tag:theconversation.com,2011:/ca/topics/ban-29289/articlesBan – The Conversation2024-02-13T12:45:10Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2231712024-02-13T12:45:10Z2024-02-13T12:45:10ZStruggling seabirds thrown a lifeline by new commercial fishing ban in the North Sea – but it may not be enough<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574500/original/file-20240208-20-wgkkts.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Puffins and many other seabirds rely on sandeels as a food source. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/closeup-atlantic-puffin-fish-beak-1909632901">Arnoud Quanjer/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>With their bright, orange feet and colourful beaks full of glistening fish, puffins are really charismatic seabirds. But <a href="https://jncc.gov.uk/our-work/seabirds-count/#results">puffin populations are in decline</a>, largely due to their struggle to catch enough of <a href="https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/atlantic-puffin-fratercula-arctica/details">these shiny fish: sandeels</a>. </p>
<p>Sandeels have been industrially fished on an industrial scale <a href="https://academic.oup.com/icesjms/article/59/2/261/619635">since the 1950s</a>, not for human consumption but to make fishmeal. They are the bedrock of marine ecosystems in the <a href="https://consult.defra.gov.uk/wg-management-measures-for-industrial-sandeel-fishing/consultation-on-spatial-management-measures-for-in/supporting_documents/What%20are%20the%20ecosystem%20risks%20and%20benefits%20of%20full%20prohibition%20of%20industrial%20Sandeel%20fishing%20in%20the%20UK%20waters%20of%20the%20North%20Sea%20ICES%20Area%20IV.pdf">North Sea</a>. But a new fishing ban could provide welcome respite for puffins and other marine wildlife. </p>
<p>The UK and Scottish governments have announced a permanent end to industrial sandeel fishing in English and Scottish waters. <a href="https://blogs.gov.scot/marine-scotland/2024/01/31/sandeel-fishing-to-be-banned-in-scottish-waters/">This ban</a> will begin on April 1 – the start of this year’s sandeel fishing season. </p>
<p>The news of the closure of this sandeel fishery has been met with praise from across the conservation sector. A quarter of a century of <a href="https://www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happening/news/sandeel-campaign-success-in-england">campaigning by the RSPB</a> seems to have paid off. </p>
<p>The health of sandeel populations in Scottish and English seas can link to the breeding success of the seabirds that feed on them, but the correlation is complex. This fishing ban is a start but, with the added pressures of climate change, more is needed to save Britain’s seabirds.</p>
<h2>The significance of sandeels</h2>
<p>These small, silver, schooling fish pack a large nutritional punch. They feed on zooplankton and are a vital source of food for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0022-1112.2004.00400.x">larger fish</a> such as cod, haddock and whiting, as well as <a href="https://doi.org/10.3354/meps08232">top predators such as seals</a>. </p>
<p>Sandeels are also a favourite food for seabirds such as surface-feeding gulls and terns, and deep-diving auk species including puffins, razorbills and guillemots.</p>
<p>As well as falling foul of marine predators, sandeels are caught by humans, largely to be used as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fst087">feed for farmed fish</a>, such as salmon, or livestock. The sandeel fishing grounds around the UK are jointly managed by the UK and the European Union. </p>
<p>But the UK government has not allowed British vessels to fish for sandeels <a href="https://www.gov.scot/publications/sandeel-prohibition-fishing-scotland-order-2024-final-business-regulatory-impact-assessment/">since 2021</a>. Instead, commercial fishing for sandeels has most recently been carried out by European vessels, <a href="https://www.gov.scot/publications/sandeel-prohibition-fishing-scotland-order-2024-final-business-regulatory-impact-assessment/">particularly those from Denmark</a> that regularly fish in UK waters during the summer. </p>
<p>Data from the Marine Management Organisation suggests that an average of <a href="https://www.gov.scot/publications/sandeel-prohibition-fishing-scotland-order-2024-final-business-regulatory-impact-assessment/">257,000 tonnes of sandeels</a> were caught annually by EU vessels between 2015 and 2019.</p>
<p>One of the major sandeel fishing areas in the North Sea, a 21,000km2 area off the east coast of Scotland and northeast England called <a href="https://marine.gov.scot/sma/assessment/case-study-sandeels-scottish-waters#:%7E:text=The%20largest%20of%20the%20sandeel,one%20with%20an%20active%20fishery.">sandeel area 4</a>, has been closed to both UK and EU vessels since 2000 – although a small scientific fishery continued to conduct stock assessments <a href="https://data.marine.gov.scot/dataset/monitoring-consequences-northwestern-north-sea-sandeel-fishery-closure">during this time</a>. </p>
<p>Following the area’s closure, sandeel numbers grew and that corresponded with an initial increase in the number of fledged chicks in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1139/f07-164">black-legged kittiwakes</a>, an iconic gull species that has declined in recent decades.</p>
<p>Elsewhere in the world, closures of other “forage fish” fisheries (those that catch species that are prey for larger predators) have revealed positive impacts. African penguins rear more chicks in years when anchovy and sardine fishery areas off the coastline of <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2017.2443">South Africa are closed</a>.</p>
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<img alt="Small thin silver fish dead laying on brown fishing net" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574503/original/file-20240208-18-xt7od3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574503/original/file-20240208-18-xt7od3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574503/original/file-20240208-18-xt7od3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574503/original/file-20240208-18-xt7od3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574503/original/file-20240208-18-xt7od3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574503/original/file-20240208-18-xt7od3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574503/original/file-20240208-18-xt7od3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Sandeels are caught for use as food within the fish farming industry.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/small-sandeel-on-fish-net-1312001660">Coulanges/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>As well as removing sandeels from the sea, industrial fishing can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fss155">disturb them</a> and drive them to different locations or to deeper depths, away from the hungry beaks of kittiwakes that catch prey for themselves and their chicks at the sea’s surface. </p>
<p>Relationships between the closure of sandeel area 4 and the breeding success of other sandeel-reliant seabirds around northern England and Scotland have not been obvious. This is potentially due to differences in foraging ranges and diving abilities between <a href="https://doi.org/10.1890/07-0797.1">different seabirds</a>. </p>
<p>For kittiwakes, breeding success initially rose after the closures until 2018, but did not bounce right back to the levels observed before <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2023.109990">fishing here began</a>, despite 20 years of potential recovery time. This suggests that other factors influence breeding success in kittiwake colonies. </p>
<h2>Climate drivers</h2>
<p>Studies of the impacts that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2017.05.018">forage fishery closures</a> have on seabirds consistently flag the importance of environmental influences. Although fisheries could <a href="https://doi.org/10.1890/07-0797.1">exacerbate declines</a> in <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2017.2443">some seabird species</a>, changing environmental conditions have larger impacts. </p>
<p>Sandeels bury themselves in the sand during the winter and come out during the day to feed in the summer, but warmer temperatures can cause them to emerge from the sand <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8310">earlier in the year</a>. This change might have detrimental <a href="https://doi.org/10.3354/meps09520">knock-on effects</a> on the seabirds that feed sandeels to their chicks during their summer breeding seasons.</p>
<p>Climate change, which has already given rise to a <a href="https://www.mccip.org.uk/sites/default/files/2023-03/The%20Impacts%20of%20Climate%20Change%20on%20Sea%20Temperature%20around%20the%20UK%20and%20Ireland.pdf">warmer North Sea</a>, is a main driver of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/fog.12246">sandeel declines</a>. This has important ramifications for birds and other animals higher up the food chain. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://jncc.gov.uk/our-work/seabirds-count/">fourth national seabird census</a> (2015–2021) revealed that more than half the seabird species breeding around Britain and Ireland’s coastlines have declined over the past 20 years. Many of these declines have been linked to the influence of climate change on the availability of their prey. </p>
<p>The government’s environmental watchdog, the Office for Environmental Protection, recently warned that the government’s progress on its promise to stem declines in British nature by 2030 <a href="https://www.theoep.org.uk/report/government-remains-largely-track-meet-its-environmental-ambitions-finds-oep-annual-progress">has been scant</a>. The halting of sandeel fishing around Scotland and northern England is not enough to conserve the seabirds that breed around our coastlines. A more ambitious plan is called for.</p>
<p>Achieving the sandeel fisheries closure involved an immense lobbying effort that has been backed up by <a href="https://www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happening/news/sandeel-campaign-success-in-england">scientific evidence</a>. This success has demonstrated the importance that the British public places on protecting nature. Now, the government ought to not only combine fisheries closures with effective monitoring, but to diverge from burning fossil fuels that continue to heat our planet and choke conservation efforts. </p>
<p>Ultimately, to ensure that healthy sandeel populations will support seabirds in the future, we need to maintain cool seas that will allow their stocks to bounce back to pre-fishing levels.</p>
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<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ruth Dunn has previously received funding from the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC).</span></em></p>Many seabird colonies around UK coastlines struggle to breed because the sandeels they feed on have been overfished. The upcoming closure of sandeel fisheries will be good news for marine wildlife.Ruth Dunn, Senior Research Associate in Marine Ecology, Lancaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2220952024-02-12T16:31:43Z2024-02-12T16:31:43ZForever chemicals in ski wax are being spread on snowy slopes<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574955/original/file-20240212-16-zludm6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A study of the Austrian slopes has found that forever chemicals in ski wax end up on the slopes, in soil and snow.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/skiing-jumping-skier-extreme-winter-sports-1187224183">Artur Didyk/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Every February half-term, I think back to the French ski trips I went on as a teenager. I remember the freshness of the cold, crisp air as I snow-ploughed my way down the slopes. Escaping to somewhere seemingly so pristine felt like a world away from where I grew up in London. </p>
<p>Back then, I never considered that snow could be a potential source of exposure to a harmful chemical. However, recent evidence suggests that persistent, synthetic chemicals are being transferred into snow and soil from waxes applied to the surfaces of skis to enhance performance.</p>
<p>Nicknamed forever chemicals, per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of more than <a href="https://www.oecd.org/chemicalsafety/portal-perfluorinated-chemicals/aboutpfass/">10,000 different chemicals</a>, many of which have been used since the 1950s. They repel water and oil so they make great waterproof coatings for clothing, greaseproof paper and construction materials. </p>
<p>Some act as surfactants, allowing different liquids to mix more easily. Many resist high temperatures, so they’re ideal for making non-stick frying pans and firefighting foams. </p>
<p>Certain PFAS are used in ski wax applied to skis and snowboards as lubrication. By making surfaces of ski kit more slippery, skiers can speed up and make smoother turns as they travel from piste to piste. A <a href="https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2023/EM/D3EM00375B">new study</a> has found high PFAS concentrations in ski waxes and in the snow and soil sampled from popular skiing areas in Austria.</p>
<h2>The problem with persistence</h2>
<p>PFAS are organoflourine compounds – their super strong carbon-flourine bonds make them incredibly stable. Because PFAS don’t <a href="https://echa.europa.eu/hot-topics/perfluoroalkyl-chemicals-pfas">break down easily</a>, they can persist inside our bodies or in the environment for <a href="https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/Documents/Environmental%20Health/PFAS%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf">many years</a>. </p>
<p>A single dose of perfluorooctanoic acid or PFOA, one of the most well-studied PFAS, could take between three and seven years to reduce by half inside the body – that means it could take 100 years to eliminate 99.9% of that dose. </p>
<p>Some PFAS can be toxic to humans and wildlife, with links to <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/ebiom/article/PIIS2352-3964(23)00397-3/fulltext#:%7E:text=This%20study%20supports%20the%20hypothesis,plastic%20packaging%2C%20etc.">cancers</a>, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412022003117">developmental</a> and <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36334833/#:%7E:text=Conclusion%3A%20Based%20on%20the%20evidence,in%20odds%20ratio%20for%20infertility">reproductive problems</a>, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1438463918300476?via%3Dihub">hormone disruption</a>, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935123003171#:%7E:text=May%202023%2C%20115525-,Exposure%20to%20high%20levels%20of%20PFAS%20through%20drinking%20water%20is,based%20study%20in%20Ronneby%2C%20Sweden">diabetes</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.4890;%20https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144795">obesity</a>. </p>
