How do you insure yourself against climate change?

Wildfires in Australia, blizzards in Texas, now flash floods in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands: The growing likelihood of extreme weather has insurers and homeowners alike wondering how to best manage risk.

How can homeowners and insurers best protect properties in an increasingly unpredictable climate? Two brothers embrace after having lost their family home to catastrophic flooding in Altenahr, Germany

Many people in Germany were blindsided by the heavy rains and deadly flooding that hit parts of the country in mid-July. Now, as homeowners take stock of the damage, a second shock could be in store when they seek their insurance payouts.

Homeowner's insurance in Germany covers water damage; however, not if it's caused by heavy rains or natural flooding. For this, property owners need to purchase special coverage.

Such caveats, which are also the norm in many places besides Germany, pose problems in a world where unpredictable weather is becoming the norm. Higher global temperatures can lead to increased precipitation, making floods more likely.

Insurance against severe weather is an "urgently needed" addition to standard homeowner's insurance, said Sascha Straub, a finance lawyer working for a consumer consultancy in Bavaria.

"The damage that water can cause is so immense that it can ultimately be a complete economic disaster for the individual," Straub told DW. "And now we see the likelihood that it will also affect those who haven't had to reckon with water before."

The cost for this supplementary coverage varies by location and type of property, Straub explained, and can range from 30% to as much as 300% of a standard homeowner's insurance policy for the most at-risk properties. Less than half of insurance holders in Germany have currently opted in to such extra coverage.

RETURNING HOME AFTER GERMANY'S DEADLY FLOODS
The devastation left by flooding
The water is slowly receding, but the disaster is far from over. In devastated riverside towns in Germany, people are only slowly working their way through dealing with what the flood has left behind: bulks of mud and piles of rubbish.
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Who should pay for coverage?

Not everyone is ready to accept this cost, in particular not those who might need it most.

"Insurance becomes less attractive for high-risk households or farmers when premiums reflect the underlying risk," the European Commission wrote in a 2018 report on insurance and climate change. "Although lower-risk policyholders have a weaker incentive to reduce risk, they are more likely to buy insurance since premiums are more affordable."

Yet those who opt out are rolling the dice. And in the event of a natural disaster, the state could also be expected to jump in. The German government has already promised swift aid to those affected by the floods.

But getting even such federal emergency aid can be problematic. In Bavaria for example, only people who can prove that they tried and failed to get coverage can receive aid from the state, according to a report in the newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. It is also questionable to what extent such aid can cover the immense costs of reconstruction.

And beyond that, is it fair to stick individual homeowners with the costs of insuring against increasingly erratic weather? This is the question insurers and regulators are currently trying to address.

Our changing climate poses a conundrum for insurance companies, whose business model relies on their ability to quantify the risk of an event happening and bear the cost should it actually occur. This translates into collecting enough money in premiums to cover the cost of claims. And managing this won't be as simple as raising premiums to reflect higher risk.

"We are in a world where risk is just increasing day to day because more carbon is going into the system," Dickon Pinner, a senior partner at the global consulting firm McKinsey, said in the firm's podcast Reimagine Insurance. "So just transferring that risk is insufficient."

Watch video05:26 Germany: Nobody expected 'incredible amount of damage'

Unclear outlook for premiums

The growing unpredictability of extreme weather events makes it more difficult for insurers to assess risk. And historic measures are no longer the reliable indicators they once were.

"The changing nature of climate risk means that the likelihood of these events actually repeating in central Europe over the next 50 years will increase sevenfold," said Antonio Grimaldi, another McKinsey partner, in the podcast, speaking about the severe droughts seen recently in Europe.

What these changes mean for insurance premiums in the short and long term is unclear. A higher likelihood of devastation could mean insurers raising prices to reflect the increased risk. But prices going too high could discourage people from getting coverage just when they need it most.

On the other hand, a growing sensitivity to the risks of climate change might push more people to insure their properties against catastrophic weather.

"The more people who take out insurance, the lower the cost to cover damages, and the greater the scope for insurance companies to calculate premiums," said Straub. For this reason, he believes catastrophic weather insurance should be compulsory.

In the wake of the floods, Germany's left and center-left parties as well as the Federation of German Consumer Organizations (vzbv) have called for catastrophic weather insurance to be made mandatory. They added that it's the duty of the insurance industry to provide homeowners with affordable policies to protect themselves against extreme weather.

