#when is the republic day of india

[memecatwings]

other americans need to stop loudly and proudly admitting to things that you couldnt waterboard out of me. stop acting like its normal that you didnt know africa has cities and people in it until you were like 20 that is not normal that is a you problem not an us problem our education system is bad but its not that bad

[astrobiscuits]

Astro obs part 9

🐌 The planets in your 12th house indicate your sleeping style:

Sun in 12th house - their sleep schedule is extremely messed up; for them, daylight hours = nighttime hours and vice versa, so they have trouble being themselves during the day; their true self comes out at night

Moon in 12th house - goes to sleep very late; full moons have a special effect on these people; their intuition is more clear at night; as kids, they probably slept a lot with their mother

Mercury in 12th house - loves texting/calling people late at night; they might journal their thoughts before sleep because they overthink a lot and it helps to clear their mind or maybe they just like to relax by reading a book at night

Venus in 12th house - cares a lot about getting their "beauty sleep"; sleeps with sleep masks on, buys expensive bed lingerie, skincare night routine might be very important; loves sleeping in general lmao

Mars in 12th house - enjoys working out before going to sleep, can go to sleep angry because they tend to get into conflict more at night than during the day

I have Uranus in 12th house and i can be both a light sleeper or a heavy sleeper, depending on where i am. For example, when i'm traveling, during the first night i wake up several times, but from the second night on i sleep like a baby lmao. Another thing would be that i can't sleep in a quiet car but i don't have any problem sleeping during a thunderstorm

🐌 Mars in fire signs (Aries, Leo, Sag) and Mars in 3rd house individuals love riding motorbikess

🐌 While Mars in 9th house peeps would probably love to go on a world tour on their motorbike. The sign ruling their 9th house represents the countries they would love to visit (i'm aware that some of these can only be visited by plane, take it with a grain of salt): 

♈ in 9th house: Ireland, Poland, Japan, Zimbabwe

♉ in 9th house: Cuba, Paraguay, South Africa, East Timor

♊ in 9th house: Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Montenegro

♋ in 9th house: Canada, USA, Bahamas, Argentina, Slovenia, Madagascar

♌ in 9th house: Hawaii, France, Italy, The Netherlands, India, South Korea, Peru, Bolivia

♍ in 9th house: Switzerland, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Vietnam

♎ in 9th house: Belgium, Portugal, China, Equatorial Guinea, Lesotho

♏ in 9th house: Panama, Spain, Turkey, Arab countries (Saudi Arabia, UAE), Palestine, Lebanon

♐ in 9th house: Finland, Lithuania, Romania, Tanzania, Thailand

♑ in 9th house: UK, Germany, Czech Republic, Australia, Camerun

♒ in 9th house: Greece, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka

♓ in 9th house: Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Mauritius, Saint Lucia

🐌 I have a feeling Pisces Suns like to spend their time in a garage lmao. Mostly because their opposing sign, Virgo, would hate to spend time in a garage due to how dirty it can get.

🐌As a 7th house Sun who's been in love for almost a year now (haha, are we surprised, ofcours not; i'm not even in a relationship with him but ugh we're so perfect for each other), i realised that Sun in 7th house people tend to behave differently with their partner when they're in a healthy relationship vs when they're in a toxic one

Sun in 7th house in:

♈ Aries in a healthy relationship: empowers their partner, knows how to balance me time vs us time in a healthy manner, encourages their partner to take safe risks

♈ Aries in an unhealthy relationship: impulsive, impatient, selfish, dismisses their partner's feelings, often controlled by rage, prone to abusing their partner

♉ Taurus in a healthy relationship: veryyy generous (their love language is gift giving), accommodating to their partner's wants and needs, cooks for their partner

♉ Taurus in an unhealthy relationship: stubborn af, hard to please, focused more on the material gain from their partner rather than the love they share

♊ Gemini in a healthy relationship: curious, always lightens the mood of their partner by cracking up tons of jokes or telling them funny stories, knows that communication is key to everything so they're not afraid to discuss serious topics, teaches their partner a lot of random stuff

♊ Gemini in an unhealthy relationship: superficial, doesn't have a problem moving on from their partner to another person in a matter of seconds, if they're still in school/college, then they prioritize studying over their partner

♋ Cancer in a healthy relationship: nurturing, knows how to balance babying their partner vs being babied by their partner, emotionally vulnerable, feels safe enough to present their partner to their family early on in the relationship

♋ Cancer in a unhealthy relationship: if they don't trust their partner, they tend to become emotionally closed off to hide their deep sadness; defensive, but if their partner attackes them, then they'll hide, worries excessively, avoids presenting their partner to their family

♌ Leo in a healthy relationship: treats their partner like the king/queen they are, keeps their ego in check so it doesn't interfere with the relationship, if they've got artistic talents (music, acting, art etc.), they'll show their love for their partner by performing in front of them

♌ Leo in an unhealthy relationship: egocentric, shows off their partner/relationship too much out of pride, often feels entitled in the relationship and wants to be put on a pedestal by their partner

♍ Virgo in a healthy relationship: selfless to a healthy degree, remembers every lil detail from every casual conversations with their partner just to please them, remembers every important date and plans ahead for it, takes care of their partner when they're sick

♍ Virgo in a unhealthy relationship: critical, overfixates on past hurts and mistakes that their partner made in the relationship (often times their partner doesn't even remember those things because they're usually not that serious), loves their pets more than their partner

�� Libra in a healthy relationship: romantic, charismatic, truly values their partner and the relationship with them, acts fair in the relationship, teaches their partner lovingly about the importance of honesty, truth and a healthy give and take dynamic in a relationship

♎ Libra in an unhealthy relationship: doesn't prioritize the relationship; instead, they flirt with others despite being in a relationship, emotionally detached, cold and calculated in their current relationship

♏ Scorpio in a healthy relationship: loyal, loves their partner deeply and intensely, but without suffocating them, keeps their partner's secrets like they're a locked safe box with no public access

♏ Scorpio in an unhealthy relationship: obsessive, manipulative, seeks to dominate their partner, displays stalkish behaviour in the relationship, liar

♐ Sagittarius in a healthy relationship: exposes their partner to various cultures, belief systems and philosophies to expand their mind and form their own opinion on certain topics, loves freely but is still able to maintain a long-term relationship, improves their partner's mood, usually brings an element of surprise and excitement to the relationship

♐ Sagittarius in an unhealthy relationship: travels in order to avoid dealing with their partner, parties a bit too much, doesn't take the relationship seriously

♑ Capricorn in a healthy relationship: loves their partner in a mature, serious and secure manner, doesn't shy away from improving their partner's social status and/or career if they can, discusses plans for the future (getting married, having kids, adopting pets, buying a house) with their partner early on in the relationship, they make time for their partner, despite the fact that they're busy most of the time

♑ Capricorn in an unhealthy relationship: displays no emotions or physical affection in the relationship, has a hard time communicating their thoughts with their partner, settles in a relationship for the wrong reasons (money/kids/safety/"i'm getting old and i need to have my life established"), prioritizes work/career over their partner

♒ Aquarius in a healthy relationship: flexible, makes their partner's dreams and aspirations come true (whether they're related to the relationship or not), has got a very open-minded attitude towards their partner's opinions, lifestyle and identity, takes the time to become friends firsts with their future partner because they value a relationship built on solid foundation (often times their partner is also their best friend), knows how to balance couple time vs time with friends

♒ Aquarius in an unhealthy relationship: displays wishy-washy behaviour, emotionally detached, prioritizes their friends over their partner, seeks online validation from strangers and acquaintances to fulfill their needs

♓ Pisces in a healthy relationship: sensitive to their partner's emotions, knows how to balance wearing their heart on their sleeve vs hiding their emotions in unfavourable circumstances, always honest with their partner

♓ Pisces in an unhealthy relationship: prone to drown their relationship problems and sorrows in alcohol, drugs and meds for mental health issues, runs away from problems instead of dealing with them with their partner, displays dishonesty to a fault, prone to self-sabotage

[never-was-has-been]

Don't Look Away

"I am 85 years old.

I have experienced the American Dream because I was born a white, American male; I was privileged.

Women did not have that privilege, African-Americans did not have that privilege, people of color did not have that privilege,

Native Americans did not have that privilege, non heterosexuals did not have that privilege--it was reserved for white, American males who presented as heterosexual.

In the 1960's and 1970's a sense of optimism filled the air in America, a genuine feeling that the American Dream could be made available to all people regardless of sex, color, creed, race, national origin or sexual orientation.

It was a tumultuous time, the civil rights movement, assassinations, the Watergate scandal, the Vietnam War protest movement; nevertheless, there truly was the feeling of a promise of a better tomorrow.

Because we were so optimistic, we let down our guard; we took our freedoms for granted, a big mistake; freedom is a fragile gift that must be closely guarded.

I can't pinpoint the exact time when the change began, I think it was when Ronald Reagan was elected President in 1980.

A popular actor, a gentle-speaking likeable man, a convert to "conservative" values, a perfect puppet for the elitists, white supremacists and authoritarians who have been ever-present in our society since its very beginnings.

"Trickle-down" economics seeped in, anti-trust regulations were relaxed, “Free Markets” was the slogan of the day, human beings were reduced to chits on a profit board, consumerism took hold as the gap between the richest and the poorest widened into an insurmountable divide during the ensuing decades.

Money became the weapon of the rich and powerful white supremacists and Fascists who now seek to overthrow our tattered republic. Donald Trump is their latest puppet.

We are in a very dark place--BUT WE ARE STILL A LIVING, BREATHING REPUBLIC.

On November 5th, American citizens will be voting to decide whether our nation will remain a living, breathing Republic or will go the way of Russia, China, India, Hungary and all the other regimes that oppress their people under the heel of totalitarianism.

