Category Archives: Asia Pacific

Coronavirus live news: India evacuates Covid-19 patients ahead of cyclone as Brazil deaths pass 30,000

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Yemen aid funding falls short by US$1bn; Zoom profits double; global cases pass 6.3m. Follow the latest updates

China reported one new coronavirus case and four new asymptomatic Covid-19 cases in the mainland on 2 June, the country’s health commission said.

The National Health Commission said the one confirmed case was imported involving a traveller from overseas. Mainland China had five confirmed cases, all of which were imported, and 10 asymptomatic cases for 1 June.

China does not count asymptomatic patients, those who are infected with the coronavirus but not exhibiting symptoms, as confirmed cases.

Total number of infections to date in the mainland stands at 83,021. The death toll remained unchanged at 4,634.

Dan Collyns brings you this action-packed update from Bolivia:

“Thanos is beating us” warned a Bolivian government minister in a live televised press conference on Monday as he called for his compatriots to comply with sanitary measures and lockdown restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Mientras tanto, en bolivia pic.twitter.com/5VPR4sDoX3

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Brazil poised to overtake Italy as country with third-highest death toll – as it happened

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Sweden death rate now higher than France; Pakistan records largest single day rise in new infections; global deaths pass 380,000. This blog is now closed

We’ve launched a new blog at the link below:

Related: Coronavirus live news: Germany reveals major stimulus plan as global cases grow by 100,000 a day

At least three people were reported dead as coronavirus-hit Mumbai appeared to escape the worst of Cyclone Nisarga Wednesday, the first severe storm to threaten India’s financial capital in more than 70 years, AFP reports.

The city and its surrounds are usually sheltered from cyclones - the last deadly storm to hit the city was in 1948. Authorities had evacuated at least 100,000 people, including coronavirus patients, from flood-prone areas in the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat ahead of Nisarga’s arrival.

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Boris Johnson lays out visa offer to nearly 3m Hong Kong citizens

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UK prime minister says all eligible for BNO passport can apply if China cuts freedoms

Boris Johnson has opened the path to what he called one of the “biggest changes” ever to the British visa system, stating he was ready to offer a right to live and work in the UK to any of the nearly 3 million Hong Kong citizens eligible for a British National Overseas passport.

Ministers have been ambivalent since last Thursday on whether the government’s offer of an extendable 12-month visa would be available only to the 350,000 current BNO passport holders in Hong Kong, or would also include the more than 2.5 million eligible to apply for the passport.

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China withheld data on coronavirus from WHO, recordings reveal

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Complaints by officials at odds with body’s public praise of Beijing’s response to outbreak

The World Health Organization struggled to get needed information from China during critical early days of the coronavirus pandemic, according to recordings of internal meetings that contradict the organisation’s public praise of Beijing’s response to the outbreak.

The recordings, obtained by the Associated Press (AP), show officials complaining in meetings during the week of 6 January that Beijing was not sharing data needed to evaluate the risk of the virus to the rest of the world. It was not until 20 January that China confirmed coronavirus was contagious and 30 January that the WHO declared a global emergency.

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US may take in Hongkongers ahead of China security laws, Pompeo suggests

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Secretary of state says he is considering immigration option similar to move announced last week by UK

The US is considering letting people who no longer “feel comfortable” in Hong Kong move to the US, secretary of state Mike Pompeo has suggested.

The comments, made in a conversation with the American Enterprise Institute on Friday, come amid worsening relations between the two countries over China’s moves to impose national security laws on the semi-autonomous region.

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‘Fear will always be there’: Covid-free island prepares to bring home stranded citizens

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Pacific nation of Palau tries to balance citizens’ right to return, with protecting its coronavirus-free status

For 143 Palau citizens trapped overseas by coronavirus travel restrictions, the journey home, always long, will be especially tortuous. To reach their Pacific island home they face six long weeks of quarantine – two in Guam, two in a hotel in Palau, and then another two weeks of self-isolation at home. They will also face at least five Covid-19 tests.

But some Palauans fear that even these measures will not be enough.

