Trump tariffs: Will import duty war push India to open its markets?

13 minutes ago
Soutik Biswas
Getty Images US President Donald Trump with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House in Washington DC, United States, on February 13, 2025.Getty Images

India has usually turned to economic reforms in times of distress, with the most famous example being 1991, when the country embraced liberalisation in the face of a deep financial crisis.

Now, with US President Donald Trump’s tit-for-tat tariff wars and the global trade upheaval that has followed, many believe that India finds itself at another crossroad.

Could this be a major opportunity for the world’s fifth largest economy to shed its protectionism and further open up its economy? Will India seize the moment, just as it did more than three decades ago, or will it retreat further?

Trump has repeatedly branded India a “tariff king” and a “big abuser” of trade ties. The problem is that India’s trade-weighted import duties – the average duty rate per imported product – are among the highest in the world. The US average tariff is 2.2%, China’s is 3% and Japan’s is 1.7%. India’s stands at a whopping 12%, according to data from the World Trade Organization.

High tariffs increase costs for companies dependent on global value chains, hindering their ability to compete in international markets. They also mean that Indians pay more on imported goods than foreign consumers. Despite growing exports – primarily driven by services – India runs a significant trade deficit. However, with India’s share of global exports at a mere 1.5%, the challenge becomes even more urgent.

The jury is out on whether Trump’s tariff war will help India break free or double down on protectionism. Narendra Modi’s government, often criticised for its protectionist stance, seems to have shifted gears in recent years.

Getty Images India portGetty Images

Last month, ahead of Prime Minister Modi’s meeting with Trump in Washington, India unilaterally lowered tariffs on Bourbon whiskey, motorcycles and some other US products.

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has made two trips to the US to discuss a potential trade deal, following Trump’s threatened retaliatory tariffs, looming on 2 April. (Citi Research analysts estimate India could lose up to $7bn annually from reciprocal tariffs, primarily affecting sectors like metals, chemicals and jewellery, with pharmaceuticals, automobiles and food products also at risk.)

Last week, Goyal urged Indian exporters to “come out of their protectionist mindset and encouraged them to be bold and ready to deal with the world from a position of strength and self-confidence”, according to a statement from his ministry.

India is also actively pursuing free trade deals with several countries, including the UK and New Zealand, and the European Union.

In an interesting turn of events, homegrown telecoms giants Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have teamed up with Trump ally Elon Musk’s SpaceX to launch satellite internet services via Starlink in India. The move surprised analysts, especially after Musk’s recent clashes with both companies, and came as US and Indian officials negotiate the trade deal.

India’s rapid growth from the late 1990s to the 2000s – 8.1% between 2004-2009 and 7.46% from 2009-2014 – was in large part driven by its gradual integration into global markets, particularly in pharmaceuticals, software, autos, textiles and garments, alongside a steady reduction in tariffs. Since then, India has turned inwards.

Many economists believe that protectionist policies over the past decade have undermined Modi’s Make in India initiative, which prioritised capital- and technology-intensive sectors over labour-intensive ones like textiles. As a result, it has struggled to boost manufacturing and exports.

High tariffs have also fostered protectionism in several Indian industries, discouraging investments in efficiency, according to Viral Acharya, a professor of economics at New York University Stern School of Business.

This has allowed “cosy incumbents” to gain market power by consolidating their positions without facing much competition. As Mr Acharya, a former central banker, noted in a paper by Brookings Institution, restoring industrial balance in India requires “reducing tariffs to increase the country’s share of global goods trade and reduce protectionism”.

With India’s tariffs already higher than those of most countries, further increases could be especially damaging.

“We need to boost exports and a tit-for-tat tariff war won’t help us. China can afford this strategy due to its massive export base, but we can’t, as we hold only a small share of the global market, Rajeshwari Sengupta, an associate professor of economics at Mumbai-based Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, said. A trade conflict could hurt us more than others,” she added.

Getty Images Workers walk in front of an Apple iPhone 16 billboard along an under-construction flyover in Bengaluru on January 6, 2025Getty Images

In light of this, India finds itself at a crossroad. As the world undergoes a major shift, India has a “unique opportunity to shape a new vision” for global trade, says Aseema Sinha, a trade expert at Claremont McKenna College.

