Inspired by the Monkey King. Cry for primate awareness? Hmm... up for interpretation.

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Exploitant : Keolis Dijon Mobilités

Réseau : Divia

Ligne : L7

Lieu : Chevigny (Chevigny-Saint-Sauveur, F-21)

Lien TC Infos : tc-infos.fr/vehicule/35251

Parys Mountain – in the Welsh language Mynydd Parys – is located south of the town of Amlwch in north east Anglesey, Wales. It is the site of a large copper mine that was extensively exploited in the late 18th century.

Contents

History

The mountain was mined for copper ore in the early Bronze Age, as shown by sub-surface debris nearly 4,000 years old revealed during excavations in 2002. Since then access has been regained to the sealed underground workings of the Parys mine revealing further evidence for this ancient mining. Parys Mountain is thus one of the few sites in Britain where there is evidence for the prehistoric beginnings of the British metal mining industry.

The 18th century miners recognised that they were following in the steps of much earlier workers, an observation that was then linked to the discovery locally of copper ingots bearing Roman inscriptions.

In 1764 Charles Roe of Macclesfield was granted a 21-year lease by the Bayly family to work the mountain for copper. Rowland Pugh, a local miner, discovered the "Great Lode" on 2 March 1768 and was rewarded with a bottle of whisky and a rent-free house for his lifetime.

Although the ore here was of low quality, this was more than compensated for by the fact that it occurred in two large masses close to the surface.[1] Initially ore was worked on the surface from shallow shafts, next by open-pit mining and finally underground from adits or from shafts. The ore was broken into small lumps by hand, the best ore being shipped to Lancashire or to the Lower Swansea valley in South Wales through the port of Swansea for smelting. Copper was concentrated and extracted from the remainder using kilns and furnaces on site. It was also discovered that purer metal could be obtained efficiently, although in small amounts, by its precipitation from drainage water with scrap iron in purpose-built ponds. Associated with the mines, important chemical industries were established on the Mountain based on by-products such as ochre pigments, sulphur, vitriol and alum. The processes were described by the German writer and translator, Augustin Gottfried Ludwig Lentin (1764–1823) who visited Parys Mountain in the 1790s and published his findings in Briefe über die Insel Anglesea : vorzüglich über das dasige Kupfer-Bergwerk und die dazu gehörigen Schmelzwerke und Fabriken (Leipzig : Crusius, 1800).

Parys Penny

Parys Mountain dominated the world's copper market during the 1780s, when the mine was the largest in Europe. Its rise severely damaged the mining industry in Cornwall.[1] The copper from the mine was used to sheath the admiralty's wooden ships of war in order to prevent the growth of seaweed and barnacles and to prevent boring by worms. This increased the speed and manoeuvrability of the vessels, although it is said that Parys Mountain copper was also sold to the French for use by their fleet.

In response to a national shortage of small currency, the Parys Mine Company produced its own coinage between 1787 and 1793. The Parys Penny, also known as the Anglesey Penny, was used by the mine to pay workers, and also by the popululace at large. It is thought that around ten million pennies and half pennies were minted.

Modern day

A stream running from the mine through Amlwch saturated with copper

There is a waymarked trail around the mountain, giving views of Amlwch Port to the north and the nearby Trysglwyn wind farm to the south. Those wishing to explore the historic mine levels need to contact the Parys Underground Group. Since 1988, Anglesey Mining plc, which owns the western part of the mountain has discovered resources of 6,500,000 tonnes containing 10% combined zinc, lead, copper with some silver and gold and has permits and a plan to restart mining operations at 350,000 tonnes per year.

In the late 1990s, surveys of the mine's hydraulic systems revealed that a large reservoir held back by a dam in an underground working was in poor condition. An assessment made at the time considered that failure of the dam was likely and that catastrophic failure could inundate parts of Amlwch causing loss of life and substantial damage to property. An added complication was that the water in the underground reservoir was highly polluted by copper and other metals and had a very low pH. In 2003 a carefully-controlled drainage operation was carried out which dropped the water levels by 70 metres (230 ft) releasing the pressure on the dam and enabling its removal. The removal of the reservoir also gave access to many more passages and to a connection to the nearby previously inaccessible Mona Mine. The entry into these sections was filmed for the TV series Extreme Archaeology

Due to the high level of soil contamination little plant life survives on or near the mountain, but there are a number of examples of copper-tolerant plants and bacteria. The bare, heavily mined landscape give the mountain a strange appearance which has been used in the filming of science fiction film or television shows such as a scene in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.

Due to the high chemical content of the water, snottites thrive in the until recently submerged passage.

Ligne 38 - Arrêt : Pirmil

Exploitant : SEMITAN

Réseau TAN - Nantes

Exploitant : Transdev STRAV

Réseau : Marne et Seine

Lieu : Joliot Curie (Valenton, F-94)

Lien TC Infos : tc-infos.fr/vehicule/26864

Exploitant : Keolis Delion

Réseau : IDF Mobilités – Argenteuil – Boucles de Seine

Ligne : 2

Lieu : Gare de Saint-Germain-en-Laye (Saint-Germain-en-Laye, F-78)

Lien TC Infos : tc-infos.fr/vehicule/37791

The exploitation rights for this text are the property of the Vienna Tourist Board. This text may be reprinted free of charge until further notice, even partially and in edited form. Forward sample copy to: Vienna Tourist Board, Media Management, Invalidenstraße 6, 1030 Vienna; media.rel@wien.info. All information in this text without guarantee.

Author: Andreas Nierhaus, Curator of Architecture/Wien Museum

Last updated January 2014

Architecture in Vienna

Vienna's 2,000-year history is present in a unique density in the cityscape. The layout of the center dates back to the Roman city and medieval road network. Romanesque and Gothic churches characterize the streets and squares as well as palaces and mansions of the baroque city of residence. The ring road is an expression of the modern city of the 19th century, in the 20th century extensive housing developments set accents in the outer districts. Currently, large-scale urban development measures are implemented; distinctive buildings of international star architects complement the silhouette of the city.

Due to its function as residence of the emperor and European power center, Vienna for centuries stood in the focus of international attention, but it was well aware of that too. As a result, developed an outstanding building culture, and still today on a worldwide scale only a few cities can come up with a comparable density of high-quality architecture. For several years now, Vienna has increased its efforts to connect with its historical highlights and is drawing attention to itself with some spectacular new buildings. The fastest growing city in the German-speaking world today most of all in residential construction is setting standards. Constants of the Viennese architecture are respect for existing structures, the palpability of historical layers and the dialogue between old and new.

Culmination of medieval architecture: the Stephansdom

The oldest architectural landmark of the city is St. Stephen's Cathedral. Under the rule of the Habsburgs, defining the face of the city from the late 13th century until 1918 in a decisive way, the cathedral was upgraded into the sacral monument of the political ambitions of the ruling house. The 1433 completed, 137 meters high southern tower, by the Viennese people affectionately named "Steffl", is a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture in Europe. For decades he was the tallest stone structure in Europe, until today he is the undisputed center of the city.

The baroque residence

Vienna's ascension into the ranks of the great European capitals began in Baroque. Among the most important architects are Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt. Outside the city walls arose a chain of summer palaces, including the garden Palais Schwarzenberg (1697-1704) as well as the Upper and Lower Belvedere of Prince Eugene of Savoy (1714-22). Among the most important city palaces are the Winter Palace of Prince Eugene (1695-1724, now a branch of the Belvedere) and the Palais Daun-Kinsky (auction house in Kinsky 1713-19). The emperor himself the Hofburg had complemented by buildings such as the Imperial Library (1722-26) and the Winter Riding School (1729-34). More important, however, for the Habsburgs was the foundation of churches and monasteries. Thus arose before the city walls Fischer von Erlach's Karlskirche (1714-39), which with its formal and thematic complex show façade belongs to the major works of European Baroque. In colored interior rooms like that of St. Peter's Church (1701-22), the contemporary efforts for the synthesis of architecture, painting and sculpture becomes visible.

Upgrading into metropolis: the ring road time (Ringstraßenzeit)

Since the Baroque, reflections on extension of the hopelessly overcrowed city were made, but only Emperor Franz Joseph ordered in 1857 the demolition of the fortifications and the connection of the inner city with the suburbs. 1865, the Ring Road was opened. It is as the most important boulevard of Europe an architectural and in terms of urban development achievement of the highest rank. The original building structure is almost completely preserved and thus conveys the authentic image of a metropolis of the 19th century. The public representational buildings speak, reflecting accurately the historicism, by their style: The Greek Antique forms of Theophil Hansen's Parliament (1871-83) stood for democracy, the Renaissance of the by Heinrich Ferstel built University (1873-84) for the flourishing of humanism, the Gothic of the Town Hall (1872-83) by Friedrich Schmidt for the medieval civic pride.

Dominating remained the buildings of the imperial family: Eduard van der Nüll's and August Sicardsburg's Opera House (1863-69), Gottfried Semper's and Carl Hasenauer's Burgtheater (1874-88), their Museum of Art History and Museum of Natural History (1871-91) and the Neue (New) Hofburg (1881-1918 ). At the same time the ring road was the preferred residential area of mostly Jewish haute bourgeoisie. With luxurious palaces the families Ephrussi, Epstein or Todesco made it clear that they had taken over the cultural leadership role in Viennese society. In the framework of the World Exhibition of 1873, the new Vienna presented itself an international audience. At the ring road many hotels were opened, among them the Hotel Imperial and today's Palais Hansen Kempinski.

Laboratory of modernity: Vienna around 1900

Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06) was one of the last buildings in the Ring road area Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06), which with it façade, liberated of ornament, and only decorated with "functional" aluminum buttons and the glass banking hall now is one of the icons of modern architecture. Like no other stood Otto Wagner for the dawn into the 20th century: His Metropolitan Railway buildings made ​​the public transport of the city a topic of architecture, the church of the Psychiatric hospital at Steinhofgründe (1904-07) is considered the first modern church.

With his consistent focus on the function of a building ("Something impractical can not be beautiful"), Wagner marked a whole generation of architects and made Vienna the laboratory of modernity: in addition to Joseph Maria Olbrich, the builder of the Secession (1897-98) and Josef Hoffmann, the architect of the at the western outskirts located Purkersdorf Sanatorium (1904) and founder of the Vienna Workshop (Wiener Werkstätte, 1903) is mainly to mention Adolf Loos, with the Loos House at the square Michaelerplatz (1909-11) making architectural history. The extravagant marble cladding of the business zone stands in maximal contrast, derived from the building function, to the unadorned facade above, whereby its "nudity" became even more obvious - a provocation, as well as his culture-critical texts ("Ornament and Crime"), with which he had greatest impact on the architecture of the 20th century. Public contracts Loos remained denied. His major works therefore include villas, apartment facilities and premises as the still in original state preserved Tailor salon Knize at Graben (1910-13) and the restored Loos Bar (1908-09) near the Kärntner Straße (passageway Kärntner Durchgang).

Between the Wars: International Modern Age and social housing

After the collapse of the monarchy in 1918, Vienna became capital of the newly formed small country of Austria. In the heart of the city, the architects Theiss & Jaksch built 1931-32 the first skyscraper in Vienna as an exclusive residential address (Herrengasse - alley 6-8). To combat the housing shortage for the general population, the social democratic city government in a globally unique building program within a few years 60,000 apartments in hundreds of apartment buildings throughout the city area had built, including the famous Karl Marx-Hof by Karl Ehn (1925-30). An alternative to the multi-storey buildings with the 1932 opened International Werkbundsiedlung was presented, which was attended by 31 architects from Austria, Germany, France, Holland and the USA and showed models for affordable housing in greenfield areas. With buildings of Adolf Loos, André Lurçat, Richard Neutra, Gerrit Rietveld, the Werkbundsiedlung, which currently is being restored at great expense, is one of the most important documents of modern architecture in Austria.

Modernism was also expressed in significant Villa buildings: The House Beer (1929-31) by Josef Frank exemplifies the refined Wiener living culture of the interwar period, while the house Stonborough-Wittgenstein (1926-28, today Bulgarian Cultural Institute), built by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein together with the architect Paul Engelmann for his sister Margarete, by its aesthetic radicalism and mathematical rigor represents a special case within contemporary architecture.

Expulsion, war and reconstruction

After the "Anschluss (Annexation)" to the German Reich in 1938, numerous Jewish builders, architects (female and male ones), who had been largely responsible for the high level of Viennese architecture, have been expelled from Austria. During the Nazi era, Vienna remained largely unaffected by structural transformations, apart from the six flak towers built for air defense of Friedrich Tamms (1942-45), made ​​of solid reinforced concrete which today are present as memorials in the cityscape.

The years after the end of World War II were characterized by the reconstruction of the by bombs heavily damaged city. The architecture of those times was marked by aesthetic pragmatism, but also by the attempt to connect with the period before 1938 and pick up on current international trends. Among the most important buildings of the 1950s are Roland Rainer's City Hall (1952-58), the by Oswald Haerdtl erected Wien Museum at Karlsplatz (1954-59) and the 21er Haus of Karl Schwanzer (1958-62).

The youngsters come

Since the 1960s, a young generation was looking for alternatives to the moderate modernism of the reconstruction years. With visionary designs, conceptual, experimental and above all temporary architectures, interventions and installations, Raimund Abraham, Günther Domenig, Eilfried Huth, Hans Hollein, Walter Pichler and the groups Coop Himmelb(l)au, Haus-Rucker-Co and Missing Link rapidly got international attention. Although for the time being it was more designed than built, was the influence on the postmodern and deconstructivist trends of the 1970s and 1980s also outside Austria great. Hollein's futuristic "Retti" candle shop at Charcoal Market/Kohlmarkt (1964-65) and Domenig's biomorphic building of the Central Savings Bank in Favoriten (10th district of Vienna - 1975-79) are among the earliest examples, later Hollein's Haas-Haus (1985-90), the loft conversion Falkestraße (1987/88) by Coop Himmelb(l)au or Domenig's T Center (2002-04) were added. Especially Domenig, Hollein, Coop Himmelb(l)au and the architects Ortner & Ortner (ancient members of Haus-Rucker-Co) ​​by orders from abroad the new Austrian and Viennese architecture made a fixed international concept.

MuseumQuarter and Gasometer

Since the 1980s, the focus of building in Vienna lies on the compaction of the historic urban fabric that now as urban habitat of high quality no longer is put in question. Among the internationally best known projects is the by Ortner & Ortner planned MuseumsQuartier in the former imperial stables (competition 1987, 1998-2001), which with institutions such as the MUMOK - Museum of Modern Art Foundation Ludwig, the Leopold Museum, the Kunsthalle Wien, the Architecture Center Vienna and the Zoom Children's Museum on a wordwide scale is under the largest cultural complexes. After controversies in the planning phase, here an architectural compromise between old and new has been achieved at the end, whose success as an urban stage with four million visitors (2012) is overwhelming.

The dialogue between old and new, which has to stand on the agenda of building culture of a city that is so strongly influenced by history, also features the reconstruction of the Gasometer in Simmering by Coop Himmelb(l)au, Wilhelm Holzbauer, Jean Nouvel and Manfred Wehdorn (1999-2001). Here was not only created new housing, but also a historical industrial monument reinterpreted into a signal in the urban development area.

New Neighborhood

In recent years, the major railway stations and their surroundings moved into the focus of planning. Here not only necessary infrastructural measures were taken, but at the same time opened up spacious inner-city residential areas and business districts. Among the prestigious projects are included the construction of the new Vienna Central Station, started in 2010 with the surrounding office towers of the Quartier Belvedere and the residential and school buildings of the Midsummer quarter (Sonnwendviertel). Europe's largest wooden tower invites here for a spectacular view to the construction site and the entire city. On the site of the former North Station are currently being built 10,000 homes and 20,000 jobs, on that of the Aspangbahn station is being built at Europe's greatest Passive House settlement "Euro Gate", the area of ​​the North Western Railway Station is expected to be developed from 2020 for living and working. The largest currently under construction residential project but can be found in the north-eastern outskirts, where in Seaside Town Aspern till 2028 living and working space for 40,000 people will be created.

In one of the "green lungs" of Vienna, the Prater, 2013, the WU campus was opened for the largest University of Economics of Europe. Around the central square spectacular buildings of an international architect team from Great Britain, Japan, Spain and Austria are gathered that seem to lead a sometimes very loud conversation about the status quo of contemporary architecture (Hitoshi Abe, BUSarchitektur, Peter Cook, Zaha Hadid, NO MAD Arquitectos, Carme Pinós).

Flying high

International is also the number of architects who have inscribed themselves in the last few years with high-rise buildings in the skyline of Vienna and make St. Stephen's a not always unproblematic competition. Visible from afar is Massimiliano Fuksas' 138 and 127 meters high elegant Twin Tower at Wienerberg (1999-2001). The monolithic, 75-meter-high tower of the Hotel Sofitel at the Danube Canal by Jean Nouvel (2007-10), on the other hand, reacts to the particular urban situation and stages in its top floor new perspectives to the historical center on the other side.

Also at the water stands Dominique Perrault's DC Tower (2010-13) in the Danube City - those high-rise city, in which since the start of construction in 1996, the expansion of the city north of the Danube is condensed symbolically. Even in this environment, the slim and at the same time striking vertically folded tower of Perrault is beyond all known dimensions; from its Sky Bar, from spring 2014 on you are able to enjoy the highest view of Vienna. With 250 meters, the tower is the tallest building of Austria and almost twice as high as the St. Stephen's Cathedral. Vienna, thus, has acquired a new architectural landmark which cannot be overlooked - whether it also has the potential to become a landmark of the new Vienna, only time will tell. The architectural history of Vienna, where European history is presence and new buildings enter into an exciting and not always conflict-free dialogue with a great and outstanding architectural heritage, in any case has yet to offer exciting chapters.

Info: The folder "Architecture: From Art Nouveau to the Presence" is available at the Vienna Tourist Board and can be downloaded on www.wien.info/media/files/guide-architecture-in-wien.pdf.

Maisonneuve/Guy, Montreal, 06-14-2016.

First Secretary of ZANU-PF President Robert Mugabe officially opened the party’s 6th National People’s Congress in Harare, Zimbabwe, 4 December 2014. The congress was running under the theme “Accelerated Implementation of (Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation) ZIM-ASSET”.

ZIM-ASSET is a government blue print that was crafted to achieve sustainable development and social equity anchored on indigenisation, empowerment and employment creation which will be largely propelled by the judicious exploitation of the country’s abundant human and natural resources

Pictures: Kudakwashe Hunda and Edmore Muzerengi

Editing: Believe Nyakudjara

Some of the team.

Police have launched a two-day operation to protect the most vulnerable members of the community.

