A protester holds a placard during a demonstration against India's new citizenship law in Mumbai on December 26, 2019. - The wave of protests across the country have marked the biggest challenge to Narendra Modi's government since sweeping to power in the world's largest democracy in 2014. (Photo by INDRANIL MUKHERJEE / AFP)
Indian police have launched a sedition investigation against a primary school over a play that allegedly criticised a contentious citizenship law, officials said Wednesday.
There have been widespread street demonstrations against the law introduced by the Hindu-nationalist government that grants citizenship to religious groups from three neighbouring countries, but excludes Muslims.
Police said they were laying initial charges under the British colonial-era law against the principal and the management of the school in Bidar district in the southern state of Karnataka.
The probe came after a member of the youth wing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party filed a complaint against the school.
“We have started an investigation into the complaint by an activist who alleged that the play criticised and disrespected Modi,” Bidar police chief T. Sreedhara told AFP.
He added that the young student actors, aged between nine and 10 years old, were also being questioned, but would not be charged.
A school official told AFP they were being “unnecessarily” targeted by the government for expressing their views.
The play, which was performed on Sunday, was part of Shaheen Public School’s founding day celebrations.
A video of the five-minute play shared on social media showed students talking about how they feared the government would ask millions of Muslims to prove their nationality or be expelled from India.
The citizenship law, combined with a mooted national register of citizens, has stoked fears that India’s 200 million Muslims will be marginalised.
The play ended with a poem written by a Bollywood lyricist that has become a rallying point for hundreds of thousands of protesters across India.
The British-era sedition law enacted in 1860 carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. Prosecutions are rare but it has frequently been used against critics of the government of the day.
Dozens of demonstrators have been charged with sedition in the ongoing protests.
On Tuesday, New Delhi police arrested a student activist on sedition charges after a video posted on social media allegedly showed him telling a crowd to “cut off” India’s northeast to force the government to roll back the law.
Last week, women protesters in northern Uttar Pradesh state, which is ruled by the BJP, were charged with sedition for holding a sit-in in the heart of its capital Lucknow.
India is now capable of making Pakistan “bite the dust” in less than 10 days in any new war with its arch-rival, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said.
The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars and last February came close to a fourth with tit-for-tat airstrikes sparked by an attack on Indian troops in Kashmir.
Modi is under pressure after weeks of ongoing protests against a new citizenship law, a slowing economy and the prospect of losing the latest in a string of state elections in New Delhi next month.
“Pakistan has already lost three wars. Our armed forces will not take more than 7-10 days to make Pakistan bite the dust,” Modi said in a speech to military personnel on Tuesday.
His comments follow last year’s incident when an Indian fighter jet was shot down — and the pilot captured — by Islamabad after a rare aerial engagement.
Wearing a maroon National Cadet Corps baseball cap at the event in the capital, Modi said India’s new prowess was thanks to what he called “youthful thinking”.
He said that Indian strikes against what New Delhi said were militants in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and inside Pakistan proper in 2016 and last year were evidence of this.
“This is ‘youthful thinking’. We carry out surgical strikes and take on terrorists in their homes,” Modi said.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars: in 1947, 1965 and 1971, as well as in 1999 during the so-called Kargil Conflict.
Modi said that Pakistan continues to wage a “proxy war” against India by backing militants in Indian-administered Kashmir where tens of thousands of people have died in recent decades.
Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since Independence from Britain in 1947. In August Modi’s government stripped Indian Kashmir of its partial autonomy.
The Dalai Lama - *christopher* - Flickr: dalailama1_20121014_4639
The US House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to authorize sanctions against Chinese officials who interfere in the process of determining the Dalai Lama’s successor, raising pressure as the Tibetan spiritual leader approaches 85.
Under the legislation, Washington would freeze any US assets and ban travel to the United States of Chinese officials found to be involved in “identifying or installing” a government-approved Dalai Lama
A total of 392 lawmakers voted for the bill with 22, all of them Republicans plus one conservative independent, opposed.