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<img alt="Woman in yellow jackets applies wax to four yellow skis laid out on wooden table" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574960/original/file-20240212-28-bro51v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574960/original/file-20240212-28-bro51v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574960/original/file-20240212-28-bro51v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574960/original/file-20240212-28-bro51v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574960/original/file-20240212-28-bro51v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574960/original/file-20240212-28-bro51v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574960/original/file-20240212-28-bro51v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The presence of PFAS in ski wax is widely understood - now research shows that the chemicals transfer from ski wax to the environment and end up in snow and soil on the white slopes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/japanese-senior-woman-waxing-skis-1620325474">Rammy_Rammy/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<h2>A slippery slope?</h2>
<p>The presence of PFAS in ski waxes is not a new discovery. In 2010, a Swedish study, found high levels of various PFAS in ski wax and in the blood of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1021/es9034733">ski-waxing technicians</a>. </p>
<p>The fascinating thing about the new study is the potential for these chemicals to transfer into the environment from recreational and professional skiing equipment. She reveals that PFAS levels in the snow and soil from skiing areas are consistently higher than in those from the control sample collected away from skiing areas, indicating that skiing can act as a source. </p>
<p>The researchers highlight how the PFAS profiles (the combination of different PFAS found in each sample) differed between locations and sample types. This variability was attributed to differences between ski waxes that had been manufactured at different times or in different places. </p>
<p>I would suggest that additional sources of PFAS are likely in these areas, particularly as PFAS were still sometimes detected in areas of no skiing. They are present in some waterproof clothing, which is worn in abundance by skiers, and in food packaging, paints and cabling – all of which will be found in these areas. These products are likely to display different PFAS profiles. </p>
<p>The new study highlights the difficulty of assessing PFAS globally. There are so many different individual PFAS chemicals. So much so that there’s still uncertainty over the true number that <a href="https://time.com/6281242/pfas-forever-chemicals-home-beauty-body-products/">exist</a>. With PFAS in so many products, it’s hard to identify a singular source.</p>
<p>With so many PFAS in circulation, it’s hard to know which ones to test for. The researchers in the new study searched for 34 PFAS chemicals – that’s no easy task. For every PFAS measured, analysis takes more time and money and gets more complicated.</p>
<p>The sum of the concentrations of these 34 PFAS represented less than 1% of the total organofluorine present in the same samples, so the true PFAS concentration could be even higher. </p>
<h2>A class-based approach</h2>
<p>Historically, individual chemicals have been banned depending on toxicity, persistence and resistance to degradation. This has invariably led to the replacement of banned chemicals with structurally similar ones. </p>
<p>Assessing 10,000 PFAS individually would be impossible. PFAS display varying levels of toxicity and persistence with some breaking down <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yrtph.2022.105226">quite readily</a>, but in recent years, environmental chemists have called for PFAS to be regulated together as a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1039%2Fd0em00147c">group or class</a>. </p>
<p>The European Chemicals Agency is considering a <a href="https://echa.europa.eu/-/echa-publishes-pfas-restriction-proposal">proposed restriction</a> to ban the manufacture and use of PFAS, with some exemptions for essential use where no alternatives exist. If accepted by member states, it could prove a significant step towards the beginning of the end for forever chemicals. Meanwhile, UK legislation <a href="https://www.dwi.gov.uk/pfas-and-forever-chemicals/">falls behind</a> by focusing on individual PFAS, with delays in implementing new restrictions. </p>
<p>Interestingly, PFAS-containing waxes were banned by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation at the start of the 2023 – 2024 season. Norwegian Olympic silver medallist Ragnhild Mowinckel was disqualified last October for competing with fluorinated wax. </p>
<p>But a ban that only applies to professional competition won’t stop PFAS chemicals from reaching the slopes. A ban on the manufacture of PFAS-containing products is crucial. Only then can we prevent PFAS reaching the mountains, and even with a comprehensive ban now, PFAS already in the snow won’t disappear within my lifetime.</p>
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<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniel Drage has previously worked on projects funded by the Natural Environment Research Council and the Environmental Protection Agency of Ireland. He is a Lecturer in Environmental Health at the University of Birmingham, and an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Queensland (Australia). </span></em></p>Synthetic chemicals found in ski wax have been found in the snow and soil on ski slopes and could pose a toxic threat to the environment.Daniel Drage, Lecturer in Environmental Health, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1974492023-01-13T06:15:19Z2023-01-13T06:15:19ZSingle-use plastic bans: research shows three ways to make them effective<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504240/original/file-20230112-53024-jkl70q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5184%2C3888&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Plastic bottles, cutlery, boxes and bags sold by takeaways dominate ocean litter.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/litter-ocean-1-1346271467">Richard Smith/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Governments around the world are introducing single-use plastic product bans to alleviate pollution. </p>
<p>Zimbabwe banned plastic packaging and bottles as early <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667010021000081">as 2010</a>. Antigua and Barbuda banned <a href="https://gefcrew.org/carrcu/18IGM/4LBSCOP/Info-Docs/WG.39_INF.8-en.pdf">single-use catering and takeaway items</a> in 2016, and the Pacific island of Vanuatu did the same for <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X21008122?casa_token=0I4QYlrgMRAAAAAA:kpXkEqCi0iNUgUn_UW1d3rxcQMFzZes1eTtRyOXQfbpm6JPzoI52jaI3HIkwzpkpYltCsQgOVxMx">disposable containers in 2018</a>.</p>
<p>The EU prohibited cotton buds, balloon sticks, <a href="https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/plastics/single-use-plastics_en">plastic catering items and takeaway containers</a>, including those made from expanded polystyrene, <a href="https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/plastics/single-use-plastics_en">in 2021</a>. </p>
<p>The UK government has followed suit by announcing a ban on the supply of single-use plastic plates, cutlery, balloon sticks, and polystyrene cups and containers supplied to restaurants, cafes and takeaways in England. The measure will start in April 2023. The same products sold in supermarkets and shops will be exempt from the ban, but subject to new regulations expected in 2024.</p>
<p>While the forthcoming ban is a step in the right direction, the production, use and disposal of plastics typically spans several countries and continents. The success of any policy aimed at restricting the use of plastic products in one country should not be taken for granted.</p>
<p>Our research continues to highlight that policies which influence what consumers buy, such as bans, taxes or charges, lack the reach to confront <a href="https://plasticspolicy.port.ac.uk/final-report/">the global scale of pollution</a>. The effect of banning single-use plastic items is limited to the jurisdiction in which it is implemented, unless it inspires a wider shift in public or commercial behaviour across international boundaries. </p>
<p>Without supporting measures, or by failing to treat the ban as the beginning of a broader phase-down of plastic, banning some items does little to change the attitudes which reinforce a <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/cb.1842?saml_referrer">throwaway culture</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="White, plastic forks, knives and spoons on a blue background." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504202/original/file-20230112-16-utq9jo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5615%2C3741&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504202/original/file-20230112-16-utq9jo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504202/original/file-20230112-16-utq9jo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504202/original/file-20230112-16-utq9jo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504202/original/file-20230112-16-utq9jo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504202/original/file-20230112-16-utq9jo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504202/original/file-20230112-16-utq9jo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Plastic cutlery in cafés and restaurants is included in England’s recent ban.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/plastic-cutlery-forks-spoons-knives-pollution-1460372351">ADragan/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The <a href="https://plasticspolicy.port.ac.uk/">Global Plastics Policy Centre</a> of the University of Portsmouth <a href="https://plasticspolicy.port.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GPPC-Report.pdf">reviewed 100 policies</a> aimed at tackling plastic pollution worldwide in 2022 to understand what makes them successful. Here are three key lessons which can make the new English ban more effective.</p>
<h2>1. Make it easy to use alternatives</h2>
<p>Consumers and businesses are less likely to comply with a ban if they are expected to go entirely without plastic overnight. Ensuring businesses can source affordable alternatives is critical. Antigua and Barbuda did this by investing in the research of more sustainable materials and listing approved alternatives to plastic, such as <a href="https://www.caribbeannewsglobal.com/is-there-more-to-the-caribbeans-single-use-plastics-ban-than-meets-the-eye/">bagasse</a>, a byproduct of sugar-cane processing. </p>
<p>To maintain public support, it helps if there are measures which prevent cost hikes being passed directly on to consumers. </p>
<p>Alternative materials or products must have a lower environmental impact than the banned product, but this isn’t always guaranteed. Substituting plastic bags for paper, for example, may not be the best idea when the entire life cycle of a <a href="https://wedocs.unep.org/handle/20.500.11822/31932">product</a> is accounted for.</p>
<h2>2. Phase in a ban</h2>
<p>A phased approach to a ban improves how well it works but requires consistent and clear messaging about what products are banned and when. In Antigua and Barbuda, phased plastic bag bans in 2016 and 2017 generated <a href="https://gefcrew.org/carrcu/18IGM/4LBSCOP/Info-Docs/WG.39_INF.8-en.pdf">support for banning other plastic products</a> between 2017 and 2018. </p>
<p>In both cases, importing these products was restricted first, followed by a ban on distributing them, which gave suppliers time to find alternatives and use up existing stock. </p>
<p>This approach was used to good effect in an English ban on plastic straws, cotton buds and stirrers in 2020, allowing retailers to use up their supplies during the <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2020/971/regulation/15/made">six months</a> following the ban’s introduction.</p>
<h2>3. Involve the public</h2>
<p>Information campaigns which explain why a ban is needed, what it means for the public and businesses and what alternatives are available serve to support a ban. This was evident from Vanuatu, where the inclusion of diapers in a ban was <a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/429504/vanuatu-thinks-again-on-diaper-ban-issue">postponed</a> due to public concerns around the availability of sustainable alternatives. </p>
<p>Working closely with the public like this can also encourage innovation. For example, in Vanuatu in 2018, weavers and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112778">crafting communities</a> filled the gap left by banned plastic bags and polystyrene takeaway containers with natural alternatives made locally, including bags and food containers woven from palm leaves.</p>
<p>Single-use plastic bans can inspire wider changes to social systems and the relationship each person has with plastic. But without planned access to alternatives, a phased introduction, efforts to nurture public support and broader consideration of the entire life cycle of plastic, product bans have a limited effect on plastic pollution, and can even give the false impression of progress.</p>
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<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
<br><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeTop">Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead.</a> Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeBottom">Join the 10,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.</a></em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/197449/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Antaya March receives funding from the Flotilla Foundation and the United Nations Environment Programme.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Steve Fletcher receives funding from the Flotilla Foundation, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Bank. He is also a member of the UNEP International Resource Panel.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tegan Evans receives funding from the University of Portsmouth. </span></em></p>How to make England’s new ban a success.Antaya March, Senior Research Associate - Global Plastics Policy Centre, University of PortsmouthSteve Fletcher, Professor of Ocean Policy and Economy, University of PortsmouthTegan Evans, PhD Candidate in Ocean Governance, University of PortsmouthLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1789912022-03-17T19:05:20Z2022-03-17T19:05:20ZRussia’s bombardment and Ukraine’s departure ban leave children and those with disabilities most vulnerable<p>Russia’s war on Ukraine is driving some of the most rapid movement of refugees ever seen. Its invasion and increasingly intense bombardment is generating a <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/11/russia-ukraine-war-military-dispatch-march-11-2022">dire humanitarian crisis</a>. Over <a href="https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/ukraine">3 million</a> people have fled across borders to Poland and other surrounding countries since February 24. </p>
<p>Ukraine has accused Russia of blocking and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/08/ukraine-war-civilians-sumy-irpin-refugees-russia">bombarding</a> a humanitarian escape corridor. It also claims Russia is holding 400 patients and staff <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-16/ukraine-says-russia-holds-400-hospital-patients-staff-hostage/100912918">hostage</a> in a Mariupol hospital. </p>
<p>The scale of the exodus from Ukraine would be even greater if its government had not banned the departure of men aged 18-60.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-banning-men-from-leaving-ukraine-violates-their-human-rights-178411">Why banning men from leaving Ukraine violates their human rights</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Ukraine’s departure ban</h2>
