Myanmar junta executes two pro-democracy rivals

Yahoo – AFP, 25 July 2022 

Myanmar's junta has executed four prisoners including a former lawmaker from Aung San Suu Kyi's party and a prominent activist, state media said Monday, in the country's first use of capital punishment in decades. 

The four were executed for leading "brutal and inhumane terror acts", the Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper said. 

The paper said the executions were carried out "under the prison's procedure" without saying when or how the men were killed. 

The junta has sentenced dozens of anti-coup activists to death as part of its crackdown on dissent after seizing power last year, but Myanmar had not carried out an execution for decades. 

Phyo Zeya Thaw, a former lawmaker from Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) who was arrested in November, was sentenced to death in January for offences under anti-terrorism laws. 

Democracy activist Kyaw Min Yu -- better known as "Jimmy" -- received the same sentence from the military tribunal. 

Two other men were sentenced to death for killing a woman they alleged was an informer for the junta in Yangon. 

Diplomatic condemnation 

The junta was heavily criticised by international powers last month when it announced its intention to carry out the executions. 

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the junta's decision, calling it "a blatant violation to the right to life, liberty and security of person". 

UN rights experts said that if the executions went ahead -- for the first time in Myanmar since 1988 -- it could mark the start of a spate of hangings. 

The experts said that under the junta's martial law provisions, the death penalty could be given for 23 "vague and broadly defined offences" -- which in practice could include any criticism of the military. 

Myanmar expert Richard Horsey of the International Crisis Group (ICG) said on Twitter that the executions were "an outrageous act. And one that will create political shockwaves, now and for a long time to come". 

Phyo Zeya Thaw had been accused of orchestrating several attacks on regime forces, including a gun attack on a commuter train in Yangon in August that killed five policemen. 

A hip-hop pioneer whose subversive rhymes irked the previous junta, he was jailed in 2008 for membership in an illegal organisation and possession of foreign currency.

 He was elected to parliament representing Aung San Suu Kyi's NLD in the 2015 elections, which ushered in a transition to civilian rule. 

The country's military alleged voter fraud during elections in 2020 -- which the NLD won by a landslide -- as justification for its coup on February 1 last year. 

Suu Kyi has been detained since then and faces a slew of charges in a junta court that could see her face a prison sentence of more than 150 years. 

Kyaw Min Yu, who rose to prominence during Myanmar's 1988 student uprising against the country's previous military regime, was arrested in an overnight raid in October.

Myanmar shadow government wants ASEAN crisis talks invite

Yahoo – AFP, Sun, 18 April 2021 

The coup in Myanmar has sparked mass protests against the military junta

Myanmar's shadow government on Sunday urged Southeast Asian leaders to give it a seat at the table during crisis talks next week, and not to recognise the military regime that seized power in a February coup. 

Junta leader Min Aung Hlaing is expected to join a special ASEAN summit on Myanmar on Saturday in Jakarta -- his first official overseas trip since the putsch that ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. 

The army has moved to quell mass protests against its rule, killing at least 730 people according to a local monitoring group. 

Min Aung Hlaing's invitation to the meeting of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations has drawn scorn from activists who have urged foreign leaders not to formally recognise the junta. 

Moe Zaw Oo, deputy minister of foreign affairs for the parallel "national unity government" -- formed Friday by ousted lawmakers mostly from Suu Kyi's party, as well as ethnic-minority politicians -- said ASEAN had not reached out to them. 

"If ASEAN wants to help solve the Myanmar situation, they are not going to achieve anything without consulting and negotiating with the NUG, which is supported by the people and has full legitimacy," he told Voice of America's Burmese service. 

"It's important that this military council is not recognised. This needs to be handled carefully." 

Meanwhile, the junta continued targeting the media on Sunday, arresting Japanese freelance reporter Yuki Kitazumi. 

He was arrested at his home in Yangon on Sunday evening, his assistant said in a message. 

In February, he was beaten up and briefly detained during a crackdown on protesters but was later released. 

