国泰航空又出事了。这家公司过去几年出了不少事情。说到国泰航空，很多人可能并不真正了解。很多人可能以为这是一家中国公司，其实并不是如此。国泰航空背后三大股东，分别是太古集团、中国航空、卡塔尔航空，而真正占据控股地位就是太古集团了。
太古集团可是一家非常庞大的财团，业务种类非常繁多，涉及地产、航运、航空、饮料、工程等等。很多人可能不知道，在中国瓶装的可口可乐业务就是属于太古集团的。另外很多人喝咖啡会下的方糖也是太古生产的。在中国很多知名的地产项目也是太古集团开发的，比如说成都著名的远洋太古里，还有广州著名的太古汇。
[xyz-ihs snippet=”In-article-ads”]太古集团背后则是一个隐形豪门，那就是英国的施怀雅家族了，这个家族已经富过了六代人，可是如今你在全球任何一个财富榜上都看不到他们的名字。可是他们家族光是地产收租的收入每年就超过了100亿。整个家族至少资产得数千亿，甚至是更多。可是财富榜却始终无法追踪他们的财富。
100多年之前，中国还是处于清朝的时候，施怀雅家族就到中国经商了。那个时候英国是日不落帝国，很多英国人也随着英国的舰队在全球各地去做生意。事实上在200多年之前，施怀雅家族在英国的利物浦成立了公司，并且通过贸易生意积累家族的财富。
到了清朝末年的时候，施怀雅家族开始来到了远东发展，他们把中国的茶叶、陶瓷、丝绸等商品卖回到欧洲，赚取了巨额的利润。1866年，施怀雅家族收购了布鲁尔洋行，并且改名为太古洋行。
到了19世纪后期的时候，太古洋行控制的航运生意，已经成功控制了中国长江领域的上下游了。当时可以跟太古洋行对抗的只有中国本土的轮船招商局了。之后施怀雅家族又陆续进入了航空、地产、工程、饮料等等领域，获得了巨大的成功。
他们也把总部搬到了香港，并且在香港扎根发展。50年代之后，太古洋行已经跟怡和洋行等齐名，成为了香港有名的四大洋行。
利用香港人口暴涨的时候，太古也是积极投入房地产生意，在五六十年代赚得是盆满钵满。在房地产获得成功之后，他们又积极投资商业地产，开发了一系列优秀的商业物业，同时他们在80年代之后，把投资触角再次涉及内地。
[xyz-ihs snippet=”GoogleADresponsive”]如今太古集团年营收超过了800亿，利润超过了300亿，依然是全球最大的财报之一。在太古集团的支持下，施怀雅家族也是成功富过了六代人。如今太古集团依然是施怀雅家族成员控制的。光是在地产板块，他们一年的租金就在120亿左右。
香港曾经大名鼎鼎的四大洋行，会德丰跟和记黄埔都被华资给收购了。会德丰在1985年被包玉刚给收购了。几年之前，包玉刚的女婿吴光正也把会德丰跟私有化了。和记黄埔则是在1978年被李嘉诚给收购了，成为了李嘉诚家族成功。
2015年的时候，李嘉诚把长江实业跟和记黄埔成功重组，变成了如今的长和集团跟长实集团。也就是说如今香港四大洋行的时代已经一去不返了，而且也就剩下怡和跟太古这两家公司了。
可是不得不说怡和跟太古依然是实力非常强大，每年的利润都是数百亿级别的。在中国本土也找不到几家可以跟他们对抗的私人企业了。
其实施怀雅家族这样的豪门才是真正的豪门，他们不会出现在财富榜上，但是他们却是真正的有钱，而从200多年前开始到现在，已经富了六代人了，在中国很难找不到这样的家族。
国泰航空的麻烦，不止一个
国泰航空这次惹上了大麻烦。5月22日有网友实名举报国泰航空空乘歧视非英语乘客，在其放出的一段视频中，有疑似为空乘人员的声音用英文说“如果你不会说毛毯的英文，那你就没办法拥有毛毯（If you cannot speak blanket, you cannot have it）”，周遭还传来疑似其他空乘的笑声。
在这之后，国泰航空从22日晚到24日，连发三条道歉声明，从一开始表示“将严肃调查处理”，到“暂停有关人员飞行任务”，再到“对涉事空中服务员予以解聘”，期间，国泰航空行政总裁林绍波公开致歉，全程用普通话表示将作全面检讨，但也难消众怒。
[xyz-ihs snippet=”In-article-ads”]一条毛毯、三位空乘、无数批评，就这样国泰航空再次深陷舆论漩涡。
其实过去几年，国泰航空可以说是热搜上的常客。一位知名电视主持人曾公开喊话国泰航空，“真是对不起这个名字……还是善意的提醒一句吧，no zuo no die”。
除了事件本身，外界对国泰航空还有许多好奇——这到底是谁的公司？过去三年活得如何？在国内航空公司中又属于怎样的存在？
1
谁的国泰航空？
成立于1946年的中国香港，国泰航空在过去77年时间里一直以中国香港为总部。2019年以前国泰航空曾是全球第八大国际客运航空公司及第三大国际货运公司。
资产规模上，截至2022年末，国泰航空连同其附属公司共拥有222架飞机，旗下客运及货运航线前往全球38个国家和地区共计82个目的地，其中包括位于中国内地的14个目的地。
人员方面，国泰航空及其附属公司在全球有2.12万名员工，其中在香港雇有员工约1.74万人。
那么国泰航空的背后是谁？
