Chinese citizen journalist jailed for Wuhan virus reporting

Yahoo – AFP, 28 December 2020 

Authoroties said former Chinese lawyer and citizen journalist
Zhang Zhan had spread "False remarks" online.

A Chinese citizen journalist was jailed for four years Monday for her reporting from Wuhan as the Covid-19 outbreak began, her lawyer said, almost a year after details of an "unknown viral pneumonia" surfaced in the central China city. 

Zhang Zhan, a former lawyer who arrived at court in a wheelchair, was sentenced at a brief hearing in a Shanghai court for allegedly "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" during her reporting in the chaotic initial stages of the outbreak. 

Her live reports and essays were shared on social media platforms in February, grabbing the attention of authorities, who have punished eight virus whistleblowers so far as they curb criticism of the government's response to the outbreak. 

Beijing has congratulated itself for "extraordinary" success in controlling the virus inside its borders, with an economy on the rebound while much of the rest of the world stutters through painful lockdowns and surging caseloads a year on from the start of the pandemic in Wuhan. 

Controlling the information flow during an unprecedented global health crisis has been pivotal in allowing China's communist authorities to reframe the narrative in their favour, with President Xi Jinping being garlanded for his leadership by the country's ruling party. 

But that has come at a serious cost to anyone who has picked holes in the official storyline. 

The court said Zhang Zhan had spread "false remarks" online, according to one of her lawyers Zhang Keke, but the prosecution did not fully divulge its evidence in court. 

"We had no way of understanding what exactly Zhang Zhan was accused of doing," he added, describing it as "a speedy, rushed hearing." 

In return the defendant "didn't respond [to questions]... She refused to answer when the judge asked her to confirm her identity." 

The defendant's mother sobbed loudly as the verdict was read out, Ren Quanniu, another member of Zhang's defence team, told reporters who were barred from entering the court. 

Concerns are mounting over the health of 37-year-old Zhang, who began a hunger strike in June and has been force-fed via a nasal tube. 

Her legal team said her health was in decline and she suffered from headaches, dizziness and stomach pain, and that she had appeared in court in a wheelchair. 

"She said when I visited her (last week): 'If they give me a heavy sentence then I will refuse food until the very end.'... She thinks she will die in prison," Ren said before the trial. 

"It's an extreme method of protesting against this society and this environment." 

China's communist authorities have a history of putting dissidents on trial in opaque courts between Christmas and New Year in an effort to minimise Western scrutiny. 

Example made

The sentencing comes just weeks before an international team of World Health Organization experts is expected to arrive in China to investigate the origins of Covid-19. 

Zhang was critical of the early response in Wuhan, writing in a February essay that the government "didn't give people enough information, then simply locked down the city". 

"This is a great violation of human rights," she wrote. 

Rights groups and embassies have also drawn attention to her case, although diplomats from several countries were denied requests to monitor the hearing. 

"Zhang Zhan's case raises serious concerns about media freedom in China," the British embassy in Beijing said, urging "China to release all those detained for their reporting." 

Authorities "want to use her case as an example to scare off other dissidents from raising questions about the pandemic situation in Wuhan earlier this year", added Leo Lan, research and advocacy consultant at the Chinese Human Rights Defenders NGO. 

A United Nations official following the trial also expressed "deep concern" about the verdict. 

"We raised her case with the authorities throughout 2020 as an example of the excessive clampdown on freedom of expression linked to #COVID19 & continue to call for her release," the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said in a tweet. 

Zhang is the first of a group of four citizen journalists detained by authorities after reporting from Wuhan to face trial. 

Previous attempts by AFP to contact the other three -- Chen Qiushi, Fang Bin and Li Zehua -- were unsuccessful. 

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Asia's first LGBT-focused streaming service tackles taboos

Yahoo – AFP, Catherine Lai, December 30, 2019

GagaOOLala brings more than 1,000 feature films, shorts, web series, and
documentaries to people across Asia, where censorship and traditional attitudes
mean there has been little in the way of gay content in the mainstream
media (AFP Photo/Roslan RAHMAN)

Singapore (AFP) - A rom-com about a lesbian flight attendant and a romance in a gay spa are among the shows featured on Asia's first LGBT-focused streaming service, which is pushing boundaries in an often highly conservative region.

