Dec 1 (Reuters) - Aier Eye Hospital Group Co Ltd :
* SAYS BOARD ELECTS CHEN BANG AS CHAIRMAN Source text in Chinese: https://bit.ly/37O1c1H Further company coverage: (Reporting by Hong Kong newsroom)
A man sodomised his underaged brother-in-law for over four years, starting from before he married the victim’s sister.
The lockdown of another Hong Kong neighbourhood for mandatory Covid-19 testing came to an end at 6am on Wednesday as the city continued to target areas filled with ageing tenement buildings amid a recent surge in infections. The sudden lockdown on Tuesday night came just hours after the city’s leader revealed she had sought Beijing’s help in securing Covid-19 shots from state-owned Sinopharm following “hiccups” in the procurement of other vaccines already purchased by the government. One resident of Hong Kong’s Yau Ma Tei area was known to have tested positive after about 330 people had completed the mandatory testing, according to a government statement. The infected resident was sent to hospital for treatment and the patient’s close contacts were quarantined.Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories originating in China. All in all, I can tell you that rolling out an orderly inoculation is my responsibility and I will do my very best for it Carrie Lam, Hong Kong leader Health authorities visited 306 households in all, but there was no answer at 93. The authorities said they will continue to follow up with the unresponsive residences. The unexpected lockdown of 11 blocks at 9-27 Pitt Street and Shun Fung Building at 3 Tung On Street in Yau Ma Tei started at 7pm, following Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s warning earlier in the morning that the government would go for “ambush-style” lockdowns. The city’s first such lockdown was off to a questionable start last weekend after the news was leaked by the media an entire day in advance, giving residents of affected buildings plenty of time to move out and avoid being confined to their homes for 48 hours. Tuesday’s move was announced at the last minute to avoid a repeat of residents escaping mandatory testing. Earlier in the day, Hong Kong had confirmed 64 new Covid-19 infections citywide as two more neighbourhoods were placed under stepped-up mandatory testing orders in Mong Kok and Hung Hom districts, and existing social-distancing measures were extended by another week. On the vaccine front, Lam said delivery of the first batch needed to roll out a mass vaccination programme would be deferred until at least the end of next month, contrary to earlier assurances it could begin after the Lunar New Year holiday in mid-February. But advisers warned Lam’s latest plan would not speed up the roll-out, as Sinopharm had yet to publish any third-round clinical data in medical journals, with one expert stressing the widespread use of the vaccine in mainland China would not be a factor in considering emergency approval for Hong Kong. “We have been very concerned about the supply of vaccines for Hongkongers, because this is really the light at the end of the tunnel,” Lam said ahead of her weekly Executive Council meeting. Another Hong Kong lockdown as Beijing’s help sought on Covid-19 jabs According to Lam, the administration had experienced difficulties in securing doses of the BioNTech vaccine from Europe, Beijing-based Sinovac’s CoronaVac and the jab jointly developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University despite having advance purchase agreements in place. “They all have a little bit of a hiccup. For the one that has been authorised by the secretary for food and health … the supply will only come by the end of February from Germany,” she said, referring to the BioNTech shots. Health minister Professor Sophia Chan Siu-chee said manufacturing of the first batch of BioNTech vaccines for Hong Kong had been completed, while safety and quality tests were under way. “If all the tests are finished smoothly and are passed, then they are expected to be delivered from Germany to Hong Kong in the second half of February,” Chan said. Under government plans, priority for 1 million BioNTech doses, the first batch of vaccines to arrive, will be given to high-risk groups starting with staff and residents of care homes for the elderly, followed by hospital workers and other old people. The supply of CoronaVac doses, originally scheduled for delivery by the end of January, had also been delayed, while the ones from AstraZeneca would not arrive until the second half of the year, Lam added. “But at the same time, we have a desperate need for vaccination among high-risk groups and cross-border workers,” she said. “With those considerations in mind, I triggered [an agreement] when I visited Beijing last November, that if there was a need in Hong Kong, the chief executive could always approach the central