Beijing’s national security law has prompted the exit of people from all walks of life in fear they or their children are at riskJoe Kwong* loves Hong Kong. But he knows he has to leave.A university-educated construction worker in his 30s, he is just one of many Hongkongers who have uprooted their lives in recent months – or are now planning to – because of fears over the rapid demise of the rule of law and civil liberties. Hong Kong’s descent into effective Chinese control has been swift, and was cemented in June by the introduction of the national security law, which prohibits acts of secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces. Continue reading...
by Charlotte Graham-McLay in Wellington on (#58NXK)
With a crowded election cycle, non-committal politicians and a pandemic to worry about, public support for a yes vote in the referendum is erodingIt is believed to be the first country in the world to put the legalisation of recreational cannabis to a national public vote. But amid a pandemic, an election concentrated almost entirely on the Covid-19 crisis, and a simultaneous vote on euthanasia, New Zealand’s upcoming marijuana referendum has not captivated the mainstream public attention that it might have in an ordinary year.New Zealand would join Canada and Uruguay on the list of countries legalising the sale and use of cannabis for adults if more than half of voters approved it – but public backing for the measure has eroded in polling during 2020, reversing growing support in recent years. In a debate plagued by claims of misinformation from both sides – and taking place during an overcrowded election cycle – some politicians have shied away from the matter altogether, fearing they will end up on the wrong side of a divisive topic. Continue reading...
Government and company Tepco ordered to pay some damages for 2011 event, but ruling could spur further claimsA Japanese court has found the government and Tepco, the operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant, negligent for failing to take measures to prevent the 2011 nuclear disaster, and ordered them to pay 1bn yen ($9.5m) in damages to thousands of residents for their lost livelihoods.The ruling on Wednesday by Sendai high court could open up the government to further damage claims because thousands of other residents evacuated as reactors at the coastal power station overheated and released a radioactive cloud, following the devastating tsunami. While some people have returned home, areas close to the plant are still off limits. Continue reading...
York region police announced 29 arrests and seized millions in assets connected to gambling den operating while legal casinos shutteredPolice in Canada have charged dozens of people and seized millions in assets after discovering that a sprawling mansion north of Toronto was thriving as a underground gambling den while legal casinos were shuttered due to the coronavirus lockdown.York region police announced 74 charges on Wednesday connected to a months-long investigation into illegal gambling operations in Ontario. As well as making 29 arrests, police seized more than $10m in assets, firearms, cash and high-end liquor. Continue reading...
Salman Abedi also visited a terrorist in jail twice and regularly travelled to Libya, the inquiry was toldThe Manchester Arena suicide bomber was identified associating with six separate MI5 “subjects of interest”, visited a terrorist twice in jails and regularly travelled to war-torn Libya, a public inquiry heard.Intelligence on Salman Abedi came in to MI5 for six years and right up to the months before he blew himself up with a homemade bomb packed with shrapnel, murdering 22 bystanders and injuring hundreds more in the foyer of the arena at the end of an Ariana Grande concert on 22 May 2017. Continue reading...
Migrants have been left to sleep rough or taken to an already-full facility, agency claimsBosnian authorities have started emptying UN-run migrant camps in town centres, moving hundreds of people to a crowded, remote facility that is not equipped for winter conditions — or just leaving them to fend for themselves in the woods.Some 10,000 transient migrants and refugees are stuck in the small Balkan country, and already face a chronic lack of accommodation. At least one in four live outside organised facilities. Continue reading...
Thursday: President told white extremist group to ‘stand back and stand by’ during debate ‘shitshow’. Plus: join the Jimmy Barnes Zoom book clubGood morning, this is Richard Parkin bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Thursday 1 October. Continue reading...
Khan and GLA staff will boycott event in protest over human rights issues in the countryThe mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has joined the mayors of New York, Los Angeles and Paris in refusing to attend or send a representative to a major international summit this week hosted by Saudi Arabia as part of its chairmanship of the G20.Campaign groups had called on mayors around the world not to attend the three-day Urban 20 summit (U20), which began in Riyadh on Wednesday, in protest at the plight of political prisoners in Saudi Arabia. Continue reading...
Syrians on the ground are believed to be contractors working for Turkish security companiesAt least three Syrian opposition fighters have been killed in skirmishes in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, the Guardian has learned, confirming earlier reports of foreign involvement in the battle between Armenian and Azerbaijan over the territory and increasing fears it may spiral into a wider regional conflict.As fierce combat between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces stretched into a fourth day, the presence of Syrians on the ground – believed to be contractors working for Turkish security companies – signalled a new frontier for Ankara’s increasingly assertive foreign policy. Continue reading...
