The dwindling witnesses to the world’s first atomic bombing marked its 75th anniversary Thursday, with the mayor and others noting the Japanese government’s refusal to sign a nuclear weapons ban treaty, highlighting its hypocrisy.Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui urged world leaders to more seriously commit to nuclear disarmament, pointing out Japan’s failures.”I ask the Japanese government to heed the appeal of the (bombing survivors) to sign, ratify and become a party to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons,” Matsui said. “As the only nation to suffer a nuclear attack, Japan must persuade the global public to unite with the spirit of Hiroshima.”His speech highlights what survivors feel is the hypocrisy of Japan’s government, which hosts 50,000 American troops and is protected by the U.S. nuclear umbrella. Tokyo has not signed the nuclear weapons ban treaty adopted in 2017, despite its non-nuclear pledge, a failure to act that atomic bombing survivors and pacifist groups call insincere.The U.S. dropped its first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, destroying the city and killing 140,000 people, mostly civilians and including many children. The U.S. dropped a second bomb three days later on Nagasaki, killing another 70,000. Japan surrendered August 15, ending World War II and its nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.Survivors, their relatives and other participants marked the 8:15 a.m. blast anniversary Thursday with a minute of silence.Thursday’s peace ceremony at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park was scaled down, with the number of attendants reduced to fewer than 1,000, or one-tenth of past years, because of the coronavirus pandemic.Some survivors and their relatives visited and prayed at the park’s cenotaph hours before the ceremony began. The registry of the atomic bombing victims is stored at the cenotaph, whose inscription reads “Let all the souls here rest in peace for we shall not repeat the mistake.”An aging group of survivors, known as hibakusha, feel a growing urgency to tell their stories, in hopes of reaching a younger generation.On the 75th anniversary, elderly survivors, whose average age now exceeds 83, lamented the slow progress of nuclear disarmament.They expressed anger over what they said was the Japanese government’s reluctance to help and listen to those who suffered from the atomic bombing.”Many survivors are offended by the prime minister of this country who does not sign the nuclear weapons prohibition treaty,” said Keiko Ogura, 84, who survived the atomic bombing at age 8. “We need non-nuclear states to help us and pressure the Japanese government into signing.”Matsui urged world leaders, especially those from nuclear weapons states, to visit Hiroshima and see the reality of the atomic bombing.
…
Category: East
East news. East is the direction toward which the Earth rotates about its axis, and therefore the general direction from which the Sun appears to rise. The practice of praying towards the East is older than Christianity, but has been adopted by this religion as the Orient was thought of as containing mankind’s original home
New Coronavirus Clusters Emerge in Jakarta Office Buildings
Two months ago, Jakarta transitioned away from large-scale social restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, allowing people like Sri Hendary to resume normal activities like working at the office. But this past Monday, Sri had to revert to working from home when her office decided the risk of workplace infection became too great. “We now work in shifts,” said Sri, who works at a shipping company that abides the strict health protocols enforced in most Jakarta office buildings. “In our building, every person has to get their temperature checked with a thermal scan, disinfect their hands and shoes, and wear a mask at all times,” she explained. FILE – Officials take the body temperature reading of worshippers as a precaution against the new coronavirus outbreak, outside a mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia, July 31, 2020.Spooked by a cluster of new outbreaks, her managers took action. “The staff comes into the office once a week only for a few hours, but for those who are above 50 years old, including me, we are advised to work only from home.” Tenfold increase Indonesia’s COVID-19 Task Force recorded at least 90 new coronavirus clusters in Jakarta office buildings on July 28, comprising a total of 459 confirmed workplace cases — a tenfold increase since large-scale social restrictions concluded in early May. Of these clusters, 18 were discovered in offices of different Indonesian ministries. FILE – An employee wearing protective gear as a precaution against the new coronavirus holds a banner displaying information about the virus, at the Harmoni Central Busway station in Jakarta, July 16, 2020.Task force spokesperson Wiku Adisasmito says these clusters emerged because some businesses are neglecting health protocols. “Internationally, we are still in a pandemic,” he told VOA. “It has been advised to work from home, especially for those who are at higher risks. Offices should also limit the working hours and the room capacity should be at 50%. “If people are not disciplined in maintaining the health and safety guidelines, then of course clusters can happen,” he added. Elizabeth Selina, who works at an office in West Jakarta, says complacency about workplace safety guidelines have left her constantly worried about contracting the virus. “At first we had to disinfect our hands when we entered, but after some time, I’ve seen people who just walk in without doing that,” she said. “We also have to wear a mask, but at one point, some of the staff will take it off.” Selina says some colleagues are confined to close quarters for several hours, sometimes with poor ventilation. She hopes the government will impose stricter enforcement of workplace safety protocols, including regular testing of those who work on site. Lax oversight University of Indonesia epidemiologist Pandu Riono blames the latest outbreak on a lack of supervision and education about workplace protocol enforcement. A lot of offices have opened up their buildings, he said, without properly educating the staff about the importance of cleanliness and maintaining a physical distance. “I had identified potential clusters that can happen with the easing of [restrictions],” said Riono, explaining that he had urged government health officials in May to require physical distancing in offices, factories, markets, or any place where crowds gather. Dicky Budiman, an epidemiologist from Australia’s Griffith University, says the government should hold off opening non-essential offices until the end of the year. “There is no other choice for Indonesia, unless you want to risk a large increase in infection and death,” Budiman told local news outlet Kompas. FILE – A security guard wearing protective equipment looks on during a coronavirus test for passengers of long-distance trains at Senen Train Station in Jakarta, Indonesia, July 27, 2020.Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has vowed to improve enforcement oversight and expand COVID-19 testing, promising to name companies that fail to comply. “The Jakarta Government will continue to supervise every business and public activity in Jakarta,” he said during an online press conference July 30. “We will formally announce in our website any violations and the consequences,” he said. “We will also impose a progressive fine for repeat offenders and companies that have received prior warnings.” Baswedan says the head of the office must take actions to protect their workers and continue to stress the importance of adhering to the health and safety protocols, as well as continuously supervising the day-to-day activities in the building. “If a workplace does not care about its workers, the consequence is potential infection,” he said. “When that happens, there has to be a closure and, in the end, everyone will lose.” Indonesia now has more than 116,871 confirmed cases, with 5,452 deaths, the highest in Southeast Asia.
…
India Widens China App Ban to Cover More From Xiaomi, Baidu
India has banned some mobile apps of Chinese companies such as Xiaomi Corp and Baidu Inc, three sources told Reuters on Wednesday, in New Delhi’s latest move to hit Chinese companies following a border clash between the neighbors.
India in June outlawed 59 Chinese apps for threatening the country’s “sovereignty and integrity,” including ByteDance’s video-sharing app TikTok, Alibaba’s UC Browser and Xiaomi’s Mi Community app.
Another ban was imposed in recent weeks on about 47 apps which mostly contained clones, or simply different versions, of the already banned apps, the sources said.
Unlike its June move, the government did not make its latest decision public, but there are a few new apps that have made it to that list, including Xiaomi’s Mi Browser Pro and Baidu’s search apps, the sources said.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many new apps have been affected.
India’s IT Ministry and the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi did not respond to a request for comment. China has previously criticized India’s decision to ban the apps.
