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Hun Sen warns of more arrests related to Vietnam-Laos cooperation deal

Editor05 mins

Cambodia’s Senate President Hun Sen on Monday again threatened to arrest anyone who tries to organize a demonstration in the country against an economic cooperation agreement with Vietnam and Laos that has been a subject of online debate over the last month. The 1999 agreement between the three countries was aimed at encouraging economic development and trade between Cambodia’s four northeastern provinces and neighboring provinces across the border. Last month, three activists were arrested on incitement charges after they spoke of concerns that the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Triangle Development Area, or CLV, could cause Cambodia to lose territory or control of some of its natural resources to Vietnam. The activists made the comments in an 11-minute Facebook video. An angry Hun Sen ordered the arrests and has spoken publicly about the CLV several times since then. On Monday, Hun Sen warned in a Facebook post of more arrests after overseas Cambodians set up a chat group on the Telegram app where plans for an Aug. 18 demonstration in Phnom Penh against the CLV were being discussed. The Telegram group was created following a weekend of protests against the CLV among overseas Cambodians living in South Korea, Japan, Canada and Australia. “My message to all brothers and sisters in this group, I listened to your conversation in the group long enough,” he said. “You are being incited by overseas people.” ‘Try it’ Hun Sen said he has spies in the Telegram group who have sent conversations and names to his private account. He added that he wouldn’t order the arrests for anyone who left the group. “We cannot let a few people destroy the peace of 17 million people. Some have seen the events in Bangladesh and compared the events in Cambodia,” he said. “Try it. If you consider yourself a strong person, please try.” Hun Sen stepped down as prime minister last year but remains a powerful force in the country. His son, Hun Manet, succeeded him as prime minister.  Last week, Hun Manet warned Cambodians against protesting against the government, citing Bangladesh’s recent demonstrations in its capital that turned into deadly clashes and caused that country’s leader to resign. RELATED STORIES Cambodia’s prime minister warns against Bangladesh-like demonstrations Police arrest activists after Facebook video angers Cambodia’s Hun Sen Hun Manet has also tried to reassure Cambodians about the CLV, saying that the agreement won’t result in the loss of any territory. Soeung Senkaruna, the former spokesman for human rights group Adhoc, said Cambodians both inside and outside the country have the full right to freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by the Constitution and international law.  Using force to keep people from expressing their opinions shouldn’t happen in a country “that the government claims enjoys democracy and peace,” he said. Translated Sun Sok Ry. Edited by Matt Reed.

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Opponents of Myanmar junta skeptical on any Thai help for census, vote

