Monthly Archives: May 2023

Calls to make education ‘more affordable’ for Pacific island students – Stuff

Posted: May 18, 2023 at 1:00 am

When Finance Minister Grant Robertson delivers the Budget today, his last before Octobers election, he will announce close to $400 million will go towards schools, and that the Government is committed to building hundreds more classrooms.

While Pacific island leaders welcome the move, they want New Zealand to review its "sky-high" education fees for their students studying in Aotearoa.

There are 101 Pacific island children out of 5271 international students enrolled in schools across New Zealand as of April 12.

Data for tertiary students for the same period is yet to be released but 21,915 Pacific people were enrolled in universities, private training establishments (PTEs), Te Pkenga, wnanga and workplace training in 2022.

READ MORE:* Less than half of NZ students achieve UE, with only two-thirds passing NCEA Level 1* NZ hosts Pacific education ministers as talanoa targets challenges* Three quarters of eligible school students about to get access to free period products* Fees-free tertiary study: How it could hurt those it's meant to help

The Government said its zero-fee policy (Fees Free) is for first-year students only.

For a student visa, applicants are required to provide evidence that they have at least NZ$20,000 or NZ$17,000 to cover living expenses for their first year of study.

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Pacific island leaders want a review of New Zealands tertiary education fees, with an emphasis on reclassifying international Pacific students as domestic students.

Tonga's Prime Minister Hu'akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni said there were different fee structures for domestic and international students and this should change.

He said Pacific students were on the international list, and they had to pay higher fees to be able to access higher education in both Aotearoa and Australia.

Education Minister Jan Tinetti said students from the Pacific represented one in every 40 international students with 32% from Fiji, Tonga (26%), Papua New Guinea (14%) and Samoa (9%).

In a statement, Tinetti said around half of the Pacific students were in universities, with one in six enrolled in private training establishments (PTEs) and a third in polytechnics and wnanga.

Between 2016 and 2019, there were 495 Pacific nationals undertaking tertiary education and supported by a Manaaki scholarship 33% of all international students.

That means that there were 1000 students a year from Pacific nations, privately funded or financed by awards other than through the Manaaki scheme (some will be funded by family, employer, by charities or scholarships other than from the government), Tinetti said.

At the recent Conference of Pacific Education Ministers (CPEM) in Auckland, concerns were raised with Tinetti about the sky-high fees.

She said one of the primary objectives of the meeting was to define what empowering education means for Pacific people and societies.

Since April 12, 101 Pacific students out of 5271 internationals are enrolled in schools across the country, according to the Education Ministry Te Thuhu o te Mtauranga.

AIMAN AMERUL MUNER/Stuff

Tongas Prime Minister Hu'akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni wants New Zealands sky-high education fees for Pacific island students to fall.

Victoria University of Wellington and the University of Auckland both estimated living costs at $20,000-$27,000 each year, with Otago University in Dunedin at $18,000-$21,000.

Annual fees for state schools start at about $11,000 for primary schools and $14,000 for secondary schools. Annual fees for private primary and secondary schools start at about $25,000.

Hu'akavameiliku said fees at universities in New Zealand and Australia were "too high for Pasifika.

"Our students are paying the same fees as other international students, say from Asia or Europe," he said.

Tinetti said the Government supports education for Pacific students through the International Development Cooperation programme and through the Manaaki New Zealand Scholarships programme.

They allowed students to study in a New Zealand or a Pacific institution, she said.

The New Zealand education system is not currently funded to support tertiary education for non-New Zealand citizens and residents.

For work-based learning, Fees Free covers the student and employer's fees for training and assessment for the first 24 months of any eligible work-based programme.

But to be eligible for Fees Free, while enrolled in work-based learning in 2023, applicants need to meet the residency and prior study and training criteria.

Fiji govt

Pacific heads of education discuss the challenges facing the sector in the region.

Fiji's Education Minister Aseri Radrodro said Pacific countries had been hit hard by climate change and disasters including cyclones, Covid-19 and a cost of living crisis.

He urged New Zealand and Australia to work together with the island states to "address these issues that we are confronted with daily".

Kiribati Education Minister Alexander Teabo said its 33 islands stretched across 3 million square kilometres of ocean which made it logistically hard to provide education there.

The Pacific Islands Forum said in a statement, "without education to drive economic growth, the island nations will remain dependent on others to finance development goals".

Hu'akavameiliku also raised the issue with Foreign Affairs officials, urging New Zealand and Australia to provide a pathway similar to the Pacific work access category, which would make education more affordable for Pasifika.

Tinetti said people from New Zealands realm countries the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau have all the rights of a New Zealand citizen, including the right to live in Aotearoa to enrol as domestic students in tertiary education.

They pay domestic student fees, can be returned as domestic students in enrolment returns, generate government tuition funding entitlements and have access to the New Zealand student financial support system student loans and student allowances.

Tinetti said reclassifying international Pacific students as domestic students would have a fiscal cost, given the Government subsidises the majority of the cost of tertiary study for domestic students.

Any change to these settings would need to be considered through future Budget processes, she said.

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The startling role that disease played in human evolution – Sydney Morning Herald

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The word pathogenesis means the ways in which a disease develops and progresses, and Jonathon Kennedys hopefully contagious thesis examines all manner of dreadful illnesses and their gruesome effects; not just on individuals, but on entire societies.

Most readers will be familiar with the calamitous results of the introduction of bacteria and viruses into populations with no prior immunity. British annexation of Australia, while a disaster for the Indigenous population, was made far worse by the introduction of smallpox and other diseases to which the colonists had, over centuries, developed immunity, or at least far lower fatality rates.

British annexation of Australia, while a disaster for the Indigenous population, was made far worse by the introduction of smallpox and other diseases. Detail from Taking of Colbee & Benalon, November 25, 1789 by William Bradley. State Library of NSW

The Aztecs and Incas of central and southern America, as well as the northern tribes of what was to become the USA and Canada, were all decimated by European pathogens far more deadly than swords and muskets. Indeed, it was much worse than that. The Latin word decimate means to kill one in 10. These cultures were not decimated they suffered casualty rates that a twisted Roman general could have only dreamed of.

Kennedy writes that the population of the whole of the Americas, estimated at more than 60 million in 1500, was at most 6 million a century later. The vastly outnumbered soldiers of Cortes and Pizarro did not defeat the massive armies of the Central American empires. No, they were beaten by an unintentional yet devastating form of germ warfare, invisible invaders that spread faster than the armies that followed them. Spanish soldiers would walk into deserted Andean villages, with only corpses to be found.

There was an exchange of diseases, with syphilis being brought back to Europe by conquistadors and rapacious slave traders, but it was essentially a one-sided affair. Kennedy concedes that venereal afflictions certainly caused a good deal of pain, irritation and embarrassment to the people of Europe, but points out that their impact cannot be compared to that of Old World pathogens in the Americas.

Europe had had its own catastrophic encounter with an imported pathogen two centuries earlier, the Black Death having made its way from eastern Asia aboard rats and fleas via the trade routes of the Silk Road. Although plague had been a regular and dreaded occurrence in Europe in the 6th and 7th centuries, the Black Death, which swept across Europe and the Mediterranean between 1346 and 1353, was probably the deadliest outbreak of contagious disease in history, killing between 75 million and 200 million people. Europe would never be the same.

So while Kennedys book is subtitled How Germs Made History, he has certainly not written a history of disease. The book is about disease as an essential driver of primate evolution, then the human story, from before we homo sapiens outlasted all the other hominids to become, for the time being at least, the dominant creatures on the planet.

He kicks off with microbiologys most perplexing debate is a virus alive? Well, yes and no. The lonely virus is both a dead collection of complex chemicals, and an incipient, bottled genie waiting patiently for the correct chemical caress to pop its cork.

