Uganda’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has dismissed as false a story reportedly circulating on social media of 23 Ugandan prisoners said to be on death row over drug trafficking offences. According to a statement released Monday, the ministry said the list of 23 is actually of those who were previously …
Read More »China pressures Botswana over Dalai Lama visit
Gaborone, Botswana | AFP | China piled pressure on Botswana on Saturday over a scheduled visit to the southern African country by the Dalai Lama, who it considers a dissident separatist threat. Botswana’s President Ian Khama announced on Wednesday he would meet the Tibetan spiritual leader during his visit to the …
Read More »China’s economy slows in second quarter: AFP survey
Beijing, China | AFP | China’s economy lost momentum in the second quarter, a survey shows, as Beijing’s efforts to curb risky lending and investment took a toll on the Asian powerhouse. The world’s second-largest economy expanded by 6.8 percent in the April-June period, compared with a year ago, according …
Read More »Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo’s ashes scattered in sea
Shenyang, China | AFP | The ashes of China’s late Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo were scattered in the sea Saturday after a controversial funeral, as his friends worried about the fate of the democracy advocate’s widow. Officials showed a video in which his wife, Liu Xia, and others lowered a …
Read More »China cremates body of Nobel laureate and dissident Liu Xiaobo
Shenyang, China | AFP | The body of China’s late Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo was cremated Saturday after a private ceremony attended by his family, as Beijing faces international pressure to let the dissident’s wife leave the country. Liu’s remains were incinerated “in accordance with the will of his family …
Read More »China’s Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo dies in custody
Shenyang, China | AFP | China’s Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo died Thursday after a battle with cancer, remaining in custody until the end as officials ignored international pleas to let him spend his final days free and abroad. The prominent democracy advocate died aged 61, more than a month after …
Read More »Botswana risks China ties with visit from Dalai Lama
Gaborone, Botswana | AFP | The Dalai Lama will visit Botswana next month and meet with President Ian Khama in a trip likely to anger China, a key investor across Africa and its largest trade partner. Beijing views the Dalai Lama as a dangerous separatist campaigning for Tibetan independence and …
Read More »US warship near S. China Sea island ‘provocation’: China
Beijing, China | AFP | The passage of a US warship close to a disputed island in the South China Sea was a “serious political and military provocation”, Beijing said, one that could further strain relations between the superpowers The destroyer, the USS Stethem, sailed less than 12 nautical miles from …
Read More »ANALYSIS: ‘Schoolmaster’ Xi leaves Hong Kong smarting
Hong Kong, China | AFP | A landmark visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Hong Kong left little doubt that Beijing views the city as a destabilising hotbed of unacceptable political dissent that must prove its loyalty, analysts said Sunday. His three-day trip to celebrate 20 years since Hong …
Read More »China’s Xi draws ‘red line’ in Hong Kong
Hong Kong, China | AFP | China’s President Xi Jinping said Saturday Hong Kong was freer than ever before but laid down an uncrossable “red line” for any challenge to Beijing’s authority as the city marked 20 years since it was handed back by Britain. Xi spoke in a televised …
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