London — China has increased high-level diplomatic engagement with Myanmar’s military government over the past week as rebel groups continue to make gains in the northern part of the country, where Beijing has huge economic and geostrategic interests.

Some analysts say recent trips by top Chinese officials, including Foreign Minister Wang Yi and China’s special envoy to Myanmar, Deng Xijun, reflect Beijing’s attempt to stabilize the situation in Myanmar.

“The Chinese are trying to use these high-level visits to entice the Myanmar military to come back to the negotiation table,” said Jason Tower, the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) country director for Myanmar.

However, he thinks the Chinese government is struggling to facilitate new rounds of cease-fire talks between the military government and rebel groups, which have been gaining control over key facilities along the China-Myanmar border in recent months.

“It’s not clear how the Chinese would be able to facilitate a sustainable agreement between the rebel groups and the military government [since] both sides seem to be fundamentally at odds with each other,” Tower told VOA in a phone interview.

Following his meeting with the Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing on Wednesday, Wang said Beijing “opposes chaos and conflicts in Myanmar” and hopes the country will increase efforts to stabilize the situation along the China-Myanmar border.

“Wang Yi expressed his hope that Myanmar will earnestly safeguard the safety of Chinese personnel and projects in Myanmar, maintain peace and stability along the China-Myanmar border, step up joint efforts to crack down on cross-border crimes, and create a safe environment for bilateral exchanges and cooperation,” the Chinese government said in its official readout.

For its part, Myanmar’s military government said China supports its “endeavors in implementing the five-point roadmap for ensuring peace and stability of the state and development and making preparations to hold a free and fair multiparty democratic general election.”

While Myanmar’s state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper claimed that Beijing vowed to support a promised election, which the military government has said will be held in 2025, the Chinese readout didn’t include such details.

Some analysts say this difference reflects how Myanmar’s military government and the Chinese government view the supposed “election plan.”

“For the Myanmar military and its leader Min Aung Hlaing in particular, the elections are existential, but China probably remains very skeptical about the likelihood of an election being held since the military government controls less than half of Myanmar’s territory at the moment,” Hunter Marston, an adjunct research fellow at La Trobe University in Australia, told VOA by phone.

An alliance formed by several armed resistance groups called the Three Brotherhood Alliance gained control in recent months over key facilities and infrastructure in the northern part of the country, including a regional military base in the northern Shan State and the strategic city of Lashio, which sits on a highway between China and the major city of Mandalay.

USIP’s Tower said as the Myanmar military loses more of its monopoly over the ability to provide security to Chinese state-run enterprises’ projects in northern Myanmar, Beijing may increase cooperation with rebel groups to safeguard its economic interests in the region.

“As more and more of these projects fall under the control of different resistance actors, we may see China work with these groups to try to facilitate its business operation in Myanmar,” he told VOA.

While Beijing may increase cooperation with rebel groups, Marston said, China will continue to manage its relationship with Myanmar by engaging all political players in the country.

“China is continuing its long-term strategy of hedging its bets, which means that it will engage with a number of stakeholders and try to retain influence over as many factions in Myanmar as possible,” he told VOA.

In addition to meeting leaders of Myanmar’s military government, Wang also met with the former chairman of Myanmar’s State Peace and Development Council, Than Shwe, who urged Beijing to help Myanmar “prevent external interference and maintain domestic stability.”

While some analysts say Myanmar’s military government has been stalling the cease-fire negotiations as many competing political forces refuse to negotiate with them, they think China will not support the complete ousting of the military from Burmese politics.

“Since Myanmar became independent in 1948, there has not been a single day when the Burmese military was not a part of the center of the Burmese politics,” Yun Sun, China Program director at the Stimson Center in Washington, told VOA by phone.

She said Beijing will likely support a peace process based on negotiation and reconciliation.

“The peace process has to be based on some sort of concessions made by both sides,” said Sun.

But since there is no sign that the fighting between rebel groups and Myanmar’s military will stop any time soon, Marston said Beijing can only try to urge different resistance groups to respect its interests while gradually cultivating an environment for potential cease-fire negotiations.

“Beijing will continue to incrementally work around the margins by pushing cease-fire negotiations in northern Myanmar while trying to ensure that all players are on China’s side,” he told VOA.
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TOKYO — Flights and trains in the Tokyo area were canceled Friday, and people were warned of strong winds, heavy rains and potential flooding and mudslides as a typhoon swerved near Japan on its way further north in the Pacific Ocean.

