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Month: June 2022

Myanmar military forcibly recruits villagers into pro-junta militias

Editor011 mins

Myanmar’s military is sending troops to villages in war-torn Sagaing region where the armed resistance is strong and forcibly recruiting residents into pro-junta militias, according to sources in the area. Residents of Sagaing told RFA’s Burmese Service on condition of anonymity that troops have offered them money to join and train with the pro-junta Pyu Saw Htee militia and threatened to burn down their villages if they don’t comply. A source from Kyunhla township’s Magyi Inn village wrote in a letter to RFA that one military unit visited the area last week and demanded that 30 residents join the Pyu Saw Htee. Troops said that if the recruits didn’t show up for training within a few days, they would return and torch the entire tract. RFA attempted to confirm the incident with residents of the village by phone, but they refused to comment, citing fear of reprisal. A resident of Taze township told RFA that troops recently armed villagers in the area and paid them to recruit others in the fight against pro-democracy People’s Defense Force (PDF) paramilitaries. “Pyu Saw Htee groups have been set up in many villages of Kanbalu and Taze townships, as well as those in the Mu River valley,” he said. “In those villages, people joined them because they were paid and provided weapons. When they were sent elsewhere, they acted abusively because they had received armed training. In some places, they ended up extorting money from people and now are more like bandits.” RFA was unable to independently confirm the resident’s claim that villagers were being paid to join the Pyu Saw Htee. Residents of Taze told RFA that there are “about 400 Pyu Saw Htee fighters” based in the eastern part of their township and neighboring Kanbalu. Around 500 homes in Taze’s Ywah Shay village were set on fire by a joint force of military troops and Pyu Saw Htee militiamen on June 1, they said, although it was not immediately clear whether the arson was connected to a recruitment campaign. An aerial view of Chaung Oo village, in Sagaing region’s Pale township, where junta troops and Pyu Saw Htee fighters burned more than 300 homes, Dec. 18, 2021. Credit: RFA Targeting two regions Data for Myanmar, a research group that studies the impact of conflict on communities, also said the burning of villages in Sagaing and neighboring Magway region are the work of the military and Pyu Saw Htee. More than 11,400 homes have been destroyed in the regions since the military’s Feb. 1, 2021 coup, the group said. Residents in Sagaing and Magway regions claim that the military pays Pyu Saw Htee members 7,000 kyats (U.S. $4) a day. A spokesman for the PDF in Magway’s Yezagyo township told RFA that the military is using Pyu Saw Htee units “to oppress the people.” “To say it bluntly, Pyu Saw Htees are asked to do the dirty work because the military doesn’t want their name tarnished,” he said. “These Pyu Saw Htees are mostly supporters of the military. They are given training and armed and are sent to the head of troop columns. It’s dangerous. In other words, they are being used as human shields.” A resident of Sagaing, who also declined to be named, told RFA that he had seen Pyu Saw Htees carrying military-grade weaponry, including automatic rifles and carbines and even grenade launchers. Asked about the reports, junta Deputy Information Minister Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, told RFA last week that there “are no such thing” as Pyu Saw Htees and claimed the military is forming militia groups so that residents can protect their own villages from the PDF, which the military has labeled a terrorist group. “If there is a real need, we will provide training first. During the training, they learned how to shoot,” he said. “But it is not just a matter of armed training. There are duties and responsibilities to be assumed. There are rules to be followed, just like a soldier does. We are working for peace in the community in a systematic way.” He did not comment on allegations that members of the Pyu Saw Htee are paid by the military. Forming a proxy force After the military coup, Pyu Saw Htee militias were formed in villages which formerly supported the military and the military proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). Observers say the Pyu Saw Htee act as a proxy force for the military and are responsible for some of the junta’s worst abuses against civilians, including looting and arson, arbitrary arrests, torture, and execution. RFA documented at least 74 civilian deaths linked to pro-military groups such as the Pyu Saw Htee in Myanmar in May alone. USDP spokesman Nanda Hla Myint has told RFA that although party members had not been instructed to take up arms against the opposition, the party leadership will not stop them from doing so. Zaw Zaw, a resident of Sagaing’s Pale township said that although not every USDP member is Pyu Saw Htee, Pyu Saw Htee units are mainly comprised of USDP members. “Some of them, mostly hardliners, go to Pyu Saw Htee training. In some villages, people who were accused as ‘Dalans’ (military informers) flee and join them,” he said. “These kinds of people have been involved in election campaigns for years. They are not actually USDP members but most of them are very supportive of the USDP.” Min Zaw Oo, executive director of the Myanmar Institute for Peace and Security (MIPS), said the formation of proxy armed groups like the Pyu Saw Htee is a military strategy with a long history in the country. “It seems junta leaders were hesitant in the beginning, as they weren’t sure whether they could trust the villagers not to turn against them when they were given weapons,” he said. “In the beginning, there were no guns, but later – especially in 2022 – more groups were armed.” According to a recent report by the Institute for Strategic…

