Life360 2 2012 by Tim Holmes

Plus! Investment

HINTS

for young professionals Issue 2

wwww.jomec.co.uk/life360/

‘I didn’t think I would make it alive ’ A Tibetan refugee

12 March 2012

Money matters How to make the most of

tells his story

your savings

ive s u l c Ex ew i v r e int

E-books boom

Gay activists in homophobic Kenya

The end of the road for libraries?

S T C I L F N O C 5 rld o w r u o e k a h s t a h t s e u s s social i

World news

Debate

Tech

Quiz

Photo story

Reviews

What Social Issue bothers you the most? This is what Team Life 360 had to say -

12 March 2012, Issue 2

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Timothy Holmes

CONTRIBUTORS Davina Ogwu Oda Gilleberg Paul Dharamraj Segolene Scheuer Shen Wu

DESIGNERS Alex Thackrah Marcela Kunova Shu Liu Tanika Godbole Yanfei Ding

PUBLISHERS Cassie Gao Magda Anna Lusinska Shavy Malhotra Suzan Huijgen Xiao Cao

PHOTOGRAPHY Ric e Ette tnguyen FOGLibraries Alexliivet

CONSULTANTS 2

Jane Bentley Simon Williams

Life 360 Issue 2

Special Edition - Social Issues

12th March 2012

CONTENTS

On the cover:

Page 11 Page 8

Page 7

Page 6

1. Immigration A refugee’s Tale 2. Gay Rights Exclusive Interview with Gay Activists in Kenya 3. Financial Crisis Make the most of your money 4. Euthnasia Right or Wrong? 5.Technology Overload Are Libraries becoming obsolete

5 Social Issues that shake our world..

Pages 4 and 5 NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD A look at what’s happening around the globe Page 6 Technology The new BLACKBERRY PORSCHE Smartphone wonder or epic sales dud? Q and A: Are libraries becoming obsolete?With Sophie Westwood, Library Assistant Page 7 EXCLUSIVE Interview with gay activists in Kenya Pages 8 and 9 Life 360 tells you how to MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR MONEY inMoney Matters - feature

Page 10 Take our QUIZ the Economic Crisis:How much do you remember? Pages 11 - 13 A Refugee’s Tale - Feature Tendar Tsering recounts his escape from TIBET Pages 14 - 15 Photostory WHAT DO YOUR SHOES SAY? Match the shoes with the story they tell Pages 16 - 17 Life REVIEWS: This month’s guide to art, entertainment, culture. EUTHNASIA - from both sides. 3

L i f e N e w s

CANADA Study proves link between low IQ and racism Researchers at Brock University, Canada, have found that children with lower intelligence tend to grow up to be racist and socially conservative adults. Persons with weaker cognitive abilities tend to be attracted to rightwing ideologies, which in turn have a strong correlation with prejudice towards homosexuals By Oda Gilleberg

Unite State school shooting rampage Gun shoot in Chardon High School, Ohio, the USA causing at least one dead and four injured. The witness says a student brought a gun to school and he was acting alone. The school is on lockdown after the shooting. According to a police officer, evidence has been collected and statement taken from the individuals. by Shen Wu

News from Aro

UK: Murdoch junior steps down As of Wednesday 29 February James Murdoch is no longer executive chairman of News International, the British arm of News Corporation. Rupert Murdoch’s son is relocating to New York where he will retain responsibilities for overseeing various television businesses worldwide. James Murdoch has been under pressure following allegations that he was aware of phone hacking at the News of the World. By Oda Gilleberg

CUBA: Pope’s Cuban visit steeped in controversy At the end of March 2012, Pope Benedict XVI will visit Cuba and its leader Fidel Castro. This visit has come under heavy criticism in the US, as it has recently been proved that the Catholic Church in Cuba was working with Fidel Castro and his dictatorship after the recent expulsion of ‘dissidents’ from the island. By Ségolène Scheuer

ound the World

EUROPE: Six Nations ends on St. Patrick’s Day There couldn’t be a better end to the Six Nations rugby Championship. On 17 March, Cardiff, Rome, London and all of Ireland will be watching the final games whilst celebrating St. Patrick’s Day. Wales will try to take revenge on the French after the bitter end to their World Cup defeat back in October. By Ségolène Scheuer

Namibia: chorus for victory Namibia’s national choir, the Voices of Namibia is getting into fighting shape for the auspicious 2012 World Choir Games in Cincinnati, USA, which will run from 4-14 July. The competition will host four hundred choirs from seventy countries. The Voices of Namibia made a stellar debut at the 2010 Games in Shaoxing, China, coming home with one gold and two silver medals. By Davina Ogwu

RUSSIA: St. Petersburg passes anti-gay law An anti-gay bill passed its third and final reading in the Russian federal city of St. Petersburg on 28 February despite massive international objection. The bill equates homosexuality to paedophilia by outlawing promotion of “homosexuality, paedophilia, or transgenderism to minors”. In practice it means that all gay Pride events are banned. Similar bans are expected to follow in other Russian regions By Oda Gilleberg

CHINA: Drunk man stopped two trains In Hubei Province, a 24-year-old man, who was found drunk afterwards, drove his car onto a railway track, forcing two trains to stop. The car was stuck on the railway and traffic police had to call a tow-truck to remove the car. By Shen Wu

AUSTRALIA: Job woes in Altona 350 workers at a Toyota manufacturing plant in Altona are set to lose their jobs by 16 April 2012.This revelation comes in the wake of Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s landslide victory in recent Labour elections. Voters have urged Gillard to help save their jobs. By Davina Ogwu

