US Department of Commerce accusations against Shirtmaker Esquel is fake. It is racially and politically motivated.

The Yang family has been a strong supporter of the School of Travel Industry Management (TIM) at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UH) and a close friend of Dean Chuck Yim Gee. Dean Chuck Yim Gee born and raised in San Francisco was Dean of UH TIM School for more than 3 decades and UH Board of Regents for 8 years. I have been working with Dean Gee for more than 4 decades until his passing in 2019. Shirtmaker Esquel does not practice the fake accusations by the US Department of Commerce. I was the Vice Chairperson for US Department of Commerce Export Council in Hawaii for 8 years. US Dept of Commerce has changed since I left 10 years. It used to promote trade, now become part of US propaganda racist organ and mouthpiece against nations of Colors. 楊氏家族是夏威夷大學(UH) 旅遊業管理學院 (TIM) 的堅定支持者. 朱卓任教授是夏威夷大學旅遊業管理學院院長做了30多年, 也在夏威夷大學校董會做了8年. 我與朱卓任教授亦師亦友合作了40多年, 直到他於 2019 年去世. Shirtmaker Esquel 並沒有像美國商務部的虛假指控. 我曾在夏威夷擔任美國商務部出口委員會副主席 8 年. 自從我離開10 年以來，美國商務部發生了變化. 它曾經促進貿易，現在成為美國宣傳種族主義和反對有色人種國家的美國喉舌的一部分.

HKers file lawsuit against US on Xinjiang By NURY VITTACHI 07 Jul 2021

Their fight for fairness has a wider message

A HONG KONG FAMILY firm stood with their Uyghur staff members yesterday by playing America at its own game. They took out a lawsuit in the US courts against that country’s Department of Commerce using Western lawyers.

Shirtmaker Esquel, run by Hong Kong’s Yang family, has been blacklisted after accusations that it ran a “slave labor” cotton-picking operation in Xinjiang using Uyghur prisoners sent by governments from detention centers.

But the allegations were entirely false, according to large amounts of evidence the company has gathered.

In contrast, the evidence against Esquel appears slim to non-existent, consisting largely of allegations from the Australia Strategic Policy Institute, a militaristic Sydney-based “research group” financed by Western government sources and US and UK arms dealers.

The facility in Xinjiang

“The Department of Commerce provided no evidence for its erroneous decision,” said US lawyer James Tysse, filing the lawsuit this week on behalf of staff at Esquel’s Xinjiang subsidiary, Changji Esquel Textile Company.

NO DISCRIMINATION

The Yang family firm’s Xinjiang operation has about 400 Uyghur team members, including almost 15 per cent who have worked there for more than 10 years.

“Because we do not discriminate based on race, gender, religion or ethnicity, our team in Xinjiang has always included Uyghurs,” the company said.

Many Uyghur staff choose to stay long-term. This makes sense, since the company pays two to three times the minimum wage, gives all staff the same promotion opportunities, and even has chefs to prepare Uyghur food in the staff restaurants.

Visitors to an open day at Esquel’s facility in Xinjiang

The family behind Esquel, a spectacular Hong Kong success story, is well-known in the city. It was founded by Yang Yuan Loong, known as YL, in Tsim Sha Tsui in 1978, and promptly signed the first US-China agreement of its kind in the international garment trade.

The firm grew to be one of the biggest shirtmakers in the world, creating 100 million garments a year.

It is now run by his daughter Marjorie (highlighted in main picture at the top), a popular figure in Hong Kong, known for her civic and charity work, and also for her interest in equality for women and other progressive issues, such as sustainability.

As well as providing employment to Xinjiang people for 25 years, the company also pioneered a micro-financing system to help farmers in the largely agricultural area, once mired in poverty.

Esquel takes a special interest in empowerment of women

ACCUSATIONS FROM AUSTRALIA

The accusations of “slavery”, or the use of forced labor, come from ASPI, an Australian group best known for locating compounds in China by using Google Maps and alleging that they are concentration camps.

