Umbrella Protestors Return to Streets of Hong Kong
Organizers say modest turnout does not mean end of dispute over Beijing election plan
Obama to appear in public with Dalai Lama
AFP President Barack Obama meets with His Holiness the Dalai Lama in the Map Room of the White House, Feb. 18, 2010. WASHINGTON -- US President Barack Obama will appear in public at an event attended by the Dalai Lama next week in Washington, the White House said on Friday (Jan 30), in a move sure to anger Beijing. "The president will deliver remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast about the importance of upholding religious freedom," National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan s...
Chinese Activists Cut Across Indochina in Search of Asylum
The couple have spent three months trekking through China, Vietnam and Cambodia. By Luke Hunt It was a lonely trip. Liu Linna , better known by her nickname Liu Shasha , and her husband Yeung Hung have spent three months trekking through China, Vietnam and Cambodia in search of political asylum amid a Chinese government crackdown on the Umbrella Movement. Looking tired and worried about an uncertain future, Liu spoke about her fears of jail and experiences of torture shortly after being...
Latent Aggression: China's Navy to Send More Ships to the Indian Ocean
Recent reports of PLAN naval movements have many analysts worried. By Franz-Stefan Gady During a press conference on January 29, a spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense (MND), announced that China will step up its deployment of a range of warships in the Indian Ocean. IHS Jane’s reports that Senior Colonel Yang Yujun , after being asked a question on PLAN submarine movements in the Indian Ocean, tried to downplay Chinese naval activities in the region, characterizing ...
1989 Cables Offer New Detail, and Questions, on Tiananmen
By AUSTIN RAMZY Civilians wounded in the suppression of pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing being rushed to a hospital on June 4, 1989. Thousands were killed. The release of Canadian diplomatic cables from 1989 has offered new detail on the deadly crackdown on protesters in Beijing that year. The cables describe the killing of unarmed civilians, rumors of widespread executions and fears that the Canadian Embassy in Beijing could be overrun by the Chinese military if it shelter...
Q. and A.: Roderick MacFarquhar on Xi Jinping’s High-Risk Campaign to Save the Communist Party
A party without ideology: Is that a sustainable model? By MICHAEL FORSYTHE Xi Jinping, center, and other top leaders voting at the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Nov. 12, 2013. Two years into Xi Jinping ’s tenure as China’s president, many analysts consider him to be the most powerful leader since Deng Xiaoping , the man who oversaw China’s opening to the world and its market-oriented policies after the chaos of the 1966-76 Cultura...
As Muslim Uighurs Flee, China Sees Jihad Risk
As Homeland Grows Violent, Some Uighurs Seek Haven in Turkey By JEREMY PAGE And EMRE PEKER Uighur protesters burn a Chinese flag in Istanbul, where some members of the mostly Muslim ethnic group have settled after fleeing their homeland in China. KAYSERI, Turkey—In hindsight, it was a soccer match that kindled Mehmet’s hatred of Chinese rule and set him on the path to exile. In 2002, Mehmet was at university in Xinjiang, the northwest corner of China that is home to his Uighur...
China’s Great Firewall Gets Taller
Internet Filter Makes It Harder to Circumvent Blocks to Services Like Google and Facebook By EVA DOU People use computers in an Internet cafe in Beijing. China's Communist Party is tightening its grip on the Internet. China’s government has unveiled a smarter and stricter Internet filter, riling web users and widening the divide between China’s Internet and the World Wide Web. A recent upgrade to China’s web filters, commonly referred to as the Great Firewall, has made it more difficult ...
China's financial diplomacy: Rich but rash
To challenge the World Bank and the IMF, China will have to imitate them The Economist XI JINPING was chummy in public when he met Nicolás Maduro in Beijing in early January (pictured), praising his Venezuelan counterpart as a “good friend of the Chinese people”. Behind closed doors, negotiations must have been far more tense. Chinese banks have lent $50 billion to Venezuela since 2007. With its economy in a deep recession, Venezuela’s ability to repay these debts is in grav...
China is building a string of artificial islands to fortify its position in the disputed South China Sea
By JEREMY BENDER A Chinese vessel works on a building project in the Spratly Islands in 2014. China is constructing five man-made islands in the disputed South China Sea in an apparent effort to secure its sweeping territorial claims in the region, the Los Angeles Times reports . The largest island is being constructed at the Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly Islands, an island chain whose territory is claimed by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia. US officials estimated th...
