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Category: Asia Pacific

  • MIL-Evening Report: Under a Coalition government, the fate of Australia’s central climate policy hangs in the balance

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Deane, Professor of Trade Law, Taxation and Climate Change, Queensland University of Technology

    RobynCharnley/Shutterstock

    The future of Australia’s key climate policy is uncertain after Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said a Coalition government would review the measure, known as the “safeguard mechanism”, which is designed to limit emissions from Australia’s largest industrial polluters.

    According to the Australian Financial Review, if the Coalition wins office it will consider relaxing the policy, as part of its plan to increase domestic gas supplies.

    Evidence suggests weakening the mechanism would be a mistake. In fact, it could be argued the policy does not go far enough to force polluting companies to curb their emissions.

    Both major parties now accept Australia must reach net-zero emissions by 2050. This bipartisan agreement should make one thing clear: winding back the safeguard mechanism would be reckless policy.

    What’s the safeguard mechanism again?

    The safeguard mechanism began under the Coalition government in 2016. It now applies to 219 large polluting facilities that emit more than 100,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases a year. These facilities are in sectors such as electricity, mining, gas, manufacturing, waste and transport. Together, they produce just under one-third of Australia’s emissions.

    Under the policy’s original design, companies were purportedly required to keep their emissions below a certain cap, and buy carbon credits to offset any emissions over the cap. However, loopholes meant the cap was weakly enforced.

    This meant greenhouse gas pollution from the facilities actually increased – rising from 131.3 million tonnes to 138.7 million tonnes in the first six years of the policy.

    Labor strengthened the safeguard mechanism after it won office, by setting a hard cap for industrial emissions. The Coalition voted against the reforms.

    Dutton has since labelled the safeguard mechanism a “carbon tax”
    – a claim that has been debunked. Some members of the Coalition reportedly believe the policy makes manufacturers globally uncompetitive.

    Now, according to media reports, a Coalition government would review the safeguard mechanism with a view to weakening it, in a bid to bolster business and increase gas supply.

    Why the safeguard mechanism should be left alone

    Weakening the safeguard mechanism would lead to several problems.

    First, it would mean large facilities, including new coal and gas projects, would be permitted to operate without meaningful limits on their pollution. This threatens Australia’s international climate obligations.

    Second, if polluters were no longer required to buy carbon offsets, this would disrupt Australia’s carbon market.

    As the Clean Energy Regulator notes, the safeguard mechanism is the “dominant source” of demand for Australian carbon credits.

    In the first quarter of 2024, about 1.2 million carbon-credit units were purchased by parties wanting to offset their emissions. The vast majority were purchased by companies meeting compliance obligations under the safeguard mechanism or similar state rules.

    If companies are no longer required to buy offsets, or they buy fewer offsets, this would hurt those who sell carbon credits.

    Carbon credits are earned by organisations and individuals who abate carbon – through measures such as tree planting or retaining vegetation. The activities are often carried out by farmers and other landholders, including Indigenous organisations. Indigenous-led carbon projects have delivered jobs, cultural renewal and environmental benefits.

    The safeguard mechanism, together with the government pledge to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, also provides certainty for the operators of polluting facilities. Many in the business sector have called for the policy to remain unchanged.

    And finally, winding back the safeguard mechanism would send a troubling signal to the world: that Australia is stepping back from climate action.

    Now is not the time to abdicate our responsibilities on climate change. Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have risen dramatically since 1960. This increase is driving global warming and climate change, leading to extreme weather events which will only worsen.

    A hard-won policy

    The safeguard mechanism has not had time to deliver meaningful outcomes. And it is far from perfect – but it is hard-won, and Australia needs it.

    The 2023 reforms to the mechanism were designed to support trade-exposed industries, while encouraging companies to invest in emissions reduction.

    Undoing this mechanism would risk our climate goals. It would leave the government limited means to curb pollution from Australia’s largest emitters, and muddy the roadmap to net-zero. It would also create uncertainty for all carbon market participants, including the polluting facilities themselves.

    Felicity Deane does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Under a Coalition government, the fate of Australia’s central climate policy hangs in the balance – https://theconversation.com/under-a-coalition-government-the-fate-of-australias-central-climate-policy-hangs-in-the-balance-253426

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: From trading nutrients to storing carbon: 5 things you didn’t know about our underground fungi

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Frew, Lecturer in Mycorrhizal Ecology, Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University

    marian galicia/Shutterstock

    If you’re walking outdoors, chances are something remarkable is happening under your feet. Vast fungal networks are silently working to keep ecosystems alive.

    These fungi aren’t what you might picture. They are not mushrooms, or brightly coloured growths on tree trunks. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi look like spools of thread wrapped around plant roots.

    What makes these fungi remarkable is the deal they struck almost half a billion years ago with another kingdom of life – plants.

    AM fungi make threads of hyphae thinner than spider silk and weave them through plant roots. Then, they begin to trade, offering plants water and phosphorus, a vital plant nutrient in soils. In return, plants offer carbon-rich sugars and fats from photosynthesis. Fungi can’t photosynthesise, but plants can.

    This symbiotic relationship can help plants survive periods of drought and live in nutrient poor soils. More than 80% of all plant families rely on these fungi, while AM fungi cannot live without plants.

    Without these fungi, many of Australia’s plants — and the soil they grow in — would be in real trouble. Our continent is ancient, dry, and nutrient-poor. But while we monitor the fate of plants and animals in response to human impact and climate change, we haven’t been tracking the fungi who support it all. We don’t even know how many species there are, let alone if we’re losing them.

    To help fill this gap, I have developed the first dedicated database recording species and distributions of AM fungi in Australia – AusAMF.

    The underground economy of roots and filaments

    AM fungi deserve to be better known. These essential companions to most of the world’s plants maintain plant diversity, suppress invasive species, store carbon, cycle nutrients and prevent soil erosion.

    Here are five remarkable things about AM fungi:

    1. They’re older than roots

    Incredibly, this fungus-plant symbiosis emerged before plants evolved roots some 360–420 million years ago.

    AM fungi have been around for 475 million years, partnering with very early land plants such as the ancestors of today’s liverworts – which have no roots. This ancient alliance actually helped plants colonise land.

    2. They can boost native plants and reject invasives

    AM fungi do more than transport nutrients, carbon and water. They shape entire plant communities. Some plants benefit more than others, influencing competition and species co-existence. By giving some species a competitive edge, AM fungi allow some plants to survive which might otherwise be lost.

    When AM fungal diversity declines, it can lead to a loss of native plants and open the door to invasive plant species.

    But with the right management — such as reducing pesticides or reintroducing locally adapted fungi — AM fungi can boost plant nutrition and ecosystem restoration. They can help native vegetation recover and stop invasive species from gaining a foothold.

    3. They run an invisible underground economy

    The fungi-plant trade is more organised than you might think.

    In some instances, plants reward the fungi giving them the most phosphorus with more carbon, while the fungi prioritise plants offering them the most carbon – a bit like a marketplace. Some plants have figured out how to cheat the fungi, taking resources without giving anything in return.

    This high-magnification video shows water and nutrients flowing inside the hyphae of the AM fungus Rhizophagus irregularis. Source: Oyarte Galvez et al. (2025) Nature

    4. They boost plant defences against pests and disease

    Fungi don’t just help plants grow, they help them fight. As AM fungi colonise a plant’s roots, they boost its defences against threats such as diseases and plant-eating insects by strengthening and speeding up chemical responses. My research shows the size of this fungal-defence boost for plants can depend on what AM fungi are present.

    And if one plant is attacked, it puts out chemical signals which can move through the fungal network and let other plants know to ready their defences.

    5. They take in vast amounts of carbon

    Plants take carbon from the atmosphere and store it in their leaves, roots and wood. But AM fungi store carbon from plants too.

    Because mycorrhizal fungi are found wherever there are plants, their underground networks are vast – and so is their carbon impact. Recent research estimates the annual figure is more than a third of global fossil fuel carbon emissions.

    Vitally important, all but unknown

    If AM fungi vanished, many plant species would likely follow suit. Others would become more vulnerable to drought, disease, and pests. Soil would erode more easily, and nutrient and carbon flows would shift dramatically.

    Are they in trouble? We don’t know. AM fungi are out of sight, out of mind. No federal or state government agency seem to be tracking them. Our current National Soil Action Plan doesn’t mention fungi at all, despite their importance to soil health.

    Other than Antarctica, Australia is the least sampled continent for soil AM fungi, with just 32 sites in global databases. Europe, by comparison, has data from more than 1,200 sites.

    AM fungi help plants grow better. On the left is grass in symbiosis with AM fungi with visible white hyphae. On the right is grass without the fungi.
    Soil Ecology Wiki, CC BY

    That’s where I hope the AusAMF database will help. I partnered with landholders and research networks to gather soil samples. So far, the database has data from 610 locations, with about 400 more on the way.

    But this is still scratching the surface. AM fungal communities can differ between neighbouring fields or habitats, depending on land management methods and types of vegetation. Virtually all current records are a single snapshot in time — we lack the long-term monitoring needed to track seasonal or annual changes.

    It would be a mistake to remain in the dark about AM fungi. The more we learn, the more we see their importance, not only in supporting biodiversity, but in helping our crops and ecosystems cope with a changing world. If they are in decline, we need to know – and set about protecting them.

    Adam Frew receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the British Ecological Society.

    – ref. From trading nutrients to storing carbon: 5 things you didn’t know about our underground fungi – https://theconversation.com/from-trading-nutrients-to-storing-carbon-5-things-you-didnt-know-about-our-underground-fungi-252184

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Menthol cigarettes will be banned from April 1. Here’s why – and what else is changing

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Becky Freeman, Professor in Public Health, University of Sydney

    patpitchaya/Shutterstock

    New laws come into effect in Australia today that change the look, ingredients, and packaging of tobacco products.

    The Australian government passed the package of tobacco laws in late 2023, which include:

    • standardised tobacco pack and cigarette stick sizes, no more novelty pack sizes or cigarette lengths

    • updated and improved graphic health warnings and quitting advice inserts within all tobacco packs

    • warnings printed directly on cigarettes

    • banning ingredients that make tobacco taste better and easier to smoke, including menthol.

    Retailers have a three-month grace period to sell any old stock already in their stores by July 1.

    Here’s what’s behind these changes – and what needs to happen next.

    Packs warn about the harms of smoking.
    Department of Health and Ageing

    New graphic health warnings

    Cigarette packaging requirements have been stagnant since 2012, when Australia introduced plain packaging laws that banned the use of all on-pack logos and branding. This was a world-first.

    While large graphic health warnings are effective in both preventing smoking uptake and aiding quitting smoking, the effects wear out if warnings are not refreshed and varied.

    New warnings replace those from 2012.
    Department of Health and Ageing

    Cigarette packages must carry one of ten new health warnings. Fresh warnings that smoking doubles the risk of cervical cancer and leads to diabetes will be new information for many smokers.

    There are also warnings for roll-your-own, cigar, bidi and shisha tobacco packaging.

    Warnings on cigarettes

    Cigarettes themselves must now include one of eight health warnings printed directly on the filter paper.

    Canada was the first country in the world to adopt similar requirements in 2023.

