Voice of America’s immigration news

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

MANILA, Philippines — A Philippine group leading a civilian supply mission in the South China Sea delivered food and fuel to Filipino fishermen despite being shadowed by Chinese  vessels, its officials said Thursday, calling it a "major victory." Atin Ito (This is Ours) said a 10-member team sailed to the Scarborough Shoal a day before the civilian flotilla, composed of five commercial vessels and 100 small fishing boats, began its voyage. "The mission achieved a major victory when its advance team reached the vicinity of Panatag Shoal on May 15 (and) was able to supply the fishers in the area," said Emman Hizon, Atin Ito spokesperson, using the local name of Scarborough. Located inside Manila's 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone, the Scarborough Shoal is coveted for its bountiful fish stocks and a turquoise lagoon that provides safe haven for vessels during storms. China said on Wednesday it has sovereignty over the shoal, which it calls Huangyan Island, and its adjacent waters. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the Chinese Coast Guard conducted "routine rights protection and law enforcement activities" in waters around the shoal Wednesday. Hizon told Reuters the advance team was part of the group's contingency plan in case China blocked the main flotilla, which he said would make its way back to port Thursday after having sailing to a point about 93 kilometers from the shoal. Hizon said the larger flotilla was not needed because the fishermen, already supplied by the advance ships, left the area after being driven away by Chinese vessels. A Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) aircraft deployed to monitor the situation at Scarborough Shoal on Wednesday spotted 19 Chinese vessels, including one Chinese navy ship, in the area where. The PCG said it was also monitoring two floating barriers at the southeastern entrance of the shoal. The PCG was not part of the mission, but deployed vessels to provide safety and security for the civilian volunteers. The PCG said two Chinese Coast Guard ships shadowed Atin Ito boats. China claims almost all the South China Sea, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam, despite a 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration found that its sweeping claims have no legal basis.

TAIPAI, TAIWAN — Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC said Thursday there was no damage to its facilities after an incident at its Arizona factory construction site where a waste disposal truck driver was transported to a hospital. Firefighters responded to a reported explosion Wednesday afternoon at the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company plant in Phoenix, the Arizona Republic reported, citing the local fire department. TSMC, the world's largest contract chipmaker whose clients include Apple and Nvidia, said in a statement none of its employees or onsite construction workers had reported any related injuries. "This is an active investigation with no additional details that can be shared at this time," it added. TSMC's Taipei-listed shares pared earlier gains after the news and were last up around 0.8% on Thursday morning. TSMC last month agreed to expand its planned investment by $25 billion to $65 billion and to add a third Arizona plant by 2030. The company will produce the world's most advanced 2 nanometer technology at its second Arizona facility expected to begin production in 2028.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