The cost of doing business in China: Spying
If you're a tech company and want to do business in China, you'll have to hand over the keys to your kingdom first. By Jose Pagliery New rules make it tough for foreign companies to provide technology for Chinese bank, like software on ATMs. Strict, new Chinese government rules will subject foreign companies to tailor their products for use within China -- making them less secure. Companies that provide back-end IT infrastructure, such as Cisco, would have to install back-doors into their har...
China’s Self-Destructive Tech Crackdown
The crackdown makes a joke of China’s commitment to abide by global trading rules established by the World Trade Organization The New York Times Xi Jinping Under the guise of improving security, the Chinese government is clamping down on technology companies and further limiting the access its citizens have to information that is not sanitized by the Communist Party. These moves will hurt the Chinese economy and create a major rift between China and the rest of the world. The gove...
Five Dead After Security Checkpoint Clash in Xinjiang’s Hotan Prefecture
Two Uyghur youth were shot dead and one captured after the fatal stabbing of three security officials.
Eleven Tibetans Detained in Sichuan Over Land-Grab Protest
They had demanded the return of land taken five years ago for a government development project.
Infant Becomes Latest Person to Die in Cambodia’s Mass HIV Infection
The baby was one of 16 people in an extended family who contract the virus from an unlicensed medical practitioner.
Illegal Sale of ‘Double Portrait’ Lapel Pins Flourishes in North Korea
More citizens are using the pins featuring pictures of former leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in place of cash.
Top Beijing Rights Lawyer's License Seized in Detention Center
Wang Yu's professional ID is taken away after she prepares a complaint over allegations of forced confession.
Chinese Universities Told to Ban 'Western Textbooks,' Grumbling From Classrooms
The country's education minister says universities must ensure they uphold 'core socialist values.'
China Calls For Probe Into Causes of Official Deaths
The probe comes amid increasing reports of suicides among officials and a nationwide anti-corruption campaign.
China: Overborrowed and overbuilt
By Jamil Anderlini Its economy has become the world’s largest but a credit-fuelled construction binge threatens growth ©Dreamstime Wangjing’s Soho building: analysts fear areas such as the Beijing suburb face a perfect storm of overcapacity, demographic shifts and the potential for local debt crises T he last time China was the world’s largest economy Beijing was a city of about 700,000 people, and its Wangjing district was nothing but a jumble of barren man-made hills built to pr...
Xiaomi just wandered into a 100-year-old border dispute between China and India
By Lily Kuo Not the best of friends. Xiaomi has big plans for winning over Indian smartphone users, but that might mean losing fans at home. This week, the Chinese smartphone maker’s vice president Hugo Barra posted a much-criticized photo on the Chinese microblog Weibo of the launch of its latest Mi4 phone in Delhi. The problem? Behind Barra is a map of China and India that marks a still disputed area along the two countries Himalayan border, the focus of a Sino-Indian border war...
Cold War Fascism
China says no room for 'western values' in university education AFP Students attend their college graduation ceremony in Shanghai’s Fudan University. China’s education minister has said there is no place for western values in university teaching. China’s education minister has vowed to ban university textbooks which promote “western values”, state media said, in the latest sign of ideological tightening under Xi Jinping . “Never let textbooks promoting western values appear in our class...
China Clamps Down Still Harder on Internet Access
“It’s like we’re living in the Middle Ages.” -- Zhang Qian, a naval historian By ANDREW JACOBS An Internet cafe in China, which has long had some of the world’s most onerous digital restrictions. BEIJING — Jing Yuechen, the founder of an Internet start-up here in the Chinese capital, has no interest in overthrowing the Communist Party. But these days she finds herself cursing the nation’s smothering cyberpolice as she tries — and fails — to browse photo-sharing websites like Flickr...
The Twilight of China’s Communist Party
Xi Jinping may be gathering unprecedented power in China—but perhaps it is more the flaring of a candle before it gutters. By MICHAEL AUSLIN “I can’t give you a date when it will fall, but China’s Communist Party has entered its endgame.” So says one of America’s most experienced China watchers to a small table of foreign diplomats at a private dinner in Washington, D.C. The pessimism from someone with deep connections to the Chinese government is notable. Washington should start ...