Watch video 02:14 German government to speed relief to flood victims

 

Insurers can actively shape future

With a business model that relies on predictability, insurers also have an incentive to use their special role in society to shepherd the transition away from carbon-based energy sources, experts believe.

"At a macro scale, this is about massive capital allocation and reallocation," said Pinner. Insurers can send price signals through by diverting capital away from risky assets such as fossil fuels, he continued.

In its report, the European Commission has suggested many ways the industry might help restore stability. Insurers' data and knowledge could be tapped to help develop better building code regulations based on their assessment of an area's risk. Or, insurance policies could include clauses that require damaged buildings to be repaired to a higher standard than previously accepted, reducing the risk of future damage.

But until such changes are put into place, people will have to prepare the best they can for weather that is becoming increasingly harder to predict.

"It is not possible to plan where the next flood or landslide will occur," said Straub. "Anyone could be affected. The more people who pay into the insurance pot, the easier it will be, and the cheaper it will be for everyone in the long run."

CHINA: DEADLY FLOODING IN HENAN — IN PICTURES

Heaviest rain in decades

China's central Henan province has been hit by the heaviest rains since records began over 60 years ago. In fact, forecasters say it was is the kind of rain only seen "once in 100 years." From Saturday to Tuesday, 617.1 mm (24.3 inches) of rain fell in the provincial capital Zhengzhou. The average for a whole year is 640.8 mm.     123456789

Indian farmers begin sit-in at Parliament over agriculture laws

A small group of farmers protested near India's Parliament against three new farm laws which they say threaten their livelihoods. 

Thousands of security forces have been deployed.



Indian farmers gathered in New Delhi with a police escort

About 200 farmers in India on Thursday said they would stage a demonstration every day during the current parliamentary session, ending on August 9, against new agriculture laws.

Since November last year, the farmers have been calling on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government to repeal three controversial agricultural reforms that they say will leave them at the mercy of corporations.

The government said the new reforms, introduced in September 2020, would improve farmers options and the prices they could command when selling produce. However, opponents argue that the changes will favor large conglomerates and could force smaller-scale farmers out of business.

The government introduced the new laws which are being contested by the farmers in September 2020

Limit on numbers, security forces deployed

Security forces were deployed in large numbers across New Delhi on Thursday, after an earlier protest in January turned into a riot with pitched battles between police and protesters. Authorities only allowing 200 farmers to protest each day, also requiring them to follow coronavirus guidelines.

Police manned barricades and roadblocks around Delhi as the farmers were transported to the protest site in buses.

Balbir Singh Rajewal, a leading farmers' representative, said demonstrators would attend the sanctioned Jantar Mantar protest site each day during the current monsoon session of Parliament, "to remind the government of our long-pending demand.”

Opposition MPs have also staged their own protest calling for the repeal of laws.

Watch video 06:11 Farmers’ protests in India and Germany

on/msh (AP, Reuters, AFP)

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M

EUROPE
The EU declares war on money laundering

Huge sums of money of illegal origin are channeled into the regular economy every year. The EU has now prepared a comprehensive reform in order to crack down on money laundering. Bernd Riegert reports from Brussels.



"The rules we have in place to prevent money laundering are among the toughest in the world," said the vice president of the European Commission, Valdis Dombrovskis, "but they must also now be systematically applied."

There hasn't been enough of this in recent years. In practice, many EU member states don't actually implement the rules or are simply too lax in supervising and scrutinizing suspicious financial transactions. This is why the European Commission has now officially proposed something Brussels has been working on for months: It wants to create a new EU supervisory authority that will keep a close eye on financial activity in member states and will monitor and audit large transnational financial institutions that are a potential risk.

However, this powerful authority is not expected to start its operations for another three years, and it will be five years before it takes full effect. The EU member states have in principle agreed to the establishment of this central supervisory authority, similar to the one that already exists for banks, but are arguing over where its physical headquarters should be.

Dombrovskis: Every money laundering scandal is one too many
Significant 'dirty' turnover

As Mairead McGuinness, the EU commissioner for financial services, acknowledged when presenting the new legislative proposals: "Money laundering poses a clear and present threat to citizens, democratic institutions and the financial system." Transactions involving "dirty" money account for about 1.5% of gross domestic product in the EU — that's €133 billion ($157 billion). "The scale of the problem cannot be underestimated, and the loopholes that criminals can exploit need to be closed," McGuinness said.

