Author: Grace Tsoi

<strong>Muizzu’s legacy will be negative for Maldives</strong>
17Mar By Grace TsoiNo Comments
Asia

Muizzu’s legacy will be negative for Maldives

It is ironic that former President of the Maldives Mohammed Nasheed is apologising for the actions of the incumbent Muizzu administration that too on behalf of the Maldivian people. Maldives' former president Mohammed Nasheed has said the “people of Maldives are sorry” for the anti-India narrative in the country and urged President Mohamed Muizzu to “put a stop” to anti-India discussions under his government. Voicing his concerns over the impact of India's boycott on Maldives and its economy, Nasheed urged Indian tourists to continue to visit the island nation. The Nasheed statement comes President Muizzu shifted blame onto the previous Solih administration, accusing them of treacherously “selling off” Maldivian maritime territory to Mauritius. Asserting Maldives’ rightful ownership of th
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Comprehending the Political Economy of China
14Mar By Grace TsoiNo Comments
China, World

Comprehending the Political Economy of China

SHANGHAI – As China grapples with enormous challenges — including an imploding property sector, unfavorable demographics and slowing growth — doubts about the future of the world’s largest growth engine are intensifying.Add to that China’s geopolitical rise, together with deepening tensions with the United States, and the need to understand China’s political economy is becoming more urgent than ever. A recent book by MIT’s Yasheng Huang — "The Rise and Fall of the EAST: How Exams, Autocracy, Stability, and Technology Brought China Success, and Why They Might Lead to Its Decline" — can help. Huang unpacks the “EAST” heuristic from the historical record of the last two and a half millennia, especially the last 40 years, to arrive at a clear conclusion: China must make radical changes if
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<strong>Due to economic hardships in China, unemployed people are forced to sleep in outdoor sewer pipes</strong>
5Mar By Grace TsoiNo Comments
Asia

Due to economic hardships in China, unemployed people are forced to sleep in outdoor sewer pipes

The National Bureau of Statistics of the Communist Party of China recently released a series of economic data however there is still no data on the youth unemployment rate which is said to be intentional due to the current situation. Currently unemployment among Chinese youth is widespread to maintain stability and avoid risks from domestic public opinion. The CCP did not publish this data, a recent online video spread on social media highlights the challenging situation in places like Shenzhen Guangdong and KunshanJiangsu where a substantial number of young workers struggle to secure employment resorting to sleeping on the streets and facing eviction by landlords for inability to pay rent on time.  Regrettably this scenario is becoming increasingly common in major Chinese cities ...
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<strong>China’s diplomacy focuses on poaching Palau, Taiwan’s ally</strong>
29Feb By Grace TsoiNo Comments
Asia, China

China’s diplomacy focuses on poaching Palau, Taiwan’s ally

China is in worst form. Soon after the declaration of president’s elections in Taiwan, it has stepped up efforts to isolate Taiwan. Irritated by Taiwan’s election which returned the incumbent Democratic Progressive party, a pro-sovereignty administration that Beijing had hoped to see ousted, China stepped up efforts to isolate Taiwan from its allies. It had succeeded in convincing nine of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies to dump Taiwan for China. Nauru was the last country to have switched its loyalty towards China. Prior to that was Honduras which severed ties with Taiwan in April last year, ending 82 years of mutual diplomatic recognition. China has identified Palau which has close relations with Taiwan. However, it has used tourism as a weapon to pressurise Palau to sever diplomatic ti
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21Feb By Grace TsoiNo Comments
World

As Pakistan’s competing parties come to a power-sharing agreement, Khan supporters are marginalized.

