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Asia in Review

No. 14, April/2020, 1

Brought to you by CPG

Dear Readers,

With the coronavirus still spreading and continuing to define our lives, the AiR team hope you are staying healthy and safe and wish you an informative read of this week’s Asia in Review.

Best regards,

Henning Glaser

Director, German-Southeast Asian Center of Excellence for Public Policy and Good Governance (CPG)

Webpage: www.cpg-online.de, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CPGTU

Main Sections

• Law and Politics in East Asia

• Law and Politics in South Asia

• Law and Politics in South East Asia

• International Relations, Geopolitics and Security in Asia

• Background Reading

Law and Politics in East Asia 

China/Hong Kong: Opposition eyes majority in Legislative Council election

(dql) Hong Kong’s opposition camp, spurred by the landslide victory in the district council elections last November when it had won 17 out of 18 district councils, announced it aims to secure for the first time since Hong Kong’s return to China in 1997 the majority of the 70 seats in the city’s legislative election in September this year in order to force the government into delivering democratic reforms. The opposition currently holds 29 seats. [South China Morning Post]

The announcement came shortly after past Saturday marked the 30th anniversary of Hong Kong’s Basic Law, which has come under immense pressure as universal suffrage and democratic reform in the city remain core demands of the – currently silent – anti-government protest.

For a critical account on prospects of the Basic Law remaining the centerpiece of governance in Hong Kong see Pui-yin Lo at [Verfassungsblog] who argues that all depends on the willingness and courage of Hong Kong courts and judges to enforce legal means provided by the Basic Law itself to uphold the Basic Law and its rights, principles and values against Beijing’s encroachment.

China: Xinjiang’s new rules on domestic violence includes extremist behavior

(dql) The Standing Committee of the Xinjiang People’s Congress last week passed new anti-domestic violence rules for the region under which domestic violence includes – among other offenses – also the “exercise of extremist behavior that both bodily and mentally prevent members of a family from engaging in normal production and way of life”.

While officially being part of the implementation of national legislation on combating domestic violence passed in 2015, the rules, effective from 1 June, are seen among critical observers as a move to further deepen already pervasive state control and surveillance of the Uighur Muslim minority within the frame of the government’s announced fight against extremism and separatism in Xinjiang for which Beijing has come under international pressure over reportedly more than 1 million Uighur Muslims detained in internment camps. [South China Morning Post] [XJBS, for the rules in Chinese]

China: Prominent human rights lawyer released

(dql) Wang Quanzhang, a leading Chinese human rights lawyer known for defending political activists and victims of land seizures, was released from prison after spending almost five years behind bars. Wang was detained in 2015 during a crackdown on over 300 lawyers and government critics in China and sentenced in January 2019 to four-and-a-half years in jail after he had been found guilty of subverting state power. [Deutsche Welle]

The fact that Wang, instead of reuniting with his family after release, was transferred to a residence far from his family in order to undergo two weeks of quarantine has raised concerns about him being put under house arrest. [BBC] [South China Morning Post]

China: World’s no 1 in international patents application

(dql) With 58,990 applications China was the biggest source of applications for international patents in the world in 2019, taking to top spot away from the United States (57,840) which has held it since the Patent Cooperation Treaty system was established in 1978. China’s figure has increased 200-fold in just only years. [Reuters]

South Korea: Campaigns for parliamentary election kicked off 

(ef) While overseas polling stations have been halted in 25 countries due to safety concerns and mobility restriction over Covid-19 preventing almost 90,000 citizens from voting [Korea Herald], campaigns in South Korea for the April 15 legislative election started last Thursday. The election is widely expected to become a referendum in favor of President Moon whose strident response to the coronavirus outbreak and spread has earned him high approval ratings and is expected to benefit his party, the ruling Democratic Party, which currently holds 120 seats out of the 300 seats in the National Assembly. [Reuters] [Yonhap]

This election is the first after some substantial changes in the election law. It is the first election since the voting age was reduced from 19 to 18 years. Furthermore, the way the votes for the 47 proportional seats are tallied has been changed, thus causing minor parties to spring up. As a result, there are now 35 parties on the ballot, a record in the country’s electoral history.  [The Diplomat]

Meanwhile, about 4,000 patients currently receiving coronavirus treatment were confirmed to be provided the possibility to cast ballots by mail or absentee voting ahead of the election day. [Channel News Asia]

South Korea: Statute of limitations for sex crime involving children and minors to be dropped

(dql) South Korea is set to abolish the statute of limitations for sex crime involving children and minors after the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the government have agreed to push for such a reform of the country’s criminal code.

