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Taipei, Taiwan — A report released on Wednesday finds that Hong Kong's national security law, enacted in July 2020, has eroded academic freedom in the former British colony. The report, co-authored by Human Rights Watch, and the Washington-based advocacy organization Hong Kong Democracy Council, said university authorities have imposed greater control and limitations on student activities and that students and faculty members are increasingly exercising self-censorship to avoid getting into trouble. "Students, academics, and administrators, especially those from Hong Kong studying contemporary socio-political issues, feel as if they are living under a microscope," the report says. Some analysts say the opaque definition of what constitutes a violation of the security law has created a chilling effect among students and faculty members at Hong Kong universities. "When the red line isn't clear, there will be a pervasive sense of fear, and students and faculty members will try to make adjustments to ensure they don't get into trouble," Maya Wang, the associate China director at Human Rights Watch, told VOA by phone. The report said Hong Kong's eight public universities have been managed by people who hold views favored by Beijing following the imposition of the law in 2020. Since then, university officials have increased crackdowns on student unions and banned symbols or events viewed as promoting pro-democracy values. "University officials have punished students for holding peaceful protests and gatherings, and have broadly censored student publications, communications, and events," the report reads. Wang at Human Rights Watch said since many college students and academics were involved in 2019 protests over an extradition bill, one of the Chinese government's priorities following the implementation of the law is to "impose ideological control" over universities. "The decline of academic freedom in Hong Kong's universities is part of Beijing's attempt to impose ideological control over the entire city," she told VOA. Exercising self-censorship Most of the 33 students and academics interviewed for the report said self-censorship is a common practice at universities in Hong Kong, especially on socio-political topics related to China and Hong Kong. "They do this when expressing themselves in classrooms, when writing and researching academic articles, and when inviting speakers for academic conferences," the report says, adding that academics teaching Hong Kong and China current affairs feel "especially vulnerable." In some cases, university officials have asked academics in the social science field to stop offering courses on topics that Beijing considers sensitive. Others face censorship imposed by university administrators or academic publishers. Some academics said the prevalence of self-censorship at universities in Hong Kong will reduce international understanding of the dynamics in China. "Hong Kong was always an important space that gives the international community some insight into what's happening in Hong Kong and the broader China, but that space is now rapidly disappearing," Lokman Tsui, a research fellow at the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab and a former journalism professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, told VOA by phone. The law's negative impact on academic freedom in Hong Kong seems to differ between academics in different fields. "Some said [the NSL] affected everything they do; others said it has very little impact," the report says. Since university management is stacked with supporters of the Chinese government's position, the report says university administrators have worked with Chinese and Hong Kong authorities to harass, intimidate or even remove academics voicing different opinions. "The government does that by defaming and intimidating those academics perceived to hold liberal or pro-democracy views in the state-owned media and denying or not issuing visas to foreign academics expressing such opinions," the report says, adding that universities would then fire, let go or deny tenure to these academics. Human Rights Watch and Hong Kong Democracy Council said the Chinese government's efforts to "cleanse" universities in Hong Kong have led to a "harmonization" of opinion in academia in Hong Kong. They also help amplify Chinese and Hong Kong authorities' claim that pro-democracy voices are now "in the minority." "The Chinese government's overall intention has been to 'cleanse' the universities [and] the result is a sanitized version of higher education compliant with the Party's views, which so far continues to deliver a high-caliber education," the report says.