In order to achieve this, the Commission wants to standardize the rules on combating money laundering — i.e., bringing "dirty" money from criminal activities into normal, "clean" monetary circulation — right across Europe. All member states would have to be transparent about who actually owns which companies, financial service providers and real estate. It would no longer be possible in the EU for these to be held in the name of anonymous companies, trustees and representatives. Registers of bank accounts and their account holders would be merged across the EU.

Watch video01:57  What are the motives behind financial fraud?

Directive number six

The Commission states that the repeated division of assets into smaller units, the nesting of companies and electronic transactions through a series of foreign accounts all make it very difficult to follow the trail of money obtained through drug trafficking, illegal prostitution, illegal gambling, human trafficking and other crimes of this nature.

A new directive to combat money laundering — this is version number six — aims to make it harder for organized crime and those who finance terrorism to do business. The rules have been tightened up further compared to the fifth directive, which is currently in force. Cryptocurrencies — privately created electronic currencies such as Bitcoin, which the EU believes are particularly well-suited to anonymous transactions — are also being targeted. In future, cryptocurrency providers will have to disclose the identity of the account holder.


Watch video 26:06 Money laundering, oligarchs, terrorists: How corrupt are the banks?

Cash transaction limits

A proposal also tabled today by Dombrovskis is proving controversial among member states. He wants to limit cash payments to a maximum of €10,000. He points out that cash is an easy gateway for the laundering of money. Cash proceeds from drug deals, for example, may be put into circulation by inflating the sales of a pizzeria owned by the criminals. Real estate is bought and paid for with suitcases full of cash.

Some EU member states have already imposed an upper limit on cash payments. In Greece, for example, it is just €500. In other countries, though, such as Germany or Austria, there is no limit at all. Around 70% of all end consumer payments in the EU are made in cash.

The Austrian finance minister, Gernot Blümel, supports the fight against money laundering, but says it's an illusion to think that criminals only use cash. "We see that white-collar criminals are increasingly switching to the digital realm, and we need to intensify our efforts here in future," Blümel said in Vienna last week. "I think this is more effective than arbitrary caps, which reinforce the current tendency to do away with cash." He explained that cash must be retained as a means of payment that does not require technical assistance.


The money laundering scandal at Danske Bank — the FinCEN Files — was exposed after running for many years

Dombrovskis is primarily concerned about the EU's reputation and stability as a financial center. "Every money laundering scandal is one too many," he said.

Last September, thanks to the so-called FinCEN Files, it became clear that even renowned major European banks have been circumventing EU rules on money laundering. In 2018, a Danish bank was found to have been laundering money through a small branch in Estonia for years – up to €200 billion. The Danske Bank scandal provided the impetus for the Commission's new anti-money laundering initiatives. These still have to be approved by the European Parliament and the 27 EU member states.

Watch video02:40 What are the FinCEN Files?

This article was translated from German.

Opinion: Pegasus — the favorite cyber weapon of dictators

With few exceptions, spying on the data on cell phones remains a scandal that demands urgent consequences — from us individually, the Pegasus manufacturer NSO, and the EU, says Martin Muno.



Hacking into electronic devices and spying on data is nothing new but the Pegasus cyber attack has taken it to the next level


It sounds like something out of a science fiction dystopia: In many countries, intelligence agencies and police authorities are using the Pegasus spy program to monitor journalists, lawyers and opposition activists.

"Pegasus" is a Trojan that turns cellphones into data zombies — emails, encrypted messenger messages and calendar entries can be read; the microphone and camera can be switched on unnoticed.

The attack does not even have to come via an infected email or website but can also be triggered via manipulated cell towers. This means that even prudent users have no chance of protecting their data. Pegasus is thus an effective and cruel cyberweapon that, according to current findings, was also used in connection with the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the fall of 2018.
The line between right and wrong is blurred

The manufacturer of the software, the Israeli cyber intelligence NSO Group, claims to sell it only to verified government agencies and exclusively for the purpose of fighting terrorism and crime. But we know from painful experience that it is not only in dictatorships where the line to illegal surveillance becomes blurred.

The whole thing is scandalous— but doesn't really come as a surprise. Since the revelations by Edward Snowden, we have known how great the hunger for data is even among democratically legitimized intelligence services — for example, when the US intelligence service NSA spied on the cell phone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel for years without being detected.

