DRULAP

New Delhi      — In Sri Lanka, Marxist-leaning lawmaker, Anura Kumar Dissanayake, has won the presidential election on promises of helping the poor and stamping out corruption in a country where an economic meltdown two years ago led to a resounding cry for systemic change.   

It represents a major shift in the politics of the South Asian country, which rejected mainstream political parties that have governed the country for decades. Dissanayake, 55, known for his pro-working class stance, heads a left-leaning coalition, the National People’s Power.   

His own party, the JVP, which was once a fringe, radical group, holds only three seats in the 225-member parliament and has not been part of the political mainstream.      

Political analysts say widespread disillusionment with established political parties catapulted Dissanayake to the top post.   

“This victory belongs to all of us” Dissanayake wrote in a post on X. “We stand ready to rewrite Sri Lankan history.”   

“We believe that we can turn this country around, we can build a stable government,” Dissanayake told reporters. “For me this is not a position, it is a responsibility.”   

He emerged the winner following a historic second round of counting after none of the three leading candidates secured the 50% plus one vote required to secure an outright victory in the initial count. He had secured 42% of the votes cast in the first count.   

Dissanayake’s alliance is made up of different groups that include political parties, youth, civil society and women’s groups and trade unions. It is centered on the working class.    

“We have rejected the old-school parties. I am overjoyed, this is what we need.” said tour guide Hasitha Vishwa. “For us, the younger generation, Dissanayake is a symbol of non-corruption. Previous politicians were too corrupt.”  

The coming months could see a dramatic change in Sri Lanka’s political landscape. Dissanayake has promised to dissolve parliament after taking power to seek a fresh mandate for his policies in general elections. It is the first time that a country that has adopted free-market policies for over five decades, will have a government with a left-leaning ideology.   

Popularly known as AKD, the firebrand politician, presented himself as the candidate who will clean up the country’s politics — the demand made by tens of thousands of protestors two years ago when they stormed the presidential palace and ousted former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Protestors had blamed entrenched corruption and mismanagement for the country’s economic collapse.   

Incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe was praised for stabilizing the economy and bringing it back from the brink of bankruptcy, but was blamed by many for failing to address concerns about corruption and protecting the country’s Rajapaksa political dynasty.  He was eliminated from the second count after winning only 17% of the vote. Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa won 32% of the vote.   

“History will judge my efforts, but I can confidently say that I did my best to stabilize the country during one of its darkest periods,” Wickremesinghe said in a statement.   

Political analysts said that while the demand for change has swept Dissanayake to victory, a country whose economic future is at stake, is entering uncharted territory.   

“He is basically untested. He is a new kid on the block,” according to Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, Executive Director at the Center for Policy Alternatives. “We don’t know what his team is and whether they will have the expertise and experience to deal with the challenges that confront the country.”   

Dissanayake now faces the daunting task of delivering on the primary concern for many voters — easing the hardship that millions grapple with due to spiraling costs of living. 

Tough economic reforms imposed after the country secured a $2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund to rescue its economy from bankruptcy have led to higher prices of essentials like food and fuel. Many in the country were pushed into poverty or saw their living standards plummet.     

“Yes, he has promised to ease the burden on people due to austerity measures, but the key question is where will the money come from,” questioned analyst Paikiasothy.    

Dissanayake has said he will adhere to the $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund bailout package and repayment of the country’s debt, which is critical to build on the fragile economic recovery that took place in the last two years.   

But he has pledged to renegotiate the terms of the IMF deal to make austerity measures more bearable by lowering taxes.     

“It will be a sea change for Sri Lanka. A lot of people are excited about the prospect and a lot of people are worried about that prospect,” said Alan Keenan, Senior Consultant, Sri Lanka, at the International Crisis Group.   

Dissanayake will take the oath of office on Monday. About 17% of the country 17.1 million voters cast ballots in the election. 
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Islamabad — A roadside bomb detonated near a convoy of foreign diplomats visiting Pakistan’s scenic Swat district Sunday, killing at least one police officer and injuring several others.

Police officials in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where the district is located, confirmed the casualties, saying the victims were part of the squad leading the convoy of about a dozen countries. They noted that all the foreign dignitaries were unharmed.

The foreigners were mostly ambassadors from Russia, Portugal, Iran, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Turkmenistan, Vietnam, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“All the ambassadors remained safe in the attack and had been shifted to a safe place before their departure to Islamabad,” said Mohammad Ali Gandapur, a senior provincial police officer.

In a late evening statement, the Pakistani Foreign Ministry reported that “the group of diplomats has returned safely to Islamabad.”

Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office stated that he condemned the attack as a “cowardly terrorist” act.

Russian Ambassador Albert Khorev’s office in Islamabad confirmed his presence in the convoy, along with several other ambassadors, saying they took part in a tourism summit in Swat.

“On the way to the hotel from the town of Mingora in Khyber-Pakhtunkwa, an escort vehicle hit a mine. Several policemen were injured, [but] diplomats were not harmed,” the Russian embassy wrote on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

No group claimed responsibility for Sunday’s rare attack in Swat, a former stronghold of the Terik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, an Islamist insurgent militant group waging deadly attacks against military and police forces in the province and elsewhere in the country.

Pakistani Nobel Peace laureate Malala Yousafzai, a resident of Swat, was shot and seriously wounded by TTP militants in 2012, apparently in retaliation for her campaign to promote girls’ education in the largely conservative district. Malala was swiftly airlifted to Britain for treatment.

TTP’s intensified attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which borders Afghanistan, have killed more than 100 police and an equal number of civilians since the start of the year.

Pakistan alleges that the extremist group is orchestrating the violence from Afghan sanctuaries and is being facilitated by Taliban rulers of the neighboring country.

The Taliban government in Kabul, which is officially not recognized by any country, rejects the allegations, saying no foreign group, including TTP, is being allowed to use Afghan soil against other countries.
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COLOMBO, SRI LANKA — Marxist-leaning Anura Kumara Dissanayake and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa headed to a run-off for Sri Lanka’s presidency on Sunday, the election body said, with a second round of counting to determine the winner using preferential votes.

It is the first time in Sri Lanka’s history that the presidential race is to be decided by a second round of counting after the top two candidates failed to win the mandatory 50% of votes to be declared winner.

All remaining candidates, including incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe, have been disqualified, the Election Commission told reporters. Dissanayake polled 39.5% of the counted ballots with Premadasa finishing second at 34%.

Wickremesinghe, who led the heavily indebted nation’s fragile economic recovery from a debilitating crisis in 2022, trailed in third with 17%.

This is Sri Lanka’s first election since the Indian Ocean nation’s economy buckled in 2022 under a severe foreign exchange shortage, leaving it unable to pay for imports of essentials including fuel, medicine and cooking gas. Protests forced then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee and later resign.

“The election result clearly shows the uprising that we witnessed in 2022 is not over,” said Pradeep Peiris, a political scientist at University of Colombo.

“People have voted in line with those aspirations to have different political practices and political institutions. AKD (as Dissanayake is known) reflects these aspirations and people have rallied around him.”

Dissanayake, 55, presented himself as the candidate of change for those reeling under austerity measures linked to a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund bailout, promising to dissolve parliament within 45 days of taking office for a fresh mandate for his policies in general elections.

He has worried investors with a manifesto pledging to slash taxes in the island nation, which could impact IMF fiscal targets, and a $25 billion debt rework. But during the campaign, he took a more conciliatory approach, saying any changes would be undertaken in consultation with the IMF and that he was committed to ensuring repayment of debt.

Premadasa also pledged to renegotiate the contours of the IMF deal.

Grinding poverty for millions

Buttressed by the IMF deal, Sri Lanka’s economy has posted a tentative recovery. It is expected to grow this year for the first time in three years and inflation has collapsed to 0.5% from a crisis peak of 70%.

But the continued high cost of living was a critical issue for many voters, and millions remain mired in poverty, with many pinning hopes of a better future on the next leader.

Voting was peaceful, although police declared a curfew across the island nation until noon (0630 GMT) as a precaution while vote counting continued.

About 75% of the 17 million eligible voters cast their ballots, according to the commission.

Dissanayake, known for stirring speeches, ran as a candidate for the National People’s Power alliance, which includes his Marxist-leaning Janatha Vimukthi Peremuna party. Traditionally, Dissanayake’s party has backed stronger state intervention, lower taxes and more closed market economic policies.

Although JVP has just three seats in parliament, Dissanayake was boosted by his promises of tough anti-corruption measures and more pro-poor policies. He drew big crowds at rallies, calling on Sri Lankans to leave behind the suffering of the crisis.

Premadasa, 57, entered politics after his father, President Ranasinghe Premadasa, was killed in a suicide bombing in 1993. The younger Premadasa polled 42% of the votes in 2019 to finish second, behind Rajapaksa, in the last presidential election.

Premadasa’s center-left party has promised tax changes to reduce living costs. Support from farming communities in north and central Sri Lanka helped him close the gap on Dissanayake as counting progressed.

