India needs new leadership--one divorced from dangerous nationalism and dynastic politics. Modi may win re-elections in 2024, or the Gandhi family may revive themselves, but what India really needs is a new government. And an integrous, accountable leader that isn't shroud in corruption, but right now the pickings are slim. Modi, the boy who once sold tea at a railway station, stole the hearts of many and has now led India into what many have called afascist, Hindutva authoritarian state, indirectly encouraging violence towards Muslims. Rahul Gandhi, hailing from India’s unofficial ‘First Family’ (one revered for freedom, independence, and the good of the people), is now standing disgraced after numerous corruption scandals. Many have put their faith in Chief Mayawati, a Dalit woman who originates from humble beginnings, but even she has been accused of losing sight of the core values she ran on. India's 2024 Elections are fast approaching and though the options appear limited, there’s a history of manipulation and nepotism that isn’t new. The full history, here with Sanjna Selva.
What Asian horror movies have proven is that there is nothing scarier than a woman, free from her shackles, wreaking havoc on society to get justice. Why is the ghostly, vengeful woman such a prevalent trope, and how does it represent misogyny across Asian cultures? From the infamous virgin ghost, to the seductive “femme fatale” archetypes, there are consistent depictions of the vengeful female spirit throughout Asian stories. The pale, long black-haired woman in a white dress is the scariest ghost of all. While these characters might begin as victims, they become terrifying villains, making it difficult to sympathize with their pain. It’s the unfair deaths these female characters experience that turn their spirits into monsters that are feared and not souls free to rest. There is little understanding of their suffering, or even their existence, mirroring the reality of many. It’s possible this trope persists because scary stories have often been the only outlet to name the violence women face. In patriarchal societies that view women as subservient, many women die in unfair suffering: murder, death connected to sexual assault, and forced suicide. Asian horror has evolved to incorporate deeper commentaries about women’s issues over time like marital anxiety, dissociative identity disorders, and becoming a widow. But irrespective of final outcome,being abused and thus vengeful continues to be the most natural character foundation of Asian women in horror stories and films.
If you lived in Seoul and earned the average income, it would take you 19 years to buy a home in Seoul. Women still have to choose between career and family. Unemployment rates are high and job opportunities are low. Between inflation and social norms, the younger generation don’t believe that the benefits of having a child will outway the costs. And as a result,the country’s population is at risk. In fact, SK’s population is 51 million and yet, it has one of the lowest birth rates in the world. Even the government’s $37B investment in families with children couldn’t reverse the trend: the rates of both fertility and couples tying the knot are at an all time low, and the country is anxious.
In Asia, KFC rules supreme over McDonald’s, holding double the market share of their biggest competitor. But there’s a reason why. KFC is an OG in the Asian market, opening up its first store in the Philippines in 1966. Since then, it’s spread to the rest of the continent. But the reason KFC is so successful is not just how long it’s been around: KFC caters to local flavors, bringing to life cultural favorites and then combining them with their addictive staples. You can get a KFC chicken biryani in Sri Lanka, a shrimp donut in Thailand, and Christmas isn’t complete in Japan without a bucket of KFC chicken. But it’s not always beef between KFC and McDonald’s. In fact, they often influence each other’s growth. Over the years, McDonalds has come up with its own menu of Asia-specific items. And while KFC is declining in its home country, the United States, it’s crushing the international market. Its success in Asia comes down to one main thing: being good at listening.
When you walk through the #BritishMuseum or #TheMet in New York, you will come across millions of objects from around the world – many of which were looted and trafficked to the west from their places of origin in formerly colonized countries. Recently, the governments of some of these countries – like Cambodia, China, and India - have been pushing for the return of these artifacts. But repatriating stolen artifacts to their home countries is complicated and difficult. Why? Because artifacts have often changed hands many times over decades, it’s difficult to trace exactly where and whom they belong to. There are also problems when the artifacts do make it home. In some cases, items returned home are stolen again because they’re in the hands of museums that aren’t the best caretakers. And this isn’t just a problem of the past. Right now, stolen artifact trafficking is the third largest illegal activity in the world, exceeded only by drugs and weapons. WhatsApp and Facebook groups make it easy to connect with smugglers, and it’s estimated that 10 billion dollars-worth of cultural property is trafficked every year. Putting an end to this practice is still an ongoing issue - and we need to keep having these complicated discussions around stolen artifacts and how to return them to their rightful owners in the future.
While you’re trying to cope with your insane family chat on WhatsApp and Facebook, animal smugglers are creating hundreds of groups where animals are bought and sold. Facebook search any country and exotic animal and you’ll find groups dedicated to finding endangered pets in any nation. As the world’s 4th largest illegal trade after drugs, human trafficking and counterfeiting, South and South East Asia’s literal and metaphorical appetite for exotic animals and their parts amount to a 20-23 Billion Dollar industry. This harms the animals and our planet. Southeast Asia experiences the world’s fastest rate of deforestation, and an increase of illegal wildlife trafficking will only make things monumentally worse for its biodiversity. The Asian Elephant population has already declined by 50% over the past century. Hundreds of species are likely to go extinct if the trade goes on unchecked. Joy Jeong explains how animals are trafficked, and how activists are tackling the industry.