Q&A: Are libraries becoming obsolete? By Davina Ogwu In this technology-driven age, libraries have taken a backseat. This has met a fiery response from the public. But are libraries really in danger of becoming a thing of the past? On 5 February 2012, ‘Save Our Libraries’ day, a nationwide protest, was held to fight against the closures of libraries across the UK. In our Arts and Culture edition, Life360 addressed the rise of e-readers and their threat to books. (Changing the fabric of books). These two issues are invariably connected. Life360 chats to Cardiff Library assistant, Sophie Westwood, to gauge some feelings from the inside. What do you think about the rise of technology in the forms of Kindles and Apps? I think it’s good to be honest, but I am 18! Maybe if I was older, I would feel differently, but I think they’re quite handy especially for reading large books. Do you think it could affect libraries in a bad way? Yes, definitely, because it’s quite cheap to download books on your Kindle or iPad, and it saves you the effort of coming to the library, but there are a considerable amount of people who still come to the library. So I don’t think it has affected libraries massively. Do you think there could be a balance between e-reading and using the library? Yes, libraries are not just for books. They also have DVDs, CDs, and have IT services, and are also used for events. So people may download books on their Kindles or iPads, but come to the library for other things.

locals gather for the ‘Save Our Library Day’ campaign at Moreton-in-Marsh library, Gloucestershire (photo by FOGLibraries/flickr)

A young supporter for the Moreton-in-Marsh library (photo by FOGLibraries/flickr)

Do you think Kindles and Apps could help our reading habits? I think it could be useful for older people, like my nan, who can’t carry around heavy books. How do you think libraries have adapted to all these changes over the years? Libraries have changed since I used to go. Especially since working here, I can see they’ve become quite modern. It’s no longer about just sitting quietly in the corner, reading a book. Are you sentimental about libraries? My nan always used to get me books from the library, and I used to go with her to the library as a child. I still carry a book in my bag today. Libraries are still important, and everyone should still go to them.

TECH: Porsche or not?

The new BlackBerry Porsche a.k.a Blackberry P’9981 is sleeker, slimmer and more expensive than its predecessors. Will it be another Smartphone wonder... or a damp sales squib? to be seen. tiveness. Though clean-cut and By Davina Ogwu It doesn’t disappoint when it slimline, its rectangular shape comes to performance; it has a and black and steel colour set The latest release in Blackberry 5 MP camera with a 720p HD give it a masculine austerity that phones made its debut in Harrods, video recording capacity, 1.2GHz might comfortably sit in more London, at the end of last year. processor, and an impressive 8GB briefcases than handbags. With this latest model, Research memory package. Now generic Blackberry cannot afford to lose In Motion (RIM), the brains facilities, such as its touchscreen their clientele, especially since behind the Blackberry phone facility and optical trackpad, still the BlackBerry Playbook barely series decided to distance themcomplement the phone’s technimade a dent in the market. In this selves from emotive words and cal finesse. But at a jaw-dropping long war to out-innovate Apple, intangible expressions, and jump price-tag of £1,275, it might leave the question is, has BlackBerry on the bandwagon of a successful consumers wishing it had a port- finally produced a worthy oppoautomobile company. Whether able loo and a mini-microwave to nent to the almighty iPhone? this blatant cry for attention (and heat food on the go! I think we all know the answer to market share) will pan out, is yet It scores zero for unisex attracthat one.

photo by tnguyen/flickr

Ugandan gays flee to homophobic Kenya

October 2010: Rolling Stone newspaper calls for the killing of gay Ugandans, including David Kato. January 3rd 2011: the newspaper is banned for publishing more names, addresses and photos. January 26th 2011: David Kato is murdered in his home.

By Oda Gilleberg International outcry helped to shelve the proposed death penalty for homosexuals in Uganda in May last year. The Anti-Homosexuality Bill that was brought in by David Bahati, a parliamentarian with evangelical Christian beliefs, is back on the agenda, forcing Ugandans to flee the country. Bahati claims that the revived bill no longer includes the death penalty, but the punishment for homosexual offences will at the very least be increased to life in prison. Prison also awaits those who fail to report a person whom they know is gay. Ugandan gays have sought refuge in Kenya, but Kenya is not a safe haven, according to activists. Punishment for male to male relationship

Map of Africa with colour codes No data Imprisonment of 10 years or more Death Imprisonment of less than 10 years Fines or restrictions or penal labour No law Source: http://www.ilga.org/

Rafie and Maurs (not their real names) are members of the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya (GALCK). “It is dangerous in Kenya too,” they say. “Most journalists and editors are extremely homophobic. If they get the chance they will publish our names and photos,” Maurs says, referring to the Ugandan gay activist David Kato who was murdered in January 2011 as a result of being outed in the Rolling Stone newspaper.

Religious control

About 80 percent of the Kenyan population are Christians (45% Protestants, 33% Catholics), and according to Rafie and Maurs the Christian religion controls the country. “Religion controls politics and the way people lead their lives, including people’s opinions on homosexuality,” says Maurs. “They think homosexuality is caused by bad spirits, and that it has been imported from the West,” he continues. “Un-African. That’s the word,” says Rafie, laughing exasperatedly. “We know that old tribes practiced what we today could define as homosexual activities, but there were no names for it, which is why politicians can claim it has never existed.” If caught, homosexuals in Kenya can face five to 14 years imprisonment, but according to the activists the daily, indirect discrimination is worse.