people’s government for help in trying to secure a mainland-developed vaccine for Hong Kong.” Altogether, the city has bought 7.5 million doses each from Sinovac, BioNTech and AstraZeneca. The vaccine Lam has requested, developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Products under the China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm), was conditionally approved by mainland authorities in December. The authorities said the vaccine, which is one of three approved for emergency use on the mainland and employs the dead virus to help develop an immune response in users’ bodies, had similar rates of adverse effects to other such brands. According to their trial results, less than 0.1 per cent of subjects experienced mild fevers while serious allergic reactions occurred in about two per million people. Last month, Sinopharm told the press its vaccine had 79.34 per cent efficacy, a non-peer-reviewed rate based on an interim analysis of phase-three clinical trials. The vaccine has been rolled out across the mainland – pending full results of third-stage clinical trials – with about 200 pro-Beijing politicians in Hong Kong having received their first doses last week on a trip to Shenzhen, as part of precautions before attending the plenary sessions of China’s legislature and its top advisory body in March. EU locks horns with AstraZeneca on vaccine deliveries amid ‘supply shock’ Sinopharm’s vaccine has also been approved in several Middle Eastern and Asian countries, and is making inroads in poorer nations in Europe. Lam noted that Sinopharm had yet to disclose the data. Asked how she would win over experts and public acceptance, she said: “[The vaccine] would come under the same legal regulatory framework, but it is too early to say. We will see how things develop. “All in all, I can tell you that rolling out an orderly inoculation is my responsibility and I will do my very best for it. The central government has also shown its resolve to help Hong Kong.” But Chinese University respiratory medicine expert Professor David Hui Shu-cheong, who advises the government on Covid-19 vaccines, said Lam’s plan to rope in Sinopharm would not speed up Hong Kong’s roll-out, as the city had a “very stringent” approval process which required submission of third-stage data in medical journals. “There are no short-cut or corners to cut in this,” he said. Hui also said Sinovac, maker of CoronaVac, the other mainland vaccine that Hong Kong had already procured, did not seem to have any incentive to submit its third-stage data to local authorities for regulatory approval soon, as it had received many purchase orders worldwide and gained approval in Indonesia, Turkey, Brazil and Chile. He said Hong Kong’s contract with the firm would only be “activated” if the data met necessary requirements, adding he believed a deadline clause had been set. Ex-city leader CY Leung refuses to back down on chief executive election row Sinovac’s partner in Brazil, the Butantan Institute, earlier announced a 50.4 per cent general efficacy rate, offering protection against severities caused by Covid-19, and also mild cases not requiring treatment. The company has since sought to clarify its findings by stating that the CoronaVac was 100 per cent effective in protecting against severe cases, and 78 per cent effective in shielding people from symptoms that required treatment. Meanwhile, Professor Ivan Hung Fan-ngai, who is advising the government on its vaccination plan, told a Tuesday morning radio show that the most important thing for adopting a vaccine, whether it came from Sinopharm or Sinovac, was the third round of clinical data. “Without this information, it is difficult for the [government’s vaccination] committee to vet and recommend its use. People’s health is the most important consideration,” he said. Additional reporting by Kanis Leung and Tony CheungMore from South China Morning Post:Hong Kong fourth wave: ‘ambush-style’ Covid-19 lockdown takes residents of 12 Yau Ma Tei buildings by surpriseHong Kong lockdown: was it worth it? A look at whether city’s harshest coronavirus measure was effective‘Chimney effect’ may be spreading Covid-19 at large private housing estate in Hong Kong, health expert saysHong Kong lockdown: experts ask if drastic step needed after only 13 coronavirus cases uncovered; city logs 73 infectionsThis article Hong Kong fourth wave: sudden coronavirus lockdown ends within 12 hours; Carrie Lam seeking Beijing’s help in securing Sinopharm vaccine first appeared on South China Morning PostFor the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2021.
Relatives of Wuhan's coronavirus dead on Wednesday said Chinese authorities have deleted their social media group and are pressuring them to keep quiet while a World Health Organization team is in the city to investigate the pandemic's origins.
