Four Killed in Israel Strikes on Syria: War Monitor

Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Israel has routinely carried out air strikes inside Syria.

An Israeli F-35I fighter jet takes part in a multinational air defense exercise at the Ovda Air Force Base, north of the Israeli city of Eilat, on Nov. 11, 2019.

 Photo: Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images

 STAFF WRITER WITH AFP 

NOVEMBER 24, 2021

Two civilians were among four people killed by Israeli strikes on Wednesday that targeted a part of Syria where fighters loyal to Lebanon’s Hezbollah are based, a monitor said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based group that relies on sources on the ground, said the Israeli missiles struck an area near three villages in the west of Homs province.

The raid killed four people, including two civilians, said the war monitor, although it was unable to determine whether the other two deaths were civilians or soldiers.

The official Syrian news agency SANA, citing a military official, said two civilians had been killed and seven people wounded in the strikes that were conducted at dawn.

“The (Israeli) aggression resulted in the death of two civilians and injured six soldiers and one civilian,” the military official was quoted as saying.

The strikes targeted positions in the central part of the country, it said, without giving further details on the location.

Syria’s air defenses “repelled the aggression and shot down most” of the missiles, SANA said, quoting the same source.

The Israeli military, which rarely acknowledges individual strikes on Syria, declined to comment on “reports in the foreign media.”

Israel has said repeatedly it will not allow neighboring Syria to become a launchpad for its arch-foe Iran.

Since civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes on Syrian territory, targeting government positions as well as allied Iran-backed forces and Hezbollah fighters.

Similar strikes on November 3 hit positions held by the Syrian government and its pro-Iranian allies near Damascus, said the Observatory.

On October 30, five pro-Iranian militiamen were killed in an Israeli strike that destroyed Hezbollah and Iranian weapons and ammunition near the Syrian capital, the monitor said.

An Israeli strike in mid-October killed nine pro-government fighters near the T4 airbase east of Palmyra in central Syria, according to the same source.

Bangladesh resumes moving Rohingya refugees to flood-prone island

Bangladesh has resumed moving Rohingya refugees to a remote and flood-prone island, authorities said Wednesday, despite criticism from aid groups and claims some are being relocated against their will.

© - Nearly 20,000 Rohingya refugees have already been sent to Bhashan Char and Bangladesh eventually wants to move about 100,000 to the remote and flood-prone island

© Tanbir Miraj About 850,000 Rohingya are packed into camps along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border

Nearly 20,000 members of the stateless minority, who fled neighbouring Myanmar in 2017 after a brutal military crackdown, have already been sent to Bhashan Char island.


Bangladesh eventually wants to rehouse 100,000 of its approximately one million Rohingya refugees to the island, moving them from cramped relief camps on the mainland.

But hundreds already sent there have since been arrested in coastal towns after fleeing the island, and dozens died in August after a fishing boat carrying escapees capsized.

Another 2,000 Rohingya will nonetheless be transferred this week, the country's deputy refugee commissioner Moozzem Hossain told AFP, more than six months after the last group was sent there.

"Navy ships will bring them to the island on Thursday," he added.

The UN refugee agency signed a deal with Bangladesh authorities to provide help and protection to refugees on the island last month.

Hossain told AFP that all relocations were completely voluntary, but several refugees said they were being forced to move there.

"We don't want to go to Bhashan Char," a Rohingya woman told AFP by phone, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

She said a Rohingya community leader in the camps had added her name to a list of people seeking to relocate without her consent.

"If I go to Bhashan Char, I will not be able to go back to Myanmar. I will not go," she added.

One Rohingya community leader, who also asked to remain anonymous, said Bangladeshi authorities had told him and his peers to each provide lists of at least five families to be relocated.

- Cyclone threat -

About 850,000 Rohingya are packed into camps along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. Most fled a Myanmar military clampdown in 2017 that the UN says could be genocide.

Bangladesh has been praised for taking in the refugees who poured across the border but has had little success finding them permanent homes.

Bhashan Char is 60 kilometres (37 miles) from the Bangladesh mainland and lies at the heart of the Meghna estuary, an area prone to powerful cyclones that have killed around one million people in the last 50 years.