The move is a response to demands of the public to stop the practice of lenient punishments for offenders in child abuse cases following the disclosure of a high-profile sex exploitation case at online chat rooms involving minors.  [Korea Times] [AiR No. 13, March/2020, 5]

South Korea: Launch of a central bank-issued digital currency

(ef) Albeit there still being a high demand for cash, the Bank of Korea has launched a pilot program testing a central bank-issued digital currency to meet future demands. The move comes after the National Assembly passed the world’s first comprehensive cryptocurrency bill last month. [AiR No. 10, March/2020, 2] The program will last for 22 months and will review the legal and technological aspects of implementation. [Asia Times]

Japan: State of emergency declared over Covid-19

(dql) In response to a worrying increase of coronavirus infections in Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe this Tuesday declared a monthlong state of emergency for Tokyo, Osaka and five other prefectures providing authorities legal backing to request the population to stay at home, with governors allowed to order the closure of schools, cinemas, department stores and other places which brings together large crowds. Due to legal limits, the declaration does not include hard lockdowns like those imposed in China or Italy and also no punishment for non-compliance.  

In an earlier development of the day, the government approved a stimulus package of nearly 1 trillion USD to ease the economic impact of Covid-19 in Japan. [Mainichi] [Aljazeera]

Law and Politics in South Asia 

India: Corona fears and Anti-Muslim sentiments reinforced by Hindu nationalist government 

(jk) After authorities in India had found a cluster of COVID-19 cases in a Muslim group that held a conference in Delhi in early March, fears over the Coronavirus and ever-increasing intolerance towards Muslims continue to reinforce each other. The issue is going as far as creating a narrative over a so-called "Corona Jihad", suggesting Muslims were purposely spreading the virus. [Time]

Exacerbating the growing sentiments, Indian police said last week that some members of the group would be charged under India’s Epidemic Disease Act over their religious gathering [NDTV 1], and then, the government announced further charges to be brought forward against these "enemies of humanity" under India's National Security Act for violating quarantine and lockdown regulations. [NDTV 2] 

While some allegations of violations of the acts may be warranted, the handling of the situation indicates a clear continuation of the trend of a Hindu nationalist government that seeks to target Muslims on many fronts and works towards turning India into a more explicitly Hindu state and Muslims into foreigners.  

India: New domicile rules for Jammu and Kashmir

(jk) The Indian government has released new domicile rules of the new Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir which open up the eligibility criteria for becoming permanent residents there. The new rules mark a change in the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, which previously restricted the availability of local government jobs, scholarships and properties for Indian's from other parts of the country. [The Print]

India: Ruling BJP takes back state assembly leadership in Madhya Pradesh

(jk) After Congress leader's resignation from the post of Madhya Pradesh chief minister [Asia in Review No. 11, March/2020, 3], ending the rule of the party in the state, PM Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party has again taken over the leadership in the state and picked a new CM. It is the same minister who initially stepped down after the Congress won a narrow majority in the December 2018 Assembly elections. He, and the BJP, is back in the leadership position after 15 months in opposition. [Livemint]

Pakistan: Court overturns death sentence of accused murderer of US journalist 

(jk) The man facing execution for the 2002 kidnapping and murder of a Wall Street Journal reporter in Pakistan, and three co-accused, were acquitted last week in a ruling by the high court of Sindh province. The man has been on death row for allegedly masterminding the kidnap and murder, however his involvement in at least the murder of the journalist has long been disputed and was the subject of ongoing legal disputes. The court found there is not enough evidence for the murder, and the sentence for the kidnapping has already been served. [The Guardian]

The ruling can still be overturned by Pakistan’s supreme court, where the government has made an appeal against the decision. [South China Morning Post]

Pakistan: IMF postpones approval of next part of bailout programme

(jk) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has postponed approval of a part of the US$6-billion bailout programme. The delay regards a release of a third loan tranche of US$450 million on April 10, agreed to by Pakistan and the IMF in February, subject to the fulfilling of all conditions by the Pakistan government. [The Express Tribune]

Pakistan: prioritizing China-Pakistan Economic Corridor projects

(jk) Prime Minister Imran Khan ordered a relief package last week that specifically focuses on the construction industry and directed resumption of all China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) related infrastructure projects.

