Other news of the day: The FAO raised the alarm in Afghanistan over a locust invasion. In Pakistan, the former foreign minister of Imran Khan’s party was arrested. East Timor’s first participation in ASEAN with a view to membership. The campaign for the “No” in the referendum of the indigenous people in Australia gains strength.
HONG KONG
The Chinese-language daily Ming Pao removed a satirical cartoon due to pressure from the Hong Kong authorities. Cartoonist Wong Kei-kwan, known as “Zunzi”, has been publishing his snapshots of the city since 1983. The strip in question showed a man telling a woman that new city representatives would be elected “if the superior deems them fit.” “, although they failed all examinations and health tests. “I think the pressure is mounting and it won’t stop if there are no changes,” said the 67-year-old.
AFGHANISTAN
The United Nations Organization has sounded the alarm about an ilocust invasion in at least 10 provinces of Afghanistan that are considered the “breadbasket” of the country. “The Moroccan locust devours more than 150 species of plants, many of which are cultivated in Afghanistan. It constitutes a huge threat to farmers, communities and the whole country,” said FAO Representative Richard Trenchard. “The last two big outbreaks, 20 and 40 years ago, cost Afghanistan between 8 and 25 percent of its annual grain production,” he added.
PAKISTAN
The situation in Pakistan remains tense: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan’s party, has reported that it is also Shah Mahmood Qureshi was arrested, Minister of Foreign Affairs during the government of the leader, who was imprisoned two days ago. In the last few hours, two other important PTI figures have also been arrested.
EAST TIMOR
The Prime Minister of East Timor, Taur Matan Ruak, participated for the first time in a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations after obtaining observer status. “Today, finally, thanks to the measures we have taken, I can stand here as the Prime Minister of East Timor and say: we will fulfill all our obligations to be a full member of ASEAN.”
AUSTRALIA
grows the opposition, on the part of the indigenous people themselvesagainst the referendum for the recognition of indigenous peoples in Australia: Warren Mundine, former Chairman of the Labor Party, and a group backed by Minister Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, both belonging to indigenous peoples, have announced that they will join forces to create a joint campaign for ‘No’ under the name of ‘Australians for Unity’.
RUSSIA
On May 9, at least three Russian citizens were arrested for discrediting the Armed Forces with their clothing alone: one in Nizhny Novgorod for wearing a jacket with Putin’s portrait crossed out with an X, and two in Moscow because they wore “the colors of the Ukrainian flag”, yellow-blue: a woman in the jacket and a young man in the pants.
SYRIA – Türkiye
The foreign ministers of Russia, Syria, Turkey and Iran met in Moscow to discuss a normalization of relations between Damascus and Ankara. The meeting revealed that the priority for the Syrian government is to end the presence on its territory of all foreign armed forces, including the Turkish one. Russian Minister Lavrov said a road map could “positively influence the current situation in the region and in the entire Middle East.”