A spokesman for Xiaomi in India said the company was trying to understand the development and will take appropriate measures. Baidu declined to comment.
A ban on the Mi Browser, which comes pre-loaded on most Xiaomi smartphones, could potentially mean the Chinese firm will need to stop installing it on new devices it sells in India.
Xiaomi is India’s No.1 smartphone seller with close to 90 million users, according to Hong Kong-based tech researcher Counterpoint.
The bans are part of India’s moves to counter China’s dominant presence in the country’s internet services market following a border clash in June between the two nuclear-armed neighbors in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed.
India has also made approval processes more stringent for Chinese companies wanting to invest in the country, and also tightened norms for Chinese companies wanting to participate in government tenders.
…
Thai Army Chief Says ‘Hatred of Nation’ Bigger Threat Than Virus
Thailand’s powerful army chief on Wednesday told cadets that the “hatred of the nation” plaguing the country was a bigger threat than the coronavirus, as a nascent pro-democracy movement grows bolder.
The kingdom has seen near-daily protests for more than two weeks by mostly young Thais, fuelled by their anger at a pro-military royalist government headed by former army chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha.
The most overt show of discontent came Monday night, when young students dressed in Harry Potter robes cheered on a lawyer as he led a discussion on the monarchy’s role in Thailand.
During a visit to a military academy on Wednesday, army chief Apirat Kongsompong — an arch-royalist who has slammed pro-democracy figures in the past — spoke obliquely about the “disease” of criticising one’s country.
“COVID-19 can be cured… but the disease that cannot be cured is the hatred of the nation,” the general said.
“We cannot cure people who hate their nation.”
Thailand’s politics has long been defined by a cycle of violent protests and military coups, in apparent zealous protection of the monarchy.
The super-rich King Maha Vajiralongkorn sits at the apex of Thai power, and is protected from open criticism by harsh royal defamation laws.
Premier Prayut, who led the last coup in 2014, is seen as a product of the military’s legacy in politics, and much of his cabinet is stacked with generals and royalist establishment elite.
His administration has faced criticism for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has slammed the Thai economy and left millions jobless.
Social-media savvy protesters have called for his government’s ouster and amendments to a 2017 military-scripted constitution, which critics say unfairly stacks the power in favour of the military-aligned ruling party.
Prayut appeared to strike a conciliatory tone Tuesday, saying that a committee has been set up to discuss constitutional amendments and floated “public forums with the people, including the young” to discuss grievances.
…
Vietnam Says Contagion ‘Under Control’ in Virus Epicenter but Spread Elsewhere
A new coronavirus outbreak in Vietnam spread to two more provinces on Wednesday, the country’s health minister said, as the COVID-19 task force declared the contagion “under control” in the central city where the outbreak began.
Aggressive contact-tracing, targeted testing and strict quarantining had helped Vietnam contain earlier outbreaks, but it is now battling infections in at least 10 cities and provinces, after going more than three months without domestic transmission.
The health ministry confirmed two new cases on Wednesday, bringing Vietnam’s total infections to 672, with 8 deaths.
The new outbreak was first reported on July 25 in the tourist resort city of Danang and has spread to major urban centers like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, which have since closed entertainment venues, restricted gatherings and tested tens of thousands of people.
Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long told state media on Wednesday the outbreak had expanded to the provinces of Bac Giang near Hanoi and Lang Son, bordering China, both linked to the Danang infections.
State media and government officials have made strong statements against illegal immigration since the new outbreak, but no official links have been made.
The outbreak in Danang, currently under lockdown alongside Quang Nam province, was “under control,” the government’s COVID-19 steering committee said late Tuesday.
The source of the Danang outbreak remains unclear.
All but six of its cases have been traced to three of the city’s hospitals, the committee said, and the six had not infected anyone else.
“The second wave of the pandemic may be happening elsewhere in the world, but we are determined to not let that happen in Vietnam,” committee head Vu Duc Dam said in the statement, which predicted more cases and deaths ahead.
“We do not intend to repeat the story of a widespread, national lockdown either. If everything is done well, we are confident we can fight the disease.”
…
North Korean Border City Rocked by Apparent Deadly Explosion
A series of explosions rocked a North Korean city near the border with China this week, according to multiple reports, resulting in possible casualties.Neither North Korean officials nor state media have commented on the blasts, which reportedly occurred late Monday in a residential area in the city of Hyesan.Videos, posted by the Associated Press and the Seoul-based Daily NK, showed repeated explosions, along with orange flames and dark smoke rising from a neighborhood in Hyesan. The videos were shot from China, which lies just across the Yalu River from North Korea.Daily NK, which relies on a network of anonymous sources across North Korea, reported that the explosion killed at least 15 people. That figure has not been confirmed.The outlet said the initial blast appeared to be caused by a gas leak in a house, which exploded a liquid petroleum gas cylinder. That set off as many as 10 other explosions at nearby houses, it reported.North Korea frequently does not report deadly accidents.
…
In Hong Kong, Some Activists Fear Academic Freedom Will Suffer Under National Security Law
When lecturer Shiu Ka-Chun received a letter from his university last week, he was shocked to find that he had been effectively fired. Shiu, also a legislator, has taught social work at the Baptist University of Hong Kong for 11 years, where his teaching had been consistently rated as excellent. He was jailed last year for “inciting public nuisance” in the 2014 civil disobedience Occupy Central movement and after his release, he was removed from teaching duties pending disciplinary proceedings linked to his conviction. Shiu said his effective dismissal amounted to “political persecution” but the university gave him no explanation. He said he felt “angry, upset and insulted.” The university declined to comment on his case. Law professor Benny Tai, one of the founders of the 2014 occupy movement jailed last year on public nuisance charges for his role, was also fired by the University of Hong Kong last week. Tai lamented that academics in Hong Kong are “no longer free to make controversial statements about politically or socially controversial matters.” Shui and Tai’s dismissals occurred the same week as the arrests of four students on national security charges, the disqualification of 12 pro-democracy legislative candidates and news of Hong Kong police issuing arrest warrants for six Hong Kong activists abroad. The incidents took place within a month of the passing of a strict, broadly defined national security law that, among other things, bans acts of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces. Although Tai’s dismissal was widely considered an indicator of the demise of the city’s academic freedom, China’s liaison office and the Beijing-owned press in Hong Kong triumphantly declared it as “a deed of justice” for an academic who has spread “poisonous” political thinking among youngsters. The Wen Wei Po newspaper compared Tai’s dismissal to the removal of “a poisonous cancer” and portrayed Tai in a cartoon as a virus being dusted away by a broom. Hong Kong and Chinese officials have escalated their rhetoric on the education sector in recent months, accusing teachers of “inciting” anti-China sentiments and encouraging students to oppose the authorities, and blaming them for the mass, anti-government protests last year. The national security law is aimed at stamping out activities like the pro-democracy protests, which turned increasingly violent as frustrations mounted. Hong Kong’s top leader, Carrie Lam, told a forum days after the national security law was passed last month that social movements, from the Occupy movement in 2014 to last year’s anti-government movement, indicate that “anti-China forces have infiltrated school campuses.”Protesters walk on top of a bridge near Hong Kong Baptist University, in Hong Kong, Nov. 16, 2019. Most anti-government demonstrators abandoned their positions Saturday.Citing statistics that some 40% of those arrested in the anti-government protests were students and 45% of them were under 18, she vowed to push national security law in schools and colleges across Hong Kong, saying the