(Washington, DC — March 1, 2014) Radio Free Asia broadcast the following stories, and more, in February:
RFA Reports on authorities barring lawyer from meeting jailed Uyghur scholar, wife
Feb. 28 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on Chinese authorities barring detained Uyghur scholar Ilham Tohti's lawyer from meeting with Tohti or his wife.
RFA Reports on North Koreans using radios after DVD crackdown
Feb. 28 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on the high demand in North Korea for miniature radios smuggled in from China. North Koreans are desperately trying to maintain contacts with the outside world following a crackdown on visual media, according to sources inside the country.
RFA Reports on Myanmar leader backing Buddhist monks’ call to “protect” faith, race
Feb. 27 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on Myanmar’s President Thein Sein asking parliament to consider enacting laws aimed at minority Muslims that would restrict interfaith marriage and religious conversion, ban polygamy, and control population growth.
RFA Reports on Cambodia threatening opposition with lawsuit for “inciting violence”
Feb. 27 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodia’s government criticizing opposition leader Sam Rainsy’s comparison of his bid to unseat Prime Minister Hun Sen to a popular movement in Ukraine. The government also threatened him with a lawsuit for allegedly inciting violence in the nation.
RFA Reports on beating of Vietnamese dissident and wife before diplomat meeting
Feb. 26 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on a prominent Vietnamese dissident and his wife being dragged from a taxi and beaten by suspected police agents. The couple was attacked on their way to meet with an Australian diplomat in Hanoi to press for the release of fellow activists detained after a police raid on the dissident’s house earlier in February.
RFA Reports on knife attack on former Hong Kong editor
Feb. 26 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on a knife attack that seriously injured the former editor of a Hong Kong newspaper whose ouster sparked press freedom protests. Police said that Kevin Lau, former editor-in-chief of the Ming Pao, was attacked by two unidentified men wielding meat cleavers in Hong Kong's Chai Wan district as he got out of his car in broad daylight.
RFA Reports on trial of prominent Vietnamese blogger
Feb. 25 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the trial of a prominent Vietnamese blogger arrested 10 months ago after he published articles critical of the government. Truong Duy Nhat was taken into custody on May 26 after police searched his home in Da Nang city in what was widely seen as part of a crackdown by authorities on online dissent in the one-party communist state.
RFA Reports on Tibetan killing self to avoid arrest in religious statue controversy
Feb. 24 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on a young Tibetan killing himself to avoid arrest over the destruction of a statue of a Buddhist “protector” deity denounced by the Dalai Lama. Tashi Tsering, 28, stabbed himself to death on Feb. 20 when police attempted to detain him in China’s Tibet Autonomous Region over the statue’s destruction six years ago.
RFA Reports on jailing of elected southern Chinese village chief amid land dispute
Feb. 24 – RFA Cantonese aired story [text in English/Cantonese] on the husband of a whistle-blowing elected village chief in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong criticizing her sentencing to a year's imprisonment on public order charges. The move, he said, was a triumph of power over law in China.
RFA Reports on Hong Kong journalists forecasting “grim future” for press freedom
Feb. 24 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on Hong Kong journalists holding a press freedom rally. With creeping restrictions and growing self-censorship to avoid Chinese authorities’ censure, journalists forecast a “grim future” for the city’s free press.
RFA Reports on Dalai Lama meeting with President Obama despite Beijing’s objections
Feb. 21 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on U.S. President Barack Obama pledging "strong support" for Tibetan traditions and human rights during talks with Tibet's exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Obama also called on Beijing to resume its long-stalled dialogue with the Dalai Lama's envoys on the prospects for greater autonomy for Tibet, supporting the Tibetan's leader's "Middle Way" approach to a solution to the Tibetan question.
RFA Reports on wife of jailed Nobel laureate denied medical parole
Feb. 20 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on Chinese authorities turning down a request by the wife of jailed Nobel peace laureate Liu Xiaobo for medical parole to seek treatment for heart problems overseas. Liu Xia, who has been held under house arrest at the couple's Beijing home since her husband's Nobel Peace Prize was announced in October 2010, requested permission to leave China to seek medical help after a hospital in Beijing refused to continue her treatment for heart disease.
RFA Reports on Lao officials beefing up security in Hmong village
Feb. 20 – RFA Lao aired story [text in English/Lao] on Lao authorities stepping up security in a northeastern province amid growing public concerns over the health and treatment of three elderly jailed ethnic Hmong men. Lao authorities have long been wary of opposition among the Hmong, many of whom say they face persecution from the government because of their Vietnam War-era ties with the United States.
RFA Reports on Laos concealing serious human rights abuses
Feb. 19 – RFA Lao aired story [text in English/Lao] on the one-party Communist government of Laos committing “serious” human rights abuses which go largely unreported due to tight political controls.
