This Week’s Under-reported News Summary Aug. 7, 2019

• The day after Hong Kong police arrested 44 people, including dozens of students on rioting charges during an unauthorized street protest, the local garrison of China’s People’s Liberation Army, posted a video warning of a possible military crackdown. After two months of mass protests, the video is a sign of growing tensions between pro-democracy activists and Beijing. This summer’s street protests exploded over widespread opposition to a proposed extradition law, which could send criminal suspects to courts in mainland China. In response to the massive protests, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam announced that the bill is “off the table,” but refused to kill it.

(“Hong Kong Protesters Charged With Rioting,” CNN, July 31, 2019; “Hong Kong Is a Black and White Issue,” Bloomberg, July 31, 2019; “How China Lost Hong Kong,” Foreign Policy, July 29, 2019)

• Rohingya Muslim refugees in camps in Bangladesh have refused to return to their villages in Myanmar unless they are recognized as an ethnic group by Myanmar’s government.  Rohingya leader Dil Mohammed told Reuters that the Rohingya are demanding citizenship rights, and will only return if international protection is in place. In a meeting in a refugee camp, Myanmar offered a “gateway to citizenship” if they applied for a National Verification Card, which was rejected the refugees.

(“Rohingya Tell Myanmar They Refuse to Return Without Recognition,” Reuters, July 28, 2019; Guardian, “Satellite Images Reveal Scale of Myanmar’s Rohingya Crisis,” Guardian, July 24, 2019; “UN Official Likens Rohingya Living Conditions to Nazi Concentration Camps,” Guardian, July 4, 2019)