Uwazi

Seoul Metro, the operator of the subway system in Seoul, has filed a damages suit against a disability rights advocacy group over its subway-riding protests, city officials said Tuesday.

The city-run company filed the suit with the Seoul Central District Court on Friday seeking damages of 601.45 million won ($484,000) for train delays and other losses caused by 75 illegal protests staged by the Solidarity Against Disability Discrimination (SADD) since Dec. 3, 2021, they said.

The group staged subway-riding protests at major stations in central Seoul, demanding an increased government budget to protect the rights of people with disabilities.

Wheelchair-bound activists have repeatedly boarded and disembarked trains disrupting metro services during the morning rush hour.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon late last month declared a zero-tolerance policy against their protests, warning of stern legal actions.

In late 2021, Seoul Metro filed a lawsuit against SADD, claiming 30 million won in compensation.

Last month, the Seoul Central District Court issued a mediation, calling for Seoul Metro to install more elevators at subway stations and SADD to stop protests. The court ruled SADD must pay Seoul Metro 5 million won for every five-minute delay in subway operations in the future.

The group accepted the compromise, but Seoul Metro and the city government rejected it.

SADD resumed the protests last month, and the company early last week warned of an additional lawsuit.

Last Wednesday, the group said it will suspend protests until Jan. 19 and demanded a meeting with Mayor Oh.

Oh accepted the offer, but the two sides have yet to agree on the details of the proposed meeting.

The Delhi Police on Wednesday detained several students of the Jamia Millia Islamia university after the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) planned to screen the BBC documentary on Narendra Modi and the 2002 Gujarat genocide on campus.

“The detained Jamia Millia Islamia students are kept in Fatehpur Beri police station,” tweeted Shamseer Ibrahim, Fraternity Movement national president.

“The police is not ready to tell the number of detainees nor are they allowing the lawyers to meet the students as given u/s 41D CrPC. The advocates are waiting outside the police station for the last 3 hours,“ he said.

Ladeeda Farzana, student leader in her twitter thread alleged that the city police is misbehaving with female lawyers.

The news agency PTI claimed that more than 70 students were detained. It is not clear how many students were detained.

Around four SFI activists were detained morning, while several students were picked up by the cops around 3 pm. The detainees include leaders of Fraternity Movement, SFI, NSUI and other student organisations.

DCP (Southeast) Esha Pandey said to Indian Express: “A screening for a BBC documentary was to be organised by a group of Jamia students inside the university today, which was not allowed by the administration of the University. The University administration informed the police that some students were creating ruckus on the streets and therefore a total of 13 students were detained around 4 pm to ensure peace in the area.”

Reacting to news that the authorities in Kyrgyzstan have applied to a court to close Radio Azattyk, the national service of the US broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, said:

“The closure of Radio Azattyk would be a deep and stark attack on the right to freedom of expression in Kyrgyzstan adding to the continuing repression against journalists and other voices critical of the authorities. The international community cannot ignore the threat looming over human rights in Kyrgyzstan and must call on Bishkek to comply with its international human rights obligations in full. The application to close Radio Azattyk should be withdrawn, its website unblocked, and journalists and other media workers in Kyrgyzstan should be able to work without fear of reprisals.”

Background

On 24 January, Radio Azattyk was notified of an application submitted to the Lenin District Court in Bishkek by the Kyrgyzstan Ministry of Culture, Information, Sport and Youth, seeking to terminate Radio Azattyk’s operations. The reason for the lawsuit was reportedly the publication on Radio Azattyk’s social media channels of a video produced by the radio’s sister organization, Current Time TV, which covered the September 2022 border conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. The video allegedly violates the law “On the Mass Media,” which forbids “propaganda of war, violence and cruelty, national, religious exclusivity and intolerance to other peoples and nations.”

In October 2022, the material was cited as the reason for blocking Radio Azattyk’s website while its bank accounts were frozen under national money laundering laws. In December, the website ban was declared “indefinite.”

Over the past year, government critics, journalists and other media workers have been repeatedly harassed in Kyrgyzstan. On 23 November, Bolot Temirov, the founder of the investigative project Temirov Live, was stripped of his Kyrgyz citizenship and forcibly deported to Moscow in retaliation for his criticism of the authorities.

Police on Monday arrested several rights activists including Ruby Khan, who has been staging a sit-in demanding action against the culprits involved in the suspicious disappearance and death of Banke’s Nirmala Kurmi of Banke.

Bangladesh authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Raghunath Kha and investigate allegations that he was electrocuted and beaten in police custody, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday.

At around 11 a.m. on Monday, January 23, plainclothes police officers detained Kha, a correspondent for the privately owned broadcaster Deepto TV and privately owned newspaper Dainik Projonmo Ekattor, according to multiple news reports and a person familiar with the case who spoke to CPJ on the condition of anonymity, citing safety concerns. Kha was detained after reporting on a land dispute in the Khalishakhali area of the southwestern Satkhira district.

Police arrested Kha and two others, alleging they were involved in an attempted bomb blast in coordination with landless people in the area, and authorities initially denied that Kha was in custody, according to those sources.

When the journalist appeared in court the following day, he was unable to stand properly and said that police severely beat him, electrocuted him, and threatened to kill him if he continued reporting on landless people, the anonymous source told CPJ.

During that hearing, the court ordered Kha to be held in the Satkhira jail while his case is investigated. Police have not provided copies of the first information reports in Kha’s case, which would show the specific allegations against him, according to that source.

“Bangladeshi authorities’ arrest and alleged maltreatment of journalist Raghunath Kha constitute only the latest attack on press freedom in the country, where law enforcement continues to retaliate against journalists with raging impunity,” said Beh Lih Yi, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator. “Authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Kha, drop all cases against him, and conduct a swift investigation into claims that police physically abused him.”

Authorities did not produce Kha in court until about 5 p.m. on Tuesday, that source said, in apparent violation of Bangladesh’s code of criminal procedure, which provides that police must present an arrested person before a magistrate within 24 hours.

That source told CPJ that they believe authorities targeted the journalist in retaliation for his reporting highlighting the struggles of landless people in their conflict with land grabbers allegedly supported by police.

In recent months, Satkhira Police Superintendent Kazi Moniruzzaman repeatedly threatened Kha with arrest and legal retaliation in retaliation for his reporting, that source said, adding that the journalist submitted a written complaint sometime about those threats to Moinul Haque, the deputy inspector-general of the Khulna division police, which oversees the Satkhira branch of the force.

No action was taken against Moniruzzaman, that source told CPJ. CPJ emailed Moniruzzaman and Haque and sent them requests for comment via messaging app, but did not receive any replies.

CPJ has previously documented similar allegations of alleged police abuse of detained journalists in Bangladesh. Journalist Shahidul Alam, who was awarded CPJ’s International Press Freedom Award in 2020, told CPJ that police officers beat him in custody. Cartoonist Kabir Kishore told CPJ that authorities beat him and electrocuted his colleague Mushtaq Ahmed, who died in jail.

A veteran journalist known for covering rights abuses in Indonesia’s militarised Papua region says a bomb exploded outside his home yesterday and a journalists group has called it an act of “intimidation” threatening press freedom.

No one was injured in the blast near his home in the provincial capital Jayapura, said Victor Mambor, editor of Papua’s leading news website Jubi, who visited New Zealand in 2014.

Police said they were investigating the explosion and that no one had yet claimed responsibility.

“Yes, someone threw a bomb,” Papua Police spokesperson Ignatius Benny told Benar News. “The motive and perpetrators are unknown.”

The Jayapura branch of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) condemned the explosion as a “terrorist bombing”.

In Sydney, the Australia West Papua Association (AWPA) and Pacific Media Watch in New Zealand protested over the incident and called for a full investigation.