The winner will have to ensure Sri Lanka sticks with the IMF program until 2027 to get its economy on a stable growth path, reassure markets, repay debt, attract investors and help a quarter of its people climb out of poverty.
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SANBAGAWA, Japan — Benmou Suzuki’s dilapidated 420-year-old temple, located deep in the forest near a tiny Japanese mountain village, hardly looks like prized real estate.

Yet the monk was recently approached by two men, who said they were real estate brokers and wanted to know if he was interested in selling.

He suspects they weren’t really interested in the ornate building at the trailhead of a sacred mountain, but the special tax status that comes with running a religious property.

“There are people out there who want a temple, even a mountain temple like this. In fact, considering the value of the religious corporation status, this temple could fetch quite a lot of money,” said 52-year-old Suzuki.

As Japan’s population falls and interest in religion declines, there are fewer people to contribute to the upkeep of the country’s numerous temples and shrines. Suzuki’s Mikaboyama temple, for example, is located in Sanbagawa — an area a three-hour drive from Tokyo with only 500 residents and which also has three other Buddhist temples, one Shinto shrine and a church.

A surge in religious properties coming up for sale has Japanese authorities worried that prospective buyers are not interested in them for heavenly purposes. Rather they fear many are out to dodge taxes or possibly even launder money.

“It’s already a sense of crisis for us and the religious community,” said an official at Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs, which oversees religious sites.

Cases of temple or shrine properties being extensively repurposed have triggered public outrage. In Osaka, a temple sold in 2020 was later razed and dozens of graves were relocated to make way for a property development. In Kyoto, a case about a temple that was demolished and turned into a parking lot made headlines this year.

Owning a temple, shrine or church recognized as a religious corporation in Japan can confer sizeable tax benefits. Businesses under such corporations that offer religious services such as funerals do not have to pay taxes while other non-religious businesses also enjoy preferential tax rates. A wide range of undertakings are allowed from restaurants to hair salons to hotels.

Japan had about 180,000 religious sites with corporation status as end-2023, according to the agency’s data. The number of so-called inactive corporations — such as those with no religious events for more than a year — jumped by a third to more than 4,400.

When monks or priests die without a successor, the overseeing religious group will usually appoint someone to take over or voluntarily relinquish the site’s corporation status.

However, there are around 7,000 religious sites that operate independently of these groups and are considered easy to acquire, according to the agency and specialist brokers.

The cultural affairs agency said it has stepped up efforts to dissolve the corporation status of inactive religious sites to stop them from being targeted by dubious buyers.

And when big earthquakes hit, often damaging temples and shrines, agency officials visit religious groups in those areas, warning them about falling prey to such buyers.

Last year, 17 religious corporations were voluntarily dissolved and six were ordered to dissolve. The agency said the number would increase this year and next year as it ratchets up scrutiny.

It might seem easier for Japan to change its laws to more strictly control the criteria for purchasing religious sites. But the agency said the government is wary about amending laws related to religion as that could be seen as impinging on religious freedom which is guaranteed by Japan’s constitution.

Reuters checks of six websites specializing in brokering the sale of religious properties showed hundreds on the market. Most are only obliquely described online with brokers saying sellers prefer to conduct sales as privately as possible.

Osaka-based broker Takao Yamamoto told Reuters interest is surging. A religious corporation license alone can fetch 30 million yen ($210,000), he adds. Some religious sites, especially those with profitable graveyards, are advertised for millions of dollars.

“Anyone can buy independent sites as long as you have money…even foreigners can buy them. Recently, a lot of Chinese people are trying to buy them,” Yamamoto said.

For his part, Suzuki says he has no intention to sell Mikaboyama temple and is working on ideas to raise funds to maintain it. “Temples are places for local people to gather and forge connections. We just can’t get rid of them,” he said. 
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KAWARAMACHI, Japan — Time seems to stop here. 

Women sit in a small circle, quietly, painstakingly stitching patterns on balls the size of an orange, a stitch at a time. 

At the center of the circle is Eiko Araki, a master of the Sanuki Kagari Temari, a Japanese traditional craft passed down for more than 1,000 years on the southwestern island of Shikoku. 

Each ball — known as a “temari” ball — is a work of art, with colorful geometric patterns carrying poetic names like “firefly flowers” and “layered stars.” A temari ball takes weeks or months to finish. Some cost hundreds of dollars (tens of thousands of yen), although others are much cheaper. 

These kaleidoscopic balls aren’t for throwing or kicking around. They’re destined to be heirlooms, carrying prayers for health and goodness. They might be treasured like a painting or piece of sculpture in a Western home. 