A virus is both a dead collection of complex chemicals, and an incipient, bottled genie.

But COVID-19, AIDS and all the other blueprints for despair that wed rather had never evolved notwithstanding, Kennedy enlightens us on one viral infection so astonishing, so fundamental, that it explains how we came to be the creatures we are.

For billions of years, all creatures hatched from eggs. And we still do, in a way. A human ovum is an egg. Not much to look at, next to an ostrichs, but thats because it doesnt have to be. Until a fortunate retrovirus infected a shrew-like creature many millions of years ago, all eggs hatched outside their mothers body. Most eggs on earth still do.

Then mammals found themselves with an escape hatch, an airlock between umbilical babe and a hostile outside world.

Yes, the placenta, a temporary organ that allows all mammalian mums to hatch their eggs inside their own bodies. But the astonishing thing is that the evolution of our maternal engineering was less likely than an asteroid impact.

It was the result of an opportunistic viral infection, one thats been protecting us in the womb from being ousted by our own mothers immune systems. Then, when fully baked, we get shoved out, along with the placenta and any other odds and ends that mum doesnt need any more.

Not a bad effort for a humble virus, eh? But dont feel too grateful to this mindless sack of viral spare parts. Its done pretty well out of it, too.

The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from books editor Jason Steger. .

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Celebrate Mothers Day With These 15 Stuntcasted Sitcom Moms – Cracked.com

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Mothers Day is upon us. For most of us, that requires some very specific plans to honor our own moms. You make a trip to Hallmark (not the grocery store) for a nice card. You make a reservation at a brunch spot back in February, to make sure mom wouldnt have to wait. And perhaps you make a promise to yourself that youll call or at the very least text your mother more, and if youre a very good child, you might even keep up that resolution past the Fourth of July.

But if you dont want to have the kind of Mothers Day that commercials typically dictate, you can spend Sunday with some mothers from TV specifically, famous ones who were brought in to play a series regulars mom (and maybe notch an Emmy nomination while theyre at it).

The thing about calling your show Mom is that every female parent you subsequently cast has to nail the part. In the early going of CBS sitcom, Bonnie (Allison Janney) tells us a fair bit about the troubled childhood that contributed to her disordered substance use in particular, that her own mother abandoned her, leaving Bonnie to be raised in foster care. But in Terrorists and Gingerbread, the Season Three premiere, Bonnie and her mother are reunited. Mom always mixed real pathos with its comedy plots, and that was especially true here, as Bonnies mother Shirley (Ellen Burstyn) reaches out hoping to make peace, and Bonnie ponders the kind of relationship she wants them to have or if they should have one at all. You dont have to get an Oscar winner to play a role like Shirley, but it doesnt hurt.

A Different World immediately establishes Whitley (Jasmine Guy) as a Southern belle with extremely specific ideas about how to live life, and extremely ready judgments for anyone who doesnt conform. Where could such a woman come from? Well, from a mother like Marion (Diahann Carroll). Through Carrolls nine appearances on the series, we see that Marion was instrumental in Whitleys having developed a gift for insults so sugary-sweet that their targets may not even notice theyve been attacked. Bonus: Many of Carrolls best spats find her facing off against Adele, mother to Whitleys eventual husband Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison). And Adele is played by none other than Patti LaBelle.

Abe Grampa Simpson (voice of Dan Castellaneta) was part of The Simpsons before The Simpsons was a stand-alone show, appearing in the short Grampa and the Kids in a 1988 episode of The Tracey Ullman Show, before The Simpsons spun off from it. But little was known about Homers other parent, Mona, until the seventh-season Simpsons episode Mother Simpson. Prior to that point, flashbacks to Mona (in which she was voiced by Maggie Roswell) showed her as a typical mid-century American homemaker. Homer (also Castellaneta) had believed Mona was long dead, but when multiple Oscar nominee Glenn Close took over the role, we learned that Mona had left the family after getting involved in leftist activism who can say how many 1960s housewives were similarly radicalized by Joe Namaths sideburns?! and was still wanted by the FBI for sabotaging a lab full of germ warfare experiments. Mona recurs in later-era episodes, but none is as poignant as the first.

After starting out as a stand-up comic, Susie Essman made an indelible impression as the virtuosically profane Susie Greene on Curb Your Enthusiasm, establishing herself as an actor. After that, Essmans profile was high enough for her to be cast on Broad City as Sandi, mother to Ilana (Ilana Glazer). A Long Island doyenne, Sandis trips to New York City to see her children are always memorable, whether shes tearing it up at the nail shop or hunting for the most convincing knockoff purses.

Essman may not have the widest range as an actor, but she seems to have staked out her terrain playing TVs Jewish mothers. Here she is playing Donna, mother to Lake Bells Rio in the tragically short-lived and underrated Bless This Mess, about a couple of New Yorkers who inherit a farm in Nebraska

and as Sharon Quinzell, mother to the artist currently known as Harley Quinns eponymous anti-heroine.

Character actor and later director Chip Fields is a lot less famous than the other mom-portrayers here, but I could not possibly sign off on a list of mom stuntcasting on sitcoms without including her. Fields recurred on The Facts of Life as Diane Ramsey, mother to Tootie; Tootie was played by Kim Fields, Chips real-life daughter. As a working actress in the entertainment industry, which doesnt exactly brim with opportunities for Black women, Chip may not have had to dig too deep to perform this argument about, among other things, Tooties desire to become an actor:

In the next decade, Chip and Kim would play mother and daughter again when Kim was cast in another sitcom revolving around a female foursome: Living Single.

On Friends, Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) had the spottiest family history: Her mother, Lily, died by suicide; her father Frank (Bob Balaban) left her family and then one more that we know of; her twin sister Ursula (also Kudrow) is basically a sociopath; and while were supposed to be happy for her brother, Frank Jr. (Giovanni Ribisi), when he finds love with his home-economics teacher Mrs. Knight (Debra Jo Rupp), that requires us to forget that when their relationship started, it was technically felonious. So when Phoebe tracks down Lilys best friend Phoebe (Teri Garr) on a trip to Montauk and finds out that Phoebe Sr. is actually Phoebe and Ursulas biological mother, its a relief and excellent casting of a character whose flingy attributes are apparently genetic.

Years later, it would be Kudrows turn to be stuntcast as a mom whos not quite up for the job: roller-coaster enthusiast Lori-Anne, mother to Kimmy (Ellie Kemper) in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt; and on Space Force as Maggie (mother to Erin, played by Diana Silvers), incarcerated for very serious crimes that are never actually revealed.

Honorable mention to the many other stuntcast moms of Friends: Marlo Thomas (That Girl) as Sandra Green, mother to Rachel (Jennifer Aniston); Christina Pickles (St. Elsewhere) as Judy Geller, mother to Monica and Ross (Courteney Cox and David Schwimmer); Brenda Vaccaro (Midnight Cowboy) as Gloria Tribbiani, mother to Joey (Matt LeBlanc); and Morgan Fairchild as Nora Tyler Bing, mother to Chandler (Matthew Perry).

Though shes best known to viewers of a certain age for playing Deacons daughter Thelma on NBCs church-centered sitcom Amen, Anna Maria Horsford has been a steadily working actor since the 1970s, with roles across all on-screen genres. Case in point: She already co-starred in History of the World, Part II earlier this year. By far my favorite of her mom roles is New Girls Charmaine. When she was originally introduced in Season Two, she didnt get much to do but disapprove of Schmidt (Max Greenfield), roommate to Charmaines treasured son Winston (Lamorne Morris). When she returns in Season Six, its for a much meatier storyline: Winston has joined the LAPD, but because he knows how much his single mother Charmaine dotes on him, hes kept his career change from her via elaborately faked episodes of his sports radio show. Charmaines immediate bond with Winstons new fiance Aly (Nasim Pedrad) forces him to rethink how hes been deceiving Charmaine. A scene in a discount retailer that is definitely NOT TJ Maxx proves pivotal.