最新数据显示，国泰航空最大股东是持股45%的太古股份，其次是通过众多公司合计间接持股29.99%的中国国航（国泰航空也持有中国国航16.26%的股权），且太古股份和中国国航为一致行动人，之后是持股9.99%的卡塔尔航空和持有6.47%优先股的香港财政司。
在持股比例最高的太古股份背后，是拥有180多年历史的英国太古集团，太古股份只是集团下属的一个投资控股公司，主要经营地产、饮料和航空三个重要业务板块。
2022年年报显示，太古股份全年收入914.77亿港元，净利润41.95亿港元，自2020年受外部环境影响大亏百亿后，正处于业绩逐步修复的阶段。
具体来看，太古地产板块拥有多个购物商场，包括香港太古广场和太古坊，是香港最大的商用物业业主和零售物业运营商之一，在内地的购物商场则遍布北京、广州、成都、上海、西安和三亚，比如大家所熟知的“三里屯太古里”“成都远洋太古里”“前滩太古里”“颐堤港”等等。
太古股份的饮料业务同样规模可观，截至2022年末，其在大中华区、美国和柬埔寨的专营区域经销可口可乐公司系列产品，受众达到7.82亿人口，经销品类包括21种碳酸饮料品牌和37种非碳酸饮料品牌。
[xyz-ihs snippet=”googleAD300x100″]2022年内太古可口可乐刚刚收购了柬埔寨及越南的可口可乐专营业务，将其瓶装业务扩展至东南亚，还重组了中国内地的不含汽饮料生产业务。
航空业务方面主要就是国泰航空及其附属公司，但近几年，受大环境等因素影响，始终是一个持续亏损的存在。
2017年以来太古股份饮料业务带来的收入逐渐成为业绩主力，2022年创收542.23亿港元，占比近六成，其次是137.88亿港元和138.28亿港元的房地产业务和航空业务，占比均在15%左右。
已有业务之外，太古公司还瞄准了私营保健服务领域，在年报中披露，“未来将继续在私营保健服务领域寻求投资机遇，特别在中国内地的主要城市群一带及东南亚。”
太古股份的这些收入，都从哪些地方赚来的呢？
按地区划分收入来源，太古股份2022年的收入中，有38%来自内地，19%来自香港，合计占比达到57%；如果剔除国泰航空和环球海洋业务，太古股份经常性盈利中则有46%来自内地，34%来自香港，合计占比达到80%。
在国泰航空2020年开始持续亏损的背景下，来自内地和香港的经常性溢利成为太古股份相当重要的业绩支撑。
截至当前，太古公司已经成为香港规模最为庞大、历史最悠久的雇主之一，在香港聘用超2.9万名员工，在内地的员工人数则超过3.5万人，全球员工接近8万人。
2
亏损三年，最难的日子刚刚过去
就像全球众多航空公司一样，过去三年对国泰航空的打击也是巨大的。
业绩趋势来看，直到2019年，国泰航空收入虽有一定波动，但整体已基本稳定在千亿港元的规模，净利润方面有一定波动，但亏损年份也相对有限。
2020年受客观环境影响，国泰航空收入大跌56.13%，直接拦腰砍半，成本却居高不下，全年亏损218.79亿港元，这之后的2021年和2022年都属于收入挣扎上涨，亏损努力收窄的“回血”阶段。
年报显示，2022年下半年国泰航空业绩已有大幅改善，在产生正向现金流的同时还有所盈利，2022年12月，其可载客量已相当于上半年的八倍，但其实还只是2020年前的三分之一；可载货量则在2022年末达到2020年前的三分之二。
事实上，内地对国泰航空近几年的业绩有越来越高的重要性。
[xyz-ihs snippet=”In-article-ads”]由内地经香港枢纽前往澳洲、英国及美国等长途航点的过境客运量（尤其是学生），成为2022年国泰航空的重要客运来源。
资金方面，国泰航空2022年的带息债务整体规模有所减少，但182.77亿港元的流动资金相比146.43亿港元的流动带息债务，也只是小幅盈余，其整体债务净额与股东权益之比依然达到0.92，意味着每一元的股东投入，都对应着0.92元的带息债务。
年内国泰航空由经营活动产生的现金流量净额为178.36亿港元，如果要覆盖588.29亿港元的借款净额，需要3.3年才能还完，而这还是在2020年重组方案实施完毕的情况下。
2020国泰航空曾进行过一系列重组，过程中向香港特别行政区政府发行了195亿港元的优先股及分离认股权证，另由香港特别行政区政府提供78亿港元的过渡性贷款，同时向当时的股东增发117亿港元股份，这才免于破产度过了难关。
虽然目前仍处于业绩亏损、资金紧张的状态，但如果相比国内其他航空公司，国泰也不是最惨的。
▲（林绍波。图源/视觉中国）
以2022年和2019年的收入比较，国泰航空已经恢复至四成有余，高于国航、东航、海航30%-40%的水平，但次于南航、华夏航空、春秋航空和吉祥航空，居于中位。
对比当前亏损金额与总收入，国泰航空2022年净利润为-63.98亿元，净利率为-14.03%，是上述多家航空公司中亏损幅比率最低的。作为对比，国航、东航、南航的亏损金额均在300亿元以上，亏损幅度则在37%至78%之间。
所幸国内各大航空公司2023年以来的运营数据都在好转，国航、南航、东航和海航的最新一季报显示亏损已较上年同期有大幅收窄，国泰航空最新4月份客运量数据也显示，4月份载客138.12万人次，单日最高人次5.32万人，为2020年以来新高。