Washington — China, which has long influenced Myanmar’s ethnic armed groups, is pressuring the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, or MNDAA — part of the Three Brotherhood Alliance that includes the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Arakan Army (AA) — to avoid aligning with other opposition forces that China perceives as Western-backed, experts say. The MNDAA, also known as the Kokang ethnic armed group, whose members are Mandarin-speaking Han Chinese native to Kokang, reposted a statement on social media confirming their alliance with China. “Our political red line is not to form alliances or work together with those who are against China,” read the statement, which was briefly posted Sept. 4 and reposted on Sept. 19. Analysts say that Beijing’s pressure on ethnic armed groups, especially the MNDAA, reflects its strategic interests in maintaining control over Myanmar’s political landscape. Strategically located along Myanmar’s northeastern border with China, the MNDAA is being pushed to sever ties with opposition forces that Beijing views as having U.S. support. China used its economic and political leverage when it reportedly cut off trade and supplies to Laukkai, the capital of the Kokang region, to create distance between the MNDAA and the National Unity Government (NUG) — the pro-democracy shadow government leading the fight against the ruling junta. “The MNDAA’s statement is a follow-up to China’s warning that the ‘three bottom lines’ must not be crossed,” said Than Soe Naing, a veteran political analyst based in Myanmar. The “three bottom lines,” articulated by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in August, call for Myanmar to avoid civil strife, remain part of ASEAN, and prevent external interference.  According to a political analyst based in Yangon who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, there is a perception in China that the National Unity Government and certain resistance forces, as well as some ethnic armed organizations, are close to the United States and are receiving U.S. support. “This policy reflects China’s emphasis on preventing external forces from interfering in Burma's affairs, which Beijing views as critical to its regional strategy,” said political analyst Than Soe Naing, using an alternative name for Myanmar. So far, Beijing has not commented on the MNDAA’s statement, despite the group’s request for China’s help to resolve the conflict and its willingness to cease fighting and cooperate with Beijing to negotiate a solution to Myanmar’s crisis. Myanmar also has not commented on the MNDAA’s statement. Meanwhile, Myanmar’s military continues airstrikes in northern Shan State. According to a Sept. 24 MNDAA social media post,a recent strike killed one civilian and injured 16 in Lashio, former headquarters of the junta’s Northeastern Command.  Beijing’s interests in Myanmar Frequent visits by Chinese officials to Myanmar have reinforced perceptions that Beijing is siding with Myanmar’s military because it perceives the opposition groups to be in alignment with the United States, observers say. “China sees the NUG and the People’s Defense Forces as Western-backed entities, and for China, that is a red line,” said Thomas Kean, senior consultant for Myanmar at the International Crisis Group. According to Hla Kyaw Zaw, a China-based expert on China-Myanmar relations, Myanmar offers China a valuable connection to the Indian Ocean, providing an essential trade route that would allow Beijing to compete more effectively in the region with the United States. “If Myanmar is stable, China’s southwestern land-locked provinces will have a safe and secure outlet to the sea,” Hla Kyaw Zaw explained. “Beijing wants these initiatives to move forward quickly.” China is the largest investor in Myanmar, and the internal conflict is “not conducive to foreign investment and trade,” according to a Stimson Center report.   That said, Kean told VOA that despite MNDAA’s public stance on China, the group may still maintain limited cooperation with resistance forces to secure its territorial interests. Nan Lwin, head of the Myanmar China studies program at the Institute for Strategy and Policy - Myanmar, said, “If China is to be credible for the Myanmar peace process, it will need to have a multi-country approach.” Balancing act for opposition Earlier this year, the National Unity Government, or NUG, issued its first formal policy statement on Beijing, pledging to safeguard Chinese investments and enterprise as resistance forces continue to gain ground in areas near the Chinese border.  However, the Yangon-based analyst who spoke on the condition of anonymity said this policy is insufficient to win over China, which seeks complete control in the region and wants to prevent any outside influence, particularly from the United States, near its strategic access point to the Indian Ocean. “The more the conflict escalates on its border, the greater the risk of disagreements between China and the U.S. on Myanmar,” Kean said.  

