https://www.scmp.com/rss/324527/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Lying in his hospital bed with broken ribs, cracked vertebrae, and a collapsed lung after being run over by a boat while going for a paddle, New Zealander Tim Grammer says he “couldn’t be any luckier”. The former international multisport athlete was out with some friends on their ocean racing skis in Christchurch’s Lyttelton Harbour on Saturday afternoon. Grammer, 55, told the Herald the group had paddled into the wind before turning around and heading towards their next marker when he heard a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3206931/new-zealand-paddler-who-miraculously-survived-after-being-run-over-boat-says-he-couldnt-be-any?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3206931/new-zealand-paddler-who-miraculously-survived-after-being-run-over-boat-says-he-couldnt-be-any?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Jan 2023 03:37:45 +0000 US rapper Azealia Banks’ controversial tour of Australia has finally come to an end with the star dubbing Australians “broke and racist” and labelling the promoters who organised the tour “pubic lice”. The New York-based 212 rapper’s Australian and New Zealand tour has been plagued by scandal, with last-minute show cancellations, social media outbursts and wildly varied sets. Her touring commitments are now over – and with the star having vowed never to visit the nation’s shores again, she left... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3204110/us-rapper-azealia-banks-slams-broke-racist-australia-i-will-not-be-back?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3204110/us-rapper-azealia-banks-slams-broke-racist-australia-i-will-not-be-back?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Dec 2022 09:01:08 +0000 Hot, moist air from near the equator was lingering around the north of New Zealand on Monday, bringing balmy temperatures and soupy air to the country’s biggest city Auckland – making residents feel like they’d stepped off a plane in the tropics. MetService, New Zealand’s national weather authority, does not provide hour-by-hour humidity predictions, but according to Weather.com humidity in Auckland was set to hit a shirt-dampening 91 per cent on Monday, the same figure the website predicted for... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3203772/new-zealand-city-braces-oppressive-singapore-style-humidity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3203772/new-zealand-city-braces-oppressive-singapore-style-humidity?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Dec 2022 01:59:15 +0000 New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in parliament on Wednesday that she stood by a crude remark she had made about the leader of another party that was unintentionally picked up by a microphone earlier in the week. Ardern apologised in parliament to ACT Party leader David Seymour for calling him an “arrogant p****”, but the went on to confirm that she stood by the remark in response to a question from National Party leader Christopher Luxon. Seymour had already accepted an earlier... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3203241/new-zealand-pm-says-she-stands-crude-insult-caught-hot-mic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3203241/new-zealand-pm-says-she-stands-crude-insult-caught-hot-mic?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Dec 2022 06:26:10 +0000 New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was caught on a hot mic calling the leader of another political party an “arrogant p****” as she took her seat following questions in parliament on Tuesday. Ardern has since apologised to ACT Party leader David Seymour for the remarks via text. Referencing another instance when he had been called names by Labour MP Willie Jackson, Seymour told media: “Some days I am a useless Māori, others days I am an arrogant p****. “The apology we are really looking... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3203086/new-zealand-pms-foul-mouthed-retort-caught-hot-mic-moment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3203086/new-zealand-pms-foul-mouthed-retort-caught-hot-mic-moment?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Dec 2022 05:03:08 +0000 A man who took more than a dozen clandestine videos of a woman undressing and showering in her own home in New Zealand said it wasn’t for his own sexual gratification. Instead, Luo Xiaodong said he was trying to make the woman, whom he has known for many years, “dislike” him. The 53-year-old, an Auckland Transport Metro bus driver until his offending was discovered, was sentenced at the Waitākere District Court on Friday. Court documents show Luo planted his phone camera in the bathroom of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3202689/new-zealand-sentences-chinese-man-who-filmed-bathroom-videos-woman-make-her-dislike-him?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3202689/new-zealand-sentences-chinese-man-who-filmed-bathroom-videos-woman-make-her-dislike-him?