Xi’s pledge to ‘uproot sick trees’ aired weeks ahead of major party conclave

South China Morning Post - Oct 16, 2026

President Xi Jinping has pledged to “uproot sick trees” in the anti-corruption fight, according to a speech transcript published by the party’s flagship magazine ahead of a major party conclave later this month. The warning appeared on Thursday in the magazine Qiushi, which carried fresh details of a speech Xi delivered in January at the fifth plenary session of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), the party’s top anti-corruption watchdog. The speech contained a series of...

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Ex-lawmaker referred to prosecution over daughter's hiring at university

Ex-lawmaker referred to prosecution over daughter's hiring at university

Former opposition lawmaker Yoo Seong-min and three university officials have been referred to the prosecution for possible indictment over allegations of preferential treatment in the hiring of Yoo's daughter as a professor by Incheon National University (INU), police said Friday. The Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency said Yoo, INU President Lee In-jae and two INU professors were sent to the prosecution without detention on charges of obstruction of business. Lee and the two professors were also charged with violating the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act. The four are suspected of obstructing the university's recruitment process when Yoo's daughter, Yoo Dam, 32, was hired as a faculty member in its trade department in the second semester of last year. Lee and the two professors are also suspected of receiving improper solicitations concerning the hiring of Yoo's daughter, although investigators found no evidence that they had accepted money or valuables, the police said. The police announcement came after an investigation that began in November last year. They also questioned Yoo's d

1 firefighter in cardiac arrest, 6 others injured in Bucheon factory fire

1 firefighter in cardiac arrest, 6 others injured in Bucheon factory fire

One firefighter went into cardiac arrest and six other people were injured Friday following a fire at a factory in Bucheon, just west of Seoul, officials said. The fire broke out at the four-story metalworking factory at 8:38 a.m., with authorities bringing the main blaze under control about two hours later after deploying 80 firefighters. Two firefighters were seriously injured, including one who was rushed to a hospital in a state of cardiac arrest. The fire also left three other firefighters and two factory officials with minor injuries, such as smoke inhalation. Fire authorities plan to investigate the exact cause of the blaze. The factory reportedly stored flammable material. After being briefed on the fire, President Lee Jae Myung called for utmost efforts to extinguish the fire and rescue those in danger, according to presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung. The president also called for a thorough response to prevent further damage, citing the presence of inflammable substances inside the factory, while urging special caution to ensure the safety of firefighters battling the fire,

Korean startup targets 'legal AI music' via copyright tracking

Korean startup targets 'legal AI music' via copyright tracking

More than half of the new tracks uploaded to French streaming service Deezer each day are now made by artificial intelligence (AI). The company said such uploads peaked in June at about 90,000 a day, up from roughly 10,000 in January 2025. The record industry's response is shifting from the courtroom to the negotiating table. Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, which sued AI music generators Suno and Udio in 2024 alongside Sony Music, have since settled with Udio. Warner has also settled with Suno. What the industry still lacks is a way to pay the people whose music feeds these systems. Streaming runs on a simple formula, in which a song is played, counted and paid for, but nothing comparable exists for AI-generated songs that draw on existing ones. For now, platforms are simply keeping fully AI-generated tracks out of royalty payments. These are not distant problems for Korea. K-pop reaches much of its global audience through the same streaming services, and at home, AI-assisted tracks have recently climbed the charts on Melon and YouTube, even though major streaming platforms

Hong Kong vies for role in robotics boom with launch of embodied AI hub

Hong Kong vies for role in robotics boom with launch of embodied AI hub

The Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) opened the city’s first experimental hub for embodied artificial intelligence on Thursday with the participation of seven mainland and Hong Kong companies, including industry leaders Unitree Robotics and Galbot, as the city looks to carve out a role in the global robotics boom. Located at the HKPC Building in Kowloon Tong, the Embodied AI International Applications Hub, housed under the HKPC’s industrial AI and robotics centre, features simulated...

Giant machines harvest a sea of cotton in Xinjiang

Giant machines harvest a sea of cotton in Xinjiang

Giant machines harvest a sea of cotton in Xinjiang

Wang Yi: China-Türkiye cooperation benefits global economic recovery

Wang Yi: China-Türkiye cooperation benefits global economic recovery

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Thursday on the sidelines of the 7th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia in Baku.

China's clean energy equipment exports gain momentum

China's clean energy equipment exports gain momentum

China's total installed power generation capacity reached 4.103 billion kilowatts by the end of August, up 11.1% year on year, reflecting continued growth in the country's energy infrastructure.

It’s your funeral: former academic gives Hongkongers more end-of-life choices

It’s your funeral: former academic gives Hongkongers more end-of-life choices

After years of teaching Hongkongers about death and end-of-life arrangements, Dr Ng Kwai-lun realised there was a gap between what people were told they could do and the services actually available to them. Determined to bridge that gap, he left a stable university career to become an entrepreneur. Ng had worked at the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s medical school, where he managed embalming and helped run and promote its body donation initiative. But by 2020, the pandemic had exposed another...

Tapping into tech and talent

Tapping into tech and talent

Download the PDF This is the fourth in a series of factsheets about Hong Kong’s first five-year plan and 2026 policy address. Part I – Hong Kong’s new chapter Part II – The story begins ... Part III – Sharpening Hong Kong’s edge Part IV – Tapping into tech and talent The series has been produced with support from the Hong Kong SAR government. To see the South China Morning Post’s coverage of the five-year plan, click here. This Factsheet will appear in the SCMP print edition on October...

Sharpening Hong Kong’s edge

Sharpening Hong Kong’s edge

Download the PDF This is the third in a series of Factsheets on Hong Kong’s first five-year plan and 2026 policy address. Part I – Hong Kong’s new chapter Part II – The story begins ... Part III – Sharpening Hong Kong’s edge Part IV – Tapping into tech and talent The series has been produced with support from the Hong Kong SAR government. To see the South China Morning Post’s coverage of the five-year plan, click here. This Factsheet will appear in the SCMP print edition on October 20....

Wang Yi urges Israel to open Gaza routes, halt West Bank settlements

Wang Yi urges Israel to open Gaza routes, halt West Bank settlements

Wang Yi urges Israel to open Gaza routes, halt West Bank settlements

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