Hong Kong authorities release a prominent independence activist

HONG KONG: Hong Kong authorities on Wednesday released Edward Leung, an independence activist whose slogan became a symbol of the 2019 pro-democracy movement, after spending nearly four years behind bars.

Leung, 30, was one of the most prominent faces of the "indigenous Hong Kong" movement and a rising star on the city's political stage as the pro-independence movement gained momentum in 2016.

But his career faltered two years later when he was imprisoned for rioting and assaulting police during a 2016 protest that saw stones thrown and rubbish bins set on fire.

While Leung was in his high-security prison cell, his campaign slogan "Free Hong Kong, the revolution of our time" became one of the most prominent chants chanted by protesters in 2019 to express resistance against authoritarian rule in China.

Leung was expected to leave Shek Bek prison during working hours on Wednesday, but local media reported that the activist was released before 3:00 a.m. (1900 GMT Tuesday) for precautionary reasons related to the prisoner's desire and safety, according to a prison official. .

At about 5:45 am, Leung announced on his official Facebook page that he was among his family.

In his post, he wrote: “After four years, I want to appreciate the precious time with my family and get my life back to normal. I would like to express to you my true gratitude for all the care you have provided,” adding that he “will stay out of the limelight and stop using social media,” before his page becomes inaccessible.

Currently, under Hong Kong's new National Security Law, which took effect in 2020, advocates of the city's independence from China are punished with imprisonment from 10 years to life.

'Wonder how UPM awarded almost 400 PhDs this year' : Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin

MP SAYS l Regarding the news of the 44th Convocation Ceremony of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) on 8 to 13 January, there are facts that need to be enlightened by the university, especially the awarding of 398 recipients of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Degrees.

I wonder why so many people are awarded PhDs at UPM when foreign universities that rank higher in the Times Higher Education list , for example, do not award that many PhD degrees in a year.

The question arises how are these PhD students evaluated if a student needs a professor as a supervisor for the purpose of monitoring, reviewing and approving the thesis they produce? Does UPM have that many teaching staff or are they supervised by lecturers with lower academic standards?

While the 10 best universities in the world, if examined PhD graduates produced no more than 20 people a year. For example, the world's leading universities such as Cambridge University have only produced under ten PhD students a year in the last 5 years.

Is the PhD produced by UPM equivalent to the world's leading universities or has a different status? If the PhD is produced under the (substandard) standard of the world's leading university, and the method of preparing the thesis is easier then is this standard recognized by the academic world outside Malaysia?

The award of a PhD is no small matter. A person who has a PhD is considered fit and competent to perform work in accordance with his or her expertise. If the quality of the PhD is compromised then the work done will risk the organization that hires them.

I urge the Ministry of Higher Education to monitor local universities that produce so many PhD graduates in a year and scrutinize their PhD production methods, before the ranking of Malaysian universities declines internationally which of course places importance on the quality of research.

SHAMSUL ISKANDAR MOHD AKIN is a member of parliament for Hang Tuah Jaya and PKR information chief.

Human Rights Watch: China Uses Third Country Trap to Repatriate Uyghurs

Voices are growing against China's use of Interpol

Human Rights Defenders, headquartered in Italy, issued a report on November 18 alleging that China had openly violated international law and standards in the repatriation of Chinese refugees and Uyghur refugees abroad and was trying to legitimize its actions.

The organization's report, "Involuntary Repatriation: China's Secret Deployment of Refugees Abroad," states that the Chinese government has used three methods to repatriate Chinese refugees and Uighur refugees, three of which are to threaten refugee or refugee families in the country. These include sending them directly to their home country or harassing them in their home country.

The report details in detail how China has implemented these three methods, with data and specific cases, and how the authorities have given it a legal color, but how its second and third methods are aimed at the legal well-being of the target countries, as well as international law, standards and international standards. It is alleged that the ambassador provided the information to Hussein.

According to the report, China is using the means to repatriate Uyghurs by harassing or abducting family members, abusing the International Police Organization, indirectly abducting Uyghurs in their countries of residence, or repatriating them through third countries. Chen Yanting, a researcher and co-ordinator at Human Rights Watch, said in an interview on January 18 that China was trying to legitimize these methods and give them a legal explanation.

"In our report, we outline the three methods that the Chinese Communist Party is using to target people," Chen Yanting said. One of these methods is to harass these people in China and put pressure on foreigners. Method 2 sometimes sends its agents and police directly to the target country to harass or threaten them. Method 3 Capture the target. I think the most important finding in the report is that the Chinese Communist Party is trying to legitimize these methods and give them a legal interpretation. "

He asserted that his confession had been obtained through torture, and that his confession had been obtained through torture. "It simply came to our notice then that we could not be reached for comment. Not only is this situation open, but it is also very scary. Of course, you will not find legal documents of this kind in any other country. "

According to a 69-page report by Human Rights Defenders, threatening family members is a comprehensive way for China to repatriate Uighurs abroad, and that it was adopted in 2017, with more than 200 Uighur students abducted in Egypt that year, many of them relatives. He was called and asked to return.

The report also states that China sometimes uses direct and indirect kidnappings, with Egyptian and UAE police assisting Chinese police in abducting and repatriating Uyghurs who are legally detained, and that in 2018, Dubai police abducted Ahmetcan Talib and returned him to China. The report said that the Dubai Prosecutor's Office did not have enough reason to extradite Ahmetcan Talib and that he had been released, but that he had been returned to China. According to the report, another way for China to repatriate Uighurs is a third-country trap, and Turkey is the best example.

“We interviewed a family member of an Uyghur victim named Hussein Tokhti Emin,” Chen Yanting said. His wife told us that during the siege of Hussein Emin Tokhti's detention center in Turkey, he was interrogated by Chinese officials along with Turkish police, and a Chinese official told him: 'We will give you three options. The first is that you work for us and oversee Uyghurs abroad. Second, you are being held in a detention center in Turkey. "Third, you choose to go to a third country."

According to the report, in the incident in Istanbul in 2017, Chinese police detained Hussein Eimin Tokhti and three other Uyghurs on condition that they choose one from the United Arab Emirates, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan or Kazakhstan. The report said all the captives had chosen Dubai, but that they had disappeared as soon as they arrived in Dubai. It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.

The report also notes that China has issued a "red-stone arrest warrant" for many of China's abductees and abused the international police force, but that it has "taken involuntary repatriation" of the vast majority of refugees. European countries need to rescind criminal exchange agreements with China, said Laura Hart, event director of Human Rights Defenders. In a recent interview, he said: "First of all, Interpol should review all its cooperation with China. "Second, all countries in Europe that have an ongoing criminal exchange agreement with China should immediately suspend those agreements."

Democrats need to see that Interpol is not allowed to cooperate with countries that do not abide by the rule of law.

"Democrats and rule-of-law countries need to review Interpol and understand that this international organization should not cooperate with countries that do not abide by the rule of law, that overthrow the people, that do not guarantee fair trial standards, and that impose corporal punishment," he said.

According to a report by Human Rights Watch, the number of people fleeing China has risen sharply with the rise of Chinese leader Xi Jinping and his anti-corruption campaign. The report cites data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which saw an increase of 700 percent of Chinese nationals seeking political asylum abroad from 2012 to 2020, 110 Chinese seeking political asylum in 2020, and another 175,585 Chinese granted UN refugee status that year. Emphasized.

According to the report, the global expansion of Chinese police and other Chinese state agencies is linked to Xi Jinping's "anti-corruption" campaign launched in 2012, which has displaced about 10,000 people since 2014