Category Archives: Asia Pacific

‘It’s offensive’: backlash against China’s ‘good for marriage’ women’s trend

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Style featuring pastel makeup and modest clothing has taken off, but many are objecting to the ethos behind it

A social media debate has erupted in China over a trend among some women to dress and behave in a way that’s “good for marriage”, with detractors saying it discourages independence.

China, like much of east Asia, is battling with a demographic crisis and young people increasingly choose to forgo marriage and children. Last year China officially recorded its first decline in population for more than 60 years.

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Chinese economy out of deflation but faces threat of relapse

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Slow domestic consumption, high youth unemployment and decline in exports among factors dragging on post-Covid recovery

China’s consumer price index rebounded in August as the world’s second-largest economy emerged from deflation, official data released on Saturday suggested, despite sluggish domestic consumption that is complicating its post-Covid economic recovery.

Last month’s CPI, the main gauge of inflation, rose 0.1% year on year, the national statistics bureau said.

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China reportedly extends iPhone ban to more workers as tensions with US rise

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Apple shares fall as local government and state-owned firms latest to face restrictions on devices at work

China’s government has reportedly expanded its ban of iPhones to local government workers and state-owned companies, a day after it emerged central government employees were forbidden from bringing the devices to work.

Several agencies had begun instructing employees not to bring iPhones to work and the ban was expected to be further extended, Bloomberg reported. Nikkei reported at least one state-owned company had told its employees that anyone working with trade secrets could not bring their iPhones, Apple Watches or AirPods into work from next month.

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Chinese law to ban comments that harm China’s ‘feelings’ prompts concern

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Legal experts and bloggers say proposed crimes could be used arbitrarily and lead to more censorship

Proposed changes to a Chinese public security law to criminalise comments, clothing or symbols that “undermine the spirit” or “harm the feelings” of China have triggered the concern of legal experts, who say the amendments could be used arbitrarily.

The changes were first made public last week as part of a mandatory “soliciting opinion” process, as concerns mount about the increasingly authoritarian and nationalistic rule of China’s president, Xi Jinping.

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North Korea launches new ‘tactical nuclear attack submarine’

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Kim Jong-un heralds new chapter for navy but South Korea says vessel seems not to be operational

North Korea has launched its first “tactical nuclear attack submarine”, state media reported, although the South Korean military said the vessel might not be operational.

The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, presided over the unveiling ceremony on Wednesday, saying the sub was part of a “push forward with the nuclear weaponisation of the navy”, according to the state news agency KCNA.

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Albanese’s China trip suggests a smoother relationship rather than a cosy one

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A key calculation of the Australian PM’s team is that dialogue is of value, even if both sides agree to disagree

In a far cry from Henry Kissinger’s secret trips to China in the 1970s, Anthony Albanese’s planned travel to the country has been an open secret for months.

Still, the Australian prime minister’s confirmation this week that he had accepted an invitation to fly to Beijing is another key step in his government’s efforts to “stabilise” a relationship that hit rock bottom in 2020.

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Marise Payne to quit parliament – as it happened

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This blog is now closed.

The Bureau of Meteorology is urging people in western Sydney, southern and central ranges and the Hunter region to tidy up loose items around their yards as damaging winds are extending over the areas today.

Gusty storms may hit Sydney and the Central Coast today, while there are possible severe storms heading to the Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast this afternoon, with a risk of damaging winds and large hail, the BoM says.

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Two dead after Hong Kong’s heaviest rain in at least 140 years

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More than 200mm of rain recorded on Hong Kong’s main island and there is also disruption in Shenzhen

Hong Kong’s heaviest rain since records began 140 years ago has left two people dead and more than 100 injured, as unusually wet weather caused by typhoons brought more disruption to southern China.

Videos showed water cascading down steep hillsides in the former British colony, causing waist-deep flooding in narrow streets and inundating malls, railway stations and tunnels.

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G20: battle for influence as US seeks to rival China in the global south

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There will be pressure on rich countries to fulfil a commitment to provide climate finance to poorer nations

The run-up to this weekend’s G20 summit in Delhi has largely been dominated by two issues: the host’s efforts to project India as a superpower; and the intriguing decision of Xi Jinping not to attend. The substance of what world leaders will discuss during their two days together has struggled to surface.

Yet this year’s G20 – the 24th since the format was inaugurated in 1999 – is potentially a make or break moment for the organisation that includes the world’s 19 wealthiest nations plus the European Union as a bloc. With one part of the world increasingly gathering in the now expanded Brics format where China has a leading role, and the west comfortable with its annual G7 summitry, the G20 is the best remaining hope of keeping the principle of multilateralism alive. The United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, spoke on Thursday of a real risk of fragmentation of the world order, while his own organisation is paralysed by the war in Ukraine.

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Head of Johnny Kitagawa’s J-pop agency resigns over sexual abuse scandal

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Julie Fujishima, niece of late pop mogul, apologises and acknowledges agency founder’s abuse for first time

The president of Japan’s biggest boyband talent agency has resigned after acknowledging for the first time that its late founder sexually abused aspiring young stars.

