Thursday, November 25, 2021

Researchers recover ancient mammoth tusk during deep-sea expedition

by Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute

The ocean's dark depths hold many secrets. For more than three decades, MBARI has been exploring the deep waters off the coast of central California. During an expedition aboard the R/V Western Flyer in 2019, ROV pilot Randy Prickett and scientist Steven Haddock made a peculiar observation.

While exploring a seamount located 300 kilometers (185 miles) offshore of California and 3,070 meters (10,000 feet) deep, the team spotted what looked like an elephant's tusk. Only able to collect a small piece at the time, MBARI returned in July 2021 to retrieve the complete specimen. Now, Haddock and researchers from the Paleogenomics Lab, UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute, and the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), and the Museum of Paleontology at the University of Michigan (U-M) are examining the tusk.

The researchers have confirmed that the tusk—about one meter (just over three feet) in length—is from a Columbian mammoth (Mammuthus columbi). The cold, high-pressure environment of the deep sea uniquely preserved the tusk, giving researchers the opportunity to study it in greater detail. Computed tomography (CT) scans will reveal the full three-dimensional internal structure of the tusk and more information about the animal's history, such as its age.

The team believes it could be the oldest well-preserved mammoth tusk recovered from this region of North America. Researchers hope to sequence the ancient DNA embedded in the specimen, which could provide valuable insight about how mammoths colonized North America.

"You start to 'expect the unexpected' when exploring the deep sea, but I'm still stunned that we came upon the ancient tusk of a mammoth," said Haddock. "We are grateful to have a multidisciplinary team analyzing this remarkable specimen, including a geochronologist, oceanographers, and paleogenomicists from UCSC; and paleontologists at the University of Michigan. Our work examining this exciting discovery is just beginning and we look forward to sharing more information in the future."

"This specimen's deep-sea preservational environment is different from almost anything we have seen elsewhere," said University of Michigan paleontologist Daniel Fisher, who specializes in the study of mammoths and mastodons. "Other mammoths have been retrieved from the ocean, but generally not from depths of more than a few tens of meters."

Fisher and his U-M Museum of Paleontology colleagues will use their knowledge of the structure and composition of mammoth tusks to analyze CT scans of the specimen. The other members of the U-M team are Adam N. Rountrey, Michael D. Cherney, Ethan A. Shirley, and Scott G. Beld.

A team of researchers from UCSC's Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences will examine when and how the tusk may have arrived deep offshore. Terrence Blackburn, who specializes in geochronology, will study the mineral crusts on the tusk to determine when it landed on the deep seafloor, while Christopher Edwards and Patrick Drake will examine the oceanographic currents to better pinpoint where the tusk originally came from. Katie Moon and Beth Shapiro from the Paleogenetics Lab and the UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute at UCSC will extract and sequence DNA from the tusk to learn about its lineage and the evolution of mammoths in North America.

The ocean represents 99 percent of the space where life can exist on this planet and yet we still know very little about it. As interest in exploiting the deep sea by mining for valuable metals has grown—with the potential to place many marine animals in harm's way—this surprising discovery, hidden on the seafloor for eons, serves as a fragile reminder of the many remaining mysteries worthy of our protection.'Well-preserved' rare mammoth skull unearthed in Channel Islands puzzles scientistsProvided by Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute

SPECULATIVE CAPITALI$M

Einstein’s notes on theory of relativity fetch record €11.6m at auction

Manuscript handwritten by physicist and a colleague in 1913-14 fetched nearly four times estimate

A page of the Einstein-Besso manuscript is displayed at Christie's in Paris. Photograph: Chesnot/Getty Images

Agence France-Presse in Paris
Tue 23 Nov 2021

Albert Einstein’s handwritten notes on the theory of relativity fetched a record €11.6m (£9.7m) at an auction in Paris on Tuesday.

The manuscript had been valued at about a quarter of the final sum, which is by far the highest ever paid for anything written by the genius scientist.

It contains preparatory work for the physicist’s signature achievement, the theory of general relativity, which he published in 1915.

Calling the notes “without a doubt the most valuable Einstein manuscript ever to come to auction”, Christie’s – which handled the sale on behalf of the Aguttes auction house – had estimated prior to the auction that it would fetch between €2m and €3m.
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Previous records for Einstein’s works were $2.8m for the so-called “God letter” in 2018, and $1.56m in 2017 for a letter about the secret to happiness.