The concept behind temari is an elegant otherworldliness, an impractical beauty that is also very labor-intensive to create. 

“Out of nothing, something this beautiful is born, bringing joy,” said Araki. “I want it to be remembered there are beautiful things in this world that can only be made by hand.” 

Natural materials 

The region where temari originated was good for growing cotton, warm with little rainfall, and the spherical creations continue to be made out of the humble material. 

At Araki’s studio, which also serves as head office for temari’s preservation society, there are 140 hues of cotton thread, including delicate pinks and blues, as well as more vivid colors and all the subtle gradations in between. 

The women dye them by hand, using plants, flowers and other natural ingredients, including cochineal, which is a bug living in cacti that produces a red dye. The deeper shade of indigo is dyed again and again to turn just about black. Yellow and blue are combined to form gorgeous greens. Soy juice is added to deepen the tints, a dash of organic protein. 

Outside the studio, loops of cotton thread, in various tones of yellow today, hang outside in the shade to dry. 

Creating and embroidering the balls 

The arduous process starts with making the basic ball mold on which the stitching is done. Rice husks that are cooked then dried are placed in a piece of cotton, then wound with thread, over and over, until, almost magically, a ball appears in your hands. 

Then the stitching begins. 

The balls are surprisingly hard, so each stitch requires a concentrated, almost painful, push. The motifs must be precise and even. 

Each ball has lines to guide the stitching — one that goes around it like the equator, and others that zigzag to the top and bottom. 

Appealing to a new generation 

These days, temari is getting some new recognition, among Japanese and foreigners as well. Caroline Kennedy took lessons in the ball-making when she was United States ambassador to Japan a decade ago. 

Yoshie Nakamura, who promotes Japanese handcrafted art in her duty-free shop at Tokyo’s Haneda airport, says she features temari there because of its intricate and delicate designs. 

“Temari that might have been everyday in a faraway era is now being used for interior decoration,” she said. 

“I really feel each Sanuki Kagari Temari speaks of a special, one-and-only existence in the world.” 

Araki has come up with newer designs that feel both modern and historical. She is trying to make the balls more accessible to everyday life — for instance, as Christmas tree ornaments. A strap with a dangling miniature ball, though quite hard to make because of its size, is affordable at about 1,500 yen ($10) each. 

Another of Araki’s inventions is a cluster of pastel balls that opens and closes with tiny magnets. Fill it with sweet-smelling herbs for a kind of aromatic diffuser. 

A tradition passed down through generations 

Araki, a graceful woman who talks very slowly, her head cocked to one side as though always in thought, often travels to Tokyo to teach. But mostly she works and gives lessons in her studio, an abandoned kindergarten with faded blue paint and big windows with tired wooden frames. 

She started out as a metalwork artist. Her husband’s parents were temari masters who worked hard to resurrect the artform when it was declining in the modern age, at risk of dying out. 

They were stoic people, rarely bestowing praise and instead always scolding her, she remembers. It’s a tough-love approach that’s common in the handing down of many Japanese traditional arts, from Kabuki acting to hogaku music, that demand lifetimes of selfless devotion. 

Today, only several dozen people, all women, can make the temari balls to traditional standards. 

“The most challenging aspect is nurturing successors. It typically takes over 10 years to train them, so you need people who are willing to continue the craft for a very long time,” Araki said. 

“When people start to feel joy along with the hardship that comes with making temari, they tend to keep going.” 
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TOKYO — Rescue workers searched for at least six people missing Sunday after heavy rain pounded Japan’s northcentral region of Noto, triggering landslides and floods and leaving one person dead in a region still recovering from a deadly January 1 earthquake.

The Japan Meteorological Agency on Saturday issued the highest alert level for heavy rain across several cities in the Ishikawa prefecture, including hard-hit cities Suzu and Wajima on the northern coast of the Noto peninsula.

The agency has since downgraded the heavy rain alert and kept landslide and flooding warnings in place.

In Suzu, one person died and another was missing after being swept in floodwaters. Another went missing in the nearby town of Noto, according to the prefecture.

In Wajima, rescue workers were searching for four people missing following a landslide at a construction site. They were among 60 construction workers repairing a tunnel damaged by January’s quake.

The FDMA said another person was missing due to floods at a different location in the city.

NHK footage at a coastal area of Wajima showed a wooden house torn and tilted after it was apparently hit by a landslide. No injuries were reported from the site.

In Noto town, two people were seriously injured by a landslide while visiting their quake-damaged home.