The initiative codenamed Operation Longford will see officers from across the Force and specialist units including traffic, tactical aid and the ANPR intercept teams take to the streets in a bid to target vulnerability in the community.

Some of the work as part of the days of action (Friday 29 to Saturday 30 May) will include visits to licensed premises, policing open spaces that attract youths and alcohol, takeaway enforcement, visit to shisha bars in addition to Metrolink and Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) patrols.

Superintendent Craig Thompson operational lead said: “Safeguarding vulnerable people is an on-going priority for the Force which makes days of action like this so important. By having mechanisms in place and working alongside our partners we can ensure those at greater risk in our community are protected before the actions such as exploitation and abuse begin.

“As with our day to day policing we will also carry out enforcement work and will target offenders for a range of offences including, human trafficking, Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE*), antisocial behaviour and general criminality.”

As part of the operation officers from the City Centre Neighbourhood Policing Team and partners such as Manchester City Council, Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner will launch the partnership Safe Haven scheme. It is a place of safety for anyone who is out and about in the city centre on a Friday or Saturday night and in need of help, support, a place of safety or a designated meeting point for when you lose your friends.

Superintendent Thompson added: “We want Operation Longford to show our community that their safety comes first and will always be our priority. We will make use of all of our disruption tactics to put a stop to criminals.”

For live updates from the operation follow #OpLongford from the GMP twitter accounts. You can find your local Twitter account by visiting: www.gmp.police.uk/socialmedia.

Un héros oublié : le sergent HOFF

autographe.com/autographes/autographe-sergent-hoff/

Ce soldat fit la une des gazettes de son époque qui relataient régulièrement ses exploits en louant son courage, son adresse, son astuce et son sang-froid. Il fut félicité maintes fois pour sa bravoure, reçut les plus hautes distinctions militaires. Il fut aussi accusé d’être un espion, puis réhabilité. Après sa mort une souscription nationale fut lancée pour l’édification d’un monument à sa mémoire.

C’est ainsi qu’on peut de nos jours découvrir au cimetière du Père-Lachaise à Paris sa tombe surmontée du monument inauguré en 1904 et qui est une des dernières oeuvres du célèbre sculpteur BARTHOLDI. Il l’a représenté debout en tenue militaire, l’allure martiale, arme au pied et une main en visière protégeant son regard qui scrute l’horizon. Sur le socle, une fillette qui a écrit : « FRANCE SOUVIENS TOI ».

Mais qui se souvient encore du Sergent HOFF?

Rien ne prédestinait Ignace HOFF, né le 20 juillet 1836 à Marmoutier (Bas-Rhin), à devenir un héros de la guerre de 1870. Ouvrier plâtrier, il avait commencé son tour de France dès l’âge de 14 ans. En 1857, il fut incorporé dans l’armée et en 1863, il se réengageait pour 7 ans. Lorsqu’éclate la guerre de 1870, il est sergent et stationné à Belle Isle en Mer. Croyant (à tort) que son père avait été abattu par l’armée prussienne en tentant de défendre sa maison, il se démène pour aller combattre l’ennemi. À force de persévérance, il réussit à changer de bataillon et à rejoindre les défenseurs de Paris. Lors du siège de Paris par les Prussiens auxquels il vouait une haine farouche, il révéla une audace et une bravoure qui en firent un héros adulé par tous et dont les faits d’armes étaient suivis au jour le jour par les parisiens qui pouvaient s’identifier à cet homme du peuple, simple et discret et pourtant capable d’accomplir des actes héroïques. Il pratiquait une guerre de ruses et d’embuscades, sa connaissance de l’allemand lui permettant de tromper les sentinelles. « Chasseur d’hommes », il opérait le plus souvent seul et bien qu’excellent tireur il privilégiait le sabre et le corps à corps pour ensuite disparaître dans la nuit. Fin octobre, avec quelques francs-tireurs, il reprit aux Prussiens l’Ile aux loups sur la marne. Cet exploit lui valu de recevoir la Légion d’honneur le 6 novembre des mains du général d’Exéa, qui souligna que cette 1ère croix donnée par la République était bien méritée.

Le général Le Flô, ministre de la guerre, décida alors de le charger de porter une dépêche à Bazaine, encerclé dans Metz, considérant qu’il était le seul capable de franchir les lignes ennemies grâce à sa ruse et sa connaissance de l’allemand. Mais la prise de Metz intervint juste avant son départ. Comme il avait refusé toute rémunération ou tout honneur pour cette périlleuse mission, le ministre lui-même l’autorisa à ne plus dépendre de ses officiers et à choisir 12 personnes qui relèveraient de lui seul pour poursuivre son action.

Le 19 novembre, il fut mis à l’ordre du jour du 107ème de ligne par le général TROCHU, gouverneur de Paris pour avoir tué dans divers combats individuels 33 Prussiens et, le 5 octobre, en embuscade avec 15 hommes, mis en déroute une troupe d’infanterie et de cavalerie.

Il devint alors une sorte de légende, dont la tête était mise à prix 20 000 thalers par les Prussiens qui considéraient que ses méthodes de combat ne correspondaient pas à des méthodes de guerre « loyales ».

Au cours de la bataille de Champigny, voyant qu’il allait être fait prisonnier, il eut la présence d’esprit d’arracher galons et décorations et de se fondre dans la troupe. Malgré les soupçons des Prussiens, il réussit à dissimuler sa véritable identité pendant ses 4 mois de captivité à Cologne en prenant un nom d’emprunt. Pendant ce temps à Paris, Paris Journal, constatant qu’il ne figurait ni parmi les morts ni parmi les blessés, déclara qu’il n’était qu’un imposteur et était en réalité un espion prussien, nouvelle qui fut bien entendu abondamment reprise par d’autres publications. C’est pendant sa captivité que le sergent HOFF apprit ces calomnies qui l’affectèrent grandement.

À peine libéré, il est incorporé sur le chemin du retour par le général CLINCHAMP pour marcher contre la commune. Au cours des combats il fut grièvement blessé et évacué vers un hôpital militaire. Dès sa sortie de l’hôpital, il se précipita chez le directeur de Paris-Journal pour demander réparation par les armes. Celui-ci réussit à le persuader que la publication d’un démenti serait plus efficace. Et le jour même une réparation éclatante était publiée dans les feuilles du soir de plusieurs journaux.

Commença alors pour le sergent HOFF une période difficile. Homme simple, d’une grande modestie, il avait refusé d’être promu officier en invoquant le fait qu’il n’avait « pas assez d’éducation ». Il refusa également un grade dans l’armée des Indes offert par les Anglais. Mutilé militaire, gardien au bois de Boulogne puis au square du Trocadéro, il subsistait difficilement avec une maigre pension, souffrant de ses blessures et proche de la misère.

Jules CLARETIE, ému par sa situation, écrivit au président Mac Mahon. Cinq jours plus tard il était nommé gardien de la colonne Vendôme où il resta 5 ans. En 1881 il fut nommé gardien chef de l’Arc de Triomphe, avec grade d’adjudant. Il eut l’honneur d’y accueillir et de veiller le cercueil de Victor Hugo.

Dès lors, jouissant d’une relative aisance, il occupa ses loisirs dans diverses sociétés de tir, à instruire des jeunes gens. Il déposa même un brevet pour améliorer un fusil.

Il mourut le 25 mai 1902, peu avant sa retraite et fut enterré avec les honneurs militaires.

En 1880, alors qu’il était question d’offrir au sergent HOFF une fête et un banquet patriotique, Sadi Carnot écrivait : « La pensée de rendre un public hommage au sergent HOFF, en reconnaissance de sa belle conduite pendant le siège de Paris, mérite d’être encouragée par les patriotes. Nous nous rappelons tous combien le récit de cette campagne héroïque, d’un homme contre une armée, vint alors réconforter nos coeurs. De pareils souvenirs appartiennent à notre trésor national, et doivent y être religieusement conservés, mais chaque occasion de les remettre en lumière doit aussi être saisie avec empressement ».

Mais aujourd’hui, qui se souvient du sergent HOFF?

Au 20ème siècle d’autres guerres, mondiales celles-là, et autrement plus meurtrières, ont révélé de nouveaux héros qui ont remplacé dans notre mémoire collective le brave sergent HOFF.

Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Vancouver, BC, Canada

Sex workers, allies, family and friends stand together

The red umbrella is the symbol of the global sex workers’ rights movement. The Red Umbrella March is part of a national day of action, with similar events taking place in cities across Canada.

In Vancouver it began at 2:30 p.m. on June 11 with a rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery (Robson Street plaza), followed by a march starting at 3 p.m. The march travelled through Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside to CRAB Park.

Protest chants included:

Freedom to associate is our right!

Get your laws off my body!

Sex workers rights are human rights!

My body, my business, my choice!

Remember Bedford!

No bad whores, only bad laws!

Sex worker rights now!

I support sex workers' rights

A Blow Job is Better than No Job.

This year’s focus was “Freedom to Associate is Our Right!”

The Freedom to Associate is a right granted to all citizens by our Charter of Rights & Freedoms. Canada’s new anti-prostitution laws violate sex workers’ freedom even to the point that standing in the street together is illegal if it encourages buying sex.

Marching together shows Canadians that when sex workers’ freedom to associate is infringed upon, it is a concern for all Canadians. It forces them to work alone and unsafe, they’re alienated, their families are torn apart.

When the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act became law in 2014, purchasing sexual services became a crime for the first time in Canada. Advocates for this, the “Nordic model,” believe it is the way to keep sex workers safe from violence and exploitation.

In the eyes of anti-sex work activists, “shaming the Johns” is a legitimate way to reduce the overall amount of street prostitution (estimated to comprise not more than 15 percent of all sexual services offered in Canada). But “John shaming” impacts sex workers themselves. Making what they do illegal only forces them to do it in riskier circumstances. For instance, street-based sex workers face longer hours, thanks to a temporary decline in clients. They may be more willing to take clients they would otherwise screen out, particularly when they’re under greater pressure to avoid police detection. And clients may be less likely to seek relevant health care. The Vancouver Police Department say they don’t consider sex between consenting adults an enforcement priority, claiming to only intervene in situations where there are reports of violence, exploitation, or involvement of youth or gangs.

But there’s no real difference between banning providing sexual services and banning paying for them. As long as the act of engaging in sex for money is illegal, sex workers will not see the police as allies in the moments that they really need them.

From the early 1990s to 2002, more than 70 women disappeared from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, most of them sex workers and all of them poor. Criminalization only served to push these women away from police and from the rest of society; it never made them safer. Robert Pickton admitted to an undercover police officer that he killed 49 women after he was arrested in 2002. He was convicted of the second-degree murders of six women and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. Former Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu has repeatedly apologized for his force’s failure to stop Pickton’s killing spree. Lawsuits claimed police, including individual RCMP officers, and the Crown failed to warn women on the Downtown Eastside that a serial killer may have been responsible for women disappearing, and was wrong for not putting Pickton on trial for attempted murder following an attack on a sex worker in 1997.

The Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity was co-organized by: Triple-X Workers’

Solidarity Association of B.C., Downtown Eastside Sex Workers United Against Violence (SWUAV), Pivot Legal Society, PACE Society, B.C. Coalition of Experiential Communities, FIRST: Feminists Advocating for the Decriminalization of Sex Work, SWAN Society Vancouver.

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Solaris Urbino 18 IV Electric n°7100 du réseau ZTM de Warszawa (Varsovie) de l'exploitant MZA, Ex-n°1900 réseau ZTM de Poznań de l'exploitant MPK en déplacement au Centre d'Exploitation et de Maintenance des TAMM pour la présentation aux élus de Metz Métropole et la presse. Le G7 de l'Environnement s'est tenu à Metz les 5 et 6 mai. A cette occasion, le réseau LE MET' a mis en circulation plusieurs véhicules 100% électrique sur des navettes privées reliant le Centre des Congrès Robert Schuman/Centre Pompidou-Metz jusqu'au restaurant La Citadelle vers la Place de la République pour les ministres, mais aussi la presse. Les véhicules présents sont: Un Bolloré Bluebus 22 de démonstration, deux Lohr Cristal (Prototypes) attelés ensemble, un Mercedes-Benz eCitaro de démonstration, deux Irizar ie 18 Tram du réseau Ametis d'Amiens n°702 et n°714 destinés aux lignes Nemo et un Solaris Urbino 18 IV Electric du réseau ZTM (MZA) de Varsovie n°7100. Le Bolloré Bluebus 22 de démonstration a été testé sur la navette N83 CITY le vendredi 3 mai sur une courte durée en fin de matinée et en début d'après-midi. En effet, le réseau LE MET' mettra en circulation deux véhicules neufs identiques en juin sur cette ligne.

Sabena (an acronym of Societe Anoyme Belge d’Exploitation de la Navigation Aerienne—Belgian Corporation for Air Navigation Services) was formed in May 1923 as Belgium’s flag carrier airline, replacing an earlier company. Beginning with a mix of French Bleriots and Italian Ansaldos, Sabena’s initial route network was split between linking Belgium with Europe and serving locations in the Belgian Congo (today the Republic of the Congo); the two networks were not linked until 1935, when a five-day service was flown between Brussels and Leopoldville.

World War II temporarily ended Sabena’s plans to expand its European routes, as Belgium was overrun by Nazi Germany, but the airline remained in operation in the Congo. Following war’s end, Sabena rebuilt like most postwar airlines—with a lot of war surplus Douglas DC-3s, which would be operated by the airline until 1970. It was rapidly able to establish transatlantic links with DC-6s, and Sabena adopted the title “Belgian World Airlines” as a result; it also maintained its links with Africa. Though Sabena also suffered from a poor safety record during the 1950s, it was able to maintain a period of steady growth. In 1960, it became the second European airline to operate a jet transatlantic service (after BOAC) when it purchased Boeing 707s; though the Belgian Congo achieved independence after a bloody conflict in 1961, Sabena was able to maintain its links to Africa and even helped start Air Congo.

The last of the piston-engined airliners left in 1970, and Sabena maintained a mostly jet fleet. Unusually, Sabena did not favor one aircraft company over another, and maintained one of the most diverse fleets in Europe—at one point flying Boeing 707s alongside Airbus A300s and Sud-Aviation Caravelles. It entered the wide-body era in 1971 by purchasing 747s, though there was little demand for it. Indeed, most of Sabena’s profitable routes were ones with little competition, such as its African network.

Sabena remained just profitable in the 1980s, and introduced a revamped livery in 1990, becoming one of the first “Eurowhite” airlines by adopting an all-white fuselage, and attempted to standardize more by using mostly Airbus products. However, Sabena was already in trouble: barely turning a profit as it was, the deregulation of the European airline industry and a slump caused by the First Gulf War hit Sabena hard. With the Belgian government (which had owned a majority share since Sabena’s founding) devoting more and more money to keep the airline operating, it went looking for a profitable partner—only to find that no one wanted Sabena. Air France, British Airways, and KLM all passed on offers, and it was not until 1995 that Swissair finally agreed to become the minority partner in Sabena. Even then, Sabena continued to struggle. An attempt to further modernize the fleet just added to the airline’s costs.

The fatal blow finally came in 2001, in the post-9/11 airline downturn. Most airlines took significant losses, but Sabena was already teetering on the edge, and worse, facing increased competition from low-cost airlines like Easyjet and Virgin Atlantic. Swissair promised to inject millions in investments into Sabena, but Swissair itself was struggling to survive. With no help coming from Swissair and the Belgian government in no position to help, Sabena filed for bankruptcy in November 2001. Some of the airline’s aircraft and investments were rescued by a group of Belgian businessmen, who launched SN Brussels Airlines soon after Sabena’s bankruptcy, and SN Brussels continued to use the stylized-S tail logo of Sabena. Even this came to an end in 2007, when SN Brussels merged with Virgin Express to become simply Brussels Airlines.

This DC-10 shows the 1970s-80s scheme of Sabena.

The exploitation rights for this text are the property of the Vienna Tourist Board. This text may be reprinted free of charge until further notice, even partially and in edited form. Forward sample copy to: Vienna Tourist Board, Media Management, Invalidenstraße 6, 1030 Vienna; media.rel@wien.info. All information in this text without guarantee.

Author: Andreas Nierhaus, Curator of Architecture/Wien Museum

Last updated January 2014

Architecture in Vienna

Vienna's 2,000-year history is present in a unique density in the cityscape. The layout of the center dates back to the Roman city and medieval road network. Romanesque and Gothic churches characterize the streets and squares as well as palaces and mansions of the baroque city of residence. The ring road is an expression of the modern city of the 19th century, in the 20th century extensive housing developments set accents in the outer districts. Currently, large-scale urban development measures are implemented; distinctive buildings of international star architects complement the silhouette of the city.

Due to its function as residence of the emperor and European power center, Vienna for centuries stood in the focus of international attention, but it was well aware of that too. As a result, developed an outstanding building culture, and still today on a worldwide scale only a few cities can come up with a comparable density of high-quality architecture. For several years now, Vienna has increased its efforts to connect with its historical highlights and is drawing attention to itself with some spectacular new buildings. The fastest growing city in the German-speaking world today most of all in residential construction is setting standards. Constants of the Viennese architecture are respect for existing structures, the palpability of historical layers and the dialogue between old and new.

Culmination of medieval architecture: the Stephansdom

The oldest architectural landmark of the city is St. Stephen's Cathedral. Under the rule of the Habsburgs, defining the face of the city from the late 13th century until 1918 in a decisive way, the cathedral was upgraded into the sacral monument of the political ambitions of the ruling house. The 1433 completed, 137 meters high southern tower, by the Viennese people affectionately named "Steffl", is a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture in Europe. For decades he was the tallest stone structure in Europe, until today he is the undisputed center of the city.

The baroque residence

Vienna's ascension into the ranks of the great European capitals began in Baroque. Among the most important architects are Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt. Outside the city walls arose a chain of summer palaces, including the garden Palais Schwarzenberg (1697-1704) as well as the Upper and Lower Belvedere of Prince Eugene of Savoy (1714-22). Among the most important city palaces are the Winter Palace of Prince Eugene (1695-1724, now a branch of the Belvedere) and the Palais Daun-Kinsky (auction house in Kinsky 1713-19). The emperor himself the Hofburg had complemented by buildings such as the Imperial Library (1722-26) and the Winter Riding School (1729-34). More important, however, for the Habsburgs was the foundation of churches and monasteries. Thus arose before the city walls Fischer von Erlach's Karlskirche (1714-39), which with its formal and thematic complex show façade belongs to the major works of European Baroque. In colored interior rooms like that of St. Peter's Church (1701-22), the contemporary efforts for the synthesis of architecture, painting and sculpture becomes visible.

