#zaobao

[southeastasianists]

On 5th July 2023, The Washington Post published ‘In Singapore, loud echoes of Beijing’s positions generate anxiety’. Written by Singaporean journalist Shibani Mahtani, it alleged that local Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao “now routinely echoes some of Beijing’s most strident falsehoods” and “has been running regular opinion columns since 2016 from at least two [Chinese Communist Party] officials without noting their party affiliation”. 

The article argued this was a symptom of more extensive efforts by China to influence Singapore’s Chinese population. 

It sparked immediate (and anxious) reactions. Lianhe Zaobao rebutted that they take in “Chinese and Western viewpoints while preserving [their] unique stance and independence”. Lui Tuck Yew, Singapore’s Ambassador to the US, published a letter saying the article “wrongly suggests that Lianhe Zaobao […] echoes Beijing’s propaganda” and that the article was “misguided for American news outlets to expect Zaobao to resemble The Washington Post or for Singapore to follow either the US or China”. 

Prime Minister-in-waiting Lawrence Wong briefly discussed the article during his US trip, affirming that Singapore is vigilant about external influences, including “Western liberal ideals”.

“To be candid, there is no shortage of criticism about Singapore in the Western media, no shortage of commentaries and articles highlighting the shortcomings in our system and asking us to be more like Western liberal ideals,” DPM Wong clarifies.

Naturally, it was the first thing I asked her about. 

On Lianhe Zaobao

As expected of someone who interviews public figures for a living, Shibani’s relaxed manner instantly puts you at ease. Her speech—liberally peppered with “you know” and “right?”—draws you into the same wavelength. 

Learned from years of journalism, the 35-year-old balances her claims with caveats. Her neutral-sounding English is flawless, void of the full ‘R’s characterising American accents or the poshness of British accents. In her own words, she speaks like “someone very privileged to have experienced different cultures, societies, and ways of life”.

When I bring up the Lianhe Zaobao kerfuffle, her demeanour turns serious. 

“Nowhere did I advocate for Singaporean media to be like Western media,” she begins. 

“The story didn’t argue from a US-China perspective at all, honestly. It was an investigation into the discourses and the narratives around Chinese-ness.”

While acknowledging Western ideas and narratives have long been embedded in Singapore, she argues China’s resurgence makes examining Chinese influence more urgent. 

“Ethnicity has historically been very fragile in this part of the world. Most of Singapore’s population is ethnic Chinese. As [Ambassador-at-Large] Bilahari said, there’s something very different about the CCP propagating the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, which involves ethnic Chinese from all over the world,” she notes. “The US cannot have that same claim here.”

Probing Shibani is an exercise in probing the Singaporean identity. Born and bred in Singapore, she’s highly invested in the way things operate here.

However, the values she developed from Singapore’s environment differed from most. Where political apathy (even cynicism) prevails, Shibani champions ‘flowery’ values like free speech and transparency. Such values inform her work, birthing social media comments accusing her and her work—like her Lianhe Zaobao article—of being “Western” and a “foreign influence”.

Shibani’s interest in examining China’s influence on Singapore began upon returning home while covering the 2019 Hong Kong protests.

“People around us would be like, ‘Oh, these people are unhinged’.” She suspected these narratives parroted CCP talking points.

After asking friends and consulting academics, she learned how Chinese state narratives can be spread through various channels in Singapore: WeChat, WhatsApp, forum posts, cable TV and print media. 

Shibani focused on Lianhe Zaobao because it was quantifiable. 

Working with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, an Australian government-linked think tank that declared receiving $1.48 million from the US State Department in 2021-22, The Washington Post could “run a scraper through” Zaobao’s articles for references to pro-China sources.

She notes another reason. 

“The way Singapore views the media is not as a check and balance but to positively aid national development and discourse. I felt that if it were true that Chinese narratives were seeping in, that would run counter to the Singapore government’s efforts to ensure that our narratives are self-defined and driven by Singapore’s interests.”

A proponent of free speech, she claims pro-China views have a place in Singapore’s media landscape. Her gripe, however, is transparency—publications need to clarify the writer’s affiliations to readers.

“You could not get away with having a US State Department official write for The Straits Times as a neutral analyst.”

A Singaporean, Born and Bred

Her conversations with fellow Singaporeans informed Shibani’s story of Chinese influence in Singapore. It’s far from the first story birthed from her connections here.

“One of the first stories I did—and it remains a story I’m very, very proud of—was writing in the Wall Street Journal about racial discrimination within Singapore’s housing ads. People can—even today—advertise ‘no Indians’ or ‘Chinese preferred’ or ‘light-skin only.'” 

It presented a disconnect from narratives she grew up hearing about Singapore’s racial harmony and the Housing Development Board’s Ethnic Integration Policy preventing ethnic enclaves. 

“I don’t know if I would have caught on to that issue if I had not been born and raised here,” she affirms.

Growing up an ethnic minority, she didn’t see her experiences and views validated. 

Without social media or alternative media back then, she could only read from The Straits Times or Business Times and what foreigners wrote about Singapore in overseas publications. There was little available discourse divorced from those lenses. Her current endeavours in journalism aim to fill that gap: To present perspectives on Singapore she wasn’t able to read growing up.

Her childhood fascination with travel and language evolved into a fixation on journalism as her political awareness developed. 

“I remember the WIRED piece that called Singapore a ‘Disneyland with the death penalty‘”, she says. Reading international coverage of Singapore spurred her to interrogate the place she calls home.

She focused on writing. She contributed to the school paper at Raffles Junior College and became Executive Editor of the student newspaper at the London School of Economics. 

“When I went to grad school [at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in 2010], I wanted to learn how big global news organisations operate. They are much better resourced and offered a more international career, which can be hard to carve out at somewhere like The Straits Times.” 

Yet, it felt far-fetched. 

“When I started writing for The Wall Street Journal [in 2011], it was rare for them to have non-white, non-Western journalists,” she recalls. 

Her opportunity was borne from need: WSJ’s foreign journalists on employment passes got their passes cut.

“So they said okay, instead of hiring foreigners, we should hire Singaporeans.”

Beyond the Bubble

Working in global news organisations meant Shibani was often overseas, starting with Myanmar in 2013. She volunteered for the job—a leap of faith stemming from her interest in Southeast Asia.

Adapting to Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar, was a “crazy experience”. Internet was virtually nonexistent and absurdly priced.

“SIM cards still cost US$150 before the liberalisation of the telecom sector.” She often loitered in the Traders Hotel (now Shangri-La) lobby, trying to connect to decent internet.

For correspondents, living in the country they’re covering gives a valuable taste of life there to inform their perspectives.

Contrary to places like Hong Kong or Singapore, where expatriates have the ability to somewhat detach from local life, Shibani notes that it was much harder in Yangon circa 2013.

“Living in Yangon is a bit of a bubble [for expatriates], but our issues with the internet were shared [with locals]. If it flooded, everything flooded. If the power cuts, the power cuts for everybody—not to equate; I was a privileged expat, but we lived in a pretty local neighbourhood.”