At least 16 rivers in Ishikawa breached their banks as of Saturday afternoon, according to the Land and Infrastructure Ministry. Residents were urged to use maximum caution against possible mudslides and building damage.

By late afternoon Saturday, about 1,350 residents were taking shelter at designated community centers, school gymnasiums and other town facilities, authorities said.

About 50 centimeters of rain has fallen in the region over the last three days, due to the rainbands that cause torrential rain above the Hokuriku region, JMA said.

“Heavy rain is hitting the region that had been badly damaged by the Noto earthquake, and I believe many people are feeling very uneasy,” said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi.

Hayashi said the government “puts people’s lives first” and its priority was search and rescue operations. He also called on the residents to pay close attention to the latest weather and evacuation advisories and take precautions early, adding that the Self Defense Force troops have been dispatched to Ishikawa to join rescue efforts.

A resident in Wajima told NHK that he has just finished cleaning his house from the quake damage and it was depressing to now see it flooded by muddy water.

A number of roads flooded by muddy water were also blocked. Hokuriku Electric Power Co. said more than 5,000 homes were still without power Sunday. Traffic lights were out in the affected areas. Many homes were also without water supply.

Heavy rain also fell in nearby northern prefectures of Niigata and Yamagata, threatening flooding and other damages and suspending train operations, including the Yamagata Shinkansen bullet trains, officials said.

A 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck the region on January 1, killing more than 370 people and damaging roads and other key infrastructure. Its aftermath still affects the local industry, economy and daily lives.
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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s Marxist-leaning leader, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, grabbed a commanding early lead on Sunday in his bid to become the next president of the debt-ridden country seeking to elect a leader to bolster its fragile economic recovery.

Dissanayake won about 53% of a million votes counted so far in the election, Sri Lanka’s Election Commission data showed. Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa was second at 22%, ahead of President Ranil Wickremesinghe in third place.

About 75% of the eligible 17 million people in the Indian Ocean island nation cast their votes in Saturday’s election, according to the poll body.

Dissanayake contested as candidate for the National People’s Power alliance, which includes his Marxist-leaning Janatha Vimukthi Peremuna party that has traditionally backed stronger state intervention, lower taxes and more closed market economic policies.

Although JVP has just three seats in parliament, the 55-year-old Dissanayake has been boosted by his promises of tough anti-corruption measures and more pro-poor policies.

He presented himself as the candidate of change, promising to dissolve parliament within 45 days of coming to power in order to seek a fresh mandate for his policies in the general elections.

“After a long and arduous campaign, the results of the election are now clear,” Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said on X.

“Though I heavily campaigned for President Ranil Wickremasinghe, the people of Sri Lanka have made their decision, and I fully respect their mandate for Anura Kumara Dissanayake.”

This was Sri Lanka’s first election since the economy buckled in 2022 under a severe foreign exchange shortage, leaving the country unable to pay for imports of essentials including fuel, medicine and cooking gas.

Thousands of protesters marched in Colombo in 2022 and occupied the president’s office and residence, forcing then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee and later resign.

Buttressed by a $2.9 billion bailout program from the International Monetary Fund, the economy has posted a tentative recovery, but the high cost of living was still a critical issue for many voters.

Although inflation cooled to 0.5% last month from a crisis high of 70%, and the economy is forecast to grow in 2024 for the first time in three years, millions remain in poverty, with many pinning hopes of a better future on the next leader.

The winner will have to ensure Sri Lanka sticks with the IMF program until 2027 to get its economy on a stable growth path, reassure markets, repay debt, attract investors and help a quarter of its people climb out of poverty.

In his manifesto, Dissanayake, known for his ability to deliver stirring speeches, has pledged to slash taxes that would impact fiscal targets, leaving investors and market participants worried about his economic policies.

However, during campaign speeches he has taken a more conciliatory approach, saying any changes would be undertaken in consultation with the IMF and that he is committed to ensuring repayment of debt.
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london — The Chaser, a news website run by Hong Kong journalists in Britain, says Google informed the diaspora media outlet that its company email was being targeted by “government-backed attacks.”  

China is presumed to be behind the attacks, something Beijing denies. Analysts say the case highlights the growing difficulties Hong Kong journalists face both at home and overseas. 

On Tuesday, The Chaser published a report about the incident on its website, including a screenshot of the email from Google about the government-backed attack. The email listed the severity of the attack as high. 

According to Google, only 0.1% of users worldwide have been subjected to similar attacks. Google also pointed out that it cannot rule out that the warning may be a false alarm, but the company believes it has detected suspicious activities. 

