The US European Command (EUCOM) raised its threat level to the highest level last week (‘Potential Imminent Crisis’) as a build-up of Russian forces on Ukraine’s eastern border prompted alarm amongst western leaders. In excess of 20,000 troops are thought to have been deployed on the border separating Russia from the Ukrainian oblasts of Donetsk Read More…
CW: Mentions of rape and sexual assault The recent pile-up of sexual assault and harassment allegations within the Australian Parliament is symptomatic of a deep-rooted sexist culture governing Australian politics. Australia is experiencing a political #MeToo moment which has left Prime Minister Scott Morrison grasping at straws in an attempt to rescue his decreasing approval Read More…
On the 30th March, the French Senate voted in favour of the “Separatism Bill”, which would enforce a ban on wearing the hijab for anyone under the age of 18. The bill would also prohibit mothers accompanying school field trips from wearing it, as well as banning the burkini from public swimming pools. While the Read More…
In his political column, On the Other Hand, Hayden Barnes examines Narendra Modi’s autocratic and Islamophobic tendencies and their impact on the world’s biggest democracy. Artwork by Rachel Macnaghten.
“The clearest illustration of Hindu nationalism and supremacist ambitions is the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB). In short, this bill grants citizenship to those who failed to qualify for the National Register of Citizens (NRC) – everyone except Muslims. The pluralism, the secularism, the multiculturalism, the cosmopolitanism of Gandhi and Nehru is being treated like an offensive building: knock it down, Modi says, and build something new.”
18th March marked 150 years since the start of the Paris Commune, a revolutionary regime that for a brief 72 days wielded power amidst the climate of general disarray that followed the spectacular defeat of French armies in the Franco-Prussian War. In an ensuing post-armistice election, whilst most of France elected conservative deputies, Parisians bucked Read More…
Last week, five parliamentarians, including ex-Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, and four others had sanctions imposed upon them by the Chinese government. As a result, these individuals cannot enter China, Hong Kong or Macau, their property and assets in China are frozen, and Chinese individuals and institutions are not allowed to do business with them. Read More…
“We didn’t shoot for the stars” claimed French President Emmanuel Macron on Greek television channel ERT amidst the current EU vaccine debacle. As countries like the UK and the US are well under way in their inoculation programmes, the EU is lagging behind. The consequences on global health are supplemented by diplomatic tensions between the Read More…
Mozambique, like many African nations, hasn’t exactly had a bloodless history. But the recent episode of an Islamic fundamentalist insurgency in its northern province of Cabo Delgado is a whole new chapter. With over two thousand dead and amid concerns for the safety of children and non-combatants, this conflict, despite its staggering volume, is deeply Read More…
Bitcoin is now worth over £40,000 per coin. What does its rise mean for the dollar, how we perceive money, and American economic power? Existential Dilemmas Money, and the stability of a monetary system are things we take for granted. In fact, the ability for currency to work actually necessitates our taking it for granted: Read More…
The ASNM has confirmed the existence of a limited risk of atypical thrombosis from the AstraZeneca vaccine. The investigation followed new cases of the rare thrombosis occurring shortly after receiving the AstraZeneca jab in France, including two deaths. The Agence française de sécurité sanitaire des produits de santé (French Agency for the Safety of Health Read More…