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Selasa, 02 Juni 2020

'I can't be silent': Hong Kong people aim to mark Tiananmen despite ban - CNA

HONG KONG: Many Hong Kong people will find their own way to mark the 31st anniversary of Chinese troops opening fire on protesters in and around Tiananmen Square, after an annual candlelight vigil was cancelled for the first time because of the coronavirus.

The anniversary of the crackdown on the student-led democracy protests has a special poignancy this year, coming a week after Beijing gave the green light to move ahead with national security legislation for Hong Kong, which critics fear will crush freedoms in the former British colony.

"I can't be silent. If people tell me to keep silent, I won't," said office worker Daisy Lam, 52, who has attended nearly every vigil since Jun 4, 1989, with her children.

READ: Hong Kong police ban Tiananmen vigil for first time in 30 years

Former Hong Kong student leader Chan Ching-wah, 56, was in Beijing on Jun 4, 1989, and recalled the kindness of a customs officer who let him to take a bag full of photos and video of the military crackdown when he left Beijing.

"I feel like I had never left because the danger that Hong Kong is facing, the repression it's going to face is no small thing," Chan told Reuters as he held a photo of himself in Tiananmen Square.

"I hope the battle in Hong Kong won't lead to a crackdown like the one on Jun 4."

Former Hong Kong student leader Chan Ching-wah speaks to Reuters at the June 4th Museum in Hong Kong, China May 30, 2020. Picture taken May 30, 2020. REUTERS/Yoyo Chow

Fears have intensified over what many residents of Hong Kong see as Beijing's encroachment on its freedoms, and the impact of that on the city's status as a global financial hub.

Mainland and Hong Kong authorities reject criticism of the security legislation and insist the city's high degree of autonomy will remain intact under a "one country, two systems" formula.

READ: Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam accuses US of 'double standards' over protests

In past years, Hong Kong's candlelight memorials have drawn tens of thousands of people to the city's Victoria Park.

But police said this week a mass gathering would pose a serious threat to public health just as the city reported its first locally transmitted coronavirus cases in two weeks.

READ: New COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong raise concerns of local cluster

Hong Kong has banned gatherings of more than eight people to prevent the spread of the virus.

Embattled city leader Carrie Lam said on Tuesday the restrictions were not about limiting freedom and public health was also a part of national security.

Despite the ban, online forums and the organiser of the vigil have called on people to light candles to remember those who perished.

Priscilla Leung, a retired civil servant who volunteers for non-government organisations, said she would continue to inform young people about the Tiananmen crackdown, which is a taboo issue on the mainland. The anniversary is not marked by the government.

"I have already bought some electronic candle lights and I plan to light them on the streets," said Leung.

"It doesn't matter if it's one person or a few people, as long as there's fire in our hearts, we'll be able to pass on the message to the next generation."

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2020-06-02 07:08:30Z
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New COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong raise concerns of local cluster - CNA

HONG KONG: A cluster of nine coronavirus cases raised concerns in Hong Kong over renewed local transmission in a city that has been one of the most successful in keeping the pandemic under control.

The first two cases in the cluster - a husband and wife - were confirmed on Sunday. Since then four neighbours, two of the wife's work colleagues, and a fire department medical officer who had sent the woman to hospital have been confirmed to have been infected. None had been abroad recently.

"We are very concerned about this cluster of nine," Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam told her weekly news conference on Tuesday (Jun 2), before an executive council meeting.

The infected woman is a night-shift worker at a Kerry Logistics warehouse, where she labels food items imported from Britain, local media reported.

The government was expected to extend a ban on group gatherings larger than eight later on Tuesday. It was due to expire at the end of Thursday, and has been extended several times for two-week periods.

The limits on the size of gatherings prompted police to reject for the first time an application of the annual vigil tens of thousands of Hong Kong people traditionally hold in a downtown park to commemorate protesters killed in and around Beijing's Tiananmen Square 31 years ago.

READ: Hong Kong police ban Tiananmen vigil for first time in 30 years

A further extension is also likely to thwart plans for legally organising anniversary marches of the anti-government protests that started in June last year and resumed recently after Beijing announced plans to impose national security laws on Hong Kong.

Lam has repeatedly said health measures had no political motive. On Tuesday, she said they were not about "taking away people's freedom", but about protecting people, adding that public health was "also part of national security."

As of Monday, Hong Kong had reported 1,088 coronavirus cases and four deaths.

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2020-06-02 06:38:35Z
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Senin, 01 Juni 2020

Can Trump send the US military to quell violence at protests? - CNA

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Monday (Jun 1) suggested he would use federal troops to end unrest that has erupted following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man killed in police custody last week.

"If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them," Trump said during brief remarks at the White House.