The act still needs approval from the Senate, where Republican Marco Rubio has promised to lead efforts, before heading to President Donald Trump for his signature.
The law would also prohibit China from opening any further consulates in the United States until Washington can open a mission in Lhasa, the Himalayan territory’s tightly restricted capital.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a longtime advocate for Tibet, said that the bill aims to encourage Beijing to resume dialogue with envoys of the Dalai Lama that broke off a decade ago.
“We are supporting the Tibetan people’s right to religious freedom and genuine autonomy by formally establishing a US policy that the Tibetan Buddhist community has the exclusive right to choose its religious leaders, including the 15th Dalai Lama,” Pelosi said.
It is the latest human rights bill passed in the US Congress, including an act in support of Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters that angered China.
The 14th Dalai Lama, a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, has won a global following through his good-humored discourses on peace and compassion, helping fuel interest in his push for greater Tibetan autonomy.
Beijing, while officially atheist, has signaled that it could try to stage-manage his succession — a ritualistic search in which monks look for clues in a young boy — with the presumed goal of grooming a pliant Dalai Lama.
While brushing aside any worries about his health, the Dalai Lama has said he is open to breaking tradition by choosing a successor before he dies, including potentially a girl, or even declaring the institution finished with him.
In 1995, Beijing selected its own Panchen Lama — another influential Tibetan Buddhist position — and detained a six-year-old identified for the role, whom rights groups described as the world’s youngest political prisoner.
Drone image of fake town - but no one knows if its related to Wuhan virus - Youtube Grab
A deadly coronavirus outbreak, which has infected thousands and spread around the world since emerging in China, has also spawned many false claims on social media.
Here’s a selection of misinformation debunked by AFP’s Fact Check service.
Sydney food not contaminated
In Australia, multiple Facebook posts shared hundreds of times claimed to show a list of foods and locations in Sydney which have been contaminated by the new coronavirus strain first discovered in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December.
One post, published on January 27, identified different types of rice, cookies and onion rings that allegedly contain traces of the virus. It also claimed that a “bureau of diseasology” had run tests and discovered the strain in several Sydney suburbs.
But the local health authority told AFP the locations listed posed no risk to visitors, and the foods named did not appear in the New South Wales food authority’s list of recalls and advisories.
Not Wuhan market
A video viewed more than 88,000 times on Facebook purported to show the market in Wuhan where the virus strain materialised. In reality, it was filmed at an Indonesian market.
The misleading post was published on an account in the Philippines on January 26, 2020. The footage showed bats, rats, snakes and an assortment of other animal meat products being sold at a bustling market.
However, a reverse image search using key frames extracted from the video led to another identical YouTube clip uploaded on July 20, 2019.
AFP was able to confirm the video was in fact captured at the Langowan market in Indonesia’s North Sulawesi province.
Fake death projections
In Sri Lanka, a Facebook post shared thousands of times claimed doctors were projecting that the entire population of Wuhan — a city of 11 million people — would likely die of the novel coronavirus.
This is false; Chinese authorities have made no such projection.
There is currently no vaccine for the new strain of coronavirus. But the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention stated that most people will recover on their own.
The post also claimed the virus could be caught by eating the meat of the Chinese cobra but this has not yet been established.
Salt water can’t kill virus
Multiple posts on Weibo, Twitter and Facebook shared in January claimed top Chinese respiratory expert Zhong Nanshan had told people to rinse their mouths with salt water solution to prevent infection from a new virus outbreak.
But the claim is bogus; the expert’s team said saline would not “kill” the new virus and urged people not to believe or share medically-inaccurate online rumours.
The World Health Organization also told AFP there was no evidence that saline solution would protect against infection from the new coronavirus.
Conspiracy theories
Multiple posts on Facebook and Twitter alleged that the novel coronavirus was created on purpose — with theories including that it was manufactured by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The posts included patents to buffer their claim. But these were in fact patents registered in an effort to combat different strains of coronavirus, for example by developing vaccines.
