Mexicans buy fake cellphones to hand over amid spike in bus muggings

Abstract: MEXICO CITY - Armed robberies have gotten so common aboard buses in Mexico City that commuters have come up with a clever if disheartening solution: Many are buying fake cellphones, to hand over to thieves instead of their real smartphones. Costing 300 to 500 pesos apiece — the equivalent of $15 to $25 — the “dummies” are sophisticated fakes: They have a startup screen and bodies that are dead ringers for the originals, and inside there is a piece of metal to give the phone the heft of the real article. That comes in handy when trying to fool trigger-happy bandits who regularly attack the buses, big and small, that ferry people from the poorer outlying suburbs to jobs in the city center. The scene is repeated over and over again, courtesy of the cameras that many buses now carry that record the assaults, often late at night or in the early morning: Sleepy passengers are seen bouncing along in the jitneys when one or two of the men aboard suddenly pull masks over their faces. One will pull out a gun while his accomplice passes down the aisle, often with his own gun, demanding valuables. “You’re all screwed now! Don’t move or you’re dead! Cellphones and wallets!” barks a thief in one recent video. Time and again, those who resist or refuse are hit in the head with a pistol, or simply shot and left to bleed on the floor of the bus. Martha Patricia Rociles Estrada, a schoolteacher from the low-income suburb of Nezahualcoyotl, was robbed herself. Now, she says, most city residents make their daily commutes in fear. “Getting on public transportation is now a risk,” Rociles Estrada said. “You get on, but you never know if you’re going to return.” “Now you have to be careful to carry money, because if you don’t, the thieves get angry and you run the risk that they’ll shoot you if you’re not carrying money.” There were an average of 70 reported violent muggings every day in Mexico City in the first four months of 2019. About two-thirds were committed against pedestrians, with the rest split almost evenly between bus passengers and assaults on motorists stopped at lights or caught in traffic jams. Between 2017 and 2018, such assaults rose by about 22 percent. But when Rociles Estrada was robbed at gunpoint several years ago, most people weren’t carrying costly smartphones around with them. “They just took whatever I had of value, my change purse, that was all,” she recalled The advent of smartphones changed all that. Now, many people carry a device worth hundreds of dollars in their pocket, and one that may also hold their bank or credit card information. That’s where “dummy” vendors like Axel come in. Axel says he sells three or four dummy phones a week out of his stall in a downtown electronics marketplace, next door to a colonial college building that dates to 1767. Axel, who asked his full name not be used for fear police would accuse him of selling fake merchandise, said all of his customers know they are buying fakes. “It’s useful for robberies, the large number of muggings happening in Mexico City,” said Axel. “They say ‘hand over your cellphone, give me everything’, and people know now they have to hand over the phone quick, in a matter of seconds, so they hand over these phones and often the thieves don’t realize it.” But Axel admits the victim would be in trouble if a thief caught them handing over a “dummy” phone. “Obviously there are problems, because if the criminals search it or find out … there is going to be a problem.” Because of that, some try a different strategy, spending a little more to buy a cheap but real second phone. Gloria, who works at her own stall at another market across the street in a converted art-deco movie house, said the dummy trade started about 14 years ago, but for different reasons: Phone shops would buy dummies for their exhibition cases to protect against another type of crime, the so-called “sledgehammer crews” who can clear out a jewelry or electronics store in seconds by breaking windows. “Generally, the dummy is for a showcase, for people who sell real cellphones,” Gloria explained. “Dummies have been sold here for about 14 years, for use in showcases, but nowadays people are buying them to protect their own cellphones.” Gloria sells an iPhone dummy for 300 pesos ($15), that would save a victim the 18,000 pesos ($900) a real iPhone would cost here. “In most cases, people want to avoid getting their cellphone stolen, but also their data,” says Gloria, who also asked her last name not be used. The paranoia about assaults and muggings has been amplified by the fact that so many of the robberies are now videotaped by surveillance cameras on public buses. The tapes are often shown on news programs, instilling terror in people. The government of the eastern borough of Ixtapalpa — one of the city’s biggest and poorest precincts — launched a program this week to have police ride the buses to prevent robberies. But even as the program started up with fanfare and media photo ops, some residents were skeptical. Oscar Armenda, a transportation worker who was riding a bus in Iztapalapa around midday as police started climbing aboard, said, “This is good in a way, but in a way it’s not.” “They should do this at the time of day when it’s needed, at night, not now,” Armenda said.


Hundreds gather at U.S. Supreme Court to protest state abortion bans as step backward

Abstract: WASHINGTON - Hundreds of abortion-rights campaigners, including Democrats seeking their party’s 2020 presidential nomination, rallied in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to protest new restrictions on abortion passed by Republican-dominated legislatures in eight states. Many of the restrictions are intended to draw legal challenges, which religious conservatives hope will lead the nation’s top court to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that established a woman’s right to terminate her pregnancy. “We are not going to allow them to move our country backward,” U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, one of the two dozen Democrats running for president, told the crowd through a megaphone. The rally is one of scores scheduled for Tuesday around the country by the American Civil Liberties Union, NARAL Pro-Choice America, Planned Parenthood Action Fund and other abortion rights groups. The protests are a response to laws passed recently by Republican state legislatures that amount to the tightest restrictions on abortion seen in the United States in decades. Alabama passed an outright ban last week, including for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest, unless the woman’s life is in danger, while other states, including Ohio and Georgia, have banned abortions absent a medical emergency after six weeks of pregnancy or after the fetus’s heartbeat can be detected, which can occur before a woman even realizes she is pregnant. Protesters outside the Supreme Court waved signs saying “We won’t be punished” and “Protect Safe, Legal Abortion” and were joined by Pete Buttigieg, the South Bend, Indiana, mayor who also is vying for the 2020 nomination. “My entire campaign is about freedom,” he said in a brief interview. U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley also was a featured speaker, telling the crowd: “This nation was built on the backs and grown in the wombs of women, and our rights are not up for debate.” U.S. President Donald Trump, a Republican who opposes abortion, has seized on the issue as one likely to fire up his core supporters. The restrictive new laws are contrary to the Roe v. Wade ruling, which affords a woman the right to an abortion up to the moment the fetus would be viable outside the womb, which is usually placed at about seven months, or 28 weeks, but may occur earlier. The bans have been championed by conservatives, many of them Christian, who say fetuses should have rights comparable to those of infants and view abortion as tantamount to murder. The Supreme Court now has a 5-4 conservative majority following two judicial appointments by Trump. A federal judge in Mississippi on Tuesday heard arguments in a lawsuit challenging the state’s new fetal-heartbeart abortion law. District Judge Carlton Reeves asked questions suggesting he thought the new law to be even more unconstitutional than the state’s 15-week abortion ban he struck down last year, USA Today reported.


Poland never renounced right to seek German WWII reparations, official says

Abstract: WARSAW - A Polish official said his country is entitled to seek World War II reparations from Germany, arguing Tuesday that no documents or records show Poland ever renounced its right to do so. Berlin has repeatedly said there is no legal basis for the claims because the matter was settled in a 1953 agreement. But prominent ruling party lawmaker Arkadiusz Mularczyk told The Associated Press that to his knowledge the only document that exists is a copy of a 1953 note from a government session. It’s signed only by Poland’s communist leader of the time, Boleslaw Bierut, and isn’t legally binding. Poland’s current right-wing authorities have argued the 1953 decision is invalid because it was dictated by Moscow when Poland was a satellite of the Soviet Union. Mularczyk believes that raising reparations with Berlin would improve bilateral ties. He said Poland hasn’t been adequately compensated for the human and material losses it suffered under Nazi German occupation from 1939-45. “This is not antagonizing,” he argued. “If Germany paid reparations to Poland it would be a chance to improve those relations,” because there is still a sense among many Poles that the country should be compensated for its losses. According to Mularczyk, Poles who were Nazi concentration camp inmates, victims of pseudo-medical experiments or forced laborers have been paid less than €2 billion in compensation, which is incommensurate with their suffering. He believes the matter could be solved through bilateral talks. Last month, Greece said it would revive its long-standing demand for German war reparations and would make use of European and international law to back its demand, which Germany has repeatedly rejected. Mularczyk reiterated the government’s refusal to discuss compensation for Jewish property, saying Poland shouldn’t pay reparations since it was a victim of the war. He said that in line with Poland’s law, legal heirs should claim property, if it exists, or compensation, through courts, a lengthy procedure that also applies to Polish citizens whose property was seized during the war and under communism. “Please send the bill to Germany, to Mrs. Merkel” Mularczyk said, referring to the German chancellor. Mularczyk heads a team of experts set up in 2017 by the ruling nationalist Law and Justice party that tasked it with counting the losses and their long-term effects on Poland, saying the nations deserves compensation. He intends to present it to Germany and other countries on Sept. 1, the 80th anniversary of the Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland. “Our goal is to show (internationally) the effects and consequences of World War II, the human and material losses and how they influence today the life, the economic, the political and the demographic position of our country,” he said. Mularczyk said the “very cautious, minimalist” estimate of losses will be higher than the currently cited $850 million, which derives from a 1947 count. It will include losses to all who were Poland’s citizens in 1939, including Jews and other minorities.

