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Two dead, 3 injured in airstrikes on central Myanmar village

Editor1 year ago03 mins

A junta jet dropped bombs and opened fire with machine guns on civilians in three townships killing two women and injuring three more, locals and People’s Defense Force members told Radio Free Asia. The aircraft attacked Magway region’s Seikphyu, Pauk and Saw on Friday night forcing almost 8,000 people to flee the townships. Locals identified the dead women as 21-year-old Yu Nandar and 24-year-old May Thingyan from Seikphyu’s Than Pu Yar Pin village. They were cremated on Friday evening according to a resident who declined to be named for fear of reprisals. “Two bombs fell when the girls were collecting water. They died on the spot,” he said. “The jet went back and opened fire with machine guns, hitting two children and a woman. The woman, Tin San Htwe was hit in [the back of her head] and is still unconscious.” About 600 people live in 140 houses in Than Pu Yar Pin village. They told RFA Burmese they were afraid to return to their homes because there may be more airstrikes. A People’s Defense Force officer based in Seikphyu said the junta launched an attack even though there had been no fighting because it considers the township strategically important. “Seikphyu is a key place,” he said. “Wazi, which prints banknotes, is in the area. There is an Air Defense Operations command headquarters and an aviation training school. Also there are two defense equipment factories.” Calls to junta spokesman Than Swe Win seeking comment on the junta’s airstrikes, went unanswered. Some 730 civilians have been killed and 1,292 injured by airstrikes and heavy artillery this year according to data compiled by RFA, Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Mike Firn.

Hong Kong vows to pursue wanted overseas activists ‘to the end’

Editor1 year ago012 mins

Hong Kong on Friday vowed to pursue overseas pro-democracy activists on its national security wanted list “to the end,” amid calls from U.S. Congress members for sanctions linked to transnational repression by the Chinese Communist Party. National security police on Thursday issued arrest warrants for former British consular employee Simon Cheng, who co-founded the advocacy group Hongkongers in Britain, Frances Hui of the U.S.-based Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong, U.S. citizen and Hong Kong campaigner Joey Siu and overseas YouTube hosts Johnny Fok and Tony Choi. Police said they had “absconded overseas” and offered a HK$1 million (US$128,000) bounty for information leading to their arrests. “Fugitives should not have any delusion that they could evade legal liabilities by absconding from Hong Kong,” a spokesman said on Friday. “Fugitives will be pursued for life unless they turn themselves in … we will pursue these fugitives … to the end and use all practicable measures to bring them to justice,” he said in a statement posted to the government’s website. The wanted activists “continue to engage in acts and activities endangering national security,” slamming criticism of the move as “unreasonable” and “tainted with double standards,” he said. Chief Superintendent of Police (National Security Department ) Li Kwai-wah and Senior Superintendent Hung Ngan attend a press conference on arrest warrants issued for activists Simon Cheng, Frances Hui, Joey Siu, Johnny Fok and Tony Choi, in Hong Kong, Dec. 14, 2023. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters) The new additions to the Hong Kong authorities’ wanted list come after similar warrants were issued for eight prominent pro-democracy activists in July, and amid growing concern over China’s long-arm law enforcement activities far beyond its own borders. The group are wanted on a slew of charges under a draconian security law that bans public criticism of the authorities, including “incitement to secession”, “incitement to subversion” and “collusion with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security,” police said in a statement on Thursday. Intimidation and harassment The warrants prompted calls in Washington for sanctions on Chinese Communist Party-backed officials. “Last night, CCP-controlled authorities in Hong Kong issued bounties on five Hong Kongers living abroad, including two pro-democracy activists living in the United States, one of whom is an American citizen,” Chairman Mike Gallagher and Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party said in a joint statement on Dec. 14. “CCP-controlled Hong Kong authorities’ effort through intimidation and harassment to persecute US citizens and residents engaging in peaceful political activism in the United States is unacceptable,” they said, calling for urgent action from Congress to stem China’s “transnational repression.” U.S. Reps. Mike Gallagher and Raja Krishnamoorthi, seen at a hearing earlier this year, issued a joint statement calling for urgent action from Congress to stem China’s “transnational repression.” (J. Scott Applewhite/AP) Hong Kong’s national security police said on Thursday that “the acts of these five persons seriously endanger national security,” announcing a reward of HK$1 million to members of the public who provide information leading to their arrest. Police also arrested four people on suspicion of offering financial assistance via online crowdfunding to exiled former pro-democracy lawmakers Ted Hui and Nathan Law. No change Wanted activist Frances Hui said she wasn’t surprised by the bounty on her head, and wouldn’t be giving up her advocacy as a result. “I will continue to do what I think is right, including my advocacy activities for freedom and democracy in Hong Kong, and fighting for the imposition of sanctions on Hong Kong officials, continuing to advocate for the release of Hong Kong political prisoners, and continuing to appeal to the international community and [over China’s] transnational human rights violations,” she told Radio Free Asia. “I will also continue to build the overseas Hong Kong community and promote Hong Kong culture.” “I will continue to do what I think is right, including my advocacy activities for freedom and democracy in Hong Kong,” says Frances Hui, seen in the Chinatown neighborhood of Boston, Oct. 2, 2019. (Charles Krupa/AP) Meanwhile, Joey Siu said the Hong Kong authorities are using their trade and economic offices in overseas cities as a base from which to target and harass overseas activists from the city. She said even being a citizen of a foreign country is no protection. “The Hong Kong government’s basis for making me a wanted person is comments I made as a U.S. citizen in my own country,” Siu said. “This just shows how unreasonable and all-pervasive this transnational suppression by the Hong Kong and Chinese governments has become.” An honor Former U.K. consular employee Simon Cheng said it was his “lifelong honor” to be singled out by the authorities. “The accusations … that I betrayed my country are actually highly political and baseless,” Cheng told Radio Free Asia. “It’s actually a pretty humble wish that the government respect the rights of its citizens, and allow their voices to be more freely heard.” “We’re just a bit more persistent than the average person and are not afraid to carry on speaking out, so that’s why we are receiving this so-called punishment,” he said, adding that his main fear is that the authorities will target his friends and relatives in Hong Kong. Simon Cheng, seen in London in 2020, says his main fear is that authorities will target his friends and relatives in Hong Kong. (AP) British Foreign Secretary David Cameron condemned the warrants, saying his government would take up the matter “urgently” with Beijing and Hong Kong officials. “We will not tolerate any attempt by any foreign power to intimidate, harass or harm individuals or communities in the U.K.,” Cameron said in a statement. “This is a threat to our democracy and fundamental human rights.” “We call on Beijing to repeal the National Security Law and end its persecution of political activists.” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller called on Beijing to act in accordance with international norms and…

