Day: November 30, 2023

Tattoo Campaign Seeks to Help Displaced in Myanmar

Media Library

WASHINGTON —  A new campaign for Myanmar led by the son of imprisoned democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Kim Aris, is using tattoos as a publicity tool to raise humanitarian aid for the millions displaced following the 2021 military coup. People in Myanmar’s diaspora are getting tattoos of a Burmese water dragon as a symbol of solidarity with the ongoing resistance movement inside Myanmar. And they are sharing pictures and videos of their tattoos and the associated live fundraising events on social media to create a buzz around the…

China’s top diplomat visits Vietnam ahead of likely Xi trip

Media Library

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected in Vietnam Friday, paving the way for a possible visit by President Xi Jinping this month. Wang will co-chair the 15th session of the Vietnam-China Bilateral Cooperation Steering Committee, an annual event, with Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang. Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the Chinese foreign minister will have talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Bui Thanh Son and greet Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Vo Van Thuong.  Xi – who is also the Chinese Communist Party…

Countries join China’s food-tech war on the West, Hong Kong logistics firms face eviction: SCMP’s 7 highlights of the week

Media Library

3. US$280 in China, US$8,892 in the US: new Chinese cancer drug gets FDA approval Vials of Toripalimab Injection are on display at the booth of Shanghai Junshi Biosciences Co., Ltd during the 8th China (Shanghai) International Technology Fair in 2021. Photo: Getty Images A cancer drug developed by Chinese scientists and recently approved by the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will cost over 30 times more in the United States than in China, with two other Chinese cancer drugs set to experience similar price bumps in the US…

Nasa urges researchers to reach out for China’s Chang’e 5 moon samples, sidestepping US ban

Media Library

The applications would normally be illegal under the so-called Wolf Amendment – passed by the US Congress in 2011 and named after then Republican senator Frank Wolf – which bans Nasa from cooperating with China unless authorised by lawmakers. According to the Nasa email, addressed to “dear colleagues”, the application for access was necessary because of the “unique value” of the Chinese samples, which had been “made available recently to the international scientific community for research purposes”. The email made clear that the green light for applications was an exceptional…

US, South Korea Sign Pact to Counter Disinformation  

Media Library

state department —  The United States signed a Memorandum of Understanding to cooperate with South Korea in the fight against false propaganda and disinformation. It is the first such agreement that Washington signs with its Asian ally, and it comes as U.S. officials and lawmakers accuse the People’s Republic of China of conducting “deceptive online campaigns” targeting the United States and other countries. Chinese officials have refuted the accusation. Liz Allen, the U.S. undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, is traveling to Asia this week. Allen met…

VOA Exclusive: US, S Korea, Japan to Sign Pact to Counter Disinformation  

Media Library

state department —  The United States plans to sign a memorandum of understanding to cooperate with South Korea and Japan in the fight against false propaganda and disinformation. It will be the first such agreement that Washington signs with its Asian allies, and it comes as U.S. officials and lawmakers accuse the People’s Republic of China of conducting “deceptive online campaigns” targeting the United States and other countries. Chinese officials have rejected the accusation. Liz Allen, the U.S. undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, is traveling to…

British Documentary Alleges China Influences Universities, Spies on Hong Kongers in UK

Media Library

london —  A BBC Channel 4 documentary, “Secrets and Power: China in the UK,” claims the Chinese government is interfering with academic freedom and spying on Hong Kong activists in the United Kingdom. The 49-minute film released Wednesday alleges that the University of Nottingham used a Beijing-approved curriculum in classes taught on a satellite campus in Ningbo and closed its School of Contemporary Chinese Studies under pressure from Beijing. The program also claims a professor at the Imperial College London collaborated with researchers at a Chinese university on the use…

China’s Xinjiang building world’s longest highway tunnel in play for regional connectivity

Media Library

China is building, by present standards, the world’s longest highway tunnel – a project that will traverse one of the planet’s longest mountain ranges and open new pathways for exchanges between the country’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and Central Asia, which experts said is an increasingly decisive area for foreign trade. A crucial section of the Urumqi-Yuli Expressway, the Tianshan Shengli tunnel will serve as a pivotal transport link between the southern and northern halves of the region, state media said. When opened to traffic by the end of October…

China factory activity surprisingly expands in November, hits 3-month high

Media Library

China’s factory activity unexpectedly expanded in November, driven by rising orders, a private survey showed on Friday, but sluggish external demand continues to weigh on manufacturers. The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to 50.7 in November from a 49.5 reading in October, marking the fastest expansion in three months and surpassing analysts’ forecasts of 49.8. The 50-point mark separates growth from contraction. The official and Caixin surveys have different samples, with the Caixin PMI focusing on export-oriented enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises in the country’s coastal…

Myanmar’s Junta Cuts Off Aung San Suu Kyi From Son

Media Library

washington —  Myanmar’s military junta has blocked communication between detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her family and her lawyers, according to her younger son. Suu Kyi’s son Kim Aris told VOA via phone that the Myanmar junta has not allowed him to communicate with his mother “at all,” despite concerns about her health. Suu Kyi, 78, was arrested on February 1, 2021, after the military overturned the results of an election that her party had won. The coup was met with protests across the country and outrage…