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mainland China Hong Kong's legislature new national law

Hong Kong Legislature Passes Tough New National Security Law

By LokMarg 19th March 2024

Further aligning it with mainland China, Hong Kong’s legislature unanimously passed a new national law on Tuesday that expands government power to crush dissent, Al Jazeera reported.

The Safeguarding National Security Law passed includes new measures on treason, espionage, external interference, state secrets and sedition.

“Today is a historic moment for Hong Kong,” said Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee, who added that the law punishing five major crimes would go into effect on March 23.

It gives government more power to quash dissent, widely seen as the latest step in a sweeping political crackdown triggered by pro-democracy protests in 2019. It comes on top of a similar law imposed by Beijing four years ago, which has already largely silenced opposition voices in the financial hub, Al Jazeera reported.

Critics say that the major piece of legislation, known as Article 23, further threatens the Chinese-ruled city’s freedoms.

The 90-seat council stacked with pro-China loyalists was first presented with the bill on March 8, following a monthlong public consultation, with Hong Kong’s leader calling for it to be enacted at “full speed”.

Eighty-eight lawmakers and the legislative council president voted unanimously to enact the legislation.

Coming into effect on Saturday, the law introduces 39 new national security crimes, adding to an already powerful national security law that was directly imposed by Beijing on Hong Kong in 2020 after huge and sometimes violent democracy protests the year before, CNN reported.

That law has already transformed Hong Kong, with authorities jailing dozens of political opponents, forcing civil society groups and outspoken media outlets to disband and transforming the once freewheeling city into one that prioritises patriotism.

Known locally as Article 23, the new national security legislation covers a raft of new crimes, including treason, espionage, external interference and unlawful handling of state secrets, with the most serious offences punishable by up to life imprisonment, CNN reported.

“We…have completed a historical mission, lived up to the expectations of the country and did not let the central government down,” he said, referring to China’s Communist Party leadership in Beijing.

CNN reported that China and Hong Kong’s leaders say the new laws are needed to “plug loopholes” as part of their drive to “restore stability” following the huge 2019 protests. They argue that their legislation is similar to other national security laws around the world.

Critics counter that what China’s Communist Party views as national security offences are far broader and more sweeping, often ensnaring political criticism, dissent and even business activity that would not be criminalised elsewhere.

The new legislation also comes as Hong Kong’s government is embarking on a high-profile campaign this year to revive the city’s business credentials after the political crackdown – combined with nearly three years of strict coronavirus controls – sparked an exodus of local and international talent. (ANI)

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Japanese Ministers Quit As Fumio Kishida Faces Trust Deficit

By LokMarg 14th December 2023

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is in the process of reshuffling his cabinet in response to the resignation of many ministers, including government spokesman and close ally Hirokazu Matsuno, due to a significant corruption scandal inside the ruling party, Al Jazeera reported.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno resigned on Thursday, following the resignation of Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister for Economy and Industry.

Junji Suzuki, the minister of internal affairs, and Ichiro Miyashita, the minister of agriculture of Japan announced their resignations, as five deputy ministers were also let go, according Al Jazeera, citing Jiji Press and other Japanese media.

All of the ministers are members of the largest and most influential faction within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), known as the ‘Abe faction’ after the assassinated former prime minister Shinzo Abe.

A criminal inquiry against the group has been launched by Japanese authorities over its claims that it received over 500 million yen (USD 3.5 million) in fundraising earnings that went missing from party accounts, Al Jazeera reported citing media reports.

Making the announcement at a news conference, Matsuno said, “In light of the various allegations made regarding political funds, which have shaken the public trust in politics, and the various allegations made regarding my own political funds, I have submitted my resignation.”

Yoshimasa Hayashi, who served as foreign minister until September, will now replace him.

Kishida, who has ruled Japan virtually continuously since the conclusion of World War II, battled to control the impact of the controversy in the party and declared late on Wednesday that he would restructure his cabinet.

He expressed sadness that the scandal had increased political mistrust and vowed to act quickly to address it.

Meanwhile, Kishida’s public support dropped to its lowest since he took office in October 2021, plummeting to roughly 23 per cent after the news of the most recent controversy surfaced a few weeks ago.

The elections need not be held until October 2025, as the prime minister has already reorganised his government twice. Historically, a weak and dispersed opposition has found it difficult to gain ground against the LDP.

On Wednesday, an unsuccessful no-confidence move against Kishida was spearheaded by opposition parties, including the Japanese Constitutional Democratic Party (CDPJ), according to Al Jazeera.

