Fifty nations at the United Nations General Assembly on Monday denounced China for its treatment of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in the northwestern Xinjiang region and called on Beijing to end human rights violations there, including arbitrary detentions. The countries, which included the United States and many of its Western allies, constituted the largest group of nations to publicly denounce China’s human rights violations in the region. The joint statement referred to a key August report released by the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, or…
Day: November 1, 2022
No kimchi? Poor harvests, lower incomes mean North Koreans may go without staple dish
It’s a traditional, often communal event that happens every autumn when the weather grows colder, and it is central to Korean culture and cuisine: kimjang, the process of making kimchi, which is the country’s signature dish and a staple of nearly every meal. But this year in North Korea, the combination of a drop in incomes and poor harvests of napa cabbage and radish – essential ingredients for the fermented, usually spicy dish – mean that there will be very little kimchi produced in the country this year, sources told…
Chinese city accused of ‘performative lockdown lifting’
Authorities in Zhengzhou have been accused of “performative lockdown lifting” after they partially lifted restrictions amid growing pressure from residents and the reported arrival of state media. An almost month-long lockdown in the Chinese city of about 12 million people had prompted complaints of arduous conditions, sometimes violent enforcement, inadequate medical care, and worsening mental health. But a sudden decision to ease restrictions on Tuesday was greeted by some residents with scepticism and anger. Zhengzhou has been the subject of national focus, particularly after hundreds of workers from the iPhone…
Xi Jinping’s Energy Policy: Contradictions and Caveats
Advertisement In my August article on coal in China, I looked at how an earlier Chinese promise to reduce coal usage has been overridden by practical considerations. Coal usage in China, and therefore coal mining in China, is on the rise. Since then, this trend to go all-in on coal has been underscored by China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, in his speech on October 16 at the opening to the Chinese Communist Party Congress, a seminal event occurring every five years. On coal, Xi said: We will promote clean, low-carbon,…
China iPhone factory quadruples bonuses to workers amid anger over Covid curbs
Apple supplier Foxconn said it has quadrupled bonuses on offer for workers at its Zhengzhou plant in central China as it seeks to quell discontent over Covid curbs and retain staff at the giant iPhone manufacturing site. Daily bonuses for employees, who are part of a Foxconn unit responsible for making electronics including smartphones at the site, have been raised to 400 yuan ($55) a day for November from 100 yuan, according to the official WeChat account of Foxconn’s Zhengzhou plant. Foxconn, formally Hon Hai Precision Industry, is Apple’s biggest…