China Is Trying To Silence Activists In America Who Oppose The CCP



ByStavros Atlamazoglou

Image: Creative Commons.

One American and four Chinese intelligence officers have been charged with spying and conspiring to silence critics of the Chinese government on American soil.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed an indictment charging one U.S. and four Chinese citizens with conspiracy and espionage, and transnational repression charges.

Spying On American Soil

On May 18, the Justice Department charged and identified the American asset and four Chinese intelligence officers.

According to the Department of Justice, the five men participated in an espionage and transnational repression program in the U.S. and abroad.

The five men are: Wang Shujun, of Queens, New York; Feng He, also known as “Boss He,” of Guangdong; Jie Ji, of Qingdao; Ming Li, also known as “Elder Tang and Little Li,” of Guangdong; and Keqing Lu, also known as “Boss Lu,” of Qingdao.
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Wang, the American citizen, wasn’t an intelligence officer but rather an asset that was working with the four Chinese intelligence officers.

“We will not tolerate efforts by the PRC or any authoritarian government to export repressive measures to our country,” Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen, who is assigned to the Justice Department’s National Security Division, said in a press statement.

“These charges demonstrate the Justice Department’s unwavering commitment to hold accountable all those who violate our laws in seeking to suppress dissenting voices within the United States and to prevent our residents from exercising their lawful rights,” Olsen added.

Out of the five individuals, only Wang has been arrested. The four Chinese intelligence officers remain at large—most likely safe in China.

“As alleged, Wang acted as a covert intelligence asset in his own community, spying on and reporting sensitive information on prominent pro-democracy activists and organizations to his co-defendants, who are members of the Chinese government’s Ministry of State Security,” U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York said.

“Today’s indictment exposes and disrupts an operation by the PRC that threatens the safety and freedom of Chinese nationals residing in the United States on account of their pro-democracy beliefs and speech. Our office and our law enforcement partners will remain vigilant to thwart foreign espionage activities aimed at our citizens and residents,” Peace added.

The indictment was unsealed in a federal court in Brooklyn, New York City.

Targeting Dissidents and Activists

According to the Justice Department, Wang was using his position as a reputable academic and author who advocated for a pro-democracy organization to actually collect information on members of the Chinese diaspora who were supporting activism and human rights in China. Wang then passed the information to the Ministry of State Security (MSS), China’s main intelligence agency.

“If anyone doubts how serious the Chinese government is about silencing its critics, this case should eliminate any uncertainty. The Chinese government’s aggressive tactics were once confined to its borders. Now, the PRC is targeting people in the United States and around the world. The FBI and its partners remain committed to combatting transnational repression,” Acting Executive Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler Jr. from the FBI’s National Security Branch stated.

1945’s New Defense and National Security Columnist, Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations, a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ), and a Johns Hopkins University graduate. His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M

Political control, money and firepower: Latin American 'maras' evolve beyond gangs, a new report warns

MS-13 is now "among the largest non-state armed groups in the Western Hemisphere," according to a new report.


POR::DAVID C ADAMS
PUBLICADO 30 MAY 2022 

A former MS-13 gang leader is pictured at Santa Ana prison, 60 km northwest of San Salvador. 

Crédito: OSCAR RIVERA/AFP via Getty Images

Gangs in Central and South America are growing so powerfully connected to state institutions that they have morphed from their traditionally isolated, street-level criminal activities to become dangerous “community-embedded transnational armed groups” with corrupt ties to the police and political parties, according to a new report published the National Defense University in Washington.

“If you look at their territorial control, financial power, military control, political influence, they've really you know, they've gone far beyond just gangs,” one of the authors, Douglas Farah, told Univision Noticias.


“They're not really organized crime or cartel owners, but they're certainly not just gangs any more like what they were in the early 1990s, guys were still earrings on busses who rip off your purse and sell crack on the street. These guys are now structures, coherent military and political economic forces that need to be viewed in a different light,” said Farah who is a former journalist a veteran regional security analyst who was conducted research for the U.S. government.

Members of the "Mara 18" and "MS-13" gangs are seen in custody of guards at a maximum security prison in Izalco, Sonsonate, El Salvador on September 4, 2020, amid the new coronavirus pandemic. Crédito: YURI CORTEZ/AFP via Getty Images

"Gangs No Longer" - a new report on MS-13

Groups like MS-13 in Central America and First Command of the Capital (PCC) in Sao Paulo, Brazil, “are growing in power and influence while the state is in retreat” and are in large part responsible for the growing waves of corruption and instability in theregion, adds the report, titled ‘Gangs No Longer: Reassessing Transnational Armed Groups in the Western Hemisphere’.