Typhoon Ampil was forecast to reach the waters near Tokyo in the evening then continue north, bringing stormy conditions to the northern Kanto and Tohoku regions early Saturday. It had sustained winds of 162 kph with higher gusts Friday morning and was moving north at 15 kph, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. Ampil was not expected to make landfall and would weaken to a tropical storm by Sunday.

Tokyo’s Disneyland, usually open until 9 p.m., was closing early at 3 p.m. because of the typhoon. Yamato Transport, which makes Amazon and other deliveries in Japan, said no deliveries will be made in the Tokyo and nearby affected areas Friday and Saturday.

The Shinkansen bullet trains running between Tokyo and Nagoya were halted for the entire day, according to Central Japan Railway, a common response to typhoons here. Bullet trains serving northeastern Japan and some local Tokyo trains were suspended temporarily or switched to a slower schedule.

Dozens of departing and arriving flights were canceled at Tokyo’s two airports, Haneda and Narita, as well as at Kansai, Osaka and Chubu airports. The flight cancellations affect some 90,000 people, according to Japanese media reports. Several highways may also partly close to traffic.

Airports and train stations had been packed Thursday with people moving up their plans to avoid disruptions from the typhoon. Friday was drizzly and windy in Tokyo, although the intensity varied. Traffic and crowds out on the streets were sparse, mostly because of the Bon summer holiday period, not just the weather. Stores remained open.

Officials warned people to stay away from rivers and beaches and to be wary of winds strong enough to send objects flying.

“We foresee extremely fierce winds and extremely fierce seas,” said Shuichi Tachihara, JMA chief forecaster.

Japanese TV broadcasts showed Hachijo residents boarding up windows. Ampil moved past Hachijo by midday, as it headed northward. Store shelves for bread and instant noodles were empty.
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washington — As Indonesia gears up to participate in U.S.-led joint military exercises this month, it agreed at a meeting this week to hold military training with China, a move analysts say points to Indonesia’s nonalignment stance regarding the U.S.-China rivalry.

The Indonesian military is preparing to host Super Garuda Shield exercises led by the U.S. with participation by dozens of countries, including Japan, Australia, South Korea, Germany, Singapore and Malaysia. The annual drills will be held in the Indonesian provinces of East Java, West Java and South Sumatra from August 26 to September 5.

In the meantime, senior Indonesian and Chinese officials agreed to hold joint military training and reaffirmed their commitment to boost regional security, among other things, at a meeting Tuesday in Jakarta, according to a statement by the Indonesian Foreign Ministry.

It was the first senior officials’ meeting of a joint foreign-defense ministerial dialogue that will be elevated to a ministerial-level meeting during a new Indonesian administration next year. President-elect Prabowo Subianto will begin his term in October.

The two countries agreed to launch a new dialogue when outgoing President Joko Widodo met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in October in Beijing.

“If it takes place next year, the bilateral exercises with the Chinese will reflect Indonesia’s pursuit of showcasing its neutrality” based on “bebas and aktif,” or “free and active” foreign policy aimed at making it “difficult for any major power to pull Indonesia into its sphere of influence,” said Abdul Rahman Yaacob, a research fellow in the Southeast Asia Program at the Lowy Institute.

However, if the exercises with China focus on combat operations and interoperability rather than nontraditional security areas such as piracy and counterterrorism and are conducted in the contested South China Sea, it “will raise red flags for the U.S. and its allies,” Yaacob said.

“Indonesia under Prabowo will have to balance many factors when planning exercises with the Chinese, as potential repercussions could be high.” The U.S. and its allies, including South Korea, France and Japan, could reconsider a decision to supply the Indonesians with advanced weapons systems, he added.

Indonesia, like other Southeast Asian countries, has been conducting joint drills with both the U.S. and China.

Last year, China sent a naval destroyer and frigate to participate at the invitation of Jakarta in a multilateral naval exercise aimed at fostering cooperation on humanitarian operations and disaster management.

The U.S. Navy, which also participated, described the drills as allowing “exchanges that support multilateral cooperation.”

Indonesia’s defense cooperation with China is considered underdeveloped, mainly focusing on low-level exercises. But recently, Jakarta expressed its desire to hold more military exercises with China, in addition to ASEAN member states and the U.S.

In an interview with Nikkei Asia in July, Indonesian Army Chief of Staff General Maruli Simanjuntak said the Indonesian army is preparing to conduct joint drills with China that could start next year.

