Grasp the pattern, read the trend
No. 7, February/2022, 3
Brought to you by CPG
Dear Readers,
The AiR team is pleased to present you this week’s Asia in Review issue.
I wish you an informative read and extend special greetings to everyone who celebrates The Gambia’s Independence Day, Lithuania’s Statehood Restoration Day and Serbia’s Statehood Day in this week.
With best regards,
Henning Glaser
Editor in Chief
Webpage: www.cpg-online.de, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CPGTU
Main Sections
Constitutional Law and –Politics, Human Rights and National Security in East Asia
Constitutional Law and –Politics, Human Rights and National Security in South Asia
Constitutional Law and –Politics, Human Rights and National Security in Southeast Asia
International Relations, Geopolitics and Security in Asia
Announcements
Constitutional Law and –Politics, Human Rights and National Security in East Asia
China: High profile strike against corruption in finance sector
(tp) Former vice chairman at the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) Cai Esheng has been added to the long list of executives and senior officials to be arrested in President Xi Jinping’s latest anti-corruption crackdown.
China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate announced on Thursday Cai’s arrest for crimes including taking bribes and abusing his power when serving as vice chairman between 2005 to 2013. Last, he was expelled from the Chinese Communist Party on grounds of corruption. [Global Times] [Al Jazeera]
This comes as China launched a nationwide anti-graft crackdown targeting financial regulators and state-owned banks in October last year ahead of the 20th National Party Congress, which has since led to the arrest of more than 20 officials in the financial institution and regulatory bodies. [Bloomberg] [See also AiR, No. 3, January/2022, 3]
The crackdown has also seen Wang Bin, chairman of China Life Insurance Co, China’s biggest life insurer in terms of assets, placed under investigation last month for corruption. Huarong former Chairman Lai Xiaomin was executed in January last year for bribery. Huarong is a majority state-owned financial asset management company and one of the four asset management companies established in 1999 in response to the 1997 Asian financial crisis. [Al Jazeera 1] [CNN News] [See AiR No. 3, January/2022, 3] [Also see AiR No. 2, January/2021, 2]
China: Researchers announce latest developments in 6G technology
(tp) A team of researchers at Tsinghua University in Beijing have claimed to have achieved a record speed in data streaming using vortex-wave technology that could help China become leader in the global race for wireless communication or 6G.
A form of high-frequency radio waves with rapidly changing spins, the vortex waves could allow the streaming of over 10.000 high-definition live video feeds simultaneously, according to the researchers. They were successfully tested in an experimental wireless line set up in the Winter Olympics compound in January. [South China Morning Post]
China: R&D spending reaches record high in 2021
(tp) Beijing spent a record 2.79 trillion yuan (US$441.3 billion) on research and development (R&D) in 2021, a 14 percent increase compared with the previous year, according to data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics. Space exploration, nuclear physics, quantum science and biological engineering were among the areas receiving largest funding.
Internationally, China’s R&D expenditure rose two places to 12th on the OECD ranking, with R&D expenditure reaching a record high of 2.44 percent of GDP. [South China Morning Post]
China: Discriminatory work policies against Uyghur minority continues, UN report details
(tp) China is facing fresh accusation of using forced labour in the northwest province of Xinjiang.
On Friday, February 11, a United Nations committee presented findings of a report of the International Labour Organisation according to which China continues to carry out discriminatory labour practices, such as running widespread and systematic “programmes” of forced labour on the Uighur and Muslim minorities in Xinjiang. A key feature of these programmes are “re-education” camps which house some 1.8 million Uighur and Muslim people. These camps are characterised by extreme hardship, lack of freedom of movement, physical and psychological torture.
The report added that China justifies its methods in a context of “poverty alleviation”, “vocational training”, “re-education through labour” and “de-extremification”. [Al Jazeera] [ILO]
China: Labour rights in gig sector to be strengthened
(tp) China’s government is stepping up its regulation of the sector to greater protect labour rights in the gig sector.
In a meeting held last month, officials warned eleven internet platforms including Alibaba, South China Morning Post, and Tencent Holdings, that they must have the “political, ideological and actionable consciousness of” protecting gig worker’s rights.
The move comes as delivery couriers and migrant workers in the gig economy across China are pushing the government for greater labour protections and welfare coverage in the face of low wages, poor working conditions, and extra hours.
Some 200 million people in China work on flexible terms, including those in the gig economy or self-employed. For many migrant workers, delivery food or parcels is a common choice due to huge demand, low barriers to entry and flexible employment terms. While the market size of the food delivery industry has jumped from 21.7 billion yuan to 664.6 billion yuan from 2011 to 2020, the gross income level of the delivery workers has not. Drivers are required to do large amounts of overtime work in the face of scant welfare coverage and insufficient protection against uncertainties such as covid-19 lockdowns, and poor weather conditions. Additionally, delivery drivers are bound by the harsh algorithms of food delivery platforms, which can deduct money from drivers for delayed deliveries and enforce difficult to meet delivery times at the expense of the driver.
Last year, the government also ordered online platforms including Meituan and Ele.me to ensure that food courier drivers earned above the minimum wage, not be bound by the demands of algorithms, and can access social security and a place in a recognized union. [South China Morning Post]
China: New requirements for Hong Kong’s civil servants
(tp) Hong Kong’s Civil Service Bureau announced at a policy briefing of the Legislative Council, the city’s parliament, on Wednesday, February 9, new training requirements that newly employed civil servants must meet in order to complete their three-year probation period.
They include especially attending national security trainings on course topics such as the “one country, two systems”, the nation’s development, Hong Kong’s national security law and finally completing the Basic Law test. Those who excel in the training will be offered exchange opportunities in Greater Bay Area cities.
Existing civil servants are also required to undertake the training course and tests in order to be promoted. [Hong Kong Free Press]
The new requirements are reflective of Beijing’s continued efforts to tighten its grip on Hong Kong’s bureaucracy since it has successfully cracked down on the pro-democracy protests and won total control over the former British colony.
China: Hong Kong court upholds conviction of US lawyer
(tp) A Hong Kong court on Tuesday upheld the conviction of American corporate lawyer Samuel Bickett, forcing him to return to custody to serve the remainder of his 10-week sentence.
The lawyer, who assaulted an off-duty officer during antigovernment protests, maintains that he saw a senior police constable beating a teenager with a baton in a subway station on Dec. 7, 2019, at the height of the Hong Kong pro-independence protests, and said he tried to take the baton away, resulting in a scuffle between the two.
Bickett served six weeks of his prison sentence last year, before being released on bail while he appealed his case. In a statement, Bickett said, “Today’s ruling is just the latest indication that the judiciary’s reputation for applying the law rationally, fairly and equally is in danger.”
Critics say the conviction of Bickett reflects growing concerns about the rule of law and judicial independence in Hong Kong amid President Xi Jinping’s crackdown on dissent. [NBC News 1] [NBC News 2]
China: 21 countries denounce loss of press freedom in Hong Kong
(xh) In a joint statement released last week, a group of 21 nations, calling itself the “Media Freedom Coalition”, condemned the governments in Beijing and Hong Kong for undermining press freedom in the former British colony, citing recent closure of media outlets known for their government-critical work under the Hong Kong national security law imposed by Beijing in June 2020.
Among the signatories of the statement are Australia, Canada, Germany, Lithuania, Austria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, the US, and the UK as well as Japan as the only Asian country. [South China Morning Post]
China/Hong Kong: Three Apple-Daily affiliated firms charged with sedition in national security case
(tp) Apple Daily Limited, Apple Daily Printing Limited and AD Internet Limited have been charged with sedition by the West Kowloon Magistrate’s Court where they appeared on Thursday, February 10.
The Apple Daily affiliated firms stood accused of conspiring to commit collusion with foreign forces to endanger national security, and to print, publish, sell, offer for sale, distribute, display and/or reproduce seditious publications between April 2019 and June 2021 [see Air No. 25, June/2021, 4].
Under the Beijing-imposed Hong Kong national security law of June 2020, a corporate entity can be fined and ordered to shut down if convicted.
For individuals, sedition carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison for a first offence under the colonial-era Crimes Ordinance whilst conspiracy to collude with foreign forces carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment under the national security law. [South China Morning Post]
Japan: Top prosecutors office sets terms for name disclosure under Japan's revised Juvenile Act
(dql) High and district public prosecutors across Japan have been notified about basic terms for decisions whether or not to disclose to the public legal names of 18- and 19-year-olds criminals when indicted.
The notification by the Japan’s Supreme Public Prosecutors’ Office comes specifies that subject to such disclosure are “cases where the crime is serious and has a severe impact on the local community,” adding that cases with a high demand from society for name disclosure and relatively low impact on the offender’s rehabilitation are left to the discretion of the individual prosecutors.
Japan’s Juvenile Act was revised last year and will enter into force in April, allowing media organizations to report the legal names of indicted 18- and 19-year-olds. [Mainichi]
South Korea’s presidential election: Opposition candidates to merge their candidacy?
(dql) Three weeks ahead of the presidential election, there is growing indication that the candidates of the opposition People Power Party and People’s Party Yoon Suk-yeol and Ahn Cheol-soo might merge their candidacy to defeat Lee Jae-myung, the candidate of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) after Yoon publicly did not rule out such a merger through a surprise agreement. [Yonhap News Agency]
However, in a related, latest development Yoon rejected a proposal of Ahn to field a single through a public opinion survey. [Korea Herald]
South Korea: Military pushes for expanding missile command
(dql) South Korea's Defense Ministry announced on Thursday, February 10, that it will push for legislation that would allow for an expansion of its headquarters and subordinate units.
The announcement comes on the heels of a series of North Korean missile launches that has prompted discussion whether Seoul was ready to counter threats from missiles, especially low-flying, highly maneuverable ones that are difficult to detect and intercept. [Korea Herald]
Taiwan: Democratic Progressive Party will field “excellent” candidates for next elections
(eb) On February 9, President Tsai Ing-wen of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) declared the four goals that the government intends to achieve during 2022, including selecting only the most adequate candidates for the next local elections on November 2022.
During the last local elections in 2018 the DPP was defeated harshly by the Kuomintang Party (KMT), that won in 15 of the 22 municipalities of the country.
President Tsai also declared that other goals for her government this year would include strengthening ties between Taiwan and its democratic partners and maintaining high standards for the food quality, referring to the lift of the ban on Japanese food coming from the Prefectures affected by the 2011 Fukushima accident. [Focus Taiwan]
Taiwan: 2021 Democracy Index rates Taiwan as strongest democracy in Asia
(eb) According to a report released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) on February 10, Taiwan is the strongest democracy in Asia and the 8th strongest in the world. Taiwan has gained three positions, from 11th in 2020, scoring 8.99 out of 10 and ranking as “full democracy”, ahead of South Korea (16th, 8.16) and Japan (17th, 8.15).
Among the top five counties of the Index are Norway (9.75), New Zealand (9.37), Finland (9.27), Sweden (9.26) and Iceland. (9.18)
The index reviews and assesses the state of democracy in 165 independent states and two territories based on five categories (electoral process and pluralism, civil liberties, proper functioning of government, political participation, and political culture). [EIU]
Taiwan’s ban lift on Japanese food sparks debate
(eb) As last week Taiwan’s government announced that the ban on Japanese food coming from the Prefectures affected by the 2011 Fukushima accident was going to be lifted, a series of reactions and decisions by Taiwanese politicians and by the Japanese de-facto ambassador in Taiwan followed.
The main opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT), strongly opposed the decision, arguing that as the ban on Japanese food was included in a referendum that passed when the KMT was governing Taiwan, not consulting with the citizens and other parties before making the decision final was a terrible decision by the current administration [Taiwan News].
On the other hand, the Japanese de-facto ambassador in Taiwan Hiroyasu Izumi welcomed the decision, reiterating that the Japanese government will never sell to other countries hazardous products. The two countries, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will soon sign a memorandum of understanding on food security [Focus Taiwan 1].
The Taipei City Government, albeit declared that the decision is one that belongs to foreign policy, will ask retailers to set up specifically marked zones for the products that come from the areas affected previously by the ban so that customers will be aware of the origin of those goods given that almost 80% of the population voted in favour of the ban in the 2018 referendum. However, a poll conducted by the current government between February 7 and February 8 seems to show that nowadays the majority of Taiwanese people is in favour of lifting the ban and believe that it would benefit relations with Japan. [Focus Taiwan 2] [Focus Taiwan 3]
Also, following the lifting of the ban the Atomic Energy Council (AEC) of Taiwan announced that it will boost the ability to test the food for radioactive traces by collaborating with seven new different radiation testing laboratories in Taiwan to analyse as many products as possible while the Agriculture Minister Chen Chi-chung declared that the food in question will not be used to prepare school meals anyway on February 9 [Focus Taiwan 4] [Radio Taiwan International].
The Presidential Office of Taiwan confirmed on February 10 that a phone call happened between former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo and current Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on January 31. During such call, Tsai and Abe shared in-depth views on Japan's food safety control measures and Taiwan’s entrance in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) among other topics [Taiwan News 5].
Taiwan missiles put at risk by subcontractor who imported Chinese sub-standard materials
(eb) According to Taiwan’s National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology, a subcontractor had imported inferior quality parts (specifically silicon-controlled rectifiers) for the indigenous surface-to-air Bow Missile System from China. It was discovered last March. [Taiwan News]
Since the acquisition of potentially fraudulent components could have compromised Taiwan’s native missile defense system, the affair has raised the attention of many on the issue. While Democratic Progressive Party legislator Wang Ting-yu, who asked for an inquiry in order to assess potential collusion between officials and insiders based, the Taipei bureau chief Sankei Shimbun, a nationalist and conservative newspaper, believes that the Chinese contractor companies might have acted purposely on China’s behalf to weaken the defences of Taiwan. Former Taiwan Statebuilding Party legislator Chen Po-wei, meanwhile, recommended lawmakers to create stricter rules in order to safeguard Taiwan’s missiles and asked to eliminate all Chinese products and components from the supply chain. [Taipei Times]
New, domestically produced, supersonic training fighter enters service in Taiwan's Air Force
(eb) On February 11 Taiwan’s Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) T-5 Yung Yin (Brave Eagle) has entered service. The AIDC plans to deliver 66 more planes of the same kind between 2026 and 2028.