new york — Caroline Ellison, a former top executive in Sam Bankman-Fried's fallen FTX cryptocurrency empire, was sentenced to two years in prison on Tuesday after she apologized repeatedly to everyone hurt by a fraud that stole billions of dollars from investors, lenders and customers.  U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said Ellison's cooperation was "very, very substantial" and "remarkable."  But he said a prison sentence was necessary because she had participated in what might be the "greatest financial fraud ever perpetrated in this country and probably anywhere else" or at least close to it.  He said in such a serious case, he could not let cooperation be a get-out-of-jail-free card, even when it was clear that Bankman-Fried had become "your kryptonite."  "I've seen a lot of cooperators in 30 years here," he said. "I've never seen one quite like Ms. Ellison." She was ordered to report to prison on November 7.  Ellison, 29, pleaded guilty nearly two years ago and testified against Bankman-Fried for nearly three days at a trial last November.  At sentencing, she emotionally apologized to anyone hurt by the fraud that stretched from 2017 through 2022.  "I'm deeply ashamed with what I've done," she said, fighting through tears to say she was "so so sorry" to everyone she had harmed directly or indirectly.  She did not speak as she left Manhattan federal court, surrounded by lawyers.  In a court filing, prosecutors had called her testimony the "cornerstone of the trial" against Bankman-Fried, 32, who was found guilty of fraud and sentenced to 25 years in prison.  In court Tuesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon called for leniency, saying her testimony was "devastating and powerful proof" against Bankman-Fried.  The prosecutor said Ellison's time on the witness stand was very different from Bankman-Fried, who she said was "evasive, even contemptuous, and unable to answer questions directly" when he testified.  Attorney Anjan Sahni asked the judge to spare his client from prison, citing "unusual circumstances," including her off-and-on romantic relationship with Bankman-Fried and the damage caused when her "whole professional and personal life came to revolve" around him.  FTX was one of the world's most popular cryptocurrency exchanges, known for its Superbowl TV ad and its extensive lobbying campaign in Washington before it collapsed in 2022.  U.S. prosecutors accused Bankman-Fried and other executives of looting customer accounts on the exchange to make risky investments, make millions of dollars of illegal political donations, bribe Chinese officials, and buy luxury real estate in the Caribbean.  Ellison was chief executive at Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency hedge fund controlled by Bankman-Fried that was used to process some customer funds from FTX.  As the business began to falter, Ellison divulged the massive fraud to employees who worked for her even before FTX filed for bankruptcy, trial evidence showed.  Ultimately, she also spoke extensively with criminal and civil U.S. investigators.  Sassoon said prosecutors were impressed that Ellison did not "jump into the lifeboat" to escape her crimes but instead spent nearly two years fully cooperating.  Since testifying at Bankman-Fried's trial, Ellison has engaged in extensive charity work, written a novel, and worked with her parents on a math enrichment textbook for advanced high school students, according to her lawyers.  They said she also now has a healthy romantic relationship and has reconnected with high school friends she had lost touch with while she worked for and sometimes dated Bankman-Fried from 2017 until late 2022. 

A U.S. House of Representatives panel held Secretary of State Antony Blinken in contempt Tuesday for failing to answer lawmakers’ questions about the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021. VOA’s congressional correspondent, Katherine Gypson, has more from Washington, with Amadullah Archiwal contributing.

washington — Afghan women and their international supporters are calling for the inclusion of women in any negotiations on the future of Afghanistan amid the Taliban's increasing restrictions on women in the country. In a side event on the eve of the United Nations General Assembly, co-hosted by Ireland, Indonesia, Switzerland and Qatar together with the Women's Forum on Afghanistan, women's activists called on the international community to stand with Afghan women in the face of the Taliban's repressive measures. Academy Award-winning actress Meryl Streep, who participated in the meeting, said Afghan women have been stripped of their rights under the Taliban. "A bird may sing in Kabul but a girl may not, and a woman may not in public," she said. "This is extraordinary. This is a suppression of the natural law. This is odd." Streep was referring to the Taliban's newly imposed morality law that prohibits women from speaking aloud in public. "Whenever an adult woman leaves her home out of necessity, she is obliged to conceal her voice, face, and body," the new law states. U.N. human rights experts say the Taliban's law issued last month would further restrict women's rights. "It reinforces and expands existing discriminatory policies, such as mandatory dress codes, the requirement for women to have a male guardian [mahram], and the segregation of men and women in public spaces," the U.N. human rights experts said in an August 30 news release. Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban have imposed repressive measures on women in Afghanistan, including banning them from getting secondary and university education, and barring them from working with government and nongovernmental organizations. Under the Taliban, girls and women are not allowed to travel long distances without a male relative and may not go to parks, public baths and gyms. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told a side meeting at UNGA that the Taliban's treatment of women can be compared to "some of the most egregious systems of oppression in recent history." "We will continue to amplify the voices of Afghan women and call for them to play a full role in the country's life, both inside its borders and on the global stage," he said. Yousafzai demands end to discrimination Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai said at the UNGA that discrimination against women should stop in Afghanistan. "A threat to girls rights in Afghanistan is a threat to girls everywhere," Yousafzai said in a Facebook post. "I want us to push our leaders to hold the Taliban accountable for their crimes against humanity. Let's act for our common future."

