Covering The Multicultural Asian American Community in Georgia
www.gasiantimes.com
January 1-15, 2017
New Republican-led Congress lays groundwork for Trump era
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017
Publisher: Li Wong Account Manager: Adrian West Contributors: Andrian Putra, May Lee, Mark Ho Photographer: Ben Hioe
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All Rights Reserved: including those to reproduce this printing or parts thereof in any form without permission in writing from Georgia Asian Times. Established in 2004, the Georgia Asian Times is published by Asiamax Inc. All facts, opinions, and statements appearing within this publication are those of writers and editors themseleves, and are in no way to be construed as statements, positions, endorsements by Georgia Asian Times or its officers. Georgia Asian Times assumes no responsibility for damages from the use of information contained in this publication or the reply to any advertisement. The Publisher will not be liable for any error in advertising to greater extent than the cost of space occupied by the error and will only be made for a single publication date. The Publisher reserves the right to reject any ad or articles submitted for publication that may not be in good taste for a free publication.
GAT Calendar of Events GAT welcome submission of announcement pertaining to community related events. Please email event, date, venue, and time to gat@gasiantimes.com. GAT does not guarantee insertion of event announcement and has the right to deny any posting.
Atlanta China Chamber of Commerce - Annual Meeting Date: Jan 14, 2017 Time: 5:30 pm Venue: Oriental Pearl Seafood Restaurant, 5399 New Peachtree Road, Chamblee GA 30341 For more info: www.cbaaweb.org
2017 Atlanta Chinese Lunar New Year Festival Date: Jan 28 & 29, 2017 Time: 10:00 am - 4:00 pm Venue: Culture Center of Taipei Economic & Culture Office in Atlanta Admission: $5 adult, children Free 5303 New Peachtree Road, Chamblee
24th Spring Festival Gala Atlanta China Chamber of Commerce and Atlanta Chinese Professionals Date: Jan 15, 2017 Time: 7:00 pm Venue: Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St, NE, Atlanta GA 30309 For more info: www.cbaaweb.org
NACA Chinese New Year Gala Date: Saturday, Feb 4, 2016 Time: 6:00 pm Venue: Canton House For more info: www.naca-atlanta.org
17th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Parade Celebration Organized by United Ebony Society of Gwinnett County Date: Monday, Jan 16, 2017 Time: 11:00 am Venue: 75 Langley Drive, Lawrenceville GA 30046 For more info: www.gwinnettmlkparade.com
Lunar New Year Spring Reception Organized by Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office New York Date: Thursday, Feb 16, 2016 Time: 6:30 pm -8:30 pm By invitation only. “One Belt, One Road� Forum Guest speaker: John Rice, Vice Chair, GE Energy Organized by Hong Kong Association, Carter Center Date: March 2, 2016 Venue: Carter Center
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
METRO ASIAN NEWS
APAC Georgia appoints new President and officers Atlanta, Dec 21, 2016 — Asia-Pacific Council of Georgia (APAC-Georgia) officially appoint its 2017 officers and Board of Directors at its annual meeting. Eleanor Mae Pascual, of Philippines American Association of Georgia, is elected as the 2017 President of the organization. Sopheap Lam of Cambodian Association of Georgia, was elected as the Vice President.
Board of Directors: Sushma Barakoti Tramy Nguyen Yoon Kim Sudhir Agarwal The annual APAC Georgia fundraising gala is scheduled for May 6, 2017.
2017 APAC Georgia Officers and Board of Directors:
New TECO Atlanta DG Liu assume post Atlanta, Dec 28, 2016 — The new Director General of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Atlanta, Mr. Vincent J.Y. Liu started his assignment at the TECO office in midtown last week. Director General (DG) Liu arrives in Atlanta from Taipei with his family to assume the posting. DG Liu oversee’s TECO Atlanta jurisdiction that covers the Southeastern states including Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. TECO Atlanta offers consular services and is dedicated to promoting cooperation and mutual understanding between Taiwan and the Southeast United States in economic, cultural and other areas. DG Liu, a career diplomat, was previously posted on official assignments to Moscow, Washington DC, New York, and Singapore. Having pursued graduate studies at the prestigious Harriman Institute at Columbia University in New York, DG Liu is fluent in the Russian language.
He also earned a Master of Public Administration degree from the Kennedy School of Government from Harvard University in 2005. DG Liu also has a Masters of International Relations and a BA in Diplomacy from National Chengchi University in Taiwan. “I look forward to meeting new friends, colleagues, and officials in the community and the State of Georgia,” said DG Liu in a meeting with Georgia Asian Times. DG Liu has plans to visit each of the six states in the coming months to introduce himself to the community. “I hope to continue the good work of my predecessors. TECO Atlanta will continue to serve as a bridge between the Southeastern states and Taiwan.”
President: Eleanor Mae Pascual Vice President: Sopheap Lam Secretary: Victoria Huynh Treasurer: Elsie Vidanes Communication Director: Varinee Sangmalee
OCA-Georgia elects 2017-2018 officers and Board Atlanta, Dec 31, 2017 - OCA-Georgia holds its annual election of officers and Board of Directors for 2017-2018 term. Listed below are the official result of the election: President: Alexandra Kuo Executive Vice President: Estrella Cramer Treasurer: Louis Chen VP of Education: Victor Eng
VP of Public Affairs: Louis Tseng VP of Culture: Shandry Law Board of Director: Joan Goh Board of Director: Clayton Lee
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017
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NATIONS
New Republican-led Congress lays groundwork for Trump era Washington DC, Jan 3, 2017 — The Republican-led U.S. Congress begins a new session on Tuesday in which it will start laying plans for enacting President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda of cutting taxes, repealing Obamacare and rolling back financial and environmental regulations. With Trump set to be sworn in as president on Jan. 20, Republican lawmakers hope to get a quick start on priorities that were blocked during Democratic President Barack Obama’s eight years in the White House. But the message was overshadowed by a surprise move by Republicans in the House of Representatives in a closed-door meeting late on Monday to weaken an the independent Office of Congressional Ethics, which is in charge of investigating ethics breaches by lawmakers. That drew criticism from Trump. “With all that Congress has to work on, do they really have to make the weakening of the Independent Ethics Watchdog, as unfair as it may be, their number one act and priority,” he said on Twitter on Tuesday. “Focus on tax reform, healthcare and so many other things of far greater importance!” The ethics office was created in 2008 following several corruption scandals but some lawmakers have charged in recent years that it has been too quick to investigate complaints lodged by outside partisan groups. Lawmakers will have greater control of the watchdog once the measure, part of a broader rules package, passes when the House convenes on Tuesday.
jority, the Republicans find they have to deliver on their campaign promise, even though they have not agreed on a replacement healthcare program.
