It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Sunday, September 15, 2024
WOMAN LIFE FREEDOM
34 Iran women prisoners go on hunger strike: jailed Nobel peace laureate
Thirty-four women prisoners went on hunger strike in an Iranian prison on Sunday to mark two years since protests erupted against clerical authorities, the foundation of Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi said.
“Today, on the 15th September 2024, 34 female political prisoners in Evin Prison have gone on a hunger strike in commemoration of the second anniversary of the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ movement and the killing of Mahsa (Jina) Amini,” it said.
Amini was a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd whose death in custody after her arrest for allegedly violating the strict dress code for women sparked the demonstrations.
The prisoners had abstained from food “in solidarity with the protesting people of Iran, against the government’s oppressive policies,” the foundation added.
Mohammadi, who has campaigned against the compulsory wearing of the hijab and the death penalty in Iran, has been in Tehran’s Evin prison since November 2021. She has spent much of the past decade in and out of jail and has staged repeated hunger strikes.
“On the second anniversary of the ‘Women, Life, Freedom’ movement, we reaffirm our commitment to achieving democracy, freedom, and equality and to defeating theocratic despotism,” Mohammadi said in a statement on her official X account. “Today, we raise our voices louder and strengthen our resolve.”
Mohammadi’s children received the Nobel Peace Price on her behalf in 2023 while she was incarcerated.
According to her family, she was on hunger strike at the time in solidarity with the Baha’i community, Iran’s largest religious minority who say they are targeted by discrimination.
UN experts last month accused Iran of denying Mohammadi proper healthcare.
She “was reportedly subjected to physical violence” in Evin on August 6, during which she “allegedly lost consciousness, and sustained injuries to her ribcage and other parts of her body”, the experts said.
Iranian authorities acknowledged a confrontation had taken place, but blamed Mohammadi for “provocation” and denied any prisoners had been beaten.
Women-led protests erupted after Amini died in custody on September 16, 2022. The protests rattled Iran’s leadership that autumn and winter, but authorities crushed them, with rights group Amnesty International saying security forces used assault rifles and shotguns in the crackdown.
Human rights groups say at least 551 people were killed. Thousands more were arrested, according to the United Nations.
Indigenous Peoples Summit in Omaha draws national tribal leaders and a dispute over lunch
OMAHA — It was not a walk that participants in the annual Indigenous Peoples Summit wanted to take on an 86-degree afternoon.
But they did — on principle, and to underscore a key reason that brought some 125 leaders of tribal governments, Indigenous groups and others together in the first place: a quest to reclaim cultural power and traditions.
What pushed conferees on Friday to walk the quarter-mile from a University of Nebraska at Omaha auditorium to Elmwood Park for lunch — many in jingle dresses and other traditional regalia — was that they were not permitted to bring food from a preferred culturally-sensitive caterer onto UNO grounds.
UNO has an exclusive contract with Sodexo, a global food services company. Efforts by summit organizers to find a work-around were rejected, so they took their lunch hour off campus.
“We were put into a place where we would have had to compromise our dignity and traditions,” Sheelah Bearfoot of the Chiricahau Apache Nation told the Nebraska Examiner.
More at stake than lunch
Choosing to walk to the park was inconvenient, particularly for the elders who were offered rides. But Bearfoot, an environmental justice advocate, and other planners of the event said there was more at stake than lunch.
Friday’s gathering was about empowerment, rebuilding Native Nations, reaching economic sovereignty, climate justice, sacred sites and traditional ecological knowledge.
The group sought to strengthen partnerships, create opportunities, to learn and to share successes. Expert speakers represented an array of tribes and academia from as far away as Zimbabwe, where Aya Khourshid, a climate and social researcher joined virtually to talk about rethinking economies.
After morning workshops, waiting for the group at the Elmwood Park pavilion was a colorful spread prepared by Anthony Warrior, a Nebraska-based chef specializing in Indigenous-inspired cuisine, including braised bison with Umoⁿhoⁿ Nation corn medley, white earth wind rice and patty pan squash.
The group walked back to UNO’s Milo Bail Student Center for afternoon programs.
Speakers included State Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha, who welcomed the group to his district and offered to help with legislative efforts, and State Sen. Terrell McKinney of North Omaha, who has battled for Native American issues including a law that protects public school students from discrimination based on cultural hairstyles, tribal regalia and headdress and funding for a Chief Standing Bear museum.
‘No solution is too far’
McKinney, in response to a question on how to craft state policy, said that any legislative initiative should keep top of mind the “core of who you are.”
“But be as creative, as bold as you can be … no solution is too far,” McKinney said.
During the same panel on economic sovereignty, Luis Marcos, co-founder of Comunidad Maya Pixim, noted the significance of the luncheon dilemma.
He said Indigenous and tribal governments want to be respected and treated as sovereign nations.
Victoria Kohout, chief of external relations for UNO, said Sodexo is the exclusive caterer for all main campus buildings except the Thompson Alumni Center. She said it’s a setup that’s common practice for universities.
“When will this stop?” Marcos said, amplifying his voice to conferees. He referred to an earlier conference discussion that delved into ways to rebuild sovereignty and authority stolen from Indigenous people.
“When will we be recognized as sovereign nations?”
