China to reopen to tourists, resume issuing all visas

China will reopen its borders to tourists and resume issuing all visas Wednesday as it tries to revive tourism and its economy following a three-year halt during the COVID-19 pandemic.

China is one of the last major countries to reopen its borders to tourists. The announcement Tuesday came after it declared a “decisive victory” over COVID-19 in February.

All types of visas will resume from Wednesday. Visa-free entry also will resume at destinations such as Hainan island as well as for cruise ships entering Shanghai that had no visa requirement before COVID-19.

Court convicts rights activist of aiding an abortion by providing pills

A court in Poland on Tuesday found a women’s rights activist guilty of aiding an abortion by providing pills, the first conviction of its type in the country and Europe, highlighting the growing risks for women in a nation with the strictest antiabortion law on the continent.

The activist, Justyna Wydrzynska, a founder of the Abortion Dream Team, an organization that provides information about how to safely terminate pregnancies, was sentenced to eight months of community service but vowed to continue her work.

“I don’t feel guilty at all,” Wydrzynska said Tuesday outside the court building in Warsaw, Poland. “I don’t accept this verdict. I will continue picking up the phone calls.”

Wydrzynska said she would appeal the verdict.

Special prosecutor steps down in Alec Baldwin case

SANTA FE>> A special prosecutor who doubles as a state legislator is stepping down from her role in the manslaughter case against actor Alec Baldwin in the death of a cinematographer on a New Mexico film set.

Baldwin’s legal team in February sought to disqualify special prosecutor and Republican state Rep. Andrea Reeb of Clovis based on constitutional provisions that safeguard the separation of powers between distinct branches of government.

Reeb said in a statement Tuesday that she “will not allow questions about my serving as a legislator and prosecutor to cloud the real issue at hand.”