THE CHOICE IS OURS; EVERY VOTE IS CRITICAL; THE SUM TOTAL OF OUR VOTES WILL ECHO THE VOICE OF FREEDOM.

Donald Trump has a fixed base of mindless supporters that will not grow significantly.

If freedom-loving voters go to the polls, we can have a decisive victory and we can then begin the long and challenging task of restoring the promise of a better tomorrow, not just for American citizens, but FOR ALL HUMAN BEINGS.

I am an old man; I will not live to see my AMERICAN-DREAM-FOR-ALL come true.

I have devoted my life to. this cause.

Please allow me to celebrate the beginning of a better tomorrow for America and the world.

IT CAN HAPPEN ON NOVEMBER 5TH!

Be well... ~Alan "DontLookAway" Dornan~ "

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Adult SFF Books Bracket: Round 2

Book summaries and submitted endorsements below:

The Burning Kingdoms series (The Jasmine Throne, The Oleander Sword, The Lotus Empire) by Tasha Suri

Author of Empire of Sand and Realm of Ash Tasha Suri’s The Jasmine Throne, beginning a new trilogy set in a world inspired by the history and epics of India, in which a captive princess and a maidservant in possession of forbidden magic become unlikely allies on a dark journey to save their empire from the princess’s traitor brother.

Imprisoned by her dictator brother, Malini spends her days in isolation in the Hirana: an ancient temple that was once the source of the powerful, magical deathless waters — but is now little more than a decaying ruin.

Priya is a maidservant, one among several who make the treacherous journey to the top of the Hirana every night to clean Malini’s chambers. She is happy to be an anonymous drudge, so long as it keeps anyone from guessing the dangerous secret she hides.

But when Malini accidentally bears witness to Priya’s true nature, their destinies become irrevocably tangled. One is a vengeful princess seeking to depose her brother from his throne. The other is a priestess seeking to find her family. Together, they will change the fate of an empire.

Fantasy, epic fantasy, politics, secondary world, series, adult

Running Close to the Wind by Alexandra Rowland

Endorsement from submitter: "Utterly hilarious romp. No actual sex, but somehow hornier than 90% of books with actual sex in them that I have read."

Avra Helvaçi, former field agent of the Araşti Ministry of Intelligence, has accidentally stolen the single most expensive secret in the world―and the only place to flee with a secret that big is the open sea.

To find a buyer with deep enough pockets, Avra must ask for help from his on-again, off-again ex, the pirate Captain Teveri az-Ḥaffār. They are far from happy to see him, but together, they hatch a plan: take the information to the isolated pirate republic of the Isles of Lost Souls, fence it, profit. The only things in their way? A calculating new Araşti ambassador to the Isles of Lost Souls who’s got his eyes on Avra’s every move; Brother Julian, a beautiful, mysterious new member of the crew with secrets of his own and a frankly inconvenient vow of celibacy; the fact that they’re sailing straight into sea serpent breeding season and almost certain doom.

But if they can find a way to survive and sell the secret on the black market, they’ll all be as wealthy as kings―and, more important, they’ll be legends.

Fantasy, humor, adventure, secondary world, queernorm, adult

[lizardsfromspace]

Sylvia Browne was one of the most famous psychics of the turn of the millennium, and one of its most despicable. You may remember her from when she told the mother of Amanda Berry her daughter was deceased, which she believed, and she died believing that...but Barry was alive the whole time. Or from the dozens of other times she did something similar

Sylvia Browne released her predictions for the new year every year, like many psychics, but she was stupid enough to keep them online so people could judge them later. Her predictions for the year 2000 include Bill Bradley beating out the Reform Party for the Presidency (he lost the primary to Al Gore, and the Reform Party finished fourth, behind the Green Party with less than half a million votes), that David Letterman would retire (he stayed with the show for 15 more years), that small businesses would flourish in the 2000s, and that Donald Trump will not have a career in politics. Which did technically come true in that he didn't run in 2000, but uh

Also, from reading these at the time, she predicted the big one in California and the death of the Pope nearly every year. Only a keen psychic mind could predict that a man in his eighties could pass away from old age

There's one year she left out, though. She wiped her 2001 predictions from the internet...and her 9/12/2001 predictions. But thankfully, someone preserved them (they're not in the Wayback Machine bc its only 2001 save is in October. And apparently the thing below was a pop-up)

Let's unpack this

She says bin Laden was behind it. An amazing prediction, except she posted this a few days after 9/11, when the media was already speculating he was responsible

She was "given information", which I guess is a way to phrase "watched CNN"

She just makes up a country. She says 9/11 was done by the "Palestinian Republic of Bundi". I can find forum threads from then wondering what the fuck she meant, and all these years later it's still baffling

Did she mean Burundi? A country in Southeastern Africa? There's villages named Bundi in Iran and India, but I can't even begin to imagine what she was even imagining, or why she didn't even begin to stop imagining it

"Triad of Jordan" also turns up nothing

The first name she mentioned just brings up Linkedin pages.

The second only turns up this post. Neither of those names seems to exist in any language

She tried to explain why she didn't predict 9/11, by saying she's not omniscient, and she warned of terrorism...in 1999. But that article I linked dug up her 1999 predictions, bc she left them online, and she said there'd be terrorism...in Florida and London

At the end of this, she takes care to note that 9/11 will NOT stop the Sylvia Browne cruise through Greece and Turkey!!

She saw 9/11, and rushed to make a statement trying to explain why the spirits didn't show her 9/11, and also make up a few countries to blame 9/11 on. Then she sold a cruise, deleted the page, and wrote a book claiming everyone who died on 9/11 was led there to die by their spirit guide to be martyrs to bring patriotism back. I'm glad we don't have celebrity TV psychics anymore but I almost miss them. Simply not justice in how she got off scot-free and our passive aggressive, intermittently-Jamaican queen Miss Cleo got nabbed

[tiredwitchplant]

Everything You Need to Know About Crystals: Carnelian (Red)

Carnelian (The Sunset Stone)

Color: Red, orange, pink, brown

Rarity: Common, easy to obtain

Hardiness: 7

Type: Agate or Chalcedony

Chakra Association: Solar-Plexus, Sacral, Root Chakra

Angels: Michael

Deities: Isis

Astrological Signs: Leo, Taurus, Aries

Element: Fire

Planet: Sun

Origin: Britain, India, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Peru, Iceland, Romania

Powers: Success, Confidence, Motivation, Courage, Sexual Energy, Vitality, Action

Crystals It Works Well With: Aquamarine, Beryl, Super Seven

How It is Created: It is part of the chalcedony family. It is made up of silicon dioxide colored by different levels of iron impurities, with specks, banding, or stripes in many shades of brown or orange-red. The stone itself has a beautiful warm orange color that is best appreciated when it is polished.

History: Since ancient times, carnelian has been polished and worn as jewelry. The Egyptians used it to contrast with onyx and lapis lazuli in the making of collars and necklaces. The Romans were fond of it set in gold, using small beads in earrings or larger polished stones in finger rings for men and women. In the Middle Ages, carnelian was also popular as a healing stone. It was said to dissolve anger or rage, protect the wearer from negative influences, and promote courage.

What It Can Do:

Can be used in spell for success, confidence, and motivation

Can bring a burst of inspiration and energy

Is good for sex magic and sometimes menstrual support

Can cleanse and restore other crystals

Can help those in abusive situations by providing inner strength and movement to the right path

Help with mental preparation with childbirth

Calms angry emotions and puts a stop to mental lethargy

Can restore vitality and remove the fear of death

Was used to protect the dead to their journey to the afterlife

Dispels apathy and motivates success

Improves analytics abilities and clarifies perception

Removes extraneous thoughts in mediation and tunes daydreamers into reality

Can stimulate metabolism and improve your life force

Can influence reproductive organs and increase fertility

How to Get the Best Out Of: Use as a pendant or belt buckle, or place in contact with the skin as appropriate.

How to Cleanse and Charge: You can cleanse and charge carnelian with the sun.

Crystal Grid:

Creativity Grid

Shape: Flower of Life or Vesica Piscis

Mantra: “Creativity flows through me.”

Center Stone: Carnelian sphere or tumbled stone

Secondary Stones: Rainbow moonstone, larimar, kunzite, orange calcite

Moon Phase: Waxing phase or full moon

Day: Wednesday

Sources

[survivalove]

Katara the selfcare queen

Every canon instance or mention (that i can rmr) of Katara indulging in selfcare in the middle of a war because I find it quite amusing yet fascinating.

I may or may not have made a post like this before but I wanted to expand on it.

1. Skincare routine

In 1x14, The Fortuneteller, Katara reveals she has a special seaweed lotion that she carries with her for soft skin. (Avatar Extras also made a point of saying that it smells…?) She even offers to get Aunt Wu some, as if she has extra. So my question is, who is this plug that she gets her steady supply of seaweed lotion from? 😭

Real-life: Seaweed has been used in skincare for thousands of years, first recorded in ancient Chile. Nowadays, seaweed extract is pretty common in skincare products especially from emerging brands in Nunavik and Iqaluit, Canada.

My headcanon: This is probably a recipe Katara picked up from the older women of her tribe, so she just plucks some seaweed whenever the gaang stops by a body of water. And she definitely makes it in cute glass jars and shares it with her fellow healers in the Republic City Hospital ✨selfcare queen✨

2. Spa Day

I just find this funny because when and how did she even find this spa? How long has she been going by herself? Look how comfortable she is like dhjfjcd she’s definitely a regular and they all know her.

