Research, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
News on Taiwan, Myanmar, Uyghurs, CCP, disease control
News (1)
Taiwan built the second-generation of "Tengyun'' UAV. After intensive evaluation and complete tactical evaluation, mass production in 2022
Reporter : You Tailang / https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/politics/breakingnews/3664372
Image : After the second-generation "Tengyun" UAV of the Chinese Academy of Sciences completed the flight test and safely landed at the Air Force Jiashan Base, the R&D personnel immediately carried out inspection operations. (Photo by reporter Yu Tailang)
Image : The first-generation "Tengyun" UAV is significantly different from the second-generation in appearance and body configuration. (Photo by reporter Yu Tailang)The second-generation "Tengyun" UAV developed by the Zhongshan Academy of Sciences has been intensively tested at the Air Force Jiashan Base for several days and warmed up to participate in this year's "Hanguang 37" exercise. The team strive to complete the tactical evaluation this year and start mass production in 2022.
The first generation of "Tengyun" drones developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences crashed in Taitung's Living Water Lake on the evening of February 18 this year. The location of the test was quietly changed from Taitung Zhihang Base to the hidden Jiashan Base in Hualien, and the model tested was changed to a more advanced second-generation model. In the past few days, the airspace gap time in Hualien was used to take off and land from Jiashan Base. For the performance test, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Air Force arrived home in a low-key and confidential manner. In addition to the unannounced test and take-off and landing time, measures were also strengthened around the base.
This second-generation "Tengyun" drone, numbered MU1811, is sprayed with the words "National Zhongshan Academy of Sciences" and the drone logo. It is obviously different from the first-generation model that only sprays the English words "NCSIST ASRD" and the national flag. The number is also From 1611 to 1811, in addition to the enlargement of the body, the propellers and related configurations at the rear end are also significantly different due to the new engine.
The Chinese Academy of Sciences has manufactured 4 "Tengyun" UAVs, two of which are the first-generation old configuration, developed in 2016, and two are new models. Research and development began in 2018. The engines of the new aircraft are directly procured from the United States. The crash in mid-February was an old model manufactured in 2016 and also the first prototype. After the crash, the Chinese Academy of Sciences only confirmed that there was a control problem. Therefore, the second-generation model was tested at the Jiashan base and received special attention from the Ministry of National Defense. It is preparing to participate in the Hanguang exercises and conduct related tactical evaluation tasks.
It is pointed out that after the United States announced the sale of four reconnaissance-type MQ-9B "Marine Guardian" large drones to the Republic of China, the outside world is worried that it may reduce the space for the Chinese Academy of Sciences to develop the "Tengyun" drone, but the military still gives the Chinese Academy of Sciences research and development space to position the second-generation "Tengyun" UAV to have both reconnaissance and attack capabilities, and to differentiate it from the reconnaissance-type MQ-9B sold by the US.
The "New Tengyun Aircraft" of the Chinese Academy of Sciences is codenamed "Tengyun Project". It will be researched and developed for 4 years from 2018 to 2021. The total expenditure is 3.45 billion yuan. It has been procured and is the same as the U.S. MQ-9 "Reaper" unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. The power system of the TPE331 turboprop engine has been greatly improved. It is planned to produce 4 prototypes. If the performance and tactical evaluation is successfully completed this year, it will be put into mass production as soon as 2022.
In addition, the military revealed that the second-generation "Tengyun" UAV will carry out functional verifications such as weapon system mounting and shooting in the future. Since the new engine has been replaced, the body has been enlarged and the payload capacity has doubled, and it will have the ability to mount weapon systems. As for what kind of weapon to mount, the Chinese Academy of Sciences will conduct research and development and the Air Force will evaluate it.
It is pointed out that the Air Force’s plan will focus on Tengyun UAVs plus MQ-9B to assess the feasibility of establishing a UAV "reconnaissance squadron". Mountain base is a priority.
News (2)
First in Taiwan! Weng Qihui will be awarded the Welch Prize for his extraordinary contribution to chemical research
Image: University Former Dean of Academia Sinica Weng Qihui. (Photo/Central News Agency)
The Welch Foundation is expected to announce the winners of the 2021 Welch Award in Chemistry on 8 September 2021, US time. According to the source, the former Dean of the Academia Sinica and the National Council for the Advancement of Biotechnology and Medical Industry Chairman Weng Qihui will become the first person in Taiwan to receive the award.
The purpose of the Welsh Prize in Chemistry is to promote and encourage basic chemical research, and to recognize the value of chemical research to the benefit of mankind in a substantive way.
Weng Qihui won the Wolf Prize in Chemistry in 2014, which is often regarded as an outpost of the Nobel Prize. He won the Robinson Prize from the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2015 and the Wilsh Prize in Chemistry in 2021.
According to international practice, he won the Nobel Prize. After the Welch Prize, the next step is the Nobel Prize, so the outside world is optimistic that Weng Qihui's road to the Nobel Prize is near.
Weng Qihui is the first scientist in the world to successfully synthesize complex polysaccharides (polysaccharides and glycopeptides) with enzyme technology. These two methods are currently used by the industry to develop new drugs for the treatment of heart disease, stroke and various inflammatory diseases. He is also the first to develop polysaccharides, the scientist for automated chemical synthesis of molecules.
Weng Qihui’s research spans the fields of chemistry and biological sciences and is a heavyweight in the international biochemistry community. He has made very important contributions to bioorganic chemistry and sugar molecule science, changing the public’s understanding of sugar molecules, and researching and researching functional genomics science.
The development of new drugs has a significant impact. The invention of the "programmed one-pot enzyme reaction" brings new opportunities for vaccine development and treatment for cancer research, bacterial and viral infections, and immune function, effective flu vaccine, sugar chip, etc.
Recently, Weng Qihui and Ma Che, a researcher from the Genome Research Centre, have also actively developed a broad-based vaccine, developed a monoglycated spike protein (S protein) vaccine that is not afraid of virus mutations, and found a super monoclonal antibody "m31A7". The ability of the pneumovirus is more than a hundred times better than that of all monoclonal antibody therapies in the world.
At the age of 31, Weng Qihui went to the United States to pursue a doctoral degree, which opened his path to sugar molecular science. After graduation, he has been doing sugar molecular science research in the American academic circle. After studying in the United States for more than 20 years, he was elected as an academician of the National Academy of Sciences.
In 2000, Weng Qihui returned to Taiwan to host the Biochemical Polysaccharide Laboratory of Academia Sinica at the invitation of Li Yuanzhe, then president of the Academia Sinica. In 2003, he took over as the director of the Genomics Center of the Academia Sinica, in 2006, as the president of the Academia Sinica, and in 2019 as the president of the National Biotechnology and Medical Industry Promotion Council. (Central News Agency)
Ref: news.tvbs.com.tw/politics/1580876
News (3) to (4) / Source : Myanmar Now
News (3)
Regime targets in Magway and Sagaing regions targeted
Resistance forces carried out multiple attacks on junta targets
in Magway and Sagaing regions on Tuesday, as Myanmar’s shadow government
stepped up its campaign to oust the country’s military dictatorship.
The Magway-based Beikthano People’s Defence Force (PDF) said in
a statement that it hit five military targets in four of the region’s townships
on Tuesday. The group, which takes its name from an ancient city founded
in the region some 2,000 years ago, said its members attacked Light Infantry
Battalion 103, based in Taungdwingyi Township, with a bomb at around 4.30am.
It said it then set off explosions targeting two transmission
towers used to supply electricity to the No.17 Defence Appliances Factory in
the village of Nyaung Kone in Myothit Township.
The homes of a municipal official in Yaysakyo Township and the
Ku Lar Shin village administrator in Natmauk Township were also bombed in
pre-dawn attacks, according to the statement.
Regime forces providing security for a branch of the state-owned
Myanma Economic Bank in Natmauk were the fifth target, the statement added.
Meanwhile, in neighbouring Sagaing Region, another local PDF
carried out a grenade attack on Kalay Township’s central police station on
Tuesday afternoon.
A local resident told Myanmar Now that he heard an explosion
followed by two gunshots near the station, but was not aware of any casualties.
“It happened at around 1.30pm. We heard two gunshots, but I
haven’t heard anything about any police officers being killed,” said the
resident, whose account was confirmed by another person living in the
area.
In a separate incident, regime forces arrested two people in
Kalay on Tuesday after driving into them as they took part in a protest march,
according to local sources.
