China News - 4 June 2021
Hong Kong vigil leader arrested as 7,000 police enforce ban on Tiananmen anniversary protests. Hong Kong barrister and activist Chow Hang Tung, vice-chairwoman of the group which organises annual vigils for the victims of China’s 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, was arrested, two group members said Thousands of police were deployed on Friday to enforce a ban on the city’s traditional candlelight vigil. The Guardian, The Times, 4 June
Lady Hale to quit Hong Kong court. Baroness Hale of Richmond, the first female president of the UK’s Supreme Court, revealed she will quit Hong Kong’s highest court when her first term expires next month, citing concerns over the national security law. The Times, SCMP, 4 June
Washington to bar US investors from 59 Chinese companies. President Joe Biden on Thursday signed an executive order to prohibit investments in 59 companies, including marquee Chinese groups such as Huawei and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, China’s largest chipmaker, which US intelligence says is critical to the Chinese military. FT, The Telegraph, List of companies, 3 June
Hearings in London aim to assess allegations of genocide in China. The Uyghur Tribunal starts today. The series of hearings aim to gather evidence on whether the Chinese government's alleged human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region constitute a genocide. An eight-member panel, chaired by the prominent British barrister Sir Geoffrey Nice, will hear from about 30 witnesses over four days of testimony. BBC, 4 June
G7: Boris Johnson urged to ensure ‘crisis in Hong Kong’ is high up on G7 agenda next week by six former British foreign secretaries. SCMP, 4 June
Bahrain, facing a Covid surge, starts giving Pfizer boosters to at-risk recipients of Chinese vaccine. WSJ, 4 June
New Zealand court clears way for murder suspect’s extradition to China. It was the first time that China had asked New Zealand to extradite a citizen or resident. NYT, The Guardian, 4 June
Economy & tech
China will soon open a new stretch of rail across Tibet. The 37bn-yuan ($5.7bn) track extends from the region’s capital Lhasa eastward to the city of Nyingchi, but the next phase - a second rail link with China’s interior - could cost about ten times that of the Lhasa-Nyingchi stretch. The Economist, 4 June
China issues 5-year action plan for seawater desalination in face of water scarcity. Xinhua, 3 June
Tesla’s China orders halved in May, reflecting a drastic shift in Chinese consumers’ appetite for Tesla. The Information, 3 June
China joins bandwagon to dump long-time interest rate benchmark Libor. Caixin, 3 June
Longer reads & opinion
Analysis: Huawei's global troubles spur Beijing’s push for self-reliance. Huawei’s total sales in overseas markets last year decreased for the first time since it began publishing regional data in 2010. MERICS, 1 June
Chaguan: A new children’s film about Zhou Enlai reveals a lot about China today. This year’s Children’s Day patriotic film about Zhou Enlai’s pre-teenage life promotes traditional values of education and family harmony. The Economist, 3 June
The return of the West: can the G7 nations rebuild a global alliance? The year 2020 represented a new nadir for Western values. New Statesman, 3 June
Why Chinese women don’t want more children. Cindy Yu in The Spectator, 4 June
China is not as strong as it appears. James Forsyth in The Spectator, 4 June