New Group of Eighteen Montagnards From Vietnam Seek Refugee Status in Cambodia
They bring to 32 the total number hiding in Cambodia’s jungles.
China, Asian Authoritarian States Score Poorly in Rights Report
Human Rights Watch sees 'ferocity' in Xi Jinping crackdown, backsliding in Myanmar, and 'dire' situation in North Korea.
Villagers Appeal for Release of Jailed, Elderly Uyghur Religious Scholar
Residents of Aksu prefecture say an 85-year-old imam jailed on charges of illegal religious teaching activities and murder is in poor health.
Victim's Mother Hits Out at Foreign Governments Over Tiananmen Secrets
A Canadian news site publishes formerly secret diplomatic cables from Beijing, released 25 years later.
Civil Society Groups Urge Myanmar to Drop Bills to ‘Protect’ Religion, Race
They say the proposed laws threaten stability in the newly-democratic nation.
Tibetan Monk is Handed 10-Year Term on Unknown Charges
He is finally sentenced after being held for almost a year.
'I Don't Know Where it All Went Wrong'
An evictee in one of China's richest cities says she and her ailing husband have no income and are hounded by the authorities.
Philippines, Vietnam upgrade ties in show of unity against China
Reuters The Philippines and Vietnam are forging closer ties in a symbolic move after China stepped up activities in disputed areas of the South China Sea, raising tension in the potential flashpoint. China claims almost the entire South China Sea, believed to be rich in oil and gas deposits and fishery resources. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam also claim parts of the sea, crossed by ships carrying $5 trillion a year in cargo. Pham Binh Minh , Hanoi's deputy prime minister...
It Is Time To Stand Up To China
Chinese ignore most trade rules and do whatever is to their advantage By Mike Collins In 2001 America opened free trade with China and they were accepted into the World Trade Organization. Open free trade with China was supposed to help move China closer to democracy and freedom. President Clinton said “If you believe in a future of greater openness and freedom for the people of China, you ought to be for this agreement.” It was hoped that free market capitalism would rub off on C...
Pentagon Pauses New Exchanges With China
Decision Delayed Until Washington and Beijing Can Agree on Rules for Encounters Between Warplanes By JULIAN E. BARNES in Washington and JEREMY PAGE in Beijing Rep. Randy Forbes (R., Va) said that military exchanges with China risk sharing too much information, including critical elements of U.S. military strategy. The Pentagon put on hold an effort to expand defense ties with China, saying it wouldn’t agree to a major new military exchange until the two countries can agree on rules ...
Why China Is Nervous About Its Role in the World
China’s fear of closer ties between the U.S. and India may indicate growing economic problems at home By Sanjay Sanghoee Hong Kong based Vietnamese demonstrators carry Vietnam's flag during a protest against China's territory claim in Hong Kong May 25, 2014. Around 200 people marched on Sunday to declare Paracel Islands belong to Vietnam. In the wake of President Obama’s historic trip to India, China issued an unsolicited and perplexing statement downplaying the relevance of the vi...
U.S. would welcome Japan air patrols in South China Sea
BY TIM KELLY AND NOBUHIRO KUBO The United States would welcome a Japanese extension of air patrols into the South China Sea as a counterweight to a growing fleet of Chinese vessels pushing China's territorial claims in the region, a senior U.S. Navy officer told Reuters. Regular patrols by Japanese aircraft only reach into the East China Sea, where Japan is at loggerheads with China over disputed islands. Extending surveillance flights into the South China Sea would almost certainly inc...
New Rules in China Upset Western Tech Companies
By PAUL MOZUR HONG KONG — The Chinese government has adopted new regulations requiring companies that sell computer equipment to Chinese banks to turn over secret source code, submit to invasive audits and build so-called back doors into hardware and software, according to a copy of the rules obtained by foreign technology companies that do billions of dollars’ worth of business in China. The new rules, laid out in a 22-page document approved at the end of last year, are the first in a series...
“If You Are Eating Chocolate, How Do You Know When to Stop?” – Being Black in China
By John Farrier “Why are you black?” If you’re a black person visiting China, you may get asked this question. This fascinating video by TMD Shanghai shares the experience of being a black visitor to China, which historically has had few black residents. For African American visitors, it gets even stranger. The narrator explains that many Chinese believe that all black people are from Africa, so African Americans are not native English speakers. Content warning: some foul la...