She regales tales from her travels, recalling the poppy-infested Northern areas of Myanmar, where opium is produced.  

“I remember feeling very shaken visiting these shacks, which were treatment centres for recovering addicts. Their eyes were just so hollow and their expressions so blank.”

She remembers interviewing Khin Nyunt, Myanmar’s former Chief of Intelligence—infamous for ruthlessly running the pervasive state security apparatus and cracking down on anyone opposing the regime. 

“What a difficult interview, man. Imagine you’re sitting across from someone who you essentially know is a really bad person, for lack of a better word,” she grimaces.

“And you have to smile at them and go: ‘So. About torturing and disappearing people.'”

She shudders as she recalls speaking to Aung San Suu Kyi—her toughest interviewee yet. When she tried to press Aung San Suu Kyi on the national economy and internal political party dynamics, Aung San Suu Kyi got angry and refused to talk. Shibani crumpled up internally.

Fighting for Something

Then, there was the time when she covered the Hong Kong protests in 2019.

“It was incredibly fast-moving every weekend. […] Protests were so dispersed. Journalists were in WhatsApp groups together so we could crowdsource or trade info.”

It fell into a routine. Mornings and afternoons were peaceful, while at night, there’d be pockets of radical action like vandalism or police chases. 

That soon devolved into chaos. “You didn’t know whether to expect Molotov cocktails being thrown or crackdowns from the police.” That escalation only waned after local elections in November 2019 and the advent of COVID-19.

Despite the violence, it was the tender moments that stuck with her. “We would see people helping each other and giving out food and drinks, young couples holding hands and walking through the streets. It was surreal to see those spaces you’d drive down occupied by people sitting and holding hands.”

“You see what it meant to people to be part of a collective and a community fighting for something,” she reminisces. “That stayed with me.”

Journalists aren’t immune to the heightened emotions: “It’s very hard not to be affected by seeing kids beaten up on the street or seeing your friends flee home.” 

She tries to channel these emotions into her writing, as with her recently published book, Among The Braves. Co-written with her husband, Timothy McLaughlin, the book explores the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement through the eyes of people on the ground. 

“In 2021, when they started mass arresting groups of people, our whole contact list disappeared. We identified a few people [to profile in the book], and they started going to jail, one by one. Local Hong Kong outlets we referenced, like Apple Daily or Stand News, began shutting down.” 

She stressed the urgency. “I think the power of the Chinese Communist Party to do this forced mass amnesia has been well-documented post-Tiananmen. If we didn’t do it now, we’d lose the opportunity to put down what we saw in these people’s life experiences.”

‘A Different Approach’

Today, Shibani is back in Singapore after returning home with her husband and Bean, her dog.

“It’s pretty surreal,” Shibani reflects, sipping coffee as her eyes linger on the Singapore skyline. “It feels like we’re in a corner of the world untouched by the insanity everywhere.”

“For all of Singapore’s flaws, we should feel fortunate to have a good, stable and functional government,” Shibani notes.

“In Hong Kong, all people wanted is to vote for their government,” she says. “I’m not saying that stuff like gerrymandering doesn’t exist. Singapore’s not a perfect system, but we still have that right [to vote] many people are fighting for.” 

Shibani pauses. “I sometimes wonder if it is valued as much as it should be.”

Despite being well-travelled, she doesn’t consider herself an international citizen.

“Being Singaporean is at the heart of everything I do, everything I believe in, and everything I am.”

From Shibani’s perspective, many of her contrasting beliefs are because of her Singaporean experiences “formed in opposition to narratives [she] heard since young”.

Not all her beliefs are oppositional. She attributes positive experiences in Singapore to her strong belief in multiculturalism, the virtues of an open immigration system (relative to other countries), and diversity within our neighbourhoods.

Shibani reflects Singapore’s difficulties balancing a desire to be an open, cosmopolitan city while nurturing a nationalism that, in its quest to unite, may exclude Singaporeans who stray from conventions of how a Singaporean should think or act.

Being critical of these perspectives is one thing. Shunning these viewpoints altogether strangles Singapore’s social diversity and vibrancy of thought. 

Those differences in values influence her views on Singaporean journalism. “I don’t want to criticise traditional SPH media, honestly. They inform society on things only they will cover right, like day-to-day concerns of Singaporeans.”

“Perhaps the only point I would make is, generally, I believe journalism should be free of government interference, red lines, and tacit control, but that’s not the way Singapore’s government sees its media; they see it as having a civic role. And that’s just a different approach.”

A Journalist’s Role

In comparison, she recalls, “When I was in the US [between 2016 and 2019], I was highly critical of the Chicago local government, the Chicago Mayor, and the Illinois state government. That’s our role as journalists: To be a check on government.”

This principle also holds in Hong Kong. She rejects claims that her writing, often critical of the Hong Kong government, represents Western influence in a larger East vs West ideological conflict. After all, she scrutinises Western governments using similar criteria, too.

“[Journalists] mean it when we say we want all perspectives,” she says, citing her own extensive interviews with people within the Hong Kong government.

That includes police officers on the ground. “We worked with a local journalist who—this is a true story, and RICE Media fodder—Tinder matched with two cops. When the movement started, she was like, ‘Oh my god. Let me reach out to my Tinder contacts.'”

However, those core disagreements with journalism’s role in Singapore are also why she’s so excited about the burgeoning independent media scene. “I feel like this landscape now is so much more diverse and interesting than I could have imagined in its history.”

After her book tour, she intends to add to that diversity by writing for The Washington Post on topics like trafficking or refugees in Southeast Asia. I ask what sustains her dedication to pure journalism. 

“So cheesy, but I’m just interested in hearing people’s stories,” she laughs.

“We can’t escape the confines in which we grew up—the schools we go to, the countries we live in. All that means we interact with only specific subsets or groups of people. The amazing thing about journalism is that all those boundaries don’t exist.”

She’s talked with so many people: Hardcore gun-toting Republicans in Southern Illinois, Rohingya refugees on the Thai border, and millionaires relinquishing everything to support the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement.

“It’s like therapy, I think, for them,” she ponders.

“It’s a testament to how so many people have stories to tell—it’s just about drawing it out.”

[bizarrequazar]

GJ and ZZH Updates — June 11-17

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This is part of a weekly series collecting updates from and relating to Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan.

This post is not wholly comprehensive and is intended as an overview, links provided lead to further details. Dates are in accordance with China Standard Time, the organization is chronological. My own biases on some things are reflected here. Anything I include that is not concretely known is indicated as such, and you’re welcome to do your own research and draw your own conclusions as you see fit. Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or additions. :)

[Glossary of names and terms] [Masterlist of my posts about the situation with Zhang Zhehan]

Late addition to last week: The Singaporean paper Shin Min Daily News (aka Zaobao) published an “email interview” article about “Zhang Zhehan” (ie. taking the Zhang Sanjian scam and concerts as legitimate) with the first line of the article saying that Zhang Zhehan visited Yasukuni Shrine. This article was celebrated by whalers, with some blatantly omitting this first line; when confronted about this, they claimed it was no big deal for the very smears at the centre of 813 to be repeated here. The article also went on to say that Zhang Sanjian was “grateful for the opportunity” that his cancellation gave him.

