#Column #Opinion #Aug24 #SpecialStatus #NationalSecurityLaw
Year 2020: The Stranding and Disconnected World
Part 1 - 2
Since Beijing's forceful imposition of the National Security Law in Hong Kong, thrusting the new legislation into the city’s constitution the Basic Law, how the Central and HKSAR governments extends juridiction through the law around the world is no longer the only main issue. In one way or the other, most democratic governments in the free world have suspended their extradition treaty with China and Hong Kong.
Although, the SAR government insisted that the U.S. sanctions has no legal effect in Hong Kong.
Several years ago, when the United States sanctioned North Korea and Iran, Hong Kong was both guarding and avoiding the U.S., while warily sponsoring China’s allies.
At a time in 2020, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (#HKMA) had issued a statement to financial institutions operating in Hong Kong, claiming that impact of the U.S. sanction is negligible. So is the Hong Kong Dollar no longer pegged to U.S. Dollar?
Suppose that the U.S. government will strictly enforce the sanction, and put an end to financial institutions providing services to the 11 individual being sanctioned, will the U.S. government also consider revoking the green-peg, or even withdrawing U.S. bonds from Hong Kong and China financial markets?
No one can predict where this financial warfare is leading to. But any reasonable Hongkonger should expect the Hong Kong and Central governments to turn these 11 people in to face the U.S. sanction. As Le Yucheng, China’s foreign vice-minister said in an interview, “we must stay focused without being swayed by any extreme forces, keep to the right direction of the bilateral relationship to prevent US-China relationship from spiraling out of control or getting derailed. This is also to avoid worsening of the hard-won trade deals.”
If any financial predator targets Hong Kong’s linked exchange rate system at this time, how much financial reserve does Hong Kong government have to defend the linked exchange rate? We must not forget that the government has been pouring out public money in enormous infrastructure projects like Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, the new runway in airport and Lantau Tomorrow Vision.
Besides, the Central government might need substantial amount of funds from the Hong Kong government to reactivate its trade relationship with the U.S..
One must note that, in China, countless farmlands have been wiped out in recent mass floodings as the #CCP called for food saving. Local authorities sprang into action with proposals targeting food wastage and food recycling, or “operation empty plate”, an initiative reactivated anew by Xi.
Hong Kong could possibly resume its role in supporting China as if during Cultural Revolution: endeavored to purchase American soybeans or Australian beef for the motherland, feeding hungry fellows.
Image: CNN
#FoodShortage #FoodSecurity #Flooding #China #CCPControl #Xi #ExtraditionTreaty
Year 2020: The Stranding and Disconnected World
Part 1 - 2
Since Beijing's forceful imposition of the National Security Law in Hong Kong, thrusting the new legislation into the city’s constitution the Basic Law, how the Central and HKSAR governments extends juridiction through the law around the world is no longer the only main issue. In one way or the other, most democratic governments in the free world have suspended their extradition treaty with China and Hong Kong.
Although, the SAR government insisted that the U.S. sanctions has no legal effect in Hong Kong.
Several years ago, when the United States sanctioned North Korea and Iran, Hong Kong was both guarding and avoiding the U.S., while warily sponsoring China’s allies.
At a time in 2020, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (#HKMA) had issued a statement to financial institutions operating in Hong Kong, claiming that impact of the U.S. sanction is negligible. So is the Hong Kong Dollar no longer pegged to U.S. Dollar?
Suppose that the U.S. government will strictly enforce the sanction, and put an end to financial institutions providing services to the 11 individual being sanctioned, will the U.S. government also consider revoking the green-peg, or even withdrawing U.S. bonds from Hong Kong and China financial markets?
No one can predict where this financial warfare is leading to. But any reasonable Hongkonger should expect the Hong Kong and Central governments to turn these 11 people in to face the U.S. sanction. As Le Yucheng, China’s foreign vice-minister said in an interview, “we must stay focused without being swayed by any extreme forces, keep to the right direction of the bilateral relationship to prevent US-China relationship from spiraling out of control or getting derailed. This is also to avoid worsening of the hard-won trade deals.”
If any financial predator targets Hong Kong’s linked exchange rate system at this time, how much financial reserve does Hong Kong government have to defend the linked exchange rate? We must not forget that the government has been pouring out public money in enormous infrastructure projects like Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, the new runway in airport and Lantau Tomorrow Vision.
Besides, the Central government might need substantial amount of funds from the Hong Kong government to reactivate its trade relationship with the U.S..
One must note that, in China, countless farmlands have been wiped out in recent mass floodings as the #CCP called for food saving. Local authorities sprang into action with proposals targeting food wastage and food recycling, or “operation empty plate”, an initiative reactivated anew by Xi.
Hong Kong could possibly resume its role in supporting China as if during Cultural Revolution: endeavored to purchase American soybeans or Australian beef for the motherland, feeding hungry fellows.
Image: CNN
#FoodShortage #FoodSecurity #Flooding #China #CCPControl #Xi #ExtraditionTreaty
#AsiasFinest #PoliceState
Hong Kong Police coerce and insult a female shopper: "you eat shit"
One day before the first anniversary of 831 Prince Edward Station Attack, netizens initiated commemorative activities in Hong Kong. Police stormed into the shopping malls as protest slogans were heard.
