Category Archives: Society

The climate crisis is the most urgent threat of our time. Help us fight it | Katharine Viner

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Urgent policy steps are needed to avoid climate catastrophe, but we as citizens can also support practical, natural solutions

  • Please donate to our appeal here

The 2019 Guardian and Observer charity appeal is all about trees: for what they are in themselves, in all their beauty and majesty, and for what they represent. This year, our theme is the climate emergency and our support goes to charities whose work is essential for the renewal of nature and the planet: not just planting new trees but protecting and restoring existing forest, woodland and other natural habitats in the UK and in the Amazon basin of South America.

As Guardian and Observer readers, we hope you will have appreciated our comprehensive reporting on the causes of the climate crisis, from fossil-fuel burning and rainforest-clearing to pollution-emitting cars and planes. We’ve tracked the destructive consequences, including forest fires, melting ice caps, extreme weather events such as droughts and flash floods and filthy air. We’ve reported the evolving science of global heating and followed the emergence of a wave of youth-led eco-activism led by Greta Thunberg. We’ve covered the fight of environmental and land rights activists across the planet against ecologically destructive corporate and political interests.

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Indian police shoot dead four men suspected of Hyderabad rape

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The men had been in police custody and were shot near the scene of the crime during a reconstruction

Indian police have shot dead the four men accused of the brutal gang rape of a young vet in Hyderabad, in circumstances that have been described as “suspicious”.

The four had become high-profile objects of hatred within the country, following their alleged premeditated attack on a 27-year-old veterinary doctor last Wednesday.

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142,000 died from measles last year, WHO estimates

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Number of cases reported so far this year is three times higher than at same stage in 2018

The worldwide surge in deadly measles outbreaks is showing no sign of abating, with nearly 10 million cases and 142,000 deaths last year, according to new estimates, and three times more cases reported so far this year than at the same stage in 2018.

Most of those dying are small children, and thousands more suffer harm including pneumonia and brain damage. New scientific evidence shows survivors are at greater risk soon afterwards because their immune system is impaired.

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Explosions, broken noses, Pokémon woe: study finds surge in phone injuries

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US experts report sharp increase in mobile casualties since rise of the iPhone in 2007

• Tell us about your mobile phone injuries

Broken noses, nasty cuts, traumatic brain injury and even death: it sounds like the start of a Quentin Tarantino movie. In fact, they are among the hazards of using a mobile phone.

A study by experts in the US has found that since the advent of smartphones, injuries linked to mobile phones have shot up, both indirect injuries – such as those sustained texting while walking – and those caused by the devices themselves, such as the phone hitting someone in the face or the battery exploding.

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Nearly 700,000 Americans to lose food stamps under new Trump policy

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Move will limit states from exempting work-eligible adults from having to maintain steady employment to receive benefits

Hundreds of thousands of Americans who rely on the federal food stamp program will lose their benefits under a new Trump administration rule that will tighten work requirements for recipients.

The move by the administration is the latest in its attempt to scale back the social safety net for low-income Americans. It is the first of three proposed rules targeting the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as Snap, to be finalized. The program feeds more than 36 million people.

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Half of all homeless people may have had traumatic brain injury

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Experts say TBI could be consequence or cause of homelessness

Half of all homeless people may have suffered a traumatic brain injury at some point in their life, according to new research – which experts say could be either a consequence or even the cause of their homelessness.

Traumatic brain injury is sudden damage caused by a blow or jolt to the head, which can be caused by a motor accident, a fall or an assault. Sometimes it can cause long-term damage to the brain, leading to neurological and psychiatric disorders.

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‘Pilates-changed-my-life’ stories are annoying… but it did

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Over three years the exercise regime took Rachel Cooke from terrible back pain to new levels of fitness. But it was a lot harder than she expected

One morning almost five years ago, I awoke from uneasy dreams and, like Gregor Samsa in Franz Kafka’s story, The Metamorphosis, found myself to be… well, not precisely an insect, but the effect was similar. Trying to get out of bed, I realised I could barely move. So excruciating was the pain in my back, my only option seemed to be to roll myself – thunk! – on to the floor.

Lying there on my stomach for a few moments, I took in the view (beneath the bed were old shoes and dust balls the size of planets) and then, screwing up my courage, I crawled on to the landing – which is where I stayed for the rest of the day, sobbing quietly and wondering how I would get to the loo; when, exactly, the NHS emergency doctor would arrive.

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South Africa begins rollout of cutting-edge HIV drug

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Introduction of three-in-one pill hailed as a ‘game-changer’ in efforts to treat 7.7 million South Africans with HIV

South Africa has begun rolling out a state-of-the-art antiretroviral drug in a “game-changing” bid to drastically reduce the number of people living with HIV.

The distribution of the new three-in-one pill, timed to coincide with World Aids Day on Sunday, is eventually expected to treat the 7.7 million South Africans who have HIV, accounting for 20% of the global prevalence of the disease.

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Angola’s war is over and now it faces up to an HIV legacy – in pictures

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A long civil war ended in 2002 but disasters, poverty and food insecurity have allowed Aids-related deaths to rise by more than 33% in the past decade. The number of new HIV infections is also on the rise and too many pregnant women are not getting access to medicines to protect their babies

All photographs by Cynthia R Matonhodze for the UNDP

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Trump plan to label Mexico cartels as terror groups defies logic, experts say

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Analysts say designation would be largely cosmetic as the already illegitimate groups are driven by money, not politics

Mexican drug cartel thugs have hanged bodies from bridges, set fire to crowded buildings and tossed hand grenades into crowds.

