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☆ Hong Kong Court Bans Democracy Song, Calling It a ‘Weapon’
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A Hong Kong court on Wednesday granted a government request to ban a popular pro-democracy anthem, raising further concerns about free speech in the city. The decision, which overturned an initial ruling, could give the government power to force Google and other tech companies to restrict online access to the song in Hong Kong. At issue in the case is “Glory to Hong Kong,” which emerged in 2019 as an unofficial anthem for democracy protests and a flashpoint for the authorities, who considered it an insult to China’s national anthem. The song has been banned from Hong Kong schools and has drawn angry official rebukes when played, apparently by mistake, at international sports events. People convicted of posting seditious content online have gone to prison.

Organizations: Google Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, British

☆ Hong Kong Adopts Sweeping Security Laws, Bowing to Beijing
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-19 | by ( Tiffany May | David Pierson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hong Kong on Tuesday passed national security laws at the behest of Beijing, thwarting decades of public resistance in a move that critics say will strike a lasting blow to the partial autonomy the city had been promised by China. The new legislation, which was passed with extraordinary speed, grants the authorities even more powers to crack down on opposition to Beijing and the Hong Kong government, establishing penalties — including life imprisonment — for political crimes like treason and insurrection, which are vaguely defined. It also targets offenses like “external interference” and the theft of state secrets, creating potential risks for multinational companies and international groups operating in the Asian financial center. Many of the opposition figures who might have challenged the legislation have either been jailed or have gone into exile since China’s ruling Communist Party, under Xi Jinping, its most powerful leader in decades, imposed the first national security law, in 2020. That law gave the authorities a powerful tool to quash dissent after months of antigovernment demonstrations engulfed the city in 2019.

Persons: —, Hong, China’s, Xi Jinping Organizations: Hong, Communist Party Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, China

☆ Zong Qinghou, Beverage Tycoon in China, Dies at 79
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( Tiffany May | Keith Bradsher | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Zong Qinghou, a self-made beverage entrepreneur who was once the richest person in China, died on Sunday. His death was announced by his company, Wahaha Group, which said that Mr. Zong had died from an unspecified illness and gave his age as 79. Mr. Zong’s rags-to-riches story had made him prominent in China even before a public feud with his foreign business partner considerably raised his profile — and his wealth. He founded a beverage company in the 1980s, and in the 1990s, he partnered with Danone, the French food giant, to launch one of the best-known food and beverage brands in China. But tensions erupted in 2007 when Danone accused Mr. Zong of running secret companies selling virtually identical products that siphoned off as much as $100 million from the joint venture.

Persons: Zong Qinghou, Zong Organizations: Wahaha, Danone Locations: China

Snow and freezing rain in China were disrupting travel on Monday and had already caused hundreds of rail and flight cancellations, as millions of people traveled across the country before lunar new year holiday begins this weekend. For many years, heavy travel within and into China ahead of the holiday, known as Spring Festival in Chinese, produced the world’s largest annual migration. During the coronavirus pandemic, fear of lockdowns, quarantines and other rules deterred many from traveling. Last year, the authorities abruptly lifted those rules weeks before lunar new year after facing widespread protests, but many would-be travelers stayed put because they were anxious about spreading the virus. This year was supposed to mark a return to normal levels of holiday travel.

Locations: China

☆ Amazon Filmed ‘Expats’ in Hong Kong, but People There Can’t Watch It
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Tiffany May | Yan Zhuang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

That series from Amazon Prime, “Expats,” which stars Ms. Kidman, aired its first two episodes last week in what it described as a worldwide release. For Hong Kong viewers, they appeared as “currently unavailable.”The reasons are unknown. Amazon Studios declined to comment. A spokesman for the Hong Kong government said it had facilitated the filming of some street scenes in “Expats” but would not comment on the “operational arrangement of individual businesses.”The show is being released after several years of transformation in the city, a Chinese territory. Hong Kong was largely closed off to the world during three years of pandemic restrictions, and speech and dissent have become severely restricted after a mass protest movement was squashed in 2019.