Hospital not built in record time
A photo shared hundreds of times on Twitter and Facebook claimed to show a a new hospital in Wuhan that was built in just 16 hours especially for coronavirus patients.
In reality, it is a stock image of a random building that has circulated online since at least January 2019.
Although a new hospital is being built in Wuhan, AFP visited the construction site on January 27 and found it was still in the very early stages of development.
False alarm in France
In France, several social media posts have circulated with claims that people had been contaminated with the novel coronavirus in the departments of Val d’Oise, Savoie, Lot-et-Garonne and Pyrenees-Orientales.
These false reports were accompanied by images made to look like they were screenshots from several French news sources — including AFP.
However, these images were digitally manipulated. No cases have been confirmed in these departments.
See AFP’s Fact Check blog https://factcheck.afp.com
A part of Wuhan city before the outbreak of the virus - Wikipedia
China has enacted extraordinary measures to contain the spread of a new coronavirus that has killed more than 130 people, infected thousands and reached some 15 countries.
Here is a rundown of the steps taken so far in an unprecedented effort:
Millions under lockdown
More than 56 million people are subject to travel curbs in Hubei province, where the virus was first detected.
Public transport has been stopped in 18 cities there, with train stations shut, events cancelled and theatres, libraries and karaoke bars closed in some locations.
The epicentre of the outbreak is provincial capital Wuhan, the biggest city on lockdown, where the government has halted all travel out of the Yangtze River metropolis of 11 million.
Wuhan residents have been urged to stay home and authorities have restricted car traffic in the city centre.
Similar quarantine measures are being taken in nearby cities, with strict controls on weddings and funerals, temperature screenings for new arrivals, and the suspension of online taxi services.
The United States and Japan airlifted out some of their trapped nationals on Wednesday. Europeans plan a similar operation this week.
Travel restrictions
Beijing, Shanghai and other megacities have suspended the entry and departure of long-distance bus services.
At least 2,000 inter-province train services have been cancelled since Friday — most until February 8-9 but some for weeks.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that 3.3 million railway trips were expected to be made on Wednesday, down more than 70 percent year-on-year.
Chinese authorities have also asked citizens to delay international travel to stop the virus from spreading elsewhere overseas.
Authorities had already suspended both domestic and overseas Chinese group tours over the weekend.
Tourists from Hubei in Haikou, capital of the island province of Hainan, were told by the city government they had to spend 14 days in a hotel for centralised medical observation, and were forbidden to leave.
Holidays extended
Hundreds of millions of people criss-crossed the country last week for family reunions for the Lunar New Year holiday, in what is typically a joyous time of gatherings and public celebration.
Instead, public health officials asked China’s 1.4 billion citizens to confine themselves at home until all is clear.
Schools and universities across the country were ordered not to reopen until further notice on Tuesday, a day after the holiday break was extended to try and reduce the spread of the virus.
Wuhan and Beijing had earlier cancelled public events that usually attract hundreds of thousands of people to temples during the New Year holiday.
Attractions closed
Beijing’s Forbidden City, a sprawling imperial palace, was closed from Saturday.
Other famous landmarks including a section of the Great Wall, the Ming Tombs and Yinshan Pagoda also shut. Tibet’s Potala Palace was shut down on Monday.
Disneyland amusement parks in Shanghai and Hong Kong have closed down indefinitely.
Women’s Olympics football qualifiers scheduled for next week in Wuhan have been moved out of the country and will now be held in Sydney.
China’s film box-office earnings for Lunar New Year’s Eve on Friday were just one-tenth of last year as people shunned crowds.
US coffee chain Starbucks said it had shut all its stores in Hubei during the holiday break and more than half of its stores around the country.
Travel screenings
China has ordered sterilisation and ventilation at airports and bus stations, as well as inside planes and trains, while travellers are being screened for fever.
