February 3-9, 2025

NORTHEAST ASIA

Saving diminished global support for Tibet

The United States’ decision to withdraw from the U.N. Human Rights Council has sparked concern not only among international human rights organizations but also across Tibetan organizations fighting for self-determination and independence.

The latter said the move could undermine efforts to hold China accountable for its systematic repression of the Tibetan people.

On Feb. 5, the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) issued a statement recalling the U.S.’s crucial role in advocating for Tibetan rights within the U.N. It called on the international community to step up its support for Tibetans while warning that China might perpetuate its abuses in Tibet and elsewhere. 

The U.S.’s withdrawal from the UNHRC “(takes) away a voice that has held accountable those who disrespect human rights and standing against those whose goal is to subvert the international discourse on human rights to fit autocratic agendas,” the ICT said. 

FAST FACTS

• On Feb. 3, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the United States was withdrawing anew from the top U.N. human rights body and will not resume funding for the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).
• The move was done in support of its ally Israel, amid accusations that the UNHRC has demonstrated bias against Israel – which was committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip – while failing to address human rights violations in authoritarian states. It’s also part of a broader shift in U.S. foreign policy as Trump pursues a nationalist, or America First, agenda. 
• In 2018, under Trump’s first term the U.S. left the council, and rejoined the global agency in 2021 under President Joe Biden’s administration. 
• China, the second-largest financial contributor to the United Nations, has been accused of suppressing Tibetan identity through policies that limit religious freedoms, impose harsh surveillance, and restrict the use of the Tibetan language.
• The U.S. has historically raised concerns over Tibet within the UNHRC and through other avenues, and advocated heightened scrutiny of China’s actions in the region. Observers fear that without U.S. involvement, Beijing could face fewer obstacles in advancing its repressive policies.

ACTIONS SOUGHT

The International Campaign for Tibet is calling on:

• Member and observer states at the Human Rights Council to strengthen their efforts to protect human rights standards, particularly in Tibet
• The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to maintain pressure on China

SOUTHEAST ASIA

Hands off: Denormalizing state repression of the press

Cambodia has long been notorious for its relentless crackdown on independent media and journalism under the repressive and dynastic rule of the Hun family. 

But it appears that environmental journalists in particular often draw the short stick. On Feb. 5, the government confirmed that it had denied the reentry of British journalist Gerald Flynn last Jan. 5 ostensibly for lying on his visa application. 

This prompted several journalists and human rights organizations to release a joint statement calling for his immediate return to Cambodia so he could continue his work. 

“Flynn’s arbitrary ban from entering the country comes after five years of reporting in Cambodia, where he has uncovered rampant environmental crimes and the destruction of natural resources,” the groups said. “Flynn should be allowed to return to the country and resume his important journalism which is critical to conservation efforts to protect Cambodia’s fast-dwindling natural resources.” 

FAST FACTS 

• The British investigative and environmental reporter was denied entry at Siem Reap International Airport on Jan. 5. Authorities claimed Flynn’s visa was “fake” and informed him that he had been blacklisted since Nov. 25, 2024. However, no official explanation or appeals process has been provided.

• On Nov. 22, 2024 France 24 released a documentary on Cambodia’s controversial carbon offsetting projects featuring him as a source. The government dismissed the documentary as “fake news” without evidence, and briefly detained two other sources featured in the broadcast piece.
• His blacklisting under Hun Manet’s administration is the latest episode in Cambodia’s worrying pattern of suppression targeting journalists and activists that dates back to former premier Hun Sen’s four-decade rule. 

Environmental journalists and activists targeted under Hun Manet

• Cambodia has fallen nine places in Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index in the past two years, ranking 151st out of 180 countries in 2024.

ACTIONS SOUGHT

Journalists and human rights groups alike have urged the Cambodian government to:

• Allow Flynn to return to Cambodia and resume his journalistic work without fear of persecution
• Stop the arbitrary arrests, intimidation, and harassment of journalists
• Uphold press freedom and ensure the safety of journalists including those covering the environment

¹This followed a pattern of opposition figures who renounced their former colleagues to join the ruling party after being harassed and targeted by the state. Many of them were also asked to do a public apology, posted on the government state news site.

SOUTH ASIA

Keeping journalists safe – and alive

Concerns over the country’s longstanding pattern of impunity in crimes against journalists were sparked anew when Sri Lanka’s attorney general ruled against the pursuit of legal action against three suspects in the 2009 murder of investigative journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge.

