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  • China makes demands on the US

  • Advertisers flee a pro-Beijing TV station

  • And a surprise star in the live action Mulan

  • That and more on this week's China news headlines.

  • This is China Uncensored, I'm Chris Chappell.

  • This week's China news headlines.

  • The Chinese Communist Party likes to think of itself

  • as the world's next superpower.

  • And as a superpower,

  • China should have the right to make demands of other countries.

  • After all, that's what's made America so beloved.

  • The most recent demand?

  • The US must cancel a 2 billion dollar weapons sale to Taiwan.

  • Yes, I'm sure Trump will take that under advisement.

  • This is the first major sale of US arms to Taiwan in decades.

  • It includes American anti-aircraft missiles and battle tanks.

  • Which unfortunately, is not as good as Japan's battleship girls.

  • Enemy planes targeted.

  • Loading type 3 shells

  • All main guns blow them away

  • Yes, those girls are also battleships.

  • Japan is a special place.

  • One where they shipped those characters.

  • Literally.

  • But the Chinese demands don't stop at battleship girls.

  • I mean weapons sales to Taiwan.

  • China is also demanding an end to US tariffs.

  • True, the Chinese Communist Party hasn't actually agreed to

  • the reforms the US has demanded in return for ending tariffs.

  • But there's a long history of the Party not doing what the US demands,

  • so why shouldn't they keep getting away with it?

  • It's tradition.

  • Anyway, Chinese diplomats are warning of disastrous consequences

  • if the US treats China as an enemy.

  • But according to President Trump, trade talks are doing very well.

  • Which is also what he said at the end of May.

  • And in mid-February.

  • And in early January.

  • And the beginning of December.

  • Trump is clearly a “glass half fullkind of guy.

  • But the tariffs may also be affecting demand...for Bibles.

  • Apparently, “millions of Bibles

  • some estimates put it at 150 million or more

  • are printed in China each year.”

  • But proposed 25% tariffs on Chinese goods

  • also includes tariffs on all books printed in China.

  • And that could mean the Good Book

  • could get a good deal more expensive.

  • According to Geof Morin, president and CEO of Biblica,

  • the International Bible Society,

  • the tariff woulddramatically affect the number of Bibles

  • we are able to print and give away,

  • impacting the religious freedom of individuals in countries

  • where Bible access is limited and often nonexistent.”

  • Now, I'm all for printing Bibles.

  • But here's the thing:

  • It's not a Bible tariff.

  • It's a book tariff that affects all books.

  • And it just so happens that the two largest Bible publishers in the United States

  • are owned by the multi-billion dollar publishing conglomerate HarperCollins.

  • And HarperCollins might be hoping to keep making those big profits

  • on the best-selling book in America

  • and on all their other books that are printed in China, too.

  • But really, should the US government go soft on a regime that's closing churches,

  • jailing pastors, and even rewriting scripture?

  • I wonder what the Bible would have to say about that.

  • But back to China's demands.

  • As you may have heard,

  • Hong Kong has erupted in protests over Beijing's growing influence in the city.

  • The One Country, Two Systems model,

  • where Beijing lets Hong Kong keep its freedoms,

  • hasn't exactly been going well.

  • But when Hong Kong pop star and activist Denise Ho

  • brought that up at a recent UN meeting,

  • the Chinese representative demanded she be quiet.

  • The One Country, Two Systems is nearing its death,

  • protests are still on going…”

  • There is a point of order.

  • I give the floor to China.”

  • In fact, the Chinese representative interrupted her twice.

  • Which was pretty impressive since her speech was only 90 seconds long.

  • Apparently, the Chinese side was upset at her

  • for “'baselessly' attacking the 'one country, two systems' arrangement.”

  • Meanwhile, more Hong Kong protesters have been arrested.

  • The protests mostly center around a proposed extradition bill

  • that could allow authorities to send people from Hong Kong to Mainland China for trial.

  • And Chinese courts have a 99.9% conviction rate.

  • However, in what Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam

  • clearly hopes will finally appease protesters,

  • she's trying to lay the bill to rest.

  • The bill is dead.

  • Dead, yes.

  • But she has repeatedly refused to say the bill has been withdrawn,

  • which is the phrase everyone wants to hear.

  • Why?

  • “'The bill is dead is a political description and it is not legislative language,'

  • Civic Party lawmaker Alvin Yeung told the BBC,

  • adding that the bill was technically still in the process of a second reading.”

  • So it's dead, but still alive.

  • Which means...the bill is a zombie!

  • In other Hong Kong news, advertisers are fleeing from TVB,

  • the main Hong Kong cable broadcaster.

  • That's because TVB is believed to have an increasingly pro-Beijing bias.

  • One of the bigger sAnd one of the advertisers to bail is Pocari Sweat.

  • Pocari Sweat is like Japan's answer to gatorade.

  • I drank plenty of it when I was in Hong Kong.

  • Even though the name makes it sound like the bottled sweat of a cute little Pokemon.

  • But to prove that TVB doesn't have a pro-Beijing bias,

  • a TVB spokesman told my favorite Chinese state-run media, the Global Times,

  • Pocari Sweat's comments are designed to please protesters,

  • which equals to bowing to violence.”

