Hey, this is Sham, your very own news curator. I have some colossal news to share with you in the upcoming days. Give me some time to collect my words.
In issue #346, I talk about the latest Human Rights Watch report on the situation of Ethiopian migrants at the border between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, the new BRICS plan and why the U.S. might be feeling a little hmmm about it, and Chile's 9/11. Plus, African rock music from Zambia, an Indian series to binge, Ottoman shade, some good news from Guatemala and Ecuador, Guyana's reparations talk, French and Afghan misogyny, and so much more.
If you like this newsletter, yay! These lengthy emails take me hours and hours to write, research and make fun-to-read. You can support my work if you become a paid subscriber or buy me coffee. Or, just forward it to a friend.
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Estimated reading time: 10 min
You have access to all of my sources by clicking on what's underlined.
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Hundreds of Ethiopian migrants were killed by Saudi border guards while trying to cross the Yemen-Saudi border
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What happened
Hundreds of migrants from Ethiopia were killed by Saudi border guards while trying to cross the Yemen-Saudi border between March 2022 and June 2023, according to Human Rights Watch. The 73-page report suggests these killings are still happening.
Why this matters
Saudi Arabia has been investing in global sports and entertainment, possibly to divert attention from its human rights issues. From hosting Formula 1 races to buying English Premier League teams, the kingdom is investing heavily in its global image.
Tell me more
Human Rights Watch has interviewed migrants, analyzed videos, and studied satellite images. The Saudi Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment. In the report published last Monday, Human Rights Watch shows evidence of mass graves and increased Saudi border security. The rights group also said Saudi border guards aren't just shooting, they're using explosive weapons. Sometimes they're asking survivors which limb they'd prefer to be shot in before pulling the trigger. "If committed as part of a Saudi government policy to murder migrants, these killings would be a crime against humanity," they said. Roughly 750,000 Ethiopians live in Saudi Arabia. Many are looking for work, but others are escaping human rights abuses back home. They often take the dangerous "Eastern Route" through Yemen to get there, where they also face abuse from smugglers and traffickers.
What's next?
Human Rights Watch has a few suggestions at hand, 'Saudi Arabia must stop any policy targeting migrants. We urgently need an independent investigation into these abuses. Plus, international governments should consider sanctions and stop selling weapons to Saudi Arabia, and global entities should think twice about participating in Saudi-sponsored events.'
Did Ethiopia or Saudi Arabia reply?
Yes. After the report came out, Ethiopia's Foreign Affairs Ministry quickly announced plans to investigate the findings alongside Saudi officials (meaning, not independently). They urged everyone to avoid jumping to conclusions and to wait for the investigation's results. The ministry's statement, shared on X (previously known as Twitter), also highlighted the strong, long-standing relationship between Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia, despite the recent tragic events. Human Rights Watch is already skeptical, 'Saudi Arabia won't address this, we just know.'
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The global financial order might be reshuffling soon
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What happened
The BRICS economic group is getting bigger. Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, have invited Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates to join early next year.
Why this matters
The BRICS nations already account for 40 percent of the world’s population (some 2.88 billion people live here) and about 25 percent of the global aggregate GDP. If the invitation is accepted, this will be the first expansion since it became a formal group with annual meetings in 2009. And the 'let's de-throne the U.S. dollar in international trade' movement might be picking up speed.
Tell me more
The BRICS nations are on a mission to amplify their global clout, aiming to balance the scales against the US's heavyweight status in global trade. They're even considering creating a new currency for their trade, but they haven't agreed on the 'should we really?' and 'if yes, how would we do that?'. To give you a little bit of an insight into the ongoing debate, Brazil and Russia for example are super hype about it, India is a bit more 'realist' and China is strategically silent. For countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE (long-standing strategic partners of the U.S.), this isn't just a geopolitical chess move. They want to focus on their economic interests, which are increasingly with China, rather than take sides in the great geopolitical standoff between the U.S. and China and Russia. As the UAE’s Economy Minister, Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, put it, "We're all about peace, prosperity, economy, and trade."
So, is the U.S. taking the L?
It's not that simple. Yes, the ties between nations like Saudi Arabia and the UAE with China and India are thickening by the day, and more than 40 countries have expressed interest in joining the economic group. But that doesn't mean very much... Yet. Most countries' currencies are still very much pegged to the U.S. dollar and most of their imports are in the U.S. currency, which has made it easy for them to make/send money to each other. Sure, some analysts believe that China is pulling the strings behind BRICS' latest move. But with such a diverse mix of countries, each with its own agenda, BRICS is more like a melting pot of global ambitions. As Janan Ganesh of the Financial Times notes, their shared history of challenging Western dominance might just be the glue holding them together.
Did you know that the BRICs acronym was all marketing? A Goldman Sachs economist named Jim O'Neill coined the term in 2001.
