Lula da Silva: Brazil Immune to Foreign Attempts to Hinder Cooperation With China

Brazil cannot be prevented from developing cooperation with China, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Friday during his trip to Beijing.

"Yesterday we visited Huawei. It is a demonstration that we want to tell the world that we have no prejudices in relations with our Chinese counterparts. No one will prohibit Brazil to improve relations with China," Lula said at a meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.

In a press statement preceding the bilateral meeting, Lula said that Brazil was committed to intensifying cooperation with China in science and technology, student exchanges, culture, climate change, clean energy and electric vehicles.

Lula's trip comes two months after his meeting with US President Joe Biden in Washington. The United States is one of the hardliner countries in relation to Chinese tech companies, Huawei in particular, over their alleged collusion with the Chinese Communist Party.

Lula’s Visit to China Paints Beijing as ‘Viable Alternative’ to US

The Brazilian president visiting China can be perceived as a good sign now that more people become frustrated over the US’ dominance in a unipolar world, Dr. Ken Hammond, writer and professor of East Asian and global history at New Mexico State University, told Sputnik.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has met his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing. Before departing Brazil earlier this week, Lula pledged that his country is “going to consolidate” its relationship with China.

©AFP 2023/KEN ISHII

“What we're seeing is that people in countries around the world don't want to be in a unipolar world dominated by the United States. And they are increasingly seeing China as a viable alternative, not the only alternative, but, you know, as a country that it's good to work with,” Hammond said.

He added that those countries see that “the Chinese are trying to build a new multicentric international order, and that Beijing is trying “to support the development of countries like Brazil through things like the Belt and Road Initiative. It's just a logical process.”

The professor pointed out that even though the US “continues to act as a great sort of menacing presence," the modern day world remains “on the verge of changing for the better.”

According to him, “people getting together like Lula going to Beijing” are “the good signs of our times.”

China 'Frustrated' Over Its Ties With US

In this vein, Hammond pointed to the China-US relationship, which, he said, the PRC is “very frustrated” with.

He added that the US “persists in adopting an attitude of hostility” toward China, trying to provoke and demonize the country, as well as “cut off educational contacts and informational exchange with ordinary people.”

The expert also commented on the developments in early February, when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed his visit to China over the suspected Chinese balloon in American airspace.

Hammond said he thinks it’s “entirely legitimate” for China “to keep people like Blinken a little bit at arm's length.

“When he [Blinken] has gotten together with Chinese leaders and officials in the past, all he's done is basically berate them, tell them to get with the American program and kind of try to throw his weight around. So who wants that? Why do you want this guy in the room when you have this ongoing process of building more creative or mutually beneficial relationships with countries where the vast majority of people in the world live?” the professor concluded.

TPNPB-OPM Klaim Bunuh 9 Anggota TNI di Nduga, Papua Pegunungan

Kapendam XVII/Cenderawasih, Kolonel Kav Herman Taryaman (Beritasatu.com)

Tentara Pembebasan Nasional Papua Barat - Organisasi Papua Merdeka (TPNPB-OPM) mengklaim terlibat dalam penyerangan terhadap pos militer Indonesia di Distrik Yal, Kabupaten Nduga, Papua Pegunungan, di bawah komando Perek Jelas Kogeya dan pasukan. TPNPB menyebut pasukan ini telah menembak mati 9 prajurit TNI dan merampas 9 pucuk senjata pada Sabtu, 15 April 2023.

Awalnya, jumlah korban prajurit yang tewas dikabarkan berjumlah 6 orang. Tapi kemudian ada konfirmasi bahwa Panglima Komando Daerah Pertahanan III TPNPB-OPM Brigadir Jenderal Egianus Kogoya menyebut bahwa jumlahnya bertambah menjadi 9 orang.

"Mereka sudah membunuh 9 orang, bukan 6," kata juru bicara TPNPB-OPM Sebby Sambom saat dihubungi, Ahad, 16 April 2023.

Kabar penyerangan ini terjadi di tengah penyanderaan terhadap pilot Susi Air Phillip Marthens yang berkebangsaan Selandia Baru. Philip ditangkap pada 7 Februari dan belum bisa dibebaskan sampai sekarang.

Sebby menjelaskan bahwa TPNPB-OPM telah mengajukan negosiasi damai dengan pemerintah Selandia Baru dan Indonesia, namun belum ada balasan yang diterima. Akan tetapi, kata Sebby, TNI dan Polri juga melakukan operasi militer masif di Kabupaten Ndugama pada 23 Maret 2023.

Setelah peristiwa 23 Maret tersebut, Sebby menyebut sudah ada satu prajurit yang tewas ditembak dan dikirim ke Jakarta. Untuk itu, TPNPB-OPM meminta pemerintah Selandia Baru dan PBB bisa mendesak pemerintah Indonesia menghentikan operasi militer ini.