Like Friends, New Girl also went big on stuntcasting: Lets hear it for Jamie Lee Curtis (Everything Everywhere All At Once) as Joan Day, mother to Jess (Zooey Deschanel); Nora Dunn (Saturday Night Live) as Louise, mother to Schmidt; and Margo Martindale (Justified) as Bonnie Miller, mother to Nick (Jake Johnson).

Since her breakout role as Gabi in the soapy dramedy Desperate Housewives, Eva Longoria has been leaning further into comedy. In front of the camera, shes starred in the sitcom Telenovela and recurred on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Shes also worked in comedy behind the camera, as a director and/or producer on Jane The Virgin, The Mick and Black-ish. And shes done comedy on productions where she might never be near a camera, voicing roles in The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, The Boss Baby 2: Family Business and BoJack Horseman.

Longorias role in the last of these is even less appropriate for children than the average BoJack: She plays Mrs. Buenaventura, mother to Yolanda (Natalie Morales). Yolanda has been dating Todd (Aaron Paul), and the time has come for her to introduce him to her family. She has yet to disclose to them that shes asexual, and asks Todd to join her in pretending theyre sexually active. What possible reason might their sex life come up at a family dinner? Well, her father has written sex books, her sister is a sex columnist and her mother is an accomplished adult film star. So it does.

Since getting cast as Georges wife Angie on The George Lopez Show, Constance Marie has rarely been off our TVs or streaming services. Her (initially) ABC Family show Switched at Birth premiered just a few years after the end of The George Lopez Show; then she had a recurring role on Elena of Avalor; then a series regular role in an adult animated show, Undone; and is about to return for the second season of With Love, a Prime Video romcom series from One Day At A Time creator Gloria Caldern Kellett. This year, Marie also made time to stop by How I Met Your Father and originate the role of Raquel, Long Island real estate mogul and mother to Val (Francia Rasa). Opposite Mark Consuelos as Vals father Juan, Marie must convince the audience that shes in such a hot couple that even late twentysomethings (like Hilary Duffs Sophie) are ready to make out with either or both of them. Spoiler: They nail it.

Longtime colleagues and roommates Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Sheldon (Jim Parsons) had very different origin stories. Leonard was raised by Beverly (Christine Baranski), a neuroscientist with multiple PhDs. Sheldon was raised by Mary (Galeckis former Roseanne co-star Laurie Metcalf), an East Texas woman whos so born-again that she formerly worked as a church secretary. Mary may not entirely understand science in general, or Sheldon in particular, but as this compilation of her best moments shows, her ability to to love her son and his friends is as infinite as her supply of folksy expressions:

When CBS greenlit the single-cam prequel series Young Sheldon, the show found the perfect performer to play young Mary: Zoe Perry, aka Metcalfs daughter.

Netflixs 2017 beloved cult hit remake of Norman Lears 1970s and 1980s sitcom One Day At A Time introduced Rita Moreno already an Oscar winner for West Side Story to a whole new audience as Lydia, mother/overbearing roommate to Justina Machados new divorce Penelope. Its an iconic role, but two years before, Moreno made her dbut on another beloved TV comedy. On A Different World, Marion showed the audience how a character like Whitley might come by her extreme self-absorption honestly thanks to the influence of a narcissistic parent, and on Jane The Virgin, Janes father Rogelio (Jaime Camil) makes a lot more sense once we meet his mother Liliana (Moreno), who is pretty much obsessed with him.

Moreno extended her run of stuntcast sitcom matriarchs this year as Dolores, Georges (George Lopez) grandmother, in a January episode of Lopez vs. Lopez though since shes technically playing Doloress ghost, haunting Georges house, its unclear whether one should expect further appearances.

At first, Penny (Casey Wilson) seems to be a bit on the flighty end of the spectrum although, compared to Jane (Eliza Coupe), nearly everyone is. Then we meet Pennys mother Dana (Megan Mullally), a thrice-divorced itinerant lounge singer who formerly enlisted a young Penny in a mother-daughter cabaret act. Penny and Danas intermittently functional relationship is strained when Dana starts dating Big Dave (Michael McKean), father to Dave (Zach Knighton), one of Pennys best friends right around the time it seemed like Dave and Penny might be drawn to one another themselves. The womens capacity to work through their emotions is also limited by a practice, started by Dana during Pennys childhood, for them only to argue with each other through improvisational song. But maybe Dana was on to something if their conflict can bring us musical numbers like this:

One of the most enduring jokes of Will & Grace is that the titular Grace (Debra Messing) is obsessed with gay men. So who better to play her mother than someone gay men had been obsessed with for almost 50 years? As Bobbie Adler, a flamboyant firecracker whos the toast of the theater scene in Schenectady, New York, Hollywood legend Debbie Reynolds got to show off all her talents: singing, dancing, impersonating Mae West and the impeccable timing required to put down her daughter with devastating effect. Its a tour de force.

Once again, Will & Grace used parent casting to bring in A-list talent. Lets give it up for Blythe Danner (Meet the Parents) as Marilyn Truman, mother to Will (Eric McCormack); Veronica Cartwright (The Witches of Eastwick) as Judith McFarland, mother to Jack (Sean Hayes); Suzanne Pleshette (The Bob Newhart Show) as Lois Whitley, mother to Karen (Megan Mullally); Judith Ivey (Women Talking) as Eleanor Markus, mother to Graces husband Leo (Harry Connick Jr.); and Ellen Albertini Dow (The Wedding Singer) as Syl, Karens mother-in-law.

Speaking of showbiz legends, the only one on this list whos really in Reynoldss league is Elaine Stritch. Her legacy was secured as soon as she appeared in the seminal documentary Original Cast Album: Company (watch it, then watch Documentary Now!s parody, Original Cast Album: Co-op). Mostly a Broadway actor, Stritch had considered sitcoms: As she told it, in a one-woman show in the early aughts, she had the opportunity to read for Dorothy in The Golden Girls, but the thought of working with Betty White every day would be like taking cyanide. (The eventual stars have a different recollection, but its still a good story.)

Anyway: Dorothy might not have panned out, but another caustic senior citizen came along later, and Stritch was cast as Colleen Donaghy, bitter mother to Alec Baldwins Jack. A success in all aspects of his life, Jack can still be psychologically assaulted by a visit from Colleen, a merciless fault-finding machine the shows producers deployed with admirable judiciousness.

More famous moms dotted this long-running production, too: Catherine OHara (Schitts Creek) as Pearline, mother to Kenneth (Jack McBrayer); Patti LuPone (Broadways Evita) as Sylvia Rossitano, mother to Frank (Judah Friedlander); Mary Steenburgen (The Last Man on Earth) as Diana, mother to Jacks wife Avery (Elizabeth Banks); and Jan Hooks (Saturday Night Live) as Verna Maroney, mother to Jenna (Jane Krakowski).

Famously, Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) lives with his father Martin (John Mahoney). A retired detective, Martins mobility is compromised from a gunshot to the hip, and he moves in with Frasier for, initially, at least, safety reasons. Though Frasiers psychotherapist mother Hester appeared in one episode of Cheers, the show that introduced him played by future Sopranos star Nancy Marchand by the time Frasier is launched, she has been dead for some time. Come the seventh-season premiere, Frasier has a meet-cute at Cafe Nervosa with childrens book author Mia (Rita Wilson) and invites her on a family trip. So far so normal, until Martin and Frasiers brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce) meet her and blanch: It hasnt occurred to noted Freudian Frasier that his latest love interest looks exactly like his late mother; footage from an old home movie reinforces the casting retcon.

