China

Emerging from a year of illness and isolation
11Jun By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, Singapore, World

Emerging from a year of illness and isolation

In An Uncertain Situation. (Photos: Kalwit Studio & Gallery) In a quiet and gloomy world, a girl walks alone on empty and winding roads. The girl is a character in the paintings Alone1 and Alone2 from the Covid-19 pandemic-inspired collection "Linetopia" by Apiwat Bunler. Periods of stay-at-home and self-isolation had a strong impact on independent artist Apiwat, who also bartends in his own bar, Barley, where he meets many people. "The atmosphere during the pandemic is depressing. I feel lonely staying home by myself. The girl in Alone1 and Alone2 represents a lonesome state of mind with dark colours. The painting In An Uncertain Situation portrays my own character dragged by a chariot, which was inspired by a scene in the movie Troy, when Achilles tied and dragged Hector's corpse with ...
Read More
China again slammed by US Secretary over lack of transparency over COVID-19 origins
11Jun By Grace TsoiNo Comments
Asia, China

China again slammed by US Secretary over lack of transparency over COVID-19 origins

Washington, China: Once again China is slammed by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday for the lack of transparency on the origins of the coronavirus, as global pressure mounts for a fresh probe in Wuhan. “What we’ve seen, more than unfortunately, from the PRC (People’s Republic of China) since the beginning of this crisis is a failure to meet its basic responsibilities in terms of sharing information and providing access,” Blinken told the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs, reported Voice of America (VOA).In his opening remarks to the Committee, the Secretary of State said that China and others are working hard to “bend international organizations to their worldview” and stressed that organisations should remain grounded in the values, principles, and rules of road and r
Read More
‘Blue Dot’ an alternative to China’s BRI
11Jun By Yusara AskariNo Comments
Asia, China

‘Blue Dot’ an alternative to China’s BRI

New York, US: In order to have an alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, US President Joe Biden, along with the Japanese and Australian governments, are reviving the ‘Blue Dot Network’ infrastructure initiative. The Blue Dot Network was first announced during former President Donald Trump’s administration, and kicked off talks among stakeholders in Paris on Monday after a prolonged period of inactivity, reported Nikkei Asia. The initiative, which would certify projects meeting such standards as transparency and sustainability, is meant to galvanise the private sector to invest in infrastructure development in emerging markets. “The Blue Dot Network will be a globally recognized symbol of market-driven, transparent and sustainable infrastructure projects,” the Blue Dot N
Read More
Two bills to prevent stealing of intellectual property signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signs
11Jun By Nectar GanNo Comments
China

Two bills to prevent stealing of intellectual property signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signs

Florida, US: The Florida governor has signed two bills to tackle the espionage and prevent foreign adversaries from stealing intellectual property after he accused China of waging a campaign and steal Florida secrets. “All we are doing today is saying enough is enough,” DeSantis said. “We have to start fighting back. Florida is doing that.” The first bill toughens penalties for stealing a trade secret to benefit a foreign government. The second bill requires universities and colleges to disclose grants and donations of more than USD 50,000 from foreign governments, Sun Sentinal reported. The legislation highlights seven countries of concern: Russia, China, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Syria and Venezuela. At a news conference in Miami, DeSantis attacked China for stealing state se
Read More
Surveillance to increase the productivity of tech employees, forced to work long hours
10Jun By Grace TsoiNo Comments
Asia, Business, China

Surveillance to increase the productivity of tech employees, forced to work long hours

Beijing, China: In order to bring productivity-enhancing tools into everyday office life of techies in China, a software driven surveillance management and monitoring into their professional lives.Nikki Sun for Nikkei Asia writes that rapid technological development in China's tech industry is accompanied by poor labour regulations, which has created a potential for labour abuse. The big tech companies themselves, locked in cutthroat competition for new business opportunities, are pioneering these technologies and tools in their own operations.Andy Wang, an IT engineer at a Shanghai-based gaming company, said that a surveillance software called DiSanZhiYan, or "Third Eye" was installed on the laptop of every employee to track their screens in real time, recording their chats, browsing act...
Read More
China’s ambition now includes influence beyond immediate neighbourhood
10Jun By Stuart WhiteNo Comments
China, Conflict, Opinion, Politics, Singapore