DW editor Martin Muno

Pegasus attacks on iPhones are also nothing new. As early as five years ago, the iOS operating systems of Apple phones had security vulnerabilities that allowed Pegasus to tap into data. Apple needed several updates to close the gap — which permanently damaged the company's security reputation.
Bitter realization: Our data is not safe

Nothing new, then, but scary nonetheless because this is apparently also about murder, imprisonment and intimidation. There should be three consequences from the Pegasus revelations — one for each and every one of us, one for NSO Group, and one for the European Union.

The first is simple: We should all be aware that our data stored on mobile devicesare only partially secure, even when encrypted. What is meant for our eyes only does not belong on a cell phone — from intimate videos to confidential information. And we should be skeptical when our governments justify the need for more and more state Trojans with the fight against crime, as it recently happened in Germany.
The NSO Group's complicity

The second consequence concerns the Pegasus manufacturer NSO, which — as is unfortunately common practice in such cases — washes its hands of the matter. Anyone who provides spy software to authoritarian governments such as those in Belarus or Saudi Arabia is complicit in human rights violations up to and including murder. This would then also be a case for the Israeli prosecution. Or the government, which would regulate the export of the software more rigorously.

Finally, the EU must step up. Viktor Orban's Hungarian government initially waited 24 hours without addressing the allegations of using Pegasus against reporters. Then Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto merely ruled out the possibility that the civilian intelligence service he oversees — one of five Hungarian intelligence agencies — had used the software.

A real denial looks different. If it transpires that Hungary is bullying the press in this way, then the country has no place in the EU. Then action is needed, not just words of warning. Because then — finally — sanctions must be imposed to wipe the smile off Orban's face as he pockets EU funds while trampling all over democratic values at the same time. It's time for Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to act decisively.

This piece has been translated from German.

VIDEO

Pegasus scandal: Indian journalist Siddharth Varadarajan

Opinion: We need climate action, not space tourism

The actions of millions of people and policies of innumerable governments to protect the climate are being negated by selfish millionaires shooting themselves into space. Sonya Diehn has a proposal for Branson and Bezos.

Jeff Bezos says Blue Origin is supposed to help the planet. Really?

I care about the future; therefore, I care about the climate. I belong to the vast majority of global citizens who, as poll after poll shows, are concerned about the direction the planet is heading and understand the urgency and existential nature of the impending climate emergency. The recent catastrophic flooding in central Europe and extreme high temperatures in North America are just a few symptoms of this.

So in my family, we do something about it. We scrimp and save on our carbon budget: we walk or ride bikes instead of driving our car; we eat dramatically less meat than the average family in industrialized countries; we skip that trans-Atlantic trip even if we really want it; we make sure we're not wasting food and we also compost our scraps.

And then some filthy rich dude blasts into space, just for fun.

That's incredibly selfish, isn't it?

And it really devaluates our efforts to protect the climate — both morally and materially.
Tiny trip, enormous emissions

Sonya Diehn has a proposal for Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson

People's motivation to take action on climate change declines when they see others doing whatever they want, without heed for the consequences. Beyond this demoralization, there is then the actual carbon footprint of space tourism.

Look, I'm not against space travel in principle. I'm actually a bit of a science-fiction nerd myself, and get very excited about the possibilities of exploring space. And granted, all tourism — even on Earth — creates carbon emissions. My intention is not to say tourism shouldn't exist. But the problem with space tourism is the proportion.

Let's take Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic space flight on July 11. For a suborbital journey of about 100 miles (160 kilometers), the company said the carbon dioxide emissions released were roughly equal to a round-trip trans-Atlantic passenger jet flight. Based on publicly available information, a trip from London to New York City releases about 1.24 metric tons of CO2. To put it another way, that 1 1/2-hour jaunt into space was equivalent to about 3,000 miles (4,800 kilometers) of driving an average passenger car.

Not only CO2, but also soot and ozone-depleting substances are released by Virgin Galactic's space plane

If Virgin Galactic is adding 3,000 road miles of CO2 emissions to our atmosphere for a single short trip for a mere six people, that devalues efforts — both personal and policy — to protect the climate. The problem could become particularly acute as space tourism ramps up, as it seems could soon be the case: More than 600 people have already made a reservation for a Virgin Galactic space flight, which has a price tag of between $200,000 and $250,000 (€169,000 to €212,000).

Branson's Virgin Galactic reportedly focuses on environmental sustainability, although what that entails has not been made clear. I find this to be a very dubious claim, particularly in light of the carbon footprint of such flights.