NEW DELHI — As India holds a phased election, Pavni Mishra, an undergraduate student at Delhi University, would prefer to watch the country’s leaders focus on issues relevant to young voters like her, but she fears those issues are getting lost in the din of a polarized campaign. "We should have a healthy competition in our politics rather than talking about religion," said Mishra. "We should talk about education, we should talk about employment, about how to empower our women and enlarge the startups in the country." At the start of his election campaign last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke of his vision of making India a developed country by 2047 and of welfare programs during his decade in power that had helped poor people. But at his election rallies in recent weeks, the Hindu nationalist leader has accused the Congress Party of plans to give more benefits to Muslims if voted to power and warned women that the opposition would confiscate their gold and redistribute it to India’s largest minority. The divisive rhetoric is seen as a bid to galvanize support in the Hindu majority country as he seeks a third term in office. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party is facing off with an alliance of opposition parties that includes the Congress Party, whose leader Rahul Gandhi is seen as the prime minister’s main rival. Modi has denied criticism that he is stoking divisions between Hindus and Muslims to win. Gandhi has denied Modi’s charges of plans to favor Muslims, who make up India’s largest minority group. India’s 18 million first-time voters in the general elections include millions of undergraduate students. For many of them, the top issue is how the next government will create more employment opportunities in a country where despite a growing economy, finding suitable jobs for graduates has become a key challenge. "I want a fair government that ensures employment for everyone," said 19-year-old Shreyas Sood. Another student, who did not want to be named, said even finding an internship was a challenge. "I think the concern is about getting jobs which pay you a good decent amount to live. Everyone is stressed," she said. They have reason to worry. According to a recent report by the International Monetary Fund, the unemployment rate for graduates is 29.1% -- nine times higher than for the lesser educated. Despite such concerns, Modi’s image as a strong leader who delivers results and has improved India’s image overseas has won him the support of many young students. "You can trust on Modi. I feel the country is in safe hands with him," said B. Prerna, an undergraduate student. Several students echoed that sentiment. A survey among first-time voters by Lokniti research institute and the Center for Developing Societies indicated that Modi was the first choice for many who felt he could address youth-related challenges such as creating employment opportunities. Two-thirds of those surveyed said they would vote for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party and that Modi was best suited to lead the national government. "In younger people, there is a natural tendency to veer towards someone who is very visible, strong, seen as an iconic figure, and as someone trying to deliver results. In that sense Modi ticks off most of the boxes," according to political analyst Rasheed Kidwai. Some students say a weak opposition has limited their choices. Congress Party leader Rahul Gandhi has flagged the issue of employment in his campaign rallies, promised internships to college students and says his party will take steps to address growing economic inequality in the country. But many perceive the Congress Party, which has been dislodged by the BJP as India’s dominant party in the last decade, as an ailing party that has not rejuvenated itself. "We have to vote for the Modi government because currently he is the only one who is looking good, who has a good face," said college student Satvik Sharma. "To be honest, opposition in the country right now is very weak." Analysts say many young voters do not see any alternative to Modi. "The opposition is fragmented and although several parties have strong leaders, they are not pan-Indian leaders. Rahul Gandhi is not a prime ministerial candidate," pointed out Kidwai. However, students like Sharma worry about divisive rhetoric and growing polarization during the BJP’s decade-long stint in power. "The country and the youth are becoming religiously too radical, be it any religion," he said. "I want the government to be a little liberal, the youth to be a little liberal and think about the country as a whole and not their religion as supreme." The use of issues such as caste and religion by political parties, has disillusioned some students in the world’s youngest country – more than half of India is under 25. "We are still fighting about mythical creatures and gods and religions. Rather, we should rather focus on the development of the country," said Amaldev K. He could not travel to his home state, Kerala, to cast his ballot, but he said that had he voted, he would have chosen an option that India allows on the ballot – NOTA or "None of the Above" which indicates a voter’s dissatisfaction with all the candidates in the fray.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