In a speech delivered early Tuesday morning, the acting
president of the shadow National Unity Government, Duwa Lashi La, officially declared war on the junta that overthrew
Myanmar’s elected civilian government on 1 February.
“This revolution is a just and fair revolution and is necessary
to build a federal union with sustainable peace,” Duwa Lashi La said in the
speech, as he called on all citizens to resist a regime that has killed more
than 1,000 civilians since seizing power.
News (4)
Members and allies of Myanmar's resistance respond to NUG's declaration of war against Junta
Following Tuesday morning’s declaration of war against
the junta by the National Unity Government (NUG), Myanmar Now spoke to members
and allies of the anti-dictatorship movement about what could await the
resistance forces in confronting a military that both outnumbers and outguns
them.
The NUG’s announcement came seven days and seven months after
Myanmar’s February 1 coup, during which time the military council killed more
than 1,000 people and jailed several thousand opponents and dissidents.
The declaration was also made one week before the opening of the
76th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York on 14 September 2021. The UN
Credentials Committee is expected to be asked to make a decision regarding who
will occupy Myanmar’s seat at the General Assembly—NUG-allied Ambassador Kyaw
Moe Tun, who was appointed by the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD)
government, or a junta-appointed representative.
Junta spokesperson Gen Zaw Min Tun told the pro-military People
Media on Tuesday that he believed the NUG’s announcement was intended to
coincide with the opening of the General Assembly.
He dismissed the NUG’s call to arms, referring to them as
“extremists.”
“They are inciting [others] to commit more violence and for the
public to become terrified and for instability,” the general was quoted as
saying, telling the public that they “do not need to worry.”
The NUG was formed in April with the support of the Committee
Representing the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, which is made up of elected lawmakers who
were unable to take their seats in parliament.
Recognising the NUG as Myanmar’s legitimate government, many
members of the Myanmar public showed support for the administration’s call to
war against the junta, which they aim to topple.
Dr. Miemie Winn Byrd, retired US army officer
“Between firepower and the people power, the latter has proven
to be more important during a battle,” Dr. Miemie Winn Byrd, a Burmese-American
retired lieutenant colonel who served nearly three decades in the US army, told
Myanmar Now.
She speculated that the Myanmar military, despite possessing
advanced weaponry, is struggling due to the momentum brought on by the Civil
Disobedience Movement (CDM), including the securing of public trust, new
recruits, and international support.
“People are already questioning the integrity of the military
leaders. This factor is very important in this war. It would be very hard for
them to get anything done because no one is believing anything they say,” Dr.
Byrd continued.
While rumours of Tuesday’s NUG announcement had been circulating
online for weeks, Dr. Miemie Win Byrd said that the resistance would need to be
tight-lipped about its plans regarding the revolution in order for their
actions to have maximum impact.
“We should be very careful so as not to reveal our plans to the
opponent, as it would do nothing but make them more prepared to retaliate
against our attacks,” she said. “When the weak goes against the strong, their
best chance is to ambush them when the opponent is not expecting it. If
information leaks [online], it would help prepare the enemy to respond to the
ambush.”
Cpn Lin Htet Aung, Myanmar military defector
Cpn Lin Htet Aung, a Myanmar army officer who took part in the
CDM by defecting and joined the resistance, told Myanmar Now that he believes
many soldiers still serving in the junta’s armed forces are opposed to the
coup, and more will defect when the war begins.
“It is now high time that the junta soldiers pick the side of
the people and disobey the dictators. Failing to do so will bring nothing but
misfortune to their lives,” he said. “It has now become clear what’s right and
what’s wrong. Be on the right side of history. Come to the people’s side in
whatever way that you can.”
Col Naw Bu, KIA
Col Naw Bu, the spokesperson for the Kachin Independence Army
(KIA)—which has been engaging in clashes with the junta’s armed forces in the
northern part of the country—welcomed the NUG’s call to arms, noting that
Kachin forces had already been fighting against the military for 60
years.
“The people need to take responsibility and contribute however
they can if we want to end the dictatorship led by Min Aung Hlaing. We also
need to be very careful regarding our own security. These are the two
responsibilities of the people,” the colonel said.
Col Naw Bu declined to comment on the extent of communication
between the KIA and the NUG.
Khu Daniel, KNPP
Khu Daniel, Secretary (1) of the Karenni National Progressive
Party (KNPP)—whose armed wing, the Karenni Army, has been fighting against the
junta forces in ethnic Karenni territory—said that Tuesday’s declaration
signified the start of more intensified resistance to the military council by the
NUG and their allied forces.
“Now that the official announcement is here, everyone needs to
actually participate in the process. Everyone, including the civil servants
that are still going to work. This can end only if everyone takes part in it,”
he said.
Political analyst, Yangon
A Yangon-based political analyst pointed out that because of the
sacrifices they have made, the public have high expectations of the NUG and its
forces and expect the complete overthrow of the military dictatorship.
“If they don’t manage to give us a strong start, the people will
start losing trust in the NUG and this could lead to a decrease in the people’s
support in the future,” the analyst said.
News (5) to (9) / Source : The Irrawaddy
News (5)
Other Myanmar resistance forces' response to NUG's declaration of war on Junta
People’s Defense Forces (PDF) across Myanmar have announced an escalation in attacks on junta forces in response to the declaration of war by the shadow, civilian National Unity Government (NUG),
Several PDFs have urged residents to be alert and help resistance fighters as more fighting is expected.
In a speech on Tuesday, the NUG’s acting president Duwa Lashi La called on all citizens to “revolt against the rule of military terrorists led by coup leader Min Aung Hlaing in every corner of the country by declaring all of Myanmar to be under a state of emergency”.
A leader of the Chinland Defense Force in Mindat, which has been fighting the junta in Chin State since late April, said: “We are pleased about the NUG’s announcement about preparations for the whole country to resist the junta. We can make a move if we push together. We already have plans to force the military dictatorship out of the country.”
The Mindat resistance has inflicted heavy casualties on the military regime in the township.
On Tuesday, the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF) in Kayah State said there have already been more operations against the regime since the declaration of a people’s war against the junta.
The KNDF has urged people not to be afraid of clashes and to cooperate with the PDF.
Myanmar Junta denies accepting ASEAN ceasefire proposal
Image : Myanmar military spokesperson Major Zaw Min Tun (Web Screenshot / The Irrawaddy)
Myanmar’s military regime has denied that it has accepted the call for a four-month ceasefire made by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) special envoy to Myanmar.
ASEAN’s special envoy, Erywan Yusof, told Kyodo News on Saturday that the junta had accepted his proposal of a four-month ceasefire until the end of this year to enable the delivery of humanitarian aid to Myanmar. The special envoy made the proposal to the junta-appointed Foreign Minister, U Wunna Maung Lwin, on 31 August 2021.
Erywan Yusof, Brunei’s second minister for foreign affairs, said also that he hopes to visit Myanmar this month and that he had requested a meeting with detained State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. However, the military regime has not yet said if he will be allowed to do so.
Junta spokesperson Major General Zaw Min Tun told The Irrawaddy on Monday that U Wunna Maung Lwin did not say that Myanmar had agreed to Erywan Yusof’s call for a ceasefire.
The Myanmar military has extended its current truce monthly until 30 September since it was first declared on 21 December 2018, said the Maj. Gen, adding that it is ethnic armed organizations (EAO’s) who are violating the terms of the military-announced ceasefire on the ground.
“ASEAN also shared their assistance when the Cambodian health minister came to offer support. ASEAN’s general secretary is also planning to visit. We also invited the ASEAN special envoy to our press conference, which he declined to join,” said Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun.
The junta spokesperson said that the regime will not block humanitarian assistance or bar the visit of the ASEAN special envoy to Myanmar.
Erywan Yusof said also that he has passed his proposal for a ceasefire indirectly to parties opposed to the regime.
However, some EAOs have said that they do not believe that the junta would abide by any ceasefire.
Padoh Mahn Mahn, the spokesman for the Karen National Union’s Mutraw (Papun) District said that the military had previously taken advantage of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement to strengthen its power.
“It is nothing new because even if there is a ceasefire the military tend to use the tactics of divide and rule, leaving some areas out [of any ceasefire],” said Padoh Mahn Mahn.
A member of the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force also questioned whether any ceasefire would work.
“We can’t trust them; the military has deployed more troops in our [Kayah] state,” he said.
Myanmar has been in crisis since the military takeover and the ousting of the National League for Democracy government led by Daw Aung Suu Kyi. Armed resistance to the regime by civilian fighters and EAO’s has spread to every part of the country, apart from Rakhine State.