While encircled by the police, a female shopper cried out in anguish, "Hail to Chairman Xi. We come to spend money and shop, what else do you expect us to do here in a shopping mall?"
In response, police shouted to her, "you eat shit".
Source: Stand News #Aug30
#Xi
Hong Kong Police coerce and insult a female shopper: "you eat shit"
One day before the first anniversary of 831 Prince Edward Station Attack, netizens initiated commemorative activities in Hong Kong. Police stormed into the shopping malls as protest slogans were heard.
While encircled by the police, a female shopper cried out in anguish, "Hail to Chairman Xi. We come to spend money and shop, what else do you expect us to do here in a shopping mall?"
In response, police shouted to her, "you eat shit".
Source: Stand News #Aug30
#Xi
#CCPLies #MadeinChina
The Poor Man’s Luxury Sofa in China: Netizens Question Authenticity of Chinese Government Visit
Responding to Xi Jinping’s call for eradicating poverty in all of China’s impoverished rural community by 2020, the Administrative Committee of State Economic and Technological Development Zone of Pingxiang in the province of Jiangxi published an article on WeChat titled “District Leaders Supervise Work on Fighting Poverty and Visit the Impoverished”. The publicity effort, however, has led to questions of its authenticity.
An attempt to demonstrate the government’s care for the poor, the article reported a visit on the afternoon of 19 August by Li Jinlin, secretary of Pingxiang’s Party Working Committee, to inspect the work on fighting poverty at the village level. Allegations of the visit being a stunt were made as photos in the article show Li and other officials talking to what are supposedly poor people at two luxuriously furnished houses in Tianzhong Village. The residences came with marble flooring and a spacious living room equipped with a large sofa and a matching coffee table. A netizen in China commented that “this poor man’s sofa is even larger than mine”.
The article has been taken down after the argument appeared, but the images are still going viral online. The government responded by asking netizens “not to determine whether a family is poor from how well its home is furnished”.
#China #Xi #Jiangxi #LocalGovernment #Society #Economy #Staging #Sofa
Source: Apple Daily Taiwan #Aug23
https://bit.ly/32U5SS6
The Poor Man’s Luxury Sofa in China: Netizens Question Authenticity of Chinese Government Visit
Responding to Xi Jinping’s call for eradicating poverty in all of China’s impoverished rural community by 2020, the Administrative Committee of State Economic and Technological Development Zone of Pingxiang in the province of Jiangxi published an article on WeChat titled “District Leaders Supervise Work on Fighting Poverty and Visit the Impoverished”. The publicity effort, however, has led to questions of its authenticity.
An attempt to demonstrate the government’s care for the poor, the article reported a visit on the afternoon of 19 August by Li Jinlin, secretary of Pingxiang’s Party Working Committee, to inspect the work on fighting poverty at the village level. Allegations of the visit being a stunt were made as photos in the article show Li and other officials talking to what are supposedly poor people at two luxuriously furnished houses in Tianzhong Village. The residences came with marble flooring and a spacious living room equipped with a large sofa and a matching coffee table. A netizen in China commented that “this poor man’s sofa is even larger than mine”.
The article has been taken down after the argument appeared, but the images are still going viral online. The government responded by asking netizens “not to determine whether a family is poor from how well its home is furnished”.
#China #Xi #Jiangxi #LocalGovernment #Society #Economy #Staging #Sofa
Source: Apple Daily Taiwan #Aug23
https://bit.ly/32U5SS6
蘋果新聞網
中國官員訪窮人照片掀熱議 網友驚「貧戶家沙發比我家還大」 ｜ 蘋果新聞網 ｜ 蘋果日報
為了展現有做到習近平的「2020年中國實現農村貧困人口全部脫貧」政見，江西省「國家萍鄉經濟技術開發區」管理委員會，近日在官方微信刊發表《區領導督導脫貧扶貧工作並走訪看望貧困戶》一文，沒想到引發中國網友熱議。原因是照片中的貧困戶，家中裝潢、陳設，比許多網友的家還豪華。「這貧困戶...
Xi Jinping coughs multiple times during speech at Shenzhen’s 40th anniversary celebration, China's Media Removes Scenes in Live Broadcast
On October 14, 2020, Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping attended the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone.
The event was also attended by Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam and some senior government officials from Hong Kong. Lam had postponed the annual police address which was originally scheduled around this time.
In his speech, Xi reiterated thst the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area project is crucial to the country’s development, and Shenzhen is the engine of this project. He hoped to speed up the establishment of railways around the Bay Area, and the integration in workers and logistics between the areas. He also mentioned that the establishment of the Bay Area can attract youngsters from Hong Kong and Macau to study, work, or reside there, so to initiate "in-depth communications" with youngsters from China and "be more united with the country".
During Xi’s speech, Hong Kong officials like Paul Chan, Teresa Cheng, John Lee and Eric Tsang were seen taking notes diligently.
Xi coughed around 4 times during 10 minutes in his 50-minute speech, but those shots were removed by the live broadcast handled by Chinese state media. Xi did not wear a mask.