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Chile marks the 50th anniversary of the September 11, 1973 coup
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What happened
On September 11, 1973, General Augusto Pinochet led a military coup that toppled the socialist government of President Salvador Allende. Allende, the first socialist president elected in Chile, shot himself during the upheaval. This event marked the beginning of a military dictatorship that lasted until 1990.
Why this matters
According to data from the Chilean Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, 40,175 people were recorded as victims of executions, torture or political imprisonment, or were "disappeared" during Pinochet's rule. Today, Chile, home to some 19 million people, is still divided over this period.
Tell me more
Opinions about Pinochet's rule vary widely. Some, including (leftist) President Gabriel Boric, believe that the dictatorship needs to be fully reckoned with and condemned. On the right, many remain loyal to Pinochet. Recent polls, such as the Barómetro de Política CERC-MORI 2023, show a growing number of people believe that the coup was justified compared to a decade ago.
Btw, to this day, it's debated if the U.S. and Australia had a direct hand in the 1973 events. They were definitely involved, as some newly declassified documents show.
Is Chile leaning far-right at the moment?
You could say so. The latest CEP poll highlights crime, drugs, corruption, and immigration as pressing issues for Chileans. Some analysts believe that this is why the far-right is on the rise (again). In May, many Chileans did elect a far-right party (that believes in a total abortion ban and kicking out illegal immigrants) to be in charge of rewriting the country's constitution (something the leftists had originally campaigned for). The leader of that party, José Antonio Kast, is a brother of a former minister in Pinochet’s government, and a front-runner for the 2025 presidential elections. So, Chile's new constitution may end up looking a lot like the one during Pinochet's rule, but without his name on it.
Zoom out: There's a shift towards authoritarianism in the entire region.
Dig deeper: I've just started listening to this new podcast on the coup in Chile, and specifically the Allende era, "The Santiago Boys – The tech world that may have been", written and presented by journalist Evgeny Morozov, produced by Cora Media and Post Utopia. Based on two years of intensive research (more than 200 interviews + archival work), Morozov reinterprets the legacy of Salvador Allende in light of today’s debates about Big Tech and offers a new perspective on what exactly happened on the day of the coup and the role that "Dark Tech" played in it. The podcast is accompanied by an extensively documented website, with transcripts of interviews, footnotes, and links, so dive in.
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Nigeria: The country's currency devaluation (naira is a lot weaker than the U.S. dollar) is really bad news for a lot of startups, unless they sell their products and services internationally. (rest of world)
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France: France is planning to make a rule that girls in public schools can't wear abayas. (The Guardian)
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Afghanistan: The Taliban have banned women from visiting one of Afghanistan’s most popular national parks, adding to a long list of restrictions aimed at shrinking women’s access to public places. (The Guardian)
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Pakistan: An individual has moved the Lahore High Court to petition for a ban on TikTok due to its "bad, negative and dangerous" impact on the youth. Pakistani authorities have banned the video-sharing service several times in the past. (Arab News) The real problem lies in child workers dying, though. The latest victim is 10-year-old Fatima Furiro, and her case only came to light because two graphic videos turned up on social media. (The Guardian)
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Niger: Everybody's on high alert. Still. (Al Jazeera)
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Qatar: Qatar's sovereign wealth fund invested US$1 billion into the retail business of Asia's richest man, Mukesh Ambani. The deal came days after the QIA picked up a US$474 million stake in billionaire Gautam Adani's green energy business. (Bloomberg)
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Zimbabwe: Emmerson Mnangagwa has been re-elected as Zimbabwe’s president. Opposition leader Nelson Chamisa has rejected the results (so does the EU), vowing his party will not wait five more years to take action. To be continued. (New Zimbabwe)
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Saudi Arabia: Saudi Aramco, the oil giant, is being investigated by the United Nations for possible human rights violations tied to fossil-fuel induced climate change. (Bloomberg)
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Syria: there have been ongoing protests and strikes for a second week, mainly in the southern areas, demanding the removal of the president, Bashar al-Assad. (The Guardian)
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Libya / Israel: Libya suspended its foreign minister after she met her Israeli counterpart in Rome. The two countries have no formal relations. (Bloomberg)
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Guyana: Guyana's president, Irfaan Ali, had asked the descendants of European slave traders to consider paying reparations. A couple of days later, the descendants of former British prime minister William Gladstone apologized for their family's involvement in enslaving people in Guyana and called on the UK government to talk about making amends for the wrongs that were done. At least, there's a discussion about it. (The Guardian)
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Guatemala: Bernardo Arévalo, a candidate who wants to fight corruption and bring about change, won the presidential election by a large margin. He defeated Sandra Torres, a former First Lady, with 58% of the votes compared to her 37%. (Americas Quarterly)