    The size, shape, and colour of cigarettes has also been standardised to prevent tobacco companies from using unique cigarette designs to attract new users. Long, thin cigarettes, for example, have been marketed to women as a fashion accessory and diet tool for nearly a century.

    Warnings will now be on the sticks themselves.
    Department of Health and Ageing

    The ingredients permitted in cigarettes are also changing, with ingredients that enhance the flavour of tobacco being now banned. The long list of prohibited ingredients includes everything from cloves, to sugar, to probiotics and vitamins.

    Until now, the tobacco industry has had free reign to add ingredients that increase the palatability and attractiveness of cigarettes. This banned list also captures menthol and any ingredients that mimic the cooling properties of menthol.

    Why ban menthol?

    Menthol masks the harshness of smoke. Just like cold lollies that contain menthol to soothe sore throats and tame coughs, menthol in cigarettes prevents inexperienced smokers from reacting to the rough effects of tobacco smoke in the throat. This helps to make smoking a more pleasant experience that young users will return to.

    The introduction of crushable menthol capsules in cigarette filters has proven very popular with Australian teenagers. Teens who use these products are more likely to have recently smoked and have higher smoking intentions in the future. The new laws also explicitly prohibit these “crush balls” or “flavour beads.”

    Other counties that have banned menthol have seen drops in tobacco sales and use and increases in quitting behaviours.

    No similar reforms for the United States

    Menthol cigarettes have been heavily marketed to African American people since at least the 1950s and make up one-third of the total US cigarette market share. Tobacco control groups in the US have been advocating for a menthol ban for well over a decade.

    The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a rule banning menthol in 2022, and a 2024 US Surgeon General report highlighted that menthol products increase addiction and are:

    disproportionately used by Black people, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander people, women and people who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual.

    Under the Biden Administration, the FDA delayed issuing the final rule which meant the ban was not properly enacted before Trump was elected.

    In January 2025, the Trump administration completely withdrew the ban.

    A menthol ban in the US was predicted to reduce total smoking by 15% and the number of smoking attributable deaths among African Americans by up to 238,000.

    Reforms needed to stamp out our illicit market

    Organised criminals are operating in Australia’s tobacco supply chain to illegally import and sell tobacco products. Government action to step in and gain control of that supply system is long overdue.

    Until this year, Australia’s two most populous states didn’t even require tobacco sellers to be licensed, and Queensland only introduced licensing last year.

    Australia will need to change how tobacco is sold. It should not be so easy and commonplace to sell such an addictive and deadly product.

    Both state and national governments need timely and transparent reporting on the size and scope of the illicit market, and strict licensing of the entire tobacco supply chain.

    Businesses that sell illicit tobacco must face real consequences – not only large fines and loss of licences to operate, but also criminal charges.

    All aspects of the tobacco supply chain – from wholesalers to retailers – must be tightly controlled.

    Becky Freeman is an expert advisor to the Cancer Council tobacco issues committee and a member of the Cancer Institute vaping communications advisory panel. She has received relevant competitive grants from the NHMRC, MRFF, NSW Health, the Ian Potter Foundation, VicHealth, and Healthway WA.

    – ref. Menthol cigarettes will be banned from April 1. Here’s why – and what else is changing – https://theconversation.com/menthol-cigarettes-will-be-banned-from-april-1-heres-why-and-what-else-is-changing-251920

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Keep an eye on the Senate – the people elected to it this year will have immense power for years to come

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Zareh Ghazarian, Senior Lecturer, School of Social Sciences, Monash University

    Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has finally ended weeks of speculation and named the election date for the national parliament.

    After months of unofficial campaigning, Australians will now be treated to a festival of democracy as promises are made, policies are announced, and the leaders travel the country to rally support.

    Much of the campaigning by the parties will be focused on the House of Representatives. This is to be expected as the lower house is where government is formed by the party that wins the majority of seats in this chamber, and the leader of this party becomes prime minister.

    While the election for the lower house dominates the campaign, the contest for the Senate is rarely mentioned.

    This is a bit unfair as the Senate is an immensely powerful chamber.

    The power of the Senate

    Barring its inability to initiate or amend supply bills, the Senate has almost the same powers as the House of Representatives. Senators can introduce their own bills, as long as they’re not supply bills.

    For any proposed bill to become law, it must be passed by the Senate as well as the House of Representatives.

    All states have equal representation in the chamber. Currently, every state is represented by 12 senators, each with six-year terms.

    This means half the Senate is up for election at every general election.

    The territories are represented by two senators each and they face re-election at every general election. The current number of senators is 76.

    Winning a majority in the Senate has no bearing on who forms government (it’s the result of the lower house – the House of Representatives – which determines this). It does, however, make it easier for the government to pass bills to become law if it enjoys a majority in this chamber.

    Who wins seats in the Senate?

    The voting system in the Senate is very different to the House of Representatives. To win a seat in the House of Representatives, a candidate must win 50% +1 of the votes cast in the district.

    In the Senate, however, a candidate must win a proportion (approximately 14.3%) of the state-wide vote.

    This makes it a bit easier for minor parties to win representation as they can rely on broad support from across the state to reach the required threshold.

    Changes introduced in 2016 mean Australians have choice on how to complete their Senate ballot paper. They can either number six or more candidates of their choice above the black line, or vote below the line by numbering 12 or more candidates.

    While parties will organise their own preference deals to benefit them, voters are ultimately in control of where their preferences go.

    Thanks to the voting system used in the Senate, it is rare for a government to hold a majority of seats in the upper house. The last time this occurred was in 2004 when the John Howard-led Coalition enjoyed a majority in the chamber.

    The current Senate

    Following the 2022 election, both major parties lost ground in the Senate. To have a majority in the chamber, a party must have 39 seats. Currently, Labor has 25 representatives, while the Coalition has 30.

    The remaining seats are held by the Greens with the third highest number of representatives (11), One Nation (2), Jacqui Lambie Network (1), United Australia Party (1), and six Independents.

    Several high-profile senators are up for election in 2025. In Queensland, for example, Malcolm Roberts from Pauline Hanson’s One Nation will be up for re-election, Jacqui Lambie will be recontesting in Tasmania, while Independent Senator David Pocock from the ACT will be seeking another term.

    There will also be some other prominent senators hoping to be re-elected from established parties.

    These include Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price (Country Liberal Party) and Senator Malarndirri McCarthy (ALP) from the Northern Territory, Liberal James Paterson from Victoria, Sarah Hanson-Young from the Greens in South Australia, and Jordan Steele-John from the Greens in Western Australia.

    The 2025 contest

    Fewer people have been voting for the major parties in recent years. In 2022, the vote for non-major party candidates reached a high of 35.7% (which, as Antony Green reminds us, was higher than the primary vote for both the Coalition and Labor).

    Since the 1980s, Australians appear to have become open to supporting non-major party candidates contesting the Senate. If this continues as expected in 2025, whoever becomes prime minister will have to deal with the diverse interests and policy demands from those in the upper house.

    While the campaign for the Senate may go under the radar over the next few weeks, who is elected to the Senate will have a massive impact on Australian politics for years to come.

    Zareh Ghazarian does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Keep an eye on the Senate – the people elected to it this year will have immense power for years to come – https://theconversation.com/keep-an-eye-on-the-senate-the-people-elected-to-it-this-year-will-have-immense-power-for-years-to-come-252899

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Stone tool discovery in China shows people in East Asia were innovating during the Middle Paleolithic, like in Europe and Middle East

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Ben Marwick, Professor of Archaeology, University of Washington

    The artifacts found at Longtan, southwest China, were as old as 60,000 years. Qijun Ruan

    New technologies today often involve electronic devices that are smaller and smarter than before. During the Middle Paleolithic, when Neanderthals were modern humans’ neighbors, new technologies meant something quite different: new kinds of stone tools that were smaller but could be used for many tasks and lasted for a long time.

    Archaeologists like me are interested in the Middle Paleolithic – a period spanning 250,000 to 30,000 years ago – because it includes the first appearance of our species, our arrival into many parts of the world for the first time, and our invention of many new kinds of stone tools.

    Illustration of a typical Quina scraper and related tools. The toolmaker would flake pieces of stone off the core to carefully shape the Quina scraper.
    Pei-Yuan Xiao

    In our study just published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a team of international collaborators and I describe our discovery in China of the first complete example of a Middle Paleolithic technology previously seen only in Europe and the Middle East.

    Archaeologists have thought that ancient people in East Asia completely skipped the Middle Paleolithic. Our discovery challenges the long-standing notion that while ancient people in Europe and Africa were inventing new tools during this period, people of East Asia stuck to only the most basic tools that remained unchanged for thousands of years.

    The Quina tool kit from Longtan. (A–D) Quina scrapers. (E–G) Quina cores. (H-J) Resharpening flakes showing Quina retouch at the near end of the top face. (K) Small tool made on resharpening flake.
    Hao Li

    Quina scrapers helped hunters process kills

    The tool we’ve identified is called a Quina scraper. This type of stone tool is well known from archaeological sites in Europe and the Middle East.

    Quina scrapers are typically quite thick and asymmetrical, with a broad and sharp working edge that shows clear signs of being used and resharpened multiple times. This shape results in durable cutting edges, ideal for long cycles of use followed by resharpening.

    People used Quina scrapers to scrape and cut soft materials, such as meat and animal skins, and medium-hard materials, such as wood. We know this from tiny scratches and chips on the scrapers that match traces caused by working these materials in experiments using contemporary stone tools.

    European archaeologists believe that Quina scrapers were invented to meet the needs of highly mobile hunters living in cool and dry climates. These hunters were focused on seasonal migratory prey such as reindeer, giant deer, horse and bison. Quina scrapers would have helped them process their kills into food and other resources – for example, to extract marrow.

    A. Map showing the location of the discovery of the Quina tool kit in China, at the southern margin of the Hengduan Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau. B. View of the landscape showing the Longtan archaeological site.
    Hao Li, CC BY-ND

    First find of a Quina tool in East Asia

    Our team, led by Hao Li of the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research and Qijun Ruan of the Yunnan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, excavated Quina scrapers and related stone tools from the Longtan archaeological site in southwest China.

    Bo Li collects samples from Longtan for luminescence dating at his laboratory at the University of Wollongong.
    Qijun Ruan

    Our colleague Bo Li at the University of Wollongong used optical luminescence dating methods on the layers of earth that contained the artifacts. This technique can identify how much time has passed since each individual sand grain was last exposed to the Sun. Dating many individual grains in a sample is important because tree roots, insects or other animals can mix younger sediments down into older ones.

    After we identified and removed intrusive younger grains, we found the layers containing the artifacts were 50,000 to 60,000 years old. This is roughly the same time Quina scrapers were being used in Europe at Neanderthal sites.

    Keliang Zhao from China’s Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology looked at pollen grains from the Longtan excavations. He found that the Middle Paleolithic people of Longtan lived in a relatively open forest-grassland environment and a dry and cool climate. This environment is similar to that of Quina sites in Europe.

    Davide Delpiano, Marco Peresani and Marie-Hélène Moncel, experts on European Middle Paleolithic tools, joined our team to help with the comparison of the Chinese and European specimens and confirm their similarities.