The T-5 is a supersonic training plane developed in collaboration with the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCIST) to complete the Advanced Jet Training programme. It is composed for 80% of locally produced hardware and materials. Although it is mainly designed as a plane for training, it can still be equipped with weaponry. [AIN]
Constitutional Law and –Politics, Human Rights and National Security in South Asia
Bangladesh: Election Commission search committee holds second meetings
(ap) The newly appointed search committee to appoint a new Election Commission (EC) held its second meeting last week. According to the recent bill on the formation of the EC, the committee must propose 10 nominees for the EC to the president, who will select the new EC members. [bdnews24.com]
The bill was passed last month despite criticism from opposition political parties and rights organizations, which claim that the drafting process did not take into account recommendations from civil society members and stakeholders. The law formalizes procedures used by the current and previous administrations that empower the country’s president – almost always someone who resigns from the ruling party to take office.
Following the passing of the EC formation bill in Parliament, the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) announced that it will not participate in any national elections under the current government. [AiR No. 5, February/2022, 1]
India: Voting begins in Uttar Pradesh state in key test of Prime Minister Modi’s popularity
(lm) On February 10, voting began in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh in in the first of a series of state elections that will be a test of the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and his ruling party.
Uttar Pradesh is India’s most populous state, making it the single biggest electoral prize: The state sends 80 representatives to India’s 543-member House of Representative — more than twice as many as any other, barring Maharashtra. The election to the state’s Legislative Assembly will phase out until March 7.
Voters in the states of Goa, Uttarakhand, Punjab, and Manipur will also go to the polls. Counting in all five states begins on March 10, with the results expected soon after. [Reuters]
These local polls coincide with the midway point of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second term in office, and thus, are being viewed by the Indian public as a midterm referendum on his rule. For the last five years, the state has been ruled by Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Indeed, Modi’s strong appeal in Uttar Pradesh is the main reason he has won back-to-back parliamentary majorities, something no Indian prime minister has done since the 1970s.
Against this backdrop, the opposition hopes to capitalize on concerns about the pandemic-battered economy, and the ruling BJP’s poor handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has so far led to more than 500,000 deaths and health care workers reporting a collapse in the system. The BJP, for its part, is apparently counting on its polarizing Hindu nationalist agenda to resonate in Uttar Pradesh – a stronghold of the party’s Hindutva [Hindu identity] project – thereby preserving its hold on power in the state and putting it in a favorable position for nationwide parliamentary polls due by 2024. [Bloomberg]
Thus, a key election storyline centers around Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister, politician-cleric Yogi Adityanath, who engages in hate speech and has never been prosecuted for it. Many close observers of Indian politics see Adityanath as a potential successor to Prime Minister Modi, who also served as a chief minister before ascending to national office. But for Modi and the BJP to see Adityanath as prime minister material, he will need to prove his political chops and win a second term. [The New York Times, $]
In the run-up to the election, the BJP enacted punitive laws to discourage interfaith marriages, with Chief Minister Adityanath promising death for those who “play with the honor” of Hindu women. Headway is also being made on the construction of a temple at the site of a destroyed mosque at Ayodhya, in the eastern part of Uttar Pradesh. [Time]
India: Tensions over hijab ban grow, spread across the country
(lm) A dispute over restrictions on the wearing of the hijab by female students in India’s south has reached the country’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, with a group of youngsters petitioning their college to ban the hijab within its compound.
The religious divide has been widening since January, when six Muslim female students in southern Karnataka state staged a weeks-long protest after they were told to either remove their headscarves or stop attending classes at their government-run school.
The dispute spread to other colleges in the state, with girls protesting against the ban outside college gates. That prompted rival protests from right-wing Hindu students, who tried to prevent hijab-wearing Muslim women from entering educational institutions in the state.
Things came to a head on February 5 when the state government of Karnataka directed colleges to ensure that “clothes which disturb equality, integrity and public law and order should not be worn”. The order cited Indian court judgments to argue that a ban on hijab on campus did not run afoul of constitutional rights. [South China Morning Post]
In light of this, protesters petitioned the state's high court to lift the ban, saying they are being denied their rights to education and to practice their religion – both of which are enshrined in the constitution. On February 10, the court said students should stop wearing religious garments in class until it makes a final ruling on whether a school there can ban the hijab. [The New York Times, $]
Two days earlier, on February 8, about 40 students and some policemen were injured during rallies opposing and supporting the ban. Police used tear gas and wielded batons while charging at protesters. Local authorities also imposed Section 144 of India’s Criminal Procedure Code, a colonial-era law that prohibits the gathering of more than four people in one place. Moreover, hundreds of people demonstrated against the ban in Kolkata and Chennai, two of India's largest cities, and in Hyderabad. [The Straits Times 1]
Karnataka is controlled by India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and for critics of the Modi administration, the hijab ban galvanized fears about what they say is increasing persecution under the Hindu nationalist government. Government supporters counter that the college was simply trying to enforce rules on school uniforms. [The Guardian]
On February 14, the dispute over restrictions on the wearing of the Muslim headscarf reached India's most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, with a group of youngsters asking their college to ban the head covering within its compound. The state is ruled by politician-cleric Yogi Adityanath and is in the midst of a multi-phase election that ends next month. Hindu-Muslim disputes are often used for political gains in the state. [see entry above] [The Straits Times 2]
Nepal: Chief justice suspended as result of possible tit-for-tat within ruling coalition government
(lm) The chief justice of Nepal’s Supreme Court, Cholendra Shumsher Rana, was suspended on February 13 after lawmakers voted to impeach him on accusations that he removed the former prime minister and reinstated Parliament in exchange for political jobs for relatives.
Back in October, reports surfaced that the Rana had demanded a say in the distribution of posts in Prime Minister Deuba’s Cabinet, allegedly as payback for the Supreme Court’s ousting of the prime minister’s predecessor KP Sharma Oli earlier in July. He was also accused of influencing cases assigned to other judges, though he denied the allegations against him. [AiR No. 44, November/2021, 1] [The Kathmandu Post]
In light of the allegations, Nepal’s legal community, including Supreme Court justices, boycotted the bench for weeks, upending most cases, with plaintiffs forced to return home without hearings. Only when Rana agreed to support a lottery system to assign judges to cases, the apex court resumed hearings of all kinds of cases. [AiR No. 49, December/2021, 1]
Deepak Kumar Karki, the next most senior member of the Supreme Court, takes the chief justice’s place, pending a vote on impeachment, which requires the support of the main opposition Communist Party (Unified Marxist–Leninist) (CPN-UML) to reach a two-thirds majority.
The CPN-UML objected to the impeachment motion against the chief justice and threatened to impeach four justices of the Supreme Court, including Acting Chief Justice Karki, who sat on the constitutional bench and had ruled as unconstitutional Oli’s move last May to dissolve Parliament’s lower chamber for the second time and call for snap elections [see AiR No. 28, July/2021, 2]. In light of this, the vote is note expected for several weeks. [The Himalayan Times]
Timing and context of the impeachment motion, filed by as many as 98 lawmakers of Nepal’s three governing parties, assumes added significance. According to local media outlets, the move was initiated after the Maoist partners in the governing coalition – Madhav Kumar Nepal and Pushpa Kamal Dahal – agreed to support the ratification of onetime grant from the Millennium Challenge Corporation, an independent United States agency. [Nepal Live, in Nepalese] [The New York Times, $]
Last week, the assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, told Kathmandu it had until the end of the month to ratify the aid. [see entry in this edition]
Pakistan: Appeals court acquits brother convicted of ‘honor killing’ of social media star
(lm) A Pakistani appeals court on February 14 acquitted a man sentenced to life in prison in 2019 for strangling his sister, a social media star, after major witnesses retracted their testimony, prompting the acquittal. [The Straits Times]
Waseem Azeem was sentenced to life in prison in 2019 for killing Qandeel Baloch for posting what he called “shameful” pictures on Facebook. The case became Pakistan’s most high profile “honor killing” of recent years — where women are punished, or killed, by male relatives for purportedly bringing taunting and embarrassment to a family's reputation.
After Baloch’s death, Pakistan’s parliament passed an anti-honor killing law, which outlined harsher punishments and partially closed loopholes for families to pardon a convicted killer. As per the main amendment, only a judge can decide if a murder is defined as a crime of honor, which means killers have to claim a different motive to be pardoned. [Deutsche Welle]
While the siblings’ mother, who had also submitted a statement in court that she had pardoned him, welcomed Azeem’s impending release, the court’s decision has triggered uproar among human rights activists and on social media in Pakistan. [The Washington Post, $]
Pakistan: Mentally ill man accused of blasphemy stoned to death by mob; Prime Minister Khan vows action
(lm) An angry mob has stoned to death a mentally ill man in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province, after it was alleged that the victim had burned some pages of the Qur’an, in the country’s latest case of blasphemy-related violence. [South China Morning Post]
A police team that reached the village began to take the man into custody. But the mob, which included some 300 people, snatched him away and hanged his body from a tree. Some 36 assailants have so far been detained. [The Guardian]
Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the violence and said on Twitter his government had “zero tolerance for anyone taking the law into their own hands”, adding that “mob lynchings will be dealt with full severity of the law”. [Deutsche Welle]
The killing came after a woman last month was sentenced to death after being convicted of sending llegedly blasphemous messages and caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad over WhatsApp and Facebook [see AiR No. 4, January/2022, 4]. Prior to that, a Sri Lankan factory manager was beaten to death and set on fire by a mob over blasphemy in Sialkot city, also in Punjab [see AiR No. 49, December/2021, 1].
Pakistan: Hindu teacher sentenced to life imprisonment under contentious blasphemy law
(lm) A Pakistani court has sentenced a Hindu principal to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of blasphemy for insulting Islam’s Prophet Muhammad. The court took two years to convict the man who has been in jail since 2019 as an undertrial prisoner. [Hindustan Times]
The principal was arrested in September 2019 after a video went viral on social media in which a student alleged that the accused had made derogatory remarks against the Prophet. Shortly afterwards, a local leader of the Jamaat-e-ahle Sunnat – a Muslim religious organization in Pakistan – filed a complaint with the police against the teacher under Pakistan’s Penal Code. As the news spread, a protest erupted in the town and a violent mob desecrated three Hindu temple, vandalized the school and attacked houses and shops belonging to the members of the Hindu community. [AiR No. 38, September/2019, 3]
Few issues are as galvanizing in Pakistan as blasphemy, and mere allegations of an insult to Islam can cause riots. In light of this, Islamabad has long been under pressure to change the country’s blasphemy laws – a move mullahs and religious-political parties strongly resist.
Last month, a Pakistani sentenced a woman to death over allegedly blasphemous messages and caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad sent over WhatsApp and Facebook. [AiR No. 4, January/2022, 4]
Sri Lanka: Government outlaws strikes as unions cripple hospitals
(lm) Sri Lanka’s President Gotabaya Rajapaksa last week invoked a 1979 law prohibiting strikes in the health and electricity sectors after health unions ignored a court order instructing them to suspend their strike pending a hearing of a petition against their action. [The Straits Times]
More than 65,000 health workers in Sri Lanka launched an indefinite strike on February 7 protesting the government’s alleged failure to address salary anomalies and other issues. This follows a one-day strike on January 26 and other actions in the past three months. [Peoples Dispatch]
Electricity sector workers are not on strike, but they too have threatened trade union action if the government goes ahead with plans to sell a thermal power plant to a United States-based company.
The Colombo District Court on February 10 issued an Enjoining Order until February 24 on the Government Nursing Officers’ Association and its president, preventing them from engaging in a strike. But the vast majority of unions defied the court order and continued their protests. [ColomboPage]
In light of this, President Rajapaksa on February 12 invoked the Essential Public Services Act to declare electricity and all services related to health as essential services, thereby banning strikes by employees in these sectors. According to these rules, people who are found in violation could face two to five years imprisonment, fines, and possibly lose their professional credentials for taking part in such actions. [Colombo Gazette]
The continuing struggle by workers in Sri Lanka comes amid the failure of the Rajapaksa government’s policies to bring the island nation out of an acute economic crisis. On February 10, the finance ministry issued a circular to all government institutions calling on them to reduce expenditure, including on basic items such as telephone and electricity. [World Socialist Web Site]
Constitutional Law and –Politics, Human Rights and National Security in Southeast Asia
Cambodia: Political parties prepare for upcoming commune, national elections
(bs) Political parties and candidates are preparing for Cambodia’s upcoming commune elections in June, which are expected to anticipate potential results of the national elections scheduled in July 2023.
While the ruling party, the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), already has a stable internal structure, other running parties are preparing to gather supporters by revising some structural elements. For instance, the royalist party Funcinpec has elected as its new president Prince Norodom Chakravuth, son of Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the leader of the party that won the elections in 1993. At the same time, the Candlelight Party (CP), which garnered media interest due to it being a group of opposition forces from the defunct pro-human-rights Cambodia National Rescue Party, has also begun its preparations for the upcoming elections by establishing headquarters in every Cambodian province and supporting infrastructure development across the country. [Radio Free Asia] [The Diplomat]
Cambodia: Activist released after two years in jail
(bs) A Cambodian labor rights activist and supporter of the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), a major political party that supported civil freedom and human rights and that was banned in 2017, has been released from jail after serving four years and paying the fine imposed for her release.
The woman, Sam Sokha, was arrested in 2018 in Thailand and deported to Cambodia despite her refugee status where she was sentenced in absentia to two years in prison and the payment of a fine for ‘incitement’ after throwing a shoe at a poster representing the ruling party. [Amnesty International]
Sokha spent two extra years in jail after being sentenced initially to another 6 months for her inability to raise $2,460 to pay the fine for her release and, when she collected the money, for not receiving a receipt of the payment by the court. [Radio Free Asia]
Indonesia: Capital relocation plan sparks controversy over land rights, throws China-backed rail link into disarray
(bs/bp) A Chinese-backed railway project in Indonesia will be further delayed after the decision to move the Indonesian capital from Jakarta to Nusantara, in the Borneo islands.
According to the president director of the enterprise consortium in charge of the project, the capital relocation would cause the 142-kilometer high-speed railway that would link Jakarta to Bandung, in West Java, to reduce the estimated number of passengers to half the number estimated in 2017. Moreover, the consortium foresees another step back in the profit estimation, which would double to 40 years compared to the original plan for the rail line to be profitable within a 20-year period.