Shelling kills 3, including a child, in Myanmar’s Mandalay region

Editor1 year ago04 mins

Heavy weaponry in central Myanmar killed three civilians, residents told Radio Free Asia on Thursday. Junta troops fired a shell at Mandalay division’s Tha Hpan Kaing village on Wednesday night, killing two women and a child, locals said. The victims are eight-year-old Su Su Nway, 17-year-old Nadi Hlaing, and 45-year-old Ma Nwe, all from Tha Hpan Kaing village. Two people were also injured, including Ma Nwe’s son, one resident said, asking to remain anonymous for security reasons. Six-year-old Htet Pyae Sone Chit and 31-year-old Aye Min Thu are being treated for their injuries. “The injured six-year-old boy is the son of the dead woman, Ma Nwe. And all the people who were hit by the heavy artillery are relatives,” he told RFA Burmese on Dec. 14. “The military junta deliberately shot into the village, rather than indiscriminately shooting. Lately, Madaya township has been experiencing daily attacks with heavy weaponry.” Ten soldiers entered Madaya township from neighboring Patheingyi township on a truck and fired 120 millimeter shells at Tha Hpan Kaing village, he added. Troops shot from roughly 10 kilometers (six miles) away in Kyauk Ta Dar village around 8 p.m. on Wednesday. Calls by RFA to Mandalay’s junta spokesperson Thein Htay to learn more about the attack went unanswered on Thursday. Tha Hpan Kaing village is a large village in the region, with 500 houses, residents said, adding that it’s 16 kilometers (10 miles) from Mandalay’s Madaya city. Troops also fired weaponry from Kyauk Ta Dar village at other villages in the area before Wednesday’s attack, locals said. On Tuesday, a two-hour battle erupted between junta troops and joint defense forces near Kyauk Ta Dar village. Following the battle, junta soldiers fired heavy weapons toward the War Lone Pyun village, but there were no reported injuries, residents told RFA Burmese. The fighting between the junta and local People’s Defense Forces has intensified since November in Madaya township, residents and People’s Defense Force members said. As fighting escalates, so have junta raids on nearby villages. Soldiers are using helicopters to fire shells at villages where they believe resistance groups may be sheltering, according to locals. Data compiled by RFA show attacks on villages in Madaya township have killed 17 locals and injured three in November alone. From Jan. 2022 to Sept. 2023, RFA found that 816 civilians have died and 1,628 were injured by heavy weapons and airstrikes across the country. Edited by Taejun Kang.