Source: Stand News #Oct14
https://bit.ly/34SUNBy
#Xi #Cough #GreaterBayArea #CarrieLam
On October 14, 2020, Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping attended the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone.
The event was also attended by Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam and some senior government officials from Hong Kong. Lam had postponed the annual police address which was originally scheduled around this time.
In his speech, Xi reiterated thst the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area project is crucial to the country’s development, and Shenzhen is the engine of this project. He hoped to speed up the establishment of railways around the Bay Area, and the integration in workers and logistics between the areas. He also mentioned that the establishment of the Bay Area can attract youngsters from Hong Kong and Macau to study, work, or reside there, so to initiate "in-depth communications" with youngsters from China and "be more united with the country".
During Xi’s speech, Hong Kong officials like Paul Chan, Teresa Cheng, John Lee and Eric Tsang were seen taking notes diligently.
Xi coughed around 4 times during 10 minutes in his 50-minute speech, but those shots were removed by the live broadcast handled by Chinese state media. Xi did not wear a mask.
Source: Stand News #Oct14
https://bit.ly/34SUNBy
#Xi #Cough #GreaterBayArea #CarrieLam
Mocking Xi Jinping with Winnie the Pooh Costume on #Halloween;
Hongkongers in #US: We Shall Stand up to China Despite Fear for National Security Law
'Project Black Mask HK', an organization of American Hongkongers, donned #WinniethePooh costumes for Halloween to mock Chinese communist leader Xi Jinping.
About a dozen people assembled and dressed up as Winnie the Pooh to raise awareness for China's racial oppression, as well as to express support for Hongkongers, Kazakhs, and Uyghurs.
The participants waved flags that read 'Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Times' and 'Glory to Hong Kong', and chanted slogans such as 'Stand with Hong Kong'. Representatives of minority groups gave speeches describing the oppression they faced in China.
A Hongkonger who attended the assembly admitted that Hong Kong's National Security Law still worried him even he was now in the US. Despite the chilling effect of the law, he felt obliged to stand up to the oppression, saying, 'Liking posts behind the keyboard is not enough.'
Source: Apple Daily #Nov1
#GlobalSupport #WorldAgainstCCP #NationalSecurityLaw #Xi #ProjectBlackMask
Hongkongers in #US: We Shall Stand up to China Despite Fear for National Security Law
'Project Black Mask HK', an organization of American Hongkongers, donned #WinniethePooh costumes for Halloween to mock Chinese communist leader Xi Jinping.
About a dozen people assembled and dressed up as Winnie the Pooh to raise awareness for China's racial oppression, as well as to express support for Hongkongers, Kazakhs, and Uyghurs.
The participants waved flags that read 'Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Times' and 'Glory to Hong Kong', and chanted slogans such as 'Stand with Hong Kong'. Representatives of minority groups gave speeches describing the oppression they faced in China.
A Hongkonger who attended the assembly admitted that Hong Kong's National Security Law still worried him even he was now in the US. Despite the chilling effect of the law, he felt obliged to stand up to the oppression, saying, 'Liking posts behind the keyboard is not enough.'
Source: Apple Daily #Nov1
#GlobalSupport #WorldAgainstCCP #NationalSecurityLaw #Xi #ProjectBlackMask
Sapientia - Exhibition of the protests (Part 2)
A Mask of Xi Jinping
This cut out mask was used at a human chain demonstration against the amendments to the Extradition Bill and the Anti-mask Law. Wearing the mask is one of the creative responses to protest against the Anti-mask Law. While protesters urged for the “five demands”, Chief Executive Carrie Lam invoked the colonial-era Emergency Regulations Ordinance in October 2019 to ban the wearing of masks at assemblies. It is common amongst protesters to wear face coverings as it helps protesters to filter out tear gas shot by the police and to remain anonymous in this leaderless, faceless movement.
The Anti-mask Law, created to stop the protests, resulted in more intense social unrest afterwards.
“I wasn’t going to eat it, I was just going to taste it.”
— Winnie the Pooh
#AntiMask #HongKongProtest #AntiELAB #Exhibition #HKUSU #Sapientia #Xi #WinniethePooh
http://timable.com/zh-hk/event/1940311
A Mask of Xi Jinping
This cut out mask was used at a human chain demonstration against the amendments to the Extradition Bill and the Anti-mask Law. Wearing the mask is one of the creative responses to protest against the Anti-mask Law. While protesters urged for the “five demands”, Chief Executive Carrie Lam invoked the colonial-era Emergency Regulations Ordinance in October 2019 to ban the wearing of masks at assemblies. It is common amongst protesters to wear face coverings as it helps protesters to filter out tear gas shot by the police and to remain anonymous in this leaderless, faceless movement.
The Anti-mask Law, created to stop the protests, resulted in more intense social unrest afterwards.
“I wasn’t going to eat it, I was just going to taste it.”
— Winnie the Pooh
#AntiMask #HongKongProtest #AntiELAB #Exhibition #HKUSU #Sapientia #Xi #WinniethePooh
http://timable.com/zh-hk/event/1940311
Xi Jinping Advocates “Internationally Accepted QR Codes” to Track Global Population
Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the G20 Leaders’ Summit via video conference on Saturday (Nov 21), during which he expressed his wish for more countries to participate in an international mutual recognized mechanism for health codes proposed by China, in order to rapidly track international travels and movements of personnel during the pandemic.
