Teenager who set dog on fire in Johor eludes public caning after High Court overturns sentence - CNA

JOHOR BAHRU: The Johor Bahru High Court has overturned a caning sentence for an 18-year-old teenager who was charged for animal abuse and setting a dog on fire.

Braden Yap Hong Sheng was sentenced by the Johor Bahru Sessions Court in April to receive seven strokes of light caning and be placed on a good behaviour bond for one year with a surety of RM10,000 (US$2,200). The caning was due to be carried out on Sunday (May 21) in court. 

However, on Sunday morning, High Court Judge Abu Bakar Katar ruled that the caning sentence be overturned but upheld the 1-year good behaviour bond.

He said that the sentence was overturned based on the wording of Section 293 of Malaysia's Criminal Procedure Code (CPC). 

The judge explained that according to the CPC, a male youth offender convicted of any offence may be whipped with a light cane within the court premises instead of awarding any term of imprisonment or good behaviour bond - but not both. 

Speaking to reporters after the High Court ruling, Yap’s lawyer G K Sritharan confirmed that his client would now only serve the 1-year good behaviour bond.

“We were summoned by the High Court this morning by Justice Abu Bakar and we were informed of the judgement,” said Mr Sritharan. 

“So (my client) should not get involved in any offences in the future, especially so for the next 12 months,” he added. 

Mr Sritharan also said that his client’s hand was fractured during the incident with the dog and that caning could inflict further injury. 

“One arm was already broken and he has not recovered fully from it. And to inflict harm on him now may be too harsh, I don’t know,” said Mr Sritharan. 

“Of course, the (overturning of the caning sentence) will make this case viral again - they will say ‘it’s not fair’ etc, but it will be ok. My client can go on with his life,” he added. 

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2023-05-21 04:15:46Z
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At G7, Japan and Germany want a rethink on the 'Global South' - CNA

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said international organisations need to change as the world has.

"Any functioning international order must reflect the multipolar character of the world," he said on Monday in Berlin.

"The uni- or bipolar world of yesterday may have been easier to shape - at least for the powerful," he added. "But it is no longer the world we live in."

The initiative comes as Japan and other G7 members try to engage the Global South, as the G7 nations struggle to stay relevant amid growing Chinese influence in developing countries.

The G7's economic clout has also shrunk. The G7 economies accounted for 29.9 per cent of global GDP in 2023, down from 50.7 per cent in 1980, according to the International Monetary Fund.

Japan's Kishida has said his country's role is to bridge the gap between the G7 and the Global South in areas such as energy and food security.

Tokyo announced a new security aid programme this year, the Overseas Security Aid, which will provide military equipment to help developing countries bolster security with an eye on countering Chinese pressure, a Japanese official said.

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2023-05-20 14:40:00Z
2016045828

G7 leaders agree to new initiative to fight economic coercion - CNA

TOKYO : Group of Seven leaders on Saturday (May 20) agreed to a new initiative to counter economic coercion, and pledged action to ensure that any actors attempting to weaponise economic dependence would fail and face consequences.

The initiative, dubbed Coordination Platform on Economic Coercion, will use early warning and rapid information sharing on economic coercion with members meeting regularly for consultations, the leaders said in a statement.

"The world has encountered a disturbing rise in incidents of economic coercion that seek to exploit economic vulnerabilities," the G7 leaders said in a statement following a meeting in Hiroshima, Japan.

The statement did not identify China, but in details released on Friday that outlined the proposed initiative, the British government pointed to attempts by China to use its economic power in political disputes with Australia and Lithuania.

In a statement posted Saturday on its website, China's embassy in Britain warned the G7 countries that any words or deeds harming Beijing's interests would be met with "firm and resolute countermeasures".

The G7 statement also committed the leaders to deepen cooperation on hardening supply chains and called for a bigger role for lower income countries in promoting economic resilience.

They urged all nations to adhere to principles of "transparency, diversification, security, sustainability, and trustworthiness and reliability" in building supply chain networks.

The group also agreed to deepen cooperation in information sharing as it looks to establish new standards for next generation technologies. 

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2023-05-20 08:32:06Z
2016045828

'War is not an option', Taiwan president says amid China tensions - CNA

TAIPEI: Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen vowed on Saturday (May 20) to maintain the status quo of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait amid high tensions with China, which has stepped up military pressure on the democratically governed island.

Taiwan will not provoke and will not bow to Chinese pressure, Tsai said in a speech in the presidential office in Taipei marking the seventh anniversary of her governance.

China, which considers Taiwan as its own and threatens to bring the island under its control if necessary, has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure to force the island to accept Chinese sovereignty since Tsai took office in 2016.

Beijing has rebuffed calls for talks from Tsai, regarding her as a separatist. Tsai has repeatedly vowed to defend Taiwan's freedom and democracy.

"War is not an option. Neither side can unilaterally change the status quo with non-peaceful means," Tsai said. "Maintaining the status quo of peace and stability is the consensus for both the world and Taiwan."