At least billionaire Jeff Bezos gives the environment more than just lip service, by having rockets for his space travel company Blue Origin use hydrogen fuel, which does not produce carbon emissions. But let's please not ignore the fact that hydrogen fuel, though it can be produced using renewable energy, is currently typically produced by — you guessed it — burning fossil fuels.

A proposal for the space cowboys

It's ironic: the sight of planet Earth from orbit — a gem of life amid the black void of space — is often credited with inspiring the modern environmental movement. And now, Blue Origin says its vision is to benefit Earth. This was most certainly the motivation behind selling off one ticket on its current flight to an ultra-rich mystery bidder — at $28 million (that person has since postponed their participation to a future trip). That's beyond ironic — I'd call it … cynical.

So beautiful, yet so fragile: The one and only planet Earth

If space tourism companies really want to make good on their green claims, I propose the following: For every flight taken by tourists into space, let's see those companies invest an equal sum into climate protection. That way, those egoists can still get their kicks, and we can also try to heal the climate.

Space tourism should only be possible if conducted against a mega-offset: one that guarantees a future on this sparkling blue and green and brown gem. After all, it's the source of our lives — and the only planet that can sustain us.

How sustainable is hydrogen production?

WHOSE IS GOING TO BUY ALBERTA CRUDE THEN?
Daimler prepares for all-electric shift by 2030

Issued on: 22/07/2021 - 

John MACDOUGALL AFP/File


Frankfurt (AFP)

German luxury carmaker Daimler said Thursday it was investing 40 billion euros ($47 billion) in a full shift to electric Mercedes-Benz vehicles by the end of the decade.

"Mercedes-Benz will be ready to go all-electric within this decade," the firm said in a presentation, although it did add the caveat "where conditions allow".

The carmaker unveiled an ambitious strategy that would have an electric version of all models by 2025 and a pledge that all new car platforms would be electric-only from that date.

To enable its shift to electric vehicles Daimler said it plans to open eight battery production facilities and planned to use a common battery platform across more than 90 percent of future vehicles.

"The EV shift is picking up speed -- especially in the luxury segment, where Mercedes-Benz belongs," Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius said in a statement.

"Our main duty in this transformation is to convince customers to make the switch with compelling products," he added.

The company said it is aiming to boost efficiency across the board with the goal of providing a real driving range of over 1,000 km (620 miles) on a single charge.

A growing number of carmakers have unveiled plans to shift to electric vehicles, making it likely that the days of the internal combustion engine are numbered.

The EU signalled last week that it wants a ban on new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035 to meet its target of reaching carbon neutrality by mid-century.

© 2021 AFP

IMPLAUSIBLE DENIABILITY
India denies millions have died from 

Covid-19


Issued on: 22/07/2021 - 

A man walks past a mural with a message spreading awareness about Covid-19 in Hyderabad NOAH SEELAM AFP

New Delhi (AFP)

The Indian government rejected on Thursday recent studies suggesting that millions of people have died in the country from Covid-19, several times the official toll of almost 420,000.

It said in a statement however that several Indian states were now "reconciling" their data after dealing with a spike in cases in April and May.

On Tuesday a study by US research group the Center for Global Development suggested anywhere from 3.4 million to 4.7 million people had died in India, between eight and 11 times the official number.


That would give the country the world's highest number of fatalities. Currently its official toll of 419,000 trails the United States on 610,000 and Brazil with 545,000.

The study is the latest to cast doubt on India's official numbers, pointing to poor record-keeping and the death rate per million being around half the global average.

Researchers have looked in particular at "excess mortality", the number of additional fatalities compared with normal times, and at death rates in other countries.

But the Indian government said Thursday it was an "audacious assumption that the likelihood of any given infected person dying is the same across countries".

The studies, it said, ignored "factors such as race, ethnicity, genomic constitution of a population, previous exposure levels to other diseases and the associated immunity developed in that population".

Assuming that all excess deaths were from coronavirus was "not based on facts and totally fallacious", the government said.

It added that India has a "thorough contact tracing strategy", a "vast availability" of testing labs and that while some cases may go undetected, "missing out on deaths is unlikely".

The statement however left some room for blame against local authorities, saying the health ministry "only compiles and publishes data sent by the state governments" and that it had been "repeatedly advising" states on properly recording deaths.

States overwhelmed by the surge in April and May have now been "advised to conduct thorough audits that could have been missed", and several have in recent weeks updated their figures, it said.

