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Movie Review: 'Danny Collins' is an interesting fare

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Danny Collins

Producer: Nimitt Mankad, Jessie Nelson, Denise Di Novi & Shivani Ravat
Director: Dan Fogelman
Star Cast: Al Pacino, Annette Bening, Jennifer Garner, Bobby Cannavale, Christopher Plummer, Katrina Cas, Giselle Eisenberg, Melissa Benoist & Josh Peck
Genre: Comedy Drama
Verdict: Good

Debutante Director Dan Fogelman in his debut directorial offering Danny Collins has tackled a true story of a reputed folk singer Steve Tilston. All in all Danny Collins is an offbeat and a thought provoking movie.

Plot: Danny Collins (Al Pacino) is an aging 70s rocking folk singer who cannot give up his extravagant ways of living. Once he also gifts away his brand new Mercedes to a hotel’s bell boy Nicky Ernst (Josh Peck). But once when his manager Frank Grubman (Christopher Plummer) uncovers a 40 year old undelivered letter written to him by John Lenon & Yoko Ono, Danny decides to change the course of his life and embarks on a heartfelt journey to rediscover his family, find true love and begin a new life.

Aces: Dan Fogelman’s sensitive treatment of the subject at hand. The sterling performance of a dynamic actor Al Pacino who really sinks his teeth into every role of his career. And the cute & lovable pair of Nicky Ernst (Josh Peck) & Jamie (Melissa Benoist) albeit in their brief roles.

Minuses: Couldn’t find any flaws to talk about.

Last Word: A short & Sweet movie about a legendary singer’s journey of self realisation.

SC prohibits politicians' photos on government ads

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Supreme Court India

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday prohibited the use of photographs of political leaders, including ministers, in advertisements issued by the government and its agencies, saying that it leads to promotion of personality cult.

The apex court bench, headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi, in its judgment, however, permitted the use of photographs of the president, prime minister, Chief Justice of India and departed leaders, including Father of the Nation, in the advertisements issued by the government and its agencies.

The court said the use of photographs of an individual, leader or minister not only has a tendency to associate an individual with a project, but leads to a personality cult.

The court said this was a direct injustice to democracy.

(IANS)

Child labour law amended: Children below 14 can now work in family businesses

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child-labour

New Delhi: Government today gave its nod to a proposal allowing children below 14 years of age to work only in family enterprises or entertainment industry with certain conditions while completely banning their employment elsewhere.

The original child labour law banned employment of children below 14 in only 18 hazardous industries.

The amendments also make it clear that children between 14 and 18 years will also not be allowed to work in hazardous industries.

The changes in the labour law also provide for stricter punishment for employers for violation. While there is no penalty provision for parents for the first offence, the employer would be liable for punishment even for the first violation.

In case of parents, the repeat offenders may be penalised with a monetary fine up to Rs 10,000

In case of first offence, the penalty for employers has been increased up to two and half times from the existing up to Rs 20 thousand to up to Rs 50,000 now.

In case of a second or subsequent offence of employing any child or adolescent in contravention of the law, the minimum imprisonment would be one year which may extend to three years.

Earlier, the penalty for second or subsequent offence of employing any child in contravention of the law was imprisonment for a minimum term of six months which may extend to two years.

After the Cabinet nod, Government will move official amendments to the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012 in Parliament.

While child rights activists were opposed to the dilution saying it will promote child labour, those involved in business maintained that children need to be trained in traditional arts at an early stage or they will not be able to acquire the required skills like weaving and stitching.

The age of prohibition of employment has been linked to age under Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009.

Exceptions have, however, been made in case of works in which the child helps the family or family enterprises.

The condition is that such enterprises should not involved any hazardous occupation. Another condition set forth is that they should work after school hours or during vacations.

Moreover, exemption has also been given where the child works as an artist in an audio-visual entertainment industry, including advertisement, films, television serials or any such other entertainment or sports activities except the circus.

This exemption is also conditional and stipulates taking up prescribed safety measures

An official statement said that while considering a total prohibition on employment of child, it would be prudent to also keep in mind the country’s social fabric and socio- economic conditions.

Justifying the amendments, it said, “In a large number of families, children help their parents in their occupations like agriculture, artisanship etc and while helping the parents, children also learn the basics of occupations.

“Therefore, striking a balance between the need for education for a child and the reality of the socio-economic condition and social fabric in the country, the Cabinet has approved that a child can help his family or family enterprise, which is other than any hazardous occupation or process, after his school hours or during vacation.”

Besides a new definition of adolescent has been introduced in the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act and employment of adolescents (14 to 18 years of age) has been prohibited in hazardous occupations and processes.

