People use mobile phones to listen to a news conference of Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, as they gather to wait for a government announcement regarding the proposed extradition bill, near the Legislative Council building in Hong Kong, China, June 15, 2019. REUTERS/Jorge Silva
HONG KONG (Reuters) - The central government in Beijing has expressed its support, respect and understanding for Hong Kong’s decision to suspend an extradition bill that would allow people to be sent to mainland China to face trial, China’s official Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday.
Hong Kong’s embattled leader Carrie Lam earlier delayed indefinitely the proposed law, in a dramatic retreat after widespread anger over the bill sparked the biggest street protests in three decades.
The central government also condemned violent acts in Hong Kong and supported the former British colony’s police, Xinhua said.
Reporting By John Ruwitch, Anne Marie Roantree and Clare Jim; editing by Christian Schmollinger
PARIS (Reuters) - A small congregation wearing hard hats will attend mass at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris on Saturday, the first service to be held since fire devastated the Gothic landmark two months ago.
FILE PHOTO: A picture shows bells gathered during preliminary work at the Notre-Dame Cathedral one month after it sustained major fire damage in Paris, France May 15, 2019. Philippe Lopez/Pool via REUTERS
Church leaders are keen to show life goes on at the cathedral as donations to help rebuild it trickle in. Less than 10% of the 850 million euros pledged by billionaires, business leaders and others has been received so far, the French government said.
Saturday’s mass, which commemorates the cathedral’s consecration as a place of worship, is due to be held at 1600 GMT in a side-chapel, with attendance limited to about 30 people who will wear the protective headgear for safety reasons.
“It is a nice symbol. A very small group of people will attend and one can understand why as there are still major safety issues,” Culture Minister Franck Riester told Europe 1 radio.
He told France 2 television on Friday the cathedral was still “in a fragile state, namely the vault, which has not yet been secured. It can still collapse”.
The April 15 blaze caused the roof and spire of the architectural masterpiece to collapse, triggering a worldwide outpouring of sadness as well as the multi-million-euro pledges for reconstruction work.
Among the high-profile people who promised to donate to the rebuilding effort were luxury goods tycoons Bernard Arnault and François-Henri Pinault.
“There could be people who promised to donate then in the end did not,” Riester said, without giving further details. “But more importantly, and this is normal, the donations will be paid as restoration work progresses.”
French President Emmanuel Macron has set a target of five years for restoring the cathedral, though Riester was more cautious.
“The president was right to give a target, an ambition. But obviously what matters in the end is the quality of the work,” he said. “So it does not mean that work will be totally finished in exactly five years.”
The archbishop of Paris, Michel Aupetit will lead Saturday’s service, which will be broadcast live on a religious TV channel.
LONDON (Reuters) - The leader of Britain’s main opposition party has questioned whether the government had evidence to back up its accusations that Iran was behind attacks on oil tankers in the entrance to the Gulf, and warned against escalating tensions.
Britain on Friday joined the United States in blaming Iran for attacks on two tankers, raising fears of a broader military confrontation in a vital passageway for the world’s oil industry.
Iran has denied any involvement.
“Without credible evidence about the tanker attacks, the government’s rhetoric will only increase the threat of war,” Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wrote on Twitter late on Friday.
“Britain should act to ease tensions in the Gulf, not fuel a military escalation that began with US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear agreement,” he added,” he said, referring to Washington’s withdrawal from a 2015 pact to curb Tehran’s nuclear plans.
British foreign minister Jeremy Hunt, who is one of the leading candidates to succeed British Prime Minister Theresa May after she announced she would step down, described Corbyn’s comments as “pathetic and predictable”.
“Why can he never bring himself to back British allies, British intelligence or British interests?,” Hunt said.
On Friday, the United States released video footage they say shows Iranian special forces removing an unexploded mine from one of the tankers.
Dominic Raab, another candidate to be the next Conservative leader, said Corbyn’s comments show he is unfit to lead Britain.
“Corbyn allows his anti-American prejudice to skew his moral compass and political judgment,” he said.
Corbyn last year was criticized by opponents and lawmakers in his own party after he questioned the government’s decision to blame Russia for a nerve toxin attack on a former double agent in England.
Reporting By Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Andrew Heavens
Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) toasts with Chinese President Xi Jinping while congratulating him on his birthday before the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Dushanbe, Tajikistan June 15, 2019. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS
BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping celebrated his 66th birthday on Saturday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who Xi considers a close friend and who gave Xi ice cream as a present, Chinese state media reported.
The discussion of senior leaders’ private lives is extremely rare in China, and the exact birth dates of most of them are not revealed publicly, as they are considered a state secret.
State television showed pictures of Xi and Putin holding up champagne glasses to toast Xi’s birthday at the hotel he is staying at in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, where they are both attending a regional summit.