Mambor said he heard the sound of a motorcycle at about 4 am and then an explosion about a minute later.

‘Shook like earthquake’ “It was so loud that my house shook like there was an earthquake,” he told Benar News as reported by Radio Free Asia.

“I also checked the source of the explosion and smelt sulfur coming from the side of the house.”

The explosion left a hole in the road, he said.

The incident was not the first to occur outside Mambor’s home. In April 2021, windows were smashed and paint sprayed on his car in the middle of the night.

Mambor is also an advocate for press freedom in Papua. In that role, he has criticised Jakarta’s restrictions on the media in Papua, as well as its other policies in his troubled home province.

The AJI awarded Mambor its press freedom award in August 2022, saying that through Jubi, “Victor brings more voices from Papua, amid domination of information that is biased, one-sided and discriminatory.”

“AJI in Jayapura strongly condemns the terrorist bombing and considers this an act of intimidation that threatens press freedom in Papua,” it said in a statement.

‘Voice the truth’ call “AJI Jayapura calls on all journalists in the land of Papua to continue to voice the truth despite obstacles. Justice should be upheld even though the sky is falling,” said AJI chair Lucky Ireeuw.

Amnesty International Indonesia urged the police to find those responsible.

“The police must thoroughly investigate this incident, because this is not the first time … meaning there was an omission that made the perpetrators feel free to do it again, to intimidate and threaten journalists,” Amnesty’s campaign manager in Indonesia, Nurina Savitri, told BenarNews.

The Papua region, located at the eastern end of the Indonesian archipelago, has been the site of a decades-old pro-independence insurgency where both government security forces and rebels have been accused of committing atrocities against civilians.

Foreign journalists have been largely barred from the area, with the government insisting it could not guarantee their safety. Indonesian journalists allege that officials make their work difficult by refusing to provide information.

The armed elements of the independence movement have stepped up lethal attacks on Indonesian security forces, civilians and targets such as construction of a trans-Papua highway that would make the Papuan highlands more accessible.

Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, has accused Indonesian security forces of intimidation, arbitrary arrests, torture, extrajudicial killings and mass forced displacement in Papua.

Security forces kill 36 Last month, Indonesian activist group KontraS said 36 people were killed by security forces and pro-independence rebels in the Papua and West Papua provinces in 2022, an increase from 28 in 2021.

In Sydney, Joe Collins of the AWPA said in a statement: “These acts of intimidation against local journalists in West Papua threaten freedom of the press.

“It is the local media in West Papua that first report on human rights abuses and local journalists are crucial in reporting information on what is happening in West Papua”.

Collins said Canberra remained silent on the issue — ‘the Australian government is very selective in who it criticises over their human rights record.”

There was no problem raising concerns about China or Russia over their record, “but Canberra seems to have great difficulty in raising the human rights abuses in West Papua with Jakarta.”

During a protest at Chiang Mai University yesterday (23 January) to demand the right to bail for political prisoners, police attempted to detain two students and accused them of causing panic and misunderstanding by dressing like inmates.

From 13.00 – 18.12, while graduation ceremony rehearsals were taking place, 7 students participated in a campus-wide performance as part of the protest to demand the release of political prisoners and to back the demands made by activists Tantawan Tuatulanon and Orawan Phuphong when they revoked their own bail on 16 January.

The students were seen walking around campus dressed in an inmate’s uniform with stockings over their heads and chains on their wrists and ankles. At 17.00, they met by Ang Kaew, an on-campus reservoir, where other protesters were standing as part of the protest calling for the right to bail for detained activists and protesters. Water from the reservoir was poured on them, making it look as if they were bleeding as pigment dissolved onto their clothes. A representative of the students also read out Tantawan and Orawan’s demands.

Tantawan and Orawan called for the reform of the judicial system so that human rights and freedom of expression take priority, and so that courts are independent and protect people’s freedom, as well as for judges to make decisions without intervention from their own executives.

They also called for all charges to be dropped against those exercising their freedoms of expression and assembly, and for every political party to guarantee people’s rights, freedoms, and political participation by backing the repeal of the royal defamation law and sedition law.

After no response was made to their demands within the three-day time limit, Tantawan and Orawan announced on 18 January that they would be going on a dry hunger strike and would not request bail for themselves until their demands are met. They were taken to the Department of Corrections Hospital last Friday (20 January) and are now in their 7th day of their hunger strike.

After several reports that the activists wished to be transferred to another hospital or back to the Women’s Central Correctional Institution due to concerns about how staff at the Department of Corrections Hospital might treat them, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) reported today (24 January) that the Department of Correction has informed the activists’ lawyer that they would be transferred to the Police Hospital for treatment, but they refused, asking instead to be transferred to Thammasat University Hospital.

TLHR said that Thammasat University Hospital agreed to have Tantawan and Orawan transferred to their facility. At around 19.00 today (24 January), the Department of Corrections issued a statement saying that the two activists will be transferred to Thammasat University Hospital, and TLHR noted that they are still in detention even though they are being transferred to a hospital outside of the authority of the Department of Corrections.

At around 20.00, it was reported that Tantawan and Orawan have arrived at Thammasat University Hospital. Police attempt to detain students for dressing like inmates

While the students were taking part in yesterdays’ performance at Chiang Mai University, police officers attempted to detain two medical students while they were standing around Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital, a teaching hospital in Chiang Mai city affiliated with Chiang Mai University’s Faculty of Medicine. The officers accused the students of causing public panic and making the officers mistake them for inmates from a nearby prison brought to the hospital for treatment. They were taken to a police office in the hospital reprimanded, before a lawyer from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR)’s Chiang Mai office arrive to negotiate their release. However, corrections officers refused to release the students until they apologize for dressing like an inmate.

Following the incident, the Chiang Mai Central Prison issued a statement addressed to the Department of Corrections saying that they were informed by correction officers guarding sick inmates receiving treatment at the hospital of a group of people dressed like officers and chained inmates, which may damage the Department’s reputation. The Prison said that it has looked into the incident, and that the group in question is not affiliated with the Chiang Mai Central Prison.

Lawyers for Lawyers again expressed concerns about the disbarment proceedings against lawyer and human rights defender Mr. Arnon Nampha.

Lawyers for Lawyers is concerned about the disbarment proceeding against Mr. Arnon Nampha, a lawyer and human rights defender, that is taking place before the Investigative Committee that was established by the Committee on Professional Ethics of the Lawyers Council of Thailand during the Meeting No. 1/2564 on 13 January 2021.

We were informed that the proceeding against lawyer Arnon Nampha is related to a complaint motion filed to the Lawyers Council of Thailand on 7 August 2020 by the Assistant Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister, who alleged that lawyer Arnon Nampha’s behaviour violated the Lawyers Council of Thailand’s disciplinary rules as his behaviour would “incite, intend to cause unrest, distort information and insult on the monarchy”. The speech in question called for reform of the constitution and the monarchy, during a peaceful protest at the Democracy Monument on Ratchadamnoen Avenue on 3 August 2020.

According to our information, a first pre-hearing was postponed twice on 24 November 2021 and 3 March 2022, due to the fact that Mr. Nampha was held in detention pending trial. Therefore, the first pre-hearing was scheduled for 7 April 2022 where both parties appeared before the Investigative Committee to schedule witness examination dates. The Committee scheduled the complainer witness examinations on 2 and 20 June and the complained witness examination on 18 July, 1 and 22 August, and 5 September 2022. However, on 2 June, the complainer failed to attend the first hearing taken place at the LCT. The proceeding therefore was adjourned until 20 June. The next witness examination was scheduled on 11 January 2023 but has been rescheduled to July 2023. After the witness examinations are completed, the Committee will schedule the date to deliver the order.

