South Korea awaits ruling on bid to arrest former first lady
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South China Morning Post
11 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Is Hong Kong's legislature becoming too timid, too tame? A year in review
A proposed piece of legislation by the Hong Kong government to recognise same-sex partnerships is set to be the first bill the legislature will reject since Beijing overhauled the city's electoral system in 2021 to ensure only 'patriots' held political power. The new law, opposed by the major political parties, was the government's response to a landmark court ruling that found authorities had violated the city's Bill of Rights by failing to offer some form of legal recognition, such as civil partnerships, to same-sex couples. Opposing lawmakers had slammed the framework as a threat to the institution of traditional marriage between a man and a woman. It marked a rare public rift between the government and the Legislative Council But privately, some conceded a veto might not necessarily be an undesirable outcome as the government could still argue it had fulfilled its constitutional responsibility by offering the bill even if it failed to pass. Still, the unlikely display of opposition was a break from the brisk and efficient proceedings the chamber had been known for since Beijing revamped the city's electoral system in 2021. After months of anti-government protests in 2019 and taunting of Legco by anti-China elements, Beijing moved to overhaul the political system to 'safeguard the constitutional order' of the city, requiring all aspiring lawmakers to demonstrate their patriotism before they could run, a move that effectively wiped out the existing opposition then. As a measure of the current briskness of business, the legislature approved 117 bills between January 1, 2022, and July 15 this year, or three each month, representing a 98 per cent increase compared with the same period in the previous term.
South China Morning Post
30 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
US' annual China human rights review shorter, remains sharply critical
The US State Department's annual review of China's human rights record, released on Tuesday, was pared back as part of a broader restructuring of its country reports but still retained many of its most politically sensitive criticisms of Beijing's conduct. Advertisement 'Genocide and crimes against humanity occurred during the year in China against predominantly Muslim Uygurs and members of other ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang,' the report said in its executive summary. The China assessment, an extensive catalogue of Beijing's alleged violations in the previous calendar year, is part of a package of department reports reviewing some 200 countries and territories based on standards enshrined in international human rights agreements. Its release comes after a months-long delay amid controversy that the reports would substantially scale back long-standing critiques of certain forms of abuses or display bias against perceived US foes. In recent years, the reports have been released in the spring, accompanied by a launch event led by the Secretary of State. This year – the first release under the second Donald Trump administration – no such event was held. Advertisement Intended to inform congressional decisions on foreign aid allocations and security assistance, the reports include some of the most comprehensive human rights reviews compiled by any single body in the world.
South China Morning Post
41 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
US pressures South Korea to redefine alliance, pivot away from North Korea
The United States has urged South Korea to 'modernise' their bilateral military alliance and ensure a timely response to threats from Pyongyang and beyond the peninsula, in comments seen as pressuring Seoul to shoulder a greater security burden. Advertisement US Forces Korea (USFK) Commander General Xavier Brunson, in his first press conference with local reporters since taking command in December, said modernising the bilateral military alliance was essential to keep it 'ready, relevant and able' to respond to evolving regional threats, such as from China and Russia. 'What's being asked of Korea is to be stronger against the DPRK, that we might have the flexibility as we modernise our alliance so that we could go do other things,' Brunson told journalists on Friday last week, referring to North Korea by the abbreviated form of its official name. He highlighted the 'strategic flexibility' of US troops, citing the rare relocation of a Patriot missile battery from South Korea to the Middle East in April to support operations against Yemen 's Houthi rebels. 'That is strategic flexibility – the ability to be able to place your forces in space and time and need. That is what we seek to always be able to do,' he said. USFK Commander General Xavier Brunson speaks at the LANPAC Symposium and Exposition in Hawaii earlier this year. Brunson wants Seoul's military to 'go do other things' with the US. Photo: US Army
