Category Archives: China

Hong Kong court jails 12 for storming parliament in pro-democracy protests

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Sentences of nearly seven years handed down over 2019 action that was pivotal moment in uprising against Chinese rule

A Hong Kong court has sentenced 12 people to jail terms of up to seven years over the storming of the city’s legislature in 2019 at the height of pro-democracy protests that challenged the Beijing-backed government.

It was the most violent episode in the initial stage of the huge protests that upended the city that year, with Beijing later imposing a sweeping national security law to snuff out dissent.

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Apple to pay $490m to settle claims it misled investors over sales in China

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Company denied that Tim Cook deceived investors when he said iPhone sales were strong weeks before revenue warning

Apple has agreed to pay $490m to settle a class-action lawsuit led by the UK’s Norfolk county council.

The class action alleged chief executive Tim Cook misled investors about a steep downturn in iPhone’s sales in China that culminated in a jarring revision to the company’s revenue forecast.

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Honda and Nissan join forces on electric car technology to chase Chinese rivals

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Deal between Japanese carmakers involves components and software amid race to catch up with Chinese EV firms

Honda and Nissan have put aside the “traditional approach” of fierce rivalry to join forces and work together on electric vehicle technology as Japan’s carmakers try to catch up with Chinese competitors.

The Japanese manufacturers will work together on technology for EVs, including components and software, after signing a memorandum of understanding on Friday.

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McDonald’s hit by ‘technology outage’ in UK, Australia, Japan and China

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Fast food chain working to resolve problem but denies it has been hit by cybersecurity attack

McDonald’s restaurants in multiple countries including the UK and Australia have been hit by a “technology outage”, which the fast food chain denied had been caused by a cybersecurity attack.

Australia, the UK, Japan and China were among the markets where services were affected, with restaurant, drive-through and online orders hit.

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Congress passed a TikTok bill. Will the US really ban the app?

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A bill passed by Congress and signed by Biden requires owner ByteDance to sell or face a US ban – it’s its biggest threat yet

The House of Representatives passed a bill that would require TikTok owner ByteDance to sell the social media platform or face a total ban in the United States. The Senate passed it less than a week later. Joe Biden signed it a day after the Senate voted yes.

TikTok is facing its biggest existential threat yet in the US. The app was banned in Montana last year, but courts found that prohibition unconstitutional, and it never went into effect.

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Chinese foreign minister’s visit to Australia locked in hours after Beijing signals wine tariff lift

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Canberra expected to push for removal of remaining trade impediments after Wang Yi arrives next week

China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, will visit Australia for the first time in seven years, with next week’s trip being locked in just hours after Beijing offered a reprieve to Australian winemakers.

China imposed tariffs of up to 200% on Australian wine at the height of the diplomatic dispute in 2020, alongside measures affecting a range of products including barley, red meat, seafood and coal.

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Jimmy Lai trial in Hong Kong hears evidence from ‘tortured’ witness

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Lai’s supporters say evidence of Andy Li should not be relied upon as it was obtained through torture

A key prosecution witness in the trial of Jimmy Lai took the stand in a Hong Kong court on Wednesday, giving evidence that the UN’s special rapporteur has said could be tainted because of allegations of torture.

Andy Li, a computer programmer turned pro-democracy activist, gave evidence about his role in a crowdfunding campaign, Stand With Hong Kong, to rally support for the pro-democracy protests in 2019. The campaign, which ultimately raised more than $1.8m (£1.4m), placed advertisements in several newspapers including the Guardian, the Washington Post and the Australian.

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Australia news live: prosecutors begin withdrawing visa breach charges; asbestos detected at two central Queensland facilities

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Follow the day’s news live

More from AAP on this:

The New South Wales government says it is working on reducing wait times and improving access to care.

We are throwing everything in our ruck sack at improving access and reducing wait times in our hospitals.

This includes boosting staff and infrastructure; but also rolling out urgent care and providing those alternate pathways to care, to treat people outside the hospital; and establishing an ED taskforce to drive improvements in wait times and access to care.

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China could use TikTok to influence US elections, spy chief says

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The US House of Representatives is due to vote on a bill giving Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to sell that part of its business

China could use social media app TikTok to influence the 2024 US elections, the director of national intelligence, Avril Haines, has told a House of Representatives intelligence committee hearing.

Asked by Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi if China’s ruling Communist party (CCP) would use TikTok to influence the elections, Haines said “we cannot rule out that the CCP would use it”.

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Canada reaches settlement with Michael Spavor over detention in China

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Spavor was one of two Canadians detained in China in 2018 amid a broader diplomatic feud between the two countries

Canada’s federal government has reached a million-dollar compensation settlement with Michael Spavor, a businessman who was held by China for nearly three years amid a broader diplomatic feud between the two countries.

Spavor and Michael Kovrig, who became known as “the two Michaels”, were detained by Beijing in December 2018 in apparent retaliation for the arrest in Vancouver of the senior Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on a US warrant. All three were later released.

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China pledges to deepen Russia ties and criticises US ‘obsession’ with suppressing Beijing

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Foreign minister Wang Yi – speaking at the Two Sessions – said it was unacceptable some countries are at the table while others are ‘on the menu’

China’s top foreign affairs official has accused the US of trying to suppress China and has vowed to deepen relations with Russia, as Beijing continues to assert the importance of what it calls a “multipolar” world order.