By lowering protectionist barriers in South Asia and strengthening ties with Southeast Asia and the Middle East, India has the chance to lead in shaping a new trade vision, positioning itself as a key player in a “re-globalised” world, Ms Sinha, author of Globalising India, says.

“By reducing tariffs, India could become the regional and cross-regional magnet for trade and economic activity, drawing in varied powers in its orbit,” she adds.

That could help India create the jobs it desperately needs at home. Agriculture, which makes up 15% of its GDP, accounts for a whopping 40% of employment, reflecting extremely low productivity. Construction remains the second-largest employer, absorbing casual daily workers.

India’s challenge isn’t in expanding its thriving service sector, which already makes up nearly half of total exports, but in dealing with the large pool of unskilled workers who lack the basic skills needed for service jobs.

“While high-end services are thriving, the majority of the workforce remains uneducated and underemployed, often relegated to construction or informal jobs. To provide meaningful employment to millions entering the workforce each year, India must ramp up its manufacturing exports, as relying solely on services won’t address the needs of the unskilled labour force,” says Ms Sengupta.

Reuters Indian farmer in UPReuters

One concern is that reducing tariffs could lead to dumping, where foreign companies flood the market with cheap goods, potentially harming domestic industries.

According to Ms Sengupta, India’s ideal approach to trade would involve a “universal reduction” in import tariffs, as it currently has some of the highest tariffs among its trading partners.

However, there is a caveat: China’s trade struggles, particularly with the US due to the ongoing trade war, could lead to Chinese dumping in India in the “short run”.

“To protect against this, India can use non-tariff barriers against China but only against this one country and only in cases of proven dumping. Barring that, it is in India’s interest to do a wholesale slashing of tariffs,” she says.

There’s also a growing concern that India may be overcompensating in its efforts to flatter the US.

Ajay Srivastava, founder of the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), believes that India’s tendency to soften trade policies “based on rhetoric rather than economic pressure” shows a lack of assertiveness in global trade talks.

If this trend continues, he says, India may end up making even more compromises in its trade deal with the US, further “eroding its bargaining power”.

“In comparison to other major economies, India’s pre-emptive surrender on multiple trade fronts – without the US imposing a single country-specific tariff – makes it appear exceptionally vulnerable to pressure tactics.”

The broader consensus seems to be that India should capitalise on what could be the unintended consequences of Trump’s tariff wars. Pranjul Bhandari, chief India economist at HSBC, believes that “potential US tariffs may have become a catalyst for reforms.“.

“If supply chains are rejigged again during the second Trump presidency due to higher tariffs on large exporters, and the world looks for new producers, India may get a second chance,” she writes.

Creating jobs that manufacture goods for the world won’t be easy. India has largely missed the bus on low-end, unskilled factory work – jobs China dominated for decades. Automation is taking over. Without deeper reforms, India risks being left behind.

Continue Reading

Sam Jones: US influencer who snatched baby wombat has left Australia

Sam Jones, an American influencer who briefly snatched a baby wombat from its distressed mother and uploaded the footage to social media has left Australia.

Australia’s Home Affairs minister Tony Burke had earlier said his department was reviewing if it could revoke Ms Jones ‘ visa, but the BBC understands that she left the country of her own accord.

” There has never been a better time to be a baby wombat”, Burke said in a short statement on Friday celebrating Jones ‘ departure.

Anger erupted across Australia after Jones posted a video of her taking a baby wombat from the side of a road while laughing and running away from the distraught mother wombat.

The video also shows the baby wombat hissing in distress before Jones then returns it to the bush.

Jones, who also goes by the name Samantha Strable, has nearly 100, 000 followers and describes herself as an “outdoor enthusiast and hunter” on her Instagram profile. She has since made her account private and deleted her post.

Her video was swiftly met with widespread condemnation, with Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese calling the incident an “outrage”.

Foreign minister Penny Wong called the video “dreadful”.

On Friday, opposition leader Peter Dutton said he thought it was” a cruel act” and that he was “glad” the influencer has now left.

An online petition demanding Jones be deported from Australia garnered more than 30, 000 signatures.

However, as Jones had not been charged nor been deemed a threat to the country – the government may not have had any grounds to cancel her visa.