He stated that the coronavirus crisis will not impede CPEC and expressed "profound regards to China for medical relief assistance to help Pakistan fight against COVID-19." [CPEC Info]

Pakistan: Pharma industry begins shut down due to shortage of raw materials while India lifts export restrictions 

(jk) The pharmaceutical industry in Pakistan has begun shutting down some of its production  due to a shortage of raw material, a majority of which is imported from China and India. In addition, fears over the coronavirus have led to hoarding of medicine stocks. [The Express Tribune]

Meanwhile, India has lifted restrictions on the export of some pharmaceutical ingredients and medicines, according to a  government statement, allegedly due to pressure from the US after a phone call between Modi and Trump on the weekend. [Straits Times] [CNBC TV 18]

Maldives: Potentials of a coming ISIS hotspot? 

(jk) With the highest per capita number of foreign fighters ("250 fighters, and about 1400 alleged radicalised individuals, out of a population of 350,000") around the world and an ongoing issue of "returning fighters" with setbacks for ISIS in the Middle East, there have long been fears the Maldives might become a hotspot for terrorists. A stabbing incident of three tourists earlier this year brought such fears to the forefront after the incident was linked to ISIS affiliated terror. [Daily Mail] Further reasons that warrant a watchful eye on developments are the fact  that the country already has a fundamentalist fringe in its society, powerful hard-line Islamist groups [e.g. Asia in Review No. 46, November/2019, 2], and allegedly little capacities dedicated to de-radicalisation. [Eurasia Review] 

Bangladesh: Heavy losses in garment industry 

(jk) Due to the current corona crisis, the garment industry is likely to face US$ 6 billion of revenue loss. Officials of an influential industrial body said that more than $3 billion have already been lost due to the crisis because most orders until July have been either cancelled or suspended. Bangladesh, the second-largest garment producer after China. [India Today]

Sri Lanka: Solution needed for constitutional impasse over new poll date

(jk) As recently reported, the parliamentary election in Sri Lanka are now indefinitely postponed beyond the initially announced date of April 25. [Asia in Review No. 12, March/2020, 4] One particular problem this situation causes, is that the country's constitution states that the new Parliament must meet within three months of dissolution, which took place on March 2. Pushing back the date into late May or June will not allow for this to happen. According to the head of the independent election commission,  “it is now up to the president to seek the Supreme Court's view” on the matter. [Devdiscourse]

Correction:

In the entry of last week’s AiR issue on the Moaist attack on security forces in India, an incorrect date of the attack was given. The correct date is 21 March instead of 22 March. 

Law and Politics in Southeast Asia 

Malaysia: New government entrenches its power. Repercussions on 1MDB investigations?

(ls) Malaysia’s new Perikatan Nasional (PN) government has begun to implement several changes at various state agencies in recent weeks. According to observers, the changes were meant to appease supporters whose factions were not rewarded with ministerial posts. Many who served in state agencies and government-linked companies during the Najib Razak administration from 2009 to 2018 are now expected to make a comeback. Prime Minister Muhyiddin, who is the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia president, is still competing with former premier Mahathir Mohamad, who has remained the chairman of the party. [Straits Times]

These changes may also have repercussions on efforts to investigate the 1MDB corruption scandal. One of the key whistle-blowers who had uncovered several illegal practices in the scandal has left the country to Switzerland as he and his family apparently now feared for their security. [South China Morning Post]

Indonesia to release about 30,000 prisoners early due to COVID-19 fears

(ls) Indonesia’s Ministry of Law and Human Rights is set to release about 30,000 prisoners early as the country seeks to avoid a possible surge in coronavirus infections in its overcrowded prisons. According to the plan, adult prisoners would be eligible for parole if they had served two-thirds of their sentences, while children would be eligible if they served half of their jail term. There are more than 270,000 prisoners across Indonesia, more than twice the official capacity of its jails. [Reuters]

Ten days ago, in Thailand, a riot erupted at the central prison in Buriram after about 100 prisoners broke furniture and smashed windows and set a fire over rumours of a Covid-19 outbreak. Several prisoners escaped before the riot was brought under control. [Bangkok Post]

