Issue 7: January 2019

SOAS SPIRIT

30 JANUARY 2019

FREE

YOUR INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER

HUMANS OF SOAS:

LIBRARY STAFF

p12

OPINION: R. KELLY

p19

ISSUE 7

SPORT: VARSITY 2019

p26

Credit: Khadija Kothia & Peter Smith

SOAS Library Hit By Cuts

Syraat Al Mustaqeem, BA English

SOAS Library is facing major cuts following news of the university’s financial crisis.

A statement released in December 2018

by SOAS Director, Baroness Valerie Amos, revealed that the university was facing a £7.1 million deficit. In an attempt to tackle this deficit, SOAS Management has revealed plans to restructure the university’s services, with the library facing cuts between £650,000–£675,000. Paula Sanderson, Registrar and Secretary of SOAS, also released a statement outlining the proposed ‘improvements’ for the SOAS Library.

The Library cuts will primarily affect full-time equivalent (FTE) staff. Of 55 FTE roles, 13 positions are to be “disestablished”, according to the Library Change Manager. If

management maintains its policy of avoiding non-voluntary redundancies, this will inevitably necessitate a number of roles being

“SOAS Management has revealed plans to restructure the university’s services, with the library facing cuts between £650,000675,000.” reduced in hours, with accompanying pay cuts. These reduced hours or possible redundancies will make the aims in Sanderson’s

statement increasingly difficult to achieve, the Library team argue. The larger dispute lies in the unbalanced focus during restructuring on the SOAS Library and its staff.

After the restructuring, only regional experts will remain in the library. In the current library structure, there is a separation of roles between regional and subject specialists. Current staff in roles that are at least a 70% match to the proposed, new roles will then be offered those positions.

Alternatively, speculation is that staff may be asked to reapply to assess their aptitude for the new roles. Some of the staff have worked in SOAS for decades. This, however, offers no guarantees in the upheaval caused in the system. Subjects whose corresponding positions will no longer exist in management’s plans for the future include: Anthropology,

Ancient Near East, Art History, Development Studies, Economics, Finance, Gender Studies, History, Jewish studies, Linguistics, Literature, Management, Migration, Politics, Religion, and Sociology.

Renaming of the new structural components has also caused confusion among students and faculty facing these changes.

Continued on page 3

15 Questions with Director Amos Inside (on pages 11-12)

30 JANUARY 2019

Contents

Letter from the Editor

News

Possibility of Strike Action Due to OPS Program

p4

Student Takes SU to Court

p5

Are We Heading Towards A No-Deal Brexit?

p6

Features 15 Questions with Direct Amos

p11-12

Humans of SOAS: Library Staff

p13

Postcards to SOAS: Japan

p16

Opinion p18 Women in Congress: Is 2019 the Year of Breaking all Glass Ceilings?

R. Kelly: Separating the Art from the Artist

p19

Culture Best Films of 2018

p22

SOAS Student Street Style

p24

Dear Spirit readers, This is the third issue of the academic year, and possibly also our penultimate. I almost cannot believe how fast time has flown, but as always, we are extremely excited to bring to you yet another jam-packed Issue.

Since the last time I wrote this note, a lot has happened on campus. For starters, we are now in second semester, as the financial struggles we revealed in Issue Six have become a topic of much conversation on campus.

Our Front Page features the unfolding story, as we place the spotlight on the library and break down all the statistics, complications, and implications of SOAS’ financial crisis. Our Humans of SOAS continuing series also features interviews with several library staff amidst the library restructuring program. To read what they have to say, check out their stories on Page 13.

As always, we have five brilliant and diverse sections for you to sieve through. There is News, which is broken down into campus news, national news, and international. We have our Features section, Opinion, Culture,

Sport: Varsity 2019

Khadija Kothia • Managing Editor • 637933@soas.ac.uk Arooj Sultan • Co-Editor-in-Chief • 611281@soas.ac.uk Uswa Ahmed • Co-Editor-in-Chief • 638268@soas.ac.uk

p26 p26

Khadija Kothia.

Managing Editor of The SOAS Spirit.

Your SOAS Spirit Team

Societies & Sport Society: SoAskMeOut Does Valentines Day

and Societies and Sport. The response to last year’s Varsity story was the somewhat sad response of, “but what exactly is varsity?” So this year, we have attempted to break it down into basics. Varsity will be a word you will be hearing a lot aboutin the upcoming months, so have a quick read on Page 26.

For this Issue, I had the privilege of interviewing the SOAS Director, Baroness Amos, for The Soas Spirit.

Amidst the financial crisis, reviews into the future of Higher Education funding and unclear waters amongst the student body and management, I thought it would be the perfect time to sit down with the Director and answer some of your questions. The questions range between student submissions, compilations of the most pressing issues at SOAS, and a few personal questions to unravel the Director herself. Have a read of ‘15 Questions For Valerie’ on Pages 11-12.

Once again, a reminder that The Soas Spirit community extends beyond this printed newspaper. A few weeks ago, the Co-Editor-in-Chief ’s and I recorded our first podcast, where we went behind the scenes into the production of The Spirit. We will also be recording a post-release podcast this week, as a few writers will sit down and discuss the process of reporting and recording the financial crisis and restructuring news as it broke on campus. Mixing different mediums is a great way to expand The Spirit’s presence and also provide more platforms to have more in-depth discussions and opportunities. Check out SOAS Radio’s website and Facebook page to have a listen.

As always, your support is continuously appreciated, and is vital for the compilation of every Issue we produce. A big thank you to everyone who sent in their stories and attended our meetings. We hope to see you for the next issue where we anticipate many more stories to report and publish.

Arooj Sultan Co-Editor-in-Chief

Jude Omidiran • News Editor • 640661@soas.ac.uk Frances Everett • News Editor • 646889@soas.ac.uk Ludovica Longo • News Editor • 639997@soas.ac.uk Syraat Butt • Features Editor • 648141@soas.ac.uk Fisayo Eniolorunda • Features Editor • 657593@soas.ac.uk Hana Qureshi • Opinion Editor • 647808@soas.ac.uk Sumayyah Daisy Lane • Culture Editor • 637349@soas.ac.uk Holly Sampson • Societies and Sports Editor • 638061@soas.ac.uk Filip Kostanecki • Copy-Editor • 652972@soas.ac.uk Indigo Eve Lilburn-Quick • Copy-Editor • 640261@soas.ac.uk Alexandra Bate • Copy-Editor • 628256@soas.ac.uk Swareena Gurung • Copy-Editor • 666887@soas.ac.uk Peter Smith • Senior Layout Editor • 629625@soas.ac.uk Anna Pax, Sarah Andree, Uswa Ahmed, Khadija Kothia, Ali Mitib • Junior Layout Editors

Uswa Ahmed Co-Editor-in-Chief

2

Swareena Gurung • Online Editor • 666887@soas.ac.uk Sumayyah Daisy Lane • Social Media Co-ordinator • 637349@soas.ac.uk Zahraa Choudhury • Marketing Co-ordinator • 638600@soas.ac.uk

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

30 JANUARY 2019 https://soasspirit.co.uk/category/news/ News editors: Jude Omidiran, Frances Everett , Ludovica Longo

SOAS News The purpose of such name changes is unclear. These changes include the change of “Schools” to “Departments”, the renaming of some departments (see: Humans Resources to Head of People) and the aforementioned role changes. Sanderson stated, a “...one-stop-shop service at Library reception” and “…direct face-to-face access to librarians” are offered as part of the new structure. These services already exist at the Library in the form of the Enquiries Desk, Subject Librarians and specialist E-Services staff. Critics claim that cuts in staff will adversely affect the efficiency of these systems by reducing them to a single service. Additionally, the specialised significance of SOAS as a National Research

News

Continued from page 1 Library will deteriorate and could cost the government funds exceeding £670,000.

Director of Librarian Services, Oliver Urquhart Irvine says “Structures only exist to provide the services required, so we’ve got to make sure the structure does that”.

Last year departmental structure changed from the previous format of three large departments to 11 smaller ones. This rearrangement in the structure led to new highly paid (Grade 10) roles being added. In an open letter the SOAS Library staff claim to have gotten no answers as to “why they had added a redundant Grade 10 role to the new structure”. As the new OPS restructure is implemented this year, many members of

faculty remain opposed to the changes. They claim that this overall process, including last year’s changes, has reflected a disregard for lower grade and part-time staff, whilst securing the roles of management. Addressing staff, Irvine states, “We wish to foster a culture that is ultimately collaborative and open to continuous improvement”.

All students will be largely disadvantaged by the lack of specialists to help with their education, Library staff argue. This is in contrast to claims of there being a focus on the well-being of all students, because the plans, as they stand, will have a larger impact on some students more than others.

Masters students especially will be affected

by the decrease in specialist support by the time they begin their dissertations, in June or July 2019.

SOAS management has organised the consultations over the Christmas period, perhaps hoping to avoid protests. However, the transition has not been smooth. SOAS staff and students have already held a protest and a walkout to voice their unhappiness.

On 16 January, a night-time “sleepover” occupation of SOAS Library was held by fifty students. Occupiers laid out sleeping bags and refused to leave after closing time in solidarity with staff. Students said, “We need to ensure that SOAS doesn’t sacrifice the jewel in its crown: the library”.

SOAS Alumni rally against library cuts

Disclaimer: The SOAS Spirit believes in providing the SOAS community with a platform to voice their thoughts, and given the depth of concern surrounding the library restructuring we at The Spirit are compelled to accurately reflect the sentiment of the SOAS body. To that end we have elected to run this letter. However, this letter is not indicative of the newspaper opting for any particular stance. The Spirit must remain as a neutral conduit for the SOAS community to interact with.

Baroness Valerie Amos SOAS University of London Thornhaugh Street London WC1H 0XG

Tom King (Co-President Welfare and Campaigns, 2015-16) David East (Co-President Democracy and Education, 2013-14) Hannah Slydel (Co-President Democracy and Education, 2015-16)

Dear Valerie, Georgie Robertson (Co-President Welfare and Campaigns 2014-15) We write as concerned alumni, former Co-Presidents and trustees to express our outrage and opposition to the planned cuts to SOAS’ library. The loss of a quarter of the library’s current staff would clearly have a devastating impact on the service available to students, staff and visiting researchers. We are particularly appalled that staff have been informed that their jobs are at risk just weeks before the Winter break and are required to respond to a consultation about their future over this period.

The proposed cuts would have disastrous consequences across all areas of the library operations from daily student support to the long-term development of SOAS’ collection. Half of all Subject Librarians (including those supporting collections in Anthropology, Ancient Near East, Art History, Economics, Finance, Gender, History, Jewish studies, Linguistics, Literature, Management, Migration, Politics, Religion, and Sociology), as well as key posts in the Library’s Customer Services (including the entire evening/weekend team), Bibliographic Services (cataloguing staff ), Electronic Services, and Archives & Special Collections would be lost. This would fundamentally diminish the quality of a resource that is so treasured by the SOAS community.

It is particularly perverse that these cuts will fall exclusively on the five lowest paid grades, while the number of highly-paid managers will, in fact, increase. We also note that, in the most recently published figures, the highest paid individual at SOAS is paid a grossly excessive salary of £230,240. It is surely the case that reducing excessive management costs and the burden of highly paid individuals should be a priority over cutting frontline student services.

The library is a resource that is highly valued by the entire SOAS community. It is devastating that SOAS management have determined to make it the focus for deep cuts.

Students deserve a well resourced library, staffed by experienced and responsive professionals, not a moribund collection run by a skeleton staff, with a top-heavy management structure. It is inevitable that these cuts will be detrimental to students’ education and to SOAS’ ability to recruit at a time when it faces such dire financial circumstances. We insist that these proposals are abandoned and urge you to produce a balanced approach to resolving the School’s current financial difficulties.

We have copied this letter to the Board of Trustees.

Yours sincerely,

Harrison Lanigan-Coyte (Co-President Finance and Communications 2012-13) Keiko Ono (Co-President Sports and Societies 2012-13) Arianna Tassinari (Co-President Welfare and Education 2011-2012) Nisha Phillipps (Co-President Democracy and Education, 2017-18) David Leone Suber (Co-President Democracy and Education 2014-15) Kabir Joshi (Co-President Events and Activities 2014-15) Dimitri Cautain (Co-President Welfare and Campaigns 2017-18) Halimo Hussain (Co-President Equality and Liberation 2017-18) Ali Khan (Co-President Finance and Communications 2011-12) Mohamed-Zain Dada (Co-President Events and Activities 2015-16) Clare Solomon (Co-President Finance and Communications 2006-08) Milaad Rajai (Co-President Welfare and Education 2010-11) Ali Ahmed Habib (Co-President Democracy and Education 2016-17) Sebilio Uribe (Co-President Finance and Communications 2009-11) Jasper Kain (Co-President Sports and Societies 2010-11) Alex Fulton (Co-President Welfare and Education 2012-2013) Mehdi Baraka (Co-President Activities and Events 2017-18)

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

3

News

30 JANUARY 2019

SOAS Votes Against NSS Boycott Khadija Kothia, BA History Students have voted against a boycott of the National Student Survey (NSS), following a referendum held by the Students’ Union earlier this month. The results showed a 160 majority in favour of rejecting a boycott. The total vote count reached 529, with 332 students voting against the boycott, 172 for, and 25 abstentions. Voting was held on-campus and online between the 10th and 14th of January. Following this result, the SOAS Students’ Union will not be campaigning for a boycott of the NSS this year, though it will be up to individual final year undergraduate students to decide whether or not they will complete the survey.

The National Student Survey is a nation-wide questionnaire held for all final year undergraduates to fill in. It asks

Posters encouraging students to vote (Credit: Khadija Kothia)

for their opinion regarding several factors affecting their university experience, such as resources, student voice, and teaching standards. The survey is usually filled out during the second half of the academic year, and the results of this survey play an important part in affecting a university’s position on the league tables, which play a key role in the decision-making process for students applying for universities in the coming year.

In the 2016/17 academic year, the National Union of Students (NUS) led a nationwide campaign to boycott the NSS. The boycott was held in protest of the linkage of the NSS to the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), which would give universities with higher rankings the ability to increase their tuition fees and was protested by the NUS on the grounds that this would “accelerate the marketisation of our sector, entrench inequality and damage the UK’s academic reputation”. Following the nation-wide boycott, the TEF/NSS linkage was dropped, and the NUS boycott was ended. However, a 2017/18 SOAS Students’ Union UGM motion passed another motion to boycott the NSS, as a moral stand against the marketisation of higher education.

Despite this boycott, 52% of students still filled out the NSS, demonstrating that students on the whole felt differently to the UGM participants who passed the motion. The Students’ Union Co-Presidents stated this as the reason for holding the referendum, saying that all students should have a say in how the university officially boycotts, and not just those present at the UGM. This year, turnout reached 529, a much higher number than those present when the decision was previously made in a UGM. Information regarding the boycott was emailed by the

Students’ Union to all students, and posters were put up around the campus. An open debate was held on Thursday 10 January in the Senate House atrium, where the floor was open to students to voice their queries. Despite low attendance, questions were asked about the boycotts impacts, particularly with regard to the university’s worrying financial position. These answers were printed and passed around campus for students to read. However, there still remains a concern that the information was not explained well enough, with students taking to social media to vent their frustration. One student said, “I don’t get the NSS thing at all…

Sometimes I feel SU just expect us to go along with what they say without providing any information lol and frankly I am scared to ask at this point”.

The results of this year’s NSS survey will likely have an impact on SOAS’ financial situation. Last month, The SOAS Spirit revealed that the university was facing a deficit of £7.1 million, following a 40% fall in undergraduate intake over the past two years. The fall was seen, in part, to be the result of a drop in league tables, as the school has a dependency on tuition fees, which make up 72% of its income, with SOAS falling so far down that the university is no longer included in scholarship programmes awarded by some governments due to the declining position in league tables. Examples include scholarship schemes in Norway, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Russia. The decision to reject the boycott could have a long-term impact on the university’s league table position, as a higher number of students filling in the survey could possibly lead to an increase in SOAS’ league table position, potentially improving the university’s financial position.

SOAS Comedy Show Saga

Possibility of Strike Action Due to One Professional Services Restructuring

Jeiran Ganiyeva, BA Japanese and Korean Studies

International Relations

Comedian and ‘free-speech’ advocate Konstantin Kisin was one of a group of comedians invited to perform as part of a fundraiser organised by the UNICEF society at SOAS. However, he chose not to proceed with the event when asked to sign a behavioural agreement. The agreement asked the performers to agree to a set of guidelines that calls for sensitivity on a comprehensive list of topics ranging from racism to anti-atheism. The agreement went on to clarify: “It does not mean that these topics can not be discussed. But, it must be done in a respectful and non-abusive way”. As the UNICEF society outlined in a statement, “given that UNICEF is a children’s charity, we wanted to make sure it was an appropriate event for the cause”. Speaking to the Guardian, Kisin stated that it is the first time he has been asked to sign such an agreement. Kisin went on to argue that “comedians play with ideas and sometimes we stray over the line”. Kisin’s public disapproval of the contract led to a backlash against the society, by his supporters, on social media.

However, the UNICEF society insists the agreement was not meant to restrict freedom of speech, but rather called for a considerate, non-abusive approach to difficult topics.

Not to mention, many of the topics mentioned in the agreement were already covered under national hate speech legislation. As the UNICEF society further clarifies: “We would never impose that guests would have to agree to anything they do not believe in. We regret the misrepresentation of our aim”.

4

Soniya Nahata, BA Politics and During an informal meeting with the representatives of the Students’ Union, a member of the academic board agreed that there is potential for the resurgence of strikes at SOAS this year. The prospect of more strikes has already caused panic amongst some students, as the impact of last year’s pension strikes still resounds in SOAS. What are the causes of this year’s threatened strikes, and what is the likelihood that it will lead to new levels of disruption?

