Category: China

It looks like Kim Jong-il may have crossed China one too many times::

The Bank of China has frozen North Korea’s accounts at a branch in Macau due to Pyongyang’s counterfeiting and money laundering activities, it emerged Monday. It is the very BOC branch where South Korea’s National Intelligence Service transferred US$200 million to the North to guarantee the success of the first North-South summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il and then-president Kim Dae-jung in 2000. U.S. pressure on the Macau-based bank Banco Delta Asia last year to freeze North Korean accounts reignited conflict between the U.S and the North.

Grand National Party lawmaker Park Jin said a former high-ranking U.S. official told him about the Chinese bank¿s decision when Park visited Washington last week. A South Korean government official later confirmed the account, saying Beijing could not turn down Washington¿s demand to clean up dubious accounts since it is well aware of the importance of improving financial transparency for the sake of trade. Analysts say that is one reason behind the recent rift between North Korea and its long-term ally over the North¿s missile tests.

US diplomats have been saying that China has been very helpful during the North Korean nuclear crisis and it appears behind the scenes they have if this latest crackdown is any indication.

If the Korean farmers think they got it bad; they need to talk to Chinese farmers. However, I hope the Korean farmers don’t pick up on this tactic:

A farmer angry over a court ruling set off a bomb in a Chinese courthouse, killing himself and four other people, a news report said Saturday.

The explosion Friday in Minle County in the northwestern province of Gansu killed the president of the county court and a local Communist Party official, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

Using a tried and true technique to avoid responsibility for their own criminal activity, the Korean rioters from the Hong Kong WTO riots are now accusing the Hong Kong authorities of police brutality:

Kong have claimed police there fired rubber bullets in the attempt to quell the demonstration. Hong Kong police arrested hundreds of Koreans for staging illegal protests during the WTO Ministerial Meeting there last week. Most have

(…)

Democratic Labor Party lawmaker Kang Ki-kap said Wednesday one of the arrested, Kang Seung-kyu, told him he was hit in the thigh by a round black rubber projectile measuring 4 cm across.

Two other Korean protesters were shot by rubber bullets but kept this quiet for fear of being thought of as hooligans, the opposition lawmaker said.

The Korean Consul-General in Hong Kong Cho Hwan-bok said police there told him they only used tear gas to quell the protests and had no orders to fire rubber bullets, but they promised to check whether rubber bullets were nonetheless used. Hong Kong police is to fire rubber bullets only when protests turn into riots.

I would say assaulting policemen with metal pipes, attacking the US Consulate, and setting cars on fire is enough to be considered a riot. I know in South Korea that is considered a peaceful protest, but in the rest of the world that is considered a riot. They ought to feel lucky that the Chinese authorities didn’t go Tianamen on them and use real bullets.

The Hong Kong authorities have finally decided they have had enough of the Korean protesters disrupting the WTO summit in Hong Kong. Is it any wonder that the Hong Kong police arrested them when they committed actions like this:

Altogether 1,400 South Korean activists took part in the protests against the opening of agricultural markets near Hong Kong’s Wan Chai that turned violent when protesters attempted to overturn police vehicles at around 5:30 p.m. Half an hour later, protesters armed with iron pipes wrested from police barricades faced off with police near the Hong Kong Convention Center, where the WTO meet was held. Seventeen policemen and 67 protesters were injured in the clashes.

Where did they get the iron pipes? Was that part of their carry on luggage? Anyway, destroying property and injuring policemen may be okay in Korea, but Hong Kong has taken a stand against it:

Some 600 Korean farmers and trade union activists were arrested on Sunday after all-night violent protests in Hong Kong during the WTO Ministerial Meeting there. Hong Kong police used tear gas for the first time since anti-British riots in 1967, and used armored vehicles to stop the rioters. It was the first mass arrest of Koreans abroad.

I say good for Hong Kong and hope these protesters meet Chinese justice. However, the Korean Foreign Ministry is trying to get these protesters off the hook:

Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said it began contacting the Hong Kong authorities to seek a “smooth” settlement of the case.