  • Yup, no pro-Beijing bias there.

  • The Global Times went on to say,

  • The Japanese company would likely face tough sanctions on the mainland

  • for adopting a wrong stance.”

  • What's that, Shelley?

  • TVB has denied they issued that statement to the Global Times?

  • Are you saying that the Global Times might...be lying?

  • I don't believe it.

  • Meanwhile, some Chinese netizens are accusing Pocari Sweat

  • of supporting Hong Kong independence and calling for a boycott.

  • Yes, today is the day that Hong Kongers will be led to independence

  • by...a sports drink.

  • And GZN48, a Chinese girl group with...61 members...

  • is cutting ties with Pocari Sweat.

  • China is also a special place.

  • After the brouhaha,

  • Pocari Sweat's parent company issued a vaguely worded apology,

  • but seemed to still be pulling their ads from TVB.

  • And Pocari Sweat's sales have surged in Hong Kong.

  • Many residents posted on social media that they bought the drink,

  • and some supermarkets and convenience stores were sold out Wednesday.”

  • Gotta drink 'em all!

  • But it's the people of Xinjiang who really might

  • no longer be able to enjoy sugary beverages.

  • Apparently, white sugar can land you in an internment camp.

  • The Chinese Communist Party has been cracking down on

  • what it callsterrorismin Xinjiang.

  • That involves putting more than a million of Xinjiang's mostly Muslim ethnic Uighurs

  • in internment camps.

  • And also building the world's most intrusive surveillance state there.

  • And everyone knows the most dangerous tool in any terrorist's arsenal...

  • is white sugar.

  • It's now a controlled substance in Xinjiang.

  • Why?

  • Because apparently it can be used as explosive material.

  • And here I just thought it caused people's waistlines to explode.

  • Xinjiang residents need to present their new government ID cards

  • in order to buy sugar.

  • Only a kilogram of white sugar can be purchased with one ID card,

  • according to the new regulations.”

  • I'm sure it's just part of a new state-led fitness trend.

  • Which is why Chinese leader Xi Jinping is telling officials to stop being lazy

  • and spending the whole day eating.

  • There's a reason Chinese officials might seem to be lazy.

  • More than a million officials have been punished

  • in Xi Jinping's so-called anti-corruption campaign.

  • So Communist Party officials aren't being lazy.

  • They're just afraid to do anything without direct orders.

  • So they sit around all day and stress eat.

  • I totally get it.

  • Xi Jinping went on to tell them,

  • Be brave to handle heavy burdens,

  • crack hard nuts and handle hot potatoes.”

  • Look, Xi.

  • If you're going to tell people to stop eating,

  • you really should avoid food metaphors.

  • Speaking of protruding guts, the Beijing bikini.

  • Found across China, not just Beijing,

  • it's a proud and noble tradition to help men cool off in the summer heat.

  • Unfortunately, it's being banned in some parts of China.

  • Maybe this ban will be the final straw that makes Chinese people

  • demand an end to the Communist Party's authoritarian rule.

  • In China, you're not allowed to bring a live chicken on the subway.

  • At least in the city of Chongqing.

  • I mean, makes sense.

  • Bird flu is sort of a problem there.

  • But when one woman recently was told

  • she couldn't bring her live chicken on the train,

  • she did what any reasonable person would do.

  • She killed it on the spot.

  • Technically, that chicken now counts as food.

  • And finally, the trailer for the live action version of Disney's Mulan is out!

  • And the first thing I noticed wasman,

  • the father sure looks like Xi Jinping!

  • Maybe he's looking for another career for after the Chinese Commuinst Party falls.

  • Anyway, I'm still disappointed I wasn't asked to play the lead role of Mulan.

  • I can do Kung Fu.

  • And what better way to prove that in the 21st century,

  • race and gender don't matter?

  • Wait, what's that Shelley?

  • Yes, yes, you're right.

  • I should be Mushu.

  • And now it's time for me to answer a question from one of you

  • a fan who support China Uncensored

  • with a dollar or more per episode,

  • by contributing through Patreon.

  • Robert W Eischen asks,

  • Where does one go to ask questions for the show?

  • I'm trying to figure out why Hong Kong hasn't backed off the treaty yet.

  • Are the communists involved in forcing it through?”

  • For the first part of your question:

  • Patreon supporters like you can leave your questions right where you did,

  • as replies to any of the videos we post on Patreon.

  • As for your next question,

  • I'm going to assume the treaty you're talking about is the Extradition Bill.

  • If passed,

  • it would be like a treaty that allows Hong Kong authorities

  • to send criminal suspects to mainland China for trial.

  • Why won't the Hong Kong government back down?

  • It might be because Beijing doesn't want to look like

  • it's giving in to the demands of protesters.

  • Imagine what kind of precedent that would set for the rest of China,

  • if word ever got out that protests can actually

  • force the Communist Party to change its policies!

  • Thanks for your questions, Robert.

  • And thanks to everyone watching!

  • We could not make this show without your support.

  • Whether it's supporting us through Patreon

  • or just watching and sharing the show

  • with your friends and family.

  • So thank you from me and everyone on the China Uncensored team.

  • Once again I'm Chris Chappell,

  • see you next time.

China makes demands on the US

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