wwii
poland
germany
soviet union
nazis
arkadiusz mularczyk


Sudan generals and protesters split on who will lead transition

Abstract: KHARTOUM - Sudan’s ruling generals and the protesters who drove President Omar al-Bashir from power last month said Tuesday they remain divided over who will lead the country during its transition period despite progress in recent talks. The protesters, represented by the Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change, have insisted on “limited military representation” in a sovereign council, while the military wants to lead the body during an agreed-upon three-year transition. The military council said in a statement Tuesday that the two sides are split over the makeup of the council and who should lead it. Both sides said early Tuesday that they intend to continue the talks, without setting a date. The U.S., Britain and Norway meanwhile issued a statement urging a transition to civilian rule. “Any outcome that does not result in the formation of a government that is civilian-led, placing primary authority for governing with civilians, will make it harder for our countries to work with the new authorities and support Sudan’s economic development,” it said. The two sides have held several rounds of talks since the military overthrew al-Bashir on April 11, ending his 30-year reign after four months of mass protests and sit-ins, which are still underway. The protesters have threatened a general strike, accusing the generals of dragging their feet on handing over power. The military has warned against any further “chaos.” Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, deputy head of the council, on Monday told his paramilitary Rapid Support Forces to be vigilant and ready to preserve security. “There are parties that are plotting to create chaos,” he said. The protesters are still holding a mass sit-in outside the military headquarters in the capital, Khartoum, that was set up days before al-Bashir was overthrown. They have vowed to remain there until the military hands over power to civilians. Also on Tuesday, Sudan’s prosecutor’s office said in a statement that guards for former intelligence chief Lt. Gen. Salah Abdallah Gosh obstructed his detention the previous day for questioning about alleged financial wrongdoing. Prosecutors have been investigating a bank account with 46 billion Sudanese pounds (more than $1 billion) accessible only by Gosh. Protesters have accused Gosh of involvement in killing demonstrators during the uprising. Once a member of the president’s inner circle, Gosh was sacked as an adviser in April 2011 for criticizing the government. He was arrested the following year on suspicion of involvement in a coup attempt, but was later pardoned by al-Bashir, who appointed him intelligence chief in February 2018. Al-Bashir is being held in a jail in Khartoum, and local prosecutors have charged him with involvement in killing protesters and incitement to kill protesters during the uprising. The military has said it will not extradite him to The Hague, where the International Criminal Court has charged him with war crimes and genocide linked to the Darfur conflict in the 2000s.

protests
sudan
omar al-bashir
mohammed hamdan dagalo


U.S. stance on Iran 'deterrence, not about war,' says Pentagon chief

Abstract: WASHINGTON - The U.S. defense chief said President Donald Trump’s administration was seeking to deter Iran but not start a war, after he briefed members of Congress. “This is about deterrence, not about war. We are not about going to war,” Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan told reporters after exiting the closed-door meeting with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Shanahan credited robust U.S. moves in recent weeks, which included the deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group, with thwarting Iranian threats. “We have deterred attacks based on reposturing of assets, deterred attacks against American forces,” Shanahan said. “Our biggest focus at this point is to prevent Iranian miscalculation. We do not want the situation to escalate,” he said. Pompeo said that he and Shanahan placed Iranian actions within the context of “40 years of terrorist activity,” since the 1979 Islamic revolution replaced the pro-Western shah with a staunchly anti-US clerical regime. The briefing did not satisfy many of the Democrats, who say that the heightened tensions are the results of President Donald Trump administration’s aggressive stance and shunning of diplomacy. “I worry very much that, intentionally or unintentionally, we can create a situation in which a war will take place,” Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent running for the Democratic presidential nomination, told reporters. Saying that the Iraq and Vietnam wars were based on lies by previous administrations, Sanders said: “I believe that a war with Iran would be an absolute disaster, far worse than the war with Iraq.”

conflict
u.s .
iran
pentagon
donald trump
mike pompeo
patrick shanahan


Risk of nuclear war now highest since WWII, U.N. arms research chief says

Abstract: GENEVA - The risk of nuclear weapons being used is at its highest since World War II, a senior U.N. security expert said on Tuesday, calling it an “urgent” issue that the world should take more seriously. Renata Dwan, director of the U.N. Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), said all states with nuclear weapons have nuclear modernization programs underway and the arms control landscape is changing, partly due to strategic competition between China and the United States. Traditional arms control arrangements are also being eroded by the emergence of new types of war, with increasing prevalence of armed groups and private-sector forces and new technologies that blurred the line between offense and defense, she told reporters in Geneva. With disarmament talks stalemated for the past two decades, 122 countries have signed a treaty to ban nuclear weapons, partly out of frustration and partly out of a recognition of the risks, she said. “I think that it’s genuinely a call to recognize — and this has been somewhat missing in the media coverage of the issues — that the risks of nuclear war are particularly high now, and the risks of the use of nuclear weapons, for some of the factors I pointed out, are higher now than at any time since World War II.” The nuclear ban treaty, officially called the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, was backed by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017. The treaty has so far gathered 23 of the 50 ratifications that it needs to come into force, including South Africa, Austria, Thailand, Vietnam and Mexico. It is strongly opposed by the United States, Russia, and other states with nuclear arms. Cuba also ratified the treaty in 2018, 56 years after the Cuban missile crisis, a 13-day Cold War face-off between Moscow and Washington that marked the closest the world had ever come to nuclear war. Dwan said the world should not ignore the danger of nuclear weapons. “How we think about that, and how we act on that risk and the management of that risk, seems to me a pretty significant and urgent question that isn’t reflected fully in the (U.N.) Security Council,” she said.

u.s .
russia
u.n .
nuclear war
renata dwan


May faces pressure to abandon vote on Brexit and resign, sources say

Abstract: LONDON - Theresa May is facing pressure to abandon her Brexit deal and quit as British prime minister within days, according to people familiar with the matter. Several senior government officials said they were shocked that the premier’s new offer intended to win votes in Parliament for her European Union divorce agreement had been so badly received so quickly. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the individuals said May’s allies know there is little hope of her Withdrawal Agreement Bill passing a crucial vote in the House of Commons, even after she promised MPs the chance to call a second referendum on Brexit. The premier was set to make the case for her “new deal” in a statement to Parliament on Wednesday afternoon. But with a fourth humiliating defeat for her plan now looking likely, May’s Conservative Party colleagues will urge her to cancel the vote, planned for the first week of June. That will leave her with little reason to carry on as prime minister. A number of officials inside the party believe she will face intense pressure from her own ministers to quit and make way for a new leader to try to deliver Brexit. “I will not vote for it,” wrote Boris Johnson, the most senior pro-Brexit candidate who wants to replace May as Tory leader, tweeted. “We can and must do better — and deliver what the people voted for.” The speculation over May’s future intensified after she made a desperate final gamble to get her Brexit deal through the British Parliament before she’s thrown out of office. In a hastily arranged speech Tuesday, the embattled Conservative leader promised to give Parliament a vote on whether to call another referendum to ratify Britain’s divorce from the EU. While May opposes another plebiscite, it’s something many MPs — including scores in the opposition Labour Party — have been calling for. May made her offer conditional on MPs backing her overall deal first. In a hint that the vote could yet be pulled, May’s Environment Secretary Michael Gove refused to confirm that MPs would still be given a chance to vote in the week of June 3, as previously promised. “I think we will reflect over the next few days on how people look at the proposition that has been put forward,” he told BBC Radio 4 on Wednesday. Labour’s Brexit spokesman Keir Starmer urged May to cancel the vote, saying the package is “too weak” and is heading for a “heavy loss” when it’s put to vote in Parliament. “In reality, the prime minister ought to now admit defeat and I think she would do well to just pull the vote and pause, because this is going nowhere,” he told BBC Radio 4. Within minutes of her speech ending, the backlash began. Pro-Brexit Conservative MPs joined opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and May’s Northern Irish allies to condemn her proposals. They vowed to vote against them in the House of Commons next month. The failure of May’s deal would throw the U.K. into renewed turmoil and uncertainty. The outcome of Brexit would be almost impossible to predict as it will be left to May’s successor as Tory leader and prime minister to complete the process. Leaving the EU with no deal, or even remaining inside the bloc could be back on the table once May is gone. Johnson, who has said he’d be prepared to leave without an agreement, is the front-runner in the leadership race that’s unofficially under way. May’s offer represents possibly the final throw of the dice for a prime minister who has all but run out of options. Almost three years after the U.K. voted to exit the EU, May’s deal has been rejected three times by Parliament. She’s tried cross-party talks to work out a joint plan with Corbyn, but they collapsed last week. Nonetheless, on Wednesday, May sent a letter to Corbyn asking him to compromise and back her new deal. In her letter, the premier set out to convince the Labour leader she’s moved in the key areas he wanted changed, including on a second referendum, and on worker’s rights. Even the dispute over the future U.K.-EU customs relationship can still be resolved, she said. “I have shown today that I am willing to compromise to deliver Brexit for the British people,” May wrote. “I ask you to compromise too so that we can deliver what both our parties promised in our manifestos and restore faith in our politics.” For its part, her party is now bracing for defeat in European elections Thursday — a poll the U.K. wasn’t meant to take part in and has been forced to because Brexit has been delayed. May has already promised to work with her party on a timetable for electing her successor after the vote on the Bill takes place. The question now is whether her Tory critics allow her that much time.


Will FAA's plan for 737 Max fly outside the United States?

