VIETNAM Protests Chinese Drills Near Paracel Islands

Posted by Asia Views | Jul 22, 2022 | 0 |

VNExpress-July 21

Chinese drills near the Paracel Islands violated Vietnam’s sovereignty and complicated the situation in the South China Sea, the foreign affairs ministry said Thursday.

“We vehemently oppose all activities that violate Vietnam’s sovereignty over the Paracel and Spratly islands,” deputy spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang said at a Thursday press meet. She reiterated a statement by the spokeswoman of the foreign affairs ministry Le Thi Thu Hang on June 23 that China’s drills near the Paracel Islands had seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereignty over the archipelagoes, gone against the spirit of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), complicated the situation and was not advantageous for negotiation processes between China and ASEAN for a Code of Conduct for Parties at the South China Sea (COC), as well as the maintenance of peace, stability and cooperation at the region. Pham Thu Hang was responding to inquiries regarding an announcement by Hainan Maritime Safety Administration on July 15 banning vessels from entering sea regions to the southeast and north of Paracel Islands from July 16 to 20 due to military drills. The Chinese army has yet to provide further details about the drills. Vietnam’s Paracel Islands, also known as Hoang Sa, are currently illegally occupied by China. Vietnam calls the South China Sea the East Sea. Read more at: https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/vietnam-protests-china-s-illegal-drills-near-paracel-islands-4490551.html

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EXTRICATING NDONESIAN CHILDREN FROM ISIS INFLUENCE ABROAD

Indonesia urgently needs to revisit the possibility of repatriating the neediest of its young citizens stranded abroad, whose families had earlier joined ISIS. Most of these children are in camps in northern Syria but there are also small numbers in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq. “Extricating Indonesian Children from ISIS Influence Abroad”, the latest report from the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) argues that the government could begin by bringing back small groups of unaccompanied children under ten years of age, who pose minimal security risk and are most vulnerable to deteriorating conditions in the camps.“The problem is that health and security conditions are worsening by the day in the Syrian camps, and the children are growing older,” says Dyah Kartika, IPAC analyst. “They need access to schools, a nurturing environment, and medical attention. If the government waits too long, the children will be further exposed to ISIS ideology.” The new report examines a 2019 list of Indonesians in camps and prisons run by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Indonesian government has been trying to verify their citizenship, but with pseudonyms, misspellings and bad transliterations, it is a daunting task. At the time the data was collected, between March and June 2019, there were 555 Indonesians in SDF camps and prisons, including 367 children. Among the children, approximately 277 were under the age of ten and 34 were unaccompanied. In June 2021, there are fewer than ten children who are both unaccompanied and under the age of ten that could be prioritized for return. Bringing back children of ISIS families is no easy task. The report analyses the main challenges faced by the Indonesian government. These include definitional issues, bureaucratic competition, the difficulty of verifying nationality, evaluating the toll of exposure to conflict, assessing security risk, and finding relatives or others willing to provide care once the children are returned. In addition, COVID has meant stringent restrictions on travel, placing further obstacles in the way of repatriation. There are several models for rehabilitation of children exposed to violent extremism in Indonesia that could be modified to accommodate the needs of children repatriated from abroad. The report examines these models and argues that the government does not need to have every detail of rehabilitation programs in place before it starts extricating children from ISIS influence. It can start by bringing back the most vulnerable children and then modify programs as needed.

“It’s important that the government see these children as victims” says Dyah. “They deserve a chance to be children again.”

VIETNAM Protests Chinese Drills Near Paracel Islands

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