Department accused of ‘just paying lip service’ after Priti Patel promises wide reformVictims of the Windrush scandal have responded with scepticism to the publication of a Home Office “comprehensive improvement plan” promising “a fairer, more compassionate” department – pointing to similar previous pledges that have yet to materialise.The author of a report into the scandal’s causes also reacted with frustration that the government is not moving fast enough to implement all of her recommendations, despite a promise from the home secretary, Priti Patel, in June that they would be adopted in full. Continue reading...
People without a specific severe impairment who want to access disability payment are being forced to first do 1.5 years of job searchNearly 14,000 people have now been forced to do 18 months of job search and survive on $40-a-day jobseeker benefits before they were finally granted the disability pension.Under Gillard government-era changes aimed at reducing the welfare spend and increasing workforce participation, people without a specific severe impairment who want to access the disability payment must complete up to 18 months of job search within three years. Continue reading...
Joyce Echaquan is seen grimacing as nurses call her ‘stupid as hell’, renewing calls for country to confront systemic racismA shocking video showing hospital staff in Canada taunting a dying Indigenous woman has left a community in mourning and renewed calls for the country to confront the realities of systemic racism.Joyce Echaquan, a 37-year-old Atikamekw woman, arrived at a hospital in the Quebec city of Joliette on Monday, complaining of stomach pain. Continue reading...
Pope Francis reportedly declined to meet Mike Pompeo during his visit this week, citing closeness of US presidential electionA top Vatican official has accused Donald Trump’s administration of exploiting Pope Francis in the final stages of the US presidential election campaign.The US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, spoke at a conference on religious freedom on Wednesday organised by the US embassy to the Holy See during his visit to Italy. Continue reading...
Extradition hearing told spying operation at Ecuador embassy included plot to take baby’s nappyPlans to poison or kidnap Julian Assange from the Ecuadorian embassy were discussed between sources in US intelligence and a private security firm that spied extensively on the WikiLeaks co-founder, a court has been told.Details of the alleged spying operation against Assange and anyone who visited him at the embassy were laid out on Wednesday at his extradition case, in evidence by a former employee of a Spanish security company, UC Global. Continue reading...
by Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent on (#58NN4)
Increased loss of ice could trigger sea level rise of up to 10cm by end of centuryGreenland’s ice is starting to melt faster than at any time in the past 12,000 years, research has shown, which will raise sea levels and could have a marked impact on ocean currents.New measurements show the rate of melting matches any in the geological record for the Holocene period – defined as the period since the last ice age – and is likely to accelerate, according to a paper published in the journal Nature. Continue reading...
Cardinal returned to Vatican on Wednesday despite Australia’s Covid travel ban on ‘official Vatican government business’Cardinal George Pell returned to Rome from Australia on Wednesday for the first time since being jailed – and then acquitted – on child sexual abuse charges.The 79-year-old, wearing a face mask, briefly lifted his hand towards a crowd of waiting journalists at Rome’s Fiumicino airport, but said nothing before climbing into a waiting car. Continue reading...
by Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent on (#58NMB)
Council surveyor tasked with overseeing refurbishment tells inquiry his department was ‘swamped’ with workThe council department responsible for checking the safety of the Grenfell Tower refurbishment was “swamped” with work as austerity-driven cuts slashed staff numbers and the key surveyor was left handling 130 projects at once, the public inquiry in the disaster has heard.John Hoban, senior building control surveyor at the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, said councillors had signed off substantial cuts to the building control department piling work on the remaining staff. Continue reading...
by Hannah Ellis-Petersen South Asia correspondent on (#58NMC)
Court clears 32 men of inciting clashes that led to destruction of site by Hindu rioters in 1992A special court has acquitted all senior figures in India’s ruling party of their role in the demolition of the Babri mosque by Hindu rioters, in a further court victory for the Hindu nationalist government over the bitterly disputed holy site.All 32 men, including the former deputy prime minister LK Advani, three leaders from the ruling Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) and a sitting BJP politician, were cleared of inciting the violence in 1992 that led to a 16th-century mosque in the city of Ayodhya being torn down by an armed Hindu nationalist mob. Continue reading...