Motorcycle protester appears in ‘confessional’ video

Editor1 year ago08 mins

A man jailed for nine years for riding a motorcycle carrying a banned slogan of the 2019 protest movement has appeared in another mainland Chinese-style televised “confession,” as part of a series of propaganda films made by the Hong Kong police in praise of a harsh security law. “I wasn’t thinking straight. I was under the influence of the atmosphere that prevailed at that time,” Tong Ying-kit says in the police-made video published Dec. 12 to the website of Hong Kong broadcaster TVB. “It felt as if there was no way to resolve issues other than through violence,” says Tong, who appears in prison uniform with his back to the camera. A narrator intones: “Tong Ying-kit became the first person to be prosecuted under the National Security Law for ‘inciting others to secession’ and ‘terrorism.’ He was just 23 years old at the time.” Motorcyclist Tong Ying-kit carries a flag reading “Free Hong Kong, revolution now!” during a protest in Hong Kong, July 1, 2020. (Cable TV Hong Kong via AP) The video is the second “confession” by a political prisoner to air in Hong Kong, and comes amid a citywide crackdown on political opposition and public criticism of the authorities under the National Security Law, which Beijing imposed in 2020 in response to protests the year before. Last week, Tsang Chi-kin, who was jailed for “rioting” after being shot in the chest by police during the 2019 protest movement, made a similar video claiming that he too was drawn into the movement as emotions ran high. “#HongKong police & pro-CCP TV station TVB have broadcast a #propaganda video of Tong Ying-kit, the 1st person prosecuted under the national security law,” the U.S.-based Hong Kong Democracy Council said via its account on X, formerly Twitter. “This is the 2nd show using a #PoliticalPrisoner. It is reprehensible coercion similar to CCP-style forced televised confession,” the council said. ‘Free Hong Kong’ banner Tong was jailed in July 2021 after much of the case was spent deciding whether the banned protest slogan on his banner – “Free Hong Kong, revolution now!” – could be considered an incitement to secession, or independence for the city. The judges said Tong’s offense was “serious” and therefore deserving of a jail term of between five and 10 years, but said his call for “secession” hadn’t come with a plan attached, and that he had committed the offense alone. They said that while the police officers who brought him and his motorbike down weren’t seriously injured, Tong’s actions were pre-planned, and his bike was a “lethal weapon.” Tong Ying-kit arrives at court in Hong Kong. July 6, 2020. (Vincent Yu/AP) “These were very serious criminal charges that could have resulted in life imprisonment,” Tong says in the video. The narrator highlights how much he misses his family, adding that he has enrolled in a rehabilitation program to help him “manage his emotions,” and is studying for a high-school qualification. The ends with footage of Tong handling and saluting the flag of the People’s Republic of China in a formal flag-raising ceremony of the kind now commonly seen in schools and other public institutions in Hong Kong. Political prisoner honored The video was released as another prominent political prisoner – barrister and former 1989 Tiananmen massacre vigil organizer Chow Hang-tung – was honored by two European governments with a human rights award. Chow was announced on International Human Rights Day as one of 12 activists, journalists and lawyers “working to defend the inalienable rights of each and every human being” being presented with the Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law. “The prizewinners … stand up for those whose voices would often not be heard without them, such as women, refugees, LGBTIQ+ people and prisoners,” according to the award website. Chow Hang-tung, a barrister and former 1989 Tiananmen massacre vigil organizer in Hong Kong, poses after an interview in Hong Kong, May 24, 2021. (Vincent Yu/AP) “They are committed to the cause of justice, political participation and unbiased reporting in the media, often risking their own freedom, frequently even their lives, under the most difficult conditions,” it said. The Hong Kong government hit out at the foreign affairs ministries of France and Germany over the award, expressing its “strong disapproval.” “Chow Hang-tung is facing a criminal prosecution of ‘incitement to subversion’ and the case has been committed to the Court of First Instance of the High Court awaiting trial,” a spokesman said. “The judicial proceedings of the case are still ongoing, but the ministries of foreign affairs of France and Germany have issued the so-called prize … in the name of ‘human rights’ and the ‘rule of law’.” Authorities in Hong Kong will continue to “effectively prevent, suppress and punish acts and activities that endanger national security,” the spokesman said. Last month, Chow, who has been behind bars since September 2021, was honored with Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe human rights awards, alongside Chinese rights attorneys Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi, who were jailed in April for attending a 2019 gathering of dissidents in the southeastern city of Xiamen. Translated with additional reporting by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Jailed Uyghur academic Ilham Tohti nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