These could include attempts to steal passwords or personal information through emails containing harmful attachments, harmful software download links or links to fake websites. 

VOA reached out to Google for more details on the attack but has yet to receive a response. 

‘There is no way out’

The Chaser said it immediately reviewed all online security measures after receiving the notice and has taken the necessary protective actions. 

The Chaser said in a statement, “At a time when Hong Kong’s press is mired in the White Terror, the invisible black hand has unscrupulously reached out to the diaspora media overseas. 

“Our team members are from Hong Kong and came to the UK three years ago, hoping to continue chasing news on free soil. In today’s turbulent world of press freedom in Hong Kong, there is no way out. Our team strongly condemns all threats to press freedom and pledges to remain at our posts.” 

VOA efforts to seek a response from China’s Embassy in Britain were unsuccessful, but the Chinese Embassy in Washington denied that China was involved in the cyberattack.  

“China firmly opposes and cracks down on all forms of cyberattacks in accordance with law. Without valid evidence, they jumped to an unwarranted conclusion and made groundless accusations against China,” the embassy said in an emailed statement Thursday. “It is extremely irresponsible and is a complete distortion of facts. China firmly opposes this.” 

Last month, The Chaser released an investigative report that said the Chinese Embassy in Britain had pressured Dragons Teaching, a British publishing house, in 2018 to remove the phrase “Republic of China” from chapters about Taiwan in Chinese textbooks. The Republic of China is Taiwan’s official name.  

Beijing is relentless in its global campaign to quash any recognition of the democratically ruled island — no matter how small.   

The publishing house eventually gave in to pressure from Beijing, according to the report from The Chaser. The textbooks are used in exams for secondary school courses in Britain. The Chinese Embassy in Britain has declined to comment on the incident and report, though other British media picked up the story. 

Journalists report harassment 

The cyberattack comes as journalists in Hong Kong are under increasing pressure. 

Last week, the Hong Kong Journalists Association said that from June to August of this year, dozens of journalists, their families, employers, landlords or neighbors were harassed and intimidated in different ways on the internet and in their daily lives, which was unprecedented. 

Benson Wong, a Hong Kong political scholar living in Britain, doesn’t believe the attacks on The Chaser and other Hong Kong journalists are purely coincidental, especially as China’s National Day is approaching. 

“From their point of view, it is understandable that the national security and intelligence units would do some things or do some ‘homework’ as part of their performance,” he said. 

He said he believes the attack is meant to send a signal that Hong Kong journalists who make critical remarks about China cannot expect to be safe from interference or even attacks just because they move overseas. 

VOA reached out to Britain’s National Cyber Security Center for comment on the attack but has yet to receive a response. 

Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.
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washington — The killing of a Japanese schoolboy in southern China has sparked worry among Japanese expatriots living in China, while online comments from Chinese people show reactions ranging from shock to cynicism. 

The 10-year-old boy, surnamed Shen, was stabbed by a 44-year-old man while the boy was on his way to class on the morning of September 18 near a Japanese school in the southern city of Shenzhen, according to China’s Foreign Ministry. 

The child, whose father is Japanese and mother is Chinese, was a Japanese national, according to the ministry. He was taken to a hospital and later died of his injuries. 

The boy was attending Shenzhen Japanese School, an international school built to serve the children of Japanese expatriots living in the region, an industrial hub where many Japanese firms, especially auto companies, set up factories decades ago. Only Japanese citizens are qualified to go to this school. 

A Shenzhen local newspaper said the suspect, surnamed Zhong, acted alone and was arrested by police on site. 

The same report said Zhong has confessed to stabbing the boy. Zhong, who has a previous criminal record, was released on bail by local police on suspicion of “damaging public telecommunications facilities” in 2015 and was detained on suspicion of “fabricating facts and disturbing public order” in 2019, according to the report. 

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed his condolences in a tweet on X, calling it “an extremely despicable crime,” and strongly urged China “to provide an explanation of the facts of the situation.”

The stabbing was the third high-profile attack on a foreigner in China in recent months. 

In June, a Chinese man wounded a Japanese woman and her child in a stabbing attack in front of a school bus in the eastern city of Suzhou. The man also stabbed a Chinese bus attendant who tried to intervene, and the attendant later died of her injuries. 

Also in June, four U.S. college instructors teaching in the northeastern city of Jilin were stabbed while visiting a public park. The American teachers suffered minor injuries and have since returned to the United States. 

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said these attacks are “isolated incidents” and said they would safeguard expatriots’ security in China. 