Abstract: NEW YORK - Getting Boeing’s top-selling 737 Max back in the skies faces a critical test this week as the company and U.S. regulators each seek to restore their reputations after two deadly crashes. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration will hold a summit of global aviation regulators Thursday to walk through the steps taken to address concerns with the Max following criticism the agency dragged its feet on the decision to ground the jets. Most agencies around the world have said little or nothing about the situation since the 737 Max was grounded following the March 10 Ethiopian Airlines crash, which together with a Lion Air crash in October, claimed 346 lives. So the gathering in Fort Worth, Texas, is expected to provide clues as to whether the aviation safety authorities will be willing to set aside any skepticism about the FAA, which has not yet given the green light for the 737 Max to fly again. Regulators “are going to want a lot of explanation,” said Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group. “We’re going to learn a lot.” The FAA would prefer to have other agencies quickly follow its lead — which previously would have been likely — but several aviation experts think that is improbable. Europe and Canada could follow the U.S. by weeks in allowing the Max jets to return to the skies. China is a wildcard. It was the first country to order the planes grounded in March, and has been sparring with the U.S. for months over trade policy. The FAA said 57 agencies from 33 countries will attend the summit, including China, France, Germany, the U.K., India, Indonesia and Ethiopia, as well as the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the United Nation’s International Civil Aviation Organization. The meeting comes after Boeing announced May 16 that it completed a software update to address a problem with the flight handling program known as the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System. In both of the Max crashes, the MCAS pointed the plane sharply downward based on a faulty sensor reading, hindering the pilot’s effort to control the aircraft after takeoff, according to preliminary crash investigations. Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg has said repeatedly that there was no design flaw in the 737 Max, and has described changes to the MCAS system as an “update” rather than a fix. Still the company’s reputation has taken a hit amid reports it knew of the issue before the Ethiopia Airlines crash, and received complaints from U.S. pilots. Boeing said it is providing additional information to the FAA in anticipation of a certification test flight, a key step in winning regulatory approval. Long considered an “gold standard” internationally, the FAA’s reputation has suffered, amid scrutiny of the oversight process and reports it allowed Boeing to effectively self-certify some features of the Max. U.S. lawmakers last week once again castigated acting FAA Administrator Daniel Elwell for lagging behind virtually all other regulators in grounding the planes, acting only after seeing data linking the two crashes. “So the opposite of data is common sense,” bellowed Representative Steve Cohen, a Tennessee Democrat, during a hearing. “Data is fine but it’s something that’s right before your eyes,” he said, noting that non-U.S. regulators reacted with appropriate urgency. Elwell told the panel the agency would permit the 737 Max to resume flights “only when the FAA’s analysis of the facts and technical data indicate that it is safe to do so.” Aviation experts expect the U.S. agency to clear the way for the 737 Max in time for major American airlines to resume flights in mid-to-late summer, as they have publicly announced. Elwell said he hoped other regulators “make their ungrounding as close to ours as possible.” Thursday’s gathering will offer clues as to whether that is likely. “We’ll have a much better idea of the timeline for the return of the 737 Max,” said Michel Merluzeau of aerospace consultancy AIR. The process would be slowed if other regulators break with precedent and insist on conducting their own test flights with the upgraded 737 Max rather than deferring to the FAA’s judgment. Another key question is whether other regulators have different expectations on pilot training than the FAA, which has said simulator training is not needed for all pilots. Scott Hamilton, founder of Leeham Company, an aviation consultancy, said the FAA’s job has been made more difficult with a “drip drip” of negative media reports. And over the weekend, Boeing acknowledged that it had to correct flaws in the flight simulator software for the Max. “How has Boeing assured the FAA there are no more surprises?” Hamilton asked in an email.


Twisters flip campers and damage homes in Southern Plains

Abstract: OKLAHOMA CITY - A tornado touched down Tuesday near Tulsa International Airport, injuring at least one person and damaging about a dozen homes, amid storms in the Southern Plains that brought a deluge of rain and powerful winds, closing an interstate and flipping campers at a raceway. Storms could bring more tornadoes and flash flooding to parts of Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma on Tuesday. Storms Monday evening flipped campers at Lucas Oil Speedway in Hickory County, Missouri, injuring seven people, four of whom were taken to hospitals. The speedway’s grandstand also was destroyed, forcing cancellation of racing this weekend that was expected to draw about 3,000 campers. Details about injuries were not immediately available. The tornado Tuesday morning in Tulsa didn’t damage the airport, but passengers were moved into shelters for about 30 minutes, according to spokesman Andrew Pierini said. Many flights were canceled or delayed because of the storms. The twister touched down at about 6:30 a.m. about 4 miles (6 km) from the airport. “We had to rescue a man, he was pinned under a tree this morning,” said Tulsa Area Emergency Management spokeswoman Kim MacLeod. The man’s condition was not immediately known. “We’ve had some other reports of damage to homes and trees down,” and damage assessments would continue throughout the day, MacLeod said. Flooding was also an issue. The Oklahoma Department of Transportation shut down Interstate 40 in El Reno, about 25 miles (40 km) west of Oklahoma City, because of high water. The National Weather Service says up to 5 inches (13 cm) of rain had fallen since Monday. In El Reno and Stillwater, home to Oklahoma State University about 55 miles (88 km) northeast of Oklahoma City, emergency responders were rescuing people from their homes because of high water. St. Louis’ major sports teams — the NHL’s Blues and baseball’s Cardinals — said they were both prepared for storms that could be rolling through just as they’re playing blocks apart on Tuesday night. The Blues said in a statement that they are coordinating with St. Louis emergency managers and police to monitor the weather. Fans are told to stay in their seats if a strong storm hits during one of the biggest games in franchise history: A win against the San Jose Sharks would send the Blues to their first Stanley Cup Finals since 1970. The Cardinals, in a statement, said Busch Stadium has clearly marked storm shelters and a detailed plan to alert fans in case of a weather emergency. The Cardinals are playing the Kansas City Royals in the opening of a series against their cross-state rivals. “Busch Stadium is the first ballpark in Major League Baseball certified as a ‘Storm Ready Facility’ by the National Weather Service,” the Cardinals said. Heavy snow melt from the north and significant spring rains have led to waves of flooding in Missouri, and President Donald Trump on Monday issued a major disaster declaration for 13 counties in the state damaged by March flooding. The Missouri River is expected to reach major flood stage by the end of the week at Jefferson City, Hermann, St. Charles and elsewhere. The levee near Jefferson City’s airport holds back water up to 30 feet (9.14 meters), Cole County Emergency Manager Bill Farr said, but the National Weather Service expects a crest of 32.3 feet (9.85 meters) Thursday. Sandbagging won’t help because the levee is too long, he said. “We’re just keeping our fingers crossed,” Farr said.

u.s .
tornadoes
oklahoma
southern plains


Hong Kong activists secure refugee status in Germany

Abstract: HONG KONG - Germany has granted refugee status to two Hong Kong activists facing charges at home, one of them said on Wednesday, in what is apparently the first time Germany has acknowledged such status for democracy campaigners from the Chinese-ruled city. Ray Wong, 25, and Alan Li, 27, were granted refugees status in Germany in May 2018, Wong told Reuters in a telephone interview from Germany. He was able to show a document setting out that status, “Now Hong Kong also has political refugees,” Wong said. A city government spokesman was not immediately available for comment. The German consulate in Hong Kong said it was aware that the two Hong Kong residents were staying in Germany, although it could not provide details on individual cases, nor confirm whether the pair had been granted refugee protection. Wong, a former member of independence group Hong Kong Indigenous, and Li were charged for a rioting offense linked to a protest that turned violent in February 2016. The pair later skipped bail and fled to Germany in 2017. Hong Kong activists campaigning for great democracy have become increasingly defiant in recent years amid growing fears of creeping interference from Beijing despite a promise of special autonomy. Scores of activists have been jailed on various charges including contempt of court and public nuisance, with critics saying Hong Kong authorities were prosecuting activists to deter protests and stifle freedom of expression and assembly. Hong Kong authorities deny persecuting activists. In April, a city court jailed four leaders of a 2014 “Occupy” pro-democracy civil disobedience movement, while young democracy leader Joshua Wong was jailed for two months this month. Wong said he was speaking up because he wanted to raise awareness about a proposed extradition law that will extend Beijing’s powers over the financial hub and has stoked criticism both within the city and from abroad. “The expansion of China is significant and I hope to use my case to say, ‘please pay attention to the expansion of China,’ ” he said. Wong said freedoms in Hong Kong had been destroyed by the Chinese authorities and Hong Kong governments since the city was handed back from British rule in 1997 under a “one country, two systems” deal promising autonomy. The proposed extradition law would allow people in the city accused of a crime, including foreigners, to be extradited to countries without formal extradition agreements, including mainland China. Hong Kong authorities have stressed the extradition law would not be used to prosecute political crimes, but Wong said he feared it could be used to suppress the pro-democracy movement, as Beijing could extradite activists to China. Wong said he lived in refugee camps in Germany for more than 10 months until August last year. “I lived in three different refugee camps and the last one was a big one in the middle of nowhere,” Wong said. The activist, who said he now believes it’s more important to focus on human rights rather than to push for Hong Kong’s independence from China, said he was learning German and hoped to study philosophy once he passes his language exams. He said it was important to raise awareness of Hong Kong’s plight internationally. “It’s necessary for Hong Kong people to speak up for Hong Kong,” he said.

hong kong
rights
germany
protests
refugees
ray wong
alan li


North Korea warns U.S. over seized ship at rare U.N. news conference

Abstract: UNITED NATIONS - North Korea stepped up its campaign on Tuesday for the United States to return a seized cargo ship belonging to Pyongyang, warning Washington that it had violated its sovereignty in a move that could affect “future developments” between the countries. North Korean U.N. Ambassador Kim Song held a rare news conference at the United Nations in New York to demand the immediate return of the ship, which the United States said earlier this month it had seized over accusations it was used for coal shipments in violation of U.S. and U.N. sanctions. “The United States should deliberate and think over the consequences its outrageous act might have on the future developments. Also the United States must return our cargo ship without delay,” Kim said. “We regard it as part of our territory where our sovereignty is fully exercised.” He said the seizure of the ship, known as the Wise Honest, defied the spirit of a statement by U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un after their first meeting in Singapore in June 2018. They pledged to build new ties between their countries and work toward North Korea’s denuclearization. The U.S. Justice Department earlier this month said the ship was seized and impounded to American Samoa. The vessel was first detained by Indonesia in April 2018. A second meeting between Trump and Kim Jong Un in Hanoi broke down in February. With talks on denuclearization stalled, North Korea went ahead with more weapons tests this month. The tests were seen as a protest by Kim Jong Un after Trump rejected his calls for sanctions relief at the Hanoi summit. The U.N. Security Council has unanimously strengthened sanctions on North Korea since 2006 in a bid to choke funding for Pyongyang’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, banning exports including coal, iron, lead, textiles and seafood, and capping imports of crude oil and refined petroleum products. “We will carefully watch every move of the United States,” said Kim. Kim wrote to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday to ask him to take “urgent measures” over the issue. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday that the letter had been received. “We’re taking a look at it. The issue of sanctions, the implementation of sanctions, the interpretation of sanctions, is really a matter for the U.N. Security Council to decide and to discuss,” he said.

