Middle East Archives - Page 36 of 36 - Investigative Journalism Reportika

Women harmed by China’s draconian family planning policies still seek redress

Editor3 years ago014 mins

Hundreds, possibly thousands, of Chinese women are still seeking redress after their health was destroyed by botched or untested reproductive procedures aimed at keeping births within targets set by Beijing. Peng Dongxiang, of Qianjiang in the central province of Hubei, gave birth to two children in defiance of population controls, drawing the ire of local officials. “We did as the government said and went to the family planning station to get injections,” Peng said. “But they were experimenting on us; using our bodies.” “They injected us straight into the Fallopian tubes … I fainted and was freezing cold instantly,” Peng recalls. “Later they told me I had to get another injection because I hadn’t had tubal ligation, but that second injection ruined my health.” Peng has suffered from decades of lower back pain, abdominal pain and organ adhesions, and was bed-bound for several years immediately after the sterilization shots. Her sons were sent to live with their grandparents because she was unable to work any more. “If [my husband’s family] hadn’t treated me well, I wouldn’t be here today,” said Peng, who has been engaged for more than a decade in a bid to win redress through official channels. She knows of hundreds of other Qianjiang women who had similar experiences. “Some of them died outright … the government didn’t care and just injected anyone at the time, even pregnant women,” Peng said. Birth quotas The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has a long history of controlling the reproductive lives of Chinese women, mostly through a decades-long “one-child” policy that led to widespread violence and rights violations against women by local family planning officials keen to stay within birth quotas. The period became infamous worldwide for the use of late-term, forced abortions, compulsory sterilization, female infanticide or selective abortion and the constant policing of women’s fertility, as well as violent attacks, forced evictions and other privations imposed on families guilty of “excess births.” Liang Zhongtang, a former government family planning adviser, said the Qianjiang women could have been subjected to a particular form of “adhesive surgery” that was used in Hubei, Sichuan and Shanxi in the mid-1980s. “The National Family Planning Commission supported this method to a certain extent back then,” Liang said. “But … the operation wasn’t recognized by the Ministry of Health, so it was dropped after a while.” But the women have yet to find any kind of redress for their grievances. One of the Qianjiang victims said she was exhausted by years of petitioning and official violence, and gave up the struggle. Another said she had stopped petitioning for fear that her children’s careers would be politically tainted by her actions. “My family … has to make money so that I can keep taking my medications and stay alive,” one 60-year-old woman told RFA. “If I give a media interview, will my son lose his job? Will they refuse to pay my compensation?” Liang said poorly educated rural cadres likely also contributed to the women’s suffering. “Back in the 1960s and 1970s, there were very few medical institutions in rural areas below county level, and the conditions weren’t there for the implementation of such family planning policies,” Liang said. In December 2007, Zhang Weiqing, then director of the National Population and Family Planning Commission, admitted that one-third of the 150,000 family planning technical service personnel — the ones carrying out abortions and sterilizations — lacked any kind of medical qualification, while many facilities used outdated equipment. An official who answered the phone at the Qianjiang municipal government denied there was an issue with the mass sterilization of women in the 1980s. “[You will] need evidence and some basis for this … and if you do investigate I think you will find … it never happened; it’s a rumor,” the official said. Repeated calls to the Hubei provincial health commission and the Qianjiang municipal health commission rang unanswered in early April. Call for compensation Zhang Jing, New York-based founder of Women’s Rights in China, said the CCP has long controlled the reproductive lives of Chinese women. “If the party tells you to give birth, you will give birth. If it tells you not to, then you won’t,” Zhang said. “This is a terrible and tragic policy.” Zhang called on the CCP set up a nationwide compensation system for women who have been harmed by family planning policies over the years. “The CCP and the Chinese government control the wombs of Chinese women,” she said, adding that rural women are most vulnerable to the kinds of abuse and mistreatment described by the women of Qianjiang. And they aren’t the only victims. Fifty-eight-year-old Jing Liping lives alone in a dangerous building on the outskirts of Beijing. She gave birth to a single child more than three decades ago, then spent a month recuperating at her husband’s family home in the western province of Gansu. There, the local family planning team caught up with her and forced her to undergo tubal ligation using metal clips. Jing’s health was also destroyed by the procedure, she told RFA. “The doctors told me that my Fallopian tubes were inflamed … but I had to rely on others to get me anti-inflammatory drugs,” Jing said. “No local doctor in Gansu would help me because I was ligated.” “It wasn’t until 2017, when I passed out on the side of the road and was sent to the hospital, that they found a problem with the clips. My Fallopian tubes had been inflamed for a long time, and they already had necrotic tissue, so I could only have them removed,” said Jing, whose husband left her, taking the couple’s son, because she started passing out every time the couple attempted intercourse. A staff member surnamed Zheng who answered the phone at the Gansu provincial health commission said officials hadn’t approved Jing’s procedure, which would have been carried out based on “expert” medical opinion. “This decision can only be made by experts … whose opinions we…

