Statuesque black standard poodle Anton has made history at the Sydney Royal Easter Show.
The four-year-old dog, with hair worthy of a glam rocker, won back-to-back best in show prizes, making him the second dog to ever do so at the annual show’s 203-year history.
It was a 4am start for Anton and his owners on show day on Sunday, floofing and poofing his pom poms to perfection. The day before, another five hours went into preparing for his outing in the show ring. (It can take up to 10 hours, Anton naps through most of it.)
It all paid off for Anton and his handler and co-owner James Bennett, as they took out the top prize for the second year running. As a result, Anton is the first dog in more than 90 years to win back-to-back crowns in Australia’s biggest canine competition.
“He’s a normal dog, just not on the weekends,” Bennett told RNZ’s Nights.
“He’s just a big black standard poodle, with a typical haircut with pom poms on the legs… and a shaved butt that everyone makes fun of and laughs about – and all that hair.”
Bennett is a third-generation competitor who grew up in the world of dog showing. He tried his hand at other things, but fell back into the profession.
Bennett says show dogs get better the older and more mature they become – reaching their peak between three and six years old.
“He’s kind of peaking now,” he says of Anton.
“He had an amazing year last year, but this is a big year for us.”
Anton celebrated his win by “running around rolling around the grass… maybe a lick of champagne with everyone else.”
He is now off to Italy to represent Australia at the World Dog Show in June.
A Fox Terrier named Jerry Ideal, owned by a W Polley, was the first dog to win back to back best in show in 1933 and 1934, the Guardian reported.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Justin Evans, 24, is missing from Papa Stronsay in Scotland.SCOTLAND POLICE / SUPPLIED
The founder of monastery on a remote Scottish island where a New Zealand monk disappeared said it was believed he had been suffering from “long term hypothermia”.
Justin Evans, 24 and originally from Christchurch, was last seen within the Golgotha Monastery on Papa Stronsay, Orkney shortly before midnight on Saturday.
Do you know more? Email melanie.earley@rnz.co.nz
Evans was described by Scotland police as being six-foot-tall with short hair and a dark beard. He spoke with a New Zealand accent and was last seen wearing a white robe, police said.
Father Michael Mary who is the founder of the traditionalist Catholic order Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer, which owns the monastery, said coastguards, helicopters and police had searched the island for Evans.
“The situation is utterly tragic,” he said.
Mary said Evans went by the name Brother Iganatius Maria while at the monastery and had lived there for about two years.
“We suspect he had long term hypothermia [before his disappearance],” Mary said.
“We are a close community and this has hit us all very hard and is deeply hurting. We hope to find him and hope that the sea will give him up soon.”
Evans had three brothers who were all monks, Mary said, and two of them also lived on the island which at the 2022 Census had a population of just nine.
“Brother’s family are in New Zealand which only adds to the pain of loss and separation.
“This is our biggest tragedy since our arrival here in 1999,” Mary said.
In a message sent out to members of the order, seen by RNZ, the order said Evans had left his “monastic cell” and had been missing since.
The vicar general of the monastery, Father Anthony Mary said he had been the last one to speak to Evans hours before and he had been “fortified with confession” the night before.
“We have no explanation of why this happened,” the message said.
A spokesperson for the order in New Zealand, also known as the Transalpine Redemptorists, said everyone in the order knew and loved Evans dearly.
“Our hearts are completely broken with the loss of this beautiful man. He loved being part of the religious family and probably would have become a priest.”
‘Hermetic’ lifestyle
A worker at a shop in Orkney, said monks from Papa Stronsay would come to the area to use the post office but had lived a more “hermetic” lifestyle in recent years.
She said they had their own boat which she suspected was the only way to get off the island.
The temperature of the water at this time of year was still very cold, the woman said and swimming was not recommended.
While the island was small, a local councillor earlier said it was not entirely isolated.
Dr Stephen Clackson was the Orkney Islands Council member for the North Isles Ward, which includes Papa Stronsay, he said he visited the monastery last year.
Stephen Clackson (C) and his wife Ute in the refectory during a visit with The Sons of The Most Holy Redeemer on Papa Stronsay.Supplied / Stephen Clackson
“We enjoyed a tour of the island and of the monastery and were made to feel most welcome. It is impressive everything that The Sons have achieved in the quarter-century their order has been present on the island, and all that they currently do and have planned for the future,” Clackson wrote in his regular newsletter to constituents.
“They are often seen on the ferry travelling back and forth to Kirkwall (Orkney’s capital), e.g. to do shopping in the supermarkets or en route to travel further afield. They have a house and chapel on Stronsay in the village of Whitehall and engage with the community there.”
Clackson said he hoped Evans was “found safe and well soon”.
The Transalpine Redemptorists were founded in the 1980s and had links to New Zealand, including a monastery near Geraldine.
Back in New Zealand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, confirmed it was aware of reports about Evan’s disappearance but for privacy reasons, no further information could be provided.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
America’s most internet-famous festival, Coachella, has wrapped the first of two massive weekends of live music in the Californian desert.
This year skewed towards big pop headliners, namely Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Colombian star Karol G, but there were plenty of surprises beyond the top billing.
With seven stages available to stream online for the first time this year, it cemented Coachella as an event that was as much for those at home as those who made the trek.
Sabrina Carpenter gave Coachella a splashy farewell on its opening night.
After a busy year performing a “half-hour of power” at international music festivals, Auckland indie band The Beths spent the summer back home mixing their upcoming album.
Here’s a few highlights and talking points from three packed days of live music action.
Sabrina is on top
Last time Sabrina Carpenter was on a Coachella stage, she told the audience she’d see them all back here when she headlined.
Two years later and this manifestation has worked. By the end of her show, it was clear top billing was where she belonged.