u.s .
north korea
kim jong un
u.n .
nuclear weapons
sanctions
north korea nuclear crisis
donald trump
wise honest


North Korea labels Joe Biden an 'imbecile,' in contrast to effusive praise for Trump

Abstract: North Korea, which has offered effusive praise for U.S. President Donald Trump, delivered a scathing rebuke of one of his top Democratic foes, Joe Biden, for insulting leader Kim Jong Un, calling the former vice president “an imbecile bereft of elementary quality as a human being, let alone a politician.” In a commentary published late Tuesday, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency blasted Biden, a leading Democratic candidate for president, for having “the temerity to insult the supreme leadership of the DPRK, an intolerable and serious politically motivated provocation.” DPRK is the acronym for the North’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The KCNA commentary did not specifically detail what Biden had said to incur the wrath of Pyongyang, but the former vice president was quoted as asking supporters at a rally Saturday in Philadelphia if the U.S. is “a nation that embraces dictators and tyrants like (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and Kim Jong Un?” The North is known to be fiercely protective of the Kim family dynasty, which are revered as almost godlike figures, and regards any criticism of them as the gravest of offenses. “We will never pardon anyone who dare provoke the supreme leadership … but will certainly make them pay for it,” the commentary said. “Biden had better think back the reason for his past two failures in presidential elections and remember that prudence commensurate with the object is integral to a presidential candidate,” it said. Biden, it added, “has gone reckless and senseless, seized by ambition for power.” It also took aim at past controversies involving Biden, including claims he improperly touched women, as well as allegations of plagiarism and falling asleep during a speech by then-President Barack Obama in 2011. “It is by no means accidental that there is nonstop comment over his bid for candidacy that he is not worth pinning hope on, backed by the jeer that he is a fool of low IQ,” KCNA said. “Yet, he is self-praising himself as being the most popular presidential candidate,” it added. “This is enough to make a cat laugh.” Van Jackson, a former Pentagon official and North Korea expert who teaches at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, said that the North’s animosity toward Biden “is deep and guaranteed.” “It’s underappreciated how ‘hostile’ Obama’s sanctions and military posturing toward Pyongyang were in 2016. Biden 2020 is to Kim Jong Un as (Hillary) Clinton 2016 was to Putin,” Jackson wrote on Twitter, referring to the famously antagonistic relationship between Clinton and the Russian president. Kim is widely believed to hold a favorable view of Trump, who became the first sitting U.S. president to meet with a North Korean leader during summit talks last June in Singapore. A second summit between the two, held in Vietnam in February, collapsed without a deal due to large differences over the scope of North Korea’s denuclearization and offers of sanctions relief by the U.S. While the denuclearization talks have stalled since the Hanoi summit breakdown, the Kim regime has refrained from singling out Trump for blame, instead targeting other White House officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and national security adviser John Bolton. Trump, for his part, has used surprisingly warm words for Kim, who human rights groups say oversees a vast network of gulags housing some 120,000 political prisoners where systematic, widespread and gross human rights violations have been reported. Last year, Trump even said the two” fell in love” during the Singapore summit. A top North Korean official was also quoted this year as similarly describing the chemistry between the two leaders as “mysteriously wonderful.”

u.s .
north korea
kim jong un
nuclear weapons
north korea nuclear crisis
joe biden
donald trump
kim-trump summit


Rodrigo Duterte tightens grip on power with landslide win in Philippine polls

Abstract: MANILA - Allies of President Rodrigo Duterte stormed to a landslide victory in midterm polls, final results showed Wednesday, dissolving a last check on his controversial rule. Loyalists won both houses of the legislature, shutting out all opposition candidates in the Senate, which had served as a buffer against Duterte’s most contentious plans. The results open a path for Duterte — who has remarkably high approval ratings — to make good on his call to bring back the death penalty and advance his project to rewrite the constitution. “It’s a clear signal that the people will be behind him as he pushes bills and processes that went nowhere previously,” political analyst Ramon Casiple said. With nine Duterte backers and three nominally unaligned politicians taking the 12 seats at stake in the 24-member Senate, only four oppositions members will remain, results from the elections authority showed. Duterte allies kept control of the lower House of Representatives, which has approved legislation to bring back capital punishment and rewrite the constitution since Duterte’s 2016 election. Among the new senators is former national police chief Ronald dela Rosa, the first enforcer of Duterte’s narcotics crackdown that has killed over 5,300. Campaigners say the true toll is at least triple that and may amount to crimes against humanity. “Number one on my agenda is the reimposition of the death penalty for drug trafficking,” dela Rosa told reporters. “I will focus on that.” Senate seats also went to Christopher “Bong” Go, Duterte’s longtime adviser, and Imee Marcos, the daughter of deceased dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who was ousted in a 1986 popular uprising. The top vote-getter in the Senate race, Cynthia Villar, thanked the president for his backing and asked for a round of applause for him in a speech after the results were announced. “The laws we craft or legislate must consider all interests involved,” she added. “A strong and independent Senate has always been our goal.” Opponents fear the majority will allow Duterte to push forward his legislative agenda. In addition to opening avenues for him to stay in power beyond his legally mandated single term that ends in 2022, a charter change could reshape the Philippines for decades. Duterte has pitched constitutional reform to turn the Asian country into a decentralized federal republic where regions would have the power to fix local problems. But the various initiatives launched in his first three years in office have also included proposals dropping term limits, allowing him to run for another term and weakening checks on presidential power. “The pessimistic assessment is that what we’re looking towards is the complete transformation of the Philippine political system in the years to come, well beyond 2022 when Duterte’s term is supposed to end,” political analyst Richard Heydarian said. The landslide victory was a crushing defeat for the opposition, leaving it mostly in disarray. “Voters were unable to relate to the issues highlighted by the opposition in the election, which was all about defeating Duterte,” Casiple said. The pro-Duterte electoral tsunami was also a win for the Duterte family. Daughter Sara, touted as a possible 2022 presidential candidate, retained her post as mayor of the southern city of Davao, with sibling Sebastian winning as vice mayor. The eldest son, Paolo, won a seat in the House of Representatives.


Ex-Philippine judge, a Xi critic, says she was held at Hong Kong airport and ordered to leave

Abstract: MANILA - A former Philippine Supreme Court justice who accused Chinese President Xi Jinping of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court said she was barred for hours Tuesday from entering Hong Kong. Conchita Carpio-Morales said she was stopped by immigration authorities and was held in a room at Hong Kong’s airport for about four hours and ordered to take a flight back to Manila. She had planned to take a vacation for five days in Hong Kong with her husband, son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren, who were all allowed entry. Hong Kong airport and immigration officials later told her “there was a mistake” and that she could proceed with her trip to Hong Kong, but she and her family had already decided to return home because of the incident, she said. “I have never been subjected to this kind of humiliation,” Carpio-Morales told The Associated Press by telephone while waiting for her flight back to Manila. She said she and her family did not want to take the risk of being subjected to further scrutiny. A Hong Kong immigration official who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss a specific immigration case said Carpio-Morales had been admitted to Hong Kong. After flying back to Manila with her family late Tuesday, Carpio-Morales told reporters she had repeatedly asked Hong Kong airport authorities why she was denied entry but was told only that it was because of unspecified “immigration reasons.” Carpio-Morales, 77, is a respected former Supreme Court associate justice and head of the Ombudsman, a special anti-corruption agency. She retired from government service last year. In March, she and former Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario took the bold step of filing a complaint against Xi and other Chinese officials over Beijing’s assertive actions in the disputed South China Sea, which they say deprived thousands of fishermen of their livelihoods and destroyed the environment. They accused Xi and other Chinese officials of turning seven disputed reefs into man-made islands, causing extensive environmental damage, and of blocking large numbers of fishermen, including about 320,000 Filipinos, from their fishing grounds. Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua called the complaint a “fabrication.” Chinese officials also raised their concern over the complaint in a meeting with Philippine officials in Manila in April, saying the case is “affecting the prestige of our leader,” a Philippine official told AP on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly. The legal offensive against China contrasts with President Rodrigo Duterte’s rapprochement with Beijing since he took office in mid-2016 while often criticizing the security policies of the United States, a treaty ally. Del Rosario said Tuesday that he and Carpio-Morales filed the complaint “to be able to push back against the bullying and harassment that we have been encountering from our goliath of a neighbor” and Carpio-Morales’s treatment in Hong Kong was “more of the same.” Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said the Duterte administration asked its diplomats to help Carpio-Morales and her family return to the country safely. The Philippine deputy consul general in Hong Kong, Germinia Aguilar-Usudan, told ABS-CBN News Channel in Manila that the Philippines will ask Hong Kong authorities about the incident.

china
hong kong
philippines
south china sea
xi jinping
icc
supreme court
rodrigo duterte
conchita carpio-morales


India claims new first for world's fastest cruise missile

Abstract: NEW DELHI - India said the world’s fastest cruise missile passed another key test Wednesday when it successfully hit a land target after being fired from a fighter jet. India is developing the supersonic BrahMos missile — which has a top speed of 3,450 kilometers (2,140 miles) per hour — with Russia, and according to media reports wants to soon start selling it abroad. The missile is one-and-a-half times faster than the old Concorde supersonic jet. The Indian defense ministry said a specially converted Su-30 MKI fighter jet successfully fired the 2.5-ton missile, which has a range of about 300 kilometers (185 miles). “The launch from the aircraft was smooth and the missile followed the desired trajectory before directly hitting the land target,” a ministry statement said. It did not say where the test was staged or give other details apart from saying “very complex” mechanical, electrical and software modifications were made to the Russian-origin fighter jet. The first test on a sea target was staged in November 2017. India said then it was the first country “to have successfully fired an air launched 2.8 Mach surface attack missile of this category on a sea target.” “The BrahMos missile provides Indian Air Force a much desired capability to strike from large stand-off ranges on any target at sea or on land with pinpoint accuracy by day or night and in all weather conditions,” the ministry said. India has already ordered sea-launched versions of the missile for its navy, and specialist defense media reports have said the BrahMos could start being introduced to the air force from 2020. BrahMos is a joint venture between India and Russia and officials from the enterprise have said at recent international air shows that discussions on sales are being held with a number of countries. Media reports have said Southeast Asian countries have expressed particular interest, which could worry China. India and Russia are reported to be preparing plans for a longer range version of the missile which could fly at up to Mach 5, or 6,125 kilometers (3,800 miles) per hour. BrahMos is named for the Brahmaputra and Moskva rivers of India and Russia respectively.