OBAMACARE IN SITES Since his election on Nov. 8, Trump has made clear he wants to move swiftly to enact proposals he outlined during the campaign such as simplifying the tax code, slashing corporate tax rates and repealing and replacing Obama’s signature health insurance program known as Obamacare. Republicans have long sought to dismantle Obamacare, insisting it was unworkable and hampered job growth. But they face a dilemma over how to provide health insurance for the 13.8 million people enrolled in Obamacare who could lose their coverage. The law aims to provide health insurance to economically disadvantaged people and expand coverage for others. Trump kept up his attack on Tuesday, tweeting: “People must remember that ObamaCare just doesn’t work, and it is not affordable,” and adding, “It is lousy healthcare.” Last month Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, said in an interview with Kentucky Educational Television that before the election, he assumed Trump did not have a chance of defeating Hillary Clinton and that Democrats would retake control of the Senate, ending any talk of repealing Obamacare. But following Trump’s win and Republicans retaining their Senate ma-
McConnell has said his top priorities for the new Congress were dealing with the “massive overregulation” he said had been a brake on the U.S. economy and making changes in the tax code to stop companies from moving jobs out of the country. Republican lawmakers also want to curtail regulations aimed at controlling industrial emissions that contribute to climate change, and roll back banking industry reforms enacted after the near-collapse of Wall Street in 2008. Republicans might use upcoming spending bills funding government agencies to try to kill some of those regulations. Trump also is expected to try to use his executive powers toward that end. CLEAR THE DECKS The first meeting of the 115th Congress will be full of ceremony, as the 435 members of the House of Representatives and a third of the 100-member Senate are sworn in. Amid the celebration will be a move by House Republicans to clear the decks for Obamacare repeal. That will come in the form of a vote on rules governing House procedures in the two-year term of the chamber. Tucked into the rules package is a move to prevent Democrats from slowing or stopping Obamacare repeal legislation because of the potential cost to the U.S. Treasury of doing so. Leading Democrats warned of a
fierce battle over Obamacare and said they planned to mobilize grassroots support for it. Obama is scheduled to meet on Wednesday with congressional Democrats to discuss strategies for fending off the Republican attacks on Obamacare. Vice President-elect Mike Pence said he would meet on Capitol Hill on Wednesday with lawmakers about plans for replacing Obamacare and rolling back other regulations. “The President-elect has a very clear message for Capitol Hill and that is, it’s time to get to work,” Pence told reporters at Trump Tower in New York. CABINET, SUPREME COURT NOMINATIONS Trump’s Cabinet nominees were set to begin meeting with senators on Tuesday ahead of Senate confirmation hearings. The Senate also is expected to receive a Supreme Court nomination from Trump early in his term to replace conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, who died last February. Republicans refused to consider Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland last year. Prominent Republican Senator John McCain has warned that Rex Tillerson, Trump’s choice for secretary of state, will have to explain his relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who McCain has called a “thug and a murderer.” Tillerson, who spent much of his career at Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N), has been involved in business dealings in Russia and opposed U.S. sanctions against Moscow for its incursion into Crimea. - Reuters
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
BUSINESS
Ford cancels $1.6 billion Mexican plant after Trump criticism Detroit, Jan 3, 2017 — Ford Motor Co said Tuesday it will cancel a planned $1.6 billion factory in Mexico and will invest $700 million at a Michigan factory, after it had come under harsh criticism from President-elect Donald Trump for its Mexican investment plans. The second largest U.S. automaker said it would build new electric, hybrid and autonomous vehicles at the Michigan plant. Ford Chief Executive Mark Fields on Tuesday said the decision to cancel the new plant in Mexico was in part related to the need to “fully utilize capacity at existing facilities” amid declining sales of small and medium sized cars such as the Focus and Fusion.
Fields also used the occasion to endorse “pro growth” tax and regulatory policies advocated by Trump and the Republican led Congress.
Also on Tuesday, Trump threatened to impose a “big border tax” on General Motors Co for making some of its Chevrolet Cruze cars in Mexico.
Trump repeatedly said during the election campaign that if elected he would not allow Ford to open the new plant in Mexico and would slap hefty tariffs taxes on imported Ford vehicles.
Fields said Ford will build a battery electric SUV with a 300-mile driving range at the Flat Rock, Michigan plant by 2020, and will launch production there by 2021 of a fully autonomous vehicle without a steering wheel or a brake pedal for use in ride services fleets.
A Ford source said the Trump team was told this morning about the decision. It was influenced by Trump’s policy goals such as lowering taxes and regulations but there were no negotiations between Ford and the Republican over the decision to cancel the Mexico plant or invest in Michigan, the source said.
Ford will add 700 jobs at the Flat Rock plant, Fields said, to cheers from union workers gathered at the factory for the announcement. Ford in April announced it would in-
vest $1.6 billion to build a new plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico to build small cars. The company said Wednesday it will shift production from Michigan of its Focus to an existing plant in Hermosillo, Mexico. Trump had urged Ford to cancel the planned Mexican plant. Ford said Wednesday it will add two new unnamed products at its Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan, where the Focus is manufactured today. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Alistair Bell)
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017
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EAT OUT
Pleasant BBQ Garden raised the bar on Hong Kong-style BBQ in metro Atlanta If you are a fan of Cantonese-style BBQ and roast pork, you are in for a treat. There is a new player in town that is setting new standards for Hong Kong-style BBQ meats and cooking. Pleasant BBQ Garden opened for business in October 2016 and has been earning accolades from Chinese customers from metro Atlanta.
importantly, they don’t use any food coloring on their meats. Crispy pan fried noodle with seafood ($10.99) is cooked to perfection with several large shrimps, scallops, squids, and Chinese kai-lan. The egg noodles blends well with clear white gravy. This is a savory dish to eat during lunch or dinner.
Located near the Assi Supermarket off Pleasant Hill Road, this tiny seven tables restaurant looks like your typical Cantonese-style restaurant. This family owned and operated business recently relocated from Flushing, New York.
There are only seven tables at this tiny place. Service is prompt and attentive as it is being rendered by Jason Chen and his sister Pink Chen. Their parents and relatives manned the kitchen. It is strictly a family affair.
There are several signature dishes to try at this restaurant. Roast duck (1/2 of roast duck, $12.25) is a must try here. The roast duck is moist and tender and roasted to perfection. It is not too salty or greasy like most other BBQ places in town.
In addition to BBQ meats and noodles, they also offer Cantonese-style congee “Jook” with choices ranging from preserved eggs, minced meat, sliced fish, sliced chicken, pork blood jello, etc. Freshly fried crispy dough is available at $1.25 apiece.
Another dish that will blow you away is the BBQ combo (pick two type of roast meat, $12.99) - we decided on Crispy Skin Roast Pork and BBQ pork. Meat is succulent and tender — most
In keeping with Hong Kong tradition, they also offer clay-pot casserole dishes. Clay-pot dishes is priced at $7.99. House special preserved meat, salted fish and minced pork, black
bean spare ribs, chicken with black mushrooms, beef with egg, and frog with preserved pork meat, are some of the casserole dishes available to order.
In my humble opinion, you would have just experienced the best Hong Kong-style BBQ in town.