“It is very regrettable for the rallies to turn violent and that many were arrested. There are concerns (South Korea’s) image will be tainted worldwide, including in Hong Kong,” a ministry official said, requesting anonymity.

The ministry plans to ask Hong Kong not to refer the detained Korean protesters to a court, he said.

It appears that the Hong Kong police have different ideas:

Hong Kong police officials said they would prosecute the Korean protesters according to Hong Kong’s ordinance. The law hands out prison terms of up to five years to those engaged in unauthorized demonstrations and up to 14 years to those who damage facilities during protests.

I say give them jail time and those responsible for injuring policemen and destroying property should get even more jail time. Just deporting them back to Korea will not stop this activity from happening again. It will only encourage it. Just look at the property damage and serious injuries protesters within South Korea continue to cause.

South Korean farmers have rioted today in Hong Kong in response to the WTO meeting there. The farmers are rioting because of the WTO attempt to open the South Korean rice market:

Many South Korean farmers are desperate to have their view against globalization and imports heard at the WTO.

They are opposed lower trade barriers for agricultural imports, which they claim would flood the South Korean market with cheap rice and force many of the country’s farmers out of business. It is a view shared by many anti-globalization groups in other countries.

South Korean demonstrators in Hong Kong attempted to break through a barrier marking the designated protest zone, CNN Senior Asia Correspondent Mike Chinoy reported.

When they failed, the group of about 1,000 to 1,500 split into smaller groups of about a dozen and spread out over several square blocks in a cat-and-mouse game with police, then reassembled closer to the exhibition center where talks are being held and began to push forward.

Police holding riot shields and wearing gas masks tried pepper spray and fire hoses to keep the demonstrators back, then fired tear-gas canisters — a nearly unheard-of tactic in normally civilized Hong Kong.

These tactics should be very familiar for people who follow events in Korea. However, according Hong Kong based blog Simon World that has been providing great coverage of the WTO protests these tactics are being criticized by other peaceful protesters in Hong Kong:

Protesters are complaining of being upstaged by South Korean demonstrators, a leading international activist says. Protesters who had not taken part in demonstrations with the Koreans had complained of “grandstanding” to the detriment of other causes, she said.

I am all for freedom of speech and the right to protest, but I strongly believe that protesters do not have the right to harm policemen or destroy property. This tactic is commonly used here in Korea and now is being exported to Hong Kong.

I have to question why Hong Kong authorities do not arrest the South Korean protesters? Here is a hint when a South Korean shows up at the airport with his red bandanna and flags I would assume he is not on a business trip. At least I haven’t seen any bamboo poles yet.

Just for the record I actually support the rice farmers but not their tactics. IMHO I think that every WTO country should be able to protect two industries vital to national security which for South Korea the rice industry would be one.

UPDATE#1: The Marmot is reporting that the North Koreans involved in the fire fight were actually North Korean soldiers. Very interesting. I wonder who Kim Jong Il is going to send to kiss China’s butt and apologize for this? Maybe he will send South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young.

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The Joong Ang Ilbo is reporting that North Korean robbers killed a Chinese soldier near the North Korean/Chinese frontier:

Chinese media reported Monday that an armed skirmish had taken place between Chinese soldiers and North Korean robbers, resulting in the death of a Chinese soldier. The firefight reportedly occurred in October in the Yanbian region of northeast China, which has a large population of ethnic Koreans.

Details were sketchy. The press reports said the attackers were North Koreans, although they did not explain how Chinese authorities had determined that they were not Korean residents in the area. The gunfight, the reports said, occurred after six Army troops engaged five robbers at a resort in the area after receiving reports of a break-in there.

The robbers escaped, the reports said. Three tourists and one staff member of the resort were unhurt, but a soldier was killed by a bullet to his chest.

Seems strange that PLA soldiers would be responding to what local police should be handling. Does anyone know if this is normal to have PLA soldiers conducting police work?

