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Factory in China tests North Korean workers for COVID after 20 show symptoms
Around 800 North Korean workers in the northeastern Chinese city of Dandong spent their May Day holiday getting tested for COVID-19 after about 20 of their coworkers began showing symptoms for the disease and were quarantined, sources in China told RFA. The North Korean women are employed by a clothing company in the city’s Zhenan district. They are among the 80,000 to 100,000 North Koreans dispatched to China’s three northeastern provinces to earn foreign currency for their cash-strapped government. Dandong has been locked down as part of China’s zero-COVID policy since last week. Workers would typically have off for May Day, an annual celebration of the fight for labor rights and an important holiday in communist countries. But workers were instead called into the factory for testing, a source in the city told RFA’s Korean Service on condition of anonymity for security reasons. The factory where the 800 women work is an important one in the battle against COVID-19, as it produces protective medical gowns, the source said. On April 27, about 20 suspected cases of COVID-19 were detected among North Korean workers at the company and the factory closed, the source said. The COVID-19 Pulmonary Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Command in Dandong diagnosed the suspected symptoms as laryngitis instead of COVID-19. “The 20 or so North Koreans who appear to have symptoms of COVID-19 are currently being treated in isolation inside the factory,” the source said. “It is absurd to say that it is laryngitis when there are hundreds of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Dandong and the municipal government and disease control authorities are blocking roads and alleys and restricting the movement of people.” COVID-19 has swept through companies employing North Korean workers before, but it was always kept a secret, the source said. “Perhaps if it was confirmed that North Korean workers had COVID-19 there would be considerable ramifications if it became known to the public. I know that the North Korean consulate in Dandong and the Chinese government are fabricating information to cover it up,” he said. “Even though it is a holiday for workers around the world, the North Korean workers are locked up in their company and taking nucleic acid tests.” A health official from Zhenan district told RFA’s Mandarin Service on Tuesday said that there were confirmed coronavirus cases in the factory, but she could not say whether it was North Korean or Chinese workers who were infected. She said that information would not be released. RFA Mandarin attempted to contact the factory but received no response. Another source in Dandong told RFA’s Korean Service that because the company is making protective gear, the factory had to continue operations on the holiday. “They don’t have time to enjoy the day because they are too busy producing COVID-19 protective suits and isolation gowns,” he said on condition of anonymity to speak freely. “They are working while wearing what they make.” “There was a recent scare after North Korean women working in restaurants, hostess bars and public baths had a few suspected cases,” he said. The source spoke of another case where four young North Korean women working at a hotel in Dandong were suspected cases. “I heard from an acquaintance who works with them that they were immediately placed into quarantine because they were showing symptoms,” the second source said. “As COVID-19 spreads here in Dandong, production rates at companies with North Korean workers fell dramatically. Companies that bought materials in advance, before things got so bad, are still forcing the North Koreans to come to work, even with the lockdown,” he said. Millions of residents of major Chinese cities are facing rigid lockdowns and strict testing regimens as the country tries to stop the spread of the omicron variant of COVID-19 under the Communist Party’s zero-COVID policy. RFA reported last week that Dandong, which lies across the Sino-Korean border from North Korea’s Sinuiju, started shutting down on April 25 and stopped all rail freight on May 1, just months after it resumed after an almost two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. North Korean labor exports were supposed to have stopped when United Nations nuclear sanctions froze the issuance of work visas and mandated the repatriation of North Korean nationals working abroad by the end of 2019. But Pyongyang sometimes dispatches workers to China and Russia on short-term student or visitor visas to get around sanctions. Translated by Claire Lee and RFA’s Mandarin Service. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Russian street singer with anti-Putin sign in brief legal scrape in Vietnam
Police in Vietnam denied local media reports that they arrested a Russian citizen for a public protest against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, saying instead that they summoned him for an expired visa. Street performer Alex Kniazev was singing and playing guitar Monday in front of a sign he made that said “STOP WAR, STOP PUTIN, RUSSIA IS NOT PUTIN!!” at Lam Vien Square in the city of Da Lat, in Vietnam’s southern Lam Dong province. After images of Kniazev, a stage name, went viral on Vietnamese social media on Monday, multiple Vietnamese media organizations reported on Tuesday that Lam Dong police arrested Kniazev because of the sign. Protests of any kind in one-party Communist Vietnam, an ally of Moscow, are rare and quickly snuffed out. The Da Lat police, however, said they merely invited Kniazev to meet with authorities to work out visa issues, the Lam Dong Newspaper reported. Following the meeting, Kniazev understood that he was in violation and agreed to travel to Ho Chi Minh City to renew his passport and extend his visa, the official newspaper said. In an official statement, the Da Lat Police repudiated the reports that it arrested the Russian for the sign, and warned that people who share fake news related to Kniazev’s situation could face legal consequences, Tuoi Tre News reported. Kniazev used the word “arrest” when he described the situation in writing to RFA’s Vietnamese Service Tuesday. “They arrest me for 2 hours because I must wait my new visa in Saigon,” he said, using the name of Ho Chi Minh City before the communist era. “I follow Vietnam’s rules and go to Saigon. That’s all,” he wrote. Kniazev also said that the police told him “they do not welcome the political actions of foreigners.” RFA reported Monday that Vietnamese government-aligned “opinion workers” who promote the Communist Party and protect its image on social media are now pushing the Russian narrative about the situation in Ukraine on Vietnam’s social media. Vietnamese have shown support for Ukraine in various ways. Hundreds of people in Hanoi have taken part in events at the Ukrainian Embassy and fundraising events to raise money for those affected by the armed conflict. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
