Mickey Bristow
Appearances
Global News Podcast
Sudan’s army retakes Khartoum airport from paramilitary RSF
I think it's worth reminding listeners that the scale of all of this is huge. We're talking about across seven decades, 140,000, maybe as many as 200,000 Korean youngsters sent abroad for adoption. Most to the United States, but also to Europe, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Australia. Was diese Kommission betrachtet hat, war eine kleine Faktion dieser Adoptionen.
Global News Podcast
Sudan’s army retakes Khartoum airport from paramilitary RSF
Sie hatten 400 oder so Anrufe und sie haben nur drei Jahre Zeit gehabt, um 50 oder so anzusehen. Aber auch in dieser kleinen Faktion von Anrufen haben sie so viele Verbrechen gefunden.
Global News Podcast
Sudan’s army retakes Khartoum airport from paramilitary RSF
We've got a hint there from the chairperson of the commission. In the 1950s, after the Korean War, South Korea was a poor place. Lots of families had been broken apart. There were unwanted children, many fathered by soldiers from the United States who fought in the war. And that began the process. But by the 60s and 70s, it became something of an industry.
Global News Podcast
Sudan’s army retakes Khartoum airport from paramilitary RSF
Lots of demand abroad and Korean private adoption agencies willing to supply that demand. So doing things like falsifying records, coercing single mums into giving up their babies and all this done with the government turning a blind eye because it meant at least they didn't have to do something. They didn't have to pay money to support these youngsters.
Global News Podcast
Sudan’s army retakes Khartoum airport from paramilitary RSF
They could get them off their hands and send them abroad. So a real patchwork of terrible things happening to these children.
Global News Podcast
Sudan’s army retakes Khartoum airport from paramilitary RSF
Well, the commission itself believes that the government should apologize and bring in some kind of compensation for all those people who have been found to have been treated poorly. The adoptees themselves, some have welcomed this report. Others say it doesn't go far enough. The government hasn't responded officially yet. But I think this is going to just be the start of this.
Global News Podcast
Sudan’s army retakes Khartoum airport from paramilitary RSF
As I suggested before, only a fraction of cases have been investigated yet. This ruling will probably lead to a lot of private prosecutions and a lot of unearthing of this past, which the chairperson of this committee said is a shameful episode really in South Korea's history.
Global News Podcast
US says it's cautiously optimistic that a deal to end fighting in Gaza is within reach
Well, this is a mother of two, Mary Jane Veloso, who was a domestic helper. She spent some time abroad in Dubai, came back to the Philippines in 2010 and was promised a job in Malaysia. Travelled to Malaysia, the job didn't materialise, but the person who had recruited her said, could you take a suitcase to Indonesia? She did do that.
Global News Podcast
US says it's cautiously optimistic that a deal to end fighting in Gaza is within reach
Unwittingly, she says inside the suitcase was 2.6 kilograms of heroin. She was caught at the airport, put on trial and sentenced to death. And she's been on death row now for nearly 15 years. And there have been some quite close calls in 2015, for example. She was scheduled to be executed by firing squad with eight others. The Philippine government made a last desperate attempt to save her life.
Global News Podcast
US says it's cautiously optimistic that a deal to end fighting in Gaza is within reach
She wasn't executed, but that last-minute reprieve came so late that in the Philippines they didn't even know until afterwards when they found out there'd been eight people executed, not nine, that their appeal had been successful. So there's been a real... desperately long campaign to have this woman freed because many in the Philippines thought she'd been duped.
Global News Podcast
US says it's cautiously optimistic that a deal to end fighting in Gaza is within reach
She is going to get quite a reception. There's a lot of sympathy for her in this case, particularly a trial itself. It was conducted in Indonesian, translated into English. Two languages that she knew nothing of, really. She didn't really speak English. Her language is Tagalog, a Philippine language. It wasn't until a few days after her sentence she actually realised she'd been sentenced to death.