Persons: Nicole Kidman, “, Kidman, Hong Kong Organizations: Amazon Prime, Hong Kong, Amazon Studios, Hong Locations: Hong Kong, Hong

☆ China’s Travel Economy Is Slowly Coming Back. Here’s Where It Stands.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Since China reopened its borders in 2023 after three years of Covid isolation, domestic travel has thrived and high-speed rail has grown increasingly popular. Before the pandemic, Chinese travelers were the world’s biggest spenders, accounting for 20 percent of global tourism spending, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization. Among the changes: China has waived travel visas or agreed to extend the length of visa-free travel for visitors from eight countries, including Germany and France. The main factor holding back international travel by Chinese will continue to be China’s economy. As they think twice about their business in China, travel suffers.

Organizations: United Nations World Tourism Organization Locations: China, Germany, France, United States, Europe

5 p.m. Search for a speakeasy in a former prison complexThe handling of colonial-era buildings — which can be painful reminders of oppression — is fraught in Hong Kong. One reimagined site is Tai Kwun , a 19th-century prison and police station in the city center, which was converted into a public arts compound in 2018. Make a game of seeking out 001 , a speakeasy behind an unmarked black door, hidden in a maze of walkways (Tai Kwun employees will help you find it, if you ask). Once you’re inside, reward yourself for the search with an Earl Grey martini (158 dollars). Use Tai Kwun’s app for self-guided tours of the compound — some focus on architecture; others highlight the best spots for photos.

Persons: Tai Kwun, Earl Grey Organizations: Kwun, Tai Kwun Locations: Hong Kong, Tai

Once China’s most prolific property developer, China Evergrande has narrowly averted liquidation. A Hong Kong bankruptcy judge on Monday gave Evergrande another two months to work out a deal with foreign investors who lost money when the company defaulted two years ago with hundreds of billions of dollars in debt. It was an unexpected development in a bankruptcy lawsuit filed 18 months ago by one investor trying to get paid by forcing the dismantling of Evergrande. It was one of the country’s most successful companies and at the heart of the real estate industry, which drove one third of the nation’s economic growth. But years of overexpansion left it financially precarious, and when it defaulted, it had more than $300 billion of overdue bills.

Persons: China Evergrande, Evergrande, Jan, Linda Chan, ”, Neil McDonald, Kirkland, “, overexpansion Organizations: Hong, Ellis Locations: China, Hong Kong

He went on to accuse Israel of being a terror organization because its airstrikes on Gaza had caused civilian casualties. A Chinese state broadcaster recently hosted a discussion page on Weibo stating that Jews controlled a disproportionate amount of U.S. wealth. Among the comments on recent posts from the official social media account of Israel’s embassy in China were similar comparisons of Israelis to Nazis. It is hard to say whether the anti-Israeli positions in state media and antisemitism on the Chinese internet are part of a coordinated campaign. “If China felt that it was dangerous and problematic to allow antisemitic comments to flourish, the censors would stop it.

Persons: Hu Xijin, I’m, ”, Israel, Shen Yi, Carice Witte Organizations: Global Times, Communist Party, Weibo, Fudan University, country’s Communist Party Locations: Lebanon, Israel, Gaza, China, Beijing, Israeli

☆ Gavin Newsom, on Climate Mission to China, Gets an Audience With Xi
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Tiffany May | More About Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, met with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, in Beijing on Wednesday, according to the Chinese state media, as part of an ambitious weeklong mission to negotiate climate partnerships. The two-term Democratic governor wants California to set an aggressive pace for the United States — and the world — to cut carbon emissions that are dangerously heating the planet. Mr. Newsom’s moves to tackle the climate crisis have elevated his national profile, just as he is widely believed to be preparing for a White House run in 2028. Mr. Xi met with Mr. Newsom in the Great Hall of the People, a grand building on the west side of Tiananmen Square where he often receives dignitaries. In an official summary of the meeting published by Chinese state media, Mr. Xi was quoted as saying he hoped Mr. Newsom’s visit would help promote ties between their countries.

