Guwahati: Netflix has taken down the Tamil film 'Annapoorani' following a controversy sparked by Hindu right-wing groups who claimed certain scenes in the
[UPDATED 11.01.2024] At least eighty Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed, several have been injured and others are missing during the war in Gaza. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS) condemn the killings and continued attacks on journalists. The...
A political crisis is brewing in Papua New Guinea as calls are made for Prime Minster James Marape to step down in the wake of deadly riots in parts of the country.
In a shocking incident at the Colonial War Memorial Hospital (CWMH) on Tuesday, a caregiver faced religious discrimination when a head nurse instructed her to remove her hijab upon reporting to work at the new surgical ward.
Residing in Komave settlement in Nabua, Rasida Janif was completing her two-month internship as a caregiver, having successfully completed her caregiving courses at the Fiji National University (FNU).
Ms J anif claimed the head nurse explicitly directed her to take off her hijab, asserting that the hospital was “not a religious facility”.
The statement left Ms Janif with mixed emotions, describing the incident as racially motivated and emotionally distressing.
“This is the first time I’ve had to endure such a horrifying experience,” Ms Janif said, expressing her dismay at the sudden discriminatory treatment.
“I’ve worked in many places, and everyone accepted my attire as it is.”
Ms Janif highlighted she had initially been advised to wear a shorter hijab during her first weeks of attachment, which she willingly complied with.
However, the abrupt demand to remove her hijab later in her internship conflicted with her religious beliefs, leaving her feeling targeted.
The Islamic headscarf, she emphasised, is not merely a piece of clothing but “a big part of her identity,” and relinquishing it would compromise her deeply held religious convictions.
Feeling disheartened, she still expressed her dedication to caregiving, citing it as her sole job opportunity.
In response to the issue, the Fiji Muslim League headquarters in Suva received a complaint from Ms Janif and intends to file a formal complaint with the Ministry of Health.
Colonial War Memorial Hospital Medical Superintendent, Dr Luke Nasedra, clarified that wearing a hijab “is allowed” and not prohibited within the hospital.
The Minister for Health and Medical Services, Dr Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu, said he had not received a formal complaint and could not comment any further.
The Fiji Women Crisis Centre coordinator, Shamima Ali, condemned the incident as a violation of human rights in a democratic country like Fiji.
She said such actions go against religious beliefs, deeming it “unacceptable” and a blatant human rights violation that demands immediate attention.
The Fiji Human Rights and AntiDiscrimination Commission will await an official complaint from the victim.
Mr Albanese said Australia was monitoring the situation via its high commission and had not received any requests for help from Papua New Guinea, which it regularly supports in policing and security.
In the volume’s artful and engaging introduction, Beichman calls our attention to several correspondences with contemporary poetics: first, there is the speculative orientation of Ishigaki’s work, capable of uncanny leaps in spatial and temporal perspective. Then there is its under-explored connection to eco-critical...
Open SoE declaration will be for Kili Island, where "people are starving", according to one Cabinet minister; the other order to put focus on the capital atoll's ongoing power crisis.
The paper illustrates dynamics of nuclear resistance movements in India and how people’s power rises in response to subversion of justice and suppression of human rights....
OUM was started in 2002, and I was there at the start. The whole world attacked the medical school in Samoa, and many professional colleagues including local, pacific, USA, NZ, and Australian colleagues called us “stupid”, “dump”, “are you out of your mind”, etc, because we were at the cutting edge of teaching medicine on line coupled with face-to-face clinical teaching, utilizing the various internet software and hardware to do innovative teaching of medicine, because we had to. I was personally attacked by colleagues overseas for getting involved in OUM. OUM was innovative as it cops all the nasty comments from 2002 until about 2010. The main criticism was, “How can you teach anatomy without a “cadaver”? Everyone around the world especially in the USA, New Zealand, and Australia gave us the name “computer doctors”. We managed to find great software to teach gross clinical anatomy that was much better than the textbooks or the cadaver. Now – look at where the whole world of medical education is at. OUM from small Samoa was pioneering all these methodologies.