READ: Trump says to send 'thousands' of troops, police to US capital's streets

READ: Trump urges crackdown on violence as US cities brace for more protests

The demonstrations have been largely peaceful, but police in some cities have used force against journalists and protesters, and protesters have clashed with police. Many US cities have set curfews.

To deploy the armed forces, Trump would need to formally invoke a group of statutes known as the Insurrection Act.

WHAT IS THE INSURRECTION ACT?

Under the US Constitution, governors generally have the authority to maintain order within state borders. This principle is reflected in a law called the Posse Comitatus Act, which generally bars the federal military from participating in domestic law enforcement.

US riot police — San Diego Police officers in riot gear and a special tactics group face off with demonstrators in downtown San Diego, California, as people gather to protest against the death of Minneapolis man George Floyd. (Photo: ARIANA DREHSLER/AFP)

The Insurrection Act, which dates to the early 1800s, creates an exception to the Posse Comitatus Act.

It permits the president to send in US forces to suppress a domestic insurrection that has hindered the normal enforcement of US law.

CAN TRUMP SEND IN TROOPS WITHOUT A GOVERNOR'S APPROVAL?

Yes. The law lays out a scenarios in which the president is required to have approval from a state's governor or legislature, and also instances where such approval is not necessary, said Robert Chesney, a professor of national security law at the University of Texas.

READ: Independent autopsy finds George Floyd died by asphyxiation, homicide

READ: Four Minneapolis policemen fired after death of unarmed black man

HAS IT BEEN INVOKED BEFORE?

Yes. The Insurrection Act has been invoked on dozens of occasions through US history. Since the civil rights movement of the 1960s, its use has become "exceedingly rare," according to a report by the Congressional Research Service.

Protest against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Long Beach — Police in riot gear are seen on an armoured vehicle during nationwide unrest following the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Long Beach, California, US on May 31, 2020. (Photo: REUTERS/Patrick T. Fallon)

The Insurrection Act was last used in 1992, when the acquittal of four Los Angeles police officers in the beating of black motorist Rodney King led to deadly riots.

CAN A COURT STRIKE DOWN TRUMP'S APPLICATION OF THE LAW?

Chesney said a successful legal challenge to Trump's use of the law was "very unlikely." Courts have historically been very reluctant to second-guess a president's military declarations, he said.

"The law, for all practical purposes, leaves this to the president with very little judicial review with any teeth," Chesney said.

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2020-06-02 04:01:48Z
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Trump, Illinois governor spar during call over get-tough talk - CNA

CHICAGO, Illinois: A conversation during which President Donald Trump urged US state governors to crack down on nationwide protests became testy on Monday when Illinois governor J B Pritzker accused Trump of making the situation worse.

Trump, who last week tweeted “when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” urged governors to get tough on disturbances following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, in police custody in Minneapolis. A white officer has been charged.

In a recording of the conference call heard by Reuters, Trump said: "You have to dominate, if you don’t dominate you’re wasting your time. They’re going to run over you, you’re going to look like a bunch of jerks. You have to dominate."

Near the end of the nearly hour-long call, Pritzker, a Democrat, challenged the Republican president.

He called some of Trump's public statements inflammatory and unhelpful to governors and mayors trying, not always with success, to keep peaceful protests from boiling over into violence and looting.

READ: Trump says to send 'thousands' of troops, police to US capital's streets

"The rhetoric that’s been coming out of the White House has been making it worse," Pritzker said on the call. "We’ve got to have national leadership in calling for calm."

"I don’t like your rhetoric much either," Trump replied, adding that Floyd's death was "horrible" and that he had spoken of it "with great compassion."

White House representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the call.

Asked about it later, Pritzker said he decided to take Trump to task after other governors failed to "call it out."

"And so I spoke out and felt that was my obligation," he said. "I don't want to dominate peaceful protesters who have legitimate grievances. I do want us to put down the situations of people destroying property or violent behavior."

Having sent 375 National Guard troops to help restore order in Chicago, Pritzker said he was activating another 250 to help local officials in other parts of the state.

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2020-06-02 01:54:24Z
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Trump announces plan to send 'thousands' of troops, police to US capital's streets - CNA

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Monday (Jun 1) said he was deploying thousands of "heavily armed" soldiers and police to prevent further protests in Washington, where buildings and monuments have been vandalised near the White House.

"What happened in the city last night was a total disgrace," he said during a nationwide address as tear gas went off and crowds protested in the streets nearby.

"I am dispatching thousands and thousands of heavily armed soldiers, military personnel and law enforcement officers to stop the rioting, looting, vandalism, assaults and the wanton destruction of property."

He denounced "acts of domestic terror" after nationwide protests against the death of an unarmed African American George Floyd in police custody devolved into days of violent race riots across the country.

"I want the organisers of this terror to be on notice that you will face severe criminal penalties and a lengthy sentence in jail," Trump said as police could be heard using tear gas and stun grenades to clear protestors just outside the White House.