Prices are reasonable and well below the competitors in town. They should give Ming’s BBQ on Buford Highway, BBQ Corner at Chinatown, and Hoa Binh Market a run for their money.
Pleasant BBQ Garden 1630 Pleasant Hill Road, Suite 220, Duluth GA 30096 Tel: 678.579.5596
This place has yet to be discovered by foodies and mainstream diners. Most of its patrons are Chinese and Cantonese speaking customers who appreciate home-style cooking.
Mon-Fri: 9:00 am - 9:00 pm Fri-Sat: 9:00 am - 10:00 pm Sunday: 9:00 am - 9:00 pm
They tend to sell out by late afternoon or dinner hours. It is advisable to dine in earlier to savor the highly favored roast meats.
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
BUSINESS
Trump tax reforms could depend on little-known ‘scoring’ panel Washington DC, Dec 28, 2016 – President-elect Donald Trump’s goal of overhauling the U.S. tax code in 2017 will depend partly on the work of an obscure congressional committee tasked with estimating how much future economic growth will result from tax cuts. Known as the Joint Committee on Taxation, or JCT, the nonpartisan panel assigns “dynamic scores” to major tax bills in Congress, based on economic models, to forecast a bill’s ultimate impact on the federal budget. The higher a tax bill’s dynamic score, the more likely it is seen as spurring growth, raising tax revenues and keeping the federal deficit in check. As Trump and Republicans in Congress plan the biggest tax reform package in a generation, the JCT has come under pressure from corporate lobbyists and other tax cut advocates who worry that too low a dynamic score could show the legislation to add billions, if not trillions of dollars to the federal deficit. “The problem is that the Joint Committee staff has adopted a whole series of assumptions that truly minimize the effects and underestimate the impact that a properly done tax reform could have,” said David Burton, an economic policy fellow at the conservative Heri-
tage Foundation think tank. A low dynamic score could force Republicans to scale back tax cuts or make the reforms temporary, severely limiting the scope of what was one of Trump’s top campaign pledges. Other analysts warn that pressure for a robust dynamic score raises the danger of a politically expedient number that could help reform pass Congress but lead to higher deficits down the road. Until last year, JCT used a variety of economic models in its arcane calculations, reflecting the uncertainties in such work. But House of Representatives Republicans changed the rules in 2015 to require that a bill’s score reflect only a single estimate of the estimated impact on the wider economy and resulting impact on tax revenues. Next year’s anticipated tax reform package would be the biggest piece of legislation that JCT has scored using this new, narrower approach, presenting the committee with a daunting challenge. JCT Chief of Staff Thomas Barthold acknowledged the challenge of dynamic scoring in an interview with Reuters. “The U.S. economy is so darn com-
plex, you really can’t have one model that picks up all of the complexity and nuance. So the essence of modeling is to try to slim things down, try to emphasize certain points,” he said. Tax reform is still months away. But the initial legislation expected in 2017 is likely to fall somewhere between two similar but separate plans, one backed by Trump and the other by House Republicans including Speaker Paul Ryan. The proposals lean heavily for fiscal legitimacy on dynamic scoring. Even the most robust independent scores show both plans adding to the deficit. But dynamic scoring, like any economic modeling technique, is far from precise and, when it comes to fiscal policy, any theoretical flaws could lead to very real consequences for taxpayers and the U.S. economy. The JCT has included macroeconomic analyses in its tax bill scores since 2003, providing a range of estimates on economic effects built on a variety of assumptions. When Dave Camp, as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, produced a tax reform bill in 2014, JCT used two models and forecast revenue gains ranging from $50 billion to $700 billion. The committee also provided economic growth forecasts from as low as 0.2 percent to as high as 1.8 percent.
The tax package likely to emerge next year will probably be even more complex than Camp’s, prompting some to worry that budgetary and economic forecasts will range even more widely. Some critics, including lobbyists for major corporations that stand to gain from big tax cuts, want JCT’s numbers to look more like the nonpartisan Tax Foundation’s, a research group whose work has been embraced by Trump and House Republicans. The Tax Foundation estimates that the House Republican tax plan would lead to a 9.1 percent higher gross domestic product over the long term, 7.7 percent higher wages and 1.7 million new full-time-equivalent jobs. It predicts the plan would reduce government revenue by $2.4 trillion over a decade, not counting macroeconomic effects, but by only $191 billion once economic growth is taken into account. By contrast, the centrist Tax Policy Center estimates the House plan would add 1 percent to GDP over 10 years and erase $2.5 trillion of revenue, even with positive macroeconomic feedback, due to higher federal debt interest. – Reuters (Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Leslie Adler)
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017 Page 9
BUSINESS
Honda to recall about 650,000 Odyssey minivans in U.S. New York, Dec 28, 2016 — Honda Motor Company said on Thursday it will recall nearly 650,000 Odyssey minivans in the United States covering 2011 to 2016 model years because second-row seats may not lock in the event of a crash. No injuries or crashes have been reported related to this issue, Honda’s U.S. division said. Two separate recalls will be conducted, Honda and U.S. safety regulators said. The largest involves 634,000 Odyssey minivans for model year 2011 to 2016, and a smaller one affects about 7,600 of the 2016 model year Odyssey minivans. Many fewer minivans will be recalled in Canada and Mexico, but Honda did not immediately have details on the number of vehicles involved.
In each of the recalls, the second row of seats may not lock in the event of a crash in certain conditions, U.S. regulators from the National Highway Traffic Administration and Honda said. Owners in the larger recall will be notified by letter in mid-February. The parts to fix this issue will not be available until the spring, Honda said. In the smaller recall, Honda said it will notify owners in late January.
Delta to cancel order for 18 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft Atlanta, Dec 28, 2016 — Delta Air Lines Inc announced that in agreement with Boeing Co that it would cancel an order for 18 787 Dreamliner aircraft, which it assumed as a part of its merger with Northwest Airlines. The order is valued at more than $4 billion at current list prices. Delta, in its statement, did not disclose specific terms of the agreement. The airline, which acquired Northwest in 2008 for $2.6 billion in shares, said it would continue to take delivery of 737-900ER aircraft through 2019. Delta declined to comment beyond its statement. The cancellation comes as Delta and other top U.S. airlines seek to slow flight capacity growth and in some instances shrink existing service in response to falling airfares.
Airlines like Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA from outside the United States are adding flights that Delta says have exceeded passenger demand and hurt unit revenue. Delta has 25 wide body aircraft from Airbus Group SE, the A350, already slated for delivery that will add to its flight capacity this decade. Delta said earlier this year that it would defer the delivery of four A350s by a year or two from 2018 to make the schedule “more consistent with (the) expected pace of international market improvement.” – Reuters
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
LIFESTYLE
China’s Sichuan cannot get enough spicy marinated rabbit heads Chengdu, Dec 28, 2016 — Chinese diners greedily crack open delicate rabbit skulls and slurp down their contents, tucking into a delicacy so popular in one province that it has to import its supplies from France. Sichuan is renowned for its spicy, peppery local dishes: one of its favorites are bunny brains, often eaten as a late night treat on the streets of its capital, Chengdu. At the “Shuangliu Laoma Tutou”, a well-known restaurant in the heart of the city, dozens of customers use their gloved hands to prise open the skulls covered in sauce, suck out the brain and nibble on the cheeks amid cries of satisfaction. “If Sichuanese people don’t eat spicy dishes every day, they’re unhappy,” said one 20-something woman surnamed Ma, as she dined with friends.