At no point did ASPI contacted the Yangs or any staff from the Hong Kong garment firm before making the accusations that resulted in it being placed on a black list that triggers seriously harmful trade restrictions.

Esquel grew to make more than 100 million shirts a year, from ordinary white office wear to designer shirts like the one above

RANDOMLY CHOSEN INTERVIEWS

The present writer has met Esquel CEO Marjorie Yang many times, and it’s hard to think of anyone less likely to use unethical labor practices.

“The use of forced labor or coercive practices is completely contrary to our founding principles and the business we have operated for more than 40 years,” the Hong Kong businesswoman said.

The company’s response to the accusations appear to be textbook examples of openness.

They invited US Commerce Department staff to visit the facilities in Xinjiang with free and open access but they did not respond.

The company then invited independent, third-party specialists in labor audits to visit the facilities in Xinjiang and conduct unstructured interviews with randomly chosen Uyghur workers. In every instance, the audits found no evidence of forced labor or coercion.

‘WE WILL NOT WALK AWAY FROM THAT RESPONSIBILITY AND COMMITMENT’

Some international firms in Xinjiang have become reluctant to hire Uyghur staff, fearing that they will be unfairly blacklisted.

This reporter met one international products buyer, an American, who says he now has to ask companies in China whether they have Uyghur staff, and he feels bad doing so—but he needs to anticipate possible negative reactions from overseas.

Xinjiang business operators to whom this reporter has spoken say that in an area of 13 million people, there are bound to be cases of friction if journalists want to seek them out, but the overall picture of the province being a nightmarish network of “concentration camps” and “slave farms” is a grotesque distortion. “You’ll find more tension between workers and officials in downtown St. Louis or Detroit,” a Hong Kong businessman says.

Esquel also set up a scheme to provide micro-financing for farmers in Xinjiang

The Esquel team says they will not be swayed. “We will continue to focus on creating local value, supporting local development and transforming life in Xinjiang as we have done for 25 years,” they said on their website. “We will not walk away from that responsibility and commitment.”

RESUMES AND INTERVIEWS

Rather than getting “slaves” from government prisons, Yang’s team say they get staff in China the same way that they hire people in any other country, with the use of resumes and interviews.

“Esquel values and respects the dignity of all our people in Xinjiang,” Marjorie Yang said.

The suit was filed on Tuesday, US time. The US Commerce Department has not yet responded.

ONE-SIDED COVERAGE

While the evidence appears to be on Esquel’s side, there is no guarantee that their lawsuit will free them from the US blacklist.

Judges in America will only have seen the one-sided coverage of the Xinjiang issue provided by the Western media. For example, today’s New York Times carries an article in which a campaign organized by the Chinese government to give the other side of the story about Uyghurs is “exposed” as a campaign organized by the Chinese government.

In April this year, Chinese individuals took out a lawsuit against the BBC’s John Sudworth, notorious even among foreign correspondents for his hostile reporting on the Xinjiang issue. Sudworth fled.

But his flight from justice was portrayed as yet another case of China “forcing” journalists out.

The Yang family’s fight to clear their firm’s name has wider implications for balanced coverage of Hong Kong and Mainland China, and a fairer world in which entrepreneurs can operate across borders without geo-political issues getting in the way.

https://www.fridayeveryday.com/news-n-politics-the-friday-collective/10108/HKers-file-lawsuit-against-US-on-Xinjiang-

Video – Singtao TV San Francisco: China uses its “proven records” to brainwash her people, what about the United States? 星電視快評—霍詠強：中國用「實在戰績」來洗腦中國人民, 哪美國呢？
https://vimeo.com/572868265
https://youtu.be/5EsrYpnETNI
https://www.facebook.com/100036400039778/posts/525634698659860/?d=n
最近中國有首歌很紅：《國際歌》，昨天七一是中國共產黨建黨百年，這段時間有大量有關於共產黨的影視劇或活動上，《國際歌》這首紅歌可謂必不可少，以往已經有中樂、搖滾、最近連電音動畫版都有。歌曲的中文版有好幾個，但目前流通的版本是1923年齊三和瞿秋白分別寫成的兩個版本的混合體，之後再反覆調整而成的。但是，它並不是黨歌，因為中共並沒有明文指定的黨歌，反而在上世紀1918-1943年成為了蘇聯的國歌。Recently, there is a popular song in China: “The Internationale”. Yesterday July 1 was the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. During this period, there were a lot of film and television dramas or activities about the Communist Party. The red song “Internationale” is indispensable. Music, rock, and recently even an animated version of electronic music. There are several Chinese versions of the song, but the current version is a mixture of two versions written by Qi San and Qu Qiubai in 1923, and then adjusted repeatedly. However, it is not a party anthem, because the CPC did not expressly specify the party anthem. Instead, it became the national anthem of the Soviet Union in 1918-1943 in the last century.