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North Korea imposed ‘loyalty funds’ on trade officials in China amid missile tests

Editor06 mins

North Korea ordered trade officials stationed in China to pay U.S. $3,000 in so-called “loyalty funds” by the end of July, which some sources in China said was likely an effort to offset at least part of cost for ballistic missile tests over the weekend. The China-based trade officials are tasked with doing business with Chinese partners to earn foreign cash for their government, in some cases for leader Kim Jong Un’s personal slush fund. Occasionally the government will demand that they pay funds in addition to what their businesses earn for the government, effectively cutting into their own earnings. The call for loyalty funds usually coincides with important events, a North Korean trade official in the Chinese city of Dalian, in the northeastern province of Liaoning, told RFA’s Korean Service Monday on condition of anonymity for security reasons. “This is the third time the authorities have imposed a loyalty fund on us this year. The first and second time, though, trade had been partially open, so we could at least pay half of the fund,” the source said. “This time it is not easy because China is on complete lockdown due to the coronavirus,” said the source.” The North Korean economy is in shambles, partially because of the closure of the Sino-Korean border and the suspension of trade for essentially the first two years of the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this year rail freight resumed, but it was quickly shut down due to new outbreaks of COVID-19 in China. With no trade, it is difficult for the officials sent overseas to pay their loyalty funds, and they have come to resent it, the official in Dalian said. “Trade officials are indignant that they keep imposing loyalty funds. We know through the internet that yesterday, once again, they tested ballistic missiles, this time eight from four locations,” said the source. “We are well aware that tens of millions of dollars are spent to launch a single missile. But how many ballistic missiles have been launched this year? I can’t quite understand the behavior of the authorities, who waste foreign currency on missile launches and forcibly impose loyalty funds on us.” South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said that the eight missiles were fired from four locations, including the Sunan area of Pyongyang into the sea east of the Korean peninsula. RFA sources estimate that North Korea has sent around 1,000 trade officials to China, meaning that the loyalty funds imposed this time should bring in around $3 million, far less than the estimated cost of Sunday’s missile test. Another trade official in Donggang, a port located close to the North Korean-Chinese maritime border, told RFA that the last time the government imposed loyalty funds, it was for a military parade in Pyongyang. That event later forced the government to acknowledge the virus after fever cases began to erupt among parade participants after they returned to their homes. “Trade officials cannot disobey orders from Pyongyang, so some of us have had to borrow money from our Chinese counterparts to contribute last time,” the second source said. “Because of that parade they ended up blocking train and maritime trade again, leaving us in debt. The complaints are pouring in because they are asking us to pay loyalty funds again,” the second source said. “They are squeezing more money out of us and wasting it on missile launches.” Translated by Leejin J. Chung. Written in English by Eugene Whong.

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Cambodia’s Candlelight Party says commune election marred by widespread fraud