law would put education “back on the right track.” The national security law stipulates that the government tighten supervision of schools to “safeguard national security” and prevent terrorist activities. Hong Kong’s security minister, John Lee, a member of the newly formed national security committee, also told the China-owned Ta Kung Pao newspaper last week that his first priority would be to “deal with the schools” and the authorities would get rid of the “bad apples” to “rescue students from being poisoned.” “The national security committee… would punish public enemies severely and take preventive measures to obliterate viruses that endanger national security within one or two years,” Lee said. The education authorities have been putting pressure on schools and teachers to increasingly toe the government line. The education secretary told schools in June to discipline students or teachers who protest the national security law. The authorities also launched new mandatory requirements for new teachers to be trained on professional conduct and national development. After the law passed, the education chief banned students from singing protest songs, posting political slogans or forming human chains. He also told schools they could call the police if students showed disrespect toward the national anthem. A teacher had her contract terminated after she allowed students to sing protest songs at their music examination. The education bureau also told schools to review their library books to avoid falling afoul of the new law after public libraries pulled several titles by pro-democracy politicians. The bureau has also warned that if schools do not cooperate with the bureau’s investigation of teachers who had “conduct issues” including advocacy of their political positions, it could revoke the principals’ and teachers’ licenses. With some receiving warnings and under the threat of having their contracts terminated, teachers say the atmosphere has been increasingly stifling. A teacher who taught liberal studies — a subject widely vilified by officials for supposedly promoting critical views of the authorities — was given a warning by the education bureau and removed from his duties after airing anti-police brutality rhetoric online. He said he now chooses his words very carefully. “Self-censorship has become a common practice among many teachers,” he said. “Now, we avoid discussing politics. Every single word can be used against us.” Many critics say the restrictions on the freedom of thought and expression will deal a heavy blow to Hong Kong’s education. Kenneth Chan, political scientist at the Baptist University of Hong Kong, said the message that has been sent to academics is “behave and stay within the perimeters of the ivory tower or face the consequences of prosecution.” Ip Kin-yuen, a legislator for the education constituency, said teaching quality will be heavily compromised when teachers cannot air their views freely. “If teachers are worried about being punished for what they teach and say, the quality of education will suffer,” he said. “Just having the national security law there is enough to stifle teachers.” Sociology professor Chan Kin Man, who has also been jailed as a co-founder of the 2014 Occupy movement, said the new law has proven to be an effective tool for silencing free speech as it punishes non-violent acts that supposedly threaten national security. “This is having a huge impact on speech,” he said.
…
Rights Groups Decry Malaysia Probe of Al Jazeera
Malaysia’s recent moves to arrest and deport a Bangladeshi man for criticizing the government’s treatment of migrant workers on a news show underscore the country’s backsliding on press freedom in recent months, rights groups say. Authorities arrested Mohamad Rayhan Kabir on July 24, weeks after revoking his work permit over an on-camera interview he gave the Qatari-based news organization Al-Jazeera’s 101 East news program. In the July 3 episode, “Locked Up in Malaysia’s Lockdown,” he accuses the government of racism for targeting fellow migrant workers for arrest in its response to the coronavirus pandemic. Kabir remains in custody without charge. Authorities have yet to explain what laws they suspect him of breaking, even while officials have threatened to deport Kabir and bar his return to Malaysia forever. Authorities have moved against Al-Jazeera, too, deposing the journalists who worked on the episode in a sedition probe and accusing the Qatari news outlet of filming without the requisite licensing. Police raided its offices in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital, on Tuesday, seizing two computers. Censorship redux Combined with the pressure on Al-Jazeera, Kabir’s arrest “clearly shows that the current authorities in Malaysia don’t tolerate any independent reporting and consequently have very little respect for press freedom,” said Daniel Bastard, Asia Pacific director for Reporters Without Borders (RSF). Rights groups agree that Malaysia’s media climate took a sharp turn for the worse with the surprise collapse of a reformist government in February and the return to power of the corruption-mired United Malay National Organization. Since UMNO’s revival, they say, more than a dozen people have been arrested, charged or questioned for comments deemed critical of the new regime, including clean-government advocates, journalists and opposition lawmakers. Bastard called it a “sad reminder” of the stifling press environment that mired much of UMNO’s first stint in power, which ended with its defeat at the polls in 2018 to former party leader turned critic Mahathir Mohamad. “Several journalists told RSF they don’t dare anymore to cover some subjects as they would feel enabled to do under Mahathir’s government,” he said. “The environment has dramatically changed, and it seems self-censorship has become the new normal again.” Fear of reprisal now has news outlets censoring their readers as well. Malaysia’s attorney general dragged local online news outlet Malaysiakini into court last month over comments some readers left on its site chiding the judiciary. Taking heed, Al-Jazeera recently shut down the comments section to its 101 East episode on Malaysia’s lockdown on YouTube. Both outlets have denied any wrongdoing and stood by their reporting.Staffs of news broadcaster Al Jazeera leave Bukit Aman police headquarters after being questioned by the Malaysian police over a documentary about the country’s arrests of undocumented migrants, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, July 10, 2020.Shooting the messenger Rights groups say Kabir’s arrest will also make the millions of migrant workers in Malaysia all the more reluctant to speak to the press about alleged abuses, raising the risk that they will fester. “Now the implication is that most other migrant workers will be completely afraid of speaking out,” said Wathshlah Naidu, executive director of Malaysia’s Center for Independent Journalism. “The moment you speak out … the investigation is not going to be on what you are alleging, but the investigation is going to be on you. And that’s what happened to Mr. Kabir.” she said. The government was quick to reject the claims of racial bias Kabir and others made to 101 East, insisting the raids on migrant communities around Kuala Lumpur and its mass arrests of undocumented workers were needed to stem the spread of the coronavirus. But even before the outbreak, reports of abuse were rife on the palm plantations and factory floors were many of Malaysia’s several million migrant workers toil in conditions that can verge on what rights groups call modern-day slavery. Matthew Bugher, Asia program director for freedom of expression advocates Article 19, said Kabir’s arrest will further stifle the media’s ability to bring those abuses to light. “When people are fearful that expressing their concerns might lead to criminal charges, they’re much [less] likely to report cases to authorities or to the media. And especially in cases of vulnerable populations like migrant workers, refugees, they might be scared to go to authorities, so press freedom is particularly important to bring out those types of concerns,” he said. Viral infractions Naidu said Kabir’s arrest and other efforts to muscle the media into towing the government line have even broader implications amid the pandemic. “Especially in [the] time of COVID, where we rely very heavily on media for updated, reliable and timely information, the implication would be information would be limited, information would perhaps not necessarily be very balanced because you [journalists] may want to sort of adopt the government’s position because you are working within this kind of climate of fear,” she said. That goes for reporting on the government’s response to the pandemic, as well, Bugher added. “There has been a distinct pattern under the COVID-19 crisis of media workers targeted under Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Act and Penal Code for simply doing their job,” the International Federation of Journalists said in a statement last month. “It is urgent for Malaysia during the COVID-19 pandemic to prioritize the public’s right to know and for the media to be able to report freely and fairly without the threat of persecution.”
