An Andy Warhol portrait of Chairman Mao has been sold at a historic auction for $12.6 million in Hong Kong. An unnamed Asian collector bought the iconic silkscreen portrait in the sale at Sotheby’s on April 2. In the past, Chinese officials had stopped versions of the painting being exhibited on the mainland, where censors […]
Tony Armada farewell party
Dozens gathered on March 21 for a farewell party for Swedish Health Services CEO Tony Armada. He stepped down in February after The Seattle Times published an investigative report on the hospital’s negligence towards its neurology patients. When asked if Armada’s resignation was related to the investigation, a spokeswoman said the decision was a personal […]
Consul General Omura leaving Seattle
Masahiro Omura is stepping down as Consul General of Japan in Seattle. Omura arrived in the Pacific Northwest in 2013. He told the Northwest Asian Weekly he is leaving his post at the end of April. He will return to Japan before being assigned to his new post — but Omura did not disclose where. […]
Stephanie Lai “stoked” to be first Chinese contestant
New Zealand is in its third season of The Bachelor, and the show features the first “Chinese Kiwi” bachelorette — 24-year-old Stephanie Lai. She is one of a number of ladies vying for the heart of bachelor Zac Franich. Lai, a Malaysian Chinese whose parents moved to New Zealand in 1988, said she was “stoked” […]
Michelle Kwan and husband are getting a divorce
Olympic medalist figure skater Michelle Kwan and Rhode Island attorney and political activist Clay Pell are getting divorced. Pell said in a March 29 statement that it’s with “deep regret” the couple’s four-year marriage is coming to an end. Kwan is a five-time world figure skating champion and nine-time U.S. figure skating champion. She won […]
China’s Xi to meet Trump, who predicts ‘difficult’ meeting
By LOUISE WATT Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — President Donald Trump will meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for the first time on April 6-7 at Trump’s Florida resort, China’s Foreign Ministry announced on March 30, amid a range of pressing issues including trade, North Korea and territorial disputes in the South China Sea. […]
Steady fall in suicides offers glimmer of hope in Japan
By KEN MORITSUGU and MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Fewer Japanese are taking their own lives, a positive sign in a country with one of the world’s highest suicide rates. The Health Ministry said that 21,897 people committed suicide in 2016, down from more than 30,000 in 2011 and the lowest number since […]
American Airlines buys stake in China Southern Airlines
By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — American Airlines has agreed to pay $200 million for a stake in China Southern Airlines, the biggest of China’s three major state-owned carriers, in a bid for a bigger share of the country’s growing travel market. American and China Southern will expand commercial cooperation, possibly in […]
Ted Lieu: Rising political star
By Staff NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) has emerged as a fierce leader in the Democratic Party during the first eight weeks of President Donald Trump’s term. In a blistering statement released on March 23, Lieu said we may have an “illegitimate president” and called for “a total and complete shutdown of any […]
Muslim immigrant to join California lieutenant governor race
By CHRISTOPHER WEBER Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) —A Pakistani-born doctor announced on March 29 that he is joining the 2018 race for lieutenant governor on a platform of saving the Affordable Care Act, providing free community college education and fighting what he termed “Donald Trump’s hate.” “I am a proud Muslim and I love […]