Missty Slater, chief of staff for the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska, said it’s unlikely anyone will be able to “codify culture” or make culture a law or a business.
But she said leaders can “push the needle” to incorporate more cultural values into policy. Band together and shun industries and businesses causing harm to Native communities and goals, she said. “Hurt their bottom dollar.”
For Indigenous people, Slater said, money is more of a “medium goal.” The larger goal of economic development is creating a positive impact on a collective community. National model
Panelist Perry Worden of Bridgepoint Investment Banking, who also is vice president of Comunidad Maya Pixan Ixim, told the summit that Nebraska-based Ho-Chunk Inc. has become a national model for self-empowerment.
Ho-Chunk Inc., for example, has WarHorse Casino, farmland, housing, and companies that manufacture and distribute Native American tobacco products.
The ancestral name for the Winnebago Tribe is Hochungra, often truncated as Ho-Chunk. Worden said the tribe’s holding company ventures have been able to help create generational wealth, which leads to economic independence.
Friday’s summit continued an annual gathering of pan-Indigenous communities. Last year’s event took place over two days in various Omaha area locations including a sacred water ceremony on the banks of the Missouri River. Nebraska Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Nebraska Examiner maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Cate Folsom for questions: info@nebraskaexaminer.com. Follow Nebraska Examiner on Facebook and X.
WW 3.0
NATO military committee chair, others back Ukraine's use of long range weapons to hit Russia
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NATO's Chair of the Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer listens during the plenary session of the Seoul Defense Dialogue in Seoul, South Korea, Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)
PRAGUE--The head of NATO's military committee said Saturday that Ukraine has the solid legal and military right to strike deep inside Russia to gain combat advantage — reflecting the beliefs of a number of U.S. allies — even as the Biden administration balks at allowing Kyiv to do so using American-made weapons.
“Every nation that is attacked has the right to defend itself. And that right doesn’t stop at the border of your own nation,” said Adm. Rob Bauer, speaking at the close of the committee's annual meeting, also attended by U.S. Gen. CQ Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Bauer, of Netherlands, also added that nations have the sovereign right to put limits on the weapons they send to Ukraine. But, standing next to him at a press briefing, Lt. Gen. Karel Řehka, chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces, made it clear his nation places no such weapons restrictions on Kyiv.
“We believe that the Ukrainians should decide themselves how to use it,” Řehka said.
Their comments came as U.S. President Joe Biden is weighing whether to allow Ukraine to use American-provided long-range weapons to hit deep into Russia. And they hint at the divisions over the issue.
Biden met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday, after this week’s visit to Kyiv by their top diplomats, who came under fresh pressure to loosen weapons restrictions. U.S. officials familiar with discussions said they believed Starmer was seeking Biden’s approval to allow Ukraine to use British Storm Shadow missiles for expanded strikes in Russia.
Biden’s approval may be needed because Storm Shadow components are made in the U.S. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to share the status of private conversations, said they believed Biden would be amenable, but there has been no decision announced yet.
Providing additional support and training for Ukraine was a key topic at the NATO chiefs’ meeting, but it wasn't clear Saturday if the debate over the U.S. restrictions was discussed.
Many of the European nations have been vigorously supportive of Ukraine in part because they worry about being the next victim of an empowered Russia.
At the opening of the meeting, Czech Republic President Petr Pavel broadly urged the military chiefs gathered in the room to be ”bold and open in articulating your assessments and recommendations. The rounder and the softer they are, the less they will be understood by the political level.”
The allies, he said, must “take the right steps and the right decisions to protect our countries and our way of life.”
The military leaders routinely develop plans and recommendations that are then sent to the civilian NATO defense secretaries for discussion and then on to the nations' leaders in the alliance.
The U.S. allows Ukraine to use American-provided weapons in cross-border strikes to counter attacks by Russian forces. But it doesn’t allow Kyiv to fire long-range missiles, such as the ATACMS, deep into Russia. The U.S. has argued that Ukraine has drones that can strike far and should use ATACMS judiciously because they only have a limited number.
Ukraine has increased its pleas with Washington to lift the restrictions, particularly as winter looms and Kyiv worries about Russian gains during the colder months.
“You want to weaken the enemy that attacks you in order to not only fight the arrows that come your way, but also attack the archer that is, as we see, very often operating from Russia proper into Ukraine,” said Bauer. “So militarily, there’s a good reason to do that, to weaken the enemy, to weaken its logistic lines, fuel, ammunition that comes to the front. That is what you want to stop, if at all possible.”
Brown, for his part, told reporters traveling with him to the meeting that the U.S. policy on long-range weapons remains in place.
But, he added, “by the same token, what we want to do is — regardless of that policy — we want to continue to make Ukraine successful with the capabilities that have been provided” by the U.S. and other nations in the coalition, as well as the weapons Kyiv has been able to build itself.
“They’ve proven themselves fairly effective in building out uncrewed aerial vehicles, in building out drones,” Brown told reporters traveling with him to meetings in Europe.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has made similar points, arguing that one weapons system won't determine success in the war.
“There are a number of things that go into the overall equation as to whether or not you know you want to provide one capability or another," Austin said Friday. “There is no silver bullet when it comes to things like this.”
He also noted that Ukraine has already been able to strike inside Russia with its own internally produced systems, including drones.
