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South Korea Holds Onto Patient Data From Prior Coronavirus, Worrying Privacy Groups

Workers wearing protective suits fumigate an art hall with antiseptic solution as a precaution against the spread of the Middle East respiratory syndrome in Seoul, South Korea, in June 2015. Lee Jin-man/AP hide caption

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Lee Jin-man/AP

Coronavirus Updates

South Korea Holds Onto Patient Data From Prior Coronavirus, Worrying Privacy Groups

Privacy advocates warn the government has kept the information from 2015 MERS patients beyond a justified emergency period.

South Korea Holds Onto Patient Data From Prior Coronavirus, Worrying Privacy Groups

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Japanese University Issues 1st Graduate Degree In Ninja Studies

Genichi Mitsuhashi spent two years studying ninja history and martial arts, The Japan Times reports. A professor says, "It's a course to learn about the ninja, not to become one."

Japanese University Issues 1st Graduate Degree In Ninja Studies

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Health

News Brief: Coronavirus Testing, Russian Bounties, China Enacts Security Law

NPR analyzes COVID-19 testing with Harvard researchers. Did the president know Russia was offering to pay Afghan militants to kill U.S. troops? And, China enacts law asserting control over Hong Kong.

News Brief: Coronavirus Testing, Russian Bounties, China Enacts Security Law

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China Enacts Security Law, Asserting Control Over Hong Kong

Pro-mainland supporters in Hong Kong hold Chinese and Hong Kong flags during a rally to celebrate the approval of a national security law on Tuesday. Kin Cheung/AP hide caption

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Kin Cheung/AP

China Enacts Security Law, Asserting Control Over Hong Kong

Despite fierce international criticism and opposition in Hong Kong, Beijing's rubber-stamp legislature passed a law allowing the mainland to impose security measures in the former British colony.

China Enacts Security Law, Asserting Control Over Hong Kong

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India Sees A Change Sparked By Black Lives Matter Movement

Black Lives Matter movement has sparked a change in Indian society — from Bollywood celebrities tweeting support for racial justice in the U.S. to manufacturers nixing popular skin-whitening creams.

India Sees A Change Sparked By Black Lives Matter Movement

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Some Of China's Freed Labor Activists Start New Lives, But State Pressure Lurks

People hold banners at a demonstration in support of Jasic Technology factory workers, outside Yanziling police station in Pingshan district, Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China, on Aug. 6, 2018. Sue-Lin Wong/Reuters hide caption

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Sue-Lin Wong/Reuters

Some Of China's Freed Labor Activists Start New Lives, But State Pressure Lurks

At least 15 Chinese workers' rights advocates who were rounded up in recent years have been released from detention, some taking on new identities and jobs, on condition that they abandon activism.

Gunmen Attack Pakistan Stock Exchange In Karachi

The attack occurred Monday morning as people were arriving for work. Unknown militants attacked the country's stock exchange in the commercial capital, Karachi.

Gunmen Attack Pakistan Stock Exchange In Karachi

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Universal Health Care Supports Thailand's Coronavirus Strategy

Thailand has been relatively successful at containing the spread of the coronavirus. Many say it's due in no small part to Thailand's universal health care system.

Universal Health Care Supports Thailand's Coronavirus Strategy

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Global Lives Lost: From A Wise And Wonderful Grandma To A Soccer Pioneer

(L to R): Sen. Heherson Alvarez, an environmental lawmaker from the Philippines; Durdana Rizvi, a doctor from Pakistan; Colombian actor Antonio Bolívar; 'Nanī' Nabi, a grandmother from Kashmir; Rocio Choque, a soup kitchen volunteer from Argentina. Eduardo Munoz/Reuters; Andaleeb Rizvi; Lucas Jackson/Reuters; Javaid Iqbal; Anita Pouchard Serra for NPR hide caption

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Eduardo Munoz/Reuters; Andaleeb Rizvi; Lucas Jackson/Reuters; Javaid Iqbal; Anita Pouchard Serra for NPR

Goats and Soda

Global Lives Lost: From A Wise And Wonderful Grandma To A Soccer Pioneer

Writers and activists around the world share stories of those who have died from COVID-19 — in Colombia, Senegal, Pakistan, the Philippines and many other nations.

Pandemic Causes China To Ban Breeding Of Bamboo Rats And Other Wild Animals

Liu Ping, a breeder of bamboo rats. He had to cull his rats when the Chinese government banned consumption of various wild animals as a way to potentially curb spread of viruses from animals to humans. Liu Ping hide caption

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Liu Ping

Goats and Soda

Pandemic Causes China To Ban Breeding Of Bamboo Rats And Other Wild Animals

The idea is to reduce the risk of spread of viruses through animal-human contact. Bamboo rat breeders are devastated by the loss of income. And critics say the ban has too many loopholes.

'We No Longer Wish For Much': People Of Wuhan Share Stories Of Loss And Survival

A resident walks across an empty track on Feb. 7 in Wuhan, China. Wuhan residents lived through the start of the coronavirus pandemic, which has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives around the world. Getty Images hide caption

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Getty Images

The Coronavirus Crisis

'We No Longer Wish For Much': People Of Wuhan Share Stories Of Loss And Survival

Meet some of the people in China who lived through the start of the coronavirus pandemic. They have not forgotten the weeks of isolation, fear and heartbreak.

'Fair & Lovely' Skin Lightening Brand, Popular In South Asia, To Change Name

The Fair & Lovely brand of beauty products, shown here for sale at a store in Mumbai, India, in 2013, is going to change its name. Kuni Takahashi/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

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Kuni Takahashi/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Updates: The Fight Against Racial Injustice

'Fair & Lovely' Skin Lightening Brand, Popular In South Asia, To Change Name

As the Black Lives Matter movement prompts reckonings about race around the world, India's most popular skin lightening cream is removing the words 'fair,' 'white' and 'light' from its marketing.

Thousands Of Child Soldiers Died In The Korean War. Survivors Want More Recognition

Park describes his experiences as a child soldier during an interview in his office in Yeongju. Anthony Kuhn/NPR hide caption

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Anthony Kuhn/NPR

World

Thousands Of Child Soldiers Died In The Korean War. Survivors Want More Recognition

South Korea conscripted more than 30,000 soldiers between the ages of 14 and 17 for the war. An estimated 3,000 of them died. One survivor prays daily for their souls.

Thousands Of Child Soldiers Died In The Korean War. Survivors Want More Recognition

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Remembering A Little-Known Group Of Korean Fighters In 'The Forgotten War'

Some 30,000 child soldiers fought for South Korea during the Korean War, which began on this date 70 years ago. Some of the child soldiers say they never received the recognition they deserved.

Remembering A Little-Known Group Of Korean Fighters In 'The Forgotten War'

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Parts Of Myanmar Unaware Of COVID-19 Due To Internet Ban, Rights Advocates Say

An Internet shutdown that began a year ago in parts of Myanmar is keeping some villages completely unaware of the global pandemic. The restrictions apply to multiple townships in the Rakhine and Chin states, site of an ongoing conflict between the country's military and the insurgent Arakan army. Richard Sargent/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Richard Sargent/AFP via Getty Images

Coronavirus Updates

Parts Of Myanmar Unaware Of COVID-19 Due To Internet Ban, Rights Advocates Say

Human Rights Watch says the restrictions, put in place last year on Rakhine and Chin states, are leaving some unaware of the pandemic. The restrictions are said to affect more than 1 million people.