GagaOOLala brings more than 1,000 feature films, shorts, web series, and documentaries to people across Asia, where censorship and traditional attitudes mean there has been little in the way of gay content in the mainstream media.

After launching in 2017 in Taiwan, a beacon for gay rights since becoming the first place in Asia to legalise same-sex marriage, it has expanded to 21 territories including several that still criminalise homosexuality.

"One of the main impetuses for me to create GagaOOlala, (is) to kind of dispel a lot of the myths and misconceptions that a lot of people might have about LGBT people," said Jay Lin, a prominent LGBT rights activist in Taiwan who founded the platform.

"We're not all living really tragic lives -- we're entrepreneurs, we're fathers," the 46-year-old, who is raising twin boys with his partner in Taipei, told AFP.

With about 280,000 members, made up mainly of gay people but also including a significant number of straight women, its success comes as some progress is made on LGBT rights in parts of the region.

As well as Taiwan's move to legalise same-sex unions in May, India's Supreme Court last year struck down a colonial-era ban on gay sex.

Dire rights situation

But the gay rights situation remains dire in other countries where the platform operates -- making its presence in those markets all the more important, supporters say.

Gay sex is still banned in Singapore as it is in Malaysia, where in the past year women and men have been caned under Islamic laws for having same-sex relations.

The tiny, oil-rich sultanate of Brunei introduced death by stoning for gay sex as part of a harsh new sharia penal code earlier this year –- but later rolled it back following a storm of criticism.

Censorship also persists in some countries, with Malaysia's film board this year cutting gay sex scenes from "Rocketman", the movie-musical based on the life of British singer Elton John.

The platform -- which is planning a global launch next year -- has not run into any regulatory hurdles so far, according to Lin, but he acknowledged the need to tread carefully in more conservative places.

The service often relies on closed chat groups, social media and LGBT influencers for promotion instead of advertising openly.

Lin's team started by building up GagaOOlala's library with Western content, but has since branched out, making an effort to find content from across Asia.

Earlier this year GOL Studios, a sister platform, was launched to help LGBT filmmakers find talent and funding, as well as distribute and market their work.

Homegrown content

The platform ramped up its production of original content this year, making its first Thai film, its first lesbian feature film in Japan and a Germany-Spain co-production.

"As we have developed..., we have realised that actually a lot of Asians also want to see Asian faces, and watch Asian stories and watch films take place in places or cities that they're familiar with," said Lin.

For streamers focusing on niche areas like GagaOOLala, original shows are key to building their brands.

Lin said interest in the platform jumped after the recent release of the "Handsome Stewardess", a series about a Taiwanese, tomboyish lesbian who takes a job as a flight attendant to pursue her new love interest to Singapore.

"The Teacher", another original about a gay educator who is in love with an HIV-positive married man, also proved a hit, bagging best supporting actress at the Golden Horse awards, dubbed the Chinese-language "Oscars".

GagaOOlala is not alone in relying on original content to draw in viewers and boost its profile.

Bryan Seah, head of original productions at Southeast Asia-focused streamer Hooq, said people felt "pride" at seeing local performers on screen.

Viewers were sending a message that "I want to see my favourite Indonesian actor, I want to see my favourite Filipino director, fronting something that has the scale and ambition to match the best Korean content", he said.

Jokowi Named Asia’s Inspiring Figure 2016 in South Korea

Jakarta Globe, May 21, 2016

President Joko Widodo inaugurated as Seoul's honorary citizen, during his state
visit to the South Korean capital on Tuesday (17/05). (State Palace Press Photo/Intan)

Jakarta. Following the arrival of President Joko Widodo in Halim Perdanakusuma Airport, East Jakarta, on Saturday (21/05), chief of staff Teten Masduki said he had been awarded as Asia’s Inspiring Figure for 2016.

“In Korea, the president received an award from the Asia Journalist Association [AJA] as the most inspiring figure in Asia for 2016,” Teten said in a press conference, Saturday.

AJA president Ivan Lim Sin Chin presented the award in Ajou University, Suwon, South Korea. According to Teten, the award’s assessment was completed in April but was held off in anticipation of his visit.

Teten added the president held a discussion with Korean citizens, as they discussed why Joko was named a figure in Asia possessing the leadership and inspiration for the youth.

