Hong Kong Activist Jimmy Lai Faces Security Trial After China Crackdown - Bloomberg

After more than 1,000 days in prison, the biggest target in Hong Kong’s crackdown on dissent, Jimmy Lai, will finally go on trial this week in a case closely scrutinized by Western governments.

The 76-year-old former media mogul’s expected appearance in court on Monday will offer a rare public glimpse of the democracy activist. The septuagenarian could spend the rest of his life behind bars if convicted of security crimes. He’s also facing one charge of conspiring to publish seditious information.

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2023-12-17 09:00:24Z
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Japan, ASEAN agree to boost maritime security cooperation - CNA

TOKYO: Southeast Asian and Japanese leaders agreed on Sunday (Dec 17) to boost dialogue and cooperation in "maritime security" in the face of China's growing assertiveness in the region.

Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea, a vital trade corridor, and its increased deployment of vessels and other methods to assert its claims in disputed areas have riled nations across the region as well as Washington.

Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed to "strengthen dialogue and cooperation for the maintenance of maritime security and safety, maritime order based on the rule of law, including freedom and safety of navigation and overflight and unimpeded commerce", a joint statement said after a summit in Tokyo.

Without identifying China, it said that they will "enhance maritime domain awareness as well as cooperation among coastguards and relevant law enforcement agencies, strengthen cooperation on maritime capacity building, and ensure the resolution of disputes by peaceful means, without resorting to threat or use of force in accordance with universally recognised principles of international law".

Close US ally Japan, which also has territorial and other disputes with China, is hiking defence spending and has expanded security cooperation with countries across the Asia-Pacific region.

Japan announced on Saturday it would deepen ties with Malaysia and provide 400 million yen (US$2.8 million) for "warning and surveillance" equipment.

Japan agreed last month to help the Philippines buy coastguard vessels and to supply a radar system, and the two are discussing allowing troop deployments on each other's soil.

Japan expressed "serious concern" last week about "dangerous actions" after the latest tense confrontation between Philippine and Chinese vessels at flashpoint reefs, which included a collision and Chinese ships shooting water cannons.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos said in an interview with Japan's public broadcaster NHK on Saturday "the situation in the (South) China Sea has grown more and more complicated".

His office quoted him as saying that a more assertive China posed a real challenge to its neighbours in Asia and that Manila would deepen cooperation with Tokyo, Washington and other like-minded countries by conducting joint exercises.

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2023-12-17 08:00:00Z
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I saved $20k during university while working part-time, but was the hustle worth it? - AsiaOne

For many, the dream is to retire early, which is why the Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE) movement is helpful. 

To achieve this, some people set financial goals, such as saving a specific amount of money before they hit a certain age.

In a recent YouTube video by The Woke Salaryman, co-founder and illustrator Goh Wei Choon shared how he managed to save his first $10,000. 

He did this by changing his lifestyle, paying his future self first and increasing his income potential. 

While some may feel that this sounds unrealistic or unachievable, it actually isn't. 

Before I turned 21, I had managed to save my first $20,000. 

But the road to reaching this goal was not easy and I do have some regrets. 

Becoming addicted to earning money 

Just a few months before entering university, I started work at a fashion boutique in town. 

I had been introduced to the role by a mutual friend and actually didn't have money on my mind when I accepted the job offer — I simply wanted a way to pass time before I started school. 

However, after seeing the numbers in my bank account increase over a few months, I became addicted to earning money. 

My monthly pay ranged from $800 to $1,100 per month, depending on how many days I worked. 

In hindsight, the pay wasn't much, but it felt like a lot as a pre-graduate. 

So, even after I started university, I would carve out time after school to get that bread. 

This meant rushing out of class once lessons were over just so I could catch the next bus to work. 

I didn't just work on the weekdays — I worked weekend shifts, too. 

And if my co-worker wasn't able to make it, I would eagerly offer to cover her, because that would mean I could earn a few more hours of money. 

Budget meals and a sad social life 

Even though I was drawing an income every month, I lived a very frugal life. 

Too frugal, if you ask me. 

One classic method I used to save money was to eat at home as much as possible. 

And when I had to eat out, I gave myself a pathetic budget of $5 per day. 

This meant eating the cheapest thing I could find at hawker centres or in school. 

As my job was in town, food wasn't the most affordable.