The army-backed Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) said they had settled days of negotiations on securing a majority to form a coalition government that will also include several smaller parties. Candidates loyal to Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party won the most seats but were forced to stand as independents following a sweeping crackdown on the party. There were widespread allegations of vote-rigging and result manipulation in the February 8 election after authorities switched off the nation's mobile phone network on election day, ostensibly on security grounds, and the count took more than 24 hours. After weeks of negotiations, Khan's adversaries announced at a late-night press conference in the capital Islamabad that a power-sha...
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21Feb By Grace TsoiNo Comments
World

As Pakistan’s competing parties come to a power-sharing agreement, Khan supporters are marginalized.

The army-backed Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) said they had settled days of negotiations on securing a majority to form a coalition government that will also include several smaller parties. Candidates loyal to Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party won the most seats but were forced to stand as independents following a sweeping crackdown on the party. There were widespread allegations of vote-rigging and result manipulation in the February 8 election after authorities switched off the nation's mobile phone network on election day, ostensibly on security grounds, and the count took more than 24 hours. After weeks of negotiations, Khan's adversaries announced at a late-night press conference in the capital Islamabad that a power-sha...
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20Feb By Grace TsoiNo Comments
World

China and India’s Engagement with the Maldives: “Rich Imperialism” vs “Poor Imperialism”

On 24 January this year, the Chinese Vice-Premier Li Guozhong made a brief transit halt in the Maldives. During the stopover, he met with the Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer. The Vice-Premier was on his way back after attending the Non-Aligned Summit and the third South Summit in Uganda from 19-24 January. This came after President Muizzu’s State visit to China for five days and his assurance that the Maldives will sign the Free Trade Agreement with Beijing. Far more interesting than the official visits from China, is a Chinese language document posted on the social media platform Battle Intelligence titled “China has set stage for investment in South Asia: The 60-year layout of ‘poor Imperialism’ to be resolved”, on 18 January 2024. It has two assertions, first that India’s time in the Mal
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Importance of Greek PM Mitsotakis’ State visit to India
20Feb By Grace TsoiNo Comments
Asia

Importance of Greek PM Mitsotakis’ State visit to India

In a diplomatic move, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is set to visit New Delhi to attend the Raisina Dialogue as a chief guest from February 21 to 23. It would be the first visit by a head of state of Greece to India after a gap of 15 years. Over the years, India's reach in the Mediterranean has gained momentum and this visit is significant as the port of Piraeus, Greece is considered a potential hub under the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) to enhance connectivity and trade. The visit also comes against the backdrop of strained relations between Turkey and Greece in the Mediterranean Sea and over the Cyprus issue. In a way, Greeceneeds global support, and nothing could be better than strengthening ties with India, the one country that many...
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17Feb By Grace TsoiNo Comments
Asia

The Perils of endorsing religious extremism in Muizzu’s Maldives

Beyond the glittery beaches and resorts in Maldives, lies the island nation facing a detrimental challenge of dwindling down into religious extremism. The archipelago nation of Maldives has for years been encountering a significant surge of Islamic radicalism in the past decade. With an openly Islamic party, endorsing hardcore radical views in power post the elections a few months ago, many analysts have come to belive this to be the beginning of a far more violent growth of radical sentiments within the country. The current President of Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, and his political aides have on most occasions endorsed such groups casting serious concerns over the future of counter-terrorism in Maldives as well as worry among the more moderate political figures regarding the future of the ...
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The Continued Deception: Unmasking The True Face Of The CCP
12Feb By Grace TsoiNo Comments
China

The Continued Deception: Unmasking The True Face Of The CCP

In the cacophony of voices that permeate the global media landscape, the focus on communist China ranges from significant issues like the property sector woes, military intimidation of Taiwan and the Philippines, and human rights violations to lighter topics such as the Chinese New Year and cuisine. However, a particularly unsettling category emerges – one that offers seemingly sincere advice to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on addressing its self-made problems. This advice, reminiscent of the days of Soviet Russia, raises concerns about the naivety and sympathy displayed by certain foreign intellectuals, diplomats, and media figures. The term "fellow traveler" finds relevance here, describing individuals who sympathize with and further the ideals of an organized group, like the CC
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