RFA Reports on claims of illegal dredging in deadly collapse in Cambodia
Feb. 19 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on authorities in Cambodia’s Kandal province searching for a family of three believed drowned after an embankment on a heavily dredged bend of the Mekong River collapsed into the water, taking their home with it. Residents claimed boats illegally dredging sand for export along the river had weakened the banks, which caused the deadly cave-in.
RFA Reports on UN envoy calling for greater trust between Myanmar government, ethnic rebels
Feb. 19 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on a U.N. envoy to Myanmar calling for greater trust between the government and ethnic armed groups ahead of a planned nationwide cease-fire agreement. Tomas Ojea Quintana, on his final visit to Myanmar as the U.N.’s special envoy for human rights in the country, said securing peace with ethnic rebels and addressing sectarian violence are crucial to reforms advocated by President Thein Sein’s administration.
RFA Reports on Cambodian opposition and ruling parties in rare agreement
Feb. 19 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodia’s opposition and ruling parties, now locked in a standoff since disputed polls in July last year, agreeing to form a joint committee to consider adopting electoral reforms. The development followed talks hailed by both sides as a breakthrough.
RFA Reports on Myanmar speaker urging charter reforms ahead of election
Feb. 18 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on Myanmar’s Parliament Speaker Shwe Mann advocating for constitutional reforms of a controversial section that deals with the military’s powers and prevents opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from becoming president. In a letter to the parliamentary committee entrusted with reform of the charter, the speaker has stressed the need for progress before future elections.
RFA Reports on Vietnam rejecting jailed government critic’s appeal
Feb. 18 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on a court in Vietnam rejecting an appeal by jailed prominent government critic Le Quoc Quan against his conviction on tax evasion charges. Hundreds of his supporters demonstrated outside the Hanoi People’s Court of Appeals in a rare mass protest in Vietnam, where the authoritarian Communist government keeps a tight lid on dissent.
RFA Reports on Secretary Kerry’s Internet freedom comments inspiring Chinese bloggers
Feb. 17 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on Chinese writers welcoming a call from visiting U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for more Internet freedom in their country. Kerry told a group of Chinese bloggers in Beijing that he would like to see more online freedom in China, prompting a sharp retort from the foreign ministry, which branded his comments as “naive.”
RFA Reports on Kim Jong Un ordering arrest of 40 entertainers linked to uncle
Feb. 15 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un ordering the jailing of 40 popular actors and actresses as part of his relentless crackdown on those closely linked to his executed uncle.
RFA Reports on Tibetan self-immolation near Kirti monastery
Feb. 14 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on a former Tibetan monk burning himself in protest against Chinese rule near Kirti monastery in Sichuan province. The incident marked the second Tibetan self-immolation protest this year.
RFA Reports on denial of care for ailing Hmong Christian leader in Vietnam
Feb. 14 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the alleged denial for medical treatment of an ailing ethnic Hmong Christian leader in Vietnam. Duong Van Minh, who is suffering from a serious kidney ailment, said that his relatives had asked about getting him treatment at several hospitals in the city, but that none of them wanted him at their facilities.
RFA Reports on mental institutionalization of Chinese who complain about ruling party
Feb. 14 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on incidents of human rights activists being institutionalized despite recent changes to China’s mental health laws. These individuals were force-fed medication, beaten, and subjected to electroconvulsive shocks in mental hospitals.
RFA Reports on new visa restrictions in Myanmar on foreign reporters
Feb. 14 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on Myanmar authorities establishing new restrictions on visas for foreign journalists working in the formerly military-ruled country. Reporters previously granted three-month visas, with the option to renew inside the country, will now be allowed to work in Myanmar for only a month, deputy information minister and government spokesperson Ye Htut told RFA’s Myanmar Service.
RFA Reports on 11 Uyghurs dead in Chinese police clash
Feb. 14 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on Chinese authorities saying that 11 people believed to be ethnic minority Uyghurs were killed when they allegedly attacked a police patrol in the latest deadly violence in northwestern China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. According to official figures, about 100 people are believed to have been killed since April last year, many of them Uyghurs accused by the authorities of terrorism and separatism.
RFA Reports on China’s Internet censors deleting Beijing pollution report
Feb. 13 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on China's Internet censors deleting online references to an official pollution report that described the capital city as nearly unfit for human habitation. The English-language tabloid Global Times newspaper, which has close ties to the ruling Chinese Communist Party, quoted one of the report's authors as saying that the media had "exaggerated" its findings.
RFA Reports on China’s media controls deepening, extending beyond borders
Feb. 12 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on China’s continuing downward spiral in media freedoms. China is also successfully exporting censorship over the border to Hong Kong, which has traditionally enjoyed a high level of press freedom.