Temperature screening checkpoints have been set up in hundreds of Chinese railway stations, according to state news agency Xinhua.
Authorities have asked people to wash their hands regularly, avoid crowded places, get plenty of fresh air and wear protective face masks.
City authorities in Wuhan have gone further and made it mandatory to wear masks in public places. A similar order was issued in southern Guangdong province, which has 110 million people.
With people rushing to get masks at pharmacies and on popular websites, China’s industry and information technology ministry vowed to increase supply.
Two new hospitals
Authorities in Wuhan are rushing to build two field hospitals by next week to ease pressure on medical facilities in the city that are struggling to handle a growing caseload.
The first facility is expected to be operational by next Monday and will have a capacity of 1,000 beds spread over 25,000 square metres, according to state media.
The second is slated to open two days later. State media announced Wednesday that it would hold 1,600 beds, 300 more than earlier indicated.
The two new hospitals will be similar in size to the temporary facility built to tackle SARS in Beijing in 2003, when 650 people died from the disease in the mainland and Hong Kong.
Singapore — The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), in a statement released on Wednesday (Jan 29), has called on Singaporeans not to produce and spread fake news and rumours about the Wuhan virus outbreak.
Nearly 6,000 people are ill and 132 have died, according to statistics released by China’s National Health Commission on Tuesday (Jan 28). The virus has reached various other cities in China and other countries, including Thailand, South Korea, Japan, the United States, France, Germany, Malaysia and Singapore.
Officials have called for only the facts regarding the outbreak to be disseminated, as false news and rumours have abounded concerning the virus, especially on social media sites online as well as messaging apps such as WhatsApp.
The SDP joined the call for the public to refrain from propagating falsehoods about the Wuhan virus, adding in its statement that“alarming the public through such misinformation only harms our community and ourselves”.
The opposition party urged people to verify the sources of information before sharing posts, double-checking to see if these are from reliable sources before forwarding them to others. It says this can be done easily through quick searches online to verify the information.
The SDP also backed full cooperation with authorities during this time. “It is important that we do our utmost at this time to cooperate with the authorities to bring the situation under control and to minimise and even stop the virus from further spreading.”
The party also commended efforts the authorities have made in informing the public concerning confirmed cases of the virus as well as their contact histories. “It is important that the public continues to receive timely and detailed information on cases under surveillance. This will be an effective way to reduce rumours from proliferating.”
The SDP statement came a day after the Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed another two cases of the virus in the country, bringing the total to seven. With three confirmed cases within the last 24 hours, the MOH noted that the trend of infection among Chinese nationals from Hubei province in Singapore is accelerating, in line with the sharp increase in global infection rates. It said this presented a heightened risk to Singapore, although there was as yet no evidence that the virus had spread in the community.
From Wednesday (Jan 29), travellers who have passports issued in Hubei and those who have been to Hubei recently will not be allowed to enter or transit through Singapore.
The authorities said on Tuesday that there are around 2,000 individuals in Singapore who have recently travelled to Hubei. From among them, those who are deemed to be at higher risk will be put into quarantine.
At present there are 75 people who are under quarantine, all of whom were in close contact with the first four individuals in the country who were confirmed to be positive for the Wuhan virus.
Quarantine, which falls under the Infectious Diseases Act, carries strict penalties when disobeyed. A fine of $10,000 and a six-month jail sentence can be meted out for first time offenders, with more stringent penalties for those who repeat the offence. -/TISG
The wife of Singapore's Prime Minister, Ho Ching. (Photo by AXEL SCHMIDT / POOL / AFP)
Singapore — The wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Chief Executive of Temasek Holdings, Madam Ho Ching, has sought to both allay fears over the Wuhan virus and advise people on how to protect themselves amid growing concerns about the rising numbers of those infected worldwide.
Just as Mr Lee had said in a post on Tuesday (Jan 28), Madam Ho said masks are for those who feel unwell. She added, however, to “have a mask ready if you worry that you may be meeting unknown patients”.