Human Rights Watch has urged Bangladesh to halt further relocations until it could guarantee freedom of movement for the refugees.

The watchdog said Tuesday that Rohingya leaders were being coerced into persuading camp residents to move to Bhashan Char, including by confiscating their identity documents.

"Bangladesh's October agreement with the UN doesn't provide a free ticket to forcibly relocate Rohingya refugees," said Bill Frelick, HRW's refugee and migrant rights director.

str-sa/gle/mtp

Video: Lessons from Bangladesh: Living with floods (Dailymotion)

Sydney nanny loses extradition appeal over Pinochet-era crimes


The Augusto Pinochet regime presided over thousands of murders, tortures and forced disappearances as Latin America was ravaged by Cold War-fuelled violence

 (AFP/MARTIN BERNETTI)


Wed, November 24, 2021, 

An Australia-based former nanny lost her second appeal against extradition to Chile on Wednesday where she allegedly served as a member of the feared secret police during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.

Adriana Elcira Rivas Gonzalez, now in her late 60s, faces seven charges of aggravated kidnapping carried out in the 1970s including the 1976 disappearance of senior Communist Party official Victor Manuel Diaz Lopez.

She has been fighting extradition since being arrested and detained by Australian authorities in February 2019 for her suspected involvement in kidnappings under the US-backed Pinochet regime, which toppled the democratically elected socialist government of President Salvador Allende.

The military junta presided over thousands of murders, tortures and forced disappearances as Latin America was ravaged by Cold War-fuelled violence.

In June this year, Rivas lost her first Federal Court appeal against a 2020 lower court's ruling that she was eligible to be extradited to Chile.

Now, a full bench of the federal court has confirmed that decision.

"In this appeal, much of Ms Rivas' submissions were directed to the assertion that she is not guilty of the offences which are the subject of the extradition request," said a ruling by three Federal Court judges, Debra Mortimer, Robert Bromwich and Stewart Anderson.

"Guilt or innocence forms no part of the international extradition process," they said, adding that this was a matter for the Chilean courts to decide.

"The appeal is dismissed," the judges concluded, finding Rivas was eligible for extradition and should also pay Chile's costs.

Chile formally requested her extradition in 2018 from Sydney, where she had been working as a nanny and a cleaner in the city's Bondi area.

Rivas has lived in Australia for three decades and was previously arrested while visiting Chile in 2007, but later fled to Australia while on bail.

In a 2013 interview with Australian broadcaster SBS, Rivas claimed she was innocent, but defended the use of torture in Chile at the time.

"They had to break the people -– it has happened all over the world, not only in Chile," she said.

bur-djw/arb/ssy

Ancient human relative walked like a human but climbed like an ape, new fossils suggest

Hannah Ryan
CNNDigital
 Tuesday, November 23, 2021 



Australopithecus sediba silhouette showing the newly-found vertebrae along with other skeletal remains from the species. (University of Witwatersrand/CNN)

An ancient human relative was able to walk the ground on two legs and use their upper limbs to climb and swing like apes, according to a new study of 2 million-year-old vertebrae fossils.

An international team of scientists from New York University, the University of the Witwatersrand and 15 other institutions studied lower back bones found in 2015 that belonged to a female Australopithecus sediba, a type of ancient hominid.

Together with previously discovered bones from the same individual -- nicknamed "Issa," which is Swahili for protector -- the fossilized remains form one of the most complete lower backs ever discovered in the early hominid record and give an indication as to how this human relative would have moved through the world.

The researchers said the newly studied lower back fossils were a missing link that proved early hominins used their upper limbs to climb like apes, and their lower limbs to walk like humans.

The fossils were first discovered in 2015 during excavations of a mining trackway running next to the site of Malapa in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, near Johannesburg.

They were then virtually prepared -- to avoid the risk of damage -- and reunited with fossils recovered during earlier work at the site and found to articulate with the spine of the fossil skeleton, part of the original specimens of Australopithecus sediba first described in 2010.

The discovery also established that like humans, sediba had only five lumbar vertebrae.