Xi proposed that all countries should formulate a universal set of policies and standards to counter the pandemic, enhance the relationship between policies and standards, and establish “fast tracks” to facilitate the flow of personnel, to ensure the smooth operation of the global economy amid the pandemic. Xi proposed that the mechanism was based on nucleic acid test results and administered through internationally accepted QR codes, and expressed his hope for more countries to participate. He did not, however, specify the types of applications or QR code systems, or who to design and manage the system.
China has widely implemented health certificates locally using QR codes that also contain personal travel and health records. The codes were deemed effective in curbing the spread of COVID-19 in mainland China. The code system assigns different colour codes to users based on their risks of potential infection: Green denotes the lowest risk, followed by yellow, with red denoting the highest risk.
#China #CCP #XiJinping #Xi #G20 #G20LeadersSummit #LeadersSummit #healthcode #UN #QRCode #nucleicacidtest
Source: Stand News #Nov24
https://bit.ly/37CdaMv
Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the G20 Leaders’ Summit via video conference on Saturday (Nov 21), during which he expressed his wish for more countries to participate in an international mutual recognized mechanism for health codes proposed by China, in order to rapidly track international travels and movements of personnel during the pandemic.
Xi proposed that all countries should formulate a universal set of policies and standards to counter the pandemic, enhance the relationship between policies and standards, and establish “fast tracks” to facilitate the flow of personnel, to ensure the smooth operation of the global economy amid the pandemic. Xi proposed that the mechanism was based on nucleic acid test results and administered through internationally accepted QR codes, and expressed his hope for more countries to participate. He did not, however, specify the types of applications or QR code systems, or who to design and manage the system.
China has widely implemented health certificates locally using QR codes that also contain personal travel and health records. The codes were deemed effective in curbing the spread of COVID-19 in mainland China. The code system assigns different colour codes to users based on their risks of potential infection: Green denotes the lowest risk, followed by yellow, with red denoting the highest risk.
#China #CCP #XiJinping #Xi #G20 #G20LeadersSummit #LeadersSummit #healthcode #UN #QRCode #nucleicacidtest
Source: Stand News #Nov24
https://bit.ly/37CdaMv
#HumanitarianCrisis #CCP
Wall Street Journal: "Jimmy Lai, China’s Lie: In today’s Hong Kong, promoting democracy makes you a criminal"
The Wall Street Journal (#WSJ) published an article titled "Jimmy Lai, China's Lie" in the name of the newspaper's editorial board. The article describes how advocating democracy makes one a criminal in Hong Kong.
On Dec 2, 2020, the founder of Apple Daily #JimmyLai and two senior executives of Next Digital were charged by the police with fraud. In the hearing on 3 December, Judge Victor So Wai-tak, whk is an appointed Judge for the National Security Law (#NSL), refused Lai's bail application.
Lai is rejected bail for the first time and will be detained in Lai Chi Kok Reception Centre until the trial to take place on April 16, 2021.
"No one is better known across the world for advocating democracy in Hong Kong than Jimmy Lai. So when Hong Kong police picked him up Wednesday on dubious fraud charges, China was sending a clear message: If you oppose us anywhere in the world, we will crush you" wrote WSJ.
"However, the fraud charge is not as serious as some of the others he already faces, especially on national security, its purpose is to dirty him up before he goes to trial on the others."
The WSJ article also mentioned it is no coincidence Joshua Wong, Agnes Chow and Ivan Lam were sentenced to prison for participating in 2019 protests against a proposed extradition law on the same day. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rightly denounced the sentences as "appalling."
WSJ believes that Beijing is testing the position of Joe Biden, who is on board as the new U.S. President next month, to see if he will be different from Trump Administration.
The article supports the U.S. to consider adding more Chinese officials in the sanctions list and review Hong Kong's legal system. It emphasizes the U.S. has to refuse to accept "Chinese Community Party's (#CCP) Lie".
The article wrote, "We trust Joe Biden is paying attention." However, Biden is not eager to get trouble with China. But Chinese leader Xi Jinping has his own priorities.
WSJ described, "He [Xi] is testing whether a Biden Administration—especially one seeking a climate accord—will look the other way on China's behavior in Hong Kong and elsewhere."
WSJ urges for sanctioninh more Hong Kong officials, following how the Trump administration has voiced for Hong Kong and sanctioned Chief Executive Carrie Lam and ten senior officials in Lam's team since the Hong Kong Autonomy Act effective in August.
WSJ also hopes the U.S. to consider adding more officials the list and evaluate Hong Kong's legal system.
WSJ continues, "If lease disputes can be criminalized to go after political opponents, perhaps the government should advise U.S. courts that contracts in Hong Kong should no longer be presumed reliable. The sooner Mr. Biden makes clear these and other moves enjoy bipartisan support, the better he will be in his own coming dealings with China."
At last, the article believes that "the most powerful message the U.S. can send to China is moral" and quoted Alexander Solzhenitsyn's essay "Live Not By Lies" written in 1974 that "the best way to resist was to refuse to participate in the everyday lies all Communist regimes depend on."