Maharashtra, India's worst-hit state, has upped its death toll by around 15,000 while Bihar added about 4,000 and Madhya Pradesh 1,500.

© 2021 AFP

"THE WORLDS BIGGEST DEMOCRACY"

India raids media companies critical of government

Issued on: 22/07/2021 - 

The building in the Indian city of Bhopal that houses Hindi-language newspaper Dainik Bhaskar, which has been raided by tax authorities Gagan NAYAR AFP
2 min
ADVERTISING


New Delhi (AFP)

Indian tax authorities on Thursday raided a prominent newspaper and a TV channel that have been critical of the government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, triggering accusations of intimidation.

There was no official comment from authorities on the raids against Hindi-language daily Dainik Bhaskar and the Bharat Samachar channel but local media quoted unnamed tax officials as saying they had "conclusive evidence of fraud".

Boasting a readership of millions, Bhaskar has carried a series of reports on the devastation caused by the pandemic in April and May and criticised the government's management of the crisis.


The daily said on its website Thursday in response to the raids that in the last six months it had sought to "put the real situation in front of the country".

"Be it the matter of (throwing) dead bodies in the Ganges or... hiding deaths due to corona, Bhaskar showed fearless journalism," it said.

At the height of the Covid-19 outbreak, families in India's north and east gave up the bodies of their loved ones to the river or buried them in shallow graves on its banks, likely unable to afford the cost of funeral pyres.

Last month, the daily's editor Om Gaur wrote an op-ed in the New York Times saying the bodies in the Ganges were symbolic of the "failures and deceptions" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration.

Brijesh Mishra, editor in chief of Bharat Samachar, said the raids were harassment.

"We are not afraid of these raids... we stand by the truth and the 240 million people of Uttar Pradesh," he was quoted as saying in Hindi on their website.

Modi's government has long been accused of attempting to stifle critical reporting in the world's biggest democracy, something it denies.

On Reporters Without Borders' 2021 press freedom index, India ranks 142nd out of 180 countries.

Ashok Gehlot, chief minister of the northern state of Rajasthan, said the raids were a brazen attempt to suppress the media.

"Modi government cannot tolerate even an iota of its criticism," Gehlot, who is from the opposition Congress party, wrote on Twitter.

New Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted that the raids were "an attempt to scare the media".

India has officially reported 31 million coronavirus infections and over 400,000 deaths so far, but experts say the actual figures could be much higher.

© 2021 AFP

#NOTOKYOOLYMPICS

Tokyo Olympics ceremonies chief steps down over fresh sexism scandal

Issued on: 18/03/2021 - 

Hiroshi Sasaki speaking in Tokyo, July 31, 2018. © Kazuhiro Nogi, AFP/File
Text by: NEWS WIRES


The creative director for Tokyo’s Olympic ceremonies resigned on Thursday for suggesting a female comedian appear as a pig, just weeks after the Games’ chief stepped down over insulting remarks about women.

Hiroshi Sasaki announced his decision after a report on Wednesday revealed his proposal that Naomi Watanabe, a popular celebrity and plus-size model, appear as an “Olympig” wearing pig ears at the opening ceremony.

It is just the latest headache for the coronavirus-delayed Games, which are struggling for public support mid-pandemic and were left reeling by former chief Yoshiro Mori’s sexist comments last month.

In a statement released early Thursday, Sasaki apologised to Watanabe and said he understood his suggestion was inappropriate.

“My idea would be a huge insult to Ms. Naomi Watanabe. This can’t be taken back,” he said.

“I regret this from the bottom of my heart, and I deeply apologise to her and everyone who felt discomfort over this,” he added.

Tokyo Olympic chief Seiko Hashimoto, who replaced Mori last month, told reporters she was “shocked” by Sasaki’s remarks.

“To joke about appearance is very, very inappropriate,” Hashimoto said, adding she would work to find a replacement for Sasaki quickly.

The scandal erupted on Wednesday evening, when a local magazine reported that Sasaki suggested to colleagues last year that Watanabe could dress up as an “Olympig”.

The proposal, made in a group chat, was immediately rejected by Sasaki’s colleagues, who told him it was inappropriate.

‘Should never have happened’

Sasaki was initially appointed to take charge of the Paralympics opening and closing ceremonies, but became creative director for the Olympic extravaganzas in December.