為了慶祝中國共產黨建黨百年，1/7 早上安排了盛大的慶祝大會，在28/6演出的大型晚會排在1/7/2021 晚播出，陣容鼎盛的節目中展現了真正無與倫比的舞台、令人震撼的煙火和特技效果。In order to celebrate the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, a grand celebration was arranged on the morning of 1/7/2021. The large evening party performed on 6/28/2021 was scheduled to be broadcast on the evening of 1/7/2021. Shocking fireworks and special effects.

這些活動作用是什麽？洗腦。這個世界無論何時都洗腦，每個國家都重視意識形態，因為社會成長和競爭力，離不開「信心」、人民的自信；但是中國是否就是靠歌舞昇平來洗腦？當然不是，中國用的是「戰績」，這些節目只是記錄了這幾十年的戰績。就比如舉行晚會那個天的上午，金沙江白鶴灘1600萬千瓦水電站正式啟用，為中國「西電東送」和減低碳排放又邁進了一大步！What are the effects of these activities? brainwashing. The world is doing the brainwashed at all times, and every country values ideology, because social growth and competitiveness are inseparable from “confidence” and the people’s self-confidence; but does China rely on singing and dancing to promote peace? Of course not. China uses “proven records.” These programs only record the achievements of the past few decades. For example, on the morning of the evening party, the 16 million kilowatt hydropower station at Baihetan on the Jinsha River was officially opened, which was another big step forward for China’s “West-to-East power transmission” and carbon emission reduction!

哪沒有「戰績」的國家又怎辦？美國有的是傳媒，再一團糟也可以「作」、也可以「吹」。周一Bloomberg公佈了全球新冠疫情恢復能力 (Resilient) 排名，美國以巨量疫苗、全面解除社交限制兩大優勢昂然排在第一位，還遠遠拋離第二三位的新西蘭和瑞士，自然遠勝第八位的中國：「雄踞榜首、疫後最強」。至於有人會説，美國現在每天還有幾百人死亡、萬多宗確診，那怎麼辦？What about countries that have no “proven records” like the United States? There are media in the United States, and even in a mess can “lies” or “BS.” On Monday, Bloomberg announced the global COVID-19 Resilient ranking. The United States ranked first with its two major advantages: a huge amount of vaccines rotten in storage and a complete removal of social restrictions. Even ranked higher than the far away New Zealand and Switzerland, which are in the second and third places. China’s success in containing COVID19 only ranked eighth place: “US ranked top the list, strongest after the epidemic.” US has absolutely no shame to claimed #1 when there are still hundreds of deaths and more than 10,000 diagnoses in the United States every day, what should we do?

筆者還記得剛在疫情爆發前2019年10月，美國智庫發佈的「全球衛生安全指數」，同樣把美國列為最能應對傳染病疫的國家，同樣昂然第一。所以今天説美國疫後最強，你相不相信？反正我是怎樣也不會相信的！The author still remembers that just before the outbreak of the epidemic, in October 2019, the “Global Health Security Index” released by a US think tank also listed the United States as the country that is most capable of responding to infectious diseases, and is also proudly number one. So today it is said that the United States is the strongest after the epidemic, do you believe it? I would never believe it anyway!