“Personally I haven’t been explicitly discriminated against, but that is because no-one knows I’m gay,” says Rafie. “But indirectly I experience it all the time, especially by the church and the priests.”

No American dream

Christian, American aid parties are flooding into many African countries, including Kenya. But the donor coin often has a downside. “The churches must consent to what the Americans say in order to get money,” Maurs says. Fundamental, Christian-conservative claims, such as that homosexuals can and wish to be turned, are promoted in Kenya as well as in the U.S. Maurs objects. “Why don’t they ask themselves the same question, if they can be turned? To be gay is not a choice. I believe very few of us in Kenya would want to go through everything we are going through if we could have chosen differently.” GALCK, in partnership with Othersheep Kenya, Kenya Human Rights Commission and the Norwegian organisation LLH, has embarked upon a project seeking to establish a platform for dialogue and acceptance for homosexuality within religious groups.

L i f e Feature

Money Matters

Finance is big business. Financial centres such as Singapore have sprung up on the back of truly global investments

If you’re just starting out on the career ladder and have a regular stream of income, why not try your hand at investing? Life360 looks at how you can make the most of your savings. By Alexander Thackrah The world of money can seem a pretty unsettling place. Lately, untold column inches and web space have been devoted to talk of economic crises, downgrades and debt. And with Moody’s credit rating agency threatening last week to downgrade Britain’s coveted AAA rating, a topping of doom has been added to the already liberal lashings of gloom. In such an environment, how can you get the most bang for your hard-earned buck? The first option is simply to leave your money in a bank. Historically, this is a safe investment. But with interest rates so low, and inflation having fallen but still running relatively high at 3.6%, this is not a particularly attractive proposition for many investors; as the rates of return on your deposits are so low that in real terms you may even lose money.

Government bonds and gilts

Alternatively, you can shield your money in a tax-free wrapper such as a cash ISA. But again, with inflation at current levels, although returns will be substantially more than those in a current or savings account, the prospects aren’t too appealing. The same holds true for government bonds. That is not to say that these options are inadvisable. On the contrary, in an environment where many investors are looking for a return of their capital, rather than a return on their

capital, these safe options are a reliable way of preserving your savings. Cautious investor Caroline Nix is of this view. She says, “If I was a young person with a limited amount of money I would invest in fixed-rate government bonds. This route isn’t going to make you rich quickly, but it should be a safe investment.” But if you want to take a somewhat more hands-on approach to your financial situation, you can invest in stocks and shares.

Equities

So, as an amateur investor what do you need to know? To the uninitiated, the financial markets can be a daunting and confusing place; a writhing mass of facts, figures, charts and data, inhabited by a vast array of companies all competing for your money. Experienced investor Timothy Thackrah says, “The number one piece of advice is never to buy anything that you don’t understand. Because if you don’t understand what you’re buying, you’re going to get ripped off, or you’re going to make a stupid mistake.” He continues, “For someone with a limited amount of money to invest, so under £10,000 say, it really does make sense to put your money in a tax-free equity ISA. Unless you want to buy a share or asset that is not covered in this, such as gold bullion.”

Dividend reinvestment

In terms of strategy, Timothy emphasises dividend reinvestment saying, “The biggest growth in the marketplace is from dividend income. One strategy you can take is to buy high-yielding dividend shares.” Another approach favoured by some investors is purchasing smaller, potentially riskier, shares. Of this Timothy says, “You can make a lot of money but you can also lose a lot of money. I wouldn’t recommend anybody buying small shares unless they really know what they are doing. And, depending on your risk profile you probably wouldn’t want to put a lot of money into them, unless you can afford to lose it. But then of course, you’re never going to make the big gains unless you take a risk.” For young investor Gareth Davies, it is this ‘risk’ that is central to the appeal of investing in equities. He says, “I enjoy it. I look more at the reward than the risk, without being too gung-ho. But I consider I am young enough not to have to worry too much about losing money as I don’t have any significant financial commitments. Plus, as long as you’re shrewd and spread your risk then you should never lose too much.”

Buy low, Sell high

For Gareth, 22, the ‘Buy low, Sell high’ principle holds true. He continues, “I generally stick to the AIM market as I consider it to be better value. I have a few shares on the main

