Asia in 3 minutes: Dotcom a winner’, Duterte a ‘serial killer’
Internet entrepreneur claims ‘major victory’ in battle to avoid extradition to the US; senator slams the Philippine president over claims he ran a hit squad
Dotcom claims victory after court backs his extradition to U.S.
Internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom claimed a “major victory” in his long-running battle to avoid extradition to the United States, even as another New Zealand court ruled he was eligible for removal from the country. The High Court said Dotcom was “eligible for surrender to the United States”, upholding a district court ruling from December 2015. But it found in favour of the appellants on the issue of copyright infringement, saying they had not committed an offence under New Zealand law. Rather, they were eligible for extradition on the grounds of conspiracy to defraud.
What next? Prosecutors allege that Megaupload, which Dotcom created while he was living in Hong Kong and once accounted for 4 per cent of all internet traffic, generated more than US$175 million in criminal proceeds from the exchange of pirated films, music and files. Dotcom has always maintained his innocence. “I told you I can’t be extradited for copyright and I was right,” Dotcom tweeted after the ruling. “I’ll be watching as the legal profession dissects this extradition judgement in a copyright case that is no longer a copyright case.”
Philippine senator slams Duterte as ‘sociopathic serial killer’
A staunch critic of Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte has urged his cabinet to declare the president unfit to rule, describing him as a “sociopathic serial killer” because of his war on drugs and allegations he once ran a hit squad. Senator Leila de Lima said Filipinos should rise up and ministers had a duty to save the country from a president “of criminal thinking”. The war on drugs has broad public support despite the killing of more than 7,700 people since Duterte took office on June 30, about 2,500 of them in police operations.
What next? De Lima is facing arrest on charges of involvement in the drugs trade, which she says are a vendetta for her leading a Senate investigation of allegations that Duterte had ordered unlawful killings of criminals while mayor of Davao City. Duterte denied involvement in unlawful killings and the Senate investigation found no evidence to prove the claims. She said new allegations made by a retired policeman, Arturo Lascanas, that Duterte had operated a “Davao death squad” should clear up any uncertainty.
Japanese university begins training ‘white-hat’ hackers
Demand for “white-hat” hackers who spot security vulnerabilities in computer systems or networks is growing in Japan, so much so that Chiba University has added “bug-hunting programmes” to its curriculum. Due to the threat of cyberattacks, firms have been running the programmes themselves for a few years, paying cash rewards to hackers who find vulnerabilities. One software company pays up to 500,000 yen (HK$34,000) for each problem detected.