China’s ambition now includes influence beyond immediate neighbourhood

Beijing, China: A Chinese navy unit has recently its training exercise in Pacific Ocean. This is giving birth to speculation that China is now aiming to expand its border ambition focus away from its immediate neighbourhood.According to South China Morning Post (SCMP), the Southern Theatre Command of the PLA said on Saturday that a fleet under its command had travelled over 6,700 nautical miles over the past month, passing between Indonesia and the Philippines and through the western Pacific."The complicated military situation presents a great challenge to the will and perseverance of the officers and soldiers… The use of weapons in the far seas not only helps assess equipment performance under continuous sailing conditions, it also tests the ability of officers and soldiers to command an
Read More
Chinese activist who reviled human rights condition in country, put behind the bars.
9Jun By Yusara AskariNo Comments
Business, China

Chinese activist who reviled human rights condition in country, put behind the bars.

Beijing, China: Wang Aizhong, a Chinese veteran activist was arrested last month for writing his mind out on twitter. He wrote about the condition of human rights in the country. Whereas he was accused under charges of ‘picking quarrels and provoking trouble’. The veteran activist helped found the Southern Street Movement in Guangzhou 10 years ago, calling for an end to one-party rule, reported South China Morning Post. He has been active on social media, commenting on human rights abuses in China. His online activities brought him attention from the police, who warned him to stay home early last month when he was invited to attend a dinner with a group of private businesspeople in the neighbouring city of Zhongshan. Despite complying with the order, the police raided the dinner
Read More
Birth control policy of the Xinjiang region could cut millions of Uyghur births
9Jun By Grace TsoiNo Comments
China

Birth control policy of the Xinjiang region could cut millions of Uyghur births

China has been accused by some Western nations of genocide in Xinjiang, partly through forced birth-control measures. Now the analysis shows that regional policies could cut between 2.6 and 4.5 million minority births in that time. China denies the allegations, saying birth-rate declines have other causes.The new study, by researcher Adrian Zenz, is the first such peer-reviewed academic paper on the long-term population impact of China's crackdown on the Uyghurs and other minority groups in Xinjiang. It found that under China's birth-control policies in the region, the population of ethnic minorities in southern Xinjiang would reach somewhere between 8.6 and 10.5 million by 2040, compared to 13.1 million projected by Chinese researchers before Beijing's crackdown."This [research and...
Read More
China Markets might be linked with earliest COVID-19 cases
9Jun By Nectar GanNo Comments
China

China Markets might be linked with earliest COVID-19 cases

It is less than two weeks now when Joe Biden ordered to probe into pandemic’s genesis and a study has been published in which Chinese markets linked to some of the earliest Covid-19 cases were illegally selling a range of wildlife from which the coronavirus may have spread.Mink, masked palm civets, raccoon dogs, Siberian weasels, hog badgers and Chinese bamboo rats were among 38 animal species sold live at markets in Wuhan from May 2017 to November 2019, researchers said Monday in a paper in the journal Scientific Reports originally submitted last October.The hunt for Covid’s origins has become increasingly political amid criticism that the Chinese government hasn’t been open and transparent with key information, including activities in a Wuhan lab studying coronaviruses. The new findings
Read More
China in pressure under the Biden administration’s soft lab-leak investigation
9Jun By Nectar GanNo Comments
China

China in pressure under the Biden administration’s soft lab-leak investigation

China is a densely populated country and it is interconnected with the world which is why the virus spread in the world so quickly. But it did not show the transparency in that. Now that the theory that the coronavirus originated in a Wuhan lab has gained prominence, that latter problem is rearing its ugly head. The Biden administration, which has declared its desire to get to the bottom of that question, is confronting some very difficult choices about how to pursue it. Thus far, it’s not exactly launching into an overt pressure campaign. Several times in recent days, top Biden administration officials have been confronted with the same question: How do you get a clearly reluctant China to play ball with international investigators? The administration line, for now, seems to
Read More