In South Korea, opposition party lawmakers have lamented the presidential office’s alleged blacklist of 9,400 artists by comparing them to American Nobel laureate Bob Dylan. It was found on Tuesday last that Cheong Wa Dae (Office of the President of South Korea) blacklisted 9,473 artists who expressed opposition to government policies or supported opposition politicians, […]
President Jacob Zuma arrived in Goa, India, on Saturday with his delegation for the 8th BRICS summit. His arrival comes as nine people are in custody in South Africa after a spate of looting and arson in Braamfontein on Friday night and Saturday morning, and questions over the safe storage of former Public Protector Thuli […]
The Society of Jesus has elected its first Latin-American leader since its foundation in 1540, a Rome-based Venezuelan whose past curiously parallels that of Francis, the first Jesuit pope. Like Jorge Mario Bergoglio, (Pope Francis)who steered his divided province through the 1970s Argentine dictatorship, Father Arturo Sosa SJ, 67, was Venezuelan provincial between 1996 and […]
A MacDonald’s opening at the Vatican and the red caps are certainly NOT lovin’ it! Opponents of what would be the first McDonald’s restaurant to open in a Vatican building within sight of St Peter’s Square has been boosted by a group of cardinals living above the proposed site. While local residents have been aghast […]
Bob Dylan, the poet laureate of the rock era, whose body of work has influenced generations of songwriters and been densely analyzed by fans, critics and academics, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday. It is the first time the honour has gone to a musician. In its citation, the Swedish Academy credited […]
A prominent Pakistani journalist claims the government prohibited him from exiting the county after he wrote an article illuminating a potential schism between military and government leaders. The article claiming that Pakistan’s top spy agency is protecting militants comes as India has accused Islamabad of backing terrorists, stroking global fears of a potential conflict between […]
Do you know that Hong Kong hopes to be hosting the 2022 “gay Olympics”? The international federation behind the global sports event may actually select Hong Kong in a bid to shine a light on its poor same-sex rights record. LGBTI sports organisation Out in HK is leading the bid for Hong Kong 2022. Since […]
South Africans have a new obsession – and it was made in India. They’re called the Guptas, immigrants from India who have reached the apex of South Africa’s business world, and the centre of its politics. A Gupta TV channel, a Gupta newspaper, Gupta coal mines, Gupta-sponsored cricket stadiums – the family’s footprint extends far […]
Soon, very soon, we shall have a new ‘Black Pope’, but will the new Jesuit Superior General be from India? A Jesuit priest has explained how the leadership election process works within the order. The Jesuits have a unique process for electing a superior general for their order, a process that “if you have not […]
Is Francis of Assisi relevant today? St. Francis was a strong voice in the nonviolent struggle for racial harmony and reconciliation. Francis lived in the political turmoil of the 13th Century “Holy Roman Empire,” locked in a culture of war as the empire united in a series of Crusades against Muslims, Jews and others labelled […]
THE LONDON MUSIC SCENE: Grime hip-hop artist Skepta was awarded Britain’s prestigious Mercury Prize last week (Sept 15) for his album Konnichiwa in recognition of a resurgent home-grown genre. As he presented the prize, Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker paid tribute to the late rock legend David Bowie who had been tipped to win the […]
Why is Child Abuse, either physical or sexual, covered up by Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi migrants in the UK? A 2016 report by the Child Protection department of the UK government highlighted the extent of child sexual abuse. They found over 47,000 police records regarding sexual abuse between 2014 and 2015 the highest recorded in […]