[xyz-ihs snippet=”All24x7″]只可惜业绩刚刚有明显好转，就发生了如此不愉快的事情。
3
业绩和管理，都需要“重生”
事实上这已经不是国泰航空首次出现类似事件，2019年一位知名电视主持人就曾公开喊话国泰航空，“听说有些人一听到普通话就假装听不懂……no zuo no die”。
但多年过去国泰航空在这方面的管理显然并未有明显改善。
此次事件还有一个细节，即发布视频的博主表示，自己此次搭乘从成都飞往香港的国泰航空CX987航班，使用的机票其实是大湾区赠票。与此对应的，是2023年初香港机场管理局推出的活动，计划派发50万张机票给来自各地的旅客，其中就包括从成都飞往香港的航班。
目前经过多方督促整改，有网友表示自己乘坐24日国泰的航班时，乘务员已经在挨个问机上旅客要不要毛毯，播报则用的是英语、粤语和普通话。
过去几年，国泰航空可以说是热搜上的常客，且多与负面信息相关。
2020年10月，在因管理不善而在全球最佳航空公司排名中跌出三甲后，国泰航空宣布了重组计划，裁员规模达到8500个，占集团总人数的24%，这直接将香港失业率推升0.1个百分点。
在2022年年报开头的主席致函中，国泰航空主席贺以礼表示，“我们一直透过加强香港与内地，及世界各地的联系推动香港经济发展，角色举足轻重。”
在经济逐步恢复、旅客量快速上涨的当下，国泰航空显然正处于能够快速改善业绩的关键阶段，但如果从更长期的视角来看，如何在更大范围上进行“自我修复”，也是国泰航空需要面对的问题。
来源: 市界/担扑
翻译：
继续推进“一国两制”实践行稳致远——论学习贯彻习近平主席在庆祝澳门回归祖国25周年大会重要讲话
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Read more广东省茂名市人民检察院原检察长王天鸿被查
中新网广州12月22日电 (记者 程景伟)据广东省纪委监委“南粤清风网”22日通报，广东省茂名市人民检察院原党组书记、检察长王天鸿涉嫌严重违纪违法，目前正接受广东省纪委监委纪律审查和监察调查。(完)
Read more第一观察｜特别的叮嘱
“中央决定开发横琴，目的就是促进澳门经济适度多元发展、便利澳门居民生活就业。这个定位要把握好，不能发展一些与这个定位不一致的产业项目。”
Read more中共中央港澳工作办公室 国务院港澳事务办公室：领航具有澳门特色的“一国两制”实践行稳致远
领航具有澳门特色的“一国两制”实践行稳致远
Read more时政新闻眼丨习近平寄语澳门：实现更好发展 作出更大贡献
12月20日，澳门，这片南海潮涌的热土，迎来了回归祖国25周年的喜庆日子。
Read more外交部发言人就美国宣布向中国台湾地区提供军援军售答记者问
中新网12月22日电 据外交部网站消息，外交部发言人就美国宣布向中国台湾地区提供军援军售答记者问时表示，中方将采取一切必要措施，坚定捍卫国家主权、安全和领土完整。
Read more“我一直惦念着这里的发展和全体居民的福祉”——习近平主席对澳门的深情牵挂
“始终坚持以人民为中心，解决好广大居民最关心最迫切最现实的问题，创造更多更好的发展机会，营造更加公平的社会环境，不断实现居民对美好生活的向往。”
Read more关于2023年度中央预算执行和其他财政收支审计查出问题整改情况报告的答记者问
2024年12月22日，受国务院委托，审计署审计长侯凯向十四届全国人大常委会第十三次会议作了《国务院关于2023年度中央预算执行和其他财政收支审计查出问题整改情况的报告》(以下简称《审计整改报告》)。为进一步了解2023年度审计整改有关情况，记者采访了审计署政策研究室相关负责同志。
Read more审计署发布2023年度审计整改报告 共整改问题金额5380多亿元
审计署发布2023年度审计整改报告 共整改问题金额5380多亿元
Read more“80后”地级市政府“一把手”再添新例：全国至少已有6人
“80后”地级市政府“一把手”再添新例。
Read more浙江明确新一年目标打法 列出九大重点任务
中新网杭州12月22日电(记者 王逸飞)12月21日，浙江省委十五届六次全体会议暨省委经济工作会议在杭州举行，明确浙江新一年经济社会发展的目标、打法。聚焦“经济大省要挑大梁”，以及高质量发展的首要任务，该省共列出九方面重点任务。
Read more我国软件开发者数量突破940万！开源参与者增速全球最快
2024开放原子开发者大会20到21日在武汉举办。工业和信息化部负责人透露，我国软件开发者数量突破940万。
Read more守护国家安全 这些快递小哥立功了
给这些快递小哥点个赞
Read more人类首份月背古磁场信息来了！月球“土特产”透露哪些秘密？
地球有磁场，但你知道，月球曾经也有磁场吗？此前研究认为，31亿年前，月球磁场强度曾急剧下降，之后一直很弱。昨天(20日)，国际学术期刊《自然》杂志发表了一项来自我国科学家对嫦娥六号取回样品的研究结果，这个研究结果给出了不一样的答案。
Read more内地民众对香港印象调研报告出炉：因多元文化爱上香港