<p>I (Maguire) wrote about this ban earlier this month, noting it violates the right of <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-banning-men-from-leaving-ukraine-violates-their-human-rights-178411">conscientious objection</a> to military service. It places <a href="https://people.com/politics/women-who-flee-ukraine-leave-behind-husbands-fathers-brothers/">Ukrainian women</a>, many fleeing with children, under great strain. It also raises <a href="https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/30390/male-only-conscription-won-t-help-ukraine-in-invasion-by-russia">important strategic questions</a> for Ukraine’s self-defence.</p>
<p>Since my earlier article, I have heard from two men in Ukraine who feel trapped by the ban and do not want to fight. One reports he is trapped between the approaching Russian army and the Ukrainian border service. </p>
<p>Another says he is hiding with relatives who are buying food for him. By order of the Lviv mayor, he says he is required to report for military service, but he cannot imagine using a weapon against another person. He says very few men are excused from service – only those with three or more children or severe health conditions.</p>
<p>I have also heard from three men who fear for their partners – gay men unable to flee Ukraine. These correspondents have asked me what organisations can help their partners to escape, because they fear persecution as Russian forces advance.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/452657/original/file-20220317-8052-1669258.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/452657/original/file-20220317-8052-1669258.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452657/original/file-20220317-8052-1669258.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452657/original/file-20220317-8052-1669258.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452657/original/file-20220317-8052-1669258.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452657/original/file-20220317-8052-1669258.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452657/original/file-20220317-8052-1669258.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The ban on men aged 18-60 leaving Ukraine poses serious human rights questions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Andrzej Lange/EPA/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Ukraine’s departure ban heightens humanitarian risks</h2>
<p>The UN Refugee Agency estimates <a href="https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/ukraine">four million</a> people could flee Ukraine. But millions more are already displaced internally, and the western regions of the country are being overwhelmed. </p>
<p>One of my correspondents describes the situation in a small town near Lviv: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Ukraine’s current border policy is a major contributor to an ongoing humanitarian catastrophe. Millions of people are fleeing into west Ukrainian regions that are still relatively safe, but those regions simply can’t accommodate every fleeing person. The housing and other basic needs are getting less affordable and accessible, tents are now being erected to house people in Lviv, and the situation might only worsen, as Russian occupation of the country progresses and more people are displaced.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This man told me many families, including his own, do not want to separate and leave service-age men behind. </p>
<p>International human rights and humanitarian law confirm the right of all families – as the natural group units of society – to <a href="https://www.unhcr.org/5a8c40ba1.pdf">unity</a>.</p>
<h2>A children’s rights crisis</h2>
<p>The ban on men leaving Ukraine <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-banning-men-from-leaving-ukraine-violates-their-human-rights-178411">should be lifted</a>. But even if more people could escape from Ukraine, many will remain trapped and subject to humanitarian and rights violations resulting from Russia’s <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/cbbdd146-4e36-42fb-95e1-50128506652c">aggression</a>. </p>
<p>As the fighting rages, Ukrainian children are particularly vulnerable. </p>
<p>There are 7.5 million children among Ukraine’s population of 44 million. Over <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/03/1113942">1.5 million</a> children are among those who have fled across national borders – almost one new child refugee every second. As the departure ban on men aged 18-60 persists, the vast majority of children are travelling with their mothers, many of whom fear this <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/06/world/europe/ukraine-poland-families-separation.html">separation</a> will be permanent. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/452658/original/file-20220317-8262-jstyb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/452658/original/file-20220317-8262-jstyb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452658/original/file-20220317-8262-jstyb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452658/original/file-20220317-8262-jstyb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452658/original/file-20220317-8262-jstyb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452658/original/file-20220317-8262-jstyb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/452658/original/file-20220317-8262-jstyb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">As the fighting rages and Ukrainians are forced to flee, children are particularly vulnerable.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Arkady Budnitsky/EPA/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The number of separated child refugees without any family support also continues to rise in what has been termed an “<a href="https://www.savethechildren.org/us/what-we-do/emergency-response/refugee-children-crisis/ukrainian-refugees#many">escalating child protection crisis</a>”. There are significant concerns for the safety of these children. In the absence of any family support, they are at a heightened risk of threats including homelessness, violence, abuse, sexual exploitation and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-12/human-trafficking-fears-as-refugees-flee-war-in-ukraine/100905686">human trafficking</a>. </p>
<p>There are also serious and immediate concerns for the safety and well-being of the children who remain in Ukraine. The recent <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-mariupol-hosital-bombed-russia/31744934.html">bombing</a> of a children’s and maternity hospital in Mariupol serves as one of the most shocking and brutal examples of Russia’s war crimes against vulnerable people, including pregnant women and newborn babies. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/remembering-the-past-looking-to-the-future-how-the-war-in-ukraine-is-changing-europe-178151">Remembering the past, looking to the future: how the war in Ukraine is changing Europe</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/hundreds-thousands-ukraine-cut-off-aid-un-says-2022-03-07/">Reports</a> also suggest access to aid and evacuation corridors has been cut off. This has left millions of people without basic supplies including medicine, power and communication. Children have been unable to enjoy their <a href="https://en.unesco.org/themes/right-to-education">right to education</a> as schools and kindergarten buildings come under attack.</p>
<p>Children with disabilities are particularly vulnerable. A significant number live in residential care facilities and may be unable to flee due to their health conditions. Ukraine has an extensive network of institutional care settings, with an estimated 1.3% of all children living in out-of-home care – <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/war-crime-against-civilians-russian-bombardment-targets-psychiatric/">one of the highest rates in Europe</a>.</p>
<p>As civilian buildings and infrastructure such as apartments, hospitals and schools come under increased attack, many Ukrainians are forced to seek shelter, often for hours on end, in nearby bomb shelters. The right of access to safety and shelter <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2022/03/11/europe/disability-ukraine-russia-invasion-intl-cmd/index.html">may not be available</a> for those with disabilities who cannot relocate easily or quickly. Many shelters are also inaccessible to people with physical disabilities, and information on emergency evacuation protocols is not available in <a href="https://www.internationaldisabilityalliance.org/content/through-conflict-ukraine-what-happens-persons-disabilities">accessible formats</a>.</p>
<p>The human rights implications of the war are incalculable, especially for children and vulnerable people. Children have the right to live with their families, the right to shelter, to be educated, to receive adequate health care and to be free from all forms of violence and abuse. The scale of the war and the atrocities inflicted by Russia will have a lifelong impact on all Ukrainian people, not least on the most vulnerable.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/178991/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As Russia’s war on Ukraine intensifies and men aged 18-60 are forced to stay in the country, many are made even more vulnerable.Amy Maguire, Associate Professor in Human Rights and International Law, University of NewcastleDonna McNamara, Lecturer in Law, University of NewcastleLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1593052021-04-26T16:55:47Z2021-04-26T16:55:47ZCanada must change the law that bans sexual assault survivors from revealing their own identities<p>Earlier this month, news broke that a Waterloo, Ont., <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/the-current-for-april-16-2021-1.5990216/case-of-sex-assault-victim-fined-for-breaking-publication-ban-leaves-legal-community-divided-1.5990570">sexual assault survivor</a> was fined $2,600 after she pleaded guilty to violating a ban on her own identity. The story was met with surprise and outrage from lawyers, academics and advocates familiar with the laws of sexual assault. </p>
<p>While I’m as appalled as anyone at this miscarriage of justice, I’m not remotely surprised. It doesn’t take a deep read of the Criminal Code to see the defect. Our law makes clear that “<a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/c-46/page-107.html#docCont">any person</a>” who violates the ban on the identity of a sexual assault complainant can be charged. Obviously, “any person” includes the complainant themself. So with these two words, the code effectively denies agency and voice to sexual assault survivors.</p>
<p>My research has explored the ways in which the ban effectively silences survivors who would like to speak publicly; it also offers guidance to journalists on how to <a href="http://www.femifesto.ca/media-guide/">ethically report</a> on sexual assault, including how to best ensure that a <a href="https://caj.ca/images/downloads/Ethics/caj_ethics_report_sex_assault_revised_march_5.pdf">survivor who wants to be identified</a> does <em>not</em> face a criminal charge for going public with their story. </p>
<h2>Sexual assault complainants revictimized</h2>
<p>I’ve been told that the risk of a criminal charge following a complainant’s decision to break the ban on their own identity is merely theoretical — after all, surely prosecutorial discretion would <em>never</em> allow a sexual assault survivor to be sanctioned for telling their own story, right?</p>
<p>While it may have seemed unlikely until recently, it is <em>not</em> without precedent. In 2000, Member of Parliament Jack Ramsay was <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/full-text-of-jack-ramsay-sentence-1.204386">convicted of the attempted rape</a> of a 14-year-old Indigenous girl in 1969 while he was an RCMP corporal in northern Saskatchewan.</p>
<p>Given Ramsay’s reputation as a “tough-on-crime” politician, and the violation of trust he committed, his sentencing was high-profile. The woman Ramsay attempted to rape told a CBC reporter that she would do an interview <em>only if</em> her identity was revealed, an act she said was part of her “spiritual healing journey.” </p>
<p>After the interview was broadcast in a report that used the complainant’s name and showed her face, a charge of breaching the ban was laid … not against the courageous survivor but against the CBC; <a href="https://j-source.ca/article/know-the-rules-about-publication-ban-before-covering-the-courts/">the broadcaster was found guilty</a> and fined $2,000.</p>
<p>In the case out of Waterloo, there was no media scapegoat for the Crown, because it was the woman herself who <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/the-current-for-april-16-2021-1.5990216/case-of-sex-assault-victim-fined-for-breaking-publication-ban-leaves-legal-community-divided-1.5990570">shared the unredacted transcript</a> with family and friends. And it was the perpetrator who complained after he learned the transcript was shared. </p>
<p>To be clear, the complaint that gave rise to the woman’s guilty plea was one of unvarnished self-interest on the part of a convicted sex offender taking action against his victim.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-AZT03pGZU8?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">George Doodnaught was convicted in 2014 of sexually assaulting patients during surgery, this City News interview tells the story of a survivor who fought to remove a ban to tell her story.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Who is the ban protecting?</h2>
<p>This isn’t the first time we’ve seen courts exhibit a concern for the reputational interests of sexual assault perpetrators. </p>
<p>A 1998 Ontario case, for example, saw three survivors who were sexually abused as children by their grandfather lose their bid to have the ban on their identities lifted. While the judge acknowledged that speaking publicly was part of the survivors’ “attempt to bring some closure and some healing to this sad and tragic event in their lives,” he <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xnYu0sv9mNNRNqZufJPBiXahi5VpiAuu/view?usp=sharing">upheld the ban</a> because rescinding it might expose “their grandfather and other members of their family … to closer inspection, and possibly ridicule, by the greater community.” </p>
<p>This ban has never <em>really</em> been about protecting the identity of the sexual assault survivor; if it was, it would be in effect from the time of the assault. Instead, the ban on a survivor’s identity isn’t imposed until <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/c-46/page-106.html#docCont">after someone is charged with sexual assault</a>, and makes their first appearance in court. </p>
<p>Given that a court arraignment is the necessary precondition for a ban to be imposed, if no one is charged, then there is no ban on the survivor’s identity. Why are victims of unsolved crimes less worthy of protection than those whose assault leads to a criminal charge?</p>
<h2>Can a sexual assault survivor speak freely to anyone?</h2>
<p>Recently we’ve seen examples of sexual assault complainants who have either refused the ban in the first place or later asked a court to rescind it, including in the high-profile cases of former <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/jian-ghomeshi-woman-waves-publication-ban-1.3540206">CBC broadcaster Jian Ghomeshi</a> (who was later <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/jian-ghomeshi-sexual-assault-trial-ruling-1.3505446">found not guilty</a>) and former <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/crime/2014/03/04/victims_of_dr_george_doodnaught_go_public_with_stories.html">anesthesiologist George Doodnaught</a>.</p>