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Dec 2022 06:32:40 +0000 A New Zealand man who tried to buy a three-year-old girl online for sex was resentenced on Wednesday to just over three years in prison. Known on the dark web as “Kiwipedo”, Aaron Joseph Hutton was initially sentenced to five years in prison in January last year. But that term was overturned the following July after a High Court justice found the previous sentencing hearing was improperly conducted. Hutton appeared for another sentencing on Wednesday before Judge David Sharp in the Auckland... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3202364/new-zealand-man-who-tried-buy-girl-3-sex-gets-just-3-years-prison?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3202364/new-zealand-man-who-tried-buy-girl-3-sex-gets-just-3-years-prison?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 07 Dec 2022 06:32:07 +0000 A doctor who sent an unsolicited text message to 600 of his patients saying he didn’t support Covid-19 vaccines has been reprimanded by New Zealand’s Health and Disability Commissioner. One patient who spoke to the commission said the doctor told her the vaccine would “settle in her ovaries”, and that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern had taken a fake dose. But the doctor, who subscribes to views ranging from vaccine-induced magnetism to a conspiracy it will be used for biometric control, cannot be... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3202063/new-zealand-antivax-doctor-told-patient-covid-jab-would-settle-her-ovaries?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3202063/new-zealand-antivax-doctor-told-patient-covid-jab-would-settle-her-ovaries?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Dec 2022 03:47:03 +0000 A woman arrested in South Korea over the deaths of two children whose bodies were found in suitcases in New Zealand claims to have been stalked and sexually assaulted, a Korean TV show reported. The programme, I Want to Know, an investigative true-crime show by Korean broadcaster SBS, also claimed the woman had spent time in a mental health hospital. The woman, who was arrested in Ulsan, South Korea, in September is currently being held in Seoul awaiting an extradition hearing that New Zealand... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3196937/south-korean-woman-new-zealand-suitcase-murder-case-involving-two-children-spent-time-mental?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3196937/south-korean-woman-new-zealand-suitcase-murder-case-involving-two-children-spent-time-mental?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Oct 2022 05:04:47 +0000 A new “baby” island has been spotted in the middle of the ocean hours after an underwater volcano erupted. The Home Reef volcano – found in the Central Tonga Islands – erupted this month and within hours, the Earth’s newest land mass had formed. Lava from the volcano was cooled by the ocean water, forming the island, which grew in size over several days as the lava continued to flow. On September 14, scientists at Tonga Geological Services announced the island covered around 4,000 square... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3193801/tonga-underwater-volcano-erupts-forming-new-baby-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3193801/tonga-underwater-volcano-erupts-forming-new-baby-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Sep 2022 06:07:03 +0000 A prolific TikTok user from New Zealand who racked up millions of views on his humorous videos before vanishing from the social media platform has been arrested in the United States, charged with attempted murder. The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that Darren John Maheno, 45 and originally from Invercargill, has been in custody for the past two weeks. Officers were called to an address in Woodland Hills, a northwestern suburb in the Los Angeles metro area, for an alleged domestic... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3193247/new-zealand-tiktok-creator-darren-maheno-arrested-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3193247/new-zealand-tiktok-creator-darren-maheno-arrested-us?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Sep 2022 06:02:08 +0000 A millionaire investor from China who stabbed to death Auckland business partner Elizabeth Zhong amid a heated court battle over control of their failing company will have to serve at least 18 years and six months of his life sentence before he can apply for parole. Fang Sun returned to the High Court at Auckland on Tuesday – two months after a jury found him guilty of murder – as Justice Neil Campbell determined his sentence. “Your offending involved calculated planning,” the judge said,... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3187368/elizabeth-zhong-murder-chinese-millionaire-fang-sun-jailed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3187368/elizabeth-zhong-murder-chinese-millionaire-fang-sun-jailed?