The number of reporters arrested so far has totalled more than 65 and at least 34 remain in custody, according to monitoring group Reporting ASEAN. 

Authorities announced Sunday night on state-run television 20 more celebrities and 20 more doctors would be added to their arrest warrant list of 420 prominent people. 

Earlier unrest continued across the country on Sunday, with protesters rallying in Mandalay, Meiktila, Magway and Myingyan, showing support for the national unity government. 

At Palaw in the country's south, demonstrators brandished banners that read: "Military dictators should not be allowed to rule. The dictatorship will be uprooted. Support the national unity government." 

Young demonstrators also staged motorbike rallies while carrying flags in Hpakant and Sagaing. 

The previous night, there were violent clashes in the central gem-producing city of Mogok when security forces cracked down on protesters. 

According to an AFP-verified video filmed by a resident, soldiers crouched on a street as their commanding officer shouted that he wanted "deaths". 

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) verified two deaths at Mogok. 

Much of Myanmar remains under a curfew imposed shortly after the coup, running from 8 pm to 4 am every night. 

Late Saturday, a young man was shot and killed in Kyaukme town in northern Shan state while riding his motorbike during the curfew. 

"He was shot by the authorities when he and other his friends drove motorbikes around 9 pm. He was shot in the head," a rescue worker told AFP, adding that his funeral would take place Sunday.

Chinese citizen journalist jailed for Wuhan virus reporting

Yahoo – AFP, 28 December 2020 

Authoroties said former Chinese lawyer and citizen journalist
Zhang Zhan had spread "False remarks" online.

A Chinese citizen journalist was jailed for four years Monday for her reporting from Wuhan as the Covid-19 outbreak began, her lawyer said, almost a year after details of an "unknown viral pneumonia" surfaced in the central China city. 

Zhang Zhan, a former lawyer who arrived at court in a wheelchair, was sentenced at a brief hearing in a Shanghai court for allegedly "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" during her reporting in the chaotic initial stages of the outbreak. 

Her live reports and essays were shared on social media platforms in February, grabbing the attention of authorities, who have punished eight virus whistleblowers so far as they curb criticism of the government's response to the outbreak. 

Beijing has congratulated itself for "extraordinary" success in controlling the virus inside its borders, with an economy on the rebound while much of the rest of the world stutters through painful lockdowns and surging caseloads a year on from the start of the pandemic in Wuhan. 

Controlling the information flow during an unprecedented global health crisis has been pivotal in allowing China's communist authorities to reframe the narrative in their favour, with President Xi Jinping being garlanded for his leadership by the country's ruling party. 

But that has come at a serious cost to anyone who has picked holes in the official storyline. 

The court said Zhang Zhan had spread "false remarks" online, according to one of her lawyers Zhang Keke, but the prosecution did not fully divulge its evidence in court. 

"We had no way of understanding what exactly Zhang Zhan was accused of doing," he added, describing it as "a speedy, rushed hearing." 

In return the defendant "didn't respond [to questions]... She refused to answer when the judge asked her to confirm her identity." 

The defendant's mother sobbed loudly as the verdict was read out, Ren Quanniu, another member of Zhang's defence team, told reporters who were barred from entering the court. 

Concerns are mounting over the health of 37-year-old Zhang, who began a hunger strike in June and has been force-fed via a nasal tube. 

Her legal team said her health was in decline and she suffered from headaches, dizziness and stomach pain, and that she had appeared in court in a wheelchair. 

"She said when I visited her (last week): 'If they give me a heavy sentence then I will refuse food until the very end.'... She thinks she will die in prison," Ren said before the trial. 

"It's an extreme method of protesting against this society and this environment." 

China's communist authorities have a history of putting dissidents on trial in opaque courts between Christmas and New Year in an effort to minimise Western scrutiny. 

Example made

The sentencing comes just weeks before an international team of World Health Organization experts is expected to arrive in China to investigate the origins of Covid-19. 

Zhang was critical of the early response in Wuhan, writing in a February essay that the government "didn't give people enough information, then simply locked down the city". 