“Indonesia, like most of its neighbors, both seeks pragmatic cooperation with and wants to hedge against the hegemonic ambitions of China,” said Gregory Poling, senior fellow and director of the Southeast Asia Program and Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“That also explains why Jakarta would be open to low-level military exercises with China even as it prioritizes its much more robust military relationship with traditional partners like the United States, Japan and Australia.”

The U.S. Navy SEALs and the Indonesian navy’s Frogman Forces Command held a joint training exercise in July. The drills have been taking place annually since their bilateral defense talks in 2022.

Andreyka Natalegawa, an associate fellow for the Southeast Asia Program at CSIS, said, “Despite the apparent — and nascent — deepening of Indonesia-China defense ties, the United States remains the primary partner of choice in defense cooperation with Indonesia.”

He continued, “The depth, frequency and institutionalization of U.S. bilateral and multilateral exercises with Indonesia remains second to none, and it is highly unlikely that China will supplant the United States’ role as Indonesia’s primary defense partner of choice in the immediate future.”

At their first U.S.-Indonesian senior officials’ foreign policy and defense dialogue in October 2023 in Washington, the U.S. reaffirmed its commitment to support Indonesia’s defense forces as the country’s “largest military engagement partner.”
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BANGKOK — Thailand’s ruling party met to choose a new prime minister candidate Thursday after Srettha Thavisin was removed from office because of what a court called an “ethical violation.”

The vote for a new prime minister is set to be held on Friday in parliament.

Paetongtarn Shinawtra, the daughter of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, is a potential Pheu Thai candidate for the top post, as is Chaikasem Nitisiri, a former minister of justice.

Party secretary-general Sorawong Thienthong told reporters they would discuss their choice with coalition partners.

Srettha was the third prime minister from Pheu Thai to be kicked out by the Thailand’s Constitutional Court and leaves office after less than a year.

On Wednesday, the court voted 5-4 in favor of stripping Srettha of his position on the grounds that he had appointed to his Cabinet a member of parliament who had been imprisoned for an alleged attempt to bribe an official.

Srettha, who led the ruling Pheu Thai party, spoke outside the court in Bangkok, accepting the decision.

“The Constitutional Court has made their decision and I abide by it. I can assure, since I’ve been working as prime minister, I have done my best with the best intentions and there was no personal conflict with anybody,” he told reporters.

He also denied that he is an “unethical” person. 

“I feel sorry that people are calling me an unethical [prime minister]. I can assure you that I am not that kind of person,” he added.

After the ruling, Srettha was removed immediately from his duties. His Cabinet is expected to stay in a caretaker role until a new prime minister is selected. Phumtham Wechayachai, who was first deputy prime minister under Srettha, is expected to become acting prime minister.

The action was taken a week after the Constitutional Court dissolved the Move Forward Party. The reformists, who had pledged to amend Thailand’s strict laws that prohibit criticism of Thailand’s royalty, were dissolved after the court ruled their pledges were aimed at toppling the monarchy.

Last week’s ruling also banned the party’s leaders from politics for 10 years. Move Forward had won the most votes in Thailand’s general election in 2023 but the Senate blocked the party from leading government.

Sunai Phasuk, a senior researcher on Thailand for Human Rights Watch, said the recent rulings amounted to a “judicial coup.”

“Within 7 days Thailand’s Constitutional Court dissolved the election winner Move Forward Party, sacked PM [Srettha Thavisin], from the runner-up Pheu Thai Party, and removed the elected government from power. This is a serious blow to democracy,” he posted on X, formerly Twitter. 

Pravit Rojanaphruk, a veteran journalist for Khaosod English and political analyst in Thailand, says Srettha’s case is serious.

“One can regard it as a judicial coup, although I mean to be fair, Srettha had appointed someone who has been charged in the past for attempted bribery of a judge, which is a serious thing,” he told VOA.

In a Cabinet reshuffle in April, Srettha appointed Pichit Cheunban as a minister of the prime minister’s office. But Pichit stepped down from his role weeks later after nationwide attention turned to his imprisonment in 2008 for contempt of court after he allegedly tried to bribe a judge with $55,000 in cash over a case involving former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

The court ruled that Srettha had sole responsibility for qualifying his Cabinet’s appointments, despite knowing of Pichit’s criminal past, and had thereby violated the ethics codes in Thailand’s constitution.

Thailand is governed by a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with the king as head of state. It is divided into three branches: legislative, executive and judiciary.

Pravit says Thailand’s leaders are not on the same page. 