Real-life: Saunas are pretty modern, starting up in Finland around 1112. (In canon, I think a firebender and a waterbender run a sauna in Republic City so hey.) Mudbaths on the other hand have been around for centuries and people have been doing it at any naturally occurring hot spring they can found. I don’t even have to tell you about massages so

My headcanon: Katara always knows where the spas and selfcare places are wherever they go. I definitely think she scooped up some stuff at the perfume abbey in season 1 (because she’s a kleptomaniac). I also headcanon she would have a spa setup in the back of Republic City Hospital because selfcare is healthcare too. Also, Aang gives her massages at home and he’s surprisingly good at it, but, Katara sucks at massages and Aang never lets her do it to him after that one time 💀

3. Yoga

In 3x11, Nightmares & Daydreams, Katara teaches Aang yoga to de-stress in a hot spring. My thing is, when did she learn about yoga and how often does she do it? We needed the Katara yoga mini shorts special. The kids would’ve loved it.

Real life: Yoga originating from ancient India is practised in a variety of forms in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. The poses they do are the Upward Salute and the Wide Legged Forward Bend.

My headcanon: I imagine Katara must have read about this at the Air Nomad Section of the Spirit Library, given the cultural heritage. Knowing her she found a yoga scroll and swiped it (can you say klepto?). This is another selfcare thing she does with Aang because it’s his culture! They do it every Saturday until he starts complaining about his old bones 😅

4. Hair care

Katara also wears a special cap on her head when doing yoga which I assume is to protect her hair from the steam 🤔 I just found it very interesting since we hardly see her hair covered. Then I also realized Katara is the only character shown actually combing her hair and styling it like 4 times: from the bun-braid, to the formal earth kingdom look, to her fire nation look and finally the bun with her hair out.

Real life: I typed so many things and I finally found something similar called a chinoiserie satin skull cap? (sorry pic limit). It’s similar in design and even has a tassel like Katara’s. Focusing on her hairstyles, the signature “hair loopies” are actually based on a traditional Inuit style known as qilliqti and her earth kingdom look is based on a traditional Manchurian style called liangbatou.

My headcanon: Like Katara’s mysterious seaweed lotion recipe, she probably makes several haircare products for herself, and has a major hair routine. So, it would make sense she wears protective caps from time to time. I also think both Hama and Katara are tied to the myth of Senna, the Inuit sea goddess, through the comb Katara uses which I headcanon is the identical comb Hama had in her home (again klepto).

If there’s any more selfcare moments I left out, please feel free to share or reply with your own Katara ✨selfcare queen✨ headcanons!

[aroace-spec-empire]

History of the AroAce Spec Empire (So far)

(Will update as I rummage through this blog and find posts/events that are considered as important history bits-)

2024

Note: At some point Luxembourg and the AroAce Spec Empire signed an agreement. Luxembourg would help with the invasion of Europe if they got Greenland

May 1 - The AroAce Spec Empire is founded during the Great Bot War Of 2024

May 1 - Almost immediately after being created, the Empire joins the Great Bot War of 2024 on the side of Aspecs

May 2 - The Empire hosts a vote to decide which European country to invade first

May 7 - The Empire reveals a map of Europe covered in dots + Promises to give Northern Ireland to Ireland

May 7 - A vote is made to decide which type of government the Empire should have

May 7-8 - The AroAce Spec Empire decides to not invade France, due to the founder Crystals la Bubble Tea (@/crystalsandbubbletea) being intimidated by them

May 9 - Draft of the AroAce Spec Empire Constitution is created

May 9 - Voting to decide which European country to invade first ends, with Denmark taking the overwhelming majority of the vote

May 13 - Czech Republic offers an alliance to the AroAce Spec Empire

May 15 - The Alliance between the AroAce Spec Empire and the Czech Republic is made official

May 16 - Canada and the AroAce Spec Empire form an alliance

May 16 - The King's Lomatia becomes the National Flower of the AroAce Spec Empire, while Garlic bread becomes the official food

May 16 - A poll just to be silly opens. The poll is for deciding if the Empire should be renamed to Peanut AroAce Spec Empire or Peanut Spec Empire after the Empire was called a peanut twice

May 17 - The USA and the AroAce Spec Empire form an alliance

May 17 - Luxembourg has to remind the AroAce Spec Empire about the agreement

May 17 - Ikea joins the AroAce Spec Empire

May 17 - AroAce Spec Empire and France open up discussions for a possible alliance

May 17 - Crystals la Bubble Tea thinks about making May 17 a national holiday known as "National Update Day", depends on the majority vote though-

May 17 - It is revealed that Crystals la Bubble Tea isn't a government official, due to the AroAce Spec Empire being an anarchy country. Instead they are responsible for polls and writing the constitution

May 17 - Antarctica and the AroAce Spec Empire become allies

May 17 - Arby's and the AroAce Spec Empire are officially chill with each other

May 18 - The Empire made a Discord server

May 20 - A new list of proposed alliances is made. The countries on the list are Germany, Turkmenistan, and Australia

May 20 - Crystals la Bubble Tea announces that they won't be in public as much for a while (AKA finals happening)

May 20 - Alliance with Australia has been confirmed

May 20 - Crystals la Bubble Tea goes out hunting for bots on the ace tags, they find none. This isn't enough for them, as who knows when the bots will be back?

May 21 - The Denmarks know about the plans to invade Denmark, causing Crystals la Bubble Tea to contemplate their life choices

May 21 - The Empire takes a bite out of the flag of Scotland and immediately regrets it

Aug 7 - The Empire faces increasing concern due to both France's losing their memories. Crystals la Bubble Tea goes into hiding

Aug 12 - The Empire gets their memories wiped. Crystals la Bubble Tea thinks about making the empire go into lockdown to prevent further memory loss

Some time between Aug 12 and Aug 19 - The Empire gets it's memories back

Aug 19 - The Empire and Communist America form an alliance

Some point in August - India and the Empire form an alliance

Aug 30 - The British Empire and the AroAce Spec Empire form an alliance

Sept 1 - The AroAce Spec Empire starts the invasion of European Countries

Oct 2 - The Great Bot was is presumably over

[iphigeniacomplex]

লিখি লোৱা, মই এজন মিঞা ("Write Down 'I am a Miyah'", 2016) by Hafiz Ahmed, translated from Assamese to English by Shalim M. Hussain, began a movement of resistance poetry among Assamese Muslims of Bengali descent, referred to as Miya Poetry after a slur used to describe this community. From Abdul Kalam Azad, for Indian Express ("Write...I am a Miya", 2019):

This poem went viral and other young poets started responding to him through poems. The young poets also started reclaiming “Miya”, a slur used against us, as our identity with pride. This chain of Facebook posts continued for days, reiterating the violence, suffering and humiliation expressed by our community. As time passed, more poets wrote in various languages and dialects, including many Miya dialects. The nomenclature ‘Miya Poetry’ got generated organically but the poets and their associates have been inspired by the Negritude and Black Arts movements, and queer, feminist and Dalit literary movements, where the oppressed have reclaimed the identity which was used to dehumanise them. The trend transcended our community. Poets from the mainstream Assamese community also wrote several poems in solidarity with the Miya poets while some regretted not being poets. Gradually, this became a full-fledged poetry movement and got recognised by other poets, critics and commentators. The quality and soul of these poems are so universal that they started finding prominence on reputed platforms. For the first time in the history of our community, we had started telling our own stories and reclaiming the Miya identity to fight against our harassers who were dehumanising us with the same word. They accused us of portraying the whole Assamese society as xenophobic. The fact is we have just analysed our conditions. Forget generalising the Assamese society as ‘xenophobic’, no Miya poet has ever used the term ‘xenophobic’ nor any of its variants. The guilt complex of our accusers is so profound that they don’t have the patience to examine why we wrote the poems.

Amrita Singh, writing for The Caravan ("Assam Against Itself", 2019), detailed the political backlash against Miya Poetry, in particular the above poem.

On 10 July this year, Pranabjit Doloi, an Assam-based journalist, filed a complaint at Guwahati’s Panbazar police station accusing ten people of indulging in criminal activities “to defame the Assamese people as Xenophobic in the world.” Doloi claimed that the ten people were trying to hinder the ongoing updation of the National Register of Citizens, a list of Assam’s Indian citizens that is due to be published on 31 August. The premise of Doloi’s complaint was a widely-circulated poem called, “Write down I am Miya,” by Hafiz Ahmed, a school teacher and social activist. “Write. Write down I am a Miya/ A citizen of democratic secular republic without any rights,” Ahmed wrote. The police registered a first information report against Doloi’s complaint, booking all ten persons for promoting enmity between groups, among other offences. [...] At the press conference, Mander emphasised that people in Assam are in distress because of the NRC’s arbitrary and rigid procedures. “One spelling mistake when you are writing a Bengali name in English … that is enough for you to be in a detention center, declared a foreigner,” Mander said. “If you are not allowing this lament to come out in the form of poetry, then where is this republic of India going?”

Ahmed's poem is influenced in structure by "Identity Card", a 1964 poem by by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish which uses the symbolic figure of the Palestinian working man to confront Israeli occupiers. Darwish's identity card, a symbol of Israeli subjugation transformed into a cry of Palestinian national identity, is reshaped by Ahmed into the National Register of Citizens for Assam and the accompanying fear of statelessness and disenfranchisement for the Miya people.

This solidarity between writers from oppressed groups is, of course, not one that ends with Darwish and Ahmed, nor with the Black, queer, feminist, and Dalit influences of Miya Poetry. As long as there is oppression, there will be companionship and recognition reflected in art and activism. On December 13, 2023, Black Agenda Report reprinted Refaat Alareer's "If I Must Die", acknowledging the connection between Alareer's poem and "If We Must Die" by Claude McKay, written in 1919 in response to the Red Summer white supremacist riots. In 2000, Haitian community activist Dahoud Andre translated "If We Must Die" into Kreyòl, and the Black Agenda Report editorial honors Alareer in a similar way, reprinting "If I Must Die" with an accompanying Kreyòl translation. (POEM: If I Must Die, Refaat Alareer, 2023.)