"While Issa was already one of the most complete skeletons of an ancient hominin ever discovered, these vertebrae practically complete the lower back and make Issa's lumbar region a contender for not only the best-preserved hominin lower back ever discovered, but also probably the best preserved," said Professor Lee Berger, an author on the study and leader of the Malapa project.

The excellent preservation of Issa helped to show that curvature of sediba's spine was more extreme than any other Australopithecus yet discovered -- that kind of spine curvature is typically seen in modern humans and demonstrates strong adaptations to bipedalism.

"While the presence of lordosis (the inward curve of the lumbar spine) and other features of the spine represent clear adaptations to walking on two legs, there are other features, such as the large and upward oriented transverse processes, that suggest powerful trunk musculature, perhaps for arboreal behaviors," said Professor Gabrielle Russo of Stony Brook University, another author on the study.

Arboreal behaviors refer to climbing and living in trees.

"The spine ties this all together," added study author Professor Thomas Cody Prang of Texas A&M University, who studies how ancient hominins walked and climbed. "In what manner these combinations of traits persisted in our ancient ancestors, including potential adaptations to both walking on the ground on two legs and climbing trees effectively, is perhaps one of the major outstanding questions in human origins."


The study concluded that Australopithecus sediba was a transitional form of ancient human relative and its spine is clearly intermediate in shape between those of modern humans and great apes -- meaning that the species would have possessed both human and ape-like traits in its movements.

The study was published Tuesday in the journal e-Life.

Related Stories
100-million-year-old tiny crab fossil found in amber
'Horned crocodile-faced hell heron' is one of two new Isle of Wight dinosaur discoveries
Two tiny species of lizard, fish that lived 100 million years ago discovered by researchers

Croatia's truffle hunters seek habitat protection amid climate change







1 / 7

The delicate microclimate in the forests of Croatia's Istria peninsula has long been famed for producing some of the finest white truffles (AFP/Damir SENCAR)

Lajla VESELICA
Wed, November 24, 2021

The sound of paws scurrying along the forest floor echoes through Croatia's northwestern woods, where the hunt for truffles is being threatened by climate change and deforestation -- stirring fears that the country's gastronomic goldmine may be at risk.

The delicate microclimate in the picturesque Istria peninsula's forests has long been famed for producing some of the finest white truffles, which this year fetched up to 2,500 euros ($2,860) per kilo.

But the increase in temperatures and lower precipitation levels linked to climate change along with a shrinking water table and habitat loss could throw off the natural incubator that produces the luxurious ingredient.

"It's more difficult to find a truffle than to sell it," laments Darko Muzica, who oversees the Istra association of truffle hunters, an advocacy group campaigning to protect the peninsula's white truffle.

Along with climate change and diminishing water tables, Muzica says poor forest management has also threatened future harvests, with officials giving preferential treatment to the timber industry.

A 2014 study on Istria's truffles issued a similar warning, saying: "throughout the world the productivity of natural truffle habitats is shrinking which is often linked with climate change but also the ways the land is used".

Truffle enthusiasts say immediate action is needed to protect the area's habitat.

"The whole region would benefit from it," says Ivan Vukadinovic, who is also a member of the truffle hunter association.

- 'Top quality' -

Fears over the truffle's future in Istria comes on the heels of a decades-long love affair with the culinary delight in Croatia.

Istria has long been a tourist hotspot in the Balkan nation, famed for its pristine coastline as well as island getaways but has often been overshadowed on the truffle front by neighbouring Italy across the Adriatic.

With money to be made, truffle hunters, accompanied by teams of specially trained dogs, comb through Istria's dense, lowland forests near Motovun hoping to strike white gold.

"Search! Search!" shouts forest scientist Zeljko Zgrablic as his two dogs paw at the ground near a suspected bulb.

After digging away a layer of topsoil, Zgrablic carefully extracts a white truffle weighing some 20 grams -- which could net up to 130 euros ($145).

It is a typical scene during Istria's white truffle season that runs from September to late December, attracting a wide swath of afficionados ranging from weekend warriors to locals hoping to pocket extra cash.