In since-deleted comments, Ms Jones said” the baby was carefully held for one minute in total and then released back to mom”.

” They wandered back off into the bush together completely unharmed”, she wrote. ” I don’t ever capture wildlife that will be harmed by my doing so”.

But wildlife experts have deemed Jones ‘ act a “blatant disregard” for native wildlife.

The Wombat Protection Society said it was shocked to see the “mishandling of a wombat joey in an apparent snatch for’ social media likes ‘”.

” Snatching a screaming baby wombat from their mother is not just appalling, it’s very possibly illegal under state or national laws”, Suzanne Milthorpe, Head of Campaigns at World Animal Protection Australia, said in a statement online. ” Wombats are not a photo prop or plaything”.

Wombats, which are native to Australia, are a legally protected species across the country. Baby wombats share a strong bond with their mothers, and any separation can be distressing and harmful, conservationists say.

Continue Reading

Haidilao pays out diners after teenagers urinate in soup

China’s biggest cuisine network Haidilao has offered to account more than 4, 000 guests who visited one of its Shanghai trees, where two youths urinated into their cuisine soup.

A picture of the boys peeing into their stew dish while dining in a personal space was widely shared online next month. It is not obvious who might have filmed the event.

Authorities said the 17-year-olds, who were drunk at the time, were detained soon after the incident.

There is no suggestion someone consumed the damaged broth. Haidilao has apologised to consumers, saying it has replaced all cuisine technology and dining utensils, as well as disinfecting another dinnerware and cutlery.

The incident happened late in February, though the bank’s management just found out about it weeks later, after video circulated on social media.

Haidilao said the staff on duty at the time had failed to stop the teenagers.

It took another year to find out which store it was, the firm said, as it has tens of stores in the area.

Customers in Haidilao use their own personal cuisine products to cook their food, and soups are no re-used again for other customers. But, it is questionable in this case if the cuisine in question was carefully cleaned and disinfected before it was used by the next user.

” We totally understand that the stress caused to our clients by this tragedy may be totally compensated for by any methods, but we will do our utmost to take responsibility”, the organization said in a statement.

Haidilao said customers who dined at the outlet between 24 February and 8 March will receive a full refund, followed by cash compensation that is 10 times the amount they were billed.

The company has expanded quickly since it opened its first restaurant in Jianyang in Sichuan province. It now operates more than 1, 000 restaurants across the world.

Haidilao is known for its customer service and family-friendly atmosphere, where ladies can receive manicures and kids are treated to candy floss while waiting for a table.

Continue Reading

Man to be charged for exposing himself to cabin crew member on flight to Singapore

SINGAPORE: &nbsp, An Indian person will be charged in jury for allegedly exposing himself to a female room team member while on board a trip to Singapore.

Police said in a news release on Saturday ( Mar 8 ) that they were alerted to the incident on Jan 23, after the 23-year-old suspect allegedly unzipped his pants and exposed his genitals while at his seat.

Studies showed that the person had covered himself with a blanket and set up his mobile phone in video capturing setting before reportedly revealing himself to a sexual flight attendant as she served his food.

The flight attendant immediately left the man’s chair and reported the problem to her officer.

When the plane landed in Changi Airport, the gentleman was arrested by airport authorities and his phone was seized for studies.

The person may get charged on Mar 12 with physical contact. If found guilty, he faces a prison term of up to one month, a great, or both.

” The policeman takes a strong stance against physical offenders who commit immoral acts that cause alarm, distress and harassment to people, whether on the plane or in public”, said the policeman.

” For criminals will be dealt with solemnly in accordance with the law”.

Continue Reading

Time Use Survey 2024 shows Indian women unfairly burdened by housework

6 days ago
Cherylann Mollan

BBC News, Mumbai

Snapchat Studios / Online A photo of the film posterSnapchat Studios / Online

A fresh Bollywood film- Mrs- has once again laid uncovered a striking reality: yet in well-educated households in India a woman’s role is generally confined to paid home work.

The character, married to a gynaecologist, finds herself trapped in an infinite loop of cooking, cleaning and caring. Her goals are sidelined never by power, but by continuous criticism and silent force.