Deputy governor of Myanmar central bank shot by gunmen at her Yangon home

Editor3 years ago011 mins

The deputy governor of Myanmar’s central bank was shot by unknown assailants on Thursday, according to sources and media reports, amid a public outcry over a new directive ordering the sale of all U.S. dollars and other foreign currency at a fixed rate to licensed banks. It was not immediately clear whether Than Than Shwe, who was shot at her apartment complex in the commercial capital Yangon’s Bahan township, survived the attack. A resident of the same complex told RFA’s Myanmar Service that she and others who live there “only found out what happened when several military trucks arrived.” “We knew a woman had been shot — a bank employee. But later, news came out that she was the central bank [deputy] governor.” Junta Deputy Information Minister Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun confirmed the shooting to RFA’s Myanmar Service and said Than Than Shwe was recuperating at the city’s military hospital. “We can confirm the attack at 11:30 a.m.,” he said, adding that Than Than Swe “was injured and is being treated at Tatmadaw Hospital.” “Her condition is good at this moment,” he said at the time. The Irrawaddy News reported later Thursday that Than Than Swe had died at the hospital from injuries she sustained in the shooting, citing sources close to the deputy governor. A report by the Associated Press quoted a local official named Thet Oo as saying Than Than Swe had been shot three times by two men after answering the door at her apartment and was confirmed dead after being taken to the hospital. RFA was unable to independently verify the reports. Than Than Swe, 55, was sworn in as deputy governor of the central bank after the military seized power from Myanmar’s democratically elected National League for Democracy (NLD) government in a Feb. 1, 2021, coup. Believed to be the most senior junta official to be shot since the takeover, she is known to have led efforts to reduce the cash flow in the banking and financial system under the NLD, a senior official at the central bank told The Irrawaddy. A group known as the Yangon Region Military Command (YRMC) announced in a statement on Thursday that it had “successfully carried out” the attack on Than Than Swe as it’s “latest target.” The YRMC is an anti-junta paramilitary group that has pledged loyalty to Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) and claims to have carried out more than 1,100 attacks since the NUG declared war on the military in September. The NUG, which has distanced itself from attacks on civilians, did not immediately comment on the attack Thursday and RFA was unable to confirm the YRMC’s claim of responsibility. Junta security forces have killed at least 1,733 civilians and arrested more than 10,000 others since February 2021, mostly during peaceful anti-coup demonstrations, according to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. An illegal money changer exchanges Myanmar kyat bank notes into US dollars in a back alley of Yangon, in a file photo. Credit: AFP New bank directive The attack on Than Than Swe comes days after an April 3 directive by the central bank ordering all foreign currency, including the U.S. dollar, to be resold within one day of entering the country to licensed banks at a fixed rate of 1,850 kyats to the dollar. The order also requires government approval before any foreign currency can be sent overseas. A Myanmar-based economist, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the central bank order suggests that the junta is running short of dollars. He warned that the move is likely to have dire consequences for an economy already decimated by COVID-19, junta mismanagement and Western sanctions. “This will make the dollar even scarcer and the buying and selling of dollars will be done under the table,” he said. “In that case, the kyat will depreciate further. The situation will just get worse. Imported goods will become even more expensive.” The price of imports from the Thai and Chinese borders are likely to be unaffected, he said, as Thai baht and Chinese yuan can be easily exchanged for Myanmar kyat. A source who earns his salary in U.S. dollars and declined to be named for security reasons told RFA he can no longer withdraw money from his bank. “The bank told me they cannot transfer the money to U.S.-dollar accounts due to the CBM directive. They cannot issue any currency notes or transfer money from one account to another in the same bank or to different banks, until further notice. … You can no longer transfer using the mobile app either. You can only see the dollars in your account, but cannot get hold of them,” he said. “There’s nothing I can do. I’m poor now. There is more money coming in and all of this was converted into kyats automatically. It’s a big, big headache now.” A businessman named Soe Tun said the prices of cooking and fuel oils are likely to fall if enough U.S. dollars are resold to importers but that the long-term impact on producers of rice and corn could be substantial. “For these exporters, it is unfortunate that they must sell their [goods] at a rate of 1,850 kyats to the dollar due to the newly fixed exchange rate,” he said. “They will lose roughly 11 percent, or about 200 kyats, for every dollar.” He said the consequences of the order will only become clear after a month or so. Lack of independence Khin Maung Myint, a legal expert, told RFA that Myanmar’s law stipulates that the central bank must remain independent from the government, but said the reality of the situation is that everything depends on who is appointed to run the bank by the junta. “The decision-makers, including the governor and the deputy governor, were appointed by the [junta], so it’s no wonder they act in accordance with the junta’s decisions and directives, no matter how independent they may be under the law,” he said. “It’s very difficult…