SOAS has recently undertaken a restructuring program for their One Professional Services, which began in 2017 in an attempt to “improve services and systems and allow for annual efficiency savings of £1 million by 2019-20”. The changes in the structure of the One Professional Services makes staff more vulnerable to compulsory redundancies, which can be triggered by members of staff being shown to be unneeded under certain criteria set by the university. As a result of this vulnerability, SOAS UNISON members

requested “that SOAS make a binding commitment that there will be no compulsory redundancies as a result of the One Professional Service Restructuring Program”. However, SOAS management has so far only stated that they have “no plans for compulsory redundancies”, which clearly fell short of the binding agreement that was requested.

The lack of a binding agreement has created panic amongst UNISON members, which resulted in a consultative ballot which asked the members that

“in the event that there are compulsory redundancies as a result of the One Professional Services restructuring program, would you be prepared to take industrial action in the form of strike action?” If the consultative ballot showed that there was widespread support for industrial action, then UNISON would form a formal ballot on the matter. However, the consultative ballot did not depict this level of support, meaning that the issue has been put aside for the time being.

Library Rally outside SOAS on 15 January (Credit: Khadija Kothia)

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

30 JANUARY 2019

Over 300 Academics and Public Figures Boycott Senate House in Support of Outsourced Workers Laura Wormington, Economics PGDip Over 300 academics, politicians, and public figures have so far pledged to boycott Senate House and the rest of University of London’s (UoL) central administration premises as part of an ongoing campaign for the university’s outsourced workers to be brought in-house.

Outsourcing refers to the practice in which a company pays an independent contractor to provide a service rather than hiring workers directly, as was the case with SOAS cleaners until they were brought in house in 2018 after a successful campaign. At the UoL, outsourced staff include cleaners, receptionists, security officers, catering staff, porters, audiovisual workers, gardeners, and maintenance workers.

Critics of outsourcing claim it allows management to dodge responsibility for the poor working conditions of outsourced staff on the basis of not being their direct employers. According to the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB), workers who are outsourced suffer on average worse terms and conditions in all aspects of employment compared to their directly-employed colleagues. This includes less sick pay, holiday pay, maternity pay, pensions, and more bullying, microaggressions, and harassment from management. In 2017, for example, the IWGB reportedly dealt with 54 complaints from outsourced workers at the UoL over issues including unlawful deduction of wages and discrimination.

The boycott, called for by the IWGB union that represents workers at UoL, is

the culmination of an ongoing dispute that began in summer of 2017. During this time, UoL management has ignored repeated industrial action by workers, some of whom have been on strike for up to fifteen days.

The union says the boycott will end when all workers are brought in-house on contractual parity with directly employed staff.

The UoL’s Justice for Workers campaign,

“The majority of the outsourced workforce at the University of London are low paid migrants. They deserve our solidarity in their struggle for equal terms and conditions.” which has staged disruptions of Senate House events in support of the workers, has described the two-tier employment system of in-house and outsourced staff as a form of ‘structural discrimination’. They point out that many of the outsourced workers are female migrants from Latin America, African countries and elsewhere, and that their complaints of sexist and racist abuse by managers have been repeatedly ignored by UoL. Last year, the UoL announced it would commit to bringing workers in-house in the near future, but later reported that cleaning staff would remain in their current contracts

until 2020, and catering until 2021, at which point in-house options would be presented alongside other commercial bids, leading to accusations that management had gone back on their word.

Outsourcing is commonly justified as being more time and cost efficient for employers who, for example, don’t have to spend their own resources on training up staff. But in June last year, the Guardian revealed that the UoL has spent £415,000 on hiring extra security during student protests in support of the campaign. Management have employed unusually heavy-handed tactics to deal with student protests and staff strikes, causing activists, workers, and union staff to question the ideology behind the university’s commitment to outsourcing. In recent weeks, the boycott has gained momentum, with notable signatories including

News

filmmaker Ken Loach, Guardian columnist Owen Jones, John McDonnell MP, as well as support from UCU branches around the country, including at SOAS. In December, singer-songwriter Billy Bragg joined the campaign and moved a sold out concert originally due to be held at the UoL to an alternative venue, saying “the majority of the outsourced workforce at the University of London are low paid migrants. They deserve our solidarity in their struggle for equal terms and conditions”.

Information on the boycott can be found at iwgb.org.uk/en/boycottsenatehouse. The SOAS community should note that while it includes attending and organising events at Senate House, it does not include the Paul Webley wing, and does not extend to the borrowing of books from Senate House library.

Senate House, part of the University of London campus that is being boycotted (Credit: Creative Commons)

Student takes SOAS SU to court over ‘discriminatory’ denial of services Monika Radojevic, MSc Development Studies A student, who identifies as a white male, complained that SOAS as an institution, “has held events and produced material which directly portrays whiteness and maleness as negative traits”.

A two-year legal dispute between the former student and the SOAS SU continues to simmer as he launches yet another case, this time appealing the County Court dismissal. The claimant, who has asked to remain anonymous, made a formal complaint to the SU in which he claimed he was the victim of discrimination due to not being allowed to attend the SOAS Women’s Network Caucus and the SOAS BME Caucus events in December 2016. The white male complained that SOAS, as an institution, “has held events and produced material which directly portrays whiteness and maleness as negative traits”, describing the experience as “profoundly humiliating and distressing to be refused service by my own students’

union on the basis of my race and gender”.

After not receiving a response from the sabbatical officers, the student formally complained twice more in January and May of 2017 about the events, taking the union to small claims court, claiming £6,000 for “discriminatory denial of services based on his race and gender”.

The claimant then discontinued this claim after taking advice from legal counsel.

Under the Equality Act of 2010, Exceptions for Charities allows for specialised circumstances where specific groups can be lawfully treated differently, which the SU assert applied to the Women’s Caucus and BME Caucus. However, he brought a new claim of denial of service, because at no point had he received a response from the SU regarding his three formal complaints. He alleged the SU’s lack of response or investigation was a discriminatory denial of service, based on his race and gender, and an overall prejudiced

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

attitude to white males by both SOAS and SU staff. He claimed £9,000 for hurt feelings (£3,000 per unanswered complaint), as well as legal costs, although the case was dismissed by the County Court.

“SOAS, as an institution, ‘has held events and produced material which directly portrays whiteness and maleness as negative traits’.”

The SU maintained a similar stance through the process. Peter Baran, the SU General Manager, responded that the SU had acted lawfully based on the positive action of “providing additional and bespoke services… to benefit a particular disadvantaged group”.

However, the SU did acknowledge and apologise to the claimant for not immediately following the correct response procedures, accepting they did not initially handle the complaint effectively, although they do not accept any wrongdoing or financial liability for any claims of unlawful discrimination.

Mr Baran added, “having spoken to the union officers running the events, the claimant did not attempt to attend either of these events and thus his claims for hurt feelings are somewhat insubstantial”.

The SOAS Spirit reached out to the student for his response to the story. The student said, “Individual SOAS SU officers are free to hold the opinion that white, male students don’t deserve representation or advocacy. They are not free to discriminate in an official capacity, as they discriminated against me. The court struck out my case due to an administrative error, not on the basis of evidence, and I am actively appealing”.

5

National News

30 JANUARY 2019

National News

Are we heading towards a no-deal Brexit?

Caroline Hilgers, BA International Relations and Social Anthropology After the historic vote on Theresa May’s withdrawal deal in the House of Commons on Tuesday evening, 15 January, the future of the UK and Brexit is more uncertain than ever. May’s devastating defeat of 432 votes against her deal was ironically celebrated by hard Brexiteers as well as Remainers. The Prime Minister subsequently faced a vote of

“Shortages in crucial products such as medicine as well as an exponential increase in tariffs on agricultural goods have already been predicted in such a scenario.” no confidence the next day, put forward by the leader of the opposition, Jeremy Corbyn.

Usually, after experiencing such a defeat, a resignation would be expected, yet May managed to survive the vote of no confidence and remains in office. The no confidence motion was defeated by 325 votes to 306. However, all this takes us no closer to understanding the direction or the nature of Brexit, which is due to happen on 29 March 2019.

What are the options at this point in time

and what are the risks for EU citizens living in the UK, British nationals living abroad, businesses, and tourism? For many the most dreaded outcome would be a no-deal Brexit, meaning the UK would leave the EU on 29 March without a transition period. This would have tremendous consequences, turning the UK’s borders into hard borders overnight. The border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is what has made the negotiations around Brexit so heated and would be the riskiest aspect of a no-deal Brexit. The Good Friday agreement, which currently ensures a smooth passing of people and goods between the Irish border would be endangered by a hard Brexit. Furthermore, international borders between crucial trading routes with countries such as France and the Netherlands would be marked by chaos in the case of a no-deal Brexit. In preparation for such an event, the Department for Transport issued a practice run to estimate any delays that could be caused. Recently, 89 lorries were sent from Manston Airport in Kent to the important trading harbour Dover to simulate the 4,000 trucks that pass through daily. This test run was deemed unrealistic in a case of an actual hard Brexit, as Richard Burnett, chief executive of the Road Haulage Association claims. The large number of lorries passing through to Calais would have to endure custom checks, delaying their journey by approximately 3 hours. Shortages in crucial products such as medicine as well as

an exponential increase in tariffs on agricultural goods have already been predicted in such a scenario.

However, all of this is not set in stone in any way and even experts are divided in terms of their predictions of what is next to come. Some claim a no-deal Brexit is highly unlikely, while others claim it seems like the only solution at this point. The alternatives to a no-deal Brexit all leave multiple endings in sight. Jeremy Corbyn seems to be hoping for another general election, whilst other Labour MPs are pushing for an extension of Article 50 or a second referendum. With a matter of days to spare until the UK is supposed to leave the EU, May is still scrambling

to find an alternative deal as she insists that there will be no extension of Article 50. It is unclear at the moment how an exit on 29 March will be possible, as the EU maintains that major amendments to May’s deal are off limits. Donald Tusk, president of the EU Council, says that an extension of Article 50 or no Brexit are the only feasible options: “If a deal is impossible, and no one wants no deal, then who will finally have the courage to say what the only positive solution is?”

It seems there will be another few weeks of political turbulence waiting for a breakthrough to occur.

Brexit is a monstrosity float in Manchester (Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Irish Passports Applications Skyrocket Ahead of Brexit Kitty Walsh, BA History and World Philosophies Since Britain voted to leave the European Union in the summer of 2016, applications for Irish passports have skyrocketed. Prior to June’s referendum, the number of applications averaged approximately 46,000 in 2015, a figure that doubled to 81,000 in 2017 and is predicted to increase. One in five of the total number of applications received is from the UK. Though the effects of the Brexit deal will

Man holds his two passports for the UK and Ireland (Credit: RTE)

6

pertain to Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, the Republic of Ireland is an independent country and will remain within the EU when Britain leaves. An Irish passport allows one to retain EU membership and visa-free travel. To be eligible, one must either have been born in Ireland or have parents or grandparents who were Irish citizens.

Approximately 10% of the UK population (excluding Northern Ireland) are eligible for an Irish passport.The most likely cause of this sudden spike is the desire of many UK citizens to retain EU citizenship. Dozens of how-to articles on how to obtain an Irish passport have emerged since the referendum.

In one article, the Independent urged its readers to accept the high cost of a successful application as it is “a small price to pay” to receive all of the benefits of EU citizenship.

Some have welcomed the figures on the grounds that this marks a watershed moment in terms of Anglo-Irish relations that have

previously been coloured by their long, colonial history. The Republic of Ireland was under British rule until the War of Independence and the signing of the Anglo-Irish treaty in 1921. Northern Ireland, remaining a part of Britain, witnessed heavy politi-

“This marks a watershed moment in terms of Anglo-Irish relations.” cal warfare during the period known as the Troubles, which came to an end in 1998 with the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.

Neale Richmond, chairman of the Brexit committee, spoke to Sky News stating there is a “new wave of people reconnecting with their Irish heritage, our post-Brexit UK-Irish relations can be built on a strong, connected, diaspora”. Even Ian Paisley, the Northern Irish MP and Brexit supporter, urged his

Twitter followers the day after the vote to apply, saying “my advice is if you are entitled to a second passport then take one”.

The news of the figures was not unanimously well received, however. Amanda Coakley wrote for the Irish Times that “citizenship of my country should be more than a flag of convenience for the Brits,”, urging those seeking passports to base their decision on Irish cultural heritage rather than utility alone.

It is expected that the relationship between Britain and Ireland will continue to occupy the spotlight in 2019, with the debate hinging around the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Currently, the border is open and allows for free travel as established in the Good Friday Agreement. Brexiteers, however, are hard-pressed to find a way to preserve the open border while simultaneously instituting ‘hard’ borders between the UK and EU countries.

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

National News

30 JANUARY 2019

Rogue drones cause chaos at London airports Frances Everett, BA International Relations and Development Studies In late December the appearance of drones on London Gatwick Airport’s runways halted flights and caused disruption for tens of thousands of people.

The drones were spotted around 21:00 on 19 December and were flown around the airfield multiple times. The police are therefore describing the act as a purposeful attempt to cause disruption to flights.

Gatwick Airport grounded all flights due to fear of collisions with the drones.

“Some believe aliens to be behind all of this” It reopened almost 36 hours later on the Friday morning, although flights were again disrupted that evening for a brief period after a further drone sighting.

An industry figure commented that “the malicious intent is something that people were aware of, but I don’t think we thought

it would happen on that scale at this stage”.

A man and a woman were arrested in their Crawley home amid claims of suspicious sightings but were later released without charge.

More than 130,000 passengers were left stranded or delayed at London Gatwick as a result of the rogue drones, some even camping overnight in the hope that the airport would soon reopen. The army was called in to help with the chaos and Gatwick Airport offered a £50,000 reward to catch those responsible. A spokesperson for Gatwick stated that early estimates suggest a loss of revenue for the airport and airlines being up to £20 million as a result of the incident.

Further problems ensued even after the initial chaos, as Heathrow also grounded flights less than three weeks later after reported sightings of drones.

The situation has prompted many to ask why it is so easy to bring a whole airport to a halt with a drone, and how airports can protect themselves from these kinds of attacks. Drones were already banned from

flying within 1 kilometre of an airport, and this will soon be extended to 5 kilometres by the government. But this is not enough as drones are untraceable, widely available, and can realistically be flown anywhere.

Specialist equipment is required to protect runways from such drone attacks. Heathrow Airport was criticised for only buying anti-drone equipment after the Gatwick incident had already happened, suggesting an underestimation of the threat they pose.

Although they are set to install the Royal Air Force anti-drone system, this cannot stop the threat of small commercial drones which can’t be picked up by airport radars.

One European defence official has pointed out that the American military uses more than 20 different systems in order to counter battlefield drone strikes, commenting that “the reason they have so many is that not one works on its own”.

As for the culprits, there have been varying suggestions of who could have been behind the attack, and what their intentions may be. Some have suggested that it was an ‘eco-terrorist’ carrying out direct action against the aviation industry, as the Telegraph reported that the police were looking

into this lead, although no such groups have claimed responsibility for the drones.

Some believe aliens to be behind all of this, as YouTube user ‘Conspiracy Stoner’ captured footage of a UFO above Heathrow airport during the disruption which showed bright flashing lights: lights which are claimed by the website ‘UFO Sightings Daily’ to be too large to be a drone.

Regardless of who caused this particular chaos, the likelihood is that it will happen again. This means that the clock is ticking for government and the aviation industry to prepare airports for future malicious drone activity.

Flights at Gatwick were grounded for almost 36 hours (Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Financial crisis predicted for 2020 Frances Everett, BA International Relations and Development Studies Financial analysts are beginning to predict the next global financial crisis just ten years after the worst financial downturn in history.

According to the Bank of England, economic crisis is an inevitability, so financiers are keen to know when the next one should come about. The Bank also says that history shows us the next crisis will not be the same as the last. This is why strategists and analysts at the multinational investment bank JP Morgan have been trying to predict when, and how, the next crisis will arise.

The coming crisis is thought to be arriving

at some point next year, and will possibly lead to US stock sliding 20 per cent as well as a 35 per cent decrease in energy prices. It appears that emerging markets will fare the worst with a predicted 48 per cent slide in emerging-market stocks.

Marko Kolanovic, a strategist at JP morgan, predicted that the crisis could be sparked by ‘flash crashes’, which describes a situation in which stock is suddenly sold off by computerised trading systems. These ‘mechanical investors’ are programmed to sell stock based on certain signals. For

Analysts are attempting to predict the next crisis (Credit: Creative Commons)

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

example, if the market drops by 2 per cent then the stock will be sold. Kolanovic predicts this trend of mechanical investors means that the market is more prone to vola-

“There is concern that this time around such a bailout will not be possible in order to save these institutions deemed ‘too big to fail’.” tility, and that market declines can happen sharply and without warning.

This news comes only months after we saw the anniversary of the collapse of the investment bank Lehman Brothers, the spark that lit the flame of the 2008 global financial crisis which saw stock markets plunge all around the world.

Governments were able to cushion the blow to some extent in 2008. The US bailout of failing institutions, such as the multinational finance and insurance corporation AIG which cost around $150 billion for the American taxpayer, helped to diminish the painful consequences of the crash. However, there is concern that this time around such a bailout will not be possible in order to save these institutions deemed ‘too big to fail’. The reason for this is a lack of financial market

liquidity since 2008 which, according to JP Morgan analysts, would eliminate “a large pool of assets that would be standing ready to buy cheap public securities and backstop a market disruption.”. As a result, governments may not have the cash available to bail out these companies. This has been described as the liquidity ‘wildcard’ by JP Morgan strategists, as this is where the real uncertainty regarding the probable crisis lies.

There is also some uncertainty with regards to the length of the resulting recession: this will be dependent on how hard markets are hit as well as how far governments are prepared to intervene in an attempt to stabilise the economy.

Despite these uncertainties, experts claim that this crisis will not be as severe as the last. JP Morgan strategists wrote that, “Across assets, these projections look tame relative to what the GFC (global financial crisis) delivered and probably unalarming relative to the recession/crisis averages”.