On 7 September 2021, the National Unity Government (NUG) calls for the whole country to revolt and wage war against the military regime.
Last Sunday (5 September 2021), the NUG calls on the international community to help stop the junta’s crimes against innocent civilians.
News (7)
Myanmar's shadow government declares war on military regime
Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) declared war on the country’s regime on Tuesday in order “to root out military rule”, taking the ongoing armed struggle against the junta to another level, with fighting expected to intensify across the country.
News (8)
NUG declares Myanmar under state of emergency
In a speech to the country on Tuesday morning, the NUG’s acting president, Duwa Lashi La, called on all citizens to “revolt against the rule of military terrorists led by [coup leader] Min Aung Hlaing in every corner of the country” and declared all of Myanmar to be under a state of emergency.
“It will last until the resumption of civilian rule in the country,” he said.
The acting president also urged anyone serving under the regime to leave their job as of today and requested that the public refrain from traveling, while asking for their support.
The NUG was formed in April, largely comprising elected lawmakers from the ousted National League for Democracy government and their ethnic allies. Since its formation, it has enjoyed support at home and abroad.
News (9)
Myanmar crisis expected to be dominant issue at UN meeting
The announcement of the official armed struggle against the regime comes one week before the opening of this year’s session of the UN General Assembly in New York. If fighting intensifies in the coming days, the Myanmar crisis is expected to be one of the dominant issues at the meeting.
The NUG’s call for armed struggle comes seven months after the military takeover in the country; Myanmar has already seen sporadic deadly civilian armed resistance against the military for months, as many young people have taken up arms in response to the junta’s deadly crackdowns on protesters. At the same time, ethnic armed groups in Kachin and Karen states have launched deadly offensives against regime troops to show solidarity with the anti-regime movement. The armed groups have also offered weapons training to the young people; many have launched deadly guerrilla attacks against regime troops and their associates in urban areas. As a result, the regime has been unable to assert control of the country as a whole.
Regarding the NUG’s call for war, it’s not yet clear how it would launch offensives. Despite the nationwide presence of civilian resistance groups like the People’s Defense Forces (PDF), the regime still outnumbers and outguns them.
Regional bloc ASEAN, of which Myanmar is a member, has tried to intervene by assigning a special envoy for the country. The envoy recently called for a four-month ceasefire to allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid.
See also: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/head-of-myanmars-shadow-govt-says-world-will-back-its-declaration-of-war-against-junta.html, https://staygate.blogspot.com/2021/09/myanmar-junta-agrees-to-four-month.html
News (10) to (11) / Reporter : Wang Jiayi / Editor : Shao Yi / https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/21/9/7/n13215816.htm
News (10)
Taliban occupy Kabul, Uyghurs stranded in fear
Image : With the rapid occupation of Kabul by the Taliban, the situation in Afghanistan has caused international concern. At the same time, countries around the world are also paying attention to the CCP's actions against the Taliban. The picture shows a Taliban fighter equipped with a machine gun on the top of the vehicle as they patrol a street in Kabul. (Photo by Wakil Kohsar/AFP via Getty Images)
With the rapid occupation of Kabul by the Taliban, Uyghurs living in Afghanistan fear that they will be deported to China after the Taliban takes over power. "The Uyghurs living there have been systematically persecuted by the CCP and forced to flee their homes. The situation in Afghanistan is changing at any time, and the situation of Uyghurs there is worrying." Yili, spokesperson for the World Uyghur Congress Shati said.
The international community is also paying close attention to the CCP's next move. The Wakhan Corridor connecting China and Afghanistan has once again attracted attention.
The Wakhan Corridor, also known as the Afghanistan Corridor, is a long and narrow strip extending from Afghanistan to Xinjiang, China. It is adjacent to Tajikistan on the southern edge of the Pamirs in the north, the Hindu Kush Mountains in the south, and Pakistan and the east on the east. Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. Known as the "land of the Four Kingdoms". It is one of the key land routes in western China. Historically, it was part of the ancient Silk Road.
According to a VOA report on 3 September, there are about 2,000 Uyghurs born or living in Afghanistan worried that they will be sent back to China after the Taliban take over power, and they will be jailed like the 1 million Uyghurs in Xinjiang detention camps.
At present, Taliban and CCP officials frequently release signals of close cooperation. A Taliban spokesperson stated on 2 September that China (the CCP) will now become the "main partner" of the organization, and they will rely mainly on funds from China to develop Afghanistan.
News (11)
Uyghurs fleeing China are more worried about being deported than ever
According to a report by Radio Asia, there are about 80 Uyghur families in Kabul living in confusion and fear of Taliban rule. Maimat said that he is a Uyghur. When he went to buy bread for his children recently, he was confronted by the Taliban. The militants' beatings cannot escape. "Kazakhstan is taking Kazakhs out of Afghanistan, Uzbekistan is taking Uzbeks out of Afghanistan, Turkey and all other countries are taking away their own citizens, but no one is asking about our situation. No one is even helping us."
A Turkish Uyghur said that relatives in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan’s fourth largest city, told him, “Taliban militants are now entering ordinary families and kidnapping girls. Many Uyghurs in Afghanistan hold Chinese ID cards that have expired, but they still write "Chinese Turkestan immigrants." If this information falls into the hands of the Taliban in the next few days, China (the CCP) may say that Uyghurs of this kind have left Xinjiang and hope the Taliban will hand us over."
Muhammad, a Uyghur jewellery merchant living in Kabul, told VOA that he is more concerned about safety than ever.
"I am most worried that the Taliban will eventually send us back to China, and China will only shoot at us," "The CCP government believes that any Uyghur in Afghanistan is an ETIM and poses a threat to China (the CCP). The Taliban have been saying, They represent and protect the interests of Muslims, but their promise to the Chinese (CCP) government is exactly the opposite."
Analysts say that one of the biggest fears of Uyghurs in Afghanistan is being labeled the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), a key strategy used by China to discredit Xinjiang’s ethnic minorities for infringing their rights.
On 5 September, Yili Shati, director of the China Affairs Department of the World Uyghur Congress, told the Epoch Times reporter that all Uyghurs who fled from China under the systematic persecution of the CCP, no matter where they live in (the world), are facing The CCP’s cross-border persecution; especially in China’s neighboring countries, like Afghanistan, where Uyghurs are now in a miserable situation.
Yili Shati said that in view of Beijing's long-standing transnational repression of Uyghurs, the possibility of China and the Taliban cooperating to expel Uyghurs is very high. The new government in Kabul has long-term ties with Beijing. They need the CCP’s economic investment and the CCP’s diplomatic and political support. The Uyghurs in exile here are in a very dangerous situation.
The World Uyghur Congress called on the international community to provide humanitarian assistance to Uyghurs living in Afghanistan while paying attention to the current situation in Afghanistan.
News (12)
Taipei aces epidemic response with smart technology
In the push for smart city programs around
the world, the Taipei City Government’s rebranded digital pass TaipeiPASS enables a quick
vaccination appointment and, in the near future, could incorporate digital
proof of COVID-19 vaccination status, adding to the city's array of diverse and
smart COVID-19 containment measures.
News (13)
Taipei Card renamed as TaipeiPASS in 2021 enables vote-casting, lodgment of complaints, offense reports
Known as the "Taipei Card" until 2020, TaipeiPASS was designed as a one-stop solution for 80% of municipal services, from paying taxes and parking tickets, to utility bill payments, access to library resources and a citizen hotline. In addition, Taiwanese citizens can remotely cast their votes, e-file complaints, report offenses and enjoy exclusive dining and shopping discounts at stores.
An English version is available for most of the services.
News (14)
Use TaipeiPASS to track footprints of suspected covid casualties
Since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020,
the tech-savvy among the city government have delved into digital technology
initiatives to contain the spread of the virus.
In 2021, TaipeiPASS has been revamped for check-ins that enable contact-tracing of suspected covid patients. Also, QR codes are displayed at registration counters, making it easier for people to check-in and for the City Covid Response Team to track the footprints of the patients.
Simon Lu, commissioner of Taipei's Department of Information Technology, said the convenience of TaipeiPASS helps prevent covid transmission. As for those less familiar with smart devices, visitors and residents can check-in with a registered Taipei EasyCard (悠遊卡).
As the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination
program is being rolled out, TaipeiPASS has also tapped into the country’s
COVID-19 vaccination registration and reservation system, streamlining the
process of scheduling a jab. The system is the scheduling method that requires
the least effort, according to popular tech blog Mr. Mad.