ORNITHOLOGY
Hawk-eyed man in Papua New Guinea snaps photo of threatened bird feared lost for over 50 years
The New Britain goshawk is found on only Papua New Guinea’s New Britain island and is considered threatened, though information about its status is sparse. PHOTO: AFP
Sep 13, 2024,
BANGKOK – A hawk-eyed photographer has thrilled scientists by snapping a photo of a threatened bird of prey in Papua New Guinea, more than five decades since it was last officially documented, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said Sept 13.
The New Britain goshawk is found on only Papua New Guinea’s New Britain island and is considered threatened, though information about its status is sparse.
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature estimates there are between 2,500 and 10,000 mature individuals in the wild, but the bird’s elusive nature makes details hard to confirm.
In fact, the bird is so unusual that Fiji-based photographer Tom Vierus did not even realise what he captured until later.
“It was such a great surprise to hear that this photo seems to be the first-ever of this ‘lost species’,” he said in a statement issued by WWF, an environmental non-governmental organisation.
The last scientific documentation of the species appears to be a 1969 specimen now kept in a US museum, according to Mr John Mittermeier, director of the Search for Lost Birds at the American Bird Conservancy.
While there have been sporadic reported sightings, “the New Britain goshawk seems to have eluded photo, sound, and specimen documentation for 55 years”, he said.
WWF said the discovery highlighted the importance of protecting the area from threats including logging and mining.
Much of Papua New Guinea’s population lives below the poverty line, and many officials are keen to welcome companies to exploit vast reserves of gold, copper, nickel, natural gas and timber.
It is also home to the world’s third-largest intact tropical forest, according to WWF, and environmentalists warn little research has been done on the diverse and rich ecosystems now at risk.
AFP
Ornithologists confirm first whiskered tern breeding in Nepal
The bird was spotted nesting at Jagadishpur Lake Bird Reserve in Kapilvastu, where it has hatched chicks.
A pair of Thimaha Fyalfyale chicks pictured in their nest.
Photo: courtesy of DR SK Singh
Manoj Paudel Published at : September 15, 2024 Kapilvastu
Whiskered tern, locally known as ‘Thimaha Fyalfyale,’ has propagated in Nepal, reportedly for the first time. The bird was spotted nesting at Jagadishpur Lake Bird Reserve in Kapilvastu, where it has hatched chicks.
Dr SK Singh from Janakpur captured the photographs of five chicks from two nests located at the northeastern edge of a mound in the middle of the reserve. “While boating, a whiskered tern nearly pecked at my head,” said Singh, who is a physician by profession and has recently developed a passion for wildlife photography. “Proceeding with caution, I noticed two nests with chicks.”
He managed to photograph three chicks in one nest and two in the other before retreating to avoid disturbing them. Anil Chaudhary, a nature guide accompanying him, observed 60-70 whiskered terns flying and resting in the area. He estimated that there were at least 15-20 nests.
The whiskered terns are typically found near seas, rivers, and wetlands across Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Senior ornithologist Hemsagar Baral confirmed that this is the first recorded instance of the species breeding in Nepal. “It’s good news for the country,” he said. “This will attract more attention to eco-tourism.”
Last year, in the last week of August, wildlife photographers Sugam Tamrakar and Pemba Sherpa spotted whiskered tern nests at Jagadishpur Lake, while Nishan Baral discovered nests near Koshi Bridge. However, once the news broke, an influx of photographers at Jagadishpur caused the birds to abandon their nests. Unfortunately, Baral was unable to follow up on the nesting activities at Koshi.
This year, the successful breeding of black-winged stilts at Jagadishpur has added another attraction to the site. “We are delighted,” said Deepak Bahadur Gurung, the chairman of ward 9 in Kapilvastu Municipality. He noted that stricter measures have been implemented this year to prevent disturbance to the birds inside the lake, ensuring they can rear their chicks undisturbed.
Singh, who originally came to photograph pheasant-tailed jacanas, locally known as jal apsara, expressed his joy at setting a new record for the country by photographing the whiskered tern chicks.
A whiskered tern captured at Jagadishpur Birds Reserve in Kapilvastu.
Photo: courtesy of DR SK Singh
The whiskered terns are irregular winter visitors to Nepal and a migratory species during spring. Although there hasn’t been specific research on where the birds migrate from, ornithologists speculate that they may come from around the Arabian Sea.
While common in other countries, it is a rare migratory visitor to Nepal. This bird is notoriously difficult to photograph, except during nesting season, due to its highly restless nature, ornithologists say.
The whiskered tern builds its nests using aquatic plants and twigs on the water. Of the eight tern species, this one primarily feeds on insects and small invertebrates. In the breeding season, it is distinguishable by its white face, black head, and light-coloured lower body.
In 1982, more than 400 whiskered terns were recorded at Koshi Barrage. Forty-one years later, nearly 100 were spotted at Jagadishpur last year, according to ornithologist Hathan Chaudhary. He suggested that the impacts of climate change and rising sea temperatures may have prompted these birds to select Nepal’s wetlands as a safer breeding ground.
Jagadishpur lake, which was listed as a Ramsar wetland site in 2003, was declared a bird sanctuary, the country’s second, in July 2022. The lake is spread over an area of 157 hectares across Kapilvastu Municipality’s wards 9 and 10, and is located some 11 kilometres north of Taulihawa, the district headquarters of Kapilvastu.