Philippines & Vietnam: New anti-fake news laws thrive in corona crisis

(ls) After the Philippines’ president Rodrigo Duterte signed into law the “Bayanihan to Heal As One Act” on 25 March, the Act has been used to start criminal proceedings against journalists who have been accused of spreading false information about the corona crisis. According to the relevant section, the Act criminalizes “individuals or groups creating, perpetrating, or spreading false information regarding the COVID-19 crisis on social media and other platforms, such information having no valid or beneficial effect on the population, and are clearly geared to promote chaos, panic, anarchy, fear, or confusion”. [Reporters without borders] [Act on Senate’s website]

In Vietnam, a new law, which will come into effect on 15 April, will fine people who post or share false information about the corona virus online with significant amounts. The country’s Law on Cyber Security, which took effect in January 2019, already prohibits spreading fake news, but it does not stipulate specific fines for spreading them on social media. Nonetheless, the Department of Information and Communications has already issued hundreds of fines on individuals posting incorrect information about the virus outbreak. [The Register]

How the corona crisis threatens poor children throughout Southeast Asia

(ls) As the number of direct victims from the corona crisis is rising, experts say that there are also many secondary victims, underprivileged children and women in particular, whose already hard lives are made harder still. Some of them in forced marriages. Pictures also showed children in the Philippines who were caught out after curfew and put in a dog cage. Support groups warn that the coming months will leave many more at risk of human trafficking and exploitation. [South China Morning Post]

International Relations, Geopolitics and Security in Asia

China angered by Taiwan’s mask diplomacy and US support for Taiwan

(dql) In response to Taiwan’s pledge to donate as many as 10 million surgical face masks to the USA and 11 European countries as well as 15 diplomatic allies [Focus Taiwan], Beijing warned Taipei to stay away from “political tricks” to buy support for accession to the World Health Organization from which Taiwan is excluded as China has been blocking any accession attempts. Beijing further warned that the “US and Taiwan should be reminded that if there is anyone trying to use this pandemic to play political games and hurt China’s core interests, they should be very careful.”  [South China Morning Post]

China’s warnings come amid efforts taken by the US administration and lawmakers in the USA to push for support for Taiwan’s standing in international organizations in the wake of Taipei’s widely recognized response to the pandemic such as the World Health Organization or the International Civil Aviation Organization. [The Diplomat] [East Asia Forum 1].

In an earlier move, President Donald Trump signed the Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act of 2019 into law which provides the US Secretary of State with the power to expand, reduce, or terminate U.S. aid to countries depending on whether they improve, worsen, or sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan and also calls for increased American support for Taiwan's participation in international organizations either as a member or observer. [AiR No. 13, March/2020, 5]

For an assessment of China-USA relations in the light of Covid-19 see Ryan Hass and Kevin Dong in [East Asia Forum 2] who argue that there will be more, not less, tensions between China and the USA over the pandemic while suggesting that the USA would fare better if they would “prioritise the development of an Asia strategy for dealing with China, rather than concentrating on bilateral confrontation with Beijing” as reflected by the US narrative of “Chinese virus” and “Wuhan virus” on the causes of the pandemic. 

Meanwhile, Joseph S. Nye, Jr., former Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs under Bill Clinton and one of the grand and most influential scholars in international relations and US foreign policy, criticizes both Beijing and Washington for “short-term, zero-sum approaches” to their  respective pandemic response which pays to “too little attention to international institutions and cooperation” and calls on both sides to “plan for future waves of the coronavirus and establish bilateral and multilateral frameworks to enhance collaboration.” [Project Syndicate]

China-USA military relations: US Indo-Pacific Command requests over 20 billion USD additional spending

(dql) Signaling efforts to shore up the country’s post-Covid-19 standing in Asia-Pacific, the US Indo-Pacific Command has submitted to Congress a spending request to strengthen deterrence against China after the coronavirus pandemic ebbs, calling for more than 20 billion USD in additional spending between 2021 and 2026 for new radar warning systems and cruise missiles, as well as for more drills with allies, deployments of additional forces and new intelligence-sharing centers. [New York Times] [Breaking Defense]

China-Brazil relations strained over social media post on Chinese coronavirus supplies

(dql) China and Brazil are engaged in a diplomatic spat triggered by a social media post by Brazil’s Education Minister Abraham Weintraub in which he accuses Chinese medical equipment makers of profiteering from the pandemic and insinuates that the pandemic would help China to “dominate the world”. Adding to the confrontation, the text in the post is pronounced in a way to ridicule the Chinese accent. 

