The reality of women’s lives is that they are surrounded by sexual violence. Lawmakers must act to make women safeOn a Sunday afternoon less than two weeks ago I put out an angry tweet asking women to join me and protest at Parliament House. I was angry at the Morrison government’s handling of the Brittany Higgins allegations, and then about the allegations Christian Porter has denied. I was angry reading the gut wrenching stories of the horrific sexual violence in schools.This anger was the start of an Australian outpouring of rage. Continue reading...
China’s importance to the Australian economy has exploded in recent years – but data shows Australia is not nearly so important to ChinaChina’s importance to the Australian economy has exploded over the past decade, fuelled by an apparently insatiable need for iron ore and helped along by increasing demand for luxury goods as the country became richer, analysis of UN trade data by Guardian Australia reveals. Continue reading...
The Duchess of Cambridge has been filmed looking at notes and flowers left for Sarah Everard in London.Organisers of Reclaim These Streets planned to hold a demonstration on Clapham Common on Saturday, near to where the 33-year-old, whose body was formally identified on Friday, went missing.But organisers said that despite their attempts to work with police to make sure the vigil could go ahead safely, they now felt that it could not
Humiliating night for the party with Labor on course to win 53 of Western Australia’s 59 lower house seatsIt’s been 88 years since the leader of a Western Australian party last lost their seat at a state election. But that ignominy has befallen Zak Kirkup on a humiliating night for the WA Liberals as voters delivered a landslide to Mark McGowan’s Labor government.With Labor on course to claim 53 of WA’s 59 lower house seats, the Liberals have retained just two seats statewide and suffered a bloodbath in metropolitan Perth in which they have lost everything but their crown jewel of Cottesloe. The wipeout leaves the Nationals’ Mia Davies poised to become the state’s next opposition leader. Continue reading...
History shows that granting further powers to state bodies generally hurts minorities more than othersLast year’s report into the Christchurch mosque attacks was met with scepticism and disappointment from many in the Muslim community, and understandably so. Among its findings, one in particular stands out. Regarding the ability of police and Security and Intelligence Services (SIS) to anticipate the perpetrator’s planning of the attack, the report said: “there was no plausible way he could have been detected except by chance”.Despite also concluding that these same agencies have been characterised by systemic failure, it suggested giving them greater powers and resources. The government has also embraced the treatment of white supremacy as a form of “violent extremism” and Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) policies as an antidote. But overseas examples and our own history – including instances where we’ve seen them target specific communities such as Māori and environmental activists as well as refugees and asylum seekers – show us that these are the wrong strategies because they actually end up hurting the communities they purport to protect. Continue reading...
Boy will appear at youth court after incident in Ilford that left 20-year-old man with non-fatal stab woundsA 12-year-old boy has been charged over a non-fatal stabbing in east London.The Metropolitan police said officers were called to Marlands Road, Ilford, just before 4pm on Thursday where a 20-year-old man was found with stab wounds. Continue reading...
Former member of Girls Aloud, who has cancer, says she is focusing on comfort and being as pain-free as possibleSarah Harding, a former member of girl group Girls Aloud, has said she was told by a doctor she would probably not be alive next Christmas.The star revealed last August that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer, which had spread to other parts of her body. Continue reading...
The Arab Strap vocalist on late-night horror chats with his mum, spending time with Alan Partridge, and bingeing on SuccessionBorn in Falkirk, Scotland, in 1973, Aidan Moffat is the vocalist of indie rock band Arab Strap, which he founded in 1995 with Malcolm Middleton. Characterised by Moffat’s half-spoken vocals over lo-fi instrumentation, the band gained international acclaim with 1996 single The First Big Weekend; they went on to release six studio albums before splitting in 2006 and reforming in 2016. Since 2002, Moffat has released music under the name L Pierre, and collaborated with artists including Mogwai and Bill Wells. Arab Strap’s first album in 16 years, As Days Get Dark, is was released this month on Rock Action. Continue reading...