Transcripts under the cut.

[Hafiz Ahmed Transcripts (Assamese and English):

লিখি লোৱা, মই এজন মিঞা

লিখা, লিখি লোৱা মই এজন মিঞা এন. আৰ. চিৰ ক্রমিক নং ২০০৫৪৩ দুজন সন্তানৰ বাপেক মই, অহাবাৰ গ্ৰীষ্মত জন্ম ল’ব আৰু এজনে তাকো তুমি ঘিণ কৰিবা নেকি যিদৰে ঘিণ কৰা মোক?

লিখি লোৱা, মই এজন মিঞা পতিত ভূমি, পিতনিক মই ৰূপান্তৰিত কৰিছোঁ শস্য-শ্যামলা সেউজী পথাৰলৈ তোমাক খুৱাবলৈ মই ইটা কঢ়িয়াইছোঁ তোমাৰ অট্টালিকা সাজিবলৈ, তোমাৰ গাড়ী চলাইছোঁ তোমাক আৰাম দিবলৈ, তোমাৰ নৰ্দমা ছাফা কৰিছোঁ তোমাক নিৰোগী কৰি ৰাখিবলৈ, তোমাৰে সেৱাতে মগন মই অনবৰত তাৰ পিছতো কিয় তুমি খৰ্গহস্ত? লিখা, লিখি লোৱা মই এজন মিঞা গণতান্ত্ৰিক, গণৰাজ্য এখনৰ নাগৰিক এজন যাৰ কোনো অধিকাৰ নাইকিয়া মাতৃক মোৰ সজোৱা হৈছে সন্দেহযুক্ত ভোটাৰ যদিও পিতৃ-মাতৃ তাইৰ নিঃসন্দেহে ভাৰতীয়

ইচ্ছা কৰিলেই তুমি মোক হত্যা কৰিব পাৰা, জ্বলাই দিব পৰা মোৰ খেৰৰ পঁজা, খেদি দিব পাৰা মোক মোৰেই গাঁৱৰ পৰা, কাঢ়ি নিব পাৰা মোৰ সেউজী পথাৰ মোৰ বুকুৰ ওপৰেৰে চলাব পাৰা তোমাৰ বুলড্‌জাৰ তোমাৰ বুলেটে বুকুখন মোৰ কৰিব পাৰে থকাসৰকা (তোমাৰ এই কাৰ্যৰ বাবে তুমি কোনো স্তিও নোপোৱা) যুগ-যুগান্তৰ তোমাৰ অত্যাচাৰ সহ্য কৰি ব্ৰহ্মপুত্ৰৰ চৰত বাস কৰা মই এজন মিঞা মোৰ দেহা হৈ পৰিছে নিগ্ৰো কলা মোৰ চকুযুৰি অঙঠাৰ দৰে ৰঙা সাৱধান! মোৰ দুচকুত জমা হৈ আছে যুগ যুগান্তৰৰ বঞ্চনাৰ বাৰুদ আঁতৰি যোৱা, নতুবা অচিৰেই পৰিণত হ’বা মূল্যহীন ছাইত!

Write Down ‘I am a Miyah’ Hafiz Ahmed, 2016 trans. Shalim M. Hussain

Write Write Down I am a Miya My serial number in the NRC is 200543 I have two children Another is coming Next summer. Will you hate him As you hate me?

write I am a Miya I turn waste, marshy lands To green paddy fields To feed you. I carry bricks To build your buildings Drive your car For your comfort Clean your drain To keep you healthy. I have always been In your service And yet you are dissatisfied! Write down I am a Miya, A citizen of a democratic, secular, Republic Without any rights My mother a D voter, Though her parents are Indian.

If you wish kill me, drive me from my village, Snatch my green fields hire bulldozers To roll over me. Your bullets Can shatter my breast for no crime.

Write I am a Miya Of the Brahamaputra Your torture Has burnt my body black Reddened my eyes with fire. Beware! I have nothing but anger in stock. Keep away! Or Turn to Ashes.

]

[Mahmoud Darwish Transcripts (Arabic and English):

سجِّل أنا عربي ورقمُ بطاقتي خمسونَ ألفْ وأطفالي ثمانيةٌ وتاسعهُم.. سيأتي بعدَ صيفْ! فهلْ تغضبْ؟ سجِّلْ أنا عربي وأعملُ مع رفاقِ ال��دحِ في محجرْ وأطفالي ثمانيةٌ أسلُّ لهمْ رغيفَ الخبزِ، والأثوابَ والدفترْ من الصخرِ ولا أتوسَّلُ الصدقاتِ من بابِكْ ولا أصغرْ أمامَ بلاطِ أعتابكْ فهل تغضب؟ سجل أنا عربي أنا اسم بلا لقبِ صَبورٌ في بلادٍ كلُّ ما فيها يعيشُ بفَوْرةِ الغضبِ جذوري قبلَ ميلادِ الزمانِ رستْ وقبلَ تفتّحِ الحقبِ وقبلَ السّروِ والزيتونِ .. وقبلَ ترعرعِ العشبِ أبي.. من أسرةِ المحراثِ لا من سادةٍ نُجُبِ وجدّي كانَ فلاحاً بلا حسبٍ.. ولا نسبِ! يُعَلّمني شموخَ الشمسِ قبلَ قراءةِ الكتبِ وبيتي’ كوخُ ناطورٍ منَ الأعوادِ والقصبِ فهل تُرضيكَ منزلتي؟ أنا اسم بلا لقبِ! سجلْ أنا عربي ولونُ الشعرِ.. فحميٌّ ولونُ العينِ.. بنيٌّ وميزاتي: على رأسي عقالٌ فوقَ كوفيّه وكفّي صلبةٌ كالصخرِ... تخمشُ من يلامسَها وعنواني: أنا من قريةٍ عزلاءَ منسيّهْ شوارعُها بلا أسماء وكلُّ رجالها في الحقلِ والمحجرْ فهل تغضبْ؟ سجِّل! أنا عربي سلبتُ كرومَ أجدادي وأرضاً كنتُ أفلحُها أنا وجميعُ أولادي ولم تتركْ لنا.. ولكلِّ أحفادي سوى هذي الصخورِ... فهل ستأخذُها حكومتكمْ.. كما قيلا!؟ إذنْ سجِّل.. برأسِ الصفحةِ الأولى أنا لا أكرهُ الناسَ ولا أسطو على أحدٍ ولكنّي.. إذا ما جعتُ آكلُ لحمَ مغتصبي حذارِ.. حذارِ.. من جوعي ومن غضبي!!

Identity Card Mahmoud Darwish, 1964 trans. Denys Johnson-Davies

Put it on record. I am an Arab

And the number of my card is fifty thousand I have eight children And the ninth is due after summer. What's there to be angry about?

Put it on record. I am an Arab

Working with comrades of toil in a quarry. I have eight children For them I wrest the loaf of bread, The clothes and exercise books From the rocks And beg for no alms at your door, Lower not myself at your doorstep. What's there to be angry about?

Put it on record. I am an Arab.

I am a name without a title, Patient in a country where everything Lives in a whirlpool of anger. My roots Took hold before the birth of time Before the burgeoning of the ages, Before cypress and olive trees, Before the proliferation of weeds.

My father is from the family of the plough Not from highborn nobles.

And my grandfather was a peasant Without line or genealogy.

My house is a watchman's hut Made of sticks and reeds.

Does my status satisfy you? I am a name without a surname.

Put it on record. I am an Arab.

Color of hair: jet black. Color of eyes: brown. My distinguishing features: On my head the `iqal cords over a keffiyeh Scratching him who touches it.

My address: I'm from a village, remote, forgotten, Its streets without name And all its men in the fields and quarry. What's there to be angry about?

Put it on record. I am an Arab.

You stole my forefathers' vineyards And land I used to till, I and all my children, And you left us and all my grandchildren Nothing but these rocks. Will your government be taking them too As is being said?

So! Put it on record at the top of page one: I don't hate people, I trespass on no one's property.

And yet, if I were to become hungry I shall eat the flesh of my usurper. Beware, beware of my hunger And of my anger!

]

[thrashkink-coven]

Happy Emancipation Day!

Here's a short write up I did about Emancipation Day for my local grassroots mutual aid collective. This will unfortunately be focused primarily on Canada because our area of influence is more local than international. Please be sure to educate yourself on what this day means in your region!

What is the Slave Abolition Act of 1833?

The Slave Abolition Act of 1833 was a British law that ended slavery in most British colonies, freeing over 800,000 enslaved Africans in the Caribbean, South Africa, and Canada. The law, approved on August 28, 1833, took effect on August 1, 1834. It did not immediately apply to territories controlled by the East India Company, Ceylon, or Saint Helena; these exceptions were removed in 1843.

Earlier, in 1793, John Graves Simcoe, the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada (now Ontario), had passed an Act Against the importation of new slaves. This law promised freedom to children born to enslaved women at age twenty-five, but it did not free existing slaves. The Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 later replaced this law, ending slavery across most of the British Empire.

Did it really free the slaves?

The Slavery Abolition Act had its flaws. It only freed those enslaved under age six. Older individuals were classified as 'apprentices' and had to work 40 hours a week without pay as “compensation” to their former slave owners. Full emancipation was not achieved until July 31, 1838.