“We need to take last week’s ruling into consideration against Move Forward Party. I think it’s clear that the traditional branch [the monarchy, judiciary and military], particularly the Constitutional Court, are now playing a very active role. I think they clash heads on with the electorate,” he told VOA.

“You have the electorate, who vote for whichever party they like, and we see two very prominent parties. On the other hand, you have the military, the senior bureaucracy, bureaucrats and the court, and then the third one might even say the monarchy. Nobody is fully in charge. I think that’s the reality. I think the country is deeply divided,” he said.

The U.S. State Department said it hopes a new prime minister will be selected “as soon as possible.”

“We are aware of today’s ruling by the Thai Constitutional Court to dismiss Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and the entire Cabinet from office. The United States looks forward to the selection of a new prime minister as soon as possible, and a smooth transition of power,” a U.S. State Department spokesperson told VOA.

Srettha took office in August 2023.

Srettha had pushed to open Thailand following nine years under a military government marked by reform protests and the COVID-19 pandemic.

He relaxed visitor requirements for nearly 100 countries in an effort to boost tourism in Thailand, a crucial part of the country’s economy. He also introduced new visa initiatives, including the Destination Thailand Visa, aiming to lure professionals and digital nomads to work and stay in the kingdom.

But Srettha’s main pledge during his campaign was the Digital Wallet scheme, giving millions of eligible Thai citizens $286 in digital currency handouts to stimulate the sluggish economy. The plan had finally launched in August and millions had applied online.

Nike Ching contributed to this report. Material from Agence France-Presse was used in this report.
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SYDNEY — Newly released statistics from the Australian government show that thousands of Palestinians have had their visa applications rejected since the start of the Israel-Hamas war last October.

Australia’s conservative opposition said Wednesday that it was “not prudent” for any Palestinians to be allowed into the country because of national security concerns.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the leader of the center-right opposition, Peter Dutton, clashed in Federal Parliament Wednesday over visas for Palestinians fleeing the conflict in the Middle East. 

Dutton had earlier told Australian television that Palestinians trying to leave Gaza should not be granted entry to Australia because of national security concerns.  He said he was not satisfied there was adequate screening of visa applicants to ensure they were not associated with terrorism.

Albanese stressed he had confidence in the country’s vetting and security processes.

Newly released government statistics show that since the attack by Hamas militants on Israel last Oct. 7, more than 7,100 visa applications from Palestinians in Gaza have been refused by the Canberra government.  

During the same period, officials approved another 2,922 applications, mostly visitor visas to holders of a Palestinian Authority travel document.

Mike Burgess, head of the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, the domestic spy agency, said in an interview with local media Sunday that financial or material support for Hamas should lead to an application being denied.

He added, however, that “rhetorical” support for Hamas was not grounds for the immediate disqualification of a visa application.

But Australia’s center-right opposition has insisted that rhetorical, as in written or vocal, support for the militant organization should also be grounds for denying an entry visa.

James Paterson, the shadow minister for Home Affairs, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that entry rules for people fleeing Gaza need to be strict.

“I think the government should send a very clear message that no one who supports Hamas is welcome in Australia,” Peterson said. “Think about all the challenges we have had with antisemitism, with social cohesion, we have just had the terrorism threat level increased – none of those problems become easier by bringing people to Australia who support terrorism.”

Community groups have reported an increase in antisemitic and Islamophobic abuse in Australia since the Israel-Hamas war broke out last October.

Earlier this month, Australia’s new Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the government was working on safeguards for Palestinians when their visitor visas expire. He confirmed they would not be sent back to Gaza with a war still raging.

Since the Oct. 7 attacks, Australia has granted just over 8,700 visas to Israelis. About 200 applications have been refused.

Intelligence officials have confirmed that security screenings were carried out on some but not all visa applicants, which were subject to referral from the Canberra government.
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GENEVA  — A newly released report from a group of independent human rights experts says there is “substantial evidence” that Myanmar’s military junta has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, with civilians deliberately targeted in violation of international human rights law. 

“Our mandate is to collect evidence of the most serious international crimes in Myanmar. Our report shows that the number of these crimes is only increasing. The armed conflict is increasing in intensity and brutality,” Nicholas Koumjian, head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, IIMM, told journalists Tuesday in Geneva. 

“We have collected substantial evidence showing horrific levels of brutality and inhumanity across Myanmar. Many crimes have been committed with an intent to punish and induce terror in the civilian population,” he said at the launch of IIMM’s annual report. 

There was no immediate response from Myanmar’s junta, which the United Nations does not recognize as a legitimate government. 

