Tag: China

Chinese Documentaries Spread Misinfo About Tibet: Report

Tibet Witnesses Gulag, Gestapo-Like Policies Under China

By LokMarg

The discrimination towards Tibetans has intensified after Xi Jinping took oath as China’s President with an unprecedented third term as repressive policies continue to remain a part of Chinese rule in Tibet, reported a think tank, Policy Research Group (POREG).

Tibetans have raised the banner of affirmative opposition to Beijing since 1949. The latest oppression in Tibet is because of the Zero-Covid policy which has resulted in outrage amongst Tibetans.
The authoritarian lockdown is ostensible to prevent and control Covid-19 but it has suffocated people. Scores are pushed to take refuge in suicide due to inhumane quarantine conditions.

Han Chinese and Tibetans living in Lhasa hit the streets in October protesting against inadequate food and medicines under the lockdown regime. The security forces crushed the demo. Soon afterwards, the city witnessed the largest-ever protest since the 2008 uprising in which around 200 people were detained, POREG reported.

The cruelties against Tibet do not end here and reveal the next stage of hell in Tibet has created the world’s largest forensic DNA database under Xi Jinping with more than 100 million profiles to control its population.

Violation of fundamental rights of humans in Tibet and their exploitation in their own country has been on a surge for years by the Chinese government with the recent one being discrimination against the Tibetans in employment and housing.

Moreover, with every passing day, the situation in Tibet is becoming frightening. The world is being shown a country like China handling the outbreak in a harmonious way, but the reality apparently is far from that. The measures being taken are too severe and not in the public’s interest.

China was the centre of the COVID-19 outbreak in the world, the whole suffered millions of deaths in the past 2 years. But when entire China and many parts of the world were reeling under the coronavirus crisis, Tibet remained untouched except for one case at the beginning of the pandemic. Tibet did not see a COVID-19 case for over 900 days. But, Tibet has also come under its grip now.

Chinese President Xi Jinping enforced similar stringent conditions in Tibet as they were in other parts of China earlier under the ‘Zero Covid’ policy. Tibetans are taken to quarantine facilities or forced to stay inside their homes. This has caused them to lose their jobs and source of livelihood, besides mental harassment.

Amid this, China’s censorship of news and social media posts from Tibet has further raised concerns about the safety of Tibetans.

Furthermore, self-immolations continue to happen in occupied Tibet in order to divert the world’s attention towards the mistreatment of Tibetans by China with the latest one being on March 27, in which an 81-year male named Taphun from the Amdo region set himself on fire in the police station in the western part of Sichuan and died, Tibetrights Collective reported. (ANI)

Pakistan and China Deadly Virus

Despite Global Concerns, Pak, China Working On Deadly Virus

By LokMarg

While COVID-19 and its new variants still plague the world, Pakistan and China are continuing with bioweapons research in a secret facility near Rawalpindi.

The infamous Wuhan Institute of Virology and Pakistan Army-run, Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO), has set up a highly-advanced scientific infrastructure to research deadly pathogens in Pakistan. The location of the facility remains a tightly guarded secret, reported Geo-Politik.
According to various global media reports, China is creating Covid-like pathogens in Pakistan that have the potential of causing virus contamination on a scale far higher than Covid.

The mystery deepened further in 2020 when Pakistan first denied such reports. The Foreign Office of Pakistan stated that “there is nothing secret about the Bio-Safety Level-3 (BSL-3) Laboratory of Pakistan referred to in the report, reported Geo-Politik.

Pakistan has been sharing information about the facility with the States Parties to the Biological and Toxins Weapons Convention (BTWC) in its submission of Confidence Building Measures,” the FO said.

It added that the facility was meant for diagnostic and protective system improvement by Research and Development on emerging health threats, surveillance, and disease outbreak investigation.

The laboratory in question is a “Biosafety Level 4” facility (BSL-4) where the most dangerous and infective agents are tested and developed. The DSTO is located in Chaklala cantonment, Rawalpindi, and is headed by a two-star General, reported Geo-Politik.

