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Michael Kovrig, former Canadian diplomat, reportedly arrested in China
A former Canadian diplomat has reportedly been arrested in China. The International Crisis Group said Tuesday it's aware of reports that its North East Asia senior adviser Michael Kovrig has been detained.
The Brussels-based non-governmental organization said in a statement it's doing everything possible to obtain additional information about Kovrig's whereabouts and that it will work to ensure his prompt release.
The Globe and Mail in Toronto and the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported the arrest, citing unnamed sources.
Reports of Kovrig's detention come after China warned Canada of consequences for its recent arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou at Vancouver's airport. It's unclear if there's any link between the cases.
Some Chinese companies ban iPhones, require Huawei after CFO's arrest: report
Some Chinese companies are banning iPhones and requiring that their employees use Huawei products following the arrest of Huawei's chief financial officer, according to a new Yahoo News report. Meng Wanzhou, the CFO of Chinese telecom giant Huawei, was arrested by Canadian authorities last Saturday at the request of the U.S. after allegedly violating trade sanctions against Iran. Chinese officials have strongly protested Meng's detention.
Now, Chinese companies are promoting Huawei and barring Apple, an American company. Menpad, an LCD display maker and Huawei supplier, on Monday said it will punish employees who buy iPhones with a fine equivalent to the American smartphone's market price, the South China Morning Post reported. It also vowed that the company will no longer buy American products, including office supplies and computers, and will offer a 15 percent subsidy for employees who are buying Huawei phones, according to the Post.
Japan's top three telcos to exclude Huawei, ZTE network equipment: Kyodo
Japan's big three telecom operators plan not to use current equipment and upcoming fifth-generation (5G) gear from China's Huawei Technologies Co Ltd and ZTE Corp, Kyodo News reported on Monday.
The news, for which Kyodo did not cite sources, comes at a time of heightened scrutiny of Chinese tech firms by Washington and some prominent allies over ties to the Chinese government, driven by concerns they could be used by Beijing for spying. Last week sources told Reuters that Japan planned to ban government purchases of equipment from Huawei and ZTE to ensure strength in its defences against intelligence leaks and cyber attacks.
See also: How Meng Wanzhou's Arrest Might Backfire
Previously: Canada Arrests Huawei's Global Chief Financial Officer in Vancouver
Arrest of Huawei Executive Causing Discontent Among Chinese Elites
Related: New Law Bans U.S. Government from Buying Equipment from Chinese Telecom Giants ZTE and Huawei
Australia Bans China's Huawei (and maybe ZTE) from 5G Mobile Network Project
Washington Asks Allies to Drop Huawei
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Azuma Hazuki on Wednesday December 12 2018, @03:19AM (11 children)
Herp-a-derr. This has been a long time coming, and I think it needs to shake itself out, but the US is in a really bad position here...
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @04:16AM (10 children)
We might not have been fighting a trade war, but that doesn't mean there wasn't a trade war. We were just losing.
If we don't try, then we continue to lose. Trump might not win, but at least he is trying, which gives him a chance. There is no chance if you refuse to fight.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @05:16AM (5 children)
The alternative is, of course, Capitalism, whereby people are not forced to pay for services they don't want (such as bombing countries, rebuilding those countries poorly, and throwing people into cages for growing plants in their own homes).
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @06:23PM
and forced buying of bs products like insurance to the point where now various industries are dominated by these leaches.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @06:31PM (3 children)
The alternative is not capitalism. The alternatives are anarchism and socialism.
If Marx and Proudhon can be reconciled, it might be a system worth pursuing. However, it will most certainly not be capitalism. Capitalist property relations are completely unnatural. Socialist and mutualist property relations are more promising.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @09:02PM (2 children)
Capitalism is voluntary interaction.
If you want socialism, you must built it atop capitalism; you must constrain it to voluntary interaction. Otherwise, it will devolve into dysfunctional bread lines and "re-education" gulags.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @11:05PM (1 child)
Capitalism is NOT voluntary interaction, that is a pipe dream subverted by corporate control.
