Hey, this is Sham, your very own news curator. I have a huge announcement to make on Thursday, but first, let's talk about what happened last week.
In issue #348, I write about African music awards that hate women, how Qatar bought the 2022 FIFA World Cup in juicy details and the historic legal win for pro-choice activists in Mexico. Plus, a documentary about Malaysia's biggest financial scandal to date, a podcast about dead rich people in Russia, and what it takes to decolonize African cinema in the time of Netflix, 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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The 2023 Headies, aka the African Grammys, took place – 'where are the female winners?'
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What's happening
The 2023 Headies Awards, akin to the Grammys of African music, took place in Atlanta, United States last week. But here's the catch: male artists got their awards on stage, while female artists? Just a mention on social media.
Why this matters
This move has stirred up a debate about gender biases and misogyny in the African music scene, where women (and non-binary people) are often not recognized in the same way as men. And it's not just an African concern, the patriarchy is alive and well almost everywhere you go.
Tell me more
The nominations list looked like a boys' club gathering. And the wins? Even more skewed, with Rema, Burna Boy and Odumodublvck taking home multiple awards. Fun fact: Odumodublvck also got a cool solar-powered house. Among the non-gendered awards, only three women – Simi, Tiwa Savage, and Selena Gomez (as "Best International Star of The Year") – stood tall. Ayra Starr, who won the Best Female Artist category, wrote on her ‘X’ account, ‘I will never be grateful for winning a category that wasn’t even deemed fit to be announced on stage! Best female artist na beans?’ Journalist Victoria Audu in The Republic weighed in, suggesting that award shows like the Headies can be the change-makers, but they need to step up. Rema, this year's big winner, gave an acceptance speech that got everyone talking, but it didn't really hit the mark when it came to the obvious injustice.
Do we need male/female awards anyway?
Some say, 'yes, because then women wouldn't get nominated at all'. Others are like, 'Having gender-specific awards feels a bit like designating certain colors as "for boys" or "for girls."' The Grammys have already moved away from this model. Maybe it's time others did too.
Good to know: The Headies Awards have been around since 2006. It was kind of Nigeria's way of saying, "Hey, we've got great music!" It was all about celebrating the best in Nigerian/African tunes. Hence, why I took the map of Nigeria above, and not that of the United States. The renowned award show has mostly been held in Nigeria, but has only recently moved to Atlanta.
Zoom out: African beats are catching on globally. Major music awards are recognizing the Afrobeats genre, with the American Music Awards and MTV Video Music Awards introducing dedicated categories. It's like the world's discovering a new favorite song.
Want to support female African talent? I added the female winners’ songs to this newsletter’s own Spotify playlist, ‘Go Global Weekly’.
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New documents expose how Qatar bought the 2022 FIFA World Cup
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What happened
New documents have popped up hinting that Qatar (that small dot in the center of the image) might've sprinkled some extra cash to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The documents indicate payments of over US$330 million to members of the FIFA committee who voted on the host countries for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments.
Why this matters
The 2022 FIFA World Cup was kind of a big deal because it was the first time the "Middle East" got to host it. The tournament was the most-streamed World Cup in the competition’s history. Plus, Qatar is the smallest nation to ever host the World Cup.
Tell me more
The documents are part of a lawsuit by the Middle East Forum, and detail payments to members of the FIFA executive committee by Qatar National Bank (QNB), the country's largest commercial bank. And when I say 'detail', I mean details like names, bank account numbers, and amounts received. Payments were allegedly made in two phases, both before and after Qatar got the hosting nod. Some of the highest payments, more than US$100 million, went to Vitaly Mutko, who was Russia’s minister for sport between 2008 and 2016.
Is this a new accusation?
Not at all. The bid, made in 2010, sparked instant criticism. 'Why in Qatar? It's way too hot', 'we have to talk about the many human rights abuses in the country' and, of course, allegations of bribery and corruption among FIFA officials who voted for Qatar (over the U.S.). The Sunday Times reported corruption allegations back in 2012, the renowned France Football magazine published similar ones in a 20-page report back in January in 2013, and many more have raised questions since then about the integrity of the World Cup hosting selection process. About a dozen of the FIFA officials involved in the selection have since received bans from the organization – including its former president Blatter – or been indicted over allegations of corruption. In the meantime, Qatar has always been like, 'we are a victim of a smear campaign.'