However, the Chinese government is notoriously secretive about criminal investigations. Very little information has been published about the two attacks in June beyond the suspects’ last names and their employment status. 

Nicholas Burns, the United States ambassador to China, criticized Beijing’s limited release of specifics and said that he was actively pressing for more details.  

Japanese firms, especially auto companies with a presence in China, have warned their workers to stay vigilant. 

Toshiba and Toyota have told their staff to take precautions against any possible violence. Panasonic is offering its employees free flights home. Mitsubishi and Nissan have communicated with their Japanese employees in China to ease their worries and offered counseling services. 

Consequence of xenophobia propaganda 

Meanwhile, Chinese people have shown contrasting reactions in their online comments about the latest stabbing incident.   

Some expressed shock, sadness and anger. A few local residents in Shenzhen laid flowers and notes of apology to the deceased child outside the Japanese school. 

A user called “sara jon” said on X, “Aren’t you heartbroken when you hear the boy’s mother cry. This is a terrorist attack, this is Hamas.” Another X user called “Jamy felando” said, “Poor child, hope he gets peace now and hope the devil goes to hell!” 

On China’s X-like but censored social platform Weibo, many expressed cynicism and indifference, viewing the attack in light of atrocities committed during Japan’s invasion of China 80 years ago. 

“The boomerang of the Japanese invaders finally came back to their own people,” wrote a Weibo user called yaxuefensitangtaijia. “If they had not invaded China and massacred the Chinese, perhaps there would be less extreme anti-Japanese sentiment today.”  

Someone else said in agreement: “How many Chinese children died when Japan invaded China?” 

It’s not clear if Zhong deliberately chose to commit his crime on September 18, a date considered by many Chinese as “national humiliation day.” The Japanese army officially launched its invasion of China on September 18, 1931, leading to a 14-year-long war and estimated casualties of 10 million military and civilians. 

Some Chinese say long-lasting anti-Japan propaganda by the Chinese government led to the violence toward Japanese people. A user called “still typhoon” compared the propaganda to poison on Weibo: “The poison has backfired. Xenophobia and extreme nationalism are rampant online now.” 

On Friday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced that “China and Japan reached a consensus” on the discharge of radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear plant, bringing to an end a diplomatic dispute that had rumbled on for more than two years. 

Beijing had been bashing Tokyo for causing “a major nuclear safety issue with cross-border implications,” when Tokyo started discharging treated radioactive water from the site in August 2023. 

It also announced a blanket ban on all aquatic products from Japan. The anti-Japan sentiment reached a climax in August when official Chinese news media lashed out against Japan relentlessly. 
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PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said he was pulling his country out of a development agreement with neighboring Vietnam and Laos following protests that it was benefiting foreign interests. 

Critics on social media have focused on land concessions in border areas particularly with Vietnam, a highly sensitive issue because of Cambodia’s historical antagonism toward its larger eastern neighbor. 

Authorities had arrested at least 66 people ahead of a planned August rally to condemn the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Development Triangle Area — or CLV-DTA. Most were later released but leaders are facing charges. 

The agreement, formalized in 2004, intended to facilitate cooperation on trade and migration in four northeastern provinces of Cambodia and border areas in Laos and Vietnam. 

Hun Manet called groups that opposed the agreement extremists and said they were using the issue to slander and attack the government and confuse the public. 

“For instance, allegations that the government ceded the territory of the four northeastern provinces to foreign countries, etc,” he wrote in a post late Friday. 

He said that in the past 25 years Cambodia had built many achievements for the development of the four provinces but his government decided to pull out of the agreement, “taking into account people’s concern on territory and the need to withdraw weapons out of the hands of extremists to prevent them from using CLV-DTA to further cheat people.” 

Cambodia’s government has long been accused of silencing critics and political opponents. Hun Manet succeeded his father last year after Hun Sen ruled for four decades, but there have been few signs of political liberalization. 
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Washington — A brutal mob lynching at Bangladesh’s oldest university has put a spotlight on the country’s crumbling law and order, just as its fledgling interim government tries to assert control and push through sweeping institutional reforms.

Late Wednesday, Tofazzal Hossein, a man known for struggling with mental health issues and roaming around the 102-year-old University of Dhaka, wandered into a residential hall.

Accusing him of theft, a mob of students grabbed and savagely beat him over the course of several hours.

By Thursday morning, Hossein, 35, was dead, the latest casualty in a wave of mob violence that has gripped Bangladesh since student protests ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and sent her fleeing the country last month.