"This is a great violation of human rights," she wrote. 

Rights groups and embassies have also drawn attention to her case, although diplomats from several countries were denied requests to monitor the hearing. 

"Zhang Zhan's case raises serious concerns about media freedom in China," the British embassy in Beijing said, urging "China to release all those detained for their reporting." 

Authorities "want to use her case as an example to scare off other dissidents from raising questions about the pandemic situation in Wuhan earlier this year", added Leo Lan, research and advocacy consultant at the Chinese Human Rights Defenders NGO. 

A United Nations official following the trial also expressed "deep concern" about the verdict. 

"We raised her case with the authorities throughout 2020 as an example of the excessive clampdown on freedom of expression linked to #COVID19 & continue to call for her release," the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said in a tweet. 

Zhang is the first of a group of four citizen journalists detained by authorities after reporting from Wuhan to face trial. 

Previous attempts by AFP to contact the other three -- Chen Qiushi, Fang Bin and Li Zehua -- were unsuccessful. 

Related Article:

"Corona 1", Reykjavik, Iceland, Mar, 2020 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - 

(>13.46 Min - Reference to the Global Coronavirus crisis)

Latest Thailand pro-democracy protest draws at least 10,000

Yahoo – AFP, Lillian SUWANRUMPHA, August 16, 2020

Student-led groups have held near-daily protests across the country for the past month

An anti-government protest in Thailand drew more than 10,000 people on Sunday, the largest political demonstration the kingdom has seen in years as a pro-democracy movement gathers steam.

Student-led groups have held near-daily protests across the country for the past month to denounce Premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha -- a former army chief who led a 2014 coup -- and his military-aligned administration.

By Sunday evening the protesters -- who are demanding major democratic reforms -- had taken over the busy intersection around Bangkok's Democracy Monument, which was built to mark the 1932 revolution that ended royal absolutism.

Police closed off surrounding main roads to stop incoming traffic, and an official at Bangkok's Metropolitan Police Bureau told AFP the crowd size had grown to 10,000 by 6:00 pm (1100 GMT).

"Down with the dictatorship," the students chanted, many holding signs critical of the administration. Others held bird-shaped cutouts representing peace.

The peaceful gathering at Democracy Monument is the largest the kingdom has seen since Prayut staged a putsch in 2014.

The protesters are demanding major democratic reforms in Thailand

Partly inspired by the Hong Kong democracy movement, the protesters claim to be leaderless and have relied mostly on social media campaigns to draw support across the country.

"Give a deadline to dictatorship" was the top Twitter hashtag in Thailand on Sunday.

They are demanding an overhaul of the government and a rewriting of the 2017 military-scripted constitution, which they believe skewed last year's election in favour of Prayut's military-aligned party.

Organiser Tattep Ruangprapaikitseree reaffirmed the call Sunday, adding that the government must "stop threatening the people".

"If there's no positive response from the government by September, we will step up," Tattep shouted to a sea of supporters holding up their mobile phones as flashlights.

Tensions have risen over the last two weeks with authorities arresting three activists. They were released on bail after being charged with sedition.

Thai activist Parit 'Penguin' Chirawak also participated in the rally, flanked by 

cheering supporters

They were told not to repeat the alleged offences, but two of them -- prominent student leader Parit Chiwarak and human rights lawyer Anon Numpa -- arrived at the protest venue on Sunday flanked by cheering supporters.

A rally last week by around 4,000 demonstrators called for the abolition of a law protecting Thailand's unassailable monarchy, and for a frank discussion about its role in Thailand.

King Maha Vajiralongkorn sits at the apex of Thai power, flanked by the military and the country's billionaire business elite.

A draconian "112" law can see those convicted sentenced to up to 15 years in jail per charge.

During Sunday's demonstration, which drew a diverse crowd of all ages, many said they agreed with the student demands.

"We can't let the students walk on this difficult path alone," a 68-year-old woman told AFP, declining to provide her name.

Growing discontent

But the increasingly bold pro-democracy movement also has its detractors.