The dish is a speciality of the region — rarely found outside of a few popular restaurants in Beijing and other major cities.
young people rather than thought of as a delicacy, although in Sichuanese dialect eating rabbit head is slang for French kissing.
“Two out of three rabbit heads consumed in China, are eaten in Sichuan,” said Wang Min, the manager of the Chengdu restaurant, adding that locals were proud of the snack.
Although sucking on a rabbit head might seem odd to some diners even in China, it is par for the course in Sichuanese cuisine, Fuchsia Dunlop, said a London-based expert in Chinese gastronomy.
“My parents and grandparents ate them. I’ve been enjoying them since my childhood”, she said, adding the tradition goes back several centuries. “My friends in Guangxi (a southern province) and elsewhere don’t understand why we eat them,” she said, adding “they can’t stand the pepper.” Grapple factor
“There are lots of spicy dishes, such as spicy duck heads, covered in chili and pepper,” she said.
are struggling to supply enough. As a result, nearly 20 per cent of rabbit heads marketed by the company are imported from Europe, mainly from Italy and France, and mostly frozen. France exported 166 tonnes of meat and edible offal from rabbits to China in 2014, according to French government figures.
For people in Sichuan, playing with your food is part of the fun, she said, adding they like “the grapple factor”.
Hage, who says the heads are healthy since they contain little flesh, has now agreed a partnership with French firm Hycole to provide breeding rabbits to its farms in China, according to the French company’s manager Fabien Coisne.
“Using your fingers and teeth to get a little bit of meat, it’s part of the pleasure.”
He hopes that the taste for the treat will one day expand beyond Sichuan, but, he admits, the barrier is high.
“I eat them at least once a week,” she added.
In Wang’s restaurant, head chef Yin Dingjun said the rabbit head recipe seemed simple but required a well-established technique.
Westerners often avoid animal parts — duck beaks, chicken feet, heads and tripe — that Chinese gourmets treat as delicacies.
“You have to drain the rabbits of their blood, then remove the guts” before marinating the head in a broth for several hours,” he said.
But even in China there is little appetite for rabbits’ meat, much less their heads, which are overwhelmingly eaten in Sichuan, a remote province long isolated by mountain ranges.
“Diners then use their teeth to gnaw at the flesh.”
“Night markets are part of our culture in Sichuan,” said Rong Lipeng, deputy chairman of Hage, China’s leading supplier of rabbit meat and products.
Rabbits feature in Chinese mythology (a “jade rabbit” lives on the moon) and are regarded as cute by many
He sells more than eight million rabbit heads each year. But faced with a colossal local demand Chinese farms
Quite terrifying As night falls in Chendgu, innumerable stalls sell rabbit heads to locals who wash the treat down with beer.
“A lot of people outside our province do not dare taste them, because the rabbit heads do look quite terrifying.”
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017
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ENTERTAINMENT
Legendary US cartoon artist Tyrus Wong dies, aged 106 Washington, Jan 2, 2017 -- Legendary animation artist Tyrus Wong, whose evocative sketches were used to create Disney’s groundbreaking “Bambi” cartoon, has died at the age of 106, the company said. “Tyrus Wong had a gift for evoking incredible feeling in his art with simple, gestural composition,” said a statement released by the company, where he spent a brief few years before decamping to nearby rival Warner Brothers. “Though Tyrus worked at The Walt Disney Studios only three years, between 1938 and 1941, his influence on the artistic composition of the animated feature Bambi cannot be overstated,” Disney said. “Born in Canton, China in 1910, Wong and his father immigrated to America leaving behind his mother and sister, whom they never saw again,” according to an homage on Disney’s website. As a young child, Wong’s father nurtured his love of art by having him practice calligraphy and paint-
ing. Wong later attended the Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles (now the Otis College of Art and Design) on a full scholarship. He took a position at Disney in 1938, an “inbetweener,” working on the visual continuity of animations and drawing hundreds of sketches of Mickey Mouse. When he heard that the studio was in pre-production on the feature film “Bambi,” he painted several pictures of a deer in a forest. The sketches captured the attention of Walt Disney and became the template for the film’s visual style, according to the Disney website, which said Wong’s work influences films to this day, inspiring and leading contemporary animators. After his stint at Disney, Wong worked for the next 26 years as a concept and story artist at Warner Brothers, until he retired in 1968.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Sherlock Holmes is match made in history That’s elementary, according to genealogy website Ancestry.com. Cumberbatch is distantly related to author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who created the brilliant but quirky sleuth some 130 years ago, the website said on Sunday. Cumberbatch, 40, star of the Emmy award-winning BBC TV series, “Sherlock,” is a 16th cousin, twice removed of Doyle. The two are related through 14th century English nobleman John of Gaunt, who, according to records, was Cumberbatch’s 17th great-grandfather and Conan Doyle’s 15th great-grandfather, Ancestry researchers said. John of Gaunt, born about 1340, was a son of England’s King Edward III, meaning that Cumberbatch and Conan Doyle also have a distant royal connection. “How rare that an actor in a major series has the chance to play a character created by a relative, especially one as iconic as Sherlock Holmes,” said Jennifer Utley, a family historian at Ancestry. “Sherlock,” a modern twist on the life and investigations of the 19th century London detective, first aired in 2010 and returns for its fourth series
on Sunday on both U.S. and British television. The show, in which Cumberbatch plays Holmes as a haughty, socially inept detective to Martin Freeman’s calm, practical Dr. John Watson, is the most popular TV drama in Britain, according to ratings data, and has been sold to 180 other countries. Conan Doyle published the first of about 60 Sherlock Holmes stories in 1887. The eccentric, violin-playing character has since become one of the best-known fictional detectives in the world and the inspiration for hundreds of movies, stage plays, books and TV shows. Ancestry said its researchers looked at everything from church records, censuses, land deeds, newspaper announcements and tombstones to establish the link between Cumberbatch and Conan Doyle.
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January 1-15, 2017
Georgia Asian Times
FASHION
Was 2016 the year of the Muslim fashion breakthrough?
Adidas reveals new 2017 Australian Open Collection Melbourne, Jan 2, 2017 — Ahead of the Australian Open 2017 later this month, adidas has unveiled its latest collections for the event. Including new launches for both men and women as well as a new line from adidas by Stella McCartney Barricade SS17, the new performance wear has been both inspired by and designed for Melbourne’s challenging playing conditions to boost both style and performance on court. The latest Barricade collection has been reimagined for the new season with updated design details and a fresh colour palette of white and orange, while the vibrant Melbourne line has been inspired by the blue of the city’s ocean, with flashes of bright orange to reflect the summer sun and city heat. adidas by Stella McCartney Barricade SS17 has also unveiled its collection for the event, combining its own colour palette of bold blues with the collection’s signature feminine style in a range of classic shapes with a modern twist.
