Outlet promises to ‘do better in the future’, admitting that it seldom treated Māori fairlyNew Zealand media giant Stuff has issued a public apology for its portrayal of Māori it says has ranged from blinkered to racist, from its first editions until now.Its mea culpa follows an investigation by 20 of its journalists into its journalism throughout its history. Continue reading...
Ten parties charged under health and safety laws and three charged as directors or individuals over Whakaari explosion which killed 22New Zealand’s workplace safety watchdog has charged 13 parties as part of its investigation into last December’s White Island/Whakaari volcano eruption. Twenty two people died in the disaster and almost one year on, several survivors are still undergoing treatment for their injuries.The volcano erupted while 47 people were on the island – including several tour groups and their guides. The victims were from Australia, New Zealand, Germany, China, Britain and Malaysia. Continue reading...
After fleeing Hong Kong for Taiwan, Lam Wing-kee speaks of the danger the island faces and the ordeal of his detention in ChinaLam Wing-kee leans forward in his chair, answering quickly and sharply to issue a warning to the people of his new home, Taiwan. “Be ready now,” he says.“We should be more alert as citizens, we should get ready,” says the 64-year-old Hongkonger. “If they can take Hong Kong back, the next place, I feel, is Taiwan.” Continue reading...
by Matilda Boseley and Australian Associated Press on (#5B0N3)
Towns west of Brisbane to swelter over next three days as western NSW continues to suffer and Sydney’s temperatures forecast to rise again on TuesdayQueenslanders are in for a record-breaking hot day on Monday as Sydneysiders get a short-lived reprieve from the heat.Dean Narramore, a senior forecaster with the Bureau of Meteorology, says much of southern Queensland will be experiencing an “extreme” heatwave over next three days. Continue reading...
Monday: new report finds Australians increasingly worry about corruption at federal level. Plus: the strange joy of custard creams and salad sandwichesGood morning, this is Imogen Dewey bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Monday 30 November. Continue reading...
Nine officers broke up legal Milton Keynes event after misunderstanding Covid rulesPolice have apologised after a pastor was accused of breaking coronavirus regulations while holding a religious service online.The Rev Daniel Mateola said he was “treated like a criminal” when officers arrived at Kingdom Faith Ministries International church in Milton Keynes earlier this month. Continue reading...
by Tom Phillips Latin America correspondent on (#5B07Z)
Leopoldo Luque in tears after officials search his home and office in Buenos AiresDiego Maradona’s personal physician has denied responsibility for the former footballer’s death after police raided his home and surgery on Sunday, seizing laptops, medical records and mobile devices.Argentinian media reported that police were trying to establish if there was negligence in Maradona’s treatment and that searches of premises belonging to the neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque were carried out as part of an investigation into involuntary manslaughter. Continue reading...
A group of 122 Palestinian and Arab academics, journalists and intellectuals express their concerns about the IHRA definitionWe, the undersigned Palestinian and Arab academics, journalists and intellectuals are hereby stating our views regarding the definition of antisemitism by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), and the way this definition has been applied, interpreted and deployed in several countries of Europe and North America.In recent years, the fight against antisemitism has been increasingly instrumentalised by the Israeli government and its supporters in an effort to delegitimise the Palestinian cause and silence defenders of Palestinian rights. Diverting the necessary struggle against antisemitism to serve such an agenda threatens to debase this struggle and hence to discredit and weaken it. Continue reading...
Criticism of the A303 tunnel beneath the Stonehenge world heritage site is rejected by Kate Mavor, Hilary McGrady and Duncan Wilson of English Heritage, the National Trust, and Historic EnglandThe Council for British Archaeology is quite right that Stonehenge is much more than the ancient, iconic stones (Letters, 24 November). The current road severs this world heritage site and hampers access to hundreds of other prehistoric monuments across the site. That is why we want to see the road placed in a deep tunnel, well below the level of any archaeology.The long-term benefits to the public, history and wildlife will be significant – reuniting this remarkable landscape, reducing the sight and sound of traffic, and allowing people to better explore and understand the site. The archaeology where the new road will emerge at either end of the tunnel has been thoroughly evaluated and the tunnel entrances carefully positioned. Archaeological finds will be handled sensitively and the results published and shared with the public. Continue reading...
by Rupert Neate, as told to Sophie Zeldin-O'Neill on (#5B0D8)
Four years in to the newly created role of wealth correspondent, Rupert Neate explains how the lives of millionaires affect us allIn my reporting, I’ve been interested in how the hobbies and lifestyles of the super-rich affect everyone who isn’t well-off. I wrote an investigative piece on superyachts, and how their billionaire owners often spend £200m or more on what is essentially a floating palace on the ocean, but staffed by people who are entirely unsupported, working up to 24 hours a day. Continue reading...