Malaysia, flooded with plastic waste, to send scrap back to source

Abstract: KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia, which has become the dumping ground for the world’s plastic waste, will send back nonrecyclable plastic scrap to the developed countries that sent it there, its environment minister said on Tuesday. Malaysia last year became the leading alternative destination for plastic scrap after China banned imports of such waste, disrupting the flow of more than 7 million tonnes of plastic scrap a year. Dozens of recycling factories cropped up in Malaysia, many without an operating license, and residents complained of environmental damage. Most of the plastic scrap coming into the country is contaminated and low-quality plastic from developed countries that is non-recyclable. Now Malaysia has begun sending back the waste to its country of origin, said Yeo Bee Yin, Malaysia’s minister of energy, technology, science, climate change and environment. “Developed countries must be responsible in what they send out,” Yeo told Reuters. She said some of the plastic scrap sent to Malaysia was in violation of the Basel Convention, a U.N. treaty on the trade of plastic waste and its disposal. Malaysia has already sent five containers of contaminated plastic waste that was smuggled into the country back to its source, Spain, she said. The minister did not identify the smugglers but said an investigation was ongoing. More nonrecyclable plastic will be sent back to its source next week, she said. Malaysia’s imports of plastic waste from its 10 biggest source-countries jumped to 456,000 tonnes between January and July 2018, versus 316,600 tons purchased in all of 2017 and 168,500 tonnes in 2016. More recent data is not available. The United States, Britain, Japan and Australia are among the top exporters of plastic waste to Malaysia. Plastic unsuitable for recycling is burned, which releases toxic chemicals into the atmosphere. Or it ends up in landfill, potentially contaminating soil and water sources. Around 180 countries reached a deal on Friday to amend the Basel Convention to make global trade in plastic waste more transparent and better regulated, while also ensuring that its management is safer for human health and the environment. The United States, the world’s top exporter of plastic waste, has not ratified the 30-year-old pact. The amendments to the treaty will further limit the flow of plastic scrap to developing countries, said Yeo, who said it was unfair of the developed world to dump its waste on developing countries such as Malaysia. “The amendment of the Basel Convention is the first step in solving the global problem of unjust rubbish movement from developed to developing countries,” Yeo said.

malaysia
pollution
u.s .
waste
environment
plastic
plastic waste


Jakarta governor says six dead in Indonesia post-election unrest

Abstract: JAKARTA - Six people died in civil unrest that gripped parts of Jakarta on Tuesday night after the election commission confirmed that President Joko Widodo won last month’s election, the governor of the Indonesian capital said. Protests on Tuesday by supporters of Widodo’s challenger for the presidency, former Gen. Prabowo Subianto, started peacefully but turned violent in the evening, forcing police to fire tear gas to disperse the crowd. “As per 9 o’clock this morning, there were 200 people hurt being brought to five hospitals,” Gov. Anies Baswedan told broadcaster TVOne. “The number of people dead was six.” He said hospitals were conducting post-mortems to determine the cause of the deaths. Hundreds of protesters were still locked in a tense stand-off with police in central Jakarta on Wednesday after a night of violence. Television footage showed smoke billowing from behind dozens of protesters in streets of the Tanah Abang district, with some throwing firecrackers and tearing down public fences. News agency Antara reported that a small number of protesters had attempted to storm a nearby police station and were using tables as barricades. Several office buildings and embassies in downtown Jakarta were closed on Wednesday, as were train stations in the area. A separate crowd in front of the election supervisory body threw rocks and firecrackers at police around dawn, and dozens of chanting protesters joined them during the morning. Hundreds of police in riot gear blocked the usually busy Sarinah intersection to hold back a crowd they said was expected to swell further in the afternoon. “We will keep going with these protests until he (Widodo) falls,” said Afi Sikumbang, 58, a Prabowo supporter. The General Election Commission (KPU) on Tuesday confirmed unofficial counts by private pollsters in the April 17 election, which gave Widodo a 55.5 percent share of votes against 44.5 percent Prabowo. Widodo won more than 85 million votes of a total of 154 million cast in the world’s third-largest democracy, but Prabowo told reporters he believed there had been widespread cheating. The retired general pledged he would “continue to make legal efforts in line with the constitution to defend the mandate of the people,” with his legal director stating the campaign planned to contest the result in the Constitutional Court. On Monday, an election supervisory agency dismissed claims of systematic cheating, citing a lack of evidence. Independent observers have said the poll was free and fair. Widodo was congratulated for winning the election by former president and Democratic Party chairman Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who is part of the coalition backing Prabowo. The National Mandate Party (PAN), which is also part of the Prabowo coalition, has also acknowledged the results of the election, which are being rejected by Prabowo’s Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra). Presidential Chief of Staff Moeldoko told reporters on Wednesday he believed there was “a systematic effort by a certain group, outside of the terrorist group, that is riding on the situation to muddy the situation,” adding that authorities have seized two pistols from people involved in riots. “We know who is behind this, it is a matter of time,” he said, adding that security was under control. Police spokesman Dedi Prasetyo said on Wednesday that Indonesian police had arrested at least 20 people for provoking the riots and were checking on reports of casualties. He stressed that security officers on the ground, which include military personnel, were not equipped with live bullets. News website Tirto reported a man died of bullet wounds in Tanah Abang, quoting a doctor at a hospital near the site. Indonesian authorities say 40,000 police and army personnel are on duty across Jakarta to maintain security. Australia, the United States, and Britain issued travel advisories warning of an increased risk of violence across Indonesia and advising citizens to stay away from protests.

indonesia
protests
elections
joko widodo


Taiwan's balloon 'Tank Man' marks run-up to 30th anniversary of Tiananmen crackdown

Abstract: TAIPEI - A Taiwanese artist has created giant inflatables of a tank and “Tank Man” — the lone protester who stood in front of a convoy of tanks on Beijing’s Tiananmen Square — to mark 30 years since China’s bloody crackdown on the pro-democracy movement. The photograph of a man in a white shirt standing in the path of the tanks has become one of the most recognized images of the 20th century, and a symbol of peaceful protest. The balloons are on display in the Taiwanese capital Taipei, by the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, one of the country’s most famous landmarks. Mention of the June 4, 1989, crackdown is heavily censored in Chinese news and social media. The ruling Communist Party has never declared how many protesters were killed in and around Tiananmen Square. “As a Taiwanese I hope I can help China to also achieve democracy one day. So I think it is important to the Taiwanese people to continue discussing this topic — preventing people from forgetting this event and reminding the Taiwanese people that the regime in China is dangerous,” said the artist, Shake. “This thing has already been washed away by (China’s) authoritarian political view,” she added, noting Hong Kong and Taiwan are commemorating the event. Visitors to the memorial hall posed for photographs with the balloons. “Both the place and timing to put this up require courage, there are so many tourists from China coming to Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall,” said Su Yung-Hua, a 21-year-old student. She called the artwork a “statement against the Chinese government.” “I think it is very brave to put it here and I am quite concerned that there could be someone who pops it with a needle at night.”

china
taiwan
protests
art
tiananmen square
anniversaries


Death penalty possible in Myanmar cannabis plantation case

Abstract: YANGON - A court in Myanmar on Tuesday formally charged an American man and two local co-workers with violating drug laws concerning marijuana, with potential penalties ranging from five years’ imprisonment to death. The court in the central Mandalay region charged John Frederic Todoroki with violating five sections of the drugs and narcotics law covering possession, sale and trafficking of illegal drugs, lawyer Thein Than Oo said by phone. The defendants contend they were growing hemp, not marijuana. Both are subspecies of the cannabis plant genus. The mildest penalty facing the defendants is five years if they are convicted of growing narcotic drugs. The most severe penalty is 15 years to death for trafficking narcotic drugs. The company that operates the 20-acre (8-hectare) farm on an industrial estate where police arrested the three late last month says it had official permission from the Mandalay regional government to grow hemp, which can be processed into CBD — cannabidiol — a non-intoxicating compound that many believe has health benefits. Hemp can be grown legally in many countries, and is often used for making CBD products. Myanmar law does not seem to clearly distinguish between hemp and marijuana. Police who raided the III M Nutraceutical Co. plantation said they found about 349,300 marijuana plants, 5,200 seedlings, 380 kg (838 pounds) of marijuana seeds, 1,804 grams (64 ounces) of marijuana oil, and chemicals and laboratory equipment. The company said in an April 26 statement that the plants are actually hemp, and its project was approved by the Mandalay region government last August for research and development purposes. It said its farm has been growing industrial hemp, kenaf, peppermint, coffee and eucalyptus, and is strictly doing research, with no sales or distribution. Another lawyer working on the case, Khin Maung Than, said the company received official permission for the enterprise because it was growing hemp. Thein Than Oo said there was nothing stealthy about the project, and any action against the company should be done administratively rather than prosecuting it under the drug laws. He expressed concern for the health of 63-year-old Todoroki, who he said had lost considerable weight since being detained after the raid. “The heat is too strong even for locals, how could he resist the heat,” the lawyer said. The Ngunzun township court in Mandalay’s Myingyan district scheduled its next hearing for June 4. Todoroki’s co-defendants are Shein Latt and Shun Lei Myat Noe. When they were in court last week, Shun Lei Myat Noe’s parents said she was a simple worker at the enterprise, ignorant of what was going on and seeking mainly to improve her English-language skills. Police have said they are also seeking to arrest Alexander Skemp Todoroki. It’s unclear where the Todorokis, believed to be father and son, last lived in the U.S.