…
Pompeo Vows to Protect Hong Kong Activists Sought Abroad
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday vowed to protect Hong Kong pro-democracy campaigners who have fled the city and denounced China after Beijing said that police had ordered the arrests of overseas activists. “The Chinese Communist Party cannot tolerate the free thinking of its own people, and increasingly is trying to extend its reach outside China’s borders,” Pompeo said in a statement. “The United States and other free nations will continue to protect our peoples from the long arm of Beijing’s authoritarianism.” In an accompanying tweet, Pompeo said that Washington “condemns the Chinese Communist Party’s attempt to prosecute pro-democracy advocates resident outside of China, including in the United States.” Chinese state media said late Friday that Hong Kong police had ordered the arrest of six pro-democracy activists living in exile on suspicion of violating a tough new security law. One of them, Samuel Chu, head of the Washington-based Hong Kong Democracy Council, wrote on Twitter that he has been a U.S. citizen for 25 years. FILE – Pro-democracy activist Nathan Law attends a press conference in Hong Kong, January 27, 2018.The most prominent person targeted was 27-year-old campaigner Nathan Law, who recently fled Hong Kong for Britain and called the charges against him “trumped up.” Hong Kong police refused to comment on the charges. But China’s ambassador to the United States, Cui Tiankai, appeared to confirm and defend the charges. “All these law enforcement actions are taken according to the law,” Cui said in response to a question at the Aspen Security Forum. “Anybody, if they violate the law, they should be punished. That’s it. It doesn’t matter what kind of political views they might have.” China in late June passed a security law that bans subversion and other perceived offenses in the financial hub, sending a chill through a city that witnessed wide and occasionally destructive pro-democracy protests last year. The United States has denounced the law and said it would end special treatment for Hong Kong, to which Beijing promised freedoms before Britain handed back the territory in 1997.
…
Malaysia Police Raid Al Jazeera’s Office, Seize Computers
Malaysian police raided the office of news broadcaster Al Jazeera and two local TV stations on Tuesday, seizing computers as part of an investigation into a documentary on undocumented migrants that enraged the government.Al Jazeera, a Qatari-state owned broadcaster, said in a statement that police seized two computers during the raid, which it called a “troubling escalation” in a government crackdown on media freedom. It urged Malaysian authorities to cease the criminal investigation.Police opened an investigation last month into the Al Jazeera documentary on the treatment of undocumented migrants after officials complained it was inaccurate and biased. Seven Al Jazeera staff members have been grilled by police as part of the probe for alleged sedition, defamation and violating the Communications and Multimedia Act.Police obtained court warrants to search the offices of Al Jazeera as well as local broadcasters Astro and Unifitv, criminal investigation chief Huzir Mohamed said in a statement. The two local TV stations had reportedly aired the video.Huzir said the raids were conducted jointly with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, which is also investigating the stations.He said police seized computers which will be sent for further analysis and took statements from witnesses during the raids. “No individual or entity will be spared from action if they have violated the law,” he said.Al Jazeera said the raid was “an attack on press freedom as a whole” and urged Malaysian authorities to cease the criminal investigation.”Conducting a raid on our office and seizing computers is a troubling escalation in the authorities’ crackdown on media freedom and shows the lengths they are prepared to take to try to intimidate journalists,” said Giles Trendle, managing director of Al Jazeera English.”Al Jazeera stands by our journalists and we stand by our reporting. Our staff did their jobs and they’ve got nothing to answer for or apologize for. Journalism is not a crime,” he said.The documentary, titled “Locked Up in Malaysia’s Lockdown,” investigated undocumented immigrants it said were at risk during the coronavirus pandemic. More than 2,000 migrant workers were arrested during raids in areas in Kuala Lumpur that were placed under tight virus lockdowns.Malaysian authorities also detained a Bangladeshi man interviewed in the documentary after revoking his work permit, and said they will deport him for criticizing the government over its handling of undocumented migrants.”The authorities’ relentless pursuit of Al Jazeera seems to be driven by a desire to punish journalists who aired Malaysia’s dirty laundry rather than a good faith application of the law,” said Matthew Bugher, head of the Asia program of British-based rights group ARTICLE 19.He said Malaysia should investigate the rights violations shown in the documentary instead of targeting the filmmakers.Rights activists have voiced concern over a clampdown on freedom of speech and media independence under new Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who took power in March.Astro was recently fined for airing an Al Jazeera documentary in 2015 about the 2006 murder of a Mongolian woman that allegedly contained “offensive content.”Popular online news portal Malaysiakini and its editor face rare contempt proceedings from the attorney general over comments posted by readers against the judiciary.Police also questioned an activist about a social media post alleging mistreatment of refugees at immigration detention centers.A journalist from the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post was also questioned earlier about her reporting on migrant arrests.
…
Trump’s Demand for US Cut of TikTok Deal Is Unprecedented
President Donald Trump’s demand that the U.S. government get a cut from a potential Microsoft purchase of TikTok is the latest unprecedented scenario in an unprecedented situation. Microsoft is in talks to buy parts of TikTok, a forced sale after Trump threatened to ban the Chinese-owned video app, which claims 100 million U.S. users and hundreds of millions globally. The Trump administration says TikTok is a national-security concern. How a ban would have worked was not clear; that federal authority has never been used before with a consumer app. TikTok denies that it would send U.S. user data to the Chinese government. Microsoft did not address a potential price when it confirmed the talks. FILE – The logo of the social media video sharing app Tiktok is displayed on a tablet screen in Paris, November 21, 2019Trump said Monday to reporters that the U.S. “should get a very large percentage of that price because we’re making it possible,” adding that “we want and we think we deserve to have a big percentage of that price coming to America, coming to the Treasury.” Trump sometimes floats ideas or actions that get set aside without follow-through. Appearing on the Fox Business Network on Tuesday, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow appeared to walk back the idea of a payment to the Treasury, saying “I don’t know if that’s a key stipulation.” TikTok under reviewTikTok was under review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, known as CFIUS, a U.S. government group chaired by the Treasury Secretary that studies mergers for national-security reasons, for its acquisition of another video app, Musical.ly, in 2017. The president can approve or disapprove a transaction recommended by the interagency panel. CFIUS collects filing fees, but those top out at $300,000. “I doubt that’s what Trump has in mind,” said Hal Singer, an antitrust expert and managing director at consulting firm Econ One. “Outside of that I can’t think of any means by which the U.S. could basically get its vig on its forced transfer.” A “vig” is slang for interest on a loan, usually in the context of illegal activity, or the fee charged by a bookie for a bet. There’s no legal precedent in antitrust law for such a payment, said Gene Kimmelman, a senior adviser at the advocacy group Public Knowledge and a former antitrust official at the Department of Justice. “In terms of a foreign company agreeing to sell assets to a U.S. company subject to antitrust review, I can’t see any logical basis under which Treasury or the White House would be negotiating elements of the financial portions of the deal.” While noting that he is not an expert in all areas of U.S. law and the broad authority that the president has, he said the TikTok deal and the White House’s role in it was highly unusual. “Not in my experience have I seen any engagement from the White House in this manner,” he said. “It’s already a unique situation from start to finish with the government intervening to prevent use of a service in the U.S.” There are no “obvious antitrust or other legal bases” for the demand for “what is in effect a payoff to the U.S. government,” said Eswar Prassad, an economist at Cornell University. “The notion of a payment to the U.S. government sets a dangerous precedent of explicit entanglement between national security and economic considerations.” White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany sidestepped a question Tuesday about what authority the federal government had to collect a portion of proceeds from the potential sale of TikTok, saying “I’m not going to get ahead of the president on any official action.” Treasury did not reply to questions about what legal precedent Trump is relying on to get a payment for the TikTok deal. Microsoft committed to dealIn a statement Sunday, Microsoft had said that that it was committed to the deal “subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury.” TikTok has said that it is loved by Americans and “will be here for many years to come.” In a memo ByteDance CEO Zhang Yiming sent Chinese employees Tuesday, a translated version of which ByteDance sent to The Associated Press, he said that he felt the goal of the Trump administration was not the forced sale of TikTok’s U.S. business to an American company through CFIUS, but “a ban or even more.” A representative for Microsoft did not reply to questions about the payment demand Tuesday. TikTok declined to comment beyond its Monday statement.