The Uncommitted National Movement that began as a protest against President Joe Biden’s policies on the war in Gaza last week announced they will not endorse Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate. Another pro-Palestinian group “Abandon Harris” says they’re working to ensure her defeat. Could these movements impact election results in battleground states? White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara brings this story from Michigan, the state with the highest percentage of Arab Americans.

Joe Biden used his final presidential address before the U.N. General Assembly to urge unity in the face of challenges that include conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from New York.

Abuja, Nigeria — Nigeria has joined the growing calls by Africans leaders for permanent representation on the United Nations Security Council. On the sidelines of the 79th U.N. General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, Nigerian Defense Minister Mohammed Badaru said such a change would promote fairness and inclusivity. "We have been in 41 different United Nations’ missions to provide security across the world,” Badaru said. “Based on that background and the effort of Africa, we also call on the United Nations to reform the Security Council so that Africa can have a permanent seat. It is time. We deserve it for justice and for equity." Other African nations also are clamoring for change. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday said, "Placing the fate of the world’s security in the hands of a select few when it is the vast majority who bear the brunt of these threats is unjust, unfair and unsustainable." Similarly, Kenyan President William Ruto criticized the multilateral system, saying, "It has proven inadequate." Many African countries were still under colonial rule at the time the Security Council was established. In 2005, the African Union adopted the so-called Ezulwini Consensus in Ethiopia for Africa to have at least two permanent and five nonpermanent seats at the U.N. council. To date, though, the U.N. General Assembly elects five new members from different geographical zones for two-year terms on the council. Africa has three rotational seats on the 15-member council. The founder of Security Watch Africa Initiative, Patrick Agbambu, said Africa needs to be united to make a good representation. "The biggest threat to Africa getting that seat is Africa itself,” Agbambu said. “Africa does not have a united front; they do not have a common voice to be able to push two countries or one country forward. You can't go for such with a divided house. “As it stands, the various blocs in the African Union seem very divided, with each having a very strong opposition to the other. So, the world is just watching Africa," he said. Last week, the United States, one of five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, said it is open to having two African seats on the council but without the veto power of the original permanent members: Britain, China, France, Russia and the U.S. Security analyst Senator Iroegbu said African representation on the Security Council is the right call but warned that it wouldn’t solve all problems. "Nigeria stands in the right mix because it's one of the most important countries in Africa and it's the most populous nation in Africa, with huge economic potential,” he said. “But just being a member of [the] U.N. Security Council doesn't guarantee stability at home if all the factors causing insecurity are not well addressed."

