China news roundup / Nachrichten 2021-06-04
Hong Kong vigil leader arrested as 7,000 police enforce ban on Tiananmen anniversary protests
"Police confirmed that barrister and activist Chow Hang Tung, vice-chairwoman of the group which organises annual vigils for the victims of China’s 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, was arrested. A 20-year-old male was also detained on suspicion of publicising an unlawful assembly through social media posts"
--- All for the good of the people, of course. They have to be kept safe from the Wuhan Virus.
"officials have also warned that a sweeping new national security law could be wielded against Tiananmen mourners"
--- Well, ... er ... obviously ... er ... This virus is clearly a threat to the whole nation. Absolutely not related to anything that did not happen in 1989 in Beijing.
"In mainland China, the Tiananmen anniversary is usually marked with a dramatic increase in online censorship and the square in Beijing being cordoned off"
--- Because nothing happened! Don't you understand? Nothing to see here! Move on! MOVE ON!
Hong Kong finds new ways to remember Tiananmen Square amid vigil ban
"A police senior superintendent, Liauw Ka-kei, was asked by media if wearing black clothes or lighting candles near the park was illegal. He said it wasn’t easy to answer, but that people knew “full well” if they were joining an unauthorised assembly"
--- When the cops don't know the law, don't care about the law, but arrest you anyway, because "you know, what you did!"
See also: Hong Kong Tiananmen Square commemorations: In Pictures
More media: Hong Kong park empty for the first time in 32 years as police surround venue to prevent banned Tiananmen Massacre vigil
Hearings in London aim to assess allegations of genocide in China
"The hearings have no government backing and the panel's conclusions are not binding on ministers"
--- Not much of a tribunal, then.
"The panel consists of academics, lawyers, and a former British diplomat. In selecting its members, the organisers intentionally drew from a mix of disciplines and avoided China experts to avoid a risk of prejudgment"
--- I'm not sure it's a good idea to have no China experts. Some Chinese policies & statements appear quite normal on the surface & people not familiar with the CCP's smoke & mirror games might be fooled. The choice of witnesses, though, makes the probability of that rather low. So, I'm moderately optimistic.
""What we hope to achieve is to provide facts that others may use," he said. "The tribunal will not go further than that, it will not look outside the crimes it has been asked to investigate, and it will not overreach by making recommendations about what others should or shouldn't do. It will simply provide facts for others to use.""
--- Well, we already have enough facts, it seems. Politicians who don't want to see these facts will probably also ignore any findings of this 'tribunal'.
German official rebukes Hungary for blocking EU criticism of China
"Hungary again blocked an EU statement on Hong Kong. Three weeks ago it was on Middle East. Common foreign and security policy cannot work on the basis of a blocking policy [...] We need a serious debate on ways to manage dissent, including qualified majority voting."
--- True, although a bit rich, coming from a country that often lobbied on China's behalf.
"Hungary blocked an EU statement in April criticising China's new security law in Hong Kong, undermining the bloc's efforts to confront Beijing's curbing of freedoms in the former British colony."
--- Orban is obviously deep in the pockets of the CCP.
New Zealand supreme court opens door for murder suspect’s extradition to China
"the minister could reasonably approve the extradition if the government received several more assurances from the Chinese government around conducting a fair trial and ensuring Kim was not subject to torture. Crucially, the supreme court accepted that such assurances could be made by China and trusted by New Zealand.
[...] The Supreme Court’s ruling found that “We do not consider that high conviction rates, such as the 98–99% conviction rate … necessarily suggest bias in the court system.”"
--- Seems like NZ judges are at least as moronic as NZ politicians.
There is a ton of evidence for torture & unfair trials in China. There is even more evidence that CCP promises & assurances cannot be trusted.
Speaking of justice with Chinese characteristics:
An American teacher was jailed for child abuse in China in 2014. He still says he's innocent — if only anyone would listen.
"when McMahon's case came to court, just one of McMahon's witnesses was allowed to testify, and she was only permitted to speak to his character. Almost all the evidence put forward by his lawyers was summarily dismissed, court documents show, demonstrative of the difficulties defense teams often have in the Chinese justice system"
--- Looks pretty much like a case of some disgruntled parent accusing a teacher & then evidence is essentially produced to make him look guilty.
China gives Li Na 'cold shoulder' decade on from changing tennis
--- DW News: "From Beijing to Hong Kong, China cracks down on dissent"
--- China Uncensored features the usual weekend news variety:
--- France 24: ‘Uighur tribunal’ to open in London as China dismisses ‘PR show’
--- BBC News: Hong Kong protesters light candles to mourn China's Tiananmen victims
--- France 24: Understanding China's three-child policy
Erinnern verboten
"Nach Medienangaben wurde Chow wegen Förderung einer nicht genehmigten Versammlung verhaftet. Sie hatte in einem Interview angedeutet, sie werde sich am Jahrestag zum Victoria-Park begeben, wo sich in den vergangenen Jahren Hunderte Menschen zur jährlichen Tiananmen-Mahnwache versammelt hatten"
--- Willkommen in China.
"öffentliche Mahnwachen, zu denen in der Vergangenheit Zehntausende in den Victoria Park kamen, sind verboten. Offiziell wegen der Corona-Pandemie, trotz geringer Infektionszahlen"
--- & bis zu 5 Jahre Haft werden angedroht. Die Hongkonger Kommis sorgen sich aufrichtig um das Wohlbefinden der Bevölkerung.
Familien der Opfer des Tiananmen-Massakers fordern Aufklärung
"Bei dem Einsatz der Volksbefreiungsarmee gegen friedliche Demonstranten um den Platz des Himmlischen Friedens (Tiananmen) in Peking waren damals einige hundert Menschen getötet worden. Die genaue Zahl ist bis heute nicht bekannt."
--- Einige hundert ... bis zu 10.000.
USA weiten Schwarze Liste aus
"Biden unterzeichnete eine Verfügung, wonach Amerikanern der Handel mit Wertpapieren von zunächst 59 chinesischen Firmen ab dem 2. August verboten wird"
--- Nur ein paar mehr als bisher, aber diesmal wohl auf einer besser formulierten Grundlage. Außerdem sollen je nach Entwicklung & neuen Erkenntnissen noch mehr Firmen dazukommen.