This, despite the promise of newly instated President Anuran Dissayanake to bring justice to journalists and activists that have been victims of attacks in the country.

On Feb. 6, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) expressed alarm over the AG’s decision and urged the government to reconsider such action. “Justice must be served in journalists’ killings,” said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Beh Lih Yi. “It is alarming that Sri Lanka’s attorney general seeks to drop charges against three key suspects in journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge’s murder without any public explanation.”

Wickrematunge’s daughter, Ahimsa, also called for the attorney general’s impeachment as she accused him in an open letter of “either gross neglect of duty or a deliberate abuse of power.” 

FAST FACTS

• Wickrematunge, the editor-in-chief of The Sunday Leader, was ambushed by eight helmeted assailants on four motorcycles while on his way to work in Colombo in 2009. Former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who at the time was defense minister, is accused of being the mastermind behind his killing as Wickrematunge was set to testify in a trial implicating him in corruption. 
• Despite national and international pressure, no one has been convicted for Wickrematunge’s killing. In 2019, his daughter Ahimsa sued Rajapaksa in a U.S. court, alleging he authorized the murder through a military intelligence unit. The case was dismissed for lack of court jurisdiction.
• Last week, Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe ordered the release of three suspects directly implicated in either the killing or the cover-up that followed: former Army Intelligence Officer Premananda Udalagama, former Mt. Lavinia Crimes OIC SI Tissasiri Sugathapala, and former Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Colombo South Range, Prasanna Nanayakkara. 
• In her open letter calling for Ranasinghe’s impeachment, Ahimsa accused the attorney general of no longer being fit to serve as attorney general if “he could act so callously in such a high-profile matter…I cannot imagine the anguish suffered by ordinary people who rely on Mr. Ranasinghe to lead the public’s efforts to bring criminals to account.” 
• Since 1983 no one has been convicted for the dozens of murders, enforced disappearances, and abductions of journalists during and after Sri Lanka’s 26-year civil war, which ended in 2009.

ACTIONS SOUGHT

CPJ and Ahimsa Wickrematunge called on the government to:

• Reopen the investigation into Lasantha Wickrematunge’s murder and ensure full accountability
• End the cycle of impunity by securing convictions for attacks on journalists 
• For Ranasinghe to step down as attorney general

GLOBAL / REGIONAL

Clearing the air for children 

Air pollution remains one of the biggest threats to children’s health and wellbeing. And yet, the latest analysis by the U.N. Children’s Fund shows that every child in the East Asia and Pacific region – 500 million in total – lives in a country where air pollution exceeds safe levels, underscoring the lack of action and urgency to address this pressing issue. 

As such, the agency called on governments, businesses, and other stakeholders to enforce stricter environmental policies and adopt clean technologies to reduce emissions. 

“Every breath matters but for too many children every breath can bring harm,” said June Kunugi, UNICEF Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific. “Addressing air pollution will lead to enormous improvements in children’s health, education, and well-being, with ripple effects across entire societies and economies.”

The UNICEF analysis comes on the heels of reports that Thai capital Bangkok – now the eighth most polluted city in the world – is shrouded in toxic haze, forcing the temporary suspension of classes in over 350 schools and the issuance of work-from-home orders by some workplaces. 

FAST FACTS

• According to the UNICEF report, over 325 million children in the region are exposed to PM2.5 levels five times higher than WHO guidelines, while 373 million are breathing unhealthy levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO₂).
• Pollutants like PM2.5 not only directly harm human health but also contribute to climate change by acting as greenhouse gases. This warming effect intensifies the formation of ozone in areas with high NO2 levels, further compounding the negative health impacts.
• Last year, UNICEF’s “State of the Global Air” report revealed that air pollution killed 8.1 million in 2021 alone, with millions more dealing with chronic respiratory diseases.  
• Air pollution increases the risk of premature birth and low birth weight, impairs lung function, and leads to chronic diseases such as asthma and cardiovascular conditions. But children are more vulnerable.
  
• In 2022, the World Bank estimated that air pollution cost the world US$8.1 trillion a year, or 6.1% of the world’s GDP. 

ACTIONS SOUGHT

UNICEF is urging: 

• Governments to enforce stricter environmental policies, transition to clean energy, and align air quality standards with WHO guidelines;
• Businesses to adopt cleaner technologies, reduce emissions, and prioritize child safety in their operations; 
• The healthcare sector to improve diagnosis and treatment of pollution-related illnesses; and 
• Parents and educators to help raise awareness and advocate for cleaner environments.