Experts say that BSL-4 labs are used to study infectious agents and toxins that can cause life-threatening diseases for which there is no vaccine or therapy available.

Those in the intelligence and scientific community, watching the developments, warn that by using Pakistan, China had outsourced a highly contagious network of laboratories where antigens a hundred times more infectious than the present Covid could be created or `dropped in,’ reported Geo-Politik.

According to bioweapons experts, the joint collaboration between Pakistan’s lab, managed by the army, and a series of laboratories and institutions run by PLA, was not for scientific experiments but to weaponize pathogens.

The secret project carries the title: Collaboration for Emerging Infectious Diseases and Studies on Biological Control of Vector Transmitting Diseases. (ANI)

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Xi Jinping Elected Chinese President For 3rd Term

Shehbaz Meets Chinese Prez Xi In Beijing

By LokMarg

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, becoming the first head of state to visit China since Xi’s re-election for the third time.

This is also Sharif’s first visit to China since assuming office in April this year and follows his meeting with Xi in Uzbekistan in September.
“During his maiden 2-days visit to China, PM Shehbaz Sharif and President Xi Jinping met at the People’s Great Hall of China to discuss broad-based cooperation in economy and investment and exchanged views on regional and global developments,” tweeted Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

Sharif is heading a high-level delegation, including Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. He is also scheduled to hold delegation-level talks with Premier Li Keqiang to review the All-Weather Strategic Cooperation Partnership between China and Pakistan.

Ahead of his visit Sharif in an opinion piece for Chinese media outlet Global Times on October 30 said: “I would be soon in Beijing on my first bilateral visit after assuming office, and that too at an opportune time, soon after the successful conclusion of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.”

“For Pakistan, relations with China form the cornerstone of our foreign policy; in China, Pakistan is described as Ba Tie i.e. China’s Iron Brother, and elsewhere our ties are appreciated for their unique strength, enduring permanence, and unfathomable trust,” he wrote.

Before leaving for China, Sharif said that his discussions with Chinese leadership will focus on the revitalization of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor among many other things.

“My discussions with Chinese leadership will focus on the revitalization of CPEC among many other things. 2nd phase of CPEC promises to usher in a new era of socio-economic progress that will uplift the quality of our people’s lives. There is a lot to learn from the Chinese economic miracle,” Sharif tweeted.

CPEC’s next phase of high-quality development will encompass key areas such as industry, energy, agriculture, ICT, rail and road network, and developing Gwadar Port as a hub of trade and transshipment, investment, and regional connectivity.

Meanwhile, China raised the issue of the safety and security of Chinese personnel and projects in Pakistan ahead of Sharif’s visit.

Xi Jinping was elected General Secretary of the Chinese communist party for the third time in the recently held 20th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party where he was elected as the general secretary and head of the pary for the next five years. (ANI)

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Chinese Post-Dalai Era

Chinese Preparations For A Post-Dalai Era

By LokMarg

China’s attempt at Sinicization of the Tibetan Buddhist identity is no hidden secret to the world, however, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) extensive plans to control the reincarnation of the next Dalai Lama reveals the sinister designs of Beijing’s post-Dalai Lama era.

Recently, two internal documents recovered by a Tibetan researcher revealed the extensive plans of the CCP to control the reincarnation of the next Dalai Lama, reported Tibet Press.
Although the 14th Dalai Lama has made it clear that the reincarnation process would only initiate within the value systems and preaching of Buddhism; and any attempt to superficially name a successor by the CCP would remain discredited within Buddhist communities around the world as well as in the Tibetan region.

However, China has been reaching out to other international Buddhist communities through financial investments as well as facilitating the renovation of important Buddhist sites and financing the construction of monuments with Buddhist linkages, reported Tibet Press.

The investments in the regions, specifically in Southeast Asia, which has a majority Buddhist population, have been invariably linked to the multi-trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative.