market but these are the ‘steady growers’ to Interview with young investor, Gareth Davies prop up the riskier investments.” What have been the biggest challenges to This idea of spreading risk, or diversification, How long have you been investing for? investing you’ve encountered? Is it harder is key. After all, if you put all your eggs in I first bought shares about 3-4 years ago but to make money than you thought? one basket, and the basket breaks, you’ll have only in the last 6-9 months have I started Knowing when to sell. I wouldn’t say it’s a nasty time clearing the yolk off the floor. investing regularly and in greater volumes. particularly difficult to make money, but it’s Caroline agrees, warning against the risk facimportant to fully research shares before buytor of shares as a whole. She notes, “I have Why do you invest? ing them. I read all the recent news stories, got shares but I don’t rely on them because At the moment there is little point holding look at current and previous market performit is a gamble. They’re part of a portfolio cash in a bank account or ISA due to interest ances before buying. Also, a good instinct! spread across different layers of risk. I think rates being so low, so I decided I was more that is the thing to stress: it is a gamble. I likely to get better returns by investing in the What do you base your investments on? mean something might be a dead cert now stock market. It’s also a bit more exciting I read various investment related websites, but as BP, which was seen as a very solid than the regular avenues, particularly when and spend a lot of time on the LSE (London British company a few years ago, showed one of your shares takes off. Stock Exchange) checking out the scene. us after the accident in the Gulf of Mexico, Once I’ve found a tip, I’ll just give it a everything can come falling down around What type of investing do you indulge in? Google news search and read the related your ears.” I generally stick to the AIM market as I conarticles, or use the Halifax research centre Investing, then, should be approached with sider it to be better value. I have a few on which gives broker opinions (not so much on caution. But hidden amidst the economic the main market such as Aviva and Vodafone smaller companies). turmoil there are bargains to be had and but these are the ‘steady growers’ to prop up money to be made. For the investor, these are the riskier investments. I also dabble with Have you got any interesting investment interesting times. the Ladbrokes investment fund. I don’t deal stories involving success or failure? much with commodities other than buying Only heartbreak. shares in mining companies of varying types Jargon Buster (oil/gold/copper) . AIM market – Alternative Investment AIM market – Alternative Investment Is there any particular sector you are Generally with AIM listed companies you Market, a sub-market of the London Stock Market, a sub-market of the London thinking of investing in? Why? are looking long term as they are developExchange I like the commodity exploration companies. ing something a year or two down the line. Stock Exchange Dividend – a sum of money paid regularly There can be a lot of volatility when results I’ve had one share for about 4 years which Dividend – a to sum of money paid reguby a company its shareholders come out but if you’re on the right side of the should hopefully pay off next month. But, larly by a– stocks company its shareholders Equities and to shares news then you can get a good return. Also, you can get lucky and one of your shares Inflation ––astocks generaland increase in prices and Equities shares small pharmaceutical companies which are might take off sooner than expected. fall in the purchasing power of money Inflation – a general increase in prices developing drugs for significant disease areas Interest – the rate a lender charges and fallrate in the purchasing power of a borare always worth a punt if they have a good What’s your strategy towards investing? rower moneyto borrow its money research team. What tips would you give? real – the value of something adjusted for Interest rate – the rate a lender charges My biggest problem is knowing when to inflation aRisk borrower its money Any stock tips? sell. I had shares in a company which I was profile –to theborrow willingness of an individuTangiers Petroleum (LON:TPET). A new float 40% up on over a 4 month period. Then it real – the value of something adjusted al to take risks, in this case, financial risks on AIM, worth a long term punt. Currently it crashed due to bad news and I lost all of my for inflation is ~35p. I think it’ll be over a £1 in a year’s profit. So, my new policy is to lock-in profit Risk profile – the willingness of an inditime. and never get too greedy. Now, I would say vidual to take risks, in this case, financial to sell if you can get 20% return and never risks look back. It’s a tough game.

Jargon Buster

Links – Learn More The internet contains a vast store of information and is the perfect place for reading up on anything markets and investment-related. There are a lot of reputable sites and sources which are an invaluable tool for the amateur investor. But, as with anything, treat any information you find and advice you see with caution. www.investopedia.org www.ft.com www.londonstockexchange.com www.hmrc.gov.uk

L i f e Economy

Getsmart

1. The stock market crash that shook Wall Street on 24 October 1929 is also known as:

Quiz

a) Black Wednesday b) Black Thursday c) Black Friday

2. What’s the common definition of the recession? A country is in recession when the nation’s economy: a) suffers longer than one year b) slows down for at least six months c) ranks as less productive when compared to other countries with similar GDP

6. The Gini coefficient is used to measure the degree of income equality. According to latest report from the CIA, which of the following countries was ranked more equal than the USA? a) Ukraine b) France c) Burundi d) all of the above

3. In 1998, which country started the financial crisis by defaulting on its debt? a) Russia b) USA c) Greece

4. In an economy, can a person be both a producer and a consumer? a) no, only the industry counts as a producers b) some are, for example workers in a factory. Otherwise not. c) yes, people do usually both in an economy- - production and consuption

7. Many financial institutions, such as Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Securities, Citigroup and others, were charged with misconduct leading to or aggravating of the current financial crisis. How much, did the Securities and Exchange Commission ordered them to pay in penalties? a) $1.2 bilion b) $55 bilion c) $220 bilion

5. What is the main factor that causes a recession in an economy? a) producers increase production faster that people can consume b) people slow down the consumption, producers examine their tight bottom lines and everybody starts to loose confidence in the strength of the economy c) both of those

8. Which country was the first in the Eurozone to officially fall into recession? a) Greece b) Britain c) Ireland

9. Subprime lending was one of the main causes of the financial crisis in USA. What is a ‘subprime loan’? a) offering loans at zero interest rate b) offering loans to customers with weak credit scores c) offering loans at a very high interest rate

10. The US national debt is close to $15 trillion. If you stacked this amount in $100 bills, you could roughly get the size of: a) Colosseum b) Statue of Liberty c) Buckingham Palace