Global News Podcast
US says it's cautiously optimistic that a deal to end fighting in Gaza is within reach
A priest had to tell her she hadn't understood the sentence when it was delivered in court. Also because of her situation... Lots of Philippine women go abroad as domestic workers. They work hard. Not always are they treated well. They leave their families back home. So that generated a lot of sympathy as well.
Global News Podcast
US says it's cautiously optimistic that a deal to end fighting in Gaza is within reach
So there's been an awful lot of sympathy with this case and there'll be an awful lot of people at the airport glad to see her back.
Global News Podcast
US says it's cautiously optimistic that a deal to end fighting in Gaza is within reach
OK, you're OK. You're OK, you're OK.
Global News Podcast
Trump says US to 'takeover' and 'own' Gaza
For several weeks, there have been petitions in the Philippines calling for the impeachment of Ms Duterte, the daughter of the controversial former President Rodrigo Duterte. On Wednesday, the lower house of Congress decided to look at the issue.
Global News Podcast
Trump says US to 'takeover' and 'own' Gaza
The Vice President has been accused of misusing public funds. She also made the extraordinary claim that she'd arranged for a hitman to kill the President, Ferdinand Marcos, if she herself was killed. Some see the impeachment as part of the ongoing feud between Mr Marcos and the Vice President. The pair were allies at the last election, but have since had a very public falling out.
Global News Podcast
Trump says US to 'takeover' and 'own' Gaza
having been filed by more than one-third of the membership of the House... In the end, legislators endorsed the motion to impeach and applauded the decision. The Philippine Senate will now decide Ms Duterte's fate at a date yet to be fixed. The outcome is uncertain.
Global News Podcast
Nvidia shares sink as Chinese AI app spooks markets
It seems extraordinary that for five years there have been no direct flights between the world's two most populous nations, with a combined population of nearly three billion. There used to be around 500 a month. They stopped in 2020 when Covid led to grounded planes everywhere.
Global News Podcast
Nvidia shares sink as Chinese AI app spooks markets
A deadly clash between Chinese and Indian soldiers on their border that same year complicated diplomatic ties, and flights didn't restart. Favlas had to go through a third country. Warmer ties means direct air links will now resume.
Global News Podcast
Erdogan calls Turkey protests 'evil' as unrest continues
The announcement was made after six flowers appeared on the cherry tree at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo that's used as the guide to the start of the season. Visitors at the tourist attraction broke out in applause when the news came. a blossom arrived exactly on schedule this year.
Global News Podcast
Erdogan calls Turkey protests 'evil' as unrest continues
The date of its appearance has been recorded for hundreds of years and can be used to measure how the world is warming. But for most people in Japan, the white and pink flowers are simply something to enjoy.
Global News Podcast
Myanmar remembers earthquake dead with a minute's silence
They were launched by the Chinese Eastern Command of the People's Liberation Army. They involved air, land and sea forces, also the rocket forces targeting targets on land and in sea around Taiwan. Most importantly, I think for Taiwan, they're practicing blockading the island from all directions. Taiwan's a very small island. It's a trading nation, a lot on trade for the import of food.
Global News Podcast
Myanmar remembers earthquake dead with a minute's silence
It also exports a lot of manufactured goods such as semiconductors. And so the ability to kind of control what goes in and outside of Taiwan is critically important. And many military analysts have been thinking over the last few years, this is what China is trying to do, blockade the island.
Global News Podcast
Myanmar remembers earthquake dead with a minute's silence
Instead of practicing an invasion, which would be quite difficult, it would be easier and perhaps just as devastating for Taiwan also. if they blockaded the island. They've carried out such drills before. Is this more of the same or are tensions rising? Yeah, it's a good question.
Global News Podcast
Myanmar remembers earthquake dead with a minute's silence
And it's interesting the way you phrase that, because even yourself, you'll have done this story a number of times before about China's military launching drills around Taiwan. How do you judge this? I think that's part of what China wants us to do. It's not like Russia, which invaded Ukraine. One day it wasn't, the next day it was. China is employing something called grey zone tactics.