Editor1 year ago010 mins

More than 180 high-level officials and experts have nominated jailed Uyghur academic and blogger Ilham Tohti to receive the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, citing his role as “the true symbol of the Uyghur people’s fight for freedom” under Chinese rule in Xinjiang. The nomination includes signatures from ministers, parliamentarians, university rectors and professors from countries including Canada, Japan, Rwanda, Australia, Paraguay, Turkey and France – a “broad international coalition” which initiative leaders Vanessa Frangville of the Free University of Brussels, Belgium, and Belgian MP Samuel Cogolati believe will bolster the 53-year-old Tohti’s chances at securing the award. “At a time when the U.N. is denouncing ‘crimes against humanity’ in Xinjiang, it is our duty to break the silence towards Xi Jinping’s totalitarian regime and support the true symbol of the Uyghur people’s fight for freedom,” they said in a statement on Monday. Supporters nominated Tohti days after the anniversary of a Dec. 9, 2021, ruling by an independent Uyghur Tribunal – composed of international legal experts, scholars, and NGO representatives – that China has perpetrated genocide against the Uyghur people. An outspoken economics professor who regularly highlighted the religious and cultural persecution of the mostly Muslim Uyghur ethnic minority in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Tohti was sentenced to life in prison on Sept. 23, 2014, following a two-day show trial on charges of promoting separatism. The court decision cited Tohti’s criticism of Beijing’s ethnic policies, his interviews with overseas media outlets, and his work founding and running the Chinese-language website Uighurbiz.net, which was shut down by Chinese authorities in 2014. But while Beijing has denounced the academic as a “separatist,” others have highlighted what they say is his commitment to peaceful interethnic dialogue between members of his ethnic group and China’s Han Chinese majority. Tohti was shortlisted for the Peace Prize in 2020 and 2023. Supporters of this year’s nomination include Kenneth Roth, former director of Human Rights Watch and co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997, and U.S. Congressman Chris Smith, who is also chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. Two members of the Belgian federal government, the speaker of the Belgian senate, two political party leaders from France, the first member of Japan’s parliament of Uyghur origin, and a member of the U.K. House of Lords also lent their names to the nomination. ‘Unprecedented’ nomination In an interview with RFA Uyghur, Cogolati called the initiative to nominate Tohti “unprecedented” because of the breadth of political views, backgrounds and global perspectives represented. “This time, we really decided to mark the occasion by joining forces between the academic and political worlds,” he said. “Ilham Tohti has always been cited as a possible favorite for the next Nobel Peace Prize. This time, what’s really different is that we were able to join forces between not only members of parliament all around the world, but also with universities, with rectors, university directors and professors.” From left: Enver Can, founder of İlham Tohti Initiative, Jewher Ilham, Ilham Tohti’s daughter, Belgian MP Samuel Cogolati and Free University of Brussels professor Vanessa Fangville are seen at a press conference on Monday, Dec. 11, 2023. (Samuel Cogolati) Cogolati said that the international community has a “duty to raise their voice and to condemn the atrocities altogether” when China is working to “silence public intellectuals like Ilham Tohti.” “He’s really a symbol of the fight of the people for freedom, but also for reconciliation, for peace and dialogue with Chinese people,” he said. “So that’s why, for us, it’s not only a fight for the recognition of the amazing academic talents and of the work of Ilham Tohti. But it is also a recognition of the fight of all Uyghurs around the world who are being persecuted by the totalitarian regime of [Chinese President] Xi Jinping.” The Belgian lawmaker said the outsize influence China can exert on international institutions was not lost on him, noting that in 2010, after Norway’s Nobel committee awarded the Peace Prize to then-jailed Chinese democracy activist Liu Xiaobo, Beijing imposed trade sanctions on Oslo. Liu died from late-stage liver cancer in 2017 while serving an 11-year jail term for subversion. “We really recognize the implications and the impact,” he said. “But what we say is that peace is more important. Life, dignity, and freedom for your people are more important.” Withstanding Chinese pressure Tohti’s daughter, Jewher Ilham, told RFA that a win for her father next year would “send a message to the Chinese government that my father has not been forgotten” and force Beijing to demonstrate proof of life for the long-jailed scholar. Additionally, she said, awarding Tohti the Peace Prize would “prove to the Chinese government and the international community that the Nobel Peace Committee is a separate entity that would not be influenced by political pressure – whether it is from China or Norway.” Human Rights Watch China Director Sophie Richardson agreed that the Nobel Committee is “capable of withstanding [the] kind of pressure” China exerted on it after Liu’s win. “When Liu Xiabo won the Nobel Peace Prize. I think it was understood and felt not just as a win for him, but indeed for peaceful critics of the Chinese government all across the country and the world,” she said. “And I think it would probably have the same effect, not just for Uyghurs, but for all people who have suffered oppression at the hands of the Chinese government.” “It would be an enormous boost to Uyghurs worldwide to have their community and somebody who’s a longtime leader of it be recognized for his extraordinary contributions to peaceful debate, to the idea of equality, to the preservation of a distinct Uyghur identity.” Tohti has received more than 10 international human rights awards since his sentencing, including the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders in 2016 and the Sakharov Award for “Freedom of Thought” in 2019. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster.