Editor010 mins

Nationwide elections for local councils were marred by fraud and irregularities, Cambodia’s opposition Candlelight Party said Monday while ruling out a formal protest against what the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) claimed was a sweeping victory. Though official returns from Sunday’s polls are scheduled for release on June 26, a statement issued by the National Election Committee (NEC) on Monday said the CPP received 5.3 million popular votes to win 9,338 out of the 11,622 commune council seats that were contested. The Candlelight Party received 1.6 million votes, winning 2,180 seats, with other parties taking up the remainder of votes and seats. Candlelight Party candidates and election observers said they were the victims of harassment and intimidation before and during the voting, and that the NEC, a purportedly independent agency that supervises elections in Cambodia, failed to take action to stop it. Nearly all polling stations across the country were closed and locked after 3 p.m., and officials prevented observers from monitoring the counting of votes at polling stations, they said. In some cases, election officials did not allow the counting of ballots at polling stations after they closed, but instead gave local authorities and representatives from CPP observer organizations access to them, they said. The Candlelight Party said the abuses amounted to vote-rigging. The party does not believe the results reflect the will of the people, but will not protest the returns, said Son Chhay, Candlelight’s vice president. “We have no plans to demonstrate, but we want to make our concern or the concern of the electorate heard about the irregularities that affect their will, and we ask for improvement,” he said at a press conference. NEC spokesman Hang Puthea disputed the Candlelight Party’s contention, saying the election process went smoothly and the results can be trusted. “Acceptance or disapproval does not depend on the political language of any political party,” he said. “On the contrary, many parties and national and international observers have expressed their appreciation for the management of the election process.” But Hang Puthea added that the NEC would accept all recommendations that yield better elections in the future. RFA could not reach CPP spokesman Sok Eysan for comment on Monday. On Sunday night he had called the election the “best one” ever without elaborating. “Pattern of threats’ Several observers though had noted heavy-handed tactics by the ruling CPP in the run-up to Sunday’s vote. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed its concern over a pattern of intimidation and the arrest and imprisonment of some opposition party candidates. At least six Candlelight Party candidates and activists had been arrested and jailed before and during election campaigning. “We are disturbed by the pattern of threats, intimidation and obstruction targeting opposition candidates ahead of communal elections in Cambodia on 5 June,” office spokesperson Liz Throssell said in a statement Friday. The ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) also registered its concerns with the election campaign, especially the persecution of Candlelight Party candidates. APHR member Maria Chin Abdullah, a Malaysian lawmaker, said it was impossible to hold free and fair elections in an environment where opposition politicians are persecuted. Political commentator Meas Nee, who visited a number of polling stations, told RFA that while he didn’t see any violence at polling stations there were other signs of voter intimidation. “But village and commune chiefs were present at the polling stations and were there to record the names of people who came to vote,” he said. “This could be interpreted in a way that conveys if you don’t vote for me, you will have problems.” Voters, many of whom are struggling with inflation after two years of economic hardship as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, expressed disappointment with the results. “My vote is meaningful for my life, but I’m so frustrated because the result showed the opposite of my expectation,” Kim Channara, 49, who works at the Chea Sinath Garment Factory Worker in Phnom Penh, told RFA on Monday. Khuth Sokha, 42, president of the garment factory, said she was disappointed by the outcome and noted that just before the elections, CPP authorities distributed 20,000 riels (U.S. $5) and a krama, or scarf, to each citizen. “The government has in power for so long and has not made any substantial progress,” Khuth Sokha said. “Land disputes are widespread, so I want to see a change of new leaders who might make the situation better.” ‘Time to fulfill promises’ Kata On, spokesman for the government’s Human Rights Commission, said the election results must be respected. “The Cambodian People’s Party works for the interest of the people. We, the CPP, are of the people, by the people, and for the people.” For several voters, working for the people means controlling inflation in country. Chheang Sinath, a tourist tuk-tuk driver in Phnom Penh, told RFA that high gasoline and food prices in Cambodia have hurt his ability to earn a living and pay his bills. “We know that the result is that the Cambodian People’s Party won the commune elections, so please consider solving the high price of gasoline for us,” he said. “Nowadays, living is so difficult.” RFA could not reach Ministry of Commerce spokesmen Seang Thai and Long Kemvichet for comment. Vorn Pov, president of the Independent Association of Informal Economy, a union that represents tuk-tuk drivers and other service economy workers, said it members are becoming poorer amid the price increases. Once again, it’s the CPP’s responsibility to solve the problem, he said. “We see that the government, especially the ruling party, has won a landslide victory in thousands of communes, so it should be time to fulfill its promises made during the election campaign,” Vorn Pov said. Translated by Sum Sok Ry for RFA Khmer. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.

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New Australian PM pledges to help make Indonesia’s G20 presidency, summit successful

