mariko oi, if you - it? know it, it wouldn't. mariko oi, if you can . it?years this november since australians voted in the republic referendum of 1999 stop back thenit referendum of 1999 stop back then it was rejected by about 55- 45% then it was rejected by about 55— 45% and interestingly, yes was actually spearheaded by malcolm turnbull of course then went on to become australia pot prime minister. but, as i said before, matt thistlethwaite is adamant that this is not the end of the republic campaign at all. he has said it is labour cosmic plan to break away from the royal family cosmic plan to break away from the royalfamily in cosmic plan to break away from the royal family in the longer term —— labour's land. —— plan. he is not giving upjust yet. uk is under growing pressure to exonerate hundreds of sub—postmasters that have been wrongly convicted of fraud because of a faulty computer system. the computer system horizon mistakingly showed money was missing from their post offices. 0ur political editor chris mason has more. this is alan bates. 24 years

the bbc's mariko oi on the uk post _ well. the bbc's mariko oi on the uk post office _ well.e other stories in the headlines. mr zelensky was speaking at the world economic forum in davos and asked for more help including fighterjets. president putin has said ukraine's stature could be irrepairbly damage if the conflict continues. health officials in the tigray region officials in the tigray region of ethiopia say 209 people including children have died of hunger in the town of edgar arbi. they have renewed their warnings about mass starvation by drought and a recent civil war. french president emmanuel macron has outlined a series of measures he says will improve the life of children including better paid parental leave, regulating children's screen time and a pilot scheme introducing school uniforms. he was speaking at a news conference to launch the government he's just appointed. he also promised more reforms to boost the economy. now to the world's biggest iceberg in what's likely to be the final months of its existence. take a look at this erosion carving dramatic featu

let's bring in mariko oi. what does this mean for evergrande going forward?he past hour we now have a confirmation that this liquidation order has been made stopjunction linda chan saying enough is enough. of course this case was filed more than 1.5 years ago and the company was told to come up with a better restructuring plan every single time the decision was delayed up until now that the judge has decided to order the liquidation of the company. it basically means its assets will be seized, sold off, in order to repay some of its outstanding debt. in terms of the company public day—to—day operation including building homes in mainland china, it will probably stay the same for now. this ruling doesn't send a through the chinese financial market because of course for many decades a real —— the real estate sector has been one of the major drivers for china's economy growth. whether or not this liquidation process will be followed remains to be seen because despite the one country, two systems slogan, many experts that i've spoken to have said that there are s

i'm mariko oi.m a live tv program in ecuador, a day after the president declared a state of emergency to tackle prison riots. america's top diplomat antony blinken says the daily toll on civilians in gaza, particularly on children, it's far too high. records �*tumble like dominoes�* as european scientists confirm that 2023 was the warmest year on record. south korea passes a band to ban the eating and selling of animal meat. thank you for being with us. we begin in ecuador where police have detained a group of armed men who interrupted a live television program, a day after the president declared a nationwide state of emergency. the men, wearing balaclavas, burst into the studio of a public television station in the port city of guayaquil,

mariko oi.ensive coverage of mps questioning a senior executive from fujtsu in the next 20 minutes, here on bbc news. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. transport scotland is advising people to avoid unnecessaryjourneys and to work from home if possible — as arctic conditions spread to cover the whole country. temperatures could drop to minus four degrees celsius, with up to eight inches of snow falling on high ground. it's estimated that more than 7,000 covid related hospital admissions could have been prevented in the summer of 2022 if the uk had been fully vaccinated. a study published in the lancet journal says that injune of that year, 44% of the population had not had the recommended number of vaccine doses. the portrait of king charles that will hang in public buildings in the uk such as courts and government offices has been unveiled. it was taken inside windsor castle with the monarch wearing his royal navy uniform. public

