News Headlines - 21 September 2020

▽Hong Kong democrats face choice: Engage Beijing or give up seats | The Japan Times

Following China’s delay of Hong Kong’s legislative elections, opposition lawmakers face a defining choice: Keep playing by Beijing’s rules? Or quit and join the radicals in the streets?
The 22 opposition members of the city’s elected Legislative Council are under intense pressure from their supporters to resign en masse before the body reconvenes next month for an extra year. Radical activists argue that staying on would legitimize Beijing’s decision to postpone the election originally planned for Sept. 6 - when the pro-democracy bloc had hoped to win an unprecedented majority on the body... Moderates, however, fear surrendering their biggest political platform and giving China a freer hand to curb civil liberties in the former British colony. Opposition lawmakers on the 70-seat council have long been among Hong Kong’s most recognizable democracy advocates and have successfully used their votes to block some of Beijing’s most contentious proposals.

▽Woman suspected of sending poisoned letter to Trump arrested at US border | Sky News

A woman suspected of sending a letter addressed to President Donald Trump found to contain the lethal poison ricin has been arrested, according to US law enforcement officials.
Officials say the woman was taken into custody by US Customs and Border Protection officers as she tried to enter the US from Canada at a border crossing in New York state on Sunday.

▽Fujifilm completes delayed Avigan clinical test, looks to government application | The Japan Times

Fujifilm Holdings Corp. said Monday it has completed delayed clinical tests of Avigan, a potential treatment for COVID-19, paving the way for the application of sales and production of the antivirus drug.
Fujifilm Toyama Chemical Co., a subsidiary of Fujifilm Holdings, is conducting analysis of data from the tests to confirm the safety and efficacy of Avigan, which could be the third drug for the treatment of novel coronavirus patients if approved by the government.

▽Australian and British bomb disposal workers killed by blast in Solomon Islands | The Guardian

An Australian man and his British colleague working to map unexploded bombs across Solomon Islands have been killed in an explosion at their home in the capital Honiara.
Australian Trent Lee and Briton Stephen “Luke” Atkinson died when an unexploded ordnance is believed to have detonated shortly after 7.30pm on Sunday.
The blast, inside the men’s rented accommodation in Tasahe, in the west of the city, was felt more than five kilometres away: cries for help from inside brought rescuers and emergency services to the building.

▽James Teagle hails Diego Mentrida after act of sportsmanship in triathlon finale | BT Sport

British triathlete James Teagle has praised an “incredible” display of sportsmanship by an opponent who allowed him to cross the finishing line head of him after he had taken a wrong turn.
Teagle was in pole position to claim third place at the Santander Triathlon in Spain last weekend when he missed the finish chute during the closing stages of the race, allowing Diego Mentrida to pass him.
However realising what had happened, the 21-year-old Spaniard waited for the Briton and let him pass, and his actions have since attracted widespread praise.