On 16 June 2022, Lawyers for Lawyers and the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe sent a letter to the Thai Authorities expressing their concerns about the disbarment proceedings. Lawyers for Lawyers and the International Commission of Jurists sent a previous letter to the Lawyers Council of Thailand on 1 February 2021, requesting them to dismiss the complaint motion against Mr. Nampha to protect his right to freedom of expression, and the rights of his clients. Unfortunately, this has been without response.

According to the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, lawyers have a right to freedom of expression and assembly, in particular in matters concerning the administration of justice and the rule of law. Moreover, according to Basic Principles 27, 28 and 29, lawyers have a right to fair disciplinary proceedings before and impartial disciplinary committee in line with recognized standards and ethics of the legal profession.

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court this morning denied bail to Chhim Sithar, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of Nagaworld (LRSU), ordering her to remain in pre-trial detention in Correctional Center 2 prison. No reason was given for the denial.

Sithar was first arrested in January 2022 and spent two months in pre-trial detention after being charged with incitement alongside other members of her union. She was released on bail in March 2022, but she was again arrested in November by immigration police at the Phnom Penh International Airport while returning from a labour rights conference in Australia.

Authorities accused Sithar of violating bail conditions by leaving the country, despite neither Sithar nor her lawyers ever being informed of such conditions. She has been detained at Correctional Center 2 prison since 26 November 2022.

LRSU members have been striking since December 2021 following mass layoffs at the NagaWorld casino that included the union’s entire leadership and a significant number of members.

Sithar and 8 fellow LRSU leaders and members face up to two years in prison if they are convicted of incitement. Another six LRSU members were charged in February under the 2021 Covid-19 Law. In October, at least 18 additional union members were slapped with charges of breaking and entering; intentionally causing damage with aggravating circumstances; and unlawful arrest, detention and confinement, in a criminal case that also references more than 100 unnamed "followers".

Snguon Nhoeun, a Kampong Chhnang land activist, said he was detained for two hours by police after taking photos of a protest outside the provincial court.

Around 50 protesters were lighting incense and praying outside the court on January 18 when he was pushed into a car and had three phones seized, Nhoeun said. Police asked him to delete the images and sign a contract, he said.

“They said I took pictures without permission,” he said. “My arrest is very unfair for me because I was only shooting in public and they arrested me. I think the court has something to hide from me.”

Nhoeun added that he worked as a citizen journalist to cover the activities. Nhoeun is part of the Lor Peang community, which has long been in dispute with KDC International, a company owned by Energy Minister Suy Sem’s wife and accused of bulldozing people’s homes.

“This is a serious threat to me. This act threatens not only me … it threatens other citizens who want to photograph in front of the court,” he said.

Kampong Chhnang Provincial Court spokesperson Hak Kimhong denied that any arrests had been made. He said that authorities had only held him to explain some problems. He said the reason why the police detained and confiscated the phone was because Nhoeun was broadcasting live in front of the court without permission so the prosecutor ordered a temporary confiscation.

“I would like to deny his arrest. It is not true. We just explained to him where to shoot and where not to shoot.”

Kampong Chhnang Provincial Police spokesperson Ear Bunthoeun declined to comment on the case, saying the order to detain Nhoeun was made by the prosecutor’s office.

Lawyers for Chea Kheng, Energy Minister Sem’s wife, told The Cambodia Daily in 2010 to not mention the minister in articles about the Lor Peang-KDC International land dispute or they would sue for spreading “disinformation.”

The respected lawyer and human rights defender Abdul Latif Afridi was shot and killed inside the Peshawar High Court on Monday. Affectionately known as Lala (meaning elder brother in Pashto), Afridi, 79, was one of Pakistan’s most courageous and outspoken voices for rule of law, democracy, and human rights over several decades.

The alleged gunman, a junior lawyer, was arrested at the scene.

Afridi’s activist career began as a student leader in the 1960s when he was expelled from Peshawar University for denouncing sham elections under the military dictatorship of Gen. Ayub Khan. After becoming an attorney, he represented many victims of enforced disappearances and their families. He was a vocal critic of religious militancy and extremism. He was never intimidated into silence, despite numerous threats to his life and several times suffering imprisonment and torture.

In 2007, he led a lawyers’ protest against then-president Gen. Pervaiz Musharraf, and was struck by a police armored personnel carrier, fracturing his leg.

Afridi was a passionate opponent of the Frontiers Crime Regulation, a draconian British colonial-era law governing the former tribal areas of Pakistan that permitted collective punishments and denied defendants basic due process rights, including the right to legal counsel. Thanks in part to his advocacy, the law was repealed in 2018.

He was a former member of the Pakistan’s National Assembly and a former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association.

My introduction to Afridi was through Asma Jahangir and I.A. Rehman, late icons of the human rights movement in Pakistan. What struck me most about Lala was that despite working under great stress, he retained his wit and charm and always found time for the younger generation of human rights activists and lawyers. His loss is a devastating blow for the human rights movement in Pakistan and for all Pakistanis who stand for rule of law, equality, and democracy.

The most fitting tribute to Lala Latif Afridi is to continue his struggle for a tolerant, rights-respecting Pakistan.

Youth progressive group Anakbayan said that unidentified individuals entered their national office at around 9 p.m. yesterday, January 15.

“Cellphones were not where they were left, tables were moved, windows are open, doors show clear signs of forced entry,” said Anakbayan in their post via their social media accounts.

Later that day, at around midnight, the youth group also stated that some of their members noticed police mobile roaming around the area.

“We fear for our safety. This attempt to enter our office is not detached from what happened to Dyan and Armand in Cebu,” said Jeann Miranda, chairperson of Anakbayan, referring to two Cebu-based activists, Dyan Gumanao, 28, coordinator of Alliance of Concerned Teachers-Region 7, and Armand Dayoha, 27, Alliance of Health Workers-Cebu coordinator, who were reported missing after spending the holidays with their families.

Before their absence, the two reported a series of harassment and tailing. As of this writing, the two have not been found.

Attacks against the youth

Anakbayan has been subjected to relentless attacks under several administrations.

One of the most notable cases is Anakbayan member and student activist Alicia Lucena, whose mother, Relissa, a member of Hands Off Our Children Network, filed a kidnapping and human trafficking case against the youth group along with former Kabataan Representative Sarah Elago and former Bayan Muna representative Neri Colmenares.

However, Lucena goes against Relissa’s statement through a video narrating how her mother illegally detained her at home, prevented her from watching television, and contacted friends and fellow activists.

Aside from this, Jovita Antoniano and the Philippine National Police (PNP) filed kidnapping and child abuse charges against Anakbayan leaders. However, last May 28, the Department of Justice (DOJ) released a 15-page resolution junking the charges due to the ‘lack of probable cause.’

The most recent case was last December 29, where Anakbayan, along with progressive groups such as Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN)’’s Facebook pages, were removed.

The accounts’ administrators and editors have also been locked due to ‘unknown entities trying to access the accounts.’

Prior to this incident, the group’s posts giving tribute to Jose Maria Sison had been flagged for violating the “Community Standards.”

“We are condemning this action made by Facebook because it’s just an attempt to silence the free speech of the youth. Sharing Prof. Jose Maria Sison’s contribution to the freedom and equality of the Filipino should not be considered a threat or terrorism,” said Anakbayan.

Anakbayan called for the youth and other human rights organizations to stand up and condemn the series of harassment against the youth.

“There is no one to blame but the state who wants to silence those fighting for their freedom and rights. We call for the youth, human rights watch, and even the Commission on Human Rights to help us look into what happened. This incident also fuels us to fight the oppressive and corrupt Marcos Jr,” said Miranda.

On January 14, the contents of Ji Xiaolong’s indictment letter, a well-known Shanghai human rights activist, were revealed. According to the recent disclosure, the official judiciary arrested Mr. Ji during the COVID lockdown for criticizing the country’s leaders. Authorities recently resumed his case for supplementary investigation.