Persons: Gavin Newsom, Xi Jinping, Newsom’s, Chuck Schumer, Xi, Newsom Organizations: Democratic, United, United States —, Mr, of Locations: California, Beijing, United States

They took swipes at the United States and depicted themselves as building a “fairer, multipolar world.” And they marveled at their countries’ “deepening” trust. And he gave a prominent role to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, underscoring how central their relationship is to Mr. Xi’s vision. Mr. Putin was treated as the guest of honor and often pictured by Mr. Xi’s side. While Mr. Putin and Mr. Xi huddled, President Biden landed in Israel on a visit aimed at preventing the war between Israel and Hamas from spreading. Though Mr. Xi did not publicly remark on the war, Mr. Putin, at a news briefing, blamed the United States for increasing tensions in the Middle East by sending warships to the region.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Vladimir V, Putin, Mr, Xi, Biden, ” Locations: China, Russia, United States, Beijing, Ukraine, Gaza, Israel, Russo

☆ Sheriff’s Deputy Fatally Shot on the Job
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Tiffany May | More About Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A sheriff’s deputy was fatally shot in his patrol car in Palmdale, Calif., on Saturday, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said. A passer-by found the deputy, Ryan Clinkunbroomer, unconscious near Palmdale Sheriff’s Station around 6 p.m. He added that investigators believed that the killing was captured on surveillance video and were analyzing a video that had been circulating online to determine whether it was related. Officer Clinkunbroomer, 30, had worked in the sheriff’s department for about eight years, Sheriff Luna said, following in the footsteps of his grandfather and father. “It’s usually the best of the best.”

Persons: Ryan Clinkunbroomer, Sheriff Robert Luna, Clinkunbroomer, Sheriff Luna, “, ”, “ It’s Organizations: Los, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Locations: Palmdale, Calif, Los Angeles, Palmdale Sheriff’s

☆ He Fled China’s Repression. But China’s Long Arm Got Him in Another Country.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( Tiffany May | More About Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

To stop him, the authorities put him under surveillance and barred him from practice, depriving him of his livelihood. Mr. Lu’s wife and young daughter fled first, moving to the United States. A few days later, as he was preparing to board a train to Thailand, he was arrested by local authorities. Accused of using fraudulent travel documents, he was in Laotian custody as of late August and facing the threat of deportation. Under Xi Jinping, China’s most iron-fisted leader in decades, Chinese authorities have aggressively expanded their net outside the country.

Persons: Lu Siwei, Lu’s, Xi, Eva Pils Organizations: King’s College London Locations: China, United States, Laos, Thailand

☆ Judge Rejects Hong Kong’s Bid to Ban Pro-Democracy Song From Internet
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Tiffany May | More About Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Hong Kong government was seeking a court injunction against the publication or distribution of “Glory to Hong Kong” with “seditious intention” on the internet or in other media. But Judge Anthony Chan denied the request, ruling that what the government wanted was too broad and effectively targeted everyone in Hong Kong. He wrote that the injunction could have had a “chilling effect” on free speech in Hong Kong. Numerous people in Hong Kong have been arrested or charged for playing the song in public under an expansive national security law that Beijing imposed on the territory in 2020. The injunction case has been closely watched in the Hong Kong business and tech communities.

Persons: Anthony Chan, ”, Judge Chan Organizations: Hong Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, China

The attack is the closest Moscow has come to hitting the military alliance’s territory since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. The port strike came amid two drone attacks in central Moscow on Monday morning that Russian officials blamed on Ukrainian forces. At least two nonresidential buildings were hit about 4 a.m. local time, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin of Moscow said on the Telegram messaging app. He added that there had been no “serious damage or casualties.”Ukrainian and Romanian officials denounced the port strike, with President Klaus Iohannis of Romania condemning the attack on Ukrainian infrastructure close to his country’s borders. He said on Twitter that the “recent escalation poses serious risks to the security in the Black Sea,” as well as affecting Ukrainian grain shipments and global food security.

