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Human rights

Human rights
Latest news, features and analysis on human rights, with a focus on civil liberties in Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia.
The US House of Representatives approved a slate of bills on Monday focused on China-related issues. Photo: AFP
US-China relations

US House passes China bills on issues from economic espionage to human rights

Representatives also move to strengthen US ties with Taiwan and approve legislation to sanction officials involved in Falun Gong abuses.

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US immigration

Trump administration offers migrants US$1,000 to self-deport

Africa

Rwanda confirms early talks to host deported US migrants

Africa

Sudan paramilitaries launch attacks, suicide drones on Port Sudan

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have increased their use of drones since losing territory including much of the capital Khartoum.

Members of the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in 2023. Photo: AFP
United States

Opinion | Trump’s unpredictability and a fractured US are a dangerous mix

As Trump erratically escalates trade tensions with China and the Global South, his domestic behaviour only adds to geopolitical uncertainty.

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US-China relations

Opinion | US tariffs a wake-up call for China to improve labour standards

If China’s export competitiveness remains reliant on lowering its labour standards, the US and others will continue their trade-restrictive policies.

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China-EU relations

Deal or no deal? EU engages US, China on high-wire bargaining act

Europe must navigate between the two powers, knowing that cutting an economic deal with one could make it impossible to do so with the other.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping meets European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Beijing in April 2023. The EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) has been frozen at the ratification stage by the European Parliament. Photo: Xinhua
Donald Trump

US judge bars Trump’s use of wartime law to deport Venezuelans

Ruling marks the biggest setback yet for Trump to deport suspected gang members under the rarely used Alien Enemies Act.

Thailand

Thai prosecutors drop royal insult charge against US academic

The long-time Southeast Asia politics scholar in Thailand was arrested last month under the kingdom’s strict lèse-majesté laws.

India

India probes snake in school lunch after 100 children fall sick

The food was served to children after the cook removed a dead snake from it, according to a rights commission’s report.

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Free lunches are offered to millions of children in government schools throughout India, seen by authorities as a way to encourage children to continue their education. Photo: AP
US-China relations

Opinion | US-China trade war has left ordinary people stuck in the middle

The implication that Chinese people’s aspirations for prosperity must be curtailed to preserve American primacy is deeply problematic.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
Middle East

Iran hangs man as ‘high ranking’ Israeli spy after trial

Mohsen Langarneshin was implicated in the killing of Guards colonel Sayyad Khodaei, who was gunned down in May 2022.

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Israel-Gaza war

Amnesty accuses Israel of ‘live-streamed genocide’ against Gaza Palestinians

Israel has rejected accusations of genocide from Amnesty International, other rights groups and some states in its war in Gaza.

Britain

UK to stop foreign sex offenders receiving refugee protections

‘Sex offenders who pose a risk to the community should not be allowed to benefit from refugee protections in the UK,’ interior ministry said.

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer, left, and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. Photo: PA via AP
US immigration

US Republicans propose charging asylum seekers US$1,000 per application

Republicans also want to impose a giant fee of US$8,500 for anyone wanting to sponsor a child to get them out of federal custody.

Migrants make their way to a Border Patrol van after crossing illegally and waiting to apply for asylum, in San Diego, California, US. Republicans on Monday proposed charging asylum seekers US$1,000 per application. Photo: AP
US-China relations

Trump’s immigration crackdown chills speech of foreign students, scholars in US

Critics say ‘America is shooting itself in the foot’ as many of the country’s brightest minds rethink their long-term investment.

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US immigration

More than 100 immigrants detained at Colorado nightclub

President Trump’s administration has launched a widespread crackdown on immigration into the US.

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US-Asean relations

The Southeast Asians facing exile from the US to a land they’ve never known

After surviving a CIA-led war and building lives in America, Laotian migrants are now being detained and deported with little warning.

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May of those who are deported to Laos from the US have no family ties or support networks in the country. Photo: Getty Images
Israel-Gaza war

Hamas says open to releasing all hostages for 5-year Gaza truce

The militants have consistently demanded that a deal must lead to the war’s end, full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a surge in aid.

United States

ICE deports 2-year-old US citizen and mother of 1-year-old infant

The cases come amid a court battle over whether Trump’s immigration crackdown has gone too far at the expense of fundamental rights.

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Israel-Gaza war

UN’s WFP says all Gaza food stocks depleted amid Israel’s aid block

The World Food Programme says its kitchens are expected to ‘fully run out of food in the coming days’.

Palestinians receiving food from a charity kitche in Jabalia, Gaza. The UN’s World Food Programme says it has depleted its food stocks. Photo: EPA-EFE
Bangladesh

Exclusive | Bangladesh’s new leader dreams big, with a little help from China

A popular revolt that ousted the kleptocratic Sheikh Hasina thrust Muhammad Yunus, 84, into power. Now he’s looking to China for help.

Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus. Illustration: Huy Truong
Africa

‘We’re suffering’: UN to reduce food help to Sudan over huge cash shortfall

Seven million people are at risk, with the agency saying it has a shortfall of US$698 million out of the nearly US$800 million it needed to cover May to September.

China-EU relations

EU stays the course on Xinjiang sanctions as China eases up on bloc’s lawmakers

European Union’s diplomatic arm says no plans to reciprocate Beijing’s overture as it has not observed improvements in far western region.

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Vietnam

Southeast Asians in Los Angeles detained, deported at routine ICE check-ins

Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese immigrants are now facing enforcement of long-stayed deportation orders as the Trump administration boosts deportations.

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An ICE Field Office Director in Los Angeles. Southeast Asian immigrants in the city face deportation after years of indefinite stays. Photo: TNS
United States

US opposition to Trump has mobilised, but is it enough to slow his agenda down?

Anger has led to massive marches and confrontations with Republicans, but analysts question whether the movement poses a serious challenge.

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
Vietnam

Vietnam targets social media users in ‘crackdown’ on dissent: rights group

Human Rights Watch reports ordinary social media users now face jail for criticising the state under Article 331.

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El Salvador

El Salvadore’s Bukele suggests prisoner swap with Maduro for Venezuela deportees

Proposal comes as El Salvador has come under international scrutiny for accepting Venezuelans and Salvadorans deported by the US.

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