There were royalist counter-protesters as well, who chanted 'Long live the king'

Standing at one corner of the monument's intersection were dozens of royalist protesters carrying portraits of the king and queen, shouting "Long live the king".

Prayut last week described the protesters' demands as "unacceptable" for Thailand's majority, calling the pro-democracy movement "risky" a day before Parit was arrested.

Sunday's massive turnout is meant to send a message to the government that "they cannot forever use legal mechanisms against the people", said political analyst Titipol Phakdeewanich of Ubon Ratchathani University.

"They can see that it's only used to serve the interests of the military and the establishment parties."

After the eight-hour rally, the activists linked arms and marched to a nearby police station to challenge authorities on arrest warrants that local media reported were issued for various leaders.

The police did not arrest anyone, and after a brief stand-off, the activists left.

The growing discontent also comes as the kingdom goes through one of its worst economic periods since 1997 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Millions have been left jobless, and the crisis has exposed the inequalities in the Thai economy, which is perceived to benefit the elite, pro-military establishment.

Thai pro-democracy rally attracts thousands as discontent swells

Yahoo – AFP, Lillian SUWANRUMPHA, August 10, 2020

Demonstrators descended in waves to Thammasat University in the outer
edges of Bangkok as the sun set

Young Thai protesters listened in rapt attention on Monday night as a pro-democracy activist called for open discussion of the unassailable monarchy's role in the kingdom, at a rally in Bangkok that drew thousands.

The massive demonstration comes after weeks of near-daily student-led protests denouncing Premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha's military-aligned administration.

The student-led movement has repeatedly demanded a rewrite to a 2017 constitution, the parliament's dissolution, and called for the government to "stop threatening the people".

Protesters regard former army chief Prayut, who led a 2014 coup, as a remnant of Thailand's junta legacy as his premiership was ushered in under a military-scripted charter in last year's poll.

But activists have waded further into sensitive territory by calling for the abolition of the kingdom's draconian royal defamation law, which protects the powerful, super-rich King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

Monday's rally outside Bangkok -- which started off with anti-government songs -- ended with speeches by two activists who were arrested over the weekend and later released on bail.

Lawyer Anon Numpa and activist Panupong Jadnok were charged with sedition for their alleged role at a massive July 18 rally.

But their arrests came days after Anon led a discussion at a protest of the monarchy's role in the kingdom.

He revisited the topic onstage Monday night, calling for the frank discussion of the unassailable institution.

Protesters held up a three-finger salute, a symbol for freedom taken from "The Hunger Games" trilogy, after his speech. 

The king sits at the apex of Thai power, buttressed by the powerful military and elite billionaire clans.

The royal defamation law carries a sentence of up to 15 years per charge, and experts say the law's vagueness makes open reporting or discussion of the royal family virtually impossible.

Organisers said the next rally  will be on Wednesday, which is a public holiday in Thailand commemorating the Queen Mother's birthday.

'No more fake democracy'

Monday's rally closed with a video conference call by prominent Thai dissident Pavin Chachavalpongpun, a Kyoto-based academic who was granted asylum in Japan following his vocal criticism of Thailand's junta, broadcast on stage.

Held at Thammasat University, the protest drew a diverse crowd from the LGBTQI community, high schoolers and elderly pro-democracy supporters.

"Us seniors must support the students," said a 70-year-old woman who declined to be named. "We must fight for our sons, daughters, nephews and nieces."

The kingdom has long been locked in a cycle of violent street protests and coups by a putsch-happy army.

The coronavirus pandemic seized up Thailand's economy, leaving millions jobless and angry at the inequalities of a society perceived to favour the kingdom's elite establishment.

"No more fake democracy," read a sign at the demonstration, which drew around 4,000 by nightfall, according to an AFP estimate.

At the end of the night, the hashtag "Thammasat will not tolerate" was trending on Thai Twitter.

Prayut has vowed to hold public forums with young people.

But army chief Apirat Kongsompong -- an arch-royalist who in the past has angrily ranted about pro-democracy figures -- called "hatred of the nation" an incurable disease.