The relocation of the Indonesian capital has also caused other issues in terms of land rights. Several prominent figures have received allegations of allegedly benefitting from the relocation. Two businessmen have been under scrutiny after reporting their ownership over part of the land designated to the new capital. Both the men denied the accusations.
The project has also raised concerns among other groups of people, among which is the National Axis for State Sovereignty. The group filed a request to the constitutional court for a judicial review of the New Capital Law. [Inquirer]
It is estimated that the capital relocation will lead to an increase of the population of Nusantara by 10 times to about 1.9 million by 2045, as projected by the National Development Planning Agency. The agency also estimates that the surrounding regions will also increase their population to around 11 million, from the current 3.7 million, by the same year. This estimate is based on the expectation that government officials and their families will be the future population of the new capital, as they relocate away from Jakarta. [Radio Free Asia]
Indonesia: Environment Ministry rejects proposal to reclassify palm oil plantations as forest
(bs) The Indonesian Environment Ministry has rejected a proposal to reclassify oil palms as forest crops. The proposal aims at solving the issue of illegal palm oil plantations in the country, but the ministry instead stated that it will follow the government’s plan to encourage local farmers to adopt sustainable agroforestry systems in place of illegal oil palm plantations.
Meanwhile, the proposal, which came from a major forestry university in Indonesia, sparked harsh debates. Critics say that such a proposal would lead the country to support the controversial issue regarding the detrimental effects that the palm oil industry has on the environment. For instance, the European Parliament banned palm oil for biofuels in 2018 after scientific findings on the damaging effects of palm oil on biodiversity and forest ecosystems. Also, among others, palm oil has been labeled as one of the causes of increased risk of natural disasters. [The Parliament Magazine]
A similar proposal had already reached the Indonesian parliament in 2011 when the forestry minister issued a new regulation that would classify oil palm plantations as forests. The regulation was taken down after a few months following backlash claiming that the move aimed at legalizing illegal plantations in forest areas, which are strictly regulated areas and usually off-limits to clearing.
Currently, illegal oil palm plantations occupy 3.37 million hectares of forest area, according to the government. [Mongabay]
Indonesia: Police condemned for repressive acts on villagers
(bs) Indonesian police received loud condemnations for arbitrarily arresting 64 villagers during a meeting between 70 National Land Agency (BPN) and local agricultural agency officers to plan new surveys on a dam project in the area.
For the past four years, residents of the Wadas village, in Central Java, Indonesia, have allegedly been victims of a series of violent repressive acts by the authorities for protesting against the mining of an site in their village for a dam project. According to the villagers, the mining operations would have negative effects on the local environment. [The Jakarta Post]
Laos: Women rescued from forced prostitution in Chinese-run Special Economic Zone
(bs) The Lao police have rescued more than 12 women who were forced into prostitution in the Golden Triangle, a Chinese-run Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Bokeo, a province in northern Laos.
The women were originally hired as “chat girls” or barmaids, but in order to leave and resign from the contract, they were asked to pay US $3,050 each. Failing to meet the ambitious sale targets imposed by the company, the women could either pay the debt or be forced into prostitution. The Chinese employers operating in the area are also known for confiscating the ID cards and passports of their Lao employees preventing them from leaving the SEZ. Two witnesses reported that they were able to be rescued by the Lao authorities only because they took a picture of their ID cards and COVID vaccination cards prior to their arrival in the Golden Triangle. That allowed them to be found by the task force. [Radio Free Asia]
The Golden Triangle SEZ has been a drug production and smuggling area for over three decades. It is also known for other human rights violations including human trafficking, forced labor, and forced prostitution. [AiR No. 4, January/2022, 4]
Malaysia: Johor’s 16th state poll to take place on March 12
(avdv) The Johor polls will take place on March 12 with 2,597,742 eligible voters. Early voting will be possible from 8 March. [AiR, No. 6, February/2022, 2] [Free Malaysia Today 1]
750,000 new voters have been added to the already registered 1.8 million. This represents a more than 40% increase in eligible voters that is not only due to the voting age being reduced from 21 to 18 but also because there may have been a rise in voter registrations among other age groups. [Free Malaysia Today 2]
Following the announcement, Pakatan Harapan, the coalition with the biggest number of state seats, asked the government to postpone the polls due to rising Covid-19 cases. This request was equally supported by the United Malays National Organisation, the leading political party of the Barisan Nasional opposition coalition [Free Malaysia Today 3]. With the same objective, the state police announced that it will deploy a total of 16,000 officers on election day. [Malay Mail]
Malaysia: Controversial Sabah carbon credit agreement is “legally impotent”
(avdv) The controversial Sabah Nature Conservation Agreement (NCA) is “legally impotent,” said the attorney general for the state of Sabah. In fact, the agreement lacks prior consent of the indigenous peoples, who are those who will be most affected by its carbon deal projects. Leaders of local indigenous communities raised concerns over the negative environmental effects the deal might have, which would indirectly damage forest communities. [Free Malaysia Today 1] [Mongabay]
The NCA was signed for the Sabah forest by several Sabah government officials and a Singapore-based shell company, Hoch Standard, in October 2021. The NCA is controversial as it was signed in the absence of public and indigenous consultation, the latter of which is a requirement of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, officially adopted by Malaysia. [AiR, No. 6, February/2022, 2] [United Nations]
Eleven non-governmental organizations are also stepping in and demanding transparent technical and financial consultation. [New Straits Times]
While Sabah is under scrutiny, in the state of Pahang, the government has sued an environmental activist for defamation after allegations of irresponsible logging activity by the government. [Free Malaysia Today 2]
Malaysia: Civil proceeding against former prime minister suspended until criminal trial on graft charges resumes
(avdv) While the scandal involving Malaysia’s former prime minister (PM) Najib Razak in the corruption case with the Malaysian state-owned investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) is pending criminal trial, lawyers for 1MDB and Razak agreed to halt the civil proceeding until the case moves on before the criminal court. The criminal proceeding is scheduled to restart on March 14.
The United States justice department filed a lawsuit in 2016 against the fund set up in 2009 by the former PM alleging that at least US$3.5 billion were stolen from 1MDB. Also, the Malay government and 1MDB filed a lawsuit in May 2021 against Najib, through which the company seeks to receive US$8 billion for incurred damages. Najib is facing 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering for allegedly taking possession of 1MDB funds between 2011 and 2014. [Free Malaysia Today] [The Guardian]
Myanmar: Telenor might violate Norwegian law on crimes against humanity
(bs) A network of Norwegian civil society groups demanded that the police investigate alleged crimes against humanity by Norwegian-based telecommunication company Telenor over its sale plan of its Myanmar subsidiary which would allow the company to provide the military junta with sensitive data of its customers. The plan has also been petitioned by activists and civil society groups in Myanmar urging the Norwegian government to oppose the Telenor Group’s sale to a military-linked company. [Global Voices]
Telenor Group’s telecommunication plan might be in violation of Chapter 16 of the Norwegian Penal Code on genocide and crimes against humanity, according to the civil society network, the Norwegian Forum for Development and Environment (ForUM). A ForUM’s advisor shared concerns as the junta might have already intensified its repression against those who were revealed to be its opponents from the data Telenor has provided.
The case, if brought further ahead and the charges are founded, might find Norway liable for complicity in crimes against humanity, a Norwegian judge said.
Meanwhile, a Telenor’s representative justified the group’s activity by calling upon the risk for its employees in case of non-compliance with the junta’s demands and the current legal framework in Myanmar. In fact, although the junta’s request for customer’s personal data finds its legal basis in Article 77 of the 2013 Myanmar’s Telecommunications Law, which dictates that the government can suspend services, intercept communications, and temporarily control services in “emergency situations,” Telenor reported concerns over the junta’s alleged use of torture to obtain sensitive data from political detainees. [AiR No. 6, February/2022, 2] [Myanmar Now 1]
On the same legal basis, the military has been imposing communication and electricity blackouts during armed clashes and attacks across the state. This way, the junta would allow only strictly controlled military-owned telecommunication providers in the affected area. Since the February 1 coup in 2021, the junta has imposed internet and communication service blackouts in 22 townships across three regions and two states. [Myanmar Now 2]
In parallel, the military government has also been pushing to increase the price of mobile data limiting access to the internet in an attempt to reduce online communication between political dissidents, consequently reducing the number of rallies or anti-junta protests. Moreover, in order to impose further control on online activities, the government has been pushing to pass a new Cybersecurity Law that would carry a three-year jail sentence and a fine for those who use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) software to surf the internet anonymously and bypassing location-firewalls. [AiR No. 5, February/2022, 1] [Aljazeera]
Myanmar: National rights groups call out junta for crimes against humanity
(bs) Two rights groups in Myanmar, the Karenni Human Rights Group (KnHRG) and the Network for Human Rights Documentation – Burma (ND-Burma), condemned the escalation of violence in Kayah state in eastern Myanmar and found evidence of crimes against humanity and war crimes perpetrated by the military junta.
In their report, the groups urged the international community to take immediate action and hold the Myanmar military junta accountable for crimes against humanity, and to prosecute the coup leader, Min Aung Hlaing, for mass crimes including genocide before the International Criminal Court. The report also asked for full accountability of other high-level officials for widespread human rights violations.
Addressing the Thai government, the groups requested that Thailand ensures temporary refugee centers, to allow the flow of humanitarian assistance for displaced people, and to “adhere to the principle of non-refoulment and work closely with local organizations in the provision of aid, and services.”
The Myanmar military has been the perpetrator of violence, atrocities, and rights repression across the country for over 70 years. From the persecution and alleged genocide of the Rohingya Muslim minority to the escalation of abuses and violence against pro-democracy activists and political dissidents, the junta has violated several international laws. The situation worsened from February 1, 2021, when the junta arrested senior members of the democratic party, the winner of the 2020 general elections, and took over power by the means of a violent coup. Since then, there were 7,686 clashes and attacks against civilians across the country killing over 1,500 people. The junta has also arrested over 8,000 people mostly during nonviolent anti-military protests and jailed about 115 journalists, of whom 44 are still in jail. [AiR No. 6, February/2022, 2] [Progressive Voice of Myanmar "The World Must Know"]
Myanmar: Amnesty to 814 prisoners granted on country’s union day while others face arrest
(bs) Myanmar’s military chief has granted amnesty to 814 prisoners on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Union Day which marks the end of British colonial rule in 1947. [Aljazeera]
The government has not released any information in regard to the potential release of anti-junta protesters and of an Australian economics professor who was arrested a few days after the February coup while working as an advisor for former democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Meanwhile, the State Administration Council announced that the former Kayin State Chief Minister has had jail sentence reduced to half the original 80-year sentence thanks to a partial pardon. [Eleven Media Group]
Former Kayin State Chief Minister Daw Nang Khin Htwe Myint was sentenced to 80 years for anti-corruption law and Section 505(b) of the Penal Code for inciting unrest.
The military junta overthrew the democratic leader and her pro-democracy government on February 1, 2021, killing over 1,500 civilians in violent crackdowns and incarcerating more than 12,000 people for anti-military protests since then. [DW]
Only a few days after the Union Day’s celebration, a Burmese filmmaker was arrested for inciting employees to join anti-junta protests. [Deadline]
Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), an international non-profit and non-governmental organization in the protection of the right to freedom of information, called for the immediate release of the co-founder of Media Top 4, a Myanmar news outlet, arrested on February 3, only two days after the first coup’s anniversary. His arrest rose the number of current media workers arrested in Myanmar to 60. [Reporters Without Borders]
Myanmar: Over 100 children killed by military government since February 2021
(bs) At least 114 children between 3 and 17 years of age have been killed by Myanmar’s military junta since the coup in February 2021, according to a United Nations Secretary spokesperson. In January 2022 alone, the junta’s army killed 18 children. The last victim was a 13-year-old boy who died after being hit by an artillery shell fired by military forces while fleeing with his family from the junta troops approaching his village in the eastern Chin State. [Myanmar Now]
Myanmar: As number of displaced people doubles, military government receives more humanitarian aid
(bs) Myanmar is set to receive more humanitarian help from international organizations and states as the number of internally displaced people increased from about 400,000 to 800,000 since the February coup, which marked the beginning of year-long violence and repression by the military government.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNCHR) has committed to maintaining its presence in Myanmar by continuing to provide humanitarian assistance to all displaced people, maintaining basic safeguards, enhancing advocacy to fundamental rights, improving coping strategies, and preventing forced returns to the country. According to the refugee agency, adequate humanitarian assistance and support would cost approximately US$56.7 million. [UNCHR]
The government of Japan has also committed to providing a US$18.5 million fund for emergency food and humanitarian assistance for the people of Myanmar, specifically those in the Rakhine, Kachin, Chin, and Shan states. [Mizzima]
According to a bi-monthly report published on February 13 by the Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN), a women’s organization for the support of displaced people from the Shan ethnic minority, nearly 7,000 people have displaced between December 2021 and January 2022 due to deadly clashes only in Shan state, among whom 200 were children. [SWAN]
Myanmar: UN Special Envoy statement under scrutiny
(bs) The United Nations (UN) Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Myanmar Noeleen Heyzer has clarified her statement released on February 2 where she encouraged Myanmar parties to negotiate with the military, which is “in control,” after being condemned by civil society organizations for backing the violent means through which Myanmar’s junta took power over the country in February 2021 and not acknowledging the atrocities it has committed ever since.
