Archive – New Naratif

Flipside

by Myle Yan Tay and Row Yow 26 January 202227 January 2022

In New Singapore, Kevin, an Accident Inspector, has always wanted to be a Grand Meteorologist, and now he might have a chance. Though at what cost?

A digital hand-drawn illustration showing a man sitting on a hospital cot in a quarantine centre. He wears a hospital gown and holds a mobile phone in his hands. A large beam of light shines from the phone, illuminating his torso and spreading out behind him to show a stylised screenshot of a Facebook support group for COVID long-haulers. In the beam of light, two other people emerge; a woman in a long-sleeved dark red shirt with a nasal oxygen tube connected to an unseen oxygen tank, and a man in glasses, a grey hoodie and a light blue shirt. The man reaches out to grasp the woman’s hand. The rest of the quarantine centre not illuminated by the light beam is depicted in shades of grey.

Feature

Across Southeast Asia, Long COVID Haunts Pandemic Survivors

by Gerald Flynn and Farid Nad 25 January 202225 January 2022

These Southeast Asians caught COVID-19 and survived, only to be misdiagnosed, misunderstood and fundamentally ignored by their countries’ medical communities. Hope for the region’s long-haulers lies in banding together.

Podcast

Communist Democracy in the Philippines

by Jacob Goldberg 21 January 202227 January 2022

Jacob Goldberg speaks to Professor Jose Maria Sison, the founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), which has been waging a revolutionary guerilla war against the Philippine government since 1968.

An illustration in colour pencil and watercolour, divided into one large central image and three panels on the left and right sides. In the centre, a woman in a t-shirt and skirt bows her head and reaches out to her partner, a man in a t-shirt and slacks who is wiping tears off his face. A Malaysian flag hangs in the background, red and white stripes forming bars behind the couple. In the six panels, three on the left and three on the right, the same couple stand at a counter, speaking to different immigration officers in each panel. There are small Malaysian flags on the countertop. The first officer looks stern; the second holds up their paperwork, laughing at it; the third shakes a form at the man angrily; the fourth beckons to another officer; the fifth looks apprehensively at another set of documents; the sixth points to a counter off in the distance, directing them into another series of altercations.

Feature

Amid Tourism Push, Malaysia Keeps Binational Families Apart

by Liani MK and Charis Loke 21 January 202221 January 2022

Pandemic travel and immigration rules in Malaysia have left many binational families stressed, strained and separated for months, with officials deeming foreign spouses “non-essential”. Some have turned to online groups to support and advocate for each other.

Mijak Tampung and other members of youth collective Kelompok Makekal Bersatu prepare to present their map of Makekal Hulu to the Orang Rimba community in 2016. Dodi Rokhdian

Feature

Pushed From National Parks, Forest-Dwellers Defend Land and Customs

by Samira Hassan and Sahnaz Melasandy 14 January 202214 January 2022

From Thailand to Indonesia, indigenous people who have lived off the land for centuries are struggling to preserve their forest homes and customs. But as states create national parks and forcibly evict forest-dwellers, their ties to ancestral land are cut.

Artists Respond

Picturing Media Freedom in 2021

by Anngee Neo, Pssyppl, Tuna Dunn, Nadhir Nor, Rob Cham, Sa-ard, Astro Ruby, Marvinne de Guzman and Amita Sevellaraja 21 December 202121 December 2021

Nine artists draw out their experiences and interpretations of media freedom in Southeast Asia.

Feature

Mothers Fight Sexism in Malaysia’s Citizenship Law

by Liani MK 21 December 202121 December 2021

Malaysia’s constitution allows Malaysian fathers—not mothers—to pass their citizenship to children born abroad. Six mothers successfully challenged this discriminatory policy in court, but must continue to take on a recalcitrant government.

Planting on plots that are overgrown with grasses, bushes and vines requires clearing all vegetation except for trees that grow wild. Reforestation teams use machetes to cut down overgrowth, which is often taller than them.

Feature

Sabah Community Aims to Regrow Healthy Forests Amid Pandemic

by Alexandra Radu 20 December 202110 January 2022

The pandemic has strained reforestation work in Sabah’s biodiverse Lower Kinabatangan region, but locals continue to replant trees in an effort to secure their livelihoods, protect endangered species and regrow carbon-capturing rainforests.

Comic

The Long Road Home

by Okky Madasari, Ghufroni An'ars and Abdul Khalik 20 December 202120 December 2021

A domestic worker in Singapore returns to Indonesia during the pandemic. She encounters differential treatment and a costly road home.

Podcast

New Naratif in 2021: A Year of Many Firsts

by Kelly Anissa and Thum Ping Tjin 17 December 202121 January 2022

New Naratif founder PJ Thum and editor-in-chief Jacob Goldberg reflect on the tough decisions, impactful stories and blossoming team spirit that made 2021 our most memorable year yet.