Out of the hills: The war is coming to Myanmar’s cities

Editor1 year ago013 mins

Operation 1027, launched on Oct. 27 by the Three Brotherhood Alliance, has led to coordinated attacks throughout Myanmar and seen the fall of 20 towns and over 300 military posts. But violence is now starting to spread to the cities, a strategic tipping point. Since that offensive against the military in northern Shan state by the alliance – the Arakan Army (AA), the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) – members and others are expanding the battle front against the military junta. In the east, Karenni forces launched Operation 1111 and now control nearly 80% of Kayah state. They are now fighting in the capital Loikaw. In this Kokang online media provided photo, fighters of Three Brotherhood Alliance check an artillery gun, claimed to have been seized from Myanmar junta outpost on a hill in Hsenwi township, Shan state on Nov. 24, 2023. (The Kokang online media via AP) In western Myanmar, the Arakan Army ended its cease-fire in Rakhine state, and have taken major bases, while Chin forces have made significant inroads along the Indian border and claim to have established civil administration in 70% of the state. The MNDAA has begun its assault on Laukkaing, the capital of the Kokang region. Karen forces in Kayin State have taken over parts of the main road to the Thai border, greatly restricting border trade. On Dec. 3, the opposition National Unity Government announced the establishment of civil administration in Kawlin town in the war-torn Sagaing region, the first township capital to fall to the opposition. The military that took power in a Feb. 2021 coup is increasingly constrained to a diminishing share of the Bamar heartland. But even that is starting to slip away. On Dec. 3, the KNLA and local PDFs took over Mone, the first town to fall in Bago state. Some 17 soldiers surrendered with their weapons. More importantly, the opposition is getting within striking distance of Highway 1 that connects Yangon and Naypyidaw. Military escalation The military has responded with an escalation in the number of long-range artillery and aerial bombing, both of which have resulted in increased civilian casualties. On Dec. 3, the NUG’s Ministry of Human Rights released details on SAC attacks on civilians, documenting 84 airstrikes, and 112 artillery strikes that resulted in the death of 244 civilians. Such attacks will continue as the military has neither sufficient number of troops to retake lost territory, nor sufficient means to move troops. One cannot control territory from the air. In a brief moment of candor, Min Aung Hlaing acknowledged some battlefield setbacks, blaming foreign interference. While there have been significant opposition gains in the countryside, within the cocoons of Mandalay and Yangon, the military regime has gone to great lengths to project a sense of normalcy, so that the population will acquiesce to military rule. Restaurants and bars are open, life goes on. A woman looks through debris in the aftermath of a junta strike on a camp for displaced people near Laiza, northern Myanmar on Oct. 11, 2023. Junta has escalated long range artillery and aerial bombing, both of which have resulted in the increased civilian casualties. (AFP photo) Reports from the ground suggest that the military is building up its defenses in Naypyidaw, Yangon, and Mandalay, with increasing shows of force and patrols of armored vehicles. Naypyidaw is already a fortress city that will be hard to attack. But the recent capture of heavy artillery and multiple launch rocket systems should give opposition forces the ability to now target the city. Likewise, greater proximity will allow the small drones and quadcopters that the opposition has used to drop mortar shells the ability to strike targets. Even symbolic strikes in Naypyidaw would sew fear amongst regime loyalists, undermine morale, and sap the will to resist. More urban attacks That is now changing, with more attacks by opposition People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) in the cities in the past month. The most notable recent attack was the Dec. 1 assassination of the chairman of the pro-military New National Democracy Party, Than Tun. He had been a National League for Democracy (NLD) member before defecting to a pro-military party that was established by a senior advisor to the State Administrative Council (SAC). the junta’s formal name. These assassinations are meant to convey good operational intelligence on the part of the PDFs, and at the same time, serve as a warning that if they can hit someone so close to the SAC, then the military is unable to protect anyone. Myanmar’s military junta soldiers on a truck patrol in Yangon, Dec. 4, 2023. Reports from the ground suggest that the military is building up its defenses in Naypyidaw, Yangon, and Mandalay, with increasing shows of force and patrols of armed vehicles. (AFP photo) There have been many assassinations in the past, including the assassination of the chief financial officer of the military owned telecom firm MyTel, and an attack on the current governor of the Central Bank of Myanmar, which wounded her. But the military understands the importance of maintaining a sense of security in the cities. There’s always been violence in the borderlands, but once violence hit Yangon and Mandalay, people questioned the military’s hold on power. To that end, they began deploying Chinese-made CCTV cameras with artificial intelligence. Urban guerrilla networks that were active in 2022, were systematically taken apart. The arrest and torture of one member, often led to the rest of entire cells. This means that the return of urban guerrillas is an important milestone that demonstrates both a decline in the military’s control over the cities, and the growing confidence of the PDFs to conduct operations. Yangon sees PDF attacks There has been a string of attacks in greater Yangon in the past few weeks. A PDF attacked soldiers guarding the state-owned Electric Power Cooperation Department in both North Okkalapa and South Okkalapa Townships on Nov. 23 and 24, respectively. On Nov. 29, PDFs attacked a…

Police out in force during Lhasa religious festival

Editor1 year ago03 mins

Chinese police were out in force during a major religious festival in Tibet’s regional capital of Lhasa on Thursday, residents told Radio Free Asia. It was the latest effort by China to suppress Tibetan religious and cultural expressions by sending a large police force to religious gatherings to surveil attendees. Marked by displays of butter lamps and candles, the Gaden Ngamchoe festival commemorates the death of Je Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelukpa school of Tibetan Buddhism, a revered 14th century scholar. It is observed on the 25th day of the 10th month of the Tibetan calendar, which falls on Dec. 7 this year. But police in Lhasa prevented followers from gathering in large numbers and restricted the number of those trying to go on a pilgrimage to the Jokang Temple and Potala Palace, a resident there told RFA Tibetan on condition of anonymity for security reasons. “The Chinese government has deployed police in great numbers, and checkpoints to screen and restrict the mass public gatherings to observe the Ganden Ngachoe prayer offerings in Lhasa,” the resident said. “Drones are used to track people’s movement.” In video footage RFA obtained from a trusted source, a heavy police presence can be seen all around the Tsuglakhang Temple. The police use high beam flashlights to disperse the crowds around the temple and tell the devotees to keep moving. The enhanced surveillance came without warning, another resident said. “Without any prior announcement, the Chinese authorities are distressing devotees from entering Tsuglakhang Temple on this auspicious day,” the second resident said. “There are so many police deployed all around Tsuglakhang and police holding guns can also seen above the temple.” Though they were allowed to enter the temples, the police were there to ensure that the gatherings did not grow to be too big, the second resident said. “They are dispersing the devotees in sections and screening us and checking our phones at the checkpoints.” Translated by Tenzin Dickyi. Edited by Eugene Whong.