So, when I worked the later shift and had no choice but to buy dinner, I would camp for discounted sushi at the supermarket. 

On good days, I could get a eight-piece pack of maki for $2.80. 

If there wasn't sushi available, I would go to 7-Eleven and get myself one of the $2 onigiri.

Occasionally, I would treat myself to some butter chicken biryani for $3.90, and that already felt like a splurge. 

Not having much of a social life also helped my wallet quite a fair bit. 

Because I was so busy zipping off to work after school, I barely had time to make new friends or hang out with existing ones. 

This meant that I didn't need to spend much on meals or activities. 

I also rejected invitations to watch movies in cinemas because back then, the idea of spending $8 on a movie ticket felt too indulgent. Why do that when I could stream it at home for free? 

And obviously, an overseas trip with friends was not on my to do list. 

So, while my friends were having a good time jetting off to destinations like Bali and Bangkok, I was grinding away at work, saving every cent that I could. 

It wasn't entirely worth it 

Towards the end of university, I decided to stop working because I wanted to focus on my last two semesters of school. 

Immediately after, I started work at my first proper full-time job, with no breaks in between and no graduation trip. 

This was when I realised that I had shortchanged myself. 

Yes, I did have an impressive amount in my bank, probably more than most of my peers. 

But I also didn't get to experience what would have been the last few years of my schooling life. 

On top of that, I was perpetually sleep deprived and exhausted from trying to juggle so many things at once. 

[[nid:615794]]

Not to say that I shouldn't have worked while I was in university — if I could turn back the clock, I still would have done it, but differently. 

I would have been less strict with myself and allowed myself some leeway to use a portion of that money for leisure. 

I also would have worked fewer hours so I could spend more time with friends and loved ones. 

Sure, that would have meant that I wouldn't have been able to save up as much, or have taken much longer to hit the $20,000 mark. 

But all the money in the world can't buy you back time. 

And I feel that because I earned all that money in such an unhealthy way, I spent the rest of my 20s trying to make up for all that lost time by revenge travelling and spending.

This in turn, made me spiral and recklessly use up a huge chunk of all that hard-earned money. 

So, while it's good to hustle and set goals for an early retirement, you shouldn't put too much pressure on yourself to meet those goals. 

There's no point accumulating money and not spending it — have a balance and don't forget to enjoy the little things in life while you're at it. 

ALSO READ: How to save money the foolproof (and fun) way

melissateo@asiaone.com 

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2023-12-17 02:01:24Z
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Hong Kong pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai to go on trial - CNA

WORLD SHOULD "PAY ATTENTION"

The US, Britain, the European Union and the United Nations (UN) have all expressed concerns about Lai's case - which Beijing has dismissed as smearing and interference.

Lai's son Sebastien last month told AFP the case was "an opportunity for Hong Kong to show whether they are actually rule-of-law compliant".

The world "should be paying attention to my father's case, to the case of Hong Kong", he said.

The Apple Daily owner's arrest came during the rapid erosion of press freedom and political dissent in Hong Kong, with analysts saying the trial will show whether the city's courts can rule independently of Beijing.

How judges draw the line between the concepts of advocacy and collusion will be a key issue to watch, according to Georgetown University legal scholar Eric Lai.

"It is important to observe how the court would define ordinary overseas advocacy activities as a crime," he told AFP.

The case was "also worth concern in terms of fair trial and due process," he added.

"ANTI-CHINESE"

Senior Beijing and Hong Kong officials have repeatedly issued statements condemning Lai since 2019.

China's foreign affairs commissioner in Hong Kong in September accused Lai of being "an agent of the anti-Chinese forces in the United States and the West" and a secessionist.

In a post on X - formerly known as Twitter - Britain's foreign office said that Foreign Secretary David Cameron met earlier this month with Lai's son, Sebastien, "to listen to his concerns for his father".

"The UK opposes the National Security Law and will continue to stand by Jimmy Lai and the people of HK," the office said on Wednesday.

Beijing blasted the meeting as a clear sign of Britain's "malicious intentions", calling Lai "a driving force behind the chaos in Hong Kong".

Hong Kong follows a common law system due to its colonial history, but Lai's case differs from how criminal trials are usually run.

He will be tried, without a jury, by three judges drawn from a pool of jurists handpicked by Hong Kong's leader.