What now?
To be continued. There's the hope that these new revelations could finally tarnish the reputation of both FIFA and Qatar. As Armin Rosen writes in Tablet Magazine, "Qatar has enough money to be able to buy popularity, whether it’s through showering a half-billion US dollars on Al Gore and his partners in order to buy their failing cable channel, pledging US$14.8 million to the Brookings Institution, flying leaders of the U.S. Jewish community to Doha, or hosting the single biggest sporting event in the world. Doha apparently gambled that the fiscal and reputational costs of bribing its way to the World Cup would be negligible in the long run—a principle that has served the monarchy well in its larger campaign for influence." So far.
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Abortion is no longer a crime in Mexico
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What happened
So, Mexico's top court just made a game-changing move. They unanimously said that state laws against abortion are totally unconstitutional and against women's rights.
Why this matters
This court's decision means that no woman, pregnant person, or even health workers will face punishment for abortion in Mexico anymore. It's a big win, especially in a region where the Catholic Church has a lot of sway and many countries have tight restrictions on abortion.
Tell me more
This ruling didn't come out of nowhere. Two years back, the court told the state of Coahuila to stop treating abortion as a crime. Since then, 12 out of Mexico's 31 states have decriminalized abortion. The GIRE, a big reproductive rights group in Mexico City, played a huge role in this. They've been pushing for this change for years. And you should've seen social media – Mexican women were celebrating with green heart emojis 💚, symbolizing the feminist movement in Latin America.
What's next?
Here's the thing: the ruling doesn't instantly change the law. Mexico's legislative bodies need to get together and officially remove abortion from the penal code, says Rebeca Ramos, executive director of GIRE in this interview with Democracy Now. This could be quick, or it might drag on. The court's latest decision protects them until then. Remember when they decriminalized marijuana in 2018? The official law only came in 2021.
Zoom out: Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Suriname all have a complete ban on abortion. But there's hope. After years of activism, Argentina legalized abortion in 2020, and even conservative Colombia did the same two years later.
Good to know: Traditionally very conservative Catholic countries like Ireland, Spain, and now Mexico have more universal abortion rights — are more respectful of female bodily autonomy — than the United States.
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Africa: The whole of Africa has 37 radar facilities that can track weather. Europe has 345. The African continent is larger than China, India, and the U.S. combined. Half of the ones on the continent are not able to provide data that’s accurate enough to predict weather patterns, according to research published in the journal Nature last month. (Fast Company)
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Morocco: An earthquake hit Morocco, killing more than 2,000 people. I assume you're already getting a lot of updates on what's happening there already, hence why I chose not to turn this news into one of the centerpieces of this week's issue. (Al Jazeera)
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Sudan: At least 43 people were killed and dozens more were injured during an airstrike in Khartoum, Sudan yesterday. It was the deadliest airstrike during the conflict. (AP)
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Honduras: According to the National Migration Institute (INM), about 36,983 children have migrated through Honduras from January to August 2023. This is too high a number. Migrants lack refuge, food, water, and risk falling victim to crimes of rape. (La Prensa)
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Mali: Former Mali, Marseille and Saint-Etienne attacker Salif Keita died aged 76, the country's sports minister told Agence France-Presse. Minister Abdoul Kassim Ibrahim Fomba said Keita passed away in the capital city Bamako, where he was also born. He was one of the first African footballers to forge a successful career in Europe – paving the way for many to follow – and had to overcome considerable odds to do so. (Le Monde)
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Israel: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the deportation of all unauthorized immigrants from Israel, a day after a riot in Tel Aviv between rival groups of Eritreans left more than 100 people injured. (The New York Times)
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Madagascar: Madagascar's President Andry Rajoelina on Wednesday announced he will run for re-election in November. Rajoelina first came to power in a coup in 2009. In June, leaked documents revealed that Rajoelina had acquired French citizenship in 2014, and dual citizenship is prohibited under Malagasy law. Did you know he used to be a DJ? (Africanews)
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Maldives: Maldivians voted for a president but no candidate received a 50 percent majority, so incumbent President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih will face opposition candidate and Malé mayor Mohamed Muizzu in the second round on September 30. (Reuters)