Their “vise-like territorial control” developed over three decades of existence, has allowed them to co-opt state entities through corruption and intimidation, while establishing the groups as legitimate governing entities, the 44-page report concludes. This new maturity of leadership and a willingness to end economic gain from extortion and other hated practices in exchange for political support have in fact led to economic and political gain.

MS-13's political influence in El Salvador and Honduras

The report highlights the political influence of MS-13 in El Salvador and Honduras, including allegations of ties to the government of Nayib Bukele in El Salvador and the former government of Juan Orlando Hernandez in Honduras. In El Salvador, media reports have alleged that MS-13 negotiated the homicide rate with government officials, in exchange for money, access to cabinet-level positions, and favorable prison conditions.


In Honduras, MS-13 has moved into the cocaine trade including trans-shipments from South America as well as developing the ability to process coca paste into refined cocaine in its own laboratories, in order to cash in on the much higher value for the finished product. This has also involved the corruption of the police, military, and judicial structures to guarantee its political control over its territories.

Yulan Adonay Archaga Carias, the alleged leader of MS-13 for all of Honduras—and a member of the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List. 

Crédito: Twitter - FBI Most Wanted

Porky case, an example of MS-13's political influence in Honduras

As an example of their growing political influence, Farah pointed to the case of a notorious Honduras MS-13 leader, Yulan Andony Archaga Carías, alias ‘Porky,’ the Leader of MS-13 in Honduras who was named to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List in November 2021 and charged with trafficking multi-ton shipments of cocaine into the U.S. and multiple murders.

Honduran and U.S. investigators believe Porky enjoyed the protection of Honduran government officials, possibly including former Honduran president, Juan Orlando Hernandez, Farah told Univision. He escaped in broad daylight while being transferred under heavy armed guard to a supposed court hearing in 2020 and has not been seen since.

Hernandez is being held in the United States on charges in federal court in New York for cocaine and arms trafficking.

MS-13 members were also allegedly responsible for the murder of a key witness against Tony Hernandez, the president's brother.

Hernandez, and Bukele in El Salvador, have both strongly rejected any ties or negotiations with MS-13.

The Porky case “shows the deeper reach MS-13 has to government structures. They're no longer outsiders, they can negotiate directly with power,” said Farah who spoke directly with U.S. and Honduras officials investigating MS-13 and its political links.

“For the Porkys of this world this allowed them for the first time to develop direct political access where they could negotiate their highest desires at a very senior government level and get something concrete in exchange for it,” he added.

Members of the criminal gang Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) are escorted by officers of the National Police in Tegucigalpa on February 19, 2021, after the dismantling of an operations centre of the organisation found in the mountains of the department of Olancho, north of Honduras.

 Crédito: ORLANDO SIERRA/AFP via Getty Images

Gangs are an existential threat to Central American countries

Like MS-13, the PCC in Brazil has become increasingly active in the global cocaine trade, expanding to control key ports and trafficking routes across the hemisphere. The revenue from this cocaine trade has also given the PCC the means to pursue political protection at the local, regional, and national levels in much of the country.

MS- 13 is smaller and not as well structured as the PCC is Brazil, but poses a more existential threat in Central America as well as to the United States. “They control towns in El Salvador and Honduras and they operate in chunks of Guatemala, and along Mexico border,” said Farah.

Less interested in crossing the border themselves, MS-13 is more dedicated to trafficking drug into the United States, as well as profiting from migrants smuggling rings.

The authors point out socioeconomic factors such as police violence and poverty in Central America as well as racial discrimination against Blacks in Brazil have made the groups harder to defeat.

The report warns that unless new policies are adopted to tackle these groups their territorial control could give them the ability to deliver large blocks of votes with the corresponding political influence as a result.

So far, solutions such as repression and mass incarceration have failed to undermine the maras and has only made them stronger and helped them recruit new members across the prison systems.

The authors of the report said recommended adopting the Biden administration’s double-pronged approach of combating corruption and its root causes, including police reforms and prosecution of corrupt politicians, while also combating transnational organized crime.

Police officers guard Tokiro Ramirez Rodas (C) aka "Komander", leader of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang, required for extradition to the US for alleged drug trafficking in Tegucigalpa, on March 18, 2022.

 Crédito: ORLANDO SIERRA/AFP via Getty Images

Glyphosate not carcinogenic, says EU chemicals agency


The opinion is set to influence decision on whether to reauthorize the controversial herbicide in the EU.

A French farmer sprays Monsanto's glyphosate herbicide "Roundup 720" on his crop | Jean-Francois Monier/AFP via Getty Images

BY EDDY WAX
May 30, 2022 

The controversial herbicide ingredient glyphosate does not cause cancer in humans, according to a scientific opinion published by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) Monday.

The agency's Committee for Risk Assessment found that "the available scientific evidence did not meet the criteria to classify glyphosate for specific target organ toxicity, or as a carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic substance."