The question remains as to how this coming crisis will affect regular people, rather than just how it will affect stocks and corporations. Falling incomes and unemployment affected millions after 2008. The curveball thrown by the liquidity issue means that it is impossible to predict the severity and length of the next crisis, and how harsh its impact may be. Although it is supposedly going to be less painful than the last, the winners and losers of the next crisis very much have yet to be decided.

7

International News

Exams Reform Boosts Private Schools Uswa Ahmed, BA World Philosophies Data released in parliamentary research into exams chosen by private schools for 15-16 years olds has revealed that secondary schools in the independent sector are still choosing to opt for the ‘less rigorous’ International GCSEs (IGCSEs) rather than the ‘more challenging’ GCSE’s taken by their counterparts in state schools.

In a climate where state schools are gradually being barred from enrolling their pupils into IGCSE exams, figures have disclosed that the number of schools opting for the ‘easier’ IGCSEs is significantly higher

in the independent sector. It was revealed that in the 2017-18 academic year, 91 per cent of IGCSE enrolments in core subjects including English and Maths were entries by independent schools. Therefore, a pupil in an independent school was 136 times more likely to sit an IGCSE than their counterpart in a state-funded school. This includes pupils at the prestigious £40,668-per year Eton College where students were entered for IGCSE exams in core subjects.

In light of these findings, private schools have been accused by critics including

“Figures have disclosed that the number of schools opting for the “easier” IGCSEs is significantly higher in the independent sector.”

Former Education Secretary Lucy Powell of

30 JANUARY 2019

“cheating the system to inflate their results”.

Ms. Powell stated: “If, as ministers say, these new GCSEs are the gold standard, why are private schools opting out? Private schools are cheating the system to inflate their results and give their pupils, who are already advantaged, a further boost.”. She went on to contend that while “state school pupils have been treated like guinea pigs”, “independent schools have gamed the system, insulating their institutions and their pupils against these changes, keeping the easier International GCSEs completely, or waiting for the new GCSEs to bed in before opting to enter their pupils on to these courses.”.

International News

Longest Government Shutdown in US History Holly Sampson, BA Middle Eastern Studies and World Philosophies The US Government Shutdown commenced on 22 December and is the longest government shutdown in US history. The shutdown began due to a disagreement between President Donald Trump and the Democrats, surrounding Trump’s call for $5.7 billion in taxpayer money to proceed with the construction of the border wall. Since then, there has been no movement from either side to indicate any upcoming resolution. A Government Shutdown is the cessation of all non-essential operations and services in Federal Agencies. This affects around 25 per cent of the government and has had a significant impact on 800,000 federal workers, with around 450,000 of these workers having

“450,000 federal agency employees have to continue working, without being paid, due to the nature of their job.”

to work without pay as they are unable to suspend their work or take up another job.

A government shutdown occurs in the US when Congress refuses to pass the bills

8

and resolutions that allow the continuing funding of federal government operations and agencies, or when the President refuses to sign bills or resolutions. The shutdown that the US is currently experiencing is due to the Democrats in Congress refusing to sign off on funding that Trump wants to build the border wall. Trump is demanding $5.7 billion in taxpayer money to proceed with construction, which the Democrats are standing firmly against. This stalemate means all non-essential federal agencies, such as NASA, are cut off from any funding until a resolution can be found. Whilst there have been some talks between Congress and the White House, a resolution does not seem to be fast approaching.

The impact of the government shutdown goes beyond the disagreement between Trump and the Democrats. 450,000 federal agency employees have to continue working, without being paid, due to the nature of their job. This includes air traffic controllers and Secret Service agents who have missed their first paycheck of the year. Whilst there have been some negotiations about the retrospective pay for this work that will be put in place once the government shutdown ends, those on worker contracts are not included in this. The government shutdown effects also spread more widely than employees themselves with around 80 government websites having their security compromised, food safety fears as the FDA is forced

Protestor in front of white house (Credit: Larry Downing)

to suspend all non-essential work and an increasing weakness in airport security due to an increase in officers claiming sick days as they go without pay and officers quitting their jobs. There are also indirect and longterm issues that arise from this government shutdown such as money generated from tourism dropping as more and more national parks are closed and landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty are no longer being cleaned and maintained with federal money. Efforts to do essential research in medicine and in natural disasters, such as hurricane season preparation, are being held back as they run out of money that is necessary to continue their efforts.

For the US government shutdown to end, an agreement between Congress and

the White House needs to be reached. Some members of the Congress are calling on the Senate to take up legislation to end the shutdown and allow the debate over the border wall when the government opens. However, Trump is also threatening to declare a national emergency. If he were to do this then he could build the wall without congressional approval. This is not without flaws for Trump as it would be a legal nightmare and could damage his political career beyond repair. As it stands currently, neither side seems willing to compromise and the US Government appears to be facing a continuing shutdown, with consequences becoming increasingly dire with each passing day.

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

International News

30 JANUARY 2019

#SaveRahaf: After a Twitter storm Saudi refugee resettled in Canada Arooj Sultan, BA Economics & Politics Rahaf Mohammed, the 18-year-old Saudi refugee who fled from her family, is now safely residing in Canada. The teenager made headlines earlier this month when, citing family violence, she fled to Thailand and barricaded herself in a hotel room whilst sending out appeals for help on Twitter.

Ms Mohammed, who has now dropped her family surname, Al-Qunun, alleged that her family had physically and psychologically abused her. She stated that she was being beaten by her family, and on one occasion locked in her bedroom for six months after she cut her hair short. She was on a trip with her family in Kuwait when she fled and flew out to Bangkok, from where she intended to take a connecting flight to Australia, in order to claim asylum there. However, upon reaching Thailand her passport was seized by a Saudi diplomat, and she was told by Thai immigration officers that she would be sent back to Kuwait. Ms Mohammed then barricaded herself in a hotel room at Bangkok airport and started tweeting out calls for help. She asserted that she would be killed if forced to return to her family, adding that

she had also renounced Islam — a crime that is punishable by death in Saudi Arabia. Her pleas for help gained traction on Twitter after Human Rights Watch, numerous activists, and journalists got involved, spawning the viral hashtag #SaveRahaf.

As the hashtag went viral and Ms Mohammed’s Twitter following grew, an

“She stated that she was being beaten by her family, and on one occasion locked in her bedroom for six months after she cut her hair short.”

increasing amount of international publicity and support came with it. Thai authorities, in a rare deviation from their usual policy regarding refugees, finally allowed Ms Mohammed to be released into the care of the UN Refugee agency: the UNCHR.

Thailand has a track record of generally refusing to recognise and take in refugees and asylum seekers, and also of often returning them to the countries where their lives are endangered. Though, following this saga Thailand’s new immigration chief has said that refugees will no longer be returned “involuntarily”. Rahaf Mohammed was subsequently granted asylum by the Canadian government, after being placed under the protection of the UNHCR. Ms Mohammed was then promptly relocated to Toronto and personally greeted by the Canadian Foreign Affairs minister, Chrystia Freeland, who welcomed her and highlighted that this was part of Canada’s broader policy of supporting women both in Canada and around the world. Ms Freeland and her ministry drew the ire of the Saudi government last August by calling for the release of several women’s rights activists who are currently in jail. Although the Saudi government has yet to officially comment on the Rahaf Mohammed case, the head of the Saudi-government funded National Society for Human Rights said he was “surprised by some countries’ incitement of some Saudi female delinquents to rebel against the values of their families”.

The Canadian government has come under criticism with regard to the Rahaf Mohammed case, as some columnists and online commentators are contrasting Canada’s treatment of Rahaf against its policy of blocking prospective refugees coming through the United States from other countries. Ms Mohammed has since given a media interview stating that her journey was “worth the risk” because Saudi women are “treated like objects”, and that she is safe, happy and looking forward to making her own decisions with regard to her future and education.

Gilets Jaunes and the battle for France’s economic future Arooj Sultan, BA Economics & Politics The Gilets Jaunes (Yellow Vest) anti-austerity and anti-government protestors marched for the 10th consecutive weekend, on 19 January.

An estimated 84,000 people demonstrated against the government. Government buildings were vandalised, rioting broke out at the tomb of Napoleon, and protestors hurled bottles and stones at police. The police responded in kind with more force by deploying tear gas, water cannons, and non-lethal rubber bullet guns. French police have been heavily criticised for their use of rubber bullets that left several protestors with

serious injuries.

The Yellow Vest Protestors are called so in reference to the yellow hi-visibility vests that all french drivers are required, by law, to carry in their vehicles. This grassroots, social media based movement first started in November 2018, as a reaction against rising fuel taxes. However, since then it has grown to become a wider protest against economic inequality and rising living costs. The driving force the movement is centred around is the feeling — especially among low-paid workers— that the economic divide in France is

Yellow Vest protest in Paris (Credit: Flickr)

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

worsening and President Macron’s government, with its liberal economic policies, is blind to the needs of the working class. The general perception of the protestors is that the current government is favouring the urban elite at the expense of the rural poor.

In effort to quell the protests, the president already announced government concessions worth £8.9 billion. The concessions include raising the national minimum wage, tax cuts for the less well off and repealing green taxes on fuel. Yet, the protests continue to persist.

These protests have tapped into the heart of citizen’s discontent with the system.

Poverty and inequality in France, without tax breaks and welfare payouts, would be among the highest in countries belonging to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), according to OECD data. As per the OECD data, the vast French welfare system has kept poverty in check at 14 perc ent, well below the 18 percent average for OECD countries. However, this comes at a cost as generous welfare practices when combined with a rather progressive taxation system have led to French tax payers having the highest burden among the OECD countries. Tax cuts on financial and wealth related assets given by the Macron government have added to the ire of low and middle-class taxpayers, as they seem to feel put upon and snubbed in favour of the wealthy.

OECD data further suggests that upwards mobility for the french poor is increasingly limited, despite an expansive welfare system, as it would take six generations for an individual from a low income family to reach an average income compared to two generations in Denmark.

President Macron has launched his Grand Debate hoping to use it to address the discontent evidenced by the protests. The three-month-long Grand Debate is supposed to be a mass consultation of sorts, for all French people to join in, and the conclusions of which will be used by the government to rework its future policies and agenda. The debates will take place online and in person (to be mediated by town mayors). The recommendations of people from each region will then be collated and passed up to the government. The debate is to be around four themes: tax and public spending, democracy and citizenship, ecological transition, and organisation of the state and public services.

Reaction to the Grand Debate has been somewhat lukewarm. Maxime Nicolle, a key leader of the Yellow Vest protestors commented to the BBC that the President has ignored their key demands and “is giving us a lesson in how to behave, as if we’re children and he’s the daddy” But based on polls across France, 40-50 perc ent of French people would like to take part in the debate.

9

International News

30 JANUARY 2019

Volcanic eruption causes devastating Tsunami in Indonesia Benjamin Jackson, MSc Violence, Conflict and Development On 22 December, Indonesia was once again staring down the barrel as the archipelago was hit by another natural disaster; years of reconstruction now lay ahead.

Anak Krakatau, a volcano which lies off the Sunda Strait and Indonesian islands Java and Sumatra, erupted, leading to a devastating tsunami. Three-quarters of the volcano’s edifice collapsed into the sea causing undersea landslides and tidal waves that headed towards the beaches.

The Indonesian National Disaster Management Agency’s (BNPB) most recent figures show that 426 people died, 7,202 were injured and 40,386 displaced, whilst 1,300 houses were irrevocably damaged. In the days after the tsunami, ECHO reported that more than 1,650 people of Banten province were affected by subsequent floods caused

by Cikalumpang River overflowing its banks.

Despite concerns that a further tsunami could hit, coastal areas were declared safe by the end of December.

Rescue efforts were complicated by heavy rain. The risk of contagious diseases in relief shelters continues to be high. Among those to respond to the disaster were the BNPB and the National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), whilst local NGOs, the military, and the Indonesian Red Cross helped to search for survivors and provide emergency

food aid as well as clean drinking water.

Those first on the scene, however, were community volunteers. Despite not being recognised as official aid providers, the

“The adhoc relief provided in the tsunami’s aftermath demonstrated the power of locally-led emergency response initiatives.” adhoc relief provided in the tsunami’s aftermath demonstrated the power of locally-led emergency response initiatives. Despite the scale of the tsunami, neither the government nor the Indonesian Red Cross requested international assistance.

In the last few weeks, there have been damning inquests into how Indonesia was devastated by yet another natural disaster.

It has been revealed that there were no early warning systems in place to detect the impact of the volcanic eruption.

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, an Indonesian

civil servant who works at the Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management, tweeted that he blamed the failure of the warning systems on “vandalism, budget limitations, and technical damage”. In response, Indonesian President Joko Widodo blamed their failure on the fact that tsunamis are usually preceded by earthquakes as opposed to volcanoes.

Further investigations will be telling, yet at present, Indonesians will be living in fear of future disasters. In September 2018, over 2,000 people were killed by a tsunami caused by an earthquake in the city of Palu, on the

island of Sulawesi. Christmas also marked the 14th anniversary of the Boxing Day Tsunami, of which Indonesia was worst affected.

To this day, it remains one of the most devastating natural disasters in history.

Lying on the crux of major continental plates, Indonesia is particularly prone to volcanoes and tsunamis: the Pacific, the Eurasian, the Indo-Australian, and the Philippine.

It is also part of the ‘Ring of Fire’ where the majority of the world’s earthquakes occur.

13per cent of the world’s volcanoes are in Indonesia, so eruptions are frequent.

Military personnel inspect damage in Java, Indonesia (Credit: Creative Commons)

Attempted Coup in Gabon Ines Rodier, BA Politics & Development Studies On 7 January, at 4:30 A.M., a group of junior officers from the presidential guard declared on the national TV station that they had seized power of the Gabonese regime. A few hours later, the government announced that it had neutralised the soldiers involved in the coup and that the situation was under control.

“Gabon is also considered stable economically and politically, even though one-third of its population lives in poverty.”

This attempt of coup surprised many. In fact, on the scale of countries likely to have a coup in 2019, Gabon was ranked 47th in sub-Saharan Africa. According to the BBC, Gabon is also considered stable economically and politically, even though one-third of its population lives in poverty. Additionally,

10

since the beginning of his mandate, President Ali Bongo Ondimba has been focusing on diversifying the oil-centred economy. Furthermore, the military has had historic ties to the family of President Ali Bongo Ondimba and is thus seen as very loyal to the regime.

What were the reasons that led the Lieutenant Kelly Ondo Obiang and junior officers to attempt to overthrow the President?

When looking more deeply into the political situation in Gabon, there are actually many factors that can explain the coup attempt. Nevertheless, the main one appears to be the recent regime crisis with the illness of the President. Following a stroke while he was in Saudi Arabia in October, Ali Bongo Ondimba has been recovering in Morocco for 3 months, thus leaving his country without a ruler. In his absence, the African Union and the United Nations asked the Gabonese political elites to exercise restraint and to respect the constitutional process regarding the peaceful transfer of power. Yet, instead of following the procedure written in the Constitution: the holding of elections 30 to 60 days after the declaration of a vacancy of power in the presidency; the Constitutional

Court amended the Constitution, thus maintaining the President in power.

The absence of the President then became increasingly problematic, with his attempts to reach out to his country largely failing to reassure the population. On New Year’s Eve, he sent a televised message saying he was feeling fine. Yet, many noticed he slurred and could not move his right arm, among them the Lieutenant Kelly Ondo Obiang who claimed it was a “relentless attempt to cling onto power”. Therefore, the coup was the logical consequence of a power vacuum, which has historically in Africa opened the door to military intervention.

But then, why did the coup failed?

Naunihal Singh, Assistant Professor at the Naval War College and author of “Seizing Power: The Strategic Logic of Military Coups” has noticed that coups are more likely to be successful if the ‘plotters’ “send credible signs to potential supporters that a coup will succeed”. Yet, in the case of Gabon, the plotters were relatively anonymous and low-rank. Additionally, they admitted that their coup did not have enough support yet.

In fact, according to African Arguments, “it seems that none of the coup leaders’ colleagues in the barracks heeded their call to help overthrow the government”.

Furthermore, the power vacuum actually did not remain for very long, with the Constitutional Court transferring presidential powers to the Prime Minister during the absence of the President. Finally, there is a growing regional hostility towards coups, resulting in them being riskier and less likely to succeed.

What is the current situation?

The President of Gabon has now returned to his country, a week after the military coup was thwarted. He appointed a new government on Saturday 13 January, and nominated Julien Nkoghe Bekale to replace Emmanuel Issoze-Ngondet as Prime Minister. While the political situation seems to have returned to normal, the coup has raised many questions about the President’s legitimacy in the eyes of the Gabonese population. In fact, the grip of the Bongo family on the state has been made even more obvious with its reaction to the coup.

One threat to the stabilisation of the situation could come from the opposition, led

by Jean Ping. African Arguments states that Ping “along with many analysts believe he was the true winner of the 2016 presidential election and still claims to be Gabon’s president-elect”. In fact, he has used the current crisis to call for a popular uprising against the President Ali Bongo Ondimba.

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

30 JANUARY 2019 http://soasspirit.co.uk/category/features/ Features editors: Syraat Butt, Tania Monica Ruiz

Features

15 Questions With Director Amos 4. What message do you have for final year undergrads who are just about to fill in the NSS survey?

I hope that students will fill the NSS survey in honestly. Sometimes there is a lot of criticism that doesn’t directly link to SOAS but wider education policy. I want the feedback to be honest for academic and professional staff because we want to improve who we are and what we do. But I also hope that students are able to distinguish between their experience at SOAS and criticisms of the wider environment.

5. Where do you see UK higher education in 10 years?

(Credit: Khadija Kothia)

Interviewed by Khadija Kothia Baroness Valerie Amos has been the Director of SOAS since 2015. The questions below are a compilation of student submissions, issues relating to current campus discussions, and personal questions about the director herself.

1. How will the financial situation affect current students?

It won’t. We have a short-term cash issue and a longer-term problem with the way we do business at SOAS to be resolved by 2020-22.