While the film, which is a remake of the hit Malayalam movie The Great Indian Kitchen, has sparked conversation – and pushback, especially from men on social media – its themes resonate with hard data.

A recent government survey reveals that Indian women spend over seven hours a day on unpaid domestic and caregiving work – more than twice the time men do. Data shows that women spend 289 minutes on unpaid domestic work and 137 minutes on unpaid caregiving, whereas men spend 88 minutes on chores and 75 minutes on care work.

They also spent less time than men doing paid work and engaging in self-care activities.

What’s disappointing is that the last such survey which came out six years ago had similar results. Despite the government launching campaigns to empower women, the situation hasn’t changed much.

Getty Images A woman lights a stove connected to an Indian Oil Corp. Indane brand liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder at a village home in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India, on Monday, Feb. 22, 2021. Photographer: T. Narayan/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesGetty Images

India’s Time Use Surveys ( TUS) track how people spend their time across various activities. Surveyors gather data nationwide by asking individuals aged six to 59 how they spent the previous day. The first TUS was released in 2019, with the second published last week.

When the government released findings from the second Time Use Survey ( TUS), it highlighted two key shifts: women aged 15 to 59 spent 10 minutes less on unpaid domestic work, while their participation in employment and related activities rose by just over three percentage points.

The survey concluded this marked a” shift from unpaid to paid activities” for women- a positive sign that they were spending less time on domestic chores and more time in paid employment.

However, economists argue this isn’t necessarily true. Even if it is, the slight drop in domestic work suggests women are still juggling paid jobs with a heavier load of unpaid work than men.

Ashwini Deshpande, an economics professor at Ashoka University, says TUS data should be analysed alongside India’s Female Labour Force Participation Rate ( FLFPR ) for a deeper understanding of how women spend their time. FLFPR measures the percentage of women aged 15 and above in the labour force.

According to government data, the FLFPR grew from about 23% in 2017-2018 to 37% in 2022-2023. Prof Deshpande says that this increase is not solely due to an increase in employment opportunities for women, but has also been spurred by economic distress.

” Women are not waiting for their time spent on domestic chores to reduce to take up jobs. Research shows that women want to work to supplement household incomes and so they end up working’ double-shifts’, doing paid work outside the home and unpaid work inside”, Prof Deshpande says.

Indian women aren’t alone in shouldering a disproportionate share of household and caregiving work- it’s a global reality. However, the gap in time spent on domestic work is significantly wider in India.

Where globally women spend about 2.8 hours more than men on domestic and care work, for Indian women, this difference is closer to four hours.

Sociologists attribute this to India’s deeply patriarchal society, which continues to enforce strict gender norms. Even among the educated elite, women remain confined by roles upheld and perpetuated not just by men, but also by women.

This rigid enforcement of gender roles doesn’t just shape women’s lives- it also shapes the way stories about them are received.

Getty Images Indian businesswomen at the center of technology in Kerala called Technopark, where highly educated women and men work at more than 45 software, hardware and international companies, on December 14, 2009 in Trivandrum, South India. (Photo by EyesWideOpen/Getty Images)Getty Images

So, while Mrs struck a chord with many, it also faced sharp criticism- especially from men on social media.

A men’s rights group accused it of” spreading toxicity” against traditional joint families, while others dismissed its premise altogether.

Kajol Srinivasan, a Mumbai-based comedian, says the film ruffled feathers because it held up an uncomfortable mirror to society.

She told the BBC how her father, who quit his job at 40 to take over household duties while her mother continued working, quickly realised that housework was no easy task.

” The first week he was excited, he cooked different dishes and deep-cleaned the house”, she says.

But then he began to find the work tedious and couldn’t continue beyond a week.

” My father realised that housework was not just about work, it was also an imbalance in power. The power always stays with the breadwinner, no matter how well you cook, there are no accolades”, she says.

She believes that women are expected and raised to accept this lower rung of power.

” When Indian men talk about what they like about their wives and mothers, it often has a lot to do with how much they have sacrificed for them or how much they take care of them or the home”, Ms Srinivasan says.

India’s Time Use Survey shows that social change is slow, and it may take time before women spend less on domestic work.