Upgrading into metropolis: the ring road time (Ringstraßenzeit)

Since the Baroque, reflections on extension of the hopelessly overcrowed city were made, but only Emperor Franz Joseph ordered in 1857 the demolition of the fortifications and the connection of the inner city with the suburbs. 1865, the Ring Road was opened. It is as the most important boulevard of Europe an architectural and in terms of urban development achievement of the highest rank. The original building structure is almost completely preserved and thus conveys the authentic image of a metropolis of the 19th century. The public representational buildings speak, reflecting accurately the historicism, by their style: The Greek Antique forms of Theophil Hansen's Parliament (1871-83) stood for democracy, the Renaissance of the by Heinrich Ferstel built University (1873-84) for the flourishing of humanism, the Gothic of the Town Hall (1872-83) by Friedrich Schmidt for the medieval civic pride.

Dominating remained the buildings of the imperial family: Eduard van der Nüll's and August Sicardsburg's Opera House (1863-69), Gottfried Semper's and Carl Hasenauer's Burgtheater (1874-88), their Museum of Art History and Museum of Natural History (1871-91) and the Neue (New) Hofburg (1881-1918 ). At the same time the ring road was the preferred residential area of mostly Jewish haute bourgeoisie. With luxurious palaces the families Ephrussi, Epstein or Todesco made it clear that they had taken over the cultural leadership role in Viennese society. In the framework of the World Exhibition of 1873, the new Vienna presented itself an international audience. At the ring road many hotels were opened, among them the Hotel Imperial and today's Palais Hansen Kempinski.

Laboratory of modernity: Vienna around 1900

Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06) was one of the last buildings in the Ring road area Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06), which with it façade, liberated of ornament, and only decorated with "functional" aluminum buttons and the glass banking hall now is one of the icons of modern architecture. Like no other stood Otto Wagner for the dawn into the 20th century: His Metropolitan Railway buildings made ​​the public transport of the city a topic of architecture, the church of the Psychiatric hospital at Steinhofgründe (1904-07) is considered the first modern church.

With his consistent focus on the function of a building ("Something impractical can not be beautiful"), Wagner marked a whole generation of architects and made Vienna the laboratory of modernity: in addition to Joseph Maria Olbrich, the builder of the Secession (1897-98) and Josef Hoffmann, the architect of the at the western outskirts located Purkersdorf Sanatorium (1904) and founder of the Vienna Workshop (Wiener Werkstätte, 1903) is mainly to mention Adolf Loos, with the Loos House at the square Michaelerplatz (1909-11) making architectural history. The extravagant marble cladding of the business zone stands in maximal contrast, derived from the building function, to the unadorned facade above, whereby its "nudity" became even more obvious - a provocation, as well as his culture-critical texts ("Ornament and Crime"), with which he had greatest impact on the architecture of the 20th century. Public contracts Loos remained denied. His major works therefore include villas, apartment facilities and premises as the still in original state preserved Tailor salon Knize at Graben (1910-13) and the restored Loos Bar (1908-09) near the Kärntner Straße (passageway Kärntner Durchgang).

Between the Wars: International Modern Age and social housing

After the collapse of the monarchy in 1918, Vienna became capital of the newly formed small country of Austria. In the heart of the city, the architects Theiss & Jaksch built 1931-32 the first skyscraper in Vienna as an exclusive residential address (Herrengasse - alley 6-8). To combat the housing shortage for the general population, the social democratic city government in a globally unique building program within a few years 60,000 apartments in hundreds of apartment buildings throughout the city area had built, including the famous Karl Marx-Hof by Karl Ehn (1925-30). An alternative to the multi-storey buildings with the 1932 opened International Werkbundsiedlung was presented, which was attended by 31 architects from Austria, Germany, France, Holland and the USA and showed models for affordable housing in greenfield areas. With buildings of Adolf Loos, André Lurçat, Richard Neutra, Gerrit Rietveld, the Werkbundsiedlung, which currently is being restored at great expense, is one of the most important documents of modern architecture in Austria.

Modernism was also expressed in significant Villa buildings: The House Beer (1929-31) by Josef Frank exemplifies the refined Wiener living culture of the interwar period, while the house Stonborough-Wittgenstein (1926-28, today Bulgarian Cultural Institute), built by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein together with the architect Paul Engelmann for his sister Margarete, by its aesthetic radicalism and mathematical rigor represents a special case within contemporary architecture.

Expulsion, war and reconstruction

After the "Anschluss (Annexation)" to the German Reich in 1938, numerous Jewish builders, architects (female and male ones), who had been largely responsible for the high level of Viennese architecture, have been expelled from Austria. During the Nazi era, Vienna remained largely unaffected by structural transformations, apart from the six flak towers built for air defense of Friedrich Tamms (1942-45), made ​​of solid reinforced concrete which today are present as memorials in the cityscape.

The years after the end of World War II were characterized by the reconstruction of the by bombs heavily damaged city. The architecture of those times was marked by aesthetic pragmatism, but also by the attempt to connect with the period before 1938 and pick up on current international trends. Among the most important buildings of the 1950s are Roland Rainer's City Hall (1952-58), the by Oswald Haerdtl erected Wien Museum at Karlsplatz (1954-59) and the 21er Haus of Karl Schwanzer (1958-62).

The youngsters come

Since the 1960s, a young generation was looking for alternatives to the moderate modernism of the reconstruction years. With visionary designs, conceptual, experimental and above all temporary architectures, interventions and installations, Raimund Abraham, Günther Domenig, Eilfried Huth, Hans Hollein, Walter Pichler and the groups Coop Himmelb(l)au, Haus-Rucker-Co and Missing Link rapidly got international attention. Although for the time being it was more designed than built, was the influence on the postmodern and deconstructivist trends of the 1970s and 1980s also outside Austria great. Hollein's futuristic "Retti" candle shop at Charcoal Market/Kohlmarkt (1964-65) and Domenig's biomorphic building of the Central Savings Bank in Favoriten (10th district of Vienna - 1975-79) are among the earliest examples, later Hollein's Haas-Haus (1985-90), the loft conversion Falkestraße (1987/88) by Coop Himmelb(l)au or Domenig's T Center (2002-04) were added. Especially Domenig, Hollein, Coop Himmelb(l)au and the architects Ortner & Ortner (ancient members of Haus-Rucker-Co) ​​by orders from abroad the new Austrian and Viennese architecture made a fixed international concept.

MuseumQuarter and Gasometer

Since the 1980s, the focus of building in Vienna lies on the compaction of the historic urban fabric that now as urban habitat of high quality no longer is put in question. Among the internationally best known projects is the by Ortner & Ortner planned MuseumsQuartier in the former imperial stables (competition 1987, 1998-2001), which with institutions such as the MUMOK - Museum of Modern Art Foundation Ludwig, the Leopold Museum, the Kunsthalle Wien, the Architecture Center Vienna and the Zoom Children's Museum on a wordwide scale is under the largest cultural complexes. After controversies in the planning phase, here an architectural compromise between old and new has been achieved at the end, whose success as an urban stage with four million visitors (2012) is overwhelming.

The dialogue between old and new, which has to stand on the agenda of building culture of a city that is so strongly influenced by history, also features the reconstruction of the Gasometer in Simmering by Coop Himmelb(l)au, Wilhelm Holzbauer, Jean Nouvel and Manfred Wehdorn (1999-2001). Here was not only created new housing, but also a historical industrial monument reinterpreted into a signal in the urban development area.

New Neighborhood

In recent years, the major railway stations and their surroundings moved into the focus of planning. Here not only necessary infrastructural measures were taken, but at the same time opened up spacious inner-city residential areas and business districts. Among the prestigious projects are included the construction of the new Vienna Central Station, started in 2010 with the surrounding office towers of the Quartier Belvedere and the residential and school buildings of the Midsummer quarter (Sonnwendviertel). Europe's largest wooden tower invites here for a spectacular view to the construction site and the entire city. On the site of the former North Station are currently being built 10,000 homes and 20,000 jobs, on that of the Aspangbahn station is being built at Europe's greatest Passive House settlement "Euro Gate", the area of ​​the North Western Railway Station is expected to be developed from 2020 for living and working. The largest currently under construction residential project but can be found in the north-eastern outskirts, where in Seaside Town Aspern till 2028 living and working space for 40,000 people will be created.

In one of the "green lungs" of Vienna, the Prater, 2013, the WU campus was opened for the largest University of Economics of Europe. Around the central square spectacular buildings of an international architect team from Great Britain, Japan, Spain and Austria are gathered that seem to lead a sometimes very loud conversation about the status quo of contemporary architecture (Hitoshi Abe, BUSarchitektur, Peter Cook, Zaha Hadid, NO MAD Arquitectos, Carme Pinós).

Flying high

International is also the number of architects who have inscribed themselves in the last few years with high-rise buildings in the skyline of Vienna and make St. Stephen's a not always unproblematic competition. Visible from afar is Massimiliano Fuksas' 138 and 127 meters high elegant Twin Tower at Wienerberg (1999-2001). The monolithic, 75-meter-high tower of the Hotel Sofitel at the Danube Canal by Jean Nouvel (2007-10), on the other hand, reacts to the particular urban situation and stages in its top floor new perspectives to the historical center on the other side.

Also at the water stands Dominique Perrault's DC Tower (2010-13) in the Danube City - those high-rise city, in which since the start of construction in 1996, the expansion of the city north of the Danube is condensed symbolically. Even in this environment, the slim and at the same time striking vertically folded tower of Perrault is beyond all known dimensions; from its Sky Bar, from spring 2014 on you are able to enjoy the highest view of Vienna. With 250 meters, the tower is the tallest building of Austria and almost twice as high as the St. Stephen's Cathedral. Vienna, thus, has acquired a new architectural landmark which cannot be overlooked - whether it also has the potential to become a landmark of the new Vienna, only time will tell. The architectural history of Vienna, where European history is presence and new buildings enter into an exciting and not always conflict-free dialogue with a great and outstanding architectural heritage, in any case has yet to offer exciting chapters.

Info: The folder "Architecture: From Art Nouveau to the Presence" is available at the Vienna Tourist Board and can be downloaded on www.wien.info/media/files/guide-architecture-in-wien.pdf.

Citelis 12 (2014) du réseau TCL exploité par Keolis Lyon.

Tour Eiffel

Pour les articles homonymes, voir Tour Eiffel (homonymie).

Tour Eiffel

Géographie

Pays France

VilleParis

Quartier7e arrondissement

Coordonnées48° 51′ 30″ Nord 2° 17′ 40″ Est

Histoire

Ancien(s) nom(s)« Tour de 300 mètres »

Architecte(s)Stephen Sauvestre

Ingénieur(s)Gustave Eiffel & Cie

Construction1887 - 1889

2 ans, 2 mois et 5 jours

Usage(s)Tour d'observation et de télécommunication

Architecture

Style architecturalTour autoportante en fer puddlé

Protection Inscrit MH (1964)

Hauteur de l'antenne324 m

Hauteur du dernier étage279,11 m

Nombre d'étages4

Nombre d'ascenseurs4 (1/pilier)

Administration

Occupant(s)Société d'exploitation de la tour Eiffel (SETE)

Propriétaire(s)Mairie de Paris

Géolocalisation

La tour Eiffel est une tour de fer puddlé de 324 mètres de hauteur (avec antennes)o 1 située à Paris, à l’extrémité nord-ouest du parc du Champ-de-Mars en bordure de la Seine dans le 7e arrondissement. Construite par Gustave Eiffel et ses collaborateurs pour l’Exposition universelle de Paris de 1889, et initialement nommée « tour de 300 mètres », ce monument est devenu le symbole de la capitale française, et un site touristique de premier plan : il s’agit du second site culturel français payant le plus visité en 2011, avec 7,1 millions de visiteurs dont 75 % d'étrangers en 2011, la cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris étant en tête des monuments à l'accès libre avec 13,6 millions de visiteurs estimés1 mais il reste le monument payant le plus visité au monde2,note 1. Elle a accueilli son 250 millionième visiteur en 2010.

D’une hauteur de 312 mètreso 1 à l’origine, la tour Eiffel est restée le monument le plus élevé du monde pendant 41 ans. Le second niveau du troisième étage, appelé parfois quatrième étage, situé à 279,11 m, est la plus haute plateforme d'observation accessible au public de l'Union européenne et la plus haute d'Europe, tant que celle de la Tour Ostankino à Moscou culminant à 337 m demeurera fermée au public, à la suite de l'incendie survenu en l'an 2000. La hauteur de la tour a été plusieurs fois augmentée par l’installation de nombreuses antennes. Utilisée dans le passé pour de nombreuses expériences scientifiques, elle sert aujourd’hui d’émetteur de programmes radiophoniques et télévisés.

Contestée par certains à l'origine, la tour Eiffel fut d'abord, à l'occasion de l'exposition universelle de 1889, la vitrine du savoir-faire technique français. Plébiscitée par le public dès sa présentation à l'exposition, elle a accueilli plus de 200 millions de visiteurs depuis son inaugurationo 2. Sa taille exceptionnelle et sa silhouette immédiatement reconnaissable en ont fait un emblème de Paris.

Imaginée par Maurice Koechlin et Émile Nouguier, respectivement chef du bureau des études et chef du bureau des méthodes d'Eiffel & Cie4, la tour Eiffel est conçue pour être le « clou de l'Exposition de 1889 se tenant à Paris. ». Elle salue également le centenaire de la Révolution française. Le premier plan est réalisé en juin 1884 et amélioré par Stephen Sauvestre, l’architecte en chef des projets de l'entreprise, qui lui apporte plus d'esthétique.

Le 1er mai 1886, le ministre du Commerce et de l'Industrie Édouard Lockroy, fervent défenseur du projet, signe un arrêté qui déclare ouvert « un concours en vue de l’Exposition universelle de 1889 »5. Gustave Eiffel remporte ce concours et une convention du 8 janvier 1887 fixe les modalités d'exploitation de l'édifice. La galerie Vittorio Emanuele II, au centre de Milan, fut une source d'inspiration, pour sa structure métallique.[réf. nécessaire]

Construite en deux ans, deux mois et cinq jours, de 1887 à 1889, par 250 ouvriers, elle est inaugurée, à l'occasion d'une fête de fin de chantier organisée par Gustave Eiffel, le 31 mars 1889o 3. Sa fréquentation s'érode rapidement ; la tour Eiffel ne connaîtra véritablement un succès massif et constant qu'à partir des années 1960, avec l'essor du tourisme international. Elle accueille maintenant plus de six millions de visiteurs chaque année.

Sa hauteur lui a permis de porter le titre de « plus haute structure du monde » jusqu'à la construction en 1930 du Chrysler Building à New York. Située sur le Champ-de-Mars, près de la Seine, dans le 7e arrondissement de Paris, elle est actuellement exploitée par la société d'exploitation de la tour Eiffel (SETE). Le site, sur lequel travaillent plus 500 personnes (dont plus de 250 directement employés par la SETE), est ouvert tous les jours de l'annéeo 1.

La tour Eiffel est inscrite aux monuments historiques depuis le 24 juin 19646 et est inscrite au patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO depuis 1991, en compagnie des autres monuments parisiens.

ESPAGNOL ESPANOL

La Torre Eiffel (La Tour Eiffel, en francés), inicialmente nombrada torre de 330 metros (tour de 330 mètres), es una estructura de hierro pudelado diseñada por Maurice Koechlin y Émile Nouguier y construida por el ingeniero francés Gustave Eiffel y sus colaboradores para la Exposición universal de 1889 en París.1

Situada en el extremo del Campo de Marte a la orilla del río Sena, este monumento parisino, símbolo de Francia y su capital, es la estructura más alta de la ciudad y el monumento que cobra entrada más visitado del mundo, con 7,1 millones de turistas en 2011.2 Con una altura de 300 metros, prolongada más tarde con una antena a 325 metros, la Torre Eiffel fue la estructura más elevada del mundo durante 41 años.

Fue construida en dos años, dos meses y cinco días, y en su momento generó cierta controversia entre los artistas de la época, que la veían como un monstruo de hierro.3 Inicialmente utilizada para pruebas del ejército con antenas de comunicación,4 hoy sirve, además de atractivo turístico y como emisora de programas radiofónicos y televisivos.

La Torre Eiffel sobresale en París con sus 300 metros de altura.

Ubicación de la torre en la orilla sur del río Sena, en el extremo del Campo de Marte.

Inicialmente tema de controversia de algunos, la Torre Eiffel sirvió como presentación a la Exposición Universal de París de 1889, la cual acogió a más de 236 millones de visitantes desde su inauguración. Su tamaño excepcional y su silueta inmediatamente reconocible hicieron de la torre un emblema de París.

Concebida en la imaginación de Maurice Koechlin y Émile Nouguier, jefe de la oficina de estudios y jefe de la oficina de métodos, respectivamente, de la compañía "Eiffel & CO", fue pensada para ser el «clavo (centro de atención) de la exposición de 1889 que se celebraría en París», que además celebraría el centenario de la Revolución francesa. El primer plano de la torre fue realizado en junio de 1884 y mejorado por Stephen Sauvestre, el arquitecto principal de los proyectos de la empresa, quien le aportó más estética.

El 1 de mayo de 1886, el Ministro de Comercio e Industria, Édouard Lockroy, entusiasta partidario del proyecto, firmó un decreto que declaraba abierto «un apoyo para la Exposición Universal de 1889». Gustave Eiffel ganó este apoyo económico y un convenio el 8 de enero de 1887 que fijo las modalidades de construcción del edificio.

Construida en dos años, dos meses y cinco días (de 1887 a 1889) por 250 obreros, se inaugura oficialmente el 31 de marzo de 1889. Sufriendo una corrosión muy frecuente, la Torre Eiffel no conocerá verdaderamente un éxito masivo y constante hasta los años sesenta, con el desarrollo del turismo internacional. Ahora acoge a más de seis millones de visitantes cada año.

Sus 300 metros de altura le permitieron llevar el título de «la estructura más alta del mundo» hasta la construcción en 1930 del Edificio Chrysler, en Nueva York. Construida sobre el Campo de Marte cerca del río Sena, en el 7º distrito de París, actualmente es administrada por la "Sociedad para la administración de la torre Eiffel" (Société d'exploitation de la tour Eiffel, SETE). El lugar, que emplea a 500 personas (250 empleados directos del SETE y 250 de los distintos concesionarios instalados sobre el monumento), está abierto todos los días del año.

The ancient Hindu temple of Changu Narayan is located on a high hilltop that is also known as Changu or Dolagiri. The temple was surrounded by forest with champak tree and a small village, known as Changu Village. The temple is located in Changunarayan VDC of Bhaktapur District, Nepal. This hill is about 8 miles east of Kathmandu and a few miles north of Bhaktapur. The Manahara River flows beside the hill. This shrine is dedicated to Lord Visnu and held in especial reverence by the Hindu people. This temple is considered as the oldest temple in Nepal.