…
Thai PM Urges Protesters to Back Off Constitutional Demands
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha told student protesters Tuesday “not to create chaos” after many advocated for reform of Thailand’s constitutional monarchy.Openly discussing the possibility of reforming the constitutional monarchy is generally seen as taboo in Thailand. And defaming the royal family can be punishable by up to 15 years in prison under the nation’s “lese majeste” laws.Prayuth said the parliament would consider the protester’s demands, underscoring, “I beg people not to create chaos at this time. We are solving these problems together.”Prayuth is a former army chief who has been in power since staging a military coup six years ago. Since then, he has headed a military-backed government in Thailand.He noted that a committee had been created in parliament to discuss possible amendments to the constitution, which was drafted in 2017 under military auspices. He added that it also would try to establish a way to ascertain the opinions of Thailand’s younger demographic.Anon Nampa dressed as a wizard speaks during a Harry Porter-themed protest demanding the resignation of Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha in Bangkok, Aug. 3, 2020.The ad hoc committee set up by the parliament specifically aimed at possible changes to Section 256 of the constitution — the section related to constitutional amendments. Currently, any constitutional amendment needs the support of a minimum of one-third of the parliament’s 250 senators.Many of the senators would be wary, however, of supporting any amendment, not wanting to be viewed as opposing the current government.Another aspect of the constitution allows appointed senators and elected House representatives to pick the prime minister. Nonetheless, many protesters want the elected representatives to have a greater say in the choice of prime minister.Protesters also say the 2017 constitution allowed Prayuth to be assured of staying prime minister after 2019’s disputed election via the creation of a junta-appointed Senate.Prayuth said, “I support changes that are needed and I am not in conflict.” He has not stated, though, what possible changes the parliament would discuss. Protests have been taking place throughout Thailand since a court ban of the opposition Future Forward Party prompted widespread campus protests in July. The protests since then have spread throughout the country, advocating other changes, as well.
…
3 Stranded Sailors Rescued From Tiny Pacific Island
The Australian Defense Department said three Micronesian sailors have been rescued from a tiny Pacific island after the large distress signal they wrote in the sand was spotted from above.
The Defense Department said the men had been missing in the Micronesia archipelago for nearly three days when their “SOS” distress signal was spotted Sunday on uninhabited Pikelot island by both Australian and U.S. aircraft.
SOS is an internationally recognized distress signal that originated from Morse code and means “Save our Ship” or “Save our Souls.”
Officials said the men apparently set out from Poluwat atoll in a seven-meter boat July 30 intending to travel about 43 kilometers to Pulap atoll when they sailed off course and ran out of fuel. Searchers in Guam asked Australia for help.
The military ship Canberra, which was returning to Australia from exercises in Hawaii, diverted to the area and joined forces with U.S. search planes from Guam.
The men were found roughly 200 kilometers from where they originally set out.
An Australian military helicopter landed on the beach and gave the men food and water. They are reportedly in good condition. A Micronesian patrol vessel was expected to pick them up.
…
European Markets Struggling Tuesday, Asian Posting Strong Gains
European markets are mostly lower Tuesday in a reversal of the strong gains posted hours earlier in Asia. London’s FTSE index is 0.1% lower at the midday point. The CAC-40 index in Paris is up 0.1%, and Frankfurt’s DAX index is down 0.4%. Asian markets posted across-the-board gains in response to new data from the United States and other nations that manufacturing activity has begun to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic. Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei index ended its trading session 1.7% higher. Sydney’s S&P/ASX index earned 1.8%. The KOSPI index in Seoul rose 1.2%, and Taipei’s TSEC index gained 1.5%.Both Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and Mumbai’s Sensex index finished 2% higher, while Shanghai’s Composite index gained 0.1%.In commodities trading, gold is selling at $1,992.50, an increase of 0.3%. U.S. crude is selling at $40.38 per barrel, down 1.5%, while Brent crude is selling at $43.47 per barrel, also 1.5% lower.All three major U.S. indices are trending negatively in futures trading ahead of the opening bell on Wall Street.
…
Asian Markets Posting Strong Gains on Manufacturing Data
Reports that manufacturing activity in the United States and other nations has begun to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic sent Asian markets soaring Tuesday. Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei index ended its trading session 1.7% higher. Sydney’s S&P/ASX index earned 1.8%. The KOSPI index in Seoul rose 1.2%, and Taipei’s TSEC index gained 1.5%. In late afternoon trading, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index is 2% higher, Shanghai’s Composite index is slightly lower at 0.1%, and Mumbai’s Sensex is up 1.5%. In commodities trading, gold is selling at $1,990.50, an increase of 0.2%. U.S. crude is selling flat at $40.98 per barrel, while Brent crude is also virtually unchanged, selling at $43.29 per barrel. All three major U.S. indices are trending upward in futures trading.
…
Japan’s Nippon Steel to Appeal S. Korean Court Order to Seize Assets
Japan’s Nippon Steel says it will appeal a ruling by South Korea’s highest court for the seizure of its assets to compensate four South Koreans who were forced into labor during Japan’s brutal colonial occupation of the Korean peninsula between 1910 and 1945. The Supreme Court issued a ruling in 2018 ordering Nippon to pay $38,000 to the four South Koreans who were forced to work in Japanese factories during World War Two. An earlier court ruling froze more than 80,000 shares of a joint venture between Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal and South Korean steelmaker POSCO. The decision angered Tokyo, claiming the issue of compensation for Korean forced laborers was settled by the 1965 treaty that normalized bilateral relations between the Asian neighbors. The treaty included $800 million in reparations paid by Japan in the form of economic aid and loans. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government responded to the court ruling by removing Seoul from its list of preferred trading partners, which allowed for the quick approval of critical products used by South Korean electronics manufacturers. South Korea removed Japan from its list of preferred trading partners in return. Japan’s 35-year colonial occupation has left a bitter legacy among South Koreans, with hundreds of thousands subjected to numerous atrocities, including the so-called “comfort women” who were forced into sexual slavery in Japanese military brothels.
