Is a global pandemic starting in China?
Hong Kong Protests Communism
And don’t get caught in your pajamas in this Chinese city.
That and more on this week’s China Uncensored.
This is China Uncensored.
I’m Chris Chappell.
This week’s China news headlines!
First an update on the deadly Chinese coronavirus
that spread from the city of Wuhan.
As of Friday morning, Chinese state-run media
had confirmed there were 887 cases nationwide, with 26 deaths.
Don’t worry.
Chinese authorities are taking resolute action against the new virus.
They’ve raised the public health response
to the highest emergency level.
Which is good.
They’ve also completely locked down travel in 13 cities, i
ncluding Wuhan where it all started.
The travel ban now covers more than 30 million people.
Authorities have also banned large gatherings around the country.
They even shut down Disneyland.
So if you hate long lines, nows the time to go.
A classic Chinese Communist Party solution:
Cracking down, like the virus is a political dissident.
Except of course it’s too late.
One virologist who helped identify SARS in 2003
told Chinese media that “a bigger outbreak is certain.”
And that “We have passed through the ‘golden period’ for prevention and control.”
If only they used the golden period for that instead of a massive coverup.
Not to mention that millions of people have already started traveling t
hroughout the country for the Lunar New Year, which starts today.
And in Wuhan, the scapegoating of local officials has already begun.
Meanwhile, the first patient to have the virus in the US
is being treated in Seattle by a robot.
That is not a joke.
The good news is, he seems to be recovering.
Meanwhile a second US case has been confirmed in Chicago.
I hope Chicago has robots, too.
Now over to Hong Kong,
where protests are continuing.
Only now, they also have to worry about this weird Chinese virus, too.
It’s a good thing so many people wear masks in Hong Kong.
Last Sunday, Hong Kongers held an anti-Communism rally.
It was called Universal Siege Against Communism.
And it was to call on other countries to sanction Hong Kong officials.
These people held up signs that say
Heaven Destroys the Chinese Commuinst Party
before police started shoving their way through and firing tear gas.
The rally was originally allowed by police,
but they suddenly shut it down after too many people showed up.
Several fights then broke out between police and protesters.
Plus the tear gas.
Police made several arrests.
One of the people arrested was Ventus Lau,
the person who organized the rally.
He’s being charged with, among other things,
“inciting others to take part in an unlawful assembly.”
Yes, Lau was charged for inciting people to take part in an unlawful rally...
that police had previously said was totally lawful
until they changed their minds in the middle of the rally
and started tear gassing people.
In other words, it was a typical Sunday in Hong Kong.
But don’t worry, that’s going to change,
thanks to the brilliant minds of Chinese Communist officials.
The new head of the Liaison Office is pushing
for the Draconian national security law they tried to pass in 2003.
In 2003, it resulted in massive protests.
So it failed before,
but clearly doing the exact same thing is going to work this time.
I believe we have a photo of the new head of the Liaison Office right here.
Human Rights Watch has released their Human Rights report for 2020.
It includes this special feature called China’s Global Threat to Human Rights.
The director of Human Rights Watch
flew to Hong Kongfor the official release.
But he was denied entry.
“The focus of the report this year was going to be on how
the Chinese government is really trying to deliberately undermine
the international human rights system.
Sadly, as I arrived here, the Chinese government decided
that it did not want to let me in.
So even though I've been able to enter Hong Kong freely before,
this time, for the first time, they've blocked me.”
Surprisingly, denying him entry to Hong Kong didn’t actually silence the report.
He just released it in New York instead.
And as a result, it got more media attention.
Imagine that.
There’s finally an update on Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou.
She was accused of violating US sanctions on Iran.
For more than a year,
she’s been detained in a harsh prison known as—Canada.
Will she get extradited to the US?
Well, extradition hearings have begun, but that’s just the beginning.
“This week's hearing focuses on whether Meng's alleged crimes in the U.S.
are also illegal in Canada.
Meng's defense say the central issue is so called "double criminality",
as in, charges she is accused in the U.S.
must also be considered crimes in Canada.
Meng's lawyers argue the case is founded on allegations of breaching
U.S. sanctions against Iran.
But, Canada has rejected those same sanctions.
So, they argue Meng can't be extradited.”
And legal experts say it could be years before a decision is reached.
So Meng will remain in legal limbo in Canada.