HISTORY OF CHANGU NARAYAN TEMPLE

The pagoda style temple has several masterpieces of 5th and 12th century Nepalese art. According to legends Changu Narayan temple existed as early as 325 A.D. in the time of King Licchavi King Hari Datta Verma and it is one of Nepal's richest structures historically as well as artistically. In the grounds there is a stone pillar inscription of great importance recording the military exploits of King Man Deva who reigned from 496 A.D. to 524 A.D. The first epigraphic evidence of Nepalese history found in the temple premises during the reign of the Licchavi King Mandeva dating back to 464 A.D. shows that Changu had already been established as a sacred site in the 3rd century A.D. It is the earliest inscription known in Nepal. The temple was restored during the lifetime of Ganga Rani, consort of Siva Simha Malla who reigned from 1585 to 1614. There are records of the temple burning in the year of 822 Nepal Samvat (1702 A.D.), after which reconstruction was carried out. More inscriptions in gilt-copper plates were added by Bhaskara Malla in 1708 A.D.

LEGEND ABOUT CHANGU NARAYAN

In ancient time a Gwala, a cow herder, had brought a cow from a Brahman named Sudarshan. The cow was known for producing large quantity of milk. The Gwala used to take the cow to Changu for grazing. At that time Changu was a forest of Champak tree. While grazing the cow it always went to the shade of a particular tree. In the evening when the Gwala took the cow home and started milking the cow he got only very few amount of milk. This continued several days. He became very sad so he called the Brahmin and told him that the cow is not giving enough milk. Brahmin after observing the fact from his own eyes then planned with the Gwala to inspect the activities of cow during the day while she was grazing in the forest. Both Brahmin and Gwala hide themselves behind the trees and spectate the activities of the cow. The cow went into the shade of a particular champak tree. To their surprise a small black boy came out from the tree and started drinking the cow milk. Both became very furious and they thought that the boy must be the devil and tree must be its home. So Brahmin cut down the champak tree. When the Brahmin was cutting down the tree a fresh human blood came out from the tree. Both Brahmin and Gwala became worried and they thought that they have committed the great crime and they started crying.From the tree lord Vishnu emerged out and he told the Brahmin that it was not their fault. Lord Vishnu told them the story that he had committed a heinous crime by killing Sudarshan’s father unknowingly while hunting in the forest. After that he was cursed for the crime. He then wandered on earth on his mouth, the ‘Garuda’ eventually descending on the hill at Changu. There he lived in anonymity, surviving on milk stolen from a cow. When Brahmin cut down the tree, lord Vishnu was beheaded which freed Lord Vishnu from his sins. After hearing these words from Vishnu, Brahmin and Gwala started worshipping the place and they established a small temple in the name of Lord Vishnu. Ever since that day, the site has been held sacred. . Even today we can find the descendant of Sudarshan Brahmin as priest of the temple and the descendents of Gwala as ghutiyars (conservators).

PHYSICAL ASPECTS

Changu Narayan Temple is situated at the top of the hill surrounded by forest of Champ tree. On the main way to temple courtyard, we can find human settlement. People from Newar community live in and around Changu Narayan area. With the development in tourism in this place, we can find many medium and small sized hotels, restaurants, souvenir shops, etc. An ancient stone tap is located on the way to Changunaran which is believed to have existed since the time of Lichhavi.

THE TEMPLE ART AND ARCHITECTURE

Changu Narayan is considered to be the oldest temple of Nepal. It remains a milestone in Nepali temple architecture with rich embossed works. The two-storey roofed temple stands on a high plinth of stone. According to Professor Madhan Rimal, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Tribhuwan University, the temple is neither in Shikhara Style nor the Pagoda style. It has an architectural style which he would like to describe as a traditional Nepali temple. Many similar features are found at Gokarna Mahadev. The temple is surrounded by sculptures and arts related to Lord Vishnu. Also we can find the temples of lord Shiva, Ashta Matrika, Chhinnamasta, Kileshwor and Krishna inside the courtyard of main temple. There are four entrances to the temple and these gates are guarded by life size pairs of animals such as lions, sarabhas, graffins and elephants on each side of the entrances. The ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu and the other idols are carved in the struts, which support the roof. The entrance door is gilded with carvings of Nagas (snakes). On the main entrance gate (i.e. western entrance gate), we can find the Chakra, Sankha, Kamal and Khadga all at the top of a stone pillar. These stone pillars has inscription in Sanskrit. This inscription is considered to be the oldest inscription of Nepal and the stone inscription pillar was erected by Lichhavi King Manadeva in 464 AD. The following monument are located while visiting the temple from the right side after entering from the main entrance (Eastern gate) to courtyard.

Historical pillar erected by Mandeva in 464 AD

Garuda:- flying vehicle of Lord Vishnu which has got a human face and is a devotee of Vishnu.

Statue of Bhupalendra Malla, King of Kantipur and his queen BhuwanLakshmi.

Chanda Narayan (Garuda Narayan):- 7th century stone sculpture of Vishnu riding on Garuda. This sculpture has been depicted in the 10 rupee paper note issued by Nepal Rastra Bank

Sridhar Vishnu:- 9th century stone sculpture of Vishnu, Laxmi and Garuda which stands on the pedestals of various motifs.

Vaikuntha Vishnu :- 16th century sculpture of Vishnu seated on the lalitason position on the six armed Garuda and Laxmi seated on the lap of Vishnu

Chhinnamasta:- Temple dedicated to Chhinnamasta devi, who beheaded herself, offered her own blood to feed the hungry Dakini and Varnini.

Vishworup:- 7th century stone sculpture- beautifully carved that depicts the scene from the Bhagwat Gita, in which Lord Krishna manifests his universal form to his devotee Arjun.

Vishnu Vikrant :- 7th century sculpture of Trivikram Vishnu that depicts the scene of popular Hindu myth of Lord Vishnu and his beloved Bali Raja.

Narasimha :- 7th century sculpture of Narasimha , an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, killing the demon King Hiranyakasyapa to save his beloved devotee Prahalad.

Kileshwor:- small two storied temples of Lord Shiva, who is believed to have appeared in this place for the protection of the hill.

INFORMATION CENTRE

There is a information centre at the entrance to Changu Village. They issue tickets to tourist. The information center has a public toilet for tourist. Also drinking water facilities is available for tourist. But the drink water facilities have not been managed properly. Only direct tap water is available there. According to Binaya Raj Shrestha, owner of Chagu Museum and the member of temple management committee, on an average 150 foreigners visit Changu.

CHANGU MUSEUM

A private museum is also located on in the Changu Narayan on the way to temple. According to Binaya Raj Shrestha, the owner of the museum, it is the first private museum of Nepal and it has the collection of ancient coins, tools, arts and architectures. There is an excellent collection of ancient, historical, artistic, religious, archaeological, cultural and other rare objects. The museum has a good collection of ancient tools used by Newar family during the medieval period. It was established on the occasion of millennium year 2000 AD with the permission of Changu Narayan VDC. The entrance fee for Nepalese is NRs. 50 and NRs. 300 is charged for foreigner. On an average 35 visitors visit this museum in a day. Mostly foreigners and Nepali students visit this museum.

ETHNOGRAPHIC MUSEUM

There is an ethnographic museum inside the building of the temple which incorporates both objects and photographs collected by Judith Davis. Entrance is INR. 250 for foreigners. There is also a small bookshop.

FESTIVALS AND FAIRS

Since the ancient period, many festivals and fairs have been organized on various occasions. One of the main festivals of Changu is called Changu Narayan Jatra. The festival ‘Mahashanan’ held here as an important festival. On the day of ‘Jugadi Nawami’ and ‘Haribodhini Ekadashi’ special puja is conducted in Changu. Daily puja and aarati is not conducted in temple and on the occasion of family rituals, such as birthday, marriage, etc local conduct not special puja in the temple.

MANAGEMENT APPROACHES

Changu Narayan Temple is on the list of world heritage sites. The valuable stone sculpture and ancient inscriptions have archeological, historical and cultural significance. Changu Narayan VDC is formed a committee called Changu Narayan Temple management Committee which is the responsible body to work for protection, preservation and management. Likewise the Department of Archeology and Palace Management Office, Bhaktapur has also provided assistance on the conservation and preservation of the temple. Many local youth clubs are involved in managing festivals, organizing awareness programs in and around temple area.

THREATS/CHALLENGES

The Manohara stream has long seen rampant mining of sand and stones. Local administration have failed to control the mining activities. Because of the mining activities, the temple area has become prone to landslides. Due to overgrazing in the nearby forest, the chances of soil erosion and landslide are very high.

There is a challenge regarding the security of the unique sculptures. Also the temple is getting older so renovation is necessary. The tourist information center has not been managed properly and they have not maintained good records of tourists. The museum is not issuing ticket bills after payments are made by Nepali visitors. Although Changu is only 8 miles east of Kathmandu, bus service is still lacking which means a newly constructed road to Changu has failed to bring in a significant number of tourists.

WIKIPEDIA

Exploitant : Cars Lacroix

Réseau : ValParisis

Ligne : 30-05

Lieu : Gare de Sartrouville (Sartrouville, F-78)

Lien TC Infos : tc-infos.fr/id/36076

Citelis 12 GNV (08/2012) du réseau STAN exploité par Transdev Nancy.

In honor of the month of the military child, the 3rd Military Intelligence Battalion (Aerial Exploitation) hosted a military child appreciation day on April 21. The unit hosted an open house tailored to children.

Both children and family members were treated to static displays consisting of unit equipment, vehicles, and reconnaissance aircraft. Children (and parents) were able to climb behind the wheel of an LMTV and a HEMMT. They were also able to pose for photos with M4 training aids otherwise known as ‘rubber ducks’.

B Company, 3rd MI BN (AE) had a static display of their GUARDRAIL RC-12 reconnaissance aircraft and A Company 3rd MI BN (AE) had a static display of their DHC-7 Airborne Reconnaissance Low (ARL) multi- mission aircraft. Under the watchful eyes of Soldiers, who volunteered their time to demonstrate the equipment, the children were able to go inside unit aircraft and learn about the responsibilities and missions of their military parents.

While the 3rd MI BN (AE) aircraft and military vehicles made an impression, the USAG-Humphreys Military Police working dogs made a guest appearance and held a working dog demonstration. The MP’s demonstrated how their dogs are trained to sniff for drugs and to attack on command.

Military children are a critical part of the Army family and it was great for Soldiers to have the interaction with an enthusiastic audience and teach the children about the unit and its mission.

The event concluded with a Family Readiness Group Potluck Dinner. Children and Spouses, of the 3rd MI BN (AE) are looking forward to another fun filled open house this summer.

Courtesy photos

For more information on U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys and living and working in Korea visit: USAG-Humphreys' official web site or check out our online videos.

Coaches, players and sport clubs are teaming up with police, charities and local authorities to send a clear message to communities that child sexual exploitation has no place within sport.

Salford Red Devils, FC United, Wigan Warriors and Rochdale Hornets are among some of the clubs supporting the ‘It’s Not Okay’ campaign as part of a week of action focussing on sport.

Throughout the week, police and partners will be raising awareness of child sexual exploitation with those that play, watch or coach sport by delivering training sessions, hosting information stalls at local leisure centres and speaking to young players about child sexual exploitation.

Sports clubs will be encouraged to sign and display an ‘It’s Not Okay ‘ charter on their noticeboards, reinforcing their commitment to tackling and preventing child sexual exploitation from happening on their watch.

Detective Superintendent Joanne Rawlinson from Greater Manchester Police said: “Greater Manchester is a fantastic place for sport and we want to celebrate this while ensuring it is a safe space for children and young people.

“Allegations of historical child sex abuse within sport has recently been highlighted nationally and it is important that people feel able to come forward regardless of whether the abuse happened 10 years ago or 10 days ago.

“Children and young people may choose to confide in their coach and it is vital that staff know how to respond to a child who may turn to them for help.

“This week we are providing training to people working within sport to increase their understanding of child sexual exploitation and the steps that can be taken to identify the signs and provide support to victims.”

Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime Beverley Hughes said: “Greater Manchester’s sporting reputation is world-class, and it’s fantastic to see so many of our clubs getting involved with this important campaign. It’s vital that sports coaches are able to recognise the signs of sexual exploitation, and that they know what to do if they have any concerns that a child at their club may be being abused.”

A spokesman for Salford Red Devils said: "We were keen to get onboard and support the campaign from the start. As a community-focused major sports club, a large number of our fans are juniors and their wellbeing, and that of all kids is of great importance to us.

“It is sad that even in this day and age that a campaign such as "It's Not Okay" is even necessary and going forward we will do anything we can to help spread its message as far and wide as possible.”

Jane Gardiner, Development Manager (Workforce) for Greater Sport said: “We’re proud to support the child sexual exploitation awareness week, It’s Not Okay and GMP’s work to highlight this area and offer guidance on what to do, which is integral for our sports workforce. If a situation arises then we need to ensure that volunteers and coaches in our local sports clubs are comfortable and confident in the correct procedures to address this.”

Sue Cuffe, Assistant Director for Barnardo’s Child Sexual Exploitation Services in the region said: “We always encourage children to take part in sport and leisure activities where they can, as we know the huge benefits this can bring to wellbeing.

“This awareness week highlights the importance of parents and young people being educated and alert to the signs of exploitation, so that if a situation arises in a sports environment or someone does something that makes a child feel uncomfortable, they know who they can approach to deal with this.

“Barnardo’s works with teachers to educate pupils in schools across Greater Manchester about child sexual exploitation, helping children to be aware of what healthy relationships look like across all areas of their life, both in the real world and online.”

Wigan Warriors Scholarship Manager, Steve McCormack said: “As a Club and through the Community Foundation we work with thousands of youngsters each week and a large number of our fans are juniors too.

“Their wellbeing is of upmost importance to all of us and we are proud to be involved in “It’s Not Okay” and will endeavour to do all that we can to help spread this important message far and wide.”

To report child sexual exploitation, call police on 101 or 999 if a child is in immediate danger. Alternatively, visit www.itsnotokay.co.uk to find contact details for local ‘It’s Not Okay’ team.

Sports organisations can download a charter from www.itsnotokay.co.uk

Join in the conversation online using the hashtag #ItsNotOkayInSport

Operation Vulcan executed their latest warrant yesterday (3 May 2023) at a property on Great Ducie Street in Cheetham Hill.

The warrant was carried out after intelligence came to light suggesting the property - a large distribution warehouse - was being used to supply a network of counterfeit stores throughout Cheetham Hill.

The number of items seized have an estimated worth of £1.2million pounds.

The enterprise was so vast officers made use of a conveyor belt to speed up the transfer of seized items into waiting vehicles.

Over the last 6 months through relentless policing and support from dedicated partners, Operation Vulcan has turned the tide against the criminals. The support of partners has been integral to Operation Vulcan and that was on full display yesterday (3 May 2023) with over 15 departments, teams, organisations and partner representatives in attendance - including from Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, Intellectual Property Office, Trading Standards, Brand Experts and Border Force.

GMFRS also raised concerns about the safety of the building, which led to it being issued it with a prohibition order.

Inspector Andy Torkington said: "The network of counterfeit stores in Cheetham Hill might seem chaotic and disorganised but this is far from the truth. The latest warrant demonstrates that these stores are well funded and well supplied and it's big business for organised crime groups who have been operating out of the area.

"This warrant is an opportunity to make a huge dent in the supply chain by cutting off the head of the supply snake. I hope it sends a message to any remaining counterfeit stores in the area who persist in trading to pack up now or face the consequences.

"Operation Vulcan is here to stay and we will continue making it unsustainable for criminal businesses to exist here and will work shoulder-to-shoulder with our partners to re-build the area into a thriving community where people feel safe.”

Neil Fairlamb, Strategic Director of Neighbourhoods for Manchester City Council said: "The work that has taken place throughout Operation Vulcan has shown the scope and scale of the counterfeit industry. It is huge enterprise, one which has had an incredibly negative impact on our communities. By striking a blow against this criminal supply chain we will succeed in forcing these traders out for good."

The Intellectual Property Office’s Deputy Director of Intelligence and Law Enforcement, Marcus Evans said: The Intellectual Property Office’s Deputy Director of Intelligence and Law Enforcement, Marcus Evans said: “Criminal networks are seeking to exploit consumers and communities for their own financial gain through the trade in illegal counterfeits – with absolutely no regard for the quality or safety of the items being sold, which are often dangerous and defective. Such items can cause genuine harm to the people who buy and use them, as well as those workers often exploited during their production.

“As well as helping to sustain serious and organised crime, the sale of counterfeit goods has been estimated to contribute to over 80,000 job loses each year in the UK by diverting funds away from legitimate traders and into the hands of criminals. We are pleased to support the ongoing activity by Greater Manchester Police to clamp down on this illegal activity and help protect the public, as we continue to work with partners across in industry, local government, and law enforcement to help empower consumers and raise awareness of the damage these goods cause.”

Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Vancouver, BC, Canada

Sex workers, allies, family and friends stand together

The red umbrella is the symbol of the global sex workers’ rights movement. The Red Umbrella March is part of a national day of action, with similar events taking place in cities across Canada.

In Vancouver it began at 2:30 p.m. on June 11 with a rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery (Robson Street plaza), followed by a march starting at 3 p.m. The march travelled through Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside to CRAB Park.

Protest chants included:

Freedom to associate is our right!

Get your laws off my body!

Sex workers rights are human rights!

My body, my business, my choice!

Remember Bedford!

No bad whores, only bad laws!

Sex worker rights now!

I support sex workers' rights

A Blow Job is Better than No Job.

This year’s focus was “Freedom to Associate is Our Right!”

The Freedom to Associate is a right granted to all citizens by our Charter of Rights & Freedoms. Canada’s new anti-prostitution laws violate sex workers’ freedom even to the point that standing in the street together is illegal if it encourages buying sex.

Marching together shows Canadians that when sex workers’ freedom to associate is infringed upon, it is a concern for all Canadians. It forces them to work alone and unsafe, they’re alienated, their families are torn apart.

When the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act became law in 2014, purchasing sexual services became a crime for the first time in Canada. Advocates for this, the “Nordic model,” believe it is the way to keep sex workers safe from violence and exploitation.

