Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 335

Torbjørn Færøvik: Kinas olympiske farse

Underlige olympiske vinterleker står for døren. Kina forbereder et to ukers arrangement uten frihet, glede og spontanitet. All transport, ja alle bevegelser, skal foregå i en virusfri ”loop”. Straks utøvere og andre ankommer Beijing, fraktes de til en lukket deltakerlandsby uten å komme i fysisk kontakt med det virkelige Kina. Egne biler, busser og tog skal frakte dem hit og dit. Skulle et

Beijing 2022 official says athlete protests will lead to punishment

Behavior by athletes that violates the Olympic spirit or Chinese rules could be subject to punishment, a Beijing 2022 official said, after rights groups voiced concern about the safety of competitors if they protest at next month’s Games. Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter states that “no kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites,” although

The United States and Japan Should Prepare for Chinese Aggression Against Taiwan

As China continues to increase its pressure against Taiwan, the questions of whether it will eventually use force to bring Taiwan under its control and how the United States should address this issue have moved to the center of the U.S. foreign policy debate. An often overlooked but critical factor is the extent to which any U.S. response to Chinese aggression would require the use of its forces

Journalists flee Hong Kong fearing intimidation from China

In recent months, well-known media outlets in Hong Kong, such as Apple Daily, Stand News and Citizen News, have had no choice but to shut shop. It's prompted journalists to abandon Hong Kong for safety abroad. DW Joyce's Lee met some in Taiwan.Watch video

Involuntary Returns – report exposes long-arm policing overseas

Just around Christmas last year, China’s global hunt for “fugitives” hit a new milestone. Since its launch in 2014 as part of Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign, 10,000 are claimed to have been successfully returned from over 120 countries around the globe under Sky Net (and junior partner Fox Hunt) operations.This new report by Safeguard Defenders goes beyond the few individual cases reported

Xi Jinping forced 10,000 people who fled overseas to return to China through an operation called 'Sky Net,' says human rights NGO

A new report published by a human rights NGO has detailed the methods used by China to force thousands of fugitives to return from other countries, describing the extent of Beijing's operations on foreign soil to control the Chinese diaspora. Spain-based NGO Safeguard Defenders highlighted three tactics sanctioned by China for this purpose — detaining the fugitive's relatives as a threat, sending

Slovenia considers following Lithuania’s lead in building ties with Taiwan 2

Slovenia and Taiwan are working on “exchanging representatives”, Prime Minister Janez Janša has announced, criticising China’s response to Taiwan’s decision to open a diplomatic office in Vilnius. The comments come as the EU is still struggling to find a unified message on China’s coercive trade measures against Lithuania, which faces mounting direct and indirect pressure in terms of trade. The

Chinese activist told he could not visit dying wife is re-arrested

A Chinese human rights activist and writer who was detained following repeated pleas to be allowed to visit his terminally ill wife has been formally arrested days after she died for allegedly “inciting subversion of state power”.Yang Maodong, who goes by the pen-name Guo Feixiong, was formally arrested on Wednesday last week by the Guangzhou Public Security Bureau, two days after the death of

China's Xi Jinping defends 'common prosperity' crackdowns

Chinese president Xi Jinping has made a rare defence on the world stage of his "common prosperity" policy, which has seen major crackdowns on businesses. His comments came during the World Economic Forum's (WEF) annual meeting of government and corporate leaders. China says the policy is aimed at narrowing the widening wealth gap, which could threaten the Communist Party's rule if left

Winter Olympics: Athletes advised to use burner phones in Beijing

The Beijing Winter Olympics app that all Games attendees must use contains security weaknesses that leave users exposed to data breaches, analysts say. The My2022 app will be used by athletes, audience members and media for daily Covid monitoring. The app will also offer voice chats, file transfers and Olympic news. But cybersecurity group Citizen Lab says the app fails to provide encryption on