Hotznplotzn

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49453491

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49453195

The [UK] government approved China's proposal to redevelop the former Royal Mint site [in London] into a vast 215,300 sq ft (20,000 sq m) UK headquarters, despite opposition from politicians and campaigners.

About 200 people live in Royal Mint Court, a complex of flats on the site, with many fearing a loss of privacy, disruption caused by protests and eviction.

[...]

On Tuesday evening, Royal Mint Court Resident's Association announced they had reached their target of £145,000 in donations, jumping from £35,000 12 hours earlier.

Campaigners say they will challenge the legality of the government's decision and believe there could be several grounds on which to bring their case.

These could include whether the government had a predetermined view on the development and whether redactions were made by the Chinese when they were asked to reveal detailed plans.

Planning law specialist Lord Charles Banner KC has been instructed to act for the association, they added.

[...]

Royal Mint Court resident and treasurer for the group, Mark Nygate, said they had received donations from people across the UK.

"We are humbled that so many of those persecuted by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), together with ordinary Brits up and down the country, have placed their faith in us, and stood by residents.

"We won't waste a single penny in ensuring that this embassy plan crashes on the solid rock of our judicial system."

The residents' campaign has the support of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), a group set up to hold China to account on democracy and human rights issues.

Luke de Pulford, from the group, said: "The blistering speed with which this crowdfunder has reached its target is a clear indication of the sheer unpopularity of this mega-embassy.

"It remains to be seen if the world's second superpower is a match for UK planning law."

[...]

The embassy would be the biggest of its kind in Europe and would sit in close proximity with the financial district as well as fibre optic cables carrying sensitive information.

Opponents have warned it could serve as a base for spying and pose security risks.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49455401

The European Open Digital Ecosystem Strategy will set out:

• a strategic approach to the open source sector in the EU that addresses the importance of open source as a crucial contribution to EU technological sovereignty, security and competitiveness
• a strategic and operational framework to strengthen the use, development and reuse of open digital assets within the Commission, building on the results achieved under the 2020-2023 Commission Open Source Software Strategy.

Feedback period: 06 January 2026 - 03 February 2026 (midnight Brussels time)

As Dries Buytaert, the founder of Drupal, wrote in his post (highly recommended read) as feedback to the European Commission's call for evidence:

Europe does not need to build the next hyperscaler. It needs to shift procurement toward Open Source builders and maintainers. If Europe gets this right, it will mean better software, stronger local vendors, and public money that actually builds public code. Not to mention the autonomy that comes with it.

The European Open Digital Ecosystem Strategy will set out:

• a strategic approach to the open source sector in the EU that addresses the importance of open source as a crucial contribution to EU technological sovereignty, security and competitiveness
• a strategic and operational framework to strengthen the use, development and reuse of open digital assets within the Commission, building on the results achieved under the 2020-2023 Commission Open Source Software Strategy.

Feedback period: 06 January 2026 - 03 February 2026 (midnight Brussels time)

As Dries Buytaert, the founder of Drupal, wrote in his post (highly recommended read) as feedback to the European Commission's call for evidence:

Europe does not need to build the next hyperscaler. It needs to shift procurement toward Open Source builders and maintainers. If Europe gets this right, it will mean better software, stronger local vendors, and public money that actually builds public code. Not to mention the autonomy that comes with it.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49454704

Archived

Digitization has made administration more efficient, but also more vulnerable. In a world where government processes are almost exclusively digital, collaboration across networked systems forms the central nervous system of the state. If failures occur here, standstill threatens. To escape this fate, the major German social insurance providers are now relying on strategic redundancy, which is intended to serve as a digital lifeline in an emergency.

Under the name "Cloud-based communication in crisis situations" (Cloudbasierte Kommunikation im Krisenfall, CKKI), a pilot project was launched a few days ago, marking a change in perspective. The Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund, the Bundesagentur für Arbeit, and the IT service providers Bitmarck and BG-Phoenics are trialing OpenDesk, the open-source alternative to the Microsoft 365 office suite developed by the Center for Digital Sovereignty (Zendis). The goal is to establish a fully functional emergency workplace that exists independently of the primary IT infrastructure.