Editor07 mins

Opponents of military rule in Myanmar have criticized the possibility that Thailand will help conduct a census in preparation for an election that the Myanmar junta has promised but which critics say will be an illegitimate sham. The possibility of Thai support for Myanmar’s Oct. 1-15 census and for an election next year was discussed by the Thai  ambassador, Mongkol Visitstump, and the head of Myanmar’s Election Commission, Ko Ko, and Immigration and Population Minister Myint Kyaing in Myanmar’s capital of Naypyidaw on Aug. 7, junta-backed media reported. Myanmar’s military ousted an elected government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in early 2021, jailing her and hundreds of party colleagues and supporters, dissolving her party and banning other parties.  The junta has promised to hold elections but critics say a vote would be meaningless with Suu Kyi and so many pro-democracy politicians and activists in jail. A spokesman for a civilian shadow government largely made up of politicians from Suu Kyi’s party told Radio Free Asia the international community, including Thailand, should focus on restoring human rights and stability, not supporting any “illegitimate” junta plan. “I would request the international community not to support and help this illegitimate Myanmar military junta against the will of the people,” said Kyaw Zaw, spokesperson for the Office of the President of the National Unity Government, or NUG. “This is a time for the international community to support Myanmar people and Myanmar people’s resistance against the fascist military and prepare for the post-military era,” he said.  Thailand’s embassy in Myanmar and its Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to requests for comment.  Thailand has been at the forefront of efforts to press Myanmar’s rivals into resolving their differences peacefully.  RELATED STORIES Myanmar junta orders its workers to pay it part of their Thai wages Thailand should end Myanmar junta’s control over migrants: NUG Thailand’s offer of aid to Myanmar gets mixed reaction It says that it is the country that shares the longest border with Myanmar, and which has for decades served as home for hundreds of thousands refugees fleeing conflict  in Myanmar, it has a particular interest in seeing stability restored. But despite the efforts of Thailand and its neighbors in the Association of South East Asian Nations, fighting has escalated as  junta forces face battlefield setbacks in several parts of the country. ‘Step up attacks’ Kyaw Zaw said the junta had no ability to conduct a “meaningful, useful census,” and that the international community should focus on other human rights and development efforts.  The junta has not set a date for an election but the earliest would be early next year. Under the constitution, an election must be held within six months of a state of emergency being lifted. A state of emergency in effect since the early 2021 coup was extended for another six months on Aug. 1.  The junta chief, Sen. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, has said an election will be held in 2025 but acknowledged that voting in some places may not be possible in the absence of “peace and stability”. Insurgents control 73 towns across the country, according to data from the Myanmar Peace Monitor.  A political observer close to one of Myanmar’s most powerful ethnic minority insurgent groups, the Arakan Army, dismissed the possibility of an effective census and election given the amount of territory the insurgents control, adding that attempts by the junta to organize a vote would likely only exacerbate the fighting. “It is very likely that [they] will step up attacks on the liberated areas, especially targeting the civilians as collective punishment,” said the political observer, who declined to be identified given the sensitivity of the issue. The Arakan Army controls nine townships in Rakhine state in western Myanmar as well as territory in neighboring Chin state. “Neighboring countries should speak out, that the SAC needs to stop attacks on civilians and initiate dialogue and only then can genuine elections come out of these,” he said, referring to the junta, which is officially known at the State Administration Council. Edited by Taejun Kang.

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Olympics fans in Laos watch events through social media, Thai broadcasts

Editor04 mins

Sports fans in Laos have been watching the Paris Olympic games through online video platforms or through television broadcasts from neighboring Thailand. Four athletes representing Laos competed in Paris, but there was little expectation they would bring home a medal. So viewers in Laos have also taken an interest in Thai athletes and other Southeast Asian competitors.  “I know well that Lao athletes have very little chance to win a medal,” a Vientiane resident told Radio Free Asia. “But I’m still closely following the Olympic games.” She cheered on Panipak Wongpattanakit from Thailand, who won a gold medal in the taekwondo women’s flyweight division. “I remember that she also won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics too,” she said, referring to the games held in 2021. “I would say ‘congratulations’ to her.” Steven Insixiengmay of Laos competes in the Men’s 100m Breaststroke Heats on July 27, 2024 in Nanterre, France. (Al Bello/Getty Images) Laos’ television channels didn’t have enough advertising sponsors to show a live broadcast of the Paris games, an official from Laos’ Olympic committee said.  Instead, committee officials who are in France have been posting results from Lao athletes on social media platforms and have also done a few Facebook Live broadcasts to talk about the events, he said. Fans in Laos have also just been enjoying the track and field, soccer and gymnastic events no matter who is competing, another Lao citizen told RFA. “I watch almost everything,” he said. Laos hasn’t won a medal since it first sent athletes to the Olympics in 1980, when the games were held in Moscow.  Praewa Misato Philaphandeth of Laos performs a rhythmic gymnastics routine, Aug. 8, 2024 . (Mike Blake/Reuters) Four athletes represented Laos in Paris: Silina Pha Aphay, a Lao-born 100-meter sprinter; Praewa Misato Philaphandeth, a rhythmic gymnast who is of Lao, Thai, and Japanese descent; and Ariana Southa Dirkzwager and Steven Insixiengmay, both of whom are Lao-American swimmers. Pha Aphay was briefly in the spotlight during a preliminary heat of the women’s 100-meter race. She was seen helping another sprinter, Lucia Moris of South Sudan, who fell to the ground during the race after an apparent injury.  After crossing the finish line in sixth place, Pha Aphay ran back to Moris as she lay on the track in pain. She stayed with her as medics strapped her onto a stretcher. “Once I saw her on the ground in pain, it was in my mind that I must finish my race first,” she told RFA. “Then I asked permission from the referee if I could help her. The referee said yes, then I rushed to help her.” Translated by Phouvong. Edited by Matt Reed.