06-11 → An article about Word of Honor was published by the Collider, an English language film news media company, promoting the drama as “one of the best queer historical dramas”.

06-12 → #Chen Lu's suspected extortion case enters the review and prosecution stage# got on Weibo hotsearch, about a legal case involving Huo Zun (a singer who performed 锦书来 for Word of Honor) and his ex-girlfriend that started in summer 2021.* All the featured posts under the hotsearch were from marketing accounts affiliated with CAPA and presented Huo Zun in a more positive light than his ex, indicating that he likely reached some sort of agreement with CAPA for them to back him. At least one post was written in a way that can also be read to allude to Zhang Zhehan’s case, saying that “there's no benefit to making your enemy go to jail, seek a win-win result and don't insist on them going to jail.” (CAPA seems to be scared as of late, no?) *I have not been following this case and have no opinion on it. 

06-13 → 361° posted nine photo ads featuring Gong Jun.

→ Gong Jun donated 230,000 RMB to the China Charities Aid Foundation for Children, including the 30,000 RMB he received as compensation in one of his lawsuits against an anti.

06-14 → On Aura Tout Vu (see 06-05 under last week) posted a blog article about Zhang Sanjian, in which they mentioned Yasukuni Shrine and the Nogi Shrine wedding photos without clarifications, and said Zhang Zhehan was banned by “authorities” who “also suspected him of homosexuality[.]” [screenshots] This was edited twenty minutes later to remove the specific mention of the shrine, referring to it as a defamation campaign, then was edited again several hours later to remove the mention of homosexuality. [records showing the editing history]

→ Xie Yihua made claims that she had won a defamation suit against an “anti” account. There is no record of any such suit existing [1] [2], the “apology letter” posted that was supposedly written by the person sued does not include a UID number, and the account mentioned only has five followers. The UID that was later found was discovered to belong to someone who had had a hand in 813. It was subsequently passed around whaler circles that Zhang Zhehan must not be pursuing his case because otherwise Xie Yihua’s wouldn’t have concluded first, as if the two could be compared even if Xie Yihua wasn’t a compulsive liar.

→ ELLE magazine posted a teaser video for their photoshoot with Gong Jun they would release later. Caption: “In the July issue of ELLE, we talked about music, movies, work, study plans, and even childhood memories with the cover character @ Gong Jun Simon. We have seen a Gong Jun who regards sincerity and frankness as the wall of his comfort zone, we have seen Gong Jun who likes strong-paced pop music and brain-burning suspense movies, we have seen Gong Jun an actor who treats each character with heart, and we have seen Gong Jun who is willing to learn more. Gong Jun who takes a little time, and Gong Jun who has too many ideals. Stay tuned!”

→ L’Oreal posted a photo ad of Gong Jun from Cannes.

→ ELLE posted the covers of their issue featuring Gong Jun. Caption:  “For more than a year, @ Gong Jun Simon has been in a crew almost all the time, ‘Legend of AnLe’, ‘Rising with the Wind’, ‘Fox Spirit Matchmaker: Red Moon Red Chapter’... Meeting ELLE on the long-lost holiday, it seems that everything can trigger his joy. At the shooting scene, Gong Jun lamented the good weather, beautiful scenery, and enjoying the beauty of nature. What's even more rare is that his happy personality doesn't have much purpose. In his opinion, the foundation of an actor's life is his work. He already has happiness, and now he wants to ‘walk more steadily step by step’.” This was reposted by Gong Jun’s studio with the added caption: “Perched on a canoe, leaning on the prow of a small boat, @ Gong Jun Simon listens to the gurgling water~” Fan Observations: The covers use the famous first line from Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18, one of the poems written about the Fair Youth believed to have been his male lover.

→ ELLE posted eleven photos from their shoot with Gong Jun. Caption: “We are naturally happy to see the person opposite speak crisply; but for public figures who need to be cautious in their daily words and deeds, will this kind of directness cause trouble? @ Gong Jun Simon said that he is very satisfied with his personality and does not need to change: ‘If you want to express it, you can express it directly, and if you have a request, you can express it directly. The friends around me are also the same kind, and they are all straightforward people.’ When we discussed the topic of ‘most recently listened to music’, he directly opened the music app in his mobile phone, showed me the playback history and favorites, and even played the song he listened to the most recently to invite us together listen. Parson James' Sad Song sounded in the dressing room. It didn't sound so sad, but the rhythm made people feel the urge to dance.”

→ Gong Jun posted nine photos from the ELLE photoshoot. Caption: “Fresh summer! Thanks @ ELLE” He also posted nine to his Xiao Hong Shu, caption: “Vacation  Just a joke 😱” and ten to his Instagram, caption: “Fresh summer😉” Fan Observation: The Weibo post was at 11:06, which wouldn’t really be notable except the post from his studio an hour later was at 12:01. 🤔

→ Tangle Teezer posted a promotional video spoken by Gong Jun. (1129 kadian)

→ ELLE posted a video of their photoshoot. Caption: “Everyone likes the contagious smile of @ Gong Jun Simon, the kind of smile that stretches the brows and eyes and is full of vitality, as if the surrounding is always sunny and the air is fresh; his personal temperament is also happy and bright, even as long as you mention this the name, the face that comes to mind is the smiling one. In an industry that is often overworked, it is not easy to stay energized and positive. It may take a little bit of luck, but also some determination to be yourself. The warm and loving family endows Gong Jun with a bright and optimistic personality background, while his straightforward social attitude guards a pure heart.” This was reposted by Fresh. Fan Observation: The straw hat looks similar to that of Luffy from One Piece, the character Zhang Zhehan used as his Weibo pfp. 

→ ELLE posted their interview with Gong Jun.

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a video of behind the scenes footage from the photoshoot. Caption: “In the lush season of summer, record the cool moment of @ Gong Jun Simon” BGM is White Lies (Instrumental) by ODESZA. 

→ Hogan posted four of the ELLE photos, highlighting their clothes. Caption includes “Go into the mountains and start an adventure.”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted six behind the scenes photos from the shoot. Caption: “Watching nature quietly, @ Gong Jun Simon is at leisure, enjoying the peaceful world beyond the turmoil.”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a douyin of behind the scenes footage from the shoot. Caption: “@ Gong Jun Simon takes grass and trees as a seat and lies flat!” BGM is After Hours by The Weeknd.

→ 361° posted three photo ads featuring Gong Jun.

06-15 → EHz.Z changed recipient companies again, this being the eleventh time since October 2022. (see 06-03)

→ Tangle Teezer posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun.

→ The Instagram posted six photos of “Zhang Zhehan”.

