China

Three people are dead and 88 injured after a magnitude 6 earthquake shook Lu county in China’s southwestern province of Sichuan at 4.33am on Thursday, according to the China Earthquake Networks Centre (CENC). The local authorities said more than 76,000 residents had been evacuated and more than 24,000 houses damaged. A combined team of more than 4,000 rescuers was sent to the affected area, after Sichuan’s earthquake relief headquarters and the local authorities initiated the highest and second-highest levels of emergency response this morning. CENC said the quake struck at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles), with the epicentre at 29.2 degrees north latitude and 105.34 degrees east longitude. Heavy downpours were also expected on Thursday, with a blue rain alert issued the previous day by the Luzhou municipal observatory. Cumulative rainfall was expected to reach more than 100mm (3.9 inches) in some places, with associated thunder, strong winds and hail forecast for some towns in ... » Learn More about Earthquake shakes China’s Sichuan province, killing 3 and injuring 88

China on Thursday, September 16, denounced a new Indo-Pacific security alliance between the United States, Britain and Australia, saying such partnerships should not target third countries and warning of an intensified arms race in the region. Under the arrangement, dubbed AUKUS, the United States and Britain will provide Australia with the technology and capability to deploy nuclear-powered submarines. France, which loses its own submarine deal with Australia called the plans brutal and unpredictable. The United States and its allies are looking for ways to push back against China's growing power and influence, particularly its military buildup, pressure on Taiwan and deployments in the contested South China Sea. US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison did not mention China by name in the joint announcement and senior Biden administration officials, who briefed reporters ahead of time, ... » Learn More about China, France denounce US nuclear sub pact with Britain, Australia

US President Joe Biden denied on Tuesday, September 14, a media report that his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, last week turned down an offer from Biden for a face-to-face meeting. The Financial Times cited multiple people briefed on a 90-minute call between the two leaders last week as saying Xi did not take Biden up on the offer and instead insisted that Washington adopt a less strident tone toward Beijing. "It's not true," Biden said when asked by reporters if he was disappointed that Xi did not want to meet with him. Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said in a statement earlier on Tuesday that the report was "not an accurate portrayal of the call. Period." A source who was among those briefed on the call confirmed the report was accurate. "Xi apparently intimated that the tone and atmosphere of the relationship needed to be improved first," the source told Reuters. China's embassy in Washington did not immediately ... » Learn More about Biden denies China’s Xi turned down meeting offer

Agencies PREMIUM Sydney, Australia   ● Fri, September 17, 2021 Australia on Friday shrugged off Chinese anger over its decision to acquire US nuclear-powered submarines and vowed to defend the rule of law in airspace and waters where Beijing has staked multiple hotly contested claims. US President Joe Biden announced the new Australia-US-Britain defence alliance on Wednesday, extending US nuclear submarine technology to Australia as well as cyber defence, applied artificial intelligence and undersea capabilities. China's government described the alliance as an "extremely irresponsible" threat to regional stability, questioning Australia's commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and warning the Western allies that they risked "shooting themselves in the foot". China has its own "very substantive programme of nuclear submarine building", Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison sai... to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month ... » Learn More about Australia shrugs off China anger as US calms French fury over submarine deal

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) released a new set of guidelines for the Chinese airline industry on Nov. 25. Flight attendants advised to wear diapers to avoid Covid-19 transmission in toilet The guidelines include hygiene practices for airline workers to adhere to on aircrafts and in airports, to keep passengers and themselves safe in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. In the 49-page document , the CAAC advised flight crew members to wear disposable diapers and avoid using the lavatory outside of exceptional circumstances. This is to reduce the risk of Covid-19 transmission on flights to and from countries that were considered high-risk. Flight attendants were also advised to wear Personal Protective Equipment like medical masks, double-layer disposable medical gloves, goggles, disposable hats, disposable protective clothing, and disposable shoe covers. Evidence suggesting Covid-19 transmission in airplane lavatory While the ... » Learn More about China advises flight attendants to wear diapers to avoid Covid-19 infection risk in lavatory