Indonesia faces criticism over plan to deport Rohingya to Myanmar

Editor1 year ago012 mins

Human rights activists and observers on Wednesday criticized a plan by the Indonesian government to return nearly 1,500 Rohingya to their home country of Myanmar, where they have faced persecution and violence, according to a report from BenarNews, a news outlet affiliated with Radio Free Asia. The Indonesian government announced the plan a day earlier without giving a deportation date, saying Aceh province, where boats carrying Rohingya mostly land, was running out of space and money. In addition, residents were rejecting the foreigners’ presence. “We’ve been lending a helping hand, and now we’re overwhelmed,” said Mohammad Mahfud MD, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs. “We will discuss how to return them to their country through the U.N. I will lead the meeting.” The ministry reported that 1,487 Rohingya were in Indonesia, according to media reports. President Joko “Jokwoi” Widodo had tasked the minister with leading government efforts to deal with the issue. Vice President Ma’ruf Amin, however, proposed a different solution: Relocate the Rohingya to an island near Singapore where the Indonesian government had sheltered Vietnamese refugees who escaped their country in the 1980s and 1990s. Nadine Sherani, an activist with KonstraS, a Jakarta-based human rights group, said that by sending the Rohingya to Myanmar they could be exposed to atrocities linked to the junta, which seized power in a military coup in February 2021. “That step will transfer them to the hell they have experienced before,” Nadine told BenarNews. “Does the government think about the long-term impact of repatriation? The main actor of violence in Myanmar is the junta. That is the reason they left the country,” she said. Oppressed people The Rohingya are one of the world’s most oppressed stateless people, according to the United Nations. They have been denied citizenship and basic rights by the Myanmar government, which considers them illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh. Following a military offensive in Myanmar’s Rakhine state in 2017 that the U.N. described as a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing,” about 740,000 Rohingya fled across the border to Bangladesh. Seeking to escape difficult living conditions in Bangladesh refugee camps in and around Cox’s Bazar district, thousands of Rohingya have risked their lives on perilous sea journeys to reach Indonesia and other destinations. On Wednesday, police in Cox’s Bazar reported that four Rohingya had been killed within 24 hours during gunfights between members of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army and the Arakan Solidarity Organization gangs in the Ukhia refugee camp. Those killings brought the death toll to 10 in the sprawling Rohingya camps over the last 15 days and a total of 186 fatalities linked to violence in the camps since 2017. Meanwhile in Aceh province, the Rohingya presence has caused resentment and hostility from some locals who have accused them of being a burden and a nuisance. On Nov. 16, a boat carrying 256 Rohingya was initially rejected by at least two groups of villagers in Aceh but was finally allowed to land after being stranded for three days. Another boat carrying more than 100 Rohingya landed on Sabang island on Dec. 2 after locals threatened to push it back to sea. ‘Urgent appeal’ Since then, UNHCR, the U.N. Refugee Agency, issued “an urgent appeal to all countries in the region, particularly those in the area surrounding the Andaman Sea, to swiftly deploy their full search and rescue capacities in response to reported vessels in distress with hundreds of Rohingya at risk of perishing.” In its statement issued on Saturday, UNHCR said it was concerned that Rohingya on two boats would run out of food and water. “[T]here is a significant risk of fatalities in the coming days if people are not rescued and disembarked to safety.” Mahfud MD said Indonesia had shown compassion by taking in the Rohingya even though it was not a party to the U.N refugee convention, an international treaty that defines rights and obligations of refugees and host countries. “We could have turned them down flat. But we also have a heart. They could die at sea if no one wants them,” he said. Vietnamese children sit aboard an Indonesian Navy ship at Galang island as they wait to be repatriated from the island’s refugee camp, June 26, 1996. [Reuters] Ma’ruf, the vice president, suggested the Rohingya be settled temporarily on the island near Singapore. “We used Galang island for Vietnamese refugees in the past. We will discuss it again. I think the government must take action,” Ma’ruf said on Tuesday. Galang housed about 250,000 Vietnamese refugees, known as “boat people,” from 1979 to 1996. The UNHCR built healthcare facilities, schools, places of worship and cemeteries. Ma’ruf said the government could not turn away the Rohingya, but also had to consider local people’s objections and the possibility of more refugees arriving. Angga Reynaldi Putra, of Suaka, a Jakarta-based NGO that advocates for the rights of refugees, said Indonesia was bound by the principle of non-refoulement – or the forced return of refugees to their home countries – because it had ratified the anti-torture convention through a law in 1998. “The anti-torture convention ratified by Indonesia also states that there is an obligation to prevent a person from returning to a situation where he or she experiences torture,” Angga told BenarNews. He added that Indonesia issued a presidential regulation in 2016, which mandates providing assistance and protection for refugees in coordination with the regional government, the International Organization for Migration and the immigration office. Angga warned that putting Rohingya on Galang island could limit their access to basic rights, such as health and education. “If we consider human rights, there is a right to freedom of movement. Being placed on a certain island, their movement would be restricted,” he said. Women and children Mitra Salima Suryono, a UNHCR spokeswoman in Indonesia, said she hoped the issue could be resolved humanely. “We are optimistic and hope to see the same strong spirit of solidarity and humanity as before,” Mitra said. She said the Rohingya who arrived…

