An initiative of the FABC, bishops and pastoral workers gather in Macao to reflect on how to rise to the challenge set out by Leo XIV in his encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas”. They examined the reality of a continent at the forefront of AI but also one that is more exposed to its contradictions. They also proposed some concrete actions for the Churches.
One of them, Lam Man-chung, was arrested yesterday. Journalists' Association: it's 'white terror'. RTHK journalists are banned from writing about 'the president or government of Taiwan'. Five trade unionists arrested for publishing children's stories explaining 2019 anti-government protests.
The official opening event of the games is scheduled for tomorrow. The organising committee has relieved Kentaro Kobayashi of his duties over anti-Semitic jokes he allegedly made in the past. The former comedian and the president of Tokyo 2020 have since apologised. Meanwhile, new cases of Covid-19 reported.
Ties strengthened with Turkmenistan. Energy and regional security are the main areas of cooperation between Beijing and Ashgabat. Fears over the Taliban advance in Afghanistan. The Chinese are better positioned than the US and Russia in the "great game" for Central Asia.
A large dam near Zhengzhou is at risk of collapsing. People stranded in underground stations. Rail and road networks blocked. Xi Jinping sends 3,000 soldiers and another 1,800 rescuers. After the heaviest rainfall in 1,000 years, 46 rivers in 14 provinces overflowed.
World Health Organisation Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus issues statement. At least 71 positive cases in some way linked to the Games. A Chilean athlete in isolation will miss the competition. The head of the organising committee does not rule out the cancellation of the event even at a late stage. Today the first softball match between the home team and Australia.
Yesterday, 49 cases were recorded, compared to 15 on July 6. Many originating in the former Burma. Chinese scientist leading the fight against the virus receives third dose of a different vaccine. Study: Sinovac produces one-tenth of the antibodies produced by Pfizer-BioNTech. Health workers vaccinated with Chinese drugs die of coronavirus in Indonesia and Thailand.
Competitions begin tomorrow in the city hit by the nuclear disaster 10 years ago, with softball. The site of the disaster has been chosen to redeem Japan's image. Pandemic and international rifts threaten to undermine what had been dubbed the "Recovery Olympics".
Kim's regime claims no coronavirus cases in the country, while controls at the Chinese border remain strict. Some 20 trading officials are arrested. Trade between the two communist states is at its lowest since 2001. North Koreans could face food shortages as early as this August.
Kyrgyz Ulema: it does not contradict the norms of Islam. Inoculations with the Chinese vaccine Sinopharm begin. To date the government had been in denial about the virus. The pandemic is compounded by the problem of refugees fleeing Afghanistan.
Three members of South Africa's football team have tested positive and 21 close contacts have been isolated. Approval for the government is at its lowest level for a year. To avoid association with the sporting event, Toyota will not air commercials related to the Olympics.
"We need an 'ecology of the heart'". "It is not enough to 'unplug', we need to really rest. And to do this, we need to go back to the heart of things: stop, be silent, pray". Closeness to the populations of Germany, Belgium and Holland affected by the floods and to those of South Africa and Cuba wounded by violence.
During today's daily screening, a total of 15 new cases were registered. The organising committee has not revealed the identity of the person who tested positive in the Olympic village, but said he was not an athlete and is now in isolation in a hotel.
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