South Korea's Lee to restore pact halting military activity on North Korean border
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RTHK
12 minutes ago
- RTHK
Drug agency boss named 'emergency police chief' for DC
Drug agency boss named 'emergency police chief' for DC Pam Bondi, with Donald Trump looking on, says Washington police must receive approval from the new 'emergency police commissioner'. File photo: Reuters The Trump administration, stepping up its crackdown on an alleged crime wave in the America's capital, has named the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to be Washington DC's 'emergency police commissioner" with all the powers of the police chief. The move is significant in that it increases national control over the city as part of the federal government's law-enforcement takeover. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a directive issued on Thursday evening that DEA boss Terry Cole will assume 'powers and duties vested in the District of Columbia Chief of Police.' The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) 'must receive approval from Commissioner Cole' before issuing any orders, Bondi said. It was not immediately clear where the move left Pamela Smith, the city's current police chief, who works for the mayor. DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb responded late on Thursday that Bondi's directive was 'unlawful', arguing that it could not be followed by the city's police force. 'Therefore, members of MPD must continue to follow your orders and not the orders of any official not appointed by the Mayor,' Schwalb wrote in a memo to Smith, setting up a potential legal clash between the heavily Democratic district and the Republican administration. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser wrote on social media that 'there is no statute that conveys the district's personnel authority to a federal official'. Bondi's directive came hours after Smith directed MPD officers to share information with immigration agencies regarding people not in custody – such as someone involved in a traffic stop or checkpoint. The Justice Department said Bondi disagreed with the police chief's directive because it allowed for continued enforcement of 'sanctuary policies". Bondi said she was rescinding that order as well as other MPD policies limiting inquiries into immigration status and preventing arrests based solely on federal immigration warrants. All new directives must now receive approval from Cole, the attorney general said. The police takeover is the latest move by US President Donald Trump to test the limits of his legal authority to carry out his agenda, relying on obscure statutes and a supposed state of emergency to bolster his tough-on-crime message and his plans to speed up the mass deportation of people in the country illegally. It also marks one of the most sweeping assertions of federal authority over a local government in modern times. While Washington has grappled with spikes in violence and visible homelessness, the city's homicide rate ranks below those of several other major US cities and the capital is not in the throes of the public safety collapse the administration has portrayed. A population already tense from days of ramp-up began seeing more significant shows of force across the city on Thursday. US National Guard troops watched over some of the world's most renowned landmarks and Humvees took position in front of the busy main train station. Volunteers helped homeless people leave long-standing encampments – to where, exactly, was often unclear. Department of Homeland Security police stood outside Nationals Park during a game on Thursday between the Washington Nationals and the Philadelphia Phillies. DEA agents patrolled The Wharf, a popular nightlife area, while Secret Service officers were seen in the Foggy Bottom neighbourhood. For an already wary Washington, Thursday marked a notable – and highly visible – uptick in presence from the previous two days. The visibility of federal forces around the city, including in many high-traffic areas, was striking to residents going about their lives. Trump has the power to take over federal law enforcement for 30 days before his actions must be reviewed by Congress, though he has said he'll re-evaluate as that deadline approaches. (AP)
South China Morning Post
12 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Nearly 3,000 Malaysian government employees caught taking bribes in a decade
Almost 3,000 Malaysian government employees had been caught taking bribes over the last decade, lawmakers heard on Friday, topping the list of receivers of under the table payments over the past decade and nearly three times more than in the private sector. Advertisement Bribery remains entrenched in Malaysian society despite strong public sentiments for its eradication. High-profile corruption scandals, including those involving several former prime ministers, has done little to dampen the public appetite for an end to what many say is a pay-to-play system that covers everything from passing vehicle inspections to winning a government contract. Malaysia ranks 57th out of 180 countries in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), second to neighbouring Singapore among Southeast Asian nations. In a written reply to parliament on the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission data, Law Minister Azalina Othman Said noted that 6,585 cases of soliciting and giving bribes were recorded between 2015 and June 30 this year. Of those caught accepting bribes, 2,965 were public servants, compared with 1,101 private sector employees. Advertisement The ethnic breakdown revealed Malays accounted for 75 per cent of bribe-soliciting cases – 3,690 out of the total – followed by Chinese and then Indians. Yet in contrast, those most likely to pay bribes were ethnically Chinese.
South China Morning Post
12 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Indonesia's Prabowo touts economic wins in defiant first state of the nation address
Indonesia 's President Prabowo Subianto has used his first state of the nation address to spotlight the country's economic resilience and independent foreign policy, striking a defiant tone against colonial legacies and geopolitical rivalry while positioning himself as a reformer at home. In a wide-ranging speech before the People's Consultative Assembly on Friday, the 73-year-old leader – inaugurated last October – pointed to second-quarter growth of 5.12 per cent as a sign of the economy's robustness despite 'global political tension and trade war'. Prabowo also emphasised his government's approach to diplomacy, praising Indonesia's growing ties with both developing and Western powers. 'Indonesia was the guest of honour at the independence celebrations of India and France,' he said. 'We completed the EU [Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement] trade negotiations, and [a trade deal] with the United States .'