The 54-page document was handwritten in 1913 and 1914 in Zurich, Switzerland, by Einstein and his colleague and confidant Michele Besso, a Swiss engineer.

Christie’s said it was thanks to Besso that the manuscript was preserved for posterity. This was “almost like a miracle”, it said, since Einstein would have been unlikely to hold on to what he considered to be a simple working document.

Today the paper offered “a fascinating plunge into the mind of the 20th century’s greatest scientist”, Christie’s said. It discusses his theory of general relativity, building on his theory of special relativity from 1905 that was encapsulated in the equation E=mc2.

Einstein died in 1955 aged 76, lauded as one of the greatest theoretical physicists of all time. His theories of relativity revolutionised his field by introducing new ways of looking at the movement of objects in space and time.

In 1913 Besso and Einstein “attacked one of the problems that had been troubling the scientific community for decades: the anomaly of the planet Mercury’s orbit”, Christie’s said.

This initial manuscript contains “a certain number of unnoticed errors”, it added. Once Einstein spotted them, he let the paper drop, and it was taken away by Besso.

“Scientific documents by Einstein in this period, and before 1919 generally, are extremely rare,” Christie’s said. “Being one of only two working manuscripts documenting the genesis of the theory of general relativity that we know about, it is an extraordinary witness to Einstein’s work.”

Einstein also made major contributions to quantum mechanics theory and won the Nobel physics prize in 1921. He became a pop culture icon thanks to his dry witticisms and trademark unruly hair, moustache and bushy eyebrows.

Late capitalism - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Late_capitalism

Late capitalism, or late-stage capitalism

The Failure of Speculative Capitalism

https://www.catholiceducation.org/.../the-failure-of-speculative-capitalism.html

The Failure of Speculative Capitalism. While the media blames good old-fashioned greed, the reasons are more complex, involving financial practices that constitute a "structure of sin." Since the global financial crisis began in September, stock markets around the world have careened hundreds of points up and down almost every day, sometimes

The Crisis and Speculative Capitalism - MLToday

https://mltoday.com/the-crisis-and-speculative-capitalism

2008-03-15 · Contemporary speculative capitalism relies more on the tools of game theory, computational speed, statistical analysis, and, in far too many cases, inside or privileged information. It is one thing to acquire all the public information about market entities and weigh it in investment decisions, quite another to possess and use tools that guarantee an advantage in investment speculation.

Estimated Reading Time: 9 mins

The Crisis and Speculative Capitalism, Revisited - MLToday

https://mltoday.com/the-crisis-and-speculative-capitalism-revisited

2008-10-22 · Speculative capital, as we know it, developed at a particular time and place for reasons that reflect the evolution of the capitalist

Montrealer spends decades buying entire island to donate it to Nature Conservancy of Canada

Rachel Lau

CTVNewsMontreal.ca

Digital Reporter
Wednesday, November 24, 2021

Andrew Howick has donated Molson Island to the Nature Conservancy of Canada in the hopes of protecting it from development. (Nature Conservancy of Canada/Handout)

MONTREAL -- Andrew Howick has been busy over the last few decades buying property on Molson Island in Lac Memphrémagog in the hopes of protecting it from development.

Now, he's donating all 26 hectares -- about the same as 24 soccer fields -- to the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC).

"I was very anxious to make a gesture for conservation and for climate change and something that my children and grandchildren would be proud of," he said.

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The Stanstead resident says he had the possibility of selling the land, but was worried about what the future owner might do.

"I had some sleepless nights worrying about it," confessed the businessman, adding he's passionate about nature.

Howick's donation is part of the Government of Canada's Ecological Gifts Program, which provides tax benefits to individuals and corporations who donate ecologically sensitive land for conservation.

"Thanks to his generosity, Molson Island will remain protected from development and its biodiversity will continue to thrive," said Jensen Edwards, spokesperson for the Nature Conservancy of Canada.

The forested island boasts a variety of habitats, from rocky areas to riparian zones and a forested bog with a bed of moss.

“The Northern Green Mountains are one of the last remaining areas in southern Quebec where large tracts of wilderness are still relatively undisturbed," said Cynthia Patry, biologist and project manager for the Northern Green Mountains at the Nature Conservancy of Canada in Quebec.

According to the NCC, these natural spaces are vital for the protection of threatened or vulnerable plants in Quebec and Canada.