Laos deports 462 Chinese nationals with alleged ties to Bokeo scam rings

Editor1 year ago07 mins

Authorities in Laos have deported 462 Chinese nationals arrested for crimes, including human trafficking, from the lawless Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in the country’s north that has been described as a de-facto Chinese colony, according to officials. They were arrested on Nov. 28 during a raid on the gambling and tourism hub in Laos’ Bokeo province and deported to China the following day via the Boten-Bohan International Border Checkpoint, said a statement posted on the website of the Lao Public Security Bureau. The individuals appeared to be involved with call centers where scammers try to trick people into fake investments. Radio Free Asia has reported that these call centers often exploit their employees by holding them against their will and subjecting them to beatings and other forms of torture if they refuse to work or fail to make scam quotas. Attempts by RFA Lao to contact the Bokeo Provincial Police and authorities operating within the special economic zone, or SEZ, for comment went unanswered by the time of publication. The latest round of arrests and deportations of Chinese nationals follows one in mid-September, when Lao authorities sent 164 home, including 46 who were arrested in the Bokeo SEZ, another economic zone in the province operated by a Chinese tycoon who the U.S. government has sanctioned for running a human trafficking network. Ordinary Laotians welcomed the news, saying it would make the country safer. “It’s good that the Lao and Chinese authorities are cooperating again in cracking down on the scamming gang in Laos,” said one person who, like others interviewed for this report, spoke on condition of anonymity citing security concerns. “I hope that the number of Chinese scammers continues to dwindle in the Golden Triangle SEZ and throughout the country.” Entrance to the Kings Romans casino, part of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone run by Chinese company Jin Mu Mian in Laos, Golden Triangle in 2012. (Sukree Sukplang/Reuters) But others expressed concern that the deportations won’t address the reasons such crimes persist in Laos. “My question is, ‘Is this all?’ My answer is, ‘No,’ said a resident of the capital Vientiane. “It’s going to take a lot of time and effort to nab all of them.” Regional cooperation needed The resident of Vientiane said that while the latest arrests may deal with the problem in the Golden Triangle SEZ, scam gangs may simply move to another place where they can operate without much oversight by authorities, such as Tachileik, a town in Myanmar’s Shan state along the Lao border. “Then [the deportees] will just come back to Laos again,” he said. Chinese suspects linked to telecom frauds are brought back to China from Laos at Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport, Chongqing, China, in Sept. 2023. (Chen Chao/China News Service via Getty Images) A third Laotian suggested that the only way to effectively eradicate scamming networks is through the cooperation of domestic and foreign security forces across the region, rather than each country individually. “Here in Laos, [Lao and Chinese forces] are focusing only on the [SEZs],” he said. “The scam rings are everywhere and many of them are still operating. Laos alone doesn’t have the resources to do it all.” Criminal enterprises expanding Meanwhile, Yos Santasombat, a professor of social studies at Chiang Mai University in Thailand, warned that as criminal activity goes largely unchecked within the SEZs in Bokeo province, gangs are expanding their existing operations and adding new services. “I went to the Golden Triangle SEZ two months ago and I noticed that the place was huge and expanding,” he said. “[As it grows] it might attract other businesses besides gambling and tourism, such as money laundering.” Sources from the region have previously expressed concern that authorities only arrest “the small guys” who aren’t responsible for running the scam rings, and have failed to address unemployment and inflation in Laos, which allow ringleaders to lure workers with offers of good-paying jobs. In early September, Myanmar police repatriated 1,207 Chinese criminals arrested from a call center in Myanmar. Thailand, Myanmar, China and Laos have set up a special unit to crack down on human trafficking but the problem still persists. Translated by Max Avary. Edited by Joshua Lipes.

