Day: January 26, 2022

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday urged Myanmar’s Snr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing to uphold an agreement he made with fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members to end the political crisis in his country, but observers say the entreaty had likely fallen on deaf ears.

Hun Sen, who recently assumed the rotating chair of ASEAN, made the request to Min Aung Hlaing during a video conference, a day after he confirmed plans to invite the junta chief to an upcoming summit of the bloc even though he has yet to implement the so-called Five-Point Consensus, a plan he agreed to last April to end violence in Myanmar.

The call was billed as a follow up to Hun Sen’s Jan. 7-8 trip to Myanmar — the first by a foreign leader since the military’s Feb. 1, 2021, coup — which drew widespread criticism for conferring legitimacy on a regime that has detained nearly 8,800 civilians and killed some 1,500 others, mostly during nonviolent protests of its rule, according to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.

In addition to discussing “how to further advance” implementation of the consensus, the two leaders “shared the view on the need to make more efforts to improve the situation in Myanmar,” according to a statement by Cambodia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Hun Sen stressed to Min Aung Hlaing that he is “deeply concerned over the persistent violence” in the country.

The statement said that Min Aung Hlaing told Hun Sen that Myanmar “is committed to work with Cambodia as the ASEAN chair,” and that the two sides agreed to continue to hold “candid discussions on matters of mutual interests,” but did not clarify whether he planned to honor his promises to the bloc.

Speaking to RFA’s Khmer Service, Cambodian political analyst Em Sovannara said he expects there is little chance that Min Aung Hlaing will follow through on his promises to ASEAN, despite the rosy portrayal of Wednesday’s video conference offered by Hun Sen’s foreign ministry.

If the status quo remains in effect, he said, the political crisis in Myanmar will continue and likely result in further bloodshed.

“[The talks took place because] Hun Sen wanted to restore face after he was criticized over his recent trip to Myanmar being a waste of time,” he said.

In the statement, Hun Sen noted that the Five-Point Consensus “represents ASEAN’s shared resolve to bring normalcy” and should therefore “remain a priority.”

As part of that process, he called on Min Aung Hlaing to facilitate a visit to Myanmar by the special envoy of the ASEAN chair as soon as possible. He asked that “all parties … including [the junta] exercise with utmost restraint, cease violence, and endeavor to achieve a ceasefire” to set the stage for dialogue, and requested full cooperation from the military in support of ASEAN relief efforts.

Other statements on Hun Sen’s Facebook page referred to Min Aung Hlaing as the “senior leader” of Myanmar or chairman of the country’s State Administration Council, using the official name of the junta — noticeably different than the more deferential tone that followed the Jan. 7-8 visit in which Cambodia’s Foreign Ministry called him the Myanmar’s “prime minister.”

Earlier statements prompt concern

As recently as Jan. 20, Cambodia’s Foreign Ministry had issued a press release condemning clashes between the military and anti-junta forces in Myanmar’s Kayah state for “jeopardizing” what it characterized as “progress” made in the aftermath of Hun Sen’s visit.

Such statements, as well as Hun Sen’s failure during his visit to meet with any of Myanmar’s prodemocracy leaders, including jailed National League for Democracy chief Aung San Suu Kyi — another condition of the five-points — had prompted concern from observers, who said they suggest the prime minister intends to treat the junta with kid gloves as chair of ASEAN.

In the weeks since Hun Sen’s visit, Aung San Suu Kyi has been sentenced to four years in detention and the military has deployed air strikes during clashes that have displaced thousands of civilians.

On Tuesday, Hun Sen told Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob — his counterpart in fellow ASEAN member state Malaysia — that he had invited Min Aung Hlaing to an upcoming ASEAN summit, provided he implements conditions to end the political crisis in his country. If Myanmar fails to do so, he said, the junta will have to send non-political representatives to the meeting.

Hun Sen warned that ASEAN has “a lot of work to do” and cannot allow itself to “become a slave to Myanmar” by becoming too focused on the latter’s internal politics, Cambodia’s Foreign Ministry said. 

Reported by RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

Around 300 Vietnamese workers are being held in isolation at a China-backed power plant amid COVID-19 concerns and have been refused permission to return home for the Lunar New Year, sources in the country say.