Heyzer regretted the ‘misunderstanding’ that followed her use of the term “power-sharing” in an interview talking about potential solutions to the Myanmar crisis. She clarified that by “power-sharing she meant that while the junta must take part in the peace process, it cannot be the leading force of it, being it led by Myanmar’s people who have been the main victims of the ongoing crisis. [Democratic Voice of Burma] [Mizzima]
Myanmar: Clashes between army and local militias claimed several deaths
(bs) New clashes with the Arakan Army, a Rakhine ethnic armed group in the Rakhine State, western Myanmar, caused the death of several junta soldiers, while others were captured. The junta military troops were in the region to conduct investigations on the alleged presence of Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) fighters, an armed group of Rohingya people, who smuggle arms and drugs in the area. [Irrawaddy]
The Rakhine State is notorious for a large presence of the Rohingya Muslim ethnic group and a Buddhist ethnic Rakhine majority, which led to a decades-long conflict. In 2017 over 740,000 Rohingya Muslims were forced to flee the country after being victims of persecution by the military. Moreover, rights groups have also accused soldiers of committing war crimes against the Arakan Army. [Mizzima]
Meanwhile, the tension between the military and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) intensifies in Kachin State, northern Myanmar, as the former escalates the use of airstrikes. While the targets are members of the KIA and the People’s Defence Force (PDF), civilians often fall victims to the attacks and are forced to flee the area and take refuge in the forest. [AiR No. 6, February/2022, 2] [Myanmar Now]
The junta has also carried out airstrikes on eight villages in Sagaing Region, in North-West Myanmar, arbitrarily arresting 70 people, including elders and children, and forcing 17,000 people to flee to the forest and neighboring villages [Myanmar now]. Five days later, 100 junta soldiers raided another village in Sagaing Region setting ablaze 20 houses and damaging several others. [Myanmar Now] The military has also killed 38 people in four townships across the region during a ten-day raid against the PDF militia and its civilian supporters. [Radio Free Asia]
Tension is also felt in the Karen State, southern Myanmar, where the Karen National Union (KNU), a political organization of the Karen people, warned junta staff, and members and families of military allies to leave the territory administered by KNU. The group has also warned locals to avoid any cooperation with the junta forces. [Myanmar Now]
The Myanmar junta, meanwhile, fired an artillery shell on a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Karenni State, in the northeastern part of the country, injuring one person and destroying several shelters. [Myanmar Now]
The Philippines: Presidential election campaign kicks off
(bs) The Philippines’ presidential campaign began on February 8, with promises of economic recovery, corruption fight, political unity, and healthcare improvement.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has imposed a set of rules that both candidates and supporters must respect during the three-month campaign scheduled from February 8 to May 7. Among other rules, the candidates must secure a permit from the Comelec before organizing campaign gatherings. The Comelec reiterated that the rules were drafted in light of the current Covid-19 situation to ensure safety for everyone. [Manila Bulletin 1] [Manila Bulletin 2]
Another set of rules was drafted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) which called on all candidates to run an environmentally-conscious campaign by, for instance, refraining from posting election material on trees, reducing waste, and encouraging the use of recyclable and environmentally-friendly material. The DENR also reminded candidates and supporters that any violation will be punished with six months to two years in jail and a monetary fine. [Manila Bulletin 3]
Similar to the 2016 election, the citizens have already begun an intense online election battle, where supporters gathered in teams and attacked their opponents on social media platforms. [Reuters]
The Philippines: Election body dismisses bids to disqualify Marcos
(bs) The Philippines’ Commission on Elections (Comelec) has dismissed three petitions for “lack of merit”, that sought to disqualify presidential candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr. from the presidential race scheduled for May 9.
The opposition filed the petitions arguing that Marcos Jr., son of the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos, would violate Section 253 of the National Internal Revenue Code by running in the presidential elections as he has yet to serve his sentence on tax payment ordered in 1995 or failing to file tax returns while being a public officer from 1982 to 1985. According to the law, “a government official who violates the tax code would be dismissed from the public service and perpetually disqualified from holding any public office, to vote and to participate in any election.” [AiR No. 2, January/2022, 2]
However, the commission ruled in favor of Marcos Jr. on the basis that the former senator has already won several elections in the past. It also reasoned that the penalty, being introduced after Marcos’ violations, cannot be applied retroactively. [Channel News Asia] [The Diplomat]
The case has sparked debates since the beginning of the year. In one of the meetings, the Comelec's First Division’s presiding Commissioner voted in favor of the petitions seeking to disqualify Marcos Jr., which was immediately followed by a group of petitioners requesting for partial reconsideration of the decision citing “possible grave abuse of discretion” and accusing the commission to be biased. [AiR No. 5, February/2022, 1]
Marcos’ candidacy was also objected by groups of former political prisoners and civil society, which feared the return to power of the family that ruled a dictatorship in the Philippines from 1965 to 1986 and thus a return of martial law and human rights violations in the country. [AiR No. 6, February/2022, 2]
The Philippines: Clashes with terrorist group kills two minors
(bs) Armed clashes between a group of terrorists from the Communist New People’s Army, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, and troops of the Philippines’ army resulted in four deaths, including two members of the terrorist group and two 12 and 13-year-old civilians. The deadly encounter happened in Northern Samar, in the Eastern Visayas region.
A task force sent to assess the area stated that it will file the case against the perpetrators for firing civilians and allegedly killing two children. [Manila Bulletin]
Singapore: Members of parliament to be criminally persecuted for lying while on duty
(avdv/bs) The parliamentary committee said that Pritam Singh, leader of the Opposition and Workers’ Party, might be criminally persecuted and charged with perjury for having played a “key and leading role” in the case of Member of the Parliament (MP) Raeesah Khan, a member of the former Workers’ Party (WP) who lied in the parliament in November 2021. The Committee of Privileges also advised bringing Singh’s case before the public prosecutor for a criminal investigation.
The committee’s report was presented to the parliament on February 10 and is pending a vote. The report alleges that WP’s leader Pritam Singh is the mastermind behind Khan’s lie which makes him a potential target for public prosecution and might lead him to receive a harsher sentence. In his defense, Singh stated that Khan has mental health issues and that her declaration is “a bare lie”. [AsiaOne] [The Straits Times 1]
Singh was also found guilty of lying in a parliamentary committee hearing where he said to have advised Ms. Khan to set the record straight in Parliament.
Under Section 31 of the Parliament Act, it is a criminal offense to "willfully make a false answer to any question material to the subject of inquiry put during examination before Parliament or a committee." Against such offense, the parliament itself has the power to impose sanctions, or it can refer the case to a public prosecutor.
On November 1, 2021, Khan resigned from her position as MP and admitted to lying in parliament about accompanying a sexual assault victim to the police station claiming that the police mishandled the case. [AiR No. 49, December/2021, 1]
Two other WP members, the chairman and vice-chair, also face potential prosecution. The chairman’s cooperation may save her from further sentencing, while the vice-chair’s refusal thereof led the committee to conclude that Khan’s declarations were lies. [The Straits Times 2]
Singapore: Trade and Industry Minister reveals plan of investments in space program
(avdv) The Trade and Industry Minister announced the government’s plan of a $112-million investment in the enhancement of Singapores’ space industry and space research in the framework of the Space Technology Development Programme.
The Singaporean space sector includes more than 50 companies and employs more than 1800 professionals. This sector also constitutes a critical role for leadership in other tech sectors, such as aviation and maritime industries. [Ministry Trade and Industry] [Today]
Thailand: Petition to expulse Amnesty gathers 1.2 million signatures
(ay/bp) A petition that seeks the expulsion of human rights organization Amnesty International from Thailand has gathered 1.2 million signatures and will be submitted this week to the National Security Council and the Interior Ministry next week.
Ultra-royalist groups have been moving numerous complaints accusing the organization of fomenting national instability by urging the government to stop filing criminal charges against those who advocate reform of the monarchy. The organization has been accused of being biased and of supporting anti-government movements. [VOA Thai, in Thai]
Amnesty, in a statement on February 11, said that although it recognizes the duty of the Thai government in maintaining national peace and stability, it also emphasizes the need for the Thai government to act in accordance with the international human rights law.
The movement to expel Amnesty International gained momentum after it publicly supported three pro-democracy leaders whose actions the Constitutional Court viewed as attempts to overthrow the monarchy in a ruling in November. Rights groups, including Amnesty, became vocal in their criticism of the Thai approach to political protesters as the ruling could have had the three activists charged with treason, which carries life imprisonment and potentially the death penalty [see AiR No. 46, November/2021, 3]. Amnesty then organized a rally in front of Government House on November 25 to ask the government to reform the lèse-majesté law, a royal defamation law that criminalizes defamation, insult, or threatening of the royal family. [Bangkok Post]
The government has also taken indirect action against Amnesty International by attempting to pass legislation governing non-profit organizations, requiring them to disclose mission statements and funding sources and prohibiting them from engaging in activities deemed as “harmful to national security or social harmony” [see AiR No. 2, January/2022, 2].
Since the crackdown on the anti-government protests, more than 1,700 activists are facing charges of disrupting national security, and at least 169 are charged under the lèse-majesté law facing sentences to up to 15 years in prison. [Euro News]
Thailand: Courts approved release on bail of anti-government protest leaders
(kc) On 10 and 11 February, the Bangkok South Criminal Court and Ayutthaya Provincial Court approved the temporary release of two prominent pro-democracy protest leaders, who have been sued over offenses against the lèse-majesté law. [Thai PBS, in Thai]
The court barred them from attending rallies and traveling aboard and said they must retain a curfew, and wear electronic bracelets. Judges stated the verdict based on the request for temporary release and the behavior of the other protesters who were previously released on bail. [Thai Lawyers for Human Rights 1, in Thai]
According to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), a national human rights group, over ten people remain incarcerated for their involvement in political demonstrations over the past two years. [Thai Lawyers for Human Rights 2, in Thai]
Thailand: Progressive party pushes for constitutional amendment on Prime Minister election
(ay) The opposition Pheu Thai Party is pushing for a constitutional amendment that would require the prime minister to be elected by members of parliament (MP).
The party has prepared three constitutional amendments, among which one aims at reforming the prime ministerial candidacy, meaning that only MPs whose party is represented in the House of Representatives will be eligible for the prime minister post. The bill also foresees that in case of loss or revocation of the prime minister’s MP status, and the ensuing loss of premiership, the entire cabinet will not have to resign. [Bangkok Post]
The second amendment bill would eliminate all conditions for denying bail to criminal suspects when they are not a flight risk. The third amendment introduces compulsory public hearings for projects that have the potential to harm the environment or human health. [Bangkok Post] [Khoasod in Thai]
Thailand: Prime Minister’s assistant sets up a reserve party
(kc) On 7 February, Mr. Seksakon Atthawong, assistant minister to the Prime Minister’s Office and founder of the “Ruam Thai Sang Chart Party” revealed that he has planned to offered Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to lead the party in case the Prime Minister would continue to face pressure from the the ruling Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP). [Bangkok Post]
He also confirmed his party would nominate Prayuth as Prime Minister candidate in the next election if the PPRP would not do so. [BBC Thai, in Thai]
Thailand: Coalition party boycotts cabinet meeting to oppose Skytrain contract extension
(kc) On 8 February, all seven ministers from the Bhumjaithai Party (BJT), the second largest ruling coalition party, did not attend the cabinet meeting in a move to oppose the Bangkok Skytrain contract extension for a publicly listed 'BTS' company, stating that the extension did not comply with regulations, and good governance. [Bangkok Post 1] [Manager Online 1, in Thai]
The party leader said that by abstaining from voting in the cabinet meeting, the ministers would be saved from eventual criminal accountability in case the proposal is passed and results in a criminal case. Nonetheless, the leader renewed the party’s support to the current prime minister’s administration despite acting out his party’s dissent over the Skytrain contract extension. In the same interview, he also denied that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had asked for his help in a House scrutiny debate led by opposition groups. [Bangkok Post 2]
In April 2019, Gen. Prayut in his capacity as head of now-dissolved the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) transferred the concession of the Skytrain project in Samut Prakan Province, which was formerly owned by the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA) to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA). There are significant concerns that if the government approves the extension of the contract, the BMA could unfairly transfer the concession to the BTS company in exchange for their debts. [Manager Online 2, in Thai] [Bangkok Biz, in Thai]
Thailand: Candidate in Bangkok’s gubernatorial race asked anti-corruption body to probe his wealth
(bs) Democrat Party candidate in Bangkok’s gubernatorial election Suchatvee Suwansawat has requested in a petition to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) to probe his wealth after being accused of unusual wealth and malfeanance in January. He has denied all the charges and asked his wealth to be scrutinized in order to prove his innocence.
The accusation, from an anonymous party, came after, in December 2021, the NACC released information on a list of assets and debts owned by Suchatvee urging him to declare the information upon resigning from his position as a rector of King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang. Suchtavee then declared 141.72 million baht ($4.4 million) of assets. [Bangkok Post]
Thailand: Police accused of torture in drug case
(bs) The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) has received formal accusations against 13 police officers, including the deputy chief investigator, to have tortured four members of a family during interrogations on a drug case in 2007. The police officers are accused of attempted murder, attempted robbery, and freedom deprivation to minors.
The activist lawyer chairman of the Crime Victims Assistance Club, also a supporter of the filed complaint, said that when the police could not find drugs in the family’s house, they took them to a nearby petrol station and allegedly tortured all family members with eclectic shock and by covering their heads with plastic bags before being taken to a police station. Soon after the event, the police announced to have found drugs near the fence of the house. The family members always claimed their innocence. [Bangkok Post]
Timor-Leste: Ministry of Justice formalized country’s candidacy to UN Human Rights Council
(bs) Timor-Leste has formalized its intention to become a member of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council for the period 2024-2026 by presenting its candidacy. This is the first time Timor-Leste has presented its candidacy to the Human Rights Council after regaining national independence in 2002.
The country is now waiting for the board’s decision, which is scheduled for 2023.
The UN Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body for the promotion and protection of human rights across the world. It is made of 47 states which are elected by the UN General Assembly for three years. [OHCHR] [Tatoli]
Timor-Leste: Mobility agreement with Portuguese-speaking country community to be ratified
(bs) The government of Timor-Leste has approved the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation’s proposal to ratify a mobility agreement with the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP). The proposal will then be sent back to the parliament for final approval.
The agreement aims at facilitating the mobility of citizens of its member states within the CPLP’s space. [E-Global, in Portuguese]
Vietnam: Amidst increased religion-based crimes priest killer found mentally ill
(kc) The Vietnamese police concluded that the drug-addicted man who stabbed a Vietnamese Dominican priest to death during a religious ritual on 29 January had a mental illness. [The Tablet]
A member and commissioner of the United States (US) International Religious Freedom committee in the Department of State claimed that physical violence against people of religion that resist government control has increased over the past two years, resulting from established hate speech and defamation. The US Commission designated Vietnam as a country of particular concern in relation to the freedom to practice religions despite the country's adoption of a new Law in 2018 that improved religious freedom. [Radio Free Asia]
Vietnam has been targeting Protestants in its Central Highlands area, imprisoning over 500 Protestants since 2000 for undermining national unity and plotting to overthrow the government. A state-controlled newspaper also released several articles targeting the prominent Church of Christ in the same area. The US government also estimated that around 8% of Vietnamese are Roman Catholic or Protestant, a number that is rapidly increasing. [U.S. Department of State]
Vietnam: Third activist for tax evasion arrrested
(kc) On February 9, Vietnamese state media reported that prominent Vietnamese environmentalist Nguy Thi Khanh was arrested on tax evasion charges.