It has been unbelievable that OUM in Samoa started a new trend of medical education in the world, delivering medical education at a distance to educate doctors all around the globe to a top quality, while utilizing their local doctors to teach their clinical students in their facilities, so to build their medical capacity. We managed to bring the best expertise from around the world to teach all the local (Samoa) and overseas students in basic science, then utilize their clinical health structures and doctors to train their future doctors utilizing OUM’s curriculum and method of study.
This is how innovative it was, and now everyone around the world is following it. After 21 years of delivering this method of medical education, the whole world has followed what started in small Samoa. We were the leader in this modern innovative idea.
The Government of Samoa had risked its reputation by setting up OUM in 2002 and had been very visionary with this, leading the way for modern and virtual medical education. The challenge now is to continue to push the envelope politically to spread this innovative model of medical education to educate more New Zealand Pacific Island doctors, Maori doctors, and Indigenous and First Nation doctors in New Zealand and Australia.
OUM model is an answer to the shortage of doctors all around the world, and every country is short of medical doctors. New Zealand is talking about setting up a 3rd medical school besides Otago and Auckland, and OUM could be this 3rd medical school, as OUM has been running these medical training modules for 21 years. OUM has many graduates working in the USA, Australia and Samoa. We have had 2 graduates from American Samoa. The proof of the quality of the OUM teaching is in the quality of the doctors who graduated through the program. Many are working in our hospitals in Samoa in all disciplines.
Up to 200 police, corrections and army personnel have gathered at the Unagi Oval in Port Moresby to in protest over deductions to their salaries this fortnight.
The deductions over the last fortnight range between US$26 and US$80 (K100 and K300).
"Frustrations boiled over so they got into their vehicles and stormed parliament...they opened the gates and went into parliament," RNZ Pacific's Papua New Guinea correspondent Scott Waide said.
"There was no real resistance to stop them...it was a rowdy crowd, the defence minister had attempted to speak to them outside of parliament before they walked in," he said.
He said he has been told by government that the deductions are the result of tax glitches.
"They are currently at parliament right now. I think somebody is addressing them, I'm not sure to sure whom as I've just seen the videos.
"There's a large group of police, army and correctional services personnel at parliament house right now, protesting over the deductions.
"The public is relatively quiet, nobody from the public has joined the protest in large numbers. Everything has remained calm."
Across Southeast Asia, interest in German is on the rise as the German government taps increasing numbers of the region's skilled workers to tackle the country's severe labor shortages.
@Anibyl the worst about it: developed countries take advantage of well-educated specialists in their respective fields from lesser developed countries > it's lesser developed countries which would pay for the education, not rich countries like germany
The Union government said the process of inclusion or exclusion from the ST list requires the proposal to originate from the concerned State government.
The Vanuatu Government is considering the possibility of allowing the Manila Times University of Philippines to run nursing courses at the Vanuatu College of Nursing Education (VCNE) starting from June.
Acting Director General (DG) of MOH, Dr Posikai Samuel Tapo, revealed that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) will be signed this Friday to allow the Manila Times University of Philippines to offer nursing courses.
As part of the agreement, the Manila Times University will enter the country with its staff and facilitators to provide access to nursing education while the ministry will provide learning facilities, according to the Acting DG.
He said it is possible that they will be using the Vanuatu College of Nursing Education (VCNE) to run their courses. VCNE is ceasing operation for the next five academic years because it does not meet some standard requirements set by the Vanuatu Qualifications Authority (VQA).
A priority of the MOH is ensuring Vanuatu continues to produce its own nurses despite the closure of VCNE. The ministry is bringing in more Solomon Islands nurses to fill existing critical positions and also securing scholarship opportunities abroad for students who want to pursue studies in nursing.
The Assistant Vice President for Student Recruitment and International Services at the Manila Times University, Annabelle Lesaca, said after an exploratory visit to Vanuatu that they want to introduce their elite medical courses like Bachelor of Science and Nursing, Bachelor of Science and Medical Technology, Bachelor of Science and Pharmacy, and even Doctor of Medicine.
Lesaca said they want to offer nursing courses because Vanuatu needs it.
She said that Philippines’ nurses and doctors are some of the best in the world, they practise medicine in a lot of countries.
