Day: January 12, 2023

China’s Reopened Borders Raise Hopes for Soccer Resurgence

Chin@Strategy

After three years of isolation and financial struggles in Chinese soccer, the country is reopening its borders and economy to the outside world. With it, frustrated fans, financially challenged clubs and unpaid players in the Chinese Super League might receive some long-awaited good news. The 2022 season was unrecognizable from the 2019 edition, the last before COVID-19 hit. Then the league had an average attendance of over 24,000, the highest in Asia, and a number of big-name foreign imports. From 2020 onwards, Beijing’s “zero-COVID” policy, designed to stamp out the…

Cloned Horse Raises Hopes for Equestrian Sports in China

Chin@Strategy

BEIJING —  A Chinese company presented a cloned horse to the public Thursday that is the first of its kind born in the country and approved for equestrian sport. The cloning of competition and thoroughbred horses has been practiced in several countries since the early 2000s, particularly for genetic improvements. Born last June from a surrogate mother, Zhuang Zhuang was produced by the Beijing laboratory Sinogene and is a clone of a horse imported from Germany. The black animal is the first from the “warmblood” group of breeds to be…

China’s Foreign Ministry Branch in Hong Kong Urges Britain to Stop Hong Kong Report

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Beijing —  China’s foreign ministry in Hong Kong urged the British government to stop its “so-called half-yearly report on Hong Kong,” state media reported on Friday local time. A spokesperson at the ministry branch said Britain’s report “grossly interfered with Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs, and seriously trampled on international law.” Britain criticized what it said was the systematic erosion of freedoms in Hong Kong by the Chinese government and a crackdown on free speech by authorities, in its latest report on the former British colony, announced in…

Vietnam intensifies crackdown on basic freedoms, Human Rights Watch says

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Vietnam stepped-up its crackdown on domestic and international non-governmental organizations in Vietnam last year, Human Rights Watch said in its World Report 2023. As the country takes its seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council for the 2023-2025 term, the New York-based group of independent international rights experts accused the government “under the dictatorial one-party rule of the Communist Party of Vietnam” of cracking down on independent unions, human rights groups and political parties. Human Rights Watch said these groups face “harassment, intimidation and retaliation from the authorities,” severely…

Lawyer: Suspect in Abe Assassination to Face Murder Charge

Chin@Strategy

TOKYO —  Japanese prosecutors are expected to formally charge the suspect in the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with murder on Friday, his lawyer said. Tetsuya Yamagami was arrested immediately after allegedly shooting Abe with a handmade gun as the former leader was making a campaign speech in July outside a train station in Nara in western Japan. Later that month, Yamagami was sent to an Osaka detention center and given a five-month mental evaluation, which ended Tuesday. Yamagami is now back in police custody in Nara after…

US to base mobile Marine unit on Japan’s Okinawa island

Chin@Strategy

The United States and Japan have agreed to further boost their military alliance with a plan to deploy a new Marine unit to an island chain near Taiwan amid rising strategic challenges from China. Top foreign affairs and defense officials from both countries on Wednesday held an unprecedented meeting of the U.S.–Japan Security Consultative Committee, dubbed 2+2, which U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called “another step toward tightening already incredibly strong bonds” between the two countries.  The two sides announced a military alliance-updating plan that includes the deployment of…

Japanese PM Asks for Canada’s Help on Clean Energy

Chin@Strategy

OTTAWA, Ontario —  Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is looking to Canada to help his country wean itself off fossil fuels from places such as Russia. Kishida is in Ottawa Thursday for his first visit as Japan’s head of government, as part of a tour of other Group of Seven countries. Japan holds the G-7 presidency this year and is set to host meetings with the leaders of some of the world’s richest countries. The group includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, plus the European…

Australian Economist Says Myanmar Junta Has Revoked his Amnesty

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The Myanmar junta has revoked its pardon of Australian economist Sean Turnell, who was granted amnesty and deported last November. The decision appeared in an unpublicized announcement dated December 6 which was leaked on social media recently. “Unfortunately, this is not fake … the junta has revoked my amnesty, and requested my arrest,” Turnell confirmed to VOA’s Burmese Service via text. Turnell, who’s based in Australia, which has no extradition treaty with Myanmar, said he understands his name has been submitted to Interpol. “It is risky for me to travel…

As COVID Rips Across China, One Family Counts 5 Dead

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washington —  Guan Yao, who lives in California, never thought that on his last video chat with his grandmother in Beijing he would watch her die. He had installed a tiny robot camera in his grandmother’s home some time ago so they could be in constant contact after he moved to the U.S. in 2016. She took to the device, holding it almost as if it provided the comfort of his touch. Guan was video chatting with her throughout the last four hours of her life on December 22. The…