<p>The woman at the centre of the Waterloo case didn’t reveal her identity to a journalist — she shared with family and friends, people who almost certainly had pre-existing knowledge of the matter. So what does this tell other sexual assault complainants? Can they talk to their friends? Can they share in a group counselling session? </p>
<p>So the alternative is that any sexual assault survivor whose identity is banned should have the ban lifted if they wish to speak publicly, right? </p>
<p>Well, it’s not that easy. Jane Doe is the sexual assault survivor who <a href="https://www.leaf.ca/case_summary/jane-doe-v-metropolitan-toronto-commissioners-of-police-1998/">sued the Toronto police</a> after they failed to warn women that there was a serial rapist in their midst. <a href="https://books.openedition.org/uop/577?lang=en">Doe’s research</a> led her to conclude there’s little consensus on the ban’s purpose and scope, nor is there agreement on how to rescind it … and there’s certainly nothing written into the Criminal Code that sheds light on the problem.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/metoo-in-2021-global-activists-continue-to-build-on-the-movement-against-sexual-violence-152205">#MeToo in 2021: Global activists continue to build on the movement against sexual violence</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Some well-resourced complainants have hired lawyers to fight the ban, while others have reached out directly to Crown prosecutors to seek a resolution; such efforts, however, are not within the means of all survivors. </p>
<h2>A progressive alternative</h2>
<p>The clearest path out of this problem already exists in Canadian law — the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) offers <a href="https://www.laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/y-1.5/page-21.html">a straightforward remedy</a> to an unwanted publication ban. Under the YCJA, anyone who was previously accused of a crime can unilaterally lift the ban on their own identity as long as they are not in custody on a YCJA matter and they are at least 18 years old. </p>
<p>There’s no need to hire a lawyer, petition a prosecutor or make their case to a judge. </p>
<p>Sexual assault complainants deserve a similar, statutorily defined process to shed this ban. Instead, they face a choice between flouting the law or engaging in a battle where they will almost certainly face a lack of clarity about the process and paternalism from the other parties involved; they may also be forced to make significant financial and emotional investments just to be able to speak openly about their experience.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/159305/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lisa Marie Taylor is a senior fellow with Ryerson University's Centre for Free Expression, chair of the Ethics Advisory Board of the Canadian Association of Journalists, and an associate member of the Canadian Media Lawyers' Association. </span></em></p>The solution to a defective, sexist Criminal Code ban can be found in the Youth Criminal Justice Act.Lisa Taylor, Associate Professor, School of Journalism, Toronto Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1523002020-12-23T13:46:40Z2020-12-23T13:46:40ZWould you eat indoors at a restaurant? We asked 5 health experts<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/376158/original/file-20201221-17-1vz3kj3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Open to eat indoors – but will you?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/banner-bearing-the-words-were-now-open-to-eat-in-seen-at-a-news-photo/1227801524?adppopup=true">David Mbiyu/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Earlier this fall, many of the nation’s restaurants opened their doors to patrons to eat inside, especially as the weather turned cold in places. Now, as <a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#cases_totalcases">COVID-19 cases surge</a> across the country, some <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/11/nyregion/indoor-dining-nyc.html">cities and towns have banned indoor</a> dining while others have permitted it with restrictions. Still other geographies <a href="https://www.aarp.org/politics-society/government-elections/info-2020/coronavirus-state-restrictions.html">have no bans at all</a>.</p>
<p>The restaurant and hospitality industry has reacted strongly, filing <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/coronavirus-restrictions-virginia-maryland-dc/2020/12/16/96c303be-3fa8-11eb-9453-fc36ba051781_story.html">lawsuits challenging indoor dining bans</a> and, in New York state, pointing to data that showed restaurants and bars <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/restaurants-bars-account-less-2-percent-new-covid-19-cases-new-york-1554206">accounted for only 1.4% of cases there</a> – far lower compared with private gatherings.</p>
<p>We asked five health professionals if they would dine indoors at a restaurant. Four said no – and one had a surprising answer.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="4 out of 5 experts say no" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/376409/original/file-20201222-23-1ko4hgg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/376409/original/file-20201222-23-1ko4hgg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=138&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/376409/original/file-20201222-23-1ko4hgg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=138&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/376409/original/file-20201222-23-1ko4hgg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=138&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/376409/original/file-20201222-23-1ko4hgg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=174&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/376409/original/file-20201222-23-1ko4hgg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=174&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/376409/original/file-20201222-23-1ko4hgg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=174&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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</figure>
<h2>Not an option</h2>
<p><strong>Dr. Laurie Archbald-Pannone, Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Virginia</strong></p>
<p>No. March 12, 2020 was the last day I ate indoors at a restaurant. At the time, there was mild apprehension – but much changed that week. The COVID-19 pandemic altered many aspects of “normalcy,” and for me eating inside at a restaurant is one of those activities. I loved eating out and typically would eat out three times a week (sometimes more!). But understanding how the COVID-19 infection is transmitted, I feel that being inside without a mask on – even just to eat – is not an option for me. I strongly believe that we need to support our community through these challenging times, so we still get curbside pickup or delivery from our favorite local restaurants at least three times a week – sometimes more! – but it will be a while before I’m back inside. When I do return I’m definitely getting dessert.</p>
<h2>Great risk</h2>
<p><strong>Dr. Thomas A. Russo, Chief of Infectious Disease Division, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo</strong></p>
<p>No. And it’s been “no” right from the beginning.</p>
<p>We have a little more information now, but what I <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-lower-your-coronavirus-risk-while-eating-out-restaurant-advice-from-an-infectious-disease-expert-138925">said in the spring</a> hasn’t really changed. The <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.02.28.20029272v2">greatest risk</a> of getting infected with SARS-CoV-2 is being indoors with people who aren’t using masks at all times. The concern isn’t just big respiratory droplets when close to someone talking; it’s also the <a href="https://theconversation.com/when-covid-19-superspreaders-are-talking-where-you-sit-in-the-room-matters-145966">tiny aerosols</a> that linger in the air.</p>
<p>Making it even riskier is the generally poor ventilation in many restaurants. The key differences between indoor dining and shopping in a big box store or grocery store are: 1) big stores have more ventilation and greater air space; 2) everyone can wear a mask at all times; 3) you’re not fixed in space, so if you see someone who just has a bandanna or their mask drops down below their nose, you can steer clear of them; and 4) it should take less time than dinner out. At a restaurant, you’re stuck at that table. If a party near you is having an animated conversation, they could be generating a lot of respiratory secretions. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e415">Some interesting studies</a> have looked at the airflow and air currents in restaurants in relation to <a href="https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/26/7/20-0764_article">where people became infected</a>. In one, a person was <a href="https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e415">20 feet away</a> from the source for only about 5 minutes, but the person was directly in the airflow and became infected. It’s a reminder of what we’ve been saying – there’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-a-smoky-bar-can-teach-us-about-the-6-foot-rule-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-145517">nothing magical about 6 feet</a>. The high degree of community disease in the U.S. right now increases the likelihood that another diner in the restaurant is infected. If you are tired of cooking and need a break, takeout is the way to go.</p>
<h2>Careful mixed with trust</h2>
<p><strong>Sue Mattison, Provost and Professor in the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences,
Drake University</strong></p>
<p>Yes. As an epidemiologist, my response may seem surprising or hypocritical: I do eat at local restaurants, but only because in April, like more than <a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#cases_casesper100klast7days">17 million Americans since that time</a>, I tested positive for COVID-19 and recovered. According to the <a href="https://directorsblog.nih.gov/2020/12/08/study-of-healthcare-workers-shows-covid-19-immunity-lasts-many-months/">latest evidence</a>, I believe I have immunity for now, and perhaps longer. But I am not pushing my luck. </p>
<p>I have my own list of four restaurants where I eat. I trust these restaurants because each has drastically reduced their number of tables and spaced them at least 6 feet apart, and everyone inside is diligent about wearing a mask. My husband and I also order takeout a lot. It is important to reiterate, however, that evidence shows <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6936a5.htm">restaurants are a significant source of infection</a>, and those who have not recovered from COVID-19 should refrain from eating at restaurants until the community gets a better handle on the spread of infection.</p>
<h2>Short-term sacrifices</h2>
<p><strong>Dr. Ryan Huerto, Family Medicine Physician, Health Services Researcher and Clinical Lecturer, University of Michigan</strong> </p>
<p>No. While I understand many factors contribute to indoor dining, such as the mental health toll of social isolation, the opportunity to support small businesses and cold weather, I strongly recommend against indoor dining.</p>
<p>The risk of contracting COVID-19 from indoor activities is far greater than from physically distanced outdoor activities. The recent spike in COVID-19 infections, deaths and ICU bed shortages is <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health-news/the-post-thanksgiving-covid-19-surge-is-here-what-to-expect-now">likely linked to indoor gatherings during Thanksgiving</a>.</p>
<p>On Dec. 22, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html">201,674 infections and 3,239 deaths</a> due to COVID-19 were reported. This death toll is equivalent to approximately 20 Boeing 737 aircrafts crashing in a single day. </p>
<p>Even with a COVID-19 vaccine approved, staying home, physically distancing, wearing a mask and good hand hygiene are as important as ever. Think of these as short-term sacrifices to help protect your friends, family, neighbors and essential workers.</p>
<p>Instead of dining in, please consider exponentially safer alternatives such as ordering delivery or curbside pickup.</p>
<h2>Restaurants pose big risk</h2>
<p><strong>Kathleen C. Brown, Associate Professor of Practice and MPH Program Director, College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences, University of Tennessee</strong></p>
<p>No. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6936a5.htm">reported that patients testing positive were twice as likely</a> to have eaten in a restaurant than those testing negative in the 14 days preceding their test. I regularly get takeout but do not eat in restaurants. </p>
<p>What I cannot control poses a risk. I have very open and honest conversations with family and friends about where we have been and who we have been with. From there, our risk is pretty clear but still not at zero. The more people I come into contact with, the greater the risk. </p>
<p>In a restaurant, I am not able to assess the risk posed by other patrons or the staff. Each person in that restaurant has a network of others that, taken together, increases my risk of contracting COVID-19. Currently, Tennessee, where I live, is the <a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#cases_casesper100klast7days">second-leading state for cases per 100,000</a>, which means community spread is high. </p>
<p>In plain language, that means there is an increased likelihood that I may come into contact with someone who is infectious – symptomatic or not – if I eat inside a restaurant. I will continue to pick up my takeout for now.</p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/152300/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Experts weigh in on whether they will sit and eat at a restaurant.Laurie Archbald-Pannone, Associate Professor Medicine, Geriatrics, University of VirginiaKathleen C. Brown, Associate Professor of Practice and MPH Program Director, College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences, University of TennesseeRyan Huerto, Family Medicine Physician, Health Services Researcher and Clinical Lecturer, University of MichiganSue Mattison, Provost and Professor in the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences., Drake UniversityThomas A. Russo, Professor and Chief, Infectious Disease, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at BuffaloLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1327382020-03-01T04:26:52Z2020-03-01T04:26:52ZSun Yang ban shows world swimming body must establish an integrity commission<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/317900/original/file-20200301-24694-da46xd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/EPA/Patrick B. Kraemer</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>With the announcement that China’s Sun Yang has been banned from swimming for eight years, <a href="http://www.fina.org/">FINA</a>, the world governing swimming body, must take stock of how it oversees one of the most popular and high-profile of the Olympic sports ahead of this year’s Tokyo games.</p>