In the future, TaipeiPASS will incorporate digital proof of vaccination status, with the hope that post-pandemic life will be easier as the restaurant and tourism sectors resume operations.
News (15)
Apply pandemic relief subsidies through TaipeiPASS
Individuals who have lost their job or gone
out of business since the start of Taiwan's first major covid outbreak in
mid-May have been able to apply for pandemic relief subsidies through the
platform. This reduces the risk of exposure to the virus by circumventing a
trip to government agencies.
With the service portal, users can pay local
taxes, water bills, parking, medical, and tuition fees. The platform also supports
various forms of digital payment, including Easy Wallet, JKOPAY, and ezPay.
As cyber-attacks become increasingly
sophisticated and ransomware continues to pose a threat, the platform was built
with the highest standard of data security. “The system was built on dual
protections — Public Key Infrastructure as well as on Zero Trust Network —the
toughest access controls to protect data during transmission,” Lu explained.
“Additional security layers are implemented
as the city government leverages cellular and wireless technologies to connect
and improve infrastructure to ensure a desired quality of life for residents
and visitors alike."
News (16)
Cuba takes the lead in using unapproved domestic vaccines for children over 2 years old
Image : On 24 August 2021, at the Juan Manuel Max Hospital in Havana, 13-year-old Brian Alejandro Gasco received the Cuban vaccine Soberana vaccination (Adalberto Roque /AFP via Getty Images)
Cuba began to administer the covi vaccine to children over 2 years old on 6 September 2021. The vaccine is one of the domestic vaccines not approved by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Cuba is the first country in Latin America to independently develop a covi vaccine but the Cuban vaccine has not yet been reviewed by international scientific peers. They use the same recombinant protein technology as the Novavax and Sanofi vaccines in the United States. Novavax and Sanofi vaccines are also waiting for WHO approval.
After Cuba completed clinical trials of the domestic vaccines "Abdala" (Abdala) and "Soberana" against minors, the vaccination of children started on the 3rd, starting from the age of 12.
On 6 September, the central province of Cienfuegos began to distribute vaccines for groups of 2 to 11 years old.
Several other countries have successively vaccinated adolescents over the age of 12, and some countries are experimenting with younger children, but Cuba is the first country to act.
In addition, countries such as China, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela have announced plans to vaccinate younger children; Chile on 6 September approves the Sinovac vaccine CoronaVac for children between 6 and 12 years old.
Most Cuban schools have been closed since March 2020. They restarted for a few weeks at the end of last year, but closed again in January this year. The new school year starts on 6 September but pupils study through TV programs at home because most Cuban families do not have internet access.
The authorities announced that schools will gradually restart in October and November, but they must reopen after all school children have been vaccinated.
Cuba has a population of 11.2 million. Since the outbreak, about 5,700 people in Cuba have died of covid, and nearly half of them died last month; the country has a total of about 690,000 cases, but the cases discovered last month accounted for nearly 1/3 of them.
News (17)
U.S. media public documents reveal new details of U.S. funding for Wuhan Institute of Viology
Since the outbreak, new details have been exposed about whether US funds have been used to fund Wuhan Institute of Virology to conduct research on SARS-CoV-2.
The US investigative news website The Intercept published more than 900 pages of documents on the 6th, detailing the EcoHealth Alliance's use of federal funds to fund research on several types of SARS-CoV in Wuhan laboratories in detail.
These documents were obtained after Intercept filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the National Institutes of Health.
This batch of documents includes two previously unannounced funding proposals funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as project updates on related research with the Eco-Health Alliance. At present, the US authorities are carefully reviewing the alliance and quickly frozen the original allocation.
Gary Ruskin, executive director of the US Right To Know, said in response to the newly released document,"This is a roadmap for high-risk research, and it may be possible to (further explore) this pandemic disease.” The organization has been investigating the origin of the covid.
According to the document, one of the funding projects entitled "Understanding the Risks of Covid-19 in Bats" was led by Peter Daszak, Chairman of the Eco-Health Alliance and Pathogen Consultant of the World Health Organization, with the aim of Screen a large number of bat samples to look for SARS-CoV-2. The research also involves screening people who interact with live animals.
According to its proposal, “Specifically, we will conduct field research in China, obtain high-quality samples from bats, and identify, characterize and isolate known and new coronaviruses. We will analyze the status of coronaviruses. The mode of transmission between bats and other wild animals, and the risk of transmission to humans."
The Ecological Health Alliance received US$3.1 million in funding through this bat project, of which US$599,000 was allocated to the Wuhan Institute of Virology to study and identify and change the bat coronavirus that may infect humans.
"Intercept" pointed out that these documents raise more questions about the theory that the disease may start from a laboratory accident, and many scientists expressed concern about the potential dangers associated with such experiments even before the outbreak.
Part of its funding proposal also acknowledges that these studies involve some dangerous situations. The document states: “These fieldwork involves the highest risk of exposure to SARS or other CoVs. At the same time (researchers) working in caves with a high density of bats may be Inhale dust from bat feces."
Alina Chan, a molecular biologist at the Broad Institute, said these documents show that the Eco-Health Alliance has reasons to take the laboratory leak theory seriously.
"In this proposal, they actually pointed out that they knew how risky this work was. They kept talking about people who might be bitten, and they also kept a record of every bitten person," Chen said "Does the Eco-Health Alliance have these records? If not, how can they rule out research-related accidents?"
Richard Ebright, a molecular biologist at Rutgers University, said that these file packages involve key information for the creation of new viruses in Wuhan. "The viruses they created have passed the ability to infect mice. These little mice are designed to display human-type receptors on their cells."
Ebright said that these documents clearly show that two different types of SARS-CoV-2 can infect "humanized mice." According to the document, the experiment of "humanized mice" was carried out in a third-level biosafety laboratory in the Animal Experiment Center of Wuhan University.
The grant was initially granted for a five-year period, from 2014 to 2019, and was extended in 2019. With the outbreak of the epidemic, the research funding was finally suspended by the U.S. government in April 2020.
Regarding the documents published by "Intercept", Robert Kessle, communications manager of the Eco-Health Alliance, responded, "We are applying for funding for research. The relevant agencies consider it to be important research, so they funded it. So I don't know what to say."
News (18)
North Korean military shocked. A large number of soldiers suspected of being infected with the epidemic
Image : On 4 September 2017, two North Korean soldiers were sleeping in front of a guard post on the bank of the Yalu River near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite Dandong, Liaoning Province, northeastern China. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)
According to multiple sources within North Korea, a large number of North Korean soldiers suspected of being infected with covid have died in hospitals recently. The incident shocked the country’s military authorities, and the news even reached North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who was said to be very angry.
According to a report by Korean media "Mainichi Korea" on 7 September, a military official in Gangwon-do told the media on the 6th that in July and August, there were 45 temporary wards for "infectious diseases" operated at the headquarters of the Second Army Corps. A soldier died. He said, "After reporting to the Army Health Bureau under the title of "Statistics of Combat and Battle Deaths During Political Training 2020-2021," the ward was closed and the patients were transferred to another temporary facility."
At the same time, a military official in Namphu said on the 4th that the Army Health Bureau had received statistics on deaths in the Second Army during the summer and winter training. He said the hospital was in a "state of chaos" after being reprimanded, which meant that the ward was reprimanded by the superiors due to the unexpectedly high death toll.
The problem is much more than that. As general statistics show that the death toll of the entire army far exceeds expectations, the country's military authorities are in a state of shock.
North Korea’s front-line regiments such as the First and Second Corps had the highest number of deaths, followed by the regiments and headquarters stationed on the border between China and North Korea, and then the “rear regiments” and training camps. The number of deaths in the wards of suspected CCP cases was highest in the Second and Third Army Corps.
"The military authorities were shocked. Despite the strongest quarantine measures, so many people died, and the top leader (Kim Jong Un) was also very angry," the source said. "They said the only thing to do is to speak up. Call for strengthening quarantine work."
Since the military authorities believed that the CCP virus pandemic would end soon, military units adopted temporary measures, such as changing the first floor of the tuberculosis ward into a CCP virus ward, or placing beds in the warehouse to isolate suspicious cases.
However, during the winter training period that began on 1 December 2020, all corps had fever. The military ordered a large-scale quarantine, and the authorities began to build temporary quarantine facilities in the mountains far away from the troops.
In addition, doctors did not provide accurate "diagnosis" or "treatment" to patients. The source said that patients suffering from tuberculosis, hepatitis and even colds were "relentlessly" placed in makeshift wards "as if they were kidnapped", and there was no precise diagnosis of their disease.