“The Philippines educational system is very much focussed on the bachelor degrees. We have very good nurses and doctors. I would like Vanuatu people to try our curriculum...for students who want to pursue the elite courses, I strongly urge they do because Vanuatu needs you,” she said.
Netflix removes Tamil film 'Annapoorani' amid controversy (www.eastmojo.com)
Guwahati: Netflix has taken down the Tamil film 'Annapoorani' following a controversy sparked by Hindu right-wing groups who claimed certain scenes in the
Palestine: At least eighty journalists and media workers killed in Gaza / IFJ (www.ifj.org)
[UPDATED 11.01.2024] At least eighty Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed, several have been injured and others are missing during the war in Gaza. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS) condemn the killings and continued attacks on journalists. The...
PNG PM Marape under pressure to resign as govt MPs step down after riots (www.rnz.co.nz)
A political crisis is brewing in Papua New Guinea as calls are made for Prime Minster James Marape to step down in the wake of deadly riots in parts of the country.
Hijab Drama At CWM Hospital (fijisun.com.fj)
"This is the first time I've had to endure such a horrifying experience," Ms Janif said, expressing her dismay at the sudden discriminatory treatment.
Albanese calls for calm in PNG after riots, looting (www.afr.com)
Mr Albanese said Australia was monitoring the situation via its high commission and had not received any requests for help from Papua New Guinea, which it regularly supports in policing and security.
Schoolchildren to help fight plastic pollution in Cook Islands - ABC Pacific (www.abc.net.au)
Cook Islands' environmentalists are tackling the plastics problem in their remote environment by asking schoolchildren for help.
Toward a Speculative Poetics of Translation: Janine Beichman’s Translation from Japanese of Ishigaki Rin’s “This Overflowing Light: Selected Poems” (readingintranslation.com)
In the volume’s artful and engaging introduction, Beichman calls our attention to several correspondences with contemporary poetics: first, there is the speculative orientation of Ishigaki’s work, capable of uncanny leaps in spatial and temporal perspective. Then there is its under-explored connection to eco-critical...
Chaotic scenes of looting and destruction in PNG's Port Moresby (www.abc.net.au)
Angry mobs storm and pillage shops, setting fire to buildings in the Papua New Guinean capital.
Danny De Gracia: The Truth About Why We Depend On Tourism In Hawaii (www.civilbeat.org)
Hawaii's regulatory framework is stacked against the mom-and-pop businesses in favor of large corporations and special interests.
Marshall Islands: President Heine expected to issue two emergency declarations (www.rnz.co.nz)
Open SoE declaration will be for Kili Island, where "people are starving", according to one Cabinet minister; the other order to put focus on the capital atoll's ongoing power crisis.
At least 10 dead after looting, fires on Port Moresby's 'darkest day' (www.rnz.co.nz)
Chaos broke out as looters took advantage of a protest by the country's police. As well as those who are dead, dozens are injured.
Nuclear Resistance Movements in India (doi.org)
The paper illustrates dynamics of nuclear resistance movements in India and how people’s power rises in response to subversion of justice and suppression of human rights....
Government considers recruiting ADF personnel from overseas (www.9news.com.au)
The government is considering recruitment from Pacific nations like Tuvalu, and from other countries around the world.
Medical training in Samoa - Part 1 (www.samoaobserver.ws)
By Professor Asiata Dr. Satupaitea Viali...
Papua New Guinea's security personnel storm parliament (www.rnz.co.nz)
Up to 200 police, corrections and army personnel have gathered at the Unagi Oval in Port Moresby to in protest over deductions to their salaries this fortnight.
Why more and more Southeast Asians want to learn German – DW – 01/09/2024 (www.dw.com)
Across Southeast Asia, interest in German is on the rise as the German government taps increasing numbers of the region's skilled workers to tackle the country's severe labor shortages.
Manipur govt to look into claim of 'delisting' Kukis, Zomis from ST list? (www.eastmojo.com)
The Union government said the process of inclusion or exclusion from the ST list requires the proposal to originate from the concerned State government.
Foreign university to offer nursing courses in Vanuatu (www.dailypost.vu)
The Vanuatu Government is considering the possibility of allowing the Manila Times University of Philippines to run nursing courses at the Vanuatu College of Nursing Education (VCNE) starting from June.