(Washington, DC — Sept. 1, 2014) Radio Free Asia broadcast the following stories, and more, in August:
RFA Reports on Tibetan exile government rejecting Beijing’s Dalai Lama claims
Aug. 31 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on the head of Tibet's government-in-exile rejecting a claim by Chinese authorities that the Dalai Lama is in talks with Beijing about possibly returning to Tibet. But Lobsang Sangay, the political leader of the India-based Central Tibetan Administration, left open the possibility of any official dialogue between the two sides aimed at bringing about a resolution to the Tibet question.
RFA Reports on two holdout Myanmar ethnic rebel groups agreeing to cease-fire deal
Aug. 29 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on two major Myanmar armed ethnic groups agreeing to enter into a nationwide cease-fire accord with President Thein Sein’s government. The United Wa State Army, the country’s largest armed rebel group, and the National Democratic Alliance Army from eastern Shan State were previous holdouts from an agreement.
RFA Reports on recycling ban of Kim Jong Un’s image in North Korea
Aug. 29 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on authorities in North Korea requiring the public to treat pictures of the nation’s leader Kim Jong Un with greater respect after printed copies of his image were found to have been submitted for a paper recycling drive. The issue came to light when some North Korean students participating in a “Kids Plan” recycling campaign submitted a huge volume of copies of a newspaper carrying a photo of Kim and his family, known as the “No. 1 Portrait.”
RFA Reports on China offering cash for Uyghur-Han marriages
Aug. 29 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on Chinese authorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region announcing cash incentives for marriages between members of ethnic minority groups and majority Han Chinese. The move drew criticism from overseas exile Uyghur groups, who called it an extension of the ruling Chinese Communist Party's policy of assimilation of the region's mostly Muslim, Turkic-speaking Uyghur group.
RFA Reports on Chinese security forces storming church, tearing down cross
Aug. 28 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on authorities in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang dispatching more than 1,000 security personnel to remove a cross from a Christian church building. The authorities beat back the protesters, with a number of injuries reported in the process, and succeeded in bringing down the cross.
RFA Reports on police raiding home of Hong Kong media magnate
Aug. 28 – RFA Cantonese and Mandarin aired story [text in English/Cantonese/Mandarin] on anti-corruption police in Hong Kong raiding the home of an outspoken media magnate and pro-democracy leader. The police raid occurred amid growing fears over the erosion of press freedom and a more proactive role by Beijing officials in the city's political life.
RFA Reports on Vietnamese blogger refusing to plead for release
Aug. 28 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on prominent jailed Vietnamese dissident Nguyen Van Hai refusing to make an official application to the authorities seeking his release from prison. He insists that they explain the reasons for his initial arrest and demands to be freed without condition.
RFA Reports on sentencing of Tibetan monk at secret trial
Aug. 27 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on a Tibetan monk being sentenced to a nine-year prison term after a secret trial. Geshe Tsultrim Nyendrak, a teacher at the Rabten monastery in Driru county in the Tibet Autonomous Region’s Nagchu prefecture, had been held since December 2012 and was sentenced for his involvement in activities challenging Chinese rule.
RFA Reports on Lao activist defying authorities and building home on disputed land
Aug. 26 – RFA Lao aired story [text in English/Lao] on a Lao activist refusing to vacate land that has been tagged for a government road expansion project. Sivanxay Phommarath said she began construction of her house on the disputed plot of land in Khammouane province despite being notified by the government that the area would have to be vacated for expansion of a road near the country’s largest hydroelectric dam.
RFA Reports on pregnant Tibetan woman’s suicide after husband’s shooting death
Aug. 26 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on the suicide of the pregnant wife of a Tibetan teenager who died after being shot and detained by police during mass protests in Sichuan province. The woman apparently was distressed over the death of Jinpa Tharchin, 18, who succumbed to untreated gunshot wounds he sustained after police opened fire on protesters in the Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.
RFA Reports on North Korea stepping up inspections of Chinese-made TVs
Aug. 26 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on authorities in North Korea stepping up inspections on households with television sets imported from neighboring China. They are targeting LCD sets with USB ports and remote control functions in Pyongyang’s latest attempt to prevent citizens from accessing foreign media.
RFA Reports on Cambodian opposition party gaining key parliamentary spots
Aug. 26 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on the election of an opposition leader as deputy speaker along with 14 other Cambodia National Rescue Party lawmakers as members of key panels of parliament. The opposition party gained unprecedented power in the legislature following a political deal with Prime Minister Hun Sen.