→ Huang Xiaoming posted a photo to celebrate Go Fighting! season 9 wrapping, with the regular cast members who weren’t present for the photo poorly photoshopped in. Gong Jun commented, “Ge, why do I blend in more naturally than you in this picture?” to which Huang Xiaoming replied, “This is the extent of my photoshopping skills 😂”

06-16 → STELLAR, the production company for Rising with the Wind and Fox Spirit Matchmaker, posted a video celebrating their 5th anniversary with brief messages from various actors. [subbed cut of Gong Jun]

→ Louis Vuitton posted a teaser video of Gong Jun from when he was in Seoul in April.

→ Gong Jun posted the full video for Louis Vuitton, showing him spending a day in Seoul with Jin Chen, who was also there in partnership with LV. [subbed video] Caption: “Set off with a comfortable mood and unlock an unforgettable adventure. Roam Seoul with @ Louis Vuitton and explore the infinite joy of travel.”

→ The 不想匿名 account was deactivated. It’s unknown if this was done by the account itself or the platform.

→ The Instagram posted a video of “Zhang Zhehan” playing a new song.

06-17 → Fresh posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun.

→ L’Oreal posted a promotional video spoken by Gong Jun.

→ The Instagram posted a video of “Zhang Zhehan” having a photoshoot.

Additional Reading: → A Twitter event, #ShineWithTheMoon, is being organized for 08-03 for fans of Zhang Zhehan to share positive messages about the fandom. Update: This event has been postponed due to concern over recent bot activity.

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This post was last updated 2023-06-20.

[twoset-updates]

[171222 zaobao article]

read online (subscribers only)

text transcription and translation of highlights below:

(typed by hand, there may be errors. as most information is already familiar to fans, only new information has been translated.)

（手工打字，若有任何误差敬请见谅）

古典音乐博主��琴侠：虎妈”原型就是我妈

古典音乐博主双琴侠杨博尧和陈韦丞，以搞笑风格展现音乐人的日常生活，通过视频让年轻人接触到古典音乐。他们调侃亚裔家长强迫孩子练琴，却又反对他们从事音乐职业，让不少亚裔观众产生共鸣。

张鹤杨／报道

　　从对调左右手拉小提琴、蒙眼盲猜小提琴的价格等搞怪挑战，到调侃亚裔家长强迫孩子练琴又反对他们从事音乐职业等文化现象，双琴侠（TwoSet Violin）无疑是当今古典音乐界最炙手可热的YouTube播主。

　　由澳籍台裔的杨博尧和陈韦丞开设的双琴侠YouTube频道现在有约400万订阅者，著名小提琴家希拉里・哈恩，陈锐，以及本地小提琴家蔡珂宜都是该频道的常客。11月16日，双琴侠携手新加坡交响乐团在本地维多利亚音乐厅呈现现场音乐会，线上同步直播收获超过100万浏览量。

边搞笑边科普

　　双琴侠的视频大多以搞笑风格展现职业音乐家和音乐学院生的日常生活，有时还会用“roast”（吐槽）的形式，以专业视角解析大众文化中的古典乐元素，边搞笑边科普，还诞生一系列“梗词”。如形容拉琴很快却不准的“sacrilegious”，每天练琴40小时的虚构神童“Ling Ling”等，其中文粉丝由此自称“零学家”。

　　与“Ling Ling”相对应的，是陈韦丞不时反串饰演的“虎妈”（tiger mom）角色。虎妈不仅望子成龙心切更爱攀比，一面逼孩子练琴参加比赛，又极力反对孩子选音乐为职业，认为除了医生和律师，其他职业都是“失败者”，让不少亚裔观众产生共鸣。

　　“虎妈的原型就是我妈 ¹ ，我从小被安排上各种补习班。”陈韦丞说：“17岁时我想报考音乐学院，她极力反对，认为我就是为了逃避竞争才去学音乐。后来我们达成一个很好笑的协议，只要我考上医学院，她就让我去学音乐。”

　　陈韦丞成绩向来出色，只花了不到一个月的时间备考就一超过同届97%考生的成绩获得医学生资格 ² 。尽管母亲万般不愿意，陈韦丞仍如愿进入音乐学院。“父亲生前是一名牙医，他曾问我，你愿意每天醒来后就盯着别人的牙齿看10个小时吗？”陈韦丞说：“他以自己的人生经历告诉我，一定要选择热爱的事情做职业。”

　　杨博尧则开玩笑说自己是被弟弟“拯救”了，他说：“我的成绩没有那么好，父母‘放弃’我后还有第二次机会，好在弟弟当了牙医。”

古典音乐与粉丝文化

　　双琴侠的粉丝群非常年轻，并且有强大的应援能力。陈韦丞提到就在几个月前，台湾的“零学家”们自发筹款，为他们的偶像买下巨幅广告牌；与新加坡交响乐团合作的音乐会是8月18日上午10时开始线上售票，仅两分钟后系统内排队人数便超过4900人，即可售罄。

　　这场音乐会是双琴侠为庆祝达到YouTube频道400万订阅的特别企划，由杨博尧担任独奏与新加坡交响乐团合作门德尔松小提琴协奏曲。在音乐会后的签名环节，有粉丝说自己坐了17个小时的飞机从美国西雅图来听这场音乐会，更有粉丝推着行李箱称自己是前一天凌晨两点才从德国飞抵新加坡，马上还要赶去机场；还有粉丝告诉两人因为喜欢他们的视频找到了志同道合的另一半。

　　被问及粉丝更喜欢他们本人还是他们的音乐时，陈韦丞说：“我想很多粉丝喜欢我们，是因为我们展现出做自己和追求梦想的勇气；另一方面，我们的视频不仅搞笑而且内容扎实。他们是抱着手机看视频长大的一代，通过我们的视频让年轻人接触到古典音乐是值得高兴的趋势。” ³

对古典乐未来有信心

　　杨博尧说：“我们也看到当今社会对古典音乐依然心怀尊重，所以我们时刻提醒自己要保持水准，要对得起古典音乐，不能乱来。”

　　YouTube订阅每过百万大关，双琴侠都会为观众演奏一首小提琴协奏曲。此前在订阅达到200万和300万时，杨博尧和陈韦丞分别演奏了柴可夫斯基和西贝柳斯协奏曲。

　　杨博尧说：“前两次我们都是对着电脑直播，这次我们特意联系了新加坡交响乐团。”此外美国著名名琴拍卖行Tarisio借给他们两把1708年制的斯特拉迪瓦里小提琴，供这场音乐会及之后使用。

　　杨博尧说：“新加坡交响乐团和Tarisio这样的机构愿意做如此‘非主流’的尝试，不仅展现��魄力和胸襟，更让我坚信古典音乐的未来与希望。”

　　自2020年以来，很多粉丝都在新加坡的街头发现双琴侠的身影，他们的视频中也时常出现本地音乐学院的学生来客串，但二人否认移居新加坡的说法。不过他们透露，疫情结束后他们终于可以继续中断已久的世界巡演，而新加坡地理位置优越，非常方便。⁴

translations:

¹ Tiger Mom is based on Eddy’s mom

² Eddy spent less than a month preparing for the medical exam and scored in the 97th percentile.