But Donald Trump’s decision to designate the cartels as foreign terrorist organisations (FTOs) has been questioned by experts, who argue that the move’s main impact would be cosmetic – although it might provide a pretext for possible US military incursions.

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Jeremy Corbyn reveals dossier ‘proving NHS up for sale’

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Labour leader says documents leave Boris Johnson’s denials on post-Brexit US trade deal ‘in tatters’

Labour has obtained official documents showing that the US is demanding that the NHS will be “on the table” in talks on a post-Brexit trade deal, Jeremy Corbyn has said.

The Labour leader said the uncensored papers gave the lie to Boris Johnson’s claims that the NHS would not be part of any trade talks, and revealed that the US wanted “total market access” after the UK leaves the EU.

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New Zealand launches world’s first HIV positive sperm bank

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Effort aims to reduce the stigma experienced by those living with the virus

The world’s first HIV positive sperm bank has been launched in an effort to reduce the stigma experienced by those living with the virus.

Sperm Positive has begun with three male donors from across New Zealand who are living with HIV but have an undetectable viral load, meaning the amount of the virus in a person’s blood is so low that it cannot be detected by standard methods.

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Spain’s far-right Vox blocks violence against women declaration

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Vox refusal to sign joint all-party statement outrages civil rights groups and embarrasses allies

Spain’s far-right Vox party has refused to sign an all-party declaration condemning violence against women, drawing outrage from civil rights groups and embarrassing its allies in the conservative People’s party.

Vox’s refusal to sign the declaration by Madrid city council on Monday meant that for the first time since a landmark 2004 law on gender violence, local authorities in the Spanish capital were unable to issue a joint all-party statement.

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Aid groups condemn Greece over ‘prison’ camps for migrants

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Government’s announcement represents blatant disregard for human rights, says IRC

Greece is poised to create “prison” island camps, say aid groups amid growing criticism of government plans to overhaul refugee reception centres on Aegean outposts facing Turkey.

As the UN refugee agency’s top official, Filippo Grandi, prepared this week to fly to Lesbos, where almost 16,000 people are crammed into a single facility, Athens was criticised for adopting legislation in contravention of basic human rights.

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Tim Berners-Lee unveils global plan to save the web

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Inventor of web calls on governments and firms to safeguard it from abuse and ensure it benefits humanity

Sir Tim Berners-Lee has launched a global action plan to save the web from political manipulation, fake news, privacy violations and other malign forces that threaten to plunge the world into a “digital dystopia”.

The Contract for the Web requires endorsing governments, companies and individuals to make concrete commitments to protect the web from abuse and ensure it benefits humanity.

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‘France’s shame’: thousands protest against gender violence

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More than 100 women in France have been killed by a current or former partner this year

Several thousand people marched in France on Saturday to protest against alarming levels of deadly domestic violence against women, which the president, Emmanuel Macron, has called “France’s shame”.

The biggest rallies were in Paris. The streets of the capital became a sea of purple and white as thousands marched carrying banners, placards and flags calling for an end to femicide.

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Norwegian sugar tax sends sweet-lovers over border to Sweden

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Consumption has fallen to record lows, but candy superstores in the neighbouring country are booming as the levy rises again

It seems unfair to call it a sweet shop. In the shopping centre north of Charlottenberg in south-western Sweden, barely four miles from Norway and less than 90 minutes’ drive from Oslo, is a candy superstore.

Arrayed across 3,500 sq metres of floor space – half a football pitch – are aisle upon aisle of sugary treats, more than 4,000 products in all, from sour strawberries, liquorice laces and fruity gumballs to red rockets, Lion bars, M&Ms, Milky Ways and Oreos.

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Concern grows over ‘rough sex gone wrong’ defence in courts

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UK lawyers and activists demand action as researchers find tenfold rise in usage

Senior lawyers and women’s organisations have condemned the increasing use of “rough sex gone wrong” as a courtroom defence to the murder of women and called for a change to the law in the UK.

In the wake of the conviction of British backpacker Grace Millane’s killer in New Zealand, researchers have revealed a tenfold rise over the past two decades in the number of times similar claims have been made in UK courts.

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Children bear the brunt as the world’s biggest measles epidemic sweeps Congo

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Children under the age of five account for 90% of deaths as disease claims 5,000 lives in less than a year

More than 5,000 people, mostly children, have been killed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in what is currently the world’s biggest measles epidemic.

Measles, which is preventable through vaccination, has spread to all 26 provinces of the country, which is also battling a 15-month-long Ebola epidemic.

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More than 80% of adolescents not active enough, warns WHO

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Sedentary lifestyles focused on screens are jeopardising health, says World Health Organization

More than 80% of adolescents worldwide are not active enough, putting their health at risk by sitting focused on a screen rather than running about, say World Health Organization (WHO) researchers.

The proportion of insufficiently active girls in 27 countries rose to more than 90% in 2016, the latest year for which figures are available. There was a significant gender gap, with girls lagging behind boys in physical activity, in all but four countries – Afghanistan, Samoa, Tonga and Zambia.

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