As the world pauses for International Women’s Day, Ukrainians are suffering from sexual violence
Bombs, missiles and air raid sirens. Russian President Vladimir Putin has described these actions as a “special military operation” designed to “de-Nazify Ukraine”.
When the air raid sirens were blarring Tamara* was left to her own devices. She said the war changed her as a mother and caregiver for her parents.
“All changed for the worse. Men [from the family] are at war, women are left alone, many with small children on their backs without any income. There is no help—no physical help, no financial aid,” she said.
Tamara, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, has been living in the Donetsk Oblast conflict zone.
She was forced to choose between abandoning her parents and keeping her children alive.
She decided to stay in Ukraine, and put her family at risk.
“I need to take care of my kids and my elderly parents [were] left at home—this is my duty. There is no one to take care of them but me. I have no choice,” she said. For many women, travelling to safety can carry a devastating emotional and physical toll,” she said.
Many Ukrainian women have joined the resistance to Russian aggression. But caregiving responsibilities for children and family members often fall disproportionately on women.
These responsibilities can be difficult in the perilous conditions of conflict.
Women continue to face grave risks as Russian’s full-scale aggression in Ukraine enters its second year, according to Amnesty International.
Agnès Callamard is the Secretary General at Amnesty International, who said the conflict is having a detrimental effect on women’s mental, physical and sexual and reproductive health.
“Time and time again, women bear the brunt of war’s brutality.
“They are consistently on the frontlines of conflict—as soldiers and fighters, doctors and nurses, volunteers, peace activists, carers for their communities and families, internally displaced people, refugees, and too often as victims and survivors.”
Agnès Callamard, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
“Women confront increased sexual and gender-based violence and perilous health conditions, while being forced to make life and death survival decisions for their families,” Ms Callamard said.
War leads to an increase in gender-based violence
Gender-based violence is not a new phenomenon. Typically, it involves a lack of security; trust; and increased stigma attached to sharing experiences.
A 2019 study reported masculinity is “militarised and linked to violence” while women assume roles as the “heroic housewife, sacrificial mother and loving wife,” during political conflict.
Kateryna* was nine weeks pregnant when Russian tanks rolled across the border in February 2022.
“I did not know what would happen to us. There were rumours about evacuation and doctors leaving. I could not do the ultrasound and all the tests. There simply was no access. That was adding to the anxiety and emotional tension,” she said.
She said her husband’s aggression has led to more conflict at home.
“I cannot leave my children with my husband because of the uncertainty throughout the day. He lost his job and now my husband is overwhelmed with emotion and nerves.”
Sima Bahous is the UN Women Executive Director, who is seeking to push women’s and girls’ voice, agency and participation in conflict response.
“Systemic, gendered crises require systemic, gendered solutions. That means ensuring that women and girls, including from marginalized groups, are part of all the decision-making processes.
“That is simply the only way to be certain that their rights and needs are fully taken into account as we respond to the clear facts before us,” she said.
Costa is a news producer at ticker NEWS. He has previously worked as a regional journalist at the Southern Highlands Express newspaper. He also has several years' experience in the fire and emergency services sector, where he has worked with researchers, policymakers and local communities. He has also worked at the Seven Network during their Olympic Games coverage and in the ABC Melbourne newsroom.
He also holds a Bachelor of Arts (Professional), with expertise in journalism, politics and international relations. His other interests include colonial legacies in the Pacific, counter-terrorism, aviation and travel.
These travel tips will help you reduce jet lag the next time you travel abroad
We all love a holiday but, unfortunately, when you’re travelling long distances it often comes with a side of jet leg.
So what causes it and are there any ways to avoid that drowsy feeling?
After years of lockdowns and travel restrictions, people are finally back in the skies and venturing to destinations right around the world.
The term “jet lag” describes the physical and cognitive symptoms people experience when traveling quickly across several timezones.