    Hélène Monod, from Universidad Rovira i Virgili in Spain, looked at our Quina scrapers under the microscope and found traces on them from scraping and scratching bones, antlers and wood. She also found polish from using the tools on meat, hides and soft plants.

    Who lived in East Asia during this period?

    Our new discovery of Quina scrapers joins another recent find of a different kind of Middle Paleolithic technology in East Asia: Levallois tools from Guanyindong Cave in Guizhou Province in south-central China. Levallois tools result from a distinctive multistep sequence that efficiently produces lots of useful cutting tools, with minimal wasted stone. Taken together, these two finds make a strong case that Middle Paleolithic technologies were present in East Asia.

    But why are we only just finding this Quina tool kit now, when it has been known in Europe for such a long time?

    One reason is that archaeologists have been looking in Europe for longer than almost anywhere else in the world. Another reason Middle Paleolithic evidence appears rare in East Asia is because what now seem to be less typical variations of the Quina tool kit previously found in China had been overlooked, likely due to archaeologists’ narrow definitions based on European examples.

    The Quina tools at Longtan are among the earliest artifacts from that site, which makes it hard for researchers to determine the origins of this new technology. Was it introduced by visitors from Europe? Or did local people in East Asia independently invent it?

    The research team shows off the Longtan artifacts.
    Hao Li

    To answer these questions, we hope to find more Quina scrapers at sites with deeper – meaning older – layers than Longtan. If older layers hold what look like the remnants of experiments in stone toolmaking that would eventually result in Quina tools, it suggests Quina tools were invented locally. If deeper layers have dissimilar tools, that suggests Quina technology was introduced from a neighboring group.

    We also hope future work will reveal who made these tools. Our excavations at Longtan did not find any human bone or DNA that could help us identify the toolmakers.

    During the Middle Paleolithic, there were multiple human species that could make tools like this. It could have been modern humans like us. But it could also have been Neanderthals. Considering that the Quina technology in Europe is directly associated with Neanderthals, this seems likely. But it could also have been Denisovans, an extinct species similar to modern humans found during this time in Siberia, the Tibetan Plateau and Laos, or even a new human species that hasn’t been seen before.

    Whoever was making and using these Quina scrapers, they were able to be inventive and flexible with their technology, adapting to their changing environment.

    Ben Marwick does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Stone tool discovery in China shows people in East Asia were innovating during the Middle Paleolithic, like in Europe and Middle East – https://theconversation.com/stone-tool-discovery-in-china-shows-people-in-east-asia-were-innovating-during-the-middle-paleolithic-like-in-europe-and-middle-east-252868

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Demand Trump Rescind Illegal Anti-Voter Executive Order

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore)
    March 31, 2025
    Senators say “requirements in this illegal order would likely disenfranchise millions of American voters…places a variety of other process burdens on voters, especially married women, rural residents, and low-income voters, and communities of color.”
    Washington D.C.—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., said today they have joined Senate colleagues in calling on Donald Trump to revoke his illegal anti-voter executive order that would disenfranchise millions of Americans.
    “This unlawful directive exceeds your authority over an independent agency and would likely disenfranchise millions of eligible American voters by creating barriers to voting, while also inviting chaos into state voter registration processes – including by inappropriately sharing Americans’ data with the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE),” the lawmakers wrote. “Under the Constitution and existing law, this Executive Order cannot be implemented. Sadly, we are not surprised at your continued efforts to undermine our free and fair elections. From welcoming foreign election interference in our elections, to supporting the January 6 insurrection, to promoting baseless election conspiracy theories, your dangerous rhetoric has undermined public confidence in our election system.”
    The proof of citizenship requirements in the executive order would restrict the right to vote for millions of Americans given the burden it creates to obtain these documents. Nearly half of all American citizens do not have valid passports, and millions more have a legal name that differs from other government-issued documents, including up to 69 million married women whose birth certificates no longer match their legal name. 
    The senators emphasized that the order runs counter to the constitutional foundation that elections are to be primarily administered by the states. They also sounded the alarm on the order’s attempt to empower DOGE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to review state voter registration lists, other state records, and various federal databases, with the power of subpoena. 
    “Voting by noncitizens is already a federal crime and, despite unsubstantiated claims to the contrary, is extremely rare. By interjecting DOGE into the process, this order would interfere with states’ maintenance of voter registration lists, compromising voters’ personal information,” the lawmakers continued.
    “The new federal voter registration requirements in this illegal order would likely disenfranchise millions of American voters. Millions of Americans do not have passports and many face challenges obtaining other documents that would be required by this order, if it was ever implemented,” the lawmakers concluded. “This order also places a variety of other process burdens on voters, especially married women, rural residents, and low-income voters, and communities of color.”
    The letter was led by U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, D-Calif. In addition to Wyden and Merkley, the letter is also signed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and U.S. Senators Cory Booker, D-N.J., Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, Angus King, I-Maine, Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Patty Murray, D-Wash., Jack Reed, D-R.I., Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.
    The full text of the letter is here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murphy, Colleagues Urge Trump Administration To Reverse Illegal Gutting Of U.S. Agency For Global Media

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Connecticut – Chris Murphy
    WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, joined a bicameral letter urging United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) Acting CEO Victor Morales and Special Advisor Kari Lake to rescind the Trump administration’s illegal actions to dismantle the agency, terminate grants for several government-funded outlets worldwide, and place Voice of America and other federal staff on administrative leave.
    “Congress reaffirmed its commitment to your agency, its mission, and its personnel by funding the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) at $866.9 million in the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extension Act, 2025, and expects that each of the entities will continue their unique mission of broadcasting content to audiences around the world,” the lawmakers wrote. “Your decisions to terminate the grants to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia (RFA) (in addition to withholding funds for the BenarNews service), Middle East Broadcasting Networks, and Open Technology Fund; place on administrative leave Voice of America (VOA), Office of Cuba Broadcasting, Technology, Services, and Innovation, and other federal staff; cancel hundreds of contracts; and pull transmissions from the air violate several provisions in the appropriations bill.”
    “These actions are not just illegal and wasteful, they run counter to our interests,” they continued. “America’s authoritarian adversaries are investing billions in state-backed media, targeting the same countries USAGM entities reach. With an audience of 427 million people speaking more than 60 languages, USAGM networks are a trusted and reliable source of information in the face of state censorship, including in the People’s Republic of China, Iran, Russia, North Korea, Cuba, and Afghanistan, and across Eastern Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia. The technology developed by the Open Technology Fund and used across grantees will leave users who are dependent on their tools to circumvent censorship stranded. Once America loses the trust of these audiences, it will be difficult to get it back.”
    “We respectfully request that you rescind the actions you have taken to date and refrain from any further downsizing or terminations, and that you ensure you are in compliance with your legal requirements, including to consult and notify Congress of any proposed changes and to meet congressional spending directives,” they concluded.
    U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), as well as U.S. Representatives Lois Frankel (D-Fla.), Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Norma Torres (D-Calif.), and Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) also signed the letter.
    The full text of the letter is available HERE and below.
    Dear Acting CEO Morales and Ms. Lake:
    You are at the helm of an agency with a critical mission to increase freedom of expression, circumvent censorship, and deliver objective, accurate, and relevant information to hundreds of millions of people worldwide. This mission directly supports U.S. national security and foreign policy interests.
    Given its importance, we write to express our concerns with the decisions you have made in response to the March 14, 2025 Executive Order titled “Executive Order on Continuing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy.”
    Congress reaffirmed its commitment to your agency, its mission, and its personnel by funding the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) at $866.9 million in the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extension Act, 2025, and expects that each of the entities will continue their unique mission of broadcasting content to audiences around the world. Your decisions to terminate the grants to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia (RFA) (in addition to withholding funds for the BenarNews service), Middle East Broadcasting Networks, and Open Technology Fund; place on administrative leave Voice of America (VOA), Office of Cuba Broadcasting, Technology, Services, and Innovation, and other federal staff; cancel hundreds of contracts; and pull transmissions from the air violate several provisions in the appropriations bill. This includes sections 7015 and 7063, and the provisions under the United States Agency for Global Media heading, of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2024, as carried forward by the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extension Act, 2025.
    Additionally, the actions you have taken to significantly downsize the agency, including termination of the new building lease and closeout costs, will cost the U.S. taxpayer hundreds of millions of dollars.
    These actions are not just illegal and wasteful, they run counter to our interests. America’s authoritarian adversaries are investing billions in state-backed media, targeting the same countries USAGM entities reach. With an audience of 427 million people speaking more than 60 languages, USAGM networks are a trusted and reliable source of information in the face of state censorship, including in the People’s Republic of China, Iran, Russia, North Korea, Cuba, and Afghanistan, and across Eastern Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia. The technology developed by the Open Technology Fund and used across grantees will leave users who are dependent on their tools to circumvent censorship stranded. Once America loses the trust of these audiences, it will be difficult to get it back.
    In 2020, when then-USAGM CEO Michael Pack instituted mass firings, then-Senator Rubio led a bipartisan effort to have such actions reversed. In the letter, Senator Rubio and colleagues stated:
    “We are at a critical moment in history where malign actors including Russia, China, and Iran, are using advanced tools and technology to undermine global democratic norms, spreading disinformation, and severely restricting their own free press to hamper access to independent news for their citizens. As these and other authoritarian regimes further crack down domestically, their citizens turn to outside media as their only trustworthy source of unbiased, accurate news.”
    This is no less true today.
    We are equally troubled that these actions put staff across all of those entities, who have faithfully served the interests of the U.S. government, at risk if they are forced to return to authoritarian countries where they may be subject to harassment, persecution, or arbitrary arrest. The agency appears to have no plan in place to address these risks. Already, 1,300 VOA staff and 75 percent of RFA U.S.-based staff have been put on leave.
    We respectfully request that you rescind the actions you have taken to date and refrain from any further downsizing or terminations, and that you ensure you are in compliance with your legal requirements, including to consult and notify Congress of any proposed changes and to meet congressional spending directives. We request that you respond to this letter no later than April 4, 2025 confirming your intent to do so.
    Thank you for your attention to this matter.
    Sincerely,

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How a new wave of fighter jets could transform aerial combat

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By David Bacci, Senior Research Fellow, Oxford Thermofluids Laboratory, University of Oxford

    The most advanced fighter jets in the world are known as “fifth generation”. They contain technologies developed in the first part of the 21st century. Examples of fifth generation fighter jets include America’s F-35 Lightning II and F-22 Raptor, China’s Chengdu J-20 and Russia’s Sukhoi SU-57.

    Now, however, nations are moving ahead with the sixth generation of combat jets. In the past few months, China has flown its J36 and J50 prototype jets. Meanwhile, the US has selected Boeing to build a new fighter aircraft called the F-47.

    As with previous generations, the sixth will incorporate major advances in aircraft design, onboard electronics (avionics) and weapon systems.

    But how will the new generation of jets stand out from the previous one? Future combat jets will not see dramatic increases in maximum speed, nor in flight performance. Instead, the true innovations will be in how these systems operate and achieve dominance in aerial combat.