At bilateral meet, Japanese, Thai PMs urge end to war in Ukraine
Japan and Thailand urged an end to the war in Ukraine and discussed working with the international community to provide humanitarian assistance, Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-Cha said after he met with his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, in Bangkok on Monday. The two countries also signed a defense deal as they reaffirmed their bilateral relationship during Kishida’s trip to Thailand, which coincides with the 135th anniversary of diplomatic relations and ten years of the strategic partnership between the two countries. Kishida arrived in Thailand Sunday evening for a two-day trip after visiting Vietnam, a staunch Russian ally, which nevertheless announced a humanitarian aid package worth U.S. $500,000 to Ukraine during the Japanese leader’s trip. “Concerning the situation in Ukraine, Thailand and Japan reaffirmed the principles of territorial integrity, international law, and the United Nations Charter. Both sides expressed concern over the escalation of tension in the situation and urged all relevant parties to cease all hostilities and violence and exercise utmost restraint,” Prayuth said in the statement. Japan condemned Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine and joined a slew of Western nations in imposing sanctions on Moscow. Thailand, meanwhile, abstained from a United Nations resolution vote to suspend Russia from the U.N. Human Rights Council for alleged human rights abuses in the war in Ukraine. It did however support a strongly worded U.N. resolution that “deplored” the aggression by Russia against Ukraine. Kishida said Japan admired Thailand for supporting the latter resolution. “I agree with Prime Minister Prayuth to denounce the violation of sovereignty and territorial integrity, unilateral use of force in any region, and disapproval of the use of weapons of mass destruction or the threat to use it,” the Japanese PM said. Prayuth also said he had proposed a “new approach towards ending confrontation which calls for the need to change the narrative of the Ukraine situation from conflict to humanitarian consideration for those who are affected by the Ukraine situation.” He said he had a similar approach “to resolve the situation in Myanmar and attached importance to humanitarian assistance for the people of Myanmar.” He did not give details about the so-called approach. Thailand shares a 2,400-kilometer (1,500-mile) long border with Myanmar. It has not outright condemned the coup in Myanmar or the actions of its security forces, which toppled the elected National League for Democracy (NLD) government on Feb. 1, 2021. Before arriving in Bangkok, the Japanese PM visited Hanoi where he spent fewer than 24 hours. He was received by all three of Vietnam’s top leaders, including the prime minister, the president, and the chairman of the national assembly. Speaking about Vietnam’s commitment of humanitarian aid for Ukraine, a Vietnamese analyst, Le Dang Doanh, said that Kishida’s visit helped Russian ally Vietnam “adjust its stance towards the Ukrainian war.” South China Sea At a meeting with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh and the other Vietnamese leaders, Kishida also discussed the issue of the disputed South China Sea, and the need for a free and open Indo-Pacific. Vietnam shares interest with Japan in safeguarding maritime security in the South China Sea, where China holds expansive claims and has been militarizing reclaimed islands. China is involved in maritime disputes with Japan over the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea. China claims sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea, where Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam all have claims. In Bangkok Monday, Kishida said that Japan along with Thailand hoped to “achieve the goal of [a] free and open Indo-Pacific and will closely cooperate to handle the matters of the South China Sea and North Korea and nuclear weapon and ballistic missile tests.” Defense deal Meanwhile the new defense equipment deal announced by Kishida and Prayuth would help facilitate the transfer of hardware and technology from Japan to Thailand, but the leaders provided no details. The deal “would support the strengthening of defense cooperation between the two countries and incentivize Japanese investment in the Thai defense industry, which is one of the targeted industries,” Prayuth said in a joint press conference held at the Government House in Bangkok on Monday evening. “The signing of our defense equipment and technology transfer agreement is a major step forward in expanding bilateral defense cooperation,” Kishida said. The two countries will later decide on the specific types of equipment for transfer. Apart from the defense deal, the two leaders also witnessed the signing of agreements to deepen financial cooperation between Japan and Thailand. Additionally, Japan gave Thailand COVID-19 emergency support worth 50 billion yen (U.S. $384 million) in loans and 500 million yen in grants aid, according to a joint statement. The two leaders discussed improvements in agricultural supply chains and agreed to continue working together on the Mekong sub-region, “particularly in promoting connectivity, human resource development, and sustainable development,” the statement said. Japan is Thailand’s biggest foreign investor, followed by the United States and Singapore. According to the Thai commerce ministry, Japanese investors represented 28.6 percent of the overall foreign investment in Thailand, worth more than 82.5 billion baht (U.S. $ 2.39 billion), in 2021. Japan’s investments, especially in the automotive industry, have been vital to Thailand’s economic growth in the last several decades.