"With regard to Xi Jinping, China's lies is about everything from the origins of the coronavirus to his incarceration of more than a million Uighurs.
China is now claiming that Jimmy Lai, Joshua Wong, Agnes Chow and Ivan Lam are criminals for taking a stand for democracy. Insisting on the truth may not immediately set them free. But the lack of moral credibility is the regime's biggest vulnerability, and refusing to accept its lies must be the starting point of any U.S. China policy."
Image: Stand News
Source: Wall Street Journal #Dec2
https://www.wsj.com/articles/jimmy-lai-chinas-lie-11606951156
#HongKongProtests
#NextMedia #JimmyLai #JoshuaWong #AgnesChow #IvanLam #Demosisto #Court #Trump #Biden #US #Sanction #Xi
Wall Street Journal: "Jimmy Lai, China’s Lie: In today’s Hong Kong, promoting democracy makes you a criminal"
The Wall Street Journal (#WSJ) published an article titled "Jimmy Lai, China's Lie" in the name of the newspaper's editorial board. The article describes how advocating democracy makes one a criminal in Hong Kong.
On Dec 2, 2020, the founder of Apple Daily #JimmyLai and two senior executives of Next Digital were charged by the police with fraud. In the hearing on 3 December, Judge Victor So Wai-tak, whk is an appointed Judge for the National Security Law (#NSL), refused Lai's bail application.
Lai is rejected bail for the first time and will be detained in Lai Chi Kok Reception Centre until the trial to take place on April 16, 2021.
"No one is better known across the world for advocating democracy in Hong Kong than Jimmy Lai. So when Hong Kong police picked him up Wednesday on dubious fraud charges, China was sending a clear message: If you oppose us anywhere in the world, we will crush you" wrote WSJ.
"However, the fraud charge is not as serious as some of the others he already faces, especially on national security, its purpose is to dirty him up before he goes to trial on the others."
The WSJ article also mentioned it is no coincidence Joshua Wong, Agnes Chow and Ivan Lam were sentenced to prison for participating in 2019 protests against a proposed extradition law on the same day. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rightly denounced the sentences as "appalling."
WSJ believes that Beijing is testing the position of Joe Biden, who is on board as the new U.S. President next month, to see if he will be different from Trump Administration.
The article supports the U.S. to consider adding more Chinese officials in the sanctions list and review Hong Kong's legal system. It emphasizes the U.S. has to refuse to accept "Chinese Community Party's (#CCP) Lie".
The article wrote, "We trust Joe Biden is paying attention." However, Biden is not eager to get trouble with China. But Chinese leader Xi Jinping has his own priorities.
WSJ described, "He [Xi] is testing whether a Biden Administration—especially one seeking a climate accord—will look the other way on China's behavior in Hong Kong and elsewhere."
WSJ urges for sanctioninh more Hong Kong officials, following how the Trump administration has voiced for Hong Kong and sanctioned Chief Executive Carrie Lam and ten senior officials in Lam's team since the Hong Kong Autonomy Act effective in August.
WSJ also hopes the U.S. to consider adding more officials the list and evaluate Hong Kong's legal system.
WSJ continues, "If lease disputes can be criminalized to go after political opponents, perhaps the government should advise U.S. courts that contracts in Hong Kong should no longer be presumed reliable. The sooner Mr. Biden makes clear these and other moves enjoy bipartisan support, the better he will be in his own coming dealings with China."
At last, the article believes that "the most powerful message the U.S. can send to China is moral" and quoted Alexander Solzhenitsyn's essay "Live Not By Lies" written in 1974 that "the best way to resist was to refuse to participate in the everyday lies all Communist regimes depend on."
"With regard to Xi Jinping, China's lies is about everything from the origins of the coronavirus to his incarceration of more than a million Uighurs.
China is now claiming that Jimmy Lai, Joshua Wong, Agnes Chow and Ivan Lam are criminals for taking a stand for democracy. Insisting on the truth may not immediately set them free. But the lack of moral credibility is the regime's biggest vulnerability, and refusing to accept its lies must be the starting point of any U.S. China policy."
Image: Stand News
Source: Wall Street Journal #Dec2
https://www.wsj.com/articles/jimmy-lai-chinas-lie-11606951156
#HongKongProtests
#NextMedia #JimmyLai #JoshuaWong #AgnesChow #IvanLam #Demosisto #Court #Trump #Biden #US #Sanction #Xi
#FakeNews #CCPLies #CCPControl
No ‘Negative’ News: How China Censored the Coronavirus
In 2020, the whole world has been extensively affected by COVID-19, which was originally called "Wuhan Pneumonia" at the early stage of the outbreak because of its alleged origin. The pandemic has led to the lockdown of many countries, the suspension of economic activities and the separation of families.
In an investigative report published by The New York Times on Dec 19, 2020, it was revealed that the Chinese Communist Party government stage-managed what appeared online in the early days of the outbreak and downplayed the severity of the coronavirus.
The New York Times wrote,
“At a time when digital media is deepening social divides in Western democracies, China is manipulating online discourse to enforce the Communist Party’s consensus.
To stage-manage what appeared on the Chinese internet early this year, the authorities issued strict commands on the content and tone of news coverage, directed paid trolls to inundate social media with party-line blather and deployed security forces to muzzle unsanctioned voices."