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Gymnastics silver medalist Nairman Kurbanov thrills Kazakhs and Uyghurs

Editor07 mins

Kazakhstanis turned out in large numbers to welcome home gymnast Nariman Kurbanov from the Paris Olympics, where the 26-year-old ethnic Uyghur won a silver medal in the Men’s Pommel Horse – the first gymnastics medal for the Central Asian nation in the 30 years it has competed as an independent country. Kurbanov, who has been a gymnast since the age of six and holds degrees in coaching and law, was met at Almaty airport Wednesday by Kazakhstani sports officials and community leaders and activists representing the nearly 300,000 Uyghurs in Kazakhstan. “It’s been a few days since the finals of the Olympics, but I still can’t fully grasp the significance of my medal,” he told Radio Free Asia Uyghur.  “My fans and sports enthusiasts from all over the country and abroad are not only congratulating me, but also expressing their gratitude for the joy I’ve brought them,” he added. “My parents and relatives were overjoyed to see my success. In particular, my father, who has always been by my side, is delighted by this blessing and feels as if he is in seventh heaven,” said Kurbanov, whose father coached him for much of his early career. Kazakhstan’s Nariman Kurbanov poses with his silver medal during the podium ceremony for the artistic gymnastics men’s pommel horse during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Bercy Arena in Paris, Aug. 3, 2024. (Lionel Bonaventure/AFP) In the Aug. 3 finals in Paris, Kurbanov scored 15.433 points, falling by a tenth of a point to gold medalist Rhys McClenaghan from  Ireland with 15.533 points. “The entire population of Kazakhstan, including the Uyghurs, expected and believed that Nariman would earn a medal at the Olympics. Now, Nariman has won the silver medal and justified our confidence,” Bahar Rejapova, a Uyghur youth activist from Kazakhstan, told RFA. He noted that Kurbanov had become widely known in Kazakhstan since started competing in international competitions in 2018 or earlier and winning world titles. “I am not exaggerating when I say that his efforts and determination will serve as a great role model for us, the youth,” Bahar said. Veteran Kazakhstani trainer Tursun Sadirov told RFA Kurbanov’s silver medal was “a great honor for our country and our people” which called to mind the earliest medalists, including many Uyghurs, from the days when Kazakhstan was part of the Soviet Union and competed under the USSR flag. Independent Kazakhstan competed in its first summer games in Atlanta in 1996. “When I saw and heard Nariman carrying the blue flag of Kazakhstan, I was very happy and I thanked him, his parents, and coaches,” Tursun told RFA.  “I express my gratitude to our young people like Nariman, who are introducing Kazakh sports to the world, and wish them great success.” Take a moment to read more Taiwanese boxing gold medal hopeful heads to final match in Paris Soaring price of shuttlecocks ruffles feathers in China Chinese police arrest Beijing woman for ‘defaming’ Olympic athletes Tibetan athlete fails to medal in her latest Olympics but is ‘happy’ Chinese state TV pulls plug on Taiwan’s badminton victory Chinese social media users slam athletes over failure to deliver gold Silver medallist Kazakhstan’s Nariman Kurbanov celebrates after the artistic gymnastics men’s pommel horse final during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Bercy Arena in Paris, Aug. 3, 2024. (Paul Ellis/AFP) The performance in Paris by Kurbanov, who is credited with inventing the difficult pommel move called “the Kurbanov,” has also reverberated among the Uyghur diaspora. “His silver medal achievement brings great joy to us all. For the Uyghur community, this is especially significant,” said Alimjan Hamrayev, a Uyghur professor and head of the Euro-Asia Uyghur Academy in Almaty. “Nariman Kurbanov’s success has greatly contributed to strengthening Uyghur-Kazakh friendship. His accomplishment has reinforced our historic bonds,” he told RFA. Kurbanov told RFA in an telephone interview Friday that support from Uyghurs around the world is “very nice.” “When I go on the world stage, I represent Kazakhstan, our entire country, but since I am a Uyghur, I feel the Uyghurs’ concern about me in Kazakhstan, and in Europe, and in America, and in Australia,” he said. “Everyone is sending me greetings from all over the world. All the Uyghurs are rooting for me, congratulating me, and it is very nice. It makes me very proud of our entire nation.” Translated by Alim Seytoff. Edited by Paul Eckert.

