Top Asian News 3:42 a.m. GMT
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — The Australian government on Thursday released the wording of a referendum question that promises the nation’s Indigenous population a greater say on policies that effect their lives. Australians will vote sometime between October and December on the referendum that would enshrine in the constitution an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. An emotional Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said such a body promoting Indigenous views to the government and Parliament was needed to overcome Indigenous disadvantage. “We urgently need better outcomes because it’s not good enough where we’re at in 2023,” Albanese told reporters. Indigenous Australians from the Torres Strait archipelago off the northeast coast are culturally distinct from the mainland Aboriginal population.
NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police are searching for a separatist leader who has revived calls for an independent Sikh homeland, stirring fears of violence in northwestern Punjab state where there’s a history of bloody insurgency. Police have accused Amritpal Singh, a 30-year-old preacher, and his aides of creating discord in the state, which is haunted by the memories of an armed insurgency in the 1980s for an independent Sikh state called Khalistan. The insurgency had prompted a controversial military operation by the Indian government that killed thousands of people, according to official estimates. Authorities have deployed thousands of paramilitary soldiers to the state and suspended mobile internet services in some areas to prevent unrest, Sukhchain Singh Gill, the inspector general of police for Punjab, said Wednesday.
MOSCOW (AP) — It was a revealing moment during Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s tightly scripted visit to Moscow: Standing in the doorway of the Grand Kremlin Palace, he told Russian President Vladimir Putin that the two of them were “witnessing the changes that haven’t been seen in more than a century, and we are pushing them together.” “I agree,” Putin responded. The remarks — caught on a Kremlin camera over a bodyguard’s shoulder — offered a rare glimpse into Xi’s ambitions and his relationship with Russia after more than a year of fighting in Ukraine. While Moscow increasingly looks like a junior partner to Beijing, Xi is likely to offer a strong lifeline to Putin, his key partner in efforts to reshape the world to try to limit U.S.
BEIJING (AP) — China on Wednesday said President Xi Jinping’s just-concluded visit to Russia was a “journey of friendship, cooperation and peace,” and again criticized Washington for providing military support to Ukraine. The trip that ended Wednesday signaled no new progress in ending the bloody conflict between Russia and Ukraine while shoring up President Vladimir Putin’s standing amid growing efforts to isolate him and his government internationally. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin reiterated China’s claims that it remains neutral in the conflict and said it had “no selfish motives on the Ukraine issue, has not stood idly by ... or taken the opportunity to profit itself.” “What China has done boils down to one word, that is, to promote peace talks,” Wang said at a daily briefing.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping just concluded a three-day visit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a warm affair in which the two men praised each other and spoke of a profound friendship. It’s a high point in a complicated, centuries-long relationship during which the two countries have been both allies and enemies. Chinese and Russian states have loomed large in each other’s foreign affairs since the 17th century, when two empires created a border with a treaty written in Latin. Neighbors can be good friends, or bitter rivals. Sharing a border of thousands of miles, Beijing and Moscow have been both.
WASHINGTON (AP) — TikTok is ramping up a public relations campaign to fend off the possibility of a nationwide ban by the Biden administration, and it’s bringing some unconventional advocates to help: online influencers. Dozens of TikTok creators — some with millions of followers on the video-sharing app — came to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to lobby in favor of the platform, one day before lawmakers are slated to grill the company’s chief executive about concerns over user data falling into the hands of the Chinese government. Shou Zi Chew plans to tell Congress on Thursday that TikTok, which was founded by Chinese entrepreneurs, is committed to user safety, data protection and security, and keeping the platform free from Chinese government influence.
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday defended his decision to allow a larger United States military presence in the country as vital to territorial defense despite China’s fierce opposition and warning that it would “drag the Philippines into the abyss of geopolitical strife.” The Marcos administration announced in early February that it would allow rotating batches of American forces to indefinitely stay in four more Philippine military camps in addition to five local bases earlier designated under a 2014 defense pact of the longtime treaty allies. Marcos said the four new sites would be announced soon and they include areas in the northern Philippines.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Millions of Muslims in Indonesia are celebrating the holy month of Ramadan that was set to begin Thursday as many grappled with soaring food prices as a result of supply disruptions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. From colorful torchlight street parades to cleaning relatives’ graves and sharing meals with family and friends, every region in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country and the largest archipelago has its own way to mark the start of Ramadan. Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas announced on Wednesday evening that Ramadan will begin on Thursday after the sighting of the crescent moon was confirmed by Islamic astronomy observers teams from several regions.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Muslim holy month of Ramadan began at sundown on Wednesday, as the faithful prepared for a month of dawn-to-dusk fasting intended to bring them closer to God and to remind them of the suffering of those less fortunate. For the next 30 days, Muslims will refrain from eating or drinking anything — even the tiniest sip of water — from sunrise to sunset. Many will strictly observe prayers, read the Quran and donate to charity as they seek to draw closer to God. Family and friends will gather for joyful nightly feasts. This year many will struggle to afford holiday treats amid soaring prices fueled in part by the war in Ukraine.
BANGKOK (AP) — Thai police said Wednesday they busted an international gang that operated call centers to deceive older Americans into wiring them money, netting more than 3 billion baht ($87 million). Police said they arrested 21 suspects Tuesday after raiding nine locations in four Thai provinces, seizing 162 bank accounts, 61 mobile phones, two cars, one gun, and multiple real estate properties. Another Thai suspect was arrested Wednesday. U.S. agents took part in the raids. The suspects, including five Indian nationals and 15 Thais, have been charged with involvement in transnational crime, fraud by impersonating others, fraud of the people, inputting false information into computer systems that causes damage to others, money laundering and conspiring to launder money.