In the meantime, films like Mrs spark conversations around everyday questions many prefer to avoid- like, who’s doing the dishes?

Continue Reading

Rower rescued days before completing trans-Pacific feat

A rower who attempted to cross the Pacific Ocean from the United States to Australia was saved just weeks before reaching his ultimate destination.

Aurimas Mockus, a Ukrainian swimmer, was stranded by a cyclone late on Friday when he heard a distress signal and was surrounded by strong winds and towering waves.

Authorities made contact with Mr. Mockus the following day, when he was about 740 kilometers west of Mackay, a town in the Coral Sea, on television.

By the time he was found at sea on Monday night, the 44-year-old had spent almost five months only.

According to the navy, Mr. Mockus is receiving medical care on an American warship that does get him to Sydney.

He made an effort to cross the Pacific alone and without stopping, making the effort to become one of the dozen rowers to do so.

Among them are American Michelle Lee in 2023, British citizens Peter Bird and John Beeden, who did it in 1983 and 2015, both, and Australians Michelle Bird and John Beeden.

From San Diego, in southeastern California, Mr. Mockus began his 12, 000-kilometer voyage in October. His place was Brisbane, not Brisbane.

He rowed, according to local accounts, for an average of 12 hours per day.

He constantly posted his development on Instagram. Mr. Mockus claimed that he had crossed the Chesterfield Islands, a group of European coral islands about 1,500 kilometers west of Australia, in the most recent article that was published a time before he called for assistance.

The Chesterfield Islands islands ‘ success is what made me tick,” she said. And as God’s will allows… Holding up the next few days is what’s most important, he wrote.

In the upcoming days, Tropical Cyclone Alfred, which derailed Mr. Mockus’s program, is expected to strike Australia’s southeast says of Queensland and New South Wales.

Continue Reading

Qatar Airways: Crew handled dead body on flight ‘appropriately’

Qatar Airways says an internal review has found that its crew “acted quickly, appropriately and professionally” when they placed the body of a woman who died mid-flight next to an Australian couple.

After the pair told ABC’s of Australia that they were traumatized by the incident on the journey from Melbourne to Doha, the flight issued the declaration to the BBC on Friday.

In a earlier speech, Qatar Airways expressed regret for “any pain or stress this incident may have caused.”

The event sparked discussion about how to handle incidents aboard airplanes.

Mitchell Ring and Jennifer Colin, who were travelling to Venice for a holiday, said the house staff had placed the dying woman, covered in blankets, next to Mr Ring for the last four days of a 14-hour trip.

The girl passed away along the hall next to them after collapsing. The crew attempted to move her figure to the business class section after that because” she was very large girl and they don’t get her through the aisle,” according to Mr. Ring.

The woman was therefore moved into the chair that Mr. Ring was sitting in before moving her.

Mr. Ring claimed that despite having empty seats nearby, the aircraft’s employees did not offer to move him abroad even though another passenger had invited him to sit next to her across the aisle.

Qatar Airways stated on Friday that the captain’s management of the person’s dying was “in line with industry standard practice and training.”

A staff member was seated with the dying customer for the duration of the trip until Doha, according to its statement.

Sudden deaths do occasionally result on board aircraft in the aerospace industry, and our staff are extremely trained to deal with these conditions with as much respect and dignity as possible.

The airport added that they have also offered financial support and payment to the deceased’s family and other travellers who were directly affected by the event.

In the televised meeting with Channel 9, Ms. Colin stated,” We fully understand that we didn’t hold the airline accountable for the poor girl’s death. But certainly there has to be a method to look after the passengers on board.”

Mr. Ring said that as the plane landed, passengers were instructed to remain placed while officers and medical personnel arrived. The woman’s emergency officials then began pulling mats off her, and he said he saw her face.

He continued,” I can’t believe they told us to stay,” adding that he believed they should have let the passengers leave the plane first before allowing medical staff to handle the body.

Previous Virgin Atlantic captain Barry Eustance previously told the BBC that in his opinion,” the staff would usually try to remove the body, so there is no passenger exposure to the body, and vice versa, for respect and privacy but also for health reasons.”

The deceased person should be moved to a seat, preferably one with few other passengers nearby, and covered with a blanket or body bag up to the neck, in accordance with the recommendations of the International Air Transport Association. Additionally, the body could be moved to a location that doesn’t block an aisle or exit.

