US lawmakers want North Korea put back on terrorism blacklist

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teThe Guardian

Murder of Kim Jong-un’s half-brother strengthens calls for more sanctions as US urges China to keep pressure on North Korea

Combination of file photos shows Kim Jong-nam, left, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un
Democrat and Republican lawmakers want North Korea relisted as state sponsor of terrorism after murder of Kim Jong-nam (L), half-brother of leader Kim Jong-un. Photograph: Shizuo Kambayashi, Wong Maye-E/AP

Guardian staff and agencies

Sunday 19 February 2017 00.00 EST

The apparent assassination of the North Korean leader’s estranged half-brother is strengthening bipartisan calls for the US to relist North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism, a designation lifted nine years ago. Doing so would increase the country’s isolation, while potentially complicating any future diplomacy to halt its nuclear and missile programs.

The US kept North Korea on its terrorism blacklist for two decades after the 1987 bombing of a South Korean airliner killed 115 people. But President George W Bush lifted the designation in 2008 to smooth the way for aid-for-disarmament negotiations. The concession proved of little value as the talks collapsed soon after and have yet to resume. Tiếp tục đọc “US lawmakers want North Korea put back on terrorism blacklist” →

US carrier group patrols in tense South China Sea

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ChannelNewsAsia

  • Posted 19 Feb 2017 09:30
  • Updated 19 Feb 2017 10:25

FILE PHOTO – Sailors man the rails of the USS Carl Vinson, a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, as it departs its home port in San Diego, California August 22, 2014. REUTERS/Mike Blak

BANGKOK: A United States aircraft carrier strike group has begun patrols in the South China Sea amid growing tension with China over control of the disputed waterway and concerns it could become a flashpoint under the new U.S. administration.

China’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday warned Washington against challenging its sovereignty in the South China Sea.

The U.S. navy said the force, including Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, began routine operations in the South China Sea on Saturday. The announcement was posted on the Vinson’s Facebook page.

The strike group’s commander, Rear Admiral James Kilby, said that weeks of training in the Pacific had improved the group’s effectiveness and readiness. Tiếp tục đọc “US carrier group patrols in tense South China Sea” →

WJEC16: Climate change reportage ‘needs stepping up’ in Asia-Pacific newsrooms

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Asia Pacific Report

By TJ Aumua – July 28, 2016
At the World Journalism Education Congress earlier this month, (from left) Jose Maria Carlos, Misa Vicky Lepou, Dr Hermin Indah Wahyuni, and Professor Crispin C. Maslog were all members on a panel that discussed climate change and the media. Image: Del Abcede/PMC

Climate change reportage in the Asia-Pacific needs to be stepped up and taken more seriously by the region’s media organisations. This was an issue agreed on by journalists and media educators who came together at a global journalism congress in Auckland earlier this month. TJ Aumua reports.

People stories
CNN Philippines editor Jose Maria Carlos says more “people stories” need to be told in the media to bring better interest and awareness to climate change.

“That is identifying families or individuals who have done something to deal with the impact of climate change. Whether it’s flooding, planting new types of crops that are resilient to the impacts of climate change, or simply moving out from dangerous areas to new locations. Tiếp tục đọc “WJEC16: Climate change reportage ‘needs stepping up’ in Asia-Pacific newsrooms” →

Febriana Firdaus wins inaugural Pogau award for courage in journalism

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Asia Pacific Report

By PMC Editor – February 19, 2017
Inaugural award winner Febriana Firdaus … courageous writing on the 1965-1966 massacres, disappearances and arbitrary detentions, and on discrimination, intimidation and LGBT community rights. Image: Pantau Foundation

Jakarta has a new award for courage in journalism honouring West Papuan editor Oktovianus Pogau, who died last year. The inaugural award has been made to reporter Febriana Firdaus, who has extensively covered human rights abuses in Indonesia, says the Pantau Foundation.

“We want to honour our colleague, Oktovianus Pogau, a smart and courageous journalist, who edited Suara Papua news and highlighted human rights reporting. He passed away at a very young age – just 23 years old. We want to honor his legacy by establishing this Oktovianus Pogau award,” said Imam Shofwan, chairman of the Pantau Foundation in a speech to a small gathering at his office. Tiếp tục đọc “Febriana Firdaus wins inaugural Pogau award for courage in journalism” →

Vụ học sinh bị gãy chân tại trường: Thêm 18 giáo viên ‘tố’ hiệu trưởng gian dối

~ Phạm Thu Hương ~ 1 bình luận

10:19 AM – 19/02/2017 TNO

Finland is really good at stopping bullying. Here’s how they’re doing it.

