Good morning.
We’re covering the quashing of protests in Hong Kong, the setbacks caused by the pandemic in India and the struggle to do distance learning in Indonesia.
Hong Kong police break up protests over delayed election Nearly 300 people were arrested during protests in Hong Kong on Sunday, the day when a legislative election was initially scheduled to take place. Thousands of police officers in riot gear filled the streets.
Videos showed plainclothes officers using pepper spray at close range and dragging a man across asphalt and sidewalks before putting him in handcuffs. Three activists from a leftist pro-democracy group and a leading figure of the People Power group, which had organized street booths, were among those arrested.
The legislative election was postponed for one year because of the pandemic, but many in the pro-democracy camp accused the government of stalling to avoid the defeat of establishment candidates. The protests were also to show public anger at a draconian security law imposed by Beijing that is silencing dissent.
A major shift: Our reporters documented the chilling effect that the law has had on free speech in Hong Kong.
How the pandemic ‘smashed’ India’s engine Not so long ago, India had a sizzling economy that was lifting millions out of poverty. Leaders aimed to give the people a middle-class lifestyle, update the military and become a regional superpower that could some day rival China.
But the pandemic’s devastation is imperiling such aspirations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s early, abrupt lockdown hurt the economy but ended without having fully reined in the virus. India now has the fastest-growing outbreak, reporting a global record of more than 90,632 new cases on Sunday. Its economy has shrunk faster than that of any other major nation. As many as 200 million people could slip back into poverty.
Quotable: “The engine has been smashed,” said Arundhati Roy, one of India’s pre-eminent writers. “The ability to survive has been smashed. And the pieces are all up in the air. You don’t know where they are going to fall or how they are going to fall.”
Here are our latest updates and maps of the virus outbreak.
In other developments:
Many experts are skeptical about quick at-home tests for the coronavirus. There isn’t really yet data that shows it will work, they say.
The first famines of the coronavirus era could soon hit four chronically food-deprived conflict areas — Yemen, South Sudan, northeast Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo — the top humanitarian official of the United Nations has warned.
A menacing signal for U.S. media in China Journalists from CNN, The Wall Street Journal and Getty Images who tried to renew their Chinese media credentials last week were told their cards, which are usually good for one year, would not be reissued, according to six people with knowledge of the events.
China also implied that it would expel foreign journalists if the Trump administration took further action against Chinese media employees in the U.S., the people said.
Latest Updates: The Coronavirus Outbreak Updated 2020-09-05T12:05:40.998Z
Research connects vaping to a higher chance of catching the virus — and suffering its worst effects. Another college football game won’t be played as planned. Pharmaceutical companies plan a joint pledge on safety standards as they move vaccines to the marketplace. See more updates
More live coverage: Markets
The bigger picture: The actions and threats raise the stakes in the cycle of retribution between Washington and Beijing over news organizations and are part of a much broader downward spiral in U.S.-China relations. In March, China expelled almost all American journalists for The Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post from mainland bureaus after 60 Chinese employees from five Chinese state-run news organizations were expelled from the U.S.
If you have 5 minutes, this is worth it Climbing a tree for distance learning
In North Sumatra, students climb to the tops of tall trees a mile from their mountain village, hoping for a cell signal strong enough to complete their assignments. In Central Java, they go to the village hall, above, for free wifi.
Around the globe, educators are struggling with how to make distance learning viable during the pandemic. But in poorer countries like Indonesia, where more than a third of students have limited or no internet access, the challenge is particularly difficult — and failure will mean even greater inequalities.
Here’s what else is happening U.S. Open: Novak Djokovic, the No. 1 men’s player and No. 1 seed, was defaulted from the tennis tournament on Sunday after inadvertently striking a lineswoman with a ball hit in frustration.
U.S. presidential campaign: Polls show the race for the White House largely stable but tightening slightly in some states, with President Trump recovering some support from conservative-leaning rural voters. Joe Biden continues to enjoy advantages, especially in populous areas where the virus remains at the forefront for voters.
Stabbings in England: A search was underway in Birmingham on Sunday for a man who was said to have carried out a series of stabbings across the city that left at least one person dead and seven more wounded, two of them seriously. The police are not treating the rampage as terrorism.
Belarus protests: Protesters on Sunday again flooded into the capital of Belarus and towns across the country, but President Aleksandr Lukashenko, fortified by strong support from Russia, showed no sign of bending. The protests have continued for nearly a month.
Snapshot: Above, an evacuation in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan on Sunday ahead of Typhoon Haishen. The authorities ordered 1.8 million residents to evacuate and another 5.6 million to seek shelter as the storm lashed the country’s western coast with high winds and threatened record-breaking flooding.
What we’re reading: This article in The Record on a one-of-a-kind love story. “She was a nun. He was a priest. Or at least they were until their paths crossed in Newark during the tumult of the 1960s,” Will Lamb, an editor on the Express desk, writes of this “unusual and delightfully surprising love story by their son Terrence McDonald of The Record.”
Now, a break from the news
Cook: This sheet-pan recipe for roast chicken and plums is mostly fuss-free. Sliced red onions caramelize in the plummy juice.