The source explained that the patient “did not receive any medical or pathological treatment, just check the body temperature and sunbathe every day”. The patient is also not getting proper nutrition. Soldiers in quarantine received only 450 grams of cold miscellaneous grains (150 grams per meal) and salted cabbage soup every day.
The report said that North Korean military units tried to cover up the deaths, and they informed their families that the soldiers had died in "accidents." However, relatives of soldiers quarreled with the military and lodged a complaint with the Ministry of Defense.
After being reprimanded by the Ministry of National Defense, North Korean military units began to submit formal reports. Then the news began to spread to some military families. According to sources, the families are worried that the military "cannot guarantee that another mass death will not occur because the soldiers have to live together in a barracks."
According to North Korean military regulations, the Army Health Bureau must write an assessment report in August each year, one month before the end of the training day (30 September), detailing the number of hospitalizations in the army and the training period, the number of deaths and their causes.
News (19)
Multi-country tracing BGI's prenatal genetic testing cooperates with the CCP military
China BGI is being investigated by many countries. This is because there is evidence that it cooperates with the Chinese military to collect genetic data from foreign users through prenatal inspections.
In July 2021, BGI was exposed to cooperation with the CCP’s military, using the “Non-Invasive Fetal Chromosome Genetic Test” (NIFTY), which is popular in more than 50 countries around the world, to collect genetic data on 8.4 million women worldwide. Concerns of regulatory agencies in various countries.
At present, regulatory agencies in Germany, Canada, Australia and other countries have indicated that they are reviewing the data protection issues of this genetic test. A Canadian regulatory agency has advised local women to seek genetic testing from other places where protection measures are appropriate.
U.S. government advisers warned as early as March this year that BGI is collecting and using artificial intelligence to analyze a huge genome database, which may cause the CCP to bring harm to the United States that cannot be ignored in the future.
Image : Video Screenshot
Today’s focus: The black swan appears in Beijing, an ominous omen for the CCP? Forcing common prosperity, fear of becoming common poverty? Infighting in Zhongnanhai is fierce, fearing civil war? The restoration of ultra-left socialism, repeating the bloody storm of the Cultural Revolution?
On 5 September, a black swan landed on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, causing crowds to watch. The police also dispatched to disperse the crowd. Because the "black swan" is a sensitive and ominous symbol, and it appeared in the most politically iconic Tiananmen Square, it has aroused heated discussions at home and abroad.
But in fact, the CCP and China have indeed encountered many "black swans" risks. These black swans not only endanger the people's livelihood in China, but also endanger the survival of the CCP regime. After all, which "black swan" threats hover over Beijing? What challenges will it bring to the CCP and China? How will the cross-strait situation and the situation in East Asia be affected? In this episode, I will discuss with you.
News (20)
Black swan spotted in Beijing, hotly debated
In the past two days, a cute and strange incident occurred in Beijing, which has aroused heated discussions at home and abroad. On September 5, a black swan landed on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, attracting the surrounding people to watch. The black swan was considered an ominous omen of an accident and was therefore very sensitive. The police once drove away the crowd.
But it did not take long before the sky was still raining, which also made people wonder, does it mean that after the emergence of the black swan, Beijing or the CCP will be shaken by storms? Therefore, today we are going to talk to you about a topic:
Okay, let's talk about it first, why is the "black swan" considered a bad omen? Because there are two popular terms in the financial field: "black swan" and "gray rhino". A black swan refers to an event that is unexpected and has a low probability of occurrence, but has a huge impact. The gray rhino refers to an event that is obvious and very likely to happen, but is ignored by people, and finally leads to a major crisis.
Simply put, the black swan is a small probability disaster that is difficult to predict and prevent, such as the plague; while the gray rhino is a high probability risk that is visible but neglected to prevent, such as a debt crisis. Now, the black swan has landed in Beijing alive, and the CCP only announced the establishment of the Beijing Stock Exchange on September 2. Therefore, some friends have been discussing whether this ominous omen refers to a situation in the Beijing Stock Exchange?
News (21)
Five black swans circling the CCP's risk cover
Of course, we do not know whether the funds of the Beijing Stock Exchange will be taken away by the black swan. However, in my opinion, there are indeed black swans hovering over China and the CCP regime, and there is not only one, but a whole family. Let's talk to you about who is in this "black swan family":
News (22)
Black Swan No. 1: Forcing "common prosperity" to lead to common poverty
A few days ago, Xi Jinping chanted the slogan "Promoting Common Prosperity" and declared that he would carry out "three distributions" to the social economy. He immediately scared big companies out of money for charity, such as Tencent donated 50 billion yuan, Alibaba 100 billion, Pinduoduo also donated 10 billion.
Although the money came quickly, this approach actually turned these private enterprises into scapegoats for the inequality between the rich and the poor under the CCP’s rule. The CCP was unable to improve the inequality of the rich and the poor. As a result, the CCP used a knife to rob and force these companies to take the money. Handing it over, on the surface it is meant to be charity, but in fact it is to let the enterprise pay for the CCP’s social stability work and spend money to eliminate disasters. Private enterprises have become the CCP’s tokens and wallets, making enterprises frightened.
Moreover, the CCP's strategy of "killing the rich and making money" has also destroyed a key stepping stone for the rapid development of China's economy in the past 40 years, called "protection of property rights." Deng Xiaoping's reform and opening up at the beginning saw that the path of "community" would not work, and that China's economy would weaken and collapse. Therefore, he allowed the people to own private property, so that the people and enterprises have a positive motivation to work hard and make money.
However, the "common prosperity" this time is obviously that the government wants to seize private assets and lose protection of property rights. In addition, the Chinese government is vigorously interfering in the operation of the market and enterprises in the name of "anti-monopoly", preventing enterprises from free competition. These means On the one hand, private enterprises will lose their confidence and they will not dare to expand their investment easily. On the other hand, they will also disappoint overseas funds and will not dare to invest in China's real economy.
Moreover, this time the CCP forcibly forced large companies to "voluntarily donate". In fact, it is also deliberately trying to guide the public to "hate the rich" and make people think that companies are rich and unkind. Therefore, the party came out to uphold justice and ask big companies to hand over the money to the people. But in fact, I am not optimistic about whether the money will be handed over to the people, but what is certain is that this kind of struggle will increase the hostility and hatred of the people towards the enterprise.
As a result, entrepreneurs will face an increasingly severe living environment, and will encounter increasingly complex political risks, which will inhibit their willingness to invest and operate, and will likely prompt more companies to dissolve and lay off employees. Or move out. So in the future, China’s unemployment problem will rise, and the people’s income and consumption will decrease. In this way, China will not move towards "common prosperity" but instead towards "common poverty."
The CCP is also aware of this crisis, so it arranged for Vice Premier Liu He to come out to "clarify" and "wash the land", saying that Beijing's private economic development policy has not changed and will not change in the future, and it also said that property rights and intellectual property rights should be protected.
Well, obviously the CCP has found that something is wrong and wants to step on the brakes urgently to avoid scaring away private investment and foreign capital. But the problem is, now that Chinese society is beaten up by the CCP, who still believes what the CCP said?
Moreover, from another perspective, the CCP’s use of a knife to force companies to pay out is also very limited, and it cannot last for long. For example, Alibaba, Tencent and Pinduoduo donated a total of 160 billion yuan, which sounds like a lot, but Li Keqiang said that there are 600 million people in China who earn less than 1,000 yuan a month. Well, the average person can only be allocated 267 yuan at a time, but the utility is limited.
Therefore, if the CCP continues to adopt this method of "robbing the rich and robbing the pie," instead of trying to "make the pie bigger and bigger," then the Chinese economy will only become increasingly embarrassed and poorer.
News (23)
Black Swan No. 2 : The internal fighting in Zhongnanhai is too fierce, and military civil war or assassination may break out
Next year will be the power reorganization meeting of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. Now we have seen the power struggle of the high-level CCP unfolding in full swing. Not only has the rumor that Wang Yang is going to succeed Xi Jinping in the party, arousing dissatisfaction with the high-level Beijing; Tossing around the article together, advocating "profound change", it is suspected that the second "cultural revolution" will be launched.
These signs are actually the sword and shadow of the CCP’s court struggle. Moreover, when Mao Zedong launched the Cultural Revolution, he had an orderly combat model. He first started the war in the field of literature and art, and then the war spread to the political circle, and then mobilized the Red Guards to "rebel" with the masses across the country, causing serious "army fighting". "In the end, even the military intervened, and the whole of China fell into a state of "quasi-civil war".