According to Zendis, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs is funding the project, which is intended to demonstrate the resilience of the planned digital safety net by April. OpenDesk is more than just a chat application for crisis times. The suite offers a package of office software, email, calendar, project management, and video communication. Since the solution works purely browser-based, it allows employees to access it from almost any location and device. This flexibility is particularly crucial when physical locations or local networks can no longer be used safely.

[...]

The four participating organizations each installed their own OpenDesk instances on different cloud infrastructures. The systems are now being tested in various scenarios to see how well they can communicate with each other. Whether interoperability will be maintained even when different cloud providers, such as project partners Ionos, Stackit, or T-Systems, serve as the basis is important. Zendis CEO Alexander Pockrandt sees this as confirmation of the chosen path: the flexibility of the solution ensures that critical infrastructure (Kritis) can be maintained even in extreme crisis.

[...]

CKKI is not just designed as a disaster protection exercise for the German administration. The findings from the project are to be directly incorporated into the European cloud initiative 8ra. Thus, the German initiative is transforming into a building block for a larger, European vision of a sovereign and cross-provider IT infrastructure. Harald Joos, Cloud Commissioner of the Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund, emphasizes that the use of OpenDesk not only strengthens their own resilience. The participants also want to demonstrate to their European partners that sovereign cloud solutions are practical at the EU level.

[...]

After OpenDesk has already been able to find its way into other areas such as the Bundeswehr or the public health service, the acid test in the discipline of high availability now follows. If the concept proves successful, the "emergency workplace from the cloud" could soon become standard repertoire for any authority that wants to assert its digital sovereignty not just on paper.

Archived

Digitization has made administration more efficient, but also more vulnerable. In a world where government processes are almost exclusively digital, collaboration across networked systems forms the central nervous system of the state. If failures occur here, standstill threatens. To escape this fate, the major German social insurance providers are now relying on strategic redundancy, which is intended to serve as a digital lifeline in an emergency.

Under the name "Cloud-based communication in crisis situations" (Cloudbasierte Kommunikation im Krisenfall, CKKI), a pilot project was launched a few days ago, marking a change in perspective. The Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund, the Bundesagentur für Arbeit, and the IT service providers Bitmarck and BG-Phoenics are trialing OpenDesk, the open-source alternative to the Microsoft 365 office suite developed by the Center for Digital Sovereignty (Zendis). The goal is to establish a fully functional emergency workplace that exists independently of the primary IT infrastructure.

According to Zendis, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs is funding the project, which is intended to demonstrate the resilience of the planned digital safety net by April. OpenDesk is more than just a chat application for crisis times. The suite offers a package of office software, email, calendar, project management, and video communication. Since the solution works purely browser-based, it allows employees to access it from almost any location and device. This flexibility is particularly crucial when physical locations or local networks can no longer be used safely.

[...]

The four participating organizations each installed their own OpenDesk instances on different cloud infrastructures. The systems are now being tested in various scenarios to see how well they can communicate with each other. Whether interoperability will be maintained even when different cloud providers, such as project partners Ionos, Stackit, or T-Systems, serve as the basis is important. Zendis CEO Alexander Pockrandt sees this as confirmation of the chosen path: the flexibility of the solution ensures that critical infrastructure (Kritis) can be maintained even in extreme crisis.

[...]

CKKI is not just designed as a disaster protection exercise for the German administration. The findings from the project are to be directly incorporated into the European cloud initiative 8ra. Thus, the German initiative is transforming into a building block for a larger, European vision of a sovereign and cross-provider IT infrastructure. Harald Joos, Cloud Commissioner of the Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund, emphasizes that the use of OpenDesk not only strengthens their own resilience. The participants also want to demonstrate to their European partners that sovereign cloud solutions are practical at the EU level.

[...]