General public gets to visit White House grounds in spring and fall

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Bangkok — Thailand has grown increasingly dangerous for foreign dissidents seeking shelter in the country over the past decade, and more repressive of its own dissidents abroad, Human Rights Watch says in a new report. The U.S.-based human rights group dates the start of the surge to Thailand’s 2014 coup, which swapped the country’s democratically elected government for an authoritarian military regime. Tainted elections in 2019 returned Prayut Chan-ocha, the ex-general behind the coup, to power at the head of a military-backed government for another four years. Though Prayut’s party lost last year’s general elections, it remains a part of the ruling coalition with senior members in the cabinet. “For a long time, Thailand has been somewhat of a sanctuary for people fleeing persecution in neighboring countries,” Elaine Pearson, Human Rights Watch’s Asia director, told VOA ahead of the report’s launch in Bangkok on Thursday. “But since 2014 we noticed an escalation in arrangements with other countries and an escalation in the harassment, surveillance and intimidation of those exiles living in Thailand, often asylum seekers or refugees awaiting resettlement in third countries,” she said. A spokesman for the Thai government did not reply to VOA’s request for comment. Two former spokespersons for the previous Prayut government also did not reply to VOA. The report, We Thought We Were Safe: Repression and Forced Return of Refugees in Thailand, recounts 25 cases since the coup ranging from assault by gangs of masked men to the abduction, deportation and murder of dissidents in Thailand and its neighbors, mainly Laos and Cambodia. “In terms of the level of state involvement, it does really vary. But we are concerned that in a number of cases there is clear collaboration between the Thai authorities and officials from other countries in terms of apprehending and sending back people at risk in Thailand,” Pearson said. One of the first cases following the 2014 coup was also the largest. In 2015, Thailand deported 109 ethnic minority Uyghurs to China, which the United States and others have accused of committing genocide against the mostly Muslim ethnic minority. China denies the accusations. The Uyghurs were arrested the year before for entering Thailand illegally on what they hoped would be their way to Turkey, where the Uyghurs claim to have roots. Thai authorities at the time defended the move as “per protocol.” Other cases have been more mysterious but bearing what advocates believe to be the hallmarks of foreign state involvement. In 2023, Duong Van Thai, a Vietnamese activist and journalist taking refuge in Thailand while making plans to resettle abroad, was kidnapped by unidentified men in front of his rental home just north of Bangkok. Human Rights Watch says the abduction was caught on video. Days later, Vietnamese authorities said Duong had been arrested entering Vietnam illegally, a claim his friends dismissed as far-fetched. He has since been put on trial for conducing “propaganda against the state.” Human Rights Watch and others say such cases, with or without the states’ admission, appear to be part of a long-running “swap mart” among the Mekong River countries, a quid pro quo arrangement by which they agree to return each other’s political dissidents regardless of their potential persecution back home. The groups say the deals are largely kept out of sight. In 2018, though, Thailand and Cambodia announced a bilateral pact to monitor and help return the other’s “fugitives.” While sold as a deal to help bring wanted criminals to justice, Pearson said, “The reality is that this basically provided a green light to track down political dissidents.” Human Rights Watch says at least 12 foreign dissidents taking refuge in Thailand, including a number of Cambodians, have reported being surveilled by unidentified men since 2014, and confirmed at least four attacks. Thai dissidents seeking shelter abroad from their own government have not been safe, either. Nine have gone missing or died under suspicious circumstances over the past decade in Laos alone. They include two known activists whose bodies were found in January 2019 on the banks of the Mekong where the river divides the two countries. Their hands were tied behind their backs, their abdomens cut open and filled with concrete in an apparent attempt to weigh them down in the water. All the cases chronicled in the report occurred before Thailand’s new government took office in September. Pearson said it was too soon to say whether Thailand would change tack but added that it had new incentives to try. “Particularly at a time when Thailand is both courting more foreign investment from Western governments but also seeking a seat at the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva, then it really needs to show that it is addressing human rights violations that occur on its soil,” she said. Thailand also enacted a new law last year explicitly outlawing enforced disappearance. And while the government does not officially recognize refugees, it has launched a program that lets foreign asylum seekers apply to the Thai government for “protected persons” status and, in theory, spare them from forced return. Both moves have raised hopes that foreign political dissidents in Thailand and Thai dissidents abroad will be safer, Pornpen Khongkachonkiet of the Cross Cultural Foundation, a Thai rights group that has independently investigated some of the cases highlighted in the new report, told VOA. She said the Thai government also appears more willing of late to let foreign dissidents picked up on immigration charges resettle in third countries rather than deport them to the countries they fled, citing a few examples over the past year. Still, a group of at least 43 Uyghurs continue to languish in a Bangkok detention center some 10 years after they were arrested for illegal entry, without charge or any indication from the new government of whether they too will be sent home or allowed to resettle elsewhere. Pornpen said the new government has also demonstrated no more motivation than the last to thoroughly investigate the harassment, attacks, abductions and disappearances of dissidents reported over the past decade. “Without political will of the current government … the investigations will go nowhere,” she said. “We as civilians, we cannot look for evidence,” she added. “We need the power of the DSI [Department of Special Investigation], we need the power of prosecutors, we need the power of the police to look into all those reports…. But [there is] not political will.”