The lake has become a favoured spot for nesting birds due to its rich biodiversity, said ornithologist Krishna Prasad Bhusal. “The lake’s environment is currently very bird-friendly, attracting various species to nest and rear their young.”
Whiskered terns typically lay eggs in July-August, with chicks hatching by August-September. They rear their young for two to three months before migrating back to their summer grounds.
The lake, often considered a birdwatcher’s paradise, provides a sanctuary for waterfowl in Nepal. According to an IUCN Nepal study, the lake is home to 43 species of fish, 10 species of amphibians, 42 species of reptiles, and 32 species of mammals.
Moreover, as many as 167 bird species have been recorded in the area, including 92 resident species, nine that visit during the summer, 64 winter visitors, and three partial migrants. The lake also hosts globally endangered species such as the fishing cat and eight other rare bird species.
Manoj Paudel is the Kapilvastu correspondent for Kantipur Publications.
Pair of taxidermied huia could fetch $128k at London auction
14 September 2024
A pair of huia being auctioned by Roseberys in London. Photo: Supplied / Roseberys
A pair of taxidermied huia are expected to fetch up to NZ$128,000 when they are auctioned in London in October.
The birds - a male and a female - date to the late 1800s, auctioneer Roseberys said.
"Specimens of these striking songbirds are rarely seen on the market and displays showcasing both a male and female bird are even harder to come by."
Huia were once widespread throughout the North Island, but populations declined swiftly following human settlement and the last confirmed sighting was in 1907.
The birds had a special place in Māori culture, with their highly prized tail feathers often being worn to denote status.
Male huia, pictured, had shorter, straighter beaks than the females. Photo: Supplied / Roseberys
Roseberys described the taxidermied pair as being "eye-catching" examples of huia, with "deep metallic, bluish-black plumage, orange wattles and long white-tipped tail feathers ... in very good condition".
The auction was "a rare opportunity to acquire a fine example of an extinct species", the auctioneers said.
The birds are expected to go for between £40,000 and £60,000 (NZ$85,000-$128,000). Bidding starts at £28,000 (NZ$60,000).
Being auctioned in the same lot are a Louis Vuitton monogrammed canvas wardrobe trunk from the 1920s, and a piece of fruit cake from the 1947 wedding reception of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
NEPAL
How technology helped Subedi, a mushroom farmer
TECHNOLOGY THE NEW FORDISM
A returnee from a foreign land, Subedi sold mushrooms worth Rs20 million last year.
This year, he aims to double the income.
The AC chamber involves cooling, humidity, heating, CO2 control, fresh and return air mixing, exhaust and microcirculation.
Kamal Subedi brought home around Rs20 million last year selling mushrooms. This year, he aims to double his income.
Mushroom grower Subedi has a farm in Padampur, Kalila municipality, producing two varieties—oyster and button.
Last year, Subedi cultivated button mushrooms for only three months. This year, he prepared an air conditioner (AC) for mushroom cultivation, which he can use to produce mushrooms around the year.
The AC chamber involves cooling, humidity, heating, CO2 control, fresh and return air mixing, exhaust and microcirculation. This equipment efficiently controls the climate for mushrooms in various air conditioning systems.
Subedi expects that, as button mushrooms are comparatively more expensive, production round the year would double his income.
Subedi, originally from Nawalparasi, went to Belgium in 2002. He trained for two years on mushroom farming during his five-year stay in the European country.
He also migrated to other countries for a job and returned to Nepal four years ago.
Initially, he worked in another person's mushroom farm.
“After returning from the foreign country, I worked on mushroom farms in Bhairahawa and Jugedi,” said Subedi.
In December 2022, he leased a land plot in Padampur and started growing mushrooms.
Starting with an initial investment of Rs500,000, he gradually expanded the investment. Observing good income from mushrooms throughout the year, Subedi installed an AC chamber.
Production grew significantly after the installation of the AC chamber.
“Though it is called an AC chamber, it is an air handling unit. This technology creates appropriate humidity and temperature for mushroom production,” Subedi said.
An AC chamber costs around Rs1.1 million.
Subedi has 12 such chambers. The provincial government provided him with a subsidy for one unit, and he managed to purchase 11 AC chambers on his own.
“I have invested Rs40 million in total. Of that, Rs20.5 million is from loans,” Subedi said.
Though the price of oyster mushrooms fluctuates, the price of button mushrooms is stable around the year, Subedi said. “Sometimes, from Rs200 a kg, the price of mushrooms drops suddenly, and I have to sell it for as low as Rs100 per kg.”
He said that button mushrooms fetched up to Rs350 a kg. “With that income and demand for button mushrooms in mind, I prepared for commercial farming and installed the AC chambers.”
AC chamber technology for mushroom farming is new in Nepal. Mushrooms are being produced with its use in Bhairahawa, Sarlahi, Gaidakot, Jugedi, and Kathmandu.
“I learned the skill in a foreign country and started producing something in my own country. I have a plan to take mushroom cultivation forward in a more manageable way with new technology,” Subedi said.
Kalika Municipality produces mushrooms worth more than Rs40 million annually, said Mayor Binod Regmi. “There are 80 households involved in mushroom farming.”