The leader of the Japanese Communist Party Kazuo Shii referred to the controversy as “a bottomless, serious problem”. (ANI)

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Taliban Min Raises Concern Over Deportation Of Afgh Migrants From Pak

By LokMarg 14th November 2023

Taliban Minister Haji Nooruddin Azizi raised the issue of the deportation of Afghan refugees during his meeting with Pakistan Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani, Al Jazeera reported on Tuesday.

According to an Afghan embassy statement, Azizi discussed how Pakistan is expelling thousands of Afghan citizens as they are unable to take cash and other assets back to their homeland which they have built for decades.

The meeting comes days after Pakistan said its move to expel more than a million undocumented Afghans was a “response to the unwillingness of the Taliban-led administration” to act against armed fighters using Afghanistan to carry out attacks in Pakistan.

The Taliban officials have been saying that the attacks are an internal matter for Pakistan and have called on Islamabad to halt its deportation of Afghan citizens.

“Bilateral trade, especially the stranded goods of [Afghan] traders in Karachi port, smooth transfer of [Afghan] refugees’ properties to [Afghanistan] and related issues were discussed,” Afghanistan’s embassy in Islamabad said in the statement.

On the other hand, the Afghan citizens returning to Afghanistan have said there are restrictions on the transfer of cash and property to Afghanistan from Pakistan, where many had built businesses and homes for decades, Al Jazeera reported.

Last month, Pakistan set a November 1 start date for the expulsion of all undocumented immigrants, including hundreds of thousands of Afghans. It cited security reasons, brushing off calls to reconsider from the United Nations, rights groups and Western embassies.

Around 4.4 million Afghan refugees live in Pakistan, 1.7 million of them without valid documents, Al Jazeera reported citing Pakistan government figures.

Earlier on Monday, Pakistan opened three new border crossings to accelerate the repatriation in southwestern Balochistan province in addition to the main crossing in Chaman district, said Jan Achakzai, information minister for the provincial caretaker government.

The number of border crossings used to deport thousands of Afghans rose to five after the new facilities were opened. Currently, about 15,000 Afghans have been crossing the border every day from Pakistan. Before the crackdown, the figure was about 300.

Some 3,05,462 Afghan refugees have since left the country, authorities said. The majority, 2,09,550, crossed the border from the north-western province of Khyber Pakhtunkwa, said Fazal Rabbi, a senior official overseeing the deportation process.

Meanwhile, the international aid agencies have documented chaotic and desperate scenes among Afghans who have returned from Pakistan, Al Jazeera reported.

They have raised alarm at the dire conditions many Afghans who have recently returned are facing with few resources as the cold winter season begins and say many are staying in crowded shelters near the border operated by NGOs and Taliban authorities.

“Many Afghans in Pakistan are now facing police raids and demolition of their homes without due process. Detainees have been denied the right to a lawyer and communication with family members, leaving loved ones in the dark as to their whereabouts,” Amnesty International wrote on X (formerly Twitter) asking Pakistan to immediately halt deportations to prevent further escalation of this crisis.

Achakzai, the information minister, said police in Balochistan in recent days had arrested more than 1,500 Afghans who had no valid documents.

A prominent Pakistani human rights lawyer, Moniza Kakar, said in the southern port city of Karachi that police had launched midnight raids on homes and detained Afghan families, including women and children.

The head of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Hina Jilani, said Pakistan lacks a comprehensive mechanism to handle refugees, asylum seekers and migrants without papers, despite hosting Afghans for 40 years.

Also on Monday, police said officers were investigating whether an Afghan man, Asif Khan, killed his 25-year-old Pakistani wife, Ameena Bibi, because she refused to go to Afghanistan with him.

The incident happened the previous day in the northwestern city of Nowshera, police official Yasir Khan said. He said the suspect left the country with his four children, Al Jazeera reported. (ANI)

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Thousands Of Israelis March Ahead Of Final Votes On Judicial Bill

By LokMarg 23rd July 2023

Thousands rallied against the controversial judicial reform bill that faces a final vote early next week, protesters set up a ‘tent city’ near Knesset after the multi-day march, Times of Israel reported.

Some of the protesters blocked the traffic on Tel Aviv’s Ayalon Highway, as part of demonstrations against the judicial overhaul.
Police arrest four of the demonstrators on suspicion of disturbing public order.

The demonstrations on Saturday came days after Netanyahu’s government gave preliminary approval to a crucial bill that is a part of the overhaul, reported Times of Israel.

The bill, which passed in its first reading, would restrict the use of the “reasonability” clause, which allows the courts to overturn executive orders, according to Al Jazeera.