Vietnam ‘opinion workers’ push Russian fake news on Ukraine on social media
Vietnamese “opinion workers” who promote the Communist Party and protect its image on social media now have a new role: spreading fake or misleading reports that support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Facebook. Facebook groups like “Đơn vị Tác chiến Mạng” (Cyber CombatUnit), “Truy quét Phản động” (Elimination of Reactionary Forces), “Bộ Tự lệnh Tác chiến” (Combat Command), and “Trung đoàn 47” (Regiment 47) that have worked to counter criticism of the Communist Party all now post information in favor of Russia. For example, Trung đoàn 47, which is believed to be part of a cyber combat force in the Vietnam People’s Army, posted this justification for the invasion: “Mr. Putin said: ‘Moscow has done everything it can to maintain Ukraine’s territorial integrity as well as protect the interests of Donetsk and Lugansk’s people but Kiev had blocked Donbas, suppressing local residents and shelling Donbas.’” Đơn vị Tác chiến Mạng posts fake news on a nearly daily basis. One video clip shows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meeting with members of his Cabinet and a close-up shot of a handful of white powder on his desk that looks like heroin. Đơn vị Tác chiến Mạng claimed that Zelensky posted this video on his website before it was quickly deleted. Facebook attached an alert on the video to let viewers know it is an altered recording, though it is still available. Even wider of the mark has been coverage of the massacre in Bucha, a town outside the capital Kyiv where hundreds of Ukrainians were killed by Russian soldiers. The torture and murder of Bucha residents apparently carried out by Russian soldiers before Ukrainian forces retook the town has drawn international calls to bring perpetrators to justice for war crimes. But Don Vi Tac Chien Mang said the atrocities were faked by Ukraine officials and soldiers, who, the Facebook group claimed, transported the corpses to Bucha from another location. RFA sent evidence to prove the video was fake to Meta, Facebook’s parent company, asking for comment as to why the social media platform had not yet identified it as such. A team representative said a response would be forthcoming within 24 hours, but RFA did not receive a reply. ‘It cannot discourage me’ The pro-Russian disinformation comes from a force of tens of thousands of cyber troops created by the Hanoi regime to watch and attack people online for posting information seen as detrimental to the Vietnamese Communist Party. Targets include individual netizens like Phan Chau Thanh, a Vietnamese businessman living in Poland who along with his friends began to organize the delivery of relief aid to Ukraine refugees in Poland right after the war broke out. “I find this war extremely unjustifiable,” Thanh said. “How can Russia carry out an invasion of another country right in the middle of Europe in the 21st century? Therefore, I want to provide Vietnamese people with updates about the war through the eyes of a person living in Europe.” Posts from his Facebook account garner thousands of views among Vietnamese, including government officials and the army of official influencers. “Since the war started, or over the past 60 days, my Facebook account has been blocked four times,” he said, due to reports accusing him of violating Facebook’s community standards. In December 2021, Meta, Facebook’s parent, announced that it had removed from the site a network of users who attacked political dissidents in Vietnam through similar methods. Thanh said he has also received a flurry of obscene and nasty comments, a typical tactic of Vietnamese cyber troops. “Of course, it makes me feel down, but it cannot discourage me,” he said. “It irritates me, but in many cases it gives me stronger determination to keep going.” RFA sent Facebook a message containing Phan Chau Thanh’s complaints but did not receive a response. In many cases, Vietnamese opinion workers are amplifying fake news created by Russian propagandists. Their influence could be seen recently when a video of four Ukrainian men ripping apart Vietnamese flags went viral on Facebook, passed on as “evidence” of the Ukrainian government’s hostile view toward the Southeast Asian nation. The video fueled a wave of criticism against Ukraine and served to support the Vietnamese government’s decision to