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Gay US couple to be deported after calling Bali 'queer friendly'
Denpasar (Indonesia) (AFP) - A gay American couple is being deported from Bali after viral tweets that called the Indonesian resort island "queer friendly". The firestorm started when Kristen Gray tweeted over the weekend that she was enjoying "an elevated lifestyle at a much lower cost of living" after moving to the island from Los Angeles with her girlfriend. Praising the benefits of Bali, she said it was "queer friendly" and home to a "black in Bali community". She also promoted an e-book she was selling that told people how to bypass strict regulations barring foreigners from visiting duri...
AFP
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The pandemic baby boom that no one necessarily asked for
While couples in some countries might be thinking twice about having a child amidst the global coronavirus outbreak, for women in countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines, such a choice is a luxury many of them might not have due to the pandemic. That's because the pandemic has made it more difficult for women and girls in these countries to access contraceptives - and some experts are now predicting a baby boom, even if they're unwanted pregnancies. The UN children's aid organization UNICEF does not want to speculate on a possible boom, but it has forecast that 140 million babies were ...
DPA
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US to seize all Xinjiang tomato, cotton imports
Washington (AFP) - The United States will seize all imports of tomato and cotton products from China's Xinjiang region due to the use of forced labor, the Customs and Border protection agency announced Wednesday. CBP issued a "withhold release order" on those imports "based on information that reasonably indicates the use of detainee or prison labor and situations of forced labor," it said. It was the latest in a series of withhold release orders issued on products originating in China's huge far-west region, where the government has forced more than one million ethnic Uighur Muslims and othe...
AFP
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Report: Child mortality rate at former Irish facilities 'disquieting'
A report published on Tuesday shed light on the deaths of thousands of children at mother-and-baby homes throughout Ireland in the 20th century, highlighting deep cruelty towards unmarried mothers that lasted for decades. "About 9,000 children died in the institutions under investigation – approximately 15 per cent of all the children who were in the institutions," the independent commission wrote in its final report. The report called the mortality rate "the most disquieting feature of these institutions" and said that, before 1960, the homes did not save children's lives, but rather reduced ...
DPA
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China blasts Britain at UN over criticism of Uighur treatment
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - China's ambassador to the UN warned Britain on Tuesday not to interfere in its affairs, after a British minister criticized Beijing's treatment of its Uighur minority during a Security Council meeting. Zhang Jun slammed what he termed a baseless "political attack" after the speech at the Security Council from British government minister James Cleverly, which targeted alleged human rights violations against Uighurs and other minorities in China's northwestern Xinjiang region. China's pushback also came after London earlier on Tuesday accused Beijing of abu...
AFP
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US voices disgust at China boast of Uighur population control
Washington (AFP) - A US official voiced disgust Friday after China's embassy took to social media to laud how women of the mostly Muslim Uighur community were no longer "baby-making machines." "Appalled and disgusted at lies" of the Chinese embassy, tweeted Sam Brownback, the US envoy on international religious freedom. "Coercive population control is not reproductive health care. (Uighur) women deserve to enjoy their religious freedom and unalienable rights with dignity to make their own choices." China's embassy on Thursday promoted a study in state-run media that said that the birth rate de...
AFP
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Neil Young sells 50 percent stake in his music
New York (AFP) - Neil Young is the latest high-profile musician to cash in on his song rights, selling a 50 percent stake in his music to British investment company Hipgnosis. The company said it acquired half of Young's global copyright and income interests of his catalog, which includes 1,180 songs. Hipgnosis did not disclose terms of the deal. The writer of hits including "Heart of Gold", "Rockin' in the Free World" and "Cowgirl in the Sand," Young has remained famously guarded and outspoken against the commercialization of music. Merck Mercuriadis, founder of Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited, ...
AFP
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Germany's main beauty contest wants to become less superficial
Skinny women in bikinis are not what the Miss Germany contest is about anymore. Men judging women for their appearance - that's in the past. From now on, Miss Germany is a beauty pageant no more, says Max Klemmer, who organizes the contest. "We are trying to find an ambassador who can be an idol and an identification figure for many other women," says the 25-year-old, who leads the MGC-Miss Germany Corporation together with his father. The personality of the contestants is now the focus of the contest. Klemmer says he wants to provide a platform for strong women. "We are looking for diversity ...
DPA
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Argentina's Senate legalizes abortion in historic vote
The Argentinian Senate on Wednesday gave the final approval to a law legalizing abortion in a historic vote. The law, which was proposed by President Alberto Fernandez and had already been approved by the lower house, was adopted by 38 to 29 votes with one abstention in the Senate. "Today we are a better society that amplifies rights for women and guarantees public health," Fernandez wrote on Twitter. The new legislation legalizes abortions until the 14th week of pregnancy. Thousands of people demonstrated outside the Senate building during the 13-hour-long vote, some in favour of the law carr...
DPA
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Argentinian Senate approves law legalizing abortion
The Argentinian Senate on Wednesday gave the final approval to a law for the legalization of abortion in a historical vote. The law, which was proposed by President Alberto Fernandez and had already been approved by the lower house, was adopted by 38 to 29 votes in the Senate. The new legislation legalizes abortions until the 14th week of pregnancy. Thousands of people demonstrated outside the Senate building during the 13-hour-long vote, some in favour and some against the law. Pope Francis, who is Argentinian, expressed his opposition to the law. "Every outcast is a child of God," he wrote o...
DPA
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