u.s .
myanmar
marijuana
death penalty
hemp


Government decides route of October parade to celebrate Emperor Naruhito's enthronement

Abstract: The government said Tuesday it has decided on the October parade route to be taken by the imperial couple to celebrate Emperor Naruhito’s ascension to the throne earlier this month. The open motorcade is expected to spend 30 minutes driving the 4.6 kilometers from the Imperial Palace to Akasaka Palace in the capital on Oct. 22, to be cheered by the public. The route, to be driven in a convertible version of Toyota Motor Corp.’s Century luxury sedan, will differ slightly from the one taken by Emperor Emeritus Akihito and Empress Emerita Michiko when the former emperor ascended the throne in 1990. The route for the current imperial couple’s wedding parade in 1993 was also considered but rejected. A clear view of the emperor and empress along the route was a crucial consideration, both for security and to allow the crowd to see them easily. The motorcade will drive near Nijubashi-mae crossing, Hibiya Park, Sakuradamon crossing and the National Diet Building, then drive from the crossing at Akasaka Mitsuke along Aoyama-dori street to the Akasaka Palace. “We sought a route that allowed for easy accommodation of the crowd, good views and large spaces, and which would not disrupt other traffic,” said Kazuhiro Sugita, a deputy chief Cabinet secretary who is part of the governmental planning committee for imperial succession rituals. The motorcade will also include Crown Prince Akishino accompanied by his wife Crown Princess Kiko, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga among others. The parade will be preceded on the day by the Sokuirei Seiden no Gi enthronement ceremony to proclaim the imperial succession at home and abroad, which is expected to be attended by foreign dignitaries and envoys

parade
emperor naruhito
empress masako
sokuirei seiden no gi


347 pass Japan's foreign worker exam for jobs in the food service industry

Abstract: Nearly 350 of the first group of non-Japanese nationals applying for newly created visas to work in Japan’s food service industry have passed a qualifying exam, the implementing body has said. The Organization for Technical Skill Assessment of Foreign Workers in Food Industry said Tuesday that 347, or 75.4 percent, of 460 examinees cleared the language and skills tests held in Tokyo and Osaka last month. The successful candidates are expected to start working possibly from July, according to the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry, which oversees the food service industry. That sector, which includes restaurants and catering, is among 14 designated as in scope for foreign nationals working under a residence status called Specified Skilled Worker No. 1, which grants a stay of up to five years. The new visa status was introduced on April 1 to cope with the chronic labor shortage arising from the country’s rapidly graying and shrinking population, marking a major policy shift from its traditionally strict immigration rules. Over the next five years, the government expects up to about 345,000 non-Japanese to acquire the new visa status to work in those 14 labor-hungry sectors, which include accommodation, nursing care, construction and farming. Of the 347 successful applicants, 203 were Vietnamese, 37 Chinese and 30 Nepalese, the organization said. The second round of exams for food service workers is scheduled for late next month, with exams to be held in seven cities across the nation and plans to accept up to 2,000 applicants. The government expects up to 53,000 non-Japanese with the new residence status to work in the food service industry over the next five years. Around 140,000 non-Japanese are currently engaged in food service work, according to the ministry. Proficient workers in the construction and shipbuilding fields can further extend their stay by securing a second, “No. 2” new visa status, which allows holders to bring family members into the country and has no limit on the number of times the visa can be renewed.


Empress Masako conducts first official duties since emperor's enthronement

Abstract: Empress Masako conducted her first official duties Wednesday in her own capacity since her husband, Emperor Naruhito, ascended to the throne at the beginning of the month. The 55-year-old empress, who has been steadily recovering from an adjustment disorder, appeared at the Japanese Red Cross Society’s annual gathering in Tokyo. She became honorary president of the organization May 1, succeeding Empress Emerita Michiko in the position. The event at the Meiji Jingu hall in Shibuya Ward was also attended by Crown Princess Kiko, honorary vice president of the society, and other members of the imperial family. Last May, Empress Masako, who was then crown princess, attended the Red Cross gathering for the first time in 15 years, in one of the more recent signs of her steady recovery from her stress-linked illness. When the historic imperial succession took place May 1 and Emperor Naruhito succeeding Emperor Emeritus Akihito, who had abdicated the day before, Grand Chamberlain Nobutake Odano said the Imperial Household Agency would carefully consider the health condition of the new empress. After abandoning her career as a diplomat to marry the emperor, she fell ill around December 2003 and was later diagnosed as having an adjustment disorder. The Oxford- and Harvard-educated empress had faced pressures to bear a male who can succeed the Chrysanthemum Throne and continued to face such pressure after giving birth to Princess Aiko in December 2001. Japanese law limits the imperial succession to males. At one point the empress withdrew from all official duties, but has been expanding the scope of her activities in recent years.

royalty
imperial family
red cross
empress masako


Abe urges new South Korean envoy to properly handle wartime labor issue

Abstract: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe asked the new South Korean Ambassador to Japan Nam Gwan-pyo on Tuesday to deal properly with a dispute over compensation for wartime labor, the Japanese Foreign Ministry has said. Relations between the two countries have shown no signs of improving after a series of court rulings in South Korea ordered Japanese companies to compensate for forced labor during Japan’s 1910-1945 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. The 15-minute meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office was closed to the press. Tokyo maintains the court rulings breach a 1965 bilateral accord that it says settled the issue of compensation related to wartime labor “finally and completely.” On Monday, the Foreign Ministry said it had asked for the establishment of an arbitration panel involving members from a third country, as provided for under the accord — a request the South Korean government said it would “carefully review.” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga met separately with Nam on Tuesday. “I explained the Japanese government’s stance on various issues of bilateral concern and expressed hope that Ambassador Nam will work to improve bilateral ties,” the top government spokesman said at a news conference. When asked about the possibility of a summit between Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in on the fringes of the Group of 20 summit in late June in Osaka, Suga said “nothing has been decided.” Nam worked at the South Korean Embassy in Tokyo between 1992 and 1995.

forced labor
wartime labor
ambassadors
nam gwan pyo


Time for a change? Japan wants international media to put family names first

Abstract: Foreign Minister Taro Kono plans to ask overseas media outlets to write the names of Japanese people with the family name first, as is customary in the Japanese language. If realized, the new policy would mark a major shift in the country’s long-running practice for handling Japanese names in foreign languages — which began in the 19th to early 20th centuries amid the growing influence of Western culture. At a news conference Tuesday, Kono said that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s name should be written as “Abe Shinzo,” in line with other Asian leaders such as Chinese President Xi Jinping and South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Now is the right time to make the change, given that the Reiwa Era has just begun and several major events — including next month’s Group of 20 summit and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — are approaching, Kono said. “I plan to ask international media organizations to do this. Domestic media outlets that have English services should consider it, too,” he said, citing a report released in 2000 by the education ministry’s National Language Council that said it was desirable to write Japanese names with the family name first in all instances. At another news conference the same day, education minister Masahiko Shibayama said his ministry will also call on other government bodies to use family names first. Foreign media outlets contacted by The Japan Times Wednesday declined to give any immediate response. But one government official urged caution toward Kono’s policy, citing potential technical problems, while others showed overall support. A senior Japanese official said the government will “cautiously” consider adopting the name order proposed by Kono, citing concerns over possible repercussions including overhauls of computer systems. “This is not an official government policy yet,” the official said of the minister’s suggestion. One senior Foreign Ministry official said he personally wonders if his non-Japanese friends and acquaintances could get confused, because he has always written his given name first and many of those people referred to him using his first name. “It’d be just OK” if the order of the names in English is reversed as Kono has proposed, the official said. Kono, who was educated in the United States and is fluent in English, has raised the issue in the past. In March he said the Foreign Ministry would consider making the switch in official documents, which may include passports.


Flying the friendly skies: Okinawa student reunites with mystery benefactor who loaned him airfare

Abstract: NAHA, OKINAWA PREF. - A high school student in Okinawa Prefecture reunited Tuesday with an unknown benefactor who lent him money when he lost his wallet to buy a ticket for a flight, after he managed to get in touch with him with the help of local newspapers. Soma Sakimoto, a 17-year-old second-year student at Okinawa Technical High School in Naha, met Hiroshi Inoya, a doctor from Saitama Prefecture, at the school and returned the ¥60,000 he had borrowed. Sakimoto also presented Inoya, 68, with a handmade paperweight engraved with their names as well as kanji characters meaning “Thank you.” On April 24, Sakimoto was on his way to his hometown on Yonaguni Island in Okinawa to attend his uncle’s funeral. When he arrived at Naha Airport Station, the last station on the monorail line, he noticed that he had lost his wallet. Inoya approached the student and asked what was wrong. Sakimoto explained, and Inoya handed him ¥60,000 just moments before the train’s doors closed. Because of his kind act, the student was able to catch his flight. Although Sakimoto had accepted the money, he forgot to ask for Inoya’s name or contact details — which would have allowed him to repay the debt. Later, after seeking advice from his teacher, Sakimoto told local newspapers about his experience and the newspapers published a story on him. One of Inoya’s colleagues saw the article when it was released online on May 10 and told the doctor who then phoned the school, which led to the pair’s reunion. Inoya, a Naha native who now lives in the town of Miyoshi in Saitama Prefecture, received the gift from Sakimoto with delight. He gave the student a new wallet as a gift and told him “not to lose it again.” Sakimoto’s original wallet was found at the station where he boarded the train. When he retrieved it, all the cash was still inside. “I will not forget these feelings of gratitude, and I want to become the kind of person who will lend a hand to people in need of help,” Sakimoto said.