中新社北京12月21日电 (记者 徐雪莹)香港特别行政区政府驻北京办事处21日公布的一则调研报告显示，“文化多元，东西交融”已成为多数内地受访者爱上香港的理由。
Read more说“闻”解字丨从“澳”字，读懂澳门发展的密码
“澳”，形声字，始见于篆文，字形从水，表示海边弯曲可以停船的地方。澳门之名，相传就因半岛的两个湾口如两扇门而来。
Read more中央广播电视总台2024年度乡村振兴十大新闻
中央广播电视总台今天(21日)发布2024年度乡村振兴十大新闻。
Read more国防部：美发布报告曲解中国国防政策 中方坚决反对
中新社北京12月21日电 中国国防部新闻发言人张晓刚21日就美方发布2024年《中国军事与安全发展报告》发表谈话。
Read more看图学习·盛世莲开丨把琴澳一体化提升到更高水平 总书记强调“三个联通”
横琴地处广东珠海南端，与澳门一水之隔，是促进澳门经济适度多元发展的重要平台。12月19日，习近平总书记来到横琴粤澳深度合作区考察，同居住在这里的市民代表、青年创业者代表以及参与合作区规划、建设、管理、服务等各方面代表亲切交流。总书记对合作区各项工作取得的进展给予肯定，勉励大家牢记开发横琴的初心，在新的起点上，锐意改革、聚力攻坚，携手开创合作区建设新局面。一起来学习！
Read more澳门特色“一国两制”实践取得巨大成功
澳门特色“一国两制”实践取得巨大成功
Read more习近平澳门之行，这些话语重心长
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Bros’s Matt Goss on love and loss; ‘my father, the serial killer’; Marina Hyde on Prince Andrew and the spy; and Philippa Perry on finding purpose at 80 – podcast
The Duke of York is a royal problem, says Marina Hyde: it’s time they owned it. Matt Goss discusses mega-fame, political correctness and loneliness with Simon Hattenstone. After April Balascio’s foster brother was killed, she started piecing together evidence that revealed her father was a serial killer. And Philippa advises an 80-year-old reader how to face the existential void that is overwhelming them.
Continue reading...Read moreRos Atkins On... Four reasons why the relationship between the UK and China is strained
The BBC's Analysis Editor Ros Atkins looks at how relations between the UK and China became so strained.
Read moreXi Jinping urges Macau to diversify economy away from casinos
Chinese president calls for city to ‘focus on cultivating new industries’ as he attends inauguration of new leader
China’s president, Xi Jinping, has urged the gambling hub of Macau to diversify away from casinos, as he addressed the Chinese territory at the inauguration of its new leader.
Xi was in Macau to mark the 25th anniversary of its return from Portuguese to Chinese rule on 20 December 1999. In the quarter-century since then, Macau has been run as a special administrative region of China, a semi-autonomous territory with a similar legal status to Hong Kong, but it has traditionally been much more pliant to Beijing’s rule than the former British territory. More than half of its 700,000 population have immigrated from China in recent decades.
