Fiji’s show of support for Lam Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam was in the midst of dealing with massive protests against Hong Kong residents opposing her extradition bill as we went to print, but still had time to meet Fiji’s Trade Minister Premila Kumar. Kumar met Lam on August 15, and reassured her of Fiji’s support for the ‘One China Policy’ and ‘One Country, Two Systems’ for Hong Kong. There’s no sign that the protests will abate at this point, and the political troubles have led to the cancellation of two conferences that were due to be held in Fiji as organisers were not willing to risk participants having to transit through Hong Kong airport.
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Jeers, not cheers Texan brewers, the Manhattan Project Beer Company have come under fire for naming a beer ‘Bikini Atoll’. Marshall Islanders continue to live with the legacy of US nuclear tests on the atoll, and say the name is insensitive. The company has defended itself by saying it didn’t mean to trivialise the nuclear tests and “is creating awareness of the wider impacts” of nuclear test programs, although it’s hard to see how that aligns with the endless photos of artistically-placed beer cans and bikinis that populate its social media channels
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