Years later, Wilson would recur as Evie Michaels, mother to Allison Williamss Mia, in the HBO dramedy Girls; thanks to Frasier, she already had experience performing in a comedy full of characters who were only somewhat capable of addressing their own mental health.

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Celebrate Mothers Day With These 15 Stuntcasted Sitcom Moms - Cracked.com

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The CIA Is Now Trying to Recruit Russian Spies On Telegram – TIME

Posted: at 12:59 am

A man trudges through snow to a bleak office full of paperwork. A woman logs onto a government computer. The weary bureaucrats seem to be reaching a breaking point with life in Vladimir Putins Russia.Is this the life I dreamed of? a speaker asks. The camera pans over photos of their children on their desks.

The cinematic video, with the gray tones of a Cold War thriller, is part of a U.S. effort to provide more tools for disaffected Russians who might be willing to provide information. Created by the Central Intelligence Agency, the two-minute clip was posted Tuesday on a new Telegram channel that provides information on how to securely contact the U.S. agency using a Tor browser and encryption tools to send information via the dark web.

Are you a military officer? Do you work in intelligence, diplomacy, science, high technology or deal with people who do? reads a message in the video, which ends with both characters deciding to contact the CIA on their phones. Do you have information about the economy or the top leadership of the Russian Federation? Get in touch with us.

The recruitment effort comes as Russias winter push in Ukraine led to little progress and staggering losses, with more than 100,000 soldiers killed or wounded since December alone, according to a National Security Council spokesman. U.S. intelligence agencies have indicated that they expect the twin tolls of war and economic sanctions will make more Russians open to recruitment, including ordinary bureaucrats, fed-up military officers, and wealthy businesspeople who have taken a financial hit.

Were looking around the world for Russians who are as disgusted with [Putins actions] as we are, CIA Director of Operations David Marlowe said last November in rare remarks at an event at George Mason University. Because were open for business.

Read More: How Telegram Became the Digital Battlefield in the Russia-Ukraine War.

The video suggests that making the difficult but important decision to quietly get in touch with the CIA is the dignified decision, and in the best interest of Russians families. Your information may be more valuable than you think, it says.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Tuesday called the channel, which had almost 6,000 subscribers by noon, a very convenient resource for tracking applicants.

The agency first posted Russian-language instructions for how to get in touch with the CIA on its social channels last year. But with access to most mainstream social-media sites restricted by the Kremlin, the Telegram messaging app has become the primary platform for Russians to communicate beyond the nations borders and seek uncensored information. While the app was popular in Russia before the war, its use exploded after the invasion of Ukraine. An analysis of 187 Russian-language news channels provided to TIME last year by Logically, a U.K.-based technology company, showed that subscribers to Russian-language Telegram channels grew by 8 million, or 48%, in the month after the invasion. The platform became the wars digital battlefield, a prime venue for both intelligence-gathering and recruitment.

U.S. officials clearly targeted the video on the platform to appeal to Russian patriotism and concern for their families, experts tell TIME. It includes quotes from Russian writers Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky, and notably uses the word , the Russian term for stand up or resist, which has frequently been used by Putins own military recruitment campaigns.

Theyre picking up on the language of the regime and just gently twisting it into another kind of context, says Ian Garner, a historian and analyst of Russian propaganda.

Read More: Inside the Kremlins Year of Ukraine Propaganda.

Despite the work that went into the Telegram campaign, theres a glaring flaw, says Garner: Theyre not offering anything. Most people with access to information that would interest the CIA, such as mid-level government officials, are provided security by the state, and their children are much less likely to be forced to enlist.

The video goes from grainy sad life in Russia to whatgrainy, sad life on the CIA side? asks Garner. The messaging, which emphasizes Americas pursuit of the truth, is also likely to fall flat, he says. Most Russians are suspicious of America and the CIA in particular. So associating this with the CIA is only likely to reinforce the belief that theyre the ones doing the lying.

More Must-Reads From TIME

Write to Vera Bergengruen at vera.bergengruen@time.com.

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Dark Web Alerts: Identifying Criminal Data Exposure on the Dark Web – Security Boulevard

Posted: at 12:59 am

The dark web serves as a breeding ground for cybercriminal activities, with stolen data and illicit services often traded on underground marketplaces. One critical tool for organizations to protect themselves against potential data breaches and fraud is the implementation of dark web alerts.

By monitoring these hidden corners of the internet, cyber practitioners can proactively identify and address instances of criminal data exposure, allowing them to take swift action to mitigate the associated risks and safeguard their organizations sensitive information.

The dark web is a part of the internet that exists on encrypted networks, hidden from conventional search engines and accessible only through specialized tools like the Tor browser. Its structure provides a high degree of anonymity, making it an attractive hub for various cybercriminal activities, including the trade of stolen data, illegal services, and contraband.

Threat actors often operate on dark web marketplaces and forums, where they exchange sensitive information such as personal and financial data, corporate secrets, and login credentials.

To effectively combat the threats emanating from this hidden realm, security practitioners must develop a deep understanding of the dark webs structure and role in cybercrime. This knowledge will enable them to harness the power of dark web alerts and other intelligence-gathering tools, ultimately bolstering their organizations defense against the wide array of risks lurking in the digital shadows.

Well discuss some of the general areas in the dark web to monitor for sensitive information about your organization.

A dark web forum is an online discussion board or community that exists on the dark web, an encrypted and hidden part of the internet that requires specialized tools like the Tor browser for access. These forums provide a platform for users to communicate anonymously, exchanging information, ideas, and resources related to various topics, including cybercrime.

Due to the high degree of anonymity provided by the dark web, these forums often serve as a hub for illicit activities, such as trading stolen data, sharing hacking tools, and discussing cybercriminal tactics. Dark web forums play a significant role in the cybercriminal ecosystem, enabling threat actors to collaborate, learn from each other, and conduct illegal transactions.

A dark web market is an online marketplace that operates on the dark web. These markets enable anonymous transactions, often using cryptocurrencies, and primarily facilitate the trade of illegal goods and services. Dark web markets typically offer a wide range of illicit items, such as drugs, weapons, counterfeit currency, and stolen data, as well as services like hacking, money laundering, and identity theft. These marketplaces have become a hub for cybercriminals and other individuals engaging in illegal activities, making them a significant concern for law enforcement agencies and cybersecurity professionals.

Though not technically a part of the dark web, illicit Telegram channels serve as a hub for threat actors and are rapidly gaining popularity. Threat actors take advantage of Telegrams end-to-end encryption and privacy features, providing a space for cybercriminals to communicate, exchange tools and techniques, and share stolen data. They serve as an alternative or supplement to dark web forums and marketplaces.

Dark web alerts function as an early warning system, enabling organizations to proactively monitor and detect potential data breaches and criminal activities involving their sensitive information. These alerts are powered by advanced algorithms and automated tools that continuously scan dark web marketplaces, forums, and other hidden platforms for specific keywords, patterns, or data signatures linked to the organization.

When the platform identifies a match, the system generates a real-time alert, providing security practitioners with critical details such as the type of data exposed, the source of the exposure, and any associated threats or vulnerabilities. Armed with this actionable intelligence, organizations can swiftly respond to potential data breaches, address security gaps, and initiate appropriate remediation measures to mitigate the risks associated with the exposed information. By incorporating dark web alerts into their cybersecurity strategy, businesses can enhance their overall security posture and stay one step ahead of cybercriminals.

Timing is crucial when finding external risks. The average time to identify and contain a data breach inside an organization is 287 days, which is almost a year for malicious actors to be able to find and abuse sensitive data.

Integrating dark web alerts into your cybersecurity strategy provides several key benefits, including proactive threat detection, improved incident response, and enhanced risk management. By monitoring for your organizations data on the dark web, you can identify potential breaches and address vulnerabilities before they escalate into full-blown crises. To make the most of dark web alerts, consider these best practices:

By incorporating dark web alerts into your cybersecurity strategy and following these best practices, your organization will be better equipped to identify and address potential data breaches, ultimately strengthening your overall security posture in the face of evolving cyber threats.

