CHINA
Part of cyberlaw postponed
The government is postponing enforcement of part of a cybersecurity law that business groups warn might violate its free-trade pledges, but says most of its restrictions are to take effect today as planned. Authorities said they need to tighten control over how companies store and use information to protect the public’s privacy, and prevent crime and terrorism. Companies and foreign governments have complained the law might hamper access to the nation’s technology markets and possibly weaken information security. The latest version of the law says enforcement of measures on cross-border movement of data has been postponed to Dec. 31 next year. Rules on what counts as important information, computer security standards and other measures are to take effect today, Xinhua news agency said.
NEPAL
Polls on hold for third time
The government yesterday postponed local elections for a third time after its small Muslim community expressed concerns about the polls clashing with the holy month of Ramadan. The elections — the first at local level in 20 years — have been beset by delays. They were originally supposed to be held on one day, but were split into two phases upon objections from the Madhesi, a minority group living along the border with India. The first phase went ahead in the middle of last month, but the second was delayed when the Madhesi threatened a boycott. The government has now been forced to push back the date a third time to avoid a clash with the last Friday of Ramadan. “The government has decided to postpone the polls to June 28 upon the request of the Muslim community, because June 23 was a major event of the Ramadan festival,” Minister for Women, Children and Social Welfare Kumar Khadka said. The new date puts the polls at the height of the monsoon season, raising further concerns that voters in remote areas could struggle to reach polling stations. The government acknowledged the threat posed by poor weather, but assured voters that long-term forecasts had been consulted ahead of the decision.
UNITED STATES
Missile test a success
The military on Tuesday said it had intercepted a mock-up of an intercontinental ballistic missile in a first-of-its-kind test that comes amid concerns over North Korea’s weapons program. A ground-based interceptor launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California “successfully intercepted an intercontinental ballistic missile target” fired from the Reagan Test Site in the Marshall Islands, the military said in a statement. “This system is vitally important to the defense of our homeland and this test demonstrates that we have a capable, credible deterrent against a very real threat,” Missile Defense Agency director Vice Admiral Jim Syring was quoted as saying.
UNITED STATES
Singer reveals new cancer
Singer Olivia Newton-John on Tuesday revealed a return of breast cancer, 25 years after her first successful battle made her an advocate for fighting the disease. The British-born star said she was obliged to postpone a tour of the US and Canada following her new diagnosis. The 68-year-old said she would undergo a short course of radiation, as well as natural therapies, upon the advice of specialists at a cancer research center named after her in her adopted home of Melbourne, Australia. The singer “is confident she will be back later in the year, better than ever, to celebrate her shows,” a statement by her management said.
As the sun sets on another scorching Yangon day, the hot and bothered descend on the Myanmar city’s parks, the coolest place to spend an evening during yet another power blackout. A wave of exceptionally hot weather has blasted Southeast Asia this week, sending the mercury to 45°C and prompting thousands of schools to suspend in-person classes. Even before the chaos and conflict unleashed by the military’s 2021 coup, Myanmar’s creaky and outdated electricity grid struggled to keep fans whirling and air conditioners humming during the hot season. Now, infrastructure attacks and dwindling offshore gas reserves mean those who cannot afford expensive diesel
Does Argentine President Javier Milei communicate with a ghost dog whose death he refuses to accept? Forced to respond to questions about his mental health, the president’s office has lashed out at “disrespectful” speculation. Twice this week, presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni was asked about Milei’s English Mastiff, Conan, said to have died seven years ago. Milei, 53, had Conan cloned, and today is believed to own four copies he refers to as “four-legged children.” Or is it five? In an interview with CNN this month, Milei referred to his five dogs, whose faces and names he had engraved on the presidential baton. Conan,
French singer Kendji Girac, who was seriously injured by a gunshot this week, wanted to “fake” his suicide to scare his partner who was threatening to leave him, prosecutors said on Thursday. The 27-year-old former winner of France’s version of The Voice was found wounded after police were called to a traveler camp in Biscarrosse on France’s southwestern coast. Girac told first responders he had accidentally shot himself while tinkering with a Colt .45 automatic pistol he had bought at a junk shop, a source said. On Thursday, regional prosecutor Olivier Janson said, citing the singer, that he wanted to “fake” his suicide
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed his pledge to replace India’s religion-based marriage and inheritance laws with a uniform civil code if he returns to office for a third term, a move that some minority groups have opposed. In an interview with the Times of India listing his agenda, Modi said his government would push for making the code a reality. “It is clear that separate laws for communities are detrimental to the health of society,” he said in the interview published yesterday. “We cannot be a nation where one community is progressing with the support of the Constitution while the other