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Myanmar junta authorities prevent young adults from leaving the country by air

Editor08 mins

Myanmar authorities under the ruling junta are now preventing young adults who want to get jobs abroad from leaving the country via Yangon’s international airport, people with knowledge of the situation said. Young people have been leaving Myanmar in droves to work in other countries since the military seized control in a February 2021 coup d’état followed by violent crackdowns on civilians and civil war. The new measure is one of various methods used by the ruling military council to control the number of citizens leaving for employment opportunities abroad because of the civil war, economic downturn and military conscription. Men ages 18 to 35 years and women ages 18 to 27 must serve a minimum of two years in the military under Myanmar’s conscription law.   In May, the junta temporarily banned all men from working abroad amid widespread public concern over the implementation of the military conscription law. RELATED STORIES Myanmar’s junta halts passport conversion as Thailand mulls worker amnesty Myanmar now requires biometric ‘smart card’ to exit country by border Myanmar junta bans all men from working abroad Junta requires workers abroad to send money home via approved banks Authorities are denying people between the ages of 23 and 35 from taking flights out of Yangon, the country’s largest city, since the beginning of August, said a city resident. They have implemented tighter passenger scrutiny and are turning away young adults regardless of the type of passport they hold, citing incomplete documentation, said the person, who like other sources in this report asked not to be named for fear of retribution. Myanmar issues nine types of passports, including one for overseas workers, known as PJ, one for tourists, known as PV, and one for sailors, known as PS. But there is no specific policy detailing which types of people are restricted from traveling, the Yangon resident said.  “Even those with all the required documents and a PJ passport people have been barred from leaving the country,” the person said.  Neither junta spokesman Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun or Nyunt Win, permanent secretary of the Labor Ministry, responded to requests for comment on the travel restrictions. Illegal ways to go abroad RFA has not been able to determine how many people have been affected by the measure so far. A labor union leader criticized the new restrictions, saying they would push young people to find illegal ways to go abroad. “Due to the pressure on people to leave because they can’t find work in this country, it is the foreign employment agencies that are most affected,” he said. “As a result, illegal agencies are beginning to emerge, and brokers are becoming more active.”  Travelers wait in a security check line in the departure terminal at Yangon International Airport in Yangon, Myanmar, June 2024. (RFA) Authorities previously didn’t check whether passports matched corresponding visas, but now if there’s a mismatch, the person is not allowed to leave the country, said an employee at an overseas job search service in Myanmar. “Some travelers were sent back because they were using PV passports with a work visa, even though the passport type appeared to match the visa type,” the person said, adding that those with such visas cannot use them for other travel purposes.  “In other words, if you hold a tourist passport, you will no longer be allowed to go abroad for work, study or similar purposes,” the source said. In June, the military council also revoked the right to change passport types. Additionally, PJ passport holders are now permitted to work overseas only if they possess an Overseas Worker Identification Card. A young woman aspiring to work abroad said she believes the cash-strapped junta is restricting those with PV passports from leaving the country for jobs elsewhere because it doesn’t collect taxes from them. “It would be more convenient if, after allowing people to go, the authorities required 25% of their salary to be transferred back at a set amount, deducting the government’s share,” she said. “This system could then be applied to PV passport holders in the same way.”   A young sailor told RFA that he and others who must renew their passports have to wait longer than previously to get a new travel document. Passports must be valid for at least 18 months before sailors set off and leave Myanmar, but unforeseen delays in waiting for a QR code after submitting a renewal application are preventing them from working, he said. “I have about six months left on mine, but I can’t work on a ship with only six months remaining,” he added. Translated by Kalyar Lwin for RFA Burmese. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Matt Reed.w

