In the Chinese province of Zhejiang, the authorities have recently detained priests, nuns and ordinary Catholics who made a trip abroad last year; their goal is to induce underground Bishop Shao Zhumin to join a government-controlled Church body. Places of worship and the relatives of underground priests have also been targeted. One priest says, “we want to follow our conscience” without having to submit to the political whims of the Party.
The relics arrived on 13 June, the day war broke out between Iran and Israel, and are travelling through a country that is recovering from the war between Hezbollah and the Jewish state. A stop in the tormented south is planned. They are a precious seed according to the nuncio, Archbishop Borgia, and encourage “the faithful to undertake the same path to holiness,” says Lazarist clergyman.
Demands for electoral reform are growing in Bangladesh. Several voices from across the political spectrum have proposed scrapping the first-past-the-post system to enhance the presence of minorities in parliament. Elections are expected in April next year.
The pilgrimage (yatra) begins today to the Amarnath Temple in the Himalaya. After the attack in Pahalgam in April that cost the lives of 25 tourists, the Indian government has put in place unprecedented security measures, with paramilitary units, drones, digital mapping, and armoured vehicles. The aim is to boost tourism amid persistent tensions with Pakistan.
On 1 July, a ban came into force on countries that are not signatories to the Basel Convention, the international treaty against the transport of hazardous waste, including plastic. In 2024, 35,000 tonnes of rubbish arrived in Malaysia from the US, now in search of a new destination. China had already closed its ports in 2018, shifting this lucrative but dangerous trade to Southeast Asia. Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia still have less stringent regulations.
For some time now, the authorities in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan have banned end-of-school-year celebrations in order to ‘avoid excesses’. However, these celebrations continue to take place in secret in country houses or basements, with spending on gifts increasing year after year.