要有多少人無辜見上帝才能改變美國政客的態度？總之，現在必須全力為美國人打強心針，怎樣作也得保住美國夢想國度這個名頭？至於埋在佛羅里達瓦礫底下的災民，或許變成冤魂後，還不明白州市政府為何要用16小時來確認聯邦政府可以介入搶救？更不會明白為何隣近八個州的救援隊，為何要在最寶貴的黃金72小時過去後，才能加入救援工作？How many American Politicians need to see God innocently to change the attitude? In short, we must now try our best to invigorate the Americans. What can we do to keep the American dream? As for the victims buried under the rubble in Florida, they may not understand why the city government has to spend 16 hours to confirm that the federal government can intervene in the rescue after they have become victims. I do not even understand why the rescue teams in the eight neighboring states can only join the rescue work after the most precious 72 hours have passed.

當然，經歴了這幾年，不能否認、美國肯定是「大話最強」，可以用謊言來洗腦；否則遠在東方的香港, 又何致會有人愚蠢至恐襲警員而後自殺？Of course, after a few years, it cannot be denied that the United States is definitely the “big talker big liars” and can be brainwashed with lies; otherwise, in Hong Kong, far in the east, why would anyone be so stupid as to assaulting police officers and then committing suicide?

China urges Australia to face up to severe human rights violations at UN body by Liu Xin Jul 08 2021

China expressed grave concern over Australia’s severe violations of human rights, including its soldiers’ killing of innocent civilians in overseas military actions, detaining immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers in offshore detention centers, and its domestic systematic race discrimination on Thursday at the 47th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council.

“It is with regret to see Australia not take China’s suggestion… China urges Australia to take the universal periodic review as an opportunity to face up to and repent its own severe problems on human rights, stop various violations of human rights and take concrete measures to protect human rights,” a Chinese representative said on Thursday.

Every five years each country’s record and policies on human rights are put under the spotlight as part of a UN process known as the universal periodic review (UPR). Australia had its UPR on Thursday.

The Chinese representative pointed out that Australia’s severe violations of human rights include its soldiers killing innocent civilians in overseas military actions and committing severe war crimes.

Australian special forces allegedly killed 39 Afghan civilians unlawfully in an environment where “blood lust” and “competition killings” were reportedly a norm, according to a long-awaited official report unveiled in November 2020.

Aside from the war crimes, Australia was criticized for setting up detention centers to forcibly detain immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers for a long time.

Representatives from other countries and non-governmental organizations also criticized Australia and called an end to the offshore processing of asylum seekers arriving by sea and to prohibit detaining children in immigration detention centers at the Thursday meeting.

Calls from 30 countries for Australia to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 10 to at least 14 – amid concerns about the over-incarceration of Indigenous children – have simply been “noted,” with the government pointing to the role of state and territory governments in legislating any such change, The Guardian reported.

But Australia rejected all these proposals.

Australia’s rejection has brought dissatisfaction to NGOs in Western countries. “Australia paints a picture of itself for the global stage that doesn’t match the reality at home,” said Sophie McNeill, Australia researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Government claims that Australia is committed to the human rights of refugees and asylum seekers are absurd so long as harmful offshore detention policies continue and people remain for years in immigration detention.”

Some NGOs also criticized Australia for its poor record on Indigenous communities’ human rights and treatment. The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) revealed in an article on July 2 that Indigenous Australians had most of their human rights at risk. Seventy-one percent of experts surveyed believe Indigenous people are at risk of having their freedom from arbitrary arrest violated.

The Chinese representative pointed out that Australia also has long-term and systematic discrimination against Africans, Asians and other minorities and Muslims and indigenous people. It also has serious hate crimes.

However, instead of reflecting on its own problems on human rights, out of political purpose, Australia has kept spreading disinformation and uses human rights as an excuse to interfere in other countries’ international affairs, the Chinese representative said.

Closely following the US and a small group of Western countries, Australia has joined the anti-China campaign to smear China by hyping human rights topics, especially on China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

For example, in a joint statement on March 23, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta called on China to grant meaningful and unfettered access to Xinjiang for United Nations experts, and other independent observers.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said that the door to Xinjiang is always open. We welcome any unbiased foreigners to Xinjiang, but firmly oppose any so-called “investigation” and “accountability” with presumption of guilt, and stand against anyone using this for political maneuver to pressure China.