…
Voting with Their Feet: Children of High-Level CCP Officials Choose to Live Abroad
A recent article by an outspoken Chinese sociologist has gone viral on Beijing’s tightly-controlled social media, sparking debates about the children of China’s privileged class who choose to live overseas.Zheng Yefu, a retired sociology professor from China’s prestigious Peking University, wrote that although the Chinese Communist Party maintains its grip on power in order to better serve the ruling elite, their children are choosing to “vote with their feet,” taking-up permanent residence in western countries.Exactly how many children of China’s Communist Party leaders choose to live overseas is unknown, but there have been several high-profile children who have sought degrees in top tier American universities.Chinese President Xi Jinping’s only daughter, Xi Mingze, was educated at Harvard. Two of the party’s last three top leaders, former President Zhao Ziyang and Jiang Zemin, had grandchildren who attended Harvard. Jia Qinglin, a former member of the Politburo Standing Committee, the party’s highest ruling organ, had a granddaughter at Stanford. The now disgraced former Chongqing party star Bo Xilai, is the father of Bo Guagua, who had attended the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.The Washington Post reported that at least five of the nine members of the last Politburo Standing Committee have children or grandchildren who studied in the United States.The Washington-based Migration Policy Institute noted in a report that affluent and educated elites are the main force driving emigration from China to the U.S.According to a report from the China-based wealth research firm Hurun Research Institute, more than a third of rich Chinese “are currently considering” emigrating to another country, for better education systems elsewhere and to flee the country’s polluted cities and strict government, as well as protecting their wealth.Voting with their feetZheng Yefu, a long-time critic of Communist Party policy, wrote that China has spent billions of dollars to “maintain stability,” in order to “safeguard the country created by the great Communist Party.”Zheng argued the effort is mainly aimed at protecting the country’s privileged class and passing those economic and political advantages on to their children.Yet, he noted, the children of a number of Communist Party leaders seem to be indifferent to the idea of inheriting their parents’ political power. They have voted with their feet and moved to western countries, particularly the U.S.“They don’t love the power, they love America,” Zheng concluded.He pointed out there are several reasons for this change of mind from their fathers and grandfathers, including a worsening environment for freedom of speech and movement, and a general dissatisfaction with the previous generation’s way of seizing and maintaining power.He also noted that after China’s opening up in 1978, people have the chance to go abroad more freely. Benefiting from that policy, some of these elites decide to stay in western countries after comparing the two ways of life.’They can’t change China’China observer Zan Aizong told VOA that one of the reasons that these elites decide to emigrate is that they feel they have no way to change China.“If China has democracy, constitution, the rule of law, human rights and universal value, then although there’re problems, they could stay and try to fix it. But if they see there’s no way to change the current status, they would just give up. Vote with their feet,” Zan told VOA.Rights activist Hu Jia said that there’s another reason: if they choose to stay and fight for their positions in the party, there are huge risks involved.“For the second or third generation reds, if you lose in the power struggle, you are going to lose everything. Compare that to your opportunity to live a peaceful life in a free and democratic environment,” he said. “So for some, they choose to stay away from the mess.”
…
Trump Gives Microsoft 45 Days to Seal TikTok Deal
The Chinese-owned social media app TikTok “is going to be out of business in the United States” on Sept. 15, unless Microsoft or another U.S. company concludes a purchase deal that satisfies the U.S. government, President Donald Trump said on Monday. The president also is insisting the U.S. Treasury should get a cut of the sale price for allowing the company to operate in the U.S. “The United States should get a very large percentage of that price,” Trump said at an afternoon news conference. “It would come from the sale — whatever the number is.” It is unclear under what authority the government could demand such a payment. FILE – Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks at a conference in Seattle, May 6, 2019.In a statement, Microsoft confirmed that its chief executive officer, Satya Nadella, had spoken to Trump and was committed to acquiring the company by the stated deadline.“Microsoft will move quickly to pursue discussions with TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, in a matter of weeks, and in any event completing these discussions no later than September 15, 2020. During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States government, including with the president,” the statement read. “Price is important, as well as whatever restrictions come with it from a government perspective, but I think it’s an exciting avenue for Microsoft to really increase its consumer base,” the company’s largest individual shareholder, former CEO Steve Ballmer, told CNBC earlier Monday. Trump suggested it would be “easier to buy the whole thing than to buy a portion” of TikTok. “How do you do 30%? Who is going to get the name? The name is hot. The brand, hot. And who is going to get the name? How do you do that if it’s owned by two different companies?” Trump said at the White House. The Chinese video app is extremely popular globally. It has been downloaded 2 billion times, including 165 million times in the United States. TikTok features not only entertainment videos but also debates, and it takes positions on political issues, such as racial justice and the upcoming U.S. presidential election. Trump said late last week that he would ban the app because of security concerns. India already has taken such action. Trump Sets Clock Ticking for TikTokUS president has threatened to ban popular Chinese-owned social media app amid security concerns Officials in Washington have repeatedly expressed concern that TikTok may pose a security threat, fearing the company might share users’ data with the Chinese government. ByteDance has said it does not share user data with the government of China and maintains it stores Americans’ user data only in the United States and Singapore. TikTok recently chose former Disney executive Kevin Mayer as its chief executive in a move seen as an effort to distance itself from Beijing. “TikTok will be here for many years to come,” company spokesperson Hilary McQuaide said in a statement issued Monday. The U.S. government’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), an interagency group led by the Treasury Department, opened a national security review of TikTok last year. CFIUS’s job is to oversee foreign investments and assess them for potential national security risks. It can force companies to cancel deals or institute other measures it deems necessary for national security.