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Aug 2022 23:38:09 +0000 The commander of the United States military in the Pacific said on Monday he wants to expand and strengthen its ties with New Zealand against a backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions and China increasingly asserting its might. The visit to Wellington by Admiral John Aquilino, commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, comes as the US is looking to increase its presence in the region amid deep concerns over China’s growing ambitions in the Pacific. Aquilino was greeted with a traditional Māori... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3187275/us-military-wants-expand-ties-new-zealand-says-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3187275/us-military-wants-expand-ties-new-zealand-says-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Aug 2022 06:04:23 +0000 A vigorous handshake between Britain’s Boris Johnson and Jacinda Ardern has gone viral, with some even fearing New Zealand’s prime minister may have suffered a workplace injury. As Johnson greeted the visiting prime minister outside his Downing Street residence for an official photo call, the symbolic greeting left observers on either side of the globe wondering what it was all about and praising Ardern’s diplomacy. Lasting for at least five seconds, the firm, energetic shake is coupled with a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3183936/awkward-boris-johnson-jacinda-ardern-handshake-goes-viral-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3183936/awkward-boris-johnson-jacinda-ardern-handshake-goes-viral-it?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Jul 2022 02:10:48 +0000 Seven people, making up three generations of the same family, have died in New Zealand after the van they were travelling in hit a truck on Sunday morning. A baby was among the victims, some of whom came from Auckland’s Filipino community. A teenage boy and a man survived. Police said the victims included Paul Brown and his wife, Diseree Brown, and their son Mark. Diseree’s sister, Divine Dolar, also died in the crash along with her daughter Flordeliza Dolar, the Stuff news portal reported. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3182351/three-generations-filipino-new-zealand-family-killed-shocking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3182351/three-generations-filipino-new-zealand-family-killed-shocking?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Jun 2022 07:03:08 +0000 Covid-19 test requirements for travellers heading for New Zealand look set to be scrapped from early next week. Facing increased pressure to do away with the costly and disruptive tests, it is understood the government is poised to eliminate the procedure. An announcement could be made as early as Thursday that would require law changes and mean the tests could no longer be required by the start of next week. A spokesman for new Covid-19 Response Minister Ayesha Verrall said the future of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3181730/coronavirus-new-zealand-eliminate-pre-departure-covid-19?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3181730/coronavirus-new-zealand-eliminate-pre-departure-covid-19?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Jun 2022 02:07:21 +0000 Pacific nations can better rebuff China’s advances if working collectively, Jacinda Ardern says. New Zealand’s Prime Minister is visiting Australia and told Channel Nine she viewed the Pacific nations as family. She said China’s presence in the region was not new, but the giant country’s recent propositions showed island nations should stick together to advance regional interests. “There is power in the collective. And in fact, we’ve in recent times asked for big conversations, like for... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3181125/new-zealands-jacinda-ardern-says-collective-effort-needed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3181125/new-zealands-jacinda-ardern-says-collective-effort-needed?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Jun 2022 01:41:34 +0000 Pacific countries should not be patronised and can make their own decisions about engaging with China, Jacinda Ardern says. The Prime Minister made the comments after weeks of rising tensions over China’s overtures in the region, and ahead of a planned visit from Samoa’s PM. “I feel like some of the commentary we’ve seen does a disservice to the Pacific,” Ardern said. “These are sovereign nations who have had relationships with China that span many years, as New Zealand does.” Ardern said the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3180759/pacific-tensions-nz-leaders-call-less-patronising-approach?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3180759/pacific-tensions-nz-leaders-call-less-patronising-approach?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Jun 2022 10:56:55 +0000 New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says China’s “pace of engagement” has increased in the Pacific but defended her country’s own efforts, calling the relationship “naturally different”. Her comments come as China on Monday fell short on a bold plan to have 10 Pacific nations endorse a sweeping new agreement covering everything from security to fisheries, with some in the region expressing deep concerns. But there have been many small wins for China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, as he... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3179791/new-zealands-ardern-says-chinas-moves-pacific-not-new-pace?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3179791/new-zealands-ardern-says-chinas-moves-pacific-not-new-pace?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 May 2022 02:15:17 +0000 New Zealand’s opposition National Party leader Christopher Luxon was stuck inside a building for nearly an hour this morning after protesters blocked the exit from a community meeting in Palmerston North. It’s understood Luxon and a staff member were unable to leave the premises until soon before midday because of a crowd of about 30 people. The group was believed to be protesting against the Covid vaccine mandates. No one was hurt, but the stand-off ended only after the police intervened. A... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177772/coronavirus-nz-vaccine-protesters-block-mp-leaving-building?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177772/coronavirus-nz-vaccine-protesters-block-mp-leaving-building?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 May 2022 09:50:02 +0000 On the same night authorities believe an intruder broke into businesswoman Elizabeth Zhong’s East Auckland home and stabbed her over 20 times in her bedroom – nearly decapitating her – a private investigator had sent a short message to the man who would later be charged with her murder. “Always there,” Jimmy Jin told Zhong’s estranged business partner, Fang Sun, via WeChat. The message, Jin explained to jurors on Friday at Sun’s trial, referred to a tracking device illegally placed underneath... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177580/elizabeth-zhong-murder-ex-cop-hired-fang-sun-admits-tampering?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177580/elizabeth-zhong-murder-ex-cop-hired-fang-sun-admits-tampering?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 May 2022 06:15:14 +0000 A former New Zealand Police detective turned private eye who was paid to tail Auckland businesswoman Elizabeth Zhong in the months before her grisly death acknowledged to jurors today that he was knowingly breaking the law while doing so. Jun “Jimmy” Jin was hired in July 2020 by Fang Sun, an estranged business partner of Zhong’s who is now on trial for her murder. Jurors spent most of the day reviewing multiple photos and videos that the 19-year police veteran took of Zhong and her East... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177448/elizabeth-zhong-murder-ex-cop-hired-defendant-fang-sun-tells?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177448/elizabeth-zhong-murder-ex-cop-hired-defendant-fang-sun-tells?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 May 2022 06:45:14 +0000 Eleven months before she was stabbed more than 20 times in an east Auckland suburb, Chinese woman Elizabeth Zhong filed a sworn affidavit stating that her estranged business partner had warned her of his gang connections in Hong Kong, a New Zealand court heard. The affidavit, which Zhong filed in January 2020 as she and business partner Fang Sun were engaged in a heated civil battle over control of their multimillion dollar company, was read aloud alongside multiple other threat reports on... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177122/hong-kong-guys-will-kill-you-elizabeth-zhong-threatened-gang?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177122/hong-kong-guys-will-kill-you-elizabeth-zhong-threatened-gang?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 May 2022 02:03:45 +0000 Britain’s Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, is due to reveal a new project he is involved with in an exclusive interview airing on New Zealand’s Māori television on Monday night. The new kaupapa (a principle or policy) will be debuted by Harry on Te Ao with Moana, with host Moana Maniapoto who is hoping the message from Prince Harry, airing at 8pm, will “spark a discussion” among viewers. She said Harry’s kaupapa being launched from New Zealand was inspired by Māori values around kaitiakitanga... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177068/prince-harry-make-big-announcement-world-exclusive-interview?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3177068/prince-harry-make-big-announcement-world-exclusive-interview?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 May 2022 10:43:54 +0000 In the four years leading to the discovery of Elizabeth Zhong’s body in the boot of her Land Rover, the China-born New Zealand businesswoman had visited Auckland’s SkyCity Casino 381 times and had accumulated nearly NZ$240,000 (US$152,000) in gambling losses. At the same time, Zhong was being accused in a civil suit in the High Court at Auckland of improperly funnelling millions of dollars from the business she shared with Fang Sun, while creditors sold the company’s assets to repay debts. Those... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3177060/elizabeth-zhong-murder-victims-daughter-lawyer-describe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3177060/elizabeth-zhong-murder-victims-daughter-lawyer-describe?