<p>It would now seem obvious that, taking the lead from <a href="https://www.athleticsintegrity.org/">athletics</a> and <a href="https://www.tennisintegrityunit.com/">tennis</a>, FINA should establish an independent integrity unit to investigate and prosecute doping and similar offences.</p>
<p>In a decision announced Friday, the Court of Arbitration (CAS), sport’s self-styled world supreme court, confirmed that Sun would be banned from competitive swimming for <a href="https://www.tas-cas.org/en/general-information/news-detail/article/sun-yang-is-found-guilty-of-a-doping-offense-and-sanctioned-with-an-8-year-period-of-ineligibility.html">eight years</a>. His swimming future now rests largely on one final avenue of appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-drug-cheats-are-still-being-caught-seven-years-after-the-2012-london-olympics-121123">Why drug cheats are still being caught seven years after the 2012 London Olympics</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>This has always been a big global story: Sun is one of the most successful swimmers of all time, and one of China’s most beloved sports stars. A three-time Olympic gold medallist, he has 11 world championship golds, and is second only to the legendary US swimmer Michael Phelps in men’s individual events.</p>
<p>It was at last year’s world championships in Korea that silver medallist, Australia’s Mack Horton, <a href="https://theconversation.com/swimmer-protests-at-the-world-championships-renew-calls-for-urgent-anti-doping-reforms-120848">famously protested</a> against Sun, during the podium ceremony for the 400 meters freestyle.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/317901/original/file-20200301-24672-pmxpjk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/317901/original/file-20200301-24672-pmxpjk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317901/original/file-20200301-24672-pmxpjk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317901/original/file-20200301-24672-pmxpjk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317901/original/file-20200301-24672-pmxpjk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317901/original/file-20200301-24672-pmxpjk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/317901/original/file-20200301-24672-pmxpjk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mack Horton (left) protested Sun Yang’s win at the world championships in 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/EPA/Patrick B. Kraemer</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Horton’s protest related to the fact that Sun, having previously served a three-month ban <a href="https://theconversation.com/snubbing-chinese-swimmer-sun-yang-ignores-the-flaws-in-the-anti-doping-system-120895">for a doping infraction</a> in 2014, had been involved in an incident with doping control officers in September 2018.</p>
<p>Having given a sample to the testers at his home, Sun became concerned about their conduct and accreditation. This concern eventually led to the vial containing Sun sample being smashed by one of the swimmer’s entourage.</p>
<p>Initially, Sun’s behaviour in this case merely attracted a reprimand. <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-21/sun-yang-doping-case-more-complicated-than-it-seems/11328364">An investigation carried out by FINA</a> concluded that, although Sun’s actions were incautious, they could be justified given the testers’ grave procedural errors and misconduct.</p>
<p>The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the global body for anti-doping standards, later took the view that FINA’s approach was overly lenient. WADA appealed to CAS and a <a href="https://vimeo.com/373204016">public hearing</a> was held in Switzerland in November.</p>
<p>Having deliberated on what they heard at that eleventh-hour hearing, which was initially marred by <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-16/translation-issues-mar-sun-yang-drug-test-appeal/11710736">poor translation</a>, the three arbitrators delivered a summary of their verdict last week.</p>
<p>Basically, CAS held that the procedural concerns Sun had about the testing process in September 2018 either did not occur or were not sufficiently compelling to justify tampering with the sample container. Given this was his second anti-doping infraction, an eight-year sanction applied.</p>
<p>It must be remembered the charge against Sun is that of tampering with a sample – it is not a charge or “conviction” relating to doping. Sun’s sample taken in September 2018 was never tested, and this seems to be the reason why the arbitrators have not decided to strip him of the medals he obtained at the world championships in 2019. In this, as with other aspects of the Sun decision, we must await the publication of the arbitrators’ <a href="https://www.tas-cas.org/fileadmin/user_upload/CAS_Media_Release_6148_decision.pdf">full, reasoned award</a>.</p>
<p>Sun now has until the end of March to lodge an appeal at the Swiss Federal Tribunal (SFT) and <a href="https://7news.com.au/sport/olympics/chinese-swimmer-sun-yang-fumes-and-vows-to-appeal-eight-year-ban-c-721776">has already indicated</a> that he will take that option. As it happens, on various technical grounds – one relating to an unsubstantiated claim of bias against WADA’s chief lawyer – Sun’s lawyers have already been to the SFT <a href="http://sportlegis.com/2020/02/26/sun-yang-v-wada-fina-a-cas-letter-confirming-the-admissibility-of-the-appeal-is-not-an-appealable-decision-before-the-swiss-federal-tribunal/">on three separate occasions</a>. They will now likely go for a fourth time, and it is likely to end in disappointment.</p>
<p>He will not get a full re-hearing at the SFT, and the grounds of appeal will be limited to narrow procedural issues only. An example would be whether the CAS hearing in some way unfair – ironically, the fact that it was held in public at Sun’s request may tell against him here. Another consideration may be whether the sanction was disproportionate – given the eight-year ban is mandated in the <a href="https://www.wada-ama.org/en/what-we-do/the-code?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIx5Xy3qn45wIVjxWPCh3qSgrCEAAYASAAEgIHnfD_BwE">World Anti-Doping Code</a>, this ground would likely not succeed. One final consideration may be whether the poor translation service at the CAS hearing might be a ground of appeal – again, unlikely, given that it was Sun’s legal team that hired the translator.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/snubbing-chinese-swimmer-sun-yang-ignores-the-flaws-in-the-anti-doping-system-120895">Snubbing Chinese swimmer Sun Yang ignores the flaws in the anti-doping system</a>
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<p>Arguably, Sun’s strongest point has always been the general one, outlined in the seminal CAS case of <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/sport/swimming/fairness-at-core-of-sun-yang-case-despite-headline-hysteria-20191122-p53d4r.html">Quigley v UIT</a>. It is that, while the principle of strict liability applies to athletes in anti-doping control, it should equally apply to testers to strictly comply with all administrative aspects of the anti-doping process. Whether the SFT would entertain an argument that goes right to heart of the current anti-doping policy globally is unlikely.</p>
<p>While Sun grapples with an effective end to his career and <a href="https://www.wada-ama.org/en/media/news/2020-02/wada-statement-regarding-cas-public-hearing-wada-v-sun-yang-fina">WADA</a>, unsurprisingly, feels vindicated, FINA must now reflect on its governance of its sport.</p>
<p>Lately, it has had a fractious relationship with some of its leading participants who sought successfully, on threat of litigation, to compete in a privately funded <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/aquatics/the-buzzer-international-swimming-league-explainer-1.5316563">international swimming league</a>. An integrity commission would seem a vital next step.</p>
<p>The reaction to the Sun ban <a href="https://au.news.yahoo.com/chinese-trolls-target-mack-horton-after-sun-yang-cas-ban-014543084.html">on social media from China</a> has been predictably ferocious. One knock-on effect of the Sun decision may be a greater focus from countries such as China and Russia on the fact that, in terms of the nationality of those appointed to hear cases, CAS, sport’s supreme court, appears to be systemically Eurocentric in nature.</p>
<p>It seems almost certain that Sun will not compete at Tokyo 2020. Attention now moves at CAS and on doping in sport to the case against <a href="https://www.tas-cas.org/en/general-information/news-detail/article/cas-procedure-between-the-world-anti-doping-agency-wada-and-the-russian-anti-doping-agency-rusada.html">Russia and its athletes</a>.</p>
<p>The reaction to the Sun verdict will be a mere ripple in a pool compared to that which will greet a similar verdict against Russia.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/132738/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jack Anderson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Following the Chinese swimmer’s eight-year ban, FINA must examine its governance and follow the example set by athletics and tennis to investigate and prosecute doping.Jack Anderson, Professor of Sports Law, Melbourne Law School, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1312252020-02-05T13:57:41Z2020-02-05T13:57:41ZFour things the UK government must do to phase out petrol, diesel and hybrid cars<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/313741/original/file-20200205-149796-1d61lsl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5751%2C3837&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The future of British motoring?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/london-uk-may-28-2018small-modern-1092281945">Bubble_Tea Stock/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The UK government recently pledged to bring forward a ban on new diesel and petrol car sales from 2040, to 2030. The move surprised some, but perhaps most surprising was the confirmation that the ban will also include hybrid vehicles, which use a combustion engine running on fossil fuel and an electric battery pack.</p>
<p>You might have taken the noise and fumes for granted at roadsides, but the ban would mean that petrol and diesel fuel is eliminated from new passenger vehicles within 15 years. This would have obvious benefits for reducing carbon emissions and improving air quality, but there are significant obstacles for the UK’s car industry to overcome in the meantime. </p>
<p>In 2019, only 1.6% of new passenger vehicles sold were <a href="https://www.smmt.co.uk/vehicle-data/evs-and-afvs-registrations/">electric vehicles</a>, but they will need to form the majority of sales from 2035. So how can the next decade and a half set Britain on track for zero-carbon car travel?</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cars-will-change-more-in-the-next-decade-than-they-have-in-the-past-century-113585">Cars will change more in the next decade than they have in the past century</a>
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<h2>1. Skills and training</h2>
<p>When it comes to designing and building petrol and diesel powered vehicles, the UK has a wealth of talent and expertise. <a href="https://www.smmt.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/SMMT-Motor-Industry-Facts-May-2019-V2.pdf">In 2018, the UK produced 2.72 million engines</a> and was the fourth largest car manufacturing country in the EU by total vehicles produced. </p>
<p>If the UK is to retain or grow this £82 billion industry in 2035, much of the existing workforce will need to be retrained in making electric vehicles. A wave of engineering graduates with expertise in electric and autonomous vehicles will also be needed to develop the next generation of electric vehicles.</p>
<h2>2. Innovation and infrastructure</h2>
<p>The good news is that universities and start-ups in the UK are behind world-leading research into new battery technologies. There’s more than one way to power an electric car, and these batteries come in a dizzying variety, from solid-state electrolyte batteries, low cost sodium-ion batteries, and lithium-air batteries which can store much more energy than conventional lithium-ion batteries. </p>
<p>The government is investing £274 million in battery research and manufacturing over four years through the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/business-secretary-to-establish-uk-as-world-leader-in-battery-technology-as-part-of-modern-industrial-strategy">Faraday Challenge</a>. But investment will have to continue well after that to ensure these technologies make the difficult transition from prototype to mass production.</p>
<p>All those electric vehicles will need charging points too, and their increased electricity demand on the national grid will need to be met by renewables. That could amount to over 80 terawatt hours (TWh) – <a href="https://theconversation.com/britain-has-shifted-30-of-its-electricity-away-from-fossil-fuels-in-just-nine-years-108969">increasing demand by a quarter</a>. New solar farms and wind turbines will need to be built, along with new power lines, substations and rapid charging networks to distribute the electricity. If all of this is to be in place by 2035, action and investment is needed almost immediately.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/313748/original/file-20200205-149789-1cujoy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/313748/original/file-20200205-149789-1cujoy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313748/original/file-20200205-149789-1cujoy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313748/original/file-20200205-149789-1cujoy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313748/original/file-20200205-149789-1cujoy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313748/original/file-20200205-149789-1cujoy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313748/original/file-20200205-149789-1cujoy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">To ensure the transition to electric transport is sustainable, the UK will need to decarbonise its electricity supply.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/electric-vehicle-charging-station-london-westminster-1058971523">Bubble_Tea Stock/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<h2>3. Lifetime and recycling</h2>
<p>Many electric cars run on lithium-ion batteries, which start to age and lose the amount of electricity they can store from the moment they’re made. This is not so much of a problem in our phones, which have small batteries and are replaced every few years. But when it comes to electric vehicles, the battery pack is typically the most expensive part of the vehicle. </p>
<p>In 2017, the average lifetime of an electric vehicle battery pack was <a href="https://www.apcuk.co.uk/technology-roadmaps/">eight years, and only 10-50% of it could be recycled</a>. Targets for 2035 are to have battery packs that last 15 years and are 95% recyclable. Researchers will need to improve the design of these batteries and the cars themselves to achieve this, while the government will have to build facilities that can recycle batteries, separating the raw materials – lithium, cobalt, nickel and carbon – so that they can be reused in the next generation of batteries.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/lithium-is-finite-but-clean-technology-relies-on-such-non-renewable-resources-109630">Lithium is finite – but clean technology relies on such non-renewable resources</a>
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<h2>4. Hydrogen</h2>