    Like the fifth generation, the sixth will be dominated by stealth technology. This helps fighters jets to reduce their chances of being detected by infrared and radar sensors, to the point that when their signatures are eventually picked up, the opponent has no time to act.

    Stealth is achieved through particular shapes of airframe (such as diamond shapes) and coatings on the aircraft – called radar absorbing materials. The airframe is the fundamental structural framework of an aircraft, encompassing the fuselage, wings, tail assembly and landing gear.

    The diamond-like shapes that already characterise fifth generation jets are likely to remain in the upcoming generation of fighter, but they will evolve.

    A common feature we’re likely to see is the reduction or complete removal of vertical tails at the back of the aircraft and their control surfaces. In current aircraft, these tails provide directional stability and control in flight, allowing the aircraft to maintain its course and manoeuvre.

    However, sixth generation jets could achieve this control with the help of thrust vectoring – the ability to manipulate the direction of engines and therefore the direction of thrust (the force that moves the jet through the air).

    The role of vertical tails could also be partially replaced by devices called fluidic actuators. These apply forces to the the wing by blowing high speed and high pressure air on different parts of it.

    F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft. Vertical tails can be seen at the rear of this fifth generation jet.
    US Air Force / Paul Holcomb

    The removal of the vertical tails would contribute to the fighter’s stealth. The new generation of fighters is also likely to see the use of novel radar absorbing materials with advanced capabilities.

    We’ll see the introduction of what are known as adaptive cycle engines on sixth generation fighters. These engines will feature what’s known as a three stream design, which refers to the airstreams blowing through the engine. Current jets have two airstreams: one that passes through the core of the engine, and another that bypasses the core.

    The development of a third stream provides an extra source of air flow to increase the engine’s fuel efficiency and performance. This will allow both the capability to cruise efficiently at supersonic speed and deliver a high thrust during combat.

    It is likely that China and the US will build two separate fighters with different airframes. One will have a bigger airframe, designed for use in an area like the Pacific Ocean region. Here, the ability to fly further and carry a heavier payload will be key, because of the distances involved. Airframes designed for this region will therefore be larger.

    Another fighter jet carrying a smaller airframe will be designed for use in areas such as Europe where agility and manoeuvrability will be more important.

    The next wave of jets will have a system in the cockpit that gathers lots of information from other aircraft, ground surveillance stations and satellites. It would then integrate this data to give an enhanced situational awareness to the pilot. This system would also able to actively jam enemy sensors.

    Another key feature will be the deployment of unmanned combat aerial vehicles (Ucavs), a form of drone aircraft. The piloted fighter jet would be able to control a variety of Ucavs, ranging from loyal wingmen to cheaper, unpiloted fighter jets that will assist the mission, including protecting the piloted fighter.

    This will all be the responsibility of something called the advanced digital cockpit, a software-driven system that will use virtual reality and allow the pilot to effectively become a battle manager. Artificial intelligence (AI) will be a key feature of the support systems for the drones. This will allow them to be controlled with complete autonomy. The pilot will assign the main task – such as, “attack that enemy jet in that sector” – and the system will carry out the mission without any further input.

    Another advancement will be the weapon systems, with the adoption of missiles that not only will be capable of travelling at hypersonic speeds, but will also incorporate stealth features. This will further reduce the reaction times of enemy forces. Directed energy weapons systems, such as laser weapons, could potentially appear in later stages, as this technology is under study.

    Under America’s sixth generation fighter programme, the US Navy is working on a separate jet called the F/A-XX, complementing the F-47.

    The UK, Italy and Japan are also working on a jet project known as the global combat air programme (GCAP). This will replace the Eurofighter Typhoon in service with the UK and Italy and the Mitsubishi F-2 in service with Japan.

    Germany, Spain and France are working on a fighter programme called the future combat air system (FCAS). This could supersede Germany and Spain’s Typhoons and France’s Rafale.

    The path for sixth generation fighter jets seems to have already been traced, but uncertainties remain. The feasibility of some of the characteristics described and development times and costs are not yet well defined. This interval of time was more than ten years for fifth generation fighter jets – and the sixth is going to be far more complex in terms of requirements and capability.

    A new generation of fighter jet is expected to remain on active duty for something like 30 years. But warfare across the world evolves rapidly. It is unclear whether the design requirements we are fixing today remain relevant over the coming years.

    David Bacci is affiliated with Cranfeild Defence & Security (CRanfield University) – Visiting Research Fellow

    – ref. How a new wave of fighter jets could transform aerial combat – https://theconversation.com/how-a-new-wave-of-fighter-jets-could-transform-aerial-combat-252949

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: The lore of ‘lore’ – how fandoms created an online phenomenon from an Old English word

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Kate McNicholas Smith, Lecturer in Television Theory, University of Westminster

    steved_np3/Shutterstock

    The term “lore” has, well, a whole lot of lore. Now essential online slang, the word can be traced back to Old English, where it referred primarily to learning, as in the act of teaching or being taught.

    Over time, lore came to be associated with more informal knowledge, passed on through word of mouth. The term “folklore,” the “lore of the people”, was coined by the British writer William J. Thoms in 1846. As a result, lore largely slipped out of common usage. By 2024, however, it had made the shortlist for the Oxford word of the year (the title was taken by “brainrot”).

    So, how did “lore” come to hold such contemporary relevance? And what does it mean today? The answer can be found, at least in part, in fandom, where “lore” is used to refer to the body of knowledge that exists around a person, fictional universe or character.

    Fandom has long facilitated deep dives into media in which fans analyse, discuss and track their favourite storylines and character arcs. This has been particularly true of the science fiction and fantasy genres, due to their complex and expansive narrative universes.

    No one’s 20s and 30s look the same. You might be saving for a mortgage or just struggling to pay rent. You could be swiping dating apps, or trying to understand childcare. No matter your current challenges, our Quarter Life series has articles to share in the group chat, or just to remind you that you’re not alone.

    Read more from Quarter Life:

    In 1969, science fiction fan and writer Bjo Trimble self-published the first edition of Star Trek Concordance. It was an unofficial reference book for the television series featuring timelines, plot summaries, character biographies and more – information that might now be described as Star Trek lore.

    Since then, fans of Star Trek and countless other television shows have continued to create zines, write fan fiction, organise conventions and develop vast and ongoing archives of fan-works. Through such practices, fans develop what media expert Henry Jenkins has described as collective intelligence, as each fan contributes small parts of knowledge to a whole – or, to the lore.

    Fandom has, of course, come a long way since the early days of Star Trek. Fan activities have now moved online, where their reach and visibility has significantly increased. Television has changed too, shifting towards the narrative complexity and innovation made possible, in part, by the active engagements of fandoms.

    Where fandom was once a niche (and often derided) activity, in recent years fan culture has gone mainstream. From direct communication between fans and producers to the creative possibilities of transmedia storytelling (where productions circulate official content across platforms in ways that echo fan-ish expansions of narrative worlds) media is increasingly inviting audiences to participate in the investigating, cataloguing and circulating of lore.

    Pop lore – from K-pop to Gaylor Swift

    A powerful example of lore inspiring transmedia storytelling can be found in K-pop.
    Well known South Korean bands engage with their fans not only through their music, but also with “concepts” (themes that span styling, music and other media) and ever-expanding storytelling universes.

    Take, for example, mega-boyband BTS’s meta narrative of the Bangtan Universe. It’s a fictional alternate universe which spans music videos, webtoons (digital comics), short films, mobile games, books and more. This kind of cross-platform storytelling encourages BTS fans to piece together the “lore” of the respective universe.

    Storytelling is also central to the popularity of singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, described by Teen Vogue as “the queen of easter eggs”. These hidden messages and inter-textual references can be found in the star’s lyrics, videos, fashion, interviews and even manicures, and produce an expansive archive of Swift lore.

    A subsection of Swift lore is known as Gaylor – where fans collate “evidence” that they believe shows that Swift is queer. It is, in part, an example of the expansive possibilities of fandom for queer audiences. But it also speaks to the ethical tensions of fandom and parasocial relationships, as fan-created lore can develop into [invasive expectations](https://www.them.us/story/taylor-swift-end-of-gaylorism](https://www.them.us/story/taylor-swift-end-of-gaylorism) of celebrities.

    Dropping lore on TikTok

    As digital media has grown to become part of our daily lives, “lore” has grown too. Today it goes beyond fictional universes and celebrities to also include everyday people and their online stories.

    YouTube first invited users to “broadcast yourself” in 2005, and opportunities to do so have only expanded since then, notably with the rise of TikTok.



    Read more:
    YouTube was born from a failed dating site – 20 years on, the world’s biggest video platform faces new challenges

    On TikTok, some users tell stories about their lives and experiences, or their “lore”. In these short videos, lore is “dropped” (revealed) about notable events, defining experiences, relationships (such as ex-lore) and family stories (such as dad lore).

    These playful retellings remake real life through narrative conventions of heroism, romance and comic misadventure, while other videos offer ironic commentary on lore-dropping itself.

    There is at once authenticity, performance and play here. Stories are, in part, ephemeral, as lore comes and goes in the fast-paced flow of digital content. Circulating via hashtags, however, stories are connected, responded to and remade, facilitating digital intimacies.

    The circulation of lore is, at once, user generated and algorithmically curated. In the context of what researchers have described as the datalogical turn (where big data and adaptive algorithms become increasingly central to shaping and understanding society) and the rise of affective capitalism (in which feelings, desires and experiences are capitalised on for economic gain), personal lore also becomes valuable data to be commodified.

    Lore then, is an old word with a distinctly contemporary iteration. It’s representative of the ever-expanding convergences of digital media, identity and intimacy.

    Kate McNicholas Smith does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. The lore of ‘lore’ – how fandoms created an online phenomenon from an Old English word – https://theconversation.com/the-lore-of-lore-how-fandoms-created-an-online-phenomenon-from-an-old-english-word-252577

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Margot Robbie’s Wuthering Heights dress is inaccurate, but not because it’s white – an expert explains

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Danielle Mariann Dove, Surrey Future Fellow and Lecturer in English Literature, University of Surrey

    The tiered ‘polonaise’ style dress would have been popular with women like Cathy Earnshaw during the period the book was set. Wikimedia, CC BY

    The upcoming Wuthering Heights adaptation by Saltburn director Emerald Fennell has courted controversy since it was first announced, with Fennell’s choice of leading lady and man drawing internet critics.

    Playing tragic heroine Catherine Earnshaw is the 34-year-old blonde Margot Robbie, and as tortured Heathcliff will be fellow Aussie, the 27-year-old Jacob Elordi. If you’re familiar with Emily Brontë’s 1847 novel then you know the ages, vibes and looks are just off.

    Now online fans of the book are aghast in response to a series of leaked photographs of Margot Robbie wearing an elaborate white wedding gown.

    Some were quick to point out the historical inaccuracy of the wedding gown, while others argued that “the tradition of a white wedding dress wouldn’t have come around until after the story took place”.

    But is that really true? And what would Catherine Earnshaw have actually worn on her wedding day in the late-18th century?

    Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

    Most 18th-century brides would have probably worn their Sunday best on their wedding day. This was their finest day dress in the current fashion.