Pro-democracy rallies have raised pressure on Thailand’s royalty and military in past weekThousands of protesters marched to a barracks belonging to Thailand’s royal guards in Bangkok on Sunday, demanding that King Maha Vajiralongkorn give up control of some army regiments, the latest show of defiance against the country’s powerful monarchy and the military.The protest comes after days of rallies in the Thai capital, where a student-led pro-democracy movement that emerged in July has intensified pressure on the establishment. Over recent months, demonstrators have shaken the country by criticising the monarchy, an institution protected by a harsh defamation law, and demanding the king relinquish some of his vast power and wealth. Continue reading...
by Presented by Anushka Asthana and reported by Lucy on (#5B0D9)
Wendy Walsh was 17 when she moved to Paris to be a model. Within weeks of arriving, Walsh alleges, she was raped by Gérald Marie. She is one of 16 women who have spoken to the investigative reporter Lucy Osborne, who has spent the past year looking into whether Marie was a sexual predatorWhen Wendy Walsh moved to Paris in 1980 to work as a model, she was excited about what the future held for her. But within weeks, she alleges, the former Elite Models boss Gérald Marie had raped her. Walsh is one of 16 women who have made sexual misconduct allegations against Marie, who for three decades was one of the most powerful men in the fashion industry.Marie was married to the supermodel Linda Evangelista between 1987 and 1993. Evangelista has praised the “courage and strength” shown by a growing number of women accusing her ex-husband of sexual misconduct and rape, saying she believed the women’s accounts of their experiences with Marie. “During my relationship with Gérald Marie, I knew nothing of these sexual allegations against him, so I was unable to help these women,” said Evangelista. “Hearing them now, and based on my own experiences, I believe that they are telling the truth. It breaks my heart because these are wounds that may never heal, and I admire their courage and strength for speaking up today.”
Attack took place in village near Maiduguri, with assailants targeting farmers in rice fieldsAt least 110 people have been killed in an attack on a village in north-east Nigeria blamed on the Boko Haram jihadist group, according to the UN humanitarian coordinator in the country.“At least 110 civilians were ruthlessly killed and many others were wounded in this attack,” Edward Kallon said in a statement after initial tolls indicated 43 and then at least 70 dead from the massacre on Saturday by suspected Boko Haram fighters. Continue reading...
by Eduardo Robaina in Arguineguín and Sam Jonesin Ma on (#5B05V)
Spanish archipelago has received 20,000 migrants and refugees this year, 8,000 in the last monthIn the Canary Islands, 2020 will be remembered as more than just the year of the coronavirus.The streets of Arguineguín, a small town on the island of Gran Canaria, are thronged not with tourists in search of winter warmth, but with police officers, health workers and journalists, all scurrying to and from the crowded dock, which has become the newest symbol of an old phenomenon. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Home Office quietly agrees deal with Jamaica amid outcry over charter planeA deal has been quietly agreed between the Home Office and Jamaica not to remove people who came to the UK as children on a controversial charter flight to the Caribbean island this week, its high commissioner has said.Seth Ramocan told the Guardian that following diplomatic overtures to the Home Office, officials agreed not to deport Jamaicans who came to Britain under the age of 12. The Home Office has declined to comment and there has been no public announcement. Continue reading...
From shaving to threading to dyeing to painting, the little touches that used to seem so important have been squeezed out by the pandemic. And many Britons are all the happier for it
Oliver Dowden says younger viewers might take historical drama’s portrayal as factThe culture secretary plans to write to Netflix and request a “health warning” is played before The Crown so viewers are aware that the historical drama is a work of fiction, he said in an intervention that prompted criticism.Oliver Dowden said that without the caveat younger viewers who did not live through the events might “mistake fiction for fact” following complaints that the fourth series of the drama had abused its artistic licence and fabricated events. Continue reading...