She also suggested alternatives in case it is not possible to wash the hands with soap and water, including using hand sanitiser, strong alcohol, disinfectant, wet wipes, or even mouthwash.
Madam Ho explained why clean hands are so important: “Like Sars, and most seasonal flu, transmission is via droplets. So the main transmission is via the hands touching surfaces contaminated by these droplets.
“We touch parts of our face regularly, scratching our nose, rubbing our eyes, putting food into our mouth, stroking our chin, etc.
“This brings the viral load to our face, to help the virus get into our nose, throat and eventually down into our lungs, where they multiply, and inflame our lungs, mess up our lung membrane to prevent proper gas exchange of CO2 from the blood and oxygen from fresh air into our blood.
“This is why one important symptom to watch for is breathlessness. Another softer indicator is dry coughs. Fever is just the side effect of our body immune system mounting a fight.”
As for masks, if these are not available, given that people have been snapping them up from the stores, Madam Ho said that a handkerchief or even a Good Morning towel would do as well, when folded “into a triangle with 2 layers, to tie over our nose and mouth, as if you are ready to be a robber in one of these cops-and-robbers movies”.
And for added protection, one can put a few layers of tissue above their mouths and noses, she wrote, “to be more kiasu and kiasi”.
She again reminded the public to cleanse their hands after handling those tissues.
Madam Ho addressed taxi and rideshare drivers as well, saying they can wipe down cabs whenever a passenger who seemed unwell rode with them.
At the end of her post she said that, since many viruses do not like warm weather, “the critical period is the next 1-3 months, hopefully only 1 month or twice the incubation period, to be watchful and ready to step up precautions and maintain vigilance, to respond quickly and decisively to the fast changing and fluid situation of an evolving pandemic”. -/TISG
Yee Jenn Jong, a former Non-constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) with the Workers’ Party (WP) posted on social media earlier today asking the people of Singapore to stay calm, yet vigilant.
Sharing a message by his party, he wrote: “Most importantly, we urge everyone to remain calm, and not to give in to fear mongering by speculating or spreading rumours online”.
Mr Yee added: “Every once in a while, the world will face new unknown and deadly viruses. We do not know a lot yet about the new coronavirus that originated from Wuhan. It appears to spread faster than SARS due to its stealth nature (many carriers do not exhibit obvious symptoms) but is so far less deadly than SARS, MERS and certainly nowhere near the level of Ebola or the Spanish flu of 1918”.
Advising people to rest and sufficiently hydrate, Mr Yee also reminded the public of the need to be mindful about disseminating articles online “as there are many rumours spreading around, many of these untrue and stroking (sic) unnecessary fear”.
Earlier today, in their press release, The Workers’ Party voiced their “full support” for the multi-ministry task force to consolidate efforts in containing the spread of the virus within Singapore, as well as overseas. They too urged the public to stay united and heed instructions given by the various ministries.
Mr Yee’s and other politicians messages of concern come in as Singapore sees its seventh patient confirmed with the Wuhan virus; a 35-year-old male, who arrived in Singapore on Jan 23. He developed symptoms on Jan 24 and went to Raffles Hospital, from where he was transferred to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases by private ambulance, MOH said. The man subsequently tested positive for coronavirus on Jan 27 at 11 pm. /TISG
Photo: YouTube screengrab, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong interview
Singapore—In the wake of three new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Singapore in a twenty-four-hour span, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong posted a message to the public regarding the spread of the virus, which originated in Wuhan, a city in central China and has thus far affected around 6,000 individuals, with a death toll of 132.
PM Lee sought to assure the public that measures are being made to ensure that Singapore is well-prepared at this time.
The Prime Minister, who posted his message late on Tuesday afternoon (Jan 28), said that he had been receiving numerous messages abut the virus, and assured that he understood well the concern people have for themselves and their loved ones in Singapore and other countries.