maintain neutrality in the face of Russia’s brutal attack. It turned out the flag-tearing incident occurred in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv 16 years ago. Fallout from the video Oleksandr Gaman, Ukraine’s ambassador to Vietnam, was forced to address the fallout from the video on the embassy’s Facebook page. “The information war, part of the burning war in Ukraine, has come to Vietnam. Russia is making every effort to create frictions between Ukrainian and Vietnamese people,” Gaman said in a video speech posted on April 19, adding that old videos and photos and fake facts were being presented as the official position of Ukraine. A representative from the Ukrainian Embassy in Hanoi told RFA that Russia also has a large army of fake newsmakers. Natalia Zhynkina, the embassy’s temporary chargé d’affaires, said Russia was taking advantage of the image of the former Soviet Union, a country that supported Vietnam during its war with the United States, to make its propaganda appealing to the Vietnamese. But she questioned the effectiveness of Russia’s tactics. “A question should be asked about the effectiveness of Russia’s communication attempts in Vietnam,” she told RFA. “I believe that the information created by Russia has failed to attract the attention of young people. A communication campaign based on hostility and a war will never succeed.” Despite Russia’s efforts, many Vietnamese have shown support for Ukraine in various ways. Hundreds of people in Hanoi have taken part in events at the Ukrainian Embassy and fundraising events to raise money for those affected by the armed conflict. Reported by RFA’s Vietnamese Service. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
Delivery of US Howitzers to Taiwan delayed due to Ukraine crisis
An arms contract between the United States and Taiwan is facing severe delays due to “crowded production lines” caused by the war in Ukraine, prompting Taipei to look for alternatives, the island’s Ministry of National Defense has confirmed. The first batch of U.S.-made M109A6 “Paladin” self-propelled howitzers will not be delivered in 2023 as planned as the production capacity of the U.S. arms industry has been affected by the ongoing Ukrainian war, Taiwan has been notified. Instead, the U.S. has offered some alternative long-range precision strike weapon systems such as the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), the Taiwanese Ministry said, adding that officials are currently evaluating the proposal before making a final decision. Last August, Washington approved the sale of 40 M109A6 “Paladin” self-propelled howitzers and related equipment at an estimated cost of U.S. $750 million to Taiwan. It was part of the first arms sale to Taiwan approved by President Joe Biden since taking office that also included 20 M992A2 Field Artillery Ammunition Support Vehicles, 1,698 multi-option Precision Guidance Kits, and other related equipment and logistical support. The first eight units were due to be delivered next year, with another 16 each in 2024 and 2025, but U.S. manufacturers have now said it would be 2026 at the earliest. Eight weeks into the war, Washington decided to ramp up the delivery of artillery guns including a large number of howitzers to Ukraine as part of an additional U.S.$800-million military assistance package, the Associated Press reported. The Taiwanese military has been using two older howitzer variants – the M109A2 and M109A5. The “Paladin” is believed to be far superior with increased armor and an improved M284 155mm howitzer cannon. The proposed alternative – HIMAR – is a multiple-launch rocket system made by Lockheed Martin Corp. It can be mounted on a military truck, is mobile and has a strike distance of 300 kilometers (185 miles) when carrying M57 Army Tactical Missile Systems. Local media reported that besides the howitzers, a Taiwanese Navy’s plan to purchase 12 MH-60R Seahawk anti-submarine helicopters from the U.S. may also run into difficulties as the U.S. deemed that the helicopter is not suitable for asymmetric warfare. Although Washington and Taipei do not have formal diplomatic ties, the U.S. is committed by law to help provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself. Those arms sales have long been an irritant in relations between Washington and Beijing which regards the island as part of China, although Taiwan governs itself.