In addition to striking design the new collections of course employ adidas technology to help combat the heat, which provides difficult conditions for even the best players. A combination of mesh cut-out details, super lightweight fabrics, ClimaLite materials and Climacool technology help wick away and quickly evaporate sweat and regulate body temperature to maximise comfort, breathability and performance at the Grand Slam. The new collections will be seen on the court during the event, which takes place January 16-29, with players Angelique Kerber, Dominic Thiem, Sascha Zverev, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga set to wear the Melbourne and Barricade collections on court, while Garbiñe Muguruza and Caroline Wozniacki will debut the new adidas by Stella McCartney Barricade range. The 2017 adidas Australian Open Melbourne and Barricade collections are available online now at http:// www.adidas.com/tennis.
From France’s burkini furore to New York Fashion Week’s first-ever show featuring a hijab as part of every look, Muslim fashion has captured Western headlines this year, as modest fashion becomes arguably more mainstream than ever in many parts of Europe and North America. Last weekend, 19-year-old Halima Aden caught the fashion world’s attention when she became the first Miss Minnesota USA competitor to sport a hijab and a burkini during the pageant. The Somali-American teenager opted to stay covered for the competition’s swimsuit category and kept her hair under wraps for all other rounds of the event, with the support of its organizers, reported local news channel Kare 11. This week she took to Instagram to celebrate the milestone, with a message that included the statement: “Beauty isn’t a one size fits all. We need to celebrate everyone and welcome those who are different than us.” Aden isn’t the first woman to push this particular boundary — and it looks like the fashion industry might finally be taking note. Following the widespread outrage following some French cities’ creation of a short-lived ‘burkini ban’ this summer, 2016 has seen several proactive ‘modest fashion’ moments.
Indonesian designer Anniesa Hasibuan set the tone in September when her New York Fashion Week Spring/ Summer 2017 catwalk show hit the headlines for exclusively featuring hijab-clad models, dressed elegantly in trousers, tunics and long-sleeved dresses. Then in November, Muslim beauty blogger Nura Afia was unveiled as the star of cosmetic giant CoverGirl’s latest commercial. The YouTube sensation was recruited by the makeup brand, which has developed a reputation for championing diversity via its models and ambassadors, to front the campaign for its new ‘So Lashy! BlastPro’ mascara, which launched on November 1. “I’m so excited to be a part of CoverGirl’s new campaign,” Afia said at the time. “It feels so surreal. Honestly, growing up and being insecure about wearing the hijab I never thought I would see Muslim women represented on such a large scale.” The strongest message came at the very beginning of 2016, in January, when Dolce & Gabbana announced plans to launch its ‘Abaya Collection’. Aimed at clients in the Middle East, the collection featured the Italian house’s signature bold prints, alongside lace-trimmed hemlines and a dash of jeweled embellishment, ensuring that the lightweight pieces radiate glamour while remaining conservative in structure.
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017
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SPORTS
NBA stars LeBron, Harden, Westbrook shine in triumphant efforts WASHINGTON, Jan 1 — Houston’s James Harden scored a career-high 53 points, Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook achieved a first-half triple double and LeBron James sparked an injury-hit Cleveland squad in triumphant NBA efforts yesterday.
Four-time NBA Most Valuable Player James scored 32 points, 17 in the first quarter, and had nine assists while Kevin Love added 28 points and 10 rebounds to spark the defending NBA champion Cavaliers over host Charlotte 121-109.
Westbrook, the NBA’s top scorer with 31.3 points a game, needed only 19 minutes to reach double figures and finished with 17 points, 14 assists and 12 rebounds in the Thunder’s 114-88 home victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Westbrook, the only NBA player since 1997 to manage a first-half triple double, scored 11 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and passed off 12 assists to spark Oklahoma City to a 69-40 halftime advantage.
Harden, Westbrook’s former Thunder teammate, had a triple double of his own with 17 assists — matching his career best — and 16 rebounds in powering the host Rockets over New York 129-122.
But Westbrook’s 16th triple double of the season fell short of the NBA’s fastest-ever triple double, achieved in only 17 minutes by Syracuse’s Jim Tucker in 1955. At Charlotte, Jordan McRae scored 20 points in only his second career
start to ease the load on James as Cleveland was missing guard Kyrie Irving due to a tight right hamstring and reserve forward Mike Dunleavy with an ankle injury. Kemba Walker led Charlotte with 37 points. At Houston, Brandon Jennings led the Knicks with 32 points while New York star Carmelo Anthony scored only seven points before leaving the game with a sore left knee. Greek star Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 35 points, Jabari Parker added 27 and Malcolm Brogdon contributed 15 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds for Milwaukee in the Bucks’ 116-96 victory at Chicago. Jimmy Butler scored 26 points in a losing cause. French big man Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 13 rebounds while Gordon Hayward added 18 points to spark host Utah over Phoenix 91-86.
Mike Conley scored 22 points in his return after missing two games with a toe injury and the visiting Memphis Grizzlies ripped Sacramento 112-98 despite losing Spanish center Marc Gasol with a left ankle sprain three minutes into the second half. The Grizzlies netted a club-record 17 3-pointers, 11 of them in the third quarter, in improving to 22-14. They made six 3-pointers in a row and 7-of-8 over a 4:30 span that saw them open a 22-point advantage. “When we’re shooting like we were today, we’re a very tough team,” Conley said. “The ball was shared so much that guys got a lot of open looks.”
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
SPORTS Mourinho salutes Old Trafford faithful Manchester, Jan 1, 2017 — Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho saluted the Old Trafford crowd and said they swept his side to a dramatic 2-1 victory over Middlesbrough.
Klopp lauds Liverpool’s ‘wonderful’ Wijnaldum Liverpool, Jan 1, 2017 — Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp hailed Georginio Wijnaldum’s “wonderful” goal after the Dutch midfielder’s early header earned his team a 1-0 win over Manchester City yesterday. Wijnaldum met Adam Lallana’s cross with a bullet header in the eighth minute at Anfield to cut Chelsea’s lead back to six points and give Liverpool a four-point advantage over third-place City. “It was difficult. We couldn’t create too many chances. We defended really well. It was a wonderful goal,” Klopp said. “The quality of Man City, the situation — when you invest so much in a game like this, at the end you want to have it all. Thank God we got it because we play again on Monday (at Sunderland). “We probably had the bigger chances. The second half, our biggest problems were when we gave the ball away. I don’t know of any real chances for them.” Liverpool leftback James Milner conceded his side had not been at their fluent best, but drew encouragement from the way they dug in. “Arguably it’s one of the worst performances for how we want to play.