Istria remains one of the few areas outside of Italy's famed Alba region able to produce high-end white truffles thanks to its humid climate and alkaline soil that imbues the edible fungi with a strong aroma and optimal density.

"They are heavy, have a good shape... which makes them a top quality product," says Zgrablic as he carefully writes down details of the truffle.

- 'Truffle land' -

The first written reference to truffles in Istria dates back to the late 1920s, when the peninsula was then part of Italy.

But the industry has gone into overdrive in the past two decades, with the sector netting millions of dollars annually -- spurring Istria to rebrand itself as "truffle land".

The truffle rush started after the discovery of a bulb weighing 1.31 kilogrammes (2.88 pounds) that was listed for a time in the Guinness Book of World Records.

"The event started a truffle avalanche," says Giancarlo Zigante, a former hunter and restaurateur, who now produces hundreds of locally sourced truffle products -- including oil, chocolate and chips that are exported to dozens of countries worldwide.

Hoping to protect the area's lucrative truffle trade, the local association of truffle hunters has begun campaigning for "protected designation of origin" within the European Union.

If granted, it says the certification would help provide better management of the region's forests by eliminating their "irrational devastation", while also guaranteeing the truffle's authenticity and helping raise awareness for preservation efforts.

But for many enthusiasts, preserving the area's habitat is about protecting the simple pleasures that come with truffle hunts.

"It's a lifestyle, it gets under your skin," Muzica says.

"The dog is happy whenever I'm happy. And I'm happy when my dog finds a truffle."

ljv/ds/kjm

RETURN OF THE METROSEXUAL

Man-icures: How and why men are embracing nail varnish

Gregor Tholl

 Nov 15, 2021

© picture alliance / dpa

If you see a man wearing nail polish, he might be sending all manner of message, from a socially conscious one to a statement about his own masculinity. It's a trend that's growing.

Berlin (dpa) - Gianni Versace made it clear years ago: The men wearing nail varnish are "nice and witty."

It was 1994 and Versace was explaining the business of fashion to a journalist after being asked who was walking around like 'that.' 'That' referred to male models on the Milan catwalk, clad in miniskirts over their trousers, embellished with bright red lips and sporting nail varnish.

Thirty years later, it's not every young man who is painting his nails. But some are. And they are often "nice and witty."

Designer Marc Jacobs said a few years ago that nail polish was the perfect finish for men who sought to achieve the perfect look.

Some may think it silly to cover their nails with chemicals - while others say it is super sexy. Take Portugal football star Cristiano Ronaldo, known for painting his toenails.

American rapper Lil Yachty has gone a step further, launching a nail polish line for men. However, the Negatives 001 man-icures collection is initially only available in shades of concrete grey, matte white and matte black.

"I always thought painted fingernails were beautiful," German actor Lars Eidinger told dpa. "It's the level of exaltation I allow myself, so to speak." He says putting on nail varnish is not a statement and does not indicate he wishes he was a woman.

When it comes to choosing a colour, Eidinger says he usually opts for blue or black, with a classic red occasionally to shake things up.

A look at the world of celebrities reveals further fans beyond Eidinger and Lil Yachty, from glam rocker Damiano David of the Italian band Maneskin, winner of the Eurovision Song Contest, to queer rapper Lil Nas X, British pop singer Harry Styles, US actor Ansel Elgort and Brooklyn Beckham, oldest son of the football star David.

Meanwhile Instagram offers thousands of posts under hashtags such as #guynails or #malepolishedtoes.

Of course, there have been male celebrities in the past who wore varnish - think of David Bowie, Kurt Cobain, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Johnny Depp and Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler. But their use was generally considered a quirk.

"Right now, we see that male influencers have become more enthusiastic about decorative cosmetics," says Birgit Huber, who works for a German consumer products association. More and more often, actors show up to red carpet events with their nails done, she says.

Nail polish has also brightened up the Polished Man Challenge, a social media campaign seeking to raise awareness about sexual violence against children. On average one in five minors is a victim of sexual violence. To heighten awareness, participants paint one of their five fingernails. Chris Hemsworth, his brother Liam, Zac Efron and Shawn Mendes have all joined in.