Koumjian said the IIMM has not sent the report to any authorities in Myanmar, though a public information officer noted the U.N. sent a copy to all member states, including Myanmar.  

The 18-page report by IIMM, a body created by the U.N. Human Rights Council in 2018, covers the period between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024.   

Investigators say the report is based on evidence collected from more than 900 sources, including more than 400 eyewitness testimonies, along with additional evidence such as photographs, videos, geospatial imagery, social media posts and forensic evidence.  

Authors of the report say that since the military toppled the country’s democratically elected government in February 2021, “the number of serious international crimes in Myanmar has continued to increase in frequency and scale.” 

They note that in the civil war, the military has lost territory in outlying regions to ethnic armed organizations and the People’s Defense Force, or PDF, causing it to increasingly rely “on aerial and artillery bombardments of populated areas, resulting in numerous injuries and fatalities among the civilian population.” 

The report documents many incidents proving that civilians “are often the victims of the conflict, not simply collateral damage, but often are targeted in the conflict,” Koumjian said. 

“In Kayah state in February of this year, four children were killed and around 10 injured when fighter jets dropped bombs and deployed machine gun fire on the school,” he said. 

One of two captured videotapes that he viewed shows PDF fighters “being tied between two trees and a fire built underneath them,” burning them to death. Another video shows “resistance forces beheading captured soldiers in Loikaw in Kayah State” in November and December of last year. 

“It is incredible, not just the level of brutality, but the obvious feelings of impunity of those that committed the offense that they actually would videotape what occurred and then put it on social media so it would be broadcast,” he said. 

The report accuses security forces of violently suppressing protests with disproportionate, often lethal force, “causing civilian deaths and serious bodily injury.” It says thousands of people have been arrested and many tortured or killed in detention, “particularly in military detention.” 

Investigators say they have also collected reliable evidence of sexual and gender-based crimes in detention committed against males and females, including children under age 18, including gang rape and multiple rapes. 

“I think the desperation of the regime is leading to more ferocity, more brutality in their attacks against the civilian population,” Koumjian observed. “But I would add that we are also seeing a very concerning increase in violence and brutality by opposition forces, and we are very concerned about that also.” 

The chief investigator is calling on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations regional bloc, or ASEAN, to help end the violence and bring the perpetrators of crimes to justice.

“ASEAN is a very key player in Myanmar,” Koumjian said, noting that the group “has drawn up a five-point consensus to end the fighting, that the junta itself has signed.” 

“Yet we have seen an increase in violence, and we have seen an increase in the violence targeting civilians. … It is not simply enough to say we support ending the violence,” he said. “There have to be steps taken to ensure that, in fact, the violence has ended. 

“It is time for ASEAN to put some bite into its consensus.”
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Seoul  — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who has effectively announced his resignation, helped transform Japan’s foreign policy, boosting its global role and accelerating a major military expansion, despite facing domestic challenges that ultimately led to his exit.

In an unexpected announcement Wednesday, Kishida said he will not seek re-election as head of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, meaning he will step down as prime minister following an internal party leadership election next month.

During Kishida’s three-year term, global geopolitical tensions sharply escalated. Kishida responded by taking several steps to align his country closer with the West and to loosen Japan’s self-imposed post-World War II military restraints.

Most notably, Kishida increased Japan’s defense budget. Under a five-year plan unveiled in 2022, Japan is on track to become the world’s third-largest military spender, trailing the United States and China.

Under Kishida, Japan announced for the first time that it will acquire missiles that can reach other countries, breaking a decades-old taboo against weapons that could have offensive uses.

Kishida also deepened Japan’s security ties with like-minded partners, not only reinforcing its alliance with the United States but also enhancing cooperation with the Philippines, Australia, South Korea, and NATO.

Those policies largely continued the vision of the late Shinzo Abe, Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, who advocated a more assertive Japanese foreign policy.

“But I think [Kishida] went beyond Abe in many ways,” said Daniel Sneider, an East Asia policy specialist at Stanford University.

Under Kishida, Japan “moved beyond the kind of narrow definitions of self-defense that were the hallmark of Japanese security policy for so many decades,” Sneider added.

Ukraine war impact

A main reason Kishida was able to enact many significant changes to Japan’s security policy was Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began four months after Kishida took office.

“Kishida understood very quickly that this was a huge turning point in postwar history,” Sneider said.

Although the Ukraine war was on the other side of the world, Kishida viewed it as a violation of the fundamental principles of the post-World War II international order, “the first of which was not to use force to change boundaries,” Sneider said.