Ms. Khanh is a pioneer advocate for the environmental movements in Vietnam as she founded the Green Innovation and Development Centre (GreenID) to promote sustainable energy development in Southeast Asia, which played a crucial role in precluding new coal plants from the 2030 national energy plan. [Goldman Environmental Foundation]
The woman is the third person to be arrested for tax evasion in one month. In January two other people were jailed on the same charges. However, the Paris-based Vietnam Committee on Human Rights stated the Vietnamese authorities have arrested these people allegedly to halt the creation of an advisory group that would have “enabled activists to be independent civil society representatives in accordance with the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).” [Radio Free Asia]
International Relations, Geopolitics and Security in Asia
US emphasizes alliances and partnerships to counter China in Indo-Pacific strategy
(dql) Long awaited, the US on Friday, February 11, unveiled its strategy for the Indo-Pacific laying out at its core a broad-ranging blueprint to counter and push back China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific and presenting “ten core lines of effort in the next 12 to 24 months,” which revolves mainly around building and strengthening alliances, partnerships and cooperation in diplomacy, security, trade and technology with countries in “every corner of the region.”
The strategy paper highlights ASEAN’s role as one of the region’s “premier organizations,” and pledges that the “US will work with ASEAN go build its resilience as a leading regional institution,” adding that opportunities for cooperation between the Quad and ASEAN will be explored and “closer ties between South Asian partners and ASEAN” will be supported.
Reflecting attempts to fill a gap with regards to a consistent US trade policy in the region, the strategy document announces that the US will “put forward an Indo-Pacific economic framework – a multilateral partnership for the 21st century.” The US is currently neither party to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership – a trade agreement among the Asia-Pacific nations of Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam – nor of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, trade agreement among Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. [The White House, USA] [Reuters] [AP News]
China, accused in the paper of “coercion and aggression” that “spans the globe, but it is most acute in the Indo-Pacific,” “economic coercion of Australia,” and “bullying of neighbors in the East and South China Seas,” condemned the strategy for “resurrect[ing] the Cold War mentality and bloc politics,” that “has nothing new and no future, but will only bring division and turbulence to the Asia-Pacific,” forecasting that it will be met with the regional countries’ “vigilance and rejection.” [Ministry of Foreign Affairs, China]
State-run media outlet Global Times cited Chinese experts calling the strategy “a ridiculous Biden administration fantasy filled with deceptive actions to tie Asian countries to its anti-China chariot to stir up regional turbulences.” [Global Times]
The US Indo-Pacific strategy was revealed as US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken was on this Pacific trip and announced Saturday, February 12, during a virtual meeting with 18 Pacific Island leaders that the US plans to reopen its embassy on the Solomon Islands after 29 years after Washington downgraded its diplomatic with the South Pacific state. The is move widely seen as in line with the strategy’s aim to counter China’s influence in the Pacific region. [The Guardian]
In November, the Solomon Islands experienced violent riots against the government triggered over discontent over broken promises for more inclusive politics while Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, accused by political rivals of serving China’s interests, survived a non-confidence vote [see AiR No. 49, December/2021, 1].
In September 2019, the Solomon Islands severed its ties with Taiwan to establish diplomatic relations with China [see AiR No. 38, September/2019, 3].
Foreign ministers of the Quad meet in Australia, address Indo-Pacific ‘coercion’, climate, COVID-19
(lm) Foreign ministers from the four-nation Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) – the United States, Australia, Japan and India – pledged on February 11 to deepen cooperation to ensure the Indo-Pacific region was free from “coercion”, a thinly veiled reference to China’s growing economic and military presence. Meeting in the Australian city of Melbourne, the four top diplomats also promised to increase cooperation on climate change, COVID-19, cybercrime, and counterterrorism. [Reuters] [South China Morning Post]
The Quad has gained momentum in recent years as all four countries have seen a rapid deterioration of relations with China over a wide range of issues, including territorial disputes, human rights and the origins of the coronavirus. Beijing, for its part, denounced the informal grouping as “exclusive”, saying it was “doomed to fail”, when leaders of the Quad met for their first in-person summit in September last year in Washington [see AiR No. 39, September/2021, 4].
Although the Quad countries touted their shared interests, last week’s session unfolded against the backdrop of several world crises on which they don’t see eye to eye, most notably Russia’s military buildup on the border with Ukraine.
Prior to the Quad summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on February 4 announced the partnership of the two nations had “no limits”, their most detailed and assertive statement to work together – and against the United States – to build a new international order based on their own interpretations of human rights and democracy. [AiR No. 6, February/2022, 2]
Having deep historical ties and a strong defence relationship with both the former Soviet Union and now Russia, India diverged from the other members on the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine, instead preferring the Quad focus on Indo-Pacific issues and avoid any agenda that might damage its relationship with Moscow. [AiR No. 4, January/2022, 4]
In light of this, the main goal of the foreign ministers was to display unity, resolve and collective strength. Washington, in particular, was keen to signal that it is committing to bolstering its presence across Asia — and to competition with China – despite crises in Ukraine and elsewhere in the world. Australia was only the first of three stops for Secretary of State Blinken, who was also scheduled to meet with foreign officials in Fiji and Hawaii. [The New York Times, $]
The Quad foreign ministers also voiced support for small island states, especially those in the Pacific, to enhance their economic and environmental resilience. Additionally, they signaled their intent to strengthen collaboration on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. This is a return to the group’s 2004 origins, when the four countries first came together to respond to the Indian Ocean tsunami. [The Conversation]
Russia, United States to take part in India’s MILAN naval exercise amidst Ukraine standoff
(lm) Amid rising tensions over Russia’s military buildup near Ukraine, both Moscow and the United States have confirmed their participation in India’s biggest-ever maritime exercise, MILAN 2022, to be held from February 26 to March 4. However, it is yet not clear if both countries will be sending in their ships or will be participating with naval representatives. [The Times of India]
A total of 46 countries have been invited to join the maritime exercise, which was scheduled to take place in 2020 but later cancelled due to the unfolding coronavirus pandemic. For the first time, exercise MILAN is being held in Visakhapatnam, on the Bay of Bengal. [The Hindu]
China fails to meet purchase targets of Phase One deal with the US
(xh) On Tuesday, February 8, the US Census Bureau declared that China did not meet the commitments it had made in the so-called Phase One trade deal, by only reaching the 57% of the purchasing goals, adding that the US’s goods trade deficit with China in 2021 rose by $45 billion, or 14.5%, to $355.3 billion, the largest since a 2018 record of $418.2 billion. In 2020 the deficit stood at US$310.3 billion, a 10-year low due to coronavirus pandemic lockdowns.
In 2020, China and the US under President Donald Trump signed the Phase One deal that called for Beijing to increase its purchases of US goods, energy, and services by US$200 billion more than in 2017 when the trade war begun. Also, China was expected to give the US more access to the Chinese market and to improve its intellectual property protection. [Asia Financial]
In response to this data, the Biden administration announced a potential new tariff probe as well as joint actions with allies if Beijing continues to fail to reach the purchase targets. [Reuters]
US President Biden in January announced that he will not lift the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration for the time being citing China’s failure to fulfil its purchase commitments made under the deal. [AiR No. 4, January/2022, 4]
US red-flags Chinese SMEE and other semi-conductor companies
(xh) On Monday, February 7, the US Commerce Department added Shanghai Microelectronics (SMEE) and other 33 companies to its export watch list, making it necessary for US companies to obtain a license in order to export chips and other semi-conductor products to those companies.
The listing of SMEE might be seen as a strategic move aimed to hinder China’s technological advancement in the semiconductor sector as SMEE is currently the only Chinese company believed to able to produce advanced chips. [South China Morning Post]
Lithuania and Australia agree to strategic cooperation to counter China as Beijing halts beef import from the Baltic state
(xh/dql) On Wednesday, February 9, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis and his Australian counterpart Marise Payne met in Canberra to discuss strategic cooperation to face the “Chinese coercion”, with both agreeing on the importance of cooperation between like-minded countries that share “a consistent approach to maintaining the international rules-based order, free and open trade, transparency, security and stability.” In a press conference following the meeting he accused China of using trade as weapon. [AP News] [The Sydney Morning Herald]
The meeting with Payne was part of Landsbergis’s visit to Australia during which he also opened Lithuania’s first embassy in Australia in more than 31 years of bilateral ties. [AP News] [The Sydney Morning Herald]
On the same day, China suspended beef import from Lithuania without providing a reason for the move which is widely seen as latest retaliation against Baltic state’s decision last year to break diplomatic custom and allow Taiwan to open a representative office with “Taiwan” in its name instead of usual “Taipei”. [Al Jazeera]
For an account of the development of Lithuania’s and Australia’s encounter with China’s “economic coercion” that brought the two countries closer to each other, see [The Diplomat].
Meanwhile, China agreed last week to hold consultation with the European Union at World Trade Organization (WTO) after the European Commission in late January launched a WTO case against Beijing over what it views as “discriminatory trade practices” against Lithuania, referring to goods, both from the Baltic nation and from EU companies that use Lithuanian components, held up at China’s borders. [South China Morning Post] [AiR No. 5, February/2022, 1]
China supports Argentina’s claim over the Falkland Islands
(xh) On Sunday, February 6, Chinese President Xi and Argentinian President Fernandez met in Beijing on the sideline of the ongoing Winter Olympics. In the joint statement released after the meeting, China vowed to back Argentina’s claim over the British Falkland Islands, while Argentina reaffirmed to uphold China’s claim over Taiwan. Furthermore, the two countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) over Argentina joining the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Argentina is the 21st country from Latin America and the Caribbean to join China’s global infrastructure development strategy and program. [EurAsian Times]
This comes after in early February, state-owned China National Nuclear Corp (CNNC) signed a contract with Argentina to build a US$8 billion nuclear power plant near Lima, reflecting another effort of Beijing to expand its influence in the region. [Reuters]
The UK firmly rejected the China’s statement on the Falkland Islands, calling on China to respect the British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, which are considered as a self-governing territory under British protection. Argentina strongly believes that the Malvinas Islands (Argentinian name for the Falklands) were illegally taken from the South American country in 1833. [ABC News]
For a brief historical of foundations of Argentina’s accession to the BRI over the past few years under Fernandez’s predecessor, see Marc Lantaigne in [The Diplomat] who also mentions that in 2016, a Chinese boat was sunk by the Argentinian coast guard due to Chinese fishing activities near Argentinian waters.
Meanwhile, a new Chinese study showed that China’s BRI investments in public health construction increased by 246% last year (from US$130 million to US$450 million) due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since the beginning of this initiative, the BRI has mainly focused on infrastructure projects in 144 countries but when Covid-19 started to spread around, the global crisis called for more investments in the health sector. China announced repeatedly that one of its goals is to fill in the role as world leader in the fight against coronavirus, which hit harder on developing countries. The top recipient of Chinese investments in 2021 was Iraq with investments about US$10.5 billion. [South China Morning Post]
EU to counter China’s BRI in Africa
(xh/dql) In what is widely seen as a move to rival China’s Belt and Road Initiative, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday, February 10, unveiled at a press conference in the Senegalese capital Dakar an investment plan in Africa worth €150 billion in Africa, adding that her goal was to make Europe the continent's biggest and "most reliable" partner.
The investment plan is part the European Union's Global Gateway, an investment blueprint that aims at mobilizing up to €300 billion for public and private infrastructure projects to be implemented around the world by 2027. It was announced by von der Leyen in December. [RFI] [AiR No. 49, December/2021, 1]
In a related, lates development, the European Union is reported working on financial package totaling €20 billion to support African transport networks, as well as energy, digital, education and health projects. It also covers strategic corridors and international submarine cables, along with new energy interconnections and investments in renewable sources in Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Morocco and Kenya. The plan is pending commitment of EU members states. [Bloomberg Quint]
At the 8th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in November in Dakar, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that China will provide African countries with $40 billion in investment, credit lines, trade finance as well as special drawing rights. At the last two FOCAC 2015 and 2018 China had provided $60 billion respectively [see AiR No. 49, December/2021, 1].
Japan aligns with US and EU over Ukraine
(dql) Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and his US counterpart Antony Blinken met on Friday, February 11, in Australia on the sidelines of the meeting of the Quad foreign ministers to discuss current security issues, thereby demonstration unity.
Both expressed grave concern over the Russian military build-up and drills near Ukraine’s border. They also reaffirmed their opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East and South China seas, and to deepen the US-Japan security alliance to counter Beijing’s growing military and economic influence in the Indo-Pacific region. [Kyodo News]
The meeting comes shortly after Japan’s Industry Ministry announced on February 9 that Japan will provide part of its liquefied natural gas imports to Europe, beginning in March.
The announcement came on the heels of separate requests from the European Union and the US and reflects Japan’s alignment with the West which is currently facing tensions with Russia over Ukraine and prepare for potential energy supply disruptions in Europe in the event of a Russian invasion in Ukraine. [Reuters]
In a related, latest development, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and European Commission President Ursula von der Leye agreed in a phone talk Tuesday, February 15, to coordinate closely on efforts to ease tensions over Ukraine. Bothe leaders reaffirmed their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
On the same day, Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi announced that Tokyo considers sanctions as a possible option for a response to an Russian attack on Ukraine saying that Japan “will respond appropriately to the actual situation by coordinating with the international community, including imposing sanctions." [Mainichi]
Japan-US relations: Steel tariffs cut
(dql) Japan and the US reached an agreement under which Washington will suspend tariffs on incoming steel imports from Japan up to annually 1.25 million metric tons, effective from April 1. Imports beyond that cap will still subjected to additional 25% tariff charges.