Surveys show people are noticing, says Huber. Men tell pollsters they see make-up and nail polish becoming increasingly trendy on Instagram. But that does not mean they will take to the nail polish themselves. Yes, they have seen it, but no, they would not feel confident using it, is a frequent response, she says.

But for young boys who like the look of nail polish and may feel like trying it, few receive a positive response and instead are bullied or told off. Occasionally, though, fathers put on some nail polish out of solidarity with their sons.

Overall, men wearing nail polish has its own distinct meaning, different to when women paint their nails, say observers.

"Nail polish is a way for men to signal flexibility and openness to social change without seriously challenging the standards of masculinity on the street," says male fashion expert Marco Nikolaj Rechenberg.

Nail polish for men comes from the mostly straight punk, rock, grunge and skater worlds, rather than drag queen culture, says Rechenberg.

"The motivation is not the suggestion of queerness or gender-bending, but, on the contrary, rather the emphasis of one's own heterosexuality or masculinity by breaking the rules, which is perceived as courageous," he says.

Wearing nail varnish is a good way to do this, as it is a relatively low risk product, he says.

Using nail varnish seems less feminine than other cosmetics, as it does not emphasize a feature in the way that lipstick and eye shadow do, says Rechenberg.

Historically, nail polish has been less about attractiveness and more about social status, with wearers showing off the fact that they do not have to work with their hands.

"Nail varnish is completely artificial," Rechenberg points out. "People have red lips by nature, but not shiny nails."

Ridley Scott announces the arrival of new Blade Runner TV series

Swapnil Dhruv Bose
TUE 23RD NOV 2021 

(Credit: Gage Skidmore)

The latest addition to the Blade Runner franchise is the anime series Black Lotus which recently premiered on Adult Swim. Set in a different timeline, the anime expands on the legacy of the haunting world constructed by the two films and Philip K. Dick’s book but attracted criticism for its animation style as well as other elements that feel manufactured.

As for the setting of the new anime series, the production company’s CEO Andrew Kosove explained: “The timeline falls about halfway between the end of the first ‘Blade Runner’ and the start of ‘2049.’ So we’re right in sort of that midway point where the character that, of course, Jared Leto plays in our movie, is coming into prominence and bringing his vision of what replicants can be to the world”.

According to the studio, they had hired two full-time employees with a job description that should have been taken care of by the writers. They spent their work hours keeping track of the various timelines and canons throughout the history of the franchise, making sure that no lapses take place.

“We have two people who work for us at Alcon whose — I wouldn’t say it’s their full-time job, [but] it’s the majority of their job,” Kosove said. “[They take it] really seriously, interweaving the different stories and making sure the timelines, the canon, the character motivations are all seamless and have a logic within the canon.”

Kosove added that the studio is especially concerned with the goal of sticking to the official canon. “Our goal at Alcon, because we’re the keeper of the Blade Runner IP, and therefore we take the canon of the franchise very seriously, because the fans, of which there are so many, have invested so much of themselves in the material.”

In an interview with the BBC, Ridley Scott revealed that a live-action TV series based on Blade Runner is already in the works: “We [have already] written the pilot for Blade Runner and the bible. So, we’re already presenting Blade Runner as a TV show, the first 10 hours.” Scott is also developing a TV show based on Alien which is being directed by Noah Hawley.

Blade Runner: Black Lotus is a co-production between Japan and America and is already highly anticipated by fans around the world. Watch the trailer below.

POST MODERN STALINISM

It’s not just Peng. China is cracking down on MeToo movement

By HUIZHONG WU

Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai reacts during her women's singles match at the China Open tennis tournament in Beijing on Oct. 5, 2016. When Peng disappeared from public view this month after accusing a senior Chinese politician of sexual assault, it caused an international uproar. But back in China, Peng is just one of several people, activists and accusers alike, who have been hustled out of view, charged with crimes or trolled and silenced online for speaking out about the harassment, violence and discrimination women face every day. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)


TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Huang Xueqin, who publicly supported a woman when she accused a professor of sexual assault, was arrested in September. Wang Jianbing, who helped women report sexual harassment, was detained along with her. Neither has been heard from since. Meanwhile, several other women’s rights activists have faced smear campaigns on social media and some have seen their accounts shuttered.