For many Japanese, the lesson of Ukraine was clear: the country needed a more proactive foreign policy – especially with Russia next door and China and North Korea increasingly intent on upsetting the U.S.-led regional order.

“Ukraine’s example was perfect to convince Japanese people that, look, talking peacefully is not enough – something else needs to be done,” said Mieko Nakabayashi, a former Japanese lawmaker and professor at Tokyo’s Waseda University.

“Mr. Kishida used that rhetoric very well – and it was not only rhetoric, but a reality in the world. Therefore, it was very convincing,” Nakabayashi said.

Kishida responded by quickly joining U.S.-led economic sanctions against Russia. Japan also sent Ukraine large amounts of humanitarian and military aid, which although non-lethal was unprecedented in Japan’s modern history.

Taiwan support

For Kishida, another foreign policy focus was Taiwan, the self-ruled island that China views as its own and has threatened to invade.

Japan has much to lose if a regional war over Taiwan erupted. Its westernmost inhabited island is just 100 kilometers from Taiwan. And Japan hosts over 50,000 U.S. troops, who analysts say would likely be drawn into any Taiwan conflict.

Although Japan has not committed to defending Taiwan, Kishida has expanded Japan’s rhetorical support for the island democracy. He has also boosted security cooperation with countries who aim to preserve the status quo in the Taiwan Strait.

At international forums, Kishida repeatedly warned that “Ukraine today may be East Asia tomorrow,” a statement many saw as an implicit reference to the dangers of China invading Taiwan.

Tough legacy at home

Kishida’s more assertive, values-laden foreign policy won him admirers throughout the West, but his legacy at home is more complicated. 

During his three years in office, Kishida suffered consistently low approval ratings – one poll in July suggested that only 15.5% of Japanese approved of his Cabinet.

Many Japanese voters appear unhappy with Kishida’s handling of the economy. Not only did the policies of Kishida’s government fail to fix Japan’s long-standing stagnation, he and his cabinet struggled to respond to newfound inflation, which drove up consumer prices, especially following the Ukraine war.

Kishida’s LDP also faced a series of domestic controversies, including one involving millions of dollars in undocumented political funds.

In Kobayashi’s view, Kishida exerted more effort trying to protect his political allies than uncovering who was responsible for the allegedly misappropriated funds.

“The perception [of Kishida] outside of Japan and inside of Japan are very different,” she said. “He was respected by international leaders because of his consistent role to protect democracy…however, looking at him from inside Japan, he lacked leadership.”
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BEIJING — China has uncovered widespread corruption in its funeral services industry, state media said on Wednesday, with offenses such as illegal fees and cemeteries committed by long-time managers and officials of funeral homes.

Just last week a Chinese company was caught up in a scandal over the illegal harvesting, theft and resale of thousands of corpses, some from funeral homes, after a report by state-backed outlet the Paper went viral on social media.

Investigations by disciplinary authorities across the provinces of Anhui, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Sichuan and Yunnan have led to numerous accusations of violations by employees of funeral parlors and similar bodies, the state-run China Daily said on Wednesday.

Dozens of cases have emerged since investigations started at the beginning of the year, it added, and many of those targeted have extensive industry experience.

China has waged an all-out war on corruption in many industries from the start of the year, as part of a rigid, sweeping campaign pursued by President Xi Jinping since he took power in 2012.

Graft campaigns in Anhui, Liaoning and Jilin exposed funeral parlors charging illegal fees, along with illegal construction and operation of cemeteries and staff corruption, said the Global Times, a mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party.

In the eastern province of Anhui, Communist Party investigators detained Zhang Duo, an employee of the Panji district funeral home in Huainan city, for “suspected serious violations of discipline and law,” the local government said.

The term is a euphemism that usually refers to graft cases.

Zhang could not immediately be reached for comment.

In the southwestern province of Sichuan, discipline officials in the city of Dazhou launched proceedings against 89 people, and detained six, the China Daily said.

Also being investigated is a manager surnamed Yang, working at two companies in the province’s Quxian county, with more than 30 years in the funeral business, the government said in a statement, but gave no details.

Authorities in northeastern Jilin have also stepped up efforts to combat misconduct and corruption in the industry, in response to complaints from the public, state media said.

Anti-graft watchdog the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) has doubled down on a pledge to relentlessly carry out Xi’s orders to catch corrupt and disloyal officials.