³ When asked if fans like them or their music more, Eddy said, “I think a lot of fans like us because we show the courage to be yourself and chase your dreams; in addition, our videos are not only funny but the content is solid, too. This generation grew up watching videos on their phones, so having young people be exposed to classical music through our videos is a great trend.

⁴ Since 2020, many fans have spotted TwoSet Violin on the streets of Singapore, and local music students frequently feature in their videos. However, the pair denied immigrating to Singapore. However, they stated that after the pandemic, they will finally continue their world tour, and Singapore has a convenient geographic location.

[kneedeepincynade]

Taiwan separatists should first learn to separate their private parts from their colleagues before separating taiwan from China

The post is machine translated

Translation is at the bottom

The collective is on telegram

⚠️ SCOPPIA LO SCANDALO DELLE MOLESTIE SESSUALI NEL PARTITO SEPARATISTA PRO-US DEL REGIME-FANTOCCIO DI TAIWAN, COINVOLTO ANCHE UN "ATTIVISTA PRO-DEMOCRACY" CHE PARTECIPÒ AL TENTATIVO DI GOLPE DEL 1989 ⚠️

🤮 Dopo il Dalai Lama molestatore, che chiedeva ad un bambino di «succhiargli la lingua», un'altra figura anti-CPC, Wang Dan, viene accusata di molestie sessuali ❕

🤔 Chi è Wang Dan? Avete presente Chai Ling? L'asset pro-US nel tentativo di golpe del 1989 a Pechino? Ecco, una figura simile, anche lui «attivista» (ovvero: teppista anti-CPC legato alle forze anti-Cinesi) durante quell'evento 🤪

🤡 Anche lui, come Chai Ling, è andato a vivere negli USA, a New York, dove ora è Visiting Scholar dell'Università della California di Los Angeles, nonché Presidente della "Chinese Constitutional Reform Association", un'organizzazione anti-CPC con sede a... serve dirlo davvero? 😆

✍️ Come scrive il giornalista su Zaobao: «In seguito agli scandali sessuali scoppiati la scorsa settimana nel Partito Democratico Progressista di Taiwan [separatisti pro-US], anche Wang Dan, ex-attivista pro-democracy in Cina, deve affrontare accuse di molestie sessuali, provenienti da due uomini» 🤔

🇹🇼 Li Yuanjun, ex-assistente del Consigliere Comunale di Taipei Lin Liangjun, ha accusato Wang Dan di averlo assalito, baciato con la forza e tentato di stuprarlo dopo averlo invitato a New York, nel 2014❗️

🇹🇼 Un'altra persona, lo scrittore Xu Haoqian, anch'esso cittadino di Taiwan, ha accusato - il 03/06 - Wang Dan di molestie sessuali nel 2010, dichiarando di essere stato toccato da lui senza consenso❗️

🇨🇳 Come scrive il Compagno Liu: «Wang Dan, dopo essere fuggito negli USA, è diventato una figura ben nota nel cosiddetto "movimento per la democrazia" all'estero. È stato a lungo nutrito dalle autorità del DPP ed è stato molto attivo a Taiwan negli ultimi anni» 🇹🇼

✍️ "Aspetteremo e vedremo come si svilupperanno le cose. Questi attivisti pro-democracy all'estero parlano di libertà e democrazia, ma in realtà perseguono un'indulgenza personale sfrenata e senza fondo. Sono diventati pedine, conquistati dalle forze straniere anti-Cinesi" 🔥

🐰 Lo scandalo delle molestie sessuali nel DPP, che governa il regime-fantoccio di Taiwan, e si genuflette ogni giorno agli imperialisti statunitensi, sta colpendo figure molto in alto, come Hsu Chia-tien - Vice-Segretario Generale del DPP 🇹🇼

🇹🇼 Tsai Mu-lin, ex-Leader della Giovanile del DPP, è stato accusato da una whistleblower di aver coperto le denunce di abusi sessuali contro Chen Yu-hao, collega di Tsai Mu-lin❗️

🇹🇼 Chen Wen-hsuan, ex-Membro dello Staff del DPP, ha accusato Chen Yu-hao di molestie e comportamenti inappropriati, dichiarando di essere stata toccata senza il suo consenso in più punti del suo corpo, nel 2020❗️

🤔 Curiosamente, Tsai Mu-lin, un giorno prima dell'uscita dello scandalo, si è dimesso dalla sua posizione nel DPP 🤡

🇹🇼 Chen Chien-jou, anch'essa ex-Membro del DPP, ha accusato Hsuen Chao-hui, membro del DPP, di averla molestata sessualmente, dichiarando che Chao-hui l'avrebbe palpeggiata e toccata senza il suo consenso, a settembre del 2022, durante un lavoro per il DPP❗️

🤮 Il DPP è la vergogna di Taiwan, un coacervo di molestatori e guerrafondai, che funge da piattaforma pro-US atta a far generare giganteschi profitti ai trafficanti d'armi statunitensi, che vedono l'Isola come una "carta da giocare" per contenere l'Ascesa della Cina ❌

😡 Tsai Ing-wen e il DPP saranno giudicati colpevoli di fronte al tribunale della Storia 🐰

🔺FT: "Il vice segretario generale del DPP si dimette per un caso di molestie sessuali" 🇹🇼

🔺Le spese folli volute da Tsai Ing-wen per la "Difesa" di Taiwan e la "Diplomazia del Dollaro" sono una rovina per i cittadini dell'isola 😭

��� Iscriviti 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

⚠️ THE SEXUAL HARASSMENT SCANDAL BREAKS OUT IN THE PRO-US SEPARATIST PARTY OF THE TAIWAN PUPPET REGIME, ALSO INVOLVING A "PRO-DEMOCRACY ACTIVIST" WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE 1989 COUP ATTEMPT ⚠️

🤮 After the molester Dalai Lama, who asked a child to "suck his tongue," another anti-CPC figure, Wang Dan, is accused of sexual harassment ❕

🤔 Who is Wang Dan? Do you know Chai Ling? The pro-US asset in the 1989 coup attempt in Beijing? Here, a similar figure, also «activist» (i.e.: anti-CPC thug linked to anti-Chinese forces) during that event 🤪

🤡 He too, like Chai Ling, went to live in the USA, in New York, where he is now a Visiting Scholar of the University of California in Los Angeles, as well as President of the "Chinese Constitutional Reform Association", an anti-CPC organization with based in…does it really need to be said? 😆

✍️ As the reporter writes on Zaobao: "Following the sex scandals that broke out last week in Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party [pro-US separatists], Wang Dan, a former pro-democracy activist in China, also faces sexual harassment charges , coming from two men» 🤔

🇹🇼 Li Yuanjun, former assistant to Taipei City Councilor Lin Liangjun, accused Wang Dan of assaulting, forcibly kissing and attempting to rape him after inviting him to New York in 2014❗️

🇹🇼 Another person, the writer Xu Haoqian, also a citizen of Taiwan, accused - on 03/06 - Wang Dan of sexual harassment in 2010, claiming that he had touched him without consent❗️