In the eyes of anti-sex work activists, “shaming the Johns” is a legitimate way to reduce the overall amount of street prostitution (estimated to comprise not more than 15 percent of all sexual services offered in Canada). But “John shaming” impacts sex workers themselves. Making what they do illegal only forces them to do it in riskier circumstances. For instance, street-based sex workers face longer hours, thanks to a temporary decline in clients. They may be more willing to take clients they would otherwise screen out, particularly when they’re under greater pressure to avoid police detection. And clients may be less likely to seek relevant health care. The Vancouver Police Department say they don’t consider sex between consenting adults an enforcement priority, claiming to only intervene in situations where there are reports of violence, exploitation, or involvement of youth or gangs.

But there’s no real difference between banning providing sexual services and banning paying for them. As long as the act of engaging in sex for money is illegal, sex workers will not see the police as allies in the moments that they really need them.

From the early 1990s to 2002, more than 70 women disappeared from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, most of them sex workers and all of them poor. Criminalization only served to push these women away from police and from the rest of society; it never made them safer. Robert Pickton admitted to an undercover police officer that he killed 49 women after he was arrested in 2002. He was convicted of the second-degree murders of six women and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. Former Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu has repeatedly apologized for his force’s failure to stop Pickton’s killing spree. Lawsuits claimed police, including individual RCMP officers, and the Crown failed to warn women on the Downtown Eastside that a serial killer may have been responsible for women disappearing, and was wrong for not putting Pickton on trial for attempted murder following an attack on a sex worker in 1997.

The Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity was co-organized by: Triple-X Workers’

Solidarity Association of B.C., Downtown Eastside Sex Workers United Against Violence (SWUAV), Pivot Legal Society, PACE Society, B.C. Coalition of Experiential Communities, FIRST: Feminists Advocating for the Decriminalization of Sex Work, SWAN Society Vancouver.

« Faire la route » .... L’espace à soi, sans limite autre que la rondeur de Gaïa. J’ai vu la soif à perte de vue par dessus les dunes, souverainement méprisée par la caravane altière. Celui qui va à pied n’est pas mieux considéré. Dormir sur le quai des gares ou dans des fossés : le confort peut en être discuté !

Somme toute, rien n’égale l’humour d’un montagnard afghan, si ce n’est sa familiarité avec les armes … et sa façon d’aborder un chilam.

« Caminante no hay camino, se hace camino … » (Antonio Machado)

© Yves Claudé – 2009 / ycsocio@yahoo.ca

Montréal : charmes et maléfices d’une île laide …

NB: Cet album « Montréal : charmes et maléfices d’une île laide » est conçu comme un diaporama. Vous pouvez le lancer à partir de l’adresse suivante :

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Vos commentaires et suggestions sont appréciés, soit directement sur le site de flickr.com, soit via mon adresse de courriel (ycsocio@yahoo.ca).

Yves Claudé

ENGLISH / ESPAÑOL / DEUTSCH / ITALIANO / PORTUGUÊS / РУССКИЙ

NB: This album « Montréal : charms and bewitching of an ugly island » is conceived as a slide show. You can start it from the following address:

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It is preferable to choose "slow speed" in the menu of the slide show.

Your comments and suggestions are appreciated, either directly on the site flickr.com or via my email (ycsocio@yahoo.ca).

YC

Nota: Este álbum « Montréal : encantos y maleficios de una isla fea » es concebido como un diaporama. Usted puede lanzarlo a partir de la de la siguiente dirección:

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Sus comentarios y sugerencias son apreciados, ya sea directamente en el flickr.com sitio o por medio de mi correo electrónico (ycsocio@yahoo.ca).

YC

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Es ist besser "langsame Geschwindigkeit" im Menü des Diaporama auszuwählen.

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È preferibile di selezionare "velocità lenta" nel menù del diaporama.

Vostri commenti e suggestioni sono apprezzati, o direttamente sul sito di flickr.com, o via il mio indirizzo di courriel (ycsocio@yahoo).

YC

NB: Este álbum « Montréal : encantos e maléfices de uma ilha feia » é concebido como um espetáculo de deslizamento. Você pode lançar isto do seguinte endereço:

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É preferível seleccionar " velocidade lente" na ementa do diaporama.

Seus comentários e sugestões são bem-vindas, quer directamente, no flickr.com local, quer através de meu endereço de e-mail (ycsocio@yahoo.ca).

YC

NB: Этот альбом "Отель: Обаяния и злые периоды уродливого острова" предназначена как слайд-шоу. Вы можете начать со следующего адреса:

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Это должно лучше выбирать "медленно скорость" в меню показа слайда.

Ценим Ваши замечания и предложения, либо непосредственно на сайте flickr.com, либо через мой адрес электронной почты (ycsocio@yahoo.ca).

YC

"Yves Claudé" Montréal Québec punk punks skinhead skinheads Bloods Bloodz Crips Cripz mara maras "mara salvatrucha" "inégalités sociales" " social inequalities " "desigualdades sociales" "diseguaglianze sociali" "desigualdades sociais" "soziale Ungleichheiten" "sociale ongelijkheden" "социальные неравенства" "социальное неравенство" "marginalisation sociale" "social marginalization" "social marginalisation" "marginación social" "emarginazione sociale" "marginalização social" "Soziales Aussteigen" "soziale Marginalisierung" "sociale marginalisation" "социальное разграничивание" "cоциальная маргинализация" pauvreté poverty pobreza povertà Armut armoede exploitation explotación sfruttamento Betrieb gebruik victimisation victimization Viktimisierung vitimização révolte revolt uprising rebelión sommossa revolta Revolte opstand мятеж bосстание "mouvements sociaux" "social movements" "movimientos sociales" "movimenti sociali" "Movimentos sociais" "sozialen Bewegungen" "sociale bewegingen" "социальных движений" "социальные движения" "mouvement ouvrier" "labour movement" "movimiento obrero" "movimento operaio" "movimento operário" "Arbeiterbewegung" "arbeidersbeweging" "Рабочее движение" syndicat syndicats "labor union" "labor unions" "trade union" "trade unions" sindicato sindicatos sindacato sindacati Gewerkschaft Gewerkschaften vakbond vakbonden профсоюзный Профсоюз Профсоюзы Союз Союзы syndicalisme "trade unionism" sindicalismo Syndikalismus vakbeweging "профсоюзное движение" "mouvement des femmes" "movement of the women" "women's movement" "movimiento de las mujeres" "movimento delle donne" "movimento das mulheres" "Bewegung der Frauen" "beweging van de vrouwen" "движение женщин" "Женское движение" "mouvement féministe" "feminist movement" "movimiento feminista" "movimento femminista" "Frauenrechtsbewegung" "feministische Bewegung" "feministische beweging" féminisme feminism feminismo Feminismus феминизм poésie poetry poesía poesia Poesie dichtkunst поэзия "crime organisé" "organized crime" "crimen organizado" "crimine organizzato" "crime organizado" "organisiertes Verbrechen" "georganiseerde misdaad" "предумышленное преступление" "motards criminalisés" "biker gangs" "motociclistas criminalizados" "motociclisti criminalizzati" "kriminalisierte Motorradfahrer" "fietser troepen" "Криминализированные мотоциклисты" "gangs de rue" "street gangs" "pandillas callejeras" "bande di via" "bandos de rua" "Straßenbanden" "straat troepen" "уличные банды" mafia "culture urbaine" "urban culture" "cultura urbana" Stadtkultur stadscultuur "stedelijke cultuur" "городская культура" "culture populaire" "popular culture" "cultura popular" "cultura popolare" Volkskultur "народной культуры" "популярная культура" sous-culture subculture subcultura sottocultura subcolture Subkultur subcultuur субкультура sous-cultures subcultures subculturas Subkulturen subculturen субкультуры capitalisme capitalism capitalismo Kapitalismus kapitalisme капитализм "capitalisme sauvage" "savage capitalism" "capitalismo salvaje" "capitalismo selvaggio" "capitalismo selvagem" "wilder Kapitalismus" "wild kapitalisme" "Дикий капитализм" "capitalisme barbare" "barbarian capitalism" "capitalismo bárbaro" "capitalismo barbaro" "barbarischer Kapitalismus" "grof kapitalisme" "варварский капитализм" "дикий капитализм" Sociologie Sociology Sociología Sociologia Soziologie Социология Anthropologie Anthropology Antropología Antropologia Antropologie Антропология Histoire History Historia Storia História Geschichte Geschiedenis История

This advertisement makes me SO mad. Exploitation of kids. How can we condone using seven year olds in this way? Using Barbie to draft kids into the sick world of "fashion."

Four men have been arrested in connection with the sexual exploitation of vulnerable young girls in Bury between 2006 and 2009.

The arrests were made on Wednesday24 May and Thursday 25 May 2023 during a series of warrants at properties in the Elton, Moorside and Eastern areas of Bury.

The suspects are between the ages of 36 and 44. The 44-year-old man is a former police officer. They all remain in police custody for questioning.

Two men, aged 35 and 41, have previously been arrested in connection with this investigation and are currently on bail pending further investigations.

Bury District Commander, Chief Superintendent Chris Hill said: “I commend the bravery and strength of any victim in coming forward and supporting police enquiries. The passage of time does not affect our dedication to ensuring they are listened to, placed at the very heart of operations and supported by specialist services for as long as they need.

“The report which resulted in the launch of this investigation initiated a multi-agency response. Officers have completed extensive enquiries to identify and locate suspects - this work is ongoing. They are also working with partner agencies, including Bury Council, to ensure any necessary safeguarding action is taken.

“What follows these arrests is a lengthy investigation to ensure that all involved are identified and that evidence of criminality is referred to the Crown Prosecution Service. Our message is clear – if you believe that you are a victim of child sexual exploitation or have something else to tell us which relates to this investigation, please report it.”

Detective Chief Inspector Dave Jones, of GMP’s Professional Standards Branch, said: “It is, obviously, extremely concerning that one of the suspects is a former police officer, who was employed by GMP until 2011. The Professional Standards Branch is supporting the investigation team and ensuring the correct processes and procedures are followed.”

The investigation team can be contacted via 0161 856 8633 or via the Live Chat function at gmp.police.uk, quoting Operation Factor. Anonymous reports can be made via the independent charity – Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Could you spot a child who is at risk of CSE?

Spot the signs of child exploitation: Going missing for periods of time or regularly returning home late; skipping school or being disruptive in class; appearing with unexplained gifts or possessions that can’t be accounted for; experiencing health problems that may indicate a sexually transmitted infection; having mood swings and changes in temperament; using drugs and/or alcohol; displaying inappropriate sexualised behaviour, such as over-familiarity with strangers, dressing in a sexualised manner or sending sexualised images by mobile phone ("sexting"); increasing screen time or showing unusual use of online platforms, such as websites, social media, apps or games; they may also show signs of unexplained physical harm, such as bruising and cigarette burns.

If you or someone you know has been raped or sexually assaulted, we encourage you not to suffer in silence and report it to the police, or a support agency so you can get the help and support available.

- Saint Mary's Sexual Assault Referral Centre, Manchester provides a comprehensive and co-ordinated response to men, women and children who live or have been sexually assaulted within Greater Manchester. They offer forensic medical examinations, practical and emotional support as well as a counselling service for all ages. Services are available on a 24-hour basis and can be accessed by calling 0161 276 6515.

- Greater Manchester Rape Crisis is a confidential information, support and counselling service run by women for women over 18 who have been raped or sexually abused at any time in their lives. Call on 0161 273 4500 or email help@manchesterrapecrisis.co.uk

- Survivors Manchester provides specialist trauma informed support to male victims in Greater Manchester who have experienced sexual abuse, rape or sexual exploitation. Call 0161 236 2182.

Vintage postcard. Brigitte Bardot in La vérité / The Truth (Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1960).

French actress Brigitte Bardot (1934) died on 28 December 2025, at the age of 91. In the 1950s, she was the sex kitten of the European film industry. BB starred in 48 films, performed in numerous musical shows, and recorded 80 songs. After her retirement in 1973, she became an animal rights activist. In the coming weeks, we will continue to post a BB postcard every day to remember her as she once was.

Brigitte Bardot was born in Paris in 1934. Her father, Louis Bardot, had an engineering degree and worked with his father in the family business. Her mother, Ann-Marie Mucel, was 14 years younger than Brigitte's father, and they married in 1933. Brigitte's mother encouraged her daughter to take up music and dance. At the age of 13, she entered the Conservatoire Nationale de Danse to study ballet. By the time she was 15, Brigitte was trying to launch a modelling career and found herself on the cover of the French magazine Elle in May 1949. Her incredible beauty was readily apparent, and Brigitte was noticed by Roger Vadim, then an assistant to the film director Marc Allegrét. Vadim was infatuated with Bardot and encouraged her to start working as a film actress. BB was 18 when she debuted in the comedy Le Trou Normand / Crazy for Love (Jean Boyer, 1952). In the same year, she married Vadim. Brigitte wanted to marry him when she was 17, but her parents quashed any marriage plans until she turned 18. In April 1953, she attended the Cannes Film Festival, where she received massive media attention. She soon was every man's idea of the girl he'd like to meet in Paris. From 1952 to 1956, she appeared in seventeen films. Her films were generally lightweight romantic dramas in which she was cast as an ingénue or siren, often with an element of undress. In 1953, she made her first US production, Un acte d'amour / Act of Love (Anatole Litvak, 1953) with Kirk Douglas, but she continued to make films in France.

Roger Vadim was not content with the light fare his wife was offered. He felt Brigitte Bardot was being undersold. Looking for something more like an art film to push her as a serious actress, he showcased her in Et Dieu créa la femme / ...And God Created Woman (Roger Vadim, 1956). This film, about an immoral teenager in a respectable small-town setting, was a smash success on both sides of the Atlantic. Craig Butler at AllMovie: "It's easy enough to say that ...And God Created Woman is much more important for its historical significance than for its actual quality as a film, and that's true to an extent. The immense popularity, due to its willingness to directly embrace an exploration of sex as well as its willingness to show a degree of nudity that was remarkably daring for its day, demonstrated that audiences were willing to view subject matter that was considered too racy for the average moviegoer. This had both positive (freedom to explore, especially for the French filmmakers of the time) and negative (freedom to exploit) consequences, but its impact is undeniable. It's also true that Woman is not a great work of art, not with a story that is ultimately rather thin, some painful dialogue, and an attitude toward its characters and their sexuality that is unclear and inconsistent. Yet Woman is still fascinating, due in no small part to the presence of Brigitte Bardot in the role that made her an international star and sex symbol. She's not demonstrating great acting here, although her performance is actually good and much better than necessary, and her legendary mambo scene at the climax is nothing short of sensational." During the filming of Et Dieu créa la femme / And God Created Woman (Roger Vadim, 1956), directed by her husband, Brigitte Bardot had an affair with her co-star, Jean-Louis Trintignant, who at the time was married to French actress Stéphane Audran. Her divorce from Vadim followed, but they remained friends and collaborated in later work.

Et Dieu créa la femme / ...And God Created Woman (Roger Vadim, 1956) helped Brigitte Bardot's international status. The film took the USA by storm, her explosive sexuality being unlike anything seen in the States since the days of the 'flapper' in the 1920s. It gave rise to the phrase 'sex kitten', and fascination with her in America consisted of magazine photographs and dubbed over French films - good, bad or indifferent, her films drew audiences - mainly men - into theatres like lemmings. BB appeared in light comedies like Doctor at Large (Ralph Thomas, 1957) - the third of the British 'Doctor' series starring Dirk Bogarde - and Une Parisienne / La Parisienne (Michel Boisrond, 1957), which suited her acting skills best. However, she was a sensation in the crime drama En cas de malheur / Love is My Profession (Claude Autant-Lara, 1958). Hal Erickson at AllMovie: "This Brigitte Bardot vehicle ran into stiff opposition from the Catholic Legion of Decency, severely limiting its U.S. distribution. Bardot plays a nubile small-time thief named Yvette, who becomes the mistress of influential defence attorney Andre (Jean Gabin). Though Andre can shower Yvette with jewels and furs, he cannot "buy" her heart, and thus it is that it belongs to handsome young student Mazzetti (Franco Interlenghi). Alas, Yvette is no judge of human nature: attractive though Mazzetti can be, he has a dangerous and deadly side. En Cas de Malheur contains a nude scene that has since been reprinted in freeze-frame form innumerable times by both film-history books and girlie magazines." Photographer Sam Lévin's photos contributed considerably to her image of sensuality and slight immorality. One of Lévin's pictures shows Brigitte, dressed in a white corset. It is said that around 1960, postcards with this photograph outsold in Paris those of the Eiffel Tower.

Brigitte Bardot divorced Vadim in 1957, and in 1959 she married actor Jacques Charrier, with whom she starred in Babette s'en va-t-en guerre / Babette Goes to War (Christian-Jaque, 1959). The paparazzi preyed upon her marriage, while she and her husband clashed over the direction of her career

Her films became more substantial, but this brought a heavy pressure of dual celebrity as she sought critical acclaim while remaining a glamour model for most of the world. Vie privée / Private Life (1962), directed by Louis Malle, has more than an element of autobiography in it. James Travers at French Films: "Brigitte Bardot hadn’t quite reached the high point of her career when she agreed to make this film with high-profile New Wave film director Louis Malle. Even so, the pressure of being a living icon was obviously beginning to get to France’s sex goddess, and Vie privée is as much an attempt by Bardot to come to terms with her celebrity as anything else. Malle is clearly fascinated by Bardot, and the documentary approach he adopts for this film reinforces the impression that it is more a biography of the actress than a work of fiction. Of course, it’s not entirely biographical, but the story is remarkably close to Bardot’s own life and comes pretty close to predicting how her career would end." The scene in which, returning to her apartment, Bardot's character is harangued in the elevator by a middle-aged cleaning lady calling her offensive names was based on an actual incident, and is a resonant image of celebrity in the mid-20th century. Soon afterwards, Bardot withdrew to the seclusion of Southern France.

Brigitte Bardot's other husbands were German millionaire Playboy Gunter Sachs and right-wing politician Bernard d'Ormale. She is reputed to have had relationships with many other men, including Samy Frey, her co-star in La Vérité / The Truth (Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1960), and musicians Serge Gainsbourg and Sacha Distel. In 1963, Brigitte Bardot starred in Jean-Luc Godard's critically acclaimed film Le Mépris / Contempt (Jean-Luc Godard, 1963) opposite Michel Piccoli. She was also featured along with such notable actors as Alain Delon in Amours célèbres / Famous Love Affairs (Michel Boisrond, 1961) and Histoires extraordinaires /Tales of Mystery (Louis Malle, 1968), Jeanne Moreau in Viva Maria! (Louis Malle, 1965), Sean Connery in Shalako (Edward Dmytryk, 1968), and Claudia Cardinale in Les Pétroleuses / Petroleum Girls (Christian-Jaque, 1971). She participated in various musical shows and recorded many popular songs in the 1960s and 1970s, mostly in collaboration with Serge Gainsbourg, Bob Zagury and Sacha Distel, including 'Harley Davidson', 'Le Soleil De Ma Vie' (the cover of Stevie Wonder's 'You Are the Sunshine of My Life') and the notorious 'Je t'aime... moi non plus'.