The CCP views the next selected Dalai Lama to be a part of their outreach of quenching the Tibetan question while also curbing the growing animosity within the region by installing a leader of their choice and not through the religious process of Buddhism.

This in itself is a significant cause for concern for regions and countries that value human rights and have constantly voiced their worry on the same, reported Tibet Press.

The report published by the International Tibet Network and Tibet Justice Centre in a similar understanding as that discussed above examined elaborately the Chinese preparations for a ‘Post Dalai Era’.

The specific connotation of an era post the 14th Dalai Lama, the report states is adopted in order to convey China’s plan to capitalize on the succession race once the 14th Dalai Lama is no more, reported Tibet Press.

It is quite evident that the CCP is concerting all its efforts to exploit the inevitable passing of the Dalai Lama to cement its stronghold upon the troubled region.

This invariably addresses many issues for the CCP in one go itself.

Firstly, it addresses a long-standing debate on who rules over the Tibetan region; China’s legitimacy has always been questioned due to the presence of the Dalai Lama in India.

Secondly, it helps the Chinese administration to quell human rights violations in the region by asserting dominance in the region through a self-installed Dalai Lama over the Autonomous Tibetan region.

Finally, the succession also has worldwide implications in terms of Chinese hawkish aspirations in and around its neighbourhood, reported Tibet Press. (ANI)

Germany Against China Taiwan

Germany Hardens Its Stand Against China, Taiwan

By LokMarg

Germany is re-evaluating its relationship with China after the outcome of the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) – tough stand on Taiwan, industrial espionage, human rights violations in Xinjiang, and unfair competition.

This move has irked China which has out-rightly rejected Germany’s charges, urging later to view its ties with Beijing objectively, reported Voices Against Autocracy.
Moreover, at the 20th National Congress in China, the last few sensible leaders in CCP have been removed and Xi Jinping tightened his authoritarian rule and surrounded himself with only “yes men”, pushing Germany to re-calibrate its relations with China.

While efforts are on to prepare Germany’s first China strategy document next year, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said that violence must be banned from international relations while commenting on the Taiwan question, reported Voices Against Autocracy.

The three-way coalition government that took office in December, is due to publish Germany’s first China strategy document next year. Out of three, the Greens and Free Democrats, are more hawkish than Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD), who want to avoid triggering a US-style Cold war with China.

His remarks on Taiwan have to be seen in the context of the fact that China is Germany’s most important trading partner. If Berlin takes a clear stand against Chinese efforts to retake Taiwan, this could risk serious conflict, above all in economic terms.

However, the German leadership has decided to reduce its trade dependence on China. Currently, it is dependent on Chinese raw materials, batteries and semiconductors, reported Voices Against Autocracy.

This could be one of the reasons why the Chancellor might approve the Chinese take-over of the German chip manufacturing firm Elmos. The semiconductor production of Dortmund-based Elmos is being taken over by Sweden’s Silex, a wholly-owned subsidiary of China’s Sai Microelectronics.

The said approval is being granted despite strong advice against the same by the German intelligence agency and warnings from the EU, besides warning from six of his own federal ministries, including Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck, reported Voices Against Autocracy.

Last month, Germany’s economy minister Robert Habeck stated that the government was working on a new trade policy with China to reduce dependence on China, promising “no more naivety” in trade dealings with Beijing.

Habeck said that China was a welcome trading partner, but Germany could not allow Beijing’s protectionism to distort competition and would not hold back criticism of human rights violations under threat of losing business. This was the first time the Minister has made clear that this tougher line was being translated into policy measures, reported Voices Against Autocracy.

The Green Party, which runs the ministry, has long advocated taking a harder line on China with Habeck announcing that Germany would adopt a tougher approach on trade.

Available reports from Berlin suggested that politicians and executives in Germany have broadly come to agree that the country needs to reduce its economic dependence on China, given their concerns about industrial espionage, unfair competition, or human rights violations – concerns that Beijing has strongly rejected as being unfounded, reported Voices Against Autocracy.

