5 h. ago ‘Even if I was shot, I was fine with that’: a North Korean’s journey to freedom

A man whose early life in North Korea was so bleak that he was prepared to be shot in the back while making a break for freedom across the Chinese border has told his story after defecting to Japan in 2017. The man is one of many to have become involved with an Osaka-based charity that addresses North Korean human rights issues. The organisation provides speaking opportunities for North Korean defectors on podcasts and other platforms, allowing them to share information about the realities of...

Politics

30 h. ago China firm offers annual weight loss bonus; 1 person earns US$2,800 for losing 18kg

A Chinese company has triggered widespread discussion online by offering a one-million-yuan (US$140,000) bonus to encourage weight loss among employees, with one staff member receiving 20,000 yuan after shedding over 20kg in just 90 days. On August 12, Shenzhen-based tech firm Arashi Vision Inc., more commonly known as Insta360, made headlines with its annual “Million Yuan Weight Loss Challenge.” This initiative, held each year, aims to motivate employees to adopt healthier lifestyles by...

Economics

3 d. ago Fear travels: Cambodians in Japan silenced through threats to loved ones

It begins with a knock at the door in Phnom Penh: police officers asking about a son, sister or cousin living thousands of miles away – and warning the family to make them stop. Cambodian dissidents who thought they had found safety in Japan are still facing threats delivered not to their own doors, but to the homes of loved ones left behind, according to a new Human Rights Watch report. The NGO’s Tokyo office said on Tuesday that nearly all of the 23 Cambodian nationals it interviewed in Japan...

Events

3 d. ago ‘Make them stop’: Cambodian exiles in Japan face intimidation tactics back home

It begins with a knock at the door in Phnom Penh: police officers asking about a son, sister or cousin living thousands of miles away – and warning the family to make them stop. Cambodian dissidents who thought they had found safety in Japan are still facing threats delivered not to their own doors, but to the homes of loved ones left behind, according to a new Human Rights Watch report. The NGO’s Tokyo office said on Tuesday that nearly all of the 23 Cambodian nationals it interviewed in Japan...

Politics

3 d. ago Washington should lower temperature on Taiwan invasion threat, US report says

As the US Congress works to finish its annual defence authorisation bill, with new measures aimed at countering China’s influence, a report released Wednesday argues that Washington would be better served by toning down rhetoric about Taiwan and reducing defence investments premised on a looming Chinese invasion there. Beijing is “highly unlikely” to invade Taiwan, with its chances of success increasingly improbable, authors of the Stimson Centre report, “Rethinking the Threat: Why China is...

Events

3 d. ago Washington should lower temperature on Taiwan attack threat, US report says

As the US Congress works to finish its annual defence authorisation bill, with new measures aimed at countering China’s influence, a report released Wednesday argues that Washington would be better served by toning down rhetoric about Taiwan and reducing defence investments premised on a looming mainland Chinese attack there. Beijing is “highly unlikely” to attack Taiwan, with its chances of success increasingly improbable, authors of the Stimson Centre report, “Rethinking the Threat: Why China...

Events

5 d. ago News Wrap: China welcomes closest allies to annual security summit

News Wrap: China welcomes closest allies to annual security summit  PBS

Politics

6 d. ago 6 takeaways from Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit opening

Chinese President Xi Jinping called on members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to uphold international fairness and justice while pursuing mutually beneficial economic and cultural cooperation. Xi made the remarks at the official meeting of the SCO leaders during their annual summit in China’s northern city of Tianjin on Monday. Alongside a keynote speech by Xi, leaders from Belarus, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Russia gave...

Politics

6 d. ago At summit, China’s Xi announces talent scheme, calls for SCO development bank

This live blog has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. New users who download our updated app get a seven-day free trial. China is hosting the annual Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in the northern port city of Tianjin, to be attended by dozens of world leaders and chiefs of international organisations. On Monday, President Xi Jinping kicked off the official meeting with leaders of SCO member...

Politics

6 d. ago China’s Xi pushes SCO bank as Putin deflects Ukraine blame – as it happened

This live blog has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. New users who download our updated app get a seven-day free trial. China is hosting the annual Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in the northern port city of Tianjin, to be attended by dozens of world leaders and chiefs of international organisations. On Monday, President Xi Jinping kicked off the official meeting with leaders of SCO member...