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India: India became the fourth country to land a spacecraft on the moon, and the first to land one in the little-explored south polar region. The poles have the largest water reserves on the moon, which is vital for any future colonization missions. (BBC)
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Mexico: More and more countries are thinking about making a new law that considers causing serious harm to the environment a crime. Mexico is the latest country to think about this. (WION)
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United States: In artistic gymnastics, Simone Biles set a new record for the most all-around titles by a gymnast of either gender, surpassing the previous record set by Al Jochim in 1933. (USA Today)
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Ecuador: Ecuadorians voted overwhelmingly to halt the development of new oil wells in one of the most biodiverse regions in the world. (Semafor)
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Global: About 2,000 artifacts are believed to be missing from the British Museum in London, England. In short, the museum had so much that it didn't have a complete catalog of its collection. The museum has long faced criticism for refusing to return looted objects, including the Rosetta Stone, the Benin bronzes and the Gweagal shield. This user on X is like, 'if you can't protect them either, what stops you from giving them back altogether?'. (The Guardian)
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Watch... the Amazon series "Made in Heaven" (trailer), a 2019 Indian romantic drama web series about the lives of Tara and Karan, two wedding planners in Delhi running an agency named Made in Heaven. The show also covers social issues like the dowry, Article 377, extramarital affairs from all perspectives, sexual assault, superstitions, and so much more. I was obsessed with the first season in 2019, and one of its main protagonists, Sobhita Dhulipala, ever since. This IMDb user says, "Made In Heaven is arguably India's finest series yet. It pushes boundaries that traditional cinema has never dared to." The second season was released on August 10, 2023. So, you're free to binge this all the way through.
Listen to... the podcast episode "The Sound of Struggle in Zimbabwe – with Thomas Mapfumo" by The Lede from New Lines Magazine. Thomas Mapfumo has been making music for more than 50 years. A popular and influential Zimbabwean protest musician, Mapfumo is known as the "Lion of Zimbabwe" and has been a persistent opponent of dictatorship since the days of white-minority rule. His genre? Rock, blues, traditional Shona music, a blend of it all. I loved reading this deep dive in his musical evolution on African Arguments. I wrote this issue while listening to his entire discography. Some of my personal favorites (there were so many, I had to be highly selective) are now in the 'Go Global Weekly' Spotify playlist, this newsletter's very own.
Read... the article: "Forgetting the Ottoman past has done the Arabs no good" by Mostafa Minawi for Al Jazeera. In this opinion piece, the historian writes about how imperialism is a difficult subject for the Arab world. "The word conjures up associations with the days of French and British colonialism and the present-day settler colony of Israel. Yet the more indigenous and long-lasting form of imperial rule, Ottoman imperialism, is often left out of contemporary historical debates," he writes. The Ottoman rule lasted from 1516 to 1917, some 400 years. It's time that local students of history research this better to "uncover and come to terms with the good, the bad, and, indeed, the very ugly imperial past that people in the Arabic-speaking-majority parts of the Middle East were also the makers of." Very timely, very relevant.
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"Avalance of Love (feat. Sampa the Great)" by WITCH. WITCH is a Zambian rock band, with the backronym for We Intend To Cause Havoc. The band is finally back with a new album called "Zango" following a nearly four-decade absence, and "Avalanche of Love" is on it. WITCH, founded in 1972 and once touted as the most popular band in the southern African country, were pioneers of the Zamrock sound. The genre, which the band’s 71-year-old lead vocalist Emmanuel "Jagari" Chanda called a "fusion of traditional African music, funk, blues, jazz," was popular in 1970s Zambia. Economic hardships and government authoritarianism forced the group out of the country, and they moved to Zimbabwe and later to Botswana, where the group disbanded in 1985. Chanda and former keyboardist Patrick Mwondel reunited in 2019. Of course, this song is on the 'Go Global Weekly' Spotify playlist.
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The National Security Agency, responsible for the United States’ electronic and cyber spying, has instructed its employees that foreign targets of its intelligence gathering "should be treated with dignity and respect," according to a new policy directive.
That totally doesn't make everything seem like it's even more shady and dubious.
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That's it from me. Did you know that I'm a superfan of Viola Davis?
For the maps, say thanks to Wikimedia Commons.
Map 1: John Doe / CC-BY-SA-3.0
Map 2: Cflm001 (Diskussion), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Map 3: John Doe / CC-BY-SA-4.0
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Hey, I'm Sham, the person behind this newsletter. Since 2014, I email a bunch of strangers once a week, curating news headlines from Asia, Africa and Latin America. I work under the assumption that, here in the West (I live in Berlin, Germany), we don't read or know much about the global majority, aka the rest of the world.
My goal is to help you burst your Western-centric bubble.
If you want to know more about me, visit my website or follow me on Twitter or Instagram.
Questions or feedback? Just reply to this email. I intend to write back.
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