We are taking a range of actions, so in that sense, there is an impact on students. For example, the OPS (One Plus Service) restructuring program, which is about improving services, will see a financial shift. But OPS is about improving student services and the relationship between staff and academic staff. So students shouldn’t worry about a direct impact. We are putting students at the heart of the things we are doing to tackle the financial situation, which I hope will have a positive impact on them.

2. The dropout rate was 14% in 2015-16, much higher that the 9.9% average.

Why? And what steps will you take to address SOAS’ high dropout rate?

In some departments, the dropout rate is even higher. We are working to improve

this under the umbrella of our teaching and learning strategy. We are updating our curriculum according to pedagogical developments, and recognising that students have diverse qualifications and engagement patterns with higher education. The focus is on understanding and appreciating the individual circumstances of students and how to support them. London is not an easy student environment, it can be quite lonely too. So it’s about looking at the wider experience.

3. Our undergraduate intake has dropped by 40% in the last two years.

Why has our intake fallen by such a significant amount?

Our intake has fallen for different reasons, one being a competitive environment. A while ago there was a cap on student numbers. When it was lifted, universities could expand and grow as much as they wanted.

There is an aggressive market out there competing for students. The last round of results showed that 87 perc ent of students went to their first choice university. So why isn’t SOAS students’ first choice? Partly it is due to our drop on the league table positioning, which relates to students’ feedback on the National Student Survey (NSS). Generally, universities in London get lower NSS scores for a range of reasons, and we consistently get lower scores from SOAS students on things like assessment and feedback. Then of course, the dropout rates do not help. So, we are looking to work on these factors.

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

It’s very hard to say. We have a major review of higher education funding based on further education and post-2018 funding coming up.

It might be delayed because Brexit is pushing these issues to the margin. Some reports have criticised choices students make by comparing their course to how much they earn in the future. I think this is a very narrow and unhelpful way of looking at university education. SOAS students really care about what is happening in the world. They go on to do important work for NGOs and in politics as defenders of the most vulnerable people worldwide. That’s not necessarily going to bring in the highest income but does have a huge positive societal impact. So the way higher education is viewed is very narrow and not the way I, or others at SOAS, see it.

6. In the last recorded NSS results, SOAS positioned in bottom quartile for all but one question - learning resources. Why is the library being hit hardest in the OPS restructuring program?

I don’t think the library is being hit hardest. The OPS restructuring program is based on how we can re-orient services towards improving students’ experience. Students are learning very differently and we need to be up-to-date, including the library. We know students have a lot of love and emotional attachment towards the library. There is a lot of focus on the fact that the library will lose five staff. If you look at what the remaining staff will do, I think you’ll see that the new proposals are focused on student-facing services. At the moment, 10 perc ent of our resources at SOAS are spent on the library.

When you look at the expenditure of other national research libraries, you see that we spend way over the kilter, and that’s because they’ve changed faster than we have.

7. How has the consultation period impacted your restructuring plans?

We are looking at that now. In the past, proposals are made, consulted on, and then a revised version based on feedback is published. The consultation period ended a few weeks ago, and we have 537 pages of responses across the OPS. That’s in addition to consultation meetings being held. This is all being looked at by directors of all areas, so it is too early to tell.

8. A 73% dependency on student tuition fees is very high and risky.

DOESes SOAS plan to invest or diversify financial income so it’s dependency on tuition fees isn’t so high and risky?

Yes, we have to diversify. It’s very high compared to other universities. First, what we offer needs to be more attractive to prospective students. We currently offer the same number of courses as the University of Manchester and we are a lot smaller. We need to invest in growing areas like Law and Politics.

We have to focus on developing a pipeline of students coming to SOAS, through IFCELS (International Foundation Courses and English Language Studies), as well as strengthening international partnerships.

We have never and don’t plan on opening campuses outside SOAS, but are focusing on partnerships. For example, we have a Finance and Management partnership in Singapore.

We are looking at opportunities in China and Ghana. We are also looking to strengthen summer school offerings and shorter-term courses to diversify our income.

9. There seems to be a rumour going around that UCL is buying SOAS. is this true?

This rumour has been circulating since I stepped foot in SOAS. I think that is partly related to UCLs recent purchase of the Institute of Higher Education (IOE). There are a lot of mergers and strategic partnerships happening across the sector. UCL may like to talk to SOAS, but I am certainly not aware of UCL buying SOAS. I haven’t been offered any money and I don’t think the Board of Trustees have been offered anything either.

Continued on page 12.

11

Features Continued from page 11.

10. What do you think is the link between SOAS and Decolonisation?

Given the way SOAS has developed from initially being set up to train future colonial administrators, decolonisation has always been on the agenda. Even alumni in their 60s and 70s talk to me about it.

We now have a decolonisation working group between students and academics, and we also have a decolonisation tool-kit.

It is important that we look at our history through the frame of the whole decolonisation agenda, and at what we teach now and how the agenda will continue into the future. We are keen to lead the way.

11. SOAS sends a small number of students to the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. The main objection raised in the case of the Hebrew University is that the campus is in occupied territory. Does this run counter to our aims to decolonise?

This is being led by the team in Languages, Culture and Linguistics, where Hebrew is being taught. There was a big discussion on the Academic Board regarding where the year abroad was being held. The university itself isn’t on occupied territory. Regarding accommodation, I would have to double check that. This isn’t an Executive Board issue but an academic issue that the Academic Board must make. There is a further

30 JANUARY 2019 report coming to the Board on options for students on year abroad schemes. Of course, part of that issue is how we can ensure that we can stay true to SOAS values.

12. What were your biggest aims and visions coming into this role in 2015?

I wanted SOAS to be one of the places that helped make connections across the world in finding solutions to the biggest problems, as well as building bridges and connections based on the work we do, and our research across culture, humanities, and the social sciences. I think we must recognise that whilst we are relatively small we can have a dramatic impact in what we do.

13. What do you think you have brought to your role since taking the job?

I never have a day that is typical, but there are similar elements. I have many meetings and do a lot of public engagement for the university. I am on the board of Universities UK, and am currently co-leading a project regarding the BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) attainment gap with one of the deputies of the NUS. We are in the final stages of this report, which has taken me all over the country. I am on the Board of Trustees and the Resources and Planning committee. I am also Chair of the Executive Board and Academic Board. I have a fundraising responsibility for SOAS and do a lot of foreign travel on behalf of SOAS. 15.What’s your plan for improving the relationship between management and the student body?

That’s an ongoing issue. When I first arrived we tried to have all students’ meetings with me, which were poorly attended – maximum twelve students in a meeting. We tried meetings with student representatives from all departments. My door is always open for students and I enjoy the time that students come to talk about their experiences and what they do. So the plan is to continue working with Students’ Union representatives and see what the best ways to engage might be.

Do you have any comments you would like to make? Send in your responses to spirit@soas.ac.uk and have your replies, thoughts and comments published in the next Spirit Issue.

I don’t think it is about what I have brought, but more about what I brought with me.

I have a lot of global experience, having worked with the UN, and being High Commissioner to Australia. What attracted me to SOAS was the regions we specialise in that I think have a lot to offer to the world.

So I hope that I have brought my international network, my ability to lead and run organisations, and my passionate commitment to the values SOAS upholds.

14. Describe your day as Director of SOAS.

Poems & Creative Submissions The Headache

My Heart Through My Stomach

Growling, at noon and punctual, it creeps.

It utters ‘hello’.

You sigh. It leaps.

It plays with your mind, at Hide and Seek, (it lets you believe it’s just a peek).

You are the heat in my lungs brought on by the jollof

And then it oozes, right down to your neck, twitching the nerves it’s about to wreck.

It rubs its hands, filled with delight, it’s planning, it’s drafting, it’s heaving its fright.

And soon enough, but oh- too soon, you drop like dead in spinning room.

Alright, you say, my fate is woe, I won’t study today.

That’s all. End show.

- Bendetta

rice the sweet vanilla in the Nigerian custard You are the thickest fried plantain in the freshly, fried batch The

‘A reflective poem on the realities of walking around the house with outdoor shoes’

The tightness of my wrapper against my chest

Today I mopped the floor : And I had an epiphany :: All this muck and grime ::: Comes from the city :::: All the petrol, vom and spit ::::: All the cappuccinos spilt :::::: Dog poo, cat wee, human tears ::::::: All line the soles of my slippers.

You hold me up, you draw me in, you send me

- lame poet

okra soup that swoops and draws so elegantly

You are the softest puff puff And the hottest akara You are the fish in my moi moi

home - Destiny Adeyemi

12

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

Features

30 JANUARY 2019

Humans of SOAS: Library Staff

Interviews with: Debbie Barney (E-services Manager), Erich Kesse (Library Digital Projects Officer), Esther Okwok (Interim Customer Services Manager), Ludi Price (Far East Cataloguer), Vicky Bird (Subject Librarian) Interviewed by Indigo Lilburn-Quick, BA History and Politics What is your favourite thing about the SOAS Library? What makes it special?

Debbie Barney: It’s got such an amazing vast collection of stuff that you just wouldn’t get anywhere else. You can just wander around and find amazing things. The other thing I love is that people are so passionate about it, it really inspires passion and love in people. I think that’s why we’ve had so many people on board with the campaign, people have a real connection to it.

Erich Kesse: The collections. Not just the Special Collections. There are research gems in the London general stacks and in remote storage as well. In terms of what we digitise, forty percent comes from Special Collections, sixty percent from General and Remote Collections. I am constantly surprised by what comes across my desk!

Esther Okwok: The staff make it special. They are passionate about the resources and know the collections inside out. Library Inductions share these with our students and staff.

Ludi Price: I think SOAS library is just so unique and special, we have some global treasures. Like I could go into the basement and find a box of really random stuff.

Moments of discovery like those are why I love working here.

Vicky Bird: The staff! The team at SOAS library work really hard to try and deliver

a good service and are always trying new things, or finding a new angle to work from, we really try to keep our students and staff happy. SOAS is not a cookie cutter institution, it is unique and so is its library, that’s its strength.

Why are libraries important?

EK: My grandfather was a bookbinder and when I hold a book, I remember him, and where I came from. His work stands as a metaphor. Did you know that the treasures of the Greek world survived the Dark Ages, to be rediscovered in the libraries of Egypt, or, that many are still being discovered alongside treasures of the Islamic world in the living libraries of Timbuktu? Libraries are important: they hold the voices of humanity, many of which are otherwise silent. They reveal our greatest thoughts and worst deeds.

Because many are written in now dead or obscure languages and scripts, they force us to interpret, to question, to hypothesize, to believe, and to doubt.

LP: I think libraries and information work is really important because we are living in an age of information glut. With Google and so on, we are bombarded with information all the time that we think we know how to deal with, but sometimes it’s just too much.

Libraries are important because they curate the best quality of information. They’re not only repositories of knowledge, they are places where you can get information literate and know better how to organise information.

it all and making historic materials more widely available. We’re being taught through the work of SOAS academics and student researchers, many of whom are leading their fields.

EO: Seeing the happy students at their graduation, and knowing the Library staff played a small part.

LP: Getting to work with unique material. I mean, there’s just some stuff that probably no other library in the world has and you’re the one who’s touching it, you’re the one making it available for other people to see. That’s hugely satisfying.

VB: Libraries offer a safe space, a refuge, free access to information, and educational resources. Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights covers the right to access information and libraries help to defend this right. One of the core tenets of the library profession is a belief in the right of people to have access to information.

Libraries are the ultimate vehicle for social justice.

VB: Definitely the students. I love dealing with students and that’s why I became a subject librarian. I like the variety of enquiries I get, anything from water provision in various countries through to commodities to a bit of human rights work, so it’s very interesting, very diverse. The students here are so passionate about their studies and I really love helping and being a small part of their research.

What’s the best part of your job?

How are the cuts going to affect you?

DB: I like helping people find what they need and learn things they wouldn’t have got to before. Part of my job is helping people find journal articles and books and helping them construct searches for their research topics and just guiding them a bit to what’s going to be useful for them and I find that really satisfying. It feels like you’re giving people skills that they can use in other things as well which is what I like best.

Vicky in her office (Credit: Jeiran Artykova)

Ludi by her desk (Credit: Jeiran Artykova)

EK: The best part of this job is getting to see

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

DB: I’m one of two staff in the e-services team and both of those roles are going in the restructure. It’s not really clear from the documentation but I think the work is being dispersed among other teams. We’ve got concerns about whether that’s a really inefficient way of doing things, and how effective that’s going to be.

EK: As currently outlined, they do away with the Digitisation Assistant. I will have even

less capacity to get things done.

LP: The thing is that I am one of the few people that stand to benefit from the library restructure in that my role will be moving from part-time to full-time But my concern is that we’ve been told that this would increase the number of hours spent on language cataloguing. We are quite concerned that in actuality because of the many staff cuts we will have to take up the slack of the people that will be lost, so a lot of our work will not actually be language cataloguing but stuff like working on the service desk, giving tours, that kind of thing, which we haven’t had any training in. We’re concerned that the restructuring, and making us full-time won’t actually benefit the library in the way they say it will.

VB: My post will be disestablished. This means I have a choice of voluntary severance, or being fitted to a role in SOAS, probably at a lower pay grade than I am on now, which does not make use of my specialist skills that haven’t been recognised in the restructure. I commute in so it means that it will no longer be financially viable for me to work here so realistically I have the choice of voluntary severance.

How are the cuts going to affect the library?

DB: I think if it goes ahead with the structure that’s been proposed I can’t see it being able to deliver what the vision is for the library.

I think the people who remain will end up with a lot more work and it will be quite stressful and a lot of pressure. There’s a lot of uncertainty at the moment and I think if the structure stays the same I don’t think we will

13

Features

30 JANUARY 2019 be able to do what we need to help people properly.

LP: I think it’s a huge issue. It’s going to affect everyone. We’re going to be reduced to basically skeleton staff at least on the bottom level of the structure. We’re having more managers put in but much fewer people on the ground. User-facing staff will be far less, so students will get less of a service.

There will be fewer people actually working with the books themselves so that will make turnover rates much slower. Less time for shelving, less time for cataloguing, and things like that. We’re really concerned about providing a good level of service to our users and I think that’s the main issue.

Esther stands among the books (Credit: Jeiran Artykova)

VB: We just don’t really know how the services will be provided as there has not been a full consultation with library staff, there hasn’t been an open conversation about where our roles are going for people who are being disestablished. The staff that are remaining are very worried about how

they’re going to take on the extra work.

What can students do to support the library whilst facing the cuts?

DB: We would just value support, if we’re getting support from the students and the staff that’s got more impact on the administration than us just saying “it’s not gonna work, it’s not gonna work!” So if we can get students being supportive at the rallies and other things that would be great.

LP: So far students have given us amazing support. Carry on what you’re doing! Carry on being engaged, carry on writing into management and make your voices heard — tell them what you want because as far as we know you haven’t been asked what you want even if they’re basing the cuts supposedly on what you have told them [referring to student requests for 24-hour service]. Get yourself heard in any way and we will support what you want. You are why we’re here.

VB: SOAS management says they listen to students and are using what they say students want to partially justify the cuts. They’re using longer opening hours, which we would love to give you, as a justification for cutting staff, but also they’re increasing the number of managers so there’s that disparity. It’s really difficult for staff to defend against these claims because it sounds like we’re saying, “we shouldn’t give students longer opening hours”. So I think the most important thing is to speak up if you feel that your university experience will be detrimentally affected by these changes.

All interviews may have been edited for the purposes of length and clarity.

Please head to http://soasspirit.co.uk/ to read the full interviews!

Humans of SOAS: The SU Shop Asa Willoughby, BA South Asian Studies

and authentic Lebanese sandwiches and wraps? We also have a delivery of fresh sushi and fruit every morning. We sell a huge variety of gluten free and vegan snacks for both healthy and unhealthy revision breaks and a ridiculously large selection of juices, smoothies, cold coffee and fizzy drinks (vegan included!) How does this represent the SOAS student body?

“This is my third year working in the shop and I

love it, I cannot think of a better part-time job for a student, it feels like a family. But so often I feel that a lot of students are completely unaware of what we do and sell as part of the SOAS community.”

Shop Staff 17/18: Asa, Natena, Holly, Christel, Nida, Saarah, Gpòbé (Credit: Ravneet Kaur Matharu)

The SU Shop is an integral part of SOAS, everyone knows it, every alumni comes back to see it, ex-employees constantly pop in for a chat and it represents so much of who the student body at SOAS is — but perhaps you have never noticed that. This is my third year working in the shop and I love it, I cannot think of a better part-time job for a student, it feels like a family. But so often I feel that a lot of students are completely unaware of what we do and sell as part of the SOAS community.

The shop is run by the Students’ Union, not SOAS, and is controlled by Khaled Ziada, the SU commercial services manager who also runs an events company promoting Arabic culture, for which we sell tickets in the shop. All the shop staff are students, some undergrad, some doing a masters, some part-time, and some doing a PhD. We are all from diverse backgrounds which is always on show through the music we play whilst we work. We love it when a song gets everyone dancing whilst they rush to get a coffee in between a class. (Somali dhaanto gets people moving every time!)

Did you know that we order from around 5 different sandwich companies everyday including vegan, kosher, halal

14

Shop Staff 17/18: Caitlin, Theint Theint (Credit: Caitlin Shewell-Cooper)

We have something for every walk of life: Fair Trade flapjacks, vegan protein balls, dates and almonds straight from Palestine that provide for Palestinian families.

Is the shop green enough?

Perhaps not, but we are always working on it. At the moment we charge 25p extra for anyone using a single use cup, we recycle all coffee grinds, milk bottles and cardboard and we sell SOAS water bottles and keep cups.

We are always open to suggestions on how to improve, so come and talk to us!

What we, the staff, often feel is forgotten, is that we are all also students and part of the student body and not robots. We love to have a chat when you come in, we can always empathise with deadline stresses, and

Shop Staff 17/18: Helen, Elisa, Molly (Credit: Asa Willoughby)

we would love for the shop to be a community space for all students! Come in, grab a coffee, and say hello. Equally the shop provides much needed funds for the SU, it provides jobs for students, funding for student societies, and refreshments for events and training sessions.