Sementara itu, aksi baku tembak memang terjadi antara TNI-Polri dan anggota TPNPB-OPM pada 23 Maret lalu di Kampung Mundidok, Kabupaten Puncak, Rabu, 22 Maret 2023. Baku tembak terjadi saat pengejaran terhadap pelaku penembakan seorang tukang ojek di Ilaga.

Sementara itu, Kapendam XVII/Cenderawasih Kolonel Kav Herman Taryaman membenarkan bahwa prajurit TNI dari Satgas Yonif R 321/GT yang bertugas di wilayah Mugi-Mam Kabupaten Nduga diserang dan ditembak oleh Kelompok Separatis Teroris (KST), sebutan aparat untuk TPNPB-OPM. Penembakan terjadi pada Sabtu sore, pukul 16.30 WIT.

"Akibat serangan dan tembakan gerombolan KST tersebut, masih belum diketahui secara pasti berapa korban Prajurit TNI yang meninggal dan luka-luka," kata Herman.

Menurut dia, aparat Sampai saat ini masih dilaksanakan pemantauan. Namun karena cuaca hujan dan berkabut, sehingga tim belum bisa berkomunikasi dengan aparat keamanan yang berada di lokasi tersebut.

Video shows New Mexico police were at wrong house seconds before killing homeowner

Authorities in northwestern New Mexico on Friday released body camera footage of police officers opening fire and killing a homeowner after they showed up at the wrong address in response to domestic violence call.

The video released by the Farmington Police Department — just over a week after the April 5 nighttime shooting — showed officers arriving at the home. They walked up to the front door, passing the address that was posted on the home and illuminated by an exterior light, knocked on the door and announced themselves.

While knocking twice more, the officers can be heard asking a dispatcher to confirm the address and to tell the caller to come to the door. The dispatcher states the address of a home across the street.

It was soon after that the homeowner, armed with a handgun, opened the door and the officers immediately began shooting, firing multiple rounds as they backed away. The man can be seen dropping to the ground.

About a minute afterwards, a woman can be heard screaming inside the home and more shots ring out.

Authorities have said the man's wife returned fire from the doorway, not knowing who was outside, prompting the officers to fire again. She was not injured but could be heard screaming and crying after the second volley of shots were fired.

Dispatchers also received a frantic 911 call from the man's daughter, saying she heard bangs and then gunfire and that her dad needed help.

"There were gunshots in the house and my dad is dead," she tells 911 dispatchers.

She and two other children were inside the home at the time of the shooting.

The video showed a chaotic scene erupting about 4 minutes after officers first arrived at the wrong address. Once the gunfire stopped, sirens could be heard blaring as more officers arrived.

The homeowner's wife can be heard pleading with officers. "Help! Somebody shot my husband. Please! Please! My kids are upstairs," she said.

Officers were asking her to come outside and one yelled to put her in handcuffs as she was led away from the home.

Why officers approached the wrong address remains part of an ongoing investigation, Farmington police said.

Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe said in a news conference Friday that the department was releasing the video out of a desire to be forthcoming and transparent about what he has called a dark day for the police force and for the family of homeowner, who was identified as Robert Dotson, 52.

"It starts with us not getting off to a good start and making a mistake and going to the wrong address," Hebbe said. "But it ends, honestly, with something you just don't see very often, with Mr. Dodson coming out with a gun and then pointing it at the officers."

The department said the video also was reviewed by the Dotson family and their attorney before it was publicly released.

"All of us — the men and women of the Farmington Police Department — recognize the severity of this incident. We will do everything possible to more fully understand what transpired here," Hebbe said.

"Once again, we wish to express our condolences to the Dotson family and as your chief of police, I wish to convey how very sorry I am that this tragedy occurred. We will continue to provide updates as we are able."

Three officers have been placed on paid administrative leave pending an ongoing investigation. The officers have not been identified.

The case comes amid an ongoing reckoning across the country over use of force by law enforcement officers.

The State Police Investigations Bureau continues to review the case, saying findings will be shared with the district attorney for further review.

27 killed, scores injured amid clashes in Sudan as army battles paramilitaries

Sudan’s military and a powerful paramilitary force battled fiercely Saturday in the capital and other areas, reportedly causing more than 200 deaths and injuries while dealing a new blow to hopes for a transition to democracy and raising fears of a wider conflict.

The country’s doctors’ syndicate said late Saturday that at least 27 people had been killed and more than 180 wounded. But the Sudan Doctor’s Syndicate added that there many uncounted casualties, including military and RSF personnel in the western Darfur region and the northern town of Merowe.