China enlists foreign vloggers to whitewash Uyghur situation in Xinjiang
China has enlisted some fresh faces in its pushback against charges it is committing genocide against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang: young foreign social media influencers who produce short videos showing happy minorities in the far-western region. Travel videos recorded by video bloggers known as vloggers are carried on platforms such as Twitter that are banned in China and spread by state media and affiliated sites. The echo and amplify Beijing’s massive propaganda effort to depict Uyghurs as content with and grateful for Chinese rule. The videos show “foreign travelers” interviewing people in factories in Xinjiang, with captions such as “Friends, it’s a lie that there is a genocide of the Uyghurs.” “Everything is normal here,” and “Is there a single piece of evidence that there are more than 1 million people in concentration camps?” State-owned media outlets and local governments organize the pro-China campaign, paying vloggers to take trips, according to documents posted online and video producers familiar with the system. “What happens is you’ll have a state media like CGTN or CRI or iChongqing or any number of organizations which are run by the Chinese government — which are the Chinese government — and what they will do is they will pay for the flights, pay for the accommodation, organize the trip, and liaise with the content creator and invite them to go on these trips,” said YouTuber Winston Sterzel, who lived in Xinjiang. Minders working as translators or fixers are always present to make sure the content creators follow the script, he said. Vloggers, who post short videos on their personal websites or social media account on platforms like YouTube, say that local government officials arrange their travel and logging during trips they are hired for to make videos that put China in a good light. “They arrange our travel, and they pay for our lodging and food,” said YouTuber Lee Barrett in a video he recorded. Business Insider reported in January that China’s consulate general in New York signed a U.S. $300 million contract with U.S.-based Vippi Media in New Jersey to create a social media campaign promoting positive messaging about China TikTok, Instagram, and Twitch as a lead-up to the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing. Social media influencers were asked to produce content for their target audiences on Chinese culture, positive diplomatic relations between China and the U.S., and consulate general news. ‘Living happily and joyfully’ On the YouTube channel “Two Brothers,” Netherlands-based Tarekk Habib and Anas Habib, both of Egyptian descent, published a video on Dec. 31, 2021, in which they say a Chinese company agreed to pay them U.S. $1,000 to produce and share a video extoling the government’s measures to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus at the Olympics and to ensure the safety of athletes. They said they turned down the request and instead produced a video discussing China’s oppression of Uyghur Muslims. China’s struggle to shape world opinion about Xinjiang will come into sharp focus this month, when U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet makes a long-awaited visit to China, including Xinjiang. Since 2017, about 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples are believed to have been incarcerated a vast network of internment camps in Xinjiang. The U.S. and a handful of European countries have labelled these practices genocide, while China has angrily rejected criticism and maintains the camps are vocational training centers designed to combat religious extremism and terrorism. In fall 2021, the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) government began an initiative to mobilize foreign students in China to praise “Xinjiang policy.” The effort was part of the central government’s larger plan to portray ethnic minorities in Xinjiang as happy and content, according to an article in Xinjiang Daily. Under the title “The people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang are living happily and joyfully,” the report cited a series of letters written by Chinese Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping in which he called on foreign students in July 2021 to increase their understanding of the “real China,” so that their knowledge would inspire others to understand the country as well. The XUAR government in October 2021 sponsored a trip to Xinjiang for students from 16 countries, including Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Burundi, Uganda, Russia, Pakistan, Korea, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, the U.S. and the U.K. Chinese state media said the students visited Kashgar (Kashi), Hotan (Hetian), and other places, and saw Xinjiang’s economic development, social stability, quality of life, culture, ethnic unity and religious harmony. “They are not only able to look after the young and old people in their homes, they can also earn a salary. Their work environment is very good, and they are truly happy,” an Armenian student was quoted as saying. Such accounts are meant to counter a growing tide of well-researched reports by researchers and foreign media about conditions in Xinjiang. Government minders Since the start of 2018, authorities have prevented most international journalists from entering Xinjiang and forced foreigners living in the region to leave. YouTubers from the U.S. and South Africa who lived in the Xinjiang or in mainland China for a decade or more said that while recent vlogs by foreigners “traveling” to Xinjiang appear to be simple and normal, government fixers are always on the other side of the camera, controlling what is said and recorded. “You’re gonna be approached by your agent or your middleman … who is a communicator between you and the management company, or as they call themselves, talent agencies,” said LeLe Farley, an American comedian and rap artist who lived in China for years and worked as an announcer for Chinese-language programs. “Those talent agencies get word directly from the government, like ‘we need foreign bloggers for white-washing Xinjiang; we need them to go there, and here’s the trip that we’ve prepared for them to go on. We’ll pay for the whole trip,’” he said. Josh Summers, who ran a popular blog known as “Far West China” as well as a YouTube channel, moved…