Continue reading...Read moreThe US supreme court’s TikTok case will put free expression on the line | Trevor Timm
Let’s hope the court does the right thing, and strikes down this potential censorship before it spins out of control
The US supreme court surprisingly decided, this week, to hear TikTok’s emergency appeal to its imminent ban in the United States. It may be the most important case at the intersection of the first amendment and national security in decades. Whether or not you see China as a nefarious threat, all Americans who care about free expression should worry about the precedent this case could set – and should want the TikTok ban overturned.
After a fifth circuit court of appeals ruling earlier this month, TikTok’s owner, ByteDance, has until 19 January to either sell the popular video-sharing app or face a nationwide ban. The decision stems from Congress passing a law last year that essentially proclaims that if the government says a foreign-owned platform threatens national security, then it can force its sale or censor it.
Trevor Timm is executive director of the Freedom of the Press Foundation
Continue reading...Read moreNigel Farage and other MPs are mistaken over parliamentary privilege | Letter
Stephen Sedley writes in response to MPs threatening to name Yang Tengbo in parliament last week before the high court identified him
Contrary to what Nigel Farage and many other MPs and peers appear to believe (MPs consider naming Chinese ‘spy’ linked to Prince Andrew, 15 December), there is no parliamentary privilege in our constitutional law that allows them to defy court orders or decisions if they think it right to do so.
Insofar as we have a written constitution, the Bill of Rights 1689 forbids the courts to adjudicate on anything said or done in parliament. This is the immunity incorrectly referred to as parliamentary privilege. Parliament has for centuries reciprocated by respecting court decisions and orders, however strongly members object to them.