The agreement ends a metals dispute that started in 2018, when former US President Donald Trump imposed duties on steel and aluminium from Japan, citing risks to national security. [The New York Times]
Japan, UK agree on joint research on fighter jet sensor
(dql) On Tuesday, February 15, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced the signing of a letter of arrangement with Japan to cooperate on research for a fighter jet sensor that would allow the military to better detect lethal threats from air, land and sea, to quickly and accurately locate targets and to deny surveillance technology operated by adversaries. The joint project’s launch is scheduled for Aril. [Reuters]
Japan: International Atomic Energy Agency begins review of release plans for treated radioactive water
(dql) On Monday, February 14, a 15-member team from the International Atomic Energy Agency arrived began its five-day mission on reviewing Japan's plan to begin releasing over one million tons of treated radioactive water into the sea from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant.
Last year, Tokyo announced its plans of the water release scheduled spring 2023 following further treatment and dilution. The announcement prompt strong objections from fishermen and local residents as well as from neighboring China and South Korea. [VoA]
Inter-Korean relations: Seoul and US agree on end of war wording
(dql) South Korean President Moon Jae-in revealed in an interview on Thursday, February 10, that South Korea and the United States have reached an agreement on the wording of a declaration to formally end the Korean War, adding that it would be unlike that such a declaration would be reached by the end of his term in May.
As the Korean War ended in 1953 not with a peace treaty, but with an armistice, South and North Korea are still technically at war. According to Moon the end of war declaration “signifies a process to promote mutual trust and a move toward denuclearization and the institutionalization of peace on the Korean Peninsula,” and at the same time put an “end hostile relations.” [Yonhap News Agency]
Moon also added that he was ready to hold an inter-Korean summit without prerequisites in whatever format North Korea wants, reflecting Seoul’s earnest to reach a breakthrough in the current impasse of peace and de-nuclearization talks. [AA]
Moon’s statement comes as North Korea launched seven rounds of missile test in January [see AiR No. 5, February/2022, 1], signalling a muscular-assertive stance towards the US and South Korea, leaving the prospects for negotiations on an end of war declaration more than bleak.
In a related development, top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the US and Japan met on Thursday in Honolulu for bilateral and trilateral talks on North Korea’s missile tests and called on Pyongyang to stop activities that escalate tension and return to the negotiation table at the earliest. [Korea Herald]
President Moon criticizes Japan’s world heritage listing recommendation for forced labor-associated gold mine
(dql) South Korean President Moon Jae-in slashed out against Japan’s recent recommendation to UNESCO to include a gold mine on the island of Sado in the Sea of Japan, which was turned into facilities to produce war materials and where Koreans were forced to work during World War II, calling Tokyo’s move “unnerving.”
Japan’s move adds fuel to the year-long conflict between both countries over Korean laborers and sex slaves mobilized by Japan during World War II. [Yonhap News Agency]
For a critical assessment of Moon’s failures in dealing with Japan on the issues of forced labor, see Chung Jae-hong in [Korea JoongAng Daily] who argues that South Korea’s President bears responsibility for “fanning the rightist movement in Japan,” that “has been condoning a worsening in the relationship with Seoul.”
US government approves sales of Patriot missiles to Taiwan
(eb) Aimed at strengthening Taiwan’s missile defense capabilities, the US government approved on February 8 a US$ 100 million deal with Taiwan for engineering support to “sustain, maintain and improve the Patriot Air Defense System” over the next five years. It is the second deal between Taiwan and the US since President Joe Biden took office. [Washington Times]
Furthermore, on February 11 the agreement between the US and Taiwan to keep on Taiwan soil US experts in charge of the maintenance of the Harpoon anti-ship missiles was extended until 2025. The missiles were part of a package of tactical anti-ship equipment bought in 2020 worth USD$ 2.37 billion. [Taiwan News]
Cross-strait relations: Eleven Chinese planes enter in Taiwan’s ADIZ
(eb) On February 10 Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense reported that eleven Chinese aircrafts entered Taiwan’s Air Defence Interception Zone (ADIZ). Eight Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, one Shaanxi Y-8 electronic warfare plane, one Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare airplane, and one Shaanxi Y-8 reconnaissance aircraft flew in the south-west corner of Taiwan’s ADIZ, marking the fifth incursion of February [Taiwan News].
Australian parliament support’s Taiwan access to the CPTPP
(eb) The Australian Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade has supported Taiwan’s access to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)on February 10, citing shared values of an open and transparent economy and the willingness to respect shared rules.
The committee also encouraged Australia to establish free-trade agreements with Taiwan and urged the government to push China towards a greater commitment towards respecting the rules of trade such as the end of coercive trade [Taiwan News].
Somaliland’s foreign minister meets Taiwan’s president
(eb) A delegation from the African unrecognized state of Somaliland led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Essa Kayd Mohamoud, arrived in Taipei on February 8 to meet President Tsai Ing-wen on February 9. It was the first visit of Somaliland politicians to Taiwan after the two sides formally agreed to open representative offices in the two countries in February 2020. [Taipei Times]
During his meeting with Tsai, Essa Kayd Mohamoud welcomed the state of the relations between the two countries and opened the possibility of Taiwanese investments in the region especially concerning the possibility to extract gas and oil. Asked whether he feared a Chinese backlash of the visit, the Minister declared that “We are born free. We will stay free. We will earn our business the way we want. China cannot dictate, no country can dictate.”
Tsai, for her part, hailed the relationship as one of major diplomatic breakthroughs of her government. [Africa News] [Taiwan News] [DW]
Holy See not to pull out representative offices from Taiwan and Hong Kong
(eb) Monsignor Javier Herrera Corona, recently appointed apostolic nuncio in Gabon and Congo, dismissed the rumours that pulling the representatives of the Vatican out of Taiwan and Hong Kong was a move by the Holy See to establish relations with China on February 10. [Union of Catholic Asian News].
Corona said that the reassignment presents just a regular transfer and that the missions of the Holy See in Hong Kong and Taiwan will not be closed and thus dismissed the rumours on the Vatican to cut ties entirely with Taipei in order to finalize its relations with [South China Morning Post].
Taiwan to take countermeasures regarding potential Russia-Ukraine conflict
(eb) Given the real possibility of a Russian invasion, Taiwan has taken measures to protect its interests as well as its citizen in Ukraine by creating a task force for the citizens and by assessing the exposure in Ukraine and Russia.
The government had initiated the "Ukraine Crisis Response Team" was not created just with the purpose of monitoring the development of the crisis in Eastern Europe but given the potential ripple effect that the conflict could have all over the world, but also to monitor any possible impact on commodity prices, equity and forex markets, and other issues at stake to ensure financial stability [Taiwan news].
Furthermore, all the Taiwanese citizens registered as living in Ukraine (approximately 25, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) were advised to leave the country as soon as possible [Taipei Times 1].
Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has assessed risk exposure in banking, insurance and securities in the two countries by Taiwan and overall Taiwan is much more exposed in Russia (total of NT$209.085 billion) than in Ukraine (NT$20.086 billion) [Taipei Times 2].
United States say it will review bilateral ties if Nepal does not ratify MCC grant by end of month
(lm) In a thinly veiled slap to Nepal, the United States have conveyed that it would be forced to review its ties with the Himalayan nation if Kathmandu’s political leadership fails to ratify the $500 million Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) grant until the end of this month.
Under the MCC-Nepal Compact, Washington will provide $100 million in grants a year over five years to support the implementation of two major infrastructure projects in Nepal, while Kathmandu would chip in $130 million. The agreement, however, has become a hotly debated political issue in the Himalayan nation, with Nepal’s two Communist parties – the Maoist Centre and the Unified Socialists – saying accepting the money could draw Kathmandu into the US Indo-Pacific Strategy and undermine national sovereignty.
Importantly, the protracted dispute also involves pitting the US and China against each other, as most communist leaders in Nepal would prefer getting help on infrastructure from China under President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative. In light of this, Beijing has increased its lobbying efforts, with top Chinese officials, including Beijing’s ambassador to Kathmandu, and the head of the International Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party, meeting virtually with former prime minister KP Sharma Oli.
Against this backdrop, US Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu held separate phone conversations with Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, and the chairmen of Nepal’s two Communist parties – opposition leader Oli and ruling coalition partner Pushpa Kamal Dahal – on February 10 to make clear that time for Kathmandu was running out. [The Kathmandu Post 1]
It is important to keep in mind that Prime Minister Deuba’s Nepali Congress by itself does not have the numbers in the House to pass the MCC, and thus, will need the support of both junior partners of the coalition government - Dahal’s Maoist Centre and the Unified Socialist party of Madhav Kumar Nepal.
In light of this, another event assumes added significance: the impeachment motion against Nepal’s Chief Justice Rana. According to local news outlets, the motion was initiated after both Maoist parties agreed to support the ratification of the MCC tacitly by being absent from the vote in the lower house of parliament. [see entry in this edition] [The New York Times,$ ]
On February 15, then Prime Minister Deuba told lawmakers of his ruling Nepali Congress party that he had asked the House speaker, who so far has refused to convene lawmakers to ratify the aid agreement, to table the MCC accord. [The Kathmandu Post 2]
Pakistan, Iran to form joint working group on border issues
(lm) Iran and Pakistan will form a joint working group to look after border management, including security, trade and travel issues between the two countries, Iran’s Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said on February 14 after concluding a one-day working visit to Islamabad. [Al Jazeera]
During his visit, Vahidi met his Pakistani counterpart Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and the country’s Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa. The Iranian diplomat was accompanied by a small, yet high-level delegation comprising Iran’s ambassador to Islamabad, the commander of the Iranian Border Guards, and the Iranian military attaché. [Pakistan Observer]
The two countries share a border of roughly 950 kilometers, which has been the site of several security incidents – mainly targeting Iranian forces – in recent years. In light of these security concerns, and to reduce the flow of illegal drugs into Iran, the two countries last year begun fencing their common border. They also signed a Memorandum of Understanding to open a new border crossing and establish six joint border markets across the border.
The Iranian minister’s visit to Islamabad was preceded by a meeting between Pakistan’s ambassador to Tehran and the chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Iranian parliament on January 31. That meeting came after the head of Iran’s border guard visited the Pakistani port city of Karachi on January 12 to meet with defense officials and partake in a maritime training exercise.
India summons South Korean envoy over Hyundai’s Kashmir tweet
(lm) India said on February 8 it had summoned the South Korean ambassador to express “strong displeasure” over what it called an “unacceptable social media post” made by a Pakistani partner of automaker Hyundai over disputed Kashmir.
The row erupted on February 5, a day after Pakistan marked the annual Kashmir Solidarity Day, a holiday to mark the nation's support for people in the India-administered part of Kashmir. Posts on behalf of Hyundai's partner, the Nishat Group, appeared on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram commemorating what it described as the sacrifices of Kashmiris struggling for self-determination. [South China Morning Post]
The tweet sparked intense backlash in India where social media users vowed to stop buying Hyundai-manufactured vehicles in favor of supporting local carmakers.
On February 8, carmaker Hyundai issued a statement saying it deeply regrets any offence caused to Indians by an “unauthorized” tweet from the account of its Pakistan partner. Furthermore, South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong expressed his regret during a phone conversation with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar. [CNN]
The diplomatic escalation – a rare moment of discord between the two countries that have long enjoyed friendly ties – highlights the risks global companies face while navigating local sensitivities amid rising nationalism in the region. [Reuters]
High-level delegation from Oman visit India, as both countries continue to deepen engagement
(lm) In the latest sign of burgeoning defense ties between India and Oman, the commander of the sultanate’s navy, Rear Admiral Saif Bin Nasser Bin Mohsin Al Rahbi, on February 13 started a four-day official visit to New Delhi for Navy-to-Navy talks aimed at exploring avenues for cooperation. [The Economic Times]
The navy chief’s visit comes close on the heels of another visit by Oman’s top defense official Mohammed Nasser Al Zaabi to India earlier this month. During his India visit, Al Zaabi co-chaired the 10th meeting of the Joint Military Cooperation Committee (JMMC) – the highest forum of engagement between India and Oman in the field of defense – alongside his Indian counterpart Ajay Kumar. [AiR No. 5, February/2022, 1]
Later this month the Chief of the Royal Air Force of Oman will also visit India, and the two Air Forces are scheduled to hold a bilateral exercise which will see the participation of over 150 personnel from Oman. [The Hindu]
Bangladeshi ex-diplomat implicated in 1975 murder of ruling party leaders arrested in Malaysia
(sk/lm) Malaysia on February 10 announced the arrest and pending extradition of a former Bangladeshi ambassador to Kuala Lumpur, who previously had been implicated back home for his alleged involvement in the 1975 of four leaders of the now-ruling Awami League political party. [Benar News]
M. Khairuzzaman, a retired army major, has been linked to a series of events that followed the assassination of Bangladesh’s founding leader and father of Prime Minister Hasina, Sheikh Mujib, in August 1975. In November the same year, four senior leaders of the Awami League, who had been arrested after Rahman’s death, were killed while in state custody.
Three other defendants were convicted and sentenced to death in 2004 – nearly three decades after the killings. Two years later, the High Court acquitted two of the defendants and upheld the death sentence for the third. Prosecutors appealed and in 2013 all three, who had absconded, were sentenced to death by the Appellate Division.
A court acquitted Khairuzzaman of those allegations in 2004. He had been appointed director general of the Foreign Affairs Ministry one year earlier in a coalition government led by Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, Hasina’s archival. Khairuzzaman had been serving as a diplomat in Kuala Lumpur when Hasina returned to power in 2009. Ordered back to Dhaka, he chose to stay in Malaysia and received a refugee card from UNHCR.
In light of Khairuzzaman’s arrest and immanent extradition, his lawyer said he would be filing a habeas corpus with a certificate of urgency. The lawyer said since his client was a political asylum seeker with a UNHCR card and had not committed any immigration violations, his detention was unlawful. [Free Malaysia Today]
(bs) United States (US) Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his South Korean counterpart urged the Myanmar military junta to allow “unhindered humanitarian access” into the country.
In a meeting with the South Korean foreign minister, Blinken also highlighted the importance of cooperation on a regional level to address the human rights abuses in Myanmar and push the country towards the restoration of democracy. In the same meeting, the parties discussed enhancing the US-Republic of Korea (ROK) alliance in ensuring regional peace and security.