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Hong Kong police ban Tiananmen memorial vigil, citing Covid-19

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Announcement means event will not be held for first time since massacre in 1989

Hong Kong police have formally banned this week’s vigil for the Tiananmen Square massacre, citing Covid-19 measures.

The move had been expected, especially after the Hong Kong government extended its ban on public gatherings in groups larger than eight, but the announcement confirms that for the first time since the Chinese military killed untold numbers of protesters on 4 June 1989, there will be no commemorative event.

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Thousands in New Zealand protest against George Floyd killing

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Speakers highlight racism against Indigenous people and call on Ardern to denounce killing

Tens of thousands of New Zealanders have come out in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, after the death of George Floyd in the US.

At least four solidarity gatherings were held in the country on Monday afternoon, with massive crowds taking to their knees in the Auckland demonstration.

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Coronavirus news live: no new Covid-19 deaths in Spain for first time since March

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Pakistanis urged to ‘live with the virus’; employee in Israeli prime minister’s office tests positive for Covid-19; Czech Republic will welcome foreign travellers from 15 June

UK ministers have been accused of not taking seriously the threat posed to black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) Britons by Covid-19, after it was reported that the release of an official review of the issue had been delayed over fears of potential civil unrest.

According to Sky News, officials are concerned about the effect the publication could have amid global anger over the death of George Floyd, an African American man who pleaded for air as a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on his neck.

Related: Ministers accused of not taking Covid-19 threat to BAME Britons seriously

Get in touch on Twitter @helenrsullivan.

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Global report: Wuhan reports no asymptomatic cases for first time

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Chinese city marks recovery milestone; English health officials voice concern over loosened lockdown; Brazil pass 500,000 cases

The Chinese city of Wuhan, where the Covid-19 pandemic began, reported no new asymptomatic cases for the first time on Sunday, according to Chinese health officials.

Mainland China reported 16 new cases overall on Sunday, the highest daily number in three weeks. All were reported as imported cases – 11 in Sichuan province, three in Inner Mongolia, and two in Guangdong.

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Fears in Papua New Guinea over reports of China Mobile buying major phone carrier Digicel

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Speculation that the beleaguered mobile phone operator will be sold to Chinese telco has sparked security concerns

Speculation that mobile phone operator Digicel is considering selling the Papua New Guinea business that is considered the jewel in the financially troubled empire’s crown has sparked concern within the country over Beijing’s growing influence in PNG.

The Digicel conglomerate, which is controlled by Irish businessman Denis O’Brien, surprised many of its users in PNG by filing bankruptcy proceedings earlier this month in Bermuda and the US, where it owes billions of dollars.

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Coronavirus live news: Spain’s prime minister seeks final two-week extension of state of emergency

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Brazil becomes fourth worst country for deaths; pressure builds on South African president over his handling of outbreak

Bosnia’s state court has ordered the release of a regional prime minister and two other men suspected of corruption in connection with the import of defective ventilators for coronavirus patients.

The court of Bosnia-Herzegovina said their detention was unnecessary, and turned down the prosecution’s requests to detain the three men for 30 days.

Senior public health officials have made a last-minute plea for ministers to scrap Monday’s easing of the coronavirus lockdown in England, warning the country is unprepared to deal with any surge in infection and that public resolve to take steps to limit transmission has been eroded.

The Association of Directors of Public Health said new rules, including allowing groups of up to six people to meet outdoors and in private gardens, were “not supported by the science” and that pictures of crowded beaches and beauty spots over the weekend showed “the public is not keeping to social distancing as it was”.

Related: Health officials make last-minute plea to stop lockdown easing in England

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Beijing has undermined the image of a stable Hong Kong | Isabel Hardman

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China has effectively torn up the treaty it signed with the Thatcher government – yet the UK’s response is feeble

To understand how wide Beijing now casts its security net in Hong Kong, consider the case of Martin Lee. Now in his 80s, Lee is a distinguished barrister, a politician and a lifelong defender of civil liberties. He has never committed an act of violence or advocated that others do so.