Beijing denounced the post as “completely absurd and despicable” and of “racist character.” 

Weintraub is known for favoring closer alignment with the United States and cautioning towards China, Brazil’s largest trading partner. [Reuters] [Aljazeera]

U.S. military aircraft fly near Taiwan

(dql) For the fourth time in March, a United States military aircraft, a submarine-hunting aircraft  was reported flying near Taiwan's southern airspace last Tuesday, signaling intensified US military activity in the South China Sea as well as continued monitoring of the region, despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. [Focus Taiwan]

For an overview of military activities of China in the Taiwan Strait China Sea in the first quarter of 2020 and the corresponding political signaling towards Taiwan and the USA see John Dotson at [The Jamestown Foundation: China Brief]. 

Increased Chinese activity in the South China Sea?

(ls) In a new incident in the South China Sea, a Chinese maritime surveillance vessel appears to have rammed and sunk a Vietnamese fishing boat near the Paracel Islands, according to an official protest that Vietnam lodged with China. The Chinese coast guard said the Vietnamese boat illegally entered the area to fish and refused to leave. Last year, a Chinese oil survey vessel conducted operations in Vietnamese-controlled waters for more than three, causing a tense standoff between vessels from the two countries. [Reuters]

Tensions over fishing territories have also pitted China and Indonesia against each other over recent months. Nonetheless, Indonesian have so far tried to avoid any open conflict with Beijing. [Straits Times]

The Diplomat reports a U.S. State Department statement on the incident noting that the sinking of the Vietnamese vessel is just the latest in a series of moves China has been undertaking in this respect since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, with others including new “research stations” on military bases built on Fiery Cross Reef and Subi Reef, landing of special military aircraft on Fiery Cross Reef, and continued deploying of maritime militia. [The Diplomat]

South-Korea: US spy plane over Korean Peninsula

(dql) A US surveillance aircraft has flown over South Korea on an apparent mission to monitor North Korea after a series of major weapons tests conducted by Pyongyang last month. [Korea Herald 1]

Meanwhile, South Korea's Bigung guided rocket system has passed a comparative test by the US defense department for foreign weapons, opening the door for exports to the US market. 

It is the country's first guided rocket system successfully evaluated through the test. Bigung, which means "flying arrow," is part of the country's coastal defense system and employs an advanced guidance system, which does not require further guidance after launch so as to be capable of conducting multiple tasks at the same time and to be less vulnerable to possible attacks. [Korea Herald 2]

India's army now largest ground force 

(jk) Amid Chinese PLA modernisation, meaning a reduction in ground forces and a focus on navy, air force and new technologies, India's army, with approximately 1.4 million personnel, has become the world’s largest ground force, ahead of North Korea and China. [The Print]

Indian Senior Advocate launches UNHRC complaint blaming China for Covid-19 ‘conspiracy’

(jk) A [complaint] to the United Nations Human Rights Council seeking compensation from China for “surreptitiously developing a biological weapon capable of mass destruction”, has been filed on behalf of the London-based International Council of Jurists [ICJ] and the All India Bar Association. The complaint was written by and Indian advocate who is the Bar Association's chairman and ICJ President. He is also former vice-chairman of the Bar Council of India, the Supreme Court Bar Association, as well as the chairman of the Bar Council of Delhi. In the allegation, he states China “aimed at catapulting itself to the position of a superpower of the world and undermining other countries through biological warfare”. [The Print]

India - Pakistan: Five army commandos and 5 alleged intruders killed in LoC battle

(jk) Five Indian special forces soldiers and five alleged terrorists were killed during an encounter near the Line of Control after the army intercepted a group of heavily armed men who tried to infiltrate Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir. [Hindustan Times] Pakistani media reports on the death of five insurgents in addition to a second gun battle 24 hours earlier in which another four people died. [Geo News]

Malaysia intercepts boat carrying Rohingya refugees

(ls) Malaysian authorities have intercepted a boat carrying more than 200 Rohingya people off the holiday island of Langkawi. In February, at least 15 Rohingya refugees died when a vessel carrying about 130 people capsized in the Bay of Bengal while trying to reach Malaysia, which is a favored destination of Rohingya refugees. [Reuters]

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