COVID in China

On the afternoon of January 11, 2023, Ji Xiaolong’s lawyer met with him at the Pudong Detention Center in Shanghai. According to the information released by Mr. Ji Xiaolong Concern Group, the lawyer told Ji about the situation of COVID in China, saying that the country has been fully reopened and many people have been infected. Ji Xiaolong noted that he was once infected in the detention center. At that time, he had pain all over his body and came down with a fever, but the detention center did not provide him with medications for treatment.

Refused treatment

Sources disclosed that the detention center did not arrange for Ji Xiaolong to visit the dentist. The month Ji Xiaolong was arrested, the dentist gave a medical opinion and suggested periodontitis treatment; otherwise, he would not be able to receive dental implants in the future.

Potential charges

Ji Xiaolong read the prosecution’s opinion document to his lawyer. The main content has two aspects: one of them being Ji speaking out for relevant protests during the lockdown, and the official said he’s suspected of fabricating rumors. The other was the authorities stating that Ji Xiaolong was suspected of insulting the country’s leader. The specific details will only be revealed after the lawyer reads the document. Ji Xiaolong’s case was returned for supplementary investigation on January 5, and the lawyers will not be able to review the case until February 5.

Further investigation

In terms of procedure, Ji’s case has reached the prosecution stage in the People’s Procuratorate but has been returned for supplementary investigation. According to the relevant provisions of Chinese law, if, within one month, the prosecutor believes that the evidence of the case is insufficient, it does not meet the requirements for prosecution, the court will decide not to prosecute. In the case of the second supplementary investigation, if the prosecutor still believes that the evidence is insufficient and does not meet the requirements for prosecution, it may make a decision not to prosecute.

His work during zero-Covid

During the complete lockdown of Shanghai in April, Ji Xiaolong posted a letter on Weibo, WeChat, and Twitter on April 2, “Immediately stop the campaign-style disease prevention, relieve difficulties and send relief ——Shanghai Citizens’ Petition for the People.” It has been widely distributed and received widespread attention. He also sent a letter to Li Qiang, the Party Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Committee at the time, who later joined and is now a member of China’s most powerful committee. Ji raised the question of accountability for the excessive COVID prevention policy in the early stage in Shanghai.

His efforts all fall within the category of freedom of speech stipulated in the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China and are based on the most foundational humanitarian considerations.

After that, he organized volunteers in Shanghai to solve the difficulties and resolve the worries of citizens, aided migrant workers who had nowhere to live and offered legal assistance to citizens who were in severe economic difficulties due to covid lockdown.

Detained

For these reasons, Mr. Ji was summoned and detained by the Shanghai police many times and was taken away from his home by the police on August 31, 2022; on September 2 of the same year, he was formally placed under criminal detention by the police again; The People’s Procuratorate approved the arrest on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking troubles,” and he was detained in Shanghai Pudong Detention Center.

Youth environmental activists advocating against the development of a Koh Kong island say they are facing threats and surveillance after authorities blocked an advocacy push at a Royal University of Phnom Penh event earlier this month.

A group of about 50 young activists organized a stall at an RUPP event in mid-January selling coconuts, providing leaflets and talks on the potential development of Koh Kong Krao island in Koh Kong province. Activists from Mother Nature and Khmer Thavrak have advocated for the government to refrain from leasing the island for development.

The stall — which was set up during the 63rd anniversary celebrations of the university — was shut down by district officials and university staff who considered it against university policies, activists said.

Since then, the activists allege they have faced surveillance from local authorities.

Phuon Keoreaksmey, a fourth-year university student and a Mother Nature activist, said the group was initially allowed to set up the stall in the university premises during the anniversary celebrations hosted from January 13th to 15th.

But on the first day of the event, local authorities and the university’s rector summoned them for a meeting and said they had to close down the stall and were banned from distributing any leaflets with messages about Koh Kong Krao island.

“They dare not to follow their own decision and work based on the advice of another person,” she said.

Kim Chilin, a Mother Nature activist and RUPP student, said authorities were monitoring his residence and even following him since then. He said this was a threat and aimed at affecting the morale of activists advocating for environmental rights.

“Me and my friends were followed by authorities to our homes. This is a kind of threat. For me, I think that it should not have happened to me,” he said.

Last month, activists also distributed pamphlets and held banners at the university’s Institute for Foreign Languages, urging authorities to not allow the development of the island. The Environment Ministry in 2020 said it was assessing whether to allow for development of the island, which was granted to notorious tycoon Ly Yong Phat, who got the development rights to the island in 2019.

Men Sreydav, another activist who was part of the advocacy effort, said authorities began following members of the group as soon as they distributed the leaflets.

“Generally, they followed us to our houses after our dissemination activities. I am worried about my safety because I always come out to do activities,” he said.

VOD could not reach Phnom Penh City Hall spokesperson Met Measpheakdey and Tuol Kork deputy district governor Teav Sam Oeun denied the accusations.

“I would like to deny that authority did not threaten them,” he said. “Whenever they have proper permission, we will cooperate immediately.”

The government has routinely blocked youth and environmental activists for advocating for their issues, even arresting and jailing them.

A Kyrgyz blogger known for his critical reports of authorities has been detained after the Bishkek City Court canceled his three-year parole-like probation.

Adilet Ali Myktybek, known on social media as Alibek Baltabai, was sentenced to five years in prison in November on a charge of calling for social unrest via the internet, allegations he has called politically motivated.

The court ruled at the time that Myktybek would not have to serve his prison sentence immediately, but instead would be under a three-year parole-like probation period. If he served that period without any violations, the court said his five-year prison term would be canceled.

The blogger's lawyer, Taken Moldokulov, told RFE/RL that the Bishkek City Court's decision January 12 to send his client to a penal colony was made at the request of prosecutors who considered Myktybek's sentence too lenient.

Moldokulov added that the court annulled the probation part of the sentence leaving the five-year prison term without changes.

"The Penitentiary Service is expected to inform us where exactly Adilet Baltabai will be serving his term," Moldokulov said, adding that the court decision will be appealed.

Myktybek was detained in late June last year after he was questioned by Bishkek police for a third time since May about his coverage of rallies by civil rights activists.

Following his release in November, Myktybek continued his blogging activities and took part in a rally January 10 to express support for 26 jailed Kyrgyzstan politicians and activists arrested in October for protesting a border deal with Uzbekistan.

Myktybek has been known for actively covering anti-government rallies and pickets in the Central Asian nation.

He is also a freelance correspondent for the Next television channel, whose director, Taalaibek Duishembiev, was handed a suspended three-year prison sentence in September after a court found him guilty of inciting interethnic hatred by airing a controversial report related to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Kazakh authorities should thoroughly investigate a recent spate of attacks on independent journalists, hold all those responsible to account, and ensure that members of the press are able to work safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday.

Since January 12, journalists throughout Kazakhstan have seen their cars set on fire, apartments attacked, and offices vandalized, according to media reports and journalists who spoke to CPJ. Police have detained five suspects in relation to two of those incidents.

“While Kazakh police should be applauded for their swift work in apprehending suspects in two recent attacks on journalists, authorities must ensure that all the recent instances of harassment against the press are thoroughly investigated and that those who ordered them are held to account,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, in New York. “Authorities’ rhetoric about a ‘new Kazakhstan’ will remain empty words unless they are able to ensure journalists’ safety.”

On January 12, attackers smashed the glass entrance to an office building that houses the independent outlet Elmedia in the southern city of Almaty, according to media reports and posts on Facebook by Elmedia editor-in-chief Gulzhan Yergalieva, which said that it was the sixth such attack on the outlet’s office since October.

Elmedia covers politics on its YouTube channel, where it has about 100,000 subscribers.