The farmers have started using new technology for the crop, which has made some of them entrepreneurs and generated jobs.
Most of the mushroom is grown in ward 2 of Kalika Municipality.
“Since last year, I’ve started producing mushroom seed as well. The sales of seeds are also going well,” said Subedi. He has hired 26 workers. However, it is difficult to retain them.
Subedi has also imported the equipment from New Delhi, India, to sprinkle water in the chamber.
Seventy percent of the mushroom he produces is consumed in Chitwan while the rest is supplied to Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Surkhet.
Farmers who have installed AC chambers require electricity 24 hours. Any fluctuation in power supply affects production.
KOREA
Only 12 pct of unsafe food imports taken off market for disposal: report
SEOUL, Sept. 15 (Yonhap) -- Only about 12 percent of food imports determined to be unsafe have actually been taken off the market, a lawmaker said Sunday, citing related government data.
According to the data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, an average of 12.5 percent of 141 import food items that had been ordered to be recalled since 2022 have actually been removed from the local market.
An investigator from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety shows a range of fake products imported from China, in this file photo taken July 25, 2024. (Yonhap)
Rep. Seo Mi-hwa of the main opposition Democratic Party said some of the recalled food items had a collection rate of over 80 percent, but that the rates for more than 90 recalled items were below 10 percent.
For instance, a type of dried mushrooms from China had been banned after it was found they contained prohibited substances, but none of the 3,550 kilograms that had already been imported and sold have made it back to the seller to be disposed of, the data showed.
Also, 144,000 kg of Vietnamese chili pepper had been ordered to be recalled for excessive pesticide residues, but only about 115 kg have so far been collected from the market.
A ministry official said the government works to "quickly retrieve affected products off the market when there is a recall order while informing consumers to return such products to the place of their purchase."
"But there are difficulties in retrieving products that have already been sold as they are often consumed before a recall order is put in place or disposed of by the consumers themselves," the official added.
Seo stressed the need for the food safety agency to conduct their food safety tests "more swiftly" so that "necessary steps can be taken before large quantities of unfit foodstuffs are distributed."
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)
GENDER APARTHEID
Barred from sports, Afghan women seek relief in secretive exercise
They exercise secretively for a health and peace of mind in a country where the Taliban government has stopped women from playing sports.
Sep 15, 2024
KABUL - Most mornings after praying, 25-year-old Sanah joins several women from her neighbourhood in the Afghan capital Kabul for a walk along the main road before it fills with traffic, never jogging or getting too near to the many Taliban checkpoints.
They exercise secretively – and not for competition, but for a modicum of health and peace of mind in a country where the Taliban government has stopped women from playing sports.
“We cannot go near the Taliban checkpoint because they say, ‘Why are you outside the house so early? Where are you going? Why do you need to exercise? You don’t have to, so don’t’,” said Ms Sanah, whose name has been changed – along with all the women interviewed by AFP – for fear of reprisal.
The Taliban authorities have implemented an austere interpretation of Islamic law, with women bearing the brunt of restrictions that the UN has labelled “gender apartheid”.
In November 2022, the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice announced that women were barred from parks and gyms on the grounds they were not adhering to a dress code that orders them to cover up.
Gyms had previously offered time slots for women, and while some informal women-only fitness clubs still exist, they are rare and low profile.
Ms Sanah and one of her companions, Ms Latifah, who is middle-aged, used to walk in large, tree-lined parks in the city.
The last time Ms Latifah went to the park near her house, not long after they were permanently closed to women, she said she was forcibly removed, crying anew as she recalls the incident.
“The doctor told me to exercise more because I have high cholesterol and a fatty liver, but the Taliban won’t let us exercise or go to the gym or walk (freely) outside,” she said.
Ms Sanah yearns to become a yoga teacher, and guides the group through some gentle aerobic exercises and meditation after their walk.
Pressing her thumb and forefinger together on her knees in the yellow dawn light, away from prying eyes on a protected balcony, Ms Sanah says softly: “Take a deep breath.” Boxing in secret
Forced out of their gym, 19-year-old Rayan and a few fellow women boxers instead visit a friend’s home and use what little equipment they have to practise in a society that was already hostile to women in sport, but has now turned draconian.
“We train less, but we never stopped,” said Ms Rayan, watching a video on her phone in which her fists fly in jabs and hooks – a bittersweet reminder of the avid boxer she once was.
Pulling her headscarf off in a private garden in the Kabul heat, fellow former competitive boxer Bahar said the situation had left her and other Afghan women stressed, exhausted and low.
“But when we box, it pushes all that away for a moment. Even if we only train for a few minutes, it makes a big difference,” the 20-year-old said, the henna from her recent wedding still staining her hands.
Her husband does not know she still boxes.
Many women athletes fled Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover.
Some still compete on the international stage, including at the recent Paris Olympics, but they come from outside the country and under the flag of the ousted Republic.
The Taliban authorities are not officially recognised by any state.
“In Afghanistan, girls’ sports have been stopped. When girls’ sport isn’t practised, how can they join the national team?“ said Mr Atal Mashwani, spokesman for the Taliban government’s sports directorate. ‘Give them hope’
Ms Banafsha, a black belt in the Chinese martial art of wushu, voiced the mixed feelings echoed by others about Afghan women’s Olympic participation.