Don’t feel too bad for her, though.
Her “prison cell” is house arrest.
At her 12-million-dollar luxury home.
Plus, she’s getting by with a little help from her friends.
And by friends, I mean people who were paid to protest on her behalf.
Who says money can’t buy friends?
There’s another Meng in the hot seat this week.
The former head of Interpol Meng Hongwei.
No relation.
He’s been sentenced to more than a decade in prison for corruption.
And I don’t think *his* prison cell will look like this.
How did a corrupt guy like Meng Hongwei
get elected to the head of the International Police?
“Partly on the strength of his record of combating graft in China.”
Ironic.
Meng is also a part of former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin’s faction,
which current leader Xi Jinping has been locked in a factional power struggle with.
It’s nice to know that despite everything else
that’s putting stress on the Communist Party,
the power struggle goes on.
But if you’re thinking both Meng’s haven’t got a prayer,
well...most people in China might not have a prayer, either.
Because the Chinese Government is planning
to re-interpret classic religious books
like the Bible, the Quran, and Buddhist Texts.
“Socialist core values should guide the re-interpretation process.”
Oh good.
And even more good news for religion in China.
The Vatican has chosen a new Bishop for Hong Kong.
But they haven’t officially announced who it is.
Why?
According to the Catholic News Agency,
it’s because of concerns that the guy they chose
is too sympathetic to the Chinese Communist Party.
To clarify, the Vatican’s concern is not that the new bishop
is too sympathetic to the Communist Party.
No, their concern is just that *announcing* it
would upset the people of Hong Kong,
who are protesting the Communist Party.
Sure, heaven will destroy the CCP.
Just not the under the Vatican’s watch.
And now, witness the power of China’s fully operational Radio Telescope.
Not only is it the largest radio telescope in the world,
but like the feelings of the Chinese people,
it’s also the most sensitive.
Which is probably why it was built in a depression.
And finally, another technological breakthrough.
China is using AI Facial recognition technology...
to shame people for wearing their pajamas.
Because wearing pajamas in public is a thing in some parts of China.
This crackdown is another one of those things you only see in a country like China,
where top down government directives lead to idiotic local policies.
Officials in Suzhou, a city of six million people in Anhui Province,
got word that they needed to root out uncivilized behavior.
Nice and vague.
So obviously they took action.
Which for them, meant publishing surveillance photos
taken by street cameras of residents wearing pajamas in public
along with parts of their names, government identification numbers and their locations.
That sparked a nationwide outcry, so local officials quickly apologized.
And that does it for this week’s China News headlines.
What do you think?
Leave your comments below.
And as I’ve mentioned before,
YouTube demonetizes episodes like this,
because they’re too controversial for advertisers.
We would have been run out of business years ago,
if it weren’t for fan support through the crowd funding website Patreon.
So as a thank you to these fans,
I answer their questions at the end of some of my episodes.
This question comes from...Thomas Kollmeier.
“Which of the 2020 presidential candidates is the most anti china out of all them,
because I'm getting the impression lately that no one wants to stand up to china.”
Good question, Thomas.
If by anti-China, you mean anti-Chinese regime,
none of the candidates are.
Even president Trump has not explicitly said anything
against the Chinese Communist Party or Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Although to be fair, through Trump’s actions on trade,
he’s done a lot to weaken their grip on power.
And some key people in Trump’s administration,
like Vice President Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo,
have openly criticized the regime’s human rights abuses.
Among the 12 Democrats still in the presidential race,
it’s not clear so far whether any of them
will meaningfully stand up the Chinese regime.
While some of them have criticized China’s human rights abuses,
they also say that, “we need to work with them”, or they say nothing at all.
Michael Bloomberg has even openly said China is not a dictatorship.
Which I guess makes him the most anti-China of all
if you take “anti-China” to mean “anti-Chinese people.”
The poor guy makes billions of dollars a year from China,
so I understand where he’s coming from.
Maybe after the primaries are finally over,
the remaining democratic candidate will try to match
Trump’s toughness when it comes to China trade,
but I won’t hold my breath.
And since politicians aren’t doing enough, I hope you will.
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Pledge a dollar or more per episode to help us keep this show going.
And as a thank you, I answer questions from Patrons at the end of some of my episodes.
Thanks for watching China Uncensored.
Once again, I’m Chris Chappell.
See you next time.