For example, regarding the death of the whistleblower Dr. Li Wenliang, who had been threatened and prosecuted by the Chinese authorities, on Feb 7, 2020, China "ordered news websites not to issue push notifications alerting readers to his death. They [Chinese authorities] told social platforms to gradually remove his name from trending topics pages. And they activated legions of fake online commenters to flood social sites with distracting chatter, stressing the need for discretion".
The New York Times also found that "Chinese officials tried to steer the narrative not only to prevent panic and debunk damaging falsehoods domestically. They also wanted to make the virus look less severe — and the authorities more capable — as the rest of the world was watching."
According to Xiao Qiang, a research scientist at the School of Information at the University of California, Berkeley, and the founder of China Digital Times,
“China has a politically weaponized system of censorship; it is refined, organized, coordinated and supported by the state’s resources. It’s not just for deleting something. They also have a powerful apparatus to construct a narrative and aim it at any target with huge scale.”
“This is a huge thing,” he added. “No other country has that.”
Source: New York Times #Dec19
Read the original article:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/19/technology/china-coronavirus-censorship.html
#CyberSpace #Xi #WaterArmy #WuhanPneumomia #Manipulation #COVID19 #Christmas2020
No ‘Negative’ News: How China Censored the Coronavirus
In 2020, the whole world has been extensively affected by COVID-19, which was originally called "Wuhan Pneumonia" at the early stage of the outbreak because of its alleged origin. The pandemic has led to the lockdown of many countries, the suspension of economic activities and the separation of families.
In an investigative report published by The New York Times on Dec 19, 2020, it was revealed that the Chinese Communist Party government stage-managed what appeared online in the early days of the outbreak and downplayed the severity of the coronavirus.
The New York Times wrote,
“At a time when digital media is deepening social divides in Western democracies, China is manipulating online discourse to enforce the Communist Party’s consensus.
To stage-manage what appeared on the Chinese internet early this year, the authorities issued strict commands on the content and tone of news coverage, directed paid trolls to inundate social media with party-line blather and deployed security forces to muzzle unsanctioned voices."
For example, regarding the death of the whistleblower Dr. Li Wenliang, who had been threatened and prosecuted by the Chinese authorities, on Feb 7, 2020, China "ordered news websites not to issue push notifications alerting readers to his death. They [Chinese authorities] told social platforms to gradually remove his name from trending topics pages. And they activated legions of fake online commenters to flood social sites with distracting chatter, stressing the need for discretion".
The New York Times also found that "Chinese officials tried to steer the narrative not only to prevent panic and debunk damaging falsehoods domestically. They also wanted to make the virus look less severe — and the authorities more capable — as the rest of the world was watching."
According to Xiao Qiang, a research scientist at the School of Information at the University of California, Berkeley, and the founder of China Digital Times,
“China has a politically weaponized system of censorship; it is refined, organized, coordinated and supported by the state’s resources. It’s not just for deleting something. They also have a powerful apparatus to construct a narrative and aim it at any target with huge scale.”
“This is a huge thing,” he added. “No other country has that.”
Source: New York Times #Dec19
Read the original article:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/19/technology/china-coronavirus-censorship.html
#CyberSpace #Xi #WaterArmy #WuhanPneumomia #Manipulation #COVID19 #Christmas2020
Nytimes
No ‘Negative’ News: How China Censored the Coronavirus (Published 2020)
Thousands of internal directives and reports reveal how Chinese officials stage-managed what appeared online in the early days of the outbreak.
#Totalitarianism
Daughter-in-law of Former CCP's Senior Leader Asks Xi Jiping to Let her Return to the United States
On Christmas eve of 2020, an open letter was sent on Twitter to the Communist Chinese Party (#CCP) leader Xi Jiping, hoping that "the top leader of the country" could "help" the owner of the account and her daughter to leave China, so that she can reunite with her parents in the United States.
The account owner claimed to be the daughter-in-law of Zhou Yonghong, former state councillor and Party Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party who has been in jail for 5 years under accusations of bribery, abuse of power and intentionally disclosing state secrets.
Huang Wan, daughter-in-law of Zhou, said that in December 2013, her whole family was taken away. They then lived at home under surveillance for 10.5 months, and were held in the detention center for more than one year. She was “tortured and abused” by the Public Security system in Hubei, China. She was then sentenced to probation order and spent 3 years under the monitor of the judicial office until June 2019.
After that, she was restricted to leave the country by the Beijing Chaoyang People's Court due to a “civil complaint that has nothing to do with me [her]”. 18 months has already passed, and the case still has not been trialed. Huang suspected that the intention is to keep her in China.
Huang described that the past seven years “felt like hell”. Recently, she was ordered by the Chinese court to evict from her home in ten days.
Despite her US citizenship, she still could not go back to the US because of the Chinesecourt’s travel restriction. She said she felt totally helpless in China.
Source: Stand News #Dec26
#CCPRule #ChineseCourt #Xi #HumanitarianCrisis #Detention
#ZhouYongHong #OpenLetter
Daughter-in-law of Former CCP's Senior Leader Asks Xi Jiping to Let her Return to the United States
On Christmas eve of 2020, an open letter was sent on Twitter to the Communist Chinese Party (#CCP) leader Xi Jiping, hoping that "the top leader of the country" could "help" the owner of the account and her daughter to leave China, so that she can reunite with her parents in the United States.