We’ll soon be able to venture beyond our local park … and to help us, the Observer has launched a guide to Britain’s hidden treasures, starting with Jay Rayner’s hunt for tasty morsels in unlikely placesThe Oban docks on Scotland’s west coast are a functional place. Veteran CalMac ferries to the islands heave on their moorings and, from time to time, there’s a waft of diesel in the air. It’s not the first place you might think of visiting for lunch. But there, alongside the blocky, modern ferry terminal building, is the glory that is the Oban Seafood Hut. It’s in the kind of prefabricated shed only its designer could love, and emblazoned with a garish bright green signage that can doubtless be seen from a mile off shore. But oh, the food. One afternoon, beneath gunmetal skies, I feasted on scallops the size of a baby’s fist in ponds of hot garlic butter, shiny black mussels and crab sandwiches thicker than an airport bonkbuster novel.I cannot claim that the Oban Seafood Hut is a secret, newly whispered. I’ve written about it in my column and, in any case, part of my job reviewing restaurants in normal times involves giving exposure to the relatively obscure. I have no secrets. But it is proof, if we needed it, that a very good time out is not necessarily found in all the most obvious places; those destinations weighed down by labels like “beauty spot” and “national park” and the crowds of visitors that flock to them. Continue reading...
Group calls for nationwide candlelit vigil at 9.30pm on Saturday night after police block in-person events across the UKAn organiser of the London vigil for Sarah Everard has said that while the group is “devastated” that in-person events had to be cancelled, it hopes that virtual gatherings and at-home vigils will have an even wider impact.The London vigil for Everard, the 33-year-old woman whose body was formally identified on Friday, more than a week after she disappeared in south London, has been cancelled, with organisers citing a “lack of constructive engagement from the Metropolitan police”. Continue reading...
Analysis: the Fox News host had a troubling history of sexist behavior before recent harassment of a New York Times journalistIt was International Women’s Day this week, a global endeavor designed to focus attention on women’s rights and the challenges they face. Many news organizations, and politicians, dedicated tributes to the achievements of women and highlighted the problems that sexism continues to pose.Over at Fox News, however, Tucker Carlson took a different tack. The rightwing media host instead marked the celebration of women by giddily harassing a female journalist, devoting his time to attacking the New York Times reporter Taylor Lorenz. Continue reading...
Wayne Couzens’ head wound is visible as magistrates hear victim’s body was found in a builder’s bagThe Metropolitan police officer charged with the kidnap and murder of 33-year-old Sarah Everard has appeared in person in court.PC Wayne Couzens, 48, was at Westminster magistrates court on Saturday morning for his first hearing, the start of the process before a full trial for murder, following his arrest on Tuesday at his home in Kent. Continue reading...
Air force launches inquiry into video in which troops reportedly appear to sexually assault airman in initiation ritualThe RAF is investigating a video in which troops reportedly appeared to sexually assault an airman in an initiation ritual.A spokeswoman for the force said the RAF police special investigation branch was looking into the incident after the footage was obtained by the Daily Mail. Continue reading...
It has rocketed during the pandemic. But how do you make sure you like what you order online? From measuring up to editing down, we’re here to helpWe haven’t just been doomscrolling, homeschooling and working through our screens these past 12 months. We have also been shopping.Online shopping has rocketed: UK sales were up 61.4% in December compared with the same time last year, according to the Office for National Statistics. Last month, when Asos and Boohoo bought high street stalwarts Debenhams and Topshop, and turned them into online-only brands, this pandemic-driven trend took on an air of permanence. Continue reading...
The poet, broadcaster and children’s author contracted Covid-19 a year ago and spent 48 days in intensive care. His new collection of prose poems attempts to make sense of that time
Students say lockdown learning in their bedrooms is not what they paid forHundreds of international students at three major London universities are refusing to pay their fees because they say learning mostly in their bedrooms has not justified prices of up to £29,000 a year.More than 300 students at the Royal College of Art, two-thirds of them from abroad, launched a tuition fee strike in January, the Guardian has learned, potentially withholding around £3.4m in fee payments, in an attempt to force the university to issue refunds for the past year. Continue reading...
A ‘watch and act’ warning replaced an earlier emergency warning for people in the Geraldton suburbThe threat level of a bushfire burning in Wandina in Geraldton, Western Australia has been downgraded and the blaze was being controlled.A “watch and act” warning replaced an earlier emergency warning for people in the area bounded by Bellimos Drive, Eakins Crescent and McDermott Avenue. Continue reading...
Observers say relationship survives on basis of unwritten rules that are now being reexaminedIn an interview stuffed with quotable lines, it was among the most resonant: the “invisible contract”, as the Duke of Sussex called it, that has bound the royal family and reporters together for years.In this telling, it is not that the royals enjoy their media duties, or view them as a responsibility, but that the only way to survive the press is to strike a deal with it. Continue reading...