Find all the answers on : www.jomec.co.uk/life360

Opinion: We need new visions

By: Oda Gilleberg Growing inequality is the world’s most pressing problem. That was one of the conclusions of the World Economic Forum in Davos in January. In 1980, the highest paid one percent of the U.S. population collected eight percent of its total revenues. In 2008, they collected almost 20 percent. According to the BBC, the income inequality in the UK was at its highest level in 2008 since the late 1940s. In 2010 the Guardian reported that “the richest 10% of the population are more than 100 times as wealthy as the poorest 10%.” Similar development can be recognized in almost all OECD countries, and the received wisdom is that it is vital to the development of the world economy. Many argue that this need not be the case. “The Spirit Level” for instance, published in 2010 by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett, argue that all levels of society, including the rich minority, will benefit from increased equality. The authors investigated social and health problems between the world’s 23 richest countries, and the relationship between those problems and income inequalities within these countries. They found that, “The more equally wealth is distributed the better the health of that society.” Wilkinson and Pickett make several suggestions to how more equality can be achieved. Among them are democratic bottom-up management at the workplace, reallocation of income from the rich to the poor through taxes and benefits, and the raising of public awareness on the causes and effects of inequality. Opinion polls in the UK and USA already show that the majority of people are in favour of a more even distribution of wealth, and research shows that this majority grows when people are made aware of the actual differentials of distribution (which tend to be much higher than what people generally assume) and the effects of inequality. Wilkinson and Pickett have established the Equality Trust to disseminate such information. They also suggest that more equality can be achieved by reducing the differences in gross income by cutting maximum wages. EU member states seem to be taking a different tack these days, demanding that Greece cut minimum wages by 22 percent, among other shock doctrines. The human collective needs new visions. It is time for the younger generations to appreciate what our parents achieved, but ultimately reverse the intended and unintended negative consequences of financial dictatorship and greed. There is need for long-term political will to tackle the root causes of inequality, rather than trying to solve social problems one by one. Social problems will be reduced only if inequality is reduced as well. We have the evidence. It is up to us to bring it to court. Sources Willinson,R. and Pickett, K. 2010. The Spirit level www.taxfoundation.org/news/show/250.html www.news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7193904. stm#graph www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/jan/27/unequalbritain-report

Living in exile As the clashes between Tibetan protesters and Chinese soldiers see an increase this year, a Tibetan refugee tells Life 360 the story of his flight from Tibet across borders as a child. By Paul Dharamraj

It had been three days since he’d last eaten.

Trudging slowly through the thick snow, 12 year-old Tendar Tsering could clearly see the outline of Mount Everest as its shadow loomed above him. He had no idea what lay beyond that snow-capped peak, except the promise of starting a new life. But now, Tsering was beginning to wonder if he’d even make it across the border alive. Only a few weeks ago, Tsering’s uncle had driven him down to Llhasa, which was three days away from his village of Chamdou in north-eastern Tibet. Tsering had packed in a hurry and didn’t even have time to tell his friends. A few hours after they reached Llhasa, he was put under the care of a complete stranger. With seven other children, he was to going to be smuggled across the Tibetan border into a country he had only vaguely heard of: India. Fifteen years later, the human rights activist and journalist now lives in Himachal Pradesh, a northern Indian state that also provides refuge to his spiritual leader the Dalai Lama and the exiled Tibetan government. Every last detail from the painful experience of fleeing his homeland, however, is still fresh. “I didn’t tell any of my friends that I was leaving that day,” he says, “because I feared what would happen to them.” Taken over during the Chinese occupation of Tibet in 1950, Tsering’s village has always been watched carefully by Chinese troops, deployed to pre-empt even the slightest chance of insurgency. Movement between towns is restricted and all communication, from letters to telephone calls from abroad, is monitored. But despite the great risk involved, his family was determined to send their oldest son to India, where he’d have a chance at a better life in freedom. “Back in 1996, my family paid 2,000 Yuan to a guide who would take me secretly across the borders,” Tsering says. “There were seven of us children, the oldest was 14 and the youngest was six.” With none of the protective gear or oxygen cylinders that any mountaineer trekking through the Himalayas would normally carry, the children set off towards India. The entire journey was on foot and the party stuck to a strict routine: sleep by day and travel only by night. The billowing December winds and thick snow cover made it harder to hike through the high-altitude Himalayan terrain. One of the refugees from their group failed to make it across the border. “That night, one of the older men who were travelling with us fell sick because he couldn’t manage the altitude,” Tsering says. “I was sleeping next to him and when I woke up in the evening, he was dead. A few men from a nearby village helped us bury him, but the snow was so thick that we couldn’t even dig up a grave for his body.” Since India doesn’t share a direct border with Tibet, their journey took them through Nepal, the politically unstable former kingdom at the foot of Mount Everest. Besides getting past several checkpoints, the

“The burden of my people”

Tendar Tsering currently works with a Tibetian publication northern India and lives with the exiled government.

group also had to worry about local informers, who were paid to alert the border police about Tibetan refugees. “After three days without food, we finally reached a border town in Nepal. Our only chance to get across would be later that night, when the border cops were not on alert,” Tsering says. A little after midnight, the party cautiously made its way towards the check point. “Our guide told us to wait by the road while he climbed up to the check post to see if the border cops were awake,” Tsering says. Tired and hungry, Tsering sat down by the road and after a few minutes, drifted off to sleep. Suddenly, he was woken up by shouting. “I got up and found that we were surrounded by police,” Tsering says, “we were really frightened. The cops were shouting and began beating our guide.” Tsering would later find out that some of the locals had informed the police about their movements. So when the party of refugees arrived, the border police were expecting them. “The police then told us that they would hand us over to the Chinese, unless we paid them,” Tsering recounts. “They took all our belongings—all our money and even jewellery our parents had given us when we left.” Fortunately, a Tibetan activist group in Nepal were also alerted to Tsering’s capture. Within a few hours, they had negotiated a sum for each of the refugees and bribed the police to let them go. To this day, Tsering does not know the price at which his life was valued. But he is grateful to the activists for rescuing him. “With their help we finally made it to India after nearly two months of travel,” Tsering says. “I didn’t think I would make it alive.”