“Environments like Molson Island are becoming increasingly rare in Quebec," notes Environment Minister Benoit Charette. "I am pleased that Mr. Howick, a private landowner, sees the urgency of taking action to protect his island and is turning to NCC to help him in his efforts."

Andrew Howick has donated Molson Island to the Nature Conservancy of Canada in the hopes of protecting it from development. (Nature Conservancy of Canada/Handout)

HOW IT STARTED

Howick says he and his family have admired Molson Island from their cottage since the 1980s.

"When Howick and six of his neighbours learned in the early 1990s that the island was being eyed for development, they decided they had to do something about it," the Nature Conservancy of Canada notes. "They rolled up their sleeves to contact the descendants of the Molson family and bought all the shares of the island from them."

Over time, Howick purchased the stocks from his neighbours and eventually became the sole owner.

"I hope that this gesture might serve as inspiration for people to give," Howick said. "If they have time to give, to volunteer, if they have a few dollars, to donate, or if they have a property, whatever is within their means."

WATCH Andrew Howick explains why he donated Molson Island to the NCC

British lawmakers want to change rules that ban babies in Parliament

CHAUVINIST SEXIST OLD BOYS CLUB

November 24, 2021
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Labour member of Parliament Stella Creasy carries her son, Pip, during a Westminster Hall debate in Parliament, London, on Tuesday, in a screen grab from House of Commons TV.House of Commons/PA via AP

LONDON — Several British politicians demanded a change in parliamentary rules on Wednesday after a lawmaker was told she couldn't bring her 3-month-old baby into the House of Commons.

Labour Party legislator Stella Creasy said she had received a letter from Commons authorities after she took her son Pip to a debate.

She said she had previously taken both Pip and her older daughter to Parliament without problems, but had been told the rules had changed in September. Members of Parliament are now advised that they "should not take your seat in the chamber when accompanied by your child."

THE TWO-WAY
Senator Becomes First To Breast-Feed On Floor Of Australia's Parliament

Creasy said the rule undermined efforts to make politics more family-friendly.
"There are barriers to getting mums involved in politics, and I think that damages our political debate," she told the BBC.

Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab, a Conservative, said he has "a lot of sympathy" for Creasy, but said the decision is for the House authorities to make.

"I think we do need to make sure our profession is brought into the modern world, the 21st century, and can allow parents to juggle the jobs they do with the family time that they need." Raab said.
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PARALLELS
Japanese Lawmaker's Baby Gets Booted From The Floor

Green Party lawmaker Caroline Lucas said the baby ban was "absurd." She said babies were "far less disruptive than many braying backbenchers."

House of Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said he had asked Parliament's procedure committee to review the rules, and noted that there were "differing views on this matter."

"The advice given yesterday ... correctly reflects the current rules. However, rules have to be seen in context and they change with the times," he said.

"It is extremely important that parents of babies and young children are able to participate fully in the work of this House."

THAT WOULD BE THE DISCOVERY OF LIFE

Alien organisms could hitch a ride on our spacecraft and contaminate Earth, scientists warn

The risk of invading alien organisms is low, but we're increasing the chances.

A concept image of alien organisms above Mars.

(Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library via Getty Images)

The growing demand for space exploration is increasing the chances of alien organisms invading Earth and of Earth-based organisms invading other planets, scientists have argued in a new paper.

The researchers point to humanity's record of moving species to new environments on Earth, where those organisms can become invasive and harm the native species; they say such behavior suggests the same could happen with alien life from another planet contaminating Earth and vice versa, according to the paper, published Nov. 17 in the journal BioScience.

"The search of life beyond our world is an exciting endeavour that could yield an enormous discovery in the not-too-distant future," lead author Anthony Ricciardi, a professor of invasion biology at McGill University in Montreal, told Live Science in an email. "However, in the face of increasing space missions (including those intended to return samples to Earth), it is crucial to reduce the risks of biological contamination in both directions."

Ricciardi and his colleagues use the paper to call for more collaborative studies between astrobiologists searching for extraterrestrial life and invasion biologists studying invasive species on Earth. "We can only speculate on what kinds of organisms might be encountered if astrobiologists were to find life," Ricciardi said. "The most plausible life-forms would be microbial and probably resemble bacteria."

The scientists consider the risk of interplanetary contamination to be extremely low, partly because the harsh conditions of outer space make it difficult for potential hitchhiking organisms to survive a ride on the outside of a human spacecraft. However, we should still be cautious of interplanetary contamination based on the negative impacts that invasive species have had on Earth, according to Ricciardi.