Editor09 mins

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese pledged Monday to help host country Indonesia make this year’s G20 summit a success, including by attending the gathering, which controversially has both the Russian and Ukrainian presidents on the guest list. Australia’s new PM made the pledge during a news conference at the Presidential Palace in Bogor, after he and Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo held talks and rode around the palatial grounds on bamboo bicycles, in a nod to their humble origins. Albanese, who took office two weeks ago, was on his maiden visit as prime minister to the giant neighbor next-door. “[D]eepening engagement with Southeast Asia is a priority for my Government,” he stressed in a statement read out to reporters. “I will work closely with President Widodo to help deliver a successful summit,” Albanese said, adding that international cooperation was needed “to tackle the many challenges we face in navigating the post-COVID global economic recovery.” Indonesia holds the 2022 presidency of the grouping of the world’s top 20 economies. The United States has urged Indonesia not to invite member-state Russia to the G20 summit, scheduled for November in Bali, because of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.  Jakarta so far has refused to disinvite Russia from the summit but has invited Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, which is not a G20 member, as a guest. In March, U.S. President Joe Biden said Ukraine should be able to participate in the G20 summit, if the grouping did not expel Russia. Indonesian President Joko Widodo (left) and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese interact with journalists at the Presidential Palace in Bogor, Indonesia, June 6, 2022. Credit: Indonesian Presidential Palace ‘Mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation’ Albanese also pledged closer cooperation with Indonesia on trade, security and climate change. “Indonesia is on track to be one of the world’s five largest economies,” Albanese said. “Revitalizing our trade and investment relationship is a priority for my government,” he said. Albanese added that the two countries were working to realize the potential of the Indonesia Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, a free trade agreement which came into effect two years ago. Albanese came to Indonesia with a delegation that included chief executives of major Australian companies, as well as Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Trade Minister Don Farrel. Jokowi, for his part, said that the “strategic partnership agreement” and the free trade deal with Australia provided a strong foundation for bilateral relations. “These two foundations are very important for the two countries to continue to strengthen mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation,” Jokowi said. Jokowi stressed the importance of expanding access to exports for Indonesian products to Australia, including cars. “The first shipment of completely built-up cars made in Indonesia to Australia was made in February and I hope that export access like this will continue to expand,” he said. Jokowi said he told Albanese that good bilateral relations could contribute to regional peace and prosperity. “International principles and laws must be consistently obeyed, strategic competition in the region needs to be managed properly to avoid open conflict, a culture of peace and strategic trust needs to be strengthened,” he said. Albanese also promised increased cooperation in the fields of defense, as well as maritime security and safety, amid China’s growing assertiveness in the contested South China Sea. Indonesia has on several occasions expressed concerns about a new trilateral security pact between Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom, known as AUKUS, which allows Australia to acquire nuclear-powered submarines. In their respective statements, however, the two leaders made no references to AUKUS. Albanese stressed that his government would work closely with Australian Super Funds, one of the country’s largest investors, to explore investment opportunities in Indonesia. Ninasapti Triaswati, an economist at the University of Indonesia, said the visit provided an opportunity for Indonesia to strike business deals with Australian companies. “But it requires technical readiness on the part of the Indonesian side to be able to make cooperation contracts that benefit the Indonesian people,” Ninasapti told BenarNews. Ninasapti said she believed the presence of Putin at the upcoming G20 summit would not affect economic ties with Australia. “If Putin comes, the Australian government may leave the room, but CEOs of Australian private companies will still be interested in investing in Indonesia,” he said. ‘Strengthen partnerships in the Pacific’ Albanese also said his government was committed to deepening economic ties with Southeast Asian countries. “And we will deliver a comprehensive ASEAN Economic Strategy to 2040, to map current and future export and investment opportunities across key ASEAN markets,” he said. Albanese said Australia would give A$470 million (U.S. $338.55 million) to Southeast Asia over four years under Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) programs, on top of A$200 million for its climate and infrastructure partnership with Indonesia. “We also agreed to strengthen partnerships in the Pacific, especially in the fields of climate, fisheries and agriculture,” he said. “True to my government’s ambitious climate targets, I want better access to affordable, reliable and secure clean energy right across our region, as we transition to a net zero world together.”

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Vietnam Communist Party expels health minister and Hanoi mayor for COVID test scandal

Editor07 mins

The Vietnam Communist Party (VCP) on Monday expelled the country’s health minister and the mayor of the capital Hanoi for their roles in a U.S. $172 million scandal involving overpriced coronavirus test kits, the party said at an emergency meeting of its Central Committee. Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long and Mayor Chu Ngoc Anh are the latest casualties of the one-party state’s crackdown on corruption, which has seen several high-profile arrests of government and private sector officials over the past few months. Long and Anh could face criminal charges for their actions in connection to the Viet A Technologies Company scandal, during which officials were paid off so that hospitals would use overpriced COVID-19 test kits. “It’s always a sign when the Vietnam Communist Party calls for an emergency session of its Central Committee,” Southeast Asia analyst Zachary Abuza, a professor at the National War College in Washington, told RFA. “Expulsion from the party is in itself a major deal… No longer protected by their elite party status, their legal jeopardy just went up a few notches,” he said. “Now that the party’s inspection has concluded, they will now be passed on the prosecutors for trial and an almost certain conviction.” The company’s director-general, Phan Quoc Viet, faces charges of bribing health officials so that they would agree to overpay for the test kits to be distributed to hospitals and provincial Centers for Disease Control. Viet was able to make $172 million in profit and then re-channel $34 million into more bribes, AFP reported. The Viet-A scandal was uncovered at the end of last year as part of the Communist Party’s efforts since 2016 to get tough on corruption. The anti-corruption campaign, referred to as “furnace burning” by its architect, Secretary General Nguyen Phu Trong, has seen high-profile arrests of government officials over the past few months for their involvement in various scandals. For example, several Ministry of Health officials have been accused of accepting bribes for space on international rescue flights out of areas in the world heavily hit by COVID-19. Authorities have also discovered a number of training violations at the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences. The director of a military hospital was arrested for granting slots to unqualified applicants at the ASEAN Medical and Pharmaceutical College. Vietnam also recently arrested 19 people on charges of “violating regulations on asset management and use, causing losses and waste” at an agriculture company, and seven senior coast guard officials, including the commander, for embezzling funds Nguyen Ngoc Gia, an independent journalist, told RFA that corruption is more widespread than even the recent arrests would indicate. “I think the big reasons are that the rule of law doesn’t exist, the rule of virtue is just a formality, and the technocracy is too weak,” Gia said. “Meanwhile, culture and education, the two most important areas making up the soul of a nation, are widely manipulated by money. Therefore, it can be seen that the current appearance of morality is just hypocrisy,” said Gia. Totalitarianism and the one-party system have led to an overemphasis on money and power, Gia said. The Viet-A scandal was not as large as others, but the government is paying special attention, Abuza said. “This scandal seems to have stung the leadership a little bit more. In part there was the direct link between the firm and the senior leadership. General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong had egg on his face,” Abuza said. “Anti-corruption has been the hallmark of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s tenure. Trong has wielded anti-corruption as he believes that the country’s endemic corruption threatens the VCP’s legitimacy,” he said. “But he also has wielded it as a tool against political rivals. And many in the country will see this as just that: elite political infighting.” Trong suffered a stroke in 2020, so there are expectations that the third-term general secretary will step down before the term is up in 2026, Abuza said. “But as long as he believes that corruption is still reaching the senior most ranks, he’ll fight to stay on, convinced that others will take the issue of corruption as seriously.” Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Eugene Whong.

