It was launched by educator and activist Jina Achji, who wanted to “offer a space” capable of bringing together and uniting “all communities”. The idea took its first steps in Aleppo in 2012 and has now spread to Hama and Homs. The invitation is to live ‘the present and reality’ by putting aside the ‘lost dream [...] for an imaginary land’.
Built 160 years ago, the historic iron bridge, long a tourist attraction in the Badulla district, has been in a state of disrepair for over a year after part of it was swept away by bad weather. Local residents are protesting because during the rainy season they are forced to travel 70 kilometres to sell their vegetables at the market.
The effects of climate change are leading to a drastic decline in cereal production this year, a crucial sector for the Russian economy. In the Rostov region, 17.5% of the territory has now become desertified. But in the crackdown on any voice of dissent, even environmentalists fighting to protect wooded areas are being targeted.
The Japanese prime minister is open to a summit regarding the case of 17 Japanese nationals, a matter that has dragged on since the 1970s. The last meeting between North Korean and Japanese leaders was in 2004 when Junichiro Koizumi was Japan’s prime minister. For its part, Pyongyang considers the matter closed. Meanwhile, the defence ministers of South Korea and the United States made their first joint visit to the Demilitarised Zone since 2017.
Chinese language teaching is increasingly about memorising and repeating sounds and signs, without the meditative beauty that underlies the language. Pronunciation is not a relevant variable in a codified system of linguistic levels since listening is more important. In the efforts to make Chinese "easier to learn" along the New Silk Road, the fine line between culture and propaganda, between ancient Chinese wisdom and sinicisation, is blurred.
The compound has been at the centre of an ongoing battle between his children over its fate. The father had called for its demolition or closure to the public. The government stresses its "historic merit”, which make it “worthy”" of preservation. Still, its future remains uncertain. The meetings that led to the founding of the People's Action Party in 1959 were held in the basement.