Its website has repeatedly emphasized the importance of a strong stance against corruption, bribery and the core issues that cause the problems.
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Vancouver, British Columbia — Tens of thousands of people have signed online petitions for the release of environmentalist Paul Watson, the controversial activist arrested in Greenland on an extradition request by the Japanese government.

Watson’s latest legal journey started July 21 in Nuuk, Greenland, when he was arrested aboard his foundation’s ship, the John Paul DeJoria.

His arrest and extradition appear to be tied to alleged actions in 2010 against the Japanese whaling vessel Shonan Maru 2.

For the past several decades, Watson has been known to take severe measures, including the ramming and disabling of whaling ships, to stop the commercial harvesting of whales. Many of the ships were from Japan. He also gained further notoriety as the focus of the reality TV series “Whale Wars.”

The John Paul DeJoria’s captain, Lockhart MacLean, said it made a regular stop for provisions when Danish national police came aboard after a friendly visit by Greenlandic police. Greenland is a territory of Denmark.

“So, these were police that had been flown in from Copenhagen, came on board, and they had a very different attitude,” MacLean said. “They’re much more, much more aggressive and firm, and obviously, within a few minutes, they had taken Paul Watson in cuffs into a van, off the ship.”

MacLean said the ship will continue to travel via the Panama Canal into the Pacific Ocean in an effort to stop Japanese whaling.  

Watson, a 73-year-old Canadian American, has been arrested many times.

Among the original members of Greenpeace, created in 1972 in Vancouver, he split from that organization five years later to form the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Under that group, he garnered worldwide headlines for ramming whaling ships at sea. He formed the Captain Paul Watson Foundation in 2022.

Rex Weyler was the director of the original Greenpeace and co-founded Greenpeace International in 1979.

He says Watson’s arrests usually strengthen his cause.

“Paul Watson being arrested is one of his tactics, and it was one of our tactics at Greenpeace, which is to challenge what the whalers or sealers or other extractors of ecological resources were doing,” Weyler said. “And if they wanted to arrest us, that’s fine, because when they arrest us, it only heightens the story. And that’s what we’re trying to do.”

For Teale Phelps Bondaroff, research director of OceansAsia, Watson’s arrest was a surprise. Bondaroff, who has worked for Sea Shepherd in the past, said the arrest shows that commercial harvesting of whales still exists.

“Anything like this draws attention to the issue. One of the things I find is interesting is a lot of folks, when you talk about whaling, see it as something of the past and aren’t aware of the fact that there are still countries that are whaling today,” Bondaroff said.

MacLean said because of Watson’s age, a 15-year prison sentence in Japan would amount to a life sentence. He hopes that a freed Watson will manage to rejoin them on their campaign against Japanese whaling.

The Japanese Foreign Ministry was asked to comment on this story through the Japanese Embassy in Ottawa but did not respond.
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Taipei, Taiwan — Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka is in China for a 10-day visit that includes meetings with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. Rabuka is the third South Pacific leader to visit China since early July as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive with leaders and governments in the region.

Analysts say Rabuka is likely to use his trip to promote his vision for regional order in the Pacific and focus on Fiji’s economic development. The trip is Rabuka’s first to China since he was elected in late 2022.

“I expect Rabuka to use his trip as an opportunity to promote his ‘Zone of Peace’ vision for Pacific foreign policy,” said Parker Novak, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub and Indo-Pacific Security Initiative, adding that Rabuka may push Beijing to “be a friendly power” in the Pacific.

Other experts say Rabuka will also try to deepen economic ties with China, including restoring the bilateral tourism relationship.

“Rabuka does focus much more on the economic aspect of Fiji’s relationship with China, including the support for development and the infrastructure support,” Tess Newton Cain, an adjunct associate professor at Griffith Asia Institute in Australia, told VOA by phone.

In a radio interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation on August 12, Rabuka said he is looking to learn from China’s experience in poverty alleviation, describing Beijing’s achievement as an inspiration for countries in the Pacific and around the world.

Rabuka is also expected to seek support from Beijing to address Fiji’s development needs.

Following his meeting with Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation’s summit in San Francisco last November, Rabuka said Fiji might look to collaborate with China on modernizing port facilities and shipyards, which he said were the key focus of the island nation’s sustainable economic development.

Beijing may try to use the visit to shore up its security presence in the region, Novak told VOA.

“Beijing may try to entice Rabuka to increase security cooperation between China and Fiji, but I think Rabuka would be hesitant to do so,” he said in a phone interview.

Earlier this year, Fiji agreed to maintain a policing deal with China that has sparked concern on the island among some police and political leaders and from Australia. The deal, which was signed in 2011 when the country was still under military rule, allows for the exchange of intelligence, visits, training and the supply of police equipment.