Public anger grows in China over ‘Cultural Revolution-style’ disease prevention

Editor3 years ago014 mins

Public criticism is growing in China of the authorities’ Cultural Revolution-style anti-COVID-19 campaigns after a doctor committed suicide over a hospital outbreak and officials killed pets whose owners tested positive for the virus. While most criticism or negative news about the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s zero-COVID policy is swiftly removed by internet censors, reports have surfaced in recent days that Shi Jun, head of neurosurgery at the Jidong County People’s Hospital in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang, committed suicide after being arrested and interrogated by police in connection with a COVID-19 outbreak at his hospital. The outbreak was started by a woman who used her mother’s PCR test result to gain admission to the hospital for brain surgery, but who passed the virus on to other patients, causing an outbreak that led to a county-wide lockdown and billions of yuan in economic losses, according to local media reports. Shi was arrested and interrogated by police over seven days for hours at a time, forcing him to wear handcuffs and leg irons when he went for a medical checkup, and threatening him with a heavy sentence if he didn’t “confess.” He managed to take his own life while in detention by breaking his toothbrush and using it to stab an artery in his thigh, according to social media posts, many of which were quickly deleted. A fellow Jidong county doctor surnamed Chen told RFA the Shi had died in the course of the investigation into the outbreak. “Yes, it’s true, he really is dead,” Chen said. “It’s been more than a week now, I think.” “I don’t know the details, because I don’t work at the same place, but I heard it was because of a mistake or negligence at work, giving rise to an outbreak of COVID-19,” he said. An employee who answered the phone at the Jidong County People’s Hospital refused to comment on the case when contacted by RFA on Thursday. “I don’t know about this; we’re not in the same department … we didn’t know each other that well, there are hundreds of people who work here, and we had very little contact,” the employee said. “What media organization are you from?” “You can call management [and ask them],” the employee said. Shi was among thousands of doctors who volunteered to work on the front line of the early pandemic in the central city of Wuhan in February 2020, working at the Yingcheng Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital for 39 days. He was lauded by state media as a hero of the pandemic, with his wife and children appearing on TV, and his family named as “the most beautiful family” of Heilongjiang by the CCP-backed Jixi Women’s Federation, as part of CCP leader Xi Jinping’s insistence on positive news stories about the pandemic. An employee who answered the phone at the Jixi Women’s Federation declined to comment when contacted by RFA on Thursday. “We don’t know much about this,” the employee said. “If you want to ask about the most beautiful family, the person in charge of that department isn’t here … You can always call again later.” An employee who answered the phone at the Yingcheng Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital also declined to comment. “I haven’t been contact with him … I didn’t work with him, OK?” the employee said, before hanging up the phone. Calls to the Jidong county police department, the county health bureau and the Jidong county government rang unanswered during office hours on Thursday. Public anger over China’s “campaign-style” approach to managing COVID-19 appears to be breaking through onto social media despite official attempts to erase it. Genuine hardship Shanghai resident Ji Xiaolong, who has been under COVID-19 lockdown alongside 26 million others for several days now, has been warned off speaking out in public after he published a petition to the authorities in Beijing, hitting out at the zero-COVID policy. “I hope my petition will be placed on Xi Jinping’s desk,” Ji told RFA on Thursday, adding that he has been taking two or three phone calls a minute from people across China since he posted it. “[They call from] all over the country; there are also overseas Chinese, ordinary people who have escaped from Shanghai,” he said. “[I’ve had] thousands of phone calls, text messages, WeChat, voice notes and Weibo comments.” Ji also hit out an online censorship, saying that much of the information posted to social media is genuine, and not “rumors,” as claimed by the government. “The Shanghai government debunks a [so-called] rumor every two minutes,” he said. “Are there really so many rumors? These rumors are often later confirmed, so they’re not necessarily rumors.” Ji said the restrictions have caused genuine hardship in his residential community. “There are people in our community who need to go to the hospital on a regular basis,” Ji said. “I saw [one of them] begging [officials] in our WeChat group. There is a neighborhood committee for our community, but they need to report [trips for medical attention] to higher ups, one level after another, and several days have gone by.” “There are others who are unwilling to beg, because of their dignity, so they endure the pain instead; they definitely exist too.” ‘They’re like the Red Guards’ U.S.-based commentator Chen Pokong said there’s a joke circulating in Shanghai that the government doesn’t care if you die, as long as you don’t die of COVID-19. “This is the government’s position,” Chen said. “Hospitals and emergency rooms are closed, and critically ill patients can’t get treatment or assistance.” “Many critically ill patients are dying or starving to death, of jumping off buildings,” he said. Ji said epidemic prevention officials were jokingly referred to by residents as “condoms,” because of their protective suits. “They’re like the Red Guards [community enforcers during the Cultural Revolution],” he said. “We all have to stay inside, but they can walk around openly wherever they like.” “Judging from their age and mental outlook, they are also excellent Communist…