But it was a gutsy performance,” he told BT Sport. “We had to grind out the result. You can’t always win games the way you want. It’s a massive victory. There’s a long way to go, but it’s pleasing to be up there.” City have now been beaten four times in the league this season and although they improved in the second half, they never seriously looked like forcing their way back into the match. “We started really good. The first chance they have, they score, so it was always difficult,” City manager Pep Guardiola told the BBC. “First half we didn’t create much, second half we were a little better. It is what it is. There were not too many clear chances. In these kind of games, the little details make the difference. “We have to focus on the next game, not on the target or the Premier League. Now it is Burnley (on Monday). Now we start the second road and see what can happen.”
Grant Leadbitter’s goal after 67 minutes gave Aitor Karanka’s unfancied visitors a surprise advantage until Anthony Martial swept home on 85 minutes and Paul Pogba won it 87 seconds later with a fine header. The late turnaround — reminiscent of the glory years of the watching Alex Ferguson on his 75th birthday — sealed United’s fifth consecutive Premier League victory and they are now unbeaten in 12 matches in all competitions.
the chance of equalling that record. “That stopped such an amazing player from being top scorer with Messi in 2016. It was quite frustrating and it was another big test for us and the players.” After the break United remained in complete control but Middlesbrough’s resilience was superb as they repelled constant United attacks, until Martial and Pogba produced the goods in an end that was extremely cruel on the visitors. “If the fans remember Sir Alex, not just for his birthday but for the performance we had, that is a great tribute,” Mourinho said.
A delighted Mourinho believes the atmosphere inside the “Theatre of Dreams” eventually made all the difference.
“I think the fans love the way we try and play football and they love the players’ attitude. It was a big victory for us, a big three points.”
“We managed to do something that is amazing, which is to bring the fans onto the pitch,” he said.
Karanka was Mourinho’s assistant for three years from 2010 at Real Madrid and the United manager spoke in his pre-match programme notes of his genuine affection for his Middlesbrough counterpart.
“I think we did that in the last 15 and 20 minutes. We played with 70,000 or 80,000. What was on the pitch was too much for a very good team. “I feel for my brother (Karanka) but not just him, I feel for their players because they gave it everything. But my players deserved it because they gave it everything.” United should have been out of sight by half time after dominating the first 45 minutes. They hit the post twice, courtesy of Pogba and Martial, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic also had a goal controversially ruled out. If Ibrahimovic’s goal had been allowed to stand he would have matched Lionel Messi’s 2016 tally of 51 strikes in the calendar year and Mourinho was upset that the 35-year-old was denied
Karanka feels the same back but, understandably, could not hide his disappointment at failing to hang on for what would have been a truly spectacular end to 2016. “The reaction is one you can imagine,” Karanka said. “I don’t like to lose but I told them that apart from the result, the performance once again against a top team was really good. “Again we competed against a top team. We will win games against teams around us. Once again we showed we are a consistent team and we had chances to score.”
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017
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HEALTH New study finds yoga beneficial in lowering blood pressure Researchers at the Sir Gangaram Hospital in Delhi, India, studied the impact of yoga on blood pressure in 60 patients with prehypertension but otherwise healthy. Prehypertension is defined as a slightly elevated blood pressure of between 120/80mmHg and 139/89mmHg, according to reference values from the World Health Organization. Patients with prehypertension can reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease, including strokes, by taking regular exercise. The researchers split participants into two groups of 30, with an average age of 56 and 52 respectively. The first group took part in yoga sessions for three months while the second group made lifestyle changes such as quitting smoking, exercising and paying attention to their diet.
The yoga sessions included stretching exercises, breathing control and meditation taught by an instructor for one hour per day for the first month, then continued at home for the next two months. Blood pressure was initially 130/80 mmHg for participants in the yoga group and 127/80 mmHg for those in the control group. At the end of the study, blood pressure in the yoga group had dropped significantly by around 4.5 mmHg. No significant change in blood pressure was seen in the control group. “Although the reduction in blood pressure was modest, it could be clinically very meaningful because even a 2 mm Hg decrease in diastolic blood pressure has the potential to decrease the risk of coronary heart disease by 6% and the risk of stroke and transient
ischemic attack by 15%,” explains Dr. Ashutosh Angrish, a cardiologist at Sir Gangaram Hospital in Delhi, India, and author of the study. The researchers suggest that yoga could reduce sympathetic drive and reset baroreceptors, found in the layer of elastic tissue in blood vessels, serving to regulate blood pressure. Cutting the risk of obesity, high blood pressure and cholesterol A previous study of 3,000 people published in 2013 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology concluded that yoga could be as beneficial as jogging or brisk walking when it comes to cutting the risk of heart disease. Practicing yoga was associated with a lower risk of obesity, and reduced blood pressure and cholesterol.
A 2011 study from the University of Kansas, USA, also found yoga beneficial in heart-related conditions. Patients suffering from the heart rhythm disorder atrial fibrillation saw the number of episodes of irregular heartbeats halved after three months of practicing yoga, compared with participants engaging in other forms of exercise. The 68th Annual Congress of the Cardiological Society of India runs December 8 to 11, 2016, in Kochi, India.
Another reason not to smoke while pregnant Women who smoke during pregnancy may be more likely to have children with kidney damage than mothers who steer clear of cigarettes, a study suggests.
Shinzawa and colleagues examined data from urine tests from 44,595 children to look for elevated levels of protein in the urine, which can indicate impaired kidney function.
Smoking during pregnancy has long been linked to preterm and underweight babies and a wide range of birth defects. The current study offers fresh evidence that the kidneys are among the organs at risk for damage, said lead author Dr. Maki Shinzawa, a public health researcher at Kyoto University in Japan.
Data on maternal smoking was collected during women’s prenatal checkups, and researchers also had records from their children’s health checkups at four, nine, 18 and 36 months of age.
“Cigarette smoking releases nicotine and other harmful or potentially harmful substances, such as nitrogen oxide, polycarbonate, and carbon monoxide, some of which cross the placenta,” Shinzawa said by email. “Some of these trans-placental substances may affect fetal programming of the kidney during pregnancy.”
Overall, 79 percent of women said they never smoked and another 4 percent said they stopped smoking during pregnancy. About 17 percent of the mothers said they continued to smoke while they were pregnant. The absolute risk of kidney damage among the children was low. But compared with children born to nonsmoking mothers, kids whose mothers smoked while pregnant were 24 percent more likely to show signs of kidney damage in their urine tests by
age three. Urine tests showed elevated protein levels in 1.7 percent of children born to smokers, 1.6 percent of kids whose mothers were former smokers and 1.3 percent of children born to women who never smoked. Children exposed to second-hand smoke at home also appeared to have a higher risk of kidney damage than kids who didn’t live with smokers, but the difference wasn’t big enough to rule out the possibility that it was due to chance. One limitation of the study is its reliance on women to accurately report and recall how much they smoked before or during pregnancy, and a lack of lab tests to confirm smoke exposure, the authors note in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. Still, the findings add to evidence
linking smoking to kidney damage, a connection that some previous research has established for adult smokers and for children who inhale second-hand smoke, said Dr. Paul Fowler, director of the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University of Aberdeen in the UK. “Maternal smoking has been observed to lead to reduced kidney size in offspring, which is of concern since it is known that retarded kidney development contributes to (high blood pressure) and renal injury in adults,” Fowler, who wasn’t involved in the study, added by email. “This study highlights one more reason why women should not smoke during pregnancy and why children should be raised in cigarette-free households,” Fowler said. “It is not, in itself, an overwhelming reason, but rather one more nail in the coffin.”