The clashes capped months of heightened tensions between the armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces group. Those tensions had delayed a deal with political parties to get the country back to its short-lived transition to democracy, which was derailed by an October 2021 military coup.

After a day of heavy fighting, the military ruled out negotiations with the RSF, instead calling for the dismantling of what it called a “rebellious militia.” The tough language signaled that the conflict between the former allies, who jointly orchestrated the 2021 coup, was likely to continue.

Rekaman dari bandara #Khartoum saat penumpang meringkuk karena pertempuran antara tentara #Sudan dan Pasukan Dukungan Cepat (RSF) paramiliter pic.twitter.com/3z00t46sQ5

— Ahmad Hanafiah (@Ahmadhanafiah) April 16, 2023

The Sudan Doctor’s Syndicate did not immediately release details of where the 27 deaths occurred, but it said at least six of them were in the capital Khartoum and its sister city Omdurman. At least eight dead and 58 wounded were in the vicinity of Nyala, the capital city of the South Darfur province in the southwest.

The fighting erupted early Saturday. The sound of heavy firing could be heard throughout the day across the neighborhoods in and near the capital, where the military and the RSF had massed tens of thousands of troops since the coup.

Witnesses said fighters from both sides fired from armored vehicles and from machine guns mounted on pick-up trucks in densely populated areas. Some tanks were seen in Khartoum. The military said it launched strikes from planes and drones at RSF positions in and around the capital.

The miliatry said in a statement late Saturday that its troops had seized all RSF bases in Omdurman, while residents reported heavy airstrikes on paramilitary positions in and around the capital continued into the night. Sounds of gunfire and explosions were still heard in several parts of Khartoum, they said

Those in Khartoum described chaotic scenes. “Fire and explosions are everywhere,” said Amal Mohamed, a doctor in a public hospital in Omdurman. “We haven’t seen such battles in Khartoum before,” said resident Abdel-Hamid Mustafa.

One of the flashpoints was Khartoum International Airport. There was no formal announcement that the airport was closed, but major airlines suspended their flights.

Saudi Arabia’s national airline said one of its aircraft was involved in what it called “an accident.” Video showed the plane on fire on the tarmac. Another plane also appeared to have caught fire. Flight-tracking website FlightRadar24 identified it as a Boeing 737 for SkyUp, a Kyiv, Ukraine-based airline. It did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Sudan Doctors’ Syndicate said earlier in the day that two civilians were killed at the Khartoum airport. Another man was shot to death in the state of North Kordofan, it said. The BBC said one of its reporters was stopped by soldiers, taken to the military headquarters and beaten.

The leaders of the armed forces and the RSF traded blame over who started Saturday’s fighting and offered conflicting accounts of who was in control of key installations.

Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, commander of Sudan’s military, told the Qatar-based satellite news network Al Jazeera that RSF troops first “harassed” the military south of Khartoum, triggering the clashes.

Burhan accused the RSF of entering Khartoum airport and setting fire to some planes. He also said all strategic facilities including the military’s headquarters and the Republican palace, the seat of Sudan’s presidency, are under his forces’ control. He threatened to deploy more troops to Khartoum.

The head of the RSF, Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, accused Burhan of starting the battle by surrounding RSF troops. “This criminal, he forced this battle upon us,” he said.

Dagalo told Al Jazeera that he believed the fighting would be over in “the next few days.”

The RSF alleged that its forces controlled strategic locations in Khartoum and the northern city of Merowe some 350 kilometers (215 miles) northwest of the capital. The military dismissed the claims as “lies.”

The fighting comes after months of escalating tensions between the generals and years of political unrest since the 2021 coup. The tensions stem from a disagreement over how the RSF, headed by Dagalo, should be integrated into the armed forces and what authority should oversee the process. The merger is a key condition of Sudan’s unsigned transition agreement with political groups.

Pro-democracy activists have blamed Burhan and Dagalo for abuses against protesters across the county over the past four years, including the deadly break-up of a protest camp outside the military’s headquarters in Khartoum in June 2019 that killed over 120 protesters. Many groups have repeatedly called for holding them accountable. The RSF has long been accused of atrocities linked to the Darfur conflict.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other top diplomats expressed extreme concern over the outbreak of violence. “We urge all actors to stop the violence immediately and avoid further escalations or troop mobilizations and continue talks to resolve outstanding issues,” Blinken wrote on Twitter.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres; the European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell; the head of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat; the Arab League chief, Ahmed Aboul Gheit; and Qatar all called for a cease-fire and for both parties to return to negotiations. Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates called on those fighting in Sudan to exercise restraint and work toward a political solution.

Former Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, who was ousted in the 2021 coup, warned of a possible regional conflict if the fighting escalates. “Shooting must stop immediately,” he said in a video appeal to both sides posted on his Twitter account.