Flare monitors over 13 billion leaked credentials on the dark web. Our platform cuts out the noise and prioritizes alerts so that your cyber team doesnt have to sort through them.

Book demo with us so you can see how our dark web alerts can level up your cybersecurity posture.

The post Dark Web Alerts: Identifying Criminal Data Exposure on the Dark Web appeared first on Flare | Cyber Threat Intel | Digital Risk Protection.

*** This is a Security Bloggers Network syndicated blog from Flare | Cyber Threat Intel | Digital Risk Protection authored by Yuzuka Akasaka. Read the original post at: https://flare.io/learn/resources/blog/dark-web-alerts/

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Mullvad aces security audit with this new privacy tool – TechRadar

Posted: at 12:59 am

After recently proving its no-log policy in spite of a police raid in Sweden, Mullvad gave demonstrated strong security infrastructure offered by its VPN service once again.

This time it was its new search engine tool Leta which underwent an independent review by audit firm Assured AB.

Auditors were called to assess both the security and privacy posture of the new tool. Leta aced the review with no significant issues found.

"Overall, Mullvad Leta is well contained with a small attack surface, and good measures have been implemented to strengthen privacy as well as security," the audit's report (opens in new tab) concluded.

Auditors performed both a web application penetration test and a web security review of Leta, the new privacy-focused Google search proxy developed by Mullvad and available for all its VPN users at no extra cost.

They found a total of two low-risks privacy issues related to logging and search query caching, as well as one potential security flaw linked with Google search results' HTML content being rendered in the Leta search results.

The provider reassured it had already begun work on carry out the auditors' recommendations.

Leta is also an option to use with Mullvad Browser as a default search engine. First released on April 3, the latter seeks to offer users all the privacy and security of the Tor Browser, together with all the perks of secure VPN software.

"Leta aims to present a reliable and trustworthy way of searching privately on the internet," explains the provider (opens in new tab).

Using such a tool is pointless, though, when combined with a private web browser that blocks fingerprinting, cookies and other web trackers.

"For most people Leta can be useful, as the above conditions cannot ever truly be met by systems that are available today."

This proves more promising still when you consider that Leta's privacy and security have finally been verified.

Compare today's best five secure VPNs on price

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Billions of Google Chrome users warned to avoid browser over red alert privacy concerns check your sett… – The US Sun

Posted: at 12:59 am

CYBERSECURITY experts have claimed that Google Chrome doesn't take data privacy as seriously as other browsers.

Billions of people use Chrome as their browser of choice, but tech specialists at Kaspersky, a cybersecurity company, suggested that the browser should be avoided.

A recent blog post published on Kaspersky's website explains how Google largely collects user data to make money selling ads and goes as far as to state "the browser is best avoided."

The post stated: "If you use Chrome,Google can seejust about everything you get up to online.

"And theres nothing you can do about it: delete as many cookies as you like or browse in Incognito mode, it wont make a lot of difference Google will still hoover up dataabout your internet activity.

"And dont forget that, besides Google, hundreds of other companies are alsotracking your actionsin cyberspace.

"And Chrome doesnt really do much to stop this."

The post went on to recommend other browsers that it said are more privacy-mindedand work to stop companies from collecting so much data.

The recommended browser list includes Apple Safari, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Vivaldi, DuckDuckGo, Tor Browser, and Mullvad Browser.

However, Google Chrome is extremely popular for a reason and has a range of features that lead to less data collection.

All users can try incognito mode and Android users can try "Do Not Track" mode.

Google in a support webpage post said: "When you browse the web on computers orAndroid devices, you can send a request to websites not to collect or track your browsing data. It's turned off by default."

To use Chrome incognito mode on your computer, click the three vertical dots in the top right corner of the browser.

Then in the drop-down menu select "New Incognito Window".

A new window will appear, which will indicate that you have gone incognito.

The U.S. Sun has reached out to Google for comment.

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How the decision on Space Command’s home will be made – POLITICO

Posted: at 12:59 am

If U.S. Space Command stays in Colorado, itll look like President Joe Biden is bending to the will of a blue state. If it moves to Alabama, hell be criticized for relocating a key military organization to a state that is enforcing a total abortion ban. | Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo

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The Biden administration has a tough decision ahead: Where to place U.S. Space Command. Its currently based in Colorado, where it was reestablished under a temporary HQ in 2019. But former President DONALD TRUMP said its permanent home should be in Alabama. A furious review is going on within the Air Force about whether to reverse Trumps decision or abide by it.

Whenever its done, were told by two U.S. officials that the process will start with Air Force Secretary FRANK KENDALL briefing Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN on the result. Austin will then surely inform President JOE BIDEN about the decision, and its up to the commander in chief whether to weigh in. The officials were granted anonymity to detail an internal debate.

According to the people weve talked to, the White House still isnt sure which way the Air Force is leaning. No recommendation has been sent over to the National Security Council, so the administration is still a while away from decision time.

Were trying to take into consideration all possible factors that will affect [the] final decision, Kendall said in late April.

But when that time comes, Biden faces a no-win moment. If the command stays in Colorado, itll look like hes bending to the will of a blue state. If it moves to Alabama, hell be criticized for following Trumps lead and relocating a key military organization to a state that is enforcing a total abortion ban.

Those fraught politics are exacerbated by Sen. TOMMY TUBERVILLE (R-Ala.), who is holding up military promotions over the Pentagons policy to assist service members seeking an abortion.

As POLITICO first reported in February, abortion politics have entered the Space Command debate. And now its possible that last years overturning of Roe v. Wade, which upended American society and roiled national politics, may be a reason why the review which was supposed to be completed in December is still ongoing.

Tubervilles office contends the hold on military nominations and the Space Command headquarters decision are completely separate. The senator has called for a basing decision for a year, long before the Pentagon implemented its abortion policy, a spokesperson said.

But the fight is even more complex, as Colorado Republicans who count themselves Trump allies and opponents of abortion rights argue moving Space Command to Alabama is a mistake driven by politics. Rep. DOUG LAMBORN (R-Colo.), whose district is home to Space Command (for now) in Colorado Springs, said he hopes that abortion would not play a role in this whole decision.

This is an interesting dichotomy, Lamborn told NatSec Daily of the political cross currents on the fight. And I happen to agree with Sen. Tuberville...that DoD should not be financing people going out and traveling to get abortions.

Lamborn instead argued that Air Force rankings placing Colorado Springs below Huntsville were flawed and very subjective. A top factor, he said, should be when Space Command becomes fully operational in Colorado, a milestone he predicted could happen in just a few months.

U.S. Sen. JOHN HICKENLOOPER (D-Colo.) said he believes the Biden administration is trying to make sure the decision as unpolitical as possible, and that Tubervilles holds arent part of the calculus. And to be clear, Hickenlooper believes the command should stay put.

Were almost at full operational capability. Theres no question that the country is better served to keep it where it is, Hickenlooper said. Were in a hostile engagement with various adversaries around the world, some of which have the capability to attack our assets in space. Its not the time to be moving things around.

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BREAKING: INTRUSION AT SULLIVANS HOME: A man entered national security adviser JAKE SULLIVANs home two weeks ago, per the Washington Posts CAROL LEONNIG and TYLER PAGER. Sullivan is guarded by the Secret Service, prompting questions about how the break in happened.

A U.S. official confirmed that Sullivans home was broken into but declined to offer any details.

BIDEN COULD CUT G-7 TRIP SHORT: The president will head to Japan this week to attend the G-7 summit but is considering canceling the remainder of his visit abroad to return to Washington and help oversee ongoing debt ceiling negotiations with congressional Republicans, our own JONATHAN LEMIRE and KELLY GARRITY report.