Since August, people have also filed false reports to police about bombs in Elmedia’s office and Yergalieva’s home and car, sent the journalist a funeral wreath, and placed her phone number and photo on websites advertising sexual services.

In messages sent to Elmedia’s Telegram account and posted by Yergalieva on Facebook, individuals who claimed to have carried out the attacks threatened “maybe the next brick will be to your forehead,” and told the outlet to “put a muzzle on” Yergalieva, “otherwise we will shut her up.”

Separately, on the night of January 13, a vehicle belonging to independent journalist Dinara Yegeubayeva was set on fire in Almaty, according to news reports and a post by the journalist on Instagram.

Yegeubayeva, who is also a political activist, said in an interview with independent journalist Vadim Boreiko that she believes the attack was related to her journalistic posts on Instagram and YouTube, where she has a combined 94,000 subscribers and has covered allegations of rights abuses by authorities during 2022 mass protests in Kazakhstan and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Police have arrested five suspects aged between 15 and 17 who confessed to carrying out the arson attack on Yegeubayeva’s car and the most recent attacks on Elmedia, saying they were paid to commit them by unidentified individuals who contacted them on the internet, news reports said.

Separately, on January 16, unidentified individuals injected construction foam around the apartment door of Gulnara Bazhkenova, chief editor of the independent news website Orda, in Almaty, for the third time since September, the journalist told CPJ by phone and wrote on Facebook. Bazhkenova said unidentified people also mailed her a tombstone featuring her image and the date “2023” in December, and that her outlet’s website has faced consistent distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks since July 2022.

Also, on January 18, hackers infiltrated the website of the independent news website Ulysmedia, based in the capital city of Astana, and placed the personal data of chief editor Samal Ibrayeva and her children online, according to news reports and a statement by the journalist posted on Telegram.

Following the doxxing, unidentified users flooded Ulysmedia’s social media accounts with an identical message, saying: “This is just the start of your new life full of pain and sorrow. We know about everything that you hold dear.”

Ibrayeva told CPJ by messaging app that Ulysmedia’s website and social media accounts have repeatedly been targeted by DDoS and spam attacks since July 2022.

Separately, in the early hours of January 19, unidentified attackers injected construction foam around the door of journalist Vadim Boreiko’s apartment in Almaty and wrote graffiti featuring a lewd image and the name of Boreiko’s YouTube channel, according to news reports and a Facebook post by the journalist.

On his YouTube channel Giperborei, which has about 250,000 subscribers, Boreiko has covered topics including the war in Ukraine and the 2022 protests, which he told CPJ by messaging app were “the most undesirable topics for Kazakh authorities.”

Ibrayeva and Boreyko told CPJ that they had not received any information about the suspects in their cases.

Bazhkenova told CPJ police arrested two young people in November who admitted to some of the previous harassment of Orda and Elmedia, and who told police they had also been paid by unidentified individuals who contacted them online.

On January 20, a spokesperson for Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev wrote on Facebook that the president had ordered a “thorough investigation” into the attacks on journalists, saying that “not only the perpetrators, but also those who ordered these illegal acts” must be identified.

CPJ emailed the Kazakhstan Ministries of Internal Affairs and Information for comment, but did not receive any replies.

Police in Bishkek have dispersed and briefly detained dozens of supporters and relatives of 26 Kyrgyz politicians and activists arrested last year for protesting against a border deal with Uzbekistan.

Police forced the men and women onto buses and took them to police stations while they were holding a rally near Bishkek's Gorky Park on January 10 demanding the release of the jailed politicians and activists.

Several journalists who covered the rally-- including a reporter for RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service -- were detained along with the demonstrators, but released shortly afterwards. Others were released hours later.

Kyrgyz authorities arrested 26 members of the so-called Kempir-Abad Defense Committee in late October after they protested against the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border demarcation deal which saw Kyrgyzstan in November hand over the territory of the Kempir-Abad water reservoir, comprising 4,485 hectares, to Uzbekistan in exchange for over 19,000 hectares elsewhere.

Those arrested were charged with planning riots over the border agreement, which was more than three decades in the making.

Seventeen of those detained have been on a hunger strike for a week.

In November, the presidents of the two Central Asian nations signed the controversial deal into law after lawmakers in both countries approved it.

The Kempir-Abad reservoir, known in Uzbekistan as the Andijon reservoir, was built in 1983. It is located in the fertile Ferghana Valley and represents a vital regional water source. Uzbekistan, whose population of 35 million is five times larger than that of Kyrgyzstan, uses most of the water from the area.

Many Kyrgyz civil activists, opposition politicians, and residents living close to the dam have been against the deal, saying Uzbekistan should continue to be allowed to use the water, but the reservoir's land should remain within Kyrgyzstan.

President Japarov and his allies claim the deal benefits Kyrgyzstan and that Kyrgyz farmers will still have access to the water reservoir.

Dyan Gumanao, 28, coordinator of Alliance of Concerned Teachers-Region 7 and Armand Dayoha, 27, Alliance of Health Workers-Cebu coordinator were expected to arrive in their offices on Jan. 10 after spending the holidays with their families but have not been able to show up or contact family and colleagues since then.

According to Karapatan-Central Visayas, Gumanao and Dayoha had previously reported a series of harassment and tailing, which had increased following Gumanao’s arrest on June 5, 2020 as part of the Cebu 8.

Both Gumanao and Dayoha had also been tailed by suspected state agents after a Mendiola Massacre commemoration protest on January 22, 2021.

“These irregularities that they have observed have been considered to be possible monitoring of the two of them as active development workers and long-time human rights advocates in Cebu,” Karapatan-Central Visayas wrote in their statement.

The group added that Gumano had also experienced numerous instances of tailing by suspected state forces in the last quarter of 2022.

Gumanao had previously served as the head coordinator of Aninaw Productions and had been a key figure in its revival in 2017. Prior to that, she had been the chairperson of the UP Cebu University Student Council of the University of the Philippines Cebu (UP Cebu) and served as the Vice President for Visayas of the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP).

After graduating cum laude with a Mass Communication degree from the university, Gumanao joined the non-government organization Community Empowerment Resource Network (CERNET) as a Special Support Services Coordinator.

She currently serves as a volunteer coordinator for the Alliance of Concerned Teachers-Region 7 after having been a volunteer for several years.

Dayoha, meanwhile, graduated from the Psychology program of UP Cebu and has served as a National Service Training Program (NSTP) lecturer in the university since 2015. He has also been pursuing a bachelor in Fine Arts as a second degree.

Having been active in the pursuit of “art for the people,” he was one of the founding members of the Cebu-based cultural group Art and Tankard Organization (ATO).

During the height of the pandemic in 2020, Dayoha was cited to be one of the key volunteers in addressing the issues of the workers and the urban poor in Mandaue City. He eventually became a staff member of the non-government organization Visayas Human Development Agency, Inc. (VIHDA, Inc.).

Dayoha currently serves as the coordinator of the Alliance of Health Workers-Cebu.

Karapatan-Central Visayas said that the incident has been reported to authorities and concerned government agencies.

“We are demanding the urgent action and cooperation of state forces in our collective efforts to identify the whereabouts of Dyan and Armand. We assert that there is nothing wrong with their work and the advocacies they carry with them, and that citizens who decisively tread the path that they have should not be harassed, threatened, silenced, or arrested,” the organization wrote.

Karapatan-Central Visayas, together with various organizations across Cebu, have strongly called to surface the two

The Observatory has been informed about the arbitrary detention and ongoing judicial harassment of Mr Sopon Surariddhidhamrong, aka Get, leader of the student pro-democracy group Mok Luang Rim Nam, and Ms Natthanit Duangmusit, aka Baipor, member of the pro-democracy and monarchy reform activist group Thalu Wang. Founded in August 2020, Mok Luang Rim Nam has expanded from advocating for the rights of students at Navamindradhiraj University in Bangkok to various human rights issues in Thailand, including enforced disappearance, labour rights, and equality. Formed in early 2022, Thalu Wang has been advocating for the abolition of Article 112 of Thailand Criminal Code (“lèse-majesté”) and conducting public opinion polls at various locations in Bangkok on how the Thai monarchy affects people’s lives and whether the institution should be reformed.