Lai has been jailed since Hong Kong's top court denied him bail in late 2020 - a change from the city's previous practices on pre-trial detention.

His case has been further delayed after Hong Kong authorities last year sought to bar Lai from being represented by British rights lawyer Tim Owen, citing security risks.

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2023-12-17 01:34:00Z
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How are Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea affecting global trade? - CNA

WHY IS THE RED SEA IMPORTANT?

The Red Sea has the Suez Canal at its northern end and the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end leading into the Gulf of Aden. It is a busy waterway with ships traversing the Suez Canal to bring goods between Asia and Europe.

A huge amount of Europe’s energy supplies, like oil and diesel fuel, come through that waterway, said John Stawpert, senior manager of environment and trade for the International Chamber of Shipping, which represents 80 per cent of the world’s commercial fleet.

So do food products like palm oil and grain and anything else brought over on container ships, which is most of the world’s manufactured products.

HOW ARE HOUTHI ATTACKS AFFECTING TRADE?

Some Israeli-linked vessels have apparently started taking the longer route around Africa and the Cape of Good Hope, said Noam Raydan, senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. That lengthens the trip from around 19 days to 31 days depending on vessel speed, increasing costs and adding delays, she said.

The global oil market has shrugged off the most recent attacks. Prices have fallen, and the market is more worried about weak demand in major economies.

The single biggest immediate impact of the Houthi escalation has been increased insurance costs.

The attack and attempted strikes this week show the increased threat to vessels in the Red Sea and represent a “significant impediment” to commercial shipping in the region, said Munro Anderson, head of operations for Vessel Protect, which assesses war risks at sea and provides insurance with backing from Lloyd’s, whose members make up the world’s largest insurance marketplace.

“The latest incident represents a further degree of instability facing commercial operators within the Red Sea which is likely to continue to see heightened rates across the short to medium term,” he said.

Insurance costs have doubled for shippers moving through the Red Sea, which can add hundreds of thousands of dollars to a journey for the most expensive ships, said David Osler, insurance editor for Lloyd’s List Intelligence, which provides analysis for the global maritime industry.

For Israeli ship owners, they have gone up even more — by 250 per cent — and some insurers won’t cover them at all, he said.

While shippers are applying a so-called war risk charge of US$50 to US$100 per container to customers bringing over everything from grain to oil to things you buy off Amazon, that’s a low enough fee that it should not drive up prices for consumers, he said.

Osler expects insurance costs to keep rising but said the situation would have to get a lot worse — such as the loss of several ships — to raise prices considerably and make some ship owners rethink moving through the region.

“At the moment, it’s just an inconvenience that the system can handle,” he said. “Nobody likes to be paying hundreds of thousands of dollars more, but you can live with it if you have to.”

COULD THE HOUTHIS BLOCK THE RED SEA?

Unlikely, experts say. The Houthis have no formal naval warships with which to impose a cordon, relying on harassing fire and only one helicopter-borne assault so far. Meanwhile, US, French and other coalition warships patrol the area, keeping the waterway open.

Still, the attacks are making the shipping industry nervous, and “it’s not being taken lightly”, said Stawpert of the shipping chamber. But “you’ll still see there’s an awful lot of trade going through the Red Sea because it’s such a crucial supply line for Europe and Asia”.

He noted that the Houthis' area of influence in the waterway also remains limited.

“I just don’t see there being a possibility of the Houthis shutting transport through the Red Sea,” he said. It is “simply not how the shipping industry works. It’s not how we respond to threats like this. We will do everything we can to mitigate any such threats and keep trade flowing”.

That has been on display in other conflicts like the war in Ukraine, with the closure of some parts of the Black Sea, Stawpert said.

He doesn't see a threat to shipping in general or closure of Red Sea routes, but “if that were to arise as a potentiality, I think we would see a much more robust reaction from navies in the area”.

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2023-12-17 01:11:28Z
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Israeli hostages killed mistakenly in Gaza were holding white flag - The Straits Times

JERUSALEM - Three Israeli hostages killed mistakenly in Gaza by Israeli forces had been holding up a white flag, a military official said on Dec 16, citing an initial inquiry into the incident that has shaken the country.