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
Misc Asia India’s PM Modi defends cash ban, announces incentives
Japan pays funds for UNESCO after halt over Nanjing row with China Tokyo, Dec 23, 2016 — Japan has paid its annual contribution for UNESCO after withholding the funds over the U.N. heritage body’s decision to include documents on the 1937 Nanjing Massacre, its foreign minister said on Thursday, citing UNESCO reforms as the reason for the change of heart. The bitter legacy of Japan’s military aggression before and during World War Two still haunts ties between Japan and China more than 70 years after the end of the conflict. UNESCO last year had included a dossier on Nanjing submitted by Chinese organizations in the latest listing of its “Memory of the World” programme, which is intended to preserve important historical materials. Japan had said there were questions about the authenticity of the documents and called for improvements in the “fairness and transparency” of the Memory of the World programme so that it would not be used for political purposes. Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters that its payment of 3.85 billion yen ($32.7 million) had been made early this week. “I think there has been major progress in work on reforming the (selection) system,” he said, adding UNESCO helped promote friendship and mutual understanding among member nations.
Japanese media said Tokyo was worried that non-payment would hurt its global standing and weaken its clout in the U.N. body.
New Delhi, Dec 31, 2016 — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a slew of incentives to the poor, farmers, women and small businesses on Saturday in a special New Year’s address, and defended his shock decision to abolish high denomination bank notes. The withdrawal of 500 and 1,000 rupee bills on Nov. 8 caused widespread disruption and anger in a country where cash is dominant, and the televised speech was seen as an opportunity to offer financial relief to people suffering most.
China had said there was nothing wrong with the documents or the application process and criticized Japan’s withholding of funds. China says Japanese troops killed 300,000 people in the massacre. A post-war Allied tribunal put the death toll at about half that number and some Japanese conservatives say that accounts of the massacre are a fabrication or exaggerated. Sino-Japanese ties have also been frayed by territorial rows and mutual mistrust over China’s growing military assertiveness, as well as Japan’s bolder security stance. The Chinese dossier, covering the period from Dec. 13, 1937 to early 1938, includes court documents from the Allied tribunal and a separate Chinese military tribunal, as well as photographs said to be taken by the Japanese army and film taken by an American missionary. – Reuters (Reporting by Nobuhiro Kubo; Writing by Linda Sieg)
in 2014 on the back of promises to root out graft, said the authorities would continue to stamp it out. “Serious offences by bank and government officials have come to light. No one will be spared,” he said. The speech came weeks before the government is expected to announce its annual budget, probably some time in February, and ahead of a critical election in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh not long afterwards. Among measures announced on Saturday, Modi offered a 4 percent discount on interest rates for home loans for up to 900,000 rupees taken out in 2017 by middle class Indians. He also said the government would increase credit guarantees for small businesses and provided additional incentives for digital transactions.
Modi had pledged that conditions would improve by the end of the year, but Indians have had to line up outside banks for hours to deposit old money or withdraw limited amounts of new notes. Analysts have forecast that economic growth will be hit this quarter as a result. But Modi believes long term gains will outweigh the short term pain; his radical decision was aimed at banishing the shadow economy, boosting taxes, beating corruption and moving towards a cashless society. “In this fight against corruption and black money, it is clear that you would like to walk shoulder to shoulder with us (the government),” Modi said, speaking in Hindi. “For us in government, this is a blessing.” The prime minister, who swept to power
Some of the incentives appeared to be geared towards the huge rural population, a key constituency in Uttar Pradesh, including reducing interest on certain loans for agriculture. Modi did not say how the government would pay for the new measures, although his administration has sought to keep budget deficits under control. Members of the main opposition Congress party were quick to criticize the speech. One senior member, Prithviraj Chavan, said the address was vague and lacked accurate accounting details. “It was his day to present a report card and specifically disclose the benefits of ‘demonetization’, but clearly the entire drive has been a failure,” he said. – Reuters (Additional reporting by Suvashree Dey Choudhury; Writing by Rafael Nam; Editing by Mike Collett-White)
Georgia Asian Times January 1-15, 2017
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Misc Asia Movie-mad Indians challenged to rewrite sexist Bollywood songs Mumbai, Dec 30, 2016 — A women’s rights organization is asking movie-mad Indians to rewrite sexist Bollywood songs, the latest attempt in drawing attention to gender stereotyping and misogyny portrayed by the country’s influential film industry.
China passes law to boost traditional medicine Beijing, Dec 27, 2017 — China passed a law at its top legislature on Sunday demonstrating its intention to put greater emphasis on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in its healthcare system. The law, which will come into effect on July 1, 2017, will improve patient access to a wider range of healthcare. This ancient form of medicine has been somewhat neglected since the introduction of Western medicine under the Qing dynasty (1644-1912). Over 2,000 years old, Traditional Chinese Medicine covers five main areas: acupuncture, qigong (exercise), massage, plants and minerals, and dietary therapy. Unlike Western doctors, practitioners learn the techniques of TCM from a ‘master’ instead of studying the discipline at university. According to a white paper published by China’s State Council Information Office in December 2016, there are 3,966 TCM hospitals and 42,528 TCM clinics in China, employing around 452,000 practitioners. These hospitals and clinics undertake an average of 910 million consultations per year. Development of traditional medicine in hospitals The new law aims to protect and facilitate the development of TCM, requiring regional governments to set up TCM institutions in public-funded general hospitals and mother-andchild care centers.
In addition, practitioners will be able to take exams to obtain a licence allowing them to practice TCM in hospitals or clinics, or to work privately. Up until now, these practitioners could not qualify as doctors, as medical training prioritizes Western medicine and fluency in English. The new law also stipulates that TCM and Western medicine will be put on an equal footing, with better training of TCM practitioners and monitoring of the use of products containing pesticides.
Akshara Centre’s ‘Gaana (Song) Rewrite’ competition, launched earlier this month, invites people to change the lyrics to any Bollywood film song they find sexist. The group said it may then engage with the film industry to push for change. “In our gender awareness work, one of the issues that’s been raised repeatedly by young women is being harassed by men singing inappropriate Bollywood songs,” said Snehal Velkar, a coordinator at Akshara Centre in Mumbai, the Bollywood hub.
International exchanges and global cooperation to develop TCM are to be stepped up. In October 2015, Tu Youyou was the first Chinese person to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine, for her work on a traditional anti-malaria medicine. The award of this prestigious prize to a member of the Academy of Chinese Traditional Medical Sciences was met with some surprise. According to the World Health Organization, 103 member states approved the practice of acupuncture and moxibustion (a traditional therapy which consists of burning dried mugwort on particular points on the body), 29 have passed laws on traditional medicine, and 18 have included acupuncture and moxibustion in their medical insurance provisions.