Before you leave, you’re synchronised to your local time and once you enter a new timezone, your body’s rhythms are thrown out of whack.
The experience of jet lag varies between people because we all have our own internal rhythm.
Most have a natural daily cycle of about 24.2 hours.
But some people have slightly longer cycles than others, and this could play a role in how a person experiences jet lag.
Research shows if you have a longer cycle you might adjust quicker to westward travel.
We also get a little less resilient as we age, so the older you are, the worse the jet lag may be.
So does the direction of travel matter? Scientists think so.
Many people find westward travel easier. This is when you, essentially, gain time.
But that’s not always possible – so here are some tips to help you through the pain, or even avoid it, in the first place:
1. If you’re trying to shift your body clock, you should start on the plane. Do this by setting your watch to your destination’s timezone and line up your activities, like sleep and meals, accordingly.
2. Next, keep your caffeine and alcohol intake low on the journey to help aid both sleep and hydration.
3. When you arrive, try your absolute best to sleep during the local night time and rest during the day as needed.
4. You can take a nap – but make sure it’s 30 minutes or less.
5. If you’re prone to or experience tummy trouble while traveling, stick to small meals and only eat when you’re hungry.
6. Finally, you should also expose yourself to sunlight throughout the day when adjusting to your new timezone.
Young people are taking to the streets in France as Macron pushes ahead with raising nation’s retirement age
Huge crowds have gathered in France in recent weeks to protest a controversial rise in the country’s pension age by two years to 64.
Some of the marches have turned violent.
While the reform is most relevant to those approaching retirement, many young people are also taking to the streets.
But why might that be?
The French youth have joined the protests in growing numbers since the government bypassed parliament to push the plans through.
Every night for the past few weeks, 18-year-old Charles Chauliac has been making his voice heard. Not just for his parents, but for himself.
“I am against this reform simply because I have two parents who are killing themselves at work and damaging their health and I don’t want to see them die at work. My father, he works every day, he gets up to get on the tarmac at Charles de Gaulle airport at 5 a.m. to load the planes. I find it difficult to imagine myself at 64 getting up at 3 a.m.”
Chauliac is part of groups started by university students to organize unauthorized demonstrations, which are usually carried out in the evenings.
While a few protesters have been seen torching bins and throwing rocks at police, Chauliac insists he hasn’t.
Opinion polls show a wide majority of voters are opposed to the pension bill.
They are further angered by Macron’s leadership style and the government’s decision to skip the parliamentary vote.
“For young people like me, we grew up with the hope of being able to influence our society. And when we see that decisions are made without consulting the people who make up this society, that takes away the possibility of being able to change things.”
Many students, like Chauliac, have been joining private groups on social media which help students mobilize for spontaneous protests.
He says they help prevent the groups being noticed by police.
But does Chauliac worry about the repercussions, should the demonstrations get out of hand?
“I wonder about that, because I know what can happen to us too, we see the images and we see what happens to fellow protesters, but that wouldn’t prevent me from demonstrating, because I’m so outraged that it surpasses potentially endangering myself.”
Macron recently said he would press ahead with the reforms.
Unions have called for regional action, and the continuation of nationwide strikes and protests. #trending #featured
Controversial facial recognition has been used a million times by police to help track criminals
As facial recognition becomes more prominent, the founder of tech firm Clearview says his company has run nearly a million searches for U.S. police.
It’s also been revealed the company has scraped 30 billion images from platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, taken without users’ permissions.
The company has been fined numerous times in Europe and countries like Australia for breaches of privacy laws.
In the U.S., critics say the use of Clearview by authorities puts everyone into a “police line-up”.
The company’s high-tech system allows law enforcement to upload a photo of a face and find matches in a database comprising of billions of images it has collected.
It then provides links to where matching images appear online.
The tool is considered to be one of the world’s most powerful and accurate.
While the company is banned from selling its services to most U.S. companies, there is an exemption for police. #trending #featured