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Gunmen fire at cars on China-backed Lao expressway

Editor05 mins

Gunmen opened fire Sunday on traffic moving along a China-invested expressway in Laos, leaving one of three injured in the shooting in a coma in a local hospital, Lao sources say. Four suspects described by authorities as “bandits” and including both Lao and ethnic Hmong are now under arrest following the incident, which took place at about 12:30 p.m. at the Phou-Pha tunnel on the Vientiane-Vang Vieng Expressway, a public security official told RFA on Monday. The group may have been involved in a business dispute, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media about the case. “We have already arrested four suspects, who include both Lao and Hmong,” the official said. “Details of what happened are still unclear, and we are carrying out an investigation.” An official press conference will be held when the investigation ends, the official said. Meanwhile, security measures will be taken to ensure safety along the Vientiane-Vang Vieng expressway, and vehicles will be checked before entering, the official said. Seriously wounded in the shooting, a resident of the Lao capital Vientiane is now in a coma at the Lao-Soviet Friendship Hospital in Vientiane, where doctors are attempting to remove a bullet from one of his lungs, and family members are appealing for donations of blood, sources said. A family member contacted by RFA declined to comment on the case. A toll gate on the Vientiane-Vang Vieng Expressway , Dec. 27, 2020. Photo: RFA Lao residents concerned over safety issues on the major roadway linking the capital with Vang Vieng, a popular tourist destination north of Vientiane, told RFA the gunmen had likely been involved in a dispute over drugs, with one source saying the shooters may have been under the influence of drugs themselves. “These young gangsters are all using drugs, especially methamphetamines. The police are always arresting them,” RFA’s source said, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons. Other Lao villagers following the news said those injured in the shooting may have been involved in earlier disputes. “After reading about this incident on Facebook, it seems to me there may have been some conflict over drugs. I’m sure this must be what this was all about,” one source said, also declining to be named. Government authorities must now strengthen security along the expressway, especially by deploying more police officers along the road, said another local resident who often drives along the Vientiane-Vang Vieng route. “I usually see CCTV cameras on the expressway, but not that many police,” he said. Reached for comment, an official of the Laos-China Joint Expressway Development Co., Ltd., declined to speak to RFA reporters, but the company issued a statement Sunday reporting the shooting and saying reasons for the incident were being investigated by the police. Traffic was moving normally along the expressway, which began operations in 2020, by 5:35 p.m., the company said in its statement. Translated by Phouvong for RFA’s Lao Service. Written in English by Richard Finney.

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Tank cake on eve of Tiananmen anniversary sparks shutdown of influencer’s livestream