    While it may have been an expensive dress, it wouldn’t necessarily have been a purpose-made wedding gown – unless the bride was very wealthy. Significantly, and unlike most wedding dresses today, the gown would also have been worn again on other social occasions.

    Brontë tells us nothing about Cathy’s wedding clothes and very little about Cathy and Edgar Linton’s wedding day, which takes place in 1783. However, as the bride of a wealthy landowner she would likely have chosen to have a wedding gown specially made for the occasion in rich silk or satin.

    The dress would have been a testament to her new family’s social standing. It would likely have featured a tightly fitted bodice with a low, round neckline characteristic of the period, a sash, and close-fitting, three-quarter length sleeves with a frill.

    The wide skirts would have been open to reveal a longer petticoat underneath, or they might have been looped up with ribbons to form three layers in the popular “polonaise” style of the day.

    By contrast, the wedding dress that Margot Robbie has been pictured wearing is much more reminiscent of the silhouette in vogue in 1840.

    In fact, it appears to take direct inspiration from Queen Victoria’s wedding gown which she wore to marry Albert in February of that year – almost six decades after Cathy’s fictional wedding takes place. Like Queen Victoria’s wedding gown, Robbie’s features a similar off-the-shoulder neckline, short, puffed sleeves and a deep V-shaped bodice.

    A white dress?

    Queen Victoria is often credited with having started the trend for wearing a white wedding dress. But while she certainly helped to popularise the white gown in the 1840s, she was by no means the sole originator of the tradition. Women were married wearing white long before she chose to do so and they continued to marry wearing dresses of other colours long after.

    In 1875, for example, the magazine Beeton’s Young Englishwoman advised one of its readers who wrote in asking for bridal fashion advice, that a grey wedding dress of “Japanese silk would be pretty”, and suggested a silk gown of “pale blue or pale mauve” which “would be useful afterwards”.

    Contrary to popular belief that white wedding dresses were not in vogue until the Victorian period, white and silver were in fact the preferred colours for wedding gowns in the 18th century.

    The preference for a white or silver wedding dress over a coloured gown can be seen in Oliver Goldsmith’s 1768 comedy play, The Good Natur’d Man, when Garnet, a lady’s maid, tells the soon-to-be married Olivia: “I wish you could take the white and silver [gown] to be married in. It’s the worst luck in the world, in anything but white.”

    The historical inaccuracy of Robbie’s Wuthering Heights wedding dress stems not from its colour, then, but primarily from its problematic silhouette.

    Of course, historical accuracy is not necessarily the end goal for film directors. Rather, Robbie’s anachronistic wedding gown appears to exemplify a broader trend in historical drama (think Bridgerton) towards a kind of strategic inaccuracy, in which producers and costume designers prioritise experimentation over strict fidelity to period detail.

    For all we know, Fennell might have decided to set the adaptation around the time of the novel’s publication rather than its original late-18th and early-19th century setting. Even more intriguingly, she might be using the wedding dress to signal the adaptation’s more modern inflections.

    Robbie’s wedding dress and cathedral-length veil wouldn’t look out of place at a contemporary wedding. Basque, or drop waist, wedding dresses dominated New York bridal fashion week in October 2024 and are poised to become a major trend in 2025 having been adopted by celebrities such as actor Millie Bobby Brown and podcaster Alex Cooper. Perhaps Fennell’s Cathy is just extremely fashion forward.

    Danielle Mariann Dove does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Margot Robbie’s Wuthering Heights dress is inaccurate, but not because it’s white – an expert explains – https://theconversation.com/margot-robbies-wuthering-heights-dress-is-inaccurate-but-not-because-its-white-an-expert-explains-253461

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Fires in the Republic of Korea: UNESCO remains at the disposal of the authorities for the protection and restoration of heritage

    Source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

    UNESCO expresses its solidarity with the firefighters and the authorities of the Republic of Korea who have been facing unprecedented fires in recent days. In view of the heavy human toll, the Organisation also extends its most sincere thoughts to the victims and their families.
    As part of its mandate, UNESCO has been monitoring the damage to heritage and culture. These forest fires have indeed posed a significant threat to several properties inscribed on the World Heritage List.
    UNESCO commends the authorities for taking immediate action, deploying more than 750 professionals to the heritage sites to carry out inspections and implement emergency protection measures.

    These actions helped to prevent the World Heritage sites from being directly affected by the fires and cultural property of universal value from disappearing.

    Unfortunately, the scale of the disaster caused significant damage to other Korean cultural sites of national importance, such as the 7th-century Gounsa Temple in Uiseong County, which was destroyed.

    UNESCO remains ready to provide any expertise that may be deemed necessary by the authorities to further strengthen the protection of heritage sites. The Organization also remains at their disposal, once the emergency is over, to plan the restoration of cultural property, wherever possible, and to draw up updated risk prevention plans.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Kim, Connolly Reintroduce Taiwan International Solidarity Act 

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Young Kim (CA-39)

    Washington, DC – Congresswoman Young Kim (R-CA), the Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on East Asia and Pacific, and Congressman Gerald E. Connolly (D-VA), a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Co-Chair of the bipartisan Congressional Taiwan Caucus,  and the former President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, introduced the Taiwan International Solidarity Act, bipartisan legislation that counters Beijing’s attempts to exclude Taiwan from participating in international organizations.  

    The legislation previously passed the House in July 2023. 

    “Beijing continues to do all it can to isolate Taiwan from the outside world and silence Taiwan’s voice on the world stage. Taiwan has a track record of success in democracy and global health security, and its perspective deserves to be heard,” said Kim. “The Taiwan International Solidarity Act helps the United States demonstrate through meaningful action our support for Taiwan’s status in international organizations. Taiwan’s participation in global conversation is the world’s gain.” 

    “For too long, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has distorted policies and procedures at international organizations to assert its sovereignty claims over Taiwan, often to the detriment of global health, governance, and security efforts,” said Connolly. “This bipartisan legislation ensures that we stand against Beijing’s weaponization of international organizations and in solidarity with the wishes and best interests of the people of Taiwan.”  

    The Taiwan International Solidarity Act builds on the Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act, which was signed into law in March 2020, to further counter the PRC’s attempts to weaponize international organizations to claim that Taiwan is part of China by distorting the language, policies, and procedures of international organizations. The legislation clarifies that U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2758 does not preclude the United States from using its vote, voice, and influence to resist the reckless campaign against Taiwan’s place on the world stage. It also encourages the U.S. to work with allies and partners to oppose the People’s Republic of China’s efforts to undermine Taiwan’s diplomatic relationships and partnerships globally. Finally, the bill expands reporting requirements to include information relating to any prior or ongoing attempts by the People’s Republic of China to undermine Taiwan’s participation in international organizations as well as its ties and relationships with other countries. 

    Text of the legislation is available here.  

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: Apple Intelligence comes to Apple Vision Pro today with visionOS 2.4

    Source: Apple

    Headline: Apple Intelligence comes to Apple Vision Pro today with visionOS 2.4

    March 31, 2025

    UPDATE

    Apple Intelligence and new spatial experiences come to Apple Vision Pro today with visionOS 2.4

    Alongside the first set of powerful Apple Intelligence features, users can discover new content with Spatial Gallery and the Apple Vision Pro app for iPhone, and share the magic of spatial computing with enhancements to Guest User

    visionOS 2.4 is available today, bringing the first set of powerful Apple Intelligence features that help users communicate, write, and express themselves on Apple Vision Pro — all while taking an extraordinary step forward for privacy in AI.1 With the new Spatial Gallery app, users have access to a curated collection of spatial content spanning art, culture, nature, sports, and more. visionOS 2.4 also introduces the Apple Vision Pro app for iPhone to help users easily find new content and apps, and enhancements to Guest User make sharing Vision Pro experiences even easier.

    Apple Intelligence on Apple Vision Pro

    With Writing Tools, users can refine their words by rewriting, proofreading, and summarizing text nearly everywhere they write, including Mail, Notes, and many third-party apps. With Rewrite, users can adjust the tone of their text to make it more friendly, professional, or concise, or specify the change they’d like to make using Describe Your Change. Proofread checks grammar, word choice, and sentence structure, and provides suggested edits. Users can also select text and have it recapped in several formats with Summarize. With Compose, users can ask ChatGPT to generate content for anything they are writing about from the systemwide Writing Tools.2

    Image Playground allows users to easily create fun and unique images from themes, costumes, accessories, and places. Users can add their own text descriptions, and can even create images in the likeness of a family member or friend using photos from their photo library. The experience is integrated directly into apps like Messages and Freeform, and is also available as a dedicated app for Apple Vision Pro.

    Apple Intelligence takes emoji to an entirely new level, offering users the ability to create original Genmoji by simply typing or speaking a description into the emoji keyboard. Genmoji can be added inline to messages, shared as a sticker, or sent as a Tapback.

    Smart Reply in Messages and Mail provides suggestions for a quick response, and will identify questions to ensure everything is answered.

    With natural language search in the Photos app, it’s even easier to find a specific photo or moment in a video just by describing it. Create a Memory Movie lets users create the movies they want to see by simply typing a description. Using language and image understanding, Apple Intelligence will pick out photos and videos based on a user’s description, craft a storyline with chapters based on themes identified from the photos, and arrange them into a movie with its own narrative arc. As with all Apple Intelligence features, user photos and videos are kept private, and are not shared with Apple or anyone else.

    visionOS 2.4 also includes support for Priority Messages in Mail, Mail Summaries, Image Wand in Notes, Priority Notifications in Notification Center, and Notification Summaries. The initial set of Apple Intelligence features is available in visionOS 2.4 for users with their device and Siri language set to U.S. English.

    Apple Intelligence uses on-device processing whenever possible to protect users’ privacy. For requests that require access to even larger models, Private Cloud Compute extends the privacy and security of Apple products into the cloud to unlock even more intelligence. When using Private Cloud Compute, users’ data is never stored or shared with Apple; it is used only to fulfill the request. Independent experts can inspect the code that runs on Apple silicon servers to continuously verify this privacy promise, and are already doing so.

    Curated Spatial Content with Spatial Gallery

    Spatial Gallery, a new app for Apple Vision Pro, features spatial photos, spatial videos, and panoramas curated by Apple, and gives users a window to captivating and powerful moments spanning art, culture, entertainment, lifestyle, nature, sports, and travel, with new content released regularly.

    At launch, users can discover stories and experiences from iconic brands including Red Bull, Cirque du Soleil, and Porsche; go behind the scenes with Apple Originals like Severance, The Studio, and The Morning Show; and listen to conversations with top artists like Bad Bunny, Charli xcx, and Keith Urban.

    The Apple Vision Pro App for iPhone

    The Apple Vision Pro app for iPhone offers a new way for users to discover new spatial experiences, queue apps and games to download, easily find tips, and quickly access information about their Vision Pro, all from their iPhone.

    The Discover page features recommendations for new and notable experiences on Apple Vision Pro, from popular apps like Explore POV and JigSpace, to Apple Arcade games like Gears & Goo, to Apple Immersive experiences like Metallica, which gives viewers unprecedented access to the band through a remarkable storytelling format only possible on Vision Pro.

    The My Vision Pro page helps users get the most out of their Apple Vision Pro, offering tips and key information such as their current visionOS version and device serial number. Users with vision correction needs can now store and view the App Clip code for their ZEISS Optical Inserts in the Apple Vision Pro app.

