Afghanistan: Taliban central bank governor meets Chinese ambassador

Other news of the day: Japan redefines the crime of sexual violence. In Pakistan, journalists continue to be accused of "sedition". In the Philippines, former Senator Leila de Lima will go before a new court after trial judge steps down. In Indonesia, President Widodo wants to eliminate second-hand trade. Kazakhs forced to queue for water.

CHINA – AFGHANISTAN

The governor of Afghanistan's central bank met with China's ambassador this week to discuss financial relations. “In this meeting, economy, banking relations, business and some related topics were discussed," the bank's spokesperson Hassibullah Noori told Reuters. After the Taliban seized power again, the central bank’s assets were frozen. China does not have formal diplomatic relations with the Islamic Emirate but has maintained its ambassador in Kabul.

JAPAN

Japan passed a law redefining the crime of sexual assault and raised the age of consent from 13 to 16. Like in other countries, the definition of rape has been extended to "non-consensual sexual intercourse" as opposed to "forcible sexual intercourse". The change comes after a series of rape acquittals in 2019 spawned a countrywide protest movement called Flower Demo.

PAKISTAN

Human rights activists have expressed "extreme concern" over sedition charges against several journalists and political commentators. Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders have slammed the government for an unprecedented crackdown on critics of the Pakistani government and military. The wave of repression began following protests over the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was later released by order of the Supreme Court.

PHILIPPINES

Yesterday, a judge who rejected a bail application from a former Philippine senator stepped down. Leila de Lima has been in prison for six years for drug trafficking on what her lawyers call fabricated charges meant to silence her. The jailed former congresswoman had been one of the most vocal critics of former President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs". The case will now go another court.

INDONESIA

The authorities are putting increasing pressure on vendors of second-hand clothing imported from around the world and sold at a fraction of the original price. The goal is to ban such sales to protect the country’s garment industry. Indonesian President Joko Widodo has vowed to stop this kind of business, but risks crippling the informal sector, which, according to the World Bank, accounts for 60 per cent of the Indonesian economy.

ISRAEL – PALESTINE

Ryanair apologised after a crew member on a flight from Bologna to Tel Aviv announced, in Italian and English, that the plane was about to land in “occupied Palestine". Several passengers complained. Despite the crew’s apology, the police were called in.

RUSSIA

In Belgorod, a Russian region where pro-Ukrainian partisans have carried out guerrilla warfare, three young conscripts, sent to the area for regular basic training, have died, this according to Sverdlovsk human rights ombudsperson Tatiana Merzliakova, who noted that President Putin had promised that "the war would not touch them".

KAZAKHSTAN

In many Central Asian cities, water shortages continue to get worse with local governments unable to address the problem. In Astana, residents have been forced to take turns to shower according to a schedule and queue once a day to get water from water tanks. A scorching heatwave has hit the region, with a baseline average of 35 Celsius and maximum temperatures touching 45 degrees.

• china
• afghanistan
• japan
• pakistan
• philippines
• indonesia
• israel
• palestine
• russia
• kazakhstan