Editor010 mins

Chinese censors shut down the livestream of beauty influencer Austin Li after he displayed a tank-shaped cake ahead of the 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre, as former student leaders reflected on the June 4, 1989 crackdown from overseas. Li’s livestream was taken off air on Friday shortly after he showed an ice-cream dessert in the shape of a tank, prompting fans to wonder what unknown event he could have been referring to. Public commemorations of the massacre, in which the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) mowed down unarmed civilians with guns and tanks to end a weeks-long mass protest movement in Tiananmen Square, are banned in China. The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) rarely allows any public reference to the event, although it describes the protests that preceded it as “countterevolutionary turmoil.” Online references to the events of June 4, 1989, including images of tanks, are swiftly deleted by government censors. Now, Li may have introduced a new generation of 170 million largely unsuspecting fans to the violent crackdown that left hundreds, possibly thousands, dead. Li attributed the premature ending of his livestream to a “backstage technical failure,” but hadn’t updated his social media account by Monday. A current affairs commentator who gave only the surname Su said anything that refers to the events of spring and early summer 1989 is politically sensitive for the CCP. “He’s the second most popular anchor after Wei Ya, and he has thousands of people among his suppliers,” Su said. “He has so many people around him, yet he was silly enough to promote a tank-shaped dessert on June 3.” “Why did his production team fail to detect or block such a common-sense issue; there must be some kind of problem,” he said. Su said Li was unlikely to re-emerge following the incident. “Given the current political environment, he is finished for sure, or at least will just fade away from the public eye,” Su said. Screenshot of Chinese beauty influencer Austin Li, whose livestream was taken off the air after he displayed a tank-shaped cake on the eve of the 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre, June 3, 2022. House arrest for dissidents Massacre survivors, victims’ families and prominent dissidents are typically placed under house arrest or similar restrictions by state security police during the anniversary, only to be released when the date has passed without incident. Qi Zhiyong, a massacre survivor who had both legs crushed by a tank in June 1989, said he had been forced to leave town with a state security police escort. “I was taken away from my home on May 28 by police, who confiscated my mobile phone,” Qi told RFA. “But my dialysis appointments weren’t affected.” “There are police and security guards at the entrance to my apartment complex,” he said. Former 1989 student leader Wang Dan said he is currently engaged in setting up a June 4 Memorial Hall in New York City. “All of my energy is devoted to this project now,” Wang, who also founded the Dialogue China think-tank since arriving in the U.S. on medical parole 24 years ago. He said the overseas democracy movement was the best exiled dissidents could do for China, and suggested that CCP leader Xi Jinping’s zero-COVID policy could open some younger people’s eyes to the nature of the regime. “We’re already seeing the effects of the Shanghai lockdown,” he said. “I think a lot of little pinks [CCP fans] in Shanghai, and many millennials will be realizing that this society isn’t as beautiful as they once believed.” Former 1989 student activist Zhou Fengsuo, who founded the rights group Humanitarian China after arriving in the U.S., said his organization manages to support more than 100 prisoners of conscience annually. “That has added up to more than 1,000 people over the years,” he said. “We hope that more people will come to know about them, and to thereby understand the human rights situation in China.” Brainwashing Former Shandong student activist Bob Fu has worked to promote religious freedom in China since becoming a Christian in the wake of the 1989 crackdown, founding the Texas-based group ChinaAid. “The first thing we want to do is to give them a voice, and the second is to make very specific efforts to promote religious freedom in China,” Fu told RFA. “In the past couple of decades, we have paid particular attention to human rights lawyers, as to support them is actually to promote religious freedom in China.” A member of the millennial generation who gave only the surname Li said he thought everyone should understand what happened in 1989. “June 4, 1989 is something that every Chinese person should remember,” Li said. “We can learn a lot from the way the students were thinking, from their spirit, now.” “But a lot of people don’t have access to the internet outside the Great Firewall, including a lot of Generation Z, so they don’t know about such things, and have never heard of any of it.” A slightly older man from Shanghai surnamed Wang said CCP brainwashing has been particular effective among the younger generation. “If anyone mentions freedom and democracy, they tell you that you can’t eat those things,” Wang said. “They really support the current regime with all their hearts.” “It’s clear that this brainwashing [patriotic] education they received has been hugely successful, from the point of view of those who rule,” he said. Zhou said he realizes how far there is to go. “Of course so far, this has been a losing battle,” he said of China’s faltering democracy movement. “But before the CCP falls, many more people will have to get involved in this losing battle.” “For those who are in it and are still fighting against this authoritarian regime, at least they have the courage to resist, the spirit of perseverance. This is worthy of huge respect.” Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

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Police arrest six on banned Tiananmen massacre anniversary in Hong Kong