Indonesia confirms invitation to Ukraine for G-20 summit, says Putin will attend
Indonesia has asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to be a guest at the G-20 summit, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said Friday, belatedly confirming an invitation to the war-torn European nation’s leader that the United States had urged him to extend. The Indonesian president also said that Vladimir Putin, the leader of G-20 member Russia whose military invaded Ukraine in February, had agreed to attend the same summit in Bali in mid-November, although the Kremlin had not confirmed his participation. Indonesia hold this year’s presidency of the grouping of the world’s top 20 economies. “We know that the G-20 plays the role of catalyst in the global economic recovery and the two things are affecting the global economic recovery in a major way: COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine,” Jokowi said in a speech broadcast on YouTube. “It is in this context that I invited President Zelenskyy to attend the G-20 summit,” he said of his call Wednesday with the Ukrainian president. Meanwhile in Washington on Friday, the Pentagon’s press secretary said that Putin “absolutely shouldn’t be” welcomed at the G-20 summit. “He isolated Russia by his own actions and should continue to be isolated by the international community … [as one of the] consequences of his actions in Ukraine,” John Kirby told CNN. A day earlier, when asked whether President Joe Biden would attend the G-20 summit were Putin to attend as well, a White House spokeswoman indicated that a decision had yet to be made. “[T]he President has been clear about his view: This shouldn’t be business as usual, and that Russia should not be a part of this,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters. “But, again, [the G-20 summit] six months away; we don’t even have confirmation of these reports [about Putin’s attendance]. So I’m certainly not going to get into a hypothetical in this case.” Southeast Asia analyst Derek J. Grossman said Indonesia’s invitation to Ukraine reflected its stated foreign policy. “The nonaligned path in action,” the senior defense analyst at the Rand Corp., a U.S. think-tank, said on Twitter. Ukraine is not a G-20 member, but Indonesia, as the holder of the group’s presidency, can invite leaders of non-member countries as guests. Zelenskyy on Wednesday pre-empted Indonesia by announcing via Twitter that Jokowi had invited him to the summit. His attendance at the G-20 summit would “depend mainly on the situation in the battlefield,” Vysotskyi Taras, a senior Ukrainian government official, was quoted by Reuters as saying on Thursday. ‘War must be stopped immediately’ Jokowi, however, said he had turned down a request by Zelenskyy that Indonesia send weapons to Ukraine. “I reaffirmed [to Zelenskyy] that in line with our constitution and our independent and active foreign policy, we cannot send arms support to other countries, but we are prepared to send humanitarian aid,” Jokowi said. The Indonesian leader also said he had called for an end to the war, in his telephone conversation with Putin on Thursday. “It should be underlined that the war must be stopped immediately and peace negotiations be given a chance. Indonesia is ready to contribute to achieving that goal,” Jokowi said. “President Putin expressed gratitude for the invitation to the G-20 summit and said that he would attend,” he added. In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia would prepare for the summit but did not say whether Putin would go to Bali. “Putin wished success for the Indonesian G-20 presidency and assured that Russia will do everything necessary and everything possible to contribute to it,” Peskov was quoted as saying by the Russian news agency TASS. But, Peskov said, “it is premature to talk about any other modalities of our participation.” Last month, President Biden said Ukraine should be able to participate in the G-20 summit, if the grouping did not expel Russia, the country that invaded its smaller neighbor and former Soviet socialist republic next-door on Feb. 24. Washington went a step farther on April 6, saying that it would boycott some of the group’s meetings if Russian officials attended, which it then did later in the month. On April 20, several nations, including Ukraine and the United States, walked out when Russian officials addressed a G-20 meeting convened by Indonesia in Washington. Indonesia had invited all members, including Russia, to attend the group’s meeting of finance ministers and central bank chiefs that day. Shailaja Neelakantan in Washington contributed to this report for BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping seeks support of young people amid lockdown restrictions
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has called on China’s young people to get behind the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in a recent visit to a university reminiscent of the Mao era, as “little red books” of his personal brand of ideology made an appearance in Guangxi. In an April 25 speech to staff and students, Xi said young people should: “Unswervingly obey the party, follow its direction, and strive to grow into heirs of the era worthy of the important task of national rejuvenation.” The visit came ahead of the anniversary of a century-old student-led May Fourth Movement (1919) previously lauded by Xi for its “patriotic spirit.” The 100-year-old student-led movement was sparked by popular anger at the Treaty of Versailles and the concession of a huge tract of Chinese territory to Japan. Describing the country’s youth as the “oar,” and Xi’s Chinese Dream slogan as the “sail,” Xi appeared to encourage young people to travel the country, as they did during the decade of political turmoil instigated by Mao and now known as the Cultural Revolution. “Measure the motherland with your footsteps, discover the spirit of China with your eyes, listen to the voice of the people with your ears, and sense the pulse of the times with your hearts,” Xi told them, calling for “creative transformation and innovative development” stemming from traditional Chinese culture. Yet, as he spoke, tens of millions of people remained under a grueling COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai and other Chinese cities, while Xi addressed students without wearing a mask. The visit came after authorities in the southwestern region of Guangxi announced the publication of a Mao Zedong-style “little red book” of Xi’s political ideology, an indication of the growing personality cult Xi is seeking to build around himself, analysts said. Chen Lee-fu, vice president of the Taiwan Professors Association, leaders of dictatorial regimes, including North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian president Vladimir Putin, rarely wear masks, believing that it is detrimental to their strongman image, and makes them look like a patient. Decorative plates and cups featuring images of Chinese President Xi Jinping are seen in front of a plate featuring late communist leader Mao Zedong (top L) at a souvenir store next to Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Feb. 27, 2018. Credit: AFP ‘Red gene’ However, all of Xi’s entourage were masked, Chen said, sending the message that the country’s leader would be protected from COVID-19, which is currently ripping across the country. State news agency Xinhua said the visit was significant because Renmin University, also known as the People’s University, was the first to be founded by the CCP. Xi’s visit on the eve of May 4th was to emphasize that the university must inherit the “red gene,” and cultivate the next generation of socialists, the agency said. Taiwan-based dissident Gong Yujian said the CCP, for all its idealization of the May Fourth Movement, wouldn’t tolerate any kind of actual protest by young people in real life. “The CCP won power through rebellion, so no it fears a popular rebellion more than anything,” Gong said. “There are people in Shanghai openly calling for the overthrow of the CCP and of Xi Jinping, but the real threat is the secondary disaster and casualties caused by the inhumane lockdowns, in which people have lost their lives.” “Only rioting will make Xi Jinping feel any real fear,” he said, speaking as teams of workers continued to put up steel fences blocking major thoroughfares in Shanghai, and walling people into their buildings. Chen said Xi is currently seeking to build a groundswell of public support ahead of the CCP’s 20th Party Congress later this year, at which he will seek an unprecedented third term in office. But he said there are key differences between Xi and his late predecessor, Mao Zedong. “Back then, Mao Zedong called for the elimination of traditional Chinese bureaucracy and elite politics,” Chen said. “He gave young people a plan: to overthrow everything, and start over from scratch.” “The big dream of young people in the Mao era was to surpass Britain and catch up to the United States.” China’s President Xi Jinping with a face mask is displayed as people visit an exhibition about China’s fight against the COVID-19 coronavirus, Jan. 15, 2021. Credit: AFP Xi’s Red Guards Chen said the plan was unlikely to work for Xi, despite his recent calls for Chinese economic output to surpass that of the United States this year. “They have lived through the good years before Trump and Xi Jinping, before the conflict between the US and China,” Chen said. “This is the generation of Alibaba, of free trade and studying overseas.” “Now studying overseas isn’t an option, Belt and Road projects are failing, the whole country is under pandemic lockdown, and even expressing an opinion online can get you deleted or harassed,” he said. “All of this has happened in the last two or three years.” “The students know very well that Xi Jinping’s growing power has entailed reductions to their power and freedoms, so there is no way they will truly support him,” Chen said. “How can China imagine it will displace the United States when all the cities are locked down and there’s no food to eat … foreign capital is leaving, and there are no jobs.” He added: “Chinese universities are no longer places to nurture intellectuals and independent thought. They are the cradle of the CCP … places for Xi Jinping to cultivate his own army of Red Guards.” Sweden-based Zhang Yu, secretary-general of the Independent Chinese PEN Association, said the reappearance of the little red books in Guangxi are evidence of a nationwide propaganda campaign encouraging the cult of personality around Xi ahead of the 20th Party Congress. “With this mass propaganda movement in Guangxi, they are stepping up the praise of Xi and his so-called ideology in China ahead of the 20th Party Congress,” Zhang told RFA. “They absolutely want to try to recreate the collective hysteria of the…
Japan PM begins SE Asia trip, urges open seas, response on Ukraine