SU Shop opening hours (subject to change): Mon – Thurs: 08:00–21:00 Fri: 08:00-20:30 Sat: 09:30-18:30 Sun: 10:30-17:00

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

Features

30 JANUARY 2019

Exchanged: Being a Study Abroad Student at SOAS Ariana Akbari, BA History of Art & Architecture , Comparative Study of Religion

Colette (left), Sara (middle), and me (right) at the 2017 HarvardYale American football game, the most popular annual activity at the university (Credit: Ariana Akbari)

My name is Ariana, and I have some questions for you SOAS students. Namely, Why are all of your straws made of paper?

Why is everyone here vegan?

And why aren’t the eggs in the refrigerator section of the supermarket?

In case it is not yet clear, I am a student on academic exchange from the United States attending SOAS for terms 2 & 3. I am writing this column so that I will be able to help people see what SOAS is like from an outside perspective and also with the hope that by the end of my time here, my outside perspective will become more of an inside perspective, as I learn more about this place and the people that make it special.

Back home in the United States, I go to university at Harvard, just outside of Boston, where I study Architectural History & Theory and Islamic Studies. I have spent the past couple of summers living and working in New York, so I thought that I would be prepared for living in London and attending SOAS. In many ways I am prepared: The grey weather here, compared to a frozen Boston winter, feels like a tropical vacation. My classes tackle topics that I am familiar with, like Islamic Urbanism and Technology & Society. Everyone speaks English.

At the same time, however, I discounted just how foreign it might feel to be living in another country. For the past couple weeks I have been feeling like an alien living in an alternate universe where people drive on the wrong side of the street and are very polite when you interact with them.

Just as I was prepared for many things here at SOAS, I am equally unprepared for others: The weather here can go

from sunny to cloudy to rainy without a moment’s notice.

The way my classes are structured are strange, and what is a “Moodle?” Everyone here speaks English...but they do not really speak my English.

I have yet to do many activities here beyond class, some touristy exploration of London, and welcome events for the exchange students, but there are already a few things I can tell about what makes SOAS different from my home institution: - The SOAS student body is exceptionally diverse. SOAS students seem to come from every single country and background on the planet, and everyone has a unique viewpoint which makes conversation interesting and more dynamic.

- The SOAS campus is neatly organized and accommodating for people from widespread religious backgrounds and genders. I have never before seen a university building with a built-in space for prayer, and I think SOAS does a good job of accommodating students who may be trans or gender fluid with their built spaces (i.e. bathrooms).

- The SOAS professors are passionate about what they teach and study, and are willing to engage with their students so that they learn as much as possible. SOAS professors seem friendly and open to new ideas, and they all seem to really love what it is that they do.

I am very excited to begin this new academic journey and am hopeful that my time here will be transformative in a way that only being in London and at SOAS can be.

Until next time, One of your resident, slightly-confused Americans around campus, Ariana

My Month as a Vegan Abida Tasnim, BA Economics Why go vegan in the first place?

Animals, just like humans, feel pain. What’s to say they do not share other neurological processes with us? For this reason, vegans believe in preventing the exploitation of animal rights for the benefit of humans. It has been found that 95 perc ent of animals are killed prematurely for food production. For example, cows are usually murdered at the ages of 3-4 of a potential 20-year life span in order to capture the milk in its ‘profitable’ stage– e ven earlier for cows bred for meat. In addition to the injustice animals face in these industries, an opportunity cost is posed to society. The subsidies on non-vegan markets are pivotal in their survival.

Without them these markets would collapse. Therefore, these subsidies (coming off the hard work of tax payers) could potentially be better utilised in plant-based horticulture, or given the current predicament of the UK, the NHS. The vegan lifestyle has both ethical and economic motivation.

How did I find going vegan as a student?

A common misconception of healthy eating is that it is expensive, and whilst this generally proves to be true, it is not always the case. There are £3 meal deals available at Tesco and Sainsbury’s where vegan options are available. Still, there were times when the selection of vegan meal deals available at these supermarkets were extremely limited, and at times, there were none. Luckily for SOAS students, we also have vegan options available in the JCR, although these tend to be slightly pricier. For these prices I would prefer to go to YoSushi/YouMeSushi/Wasabi/Itsu for a vegan sushi box. Honestly,

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

I find that as young people, we don’t mind spending a little extra money on food, especially around friends.

In terms of the social aspect of going vegan, it never failed to be a great conversation starter and would also spark some debates about the ethics behind it. Furthermore, at social events or gatherings, the vegan aspect did prove to be more of a challenge, especially considering that going out to eat is everyone’s go-to plan with friends. Although it does require planning ahead of time, such as checking the menu, this usually doesn’t pose much of a problem. This tends to make spontaneous food ‘motives’ slightly trickier and I often found

“I often found myself having to come in and out of restaurants trying to find a suitable place to eat” myself having to come in and out of restaurants trying to find a suitable place to eat. In fact, for my sister’s birthday brunch, we decided to go to the Pie Factory, and at the time I was so busy and forgot to check the menu and just hoped they would have options for me. The reality was one vegetarian pie with feta cheese, hence non-vegan. I ended up ordering two side dishes (the only two vegan options on the whole menu): chips and onion rings.

Controlling your diet is much easier at home where you can easily substitute for plant-based foods. I switched to almond milk for the month and although I didn’t try it with

(credit: Creative Commons)

cereal, I did try it with tea and baking. Both times I could barely tell the difference. This month gave me the opportunity to be adventurous with my cooking and the recipes I tried have already been used as part of my weekly dinner routine due to the convenience and taste.

Of course, veganism extends beyond food, it includes cosmetics and clothing as it is, as mentioned, a lifestyle. Lush has amazing vegan cosmetic products, ranging from toothpaste to deodorant to shampoo and now, even make-up. More and more companies are joining this plant-based movement, making it easier to switch to this lifestyle. One of the key factors that has kept me going on this journey were the effects to my health. The change in energy was undeniable, rarely feeling tired during the day. My skin also reflected the cleaner eating habits, which, as shallow as it may seem, provides a strong incentive to continue on this path.

Layout editors’ response to writer: Check out ‘More Than Carrots’ - a Vegetarian/Vegan map of London restaurants showing you how many veggie options they have, and how tasty the variety is! - www.morethancarrots.co.uk

15

Features

30 JANUARY 2019

Postcards to SOAS: Japan it was as if I was visiting Japan for the first time! Unlike Tokyo, which is very “moderntechno,” Nagano was traditional and full of culture. I stayed in a hostel, with tatami mats and sliding doors, and exquisite Japanese wooden houses, covered in snow, felt like I had, yet again, gone to another world. My friends and I ate soba, the famous “Mont Blanc” chestnut cake, and visited the local temple which was very crowded. Religion is

(Credit: Bryany Mirus)

Bryony Mirus in Akihabara, Tokyo (Credit: Bryany Mirus)

Bryony Mirus, BA Japanese and Music My name is Bryony, but I am known to everyone as Bree! I am an English/Australian/Ukrainian studying Japanese and music, and I am currently on my year abroad in Tokyo, Japan. I grew up in Australia, and returned to England to study, thus resulting in me studying in my birth city, London. I have only been studying Japanese for two and a half years, and it is probably one of the hardest languages I have tried to learn. With two basic alphabets and thousands of kanji (Chinese-originated characters) to learn, there is no end to my study here.

hard to cook for myself, as the ingredients here are different and all in unrecognisable kanji. However, it is very cheap, despite being Tokyo, to eat out, although perhaps my idea of cheap is somewhat swayed by London prices.

Japan is a very beautiful country in many ways. From the flashing lights of Tokyo’s streets at night to the traditional temples,

(Credit: Bryany Mirus)

Ramen only £3.,90 (Credit: Bryany Mirus)

First impressions: As a foreigner, I could really feel the difference in culture in my first few weeks in Tokyo. Here, despite it being a massive, booming city, many things are different, whether it is the food, treatment of foreigners, even fashion. It was, and still is,

16

shrines and architecture, the combination of both modern and traditional aspects is perfectly mixed to give a city full of character. One can never be bored here, although sometimes it can be a bit too much. My favourite places to visit in Tokyo are the arcades, temples, and the world renowned convenient stores that literally sell everything, 24/7.

Travel: Yesterday, I returned from a trip to Nagano, and it was very different to Tokyo:

(Credit: Bryany Mirus)

incorporated into Japanese lifestyle, so much so that it is more tradition rather than an actual belief, I have noticed. On special holidays such as New Year’s day, Japanese people always head to the nearest shrine to receive their fortune on a slip of paper, and the lines to get this fortune seemed endless!

Student life: Currently, I am studying at Waseda University, a famous university in the heart of Tokyo. Although classes are very long (and completely in Japanese!), I enjoy my time here, though it is hard to make Japanese friends as a foreigner.

Japanese peope are generally reserved and quite shy. This along with the language barrier, makes it hard to get close to them.

They are, although perhaps somewhat of a sweeping statement, rather exclusive, and many times I have not been able to join a club because I am not Japanese! Nevertheless, there are clubs for international students, which is the best (perhaps only?) way to make Japanese friends.

University student life in Japan is very much different from England: Japanese study their whole lives, even going so far as attending cram schools during the summer, to get into a good university, yet life in that university is very chill and enjoyable. In Japan, rather than the grades one receives, getting a good job relies heavily on the prestige of the university, so many students take this opportunity to join many clubs and circles.

Social pressures and society: Although I mentioned that university life for Japanese is enjoyable, there are many

social pressures involved, such as getting into a good uni, and going into a “lifetime” job after graduation. This is often expected of young people in Japan, which makes it hard for people to follow their creative side.

Another aspect of Japanese society that I have noticed is gender roles. Japanese men are expected to become salary men, and once they are in a company, they are then expected to join their colleagues for drinking after work/group activities. Women on the other hand, are subjected to pressure in the way they act, dress, speak, etc, and many times, when I go to the gym in my gym crop top and leggings, do I see Japanese women in skirts with leggings, and long sleeved tops. For everyday fashion, a high, buttoned up blouse and ankle length skirt is all the rage, and I find it difficult to find any other outfit than this when I go shopping. When asking my Japanese friends if they thought that gender inequality was a thing, they all answered yes, one of which was applying for a year abroad to escape it!

This being said, there are many efforts to tackle these issues, such as women-only trains and the rule that all cameras must have a sound effect when taking pictures.

Overall, Japan has been a wonderful eyeopening experience, and I could not have wished for a better destination in which to spend my year abroad. I definitely recommend it!

(Credit: Bryany Mirus)

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

Features

30 JANUARY 2019

Auntie Po: Mental Health And Capitalism Will Mental Health Services Ever Keep Up with the Ever-Increasing Pressures on Young People?

Capitalism, centred around the need to keep growing and selling, means that feelings of failure add to the existing pressures of job uncertainty and financial instability.

“Keeping up with the Jones’”, a phrase used to describe the ongoing pressure to own more, better and more expensive products.

However, in this case, “Keeping up with the Kardashians” may be more appropriate, in a generation where our ads are not only plastered on buildings, but have even crept into our phones, from YouTube ads to Instagram posts, we are constantly reminded of what we do NOT have. The constant feeling of insecurity and unfulfillment has led to our deteriorating mental health.

While this pressure feeds into our everyday lives, the services around us are being cut short. There has been a drop in the number of hospital beds for mentally ill patients, of around 30 percent since 2009 in the UK. This is a drastic drop since a lot of patient cases need effective and timely

service. Ministers have promised more funding to the NHS for better services, but many young people are being put on a waiting list, and at this point, it is frankly not good enough. In an urgent case, a young person will have to look outside of the NHS. This leaves them with two options, a local charity or to go private. It goes without saying that it is a privilege to be either in an area which has an effective mental health charity or be able to pay for private therapy.

In 2018, your wellbeing has a price tag.

In our culture of fast paced achievements and quick success, it can be difficult to come face-to-face with our mental health. I know from personal experience that admitting to weakness is hard when you feel that you must be one step in front of everybody else.

But it’s not a weakness, it is only the institutions and system that we live in that have taught us that. We are in a time where short term problems are sorted and fixed quickly.

The frameworks in which we live in do not

Meditations on Media,

support or fit the idea of long-term help but would rather choose the quick fixes. To be able to commit to helping yourself in a long-term process is not something we are accustomed to. If you have a burn, soothe it, if you have an open wound, stitch it, if you have depression…fix it?

Mental health services need to be reprogrammed and re-shaped, but this is not possible in a society which is dependent on not feeling fulfilled and always wanting the next best thing. Satisfaction may sometimes seem to be an emotion which many of us may dream about. Last year teen suicide in London rose by 107 percent, a shocking figure for a country which prides itself on free healthcare. Mental health needs to be taken seriously and one of the ways which this can be done is through removing the stigma and facing the facts.

For more information on mental health, follow my podcast on: speakupbrentcentre.

Auntie Po, Pauline Blanchet (Credit: Khadija Kothia)

For anyone facing issues with mental health please speak to your doctor or GP, or for emergencies call one of the following help-lines: NHS 111 Samaritans 116 123

podbean.com

Horoscopes as Broken Things in SOAS

Gaia Tan, BA Development Studies and Social Anthropology

Capricorn – Main building lifts Aquarius – Water fountains Pisces – Library toilets Aries – Hope in our government to work past their capitalist agenda Taurus – Computers with no mouse Gemini – eduroam Cancer – Everything except the new carpets in Brunei Gallery Leo – Broken hearts on floor B :( Virgo – Desks in your 9am class Libra – BLE/Turnitin Scorpio – Administrative system Sagittarius – 40 inch screens that you can’t turn on

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

17

30 JANUARY 2019

Opinion editor: Hana Qureshi http://soasspirit.co.uk/category/opinion/

Opinion

Is 2019 The Year of Breaking All Glass Ceilings?

Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s Instagram Post: “There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.”–@michelleobama (Photo credit: @martinschoeller, @vanityfair)

Alexandra Bate, BA Social Anthropology and History of Art On January 3, the winners of the 2017 November midterm elections were sworn into their official seats in US Congress, made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives. This marks a historic moment for an unquantifiable amount of diverse interests that for the first time, are being reflected in the makeup of the US Congress.

For example, Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat was voted in as the first SomaliAmerican member of Congress. Upon arriving in Washington, she tweeted: “23 years ago, from a refugee camp in Kenya, my father and I arrived at an airport in Washington DC. Today, we return to that same airport on the eve of my swearing in as the first SomaliAmerican in Congress”. Together with Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, the first Palestinian-American woman to serve, they are the first two Muslim women with seats in Congress. Tlaib remarked that she “considered the possibility of using Thomas Jefferson’s Quran or her own, calling the former President’s

18

Quran a “symbol (that) Islam has been a part of American history for a long time”.

Many more glass ceilings were broken when you look at the diversity of backgrounds and interests that make up this years’ newcomers: Women hold a record number of seats from a previous 87 to 102, according to Pew Research Center. This also includes the first two NativeAmerican women, Democrat Rep. Deb Haaland (New Mexico) and Rep. Sharice Davids (Kansas), who is also the first openly LGBTQ Representative in Kansas. Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley (Massachusetts) and Rep. Jayana Hayes (Connecticut) are the first black congresswomen to represent their states.

Moreover, Democrats Rep. Veronica Escobar and Sylvia Garcia are Texas’ first Latinas in office; and Florida, a historically heavily Conservative State, voted for Democrat Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, the first EcuadorianAmerican, and the first South American immigrant representing a state in Congress. Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (New York) also stunned everyone by becoming the youngest woman ever elected, at just 29 years.

In the higher chamber of the Senate, Democrat Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona is the

first female Senator of the male-dominated State (think John McCain) and is also the first openly bisexual member of the Senate.

“This is a groundbreaking moment for the Democratic Party in America, and the power the Democratic majority holds in the very diverse makeup of the House of Representatives”.

This is a ground-breaking moment for the Democratic Party in America and the power the Democratic majority holds in the very diverse makeup of the House of Representatives. For the Republicans however, January 3 showed that the Party is far behind and drastically declining in women’s participation. According to The Conversation, “only 1 out of 36 newly elected female representatives in Congress is Republican”. This comes as a shock compared to the number

of glass ceilings broken by members of the Democratic Party. Looking at photos of the filled seats in Congress, one can see that the Republican side are overwhelmingly dressed in dark suits and are white men. The Democrat side in contrast, was fervently bursting with warm colours, ready to set the priorities for American society straight.

This election has proven that America’s public is more engaged than ever in celebrating diversity in the Capitol. The way the younger generation of representatives are mobilizing social media outlets, especially Instagram, is a good omen for what this stand-out class will be able to achieve — and how they continuously re-define what democracy looks like in practice. (Follow them on Instagram!)

This being said, the Democrat trailblazing women will face a lot of challenges this year, the first being the current 30-day long government shutdown as President Trump tries to push for funding for “the wall”. Everyday this goes on, federal employees aren’t getting paid and President Trump’s reckless proclamations such as America is “under siege” by ‘dangerous immigrants’, is driving up tensions and divisions in the country more than ever before.

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

Opinion

30 JANUARY 2019

R. Kelly: Separating The Art From The Artist Holly Sampson, BA Middle Eastern Studies and World Philosophies As the #MeToo movement is increasingly growing and more people are standing up against those that have silenced them in the past, it is no wonder that the debate of separating the art from the artist has come to the foreground once again. This time the focus is on R Kelly and the subsequent movement of #MuteRKelly. I don’t think that the artist should be separated from the art, and here is why.

Art is a highly emotive and subjective matter. Artists use their emotions and experiences to create their art and so it only seems logical that the art they produce is a part of them. Artists do not attempt to separate themselves from their art, so a critical approach that does not consider context is ignorant and blinds us from the full consideration of any creative piece of work.

R Kelly released a song last year, “I Admit”, which is 19 minutes long which highlights his life, the accusations against him, and his response to them, “Only God can mute me”.

Clearly, R Kelly is involved in his work, this song is blatantly biographical, and so the concept of separating him from his art is absurd. Similarly, in a time when celebrity culture seems to be at an all-time high, the

persona behind the music is as much of a product as the music itself. Musicians are aware of this and create personas that seem genuine in order to appear authentic to fans. This makes it even more impossible to separate the art from the artist.