United Nations — The World Food Program warned Wednesday that the threat of famine is growing for 5 million Sudanese in parts of the country affected by war. “Commitments made by all parties to facilitate humanitarian access urgently need to be translated into realities on the ground,” Carl Skau, WFP’s deputy executive director, said in a statement. Skau just returned from a mission to Sudan this week. He said the situation is “desperate and quickly deteriorating.” “Only a few weeks remain to stock up food supplies in parts of Darfur and Kordofan before the rainy season starts and many roads become impassable,” he said. “Farmers also need to safely reach their farmlands to plant ahead of the rains.” The rainy season in Sudan is from June through July. In spite of fighting, border closures, checkpoints and other challenges, WFP says it is currently reaching some 2.5 million Sudanese with assistance. Sudan was thrown into war 13 months ago, when fighting broke out in the capital, Khartoum, between the leaders of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The two generals were once allies in Sudan’s transitional government after a 2021 coup but have become rivals for power. The fighting has since spread to other parts of the country, forcing almost 9 million people from their homes in search of safety. Two million of them have fled Sudan to neighboring countries. Of those who remain, 25 million need humanitarian assistance. WFP says at least 5 million Sudanese are on the brink of starvation, but the number could be significantly higher, as the most recent data is from December.  The food agency has identified 41 hunger “hot spots” that are at high risk of slipping into famine in the coming month — most of them in hard-to-reach conflict-affected areas, including the Darfur and Kordofan regions and Khartoum.    Escalation in North Darfur The United Nations has been raising the alarm on the situation in North Darfur for weeks. The RSF has reportedly started in recent days to move in on SAF forces inside El Fasher, the regional capital, endangering more than 800,000 civilians in the city. On Monday, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the parties to immediately stop the fighting and resume cease-fire negotiations. El Fasher is the only city in Darfur that the RSF has not captured. A full-scale battle there could unleash atrocities similar to those of the genocide carried out by Arab Janjaweed fighters against African Zaghawa, Masalit, Fur and other non-Arab ethnic groups in Darfur in the early 2000s. Janjaweed fighters make up today's RSF. The United Nations estimates 330,000 people are facing crisis levels of food insecurity in El Fasher due to a shortage of food items and soaring prices. Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the U.N. resident and humanitarian coordinator for Sudan, said the weekend clashes in El Fasher reportedly caused dozens of civilian casualties and more displacement, with many residents seeking safety in the southern part of the city. She said aid cannot get through. “More than a dozen trucks carrying health, nutrition and other critical supplies for more than 120,000 people have been trying to reach the city for weeks,” she told reporters at the United Nations on Wednesday. “They set out from Port Sudan on the 3rd of April — and still can’t reach El Fasher due to insecurity and delays in getting clearances at checkpoints.” Doctors Without Borders, or Médecins Sans Frontières, supports a hospital in El Fasher that is overwhelmed and running low on supplies. “Until now, North Darfur had been a relatively safe haven compared to other parts of Darfur,” Dr. Prince Djuma Safari, deputy medical coordinator in El Fasher for MSF, said in a statement. “Now, there are snipers in the streets, heavy shelling is taking place, and nowhere in the city is safe at all.” He said more than 450 casualties, including women and children, had arrived at the MSF-supported South Hospital in El Fasher since fighting began on Friday. He said 56 of the patients had died and 40 more are still waiting for surgery.  

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot in a "politically motivated" assassination attempt when leaving a government meeting. As Russia ramps up its offensive in eastern Ukraine, officials with the U.S. command in Eastern Europe say it’s urgent for NATO to be ready for a possible confrontation. U.S. President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump traded barbs online Wednesday while agreeing to debate each other. The elusive street artist Banksy is front and center at a new museum in lower Manhattan dedicated to his paintings.