On January 9, 2023, the Bangkok Criminal Court revoked Sopon and Natthanit’s bail and ordered their detention, on the ground that the two violated the bail conditions of their temporary release, granted on May 31, 2022, and August 4, 2022, respectively, by participating in an anti-government protest on November 17, 2022, during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Bangkok. Sopon’s bail conditions stemmed from a “lèse-majesté” case in which he is being prosecuted for allegedly giving a speech critical of Thailand’s Queen on April 22, 2022. As for Natthanit, her bail conditions also stemmed from a “lèse-majesté” case in connection with a Facebook post she shared on March 30, 2022, concerning the budget allocated to the monarchy as well as to public opinion polls she conducted in Bangkok. These surveys questioned the appropriateness of the government allegedly allowing Thailand’s King to exercise his powers at his discretion.

On the same day of their bail revocation, Sopon and Natthanit’s lawyer submitted a bail request, which was rejected by the Court, arguing that both had already broken their previous bail conditions by participating in the November 17, 2022 protest and were likely to cause other danger or commit again acts similar to the ones of which they were accused. Upon the Court’s decision, Sopon was taken to the Bangkok Remand Prison, and Natthanit was taken to the Women’s Correctional Institution in Bangkok to be held in pre-trial detention.

The first bail revocation hearing on December 15, 2022, was initiated by a court staff who submitted a report to a judge alleging that Natthanit may have violated her bail conditions by participating in the protest. Sopon was later added to the bail revocation hearing.

The Observatory recalls that Sopon and Natthanit face charges for alleged violations of Article 112 in connection with their pro-democracy and human rights activities. Sopon is currently facing “lèse-majesté” charges stemming from three separate cases: 1) a speech he made in Bangkok on April 6, 2022, which was deemed critical of the King; 2) the above-referenced speech he made at a protest in Bangkok on April 22, 2022; and 3) a speech he made on the occasion of International Workers’ Day on May 1, 2022, in Bangkok, which was deemed critical of the King. Sopon was detained for 30 days from May 2 to May 31, 2022, at the Bangkok Remand Prison, before being released on bail.

Natthanit, in turn, is currently facing charges under Article 112 in connection with three cases: 1) conducting a public opinion poll about royal motorcades at Siam Paragon in central Bangkok on February 8, 2022; 2) the above-referenced case related to the sharing of a post on Facebook about the budget allocated to the Thai monarchy on March 30, 2022; and 3) conducting public opinion polls on April 18, 2022, at different locations in Bangkok questioning the appropriateness of the government allegedly allowing the King to exercise his powers at his discretion. Natthanit was detained in connection with the February 8 event for 94 days between May 3 and August 4, 2022, at the Central Women’s Correctional Institution in Bangkok, before being released on bail.

While in detention, Sopon and Natthanit went on a hunger strike to protest their pre-trial detention and to demand their right to bail. They were granted temporary release on the conditions that they would refrain from repeating their offences, participating in demonstrations that cause public disorder, and engaging in activities that may damage the monarchy.

The Observatory expresses its deepest concern about the arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Sopon and Natthanit, who seem to be only targeted for the legitimate exercise of their rights to freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly. Furthermore, Tantawan Tuatulanon - a human rights defender who is currently being prosecuted for delivering a speech allegedly critical of the King via Facebook live on March 5, 2022 - is scheduled to attend a bail revocation hearing on March 1, 2023, where the Court will consider whether her participation in the November 17, 2022, APEC protest violated any of her bail conditions.

The Observatory notes that between November 24, 2020, and January 11, 2023, 226 people, including many human rights defenders and 17 minors, were charged under Article 112 of the Criminal Code. Five of them are currently held in detention pending trial.

The Observatory calls on the Thai authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Sopon Surariddhidhamrong, Natthanit Duangmusit, and all other human rights defenders in the country, and to put an end to all acts of harassment, including at the judicial level, against them.

A right group’s head has been questioned by cybercrime police over the NGO’s involvement in releasing a rap video commemorating the ninth anniversary of bloody clashes between security personnel and garment workers.

Am Sam Ath, operations director at Licadho, was questioned by the cybercrime unit of the Phnom Penh Municipal Police on Monday. Sam Ath said he was asked where the NGO got the images and videos for the music video, and that police officials asked the NGO to take down the video.

He said the video was not meant to incite and that the NGO does not want violence like what was seen in 2014 to be repeated.

“We don’t support violent events. That is why we ask for it to be prevented from happening anymore, meaning we don’t support violence no matter which party does it,” he said.

Sam Ath added that only Licadho’s management committee as a whole could decide to take down the video.

Licadho and labor rights NGO Central released the video, sung by rapper Kea Sokun, on January 3, marking nine years since violence erupted on Phnom Penh’s Veng Sreng Boulevard, when workers were on general strike demanding an increase to the minimum wage.

The video is titled “Workers Blood” and uses visuals of the violence, including images of workers being beaten by security personnel. The video also uses clips from media outlets like Radio Free Asia, showing military police in riot gear marching into factory and housing premises on Veng Sreng Boulevard while bleeding workers are carried away by their peers.

“For the past nine years they have been left with pain and sorrow and sadness by gestures full of blood,” Sokun says in the song.

“There is no information and they do not know where they have drifted away. There is no one who knows, and they have been waiting for justice for the past nine years, waiting so long but there is no one held responsible.”

At least four civilians were killed, another 38 were injured, and one 15-year-old boy went missing and is believed to be dead.

Sokun previously was arrested and convicted in 2020 for another rap song with nationalist lyrics like “stand up,” “I’m opposed to the dictator,” and “the other race is encroaching.”

Apart from Sam Ath, VOD has seen summon letters for three other civil society leaders: Moeun Tola, who heads Central; Vorn Pov, president of informal worker association IDEA; and Theng Savoeun, leader of the Coalition of Cambodian Farmer Community.

Tola and Pov are summoned on Tuesday, and Savoeun is scheduled to be questioned on Wednesday.

Tola said he would present himself on Tuesday but was unsure what questions the police would have for him.

“It is remembering nine years since the violence happened. … I will wait and see what the police want to know about it,” he said in brief comments.

San Sokseyha, a Phnom Penh Municipal Police spokesperson, said the Culture Ministry had asked the police to look into the video because of its incendiary lyrics. He confirmed four people had been summoned.

“We just summoned, questioned and advised him about this issue to avoid [problems] as stated by the ministry that [the video] can provoke and incite, which could affect security and public order,” he said.

Last week, the Culture Ministry asked the National Police to restrict access to the video.

Kampong Speu residents accused soldiers of threatening to use violence against a monk trying to protect the community’s Metta forest, confiscating his phone to stop him from taking photos of their activities.

Teok Mao, a member of the Metta forest community in Oral district, said soldiers threatened violence against the monk, who lives in the forest and was taking photos of soldiers plowing land that was previously part of the forest.

The soldiers grabbed the monk’s phone during the incident on Friday to stop him taking photos, Mao said.

It was not the first violent incident in the forest dispute, he pointed out, referring to previous gunshots amid confrontations between community members and soldiers.

“We have to keep all of this evidence and not allow them to go further,” he said. “They destroyed the forest and destroyed all the evidence.”

In 2021, a government sub-decree granted 262 hectares of forest land to the military’s armored vehicle military unit. The land is part of the Phnom Oral Wildlife Sanctuary and has traditionally been used by about 253 families, according to rights group Licadho.