When tennis star Peng Shuai disappeared from public view this month after accusing a senior Chinese politician of sexual assault, it caused an international uproar. But back in China, Peng is just one of several people — activists and accusers alike — who have been hustled out of view, charged with crimes or trolled and silenced online for speaking out about the harassment, violence and discrimination women face every day.

When Huang helped spark a grassroots #MeToo movement in China in 2018, it gained fairly wide visibility and achieved some measure of success, including getting the civil code to define sexual harassment for the first time. But it was also met with stiff resistance from Chinese authorities, who are quick to counter any social movement they fear could challenge their hold on power. That crackdown has intensified this year, part of wider efforts to limit what’s acceptable in the public discourse.

“They’re publicly excluding us from the legitimacy, from the legitimate public space,” said Lu Pin, an activist who now lives in the U.S. but is still active on women’s rights issues in China. “This society’s middle ground is disappearing.”

In a sign of how threatening the #MeToo movement and activism on women’s rights is to Chinese authorities, many activists have been dismissed as tools of foreign interference — a label used to discredit their concerns as fabrications by China’s enemies meant to destabilize it.

The ongoing crackdown has mostly targeted activists with little fame or clout and who often worked with marginalized groups.

Huang and Wang both had a history of advocating for disadvantaged groups, and have been charged with subversion of state power, according to a friend of both activists who saw a notice sent to Wang’s family. He spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of police retaliation. Police in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou where the two were arrested did not respond to a faxed request for comment.

The charge is vague and often used against political dissidents. Huang’s and Wang’s families have not heard from them since they were detained and are not able to contact them — another tactic often deployed in political cases.

In this photo released by #FreeXueBing, Huang Xueqin holds up a #METOO sign for a photo in Singapore on Sept. 2017. Huang, who publicly supported a woman when she accused a professor of sexual assault, was arrested in September. In China, Huang is just one of several people, activists and accusers alike, who have been hustled out of view, charged with crimes or trolled and silenced online for speaking out about the harassment, violence and discrimination women face every day. (#FreeXueBing via AP)

The #MeToo movement burst into view in China, when Huang helped a woman named Luo Xixi to publicly accused her professor at Beihang University of trying to force her to have sex with him. The university conducted an investigation and fired the scholar, who it said had violated professional ethics.

Luo’s account inspired dozens of other women to come forward — all online. Thousands of students signed petitions and put pressure on their universities to address sexual violence. Women in other industries spoke up, leading to public discussions about the power imbalances between the sexes in many workplaces, the lack of justice for survivors of sexual violence, and the way gender can determine how one is treated in Chinese society.

While that national conversation was unsettling for authorities from the beginning, efforts to counter activism on women’s issues have increased this year, including by nationalist, pro-government influencers, some of who seem to have the blessing of authorities and have been praised by state media.

In a span of a few weeks in the spring, influencers with millions of followers launched a wave of attacks against women’s rights activists on Weibo, one of China’s leading social media platforms. They accused them of being anti-China and of being backed by foreign forces, without evidence. Such allegations have often been leveled at protest movements, including the pro-democracy one in Hong Kong that Beijing has relentlessly tried to stamp out.

By late April, roughly a dozen activists and nonprofits found their accounts restricted from posting temporarily or permanently suspended. It’s not clear why in all cases, but one activist who had lost her account, Liang Xiaowen, shared a notice from Weibo that said her account had “shared illegal and harmful information.”

FILE - Zhou Xiaoxuan, left, a former intern at China's state broadcaster CCTV, reacts as she arrives to attend a court session at a courthouse in Beijing, Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021. Zhou, who accused well-known state TV host Zhu Jun of groping her when she was an intern and was once praised for her courage in speaking up, faced a campaign of harassment and can no longer post on her public-facing accounts. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

Even Zhou Xiaoxuan, who accused well-known state TV host Zhu Jun of groping her when she was an intern and was once praised for her courage in speaking up, faced a campaign of harassment and can no longer post on her public-facing accounts.