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China: China banned the use of iPhones for government officials, resulting in the market value of Apple Inc. stock declining by US$200 billion last week. (Bloomberg)
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Djibouti: Djibouti launched a 60 megawatt wind farm, increasing the country’s power production by almost 50 percent and reducing its heavy reliance on imported electricity. Wind power is one of the least exploited renewable energy options in Africa. (Reuters)
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Japan: Japanese pop agency Johnny & Associates publicly admitted and apologized for sexual abuses on several hundred minors committed by its late founder Johnny Kitagawa. (Asahi Shimbun)
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Germany: Berlin’s Museum of Prehistory and Early History has identified living relatives of people whose remains were stolen from Tanzania and taken to Germany for "scientific" experiments during the colonial era. "It's actually a small miracle," says the team. (The Guardian)
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Kenya: The African Climate Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, ended with a call for world leaders to implement a global carbon tax on fossil fuels, transport and reforms of global financial systems which leaders say disproportionately disadvantages African nations. (AP)
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Watch... the trailer for "Man On The Run", a new feature documentary unpacking the scandal behind the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB. If you don't know anything about it, well, in a nutshell, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) was a sovereign wealth fund set up by former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak in order to finance investment and to fight poverty in his country. However, things didn't go as planned. Najib and his associate, Malaysian-Chinese businessman Jho Low, are accused of embezzling millions of dollars into their own pockets. Najib has been convicted and jailed; Jho Low denies the charges and is the "man on the run". Directed by Cassius Michael Kim, "Man On The Run" follows the story to all its extremes, from Hollywood blockbuster launches to the heart of the Malaysian government.
Listen to... "Sad Oligarch", a podcast about dead rich people in Russia. "Since January 2022, more than 12 of Russia's wealthiest oligarchs have been found dead. One was poisoned with frog venom. One was found hanged on a handrail with his wife and children killed with an axe. Several fell out of high windows. All of the deaths are suspicious," says the podcast description. "Sad Oligarch" is reported and hosted by Jake Hanrahan and Sergiy Slipchenko.
Read... the article: "Decolonising African cinema in the time of Netflix" by Ana Carbajosa for African Arguments. This article got everything, from the battle of access to historical footage of colonial Africa (often having to pay for materials taken without consent), to the broader fight for the accurate representation of Africa's history and culture on screen, to the influence of Western aesthetics/focus on African cinema and the need for Africans to take ownership of their cinematic heritage. I've learned so much in so little time. Set aside some time for this, and enjoy while getting super angry.
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Watch the trailer of "Savior Complex", a 3-part HBO Original Documentary that examines the story of a Renee Bach, a white women from the United States who left her home in Virginia to set up a charity to help children in Uganda. This 'X' user alerted me to it, "This is irresponsible as hell." Bach's crimes? "She was a 20-year-old high school graduate with no medical training. And not only was her center not a hospital — at the time, it didn't employ a single doctor. Yet from 2010 through 2015, Bach says, she took in 940 severely malnourished children. And 105 of them died," write NPR's Nurith Aizenmann and Malaka Gharib. The documentary, if not pulled before then, will premiere on September 26 on HBO.
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Last week, I learned that Spotify allegedly is a place where you can launder money, and a lot of criminal gangs in Sweden are doing just that, a Swedish newspaper reported last Tuesday.
How?
"Describing the process, he said the gangs would convert their dirty cash to bitcoin, then used the cryptocurrency to pay people who sold fake streams on Spotify, which is a Swedish company. They “made sure we ended up at the top of the charts”, he said, adding that the fake streams also led to an uptick in real streams."
Spotify, I should add, said it had "no evidence that money laundering occurred" on the platform.
Hats off to whoever came up with this scheme; it's very creative, to say the least.
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That's it from me. September 14 is going to be a very important day.
For the maps, say thanks to Wikimedia Commons.
Map 1: John Doe / CC-BY-SA-3.0
Map 2: John Doe / CC-BY-SA-3.0
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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