Continue reading...Read moreMacau: a city of contrasts – in pictures
Macau is marking the 25th anniversary of its handover to China. It was administered by the Portuguese until 20 December 1999 and was the last outpost under European rule in Asia. Photographer Eduardo Leal documents a city that has gone through enormous development
Continue reading...Read moreWill Japan’s close ties with US survive the caprice and quirks of Donald Trump?
Japan’s complex defence alliances built up over years as protection against China could be put at risk in a Trump-launched trade war
Arguably, no country in Asia has better reason to be in a state of anxiety over the return of Donald Trump to the White House than Japan, since the US has been the linchpin of Japanese foreign and security policy since the second world war.
Back in 2017, well before he became prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba described Trump’s method as one of “placing his counterpart in a state of anxiety and tension, creating psychological instability and then initiating a deal”.
Continue reading...Read moreFiji defence minister welcomes US security deal and criticises China missile test
Pio Tikoduadua tells the Guardian the Pacific is ‘not a space for missile testing’ after China’s launch earlier this year raised concern in the region
Fiji’s defence minister has stressed the need for stability in the Pacific and welcomed moves to strengthen security ties with the US, while adding to criticism over China’s recent missile test for posing a threat to peace in the region.
Fiji, a country of about 1 million people strategically located in the Pacific, maintains ties and receives support from Washington and Beijing amid a wider struggle for influence by the two powers in the region.
Continue reading...Read moreUnited Front: China's 'magic weapon' caught in a spy controversy
The UFWD is a decades-old - and increasingly controversial - arm of China's Communist Party. What does it do?
Read moreUS Senate passes defense bill that raises troop pay and strips trans care for kids of military
Bill authorizes pay raises, strips coverage of trans medical treatments for children and aims to counter China’s power
The Senate passed a defense bill on Wednesday that authorizes significant pay raises for junior enlisted service members, aims to counter China’s growing power and boosts overall military spending to $895bn while also stripping coverage of transgender medical treatments for children of military members.
The annual defense authorization bill usually gains strong bipartisan support and has not failed to pass Congress in nearly six decades, but the Pentagon policy measure in recent years has become a battleground for cultural issues. Republicans this year sought to tack on to the legislation priorities for social conservatives, contributing to a months-long negotiation over the bill and a falloff in support from Democrats.
Continue reading...Read moreNew York man pleads guilty to running Chinese police station in Manhattan
Chen Jinping pleads guilty to conspiring to act as an agent of China’s government and faces up to five years in prison
A New York man has pleaded guilty to running an undeclared police station for the Chinese government in lower Manhattan, more than a year after the US justice department unveiled efforts aimed at disrupting Beijing’s efforts to locate and suppress Chinese American pro-democracy activists.
Chen Jinping, 60, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to conspiring to act as an agent of the government of the People’s Republic of China, in connection with opening and operating an overseas police station for the PRC’s ministry of public security, or MPS.
Continue reading...Read moreSupreme court agrees to hear TikTok challenge to law ending its US operations
Court will hear two hours of oral arguments on 10 January and consider the social media app’s challenge to the law
The US supreme court said on Wednesday that it would hear TikTok’s challenge to a law that could make the company’s popular video app disappear from the US.
In its order on Wednesday, the supreme court said it would set aside two hours for oral arguments on 10 January to consider TikTok’s lawsuit against the justice department and the attorney general, Merrick Garland.
Continue reading...Read morePrince Andrew to miss royal family’s traditional pre-Christmas lunch
Duke of York said to have pulled out of Buckingham Palace event after controversy over links to Chinese ‘spy’
The Duke of York will not attend the royal family’s traditional pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Thursday amid controversy over his links with an alleged Chinese spy.
Prince Andrew is said to have decided to pull out of the occasion after speaking to his ex-wife and close friend, Sarah, Duchess of York. He had already withdrawn from joining senior royals at Sandringham for the festive period.
Continue reading...Read moreThe prince and the spy – podcast
Prince Andrew is in trouble again, this time for meeting a businessman who has denied spying for China.