<p>Battery electric vehicles aren’t the only solution. Hydrogen fuel cells combine hydrogen and oxygen from the air to produce water, generating electricity. If the hydrogen fuel is produced through electrolysis using renewable energy, then the process can have net zero CO₂ emissions. </p>
<p>Hydrogen fuels cells are less energy efficient than batteries, but the compressed hydrogen tank can be refuelled in less than five minutes and in a similar way to refuelling a petrol or diesel car. This makes hydrogen ideal for vehicles that undertake repeated long-distance journeys and are currently limited by the range and charging times of battery vehicles, such as taxis and transit vans.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/313747/original/file-20200205-149757-f8ngak.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/313747/original/file-20200205-149757-f8ngak.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313747/original/file-20200205-149757-f8ngak.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313747/original/file-20200205-149757-f8ngak.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313747/original/file-20200205-149757-f8ngak.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313747/original/file-20200205-149757-f8ngak.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313747/original/file-20200205-149757-f8ngak.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Hydrogen buses were introduced in London to help reduce air pollution.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/londonuk501-double-decker-bus-motion-hydrogen-1008539275">Pajor Pawel/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>Lorries and buses aren’t covered in the 2035 ban, but hydrogen is also an ideal alternative fuel for them. <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/environment/pollution-and-air-quality/cleaner-buses">London has eight hydrogen buses</a>, but there are just <a href="https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-news/107297/car-makers-urge-eu-to-invest-in-hydrogen-filling-stations">17 hydrogen refuelling stations in the UK, compared with 15,000 electric vehicle charging points</a>. A hydrogen refuelling network is urgently needed to help decarbonise the parts of the UK’s transport network that is hard for electric vehicles to reach.</p>
<p>The common theme across all of these points is investment. If the UK government really intends to meet its ambitious new target, then it will need to invest heavily and soon. If done right, this could reignite the automotive industry and position the UK as a world leader in electric vehicle production.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/imagine-newsletter-researchers-think-of-a-world-with-climate-action-113443?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=Imagineheader1131225">Click here to subscribe to our climate action newsletter. Climate change is inevitable. Our response to it isn’t.</a></em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/131225/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ashley Fly receives funding from the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) UK for research into digital vehicle engineering. </span></em></p>It may seem a long way away, but a 2035 ban requires investment and major changes right now.Ashley Fly, Lecturer in Vehicle Electrification, Loughborough UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/801232017-06-28T13:31:56Z2017-06-28T13:31:56ZTurkey bans teaching of evolution – but science is more than a belief system<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/176010/original/file-20170628-7344-farpxr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:6_editions_of_%27The_Origin_of_Species%27_by_C._Darwin,_Wellcome_L0051092.jpg#filelinks">Wellcome Images/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In the US there have been many attempts to <a href="https://ncse.com/library-resource/ten-major-court-cases-evolution-creationism">expunge evolution from the school curriculm</a> or demand that creationism – the idea that all life was uniquely created by God – is given equal treatment in science textbooks. While all these have failed, the government in Turkey has now <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-40384471">banned evolution from its national curriculum</a>.</p>
<p>US creationists want both views to be presented, to let children decide what to believe. Bids to reject this are wrongly characterised as attempts to shut down debate or free speech – to promote a scientific, atheistic, secular, ideology over a more moral, ethical, commonsense religious worldview.</p>
<p>Turkey’s decision goes much further. This isn’t about claiming equal treatment, it’s an outright ban. The government justifies it by claiming evolution is “difficult to understand” and “controversial”. Any controversy however is one manufactured by ultra-religious communities seeking to undermine science. Many concepts in science are more difficult than evolution, yet they still get taught.</p>
<h2>Creationist arguments</h2>
<p>Evolution, creationists argue, is just a theory – it’s not proven and so up for debate. Evolutionary trees (especially for humans) are regularly re-drawn after new fossil discoveries, showing how poor the theory is. After all, if the theory was correct, this wouldn’t keep changing. Often, creationists will pose a challenge for science to prove how life started, knowing that there is not yet a firm, accepted theory. Finally, there’s the king of all arguments: if we all evolved from monkeys, why are there still monkeys?</p>
<p>These arguments are packed with factual inaccuracies and logical fallacies. Evolution doesn’t need an explanation of how life started. It simply describes how life develops and diversifies. Humans did not evolve from monkeys – we‘re great apes. Modern apes, including humans, evolved from now extinct pre-existing ape species. We’re related to, not descended from, modern apes.</p>
<h2>Key creationist misconceptions</h2>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1109&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1109&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175893/original/file-20170627-7455-slswow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1109&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Darwin led a massive step forward.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/flyingtrilobite/3841648190/">Glendon Mellow/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
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<p>Creationists fail to understand that evolution itself is not a theory. Evolution happens. Life develops and diversifies, <a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/science-sushi/evolution-watching-speciation-occur-observations/">new species come into existence</a>. We can see intermediate life forms right now, such as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/jun/02/crawling-breathing-invasive-fish-a-major-disaster-if-it-reaches-australia">fish that are transitioning to living on land</a> and <a href="http://www.manatee-world.com/manatee-evolution/">land mammals that recently transitioned into aquatic life</a>. The “theory of evolution” explains how evolution takes place. Charles Darwin and <a href="http://wallacefund.info/">Alfred Russel Wallace</a> first described the mechanism that drives the change - natural selection - in 1858.</p>
<p>Creationists also fail to understand the difference between a theory and a law in science. This is something that even science graduates suffer from, <a href="https://evolution-outreach.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/1936-6434-6-12">as I’ve noted in my own research</a>. Theories explain scientific concepts. They are evidenced and accepted by the scientific community. Theories are the pinnacle of scientific explanation, not just a hunch or a guess. Laws however have a different role, they describe natural phenomena. For example, Newton’s laws of gravity do not explain how gravity happens, they describe the effects gravity has on objects. There are laws and theories for gravity. In biology however, there are few laws, so there is no law of evolution. Theories do not, given sufficient proof, become laws. They are not hierarchical.</p>
<p>A third issue is the lack of understanding of the nature of science. Science aims not to find some objective truth, but to elicit an explanation of natural phenomena. All scientific explanations are provisional. When new evidence is found that contradicts what we think we know, we change our explanations, sometimes rejecting theories that were once thought to be correct. Science is always working to try and falsify ideas. The more those ideas pass our tests, the more robust they are and the greater our confidence is that they are correct. Evolution has been tested for nearly 160 years. It’s never been falsified. Science only deals with natural phenomena, it doesn’t deal with or seek to explain the supernatural.</p>
<h2>Why the ban is dangerous</h2>
<p>Banning good science undermines all science, especially considering evolution’s place underpinning modern biology, with plenty of evidence to support it. For mainstream scientists, the fact that evolution happens is neither seriously questioned nor controversial. Any controversy in discussions of evolution resides in the role natural selection has in driving diversity and change, or the pace of that change.</p>
<p>This ban on teaching evolution in Turkish schools opens up the possibility that alternative, unscientific ideas may enter science teaching, from those who believe in a flat earth to deniers of gravity. </p>
<p>How do we deal with the apparent schism between religious belief and scientific evidence?</p>
<p>My <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00219266.2014.943790?journalCode=rjbe20">research</a> and approach has been to distinguish between religion, a belief system, and science, which works on the acceptance of evidence. Beliefs, including but not limited to religious beliefs, are often held irrationally, without evidence, and are resistant to change. Science is rational, based on evidence and is open to change when faced with new evidence. In science, we accept the evidence, rather than “choose to believe”.</p>
<p>Turkey’s move to ban the teaching of evolution contradicts scientific thinking, and tries to turn the scientific method into a belief system – as if it were a religion. It seeks to introduce supernatural explanations for natural phenomena, and to assert that some form of truth or explanation for nature exists beyond nature. The ban is unscientific, undemocratic and should be resisted.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/80123/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Williams does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Outlawing evolution in schools is based on creationist misconceptions – here’s how to counter themJames Williams, Lecturer in Science Education, Sussex School of Education and Social Work, University of SussexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/677382016-11-11T07:25:24Z2016-11-11T07:25:24ZA sad song of musical censorship in India and Pakistan<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144562/original/image-20161104-25322-1vo4681.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C29%2C4920%2C3142&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Hindustani classical music played on a river boat in Banaras.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Indian_culture_music.jpg">Jason Baker/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>At the end of September 2016, the Indian motion picture producer’s association, India’s largest organisation related to entertainment, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/sep/30/indian-film-producers-motion-pictures-association-imppa-ban-pakistani-actors-crew-kashmir-crisis-escalates">announced a ban</a> on all Pakistani artists. </p>
<p>In retaliation, Pakistan authorities imposed a <a href="http://qz.com/813745/pakistan-has-banned-all-indian-content-from-its-airwaves/">complete ban</a> on airing Indian content on all its TV channels, including <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/pakistan-bans-bollywood-and-indian-television-radio-kashmir-dispute-entertainment-industry-a7372456.html">Bollywood movies</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-india-pakistan-film-wars">This cultural war</a>, triggered by the September <a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Uri-terror-attack-Indian-Army-camp-attacked-in-Jammu-and-Kashmir-17-killed-19-injured/articleshow/54389451.cms">Uri attacks in Kashmir</a>, is far from new. </p>
<p>Indeed it is a sad reminder of last year, when the Indian ultra regionalist Maharashtrian-based party Shiv Sena <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/ghulam-ali-concert-called-off-after-shiv-sena-threats/article7735100.ece">threatened to disrupt</a> a performance by celebrity singer Ghulam Ali in Mumbai, forcing the concert to be cancelled.</p>
<p>What are we to make of these episodes that occur now with depressing regularity, enjoy prime-time popularity on Indian television and then die down, only to be recalled when yet another event takes its place? </p>
<p>As with so many things, there is a historical explanation for the appropriation of music and performance practices <a href="http://ier.sagepub.com/content/36/2/131.citation">as part of the nationalist project</a> in both India and Pakistan.</p>
<p>As a historian, I have investigated the very complex and contested history that music in North India had with Partition – when India and Pakistan were divided in 1947. The artificial boundaries that nationalism constructed then are being reinforced to this day via these music disputes.</p>
<h2>North Indian music mixes complex social worlds</h2>
<p>Until 1947, music, or more specifically classical music, in North India belonged to a complex social universe. It was written and performed in princely establishments, courts and bourgeois public spheres in cities. It was present in both Hindu Vaishnav temples and Sufi Islamic <em>silsilas</em> – social circles that formed around specific teachers and followers, where music was an integral channel for experiencing mystic ecstasy.</p>
<p>From these cultural and social milieu sprung <a href="http://crc.sagepub.com/content/7/3/209.abstract"><em>qawwali</em></a>, a form of spiritual devotional music popular to this day across South Asia.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/T8JuNTLBEeo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (here in 1980) was a world renowned qawwali artist.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>North Indian music flourished in the 17th and 18th centuries, in virtually all of Mughal North India, which extended from Gujarat in the west to Jaunpur and Benaras in the east (the current state of Uttar Pradesh); from the Punjab to the Mughal Deccan. It was part of a composite, Indo-Islamic culture, identified then as as “<a href="http://thewire.in/tag/ganga-jamuni-tehzeeb"><em>ganga jumni tehzib</em></a>”. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144477/original/image-20161103-25335-19kln0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144477/original/image-20161103-25335-19kln0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144477/original/image-20161103-25335-19kln0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144477/original/image-20161103-25335-19kln0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144477/original/image-20161103-25335-19kln0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=670&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144477/original/image-20161103-25335-19kln0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=670&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144477/original/image-20161103-25335-19kln0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=670&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Female musicians at the wedding of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, 1636.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The style incorporated acoustic elements from <a href="http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/20978/1/Widdess_Chapter.pdf">diverse sources</a> and rested on a multi-lingual repertoire, conveying the simplicity of both Hindu <em>bhakti</em> and Islamic sufi poetry. </p>