Global News Podcast
Myanmar remembers earthquake dead with a minute's silence
Essentially, it increases the pressure on Taiwan very, very slowly. So the world doesn't really notice what's going on. But in the end, it's in a position where a lot has changed. So, for example, over the last 10 years, these kind of drills hardly ever took place. Now they're commonplace, but nobody really has noticed because China has gone quite slowly. I'll just give you an example.
Global News Podcast
Myanmar remembers earthquake dead with a minute's silence
There is a median line between the island of Taiwan and China. Up until about five years ago, China rarely crossed this median line. Now it does so all the time. So it's really increased the frequency, the scale of these drills. No one has really noticed that.
Global News Podcast
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen's Houthis
I don't know what you're talking about.
Global News Podcast
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen's Houthis
Hot springs with traditional Japanese pastime and Obviously, when foreign visitors go to Japan, they want to experience it. And there's been so many foreign tourists in Japan over the last year or so. Last year, there was more than 30 million, a record. They just want to go there and they've been using all the water.
Global News Podcast
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen's Houthis
And so there's a lot of hot springs that are just running out of the water because you've got to remember that this is water that's heated up underneath the ground, brought to the surface. So there's only a limited amount of this water and it's simply been used up.
Global News Podcast
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen's Houthis
Essentially, what the authorities have tried to do is they're saying, look, you've got to try and limit the amount of water you use, if possible. That means, say, hotels, a building private, onsen in rooms, don't do that as much. Limit the amount of times you can use this water.
Global News Podcast
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen's Houthis
Also, I'm sure there's a temptation to drill even further into the bowels of the earth and pump this water up, if possible, to get more of it. There'll also be a temptation to filter some of this water. Now, there are really strict rules about what counts as hot spring water in Japan, as you can imagine. But the temptation will be to filter it, reuse it again if there's a limited supply.
Global News Podcast
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen's Houthis
Yeah, I mean, tourism is a great thing in many respects. If you're getting lots of people coming into the country, as you are in Japan, you're getting people spending lots of money. It's boosting the economy. But of course, the flip side of that is it brings a lot more people and so a lot more pressure on infrastructure, such as trains and buses, hotels. Airbnbs all booked out.
Global News Podcast
US launches wave of air strikes on Yemen's Houthis
So it essentially raises the prices. So, of course, tourism brings a lot to the economy, but it does bring a problem. And it's something Japanese people are beginning to understand and complain about as well, even though they recognize that tourists bring money and create jobs and wealth.
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
Tens of thousands of people have come together as we heard there, protesters from both sides of the divide. That's people who want to see the suspended president not only arrested, but they want to see him prosecuted and completely removed from office.
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
There are also his supporters who want to see the impeachment, which was voted for by the National Assembly, still got to be approved, but they want to see that impeachment rescinded. So both sides are of the divide out protesting throughout Seoul, central areas mainly, but also around the presidential compound.
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
And that's complicated matters about trying to arrest the president or this former president because investigators want to speak to him. They want to arrest him. They haven't been able to do that yet. And these protesters out on the streets are making that even more complicated.
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
Yeah, it's all quite complicated. And it does appear to be that scenario. They've had impeached presidents before, but never before has a sitting president faced this kind of situation where he is essentially wanted by the authorities who want to arrest him. That hasn't arisen before.
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
We have people around President Yoon who essentially were given the job as presidential security service, given the job of protecting him. That's what they are doing. Everyone's doing their job, but it's not clear how this legal situation is going to be resolved.
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
Well, obviously, the absence of any clear leadership in any country is going to be a problem, and particularly in South Korea, which faces a number of important threats. North Korea, for one thing, and in fact, the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is on his way to Seoul He's going to be holding talks on Monday to discuss a number of issues. North Korea will be among them.