Editor08 mins

Police in Hong Kong have arrested six people on public order offenses around the 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre near Victoria Park, commemoration of which has been banned under a draconian national security law for the third year in a row. Police said they had arrested five men and one woman aged 19-80 by 11.30 p.m. on June 4 after stepping up patrols around Causeway Bay and Victoria Park and warning people not to try to stage their own personal memorials. The six arrestees were taken away on charges that included “inciting others to take part in an illegal assembly,” “possessing an offensive weapon” and “obstructing police officers in the course of the duties.” The soccer pitches, basketball courts and central lawn areas — where mass candlelight vigils had taken place for three decades since the June 4, 1989 massacre by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in Beijing — were reopened on Sunday after being closed to the public. Police remained at the park on Sunday, stopping passers-by for questioning, but otherwise allowing people in and out again. Large numbers of Hongkongers in exile turned out to mark the massacre in London at the weekend, lighting candles and writing messages of commemoration, including outside the Chinese Embassy, where protesters mock-charged the building with paper effigies of tanks, only to be pushed back by police. Protesters held up photos of political prisoners jailed in Hong Kong under a draconian national security law imposed on the city by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the wake of the 2019 protest movement, which called for universal suffrage and greater official accountability, as well as opposing plans to allow extradition to mainland China. A former Hong Kong teacher who gave only the English name Jeremy said he had emigrated to the U.K. with his family, and had continued his annual attendance at the vigil in London, this time bringing his daughter along too. “The regime did something wrong, and we are here as proof of that, and to tell the next generation that justice should be done, and that someone should admit responsibility for that wrongdoing,” he said. “It’s that simple.” “The people of Hong Kong see you, and we haven’t forgotten the June 4 massacre,” he said. Hongkongers in exile in Britain join mainland democracy activists to mark the 33rd anniversary of the June 4, 1989 Tiananmen massacre in London at the weekend, lighting candles and writing messages of commemoration outside the Chinese Embassy, in London, June 2, 2022. Credit: RFA Danger to families A participant who gave only the surname Liew said Hongkongers are beginning to have similar fears to mainland Chinese in exile, namely that their friends and families back home could be targeted if they speak out overseas. “Of course I’m scared too, but my view is that if we do nothing, they’ll be even more contemptuous of our rights,” she said. “They won’t go any easier on us if we do nothing; the abuse of our rights will only intensify.” Around 2,000 people turned out to mark the anniversary on the democratic island of Taiwan, many of them chanting now-banned slogans from the 2019 protest movement including “Free Hong Kong! Revolution now!” A replica of the now-demolished Pillar of Shame sculpture that once stood on the University of Hong Kong campus formed a focal point for the event, as Taiwan president Tsai Ing-wen wrote on her Facebook page that the authorities in Hong Kong are currently working to erase collective memory of the massacre. The country’s foreign affairs ministry sent an open letter to the people of China in the simplified Chinese used in China, calling on them to research the massacre for themselves, beyond the Great Firewall of internet censorship. A replica of the now-demolished Pillar of Shame sculpture that once stood on the University of Hong Kong campus is displayed in Taiwan, where some 2,000 people turned out to mark the 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre, June 4, 2022. Credit: RFA Hong Kong artist Kacey Wong, now in exile in Taiwan, gave a speech to the crowd, saying the CCP fears such events because of how many people they killed. “Friends looked for friends in piles of corpses, wives looked for husbands in piles of corpses, parents looked for their sons and daughters among the blood and corpses,” Wong said. “The Chinese Communist Party is very afraid of passing on [that knowledge] from generation to generation, but that’s exactly what we want.” “Make sure everyone knows they killed those people … fight for freedom and democracy, and then their deaths will have made sense.” Back in Hong Kong, national security judge Peter Law handed over the “subversion” cases of 47 former opposition lawmakers and democracy activists to the High Court, paving the way for potential life imprisonment under the national security law for organizing a democratic primary in 2020. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

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Five people killed in Sagaing region township blazes

Editor03 mins

The charred bodies of a 79-year-old woman and a 14-year-old boy were among five people discovered after military forces set fire to two villages in Myanmar’s war-torn Sagaing region, locals told RFA. The elderly woman was from Thargara village in Khin Oo township. The boy and three men came from Than Se Chaung village in Kani township. Residents told RFA the elderly woman may have been trapped after suffering a stroke when junta troops burned down houses on June 4. They say the blaze also killed cattle and destroyed 70 houses, agricultural machinery, motorbikes and 10,000 baskets of rice, being stored for food. Agricultural equipment and food supplies were also destroyed in the blaze. CREDIT: citizen jounalist. The bodies of four Than Se Chaung residents were found close to their village, near Nat Sin Gone at Nga Pyat village. They had been detained by the military a few days earlier. A local resident told RFA the four villagers, aged between 14 and 45, were killed after being taken hostage by troops. “They were sent to the frontline and were then killed as they did not do what the junta troops asked and commanded,” said the resident, who spoke to RFA on condition of anonymity. It was still not known how the four were killed. Calls to a military council spokesman by RFA on Monday morning went unanswered. Most of Sagaing’s townships and villages have been affected by fierce fighting between junta forces and members of the People’s Defense Forces since the military seized power in a Feb. 1, 2021 coup. RFA reported last month that nearly 6,300 homes in 19 townships had been burned down in the northwestern region over the previous two months. Junta spokesman Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun blamed the PDFs for starting the fires. RFA figures show that 414 people were killed in Sagaing region between Feb. 1 and Dec. 1 last year, 309 by the junta and 105 by PDFs.

