News & Politics

During a crisp September week, China’s top leader—General Secretary Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic and Chairman of the Central Military Commission—led a central delegation to the Tibet Autonomous Region to mark the 60th anniversary of the region’s founding. The trip, captured in a new China Central Radio and Television documentary titled “Panoramic Record of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s Visit to Tibet,” has been billed as a historic first: never before has a Party General Secretary, state president and top military commander personally headed a central delegation for the celebration.

News & Politics

Chinese Judge Grants Death Sentence With Two‑Year Reprieve to Husband Who Brutally Murdered Wife After She Sought Divorce, Sparking Nationwide Outrage

In a case that has ignited fierce debate across China’s social media landscape, a Guangzhou‑area businessman was sentenced to death with a two‑year reprieve after brutally murdering his wife when she sought to end their marriage. The judgment, handed down by the Dongguan Intermediate People’s Court in late July 2024, has been slammed by observers as far too lenient for a crime that prosecutors described as pre‑meditated, sadistic and exceptionally violent.

News & Politics

Taiwan’s “Great Recall” Fails: DPP’s Mass Petition Drive Falls Short, Leaving Legislative Balance Unchanged

The phrase “Taiwan 大罢免,” usually rendered in English as “the great recall” or “the major recall in Taiwan,” captures both the mechanics of a legislative recall and the sheer scale of the campaign that has dominated the island’s political discourse over the past year. In Mandarin, 罢免 (bàmiǎn) means “recall,” while 大 (dà) adds a sense of magnitude—​a “large‑scale” or “great” effort. What began as a series of citizen‑initiated petitions has evolved into what observers are calling the largest recall wave in Taiwan’s modern history, targeting dozens of lawmakers from the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and, to a lesser extent, officials from the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) and even the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) itself.