Another community member, Khorn Sarith, said the soldiers had been active in the cleared parts of the forest, dredging for sand and digging boundaries.

“They plow and place marker poles. When community members stop them, they leave, but when we return home, they come to do it again. They do this almost every day.”

Pen Sarin, who villagers said was the soldier leading the clearing of Metta forest, denied any threats and said soldiers were only clearing the land the government had given them.

Vietnamese authorities arrested an activist on Tuesday on unknown charges after he posted two short messages on his Facebook page that appeared to criticize his former employer, a water purification company.

The first post on Hoang Van Vuong’s page said, “Whoever has party membership should establish clean water companies to sell dirty water but receive payments for clean water. Easy earn!”

The second post said, “Clean water companies provide dirty water. Who is held responsible?”

Vietnam has come down hard in recent years on activists and individuals who make critical comments on Facebook, which is widely used in the Southeast Asian nation, arresting them on vague charges of “abusing the rights of freedom and democracy” or “spreading anti-state propaganda.”

Last year, authorities convicted and imprisoned at least 31 such people, handing out prison terms ranging from one to eight years.

Vuong’s younger brother, Hoang Van Quoc, told Radio Free Asia that on Tuesday, Vuong received a call from his former employer asking him to come to the office to pick up a New Year’s gift. Police at the scene then arrested him.

Then the police went with him to his house, asked that the electricity be cut off and read out a house search warrant. They confiscated a camera, a cell phone and a broken laptop. said Hoang Van Long, his older brother.

After that, they made a record of the house search, made six copies, and had Vuong sign one before taking him away, Long said. The police didn’t tell the family what he was arrested for.

Tuyen said he was surprised by the arrest because Vuong was not an influential political dissident and he did not post messages often on Facebook.

Vuong, 44, began voicing critical viewpoints in 2011 and as a result was detained and beaten by authorities that year and in 2012, Tuyen said.

“He is an ordinary person and does not belong to any organization,” Tuyen said. “He spoke up whenever he saw injustice. He only talked about what he witnessed. He sometimes took part in a demonstration together with me or other groups.”

Thong Nhat district police told RFA that they did not have the authority to respond to inquiries about the arrest and suggested contacting Dong Nai provincial police. But someone there said provincial police had not conducted the arrest, and referred RFA back to district authorities.

Facebooker Hoang Van Vuong, 44, was arrested in Dong Nai Province for allegedly criticizing the water authorities. A relatively unknown but outspoken critic of injustice, Vuong began voicing his opinions in 2011 and was detained briefly in 2012. According to RFA, Vuong was called into his former workplace to pick up a gift whereupon he was promptly detained by waiting public security. It is not known what the charges are against Vuong.

A young man in Ghor was arrested for posting critical content on Facebook and criticizing the Taliban for the ban on university education for women.

Local sources told Hasht-e Subh on Tuesday, January 3 that Majid Ahmadi, who had criticized the Taliban on his Facebook page for their decision to ban university education for women, was arrested by Taliban forces.

Taliban members arrested the young man four days ago in Firuzkoh, the capital city of Ghor province, according to sources. Sourced reiterated there are no details about his whereabouts and whether he is alive or dead.

Taliban officials in Ghor have not hitherto expressed their opinion on this matter.

The Taliban had kept another young man in custody for almost two months in Ghor province for criticizing the group’s governance and incompetency.

Subway workers blocked a group of disability rights activists from staging a subway protest during the morning rush hour on Tuesday, a day after authorities used force for the first time to deter their yearlong protest.

Since late last year, the Solidarity Against Disability Discrimination (SADD) has staged subway-riding protests at major stations in central Seoul on and off, demanding an increased government budget to protect the rights of people with disabilities, including mobility rights.

Wheelchair-bound activists have repeatedly boarded and disembarked trains to cause delays in metro services during the morning rush hour, drawing complaints from commuters.

In their latest protest on Tuesday, about 20 SADD members boarded a subway train on Line 4 at Sungshin Women's University Station at around 8 a.m. and got off at Dongdaemun History Culture Park Station.Immediately after disembarking, the activists tried to get back on the same train, but Seoul Metro workers blocked their entry, sparking protests from the activists.

"Let us get on the subway. Disabled people are citizens as well," they chanted.

The confrontation followed a 13-hour shoving match between activists and authorities at Samgakji Station on Line 4 on Monday.

Up to 640 riot police personnel were mobilized to block dozens of SADD activists from boarding a subway train from the morning through the night on Monday, the first time physical force was used to counter the subway protest in earnest.

Seoul Metro had 13 subway trains pass through Samgakji Station without stopping during the 13-hour confrontation, citing the railway safety act that prohibits rowdiness at train stations and facilities.

Groups of artists condemned the death threat on multi-awarded artist Bonifacio Ilagan, saying the incident is yet another desperate ploy against activists and progressive cultural workers.

The Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP) and the Kilometer 64 Writers’ Collective (KM 54) said the threat against Ilagan is part of ongoing fascist attacks against political dissenters.

Ilagan reported to colleagues he was at a pet store in Quezon City in the afternoon of January 2 when he received a call from an unknown number.

He recalled that the caller introduced himself as a commander of a unit tasked to wipe out suspected Communists like the veteran activist.

Ilagan added that the caller warned him to desist from his activities as their so-called unit is just waiting for the “final order from the higher ups.”

“[The caller] said they would surely get me, and that I should not ask for mercy. It would be futile, because I had already been warned,” Ilagan reported.

“While the man didn’t say outright that they would kill me, his point was all too clear: They could,” Ilagan added.

The artist said that while he received his share of messages that cursed and threatened him in the past because of his activism, Monday’s incident was the first time that he received a call that said much more.

“There is no other reason I can think of behind the threat but my activism that goes way back to the 70s,” Ilagan said.

Quick condemnation

CAP said in a statement Wednesday that it condemns that crackdown against activist artists like Ilagan.

KM 64 added that the threat against Ilagan is part of an old strategy against critics of anti-people government policies.

Human rights group Karapatan earlier reported that that at least 17 civilians became victims of mass surveillance and extrajudicial killings from July 1 to November 30 of 2022.

“We are in solidarity and we stand with Bonifacio Ilagan and all other cultural workers who are part of the people’s history by fighting for truth, genuine freedom and human rights,” KM 64 said.

Who is Boni Ilagan?

Ilagan was a student activist during the Ferdinand Marcos Sr. dictatorship who led the historic Diliman Commune uprising at the University of the Philippines in 1970.

Ilagan was abducted in 1974 and was subjected to various forms of torture. After being conditionally released on 1976, Ilagan continued his activism and became a multi-awarded stage and film playwright.

He was again arrested in the 1990s but was released after three months in detention.

He was among the thousands of petitioners who filed a class action suit against the Marcos estate that awarded millions of dollars as indemnification to thousands of Martila Law victims.

He is a member of SELDA (Semahan ng mga Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detensiyon at Aresto) and co-convened the Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law (CARMMA), an organization composed of martial law survivors that seek accountability for the various rights violations of the late dictator, his cronies, and the Marcos dynasty.

Ilagan was named the winner of the prestigious Gawad Plaridel in 2019, given by the College of Mass Communication of his alma mater University of the Philippines.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urges for the release of Chinese political commentator Ou Biaofeng, already detained for two years and who was sentenced on 30 December 2022 to three years and six months in prison for “subversion”.

“As a political commentator, Ou Biaofeng published fact-based essays that allowed the Chinese public to access information on regime's human rights abuses despite heavy censorship. Regime should release him as well as all other press freedom defenders detained in China.