Watanabe is a feted celebrity in Japan, and is known to international fans in part thanks to an appearance on the makeover show “Queer Eye”.

The comedian and model, who fronts campaigns for products from clothing to skincare, has more than nine million followers on Instagram.

She is one of the few prominent plus-size figures among Japan’s celebrities, and has faced insults in the past. She has not yet commented on the latest row.

The incident comes at a sensitive time for the Games after the firestorm that erupted when former Tokyo 2020 chief Mori said women speak too much in meetings.

Mori eventually stepped down, with former Olympic minister Hashimoto appointed his successor, but the scandal was damaging for organisers, who have now moved to improve the gender balance on their board.

Hashimoto said she had spoken to the International Olympic Committee after the story broke yesterday and that they were “quite concerned”.

“This kind of problem should never have happened,” she added.

Japan’s government also weighed in on the row, with deputy spokesman Naoki Okada calling Sasaki’s suggestion “completely inappropriate”.

It is the latest in a series of public-relations setbacks for the Olympics, including a plagiarism row over the Games’ original logo and anger over a $2 billion design for the main stadium, which was later scaled back.

In 2019, the head of Japan’s Olympic committee, Tsunekazu Takeda, stepped down after he was charged by French magistrates probing $2.3 million in payments made before and after Tokyo secured hosting rights.

Organisers are facing public scepticism over holding the Games this year, and are due to make a key decision on whether to allow foreign fans to attend.

They are widely expected to announce next week that overseas spectators will be barred, with limits on domestic fans still to be decided.

But organisers insist the Games can still go ahead, and have released a series of rulebooks they say will ensure virus safety.

The Olympic torch relay is due to kick off on March 25, though spectators are barred from the launch ceremony and first leg, with those lining the route elsewhere banned from cheering and crowding, and required to wear masks.

(AFP)

Tokyo Olympics: Female athletes face double standards over uniforms


Issued on: 22/07/2021 - 14:47

Wales’ Olivia Breen celebrates after the athletic's women's T38 long jump final during the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. © Adrian Dennis, AFP

Text by: Lara BULLENS

The Norwegian women’s beach handball team were fined because their shorts were too long, British Paralympian Olivia Breen was told by an official that her briefs were too short and Olympic swimmer Alice Dearing won’t be allowed to wear a swimming cap for natural black hair at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Ahead of the Games, set to start on July 23, female athletes are being scrutinised for their choice of sportswear. FRANCE 24 looks at why athletic uniform regulations for women are so harsh.

The 2021 Tokyo Olympics haven’t even begun and the run-up is already fraught with debate on what female athletes should or shouldn’t wear.

Double Paralympic world champion Olivia Breen is the latest Olympic athlete to be caught in a sartorial storm. After competing in the long jump at the English Championships in Bedford on July 18, an official said her briefs were “too short and inappropriate”.

“She said to me that I should consider wearing shorts because my briefs were too revealing,” Breen told FRANCE 24. “I was so taken by surprise and gobsmacked that I asked her if she was joking. She said no, and insisted I should buy a pair of shorts.”

Writing about the incident in a Twitter post, Breen pointed to a double standard regarding athletic dress codes and questioned whether male athletes would be subjected to the same level of scrutiny.

“I have been wearing the same style sprint briefs for many years,” she said in her post. “I recognise that there needs to be regulations and guidelines in relation to competition kit, but women should not be made to feel self-conscious about what they are wearing when competing, [they] should feel comfortable and at ease.”

The 24-year-old says she was in full compliance with athletic uniform regulations, which allow athletes in her department to wear sponsor gear (the briefs), as long as they also don a club vest or a national kit. Their outfits cannot be “objectionable or see-through”.

“It’s 2021, it’s not the 18th century,” she told FRANCE 24. “I shouldn’t be told what I can and can’t wear.”

Breen filed an official complaint to England Athletics on Monday, but says she hasn’t heard anything back. The young athlete is set to take part in the Tokyo Paralympics this August and intends on wearing the "contentious" briefs. “I’m not letting them stop me from wearing them. I will be wearing them in Tokyo,” she said.

Racist measures and double standards

Breen’s case is in no way singular. Alice Dearing, the first black swimmer ever to represent Team Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics, will not be allowed to wear the swimming cap made specifically for natural black hair she has been promoting.

Earlier this month, the International Swimming Federation (FINA) banned the use of swimming caps made specifically to protect dreadlocks, afros, weaves, braids and thick curly hair for the 2021 Games. Soul Cap, the company behind the swimming caps, were told by FINA that it was because their product doesn’t fit “the natural form of the head”.