The opinion does not deviate from the stance ECHA took in 2017, when it also did not classify glyphosate as carcinogenic. Then as now, ECHA said glyphosate can cause serious eye damage and is toxic to aquatic life.

The committee will publish its report by mid-August.

ECHA's opinion will influence the EU's decision on whether to ban or re-authorize the herbicide for use, with the European Commission expected to make a recommendation by July 2023 at the earliest, after delays.

In the U.S., thousands of litigants have gone to court alleging that their non-Hodgkins' lymphomas was cause by Roundup, a herbicide sold by Monsanto and now owned by German chemicals' giant Bayer, which contains glyphosate. The World Health Organization’s cancer research arm concluded in 2015 that glyphosate is a probable carcinogen, prompting the EU to renew it for five years instead of 15 in 2017.

ECHA's remit is only to look at the inherent hazardousness of the substance, not its real-world risk of causing harm. The European Food Safety Authority in Parma, Italy, is looking at that as part of a parallel study, expected to be ready in July next year.

 

First Monkeypox Death in Nigeria in 2022

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The Washington Post

30 May 2022 

The Washington Post published this article:

Nigeria has recorded its first death from monkeypox this year in a patient with underlying medical conditions, the diseases control agency said.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention announced Sunday that in 2022 it has confirmed 21 out of 66 suspected cases of the disease, which is usually endemic in Nigeria and other parts of West and Central Africa.

“The death was reported in a 40-year-old patient who had underlying co-morbidity and was on immunosuppressive medications,” the Nigeria CDC said.

Nigeria has not had an outbreak of monkeypox since September 2017 but it continues to report sporadic cases of the disease. At least 247 have been confirmed in 22 of its 36 states since then with 3.6% fatality rate, the disease control agency said.

A spike in monkeypox cases reported in Europe and the U.S. has generated concerns among those countries, many of whom have not recorded a single case of the disease in years. Nearly 200 cases of the disease have been reported in more than 20 countries not usually known to have outbreaks, the World Health Organization said.

Monkeypox has not previously triggered widespread outbreaks beyond Africa, where it is endemic.

One of the new cases in the U.K. was recorded in a man days after his arrival from Nigeria on May 4. Nigeria has recorded six confirmed cases of the disease the British citizen left the country.

Dr. Ifedayo Adetifa, head of the country’s Center for Disease Control, told The Associated Press that nothing shows the British citizen contracted the disease in Nigeria and that the country remains prepared to respond to an outbreak of monkeypox.

“The biggest challenge that you have with a disease such as monkeypox is that it is uncommon and the perceived risk by the population about how dangerous this condition is has been very low … that is why ... we have conducted awareness training and advocacy training to increase the level of awareness of health care workers,” Adetifa said.

Gabon launches anti-poaching operation

VIDEO Anti-poaching operation in Gabon -

 
Copyright © africanewsLUSA
By Africanews


Authorities in Gabon have launched an operation in search of weapons and game belonging to potential poachers.

The operation is a response to reports of increased poaching activity in some areas.

The anti-poaching unit was formed two years ago and results from a partnership partnership between Gabon's ministry for Water and Forests, a Belgian NGO called Conservation Justice and a Swiss-Gabonese sustainable forestry firm, Precious Woods CEB.

"We've observed strong poaching activities in these areas so we had to be present on the ground to regulate these activities", said brigade leader Jerry Ibala Mayombo.

Forests cover 88% of the surface of this small central African nation that has made the protection of biodiversity a priority.

Since 2002 that Gabon has been investing in nature conservation and raising awareness.

Last year, the anti-poaching unit seized 26 weapons, several dozen items of game and arrested eight individuals for ivory smuggling.

"It is necessary because we have a lot of animals in the area and then the natives. It's true that there are people who try to make a living out of it (hunting), but there are those who do a little more. I think it's often good" said truck driver Alain Moussavou whose vehicle was inspected by the authorities.

Despite the efforts, sometimes problems occur when humans and animals clash.

"Elephants are more important than us. So we are just going to die as they come to eat our food in the village... We don't have the means! We don't work.
I don't have money to buy the rice, the crops are destroyed..." laments local villager Hélène Benga who has experienced problems in the past.

Around 30 locals attended a session organised by Belgian NGO Conservation Justice who are explaining the hunting restrictions and how to deal with these.

Many however remain unconvinced.

"We can preserve them. But what if I'm going to go to the bush and a gorilla confronts me. I have my rifle. Am I going to let him do it? An elephant destroys my plantation, I have a bullet in my rifle, do you think I'll take pity on the elephant?", asked defiantly Léon Ndjanganoye, a local villager.

The conservation of forest elephants is a success story in Gabon. In 10 years the elephant population doubled to 90,000.

