Asia News Wrap: Indonesian volcano erupts killing 23, and more

Here are a few stories from around Asia you may have missed this week.

Indonesia's Mount Marapi volcano erupted on Sunday, killing 23 people who were hiking in the area. The search for missing hikers resumed only on Tuesday after being paused due to safety concerns. 

The volcano spewed a 3-kilometer cloud of ash into the air, covering surrounding villages in ash. The eruption was the Marapi's deadliest since 1979, when 60 people were killed. It last erupted in January and February this year. Mount Marapi, which means "Mountain of Fire," is among the most active of Indonesia's 127 volcanoes and is also popular among hikers.

South Korea on Tuesday announced a plan to offer mental health check-ups every two years for people aged 20 to 34. Other counseling services will be tailored to all age groups. It is the first state policy aimed at tackling the country's high suicide rates. The Korean Herald reported that, "(South) Korea has recorded the highest suicide rate among member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for almost 20 years, with 25.2 deaths per 100,000 people in 2022, more than double the OECD average of 10.6 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the organization's data released in September." 

To tackle the country's mental health record, the government will implement mental health checkups once every two years, starting with those aged between 20 and 34 and later expanding to all age groups to detect warning signs early on. An updated target disease list will include depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. 

Cyclone Michaung left a trail of destruction in southeast, India killing 13 people in and around Chennai, an IT hub in Tamil Nadu state. The cyclone arrived with torrential rains and flooding on Tuesday. It weakened into a depression over the state of Andhra Pradesh as it moved north. The storm damaged 770 kilometers of road, trees were uprooted and at least 25 villages inundated, while authorities evacuated more than 15,000 people to safety. More than 140 trains and 40 flights were cancelled. 

The Hindu Businessline newspaper reported that, "employees couldn't opt for work-from-home option due to lack of electricity. And, even if power was available, Internet was not accessible in many parts of the city as cables were cut and telecom towers were not functioning due to lack of diesel to operate the generators."

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, currently in jail facing multiple charges, was replaced on Saturday as head of the party he founded. 

Khan launched the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party in 1996, and it became the biggest bloc in parliament after the 2018 polls, making him the prime minister. The Election Commission of Pakistan had instructed PTI to conduct elections for a new chief if it wanted to participate in elections scheduled for February 8. Barrister Gohar Ali Khan is the new head of the party. 

The Netherlands returned six artifacts including a cannon, a ceremonial sword and two guns taken from Sri Lanka more than 250 years ago on Tuesday, as part of efforts by the former colonial power to redress historical wrongs, officials said. Sri Lanka asked the Netherlands to return the artifacts after the Dutch government approved the restitution of historic objects in 2021. The artifacts were taken in 1765 from Kandy, the last kingdom of ancient Sri Lanka, when the Dutch besieged the palace, a statement from the Netherlands embassy said. 

Meanwhile, a dispute between Britain and Greece over the ownership of the Parthenon Sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, escalated last month, with both sides blaming the other for the cancellation of a planned meeting between their two leaders. Greece has repeatedly called on the British Museum to permanently return the 2,500-year-old sculptures that British diplomat Lord Elgin removed from the Parthenon temple in Athens in 1806, during a period when Greece was under Ottoman Turkish rule.

(Cover: Villagers stand near a paddy field as Mount Marapi volcano spews volcanic ash, in Padang Panjang, West Sumatra province, Indonesia, December 6, 2023. /Reuters)