A former army general who allegedly ordered troops to commit human rights abuses may be on the verge of becoming Indonesia’s next president. This possibility is raising questions about how much the archipelago’s youth know about their country’s past. Dave Grunebaum has the story from Jakarta. Voice of America
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The writer is chair of Rockefeller International At a time when leaders around the world are struggling with record low approval ratings, Indonesian president Joko Widodo is ending his time in office on a high. At 80 per cent, Widodo’s latest approval rating is the highest for the leader of any major democracy and very unusual for a politician who has spent a decade in power. Widodo’s time is up,…
Chinese launch start-up Galactic Energy is gearing up to debut its reusable rocket later this year. If it happens, Pallas-1 will be the first such rocket developed in China to reach orbit – though it is not clear if it will be recovered during the flight. The announcement adds fuel to the race to develop reusable rockets in China. A number of the rockets are under development in the country but none were expected to be ready for space until next year. Named for the goddess Athena in Greek mythology,…
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Qatar has released eight Indian former naval officers sentenced to death last year for spying for Israel, India’s government said early on Monday morning. Narendra Modi’s government said it welcomed the release of the eight men, adding that seven out of the eight had now returned to India. “We appreciate the decision by the Emir of the State of Qatar to enable the release and homecoming of these nationals,” India’s…
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. A Singapore private club known for catering to wealthy Chinese clients has shut down as ultra-rich residents of the Asian financial hub increasingly opt for discretion over conspicuous displays of wealth. Circle 33, located inside a former colonial residence on Scotts Road in the swish suburb of Orchard, has closed its doors after failing to renew its lease last year, according to three people familiar with the wine club’s situation.…
ATHENS, Greece — Greece has announced new measures to protect locals from a deluge of mainly Chinese nationals purchasing homes and property in exchange for residency rights in the West — what is commonly known as a “Golden Visa” scheme. For many of China’s newly well-off citizens, the incentive to emigrate has been rising, feeding what is being dubbed worldwide as “investment migration” businesses. In recent years, there has been a massive rush of Chinese nationals to Greece, and that has created a serious housing crisis. On Friday, Prime Minister…
This means that Li’s brain has been in cold storage for over two years. The revelation has caused a stir among Chinese intellectuals over the past week, with many scholars expressing shock at Li’s unconventional last wishes. Leading light of 1980s Chinese aesthetics movement dies in the US at 91 Li graduated from Peking University in 1954 with a degree in philosophy and later joined the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences as a senior researcher and the College International de Philosophie in Paris as a fellow. Li’s work had a…
“But with Xi focussing on corruption, they’ll just ‘lay flat’. Mr Xi, of course, doesn’t want to allow this and is demanding that they work hard lest their corruption be exposed. But the crackdown has gone on for over 10 years now and officials have become used to it. If you chase me to do work, I’ll put in a bit more effort. If you stop using the whip on me, I’ll just take it easy for a while and ‘lay flat’”. BBC
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The writer is a faculty member at Yale, formerly chair of Morgan Stanley Asia, and is the author of “Accidental Conflict: America, China, and the Clash of False Narratives” There is more to economic vitality than the stock market. But for Hong Kong, the market has always been emblematic of success. Imagine, a small city state with what had long been the world’s fourth largest exchange (it is now fifth,…
New Delhi — China’s Xiaomi has told New Delhi that smartphone component suppliers are wary about setting up operations in India amid heavy scrutiny of Chinese companies by the government, according to a letter and a source with direct knowledge of the matter. Xiaomi Corp., which has the biggest share in India’s smartphone market at 18%, also asks in the letter dated Feb. 6 that India consider offering manufacturing incentives and lowering import tariffs for certain smartphone components. The Chinese company assembles smartphones in India with mostly local components and…