Yamanashi governor looks to draw up Mount Fuji railway plan in two years

Abstract: KOFU, YAMANASHI PREF. - The governor of Yamanashi Prefecture said Wednesday he will have a railway plan drawn up within two years to connect the bottom and the fifth station of Mount Fuji, the nation’s highest mountain. Gov. Kotaro Nagasaki, who was elected in January, said he will set up a panel of experts, possibly in late June, to study the details of the plan including the route and its impact on the economy and environment. Railway plans for the 3,776-meter volcanic mountain have been discussed in the past but never materialized, partly due to concerns about the potential impact on the environment caused by construction. At present, visitors can only get to the fifth station by bus or car. “I pledged to build a railway on Mount Fuji during the election campaign (in January) and the idea won wide public support,” Nagasaki said after a meeting on the plan was held in Tokyo. “I will do my best to carry out my promise.” In the meeting attended by Masanori Aoyagi, former head of the Cultural Affairs Agency, Toshitsugu Fujii, volcanologist and professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo, and others, many participants supported the idea saying it would be convenient to use the train to evacuate many people in case of a volcanic eruption. Nagasaki had said in his election pledge the railway project would help conserve the environment and increase the number of tourists during the winter season. In 2013, Mount Fuji was designated as a World Cultural Heritage site by UNESCO as an “object of pilgrimages” that has “inspired artists and poets.”

mount fuji
tourism
railways
yamamashi prefecture


At Tokyo summit, mayors from world cities urge Abe to lead G20 debate on climate and other global issues

Abstract: Mayors of major world cities gathered in Tokyo on Wednesday asked Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to lead debate on pressing global issues such as climate change at the Group of 20 summit next month in Osaka. The local government leaders from the “Urban 20,” or U20, group released a joint statement at the end of their meeting, setting various goals such as a commitment toward “decarbonization by 2050 at the latest.” “We are aiming to cut greenhouse gas emissions to effectively zero by 2050 and cut plastic waste,” Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike said when she handed the communique to Abe at his office along with other participants of the two-day meeting, including the mayors of Berlin, Helsinki and Rome. “We hope that the G20 leaders will listen to our proposals,” Koike said. Abe responded, “Climate change and marine plastic are among the global issues that the G20 will discuss along with free trade and rules for the digital economy.” The leaders of the G20 major economies will gather in Osaka on June 28 and 29. In the statement, the mayors urged the G20 leaders to set targets and develop pathways toward “decarbonizing the energy grid, with 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030, and 100 percent renewable energy by 2050.” Climate change is “the most pressing challenge of the 21st century,” they said, adding that their cities are committed to the 2015 Paris climate accord. The accord aims to keep the average increase in global temperatures to well below 2 degrees Celsius, and ideally 1.5 C, from preindustrial levels to mitigate impacts of climate change including droughts, floods and rising sea levels. President Donald Trump has decided to pull the United States out of the accord, making climate change one of the contentious agenda items at the G20. To prepare for climate-related hazards and natural disasters, the mayors also called for the construction of resilient infrastructure.

tokyo
climate change
yuriko koike
urban 20


Best-selling writer Tamotsu Sugano referred to prosecutors over allegation of attempted sexual assault

Abstract: Best-selling nonfiction writer Tamotsu Sugano was referred to prosecutors earlier this month after allegations he attempted to sexually assault a woman in 2012, police said Wednesday. According to investigative papers sent to prosecutors on May 14, Sugano is suspected of having pushed the woman onto a bed and tried to kiss her at an apartment in Tokyo on July 9, 2012. The police said he has basically admitted to the allegations. The woman in her 40s filed a damages suit claiming he had sexually assaulted her, and the Tokyo District Court ordered Sugano to pay her ¥1.1 million in August 2017. The writer appealed the ruling, but the Tokyo High Court dismissed the appeal in February 2018. Sugano, 44, is the author of the best-seller “Nippon Kaigi no Kenkyu” (“A Study on the Japan Conference”) published in 2016, which sheds light on the conservative lobby group and its influence on the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

lawsuit
nippon kaigi
police
tamotsu sugano


Death sentence confirmed after killer of two Osaka junior high school students drops appeal

Abstract: OSAKA - A death sentence for a man convicted of murdering two junior high school students in Osaka has been finalized after he dropped an appeal, it was learned Tuesday. According to the Osaka High Court, the appeal against the Osaka District Court ruling of December last year was withdrawn Saturday. In a lay judge trial, the district court sentenced Koji Yamada, 49, to death, ruling that he strangled Ryoto Hoshino, 12, and Natsumi Hirata, 13, who were both students at a junior high school in Neyagawa, Osaka Prefecture. “The criminal responsibility is extremely grave. The choice of the ultimate penalty is unavoidable,” the court said. The defense team claimed that Hoshino died due to health problems. Regarding the death of Hirata, the team said that the girl stopped moving after Yamada’s hands, which he had put on her mouth, moved to her neck when the girl shouted. According to the ruling, Yamada strangled Hirata in or near Osaka on Aug. 13, 2015. Hoshino was also strangled the same day. On Tuesday, an attorney for Hoshino’s family said that the dropped appeal won’t bring the boy back. “His family is living in unimaginable grief,” the lawyer said.

murder
osaka
courts
death penalty
natsumi hirata
ryoto hoshino
koji yamada


Man nabbed for pointing laser at U.S. military plane in Tokyo suburb

Abstract: Police said Wednesday they have arrested a man on suspicion of aiming a laser pointer at a U.S. military aircraft flying in the vicinity of Yokota Air Base in the suburbs of Tokyo. Yoshinori Shigekawa, 60, was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly forcing U.S. military personnel to suspend a training exercise after he directed green laser beams at an airborne C-130J transport plane around 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 11, the police said. Shigekawa, who lives in Akiruno near the base, targeted the aircraft from the parking area of a nearby commercial facility, they said. He has admitted to the allegation and said he had used lasers against U.S. military and other aircraft for three years, according to the police. The U.S. military has suffered about 40 such cases around the base since March last year. The police suspect Shigekawa of involvement in at least a dozen of these cases, based on their analysis of surveillance camera footage. They have found five laser pointers at Shigekawa’s home. Directing laser beams at the eyes can result in temporary blindness, the police said.


Chinese trainee on Japan's technical intern program gets suspended prison term for abandoning baby

Abstract: KAWASAKI - A 22-year-old Chinese trainee on the government-sponsored technical intern program was given a suspended prison term Wednesday for abandoning her newborn son last December for fear of being sent back home. Zhan Meijuan was sentenced to one year and six months in prison, suspended for four years, for leaving the infant wrapped in a blanket at a private residence in the neighborhood after giving birth at her home in Kawasaki, according to the ruling by the Kawasaki Branch of the Yokohama District Court. The baby was taken into protective custody and is being raised at a home for infants, a group supporting Zhan said. “Considering that the temperature was about 13 degrees Celsius, her act would have had a serious effect on the baby boy who had just been born,” presiding Judge Kenichi Emi said when handing down the ruling. The defendant “disregarded his safety and physical health for economic reasons.” But the judge also said that Zhan “has admitted to the act and is reflecting on it.” Zhan had secured work as an intern in Japan in March last year but found out in August at a hospital in China that she was five months pregnant. As the money her parents had spent for her travel could not be refunded, she came to Japan and hid her pregnancy. She worked at a food processing plant while keeping her pregnancy secret, and had the baby at home. “I was told in China that I would be deported if I was found to be pregnant,” said Zhan during a court hearing. “I wanted to support my family (by working in Japan).” Japan’s technical training program, introduced in 1993 to transfer skills to developing countries, has faced criticism at home and abroad over claims it has been used as a cover for companies to import cheap labor. In March, the Japanese government warned companies against dismissing foreign trainees who get pregnant while working in the country, with some women having been compelled to consider an abortion or to return home.

kawasaki
expats
foreign trainees
foreign workers
chinese community


Chinese court sentences Japanese man to 6 years in prison for spying

Abstract: BEIJING - A court in Beijing on Tuesday sentenced a Japanese man convicted of spying to six years in prison, according to sources familiar with Sino-Japanese relations. The court also ordered Hideji Suzuki, the head of a Japan-China youth exchange association, to pay a fine of 50,000 Chinese yuan (approximately ¥800,000). Detained in July 2016 while visiting Beijing to make arrangements for a symposium, he was formally arrested in February 2017 and indicted in June that same year. Suzuki has an extensive history of visiting China, where he engaged in activities such as afforestation. He also interacted actively with Communist Party officials in international exchanges, and had been commended for his efforts to promote Sino-Japanese friendship. Since 2015 at least nine Japanese have been indicted in China for alleged involvement in spying activities, and this marks the eighth time court’s have rendered verdicts in such cases. The remaining case involves a male employee of major Japanese trading house Itochu Corp. who was detained during a visit to Guangzhou in February 2018 on suspicion of harming national security. On Monday, a court in the southern province of Hainan sentenced a Japanese man to 15 years in prison for illegally obtaining state secrets, analyzing them and disseminating them abroad. His Japanese colleague was sentenced last Friday by a court in Shandong Province to a prison term of five years and six months. The two were among six Japanese who were detained in 2017 while conducting geological assessments of potential hot spring development sites in Hainan and Shandong. The others were allowed to return to Japan. The detentions of Japanese nationals come as Chinese leadership under President Xi Jinping has stepped up monitoring of foreign groups and individuals working inside China.