RFA Reports on forced show of respect among Tibetans for Beijing-backed lama
Aug. 26 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on Chinese authorities in Tibet forcing villagers to turn out in large numbers to pay homage to a senior religious figure widely despised by Tibetans as a puppet of Beijing. The move came as Beijing’s handpicked Panchen Lama—Tibet’s second most-senior monk after exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama—visited monasteries in the Tibet Autonomous Region’s Shigatse prefecture.
RFA Reports on China extending detention of rights lawyers
Aug. 25 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on authorities in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou extending the criminal detention of three prominent rights lawyers on subversion charges. The extension came after they were held longer than the usual two-month period.
RFA Reports on Aung San Suu Kyi calling on writers, artists to promote democracy
Aug. 25 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi calling on the country’s writers and artists to join the push for political reforms. She said these have stalled under President Thein Sein’s administration.
RFA Reports on Hun Sen addressing Cambodia’s land grab crisis
Aug. 24 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen convening a panel to tackle the worsening problem of land grabs in the country. Nongovernmental organizations, however, claim the action falls short, saying the leader’s own policies are fueling the crisis.
RFA Reports on shooting of three Uyghur farmers
Aug. 22 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on security forces in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region shooting dead three ethnic minority Uyghur farmers suspected of terrorism. A local Uyghur leader said the three did not commit any “tangible” crimes and were rounded up for possession of knives and axes as well as religious material.
RFA Reports on Cambodian factory faintings calling into question labor conditions
Aug. 21 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on the 1,222 faintings and three deaths in garment factories in Cambodia’s key industrial zones so far this year, surpassing those reported throughout 2013. Mass faintings in Cambodia’s textile factories have garnered international attention since 2011, when nearly 300 workers fainted at a factory owned by a supplier to Swedish fashion brand H&M.
RFA Reports on Chinese state-run television airing journalist’s confession
Aug. 21 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on the release of a Chinese freelance journalist after he "confessed" to his crimes on state television. Numerous activists have criticized the growing trend of televised confessions.
RFA Reports on Chinese army evicting Mongolian herders from grazing lands
Aug. 20 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on ethnic Mongolian herders from two border areas in China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region saying they have been forced to move from traditional grazing lands. The region has been taken over by China's People's Liberation Army.
RFA Reports on Cambodia banning Khmer Krom anti-Vietnam protests
Aug. 19 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodia’s Foreign Minister Hor Nam Hong ordering the country’s embattled Khmer Krom ethnic group to suspend protests against Vietnam over a territorial dispute. Phnom Penh expressed “regret” to Hanoi over the burning of a Vietnamese flag during the demonstrations.
RFA Reports on China’s struggle to curtail illegal harvesting of organs
Aug. 19 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on China vowing to crack down on the “illegal harvesting” of organs for transplants, although organs from executed prisoners will continue to be available. Chinese hospitals are also alleged to have practiced forced organ harvesting from living prisoners, including practitioners of Falun Gong, Uyghurs, Tibetans, and house Christians.
RFA Reports on North Korea clearing proposed tourist zone of residents, businesses
Aug. 19 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on North Korean authorities forcibly resettling thousands of families and relocating businesses from the southeastern port city of Wonsan. This is being done as part of a process to convert Wonsan into an international tourism destination.
RFA Reports on denial of medical care for detained Tibetans with gunshot wounds
Aug. 18 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on a dozen Tibetan protesters being left untreated for gunshot wounds during their detention by Chinese police in Sichuan province. The situation became so acute that one of the wounded committed suicide in protest against the "torture" committed by Chinese authorities while another died of untreated wounds at the detention center in the Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.
RFA Reports on torture allegations putting spotlight on China’s ‘black jails’
Aug. 14 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on a court in the Chinese capital trying two men for the unlawful detention and injury of a petitioner from the eastern province of Anhui. The petitioner says he was tortured inside an unofficial detention center, or "black jail."
RFA Reports on son of jailed Vietnamese blogger visiting U.S. to highlight mother’s case
Aug. 14 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the son of jailed prominent Vietnamese blogger Bui Thi Minh Hang appealing to the international community on her behalf. Tran Bui Trung, 23, said that Hang’s case seemed to have “already been determined” by the one-party communist administration in Hanoi and called on foreign governments and rights groups to push for the release of his mother and other Vietnamese activists targeted for expressing dissent.
RFA Reports on harassment of Vietnamese religious group
Aug. 13 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on agents hired by Vietnamese police splashing excrement on followers of an unofficial branch of the Cao Dai minority religious movement and chaining the wheels of their motor vehicles in acts of intimidation.