During the visit, Joko also met with Seoul city government officials and several other politicians before continuing his tour to Russia.

Related Article:

Jokowi Returns to Jakarta After S. Korea, Russia Trip

Humble Pie for Home Minister After Controversial Bid to Gag Foreign Pressi

Jakarta Globe, 27 Aug 2015

Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo, left, has apologized to President 

Joko Widodo for a brazen attempt to curtail press freedoms. (Antara 

Photo/Andika Wahyu)

Jakarta. Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo has apologized for and withdrawn a regulation aimed at increasing government control over foreign journalists operating in Indonesia, following a public outcry over the move.

“I’ve apologized to the president by telephone and immediately rescinded the internal regulation that was sent to regional governments which could have led to misunderstandings,” Tjahjo, from President Joko Widodo’s Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said late on Thursday.

“I as the minister am at fault … I was wrong,” he added. “I’ve also explained this openly to the foreign minister and to the press.”

The regulation in question, a circular sent out to regional administrations nationwide, demanded that foreign journalists and their local crew have permits issued by the Foreign Affairs and the Home Affairs Ministries. It also obliged foreign journalists to report their activities and acquire permits from all relevant levels of government, from the municipal or district level to the provincial level.

“The letter clearly implies disobedience of a president who is open to foreign coverage, as well as suspicion of the press and civilians,” Poengky Indarti, executive director of the rights group Imparsial, said on Thursday. “It will also lead to less investment and tourism income.

“Imparsial urges the Home Affairs Ministry to revoke the circular as it goes against President Joko Widodo’s position of welcoming foreign journalists covering Papua and other regions in the country,” she added.

Joko announced last May a lifting of restrictions on foreign  journalists reporting from Papua, saying he wanted to end the misinformation about the restive province by granting full access to outside media.

The Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Club also took issue with Tjajho’s circular, saying in a statement that the “continuation and expansion of restrictive state policies on visiting journalists is a sad reminder of the authoritarian Suharto regime, and a stain on Indonesia’s transition to democracy and claims by its government that it supports a free press and human rights.”

The JFCC statement added that it found the new requirements “particularly troubling given that the Indonesian government already takes weeks if not months to issue approvals for foreign journalists and film crews to visit Indonesia to work – if at all.”

Raising the issue of "whether the Ministry of Home Affairs understands or heeds orders from the Presidential Palace,” the JFCC also called on the US government to make freedom of the press “a primary topic of conversation” during the planned state visit of Joko to the US, at the invitation of President Barack Obama.

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Jakarta Globe Wins for 2015 SOPA Excellence in Opinion Writing for Editorial Coverage

Jakarta Globe, Jun 11, 2015

(JG Grab)

Jakarta. The Jakarta Globe received an award for excellence in opinion writing for its editorial coverage last year at the 2015 Awards of The Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) on Wednesday night in Hong Kong.

The Globe won in the Group B category, which is reserved for publications or websites with readership smaller than that of major newspapers and services like the International New York Times and Reuters.

One of the editorial entries was for Sept. 26, 2014, which focused on legislators’ decision in the waning days in office of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to pass a bill limiting direct elections. The title “Shame on SBY and His Non-Democrats” became a social media outcry for Indonesians, who took to Twitter by creating the hashtag #ShameOnYouSBY.

“Another example of fearless editorial commentary in a country in which it can still be dangerous to take on vested interests,” a judge commented in the decision for the award.

The SOPA Awards for Editorial Excellence were established in 1999 as a tribute to editorial excellence in both traditional and new media,  and were designed to encourage editorial vitality throughout the region, according to SOPA’s website.

Voicing Indonesia’s Silence on 1965 in The Hague

Jakarta Globe, Sie Yoe Lien, Jun 07, 2015

Leila S. Chudori speaking with historian Martijn Eickhoff, left, and Aboeprijadi
Santoso of the International People’s Tribunal 1965, in The Hague. (Photo
courtesy of Tong Tong Foundation)

The music and happy chatter next door seem to be a world away as Indonesian author and Tempo journalist Leila S. Chudori speaks about her novel “Pulang” (“Going Home”). In front of a hushed audience, Leila recalls that she had only heard that there was such a thing as Indonesian political exiles when she visited Paris in the 1980s.