RFA Reports on Cambodian court refusing bail to 21 arrested in strike clampdown
Feb. 11 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on a Cambodian appeals court refusing bail to 21 workers and human rights activists arrested following a deadly government crackdown on a workers’ strike in the capital in January. The ruling has prompted accusations from rights groups of political interference.
RFA Reports on Vietnamese ‘hired thugs’ firing on farmers in land dispute
Feb. 11 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the shooting of unarmed protesting farmers outside Vietnam’s capital city by a group of men hired by the developer. The farmers were holding a demonstration to reclaim rice fields, which are to be destroyed as part of a project.
RFA Reports on illegal deforestation threatening Cambodian villagers
Feb. 11 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on indigenous villagers in northeastern Cambodia’s Ratanakiri province fearing they will be displaced from their communal forest following illegal logging. The practice has reduced important natural water supplies in the area.
RFA Reports on detention of dissident after disputing father’s ‘suicide’ death
Feb. 10 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on the detention of prominent Chinese dissident Xue Mingkai, who had publicly questioned the official verdict of suicide in his father's recent death. His lawyer spoke with RFA, expressing his concerns that Xue had not been seen or heard from by friends or family.
RFA Reports on forced registration of livestock in North Korea amid low leather supplies
Feb. 7 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on households in North Korea being required to register their livestock with the authorities. They will also be required to sell the skins from their slaughtered animals to the government so the military can have more leather for soldiers’ belts and boots.
RFA Reports on jailed Uyghur scholar foreseeing detention in interview
Feb. 7 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on jailed Uyghur scholar Ilham Tohti foreseeing detention at the hands of Chinese authorities and giving Radio Free Asia a lengthy statement last year in anticipation of being denied legal representation while in jail. Tohti requested the interview be released on several conditions, including being held for a lengthy period and not seen or heard from by friends or family.
RFA Reports on Myanmar leader ordering commission to probe Rakhine violence
Feb. 7 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on Myanmar President Thein Sein appointing a commission to investigate what was described as revenge killings of at least 40 Rohingya Muslims by Buddhist mobs following the death of a policeman in western Rakhine state in January.
RFA Reports on thousands gathering to demand release of Tibetan religious figure
Feb. 7 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on thousands of Tibetans gathering at a monastery in northwestern China’s Qinghai province to appeal to religious authorities to push for the release of a popular religious figure.
RFA Reports on first Tibetan self-immolation protest this year against Beijing’s rule
Feb. 6 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on the self-immolation of a Tibetan living in northwestern China’s Qinghai province in protest against Beijing’s rule. The incident, marking the first self-immolation protest by Tibetans this year, triggered a security crackdown.
RFA Reports on North Korean military purge after leader’s uncle’s execution
Feb. 5 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on North Korea purging its military officer corps of personnel linked to leader Kim Jong Un’s executed uncle Jang Song Thaek. The massive shake-up has led to a freeze on military exercises and delayed replacement of cadres in the ruling party but raised promotion prospects for younger officers.
RFA Reports on criticism of Vietnam on rights record at United Nations review
Feb. 5 – RFA Vietnamese service aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on Vietnam coming under criticism for the harassment and jailing of bloggers and government critics during a U.N. review of its rights record in Geneva. Diplomats who had gathered for Vietnam’s Universal Periodic Review—a process each U.N. member country undergoes every four years—also condemned Vietnam’s expanded use of the death penalty and blocking of activists from traveling to Geneva for the review.
RFA Reports on Myanmar holding journalists over chemical weapons report
Feb. 4 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Myanmar] on Myanmar authorities arresting five local journalists after they published a report alleging that the country’s military is operating a secret chemical weapons factory. The four reporters and chief executive of the Yangon-based Unity journal were detained and charged with leaking state secrets in the story published in late January.
RFA Reports on Chinese security clampdown ahead of Tibetan New Year
Feb. 4 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on China deploying security forces in large numbers to a Tibetan county in western China’s Sichuan province, apparently in preparation for possible political unrest around the Tibetan New Year in March. The stationing of paramilitary police in Kardze county in Sichuan’s Kardze prefecture followed a similar deployment in the prefecture’s Draggo county in January near the second anniversary of a deadly crackdown by police on protesters.
RFA Reports on murder of Uyghur CCP representative
Feb. 3 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on the murder of a Uyghur village secretary for the ruling Chinese Communist Party. The incident, for which authorities blamed Uyghur “separatists,” came amid a spate of violence in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in recent months.
RFA Reports on murder of Cambodian journalist who exposed illegal fishing
Feb. 3 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on the beating death of a journalist in Cambodia following a series of articles he had written exposing illegal fishing. Rights groups called for an investigation amid a “widespread culture of impunity” in the country.