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Four more killed in sweeping crackdown in Myanmar’s Sagaing

Editor06 mins

Myanmar junta forces shelled a village in the Sagaing region killing four people, residents said, in the latest attack in an anti-insurgent campaign in which hundreds of homes have been torched and thousands of villagers have been displaced, residents said on Friday. The central Sagaining region, largely populated by members of the majority Burman community, has seen some of the worst of the violence that has engulfed Myanmar since the military overthrew an elected government in early 2021. Outraged by the coup and a subsequent crackdown that shattered hopes for reform, pro-democracy activists from towns and cities, and central rural areas that had been largely peaceful for decades, have taken up arms to fight to end military rule. Sagaing has become a hotbed of dissent and junta forces have responded with full force, including airstrikes and shelling that have killed hundreds of civilians and raids in which villages have been largely destroyed and residents detained and tortured. Residents of the arid heartland region told Radio Free Asia that junta forces shelled Yinmarbin township’s Htan Taw Gyi village, about 125 kilometers (77 miles) west of the city of Mandalay, on Wednesday night for no apparent reason, killing four civilians and wounding six. The fire from the junta camp about eight kilometers (five miles) away hit the eastern part of the village, said one resident, who declined to be identified for security reasons.  “Three people died on the spot. Seven people were wounded but one of them died in the morning, so four people have died in total. There was no battle at that time,” said the resident. RFA telephoned the Sagaing region’s junta spokesperson, Nyunt Win Aung, for comme but he did not answer the phone. Residents identified the four people killed as Myint Than Aung, Phyo Zaya, Pho Thet Wai and Hlwan Moe, all aged between 20 and 40.   The injured were receiving medical care, residents said, without giving details. Junta spokesmen have denied targeting civilians but insurgents say the military has for decades cared little about civilian casualties as it tries to cut rebel forces off from civilian populations that sympathize with the rebels’ cause. Related stories: Thousands flee junta raids in central Myanmar Junta military preparations point to brutal next phase of Myanmar conflict More than 100,000 displaced by Myanmar conflict in two weeks Homes burned Independent verification of accounts related by residents is almost impossible but the evidence suggests junta operations in Sagaing have resulted in widespread dislocation of civilian populations and destruction. Residents of Kanbalu township, to the north of  Yinmarbin, estimated that a junta operation there had forced about 30,000 people from their homes since a July 24 attack by a pro-democracy militia on a junta force post in Kyi Kone village. Fighters armed with homemade or looted weapons in what are known as People’s Defense Forces, or PDFs, regularly raid outposts and ambush forces throughout the country. The July raid by the Kanbalu-based PDF sparked a junta sweep of some 20 villages in which an estimated 400 homes have been torched, residents said.  About 70 soldiers stationed in Bo Te Kone and Min Kone villages had torched numerous homes, said one villager who fled the crackdown. The displaced were struggling to make do outdoors in the rainy season, too fearful to venture back to their villages to see what remained, he said. “The weather is not good so our health is affected. We had no time to carry food or drinks with us when we ran, so we’re having a hard time,” said the villager, who also declined to be identified. Junta forces have burned 95,450 civilian homes across Myanmar since the coup, according to the independent research group Data for Myanmar. Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan.