The US, in cooperation with the United Kingdom and Canada, had previously announced the imposition of sanctions on seven people allegedly connected to the Myanmar military junta. [Republic World]
Human Rights Watch has defined the actions of the Myanmar military as “crimes against humanity” and, along with other rights groups, called the European Union to impose sanctions to the country in the form of withdrawal from economic operations that might fund atrocities by the junta.
Since the February 1 2021 coup, authorities killed over 1,500 and arrested over 8,000 mostly during nonviolent anti-junta rallies while persecuting media workers and suppressing media freedom across the country. [AiR No. 6, February/2022, 2]
World Summit or Peace on the Korean Peninsula 2022
(bs) On February 11-13, 160 countries participated in the World Summit 2022 for Peace on the Korean Peninsula held in South Korea and co-chaired by Cambodia Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen and former Secretary-General of the United Nations H.E. Ban Ki-moon.
Global leaders met in an attempt to join the effort to reunite the Korean Peninsula through peaceful dialogue. [Globe Newswire]
The two Koreas have been divided for over 70 years since 1945 when the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States claimed the peninsula as one of its geopolitical victims by dividing their control over the peninsula. [History]
Myanmar, Japan: Rights group urged Japan’s construction company to end partnership with Myanmar military partner
(bs/dql) Human Rights Watch has appealed to the Japan-based construction company Yokogawa Bridge Corp. to end its partnership with the Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC), a major conglomerate company operated by the Myanmar junta, or it will be held accountable for “helping to fund military atrocities.”
The two firms are bounded by a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2014 with which Yokogawa Bridge Corp. committed to enhancing bilateral relationships through technical cooperation and providing “technical guidance of construction engineering.” In another document, the Japanese company aims at strengthening the ties with MEC over the period 2020-2022.
In 2021, the companies were under scrutiny for supporting human rights violations in Myanmar after a MEC-owned steel mill was caught supplying two-thirds of the steel for the Japanese-backed Bago River Bridge Construction project. The Japanese company immediately halted the construction of the bridge due to the “situation on the ground,” promising that it would “conduct business that respects human rights.” MEC was also sanctioned by the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, and Canada for allegedly generating funding in support of the junta’s violence and abuses. [Human Rights Watch]
In a separate development, Kirin, Japan’s drinks giant, announced on February 9 its withdrawal from Myanmar, following its failure in a bid to disconnect its operations from a joint venture with a company, that is owned by the military regimes, after last year's coup. [Reuters]
Thailand, Myanmar: Thai energy company announced intention to take over Myanmar gas project
(bs) Thai energy company PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP) has announced its intention to submit a proposal to take over the Yadana gas field in Myanmar after 59.5 percent of the stake freed up following the withdrawal of France-owned TotalEnergies and American energy company Chevron. The companies withdrew from their operations in the country in late January in an attempt to cut the financial revenues of the military junta and reduce human rights violations in Myanmar. [Offshore Technology]
In January, other companies, including Toyota and British American Tobacco, have announced their exit from Myanmar businesses in protest of the escalation of violence by the military regime. [AiR No. 5, February/2022, 1]
With the same objective, Burma Campaign UK, a pro-democracy and human rights non-governmental organization, has welcomed the new Myanmar business risk guidance document issued by the British government on February 9 to warn British companies to avoid any involvement in the supply of aviation fuel to the Myanmar military. By denying fuel supply to Myanmar military aviation, the UK reiterates its opposition to the violence and increase in the use of airstrikes by the junta. [Mizzima]
Thailand, Saudi Arabia to restore cooperation
(bs) Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered to speed up the drafting of a roadmap to implement the joint statement signed on January 25 by the two countries during an official visit of the Tahi Prime Minister to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha aims to quickly restore diplomatic cooperation with Saudi Arabia after the countries saw a breakup for more than three decades over the “Blue Diamond Affair”, a $20-million theft of jewelry by a Thai janitor in the palace of a Saudi prince in 1989. [Bangkok Post 1]
The roadmap aims at enhancing trade and labor cooperation and normalizing economic bilateral relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia.
Thailand, to show its commitment to re-establish peaceful relations with its counterpart, on February 14 welcomed the chief of the Muslim World League to discuss closer cooperation with the Muslim community and hold interfaith dialogues. The Muslim leader is the first high-ranking visitor from Saudi Arabia to arrive in Thailand since the restoration of ties in late January. [Arab News] [Bangkok Post 2]
Laos, United States: US government lifted visa sanctions for Lao citizens
(bs) The government of the United States (US) has lifted most of the sanctions imposed on Lao citizens upon visa issuance application, maintaining only immigration restrictions for certain senior government officials under the condition that the Lao government will cooperate with the US authorities to accept those Lao nationals that are under a deportation order from the US. [The Laotian Times]
The US imposed visa sanctions on Lao citizens in 2018 and strengthened them in 2020 applying Section 243 (d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which rules that local consular offices of countries that have “denied or unreasonably delayed accepting their nationals ordered removed from the United States” impose visa restrictions on those counties’ citizens. [US Immigration and Customs Enforcement]
The decision will have radical effects on thousands of Laotians and Hmong people, the biggest ethnic minority in Laos, whom the Lao government has never recognized as Lao citizens and thus refused their deportation to Laos until now. Thousands of Hmong and Lao people fled the country following the “secret war,” which began in 1961 when the US army would recruit Hmong people to fight against the Vietnamese army during the Vietnam War, or American War, from 1955 to 1975. After fighting on the US side, the soldiers and their families were seen as traitors and started being persecuted and killed by the Lao government. The US granted them refugee status and helped them flee Laos. [Akleg] [Fresno Bee]
Timor-Leste, Australia meet to strengthen ties while Canberra accused of ‘spying’ on Timorese political leaders in 2000
(bs) New documents attesting that in 2000 former Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer called Timor-Leste an “open book”, were filed in a court hearing for the potential release of secret cabinet documents on Australia-Timor Leste relations after the 1999 elections for independence.
The affidavit was filed by the then foreign affairs department officer and adviser for the foreign affair minister, who reported a conversation with Downer, saying that “clandestine intelligence gathering” was “vital” for diplomacy and that there was “not much” left to know about Timor-Leste, claiming it to be “an open book” to Australia. The witness also claimed that Timorese leaders had expressed concerns about being surveilled by Australian authorities prior to the conversation with Downer.
Although Downer denied the claims, he pointed out that since Australia was deploying peacekeeping troops to Timor-Lest, it was predictable that it would gather as much information as possible on the Timorese geographical and political environment at the time, meaning amidst the process towards independence.
The trial in which these files were submitted aims at ruling on a request made by independent senator Rex Patrick to release secret documents that have not been released after 20 years from their issuing to avoid compromising current positive relations between Australia and Timor-Leste. Xanana Gusmão, a former president of Timor-Leste, has shown his support to Patrick and pushed for the release of the secret documents in order to unveil the whole truth and proceed with bilateral relations with Australia without holding any animosity. Gusmão also filed a statement on concerns he had over the negotiations Australia led in 2000 over national borders and the exploration of oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea, which became the subject of tensions between the two countries in 2004 when Australia was accused of bugging Timor-Leste’s government to gain special favors over the Timor Sea. [ABC News] [The Guardian]
Meanwhile, on February 10, the current Australian and Timorese ministers of foreign affairs signed the first bilateral Memorandum of Understanding under the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme framework, which aims at increasing capacity building in the Australian workforce in the field of agriculture. During the meeting, Australia has also committed to providing Timor-Leste with a $6-million fund over four years to support the country’s engagement in international forums and its capacity to be a party in regional trade agreements. [Minister for Foreign Affairs Minister for Women]
Malaysia considers deportation of former Bangladeshi envoy despite his refugee status
(avdv) A former Bangladeshi ambassador to Malaysia was arrested on 9 February for overstaying while facing the risk of being deported back to Bangladesh despite holding a “refugee” status.
Bangladesh requested the deportation of the man for alleged involvement in the 1975 jailhouse killing of four former ministers as the government is planning to revisit the case. However, deportation would be against the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' (UNHCR) principle of non-refoulment. Also, a Malaysian human rights group urged the government to release the former Bangladeshi envoy and maintain his UNHCR refugee status.
Mohamed Khairuzzaman was a former army officer and diplomat who had remained in exile in Malaysia after a change of government in Bangladesh in 2009. [BenarNews] [Free Malaysia Today] [The Independent]
Malaysia ready to cooperate with US and UK to combat human trafficking
(avdv) On February 10, the Malaysian Ministry of Human Resources announced the country’s intention to cooperate with the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK) to address the issue of human trafficking, especially with regards to forced labor. [Free Malaysia Today 1]
This follows Malaysia’s 2021-2025 National Action Plan on Forced Labour, introduced in November 2021, drafted to combat forced labor of migrant workers. This plan was initiated by the United Nations’ International Labour Organization (ILO) that had reported the Asia Pacific region to have the highest prevalence for forced labor, following which, several international companies had announced to cease economic cooperation with Malaysia. [AiR, No. 48, November/2021, 5] [Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development] [Free Malaysia Today 2] [ILO]
This US-UK-Malay cooperation will include revisions to the Employment Act 1955 (Act 265) to be implemented as soon as March, and closer collaborations with ILO. [New Straits Times]
Thailand to engage in bilateral deals with China and Malaysia to help boost tourism industry
(bp) On February 8, Thailand announced that it is in the process of holding talks with China and Malaysia this month to establish a travel bubble between the three countries. Bangkok has resumed a quarantine-free visa program to help boost its tourism industry and help the recovery process of the tourism industry that has been impacted by the pandemic. Data shows that Chinese and Malaysian tourists were the largest groups of visitors to Thailand pre-pandemic and can help Thai’s tourism industry to rebound strongly. This strategy is understood to be more impactful than the current ‘Test & Go’ quarantine-free scheme, which is causing tourists to still quarantine once they return to their home country. [South China Morning Post]
Philippines, UAE sign bilateral investment agreement
(bs) Representatives of the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) met on February 11 and signed a bilateral investment agreement. The parties also began talks for further trade cooperation.
The signed agreement aims at facilitating bilateral investments and establishing a Joint Committee on Investment to coordinate the operations. Moreover, the two countries agreed to start negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which is expected to enhance their bilateral trade relations. [Philippine News Agency]
Vietnam strengthens bilateral relations with Australia, South Korea, Algeria
(kc) Officials from Vietnam and Australia met on 9 February to discuss bilateral relations. During the meeting, the parties highlighted their joint Enhanced Economic Engagement Strategy (EEES), which would allow them to become each other’s top ten trade partners and to double bilateral investments. They also discussed the possibility of introducing a parliamentary committee to boost their relationships. [Australian Department of Education, Skills and Employment] [Vietnam Plus 1]
Vietnam’s officials also met with their South Korean counterparts during a top diplomat’s visit to Seoul on February 10. The countries agreed to strengthen strategic cooperation aimed to build resilient supply chains of key industries, digital technologies, and health care to recover both economies from the COVID-19 pandemic. Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son expressed also hope for more investment from Korean firms in the areas of climate change and high-tech industries. [Yonhap News] [Vietnam Plus 2]
On the following day, Vietnam and Algeria celebrated the 60th anniversary of their diplomatic relations and agreed to seek more bilateral investment. The Algerian Ambassador to Vietnam said that both countries would organize the 12th Algeria-Vietnam Cooperation Committee and the Algerian Culture Week in Vietnam. [Vietnam Plus 3]
Myanmar to allow ASEAN’s special envoy to meet Aung San Suu Kyi
(bp) On February 7, a senior Cambodian official said that Myanmar’s junta chief has agreed to allow a special envoy from Cambodia, Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, representing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to visit members of the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD).
The leader of the junta did not identify which members of the NLD will be available for the special envoy to meet with, but the move is considered a pivotal step in the engaging of ASEAN and Myanmar and the initiation of dialogue to end the ongoing violence in Myanmar. Myanmar has been in crisis since February 2021, when the military junta seized power, and has caused the deaths of 1,500 civilians while jailing Suu Kyi on criminal charges that could lead to a jail term of up to 150 years. [Reuters]
Philippines acquire Skyhawk from United States
(lb) The Philippines received four new Cessna 172S Skyhawk Trainer Aircraft from the United States under the US Foreign Military Financing program, worth $2.2 million. The new aircraft will support the military modernization and will be used by the Philippine Navy Air Wing to safeguard the national maritime territory. The Philippines Defence Secretary stated the new aircraft will help improve the capability of the Navy and prepare naval pilots for monitoring and safeguarding the countries maritime territories and domain. [Manila Bulletin] [Radio Free Asia]
The Philippines, Japan upcoming high-level meeting, sign loan agreement for metro construction
(lb/bs) The Philippines have signed a loan agreement of $2.20 billion for the second tranche of funding to construct the Metro Manila Subway Project (Phase 1). The loan agreement is from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), payable in 27 years, and will have a grace period of 13 years. The initial agreement was signed by the Philippines and Japan in 2018, which had a 40-year total maturity period. The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) revised the Metro Manila Subway cost in September 2021. A majority (75.9%) of the project is set to be funded by JICA and the remaining will be funded by the Philippines.
The Metro Manila subway is currently in partial operability and comprises the first stations in Quezon City and Valenzuela City. It is expected that the project will serve 370,000 passengers each day in the first year of full operation. Once fully operational the subway is expected to cut travel time. [Manila Bulletin]
Japan and the Philippines are also scheduled to meet on February 16 in their 12th high-level meeting on infrastructure development and economic cooperation, during which the parties plan to discuss several projects including the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP), North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project, rehabilitation of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3), Dalton Pass East Alignment Road, Central Mindanao Highway, and the Parañaque Spillway. [Philippine News Agency]
Philippines, United Kingdom deepen economic cooperation
(lb) The Philippines and the United Kingdom met virtually for the third Philippines-United Kingdom Economic Dialogue on February 9. The countries are committed to building better economic reform, green infrastructure, and a digital economy. Indonesia and the United Kingdom are prioritizing deepening cooperation in manufacturing and innovation, trade policy, regional trade interests, multilateral engagement, and to develop a regular dialogue about market access issues and investment opportunities. [GOV.UK]
Indonesia upgrades air, navy force while France, US boost alliance in Asia
(bp/lb) The growing tensions in the Asia-Pacific region and the US-China rivalry have led Indonesia to invest heavily in its military capabilities. On February 10, Indonesia finalized an order for 42 Rafale fighter jets with France worth US$8.1 billion, and the purchase of 36 F-15s from the United States worth US$14 billion.