Besides taking measures economically, Germany has also raised its guard against China militarily. Germany sent a record 13 military aircraft to join Exercise Pitch Black 2022, a military drill involving the US, Australia, and 15 other countries, which is seen as a collective effort led by Washington in order to form an anti-China frontline and to pressure China over the Taiwan question, reported Voices Against Autocracy.

Moreover, Germany is increasingly joining other Western allies in flexing more muscle in the Indo-Pacific region, citing so-called growing alarm over Beijing’s territorial ambitions. (ANI)

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BBC Documentary Is Politics: Jaishankar

Jaishankar Lauds Blinken For Giving Strong Counter-Terrorism Message

By LokMarg

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday praised US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken for his strong and clear message on counter-terrorism.

He also discussed the Ukraine conflict and other regional issues with Blinken.
“Thanked him for his strong and clear message yesterday on counter-terrorism and 26/11 accountability. Discussed the Ukraine conflict and other regional issues,” tweeted EAM Jaishankar.

In an apparent message to China, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday said all relevant parties should support the designation of terrorists and no nation should stand in the way.

He delivered this message via virtual statement during an informal briefing of the Counter-Terrorism Committee at one of the main sites that saw the Mumbai terror attacks – the Taj Hotel in Mumbai.

China, in recent months, has blocked several bids to designate several terrorists based in Pakistan. Beijing this month put on hold a proposal to list Talha Saeed, son of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) chief Hafiz Saeed. This bid was moved by India and co-supported by the US, under the 1267 sanction regime.

Addressing the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee members, Blinken said many members of the security council, including the United States, have adopted their own sanctions against the terrorists behind these attacks.

“But our efforts are more effective when we act together, which is why we worked with India to put the nomination to designate several terrorists through the UN 1267 committee. All relevant parties should support this designation and no nation should stand in the way,” he said.

In his message to the UN committee members, the top US diplomat said Washington is joining New Delhi and people around the world to mourn lives lost, including 141 Indians, 6 Americans, and victims from 15 other countries from every region in the world.

Blinken said India, the United States, and all nations around the world have a responsibility to the victims of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks and to bring to justice the perpetrators of terrorist attacks.

“We have a responsibility to the victims and the people everywhere to bring to justice the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks including their masterminds. That’s what the US is working to do, together with India and other partners for the last 14 years,” he added.

“Because if we allow the attacks of these attacks go unpunished, we send messages to terrorists everywhere that their heinous crimes will be tolerated,” he added.

Speaking at the counter-terrorism briefing, Jaishankar said the world knows that money is the lifeblood of terrorism.

“Terrorist organizations require funds and resources to maintain their organizational functions and undertake activities. The reality that terrorism continues to exist and expand points to an underlying truth: that terrorism continues to get the necessary financial resources to thrive,” he added. (ANI)

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India, US to Hold War Games Near LAC With China

By LokMarg

India and the US will hold their regular Yudhabhyas series of wargames in the Auli area in Uttarakhand along the China border from November 15.

The exercise, which was planned many months in advance, was earlier planned to be held in October but would now be held next month, Army officials said.

The war games would see the two armies practice counter-terrorist operations along with many drills during the exercise, they said.

The exercise would be held from November 15 to December 2 in the mountainous terrain in the area which has seen the additional deployment of assets and troops in the last two years, they said.

The Americans are in a tense relationship with the Chinese due to the Taiwan issue while the Indian military has been in a standoff with them since May 2020 timeframe.

This would be the 18th of the Yudhabhyas wargames between India and the US to help enhance interoperability between the two sides. (ANI)

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Nyoma airfield LAC

Nyoma Airfield Near LAC To Get Upgrade, BRO To Build New Runway

By LokMarg

Amid reports of China building new military infrastructure on its side, India is soon going to begin the construction work for upgrading its Nyoma advanced landing ground for fighter aircraft operations less than 50 kilometres from the LAC in eastern Ladakh, said Indian Army officials on Thursday.
The Nyoma airfield has been used for the transportation of men and materiel during the ongoing stand-off with China and has seen operations of Chinook heavy-lift choppers and C-130J Special Operations aircraft.