    New Enhancements to Guest User

    visionOS 2.4 lets users start a Guest User session on Apple Vision Pro with their nearby iPhone or iPad. To make it easier to guide a guest through the Vision Pro experience, users can now choose which apps are accessible to their guests and start View Mirroring with AirPlay from their iPhone.

    New Apple Immersive Video Content

    VIP: Yankee Stadium premieres this Friday, April 4, featuring an all-encompassing look at how elite athletes, die-hard fans, dedicated staff, and epic moments make the Bronx ballpark legendary. Bono: Stories of Surrender pulls back the curtain on the deeply personal experiences that have shaped Bono as a son, father, husband, activist, and U2 frontman. The groundbreaking film from Apple TV+ premieres May 30, and will be available in 2D and in Apple Immersive Video.

    Availability

    • visionOS 2.4 is available today as a free software update for Apple Vision Pro. For more information, visit apple.com/visionos/visionos-2. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages.
    • Apple Vision Pro is available in Australia, Canada, China mainland, Hong Kong, France, Germany, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, the UAE, the UK, and the U.S.
    • Apple Intelligence will be available in beta on Apple Vision Pro with visionOS 2.4. The first set of features will be available for Vision Pro users with their device and Siri language set to U.S. English. Feature availability varies by region; Apple Intelligence is subject to regulatory approval and not yet available in China.
    • The Spatial Gallery app will be installed with visionOS 2.4 for users in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, the UAE, the UK, and the U.S. It can be downloaded from the App Store for Vision Pro.
    • The Apple Vision Pro app for iPhone will be available with iOS 18.4. The app will be available to download from the App Store, and will automatically appear on a user’s iPhone once they update to iOS 18.4 and have both devices associated with the same Apple Account.
    1. The first set of features will be available for Apple Vision Pro users with their device and Siri language set to U.S. English.
    2. Integration with ChatGPT is available only in regions where the ChatGPT app and service is available. Refer to Open AI for Chat GPT availability.

    Press Contacts

    Corey Nord

    Apple

    cnord2@apple.com

    Andrea Schubert

    Apple

    a_schubert@apple.com

    Apple Media Helpline

    media.help@apple.com

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: Apple Intelligence features expand to new languages and regions today

    Source: Apple

    Headline: Apple Intelligence features expand to new languages and regions today

    Apple Intelligence, the personal intelligence system that delivers helpful and relevant intelligence while taking an extraordinary step forward for privacy in AI, is expanding to even more people around the world. Starting today, with the availability of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS Sequoia 15.4, Apple Intelligence features are now available in many new languages, including French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese (simplified) — as well as localized English for Singapore and India — and are accessible in nearly all regions around the world.

    In addition, iPhone and iPad users in the EU have access to Apple Intelligence features for the first time, and Apple Intelligence expands to a new platform with an initial set of features available in U.S. English with Apple Vision Pro — helping users communicate, collaborate, and express themselves in entirely new ways. Now, Vision Pro users can proofread, rewrite, and summarize text using Writing Tools; compose text from scratch using ChatGPT in Writing Tools; explore new ways to express themselves visually with Image Playground; create the perfect emoji for any conversation with Genmoji; and much more.

    This release also comes with additional Apple Intelligence features, including Priority Notifications to help users stay on top of time-sensitive communications, the ability to create a memory movie on Mac by simply typing a description, and an added Sketch style in Image Playground that creates academic and highly detailed sketches.

    Apple Intelligence marks an extraordinary step forward for privacy in AI and is designed to protect users’ privacy at every step. It starts with on-device processing, and for requests that require access to larger models, Private Cloud Compute extends the privacy and security of iPhone into the cloud to unlock even more intelligence.

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Call for localised gender-responsive value chains

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Sindisiwe Chikunga, has underscored the need to localise gender-responsive value chains and ensure the full and equal participation of women in the economy.

    “Localising gender-responsive value chains require a clearly articulated infant industry development strategy. When one examines how parts of Asia became the manufacturing hub of the world, the literature is clear: their governments have been a patient investor of first resort, with a much higher risk appetite than their private sector,” Chikunga said.

    The Minister was speaking at the 3rd Annual Women Economic Assembly (WECONA), held in Modderfontein, Johannesburg, on Friday.

    WECONA is at the forefront of driving a gender-equal economy, bringing together influential business leaders from a variety of sectors.

    It serves as a powerful platform dedicated to advancing women’s economic empowerment, fostering collaboration, and sparking deliberate, meaningful action.

    Leaders from industries, including finance, technology, and manufacturing, unite to share insights, tackle key challenges, and advocate for policies that drive change.

    Delivering her keynote address, the Minister emphasised the need for bold, measurable, and accountable actions aimed at transforming South Africa’s supply chains.

    She said WECONA needs to urgently study the anatomy of government expenditure, as well as supply chain patterns of every product and every service that has and continues to be procured.

    She stressed the need to break free from the monopolies that entrench barriers to market entry and reimagine a women-led industrial and productive revolution adding that “no sector should be beyond our reach.”

    The Minister also emphasised the need to contend with ways to introduce supplier diversity policies in procurement guidelines that formally mandate the engagement of women-owned suppliers.

    “Thirty years into our democracy, we now know that the mere presence of laws does not translate into their implementation, let alone our lived realities. More work needs to be done. We need enforcement powers that come with the ability to monitor, evaluate and ensure accountability in the implementation of the act.”

    Capacity building 

    The Minister further highlighted the need to modernise and build the capacity of women owned businesses, through access to the latest manufacturing technologies and production equipment, to ensure that they produce, supply, and distribute the best quality of goods and services.

    “In highly regulated sectors, we need to find ways to simplify the certification process and provide assistance with obtaining certifications needed to bid for public contracts. Without dedicated and tailor-made financial support, we will be setting up women for failure.

    “We need to work with both established and emerging financial institutions to provide women-owned businesses with access to credit, grants, and low-interest loans. Some governments have set up funds specifically to finance women-owned businesses participating in public procurement, without this instrument failure is almost guaranteed,” the Minister explained.
    She said delayed payments remain one of the most potent killers of women owned businesses.

    Women’s Empowerment Working Group

    Meanwhile, with South Africa’s G20 Presidency well underway, Chikunga said she is looking forward to seeing the participation of different streams of WECONA at the Women’s Empowerment Working Group.

    The working group has put forward three priorities for consideration by G20 nations and beyond. These include policy perspectives on the care economy, promoting financial inclusion of and for women, and addressing gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

    “In each of these priority areas, we intend to establish G20 Legacy Projects that will not only outlive our G20 presidency but also reach ordinary women who are normally not part of G20 proceedings,” she said. – SAnews.gov.za
     

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Human rights ought to be upheld every day 

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    By Neo Semono

    Human Rights Month may have drawn to a close, but the significance of human rights extends further than a mere month. 

    Human Rights are not just ideals enshrined in our Constitution – they are the foundation of dignity, justice, and freedom that shape our everyday lives.

    South Africa’s Bill of Rights safeguards fundamental freedoms. This includes the right to life, freedom of expression, association, and peaceful protest. Yet, in the hustle and bustle of daily life – how often do we stop and take a minute to reflect on these? 

    In fact, reflecting on them ought not to be a mere ceremonial obligation that takes place during the month of March. It should be instead a commitment and conversation that occurs throughout the year.

    The month of March this year marked over six decades since the painful events of 21 March 1960 where 69 lives were lost in the Sharpeville Massacre in Gauteng. The massacre came to be as a result of citizens choosing to protest against the pass laws of the apartheid government.

    Today, South Africa’s constitution states that everyone has the right to assemble, to demonstrate, to picket and to present petitions, peacefully and unarmed.

    This year’s Human Rights Month was commemorated under the theme: “Deepening a Culture of Social Justice and Human Rights”.

    While some would  likely only remember the month for the convenient long weekend it provided through Human Rights Day on 21 March, the theme spoke to issues affecting the globe today.

    And while many sophisticated advancements have been made over the years and will be made in the future, human rights will always matter. They are that ever-important coat that forms part of the priceless family heirloom.

    Human rights affect every aspect of life in that they are very closely linked to each person’s inner being. For example, each person that has been abused, raped and been a victim of a crime, finds it very difficult to forget how that horrid moment made them feel and how it trampled on their human rights.

    The recent horrific attack and killing of six community-based patrollers in Soshanguve, Gauteng, a day after the commemoration of Human Rights Day, has badly affected the nation’s psyche.

    The brave six, together with six others, had raised their hands up to help keep the community of the Marry Me informal settlement located north of Pretoria, safe. They paid the ultimate sacrifice.

    These patrollers were ordinary people committed to making a difference in their part of the world. The fact that citizens across the country become part of community police forums (CPFs) speaks to the fact that South Africans have an inherent can-do attitude even if it places their lives at risk.

    We should salute the fallen patrollers as well as those who continue to serve on CPFs.

    The South African Police Service (SAPS) Act states that the police service shall liaise with the community through CPFs to establish and maintain a partnership between the community and the SAPS. 

    The Act also speaks to promoting cooperation between the SAPS and the community in fulfilling the needs of the communities regarding policing as well as promoting joint problem identification and problem-solving by the service and the community.

    Government has expressed concern over crime levels with Police Minister Senzo Mchunu voicing his concern over what appears to be the increasing number of murder cases during his visit to Soshanguve last week.

    Human rights also extend to issues including inequality and addressing unemployment as stated by Deputy President Paul Mashatile in his Human Rights Day address describing these as “fundamental human rights issues.” 

    He said that while South Africa has experienced notable economic growth through expanding economic participation, the harsh reality of a 31.9% unemployment rate reveals the ongoing struggle faced by many in the country against poverty and inequality. 

    “This is not merely an economic issue. It represents a fundamental matter of human rights and fairness, demanding a concerted and sustained effort from all of us,” he said.

    Last week, news also broke that 23 South Africans were rescued from Myanmar. This after they were lured by an employment agency to Thailand under the pretences of lucrative jobs that were advertised on various social media platforms. 

    They were held captive for over four months in a cybercrime compound in Myanmar where they were subjected to physical torture and forced labour, among others. The repatriation of the victims was part of a bilateral cooperation agreement to combat human trafficking and other forms of transnational organised crime signed by Thailand and South Africa in 2023. 

    In the same week, it was reported that over 30 Ethiopian nationals were able to escape from a house in Johannesburg’s Lombardy East. It is suspected that they were victims of a human trafficking syndicate.

    Trafficking in persons is a crime and violation of human rights, and the country has the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act which deals with trafficking in all its various forms while also providing for the protection of and assistance to victims of trafficking.

    As Human Rights Month closes off, we ought to continue to look out for the collective rights of each and every person every day of the year. 

    Human rights are not abstract concepts; they touch every aspect of life. They are about safety, dignity, and the ability to live free from fear and oppression. As we move beyond Human Rights Month, we must carry forward the spirit of vigilance, advocacy, and action. Safeguarding human rights is not the duty of government alone. It is the collective responsibility of all of us. 

