China

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China Signals Shift Away From 'Zero COVID' Policy

Country faces 'new stage and mission' in pandemic fight, top official says

(Newser) - Chinese authorities have vowed to "resolutely crack down" on protests against the country's harsh "zero COVID" policies—but they also appear to be moving away from those same policies, despite rising case numbers. Dozens of districts in Shanghai and Guangzhou have been released from lockdown measures and...

After Tiananmen, This Chinese Leader Defied Predictions

Former President Jiang Zemin, who led his nation out of isolation, is dead at age 96

(Newser) - Former President Jiang Zemin, who led China out of isolation after the army crushed the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests in 1989 and supported economic reforms that led to a decade of explosive growth, died Wednesday. He was 96. Jiang died of leukemia and multiple organ failure in Shanghai, where he...

China Will Nearly Quadruple Its Nuclear Warheads by 2035

Country is building up its stockpile at a rapid pace: Pentagon report

(Newser) - China is building up its stockpile of nuclear warheads at a fast clip, and if it keeps up its current pace, it will have 1,500 of them by 2035, according to the Pentagon's most recent annual report on China's military. In 2020, the US estimated China's...

To Curb Protests, China Sends Students Home

Police have stepped up activity in Shanghai, Beijing

(Newser) - Chinese universities sent students home and police fanned out in Beijing and Shanghai to prevent more protests Tuesday after crowds angered by severe anti-COVID restrictions called for leader Xi Jinping to resign in the biggest show of public dissent in decades. Authorities have eased some controls after demonstrations in at...

Flood of Spam Drowns Out China Protest News on Twitter

Searches for Chinese cities were overwhelmed by porn, escort service ads

(Newser) - On Twitter, news of the protests in China was obscured by a flood of spam on Sunday, much of it advertising escort services and pornography. TechCrunch calls it a "great wall of porn" that overwhelmed search results for Beijing, Shanghai, and other major Chinese cities, especially when Chinese-language search...

In China, the 'A4 Revolution' Takes Hold

Protesters angry at COVID lockdowns, censorship are holding up blank sheets of paper

(Newser) - As a wave of rare demonstrations took place across China over the weekend, a common sight emerged—blank sheets of paper. As the BBC reports, demonstrators frequently held them aloft as they criticized the nation's COVID lockdown policies, censorship laws, and even leader Xi Jinping. Why this particular symbol?...

In China, the 'Unthinkable': Protesters Call Out Xi

Anger over COVID lockdowns is boiling over

(Newser) - Anger over China's draconian COVID lockdown policies has led to what the BBC describes as heretofore "unthinkable" scenes across the country: Protesters openly calling for the resignation of President Xi Jinping. Demonstrators in Shanghai in particular turned out en masse, but protests also were reported at universities in...

After Protests, China Relaxes Lockdown in City

Anger over fatal fire leads to demonstrations in Xinjiang

(Newser) - Authorities in China's western Xinjiang region opened up some neighborhoods in the capital of Urumqi on Saturday after residents held extraordinary late-night demonstrations against the city's draconian "zero-COVID" lockdown that had lasted more than three months. The displays of public defiance were fanned by anger over a...

Fire Kills 10 in Locked-Down Region of China

Neighbors say COVID restrictions kept fire engines at a distance

(Newser) - A fire in an apartment building in northwestern China's Xinjiang region killed 10 people and injured nine, authorities said Friday, during the stringent lockdowns that have left many residents in the area stuck in their homes for more than three months. The fire broke out Thursday night in the...

K-Pop Star Gets 13 Years for Rape
K-Pop Star
Gets 13 Years
for Rape
Nov 25, 2022 9:19 AM CST

K-Pop Star Gets 13 Years for Rape

Kris Wu, formerly of EXO, also fined $83.7M for evading taxes in China

(Newser) - A Chinese court on Friday sentenced Chinese-Canadian singer and actor Kris Wu to 13 years in prison on charges including rape. Beijing's Chaoyang District Court said the K-pop star was given 11 years and 6 months for a 2020 rape, and 1 year and 10 months for the "...