On Weibo, users send her private messages such as, “Get out of China, I feel disgusting living with a type of person like you, on the same piece of land.” Another called her a piece of “toilet paper” that “foreigners would use and then throw away.”

The effect is such that any discussion about the harassment, violence or inequalities that women face has been increasingly shielded from the public view.

“Now, the situation on social media is such that you have been completely sealed off, you have no way to speak,” said Zhou.

The attacks have not been limited to the digital space. In September, when Zhou went to a court hearing in the civil case where she was suing Zhu for damages and an apology, a group of aggressive bystanders yelled at her and tried to prevent her from speaking to reporters. Police at the scene did not stop them.

Late that night, when Zhou left the courthouse and headed for home, she said she was followed by men in two cars. The men waited outside her residential complex for half an hour before leaving.

The pressure campaign also forced a low-profile group called Hot Pepper Tribe, which worked with female migrant workers, to shut down in August. The group had tried to raise awareness of the hardships faced by women who work in factories, construction and other manual labor fields. It had come under pressure from authorities, though it’s not clear why it was singled out.

Still, activists are hopeful that the #MeToo movement has opened a door that cannot be shut.

“This is not so simple that you find a few feminist bloggers and you shut down their accounts,” said Zhou. “Becoming a feminist comes from discovering what kind of problems you face. And once you become a feminist, then it’s very hard to give it up. And #MeToo’s very important meaning is that it has inspired a broad feminist community.”

___

Associated Press news assistant Caroline Chen in Beijing contributed to this report.

In this photo released by #FreeXueBing, Wang Jianbing is seen in a photo taken in Lushan in southeastern China's Jiangxi province, in June 2017. Wang who helped women report sexual harassment, has been detained since September. In China, He is just one of several people, activists and accusers alike, who have been hustled out of view, charged with crimes or trolled and silenced online for speaking out about the harassment, violence and discrimination women face every day. (#FreeXueBing via AP)

 

FILM

How Scarlett Johansson reclaimed power in a male-dominated world of superheroes

Debadrita Sur

MON 22ND NOV 2021 22.00 GMT

 

Quite recently, Kylie Cheung wrote a scathing and politically charged piece regarding the blatantly misogynistic perception of female superheroes and the inability of the male gaze to accept a character that fails to “sexually gratify them”. While her comments were made in reference to the recent backlash that the live-action of Faye Valentine – portrayed by Daniella Pineda – in Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop received, it is valid for every femme-fatale in the history of cinema. Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, too, is no different and has been a blatant victim of hypersexualisation until the actress boldly reclaimed her agency in a landscape of superhero films that is largely patriarchal and male-dominated in nature. 

Romanoff, an intelligent Russian spy, had been a part of the MCU for seven films until she finally landed a movie of her own. She made her debut in the 2010 Iron Man 2 film, where she kicks Tony Stark’s second-in-command, Happy Hogan’s ass, in the boxing ring. However, it is no longer Romanoff’s ability to put up a great fight that is her defining characteristic. Stark Googles photos of her in her underwear and decides to hire her. Romanoff’s skills are reduced to her beauty and sex appeal- almost foreshadowing the kind of female representation Hollywood championed before the #MeToo movement, as discussed by the executive vice president of Marvel Studios, Victoria Alonso.  

Romanoff is the only character who did not have superhero powers like the rest of the men on the squad. But boy, did she fight well. A level-headed tactician with slick abilities, Black Widow is perhaps one of the most refreshing Avengers out there. After being sidelined and shunned on various grounds, when she finally received her origin story, it was genuinely cathartic to see her tackle sexism, blatant sexualisation and objectification and misogyny in one go. Needless to say, Johansson had an immense contribution in developing this character. From appearing as a simple “scintillating” vision in latex to finally gain momentum due to her tremendous courage and strength, Johansson’s Black Widow has become an unapologetic feminist symbol that has viewed the evolution of a female superhero via the female gaze. 