…
Why US Lawmakers Introduce Bill After Bill to Help Taiwan
American lawmakers have introduced a flurry of bills in the past two years to improve Taiwan’s defenses and raise its international exposure as legislators backed by President Donald Trump step up resistance against China, an old rival of Taipei, analysts say. At least five pro-Taiwan bills have appeared in the U.S. Congress since February 2018, an unusually fast pace. It’s largely because President Trump has championed Taiwan’s cause for self-rule since his inauguration in 2017 amid spats with China over trade and geopolitics. China sees Taiwan as part of its territory, not as an independent state. Legislators, influenced by a Taiwan lobby in Washington as well as anti-China sentiments among American voters, have made the most of Trump’s policy to get their bills signed into law, political observers believe. Trump’s predecessors focused more on maintaining ties with Beijing. FILE – In this Dec. 2, 2016 photo released by Taiwan Presidential Office, Dec. 3, 2016, Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen speaks with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump through a speaker phone in Taipei, Taiwan.“As President Trump is so far the most pro-Taiwan U.S. president since de-recognition in 1979, Congress may want to send him as many Taiwan bills as possible, knowing that he’ll actually sign them into law,” said Sean King, vice president of the Park Strategies political consultancy in New York. In 1979, the U.S. government severed diplomatic recognition of Taiwan in favor of China, a fast-growing power at the time. Washington still recognizes Beijing but sustains strong informal relations with Taiwan. U.S. officials see the democratic island as one in a chain of democratic allies in East Asia. “U.S.-Taiwan relations are right now in a mini-golden age, and the island’s many supporters presumably want to make the most of it,” King said. In February 2018, Congress approved the Taiwan Travel Act, which encourages high-level government exchanges between Taipei and Washington. The same year it passed the Taiwan International Participation Act. The participation bill advocates that international organizations include Taiwan — despite China’s customary opposition. Last year saw Congress approve the Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative Act, which directs the State Department to tell Congress about government moves aimed at strengthening Taiwan’s diplomatic relations “partners” in the Indo-Pacific. In February this year, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz proposed a bill to undo a ban on Taiwanese diplomats and military personnel displaying Taiwan’s official flag on U.S. government property. In May, Rep. Mike Gallagher introduced the Taiwan Defense Act to ensure the United States can help Taiwan resist China’s “aggressive military build-up” by maintaining the ability to fend off a Chinese invasion. Legislators are making up for lost time, some scholars say. They felt that “for many years [the United States] was doing too much to limit itself in its relations with Taiwan,” said Denny Roy, senior fellow at the East-West Center research institution in Honolulu. Congress members feel too that “since China has generally acted in bad faith, Washington is no longer as concerned as before about avoiding actions that will antagonize China,” Roy said. Lawmakers are sighting Taiwan because China cannot strike it without risking military conflict — fallout that analysts believe officials in Beijing are unready to absorb. “I think there is a tendency to focus legislations on Taiwan, because Taiwan is the one issue that China cannot really fight back,” said Yun Sun, East Asia Program senior associate at the Stimson Center research organization in Washington. Chinese officials oppose pro-Taiwan legislation in Washington and urge the United States to stick to its “One-China principle” that forbids formal diplomatic recognition of the island. FILE – Gen. Chiang Kai-shek, Chinese strongman, delivers a stirring appeal to his people by radio in an undated photo.China has seen Taiwan as its own since the Chinese civil war of the 1940s, when Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalists lost and fled to the island. China resents other countries for aiding Taiwan’s military or elevating diplomatic ties. Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry declined to comment Monday on the U.S. legislation. Taiwan-U.S. relations have been guided since 1979 mainly by a single law, the Taiwan Relations Act. The act lets Washington provide Taiwan arms and “maintain the capacity” to resist force or “coercion” that threaten Taiwan. The defense act introduced in May would “restore the original intent” of the 1979 law, Roy said. Trump and American lawmakers hope the recent bills as a whole will press China for “concessions”, said Alex Chiang, associate professor of international politics at National Chengchi University in Taipei. “China has to take notice and China may need to do some action in order for the United States to stop this kind of activity,” Chiang said. Although language in the newer bills commits Washington to little specific action, the laws are written in a way to reflect changes in Taiwanese people’s “identity” and “aspirations” since the 1979 law took effect, Sun said. Taiwanese citizens told government polls last year they want their island to remain self-ruled — after Chinese President Xi Jinping advocated unification.
“All these more recent reactions are really to protect Taiwan against the PRC aggression,” Sun said.
…
Australia Orders Six-Week Closure of Melbourne Businesses Amid Outbreak
Australia is ordering non-essential businesses in Melbourne, its second-largest city, to close for six weeks starting Wednesday as authorities try to control an outbreak that accounts for nearly all of the country’s new coronavirus cases. Health officials reported Monday 429 new COVID-19 infections and 13 deaths in Victoria state, which includes Melbourne. In addition to closing most stores, other industries such as construction and meat production will have to limit their operations starting Friday. The Victoria government declared a COVID-19 disaster in Melbourne on Sunday, and with the new restrictions going into effect, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Monday that workers in Victoria who do not have paid sick leave and have to isolate themselves will be eligible to receive a payment of about $1,000. Such payments are meant to encourage people to abide by advice that they stay home if they test positive, exhibit symptoms or may have been exposed to the virus, instead of feeling financial pressure to keep working and possibly expose others. “It’s heartbreaking. This pandemic, this virus is taking a heavy toll and now’s the time, as it has been throughout this pandemic, that we continue to provide support to one another,” Morrison said. In the United States, which has about one-fourth of the world’s 18 million confirmed coronavirus cases, negotiations are continuing Monday between the White House and congressional Democrats on a new aid package that would include federal money to help the millions of people who are unemployed. Many lost their jobs during the pandemic as lockdown restrictions and new consumer habits badly hurt the economy, and a previous round of federal aid that provided $600 a week to the unemployed expired last week.First responders receive antibody testing for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Arizona, July 10, 2020.The talks come as the United States deals with an ongoing surge in cases that began in June and pushed leaders in some states to reinstate some of the restrictions they had lifted in hopes economic activity could return without a resurgence of the virus. White House coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx told CNN Sunday the outbreak has hit a new phase in the United States with the spread of the virus becoming “extraordinarily widespread,” reaching rural areas as much as big cities. “To everybody who lives in a rural area: You are not immune or protected from this virus,” Birx said. In the Philippines, where the total number of cases has surpassed 100,000, new lockdown restrictions go into effect in the capital, Manila, and five densely populated provinces for a period of two weeks. During that time, people will be allowed to make only essential travel and mass transit will be barred. Medical groups in the country had asked for the reimposition of restrictions in order to allow health workers under the strain of caring for coronavirus patients a chance to regroup and for the government to recalibrate its efforts in response to the pandemic. “Our health care workers are burnt out with the seemingly endless number of patients trooping to our hospitals,” the medical groups said in a letter to Duterte.
…
Australia’s Victoria State Declared Disaster Area Due to Coronavirus Outbreak
Australia’s southern Victoria state has been placed under a state of disaster as a surge of new coronavirus cases continues to engulf the nation’s second-largest state. Under the decree announced Sunday by Premier David Andrews, an evening curfew is now in effect from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. local time for five million residents of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria. Residents will only be allowed to shop and exercise within 5 kilometers of their homes, and only one person per household will be allowed to leave their homes once a day to pick up essential goods. All schools will shut down and switch to remote-based learning. The only exceptions to the rule are for work or to receive medical care.Medical workers speak at the entrance of the Epping Gardens aged care facility in the Melbourne suburb of Epping on July 29, 2020, as the city battles fresh outbreaks of the COVID-19 coronavirus.The new restrictions extend Melbourne’s current six-week lockdown for another six weeks. Premier Andrews said Sunday 671 new COVID-19 cases, including seven deaths, had been recorded, bringing its total number to 11,937 and 136 deaths. Victoria is expected to report over 400 cases on Monday. All of Australia now has a total of 17,938 novel coronavirus cases and 208 deaths.