A Chinese corruption charge that the mother of Canadian music star Wanting Qu embezzled more than 350 million yuan (US$54 million) in her position as a Harbin housing official has been withdrawn, according to a social media post shared by Qu about the long-running case. But Zhang Mingjie, 65, remains in detention with her fate unclear more than six years after the accusations emerged. Prosecutors had sought the death penalty at Zhang’s original 2016 trial, but she has not been convicted. Qu, 36, who first found fame as a pop singer, then as the de facto first lady of Vancouver when she was the girlfriend of then-mayor Gregor Robertson, expressed confidence in the handling of the case by the “perfect and righteous” Chinese justice system in 2018.Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories originating in China. But last September, she decried on Weibo that there was “still no result” on the anniversary of her mother’s arrest, and she was “trying to keep faith in justice”. That prompted a fierce backlash on Chinese social media, and a rebuke for Qu in a commentary by China’s anti-corruption body, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. Last Wednesday, Qu shared a Weibo post written in the name of her 78-year-old aunt, Zhang Mingkun, that claimed her sister’s embezzlement charge had been withdrawn at a second hearing on March 12, 2019. It demanded that “justice be served” and questioned whether there was “something fishy going on”. “This fact alone is sufficient to prove that this particular indictment initiated by Harbin Procuratorate was wrong! So please do not mention this 350 million matter! This indictment does not exist any more!” said the post, originally written on January 14. It continued: “Zhang Mingjie was served with a Notice of Termination of Trial, but she is not allowed bail. Don’t you think something is wrong?” Wanting Qu issues update on mother’s death-penalty case A post by the same account on January 17 said interrogators had made Zhang Mingjie confess by threatening Qu. “[Investigators] said during the interrogations that Zhang Mingjie would definitely get the death sentence, and if she did not disclose everything honestly, they would arrest [her] relatives. They also forced Zhang Mingjie to admit her guilt by threatening the reputation of Wanting Qu,” it said. It also claimed that Zhang Mingjie was “tortured emotionally … humiliated, cursed and belittled” during a prolonged interrogation under spotlights. The Harbin Intermediate People’s Court did not respond to a request for information about Zhang’s case. Qu did not respond to a request for an interview that was emailed to her management. Zhang’s original trial in July 2016 was widely reported by Chinese state media, but the court has not publicly updated her status since then. China’s courts have a 99.9 per cent conviction rate, according to the China Law Yearbook. The official Xinhua news agency reported that Zhang, as deputy director of Harbin’s development and reform commission, was accused of selling state-owned farmland to a developer for far below its market value, in exchange for hundreds of millions of yuan in kickbacks. Vancouver’s mayor breaks up with pop star Wanting Qu She also allegedly failed to enforce the payment of tens of millions of yuan in compensation to displaced farmworkers who had lived in dorms on the land, the agency reported. “The court was told that Zhang had not only breached her duty as a civil servant, but also committed the crimes of embezzling public properties worth an enormous amount of money,” Xinhua reported. “Zhang was also said to have committed the crimes of bribe-taking and abusing authority, leading to a severe loss of public assets.” The Weibo account in the name of Zhang Mingkun was set up on January 10. It has since posted 14 times about Zhang Mingjie’s case. “I’ve tried to contact the chief justice, but he says ‘it’s useless to contact me’, he refused to see me in person. With no way out of this, I then had to make my voice heard on Weibo!” a post on the account said on January 21, responding to a question about why the family, including Qu, had taken so long to discuss the case. In the January 14 post, it said: “Even though I felt something was wrong a long time ago, I trusted that justice would be served. I patiently and painstakingly waited for almost seven years, but I discovered that the law enforcement people are not so just. That’s why I had to make myself heard here disclosing the truth to the public.” Chinese corruption prosecutors seek death penalty for mother of Wanting Qu Qu has never given an interview about the case, but has paid tribute to her mother in a handful of social media posts, and by releasing a single about their relationship, titled Your Girl. In March 2018, Qu said on Weibo: “It has been 3 years and 6 months since my mom was taken away on September 22, 2014. There is no point I wouldn’t feel pain, having seen the loss of my mother this way. However, each country has its own law. I believe that the court would hand down a ruling according to law.” When she posted about her mother again in January 2019, saying her “heart aches” for her, the remarks went viral; Weibo posts carrying a hashtag referring to her comments were viewed hundreds of millions of times, although the responses were overwhelmingly negative. Qu moved to Canada as a teenager. Her first album, “Everything in the World”, went platinum in China in 2012, and she sang on CCTV’s 2013 New Year’s telecast. But she is best known in Vancouver as the former partner of Robertson, now 56, who served as mayor from 2008 to 2018. They got to know each other after Qu was appointed Vancouver’s tourism ambassador to China in 2013, and went public with their relationship in early 2015. Robertson subsequently divorced his wife of more than 25 years, Amy Robertson, although a spokesman said no third party was involved in the split and the Robertsons had been separated since mid-2014. Qu and Robertson broke up in 2017.More from South China Morning Post:Pop star Wanting Qu issues update on mother’s death-penalty case, declaring Chinese law ‘perfect and righteous’Vancouver’s Mayor Gregor Robertson splits with pop star Wanting Qu, whose mother faces possible death penalty in ChinaChinese corruption prosecutors seek death penalty for mother of Wanting Qu, pop star girlfriend of Vancouver’s mayorThis article Canadian singer Wanting Qu shares claim that US$54 million Chinese corruption charge against mother is withdrawn first appeared on South China Morning PostFor the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2021.