In parliament, it has sparked fears about how far the British establishment has been infiltrated by spies. In Beijing, there has been outrage. For Prince Andrew, it has led to him missing Christmas dinner at Sandringham with the rest of the royal family.
It is fair to say the accusation that the Chinese businessman Yang Tengbo has been spying for China has caused a serious stir. Dan Sabbagh and David Pegg report
Read more:
Continue reading...Read moreFleeing Xi’s China: following the trail of migrants trying to reach Australia through Indonesia
A new and high-stakes escape route has been revealed, through the Indonesian archipelago to a smuggler’s boat
Paul, an Indonesian fisherman, says he was working as a rideshare driver in the dusty streets of Kupang in West Timor when he came across half a dozen Chinese men on the side of the road. They were wet up to their waist, carrying a backpack each, and spoke no Indonesian.
“They had walked from the beach, from the mangrove forest to the main road. They said they had difficulty with their boat engine,” Paul recalls. They asked for directions to a nearby hotel … and went on their way. Paul, a former people smuggler from Rote Island, called the police. “I used to bring people like this.”
Continue reading...Read moreChinese AI chip firms blacklisted over weapons concerns gained access to UK technology
Imagination Technologies had licences with two Chinese firms – but said it had not ‘implemented transactions’ that would enable the use of technology for military purposes
Chinese engineers developing chips for artificial intelligence that can be used in “advanced weapons systems” have gained access to cutting-edge UK technology, the Guardian can reveal.
Described by analysts as “China’s premier AI chip designers”, Moore Threads and Biren Technology are subject to US export restrictions over their development of chips that “can be used to provide artificial intelligence capabilities to further development of weapons of mass destruction, advanced weapons systems and hi-tech surveillance applications that create national security concerns”.
Continue reading...Read moreWhat does the China 'spy' row show? That Starmer can't just muddle through on foreign policy | Rafael Behr
The PM’s attitude to China exposes the void where there should be a strategic concept of Britain’s place in the world
When Keir Starmer met Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Rio last month he declared that Britain should build a “pragmatic and serious relationship” with China, which would be a meaningful ambition if anyone was calling for the opposite. Who stands for impractical and unserious dealings with Beijing? Prince Andrew, maybe.
The hapless royal scandal-magnet has no influence over policy, but he has enough elite contacts and cupidity to have made him worth cultivating by a Chinese businessman who is now banned from the UK on grounds of espionage. Yang Tengbo denies spying. He says he is the casualty of “sour” anti-China sentiment.
Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnist
Continue reading...Read morePrince Andrew’s ‘opaque’ finances provoke calls for register of royal interests
Claims of refused FOI requests into Duke of York’s business dealings come as controversy over alleged Chinese spy continues
Getting information from government departments about the Duke of York’s past business dealings is like playing “whack-a-mole”, it was claimed, as fallout over the alleged Chinese “spy” controversy continues, with China saying it was an attempt to “smear” it.
Calling for a register of royal interests, similar to that for MPs, and a full inquiry by the public accounts committee into royal finances, researchers trying to investigate Prince Andrew’s “opaque” finances claim their freedom of information (FoI) requests are regularly refused, making their work “impossible”.
Continue reading...Read moreThe prince and the ‘spy’ – podcast
Prince Andrew is in trouble again, this time for meeting a businessman who has denied spying for China. Dan Sabbagh and David Pegg report
In parliament, it has sparked fears about how far the British establishment has been infiltrated by spies. In Beijing, there has been outrage. For Prince Andrew, it has led to him missing Christmas dinner at Sandringham with the rest of the royal family. It is fair to say the accusation that the Chinese businessman Yang Tengbo has been spying for China has caused a serious stir.
While Dan Sabbagh tells Michael Safi what we know about the extent of Chinese spying in the UK and how it works, David Pegg examines how the scandal unfolded and caused Tengbo’s meetings with everyone from Prince Andrew to Theresa May to be put under scrutiny – and why, for the man at the centre of the story, it is all an unfair smear on someone who loves the UK and only wants to build better business relations between the UK and China.