The association advises that other passengers board the plane before the body is taken care of by the local authorities upon landing.

Continue Reading

Jail, caning for administrator of chat groups that shared material of boys being sexually abused

A person in Singapore created five to six chat groups with the sole intention of sharing abusive material involving men between the ages of five and eight. &nbsp,

Jong Chen Shiung, 34, may preside over these organizations, removing users who failed to reveal substance that fell within his requirements. &nbsp,

On Tuesday ( Feb 25 ), Jong was sentenced to six years in prison and given nine cane-related strokes.

Jong aided in the distribution of child maltreatment materials, as well as the possession of dozens of videos and photos for his own viewing.

Jong admitted guilt to four of the charges relating to these offenses, with the addition of four of the same character for his punishment. &nbsp,

When baby abuse was discovered in the Malaysian’s electronic devices, the Malaysian was working as a material cargo agent in Singapore. The police dug up his home in Singapore and discovered more devices containing outrageous material. &nbsp,

Since 2016, Jong has been searching for, saving, and watching pornographic movies and pictures while employed and residing in Singapore. &nbsp,

He created accounts with the talk apps Viber and Telegram solely to access chat groups where he could see the offensive content.

In full, Jong joined 20 to 30 talk groups that shared child abuse materials and child sex across Telegram, Viber and WhatsApp.

He was given the opportunity to serve as the superintendent for some of these organizations. He threatened to oust those who did not adhere to the guidelines for sharing just child abuse or movie as superintendent. He may even download the movies or images for personal use or post them to another chat groups.

Jong even created five to six talk groups with the sole aim of releasing explicit material starring men between the ages of five and 18. &nbsp, He removed people who did no obey by the circumstances he stipulated. &nbsp,

At the time of his imprisonment, 144 to 460 people were each in one of the three chat groups he set up on Viber. &nbsp,

Besides the talk organizations, Jong downloaded unambiguous videos or photos from blogs. Additionally, he likewise sent personal messages to young lads who participated in the chat parties, asking them to post vulgar videos of themselves. &nbsp,

The officers found at least 2, 469 films and 1, 157 pictures which featured the sexual abuse of children. &nbsp, These featured the eyes and testicles of children, some of whom were bound, struggling, or then in problems. &nbsp,

The prosecutors sought a prison term of between 70 and 73 times, and eight to 12 stroke of the wood for Jong. &nbsp,

Because of the victims ‘ extreme sensitivity, crimes involving child abuse stuff are particularly severe. The immediate damage to the victims ‘ babies is obvious, according to Deputy Public Prosecutor Santhra Aiyasamy. &nbsp,

Ms. Santhra added that some movies had a high level of damage to the children. &nbsp,

In prevention, Jong, who represented himself via videolink, said that he was the only kid in his home and needed to support his ailing mother in Malaysia. &nbsp,

” I hope to be able to be released sooner therefore that I can go home and look after her,” Jong said through an interpreter.

” I’m a first-time criminal and I’ve realised my mistakes. I promise to change my ways and won’t commit any more crimes in the future. Please forgive me and grant me a chance to change over a new leaf,” he pleaded. &nbsp,

Continue Reading

Kim Sae-ron’s death exposes South Korea’s celebrity culture

22 hours ago
Kelly Ng

BBC News

EPA Kim Sae-ronEPA

Actress Kim Sae-ron‘s death in an apparent suicide has renewed criticism of South Korea’s entertainment industry, which churns out stars but also subjects them to immense pressure and scrutiny.

After being found guilty of drink-driving in 2022, Kim, 24, had been bombarded with negative media coverage and online love. She became so unpopular, displays featuring her were edited out of exhibits.

According to experts, the circumstances that led to her death are bleakly comfortable. Another famous people committed suicide after their professions were ruined by abuse.

Researchers don’t believe Kim’s death may cause any significant change because she was laid to rest on Wednesday.

South Korea’s leisure business is enjoying huge popularity.

There are more than 220 million Asian pleasure fans worldwide today, which is four times the number of South Koreans.

However, the less beautiful part of the entertainment business is gaining more and more attention.