“Speaking of ‘accountability,’ I wonder how Australia is doing with those investigations into their soldiers’ grave crimes in Afghanistan that were exposed not long ago? Have they held the perpetrators accountable and punished them to do justice to the innocent victims? Will Five Eyes countries including the US and the UK, and the EU consider sanctions on Australia?” Hua asked.

The spokesperson added that “Besides, in Australia, there was the infamous White Australia Policy, under which genocide was committed against aboriginal people and 100,000 aboriginal children were forcibly taken away from their families. Did Australia hold accountable those who caused pain to the Stolen Generation?”

Three Asian Students Brutally Attacked by ‘Gang’ of Teens in Australia by Carl Samson July 6, 2021

Police in Queensland, Australia are investigating a vicious attack by a group of teens against a trio of Asian students late last month.

What happened: The victims — a male and two females — found themselves helpless as members of the group dragged, punched and kicked them on the side of the road.

The incident, which was caught on video, reportedly occurred outside a shopping center in Inala, a suburb in the city of Brisbane, on June 27. One of the attackers is believed to have filmed the scene.

In the video, members of the group can be seen attacking the victims separately. “What did she do?” the Asian male asks while trying to defend one of his female companions.

“Hey motherfer, don’t fing touch my sister,” one of the attackers says at one point. Another warns, “Don’t touch my brother.”

One of the two Asian females is dragged, punched and kicked by three female attackers. She cried as she struggled on the ground.

The person filming the incident can be heard saying “gang s, gang s” near the end of the video. A young male attacker is also seen walking away smiling.

Investigation ongoing: The incident is now under investigation by Queensland Police.

In a statement, they said they “have obtained the vision and are making follow-up inquiries,” according to news.com.au.

The Asian Australian Alliance — a grassroots, community-based network advocating on issues faced by Asian Australians — said the attack was a robbery and “appears to be racially motivated.” They identified the victims as Vietnamese.

Member Jenny Nguyen said a witness came forward and claimed that the group had been “looking for trouble” prior to the incident. “They were at the Inala bus stop, looking at multiple Asian people. She heard them say, ‘Oi, look at her. Should we do it?’”

Nguyen said the attackers stole money from the victims. She set up a change.org petition addressed to Chin Tan, Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner, and the Brisbane City Council, “in hopes of getting help for the victims mentally, physically and emotionally.”

https://news-yahoo-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/news.yahoo.com/amphtml/three-asian-students-brutally-attacked-160631715.html

Kiji Noh in San Francisco: The contrast between Chinese progress and American paralysis has been growing greater and greater. And it’s a serious problem. We talk; they build. We impeach; they build. We campaign for office; they build. 中國的進步與美國的癱瘓之間的反差越來越大。 這是一個嚴重的問題。 我們談談; 他們建立。 我們彈劾； 他們建立。 我們競選公職； 他們建立。

Today, there are 37,900 kilometers of high-speed railways in China, with the fastest going 210 miles per hour. As a signal that American politicians, interest groups, lobbyists, unions, and bureaucrats had better get their national goals together – just for our survival as a country – they ought to all go ride a Chinese high-speed train and then come home and ride the Amtrak Acela, which peaks at 150 miles per hour. Then, they should compare comfort, cleanliness, convenience, and service on the Chinese and American systems.

As a contrast between the Panda-inspired Chinese system and the partisan-pork-infighting-pettiness of the current American system, how many airports would you bet we could build by 2035? How many high-speed rails? Anyone who thinks we are going to compete with China without major domestic reform is simply delusional.