Persons: Sergei Sobyanin, Klaus Iohannis Organizations: Monday, NATO, Twitter Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Romanian, Ukrainian, United States, Reni, Romania, Moscow, ”

The Russian authorities said they destroyed two attack drones targeting central Moscow on Monday morning in what they called a strike by Ukrainian forces. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. At least two nonresidential buildings were targeted about 4 a.m. local time, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin of Moscow said on his Telegram account, adding that there was no “serious damage or casualties.” The Russian Ministry of Defense said earlier that it had used electronic defenses to disable the drones. The authorities blocked off part of Komsomolsky Prospect, an avenue that runs through one of the most upscale parts of central Moscow, after finding one of the drones there, state news media reported. One of the buildings is about a block away from the Russian National Defense Management Center, an imposing structure that is being used to conduct “centralized combat management of the Russian armed forces,” according to the Defense Ministry website.

Persons: Sergei Sobyanin Organizations: Russian Ministry of Defense, Russian National Defense Management Center, Defense Ministry Locations: Moscow, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Komsomolsky, Russian

Video The attack on the Moscow buildings closed traffic on at least two large avenues, according to state media. Credit Credit... Reuters Smoke was rising from the top floors of a high-rise building in a complex for Leroy Merlin, a French home improvement store. Russia has fired missiles and drones at cities across Ukraine nearly every day while Russian cities, including Moscow, have been spared the violence of the war. Then on May 31, the Russian defense ministry said at least eight drones had targeted the capital and surrounding region. Ukraine has started to publicly take credit for attacks in Crimea, the peninsula that Russia illegally annexed in 2014, arguing that the attacks are happening inside Ukrainian territory.

Persons: Maxim Shemetov, Sergei Sobyanin, Leroy Merlin, Volodymyr Zelensky, Shawn Paik, Jin Yu Young, Ivan Nechepurenko Organizations: ., Reuters, Russian Ministry of Defense, Russian National Defense Management Center, The New York Times, Credit, Military University, Central Military, Russian Armed Forces Locations: Moscow, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Komsomolsky, Russian, Moskva, Russia, Crimea

Russian authorities said they destroyed two attack drones targeting Moscow on Monday morning in what they called a strike by Ukrainian forces. No one was injured, they said. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. The authorities closed off part of the Komsomolsky Prospect, an avenue that runs through central Moscow, and were investigating a drone found there, according to Tass, a state-run news media. Videos verified by The New York Times show damage in at least two locations near the Moskva River in the southern part of the city.

Persons: Sergei Sobyanin Organizations: Russian Ministry of Defense, Tass, The New York Times Locations: Moscow, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Moskva

☆ Judge Will Rule Next Week on Internet Ban of Hong Kong Protest Song
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Tiffany May | More About Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A Hong Kong judge said on Friday that he would rule next week on a government request to ban a popular pro-democracy song from the internet, in a case that could force Google and other companies to restrict access to the song. At issue is “Glory to Hong Kong,” which was the anthem of the 2019 protests that ended with Beijing taking tighter control over Hong Kong. The authorities argue that the song is an insult to China’s national anthem and could make people believe that Hong Kong is an independent nation. The government is seeking an injunction to prohibit the publication or distribution online of “Glory to Hong Kong.” Anyone violating the injunction could face prison for contempt of court. The case is being closely watched by tech companies, because it has raised the specter of more government control of online speech in Hong Kong.

Persons: Anthony Chan Organizations: Hong, Google, Beijing Locations: Hong Kong

☆ Shooting in Baltimore Leaves at Least 2 Dead and Dozens Injured
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( Tiffany May | Emma Bubola | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

At least two people died and dozens more were injured in a shooting at a block party in Baltimore early on Sunday, the police said. Just after 12:30 a.m., officers received multiple calls for a shooting at 800 Gretna Court, in Baltimore’s southern neighborhood of Brooklyn, the city’s acting police commissioner, Col. Richard Worley, said at a news conference on Sunday morning. An 18-year-old woman was found dead at the scene, and shortly after, a 20-year-old man was pronounced dead at a hospital, the police said in a statement. Multiple other people had gunshot wounds, Colonel Worley said, and three were in critical condition. Nine people were taken to hospitals, and 20 more took themselves to hospitals, he added.