Judging from this lesson learned, large-scale power struggles within the Communist Party of China often involve rivalries of military power. Especially during the period of Jiang Ze’s democratic administration, he condoned serious corruption in the army and fostered a large number of military personnel under the command of the Jiang faction. These personnel are still active in the military today, not only against Xi Jinping, but also blocking Xi Jinping’s opposition. Full control of military power.
In particular, several signals have been very sensitive recently: First, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China issued an article publicly mentioning that there is an interest group within the party "in a vain attempt to seize the power of the party and the state" and "undermine the centralization and unity of the party." Second, Xi Jinping made a speech inside the Party School of the Communist Party of China, emphasizing the need to be loyal to the party. He also said that he should not think about living a peaceful life, and that he should "throw away illusions and fight bravely" within the party.
The third signal is that the People's Daily published a review article on September 5, the full text was only more than 1,300 words, and it mentioned 30 "struggles." These three signals indicate that the high-level CCP has been fighting fiercely.
The fourth signal is that the Jiangxi Armed Police Major General Xu Yunfei published an article in the "Liberation Army Daily", emphasizing the need to be "loyal to the party" and to "completely eliminate the influence of Guo Xufang and Zhang's poisonous influence", that is, to eliminate the four previous Jiang faction "army tigers". "Corruption and the coup d'état. For the fifth signal, Xi Jinping publicly promoted five generals on September 6, including the commanders of the Western Theater, the Central Theater, the Navy and the Air Force, and the president of the National Defense University.
These two signals indicate that there are currently obvious problems of division and confrontation within the military. Therefore, Xi Jinping continued to propagandize and demand military loyalty. In addition, he also promoted five generals and cultivated his own personnel. First, he strengthened his control of the military. Secondly, he told his opponent that as long as he obeyed and followed him, it would be good.
In my opinion, these signs fully show that the high-level factions of the Chinese Communist Party are becoming more and more fierce in the political circle and the military battlefield, but they have not publicly torn their faces. So if the two sides fight out of control and use their military and police forces to carry out civil wars or assassinate each other, then this will be the most lethal black swan against the CCP.
News (24)
Black Swan No. 3: The restoration of ultra-left socialism repeats the Cultural Revolution
Although Xi Jinping seems to be launching the "Second Cultural Revolution" or "Cultural Revolution 2.0", judging from the current situation, the scale and intensity of this "Second Cultural Revolution" is estimated not to be as shocking as Mao Zedong's old Cultural Revolution, but rather similar. It is a "high-pressure version of political and economic purge." Because Xi Jinping's family was also a victim of the Cultural Revolution, he knew that if a full-scale Cultural Revolution was launched, it would cost the whole of China a painful price and the economy would collapse.
Therefore, Xi Jinping's "New Cultural Revolution", like Mao Zedong back then, used the banner of "socialism" to fight against political opponents and resist seizure of power to consolidate his power. But at present, it seems that the strength and scale of this new Cultural Revolution are still carefully controlled, without the madness and out-of-control of Mao Zedong.
However, in the unlikely event that Xi Jinping and the anti-Xi factions in the party really fought hard, and finally went into full-scale war and open conflicts, and the two sides had to fight to the death, it cannot be ruled out that this new Cultural Revolution would accelerate its escalation and evolve into a nationwide cultural revolution. Fighting and fighting will be bloody and heavy losses in various parts of China.
News (25)
Black Swan No. 4: The Taiwan Strait wipes out guns and ignites military conflicts in East Asia
The Taiwan Strait issue is another black swan of the CCP. Although the CCP’s current military strength cannot launch a full-scale attack on Taiwan, and Taiwan cannot actively attack the CCP, the most worrying thing at present is whether the Beijing authorities will misjudge the international situation and want to launch a “surprise attack” on Taiwan? Or will the Communist Army escalate its provocative efforts, causing cross-strait gunfire and detonating military conflicts?
For example, on September 5, the CCP sent 19 military aircraft to harass Taiwan’s southwestern airspace, the largest scale in the past two months. But the most important thing is that at this point in time, the U.S. was embarrassed by the issue of the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. At this time, the CCP sent a large number of military aircraft to fly between the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait. Obviously, the main purpose was to challenge the U.S. side and test the U.S. response.
After all, the Afghan issue makes the outside world think that the US is “weakened”, not only is it unable to fight the Taliban, but also withdraws its troops into a desperate situation. This may lead the CCP to misjudge the situation of “rising from the east and descending from the west”. Now may be a good time for the CCP to invade Taiwan or expand in the South China Sea. So this time the CCP sent a large number of military planes to harass Taiwan’s southwest airspace. On the one hand, it was training troops and on the other hand, it was also to test the US reaction.
In addition, the CCP conducted simultaneous exercises in the airspace of southeastern and southwestern Taiwan last month. It is very likely that if the CCP attacked Taiwan, a joint plane would simultaneously intercept the aid of US military aircraft and warships from southeastern and southwestern Taiwan. Therefore, after the exercise, CCP military experts declared that the CCP has the ability to "enclose and control Taiwan" and "encircle and annihilate" Taiwan.
Of course, these statements are mainly due to the high level of "intimidation by propaganda", but we must be vigilant. The CCP is already self-assessing and believes that they have the ability to "siege" Taiwan. In addition, the US has recently been struggling with the Afghanistan issue, and Japan is also The prime minister is about to be changed and the election is busy. These international developments can easily cause the CCP to misjudge the situation and increase the possibility of them taking risks.
If the CCP really wants to launch a large-scale "surprise attack" against Taiwan, or if some factors want to create small-scale military frictions against Taiwan to divert domestic pressure, then the CCP must be careful to wipe out its guns, it is likely to It attracted a joint counterattack from the US military and the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, leading to a military conflict in East Asia.
In the international community, countries that are friendly to Taiwan are also likely to launch economic sanctions to condemn the CCP’s use of force against Taiwan. This will allow another black swan with only lethal power to fly over the CCP.
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Black Swan No. 5: The epidemic is "political cleared" and unpredictable or re-erupt
In mid-July 2021, a large-scale epidemic broke out again in China, including Nanjing, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan and other major cities all caught in a new round of epidemic storms, but the official vowed to "completely zero" and fully control the epidemic. Then, the epidemic data was very obedient. On August 23, the official said that the local epidemic had been cleared, and only the imported cases were left.
Do you believe this data? I do not think that the epidemic in China is really cleared to zero. It was just "political cleared" and covered up by officials. Over the past year or so, we have been analyzing how the Chinese Communist Party officially covered up the epidemic and falsified data.
The simplest data is that the number of deaths due to the epidemic in China was 4,636 on 5 September but since 25 January, the number of deaths across the country has remained at 4,636, in other words, seven or eight deaths have passed. In May, no one in China died due to the epidemic again. Do you believe it?
Moreover, the CCP only announced at the end of August that the number of vaccines in China exceeded 2 billion doses, but the official has never announced how many people died after being vaccinated? Right, only official internal documents have relevant notification data. In other words, the true situation of China's epidemic and vaccines will always be official secrets and will always be hidden from the people.
If this continues, the epidemic will always be an unpredictable black swan. After all, the people do not know the true situation of the epidemic, and there is no way to prevent it. When the official announcement is made, the paper package is often out of the fire, and everyone is in disaster. Therefore, the epidemic is still China's black swan, and it may break out again at any time, once again hitting China's economy, society and people's livelihood.
Well, the above are the five black swans that we think the CCP and China may encounter at present. Although some may sound a bit sensational, the "black swans" are unexpected and unpredictable threats, but we try to use them as much as possible. I will explain the evidence we have for your reference.
News (27)
EVA Air pilots’ "283 personnel inspection results" exposed. Chen Shizhong: The current stage is over
Editor : Zhou Jiaru
Many pilots of EVA Air had a breakthrough infection after being vaccinated. Taoyuan Mayor Zheng Wencan explained in the morning that there were 424 people who had contact with pilots and students from Beike Affiliated Workers, and 361 people had second negative test results. In addition, all the tests of the crew were negative. In this regard, the command centre commander Chen Shizhong believes that the pilot's infection "has come to an end."
Taoyuan Mayor Zheng Wencan said on 8 September that 138 pilots listed in the quarantine centre have been quarantined, 138 have been negative for the second time, and the other 59 have been arranged for inspection one after another, and some have been released from isolation.