Earlier Monday, a group of royalist supporters marched to parliament to counter a pro-democracy rally where protesters were burning models of army tanks and the constitution.

Holding portraits of the monarch above their heads, the pro-monarchy group called for the protesters not to insult the king and carried posters saying "The people protect the king". 

Besides the arrests of two activists over the weekend, protest organisers in northern Phitsanulok province were detained for hours without charge, according to a Thai legal aid group.

New Zealand's Ardern kicks off election campaign after taming virus

Yahoo – AFP, MICHAEL BRADLEY, August 8, 2020

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is riding high in opinion polls after
her leadership through the Christchurch mosque attacks, the White Island volcanic
eruption and the coronavirus pandemic

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern kicked off her Labour Party's election campaign Saturday riding high in the opinion polls after a successful response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Ardern's popularity as preferred prime minister -- often referred to as "Jacindamania" -- topped 60 percent in the latest surveys following her leadership through the Christchurch mosque attacks, the White Island volcanic eruption and the pandemic.

Before the virus forced New Zealand to seal its borders, the polls had pointed to a cliffhanger election on September 19, but support swung sharply towards the centre-left Labour Party as the country eliminated community transmission in a matter on months.

In a country of five million people, New Zealand has had only 22 COVID-19 deaths and it has been 99 days since the last recorded case of infection from an unknown source.

"When people ask, is this a COVID election, my answer is yes, it is," the charismatic 40-year-old said as she launched the campaign with a NZ$311 million (US$205 million) pledge to boost jobs.

"Businesses large and small are crucial to our economic recovery."

Labour is the senior partner in a three-party coalition government but if it can maintain the support shown in recent opinion polls, where it has consistently been above 50 percent, it could govern alone after the election.

Ardern was an unheralded MP when thrust into the Labour leadership shortly before the 2017 election when the party was struggling and "there were plenty who thought it couldn't (win)," she said.

"If you had told me then that our launch in 2020 would be in the midst of a global pandemic with our borders closed –- I would have found that very hard to fathom."

The centrepiece of Labour's campaign is to support businesses in hiring at least 40,000 people whose employment has been affected by the coronavirus.

It pledged to expand existing job schemes to help employers hire staff at risk of long-term unemployment.

It will also help out-of-work New Zealanders start a business through an expanded self-employment programme which will provide the equivalent of the minimum wage for up to 30-hours a week.

"The new flexi-wage scheme is a key plank of our economic plan to support businesses to recover and to provide jobs to those who have lost work due to COVID," Ardern said.

"Our team-of-five-million approach to fighting COVID means there is huge willingness in our business community to avoid unemployment rising by retaining staff and taking on new employees where they can, but many just need a little bit of extra support to do that, which this package provides."

Hong Kong leader says city could keep freedoms if it 'stays loyal'

Yahoo – AFP, Xinqi SU, Jerome TAYLOR,  January 16, 2020

Security officials were called in to force out pro-democracy lawmakers who shouted
slogans and held placards criticising Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam (AFP Photo/
ISAAC LAWRENCE)

Hong Kong may be allowed to keep its unique freedoms beyond their 2047 expiry date, its leader said Thursday, but only if inhabitants remain loyal to Beijing's vision of how the city should be run.

Chief executive Carrie Lam, a pro-Beijing appointee, made the comments during a fiery session in the city's legislature, where she was frequently interrupted by opposition lawmakers -- many of whom were ejected.

Hong Kong has been battered by seven months of pro-democracy protests, which Lam and Beijing have taken a hard line against.

The protests are fuelled by fears that the city is losing freedoms under an increasingly authoritarian Beijing.

Under a "one country, two systems" deal agreed ahead of the city's 1997 handover, authoritarian China has allowed Hong Kong to keep key liberties and its capitalist system for fifty years.

But protesters say Beijing is already reneging on that promise, while uncertainty swirls around what might happen when the deadline expires.

On Thursday Lam said the city's continued freedoms were contingent on the city not challenging Beijing.