While Canada often expresses pride in its relatively lesser involvement in slavery when compared to other British colonies, it wasn't the first to end it. The Independent Republic of Vermont was the first in North America to abolish slavery with its 1777 constitution. This came 16 years before Upper Canada’s partial abolition in 1793. Vermont was quickly followed by states like Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, and the U.S. Congress banned slavery in future Midwest territories in 1787.

What is Emancipation Day? What does it mean?

On March 1, 2021, the Canadian House of Commons unanimously declared August 1 as Emancipation Day. This date marks the beginning of the partial abolition of slavery across British colonies in various countries.

Why is Emancipation Day important? 

Neglecting acknowledgement of Emancipation Day allows Canada to evade its dark history and distort its legacy. We must hold governments accountable for the history of their crimes. It’s critical to confront the reality that slavery was a part of Canadian history and that its legacy continues to impact African Canadians today. While Canada often boasts about its role in the Underground Railroad and its “total” abolishment of slavery before the U.S, it must also face the uncomfortable truth of its own very real involvement in slavery. Emancipation Day is about confronting history with honesty. Acknowledging this day is essential for addressing past injustices and ensuring that future generations grasp the full, unfiltered truth of Canada's history, including the painful chapters that must not be forgotten or repeated. 

Emancipation did not end the oppression of Black people in this country. For those who suffered under centuries of slavery, emancipation should have signaled that Canada would become a place of respect and opportunity for their descendants. Instead, Black Canadians still face racism, discrimination, and prejudice in education, healthcare, housing, and the justice system.

The history of slavery and the stories of enslaved people and their descendants have historically been confined to Black communities. Recognition of this day on a national scale not only helps to validify the black experience, but also to clearly acknowledge our refusal to return to these oppressive norms. Integrating this crucial part of Canadian history into the education of all our children is vital for addressing anti-Black racism and its ongoing impact in our society to this day. A necessary step toward justice is issuing an official apology to the descendants of enslaved people, bringing this issue to the forefront of Canadian awareness and starting the path toward meaningful reparations.

Emancipation day allows us the opportunity to use the past to reflect upon the present. We must acknowledge the deep, ongoing trauma from slavery and segregation as the foundation of anti-Black racism that is still rampant in our justice system today. It is only through this acknowledgement that we can begin to form a dialogue which sees black people as an important, intrinsic part of Canadian history at all times, not just during black history month. 

[yehsahihai]

Today is Republic Day, a celebration of the unity and diversity of the nation so it seems like a pretty good day to say this: do not make our differences our weaknesses. do not scorn the ones who are not as well versed as you. do not put down people just because they have a different view tha you. do not try to glorify your own beliefs by belittling the beliefs of others.

we're a country of 28 states yes. but we're also a country of eight religions, 22 official languages, thousands of years of history both shared and individual. we're a country whose freedom was won not by a hindu or a muslim or a sikh or a christian, but by indians.

when the words "We the people of India" were put on paper, they weren't put there with any exception. we all have a guarantee of freedom, liberty, equality and fraternity. and right now, when everything seems to be trying to tear us all apart and turn us against each other, it is a good time to remember that we're a country whose constitution was primarily drafted by a buddhist, whose first prime minister was a kashmiri pandit, whose atomic energy program was lead by a parsi, whose most regarded athlete was a sikh and whose space program was pioneered by a muslim.

Our differences are not our divisions.

[infiniteglitterfall]

I think it'd be fun to sort of liveblog looking for countries that haven't abused/exiled Jews

I haven't found a list. So I'm making one.

Let's start with China. China has Jewish communities, and maybe not enough of them to become a target! The perfect amount?

Wow, Jews have lived in China since the 7th century CE. I've heard of the Kaifeng Jews!

Oh, this is ominous: "In the first half of the 20th century, thousands of Jewish refugees escaping from pogroms in the Russian Empire arrived in China. By the time of the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, only a few Jews were known to have maintained the practice of their religion and culture."

Wow, fun fact:

According to an oral tradition dictated by Xu Xin, Director of the Centre for Judaic Studies at Nanjing University, in his book Legends of the Chinese Jews of Kaifeng, the Kaifeng Jews called Judaism Yīcìlèyè jiào (一賜樂業教), lit. the religion of Israel. Yīcìlèyè is a transliteration and partial translation of "Israel".

Surprising and cool:

Famous Venetian traveler Marco Polo, who visited China, then under the Yuan dynasty, in the late 13th century, described the prominence of Jewish traders in Beijing.

Neither surprising nor cool:

Genghis Khan called both Jews and Muslims Huihui when he forbade Jews and Muslims from practicing kosher and halal preparation of their food, calling both of them "slaves" and forcing them to eat Mongol food, and banned them from practicing circumcision.

In the late 1800s a lot of Jews emigrated from India and Iraq to China; they "took a considerable part in developing trade in China, and several served on the municipal councils."

In the early 1900s, 20,000 Jewish refugees from Russian pogroms emigrated to Harbin, in northeast China and "and played a key role in the shaping of local politics, economy and international trade."

Surprisingly:

Dr. Sun Yat-sen, founder of the Republic of China, admired the Jewish people and Zionism, and he also saw parallels between the persecution of Jews and the domination of China by the Western powers. He stated, "Though their country was destroyed, the Jewish nation has existed to this day ... [Zionism] is one of the greatest movements of the present time. All lovers of democracy cannot help but support wholeheartedly and welcome with enthusiasm the movement to restore your wonderful and historic nation, which has contributed so much to the civilization of the world and which rightfully deserve [sic] an honorable place in the family of nations."

Wow. It really doesn't go into any more detail about the SMALL gap between "40,000 Jews moved to China from 1845-1945," and "most of these Jews emigrated to Israel or the West... by the time of the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, only a few Jews were known to have maintained the practice of their religion and culture."

That's four years.

Let's look at other sources.

At first, life in Shanghai was peaceful for its newest residents. The Jewish refugees were welcomed by Shanghai residents and they created a strong community with schools and a vibrant social scene. Some refugees began working as dentists and doctors, while others set up shops, cafes and clubs in the neighbourhood.

What the refugees couldn't foresee was they would travel across the globe only to fall into the clutches of the Nazis' most powerful ally. In 1941, Japan seized Shanghai. Acting under instruction from the Nazis, Japanese troops rounded up all of the city's Jews and confined them in Tilanqiao. Shanghai's Jewish ghetto had been born....

According to [historian Dvir] Bar-Gal, even prior to the Japanese invasion, many Jewish refugees in Tilanqiao lived in poverty compared to their comfortable lifestyles back in Europe. Conditions worsened greatly after Japanese soldiers gathered Jews from across Shanghai and forced them to all live within the borders of this newly formed ghetto. Jews were banned from leaving the area, even for work, unless they received permission from Japanese officers, which rarely happened.

Disease and malnutrition plagued the many heinously overcrowded group homes. "It went from a poor neighbourhood to an extremely poor neighbourhood," Bar-Gal said. "Many people had no jobs and lived in communal housing with many other beds and common bathrooms and kitchens. They had zero privacy and almost no food."

Yet, while six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, and up to 14 million Chinese soldiers and civilians were killed during their nation's war with Japan from 1937 to 1945, the majority of Shanghai's Jewish refugees survived. This remarkable feat was described by Holocaust historian David Kranzler as the "Miracle of Shanghai", and according to Bar-Gal, they survived because Jews weren't a primary target of the Japanese forces.

In 1945, when World War Two ended with the defeat of Japan and Nazi Germany, Japanese troops retreated and most of Shanghai's Jews quickly left, relocating to places like the US, Australia and Canada. But had Shanghai not taken these refugees in, many of these more-than-20,000 Jews may have never survived the Nazi death squads....

The first structure I came across was the imposing old Tilanqiao Prison. During World War Two, the Japanese incarcerated dozens of Jewish refugees and Chinese dissidents behind its thick stone walls. The brutality of the Japanese gave the Jews and the Chinese a common enemy and a shared experience. This connection remains strong, according to Tian.

That still leaves at least another 20,000, though? (I would say almost 20,000, but for the ones who already lived in China.)

Hmm. Here's a paper that says Jews "not only took part in the revolution but had also helped igniting it and then stayed on or joined later. While dealing with this puzzle in my paper, I’ll try to offer a typology of Jewish activists and revolutionaries in China, to explain their motives (by choice or not), and to evaluate their contributions in perspective. It appears that their Jewish identity did not play a direct role in their revolutionary activism, but it did play an indirect role. Included in this study are Grigorii Gershuni, Grigorii Voitinski, Boris Shumiatsky, Michail Borodin, Adolf Joffe, Pavel Mif, David Crook, Sidney Rittenberg, Israel Epstein, Sidney Shapiro, Solomon Adler, Sam Ginsbourg, Michael Shapiro, and more. Their main value to the revolution was mainly writing, translation, communication and publication. Although they were all deeply committed to the Chinese Communist revolution, some of them were jailed – for years – and occasionally more than once. Nonetheless, they continued to believe in, and even to justify, the Chinese Communist Party."

Wait, waaaaait. I was about to try to find the full paper (titled "Combining contradictions: Jewish contributions to the Chinese revolution"), but I ran across this first:

A century ago, the Communist International and the then-Russian Communist Party dispatched several agents to help foment revolution in China, including Russians like Grigori Voitinsky and Vladimir Neiman-Nikolsky and the Dutch Communist Henk Sneevliet. In addition to their shared commitment to Communism, all three were of Jewish heritage.

O rly??

They came with SKILLS!

On the evening of July 30, less than a month after the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC), members of the CPC’s First National Congress met for a vote on a new party program. Suddenly, an unfamiliar middle-aged man barged into the meeting hall. “Sorry, I’m in the wrong place,” the man declared before hurrying off.