Tourist rubles ensure warm welcome for Russians in Thailand

Editor1 year ago023 mins

>>> Read the more on Bear East Ask any Russian person which country in Southeast Asia they have heard about and you’d probably hear “Thailand.” Russian tourists are crowding its beaches, bars and even its Orthodox churches. That’s not just a sign of Thailand’s legendary reputation for hospitality and knack for catering to foreign visitors that has earned the country the moniker “Land of Smiles.” Thailand welcomed 11.4 million foreign tourists in 2022. But with Russians increasingly limited on where they can visit because of international restrictions imposed on Moscow relating to the war in Ukraine, Thailand has kept its doors open. From Russia with love On the southern island of Phuket, some areas have turned into something resembling a resort town on the Black Sea with Russian men and women lounging on the beach, trying to soak up as much sun as possible. There are signboards in Cyrillic, Russian mothers pushing strollers around and new Russian restaurants that offer a taste of home. Russian real estate agents, tour companies and even Russian tour guides cater to the visitors – which rankles locals in the tourist trade, who say they are losing business. “Russian people love Thailand, the people, the climate, the nature and the delicious food,” gushed Olesya, a young Russian businesswoman. She and her husband, Denis, have been to Phuket five times. Tourists take photos on Patong Beach in Phuket, June 20, 2023. Credit: Tran Viet Duc/RFA Olesya said they felt welcome here and “have not sensed any negative vibes” against Russians – although they were shy of speaking to a journalist and requested to be identified by their first names only. Thailand is America’s oldest ally in Asia, and was for decades a bulwark against Soviet influence in Southeast Asia during the Cold War, but it’s also a nation with a storied past with Russia. Diplomatic relations date back 126 years, when the then-Kingdom of Siam’s modernizing monarch, Chulalongkorn, also known as King Rama V, traveled to St. Petersburg in 1897. Despite the international maelstrom over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Thailand has not condemned Moscow and has abstained from several votes against Russia at the United Nations. But perhaps more significantly, there are still ways for Russians to spend their money in Thailand, which relies heavily on tourism earnings. Due to U.S. and U.K. sanctions, Russians can’t conduct transactions via the global SWIFT electronic payment system. But they can still use China’s UnionPay – the world’s largest card payment network – or use cash or cryptocurrencies. Shops catering to Russian tourists have sprung up in Pattaya, Thailand, June 22, 2023. Credit: Tran Viet Duc/RFA Cornering the condo market The Thai Tourism and Sports Ministry said that between January and June this year nearly 800,000 Russian nationals visited the Kingdom, and the number is expected to reach more than 1 million by the end of the year. The Tourism Authority of Thailand has set an ambitious target of receiving 2 million Russian visitors in 2024. Half of them are expected to fly to Phuket. A free 45-day visitor visa and direct flights between the two countries make the goal easier. Maetapong “Oun” Upatising, president of the Phuket Real Estate Association, says that the Russian market bounced back quickly after the COVID downturn, both in tourist numbers and property demands. Russian visitors prefer to rent villas and condominiums instead of hotels when staying longer than three months, and the number of rental units in Phuket alone is more than ten thousand a month, he said. There is also a growing number of rich Russians who obtained long-term resident visas that let them stay in Thailand for five to 10 years or more. Those so-called “elite visas” cost at least U.S.$20,000 yet the number of elite visa holders from Russia is increasing steadily. Between 5,000 and 10,000 wealthy Russians are thought to have obtained long-term visas and become residents in Phuket. Last year Russian buyers purchased nearly 40% of all condominiums sold to foreigners on the island, according to the Thai Real Estate Information Center. Russian investors also put large sums of money into other types of properties, among which luxury villas are the top buy. Those villas come with hefty price tags, starting from 25 million baht ($730,000), according to Maetapong from the Phuket Real Estate Association. Anton Makhrov [left], editor of Novosti Phuketa newspaper, and Jason Beavan, general manager, are seen in their office in Phuket, June 19, 2023. Credit: Tran Viet Duc/RFA Organized crime Phuket even has its own Russian newspaper. Despite the comparative ease with which Russians can travel to Thailand, the paper’s editor gripes that his countrymen get a bad rap. “Right now, it’s legitimate not to like the Russians,” said Anton Makhrov, the editor of Novosti Phuketa, who likens it to a kind of xenophobia against Russians in Thailand. “When you get on Facebook, you’ll see lots of comments such as ‘the Russians are aggressive and arrogant, we don’t like you’ but when you talk to people they all say they have good relations with some Russian friends,” he said, speaking in the weekly paper’s office in a small alley in Kathu district of Phuket. Russian visitors have also often been blamed for bad behavior, as well as petty crime such as drunk-driving and theft. The invasion of Ukraine in 2022 also appears to have dimmed Thais’ perception of Russian people. Katherine Aliakseyeva, principal of the Russian Dance Academy “Katyusha” in Bangkok, says she’s worried about the safety of her staff and students. The school has been regularly taking part in cultural events organized by the Russian Embassy. There are also long-held suspicions that Russian “mafia” operate in Thailand. A December 2009 cable by the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok that was declassified in 2019 said that “Russian organized crime circles established a presence in Thailand in the 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union.” According to the diplomatic cable, U.S. and Thai law enforcement agencies reported that “criminal networks composed of mostly…

Category: Europe