new york — The Gulf nation of Qatar on Tuesday became just the second Muslim-majority country to be admitted into a program that allows its citizens to travel to the United States without first obtaining a U.S. visa. The departments of State and Homeland Security jointly announced that Qatar had met stringent eligibility requirements to join the visa waiver program. Those requirements include a low visa refusal rate, a low rate of visa overstays and a demand of reciprocal treatment of American travelers, who are already allowed to visit Qatar without a visa for up to 30 days. "Qatar has been an exceptional partner for the United States, and our strategic relationship has only grown stronger over the past few years," the departments said in a statement. "This is further evidence of our strategic partnership and our shared commitment to security and stability." Qatar, which has played a key role in trying to negotiate a cease-fire deal in Gaza and was an instrumental U.S. partner before and during the American withdrawal from Afghanistan, is the 42nd country to be admitted to the program. Most countries whose citizens can visit the U.S. without a visa are longstanding allies in Europe and Asia. The only other Muslim-majority country in the program is the tiny Southeast Asian nation of Brunei. Although Qatar's population is just over 3 million people, only a small percentage of those — about 320,000 — are actually Qataris who would be eligible for the program if they hold valid passports. The vast majority of people who live in Qatar are foreign workers and other expatriates who do not hold Qatari passports. The program allows citizens of qualifying nations to enter the U.S. for business or tourism without a visa for up to 90 days, although they must still obtain approval through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, or ESTA, which is done online and doesn't require an in-person interview as visa applications do. After Oct. 1, U.S. citizens will be allowed to stay in Qatar without a visa for 90 days. Israel was the last country admitted to the program in 2023, and it was allowed in despite significant concerns that it does not treat Palestinian Americans, Arab Americans or Muslim Americans the same as other U.S. passport holders.

Gaborone, Botswana — Botswana is hosting delegates from 33 African elephant range states for talks on the trade in live elephants. They are also seeking a common position as Africa battles increasing elephant populations in some areas, while the numbers decline elsewhere on the continent. Botswana’s environment and tourism minister, Nnaniki Makwinja, said Africa must speak with one voice despite the peculiar challenges each region faces.  "We are cognizant that the challenges that we face are diverse and there is no silver bullet to address these challenges,” Makwinja said Monday during the opening of the four-day meeting. “We call upon these countries to engage with us before they adopt measures that may undermine our efforts to conserve our wildlife heritage and sustainable development goals.”   In 2022, delegates from Africa attended talks in Panama on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES. They were divided over elephant management.  Southern African nations want CITES to relax measures on elephant trade, but some parts of the continent, particularly the eastern and western areas, want stricter controls.  Dan Challender, a conservation scientist on the wildlife trade based at the University of Oxford, said this week’s meeting in Botswana might not address all concerns given the uneven distribution of the animals across the continent.  “The meeting provides an opportunity for African countries to come together and discuss trade in African elephants. I would expect them to find common ground on some issues but not all, recognizing the different status of the species and policy environments across the continent,” Challender said.  The meeting is open to governments, but non-profit conservation organizations are not invited.  Local conservationist Isaac Theophilus of the Botswana Wildlife Producers Association said delegates from countries that oppose trade in elephants should get a chance to see the impact of human-wildlife conflict.  “We have two opposing blocks that will be seated around the same table to look at issues relating to elephant management,” Theophilus said. “My hope and wish is that those states attending would have an opportunity to interact with people in the (wildlife) area and get firsthand information relating to problems associated with living with an increasing elephant population.”  Veterinarian and wildlife management expert Dr. Eric Verreynne said trade in live elephants poses logistical challenges.  "Transporting elephants from one country to another brings with it some challenges. Most of these challenges relate to logistics,” Verreynne said. “They are bulk animals; it's very, very expensive to transport. When you talk about females and calves, you have to take your family groups in one. The capacity to transport large numbers of elephants is limited."  Africa’s elephant population is estimated at 415,000, with more than half of the number living in southern Africa.

As Hezbollah’s conflict with Israel draws Lebanon into war, the militant political group claims to be defending the interests of all Lebanese people. Jacob Russell in Beirut looks at how much support the group really has among the general population.

