March 10:
Following a fight between Chinese and Nepalese traders in a market on the Sino-Nepal border, China has tightened surveillance along the Kimathanka trade route. The route is now open only two days a week. China has installed closed-circuit cameras on the Nepali side of the border and fenced in the area known as "Mini China" on the Chinese side of the border. The Nepali security team in Kimathanka was invited to China two months ago where they were urged to obtain permits for Nepalese nationals visiting China. The new restrictions have angered locals residents, the Annapurna Postreports.
March 11:
A war of words erupted during a UN Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, with the U.S. and China publicly excoriating each other. Speaking on behalf of a dozen countries, U.S. Ambassador Keith Harper questioned China's commitment to the rule of law, the South China Morning Post reports. He said: "We remain concerned about the unexplained recent disappearances and apparent coerced returns of Chinese and foreign citizens from outside mainland China. The actions involving individuals in Hong Kong represent a violation of the high degree of autonomy promised Hong Kong under its Basic Law. We are concerned about the overall negative trend for human rights in China and focus attention on recent detentions of lawyers and recent reports of abductions of Chinese and foreign citizens, as these actions cross a serious line and call into question China's commitment to its 'one country, two systems' policy towards Hong Kong."
Fu Cong, China's deputy permanent representative to the UN, dismissed the criticism as "groundless." "The U.S. is notorious for prison abuse at Guantanamo prison. Its gun violence is rampant and racism is its deep-rooted malaise. The US conducts large-scale extraterritorial eavesdropping, uses drones to attack other countries' innocent civilians. Its troops on foreign soil commit rape and murder of local people. It conducts kidnapping overseas and uses black prisons." Fu then urged the U.S. to "deeply reflect on themselves and ratify their own violation of human rights."
March 18:
Taiwan voiced strong protest over a decision by China to resume diplomatic ties with Gambia two years after the African country severed relations with Taiwan in November 2013. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Leo Lee described the decision as "the wrong thing at the wrong time." "We not only feel deep regret but also want to strongly protest" the decision, Lee said. He stressed that Taiwan's relations with its 22 diplomatic allies will remain firm and stable and said the loss of The Gambia will not have a domino effect. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Gambia issued a joint statement indicating that they have re-established official relations after 21 years,Focus Taiwan reports.
March 19:
China is willing to attend three-way talks with South Korea and the United States on implementing new U.N. sanctions targeting North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, China’s special representative for Korean Peninsula affairs, Wu Dawei, told his South Korean counterpart, Kim Hong-kyun. Wu and Kim shared "concerns" about North Korea's test-launch of two mid-range ballistic missiles this month and agreed that "North Korea must not take further actions that violate UN resolution," Yonhap reports. Earlier this month, the UN Security Council levied tougher sanctions on North Korea after its fourth nuclear test on January 6 and the February 7 launch of a long-range rocket that violated previous UN resolutions. North Korea has remained defiant, threatening to launch a nuclear strike on South Korea and the U.S. China accounts for about 90 percent of North Korea's total external trade.
March 20:
Taiwan's incoming Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government is facing a challenge from the New Power Party (NPP), a pro-independence party with an anti-Beijing agenda, reports the SCMP. With the DPP's support, the NPP was formed in 2015 by key members of the Sunflower Student Movement and holds five seats in parliament. The NPP is challenging president-elect Tsai Ing-wen's efforts to maintain peaceful relations with Beijing by restraining legislators from introducing certain proposals. Tsai has vowed to maintain the cross-strait status quo, and asked legislators not to describe relations between Taiwan and China as "state-to-state." She also asked legislators to stop a proposal calling for the removal of the portraits of the late founder of the Chinese republic, Sun Yat-sen, from public places in Taiwan. The moves irked the NPP, which supports the state-to-state concept. “These people are young and they support instant independence of Taiwan, making it difficult for them to accept proposals by Tsai to maintain the cross-strait status quo," said Yang Tai-shun at Chinese Culture University in Taipei.