"Only if we insist on implementing the 'one country, two systems' principle and practice it continuously and fully ... then I think there will be enough grounds for 'one country, two systems' to move ahead smoothly and there would be no change after 2047," Lam said during Thursday's appearance in the legislature.

She then called on the city's youth not to damage the principle because of "temporary misunderstandings".

"Otherwise, what they are worried about will be brought about by themselves," she added.

Watchdog report delayed

Hong Kong's protests were initially sparked by a now-abandoned attempt to allow extraditions to the mainland.

But they have since morphed into a popular revolt against Beijing's rule with huge marches and frequent clashes over the last seven months.

The ferocity and frequency of the protests have died down in recent weeks, but there are still rallies and occasional clashes with police.

The unrest has also helped tipped Hong Kong into a recession.

Among key protester demands are an independent investigation into the police, amnesty for more than 6,500 people arrested, and fully free elections.

Lam, backed by Beijing, has rejected those demands.

On Thursday she doubled down on defending the city's police force.

"I would not accept anyone accusing the police of brutality," she said.

Later in the day, the city's police watchdog said it would delay the imminent publication of an interim report on the protests because it was facing a legal challenge by pro-democracy supporters.

Beijing has thrown its full support behind Lam, who currently boasts record-low approval ratings.

Security officials had to be called in multiple times on Thursday to force out pro-democracy lawmakers who shouted slogans and held placards, including one that portrayed Lam as a vampire with bat wings.

Lam even fielded tough questions from pro-Beijing lawmakers, one of whom asked if she was willing to take a pay cut.

The last time Lam appeared in the legislature, in October, the heckling was so sustained that she abandoned a state of the union-style address and delivered it by video instead.

Human Rights Watch chief says barred from entering Hong Kong

Yahoo – AFP, January 12, 2020

Human Rights Watch chief Kenneth Roth -- pictured in October 2019 -- said he was
turned back by authorities at Hong Kong's airport (AFP Photo/NELSON ALMEIDA)

Human Rights Watch chief Kenneth Roth said Sunday he had been denied entry into Hong Kong, where he had arrived to launch the watchdog's annual report after months of civil unrest in the city.

"I had hoped to spotlight Beijing's deepening assault on international efforts to uphold human rights," Roth said. "The refusal to let me enter Hong Kong vividly illustrates the problem."

The long-time executive director of the New York-based rights group said in a video posted to Twitter that he was turned back by authorities at the financial hub's airport.

China last month announced sanctions on American NGOs, including HRW, in retaliation for the passage of a US bill backing pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.

"A large amount of facts and evidence... make it clear that these non-governmental organisations support anti-China" forces and "incite separatist activities for Hong Kong independence", China's foreign affairs ministry spokesman Hua Chunying said at the time.

Roth joins a growing list of openly critical academics, researchers, politicians and activists who have been denied entry in recent years.

Financial Times journalist Victor Mallet was denied a visa renewal without reason in 2018 after he hosted a talk with the leader of a small and now banned independence party at the city's press club.

India's protests: why now?

Yahoo – AFP, Ammu KANNAMPILLY, December 28, 2019

The new citizenship law has sparked two weeks of protests across India (AFP
Photo/Manjunath Kiran)

New Delhi (AFP) - Mumbai-based copywriter Sarah Syed says she was long alarmed by the Hindu nationalist direction of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi but felt powerless to stop it -- until now.

Like many others taking part in the current wave of protests, the final straw was Modi's new citizenship law and then the images of students being tear-gassed when they demonstrated against it.

"It's not as if one didn't know that things were not right. But for many of us, politics was just too depressing to think about," said Syed, a Muslim married to a Catholic.

"Now though it feels criminal to sit out the protests and say nothing," the 27-year-old told AFP.

The law, which offers fast-track citizenship to non-Muslim nationals from three neighbouring countries, is the latest policy instituted by Modi's government that critics accuse of marginalising Muslims in the Hindu-majority nation.