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Then you walk around the corner and see this:

A student being pushed into some lockers.

Photo from iStock.

What would you do?

Unfortunately, this is a pretty common scene.

About a fourth to a third of all students report that they’ve been bullied in school. Tiếp tục đọc “Finland is really good at stopping bullying. Here’s how they’re doing it.” →

If you see it, you can stop it

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UNICEF_For International Youth Day, UNICEF has released the results of a new global poll of more than 100,000 young people from more than 14 countries that shows two-thirds of young people have been bullied.

We asked Yeshna, a 18 year old blogger living Mauritius to write a reflection on the results and share her thoughts on bullying and why it continues to affect children in every region of the world.


Nerd. Loser. Ugly. Fake. Lame. Fat. Stupid. Worthless. Weak. Hopeless. Pathetic. If these words that so many use appeared on our skin, would we still feel ‘beautiful’? Tiếp tục đọc “If you see it, you can stop it” →

Hong Kong: Donald Tsang found guilty of corruption

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Al Jareeza

Donald Tsang, who faces up to seven years in prison, is the most senior official to be found guilty in a criminal trial.

Tsang escaped a bribery charge but could face seven years in prison over corruption [Reuters]
Tsang escaped a bribery charge but could face seven years in prison over corruption [Reuters]

Donald Tsang, Hong Kong’s former leader, has escaped a conviction of bribery in a trial that found guilty of misconduct during his time at the helm of the city.

Tsang, 72, is the most senior city official to be convicted in a criminal trial at a time when residents are losing faith in Hong Kong’s leaders.

The case is one of several recent scandals that have shaken public confidence and raised concerns about ties between Hong Kong’s leaders and wealthy businessmen.

Tsang was found guilty on Friday of failing to disclose his plans to rent a luxury flat from a major investor of a broadcaster, which was later granted a licence from the government while he was leader. Tiếp tục đọc “Hong Kong: Donald Tsang found guilty of corruption” →

After night in cell, Samsung scion taken for questioning

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ChannelNewsAsia

  • Posted 18 Feb 2017 14:25

Samsung Group chief, Jay Y. Lee arrives at the office of the independent counsel team in Seoul, South Korea, February 18, 2017. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

SEOUL: Handcuffed and tied with white rope, the scion of one of the world’s biggest conglomerates, Samsung Group, was taken on Saturday for questioning by South Korean authorities after spending a night in a small detention cell.

Samsung Group chief Jay Y. Lee was arrested on Friday for his alleged role in a corruption scandal that has led to the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye.

The 48-year-old Lee, who has a net worth of US$6.2 billion, heads the technology giant that is the world’s biggest manufacturer of smartphones, flat-screen televisions and memory chips. Tiếp tục đọc “After night in cell, Samsung scion taken for questioning” →

Kuala Lumpur rally calls for stricter Islamic law

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Al Jareeza

Push to allow Islamic courts to impose more severe punishments fuels fears of growing division in multi-ethnic nation.

About 40 percent of Malaysia’s population is not Muslim [Kate Mayberry/Al Jazeera]
About 40 percent of Malaysia’s population is not Muslim [Kate Mayberry/Al Jazeera]

Kuala Lumpur – A massive rally in the heart of Kuala Lumpur in support of proposals to allow Islamic courts to impose more severe punishments has raised fears of growing division in Malaysia’s multicultural society.

The amendments to Act 355, expected to be discussed in parliament when it sits next month, will allow the Islamic courts, which rule on religious matters and family law for Muslims, to impose a jail sentence of as long as 30 years, as many as 100 strokes of the cane and a fine of more than $22,000.

Currently, the maximum punishments are three-year jail term, six strokes of the cane and a fine of more than $1,100. Tiếp tục đọc “Kuala Lumpur rally calls for stricter Islamic law” →

Hope for Hanoi? New bus system could cut pollution … if enough people use it

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ChannelNewsAsia

A new $53m BRT (bus rapid transit) system has the power to reduce Hanoi’s dreadful air pollution. Persuading residents of Vietnam’s rapidly expanding capital to ditch their motorbikes and private cars, however, will be another story

Traffic jam in Hanoi
The swarm of motorbikes and cars is the main cause of Hanoi’s air pollution. Photograph: Linh Pham/Getty Images

Saturday 18 February 2017 05.58 EST

From his high-rise office building in Hanoi, Tran Dung can barely see his city’s skyline behind the thick layer of smog. Before leaving work, the 25-year-old executive assistant checks the pollution reading on his AirVisual app, which provides real-time measurements of PM2.5 – the tiny particles found in smog that can damage your throat and lungs.

