so having someone who sees for themselves what it’s like in the country is very different as it brings a whole new perspective to what is said.

#China #XiJinping #Surveillance

On a more positive note, the article is written by someone who is based in Beijing, the journalist is a China correspondent and she « writes about how the country’s global rise and ambitions are shaping the daily lives of its people »,

Moreover, there’s no testimony from affected people in the affected population, omitting perspectives from Chinese citizens, which can result in bias about the impact of surveillance on daily life.

But what’s lacking ? The article is putting a lot of emphasis on technology but greatly overlook the importance of human rights as well as privacy concerns for the affected individuals.

The article says yes, it does and this video from the BBC correlates what was said in the article from The New York Times, which explains how citizens serve the interests of the party by reporting almost everything that they deem suspicious.

And in august 2023 the country reportedly had over 700 million surveillance cameras or one lens for every two citizens. But does the Chinese government really track all of it’s citizens ?

China's surveillance ecosystem and the global spread of its tools For the Chinese government, investment in surveillance technologies advances both its ambitions of becoming a global technology leader as well as its means of domestic social control. This paper exami...

And it is indeed true, « the Chinese government has been reported to monitors its citizens through internet surveillance, camera surveillance, and through other digital technologies » (www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-res...)

China is depicted as very controlling and intrusive in all aspects of the citizen’s lives, as if Xi Jinping was the « Big Brother » and the citizens were diligent spies for the government.

Xi Jinping’s Recipe for Total Control: An Army of Eyes and Ears (Published 2024)

I choose this article from The New York Times (www.nytimes.com/2024/05/25/w...), which talks about how Xi Jinping’s government is using regular citizens as their eyes and ears to serve the party’s goals, as stated by the title « Xi Jinping’s Recipe for Total Control: An Army of Eyes and Ears ».

… in which security guards and manual workers are able to raise objections to such mistreatment rather than feel trapped by economic pressures to stay in abusive relationships »; which perfectly describes the vicious cycle where victims of 갑질 are trapped in.

#Korea #갑질 #Suicide

A relevant point from this article could be this sentence : « Laws and regulations require greater public consciousness and awareness. The government and apartments should create working environments …

… but at the same times it doesn’t go too deep on the matter as it is only a surface-level analysis of this issue as it doesn’t interrogate the causes or systemic enablers of this abuse of power, which is incredibly deep rooted and more common than we think in Korean society.

The article also highlight the failures of the Korean society and in corporate field which allowed the abuse to occur. It is a critique to the hierarchical power structures …

It is a serious issue right now as people with authority might abuse of their power but people below them can’t do much, at the risk of loosing their job of facing severe repression or even bullying, sometimes leading to suicide (as the example used in the article).

What’s « gapjil » (갑질)? Basically, it « describes situations where someone with a higher status or perceived advantage exploits their position to impose their will on those below them ».

South Korea: death and gapjil - The Korea Times Jian Seo and David TizzardBy Jian Seo and David TizzardIf you spend enough time in South Korea, it soon becomes apparent that a hierarchy permeates through much of society. People are ranked according...

I chose this article from the Korea Times (www.koreatimes.co.kr/opinion/2020...) which talks about death and « gapjil » in Korea.

which is often criticised by foreign (and most of the time western) countries and international human rights organisations, but without any real consequences or sanction.

#China #FalunGong #HumanRights

… as the main goal of the CCP is first and foremost to maintain unity and control over the whole country, even if it means overstepping human rights boundaries;

In summary, this article focus on the torture inflicted by the CCP to the Falun Gong, shedding light to the matter of how differently human rights are regarded in China. It seems humans rights in China does not hold as much importance as in some other countries …

But also on a more positive note, things are slowly changing and improving as « hundreds of lawyers defend Falun Gong practitioners, argue their innocence in court, and challenge the legality of their persecution ».

… shedding light on what happened to them (the forced labor, torture …) as stated in the article « even among those who were forced to renounce their faith under torture, over 500,000 have posted statements online declaring such comments “null and void.” ».

But despite the CCP’s efforts to eradicate Falun Gong, tens of millions of people still practice it.

What strikes me the most in this article is how despite suffering from the CCP’s persecution, some Falun Gong survivors denied the claims of other Falun Gong members …

Well the CCP is being accused forcing Falun Gong practitioners (a religious minority in China) to renounce their most deeply held beliefs through the means of torture (according to Amnesty International) and so on since 1999.

… which I think is a good opening line and very relevant of what the article is going to talk about. But what’s happening ?

The article talks about how « the Chinese Communist Party turned the lives of tens of millions of Chinese people upside down, banning their peaceful spiritual practice and unleashing a campaign of persecution that has spawned horrific human rights atrocities and untold deaths » …

After 17 Years of Persecution, Falun Gong Survives There are even signs that Chinese officials may be on the defensive.

This article from The Diplomat (thediplomat.com/2016/07/afte...) talks about how the Falun Gong survived despite the CCP’s persecution and efforts to destroy it.

We also noted that companies might me reluctant to opt for a greener option when they have the chance to, as it could mean losing money over it.

#ClimateChange #Korea #Environment

To conclude, the major issues right now are related to air pollution, the rise of temperatures (leading to more heatwaves with increased intensity as well as wildfires), flooding and nuclear waste.

And taking initiatives to implement greener alternatives or reduces their emission may lead to a weaker economy and a loss of income, which is why companies may choose profit over climate change.

A greener alternative ? As Belen stated, what’s making it difficult for Korea to take initiatives towards greener options to tackle waste and air pollution could be because corporations in Korea hold a huge power when it come to that.