The country’s most powerful pop mogul, Johnny Kitagawa, who died in 2019 aged 87, was accused of sexually assaulting multiple teenagers over decades, but evaded justice because his victims feared he would destroy their careers if they spoke out.

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Toyota blames factory shutdown in Japan on ‘insufficient disk space’

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‘Just in time’ production system minimises costs but technical glitch highlights risks

Toyota has blamed a recent shutdown of all of its factories in Japan on a system malfunction caused by “insufficient disk space”.

The Japanese carmaker said the stoppage on 29 August at all 14 of its domestic plants occurred after servers that process orders for vehicle parts broke down following a maintenance procedure carried out the previous day.

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Five killed as elevator at Bali resort plunges down ravine

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Accident at Ubud’s Ayuterra Resort believed to have occurred when cable in inclined lift carrying hotel staff snapped

Balinese police are investigating the catastrophic failure of a lift that left five hotel workers dead at a resort on Friday.

The accident took place at Ubud’s Ayuterra Resort about 1pm and is believed to have occurred when a cable in the inclined lift carrying the three women and two men snapped, plunging them 100 metres down a steep ravine at the hillside resort.

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Cuba uncovers ‘human trafficking ring’ recruiting for Russia’s war in Ukraine

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Havana says it is dismantling network seeking to recruit Cubans as mercenaries as Moscow attempts to boost its forces

Cuba has uncovered a human trafficking ring aimed at recruiting Cubans to fight as mercenaries for Russia in its war in Ukraine, its foreign ministry has said, as Moscow seeks to increase the size of its forces.

In a statement, the Cuban foreign ministry said the authorities were working to “neutralise and dismantle” the network, which it said was operating within the Caribbean island nation and in Russia.

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Australia urged to expand flights to Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam in blueprint to boost trade

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Anthony Albanese will launch strategy amid intense debate over decision to block Qatar Airways’ request for further flights to Australia

Australia should expand flights to key south-east Asian markets such as Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam, according to a sweeping economic blueprint to boost trade.

The strategy, to be released by the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, on Wednesday, also calls on the government to cut foreign investment barriers, fast track visas and urgently improve Australia’s “south-east Asia literacy”.

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Global economic fears deepen as service sector dips in China and Europe

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Fresh signs of weakness in Chinese economy and weak UK and eurozone data spook investors

Fears about the health of the global economy have intensified following downbeat news about service sector activity in China, the eurozone and the UK.

Share prices fell in Asia and the pound dropped to a 12-week low against the US dollar after fresh signs of weakness in China triggered speculation that its post-lockdown recovery was running out of steam.

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China on the agenda: 2024 candidates fret over how to deal with Beijing

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Republicans showcase range of hawkish policies designed to counter perceived threat amid diplomatic push by Biden

The United States’ tangled and increasingly fraught relationship with China is emerging centre stage in the 2024 presidential campaign in a rare case of foreign policy capturing the limelight in the race for the White House.

Half a century since a Republican president, Richard Nixon, made a historic visit to communist China to carve out a lauded strategic opening in the election year of 1972, Republican candidates vying to succeed him in the Oval Office are showcasing a range of hawkish policies designed to counter the perceived threat from Beijing.

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Hong Kong’s top court rules in favour of legal recognition for same-sex couples

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Judges call for alternative framework to marriage in partial victory for city’s LGBTQ+ community

Hong Kong must provide an alternative to marriage in order to legally recognise the rights of same-sex couples, the city’s highest court has declared, opening the way for civil unions.

However, it rejected appeals against current laws that restrict marriage to heterosexual couples and refuse to recognise overseas same-sex marriages, despite majority support among the population.

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Two people detained for digging shortcut through Great Wall of China

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Suspects admit using excavator to smash hole in Ming-era section in Shanxi province, state media say

Two people have been detained after using an excavator to dig a hole in the Great Wall of China, said the state broadcaster CCTV.

Police in Shanxi province followed tracks made by machinery used to dig a shortcut through a segment of the wall – remains of the immense structure built by China’s emperors to deter foreign invaders.

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New Zealand judge dismisses charges against White Island volcano owners

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Individual charges against Andrew, James and Peter Buttle dropped, though their company still faces charges over deadly eruption

The three brothers who owned Whakaari/White Island at the time of its deadly eruption had the individual charges against them thrown out by a New Zealand judge on Tuesday, two months into their trial.

The sudden eruption in December 2019 came as tour groups were visiting the island volcano. The explosion killed 22 people, 17 of them Australians, and seriously injured 25 others.

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Kim Jong-un to meet Putin in Russia for talks over supplying weapons

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North Korean and Russian leaders expected to discuss military cooperation in Vladivostok

Kim Jong-un will reportedly travel to Russia this month to meet Vladimir Putin and discuss the possibility of supplying weapons to the Kremlin for the war in Ukraine.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said details of the expected meeting were still unclear, but added that it was likely to take place in the Russian port city of Vladivostok, given its proximity to North Korea.

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