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Australia protests to China after dangerous air intercept

Editor09 mins

A Chinese fighter jet dangerously intercepted an Australian reconnaissance aircraft over the South China Sea last month, Australia’s Department of Defence (DOD) said, but China’s state media stated it was “Western countries” who were in the wrong. A DOD statement said on May 26 a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) P-8A Poseidon “was intercepted by a Chinese J-16 fighter aircraft during a routine maritime surveillance activity in international airspace in the South China Sea region.”  “The intercept resulted in a dangerous manoeuvre which posed a safety threat to the P-8 aircraft and its crew,” the DOD said, adding that the Australian Government had raised its concerns about the incident with the Chinese Government. Last week the Canadian government also expressed concerns over Chinese aircraft “buzzing” a Canadian surveillance aircraft in the East China Sea, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calling it “extremely troubling.” Chinese media rejected the accusations, saying Canada and Australia – members of the Five Eyes Western intelligence alliance – conducted “close-in reconnaissance and provocative activities” on China. The Global Times, a mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, said reports on the Chinese intercepts “are not consistent with the truth.” On Monday China’s defense ministry said the PLA has taken reasonable measures to counter provocations by Canadian military jets that have been carrying out increased reconnaissance in the region. Spokesman Wu Qian described China’s response as ‘reasonable,’ adding that Beijing has made ‘solemn representations’ through diplomatic channels, according to Reuters. ‘Dangerous mid-air maneuvres’ The Australian DOD’s statement said that it has “for decades undertaken maritime surveillance activities in the region and does so in accordance with international law.” Defence Minister Richard Marles told Australian media that the J-16 jet flew very close to the RAAF P-8A maritime surveillance aircraft, released flares and then “accelerated and cut across the nose of the P-8, settling in front of the P-8 at very close distance.” “It then released a bundle of chaff, which contains small pieces of aluminium, some of which were ingested into the engine of the P-8 aircraft,” Marles told Australia’s Channel 9. “This maneuvre is dangerous and designed to provoke,” said Alexander Neill, a defense and security consultant based in Singapore. “Dispensing chaff is extremely dangerous,” Neill added, as the pieces could cause serious damage when entering the engine of the P-8. The Chinese interpretation of the event was very different.  The Global Times quoted Zhang Xuefeng, a Chinese military expert, as saying that “it is possible that the Australian P-8 used its jamming pod to lase the Chinese aircraft, triggering the latter’s self-defense system which is programed to automatically release the flares and chaff.” Earlier this year Australia accused a Chinese warship of pointing a military-grade laser at an Australian P-8A Poseidon in the Arafura Sea, north of Australia, posing great danger to the pilots’ safety. The RAAF has a fleet of 14 modern Boeing-manufactured P-8As that it uses for maritime surveillance. Canberra raised concerns with Beijing over the Feb. 17 incident but the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) did not issue an apology, arguing that the vessel was fully complying with international law and Australia was “maliciously spreading disinformation” against China. In 2019 a similar incident happened in the South China Sea when Australian helicopter pilots, operating from the naval vessel HMAS Canberra, were forced to land as a precaution after a Chinese warship targeted it with a laser. “This maneuvre in May is similar to the one which downed a U.S. Navy P-3 back in 2001,” said Alexander Neill.  In April 2001 a Chinese F-8 fighter jet collided with a U.S. Navy EP-3 Aries II surveillance plane over the South China Sea, killing the Chinese pilot. The U.S. aircraft had to make an emergency landing on China’s Hainan island. “It seems the PLA  returned to using such dangerous techniques but dispensing chaff is even more serious,” the analyst said. A CP-140 Aurora, similar to the aircraft “buzzed”by Chinese jets over the East China Sea, in a Canadian Government file photograph  ‘Five Eyes’ Such events have become more regular as China ramps-up its campaign to back up territorial claims in the region.  At the same time the U.S. and its allies have also intensified activities in accordance with the ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific’ initiative. In September last year Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States formed the AUKUS security alliance, which is generally seen as an effort to counter China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific. Canberra was alarmed when China signed a security pact with the Solomon Islands in April and sought to reach a multi-sector deal with some other Pacific island nations. “I would say this latest incident is part of a new coercive strategy to put pressure on Australia following the creation of AUKUS and also in response to pressures by Australia in the South Pacific,” Neill told RFA. Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the U.K. and the U.S. are already members of the long-standing intelligence alliance known as Five Eyes. China has been accusing the U.S. and partners of conducting “provocative reconnaissance” on China. The South China Sea Probing Initiative, a Beijing-based Chinese think tank, alleged that last month the U.S. military performed 41 sorties of land-based reconnaissance aircraft over the South China Sea alone.

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Investigative Journalism Reportika © March 2022 by Ij-Reportika is licensed under CC BY 4.0