovereignty...
www.abc.net.au
September 22, 2025 at 1:44 AM
Australia has recognised Palestine as a sovereign state, becoming one of more than 150 countries to do so www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...
Reposted by Max Walden
JUST IN: Disney’s ABC is taking Jimmy Kimmel’s late night talk show off the air indefinitely amid a controversy over his recent comments about Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer. https://cnn.it/3VmUl9n
September 17, 2025 at 10:57 PM
JUST IN: Disney’s ABC is taking Jimmy Kimmel’s late night talk show off the air indefinitely amid a controversy over his recent comments about Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer. https://cnn.it/3VmUl9n
Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, major United Nations report finds www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...
Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, major UN report finds
Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide in Gaza, according to the "most authoritative assessment" to date.
www.abc.net.au
September 16, 2025 at 7:05 AM
Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, major United Nations report finds www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...
Reposted by Max Walden
Breaking news: President Trump said the U.S. and China have reached a deal over TikTok that would mark a shift in ownership for the app and avoid its nationwide ban.
Trump, Bessent say U.S. and China have agreed on TikTok sale
China confirmed a “basic consensus” on a deal for changing TikTok’s ownership, months after the president pushed his administration to ignore the app’s legally mandated ban.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 15, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Breaking news: President Trump said the U.S. and China have reached a deal over TikTok that would mark a shift in ownership for the app and avoid its nationwide ban.
Reposted by Max Walden
Australia and Papua New Guinea will be legally obliged to defend each other from a military attack on either territory under a landmark defence treaty, the ABC can reveal.
'Battle ready': Treaty will require Australia and PNG to defend each other
Australia and Papua New Guinea will be legally obliged to defend each other from a military attack on either territory under a landmark defence treaty, the ABC can reveal.
www.abc.net.au
September 15, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Australia and Papua New Guinea will be legally obliged to defend each other from a military attack on either territory under a landmark defence treaty, the ABC can reveal.
The firm guarding sites where aid is distributed in Gaza has been using members of a US biker gang with a history of hostility to Islam to run its armed security, a BBC investigation has found www.bbc.com/news/article...
Anti-Islamic US biker gang members run security at deadly Gaza aid sites
BBC identifies members of Infidels MC gang hired as armed security at US and Israel-backed aid sites.
www.bbc.com
September 11, 2025 at 6:31 AM
The firm guarding sites where aid is distributed in Gaza has been using members of a US biker gang with a history of hostility to Islam to run its armed security, a BBC investigation has found www.bbc.com/news/article...
During Indonesia's recent mass protests, the looted homes of politicians in Jakarta revealed unexpected victims: cats reportedly left behind or stolen as their owners fled for safety. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...
Cats belonging to Indonesian politicians are the unexpected symbol of protests
Images of these frightened cats rescued by concerned citizens have struck a deep chord in cat-obsessed Indonesia.
www.abc.net.au
September 9, 2025 at 7:31 AM
During Indonesia's recent mass protests, the looted homes of politicians in Jakarta revealed unexpected victims: cats reportedly left behind or stolen as their owners fled for safety. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...
Indonesia’s high profile finance minister Sri Mulyani has been replaced in a reshuffle of Prabowo’s cabinet.
Comes after widespread rumours she was planning to resign amid the anti-government mass protests www.cnbcindonesia.com/news/2025090...
Comes after widespread rumours she was planning to resign amid the anti-government mass protests www.cnbcindonesia.com/news/2025090...
Reshuffle Menteri Keuangan, Mensesneg Sebut Sri Mulyani Diganti?
Presiden Prabowo Subianto melakukan pergantian kabinet atau reshuffle. Salah satunya Menteri Keuangan Sri Mulyani Indrawati.
www.cnbcindonesia.com
September 8, 2025 at 8:52 AM
Indonesia’s high profile finance minister Sri Mulyani has been replaced in a reshuffle of Prabowo’s cabinet.
Comes after widespread rumours she was planning to resign amid the anti-government mass protests www.cnbcindonesia.com/news/2025090...
Comes after widespread rumours she was planning to resign amid the anti-government mass protests www.cnbcindonesia.com/news/2025090...
Reposted by Max Walden
The first story I did for Crikey back in 2021 was reporting on a leaked neo-nazi manual showing how "media baiting" — aka tricking journalists into writing about them — was a major strategy for them.
www.crikey.com.au/20...
www.crikey.com.au/20...
September 2, 2025 at 2:46 AM
The first story I did for Crikey back in 2021 was reporting on a leaked neo-nazi manual showing how "media baiting" — aka tricking journalists into writing about them — was a major strategy for them.
www.crikey.com.au/20...
www.crikey.com.au/20...
Lads lads lads
VIDEO: Putin, Modi, and Xi meet in Tianjin.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping have a conversation ahead of the opening of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping have a conversation ahead of the opening of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin
September 1, 2025 at 5:26 AM
Lads lads lads