READ: Trump urges crackdown on violence as US cities brace for more protests

He also called on state governors to "deploy the National Guard in sufficient numbers that we dominate the streets" before heading on foot for a photo op at the riot-damaged St John's, the two-century-old "church of the presidents" across from the White House.

He stopped in front of boarded-up windows at the yellow church, where many presidents have attended services, along with several members of his administration, including Attorney General William Barr, national security Adviser Robert O'Brien and other top aides.

As an acrid smell still hung in the air, Trump held up a Bible for cameras before walking back to the White House, but took no questions from reporters.

The president said in his White House remarks that he was mobilising all civilian and military resources "to stop the rioting and looting, to end the destruction and arson and to protect the rights of law-abiding Americans, including your Second Amendment rights" - a reference to the US constitutional protections for gun ownership.

"We cannot allow the righteous cries of peaceful protesters to be drowned out by an angry mob," Trump said, adding that the nation was gripped by "professional anarchists."

Protesters and police officers clash in the United States near the White House — Police officers clash with protestors near the White House on Jun 1, 2020 as demonstrations against George Floyd's death continue. (Photo: AFP / Jose Luis Magana)

The backlash was swift.

"What the president did today was he called out the American military against American citizens," New York governor Andrew Cuomo said on Twitter.

"He used the military to push out a peaceful protest so he could have a photo op at a church. It's all just a reality TV show for this president."

The demonstrations, largely peaceful during the day but turning violent after dark, have erupted over the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African American who died in Minneapolis police custody after being pinned beneath a white officer's knee for nearly nine minutes.

A second autopsy ordered by Floyd's family and released on Monday found that his death was a homicide by "mechanical asphyxiation," meaning some physical force interfered with his oxygen supply. The report says three officers contributed to Floyd's death.

READ: Independent autopsy finds George Floyd died by asphyxiation, homicide

"The evidence is consistent with mechanical asphyxia as the cause of death, and homicide as the manner of death," Aleccia Wilson, a University of Michigan expert who examined his body at the family's request, told a news conference.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner on Monday released details of its autopsy findings that also said Floyd's death was a homicide caused by asphyxiation.

The county report added that Floyd suffered cardiopulmonary arrest while being restrained by police and that he had arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease, fentanyl intoxication and recent methamphetamine use.

The unrest has been the most widespread in the United States since 1968, when cities went up in flames over the slaying of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr, and rekindled memories of 1992 riots in Los Angeles after police were acquitted in the brutal beating of black motorist Rodney King.

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2020-06-02 00:56:15Z
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America teeters as Trump vows to send troops to quell protest violence - The Straits Times

WASHINGTON - The United States teetered on the brink of its most serious internal conflict in decades on Monday (June 1) evening as President Donald Trump said he was “dispatching thousands and thousands of heavily armed soldiers, military personnel and law enforcement officers to stop the rioting, looting, vandalism, assaults and wanton destruction of property” in Washington DC.

He vowed to do the same in other cities if mayors and governors fail to regain control of the streets as nationwide protests entered their sixth day.

As he spoke in the Rose Garden minutes before a 7pm curfew was to come into effect, military and mounted police used tear gas and rubber bullets to push back protesters who ran helter skelter through the capital’s shuttered downtown. Explosions could be heard in the Rose Garden.

The protests were mostly peaceful - a characteristic of the demonstrations across dozens of cities in recent days since the death of George Floyd, a 56-year-old black man, while restrained in police custody in Minneapolis a week ago. A police officer had placed a knee on Floyd’s neck for several minutes.

An independent autopsy ordered by Floyd’s family and released on Monday, concluded that he died from “mechanical asphyxiation”, meaning his oxygen supply was cut off.

Derek Chauvin, the police officer who knelt on Floyd’s neck, and three others who stood by, were swiftly fired, but it took four days to charge Chauvin with third degree murder. He was arrested and on Monday transferred to a maximum security prison.

The other three officers have not been charged – a continuing source of outrage for the protesters.

The protesters have comprised not just African Americans but also to a large extent white people and also by and large young people.

They have been largely peaceful during the day, but have turned violent mostly after dark when stores and buildings have been looted and torched.

The administration blames radical left wing and anarchist groups for the destruction, which has hit several cities. State authorities have also said the violence is perpetrated by elements other than the protesters.

“In recent days the nation has been gripped by violent anarchists,” Mr Trump said. “What happened in the city (Washington) last night was a total disgrace.”

“Mayors and governors must establish an overwhelming law enforcement presence until the violence has been quelled,” Mr Trump said. “If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them.”

On Sunday night in Washington protesters set fires outside the White House and clashed with police.