South Korea is renowned for having a highly competitive society in all areas of life, from learning to work. One of the highest suicide rates among developed nations is in it. While its total death rate is falling, incidents of those in their 20s are rising.

This force is heightened in the case of stars. They are subjected to the needs of obstinate” very viewers” who can make or break careers and are under a lot of pressure to be perfect.

Also the slightest mistake may be the end of a job because of this.

” It is not enough that the stars be held accountable by the authorities.” They become goals of continuous criticism”, Korean culture writer Kim Hern-sik told the BBC.

He made reference to K-pop musicians Sulli and Goo Hara, both of whom had endured much battles with online trolls, despite the fact that they had never had any legal encounters. Sulli and Goo Hara passed away in 2019 by death.

Sulli had offended fans for not conforming to the K-pop mould, while an internet mob had targeted Goo Hara over her relationship with an ex-boyfriend.

A true Fish Sport

Bullying has also become a money-making job for some, Asian culture critique Kim Hern-sik told the BBC.

” Influencers get the opinions, communities get the proposal, news outlets getting the traffic. I don’t think]Kim’s death ] will change the situation.

” There needs to be harsher legal consequence against leaving dirty comments, “he says.

Kim Sae-ron’s parents claims a YouTuber caused her death, claiming that the contentious films they published caused her severe emotional distress.

Others have criticized some neighborhood media outlets, who allegedly reported the unsubstantiated allegations as fueling open animosity against Kim.

Citizens ‘ Alliance for Democratic Media, a civil rights organization, said in a speech on Tuesday that” this cycle of media-driven character assassination has quit.”

The spate of star deaths in South Korea was compared to a real-life type of Squid Game, the North Korean Netflix movie that sees the obliged fighting to the dying for a sizable cash prize, according to Na Jong-ho, a psychology professor at Yale University.

How many more lives may get lost before we stop inflicting this devastationous, stifling sorrow on individuals? Our world abandons those who stumble and techniques on as if nothing happened. “he wrote on Twitter.

” Crazy moving is a huge mistake. If that continues to go unnoticed, then our legal system would suffer. However, a world that buryes those who fail without giving them a second chance is not one that is good, Prof. Na continued.

Last year, the BBC reported on how “super fans” in the notorious K-pop industry try to dictate their idols’ private lives – from their romantic relationships to their daily activities outside of work – and can be unforgiving when things go off script.

It is no surprise that Kim Sae-ron chose to withdraw from the public eye after her DUI conviction, for which she was fined 20 million won ( £11, 000 ) in April 2023.

It is worth noting nevertheless, that not all people images are subject to the same care. Officials, including opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, even have past drink-driving views but have been able to bounce back- elections show Lee is now the country’s leading presidential candidate.

In South Korea, it is” really hard” for artistes to return when they do something that puts a hole in their” hero “image, says K-pop journalist Jeff Benjamin.

He contrasts this to entertainment companies in the West, where disputes and scandals often yet” include a rockstar-like advantage” to celebrities ‘ reputations.

” While no one applause when a Hollywood superstar is arrested for DUI ( drinking under the influence of alcohol or drugs ) or sent to jail for major offences, it’s not always career-ending, “he says.

Although there have been efforts made by the Korean entertainment industry to handle artists ‘ concerns about mental money, it is unclear how efficient these efforts have been.

According to Mr. Benjamin, real change can only occur when like aggressive monitoring is no longer financially or financially supported.

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this story you can find information and support on the BBC Actionline website here.

Jake Kwon provided extra monitoring in Seoul.

Continue Reading

Ang Mo Kio cat abductions: Man gets jail for throwing cats down HDB blocks, killing them

SINGAPORE: A person who abused five animals in Ang Mo Kio, killing two of them by throwing them off open housing stones, has been sentenced to 14 weeks ‘ prison.

Barrie Lin Pengli, 32, was given a time to which he was not entitled to keep any creature property after his release from prison.

He previously admitted guilt to three felonies of animal cruelty against neighborhood cat, with two additional felonies being taken into account.

The trial had sought 24 weeks ‘ prison for Lin, calling his steps one of Singapore’s worst instances of animal cruelty.