Japan to promote tax hike preparations by small businesses

Abstract: The industry ministry will hold meetings in major cities in June to encourage small businesses to speed up their preparations for the October consumption tax hike, it has been learned. The first gathering will take place in Tokyo on June 4. Participants are expected to include industry minister Hiroshige Seko and Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Akio Mimura, informed sources said. At the planned meetings, leading figures in the public and private sectors will directly urge small-business owners to introduce cash registers capable of handling multiple consumption tax rates and cashless payment systems to allow their customers to receive government-funded rebates on their purchases. Japan is scheduled to raise the tax rate to 10 percent from the current 8 percent for goods and services in October. Food and some other items are exceptions, with their rate to be kept at 8 percent. Small businesses are lagging in preparations for the tax hike partly due to speculation that the increase may be delayed once again. Some analysts are speculating Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may call a double election in both parliamentary chambers in order to give the voters a chance to weigh in. After the first event in Tokyo, meetings will be held by the end of June in seven other cities: Hiroshima, Osaka, Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, Sendai and Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture. The ministry will brief small businesses on a program to grant reward points worth up to 5 percent of the purchases to consumers who make cashless payments, as well as on subsidies to those who replace or update their registers. The number of businesses that need to replace or update registers is estimated at some 300,000 across Japan. Of them, only around 100,000 had finished such preparations by late April. “The tax hike is stipulated in the law, so there is no change in the plan to raise the tax,” a senior ministry official said.


China accuses U.S. officials of misleading public on trade war

Abstract: BEIJING - China on Friday accused U.S. officials of lying to the public about their trade war, as rising tensions between the world’s two largest economies kept financial markets in a state of unease. Talks to end the trade dispute collapsed earlier this month, with the two sides in a stalemate over U.S. demands that China change its policies to address a number of key U.S. grievances, including theft of intellectual property and subsidies for state enterprises. Washington has slapped higher tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods, prompting Beijing to retaliate, and effectively banned U.S. firms from doing business with Huawei Technologies Co., the world’s largest telecom network gear maker. “Domestically in the United States there are more and more doubts about the trade war the U.S. side has provoked with China, the market turmoil caused by the technology war and blocked industrial cooperation,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said. U.S. officials “fabricate lies to try to mislead the American people, and now they are trying to incite ideological opposition,” he said, when asked about U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s recent criticism of Huawei. In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, Pompeo said Huawei was connected to the Chinese government, dismissing Huawei chief executive Ren Zhengfei’s assertions that his company would never share user secrets. “The company is deeply tied not only to China but to the Chinese Communist Party. And that connectivity, the existence of those connections puts American information that crosses those networks at risk,” Pompeo said. Huawei has repeatedly denied it is controlled by the Chinese government, military or intelligence services. Pompeo said he believed more American companies would cut ties with the tech giant, while the United States has been rallying its allies to persuade them not to use Huawei for their 5G networks. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that U.S. complaints against Huawei might be resolved within the framework of a U.S.-China trade deal, while at the same time calling the Chinese company “very dangerous.” Lu said he did not know what Trump was talking about. “Frankly, I’m actually not sure what the specific meaning of the U.S. leader, the U.S. side, saying this is,” he said. World equity markets rebounded on Friday from heavy selling in the previous day’s session. The U.S. dollar was trading lower against a basket of currencies and prices of safe-haven U.S. government debt fell. With no further talks between Washington and Beijing scheduled, investors are nervously eyeing the prospect of an escalation in the tit-for-tat tariffs the two countries have slapped on each other’s products. The seeds of the current impasse were sowed when Chinese officials sought major changes to the draft text of a deal that the Trump administration says had been largely agreed. Trump, who has embraced protectionism as part of an “America First” agenda, has threatened to slap tariffs of up to 25 percent on an additional list of Chinese imports worth about $300 billion. Meanwhile, China’s move to impose higher tariffs on a revised $60 billion list of U.S. goods is set to go into effect on June 1. Financial markets fear the trade war could badly damage global supply lines and prompt a further slowdown of the world economy. Economists say the tariffs will curb growth in the United States and China, two of the more solid economies. China can maintain healthy, sustainable economic growth even as it suffers some impact from the trade friction, a senior official from China’s state planner told state television on Friday. “China’s healthy, steady and sustainable growth can be maintained in the medium- and long-term,” said Ning Jizhe, vice chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission. The Trump administration says it is monitoring any possible impact of tariffs on U.S. consumers. It also announced this week a new aid package of about $15 billion to help U.S. farmers, exceeding the up to $12 billion that was rolled out last year. American farmers, a key Trump constituency, have been among the hardest hit in the trade war. Soybeans are the most valuable U.S. farm export, and shipments to China dropped to a 16-year low in 2018.


Abe's tax hike plan faces uncertainty as economy sputters, experts say

Abstract: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has reaffirmed his plan to raise the consumption tax in October, but there is growing speculation that he could be forced to postpone the hike to safeguard growth amid a sputtering economy. Abe told the Diet on Friday that he would raise the tax as scheduled “unless there is an event on a scale similar to the Lehman shock,” a reference to one of the triggers of the 2008 global financial crisis. The government, meanwhile, stressed that the world’s third-largest economy is “recovering,” defying market expectations that it would stop using the word in its latest monthly report amid weaker production and exports due to China’s economic slowdown amid its ongoing trade war with the United States. However, an increasing number of economists suspect that the latest growth phase, touted by the government as being the longest since the end of World War II, has ended, and that raising the tax — from 8 percent to 10 percent — would thrust the economy into recession by hurting household and business spending. “There is no doubt that the Japanese economy has been in stagnation,” said Yoshiki Shinke, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute, adding that the outlook has become uncertain mainly due to weak exports to China. The conflict between the United States and China, both major trading partners of Japan, is a source of serious concern for the country’s business leaders. Shigenobu Nagamori, chairman of Nidec Corp., said earlier this year that the maker of electric motors saw “extraordinary” slides in demand and sales in China late last year. Kuniharu Nakamura, head of major trading house Sumitomo Corp., said this month that the trade row had affected supply chains, and could eventually hurt Japan. “Since many countries are integrated into supply chains, (the U.S.-China trade war) will gradually have a negative impact” on the global economy, he said. The combined net profit of companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s first section fell 7.3 percent in fiscal 2018 from a year earlier to ¥33.5 trillion ($306 billion), marking the first decline in three years, on a downturn in China, according to data compiled by SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. In addition, deepening uncertainty over the U.K.’s plan to bolt from the European Union has also added to woes for Japanese firms and made them reluctant to make fresh investments. Capital expenditure turned downward and slipped 0.3 percent in the three months through March, according to gross domestic product data released earlier in the week by the government, which showed the economy staging stronger-than-expected growth for technical reasons. A number of firms said they have yet to sufficiently reflect the global economic environment in their earnings forecasts. The consumption tax was raised to the current 8 percent from 5 percent in April 2014 in the first stage of the planned two-stage hike, and the move was widely seen as having nipped the country’s economic recovery in the bud. Abe has already postponed the second hike twice to ensure the economy would continue to expand. However, economic conditions are worsening compared with the situations that preceded Abe’s two postponement decisions, said Takahide Kiuchi, executive economist at the Nomura Research Institute. The economy is expected to remain on pins and needles as the country waits to find out if it is truly in a recession, and as Abe looks to adopt a wait-and-see approach to whether the U.S. turns up the heat even further on China in their tit-for-tat tariff battle. “The fourth round of additional tariffs (by the United States) will likely become a watershed” moment for Abe to determine whether to raise the tax, said Shunsuke Kobayashi of the Daiwa Institute of Research, referring to fresh levies U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to impose on Chinese imports, possibly in late June.

shinzo abe
japanese economy
consumption tax
trade war


Trump knocks trade advantage while urging Japanese business leaders to increase investments in U.S.

Abstract: U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday urged Japanese business leaders to increase their investment in the United States while saying Japan has a substantial edge on trade that negotiators are trying to even out. Trump arrived in Japan on Saturday for a largely ceremonial visit meant to showcase strong ties with Tokyo even as trade tensions loom. He told the group of top business executives there has never been a better time to invest in the United States. He said he hopes to address the trade imbalance between the United States and Japan and ensure fairness and reciprocity. “Japan has had a substantial edge for many, many years, but that’s OK, maybe that’s why you like us so much,” he said. Trump and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe share a warm relationship, which the Japanese leader aims to emphasize as Washington considers tariffs on Japanese auto exports that the Trump administration views as a potential national security threat. The United States is in the middle of an expensive trade war with China in protest against Beijing’s treatment of U.S. companies, and tensions with Japan and the European Union over trade are simmering. He made clear during an impromptu news conference Thursday that he was flattered by the invitation. “Prime Minister Abe said to me, very specifically, ‘You are the guest of honor.’ There’s only one guest of honor . . . I’m the guest of honor at the biggest event that they’ve had in over 200 years,” Trump said. “So it’s a great thing. And we get along very well with Japan. I get along very well with the prime minister.”

shinzo abe
tariffs
u.s.-japan relations
donald trump
trade war


Central Japan Railway's test shinkansen hits 360 kph

Abstract: A prototype shinkansen of Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai) reached the highest speed ever for the model hitting 360 kilometers per hour, the operator said Saturday, hoping to promote it in overseas markets such as the United States and Taiwan. It was the fastest speed for the N700S train, which is scheduled to commence commercial service in July on the Tokaido Shinkansen line linking Tokyo to Osaka, the company said. Among other railway operators, East Japan Railway Co. also plans a commercial bullet train service with a maximum speed of 360 kph by the spring of 2031. The test was conducted Friday night on a track between the western cities of Maibara and Kyoto, JR Tokai said. The N700S’s maximum speed in commercial operation in Japan will be 285 kph, the same as currently operating models, according to the railway firm.

shinkansen
jr tokai
railways
bullet trains