ANONYMOUS - OUR VOICE

"Dedicated To Regaining Trust" In China After Boycott: H&M

<div class="ins_instory_dv">
<div class="ins_instory_dv_cont"><img alt="'Dedicated To Regaining Trust' In China After Boycott: H&M" src="https://c.ndtvimg.com/2021-03/guhljok_hm-650_625x300_31_March_21.jpeg" title="'Dedicated To Regaining Trust' In China After Boycott: H&M" /></div>
People stand near the entrance to a store of Swedish clothing giant H&M in Beijing.
</div>
Stockholm, Sweden:
Swedish clothing giant H&M said Wednesday it was doing "everything" to resolve a boycott in China that was sparked by its decision to stop sourcing cotton from Xinjiang over forced labour concerns.
H&M and other fashion brands have been under fire in China for statements voicing concern about allegations of labour violations in cotton fields in the far west region.
Chinese celebrities and tech firms pulled partnerships with H&M, Nike, Adidas, Burberry and Calvin Klein. H&M was even erased from Chinese shopping apps.
"We are working together with our colleagues in China to do everything we can to manage the current challenges and find a way forward," H&M said in a statement.
"We are dedicated to regaining the trust and confidence of our customers, colleagues, and business partners in China," it said.
Rights groups says more than one million Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim ethnic minorities have been held in internment camps in Xinjiang, where they have also been forced to work in factories.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
 
 
source <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/h-m-says-dedicated-to-regaining-trust-in-china-after-boycott-2402934">https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/h-m-says-dedicated-to-regaining-trust-in-china-after-boycott-2402934</a>

news world "Dedicated To Regaining Trust" In China After Boycott: H&M

People stand near the entrance to a store of Swedish clothing giant H&M in Beijing. Stockholm, Sweden: Swedish clothing giant H...

A Mafia Hid From Cops For Years. They Spotted His YouTube Cooking Videos

<div class="ins_instory_dv">
<div class="ins_instory_dv_cont"><img alt="A Mafia Hid From Cops For Years. They Spotted His YouTube Cooking Videos" src="https://c.ndtvimg.com/2021-03/l29qr8i8_marc-feren-claude-biart-twitter_625x300_31_March_21.jpg" title="A Mafia Hid From Cops For Years. They Spotted His YouTube Cooking Videos" /></div>
Marc Feren Claude Biart was arrested Monday at Milan's Malpensa airport
</div>
Marc Feren Claude Biart was always careful to hide his face in his Italian cooking tutorials, filming the YouTube videos while laying low from police on a sandy beach in the Caribbean.
But Biart, an alleged member of southern Italy's powerful 'Ndrangheta crime syndicate, had failed to obscure his tattoos on tape - a clue authorities now say they used to track down the mobster in the Dominican Republic.
Biart, 53, was arrested Monday at Milan's Malpensa airport after arriving on a flight from Santo Domingo, according to the Italian state broadcaster Rai, the latest episode in a sprawling, international effort to fight the 'Ndrangheta.
Italian law enforcement officials working with Interpol, the global police organization, have in the past decade aggressively pursued the group's affiliates, the country's biggest and most influential mafia organization.
Officials have traced cocaine deals and brutal murders in its home base in Calabria - the "toe" of Italy's boot-shaped peninsula - to hundreds of mobsters across three continents, from a local mayor and police chief up to a former member of Parliament. In one case this week, officials detained one man as he was reportedly being treated for covid-19 at a Portuguese hospital.
But of all those arrests, Biart's may be the only one that was facilitated by both body art and gourmet hobbies.
According to a Rai report shared by Italy's Interior Ministry, law enforcement authorities had ordered Biart's arrest in 2014 for criminal drug trafficking on behalf of the 'Ndrangheta's Cacciola clan.
Biart fled to Costa Rica and then more than five years ago to Boca Chica, a beach town in the Dominican Republic known for its white sand and clear blue waters, police said. Although the town is a popular destination for Italian tourists, Biart and his wife kept his distance from their countrymen.
In their free time, however, they appeared to have uploaded several cooking tutorials for Italian recipes to YouTube, including ones where Biart's tattoos were visible.
It is unclear if he has retained a lawyer or if his videos are still online. He could not immediately be reached for comment by The Washington Post.
While film and TV depictions of the mafia have launched two other crime syndicates - Cosa Nostra in Sicily, and Camorra in Naples - into international notoriety, the more quiet 'Ndrangheta has managed to transcend both organizations in wealth and political power.
With a vast network based on blood ties, the 'Ndrangheta's reach extends from South America to Canada and across Europe, where it reportedly controls most of the cocaine market, the Atlantic reported. A 2013 study found that the group's business revenue, mostly from drug trafficking and a garbage disposal operation, amounted to 3.5 percent of Italy's GDP.
"They are like water," Giuseppe Governale, the top anti-mafia prosecutor in Italy, said at a news briefing last fall, according to the Associated Press. "Unlike Cosa Nostra and Camorra, which go abroad [just] to make quick money, 'Ndrangheta does go there, yes, to make money, but also to exploit the local communities."
The group acts as a kind of middleman in the cocaine business, the Atlantic reported, selling to other criminal organizations while also sucking away European Union funds for agriculture and other industries and ruthlessly killing any members who make a mistake.
The fugitive arrested in a Lisbon hospital this week, Francesco Pelle, had been convicted in one such case.
During a power struggle between two clans in a Calabrian town, Pelle was wounded and then ordered a hit that resulted in the death of his rival's wife. He disappeared days before a criminal conviction was upheld by one of Italy's top courts in 2019.
More than 350 defendants, all alleged members of the 'Ndrangheta, were tried earlier this year on similar charges of murder and extortion in Italy's largest mafia trial in decades.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
 