After a harrowing journey that lasted one month and 26 days, Tsering reached India and was immediately sent to a Tibetan refugee settlement in northern India. Fortunately, he was able to enrol in an allTibetan school funded by the Dalai Lama’s trust group. With their help, he has even managed to put himself through college, graduating with a BA in English Literature from one of India’s most prestigious undergraduate schools, Loyola College. “The Indian government has treated us like guests,” says Tsering gratefully, “and this has much to do with the Dalai Lama’s reputation here.” The spiritual leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner was granted asylum in India in 1959 and has since been the face of the Tibetan struggle for freedom. The longstanding civil resistance movement, aimed at securing autonomy from the Chinese state, has attracted global attention over the decades. It has even become a big Hollywood celebrity cause, with everyone from Richard Gere to Russell Brand endorsing it. Over the years, however, the lack of political will within the international community has put the Tibetan cause on the backburner. Despite its growing economic and political sphere of influence, the Chinese government continues to stick to its line of non-interference in the domestic affairs of state. They have no qualms about doing business with tyrants like Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe and Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir. Some commentators believe that China’s reluctance to take a stand in the Security Council against the Syrian massacres stems from a fear that the international spotlight would then shift to human rights abuses within their borders. Despite leading a far more comfortable life now, Tsering refuses to abandon his people and their struggle. He was the vicepresident of the Tibetan Student Movement in South India and organised several protests against the Chinese occupation in Tibet. “When I was at university, I was jailed after a protest march in Chennai (a southern Indian city)” Tsering shares.” We had an exam the next day, which I missed. That was when I realised that I couldn’t just lead the life of an ordinary student. I had to carry my people’s burden as well.” Tsering believes that the protests in the Middle East and the worldwide Occupy movements have revived civil resistance, throwing the Tibetan issue back into the spotlight. “Apart from the Arab Spring, China has experienced its own Jasmine Revolution over the last year,” Tsering says, alluding to the pro-democracy protests across mainland China last February. “The Chinese people are more aware of their rights now and together with them, we could shake the government.” Recently, the protests over Tibetan freedom have increased across the plateau. According to media reports, there have been a series of riots in western China, which has a high Tibetan population. Tensions peaked over

January as the Chinese army increased its presence across the region and last week, a Tibetan died after he set himself on fire in protest. This was the twenty-seventh reported case of self-immolation in the movement’s history and it comes just weeks before the start of the Tibetan New Year. “To show our solidarity, we have decided to boycott all Tibetan New Year celebrations on February 22,” Tsering says, explaining that this is a collective action that Tibetans in exile have agreed to. “This rise in political violence is only turning people against the Chinese.”

An agenda for dissent

Meanwhile, Tsering, who lives with the exiled government and writes for a Tibetan publication, says that the exiled community are currently working on a stronger agenda for their movement’s future. “Sometimes, I feel helpless because I’m here in India and cannot do anything,” Tsering says, “but we are getting impatient. We plan on doing something big over the next year, because I fear this conflict is heading towards the point of noreturn.” Even though he is not at a liberty to discuss their plans right now, Tsering assures that their struggle will never involve taking up arms. “We have always been a non-violent movement and we would never resort to violence,” Tsering adds. “I mean, we could have taken the armed route and burnt

trains, or something like that. But we are a peaceful people.” This direction has much to do with their Buddhist beliefs in non-violence and the leadership of the Dalai Lama, he explains. While armed resistance has been a popular choice among disaffected communities in the subcontinent, from India’s Maoists to Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers, the Tibetans have always chosen the path of civil resistance. Personally, his motivations for involving himself in the struggle aren’t even about nationalism or territorial sovereignty. “I’m not very patriotic, my fight is for my family,” says Tsering.” If I want to go back and be free with my family, this is the only way.” While his father now lives in Germany, Tsering has two younger brothers and a sister in Tibet. In 2002, Tsering jeopardized his freedom to visit Tibet again, since security near the borders had eased considerably. “I used a fake Chinese passport and an Indian residence certificate to get past the borders,” Tsering says. He didn’t stay for long, but was happy to see that his hometown was surviving well through the income they got from trading medicinal plants native to the village. However, Tsering doubts he could ever pull off a similar visit again, since security has tightened over the last few years. “Because of the activist work I’ve done here in India, the Chinese government has put me on a blacklist, so I’d be arrested if I ever set foot in Tibet again,” he says. Meanwhile, the number of Tibetan children being smuggled across the borders has dropped sharply.“In 1996, there were about 2,000 Tibetans fleeing to India but today, there

Tensions between the government and the Tibetian protestors have escalated over January 2011

are fewer than 200 who make it here,” Tsering says. “The cost for one child to get across is now four times more, at 8,000 Yuan.” Tsering manages to keep in touch with his brothers, who are now 18 and 21, and his little sister, who is now 16. “I spoke to them a few weeks ago on the phone,” Tsering says with a smile. “But we couldn’t speak for long. Usually, we are very careful not to mention anything the Dalai Lama or anything political because we never know who is listening in on us.” Despite the clampdown on freedom in Tibet though, Tsering does not want his siblings to even attempt reuniting with him in India. “I would never wish that they have to experience what I did when I escaped to India,” he says.

The Chinese media and Tibet Tsering currently works for a Tibetan publication and as a journalist, he says he now understands how powerful the press can be in controlling the masses. “If you look at the Chinese media, they often use propaganda to turn the Chinese people against us,” he says. “They portray us as ungrateful barbarians and the people don’t know better.” Recently, violence broke out in a local school in western China between the Chinese and Tibetan students. According to Tsering, gangs of Chinese students raided the Tibetan hostels with the slogan “Beat one student, get one credit.” The story, he says, went completely unreported in the local Chinese press.