🇨🇳 As Comrade Liu writes: «Wang Dan, after fleeing to the US, has become a well-known figure in the so-called "democracy movement" abroad. He has long been fed by the DPP authorities and has been very active in Taiwan in recent years »🇹🇼

✍️ "We will wait and see how things develop. These pro-democracy activists abroad talk about freedom and democracy, but in reality they pursue unbridled and bottomless personal indulgence. They have become pawns, conquered by foreign anti-Chinese forces" 🔥

🐰 The sexual harassment scandal in the DPP, which rules the puppet regime in Taiwan, and genuflects to the US imperialists every day, is affecting very high-ranking figures, such as Hsu Chia-tien - Deputy Secretary General of the DPP 🇹🇼

🇹🇼 Former DPP Youth Leader Tsai Mu-lin accused by a whistleblower of covering up sexual abuse claims against Tsai Mu-lin's colleague Chen Yu-hao❗️

🇹🇼 Former DPP Staff Member Chen Wen-hsuan accused Chen Yu-hao of harassment and inappropriate behavior, claiming that she was touched without her consent in multiple places on her body in 2020❗️

🤔 Curiously, Tsai Mu-lin, one day before the scandal came out, resigned from his position in the DPP 🤡

🇹🇼 Chen Chien-jou, also a former DPP member, accused DPP member Hsuen Chao-hui of sexually harassing her, alleging that Chao-hui groped and touched her without her consent, to September 2022, during a job for the DPP❗️

🤮 The DPP is Taiwan's shame, a collection of harassers and warmongers, serving as a pro-US platform to generate gigantic profits for US arms dealers, who see the island as a "playing card" to contain the Rise of China ❌

😡 Tsai Ing-wen and the DPP will be found guilty in the court of history 🐰

🔺FT: "DPP Deputy Secretary General Resigns Over Sexual Harassment Case" 🇹🇼

🔺Tsai Ing-wen's spending spree for Taiwan's "Defense" and "Dollar Diplomacy" is a bane for Taiwan citizens 😭

🌸 Subscribe 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

[fayewonglibrary]

Faye's Hedgehog Tour (1998)

By Hazel Tan

Protective. Sharp. Mysterious.

Who are we talking about here? No, not Faye Wong, or so she says.

It's a hedgehog, rather.

What does the superstar have in common with a brown, spiky creature?

In some ways, the ice queen does remind one of a hedegehog.

Like the hedgehog, she can turn all protective when it comes to her private life. That is probably why she chose the animal as a symbol for her concert.

A colourful hedgehog stands on the top right hand corner of Faye's concert poster.

"I think the hedgehog can represent my concert. It's a creature with magical powers. I have had one before.

"It's quite a mysterious creature," Faye, 29, said in a telephone interview from Hong Kong.

The interview was conducted before an audience at Parco Bugis Junction yesterday afternoon.

It was also broadcast "live" on Dongli 88.3 FM.

Tickets to the Faye Wong Singapore Scenic Tour 1999 went on sale yesterday.

The two-day concert, to be held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in February next year, is co-sponsored by local Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao.

So, what magic can we expect from Faye's concerts here?

A $2 million dollar stage with a spiral staircase and several circular platforms.

"This is just part of the essentials to help the audience get into the mood. But the main thing will still be my music…

"It would lose its novelty if I were to reveal everything now," said Faye.

But like all Faye Wong concerts, trust her to come up with something new or outrageous.

Like taking her 23-month old daughter, Dou Jingtong, to the concert.

Or even getting off the stage to let her fans take a closer look at her?

"Maybe, " she said, before sighing out loud.

"We will have to see how it goes that night, how the mood is.

"If it's that high, I will do anything," Faye said, with a few giggles.

The group of fans at Parco Bugis Junction, who were listening to the live interview, cheered and clapped at her response.

"What do they want me to do? Why are they so happy?" Faye asked cheekily, when she heard the cheers.

Not much. The fans were simply thrilled to just hear her voice.

And the pop diva wouldn't oblige, even if they had a simple request anyway, would she?

When asked to say something specially to her fans at the beginning of the interview, Faye said giggling: "Aiyoh. My God."

Then she softened: "I can't say anything special, I am just grateful to my fans."

Yes, so long as you are happy, we will be happy too, Faye.

——————————————————————

SOURCE: THE NEW PAPER

[ippnoida]

Wan-Ifra's fellowship for 23 Asian young media leaders

The World Editors Forum Asia Chapter, part of Wan-Ifra’s network for editors, is proud to announce the selection of 23 emerging leaders from the Asian news media industry to participate in the fourth edition of the Temasek Foundation Young Media Leaders Fellowship (YMLF). This highly acclaimed leadership program will commence virtually on 7 October 2024.

The program aims to nurture the next generation of Asian newsroom leaders, supporting them at various career stages. It is not only about personal growth, it also seeks to foster a collaborative network of leaders who will champion good journalism and strengthen newsrooms so that evolving societal needs can be met.

Fellows will engage in a range of training activities designed to give them the skills needed to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving media and digital landscape.

The program will conclude with an in-person finale workshop in Singapore from 4 to 7 November, where fellows will also have the opportunity to attend the Asian Media Leaders Summit. The week-long engagement will serve as a platform for fellows to exchange ideas with top industry leaders and build a collaborative network of trusted advocates committed to fostering excellence in journalism across the region.

“We’re thrilled to welcome these talented individuals into a collaborative community of emerging leaders dedicated to advancing the media industry,” said Thomas Jacob, chief operating officer of Wan-Ifra. “With the support of Temasek Foundation, we aim to strengthen the practice of quality journalism and equip newsrooms with the leadership skills needed to tackle the challenges of the future.”

The 23 Young Media Leaders Fellows for the 2024 cohort (in order of country/region) are:

Fang Qing, senior journalist, Guangzhou Daily, China

Amy Sood, Asia Reporter, South China Morning Post, Hong Kong SAR

Kanika Saxena, Staff Writer – The Economic Times, Bennett Coleman & Co., India

Akhil Kumar, deputy executive editor – Multimedia, New Delhi Television Ltd (NDTV), India

Erie P. Rachmadany, news producer, CNN Indonesia

Nabilla Tashandra, editor – Lifestyle Section, Kompas.com, Indonesia

Egi Adyatama, editor, Tempo Inti Media, Indonesia

Zufazlin Binti Baharuddin, journalist – Bernama, Malaysian National News Agency, Malaysia

Nurfarahin Hussin, assistant news editor – Utusan, Media Mulia Sdn Bhd, Malaysia

Geraldine Tong, journalist – The Sunday Star, Star Media Group, Malaysia

Marielle Alison Ventura, program manager – GMA Integrated News, GMA Network Inc., Philippines