Hanoi’s PM2.5 levels typically range from 100 to 200 micrograms per cubic metre – regularly within the globally acknowledged “unhealthy” category. But on 19 December last year, they hit “hazardous levels” at 343μg/m3, which was higher than Beijing. Tiếp tục đọc “Hope for Hanoi? New bus system could cut pollution … if enough people use it” →

Thousands march against Duterte’s war on drugs

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Al Jareeza
Luis Antonio Tagle, Catholic leader of Manila, said violence cannot be the answer to the country's drug problem [Reuters]
Luis Antonio Tagle, Catholic leader of Manila, said violence cannot be the answer to the country’s drug problem [Reuters]

Thousands of Catholics have gathered in the Philippine capital in a “show of force” to protest extrajudicial killings being carried out under the banner of President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs.

The rally, dubbed the “Walk for Life”, was attended by 20,000 people, organisers said. Manila police estimated the crowd at 10,000.

At the biggest rally yet against the killings, members of one of the nation’s oldest and most powerful institutions prayed and sang hymns as they marched before dawn on Saturday, to condemn a “spreading culture of violence”.

More than 7,000 people have died since Duterte took office almost eight months ago and ordered an unprecedented crime war that has drawn global criticism for alleged human rights abuses.

The move, however, has been popular with many in the mainly Catholic nation.

“We have to stand up. Somehow this is already a show of force by the faithful that they don’t like these extrajudicial killings,” Manila bishop Broderick Pabillo told AFP news agency before addressing the crowd.

“I am alarmed and angry at what’s happening because this is something that is regressive. It does not show our humanity.”

The demonstrators also condemned legislation restoring the death penalty for drug-related crimes and other offences. Tiếp tục đọc “Thousands march against Duterte’s war on drugs” →

Malaysia công bố ảnh 4 nghi phạm chủ mưu sát hại Kim Jong-nam

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VnExpress Thứ bảy, 18/2/2017 | 12:50 GMT+7

Cảnh sát Malaysia công bố ảnh 4 nam nghi phạm trong vụ sát hại Kim Jong-nam và cho rằng 4 người này là chủ mưu.

malaysia-cong-bo-anh-4-nghi-pham-chu-muu-sat-hai-kim-jong-nam

Ảnh 4 nghi phạm nam do cảnh sát Malaysia công bố. Ảnh: New Straits Times

Ảnh phóng to từ camera an ninh 4 nghi phạm được cho là mang quốc tịch Triều Tiên và cảnh sát Malaysia cho rằng 4 người này là chủ mưu dàn dựng vụ sát hại Kim Jong-nam, anh trai nhà lãnh đạo Triều Tiên Kim Jong-un, theo New Straits Times.

4 người này đã giám sát hai người phụ nữ mang hộ chiếu nước ngoài thực hiện vụ tấn công Kim Jong-nam từ Bibik Heritage, một nhà hàng đối diện hiện trường khoảng 40 mét.

Camera an ninh ở nhà hàng đã ghi hình được ba người, có mặt lúc 7h30, trước khi vụ tấn công xảy ra. Người thứ tư được cho là đã bám sát ông Kim khi hai người phụ nữ tấn công.

Cảnh sát cũng cho rằng những kẻ chủ mưu đã lần theo ông Kim khoảng một năm, khi ông liên tục di chuyển giữa Macau, Singapore và Malaysia. Thông tin ông Kim mới đến Singapore gần đây mới được công bố.

Tiếp tục đọc “Malaysia công bố ảnh 4 nghi phạm chủ mưu sát hại Kim Jong-nam” →

North Korean arrested over Kim Jong-nam’s killing

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Al Jareeza

Police make fourth arrest in Malaysia following death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s half-brother.

Kim Jong-nam, left, had said on several occasions over the years that he had no interest in leading North Korea [AP]
Kim Jong-nam, left, had said on several occasions over the years that he had no interest in leading North Korea [AP]

Malaysian police have arrested a fourth suspect believed to be linked to the death of Kim Jong-nam, half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

According to a statement by Malaysian police on Saturday, the suspect was arrested a day earlier in Selangor state and was identified as 47-year-old Ri Jong-chol from North Korea.

On Wednesday, a 28-year-old woman named Doan Thi Huong and carrying Vietnamese travel documents was arrested at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, the scene of Monday’s poisoning. Tiếp tục đọc “North Korean arrested over Kim Jong-nam’s killing” →