Were reevaluating the rest of the trip, National Security Council spokesperson JOHN KIRBY said today.

The president is scheduled to leave Wednesday for Hiroshima. He had planned to make visits afterward to Papua New Guinea before heading to the Quad Summit in Australia. The stops in Australia and Papua New Guinea were meant to affirm the U.S. commitment to the Pacific as Chinas influence in the region rises.

MOSCOWS EXCEPTIONAL ATTACK: Ukraine shot down six hypersonic missiles that Russia fired overnight in what Kyiv officials called an exceptional attack on the country, Reuters GLEB GARANICH and SERGIY KARAZY report.

Its the first time Ukraine has claimed to have intercepted a volley of Kinzhal missiles 18 total missiles were launched in the attack which Russia has previously said were essentially unstoppable. The missiles travel up to 10 times the speed of sound.

The latest assault was exceptional in its density the maximum number of attack missiles in the shortest period of time, SERHIY POPKO, head of Kyivs city military administration, said on Telegram.

As Russia ramps up aerial strikes, leaders from across Europe headed to Iceland on Tuesday for a rare summit of the 46-nation Council of Europe, which aims to drum up support for Ukraine, the Associated Press DAVID KEYTON and RAF CASERT report. By the end of the summit on Wednesday, the group hopes to have the outline of a system that can track the damage Russian forces have caused in Ukraine, as well as a clear path for holding Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN accountable for his invasion of the nation.

CIA SEEKS RUSSIAN SPIES: The CIA is looking for well-connected Russians outraged by their countrys war against Ukraine to help the West, writes our own NICOLAS CAMUT.

The CIA wants to know the truth about #Russia, and we are looking for reliable people who know and can tell us that truth, the agency said in a statement published with a video on Telegram, urging Russians to safely contact the CIA through a link on the encrypted Tor browser which also allows access to the Dark Web.

The video is part of a wider initiative, developed by the U.S. intelligence agency, to capitalize on what they see as unprecedented resentment toward the war effort from the Russian public.

The invasion has ushered in a historic opportunity to have Russians come to us and deliver information the United States needs, according to an official who spoke to CNN, and was interviewed on the condition of anonymity.

GOP REAX TO DURHAM REPORT: Several likely and already-declared GOP presidential candidates weighed in on the Durham report, which criticized the FBI for its actions during the 2016 probe that scrutinized DONALD TRUMPs campaign and its alleged ties to Russia, as our own KIERRA FRAZIER reports. Heres what they had to say on television and social media:

TRUMP: THEY ARE SCUM, LIKE COCKROACHES ALL OVER WASHINGTON, D.C. he wrote on Truth Social early Tuesday.

RON DeSANTIS: It reminds us of the need to clean house at these agencies, as theyve never been held accountable for this egregious abuse of power, tweeted Monday night.

VIVEK RAMASWAMY: Shut down the FBI and yes, this is much more practical than it sounds, wrote on Twitter Monday night.

NIKKI HALEY: Heads need to roll over this. Anybody that touched it or had a part in it needs to be fired and every one of their senior managers needs to be fired, said on Fox News Tuesday morning.

ASA HUTCHINSON: This makes my call to reform the FBI and limit the breadth of its jurisdiction even more important. Great people. Just needs more focus and accountability, tweeted Monday night.

ITS TUESDAY: Thanks for tuning in to NatSec Daily. This space is reserved for the top U.S. and foreign officials, the lawmakers, the lobbyists, the experts and the people like you who care about how the natsec sausage gets made. Aim your tips and comments at [emailprotected] and [emailprotected], and follow us on Twitter at @alexbward and @mattberg33.

While youre at it, follow the rest of POLITICOs national security team: @nahaltoosi, @PhelimKine, @laraseligman, @connorobrienNH, @paulmcleary, @leehudson, @magmill95, @johnnysaks130, @ErinBanco, @Lawrence_Ukenye, @reporterjoe and @_AriHawkins.

BOLTONS BASHING: Former national security adviser JOHN BOLTON, who is weighing a GOP presidential bid, lambasted his old boss on a range of topics in a CNN appearance Tuesday morning. Here are the highlights:

On Trumps reputation worldwide: I have been in those rooms with him when he met with those leaders, I believe they think hes a laughing fool, he said, referring to the Russian, Chinese and North Korean leaders in particular.

On the Turkish election: Im afraid if [President RECEP TAYYIP ERDOAN] wins that there will be real damage done to the NATO alliance. I think we need to consider whether to suspend or even expel Turkey.

On the Durham report: I was struck at how much of Durhams report followed the Department of Justice Inspector General investigation of the investigation of Russia collusion. And I think Durham hit it on the head when he said there was a predisposition to investigate Trump.

NO MORE HACKING: The Biden administration announced a series of steps Tuesday cracking down on a Russian national alleged to have been involved in ransomware attacks on U.S. critical infrastructure and law enforcement organizations, our own MAGGIE MILLER reports (for Pros!).

In two indictments unsealed Tuesday, the Justice Department alleged that Russian national MIKHAIL MATVEEV was involved in the creation of three major ransomware variants LockBit, Hive and Babuk which have been allegedly used by Matveev and other hackers to attack thousands of victims globally since 2020. According to the Justice Department, these attacks involved demands of around $400 million in ransomware payments, around half of which was paid by victims in an attempt to recover encrypted data.

The coordinated actions undertaken by the Justice, State and Treasury departments is part of a larger effort by the administration to address the wave of ransomware attacks on U.S. companies in recent years, and comes amid ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Russia around the invasion of Ukraine.

CHATGPT IN THE HOT SEAT: As countries around the world race to put guardrails on artificial intelligence, OpenAIs CEO made the case on Tuesday for Washington to do its part and regulate the powerful technology.

We think that regulatory intervention by governments will be critical to mitigate the risks of increasingly powerful models, said SAM ALTMAN, whose company created chatbot tool ChatGPT, told the Senate Judiciary subcommittee during a hearing.

One of Altmans main areas of concern is with the ability for AI to influence voters, he said, because were going to face an election next year and these models are getting better.

Sen. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-Conn.) underscored that point with a fake recording of his own voice produced by AI, saying that it could have created an endorsement of Ukraines surrendering or Vladimir Putins leadership, which wouldve been really frightening.

Wheres Warren G when you need him?

DEVELOP STEM: Congress should make it easier for immigrants with advanced STEM degrees to get a green card to better compete with China in the technological realm, nearly 70 former national security leaders wrote to the House China Select Committees head honchos on Monday.

Bottlenecks in the U.S. immigration system endanger our national advantage by driving international science and engineering talent elsewhere, they wrote. The group made the proposal as part of a letter calling for Congress to invest in boosting STEM education.

MORE MILITARY MULAH: House Republicans are proposing to tack nearly $1 billion onto Bidens proposal for military infrastructure spending as part of the opening salvo in the annual appropriations process, our own CONNOR OBRIEN reports (for Pros!).

The fiscal 2024 military construction and veterans spending bill, released Tuesday by the House Appropriations Committee, would allocate $17.7 billion for Pentagon infrastructure programs. The total is $1 billion more than Biden sought in his defense budget but would still be a $1.3 billion reduction from the current year. Bidens budget would have reduced military construction spending by $2.3 billion.

The bill is the first look at GOP designs for the Pentagon amid a partisan fight over spending cuts, though military construction is a small slice of the more than $800 billion defense budget.

KNIVES OUT FOR BLINKEN: Rep. MICHAEL McCAUL (R-Texas) expects a resolution to hold Secretary of State ANTONY BLINKEN in contempt of Congress to advance along a party-line vote, he said in an interview with Punchbowl News MAX COHEN.

Itd be the first time a secretary of States ever been held in criminal contempt, I believe, said McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, adding that resolution could arrive on the House floor as soon as early June. And so I dont take it lightly.