    Every day presents an opportunity to uphold the rights of others, ensuring that justice and freedom remain a lived reality for all. –SAnews.gov.za  

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: CBSA officers at Vancouver International Airport seize 148 kg of methamphetamine hidden in suitcases 

    Source: Government of Canada News

    March 31, 2025                        Vancouver, British Columbia            Canada Border Services Agency

    Today, the CBSA announced the interception and seizure of a combined 148.8 kilograms of methamphetamine, representing an estimated street value of $500,000, in six separate occasions at Vancouver International Airport. In all instances, the narcotics were concealed in passengers’ suitcases and bound for export.

    • On January 18, 2025, CBSA border services officers intercepted 35.7 kg of methamphetamine destined for export to Hong Kong. The narcotics were wrapped in gift wrap and hidden in two suitcases.
    • On January 31, 2025, border services officers intercepted 28.5 kg of methamphetamine destined for export to Hong Kong. The narcotics were concealed in coffee bags and hidden in two suitcases.
    • On February 16, 2025, border services officers intercepted 23.5 kg of methamphetamine destined for export to Australia. The narcotics were concealed in packages wrapped in towels soaked with vinegar and cayenne pepper in an attempt to mask the smell.
    • On February 19, 2025, border services officers intercepted: 
      • 16.4 kg of methamphetamine destined for export to Australia. The narcotics were infused within various articles of clothing.
      • 19.2 kg of methamphetamine destined for export to Australia. The narcotics were infused within various articles of clothing.
      • 25.5 kg of methamphetamine destined for export to New Zealand. The narcotics were concealed in vacuum sealed packaging with a mixture of coffee and pepper substance.

    On all six instances, the travellers were arrested and taken into custody by the RCMP’s Federal Police  Pacific Region unit.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: IAM Reaches Strong Tentative Agreement with NCCC Rail Carriers

    Source: US GOIAM Union

    IAM District 19 has reached a tentative agreement covering approximately 4,900 freight rail members with the National Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC).

    The NCCC tentative agreement covers IAM members at BNSF, Norfolk Southern, Canadian National, Belt Railway, Terminal Rail, Consolidated Rail, Indiana Harbor Belt, New Orleans Public Belt, and Palmetto Railways.

    “Our membership asked us to stand strong for a contract that includes no takeaways and makes improvements to pay, vacation and healthcare – and that’s exactly what we’ve delivered,” said IAM District 19 President and Directing General Chair Reece Murtagh. “We strongly recommend acceptance of this agreement.”

    This historic tentative agreement ensures members will receive their first pay increase on time and as scheduled.

    “District 19 continues to stand strong for industry-leading contracts,” said Josh Hartford, IAM Special Assistant to the International President for the IAM Rail Division. “Together, we are remaking this industry and giving every rail worker the respect they’ve earned.”

    Members will soon receive more information on the tentative agreement. An electronic ratification vote will take place between Friday, April 25 and Wednesday, April 30, 2025.

    Share and Follow:

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Richmond Sexual Predator Sentenced to 40 Years in Federal Prison

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    INDIANAPOLIS— Moises Bojorquez, 29, of Richmond, Indiana, has been sentenced to 40 years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of a child, distribution of child sexual abuse material, and possession of matter containing child sexual abuse material.

    According to court documents, Bojorquez sexually abused a one-year-old relative, who was in his care and custody.  Bojorquez forced the victim to perform oral sex on him on multiple occasions.  In several instances, Bojorquez live chatted the sexual abuse.  In other instances, Bojorquez recorded the sexual abuse and sent it to a woman via Telegram, an encrypted, cloud-based instant messaging service.

    Bojorquez and the woman engaged in a months-long conversation via Telegram in which they described their shared sexual interest in children.  Bojorquez also shared other child sex abuse material with the same woman via Telegram and with others via email.  Investigators located more than 1,000 images and videos on Bojorquez’s two cell phones, some of which depicted infants or toddlers engaged in sexually explicit conduct and sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence.

    “No child should suffer sexual abuse,” said John E. Childress, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “This predator cruelly exploited an innocent child to satisfy his criminal sexual desires with other likeminded predators. Thanks to the efforts of law enforcement officers, this defendant will now spend 40 years in federal prison, where he cannot sexually abuse another child.”

    “This case is a sobering reminder of the depths of pravity some individuals will go to exploit the most innocent among us,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Chicago Special Agent in Charge Matthew Scarpino. “HSI and our law enforcement partners remain committed to identifying and bringing to justice those who prey on children. We will continue to use every available resource to protect the innocent and disrupt the networks that facilitate these horrific crimes.”

    “The Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force remains vigilant and committed to working with its local and federal partners to protect society’s most vulnerable to sexual exploitation: our children. Caretakers, parents, and others in positions of trust who fail in their duty to protect children but instead seek to sexually exploit them for their own selfish and devious reasons will be identified, investigated, and prosecuted,” said Christopher D. Cecil, Commander of Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

    Homeland Security Investigations and members of the Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, including Indiana State Police, Richmond Police Department, and Plainfield Police Department, investigated this case, with assistance from the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker. 

    Acting U.S. Attorney Childress thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meredith Wood and Tiffany J. Preston, who prosecuted this case.

    This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

    If you are a victim of child sexual exploitation, please contact your local police department. Resources for victims of child exploitation can be found on our website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdin/project-safe-childhood

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Red Lake Man with Multiple Prior Felonies Charged with Illegal Possession of a Firearm

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    MINNEAPOLIS – Darrell Emery Loud, a Red Lake man, has been indicted for possessing a firearm as a felon, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick.

    According to court documents, on September 12, 2024, Darrell Emery Loud, 42, was found in possession of a Remington Model 870 Express 20-gauge shotgun. Because Loud has multiple prior felony convictions in Beltrami County for DWI, domestic assault, and fleeing from a peace officer, he is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms or ammunition at any time.

    The indictment charges Loud with one count of illegal possession of a firearm as a felon. His arraignment hearing is scheduled for April 2, 2025, in U.S. District Court before Magistrate Judge Leo I. Brisbois. 

    “The safety and security of Red Lake Nation is of the upmost importance to my office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick. “We deeply value our partnership with the Red Lake Police Department. Together, along with our federal partners, we will continue to hold accountable those who would bring violence to the Red Lake Indian Reservation.”

    This case is the result of investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Red Lake Police Department.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren O. Roso is prosecuting the case.

    An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Congressman Kweisi Mfume Introduces Legislation to Commemorate African American World War II Hero Doris Miller

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Kweisi Mfume (MD-07)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, on National Medal of Honor Day, Congressman Kweisi Mfume (MD-07) announced the introduction of a pair of bills to commemorate the life and legacy of African American Mess Attendant Doris ‘Dorie’ Miller. During the attack on Pearl Harbor, Mess Attendant Miller manned an anti-aircraft gun and downed enemy planes, despite the fact that the racially segregated steward’s branch of the Navy was not trained to use anti-aircraft guns. Congressman Mfume’s bills seek to award the Medal of Honor and a Congressional Gold Medal to Mess Attendant Miller. 

    “Today is ‘Dorie Miller Day’ on Capitol Hill. Dorie Miller protected America, and we are all the beneficiaries of his bravery. His valiance is even more admirable because he courageously worked to save a democracy that he could not fully enjoy at that time, as the United States military did not become fully integrated until almost seven years after his heroism in World War II,” said Congressman Kweisi Mfume. “I am honored to continue the work of my friend, the late Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, who had fought to give Mess Attendant Miller’s legacy the celebration of the Medal of Honor since 2001. While the Trump administration shamefully seeks to eviscerate Black history from the American story, I am introducing my dual-tracked legislative effort to award both the Medal of Honor and a Congressional Gold Medal to Dorie Miller so he can finally be recognized with an American salute that is long overdue,” he concluded.   

    This legislation’s introduction comes in the wake of reports that most U.S Department of Defense webpages chronicling the heroism of Mess Attendant Miller had been eliminated following a directive to remove diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) content from Pentagon platforms.  

    The Life of Doris ‘Dorie’ Miller 

    Background 

    • Born in Waco, Texas on October 12, 1919.
    • Son of Connery and Henrietta Miller.
    • Dropped out of school to support the family farm, worked part-time as a cook in a small restaurant in Waco.

    Military Career 

    • Enlisted in the United States Navy in September of 1939.
    • After bootcamp training, was assigned to the USS West Virginia as a messman.
    • Quickly moved up in the ranks from messman to ship’s cook, third class, and was stationed at Pearl Harbor.
    • Black sailors serving in the racially segregated steward’s branch of the Navy were not trained to use anti-aircraft guns.
    • On December 7, 1941, Doris Miller was doing laundry at around 8:00 a.m. when a Japanese torpedo hit his ship, anchored in Pearl Harbor.
    • He rushed to the main deck to help move his mortally wounded captain out of harm’s way and attend to other wounded sailors.
    • He then manned a 0.50-calibre anti-aircraft gun and fired at the attacking planes.
    • According to news stories and other sailors’ accounts, Doris Miller downed 2 to 5 enemy planes before he was forced to abandon ship.

    National Awards and the Medal of Honor  

    • Doris Miller was awarded a commendation from the Secretary of the Navy as well as the Navy Cross on May 27, 1942, in a ceremony at Pearl Harbor.
    • In 2017, the town of Waco, Texas unveiled a riverside memorial featuring a 9-foot-tall, 700-pound bronze sculpture of hometown hero Doris Miller.
    • In 2020, the Navy commissioned an aircraft carrier to be named after Doris Miller.
    • Doris Miller has yet to receive the Navy’s highest award, the Medal of Honor.
      • Mr. Miller’s family and friends have fought for decades to convince the Navy to award Doris Miller with the Medal of Honor posthumously.
      • More than 15 cities have expressed support, and the U.S. Conference of Mayors adopted a resolution endorsing the effort in 2001.
      • Congress has introduced a resolution in support of the Navy awarding Doris Miller the Medal of Honor every year since 2015.
      • Decisions on military honors are typically reserved for the military, and the Navy has not yet decided to change course on Doris Miller’s status.

    Medal of Honor Bill – Doris Miller 

    • This bill authorizes the President to award the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration in the United States Armed Forces, to Mess Attendant Doris ‘Dorie’ Miller.
    • The late Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson had fought to give Mess Attendant Miller’s legacy this recognition since 2001.
    • This legislation is endorsed by the National Association for Black Veterans (NABVETs) and the Dorie Miller Medal of Honor Committee. 

    Congressional Gold Medal Bill – Doris Miller 

    • The second bill of this dual-tracked legislative effort to federally recognize Doris Miller awards him posthumously the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award in the United States.
    • If approved by Congress, Doris Miller’s family would receive the medal and it would be displayed at the Smithsonian Museum. 

    ### 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Reduced packaging charter launched

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    Secretary for Environment & Ecology Tse Chin-wan today launched the Packaging Reduction Charter to encourage businesses to reduce their packaging usage and foster a waste reduction culture in commercial activities.

    Speaking at the charter’s launch ceremony, Mr Tse said that most packaging materials are discarded after single or limited use, placing a significant burden on the environment.

    “The launch of the Packaging Reduction Charter aims to encourage businesses to adopt sustainable practices, including reviewing packaging designs to minimise unnecessary material usage, enhancing the recyclability and reusability of packaging as well as exploring innovative solutions.

