Day: June 22, 2023

ASEAN Planning First Joint Military Drills With Eye on China

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JAKARTA, INDONESIA —  Amid regional tensions with China, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is planning its first joint military drill, finalizing on Thursday the location in Indonesia’s South Natuna Sea, according to the Indonesian military. At the 20th ASEAN Chief of Defense Forces Meeting in Bali on June 7, 10 ASEAN military chiefs agreed to conduct routine joint training and coordinated patrols in waters of the South China Sea involving their army, naval and special forces from Sept. 18-25, despite skepticism from member state Cambodia. The site was moved…

Beijing records hottest June day since weather records began as heatwave hits China

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Beijing logged its hottest June day since records began on Thursday, the national weather service said, as swathes of northern China sweltered in 40-degree heat. On Friday the capital upgraded its warning for hot weather to “red” – the highest in a colour-coded alert system – saying most parts of the city could roast in temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit). China has a four-tier weather warning system, with red the most severe, followed by orange, yellow and blue. Scientists say rising global temperatures – caused largely…

SCO Members Lack Unity on Taliban Terrorism Concerns

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washington —  Frustration with the rising threat of terrorism emanating from Afghanistan emerged at a meeting this week of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a defense and economic alliance platform consisting of China, Russia, India, Iran and five other Asian states. Russia and Tajikistan say Afghanistan, which holds an uncertain observer status in the SCO following the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, has become a breeding ground for regional terrorist groups. “According to our information, terrorist groups such as al-Qaida, Hizb ut-Tahrir, the Islamic Movement of Eastern Turkistan, the Islamic…

Biden Doubles Down on Xi Dictator Comment

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white house —  President Joe Biden on Thursday doubled down on comments he made earlier this week likening Chinese President Xi Jinping to a dictator. Asked about the comments during a joint press conference with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House, Biden said his blunt statements regarding China were “just not something I’m going to change very much.” He made another indirect criticism of the Chinese system of government, saying that a fundamental reason he believes the U.S.-China relationship is not in the same place as the…

China’s anxious parents turn to tutoring black market after Xi’s crackdown

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Receive free Chinese society updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Chinese society news every morning. With a contact book full of teachers and parents desperate to give their children the best opportunities, tutoring broker Elaine is doing a roaring trade, even in the face of repeated closures, fines and a persistent government crackdown. Two years after the government first squeezed for-profit education companies, business is “growing very quickly”, said Elaine, who asked that her Chinese name not be used. “We have been reported…

China’s anxious parents turn to tutoring black market after Xi crackdown

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Receive free Chinese society updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Chinese society news every morning. With a contact book full of teachers and parents desperate to give their children the best opportunities, tutoring broker Elaine is doing a roaring trade, even in the face of repeated closures, fines and a persistent government crackdown. Two years after the government first squeezed for-profit education companies, business is “growing very quickly”, said Elaine, who asked that her Chinese name not be used. “We have been reported…

China’s anxious parents turn to tutoring black market despite Xi crackdown

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Receive free Chinese society updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Chinese society news every morning. With a contact book full of teachers and parents desperate to give their children the best opportunities, tutoring broker Elaine is doing a roaring trade, even in the face of repeated closures, fines and a persistent government crackdown. Two years after the government first squeezed for-profit education companies, business is “growing very quickly”, said Elaine, who asked that her Chinese name not be used. “We have been reported…

Chinese private tutors resurgent as parents fear children falling behind

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Receive free Chinese society updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Chinese society news every morning. With a contact book full of teachers and parents desperate to give their children the best opportunities, tutoring broker Elaine is doing a roaring trade, even in the face of repeated closures, fines and a persistent government crackdown. Two years after the government first squeezed for-profit education companies, business is “growing very quickly”, said Elaine, who asked that her Chinese name not be used. “We have been reported…

4 Thais Extradited to Malaysia Over 2015 Mass Grave Discovery

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KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA —  Four Thai citizens were extradited to Malaysia on Thursday where they will face trial over mass graves linked to human trafficking, Malaysia’s home minister said. More than 100 bodies were discovered in 2015 buried deep in the Malaysian jungle along the border with Thailand, triggering an investigation into human smuggling in the Southeast Asian nation. The region has long been a gateway for persecuted Rohingya Muslims fleeing violence in their native Myanmar and economic migrants from Bangladesh. Smugglers in previous years have brought tens of thousands…

‘I will never forget the pain of being beaten’

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She knew she was being sought by authorities for reporting on anti-junta protests.  In the seven months since the military had carried out a coup d’etat in February 2021, Myanmar had descended into chaos, Her husband, a former journalist, had been detained for four days before being released. Fearing for her safety, Thuzar San decided to buy a bus ticket from Yangon for the Thai border town of Mae Sot, due to depart on Sept. 2, 2021. But two days before she was to leave, she was arrested by police…