“These provisions would go a long way in protecting adolescents from the employment not suitable to their age,” it said.

The statement said that in case of first offence of employing any child or adolescent in contravention of the law, penalty would be imprisonment for a term not less than six months but which may extend to two years.

Besides they could be fined an amount not less than Rs 20,000 which may extend to Rs 50,000. They could also be penalised with both imprisonment and monetary fine.

Earlier, penalty for employing any child in contravention of the law was imprisonment for a term not less than three months, which could extend to one year.

The monetary penalty for the same was a fine not less than Rs 10000, which could extend to Rs 20,000 either alone or with the imprisonment.

In case of a second or subsequent offence of employing any child or adolescent in contravention of the law, the minimum imprisonment would be one year which may extend to three years now.

Earlier, penalty for second or subsequent offence of employing any child in contravention of the law was imprisonment for a minimum term of six months which may extend to two years.

Besides, the offence of employing any child or adolescent in contravention of the law by an employer has been made cognisable which allows police to arrest without a warrant.

Government believes that this provision would act as a deterrent against the offence of employing a child or adolescent in contravention of the law.

In the principal Act, the same punishment was provided for parents or guardians for permitting a child to work in contravention of the Act, as prescribed for the employer of the child.

However, taking a “realistic view” of the socio-economic conditions of the parents, there would be no punishment in case of a first offence by them and in case of a second and subsequent offence, the penalty would be a fine which may extend to Rs 10,000, the statement said.

The proposal also provides for the setting up of a Child and Adolescent Labour Rehabilitation Fund for one or more districts for rehabilitation of children or adolescents rescued.

Thus, the Act itself will provide for a fund to carry out rehabilitation activities.

The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act (CLPR Act) 1986 prohibits employment of a child in 18 occupations and 65 processes and regulates the conditions of working of children in other occupations/ processes.

As per this Act, a child means any person who has not completed 14 years of age. The Act provides punishment for the offence of employing or permitting employment of any child in contravention of the provisions of this Act.

The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 enjoins the state to ensure free and compulsory education to all children in the age group of 6 to 14 years.

A corollary to this would be that if a child is in the work place, he would miss school.

It was felt that thus, the CLPR Act is not aligned to the RTE Act as it permits employment of child below 14 years in occupations and processes not prohibited.

It was also felt that the CLPR Act is not in conformity with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions 138 and 182, which provide for minimum age of entry into employment and prohibition of employment of persons below 18 years, in work which is likely to harm health, safety and morals.

The amendments being brought in the Act takes care of these anomalies, the government said.

(PTI)

Strong 6.8-magnitude quake hits northeastern Japan

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Japan Earthquake

Tokyo: A strong 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northeastern Japan this morning, the US Geological Survey said, but authorities did not issue a tsunami warning and there were no immediate reports of damage.

The quake struck at 6:12 am (local time) off the east coast of Japan’s Honshu island in the Pacific Ocean, according to USGS, at a depth of 38.9 kilometres.

Japan’s meteorological agency said there was no immediate tsunami threat from the quake.

The quake hit 33 kilometres south east of the nearest city of Ofunato. Japan’s islands are situated at the conjuncture of several tectonic plates and experience a number of relatively violent quakes every year.

(AFP)

Modi government not much different from UPA: Govindacharya

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File photo

File photo

New Delhi: Days after Arun Shourie criticised Narendra Modi Government, BJP’s former ideologue KN Govindacharya on Tuesday too questioned its performance, saying it was not much different from the UPA dispensation and the PM has to come up with “Made for India” policies.

Govindacharya, founder of outfit Rashtriya Swabhiman Andolan, said people continue to witness the “same partial” and “corrupt” dispensation at the central level.

“The government has completed a year. But at this moment, we can’t see a ground to list their achievements, which is a matter of concern. On one hand, it is directionless (on policy issues). On the other, there are internal differences amongst ministries.

“People feel even though Modiji looks different from others…People will have their own assessments…. But (I) can’t see much of a difference in the (two) Governments. Same partiality, corruption is there,” he told reporters.

On the Government’s policies over land acquisition bill and concepts of Smart Cities and Make in India, he cautioned the Prime Minister Modi over his advisors in these matters.

“I don’t know who are the advisors of Narendra Modi… who unnecessarily (have) brought into his head this type of a problem of Land Acquisition bill in which the basic norms could not be followed.

“Therefore, I think, that a clever person like Narendra Mod…I think he should beware of his advisors,” he said.