In yet another effort to sanction female athletes for their uniforms, the European Handball Federation (EHF) fined the Norwegian women’s beach handball team 1,500 euros for wearing shorts instead of bikini bottoms at the Euro 2021 championships. Calling it a case of “improper clothing”, the EHF said players didn’t abide by athlete uniform regulations, which require women to wear bikini bottoms “with a close fit and cut on an upward angle toward the top of the leg” and are determined by the International Handball Federation.

Male beach handball players, on the other hand, are free to wear shorts as long as 10 centimetres above the knee just as long as they aren’t “too baggy”.

The team had approached the EHF before the competition, asking for permission to play in shorts. They were told that any breach of protocol would be met with fines.

Although beach handball isn’t part of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, it’s a stark reminder of the glaring double standards held when athletic uniform regulations are devised.

Who decides?

The International Olympic Committee (IOC), the authority in charge of organising the Olympic Games, says it is not responsible for establishing and enforcing uniform regulations. Instead, it’s up to international federations for each individual sport to decide what the appropriate attire for each gender group is.

According to the most recent Olympic Charter published by the IOC, they have the “sole and exclusive authority to prescribe and determine the clothing and uniforms to be worn, and the equipment to be used, by the members of their delegations on the occasion of Olympic Games".

International sports federations don’t make their criteria for athletic uniform regulations public. FRANCE 24 tried to contact FINA and England Athletics for comment, but received no response.

Helen Jefferson Lenskyj, a professor at the University of Toronto and author of “The Olympic Games: A Critical Approach”, says uniform decisions are based on either “practical considerations related to the demands of the sport”, “traditional roots like the gi for martial arts” or gender differentiation. Some federations also argue that their decisions are purely based on performance, or that they ensure fairness.

But Lenskyj sees clear gender discrimination at play, especially given that many federations are still largely run by men. “Sports judged on aesthetics like figure skating have clothing rules consistent with judges’ often stereotypical views of what a ‘feminine’ skater should look life. Women’s beach volleyball uniform regulations are based solely on heterosexual sex appeal,” she says.

“What’s clear is that a lot of it is commercial,” Janice Forsyth, former director of Western University’s International Center for Olympic Studies in Ontario, told FRANCE 24. “[The international federations] try to appeal to what they think is a heterosexual male audience, try to titillate them into watching women’s sports, arguing that it raises interest thereby making it more lucrative by potentially attracting sponsors and TV contracts or even corporate sponsorships for athletes.”

If motivated, international federations could move quickly to change uniform regulations for women. The fact that they choose not to, according to Forsyth, is purely for marketing reasons.

A little bit of history repeating

Not every Olympic sport is stuck in the “18th century”, as Paralympic star Olivia Breen put it, but many have a history of controversy when it comes to female athletic uniform regulations. Swimming, athletics, badminton, boxing, gymnastics and beach volleyball, for example, have particularly poor track records.

Just before the 2012 London Olympics, the Amateur International Boxing Association tried to make female boxers wear skirts instead of shorts. Their reasoning was that spectators would be able to discern more easily between female and male boxers, as they couldn’t “tell the difference” before.

The suggestion sparked outrage and an online petition started by amateur London-based boxer Elizabeth Plank demanded women be free to choose what they wear in the ring. After garnering more than 57,000 signatures, the decision was amended and female boxers were free to choose between shorts or a skirt.

That same year, the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) changed its dress code. Before the amendment, women players were forced to wear bikinis or bodysuits during games. But public pressure mounted and the FIVB published new rules, allowing women to wear shorts and sleeved tops out of respect for “religious and cultural requirements” of some participating countries.

In 2011, the Badminton World Federation were less forgiving about their uniform requirements. Ahead of the London Olympics the following year, the organisation decided that female athletes playing at an elite level must wear dressers or skirts. They defended their decision saying this would create a more “attractive presentation”.

But recent sartorial debates are just the latest hurdle for female athletes, particularly when it comes to the Olympic Games. Women were barred from joining the games for decades and even subjected to gender testing. And even though the IOC openly promotes inclusivity, female athletes are still subjected to more scrutiny than their male counterparts.

“We’re just scratching the surface,” Forsyth from Western University says. “If we’re just talking about and debating uniforms, imagine what we’re going to find if we dig a little deeper.”