"Although Taiwan is surrounded by risks, it is by no means a risk maker. We are a responsible risk manager and Taiwan will stand together with democratic countries and communities around the world to jointly defuse the risks," she said.

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2023-05-20 02:59:26Z
CBMiVGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNoYW5uZWxuZXdzYXNpYS5jb20vYXNpYS90YWl3YW4tdHNpLWluZy13ZW4tY2hpbmEtd2FyLW5vdC1vcHRpb24tMzUwMjU2NtIBAA

China can help Central Asian ‘brethren’ to unite, Xi Jinping tells Xian summit - South China Morning Post

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1. China can help Central Asian ‘brethren’ to unite, Xi Jinping tells Xian summit  South China Morning Post
2. LIVE: Chinese President Xi Jinping Holds Welcome Ceremony At The 2-day China-central Asia Summit  CNN-News18
3. China's Xi unveils grand development plan for Central Asia  CNA
4. Xi makes clear China is ready to take its place in new world order  South China Morning Post
5. China's Xi unveils grand development plan with Central Asia allies  The Straits Times
6. View Full coverage on Google News

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2023-05-19 04:50:45Z
2014324701

'I have nothing now': Indonesians fall prey to fake shaman 'magic money' scams - The Straits Times

KARAWANG – Indonesian mother-of-three Aslem was a domestic worker in Dubai when she started wiring cash to a self-professed shaman, believing that he would honour his promise to magically multiply her hard-earned wages.

But she returned home last year penniless and in shock, saying she had been swindled out of her life savings by a trickster who now faces trial for his complex scams, and charges of murdering nine of his victims.

“I have nothing now,” Ms Aslem, 42, told AFP from her cramped, dilapidated house in a remote village in Karawang, West Java.

“I wanted to renovate this small house my parents left me. I wanted to make them happy... I didn’t manage to do that until the day they died.”

In Muslim-majority Indonesia, where nearly 10 per cent of the population live below the poverty line, some view shamans as traditional healers.

Ms Aslem is one of several Indonesians who say they were scammed by people claiming to be spiritual figures, promising to turn small investments into immense wealth.

Police say some alleged scammers turn to violence when their victims come looking for their money. The scams have circulated widely on Indonesian social media.

Just two dozen Facebook posts advertising so-called shaman investment schemes were viewed more than 1.4 million times as of this week, according to AFP.

One post, viewed 643,000 times from April 8 to May 17, claimed a Muslim sheikh would help people multiply their funds, and that the service did not violate the tenets of Islam.

AFP reporters contacted a WhatsApp number associated with one of the posts and were told to send photos of their identity cards to determine eligibility for the “magic money” scheme.

Eye-watering sums

After she moved to Dubai in 2016, Ms Aslem said she began talking to a man her friend had recommended, who claimed he was a Javan shaman named Aki Banyu.

Ms Aslem, who now sells snacks from her porch, recalled the first meeting with the man on a 2019 trip home.

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2023-05-19 03:05:00Z
2046120719

China's Xi unveils grand development plan with Central Asia allies - CNA

XIAN: China's President Xi Jinping on Friday (May 19) unveiled an ambitious plan to help elevate Central Asia to the next level of its development - from building infrastructure networks to boosting trade - while shunning "external interference" at the same time.

China stands ready to synergise development strategies with the five Central Asian nations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and make joint efforts to promote the modernisation of all six countries, said Xi in an address at the China-Central Asia Summit in northwest China.

"The world needs a Central Asia that is stable, prosperous, harmonious, and well-connected," Xi said.

At the same time, the six countries should oppose "external interference" in the internal affairs of regional countries and attempts to instigate "colour revolutions", and maintain a zero-tolerance stance against terrorism, separatism and extremism, Xi warned.

"China is ready to help Central Asian countries improve their law enforcement, security, and defense capability construction," Xi said.

The two-day summit in the historic Silk Road city of Xian has been portrayed by Chinese state media as a triumph of China's regional diplomacy, with the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan earlier pledging support for Beijing and vowing deeper bilateral cooperation.

The display of solidarity from China's Central Asian neighbours is expected to contrast sharply with the "negative" image of Beijing to be presented at the summit of Group of Seven leaders in Hiroshima over the weekend.

The high-profile expression of trust by China's neighbours will serve to counter US accusations of Beijing's coercive diplomacy. Xi's gathering of five heads of state on Chinese soil without Russian President Vladimir Putin also ostensibly pulls Central Asia closer to the Chinese sphere of influence as Moscow's focus remains locked on the war in Ukraine.

China and Central Asian countries should deepen strategic mutual trust, and always offer "clear and strong support" for each other on issues of core interests such as those involving sovereignty, independence, national dignity and long-term development, Xi said, without mentioning war-torn Ukraine, which like the Central Asian nations, was a former Soviet state.

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2023-05-19 03:45:00Z
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