After OpenDesk has already been able to find its way into other areas such as the Bundeswehr or the public health service, the acid test in the discipline of high availability now follows. If the concept proves successful, the "emergency workplace from the cloud" could soon become standard repertoire for any authority that wants to assert its digital sovereignty not just on paper.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49453195

The [UK] government approved China's proposal to redevelop the former Royal Mint site [in London] into a vast 215,300 sq ft (20,000 sq m) UK headquarters, despite opposition from politicians and campaigners.

About 200 people live in Royal Mint Court, a complex of flats on the site, with many fearing a loss of privacy, disruption caused by protests and eviction.

[...]

On Tuesday evening, Royal Mint Court Resident's Association announced they had reached their target of £145,000 in donations, jumping from £35,000 12 hours earlier.

Campaigners say they will challenge the legality of the government's decision and believe there could be several grounds on which to bring their case.

These could include whether the government had a predetermined view on the development and whether redactions were made by the Chinese when they were asked to reveal detailed plans.

Planning law specialist Lord Charles Banner KC has been instructed to act for the association, they added.

[...]

Royal Mint Court resident and treasurer for the group, Mark Nygate, said they had received donations from people across the UK.

"We are humbled that so many of those persecuted by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), together with ordinary Brits up and down the country, have placed their faith in us, and stood by residents.

"We won't waste a single penny in ensuring that this embassy plan crashes on the solid rock of our judicial system."

The residents' campaign has the support of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), a group set up to hold China to account on democracy and human rights issues.

Luke de Pulford, from the group, said: "The blistering speed with which this crowdfunder has reached its target is a clear indication of the sheer unpopularity of this mega-embassy.

"It remains to be seen if the world's second superpower is a match for UK planning law."

[...]

The embassy would be the biggest of its kind in Europe and would sit in close proximity with the financial district as well as fibre optic cables carrying sensitive information.

Opponents have warned it could serve as a base for spying and pose security risks.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49453195

The [UK] government approved China's proposal to redevelop the former Royal Mint site [in London] into a vast 215,300 sq ft (20,000 sq m) UK headquarters, despite opposition from politicians and campaigners.

About 200 people live in Royal Mint Court, a complex of flats on the site, with many fearing a loss of privacy, disruption caused by protests and eviction.

[...]

On Tuesday evening, Royal Mint Court Resident's Association announced they had reached their target of £145,000 in donations, jumping from £35,000 12 hours earlier.

Campaigners say they will challenge the legality of the government's decision and believe there could be several grounds on which to bring their case.

These could include whether the government had a predetermined view on the development and whether redactions were made by the Chinese when they were asked to reveal detailed plans.

Planning law specialist Lord Charles Banner KC has been instructed to act for the association, they added.

[...]

Royal Mint Court resident and treasurer for the group, Mark Nygate, said they had received donations from people across the UK.

"We are humbled that so many of those persecuted by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), together with ordinary Brits up and down the country, have placed their faith in us, and stood by residents.

"We won't waste a single penny in ensuring that this embassy plan crashes on the solid rock of our judicial system."

The residents' campaign has the support of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), a group set up to hold China to account on democracy and human rights issues.

Luke de Pulford, from the group, said: "The blistering speed with which this crowdfunder has reached its target is a clear indication of the sheer unpopularity of this mega-embassy.

"It remains to be seen if the world's second superpower is a match for UK planning law."

[...]

The embassy would be the biggest of its kind in Europe and would sit in close proximity with the financial district as well as fibre optic cables carrying sensitive information.

Opponents have warned it could serve as a base for spying and pose security risks.

[...]

The [UK] government approved China's proposal to redevelop the former Royal Mint site [in London] into a vast 215,300 sq ft (20,000 sq m) UK headquarters, despite opposition from politicians and campaigners.

About 200 people live in Royal Mint Court, a complex of flats on the site, with many fearing a loss of privacy, disruption caused by protests and eviction.

[...]