The workers have been held at the Vinh Tan 1 Thermal Power Plant in the Tuy Phong district of Vietnam’s southeastern Binh Thuan province for the last eight months, with anyone caught leaving the plant immediately fired, one worker told RFA this week.

“We have been isolated in this plant since June 1. We all work, eat and sleep here and have no contact with the outside world,” the worker said, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

“There are around 300 Vietnamese people working at this plant, and though we are being provided with food and accommodation, we always wish we could be living there in the outside community,” he said.

Two other Vinh Tan power plants in the area are managed by the Vietnam Electricity Corporation and released their workers a month ago, the worker said. However, Vinh Tan Power Plant 1 is managed by Chinese investors and has kept its workers inside.

No announcement has been made about when the isolation will end, the worker said.

“The company hasn’t responded to many local workers’ wish to be able to return home each day after work to prepare for the Lunar New Year and celebrate with their families. We tried to raise this issue with company managers but were immediately told to stop,” he said.

Workers at the plant are frustrated and angry but don’t dare to speak up, the worker said.

“If only some of us stood up, we would be fired right away or be targeted by managers for retaliation later on, and this would affect our ability to support our families,” he said.

Union representatives have collected workers’ opinions to present to the company and have met with company managers, but no response has been received, the worker said.

A Jan. 13 document sent by the Tuy Phong District People’s Committee and seen by RFA designates the Vinh Tan 1 Plant as a low-risk “green zone” with no infections reported for more than 28 days, and urges company managers to let workers leave the plant.

As of Jan. 24, no workers had been allowed to leave, however.

Calls seeking comment from the Tuy Phong District People’s Committee this week were not picked up.

Reported by RFA’s Vietnamese Service. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Richard Finney

Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday released a wide-ranging bill intended to support the U.S. tech industry while also confronting China on human rights abuses, including the persecution of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in the country’s Xinjiang region.

The legislation, which is titled the America COMPETES Act, would spend at least $52 billion to increase domestic production of semiconductors and address vulnerabilities in the U.S. supply chain, which some economists blame in part for rising inflation.

The roughly 2,900-page measure, a collection of previously introduced bills, also contains a number of foreign policy provisions, including language pertaining to China’s treatment of Muslim Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Hongkongers.

For example, it would impose new sanctions on China for its mistreatment of Uyghurs and provide refugee protection for Uyghurs and Hongkongers persecuted by their government. The bill also seeks to strengthen U.S. relations with Taiwan.

“America COMPETES builds a foundation for America to succeed for decades to come, not just in our competition with the PRC [People’s Republic of China], but in our fight for a more peaceful, prosperous, and just world,” U.S. Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a statement issued Tuesday.

The U.S. has already said China’s violence against the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities in Xinjiang constitutes genocide and crimes against humanity. The U.S. imposed a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics in a show of opposition to the host country’s dismal human rights record.

The bill introduced this week would create a special envoy for Uyghur issues who would be responsible for coordinating the government’s response to “the gross violations of universally recognized human rights occurring in Xinjiang,” the bill states.

The violations include the mass detentions of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, and the deployment of advanced surveillance systems and police detection methods that undermine basic rights in the region, the bill says.

Its text also includes a reference to the Uyghur journalists working for RFA who have been punished by the Chinese government and seen some family members imprisoned in Xinjiang.

“Congress finds that the People’s Republic of China maintains one of the worst media environments in the world and seeks to curtail political speech inside and outside the country, including by … seeking to intimidate American-based journalists working for Radio Free Asia and reporting on gross human rights violations in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region by jailing or otherwise harassing members of their families,” the bill says.

There was no immediate response to the bill’s text from the Chinese government.

Dolkun Isa, president of the World Uyghur Congress, a Germany-based Uyghur rights advocacy group, welcomed the bill’s release.

“The passage of the act will help stop China’s ongoing genocide of the Uyghurs,” he told RFA. “The Uyghur Genocide has been ongoing for the past five years. And China hasn’t changed its intentions on committing the genocide.”

Isa also said that the passage of the bill would help resettle Uyghur refugees in many countries “living under the thumb of China and worrying for their safety” and that the appointment of the special envoy would help prioritize the U.S. response to the Uyghur genocide and eventually stop it.