Foreign minister Wang Yi accused the US of imposing sanctions on Chinese companies to a “bewildering” and “unfathomable” level, referencing Beijing’s opposition to “unilateralism and protectionism”, complaints that have become buzzwords in China’s official statements of late.

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Manila accuses Beijing of ‘dangerous manoeuvres’ in South China Sea

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Philippines says vessels were damaged and four people injured after Chinese boats caused two collisions

The Philippines has accused China of “dangerous manoeuvres” in the disputed South China Sea that damaged its vessels and left four Filipinos with minor injuries, warning such action had put lives at risk.

The Philippines said Chinese coastguard and maritime militia vessels had caused two collisions, which led to superficial structural damage to the hull of one of its coastguard vessels. The simultaneous use of water cannon by two Chinese vessels against a civilian supply boat shattered the vessel’s windshield and caused minor injuries to at least four personnel onboard, according to a Philippine national taskforce.

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China sets challenging GDP target in face of regional tensions and ageing population

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Economists say 5% target is ambitious, as premier Li Qiang tells annual gathering that global economy and problems at home are presenting hurdles to recovery

China has set its target for GDP growth at 5%, in line with analysts’ expectations for another year of historically modest ambitions for the economy, amid regional tensions and its demographic crisis.

China’s premier, Li Qiang, spoke of the “challenges” facing China’s leaders as he delivered his annual government work report on Tuesday. He cited the global economy and regional tensions as hurdles for China’s recovery, as well as domestic issues such as low consumer demand in a challenging labour market.

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‘We need to go again’: Australian who led MH370 search joins calls for fresh effort to find plane

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Peter Foley, the program director for search led by Australian Transport Safety Bureau, says any chance of success needs the government to invest

The man who led Australia’s search for MH370 has urged the Australian government to support any new effort to find the plane, which disappeared 10 years ago on Friday.

On Sunday the Malaysian government said it was in talks with the US marine robotics company Ocean Infinity to discuss a new search. The company says it is willing and able to return to the search, and has submitted a proposal to the Malaysian government.

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China Two Sessions: premier Li Qiang will not speak to press in break with tradition

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Annual appearances were rare opportunity for foreign media to engage with high-ranking Chinese officials

China’s leading economics official, premier Li Qiang, will not address the press at the country’s major annual political gathering in Beijing, in a break with tradition.

The Two Sessions has started against a backdrop of major economic headwinds, decreasing transparency on government indicators, and growing concern among international business and investors.

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Chinese tourism to Australia still in the doldrums after pandemic travel bans

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Tourism industry disappointed but hopeful Chinese holidaymakers could return by year’s end – but economists predict a longer wait

In the two weeks either side of lunar new year, Mandy Ho, who manages a hot air balloon company in Melbourne, has many balls in the air.

Most mornings before dawn, when weather permits, her colleagues fly Chinese tourists from the vineyards of the Yarra Valley over Melbourne’s eastern suburbs to parkland on the city’s fringe. Interpreters make sure nothing is lost in translation.

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Asio cleared of unlawfully luring Daniel Duggan back to Australia, agency chief Mike Burgess says

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Exclusive: Duggan’s legal team continues to fight US request for extradition on charges of arms trafficking and money laundering

The spy agency Asio says it has been cleared by the intelligence watchdog of allegations of impropriety raised by the Australian citizen Daniel Duggan as he fights extradition to the US.

Duggan, a former US marines pilot accused of training Chinese pilots to land fighter jets on aircraft carriers, had complained to the inspector general of intelligence and security (IGIS) about Asio’s role in securing his return to Australia from China.

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Intrigue swirls about possible reshuffles as China’s parliament convenes

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Policy blueprint to be set out for year ahead and big personnel changes may be announced

Thousands of delegates are due to arrive in Beijing this weekend for China’s most high-profile political gathering, a closely observed series of meetings that will lay out the government’s policy blueprint for the year ahead.

The event, known as the “two sessions”, begins on Monday as China’s parliament, the National People’s Congress (NPC) convenes alongside a separate but parallel meeting of the country’s top political advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

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Boeing agrees to pay $51m over export violations in China and other countries

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Company accused of violations including Chinese employees improperly downloading files relating to Pentagon programs

Boeing said on Thursday it had reached a $51m settlement with the US state department for numerous export violations including Chinese employees in China improperly downloading documents related to US Pentagon programs.

The state department said from 2013 through 2017 three Chinese employees at Boeing facilities in China downloaded technical data involving programs including the F-18, F-15 and F-22 fighter jets, the E-3 airborne warning and control system, the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter and the AGM84E cruise missile.

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Scientist fed classified information to China, says Canada intelligence report

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Report says Xiangguo Qiu secretly worked with Wuhan Institute for Virology and posed a ‘threat to Canada’s economic security’

A leading research scientist at Canada’s highest-security laboratory provided confidential scientific information to Chinese institutions, met secretly with officials and posed “a realistic and credible threat to Canada’s economic security” according to newly released intelligence reports.

The dismissal of Xiangguo Qiu and her husband, Keding Cheng, has been shrouded in mystery ever since the couple were escorted from Winnipeg’s National Microbiology Laboratory in 2019 and formally fired two years later.

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