 
source <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/a-mafia-hid-from-cops-for-years-they-spotted-his-youtube-cooking-videos-2402833">https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/a-mafia-hid-from-cops-for-years-they-spotted-his-youtube-cooking-videos-2402833</a>

news world A Mafia Hid From Cops For Years. They Spotted His YouTube Cooking Videos

Marc Feren Claude Biart was arrested Monday at Milan's Malpensa airport Marc Feren Claude Biart was always careful to hide his face ...

Google, BMW, Volvo Sign Call For Temporary Ban On Deep-Sea Mining

<div class="ins_instory_dv">
<div class="ins_instory_dv_cont"><img alt="Google, BMW, Volvo Sign Call For Temporary Ban On Deep-Sea Mining" src="https://c.ndtvimg.com/2021-03/gt350p3c_deep-sea-mining-reuters_625x300_31_March_21.jpg" title="Google, BMW, Volvo Sign Call For Temporary Ban On Deep-Sea Mining" /></div>
Google, BMW, Volvo have signed up a call for deep-sea mining. (Reuters)
</div>
Google, BMW, Volvo and Samsung SDI are the first global companies to have signed up to a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) call for a moratorium on deep-sea mining, the WWF said on Wednesday.
In backing the call, the companies commit not to source any minerals from the seabed, to exclude such minerals from their supply chains, and not to finance deep seabed mining activities, the WWF said in a statement.
Deep-sea mining would extract cobalt, copper, nickel, and manganese - key materials commonly used to make batteries - from potato-sized nodules which pepper the sea floor at depths of 4-6 kilometres and are particularly abundant in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the North Pacific Ocean, a vast area spanning millions of kilometres between Hawaii and Mexico.
"With much of the deep sea ecosystem yet to be explored and understood, such activity would be recklessly short-sighted," WWF said in a statement.
The moratorium calls for a ban on deep seabed mining activities until the risks are fully understood and all alternatives are exhausted.
BMW said raw materials from deep-sea mining are "not an option" for the company at present because there are insufficient scientific findings to be able to assess the environmental risks. Google and Volvo did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.
South Korea's Samsung SDI said it was the first battery maker to participate in WWF's initiative.
In the meantime, deep-sea mining companies are pushing ahead with preparatory work and research on seabed licence areas.
Companies that hold exploration licences for swathes of the sea floor, including DeepGreen, GSR and UK Seabed Resources - a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin's UK-based arm - hope to eventually sell minerals from the seabed to carmakers and battery companies.
DeepGreen, which recently announced plans to go public in a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), has previously said seabed mining will be more sustainable than mining on land because it creates less waste and the nodules containing minerals have higher concentrations of metals than deposits found on land.
Meanwhile Norway has said it could license companies for deep-sea mining as early as 2023, potentially placing it among the first countries to harvest seabed metals.
 