Omer Kanat, executive director of the Uyghur Human Rights project in Washington, said his organization hoped that the appointment of a special envoy to coordinate the response would “wake up the rest of the international community that has so far been silent.”

Two decades ago, the U.S. Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 established a special coordinator for Tibetan issues within the State Department to promote dialogue between the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government and push to protect the human rights and “fundamental freedoms” of the Tibetan people.

In December 2021, the Biden administration appointed veteran diplomat Uzra Zeya as the new coordinator, prompting a warning from Beijing for the U.S. to keep out of its internal affairs.

The U.S. has taken other legislative measures against China for its rights violations against the Uyghurs and other Muslims in Xinjiang.

In 2020, Congress passed the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act, which sanctions Chinese officials who are found to responsible for arbitrary incarceration, forced labor and other abuses in Xinjiang. The same year, the House of Representatives also passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which requires U.S. publicly listed companies to review and actively audit supply chains for forced labor.

In December 2021, U.S. lawmakers passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act to block the importing of goods produced by forced labor in Xinjiang.

Translated by RFA’s Uyghur Service. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.

The U.S. Navy says it is working to recover the F-35C Lightning II fighter jet that crashed in the South China Sea – a tough mission likely to play out under the watchful eyes of China.

While attempting to land Monday on the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier, the fighter skidded over the side and tumbled into the sea.

The pilot safely ejected and was recovered by a U.S. military helicopter.

Seven servicemen were injured in the accident that happened during a joint operation conducted by the USS Carl Vinson and USS Abraham Lincoln strike groups in the South China Sea. All the injured are in stable condition.

Lt. Nicholas Lingo, spokesperson for the U.S. 7th Fleet, told media late Tuesday that “the U.S. Navy is making recovery operations arrangements for the F-35C aircraft.”

Lingo said he could confirm “the aircraft impacted the flight deck during landing and subsequently fell to the water” but did not specify the location of the crash site or the search area.

The South China Sea Probing Initiative (SCPI), a Beijing-based think-tank, alleged that based on satellite imagery the crash occurred within the U.S. exercise area some 100 nautical miles from Luzon Island of the Philippines, and 50 to 70 nautical miles northeast of Scarborough Shoal inside the Philippine exclusive economic zone.

The SCPI also said that on Wednesday morning, the U.S. sent at least six intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance aircraft including one MQ-4C, a high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle, to the area, presumably to assist the crashed fighter’s search.

The wreckage could contain many technological secrets, and analysts say the U.S. would not want them to fall into China’s hands.

“I think it’s obvious that the Chinese would be looking for the wreckage as well,” said Richard Bitzinger, senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.

He said pieces of wreckage can provide valuable information about the F-35, such as its skin, stealth sensors, and data processing.

“That said, I’m sure that the U.S. Navy is surrounding the area where the plane went down and trying to cordon it off until salvage ships arrive. So I don’t know if the Chinese could pull it off overtly and covertly. I don’t know if the Chinese have the means,” Bitzinger added.

The 7^th Fleet’s spokesman, Lt. Lingo, when asked, said: “We cannot speculate on what the PRC’s (China’s) intentions are on this matter.”

Multi-million dollar fighter jet

Chinese military observers nevertheless have been monitoring the accident closely.

Zhang Junshe, a senior research fellow at the Naval Research Academy of the People’s Liberation Army, was quoted in the state-run Global Times newspaper as saying that the U.S. military’s operations aimed at containing China exhaust American military personnel “physically and mentally.”

“Accidents would be unavoidable under this situation,” Zhang was quoted as saying.

Ten F-35Cs, including the one that crashed, are aboard the USS Carl Vinson.

The $100-million F-35, developed by the American aerospace giant Lockheed Martin Corp., is a state-of-the-art aircraft with superior stealth performance that is difficult to catch on radar.

Jane’s Defence magazine reported this month that the Thai military is considering buying new fighter aircraft to replace its air force’s ageing fleet. One option is the F-35 Lightning II strike fighter.