The ‘Hong Kong 12’ - arrested for allegedly trying to flee to Taiwan - have become the latest flashpoint for protestersThe family of a Hong Kong activist detained in China after allegedly attempting to flee to Taiwan by speedboat say they have had no communication from him and are relying on a piece of paper from Chinese authorities as confirmation of his whereabouts.Andy Li was among 12 people caught by Chinese coastguards on 23 August. He had been arrested earlier that month under Hong Kong’s newly introduced national security law, after which the authorities had confiscated his passport before releasing him on bail. Continue reading...
New Zealand's prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, has admitted to using cannabis 'a long time ago', in a heated televised debate with the opposition leader, Judith Collins.Speaking during the 90-minute debate on Newshub, the Labour leader and incumbent PM chose not to disclose how she would vote in the forthcoming cannabis referendum, drawing ire from her opponent, the National party leader
Tom Vaughan-Lawlor excels in this bleak Dublin-set drama about a closeted gay man whose life is unravellingPeter Mackie Burns’s painful, unhappy drama packs a hard punch; you must steel yourself for the emotional blows. Tom Vaughan-Lawlor is excellent as 46-year-old Colm, a Dublin man who looks like a working-class success: nice house, office job at a dockyard, lovely wife and teenage kids. But Colm is secretly gay, and living with the shame for so long has scraped his insides out. There’s nothing left of him: he is drinking heavily, barely functioning, pushing away his concerned wife Claire (Monica Dolan, bringing real emotional depth to the smallish role). Continue reading...
With infection numbers rising, Europe is relying on pandemic measures that have scarcely changed since the Black Death in the 14th century Continue reading...
Described as ‘a message of love and solidarity’ and with signatories including Jeanette Winterson and Malorie Blackman, it comes days after a host of prominent literary names signed a letter defending JK RowlingDays after a host of prominent literary names signed a letter defending JK Rowling “against hate”, more than 200 writers, publishers and journalists including Jeanette Winterson, Malorie Blackman and Joanne Harris have put their names to another stating their support for transgender and non-binary people.The letter, which is described as “a message of love and solidarity for the trans and non-binary community”, was pulled together by acclaimed writers Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Daisy Johnson. With signatories also including Juno Dawson, Elizabeth Day, Max Porter, Nikesh Shukla, Sara Collins, Irenosen Okojie, Mary Jean Chan, Naoise Dolan, Olivia Sudjic, Sharlene Teo and Patrick Ness, it states that “non-binary lives are valid, trans women are women, trans men are men, trans rights are human rights”. Continue reading...
Guy Jalland tells a NSW inquiry the company has paused its dealings with 100-odd partners who bring high rollers from AsiaA New South Wales inquiry into Crown Resorts and its casino licence has heard that Crown has suspended dealings with the 100-odd junket operators who bring high rollers from Asia and is conducting reviews of possible criminal links.Director Guy Jalland agreed that the pause had been mainly prompted by Covid-19 and travel restrictions and that Crown had not notified the junket partners they were suspended and under review. Continue reading...
Ramzy Bedia is captivating as a charismatic doctor in this French-Algerian drama about a country descending into chaosFrench-Algerian film-maker Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche sends us a dispatch from a civil war with Terminal Sud, an intriguing, somewhat abstract drama about a country descending into chaos. The facts on the ground here seem to tally with the Algerian civil war of the 90s, the so called “black decade” that claimed more than 100,000 lives. But the film was mostly shot in southern France, and Ameur-Zaïmeche doesn’t hide contemporary details such as mobiles and new-model SUVs. He has said in interviews that the point is to make it universal: this could happen any time, anywhere. The approach isn’t entirely convincing, and the unfocused sense of time and place is a bit distracting and frustrating at times. But there is real power to many of the scenes. Continue reading...
The crossbencher’s intervention leaves the Morrison government’s job-ready graduate package hanging by a threadJacqui Lambie has come out against the Coalition’s higher education funding changes, warning the bill “makes university life harder for poor kids and poor parents”.The intervention on Wednesday leaves the government’s job-ready graduate package hanging by a thread: Centre Alliance’s Stirling Griff will have the casting vote because Lambie, Labor, the Greens and Rex Patrick are opposed. Continue reading...
by Naaman Zhou (now) and Amy Remeikis (earlier) on (#58N7Y)
Victoria reports four deaths and 13 new Covid cases while NSW records no new locally acquired cases for fifth day as pressure mounts over border closures. Follow all today’s updates
Three-year transition period for European fishing fleets among proposals in negotiating paperBritain has offered a three-year transition period for European fishing fleets to allow them to prepare for the post-Brexit changes as part of an 11th-hour deal sweetener.The catches of EU fishermen would be “phased down” between 2021 and 2024 to offer time for European coastal communities to adapt to the changes. Continue reading...
by Christopher Cherry , Yuling Chow, Charlie Phillips on (#58NEX)
We follow Oscar, a journalist at the tabloid, who in the shadow of China’s controversial national security law continues to report on - now largely silenced - street protests. When the law came into force three months ago, Apple Daily was raided by police: journalists' desks were searched and its founder was taken away in handcuffs. But journalists at the paper are still working, fighting to tell the people of Hong Kong’s story.