Brigitte Bardot’s film career showed a steady decline in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 1973, just before her fortieth birthday, she announced her retirement. She chose to use her fame to promote animal rights. In 1976, she established the Brigitte Bardot Foundation for the Welfare and Protection of Animals. She became a vegetarian and raised three million French francs to fund the foundation by auctioning off jewellery and many personal belongings. For this work, she was awarded the Légion d’honneur in 1984. During the 1990s, she was also outspoken in her criticism of immigration, interracial relationships, Islam in France and homosexuality. Her husband Bernard d'Ormal was a former adviser of the far-right Front National party. Bardot has been convicted five times for 'inciting racial hatred'. More fun is that Bardot is recognised for popularising bikini swimwear, in such early films as Manina / Woman without a Veil (Willy Rozier, 1952), in her appearances at Cannes and in many photo shoots. Bardot also brought into fashion the 'choucroute' ('Sauerkraut') hairstyle (a sort of beehive hairstyle) and gingham clothes after wearing a checkered pink dress, designed by Jacques Esterel, at her wedding to Charrier. The fashions of the 1960s looked effortlessly right and spontaneous on her. Time Magazine: "She is the princess of pout, the countess of come hither. Brigitte Bardot exuded a carefree, naïve sexuality that brought a whole new audience to French films."

Sources: Denny Jackson (IMDb), Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Craig Butler (AllMovie), James Travers (French Films), French Films, Wikipedia and IMDb.

And please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Vancouver, BC, Canada

Sex workers, allies, family and friends stand together

The red umbrella is the symbol of the global sex workers’ rights movement. The Red Umbrella March is part of a national day of action, with similar events taking place in cities across Canada.

In Vancouver it began at 2:30 p.m. on June 11 with a rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery (Robson Street plaza), followed by a march starting at 3 p.m. The march travelled through Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside to CRAB Park.

Protest chants included:

Freedom to associate is our right!

Get your laws off my body!

Sex workers rights are human rights!

My body, my business, my choice!

Remember Bedford!

No bad whores, only bad laws!

Sex worker rights now!

I support sex workers' rights

A Blow Job is Better than No Job.

This year’s focus was “Freedom to Associate is Our Right!”

The Freedom to Associate is a right granted to all citizens by our Charter of Rights & Freedoms. Canada’s new anti-prostitution laws violate sex workers’ freedom even to the point that standing in the street together is illegal if it encourages buying sex.

Marching together shows Canadians that when sex workers’ freedom to associate is infringed upon, it is a concern for all Canadians. It forces them to work alone and unsafe, they’re alienated, their families are torn apart.

When the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act became law in 2014, purchasing sexual services became a crime for the first time in Canada. Advocates for this, the “Nordic model,” believe it is the way to keep sex workers safe from violence and exploitation.

In the eyes of anti-sex work activists, “shaming the Johns” is a legitimate way to reduce the overall amount of street prostitution (estimated to comprise not more than 15 percent of all sexual services offered in Canada). But “John shaming” impacts sex workers themselves. Making what they do illegal only forces them to do it in riskier circumstances. For instance, street-based sex workers face longer hours, thanks to a temporary decline in clients. They may be more willing to take clients they would otherwise screen out, particularly when they’re under greater pressure to avoid police detection. And clients may be less likely to seek relevant health care. The Vancouver Police Department say they don’t consider sex between consenting adults an enforcement priority, claiming to only intervene in situations where there are reports of violence, exploitation, or involvement of youth or gangs.

But there’s no real difference between banning providing sexual services and banning paying for them. As long as the act of engaging in sex for money is illegal, sex workers will not see the police as allies in the moments that they really need them.

From the early 1990s to 2002, more than 70 women disappeared from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, most of them sex workers and all of them poor. Criminalization only served to push these women away from police and from the rest of society; it never made them safer. Robert Pickton admitted to an undercover police officer that he killed 49 women after he was arrested in 2002. He was convicted of the second-degree murders of six women and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. Former Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu has repeatedly apologized for his force’s failure to stop Pickton’s killing spree. Lawsuits claimed police, including individual RCMP officers, and the Crown failed to warn women on the Downtown Eastside that a serial killer may have been responsible for women disappearing, and was wrong for not putting Pickton on trial for attempted murder following an attack on a sex worker in 1997.

The Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity was co-organized by: Triple-X Workers’

Solidarity Association of B.C., Downtown Eastside Sex Workers United Against Violence (SWUAV), Pivot Legal Society, PACE Society, B.C. Coalition of Experiential Communities, FIRST: Feminists Advocating for the Decriminalization of Sex Work, SWAN Society Vancouver.

Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Vancouver, BC, Canada

Sex workers, allies, family and friends stand together

The red umbrella is the symbol of the global sex workers’ rights movement. The Red Umbrella March is part of a national day of action, with similar events taking place in cities across Canada.

In Vancouver it began at 2:30 p.m. on June 11 with a rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery (Robson Street plaza), followed by a march starting at 3 p.m. The march travelled through Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside to CRAB Park.

Protest chants included:

Freedom to associate is our right!

Get your laws off my body!

Sex workers rights are human rights!

My body, my business, my choice!

Remember Bedford!

No bad whores, only bad laws!

Sex worker rights now!

I support sex workers' rights

A Blow Job is Better than No Job.

This year’s focus was “Freedom to Associate is Our Right!”

The Freedom to Associate is a right granted to all citizens by our Charter of Rights & Freedoms. Canada’s new anti-prostitution laws violate sex workers’ freedom even to the point that standing in the street together is illegal if it encourages buying sex.

Marching together shows Canadians that when sex workers’ freedom to associate is infringed upon, it is a concern for all Canadians. It forces them to work alone and unsafe, they’re alienated, their families are torn apart.

When the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act became law in 2014, purchasing sexual services became a crime for the first time in Canada. Advocates for this, the “Nordic model,” believe it is the way to keep sex workers safe from violence and exploitation.

In the eyes of anti-sex work activists, “shaming the Johns” is a legitimate way to reduce the overall amount of street prostitution (estimated to comprise not more than 15 percent of all sexual services offered in Canada). But “John shaming” impacts sex workers themselves. Making what they do illegal only forces them to do it in riskier circumstances. For instance, street-based sex workers face longer hours, thanks to a temporary decline in clients. They may be more willing to take clients they would otherwise screen out, particularly when they’re under greater pressure to avoid police detection. And clients may be less likely to seek relevant health care. The Vancouver Police Department say they don’t consider sex between consenting adults an enforcement priority, claiming to only intervene in situations where there are reports of violence, exploitation, or involvement of youth or gangs.

But there’s no real difference between banning providing sexual services and banning paying for them. As long as the act of engaging in sex for money is illegal, sex workers will not see the police as allies in the moments that they really need them.

From the early 1990s to 2002, more than 70 women disappeared from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, most of them sex workers and all of them poor. Criminalization only served to push these women away from police and from the rest of society; it never made them safer. Robert Pickton admitted to an undercover police officer that he killed 49 women after he was arrested in 2002. He was convicted of the second-degree murders of six women and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. Former Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu has repeatedly apologized for his force’s failure to stop Pickton’s killing spree. Lawsuits claimed police, including individual RCMP officers, and the Crown failed to warn women on the Downtown Eastside that a serial killer may have been responsible for women disappearing, and was wrong for not putting Pickton on trial for attempted murder following an attack on a sex worker in 1997.

The Red Umbrella March for Sex Work Solidarity was co-organized by: Triple-X Workers’

Solidarity Association of B.C., Downtown Eastside Sex Workers United Against Violence (SWUAV), Pivot Legal Society, PACE Society, B.C. Coalition of Experiential Communities, FIRST: Feminists Advocating for the Decriminalization of Sex Work, SWAN Society Vancouver.

Ligne 95 - Arrêt : Fauvelière

Exploitant : Keolis Atlantique

Réseau TAN - Nantes

Gokarna (Kannada: ಗೋಕರ್ಣ) is a small temple town located on the western coast of India in the Uttara Kannada district of the Indian state of Karnataka. Main temple and deity is Lord Shiva, who is also known as Mahabhaleshwara. This temple houses what is believed to be original image of Lord Shiva's lingam (Atmalinga). There are many other temples all over this small town. Ankola and Kumta on Highway 17 are the main towns near Gokarna.

Gokarna is historically known as one of the seven important Hindu pilgrimage centers and is located on what was once unspoiled beach near the estuary of river Aghanashini with its palm trees, other colorful tropical fruit and flower trees. Of late due to the numbers of tourists the character of this town has changed. This town is no longer just a center of pilgrimage though massive numbers of devotees still visit the town for the purposes of offering prayers and worship to Lord Shiva.

Due to its laid back unspoiled and rustic nature, many younger western tourists started visiting Gokarna about a decade ago. The beaches around Gokarna were hardly used by the locals until these mainly Western tourists started coming to undeveloped beaches around Gokarna. Many enterprising locals started stores restaurants and now fully fledged resorts cater even to the well heeled tourists.

ETYMOLOGY

Gokarna means Cow's Ear. It is believed that Lord Shiva emerged from the ear of a cow (Prithvi, the Mother Earth) here. It is also located at the ear-shaped confluence of two rivers Gangavali and Aghanashini.

MYTOLOGY

Gokarna is mentioned in the Shrimad Bhagavata Purana as being the home of the two brothers Gokarna and Dhundhakari and the Bhagawat also gives details of the differences in their temperament, nature and exploits.

The sthalapuranam of gokarna then available in Tamil as it was a part of Tamil Kingdoms during sangam times, has the following account. Inorder that Brahma who out arrogance arising out of his power to create the universe, sat penancing to redeem himself from curse of shivan, lord shiva appeared in front of him from the ears of a cow. So the place came to be known as gokarnam or ear of the cow. The sangam period writings refer to a class of chieftains going by names kocar and kilans, in charge of the region between gokarnam and present day Mumbai. Even though the Tamil saints have revered this temple, their composed hymns on the same are not available to us as of today.

HISTORY

The earliest history of the city is not known. Tamil saints like the Nayanmars Appar and Sambanthar from the 6th century CE praised the deity of Tulu Nadu in their hymn canon Tevaram. It is an established fact that Mayurvarma of the Kadamba kings brought Brahmins from Ahicchatra. A sect of Brahmins fled from the Gomantak to escape forcible conversions by the Portuguese and British and settled in and around Gokarna in the 15th century. It was part of the Sodhe and Vijayanagar kingdoms. Later, when the Konkan region - including Goa - was occupied by the Portuguese, it became part of their rule. A few temples were destroyed by the Portuguese in 1714 and then rebuilt later in the 18th century and also under the supervision of Guru H. H. Shrimat Anandashram Swamiji in 1928.

CULTURE

Gokarna is a town of contrasts, as it is a temple town and also a holiday destination. Gokarna is full of coconut, banana and other trees, blue seas and relatively clean sands. It is a laid back town with two main streets lined with shops and traditional tile-roofed brick houses. The beaches near Gokarna have shacks (huts) for rent. Kannada is the main language spoken here, however Konkani as well as Indian version of English are spoken here.

RELIGIOUS ATTRACTIONS

Gokarna is also an important centre of Sanskrit learning and houses Bhandikeri Math and Toggu Math. It is a place where Sanskrit knowledge is passed down from generations in Brahmin families. Many Hindus also perform the last rites of a person here.

- Mahabaleshwar Temple (Maha: great, bal: strength) is a famous Shiva Temple and it houses the 'Atmalinga'. Named so after Ravana referred to the linga's great strength.

It is situated at the western end of the main street. In the sanctuary is 'Athmalinga' in between the Saligrama Peethaa. The idol of Lord Mahabaleshwara is called Nagabharana. It is so named because of the Lord rests under the head of Naga (serpent). The floor of the hall in front has an intricate engraving of a giant tortoise.

- Maha Ganapathi Temple built in honour of the boy Ganapathi, who deceived the demon Ravana by keeping Atmalinga on ground before ravana returns from sandyavandanam. The deity here is two-armed, standing and at least 1500 years old.

- Uma Maheshwara Temple

- Bhadrakali Temple

- Tamra Gauri Temple

- Venkataramana Temple

- Kotitheertha is a man-made tank that is used for immersion of idols and ritual bathing. It is surrounded by temples.

- Shivaratri festival is celebrated here with great enthusiasm. The temple has two chariots - named locally as 'Dodda Ratha' (Dodda for Big in Kannada) and 'Sanna Ratha' (sanna for small in Kannada). Dodda Ratha is quite huge. While 'Sanna Ratha' is out in the open during winter and summer, the 'Dodda Ratha' is brought out and made ready only during Maha Shivaratri. On the last day of Maha Shivaratri festival the Lord Mahabaleshwara idol is carried in 'Dodda Ratha' in a procession through the town's big Car Street, while priests and pilgrims chant hymns in praise of Shiva. More than a hundred people are needed to pull the chariots with thick ropes while priests conduct religious ceremonies inside. During the nine-day Maha Shivaratri festival, the small town of Gokarna is visited by up to 20,000 pilgrims.

COMMUNITY FESTIVALS

- Mahashivaratri

- Kartika mahotsava

- suggi habba is the main cultural festival of halakki vakkaligas

BEACHES

The drive up the winding path that leads to Gokarna is scenic, with the rocky mountains and Western Ghats on one side and the Arabian Sea on the other.Gokarna is also known for the beaches. The main beaches in Gokarna are the Gokarna beach (also known as Indian Beach), Main Beach, Kuddle Beach, Om Beach, Half moon Beach, Paradise Beach (also known as Full moon)and Nirvana beach (3 km long with fine white sand). The Gokarna beach forms the coast of the town and is followed by Main beach in northern direction while the other four beaches lie to the south of Gokarna. Gokarna Beach is mainly used by Indian pilgrims. Main Beach is a long open beach, also known for surfing. Kuddle and Om are around 6 km from Gokarna town along a muddy hill; they are accessible by rickshaw or foot. Half moon and Paradise are beyond Om beach and are accessible only by foot or boat, Nirvana beach is accessible by boat and road from Kumta town. Om beach is named so because it is shaped like the auspicious ॐ [Om] symbol. Om beach is the only naturally Om shaped beach. Three other beaches - Paradise, Half Moon and Nirvana beach.

LOCATION

Gokarna is about 583 km from Bangalore, 238 km north of Mangalore and about 59 km from Karwar. It is between the Gangavali and Agnashini rivers and situated along the Karwar coast by the Arabian Sea. It is 200 km north from the college towns of Suratkal.

Gokarna can be reached by buses and maxicabs from Kumta (30 km), Ankola (26 km) and Karwar (59 km) on National Highway 17( NH-17 ). Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) also runs long-journey buses from many cities like Panaji, Bangalore and Mangalore. Private buses (Vijayanand Roadlines - VRL, Sugama, Sea Bird, etc.) operate night journeys from the capital city of Bangalore to Gokarna daily. It can be reached by train Konkan Railway on the Mumbai to Mangalore route. The railway station ( called Gokarna Road ) is 6 km away from the town. The station also has a retiring room at a nominal price. Many important trains like Matsyagandha Express have a halt here. The nearest airports are Dabolim at Goa and Mangalore International Airport at Bajpe.

WIKIPEDIA

National Animal Rights Day march in Edmonton, AB

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Why veganism:

www.vegankit.com/why

Exploitant : Chantreau Voyages

Car du club FC Nantes.

Processed with VSCOcam with a6 preset

India’s 2011 census shows a serious decline in the number of girls under the age of seven. Across India there were 945 girls per 1,000 boys in the 1991 census, 927 in 2001 and now 914 (in 2011); in some areas this can be as low as 861. Rising incomes only seem to accelerate the selective abortion of girl foetuses (female foeticide).

More disturbingly, the latest annual health survey data pointed out that in nine most populous north-Indian states, girls are disappearing not so much from foeticide as from infanticide which reflected in the substantial fall in the gender ratio in the 0-4 age group in several districts across nine states. While foeticide is driven mainly by the fear of high wedding and dowry costs, it is exacerbated by the preference for sons as family sizes shrink.

Now the skewed gender ratio has given rise to a system of bride-buying in the affected states: once trafficked or purchased they can be exploited, denied basic rights, put to work as maids and, in many cases, abandoned. Marriage to "imported brides" makes caste, language and culture immaterial as long as money is paid to the girl's family and a male child is born. Most of them come from poverty-ridden villages of east-Indian states of Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar and Orissa, and are sold because their families need the money.

India urgently needs a proper and more focused series of initiatives if it is to transform the status of its women.

Read More: gu.com/p/3z9d2/sbl

The Stellar Octopus cyanea from Madagascar

Over 3 billion people’s livelihoods depend on marine and coastal biodiversity around the world. Fishery management provides economic benefits of conservation and community engagement with broader marine management. Madagascar has incredible biodiversity, but due to climate change, as well as over exploitation, it’s delicate marine ecosystem is at high risk. It’s fisheries engage with the community to practice “no-take” conservation periods which allows the octopus time to become old enough to reproduce and increases the catch for those who depend on it.

Octopus cyanea moves along the seafloor camouflaging itself not only with color but with texture. Although octopuses are normally nocturnal, Octopus cyanea prefers twilight. Yet it is also known as the Day Octopus, because it can be found hunting in cooperation with a roving coral grouper fish who often points out hiding prey when the octopus seeks shelter in the coral. It’s lifespan is about 12-14 months from its planktonic larval state.

The Baby Green Sea Turtle Superstar (Chelonia mydas)

Who loves a marine protected area? Sea turtles do! Research shows snow birds aren’t the only one’s nesting in Florida. Scientists observed sea turtles spend most of their time breeding and feeding at the protected Dry Tortugas Beach and the protected areas of the Florida Keys. Sea turtles help maintain healthy seagrass beds and coral reefs, the key habitats for marine life. By supporting the balance of the marine food web, sea turtles facilitate nutrient cycling from water to land.