While Putin gave Xi Russian ice cream - the flavor was not mentioned - Xi gave Putin back some Chinese tea, the report said.
Xi thanked Putin and said that in China Putin was extremely popular, it added.
Pictures on Chinese state television’s website showed the two men inspecting a white cake decorated with red and blue confectionary flowers with the words written on it, in somewhat shaky red-colored Chinese characters, “good fortune double six”.
It was not immediately clear if Xi ate any of the cake.
Reporting by Ben Blanchard; editing by Christian Schmollinger
The General Overseer of the God’s Crown Chapel, Prophet Reindolph Oduro Gyebi, has said that he will soon address issues on Castro's whereabouts.
In an interview on Radio 1 with Bishop Agbe Jnr the man of God said he will enlightened Ghanaians, the whereabouts of Castro.
"I will soon hold a press conference to let Ghanaians know the whereabout of musician Castro", he said.
Saturday, July 6, 2017, will be exactly five years that Ghanaian hip-life musician Castro and a lady friend, Janet Bandu, disappeared while cruising a jet-ski on the Volta Lake at Ada.
Castro had followed his friend Asamoah Gyan to Ada for holidays when he went missing in the river, and a combined search team comprising the Ghana Navy, Marine Police, local fisherfolks and professional lifeguards could not find his body.
Till date, the two have not been found and the search team remains clueless as to the exact circumstances which led to their disappearance.
There were speculations that the two had drowned but no eyewitness account has confirmed that theory.
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam has delayed indefinitely a proposed law that would allow extraditions to mainland China, in a dramatic retreat after widespread anger over the bill sparked the biggest street protests in three decades.
Protesters hold signs following a day of violence over a proposed extradition bill, outside the Legislative Council building in Hong Kong, China, June 14, 2019. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
The extradition bill, which would cover Hong Kong’s 7 million residents as well as foreign and Chinese nationals in the city, was seen by many as a threat to the rule of law in the former British colony.
(To see a live blog of coverage of the Hong Kong protests, click reut.rs/2Iajtez)
WHAT DOES THE EXTRADITION BILL INVOLVE?
The Hong Kong government first launched the proposals in February, putting forward sweeping changes that would simplify case-by-case extraditions of criminal suspects to countries beyond the 20 with which Hong Kong has existing extradition treaties.
It explicitly allows extraditions from Hong Kong to greater China - including the mainland, Taiwan and Macau - for the first time, closing what Hong Kong government officials have repeatedly described as a “loophole” that they claim has allowed the city to become a haven for criminals from the mainland.
Hong Kong’s leader would start and finally approve an extradition following a request from a foreign jurisdiction but only after court hearings, including any possible appeals. However, the bill removes Legislative Council oversight of extradition arrangements.
If the bill becomes law, it will be possible for mainland Chinese courts to request Hong Kong courts to freeze and confiscate assets related to crimes committed on the mainland, beyond an existing provision covering the proceeds of drug offences.
WHY IS THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT PUSHING IT NOW?
Officials initially seized on the murder last year of a young Hong Kong woman holidaying in Taiwan to justify swift changes. Police say her boyfriend confessed on his return to Hong Kong and he is now in jail on lesser money-laundering charges.
Taiwan authorities have strongly opposed the bill, which they say could leave Taiwanese citizens exposed in Hong Kong and have vowed to refuse taking back the murder suspect if the bill is passed.
A long-forgotten issue, the need for an eventual extradition deal with the mainland was acknowledged by government officials and experts ahead of Hong Kong’s handover from British to Chinese rule in 1997 under the “one country, two systems” model.
The city maintains a separate and independent legal system as part of the broader freedoms the formula guarantees. Little progress has been made in discreet talks since then with justice and security officials on the mainland, where the Communist Party still controls the courts.
HOW STRONG IS OPPOSITION TO THE BILL?
Concern about the amendments has spiraled in recent weeks, taking in pro-business and pro-Beijing elements usually loath to publicly contradict the Hong Kong or Chinese governments. Senior Hong Kong judges have privately expressed alarm, and mainland commercial lawyers based in Hong Kong have echoed their fears, saying the mainland system cannot be trusted to meet even basic standards of judicial fairness. Hong Kong lawyers’ groups have issued detailed submissions to the government, hoping to force a postponement.
Authorities have repeatedly stressed that judges will serve as “gatekeepers” or guardians for extradition requests. However, some judges say privately that China’s increasingly close relationship with Hong Kong and the limited scope of extradition hearings will leave them exposed to criticism and political pressure from Beijing.
Schools, lawyers and church groups have joined human rights groups to protest against the measures. Following a brawl in the legislature over the bill, the government moved to fast-track the bill by scrapping established legislative procedures that stoked outrage amongst critics.