Humans have damaged ecosystems around the world by allowing organisms to invade new environments they'd never reach naturally. For example, a fungus from South America called Austropuccinia psidii was introduced to Australia in unknown circumstances and is taking over the country's native eucalyptus trees, stunting their growth and sometimes killing them.

The researchers noted that insular ecosystems that evolve in geographical isolation, such as on islands and in countries like Australia, are particularly vulnerable to invasive species, because the native wildlife in those places hasn't evolved adaptations to deal with such invaders. "Biological invasions have often been devastating for the plants and animals in these systems," Ricciardi said. "We argue that planets and moons potentially containing life should be treated as if they were insular systems."

For evidence of interplanetary contamination, the researchers cited the Israeli Beresheet spacecraft that crashed into the moon in 2019 while carrying thousands of tardigrades, microscopic animals that can survive extreme conditions, including the vacuum of space, Live Science previously reported. A 2021 study published in the journal Astrobiology concluded that the creatures probably wouldn't have survived the impact of the lunar crash but that the incident demonstrates the potential for biological spills.

Space agencies such as NASA have long been aware of the potential risks of biological contamination, and planetary protection policies have been in place since the 1960s, according to Ricciardi. "However, unprecedented risks are posed by a new era of space exploration aimed at targeting areas most likely to contain life," Ricciardi said. This includes the rise in private space exploration companies such as SpaceX that are making space more accessible, according to the paper. SpaceX, for example, aims to travel to Mars and beyond with its SpaceX Starship program.

The researchers suggest increasing biosecurity protocols associated with space travel, focusing on the early detection of potential biological contaminants and developing plans for a rapid response to any such detections.

Planets and moons have always exchanged material via meteorites, but human space exploration could accelerate contamination, said Jennifer Wadsworth, an astrobiologist at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Switzerland who was not involved in the paper.

The new paper is an "excellent overview" of the current and continuous need for strict and up-to-date planetary protection rules, Wadsworth said. One major issue is that current planetary protection guidelines are not mandatory, Wadsworth told Live Science.

"The line between exploration and conservation is a thin one," Wadsworth said. "One shouldn't be abandoned at the cost of the other, but both require careful consideration and, most importantly, compliance."

By Patrick Pester
Originally published on Live Science.

PANSPERMIA THEORY origin of life on Earth directed ...
https://www.panspermia-theory.com
Panspermia is a Greek word that translates literally as "seeds everywhere". The panspermia hypothesis states that the "seeds" of life exist all over the Universe and can be propagated through space from one location to another. Some believe that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds".
- Extremophiles · Videos · Lithopanspermia · Ballistic Panspermia ·

Malawi asks Mike Tyson to back budding cannabis sector

© Patrick T. FALLON

Malawi has approached American heavyweight boxing great Mike Tyson to become brand ambassador for the southern African country's nascent medicinal cannabis industry in a bid to attract investment.

The request was contained in a letter written to Tyson early this month and seen by AFP this week.

Tyson is expected to bring expertise and help start mass production as a member of a national cannabis industry association in the United States but is yet to respond to the proposition

Malawi decriminalised cannabis for medicinal and industrial purposes in 2020, following other African nations in seeking to profit from growing industrial demand for the hemp.

But the industry is struggling to grow, stalled by expensive licences and a lack of investors and buyers.

The government hopes Tyson's backing would "rope in some investors and even potential buyers," said agriculture ministry spokesman Gracian Lungu.

"We have been facing a lot of challenges and the progress has been very slow," Lungu told AFP on Wednesday.

The retired professional boxer has long advocated the legalisation of cannabis and launched his own brand of weed products last month.

But his potential appointment has raised controversy, with a Malawian think-tank accusing the government of seeking to collaborate with a "sex offender".

Tyson, 55, was found guilty in 1992 of raping an 18-year-old woman.

He was sentenced to six years' prison and four years' probation. He was released in 1995.

In a statement, the Centre for Public Accountability said it failed to "comprehend why Malawi would want to have a convicted rapist as its brand ambassador" amid government efforts to curb violence against women.

Lungu dismissed their concern, saying that Tyson was released on parole for good behaviour and had not committed any other crimes.

str-sch/sn/imm/ri

Mother knows best: How bat moms help pups navigate the world

A bat and her pup flying in a cave north of Tel Aviv (AFP/Sasha Danilovich)

Issam AHMED
Wed, November 24, 2021,

Mothers: they bring you into this world, shower you with care, and help you build up a mind map of local foraging sites while you're still a flightless pup latched to their nipples.