No injuries have been reported, but authorities have created an exclusion zone around the craterIndonesia’s Mount Ili Lewotolok erupted on Sunday, releasing a column of smoke and ash 2.5 miles(4km) into the sky, triggering a flight warning and the closure of the local airport.There were no reports of injuries or damage from the eruption in a remote part of the south-east Asian archipelago. Continue reading...
Kaavan, an overweight 36-year-old elephant, to be rehomed after outcry at conditionsAfter years of public outcry and campaigning by the US singer and actor Cher, the “world’s loneliest elephant” embarked on Sunday on a mammoth move from Pakistan to retirement in a Cambodian sanctuary.Cher has spent recent days at the Islamabad zoo to provide moral support to Kaavan – an overweight 36-year-old bull elephant – whose pitiful treatment at the dilapidated facility sparked an uproar from animal rights groups and a spirited social media campaign. Continue reading...
by Nazia Parveen North of England correspondent on (#5B00Y)
Urgent search under way for Esther Dingley, who was hiking alone in the mountainsA British woman who has spent six years travelling across Europe has gone missing while on a solo hiking tour in the French Pyrenees.Esther Dingley, 37, had been travelling with her partner, Dan Colegate, since 2014, with the couple’s travel adventures well-documented in a blog and in the national press. She had embarked on a month-long solo trip when she went missing. Continue reading...
by Michael Savage & Daniel Boffey in Brussels on (#5B00R)
Leader faces resignations from his front bench in a ‘dangerous moment’ for his authorityKeir Starmer, the Labour party leader, faces the threat of resignations from his frontbench team should he order MPs to vote in favour of a Brexit deal agreed by the government.Labour sources said that there were shadow ministers willing to step down if ordered to vote for the deal that could be agreed this week, with one describing it as a “dangerous moment” for the Starmer’s authority. Continue reading...
Bombing in Ghazni targeted a compound of the public protection force, officials sayA car bombing in the Afghanistan’s central province of Ghazni killed at least 30 Afghan security force members on Sunday, officials said, and casualties could increase given the intensity and location of the blast.Baz Mohammad Hemat, the director of the provincial hospital in Ghazni, said 30 bodies and 24 injured people had been transported there. “All of the victims are security personnel,” he said. Continue reading...
It’s no surprise Boris Johnson’s fiancee has his ear. But the former spin doctor may be turning into another unelected decision-makerThere could only be one winner. Shimmying across her office rooftop while miming valiantly to a Taylor Swift song, the new Tory MP Dehenna Davison beat a strong performance from veteran London politician Andrew Boff (resplendent in full drag and feather boa) to win the LGBT+ Conservative group’s virtual lip sync battle last month.And laughing along over Zoom from her living room, her rescue dog Dilyn barking in the background, was Carrie Symonds. The prime minister’s 32-year-old fiancee not only judged the virtual fundraiser in aid of LGBT+ candidates but persuaded her partner to join her briefly on camera. Gone, apparently, was the Boris Johnson who wrote of “tank-topped bumboys” in a 1998 newspaper column. The one who, as London’s mayor, once wore a pink Stetson for Pride is back. Continue reading...
The Morning Joe host, author of a new book on Harry S Truman, sees parallels in the two presidents’ efforts to rebuildJoe Scarborough had been discussing Joe Biden’s cabinet, Donald Trump’s delusions and America’s battered claim to be the indispensable nation when the conversation took an unexpected turn.“I knew yesterday morning it was Mika’s and my anniversary and she said nothing and about five o’clock in the afternoon I walked in and I said, ‘Is today a special day for you?’” Scarborough shared with his TV guests last Wednesday. “She goes, ‘Yeah, I guess, whatever.’” Continue reading...
Critical report details the trauma of families as soldiers describe midnight raids in the occupied territoriesA damning report by three Israeli human rights groups has condemned the military’s widespread practice of entering Palestinian homes in the occupied territories, often in the middle of the night.The report, which includes testimonies of soldiers, doctors and Palestinian families, claims that Israeli troops enter homes on average more than 250 times every month to conduct arrests but also for other purposes including “mapping” houses, to use roofs for observation posts or to search for money, weapons or for intelligence purposes. Continue reading...