The biggest threat to sea turtles is injury from fisheries and habitat degradation. To protect the sea turtles we need to 1) Reduce sea turtle interactions and mortalities in commercial fisheries, 2) Protect key habitat areas on land and in the water 3) Pass comprehensive legislation that establishes a system to protect and restore sea turtle populations

About the Project Marine Protected Animal (MPA) Glam Shots

Come get your Glam on for the Ocean! Artist, Jessica Ling Findley, combines retro glamour portraits with sea creatures thriving in Marine Protected Areas. These portraits highlight successful human actions to heal our oceans. Want to help spread the word about Marine Protected Areas and ocean optimism? Sign up to be a model for the ocean at bit.ly/38dykjn

Project Origins:

Inspired by the world’s premier Ocean Sciences Meeting in February 2020, Seaport Village and The Port of San Diego have invited artist Jessica Ling Findley to produce a series of art experiences. She will help bring science to life through art at Seaport Village from December 2019 to February 2020. As ocean vitality becomes more critical with changing climate, these works, produced with input and data from scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Birch Aquarium, explore how stories of Ocean Optimism can inspire us all to work together for a sustainable future. These immersive experiences invite audiences to think about the future of our oceans in new and creative ways.

About the Artist:

Jessica Ling Findley is an Encinitas based artist with a focus on social practice and environmental advocacy. Her work playfully blurs spectator and participant, engaging the audience to explore. Her public participatory work, Aeolian Ride, inflated people on bicycles in 20 cities around the world. Exhibitions and awards include: Dublin Museum of Science, New Museum, Deitch Art Parade in NY, and SDAI, Tokyo Wondersite Residency, Brooklyn Arts Council Grant and Black Rock Arts Grant Foundation and Port of San Diego public art commission. www.jessicalingfindley.com

References:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus_cyanea

journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone...

news.mongabay.com/2017/11/fish-vs-forests-madagascars-mar...

cases.open.ubc.ca/octopus-fishery-management-in-madagascar/

www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceans/

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nlm-Pp6g64

oceana.org/sites/default/files/reports/Why_Healthy_Oceans...

californiampas.org/archives/portfolio-item/threatened-gre...

. . . 2. 3. 2007 - this is the first day of a funeral ceremony in Bori for a High Class Woman. She died on 18. 1. 2007 at the age of 85 years. The ceremony will last for one week. Today we will see the showing of the water buffalos, pigs, cow, horse, deer and chicken. All these animals are offered to be the servants of the died woman in her new life after death in Puya. We will see buffalo fighting. Men bet for the winner of those fightings. Two buffalos fight each other - the one running away lost the fight!

If you wonder why the quality of the pictures is a little less: these are no photographs - it all are snapshots of my videos! So sorry for the less resolution, but I think, they are worth to be shown.

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The Toraja are an ethnic group indigenous to a mountainous region of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Their population is approximately 1,100,000, of whom 450,000 live in the regency of Tana Toraja ("Land of Toraja"). Most of the population is Christian, and others are Muslim or have local animist beliefs known as aluk ("the way"). The Indonesian government has recognized this animist belief as Aluk To Dolo ("Way of the Ancestors").

The word toraja comes from the Bugis Buginese language term to riaja, meaning "people of the uplands". The Dutch colonial government named the people Toraja in 1909. Torajans are renowned for their elaborate funeral rites, burial sites carved into rocky cliffs, massive peaked-roof traditional houses known as tongkonan, and colorful wood carvings. Toraja funeral rites are important social events, usually attended by hundreds of people and lasting for several days.

Before the 20th century, Torajans lived in autonomous villages, where they practised animism and were relatively untouched by the outside world. In the early 1900s, Dutch missionaries first worked to convert Torajan highlanders to Christianity. When the Tana Toraja regency was further opened to the outside world in the 1970s, it became an icon of tourism in Indonesia: it was exploited by tourism developers and studied by anthropologists. By the 1990s, when tourism peaked, Toraja society had changed significantly, from an agrarian model - in which social life and customs were outgrowths of the Aluk To Dolo - to a largely Christian society. Today, tourism and remittances from migrant Torajans have made for major changes in the Toraja highland, giving the Toraja a celebrity status within Indonesia and enhancing Toraja ethnic group pride.

ETHNIC IDENTITY

The Torajan people had little notion of themselves as a distinct ethnic group before the 20th century. Before Dutch colonization and Christianization, Torajans, who lived in highland areas, identified with their villages and did not share a broad sense of identity. Although complexes of rituals created linkages between highland villages, there were variations in dialects, differences in social hierarchies, and an array of ritual practices in the Sulawesi highland region. "Toraja" (from the coastal languages' to, meaning people; and riaja, uplands) was first used as a lowlander expression for highlanders. As a result, "Toraja" initially had more currency with outsiders - such as the Bugis and Makassarese, who constitute a majority of the lowland of Sulawesi - than with insiders. The Dutch missionaries' presence in the highlands gave rise to the Toraja ethnic consciousness in the Sa'dan Toraja region, and this shared identity grew with the rise of tourism in the Tana Toraja Regency. Since then, South Sulawesi has four main ethnic groups - the Bugis (the majority, including shipbuilders and seafarers), the Makassarese (lowland traders and seafarers), the Mandarese (traders and fishermen), and the Toraja (highland rice cultivators).

HISTORY

From the 17th century, the Dutch established trade and political control on Sulawesi through the Dutch East Indies Company. Over two centuries, they ignored the mountainous area in the central Sulawesi, where Torajans lived, because access was difficult and it had little productive agricultural land. In the late 19th century, the Dutch became increasingly concerned about the spread of Islam in the south of Sulawesi, especially among the Makassarese and Bugis peoples. The Dutch saw the animist highlanders as potential Christians. In the 1920s, the Reformed Missionary Alliance of the Dutch Reformed Church began missionary work aided by the Dutch colonial government. In addition to introducing Christianity, the Dutch abolished slavery and imposed local taxes. A line was drawn around the Sa'dan area and called Tana Toraja ("the land of Toraja"). Tana Toraja was first a subdivision of the Luwu kingdom that had claimed the area. In 1946, the Dutch granted Tana Toraja a regentschap, and it was recognized in 1957 as one of the regencies of Indonesia.

Early Dutch missionaries faced strong opposition among Torajans, especially among the elite, because the abolition of their profitable slave trade had angered them. Some Torajans were forcibly relocated to the lowlands by the Dutch, where they could be more easily controlled. Taxes were kept high, undermining the wealth of the elites. Ultimately, the Dutch influence did not subdue Torajan culture, and only a few Torajans were converted. In 1950, only 10% of the population had converted to Christianity.

In the 1930s, Muslim lowlanders attacked the Torajans, resulting in widespread Christian conversion among those who sought to align themselves with the Dutch for political protection and to form a movement against the Bugis and Makassarese Muslims. Between 1951 and 1965 (following Indonesian independence), southern Sulawesi faced a turbulent period as the Darul Islam separatist movement fought for an Islamic state in Sulawesi. The 15 years of guerrilla warfare led to massive conversions to

CHRISTIANITY

Alignment with the Indonesian government, however, did not guarantee safety for the Torajans. In 1965, a presidential decree required every Indonesian citizen to belong to one of five officially recognized religions: Islam, Christianity (Protestantism and Catholicism), Hinduism, or Buddhism. The Torajan religious belief (aluk) was not legally recognized, and the Torajans raised their voices against the law. To make aluk accord with the law, it had to be accepted as part of one of the official religions. In 1969, Aluk To Dolo ("the way of ancestors") was legalized as a sect of Agama Hindu Dharma, the official name of Hinduism in Indonesia.

SOCIETY

There are three main types of affiliation in Toraja society: family, class and religion.

FAMILY AFFILIATION

Family is the primary social and political grouping in Torajan society. Each village is one extended family, the seat of which is the tongkonan, a traditional Torajan house. Each tongkonan has a name, which becomes the name of the village. The familial dons maintain village unity. Marriage between distant cousins (fourth cousins and beyond) is a common practice that strengthens kinship. Toraja society prohibits marriage between close cousins (up to and including the third cousin) - except for nobles, to prevent the dispersal of property. Kinship is actively reciprocal, meaning that the extended family helps each other farm, share buffalo rituals, and pay off debts.

Each person belongs to both the mother's and the father's families, the only bilateral family line in Indonesia. Children, therefore, inherit household affiliation from both mother and father, including land and even family debts. Children's names are given on the basis of kinship, and are usually chosen after dead relatives. Names of aunts, uncles and cousins are commonly referred to in the names of mothers, fathers and siblings.

Before the start of the formal administration of Toraja villages by the Tana Toraja Regency, each Toraja village was autonomous. In a more complex situation, in which one Toraja family could not handle their problems alone, several villages formed a group; sometimes, villages would unite against other villages. Relationship between families was expressed through blood, marriage, and shared ancestral houses (tongkonan), practically signed by the exchange of water buffalo and pigs on ritual occasions. Such exchanges not only built political and cultural ties between families but defined each person's place in a social hierarchy: who poured palm wine, who wrapped a corpse and prepared offerings, where each person could or could not sit, what dishes should be used or avoided, and even what piece of meat constituted one's share.

CLASS AFFILIATION

In early Toraja society, family relationships were tied closely to social class. There were three strata: nobles, commoners, and slaves (slavery was abolished in 1909 by the Dutch East Indies government). Class was inherited through the mother. It was taboo, therefore, to marry "down" with a woman of lower class. On the other hand, marrying a woman of higher class could improve the status of the next generation. The nobility's condescending attitude toward the commoners is still maintained today for reasons of family prestige.

Nobles, who were believed to be direct descendants of the descended person from heaven, lived in tongkonans, while commoners lived in less lavish houses (bamboo shacks called banua). Slaves lived in small huts, which had to be built around their owner's tongkonan. Commoners might marry anyone, but nobles preferred to marry in-family to maintain their status. Sometimes nobles married Bugis or Makassarese nobles. Commoners and slaves were prohibited from having death feasts. Despite close kinship and status inheritance, there was some social mobility, as marriage or change in wealth could affect an individuals status. Wealth was counted by the ownership of water buffaloes.

Slaves in Toraja society were family property. Sometimes Torajans decided to become slaves when they incurred a debt, pledging to work as payment. Slaves could be taken during wars, and slave trading was common. Slaves could buy their freedom, but their children still inherited slave status. Slaves were prohibited from wearing bronze or gold, carving their houses, eating from the same dishes as their owners, or having sex with free women - a crime punishable by death.

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION

Toraja's indigenous belief system is polytheistic animism, called aluk, or "the way" (sometimes translated as "the law"). In the Toraja myth, the ancestors of Torajan people came down from heaven using stairs, which were then used by the Torajans as a communication medium with Puang Matua, the Creator. The cosmos, according to aluk, is divided into the upper world (heaven), the world of man (earth), and the underworld. At first, heaven and earth were married, then there was a darkness, a separation, and finally the light. Animals live in the underworld, which is represented by rectangular space enclosed by pillars, the earth is for mankind, and the heaven world is located above, covered with a saddle-shaped roof. Other Toraja gods include Pong Banggai di Rante (god of Earth), Indo' Ongon-Ongon (a goddess who can cause earthquakes), Pong Lalondong (god of death), and Indo' Belo Tumbang (goddess of medicine); there are many more.

The earthly authority, whose words and actions should be cleaved to both in life (agriculture) and death (funerals), is called to minaa (an aluk priest). Aluk is not just a belief system; it is a combination of law, religion, and habit. Aluk governs social life, agricultural practices, and ancestral rituals. The details of aluk may vary from one village to another. One common law is the requirement that death and life rituals be separated. Torajans believe that performing death rituals might ruin their corpses if combined with life rituals. The two rituals are equally important. During the time of the Dutch missionaries, Christian Torajans were prohibited from attending or performing life rituals, but were allowed to perform death rituals. Consequently, Toraja's death rituals are still practised today, while life rituals have diminished.

CULTURE

TONGKONAN

Tongkonan are the traditional Torajan ancestral houses. They stand high on wooden piles, topped with a layered split-bamboo roof shaped in a sweeping curved arc, and they are incised with red, black, and yellow detailed wood carvings on the exterior walls. The word "tongkonan" comes from the Torajan tongkon ("to sit").

Tongkonan are the center of Torajan social life. The rituals associated with the tongkonan are important expressions of Torajan spiritual life, and therefore all family members are impelled to participate, because symbolically the tongkonan represents links to their ancestors and to living and future kin. According to Torajan myth, the first tongkonan was built in heaven on four poles, with a roof made of Indian cloth. When the first Torajan ancestor descended to earth, he imitated the house and held a large ceremony.

The construction of a tongkonan is laborious work and is usually done with the help of the extended family. There are three types of tongkonan. The tongkonan layuk is the house of the highest authority, used as the "center of government". The tongkonan pekamberan belongs to the family members who have some authority in local traditions. Ordinary family members reside in the tongkonan batu. The exclusivity to the nobility of the tongkonan is diminishing as many Torajan commoners find lucrative employment in other parts of Indonesia. As they send back money to their families, they enable the construction of larger tongkonan.

WOOD CARVINGS

To express social and religious concepts, Torajans carve wood, calling it Pa'ssura (or "the writing"). Wood carvings are therefore Toraja's cultural manifestation.

Each carving receives a special name, and common motifs are animals and plants that symbolize some virtue. For example, water plants and animals, such as crabs, tadpoles and water weeds, are commonly found to symbolize fertility. In some areas noble elders claim these symbols refer to strength of noble family, but not everyone agrees. The overall meaning of groups of carved motifs on houses remains debated and tourism has further complicated these debates because some feel a uniform explanation must be presented to tourists. The image to the left shows an example of Torajan wood carving, consisting of 15 square panels. The center bottom panel represents buffalo or wealth, a wish for many buffaloes for the family. The center panel represents a knot and a box, a hope that all of the family's offspring will be happy and live in harmony, like goods kept safe in a box. The top left and top right squares represent an aquatic animal, indicating the need for fast and hard work, just like moving on the surface of water. It also represents the need for a certain skill to produce good results.

Regularity and order are common features in Toraja wood carving (see table below), as well as abstracts and geometrical designs. Nature is frequently used as the basis of Toraja's ornaments, because nature is full of abstractions and geometries with regularities and ordering. Toraja's ornaments have been studied in ethnomathematics to reveal their mathematical structure, but Torajans base this art only on approximations. To create an ornament, bamboo sticks are used as a geometrical tool.

FUNERAL RITES

In Toraja society, the funeral ritual is the most elaborate and expensive event. The richer and more powerful the individual, the more expensive is the funeral. In the aluk religion, only nobles have the right to have an extensive death feast. The death feast of a nobleman is usually attended by thousands and lasts for several days. A ceremonial site, called rante, is usually prepared in a large, grassy field where shelters for audiences, rice barns, and other ceremonial funeral structures are specially made by the deceased family. Flute music, funeral chants, songs and poems, and crying and wailing are traditional Toraja expressions of grief with the exceptions of funerals for young children, and poor, low-status adults.

The ceremony is often held weeks, months, or years after the death so that the deceased's family can raise the significant funds needed to cover funeral expenses. Torajans traditionally believe that death is not a sudden, abrupt event, but a gradual process toward Puya (the land of souls, or afterlife). During the waiting period, the body of the deceased is wrapped in several layers of cloth and kept under the tongkonan. The soul of the deceased is thought to linger around the village until the funeral ceremony is completed, after which it begins its journey to Puya.

Another component of the ritual is the slaughter of water buffalo. The more powerful the person who died, the more buffalo are slaughtered at the death feast. Buffalo carcasses, including their heads, are usually lined up on a field waiting for their owner, who is in the "sleeping stage". Torajans believe that the deceased will need the buffalo to make the journey and that they will be quicker to arrive at Puya if they have many buffalo. Slaughtering tens of water buffalo and hundreds of pigs using a machete is the climax of the elaborate death feast, with dancing and music and young boys who catch spurting blood in long bamboo tubes. Some of the slaughtered animals are given by guests as "gifts", which are carefully noted because they will be considered debts of the deceased's family. However, a cockfight, known as bulangan londong, is an integral part of the ceremony. As with the sacrifice of the buffalo and the pigs, the cockfight is considered sacred because it involves the spilling of blood on the earth. In particular, the tradition requires the sacrifice of at least three chickens. However, it is common for at least 25 pairs of chickens to be set against each other in the context of the ceremony.

There are three methods of burial: the coffin may be laid in a cave or in a carved stone grave, or hung on a cliff. It contains any possessions that the deceased will need in the afterlife. The wealthy are often buried in a stone grave carved out of a rocky cliff. The grave is usually expensive and takes a few months to complete. In some areas, a stone cave may be found that is large enough to accommodate a whole family. A wood-carved effigy, called Tau tau, is usually placed in the cave looking out over the land. The coffin of a baby or child may be hung from ropes on a cliff face or from a tree. This hanging grave usually lasts for years, until the ropes rot and the coffin falls to the ground.

In the ritual called Ma'Nene, that takes place each year in August, the bodies of the deceased are exhumed to be washed, groomed and dressed in new clothes. The mummies are then walked around the village.

DANCE AND MUSIC

Torajans perform dances on several occasions, most often during their elaborate funeral ceremonies. They dance to express their grief, and to honour and even cheer the deceased person because he is going to have a long journey in the afterlife. First, a group of men form a circle and sing a monotonous chant throughout the night to honour the deceased (a ritual called Ma'badong). This is considered by many Torajans to be the most important component of the funeral ceremony. On the second funeral day, the Ma'randing warrior dance is performed to praise the courage of the deceased during life. Several men perform the dance with a sword, a large shield made from buffalo skin, a helmet with a buffalo horn, and other ornamentation. The Ma'randing dance precedes a procession in which the deceased is carried from a rice barn to the rante, the site of the funeral ceremony. During the funeral, elder women perform the Ma'katia dance while singing a poetic song and wearing a long feathered costume. The Ma'akatia dance is performed to remind the audience of the generosity and loyalty of the deceased person. After the bloody ceremony of buffalo and pig slaughter, a group of boys and girls clap their hands while performing a cheerful dance called Ma'dondan.

As in other agricultural societies, Torajans dance and sing during harvest time. The Ma'bugi dance celebrates the thanksgiving event, and the Ma'gandangi dance is performed while Torajans are pounding rice. There are several war dances, such as the Manimbong dance performed by men, followed by the Ma'dandan dance performed by women. The aluk religion governs when and how Torajans dance. A dance called Ma'bua can be performed only once every 12 years. Ma'bua is a major Toraja ceremony in which priests wear a buffalo head and dance around a sacred tree.

A traditional musical instrument of the Toraja is a bamboo flute called a Pa'suling (suling is an Indonesian word for flute). This six-holed flute (not unique to the Toraja) is played at many dances, such as the thanksgiving dance Ma'bondensan, where the flute accompanies a group of shirtless, dancing men with long fingernails. The Toraja have indigenous musical instruments, such as the Pa'pelle (made from palm leaves) and the Pa'karombi (the Torajan version of a jaw harp). The Pa'pelle is played during harvest time and at house inauguration ceremonies.

