European leaders condemn China over ‘deplorable’ Hong Kong security bill

Beijing move to stamp out anti-government protests poses diplomatic test for UK

European leaders condemned China’s “deplorable decision” to press ahead with its new security laws in Hong Kong, warning that it will speed up the reassessment of China as a trustworthy economic partner.

The European Union council president, Charles Michel, said “we deplore the decision” and the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said the bloc was now discussing with international partners on any possible measures in response.

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Hong Kong activists shut down protest groups after China passes security law

Campaigners fear ‘disturbing’ legislation aimed at quashing protests will target them

Hong Kong activists have deleted social media profiles and closed down campaign groups after Beijing passed a new security law for the territory that many fear could land them in jail.

The standing committee of the National People’s Congress approved the measure on Tuesday morning and it is expected to be enacted in Hong Kong late Tuesday, on the eve of the 23rd anniversary of its return to Chinese rule.

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輸出規制から1年。日韓関係の悪化に焦る韓国。入国禁止、日本からの投資引揚げ、さらに日韓スワップが必要な模様。

輸出規制から1年。日韓関係の悪化に焦る韓国。入国禁止、日本からの投資引揚げ、さらに日韓スワップが必要な模様。日本にとってスワップは施しだが円安になるメリットがあるらしいウォンに価値がないという意味?

The latest figures are a wake-up call: the global Covid-19 crisis isn’t close to over | Adam Tooze

A coordinated response to the crisis in the Americas, India and Africa must be led by countries that have suppressed the virus

It took more than three months for the world to record 1 million cases of Covid-19. The latest 1 million cases were clocked up in a week, taking the total to more than 10 million. On Sunday 28 June, the world recorded more than 190,000 new cases in a single day, a new record.

Don’t fixate on the precise numbers. We are testing more than ever so we find more cases. What matters is the big picture and it is drawn in stark relief: the crisis is not yet over. Far from it. Even as east Asia and Europe begin to experience recovery, the momentum of the disease at the global level is building. Nor is this the famous “second wave”. This is still the first wave spreading out across the world’s 7.8 billion inhabitants.

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Covid-19 intensifies elder abuse globally as hospitals prioritise young

Older patients turned away or left untreated, while domestic abuse is also rising, leading charity reports

When Souzi Bondeko’s grandfather started showing symptoms of Covid-19 and was struggling to breathe, she took him to a hospital in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, where he was put on a ventilator.

She dashed home to get some food and returned to be told by a member of staff that he had been taken off the machine as it it was needed elsewhere.

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Oldest surviving photograph of Māori discovered in Australia

Picture of Hemi Pomara posing in London in 1846 was discovered at the national library of Australia by researchers

The oldest surviving photograph of a Māori person has been discovered in the national library of Australia, a historical “scoop” being lauded on both sides of the Tasman.

Hemi Pomara was kidnapped from his home on the Chatham Islands in the early 1840s by British traders, after his family were slaughtered by a rival Māori tribe.

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Scat feels better: digestive health of Japan deer improves as tourist snacks dwindle

Absence of tourists during coronavirus pandemic has led Nara’s revered deer back to traditional diets and better health

While the absence of tourists during the coronavirus pandemic may have deprived Nara’s famous deer of their favourite snack, it has worked wonders for their digestive health.

Before the outbreak, millions of tourists descended on the western Japanese city – once the country’s capital – to view its shrines and temples, and feed the estimated 1,300 free-roaming deer in the its main park

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Jacinda Ardern decries ‘dangerous’ calls to reopen New Zealand borders

The prime minister appeared to be responding to the opposition leader, who has said keeping the borders closed for months or years is ‘untenable’

Jacinda Ardern has decried as “dangerous” her detractors’ calls to open New Zealand’s borders – or present a plan for how she will do so – as the country remains largely free of Covid-19 while the virus spreads abroad.

Telling reporters on Tuesday that she had heard “calls for our borders to be opened to the world”, the New Zealand prime minister referred to “a world where the virus is escalating not slowing and not even peaking in some countries yet, where cases exceed 10 million globally and deaths half a million, where countries are extending and returning to lockdown”.

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More Hongkongers apply to be refugees in Australia as security law passes

Protesters with pro-democracy movement ‘face the dangers of prosecution’, says advocate, as protection visa applications increase

Protesters involved in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement are applying for Australia’s protection in growing numbers, official Australian government data suggests.

In March, 27 Hong Kong special administrative region passport holders applied for permanent protection visas. The following month, 17 more filed claims, even as the total number of protection visa lodgments fell dramatically with Australia’s international border closure.

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China passes controversial Hong Kong national security law

Critics say the measure, which criminalises secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces, erodes Hong Kong’s autonomy

Beijing has passed a sweeping national security law for Hong Kong that critics fear will crush political freedoms and pave the way for China to cement its control over the semi-autonomous territory.

Less than 40 days after Chinese lawmakers first proposed imposing an anti-sedition law on Hong Kong, the standing committee of the National People’s Congress, on Tuesday approved the measure, according officials and multiple media reports.

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