<p><a href="http://jhs.oxfordjournals.org/content/6/2/101.extract">This poetry</a> was inspired by popular devotional movements associated with Hinduism and Islam in the 15th century, which emphasised personal devotion and the value of a teacher. It commanded diverse genres that moved reasonably effortlessly between court and <em>kotha</em>: a space most commonly understood as brothel, but which was also part of the <a href="http://chandrakantha.com/articles/tawaif/2_tawaifs.html">popular entertainment scene</a>. </p>
<p>North Indian music also adapted musical instruments from South and Central Asia to produce new instruments such as the sitar and the <a href="http://chandrakantha.com/articles/indian_music/sarod.html">sarod</a>, and improvise with <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-bookreview/making-of-carnatic-music/article3209037.ece">new conceptions of melody and vocalisation</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144478/original/image-20161103-25319-1cgwh7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144478/original/image-20161103-25319-1cgwh7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=841&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144478/original/image-20161103-25319-1cgwh7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=841&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144478/original/image-20161103-25319-1cgwh7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=841&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144478/original/image-20161103-25319-1cgwh7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1057&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144478/original/image-20161103-25319-1cgwh7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1057&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144478/original/image-20161103-25319-1cgwh7j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1057&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ravi Shankar popularised the sitar in the West.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This music was carefully nurtured by specialist families with access to a vast repertoire and a galaxy of brilliant teachers, finding support in small courts that persisted even after the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/victorians/indian_rebellion_01.shtml">Great Mutiny of 1857</a>, when the Indian army revolted. </p>
<p>Following the mutiny, musical families were much reduced in power and stature, but found new enthusiasts among a growing middle-class gentry whose rise occurred in a new context of <a href="http://www.ggdc.net/maddison/articles/moghul_3.pdf">western education and colonial employment</a>.</p>
<h2>Music and modernity</h2>
<p>The heightened middle-class appreciation of music was mediated through the experience of modernity, which inevitably fed new anxieties about inheritance, culture and heritage that had to be projected in a way that was appropriately modern, chaste and spiritual. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144479/original/image-20161103-25356-2bfafd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144479/original/image-20161103-25356-2bfafd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144479/original/image-20161103-25356-2bfafd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144479/original/image-20161103-25356-2bfafd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144479/original/image-20161103-25356-2bfafd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=569&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144479/original/image-20161103-25356-2bfafd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=569&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144479/original/image-20161103-25356-2bfafd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=569&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Umrao Jaan, was a famous singer-courtesan of the 18th century, immortalised by Bollywood actress Rekha in 1981.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Music, practised by courtesans and Muslim <em>Ustads</em> (teachers and masters), had to be reconciled with the new aspirations of a western-educated, middle-class Hindu society. They needed to repurpose this entertainment to suit a Hindu-accented concept of Indian-ness.</p>
<p>The resolution that unfolded was a series of experiments in the late 19th and early 20th century, including publishing primers on music and setting up music appreciation societies. These were initiated by <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hindustani-Music-Listening-Aneesh-Pradhan-ebook/dp/B01DJEA0TE">nationalists and publicists</a> such as Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande and Vishnu Digamber Paluskar. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ORPFjXxZzZs?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">A 1971 documentary on V.D Paluskar, considered a main influence in popularising Hindustani music.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The societies that we mention here were early expressions of a growing middle class interest in music and its reformers who ended up assuming responsibility for music’s teaching and transmission. They also brought existing practitioners such as Abdul Karim Khan into a new regime of aesthetic standardisation and institutional support. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/An7c4ATsB2s?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Abdul Karim Khan (1871-1937) popularised and reformed the ‘kirana gharana’ style.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>Ustads</em> were persuaded to turn over their repertoire to be standardised and printed, while courtesans were marginalised in subtle and sometimes violent ways. Women were forced to give up their profession or move into new spaces afforded by the cinema, refashioning themselves in an <a href="http://www.womenonrecord.com/music-makers/artists/jaddanbai">appropriate manner</a> as Jaddan Bai, the mother of legendary and pioneer Bollywood artist Nargis, did.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kiGN2HACtKc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Jaddan Bai was the mother of Nargis, one of Bollywood’s first sweethearts.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Forced to choose sides</h2>
<p>After Partition, these hereditary practitioners were asked for the first time to choose the country they would live in. It was only then that the music of the region began to bear the scars of a violent disruption and division.</p>
<p>What was to happen even to the naming of this practice – was it to be Hindustani classical music or <em>ilm e mausiqi Pakistani</em>? This was a question that cut right to the heart of the problem; a <a href="http://www.khayaldarpan.info/">question</a> that musicians on both sides of the divide agonised over even as they struggled to maintain claims to lineage and authenticity. </p>
<p>Artists moved across borders, confused by the way events transpired. Some found it easy to settle down and make a niche for themselves, such as <a href="http://scroll.in/article/756301/indias-loss-pakistans-gain-the-journey-of-singing-great-noor-jehan-after-1947">singer Noor Jehan</a>, who settled in Pakistan. Others found it difficult to juggle offers in India with stays in Pakistan. </p>
<p>Following Partition, Bade Ghulam Ali (1902-1968), the legendary singer from the Punjab and a doyen of the <a href="http://www.parampara-sg.org/#!patiala-gharana/nl6u8">Patiala musical style</a>, came back to India and was helped to acquire Indian citizenship by Morarji Desai, the chief Minister of Bombay in 1957.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eFUqw7qzpMw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Legendary singer Ghulam Ali faced a stark choice after Partition.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There was no doubt that the violence of displacement and the zeal of the new states to prove their fidelity to national identities represented a loss for performers. Listeners too were ultimately losers, even if the politics of representation and consumption numbed them to the fractures that music and performance practice had sustained. </p>
<p>The debate is not framed in the same way today, but it was certainly a pressing one when Pakistan opted for a <a href="http://www.thefridaytimes.com/tft/pakistanis-listen-with-hearts-not-minds/">different set of musical forms</a> and cultural symbols to define its distinct heritage.</p>
<p>To this day, artists from Pakistan who sing classical music find <a href="http://www.dawn.com/news/1290329">receptive listeners in India</a> and share the general feeling that politics has very little understanding of a deeper and shared aesthetic experience. <a href="http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/music-is-spiritual-and-eternal-pak-classical-vocalist/1/142213.html">Nasiruddin Sami</a>, a Pakistani musician, has very close links to Delhi musical traditions and is very popular in the city.</p>
<p>This is certainly not to argue that both India and Pakistan did not nurture new creative artists or experiment fruitfully with genres such as the <em>ghazal</em> in Pakistan’s case, a poetic form that consists of rhyming couplets and that has enjoyed an immense resurgence.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0GLYKYgSE0Y?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The song ‘azadi’ (freedom) by sufi rock Pakistani band Junoon.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But we need to understand the shared nature of the <a href="http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/journals/index.php/TfC/article/viewFile/675/604">subcontinent’s traditions</a>, music perhaps being the most deeply felt. As Bade Ghulam Ali is supposed to <a href="http://www.deccanherald.com/content/88649/legend-alive-well.html">have said</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>If in every home one child was taught Hindustani classical music, this country would have never been partitioned.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Today, we live in a world that is saturated with sights and sounds that leak across borders, despite prohibitions and state posturings. In the digital age, bans make even less sense than older versions of censorship. </p>
<p>It appears mindless when governments speak of <a href="http://scroll.in/bulletins/36/money-plays-a-big-role-in-leading-a-fulfilled-life-but-here-are-some-other-factors-to-not-discount">patriotism</a> as some extreme form of clan loyalty, before which all sensibilities have to wither away. </p>
<p>Equally disquieting is that we, as consumers of infotainment, almost never seriously interrogate the banal but sinister intentions of government propaganda.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/67738/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Laksmi Subramanian does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Are music bans in India and Pakistan an appropriation of art and performances by nationalist imperatives?Laksmi Subramanian, Professor of History, Center for Studies in Social Sciences CalcuttaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/679232016-10-31T02:29:31Z2016-10-31T02:29:31ZSame old rhetoric cannot justify banning refugees from Australia<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/143835/original/image-20161031-15793-183ean6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A March 21, 2014 photograph of asylum seekers behind a fence at the Manus Island detention centre.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Eoin Blackwell</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The federal government <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/immigration-minister-peter-dutton-says-new-refugee-ban-will-stop-country-hopping-20161030-gse8jx.html">has announced</a> that asylum seekers attempting to reach Australia by boat will never be allowed to enter the country on any permanent or temporary visa, including a tourist visa. This applies to all of the 2500 asylum seekers who have been detained on Nauru or Manus Island at one time or another since the second half of 2013. </p>
<p>This will prevent asylum seekers who have family in Australia from ever meeting them in Australia. We know anecdotally that there are asylum seekers and refugees on Nauru and Manus Island in this position. Indeed, it is common for refugees to follow the same path to protection as family members who had earlier fled persecution. </p>
<h2>The numbers of asylum seekers on Manus and Nauru</h2>
<p>As <a href="http://newsroom.border.gov.au/channels/Operation-Sovereign-Borders/releases/monthly-operational-update-september-5">at September 30</a>, there were 1269 refugees and asylum seekers on Manus and Nauru (873 Manus, 396 Nauru). A further 551 asylum seekers have voluntarily returned to their country of origin since <a href="https://www.border.gov.au/about/operation-sovereign-borders">Operation Sovereign Borders</a> began on September 18. There have also been many involuntary returns when asylum seekers have been unsuccessful in their claims for protection, but have been unwilling to return to their country of origin. </p>
<p>The majority of those who remain on Nauru and Manus have been found to be refugees and are awaiting resettlement. Even if they were willing to return to their country of origin, it would be wrong to facilitate this. So <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1516/Quick_Guides/Offshore#_Total_number_of">although the numbers on Manus and Nauru have been falling</a>, the rate of decline has become progressively slower as a greater proportion have been found to be refugees and require resettlement.</p>
<h2>What is the rationale for the new measure?</h2>
<p>There has been some speculation that the reason for the new announcement is to send a message to asylum seekers on Nauru and Manus Island that they should take up the resettlement options offered them and not continue to hold out hope of making it to Australia.</p>
<p>But after three years, the government has failed to enter a durable resettlement agreement with any other country. The government claims that refugees can resettle permanently in Nauru and PNG. These are both inappropriate places of resettlement given the limited capacity of these countries to resettle asylum seekers and the demonstrable danger refugees face living there.</p>
<p>The arrangement with the Cambodian government for resettlement of refugees <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/world/australias-cambodia-refugee-resettlement-plan-a-failure-20160403-gnx3jv.html">was an abject failure</a>. The government spent $55 million to transfer five refugees to Cambodia. Only two remained for any length of time, and the Cambodian government admitted that its government “does not have the social programs to support them”. </p>