Sneevliet, well-versed in the techniques used by the police around the world to crack down on revolutionary activities, suggested that the meeting be adjourned and urged members to leave. By the time police arrived 10 minutes later, the building was already cleared out.

If you think that's impressive, try this!

Richard Frey... was an Austrian Jew who fled to Shanghai in the late 1930s. He worked for a hospital in the city until 1941, when he moved to a Communist military base in North China to teach medicine. In 1944, Frey was transferred to the central Communist base in Yan’an in China’s northwest Shaanxi province, where he soon succeeded in producing a crude but much-needed form of penicillin. 

He just. Made up his own penicillin for them.

What the entire fuck.

HERE we go!

International Journal of China Studies, December 2020. "Combining Contradictions: Jewish Contributions to the Chinese Revolution," by Yitzhak Shichor, University of Haifa and Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Fun Fact:

Jewish Lithuanian activist Grigory Gershuni emigrated from Russia to China by hiding in a barrel of sauerkraut.

Yeah okay, I think China's number one on the list of Hey, Some Countries Didn't Try That!

Next time: Japan? Or Brazil? Hmmmm.

[mariacallous]

Reflecting the instincts of a cold war veteran, Joe Biden’s strategy was familiar: contain the conflict. When the US president spoke in Warsaw in March 2022, a month after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he drew a red line at Vladimir Putin’s toes. “Don’t even think about moving on one single inch of Nato territory,” he warned.

The western allies would provide weapons and aid to Kyiv, impose sweeping economic and financial sanctions on Moscow and reduce the rouble to “rubble”, Biden vowed. Though not a Nato member, the US would help Ukraine win this symbolic battle for freedom and democracy. But it would not directly confront Russia unless Russia first attacked Nato.

Thirty months on, Biden’s containment strategy is failing miserably. Like an untreated cancer, Ukraine’s crisis metastasises uncontrollably. Far from being confined to the mud and ice of the Donbas, the war’s spreading, toxic fallout grows more globally destructive by the day. It contaminates and blights everything it touches. True, a “hot” war between Russia and Nato has been avoided so far. Yet Polish and Romanian territory has been affected by stray missiles and maritime attacks. The entire Black Sea region is embroiled, as is Belarus. Putin claims that the west is already waging war on Russia and threatens it with nuclear weapons. Propagandists vow to vaporise Poland.

The crisis has triggered US-Europe splits in Nato and within the EU. Rows flare over sending troops and long-range missiles to Ukraine, inviting Kyiv to join the alliance, and forging a separate European “defence identity”. France’s newly hawkish stance is cancelled out by German caution.

Neutral Sweden and Finland were panicked into joining Nato. The Baltic republics fear renewed Russian aggression. Hungary and Serbia appease the Kremlin. Italy wavers. No one feels safe.

The war is fuelling right-left political extremism as support surges for Putin’s paid-for populist apologists. In Moldova, last weekend’s EU membership referendum was grossly distorted by what its president, Maia Sandu, called a huge bribery operation by “criminal groups working together with foreign forces” – namely, Kremlin stooges.

Now Moscow is eyeing this weekend’s elections in Georgia where it covertly conspires to ensure pro-western parties lose. Such hybrid warfare – subversion, disinformation, influence operations, cyber-attacks, scams, online trolling – has mushroomed worldwide since 2022, as authoritarian regimes follow Russia’s lead.

Failure to contain the war is encouraging seismic geopolitical shifts, most notably the China-Russia “no-limits” partnership. China’s president, Xi Jinping, gets cheap oil; ostracised Putin gets sanctions-busting dual-use tech plus diplomatic backing. But it’s so much more than that. At last week’s Brics summit – hosted by Putin – Russia, China, India, Brazil and South Africa were joined by Iran, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela and, alarmingly, Nato member Turkey (among many others). Putin envisages a global anti-western alliance, Xi a post-American, China-led 21st-century new world order.

These are no idle dreams. For many second-tier countries, the west’s condemnation of Russian aggression in Ukraine and its refusal to condemn, and active facilitation of, Israeli aggression in Palestine represents an intolerable double standard. Some are switching sides.

What better illustrates the unbounded nature of this inexorably expanding conflict than the startling news that North Korea, in a breath-taking counterpoint to US and UK military intervention in the Korean war nearly 75 years ago, is deploying troops to the Ukraine theatre?

And how appalling that Donald Trump can cynically use Ukraine’s “forever war” to persuade US voters that Democrats like Kamala Harris cannot control a chaotic world, Nato is a con-trick run by freeloading Europeans and the UN is useless.

The war diverts attention from other grave conflicts, from Sudan to Myanmar. Attacks on Kyiv’s grain exports have caused food shortages and price spikes hurting poorer countries. It disrupts cooperative action on climate; indeed, it has greatly increased greenhouse gas emissions While Putin, indicted for war crimes, goes unpunished, respect for international law and the UN charter plummets. Impunity flourishes.

The war’s enormous economic costs are escalating. The World Bank estimates that the first two years caused $152bn (£117bn) of direct damage in Ukraine. The UN predicts $486bn is needed for recovery and reconstruction. Each day, the totals rise. Meanwhile, Russia constructs shadowy international networks – an officially approved black market – to circumvent sanctions and undermine dollar hegemony.

The cost in lives is heartbreaking. Conservative UN estimates suggest that about 10,000 civilians have been killed and twice that number injured. More than 30,000 Ukrainian soldiers may have died. Russian military casualties are an estimated 115,000 killed and 500,000 wounded. The cost to Russian society of intensifying authoritarianism, corruption and suppression of dissent and free media is immeasurable.

Ukraine has not lost the war, which is a remarkable feat in itself. But it is not winning, either. Western support is weakening, despite the rhetoric; Russian forces advance. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s “victory plan” has few takers. Winter is coming.

How much of this could have been prevented? Some developments, such as the China-Russia axis and rising rightwing populism, were happening anyway. The war simply accelerated them. But a lot of the wider damage was avoidable, wholly or in part.

In Warsaw, Biden was candid, almost boastful: back in January 2022, US intelligence knew that the invasion was imminent. He said he had repeatedly warned Putin it would be a big mistake. Yet, given his passionate belief that Ukraine’s fight for democracy and freedom has vital universal significance, surely what Biden should have done is told Russia’s dictator bluntly: “Forget it. Don’t invade. Or else you will find yourself fighting a better-armed, more powerful Nato.”

It’s called deterrence. It’s what Nato is for. Containment was never enough. Putin might still not have listened. But coward that he is, he probably would have – and saved everyone a world of pain.

[princesssarisa]

The next section of Cinderella Tales from Around the World is devoted to a lesser-known Cinderella subtype: One-Eye, Two-Eyes, Three-Eyes.

*The most famous tale of this type is the German version from the Brothers Grimm. To summarize:

**A woman has three daughters, each with a different number of eyes: One-Eye, Two-Eyes, and Three-Eyes. The middle sister, Two-Eyes, is hated and abused by her mother and sisters because she's beautiful and normal-looking. (There's no mention of how many eyes the mother has.) Every day she's sent out to pasture the goat, starving because her family only feeds her scraps. But one day she meets a "wise woman" (i.e. a fairy) who instructs her to recite a rhyme, and then her goat will bring her a table covered with food. She does this every day, until her mother notices that she's not eating her scraps anymore. One-Eye goes out to spy on her, but Two-Eyes sings her to sleep. Then Three-Eyes goes out, and again Two-Eyes sings, but in her lullaby she mistakenly sings "Two-Eyes" instead of "Three-Eyes," so only two of her sisters' eyes fall asleep while the third stays awake and sees how she feeds herself. She reports it to the mother, who kills the goat. But the wise woman instructs Two-Eyes to bury the goat's entrails, and when she does, a tree with silver leaves and golden apples grows from the spot. Whenever the mother or sisters try to pick the apples, the branches move out of their reach, but Two-Eyes is allowed to pick them. One day, a handsome young knight rides by, and the mother and sisters hide Two-Eyes under a barrel. But the knight admires the tree and asks for a branch from it, yet neither One-Eye nor Three-Eyes can break one off. Then Two-Eyes rolls some golden apples out from under the barrel, revealing her presence, and gives the knight his branch. The knight wants to reward her, so she asks him to take her away from her cruel family. He takes her to his castle, where the tree magically follows them, and soon afterward they marry. Some time later, One-Eye and Three-Eyes appear at the castle door, now reduced to beggars. Two-Eyes forgives them and takes them in, and her kindness makes them repent their former treatment of her.

*The other tales of this type that Heiner's book features come from France, Scotland, Denmark, Russia, the Czech Republic, India, and the United States.

**There are three French versions: Little Annette, The Golden Pear-Tree, and The Golden Bells.

*** All three include the heroine's ineffectual father, in contrast to the all-female household in the Grimms' version, and in the first and third tales, the wicked women are the heroine's stepmother and stepsisters instead of her birth family.

***In The Golden Bells, the heroine, Florine, is a princess, and her father and wicked stepmother are the king and queen. In Little Annette, the girl's eventual husband is a prince, while in the other two, he's a king.

***None of these versions include the "one-eye, two-eyes, three-eyes" motif either: in Little Annette, the stepmother magically adds an eye to the back of her youngest daughter's head, which stays open while her own eyes sleep, while in the other two the (step)sister just pretends to sleep.

***In all three, the heroine receives her food by tapping a sheep with a magic wand. In Little Annette, the wand is given to her by the Virgin Mary, in The Golden Pear-Tree by a man, and in The Golden Bells by her dying mother at the beginning. Also, rather than personally killing the sheep, the (step)mother pretends to be sick and insists that only eating the sheep's meat will cure her, so the father kills it.

