Category Archives: Asia Pacific

‘They created monsters’: How New Zealand’s brutal welfare system produced criminals

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Rangi Wickliffe was one of many Māori children repeatedly abused in welfare institutions including the notorious Lake Alice psychiatric hospital

Rangi Wickliffe’s body is a map and a history of New Zealand’s welfare and prison institutions, where the 60-year-old has spent about 45 years of his life.

There are the scars the length of his inner left forearm that he slashed up with a razor blade when he was 16. That was in D Block in Paremoremo prison, the harshest wing in New Zealand’s maximum security prison.

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Oil prices climb to fresh highs, UK petrol price hits record – business live

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After Tesco’s website and app were down for most of the weekend, leaving many frustrated customers unable to shop online, HSBC’s business banking portal (called HSBCnet) had some issues this morning.

Large corporate customers only had intermittent access via the website or app for about an hour, from 9.10am, but the problem has been fixed, according to HSBC.

This is truly a dark day for drivers, and one which we hoped we wouldn’t see again after the high prices of April 2012. This will hurt many household budgets and no doubt have knock-on implications for the wider economy.

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Amnesty International to close Hong Kong offices due to national security law

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Human rights watchdog cites staff safety among reasons over decision to leave city for first time in 40 years

Amnesty International will close its Hong Kong offices by the end of the year, citing concerns for the safety of staff trying to operate under the national security law.

The decision, announced on Monday, will leave the city without the human rights organisation’s presence for the first time in 40 years.

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Japan royal wedding: subdued ritual looms as Princess Mako marries amid controversy

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Princess’s union to Kei Komuro has attracted public and media attention for all the wrong reasons

It is perhaps fitting that the weather forecast is for cloud and drizzle in Tokyo on Tuesday, when Princess Mako – the eldest niece of Japan’s emperor – will marry her college sweetheart in a subdued ritual marred by years of criticism of their relationship.

Despite the imperial backdrop – and a public craving for distraction after 18 months of the coronavirus pandemic – their nuptials will involve lots of paperwork and rather less festivity.

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Under the radar: the Australian intelligence chief in the shadows of the Aukus deal

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Andrew Shearer’s unreported meeting in April with Joe Biden’s top Indo-Pacific adviser may have been the clincher for the Aukus security agreement

It was late April when one of Australia’s top intelligence chiefs arrived in Washington for important talks with key officials in the relatively new Biden administration.

Andrew Shearer, a longtime foreign policy hawk and one of Scott Morrison’s most influential advisers on how Australia should position itself at a time of rising tensions with China, met with Joe Biden’s top Indo-Pacific adviser, Kurt Campbell, in the building next to the White House on 30 April.

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Australia wants deeper energy ties to help Taiwan decarbonise, amid China tensions

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Trade minister Dan Tehan sees ‘real opportunities’ to help Taiwan, as he hopes relationship with China has not become permanently adversarial

The Australian government says it wants to help Taiwan decarbonise its economy, flagging this as the next area of cooperation with the democratically ruled island, amid ongoing tensions with China.

The trade minister, Dan Tehan, said he saw “real opportunities” to deepen energy ties with Taiwan, while arguing there was bipartisan recognition in Australia of “the greater assertiveness that we’re seeing from China”.

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‘You can sense Selim the Grim’s anger’: portraits of Ottoman sultans go on show

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Set of six copies of portraits first produced in 1579 in Venice are going up for auction in London next week

They were powerful rulers of perhaps the mightiest empire the world has ever seen, and their portraits oiled the wheels of diplomacy. Six sultans of the Ottoman empire, which spanned more than six centuries and dominated a great swathe of the world, gaze out beneath magnificent, bulbous turbans, a symbol of their wealth and status.

An original set of 14 portraits was produced in Venice in 1579, and copies were made later. The only surviving intact set is in Munich, but a set of six goes on display at Christie’s in London this weekend before being sold at auction on 28 October.

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China passes law to reduce ‘twin pressures’ of homework and tutoring on children

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Law makes local authorities and parents responsible for ensuring children are spared stress of overwork

China has passed a law to reduce the “twin pressures” of homework and off-site tutoring on children.

The official Xinhua news agency said on Saturday the new law, which has not been published in full, makes local governments responsible for ensuring that the twin pressures are reduced and asks parents to arrange their children’s time to account for reasonable rest and exercise, thereby reducing pressure and avoiding internet overuse.

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Have Sumatran fishing crews found the fabled Island of Gold?

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Treasures worth millions found in the last five years along the Musi River could be the site of the Srivijaya empire

It was a fabled kingdom known in ancient times as the Island of Gold, a civilisation with untold wealth that explorers tried in vain to find long after its unexplained disappearance from history around the 14th century. The site of Srivijaya may finally have been found – by local fishing crews carrying out night-time dives on the Musi River near Palembang on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

Their extraordinary catches are treasures ranging from a lifesize eighth-century Buddhist statue studded with precious gems – worth millions of pounds – to jewels worthy of kings.

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Joe Biden suggests US would defend Taiwan against China, forcing fresh White House clarification

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Administration insists there is no change of policy after president says US has ‘a commitment’ to defend island

China has urged the US to “avoid sending any wrong signals” after President Joe Biden for a second time in three months said the US would come to Taiwan’s defence if it was attacked.