Moreover, this reform would also allow the government a greater say in the appointment of judges.

Before the bill becomes law, it still needs to pass two additional votes, which are anticipated by the end of the month.

Meanwhile, few protesters were seen rallying outside the Histadrut’s headquarters in Tel Aviv, as chief Arnon Bar-David holds “emergency” deliberations amid calls for the labour federation to declare a strike, as per Times of Israel.

Last week, on July 15, Protesters in Tel Aviv unfurled a sizable banner that read “SOS” and threw paint into the air, streaking it pink and orange, reported Al Jazeera.

The protests in Tel Aviv were joined by protesters from all across the country on Saturday.

Protesters waved lit torches outside of Netanyahu’s home in Jerusalem, and they also staged demonstrations in the coastal cities of Herzliya and Netanya. The protests, however, came at a time when the country’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in hospital.

He was admitted earlier on Saturday for dehydration. The 73-year-old went to the doctor after experiencing a dizzy spell and spending the day before in the sun without drinking any water.

He later released a video from the Tel Aviv hospital saying he felt good. (ANI)

Iran’s ‘Morality Police’ Returns With Stricter Hijab Rules

By LokMarg 17th July 2023

Months after the nationwide arrests that were carried out after the Anti-Hijab protests, Iran has relaunched patrols by the ‘morality police’ in a bid to escalate their efforts to enforce the country’s mandatory hijab rules, Al Jazeera reported.

Saeid Montazeralmahdi, the spokesperson for the Iranian law enforcement force, confirmed on Sunday that police patrols were now operational on foot and with vehicles to crack down on people whose covering is not deemed appropriate in the Islamic Republic.
The morality police would “issue warnings and then introduce to the judicial system people who unfortunately insist on their norm-breaking behaviour without concern for the consequences of their covering that is outside of the norm”, Al Jazeera quoted Montazeralmahdi as saying citing state media.

He further said that the police expect everyone to conform to accepted dress codes so officers will have more time to deal with “other vital police missions”.

The officers are tasked with warning women – and sometimes men – to correct the way they are dressed.

This could range from ordering women to adjust headscarves to demanding a change of clothing to something that is more loose-fitting and deemed more appropriate. Women who are found to be in breach of the rules could be arrested and taken to ‘so-called’ re-education facilities run by the police, Al Jazeera reported.

Notably, this development comes 10 months after Mahsa Amini, 22, died in police custody after being detained over an alleged dress code violation.

Her death sparked mass protests across the country that lasted for months in which morality police were largely absent from Iranian streets.

After the protests, Iranian authorities had largely refrained from highly confrontational methods of enforcing mandatory hijab laws that were imposed shortly after the country’s 1979 Islamic revolution, Al Jazeera reported.

However, that approach appears to be gradually shifting now.

For the past few months, police have been employing surveillance cameras to identify hijab violators. They are given warnings, fines or sent to appear in court. People found to be in violation of the dress code while in their vehicles could have their cars impounded.

Businesses have also been increasingly targeted, with many cafes, restaurants and even sprawling shopping centres facing closures for offering services to women with loose hijabs.

There were several high-profile, hijab-related incidents this week, as per Al Jazeera.

The authorities released a video that showed a group of police officers – accompanied by a camera crew – going around and telling women of all ages to fix their hijab. The camera zooms in on the women’s unblurred faces and shows an animation indicating they have been identified and referred to the judiciary.

“Either you fix your hijab or you enter the van,” a man, whose voice has been digitally distorted, tells a young woman in the video. “If you believe in freedom, I will leave all the thieves and rapists free to let you know how things work,” Al Jazeera reported.

Another incident took place on Sunday when actor Mohamad Sadeghi was arrested. He had released a reaction video online a day earlier, in which he responds to another clip that showed a female officer holding a woman against the wall over her wearing of the hijab.

“If I see a scene like this in person I might commit murder. Watch out, you better believe the people will kill you,” he had said, prompting his arrest for “threatening the police” for doing its job, Al Jazeera reported citing the state media.

Earlier this week, actress Azadeh Samadi was sentenced to a six-month ban on using social media and her mobile phone in addition to mandated therapy to cure her of an “anti-social personality sickness” by a court.

This came after she participated in the funeral of a theatre director without a headscarf in May.

Samadi joined a group of actresses who have been summoned or received sentences in recent months for ditching their headscarves publicly or online.

Meanwhile, the government and the parliament have been working on legislation aimed at bolstering hijab controls, but the bill has come under fire from conservative opponents who argue it is too lenient, Al Jazeera reported. (ANI)