A soldier saw the hostages emerging tens of metres from Israeli forces on Friday in Shejaiya, an area of intense combat in northern Gaza where Hamas militants operate in civilian attire and use deception tactics, the official said.

“They’re all without shirts and they have a stick with a white cloth on it. The soldier feels threatened and opens fire. He declares that they’re terrorists. They (forces) open fire. Two (hostages) are killed immediately,” the official told reporters in a phone briefing.

The third hostage was wounded and retreated into a nearby building where he called for help in Hebrew, the official said.

“Immediately the battalion commander issues a ceasefire order, but again there’s another burst of fire towards the third figure and he also dies,” said the official. “This was against our rules of engagement,” he added.

The military on Dec 15 identified the three hostages killed in Shejaiya, an eastern suburb of Gaza City, as Mr Yotam Haim and Mr Alon Shamriz, abducted from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, and Mr Samer Talalka, abducted from nearby Kibbutz Nir Am.

Hamas militants rampaged through Israeli towns, killing 1,200 people and capturing 240 hostages on Oct 7. Israel then launched a counter-attack, during which Gaza health authorities say close to 19,000 people have been confirmed killed.

Around 300 people turned out to mourn Mr Al-Talalka, 25, at his funeral on Dec 16 in his hometown of Hura, in southern Israel.

“We had so many hopes, expectations, that he would come back to us,” his cousin, Mr Alaa Al-Talalka told Israel’s public broadcaster Kan from his Bedouin community’s mourning tent.

“We’re not going to start pointing fingers, who is guilty and who is not. It is just not the time,” Mr Al-Talalka said.

“The families are thinking only of how to bring the hostages back alive. This is the time to ask for the war to end,” he said.

More than 100 hostages remain in Gaza, held incommunicado despite Israeli calls for Red Cross access.

More than 100, women, children, teens and foreigners were released in a deal struck in late November. Others have been declared dead by Israeli authorities.

The news on Dec 15 that three had been killed by Israeli forces prompted a late-night protest outside Israel’s defence headquarters in Tel Aviv, where hostage families were expected to deliver a statement later on Dec 16.

One father said each day left families guessing whether they will be next to receive bad news.

“We’re in a kind of Russian roulette,” Mr Ruby Chen, whose son Itay is captive in Gaza, told reporters as he held up an hour glass. “Israel’s government needs to get a grip and bring back the hostages.” REUTERS

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2023-12-16 14:00:29Z
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Hamas turns Gaza streets into deadly maze for Israeli troops - CNA

JERUSALEM: The Israeli army's death toll in Gaza is already almost twice as high as during a ground offensive in 2014, a reflection of how far it has pushed into the enclave and of Hamas' use of guerrilla tactics and an expanded arsenal.

Israeli military experts, an Israeli commander and a Hamas source described how the Palestinian group has used a big weapons stockpile, its knowledge of the terrain and a vast tunnel network to turn Gaza's streets into a deadly maze.

At their disposal, they have arms ranging from drones rigged with grenades to anti-tank weapons with powerful twin charges.

Since Israel's ground campaign began in late October, about 110 Israeli soldiers have been killed as tanks and infantry thrust into the cities and refugee camps, based on official Israeli figures. About a quarter were tank crew.

That compares with 66 in the 2014 conflict, when Israel launched a more limited three-week ground incursion, but the goal then was not to eliminate Hamas.

"There is no comparing the scope of this war to 2014, when our forces mostly operated no deeper than a kilometre inside Gaza," said Yaacov Amidror, a retired Israeli major-general and former national security adviser who is now at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA).

He said the army "has yet to find a good solution for the tunnels", a network hugely expanded in the past decade.

Israel's offensive was launched after the Oct 7 rampage by Hamas gunmen who Israel said killed 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostage - some of them now freed.

Since the war began, close to 19,000 people have been killed in Gaza, sparking international demands for a ceasefire and even calls from Israel's staunch ally the United States for a shift in strategy and more precise strikes.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday Israel would wage war "until absolute victory". Israeli officials have said it could take months before being complete.

"It has been a challenge from day one," Ophir Falk, foreign policy adviser to Netanyahu, told Reuters, saying the offensive had come with a "huge price" in Israeli soldiers.

"We know that we're going to probably have to pay an additional price to complete the mission."

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2023-12-16 09:36:00Z
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