    “These efforts not only alleviate the pressure on landfills, but also help businesses fulfil their social responsibilities, contributing to Hong Kong’s long-term goals of ‘zero landfill’ and carbon neutrality.”

    The signatory companies undertake to submit to the Environmental Protection Department their annual total packaging material usage, implement measures to reduce packaging or adopt sustainable packaging solutions as well as encourage upstream and downstream suppliers, business partners and customers to reduce packaging materials and enhance packaging management.

    So far, 102 local and multinational companies have undertaken the initiative. The department has published practical guides for specific sectors, covering supermarkets and grocery stores, logistics, e-commerce, hotel and hospitality, electronics and electrical appliances, beverage manufacturing, food manufacturing, and importers.

    For enquiries, contact the charter’s secretariat at 5279 1936 or by email.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Seniors care scheme extended

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    The Social Welfare Department today announced the extension of the “District Services & Community Care Teams – Scheme on Supporting Elderly & Carers” to all 18 districts for a period of 12 months starting tomorrow, with a view to providing support and care to elderly people and carers in need.

    Addressing the launch ceremony, Deputy Chief Secretary Cheuk Wing-hing said that all 452 Community Care Teams across the city will help identify elderly people and carers in need through visits and contacts in the coming 12 months. Apart from sending care and providing assistance, the care teams will also refer those in need to social welfare service units for suitable support.

    Piloted in Tsuen Wan District and Southern District in the first quarter of 2024, the Scheme on Supporting Elderly & Carers has made great achievements. By the end of February this year, 36 care teams in the two districts had visited or contacted over 7,200 singleton/doubleton elderly, carers of elderly, or carers of people with disabilities, making over 1,200 referrals for welfare services. Moreover, over 300 senior citizens and people with disabilities received subsidies for the installation of emergency alarm systems through referrals made by the care teams.

    Mr Cheuk said that with the extension of the scheme to 18 districts, care teams are expected to reach over 60,000 households in need. He also expressed hope that members of the care teams would go beyond serving as care ambassadors in the community by strengthening collaboration with other stakeholders.

    In addition to encouraging carers to use the Designated Hotline for Carer Support (182 183) and the Information Gateway for Carers, care teams will enhance communication with the hotline to arrange visits or contacts for the carers in need, he added.

    At the ceremony today, the Deputy Chief Secretary presented certificates of appointment to the care teams of 18 districts, and presided at a pledging ceremony to start the extension of the scheme. The care teams of Yau Tsim Mong and Sham Shui Po Districts then conducted home visits to households.

    The Social Welfare Department will arrange training for the care teams, covering communication skills, information on local social welfare services and referral procedures. It will also maintain close communication with the care teams and provide assistance to ensure a smooth implementation of the scheme.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Northern Metropolis plans received

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    The invitation for the expressions of interest for the three pilot areas of large-scale land disposal in Northern Metropolis closed today, with the Development Bureau receiving a total of 22 submissions.

    The three pilot areas are the Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen New Development Area, Fanling North New Development Area and San Tin Technopole.

    The enterprises/organisations making the submissions include local and Mainland developers, contractors, conglomerates and an e-commerce logistics company.

    The bureau will immediately consolidate and analyse the collected feedback to determine the area, development parameters, works requirements and financial arrangements for the pilot areas to finalise the tender details and conditions.

    As the feedback involves commercially sensitive information from individual enterprises, the bureau said relevant views will be duly reflected in the tender conditions in due course as appropriate.

    The bureau added that it will take forward the three pilot areas at full steam, with a view to commencing the tendering work progressively from the second half of this year to next year.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: CE marks water supply milestone

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    The governments of Guangdong and Hong Kong today held a ceremony to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the supply of Dongjiang water to Hong Kong.

    Speaking at the ceremony, Chief Executive John Lee said the country has been providing the city with a reliable and stable supply of Dongjiang water, which accounts for about 70% to 80% of Hong Kong’s fresh water consumption.

    “Dongjiang water supports the sustainable economic development of Hong Kong, and nourishes the citizens, allowing them to live and work in a better place.”

    It is not only a water engineering project, but also an epitome of the strong blood ties between the country and Hong Kong, he added.

    A lighting ceremony for the Dancing Water Drops Exhibition was also held at the event. The exhibition will run until June 13 at Tamar Park and the Central & Western District Promenade (Central Section).

    Additionally, a series of celebration activities have been held since September last year, including a roving exhibition, thematic talks and Mainland study tours. Upcoming activities include the International Water Pioneers Summit scheduled for tomorrow.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Patient support scheme extended

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    The “Pilot Scheme for Supporting Patients of the Hospital Authority in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area” will be extended for one year till March 31, 2026, the Health Bureau announced today.

    Currently, the scheme is applicable to the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH).

    The bureau explained that the extension aims to enable eligible patients of the Hospital Authority (HA) to choose to receive subsidised consultation services at designated collaborating healthcare institutions in the Greater Bay Area.

    It added that an enhancement measure will be implemented in order to provide more targeted healthcare support to patients.

    From tomorrow, for participating patients to utilise the subsidy under the pilot scheme, they are required to attend consultations at the service departments of the HKU-SZH that correspond with the HA’s outpatient service categories for which they have follow-up appointments.

    Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau said: “The Government has long been taking forward collaborations on medical and health aspects in the bay area in accordance with the principles of complementarity and mutual benefits. The HA will continue to explore more in-depth healthcare collaborations with suitable organisations and enhance the efficiency of public healthcare services with a view to shortening patients’ waiting time.”

    The scope of subsidised consultation services under the scheme will continue to cover outpatient services provided by the HA. Meanwhile, episodic illnesses, inpatient or day inpatient as well as accident and emergency services are not included.

    Eligible patients who wish to continue participating in the pilot scheme may make appointments through the existing channels whereby the HKU-SZH will make appointments at the departments that correspond with the HA’s outpatient service categories for which they have follow-up appointments. They should also complete a declaration to confirm continued participation at the HKU-SZH.

    Patients who wish to cease participation and return to Hong Kong for follow-up consultations at the HA’s outpatient clinics may approach the HKU-SZH which will make referral for them to arrange follow-up appointments at the HA’s corresponding outpatient clinics according to their clinical needs.

    For eligible patients who have not participated in the pilot scheme before, or those who have joined the scheme but need to have their personal data updated, they may submit an application to the HKU-SZH from tomorrow onwards.

    For enquiries, call the HA at 2300 7070 or the HKU-SZH at (86) 0755 86913101.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Rosanna Law to visit Beijing

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    Secretary for Culture, Sports & Tourism Rosanna Law will depart Hong Kong tomorrow evening on a visit to Beijing, where she will meet various officials.

    Miss Law will call on the State Council Hong Kong & Macao Affairs Office, the Ministry of Culture & Tourism, the General Administration of Sport of China, and the China Film Administration. She will also meet officials from other cultural institutions.

    The culture chief will return to Hong Kong on Friday. During her absence, Under Secretary for Culture, Sports & Tourism Raistlin Lau will be Acting Secretary. 

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Officials attend cultural ceremony

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    Secretary for Home & Youth Affairs Alice Mak and Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Algernon Yau today attended the “Ancestor Worship Ceremony of the Yellow Emperor in the Year of Yisi” in Zhengzhou, Henan.

    The Yellow Emperor, born in Zhengzhou, is regarded as the cultural ancestor of the Chinese nation. The ceremony is a significant cultural event held annually in Henan.

    Miss Mak remarked that by attending an event of such cultural value, Hong Kong compatriots can enhance their sense of national identity.

    During her visit to Zhengzhou, Miss Mak met CPC Central Committee Hong Kong & Macao Work Office and State Council Hong Kong & Macao Affairs Office Executive Deputy Director Zhou Ji; Secretary of CPC Henan Provincial Committee and Director of Henan Provincial People’s Congress Standing Committee Liu Ning; and CPC Henan Provincial Committee Deputy Secretary and Governor of Henan Province & Secretary of Party Leadership Group Wang Kai.

    Additionally, Miss Mak met Hong Kong students studying in Zhengzhou to learn about their lives on the Mainland. She encouraged young people to grasp the opportunities open to them, gain a deeper understanding of China’s development, and contribute to the country and to Hong Kong.

    The home affairs chief was due to return to Hong Kong this afternoon. 

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: After-death services portal launched

    Source: Hong Kong Information Services

    The Food & Environmental Hygiene Department today launched a one-stop online portal to assist the public in handling after-death arrangements by streamlining the electronic application process and offering personalised services.

    Starting today, members of the public can submit applications for all cemeteries and crematoria services managed by the department via the Platform for Cemeteries & Crematoria Services.

    The applications include cremation services, allocation of public niches, cemetery services, green burial, cremation or keeping services for abortus, free memorial sails and the establishment of the Internet Memorial Service Website (Advanced Planning Version).

    The service platform allows members of the public to create an integrated service account to manage after-death arrangements for multiple deceased individuals, reducing cumbersome procedures.

    Users can also manage multiple applications for the same deceased in a single account and track the application progress of each service at a glance.

    The platform also supports multiple electronic payment methods.

    Applicants must register and complete authentication on the service platform before applying for cemetery and crematorium services. The department encourages the use of the iAM Smart electronic identity verification.

    Click here for details.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Taos Man Admits to Killing Up-And-Coming Native American Artist Deanna Suazo

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – Santiago Martinez pleaded guilty in federal court to voluntary manslaughter for the death of his girlfriend, DeAnna Autumn Leaf Suazo, a talented Indigenous artist, following a late-night argument in November 2021.

    According to court records, on November 12, 2021, Santiago Martinez and his girlfriend, DeAnna Suazo, were at their shared home, where they consumed alcohol and listened to music in her vehicle. Early in the morning hours, the couple engaged in a heated argument outside their home about the future of their relationship, during which Suazo reiterated her desire to end things. The argument escalated into a physical altercation, leading to Martinez intentionally running over Suazo with her SUV, resulting in her death due to mechanical asphyxia and blunt trauma

    Although Martinez had consumed alcohol, he acknowledged being aware of his actions and their wrongfulness at the time of the incident.

    DeAnna Autumn Leaf Suazo (Diné, Taos Pueblo) was a talented artist and the daughter of Native American artists Geraldine Tso, a Navajo artist, and David Gary Suazo, a Taos Pueblo painter. She celebrated her Indigenous heritage through figural paintings of strong Indigenous women, blending traditional and contemporary styles with inspiration from Japanese manga. Suazo’s work was exhibited nationwide, including at the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts and the Balzer Contemporary Edge Gallery. In 2022, IAIA established the DeAnna Autumn Leaf Suazo Memorial Fund for Indigenous female artists in the MFA in Studio Arts Program, honoring her legacy and contributions to the art world.

    DeAnna pictured with her artwork courtesy of David Gary Suazo

    At sentencing, Martinez faces between 10 and 15 years in prison followed by not less than three years of supervised release.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrinand Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The Santa Fe Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Taos Pueblo Department of Public Safety. Assistant United States Attorneys Zachary Jones and Nora Wilson are prosecuting the case.

    MIL Security OSI –