Politics

1 week ago Denmark, Greenland apologise for historic mistreatment of Inuit women

Denmark and Greenland on Wednesday apologised for their roles in the historic mistreatment of Greenlandic Indigenous girls and women, including forced contraception, in cases that date back to the 1960s. Nearly 150 Inuit women last year sued Denmark and filed compensation claims against its health ministry, saying Danish health authorities violated their human rights when they fitted them with intrauterine devices (IUDs). The devices, fitted in the uterus, prevent sperm from fertilising an...

Politics

1 week ago UK’s Farage unveils plan to deport asylum seekers, warns of ‘civil disorder’

Nigel Farage, leader of Britain’s anti-migration Reform UK party, announced a plan on Tuesday to repeal human rights laws to allow for mass deportations of asylum seekers, action he said was needed to prevent “major civil disorder”. Farage said his party, which is leading in national opinion polls, would remove Britain from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), repeal the Human Rights Act and nullify other international treaties that have been used to block the forced deportation of...

Events

1 week ago Abrego Garcia faces deportation again as he surrenders to ICE

Kilmar Abrego Garcia surrendered to US immigration authorities in Baltimore on Monday and faces possible efforts by the Trump administration to deport him to Uganda, an African country with documented human rights abuses and a language he does not speak. The Maryland construction worker became the face of US President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policies when he was wrongfully deported in March to a notorious prison in his native El Salvador. He was returned to the US in June, but only...

Politics

1 week ago Scholar claims China's annual fishing moratorium has replenished fish stocks

Scholar claims China's annual fishing moratorium has replenished fish stocks  SeafoodSource

Politics

2 w. ago At record high, China says July electricity use rivals Asean’s annual total

China’s electricity consumption surpassed the 1 trillion kilowatt-hour mark in July, energy authorities said, as scorching heatwaves pushed demand to levels equivalent to the annual usage of all Asean nations combined. Power usage in the country rose 8.6 per cent year on year to reach a historic high of 1.02 trillion kilowatt-hours (kWh), according to data released by China’s National Energy Administration on Thursday. The level was more than double that of a decade ago and comparable to the...

Politics

2 w. ago US names five more Chinese industries for enforcement under Uygur labour law

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Tuesday it is designating five new Chinese industry sectors, including copper, lithium and steel, for “high priority” enforcement under a human rights law restricting imports from China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Tuesday’s updated list also names caustic soda – a chemical used in textiles and detergents – and red dates, bringing the total number of high-priority sectors targeted under the law to 12. The Uygur Forced Labour...

Events

2 w. ago US names 5 more Chinese industries for enforcement under Uygur labour law

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Tuesday it is designating five new Chinese industry sectors, including copper, lithium and steel, for “high priority” enforcement under a human rights law restricting imports from China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Tuesday’s updated list also names caustic soda – a chemical used in textiles and detergents – and red dates, bringing the total number of high-priority sectors targeted under the law to 12. The Uygur Forced Labour...

Events

2 w. ago China’s latest weapons on show, US human rights slammed: SCMP daily highlights

Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. EU envoys mull skipping China military parade over Putin’s attendance: sources European envoys in Beijing are discussing plans to skip China’s massive military parade next month after considering the attendance of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the possible participation of Russian troops, the Post has learned. 2. What new weapons were on show in...

Events

2 w. ago China’s latest weapons on show, Beijing slams US on human rights: SCMP daily highlights

China’s latest weapons on show, Beijing slams US on human rights: SCMP daily highlights  South China Morning Post

Events

2 w. ago ‘Bargaining chips in power games’: China report slams US on human rights

China has accused the United States of using human rights as a “bargaining chip” in its latest annual report on the issue. The report released on Sunday criticised what it called the hypocrisy of the US political system, its unequal social welfare, widespread racism, and the politicisation of immigration, where immigrants become “scapegoats for political parties”. The US had turned human rights into “props for political theatre” and “bargaining chips in power games”, it alleged. The year 2024...

Politics