Continue reading...Read moreLabour’s review of UK-China relations on hold until after chancellor visits Beijing
Exclusive: Despite calls for more scrutiny in light of Prince Andrew spy allegations, Starmer’s instinct is not to do anything to hamper growth
A review of UK-China relations has been delayed until after the chancellor makes her first trip to Beijing next month, the Guardian has learned, amid a row over an alleged spy who befriended Prince Andrew.
Rachel Reeves will travel to China in early January as part of a charm offensive by the Labour government. The trip will be focused on financial services, and Tulip Siddiq, the City minister, is expected to travel with the chancellor.
Continue reading...Read moreNigel Farage and Nick Candy say they met Musk at Mar-a-Lago to discuss doing ‘great things together’ – as it happened
Farage and Reform UK treasurer met Musk at Donald Trump’s Florida home, party says
Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, has announced that the scope of the compensation programme for victims of the Post Office scandal will be extended to cover earlier potential victims.
The government already has four schemes in place offering compensation to post officer operators who suffered because faulty Horizon IT software led to them being wrongly blamed for missing money. More than 900 people were prosecuted, more than 100 were jailed, but many more lost out because they were forced to repay money they were accused of losing or stealing, and/or because they lost their jobs.
A significant amount of time has also passed, and we recognise that this means that timescales are far greater, and the population of postmasters that used Capture will be more advanced in age, or a greater proportion of the population may have unfortunately died. We also recognise that the passage of time means that evidence of shortfalls and consequential losses, and evidence relating to suspensions, termination, prosecution, or convictions, will be far more difficult to find. It will therefore be difficult for claimants to corroborate their claims with contemporary evidence. Postmasters, the Post Office, or the UK government may not have enough evidence, and we may never find enough evidence to determine liability to the level that would be expected by the courts.
It is thanks to testimony of postmasters that this has been brought to light and failings have been discovered.
We must now work quickly to provide redress and justice to those who have suffered greatly after being wrongly accused.
We are considering the right form of redress for victims who have suffered.
This is a challenging exercise given the passage of time and the significant lack of records and evidence.
Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said that those whose brothers or sisters were infected with potentially deadly viruses while receiving care should be fairly compensated.
He also announced in a written ministerial statement that the government “accepts in full or accepts in principle” all of the 12 recommendations made as part of the Infected Blood Inquiry.
Continue reading...Read moreChina jails ex-football head coach for bribery
Li Tie, who also played for Everton in the English Premier League, was handed a 20-year sentence.
Read moreTop Chinese language novelist dies in apparent suicide
Chiung Yao's work has been adapted to movies and TV and launched the careers of big name stars.
Read moreFilipino vessel 'sideswiped' by China Coast Guard
The incident happened near the disputed Scarborough Shoal and Beijing said it acted "in accordance with the law".
Read more‘Italian’ purees in UK supermarkets likely to contain Chinese forced-labour tomatoes
Some products described as “Italian” appear to contain Chinese tomatoes, BBC investigation suggests.
Read moreTaiwan president's Hawaii trip draws Chinese anger
Lai Ching-te's trip to the US state is being billed as a stopover, but has been condemned by Beijing.
Read moreSilenced and erased, Hong Kong's decade of protest is now a defiant memory
The BBC speaks to Hongkongers whose hopes for a freer city have withered.
Read moreChina's giant sinkholes are a tourist hit - but ancient forests inside are at risk
These caves were unexplored for thousands of years, protected by swirling mists and terrifying tales.
Read moreWho are the activists jailed in Hong Kong's largest national security trial?
They include prominent campaigners, former lawmakers and ordinary citizens who joined the pro-democracy movement.
Read moreTrump and Xi Jinping’s ‘loving’ relationship has soured - can they rebuild it?
What their dynamic means for the future of US-China relations
Read moreWe want 'strong' UK-China relationship, says Starmer
The first in-person meeting since 2018 comes as the PM prioritises shoring up support for Ukraine.
Read morePic story: inheritor of traditional Tibetan mask making technique in Xizang
A craftsman checks a traditional Tibetan mask in Dagze District of Lhasa, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Dec. 9, 2024.In recent years, the cooperative has provided a space for local people to learn mask-making skills, created employment opportunities, and contributed to the protection and development of intangible cultural heritages. (Xinhua/Tenzin Nyida)
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