On Tuesday evening, Royal Mint Court Resident's Association announced they had reached their target of £145,000 in donations, jumping from £35,000 12 hours earlier.

Campaigners say they will challenge the legality of the government's decision and believe there could be several grounds on which to bring their case.

These could include whether the government had a predetermined view on the development and whether redactions were made by the Chinese when they were asked to reveal detailed plans.

Planning law specialist Lord Charles Banner KC has been instructed to act for the association, they added.

[...]

Royal Mint Court resident and treasurer for the group, Mark Nygate, said they had received donations from people across the UK.

"We are humbled that so many of those persecuted by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), together with ordinary Brits up and down the country, have placed their faith in us, and stood by residents.

"We won't waste a single penny in ensuring that this embassy plan crashes on the solid rock of our judicial system."

The residents' campaign has the support of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), a group set up to hold China to account on democracy and human rights issues.

Luke de Pulford, from the group, said: "The blistering speed with which this crowdfunder has reached its target is a clear indication of the sheer unpopularity of this mega-embassy.

"It remains to be seen if the world's second superpower is a match for UK planning law."

[...]

The embassy would be the biggest of its kind in Europe and would sit in close proximity with the financial district as well as fibre optic cables carrying sensitive information.

Opponents have warned it could serve as a base for spying and pose security risks.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49451379

Archived

The number of Tibetan students sent to study in classes especially set up for them in schools in various provinces of China has increased in recent years in keeping with Beijing’s intensified drive to Sinicize Tibet and set a new record last year, reported the Tibetan-language tibettimes.net Jan 19, citing Chinese government sources. The number of such classes has also seen a sharp increase in order to accommodate the additional students.

The report cited a recent announcement from the Shigatse City government, Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), as saying that in 2025, a total of 10,500 students from across Tibetan regions were enrolled in Tibet Classes set up in schools in provinces and provincial-level cities across China. It was stated to have been announced as the highest number of enrolment of Tibetan students in such classes in such schools in China thus far.

[...]

Data from the Education Bureau of the TAR government was stated to show that in 2025, a total of 2,000 Tibetan students were enrolled in junior middle school classes in China with the total number of classes increased to 150. Likewise, a total of 4,500 Tibetan students were stated to have been enrolled in senior middle school classes in China and the number of such classes increased to 205. Also, a total of 4,000 Tibetan students were enrolled in middle vocational education schools in China with the number of such classes increased to 223.

Among those enrolled in senior middle school classes, a total of 3,215 were stated to have been from TAR and the remaining 785 from Qinghai. Qinghai constitutes the bulk of the traditional Tibetan province of Amdo (or Domey).

All this was stated to have been in keeping with plans to increase the number of Tibetan students sent to China to 10,500 and the number of Tibet class students in schools set up in China to 578.

[...]

China expanded its policy to enrol students from Tibet in such schools in 2023, with their numbers increased by 9.9% each successive year.

[...]

It was in 1984 that China took the decision to set up classes in schools in China for students from Tibet, claiming education in Tibet was backward; that there was paucity of skilled people there. The first of such classes were set in schools in 16 provinces and province-level cities in China.

The programme was continuously expanded over the following four decades.

[...]

A total of 180,000 Tibetan students have studied in those schools thus far, the report said.

[...]

Meanwhile, Choktrul Dorje Ten Rinpoche, a prominent Tibetan Buddhist leader, was detained by Chinese authorities back in December last year under unknown circumstances as Chinese authorities shuttered yet another Tibetan language school, as reported by the rights group International Campaign for Tibet (ICT).

Although [Chinese] authorities have not provided an explanation of any alleged wrongdoing by Choktrul Dorje Ten, ICT sources believe the detention is linked to Chinese government policies targeting privately-run schools which provide Tibetan-language instruction at a time when Chinese authorities are attempting to undermine Tibetan education in favor of Chinese.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49451379

Archived

The number of Tibetan students sent to study in classes especially set up for them in schools in various provinces of China has increased in recent years in keeping with Beijing’s intensified drive to Sinicize Tibet and set a new record last year, reported the Tibetan-language tibettimes.net Jan 19, citing Chinese government sources. The number of such classes has also seen a sharp increase in order to accommodate the additional students.