A new study published in Current Biology on Wednesday by Israeli researchers sheds light on how mammal parents help their young learn critical life skills -- in this case Egyptian fruit bats, as they soar through the night evading predators and finding figs.

"How animals, humans included, acquire their behavioral skills is a fundamental question," Yossi Yovel, a scientist at the University of Tel Aviv and one the paper's three authors told AFP.

"We know that animals do amazing things. Bats for instance navigate dozens of kilometers every night to forage, and we have always wondered how they learn to do so."

Many bat species carry their young in flight, but there is an energy cost in transporting a pup that can be up to 40 percent of the mother's own weight, and the benefits for the offspring were unclear. It was hypothesized -- but never proven -- this may be to facilitate learning in the young.

- GPS trackers -

To find out for sure, Yovel and his colleagues placed miniaturized GPS trackers on dozens of mother-pup pairs, as the offspring passed from dependence to independence.

Co-author Aya Goldshtein, said they were able to document a set of distinct patterns.

"At the beginning, the mother and pup are constantly attached, they fly together and the mother carries the pup during the entire night," she explained -- weeks one to three of the young mammal's life.

Next comes the "drop-off" phase when mothers carry their pups and park them on a tree a few kilometers (miles) from their colony.

At this stage, three to 10 weeks in, the mothers continuously return from foraging to check on their young, feeding them and helping warm them.

After that, at eight to 10 weeks, the pups start flying alone to the same drop-off sites during the night and returning to their roost before dawn -- though their mothers' work is not quite done, and they continue to check in.

"Imagine you have a teenager at home -- he's already kind of independent, but you also want to monitor he's not doing something stupid like not coming back to the house at the end of the night," said Goldshtein. Or, when pups fail to fly out alone, their mums carry them again.

Finally, at 10 weeks and beyond, the pups use the drop-off sites as starting points for independent exploration of new fruit trees.

In essence, the sites serve as navigational aids that help the young set out and return home.

As a control, the team raised some pups without their mothers, and found they often could not find their way back to their cave before sunrise.

In addition, the sites help mothers find wayward young.

"These trees are a bit like meeting points for lost-children in amusement parks," said Yovel.

The drop-off sites also serve as secondary roosts, and having many of them helps reduce the pups' exposure to predators such as owls.

- The 't' word -

"One of the craziest parts of the paper was the pup actually learns when he's attached upside down," said co-author Lee Harten. She added it's possible that "his eyes are open and he's actually gathering information while being passively transferred."

That in turn suggests the pups' brains invert the visual input into an upright image.

Harten said she was pleased to contribute to the scientific gap about how animals help their young learn -- particularly among bats, who comprise a fifth of all mammals on Earth but remain understudied.

While the team showed the bat mothers change what they do when they have children, invest energy in specific behavior, and their offspring learn as a result of that behavior, they are hesitant to use the word "teaching" in the study, which is seen as an anthropomorphism by the scientific community.

"In order to prove teaching -- you must show intention and this is very difficult with animals (you cannot simply ask them)," said Yovel.

"I would call this teaching, but to be careful, we say that they place the pups in a position that allows them to learn."

ia/ec

WORKERS WALK OUT FOR BETTER CONDITIONS AND PAY
A Colorado liquor-store owner says workers are quitting after one shift if they don't like it because they know they can get a new job on their lunch break

Mary Hanbury
Wed, November 24, 2021,

A help wanted sign on July 20.Thomas A. Ferrara/Newsday RM/Getty Images

The owner of a liquor store in Fort Collins, Colorado, said he was struggling to retain workers.

It's so easy to find work that some people are leaving after one shift to go elsewhere, he said.

For the first time in years, retail workers have more bargaining power in the labor market.

The owner of a liquor store in Fort Collins, Colorado, said the labor market in the US was so competitive that retaining workers was almost an impossible task.

In an interview with the local news site the Coloradoan, Wilbur's Total Beverage owner Mat Dinsmore said people were skipping interviews or quitting after one shift if they decided they didn't like the job. They can simply walk up Main Street and find a new job on their lunch break, he said.

"We have hired and hired, and the rate of attrition is exponentially what it's ever been," he told the Coloradoan.