In recent years, as violent crimes against women have made the headlines, women activists and some movie stars have taken Bollywood to task for its sexist themes and for glorifying violence against women. Nearly four out of five women in India have faced public harassment ranging from staring, insults and wolf-whistling to being followed, groped or raped, according to a recent survey by charity ActionAid UK. Well-known Hindi film songwriters including Javed Akhtar and Prasoon Joshi have criticized their peers for writing vulgar and irresponsible lyrics, while also blaming moviegoers who encourage such music. Earlier this year, activists urged the Tamil film industry to stop portraying stalking as cool, and instead see it as a crime that has resulted in violent deaths in southern Tamil Nadu state. The Indian government has brought in tougher penalties for gender crimes, including criminalizing stalking and voyeurism.
“Bollywood songs are great to sing and dance to, but when you pay attention, you realize that many of them objectify and demean women. This leads to normalizing sexual harassment and violence against women,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The Hindi film industry, also called Bollywood, is one of the world’s most prolific, churning out hundreds of movies every year. They are generally syrupy romances, family dramas or action movies peppered with elaborate song and dance routines. Many movies also have so-called item numbers or songs, which often have little to do with the subject of the film, and typically feature skimpily clad women.
Yet popular culture, including Bollywood, must be accountable for the enormous influence it wields and help ensure a more responsible portrayal of women, said Velkar, who is spreading word of the competition using hashtag #BollywoodCanChange. “We want to send a message to the industry that we can have popular music without it being sexist or humiliating to women,” Velkar said. — Thomson Reuters Foundation
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January 1-15, 2017 Georgia Asian Times
TRAVEL
of the island a visual and aural reminder of the power of the ocean.
Couples’ retreat: The ultimate escape for two in Maldives Singapore, Dec 29, 2016 — That water. It really does take your breath away. Any person who has visited the Maldives knows what I mean. The water of this island nation in the Indian Ocean comes in ever-shifting shades of blue, from aquamarine to cerulean to cobalt, and is so ridiculously clear that it seems like air somehow condensed into liquid. This magical, crystal-clear water that has a comforting, almost nourishing, quality to it is one of the main reasons the country is a top spot for couples in search of some romantic time alone. Although family-friendly vacations are becoming more popular these days, some resorts here prefer to maintain their status as exclusive couple getaways. For me, having been to the Maldives before and having experienced the classic island-resort set-up that has become de rigor across the country — little-dot islands, each home to a single resort scattered across the nation’s delectable waters — I was hoping for more on my next trip. This time, I wanted something a bit more diverse. So I chose the Anantara Dhigu resort, one of three sister-island properties right next to each other, accessible directly from Male International Airport by a 30-minute boat transfer. The first thing I noticed about Dhigu was its size. While I could still comfortably go around the whole
isle in less time than it takes to stroll across one-half of Bishan Park, it was big, relatively speaking. (Big enough, in fact, that some guests only used the resort’s complimentary bicycles to travel around.) The space is also central to one of the resort’s greatest assets — its land-based wildlife. My previous trips to the Maldives were memorable for the teeming underwater kingdom, but here on Dhigu we encountered lizards, geckos, hermit crabs, bats the size of adult eagles, and our favorite, the Maldivian water hen, or Dhivehi kanbili, to give it its local name. On Dhigu, the beach villas are strewn around the rim of the island — not visible from the water, thanks to the landscaping — and a finger of overwater villas, all renovated in December 2015, reach out from the north of the island, like an insect’s antenna. Quiet exclusivity Anantara Veli, another of the three resort islands, felt different from Dhigu. Accessible via a pontoon, or a small boat, that runs back and forth between Veli and Dhigu, Veli is aimed at couples — children are not allowed on Veli except for dinner, although adults staying on the other islands can visit freely. In terms of environment, it felt much more jungly, forested and primal, with waves that were stronger, the crashing surf on certain stretches
Veli definitely felt more intimate than Dhigu, no surprise given its target market, and it holds events primed for its typical guest. Every Thursday night, it hosts a cocktail event at its Orchid Garden for honeymooners; here on the fence of the orchid nursery, hundreds of little wooden hearts with wedding dates inscribed on them attest to the newly married couples that have come to the island. The Sundari Ayurvedic Spa, obviously specializing in Ayurvedic treatments, also exudes romance and privacy. Set behind a main gate, treatment rooms come with pretty painted doorways, helping to set the mood. We went for dinner at the resort’s restaurant, Baan Huraa, one evening. A large, open wooden pavilion with a soaring roof, the restaurant has Thai staff and chefs, and food that tastes as good as any I have had on any of my visits to Bangkok (or Golden Mile Complex!). The meal started with the traditional Thai snack, miang kham, that each diner prepared for themselves, wrapping diced shallots, ginger, sliced red chilli, lime, shredded coconut, roasted groundnuts, and a fragrant sauce made of lemongrass, ginger, coconut and palm sugar, in a betel leaf. It was an interesting and tasty experience. Separately, Naladhu Maldives, the third of the trio of island resorts here, has its own door on a walkway that remains locked and off-limits, except to guests staying on the island (they have a key) or people with prior appointments, like me. The resort manager of the island, a lively German woman, showed me round. Naladhu has 13 ocean houses, six beach houses, and one two-bedroom residence, each attended by a housemaster and houseboy (think personal butlers).
Nature loving Back on Dhigu, our base, there is plenty to do during the day. The water sports centre Aquafanatics is exhaustive: In addition to kayaking, scuba diving, stand-up paddle boarding, windsurfing, water-skiing, jet-skiing (some with the jet pack option), and seabobs, it opened the first PADI-certified free diving centre in the Maldives in May this year. The resort is embarking on a coral regeneration program, with ropes strung underwater and tables in the ocean used as structures for coral to attach itself. Fans of coral and sea life can see both at Gulifushi, a tiny islet just north of Dhigu’s overwater villas that is part of the resort. Gulifushi has a small restaurant that serves lunch and a swimming pool that is partially open to the sea on one side, making it a mini aquarium of sorts — it is great for snorkeling even if the sea is choppy, its walls acting as protection against any swells. It was there that we spotted scores of fish feeding off coral that had attached to the pool walls. Like the pool at Gulifushi, the best moments here were those tied to nature. While waiting at the dock on Naladhu for the pontoon, I experienced the thrilling sight of flying fish zip through the air just meters in front of me. I won’t forget the sea life swimming underneath as I sat on the walkway between Veli and Naladhu. One evening. as the sun began its quick trajectory down toward the horizon, it decided to hide behind some clouds. The sky became a canvas of pink slashes which, come to think of it, were much more impressive and unusual than the predictability of the sun sinking behind the sea. It was, for all of us, another reminder of the indelible beauty of the Maldives. — TODAY