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UK Sikhs defend right to carry sacred dagger after...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

Britain’s Sikh community has rejected calls to strip them of the rights to carry a ceremonial knife – known as the kirpan – as outrage snowballs over the murder of an 18-year-old student by a Sikh man. Vickrum Singh Digwa, 23, was handed a life sentence by a judge on Tuesday for stabbing to death Henry Nowak, an accountancy student, in Southampton in December 2025. The murder case has reopened a debate over race, religion and identity in the UK. Far-right figureheads, populist political

Warning over home births, vaccine refusal after...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

Unassisted home births and vaccine refusal put mothers and newborns at life-threatening risk, a Hong Kong doctor and a children’s rights group have said, stressing that parental choice must not come at the expense of an infant’s well-being. Their warnings followed the arrest of a Hong Kong couple on suspicion of child neglect. The pair claimed to have given birth to their third child, Danny, at home and had not registered his birth, citing privacy concerns in refusing to submit to a DNA...

Rising seas: Japan makes pitch to Pacific Island...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

Japan is positioning itself as a partner for Pacific Island nations struggling with rising seas and caught between the US-China rivalry, with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pledging on Wednesday to help fight climate change and boost maritime cooperation. Speaking at the inaugural Island States Ocean Summit in Tokyo, Takaichi made a direct pitch to Pacific leaders, presenting Japan as a reliable partner that upholds the rule of law at sea and delivers consistent support. “Japan will continue

‘King Sir’ Chung King-fai, titan of Hong Kong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

Veteran Hong Kong theatre figure “King Sir” Chung King-fai has died at the age of 89. Chung’s nephew confirmed the actor’s death on Wednesday, saying he had died peacefully in his sleep at home in the morning. “My uncle dedicated his entire life to the theatre, leaving behind a lasting legacy through the generations of students he inspired,” the nephew said through the social media page of free-to-air broadcaster TVB. “We are deeply aware of the profound respect and affection everyone holds

China celebrity dog stolen, sold for US$25 and eaten;...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

A celebrity dog in central China was stolen and slaughtered, leaving its owner seeking justice but confronting gaps in the country’s legal protections for pets. Guo, a travel influencer from Henan province, raised Chutou, an eight-year-old Border Collie known for his intelligence, energy and gentle temperament. The dog had amassed more than 1.5 million followers on mainland social media after accompanying Guo on years of journeys across China, from snowy mountains to deserts, often guarding

Adminstrator to ‘review’ tribunal decision on Wang...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

An administrator appointed to oversee the affairs of Hong Kong’s fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court has said it will arrange an extraordinary general meeting at the request of displaced owners, but stopped short of providing a time frame. In a written statement on Wednesday, Hop On Management Company said it was studying the Lands Tribunal’s reasons for dismissing its application to extend the statutory deadlines for convening and holding the meeting. It did not indicate whether the company would

China’s anti-corruption watchdog targets its former...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

Li Xiaohong, a former senior disciplinary official in charge of national inspection, has been placed under investigation for suspected severe disciplinary and legal violations, China’s top anti-corruption authorities said on Tuesday. The downfall of the 73-year-old veteran – known for spearheading high-level anti-corruption crackdowns and his top disciplinary roles at the securities regulator – underscores Beijing’s continued efforts to target corruption among its most senior disciplinary...

60 Minutes correspondent fired after clashing with...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/06/03

CBS News has terminated the ⁠contract of 60 Minutes correspondent ⁠Scott Pelley, two sources at ⁠the network said on Tuesday, joining more than half a dozen departures in recent weeks. “Your antipathy to the future of the show has come through loud and clear. And I have heard you,” the show’s ‌executive producer, Nick Bilton, wrote in a Tuesday email to Pelley that was seen by Reuters. “I therefore write on behalf of CBS News, Inc. (“CBS”) to inform you that your employment with CBS is...

Sustained security can’t come from ‘barrel of a gun’:...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

The world can learn diplomatic lessons from Asean, East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta has said in a strongly worded rebuke to existing global power structures.At the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Saturday, Ramos-Horta, who leads the newest and 11th member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, argued that the bloc epitomised how dialogue could prevent conflict and yield dividends. He acknowledged that Asean was “not heaven on earth”, achieving consensus was “frustratingly

Hong Kong must remove bottlenecks to grow yacht...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

Hong Kong should urgently address its bottlenecks in developing a yacht economy by improving immigration procedures, upgrading mooring facilities and curating niche tourism itineraries following Beijing’s policy relaxation on yachts from the city sailing to mainland China, industry leaders have said. Their calls came on Saturday after Beijing allowed Hong Kong and Macau yachts to enter designated ports in the Greater Bay Area “exempt from guarantees” and benefit from “a temporary ship...