The report cited a recent announcement from the Shigatse City government, Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), as saying that in 2025, a total of 10,500 students from across Tibetan regions were enrolled in Tibet Classes set up in schools in provinces and provincial-level cities across China. It was stated to have been announced as the highest number of enrolment of Tibetan students in such classes in such schools in China thus far.

[...]

Data from the Education Bureau of the TAR government was stated to show that in 2025, a total of 2,000 Tibetan students were enrolled in junior middle school classes in China with the total number of classes increased to 150. Likewise, a total of 4,500 Tibetan students were stated to have been enrolled in senior middle school classes in China and the number of such classes increased to 205. Also, a total of 4,000 Tibetan students were enrolled in middle vocational education schools in China with the number of such classes increased to 223.

Among those enrolled in senior middle school classes, a total of 3,215 were stated to have been from TAR and the remaining 785 from Qinghai. Qinghai constitutes the bulk of the traditional Tibetan province of Amdo (or Domey).

All this was stated to have been in keeping with plans to increase the number of Tibetan students sent to China to 10,500 and the number of Tibet class students in schools set up in China to 578.

[...]

China expanded its policy to enrol students from Tibet in such schools in 2023, with their numbers increased by 9.9% each successive year.

[...]

It was in 1984 that China took the decision to set up classes in schools in China for students from Tibet, claiming education in Tibet was backward; that there was paucity of skilled people there. The first of such classes were set in schools in 16 provinces and province-level cities in China.

The programme was continuously expanded over the following four decades.

[...]

A total of 180,000 Tibetan students have studied in those schools thus far, the report said.

[...]

Meanwhile, Choktrul Dorje Ten Rinpoche, a prominent Tibetan Buddhist leader, was detained by Chinese authorities back in December last year under unknown circumstances as Chinese authorities shuttered yet another Tibetan language school, as reported by the rights group International Campaign for Tibet (ICT).

Although [Chinese] authorities have not provided an explanation of any alleged wrongdoing by Choktrul Dorje Ten, ICT sources believe the detention is linked to Chinese government policies targeting privately-run schools which provide Tibetan-language instruction at a time when Chinese authorities are attempting to undermine Tibetan education in favor of Chinese.

Archived

The number of Tibetan students sent to study in classes especially set up for them in schools in various provinces of China has increased in recent years in keeping with Beijing’s intensified drive to Sinicize Tibet and set a new record last year, reported the Tibetan-language tibettimes.net Jan 19, citing Chinese government sources. The number of such classes has also seen a sharp increase in order to accommodate the additional students.

The report cited a recent announcement from the Shigatse City government, Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), as saying that in 2025, a total of 10,500 students from across Tibetan regions were enrolled in Tibet Classes set up in schools in provinces and provincial-level cities across China. It was stated to have been announced as the highest number of enrolment of Tibetan students in such classes in such schools in China thus far.

[...]

Data from the Education Bureau of the TAR government was stated to show that in 2025, a total of 2,000 Tibetan students were enrolled in junior middle school classes in China with the total number of classes increased to 150. Likewise, a total of 4,500 Tibetan students were stated to have been enrolled in senior middle school classes in China and the number of such classes increased to 205. Also, a total of 4,000 Tibetan students were enrolled in middle vocational education schools in China with the number of such classes increased to 223.

Among those enrolled in senior middle school classes, a total of 3,215 were stated to have been from TAR and the remaining 785 from Qinghai. Qinghai constitutes the bulk of the traditional Tibetan province of Amdo (or Domey).

All this was stated to have been in keeping with plans to increase the number of Tibetan students sent to China to 10,500 and the number of Tibet class students in schools set up in China to 578.

[...]

China expanded its policy to enrol students from Tibet in such schools in 2023, with their numbers increased by 9.9% each successive year.

[...]