The account owner claimed to be the daughter-in-law of Zhou Yonghong, former state councillor and Party Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party who has been in jail for 5 years under accusations of bribery, abuse of power and intentionally disclosing state secrets.
Huang Wan, daughter-in-law of Zhou, said that in December 2013, her whole family was taken away. They then lived at home under surveillance for 10.5 months, and were held in the detention center for more than one year. She was “tortured and abused” by the Public Security system in Hubei, China. She was then sentenced to probation order and spent 3 years under the monitor of the judicial office until June 2019.
After that, she was restricted to leave the country by the Beijing Chaoyang People's Court due to a “civil complaint that has nothing to do with me [her]”. 18 months has already passed, and the case still has not been trialed. Huang suspected that the intention is to keep her in China.
Huang described that the past seven years “felt like hell”. Recently, she was ordered by the Chinese court to evict from her home in ten days.
Despite her US citizenship, she still could not go back to the US because of the Chinesecourt’s travel restriction. She said she felt totally helpless in China.
Source: Stand News #Dec26
#CCPRule #ChineseCourt #Xi #HumanitarianCrisis #Detention
#ZhouYongHong #OpenLetter
#WhiteTerror #Regime
Beijing-funded Media Launch
#CulturalRevolution-style Attack on Hong Kong Government Officials
China mouthpieces Ta Kung Pao and Wen Wei Po ran front page article on February 27, 2021 in which it questioned if the newly appointed Secretary of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Vivian Lau Lee-kwan met the requirement of “patriots governing Hong Kong”, a principle described by President Xi Jinping as a bottom line for ensuring the city’s stability.
Lau was accused of having double standards for tolerating political placards made by “black-clad rioters” while quickly removing similar “patriotic” placards from pro-China individuals. The paper also accused Lau’s husband, Chua Hoi-wai, chief executive of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service, for opening its venues to anti-government protesters to take a rest in during 2019’s mass protests.
Executive councilor Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, a former Administrative Officer, defended Lau against pro-Beijing criticism, likening it to criticisms that prevailed the Cultural Revolution in China.
She called for “Cultural Revolution-style denunciations” to be stopped, urging Beijing loyalists to direct criticisms at issues, and not people.
Source: Stand News, #Feb27
https://www.thestandnews.com/politics/%E6%B8%85%E7%AE%97%E5%85%AC%E5%8B%99%E5%93%A1-%E5%A4%A7%E5%85%AC%E6%96%87%E5%8C%AF%E7%8B%99%E6%93%8A%E6%96%B0%E4%BB%BB%E9%A3%9F%E8%A1%9E%E5%B8%B8%E7%A7%98-%E8%91%89%E5%8A%89%E7%B1%B2%E5%BB%BA%E5%88%B6%E5%81%9C-%E6%96%87%E9%9D%A9%E5%BC%8F-%E6%89%B9%E9%AC%A5/
#LipService #Patriot #Xi
Beijing-funded Media Launch
#CulturalRevolution-style Attack on Hong Kong Government Officials
China mouthpieces Ta Kung Pao and Wen Wei Po ran front page article on February 27, 2021 in which it questioned if the newly appointed Secretary of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Vivian Lau Lee-kwan met the requirement of “patriots governing Hong Kong”, a principle described by President Xi Jinping as a bottom line for ensuring the city’s stability.
Lau was accused of having double standards for tolerating political placards made by “black-clad rioters” while quickly removing similar “patriotic” placards from pro-China individuals. The paper also accused Lau’s husband, Chua Hoi-wai, chief executive of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service, for opening its venues to anti-government protesters to take a rest in during 2019’s mass protests.
Executive councilor Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, a former Administrative Officer, defended Lau against pro-Beijing criticism, likening it to criticisms that prevailed the Cultural Revolution in China.
She called for “Cultural Revolution-style denunciations” to be stopped, urging Beijing loyalists to direct criticisms at issues, and not people.
Source: Stand News, #Feb27
https://www.thestandnews.com/politics/%E6%B8%85%E7%AE%97%E5%85%AC%E5%8B%99%E5%93%A1-%E5%A4%A7%E5%85%AC%E6%96%87%E5%8C%AF%E7%8B%99%E6%93%8A%E6%96%B0%E4%BB%BB%E9%A3%9F%E8%A1%9E%E5%B8%B8%E7%A7%98-%E8%91%89%E5%8A%89%E7%B1%B2%E5%BB%BA%E5%88%B6%E5%81%9C-%E6%96%87%E9%9D%A9%E5%BC%8F-%E6%89%B9%E9%AC%A5/
#LipService #Patriot #Xi
#Censorship #Regime
Pooh-Pooh, not Winnie: Chinese Media Avoid #Xi Satire
In Shanghai #Disneyland, a little boy attacked a worker in #WinniethePooh costume. However, the parents of the boy has been impertinent and refused to apologise to the worker.
