East Asia

A defector returning home from South Korea has been quarantined with COVID-19 symptoms. South Korean police is investigating the 24-year-old over rape allegations involving a North Korean female defector. Pyongyang and Seoul are investigating the incident. Until now, the North had always denied cases of contagion in the country.

The US flag was lowered this morning. Hundreds of people watched the "historic" moment. The US has a long list of accusations against China, including "espionage" and "intellectual property theft". Tensions between the two powers are growing.

During the Angelus Pope Francis stressed that “the building of the Kingdom requires not only God’s grace, but also the active willingness of humanity.” Life is "mediocre" when it is satisfied with "attractive but ephemeral things, whose bright lights prove illusory as they give way to darkness.” Creativity is the path to give life. The pontiff called for a round of applause for grandparents, urging young people to visit the elderly. He also praised the ceasefire in the Donbass.

Biopharma giant Celltrion announces clinical trials following government approval. Antibodies will be used to fight the coronavirus outbreak, which hit China and Korea hard.

Nicknamed ‘big cannon Ren’, Ren has been charged with embezzlement and damaging the image of leaders and the state with its criticisms. Party members cannot question the leaders, and state entrepreneurs must align themselves with the regime's decisions.

The date is symbolic. On 24 July 1923, Turkey and the Allied powers signed the Treaty of Lausanne, which marked the of the Ottoman Empire. Among the thousands of people who rushed to the first Islamic prayer in Hagia Sophia in 86 years, some carried the flags of the Empire. Others wore the fez, the Ottoman headdress that Kemal Atatürk, the father of modern Turkey, had banned in 1925. As part of his drive to build a secular country, he turned Hagia Sophia into a museum.

The reference is to the fines imposed on reporters who covered a demonstration in memory of the attack on democratic activists a year ago. Journalists: the police cannot identify and select us. European Union: Security law erodes the freedoms of the former British colony.

AsiaNews' investigation into the situation of the Church in China almost two years after the agreement between China and the Holy See continues. The testimonies we present today, speak of closed churches, blocked masses, canceled catechism courses, crosses removed, publications for underground and official communities censored. Government repression affects not only Catholics, but all religions.

At least 45 million people have been affected by floods, the worst in decades. The China Labour Bulletin reports that the government has overlooked rural areas. Migrant workers have been forced to return to their villages to help in relief efforts. Low-income households have been impoverished. Around 20 million low-paid workers are still unemployed.

Japan’s GDP growth numbers have been positive since December 2012. The government led by Shinzo Abe hoped to beat the post-war record of 73 months. In addition to the virus, a hike in the consumption tax in October 2019 and a drop in exports triggered by the trade war between China and the United States are the causes.

Data for the second quarter reveals a contraction of 2.9 percentage points in the gross domestic product. This is the worst performance since 1998, the year of the great crisis that hit all of Asia. Catholic sources: “The unemployed increase, society will pay a heavy toll. We ask the government to remember welfare and not just businesses."

Large multinationals, including Apple and Nike, are targeted, accused of profiting from the exploitation of the Islamic population of the region. United Nations: One million Uyghurs interned in concentration camps. Tens of thousands of forced labor for major international brands. France: Stop violations, the UN intervenes.