Pertempuran sengit Pemerintah Sudan dengan kelompok RSF pic.twitter.com/8KhEH9Oj8m

— Ahmad Hanafiah (@Ahmadhanafiah) April 16, 2023

Cameron Hudson, a senior associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies think-tank and a former US diplomat, said the fighting could become wider and prolonged, calling on the United States to form a coalition of regional countries to pressure the leaders of the military and RSF to de-escalate.

Volker Perthes, the UN envoy for Sudan, and the Saudi ambassador in Sudan, Ali Bin Hassan Jaffar, were in contact with Dagalo and Burhan to try to end the violence, said a UN official who asked for anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

Chad announced that it is closing its land borders with Sudan.

The clashes also took place in other areas across the country including the Northern province, the conflict-ravaged Darfur region, and the strategic coastal city of Port Sudan on the Red Sea, a military official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.

PERSIB Peringkat 3 BRI Liga 1

Pertandingan Persib Bandung melawan Persikabo 1973 di Stadion GBLA, Kota Bandung, Jawa Barat, Sabtu, 15/04/2023. (ANTARA/Bagus Ahmad Rizaldi)

PERSIB Bandung menutup BRI Liga 1 2022-2023 di peringkat ketiga setelah kalah 1-4 dari Persikabo 1973 dengan skor 1-4 di laga terakhir musim ini.

Dalam pertandingan yang berlangsung di di Stadion Gelora Bandung Lautan Api (GBLA), Kota Bandung, Jawa Barat, pada hari Sabtu, 15/04/2023, 'Maung Bandung' hanya mendapat 1 gol yang disumbangkan oleh David Da Silva.

	Pos Team	Main	Poin	Menang	Seri	Kalah	Goal	-/+
1	PSM Makassar	33	72	21	9	3	60	32
2	Persija	34	66	20	6	8	47	20
3	Persib Bandung	34	62	19	5	10	54	4
4	Borneo FC	33	57	16	9	8	64	27
5	Bali United	34	54	16	6	12	67	14
6	Persebaya Surabaya	34	52	15	7	12	52	7
7	Bhayangkara FC	34	51	15	6	13	53	9
8	Madura United	34	51	14	9	11	39	3
9	Persita	34	47	13	8	13	43	-3
10	Persis Solo	34	44	11	11	12	50	3
11	Persik Kediri	34	44	12	8	14	42	-1
12	Arema FC	34	42	12	6	16	32	-8
13	PSIS Semarang	34	41	12	5	17	44	-9
14	Persikabo 1973	34	41	11	8	15	43	-5
15	Barito Putera	34	38	10	8	16	44	-11
16	PSS Sleman	34	34	10	4	20	34	-23
17	Dewa United	34	33	8	9	17	34	-19
18	RANS Nusantara	34	19	3	10	21	40	-40

Kekalahan itu membuat suasana di Stadion GBLA, Bandung sempat ricuh setelah Bobotoh menyalakan flare di tribune stadion.

Bahkan tak sedikit Bobotoh yang turun ke lapangan karena kecewa melihat Persib Bandung kalah hingga pihak keamanan turun tangan melakukan pengamanan kepada pemain dari kedua tim.

Pelatih Persib Bandung, Luis Milla mengaku sedih. Pelatih asal Spanyol itu sedih karena gagal mempersembahkan hasil positif saat bobotoh hadir mendukung langsung di stadion.

"Untuk suporter, saya merasa sangat sedih karena kalian datang ke stadion untuk menonton sepak bola. Tentu keinginan kami untuk memenangkan pertandingan, tetapi tidak mudah untuk meraih kemenangan dalam setiap laga," ujar Luis Milla.

"Jadi normal ketika bobotoh tidak merasa senang. Itu normal ketika tim kalah dengan kemasukan empat gol," lanjutnya.

Pelatih Persib Bandung itu berharap bobotoh bisa lebih positif dalam memberikan dukungan terhadap tim kesayangan mereka. Menurutnya, sangat normal ketika tim sepak bola mengalami menang, kalah, atau pun bermain imbang.

"Memang kami tidak mengakhiri musim ini dengan bagus karena banyak meraih hasil buruk dengan perasaan yang buruk pula," ucap Luis Milla.

"Namun, kami ingin lebih positif untuk musim depan. Kami ingin tetap menjadi tim yang sangat besar dan kami ingin bekerja untuk klub dengan performa yang lebih baik. Itu pesan bagi tim," lanjutnya.

Menurut Luis Milla, musim ini Persib Bandung memiliki peluang untuk bersaing ke puncak. Namun, tak bisa dipungkiri bahwa kekalahan dari PSM membuat timnya mengalami penurunan level.

"Itu memang realitanya," tutur Luis Milla mengakhiri.