…
US Activist Accused of Breaching HK’s Security Law Says He Will Not Back Down
Samuel Chu, one of six activists now living overseas who Hong Kong has reportedly issued arrest warrants for under its new national security law, has told VOA he will not stop fighting for democracy for Hong Kong.According to China’s state television, Chu, an American citizen originally from Hong Kong who has lived in the United States for 30 years, and five other Hong Kongers who have fled the city for political reasons, are wanted by Hong Kong police for allegedly “inciting secession and collusion with foreign forces to endanger national security.”Chu, 42, is a founder and managing director of Washington-based Hong Kong Democracy Council, which has lobbied the U.S. government to take action on China for the erosion of Hong Kong’s democracy.The Hong Kong police and government have not officially confirmed the news. Hong Kong’s top leader, Carrie Lam, said Saturday it was “inconvenient” to comment on the enforcement of the national security law but said opposition to the Hong Kong or Chinese governments “is not a way out.”The five others include Nathan Law, a pro-democracy campaigner and ousted lawmaker who recently fled to Britain, Simon Cheng, a former British consular staffer who was granted asylum in Britain after alleging he was tortured in China, and activist Ray Wong.A former British Consulate employee, Simon Cheng, speaks during a protest against Hong Kong’s deteriorating freedoms outside China’s embassy, in London, July 31, 2020.If confirmed, this would be the first time Hong Kong authorities have used the sweeping national security law enacted a month ago to target campaigners living outside Hong Kong.Chu told VOA the authorities are trying to use the new law to intimidate and “create fear.”Article 38 of the law says nonresidents can be prosecuted for acts outside of Hong Kong, implying that critics of China – including Hong Kong’s large diaspora – may face legal risks if they enter the city.Chu is the first foreign national targeted by the law and he said he is “a test case” of how the law would work. He said neither he nor his family have heard from the Hong Kong or Chinese authorities.China, he said, “is sending a threat to Hong Kong people that if you have connections [with the six activists], you might be implicated,” he said.By pursuing him, though, the Chinese government is actually alerting Americans to the fact that not only Hong Kongers will be affected by this law, but also U.S. citizens, he said. The Chinese authorities are “provoking and inviting foreign response every time they use the law,” he said.“Millions of people are now understanding that if they can go after us, they can come after anybody,” he said.Chu said by aggressively targeting overseas activists, China has become “the greatest threat to [its] own national security.”FILE – A video screen shows the results of the vote on a piece of national security legislation concerning Hong Kong during the closing session of China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing, May 28, 2020.“The most egregious danger they have is the national security law because they’re inviting all kinds of actions against themselves,” he said. “They are inviting the U.S. to step up response, both politically and policywise.”Chu’s 76-year-old father, the Reverend Chu Yiu Ming, a veteran pro-democracy activist who has helped activists from the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown escape abroad and a co-founder of the 2014 civil disobedience Occupy Central movement, was convicted and given a suspended sentence for his role last year. China often harasses the families of dissidents or activists living abroad in exile to silence them. Activists also sometimes find themselves the target of harassment and intimidation by unidentified people, suspected to be security agents.He insisted that as a U.S. citizen, it was his constitutional right to advocate and lobby the U.S. government.“I would not stop what I’m doing,” he said. “They are not going to scare me into hiding and they’re not going to erase me from being able to speak out.”“This is why we created the Hong Kong Democracy Council. We always knew there might come a time when the only free organization and voice for Hong Kong might be us,” he said. “It was created to be the last frontier to be able to speak freely.”Chu, however, said he was “sad” that the trip he made to Hong Kong last year to attend his father’s trial “might be the last for a long time.”Nathan Law, former chairman of the now-disbanded Demosisto pro-democracy group, would not comment for this article, but said on Facebook that the alleged national security crimes he was accused of breaching were “trumped up charges” and the result of him “loving Hong Kong too much.”Pro-democracy activists, from left; Joshua Wong, Nathan Law and Agnes Chow attend a press conference in Hong Kong, May 30, 2020.Law, 26, said he was saddened by the news in Hong Kong last week, which included the arrests of four student activists on national security charges, the disqualification of 12 pro-democracy candidates for the legislative election and now the wanted list that included his name.“These are indications of our need to remain active on the global stage. That Hong Kong has no place for even such moderate views like ours underscores the absurdity of Chinese Communist rule,” he wrote.In a poignant note that highlighted his fears over his family being implicated, he declared he would sever his relationship with his family, saying his advocacy work overseas was conducted in his own personal capacity. Willy Lam, an adjunct professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said China wants to send a message that it cannot accept Hong Kongers, even those abroad, lobbying foreign governments or organizations.“They want to warn Hong Kong activists against pursuing international lobbying, otherwise they’ll arrest and extradite them,” Lam said. To foreigners, the message is “don’t interfere in Hong Kong affairs, otherwise you’d harm activists like Nathan Law.”“China is very determined and is acting quickly. More people will be arrested in the near term. They will further silence and stop intellectuals and journalists from expressing opinions and target democracy activists,” he said.
…
Protests Spread Across Russia in Support of Jailed Khabarovsk Former Governor
Protesters took to the street in cities across Russia on Saturday in support of jailed Khabarovsk former governor Sergei Furgal.Russian federal police detained protesters in the cities of Saint Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Moscow.The demonstrations come as thousands of people marched in the Russian Far East city of Khabarovsk for the fourth weekend Saturday, angered by the arrest of the region’s popular governor and his replacement with a Kremlin favorite.The situation in the Khabarovsk region has become a problem for the Kremlin as demonstrations in support of protesters there are spreading elsewhere in the country.Furgal, 50, a medical doctor by training, was arrested by Russian federal law enforcement in early July on charges related to multiple murders in 2004 and 2005. He was flown to Moscow, where he was ordered jailed for two months and is being held in Moscow’s notorious Lefortovo prison.Russian President Vladimir Putin replaced Furgal with a young State Duma deputy, Mikhail Degtiarev, with no ties to the region, to serve as acting governor of the Khabarovsk region.Many people in Khabarovsk believe the charges leveled against Furgal, and his replacement last week, are politically motivated. Furgal was elected in 2018, defeating a candidate from Putin’s party, United Russia.Braving the heavy rain beneath umbrellas Saturday, protesters were chanting “Freedom!” and “Putin resign!” outside a government building, while a banner read “Russia without Putin!” At times protesters also chanted “We came here of our own will.”Many in Khabarovsk, a city on the border with China, see the charges against Furgal as unsubstantiated and politically motivated. They are demanding that his trial take place in his home city, not Moscow.Protests in the city, about 8,000 kilometers east of Moscow, erupted July 11. Since then, protesters have been demanding the release of Furgal and an open and fair trial for him.
…
South Korea Arrests Leader of Church With Big Cluster
South Korean prosecutors arrested the elderly leader of a secretive religious sect Saturday as part of an investigation into allegations that the church hampered the government’s anti-virus response after thousands of worshippers were infected in February and March.Prosecutors in the central city of Suwaon have been questioning 88-year-old Lee Man-hee, chairman of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, over charges that the church hid some members and underreported gatherings to avoid broader quarantines.The Suwon District Court early Saturday granted prosecutors’ request to arrest Lee over concerns that he could temper with evidence.Lee and his church have steadfastly denied the accusations, saying they’re cooperating with health authorities. The church’s spokesperson, Kim Young-eun, said the church will do its best so that “the truth is clearly proved in court.”More than 5,200 of the South Korea’s 14,336 coronavirus cases have been linked to the church. Its branch in the southern city of Daegu emerged as the biggest cluster after infections spiked in late February.Health authorities used an aggressive test-and-quarantine program to contain the outbreak in Daegu and nearby towns by April, but the country has seen a resurgence of the virus in the Seoul metropolitan area since late May.
…