Myanmar junta metes out long prison terms for small donations to its opponents

Editor3 years ago09 mins

At least seven young Myanmar men and women from Tanintharyi region and Rakhine state have received long prison terms for donating money — U.S. $8 or less in a few cases — to opponents of the military junta that has ruled the country for 13 months, their lawyers and anti-junta activists told RFA. Military authorities have frozen the bank accounts of civilians suspected of transferring money through mobile banks services and in some cases also have filed lawsuits against them, they said. In Tanintharyi region, Saung Hnin Phyu, 19, from Dawei was sentenced to 10 years on March 29 for sending 13,500 kyats (U.S. $8) to a revolutionary group via a KBZ Bank mobile wallet service. Two other young women who are students at Dawei University were sentenced to seven years in prison on Feb. 16 for donating 5,000 kyats to the local People’s Defense Force (PDF) militia. The junta is sending a message that people who donate even small amounts of money to the opposition will receive costly penalties, an official from the Dawei Network of Political Prisoners said. “Their sentences are even longer than those handed down to anti-junta protesters,” the official said. Demonstrators receive sentences of two to three years in jail. “But these people who just donated a small amount of money and committed or did nothing are getting seven years or more,” he said. “This is a deliberate plan to oppress us.” Authorities in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state have arrested at least seven people on suspicion of having links to opposition groups, said Myo Myat Hein, director of the Rakhine state-based Thazin Legal Aid Group. Three young women from Thandwe township were sentenced to 10 years in prison on March 31 for donating money to opposition groups, and a young man from Mrauk-U township also received a 10-year sentence on Feb. 25, he said. Civilians across Myanmar have been giving money to several groups that the military regime has said are illegal: the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, which is the Burmese legislative body in exile; the shadow National Unity Government; Civil Disobedient Movement staff; and local PDFs. They also have made donations to help those displaced by the fighting between junta forces and PDFs in various regions. “The junta is using all kinds of methods to cut off the supply chain of support,” said a young woman who is on the run. “Many accounts of charitable organizations were closed down and lawsuits opened. The woman said she and others who transferred money to opposition forces using the online banking services KBZPay or Wave Money have had their accounts shut down and have been charged for violating the Counterterrorism Law for financing terrorism. “If we get arrested, more charges will be added,” she said. Opposition groups said the lines of financial support must be kept open so they are able to uproot the military dictatorship. A human rights lawyer, who declined to be identified by name out of fear for his safety, said the junta is using the Counterterrorism Law to impose the harshest penalties possible against people who financially support the opposition. “This is the current situation where an oppressive government is handing down disproportionate sentences,” he said. “What is the purpose of punishment? Is it punishment for the purpose of correcting? Is it fair punishment? Or is it something to prevent other people from doing the same thing? That should be the purpose of punishment.” Military regime leader Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing said on March 29 that those convicted under the Counterterrorism Law would not receive leniency in sentencing. The junta amended the 2014 law on Aug. 1, 2021, increasing the sentence for funding a terrorist organization to a maximum of life imprisonment. A photo montage shows the nine young anti-junta protesters arrested by the junta in Mandalay, Myanmar, Apr. 4, 2022. Credit: Citizen journalists Nine arrested now missing Meanwhile, nine young anti-junta protesters arrested on Monday in Myanmar’s second-largest city Mandalay are now missing, activists told RFA on Wednesday. The detainees are in their 20s and are students and businesspeople. Those arrested, including three women, are members of the Mandalay Strike Force from Amarapura and Patheingyi townships. “Nine people were arrested, and we have lost contact with them,” said another member of the Mandalay Strike Force, adding that the military should be responsible for ensuring that they are not harmed in detention. The nine were arrested after two safe houses were raided, said a source close to the military, who requested anonymity so as to speak freely. Venerable Rajadhamma, a Buddhist monk with Myanmar’s Peace Sangha Union, said he was concerned for the safety of those arrested, who are all in their 20s. “The junta said on March 27 that it would crackdown on all those who oppose it, whether they are laymen or monks,” he told RFA. Kyaw Swa Win, who participated in a flash protest against the military regime on March 27 in Mandalay, was beaten and arrested by the military and is said to be in critical condition. The State Administration Council, the formal name of the military regime that rules Myanmar, did not release a statement on the detainees. It also did not answer RFA’s calls for comment. “Even though the junta is saying it is going to be democratic, it is questionable how it will be able to explain about the ongoing arrests, torture and killings of protesters,” said Mandalay resident Htet Myat Aung. Since the military seized power in a Feb. 1, 2021 coup, security forces have killed at least 1,730 civilians and detained more than 13,100 political prisoners, mostly during peaceful anti-junta protests, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a Thailand-based rights group. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane for RFA’s Myanmar Service. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.