Mohammad Reza Aslani’s gothic family thriller was banned in Iran and presumed lost, only to be found years later by his children in a junk shop. Now, painstakingly restored, it’s showing at the BFI London film festivalThe rediscovery of a film is seldom as fascinating a story as the film itself, but that’s the case with Chess of the Wind (Shatranj-e Baad), directed by Iranian film-maker Mohammad Reza Aslani. It was only screened twice in Tehran in 1976, once to a cinema of hostile critics, and then to an empty cinema – the bad reviews had done their work. “The rediscovery of this film is great for me,” says Aslani, now aged 76, and still living in Tehran. “But it also allows audiences to view Iranian cinema from another perspective, and to discover other auteur film-makers who have been marginalised because of the complexity of their films.”Critical of the Shah’s royalist government, the film also featured strong female leads and homosexuality, which didn’t endear it to the Ayatollah Khomeini’s regime either. In the politically tumultuous years that followed the Iranian revolution of 1979, the film was banned, and then presumed lost. “Critics in Iran at the time of its release claimed the film didn’t make sense, that my father was just trying to make an intellectual film, to imitate European cinema,” says the director’s daughter, Gita Aslani Shahrestani. But Aslani Shahrestani was determined not to let her father’s legacy languish. A writer and academic based in Paris, she was uniquely suited to the task. “About seven years ago I was working on my PhD about auteur cinema in Iran, and this film was part of it, so I started to look for the film.” Continue reading...
During South Africa’s strict lockdown, groups of activists decided to distribute parcels of vegetables as wells as seedlings and gardening materials as well as to hundreds of vulnerable householdsPhotographs by Miora Rajaonary
by Kalyeena Makortoff Banking correspondent on (#58NC8)
Bank’s future remains uncertain as it finds itself under pressure from Beijing and WashingtonHSBC has been a fixture of the Hong Kong economy for more than a century. However, its origins as a financial bridge between Asia and the west have placed it in the centre of a modern day geopolitical storm. Facing pressure to choose sides as Hong Kong is convulsed by the new security law imposed by Beijing and Donald Trump pursues a trade war with China, HSBC is in danger of finding itself without friends in either direction.Headquartered in London, but dependent on Hong Kong and China for profits, HSBC has been affected by tensions between Washington and Beijing – and shareholder concern over its controversial acceptance of an authoritarian crackdown in its key market. Continue reading...
by Charlotte Graham-McLay in Wellington on (#58NC9)
Vodafone and communications agency DDB respond after calls on companies to use the reo termOne of New Zealand’s biggest telecommunications companies has heeded an exhortation to use the country’s original, Indigenous name of Aotearoa, joining others that have pledged to use more reo, the Māori language, or tikanga – protocols – in their daily business operations.Earlier this week Vodafone – which has about 2,000 New Zealand employees – confirmed it had changed its banner at the top of users’ phones from “Vodafone NZ” to “VF Aotearoa”. The company gave short shrift to those on social media who complained about the change. Rival companies backed the move. Continue reading...
Airline becomes first in Japan to make move as part of commitment to tackle gender-based discriminationJapan Airlines is replacing “ladies and gentlemen” in its in-flight and airport announcements with gender-neutral expressions, beginning in October.The formerly state-owned airline will use phrases such as “all passengers”, “good morning” and “good evening” in its English announcements. The standard term used in Japanese “minna-sama” – an honorific form of “everybody” – is already gender neutral. Continue reading...
What are the restrictions within Victoria and the border closures with NSW and Queensland? How far can I travel, and how many people can I have over at my house? Untangle Australia’s Covid-19 laws and guidelines with our guide
Guardian Australia analysis and map shows how the pattern of Covid-19 has changed by region and throughout Sydney. Live data updates will track the numbers throughout New South Wales
World news | The Guardian