“There are thousands of Indonesian exiles in Europe, many in the Netherlands. And that’s not even counting their families,” Leila said. “That’s why I felt I should write about those exiled abroad and the political prisoners in Indonesia. They are closely related to one another.”

Her bestseller Pulang tells the story of Dimas, who was stranded in Paris and unable to return to Indonesia after the failed coup of September 1965, blamed on the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI). In the months following the coup attempt, hundreds of thousands of people — some say over a million — accused of being communists were brutally tortured and killed, while many others were jailed without trial. 

Dimas’ character, Leila said, was based on real exiles in Paris who could not obtain Indonesian passports until after the fall of Suharto’s New Order regime, more than three decades later.

Cisca Pattipilohy, 89, who was in the audience that afternoon, was emotional when she said that the 1965 events “have wounded our whole nation, not just those directly victimized.” Cisca, a former journalist, had to leave Indonesia with her four young children after her husband, also a journalist, was arrested following the failed coup. He died in jail without ever seeing his family again.

‘1965’ at the Tong Tong Fair

Literature, history and social issues have always been an integral part of the Tong Tong Fair, says programmer Leslie Boon. “While the Fair is a celebration, it should also be a venue where heavier subjects can be discussed,” says Boon, who is also the granddaughter of Tong Tong founder Jan Boon, better known under his pseudonym Tjalie Robinson.

This year’s main themes include ‘1945’ and ‘1965,’ to commemorate the 70th and 50th anniversaries of key events in Indonesian history.

The fair is held from May 27 till June 7 this year.

“Each country has dark pages in its history,” Boon says. “For the Netherlands, 1945 marked not only the end of World War II but also the imminent loss of its biggest colony, and the wars it fought there. For Indonesia, meanwhile, it was 1965.”

The issue of 1965 is presented at the Fair through different perspectives, as Boon explains: “From the literary side we have Leila, and from the activists’ side we have IPT 1965 [International People’s Tribunal]. We also have an academic from NIOD [the Dutch Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies].”

Boon tried to get US filmmaker Joshua Oppenheimer to speak, “but unfortunately he already had an engagement in Japan.” Oppenheimer’s controversial documentaries “The Act of Killing” and “The Look of Silence” show how, decades after 1965, the perpetrators of the killings still walk free while many of the victims live in anger and fear.

Decades of silence

Leila, who took part in three discussions during the 12-day festival, spoke of how effectively the New Order regime presented its version of what happened in 1965 as the only truth. “My father [Muhammad Buchori] was a journalist, but even I grew up largely uninformed about 1965,” she said. “Traveling and studying abroad has given me new glasses to look at my country.”

Even after the fall of Suharto in 1998, the silence about 1965 has been far from broken. In 2005, Leila recalls, Tempo magazine founder Goenawan Mohamad urged the weekly to do a special edition to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the tragedy. “At first I thought: why do this old story? But then I started interviewing the families of the victims, and was stunned at all the untold stories that came out. Since then, we’ve decided to do a special edition on the subject every year.”

People’s Tribunal

Leiden University lecturer Ratna Saptari also shared the Tong Tong podium as part of the Holland-based IPT 1965, which was formed in 2012 by a group of human rights activists, artists, intellectuals and academics in Europe and Indonesia. “It is so important that 1965 is discussed in a platform with a general audience like the Tong Tong,” she said.

IPT 1965 plans to organize a people’s tribunal in The Hague later this year for the atrocities of 1965, based on similar tribunals held in countries like Japan or the former Yugoslavia. The charges prepared for the tribunal range from torture and deportation to mass murder. While the court’s outcome would not be legally binding, Saptari explains, the tribunal would be able to hear witnesses and examine evidence. “We have been gathering evidence, and we have collected data from some 13 provinces in Indonesia.”

Breaking the silence

NIOD historian Martijn Eickhoff, who has done research in Indonesia, is optimistic that the frozen subject is slowly thawing. “I have seen changes in the past few years. The younger generation, especially university students, are getting curious about their past, and are starting to look more critically at the state’s official version of the country’s history.”

Eickhoff spoke of the so-called Oppenheimer effect: that the documentaries have sparked many Indonesians, including those who did not grow up under Suharto’s rule, to seriously question what really happened in 1965. “And books like Pulang also contribute to this. Maybe we can now also mention the Chudori effect.”