During his nearly six years in power, Modi's party has renamed places with Islamic-origin names, rewritten history textbooks to diminish or discredit the role of Muslim leaders, and stripped the Muslim-dominated region of Kashmir of its special autonomy.

The new citizenship law offers fast-track citizenship to non-Muslim nationals from 

three of India's neighbouring countries (AFP Photo/NARINDER NANU)

Modi has insisted the legislation will have no impact on Indian Muslims, however his party's 2019 election pledge to conduct a nationwide survey to identify illegal immigrants has raised fears among Muslims of becoming stateless, with no fast-track naturalisation option available to them.

Mumbai-based lawyer Momin Musaddique, who has been providing free legal advice to people worried about the implications of the law, said years of pent-up anxiety among Muslims have finally found an outlet in the protests rippling across the country.

"People have been afraid for so long of this government's Hindu nationalist agenda that they now feel like they have nothing left to fear," he told AFP.

"Now that their very survival in India is under threat, they have no option but to protest," he added.

'We have woken up'

In addition to Muslims, the demonstrations have galvanised large sections of Indian society, from secular Hindus and members of other minorities to intellectuals and opposition politicians.

Historian Zoya Hasan of Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University told AFP the protests represented "the biggest challenge to the Modi government in the last six years".

The unrest is unlikely to derail Modi's Hindu nationalist campaign, said one 

analyst (AFP Photo/Manjunath Kiran)

Several local governments in opposition-ruled states such as Kerala and West Bengal have said they will not conduct surveys for the national citizens' register, responding to the public mood and undermining the prime minister's authority.

Although the protests began as a fight against the citizenship law, many of the demonstrators are now seeking a rollback of the government's push to remake officially secular India as a Hindu nation, said Hasan.

Nevertheless, she added that the unrest was unlikely to derail Modi's Hindu nationalist campaign and risk alienating his base which propelled him to a landslide re-election victory in May.

"The government may take a step back as a result of the protests but they are not going to move away from their core agenda," Hasan said.

For first-time protester Syed, participating in the demonstrations left her with "goosebumps" as she described her elation at seeing people from different communities come together.

"I used to feel so helpless before, like there was nothing I could do to change the way things were in this country," she said.

"The government's strategy has been all smoke and mirrors", she said.

"Now we have woken up."

Transgender councillor elected in Bangladesh first

Yahoo – AFP, October 15, 2019

Pinki Khatun, centre in the front row, beat her nearest rival by more than 4,000
votes to be elected Bangladesh's first transgender councillor (AFP Photo/STR)

A transgender candidate has been elected as councillor for a rural Bangladeshi town, the first in the ultra-conservative Muslim-majority nation where laws still discriminate against sexual minorities.

Pinki Khatun was elected as vice chair of a town council in the country's west on Monday after beating her nearest rival by more than 4,000 votes, local police chief Mahbubul Alam said.

"I am very delighted. I campaigned door-to-door and people have responded positively," the garment shop owner told AFP.

"I did not face any discrimination or hate campaigns."

Bangladesh has allowed transgenders, known as hijra -- an umbrella term referring to someone who is born male but does not refer to themselves as a man or woman -- to identify as a separate gender since 2013.

This year, they were allowed to register to vote identifying as this gender.

The 37-year-old councillor is a youth wing official of the ruling Awami League and campaigned as an independent candidate in the 200,000-population town of Kotchandpur after the party did not back anyone.

"My aim is to work for the betterment of women and protect their rights," said the councillor, who previously identified as a woman.

"I'll work for hijras so they can live honourably in society."

The government says there are some 10,000 hijras in Bangladesh but independent estimates say they could number up to 500,000, with many hiding their identity to avoid discrimination.

Bangladesh still has a British colonial-era law where anyone who engages in gay sex faces life in prison, although the legislation is rarely used.

The LGBT community also faces social discrimination.

Transgender rights activist Anonnya Banik said the election of the country's first transgender politician was a "big achievement".

"It will create positive impact in the society and inspire other trans-people. I think it reflects change in Bangladesh people's attitude towards trans-people," Banik told AFP.