John Gabriel Lalu, multimedia reporter – Online News, INQUIRER.net, Philippines

Roy Jerome Barbosa, news and features editor, Manila Today, Philippines

Justin Ong, senior editor – CNA Digital, Mediacorp, Singapore

Sim Yee Lim, editor – CNA Insider, Mediacorp, Singapore

Samuel Ng, deputy editor – CNA TV News International, Mediacorp, Singapore

Xi Ying Zhang, content producer – HeyKaki, SPH Media, Singapore

Tan Chee Yun, business correspondent – Lianhe Zaobao, SPH Media, Singapore

Vivien Shiao, deputy news editor and young audience editor – Thrive, The Business Times, SPH Media, Singapore

Rajadurai Hashan, senior journalist/parliamentary reporter, Virakesari Express Newspapers (Ceylon), Sri Lanka

Hsin Tzu, Hung, digital content editor, United Daily News Group, Taiwan

Uyen Thi Nguyen, reporter, Nhan Dan Newspaper, Vietnam

Tien Dat Dau, reporter, Thanh Nien Newspaper, Vietnam

First published on Wan-Ifra, article by Jen Teo jen.teo@wan-ifra.org 

[asamiya-akira]

SINGAPORE - Secondary school student bullied until eardrum gets ruptured

(Image from: Mothership.sg)

It was during her lunch break on 03/10/2024. A Secondary 1 Meridien Secondary School Student was asked by a senior to have a talk at a nearby Housing and Development Board (HDB) Void Deck.

What awaited her was nothing short of an assault, with a group of six people waiting for her, and was allegedly continuously assaulted and slapped for close to 20 minutes.

She was subsequently brought to the Hospital where she was found to have a ruptured eardrum.

The school has informed journalists that it is aware of the incident and has since taken action against the students involved.

Allegedly hit and slapped by group at void deck

The father of the student assaulted, Zhou Yueliang (transliteration), told the Chinese Paper (Lianhe Zaobao) that he was made aware of the matter after he was notified by the Police on the same day of the incident.

He said that his daughter was asked by another female student to meet at the Void Deck of HDB Block 541 at Pasir Ris Street 51 nearby the school to have a talk, whereby she found 6 others who were waiting for her.

Two girls, apparently under the instructions of four boys, hit and slapped her for 20 minutes, all of which were caught on the CCTV installed at the Void Deck.

He also added that there were nine other bystanders present at the scene.

Eventually, a passerby witnessed the incident and informed the police, thereby ending the assault.

Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) personnel also arrived and sent Zhou's Daughter to KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH).

Bruises around eyes, neck & ruptured eardrum

After being informed of the matter by the authorities, Zhou went to the hospital, only to see that his daughter had sustained visible injuries around her eyes and neck.

She also told him that her right ear hurt and that she couldn't hear clearly.

Since the Doctor recommended that she be kept under observation, Zhou arranged for her to be discharged but brought her back for follow-up at 10:30am the next day.

Whilst on the way to the Hospital, he noticed that an unknown liquid was flowing out of her right ear.

An X-ray revealed that her right eardrum had been ruptured.

Father intends to proceed with legal action

The incident has been a cause of grief and distress.

Whilst her external injuries have healed, hearing in her right ear has not yet recovered and Zhou is worried that she may never regain the same quality of hearing as before.

He has added that he will take legal action once progress has been made in Police investigations.

Disciplinary action taken against errant students

The Principal of the School Mr Mohamed Razali has told Zaobao that the school is aware of the investigations and is assisting the police and has taken disciplinary action against all, including bystanders, who were at the scene.

Investigations are still ongoing.

Writer's Thoughts:

Bullying is a serious issue, and I am glad this father is doing something to fight against those involved.

As it stands, bullying, if left unchecked, can turn into a serious incident. We, as people who are on the side of Humanity, should not allow the cancer of bullying to fester in our communities.

“You will never reach higher ground if you are always pushing others down.” – Jeffrey Benjamin

[riaunews]

Media China Soroti Kehadiran Hilgers dan Eliano: Ancaman Terbesar Bagi Timnas China

Mees Hilgers dan Eliano Reijnders dibawa Shin Tae-yong untuk menghadapi Bahrain dan China. Jakarta (Riaunews.com) – Kehadiran Mees Hilgers dan Eliano Reijnders sebagai dua pemain naturalisasi terbaru Timnas Indonesia membuat media China khawatir tim Merah Putih bisa mengalahkan timnas China pada Kualifikasi Piala Dunia 2026. Media China, Zaobao dan New QQ, menyoroti kehadiran Hilgers dan Eliano…

[miniliew-blog]

Congrats to BlueAcres Winning The Small & Medium Enterprise - Impact Enterprise award of the year

Date: Oct 3, 2024 Finally, all the news are covered in Business times, The Straits Times and ZaoBao. Congrats my wife and her business partner who one this award recently. I am guessing they are doing lots of good things. St. Andrews, SGH, Singapore Expo, even their own farm at Kaki Bukit, etc. Only after she left her job at HP back in Dec 2023, then, she can put 100% of efforts into her…

[jedidiah24497]

Hits of Classics, 6-7 Sep, Singapore Conference Hall

SCO's Mid-Autumn concert with two different programmes each night

For this concert, they would be presenting two sets of repertoire to separate audiences. Day 1 was for Lianhe Zaobao subscribers, and Day 2 was for the general public. As they had allowed each group to vote on the pieces they wished to hear, there were two sets of pieces each night. This caused the issue of instrumentation. Firstly, Day 1 featured drumset, while Day 2 did not. Additionally, there were numerous percussion shifts. Finally, there would have to be another major stage reset on both nights, similar to the previous Tsung Yeh and SCO concert.

Firstly, for the drumset, we opted to go with just a single overhead mic. While we considered adding a kick mic as well, we felt that the added logistical complexity of re-doing the mic setup before Day 2 was not worth it. This was a big paradigm shift for me. Personally, I would want 7-8 channels for a drumset in a pop song(albeit in studio settings). In fact, we had previously had 8 drumset channels (e.g. SCO @ Esplanade). However, I mildly agreed with the idea that the drumset would ultimately not contribute too much to the overall sound especially considering the full orchestra and percussion section.

Secondly, the percussion section's shift was a delicate issue. With instruments ranging from metal bowls to the yunluo to the timpani and gongs, each instrument had extremely different attack and sustain envelopes as well as differing volumes and projection. Shifting the mics while the percussion shifted was not an option, as these were tall, heavy mic stands, unlike the mini omnis and goosenecks of the orchestra. Ultimately, some sacrifices of clarity had to be made, and we placed our mics in strategic positions to make the best of all situations. However, we did dedicate a few extra mics for the percussion in this instance, slightly alleviating the problem.

Finally, the stage shift. For the previous concert(Tsung Yeh) we merely checked if the existing mics had been shifted to the right positions. For this concert, with a larger ensemble, we had to actually add mics to the stage. To make matters worse, we would need to clip on mics to some players who had exit the stage during the change. Logistically, this was already proving more complex than the previous stage shift. To execute this, we split the tasks among us and laid them out in chronological order for maximum smoothness. Essentially, two of us would go in from stage left to attach 4 mics. Then, we would go over to stage right and enter with the players to clip on their mics. However, during the concert, they had unknowingly changed the timing of their changeover, reducing the time we had to get to stage right. As a result, we were onstage for longer than they wanted. This led to some negative feedback to our company from SCO.

