Fasting starts on Tuesday [NSTTV] - New Straits Times

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Fasting starts on Tuesday [NSTTV]  New Straits TimesView Full coverage on Google News
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2024-03-10 12:24:03Z
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'A perfect mess': Thailand's proposed cannabis crackdown steeped in political games and business owner anger - CNA

There appears to be clear consensus among cannabis operators that regulations are necessary for the industry to be sustainable and viable.

But they disagree with blanket bans on recreational use and “fake restrictions” such as requiring a medical certificate for purchasing the drug in future.

The draft Bill also includes a fine of up to 60,000 baht (US$1690) for recreational use, while those selling recreational cannabis or participating in the advertisement or marketing of buds, resin, extract or smoking devices face jail terms of up to a year, a fine of up to 100,000 baht, or both.

Those farming cannabis without a licence face tougher jail sentences, ranging from one to three years and fines from 20,000 baht to 300,000 baht. 

“It will be a perfect mess,” said Mr Pachara Chayavoraprapa, the chief operations officer of Buddy Group, the operator of Plantopia.

“The current regulation is that there's not really many stringent rules. It's really loose. The best scenario would be, if possible, to draw new parameters, quite strict ones on cannabis.

His idea is to follow a model emulating Amsterdam, where cannabis use has come further out of the shadows and is supported by cultural events and social spaces. He said selling could be limited to certain zones.

“For businesses who have invested a lot to be brought back into the illegal system, I think is a bit unfair,” he said.

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2024-03-09 22:00:00Z
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US, UK, French military shoot down Houthi drones after attack on carrier, warships - CNA

CAIRO: US, French and British forces downed dozens of drones in the Red Sea area overnight and on Saturday (Mar 9) after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis targeted bulk carrier Propel Fortune and US destroyers in the region, the US military said in a statement.

The Houthis have been attacking ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November in what they say is a campaign of solidarity with Palestinians during Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza.

The group's military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a televised speech on Saturday they had targeted the cargo vessel and "a number of US war destroyers at the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden with 37 drones".

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the US military and coalition forces had downed at least 28 uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) over the Red Sea in the early hours of Saturday.

"No US or Coalition Navy vessels were damaged in the attack and there were also no reports by commercial ships of damage," CENTCOM said in a statement.

Earlier on Saturday, CENTCOM said the military was responding to a large-scale attack on ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden between 4am and 630am ET (5pm and 730pm, Singapore time).

The UAVs were intended to present "an imminent threat to merchant vessels, US Navy, and coalition ships in the region", it said in a post on social media platform X.

A French warship and fighter jets also shot down four combat drones that were advancing towards naval vessels belonging to the European Aspides mission in the region, a French army statement said.

"This defensive action directly contributed to the protection of the cargo ship True Confidence, under the Barbados flag, which was struck on Mar 6 and is being towed, as well as other commercial vessels transiting in the area," it said.

France has a warship in the area as well as warplanes at its bases in Djibouti and the United Arab Emirates.

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2024-03-09 18:56:00Z
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With strong track record, Communist Party of China should be confident enough to face media - The Straits Times

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With strong track record, Communist Party of China should be confident enough to face media

(Clockwise from top left) Former premiers of China Li Peng, Zhu Rongji, Wen Jiabao and Li Keqiang. PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES, LIANHE ZAOBAO FILE, AFP

BEIJING - When the feared but respected Zhu Rongji became China’s premier in March 1998, he declared at his maiden news conference that he would prepare 100 coffins as part of a renewed crackdown on corruption – 99 for unscrupulous officials and one for himself in the event that he was vindictively assassinated.

There was never a dull moment whenever Mr Zhu, who was also the country’s economic czar, met the press over the next five years. In March 2000, the no-nonsense prime minister warned Taiwanese voters ahead of a closely contested presidential election not to vote for an unspecified pro-independence candidate. But he stopped short of threatening to invade the self-ruled island, which Beijing claims as its own.

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2024-03-09 11:00:00Z
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Biden vows to sign TikTok crackdown bill as Trump raises concern - South China Morning Post

The bill is sponsored by Wisconsin Republican Mike Gallagher and Illinois Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, the chairman and ranking member, respectively, of the House select committee on the Chinese Communist Party.

The legislation aims to curb the influence of foreign-controlled apps within the US.

Specifically, it would give ByteDance 165 days to divest from TikTok. If it failed to do so, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet’s Google and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide web-hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, has thrown his weight behind the legislation, which is expected to come to a vote as early as next week.

State media blasts ‘anti-China show’ as US lawmakers seek to force sale of TikTok

On Friday, the select committee’s leadership voiced gratitude for the support of its counterparts on the energy and commerce panel, saying “TikTok poses a serious threat to US national security” in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

Since taking office, the Biden administration has maintained an ambiguous stance towards TikTok.

While federal government-owned phones and devices have been barred from using the app, the administration has stopped short of enforcing the ban imposed by former president Donald Trump in 2020.