There were clashes and looting overnight in a slew of other cities as well, from New York to Philadelphia to Atlanta – all of which again saw protesters gathering on Monday in defiance of curfews.

Earlier on Monday, Mr Trump told state governors in a conference call that they were weak to have lost control of the streets.

“If you don’t dominate, you’re wasting your time,” he told them. “They’re going to run over you, you’re going to look like a bunch of jerks.”

During the day Floyd’s brother, speaking in Minneapolis, called for a stop to violence.

Former President Barack Obama in a statement said: “The waves of protests… represent a genuine and legitimate frustration over a decades-long failure to reform police practices and the broader criminal justice system in the United States.

The overwhelming majority of participants have been peaceful, courageous, responsible, and inspiring.”

But he added: “The small minority of folks who’ve resorted to violence in various forms, whether out of genuine anger or mere opportunism, are putting innocent people at risk, compounding the destruction of neighbourhoods that are often already short on services and investment and detracting from the larger cause.”

Analysts see this as a pivotal moment in a country already under severe stress from the Covid-19 pandemic that has killed well over 100,000 people and crashed the economy leaving some 40 million unemployed.

That has come on top of a severely polarised, toxic political environment heading into a presidential election on Nov 3 which is seen as one of the most critical in the nation’s modern history.

“How do you tell other countries that America is a democracy to be emulated when this is what is happening on the ground in the United States?” tweeted Dr Ian Bremmer, CEO of The Eurasia Group.

“From the global perspective… the biggest problem is America’s… ability to lead by example which has been eroding for certainly a decade plus but much more quickly now. You can say it’s all about President Trump but in my view it’s a lot deeper and more structural.”

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2020-06-02 00:11:49Z
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Independent autopsy finds George Floyd died by asphyxiation, homicide - CNA

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota: Two doctors who carried out an independent autopsy of George Floyd, the black man whose death in Minneapolis police custody last week triggered nationwide protests, said on Monday (Jun 1) that he died from asphyxiation and that his death was a homicide.

The doctors also said Floyd had no underlying medical conditions that contributed to his death - and that he was likely dead before he was placed into an ambulance.

That contradicts the initial findings of the official autopsy by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner, which was cited in the court charging document against the police officer who drove his knee into Floyd's neck for several minutes.

READ: Trump urges crackdown on violence as US cities brace for more protests

Those initial findings said there was no evidence of traumatic strangulation. It also said coronary artery disease and hypertension also likely contributed to Floyd's death. The county's full autopsy report has not yet been released. Later on Monday, the medical examiner declared Floyd's death was a homicide.

"The evidence is consistent with mechanical asphyxia as cause of death and homicide as manner of death," said Dr Allecia Wilson of the University of Michigan, one of the two forensic doctors who performed an independent autopsy.

DEAD WITHIN MINUTES

Bystander video showed Floyd pleading to be let up and saying repeatedly that he couldn't breathe as a police officer Derek Chauvin kept his knee firmly pinned into Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes. Two other officers applied pressure with their knees to Floyd's back.

Chauvin, who is white and has been fired from the Minneapolis police department, was hit with third-degree murder and manslaughter charges last week.

But Dr Michael Baden, who also took part in the independent autopsy at the behest of Floyd's family, said that the two other officers' actions also caused Floyd to stop breathing.

"We can see after a little bit less than four minutes that Mr Floyd is motionless, lifeless," Baden said, adding he found no underlying health conditions in Floyd that caused his death.

Baden has worked on several high-profile cases, including the 2014 death of Eric Garner, a black man who died after being choked by police in New York City.

Baden shot down the argument that if Floyd could speak then he could breathe.

"Many police are under the impression that if you can talk, that means you're breathing. That is not true," Baden said. "I am talking right now in front of you and not taking a breath."

MORE CHARGES DEMANDED

Antonio Romanucci, one of the attorney's representing the Floyd family, said that all four officers at the scene should be facing charges, not just Chauvin.

"Not only was the knee on George's neck a cause of his death, but so was the weight of the other two police officers on his back, who not only prevented the blood flow into his brain, but the air flow into his lungs," Romanucci said. "That makes all of those officers on the scene criminally liable."

READ: Four Minneapolis policemen fired after death of unarmed black man

Ben Crump, lead attorney for the Floyd family, said the independent autopsy and video evidence make it clear that Floyd was dead while he was still lying on the street with police atop him.

"That ambulance was his hearse," he said.

Crump said the Floyd family wants to see charges lodged against all four officers who were at the scene - and for Chauvin, who kneed Floyd's neck, to be facing first-degree murder charges.

But they are also seeking an end to the violent protests that have beset the United States to end.

"George died because he needed a breath, a breath of air," Crump said. "I implore you all to join his family in taking a breath - taking a breath for justice, taking a breath for peace."

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2020-06-01 23:01:33Z
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