It was in 1984 that China took the decision to set up classes in schools in China for students from Tibet, claiming education in Tibet was backward; that there was paucity of skilled people there. The first of such classes were set in schools in 16 provinces and province-level cities in China.

The programme was continuously expanded over the following four decades.

[...]

A total of 180,000 Tibetan students have studied in those schools thus far, the report said.

[...]

Meanwhile, Choktrul Dorje Ten Rinpoche, a prominent Tibetan Buddhist leader, was detained by Chinese authorities back in December last year under unknown circumstances as Chinese authorities shuttered yet another Tibetan language school, as reported by the rights group International Campaign for Tibet (ICT).

Although [Chinese] authorities have not provided an explanation of any alleged wrongdoing by Choktrul Dorje Ten, ICT sources believe the detention is linked to Chinese government policies targeting privately-run schools which provide Tibetan-language instruction at a time when Chinese authorities are attempting to undermine Tibetan education in favor of Chinese.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/49398493

Archived

In the blink of an eye, the latest Iranian uprising has folded. For a few feverish days in January the talk was of imminent regime change, of not-so-supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei packing his bags. Then came the shoot-to-kill orders, the 16,000 or more body bags and the silence of the graveyard. Donald Trump’s cavalry did not ride to the rescue.

And the winner of this bloody, uneven contest? China’s digital repression model, duly adopted by Iran’s hardcore Revolutionary Guards, which ensured that the January protests were snuffed out even more quickly than the 2022 hijab demonstrations and the November 2019 rebellion against petrol price hikes. This time the uprising was nationwide, spread across 207 cities and towns according to the National Council of Resistance, drawing in all classes against apparently enfeebled leaders who had recently been handed a humiliating defeat with the bombing of Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities.

[...]

To the delight of the so-called Illiberal International (star members: China, Russia, North Korea), the regime has been saved by what could be dubbed the Dragon-Mullah axis. In 2021 Beijing and Tehran signed up to a 25-year tech and security deal designed to refine Iran’s ability to control its rising Gen Z population. That meant the mass transfer of surveillance technology — smart Chinese-made CCTV cameras have now been installed across cities and towns — and cybersecurity tools.

[...]

That is the kind of intelligence being fed into the Iranian machine. It probably works better in China, where huge amounts of stored personal data feed into a complex system of behavioural modification. The Iranian regime does not have that kind of number-crunching capacity. But the regular exchanges between the Iranian police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan and the Chinese minister for public security Wang Xiaohong show how anxious Tehran has been to soak up information from the brand leader. Their last meeting was in December, just weeks before the Iran protests kicked off.

[...]

A large part of this collaboration is about understanding the networks of protest, how they communicate, who is leading whom to what target. That has been part of the curriculum on the Advanced Police Officers Training Programme at China’s People’s Public Security University; Iranian practitioners, usually Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officers, take part in role-play exercises. When they return home, they get promoted quickly and presumably lobby hard for the kind of Chinese technology needed to carry out the mission. Not just facial recognition cameras but also AI systems that flag up ethnic and demographic groupings. Some of the Chinese techniques — filtering supposedly suspicious internet content — were applied by Tehran long before the two countries signed a security pact.

[...]

The command of police state-enabling tech is at the heart of Xi Jinping’s Global Security Initiative, set up in 2022. It offers to help governments to combat crime — what’s not to like? — but also to stay in power by tracking subversive critics. Xi has even summoned a global security forum which he would like to be the Illiberal International’s answer to the West-affirming Munich Security Conference. The Chinese offer: values-free security diplomacy. Imagine the deals that could be struck there.

[...]

Technical ingenuity, of course, does not remove the causes of unrest. Only good governance can tackle the misery of drought, only sound economics can restore investor confidence, only statesmanship can bring Iran to the rational conclusion that building nuclear weapons condemns the region to permanent insecurity. In the absence of these qualities, the floundering theocratic regime has to depend on the repressive toolkit offered by China. The Iranians deserve better.