"We never had problems attracting and retaining people. With the 'Great Resignation,' a lot of people were saying they didn't want to go back to customer-facing jobs," he said, citing the risks of getting COVID-19.

Wilbur's is among the retail businesses in the US that are struggling to find workers who have been put off by low pay, a lack of benefits, and pandemic health concerns, among other things.

Some are raising wages or offering perks such as free college tuition to attract workers. Others are being forced to close because they can't find enough staff.

For the first time in years, workers have more bargaining power and the opportunity to pick and choose the best-paying or most stable jobs.

Experts say it isn't only higher wages enticing workers to enter different fields. Other aspects, such as flexibility in working schedules, have also played a part.

"People are leaving because they're not feeling valued; they're not feeling as though when they bring something to a manager that they are being listened to, especially if it's a challenge," Adam Crowe, a business-development manager at Larimer County Workforce Center, which helps businesses find workers, told the Coloradoan.

"It's hard to say they need to be more empathetic because that feels like a slap in the face," he added.

"Over time, businesses will learn that lesson. Empathy has strong ties to production," he said. "If you take the time to really understand the needs, values, skills, and attributes of individual employees, they'll know how to support them in the very best way."

Russian Court to Consider Closure

of Top Rights Group; Memorial

STALIN WANTED TO BE CZAR TOO

November 24, 2021

Agence France-Presse

MOSCOW, RUSSIA —

Russia's Supreme Court on Thursday will consider a request to shut down Memorial, the country's most prominent rights group and a pillar of its civil society.

Founded by Soviet dissidents including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Andrei Sakharov in 1989, Memorial has built up a huge archive of Soviet-era crimes and campaigned tirelessly for human rights in Russia.

Prosecutors have asked the court to dissolve Memorial International, the group's central structure, for allegedly violating Russia's controversial law on "foreign agents."

The move has sparked widespread outrage, with supporters saying the shuttering of Memorial would mark the end of an era in Russia's post-Soviet democratization.

It comes in a year that has seen an unprecedented crackdown on opponents of President Vladimir Putin, including the jailing of chief Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny and the banning of his organizations.

By taking the once-unimaginable move to close Memorial, the group's founders say Russian authorities would be sending a signal to both the West and domestic opponents.

The message, Memorial founding member Irina Shcherbakova told AFP ahead of the hearing, is: "We are doing to civil society here whatever we want. We will put behind bars whoever we want, we will close down whoever we want."

Thursday's hearing concerns one of two cases brought this month against the group and is being heard by the Supreme Court because Memorial International is registered as an international body. The ruling will not be open to appeal in a Russian court.

The other case, against the Memorial Human Rights Centre, began in a Moscow court on Tuesday and will continue later this month.

Both Memorial International and the Human Rights Centre are accused of violating rules under their designations as "foreign agents," a legal label that forces individuals or organizations to disclose sources of funding and tag all their publications with a disclaimer.

Cataloging Soviet atrocities

The Human Rights Centre is facing another charge of defending "extremist and terrorist activities" for publishing lists of imprisoned members of banned political or religious movements.

The "foreign agent" label, laden with Soviet-era connotations of treachery and espionage, has been used against a wide range of rights groups and independent media in recent years.

Memorial has spent decades cataloging atrocities committed in the Soviet Union, especially in the notorious network of prison camps, the gulag.

It has also campaigned for the rights of political prisoners, migrants and other marginalized groups, and highlighted abuses especially in the turbulent North Caucasus region that includes Chechnya.

It is a loose structure of locally registered organizations, but the dissolving of its central structure could have a major impact on operations.

Memorial International maintains the group's extensive archives in Moscow and coordinates dozens of Memorial-linked NGOs in and outside of Russia.

A board member of Memorial International, Oleg Orlov, told AFP the move would greatly complicate the work of the NGO by depriving it of a legal basis to pay employees, receive funds or store archives.

Supporters speak out

United Nations officials, the Council of Europe, international rights groups and Western governments have all warned against the group being disbanded.

Russia's two surviving Nobel Peace Prize winners — last Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and Novaya Gazeta newspaper editor Dmitry Muratov — urged prosecutors to withdraw their claims.

The two said in a joint statement that Memorial was aimed not only at preserving the memory of Soviet-era repression, but at "preventing this from happening now and in the future."

The Kremlin has said the case is a matter for the courts, though Putin's spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, noted that Memorial has "long had issues with observing Russian legislation."

