Head of China's Shaolin Temple removed over embezzlement claims
Beijing's top Buddhist authority made the announcement on Monday, after allegations of embezzlement saw Abbot Shi Yongxin placed under investigation.
The Shaolin Temple said on Sunday that Shi, known as
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Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Second time round for Brown
Otago 5-mile harrier race start at Forbury Park, Dunedin. Otago Witness, 11.8.1925 E.L. Brown, the Civil Service runner, who won the Otago Five Miles Crosscountry Championship in 28min 4sec at Wingatui last year, succeeded in lowering his own record by winning this year's race at Forbury on Saturday in 27min 38sec. The Caversham Club again won the teams' championship, thus retaining the coveted banner for the third year in succession. The sealed handicap was won by the Anglican No. 1 team, with Leith and Caversham Clubs equal second. Brown, the winner, although only a young runner, has already worthily represented the province. If his present form continues he will be hard to beat in the forthcoming New Zealand Championship. For the first time since 1905, when the championship was inaugurated, the race was held from a track commencing and ending at Forbury Park instead of Wingatui. Opium inhaled in 'secret chamber' Although confronted with two opium pipes (one of which contained opium), a lamp, candle, and a tin also containing opium, which had been seized by detectives during a raid on his premises at 48 Carroll street, Joe Choy, the proprietor, pleaded complete ignorance at the City Police Court on Saturday, to the fact that opium-smoking had been carried on in his cook shop. Defendant said that he knew nothing of what had been going on, although before the detectives left his premises he offered them up to £30 to stay police proceedings. Defendant was charged that, being the occupier of premises situated at 48 Carroll street, he permitted or abetted the smoking of opium therein. The Magistrate (Mr J.R. Bartholomew SM), in declining to accept what he described as defendant's "bland explanation," convicted and fined him £5, with costs (7 shillings). Mr J. McIntosh (Collector of Customs) prosecuted, and Mr B.S. Irwin appeared for the defendant, who pleaded not guilty. Mr Irwin submitted that there was no evidence to justify the conclusion that smoking had taken place, or, if it had, that the defendant had been aware of it. The premises were used as a boarding-house for Chinese, and the smoking utensils found might have been left by other Chinese. "It always seems to me that these places all smell the same, opium or no opium," added counsel. The Magistrate: "The onus is on you to disprove the charge. You have overlooked the warm fat, Mr Irwin." Counsel: "Oh, no. The candle may have been used for other purposes than purely for opium smoking. I still submit that no facts of actual smoking have been proved." Mr McIntosh to Detective Sneddon: "Was a bribe offered you?" Witness: "Yes; at first defendant offered us £5." The Magistrate: "What did he say?" Witness: "Defendant asked us to take £5 to square it now. Later he offered £10, then £20, and finally before the detectives left the premises the inducement was increased to £60." The detectives took the opium and smoking outfit, and told defendant to appear before the court the next day. Mr McIntosh: "The attic is rather a secret chamber, isn't it?" Witness: "The stairs are very steep; and the attic is reached from the coalhouse only." The Magistrate pointed out that defendant had previously been warned. The present offence, said Mr Bartholomew, was not regarded as nearly so serious as one of being found in possession of opium. — ODT, 3.8.1925 Compiled by Peter Dowden
NZ Herald
3 days ago
- NZ Herald
China hits back at FBI director's ‘groundless assertions' in Wellington
FBI director Kash Patel at the opening ceremony for a dedicated law enforcement attaché office in Wellington. Photo / Supplied, Ola Thorsen 'Transnational crime is a common challenge encountered by all countries requiring co-operation to tackle,' a spokesperson said. 'On the opening of a new FBI office in Wellington with a permanent Legat [legal attaché] position, we have taken note of the assertions by the American side, as well as the remarks by relevant New Zealand ministers in response to the media. 'We believe that relevant co-operation should not target any third party. And we strongly oppose any attempt to make groundless assertions or vilification against China out of the Cold War mentality. Such acts are against people's will and are doomed to fail.' The Government has pushed back on suggestions that the FBI's new office in Wellington aimed to counter China. Foreign Minister Winston Peters said China was not raised in his meeting with Patel, and the minister responsible for the spy agencies GCSB and NZSIS, Judith Collins, said it was up to Patel what he wanted to say. The Chinese Embassy building in Wellington. Photo / Reece Baker, RNZ 'When we were talking, we never had raised that issue,' Peters said. 'We talked about the Pacific, what we could do to improve the law and order situation and the great concern that Pacific countries had and that they needed help, and that we need to be part of the solution.' Collins said the US was 'very focused on fentanyl' and knew New Zealand was focused on disrupting the methamphetamine trade. 'We know that we do have international criminals ... let's just understand that our security agency is also involved in this. We're not going to single out any particular country.' University of Otago lecturer Dr Peter Grace said drug and human trafficking was 'spiralling out of control' in the region, and New Zealand had limited resources to fight it. 'New Zealand is a small state, and we just don't have the kind of resources that are going to help solve these problems… So the fact that you've got somebody with much deeper pockets coming down and cooperating can be a particularly good thing.' Opposition parties expressed surprise at the announcement, Labour saying it had come without explanation and Greens saying the office should not exist and New Zealand should exit the Five Eyes arrangement altogether. - RNZ
1News
6 days ago
- 1News
Temu accused by EU of failing to prevent sale of illegal products
Chinese online retailer Temu was accused by European Union watchdogs on Tuesday of failing to prevent the sale of illegal products on its platform. The preliminary findings follow an investigation opened last year under the bloc's Digital Services Act. It's a wide-ranging rulebook that requires online platforms to do more to keep internet users safe, with the threat of hefty fines. The European Commission, the 27-nation bloc's executive branch, said its investigation found 'a high risk for consumers in the EU to encounter illegal products' on Temu's site. Investigators carried out a 'mystery shopping exercise' that found 'non-compliant' products on Temu, including baby toys and small electronics, it said. Temu said in a brief statement that it 'will continue to cooperate fully with the Commission". ADVERTISEMENT The commission didn't specify why exactly the products were illegal, but noted that a surge in online sales in the bloc also came with a parallel rise in unsafe or counterfeit goods. EU regulators said when they opened the investigation that they would look into whether Temu was doing enough to crack down on 'rogue traders' selling 'non-compliant goods' amid concerns that they are able to swiftly reappear after being suspended. In its preliminary findings, the Commission found that Temu could have had 'inadequate mitigation measures' because the company was using an 'inaccurate' risk assessment that relied on general industry information, rather than specifics about its own marketplace. The morning's headlines in 90 seconds, including the atmospheric river arrives, Epstein's girlfriend pushes for appeal, and Jennifer Lopez's wardrobe malfunction. (Source: Breakfast) 'We shop online because we trust that products sold in our Single Market are safe and comply with our rules,' Henna Virkkunen, the EU's executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, said in a news release. "In our preliminary view, Temu is far from assessing risks for its users at the standards required by the Digital Services Act. Temu has grown in popularity by offering cheap goods - from clothing to home products — shipped from sellers in China. The company, owned by Pinduoduo Inc., a popular e-commerce site in China, has 92 million users in the EU. The company will have the chance to examine the Commission's investigation files and respond to the accusations before the EU watchdogs make a final decision. ADVERTISEMENT Violations of the DSA could result in fines of up to 6% of a company's annual global revenue and an order to fix the problems.
