World
Jamie Oliver pulls children’s book after outcry from Indigenous Australians
British celebrity chef says he is ‘devastated’ his fantasy book caused offence.
British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has pulled his latest children’s book from sale after complaints that it contributed to the stereotyping of Indigenous Australians.
Oliver, who is in Australia promoting his latest recipe book, said he was “devastated” that his fantasy novel Billy And The Epic Escape had caused offence and he apologised “wholeheartedly”.
“It was never my intention to misinterpret this deeply painful issue,” Oliver, 49, said in a statement.
“Together with my publishers we have decided to withdraw the book from sale.”
Publisher Penguin Random House said that its publishing standards “fell short on this occasion” and “we must learn from that and take decisive action”.
Set in England, Billy and the Epic Escape includes a subplot featuring an Indigenous girl who is abducted while living in foster care in Alice Springs in central Australia.
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Corporation, Australia’s peak body for Indigenous education, led calls for the book’s withdrawal, telling The Guardian news outlet the book was “disrespectful” and contributed to the “erasure, trivialisation, and stereotyping of First Nations peoples and experiences”.
Indigenous figures also criticised the book for mixing together different Indigenous languages and discussing child abduction, given the history of the “Stolen Generations,” referring to the thousands of Indigenous children forcibly taken from their families and placed in foster care under policies that continued until the 1970s.
“While Oliver has apologised, the impact of such misrepresentation on First Nations children and communities cannot be understated,” Sue-Anne Hunter, an Indigenous woman and adjunct professor at Federation University in Victoria, said in a post on Instagram.
“It perpetuates harmful stereotypes and risks reinforcing colonial narratives at a time when we should be amplifying authentic Indigenous voices and stories.”
Oliver, who launched his first children’s book Billy And The Giant Adventure last year, is best known for his cookbooks and food-related television shows, including The Naked Chef, which ran for three seasons on the BBC from 1999 to 2001.
World
Video: I.C.C. Issues Arrest Warrant for Netanyahu Over War in Gaza
The International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, were issued for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. The court also sought to arrest Hamas’s military chief, Muhammad Deif, for crimes against humanity.
World
US citizen among 4 dead in Laos after suspected alcohol poisoning
An American, two Danes and one Australian tourist died after drinking tainted alcohol in Laos following reports that several people had been sickened in a town popular with backpackers.
The only victim’s identity publicly released so far is 19-year-old Bianca Jones of Australia.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told Parliament on Thursday that Jones had died after being evacuated from Vang Vieng, Laos, for treatment in a Thai hospital. Her friend, also 19, remains hospitalized in neighboring Thailand.
“This is every parent’s very worst fear and a nightmare that no one should have to endure,” Albanese said, according to The Associated Press. “We also take this moment to say that we’re thinking of Bianca’s friend Holly Bowles, who is fighting for her life.”
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Shaun Bowles told reporters outside Bangkok Hospital on Wednesday that his daughter remained in critical condition and on life support.
“We just like to thank everyone from back home for all of the support and love that we’re receiving,” he said. “But we’d also like the people to appreciate right now, we just need privacy so we can spend as much time as we can with Holly.”
Australian media said Jones was the fourth foreign tourist to die after consuming the contaminated alcohol.
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“The physician who examined her said the cause of death was a methanol poisoning, from fake liquor,” Phattanawong Chanphon, a police official in the Thai city, told Reuters. “The amount of methanol in her body was high, leading to swelling of the brain.”
Counterfeit liquor is a problem in Laos, with the governments of Australia and Britain warning citizens to be cautious when having drinks there.
Methanol is a toxic alcohol that is used industrially as a solvent, pesticide and alternative fuel source, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The U.S. Department of State did not respond to a Fox News Digital inquiry, but told the AP that local authorities were investigating the case and were responsible for providing any details. The State Department noted that the U.S. was providing consular assistance.
“At this time I would say to parents, to young people, please have a conversation about risks, please inform yourselves, please let’s work together to ensure this tragedy doesn’t happen again,” Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said after receiving news of Jones’ death.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this request.
World
UK imposes sanctions on Isabel dos Santos, Ukrainian oligarch Firtash
The measures are a part of the Labour government tightening Britain’s anti-corruption sanctions regime.
The United Kingdom has barred Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos and Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash and frozen their UK assets, the government announced, in what it said was part of a new crackdown on “dirty money”.
The measures on Thursday were the first step in tightening Britain’s anti-corruption sanctions regime as promised in July’s election, the Labour government said.
“These unscrupulous individuals selfishly deprive their fellow citizens of much-needed funding for education, healthcare and infrastructure – for their own enrichment,” Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a statement.
Dos Santos, whose father Jose Eduardo dos Santos served as Angola’s president for 38 years until 2017, is Africa’s first female billionaire and has faced corruption accusations in Angola and elsewhere for years. She denies the allegations and says she is the target of a long-running political vendetta.
She was sanctioned by the United States in 2021 for “involvement in significant corruption” and is barred from entering the country.
Britain said dos Santos abused her positions at Angolan state oil firm Sonangol and telecoms company Unitel to embezzle at least 350 million pounds ($440m).
Dos Santos lost an appeal to overturn an order freezing up to 580 million pounds of her assets in September as part of a lawsuit at London’s High Court brought by Unitel. Global police agency Interpol has issued a red notice for her.
In a statement cited by the Reuters news agency, dos Santos said that the British sanctions were “incorrect and unjustified”.
“I was not given the opportunity to defend myself against these allegations,” she said. “I intend to appeal and I hope that the United Kingdom will give me the opportunity to present my evidence.”
Firtash is wanted by Ukrainian and US authorities on suspicion of embezzling nearly $500m involving Ukraine’s gas transit system. He says the charges are without legal foundation.
He is currently in Austria fighting extradition to the US.
In June 2021, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree imposing sanctions on Firtash, including the freezing of his assets and withdrawal of licences from his companies, after accusing him of selling titanium products to Russian military companies.
Britain said Firtash had extracted “hundreds of millions of pounds from Ukraine through corruption”, and hidden tens of millions of pounds of ill-gotten gains in the UK property market alone.
Britain also sanctioned his wife Lada Firtash, who it said held UK assets on his behalf including the site of the old Brompton Road rail station of the London Underground.
Latvian businessman and politician Aivars Lembergs, who was put on a US sanctions list in 2019 for alleged corruption, was also sanctioned, as was his daughter Liga Lemberga. The British government said Lembergs had “abused his political position to commit bribery and launder money.”
Lammy said the penalties were the start of a crackdown.
“I committed to taking on kleptocrats and the dirty money that empowers them when I became foreign secretary, and these sanctions mark the first step in delivering this ambition,” he said.
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