Last month, in an early sign of what was coming, Lee was arrested at his home. Fourteen other prominent Hong Kong citizens were taken into custody that day and charged with taking part in illegal demonstrations. He has pointed out that he was already facing 14 similar charges in mainland China, and had the extradition law that triggered last year’s protests in Hong Kong been adopted he could have been sent for trial in China under a system that not even the Chinese Communist party’s (CCP) most generous supporters could describe as adequate. The CCP regards rule of law and separation of powers as threats to its power. Law, for the party, is one instrument among many that can be used to eliminate opponents – who can be anyone from dissenting public intellectuals to prominent businessmen. 

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Thirteen people charged in France over Essex lorry deaths

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Group of mainly French and Vietnamese nationals accused of organising migrants’ journey from Asia

Thirteen suspects arrested by French police over the deaths of 39 Vietnamese people found in a refrigerated lorry in Essex have been charged with people trafficking and manslaughter, a judicial source has said.

Six of the group – mainly Vietnamese and French nationals – were taken into custody on Tuesday in the Paris region, while the alleged key figure in the ring of smugglers was caught in Germany.

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Hong Kong officials lash out at Trump plan to strip city of special status

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Criticism follows the US president accusing Beijing of breaking its word over Hong Kong for imposing national security laws

Senior Hong Kong government officials have criticised moves by Donald Trump to strip the city of its special status in a bid to punish China for imposing national security laws on the global financial hub.

Speaking hours after Trump said the city no longer warranted economic privileges and some officials could face sanctions, security minister John Lee told reporters on Saturday that Hong Kong’s government could not be threatened and would push ahead with the new laws. 

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Three million Hong Kong residents ‘eligible’ for UK citizenship

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Home Office decision infuriates Chinese government and could risk backlash among traditional Tory voters

The Home Office appears to have dramatically widened the pool of Hong Kong citizens that will be eligible to apply for UK citizenship, implying millions may be able to apply if China presses ahead with plans for draconian new security legislation in the territory.

The UK government’s decision has infuriated the Chinese government, and could risk a backlash among traditional Conservative voters opposed to immigration.

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‘No cards left’: Hong Kong residents sell up and search for way out as China cements grip

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Web searches for emigration rose ten-fold after news came through about China’s approaching national security laws

As China’s parliament approved controversial national security legislation for Hong Kong, many local residents were selling assets, dumping shares and planning to move abroad while welcoming possible US sanctions.

Many Hong Kongers say they are shocked and overwhelmed with anger and helplessness as they see their freedoms being eroded and fear their city will descend into a police state. But many also say they welcome the US’s response and possible sanctions.

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Anger in China at law ordering ‘cooling-off’ period before divorce

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Chinese couples seeking a divorce must first complete a month-long ‘cooling-off’ period according to a new law passed on Thursday

Chinese couples seeking a divorce must first complete a month-long “cooling-off” period according to a new law passed on Thursday that has stirred a national debate over state interference in private relationships.

In an effort to lower divorce rates, China’s legislature approved a law that requires couples filing for separation to wait 30 days before their request can be processed. The measure, which was previously a recommendation implemented in some provinces, was met with widespread opposition when lawmakers first sought feedback last year.

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Global report: South Korea postpones school reopening due to new outbreak

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Country reverses easing plans; Philippines residents to enjoy free movement as daily infections pass 500; Mumbai’s hospital close to collapse

South Korea has postponed the planned reopening of more than 800 schools as it battles a renewed outbreak of the coronavirus, with cases now at their highest level for almost two months.

The country’s easing of lockdown measures has gone into reverse, with museums, parks and art galleries closed again on Friday for two weeks. Kindergarten pupils, and some primary and secondary school students were due back from Wednesday, in the last phase of school reopenings.

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China threatens ‘countermeasures’ against UK over Hong Kong crisis

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Beijing describes US efforts to raise controversial security law with UN as ‘pointless’

Beijing has responded with defiance to international criticism of its Hong Kong national security law, threatening countermeasures against the UK and the US and describing Washington’s efforts to raise the issue at the UN security council as “pointless”.

One day after Beijing’s legislature approved plans to move ahead with sweeping anti-sedition legislation in Hong Kong, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian warned countries that Hong Kong is “purely an internal Chinese matter” and that “no other country has the right to interfere”.

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