07/07/2025

MONDAY | JULY 7, 2025

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Dalai Lama vows to keep defying China

Myanmar rebels rebuff govt appeal BANGKOK: Myanmar’s government made a rare call for cooperation from the armed groups it is battling, ahead of a planned election, an invitation that anti-coup forces swiftly rejected. The unexpected appeal comes as the military continues to suffer major battlefield reverses to armed groups and pro-democracy “People’s Defence Forces” (PDF) that rose up to oppose its seizure of power in 2021. “If the armed groups ... choose to legally establish themselves within the framework of the law and cooperate with the government ... the government will welcome and accept this,” the military said in a statement published by The Global New Light of Myanmar . The National Unity Government, a body dominated by ousted lawmakers working to reverse the coup, said the announcement was “a tactic to legitimise a sham election and divide and weaken” its opponents. The military ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected civilian government in February 2021, triggering mass protests that were met with a brutal crackdown. Civilians set up PDFs to fight back and ethnic minority armed groups, many of which have fought the military for decades, were reinvigorated, plunging the country into civil war. State Administration Council chairman Min Aung Hlaing said last month the country plans to hold elections in December and January, pressing ahead with polls denounced as a sham by international monitors. The government invited armed groups to stop fighting and start peace talks in September last year after a major surprise rebel offensive. – AFP SEOUL: Prosecutors yesterday filed a request to detain former president Yoon Suk Yeol on charges related to insurrection from when he declared martial law last year. “Detention request is related to allegations of abuse of power and obstruction of justice,” the statement from the special counsel of prosecutors investigating the Dec 3 incident said. Yoon was summoned on Saturday for questioning by the special counsel as part of the investigation over the insurrection charges. The special prosecutors have not provided credible evidence for the charges and his legal team has plans to “explain in court that the request for an arrest warrant is unreasonable”, Yoon’s lawyers said. - Reuters – AFP JOINT EFFORT TO FIGHT TELECOM FRAUD BEIJING: China, Myanmar and Thailand agreed to intensify cooperation to dismantle all telecom scam compounds and arrest suspects in Myawaddy and other sites, China’s Ministry of Public Security announced yesterday. The decision came during a recent ministerial meeting on joint crackdown against telecom fraud attended by law enforcement agencies of the three countries. Through joint efforts, over 5,400 Chinese nationals suspected of fraud in Myawaddy have been repatriated this year, marking significant progress in the tripartite crackdown. In November last year, the ministry announced that all large-scale telecom fraud centres near the China-Myanmar border in had been wiped out. – Bernama PROSECUTORS REQUEST TO DETAIN YOON

BR I E F S

o Leaders send messages of support

systems requested by Manila as a joint development project, the Yomiuri said. The Abukuma-class destroyer escort, a relatively small type of destroyer with a 2,000-tonne standard displacement, is operated by a crew of about 120 and is armed with anti-submarine and anti-ship missiles, torpedo tubes and guns, according to a Japanese navy website. The Philippine Navy does not have destroyers, only frigates and corvettes, which are typically smaller and lighter-armed vessels. – Reuters succession of the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan Buddhist Lamas. After about two hours, the Dalai Lama left the venue abruptly after eating a piece of his birthday cake. A source earlier said he had not been feeling too well. Guests gathered at the ceremony took turns to speak, including Indian Parliamentary and Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, a practising Buddhist, who had earlier made a rare statement contradicting China by backing the Dalai Lama’s position on his successor. He later clarified that the statement was made in his personal capacity as China warned New Delhi against interfering in its domestic affairs at the expense of bilateral relations. Rijiju said yesterday the Dalai Lama was India’s “most honoured guest ... We feel blessed for his presence here in our country”. He said he has always held the view that there was a need to contribute significantly towards the cause of the Tibetan people, and added that, as a devotee, “We will follow the directions and the guidelines to be issued from the institution of the Dalai Lama.” Cultural performances were held throughout the morning, including from Bollywood playback singers, while messages from global leaders were read out. “I join 1.4 billion Indians in extending our warmest wishes to His Holiness the Dalai Lama on his 90th birthday. He has been an enduring symbol of love, compassion, patience and moral discipline,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also sent a message that said the Dalai Lama continued to inspire people by embodying a message of “unity, peace, and compassion”. “The United States remains firmly committed to promoting respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of Tibetans. We support efforts to preserve Tibetans’ distinct linguistic, cultural, and religious heritage, including their ability to freely choose and venerate religious leaders without interference,” he said. – Reuters

diplomats, Indian federal ministers, Hollywood star Richard Gere and a monk who is expected to lead the search for his successor. In a sign of solidarity, Taiwan president Lai Ching-te, leaders of Indian states bordering Tibet, and three former US presidents sent greetings to the Dalai Lama, including Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton, whose video messages were played during the event. In the preceding week of celebrations, the Dalai Lama had said he would reincarnate as the leader of the faith upon his death and that his non-profit institution, the Gaden Phodrang Trust, had the sole authority to recognise his successor. China has said that the succession will have to be approved by its leaders, and the United States has called on Beijing to cease what it describes as interference in the

thousands of Tibetans, took shelter in India and has since advocated for a peaceful “Middle Way” to seek autonomy and religious freedom for the Tibetan people. Dressed in his traditional yellow and burgundy robe, the Dalai Lama arrived at a temple to smiles and claps from thousands of monks and followers who had gathered on a rainy morning in the small Indian hill town of Dharamshala, where he lives. He waved and greeted them as he walked slowly to the stage with support from monks. “As far as I am concerned, I have a human life and as humans it is quite natural for us to love and help one another,” the Dalai Lama said, speaking after a Tibetan cultural performance that included songs for his long life. “I live my life in the service of other sentient beings,” he said, flanked on the stage with long-time supporters including western

DHARAMSHALA: The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, turned 90 yesterday after a week of celebrations by followers during which he riled China again and spoke about his hope to live beyond 130 and reincarnate after dying. The Nobel laureate is regarded as one of the world’s most influential religious leaders, with a following that extends well beyond Buddhism, but not by Beijing, which calls him a separatist and has sought to bring the faith under its control. Fleeing his native Tibet in 1959 in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, the 14th Dalai Lama, along with hundreds of

Gere kissing the Dalai Lama’s hand during the celebrations yesterday. – REUTERSPIC

Japan to export used destroyers to Philippines TOKYO: Japan will export used navy destroyers to the Philippines to strengthen its deterrence against China’s maritime expansion, the Yomiuri newspaper reported and Gilberto Teodoro agreed to the destroyer export when they met in Singapore last month, Yomiuri reported, adding the Philippine military is set to inspect the destroyers this summer as part of the final preparations. waters including the South China Sea for the Philippines and the East China Sea for Japan. Bilateral military cooperation has included joint exercises, a Japanese radar aid package and a high-level strategic dialogue. Last year they signed a reciprocal access

yesterday, as the two US allies increase cooperation to counter Beijing. The export plan involves six Abukuma-class destroyer escorts in service by the Japan Maritime Self Defence Force for more than three decades, the Japanese daily said, citing unnamed government sources. Defence ministers Gen Nakatani

A Japanese Defence Ministry spokesperson declined to comment on the report. A Philippine military spokesperson and China’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Tokyo and Manila say they face challenges from Beijing’s increasingly assertive moves in

agreement, the first such for Japan in Asia, allowing deployment of forces on each other’s soil. To clear military equipment export restrictions for the destroyers under Japan’s pacifist mandates, Tokyo will treat the installation of equipment and communication