Govindacharya advised the government to properly supplement the “Make in India” concept with “Make for India” and “Made by India” policies.

“Otherwise, it will just be a signboard that ‘India on Sale’, which won’t do any good to people of Bharat,” he said.

Shourie, a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, had earlier this month hit out at the Modi Government saying its economic policy was “directionless” while the social climate was causing “great anxiety” among the minorities.

(PTI)

FIR against IIPM founder Arindam Chaudhuri after UGC accuses him of misleading students

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Arindam Choudhari

New Delhi: Delhi Police have registered an FIR against Arindam Chaudhuri, founder of Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM), on the basis of a complaint by the University Grants Commission of “misleading, cheating and fooling” its students as its courses were not acknowledged by any recognised authority.

“We have registered an FIR under Section 420 of IPC against IIPM Dean Arindam Choudhari and his father Malayendra Kisor Chaudhuri, who is a Director, based on the UGC complaint. We are probing the matter,” Joint CP (Crime) Ravindra Yadav said.

A notice has been sent to both of them to join the investigation, police said.

IIPM, however, has questioned the UGC complaint and said the institute was not cheating its students.

The UGC, in its complaint, has said that despite the fact its courses are not authorised, the institute was “fooling” the students by charging a hefty fee from them.

Chaudhari said in a statement it was sad that some sections of the media have decided to pick up a case that was 6 months old and wondered how this could amount to cheating.

“UGC and AICTE keep themselves in news by targeting IIPM with their lies because we have stayed consciously out of their purview and accused them of massive corruption”, he said.

“We have never claimed that the institute is recognised by any statutory body nor have we claimed we give degrees. We give certificates and write clearly everywhere that “students interested in de jure recognition of IIPM’s programmes need not apply to IIPM! Its written clearly since 1970s in our prospectus and in our websites since it came into effect,” the IIPM dean also said.

“We have been cooperating with the police ever since the first notice came and will continue to do so as law abiding citizens,” he added.

(PTI)

Passion for justice: Mukul Sinha’s pioneering work

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Following is the introductory chapter of a booklet on the life and works of Advocate Mukul Sinha, compiled and published by Friends of Mukul Sinha. It will be released today evening at a Convention on Reclaiming Democracy in Ahmedabad.

Mukul-Sinha

 

by Arvind Narrain and Saumya Uma

Mukul Sinha passed away on 12 May 2014. His death occurred just before the results of the national elections were declared on 16 May 2014. The general election of 2014 brought the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government to power.

In the new political context, the dangers of forgetting what happened in Gujarat in 2002 are real.  The truly heroic efforts of Mukul Sinha and the small band of courageous, committed and persistent activists and lawyers resulted in the unprecedented conviction of over 100 persons for carnage-related cases. This now stands in danger not only of being forgotten but also overturned. Simultaneously, the threat and intimidation to civil society activists has increased.

It is in this defining moment, that we immensely feel the absence of Mukul Sinha. It is also in this context that we felt the necessity to attempt, through this publication, an understanding of what his work means to all of us, as a source of motivation and resolve to take forward his efforts towards justice and accountability.

Who was Mukul Sinha?  

As the range of tributes in this volume makes clear, Mukul Sinha was a trade union leader as well as a labour and service lawyer who shot to   national fame as the uncompromising and fearless legal spearhead who   sought to ensure accountability for what happened in Gujarat in 2002.

By their achievements in Gujarat, Mukul as well as the numerous   other activists from Gujarat have sent out a message that, justice is   indeed possible and creative lawyering and human rights lawyering lie   in goading the system to work even in the most difficult circumstances.   In doing the impossible, Mukul was an inspiration.

Why This Volume?  

This volume seeks to tell the story of the inspirational force that was Mukul Sinha from many facets. Mukul Sinha‘s own words, as reproduced   through a conversation with him in February 2013, highlight the varied aspects of his work, his strategic engagement with the law and his vision  of justice. His writings indicate a passionate commitment to working for labour rights, slum dwellers rights, environmental rights as well as the right to life and security of every person, immaterial of his or her religious or caste identity. What emerges in the course of this narrative is not only a political commitment but equally the skill, persistence and hard work which are the necessary concomitants to actualizing this vision of justice. Mukul Sinha‘s writings indicate the range of his concerns right from the politics of science to the issue of secularism and globalization to labour law issues such as the minimum wage.