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran said Tuesday it believes the remaining workers trapped by an explosion at a coal mine in the country's east have died, bringing the death toll in one of its worst industrial disasters to at least 49. A provincial emergency official, Mohammad Ali Akhoundi, gave the death toll in a report carried by Iranian state television from the mine in Tabas. Figures for the numbers of miners inside the mine at the time have fluctuated since a methane gas leak on Saturday sparked an explosion at the coal mine in Tabas, about 540 kilometers southeast of the capital, Tehran. Around 70 people had been working at the time of the blast. Bodies recovered so far showed no signs of blast injuries, suggesting many of the workers died from the gas before the blast. Such gases are common in mining, although modern safety measures call for ventilation and other measures to protect workers. It wasn't immediately clear what safety procedures were in place at the privately owned Tabas Parvadeh 5 mine, operated by Mandanjoo Company. The firm could not be reached for comment. On Tuesday, a lawmaker and member of parliament's mine committee said the safety system of the mine was not working and "even the central alarm system was broken or did not exist." Lawmaker Zahra Saeedi added that workers learned of the safety issue just before the disaster but couldn't leave in time. Two of the dead were health and safety experts at the mine, she said. Iran's new reformist president, Masoud Pezeshkian, in New York for the U.N. General Assembly, has said he ordered all efforts be made to rescue those trapped and aid their families. He also said an investigation into the explosion was underway. Iran's mining industry has been struck by disasters before. In 2017, a coal mine explosion killed at least 42 people. Then-President Hassan Rouhani, campaigning ahead of winning reelection, visited the site in Iran's northern Golestan province and angry miners besieged the SUV he rode in, kicking and beating the armored vehicle in a rage. In 2013, 11 workers were killed in two separate mining incidents. In 2009, 20 workers were killed in several incidents. Lax safety standards and inadequate emergency services in mining areas were often blamed for the fatalities.

More Latino registered voters back Kamala Harris (57%) than Donald Trump (39%), and supporters of each candidate prioritize different issues.

The post In Tight U.S. Presidential Race, Latino Voters’ Preferences Mirror 2020 appeared first on Pew Research Center.

More Latino registered voters back Kamala Harris (57%) than Donald Trump (39%), and supporters of each candidate prioritize different issues.

The post In Tight U.S. Presidential Race, Latino Voters’ Preferences Mirror 2020 appeared first on Pew Research Center.

NEW YORK — The U.S. Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit against Visa on Tuesday, alleging that the financial services behemoth uses its size and dominance to stifle competition in the debit card market, costing consumers and businesses billions of dollars. The complaint says Visa penalizes merchants and banks who don't use Visa's own payment processing technology to process debit transactions, even though alternatives exist. Visa earns an incremental fee from every transaction processed on its network. According to the DOJ's complaint, 60% of debit transactions in the United States run on Visa's debit network, allowing it to charge over $7 billion in fees each year for processing those transactions. "We allege that Visa has unlawfully amassed the power to extract fees that far exceed what it could charge in a competitive market," said Attorney General Merrick Garland in a statement. "Merchants and banks pass along those costs to consumers, either by raising prices or reducing quality or service. As a result, Visa's unlawful conduct affects not just the price of one thing — but the price of nearly everything." The Biden administration has aggressively gone after U.S. companies that it says act like middlemen, such as Ticketmaster parent Live Nation and the real estate software company RealPage, accusing them of burdening Americans with nonsensical fees and anticompetitive behavior. The administration has also brought charges of monopolistic behavior against technology giants such as Apple and Google. According to the DOJ complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Visa leverages the vast number of transactions on its network to impose volume commitments on merchants and their banks, as well as on financial institutions that issue debit cards. That makes it difficult for merchants to use alternatives, such as lower-cost or smaller payment processors, instead of Visa's payment processing technology, without incurring what DOJ described as "disloyalty penalties" from Visa. The DOJ said Visa also stifled competition by paying to enter into partnership agreements with potential competitors. In 2020, the DOJ sued to block the company's $5.3 billion purchase of financial technology startup Plaid, calling it a monopolistic takeover of a potential competitor to Visa's ubiquitous payments network. That acquisition was later called off. Visa previously disclosed the Justice Department was investigating the company in 2021, saying in a regulatory filing it was cooperating with a DOJ investigation into its debit practices. Since the pandemic, more consumers globally have been shopping online for goods and services, which has translated into more revenue for Visa in the form of fees. Even traditionally cash-heavy businesses such as bars, barbers and coffee shops have started accepting credit or debit cards as a form of payment, often via smartphones. Visa processed $3.325 trillion in transactions on its network during the quarter ended June 30, up 7.4% from a year earlier. U.S. payments grew by 5.1%, which is faster than U.S. economic growth. Visa, based in San Francisco, did not immediately have a comment.

