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Rob O'Brien

  • Speechwriter, European Medicines Agency
  • Documentary Filmmaker, Freelance
As seen in: Medium, The New York Times, The Independent (UK), CNBC, Kickstarter, Nikkei Asia, Salon, Eco-Business, Asian Correspondent, Global Compliance News and
Covers:  government, malaysia, singapore, human interest, society, technology
Br-Australian speechwriter @EMA_News. Documentary filmmaker 'The Adopted' 👇. Former Journalist @Independent @NikkeiAsia. #MECFS foot soldier. #grateful
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Singapore sting: Sky-high prices are pushing locals to the edge of affordability

Singapore sting: Sky-high prices are pushing locals to the edge of affordability

Independent — Singapore's super rich are always on the lookout for new playthings. At a jetty near the Changi Airport over the weekend, a vehicle called The Humdinga - a cross between a Hummer and a boat - was launched in a display for local media. The amphibious car is designed for disaster relief and policing, but some of the city state's wealthier residents are eyeing it as an alternative to another Ferrari 458.
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Why Are So Many Elderly Asians Killing Themselves?

Why Are So Many Elderly Asians Killing Themselves?

www.nbcnews.com — SINGAPORE - It is a question that has puzzled mental health experts in Asia for some time: Why are so many elderly Asians committing suicide? The past decade has seen astonishing spikes in the rate of Asians over 65 choosing to end their lives early, particularly in the region's economically successful countries. In South Korea, for example, suicides in that age group have risen more than fivefold, from 14 per 100,000 in 1990 to 77 per 100,000 in 2009, according to Hallym University's Institute of Aging.
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'The Act of Killing': Oscar nomination for what must be the bravest film crew of the year - but n...

'The Act of Killing': Oscar nomination for what must be the bravest film crew of the year - but n...

Independent — For the Indonesian crew of more than 60 people, public accolades went out the window when they decided to remove their names from the film's credits due to fear of reprisals from anti-communist militias.
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The quiet agony of filming 'The Act of Killing'

The quiet agony of filming 'The Act of Killing'

GlobalPost — Exclusive: The Oscar-nominated documentary's Indonesian co-director says the local crew remained anonymous out of grave fear for their lives.
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What Sunday night's riot says about Singapore

What Sunday night's riot says about Singapore

GlobalPost — Singapore's dirty little secret: A rare uprising, in Little India, uncovers blemishes in the city-state's cherished harmony.
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Malaysia censors Lego-themed mural as 'bad for investment and tourism'

Malaysia censors Lego-themed mural as 'bad for investment and tourism'

GlobalPost — Amid local crime spree, authorities cautioned artist Ernest Zacharevic to 'use his talent the right way.' His censored mural goes viral.
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For Filipino Workers Abroad, 'There Is Nothing Worse Than the Waiting'

For Filipino Workers Abroad, 'There Is Nothing Worse Than the Waiting'

New York Times — Rob O'Brien The first thing I read about the typhoon was actually on Facebook. Posted on one of my friend's status updates was something about the wind getting stronger in our part of the Philippines. After that, all of my friends began to panic. My family is from Pandan Island in Antique in the northern part of the Visayas in the Philippines, a place that fell right in the path of Typhoon Haiyan last Friday. It's not the worst hit, but it has suffered a lot of damage. I don't live in the Philippines, though, any more: I have lived in Singapore since 2005.
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Will a woman follow Hamid Karzai as Afghanistan's president?

Will a woman follow Hamid Karzai as Afghanistan's president?

Independent — As a baby, Fawzia Koofi was placed in a field and left to die under the baking sun. That was the choice the 38-year-old's mother made, believing she had failed by not producing a son and heir for her husband, whom she shared with six other wives. Koofi was the 19th child in her family; to her mother, a girl was just "another mouth to feed and a dowry to finance", Koofi says. The sunburnt baby was brought in by a stranger and handed back to her mother who, pitying her, decided to keep her.
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Smartphones struggle to connect with the elderly

Smartphones struggle to connect with the elderly

CNBC — Industry watchers say the problem largely boils down to insufficient understanding of the technology needs of the elderly, a lack of innovation and reluctant investors who aren't convinced about the prospects given the divergent aging demographic in Asia.
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Gordon Brown's activist sister-in-law Clare Rewcastle Brown denied entry to Malaysian state

Gordon Brown's activist sister-in-law Clare Rewcastle Brown denied entry to Malaysian state

Independent — The activist sister-in-law of former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was refused entry to the Malaysian state of yesterday, a place where she has spear-headed a campaign against state corruption and deforestation.
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'The smog could last for weeks': Masks become a sudden necessity in Singapore's unhealthy haze

'The smog could last for weeks': Masks become a sudden necessity in Singapore's unhealthy haze

Independent — The iPad at the reception of Singapore's famous Fullerton Hotel reads 50 to 80 per cent humidity, but outside the air is thick with smoke. Staff point to the outline where the nearby Swissotel, The Stamford, used to be visible. It all but disappeared from view on Wednesday.
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Singapore smog: Gas masks stock runs low amid record levels of pollution

Singapore smog: Gas masks stock runs low amid record levels of pollution

Independent — Singapore's air pollution reached another all-time high before stabilising, as the Indonesian Government stepped up its efforts to extinguish forest fires on Sumatra.
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Malaysian elections: 'There's big corruption, a lot of state abuse'

Malaysian elections: 'There's big corruption, a lot of state abuse'

Independent — David Chin disembarks from the Causeway Express bus that links Singapore to Malaysia's southernmost state, Johor. The bellboy from the Royal Plaza Hotel in Orchard is among the 2.5 million young Malaysians preparing to vote in their first election.
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Malaysia's long-ruling coalition hangs on to power

Malaysia's long-ruling coalition hangs on to power

Independent — Malaysia's governing coalition won what was heralded as the nation's closest election today, extending its 56-year rule and thwarting an opposition alliance that had pledged to clean up politics and end race-based policies.
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Asian Correspondent Asia News

Asian Correspondent Asia News

asiancorrespondent.com — Malaysia's politicians wary ahead of 'social media election' As Malaysia gets ready to head to the polls its politicians are surveying a notably different landscape to the one they campaigned on in 2008.
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Cluster Crops

Cluster Crops

Bangkok Post — Years were wasted by the official denial of the secret bombing of Laos during the Vietnam War, and now 11,000 people have died from leftover bombs, the majority of them children.
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