In March, McCaul issued a subpoena to Blinken to hand over the unredacted version of a cable dissent document, written by U.S. diplomats in Kabul who criticized the Biden administrations messy exit from Afghanistan in 2021.

The chair said the information the State Department has turned over thus far is insufficient, and claimed the department is in violation of its legal obligation to produce these documents and must do so immediately. McCaul gave Blinken a new May 16 deadline to release the unredacted document.

A spokesperson for the department fired back in a briefing last month, and said the full document includes the personal information of the diplomats who wrote it, and that its full release could discourage future would-be authors.

CAMBODIAN OPPO PARTY OUT: Cambodia has disqualified the main opposition party for the countrys second parliamentary election in a row, eliminating the only competitive candidate running against Prime Minister HUN SEN.

The Candlelight Party was denied registration on Monday by the countrys National Election Commission for the July general election, the New York Times SETH MYDANS reports. The party had apparently failed to file required paperwork to enter.

That ruins any chance of changing Cambodias political makeup. Hun Sen, 70, has been in power for 38 years, and the Cambodian Peoples Party, which holds all 125 seats in parliament, has been dominant ever since its primary challenger the Cambodian National Rescue Party was dissolved by government-controlled courts in 2018. Many of those members joined the Candlelight Party after.

IAN STAPLES has been appointed as Rep. KATHERINE CLARKs (D-Mass.) national security adviser. Staples was most recently acting deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Senate affairs.

DAVID ANDELMAN, CNN: How will Russias war end? Zelenskyys representative in the U.S. has an unflinching view

Ret. Maj. Gen. JOHN FERRARI and CHARLES RAHR, Defense News: Give the Defense Innovation Unit a slice of Ukraine funds

GHAITH OMARI, Foreign Affairs: The Palestinian succession crisis

American Bar Association, the American University and Mayer Brown, 8 a.m.: Security in an Insecure World: National Security, Technology, and the Law

Intelligence and National Security Alliance, 8 a.m.: Preparing for a Post-Quantum Future

Center for Strategic and International Studies, 8:30 a.m.:A Conversation with Sir ANGUS HOUSTON, Co-Lead of Australias New Defence Strategic Review

Atlantic Council and Applied Intuition, 9 a.m.: NEXUS 23: A symposium at the intersection of defense, national security, and autonomy

House Homeland Security Committee, 9:30 a.m.: Chairman Green Announces Markup on Legislative Package

Senate Armed Services Committee, 9:30 a.m.:To receive testimony on the Role of Special Operations Forces in Supporting the National Defense Strategy, Including Activities that Contribute to Long-Term Strategic Competition with China and Russia

POLITICOs China Watcher, 10 a.m.: Too Little, Too Late? Does the U.S. have a China strategy?(With our own PHELIM KINE!)

Center for Strategic and International Studies, 10 a.m.: Allied Burden Sharing in Ukraine.

Korea Economic Institute of America, 10 a.m.:U.S.-ROK-Japan Trilateral Relations and Integrated Deterrence

Hudson Institute, 12 p.m.: The Next Move in Ukraine: A Conversation with MICHAEL POMPEO

Washington institute for Near East Policy, 12 p.m.:Navigating the Dynamic Homeland Threat Landscape

Hudson Institute, 1 p.m.: American National Security and the Russian-Iranian War on Ukraine: A Conversation with Senator TED CRUZ

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2:30 p.m.: Carnegie Connects: Israel at 75 with Former Prime Minister EHUD BARAK

Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 2:45 p.m.: Hearings to examine the nominations of JENNIFER ADAMS, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Cabo Verde, HEATHER VARIAVA, of Iowa, to be Ambassador to the Lao Peoples Democratic Republic, and JULIE TURNER, of Maryland, to be Special Envoy on North Korean Human Rights Issues, with the rank of Ambassador, all of the Department of State, and other pending nominations

Thanks to our editor, Heidi Vogt, who keeps her reviews about us private.

We also thank our producer, Gregory Svirnovskiy, who always makes the right decision.

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Amid the Fight for Myanmar, Federalism Rises from the Grass Roots – United States Institute of Peace

Posted: at 12:59 am

The massacre in Pa Zi Gyi, about 70 miles north of Mandalay, was only the latest bombardment of schools, medical facilities, religious buildings and administrative structures where military bureaucrats have been expelled and ground troops cannot penetrate. This emerging pattern of violence is a clear sign that suppressing the widespread development of alternative local governance has become an existential struggle for the military, which historically relied on its local officials to maintain its control of the country.

Most international observers of the conflict in Burma are aware of the various political and armed groups that arose to resist the February 2021 coup and went on to form the super-structure for an opposition government and a defensive war. Much less visible to the international community is the rise of local, opposition-linked self-governments that have replaced military-controlled administrators.

Unspeakable brutality aside, the undermanned and shrinking military is not wrong in its strategic concerns about local governance. Preventing the coup regime from consolidating administrative control of localities has been a central objective of the country's diverse popular resistance.

Historically, successive military regimes in Myanmar have relied on local administrators and police to oppress local communities and to identify and eliminate any threats to military control. The resistance, therefore, has made a priority of action at the grassroots level, seeking to:

The progress of this campaign to date has become a glaring sign of the juntas inability to crush its opponents with terror and atrocities, and an indicator that the resistance has real staying power. The failures of local-level suppression carry an additional ominous warning for the regime: The decentralized nature of the growth of alternative governance embodies the resistance goal of creating a federal democratic union that will exclude the military from politics.

More immediately, the expansion of alternative local governance has helped pushed back at least until next year sham national elections that the junta hopes will get the international community off its back. Unable to administer anything remotely as universal as previous nationwide votes, coup-master Gen. Min Aung Hlaing realizes his only option is an election with convincing optics and a farcical outcome a contest that excludes the major parties to ensure the militarys puppets will control the parliament.

The international community would be well advised to recognize that the juntas strategy of bogus elections and stand-off butchery will not produce even temporary stability. As for the future, there, will never be a legitimate place for these brutal actors in the countrys future governments.

Several studies commissioned recently by the U.S. Institute of Peace and other organizations attest to the steady growth of self-government in more than half of Myanmars rural conflict areas, zones where resistance forces and ethnic armies have the power to keep out regime ground troops. In these areas, the military increasingly relies on air power and artillery to try to cow the civilian population.

For their part, the anti-regime locals in some regions rely largely on tradition. A degree of self-administration has been in place for decades in the major ethnic minority areas, such as Kachin, Karen, and Chin States and parts of Shan State.

The center of the country by contrast, comprising the seven Bamar-majority regions, has historically been controlled from Nay Pyi Daw by the Ministry of Home Affairs Department of General Administration (GAD), largely employing retired military personnel.

With the rise of armed rebellion in majority areas, most of the GAD structures have collapsed and are being replaced by local administration under the protection of various resistance forces. In many areas, striking civil servants from the Civil Disobedience Movement, formed in the early days of the coup, along with local civil society organizations, are now providing education, medical, security and other community services, as well as administrative functions.

While the context is new, rural communities have a long history of welfare administered by local charities, self-help associations, and religious groups and sustained by a tradition of community mutuality and barter. Recent studies of Chin, Sagaing, and Rakhine States have found that this tradition, which filled in for state negligence, has intensified markedly since the coup. It is a critical factor in sustaining the resilience of local communities and supporting resistance forces and people displaced by the junta regime. The same is undoubtedly true of other major resistance areas, such as Magway, Karenni, Kachin, and Karen States.

The emerging local governance structures are unique in modern Myanmar. For most of its years as a colony or independent state, governance was highly centralized, lacking the third tier of autonomous local administration essential to a federal democratic system.

After gaining independence in 1949, the Democracy Local Administration Act was enacted in 1953 with the goal of replacing colonial-era administration with greater public participation. When the military took power in 1962, the act was repealed, and under successive military regimes local GAD officers often oversaw land confiscation and forced eviction. The GAD was the tip of the military spear to establish an exclusionary national identity that relegated religious and ethnic minorities to second- and third-class citizens.

This history motivates the strong resistance of local communities today, which fight not only to protect themselves from the juntas atrocities, but also to replace the military-dominated governance apparatus of corruption and incompetence. In this sense, the emerging local governance structures tie directly to the stated national objectives of the resistance to create a democratic, federal system governed by law.

The emergent structures of local administration originating from the grassroots vary widely in strength, capacity and the services they provide. Some, at a nascent and unstable stage, are fractured by occasional military atrocities. The more entrenched ones manage to deliver community services, such as education, medical care, assistance for internally displaced people (IDPs), and even support for judicial functions. For example, according to USIP data from December 2022, resistance education providers operating under local governance institutions in Magwe Region were serving 78,000 students in person and 2,600 online.

In most areas of central Myanmar, local administrative structures depend on resistance forces for policing and military defense. Embedded within a broader context of resistance and revolution, they coordinate with the armed opposition, encourage resignations of government officials and gather intelligence. The degree of backing they receive from the National Unity Government (NUG) tends to vary according to the effectiveness of their performance and stability.

To be sure, these local efforts face major operational challenges. A critical one is constrained resources. For example, local governance actors in Sagaing and Magwe, which suffer some of the most vicious military atrocities, have virtually no access to international assistance. Throughout 2022, food assistance to Sagaing Region, for example, only reached townships along the Indian border, amounting to just 10 percent of IDPs and 8 percent of vulnerable non-IDPs in that area.

Often, the insurgent structures must also deal with various armed and civilian resistance elements claiming authority over local governance. While the NUG has attempted to resolve these disputes, it is hampered by the need to respect the decentralized nature of the movement. In some areas overlapping jurisdiction between the NUG and the ethnic revolutionary organizations also complicate local governance, particularly where ethnic group activity is expanding beyond established state boundaries.

Three lessons stand out from the study of emerging local administration in rural communities.

First, these new structures are an important step toward the federal democracy advocated by the resistance. If their development can be channeled toward effective civilian control, they will serve as a powerful counterweight to creeping militarization at the local level.

Second, the juntas diminished grip on community administration complicates its elections scheme. Poll workers are losing unfettered access to areas no longer under military control. Furthermore, deliberate attacks on local administrative offices by both military and resistance forces have destroyed a significant portion of the records needed for voter lists. If they can be held at all, elections are more likely to create greater conflict and chaos than to bring stability.

Third, those in the international community who seek to support vulnerable populations affected by military violence should see resistance governments as a high-leverage conduit for humanitarian aid. Local governance institutions are not only closely linked to civil society and aid organizations, but also to resistance groups. The very nature of Myanmars traditional community mutuality, sharing of resources, and hospitality to those in need guarantees that channeling cash resources into these community organizations will be put to the best use of the communities they serve.

Arkar Hein is a program specialist for USIPs Burma program.

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Lesson from Karnataka respect states and India’s federalism – Deccan Herald

Posted: at 12:59 am

Regular readers know that this column extols federalism and argues that it is the bedrock on which our nation stands. The Karnataka election outcome has reaffirmed this idea and has shown yet again that the notion of one nation, one thought is fundamentally flawed. The emphatic Congress victory is an outcome of the people of Karnataka rejecting the idea of one national leader, one national political party, one national issue, one national policy and so on. The BJP under Narendra Modi is an exemplar of that one nation, one thought idea. Karnataka has given a resounding message that India is a federal union of states, not one homogeneous nation, and attempts to shove a national idea down their throats will be spat out.

While the Congress party invoked issues of corruption that impacted Kannadigas and asked to vote out the BJP, Modi said vote for the BJP because Congress abused me 91 times. Nobody really abused Modi, except to indulge in standard election campaign speeches. But that is not the point. The BJP mindset was that the perceived sin of abusing Modi should matter to Kannadigas more than their own daily struggles with corruption.

Also Read | Key takeaways from Karnataka election result 2023

This playbook stems from the notion that if a voter in UP can be wooed by crocodile tears of a national leader, so can voters in the southern state of Karnataka and the rest of India be. It is reflective of the BJPs entrenched belief that a national leaders blessing is far superior to actual state issues for voters across the nation. The Karnataka election has revealed some harsh truths for the BJP a national leader does not trump state issues, and their supposed supreme national leader is neither national nor supreme.

Another striking example of a national election playbook forced upon Karnataka was the attempt to religiously polarise voters under the alibi of Bajrang Dal and using the national media to amplify it. Again, this tactic may have worked in UP or Gujarat, but clearly it did not in Karnataka. But the BJP under Modi does not want to recognise the diversity of Indias states and reconcile with it. It does not have a playbook other than one national formula for everything from electioneering to governance to policies.

This illusion of a national party and their leader piercing through the thick walls of state boundaries is further propagated and amplified by the self-anointed national media, based in Lutyens Delhi. The cacophonic political shows on national television and political punditry in the opinion pages of national newspapers in the run-up to the Karnataka elections bellowed about how the Congress was committing suicide with the Bajrang Dal issue and how Modis rallies would overpower local issues, etc., because that is how it works in say UP or Uttarakhand or Gujarat. 43% of voters in Karnataka voted for the Congress in this election, the highest for any party in four decades. Cheekily, the Congress party can now understandably, albeit wrongly, argue that the Bajrang Dal issue helped and not hurt its cause, contrary to national media punditry. Consumption of Delhi media is perhaps the most injurious to Indias federalism.

Also Read | Congress wrests Karnataka from BJP: K'taka's map before and after elections

As I have shown using data in previous columns, Indias regional diversity and geospatial disparity across economic, cultural, political and social axes are only widening and not converging over time. The gap between, say, Bihar and Karnataka is wider today in all aspects than even two decades ago, which will manifest in its politics. The Karnataka election is a profound lesson in federal politics, not just for the BJP but also for the Congress party. The Congress cannot extrapolate its Karnataka victory to presume that national issues such as Adanis cronyism or any other, while they may have helped in Karnataka, can be replicated in other states to same result. It is important to understand that the winning formula in Karnataka is not seamlessly transferrable to other states such as Rajasthan, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh or Chhattisgarh, where elections are due later in the year.

The obvious next question is whether regional differences recede and national issues take precedence in a national election. It is a widely held belief that Indias national elections are more national after the advent of Modis BJP. There is empirical truth to this assertion, based on the 2014 and 2019 national elections. However, this is not an entrenched and established fact of Indian politics forever.

As Indias states grow further and further apart economically and socially, it has to inevitably reflect in its politics too. It is incumbent upon the Opposition to reinforce among voters in each state that the BJP represents a coerced one nation, one formula idea which renders their state worse and delivers bad outcomes. That is, it is necessary for Opposition parties to convince the tribal woman in Rajasthan bearing the brunt of inflation or the jobless youngster in UP that their woes are best addressed by political parties and leaders that are more attuned to their local circumstances, than by any messiah from Delhi with one solution for the entire nation.

The lesson from Karnataka for the Opposition is to convince voters that even in a national election, their daily livelihood interests are best served by local leaders and the seemingly abstract notion of federalism matters for the common man.

The other sobering lesson for the Opposition from Karnataka is that ideas such as Opposition unity that assume that if few parties get together nationally, their voters in each state will also come together is a fallacy. The Karnataka outcome shows that each state election is best fought locally, and the optics of all Opposition parties leaders raising hands in a show of unity for Delhi media cameras may not entice voters across state boundaries.

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Lesson from Karnataka respect states and India's federalism - Deccan Herald

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