HONG KONG - For his last class in Hong Kong in July, liberal studies teacher Fong showed his students calligraphy by the territory's late democratic activist Szeto Wah: "Choose the right path and stick to it." He emigrated to Britain days later. Fong is one of many teachers that left Hong Kong before the school year began in September, some saying they felt disillusioned and threatened by the authoritarian turn the city has taken since Beijing imposed a stringent national security law in June 2020. "The day I resigned, I told my school: 'If one day, some students downstairs chant slogans, I would have to call the police to arrest my own students'," said Fong, 45, who asked to be identified by only one name for fear of drawing the attention of the authorities. "I could not do that. And I could not hold my tears." Several principals who spoke to Reuters said teachers were departing this year at about twice the normal rate, leaving some of them scrambling for new recruits. The ... » Learn More about Hong Kong teachers exit under shadow of security law, schools scramble to fill gaps

WASHINGTON - World Bank leaders, including then-chief executive officer Kristalina Georgieva, applied "undue pressure" on staff to boost China's ranking in the bank's "Doing Business 2018" report, according to an independent investigation released on Thursday (Sept 16). The report, prepared by law firm WilmerHale at the request of the bank's ethics committee, raises concerns about China's influence at the World Bank, and the judgment of Georgieva - now managing director of the International Monetary Fund - and then-World Bank President Jim Yong Kim. Georgieva said she disagreed "fundamentally with the findings and interpretations" of the report and had briefed the IMF's executive board. The World Bank Group cancelled the entire "Doing Business" report on business climates, saying internal audits and the WilmerHale investigation had raised "ethical matters, including the conduct of former Board officials, as well as current and/or former Bank staff." The US Treasury ... » Learn More about Ex-World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva pressured staff to favour China in report, says ethics probe

The deal extends US nuclear submarine technology to Australia as well as cyber defence, applied artificial intelligence and undersea capabilities SYDNEY - Australia on Friday shrugged off Chinese anger over its decision to acquire US nuclear-powered submarines and vowed to defend the rule of law in airspace and waters where Beijing has staked multiple hotly contested claims. US President Joe Biden announced the new Australia-US-Britain defence alliance on Wednesday, extending US nuclear submarine technology to Australia as well as cyber defence, applied artificial intelligence and undersea capabilities. China's government described the alliance as an "extremely irresponsible" threat to regional stability, questioning Australia's commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and warning the Western allies that they risked "shooting themselves in the foot". China has its own "very substantive programme of nuclear submarine building", Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said ... » Learn More about Australia shrugs off China anger on nuclear subs

A canoeist trapped with his wife on an island in Hong Kong waters on Thursday died after being struck by lightning while swimming towards a boat to seek help. The incident happened about an hour after hail was seen in Hong Kong for the first time in five years, as severe thunderstorms swept through some parts of the city. More than 3,000 lightning strikes were recorded between noon and 3pm. The 45-year-old man and his wife went canoeing from Sheung Sze Wan in Sai Kung to Green Egg Island off Clear Water Bay Country Park at about 10.30am. ALSO READ: You've got hail: Hong Kong sees hailstones 'as big as a 50 cent coin' as severe thunderstorms sweep through city The pair sought shelter on Green Egg Island because of the heavy rain and strong winds about an hour later, according to police. "The man thought that a passing boat had come to pick them up, and he then swam towards it, but was struck by lightning [shortly before 2pm]," a police source said. He said the man was ... » Learn More about Hong Kong canoeist dies from lightning strike while swimming to passing boat

Ha Chung-kin, 60, who calls himself the King of Lanterns, loves his job as one of the few traditional Chinese lantern-makers left in Hong Kong. “Art cannot make money, so I turned it into a business by making lanterns,” he says. In one corner of his busy workshop, tucked away in a small alleyway in Sai Ying Pun on Hong Kong Island, hangs a Guinness World Records plaque he received in 2017. “I got this for making the largest hanging lantern in the world. It was 9.39 metres (30 foot 8 inches) tall and 5.33 metres wide.” Despite his enthusiasm for the centuries-old Chinese craft, Ha predicts a grim future for the art form in Hong Kong, Asia’s biggest financial hub. “When I look ahead 30 to 40 years, I expect that the local lantern-making industry in Hong Kong will be dead,” he says. Still, it’s work he has enjoyed for decades. Ha’s first job, in the 1980s, was in finance. It didn’t go well. “I absolutely hated working in the financial sector,” he says. “I was so stressed ... » Learn More about Lantern maker for Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong on his love of the craft