Your Tuesday Briefing

Korean Families, Kerala, Asia Argento | View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Tuesday, August 21, 2018 [NYTimes.com »]( Asia Edition [Your Tuesday Briefing]( By CHARLES MCDERMID Good morning. Strong words from Pope Francis, frustration with Malcolm Turnbull and pushback against Beijing. Here’s what you need to know: Giuseppe Lami/EPA, via Shutterstock • “We showed no care for the little ones; we abandoned them.” Pope Francis wrote a letter to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics to [condemn the “atrocities” of priestly sexual abuse]( and its cover-up. He demanded greater accountability, asking followers to “join forces in uprooting this culture of death.” Above, Francis praying at the Vatican on Sunday. His message came ahead of a scheduled trip to Ireland, where the abuse issue has dominated headlines, and just days after [a searing grand jury report]( in the U.S. found that the church had covered up the abuse of more than 1,000 minors by some 300 priests over a period of 70 years in Pennsylvania. _____ Pool photo by How Hwee Young • Rethinking Chinese-backed projects. Malaysia’s new leader, Mahathir Mohamad, wraps up a five-day trip to Beijing today in which he has tried to free his country from some of its $250 billion of debt, some of it owed to Chinese companies. “We do not want a situation where there is a new version of colonialism happening because poor countries are unable to compete with rich countries,” he said Monday, after meeting with Premier Li Keqiang. Malaysia once led the pack in courting investment from China. Now, [our correspondent writes]( “it’s at the front of a new phenomenon: a pushback against Beijing as nations fear becoming overly indebted for projects that are neither viable nor necessary — except in their strategic value to China.” _____ Sean Davey/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • Energy policy rollbacks. The Trump administration is expected this week to propose [a]( overhaul of U.S. climate change regulations]( that would ease pollution rules on power plants that need upgrades, and also allow individual states to decide how, or whether, to curb carbon dioxide emissions from coal plants. And in Australia, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull [abandoned plans for emission targets]( that were part of the National Energy Guarantee, a policy unpopular with conservatives that aimed to bring Australia into line with international climate change commitments. The defeat spurred frustration among those worried about the country’s vulnerability to climate change. _____ Jes Aznar for The New York Times • “He was trying to beat cancer, only to die in jail.” When police in the Philippines arrested Allan Rafael, he tried to explain that he looked emaciated because he was being treated for lymphoma, not because of illegal drugs. But his brother said he was beaten and tortured to confess to drug use. He died within days of his arrest. President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war has killed thousands of people, and most deaths go largely unnoticed. But that of Mr. Rafael, who had worked abroad, has [outraged members of the large community of overseas Filipino workers](. Above, Mr. Rafael’s wake. _____ Lee Ji-Eun/Yonhap, via Associated Press • An emotional legacy. For two hours on Monday, [dozens of family members from North and South Korea]( were permitted a rare chance to see one another for the first time since fighting in the Korean War ended in 1953. Lee Gyum-sum, 92, of South Korea, above, wrapped her arms around her son Ri Sang-chol, a 71-year-old North Korean, and peppered him with questions. “How many children do you have?” she asked. “Do you have a son?” Another group of elderly North Koreans arrive Friday for more reunions. Meanwhile, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, is lashing out against domestic economic missteps as he turns his attention to building prosperity. [But he needs cooperation from the U.S](. Business • The cryptocurrency crash: The value of all outstanding digital tokens, by one evaluation, has fallen by about $600 billion, or 75 percent, since the peak in January. The [damage is particularly bad in South Korea and Japan](. • Nirav Modi, the [celebrity jeweler who fled India this year]( amid accusations that he defrauded banks of $2 billion — the largest fraud in the country’s history — was located in Britain and is under an extradition request. • Tesla is grappling with uncertainty over the well-being of its chief executive, Elon Musk, and whether the company will go private. And one more thing: [its financial health](. • Apple pulled thousands of [gambling apps from its Chinese store]( after Beijing’s state-run broadcaster accused the company of failing to clean up banned content. • U.S. stocks [were up](. Here’s a snapshot of [global markets](. In the News Antara Foto/Reuters • Lombok, the Indonesian resort island, was reeling as the death toll from two more earthquakes on Sunday rose to at least 14. Two weeks ago, a quake killed 460 people and wiped out whole villages. [[The New York Times]]( • In Afghanistan, the Taliban rejected President Ashraf Ghani’s cease-fire offer and ambushed three buses, capturing nearly 200 passengers. [[Reuters]( • Asia Argento, a leading voice of the #MeToo movement, arranged to pay an actor after he said she sexually assaulted him in her Marina del Rey hotel room when he was 17, documents show. [[The New York Times]( • Social media “can be destructive and harmful when used incorrectly.” That’s what Melania Trump told a group of cyberbullying prevention experts as part of her “Be Best” campaign, just before her husband, President Trump, unleashed a barrage of digital insults. [[The New York Times]( • Daw Aung San Suu Kyi began a four-day trip to Singapore. Today, she speaks on “Myanmar’s Democratic Transition: Challenges and Way Forward.” [[The Irrawaddy]( • In India, military teams, emergency workers and even local fisherman helped to rescue about 22,000 people from flooding in the state of Kerala after monsoon rains there finally eased. [[BBC]( • And this year’s hajj has begun for more than two million Muslims from around the world. For those who can’t make the five-day pilgrimage to Mecca, here’s how to stream it live. [[The Express]( Smarter Living Tips for a more fulfilling life. Melina Hammer for The New York Times • Recipe of the day: If you have any leftover chicken, try [enchiladas](. • Scared to talk about failure? [Don’t be](. • You don’t need an art degree [to appreciate art](. Noteworthy Poras Chaudhary for The New York Times • The Kingdom of Bhutan had a literacy rate of 3 percent in the 1950s. Today, literacy is up to 60 percent, and the country is becoming a [thriving literary hub]( behind a new generation of authors. • In “Mystery Road,” a six-episode series, Judy Davis teams up with Aaron Pedersen, a popular Aboriginal actor, in a police drama set in Western Australia. “Moody, flavorful, handsomely photographed,” [writes our reviewer](. • And rising temperatures and prolonged heat waves may be making California’s wildfires more extreme, but [humans almost always provide the spark](. And here’s a scientific look at how [wildfires]( infernos](. Back Story Dmitry Kostyukov for The New York Times Since the Louvre was closed on Mondays, the painting [was missing for more than a day]( before anyone noticed. But when they did, visitors arrived in hordes to see the spot where “La Joconde,” better known as the Mona Lisa, once hung. Franz Kafka even made the trip to contemplate the space up close. The theft on this day in 1911 “caused such a sensation that Parisians for the time being have forgotten the rumors of war,” [The Times reported at the top of its front page](. Sixty detectives were assigned to the case, and conspiracy theories abounded. “Possibly,” a police officer told The Times, “the theft was committed by a maniac.” In their search, the authorities didn’t pay enough attention to Vincenzo Peruggia, an Italian laborer who created the protective glass around Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece. He was questioned twice, and let go. Two years passed. Mr. Peruggia then tried to [sell the painting to Giovanni Poggi]( the director of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Mr. Poggi immediately called the police. The painting is [now protected by bulletproof glass]( and an alarm goes off if anyone tries to even touch the frame. Kathleen Massara wrote today’s Back Story. _____ This briefing was prepared for the Asian morning. 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