But despite Gabon's success in conservation, there remain many challenges on the ground that are yet to be tackled.

How work could be using surveillance to watch you at work | ITV News

 RARE PINK DOLPHIN

Dolphin swims into family’s home after flood in Brazil

 

This is the incredible moment a family hand-feeds a dolphin that swam into their home during a flash flood in Brazil. The footage was filmed in Vila de Paricatuba in the municipality of Iranduba. The area was hit by intense floods this week after the nearby Rio Negro burst its banks, allowing one curious dolphin to visit the family at their floating home. Footage shows the dolphin peering up at the family members, who feed it fish and pet its nose.

How Russia “seized” and “imprisoned” a Greenpeace ship | John Sauven interview 

May 30, 2022

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The New Statesman

Former Greenpeace chief John Sauven explains how after his organisation occupied one of Russia's oil rigs, Putin's government "seized the ship" and "all the crew on board, illegally." Sauven tells the story of how Greenpeace campaigned for the release of their crew and what lessons from this event could be applied to dealing with Putin over the Russia Ukraine crisis. -- John Sauven was the Executive Director of Greenpeace for over 14 years. He has overseen direct action protest, lobbying and policy change on climate issues. This wide-ranging New Statesman interview was conducted as he leaves the organisation. -- The New Statesman brings you unrivalled analysis of of the latest UK and international politics. On our YouTube channel you’ll find insight on the top news and global current affairs stories, as well as insightful interviews with politicians, advisers and leading political thinkers, to help you understand the political and economic forces shaping the world. With regular contributions from our writers including Political Editor Andrew Marr and Anoosh Chakelian - host of the New Statesman podcast - we’ll help you understand the world of politics and global affairs from Westminster to Washington and beyond.

The Laughter of the Avatar - Shunyamurti Teaching

NO LAUGHING MATTER

Laughter has become a risky business, observes Nilajana Bhowmick.

Comedian Kunal Kamra is routinely accused of promoting ‘anti-national’ sentiment.
Credit: Garvmalik1/WikiCommons

Nilajana Bhowmick
ANALYSIS
18 February 2022
India

In January 2021, stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui was arrested just as he was about to start a gig at a café in Indore, in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, where the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in power.

A group of men, led by a BJP politician’s son, stormed onstage and accused the young comic of making jokes offensive to Hindu sentiments. They were referring to material on Faruqui’s immensely popular YouTube channel – jokes that were irreverent irrespective of creed. Faruqui, who is a member of India’s beleaguered minority Muslim community, tried reasoning with the group, but wound up spending 28 days in jail for a joke he didn’t even tell that evening.

Since then, his shows have been forcibly cancelled due to threats by rightwingers, with the police urging closure rather than providing protection. Faruqui is not the only comedian in their gunsights. Rightwing groups have targeted others, too. Ribald comic Kunal Kamra is frequently trolled for being ‘anti-national’. Kamra has said that the organizers of his shows have also often threatened to cancel.

Of course, authoritarian regimes have traditionally been scared of comedy and satire. The force of laughter, after all, can penetrate even the politically unaware. But the effort to silence these comics, and the furious debates on social media surrounding these incidents, draws my attention to a wider problem.

To some extent we have always been a country of ‘hurt sentiments’, with some group or the other constantly taking offence over issues that would not even register if we had a more robust tradition of free speech. But the truth is that seven years of an increasingly totalitarian regime has silently seeped into our lives making us edgy and nervous. Our sense of offence has been weaponized. Our sentiments are hurt easily. We cannot admire something artistic without searching for something about it that offends us. We are either censoring others or censoring ourselves. Everything is controlled – either by the government or by us. So much is out of bounds. Religion, culture, books, movies, music, art, it’s all a minefield. It is just not enough anymore to be on the right side, one has to be right all the time. As the state’s grip over us has tightened, we have become porcelain dolls – fragile, über-sensitive and humourless.

We have forgotten to laugh – and this has serious social repercussions, for when we laugh together, it is difficult to hate each other.

Contrarily, however, I also wonder if being in this perpetual state of offence is also a form of defence? After all, what is there to laugh about anyway? We are constantly being gaslighted by the government and fed half-lies and untruths. We have lost too many people unnecessarily to Covid-19 owing to government inefficiency, the conflagration of funeral pyres still fresh in our nightmares. The economy has tanked, vegetable and fuel prices are skyrocketing by the day, the government has begun to crack down on our thoughts and actions, on our protests – and our laughter.

In a country where comics are stopped from telling jokes, it’s understandable that people will forget to laugh.

Nilanjana Bhowmick is a multi-award winning, independent journalist, a former TIME correspondent, based in New Delhi, India. She is an independent commentator on gender, development, politics and current affairs.

This article is from the March-April 2022 issue of New Internationalist.