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
So clearly, Antony Blinken will want to go to Seoul and he wants to have a conversation with somebody who's in charge, who can affect and make decisions and understand what the latest thinking of the South Korean government is. It doesn't appear from the outside that person exists. But having said that, South Korea is not a one-party state. I'd imagine the country is still getting on with the
Global News Podcast
Six-day state funeral for Jimmy Carter begins in Georgia
basic levels of government, but at the higher levels, it seems function is broken down.
Global News Podcast
Fatalities and injuries in German Christmas market attack
Like many things, the soil was contaminated following the meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear facility in 2011. Much of it is topsoil collected in order to decontaminate vast areas surrounding the plant. Japan plans to use the least radioactive soil in civil engineering projects such as road embankments. More heavily contaminated soil will be disposed of.
Global News Podcast
Fatalities and injuries in German Christmas market attack
The International Atomic Energy Agency has approved the proposal, but as with the discharge of water from the plant, some people will not be happy.
Global News Podcast
Turkey protests: More than 1,000 people arrested in 5 days
There's a lot of complications to this story. Essentially, it began back in December when the President Yoon Sung-yeol had declared martial law. He tried to declare martial law. He was impeached, removed from office a week later. and into the breach stepped Han Duk Su. He became acting president. He was the prime minister, became acting president.
Global News Podcast
Turkey protests: More than 1,000 people arrested in 5 days
But then he too was removed from office, impeached by the National Assembly. And so a third politician had to step into the role as acting president. What the constitutional court has done today is to say that Mr. Han should not have been removed from office as acting president, and they've reinstated him. So he's gone straight back to the office, resumed duties, as you heard there.
Global News Podcast
Turkey protests: More than 1,000 people arrested in 5 days
He thanked the judges. So still a lot of change, still a lot of upheaval. We've got an acting president back in office in the shape of Mr. Han.
Global News Podcast
Turkey protests: More than 1,000 people arrested in 5 days
Yeah, this court ruling today is essentially a sideshow, a minor event compared to the big event, which is the constitutional court's decision on whether to endorse the impeachment of the president, Yoon Suk-yool, for declaring martial law. It was possible that today's ruling could have indicated which way the judges were thinking.
Global News Podcast
Turkey protests: More than 1,000 people arrested in 5 days
But in actual fact, what they did, they were looking narrowly at whether Mr. Han, the acting president, had been involved in in martial law. They decided that he had nothing to do with that. So essentially, it doesn't really give as much of an indication of how they're going to rule in the bigger decision on Mr. Yoon's impeachment. Now that's expected. Well, it was expected already.
Global News Podcast
Turkey protests: More than 1,000 people arrested in 5 days
Some people thought it was going to come mid-March. It hasn't. And so a lot of people now are trying to work out what it is the judges are thinking, want them to get on and make this decision. Because as long as this decision isn't made, The political turmoil and chaos in South Korea continues.
Global News Podcast
Turkey protests: More than 1,000 people arrested in 5 days
Once they've made the decision on Mr. Yoon, he will either go back to being president or he will be dismissed permanently and there'll be new elections within two months. So it's only this next court case which will really see the beginning and the end of the political turmoil in South Korea.
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
Well, Hong Kong has decided to send a range of officials to Thailand to meet Thai immigration, judicial officials, police officers, in order to try and track down about two dozen or so cases in which Hong Kong residents
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
have simply disappeared when going to Thailand, and it's suspected that they've been taken by criminal gangs up to the borderlands with Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia, and they're employed somehow there in online scams, telephone scams, which have really proliferated over recent years. Now, this is about Hong Kong, but...
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
All over China particularly and other countries have reported that a lot of their citizens are disappearing through Thailand to these unknown border areas where they're getting lured to these areas in order to take part in these scams. So it's more than Hong Kong. Why is it such a big problem now? Well, it's been a big problem for some time and for several years, really.
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
Lots of countries have been warning about it, but now it's a particular problem because essentially of the disintegration of law and order in Myanmar, where there's essentially a civil war going on, the government there occupies, the BBC did a survey a few months ago, found out that the government there only occupies about a quarter of the land.