Jack Merritt devoted his short working life to transforming the hopes of prisoners. On the anniversary of his death, family, friends and ex-offenders talk about continuing his legacyDave and Anne Merritt weren’t sure how to mark today’s anniversary of the murder of their beloved son Jack. Milestone days are always the hardest. Unlike the day that would have been his 26th birthday, at the beginning of October, when they and their younger son Joe and Jack’s girlfriend, Leanne O’Brien, went for a long walk at one of his favourite places on the Suffolk coast, there are no good memories associated with 29 November. But still, Dave told me a week ago, with typical resolve: “We do want to try to somehow confront it.”Jack, he says, was always making stuff: music, art, food. So they are inviting people to join in today with “Creating with Jack Merritt”, “whether that’s painting a picture or making up a new cocktail or doing a bit of creative writing”. The plan is to share the collective results on Instagram. “We don’t want to just spend the day thinking about the day,” Dave says. “I’m sure it will be very upsetting. But it’ll be as good a day as we can make it.” Continue reading...
In reflections written during lockdown, the pontiff adds his weight to a growing group of people seeking a return to community-minded valuesNot long into these reflections on the lessons of a traumatic year, Pope Francis offers a line from his favourite poet, Friedrich Hölderlin: “Where the danger is, grows the saving power.” At moments of personal trial throughout his life, Francis writes, these words have helped him navigate the crisis. Though moments of reckoning will strip us bare, absolute vulnerability leaves us open to moments of grace and revelation.Short enough to read in a single sitting, Let Us Dream is written in the spirit of that insight and throws down a spiritual gauntlet to the reader. The distillation of summer discussions with the English Catholic commentator and author Austen Ivereigh, the book is recognisably a product of that strange, surreal first phase of the coronavirus pandemic. As patients fought for breath in overwhelmed intensive care wards, our streets fell silent and lockdown brought the world to a shuddering halt. Calamities such as this, says Francis, can be a “threshold” experience, dividing one era from another. “This is a moment to dream big,” he writes, “to rethink our priorities – what we value, what we want, what we seek – and commit to act in our daily life on what we have dreamed of.” Continue reading...
The commissioner for England and Wales attacks ‘postcode’ lottery on response to killing of womenThe first commissioner for domestic abuse for England and Wales, who will have significant powers once the domestic abuse bill becomes law early next year, has committed to working closely with the campaign to tackle femicide – the killing of women at the hands of men.At a virtual event last Thursday, attended by more than 600 people, Nicole Jacobs expressed her “sheer frustration” at the “postcode lottery” and lack of a co-ordinated response on the part of agencies to tackle the killing of women. “We all have such an urgency for change” she said. Continue reading...
James Waugh faced court on Saturday charged with ‘planning to undertake a terrorist act in the Bundaberg region’A former journalist has been charged with allegedly planning a terrorist attack in the regional Queensland city of Bundaberg.James Waugh faced a Brisbane court on Saturday after he was charged by police on Friday with planning a terrorist act for the Bundaberg region. Police also allege the 29-year-old had “sought firearms training”. Continue reading...
Up to 43 slaughtered and a further six seriously injured, say anti-jihadist militiaBoko Haram fighters killed at least 43 farm workers and wounded six in rice fields near the north-east Nigerian city of Maiduguri on Saturday, anti-jihadist militia told AFP.The assailants tied up the agricultural workers and slit their throats in the village of Koshobe, the militia said. Continue reading...
Family of Edson Da Costa were not informed of resignation over a year agoThe only police officer due to face misconduct proceedings over the death of a black man resigned before a disciplinary hearing could take place, the Observer can reveal.Witnesses claimed that the officer sprayed CS gas into the face of Edson Da Costa, and this could have “contributed” to his death according to an independent expert. The officer resigned more than 12 months ago – but the family was never told. Continue reading...
Michel Barnier has told bloc he is prepared for four more days of make-or-break negotiationsMichel Barnier has told MEPs he is prepared for a further four days of make-or-break Brexit negotiations, with growing scepticism among EU member states about the utility of further talks.Having spent a week in isolation after a member of the bloc’s team tested positive for coronavirus, Barnier and his staff resumed face-to-face negotiations in London on Saturday morning. Continue reading...