 
source <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/google-bmw-volvo-sign-wwf-call-for-temporary-ban-on-deep-sea-mining-2402830">https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/google-bmw-volvo-sign-wwf-call-for-temporary-ban-on-deep-sea-mining-2402830</a>

news world Google, BMW, Volvo Sign Call For Temporary Ban On Deep-Sea Mining

Google, BMW, Volvo have signed up a call for deep-sea mining. (Reuters) Google, BMW, Volvo and Samsung SDI are the first global companie...

Texas School To Be Named After Indian-American Woman

<div class="ins_instory_dv">
<div class="ins_instory_dv_cont"><img alt="Texas School To Be Named After Indian-American Woman" src="https://i.ndtvimg.com/i/2015-12/sonal_650x400_41451267124.jpg" title="Texas School To Be Named After Indian-American Woman" /></div>
Sonal Bhuchar died of cancer complications at the age of 58 in 2019.
</div>
Houston:
An elementary school in the US state of Texas will be named after an Indian-American trailblazer Sonal Bhuchar so that her legacy in education and philanthropy continues for generations to come, according to a statement.
The Fort Bend Independent School District (FBISD) Board of Trustees unanimously approved naming upcoming elementary school 53, after Ms Bhuchar, who died of cancer complications at the age of 58 in 2019.
The school will open in January 2023 in the Riverstone community.
Originally from Mumbai, she was a professional physiotherapist and had her bachelor's degree in physical therapy from Bombay University. She immigrated to Houston in 1984 with her husband, Subodh Bhuchar.
Ms Bhuchar, a popular community activist and a leader, who always cared about the community, was elected to the Fort Bend ISD Board of Trustees for six years and served as the Board President for two years.
In 2015 Texas Governor Greg Abbot appointed Ms Bhuchar to the One Star National Service Commission Board, that promotes volunteerism and oversees administration of the AmeriCorps programmes in the US state of Texas.
While on the FBISD board, Sonal Bhuchar led several district initiatives, including the Student Leadership Programme, the Legislative Advocacy Programme, the Fort Bend Education Foundation''s Annual International Festival, WATCH-a lifestyle education programme-and scholarship opportunities.
Several current board members spoke highly about she encouraged them to serve the community. 
Trustee Jim Rice sat on the school board alongside Bhuchar for two years.
"The first year she was my mentor, and I came to know her very well," Rice said. "She was a lady who worked very hard in our community to help build bridges of understanding between our very diverse community."
Trustee Grayle James ran for Sonal Bhuchar's school board seat when she decided to not seek re-election in 2012.
"While I did not sit on the school board with Sonal, I did try to sit in the seat and fill the shoes that she left here," James said. "She supported me as I learned my role on the school board. I''m so grateful and proud that we''ll be able to name an elementary school for her."
Thrilled about this recognition, Dr Subodh, her husband, a reputed physician and a community leader told PTI that, "The current Fort Bend citizens and FBISD board of Trustees recognised Sonal''s phenomenal service to the county by unanimously voting for an elementary school in her honour, so that her legacy in education and philanthropy continues for generations to come".
"Sonal was a quiet but effective warrior, who weaved a path for generations of young women and men to follow. She led by example and showed them that their way to succeed in life is to give, without expecting anything in return. She ensured that her actions would lead to changes that would benefit all", Dr Subodh said.
Shefali Jhaver, a local resident and friend of Ms Bhuchar, sharing the news of schools approval by FBISD said "I am thrilled that her spirit and legacy will carry on for generations to come through a school where she lived, raised her family and inspired us all. She was a shining member of our community here.
"It is a great honour for all first generation immigrants. Sonal, who was taken from us much too soon, always cared deeply about our community, and I couldn''t be happier about this decision," said Usha Ganju, a close friend of the family.
Sonal Bhuchar, until her death, was actively involved on the board of many nonprofit and local organisations, including Child Advocates of Fort Bend, the Literacy Council of Fort Bend, AccessHealth, Sugar Land Cultural Arts Foundation and the Texas Medical Association Alliance, among others. 
 