Rabuka, however, has remained cautious about advancing Fiji’s security relationship with China since he took office. Despite agreeing to uphold Fiji’s policing cooperation agreement with China in March, his government removed Chinese police officers from the Fijian police force, reiterating his concern about Beijing’s growing security presence in the region.

During his visit to Australia last October, Rabuka said he was more comfortable “dealing with traditional friends” like Australia, which shares “the same brand of democracy” as Fiji.

Beijing will also seek to grow its regional influence through state visits by Pacific leaders, Novak adds.

“The recent trips to the PRC by Pacific leaders from the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and now Fiji show how Beijing continues to use high-level visits as a diplomatic tool to advance its interests in the region,” he told VOA, using the acronym for China’s official name, the People’s Republic of China.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Rabuka’s visit highlights the “close relations” between China and the South Pacific region.

“[Leaders] of the two countries will have in-depth exchanges of views on China-Fiji relations and important issues of mutual interest,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said in a statement released on August 9.

While Beijing looks to increase engagement with Pacific Island countries, Anne Marie Brady, a political science professor at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, told VOA that China is imposing more conditions on these relationships, such as accepting more military and intelligence links with Chinese government agencies.

China has been deepening security ties with South Pacific countries in recent years, signing several security-related agreements with the Solomon Islands in 2022 and providing policing assistance to Kiribati.

China has also supported some key infrastructure projects in several South Pacific countries, including the 10,000-seat sports stadium in the Solomon Islands, the presidential palace in Vanuatu, and an airstrip in Kiribati.

Novak said that while China has tried to reframe the nature of its development aid to the Pacific region and may be making small shifts towards grant-based aid, its approach remains largely the same.

“The vast majority of the PRC’s aid [to the Pacific region] continues to be provisioned through loans rather than grants, and I expect concerns about debt to continue among Pacific leaders,” he told VOA.

Beijing’s increasing presence in the security and development sector in the South Pacific has prompted democratic countries, including the United States, Australia, and Japan, to step up their engagement with regional countries as well, including unveiling a plan to open an undersea cable connectivity and resilience center and providing more support in areas such as climate change, economic development, and maritime security.

As geopolitical competition between large countries drives increased engagement with Pacific countries, Newton Cain said the time and energy required for Pacific Island countries to manage the increased tempo of visits and talks could lead to the de-prioritization of regional issues at the upcoming Pacific Islands Forum, which begins on August 26 in Tonga.
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SYDNEY — Researchers in Australia have developed a drug that could revolutionize treatment for millions of diabetes patients around the world.  

Scientists in the U.S., China and Australia are designing treatments that imitate the body’s natural response to changing blood glucose, or sugar, levels and respond instantly.  

The Australian team is handling one of several research projects that have developed different types of so-called ‘smart insulins,’ which sits in the body of a diabetes patient and is activated only when it is needed. 

The aim is to keep glucose levels within a safe range, avoiding excessively high blood glucose, which is called hyperglycaemia, and excessively low blood sugar levels, known as hypoglycaemia.    

The new treatments are not cures for diabetes but could ease the burden on patients.

Australian researchers say their new insulin delivery method would offer one injection every three days. Patients currently have to administer synthetic insulin up to 10 times a day.

Christoph Hagemeyer, a professor at the Australian Center for Blood Diseases at Monash University and a lead researcher in the study, told Australian Broadcasting Corp. Tuesday how the technology works.

“Smart insulin is responding to sugar levels in the blood,” he said. “In our case we are not actually making the insulin molecule smart, but we are loading the insulin onto a nanoparticle, which has a built-in mechanism that it changes its charge from positive to negative when the sugar levels go up. And that is the trick how we can ensure that there is enough insulin onboard and it is released in a smart manner.”   

Insulin is a type of hormone that lowers the level of glucose in the blood. Glucose is a type of sugar from food that gives people energy.

Diabetes affects glucose levels in the blood and is normally split into type 1 and type 2, the most common.  Patients have a heightened risk of heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure.  

Monash University in Melbourne is part of a global effort to develop different types of smart insulins. It includes teams at Stanford University in the United States and Zhejiang University in China.  Each project aims to develop smart insulin to act faster and more accurately to help patients with diabetes and to start trials as soon as possible.  

The World Health Organization has estimated that about 422 million people around the world have diabetes and that 1.5 million deaths are directly attributed to the chronic disease each year. 
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