“The ALG is going to be soon upgraded for fighter aircraft operations as most of the required clearances and approvals have come already. As per plans, the construction of the new airfield and the military infrastructure would be done by the Border Roads Organisation,” senior defence officials told ANI.

The capability of operating fighter aircraft from this area would strengthen the Air Force’s ability to tackle any misadventures by the adversary in a faster way.

The inauguration of the construction work is expected to begin soon in the eastern Ladakh sector after the clearances by the Modi government in the area, they said.

India has been considering multiple options for developing airfields in eastern Ladakh including Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO), Fukche and Nyoma which are at a distance of a few minutes from the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.

The Nyoma Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) has seen operations of the Apache attack helicopters, Chinook heavy-lift helicopters and the Garud special forces operations from Mi-17 helicopters.

Recently, IAF Group Captain Ajay Rathi explained the importance of having an advanced landing ground such as Nyoma.

“Nyoma ALG has strategic importance due to its close proximity to the Line of Actual Control. It bridges the critical gap between Leh airfield and the LAC enabling quick movement of men and material in eastern Ladakh, overcoming terrain friction,” Rathi had said.

The Nyoma airbase Chief Operations Officer said the ALG will “further help in quicker access to the heights and sustenance operations thereafter. The air operations infrastructure at Nyoma enhances the operations capability of forces.”

The Air Force also has deployed the Igla man-portable air defence missiles to tackle any aerial incursion by any adversary aircraft. The Indian Air Force has been regularly deploying fighter aircraft including the Rafale and MiG-29s to carry out operations in eastern Ladakh where there has been disengagement of troops at multiple locations

The Chinese have been amassing troops since 2020 and carried out aggression in the garb of an exercise after which the Indian security forces retaliated in equal measure and checked the Chinese aggression there. The Indian Air Force is also continuing to maintain its assets in Leh along with a massive upgrade of capabilities in the area. (ANI)

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Modi Dhami

Dhami Gifts Modi A Traditional Brahma Kamal Carved Cap

By LokMarg

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday left for the national capital from Jolly Grant airport in Uttarakhand after his two-day long visit to the state.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami gifted PM Modi famous sweets from Almora and a cap with a Brahma kamal flower embossed on it.

During his visit to the state, PM Modi pitched for the Vocal for Local initiative and appealed to people, especially tourists to spend their money on locally-made products.

In his address at a public event in Badrinath’s Mana, the last village bordering China, PM Modi said that every village located in the border areas will be now considered as the first village of India.

PM Modi also attended the ‘Saras Mela’ in Mana village and interacted with the local artisans and visited the stalls in the Mela.

On the occasion, Prime Minister Modi also laid the foundation stone for road widening projects worth around Rs 1,000 crore.

According to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the two road widening projects – from Mana to Mana Pass (NH07) and from Joshimath to Malari (NH107B) – shall be another step towards providing last-mile all-weather road connectivity to our border areas. Apart from boosting connectivity, these projects will also prove beneficial from a strategic point of view as well.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after offering prayers to Lord Shiva in Badrinath, reviewed the progress of development work of the riverfront here.

Before arriving in Badrinath, PM Modi visited Kedarnath Dham in Rudraprayag and offered prayers donning a traditional pahadi outfit, Chola Dora, that was gifted to him by Himachali women during his tour to the state.

PM Modi arrived at Jolly Grant airport in Dehradun earlier in the day and was received by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Governor Lt Gen (Retd) Gurmeet Singh.

He later laid the foundation stone of the Kedarnath ropeway project and after that visited the Adi Guru Shankaracharya Samadhi Sthal and also reviewed the progress of development works along Mandakini Asthapath and Saraswati Asthapath.

