China’s ‘Spidermen’: Litter-picking over the abyss
By AFP
10 December 2020 |
2:47 pm
Dangling 400 metres (1,300 feet) over a void, suspended only by a cord, Yang Feiyue is not your average litter-picker. The 48-year-old's job is to abseil down cliffs on central China's Tianmen mountain -- an area famed for its natural beauty but plagued by plastic and other waste.
Related
4 Mar
Pretoria's Western allies are upset by South Africa hosting upcoming joint naval exercises with Russia and China. Historical ties between Moscow and the ruling ANC may explain President Ramaphosa's stance.
4 Mar
US intelligence chief William Burns says there appear to be doubts in Beijing about China's ability to successfully invade Taiwan. However, he said it was still important to take the threat to the island very seriously.
3 Mar
VW's chief of China operations says he "verified the facts" about accusations that one of the company's car plants in Xinjiang relied on the forced labor of Muslim Uyghur workers.
3 Mar
The chancellor addressed parliament one year after promising to upgrade Germany's armed forces with a massive one-off fund. In a speech to parliament, he called on China to push for Russia's withdrawal from Ukraine.
12 Mar
As the National People's Congress opened this year's session, China set an economic target of "around 5%" — one of the lowest in decades — and announced a 7.2% increase in its defense budget.
9 Mar
In recent years, China has rigorously criticized unilateral sanctions as a foreign policy mechanism. At the same time, there are multiple examples of China doing the very same thing.
20 Mar
In his first press conference as China's top diplomat, Qin Gang said US policies risk "conflict and confrontation" with Beijing. From the "spy balloon" spat to Russia's war in Ukraine, Qin outlined where China stands.
9 Mar
UN Human Rights Council head Volker Turk has highlighted the scale of Russia's war in Ukraine and Moscow's crackdown on internal dissent. He also warned about the rights of minorities in China — and some Western nations.
12 Mar
The iPhone maker's top supplier Foxconn plans to boost production in India, with a new facility in Bengaluru. But the move westward could be beset by red tape and quality control issues.
9 Mar
A number of countries, from Japan and South Korea to the Philippines, have been increasingly wary of Beijing's growing assertiveness and influence in the region.
9 Mar
In a letter to the Dutch parliament, the country's trade minister has said exporters of chip technology will have to ask for licences to do business abroad, citing concerns over international security. The Netherlands is home to one of the leaders in chipmaking equipment, ASML.
24 Mar
Taipei has agreed to resume flights to multiple cities across China, saying it hoped this might help improve ties. Reintroducing the flights will make the situation more comparable with the pre-coronavirus norm.
Latest
1 day ago
Disney lays off Marvel Entertainment's chairman amid cost-cutting drive. Disney has laid off Isaac ("Ike") Perlmutter, the head of Marvel Entertainment, as part of its cost-cutting plans. The company began cutting 7,000 jobs this week in an effort to reduce $5.5 billion in costs.
1 day ago
Pope Francis has acknowledged the many well-wishes the 86-year-old has received while he’s being treated in a Rome hospital for a respiratory infection.
1 day ago
Pope Francis will stay at a hospital in Rome for several days of treatment. The Vatican has said that his infection is not COVID-19.
1 day ago
So you see an outrageous or unbelievable image online — is it really too good to be true? If an image seems fishy, something is likely awry. But how can you prove if a picture has been manipulated? Here are a few tips.
1 day ago
China's show of solidarity with Russia displeased officials in Brussels, where concerns are growing that Beijing is considering supplying arms to Moscow. But for now there is no real desire to decouple from China.
1 day ago
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on Thursday (March 16) $150 million in new humanitarian assistance for Africa's Sahel region, saying it would provide life-saving support to refugees and others impacted by conflict and food insecurity.