Chinese journo who promoted #MeToo gets jail term
Beijing, June 14: Supporters say a Chinese journalist who promoted women’s rights as part of the country’s nascent #MeToo movement has been sentenced to five years in prison on charges of incitement to subvert state authority, almost three years after she and an activist were detained. The verdict provided to The Associated Press stated that Huang Xueqin would also face a fine of 100,000 yuan (USD 14,000), underscoring the ruling Communist Party’s intolerance of any activism outside its control in a system whose upper echelons are dominated by men. China’s #MeToo movement flourished briefly before being snuffed out by the government. China often silences activists by holding them incommunicado for a long time and then sentencing them to prison. Huang’s release date was listed as September 18, 2026, accounting for her earlier detention. Co-defendant Wang Jianbing was sentenced to three years and six months on the same charge. Wang is more known for his labour rights activity but also helped women report sexual harassment. (AP)
SL to send parl team to discuss mercenaries in Russia
Colombo, June 14: A Sri Lankan parliamentary delegation will visit Russia for a two-day visit from June 26 to discuss the repatriation of mercenaries hired from the island nation to serve in the Russia-Ukraine war, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said on Friday. The team, comprising Sabry’s deputy Tharaka Balasuriya and two other opposition parliamentarians, will discuss the return of mercenaries back to the country. Sabry said the visit by the parliamentary delegation from June 26 to 27 follows his talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the BRICS foreign minister’s meeting in Russia this week. Sri Lanka has so far arrested eight suspects in the human smuggling operation who sent retired military personnel to serve on the war front in Russia and Ukraine. (PTI)
Putin ratifies plan to jointly build lunar base with China
Beijing, June 14: Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved a plan to jointly build the International Lunar Research Station with China, an ambitious space project which was announced previously by the two close neighbours. The document connected with the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) was published on a Russian official legal information portal on Wednesday, Russia’s state-run Sputnik news agency reported. The ILRS will consist of sections on the lunar surface, sections in lunar orbit and sections on Earth, and it will be built in two phases, Wu Weiren, chief designer of China’s lunar exploration programme said in April this year. According to Wu, the first phase of the ILRS construction project will see a basic station built by 2035 in the lunar south pole region. The second phase will see the expansion of the station, set for completion by 2045, the official Xinhua news agency quoted Wu as saying. (PTI)