This is about the sanest comments I have heard about the Great Kimchi Crisis of 2005 between Korea and China:

He even said he liked kimchi:

China’s Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing has downplayed a growing trade rift with South Korea over the import of Chinese kimchi, saying he had no fear of eating the spicy cabbage dish loved by Koreans. “Three days ago when I was in Pyongyang, the capital of the DPRK (North Korea), I had very good kimchi, it was delicious,” Li told journalists.

“Two days ago in the capital of the Republic of Korea, Seoul, I had very good kimchi as well and the day before yesterday, when we were talking about the Middle East issue on the question of Syria at the United Nations (in New York) … I ordered kimchi.”

I doubt this will stop the Great Kimchi Crisis because of the domestical political reasons behind it in Korea, but at least someone is speaking sanely on this issue.

It appears that one airline had an interesting evening on Sunday:

Cathay Pacific CX 416 was scheduled to leave Hong Kong for Incheon International Airport at 4:20 p.m. on Sunday. The airline delayed the flight twice, first to 5:30 p.m. and then again to 6:00 p.m.

The airline said it made four announcements of the delays, both in the terminal and at boarding gates. But with the airport bustling and the broadcasts made in English and Chinese, some of the Koreans were unable to understand them.

Dozens of Korean passengers protested to Cathay Pacific staff at the boarding gate that the airline had delayed the flight twice but offered no explanation. They also demanded free transport once they arrived in Incheon and compensation for the delay.

The airline promised to provide meal coupons (HK$45), phone cards and transport according to its flight delay regulations. It says it also went beyond regulations in offering US$25 coupons toward in-flight duty-free goods and discount airline tickets during their next trip.

Okay, airline delays happen all the time and the airline offered meal coupons and other incentives for the delay. I have been delayed for up to five hours before and all I got was a meal coupon. So what Cathay Pacific was offering in compensation seems pretty good in comparison to my experiences with flight delays. Anyway this is what some Korean passengers decided to do:

The furious Koreans then started protesting vociferously, screaming and waving their arms. Alone among the 308 passengers, the 44 Koreans refused to board the aircraft. Attempts by the pilot to convince them fell on deaf ears.

They wanted more compensation and refused to board. So this is what the airline decided to do:

The airline then decided to let the flight take off at 7:14 p.m. without the Koreans, explaining it could not delay any longer. At this stage some of the Koreans relented saying the most important thing was to get back to Korea first, and suggested the airline must have had its reasons. When the flight arrived at Incheon at 11:34 p.m., five buses were waiting to take passengers to their regional destinations.

The Koreans that did not board were offered another flight the next day but the airline would not provide lodging and accommodations for them. The Korean passengers are demanding compensation and an officially apology from a high ranking Cathay Pacific official.

Looking at the article I cannot find where the airline was at fault. Delays happen all the time. The article did not say what the delay was for but maybe the plane had a flat tire or something. That is how I got delayed at the Phoenix airport for 5 hours because the plane needed a new tire. I didn’t go berserk, I got a meal coupon got something to eat read the paper and got on the plane when it was ready.

According to the article Cathay Pacific gave the Korean passengers everything they were entitled to for a delay of 1-2 hours. Why would someone demand a hotel room when the delay was not even 2 hours long?

Then should the plane have taken off without all of its passengers? The Korean passengers apparently were given every opportunity to board the plane and they refused. The airline has to think about all of the 308 passengers, not just 44 self absorbed ones. The airline delayed the plane over an hour longer waiting for the Koreans to board before they finally let the plane go.

It was their choice not to board the plane and I think the airline has a responsibility to do what is in the best interest of the majority of the passengers which is the plane should of left. Cathay Pacific shouldn’t feel any obligation to house people that voluntarily don’t board their plane. The passengers should feel lucky the airline gave them another flight the next day.

Make a scene, yell, protest, demand compensation, and an official apology from a high ranking official. Doesn’t this sound familiar? This is a strategy taken straight out of the anti-USFK play book. Now my final question is, how much did this people have to drink before trying to board the plane?