In both incidents, the White House has clarified that there has been no change in US policy, which officially maintains so-called “strategic ambiguity” regarding Taiwan. Still, Biden’s words will rattle Beijing.

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Fearful but defiant: life goes on in Taiwan despite China’s threats

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On the streets of Taipei, Beijing’s rhetoric is a hot topic but people are focused on a peaceful future

In a small urban park on Yong Kang Jie, Taipei’s famous eat street, an elderly woman leans across the frame of her friend’s parked bicycle and shouts. “Taiwan is an independent country!”

It’s a quiet autumn morning. Children play on a nearby slide, and a young mother enjoys a takeaway bento box.

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Auckland’s lockdown has finally given me what I always wanted – a licence to pry | Leni Ma’ia’i

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I’m one of the city’s many undercover agents, ready to pounce on any and all lockdown infringements

Nine weeks into Tāmaki Makaurau’s lockdown, having pushed the limits on baking, introspection and backgammon, I’ve taken to running.

No, not for any of the health benefits – running at my size can’t be healthy; it’s a chance to go snooping. I’ve always enjoyed sticking my nose in other people’s business, but society has repressed these urges. Lockdown, finally, has given me the licence to pry.

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South Korea launches its first homemade space rocket

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President hails ‘excellent’ test, as rocket gets high enough, but fails to put dummy payload into orbit

South Korea’s first domestically produced space rocket reached its desired altitude but failed to deliver a dummy payload into orbit in its first test launch.

The South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, still described the test as an “excellent accomplishment” that takes the country a step further in its pursuit of a space launch programme.

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Biden’s pick for China ambassador says ‘we cannot trust the Chinese’ on Taiwan

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Nicholas Burns calls Beijing an ‘aggressor’ and that US responsibility is ‘to make Taiwan a tough nut to crack’

US president Joe Biden’s nominee to be ambassador to Beijing on Wednesday said China was aggressive and untrustworthy, insisting that boosting Taiwan’s defences against the threat of Chinese invasion should be a US priority.

Speaking to the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, which is due to confirm his appointment, Nicholas Burns denounced recent Chinese warplane incursions into Taiwan’s air defence zone, calling them “especially objectionable”.

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UK strikes trade deal with New Zealand – but it may add nothing to GDP

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‘Groundbreaking’ agreement criticised by UK farmers is part of 10-year plan to pivot to Indo-Pacific

Britain has struck a trade deal with New Zealand, a key ally, as ministers hope to stem the country’s reliance on China – but the agreement is expected to add no value to the UK’s gross domestic product.

Despite the Department for International Trade heralding the deal as a “groundbreaking” achievement that was a “vital part” of Boris Johnson’s commitment to levelling up, the prime minister has been accused of selling out British farmers.

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Volcano spews ash two miles into the sky in Japan – video

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A volcano blasted ash two miles into the sky after erupting on Japan's southern island of Kyushu on Wednesday.

Officials warned of a risk of large falling rocks and lava flows within a radius of about half a mile around the mountain's crater, but there were no immediate reports of casualties. 

Mount Aso erupted at about 11.43am local time (0343 BST), and the ash falls have been showering nearby towns in the prefecture of Kumamoto


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‘He cared when no one did’: Filipino human rights lawyer Chito Gascón dies of Covid

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Gascón, who frequently clashed with Rodrigo Duterte over his ‘war on drugs’, has been hailed as a ‘true hero’ of democracy

José Luis Martín C Gascón used a walking stick to carry out his duties as the Philippines’ “courageous” human rights lawyer, a result of living with with diabetes and the wound it left on his right foot.

But in the words of his brother, Miguel Gascón, who confirmed his death on Facebook earlier this month, “of all the battles you fought, we had to lose you to Covid-19”.

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China’s Evergrande crisis: clock ticking as crucial debt default deadline looms

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A default by the property giant could have far-reaching consequences for China and global economy

The rescue of embattled Chinese property company Evergrande appears to have stalled, leaving the developer on the brink of default and threatening to unleash contagion through the country’s giant real estate sector, home prices and the economy.

The problems enveloping Evergrande, which has eyewatering total debts of $305bn, have hung over global financial markets in recent weeks and helped curb China’s post-pandemic recovery.

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North Korea says test was new type of submarine-launched ballistic missile

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State media report that device launched on Tuesday had ‘lots of advanced control guidance technologies’

North Korea says it has successfully tested a “new type” of submarine-launched ballistic missile, as the nuclear-armed country pursues ever more improved weapons.

The device had “lots of advanced control guidance technologies”, the official Korean Central News Agency said on Wednesday, adding that it was launched from the same vessel that the North used in its first submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) tests five years ago. The latter point casts doubt on claims by Pyongyang in 2015 that it had launched a submarine-based missile.

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At least 13 phone firms hit by suspected Chinese hackers since 2019, say experts

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LightBasin hackers were able to obtain subscriber information and call metadata, says CrowdStrike

At least 13 phone companies around the world have been compromised since 2019 by sophisticated hackers who are believed to come from China, a cybersecurity expert group has said.

The roaming hackers – known as LightBasin – were able to “search and find” individual mobile phones and “target accordingly”, according to CrowdStrike, a group regularly cited by western intelligence.

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