Decades worth of archaeological finds went on public display Monday in Pompeii, shedding further light on the ancient Roman city destroyed by a volcanic eruption nearly 2,000 years ago.
US President Joe Biden was expected to sign an executive order on Tuesday aimed at countering discrimination against Asian-Americans as the community made an all-out push to end the Trump administration’s controversial “China Initiative”.The initiative, launched in 2018 by the Justice Department, aimed to blunt Chinese influence. Supporters have said it has put Beijing on notice, but critics have countered that it has produced few results and significant collateral damage, including a chilling effect on scientific exchange and the demonisation of Asian-Americans.“The community is reacting to the immediate threat before them. They feel besieged because of the mass investigations … Trump’s rhetoric and the spike in hate crimes,” said Aryani Ong, an Asian-American rights activist and former civil rights lawyer. “This organising represents an effort to stand up and announce that Asian-Americans belong in the US and deserve to have their rights protected.”Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories originating in China.Biden’s expected executive order aimed at countering Asian-American racial discrimination will be part of a themed “Equity Day” scheduled for Tuesday. Other executive orders were expected to establish a commission on policing and limiting transfers of military-style equipment to local law enforcement agencies.Behind the bid to eliminate the China Initiative is the growing confidence and political power of a community that traditionally steered clear of politics or confrontation as a so-called “model minority”, its members have said.A record 21 Asian-American and Pacific Islander lawmakers were elected to Congress in November. The country has its first vice-president of Asian descent. And the number of Asian-Americans who voted for the two Democrat candidates in this month’s Georgia Senate runoff was enough to push them into the win column, giving the party overall control in Congress.Efforts to kill the China Initiative are taking several forms. Susan Lee, a Maryland state senator, is working with Democrat US Representative Jamie Raskin on holding congressional hearings as a first step toward tougher laws and regulations, said sources.Raskin is chair of the House Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.“It’s not whether a hearing will take place but when, and how to make it successful,” said one Asian-American who has been conferring with congressional staff.This follows a letter sent January 5 to Biden urging the incoming administration to end the initiative and mount a complete review of all prosecutions and investigations targeting Asian-Americans and Asian immigrant scientists, researchers and students.The letter, signed by community organisations, advocacy groups, science associations, and prominent individuals, also called on the incoming administration to investigate and combat racial bias against Asian-Americans in law enforcement, intelligence and scientific research. Joe Biden to work with allies to stop China’s ‘economic abuses’And in recent days, the community had launched fundraising campaigns aimed at raising awareness and helping to defend three Chinese-American scientists who supporters have said are victims of the China Initiative.That effort has raised over US$750,000 with GoFundMe campaigns for Gang Chen, a 56-year old Massachusetts of Technology professor charged earlier this month with grant fraud for allegedly hiding his relationship with China; University of Kansas chemist Feng ‘Franklin’ Tao, charged with fraud and making false statements stemming from his research work with China; and Texas A&M; University professor Zhengdong Cheng, charged with conspiracy, making false statements and wire fraud.In a November press conference on the second anniversary of the initiative, FBI director Christopher Wray and Justice Department officials gave themselves high marks for investigating and prosecuting trade secret theft and economic espionage, countering threats posed by Chinese foreign investment, exposing supply chain vulnerabilities and building public awareness on dangers posed by Beijing.“The Chinese Communist Party’s theft of sensitive information and technology isn’t a rumour or a baseless accusation,” said FBI director Christopher Wray. “We’ll continue our aggressive efforts to counter China’s criminal activity.”But critics point out that few charges filed as part of the initiative have involved espionage, with most involving mistakes on forms and misfiling. Of 61 charges announced under the programme to date involving researchers and scientists, none appears to involve economic espionage or trade-secrets theft by some counts.The issue – and the anger engendered by Trump’s derogatory use of such language as the “China virus” and “Kung flu” during the pandemic – has united the often divided Asian-American community.Last year, Asian Americans reported over 2,600 hate incidents during a period of a few months, compared with a few hundred in most years going back to 1999, said Ong, who met a senior FBI official in late 2018 to raise concerns about bias.Those trying to end the initiative, however, acknowledge that it will be difficult. There is strong bipartisan support for a tougher line on China as Washington struggles to counter Beijing’s growing assertiveness, intellectual property theft and diplomatic chest-thumping. That makes it difficult to take a softer line on any policy with “China” in the title, they have said. ‘I didn’t like being Chinese’: Asian-Americans explore their identityAnd even if the programme is officially halted, it is likely to continue in some form given bureaucratic momentum. There are currently an estimated 2,500 FBI investigations under way and a new one is reportedly opened every 10 hours on average.Asian-American activists said individuals who break the law should be punished. But blanket prejudice against a community that is over-represented in vital science and technology fields, with the language and cultural skills important in diplomacy, government, intelligence and the military is counterproductive and unfair, they added.