The order for French fighter jets comes as Indonesia replaces its aging fleet of American F-16s and Russian Sukhois equipment, amidst the US-China rivalry and with Indonesia at the diplomatic center of this rivalry in Southeast Asia. Indonesia also signed a letter of intent with France for Research and Development (R&D) in submarine space, with Indonesia potentially ordering two Scorpene submarines in the near future. The deal is expected to help France warm ties with Indonesia and rebuild its alliance in the region.
Since the collapse of the Australian submarine deal in 2021 following Aukus, France has built defense ties with long-term strategic partners like India, Japan, and has now turned to Southeast Asia. France’s Defence Minister said the deal marks the start of a long-term partnership and hopes Indonesia will help France extend its geopolitical ties in the Indo-Pacific. Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo said he hopes the partnership with France will also include technological transfer, joint production, and investment in defense industries. [Aljazeera]
As Indonesia further negotiates its acquisition of submarines from France through the Naval Group, it has already started developing warplanes through its participation in a South Korean program.
Meanwhile, the US has commented that Indonesia’s purchase of 36 F-15s will help maintain stability in the region while helping drive economic growth while hinting towards a growing influence of China in the region and the South China Sea. [The Straits Times] [Naval Technology]
South China Sea maritime code of conduct unlikely to be signed this year
(bp) Analysts say that the code of conduct with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for the disputed South China Sea is not likely to take place in 2022, as Beijing and ASEAN remain divided on a number of issues regarding the disputed waterway causing tension in the region. The reasons for the dispute lie around the need for a legally binding agreement, the maritime and geographic scope for countries in the region, and the accessibility of waters by those outside the region.
Some experts also predict that recent tensions between Unites States (US) and China and the instability in the South China Sea, make the code of conduct unlikely to be finalized by 2023 too. Also, reports suggest that while China and the ASEAN work towards understanding the code to be followed by countries in the region of the South China Sea, China continues its dispute on the level of ownership of the South China Sea. Given the presence of US, Australian, British and Japanese navies in the region, analysts see this as pressure on Beijing to come to the table and negotiate a reasonable code of conduct in the South China Sea. [South China Morning Post]
Laos established diplomatic relations with Burundi
(bs) On February 4, Laos signed a Joint Communique on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations with the Republic of Burundi in a ceremony at the Permanent Mission of the Lao PDR to the United Nations in New York. The countries’ representatives also reaffirmed their commitments to enhance bilateral cooperation and to support each other in the framework of the United Nations. [MOFA Lao PDR]
Announcements
Upcoming Online Events
16 February 2022 @11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (GMT-8), Hoover Institution, Stanford University, USA
Wargaming: Its History, Application, And Future Use
This kick-off session of a three-day conference with a topic on wargaming will focus on the significance and constraints of wargames in records.
Find more about the webinar at [Hoover Institute].
16 February 2022 @11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
Defeating Authoritarian Populists: The 2019 Istanbul Elections
Despite dense political censorship in Turkey and 25 years of governance by the rulig party in Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, the opposition candidate in Istanbul, won the election for the second time in 2019. In preparation for the upcoming general elections in June 2023, this virtual seminar will take a look at the previous records of Istanbul’s elections, address the opposition’s obstacles, and examine political tactics in combating totalitarianism.
If you want to know more about the event, visit [FSI]
16 February 2022 @1:00-2:15 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
Russia, Ukraine and NATO: The View from London
In the midst of escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine, the United Kingdom has been a key player in NATO discussions over NATO’s move to respond to Moscow’s proposals and actions. In this webinar, Sir Roderic Lyne, a former British ambassador to Russia, will outline how the crisis is perceived in London, examine the motivations behind Russian moves, and suggest measures the West should take.
For more details, see [FSI].
16 February 2022 @ 12:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Atlantic Council, USA
Assessing the Impact of Iraq’s Incoming Government
Political adversaries are still at odds over how to split and distribute government jobs after four months of national elections, which were held to meet the needs of a protest movement. This online forum will debate the implications and future direction of the new Iraqi government.
Further information about the event is provided at [Atlantic Council].
16 February 2022 @4:30-5:45 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
Special Deals from Special Investors: The Rise of State-Connected Private Owners in China
Market institutions are still evolving in China, and private-sector businesses require assistance to counter barriers. Various levels of government or state-owned enterprises may be able to assist. Bai Chong-en will discuss the linkages between private and public ownership in this webinar, emphasizing how these ties have aided the development of the private sector.
If you want to know more about the event, visit [FSI].
16 February 2022 @ 3:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Atlantic Council, USA
Preparing the United States for a Mineral-Intensive Future
Despite the attempt to pursue net zero, in practice, the United States is significantly reliant on imports, with significant geopolitical ramifications. This webinar will discuss how the U.S. can prepare for a mineral-intensive future, the new geopolitical paradigm of energy security.
For more information, visit [Atlantic Council].
16 February 2022 @ 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. (GMT+8), Yusof Ishak Institute, Singapore
E-Launch and Discussion Of “The State of Southeast Asia: 2022” Survey Report
At this webinar, the fourth edition of the "State of Southeast Asia 2022 survey," which was undertaken by the ASEAN Studies Centre, will be launched to the public. The survey collected data from a total of 1,677 people from the policy, research, business, civil society, and media areas. Major difficulties confronting Southeast Asia, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the Myanmar conflict, and the US-China competition, will be further discussed in the session.
If you want to know more about the event, visit [ISEAS].
16 February 2022 @ 2:00-3:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Wilson Center, USA
State of Black Businesses: Resilience in the Face of a Pandemic
According to a study from 2021, the pandemic has prompted the formation of new Black businesses. To sustain and expand on this unprecedented development, structural adjustments at the federal, state, and local levels are required. This webinar will analyze the status of Black businesses in urban areas.
Follow [Wilson Center] to learn more about the event.
17 February 2022 @ 11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, USA
The Middle East's Climate Change Wake-Up
Climate change is an ignored danger in the Middle East, exacerbating socioeconomic imbalances and jeopardizing the well-being of vulnerable populations. This webinar will feature a panel of experts who will address climate change’s ripple effects in the Middle East.
Visit [CARNEIGE] to learn more about the event.
17 February 2022 @ 10:00-11:00 a.m. (GMT+8), Yusof Ishak Institute, Singapore
The Politics of Memory: The Commemoration of Sino-Vietnamese Conflicts in Vietnam
China began a short but brutal border war with Vietnam in 1979. Moreover, Vietnam and China fought in two naval confrontations in the South China Sea. This webinar will examine how Vietnam has marked the anniversary of these Sino-Vietnamese battles.
More information is available at [ISEAS].
17 February 2022 @ 11:30 a.m. (GMT-5), Atlantic Council, USA
The EU’s Emerging Data Policy Landscape
This online forum will explore the future direction of the European Union’s data policy and address the Union’s impending data-use measures as well as their consequences for transatlantic trade.
If you want to know more about the event, visit [Atlantic Council].
17 February 2022 @1:00 p.m. (GMT-8), Hoover Institution, Stanford University, USA
A Discussion on Russia and Ukraine
This online forum will feature a dynamic conversation between Peter Meijer, Michigan’s Third Congressional District, and Michael McFaul, Peter and Helen Bing Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. The two experts will share their perspectives toward the rising tension between Russia and Ukraine.
For more details of the event, see [Hoover Institute].
17 February 2022 @ 10:00-11:30 a.m. (GMT-5), Wilson Center, USA
Digital Transformation in MENA: Harnessing Internet Accessibility for COVID-19 Recovery
The digital economy in the Middle East and North Africa is rapidly progressing. Internet usage in the region increased by 11% during COVID-19. This online session will feature a panel of specialists who will discuss and project digital transformation in MENA.
If you want to know more about the event, visit [Wilson Center].
17 February 2022 @11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
Solving Public Problems
This webinar will feature Simone Noveck, a professor at Northeastern University, who will explain how digital technology can be a helpful tool for citizens and governments to build and deliver meaningful solutions to today’s problems. During the session, the expert will present a set of practical approaches for various agencies, including officials, leaders, activists, and others who are interested in sparking constructive social change.
Find more about the webinar at [FSI].
17 February 2022 @1:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
LGBTQ rights and representation among right-wing parties
European conservative parties began to support LGBT rights in the 1990s and early 2000s. Right-wing parties’ embrace, on the other hand, is complicated and divergent. This webinar will focus on LGBTQ rights and how they are portrayed by right-wing political groups
If you wish you attend this event, register at [FSI].
17 February 2022 @4:30-6:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
Assessing the Net Value of Medical Spending
This webinar will question how effectively regulators can determine the true cost of medical care and propose pioneering techniques that can be applied to health-care data. Participants in this virtual session will be also able to apply these strategies in their own health-care settings.
Visit [FSI] to learn more about the event.
18 February 2022 @12:00-1.00 p.m. (GMT-8), World Affairs, USA
Countering Threats from Russia and China, with US Rep. Ami Bera
In this webinar, Ami Bera, Sacramento’s Democrat representative and chairs of the House of Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific will share his views on the U.S.’ foreign policy with Russia and China, the revival of its relationship with the allies, and ways to form unity between Democrats and Republicans in foreign affairs.
If you want to know more about the event, visit [World Affairs]
18 February 2022 @12:00-1:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
Research Seminar with Adrienne Sabety — The ActionHealthNYC Experiment: Providing Health Care Access for Undocumented Immigrants
At this webinar, Adrienne Sabety will present findings from her research on vulnerable people’s, particularly undocumented immigrants', access to basic health care in the U.S.
Further information about the event is provided at [FSI].
22 February 2022 @5:00-6:30 p.m. (GMT-5), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Students, Sandford University, USA
The Digital Transformation of Southeast Asia: Issues and Prospects
Southeast Asia is undergoing unprecedented digital change. Although the internet penetration rates in most of the ASEAN countries were higher than those in Asia and other regions, digital access varied greatly between and within ASEAN members. This online seminar will explore this digital development and address crucial questions that arise amid the transformation.
Further information is accessible via [FSI].
22 February 2022 @ 2:00 p.m. (GMT-5), Atlantic Council, USA
NATO in America
This webinar will feature a panel of experts, including Rep. Ruben Galego, NATO officials, and youth leasers, to exchange their perspectives on how the U.S. can effectively respond to challenges from a changing world and discuss the significant role of NATO in the nation’s security.
If you want to know more about the event, visit [Atlantic Council].
22 February 2022 @ 10:00-11:30 a.m. (GMT+8), Yusof Ishak Institute, Singapore
Climate Change and SMEs in Southeast Asia: What Do We Know, and What Can We Do?
This online forum will present findings from ISEAS’s sizable-scale survey of SMEs from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Vietnam. SME's challenges as a result of climate change, the efforts they are making to cut emissions, and future plans to encounter severe weather incidents and other climate repercussions will be further addressed.
Follow [ISEAS] to learn more about the event.
Recent Book Releases
Ro Khanna, Dignity in a Digital Age: Making Tech Work for All of Us, Simon & Schuster, 368 pages, published on February 1, 2022, reviewed in [The Guradian].
Elizabeth C. Economy, The World According to China, Polity, 304 pages, published on January 4, 2022, with a review in [The Guardian].
Michael Sheridan, The Gate to China: A New History of the People’s Republic and Hong Kong, Oxford University Press, 480 pages, published on October 26, 2021. A review is available at [The Guardian].
Aziz BineBine, Tazmamart: 18 Years in Morocco’s Secret Prison, Haus Publishing, 192 pages, published on February 15, 2021. For a review, see [LRB].
Calls for Papers
The International Association for Chinese Management Research (IACMR) invites paper proposal for its 10th biennial conferenceto be held on June 14-18, 2023, at Hong Kong Baptist University. Conference theme is “Globalization in Flux: China and the World”. Closing dates for proposal submission is October 23, 2022. For more information, see [IACMR].
The European Network Remembrance and Solidarity (ENRS) invites proposals for presentations at the international hybrid conference “History and Memory in International Relations” to be held in Warsaw, 26-28 October 2022. Deadline for submission is February 28, 2022. Visit [ENRS] for further details.
The University of Pennsylvania’s Middle East Center (MEC) invites paper proposals for its international conference on the theme “Nuclear Issues in the Middle East and North Africa” scheduled for April 2023. Closing date for submissions is April 15, 2022. Find more about the call at [MEC].
The London Centre for Interdisciplinary Research (LCIR) invites paper proposals for the international conference on European Studies: "Between Nationalism and Cosmopolitanism", an online event to be held on June 25-26. Deadline for submission is March 31, 2022. See [LCIR] for further information.
Jobs and Positions
The European Training Foundation (ETF), a European Union agency, is offering the position of Director as legal representative and public face of the ETF with core responsibility in Development and achievement of strategic objectives in the area of ETF responsibilities. Closing date for applications is February 23, 2022. For more details, see [EC].
The European Commission is recruiting a Head of Representation in Malta, to be based in La Valletta and to act as the Commission’s spokesperson in Malta. Deadline for applications is February 21, 2022. If you are interested, you can find more information at [EC].
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is seeking applications for the position of Deputy Executive Director at the level of Assistant Secretary-General to be based position is based in Nairobi (Kenya). Applications must be submitted online by March 23, 2022. Visit [UN] for more details.
The United Nations (UN) is offering the position of Executive Director of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) at the Assistant Secretary-General level. The position is based in New York, USA. Closing date for applications is February 22, 2022. See [UN] for more information.
The United Nations (UN) welcomes applications for the position of High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UNOHRLLS). This position is at the Under-Secretary-General level and is based in New York, USA. Deadline for applications is February 22, 2022. Learn more about the vacancy at [UN].
Team:
Amna Pathan (ap), Anawil Yodprasit (ay), Auriane van der Vaeren (av), Beatrice Siviero (bs), Brandon Pinto (bp), Duc Quang Ly (dql), Enrico Breveglieri (eb), Henning Glaser (hg), Jidapa Eagark, Kittikun Chumworathayee (kc), Lois Barker (lb), Lucas Meier (lm), Sally Dobie (sd), Shreya Kar (sk), Tayla Peacock (tp), Venus Phuangkom, Xhesjana Haxhiu (xh)
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