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 May 2022 10:13:40 +0000 New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will go into home isolation after partner Clarke Gayford tested positive for Covid-19. Ardern broke the news on social media on Sunday morning with a post of a card her daughter Neve had made for Mother’s Day. She said Gayford “woke up feeling a bit average and has tested positive … so we have 7 days of family time ahead of us!” She said she and daughter Neve are “fine”. “I’ll be working from home so anyone who watches question time, or is attending my... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3176943/coronavirus-new-zealands-jacinda-ardern-isolates-after?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3176943/coronavirus-new-zealands-jacinda-ardern-isolates-after?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 May 2022 07:15:20 +0000 Britain's Prince Charles is supporting a plan to put masks on cows. This mask uses new technology to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases. It catches the methane burped out by cows, before turning that gas into harmless carbon dioxide and water. About nine tenths of the methane emitted by a cow comes from its mouth and nostrils, not from its bottom! And it's all this methane that is adding to climate change. The mask rests on the cow's head and captures all methane the cow breathes out. The... https://www.scmp.com/posties/kids/steam-studio/article/3225945/cows-could-wear-masks-reduce-greenhouse-gas-emissions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/posties/kids/steam-studio/article/3225945/cows-could-wear-masks-reduce-greenhouse-gas-emissions?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 May 2022 09:28:20 +0000 In the hours before Elizabeth Zhong’s body was found in the boot of her Land Rover in Auckland in November 2020, former boyfriend David Zheng packed his bicycle into his own vehicle and went searching for her along a trail they used to enjoy walking together, he recalled today. Despite no longer being in a relationship they were still good friends and he feared it might have been another suicide attempt, he told jurors at the murder trial of Zhong’s estranged business partner, Fang Sun. “Ever... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3176273/elizabeth-zhong-murder-victims-ex-boyfriend-testifies-fang?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3176273/elizabeth-zhong-murder-victims-ex-boyfriend-testifies-fang?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 May 2022 10:03:17 +0000 Britain’s Prince Charles, a lifelong environmentalist, has thrown his full support behind an initiative to put masks on cows. Designed by Zelp, a start-up founded by Francisco Norris, this mask uses state of the art technology to reduce the emissions of toxic greenhouse gases. First, it catches the methane burped out by dairy and beef cows, before converting that gas into carbon dioxide and water. Contrary to popular belief, around 95 per cent of the methane emitted by a cow comes from its mouth... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3175895/uks-prince-charles-wants-put-masks-cows-fascinating-new-plan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3175895/uks-prince-charles-wants-put-masks-cows-fascinating-new-plan?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Apr 2022 15:04:02 +0000 An embittered former business partner of a Chinese businesswoman stabbed her until she was nearly decapitated before stuffing her body into a suitcase because he blamed her for ruining his life, a New Zealand court heard. Fang Sun, 48, is accused of murdering Elizabeth Zhong in November 2020. On Tuesday, he pleaded not guilty to the murder at Auckland’s High Court. Sun met Zhong in 2013 and the two were initially so close that he had lived with her family after moving to New Zealand from China,... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3175533/elizabeth-zhong-murder-chinese-expat-stabbed-over-20-times?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3175533/elizabeth-zhong-murder-chinese-expat-stabbed-over-20-times?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Apr 2022 07:07:15 +0000 Australia was able to stop an “incursion” by Beijing into the Pacific islands by talking with leaders there weekly and offering vaccine aid, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday. Concern over China’s military ambitions for the region, after it provided police and riot equipment to the Solomon Islands, prompted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to last month announce Washington would open a Solomon Islands embassy. Morrison said China had been “very clear” about aspirations to build a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3170307/coronavirus-australias-vaccine-diplomacy-pacific-islands?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3170307/coronavirus-australias-vaccine-diplomacy-pacific-islands?