Taiwan's Golden Horse A Holdout For Uncensored Chinese Cinema

By Amber Wang with Holmes Chan and Su Xinqi in Hong Kong
11/24/21

With no mainstream Chinese films showing for the third year running, Taiwan's top film festival may have lost some lustre, but directors and critics say it remains a crucial bulwark against Beijing's censors.

Long dubbed the Chinese-language "Oscars", the Golden Horse Film Awards will kick off in Taipei on Saturday -- again without the legion of Chinese filmmakers and stars who once used to walk the red carpet.

It ran afoul of Beijing when a Taiwanese director called for the island's independence in an acceptance speech at the 2018 ceremony, triggering an official boycott the following year.

China claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory to be retaken one day, by force if necessary.

There were no mainland films in the 2019 nomination list after China's national film board ordered directors and actors to boycott the event.

Kiwi Chow says the Golden Horse awards have now become "a free outlet especially for Hong Kong movies that cannot be distributed in Hong Kong"

Photo: AFP / ISAAC LAWRENCE

Several Hong Kong films dropped out while international sponsors cut ties with the awards that year under pressure from Beijing.

While plans to boycott were not spelt out the following two years, commercial mainland cinema and some advertisers have continued to steer clear.

Hong Kong director Jun Li, whose social drama "Drifting" is a frontrunner at this year's awards, said it was "obvious" that strained relations between China and Taiwan have affected the awards.

"Anyone would be lying if they tell you they don't feel the tension," he told AFP.

Li's film has the most nominations at 12, including best film and best director, and it tackles Hong Kong's notorious inequality with a story of homeless people taking authorities to court.

This file picture shows Taiwanese actress Karena Lam, winner of the best actress Golden Horse award in 2015

Photo: AFP / Sandy Cheng

Chinese films once dominated Golden Horse nominations but last year and this year saw just two films from the mainland in the running for best documentary and best animated short film.

According to organisers, over 200 Chinese and Hong Kong films submitted for competition this year, although film industry sources say they were mostly independent productions unlikely to hit theatres.

Analysts say mainstream Chinese cinema stayed away for fear of repercussions.

"For mega-production Chinese commercial movies, submitting to the Golden Horse awards can be courting trouble," Wonder Weng, from the Taiwan Film Critics Society, told AFP.

Weng added that the Golden Roosters -- the mainland's own premier film awards -- was being held this year on the same night as the Golden Horse bash.

This year two Hong Kong films that explore the city's 2019 pro-democracy protests are nominated

Photo: AFP / Philip FONG

"This apparently sends a message that there is a rivalry," he said.

Golden Horse continues to nominate the kind of films that would never get past China's censors.

This year two Hong Kong films that explore the city's 2019 pro-democracy protests, as well as a Chinese documentary about Tibet, are nominated.

A Chinese animation seen as a metaphor for Hong Kong's unrest and Beijing's authoritarian rule has also been given a nod.

China has imposed a sweeping national security law in Hong Kong, once a thriving cinema hub, to crush dissent, and new mainland style political censorship rules have been introduced for films.

In one recent example, authorities blocked the screening of Taiwanese short film "Piglet Piglet" unless scenes relating to the island's 2020 elections were removed, which the director refused.

Film critic Weng says the Golden Horse awards "sets the benchmark" for Chinese-language cinema as the only platform open to all subjects.

Last year, two Hong Kong films that cast an uncomfortable spotlight on China won accolades, and one of the winners proclaimed support for democracy activists in an acceptance speech read by a representative.

"I think the award has now become a free outlet especially for Hong Kong movies that cannot be distributed in Hong Kong," said Hong Kong director Kiwi Chow, who has a nomination this year.

"It gives film producers a way out under the current political climate," he told AFP.

Chow's "Revolution of Our Times," which takes its name from a pro-democracy protest slogan, is contending for best documentary and has never been shown commercially in Hong Kong.

He has also sold the rights and masters overseas to avoid Hong Kong's new censorship and national security laws.

Fellow Hong Kongers Rex Ren and Lam Sum are vying for best new director for their feature film "May You Stay Forever Young", which is also set against the backdrop of the pro-democracy protests.

Another critics' top pick for best documentary is "Dark Red Forest" by Chinese director Jin Huaqing, on how some 20,000 Tibetan nuns are forced to give up practising their faith under China's rule.

"I am gratified to see that the (Golden Horse) awards have managed to keep their courage," Chow told AFP. "I think that's also what art is meant to pursue."

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment