The Front Room” follows Belinda and Norman whose lives are thrown into disarray when the man’s mother moves in…
Read More
Brandy Norwood stars in new horror movie ‘The Front Room’
Co-Conspirator Details Emerge in Massive $10 Million Streaming Fraud Indictment — Including the CEO of a Major AI Music Company
Yesterday, a North Carolina-based musician was indicted for allegedly facilitating a massive streaming fraud scheme for the better part of a decade. Now, new details – among them the name of the prominent AI music company CEO with whom the defendant allegedly conspired – are coming to light…
Read More
Bruno Fernandes joins Arsenal man among 2023/24 stars flopping so far
To be clear, we’re aware that we’re just three Premier League games into the new season, and to be clearer still, the players on this list have been included because they were brilliant last term. They’ve not been the worst players in the top flight after three games…
Read More
The Molecular Secret to Longevity: Scientists Have Discovered a “Lifespan Limit Line”
Building on their groundbreaking research in epigenetics and transposable elements related to aging, scientists at Eötvös Loránd University have achieved a significant breakthrough in unraveling the molecular mechanisms of aging. Drs. Ádám Sturm and Tibor Vellai of Eötvös Loránd University have achieved another significant breakthrough in the study of aging…
Read More
Ce devait être sans histoire, ce sera sous tension
Un match de Ligue des Nations, face à une Belgique déclassée, deux mois après l’Euro : a priori, il n’y avait pas de quoi se faire un sang d’encre pour les Bleus. Sauf que les souvenirs plombants de l’Euro et, surtout, la défaite malvenue contre l’Italie (1-3) donnent un tout autre contexte à un match sous tension…
Read More
Why 150-day Duty-free Food Importation is yet to Commence
Why 150-day Duty-free Food Importation is yet to Commence The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Thursday, said the suspension of customs duties and taxes on imported food items will be implemented as soon as the service receives the list of beneficiaries from the Ministry of Finance…
Read More
‘A win for all of us’: HK domestic helpers welcome rare rape conviction
Hong Kong, China – A 36-year-old foreign domestic worker in Hong Kong was on her way to throw out the rubbish when her Swedish employer arrived home late one night in October 2022.
X, as she was known in court to protect her identity, said he appeared to be drunk.
Soon he was demanding sex.
She said she tried to reason with him, rejecting his advances. But he dragged her into his bedroom and raped her, despite her repeated calls to stop.
“He told me he also wanted my daughter. He also said: ‘I’ll kill you, I’ll hit you,” X recalled, speaking via an interpreter at Hong Kong’s High Court in August.
“I was terrified and frozen with fear,” the domestic worker said, stressing she had never consented to having sexual relations with him.
Unlike other domestic workers in similar situations, X decided to act. She moved out of the family’s flat the next morning and went to the police despite being the sole breadwinner for her four children and knowing she would lose her job and her home.
Nearly two years on, a jury last month found X’s employer guilty of one count of rape and one count of buggery without consent.
“I am grateful to God that I am alive and to the Hong Kong government that justice was served,” X told Al Jazeera shortly after the verdict. “I am also very thankful to the social workers and everyone who helped me during this two-year-journey.”
X’s case is one of the few successful rape prosecutions involving a foreign domestic worker in Hong Kong, shedding light on the challenges faced by migrant women in securing justice. Experts say many victims do not press charges, but they hope X’s win may encourage other survivors to come forward.
“We can say this is a victory not only for the victim but also for all domestic workers in Hong Kong and around the world,” said Sarah Pun, vice-chair of the Union of Nepalese Domestic workers in Hong Kong.
She noted that X faced many challenges in pursuing justice, including trauma, being apart from her family, and not having an income. “We are proud of the victim and her strength for having pursued this case until the end,” she added.
Dolores Balladares, chairwoman of United Filipinos in Hong Kong and spokeswoman for the Asian Migrant Coordinating Body, agreed: “It is a positive development because justice is hard to get for domestic workers. The burden of proof is always on our shoulders.”
Balladares notes it is particularly difficult to report a rape case, “as many people will blame the victim”.
X’s victory came about a month after a domestic worker from the Philippines – known in court procedures as CB – lost a civil claim of 1.06 million Hong Kong dollars ($135,982) against her British employer in the Chinese territory for alleged sexual assaults. She has since lodged an appeal.
CB’s employer, who initially represented himself, had been sentenced to 30 months in jail on two counts of indecent assault in 2021. He was later acquitted of all charges after a retrial on procedural and technical grounds, including issues related to admission of evidence.
A spokeswoman for the Hong Kong Police told Al Jazeera that from January 2019 to June this year, the force received 310 reports involving employers of domestic workers, and that 87 of those cases were related to sexual abuse.
According to the officer, 194 employers were arrested for various offences following investigations, but only 36 were prosecuted. Nine were found guilty and sentenced to up to six years in prison. The spokeswoman did not disclose the number of arrests or prosecutions specifically related to rape and other forms of sexual violence.
Scared to come forward
Advocates said that domestic workers from ethnic minority backgrounds, like X who is an Indian national of Nepali origin, have been particularly vulnerable to abuse.
There were 363,576 migrant domestic workers in Hong Kong as of the end of August. According to a spokesman for the city’s Immigration Department, nearly 56 percent hailed from the Philippines, followed by about 42 percent from Indonesia. The rest were from countries such as India and Thailand.
Manisha Wijesinghe, executive director of Hong Kong charity HELP for Domestic Workers, said those in crisis usually turn first to their peers. But for those from smaller migrant communities, it can be hard to find other workers from the same country and even the NGOs may not be able to provide them with an immediate response due to language barriers.
“These women definitely face more problems, but many don’t ever come to light,” Wijesinghe said. “They spend their time in Hong Kong and eventually leave. They are rarely able to reach out for support.”
She said that her organisation receives on average one case of sexual abuse or harassment every month.
Research conducted in 2019 by the Progressive Labour Union of Domestic Workers in Hong Kong showed migrant domestic workers were at greater risk of exploitation because their employment and living arrangements – where their income, food and accommodation depend on their two-year work contract – create a power imbalance.
The study noted that “few migrant domestic workers utilise the existing legal remedies available in Hong Kong” to enforce their rights, as they find it “expensive” and “time-consuming”.
A spokeswoman for the Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women, which promotes gender equity in Hong Kong, said that “some policies place foreign domestic workers in a particularly vulnerable position, especially when they face sexual abuse and are caught in the dilemma of whether or not to report it.”
As an example, the rule requiring domestic workers to live with their employers in Hong Kong can effectively “block victim-survivors from accessing medicolegal assistance.”
Those who break their contracts have been accused of job hopping and many fear that can prevent them from getting future visas.
At the same time, she said, many domestic workers worry about having to leave the city within 14 days of termination or completion of their contracts.
Some victims of sexual abuse or harassment are also reluctant to come forward for cultural reasons.
“There is still a stigma, they are so embarrassed, they think: ‘Who am I to bring something up in a place like this, where they look down on us?’” said Cynthia Abdon-Tellez, who heads Mission for Migrant Workers, a group that provides support services for migrant workers in Hong Kong.
She added that it was “rare” for a migrant worker like X to provide testimony in court in a sexual abuse case.
‘Often stuck in limbo’
Wijesinghe agreed that most domestic workers find the legal system intimidating.
She countered claims that domestic workers file abuse cases for financial gain. “There are much easier ways of getting a quick payout,” said the former paralegal, noting that victims often need to relive their trauma multiple times, undergo medical exams, and face cross-examination in open court.
“The victim is stuck in limbo. Some cases take years. It’s not like they point a finger and sit back waiting for justice. There is a lot that the victim needs to go through,” Wijesinghe said.
The length of the reporting procedures and the inability to provide for their families leads some to abandon their cases.
But even when they go through the legal system, analysts said the domestic workers’ unique circumstances can be ignored.
“We have observed that biases and discrimination may arise in the justice system,” the spokeswoman for the Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women said. She added that “authorities and professionals sometimes dismiss or downplay claims without fully appreciating the context and structural oppression faced by [these workers]”.
Chloe Martin, programme manager at Stop Trafficking of People (STOP) – an organisation focused on ending the practice in Hong Kong – said she learned of X’s verdict with “great relief”, but noted that more needs to be done when it comes to keeping survivors informed during legal proceedings and supporting them after rulings are made.
X first heard about the decision through the support group and not via official channels.
“Moving forward, we urge the justice system to implement robust victim notification protocols,” Martin said. “Providing them with timely updates is a critical component of trauma-informed, victim-centred practices that should be the standard.”
Balladares said she hoped X’s case could encourage other workers to come forward. “We can say that there is hope, even if it’s hard and humiliating.”
Pun also called on fellow domestic workers to seek help. “There are many organisations that can support us,” she said. “Silencing ourselves means giving more chances to sex predators and bad employers.”
Searching for a new life
X is still shocked by her experience.
“I was very happy before I came [to Hong Kong],” she recalled in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera. “I thought I was going to earn enough to help my family, but I almost died and there has been so much trouble.”
X said she had never expected to be involved in a court case. “It was painful. Not easy [to deal with] so many questions,” said the domestic worker, who was questioned by the prosecution and the defence lawyer for three days. Her testimony was delivered from a closed courtroom through a videolink, keeping her out of sight of the public and the media.
X became emotional while recounting parts of the rape in court, but found it “most difficult to hear the defence’s lies”.
During the eight-day trial, the employer, whose wife and three children had left for Japan, denied that he forced himself on her. Instead, he claimed they had consensual sex and that the domestic worker had initiated it – not just that one time, but also twice before.
Patrik Tobias Ekstrom, a Hong Kong-based businessman two years younger than X, testified that during those alleged sexual encounters, and on other occasions inside the home, she kept asking for financial assistance to pay off a loan in her home country.
He is expected to be sentenced on November 11 and is facing a life term.
Despite winning the case, X said her ordeal was not over. She has been unable to work since leaving her former employer’s home and has mostly relied on charity to get her through the court process.
She is also concerned about the reaction of some of her relatives. “How am going to face my brother and my male cousin?” X told Al Jazeera.
The migrant woman said she plans to return home for a short time after the sentence and then work for another family in Hong Kong.
“I had a very bad experience, but I think Hong Kong is a good place,” she said.
X urged workers who may be facing similar issues to got to the police.
Her experience has also prompted her to talk to her daughters about sexual abuse and harassment. “I tell them not to keep quiet … Speak up and tackle the issue the right way.”
J.D. Vance Preaches ‘Loving Thy Neighbor’ Amid His Attacks on Haitian Immigrants
Trump’s running mate continues to spread debunked claims about Haitian immigrants as violent threats in Ohio escalate following the false accusations
J.D. Vance, Donald Trump’s vice presidential candidate, headlined an evangelical conservative gala Monday evening in Atlanta. When speaking from the podium, Vance touted his Christian faith and insisted that he wanted the United States’ “public policy to be motivated by the wisdom of loving thy neighbor.”
His calls for the country to be guided by Christian principles arrive as Vance continues to spread baseless claims that Haitian immigrants are killing and eating local pets in Springfield, Ohio — debunked rumors that Trump repeated during last week’s presidential debate. Following Vance’s false accusations, many institutions, including hospitals and elementary schools, have received violent threats targeting members of its Haitian community.
When speaking at the Cobb Galleria Centre, the Ohio senator said that while those in the room were “disparaged” by the media and Democrats “as people who want to force our faith on other people,” they “don’t want to force our faith on anybody.”
Vance preached that “we want our public policy to be motivated by the wisdom of loving thy neighbor, that we want our public policy to be motivated by an understanding that family is the most important thing in this country.”
He added, “At this moment in time, in 2024, with all the violence and all the negative political rhetoric, we need to remember above and beyond that we must love our neighbors, that we must treat other people as we hope to be treated.”
Trending
During Trump and Vance’s campaign run, the senator has received backlash for his public disdain toward Americans who choose not to have children, infamously complaining that America is being run “by a bunch of childless cat ladies.”
Meanwhile, following Taylor Swift’s recent endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump, in a most unneighborly act, took to Truth Social to lament: “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT.”
Trump and Vance think anti-immigrant hate is good politics. They’re mistaken.
Over the weekend, Ohio senator and vice presidential nominee JD Vance made a stunning and unintentional admission: He’s a liar.
For more than a week, Vance, former President Donald Trump and many of their allies have spread falsehoods about the town of Springfield, Ohio, and its Haitian immigrant community. Most infamously, Trump last week repeated the now oft-debunked claim that Haitian migrants in the town are stealing and eating pet dogs and cats.
But on CNN, Vance gave away the GOP’s game. “If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do.” He claimed that the “American media” ignored the “problems in Springfield” associated with the impact of Haitian migration on public services in the town until “Donald Trump and I started talking about cat memes.” Vance tried to explain away his verbal slip, but he couldn’t avoid the truth: “creating stories” is another way to say “making stuff up.”
Most insidious is the effect on the local Haitian community, which is increasingly under siege.
The consequences for such lies are both obvious and frightening. A steady stream of bomb threats has forced Springfield officials to temporarily shutter government offices, hospitals, elementary and middle schools, and two local colleges. On Monday, a local festival celebrating “diversity, arts and culture,” was also canceled — a fitting monument to Trump and Vance’s racist attacks.
Most insidious is the effect on the local Haitian community, which is increasingly under siege. As Vance’s rhetoric has made clear, his concern is not the Haitians’ immigration status: They are in America legally. Rather, the issue is their skin color and background of those moving to Springfield. As the vice presidential nominee argued on X this weekend, the real question about Springfield is, “Should we drop 20,000 people from a radically different culture in a small Ohio town in a matter of a few years?”
Never mind that, like so many immigrant communities before them, the Haitian community in Springfield has more than acclimated itself to their new homes. Their “positive influences” on the town have been noted by everyone from Springfield’s Republican mayor and local business leaders to Ohio’s Republican governor, who has decried the Trump/Vance-led attacks as “garbage.”
But would Vance make such proclamations if the 20,000 people were, say, from Norway? Would he make the same argument about urban gentrification and thousands of white yuppies moving into a predominately Black or Hispanic community?
When Vance claims that “what is happening in Springfield is coming to every town and city in this country if Kamala Harris’ open border policies are allowed to continue,” his intent is not difficult to discern. His incessant focus on “illegal immigration” and problems “at the border” is nothing more than a racist dog whistle to MAGA voters. And it’s one that minority communities have seen play out in America for centuries.
The last nine years of American politics have shown us that Trump and his minions only sing from one anti-immigrant hymnal.
It’s also quite purposeful. As Marc Caputo reported Sunday for the Bulwark, “Privately, Trump aides think it’s a net plus,” writes Caputo. “The longer the discussion is about migrants, the less it is about tougher topics for them. ‘We talk about abortion; we lose. We talk about immigration, we win,’ said one Trump adviser.”
“But what about the blowback from spreading an incendiary story for which there is no evidence?” Caputo asks. “‘We’ll take the hit to prove the bigger point,’” the adviser responds. NBC News reports that Trump is planning to visit Springfield “soon,” which surely will fan the flames even more.
Immigration is indeed an effective policy issue for Trump. In the most recent ABC/Ipsos poll, he polled 10 points better on it than Harris. But he also polls seven points better than his Democratic rival on the economy and inflation. Not only are those issues the top concerns for undecided voters, but they have the added benefit of not utilizing unabashedly racist sentiments. To side with Trump and Vance because of concerns over the economy is asking a heckuva lot less of voters than siding with them over naked immigrant bashing. The former doesn’t require a cleansing shower after wading in the political sewer.
The last nine years of American politics have shown us that Trump and his minions only sing from one anti-immigrant hymnal. Since 2016, immigrant-bashing has been the issue that most consistently unites GOP candidates — and it’s one that has taken on an even darker hue this cycle, with routine talk of immigrant “invasions” into the U.S.
There is, however, less evidence that it’s an effective political strategy. In 2018, Trump-supported candidates regularly used xenophobic attack lines in their campaigns. This was the election of “migrant caravans” and “bad hombres.” It didn’t work. Trump trotted out the usual dog whistles in 2020. So did Republican candidates in 2022. Neither led to political success. Maybe 2024 will be different, but the evidence is against xenophobic broadsides against immigrants as a route to political success.
In fact, the constant attacks on immigrants and the rising tensions in Springfield and around the country could be a net negative for Trump. The unending negativity that now defines the Trump campaign, the constant feeling of chaos and fatigue around the former president has a profound effect. The demagoguing over Springfield may energize MAGA world but, for the anti-Trump wing of the electorate, it’s a reminder of everything loathsome about the former president. Unfortunately, for Trump and now Vance, shame has always been an emotion in short supply, so there’s little reason to expect the racist, immigration bashing to stop. There’s also not much reason to think it’ll work.
Michael A. Cohen is a columnist for MSNBC and a Senior Fellow and co-director of the Afghanistan Assumptions Project at the Center for Strategic Studies at the Fletcher School, Tufts University. He writes the political newsletter Truth and Consequences. He has been a columnist at The Boston Globe, The Guardian and Foreign Policy, and he is the author of three books, the most recent being “Clear and Present Safety: The World Has Never Been Better and Why That Matters to Americans.”
Suspected Trump Gunman’s Online Presence Becomes Focus for FBI
Law enforcement officials laid out a fuller picture of the apparent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump and said they were poring through the suspect’s substantial online presence.
Ryan Routh, 58, was charged on Monday with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession and receipt of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court in Florida. These may just be the initial charges filed against Routh, who was arrested by police on Sunday in West Palm Beach.
At a press conference Monday afternoon, Jeffrey Veltri, the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Miami field office, said several requests had been sent to companies regarding Routh’s phone and social media accounts.
Veltri noted that Routh was active on the internet. Many of his social media posts relate to his purported efforts to recruit fighters for Ukraine, and Veltri said those were part of the FBI investigation as well. The bureau is also interviewing Routh’s friends and family in Hawaii and North Carolina.
At the moment, Veltri said, there was no reason to think that the suspect was working with anyone else.
The complaint included some tantalizing details about Routh’s alleged actions. Mobile phone records obtained by law enforcement suggested Routh may have been in the area of the golf course for around 12 hours before he was spotted. The license plate on the Nissan SUV in which Routh was apprehended was also allegedly registered to a 2012 Ford truck that had been reported stolen.
The criminal complaint allows authorities to hold Routh in custody pending a formal indictment that is expected to be presented on Sept. 30. Additional charges could be added at that time.
The incident occurred while Trump, the Republican nominee for president, was golfing at his Trump International Golf Club.
According to the criminal complaint, a Secret Service agent walking the perimeter of the club at around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday saw what appeared to be a rifle poking out of a tree line. The agent fired in the direction of the rifle. A witness then saw Routh fleeing the area and entering a Nissan SUV.
The SUV was located around 45 minutes later, and Routh was apprehended after being chased by police.
At Monday’s press conference, Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said the gunman did not have a line of sight on Trump, who was immediately evacuated. Rowe said he didn’t know how the suspect could have known Trump would be playing golf that day, as it was not a publicly scheduled event.
Rowe said that he’d briefed Trump, adding that the former president is “aware that he has highest levels of protection that the Secret Service is providing.”
But the Secret Service head said the second assassination attempt had prompted some soul-searching. “We need to look at what our protective methodology is,” Rowe said. “We need to get out of a reactive model and get to a readiness model.”
Investigators have determined that Routh was previously convicted in December 2002 with possession of a weapon of mass destruction and in March 2010 with multiple counts of possession of stolen goods, according to the complaint. Both convictions were in North Carolina.
The federal charge of possessing a firearm by a convicted felon carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years in prison. The obliterated serial number charge is punishable by up to five years in prison.
The case is US v. Routh, 24-mj-08441, US District Court, Southern District of Florida.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
MoreLess
First Published:
17 Sep 2024, 03:40 AM IST
Business NewsNewsWorldSuspected Trump Gunman’s Online Presence Becomes Focus for FBI