Learning points: Again, I learned how to make compromises in terms of miking and placements. The final recording was perfectly fine, and I did not need to worry over the lack of drumset mics, or the fine placements of percussion mics.

As for the stage shift, we realised that our plan was slightly flawed and could be executed with even more buffer time in mind. Additionally, we did not fully deconflict with the stage manager before going in, leading to more issues. I learned more about the details of stage management, and will bear this event in mind in the future.

The encore piece of the concert, as well as the last piece I would hear during my internship:花好月圆. Literally, lovely flowers, round moon.

Idiomatically: 'everything is wonderful'. An extremely popular CO encore piece, and very fitting as the finale of my internship :)

[robhowell]

莫名其妙的轉型正義, 搞去蔣運動，真沒人性的民進黨,這種改革純粹是瞎折騰, 就是個笑話。惡整虐待士兵, 拿轉型正義的藉口搞黨政崇拜吧?

[tienmenglimhenry]

26/11/2023 Photos of those '70s doors and window grilles have been published in Singapore Lianhe Zaobao Chinese Newspaper.

[moppelkotzer]

In Lianhe Zaobao, Singapore’s largest Chinese-language newspaper, author Wang Huidi (汪惠迪) recently wrote a column in which he argued that Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, should no longer be referred to as “坡县” (trad. 坡縣, Pōxiàn) in the Chinese-language online media sphere. The topic received quite some attention on Chinese social media, where Singapore is often nicknamed…

[ailtrahq]

The former Singapore villa of Su Zhu, co-founder of the now-defunct cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, has been repurposed into an urban farm by his wife’s company, Abundant Cities. In Yarwood Avenue, Singapore, a villa stands as a testament to change and adaptability. Previously the residence of Su Zhu, co-founder of the cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), the property, purchased for 48.8 million Singapore dollars ($35.6 million) in March 2022, has undergone a significant transformation. Following the challenges faced by the cryptocurrency market and 3AC’s subsequent bankruptcy, the future of the villa seemed uncertain. However, it now serves a renewed purpose. According to Zaobao, the Singapore villa purchased by 3AC founder Zhu Su and his wife for US$35.57 million has been converted into a farm. Zhu’s wife has a PhD in biology from the NUS. The villa is not among 3AC's liquidated assets. pic.twitter.com/ah9m39M5mG— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 4, 2023 Evelyn Tao, Su Zhu’s wife and the visionary behind Abundant Cities, has repurposed the property into an urban farm named Yarwood Homestead. Leveraging her academic background—she holds a Ph.D. in biology from the National University of Singapore—and her professional experience from the Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory and the Institute of Medical Biology, Tao has incorporated elements of agriculture and aquaculture into the space. Today, the property houses local vegetables, herbs, fruits, and aqua-life like fish along with fowl such as ducks and chickens. Furthermore, it doubles as the research and development center for Abundant Cities. The transformation of the property is set against the backdrop of 3AC’s challenges. Once a significant player in the cryptocurrency sector, 3AC faced bankruptcy after the Terra ecosystem’s collapse, accruing debts of $3.5 billion to 27 crypto enterprises. This development led to legal implications for the fund’s co-founders. Zhu was recently arrested and received a four-month sentence related to the bankruptcy proceedings, while co-founder Kyle Davies’ whereabouts are still unknown. The Monetary Authority of Singapore has since restricted both Zhu and Davies from engaging in regulated business activities in Singapore.

[tkjiangonline]

Unveiling the Enigma: The Magic of TK Jiang in Singapore

The allure of magic is timeless, capturing the imaginations of audiences and inspiring wonder for generations. In the world of magic in Singapore, one magician stands out as a true visionary. TK Jiang, the illustrious illusionist with a plethora of awards, has set ablaze the stage with his unparalleled talents. Mastering the Art: A Lifelong Commitment TK Jiang's foray into the enchanting realm of magic commenced at a tender age, becoming an integral part of his existence ever since. His unwavering dedication and tireless passion for magic are unequivocally evident in his performances, which consistently leave spectators in awe. A Contemporary Enchanter: The Fusion of Magic and Technology What distinguishes TK is his commitment to modernizing the art of magic. He seamlessly integrates cutting-edge technology with timeless illusions, fashioning a distinct and unforgettable magical experience. His groundbreaking contributions to the realm of digital magic have redefined the limits of what can be achieved in the world of illusion.

Multilingual Proficiency: Connecting with Diverse Spectators TK Jiang's seamless transitions between English and Mandarin during his shows make him a highly sought-after performer for corporate events boasting diverse audiences. His linguistic versatility ensures his ability to engage and captivate guests from various cultural backgrounds. Champion of Champions: Recognized Excellence TK's extraordinary talent has garnered recognition on multiple occasions. Most notably, he secured the top honors in Singapore's most prestigious magic competition, organized by the International Brotherhood of Magicians, earning both the Champion and People's Choice awards. This accolade cemented his reputation as a magician of unparalleled skill and creativity. Asia's Got Talent: A Global Triumph TK Jiang achieved international acclaim by becoming the first Singaporean illusionist to earn the Golden Buzzer on the renowned TV show "Asia's Got Talent." This remarkable achievement catapulted him into the global spotlight, showcasing his exceptional abilities on an international stage.

The Future of Digital Magic: A Global Sensation TK's vision for digital magic extends far beyond the borders of Singapore. He has graced the stages of top reality TV shows in China, Europe, and beyond, introducing the world to the limitless possibilities of modern magic. A Local Hero: Recognized on Home Turf Back in Singapore, TK Jiang has received extensive media coverage in esteemed publications such as The Straits Times, Lianhe Zaobao, and Mediacorp Radio Station Yes 933. He stands as a pioneer, being the first digital magician and illusionist to perform on Mediacorp Channel 8's Live Chinese New Year Countdown TV show. Planning to host a magician show in Singapore? Don't hesitate to reach out to TK today! Immerse yourself in a world of wonder and innovation as TK Jiang seamlessly blends classic illusions with cutting-edge technology, delivering a magical experience unparalleled in Singapore.

[whattheabcxyz]

2023-08-06

Singapore

Pasir Ris resident complains of noise from road works at midnight - noise should cease after 10pm but obviously the government doesn't care

Porsche owner loses $135K after car dealer vanishes

At least 8 new nursing homes to be added in next 5 years

Latest scam involves WhatsApp message about CPT top-up scheme

Young people among scam victims seeking counselling after falling prey to scammers

Politics

Singapore government hits back at Washington Post article about Zaobao supporting CCP propaganda - Singapore can't get by without licking Xi Jinping's smelly a$$

Philippines accuses China of blocking & water-cannoning their military supply boat in disputed South China Sea region

Society

^ Tranq turns people into real-life zombies

Food

Man finds cockroach in Pepper Lunch meal ordered online - sounds typical of the level of food hygiene here in Singapore