In addition, of the 223 students from Beike Affiliated Workers' Department, the second screening was negative, and 4 others are arranging screening. In addition, because Evergreen has accumulated three pilots who have been infected with the epidemic, they have flown to Chicago. Therefore, the crew members who have been to Chicago are specially listed for "retrospective project inspection." After the inspection, the results were all negative. Therefore, the crew is now "completed" and will continue to screen more than 1,200 other personnel.
News (28)
Many children gathered in New Taipei City were diagnosed! Zhang Shangchun: If it causes pneumonia, it will affect development
Reporter : Ye Weichen
New Taipei City’s kindergarten clusters broke out. The Central Epidemic Command Centre announced on 8 September 2021 7 new local cases, all of which were also clusters. Most of the confirmed cases were kindergarten students.
Commander Zhang Shangchun, the convener of the center's expert advisory group, said that if a child develops pneumonia, it will have an impact on the future lung development but the chance is very small.
Zhang Shangchun said that whether children suffering from severe pneumonia will have sequelae depends on his age. If he is already in school, there may be fibrotic changes after pneumonia occurs. In the past, there were some patients. The lung function can be fully recovered, and some of it is impaired. The older children are not much different from the adults. He added that if it is a very, very young child, for example, if a newborn has pneumonia, it will of course affect the subsequent lung development and will have a relatively large impact. Now it seems that this situation in newborns is minimal.
News (29)
Delta invasion! Kindergarten group gathering sequence results are released. Different from EVA Air pilots
Reporter : Ye Weichen
New Taipei City kindergartens broke out in a cluster case. The Central Epidemic Command Center announced today (8) 7 new local cases, all of which are cluster events. A total of 23 people have been diagnosed, and 10 of them have genetic sequencing results released, confirmed as the Delta variant (Covi72).
Commander Chen Shizhong pointed out that it has been determined that some of the infected persons are genetically sequenced as Covi72, but compared with the viruses of EVA Air pilots, it is found that the virus sequences are different, which means that they are clusters of different sources. Next, we have to wait for the completion of the New Beifang disease investigation. Only later can we understand the whole picture.
Some experts believe that if it is confirmed to be the Delta virus, it should immediately return to the control intensity of the three-level alert. Chen Shizhong responded to this and has been doing relevant assessments on how to control the epidemic, such as before Taoyuan. The status of screening has minimized the possibility, and I hope that New Taipei City can achieve the same effect, but it is more complicated now, because there are more kindergartens involved and have entered the community, but the epidemic is still actively controlled. As for infection where is the source?
More epidemic investigations are needed, but it is also possible that the source cannot be found.
The mayor of New Taipei City Hou Youyi today pointed out that the possible source of infection in the cluster case was that the father of case 16145 returned to the Republic of China from Egypt in August this year. Chen Shizhong said that during the home quarantine process, all the tests were negative, but if there is yin, yin and yang afterwards, it is not impossible, but more information is needed, including family and children. Further sequencing is needed.
Due to the continuous expansion of this cluster case, there are confirmed patients living in the same building as the anesthesia nurse at National Taiwan University Hospital. New Taipei City raised the epidemic prevention specifications before the sequence was released. After the inspection, the building was completely emptied.
News (30)
NIH documents exposed, Fauci hearing did not tell the truth
The documents of the US-funded Wuhan Institute of Viology (WIV) were exposed, covering funds, experimental content and security. Fauci did not tell the truth in the Congressional hearing.
According to the Freedom of Information Act, The Intercept obtained 900 pages of documents from the National Institute of Health (NIH) funded by the Eco-Health Alliance for the Armed Forces Institute (WIV). From functional enhancement research to experimental safety, it proved that Fauci did not testify in Congress. to be honest. There are many aspects of traceability that can be dig deep.
News (31)
Intercepting organization received NIH funding documents from the WIV and Drug Institute Fund
An organization called Intercept published the 900-page NIH document they obtained.
1. Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, the Intercepting Organization obtained details of more than 900 pages of documents about the functional acquisition research conducted by the National Institute of Health and the Ecological Health Alliance funded by the Armed Forces Institute.
Funds, there are two funds:
Previously, according to the paper published by WIV, it was known that the 2014 and 2019 funds supported the experiment, but now it can be confirmed from the 2014 fund report and the 2017 fund application. The 2014 5-year fund ended in 2019, and the 2019 fund was also renewed, but it was suspended by the Trump administration in April 2020.
This fund is given to the Ecological Health Alliance, with a total of 3.1 million, of which 599,000 went to the Wudu Institute.
The second fund is given in 2020 and will last until 2025.
News (32)
The gain-of-function experiment on SARS and MERS is confirmed
2. Content. The blocking organization will announce the content to the public. The existing news is based on the content of the blocked website and the Twitter of Rutgers University Albert Wright who has seen the file.
Gain-of-function research:
The document confirms that the fund supports the creation of a SARS-related chimeric virus, combining the spike gene of one coronavirus with the genetic information of another coronavirus, and the result is a new coronavirus that can infect human cells and can also infect humanized mice.
The document also discloses for the first time that this newly created virus is more infectious to humanized mice than the original virus of its template, that is, it has enhanced pathogenicity.
The document also revealed that the U.S. fund supported the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) to create a new MERS-type coronavirus, using an experiment combining the spike gene of a MERS-type coronavirus with the genetic information of another MERS-type coronavirus. The spike gene of one kind of coronavirus mentioned here is the template, and the gene information of the other virus is the synthetic part.
NIH and Fauci are aware of experimental risks but cover up from the public
3. Laboratory safety. There is a fund application in the document stating that the virus experiment is carried out in the P3 laboratory of the Animal Experiment Center of Wuhan University, not in the military poisoning institute that everyone thinks.
Who is deliberately concealing and lying?
In the fund application, the danger of the experiment was recognized, and there are records of contacts and bat bites. Does Daszak have these records? Since he knows the risks, why is the laboratory leak described as a conspiracy theory?
The content of the fund stated that NIH and Fauci had long known that they had funded WIV's coronavirus gain-of- function acquisition research but Fauci lied to the American people and Congress.
Everyone remembers that in two hearings in Congress, Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky (who is a doctor) questioned Fauci's funding of the research on the function of the WIV. Fauci denied it.
Today, a large number of media reports believe that the documents reveal that Fauci did not tell the truth or simply lied.
What the exposure document tells us
4. Although many people on social media today believe that the epidemic came from the WIV, the document itself does not confirm that these studies have a direct causal relationship with this global epidemic. However, the most authoritative fund application and the first-hand data of the progress of regular reports prove that: 1) WIV has conducted a large number of gain-of-function studies, 2) NIH has provided funds through the Ecological Health Alliance;
3) Therefore, NIH (including Director Collins and Director of Infectious Diseases Fauci) has always known, but concealed it from the American public and Congress;
4) As the fund provider and experimental participant, the Health Ecological Alliance and its Daszak should know better than NIH. There are still more with Fauci. On the one hand, they should continue to investigate their experimental records, and on the other hand, they should be investigated for their crimes of misleading the public and suppressing scientific traceability.
The epidemic broke out in Wuhan. The WIV should be the first focus of the traceability investigation. The Chinese side should provide the original cases and the original data of the WIV's gain-of-function GOF experiment. This is the most direct. So far, the United States has mainly provided funds, but it does not rule out that the Eco-Health Alliance also participates in the experiment, because there is an article that Dasak is the author, and their responsibilities are naturally held by the American people, Congress, and non-governmental organizations. This is also part of the effort to prevent this kind of epidemic from happening again.
Freedom of information and reflection in the scientific community
5. Review by the scientific community. We have seen that during Pompeo’s tenure, a lot of resistance to traceability investigation came from the relevant departments of the US government, and the important reason was that it involved the NIH's funding for the research of the Armed Forces Institute.
However, through unremitting efforts, some documents have been exposed. The last time was a large number of emails related to NIH in the early stage of the epidemic, which were exposed by China Post and buzzfeed. This time it was a fund exposed by the interception organization. This is due to the Freedom of Information Act in the United States. Both the last email and the fund exposed were part of NIH, that is, government information. As long as it is not within the scope of the non-disclosure regulations, it must be disclosed. Of course, it took a lot of time and effort. This time it was actually an interception organization suing NIH. a part of.
Last time I introduced the programs of British Channel 4, many experts talked about drawing a red line in the research work, which experiments cannot be done, such as the transformation of a virus that does not infect people into a virus that can infect people. This is of no use to the development of medicines, vaccines, and prevention of pandemics, but only disadvantages. The only advantage is that researchers can publish articles in top scientific journals and earn both fame and fortune.