 
source <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/texas-school-to-be-named-after-indian-american-trailblazer-sonal-bhuchar-2402805">https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/texas-school-to-be-named-after-indian-american-trailblazer-sonal-bhuchar-2402805</a>

news world Texas School To Be Named After Indian-American Woman

Sonal Bhuchar died of cancer complications at the age of 58 in 2019. Houston: An elementary school in the US state of Texas will be nam...

UK's Prince Harry, Meghan Planning Home Birth For 2nd Child: Report

<div class="ins_instory_dv">
<div class="ins_instory_dv_cont"><img alt="UK's Prince Harry, Meghan Planning Home Birth For 2nd Child: Report" src="https://c.ndtvimg.com/2021-02/6vrbe2a_prince-harry-meghan-markle_625x300_16_February_21.jpg" title="UK's Prince Harry, Meghan Planning Home Birth For 2nd Child: Report" /></div>
Meghan Markle confessed she had no clue what her royal marriage would bring into her life.
</div>
Washington:
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's second child will be born at home, according to reports.
As reported by Fox News, the Sussexes are expecting in early summer, and the baby girl will be the first-ever royal to be born in America.
The 39-year-old Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, and Prince Harry bought their USD 14.5 million Montecito estate last year after moving to California.
During the couple's bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, the gender of the baby was revealed and during the interview, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle detailed their reasons for leaving royal life behind.
Prince Harry said: "A girl, you know, what more can you ask for? But now, you know, now we've got our family. We've got, you know, the four of us and our two dogs, and it's great."
Per Fox News, during the tell-all, the two made several serious allegations against the royal family and the Institution at large, including accusations of racism and turning a blind eye to Meghan Markle's mental health needs.
They also discussed the media's presence in their life, reporting on their every move and the criticism of Meghan Markle's actions, which led to, in part, her suicidal thoughts.
Meghan Markle confessed she had no clue what her royal marriage would bring into her life, saying: "There was no way to understand what the day-to-day was going to be like."
"That's what was really tricky over those past few years, is when the perception and the reality are two very different things. And you're being judged on the perception, but you're living the reality of it," she added. 
 
 
source <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/uks-prince-harry-meghan-planning-home-birth-for-2nd-child-report-2402769">https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/uks-prince-harry-meghan-planning-home-birth-for-2nd-child-report-2402769</a>

news world UK's Prince Harry, Meghan Planning Home Birth For 2nd Child: Report

Meghan Markle confessed she had no clue what her royal marriage would bring into her life. Washington: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry...

"You Don't Belong Here": Video Shows Asian American Woman Beaten In Racist Attack