LANGUAGE

The ethnic Toraja language is dominant in Tana Toraja with the main language as the Sa'dan Toraja. Although the national Indonesian language is the official language and is spoken in the community, all elementary schools in Tana Toraja teach Toraja language.Language varieties of Toraja, including Kalumpang, Mamasa, Tae' , Talondo' , Toala' , and Toraja-Sa'dan, belong to the Malayo-Polynesian language from the Austronesian family. At the outset, the isolated geographical nature of Tana Toraja formed many dialects between the Toraja languages themselves. After the formal administration of Tana Toraja, some Toraja dialects have been influenced by other languages through the transmigration program, introduced since the colonialism period, and it has been a major factor in the linguistic variety of Toraja languages. A prominent attribute of Toraja language is the notion of grief. The importance of death ceremony in Toraja culture has characterized their languages to express intricate degrees of grief and mourning. The Toraja language contains many terms referring to sadness, longing, depression, and mental pain. Giving a clear expression of the psychological and physical effect of loss is a catharsis and sometimes lessens the pain of grief itself.

ECONOMY

Prior to Suharto's "New Order" administration, the Torajan economy was based on agriculture, with cultivated wet rice in terraced fields on mountain slopes, and supplemental cassava and maize crops. Much time and energy were devoted to raising water buffalo, pigs, and chickens, primarily for ceremonial sacrifices and consumption. Coffee was the first significant cash crop produced in Toraja, and was introduced in the mid 19th century, changing the local economy towards commodity production for external markets and gaining an excellent reputation for quality in the international market .

With the commencement of the New Order in 1965, Indonesia's economy developed and opened to foreign investment. In Toraja, a coffee plantation and factory was established by Key Coffee of Japan, and Torajan coffee regained a reputation for quality within the growing international specialty coffee sector Multinational oil and mining companies opened new operations in Indonesia during the 1970s and 1980s. Torajans, particularly younger ones, relocated to work for the foreign companies - to Kalimantan for timber and oil, to Papua for mining, to the cities of Sulawesi and Java, and many went to Malaysia. The out-migration of Torajans was steady until 1985. and has continued since, with remittances sent back by emigre Torajans performing an important role within the contemporary economy.

Tourism commenced in Toraja in the 1970s, and accelerated in the 1980s and 1990s. Between 1984 and 1997, a significant number of Torajans obtained their incomes from tourism, working in and owning hotels, as tour guides, drivers, or selling souvenirs. With the rise of political and economic instability in Indonesia in the late 1990s - including religious conflicts elsewhere on Sulawesi - tourism in Tana Toraja has declined dramatically. Toraja continues to be a well known origin for Indonesian coffee, grown by both smallholders and plantation estates, although migration, remittances and off-farm income is considered far more important to most households, even those in rural areas.

TOURISM AND CULTURAL CHANGE

Before the 1970s, Toraja was almost unknown to Western tourism. In 1971, about 50 Europeans visited Tana Toraja. In 1972, at least 400 visitors attended the funeral ritual of Puang of Sangalla, the highest-ranking nobleman in Tana Toraja and the so-called "last pure-blooded Toraja noble." The event was documented by National Geographic and broadcast in several European countries. In 1976, about 12,000 tourists visited the regency and in 1981, Torajan sculpture was exhibited in major North American museums. "The land of the heavenly kings of Tana Toraja", as written in the exhibition brochure, embraced the outside world.

In 1984, the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism declared Tana Toraja Regency the prima donna of South Sulawesi. Tana Toraja was heralded as "the second stop after Bali". Tourism was increasing dramatically: by 1985, a total number of 150,000 foreigners had visited the Regency (in addition to 80,000 domestic tourists), and the annual number of foreign visitors was recorded at 40,000 in 1989. Souvenir stands appeared in Rantepao, the cultural center of Toraja, roads were sealed at the most-visited tourist sites, new hotels and tourist-oriented restaurants were opened, and an airstrip was opened in the Regency in 1981.

Tourism developers have marketed Tana Toraja as an exotic adventure - an area rich in culture and off the beaten track. Western tourists expected to see stone-age villages and pagan funerals. Toraja is for tourists who have gone as far as Bali and are willing to see more of the wild, "untouched" islands. However, they were more likely to see a Torajan wearing a hat and denim, living in a Christian society. Tourists felt that the tongkonan and other Torajan rituals had been preconceived to make profits, and complained that the destination was too commercialized. This has resulted in several clashes between Torajans and tourism developers, whom Torajans see as outsiders.

A clash between local Torajan leaders and the South Sulawesi provincial government (as a tourist developer) broke out in 1985. The government designated 18 Toraja villages and burial sites as traditional tourist attractions. Consequently, zoning restrictions were applied to these areas, such that Torajans themselves were barred from changing their tongkonans and burial sites. The plan was opposed by some Torajan leaders, as they felt that their rituals and traditions were being determined by outsiders. As a result, in 1987, the Torajan village of Kété Kesú and several other designated tourist attractions closed their doors to tourists. This closure lasted only a few days, as the villagers found it too difficult to survive without the income from selling souvenirs.

Tourism has also transformed Toraja society. Originally, there was a ritual which allowed commoners to marry nobles (puang) and thereby gain nobility for their children. However, the image of Torajan society created for the tourists, often by "lower-ranking" guides, has eroded its traditional strict hierarchy. High status is not as esteemed in Tana Toraja as it once was. Many low-ranking men can declare themselves and their children nobles by gaining enough wealth through work outside the region and then marrying a noble woman.

WIKIPEDIA

Star Wars, épisode VII : Le Réveil de la Force (Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens) est un film de science-fiction américain de type space opera coécrit et réalisé par J. J. Abrams, sorti en 2015.

Également raccourci en Star Wars : Le Réveil de la Force (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) lors de la promotion, l'exploitation et le merchandising, il s'agit du septième opus de la saga Star Wars ; il fait suite à l'épisode VI : Le Retour du Jedi, trente-deux ans après la sortie de celui-ci — décalage temporel conservé dans la narration. Il met en scène les personnages de la première trilogie, Leia Organa, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker et Chewbacca, et les protagonistes centraux de la nouvelle génération, Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron et le maléfique Kylo Ren. Le titre, Le Réveil de la Force, fait référence à l'héroïne Rey, qui découvre ses pouvoirs au cours du film.

Le Réveil de la Force est le premier film de la troisième trilogie Star Wars planifiée et annoncée après l'acquisition de Lucasfilm par The Walt Disney Company , pour 4 milliards de dollars, en octobre 2012. Le film est produit par J. J. Abrams, son collaborateur de longue date Bryan Burk et la présidente de Lucasfilm Kathleen Kennedy. En plus de la réalisation et de la production, Abrams a également coécrit le film avec Michael Arndt et Lawrence Kasdan, qui a coécrit les films de la trilogie originelle L’Empire contre-attaque et Le Retour du Jedi.

Le film dépasse le milliard de dollars de recettes en douze jours, en exploitation mondiale — à l'exception de la Chine où il est sorti en janvier 2016 — ce qui constitue un record historique de rapidité. Le Réveil de la Force devient ensuite le film ayant engrangé le plus de recettes de tous les temps en Amérique du Nord, dépassant Avatar en vingt jours, avec 764,4 millions de dollars de revenus. En février, il est enfin le troisième film à franchir les deux milliards de dollars de recettes mondiales, après Titanic et Avatar.

L'Épisode VII est suivi, en 2017, par Star Wars, épisode VIII : Les Derniers Jedi, réalisé par Rian Johnson.

Synopsis et détails

Dans une galaxie lointaine, très lointaine, un nouvel épisode de la saga "Star Wars", 30 ans après les événements du "Retour du Jedi".

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (also known as Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens) is a 2015 American epic space opera film produced, co-written and directed by J. J. Abrams. It is the first installment of the Star Wars sequel trilogy and the seventh main installment of the Star Wars franchise, following Return of the Jedi (1983). The film stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Max von Sydow, and was produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. and Abrams' production company Bad Robot Productions. The Force Awakens is the first Star Wars film to not involve franchise creator George Lucas. Set 30 years after Return of the Jedi, the film follows Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron's search for Luke Skywalker and their fight alongside the Resistance, led by veterans of the Rebel Alliance, against Kylo Ren and the First Order, a successor to the Galactic Empire.

The Force Awakens was announced after The Walt Disney Company's acquisition of Lucasfilm in October 2012. The film was produced by Abrams, his longtime collaborator Bryan Burk, and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan, co-writer of the original trilogy films The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983), rewrote an initial script by Michael Arndt. John Williams, the composer for the previous six films, returned to compose the film's score. Lucas served as creative consultant during the film's early production. Filming began in April 2014 in Abu Dhabi and Iceland, with principal photography also taking place in Ireland and Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom, and concluded in November 2014. It is the first live-action Star Wars film since Revenge of the Sith (2005).

Date de sortie 16 décembre 2015 (2h 15min)

De J.J. Abrams

Avec Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver plus

Genres Aventure, Action, Science fiction

Nationalité américain

Bus Relais Tram 1 - Arrêt : Tertre

Exploitant : SEMITAN

Réseau TAN - Nantes

Beijing, China.

Le score de 0 à 4 est conforme à la valeur des équipes, même si l'US Saint-Malo n'a pas à rougir de son match de 16e de coupe de France contre une solide équipe de D1.

Avec trois buts inscrits dans la première mi-temps, les filles d'En Avant Guingamp s'imposaient logiquement devant une équipe malouine courageuse, mais moins efficace dans la récupération des ballons au milieu de terrain, face à des visiteuses plus percutantes en attaque.

Dans la seconde mi-temps, le quatrième but marqué par les Guingampaises ne changeait rien à la détermination de l'USSM, qui malgré un rythme supérieur et quelques occasions, ne parvenait pas décrocher le moindre but de consolation.

Le public a salué la qualité du match joué par les deux équipes.

L'incertitude du terrain synthétique enneigé a plané jusqu'au jour du match mais les 22 actrices ont bien débuté la rencontre entre l'ETG-Ambilly et Nancy. Une rencontre qui a abouti au seul exploit du week-end avec la qualification des Savoyardes 1-0 grâce à une réalisation de Colleen Dinn en fin de rencontre (81e). Pour le reste, les formations de DH se sont bien comportées comme ESAP Metz et l'AG Caen défaits 2 à 3 par Templemars et Orvault même si ces deux premières équipes avaient la différence à la pause (0-2). Lorient n'a pas eu le temps d'exister car Blanquefort a infligé un 3-0 dans le premier quart d'heure. Montauban y a par contre cru face à La Véore Montoison jusqu'à l'ouverture du score d'Estelle Lagier. Gonfreville a pour sa part perdu le derby face à Rouen (0-4).

Pour les formations de D1, pas de mauvaise surprise. Saint-Etienne s'est imposé aussi 4-0 sur le terrain de Clermont Foot (4-0). Un score que l'on retrouve aussi lors de Saint-Malo - Guingamp, Le Mans - Metz avant l'avantage aux pensionnaires de D1. Des formations de l'élite qui seront à minima sept en huitième de finale avec les qualifications de Rodez, PSG, Lyon, Montpellier en sus. Le dernier qualifié sera connu mercredi après le match en retard Hénin-Beaumont - Juvisy. La D2 aura aussi sept représentants au minimum outre ceux cités précédemment Vendenheim et l'OM ont disposé de Bischheim (3-1) et Nivolas-Vermelle (2-1).

Tirage au sort demain, lundi soir en direct dans l'émission Femmes 2 Foot. Un tirage qui sera effectué par Corinne Diacre.

L'Union sportive de Saint-Malo est un club de football français basé à Saint-Malo, créé en 1902. L'équipe première, entraînée par Pierre-Yves David depuis 2011, évolue en CFA.

Une section féminine de l'US Saint-Malo est entraînée par Fabrice Garin. Composée de trois formations, la première équipe évolue en Division 2 depuis sa promotion au printemps 2014.

L'En Avant de Guingamp (ou simplement EA Guingamp) est un club de football français qui évolue en Ligue 1 pour la saison 2014-2015, fondé en 1912 par Pierre Deschamps à Guingamp, en Bretagne.

Resté longtemps un club amateur à portée régionale, le club grimpe la hiérarchie du football français sous la présidence de Noël Le Graët, arrivé aux commandes en 1972. En 1976, Guingamp découvre la troisième division du championnat de France, puis la D2 dès la saison suivante et s'y maintient sans discontinuer jusqu'en 1993. En 1984, le club adopte le statut professionnel et en 1990, inaugure le stade de Roudourou, qui peut accueillir aujourd'hui 18 256 spectateurs alors que la commune ne compte que 7 300 habitants.

En 1994 et 1995, l'EAG réussit l'exploit d'obtenir deux promotions d'affilée, s'ouvrant ainsi les portes de l'élite. Vainqueurs de la Coupe Intertoto l'été suivant, les Bretons participent pour la première fois à une Coupe d'Europe, la Coupe UEFA 1996-1997, dont ils sont éliminés par l'Inter Milan. Relégués en 1998, ils retrouvent la première division en 2000, dont ils terminent au 7e rang en 2003, grâce à l'explosion au plus haut niveau de Didier Drogba et Florent Malouda. Finaliste malheureux de la Coupe de France en 1997, l'En Avant de Guingamp remporte la compétition, son premier trophée national, en 2009, alors qu'il évolue en Ligue 2, et s'offre ainsi une deuxième participation à une Coupe d'Europe.

Le club est présidé depuis 2011 par Bertrand Desplat et entraîné depuis 2010 par Jocelyn Gourvennec qui est sous contrat avec le club costarmoricain jusqu'en 2017.

Le 17 mai 2013, grâce à sa victoire, à Gueugnon, sur le Gazélec Ajaccio, le club remonte en Ligue 1, neuf ans après l'avoir quittée.

Un an plus tard, le 3 mai 2014, Guingamp remporte la finale de la Coupe de France 2014, de nouveau face au Stade rennais FC.

Le 11 décembre 2014 Guingamp se qualifie pour la première fois de son histoire en 16e de finale de la Ligue Europa.

La section féminine de l'En Avant de Guingamp est un club de football féminin français basé à Guingamp et Saint-Brieuc. L'intitulé complet est : EA Guingamp Ville de Saint-Brieuc Côtes-d'Armor. Le club fut créé en 1973 sous le nom de Saint-Brieuc Sports Chaffoteaux, en tant qu'association sportive au sein de l'entreprise Chaffoteaux et Maury à Ploufragan.

L'équipe évolue dans le Championnat français de 1re Division depuis la fin des années 80, quasiment sans discontinuité, ne visitant la division inférieure que lors de la saison 2005-2006 ; le club a connu une période faste à la fin des années 80, empochant à son apogée en 1989 le titre de Champion de France. Il a subi depuis sa création de nombreux bouleversements institutionnels : il prit le nom Saint-Brieuc FF en quittant l'entreprise Chaffoteaux (1999-2003), puis Stade briochin lors de l'absorption de la section par le club de Saint-Brieuc (2003-2011), et enfin En Avant de Guingamp - section féminine en intégrant le club professionnel guingampais.

L'équipe fanion du club, entraînée par Sarah M'Barek, participe au championnat de première division pour la 9e saison consécutive et évolue la plupart du temps au stade Fred-Aubert à Saint-Brieuc, mais se déplace au Stade de Roudourou à Guingamp pour les matchs importants.

Le club s'installe pour les 3 saisons suivantes dans le ventre mou du Championnat, changeant deux fois d'entraîneur (Adolphe Ogouyon8, puis Olivier Moullac9), et ne connait guère de succès sportif durant cette période hormis un quart de finale de Coupe de France perdu à domicile, 3 buts à 1, face au Montpellier HSC. Le point d'orgue de cette période sera extra-sportif : la section féminine du stade briochin est incorporée au club professionnel voisin d'En Avant de Guingamp qui souhaite se doter d'une section féminine et bénéficie de moyens intéressants10. Le club continuera de disputer la plupart de ses matchs au Stade Fred-Aubert à Saint-Brieuc, mais se rendra à Guingamp pour les matchs importants. Cela se traduira par une augmentation notable du nombre de spectateurs, et notamment une affluence record en 2011 pour un match de Championnat : le stade de Roudourou accueillant pour la rencontre face à l'Olympique Lyonnais plus de 12000 personnes.

En 2013, Sarah M'Barek, en provenance du Montpellier HSC, rejoint le club comme entraîneur, et Gilbert Castel obtient la présidence du pôle féminin de l'En Avant de Guingamp afin d'en développer la section féminine11. Malgré une décevante élimination en Coupe de France face à l'équipe du Mans FC aux tirs-au-but, la première saison du duo est encourageante avec le gain d'une 5e place en Championnat, derrière les 4 immuables premiers : l'Olympique lyonnais, dont c'est le 8e titre d'affilée, l'ambitieux Paris Saint-Germain, et les toujours redoutables FCF Juvisy et Montpellier HSC.

Le club continue d'être réputé pour sa formation (Camille Abily, Eugénie Le Sommer...), dont l'un des symboles les plus récents est la jeune Brestoise Griedge Mbock Bathy Nka, au club depuis 5 ans12, défenseure en Équipe de France, ballon d'or de la Coupe du Monde U17 remportée par la France en 201213 et ballon d'argent de la Coupe du Monde U20 en 201414.

Plusieurs des jeunes joueuses de l'Équipe de France des moins de 20 ans ayant terminé sur la 3e marche de la Coupe du Monde U20 au Canada font d'ailleurs partie de l'effectif guingampais pour la saison 2014-2015 : Griedge Mbock Bathy Nka, Clarisse Le Bihan, Faustine Robert, Margaux Bueno, Marine Dafeur et Aminata Diallo.

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The unknown story of the broken sea shells collectors

At Uadaypur sea beach (3km from Digha at the Bengal-Orissa state border), hundreds of poor villagers (80% of them are women) gather on a particular time of the day at the peak of the low tide. They all carry a small net basket for collecting broken shells following the line of the waves. When the baskets are half-filled they empty their catch at the beach and go back to the waves again. Finally the shells are packed in bags for selling. After two hours of continuous hard work, two people together can fill only a 30-kg bag selling for INR Rs 30 (USD 50 cents) only.

The shells are rich source of calcium carbonate, use in feeder mainly at the India's growing poultry industry. Also, it has great demand in making the white (lime) paint. Traders and middlemen are always waiting to exploit these poor villagers. They make on-the-spot payment, collect the bags and transport them to the local market for a hefty profit of 300% by selling each bag for at least Rs 100 (USD $ 2).

I personally talked to the shell collectors and found no Govt. intervention to stop this exploitation. The state government can easily intervene by forming a cooperative and collecting the shells themselves by their nodal agencies with a reasonable price.

Udaypur Sea Beach, Bay of Bengal

Images of Bengal, India