“People use the concept of separation to justify still indulging in art without feeling guilty.

However, there are not two R Kellys”.

The importance of context is hammered into us from an early age. We are taught that to understand an action we cannot consider it as an isolated incident. Sometimes the cause and the effect are difficult to extrapolate and seem to feed into each other, but we are still taught that looking at the wider context is necessary for our understanding.

So, why should this change when we view art? R Kelly’s music is what he has created.

It is a part of him, just as it is part of a wider geopolitical context of the world that it engages with. If we take this away, we would be left with a limited understanding and appreciation of art.

Interestingly, this debate only seems to

arise when an artist has done something wrong. It seems as if people use the concept of separation to justify still indulging in art without feeling guilty. However, there are not two R Kellys. The R Kelly that sang ‘I believe I can fly’ is the same R Kelly that married an underage girl, abused his wife and has been accused of countless incidents of sexual assault on young black women. All of the personal aspects of R Kelly — that are deplorable — originate from the same mind as the one that created his art, and thus should be treated that way.

Whilst we can’t force legal consequences, we can do something as simple as not listening to R Kelly’s music. We can acknowledge that the music that we may enjoy was made by a man who has been accused of multiple accounts of sexual assault, and so is a man that we should not support by listening to his music. If we don’t mute him, we are saying that we are unconcerned by what R Kelly has done and, by saying this, we are muting those who have been affected by him and his horrific actions. I would like to believe that the society we live in today is moving towards a consent culture, not further away from one, which is why I think it is so important not to separate the art from the artist and to hold R Kelly, and others like him, accountable for their actions however we can.

(Credit: Creative commons)

Western Journalism Continues To Airbrush Foreign Experiences.

Five Million Indian women line the 385-long line(Credit: The Pioneer)

Khadija Kothia, BA History On 3 January 2019, Indian women in Kerala caught the world’s eye. Pictures displaying five million women emerged, standing in a 385 mile-long line that spanned the entire width of the city. Stories reported that the women were demanding an end to violent agitations against women trying to enter Kerala’s Sabarimala temple, a motion which the Indian Supreme Court had passed in September 2018. The images unsurprisingly caught global attention, and the photos and brief 280 character captions championing the line’s message received retweets in their thousands. It was certainly a sight to behold, and seemingly also celebrate.

However, though this awe-striking display was caught on camera, the presumed demonstration of female freedom and empowerment was not quite as organic as it seemed. The wall was more a manufactured demonstration planned by the Marxist-led Kerala government against its Hindu rightwing rivals, than a feminist demonstration.

Several allegations made by women’s group activists demonstrated that governmentemployed women were threatened with dire consequences had they not joined the wall, with many feeling obliged to join the line as to not lose their jobs. As a result, contrary to the shallow feminist exterior, the wall was a contradictory representation of the easy exploitation of social justice as a tool for oppression.

But most importantly, the Kerala women’s wall becomes yet another reason for why Western journalism must stop viewing the rest of the world through a Western-centric lens. Media outlets saw a wall of brown women standing together in a part of the world portrayed as backwards, and created a positive narrative that would fit Western conceptions of freedom, completely ignoring the coercion involved. True, in today’s hyper-negative world, the desire to read uplifting news seems both needed more than ever and yet also increasingly scarce. However, it is incredibly illogical to brush over injustice in order to achieve just aims, and is in itself, a failure of journal-

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

ists to hold those in power to account. To achieve this, foreign correspondents must primarily aim to understand different cultural differences in order to avoid airbrushing and silencing voices.

Foreign misreporting is the result of carelessness, and in a large respect, down to the lack of diversity within journalism.

Within the UK itself, 94 percent of the profession consists of white journalists, compared to 87 percent of the UK population.

For foreign stories, Western journalists often rely on foreign sources to relay information, and in some circumstances, journalists are awarded by NGOs to write propaganda.

This automatically creates the assumption that non-Western news is inherently peculiar and abnormal. If the role of a journalist is to rightly hold those in positions of power to account, and to provide accuracy, then more must be done to ensure that this role is taken seriously outside the West, also.

Employing journalists with organic knowledge of different local languages, ensuring foreign sources are accurate and stories are not produced for personal benefit, are

all steps that must be taken to ensure that carelessness and ignorance are not hindering the course of justice.

Perhaps, at the other end of the spectrum are the recipients themselves. In an ever-globalising world of excessive sharing, liking, and learning off social media, the role of the individual as a provider of information has become ever more crucial.

One share creates a pathway of information for hundreds, even thousands. This can have damaging consequences, as the above story demonstrate. It thus becomes all the more important for each individual to become more self-aware about the information they are intaking and dispersing, to ensure that the information is from a reliable source, without a clear, misleading agenda, and does not have damaging consequences.

Most importantly, if you are unsure, it may be better to refrain from sharing. In today’s ever-connected cyber sphere, political awareness is no longer a choice, it is a responsibility, and it is up to those with the power to shape narratives to ensure that every voice is equally heard.

19

Opinion

30 JANUARY 2019

Moix Sexism, Moix Problems?

Zahra Banday, BA English

(Credit: Creative commons)

Described by Twitter as having a “creepy Uncle vibe”, French author Yann Moix has been the topic of much debate over his recent controversial comments. They were made to the French Marie Claire, when promoting his latest novel, (I’m sure it’s great). Moix decided to treat us, the reader, to his thoughts and tastes regarding women. In the humblest way he remarked, “I prefer younger women’s bodies, that’s all. End of. The body of a 25-year-old woman is extraordinary. The body of a woman of 50 is not extraordinary at all”. This one man’s ode to his misogynistic preferences has caused a furore and the ladies of Twitter came out in hoards to shut him down — something I thoroughly recommend everyone read to just really lift the spirits. However, what started as a critique on one man’s views became part of a larger critique on how women are seen in society.

Moix claims that, “We’re living in a society where it’s hard to be an individual.

We have to always represent the universal citizen…someone who displeases nobody”.

His response to the backlash was to discuss how he is an ‘individual’ and cannot please everybody. Moix uses the word ‘individual’ to escape the real connotations of what he

is saying, namely that he is sexist, ageist and presents a deeply troubled view of manhood, a ‘prisoner’ to his tastes. This is not a matter of free speech or a person’s preferences, it is one man normalising something women have always been told, that their ‘value’ has an expiry date. Moix remarks come about at an extremely interesting time, this is an age of body positivity, growing diversity and movements championing women’s rights.

Women are supporting other women and de-bunking patriarchal attitudes. Women are fighting for equality but at the very least, accountability.

“This is not a matter of free speech or a person’s preferences”.

As if this couldn’t get any worse, Moix added that his preferred choice was to date Asian women, specifically Chinese, Korean and Japanese. Ladies rejoice! The man is not only a deeply problematic ageist but also an Asian fetishist. However, we should give him credit because in his own words, “a lot of people would be incapable of admitting that because it is racism”. Yann, just because you admit something is racist, it doesn’t make it okay and suddenly not-racist.

In a follow-up interview Moix was asked whether he thought the sales of his new

novel would suffer after this controversy, he responded by stating, “the system is so perverse that sales are about to rise like an arrow”. This presents another layer of problems to the plethora of issues created by this situation. Will his sales suffer?

There have always been male authors that treated women in a dismissive, sexist and frankly disturbing way, Nabokov springs vividly to mind, yet their books are classics and sell to this day. Moix is already a decorated author winning multiple literary awards, so perhaps his sales won’t slump despite his controversy. However, as I have stated before, this is a new age and with that comes increasing awareness, people regard the artist in relation to the art. In the wake of the allegations against Kevin Spacey and the #SurvivingRKelly movement, people are starting to look at art-forms like film, music and literature and beginning to question how far you can separate the artist from their art. Thus far, Moix has become a symbol of everything wrong with the way women can be seen in society. I think Amanda Abbington (of Sherlock fame) best sums it up when she tweeted, “#YannMoix I think I speak fairly confidently for most if not all women over the age of 45 when I say you are categorically not to our taste either.

Unless our taste stretches to backwardthinking men who look like Gollum…”.

Palestinian Activism is Not Anti-Semitism.

Benjamin Jackson, MSc Violence, Conflict and Development Supporting Palestinian rights or being a moderate activist in support of Palestinian nationalism is not anti-Semitic, nor is it a crime. Yet recent events in the US suggest otherwise.

In September last year, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI) in Alabama awarded world-renowned scholar, activist and author Angela Davis the Fred Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award. She has now had this honour stripped, and the gala awards event in February has been cancelled.

The award was rescinded because of protests from the local Jewish community. A letter was also sent to the BCRI by the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center. The letter read: “Angela Davis’ recent outspoken support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel, is very troubling as it targets the Jewish people excessively”.

Davis has often promoted Palestinian rights, in her book “Freedom Is a Constant Struggle” she drew parallels between the current Palestinian predicament and that of black people in the 20th Century.

The move has sparked outrage in the US, with most backing Angela Davis, including the Jewish Voice for Peace who released a

20

statement saying, “the decision seems to stem from a misinformed view that to advocate for Palestinian human rights is somehow offensive to the Jewish community”. The academic community has also voiced its dismay; over 350 academics have signed a letter criticising the BCRI. Three members of BCRI’s hierarchy have resigned over the scandal, and since apologised.

In a coincidentally analogous case, the first Palestinian-American woman to serve in Congress, Rashida Tlaib, has also been criticised for recent pro-Palestinian views. A well-known supporter of the BDS movement, Tlaib has been accused of anti-Semitism and an advocate of Hezbollah by tweeting that people supporting a bill protecting states that penalise Israel boycotters have “forgot what country they represent”.

These two cases are symptomatic of the propensity of the West to manipulate proPalestinian narratives. The Western establishment, including many corners of US society, are standing by Israeli claims that criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic. The issue with this is that it is a complete misinterpretation; if anything, it is anti-Zionist. However, reducing anti-Semitism to anti-Zionism is favourable: it suits the Western establishment, its foreign policy objectives, and relations with Israel.

This has created a dangerous zeal: antiSemitism is condensed to anti-Zionism and thus, pro-Palestinian activists such as Davis

and Tlaib are revoked.

European governments, especially those of Germany and Austria, are also standing by Israeli claims that criticism of Israel is antiSemitic. In doing so, and through a great deal of contortion, they are able to shift the blame and ‘origin’ of anti-Semitic behaviour from their predecessors to current Palestinian movements such as BDS. Concomitantly, this also covers up continued far-right

anti-Semitism in their own countries.

These stories are manifest examples of the ways in which Palestine’s voice is continuously undermined within the international community and how it is shaped into the mould of the foreign policy agendas of Western governments. This consequently damages Palestine’s nationalist struggle whilst the Zionist cause is further strengthened.

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

Opinion

30 JANUARY 2019

“Me Me Me Millennials”: We Need You (Because we’re terrified of becoming irrelevant)!

The Resurgence of Russia in Africa Streisand Neto, MSc International Politics

Backhanded compliments? The controversial posters that seem to exclusively target youth (credit: MoD/Crown Copyright/PA)

Monika Radojevic, MSc Development Studies In the recent misjudged advertising campaign by the British Army, ‘snowflakes’, ‘selfie addicts’ and ‘binge gamers’ have been targeted for recruitment, with the ‘politically correct’ adverts focusing on the positive side of being a selfie addict (confidence) or a snowflake (compassion).

This follows a trend of the military institution targeting vulnerable teenagers, particularly from working class backgrounds around GCSE results day, with recruitment ads on social media promising teenagers that grades aren’t everything. The UK is currently the only European country to recruit child soldiers, defined by Child Soldiers International as being “individuals under the age of 18 who are used for any military purpose”. Although 16-17 year olds are not sent to war, they still undergo the same training and militarisation as older recruits. Moreover, Child Soldiers International has also reported that younger recruits have a higher chance of suffering from mental health or behavioural issues.

Most alarmingly, the research also indicates that those who joined at 16 were “twice as likely to die on deployment” than recruits joining at later stages. Minorities and women have also been targeted by specific ads that generously suggest that yes, you can be gay in the army and you can practice your faith, the army welcomes everyone!

In part, the growing concerns over shortages in the army — that are expected to continue — have led to increased inclusivity attempts.

The fact that army recruitment adverts are so normalised reflects the insidious spread of military values, imagery, and ideals into society. General Nick Carter, Chief of General Staff argued in a Guardian interview that appealing to vulnerable or minority groups is an attempt to reflect the UK’s diversity — or, it might simply be an attempt to add more bodies to the barracks in a neatly wrapped inclusivity package. Perhaps, what the army should be focusing on is the issue of militarism itself and its toxic

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

enmeshment with a certain type of masculinity: straight, white, authoritative, and quick to deploy violence to maintain control. Militarism is the belief that the use of violence and force should be used as the best way to maintain and protect national interest, but also, just like hegemonic masculinity, as a way to maintain power and control.

What about the relationship between the army and peace? It is paradoxical that peacekeeping is overwhelmingly militaristic and dominated by army personnel who are trained not in the art of peace, but the art of warfare.

These two things are antithetical, yet are somehow intertwined and institutionalised by the biggest organisation responsible for peace and security: the UN. When those who are trained to elicit and control violence as the most efficient means to an end are placed in charge of spreading peace, things will inevitably be excluded.

Why does this matter? Because the trifecta of dominance, aggression, and violence that is present in the military in general, (which is also overwhelmingly male, 75 percent in the UK as of 2018), becomes internalised in society and promotes an ideology that ensures one demographic will always come out on top. This demographic wields an exclusionary power that decides what kind of attributes a member of the British army must have in order to ‘belong’, which only becomes more and more exclusive the higher up the chain of command you go.

The British army should not be in the habit of recruiting 16 and 17 year olds, nor should they be pushing a line of inclusivity if their inflexible military institutions cannot deliver on their promises. How can the army call itself inclusive when the ‘boys club’ mentality is as pervasive as ever, and the conceptualisation of a British soldier is still very much a white male? A few vague posters and weak attempts to relate to women, working class youth, or ethnic minorities is like sticking a bandaid on a broken leg — meaningless and ineffective.

During the height of the Cold War, the former Soviet Union had considerable importance and ties with different states in Africa, for example, Congo and Angola, where conflicts were apparent: the Soviet Union worked closely with factions in preserving their communist ideals. However, at the end of the Cold War, the Soviet Union collapsed as did their ties with those states.

In spite of this, today’s commentary on Russia portrays them as recapturing their lost influence by connecting again with African states. Tomi Oladipo, an African Security Correspondent, addresses Russia’s cooperation with the Central African Republic by providing them military arms in exchange for CAR’S minerals. The UN put forward an arms embargo against CAR. However, Russia still supported them with military aid, by stating the agreements were part of a “mining exploration” and to be “mutually beneficial.” It accentuates a common trend, and if you consider America’s isolationist strategy, there seems to be a strong impetus from Russia and other non-Western countries to exert and expand their influence, due to the vacuum left by America. Russia’s strategy is contested by analysts, arguing against the so-called transformative approach, believing it to echo a more symbolic nature of Russian power. These economic partnerships does lead one to wonder whether Russia is trying to imprint hegemony on the continent.

“There have been noticeable cases of African countries maximising these economic ties such as Kenya. More African states must follow Kenya’s route to warrant the notion of ‘mutual benefits”.

Russia has established many military partnerships that include Congo, Zimbabwe, and the Central African Republic. All these nations possess materials, which benefit external contractors. Olga Kulkova, Senior Fellow at the Institute for African Studies, highlighted the reinvigoration of relations with countries, for example, Zimbabwe who aligned with the Soviet Republic. She referenced Russia’s interest in Zimbabwe’s mining industry, where Russian corporations such as Rostec are heavily interested. The establishment of bilateral agreements and projects has caused the Western influence to wane. Aaron Ross, a writer for Reuters, addressed the shift in power dynamics between the great powers, with Russia “muscling in on a country dominated by France,” that is CAR. In essence, Russia’s cooperation with African nations could be interpreted as adapting to the changes to solidify these partnerships for both parties to benefit.

Macdonald Dzirutwe, a writer for Reuters, emphasised that the Zimbabwean President, Emerson Mnangagwa promised to “kickstart the economy”. Similarly, Sergey Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister, discussed the prospect “for military and technical cooperation”.

It signifies economic cooperation, which closely ties into an article I wrote earlier concerning China’s Belt and Road Initiative with Chinese corporations establishing relations with developing countries. It does raise another fundamental question – does it extend to the core and periphery relationship?

It derives theoretically from Immanuel Wallerstein, where he accentuates the unequal power relations between developed and developing states. The strength here, is Ronak Golpadas, a director for Signal Risk asserts the tendency of the West to paint emerging countries such as Russia, as “evil” concerning Russia’s impetus in the region. Even with the scepticism from the West, Russia has not fully expanded their influence in Africa. There has not been evidence of Russia playing hard power with African states. Abdi Latif Taher, a reporter for Quartz, highlighted the political changes in the African region, which has altered or somewhat made it harder for Russia to be a pivotal force. Taher’s point holds strong validity since it qualifies the argument of African states possessing agency in the relationship. There have been noticeable cases of African countries maximising these economic ties such as Kenya. More African states must follow Kenya’s route to warrant the notion of ‘mutual benefits.’

Is it not just the case of another scramble for Africa’s resources? I would argue so, yes. The term ‘mutual benefits’ gets tossed around quite a lot by the developed countries when working with non-Western countries. If you consider Russia’s focus in the region, as mentioned above, it does lead one to suggest Russia’s strategy comes at the expense of African sovereignty on their natural resources.

21

30 JANUARY 2019

https://soasspirit.co.uk/category/culture/

Best Films Of 2018

Thomas Underhill, BA Japanese

Culture

Museum

Film

Culture editor: Sumayyah Daisy Lane

Ian Hislop Brings Dissent To The British Museum Khadija Kothia, BA History

(Credit: Creative Commons)

What follows is a list of my 10 or so favourite films of the year (that I’ve seen), that came out in the UK in 2018. It’s all in alphabetical order except for the final entry, which I feel confident in calling my overall favourite.