Trump’s ban, which also targeted Chinese-owned WeChat, was subsequently overturned by several courts.

In his ruling at the time, US District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, said the administration’s officials had failed “to adequately consider an obvious and reasonable alternative” before banning TikTok.

TikTok, which says it has not and would not share American user data with the Chinese government, argues the US House bill amounts to a ban. Photo: dpa

Senator Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat and chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, expressed concern about TikTok’s implications for US national security.

“I think that we still need to find a way to follow India, which has banned TikTok. I’m a little worried about a mixed message,” said Warner, referring to New Delhi’s decision in 2020.

But Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee, sounded a note of caution following Biden’s comments on Friday, despite his past efforts against the popular app.

“If you get rid of TikTok, Facebook and Zuckerschmuck will double their business,” the former president said on Friday in a post on his social media platform Truth Social, alluding to Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook’s parent company, Meta.

China to block new US moves forcing ByteDance to divest TikTok, analysts say

“I don’t want Facebook, who cheated in the last election, doing better,” Trump added, referring to the 2020 US presidential race. “They are a true enemy of the people.”

Meanwhile, following the House panel’s vote on Thursday, Congress members “were inundated with calls from angry constituents after TikTok told its users that the popular social media app was at risk of being shut down in the US”, according to Axios.

TikTok has yet to respond to Biden’s latest comments.

Analysts have said it is unlikely China will approve any moves by ByteDance to divest from the platform.

In 2020 the country’s Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Science and Technology introduced regulations that could prevent TikTok’s algorithm from being exported.

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2024-03-09 00:05:13Z
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'Our entire lives depended on her': How Barbie transformed the lives of women and a Taiwan town - The Straits Times

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Letter from New Taipei

‘Our entire lives depended on her’: How Barbie transformed the lives of women and a Taiwan town

Ms Hsu Chu-lien, a guide at the Taishan Doll Industry Museum, was one of 200 seamstresses in charge of stitching doll dresses at the now-defunct Meining Factory. ST PHOTO: YIP WAI YEE

NEW TAIPEI – As my taxi drove through the quiet lanes of Taishan District in New Taipei, it was hard to imagine that the sleepy north-western Taiwanese suburb was once a key player in the production of the world’s most famous doll – Barbie.  

I thought I had gotten the address wrong when the taxi pulled up to the shabby office building that houses the Taishan Doll Industry Museum, an exhibition space which pays tribute to this slice of Taiwanese history.

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2024-03-08 21:00:00Z
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Article 23: What you need to know about Hong Kong's new national security laws - CNA

In the draft, the definition of state secrets appears quite broad, some lawyers said, saying it includes military, security and diplomatic secrets as well as classified social, economic and technological information involving the Chinese and Hong Kong governments, and their relationship.

Some analysts and diplomats fear that research into China's politics, economy and military and due diligence investigations into individuals and companies on the Chinese mainland - all traditionally carried out by some Hong Kong firms and academics - could stray into areas of state secrecy.

But while the types of information included are wide-ranging, the Bill still stipulates that it must be information that is secret and would threaten national security if disclosed.

The Bill provides for public interest defences, but the threshold appears high: "Making the disclosure manifestly outweighs the public interest served by not making the disclosure".

Hong Kong's leader John Lee has said that the laws would meet international standards and protect Hong Kong's rights and freedoms.

ISN'T HONG KONG ALREADY SUBJECT TO NATIONAL SECURITY LAWS?

Yes. It has several old, vague and arcane laws from its days as a British colony that remain on the books.

Beijing also imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020, with officials saying it was needed to bring stability to Hong Kong after months of anti-government protests in 2019.

That law dealt with only some offences, such as collusion with foreign forces, and also allowed mainland national security officers to be based in the city for the first time.

It also created a provision where suspects could be sent for trial in the mainland, where the courts are under the control of the ruling Communist Party.

The 2020 law highlighted the need for Hong Kong to continue its work on Article 23, creating local legislation. Senior Hong Kong officials say it is needed to fill legal loopholes, particularly those dealing with what they describe as "soft resistance" after the 2019 protests, and internet control.

Security chief Chris Tang has repeatedly said the government needs better tools to deal with espionage and the activities of foreign agents in the city.

DOESN'T CHINA ALREADY HAVE A STATE SECRETS LAW?

Reflecting the priorities of President Xi Jinping, China updated its own state secrets laws in 2023, banning the transfer of any information related to national security and broadening the definition of espionage. Some analysts say it remains vague.

Hong Kong's own version has to deal with state secrets but with legislation compatible with the standards of the British-based common law, of which it remains a part.

WILL THE NEW LAWS PASS EASILY?

Unlike the tensions that surrounded the Bill in 2003, the final Article 23 Bill is expected to pass relatively swiftly, after formal readings of the Bill and some debate in the largely pro-Beijing Legislative Council.

Changes to Hong Kong's electoral system after 2019 mean that pro-establishment figures screened as "patriots" control the body.

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2024-03-08 09:20:00Z
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