Analysis: As pharmaceutical companies release trial results, many questions remain about controlling coronavirus. Here is what we knowAround the world about 200 Covid-19 candidate vaccines are being developed, with more than 40 in human clinical trial stage. The Australian government has agreements to secure four of the most promising vaccines, and will roll them out if they prove to be safe and effective.All four vaccines require two doses, spaced a few weeks apart. As the pharmaceutical companies behind some vaccine candidates begin releasing results, many questions remain about the next steps towards controlling Covid. Here is what we know. . Continue reading...
From China tensions to climate change to economic recovery, Australia and the US have a rocky road to travel together in 2021The arrival of the Biden administration could change some of the “atmospherics” in the tense relationship between the US and China, Australian prime minister Scott Morrison suggested this week. As the Australian government seeks to navigate its own rocky ties with China, the prospect of constructive talks with the US is likely to be welcomed in Canberra.Related: Australia's foreign affairs chief cautions China against resorting to 'coercion' Continue reading...
French security forces fire teargas at protesters marching against police violence in Paris on Saturday after masked activists launched fireworks at their lines, put up barricades and threw stones.Thousands rallied across France after video of police beating a black music producer fanned anger about a draft law that is seen as curbing the right of journalists to report on police brutality Continue reading...
Prize-winning author Camilla Pang talks about her autism and ADHD diagnoses and her desire to challenge myths about neurodiversityThis month Camilla Pang won the Royal Society book prize for her debut, Explaining Humans: What Science Can Teach Us about Life, Love and Relationships. She has a PhD in bioinformatics from UCL and works as a postdoctoral researcher. Dr Pang was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at the age of eight and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder at 26.Why did you decide to write this book?
Met police officers tried to disperse the protesters, arguing the demonstration was unlawful under coronavirus bans on gatherings. However, some legal commentators believe protests are still permitted under the “reasonable excuse” rule in the regulations
Thousands take to streets across country in opposition to controversial draft billFrench security forces have fired teargas at protesters marching against police violence in Paris after masked activists launched fireworks at their lines, put up barricades and threw stones.Thousands of people across France gathered in support of press freedom after film of police beating a black music producer fanned anger about a draft law that is seen as curbing the right of journalists to report on police brutality. Continue reading...
To renovate her parents’ home, one French designer insisted they throw everything out and start from scratchAfter graduating from architecture school, Marine Bonnefoy decided it was time to get her hands dirty. “My studies were very intellectually oriented and had no link to actual construction,” she recalls. “By the end of them, I hadn’t even been taught what holds a wall up.” To find out, she decided to spend a year working for a building firm. “I demolished facades with a pneumatic drill, learned plastering, electricity and plumbing, and made concrete. It was fantastic!” she says.That kind of pragmatic approach has certainly stood her in good stead. She recently completed a 95 sq metre apartment in Paris’s elegant Palais-Royal and is currently building houses from the ground up in both Marseille and Bordeaux. With each project, her approach is the same. “I don’t do anything immediately,” she says. “I simply go about my daily business and it matures in my mind. It’s only after about three weeks that I start drawing.” Continue reading...
Ayatollah threatens retaliation after president blames Israel for assassination of Mohsen FakhrizadehIran’s supreme leader has called for the “definitive punishment” of those behind the killing of one of the country’s most senior scientists, who was identified by Israel as having headed a secret nuclear weapons programme.Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the architect of Tehran’s nuclear strategy, was killed on Friday on a highway near the capital in a carefully planned assassination that has led to a serious escalation of tensions in the Middle East. Continue reading...
A landslide in Sunday’s election is predicted to sweep away the city’s ‘disastrous’ conservative leaderTarcísio Motta is one of Rio’s best-known lefties – but when the city elects its new leader on Sunday, he’ll be voting for the right.“We’ve got a mayor who’s an enemy of the city, and this can’t go on. It’s ludicrous,” complained the socialist councillor, one of millions of exasperated locals desperate to evict the neo-Pentecostal bishop Marcelo Crivella from city hall after what is widely regarded as a dismal four-year reign. Continue reading...
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