The Afghan team in Paris had three men and three women, while Afghan women also competed in the Refugee Team.
“It made me happy that women haven’t surrendered yet, they are committed to their goals,” she said. “But I was also sad. Why can’t they go to the Olympics from within their own country?“
The former national competitor burned her uniform when the Taliban took power.
These days, she can barely leave the house and struggles to motivate herself to practise, feeling “hopeless and heartbroken”.
Ms Hasina Hussain Zada, who works for Free to Run, an organisation focused on women’s empowerment through sports, said while there is a range of online exercise videos and classes, they cannot replace in-person training, being in a team or exercising outdoors.
“We tell our participants to think about it as if it were Covid-19,” said the 28-year-old, who fled to Canada after the Taliban takeover.
She has worked since 2018 with the non-profit, which is still supporting women in Afghanistan in indoor exercise – albeit “cautiously and secretly”.
“You don’t need to think about the Taliban, the rules... just think about it as if it were Covid time when everyone was doing their exercises at home,” she said.
“We’re trying to change their mindsets, we’re trying to give them hope.”
AFP
Indonesia’s shrinking middle class alarms economists
As a result, the economic stability of Southeast Asia’s biggest country is at risk, experts warn.
Nazarudin Latif 2024.09.14 Jakarta
Firdaus Wadjidi, a freelance photographer retrenched from his job at a news agency a year ago, works on his computer at his home in Tangerang city, Banten province, Indonesia, Sept. 12, 2024.
Pizaro Gozali Idrus/BenarNews
Triana Rahmawati, a mother of two, lost her publishing job in Jakarta earlier this year, forcing her family to cut back on spending drastically.
Gone are the days of leisurely outings with friends and casual coffee dates, which she could afford in her old job, where Triana worked for nine years and earned around 6 million rupiah (U.S. $400) a month.
“My husband still has a job, but we’ve gone from a double-income to a single-income household,” the 36-year-old told BenarNews. “I have to be prepared for a life of limitations.” Her story exemplifies the broader struggles faced by Indonesia’s middle class, a group once heralded as a symbol of economic progress in Southeast Asia’s largest and most populous country.
The size of the Indonesian middle class has decreased significantly since before the coronavirus pandemic.
In 2019, about 57 million people were classified in the country’s middle class but that number has shrunk to nearly 48 million in 2024 – representing just over 17% of the country’s total population – according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).
Indonesia defines the middle class as households with monthly expenditures between 2 million rupiah and 9.9 million rupiah ($130 to $650).
The lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused waves of layoffs across multiple sectors, took a big bite out of this economic class.
Economists warn that the declining middle class could jeopardize Indonesia’s long-term ambitions to achieve “developed nation” status by 2045.
The class’s shrinkage poses a significant threat to national economic stability, said Jahen Fachrul Rezki, a researcher at the University of Indonesia’s Institute for Economic and Social Research.
“The middle class is a cornerstone of the national economy, not just for their purchasing power but because they also represent a highly skilled labor force and contribute significantly to tax revenues,” Jahen told BenarNews.
In a country where household consumption drives over 80% of spending, any disruption in middle-class financial security could have widespread ramifications, he said.
“If their numbers continue to fall, the ripple effects will be felt across domestic consumption, the labor market, and government tax collection,” he said.
A key factor contributing to the middle class’s decline, Jahen added, is Indonesia’s inability to generate high-value jobs.
Despite the country’s steady economic growth of around 5% annually, much of this growth has been concentrated in low-wage, low-productivity sectors such as retail and extractive industries.
Meanwhile, the government has struggled to spur development in high-tech sectors such as manufacturing and information technology, where wages are higher.
“The rise of the gig economy is another symptom of this issue,” Jahen said, pointing to a labor market increasingly reliant on short-term, freelance work rather than stable, full-time employment.
“Gig work like that should be a supplementary income, but for many Indonesians, it has become their primary source of employment, which is not sustainable.”
The current economic situation, meanwhile, has led to widespread job losses. Between January and August 2024 alone, more than 46,000 workers were laid off, according to the Ministry of Manpower.
Last year, over 64,000 people lost their jobs.
Among those affected was 42-year-old photographer Firdaus Wajidi, who lost his job at a foreign news agency in August 2023. He had worked there for 5 years, earning a monthly salary of 16 million rupiah ($1,000).
Now, Wajidi scrambles to make ends meet with freelance work, earning about 7.5 million rupiah ($500) a month while grappling with mounting school fees, mortgage payments, and daily expenses for his family of five.
“Trying to apply for a job at a media company is difficult because I’m over 40,” Wajidi said. “Besides, nearly all media companies in Jakarta are facing financial struggles.”
The government has responded by expanding social safety nets to prevent further economic decline, said Muhadjir Effendy, coordinating minister for human development and culture.
“Our focus now is on providing protections, particularly in health and employment, to safeguard the vulnerable,” the state-run Antara news agency quoted him as saying.
The government is also bolstering employment-related protections, including old-age benefits, work accident insurance, pensions, and job loss insurance, he said.
However, the structural transformation of Indonesia’s labor market remains incomplete, according to Yorga Permana, a lecturer at the Bandung Institute of Technology’s School of Business and Management.