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IOC: North Korean athletes never received sanctions-violating smartphones

Editor04 mins

The 14 North Korean Olympic athletes in Paris have not received the smartphones that were gifts to all athletes, the games’ authority told Radio Free Asia in a revised statement after it was questioned whether such gifts would be a sanctions violation. The International Olympic Committee previously told RFA Korean on Wednesday that the phones – manufactured by South Korean maker Samsung – were picked up by the North Korean delegation, but said on Thursday that “We can confirm that the athletes of the NOC of DPRK have not received the Samsung phones.” The DPRK, or Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, is the official name of North Korea. If the phones were to be brought back from Paris into North Korea, they would violate sanctions that prohibit import of industrial machinery, Lee Jaewoong, spokesperson for the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told a news conference. A participant films Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Z Flip 6 during the Galaxy unpacked products media preview in Seoul, South Korea, July 8, 2024. (Lee Jin-man/AP) “In accordance with Paragraph 7 of Resolution 2397, the UN Security Council prohibits the direct or indirect supply, sale, or transfer of all industrial machinery to North Korea,” he said. “Smartphones are prohibited goods under this resolution.”  The IOC did not respond to an additional RFA inquiry as to whether the phones were simply not distributed to the athletes by the North Korean Olympic Committee or if they were returned. IOC spokesman Mark Adams also did not clearly answer related questions at the press conference on Thursday, saying that he would have to find out more information about the subject. Ashley Hess, a former member of the UN Security Council’s North Korea Sanctions Committee panel of experts, pointed out to RFA Thursday that the smartphones could also violate sanctions on luxury goods. “It could fall under the luxury goods ban (UNSCR 1718) – a list of which is up to Member States to define for their own implementation purposes, but my reading of the EU luxury goods list is that smartphones are explicitly included, so if the Samsung phones are smartphones, as is reported by the media, then they would likely fall under the luxury goods ban, given that the Olympics are in France,” she said. There has been controversy in the past regarding North Korean athletes receiving Samsung smartphones at the Olympics. At the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, the Olympic organizing committee was concerned about violating sanctions and offered to provide North Korean athletes with Samsung phones under the condition that they return them before returning home. The North Korean delegation refused to receive them. Translated by Claire S. Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong.

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Myanmar junta bombs sleeping village killing seven, rebels say

Editor04 mins

The Myanmar junta’s air force bombed a village in a strife-torn central region killing seven people as they slept, an insurgent group said on Thursday, the latest deaths in what opponents of the junta say is a deliberate campaign to target civilians in areas under rebel control. Forces of the junta that seized power in a 2021 coup are increasingly relying on air power to strike back at insurgent forces who have made significant gains on the ground in several parts of the country since late last year.   In the central Mandalay region, pro-democracy fighters in the Mandalay People’s Defense Force and allied Ta’ang National Liberation Army, or TNLA, ethnic minority insurgents have captured dozens of junta positions, including the gem-mining town of Mogoke, over recent months. But the junta has responded with deadly retaliation from the air, in a campaign the junta’s enemies say is aimed at killing civilians in a bid to warn the population off support for the rebels. In the dead of night on Tuesday, the junta’s air force launched an attack on Mandalay region’s Payaung Taung village in a strike that appeared to be timed to catch villagers asleep in their beds to maximize casualties, the Mandalay force said in a  statement.  “Seven people were killed when a bomb was dropped at night, four women and three men,” said a resident of the area who declined to be identified for safety reasons. “There were also many injured people but we don’t know the details yet.”  Radio Free Asia could not reach the junta main spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, by telephone to ask about the incident. The Mandalay People’s Defense Force released photographs of the victims but it said it could not identify them.  The junta’s air force launched strikes on two villages in the Mandalay region’s Singu township on Aug. 4, killing 13 people and wounding 19, the group said.  Junta spokesmen have denied targeting civilians. A three-party alliance of insurgent forces, including the TNLA, this week called on neighboring China to intervene with the junta to press it to stop attacking civilians.  The insurgents have little in the way of anti-aircraft weapons to defend against junta jets. According to data compiled by the RFA, airstrikes and heavy weapon attacks by junta troops have killed about 2,000 civilians and wounded nearly 4,000 since the 2021 coup, up to May. RELATED STORIES Myanmar rebels rack up more gains as Operation 1027 enters new phase Junta military preparations point to brutal next phase of Myanmar conflict Myanmar still getting jet fuel despite call to cut supply: rights group Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan. 

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North Korea punishes students and officials for watching banned Korean War film

Editor09 mins

North Korea has kicked four university students out of school, sentenced another to eight months of hard labor, and fired government officials because they secretly watched a big budget North Korean propaganda film that was banned only five months after its release, residents and officials  in the country told Radio Free Asia. The blockbuster “72 Hours,” directed by the country’s leader Kim Jong Un, tells the story of the opening moments of the 1950-53 Korean War – which it says South Korea started – and it details how the North Korean army captured Seoul in only three days. In reality, it was the North that attacked first, but Pyongyang maintains that the first sacking of Seoul during the conflict – it changed hands four times – was part of a counteroffensive. RFA reported that the film, which debuted in February, was banned last month without explanation. Residents told RFA Korean that the film remains immensely popular and people are confused by the ban, because the film is made in North Korea and glorifies the military.  “The son of the deputy chairman in charge of food administration at the People’s Committee who secretly stored the movie on a USB stick was expelled from the Workers’ Party,” a college student in the northern province of Ryanggang told RFA Korean on condition of anonymity for security reasons. The deputy chairman’s son was a student at Hyesan Medical University and last month he and some other students watched the film together, he said. RELATED STORIES In new movie, the South started the Korean War, as Pyongyang has always claimed North Korea bans hit war movie 5 months after release In a separate incident, the chairman and a group of colleagues watched the film together.  “The deputy chairman … and four staff of the food administration department who watched the movie were fired from their positions,” he said. “Four students from the University of Agriculture and Forestry of Hyesan Medical University were punished by expulsion.” The son was sentenced to eight months labor because he purchased the film and was responsible for showing it to the others, the student said. During the trial it was found that he bought the USB flash drive that contained the film in the local marketplace in the city of Hyesan for 12 yuan (US$1.68). There are likely hundreds of people in Ryanggang who have either been punished or are under investigation over the film, a government official told RFA on condition of anonymity for safety reasons. “As the number of people subject to punishment increases, resentment among residents is also increasing, so they’re out here saying, ‘Why did the authorities make a movie that you can be punished for watching?’” Keeping up with the Chinese Kim Jong Un commissioned the film in 2021 after watching the Chinese-made Korean War blockbuster “The Battle at Lake Changjin,” which depicts one of the conflict’s pivotal battles – fought between Chinese and U.N. forces – that resulted in heavy casualties for the Chinese but forced the U.N. to retreat from the northern half of the Korean peninsula.    Kim was so moved by that film, that he “strongly scolded” the country’s propaganda filmmakers, clamoring for them to make a similar film, the official said. Kim even provided $10 million for production costs. “Kim Jong Un himself carefully guided the content of the movie and every facial expression of the actors on site. But the movie became caught up in controversy and was eventually banned,” the official said. When it was released in February it was an instant hit, and theaters were still showing it months later.. Despite its popularity though, “72 Hours” did not have the desired effect. People began to wonder how North Korea was able to capture Seoul in only three days if South Korea started the war with a surprise attack on the North as Pyongyang claims, the official said.   “Does it make sense that the United States, which had prepared for a long time and started the war by surprise, lost Seoul in three days?” he said. “The movie only deepens the suspicion that the Korean War was not started by the United States but by a North Korean surprise attack.” The official said that this logical gap is the reason why the film was banned. In a previous RFA report, other sources suggested that the ban was because the film made references to places in South Korea, or because it uses the word “unification,” which does not jive well with North Korea’s recent policy toward South Korea that defines it as a separate hostile country, rather than part of the same race of people.   Whatever the reason, people did not take the ban seriously, the official said. “They thought it was not a big deal because it’s made by us. It’s not a film from South Korea,” he said. “Also, Kim Jong Un himself directed it.” Because the film was so widely distributed on portable media after the ban, “the director of the Ryanggang Province Film Distribution Center, cell secretary, technical manager and the head of the city and county film distribution department were also arrested,” he said.  Translated by Claire S. Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong.