Chinese American Association of Commerce (CAAC) Elected New Officers and Directors on July 1 2021

Please buy a table or buy a ticket to celebrate with us at H.L. Peninsula Restaurant, 608 Dubuque Ave, South San Francisco, CA 94080 on Friday July 30 2021

$600/table or $60/person

RSVP to Ms. Leung 订席电话at 1-650-242-5736梁小姐

2021年度

美国华商总会职员表

会长：孙志雄 Baron Suen
常务副会长：孙志中
副会长：林志强
萧昆锡 谭念帖
秘书：谭文华 雷祖舜
古雪亮 黄 实
公关：张福明 谭纪任
吴卓潮 张立明
财政：蔡永强 Johnson Choi
总务：江志煊
商务：罗志秋 余志刚
核数：蔡炳乐
妇女：张春梅

Video: Video: Eric Li: China’s🇨🇳 Meteoric Rise Impossible Without Achievements of Mao Era. 沒有毛澤東時代的成就，中國的🇨🇳就不可能飛速崛起.

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to Chinese venture capitalist and political scientist Eric Li. He discusses why the 2008 economic crisis showed the West’s failure and China not understanding the gravity of the failure at the time, the importance of the Mao era in making China’s meteoric economic rise possible and the achievements during the period, why capitalists have no power in China, the need to tackle rising inequality in China, accusations of genocide in Xinjiang, mass censorship and negligible press freedom in China, measures of the Chinese people’s confidence in their government, superpower competition with the United States and much more!

We are very impressed with the Eric Li interview. In addition here are a few additional points made by Eric Li:

G7, West are engaged in Crusade. (I think this is a critical observation. I think Crusader mentality, rooted in Western arrogance, is a fundamental feature that innures even in the Western left in their critique of China.

Meritocracy vs. meritocratic governance. The interviewer raised issue of meritocracy promoting inequality. Li made differentiation between meritocracy and meritocratic governance. Rising through the ranks of officialdom is based on performance and outcomes that benefit the populace. This is meritocratic governance.

Rule of capital vs. rule of people. He points out that (despite electoral democracy) the interests of capital dominates in liberal democracy.

Conflation of liberal democratic form vs. actual democracy. Li asserts that China is more democratic than West. He points out that liberal democracy emphasizes procedure, while democracy in China emphasizes outcome (for the people).

Video: Both US and Canada Are Not Fit For Preaching On Human Rights When They Have a Terrible Human Rights Records and Getting Worst Everyday. 當美國和加拿大擁有糟糕的人權記錄並且每天都在變得更糟時，它們都不適合宣揚人權.

We urge these countries to stop interfering in others’ internal affairs and take off their hypocritical mask of “human rights preachers.” Instead, they should reflect and take concrete measures to solve their serious human rights problems. They should abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international relations. And they need to contribute their share to the sound development of the global human rights cause.
https://vimeo.com/572129068
https://youtu.be/1KaH0xUdlvU
https://www.facebook.com/100036400039778/posts/524658195424177/?d=n

Video: When China Saves whales Lives, Others in Japan and Denmark Kill for fun. 當中國拯救鯨🐳魚生命時，日本和丹麥殺鯨魚🐳只是為了好玩而殺. When Chinese people were protecting and saving whales, a traditional whaling festival was held off Denmark’s Faroe Islands. During the hunt, pilot whales were first forced to shore by boats. Fishermen used hooks and other tools to slaughter them on the shore, killing a total of 175, including those pregnant and baby whales, that day. Many netizens said that the Danish fairy tale has collapsed. Some said why the United Nations does not ban this activity. In addition, animal associations should come forward. Some netizens suspect that the local animal associations are blind. https://vimeo.com/571965159
https://youtu.be/NKdCBgXCrpo
https://www.facebook.com/100036400039778/posts/524435032113160/?d=n

Video: Here Is Why China Is Always So Ugly In the eyes of Western Media! in the west, the question why blaming China is always politically right, is not a question at all. 這就是為什麼中國在西方媒體眼中總是那麼醜！ 在西方，為什麼指責中國在政治上總是正確的，根本不是問題. 問題是99%的西人從未到過中國.

The war already began, although it is a colored revolution, like that between the US and the former Soviet Union, any delusional hope should not exist at all.
https://vimeo.com/571952592
https://youtu.be/JHqgmpZJnbY
https://www.facebook.com/100036400039778/posts/524416405448356/?d=n