<div class="ins_instory_dv">
<div class="ins_instory_dv_cont"><img alt="'You Don't Belong Here': Video Shows Asian American Woman Beaten In Racist Attack" src="https://c.ndtvimg.com/2021-03/kcer8t2o_asian-american-woman-65-beaten-in-racist-attack-nypd-says-bystanders-didnt-help-650_625x300_31_March_21.jpeg" title="'You Don't Belong Here': Video Shows Asian American Woman Beaten In Racist Attack" /></div>
The video has led to new calls for an end to the rising tide of violence against Asian Americans.
</div>
An Asian American woman was walking through the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan on Monday morning when a stranger approached.
The 65-year-old woman stopped abruptly outside a luxury condo tower, surveillance video shows.
Suddenly, the man kicked her in the stomach, knocking her to the sidewalk, and then brutally stomped on her head again and again. All the while, police said, he spewed slurs at her.
As the woman was viciously attacked, video appears to show at least three people in the condo's lobby passively watching the violence. When the attacker walks away, leaving the injured woman prone on the sidewalk, one man - reportedly a security guard - calmly shut the door on her.
The video has led to new calls for an end to the rising tide of violence against Asian Americans and raised questions about the bystanders' conduct.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
WANTED in connection to an assault. On Monday, March 29th at 11:40 AM, at 360 West 43rd St, a female, 65, was approached by an unidentified male who punched and kicked her about the body and made anti-Asian statements. Have Info? Call or DM☎️1-800-577-TIPS. Up to $2500 reward. <a href="https://t.co/6gb5NDCZCA">pic.twitter.com/6gb5NDCZCA</a>
— NYPD Crime Stoppers (@NYPDTips) <a href="https://twitter.com/NYPDTips/status/1376725286167924741?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 30, 2021</a></blockquote>
"The cold-hearted building security guard not only failed to render aid, he closed the door on the victim," the New York Police Department's Asian Hate Crimes Task Force wrote in a since-deleted tweet about the video, WABC reported.
Early on Tuesday, the company that manages the condo tower announced that the staffers involved in the incident have been suspended.
"The staff who witnessed the attack have been suspended pending an investigation in conjunction with their union," the Brodsky Organization wrote in an Instagram post, which also noted the company is trying to identify a "third-party vendor" who was also on the scene "so that appropriate action can be taken."
The case was one of two attacks on Asian Americans in New York caught on video and publicized on Monday, on the same day that city leaders gathered in Brooklyn to urge quick action to halt a rising tide of racist violence and threats.
"This is absolutely vile. These attacks against Asian-American New Yorkers must end," New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, D, said on Twitter, linking to a video of the attack on the woman. "Hate has no place here and we must always call it out when we see it."
In recent weeks, Asian Americans in New York have reported being punched in subway cars, spit on and pummeled with metal pipes - an ugly echo of a national trend that activists say gained traction as former president Donald Trump has used racist terms to tie the coronavirus pandemic to China.
The first attack shared by the NYPD on Monday took place onboard a Manhattan-bound subway car in Brooklyn. Police have not said when the attack took place, but a video of the incident shows an Asian man wearing a backpack being shoved by another passenger, who then starts punching him in the face repeatedly. Eventually, the passenger locks the man in a chokehold, tightly gripping his neck until he passes out on the floor of the train.
"The NYPD is aware of this video and is investigating," the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force said on Twitter on Monday morning.
The attack in Hell's Kitchen happened just before noon on Monday, police said, as the unidentified victim was walking along West 43rd Street. The woman was headed to church, WABC reported, when the attacker yelled, "F--- you, you don't belong here," and began assaulting her.
Video shows one man in the building's lobby watching the entirety of the attack. That man, who appeared to be tying a stack of boxes onto a cart, stared out the glass doors as the woman was repeatedly kicked in the head, but made no move to assist her. Two other men, who were security guards according WABC, then walked toward the entrance as the assailant left, and closed the door on the victim.
The woman "sustained a serious physical injury," the NYPD said, and was taken to NYU Langone Hospital, where she was in stable condition. The NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating the case.
City officials, activists and celebrities decried the video and urged a swift arrest for the attacker.
"This is absolutely disgusting. Asian Americans belong in New York and are an integral part of our city," tweeted Scott Stringer, New York City's comptroller and a candidate for mayor. "We have to continue to speak out, we have to continue to protect our AAPI neighbors, and we have to act immediately to #StopAsianHate."
Others questioned the apparent lack of action from the bystanders in the lobby.
"This is despicable. The attack and the guard's inaction and closing the door on the victim," tweeted actress Gemma Chan.
Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., who was among the officials calling for an end to anti-Asian hate crimes at the meeting in Brooklyn earlier on Monday, said the video reinforced a profound lack of empathy for Asian Americans.
"We've gone from being invisible to being seen as sub-human," Meng tweeted. "We just want to be seen as American like everyone else."
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
 
 
source <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/asian-american-woman-beaten-in-racist-attack-bystanders-didnt-help-2402784">https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/asian-american-woman-beaten-in-racist-attack-bystanders-didnt-help-2402784</a>

news world "You Don't Belong Here": Video Shows Asian American Woman Beaten In Racist Attack

The video has led to new calls for an end to the rising tide of violence against Asian Americans. An Asian American woman was walking th...