at 18:30 (JST), August 12

Asian View

"Asian View" is a five-minute news segment broadcast by NHK WORLD-JAPAN. It features the latest news and deep analysis from Japan and the rest of Asia. Listen to "Asian View" and get the latest information from a region that's playing an increasingly important role in the world.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20210812183000_english_1.mp3


Key words : chinese court 11 years
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210811_14/

A Chinese court has sentenced a Canadian entrepreneur to 11 years in prison for espionage. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau denounced the ruling as "absolutely unacceptable and unjust."

A court in Dandong in China's northeastern province of Liaoning handed down the sentence to Michael Spavor on Wednesday.

Spavor was detained in December 2018 on suspicion of giving China's state secrets to other countries.

His detention was seen as retaliation by China, as it came immediately after Canada arrested Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese telecom giant Huawei, at the request of the United States.

Final hearings opened in Canada last week to decide whether to hand over Meng to the US.

Observers see Wednesday's ruling as aimed at putting pressure on Canada to release Meng unconditionally.

On Tuesday, a high court in Shenyang, Liaoning, rejected an appeal by Canadian national Robert Schellenberg who had been sentenced to death for drug smuggling.

The court decisions threaten to aggravate ties between Canada and China.

Key words : kim handle
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210811_09/

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's close aide has criticized scheduled US-South Korea joint military drills, saying Pyongyang will make the two countries realize what a dangerous choice they made.

Kim Yong Chol made a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency on Wednesday. He heads the United Front Department of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, which handles inter-Korean affairs.

Kim referred to the annual joint military exercises, which assume a possible contingency on the Korean Peninsula. The drills are scheduled from next Monday through August 26. Ahead of the drills, the US and South Korean militaries began preliminary training against potential terrorist attacks on Tuesday.

In the statement, Kim denounced South Korea for choosing their alliance with an outside force over peace between the Koreas. He said Seoul defied the opportunity to improve inter-Korean relations and answered Pyongyang's good faith with hostile acts.

He also said North Korea will have the United States and South Korea realize what a serious security crisis they will face because of their wrong choice.

His remarks came after Kim Yo Jong, the North Korean leader's sister, denounced the US-South Korean drills in a strong-worded statement on Tuesday.

Key words : rohingya
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210811_03/

COVID-19 vaccinations are being administered at refugee camps for Rohingya Muslims who fled Myanmar to neighboring Bangladesh.

The Bangladeshi government started the vaccine rollout on Tuesday in cooperation with UN agencies at the camps in Cox's Bazar where about 900,000 Rohingya people are living.

About 48,000 people who are aged 55 and older will get the Chinese-developed Sinopharm vaccine by Thursday.

One of the recipients said he came to get the shot to avoid infection because the virus is spreading around the world.

The World Health Organization says about 2,500 Rohingyas in the camps have tested positive for the virus, and 28 of them have died.

The highly transmissible Delta variant is raging in Bangladesh, where daily case counts exceeded 15,000 in early August.

Concerns are growing that poor hygiene standards and cramped living conditions in the camps could lead to outbreaks.

Key words : taliban control china
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210811_15/

Taliban insurgents say they have taken control of more provincial capitals in Afghanistan, as they continue their offensive against government forces.

The Taliban announced on Wednesday that the capital of the northern province of Badakhshan, which borders China, fell to the insurgents.

They also said they seized control of the provincial capital of Baghlan on Tuesday, where a main road connects the capital Kabul and the major northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif.

The Taliban have captured nine provincial capitals so far.

Security in the country will likely further deteriorate ahead of the complete withdrawal of US troops by the end of this month.

On Tuesday, an international meeting on Afghan peace took place in the Qatari capital, Doha.

Representatives from the Unites States, China, Pakistan and other countries bordering Afghanistan reportedly discussed a roadmap for peace with the Taliban side. The meeting is expected to continue intermittently.

They are believed to seek political solutions by stopping battles and bringing the two sides to the negotiating table. Neighboring countries, including China are wary of deteriorating security spilling over into their own countries.

Key words : sri lankan authorities
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210812_10/

Sri Lankan authorities have filed charges against 25 Islamist group members in connection with the 2019 bomb attacks in the country's largest city of Colombo. The blasts killed 269 people.

Judicial authorities said on Wednesday that the charges filed under the country's anti-terror law include conspiring to murder, and aiding and abetting.

They called for the Supreme Court to hold a special tribunal to hear the cases.

Domestic extremists influenced by the Islamic State group were blamed for the attacks. The blasts targeted multiple sites, including luxury hotels and churches where Easter Sunday mass was being held.

The government and law enforcement authorities have been criticized for the slow pace of the investigation.

Key words : fujitsu
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210811_21/

Japan's Fujitsu says it has found that a total of 129 Japanese government offices and companies had data leakages after hackers accessed its information-sharing software.

Fujitsu on Wednesday updated the findings of the unauthorized access to its ProjectWEB software, which is widely used by public offices and businesses.

Among the government agencies that suffered data leakages are the Cabinet Secretariat, the Foreign Ministry, and the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry.

Fujitsu reported that leaked data included information on customers' systems, materials related to project management, along with personal information such as customers' names and email addresses.

But the company said no misuse of information or other damage was confirmed.

Fujitsu said it discovered that a third party illegally accessed the software using a legitimate ID and password.

The company said it set up an investigative committee consisting of external experts to look into the cause and how the company responded.

Fujitsu expressed its regret for concern and inconvenience caused to all those involved. It said it will do its utmost to restore customer trust as soon as possible.

Key words : softball
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210812_06/

The Olympic gold medal won by a Japanese softball pitcher and later bitten by a city mayor will be exchanged for a new one.

Nagoya Mayor Kawamura Takashi was visited on August 4 by pitcher Goto Miu, who helped Japan clinch gold at the Tokyo Games. The city is her hometown.

After Goto placed her medal around Kawamura's neck, the mayor suddenly removed his face mask and bit the medal.

The incident immediately set off a flurry of criticism. The mayor offered an apology the following day, saying he had behaved extremely inappropriately.

Ohmura Hideaki, the governor of Aichi Prefecture, which includes the city, said he hopes another medal will be issued for Goto. He also expressed intention to discuss the matter with relevant parties.

Sources say concerned organizations including the International Olympic Committee, the Japanese Olympic Committee and the Tokyo Games organizing committee have decided to swap the bitten medal for a new one.

The sources say Goto has agreed to the decision.

Key words : paralympic torch
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210812_01/

Lighting flames for the upcoming Tokyo Paralympic Games is to start across Japan from Thursday.

Flames representing hopes for an inclusive society will be collected at more than 880 locations across Japan in various ways that feature regional characteristics.

In Nagano Prefecture, central Japan, children with disabilities will ignite a flame with sunlight. In the southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima, a group from the island of Tanegashima, which preserves matchlock muskets, will create a flame using flint.

Torch relays were scheduled to be held from August 17 in the prefectures of Shizuoka, Chiba, Saitama and Tokyo, where events will take place.

But the runs on public roads in Chiba, Saitama and Tokyo have been canceled amid the spread of the coronavirus. Lighting ceremonies and related events will be held.

The flames from across the country and one collected in Britain, the birthplace of the Paralympics, will be brought together in Tokyo on August 20. The flame will light the cauldron at the opening ceremony on August 24.