The defense had requested a maximum sentence of nine to ten months in prison. This was mainly due to Lin’s significant depressive disorder, which was discovered to have contributed to his crimes.

In sentencing on Friday ( Feb 7 ), deputy principal district judge Kessler Soh said,” These were abhorrent acts that caused public disquiet.”

The prosecutor recognised that Lin suffered from a psychological condition at the time, but said that his “horrific” behavior deserved punishment however.

One of Lin’s crimes was also committed while he was already receiving mental therapy, and out on parole while being investigated. Judge Soh argued that this crime warranted a higher word.

However, based on the words in previous similar circumstances, the prison phrase sought by the trial appeared to be” significantly excessive”, said the judge.

Judge Soh likewise took into account Lin’s history of reoffending since December 2021 and his “good” chances of recovery.

The prosecutors requested more time to consider whether to file an appeal against the word, and the court will be informed on February 11.

THE Event

Prior to this hearing, Lin was alleged to have abused animals to cope with his mental suffering between 2019 and 2020.

When he was angry or frustrated, he would wander through the Ang Mo Kio housing and development board ( HDB) estates, where he was aware that there were more community cats and “options to harm the cats” in order to calm down.

He first fanned the cat. In addition, he eventually managed to capture one to three animals in little, watertight bags that he put in his car at once. When the bags were sealed, little to no heat could provide.

On April 21, 2020, at around 3.30 am, Lin killed a black and white rabbit by dropping it from the 12th ground of Block 572, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3.

He was caught on police surveillance video taking a raise and holding the rabbit by the scruff of its chest.

A list of missing animals, compiled by the Cat Welfare Society and based on reports from neighborhood cat feeds, was delivered to NParks two days later.

More area animals were missing from HDB lands in Ang Mo Kio, according to the feeder.

On May 15, 2020, even around 3.30am, Lin found a dark-coloured rabbit at the space board of Block 645, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 and threw it off the seventh floor.

When he reached the cat’s owner, he discovered that it was still intact. He stomped difficult on its neck, killing it.

Authorities cameras caught him removing the carcass. The kitten was found to have died from an outside blunt-force trauma incident when it was recovered.

The authorities also learned that a cat had been killed by falling from the same wall according to an observer statement that day.

Lin’s recognition was discovered during investigation, and the following morning, the authorities detained him.

Between December 2020 and June 2021, he was released on bail and treated psychologically. His depression signs got better, and he got a full-time career.

But, on Dec 26, 2021, after sending some companions house from a meeting at his position, he went up to Block 645, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6.

At around 5.15am, he wandered around the property to see if he could manage his instincts to harm cats.

He grabbed a kitten and hit it twice against a wall before losing control of the fledgling. An observer contacted NParks to report the incident.

Community cat feeder found the kitten on December 28, 2021, and referred it to a specialist. It had a cut on its chin, a broken arm, a tooth, and a damaged limb that was discovered.

The kitten was hospitalised for 14 days and received operation. It is anticipated to long-term gout at its hip.

At past hearings, Lin’s prosecutor said the offences took place during a “tumultuous time in his living” when he was facing stressors like employment, family conflict and economic pressures.

Mr Azri Imran Tan even argued that Lin’s enrollment about the mistreatment went further than “ordinary participation” with the government, and that he was truly remorseful.

The prosecutor argued that the word sought by the trial may be” crushing” for Lin, a first-time-offender, and not in compliance with his past history and future hopes.

The greatest punishment for causing needless pain and suffering to an animal is 18 months in jail, a S$ 15, 000 good, or both.

In a statement released after the sentencing, the National Parks Board ( NParks ) said it received an average of 1, 200 allegations of animal cruelty each year from 2019 to 2024.

No more than 6 % of the cases per season were substantiated as works of animal cruelty and abuse, according to Ms. Jessica Kwok, NParks team director for protection and analysis.” We had investigated each of the situations completely.

While other criminals received warning words or structure charges, the most severe circumstances were prosecuted in court.

NParks has begun a review of the Animals and Birds Act, which will include making sure its strict penalties stay strong and you effectively deter and punish dog violence.

Members of the public can report suspected cases of bird cruelty to NParks online&nbsp, or by calling 1800-476-1600.

Continue Reading