Lockheed Martin said the F-35C variant is “the first and world’s only stealth strike fighter designed and built explicitly for Navy carrier operations.” The first F-35C was put into operation only in 2019.

Recovery of the fighter jet from the sea presents a formidable challenge. The U.S. military has not provided detailed information about where the plane might be, but the area of the dual-aircraft drills where it went down is near the so-called South China Basin, where the maximum sea depth exceeds 5,000 meters.

This is the fourth crash of F-35 aircraft of all kinds.

An F-35 from Britain’s HMS Queen Elizabeth crashed into the Mediterranean Sea in November, though the pilot also safely ejected.

In April 2019, a Japanese F-35 crashed in the Pacific Ocean close to northern Japan, killing the pilot. The F-35 was recovered from the sea.

Just earlier this month, a South Korean F-35A fighter had to make an emergency landing during training due to malfunction.

Monday’s crash was the second major accident involving the U.S. Navy in the South China Sea in recent months. Last October, the nuclear submarine USS Connecticut hit an uncharted seamount and suffered significant damage.

Authorities in China have placed a “bubble” around 2022 Winter Olympics venues and facilities, in a bid to limit the spread of COVID-19, amid growing international calls for a boycott of the event due to human rights concerns.

Thousands of Olympics staff, volunteers, cleaners, cooks and bus drivers have been confined to a bubble since Jan. 25, with no contact allowed with the outside world, to be joined by an estimated 3,000 athletes and incoming journalists due to arrive ahead of the Feb. 4-20 event.

Arrivals must be fully vaccinated or face three weeks in quarantine as soon as they land, while everyone in the bubble will be tested daily for COVID-19 and required to wear masks at all times, organizers said in comments reported by Agence France-Presse.

The system includes a closed-loop transportation system between venues that includes high-speed rail services, while security fences and guards will prevent contact between anyone in the loop and anyone outside, which includes spectators.

The preparations come amid growing calls for a boycott of the Games, with rights groups and politicians citing widespread human rights abuses at the hands of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the “disappearance” of tennis star Peng Shuai after she accused a former vice premier of sexual assault.

Amnesty International launched a global campaign for a boycott at the end of last year, focusing on five Chinese nationals detained or disappeared over peaceful criticism of the government: citizen journalist Zhang Zhan; Uyghur professor Ilham Tohti; feminist activist Li Qiaochu; rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng; and Tibetan activist Rinchen Tsultrim.

“The Chinese government is using the Beijing Olympics to improve its global image and hide its human rights abuses,” the group said in a statement launching the campaign.

“China is … capitalizing on the glamour, prestige and public interest of sport to avert scrutiny of its deplorable human rights record. This amounts to sportswashing,” it said, citing “systematic violations of the right to freedom of expression” under CCP rule.

Pan Yi, campaign manager at Amnesty International’s Taiwan branch, also called for the release of Taiwan pro-democracy activist Lee Ming-cheh, who is currently serving a jail term for “subversion” in China.

“We hope that the Chinese government can at least let Lee’s family know how he is, and release him as scheduled, so that this Taiwanese national can return to Taiwan,” Pan said on Jan. 26, as the group submitted a petition to the democratic island’s Olympic Committee.

The group’s branch chief Eeling Chiu said human rights abuses have worsened under CCP leader Xi Jinping.

“Particularly since Xi Jinping came to power, we have seen more and more human rights defenders being arbitrarily arrested, imprisoned, as well as the enforced disappearance of lawyers because of their peaceful speech, assembly and associations,” Chiu said.

Some 30 non-governmental organizations and rights groups in Taiwan signed a statement calling the 2022 Winter Olympics a “betrayal of the the Olympic spirit.”

‘Closed, gloomy, solemn’

Former CCP party school professor Cai Xiaohua said the Games will expose just how isolated China under Xi Jinping is becoming.

“This Winter Olympics is closed, not open; the atmosphere is gloomy and solemn, very unlike the enthusiasm of the 2008 Olympics,” Cai told RFA. She said the Games are a way for Xi to bolster the likelihood of a third term in office, decided at the 20th Party Congress later this year.

“He has … to show that his rule is effective, that he has political achievements, and that he can hold a Winter Olympics where people all over the world acted very friendly to China,” Cai said.