Israel's military said it launched airstrikes against Hezbollah sites in Lebanon on Monday, which Lebanese authorities said had killed nearly 500 people, and sent tens of thousands fleeing for safety. Joe Biden makes his final address to the UNGA on Tuesday morning and Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke on Monday. Plus, journalism students navigate Taliban media suppression in Afghanistan.

A new school year begins in Russia, the third that is starting with Moscow's war in Ukraine as a backdrop. Elizabeth Cherneff narrates this report from Ricardo Marquina on what critics say are Russia's moves to militarize education by introducing new subjects that explain and justify its full-scale assault on Ukraine.

GENEVA — Police in northern Switzerland said Tuesday that several people have been detained and a criminal case opened in connection with the suspected death of a person in a "suicide capsule." The "Sarco" capsule is presumably designed to allow a person sitting in a reclining seat inside to push a button that injects nitrogen gas into the sealed chamber. The person is then supposed to fall asleep and die by suffocation in a few minutes. Exit International, an assisted suicide group based in the Netherlands, said it is behind the 3D-printed device that cost over $1 million to develop. Swiss law allows assisted suicide so long as the person takes his or her life with no "external assistance" and those who help the person die do not do so for "any self-serving motive," according to a government website. A law firm informed prosecutors in Schaffhausen canton that an assisted suicide involving the Sarco had taken place Monday near a forest cabin in Merishausen, regional police said in a statement. They said that "several people" were taken into custody and that prosecutors opened an investigation on suspicion of incitement and accessory to suicide. Dutch newspaper Volkskrant reported Tuesday that police had detained one of its photographers who wanted to take pictures of the use of the Sarco. It said Schaffhausen police had indicated the photographer was being held at a police station but declined to give a further explanation. The newspaper declined to comment further when contacted by the Associated Press.  In an email, the Dutch Foreign Ministry told the AP that it was in contact with the newspaper and Swiss officials.  "As always, we cannot interfere in the legal process of another country. At the same time, the Netherlands stands firmly for press freedom. It is very important that journalists worldwide can do their work freely," it said.  Exit International, the group behind the Sarco, said in a statement a 64-year-old woman from the U.S. Midwest — it did not specify further — who had suffered from "severe immune compromise" had died Monday afternoon near the German border using the Sarco device. It said Florian Willet, co-president of The Last Resort, a Swiss affiliate of Exit International, was the only person present and described her death as "peaceful, fast and dignified." Dr. Philip Nitschke, an Australian-born trained doctor behind Exit International, has previously told the AP that his organization received advice from lawyers in Switzerland that the use of the Sarco would be legal in the country. In the Exit International statement on Tuesday, Nitschke said he was "pleased that the Sarco had performed exactly as it had been designed ... to provide an elective, non-drug, peaceful death at the time of the person's choosing." The claims of Nitschke and Exit International could not be independently verified. On Monday, Health Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider was asked in Swiss parliament about the legal conditions for the use of the Sarco capsule. She suggested its use would not be legal. "On one hand, it does not fulfill the demands of the product safety law, and as such, must not be brought into circulation," she said. "On the other hand, the corresponding use of nitrogen is not compatible with the article on purpose in the chemicals law." In July, Swiss newspaper Blick reported that Peter Sticher, a state prosecutor in Schaffhausen, wrote to Exit International's lawyers saying any operator of the suicide capsule could face criminal proceedings if it was used there — and any conviction could bring up to five years in prison. Prosecutors in other Swiss regions have also indicated that the use of the suicide capsule could lead to prosecution. Over the summer, a 54-year-old U.S. woman with multiple health ailments had planned to be the first person to use the device, but those plans were abandoned. Switzerland is among the only countries in the world where foreigners can travel to legally end their lives and has organizations that are dedicated to helping people kill themselves. But unlike others, including the Netherlands, Switzerland does not allow euthanasia, which involves health care practitioners killing patients with a lethal injection at their request and in specific circumstances. Some lawmakers in Switzerland have argued that the law is unclear and have sought to close what they call legal loopholes.