1. Annihilation–Annihilation marks itself as a great sci-fi by containing several interlocking metaphors that it never attempts to fully explain to the audience, instead putting a lot of trust in them to interpret it as they please. It’s simultaneously a brilliant horror thriller that is as entertaining as it is intellectually stimulating.

2. First Reformed–The stark minimalism of First Reformed’s presentation lies in contrast to the depth of its character and themes. Ethan Hawk’s Reverend Toller is a fascinating selfmartyr, and the film’s examination of the interplay between a man looking for self-sacrifice and a cause that’s urgent enough to justify it is brutal and gripping.

3. Game Night–Game Night is unusual among big budget comedies for its tight script and inventive visuals. While indie comedies have been pushing the boat out for a while with how they make films visually funny, most rely too heavily on the improv of the leads. Game Night’s story of a murder mystery party gone wrong takes lessons from both schools of filmmaking to great effect.

4. Lady Bird–While Greta Gerwig’s other films have sometimes leaned too heavily on the soft-spoken comedy of a certain class of New Yorkers, her foray into a California high school proves that she can work outside of that field. Lady Bird manages to touch on parenthood, class, and sex without ever feeling cluttered or messy. Instead, it’s funny, sweet, and melancholic.

5. Shirkers–The story of Sandi Tan’s Shirkers, in which the director recounts her days making a film as a teenager in Singapore, is less immediately gripping than some other documentaries, but its strong sense of the personal helps its smaller plot twists hit much harder.

6. Shoplifters–Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Shoplifters, in which a family of thieves kidnaps a young girl, sounds on paper like the plot of a twisted thriller, but Kore-eda plays it more as an ode to family, specifically the ones we make for ourselves. There’s a melancholic undercurrent to the whole film, but the overriding feeling is one of a very real warmth.

7. Sorry To Bother You–Boots Riley’s anger at the increasingly messed up system we’re all trapped in fuels Sorry to Bother You, a bizarre Swiftian satire about working in a call centre.

The visuals here are inventive and energetic enough to force you into accepting the increasingly strange world it presents.

8. Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse–Superhero films seem to be increasingly the dominant cinematic medium, but the one that impressed me the most this year was Spiderverse.

Its animation is beautiful to look at and allows for a lot of unusual and exciting shifts in style.

The plot, in which multiple Spider-people collide in one universe also allows the film-makers to show off their understanding of what makes Spider-Man so relatable.

9. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs–The Coen Brothers’ Western anthology movie shows little signs of being a cut down TV series and manages to work as a cohesive whole surprisingly well. The stories are all connected by the familiar Coen theme of the futility of life, and the Western is the perfect genre to showcase that. (And if you’re curious about my favourite segment, it’s probably the titular Buster Scruggs).

10. Phantom Thread–Phantom Thread, my favourite film of 2018, is one of the most gorgeous films I’ve ever seen. Each shot is stunning, but the real trick is in how every part of the aesthetic works so well. The score by Johnny Greenwood, for example, is full of haunting leitmotifs that are constantly rearranged to fit the delicately balanced tonal shifts.

The central romance between Daniel Day-Lewis’ Reynolds Woodcock, and Vicky Krieps’ Alma is unique and often troubled, but writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson finds the beauty in it. And Phantom Thread’s beauty is so overpowering that it’s not only my favourite film of this year, but one of my favourite films ever.

The full version of this article can be found on Thomas’ blog toatalireviews.com.

22

The discourse surrounding institutions such as The British Museum has been brought into the spotlight over the past few months.

It was interesting to see an exhibition centred on political dissent in a museum under so much controversy for its role in upholding imperial power. Ian Hislop is the Editor of The Private Eye, a political satire magazine and regular figure on the BBC’s “Have I Got More News For You”. His exhibition drew out the satirical sentiments in acts of dissent across the world, albeit with a focus on Britain.

Here are my top picks from the exhibition: 1. This statuette of a man on a toilet was part of a group of stone figurines purchased by the Museum in the 1930s. Said to be from ancient Yemen, they were later identified as fakes. What makes the mockery a little more personal was (Credit: Khadija Kothia) that these figurines were deliberately made to mock the trade of antiquities and highlight that just about anything can sell for a ton of money if it looks ‘antique’ enough.

2. As if being prosecuted for being a satirical publisher wasn’t enough to stop Charles Philipon in 1831, the French satirist spent his time in prison arguing against the absurdity of his prosecution by drawing King Louis Philipe I (Credit: Khadija Kothia) as a pear. If the King looking like a pear was a mockery, then all pears should be prosecuted. He lost his case, but in nineteenth century Paris, pears took centre stage as images of the King across the city.

3. Perhaps these are not so eye-catching as objects of dissent, but in my opinion, they are extremely effective. Above are a few examples of the global and historical uses of currency for political dissent. The coin edged

with a hanging pope originated from 18th century Britain, while the note displays the ripped out face of Ghaddafi during the 2011 Libyan Uprising. Dissent through (Credit: Khadija Kothia) currency is a unique form of protest. It is subtle yet poignant, and the message is easily spread far and wide.

4. In 2017, millions of women marched worldwide in support of women’s rights.

‘Pussyhats’ like the hat pictured above were a common sight, worn by thousands to reclaim the misogynistic term for female genitalia–a word which President (Credit: Khadija Kothia) Trump had used in a leaked interview to boast about assaulting women.

5. Wherever there is political satire, Banksy is never far away. In 2005, a ‘cave painting’ appeared in one of the galleries in The British Museum.

It was even given a fake identifica(Credit: Khadija Kothia) tion number and label, and took the museum three days to realise the hoax. Even then, it took a feature on Banksy’s website to realise that cavemen didn’t use shopping trolleys.

Final thoughts: Hislop’s exhibition of political objection is refreshingly lighthearted, diverse and does well to demonstrate the scope of dissent throughout history. The exhibition reinforces the historical uniqueness of satire in continuously giving power and a voice to the masses. In my heart of hearts, an exhibit mocking The British Museum’s colonial history and looted artefacts would have been the most satirical and outrageously brilliant centrepiece of this exhibition, but perhaps there is a line at which acceptable dissent is drawn?

The exhibition was held between 6 September 2018 to 20 January 2019.

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

Culture

Film

30 JANUARY 2019

The Golden Globes: Award Season Has Begun

Zahra Banday, BA English

(Credit: Creative Commons)

It’s that time of year again where the red carpet is rolled out and glitterati emerge to celebrate one thing: themselves. Yes, award season has officially begun. Starting off the onslaught was the 76th Annual Golden Globes Awards. Hosted by Sandra Oh (“Killing Eve”) and Andy Samberg (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”), the show opened with a slew of some funny some not-so-funny jokes from the pair. A particular mention

should go to Oh’s quip, that “Crazy Rich Asians” is “the first studio film with an Asian American lead since Ghost in the Shell and Aloha” to which Emma Stone could be heard in the background shouting, “I’m sorry”.

At the end of the monologue, Oh touchingly noted that she only took on the challenge of hosting because she wanted to “look out to the audience and witness this moment of change”. However, she soberly adds that, “I’m not fooling myself, next year it could be different, it probably will be but right now this moment is real”. Perhaps, in a time where gargantuan strides are taken in the forms of films like “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Black Panther”, there is also a level of trepidation, that you have to hold on tight to these moments because the cold reality is that they might not happen again.

Inclusivity and accountability are relatively new movements in Hollywood, and perhaps Oh was reflecting on the constant fight that must continue for this to become a fixed reality in the industry.

Favourite to win and Bradley Cooper’s baby, “A Star is Born”, lost Best Drama Motion Picture to Rami Malek’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”. Just proving that if there are a hundred people in the room and ninety-nine don’t believe in you, but all it takes is one…you still won’t win best picture.

The rest of the night was less political than it had been in

previous years, there was no grand presidential speech from Oprah nor did every woman wear black in solidarity with Time’s Up, and there were hardly any badges to catch the lenses of cameras. Grand moments like the inaugural Carol Burnett Award, given to the comedy legend herself as the first recipient, were just disappointing. Burnett focused more on the state of television and how they didn’t make em’ like they used to, rather than her achievements as a woman in the male dominated arena of comedy. However, some light was found in Regina King’s speech, as she won Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture for If Beale Street Could Talk”. King addressed the importance of actors speaking out at these types of events noting that celebrities have bigger microphones to get the message out to a wider audience than most. She also made a vow that everything she will go onto produce in the next two years will be “fifty percent women”, and she challenged all industries to “stand in solidarity”.

In recent years, award shows have become markers of how much progress has been made not only within the industry, but in the wider world. Oh, the first Asian to host the Golden Globes and also the first Asian woman to win two awards, represents that progress has been made but the fight is far from over. Only time will tell if the fast-approaching Oscars will continue on in this apolitical vein.

Film

Shoplifters Is First Japanese Film To Win Cannes Film Festival In Over Two Decades Azeem Rajulawalla, BA History This year’s winner of the big prize Palme D’Or at the Cannes Film Festival went to Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda’s “Shoplifters”, a social drama about a makeshift, povertystricken family relying on shoplifting to survive in Tokyo. The first Japanese film to win the Palme D’Or since 1997, Jury president Cate Blanchett said “we were completely bowled over by ‘Shoplifters’; how intermeshed the performances were with the directorial vision”. From my own viewing, I can confirm Blanchett was right. Heartwarming and heartbreaking, “Shoplifters” takes social issues and addresses them not with a grand political statement, but instead, through genuine human connection and relationships. It takes a humanist filmmaker like Kore-eda to approach the subject matter so effectively and intimately.

I recently had the opportunity to interview Kore-eda at the BAFTA offices in Piccadilly, alongside my podcast* co-host, Adam Solomons. It was a short interview as Kore-eda was preparing to rush off to catch the Eurostar immediately after. Nevertheless, the brevity did not impact the meeting’s profundity. …

Kore-eda enters the room with his translator in a slight rush, clutching his bag in his left hand and searching for the printout of his Eurostar ticket with his right hand. He finds the crumpled copy and holds it up in relief, to which his translator comments in Japanese. After this, he’s able to relax. He greets us warmly, with a soft handshake and a gentle smile, and sits down. Although the interview is a short one, and likely with the least experienced interviewers he’s had during this press tour, he is leant forward, giving his full attention in preparation.

We opened by asking him about morality in the film, and whether the grey areas that the characters inhabit was his primary thematic focus of the film. After each question is translated into Japanese, there’s a short moment of silence as Kore-eda attempts to articulate himself.

“There wasn’t a deliberate intentional morality tale,” Kore-eda says, “But as I was filming, the moment the family begins to disintegrate is when the boy starts feeling guilty about what he’s doing and doubting what he’s doing. That’s when the family starts to disintegrate internally. But also, that’s the boy’s morality. There’s also a morality from the police, and the outside morality about what you could say as ‘justice’, but those two moralities, I think, you could say as different moralities.”

Kore-eda has previously spoken about how he was interested in how people were greatly frustrated with the idea of petty crime such as shoplifting and pension, yet were less outraged by more serious white-collar crimes. It is clear from his film he means to change the opinions, giving us an insider’s look into something which, from the outside, would seem very strange

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

and alien to us. From this, he finds the common humanity in us all. It is this same artistic quality that Kore-eda shares with one of his influences, Ken Loach. Loach recently won the Palme D’Or in 2016 for “I, Daniel Blake”, a social family drama about people living on unemployment and support allowance. When asked about what he admires about Loach’s work, a beaming smile emerges on Kore-eda’s face. He says that he admires “the way (Loach) views humanity, and how generous that is”. Kore-eda stresses that Loach “maintains a low viewing point — he’s not looking down — but he maintains a grounded position”. It’s clear that this is something Kore-eda also channels in his own work, and it creates a naturalism which is maintained visually and through the actors.

One method Kore-eda used to create this naturalistic acting was by not giving the actors a full understanding of what they were doing. “They were never given a script,” he says, “So they came to the shooting without knowing what the story is. So, they’d come on set and we’d tell them what we’re going to do, what we’re going to film. So that’s quite fun to be around, but eventually the grandmother dies, so for them it’s fun to begin with, and then, you know… Of course it’s fiction! But I shoot in a way so they can live that moment as we shoot, that’s how I do it. And it’s almost like life”. …

Immediately after our interview, Kore-eda grabbed his coat and bag and was whisked away to catch his train to Paris, off to make what is likely to be his next masterpiece, starring Ethan Hawke. In the meantime, it’s essential that his most recent gift to us gets the audience it deserves.

Shoplifters is out in cinemas now. *You can listen to Pod Fuzz, my podcast on films, on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Soundcloud now.

(Credit: Creative Commons)

23

30 JANUARY 2019

New Year, New Clothes? Think Again.

Maliha Shoaib, BA English and World Philosophies

Fashion

When pushing the restart button for the New Year, we often feel pressured to give our lives a makeover – from a new hobby, to a new diet, to new clothes to fit an improved self. Yet, if our clothes reflect our identities, shouldn’t we be as concerned with ethical fashion as we are with self-expression?

Clothes tell stories – and the stories behind fast fashion pieces neither begin nor end happily ever after. Fast fashion is an enterprise manufactured to entice us. Retailers create demand by manufacturing trends so our wardrobes become obsolete. We become fashion victims, trapped in a vicious cycle of consumption. With the anticipation of reward, inflated value of sale items, and pleasure of immediate gratification, addicted consumers turn a blind eye to unethical practices. Fashion isn’t just fast – it’s disposable. It has to keep up with the perpetual dissatisfaction of consumerist culture. With the moral pollution of the consumer comes the equal pollution of the environment and abuse of workers for cheap labour.

The West’s desire for profit in exchange for the exploitation of workers from the so-called ‘Third World’ is a familiar story. An intersectional approach is essential to understanding the true cost of fast fashion. Sweatshops operate by exploiting structural poverty, and with this inevitably comes age, gender and class discrimination.

Harassment in the workplace, including workers being beaten by employers in Bangladesh and shot by police in Cambodia, demonstrates that sweatshop conditions are inhumane and degrading.

Skilled workers are expected to work like machines. According to the Garment Worker Diaries report on factories in Bangladesh, the majority of workers felt unsafe in their working environment. Additionally, workers were not guaranteed a monthly salary or minimum wage. One cheap fast fashion item alone often costs more than an entire month’s salary, with most workers making £25 a month even with 60-hour working weeks and additional illegal overtime. Tragically, in most cases it would take adding less than £1 to the recommended retail price of each garment in order to secure better working conditions.

With increased demand for clothes comes a higher rate of production. In the past 20 years the number of clothing items produced has increased by 400 percent at 80 billion items per year – yet we keep these clothes for half as long as we did then. We are buying more than we can wear. Modern ‘throwaway’ culture has led to over 300,000 tonnes of clothing in landfill and £4.6 billion worth of unworn clothes in our wardrobes. Our unsustainable shopping habits have led to an overflow of cheap dyed fabric whose chemicals pollute our waters, contaminating soil and causing crop failure. The fashion industry is the world’s second biggest polluter after oil, making up 20 percent of water pollution. And the environmental effects hit harder on those in the ‘Third World’, leaving them doubly oppressed as we continue to demand more.

“We are buying more than we can wear.

Modern ‘throwaway’ culture has led to £4.6 billion worth of unworn clothes in our wardrobes.”

The reality is that unsustainability in the fashion industry surpasses the individual. It is a macro-level institutional structure in our capitalist society that can only be truly combatted when manufacturers and investors start putting the planet and its people first.

However, there are some minor steps we can take using our purchasing power to diminish the harm done. We must learn to value the items we already have, mending and altering when needed instead of purchasing more goods from fast fashion retailers. Furthermore, when purchasing it is important not to give in to the pressures and marketing ploys of the fast fashion industry. Trends don’t last forever.

Seek out second-hand items and ensure that the clothes we dispose of have a new home. Only 10 percent of clothes in charity shops get sold while the rest end up in landfills, so selling online or swapping with friends is favourable. We must demand transparency from an industry that thrives upon suffering. Make a fashion statement: buy less; buy sustainably. It’s totally in.

SOAS Student Street Style

GEORGE

“My style is a mixture of streetwear, Japanese Americano, Japanese street style, and Scandi and British minimalism and workwear. The main thing I like in my outfit is my Universal Works trousers.

I really like Universal Works as a brand because they do a modern take on traditional items.”

24

CAROLINE “My staple piece for the winter is my big coat – I wear it every day. I like how it’s so big and long, and it makes me feel really confident and powerful when I’m walking in the street – like I’m not hiding.”

‘Call the Midwife’ Actress Criticises #MeToo Victims.

TV

Fashion

Culture

Zahra Banday, BA English

(Credit: Creative Commons)

‘ Call the Midwife’ actress Jenny Agutter has recently come out criticising victims of the #MeToo movement. Talking to the Radio Times, Agutter discussed how she doesn’t “fully understand” how these women could be sexually assaulted.

She stated, “I never fully understood the people who got themselves into problems.

In the States, there were occasions when you might be asked to go to a private screening or someone’s place and you just didn’t do it – unless you found the person very attractive, in which case you did do it. But if they’re not really attractive, there’s nothing to be gained from it, because it’s obvious what you’re indicating by going”.

Alongside this Agutter states that its “terrible” of these men to use their power in that way and that it is “wrong, no question about it”. However, the implication is still there that if a woman does not want to get sexually abused she should not show up alone to any private meeting with a man. In short, this is clear victim-blaming.

Photographers: Maliha Shoaib, BA English and World Philosophies Uswa Ahmed, BA World Philosophies

FRANCES “My favourite item that I’m wearing is this coat because it is affordable.”

ROZA

(Credit All: Maliha Shoaib and Uswa Ahmed)

“I really like trench coats – I fell in love with this one because it’s thick, raw denim, and it’s really structured. I like how this denim coat has body to it – the silhouette is different from your average denim jacket.”

LUCY

“My favourite item that I’m wearing is my tote bag – it’s from my home country, Myanmar. It’s my friend’s brand – it’s called Living Freaks.