The former head of Shin Bet came to realize war all-out war against terrorists only deepened an existential mireAmi Ayalon is a retired Israeli warrior with much more history than he needs to fill this compact, compelling memoir. Three years older than the state of Israel, he spent the first two-thirds of his life fighting Arabs, first as a member of Shayetet 13, the Israeli equivalent of the Navy Seals, then as commander of the Israeli navy and finally as head of Shin Bet, the internal security service, its motto: “Defender that shall not be seen.”Related: Protesters silencing speakers like me won’t solve the Israeli-Palestinian problem | Ami Ayalon Continue reading...
People whose flights were cancelled by beleaguered airline face three-month wait over payment decisionThousands of passengers who had flights cancelled last year by Thai Airways will have to wait another three months to discover whether they will be refunded or have lost their money.The airline has faced financial problems since last spring, leaving a trail of passengers who had flights cancelled waiting for refunds. Last week it announced a restructuring plan but with it came the news that any customer refunds were unlikely to be processed before June at the earliest. Continue reading...
by Guardian reporter in Yangon and Rebecca Ratcliffe on (#5F9FM)
Garment workers in Yangon say they were dismissed for breaking out to take part in civil disobedience movementGarment workers in Myanmar who produce clothing for Primark were locked inside their factory by supervisors who tried to prevent them from joining anti-coup protests, testimonies given to the Guardian claim.Workers employed by GY Sen, which supplies Primark, claimed to the Guardian that their supervisors had sought to prevent them from missing work to take part in protests in the main city Yangon on 18 February. Up to 1,000 workers were trapped inside, according to workers, who said they were able to break free after several hours. Continue reading...
Local media reported police fired at crowd outside police station in Yangon on Friday nightAt least two more people have been killed in police firing in Myanmar, local media reported, as activists called for more anti-coup protests on the anniversary of the death of a student whose killing in 1988 sparked an uprising against the government.Saturday’s calls for protests came as the leaders of the United States, India, Australia and Japan vowed to work together to restore democracy in Myanmar where violence has escalated as authorities crack down on protests and civil disobedience. Continue reading...
US and others condemn move to allow only those loyal to Beijing to serve in Hong Kong’s parliamentForeign ministers in the G7 group of nations, including the United States, have expressed grave concerns at what they said was China’s decision to fundamentally erode democratic elements of the electoral system in Hong Kong.The G7 released a statement that was tweeted by British foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, saying the recent decision to change Hong Kong’s electoral system indicated that authorities in China were determined to eliminate dissenting voices and opinions in Hong Kong. Continue reading...
Lifeline records its highest ever daily call volume, as support services say recent news is ‘linking in to people’s trauma’Sexual assault and mental health services have been dealing with increased calls and emails from survivors following public allegations of rape and sexual assault against the attorney general and a ministerial staffer over the past month.Christian Porter has strongly denied the allegation, which dates back to 1988 and was detailed in a bundle of documents sent anonymously to the prime minister and other senior MPs in late February. Continue reading...
A combination of students who feel they are at little risk and a governor who has lifted restrictions has experts worried, leading some schools to cancel spring break altogetherCovid-19 and spring break have never mixed well. Last March one young, shirtless man in Miami wearing a backwards-facing green cap went “viral” in the pre-pandemic sense when he told a reporter: “If I get corona, I get corona,” he said. “I’m not going to let it stop me from partying.”A year later, even after Covid has killed over 500,000 Americans, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended against all travel, similar pictures and videos of spring breakers – no masks or social distancing in sight – are being seen again this year. Continue reading...
Prosecutors move against Jeanine Áñez and officials who backed ousting of former leader Evo MoralesBolivia’s former interim president faces an arrest warrant for terrorism and sedition as prosecutors move against officials who backed the ousting of former leader Evo Morales, which his party – now back in power – considers a coup.“The political persecution has begun,” said Jeanine Áñez, who headed a conservative administration that took power after Morales resigned in November 2019. Continue reading...
China itself has been accused of operating detention centres, with more than 1m people estimated to have been detained in XinjiangChina has said it is “deeply concerned” by what it described as the Australian government’s operation of offshore detention centres, and has called for the sites to be closed immediately.Ties between the two countries soured in 2018 when Australia became the first nation to publicly ban China’s Huawei from its 5G network and worsened when Australia last year called for an inquiry into the origins of the novel coronavirus. Continue reading...
by Vikram Dodd Police and crime correspondent on (#5F94F)
PC Wayne Couzens charged over 33-year-old woman’s disappearance and deathA serving Metropolitan police officer has been charged with kidnapping Sarah Everard from a London street as she walked home and then murdering her.PC Wayne Couzens was charged on Friday following an extensive investigation by homicide detectives. He will appear at Westminster magistrates court on Saturday for his first hearing, the start of the process that leads to a full trial for murder. Continue reading...
