(Washington, DC — July 1, 2017) Radio Free Asia broadcast the following stories, and more, in June:
RFA Reports on sentencing of Vietnamese blogger Mother Mushroom
June 29 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the sentencing of well-known Vietnamese activist and blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, also known as Mother Mushroom. She has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for “spreading propaganda against the state” through her Facebook posts and interviews with U.S. news services.
RFA Reports on Myanmar officials charging three journalists under colonial-era law
June 28 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Burmese] on Myanmar officials charging three detained Myanmar journalists under a colonial-era law in Thibaw due to covering an event hosted by armed militia in northern eastern Shan state.
RFA Reports on Cambodian authorities monitoring activist monks
June 27 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodian authorities monitoring a group of activist monks who were protesting to release one of their monks jailed over a weapons arrest.
RFA Reports on Vietnam stripping French-Vietnamese professor of citizenship
June 25 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the Vietnamese government stripping the citizenship of French-Vietnamese professor and former political prisoner Pham Minh Hoang. The authorities’ move means Hoang will have to leave the country against his will.
RFA Reports on US vowing accountability for North Korea in student’s death
June 20 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on U.S. President Trump responding to the death of Ohio college student Otto Warmbier, pledging to hold North Korea accountable.
RFA Reports on continuing concerns in Tibetan community over Dalai Lama succession
June 19 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama announcing that he is in excellent health and is cancer-free. Concerns remain, however, over China naming his eventual successor.
RFA Reports on China dismissing treaty with UK two decades after Hong Kong handover
June 16 – RFA Mandarin and Cantonese services aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on China’s President Xi Jinping dismissing the handover treaty which promised Hong Kong continued freedoms, leading to protests on the streets by pro-democracy activists.
RFA Reports on Chinese police warning jailed Chinese rights lawyer’s family
June 16 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] on Chinese authorities warning jailed Chinese human rights lawyer, Jiang Tianyong’s family after they issued an official statement against Chinese police. Jiang Tianyong has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the crime of “subversion of state power.”
RFA Reports on clashes between Myanmar army and ethnic rebels in Kachin region
June 16 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Burmese] on government troops fighting rebel militias in northern Myanmar’s Kachin State, forcing workers and residents to be evacuated. Thousands have moved and are temporarily staying in Christian churches or Buddhist monasteries or are returning to other parts of Myanmar.
RFA Reports on Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen mocking former opposition party leader Sam Rainsy
June 15 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen calling on exiled former opposition party leader Sam Rainsy to return to Cambodia to face a criminal conviction.
RFA Reports on fining Uyghurs for violating Chinese policy on Ramadan
June 14 – RFA Cantonese aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on 100 Muslim Uyghurs being punished for breaking the Chinese government’s policies on Ramadan in Kashgar and Hotan. Many pay a fine of 500 yuan or are sent to compulsory reeducation classes aimed at opposing religious extremism.
RFA Reports on a Lao agriculture company running a pyramid scheme
June 14 – RFA Lao aired story [text in English/Lao] on an agriculture company running a pyramid scheme in Laos. The PS Agriculture company defaulted vast sums owed to stakeholders and currently owes investors around 100 million kip (U.S. $12.1 million).
RFA Reports on Burmese demolition sparking evictions and strife
June 13 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Burmese] on a shantytown demolition in Yangon resulting in protests and unrest. About 200 Myanmar police officers and 1,000 others hired by the Yangon government, evicted hundreds of settlement residents and dismantled about 4,000 illegal homes along the Yangon Naypyidaw Expressway.
RFA Reports on detention of Hoa Hao Buddhists
June 12 – RFA Vietnamese aired story [text in English/Vietnamese] on the house arrest of several members of an unsanctioned sect of Hoa Hao Buddhism in Vietnam. They were denied access to social media as they mark the 78th anniversary of their religion’s founding and were guarded by unidentified men they believe were hired by local authorities.
RFA Reports on Chinese authorities accusing Taiwan and Hong Kong lawmakers for collusion
June 12 – RFA Cantonese aired story [text in English/Cantonese] on Chinese authorities accusing Taiwan and Hong Kong lawmakers for colluding over political independence. Beijing threatens to invade Taiwan if Taiwan seeks formal independence from Mainland China.
RFA Reports on Chinese police mistreating Chinese activist Li Xiaoling in jail
June 9 – RFA Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin] Chinese police mistreating rights activist Li Xiaoling who publicly commemorated the June 4, 1989 military crackdown on the Tiananmen Square student movement by wearing a T-shirt with a commemorative slogan.
RFA Reports on returning 16 Montagnard asylum seekers to Vietnam
June 8 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Cambodia returning 16 Montagnard asylum seekers who failed to meet the refugee status back to Vietnam. At least 3,000 Vietnamese Montagnards are seeking refugee status in Cambodia due to discrimination and persecution in Vietnam.
RFA Reports on Chinese authorities monitoring Uyghur homes during Ramadan
June 8 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on the Chinese government embedding Chinese authorities in Uyghur homes during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to monitor families. Local Hotan authorities also launched a campaign to prevent Uyghurs from fasting and praying.
RFA Reports on North Korea’s military offering security contracts for private business owners
June 8 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on North Korea’s military offering security contracts to private business owners in North Korea. They are contracted to guard private vehicles and goods in return for cash.
RFA Reports on North Korean police arresting a civilian on spy charges
June 7 – RFA Korean aired story [text in English/Korean] on North Korean authorities arresting Kim Seung-mo, a 61-year-old retired resident who recently visited his relatives in China on spying charges for having contact with Christians in China.
RFA Reports on jailed Cambodian analyst Kim Sok staging a hunger strike
June 6 – RFA Khmer aired story [text in English/Khmer] on Kim Sok staging a hunger strike in jail for seven days. He wants justice for the murdered popular political pundit Kem Ley.
RFA Reports on Laos-Thai cross border surrogacy issue
June 6 – RFA Lao aired story [text in English/Lao] on Lao officials ordering clinics in the capital Vientiane to shut down clinics that are using Thai women to provide illegal surrogacy services to infertile couples.
RFA Reports on Myanmar journalists banding together for press freedom
June 6 – RFA Myanmar aired story [text in English/Burmese] on more than 100 Myanmar journalists calling on the government to drop lawsuits filed against reporters under the Telecommunications Law. The journalists formed a 21-member Committee for protecting journalists and abolishing the law.
RFA Reports on China detaining 40 Tibetans over water rights clash
June 2 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on authorities in China’s Qinghai province arresting more than 40 Tibetans following a clash between villagers and police over water rights.
RFA Reports on Tibetan youth detained over Dalai Lama photo
June 2 – RFA Tibetan aired story [text in English/Tibetan] on the release of a young Tibetan who was held and questioned by police authorities for two weeks over possession of a Dalai Lama photo on his mobile device.
RFA Reports on Chinese ban on ‘extreme’ Islamic names for ethnic Uyghur babies
June 1 – RFA Uyghur aired story [text in English/Uyghur] on authorities in northwest China’s Xinjiang region introducing a ban on “extreme” Islamic names for Uyghur children and infants. Children under 16 registered with name deemed “overly religious” would be barred from the country’s registration system that gives access to health care and education.
RFA Reports on China implementing new cybersecurity law
June 1 – RFA Cantonese and Mandarin aired story [text in English/Mandarin/Cantonese] on China implementing a new cybersecurity law aimed at monitoring, defending and handling cybersecurity risks and threats from within the country or overseas. China bans social media tweets from the scene of breaking news stories to take control of internet responses.