Japan’s leader made a veiled but strong statement against Chinese assertiveness as he met Indonesia’s president on Friday at the start of a trip to Southeast Asia and Europe to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific and rally a regional response to the Ukrainian crisis. Tokyo is also considering giving Indonesia patrol boats so its coast guard could strengthen maritime security, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said, amid Chinese pressure on Jakarta over its oil and gas drilling operations in its own exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea. “I expressed a strong sense of protest against efforts to change the status quo unilaterally and economic pressures in the East China Sea and South China Sea,” Kishida said, after meeting with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in Jakarta. The Japanese premier’s remarks were a pointed reference to concern over Chinese activities in the region. Kishida’s eight-day tour will see him visiting “strategic ASEAN partners,” including Vietnam and Thailand. The prime minister will then proceed to Europe, with stops in Italy and the United Kingdom, both members of the G7 grouping of industrialized countries that also comprises Japan. Before embarking from Tokyo on his trip, Kishida said at the airport that he would like to “exchange frank opinions on the situation in Ukraine with each of the leaders and confirm their cooperation.” Indonesia is host of this year’s Group of 20 summit in November, an engagement that has placed Jakarta in a diplomatic bind, amid opposition to the participation of Russia because of its invasion of Ukraine and alleged war crimes there. On Friday, Jokowi confirmed that Indonesia had invited Ukraine’s president as a guest to the G-20 summit in Bali and that Russian leader Vladimir Putin would also attend. Kishida said he and Jokowi “exchanged views openly” on the Russian invasion, “which is a clear violation of international law and which we say has shaken the foundations of the international order, including Asia, and must be strongly condemned.” “Keeping in mind the U.N. resolutions agreed upon by the two countries, I and the president discussed this issue. We have one understanding that a military attack on Ukraine is unacceptable. In any area, sovereignty and territorial integrity should not be interfered with by military force or intimidation,” the Japanese leader said. Jokowi, for his part, called for all countries to respect sovereignty and territorial integrity. “The Ukraine war must be stopped immediately,” he said. A regional ‘reluctance to take sides’ The war in Ukraine has been a divisive issue among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN. “Across the region there is a reluctance to take sides and an ambivalence about the concert of democracies lining up in support of Ukraine,” said Jeff Kingston, a professor and director of Asian Studies at Temple University in Tokyo. Most Southeast Asian countries – Singapore being an exception – have been hesitant to condemn Russia or join international sanctions against Moscow. Japan hopes to consolidate their responses during the prime minister’s visit. “Kishida will [also] seek to gain understanding of what is at stake and the potential implications for Asia in terms of China’s hegemonic aspirations,” Kingston said. China’s increasing assertiveness in the East China and South China seas will be high on the agenda, and Kishida said he would discuss with Southeast Asian leaders further cooperation “toward realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific,” and maintaining peace and order. Stops in Hanoi, Bangkok In Vietnam, where Kishida will spend less than 24 hours over the weekend, he will meet with both the Vietnamese prime minister and president. Bilateral talks will focus on post-COVID-19 and security cooperation, Vietnamese media said. Vietnam shares interests with Japan in safeguarding maritime security in the South China Sea where China holds expansive claims and has been militarizing reclaimed islands. In Thailand, Kishida will hold talks with Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha. Thailand is the host of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum summit in November. Bangkok and Tokyo are celebrating the 135th anniversary of diplomatic ties this year, and the two sides are seeking to sign an agreement on the transfer of defense equipment and technology to strengthen cooperation in the security field, according to the Bangkok Post. Government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said it would be the first official visit of a Japanese prime minister to Thailand since 2013. In March, Kishida visited India and Cambodia, his first bilateral trips since taking office in October 2021. Later in May, he will host a visit by U.S. President Joe Biden and a summit of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or Quad. The White House announced on Wednesday that President Biden would visit South Korea and Japan May 20-24 to advance a “commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and to U.S. treaty alliances” with the two countries. The trip will be Biden’s first one to Asia as president. “In Tokyo, President Biden will also meet with the leaders of the Quad grouping of Australia, Japan, India, and the United States,” the statement said without disclosing the date. The Quad is widely seen as countering China’s weight in the region. China has been sneering at the formation of the Quad, calling it one of the “exclusive cliques detrimental to mutual trust and cooperation among regional countries.” On Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry’s spokesman Wang Wenbin said that the Quad “is steeped in the obsolete Cold War and zero sum mentality and reeks of military confrontation.” “It runs counter to the trend of the times and is doomed to be rejected,” he said. Dandy Koswaraputra in Jakarta contributed to this report for BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
Zero-covid costs spread
Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s decision to stick with a zero-covid policy that worked in 2020 but has not stopped the spread of the Omicron variant has brought lockdowns in Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing among 45 mainland cities, affecting nearly 400 million people. The economic damage to China is now spilling over to U.S., Europe, Japan and others in a global economy struggling with shortages, inflation and the Ukraine conflict.