The video went viral on the #ChineseInternet, but it seems “Winnie the Pooh” is a bigger problem to China's media than violence or parenting, as they use “Pooh-pooh bear” instead in reporting the news.
[Editor's note: the cartoon figure Winnie the Pooh has been used as a satirical representation to the #CCP General Secretary #XiJinping and was thereby banned in China for a period of time.]
Source: Liberty Times #May9
https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/breakingnews/3526274
Pooh-Pooh, not Winnie: Chinese Media Avoid #Xi Satire
In Shanghai #Disneyland, a little boy attacked a worker in #WinniethePooh costume. However, the parents of the boy has been impertinent and refused to apologise to the worker.
The video went viral on the #ChineseInternet, but it seems “Winnie the Pooh” is a bigger problem to China's media than violence or parenting, as they use “Pooh-pooh bear” instead in reporting the news.
[Editor's note: the cartoon figure Winnie the Pooh has been used as a satirical representation to the #CCP General Secretary #XiJinping and was thereby banned in China for a period of time.]
Source: Liberty Times #May9
https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/breakingnews/3526274
#Newspaper #ChineseYouth
#Xi Crackdowns Look to Whip China’s ‘Lying Flat’ Youth Into Shape
Source: Bloomberg #Aug28
Read more
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#Xi Crackdowns Look to Whip China’s ‘Lying Flat’ Youth Into Shape
Source: Bloomberg #Aug28
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
#Newspaper #ChineseYouth
#Xi Crackdowns Look to Whip China’s ‘Lying Flat’ Youth Into Shape
//Piecing together President Xi Jinping’s recent speeches and a barrage of new regulations that have roiled markets, one savvy internet user this month created a satirical image of what passes for an ideal youth in today’s China.
“The socialist successor of the new era does not attend after-school tutoring, does not play video games, does not chase celebrities,” said the post, which was shared widely before it was censored.
“They finish all their homework at school, read President Xi’s selected works for one hour everyday, go to sleep before 10 p.m., take the initiative to do chores, urge their parents to have more children and help look after them.”
The description highlights how Xi’s push for “common prosperity” and wealth redistribution is about more than just reining in tech billionaires: The flurry of rules and state-media missives targeting industries from after-school tutoring to online gaming and entertainment are also aimed at ensuring the younger generation -- some of whom are starting to embrace a minimalist lifestyle known as “lying flat” -- turns into motivated, patriotic and productive workers.//
Source: Bloomberg #Aug18
Read more:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-18/xi-crackdowns-look-to-whip-china-s-lying-flat-youth-into-shape
#Xi Crackdowns Look to Whip China’s ‘Lying Flat’ Youth Into Shape
//Piecing together President Xi Jinping’s recent speeches and a barrage of new regulations that have roiled markets, one savvy internet user this month created a satirical image of what passes for an ideal youth in today’s China.
“The socialist successor of the new era does not attend after-school tutoring, does not play video games, does not chase celebrities,” said the post, which was shared widely before it was censored.
“They finish all their homework at school, read President Xi’s selected works for one hour everyday, go to sleep before 10 p.m., take the initiative to do chores, urge their parents to have more children and help look after them.”
The description highlights how Xi’s push for “common prosperity” and wealth redistribution is about more than just reining in tech billionaires: The flurry of rules and state-media missives targeting industries from after-school tutoring to online gaming and entertainment are also aimed at ensuring the younger generation -- some of whom are starting to embrace a minimalist lifestyle known as “lying flat” -- turns into motivated, patriotic and productive workers.//
Source: Bloomberg #Aug18
Read more:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-18/xi-crackdowns-look-to-whip-china-s-lying-flat-youth-into-shape
Bloomberg.com
Xi Crackdowns Look to Whip China’s ‘Lying Flat’ Youth Into Shape
Piecing together President Xi Jinping’s recent speeches and a barrage of new regulations that have roiled markets, one savvy internet user this month created a satirical image of what passes for an ideal youth in today’s China.
How Global Public Opinion of China Has Shifted in the Xi Era
The Chinese Communist Party is preparing for its 20th National Congress, an event likely to result in an unprecedented third term for President Xi Jinping. Since Xi took office in 2013, opinion of China in the U.S. and other advanced economies has turned precipitously more negative. How did it get to be this way?
In the U.S., views of China experienced minor fluctuations in the years preceding Xi’s presidency. Throughout this period, around four-in-ten or more had positive views of China and only a minority had negative views of the country. Still, views ebbed and flowed somewhat alongside domestic and international events.
Source: Pewsearch #Sep28
#Global #China #US #Xi
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-why-are-chinese-police-operating-in-canada-while-our-own-government/
The Chinese Communist Party is preparing for its 20th National Congress, an event likely to result in an unprecedented third term for President Xi Jinping. Since Xi took office in 2013, opinion of China in the U.S. and other advanced economies has turned precipitously more negative. How did it get to be this way?
In the U.S., views of China experienced minor fluctuations in the years preceding Xi’s presidency. Throughout this period, around four-in-ten or more had positive views of China and only a minority had negative views of the country. Still, views ebbed and flowed somewhat alongside domestic and international events.
Source: Pewsearch #Sep28
#Global #China #US #Xi
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-why-are-chinese-police-operating-in-canada-while-our-own-government/