Two more Uyghurs detained in Saudi Arabia face risk of deportation to China

Editor3 years ago2 years ago09 mins

Two more Uyghurs — a mother and her daughter — are in danger of being deported from Saudi Arabia back to China, where they could face severe punishment at the hands of authorities there, an international human rights group said. Police detained Buhalchem (in Chinese, Buheliqiemu) Abula and her 13-year-old daughter near the holy city of Mecca on March 31 and told them that they faced deportation to China along with two Uyghur men already held, according to a message received by Abula’s friends, London-based Amnesty International said in a statement on Monday. One of the men held, Nurmemet Rozi (Nuermaimaiti Ruze), is Abula’s former husband and father of the 13-year who are now also being held. Rozi and Hamidulla Wali (Aimidoula Waili), a religious scholar, have been detained without charge in Saudi Arabia since November 2020. The two men traveled to Saudi Arabia from Turkey on a religious pilgrimage to Mecca and were arrested, though authorities allegedly never told them why they were being held, RFA reported in March. Family members of the two men told Amnesty that the pair had been transferred from Jeddah to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital, in a move they believed was a precursor to extradition. “Buhalchem and her daughter were detained in the evening of March 31,” Wali’s daughter, Nuriman Hamdulla, told RFA. “I spoke to her as she and her daughter were taken away. They were given no reason for the detention. We’re not sure where they’re detained now.” “They’re innocent,” she said. “They must be detained at the request of the Chinese government because they didn’t break any law.” Hamdulla also said that she had not received a response from the Saudi authorities about whether her father and Rozi had been sent back to China. “Deporting these four people — including a child — to China, where Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities are facing a horrific campaign of mass internment, persecution and torture, would be an outrageous violation of international law,” said Lynn Maalouf, Amnesty’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa. “With time seemingly running out to save the four Uyghurs from this catastrophic extradition, it is crucial that other governments with diplomatic ties to Saudi Arabia step in now to urge the Riyadh authorities to uphold their obligations and stop the deportations,” she said. Rights groups, the United Nations and some Western countries have denounced China’s persecution of Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities in Xinjiang. China is believed to have detained about 1.8 million people in a network of internment camps across the region, with survivors reporting forced labor, torture and rape. Call for international action Under the international law principle of nonrefoulement and as a state party to the U.N. Convention against Torture, Saudi Arabia is prohibited from returning people to countries where they would face torture, cruel punishment, persecution or other serious harm. Alkan Akad, Amnesty’s China researcher, told RFA that the Uyghurs would likely face arbitrary detention and torture if they were deported to China. “They would be taken to internment camps, and the daughter also would be forcibly separated from her family,” he said. “And so, we call on the Saudi government to release them immediately unless there is international recognizable crime they are charged with.” An official at the office of the Permanent Mission of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations in New York told RFA that the country’s “policy on the Uyghur issue is very clear in all our statements,” but said that she was not responsible for the issue. Amnesty also called on the international community, especially the United States and the United Kingdom as strategic allies of Saudi Arabia, to take action to prevent the illegal extradition of the Uyghurs to China. The call came after two U.N. experts, Fernand de Varennes and Ahmed Shaheed, urged Saudi Arabia on April 1 to abide by the nation’s nonrefoulement obligations and to refrain from extraditing Rozi and Wali. “We are alarmed by the arrest of two Uyghur men in Saudi Arabia, since November 2020, and their continuous detention without proper legal justification or implementation of fundamental safeguards, reportedly on the basis of an extradition request made by China,” the experts said in a statement. “Detention should remain an exceptional measure subject to an individual assessment and regular judicial review, otherwise Saudi Arabia would be depriving the two men of their fundamental rights provided for under national and international law,” they said. De Varennes and Shaheed also requested that Saudi authorities immediately allow the two men to contact their families. The Saudi government has publicly supported China’s antiterrorism measures in what rights activists have said is a tacit approval of the crackdown on predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities in Xinjiang. Saudi authorities have returned other Uyghurs back to China after they traveled to the country for work or to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. “We call on the Saudi authorities to immediately release the detained Uyghurs and refrain from deporting them to China, a country that’s committing active genocide against Uyghur Muslims,” said Dolkun Isa, president of the World Uyghur Congress in Germany. “We urge the Saudi government to allow the Uyghurs to leave for a third safe country.” Translated by RFA’s Uyghur Service. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.