But the author — whose book has been translated into English, French, German and Dutch — remains somewhat pessimistic about the future.

“Take the novel Bumi Manusia [The Earth of Mankind],” she said, referring to the classic work of literature by writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer, who was jailed for 14 years following the failed coup. “For years, Indonesian filmmakers have been trying to adapt this novel to the screen. But every time the investors hear the name of the author, they back out. Even now.”

About the Tong Tong Fair:

During the colonial rule in Indonesia, many Dutch civil servants and merchants ended up living in the archipelago, marrying locals and raising families. After Indonesia became independent, hundreds of thousands of Indos – those of mixed Indonesian and Dutch heritage — migrated to the Netherlands.

In the 1950s, Indo writer and intellectual Tjalie Robinson set up a group to organize events to celebrate Indo culture and make it wider known in the Netherlands.

In order to raise money, they organized the first Pasar Malam. It was held in The Hague’s city zoo for three days and attracted some 3,000 visitors.

Since then the Pasar Malam — renamed the Tong Tong Fair in 2009 — has grown into a two-week event with over 100,000 visitors. The festival is one of the largest annual fairs in the Netherlands, and features cultural events such as music, dance, theater and literary discussions. And, very importantly for most visitors: an abundance of Indonesian and Asian food.

Indonesia says to ease Papua reporting curbs, frees prisoners

Yahoo – AFP, May 10, 2015

Indonesian leader grants clemency to Papuan political prisoners

Abepura (Indonesia) (AFP) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo said Saturday decades-old reporting restrictions for foreign journalists in Papua would be lifted and ordered the release of a group of political prisoners in the insurgency-hit eastern province.

The moves signalled that Widodo, who took office last year, is easing the tight grip that Jakarta has long kept on the mineral-rich province, where poorly armed fighters have for years fought a low-level insurgency against the central government.

Widodo has taken a keen interest in Papua, pledging to improve livelihoods in the heavily-militarised area which lags behind other parts of Indonesia in terms of development.

He revealed in an interview with a group of reporters in Abepura, Papua, that from Sunday foreign journalists would be allowed full access.

"Tomorrow I will declare it," he said. However, implementing the change could prove tough.

Human Rights Watch researcher Andreas Harsono predicted there would be resistance from some quarters, including the foreign ministry which currently oversees the visa issuing process.

He said there would also be "a lot of pressure to implement it" in the coming months.

Indonesia has long been deeply sensitive about foreign journalists covering Papua. Applying for permission to go there is complex, and it is rarely granted.

Punishments for foreigners caught illegally reporting can be harsh -- two French journalists were given short jail terms last year for trying to make a documentary on the separatist movement without authorisation.

Presidential clemency

The disclosure came shortly after five political prisoners -- convicted over a 2003 raid on an Indonesian military weapons arsenal -- were granted clemency by Widodo. They will soon walkfree from Abepura prison.

Dozens of Papuan separatists are in jail for committing treason for acts such as raising the pro-independence "Morning Star" flag and taking part in anti-government protests.

Widodo shook hands with the five ethnic Melanesian prisoners at the prison, presenting each with a letter confirming the remainder of their sentences was being waived.

"Today we are releasing these five detainees to stop the stigma of conflict in Papua," he told reporters at the prison.

"We need to create a sense of peace in Papua. This is just the beginning."

The release marks a change in approach from previous governments. During the 10-year rule of president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, only one political prisoner in Papua was granted clemency, according to Human Rights Watch.

However Human Rights Watch's Harsono called on Widodo to go further by offering prisoners amnesties. Prisoners have to request clemency and admit guilt before it is granted, but this is not a requirement for an amnesty.

There are still regular flare-ups of violence in Papua, where insurgents are fighting on behalf of the mostly ethnic Melanesian population.

Indonesian troops are regularly accused of abusing Papuan villagers in the name of anti-rebel operations, but Jakarta denies allegations of systematic human rights abuses.

Jakarta took control of Papua, which forms half of the island of New Guinea, in 1963 from former colonial power the Netherlands.