L i f e Photostory

The Adventures of the shoe whisperer

Ever wonder what your wardrobe was really saying about you? Life360 hit the streets of Cardiff for some serious shoe-talk... Match the photos with the captions on the right.

A B

E C D

F 14

Match the captions to the fitting shoes! 1. Jipp, a member of Eminem’s entourage with a fetish for neon-pink shoelaces. 2. Jopp, another member of Eminem’s crew but with a fetish for neon-blue shoelaces.

3. An urban Fred Astaire who break dances for his supper. Word. 4. Fefe, a tap-dancing, feather-dusting French maid at your service...oui, oui... 5. Lola, a feisty, glamorous 40s can-can dancer. Still getting work in 2012.

6. ‘’Me Jane, where Tarzan??’’ 7. Savannah, a fast-talking, gun-toting, tobacco-chewing, cuss-spitting cowgirl. 8. Isis, hobbies include desert-tracking, studying Archaeology, holidaying in the Sahara and watching Indiana Jones’ flicks. Often dreams of oasis’... 9. Married ‘His and Her’ models: Husband: ‘’You’re so hot, babe’’ Wife: ‘’ No, you’re so hot babe.’’ Husband: ‘’No, no, you’re so hot babe...’’

10. ‘’I work hard for the money, so hard for the money, so you better treat me right...’’ 11. Ballerina Barbie. But where’s Ken? 12. Found him! There’s our brogue-wearing Ken. 13. Training time: 10-12 hours Calories consumes daily: 6,000- 8,000 The man to beat : Usain Bolt

14. ‘’Is this, like, going to be, like published? Because last time, I was, like wearing this faux pas fur coat, and this chick from PETA, like, completely freaked, I mean, it wasn’t even like real...’’ 15. My friends think I’m EMO, but I’m just a sucker for anything ‘’VANS’’.

16. Marigold, Ballerina Barbie’s friend, and Broguewearing Ken’s ex. She wasn’t invited to the wedding though.

Solutions: N - 10 H–7 I -12 J – 15 K – 16 L-6 M-2

A-1 B-4 C - 14 D–3 E - 13 F-9 G – 11

Angelina Jolie presents her In the Land of Blood and Honey By Segolene Scheuer FILM

In the Land of Blood and Honey, the first of many potential Jolie productions

The Bosnian War When?6 April 1992 – 14 December 1995 Where?In Bosnia and Herzegovina Who? Bosnians, Serbs, Croats Why?After the downfall of the Soviet Union in 1989, every eastern European country started to reorganize its boarders and government. The war resulted in the breakup of a multiethnic country: Yugoslavia. Muslim Bosnians, Orthodox Serbs and Catholic Croats, after failing at choosing a new government started to fight each other. The Serbs had a strong military advantage and were led by Slobodan Milošević. The goal for each party was to gain as much territory as possible, no matter what. Bosnians suffered from heavy losses. Many people were either displaced or massacred. After five years of brutal violence, NATO and the UN were deployed and assisted in the peace agreement progress, thereby stopping the mass killings.

Half of a Yellow Sun to take to the big screen

After having achieved had a successful acting career, Angelina Jolie is temporarily leaving the spot light behind in order to stand behind the camera. In the Land of Blood and Honey is set at the time of the Bosnian war and follows two characters from each side. Danijel is an officer of the Serbian army. Before the war started, he had a relationship with a Bosnian woman named Ajla. She has recently been arrested and is now held captive in the camp that Danijel oversees. Angelina Jolie’s movie shows the deterioration of this relationship in the context of a brutal war between two nations. If Mrs Jolie-Pitt charms everyone in front of the camera, we cannot say that she did the same with her debut film. The storyline is strong and the performance of the actors, all natives from different part of former Yougoslavia, adds to the strong emotions already existing in the script. The fact that each scene was shot in English, Bosnian and Serbo-Croatian is also remarkable. But it seems that Angelina’s engagement as a UN official has had too much influence on her vision of the actual conflict. Many critics from both sides have agreed to say that the Serbs were painted black. The movie shows a rather Manichean point of view: Serbs are evil. Bosnians are victims. You don’t have to be an expert in war to know that there is no ‘black and white’ situation. You have evil on both sides. The movie shocked the Serbian population, who felt insulted and thought that Jolie’s view was a much diminished and unaware presentation of war, putting the Serbs in the role of the evil character. Only 12 officials attended the second screening after the fuss caused by the first night. In other part of the world, the success remains lukewarm. No release date has been programmed for the United Kingdom yet, because of the strong polemic caused by the movie.

Concert

Florence + the Machine

EXHIBITION

The Queen is in Cardiff!