Attack in north-west of country is latest in series of mass abductions targeting schoolsGunmen have raided a college in north-west Nigeria and kidnapped 39 students, in the latest mass abduction targeting a school.The gang stormed the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation in Mando, Kaduna state, at about 9.30pm (2030 GMT) on Thursday, shooting indiscriminately before taking students. The Kaduna college was said to have about 300 male and female students – mostly aged 17 and older – at the time of the attack. Continue reading...
by Dan Sabbagh Defence and security editor on (#5F900)
Defence and foreign policy review expected to signal rise, in move analysts say is diplomatically provocativeDowning Street’s integrated review of defence and foreign policy is expected next week to signal a potential increase of the number of Trident nuclear warheads for the first time since the end of the cold war.Whitehall sources indicated that a cap on total warhead numbers – currently set at 180 – is expected to increase, although the exact figure is not yet known, in a move that analysts said was diplomatically provocative. Continue reading...
by Hosted by Katharine Murphy, produced by Miles Mart on (#5F8Z0)
Katharine Murphy talks to sex discrimination commissioner Kate Jenkins as she starts her investigation into parliament’s workplace culture. Jenkins discusses the risk factors in all workplaces which can heighten the risk to safety, and how she plans to bring about cultural change in Canberra Continue reading...
A new documentary shows that while the health impacts of the pandemic have - so far - been largely avoided, the effects of isolation on families, communities, and livelihoods has been profoundFaith, family, and a little bit of farming.The Pacific’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic has been one of self-reliance and resistance: to turn to its communities and churches, its lands and seas. Continue reading...
Officers discover vessel during wider operation in which hundreds of kilos of drugs were seizedSpanish police have announced the seizure of a homemade narco-submarine able to carry as much as two tonnes of cargo.Police discovered the nine-metre (30ft) vessel last month while it was being built in the southern city of Málaga, during a broader international drug operation involving five other countries and the EU crime agency, Europol. Continue reading...
Aya Al-Umari desperately misses her brother Hussein, who was killed in the 2019 massacre, with 50 othersA few months after the Christchurch mosque attacks, Aya Al-Umari went on a pilgrimage to Mecca, and from there to Abu Dhabi, where she and her brother Hussein grew up.The trip was a major step towards accepting her brother’s death, she says. “I wanted to go down the memory lane of our childhood.” Continue reading...
Ontario premier urged to apologise to Sol Mamakwa, who was asked to help combat vaccine hesitancy among Indigenous groupsThe leader of Canada’s most populous province is facing calls for an apology after he wrongly accused an Indigenous lawmaker of queue-jumping for his coronavirus vaccine.The outcry over Doug Ford’s comments highlights the sensitivity of the accusations as well as the broader challenges of addressing vaccine hesitancy in Indigenous communities, a group that still faces discrimination within the healthcare system. Continue reading...
Parker review shows fifth of companies, including JD Sports, IAG and BAE Systems, still have no black or minority ethic directorTime is running out for FTSE 100 firms, including the British Airways owner IAG, BAE Systems and JD Sports to appoint at least one director of colour before a year-end deadline, after analysis showed nearly a fifth of the UK’s largest listed firms were led by all-white boardrooms.An update from the Parker review, a government-backed report into ethnic diversity in boardrooms of stock market-listed companies, showed that 81 FTSE 100 firms had now met the voluntary target for “one by 2021”, up from 52 last year. Continue reading...
Prime minister says sculptures taken by Lord Elgin would remain in Britain as they had been legally acquiredBoris Johnson has used his first interview with a European newspaper since becoming the UK’s prime minister to issue a point-blank rejection of the Parthenon marbles being returned to Greece.Johnson insisted the sculptures, removed from Greece by Lord Elgin in circumstances that have since spurred one of the world’s most famous cultural rows, would remain in Britain because they had been legally acquired. Continue reading...
Refugees and migrants camped along border to Melilla say there have been repeated raids following 150 people attempting to crossMigrants in northern Morocco said they had been forced to sleep out in the open after repeated raids by police, who allegedly burned down their shelters in camps near the Spanish enclave Melilla.Those camped along the border said Moroccan forces returned for a fourth day on Friday despite having already torched most of their tents. Continue reading...
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