The Coronavirus Outbreak ？ Frequently Asked Questions Updated September 4, 2020
What are the symptoms of coronavirus? In the beginning, the coronavirus seemed like it was primarily a respiratory illness — many patients had fever and chills, were weak and tired, and coughed a lot, though some people don’t show many symptoms at all. Those who seemed sickest had pneumonia or acute respiratory distress syndrome and received supplemental oxygen. By now, doctors have identified many more symptoms and syndromes. In April, the C.D.C. added to the list of early signs sore throat, fever, chills and muscle aches. Gastrointestinal upset, such as diarrhea and nausea, has also been observed. Another telltale sign of infection may be a sudden, profound diminution of one’s sense of smell and taste. Teenagers and young adults in some cases have developed painful red and purple lesions on their fingers and toes — nicknamed “Covid toe” — but few other serious symptoms. Why is it safer to spend time together outside? Outdoor gatherings lower risk because wind disperses viral droplets, and sunlight can kill some of the virus. Open spaces prevent the virus from building up in concentrated amounts and being inhaled, which can happen when infected people exhale in a confined space for long stretches of time, said Dr. Julian W. Tang, a virologist at the University of Leicester. Why does standing six feet away from others help? The coronavirus spreads primarily through droplets from your mouth and nose, especially when you cough or sneeze. The C.D.C., one of the organizations using that measure, bases its recommendation of six feet on the idea that most large droplets that people expel when they cough or sneeze will fall to the ground within six feet. But six feet has never been a magic number that guarantees complete protection. Sneezes, for instance, can launch droplets a lot farther than six feet, according to a recent study. It's a rule of thumb: You should be safest standing six feet apart outside, especially when it's windy. But keep a mask on at all times, even when you think you’re far enough apart. I have antibodies. Am I now immune? As of right now, that seems likely, for at least several months. There have been frightening accounts of people suffering what seems to be a second bout of Covid-19. But experts say these patients may have a drawn-out course of infection, with the virus taking a slow toll weeks to months after initial exposure. People infected with the coronavirus typically produce immune molecules called antibodies, which are protective proteins made in response to an infection. These antibodies may last in the body only two to three months, which may seem worrisome, but that’s perfectly normal after an acute infection subsides, said Dr. Michael Mina, an immunologist at Harvard University. It may be possible to get the coronavirus again, but it’s highly unlikely that it would be possible in a short window of time from initial infection or make people sicker the second time. What are my rights if I am worried about going back to work? Employers have to provide a safe workplace with policies that protect everyone equally. And if one of your co-workers tests positive for the coronavirus, the C.D.C. has said that employers should tell their employees -- without giving you the sick employee’s name -- that they may have been exposed to the virus.
Read: Our reviewer recommends three sizzling new thrillers including “The Eighth Detective,” a debut novel by Alex Pavesi, which she describes as a “cerebral box of delights.”
Do: If you’re unsure whether there’s a “right” way to charge your phone, you’re not alone. Here are some tips on extending the life of your phone battery.
Cut the boredom with these ideas from our At Home section on what to read, cook, watch and do.
And now for the Back Story on … World War II stories you didn’t know The 75th anniversary of the end of World War II inspired The Times Magazine to create a yearlong series documenting lesser-known stories about the war and its aftermath through original reporting and first-person accounts. Among the contributors to the series, called “Beyond the World War II We Know,” are Alexander Chee, a Korean-American author and essayist; Yoko Ogawa, a Japanese novelist and short-story writer; and the actor, writer and producer Tom Hanks. Here’s an excerpt from Times Insider’s look at how the project came about.
Lauren Katzenberg, who heads The Times’s At War team, and Dan Saltzstein, deputy editor for Special Sections, led the project. The number of people who could still provide eyewitness accounts is diminishing all of the time, Mr. Saltzstein said, adding, “This is probably the last chance we’re going to be able to hear from them.”
The team wanted to push beyond the “typical, expected World War II coverage,” he said. The Times invited readers who served in the war, or whose family members did, to share stories and photographs via a form on The Times’s website. About 500 responses poured in, Ms. Katzenberg said. “It was just really incredible to get such a response, and to read everyone’s stories,” she said.
On Jan. 7, The Times published another invitation, this one aimed at civilians from anywhere in the world who lived through the war. Over 140 responses rolled in.
In order to include “the creative perspective,” Mr. Saltzstein said, he asked Mr. Chee, the Korean-American author, to contribute. In his essay, he wrote that his grandfather had told him that he dreamed in Japanese, and that eventually Mr. Chee learned that this was because the Japanese tried to systematically erase Korea’s culture during its occupation of the country from 1910 to 1945.
Mr. Saltzstein said he also wanted to invite a writer who could offer a distinctly Japanese point of view. Ms. Ogawa contributed an essay about how literature is essential to retaining memories of the atomic bombings. The Japanese version of her essay has attracted more readers than the English one.
Working on the project “was often moving,” Mr. Saltzstein said. Having what is probably one of the last chances to hear from eyewitnesses was “a terrific responsibility on our part, and it had a deep effect on me.”
That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.
— Carole
Thank you
To Melissa Clark for the recipe, and to Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for the rest of the break from the news. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.
P.S.
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