here's mariko oi.tarted chasing fujitsu �*s japanese headquarters in 2022, when the public enquiry focused on fujitsu and i asked its global president to speak to me. he declined my request multiple times even when i asked forjust a written comment to the victims whose lives were turned upside down. that did not exactly surprised me because going silent when faced with bad news is quite a typical strategy forjapanese typical strategy for japanese companies. they typical strategy forjapanese companies. they did send me a statement last week saying... basically the company has remained tightlipped about it. the other issue to remember, while it may be difficult to believe, hardly anyone injapan has heard of the horizon scandal until very recently. when we spoke to fujitsu's japan former president in 2022 his reaction was horizon? what horizon? because it was developed by a british company international computers limited which fujitsu bought decades ago. icl had strong ties to the british government so it

i'm mariko oi. we begin with bitcoin and how a fake post by the official social media account of the us securities and exchange commission sent the crypto—currency�*s price for a ride. it was posted on the sec�*s x account, claiming that the commission had approved an eagerly—awaited financial product. that was followed moments later by another tweet saying the account had been compromised and the news was fake. here's more from our business correspondent erin delmore. if you're in the crypto world or curious about getting into it, then a spot bitcoin etf has been on your radar that would enable people to bet on bitcoin�*s gains and losses even if they don't own any bitcoin themselves. us regulators are widely expected to approve the new exchange traded funds this week. so when a tweet was posted from the sec gov account saying essentially that it was noteworthy, it was also wrong. the sec and its chair, gary gensler, quickly posted on x that the sec account was compromised and that the regulator ha

for more, mariko oi is in the newsroom. tell us more about the allegations against mr iswaran?property tycoon were arrested injuly last year, the two men worked closely to bring the grand prix to singapore in 2008 and their arrest truly shocked singapore, it has a reputation for clean governance and is the biggest political scandal to hit singapore for four decades. as you said he has just been given 27 charges, two for corruption, some details including free vip tickets to the grand prix and getting a free flight. he has pleaded not guilty to all the charges in court today but as mentioned he has handed in his resignation notjust as a minister but also as a lawmaker. in response to his resignation letter the prime minister said we must uphold the integrity of the party and the integrity of the party and the government. this the integrity of the party and the government.— the integrity of the party and the government. this is not the only corruption _ the government. this is not the only corruption case _ the government. this is not the only corruption case against - only corru

welcome to asia business report with me, mariko oi. we begin this morning with boeing because its shares have fallen by more than 8% on wall street. as it continues to reckon with the fallout from a midflight incident. boeing 737 max 9s operated by alaska airlines. as we told you on newsday, there are renewed questions about the safety of the plane and there's in order to grant dozens of aircrafts that remain in effect. the plane maker has now put out a statement promising to help airlines address any findings that result from the inspections. erin delmore has more from new york. after a panel blew off a boeing 737 max 9s jet operated by alaska airlines midflight on friday, the faa grounded more than 170 other max 9s. upon inspection, united airlines down problems with more doors, loose bolts on at least five panels in otherjets of that model, the news was reported by publication aircurrent. united stated in a statement that the company found instances that appear to relate insulation issues in the door plug, for example, bold they nee

for more mariko oi is in the newsroom. tell us more about the allegations against the minister?the allegations against the minister?— about the allegations against the minister? . ., , , the minister? he and a property coon the minister? he and a property tycoon were _ the minister? he and a property tycoon were arrested _ the minister? he and a property tycoon were arrested in - the minister? he and a property tycoon were arrested in july - tycoon were arrested injuly last year, the two men worked closely to bring the grand prix to singapore in 2008 and there arrest truly shocked singapore, it has a reputation for clean governance is the biggest political scandal to hit singapore for four decades, as you said he hasjust singapore for four decades, as you said he has just been given 27 charges, two for corruption, all of which he pleaded not guilty to but he has resigned as a minister as well as a lawmaker. as a minister as well as a lawmaker-— as a minister as well as a lawmaker. , , ., ., , lawmaker. this is not the only scandal to _ lawmaker. this is not the only scandal to h

i'm mariko oi. we begin with boeing because its shares have plunged by more than 8%. as the aviation giant continues to reckon with the fallout from a mid—flight incident involving a 737 max nine operated by alaska airlines. that's renewed questions emerge about the safety of the plane and an order to ground dozens of aircraft remains in effect. the playmaker has put out a statement to help with any inspections. our business correspondent erin delmore reports from new york. after a panel blew off a boeing 737 max ninejet operated by alaska airlines mid—flight on friday, the faa grounded more than 170 other max mines. upon inspection, united airlines found problems with more doors, loose bolts on at least five panels in otherjets of that model. the news was reported by the industry publication air current. united said in a statement that the company, quote, "found instances that appear to relate to installation issues in the door plug, for example, bolts that needed additional tightening". that's since saturday when preliminary inspections began. the company also said