China dials down rhetoric but regional risks persist...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

The world faces challenges from “hegemonism” and “bloc confrontation” driven by “certain countries”, China’s delegation to Asia’s premier security conference said on Saturday, without directly naming the United States. Major General Meng Xiangqing, the head of the Chinese delegation to the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, sent the warning during a special session on managing threats to strategic stability. Meng, a professor at the People’s Liberation Army National Defence University, also

Hong Kong charity calls for foster carers from...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

Hundreds of vulnerable children in Hong Kong are waiting for temporary homes, a local charity has said, urging more households from diverse backgrounds to step forward as demand for foster placements continues to outstrip supply. Mother’s Choice said on Saturday that 222 children remained on the official waiting list for placement, adding that single carers made up nearly 10 per cent of foster parents in its Project Bridge programme, while the rest were married or same-sex couples. The

US agency goes back to the future to take on China’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

The US agency set up to counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative is blending national security with development finance to try to secure a critical minerals supply chain, according to analysts and officials. Created in 2019 during President Donald Trump’s first administration, the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) puts its money into private-led projects rather than those led by the state, as is often the case with China. The agency operates in more than 100 countries,...

Scheme allowing Hong Kong drivers to enter Guangdong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

The popular scheme allowing Hong Kong vehicles to travel north to Guangdong province has been extended by five years, mainland Chinese authorities have announced, as the initial three-year period is set to expire. Under the Northbound Travel for Hong Kong Vehicles scheme, eligible private car owners in Hong Kong can drive into Guangdong via the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge without a mainland number plate or dual-plate permit. Drivers can stay in the province for up to 30 consecutive days per...

China launches AI framework to improve ‘black box’...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

China has pledged to improve the accuracy, reliability and transparency of AI through a new national evaluation framework, as policymakers move to establish common standards for assessing the fast-evolving technology. New guidelines released by the central government said Beijing would create a common yardstick for AI, allowing models, computing power and data quality to be measured and compared under a unified national standard. The move comes as artificial intelligence plays an increasingly...

Chinese archaeologist who discovered 5,000-year-old...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

Liu Bin, a Chinese archaeologist credited with discovering a vast 5,000-year-old prehistoric city that rewrote the history of Chinese civilisation, has pleaded guilty to taking bribes and embezzlement. The celebrated academic, who discovered the Liangzhu ruins – a Unesco World Heritage site in eastern China’s Zhejiang province – and long oversaw its excavation and heritage nomination, accepted the charges, according to news outlet Southern Weekly. During a court hearing in Zhejiang on May 20,...

Dead humpback whale Timmy brought ashore on Danish...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

The body of a dead humpback whale known as “Timmy” has been brought ashore on the Danish island of Anholt, where experts hope a postmortem examination will shed light on how it died. A live streaming by the News5 broadcaster showed a vehicle slowly dragging the bloated carcass out of the shallow water by a rope onto the beach on Saturday morning, leaving behind a deep furrow in the sand. The Danish environmental protection agency urged people not to approach the whale as there is a risk of...

US man asserts if simple teacher and China farmer can...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

A retired American teacher is planning to travel to China in late summer for a reunion with a female farmer he assisted decades ago. In 1999, Ronald Sakolsky, then teaching English in China, was inspired by Inner Mongolian farmer Yin Yuzhen’s battle against desertification and donated US$5,000 to support her tree-planting efforts in the Maowusu Desert. This contribution enabled Yin to plant some of her earliest trees, sowing the seeds of a lasting friendship across continents. Recently, the

Hong Kong to target flavoured tobacco in next phase...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

Hong Kong authorities will crack down on flavoured tobacco substances in the next phase of their enhanced smoking control measures, with the health minister describing such products as a “poisoned chalice” designed to hook younger people. Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau warned on Saturday that flavoured tobacco was mostly delivered through e-cigarettes, with additives containing menthol or sugar-coated toxins used to mask the bitterness and smell of tobacco and attract young

Hong Kong cuts emergency mobile alert activation time...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/05/30

Hong Kong authorities have slashed the time needed to send emergency mobile alerts to residents from an hour to 15 minutes under a HK$150 million (US$19 million) system, while messages can now be tailored to specific districts, the security chief has revealed. A hearing session into the deadly Wang Fuk Court fire in April exposed the lengthy time needed to trigger the alert. But security chief Chris Tang Ping-keung on Saturday stopped short of specifying the types of incidents, such as major...

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