Persons: Richard Worley, Worley Organizations: Gretna Court Locations: Baltimore, Baltimore’s, Brooklyn

☆ Judge Delays Decision on Hong Kong’s Request to Ban Protest Song Online
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Tiffany May | Chang Che | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The government filed a court petition last week arguing that “Glory to Hong Kong” was used to “insult” China’s national anthem. While not naming any defendants, the filing included 32 links to the song on YouTube. And in December, the Hong Kong authorities criticized Google for displaying the protest song under search results for Hong Kong’s national anthem. The impact of the case on how the tech companies operate in Hong Kong remains to be seen. Google and Meta established offices in Hong Kong over a decade ago, and today each has up to several hundred employees there.

Persons: Hong Kong ”, ”, Judge Wilson Chan, “, Kevin Yam, George Chen Organizations: Hong, Google, Georgetown University’s Center, Asian Law, Meta, Twitter, The Asia Group Locations: Hong Kong, Melbourne, Australia, Greater China, Washington

☆ In Rare Victory for Media, Hong Kong Court Overturns Conviction of Journalist
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In a rare victory for journalism amid a crackdown on the news media in Hong Kong, the city’s top court on Monday overturned the conviction of a prominent reporter who had produced a documentary that was critical of the police. Choy Yuk-ling, who also goes by the name Bao Choy, is best known in Hong Kong for producing investigative documentaries examining police conduct in 2019, when the city was roiled by months of antigovernment protests. Among the documentaries she produced was a prizewinning episode of “Hong Kong Connection,” a news program by the city’s public broadcaster RTHK. She was arrested in 2020 and found guilty the next year of making false statements to obtain car registry records. A court ordered her to pay a fine of 6,000 Hong Kong dollars, about $775.

Persons: Choy Yuk, Bao Choy, Choy Organizations: Hong, Hong Kong Connection, RTHK Locations: Hong Kong, Hong

☆ Hong Kong Remembered the Tiananmen Massacre, Until It Couldn’t
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For decades, Hong Kong was the only place in China where the victims of the 1989 military crackdown on pro-democracy activists at Tiananmen Square in Beijing could be publicly mourned in a candlelight vigil. This year, Hong Kong is notable for all the ways it is being made to forget the 1989 massacre. Over the weekend, thousands of officers patrolled the streets in the Causeway Bay district, where the vigil was normally held. Zhou Fengsuo, a student leader in the Tiananmen Square protest movement, said that Hong Kong is now under the same “despotic rule” as the mainland. “Afterward, Hong Kong protests faced the same suppression, the same vilification and erasure of memories.”

Persons: Hong Kong, “, ”, Zhou Fengsuo, Zhou Organizations: Tiananmen, Human Rights Locations: Hong, China, Beijing, Hong Kong, Causeway, Tiananmen, New York

☆ China Crosses a Flying Milestone but Remains in the Boeing-Airbus Grip
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Niraj Chokshi | Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Millions of flights take off and land in China every year, almost all of them using planes made by Boeing and Airbus, the world’s two leading aircraft manufacturers. For years, China has been working to change that and, this week, it celebrated a milestone in that quest: the first commercial flight of a large passenger jet made in China. It is currently the only C919 plane being used for commercial flights. Comac, or the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, was established in 2008. Based in Shanghai, it is closely linked to Avic, the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, which makes the country’s turboprops, fighter jets and bombers.

Persons: Comac Organizations: Boeing, Airbus, China Eastern Airlines, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Aviation Industry Corporation of China, Aviation Locations: China, Shanghai, Beijing, U.S, France, Germany

☆ Cathay Pacific Fights to Emerge From the Long Shadow of Covid
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Tiffany May | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In 2019, when Hong Kong was convulsed by pro-democracy protests, Cathay Pacific was caught in the crossfire with Beijing. Flights were canceled or delayed by airport sit-ins involving thousands of demonstrators, among them employees of the airline, Cathay Pacific. Turmoil grew inside Cathay Pacific. In 2020, as the pandemic grounded its business, Cathay shuttered its regional division, Cathay Dragon. It parked 70 unused planes in the desert in Alice Springs, Australia, and fired 5,300 employees based in Hong Kong.

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