***In Little Annette, the magic tree that grows from the sheep's remains just bears "the most tempting fruit," while in the other two tales, as their titles imply, it respectively bears golden pears and constantly-ringing golden bells.

***The Golden Pear-Tree and The Golden Bells both continue after the heroine's marriage with a plot against her while her husband is away at war. In The Golden Pear-Tree, the heroine gives birth to twins, and her wicked mother-in-law replaces them with two puppies, which causes the king to order his wife executed. Unfortunately, this story only survives as a fragment with no ending, but presumably the heroine escapes somehow and reunites with her husband and children after the truth is revealed. In The Golden Bells, the stepmother throws Florine into a river. But when she does so, the bells on the tree stop ringing, and the king hears this, realizes something is wrong, hurries home, and rescues Florine.

**In the odd Scottish tale of The Sheep's Daughter, the heroine is the king's secret illegitimate daughter, whose mother is a sheep. (Apparently an anthropomorphic one who lives in a house, although the queen is able to order her slaughtered like any other sheep.) The wicked women are the king's wife and legitimate daughters. The king secretly pays regular visits to the sheep and her child, bringing them gifts, until the queen has her two daughters spy on him. The sheep magically sings the first princess to sleep, but accidentally leaves one of the second princess's eyes awake, so the queen learn's what's happening, and has the sheep killed. The heroine buries her mother's bones, then lives alone in their cottage for five years, at which point a prince gives a three-day feast. The heroine's mother rises from her grave, transformed from a sheep into a beautiful princess: she dresses her daughter in finery, and from there on the story becomes Cinderella, with the heroine attending the festival and losing a slipper on the third night, which the prince uses to find her.

**In the Danish Mette Wooden-Hood, the wicked women are again the heroine's stepmother and stepsisters: the stepmother starts out as Mette's seemingly-kind schoolteacher, who of course manipulates her into convincing her father to marry her. Mette's helper is her mother's spirit, who comforts her at her gravesite and summons doves to feed her. But eventually the younger stepsister, who has an extra eye in her neck, learns this, and Mette is locked up so she can't visit the grave anymore. Mette finally manages to run away, however, and her mother's spirit gives her a wooden dress to wear and a box that will grant her wishes when she taps it. From this point on, the story becomes like Donkeyskin or All-Kinds-of-Fur, as Mette becomes a scullery maid at a palace, attends church in magic finery three times, and on the third Sunday loses a shoe.

**In one of the two Russian versions, Little Havroshecka, the heroine is an orphan while the wicked mother and daughters are her foster family, and in other, Burenushka, they're her stepmother and stepsisters: they're also a queen and princesses in the latter. In both of these versions, "One-Eye, Two-Eyes, and Three-Eyes" are the heroine's three wicked stepsisters, in contrast to the Grimms' version where Two-Eyes is the heroine. The animal helper is a cow, who magically spins flax for the heroine in Little Havroshecka, magically feeds her in Burenushka. In the former story, after the cow is killed, a silver tree grows from her remains with golden leaves and crystal apples, which only Havroshecka can pick, while in the latter tale, a berry bush grows on which birds sing, and the birds chase away anyone who tries to pick the berries except for the heroine. Little Havroshecka ends with Havroshecka's marriage, while Burenushka continues with the heroine giving birth to a son, her stepmother turning her into a goose, and her coming back each day to briefly resume human form and suckle her baby, until her husband finds out and breaks the spell by burning the goose skin.

**In the Czech tale of The Girl Who Had a Witch for a Stepmother, "One-Eye, Two-Eyes, and Three-Eyes" are again the heroine's three wicked stepsisters, and the animal helper is again a cow, who spins the heroine's flax for her, as promised by her mother's spirit. After the cow is killed, her remains produce an apple tree and a well full of wine, both of which only the heroine can access. A prince proposes marriage to her as a result, but on their wedding day the stepmother locks her up and sends one of her own daughters disguised in the bridal clothes, cutting her feet to make the shoes fit. But the heroine turns herself into a bird and flies after her prince and stepsister, calling out the truth. Thus she gets her happy ending.

**The Iranian tale of The Story of How Fatima Killed Her Mother and What Came of It, is obviously related closely to the Iranian Cinderella tale shared earlier in the book, The Story of Little Fatima. Once again, we have a heroine named Fatima whom a wicked woman persuades to kill her own mother, and then persuade her father to marry the woman who urged it. But after the stepmother turns abusive and starves her, the mother's forgiving spirit instructs Fatima in a dream to buy a yellow calf, which produces food from its ears. Meanwhile, the stepmother gives birth to two daughters of her own, Four-Eyes and Four-Stumps, who spy on their half-sister when they're old enough and discover her secret. After the calf is killed, the story has various twists and turns that include a "kind and unkind girls" episode, a Cinderella-style lost shoe leading a prince to Fatima, and Four-Stumps murdering and replacing Fatima after she gives birth to a son, only for Fatima to miraculously come back in the end.

**The Indian tale of Lal Badshah, the Red King, or The Two Little Princesses revolves around two sister princesses who are abused by their stepmother. They secretly find food each day on their mother's grave, until their stepmother's cat spies on them and reports it, and the wicked queen manipulates the king first into desecrating the grave, and then into abandoning his daughters in the forest, Hansel and Gretel-style. After many more twists and turns, the two finally live happily ever after, with one princess married to a king and the mother of a son, and her devoted sister by her side.

**Last of all is a Latin American tale called One-Eye, Two-Eyes, and Three-Eyes, where as in the Grimms' tale, Two-Eyes is the heroine abused by her cruel mother and sisters. But otherwise, this is a Cinderella story. A prince gives three balls, and Two-Eyes is forbidden to go; but before the first ball, the prince meets and falls in love with Two-Eyes, so he secretly sends her a coach and finery each night. On the night of the third ball, the mother has Three-Eyes stay home to spy on Two-Eyes, and though two of her eyes fall asleep, her third eye discovers Two-Eyes' secret. The next day, when the prince comes to the house to ask for Two-Eyes' hand in marriage, the mother locks her away and tries to offer him first One-Eye, then Three-Eyes. But of course he rejects them both and finds Two-Eyes in the end.

*It's strange that the Grimms, who normally bowdlerized wicked mothers into stepmothers in their tales, offer one of the very few versions of this tale where the heroine's abusers are her own mother and sisters instead of a stepmother and stepsisters. That said, in their footnotes they do allude to other variants where the heroine is a stepdaughter and her helper is her mother's spirit.

I'm almost finished reading this enormous anthology. After this brief section comes the last set of tales: Cinderella tales that don't fit into any of the usual categories.

@ariel-seagull-wings, @adarkrainbow, @themousefromfantasyland

[fatehbaz]

But what is more upsetting about sugar is its atrocious history. To this day, working conditions in sugar are among the world’s worst. [...] For nearly five centuries, European planters made dizzying fortunes in sugar, made possible by enslaving workers in colonized lands. [...] Canadian investors, too, have reaped massive sugar profits. During the 1700s and 1800s, most Europeans, in what is now Canada, were implicated in the transatlantic sugar and slave trades. Not only did many consume the fruits of the enslaved sugar industry — including molasses and rum, in addition to sugar, as historian Afua Cooper writes — but some also invested in Caribbean trade, itself powered by enslaved sugar work.

Several Canadian banks — including the Imperial Bank of Commerce and the Bank of Nova Scotia (now known as Scotiabank) — have their origins in the West Indies, where their forerunners established themselves early in the 19th century. According to Cooper, the Bank of Nova Scotia exists “in the shadow of West Indian slavery.”

---

Western Canadians have also profited from unfree sugar labour. The famed western Canadian brand, Rogers Sugar, was established by American Benjamin Tingley Rogers who moved to Canada in 1889. Having grown up in the sugar industry, Rogers had both sugar connections and expertise.

Building a refinery in Vancouver, a city newly constructed [...], Rogers created a western Canadian sugar empire — one that sourced raw sugar cane through the Pacific, refined it in British Columbia and sold it throughout the Canadian West. Railway magnate William Cornelius Van Horne, together with noted investors [...], were among the ventures’ early shareholders. By the time of his death in 1918, Rogers had become “quite wealthy.” Now owned by Lantic Inc., Rogers Sugar remains a recognized Canadian brand. Less well known, though, is Rogers Sugar’s violent past. [...]

Refined predominantly in Vancouver, Rogers Sugar was made mostly from raw cane sugar. Since sugar cane cannot grow in Canada, B.C. Sugar sourced internationally [...]. B.C. Sugar also ventured into sugar cane plantation ownership: in Fiji between 1905 and 1922, and in the Dominican Republic between 1944 and 1955. Notably, it purchased the latter from the Bank of Nova Scotia. In both cases, workers reported horrendous conditions. The pay was so low and the work was so menial in the Dominican Republic that, as historian Catherine C. Legrand points out, workers left the plantation whenever they could.

---

In Fiji between 1905 and 1920, B.C. Sugar employed indentured workers from India who migrated to the colony on five-year contracts. [...] Forced into hard physical labour with little time for sleep, indentured workers at B.C. Sugar’s Fiji plantation endured sickness, confinement, hunger, abuse, injuries, whippings, beatings and more [...]. When Fiji de-criminalized the desertion of indenture contracts in 1916, it is little wonder that hundreds of workers left the colony’s sugar plantations. [...]

Canadian sugar was built upon violence, including upon enslaved and indentured labour.

---

All text above by: Donica Belisle. “Uncovering the violent history of the Canadian sugar industry.” The Conversation. 16 March 2023. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me. Images and captions are shown unaltered as they originally appear published with Belisle’s article. Presented here for commentary, teaching, criticism purposes.]