Economic Outlook Sours as China Sees Record COVID Cases

Country has reported its first COVID deaths in 6 months

(Newser) - Some three years after the earliest cases of COVID-19 emerged, infections in China have hit a record high and many millions of people are under lockdowns. Some 31,444 new locally acquired infections were reported Wednesday, breaking a record set in April when a surge in cases led to Shanghai...

Unrest Spreads at Massive iPhone Plant

Workers are in 'closed loop' amid COVID measures at Foxconn complex in China

(Newser) - Last month, thousands of workers fled the vast Foxconn factory complex in Zhengzhou, China, as COVID lockdown measures were imposed. Their replacements are apparently not happy to be there. Videos posted online show thousands of workers clashing with police officers and security staff in white protective suits, the Wall Street ...

Xi Publicly Rebukes Trudeau at G20 Summit

Chinese leader accused Canadian PM of inappropriately leaking details of conversation

(Newser) - An exchange between Xi Jinping and Justin Trudeau at the G20 summit in Indonesia has caused a stir, with Canadian analysts saying the Chinese leader was being "threatening" and Chinese officials accusing Canadians of being "condescending." Xi approached Trudeau Wednesday and accused him of leaking details of...

Girl's Death Increases Anger at 'Zero COVID' Policy

Infant died after becoming ill in quarantine in central China city

(Newser) - Chinese authorities faced more public anger Thursday after a second child's death was blamed on overzealous anti-virus enforcement, adding to frustration at controls that have confined millions of people to their homes and sparked fights with health workers. The 4-month-old girl died after suffering vomiting and diarrhea while in...

White House Reporter Grabbed, Pushed After Question to Biden

She wanted to know if he'd raise human rights issues with Xi Jinping

(Newser) - A White House pool reporter was knocked off balance Monday by a man who grabbed her backpack after she asked President Biden a question in advance of his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Indonesia. As press was being ushered out of the room, Molly...

With Discontent Growing, China Slightly Eases COVID Measures

But 'zero COVID' policy isn't changing, authorities say

(Newser) - Authorities in China said this week that they have no intention of abandoning the country's "zero COVID" policy, but the easing of some measures was announced Friday despite rising case numbers. Quarantine in government facilities for close contacts of infected people will be cut from seven days to...

Shanghai Disney Visitors Just Got an Unpleasant Surprise

Park closed indefinitely on Monday, and guests inside can't leave till they show negative COVID test

(Newser) - An NPR headline from early Monday morning notes that, due to COVID, Shanghai Disney and its adjacent shopping community will be closed indefinitely from Halloween on forward. What that headline fails to mention is that all the visitors at the theme park when officials decided to abruptly close the gates...

13 Face US Charges in Chinese Spy Cases

Plots include recruitment of agents, interference with prosecution, Garland says

(Newser) - Attorney General Merrick Garland announced charges Monday against 13 people in three cases of Chinese spying or efforts to exert illegal influence in the US. Two of those facing criminal charges are Chinese intelligence officers who, the Justice Department said, paid a US government employee for confidential information in an...

New Appointments in China Reflect Xi&#39;s Dominance
New Team Solidifies Xi's Grip
Oct 23, 2022 2:45 PM CDT

New Team Solidifies Xi's Grip

Loyalty appears to be a main requirement for deputies, which analysts say brings risks

(Newser) - Xi Jinping was reelected to a third term as leader of the Chinese Communist Party, but it was the appointments he announced Sunday that made clear the scope of his victory. The general secretary walked onstage in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, the BBC reports, followed by...

China Doubles Down on Zero-COVID Policies

Citizens had hoped party congress would signal a loosening of harsh policies

(Newser) - As China’s ruling Communist Party holds a congress this week, many Beijing residents are focused on an issue not on the formal agenda: Will the end of the meeting bring an easing of the at times draconian "zero-COVID" policies that are disrupting lives and the economy? It appears...

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