On 30 December 2022, after two years in detention, Chinese political commentator and blogger Ou Biaofeng, 42, was sentenced by a court in the city of Zhuzhou City in Hunan Province (southern China) to three years and six months for “inciting subversion of state power”. Ou was also deprived of his political rights for three years and had 70,000 renminbi (almost 10,000 euros) confiscated, on the pretext that they were an “illegal income” earned from a series of articles critical of the Chinese government published in Apple Daily, Ming Pao and on the website of the civil society organisation Human Rights Campaign in China.

On 3 December 2020, Ou was placed in administrative detention for 15 days for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” and was two weeks later transferred to one of China’s “black prisons,” under the regime of “Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location” (RSDL) in which detainees are deprived of legal representation and unable to communicate with the outside world. On 22 July 2021, Ou was then formally arrested on the charge of “inciting subversion of state power” and moved to the No. 1 Zhuzhou Municipal Detention Center.

Since Chinese leader Xi Jinping took power in 2012, he began a crusade against journalism as shown in RSF’s report The Great Leap Backwards of Journalism in China, which details Beijing’s efforts to control information and media within and outside its borders.

China ranks 175th out of 180 in the 2022 RSF World Press Freedom Index and is the world's largest captor of journalists with at least 111 detained.

Members of the youth group Anakbayan raised alarm after their official Facebook Page was deleted, while their members were locked out of their personal accounts after multiple log-in attempts from anonymous accounts.

At 3:00 p.m. of Dec. 30, the group noticed that the official Facebook Page of Anakbayan PH was no longer accessible both by the public and its page administrators. Meanwhile, at least ten members received e-mails from Facebook, notifying them that there had been multiple log-in attempts in their accounts.

“This (attack) comes as various of our chapters and other mass organizations have received notices for being unpublished, suspension and restriction of personal accounts,” said Anakbayan, through a post by one of its members.

“We vehemently condemn this brazen attack on the youth. This is a conscious and orchestrated attack to deplatform dissent and to silence the critical voice of the youth,” the group said.

According to Anakbayan, the attack happened while the organization is being very vocal on issues faced by the youth such as attacks on academic freedom through the NCST Program, and the worsening economic crisis in the Philippines.

At the moment, the organization and its members are looking into ways to retrieve Anakbayan’s Facebook page. They have created a temporary page, which can be viewed here.

In December, Myanmar courts sentenced at least eight independent journalists to prison terms ranging from three to 10 years, according to news reports and journalists who spoke to CPJ.

Separately, on January 4, junta authorities released at least six jailed journalists as part of a wider amnesty of over 7,000 prisoners to mark the nation’s Independence Day, according to news reports, a database compiled by the local rights group Assistance Association of Political Prisoners (AAPP), and a separate database compiled by the Detained Journalists Information Myanmar private Facebook group, which was shared with CPJ via email.

Myanmar ranked as the world’s third worst jailer of journalists, with 42 behind bars when CPJ conducted its annual prison census on December 1, 2022.

“Myanmar’s cruel carousel of jailing, sentencing, and granting early release to journalists is a form of psychological warfare aimed at breaking the will of independent journalists and media outlets,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative. “Authorities must immediately cease treating members of the press as criminals and should release all reporters held in custody for their work.”

And on December 30, a court in Yangon sentenced Thurein Kyaw, founder and publisher of the independent outlet Media Top 4, to 10 years in prison with hard labor under Article 49(a) of the Counter Terrorism Law, according to news reports. Thurein Kyaw was beaten by unidentified attackers and initially detained on February 3, 2022, while covering a rally in support of the military junta in Yangon, according to news reports and photographs of his injuries circulated online.

Three youths who survived a three-storey fall to the ground while trying to escape a military raid in Yangon’s Botahtaung Township last year were given 12-year prison sentences on Tuesday, according to a court source.

Ye Min Oo, Min Thitsar Aung, and Wai Yan Htet were among 10 people sentenced in connection with the raid at a hearing held inside Insein Prison, the source said.

All 10 were facing charges under the Explosive Substances Act, including illegal possession of explosives and endangering public safety. The sentences ranged from five to 12 years.

On August 10 of last year, regime forces stormed an apartment on 44th Street in Botahtaung, where they arrested three of the defendants—Thiha Kaung Sett, Poe Kyawt Kyawt Khant, and Wai Phyo Aung.

Ye Min Oo, Min Thitsar Aung, and Wai Yan Htet were caught after falling from the roof of the building as they attempted to flee, while two others—Wai Wai Myint and Wai Zaw Phyoe—plunged to their deaths.

The others sentenced on Tuesday were Kyaw Kyaw Oo, a taxi driver who was arrested before the raid; Kaung Sett and Min Hein Khant, who were apprehended later; and Sai Win Lwin Htut, whose details were not available at the time of reporting.

According to the father of Ye Min Oo, families were not allowed to meet with the prisoners until after they received their sentences.

“I’m in no position to say anything about the other kids, but Ye Min Oo is a very adaptable person. He can survive essentially anywhere,” he said, noting that his son—who was transferred to an interrogation centre soon after his release from the hospital—had still not fully recovered from his injuries.

“He only told us to give him some support from the background so that he could live comfortably in prison. He’s in good health save for a limp in his left leg, which I think is going to be a lifelong disability,” he added.

Poe Kyawt Kyawt Khant, the only woman among the 10 detainees, was handed a five-year sentence for possession of explosives, according to Myanmar Now’s source.

She was pregnant at the time of her arrest and reportedly gave birth inside Insein Prison in late February, the source added.

Kyaw Kyaw Oo, Kaung Sett, and Min Hein Khant each received 12-year sentences after they were found guilty of illegal possession of explosives and being accessories to offences under the Explosive Substances Act.

Kaung Sett and Min Hein Khant, who were arrested in November of last year, were also accused of being members of an urban guerrilla group and are facing additional charges, according to the court source, who was unable to provide further details.

Kaung Min Thant, the only person to escape the raid on the 44th Street apartment, told Myanmar Now that he managed to get away by hiding on the roof of the building for 12 hours before fleeing to a safe area.

On 27 December, two Ubon Ratchathani high school students were detained for flashing three-finger salutes, a well-known symbol of resistance, at an intersection on a road that was closed ahead of King Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida’s royal motorcade.

Another student who witnessed the incident said that he rode his motorcycle out to the intersection at around 14.00 to run an errand and discovered that the road was closed. He was not aware of the pending motorcade. Two of his friends, whose motorcycles were parked in front of him, flashed three-finger salutes for a moment. Once the traffic was allowed to resume, a police officer pulled them over. The witness thought that they were going to be fined for not wearing a helmet but later learned that they had been detained for their salute.

According to a Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) report, at around 15.30, the two students were detained at Muang Ubon Ratchathani Police Station. Lawyers were not allowed to see them. Volunteer lawyer Wattana Jantanasilp was denied permission to meet with the students and given no explanation of what had happened. Wattana was informed by the police that they had summoned the students’ parents, as well as an official from the Provincial Education Office and a child psychiatrist.

At 8.20, TLHR said that the students were released without charge, but the police refused to allow photos to be taken of the daily record on their detention.

King Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida were visiting Ubon Ratchathani to attend a religious ceremony at Wat Pah Nanachat Temple in Warin Chamrap district at 17.00 yesterday.

A food delivery driver named Nattawut (last name withheld) also said that a police officer from Muang Ubon Ratchathani Police Station called him to ask that he remain at home while the King and Queen were visiting the province. He refused, explaining that he needed to work. The officer then asked if he could follow Nattawut while he worked. When the driver agreed, the officer said that he did not need to be with him all the time and instead would call him periodically to check his location.

Last October 2022, Nattawut ran into difficulties with the police because he was live-streaming when a group of people flashed the three-finger salute and shouted at Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha. One person in the group was detained by police officers and taken away. Another person was pushed to the ground. Nattawut was threatened by the police, who ordered him to delete the recording of the livestream.