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 13 Mar 2022 09:52:28 +0000 An anti-mandate protester at Parliament is believed to have suffered a heart attack Saturday evening. A spokesperson for Wellington Free Ambulance told The New Zealand Herald they transported a patient in moderate condition to hospital. At the time of reporting the spokesperson said they were unable to give details about the incident but said were called to the event at 7.20pm local time. A social media user at the protest shared a post praising police for the speed with which they brought a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3166735/nz-protester-suffers-suspected-heart-attack-during-freedom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3166735/nz-protester-suffers-suspected-heart-attack-during-freedom?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Feb 2022 11:18:47 +0000 Engineers for SpaceX, owned by the world’s richest man Elon Musk, are reportedly in Fiji with plans to help restore internet to the Kingdom of Tonga. The devastating eruption in mid-January damaged an undersea telecommunications cable, which experts have said could take a month to repair. National Party MP Dr Shane Reti wrote to Musk, who also produces electric cars under the Tesla brand, asking for help to provide his Starlink satellite technology to the Pacific country. The technology uses... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3166029/elon-musks-spacex-help-tonga-fix-internet-starlink-satellite?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3166029/elon-musks-spacex-help-tonga-fix-internet-starlink-satellite?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 06 Feb 2022 13:34:27 +0000 A Myanmar crewman is undergoing procedures for claiming asylum in New Zealand after jumping off a cargo ship, in what an expert says is the first case of a refugee boat reaching the South Pacific country’s shores. The crewman, known only as Min Naing, spent 23 hours battling bad weather and icy water on the east coast of New Zealand before rescuers in Gisborne found him floating out to sea. Lawyer Simon Lamain told the New Zealand Herald that the Myanmar national was going through “immigration... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3155308/myanmar-seaman-who-jumped-ship-seek-asylum-new-zealand-lucky?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3155308/myanmar-seaman-who-jumped-ship-seek-asylum-new-zealand-lucky?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Nov 2021 10:59:45 +0000 New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has denied allegations a staffer may have inappropriately used parliamentary resources to help plan her wedding to fiancé Clarke Gayford. A spokesman for the prime minister said no parliamentary time or resources were used to plan the wedding, and the staffer was working in her capacity as a long-standing friend. The Herald on Sunday reported that Ardern’s electorate secretary Barbara Ward had been involved in wedding plans, visiting a wedding venue in... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3152647/new-zealand-pm-jacinda-ardern-denies-official-using-state?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3152647/new-zealand-pm-jacinda-ardern-denies-official-using-state?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Oct 2021 08:00:29 +0000 An Islamic State-linked woman arrived in New Zealand with her children on Saturday, local media reported, in a repatriation that was forced upon the country after Australia stripped her of her citizenship. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced last month that Suhayra Aden, 26, and her two children would return to New Zealand from Turkey, where they were held by authorities after crossing the border from Syria. Suhayra, who previously had dual Australian and New Zealand passports, became the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3145886/isis-bride-returns-new-zealand-after-australia-strips-her?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3145886/isis-bride-returns-new-zealand-after-australia-strips-her?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Aug 2021 07:30:07 +0000 Four years after a New Zealand teacher died in Japan, where he was restrained to a hospital bed for more than a week, his family remains committed in their campaign to call for the end of the practice they believe killed their son. Kelly Savage died in Yamato City Hospital in Kanagawa Prefecture on May 17, 2017, a week after suffering a heart attack and more than two weeks after he was hospitalised for mental health issues. His parents, Martha and Mike Savage, believe he died after suffering a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3134568/new-zealand-family-urges-japan-stop-restraining-patients?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3134568/new-zealand-family-urges-japan-stop-restraining-patients?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 May 2021 14:18:06 +0000 It may be the thought that counts, but still thousands of New Zealanders on Saturday hoped one person’s underwhelming Christmas gift would be another’s bargain find. By 8am on Boxing Day, more than 4,400 presents that had apparently missed the mark had been listed on the Trade Me website, including a Mazda car in the “wrong colour” and a pair of Apple Airpods Pro from a parent whose daughter preferred to have just the regular version. “Failed Christmas gift! Box opened, but not even put in... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3115407/failed-christmas-gift-new-zealanders-flock-online-get-rid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3115407/failed-christmas-gift-new-zealanders-flock-online-get-rid?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Dec 2020 08:00:24 +0000 A New Zealand sex worker awarded a six-figure payout after being sexually harassed at work is feeling vindicated, according to those who lobbied for her. Despite much of the case being subject to a confidentiality agreement, it emerged that a substantial settlement was reached between a business owner and a sex worker, to compensate her for emotional harm and lost earnings. Sex rights activist and national coordinator of the New Zealand Prostitutes Collective Catherine Healy called it a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3113853/new-zealand-sex-worker-wins-major-payout-sexual-harassment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3113853/new-zealand-sex-worker-wins-major-payout-sexual-harassment?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Dec 2020 07:17:43 +0000 A 55-year-old businesswoman was killed in her East Auckland house before being put in the boot of her car, New Zealand police said on Friday. Ying Zhong, also known as Elizabeth Zhong, was found dead in Sunnyhills last Saturday. She is believed to have been murdered. Police have formally identified the victim as Zhong, Acting Detective Inspector Shaun Vickers told media on Friday. “Elizabeth was killed in her house,” Vickers said. She was placed in her Land Rover when she was deceased and items... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3112531/new-zealand-businesswoman-elizabeth-zhong-killed-home-being?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3112531/new-zealand-businesswoman-elizabeth-zhong-killed-home-being?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Dec 2020 05:16:06 +0000 A diplomatic war of words between Australia and China over a graphic tweet seemed to finally cool on Thursday as Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison struck a much more conciliatory tone. Morrison’s change in approach came even after he was thwarted in getting his views out directly to Chinese people over the messaging app WeChat, after the company deleted his post on the grounds it could distort historical events and confuse the public. Earlier this week, Morrison expressed indignation and... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3112455/australia-pm-seeks-happy-coexistence-china-after-war-crimes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3112455/australia-pm-seeks-happy-coexistence-china-after-war-crimes?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Dec 2020 12:00:43 +0000 An interview by investigators with an Australian white supremacist who last year killed dozens of mosque worshippers in New Zealand will be suppressed for 30 years for national security reasons, said the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Christchurch terrorist attack on Saturday. Evidence given by New Zealand ministers and public sector bosses will also be sealed for three decades, said commissioners Sir William Young and Jacqui Caine. Full publication of the evidence could provide a “how-to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3111747/new-zealand-mosque-attack-evidence-will-be-suppressed-30?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3111747/new-zealand-mosque-attack-evidence-will-be-suppressed-30?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Nov 2020 03:33:27 +0000 A Chinese agent sent to New Zealand to spy on Taiwanese Kiwis abandoned his mission, and has been fighting for 23 years to live in the island nation. The Chinese citizen and Chinese Public Security Bureau (PSB) officer arrived in New Zealand in 1996 on a visitor visa. The spy, known as Mr H, quickly decided “he preferred New Zealand’s democratic way of life and abandoned his mission”, according to a new Court of Appeal judgment. He then applied unsuccessfully for refugee status, after failing to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3111452/chinese-spys-23-year-fight-live-new-zealand-after-ditching?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3111452/chinese-spys-23-year-fight-live-new-zealand-after-ditching?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Nov 2020 06:28:30 +0000 Police in New Zealand on Wednesday arrested six people and seized millions in assets in raids following a long-running investigation by the Financial Crime Group into money laundering activity. Four men and two women, ranging in age from 29 to 65, were charged with money laundering offences, police said. “This group today was a professional money laundering service. Their job was to launder funds,” said Detective Superintendent Iain Chapman. They used a semi-legitimate business that would remit... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3105484/new-zealand-police-arrest-six-over-money-laundering-scheme?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3105484/new-zealand-police-arrest-six-over-money-laundering-scheme?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Oct 2020 08:00:46 +0000 James Cameron has given fans an update on the Avatar sequels during a chat with none other than the Terminator. Speaking from New Zealand, Cameron joined Arnold Schwarzenegger for the 2020 Austrian World Summit. While the actor and director mostly spoke about veganism and environmental issues, Schwarzenegger sneaked in a question about the Avatar sequels. The pair also spoke about New Zealand’s Covid-19 response and how the pandemic had affected the production of the Avatar sequels – and Cameron... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3103325/james-cameron-reveals-avatar-2-complete-praises-new-zealands?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3103325/james-cameron-reveals-avatar-2-complete-praises-new-zealands?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Sep 2020 07:41:19 +0000 A coronavirus diagnosis has uncovered New Zealand’s first Covid-19 case, seven months after the infection occurred. “This infection occurred in late February following exposure to an infected person from Italy,” the Ministry of Health said. “At the time the family member was visiting New Zealand, they became ill with symptoms consistent with Covid-19, and the wider household then also became ill. “At the time, they did not meet the case definition for testing for people with defined symptoms who... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3102662/new-zealand-identifies-its-first-coronavirus-case-seven?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3102662/new-zealand-identifies-its-first-coronavirus-case-seven?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 23 Sep 2020 06:42:50 +0000 Four out of 15 adults admitted to hospital in the United States in recent months for ingesting an alcohol-based hand sanitiser died and three were left visually impaired, according to a new report from the nation’s health protection agency. The paper, published by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this week, focused on cases of serious adverse health events or death “associated with swallowing alcohol-based hand sanitisers” containing methanol in two southwestern states... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3096367/coronavirus-four-dead-three-blind-after-ingesting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3096367/coronavirus-four-dead-three-blind-after-ingesting?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 06 Aug 2020 15:01:04 +0000 A former prime minister of New Zealand wants rich Americans to buy property in the country amid the coronavirus pandemic to help reduce the impact of what he described as a looming “financial crisis”. John Key, who held the top job from 2008 to 2016, also said in an interview with talk radio station Newstalk ZB that border restrictions should be loosened so that universities and companies could bring in foreign students and skilled workers and pay for their own quarantine. “Let’s focus on what... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3096199/coronavirus-let-rich-americans-new-zealand-if-they-want-build?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3096199/coronavirus-let-rich-americans-new-zealand-if-they-want-build?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Aug 2020 21:00:18 +0000 A 56-year-old New Zealand man has been arrested in Cambodia after he allegedly stabbed his girlfriend in the head with scissors. The man was arrested by police in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on July 30. The Cambodian woman who was the victim of the attack suffered a gash in the side of her head that required 15 stitches. The Cambodian News English portal reported the attack occurred after an argument in which the man accused his girlfriend of stealing money from him on July 29. During the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3095663/new-zealand-man-arrested-cambodia-after-stabbing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3095663/new-zealand-man-arrested-cambodia-after-stabbing?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Aug 2020 12:11:12 +0000 A New Zealand man calling himself “Kiwipedo” on the dark web on Thursday admitted to trying to buy a child for NZ$15,000 (US$10,000) for sexual abuse and possessing 417 objectionable images just as his trial was nearing a close. After a week of witness testimony, the man, who has name suppression, pleaded guilty to two charges before Judge Allan Roberts in the Auckland District Court. He admitted that between January 13, 2015, and February 20, 2015, he had attempted to enter into a dealing... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3095302/kiwipedo-tried-buy-child-us10000-sex-abuse-new-zealand-court?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3095302/kiwipedo-tried-buy-child-us10000-sex-abuse-new-zealand-court?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Jul 2020 06:30:12 +0000