A modest and self-effacing person, Mukul was not one to highlight   his own achievements. To get a sense of his enormous contribution   to nurturing a vision of democracy, one needs to understand and   assimilate his work through the people he worked with and the   people he inspired. The tributes paid to Mukul by fellow travellers   in the pursuit of justice emphasize the enormous importance of his   work. Fellow activists from Gujarat including Nirjhari Sinha, Fr. Cedric   Prakash, Pratik Sinha, and Gagan Sethi have penned heartfelt tributes   on the gap which Mukul‘s absence opens up in Gujarat as well as the   resolve to take Mukul‘s work forward.

The fact that Mukul‘s impact was not limited to Gujarat alone but has 9 had an impact at a national level emerges from the tributes by Upendra Baxi, Harsh Mander, Mihir Desai, Manisha Sethi, Mahtab Alam, Ajit Sahi, Saumya Uma and Arvind Narrain.

In addition to the public persona of Mukul Sinha, a personal side to him emerges from a range of tributes. Pravin Mishra, writes that he was ―an activist, scientist, lawyer, cook, poet, singer, lover, father, comrade and a great human who cared for every fellow human but cared very little when people misunderstood him.‖ He was also an atheist, communist, an advocate with legal acumen, grit and determination as well as a sense of humour.

The tributes also talk about the final days before his death when he continued working from his hospital bed in the Intensive Care Unit. He was dictating material to be uploaded on his website, discussing legal strategies with colleagues on important cases and asking for court documents to study and analyze. Highlighted by Mihir Desai, Harsh Mander and Gagan Sethi in their tributes to him, these are a poignant reminder of Mukul‘s passionate commitment to justice.

A running thread through the contributions is the thought—how does one remember someone who was so invaluable? The thought which echoes through all the tributes is that to remember Mukul Sinha is to remember our own humanity, as a gesture, not towards the past but towards the future.

The only genuine tribute one can pay Mukul is to bring the quality of both heart and head to human rights activism and redouble our efforts to ensure that the gains of the past are not lost as we face more difficult battles in the near future.  One also learns from Mukul that the defining quality of an activist is a stubborn will to fight for justice. Mukul‘s life also embodies the dictum that the more injustice there is, the stronger is the commitment to combat it. Mukul Sinha embodied the politics of a collective aspiration for a more just world and has contributed immeasurably to the nourishing of our utopias.

We hope that this volume functions as a spark of inspiration, reminding us of our rich histories of struggle and provides us the resources and the impetus to navigate the future with hope, commitment, resilience and humour–qualities which Mukul Sinha embodied.

Swedish court refuses to lift warrant against Julian Assange

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Warrant against WikiLeaks founder and whistleblower will not be lifted

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will still face arrest if he leaves the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he has lived in political asylum since 2012.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will still face arrest if he leaves the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he has lived in political asylum since 2012.

by Common Dreams

The Swedish Supreme Court has rejected WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange’s appeal to lift the arrest warrant against him.

Assange still faces arrest if he leaves the Ecuadorian embassy where he has been living in political asylum since 2012. He has said he fears being extradited to the U.S., where an ongoing investigation into WikiLeaks is still underway, if arrested by Swedish authorities. WikiLeaks in 2010 published more than 700,000 classified military and State Department documents, some of which exposed U.S. war crimes.

The arrest warrant stems from sexual assault allegations against Assange in Sweden, although he has not been formally indicted.

“The supreme court notes that investigators have begun efforts to question Julian Assange in London. The supreme court finds no reason to lift the arrest warrant,” the court statedon Monday.

Assange has denied the allegations against him. In March, Swedish prosecutors offered to interview him in London, dropping their years-long request that he come to Sweden for questioning. Assange has agreed to be interviewed in London, his lawyer said last month.

Houthis intensify use of child soldiers, violating international law: HRW

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A Yemeni child lies in a bed at a hospital in the capital Sanaa on May 12, 2015, a day after he was wounded in an air strike by Saudi-led coalition hit an arms depot on the eastern outskirts of Sanaa. (AFP/Mohammed Huwais)

A Yemeni child lies in a bed at a hospital in the capital Sanaa on May 12, 2015, a day after he was wounded in an air strike by Saudi-led coalition hit an arms depot on the eastern outskirts of Sanaa. (AFP/Mohammed Huwais)

by Hayat Norimine, Al Bawaba

The Human Rights Watch called for an immediate stop to the use of child soldiers in Yemen’s armed groups Tuesday, as Houthi rebel group intensifies its recruitment of children to use in their fight against Yemen’s government loyalists.

The monitor said the groups’ use of child soldiers violates international law and should face prosecution. Since September 2014 the HRW said the armed militants have increasingly been using children, aged at least as young as 12, in the armed conflict. Some are used as scouts and first aid assistants, while others are trained to fight.