[aimeedaisies]

Princess Anne’s visit reinforces Sri Lanka-UK bonds - Plaudits for hard work and modest outlook

Published 14th January 2024

By Pramod de Silva

The British Royal Family is changing their outlook following the demise of Queen Elizabeth II and amidst increasing calls for truncating or even abolishing the monarchy.

Indeed, gone are the days when the British Empire was known collectively as a region where the “Sun never sets” as its colonies were located all over the globe, from Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) to South Africa. Now there are only a very few British protectorates left, including the Falklands Islands. All others have either become Dominions with King (Charles III) as the titular Head of State (examples include Canada and Australia) or Republics with no sovereign ties to the British King, such as Sri Lanka and India.

A humble Princess Anne carried her own bags off the plane as she arrived at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake with her husband Vice Admiral Sir Timothy LaurenceA humble Princess Anne carried her own bags off the plane as she arrived at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake with her husband Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence.

Yet, the British Royal Family maintains a measure of popularity in the so-called Commonwealth Countries, which are former colonies of Britain, even if their fame has taken a hit in the UK itself particularly following the death of Princess Diana, and the separation of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle from royal life. The couple has since been living in California, USA.

Queen Elizabeth II’s visit

Sri Lankans, for whatever reason(s), do have a soft corner for the British Royal Family, in spite of the mixed colonial legacy in the country. This was evinced when Queen Elizabeth II arrived here for the first time in 1954. This visit was significant for two reasons. The first was that Sri Lanka hadsaman gained Independence from Britain just six years earlier, in 1948. And Sri Lanka was still a Dominion back then.

The second was that this was one of the Queen’s first official overseas visits after her Coronation on June 2, 1953. She wore her Coronation Frock at one of the events in Colombo during this tour. She would go on to occupy the Throne for nearly 70 years. Her next visit to Sri Lanka was in 1981, by which time the country had become a Republic. But judging by the raucous reception she received wherever she and Prince Philip went, her popularity in Sri Lanka was intact.

In between those two visits, the couple became the proud parents of four children – Princes Charles (the present King), Andrew (Duke of York, though now mostly retired from Royal Duties following a string of scandals), Edward (Duke of Edinburgh) and Princess Anne, now known officially as Princess Royal. She thus happens to be the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth.

It is no secret that Princess Anne is the sibling closest to King Charles, ever-ready to steady the ship amidst the turbulent storms that the Royal Family faced in the years following the tragic death of Princess Diana in Paris in 1997. Her scandal-free life and easy going nature had endeared herself to Royal fans all over the planet.

This might explain the buzz surrounding last-week’s official visit of Princess Anne to Sri Lanka to mark 75 years of diplomatic links between the two friendly countries. Given the revolving door that is Number 10, one cannot imagine a better ambassador to mark this occasion than apparently someone from Buckingham Palace – and the hardest working member of the British Royal Family at that. Princess Anne has earned that moniker from the press thanks to her non-stop work for good causes around the world.

A royal expert has explained why the Princess Royal was chosen as the first member of the family to go away in 2024, as she was praised as being “invaluable” to King Charles. Richard Fitzwilliams said: “Princess Anne is an example of what the public most admire in a working royal, she is dedicated, conscientious and prefers a low profile and no fuss.”

First-ever Royal visit for 2024

Princess Anne began the second day of her Sri Lanka tour with a visit to the Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic) in KandyPrincess Anne began the second day of her Sri Lanka tour with a visit to the Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic) in Kandy

In fact, her trip to Sri Lanka gained international media attention due to several reasons, with magazines such as Hello! And People devoting multiple pages to the coverage, not to mention all mainstream British newspapers. After all, this was the first-ever overseas visit by any Member of the Royal Family for 2024. Princess Anne is no stranger to Sri Lanka, having visited the country previously in 1995, as a patron of the Save the Children Fund.

The media were quick to highlight the fact that Anne (73) and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence (68) flew on a commercial airline to Colombo, whereas they could have requested a Government Airbus A330 or other aircraft from the Royal Air Force (RAF). In fact, SriLankan Airlines, the only carrier which flies directly between London (LHR) and Colombo (CMB) could not hide its delight, posting on X under the headline “A Service Fit for a Royal”.

A SriLankan Airlines post said: “We are delighted to welcome onboard Her Royal Highness (HRH) the Princess Royal on her journey from London to Colombo on a three-day official visit to mark 75 years of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and the UK. It is truly an honour to extend Her Royal Highness and the delegation our inherent Sri Lankan warmth and hospitality, thereby presenting the first taste of our island home through our service. We thank the HRH for honouring us with her presence onboard and choosing us for the journey.”

Royal commentators and observers were also delighted to note that the couple carried their own bags, both at the points of embarkation and disembarkation. Princess Anne and Sir Tim’s down-to-Earth nature was displayed by them carrying their own bags onto the flight, the commentators said. One eagle-eyed royal writer even noted that one of her bags was from the French brand Longchamp’s La Pliage Line, costing just 115 Sterling Pounds, at a time lesser mortals like to show off bags from the likes of Louis Vuitton costing thousands of pounds or dollars.

A welcome ceremony at the airport saw the two Royals greeted by dancers, music, Union Jack flags and a red carpet. Princess Anne, sporting sunglasses, was received by dignitaries including the British High Commissioner Andrew Patrick and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Sabry, PC.

Princess Anne and Sir Tim kicked off their engagements right away, heading first to the MAS Active Factory near the Airport, one of the largest apparel tech companies in South Asia and identified by the UK Fashion and Textile (UKFT) Association as an important Sri Lankan partner. As President of the UKFT, the Princess Royal met staff and toured the facility to hear more about their innovative designs and partnerships with leading UK brands.

Princess Anne, Princess Royal signs the golden book after she arrives for a three-day official visit to Sri Lanka at the BIA in KatunayakePrincess Anne, Princess Royal signs the golden book after she arrives for a three-day official visit to Sri Lanka at the BIA in Katunayake.

Letter from King Charles

The couple also met President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prof. Maitree Wickremesinghe at the President’s House. Her brother King Charles had outlined “considerable challenges” that the world is facing in a letter delivered by Princess Anne to President Wickremesinghe during this meeting.

The Royal Couple also got the opportunity of meeting former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga on this occasion. She was the incumbent President when Princess Anne last toured the island in 1995. Royal watchers praised the Princess’s modest outfit worn to this important event. Hello! Magazine described her outfit in this manner: “Putting on a colourful display, the Princess Royal asserted her sartorial prowess in a ravishing red shift dress adorned with blooming pastel flowers. For an additional pop of colour, the royal added a berry-red lipstick, balancing her ensemble with a draped cream scarf and white gloves.” Another royal watcher said that her white gloves worn at the event were a subtle nod to the legacy of her mother.

Princess Anne, with her lifelong affinity to the Save the Children Fund, also took time off her busy schedule of meetings to visit its offices in Colombo and inquire into their programs in Sri Lanka. After unveiling a plaque commemorating the 50th anniversary of Save the Children working in Sri Lanka, she gave an impromptu speech to staff and guests at the charity’s Colombo HQ.

Princess Anne said: “It’s a real pleasure to return to Sri Lanka and the chance to visit Save the Children’s (headquarters) and underline the fact you have been doing extraordinary work here for 50 years.’ And I know, because when I came before it was slightly different, things have changed a lot. But the very fact that you are here and seen as valuable partners to the Government and the departments – that says a lot for what you’ve achieved…So a big thank you to all those who have been part of that journey, thank you all very much.” She also visited the Lady Ridgeway Hospital (LRH) in Colombo.

Princess Anne paid her respects to the Fallen Heroes of World Wars when she laid a wreath in their memory in Colombo, during her first visit to a Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) cemetery in the Jawatta area as the organisation’s President. They also visited the nearby Vajira Pillayar Hindu Kovil, where Sir Tim dashed a coconut to ward off bad luck. Chief Priest Sachithanantha Kurukal went into the shrine to conduct the pooja as Princess Anne and her husband watched, and they later toured the temple viewing the many shrines to Hindu Gods.

The Royal Couple then left for Kandy, where they paid homage to the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha at the Sri Dalada Maligawa. Dressed in white, Princess Anne was ushered into an inner sanctum, reserved for the temple’s most important guests, to make her offering to the Sacred Relic in private.

Princess Anne engaged in a friendly conversation with Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike KumaratungaPrincess Anne engaged in a friendly conversation with Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga

Later, the couple travelled to Jaffna, where they toured the famous Jaffna Public Library, which was burnt down by mobs in 1981 and then rebuilt to reflect its former glory. The couple toured the library “where they heard of its significance to the community and met key figures from the fields of education, arts and culture,” said the British High Commission in Sri Lanka. Andrew Patrick, British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, called the building “a landmark of great significance”. “This important moment marks the first visit by a member of the Royal Family to Jaffna,” he added.

The library was one of the largest libraries in Asia and housed over 97,000 unique and irreplaceable palm leaves books (ola), manuscripts, parchments, books, magazines and newspapers, before its destruction in 1981.

The couple had several other engagements in Sri Lanka before they flew back to the UK after a highly successful visit, which reinforced UK-Sri Lanka ties. Several more events will be held in 2024 to mark this milestone.

Princess Anne’s Sri Lanka visit is her second official engagement of this year, having returned to duties on January 4 to attend the Oxford Farming Conference.

The King and Queen are also set to fly overseas later this year. The couple are expected to visit Canada in May, before flying to Australia, New Zealand and Samoa in October.

As for the Prince and Princess of Wales, they too will be preparing to return to Royal Duties in the coming week, which comes after the family celebrated Princess Kate’s 42nd birthday on Tuesday January 9.