But she said the CCP is having to work hard to make the Games appear a success.

“Beijing is trying to keep the Olympics narrative going, and yet the heads of major Western countries won’t be attending,” Cai said. “They are all boycotting the Games diplomatically.”

“The message that will be sent to the world outside the Great Firewall will reflect China’s global isolation,” she said, adding that Xi will be hoping to use the pandemic as an excuse for the isolation and controls on visitors.

Meanwhile, Republican Senator Rick Scott said he was concerned for the safety of U.S. citizens taking part in the Games.

“I can’t tell you how worried I am about the athletes competing in Beijing,” Scott told a news conference on Jan. 24.

“Look at what Communist China did to silence and disappear Peng Shuai,” he said. “Why, it’s terrifying.”

“I’ve called on the IOC and the Biden administration to take every step necessary to keep Americans safe. But unfortunately, I haven’t heard a word for them on what they’re doing about it,” he said.

Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

Hong Kong’s security secretary warned on Wednesday that the city’s government plans to broaden the scope of the colonial-era Official Secrets Act to encompass broader definitions of espionage.

Chris Tang told the city’s legislature that existing legislation, including the draconian national security law, is currently too limited to cover all of the activities the government wishes to criminalize.

“In the existing Official Secrets Ordinance, the definition of espionage work is rather limited,” Tang said in comments aired by government broadcaster RTHK. “It covers the approach of prohibited places and the making of information useful to the enemy.”

“We feel that these definitions are not enough for us to combat all manners of espionage activities and risks arising from these,” he said.

The amendments will be made at the same time as new legislation is tabled under Article 23 of the city’s Basic Law governing national security laws, likely in the second half of this year, Tang said. Earlier plans to legislate under Article 23 were shelved following mass popular protests in 2003.

Tang’s warning came after the authorities appointed a designated national security judge to preside in the trial of five speech therapists who were charged with “conspiracy to print, publish, distribute, display or reproduce seditious publications” under colonial-era sedition laws.

The ruling means there could be no jury at the trial of Sidney Ng, 28, Samuel Chan, 25, Marco Fong, 26,  Lai Man-ling, 25, and Melody Yeung, 27, who were arrested in July 2021 after publishing three children’s books that portrayed sheep uniting to defend their village against invading wolves, a plot-line that the authorities said incited hatred of the authorities.

The five defendants appeared in good spirits as they were escorted into the District Court earlier this week, smiling and waving to loved ones in the public gallery.

The prosecution argued that Article 44 of a draconian national security law imposed on Hong Kong by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from July 1, 2020 was applicable in the case, in addition to the sedition charges.

However, they have been denied bail as the charges against them are deemed a matter of “national security.”

Trial fairness questioned

The hearing was led by national security judge Kwok Wai-kin, who was temporarily suspended from duty after expressing sympathy in court for a defendant accused of stabbing protesters during the 2019 protest movement.

Kwok, who is a designated national security judge, appointed himself to hear the trial, despite arguments from the defense that it would prejudice the public’s perception of the fairness of the trial.

“Designated national security law judges are no different from other judges,” Kwok retorted.

Hong Kong’s Chief Justice Andrew Cheung hit back on Monday at concerns over lack of impartiality in trials judged by national security appointees.

“All appointed judges are incumbent judges, and, as such, must first have met Article 92 of the Basic Law, and the strict requirements on judicial and professional abilities in selecting judges,” Cheung said in a speech opening the legal new year in Hong Kong.

“No political or personal factors are allowed to be involved,” he said.

National security judges are chosen by the chief executive, who may consult with the chief justice while making the designation, he said.

Cheung also defended the possibility that national security trials can take place without a jury, in front of three designated judges.

“[The judges’] verdict is given in a fully reasoned judgment which is published online for public scrutiny,” Cheung said.

The “seditious sheep” trial is set to begin on July 5, 2022. All of the defendants have been held on remand for at least five months.

Until the national security law ushered in a city-wide crackdown on peaceful criticism and political opposition to the government, trial by jury had been one of the most important features of Hong Kong’s common-law legal system, as it was designed to offer defendants additional protection against the abuse of official power.

Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.