Italian university probes Chinese professor who singled out student from Taiwan

Editor3 years ago09 mins

A university in Italy is investigating allegations of bullying by a Chinese lecturer following a classroom dispute about the status of Taiwan, local media reported. Complaints were made after Politecnico di Milano architecture lecturer and Chinese national Chen Zhen admonished a student from the democratic island of Taiwan, which has never been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) nor formed part of the People’s Republic of China, for failing to register as “Chinese.” “I will talk something to Wang, but this is nothing related to the other two Iranian students, so I’m going to speak in Chinese with him, OK?” Chen is seen saying in English at the start of a video clip that he initially posted to his own account on the Chinese social media account WeChat. The clip was later picked up by Australia-based asylum-seeker Wang Lebao and amplified on Twitter. Chen continues in Chinese: “So, Wang, it’s not about your thesis. This has nothing to do with the other two students, so I’m going to say this in Chinese … I gave everyone a thesis template, asking them to fill out which city and which country they’re from. You wrote Taipei, Taiwan.” “The first thing I want to say is, the whole European Union, including Italy, sees Taiwan as a part of China,” he said. “You should know that not a single EU government, nor many others, officially recognizes Taiwan as a country.” “Your government may like to play word games to fool the people, but they’ve never amended the constitution,” he said. Taiwan was part of Japanese territory for the first half of the 20th century, before being handed over the 1911 Republic of China under Chiang Kai-shek at the end of World War II. The islands of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu are still governed as a sovereign state under its constitution. Politecnico di Milano in Milan, Italy. Credit: Politecnico di Milano ‘Unification’ widely rejected Recent opinion polls have shown that the majority of its 23 million population don’t identify as Chinese, and have no wish to be governed by Beijing, which has threatened to annex Taiwan by military force to achieve its idea of “unification.” The “paternalistic and aggressive tone” of Chen’s comments prompted the university investigate, the Today.it news website reported. Taiwan’s foreign affairs ministry condemned the treatment of Wang as “an abuse of power,” and said it had asked its representative office in Italy to follow up on the matter. University rector Ferruccio Resta confirmed to the office that the university’s disciplinary committee has begun an investigation into the incident to determine whether Chen’s actions had violated the school’s code of ethics and conduct. Lee Hsin-ying, Taiwan’s representative in Italy, told Taiwanese students in the country that what had happened was “very wrong,” and a bid to quash any sense of national identity among them. Article 2 of the code requires the university to “prevent and combat all kinds of discrimination, both direct and indirect,” banning words, actions and procedures that discriminates against people based on gender, ethnic or national origin, sexual orientation, religion, personal or political views, abilities, social background or age,” the website said. “The Polytechnic should consider it of primary importance not to allow the promotion of the Chinese Communist Party’s world view or propaganda in an Italian university,” the Today.it website said in the commentary article. “Pending further developments, we ask ourselves: will this lecturer continue to teach at the university, and promote [CCP leader] Xi Jinping thought on socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era?” the article said. Chinese ‘bullying’ blasted Italian politicians also hit out at the incident, saying it was “bullying.” “The Polytechnic of Milan should suspend this teacher should suspend this teacher who attacks and bullies a Taiwanese student by imposing on him a geopolitical lesson using the worst of Chinese propaganda-speak,” Gianni Vernetti, a former senator and deputy minister from the center-left Democratic Party, said via his Twitter account. And far-right Brothers of Italy senator Lucio Malan accused Chen of trying to “re-educate” the Taiwanese student, saying he would demand an explanation from the relevant government minister. Milan’s il Giornale newspaper also weighed in with an editorial on Monday noting that Taiwan still has formal diplomatic ties with the Vatican, and is for all practical purposes a sovereign state. The row came after the 59th Bologna Children’s Book Fair succumbed to pressure from the Chinese government to change the country of origin of Taiwanese artist Pei-Hsin Cho to “Taiwan, China.” Taiwan’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou condemned the move, and accused China of trying to smear the island for political reasons. Cho had been holding a solo exhibition at the book fair after winning an award there last year. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan reiterates that Taiwan is a sovereign state of the Republic of China and is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China,” Ou said. “The Chinese government has never ruled Taiwan for a day, and naturally has no right to claim to represent Taiwan in the international arena or to devalue the name of the country used by the people of Taiwan to participate in activities.” “Taiwan and Italy share universal values such as democracy, freedom, and human rights; Taiwan solemnly calls on relevant Italian departments to show courage and reject China’s inappropriate bullying,” she said. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