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
The rest is controlled by ethnic groups, pro-democracy groups. This lawlessness has allowed mainly Chinese gangs to move in and set up these scam centres, not just scam centres, but also... Drug centres as well. So the production of drugs has increased in Myanmar over recent years since the lawlessness began. The UN worked out last year that Myanmar was now the biggest supplier of opium.
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
So all kinds of criminal activity, including scam centres, is taking place in these border areas.
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
Been a warning for the UN about this. Been a warning from lots of embassies. Just yesterday, the Chinese embassy in Bangkok issued a warning, essentially saying to people, if you get offered a job and it seems too good to be true, the pay is high, it doesn't require a lot of qualifications, then just ignore it. It's probably too good to be true. It probably doesn't exist.
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
And indeed, there was an interesting case which came to light just last week of a Chinese actor who'd... thought he was going to Thailand in order to take part in some kind of film. He got to Thailand, ended up being whisked away in a car to Myanmar, head shaved, movements restricted, involved in this online scam operations.
Global News Podcast
Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers
Eventually there was an outcry about his disappearance and he was found and he's returned home. But that's just the kind of thing which is going on. Mickey Bristow.
Global News Podcast
Syrian government says operation against Assad loyalists over
It's a good question, and with not a simple answer, considering it's just one product in one country. Essentially, in 2023, there was a heat wave in Japan which led to a bad harvest. So prices last year were very high. They don't seem to have recovered, even though last year's harvest was quite good.
Global News Podcast
Syrian government says operation against Assad loyalists over
For a number of reasons, one of them being blamed is that there are a massive amount of tourists now going to Japan, so they're eating more rice. Also, there were structural government problems. For example, the government last year warned of a massive earthquake, and that led to a lot of panic buying in Japan of rice people stocking up. That led to a price rise as well.
Global News Podcast
Syrian government says operation against Assad loyalists over
And so you have a situation now where, as you've mentioned there, price of rice is essentially double what it was about a year ago. It's about US$26 for a 5-kilogram bag. So really, at very high prices, that's what's led the Japanese government to release some of its stockpile.
Global News Podcast
Syrian government says operation against Assad loyalists over
Well, 150,000 tonnes will help. That will be on the shops at the end of March, probably. Later on, the Japanese government could release other stockpiles. It's got about a million tonnes. But I think the main problem that we're looking at is structural. If you look across East Asia, big rice-growing countries and exporters like India and Thailand have recorded record harvests last year.
Global News Podcast
Syrian government says operation against Assad loyalists over
So why is Japan... suffering like this and that's partly because the Japanese government seeks to protect Japanese rice growers partly because of food security to ensure they've got enough rice for themselves and partly to support rural areas and farmers.
Global News Podcast
Syrian government says operation against Assad loyalists over
Japanese people eat mostly Japanese rice and so whilst they could import a lot of rice because they buy their own it's very susceptible for structural problems like the ones we've seen. Mickey Bristow.
Global News Podcast
Syrian government says operation against Assad loyalists over
The computers come today for the boys.
Global News Podcast
Millions hit by huge winter storm in US
The U.S. State Department said Mr. Blinken would look at ways to strengthen America's relationship with its two East Asian allies, South Korea and Japan. He said that while in Seoul, he'd meet senior government officials without saying who. It's not clear who Mr. Blinken should meet. The president, Yoon Suk-yool, and his replacement were both impeached.
Global News Podcast
Millions hit by huge winter storm in US
The finance minister is now supposed to be in charge. It's unlikely that any South Korean leader has the time to focus on anything other than the country's internal problems. On Sunday there were more developments. Mass protests, both for and against the President, continued on the streets of Seoul.
Global News Podcast
Millions hit by huge winter storm in US
Many waited to see if investigators looking into Mr Yoon's declaration of martial law would again attempt to arrest him. They tried once on Friday, but the President's bodyguards prevented them getting to Mr Yoon. They said they'd also stop any further attempts to detain him, raising the uneasy prospect of clashes between South Korea's different security agencies.