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Philippines joins US-led allies in multilateral maneuvers in South China Sea

Editor09 mins

The Philippines joined the United States, Australia and Canada in a two-day “maritime cooperative activity” from Wednesday to press for freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea amid maritime tensions with China. The navies and air force units of the four nations will operate alongside each other to enhance “cooperation and interoperability” in the disputed waterway, a joint statement said. “We stand together to address common maritime challenges and underscore our shared dedication to upholding international law and the rules-based order,” it said. “The activity will be conducted in a manner that is consistent with international law and with due regard to the safety of navigation and the rights and interests of other States.”  The statement was signed by Gen. Romeo Brawner, the military chief of the Philippines, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command chief Adm. Samuel Paparo, Australian Defence Force chief Admiral David Johnston and Gen. M. A. Jennie Cargian, the chief of Canada’s Defence Staff. “Australia, Canada, the Philippines, and the United States uphold the right to freedom of navigation and overflight, other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace, as well as respect for maritime rights under international law, as reflected in the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” they said. The aim of the multilateral sail was to demonstrate a “collective commitment” to boosting international cooperation. The statement did not specifically say where the drills would be held, only that the maneuvers would take place “within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone” in the South China Sea.  The Philippines last week carried out similar joint sails with Japan and with the U.S. separately in Philippine areas of the South China Sea. Coast guards from the Philippines and Vietnam meanwhile are scheduled to hold their own joint drills on Friday. In related news, China on Wednesday conducted air and sea patrols near Scarborough Shoal, a flashpoint in territorial tensions between Beijing and Manila, according to a report by Agence France-Presse. Analysts praise multinational maneuvers Chester Cabalza, president of International Development and Security Cooperation, a Philippine think-tank, hailed the defense deals with various allies.  He noted that prior to this, Manila had also signed a groundbreaking Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) with Japan, another country with a territorial dispute with China. That deal would allow the exchange of troops for joint training with each other. He said the multilateral sails this week show the “global recognition” of Manila’s international arbitration award in 2016 in its territorial dispute with China over Scarborough Shoal. “It shows the legitimacy of  its sovereignty rights in the disputed maritime domains of the South China Sea,” Cabalza told BenarNews. “It reaffirms the bone of contention that China alone is not the sole owner of these important sea lanes of communications and trade,” he said. He said the joint sails should work to “solidify” the belief that countries should follow the rules-based order in the disputed sea region, a key shipping route where experts say more than 60% of global maritime trade passes. Geopolitical analyst, Don McClain Gill at the De La Salle University in Manila, said the joint sails affirm the 2016 ruling but he emphasized that such activities need to be done on a regular basis. “Patrols and exercises are very important in ensuring the freeness and openness of the maritime domain, but it must be supplemented by other activities as well, such as capacity building and more robust and permanent deterrence posture in our area in the West Philippine Sea,” Gill told BenarNews, referring to South China Sea waters within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone. “This is a very good indication that like-minded countries, three of which are part of the exercise, recognize that the Philippines is legitimately entitled to its sovereign rights and sovereignty based on UNCLOS and the 2016 arbitral ruling,” Gill said, alluding to the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea. “This is significant in that regard and must be continued,” he said. “As we can see, the Philippines has become a fulcrum for maritime cooperation.”  Countries such as Canada, which are far removed from the conflict, are also concerned because they are worried it may affect global trade and affect the stability in a “very critical maritime space,” he said. While global partnerships like the joint sail are important, he said this had not deterred Beijing from continuing with its activities in the South China Sea. But this should not be taken negatively by the Philippines, but rather as an “opportunity to explore what else could be done.” Last week, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken met their Filipino counterparts in Manila and announced a U.S. $500 million infusion to help Manila defend its shores from threats posed by China.  The funds would go towards strengthening Manila’s defenses in the South China Sea, and the monies came shortly after tensions and confrontations surrounding Ayungin Shoal or Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea. Manila maintains a rusting World War II-era ship in Ayungin, and a violent confrontation there in June saw a Filipino serviceman lose a thumb.  Both sides have subsequently worked towards de-escalating the tensions, but it remains unclear how China would react to the joint sails this week. Jeoffrey Maitem contributed to this report from Manila. BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news organization.

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