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On the island of Palawan in the Philippines, a fisherman named Benjo Atay says, "We're scared of China" as the wind and rain smash his small bamboo boat. "We're scared of China." He yells orders at his youthful crew, the majority of whom are members of his own family, while they pull on ropes in order to leave the harbor. They are already covered in sea water and sweat, but it is not the climate that causes them concern. They are afraid of something else. He claims that Chinese ships are following closely behind us and circling us. "When we are anchored, they will force us to leave," the captain said. They intended to eliminate us as a threat. A territorial dispute between the Philippines and China's capital city of Beijing is becoming increasingly contentious in the South China Sea. It is one of several nations that has lodged a complaint against a map that was released by China this week. On the map, China reaffirmed its sovereignty over more

On October 14, the citizens of Australia will participate in a historic referendum to decide whether or not to establish an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. If successful, the vote would recognize Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the country's constitution and establish a permanent body for them to give advice on laws. Additionally, the vote would establish a body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to give advice on legislation. In Australia, there is a heated debate going on about the plan right now. Since the beginning of virtually the next half century, the nation has not had a referendum that was successful. In order for it to be successful, it is necessary for the majority of Australians to vote in favor of it. In addition to this, there must be support from the population at large in at least four of Australia's six states. The parliament would subsequently be responsible for designing and debating the body's make-up, its functions, and its

The contentious dumping of treated waste water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean has begun in Japan, which has sparked protests in the surrounding area and retribution from Beijing. China is Japan's largest customer for fish, but on Thursday, China said that it will stop all imports of seafood from Japan. The Japanese government maintains that the water is safe to drink, and numerous scientists concur. The idea has also received approval from the nuclear watchdog of the United Nations. However, detractors argue that the release should be postponed until additional research has been conducted on the topic. Over the next three decades, the nuclear reactor will release more than one million metric tons' worth of water that has been stored there. China, which has been the most outspoken opponent of the plan ever since it was disclosed two years ago, referred to the water discharge as a "extremely selfish and irresponsible act" and claimed that Japan

In spite of protests from its neighbors, Japan is going ahead with plans to begin releasing radioactive water that has been treated from the tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear facility into the Pacific Ocean on Thursday. The decision was reached some weeks after the nuclear inspector of the UN gave its approval to the scheme. Since the facility was wrecked by the tsunami in 2011, around 1.34 million metric tons of water have accumulated. This amount of water is sufficient to fill 500 pools of Olympic size. Following filtration and diluting, the water will be made available to the public after a period of thirty years. After a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated that the authorities will make a request for the plant's operator to "promptly prepare" for the disposal to begin on August 24 if the weather and sea conditions are suitable. After Mr. Kishida's visit to the plant on Sunday, rumors began to circulate that the release was about to