“All armed groups in Yemen should reject sending children to battle or using them to support fighting,” HRW special adviser Fred Abrahams said. “The cost to these young people – the trauma, the injuries, and the lost schooling – is huge, as is the cost to Yemen’s future.”

Children with the Houthis and other armed groups make up about a third of all fighters in Yemen, according to UNICEF. Armed groups have recruited at least 140 children in one month alone, from late March to April.

The HRW said there have been several reports of 14- to 16-year-old soldiers carrying rifles and handguns from all parties of the war. One witness told the organization of a 7-year-old Houthi fighter standing at a checkpoint with an assault rifle.

A Houthi recruiter told the organization the children in active combat receive military training, while others provide first aid, collect bodies, carry food and ammunition or serve as guards.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon published a list of violations against children in May that included the use of children in armed forces by armed forces in Yemen.

The Human Rights Watch interviewed several children who had been recruited by the Houthis to fight in the war and wounded, including a boy who was shot in the chest and continued to fight after recovery.

Indonesia to 'turn back every boat carrying Rohingyas'

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Military says it would not allow boats as nearly 2,000 migrants arrive in Indonesia and Malaysia in past two days.

Indonesian paramedic assists a migrant child at a clinic after being rescued from a boat in Indonesia's Aceh province [Reuters]

Indonesian paramedic assists a migrant child at a clinic after being rescued from a boat in Indonesia’s Aceh province [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

Indonesian military has told Al Jazeera that they will send back any boat with Rohingya migrants entering its waters as a vessel carrying hundreds of migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh was turned away towards Malaysia.

Fuad Basya, Indonesian military spokesman, said that they pulled back a boat “full of people in dire conditions, smelling bad, some were screaming”, adding that they provided the migrants with water, food, medicine and fuel.

AFP news agency reported that the boat carrying an estimated 400 migrants was intercepted on the coast of northwestern Aceh region on Monday.

Meanwhile, rights groups have urged regional governments to save thousands of migrants believed to be stranded at sea in Southeast Asia and at the risk of death.

An estimated 6,000 to 8,000 Bangladeshis and Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar remain trapped in crowded, wooden boats, officials and activists said on Tuesday.

Nearly 2,000 people have reached Malaysia and Indonesia in the past two days after Thailand announced a crackdown on smuggling routes. They were rescued from overcrowded boats after being stranded at sea.

Myanmar shirks responsibility

Even as a large number of migrants originated from Myanmar, its government said that they will not take responsibility for migrants who are not their own citizens.

“If it is true and proven that they are from Myanmar, we will take responsibility for them. But not the Bangladeshis,” Zaw Htay, the director of Myanmar’s president’s office told Al Jazeera.

“Some of the Rohingya people may have come from Bangladesh. We can’t be responsible for them. But we do not accept the name Rohingya. They are Bengali,” Htay added referring to Myanmar’s long-persecuted Rohingya Muslim community.

The Rohingya, who are Muslim, have for decades suffered from state-sanctioned discrimination in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, which considers them illegal settlers from Bangladesh even though their families have lived there for generations.

Those comments come a day after more than a 1,000 migrants, including children from both countries, were detained in Malaysia after they arrived in the popular Malaysian resort island of Langkawi.

The police chief in Langkawi told Al Jazeera’s Karishma Vyas that 1,158 people were being held on the island. At least 672 are Bangladeshi, and around 486 of them are Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar.

At least 100 women and 60 children were among them. The migrants were in a very poor state, suffering from dehydration as well as hunger.

The police say they believe the captain as well as the other traffickers on the three boats had escaped in another vessel and left the migrants to their own devices.

Regional problem

The Arakan Project, a group advocating for the rights of Rohingya, has said as many as 8,000 people may be adrift.

Chris Lewa, the director of Arakan Project, told Al Jazeera that “there were at least three other boats near Langkawi island in Malaysia – one of them in distress” on Monday night.

She said that a big concern is where these migrants could go, and despite this being a regional problem, if there was any country willing to deal with them.

Earlier, the International Organisation for Migration called on Southeast Asian governments to find and rescue the migrants trapped at sea.

Joe Lowry, a spokesman for the organisation, told Al Jazeera that some of the migrants may have been at sea since early March.

He said that from what they’ve seen so far, many of the migrants who make it to the shore are in poor health, with some suffering from vitamin B deficiency and acute malnutrition.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has said 25,000 people are believed to have embarked from January to March, double the previous year’s pace, and that an estimated 300 had died.

Nearly 2,000 people have reached Malaysia and Indonesia in the past two days [Reuters]

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