I modeled for them when I was there so they gave me a bag and it’s become my favourite piece.”

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

30 JANUARY 2019 Societies and Sport Editor: Holly Sampson https://soasspirit.co.uk/category/societiesandsport/

Societies & Sport

SOAS Syrian Society

A Long Way From Home: Should I Stay Or Should I Go Now?

Why should you return to a place that no longer welcomes you?

Jacob Loose, MA International Studies and Diplomacy Speaking at a SOAS Syrian Society event on ‘Reconstruction, Politics, and Justice in PostWar Syria’, Mr Ibrahim Olabi said that for ordinary Syrians there is “no real, genuine choice between leaving and staying”. If they remain, they will have to join the Syrian army and potentially follow orders to attack civilians. As a consultant for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Syria, and founder of the Syrian Legal Development Programme, which provides legal training to Syrian NGOs, Olabi is well qualified to make this assertion.

Olabi went on to argue that when the media and host governments suggest some parts of Syria are now safe for refugees to return, they are ignoring the reality on the ground. Fellow speaker and Syrian architect, Sawsan Abou Zainedin, made a powerful case, explaining how the Syrian government has used this civil war to start the process of rebuilding. She argues the rebuilding process has deliberately excluded refugee populations, as laws have passed to allow many

refugee-owned properties to be ‘redeveloped’.

It is understandable that Syria’s neighbouring countries, which have taken in the most refuges, will strongly make the argument that, as soon as Syria is safe, populations should return home. However, returning home to find your apartment block bulldozed, and being forced to join the Syrian army does not constitute a safe return.

While both speakers built strong arguments about why return was impossible at this stage for millions of Syrians, it was the reaction of the audience that was the most powerful. A number of audience members introduced themselves by the job they had been doing in Syria and were visibly moved by these presentations. One said that they “don’t know what to return to” and questioned why they should return to a place that no longer welcomes them.

I was reminded of this audience reaction when I more recently attended an event on the Rwandan diaspora community hosted by the International Organisation for Migration.

This was the first in depth study of the Rwandan population in the UK, many of whom will have initially fled the country during the 1994 genocide. At this event, the project’s

Ibrahim Olabi and Sawsan Abou Zainedin at a SOAS Syrian Society Event. (Credit: SOAS Syria Society)

leaders were explicitly welcoming Rwandans to return home and contribute their specialised professional experience. There was a large student population in the audience with many viewing Rwanda as their homeland despite growing up in the UK. One student asked for support, wondering how she could

FIFA Women’s World Cup And Prize Money Inequality in sport - are women worth less?

Simone Both, PG Near and Middle Eastern Studies In less than 200 days, the FIFA Women’s World Cup will start in France. The tournament will be held between 7 June and 7 July in multiple cities all over the country such as Lyon, Nice, Montpellier and, of course, Paris.

Halfway through November, the Dutch team was the last team to claim a European ticket for the World Cup. The other European countries that have managed to qualify over the last few weeks are England, Germany, Italy, Norway, Scotland, Spain and Sweden. Even though the Dutch team is one of the favourites for the title, Japan, the United States, and Brazil are also favourites.

One issue that gets increasing attention each tournament is the inequality between male and female football players on different levels. For example, the Women’s World Cup happened for the first time in 1991, more than 60 years after the first World Cup for male national teams.

Additionally, there is much talk about the inequalities in salary. A BBC Sport Study from 2017 has shown that the gender pay gap among athletes has considerably narrowed, especially in the last three years. Of the 44 sports governing bodies that responded to participate in the research, 35 of them pay equal prize money to male and female athletes. These are sports of all ranks,

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

such as sailing, figure skating, Taekwondo and gymnastics.

Sports that still have unequal payments are, for example, cliff diving, snooker, darts, cricket (in the World Cup £3,1 million for men and £470.000 for women), cycling, golf and some surf tournaments.

However, the numbers for football stand out. In the World Cup, men receive the winning prize money of £35 million whilst the total prize money for women was £2 million. In the Champions League, the differences are even greater. Where women earn £219.920, men can earn 60 times as much, up to £13 million. This means that male athletes in football can be millionaires while their female counterparts are struggling to make a minimum salary.

‘Lionesses’ of the Dutch team with superstar Lieke Martens (Best FIFA Women’s Player 2017). (Credit: Creative Commons)

go back and make a positive difference.

The Rwandan diaspora community can perhaps provide an example for Syria’s future. If home can one day be made a welcoming and safe place again, skilled professionals will be willing to return and play a role in the reconstruction process.

The imbalances are not only caused by salaries. Sponsorship is a great cause of keeping the imbalance as it is a way for some female athletes to make up for the gender pay gap.

When one looks at the Forbes’ list of the 100 richest athletes, it is clearly still a ‘boys club’. Last year, Serena Williams was the only female on the list. However, this year she was no longer featured as she has been less active in tournaments due to the birth of her daughter Alexis. Despite earning $18 million from sponsorship deals and endorsement, Serena Williams still did not earn to make it to the list.

Even though equality of prize money is still not accomplished in all sports, we have to look at what has been accomplished over the last decades. In 1973, not a single sport paid the same prize money for male and female athletes but through the years, a growing number of sports associations equalized prize money. If this research does not change anything, perhaps we should look at how the Norway Football Association dealt with the gender pay gap. The male players donated over £50,000 of their earnings to the women’s teams so they could focus fully on their sport careers and are not be obligated to have other jobs. This way they can fully prepare themselves for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2019. Thus it can be seen that, whilst some actions are being taken to create a more level playing field, there is still so much more that needs to be done to ensure gender equality in sport.

25

Societies & Sport

30 JANUARY 2019

Society Spotlight: Varsity 2019 Rohan Mapara, LLB Law Holly Sampson, BA Middle Eastern Studies and World Philosophies This year Varsity returns for the third time, bigger and better! Kicking off on Monday, 25 February with Rugby in the evening, we are in for a tight competition after a narrow win by SOAS last year.

Varsity is a multi-match competition between two rival universities. The competition is confined to a certain time frame, which is three days for us, and contains a jam-packed schedule of different sports matches. The Varsity that SOAS competes in is called the North London Varsity and our rival university is London Met. The kind of sports that you can expect to see range from pool and video games to rugby and netball. There are badminton, tennis and volleyball teams that compete as well as women’s rugby.

London Met is a fierce competitor against SOAS and, although we often play at their facilities, we always have massive amounts of support to rival their home advantage. Despite being a third of the size of London Met, SOAS Sports and their supporters always put on a fantastic show and Varsity is always an incredibly close result, with an exciting match to end the three-day tournament with cheerleaders and all!

This year Varsity will be taking place from 25 to 27 February at a variety of

locations. If you want to be kept up to date on all the latest timings, locations and results make sure you are following SOAS Sports on Instagram and Facebook!

Another aspect of Varsity which everyone gets excited about are the opening and closing parties. Once more, SOAS will be hosting the opening party on 20 February and London Met will be in charge of throwing an epic closing party on 27 February.

Anybody can take part in Varsity, which is part of the reason why it is so great. We will need people to compete in teams that only form for Varsity, such as pool, as well as for the teams that already compete regularly. So, if you are interested in taking part, keep an eye out for details on the SOAS Sports social media accounts. Varsity is a SOAS Women’s Netball Team playing in Varsity 2018. (Credit: SOAS Varsity) great thing to come along and watch, but it Last year also saw us tackle not only the after two 9-0 victories in the last two years. is an even better experience to participate London Met Sea of Red, but also the Beast After a season of ups and downs this would in—and you get a free t-shirt! from the East. With supporters having to be a great way to finish, Varsity is one our Where Varsity goes, so does the gossip and drama. Each year there are exciting walk to London Met facilities, matches that biggest events of the year and we always matches and tantalising moments when could be played indoors continued and had enjoy competing against the London Met scores tot up as the competition progresses. a large supporter base. However, due to badminton team.

The netball match last year had everyone on matches such as Rugby and Football being This year we need everyone to get the edge of their seats as the score at final cancelled, there was a debate about the behind the SOAS Warriors and provide time was 39-39. However, with it being Var- final score of Varsity last year, and it is still support at every event from rugby to pool; debated about who won. This means that every point counts towards taking down sity, there is no way that this match could this year, these teams are keen to show what London Met’s Sea of Red in style! As both be left as a tie. Extra time was added and everyone held their breath to see the results. they are capable of and to prove who should sides have won Varsity once, it is even more have won Varsity 2018. important this year that we secure that win.

Unfortunately, it was not in our favour but the excitement of the match and the quality As the badminton captain, I am excited So, if you around from 25 to 27 February, of play by the Netball team meant that it to compete in Varsity this year. This year, get involved and come along to support was one of the most memorable and most if we can hold it together and get a win, it your fellow students in the biggest sporting watched matches of last year. will be our third Varsity victory in a row event of the year!

SOASk Me Out Does

Valentines Day Holly Sampson, BA Middle Eastern Studies and Development Valentine’s Day is upon us and this year SOASk Me Out are working on a special event to spread joy and love around the SOAS campus. With the aim to help raise money for Teenage Cancer Trust, Valentine’s Hearts are going to become the new way to announce your SOAS crush. It is time to go back to the time before Facebook, a tragic time without the presence of SOASk Me Out, to the old-fashioned days of pen and paper.

So, how does it work? For £1 you can buy a ‘love heart’ on one side of which you write a message to your loved one and include their name and student ID number on the

26

other. Once completed, you can deliver your love heart to one of the special post boxes around SOAS. They will then be collected and your loved one will receive an email on Thursday 7th February telling them to come and collect their heart, and a cute little gift, on Friday 8th February. All anonymous, all romantic and all for charity!

Valentine’s Hearts will go on sale on Monday 28th January at various locations and times, so keep an eye on the SOASk Me Out page for more details!

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

Societies & Sport

30 JANUARY 2019

Andy Murray Announces Retirement Ania Gricuk, BA Chinese and History

In the life of every tennis enthusiast there comes a moment when you witness the beginning of the career of a burgeoning new player. It seems you have been with them all the way; from the start of their journey to stardom, through the ups and downs of the rocky road that is the ATP tour, their major, career-defining titles and of course, the holy grail of every tennis player’s life, the Grand Slam title. When the player you’ve been cheering for finally hoists the US Open trophy or gives that tear-jerking victory speech after winning the final of Wimbledon, it seems like you are partaking in the glory of the demigod you have been looking up to for so long. Once they maintain a position at the top of the ATP tour ranking, in your mind they are unstoppable. And as the years go by, you start to forget that the gruelling, unforgiving pursuit that is the career of a professional athlete is, in fact, a tough, mental and physical challenge. When the time comes for them to announce their retirement, it seems like an end of an era, not only in the world of tennis but in your life as a tennis fan as well.

And most importantly, you realise the hero that you have admired since you first picked up a racket, is just as human as the rest of us.

For many young tennis fans, especially those who grew up in the United Kingdom, their adventure with the racket sport was connected with Andy Murray in the way described above. The announcement of the Scot’s retirement this year reminded all of us that the player we grew up idolising has truly given his everything to the sport he loves. In the past decade, it was impossible to ignore any figure, who could challenge the reign of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. The young

Scottish player reached his first grand slam final at the US open in 2008. Four years later, the whole world was uttering his name as he won Olympic gold for Britain and later the US Open, becoming the first British player since 1977, and the first British man since 1936, to win a Grand Slam singles tournament. A year later, Andy warmed the hearts of millions waving the Union Jack by becoming the first British male in 77 years to win the crowning jewel of every UK-based tennis fan, Wimbledon Championship. Not wanting to keep his homeland waiting another 77 years, Murray brought the nation to shed tears of joy once more by winning Wimbledon in 2016. He was crowned the winner of the ATP finals the same year.

Apart from his incredible successes on the tour and awakening patriotic sentiments on the British Isles, Andy is credited for his distinctive defensive style of playing, tactical abilities and awe-inspiring determination.

One of his biggest strengths as a player was his fierceness that manifested itself in the long, tough rallies he frequently engaged in. His trademark ‘never give up’ mentality was essential in his clearly defensive style of play. But Andy is known for being more Andy Murray, two time winner of Wimbeldon, is set to retire. (Credit: Credit Commons) than just a gritty defender. He can read the game really well, which allowed him to play Number 1 battle the injury for many years. would love to make the British Grand long rallies against top players despite not In 2017, Murray had to withdraw from Slam his last tournament. If he is unable having a very strong forehand. His ability to Wimbledon because of excruciating pain. He to continue playing until the summer, his anticipate other players’ shots and tactically underwent surgery on his hip in January last match against Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut employ volleys and drop shots inspired all of year and is planning to try another procein the first round of the Australian Open us to focus more on improving match tactics. dure, which although is hoped to alleviate could be his last performance in a Grand Murray’s characteristic defensive style the pain, will not be able to save his career.

Slam. Although it ended in Murray’s defeat, brought him many moments of glory, but it On 10 January 2019, after what must have it was a five-set battle that reflected what he was also one of the reasons he began sufferbeen a tremendously difficult time, the Scot is know for best—being a fierce, defensive ing from a painful hip injury so early in his announced that he is planning to retire. It player who gives his everything until the career. Although the details of the source is still uncertain whether Murray will play very last shot. of the pain are mainly unknown to the in this year’s Wimbledon, but the former From all of us at SOAS Tennis, thank you public, we have witnessed the former World champion of the grass court exclaimed he and farewell, Andy!

Review

SOAS Drama Society

Drama Society Presents “Small Craft Warnings”

Laura Wormington, Graduate Diploma in Economics On 14 December, I joined a small, buzzing crowd in the Djam Lecture Theatre for the SOAS Drama Society’s production of Tennessee Williams’ “Small Craft Warnings” — their first major performance of the academic year produced by this year’s society president, Oscar Ward.

The single-act, hour-long, darkly comic play — one of Williams’ lesser known — was an interesting choice. But despite its lack of narrative arc, the cast managed to sustain dynamism throughout with the unfurling and occasional collisions of the ten characters who are occupiers of a down-and-out bar in 1980s California.

Small craft warnings refer to alerts issued by the US Coast Guard to protect small vessels from dangers at sea. During the play, the

wonderfully sardonic Robert Bleibtreu, as Doc, jokes that the bar-goers themselves are like small crafts: vulnerable and harbouring in the bar for safety. Indeed, maritime themes and metaphors pervade the drama, emphasised subtly on stage with choices of blue lighting, ambient sounds, and nautical costume choices.

The scene began with a delicate rendition of a sea shanty by Violet, a regular at the bar, played by Sarah Hughes who brought a diaphanous, childlike vulnerability to the part. At the heart of the action was the American-Irish beautician Leona, played by Rebecca Larney. With the lethal combination of gentle charm and thunderous rage, employed by Larney with masterful contrast, Leona is as tempestuous as an ocean storm, lulling her subjects into intimate confessions and then scattering them into disarray.

In the wake of these two enigmatic women, the various male characters were

WWW.SOASSPIRIT.CO.UK

sent floundering and at first seemed more peripheral. But as was gradually revealed through a pastiche of classic Tennessee Williams soliloquies, each had a story to tell. These were all conveyed with great humanity and depth as the actors thoughtfully explored the awkward terrain of human tragedy, from loneliness and death to repressed homosexual desire.

Credit must be given to the directors, Neetika Kurup and Abrar Agboatwala, and the crew for their impressive and moving rendering of this challenging play. Follow the society for news on upcoming productions — if “Small Craft Warnings” is anything to go by, you won’t want to miss out on their next. You can find them on Facebook at SOAS Drama Society.

27

Societies & Sport

30 JANUARY 2019

SOAS Warriors Fixtures List

Come and support the SOAS Warriors at our home games! All information is accurate at the time of printing.

Please check https://www.bucs.org.uk/BucsCore/InstitutionProfile.aspx?id=146 for accurate information closer to the time of the matches.

03/02

10/02

24/02

11/03

1st Team vs RSM 2pm PB @ Lee Valley Hockey & Tennis Centre

First Team vs RVC 12pm @ Market Road

1st Team vs St Marys 1:30pm PB @ Lee Valley Hockey & Tennis Centre

1st Team vs Barts 5:45pm @ Highbury Fields 2nd Team vs Person College 5:45pm @ Highbury Fields

SOAS Mixed Hockey

SOAS Women’s Football

1st Team vs Greenwich 12pm @ Market Road

SOAS Women’s Football

13/02

SOAS Men’s Rugby

1st Team vs Kings 2pm @ Honor Oak Park

04/02

18/02

First Team vs Royal Holloway 5:45pm @ Highbury Fields

1st Team vs LSE 6:30pm @ Highbury Fields 2nd Team vs RSM 5:45pm @ Highbury Fields

SOAS Women’s Netball

06/02

SOAS Women’s Netball

1st Team vs Goldsmiths 5:15pm @ Highbury Fields

SOAS Men’s Rugby

First Team vs LSE 2pm @ Regent’s Park

SOAS Women’s Netball

20/02

SOAS Women’s Netball

1st Team vs Medway 6:30pm @ Highbury Fields 2nd Team vs QMUL 5:15pm @ Highbury Fields

SOAS Mixed Hockey

25/02

SOAS Women’s Netball

1st Team vs Imperial 5:45pm @ Highbury Fields

SOAS Women’s Netball

17/03

SOAS Women’s Football 1st Team vs UCL RUMS 12pm @ Market Road

27/02

SOAS Men’s Rugby

1st Team vs West London 2pm @ Ealing Trailfinders RFC

03/03

SOAS Women’s Football

1st Team vs HULT IBS 12pm @ Market Road

(Credit: Credit Commons)

Join your student-run newspaper!

Interested in journalism, writing, design, or photography? Want to gain valuable experience to pursue a career in the media or publishing?

Want to express your opinions?

Email spirit@soas.ac.uk to find out about your student-run newspaper!

The SOAS Spirit is your independent student-run newspaper; an on campus presence since 1936.

We publish monthly throughout the term.

We have opportunities to join our team as a writer, photographer, and much more.

: @soasspirit

SOAS SPIRIT