While there has been a reduction in agricultural employment, much of the growth in the services sector has been confined to low-skill jobs, leaving many workers without a pathway to upward mobility, he said.
“The government has failed to prioritize policies that create decent work,” Yorga said. “What we’ve seen instead is the domination of informal labor and gig economy jobs since 2014.”
Addressing stagnant middle-class wages must be a priority, said Muhammad Faisal, the executive director of the Center of Reform on Economics, an economic think-tank.
“The government must end the era of low wages if it hopes to rebuild a strong middle class,” Faisal said. “We need to focus on making wage growth sustainable through productivity gains.”
Pizaro Gozali Idrus in Jakarta contributed to this report.
Indonesia breaks ground on first renewable energy-powered EV battery factory
JAKARTA (Xinhua) – Indonesia on Saturday inaugurated its first electric vehicle (EV) battery factory which will operate entirely on renewable energy at the Neo Energy Morowali Industrial Estate in Central Sulawesi.
Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said that the factory was part of the critical minerals downstream policy aimed at boosting national economic competitiveness, improving public welfare and utilising environmentally friendly technology.
“Successful downstream processing of nickel has significantly boosted the export value of nickel derivatives, rising from USD4.31 billion in 2017 to USD34.44 billion in 2023,” Airlangga said at the event.
With abundant mineral resources especially nickel, Indonesia holds substantial potential for EV battery production, with an estimated annual capacity of 210 GWh. The factory’s high-pressure acid-leaching smelter will process nickel ore into mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), a key material for EV battery cathodes, adding 120,000 tons of MHP to the country’s production capacity each year.
The Investment Ministry revealed that as of June 2024, the total investment in nickel downstream activities, particularly smelter and EV battery factory development, has reached USD30 billion in the country.
WAIT, WHAT?!
Rapper Ye’s fans amazed after China’s censors let him perform there
Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, will be performing in China on Sept 15. PHOTO: AFP
Sep 15, 2024
BEIJING – When the news broke that Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, would be performing in China on Sept 15, the elation of many of his fans was mixed with another emotion: confusion.
Why would the notoriously prickly Chinese government let in the notoriously provocative Ye? Why was the listening party, as Ye calls his shows, taking place not in Beijing or Shanghai, but in Hainan, an obscure island province?
Under a trending hashtag on social media site Weibo on the subject, one popular comment simply read “How?”, alongside an exploding-head emoji.
The answer may lie in China’s struggling economy. Since China reopened its borders after three years of coronavirus lockdowns, the government has been trying to stimulate consumer spending and promote tourism.
“Vigorously introducing new types of performances desired by young people, and concerts from international singers with super internet traffic, is the outline for future high-quality development,” the government of Haikou, the city hosting the listening party, posted on its website on Sept 12.
But it is unclear whether the appearance by Ye – who would be perhaps the highest-profile Western artist to perform in mainland China since the pandemic – is part of a broader loosening or an exception.
Even before the pandemic, the number of big-name foreign entertainers visiting China had been falling as the authorities tightened controls on speech. Acts such as Bon Jovi and Maroon 5 had shows abruptly cancelled, leading to speculation that band members’ expressions of support for causes like Tibetan independence were to blame. Justin Bieber was barred from China in 2017 over what the Beijing city government, without specifying, called “bad behaviour”.
Ye might have seemed like a no-go, too. The Chinese authorities declared war on hip-hop in 2018, with the state news media saying that artists who insulted women and promoted drug use “don’t deserve a stage”.
But in Ye’s case, objections to hip-hop may have been outweighed by the potential payoff – especially for Hainan.
For years, the Chinese government has sought to turn Hainan, an island roughly the size of Maryland or Belgium, into an international commercial hub. It offers visa-free entry and duty-free shopping, and has pledged to attract more world-class cultural events.
Dr Sheng Zou, a media scholar at Hong Kong Baptist University, said enforcement of censorship was capricious. “When it comes to Ye, I guess his celebrity status may outweigh his identity as a hip-hop artist.”
For Mr Ricardo Shi, 25, an employee of a tech company in Shenzhen, the chance to see Ye was worth spending US$700 (S$900) on plane tickets for a two-day trip to Haikou. “It’s been so long since he last came to China,” he said. (Ye performed in Beijing and Shanghai in 2008.) “It’s a rare opportunity to be there in person.”
Ye, who is touring to promote Vultures, his new album series with singer Ty Dolla Sign, has praised China. He told Forbes in 2020 that the country “changed my life”. He lived in the city of Nanjing as a fifth grader when his mother was teaching English there.
And issues that have led Western brands to cut off collaborations with Ye and alienated many American fans, like his anti-Semitic and homophobic comments, are of less concern to Chinese officials.
Still, no artist can escape political scrutiny altogether.
A photo circulating on Chinese social media showed officials gathered around a conference table, before a screen that read: “Haikou Municipal Bureau of Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports ‘Kanye West World Tour Audiovisual Concert’ Risk Assessment Meeting.”
Reached by telephone, an employee at the bureau could not confirm the photo’s authenticity but said that similar meetings were routine before large-scale events.
“These things, in my opinion, are a kind of test,” the employee, who gave her surname as Wang, said of the Ye event. “In the future, there will be more foreigners coming to Hainan for similar concerts. As long as they provide positive energy, we’ll do it.”