In death, Australia's drug-smuggling pair become celebrated cause

English.news.cn, Matt Walsh,   2015-04-29

Bodies of executed Australian drug smugglers return home from Indonesia http://t.co/G3fyqmQU1s (AFP file pic) pic.twitter.com/7oqgWQoGrr

— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) 2 mei 2015

CANBERRA, April 29 (Xinhua) -- The execution in Bali on Wednesday morning of Australian drug-smuggling pair Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran brings to a close one of the most hotly- debated social justice issues in recent Australian media.

Detained in Denpasar attempting to smuggle heroin back into Australia ten years ago, the pair's case developed into a cause celebre as time went on, dominating media coverage when any snippet of news - positive or otherwise - emerged out of Kerobokan jail.

The pair was sentenced to death in 2006 for attempting to smuggle eight kilograms of heroin out of Bali.

While their cause received muted support initially, campaigning efforts were stepped up markedly when it became apparent they were not just repentant but actively trying to improve their lives in prison.

And when, in February, Indonesian authorities signed papers approving the pair's move to Nusakambangan Island, where death-row prisoners are sent for execution, the campaign for clemency in Australia went into overdrive.

Political figures began to plead with new Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his administration. Widodo dismissed any protests from Australian government officials, signaling that the death penalty in Indonesia was "still the law" and there would be no amnesty for the Australians.

But relentless bipartisan support was thrown behind the pair, and the Australian press was persistent in its efforts to secure a reprieve for Chan and Sukumaran. Television current affairs programs made much of their efforts at rehabilitation while inside prison.

Australia's Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop worked tirelessly to persuade the Indonesian government for leniency. Prime Minister Tony Abbott labeled the decision to carry out the executions as "revolting" and publicly stated that "millions of Australians are sick to their guts" as the end drew closer for Chan and Sukumaran. There were veiled threats that Australians would boycott Bali as a tourist destination.

Deputy Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek even gave an emotional speech in Australian parliament in March, detailing the personal experience of her husband - who was convicted of drug smuggling - touching on what might have become of her family had he been caught somewhere else.

The case of the Bali nine duo was as momentous as it was perplexing in Australia. The public increasingly came to believe these convicted drug smugglers, the sort of people Australians seldom had sympathy for, had redeemed themselves.

The men had spent a decade inside a Balinese prison, where they had taken huge steps towards total rehabilitation.

Chan led English classes for fellow inmates, and was ordained as a pastor and held church services in prison. He also attained a theology degree after studying while incarcerated.

Sukumaran became an established artist and was a holder of a fine arts degree. He was tutored inside Kerobokan by well-known Australian artist Ben Quilty, a former Archibald Prize winner, and his works began to win widespread acclaim.

Both men were described as model people and mentors to other inmates. The governor of the prison even testified in court try and ensure their release from death row. They were held up as a glowing example of the redemptive powers of the prison system.

The Australian people will never know what could have become of the men had they been given another ten years to rehabilitate.

Some of the blame for their predicament has been aimed squarely at the Australian Federal Police (AFP). The law enforcement agency made the decision to alert Indonesian authorities to the drug smuggling ring instead of waiting for the group to return to Australia.

The offense carries the death penalty in Indonesia and many other countries, but Australia outlawed capital punishment decades ago. The last man hanged in Australia was in 1967.

AFP Commissioner Mick Keelty faced criticism for the decision not to let the group return to Australia to be tried and convicted on Australian soil, where the maximum penalty for any crime is life imprisonment.

In the days leading up to the pair's execution, it wasn't just public vigils and politicians' pleas that surfaced in the media. World-renowned actors took to social media to urge the government to take stronger action.

Geoffrey Rush, Guy Pearce, Deborah Mailman, Joel Edgerton and Tasma Walton were among the throng of local celebrities that called upon Tony Abbott to do more. Actor Brendan Cowell told Abbott to "man up."

Of course there are different voices. One netizen tweeted the ABC saying that Australian media have made heroes if these two convicted criminals.

But all efforts were rendered futile on Wednesday when the Indonesian government finally carried out the executions.

Poignantly, the shots fired at 4 am on April 29 which killed Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, only breathed further life into debate surrounding of one of the most gripping social justice issues in recent Australian history.

The opposition's Finance Minister, Tony Burke, tweeted four words after the grim news from Indonesia: "Lives lost. Nothing gained."

And that seemed to reflect the prevailing, somber public mood in Australia on Wednesday morning.

Editor: ying

Saudi Arabia gives top prize to cleric who blames George Bush for 9/11

Controversial Indian preacher Zakir Naik awarded the King Faisal international prize for promoting Islam through his hugely popular Peace TV channel

The Guardian - AFP, 1 March 2015

Zakir Naik siad ‘even a fool will know’ that the 9/11 attacks were an
‘inside job’. Photograph: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

An Indian television preacher who has called the 9/11 attacks an “inside job” received one of Saudi Arabia’s most prestigious prizes on Sunday, for “service to Islam”.

Zakir Naik, president of the Islamic Research Foundation in India, was one of five recipients of the King Faisal international prize from Saudi Arabia’s King Salman during a ceremony at a luxury Riyadh hotel.

The annual prizes are a project of the King Faisal Foundation, established in 1976 by the children of King Faisal bin Abdul Aziz who died in 1975.

Naik was honoured for being one of the most renowned non-Arabic speaking promoters of Islam. He founded the Peace TV channel, billed as the world’s only channel specialising in comparative religion.

It has an estimated English-language audience exceeding 100 million, according to his award citation.

“Islam is the only religion that can bring peace to the whole of humanity,” he said in a video biography aired at the ceremony.

In a July 2008 Peace TV broadcast, Naik suggested that al-Qaida was not responsible for flying hijacked airliners into New York’s World Trade Center on 11 September 2001, killing almost 3,000 people.

“Even a fool will know that this was an inside job,” he said in the video, claiming then-president George W Bush was behind the attacks.

In 2010 Naik was reportedly barred from entering Britain for “numerous comments” which showed his “unacceptable behaviour”.

Naik said on Sunday that he would donate all of his $200,000 prize money to Peace TV.

The other prizewinners were:

In Islamic studies, Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Kaki for his research on the cultural heritage of the Muslim holy city of Medina

In medicine, Jeffrey Ivan Gordon of the United States, whose research has enhanced understanding of diseases such as obesity, which is a growing problem in Saudi Arabia

Michael Gratzel of Switzerland for his development of solar cells, and co-winner Omar Mwannes Yaghi of the United States for his work in the new field of metal organic frameworks

Related Articles:

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What Really Happened on 9/11? (Matthew’s Message, April 26, 2005)

Kryon Q&A

Question (2002): Dear Kryon, A friend and I are meditating on the recent shark attacks and feel that it has to do with the planetary changes. We just can’t understand why they have become aggressive. What is the message the sharks are bringing? Why is this happening?

—Thank you,

Maryann

Answer: Indeed there are changes with the environment and also with biology regarding the 12-year grid change. I will first give you what was happening in general: What you are seeing are mammals, amphibians, insects, and even fish that are in areas that are new to them. Every life-form that migrates is effected by magnetics. All life forms that follows certain feeding scenarios and are “following the food” have the potential to be affected. This is due to the changing of the magnetic ley lines of the earth as we have stated before.

The areas where you can see in the ocean most clearly are within those migration patterns closest to the land. Where the ocean interfaces with the land, there are challenges for all these creatures for at least one of their generations. Whales will beach themselves by following old magnetics headings that now “drive” them into peninsula’s and other land areas that were marginally on the edge of their old paths. Birds, amphibians, and insects will be seen to do odd things for awhile.

So these shark fish may be in greater numbers in these coastal areas than in the past, but the increased aggressive behavior was actually something else: There was a tremendous “release” of energy due to the Sept. 11 event. Much like the energy of earthquakes and other earth movement, much of the environment “feels it” coming. We have spoken about how the Sept. 11 event was not a surprise to the earth. [See Lee’s article “Did Kryon give us hints”] So, some of the new actions of these fish were due to an actual energy buildup of coming events... of which you now understand.

If you are paying attention, therefore, you might ask, “Does this mean that Human consciousness issues affect the actual earth?” Yes they do! Finally you may begin to see how global consciousness is tied into the environment, and even to basic physics and reality. They are not separate, and never were. The indigenous knew it, and now the “modern” world is beginning to wonder.

Blessed is the Human Being who understands that what they think, do, and intend, actually drives the reality of the dirt of the planet!