Summary: According to the Freedom of Information Act, the interception organization obtained 900 pages of documents. Among them, NIH used the Ecological Health Alliance to experiment with the WIV Gain-of-Function and modified at least two viruses: SARS and MERS. Fauci had long known but concealed it. There is room for further investigation.
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Taipei Campus Guidelines! If one is diagnosed, the whole campus will be suspended for 14 days, and the classes of close contacts will be suspended for 1 to 5 days
Reporter : Li Yuyu
Facing a cluster infection case in kindergartens in New Taipei City, the Delta variant (Covi72) is coming fiercely. If there is a confirmed case, the entire campus will be suspended for 14 days, and if there are contacts of the confirmed case, the class or kindergarten will initiate a preventive suspension of 1 to 5 days. Guidelines for preventive suspension of classes if confirmed cases are available on campuses in Taipei. (Photo/Taipei City Government)
Deputy Mayor Tsai Bingkun explained that the school has made the best response. The current guidelines are divided into two types. One is that if a confirmed case appears on the campus, the whole school or all kindergartens must be suspended for 14 days. ,This still requires a final decision based on the results of the epidemic investigation.
The Taipei City Government also requires schools to assist in the implementation of relevant epidemic prevention measures, immediately carry out a "School Safety Report" within 4 hours, notify the superintendents and health bureaus in the district, etc., and clean and disinfect the whole school.
Teachers and students in the class of the confirmed cases will also start home isolation on the 14th day.
The second situation is that a confirmed case "contact" or a high-risk infectious person such as an unknown source of infection who has been issued a "Home Quarantine Notice" after the epidemic investigation by the health unit appears on the campus. After the Education Bureau agrees, the "class" will start preventive suspension of classes for 1 to 5 days.
As for the kindergarten, because of the small scale and the interaction of children, the "kindergarten" will start the preventive suspension of classes for 1 to 5 days. Long-distance teaching is on the mining line.
In addition, the Education Bureau can also, depending on the changes or needs of the epidemic, report to the city government to agree to initiate preventive suspensions. People who are quarantined at home due to preventive measures will be compared with the contacts of Covi72 on the second day. If the test is negative, the isolation can be resolved.
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Research: People who have recovered from covid have "superhuman" immunity after being vaccinated
A recent study in the United States found that after being vaccinated, some survivors of the 2019-nCoV have the immune system to have a super-strong response to different variant viruses. Researchers call this "superhuman immunity" or "hybrid immunity" .
According to the Daily Mail report, researchers have found that after two doses of Pfizer or Modena vaccines in some people who have recovered from coronary disease, the immune system can produce a large number of antibodies, not only can they respond to different variant viruses, remember The virus even predicts how it will mutate.
News (35)
Enhance the immune system's memory of the virus
Immunologist Shane Crotty explained in a review article in "Science" magazine in June this year that the "natural immunity" of people recovering from coronary disease is different from the immunity of vaccination.
In natural immunity, the immune system produces B cells and T cells. These cells remember the shape of the virus and stimulate the production of antibodies when a person is infected again.
Studies have found that natural immunity usually lasts for seven to eight months, and the immune system will still retain some viral memory after about a year, but the response will still be weak when encountering a variant virus.
Crotty described that when the survivors are vaccinated, the vaccine enters the body to remind the immune system that the virus is a serious problem and that more resources need to be invested to prevent it and deepen the immune system's memory of the virus.
Crotty cites another research report that shows that people who have been vaccinated after recovery have 100 times the amount of antibodies against the B1351 variant virus that people who have recovered.
He said that even with a new variant of the virus, the mixed immune system can respond quickly, and those who have mixed immunity have different levels of coronary disease when they first contracted it. Some have had severe, mild or There are no symptoms.
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The mixed immune system can recognize all variant strains
A research report published online by Rockefeller University in the United States in August stated that the hybrid immune system can identify all six noteworthy variant strains, the original SARS virus and the 2019 coronavirus, as well as one developed in the laboratory. The following coronavirus strains are specially designed to resist the detection of the immune system.
The researchers tested the plasma samples of 15 people with mixed immunity, analyzed their immune system's response to different variant strains, and compared it with patients who were only vaccinated against coronavirus or only infected.
The report shows that the mixed immune system can recognize all invading variant strains and produce antibodies to fight the virus.
Paul Bieniasz, a virologist and head of research at the Rockefeller University, said that people can reasonably predict that people with mixed immunity will be immune to most, and possibly all, new variant strains that may appear in the future.
Researchers are still not sure whether every person who has recovered from coronary disease will have a mixed immune response after vaccination.
Researchers will continue to study mixed immunity to develop more effective vaccines.
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347 new community covid cases in Singapore
On 8 September 2021, Singapore has newly added 347 local cases of covid. Among them, three elderly people over 70 who have not been vaccinated or have not completed the vaccination are at risk of severe illness.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Health, there were two other imported cases who had fulfilled the home notification or received quarantine when they arrived in Singapore.
The Ministry of Health has not announced how many of the new local cases have not yet been linked, nor has it announced as before how many of the linked cases have been quarantined earlier or discovered through testing operations.
As of noon today, there have been 349 new confirmed cases in Singapore, with a total of 69,582 cases.
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Covid cases in Israel are falling sharply
Reporter : Joe Davies, Daily Mail
Covid infections in Israel are falling sharply after the rollout of its mass booster rollout, with hospital admissions and deaths also beginning to trend downwards, according to data.
Figures compiled by the Oxford University-backed research team Our World in Data show Israel's average daily cases have been falling for the last four days, after peaking at just over 10,000 on September 3, despite children returning to schools.
A total of 4,632 people tested positive on Sunday — the most recent day data is available for — down 20 per cent on the week before (5,809). The country's seven day average is now around 7,300, down from nearly 8,000 the week before.
Weekly hospitalisations also fell 17 per cent in the seven days ending September 5, while average deaths remained at similar levels week-on-week.
Israel was deemed the Covid capital of the world — with the highest infections rate of any country — just six days ago.
It began dishing out third doses to everyone above the age of 60 in July and expanded the drive to everyone over 12 at the end of August, which could be one of the factors prompting the recent downturn. More than 2.6 million in the country have had a booster.
News (39) to (40) / Source : The Irrawaddy
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Myanmar military Telecom Towers attacked by resistance fighters
Telecom towers owned by the Myanmar military are being targeted by resistance fighters following the shadow National Unity Government’s (NUG) declaration on Tuesday of a nationwide people’s defensive war against the military regime.
At least 14 telecom masts belonging to the military-owned Mytel, one of four telecom operators in Myanmar, have been destroyed since the NUG’s announcement.
On Tuesday, the NUG’s acting president Duwa Lashila called on citizens in every corner of the country to rebel against the rule of the military terrorists led by coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
He also called on them to “target the military junta and its assets in their respective areas”.
11 Mytel masts were simultaneously destroyed by mines on Tuesday afternoon by unidentified attackers in Budalin Township, Monywa, Sagaing Region.
Two more Mytel masts were destroyed in Tantse and Pale townships, Sagaing Region on Tuesday night.
Another Mytel telecom tower in Pauk Township, Magwe Region was destroyed and set on fire on Tuesday night by civilian resistance fighters.
Multiple other regime targets were also attacked on Tuesday by local people’s defense forces (PDF’s) in Magwe and Sagaing regions, including the base of Light Infantry Battalion 103 in Taungdwingyi Township, Magwe Region and two transmission towers connected to a military equipment factory in Myothit Township, Magwe Region. In Sagaing Region, the central police station in Kale Township was attacked with grenades.
Much of Myanmar has already been in revolt since the junta’s February 1 coup. The regime’s deadly crackdowns on anti-coup protesters have forced many young people to take up arms. The NUG’s declaration of war on Tuesday could accelerate the ongoing armed struggle against the junta, with fighting expected to intensify across the country.
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Bomb blasts have occurred in Yangon, Mandalay and northern Myanmar
Since the NUG’s declaration of war, at least 10 bomb blasts have occurred in Yangon Region, 11 in Mandalay Region, six in Sagaing Region, five in Magwe Region and two in Bago Region, according to the NUG’s Ministry of Defense.
Clashes also broke out between junta forces and resistance groups in Sagaing and Tanintharyi regions, northern Shan State, Chin State and Kayah State.
Regime troops also attacked a PDF base in Myaung Township, Sagaing Region with artillery and torched the camp. PDF members managed to escape with their weapons. Locals from at least seven villages have fled their homes following the attack.
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