let's bring in mariko oi. what does this mean for evergrande going forward? this is the big question, isn't it, steve? this news has been reported by various news agencies including reuters, afp and bloomberg and south china morning post, quoting the judge, saying that due to the obvious lack of the progress on the part of the company in putting forward a viable restructuring proposal this liquidation has been ordered. it basically means that its assets will be seized and sold off in order to repay some of its outstanding debt. of course, evergrande has more than $300 billion worth of liabilities, reportedly, and it has been trying to come up with this restructuring plan and the judge has been postponing the decision up until now. whether or not this process will be followed remains to be seen because i have been speaking to a pot of expert to say that despite the one country to system slogan there are some thorny jurisdiction system slogan there are some thornyjurisdiction issues. so, even though, if this report is concerned, the liquidator will be appointed

i'm mariko oi. we begin in the us, where the securities and exchange commission has approved the first exchange traded funds — tied directly to bitcoin. but the long—awaited decision was accompanied by a stern warning about risks associated with the asset. erin delmore has more from new york. this decision by the sec was years in the making and now it will allow people and institutions to invest in bitcoin almost as easily as they buy stocks. the move could increase demand for bitcoin and legitimacy for the cryptocurrency industry, which has weathered scandal and skepticism. sec chair gary gensler didn't shy away from that in his statement, saying "while we approved the listing and trading of certain spot bitcoin etp shares today, we did not approve or endorse bitcoin". he said that investors should remain cautious about the risks associated with bitcoin and said the cryptocurrency is, quote, "primarily a speculative, volatile asset". while investors and crypto watchers awaited the sec�*s decision,

i'm mariko oi.ve just learned in the last hour that yemen's houthi movement has targeted american ship in the gulf of aden with naval missiles, according to a spokesman for the group. this is the latest attack in the red sea, one of the the world's most important trade routes. the head of the un s international maritime organisation has told the bbc that the attacks are one of the biggest challenges the body has ever faced. my colleague aaron heslehurst spoke to the head of the organisation and asked what can be done to stop the attacks. it is one of the biggest challenges.— it is one of the biggest challenges. it is one of the biggest challenues. . , , ., challenges. the reality is that as ou challenges. the reality is that as you mention, _ challenges. the reality is that as you mention, shipping - challenges. the reality is that as you mention, shipping is i challenges. the reality is that as you mention, shipping is a| as you mention, shipping is a global sector. we transport over 80% of global

welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm mariko oi. report concludes the police response to the uvalde school massacre in texas was a "failure" i hope the failures end today. and that local officials... do what wasn't done that day. pakistan carries out strikes on what it calls �*terrorist hideouts�* in iran's border province days after iranian attacks on pakistan. and japan looks to the stars as it plans the country's first ever moon landing.

mariko oi is following the story in singapore.e arrested back in july last year, it truly shocked the city state because singapore does have a reputation for clean governance, and this is the biggest political scandal to hit the country in almost four decades. now, the two men played key roles in bringing the grand prix to singapore in 2008, but mr iswaran has now been given 27 charges — including two for corruption. he's allegedly accepted some tickets to concerts and the grand prix, as well as a free flight. he has pleaded not guilty to all charges, but he has just handed in his resignation. and in accepting his resignation, prime minister lee hsien loong said, "we must uphold the integrity of the party and the government." but, actually, this isjust the latest in a series of scandals that hit the ruling party. they were extramarital affairs and ministers accused of renting bungalows much cheaper than the market rate. and all these incidents have shaken singaporeans' trust in the ruling party — the pap — which has ruled singapor