Shanghai battens down for further lockdowns as city government admits poor planning

Editor3 years ago07 mins

China looks set to stay with its controversial zero-COVID policy, as residents of the west bank of Shanghai’s Huangpu river flocked to supermarkets ahead of Friday‘s scheduled lockdown, and patients said they were having trouble getting lifesaving medical treatment due to testing restrictions. The city, which is home to 26 million people, is under a two-phase lockdown that saw the Pudong financial district locked down for five days, to be followed by Puxi across the river on Friday. But the Pudong lockdown looks set to be extended as the authorities grapple with a rapidly rising wave of fresh community transmission of the omicron variant of COVID-19. High-ranking Shanghai government official Ma Chunlei admitted that the government had been taken unawares by the rapid rise in infections, as the city reported more than 5,600 newly confirmed cases, both symptomatic and asymptomatic. Ma said his government was working hard to address citywide food shortages. “Our knowledge about the highly contagious omicron variant has been insufficient, we were inadequately prepared for the fast-rising number of infected patients, and our control measures have not been up to speed,” Ma told journalists on Thursday, in a rare official admission of responsibility. “We sincerely accept everyone’s criticism, and are working hard to improve,” Ma said in a briefing, adding that the government is expanding its COVID-19 testing and patient isolation facilities. ‘Dynamic clearance’ The Shanghai municipal government also sent the message to the city’s residents by mass SMS, a resident surnamed Wang told RFA. “The Shanghai government was criticized today because of the huge number of complaints we have received,” Wang said. “They started distributing emergency supplies of food yesterday, but it isn’t being distributed to every household, only to those in need.” “Actually, every household is having difficulty,” he said. “There are many people in my community, and only 100 households have been given a small amount of fresh vegetables.” State news agency Xinhua weighed in on the side of mass testing and lockdown-style restrictions, saying the CCP’s preferred method of “dynamic clearance” to contain COVID-19 hadn’t changed. And food supplies aren’t the only issue. Many patients are now unable to access life-saving medical treatment as the city’s hospitals shut their doors. A woman surnamed Zhou said her husband had been scheduled to get his weekly hemodialysis at Shanghai’s Zhongshan Hospital, but the entire area is now under lockdown. “Zhongshan Hospital has been helping us find other hospitals to go to,” said Zhou, who estimated that around 500 other patients are in a similar situation to her husband. Tests before appointments She said the problem is that hospitals require a negative PCR test before patients are allowed to attend their appointments. “We were notified that we had an appointment at Longhua Hospital this evening, but it takes 24 hours to get a PCR test result back,” Zhou said. “The results come out too late, sometimes more than 10 hours too late.” Another resident surnamed Wu said his mother was rejected for treatment for terminal cancer, and local officials didn’t allow her to leave until he complained about it on social media. “My mother was admitted yesterday … they want a [negative] PCR test result to admit you,” Wu said. “I would call the neighborhood committee but their phone was constantly busy or rang unanswered.” “Within half an hour [of my social media appeal], they called me,” he said. But Shanghai resident Zhao Ning said he knew of someone who died of an asthma attack due to the lockdown restrictions imposed on medical patients. “When he was taken ill, he called an ambulance, and his family went to the police [on guard] at the door for help, but the police didn’t help them,” Zhao said. “Another ambulance came for a COVID-19 patient next door, and they went to ask for help from them, but they couldn’t help them. Then the asthma patient died.” Shanghai has seen around 20,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since March 1, although observers believe the true number may be several times higher. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

