Dear Leader Dreams of Sushi: What life was like serving Kim Jong-il and his heir

First posted June 05, 2013 By Adam Johnson. Photography by Jungyeon Roh North Korea is a mythically strange land, an Absurdistan, where almost nothing is known about the people or, more important, their missile-launching leaders. There is, however, one man—a humble sushi chef from Japan—who infiltrated the inner sanctum, becoming the Dear Leader’s cook, confidant,… Read More Dear Leader Dreams of Sushi: What life was like serving Kim Jong-il and his heir

Femicides: 2000 Turkish women killed by men since Erdogan left Womens Rights Convention

At least 996 women in Turkey have been killed by men since the country’s 2021 withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention, an international treaty aimed at combating domestic violence, while 748 women have died under suspicious circumstances, Turkish Minute reported, citing a report by the We Will Stop Femicide Platform (KCDP). March 20 marks the third… Read More Femicides: 2000 Turkish women killed by men since Erdogan left Womens Rights Convention

Jogendranath Mandal hoped for Dalit-Muslim unity in Pakistan. He’s remembered as a ‘villain’

NB: Those of us who see the events of the late 1940’s in black and white terms ought to study the complexity of historical events as well as of the views of the actors in those events. Some may be surprised to read B. R. Ambedkar’s views on the transfer of population on a communal… Read More Jogendranath Mandal hoped for Dalit-Muslim unity in Pakistan. He’s remembered as a ‘villain’

Facing history and ourselves

People’s Archive of Rural India Ulopi Biswas was declared a ‘foreigner’ despite the family’s Indian citizenship and her own papers that prove her nationality. She was declared a D-voter, and went through a trial at Bongaigaon Foreign Tribunal in 2017-2022 to prove her citizenship. Kulsum Nissa and Sufia Khatun, who are out on bail from… Read More Facing history and ourselves

Facing three global crises, the American empire may be nearing final collapse

By ALFRED MCCOY Empires don’t just fall like toppled trees. Instead, they weaken slowly as a succession of crises drain their strength and confidence until they suddenly begin to disintegrate. So it was with the British, French and Soviet empires; so it now is with imperial America. Great Britain confronted serious colonial crises in India, Iran… Read More Facing three global crises, the American empire may be nearing final collapse

China Nobel Laureate for literature becomes a target in nationalist slander campaign

Amy Hawkins  At first glance, a Nobel prize winning author, a bottle of green tea and Beijing’s Tsinghua University have little in common. But in recent weeks they have been dubbed by China’s nationalist netizens as the “three new evils” in the fight to defend the country’s valour in cyberspace. Last month a patriotic blogger… Read More China Nobel Laureate for literature becomes a target in nationalist slander campaign

Not China, Nepali Congress forced Prachanda’s hand

Bharat Bhushan There is strong suspicion in Nepal that the revivalist demand for abandoning secularism and restoring Nepal as a Hindu Rashtra is being encouraged by the Hindutva forces in India. Nepal’s politics has once again taken an unexpected turn with Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, aka Prachanda, breaking his alliance with the Nepali Congress. Prachanda’s Communist… Read More Not China, Nepali Congress forced Prachanda’s hand