<p>If the new legislative proposal is an attempt to encourage asylum seekers to take up resettlement options, then the government needs to put some resettlement options on the table. This is surely the crucial next development in refugee policy. Further discrimination against those who attempted to reach Australia by boat is a distraction from this real issue. </p>
<p>Another possibility for the policy change is that there is an imminent threat of more boat arrivals.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/2016-10-30/joint-press-conference-minister-immigration-and-border-protection">In a press conference</a>, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said that the government was locked in a “battle of wills” with “criminal gangs of people smugglers”.</p>
<p>He continued: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>You should not underestimate the scale of the threat. These people smugglers are the worst criminals imaginable.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Despite this rhetoric, the government has given no indication that there is an imminent threat from people smugglers. On the contrary, <a href="http://newsroom.border.gov.au/channels/Operation-Sovereign-Borders/releases/monthly-operational-update-september-5">Operation Sovereign Borders statistics indicate</a> that since the beginning of 2015, there have been no “illegal” maritime arrivals transferred to Australian immigration authorities and no Suspected Illegal Entry Vessels (SIEVs) intercepted. </p>
<p>Government statements and media reports suggest two other possible policy rationales for the proposed changes to the law. </p>
<p>First, the Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has pointed to a phenomenon in which asylum seekers are entering Australia on partner visas, which the minister <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/asylum-seekers-who-come-by-boat-banned-for-life-under-new-laws-20161029-gsdvf7.html">considers “unacceptable”</a>. </p>
<p>If this is true, there are safeguards around partner visas. Specifically, partners have to be able to demonstrate a genuine intention to share their lives together into the future. They are initially granted a temporary two year visa, which can be converted to a permanent visa if the relationship is ongoing and proves to be genuine. </p>
<p>The government might want to consider the reason refugees are forming relationships with refugee advocates. Having been on Manus and Nauru for three years, with very limited access to people in the outside world, it would not be surprising that some refugees form close relationships with the few outsiders they have the opportunity to encounter. The government also needs to consider whether it is right to prevent Australian citizens from sponsoring partners to Australia with whom they share a genuine loving relationship. </p>
<p>If the government decides there is no entitlement for Australians to have long term relationships with refugees who attempted to reach Australia by boat, a more targeted response than a blanket ban on those refugees ever entering Australia is to tighten the rules around partner visas. This would mean either changing the requirements for the relationship status for a partner visa, or excluding asylum seekers and refugees from accessing this class of visa.</p>
<p>Finally, there is <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2016/10/30/new-zealand-still-a-live-option-as-dutton-defends-lifetime-ban/">some speculation in the media</a> that the proposed change to the law will pave the way for agreements with NZ and the US to resettle asylum seekers from Nauru and Manus Island, because it will mean that asylum seekers settled there will not be able to subsequently enter Australia. This is logically flawed. </p>
<p>It is not clear why blocking a subsequent pathway from the US or NZ to Australia will act as a deterrent for asylum seekers to attempt to get to Australia by boat. There is little doubt that any of the asylum seekers on Nauru or Manus would be delighted to be resettled in a developed country such as NZ and the US without ever entering Australia in the future. Deterrence lies not in the lack of choice of place of resettlement, but in the lack of any resettlement options at all. </p>
<h2>Policy based on disproportionate fear</h2>
<p>The government’s fear is that if it backs down and resettles asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru in Australia, the people smuggling trade will begin again in earnest. <a href="https://theconversation.com/resettling-refugees-in-australia-would-not-resume-the-people-smuggling-trade-60253">I have argued elsewhere</a> that this is very unlikely. Given the manifest immediate harm to refugees and asylum seekers on Nauru and Manus Island, it is worth risking the resumption of boat arrivals to solve the humanitarian crisis on our doorstep that is entirely of Australia’s making. </p>
<p>The government’s message to people who might subsequently attempt to get to Australia is loud and clear: you are not welcome, you will not be resettled in Australia, you will spend many years in remote locations that will lead many of you to develop serious mental illness, and many of you will commit suicide or self-harm. We cannot guarantee your safety at these locations. You risk being murdered or sexually assaulted. Things will be so bad that many of you will choose to return to your country of origin, where you fear persecution, rather than tolerate these conditions. </p>
<p>Since October 2013, nearly 2500 asylum seekers have had to suffer for the Australian government to send this message. Does it really need to add to the list of detriments that asylum seekers will never enter Australia in any capacity for the rest of their lives? Where does it end?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/67923/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alex Reilly receives funding from Horticulture Innovation Australia for research into labour supply in the Horticulture Industry. He is also a member of the board of the Refugee Advocacy Service of South Australia, a voluntary service providing free legal and migration advice to asylum seekers.</span></em></p>The government’s message to asylum seekers is already clear: you are not welcome, and you will not be resettled in Australia. Surely that message does not need to be any harsher.Alex Reilly, Deputy Dean and Director of the Public Law and Policy Research Unit, Adelaide Law School, University of AdelaideLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/624522016-07-14T07:31:37Z2016-07-14T07:31:37ZZimbabwe’s riots: the rise of the informal trader and a new political economy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130429/original/image-20160713-12362-3dkhs9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Protesters are standing up against the police's road blocks in Harare, Zimbabwe.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/Philimon Bulawayo</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="http://www.voazimbabwe.com/a/violent-riots-rock-beitbridge-as-preotesters-demand-reversal-of-import-ban/3400881.html">upheaval</a> sweeping through Zimbabwe comes with a new economic and political reality – the informalisation of the country’s economy. In Zimbabwe today, the informal sector <em>is</em> the economy.</p>
<p>In Beitbridge, on the border with South Africa, furious cross-border traders set fire to a warehouse in protest against import bans recently imposed. In Harare <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-zimbabwe-protests-idUSKCN0ZK1DO">taxi operators</a> protested against the cost of continuous police road blocks, where spot fines are extracted.</p>
<p>Both these incidents highlight how Zimbabwe’s economy has changed dramatically. <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-36776401">Formal unemployment</a> runs at 90% <a href="https://africacheck.org/reports/is-zimbabwes-unemployment-rate-4-60-or-95-why-the-data-is-unreliable/">or more</a>, but this doesn’t mean that all these people are not doing things. They are, but not in the jobs of the past. </p>
<p>Livelihoods are improvised and flexible. Different ways of earning income – farming, trading, dealing, manufacturing, mining, selling services and a host of other distributive activities – have been combined. These shifts are reliant on deeply embedded social relationships.</p>
<p>But little is known about the informal economy. And policies often upset and disrupt, rather than support and nurture. So it is no surprise that the government’s decision to arbitrarily impose import controls – on everything from mayonnaise to body lotion and building materials – was resisted. In the name of domestic manufacturing protection, the livelihoods of many thousands of traders who bring goods from South Africa were affected. No wonder they were angry.</p>
<h2>Nature of the informal economy</h2>
<p>The informalisation of the economy is a pattern across Africa, as <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lewis-Henry-Morgan-Lectures-Paperback/dp/0822358867/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1468147899&sr=8-1&keywords=ferguson+give+a+man#reader_B00WU4PMAC">James Ferguson eloquently describes</a>. New networks of economic activity have emerged, as has a vibrant spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship. This is in the context of extreme hardship for sure, as economies fail to deliver equitable growth. </p>
<p>Ferguson argues that the improvised livelihoods of the poor are creating a new distributive economy, and with this a distributive politics. This is having a major impact on the way we understand African political economy – and not only in Zimbabwe. </p>
<p>The shock is perhaps greater in Zimbabwe, as in the past the “formal” sector was larger and stable, where “jobs” and “wages” were expected, especially for men at a certain age. But the post-structural adjustment growth of informality is a phenomenon everywhere; and is accelerating, especially in countries where reliance on a core commodity sector was the economy of the past.</p>
<p>Thus the informal sector – a huge and massively varied category – represents a very substantial proportion of Africa’s economic activity. In the rural areas this has always been the case – small-scale farming dominates and rural dwellers have always engaged in a diverse range of activities, both on and off farm. </p>
<p>Today such complex livelihoods are the norm in town too. The jobs of the past in the factories, mines, farms and so on no longer exist. When they appear, the jobs come temporarily. The alternative is a set of activities that don’t fit the former expectation of a “job” or “employment”, and are so not counted as such.</p>
<p>Ever since <a href="http://www.academia.edu/17730339/20_Africa_s_urban_revolution_and_the_informal_economy">Keith Hart</a> wrote about Africa’s informal economy long ago, many people have pointed to its importance. In recent years, there has been a growth in scholarship that has attempted to grapple with the economic, social, cultural, political and geographical dimensions of informal economies. These include the excellent work of <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=rvd3_sjE4c8C&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=kate+meagher+informal+economy&ots=WIGp5VaBYS&sig=tLfJcOZU563lHjMKiviXWxrT7lM#v=onepage&q=kate%20meagher%20informal%20economy&f=false">Kate Meagher</a> in Nigeria and <a href="http://www.vumelana.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Document-49-Meagher_WIEGO_WP27.pdf">more broadly</a>.</p>
<h2>Ignored, dismissed, berated</h2>
<p>But in public policy, statistical data collection and media commentary, the new real economy in so many places has been ignored, dismissed or berated. Responses have been inappropriate too. </p>
<p>Formalising the informal is not the point, and attempts at converting everything into a projectified “small enterprise” are misguided. Controlling and regulating will not work, and will be resisted, sometimes violently. And yes, while much activity is outside the ambit of the state, and not taxable, it is the lifeblood of the economy – and certainly is in Zimbabwe. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.ssoar.info/ssoar/bitstream/handle/document/36203/ssoar-afrspectrum-2007-3-meagher-Introduction_special_issue_on_informal.pdf?sequence=1">Yet glorifying and romanticising the informal is not the solution either</a>. Living in the informal sphere is tough. Informal activity is precarious, fragile, sometimes illegal and often subject to arbitrary taxation from those in authority. This is the case with the road blocks affecting informal transport operators across Zimbabwe. Incomes are small and highly variable and the costs of patronage, coercion and control can be high, economically and psychologically.</p>
<p>The events of the last few weeks in Zimbabwe point to the need for a new accommodation between the informal and formal and between the economies and livelihoods of the 90% and the state. A new political economy is emerging, where the class relations of the past are no longer relevant. State-economy-citizen relations must be rethought. </p>
<p>Rather than imagining the informal economy as somehow outside, and needing to be brought in, it has to be thought of as central to development. Providing support, generating legitimacy, assuring accountability and preventing exploitative predatory, patronage relations are all roles for the state; ones that the Zimbabwean state is failing on currently. </p>
<p>This means attempts at controlling, regulating and incorporating have to be avoided, despite the knee-jerk temptations. These are the key lessons from rioting in Beitbridge and Harare. The 90%, after all, are the electorate. They will protest in many ways if livelihoods in increasingly difficult circumstances are jeopardised.</p>
<p>This does not mean that attempts to rebuild the formal sector should cease. Far from it. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa was in London <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03ztvm3">making that case</a> for Zimbabwe last week to the usual <a href="http://nehandaradio.com/2016/07/05/chinamasa-confronted-london/">howls of protest</a>. But the refinancing that will hopefully flow from the International Financial Institutions and other private investors will need to find its way to the new economy, and not just prop up the old.</p>
<p>For in the longer term, it is the informal entrepreneur, the niche market trader, the small-scale artisan and manufacturer and the smallholder farmer who will scale up and multiply the massive, but uncounted and perennially unsupported informal economy.</p>
<p>Managing and supporting such a transition is the central economic challenge of the future. The standard models and forms of expertise derived from the old economy are inadequate. A new politics and economy of the informal urgently needs inventing.</p>
<p><em>A version of this post first appeared in <a href="https://zimbabweland.wordpress.com/">Zimbabweland</a></em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/62452/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Scoones receives funding from the UK Economic and Social Research Council.</span></em></p>The protest by Zimbabweans against police road blocks and banned imports highlights a new political economy that is rising on the back of informalisation of the economy.Ian Scoones, Professorial Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, University of SussexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.