Indonesian foreign minister calls on Russia to stop war with Ukraine

Editor3 years ago08 mins

During a meeting with her Russian counterpart in China this week, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said she pressed Moscow to end its war with Ukraine, citing the urgent humanitarian situation and the conflict’s ripple effects on the world economy. Her Wednesday talk with Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of an international meeting to discuss the situation in another country scarred by war – Afghanistan – focused on the war in Ukraine, Retno told reporters on Thursday. “Indonesia conveyed the importance of ending the war immediately because of its tremendous humanitarian impact, not to mention its impact on global economic recovery,” Retno told a virtual news conference from China. “I reiterated Indonesia’s consistent position, including respect for international law and the principles of the United Nations Charter such as sovereignty and territorial integrity,” she said. Retno said that, during a separate meeting on Wednesday, she also asked Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to support efforts to end the Russian invasion. “I conveyed the importance of all parties, including China, to push for an immediate end to the war so that the humanitarian crisis does not get worse,” Retno said of her meeting with Wang. Retno talked with Lavrov and Wang on the sidelines of a dialogue between Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and its neighboring Chinese district of Tunxi. The dialogue sought to stabilize Afghanistan, which is known today as an Islamic emirate after the Taliban took over following the withdrawal of U.S. forces last year. Regarding Ukraine, Indonesian officials hope negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv could be positive, she said. “Flexibility is needed so that negotiations can produce good results. And all parties must strive to end the war immediately to avoid the worsening of the humanitarian situation,” she said. During peace talks in Istanbul on Tuesday, Russian negotiators agreed to “fundamentally” cut back operations near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv, news agencies reported. Alexander Fomin, Russia’s deputy defense minister, said the move was meant “to increase trust and create conditions for further negotiations.” Despite those statements, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday dismissed Russia’s pledge, saying his army was getting ready for clashes in the east, Agence France-Presse reported. “We don’t believe anyone, not a single beautiful phrase,” Zelenskyy said in a video address to his nation. “We will not give anything away. We will fight for every meter of our territory.” Since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, more than 4 million Ukrainians have fled their country, according to a United Nations report. Shuttle diplomacy Hikmahanto Juwana, an international law professor at the University of Indonesia, said Jakarta should maintain communication with all parties in the Ukraine conflict. “Indonesia can also send its foreign ministers or a special envoy to engage in shuttle diplomacy to discuss solutions [on ending the war],” he told BenarNews. He noted that Indonesia will be hosting the G-20 summit of the world’s leading economies in October, and that could be spurring the nation’s interest in seeing fighting end in Ukraine. “Indonesia through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs must act immediately to make the G-20 summit a success and ensure that all heads of government and heads of state are present,” he said. Indonesia has sent invitations to all member countries, including Russia, foreign ministry official Dian Triansyah Djani said earlier. Russia’s ambassador to Indonesia has said that Putin planned to attend G-20 summit in Bali despite attempts by Western governments to oust Moscow from the grouping. Ukraine, which is not a G-20 member, had previously urged Indonesia to include discussions on the invasion during the summit. But Teuku Faizasyah, spokesman for Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had said Jakarta’s stance was “that the G-20 summit should focus on global economic issues.” Afghanistan While attending the gathering of Afghanistan and other countries during the China dialogue, Retno said she stressed the need for the ruling Taliban to open education to all children. In his own message to dialogue attendees, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged his nation’s support for Afghanistan but without mentioning the Taliban’s alleged human rights abuses, the Associated Press reported. Meanwhile on March 26, Indonesian and Qatari officials signed a letter of intent to provide scholarships and skills training for teen girls in Afghanistan, Retno said. “I expressed my hope that the ban on schooling for Afghan girls at the secondary school level can be reviewed,” she said of her statement at the dialogue. “As the largest Muslim country, Indonesia is ready to contribute to helping the people of Afghanistan, including in the field of education,” she said. The Taliban, which returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, had planned to allow teen girls to attend secondary schools, but dropped the plan last week over concerns about uniforms and the dress-code for schoolgirls. Girls can attend school up to grade six. She said it was important that the Taliban make good on its promises. “The Taliban needs to prepare a road map with concrete steps and timelines for fulfilling promises,” Retno said. BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news service.

Category: Middle East