PM Modi then interacted with the construction workers engaged in the Kedarnath Dham development project.

In Kedarnath, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for a ropeway project, which will be around 9.7 km long and will connect Gaurikund to Kedarnath, thus reducing the travel time between the two places from 6-7 hours at present to only about 30 minutes.

This ropeway is estimated to cost Rs 2,430 crore.

The Hemkund ropeway will connect Govindghat to Hemkund Sahib. It will be around 12.4 km long and will reduce the travel time from more than a day to only about 45 mins. This ropeway will also connect Ghangaria, which is the gateway to Valley of Flowers National Park, said the PMO statement.

The ropeways, which will be developed at a cumulative cost of around Rs 2,430 crore, are an environmentally friendly mode of transport that will provide a safe, secure, and stable mode of transport. This major infrastructure development will give a boost to religious tourism, which will give a fillip to the economic development in the region and lead to the creation of multiple employment opportunities as well.

PM Modi will now visit Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh on the eve of Diwali to celebrate the Deepotsav festival here. (ANI)

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Kuwait Saves Itself From Falling Into Guanxi Trap

By LokMarg

Kuwaiti government seems to have understood the Chinese Guanxi trap which is synonymous with bribery and corruption in China.

But its latest move of excluding Chinese-sponsored Beijing Enterprises Water Group (BEWG) from Al-Mutla’s waste water purification plant shows that the country is rectifying its past mistakes.
According to Financial Post, Guanxi is a system of mutually beneficial relationships that works as a lubricant for the wheels of the business transaction and is often synonymous with bribery and corruption in China.

Recently, Kuwait’s Ministry of Public Works disqualified the BEWG’s tender for setting up a wastewater treatment plant for Al-Mutla’s sewage station. Kuwaiti Public Works administration said that the reason behind the disqualification of BEWG’s bid was based on the ground that it was earlier involved in bribing the officials to secure the Umm Al Hayman project.

After this revelation, Kuwait’s crown prince Sheikh Al-Ahmed has directed investigative agencies to nab those involved in maladministration and misdeeds, reported Financial Post.

Financial Post reported citing the ministry of Public Works’ report that the Chinese companies are indulging in malpractices for gaining an advantage to win contracts in Kuwait.

China-sponsored companies participating in Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects are another manifestation of Beijing’s malafide intentions. There are widespread instances of bribery with a reported 60-85 percent of Chinese firms paying bribes to secure projects under BRI. Chinese firms are known offenders of peddling influence.

Apart from payments to lower-level bureaucrats, there have also been several notable scandals involving senior political figures receiving illegal gratification from Chinese companies, reported Financial Post.

Chinese companies are the least transparent as per Financial Post citing Transparency International’s study in 2019 based on 100 firms in 15 emerging markets. Poor business practices including delays in the completion of projects are endemic to BRI projects. Numerous Chinese firms have been debarred from World Bank and multilateral development banks for fraud and corruption including inflating costs to give bribes.

Kuwait is not the line example. In Malaysia and Kenya also the Chinese government used its Guanxi trap to gain advantages in the contracts.

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s ouster in May 2018 was linked to Chinese projects under BRI. China poured out the money into Malaysia’s state development fund 1 Malaysia Berhad, known as 1MDB, by inflating the cost of infrastructure projects, Financial Post reported citing Wall Street Journal.

In exchange, China received the freedom of access to major national rail and port projects in Malaysia. Whereas in Kenya, the prosecution of Chinese officials on corruption charges showed that to bypass the systemic procedure, China employed illegitimate tactics. Kenya is facing unimaginable debt resulting from a railway project that has exceeded its budget and yielded unexpectedly low results.

These case studies corroborate the widely held beliefs that China exploits countries to provide impetus to its BRI projects. To build infrastructure projects in other countries, the interested party naturally needs to go through sets of official procedures of the recipient country. However, to bypass these procedures, China indulges in corrupt practices and executes projects abroad through unsavory means, according to Financial Post. (ANI)

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