RFA Reports on denial of trial evidence for lawyer of jailed Uyghur scholar
Aug. 13 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on a lawyer representing Uyghur scholar Ilham Tohti, detained on charges of separatism, saying the evidence he has been allowed to review by the prosecution so far is incomplete. Tohti, who has flatly rejected the charge of separatism, which can result in the death penalty, was dragged from his home in Beijing by dozens of police on Jan. 15 and formally arrested about a month later.
RFA Reports on mass demonstration in Myanmar over jailed farmers in land dispute
Aug. 13 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on a large group of farmers demonstrating in Myanmar’s northern Sagaing region. Farmers in Kantbalu township held posters and shouted slogans calling on the government to drop charges against more than 300 who had also protested in May against a land grab, including 60 who had been convicted of trespassing on the disputed property.
RFA Reports on Chinese textile workers clashing with police over lost wages
Aug. 12 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on hundreds of textile workers clashing with police in the central Chinese province of Hubei over loss of income after their factory halted production. More than 300 women employees of the Yinhe Jiutian Textiles Factory began a protest outside municipal government offices after management told them to "take a three-month holiday."
RFA Reports on Chinese service providers violating users’ privacy
Aug. 12 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on the common practice among Chinese digital service providers of infringing users’ privacy. Chinese mobile phone company Xiaomi claims to have removed a "loophole" in its cloud messaging software after a report showed it was secretly sending the data to a server in China without notifying users.
RFA Reports on detention of Uyghur netizens over Yarkand killings claim
Aug. 11 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on Chinese authorities detaining an ethnic minority Uyghur man for spreading "rumors" on the Web. The man alleged in an online post on an overseas website that Chinese security forces had killed thousands of people in the troubled region’s Yarkand county.
RFA Reports on North Korean smugglers shifting strategies to overcome border controls
Aug. 11 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on farm products surpassing metal goods as the preferred contraband of North Korean smugglers crossing the Chinese border. A source in North Korea’s North Hamgyong province bordering China said increased security has forced smugglers to carry goods such as medicinal herbs, which are far easier to conceal than the bulkier metal goods.
RFA Reports on campaign to release jailed Guangzhou rights lawyers
Aug. 11 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on activists across China launching a renewed campaign for the release of Guangzhou rights lawyer Guo Feixiong. Also, relatives of three other detained lawyers from the southern city took to the streets seeking their freedom.
RFA Reports on salary freeze for Lao civil servants
Aug. 8 – RFA Lao aired story [text in English/Lao] on Laos imposing a freeze on salary increases for civil servants during the new fiscal year beginning in October. Some government workers said their morale has been dampened by the state media’s announcement of the freeze on July 31.
RFA Reports on murders of Uyghur judicial official, Han businessmen in Xinjiang
Aug. 8 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on the murders of a Uyghur judicial official and five Han Chinese businessmen in separate incidents in China’s northwest. Chinese authorities have blamed “separatists” from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region for a series of attacks which have expanded in scale and sophistication over the last year.
RFA Reports on shooting at Myanmar refugee camp
Aug. 7 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on the shooting death of a Rohingya Muslim in fresh violence in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state after security forces opened fire following a dispute at a refugee camp. Local police officers told RFA’s Myanmar Service that the violence broke out when two Muslims from a neighboring village got into an altercation with another Muslim resident of the camp.
RFA Reports on sentencing of Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge leaders
Aug. 7 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on a U.N.-backed war crimes tribunal finding two top leaders of Cambodia's notorious Khmer Rouge regime guilty of crimes against humanity and sentencing them to life imprisonment. The decision was hailed by human rights groups and surviving victims.
RFA Reports on supporters of jailed Tiananmen memorial activists marching in Henan
Aug. 6 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on supporters of 10 detained anti-corruption activists taking to the streets in the central Chinese province of Henan to draw public attention to their cause. The "Zhengzhou 10" refers to a group of activists being held in connection with a memorial to mark the 25th anniversary of the 1989 crackdown on a student democracy movement.
RFA Reports on reopening of Freedom Park in Phnom Penh
Aug. 6 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodian authorities reopening Freedom Park after barricading the capital’s designated protest space for most of this year.
RFA Reports on allegations of Uyghur massacre from exile leader
Aug. 5 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on an exile Uyghur leader claiming that at least 2,000 ethnic minority Uyghurs may have been killed by Chinese security forces following riots in late July. Rebiya Kadeer, president of the World Uyghur Congress, accused the Chinese authorities of a cover-up of what she called a “massacre” of Uyghurs in Yarkand county in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region’s Kashgar prefecture on July 28.