the bbc�*s mariko oi is in the studio with me.rute i hesitate and it so long for fujitsu to give an apology? we don't know for sure _ fujitsu to give an apology? we don't know for sure but _ fujitsu to give an apology? we don't know for sure but there _ fujitsu to give an apology? we don't know for sure but there are - know for sure but there are several factors, firstly the crisis happened decades ago in the end of the executives we are hearing today were in charge at the time. but also from the japanese headquarters point of view because the software was developed by the british company, icl that fujitsu bought in the 90s it appears not many injapan were aware of all the prosecutions and convictions including a former president injapan that we spoke to two years ago. he had no idea what horizon was even though he remembers about the icl takeover. i did not necessarily believe him in the first instance but after speaking to some of the uk fujitsu former employees it does appear that fujitsu headquarters injapan allowed the subsid

the bbc�*s mariko oi is in the studio with me. mariko, why has it take so long for an apology? have contributed to this delay in apologising. firstly, all of the executives we are hearing from today, because the scandal happened decades ago, none were in charge of fujitsu at the time. from the japanese headquarters point of view, because the software was developed by his icl, the british company that fujitsu took over back in the 1990s, it appears that not many injapan were aware of all of the convictions at the time including when we spoke to a former president of the japanese headquarters two years ago. he had no idea what horizon was. i did not necessarily believe them straightaway, but after speaking to some former comedy mac uk employees, it appears the japanese headquarters allowed its uk subsidiaries do their own things and apparently, keepjapan out their own things and apparently, keep japan out was one of the slogans of the former boss in the uk. some in japan have been asking, was fujitsu to some lucky to have bought icl but of course pressure has been mounting on the

welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm mariko oi. the headlines. a scathing report concludes the police response to the uvalde school massacre in texas was a "failure". i hope that the failures end today, and that. local officials... she cries. ..do what wasn't done that day, do right by the victims- pakistan carries out strikes on what it calls �*terrorist hideouts�* in iran's border province — days after iranian attacks on pakistan. the bbc understands tata steel is to close blast furnaces in port talbot, with the loss of up to 3,000 jobs. and japan looks to the stars as it plans the country's first ever moon landing. we begin in uvalde, texas, where a long—awaited report into a deadly school shooting has been highly critical of the police. it found, what they describe, as a cascading failures of leadership, decision—making, tactics, policy and training. when the gunman burst into robb elementary school in 2022 hundreds of police officer rushed to the scene — but it took more than an hour for them to confront him. in that time, the gunman murdere

let's bring in mariko oi. what does this mean for evergrande going forward? of course this case was filed more than 1.5 years ago and the company was told to come up with a better restructuring plan every single time the decision was delayed up until now that the judge has decided to order the liquidation of the company. it basically means its assets will be seized,

let's bring in mariko oi. what does this mean for evergrande going forward?es including reuters, afp and bloomberg and south china morning post, quoting the judge, saying that due to the obvious lack of the progress on the part of the company in putting forward a viable restructuring proposal this liquidation has been ordered. it basically means that its assets will be seized and sold off in order to repay some of its

welcome to asia business report with me, mariko oi.to reckon with the fallout from a midflight incident. involving a 737 max two operated by alaska airlines. there are renewed questions about the safety of the plane and there's in order to grant dozens of aircrafts that remain in effect. the plane maker has now put out a statement promising to help airlines address any findings that result from the inspections. erin delmore has more from new york. after a panel blew off a boeing 737 max 9s jet operated by alaska airlines midflight on friday, the faa grounded more than 170 other max 9s.

here's mariko oi.nd i asked its global president to speak to me. he declined my request multiple

mariko oi has been chasing the japanese headquarters for two years.and for the very first time japanese local sally, and for the very first timejapanese local media are interested in the story as well, because as i told you before, until very recently not many people injapan had even heard of the post office scandal, including the company's former president, wami asked him about the faulty horizon software we hadn't heard of it either. but of course the most recent spotlight on the post office scandal in the uk, which was because of a tv drama, it punted some government leaders in the uk to talk about it, which then got some attention injapan and when fujitsu's global president apologise when approached by the bbc in davos several weeks ago, that finally made news headlines injapan. he is not scheduled to attend the company's earnings press conference. that is due to take place in just about an hour. conference. that is due to take place injust about an hour. it is usually done by the company's chief financial compa ny�*s chief financial officer compa