Global News Podcast
Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
Beijing banned lobsters four years ago, along with other Australian products, including coal and wine. That followed a diplomatic dispute between the two nations, partly over Canberra's call for an independent inquiry into the origins of Covid. China has gradually lifted the sanctions following an improvement in relations. The restriction on lobsters is the last to be removed.
Global News Podcast
Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
It comes just a month before the Lunar New Year holiday, when lobsters are in great demand in China.
Global News Podcast
US sends diplomats to Syria
Our Asia-Pacific regional editor, Mickey Bristow, told us more. He was flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing overnight, a regular five-and-a-half-hour flight. But shortly after takeoff, the plane veered, instead of going northeast, it veered westwards over the Malay Peninsula, and then contact was lost with it.
Global News Podcast
US sends diplomats to Syria
Initially, the search focused around the area where it had been lost, but then it became clear that the plane had actually continued to fly thousands of kilometres off the route which it was intended to fly and had ended up in the Indian Ocean where investigators believe it had crashed. Initially, there was a search there, firstly by the governments of Malaysia, China, and Australia.
Global News Podcast
US sends diplomats to Syria
That was over a vast area, 120,000 kilometers. That ended. There was then a second search by the company Ocean Infinity. That didn't find anything. And so that stopped. And the investigation appeared to have died down. And as you suggested, they're a great aviation mystery because so many people on board, so little knowledge about what could have happened to the plane.
Global News Podcast
US sends diplomats to Syria
Why was it over the Indian Ocean? Why did it get there? So those questions remained. That's perhaps why the investigation has been reopened.
Global News Podcast
US sends diplomats to Syria
I think since the last search there's been a lot of work done on actually trying to take the information we do know about the plane to try and pinpoint more accurately where indeed investigators think that it crashed. And if you listen there to the transport minister from Malaysia, he suggested that this new area was 15,000 square kilometres.
Global News Podcast
US sends diplomats to Syria
It sounds a big area, but it's far smaller than the initial search area. So I think they feel now they've pinpointed, the area where the plane crashed. Also, there's, as you can imagine, real pressure from the families to try and find out what went on. So the Malaysian government knows that and now it's got this fresh information.
Global News Podcast
US sends diplomats to Syria
I think it's keen to try and look once again to try and find this plane.
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
The court has ruled that he should be released, but the prosecution have a period of time, seven days, to appeal against this. And whilst that appeal takes place, the president or the impeached president remains in jail.
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
But as you say, his supporters who are gathering not just outside the detention centre, but also outside his residence in Seoul, they believe it's some kind of victory or vindication for Mr. Yoon.
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
Well, interestingly, two points. Firstly, they questioned the legality or the scope of the criminal investigation against Mr. Yoon, whether the organisation which investigated him had the power to do so. But essentially, he was released on a technicality basis. He was detained in January and prosecutors were given 10 days to charge him.
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
They thought they'd done it on the final day of that detention. But the judge, counting back, said, actually, no, you've miscounted. You did it after the deadline. And so, therefore, you didn't do it in time. He should be released. So it's really a technicality. So nothing about the insurrection charges against Mr. Yoon changed, just changed.
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
just this technicality which they say means he should be released.
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
Well, as I said, in this particular case, the criminal investigation against Mr. Yoon for declaring martial law still continues. There is also a separate case, a constitutional court case, deciding whether to endorse the impeachment of Mr. Yoon, which was authorised by the National Assembly. That's due to rule in the middle of this month, so in the next couple of weeks. So
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
really no great change in Mr. Yoon's condition and the very, very serious charges that he's facing.
Global News Podcast
Dozens killed in clashes in Syria
Well, if he's convicted of the Constitutional Court decides to endorse his impeachment, he'll be removed from office permanently and there'll be a fresh election within 60 days in South Korea. There'll be a new president. The criminal case is perhaps more serious. In the insurrection case, he faces a lifetime in prison or even the death penalty, although that's probably unlikely.