Mob violence and student vigilantism were commonplace during Hasina’s 15-year reign. Rights group Ain o Salish Kendra documented 32 mob killings between January and June, even before student protests toppled her government and left more than 1,000 people dead.

But the lawlessness has spiraled out of control since the August 5 fall of the government. In the days that followed, police officers, fearful of student reprisals, vanished from the streets, creating a vacuum that has yet to be filled.

In just five weeks since early August, 21 people were lynched across the country, according to a tally by the Daily Star, a leading Bangladeshi newspaper. One of the victims, a former student leader accused of attacking protesters in July, was himself beaten to death at another major university on Wednesday.

University students, once hailed as democratic heroes, now stand accused of committing mob violence. Six face charges over Hossein’s murder, with seven more implicated in the second case.

The lawlessness has spread nationwide, leading to numerous incidents of extortion, harassment, intimidation and courtroom violence, sometimes triggering larger conflicts.

In Bangladesh’s southern Chittagong Hill Tracts region, the lynching on Wednesday of a man accused of stealing a bike reignited long-simmering tensions between ethnic Bengalis and indigenous people. The ensuing violence has already claimed at least four lives, according to media reports.

The unrest comes just days after the interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, granted the army sweeping law enforcement powers to restore order. At stake are more than domestic peace and the stability of the country’s industrial regions. Yunus’ six-week-old government has set up six commissions to advance democratic reforms, including a panel tasked with changing the country’s 51-year-old Constitution.

The instability in Bangladesh, South Asia’s third-most-populous country, is also drawing regional scrutiny, with Indian politicians voicing concern about reports of attacks on Hindus.

The Bangladeshi army’s 60-day new powers, announced Tuesday, allow commissioned officers to act as “executive magistrates,” making arrests, conducting searches, dispersing unlawful assemblies and opening fire in extraordinary circumstances.

Asif Nazarul, the interim government’s law adviser, said the government acted in response to “subversive acts” and instability, particularly in the country’s industrial areas.

“Given the situation, army personnel have been given magistracy power,” Nazarul was quoted in the Daily Star.

Rattled by growing insecurity, many Bangladeshis have welcomed the army’s new power.

Noting that security remains a “big challenge” for the interim government, Badiul Alam Majumdar, editor of Citizens for Good Governance, told VOA, “It has been done to maintain law and order in view of the overall situation. It has been done temporarily. I hope the position will change.”

Accused of using violence during the anti-government protests, Bangladeshi police became targets of student anger after Hasina’s ouster. Police stations were looted, and several officers were killed or burned to death, their bodies hanged from overpasses.

With no one held accountable in those cases, police fear for their safety. Many have yet to return to their posts, leaving the police forces understaffed and barely functioning.

Julia Bleckner, a senior Bangladesh researcher at Human Rights Watch, said while the government has a responsibility to maintain law and order, giving the army “unchecked” powers raises concerns about abuse.

“They’ve been given a mandate to carry out pretty widespread and arbitrary searches, detentions and arrests,” Bleckner said in a phone interview with VOA.

The army can now arrest anyone on the spot for “disturbing the peace” and use civilian personnel to disperse “illegal assemblies,” Bleckner noted.

“We are under a new government that has made massive commitments and very important commitments to human rights, but these are the same security forces that have carried out abuses for decades,” Bleckner said.

The Bangladeshi army last wielded similar law enforcement powers during the country’s 2006-2008 political crisis. At the time, military personnel were accused of making arbitrary arrests and other human rights abuses.

Nazarul, the law adviser, said he did not believe the army would “misuse this authority,” according to the Daily Star.

But critics remain unconvinced.

“It is not right,” ZI Khan Panna, a veteran lawyer, said of the army’s magistracy power, according to the Daily Star. “Has the government lost confidence in the magistrates? It is not right for army personnel to perform magistrate’s duties under the deputy commissioners. It would not be wise to mix army personnel with the general public.”

In the three days since receiving policing powers, the army has not announced any arrests. However, it has faced criticism for failing to quell violence.

Nolen Deibert, head of Freedom House’s Asia Religious and Ethnic Freedom Program, noted that the attacks against indigenous communities in the Chittagong Hill Tracks region came as “the army allegedly stood by and watched.”

The interim government’s home affairs adviser, Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, said a high-level committee will be formed to investigate the violence, Reuters reported.

“The country faces real risks of heightened conflict and threats of violence toward minority groups,” Deibert said via email. “The interim government must come up with a plan to return policing powers to civilian authorities who will fairly protect and serve all Bangladeshis, regardless of race or creed.”

VOA’s Bangla Service contributed to this article.
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