Foreign political and diplomatic pressure over human rights concerns is rising, too. As well as recent statements from U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his British and German counterparts, some 11 European Union envoys met Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam to protest formally.
“It’s a proposal, or a set of proposals, which strike a terrible blow ... against the rule of law, against Hong Kong’s stability and security, against Hong Kong’s position as a great international trading hub,” Hong Kong’s last British governor, Chris Patten, said on Thursday.
Some opposition politicians say the issue now represents a turning point for the city’s free status.
WILL THE GOVERNMENT DROP THE BILL?
While Lam and her key officials have been strident in defending the bill both publicly and privately, cracks have began to appear in the support base for the law.
Several pro-Beijing politicians and a senior advisor to Lam said discussion of the bill should be shelved for the time being.
Lam has insisted that broad safeguards mean that anyone at risk of political or religious persecution or who faces torture would not be extradited. Likewise, no one who faces the death penalty would be extradited. China denies accusations of human rights abuses.
Lam said the city’s legislature would now stop all work on the bill and that the next steps would be decided after consultations with various parties.
Reporting by Greg Torode, James Pomfret Anne Marie Roantree, Jessie Pang; Editing by Nick Macfie, Paul Tait and Michael Perry
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam on Saturday delayed indefinitely a proposed law to allow extraditions to mainland China, in a dramatic retreat after widespread anger over the bill sparked violent protests in the Asian finance hub.
The extradition bill, which would cover Hong Kong’s 7 million residents as well as foreign and Chinese nationals in the city, was seen by many as a threat to the rule of law in the former British colony.
Around a million people marched through Hong Kong last Sunday to oppose the bill, according to protest organizers. Protests continued through the week and were met with tear gas, bean bag rounds and rubber bullets from police, plunging the city into turmoil and piling heavy pressure on Lam.
“After repeated internal deliberations over the last two days, I now announce that the government has decided to suspend the legislative amendment exercise, restart our communication with all sectors of society, do more explanation work and listen to different views of society,” Lam told a news conference.
She said there was no deadline, effectively suspending the process indefinitely.
Cracks began to appear on Friday in the support base for the extradition bill with several pro-Beijing politicians and a senior advisor to Lam saying discussion of the bill should be postponed for the time being.
Lam had not appeared in public or commented since Wednesday. She met pro-Beijing lawmakers to explain her pending announcement earlier on Saturday.
Backing down from efforts to drive the bill through the city’s legislature by July would have been unthinkable last week when the law’s passage seemed inevitable as Lam remained defiant.
Beyond the public outcry, the extradition bill had spooked some of Hong Kong’s tycoons into starting to move their personal wealth offshore, according to financial advisers, bankers and lawyers familiar with the details.
And senior police officers have said Lam’s refusal to heed public opinion was sowing resentment in the force, which was already battered by accusations of police brutality during the 2014 pro-democracy “Umbrella” civil disobedience movement.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam speaks at a news conference in Hong Kong, China, June 15, 2019. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
Michael Tien, a member of Hong Kong’s legislature and a deputy to China’s national parliament, said a total withdrawal of the bill would not be possible.
“The amendment is supported by the central government, so I think a withdrawal would send a political message that the central government is wrong. This would not happen under ‘one country, two systems’,” he told Reuters, referring to the model under which Hong Kong enjoys semi-autonomy.
Organizers of last Sunday’s protest march are planning another march this Sunday.
In addition to calling for the bill to be completely dropped, they would also be pushing for accountability of the police for the way protests have been handled.
Lam has said the extradition law is necessary to prevent criminals using Hong Kong as a place to hide and that human rights will be protected by the city’s court which will decide on the extraditions on a case-by-case basis.
Critics, including leading lawyers and rights groups, note that China’s justice system is controlled by the Communist Party, and marked by torture and forced confessions, arbitrary detention and poor access to lawyers.
Slideshow (2 Images)
Last Sunday’s march was the biggest political demonstration in Hong Kong since people poured into the streets 30 years ago to protest against the bloody suppression of pro-democracy demonstrations centered around Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989.
Hong Kong is governed by China under a “one country, two systems” deal that guarantees it special autonomy, including freedom of assembly, free press and independent judiciary.
Many accuse Beijing of extensive meddling since then, including obstruction of democratic reforms, interference with elections and of being behind the disappearance of five Hong Kong-based booksellers, starting in 2015, who specialized in works critical of Chinese leaders.
The Chinese government has denied that it has overreached in Hong Kong.
Reporting by John Ruwitch, Joyce Zhou, Vimvam Tong, Clare Jim, Anne Marie Roantree and Twinnie Siu; Editing by Michael Perry and Christian Schmollinger