Dystopian Reality of China’s Smog Captured in ‘Airpocalypse’ App
China’s notorious smog can feel like a physical manifestation of the country’s political repression: suffocating, censored and lethal. By DAN LEVIN A Beijing resident wore a mask against heavy air pollution near the China Central Television headquarters in November. China’s notorious smog can feel like a physical manifestation of the country’s political repression: suffocating, censored and lethal. On many days, the sun is hidden behind a pale, brown veil of coal dust and other pollutants tha...
China’s churlishness shows strength of US-India relations
Obama’s trip to New Delhi was really about forging an alliance in the Asia-Pacific region By Victor Mallet in New Delhi China’s churlish reaction to Barack Obama ’s visit to New Delhi this week suggests that the US president and Narendra Modi , the Indian prime minister, are on to something important in their attempt to remake the geostrategic map of the world. One official Chinese commentary called Mr Obama’s three-day trip — the first time a US president has visited India twice while i...
Saying “No” To Better Serve Patients
Commentary: The retina allows physicians to look into the vascular and nervous systems of the body. These sometimes allow the physicians to make diagnosis of neuro-vascular diseases sooner. From: Tây Sơn News Wire
Vietnamese Singer Viet Dzung Honored With Highway Naming
Commentary: It is a rare honor that a Vietnamese American get the streets to be named after. Viet Dzung, multi-talented entertainer of the Vietnamese diaspora, who suddenly passed away last year, was honored by the California State Legislature with the … Continue reading → From: Tây Sơn News Wire
Promotion Ceremony of Brigadier General Viet Luong Celebrated By Vietnamese Community
This morning, Colonel Viet Xuan Luong made history by becoming the first Vietnamese-born to get promoted to Brigadier General of the U.S. military, the world’s most powerful military. Not too long ago, Vietnamese military men’s competence and aptitude were usually questioned by … Continue reading → From: Tây Sơn News Wire
Bon 14 Juillet! Happy Bastille Day!
From: Tây Sơn News Wire
Happy Independence Day!
From: Tây Sơn News Wire
UN pledges to support Vietnam in guaranteeing human rights - GlobalPost
UN pledges to support Vietnam in guaranteeing human rights GlobalPost 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations (UN) pledged to support Vietnam in ensuring and promoting human rights through the 2012-2016 UN One Plan, said UN Resident Coordinator Pratibha Mehta on Tuesday. Addressing the launching of the Universal Periodic ...
UN Experts Condemn Detention of Vietnamese Blogger Le Quoc Quan - Global Voices Online
Global Voices Online UN Experts Condemn Detention of Vietnamese Blogger Le Quoc Quan Global Voices Online A UN group of human rights experts has found that the detention of Vietnamese blogger and human rights defender Le Quoc Quan stands in violation of his right to freedom of expression and a fair trial. Le Quoc Quan was arrested in December 2012 on ...
Kindness One: Motorcycle causes a heap of travel trouble in Vietnam - Los Angeles Times
Kindness One: Motorcycle causes a heap of travel trouble in Vietnam Los Angeles Times As I tried to enter Vietnam from Cambodia, things were not looking good. I had encountered border troubles before. The Thai border guards didn't seem to know what to make of me and my bright yellow motorcycle. I spent six hours at the border trying to ...
Children in Vietnamese commune received beans instead of vitamin A - UPI.com
Children in Vietnamese commune received beans instead of vitamin A UPI.com CAM TRUNG, Vietnam, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- A population coordinator in a rural Vietnamese commune distributed beans to children he claimed to be vitamin A, health officials said. Parents brought their young children to a Cam Trung commune clubhouse Sunday ...
Vietnam Vet Wins $12 Million Malpractice Settlement From VA Hospital - CBS Local
Vietnam Vet Wins $12 Million Malpractice Settlement From VA Hospital CBS Local CHICAGO (CBS) — A Chicago-area Vietnam veteran will get a $12 million medical malpractice settlement from the federal government. John Johnson was a Vietnam Veteran and heart patient. He went in for oral surgery at the Hines V.A. Hospital in 2007, ...