Socialism != Communism
Capitalism and Socialism is the correct way forward, it preserves freedom while providing for society where needed. We do need to start enforcing anti-monopoly legislation, but this might require cooperation between governments.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 13 2018, @02:38AM
You expect a violently imposed monopoly ("government") to save us from a voluntarily grown monopoly (a "corporation"). That's absurd.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by realDonaldTrump on Wednesday December 12 2018, @06:39AM
We were in a Trade War with China for many years. But we had VERY WEAK leaders. Who wouldn't fight for America. Who wouldn't even call it a War. They made so many UNFAIR Treaties. The Postal Treaty, the TPP, so many. China was absolutely killing us on trade. 2017, we lost $375 billion from our Coffers to the Trade Deficit -- incredible!! And China was getting ready to do an even bigger number on us, they call it Made in China 2025. Where so much of the cyber, the modern digital, was going to come from their Factories. They wanted it to be where, you go to buy Cell Phone and the only only ones would be Chinese. Or you buy Computer -- Chinese again. Something our Intel community was very worried about. They told me, that one's going to be a big big problem. Because our Spies use Cell Phone, they use Computer, they use so much Digital. And China could wiretapp them very easily. I said, NO WAY! And no more! I did Tariffs. To put the big squeeze on them. And it worked so fabulously. Like you wouldn't believe. And President Xi of China came to me in the Argentine. At the G-20. Saying, "President Donald, please, no more Tariff!" So we're pausing the Trade War. We could win very easily, we're doing Pause. Otherwise known as Peace. It's not Peace. But, it's much better than what we had. It's something nobody expected. And, nobody else could do. I did it. I'm very honered to be the only guy that could do it. Because I have the very special temperament. Also known as Presidential. You're welcome!!
(Score: 4, Insightful) by bob_super on Wednesday December 12 2018, @06:14PM (2 children)
China was winning because Capitalism doesn't care about slave labor or unpleasant regimes.
The Chinese could build stuff, and build stuff cheap. Using the Chinese also meant access to the giant Chinese market.
All that meant Profits.
Profit is king. US executives won the economic war for China.
China just provided infrastructure, loose regulations, and cheap labor. US/Euro companies rushed in, because that's what Capitalism told them to do.
You want to win that war ? Make it illegal to transfer manufacturing to a cheaper foreign country, and jail the executives who betray their country for a few quarters of profit.
"forced technology transfers" is absolute bullshit. It's "tell me your secrets if you want my market". No gun-to-the-head ultimatum, just an offer greed short-sighted people can't seem to refuse.
China is also spying. But the bulk of what they got, they didn't have to fight for, it was offered to them. And the traitors who delivered the goods got paid handsomely.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @06:41PM
"forced technology transfers" is absolute bullshit. It's "tell me your secrets if you want my market". No gun-to-the-head ultimatum, just an offer greed short-sighted people can't seem to refuse."
i hate to agree with you, but i've been saying this since i heard this whiny line from brainwashed "americans" (i didn't know the propaganda networks had been talking about it for a while).
how can thinking person blame the chinese? at least their government is trying to work in their country's interest. they simply said, "you can have access to our cheap workers but you have to give us the ability to produce this shit ourselves in the future". those bastards! uhh, that should be a demand of every worker and consumer, much less a benevolent dictatorship or whatever the hell they have over there. as for americans, there's nothing fucking patriotic about being a stupid, lazy slave who funds the destruction of humanity by buying closed source, patent encumbered shit.
i can barely sleep at nights b/c i'm so busy crying for the suited whores who took all the jobs overseas...and i'm a libertarian, free market capitalist as far as i can tell with my largely non-existent economics education. basically, i'm pro individual freedom. if you want to self organize as a commune, or socialist coop, or a corp that's your business, but don't use government to try and tell me what to do. i reserve the 2A for that. Either way, these crony capitalist whores make me sick. if you're a free market capitalist who is not so worried about nations then just be honest and say so. don't whine about how it's not your fault because the mean ol' chinese made you be a decent human being for a change. if you gave a shit about the country you could have spent the money and automated here. at least we'd have an advanced economy to show for our callous disregard for the nation's workers.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12 2018, @09:08PM
Contrapositively:
slavery => (individual <= collective)