No one has announced what songs Ye will play. Set lists must be preapproved by censors.
A week before officials announced Ye’s Hainan stop, a listening party planned for Taiwan was abruptly cancelled. The Taiwan organisers cited “unforeseen circumstances”. It is unclear whether the cancellation was related to Ye’s show in China, which claims sovereignty over Taiwan.
A publicist who has worked with Ye on past listening parties did not respond to a request for comment.
Even after Ye passed the Chinese censors, some complained that he should not have. A string of submissions to Haikou’s public complaints website objected to his lyrics and personal behaviour, with one user declaring them “inconsistent with our country’s cultural and social values”.
Some Ye supporters suggested that those complaints were from disgruntled Taylor Swift fans. Swift, with whom Ye has a long and well-documented feud, has yet to announce any China dates for her Eras tour. (Several Shanghai government advisers recently called on the city to loosen its concert approval processes, citing performers like Swift, whom they said were like “walking GDP”, or gross domestic product.)
The anti-Ye comments have since disappeared from the government website.
NYTIMES
Historians say increased censorship in China makes research hard
A man walks past a sign warning against the sale of illegal publications, underneath which secondhand books, images and statues of Chinese leaders are displayed for sale at the Panjiayuan antique market in Beijing, Aug. 3, 2024.
BEIJING —
At Beijing's largest antiques market, Panjiayuan, among the Mao statues, posters and second-hand books are prominent signs warning against the sale of publications that might have state secrets or "reactionary propaganda."
Some of the signs display a hotline number so that citizens can tip off authorities if they witness an illegal sale.
China's antique and flea markets were once a gold mine of documents for historians, but now the signs are emblematic of the chill that has descended on their ability to do research in the country.
On one hand, Beijing wants to increase academic exchange and President Xi Jinping last November invited 50,000 American students to China over the next five years -- a massive jump from about 800 currently.
How much steam that will gather is very much an open question. But scholars of modern Chinese history in particular -- arguably among the people most interested in China - fear that tightened censorship is extinguishing avenues for independent research into the country's past.
This is especially so for documents relating to the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution -- the most historically sensitive period for the Chinese Communist Party -- when Mao Zedong declared class war and plunged China into chaos and violence.
"I would say the period of going to flea markets and simply finding treasure troves is pretty much over," said Daniel Leese, a modern China historian at the University of Freiburg.
Trawling for documents "has basically gone out of favor because it has simply become too complex, difficult and dangerous," he said, adding that younger foreign scholars are increasingly relying on overseas collections.
The Chinese Communist Party has exerted control over all publications including books, the media and the internet since establishing the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, with the degree of censorship fluctuating over time.
But censorship has only intensified under President Xi Jinping, who came to power in 2012 and has blamed "historic nihilism" or versions of history that differ from the official accounts for causing the collapse of the Soviet Union.
In recent years, a raft of new national security and anti-espionage legislation has made scholars even more wary of citing unofficial Chinese materials.
Some scholars of modern Chinese history who have published studies that either challenged Chinese state narratives or are on sensitive topics say they have been denied visas to China.
James Millward, a historian at Georgetown University, said he had been visa-blocked on several occasions after contributing to the 2004 book Xinjiang: China's Muslim Borderland but has since received short-term visas a few times albeit after a lengthy process.
The political climate is also shaping how historians choose their research subjects. One historian based in the U.S. said he has chosen to work on non-controversial topics to maintain travel access to China. He declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue.
Busts and statues portraying late Chinese chairman Mao Zedong are seen at the Panjiayuan flea market in Beijing, May 19, 2019.
China's education ministry did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. The foreign ministry said it was unaware of relevant circumstances.
Documentary discoveries
Leese and other foreign historians say they previously found case files of persecuted intellectuals as well as secret Communist Party documents at Chinese flea and antique markets.
These were often donated by relatives of deceased officials or painstakingly rescued by booksellers from recycling centers near government offices disbanded during the mass state sector layoffs of the 1990s.
But the government has, since 2008, cracked down on flea markets and other sources of used books and documents. Buyers have been arrested, sellers have been fined and used book websites have been cleared of politically sensitive items, according to domestic media reports, collectors and four overseas researchers who spoke with Reuters.
In 2019, for example, a Japanese historian was detained for two months on spying charges after buying 1930s books on the Sino-Japanese War from a second-hand bookshop.
Two years later, a hobbyist accused of selling illegal publications from Hong Kong and Taiwan publishers on Kongfuzi, China's biggest website for used books, was fined 280,000 yuan ($39,000) for not having a business license, Chinese media reported.
And this year, two workers at a recycling center were punished for selling confidential military documents, state media said.
Buyers now cultivate personal relationships with merchants who sell through WeChat, said a Beijing-based collector interested in documents from the Cultural Revolution, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Historians also note that access to the vast majority of local government archives has been restricted since 2010 and their digitization has enabled censors to heavily redact them.
Foreign-based historians add that their counterparts in mainland China can only preserve materials for posterity in the current political climate. But not all are downbeat.
"Even under Xi, Chinese scholars continue to seek openings and enlarge the understanding and interpretation of PRC history," said Yi Lu, assistant history professor at Dartmouth College, who has worked extensively with Chinese university collections of 20th-century materials. "All is not lost."