East Asia

Since the start of the year, a special pastoral team set up by Cardinal Chow has been active, dedicated to ministering to the thousands of Mandarin-speaking people who have arrived in the city in recent years. The team leader, Fr Bruno Lepeu, told the Sunday Examiner: “Friendship and care rooted in God’s love”. Of particular significance are the initiatives for young cross-border students and the parents of children attending Catholic schools.

Once classified by the Communist Party as “spiritual pollution”, this genre now generates billions of yuan in revenue and has become part of the state's cultural promotion strategy, within a clear geopolitical vision. "The Wandering Earth" and "The Three-Body Problem" are the most striking examples of Netflix phenomena. But in the background, tensions have also emerged between artistic forms and the new computing power deployed by propaganda.

From the FIFA Peace Prize to Trump to short-term visas for Iranian players, the 2026 edition will be the biggest with 48 teams and 104 matches, but also very controversial. Nine Asian teams will take part, with two newcomers: Jordan and Uzbekistan. The hopes of a continent rest with South Korea and Japan. Despite billions invested in football, China failed to qualify.

The two-day visit came after the reopening of rail and air links between the two countries, interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. China remains North Korea's main economic partner, but now faces Russia’s competition, strengthened by agreements tied to the war in Ukraine. Unlike 2019, the Chinese leader no longer made any reference to the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

New technologies promise to increase trade and productivity, but also risk exacerbating economic disparities, this according to a report by the United Nations and the Asian Development Bank. The study highlights the growing gap between East Asia's digital powers and other countries in the region, which lack digital infrastructure and skills.

After years of growth, the number of 18-year-olds taking next Sunday’s National College Entrance Examination is down by more than 3 per cent this year, a sign that an academic education is no longer seen as key to good employment opportunities, even in China. Meanwhile, enrolment in vocational schools is up, encouraged by the government.

The People's Republic of China has announced new regulations targeting Chinese investors who use foreign brokers to operate outside the country. In the name of “national security”, the government will be able to impose changes, order the sale of stakes, and even unwind completed investments. The new rules follow the controversial sale of startup Manus to Meta. They also limit cooperation with foreign legal authorities.

On the eve of the anniversary of the 1989 massacre, local authorities have told families that Wanan Cemetery, the resting place of many victims of the 4 June massacre, is off-limits. This is one of the latest acts of cruelty to erase the memory of the events of 37 years ago. Zhang Xianling, 89, told Radio Free Asia that in an unprecedented move, police are at her home.

In a message written from prison, the lawyer on trial alongside Lee Cheuk-yan and Albert Ho for the 4 June vigils in Victoria Park speaks of the importance of resilience in remembering the 1989 massacre in Beijing, whilst the Hong Kong authorities cover the void left by the crackdown with a sea of market stalls. “4 June is a matter of principle, our most reliable safeguard against the perpetuation of dictatorship and the cult of power.”

With advance polling open today and tomorrow, the 3 June elections are already underway, the first test for the incumbent president elected a year ago after his predecessor’s attempt to impose martial law. In the capital, conservative incumbent Mayor Oh is seeking a fifth term, but is feeling the heat from his challenger Chong. Housing is the hot issue in this election campaign.

The penalty was levied under the Digital Services Act, which seeks to protect European consumers from online platforms. Investigators discovered through direct purchases that some toys were toxic and several electronic devices did not comply with safety standards. Other platforms are now under the EU Commission's scrutiny.

His son issued an appeal trying to mobilise the international community. Zhenghis Reskhan is a prominent figure in Xinjiang's literary circles. For now, neither Kazakhstan’s embassy in China nor Chinese authorities have made any official statement about the case.