By Oda Gilleberg

I was introduced to Florence + the Machine in an email from my ex-girlfriend. The attached The 2007 Orange mp3 file of “Cosmic Love” struck heartbroken Prize- winning book nerves and left me addicted. A sold-out written by Nigerian Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff on Monday 5 author, Chimamanda March offered rehab. Ngozi Adichie is set About 5000 ecstatic fans lost their minds when to begin production Florence entered the stage, sparkling in black for a screenplay this and diamonds, and shiny tied-back red hair. month, according to The dog days are most definitely not over. the HarperCollins Throughout the connews website. cert feet constantly The screen adaption jumped in time to was written by the beat. Hardcore Nigerian playwright, Biyi Bandele, (Chinua fans sung along to Achebe’s Things Fall Apart) and will star “You’ve got the an award winning cast that includes Thandie love,” and climaxed Newton (Crash), Chiwetel Ejifor (Othello) and to the last song of the Dominic Cooper (The duchess). encore, “No light, no Half of a Yellow Sun is a poignant tale about light”. the lives and loves of a group of people caught Less devoted spectain the throes of the Nigerian-Biafran War in tors dozed off in the late 60s, told through the eyes of a young Attribute to: Flickr Creative between the more Commons - w. fox’s photostream houseboy. catchy rhythms, but The book was a global hit, bringing an impor- were picked up again by Flo’s velvet voice; tant part of Nigerian history to an international a soft caress that falls on you in heavy folds, audience. Of the book, Adichie says, “All the almost as good live as in production. Never political events in the book are ‘factually’ mind that she lacks Rihanna’s stage show-offs correct, but in the end, what was most important or Adele’s vocal capacity; Flo is authentic, and to me, was an emotional truth. ’’ she rocks and rolls. The £33 it costs to see 90 minutes of her live is money well spent.

By Davina Ogwu

By Shen Wu Want to see the Queen? She is in Wales now! At least her images are. At the 60th year of the Queen’s reign, National Museum of Wales celebrates the Diamond Jubilee by an exhibition called the Queen: Art and Image. Precious pictures range from 1953 the coronation to 2011 when the Queen celebrates the Duke of Edinburgh’s ninetieth birthday in Winsor Castle. The exhibition also displays the video documenting the ceremony when the Queen opened the National Library of Wales in 1955. Instead of paperback comment book, visitors can leave their comment and see how people in different positions say about the Queen on Ipad which is provided by the museum. Ann Lewis and Barbara King, visitors from Cardiff, agree that it is very interesting to see the Queen’s images by different artists in one exhibition. “It shows both the human and the majesty side of the Queen” says Ann. “Some are just lovely family photographs,” Barbara adds.

L i f e Review

Life360 takes a look at Terry Pratchett’s Snuff By Alexander Thackrah

When Sir Terry Pratchett’s latest Discworld novel, Snuff, was released back in October 2011 it became the third fastest-selling novel in British publishing history. So why all the fuss?

As ever, the 39th instalment in Pratchett’s Discworld series is worth reading if only for the author’s seemingly inexhaustible inventiveness. When reading Snuff, you are invited into a fictional, fantastical world that works so well and appears so seamless, that you are left staggered as to how one man’s mind can contain such unbridled imagination. But it is Pratchett’s ability to manipulate language that stands out as the most brilliant aspect of his writing. In a style reminiscent of P. G. Wodehouse, he combines a playful wit with a clear enjoyment and fascination with the way words work. At times, Snuff is laugh-out-loud funny. Yet Pratchett’s novels offer far more than just comic repartee; in Snuff, Pratchett probes and satirises subject matter as diverse as class, race, slavery and the French. The story of Pratchett’s latest offering centres

around archetypal good guy and Discworld regular, doughty policeman Sam Vimes. Having been pushed into taking an unwanted holiday in a mock-Austenian Country setting, Snuff charts Vimes’s attempts to put a stop to the illegal trafficking of goblins, a practice which has gone on unhindered for generations. It is a rollicking good read. Once Pratchett gets into his stride that is. For one criticism that I would level at Snuff, and it is a rare one in the case of Pratchett, is that the first part of the book does drag. Whilst by no means dull, the intricate plot lines take a while to unfold. That said, any time spent wallowing in the endless invention of Pratchett’s mind is a pleasure. Whilst lacking the unputdownability of Guards! Guards! or the sustained brilliance of Small Gods, Snuff is a worthy addition to the Discworld series.

The Euthanasia debate In 2007 Sir Terry Pratchett announced he was suffering from early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Over the past few years he has been one of the most vocal advocates of the use of assisted suicide for the terminally ill. Last year, he led a BBC Two documentary about euthanasia entitled Choosing to Die. Life360 debates the issue.

FOR Euthanasia: Marcela Kunova

People should not be forced to live. There are good reasons to support those who are terminally ill and wish to die without being able to end their lives by themselves. An individual is free to determine what will or will not be done to their body. This right is fundamental to personal autonomy and to bodily integrity. Denying suffering persons their wish to die means denying them the freedom to decide for themselves. When prolonging one’s existence will only result in prolonging one’s pain and suffering, striving to keep them alive appears almost selfish. Finally, it must not be forgotten that euthanasia is a right, not a duty. Every single terminally ill person who wish to spend his or her last days on medication is free to do so. But in an open and tolerant society we must accept that others are free to live – or to die – their way.

AGAINST Euthanasia: Alexander Thackrah

How can you know, how can you really know, that somebody will not make a recovery? History is littered with examples of people who have been given a couple of weeks, months, or years, to live and in reality have held on for much, much longer. We live in a world where advances in science are being made at a remarkable rate. Around the globe, new drugs and treatments are bursting into existence on a daily basis. Who is to say that a terminal illness of today will not become a curable, or at least treatable, illness of tomorrow? How would you feel if you were a relative, or doctor, of a patient who had undergone assisted suicide, only to find that they were misdiagnosed or the condition was in fact treatable? Would you take that risk?

traveling snaps

Oslo Slovakia Wales

budget plane pooling train car snow hostels getaway

break adventure freedom ice postcards coast hitch-hiking

fun distance sunset

cities wild outdoors activities

friends scrambling delights sensations

memories San Francisco

next issue: special travel edition 26 march 2012