Indonesia to Deport Australian Journalist Covering Death Row Story

Jakarta Globe – AFP, Feb 27, 2015

Journalists, left, wait for the arrival of family members of two Australian prisoners
 on death row, part of the so-called ‘Bali Nine’ heroin smuggling gang, outside
Kerobokan prison in Denpasar, Bali on Feb. 17, 2015. (AFP Photo/Sonny Tumbelaka)

Jakarta. An Australian journalist was to be deported from Indonesia on Friday after being caught covering the story of two Australian drug traffickers on death row without the correct visa, immigration authorities said.

Candace Sutton, a reporter for the Daily Mail, was taken in for questioning by immigration officials on Wednesday as she interviewed a relative of one of the Australian convicts at a hotel on Java.

The interview was taking place in the port town of Cilacap, close to a prison island where the traffickers Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan are to be put to death.

The men, ringleaders of the so-called “Bali Nine” drug smuggling gang, are facing imminent execution after the president rejected their pleas for clemency, typically a death row convict’s last chance of avoiding the firing squad.

No date has been set for the executions.

Immigration department spokesman Heriyanto said that Sutton “failed to show a journalist visa” and had violated immigration laws by working while on a tourist visa that she bought on arrival in Indonesia.

She will be put on a flight late on Friday from Jakarta back to Sydney, authorities said.

The Australians are among a group of foreigners, including a Frenchman and a Brazilian, who are likely to be executed soon.

Canberra has made repeated pleas for their citizens to be spared but Jakarta has insisted it will push ahead with the executions.

The looming executions have drawn global media attention, and hordes of journalists have descended on Cilacap.

Agence France-Presse

Putin criticises sanctions but says Russia does not want war (Update)

Yahoo – AFP, 7 Feb 2015

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a cabinet meeting outside Moscow,
on February 4, 2015 (AFP Photo/Michael Klimentyev)

Moscow (AFP) - President Vladimir Putin on Saturday said Russia is not at war and does not want war with anyone, but sharply criticised Western sanctions over Ukraine.

"There's no war, thank God. But there is definitely an attempt to curb our development," Putin told a trade union conference, cited by TASS news agency.

He criticised sanctions imposed on Russia by the West over Ukraine saying "they definitely can't be effective against a country like ours, although they cause certain damage and we have to realise this... We must raise our level of sovereignty, including in our economy."

Putin complained of an attempt to "freeze the existing world order that has become established over the last decades after the fall of the Soviet Union, with a single leader who wants to stay that way," apparently talking about the United States.

"Such a world order will never suit Russia," he said. "If somebody likes it or wants to live in conditions of semi-occupation (then go ahead), but we won't do this."

"But we don't plan to fight a war with anyone. We plan to cooperate with everyone."

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US NBC's Brian Williams takes himself off air amid Iraq and Katrina controversy

The Guardian, Martin Pengelly, 7 Feb 2015

Brian Williams said: ‘Upon my return, I will continue my career-long effort to be

worthy of the trust of those who place their trust in us.’ Photograph: NBCU Photo

Bank via Getty Images

NBC news anchor Brian Williams will step off air while the network continues its investigation into inaccuracies in his reporting, he announced on Saturday.

Williams has come under pressure after veterans questioned his account of an incident involving two US helicopters that came under fire in Iraq in 2003. His reporting from New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was subsequently called into question.

In a statement, Williams said: “In the midst of a career spent covering and consuming news, it has become painfully apparent to me that I am presently too much a part of the news, due to my actions.

“As managing editor of NBC Nightly News, I have decided to take myself off my daily broadcast for the next several days, and Lester Holt has kindly agreed to sit in for me to allow us to adequately deal with this issue. Upon my return, I will continue my career-long effort to be worthy of the trust of those who place their trust in us.”

On Friday, NBC News president Deborah Turness said in an internal memo to staff: “This has been a difficult few days for all of us at NBC News. As you would expect, we have a team dedicated to gathering the facts to help us make sense of all that has transpired. We’re working on what the best next steps are.”

Regarding his version of events in Iraq, Williams apologised on air on Wednesday, saying: “I made a mistake in recalling the events of 12 years ago. I want to apologise. I said I was traveling in an aircraft that was hit by RPG fire. I was instead in a following aircraft.”

“Finally someone is being held to account for misleading America about Iraq war” Jon Stewart takes on Brian Williams http://t.co/m7PjGiT6sL
— Mary Georgantopoulos (@marygeorgant) February 10, 2015