He acknowledged the swift progression of events in relation to the Wuhan virus, and said that the government’s contingency plan has been set in motion.
PM Lee added that the country’s healthcare system is well prepared, and has been getting ready for this type of situation since the SARS outbreak over 15 years ago.
He also told the public that hard work is being done all over the world to find a cure for the virus.
“Meanwhile, scientists and medical professionals across the world are working around the clock to understand the virus and develop a vaccine. Experts think the Wuhan virus may be less lethal than SARS, but more infectious. Patients who are infected may possibly be contagious before symptoms show. If true, this will make it harder to screen and detect new cases, and to stop the spread.”
He then went on to say that there is not yet a local transmission or community spread of the novel coronavirus in Singapore, and that all the people in the country so far who have tested positive for the virus are from Hubei and are Chinese nationals.
PM Lee added that recent travellers from Hubei, as well as those who have PRC passports issued from there, are no longer allowed entry or transit into Singapore. He said that Singaporeans who have recently visited Hubei or those who have long-term passes, will be quarantined.
The Prime Minister urged the public to stay calm and to practice good hygiene in order to prevent pathogens from spreading, and to consult a doctor immediately if they feel unwell.
He added that the wearing of masks is unnecessary if one is not sick.
PM Lee also urged the public to refrain from listening to fake news about the virus, since there is much of it going around especially on social media and messaging apps such as WhatsApp.
Petaling Jaya—A man was arrested in Bangi on Tuesday (Jan 28) for spreading false information about the novel coronavirus, also commonly known as the Wuhan virus.
The swiftly spreading virus, which originated from Wuhan, a city in central China, has been causing alarm worldwide, with around 6,000 people infected and a death toll of 132. The cure rate of the virus currently stands at 103, and thousands of suspected cases around the globe are being tested or awaiting results from testing.
Authorities in all countries have been calling for the dissemination of only factual information about the virus, in order to prevent undue panic or alarm.
Malaysia, however, has taken the step of arresting one man for allegedly sharing a post on social media that contained misinformation. A yet unidentified 34-year-old man was arrested in Bangi, Selangor, over a post he shared last Sunday (Jan 26).
The Malay Mail reports the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) as saying that the man was arrested at his own home, authorities confiscated his cellular phone and sim card which they believe he used for sharing posts that contained falsehoods.
Under Section 233 of the country’s Communications and Multimedia Act, his action of improper use of network facilities could mean a fine of RM50,000 (approximately SGD 16,600) and no more than one year of jail time if he is convicted.
According to the MCMC, “The stern action is among efforts by the MCMC and Royal Malaysia Police to control the spread of false news on the novel coronavirus by irresponsible individuals, which could jeopardise national stability and public peace.”
The commission also said that three other individuals are currently being investigated on similar grounds, for having spread false information about the Wuhan virus.
The MCMC and Royal Malaysia Police issued a warning earlier in the week saying that the law concerning fake news would strictly be enforced, particularly in situations involving the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Malaysia’s health authorities have had to continually correct fake news about the Wuhan virus that has spread over the country’s social media, in order to avoid situations of panic, even if there has not been a widespread outbreak in the country.
Similar to its neighbour Singapore, Malaysia has so far reported seven cases of the Wuhan virus in total, with three new cases confirmed on Wednesday, January 29.
The Health Ministry of Malaysia confirmed that the three new cases all involve Chinese nationals. The three new cases are the mother of two children also infected with the virus, a 52-year-old man and a four-year-old girl.
The two children of the mother are grandchildren of a man, age 66, who is one of the first people in Singapore who tested positive for the Wuhan virus last week.
Malaysia recently implemented more stringent health checks along its international borders. Chinese visitors entering the Tuas immigration checkpoint in Johor now have a separate lane.
According to the director-general of the Health Ministry, Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, thermal scanners are now in place in the country’s entry points to discover visitors who have a fever.-/TISG
