Other news of the day: Muhammad Ince withdraws from Turkey’s presidential race, raising the chances of the anti-Erdogan front. Hong Kong has decided that the chief executive will be able to decide whether he excludes foreign lawyers from national security cases. In Malaysia, the Islamist party PAS does not want the Coldplay concert. Russia denies the reduction of sentences to mobilize prisoners for the war in Ukraine.
PAKISTAN
The Supreme Court declared the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan illegal and supporters of Pakistan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have announced a march to the capital Islamabad in solidarity with their leader. In response, the Pakistani police, who have so far cracked down heavily on the protests, passed a emergency ordinance that prohibits concentrations.
HONG KONG
Hong Kong’s Legislative Council (LegCo) unanimously approved a bill allowing the city’s chief executive to decide whether foreign lawyers they can participate in cases related to national security law. The decision was made after Jimmy Lai, founder of the Apple Daily newspaper – which was closed in 2020 – repeatedly tried to be defended in court by a British lawyer.
MALAYSIA
A politician belonging to the Islamist party Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) who had called for the cancellation of the Coldplay concert, Scheduled for November this year, it was heavily criticized by local government Development Minister Nga Kor Ming, who confirmed that Malaysia will host the British band. “Does the government want to cultivate a culture of hedonism and perversion in this country?” Nasrudin Hassan had written on Facebook, adding that the concert will bring no benefit to “religion, race and country.”
PHILIPPINES
a Philippine court exonerated former senator Leila de Lima, 63, jailed during the Duterte government for criticizing the former president’s “war on drugs.” She was jailed for six years and was first charged with collusion with drug gangs in 2017, just months after launching a Senate investigation into the crackdown on illicit drugs, during which police killed thousands of users. and traffickers.
Türkiye
With only three days to go before the elections, withdrew from the presidential race Muhammad Ince, who had left the CHP to lead an independent formation. This decision sent Turkey’s main stock index up 6%, while polls indicate 43.7% support for current President Recep Tayyip Erdogan versus 49.3% for main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, who has promised reverse the unorthodox economic policies implemented so far.
RUSSIA
Russian courts consistently deny early release and reduced sentences for prisoners due to the massive recruitment of prisoners for war in Ukraine and the need for labor in concentration camps. In 2022, out of 60,000 applications, just over 10,000 were granted.
CENTRAL ASIA
The Geographical Societies of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Hungary have signed an agreement for the creation of a Geographical Council of the Turanic Countries – reports the Kazinform agency – with a solemn joint ceremony in Tashkent, where the office will be based , which will be directed for three years by the Uzbek Ojbek Norinbaev.