Directed by Cate Shortland, the 2021 Black Widow flick has, according to Scarlett Johannson, been a “challenge” to direct “in a male-dominated industry” due to the idea of recounting “a woman’s story from the perspective of a female director and focus on the heart of something that is inherently female”. It is important to note that most of the main characters in the MCU have had stand-alone films before making an appearance in the ensemble franchises – Black Widow is the last to join them. Even her death in Infinity War seemed quiet and subdued, not receiving the kind of reaction she deserved.

While her contribution has never been any lesser than Iron Man’s, it appears as though the man with a smart suit defeated the woman whose life has never been the bed of roses. A victim of hypersexualisation and human trafficking, Romanoff has emerged from being just the simple seductress to one of the most important characters on the team. While the initial films saw her being a “sidekick” to her male counterparts, often allowing Thor or Hawkeye or the Hulk to take the lead, she gradually gained more ground as Johansson got more involved in the process of writing and developing the character. 

Although the comics have portrayed her as a female character who appeals to the inherent male gaze, it is crucial to understand how Johansson subverts it by capitalising on her burgeoning sexuality and weaving it into the power dynamics. It is the film that delves into her childhood and does not miss out on the harrowing events that shape her into the character that she is, ripping apart the notions of the star spy being an object of visual pleasure. Johansson, too, firmly believes that the male-dominated industry has created a particular narrative for women that can surely be changed and challenged with the advent of more female directors foraying into the path. 

Before Captain Marvel and Wonder Woman took over the world by storm, it was Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow who solely shouldered the responsibility of carrying forward the narrative of empowered, feminist female superheroes who are ready to smash the patriarchal narrative. Johansson has successfully carved out the path for future actresses and directors to follow; she has fleshed out a character that is no longer the seductive, one-dimensional female ‘eye-candy’ but a layered and complicated one, one can take cues from. 

END THE DEATH PENALTY

Missouri Judge exonerates Kevin Strickland after 43 years in prison

By Rich Klein

Nov. 23 (UPI) -- A Missouri Judge ordered Kevin Strickland to be released from prison Tuesday after serving 43 years behind bars in the state's longest known wrongful imprisonment.

Missouri Court of Appeals Judge James Welsh set aside Strickland's 1979 conviction of a triple murder and ordered his immediate release Tuesday, two weeks after an evidentiary hearing during which prosecutors argued Strickland's innocence was "clear and convincing."

Strickland's case is the longest wrongful imprisonment in Missouri history and one of the longest wrongful convictions in the nation.

The release of Strickland, 62, came after an eyewitness to the April 25, 1978, incident -- in which three people were shot to death -- recanted her statements, saying that she misidentified Strickland.

Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker relied on a new state law intended to free people who have been imprisoned for crimes they didn't commit to advocate for an evidentiary hearing, NPR reported.

In ordering Strickland's release, Welsh said: "No physical evidence implicated Strickland in the triple homicide. Instead, Strickland was convicted solely on the eyewitness testimony of (Cynthia) Douglas, who subsequently recanted her statements identifying him as one of the four perpetrators."

The order also said that, "Under these unique circumstances, the Court's confidence in Strickland's conviction is so undermined that it cannot stand, and the judgment of conviction must be set aside. The State of Missouri shall immediately discharge Kevin Bernard Strickland from its custody."

RELATED Oklahoma Gov. Stitt commutes prisoner's sentence hours before planned execution

Strickland is not expected to receive compensation for the wrongful conviction and imprisonment under Missouri law because payments can only be made to prisoners who prove they are innocent through a specific DNA testing statute, the Kansas City Star reported.

An investigation by the Kansas City Star played a key role in the government's decision to review the case. The newspaper said that Strickland's first trial in 1979 ended in a hung jury of 11 to one, with the only Black juror holding out for acquittal. He was later convicted by an all-White jury of one count of capital murder and two counts of second-degree murder, the newspaper said.

RELATED Longtime inmate and key figure in juvenile sentence reforms finally wins parole

In May, the Midwest Innocence Project filed a petition of habeas corpus asking the Missouri Supreme Court to overturn his conviction.

Earlier this year, Strickland told ABC News that he hoped to travel upon his release from prison.

"I want to go to the ocean," he said. "I've never been on a beach."