New Delhi — China’s appointment late last week of a new ambassador to India fills a seat that Beijing left vacant for 18 months. It’s a small step for two big Asian rivals but one that is unlikely to resolve mistrust between the two countries, analysts say. Arriving in New Delhi last Friday, Xu Feihong, 60, replaces Sun Weidong, who stepped down in late 2022. VOA reached out to the Chinese Embassy and China’s foreign ministry on the new posting and the long delay but did not receive a response to a request for comment. In a post on X after his arrival, Xu said he was looking forward to "working hard with all for #China-#India relations." The new ambassador has been busy on the social media platform highlighting the potential of ties, updating with a post and photo Wednesday of him handing over his letter of credence to India’s foreign ministry. Xu has served as China’s ambassador to Afghanistan from March 2011 to August 2013 and as Beijing’s top envoy in Romania. In one recent post on X, the new ambassador noted that the leaders of both China and India have agreed on an important assessment that both are "cooperation partners, not competitors," and that the two are "each other’s development opportunities, not threats." Earlier this week, the India-based research group Global Trade Research Initiative said that according to data for the fiscal year of 2024, China narrowly surpassed the U.S. as India’s largest trading partner after a decline over the past two years. Prior to that, China was India’s largest trading partner from 2008 to 2021. However, some Indian analysts see relations as strained and tense, particularly following a deadly 2020 border clash that saw Beijing take control of disputed territory. "There is a desire for improved relations on both sides," said Lt. Gen. SL Narasimhan, a New Delhi-based China expert and former Beijing-based military attaché. "But at the same time, not much should be read into the appointment of a new envoy. There is a serious trust issue between two countries after the Galwan Valley conflict in June 2020." "But for India, peace and tranquility along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) are central to this relationship," said Narasimhan. Some, like Associate Professor of China Studies Sriparna Pathak, say that leaving the position open for so long was a sign of disrespect from Beijing. "Considering the state of India-China relations ... China not sending the ambassador to India [for such a long period of time] clearly indicates that it ... looks down upon India, and that has been made obvious an ample number of times," said Pathak, referring to Beijing's rejection of New Delhi's request to pull troops back to positions that preceded the deadly 2020 border clashes in Galwan, a disputed region of the Himalaya's. Pathak, of New Delhi's Jindal Global University, also said New Delhi took offense to Beijing's decision to name People's Liberation Army Commander Qi Fabao a torchbearer in the 2022 Winter Olympics torch relay. Qi was widely known for his involvement in a 2020 border clash that killed two Chinese troops and at least 20 Indians. India responded by joining Britain, Canada and the U.S. in a diplomatic boycott of the games, which several Western nations launched in response to China’s treatment of ethnic Uyghurs in the remote western region of Xinjiang. In 2022, the two militaries clashed at least two more times, though no casualties were reported. Tens of thousands of troops remain massed on both sides. Beijing and New Delhi have so far held 21 rounds of military talks and 29 rounds of diplomatic negotiations to address the standoff. Following a round of talks in March, India’s Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar told India’s NDTV that his "first duty to Indians is to secure the border. I can never compromise on that." He also went on to say that a normal relationship cannot be envisaged between India and China until China moves back to its pre-2020 position on its borders. In a May 7 interview granted to Indian and Chinese media, Ambassador Xu said relations between the two countries should not be defined by any single issue or area. "The overall border situation is stable and under control, and border areas are peaceful and tranquil," he said. "China is ready to work with India to accommodate each other's concerns, find a mutually acceptable solution to specific issues through dialogue at an early date, and turn the page as soon as possible." The last time the role of China’s top diplomat to India remained empty for more than a year was from 1962 to 1976 and was also linked to a border conflict. The 1962 Sino-Indian War was fueled by border skirmishes and the 1959 Tibetan uprising against rule by communist China, which saw the Dalai Lama flee to India. The fact that India has continued to give refuge to the Tibetan spiritual leader has been a thorn in relations between New Delhi and Beijing, which exercises strict control over Tibet and its leaders. The 1962 war saw Chinese troops attack and take over disputed territory in the Aksai Chin region along the two countries’ borders. The fighting resulted in thousands of Indian soldiers, and hundreds of Chinese troops, being killed or captured.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.