“There is a growing and broad sense that Asian-Americans are not perceived to be fully American, even now,” said Ong. “It’s in the US’ best interest to leverage all its people’s assets, and Asian Americans play a key role.”More from South China Morning Post: * Joe Biden to work with allies to stop China’s ‘economic abuses’ * US in coronavirus ‘nosedive’ as Joe Biden reinstates travel bans * US president Joe Biden orders review of domestic violent extremism threat after Capitol insurgency * Sanctions on China to remain even with Sino-US tensions set to ease under President Joe Biden: Hong Kong’s American Chamber of CommerceThis article Joe Biden expected to sign executive order countering Asian-American discrimination first appeared on South China Morning PostFor the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2021.
With an early injection of capital from Goldman Sachs Group, CS Wind Corp. has become the world’s biggest manufacturer of wind towers.
Foreigners snapping up private apartments in Singapore declined to a 17-year low in 2020 as travel restrictions and lockdowns in various countries deterred them from coming to the city-state.
Believing that her boyfriend was cheating on her, a woman made a police report about his "illegal weapons".
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has challenged his Manchester United players to show the relentlessness of champions when they welcome bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United to Old Trafford on Wednesday.
Russia said Tuesday it was up to Washington to take the first steps if US President Joe Biden wants to salvage the landmark Iran nuclear deal.
Pfizer or Sinopharm? The US or China? In the Middle East and North Africa, novel coronavirus vaccine orders are driven by diplomatic and logistical considerations, reflecting Beijing's growing regional influence.
Twitter has permanently banned My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell’s account after he continued to perpetuate the baseless claim that Donald Trump won the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Twitter decided to ban Lindell, who founded bedding company My Pillow, due to “repeated violations” of its civic integrity policy, a spokesperson said in a statement.
Fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli’s request to serve the remaining three months of his prison term in the college admissions bribery scheme at home was denied Tuesday by a federal judge. Giannulli argued he should be released to home confinement for the rest of his five-month sentence because he spent eight weeks under “extreme” conditions in solitary confinement because of the coronavirus pandemic after reporting to prison in November. Giannulli, who reported to prison on Nov. 19, believed he would only be held in quarantine for a short time before testing negative for the coronavirus, his lawyers said in court documents.
From fixed vs floating interest rates to the costs of refinancing, here are 5 key factors to compare and consider when refinancing your home loan.
Christian Eriksen scored a last-gasp winner as Inter Milan advanced to the Italian Cup semi-finals on Tuesday with a 2-1 victory over 10-man AC Milan in a fiery derby clash.
Should investors be concerned that these two prominent real estate companies have issued profit warnings? The post CapitaLand and CDL Both Announced Profit Warnings: Should Investors Sell? appeared first on The Smart Investor.
President Joe Biden signalled a tougher US stance on Russia Tuesday in his first phone call with President Vladimir Putin, raising concerns over human rights and "aggression" against Ukraine, but welcoming cooperation on a new nuclear weapons accord.
It pays to be a DBS/POSB credit card holder. Here are all the deals you can get when it comes to food, food delivery, shopping, health, wellness and more. Named the ‘World’s Best Bank’ in 2019, it’s no surprise many of us might already have […] The post DBS/POSB Credit Card Promotions and Deals: January 2021 appeared first on SingSaver Blog - We Compare, You Save.
In an unusual and potentially groundbreaking decision, French drugmaker Sanofi said Wednesday it will help bottle and package 125 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine developed by its rivals Pfizer and BioNTech, while its own vaccine candidate faces delays. The announcement came as delays or production problems for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and a vaccine from Britain's AstraZeneca have caused political uproar across the European Union. Sanofi's Frankfurt facilities will help with late-stage production of vaccines prepared by Germany-based BioNTech, including bottling and packaging, starting in the summer, according to a Sanofi official.