After a chilling opening short film starring Sam Elliott, Carpenter emerged from a classic car set up on one of the two stages that made up her set and barreled through tracks from her Man’s Best Friend and Short n’ Sweet albums.
Her glossy, sleek, ultra-horny earworms were undeniably infectious and unabashedly sunny.
While the budget for her sets and costumes must have been staggering, Carpenter also proved her natural star power in spades: her step count must have been enormous, and even with all its deeply choreographed twists and turns, the whole things came together with finesse.
It featured perhaps one of the least-expected cameos of the weekend. Susan Sarandon delivered the bleakest moment of a decidedly sunny set, her monologue as a somewhat jaded older Sabrina as compelling as it was incongruous.
Will Ferrell was as powerful, but it’s rare that he’s not funny and just having him and his physical comedy in the moment felt like a power move. By the time we got to the pre-recorded message from Samuel L Jackson, it just felt like Sabrina was showing off. But that’s kinda her thing.
She closed out the set in typically ostentatious fashion, back in that classic car. This time its seat was a dozen feet in the air as water gushed from its trunk. A silly, fun way to close out a set that few could deny was a dynamite display of all the things that have made Carpenter so endearing.
Justin Bieber stokes mixed reactions
Justin Bieber’s headline performance at Coachella this weekend has drawn mixed reviews.
Kevin Mazur
It’s safe to say there was fevered anticipation over what Justin Bieber would do in his first official Coachella performance. And the Canadian pop superstar was not planning to play by the standards set by previous headliners.
In stark contrast to memorable sets from Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, and even Sabrina Carpenter the previous night, the Biebs intentionally avoided spectacle in favour of a pared-back set.
Besides a few special guests — The Kid LAROI for mega-hit Stay; Afrobeats stars Tems and Wizkid; collaborators Dijon and Mk.gee — Bieber largely performed alone inside of a stark sunken-bowl set.
For one stretch, he sat alone at a stool, pulling up YouTube clips on the jumbo screen, singing along to old music videos for hits like ‘With You’, ‘Sorry’, and ‘Where Are Ü Now’. He even shared footage of concert mishaps and his “it’s not clocking to you” meme.
Some reactions have already criticised the performance, pointing out that Beiber’s reported US$10 million performance fee could’ve been used to budget for more. Visuals, dancers, something beyond just a laptop and an ad-free YouTube subscription.
Despite the air of low-key spontaneity, Bieber’s performance was more of a career statement on a grand scale. And that shouldn’t surprise anybody who caught the warm-up: performing solo — in boxer shorts and a guitar — at the Grammys.
The image of Bieber looking up and singing harmony with his 13-year-old past self on the biggest of festival stages was a way of reflecting the past but also exorcising it. He concluded the set turning back to the hookiest moments from SWAG and SWAG II — the pair of hazy, indie R&B surprise albums released last year.
Your mileage may very much have varied based on your investment in Justin Bieber’s redemptive arc. But you didn’t necessarily have to be a Belieber to appreciate the subversive attitude, or offer valid criticism.
Coachella’s biggest special guests
Coachella always features a bevy of unexpected special guests — usually in person, sometimes as holograms — and you could have put together a whole other festival line-up with those who showed up over the weekend.
And headliners Sabrina Carpenter and Justin Bieber weren’t the only ones using their star power to bring some big names the party.
While many were hoping UK star PinkPantheress would have Swedish collaborator Zara Larsson onboard at her set, they had to settle for actor Tyriq Withers, hyped producers Horsegiirl and The Dare, and an excellent turn from bassist Thundercat.
Thundercat also joined up with his old band Suicidal Tendencies on the final day of the festival, while Horsegiirl also popped up with Wet Leg on the final day of fun.
Teddy Swims gave Vanessa Carlton her deserved flowers at his massive main stage set, which also featured Joe Jonas, while David Lee Roth joined in on a version of Van Halen’s Jump.
The incredible Jennifer Lopez proved a highlight of David Guetta’s Saturday night set, Kehlani sang Folded with Giveon, and Californian icon Snoop Dogg joined Hugel for a take on The Next Episode.
Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan made his first ever Coachella appearance as a guest of Sombr, who performed classic 1995 track 1979.
Khalid jumped up with Disclosure to perform his 2019 smash Talk, Lizzo ducked into both KAYTRANADA and Sexyy Red’s sets, hip hop icons Clipse brought out Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker, and M.I.A. and Diplo seem to have buried the hatchet, as the two reunited for a version of Paper Planes during Major Lazer’s main stage set.
One of the biggest moments of the festival came very early, as global girl group KATSEYE brought out EJAE, Rei Ami and Audrey Nuna, the three voices that make up fictional K-Pop group HUNTR/X from the inescapable K Pop Demon Hunters.
The two groups smashed through a rendition of Golden that felt like one of many victory laps after that song’s dominance in the past 12 months.
Nine Inch Noize refreshes Nine Inch Nails
One of Saturday’s most buzzed-about sets came from Nine Inch Noize, essentially a raved-up refresh of Nine Inch Nails between project mastermind Trent Reznor and German dance producer Boys Noize.
Having worked together on the 2024 film score for tennis love triangle drama Challengers, Nine Inch Noize’s Sahara tent debut was an extended version of a mini-set they’d incorporated into a recent NIN arena tour.
Reworking cuts from the band’s industrial rock songbook (e.g. The Downward Spiral’s Heresy and Closer plus cuts from political concept album Year Zero) into pulsing dance jams animated by filthy synths and throbbing beats.
Reznor was joined on vocals by wife and creative partner Mariqueen Maandig and flanked by NIN bandmate Atticus Ross and Boys Noize manning keys and electronic stations.
Augmenting the experience of attending a vampire’s nightclub was an intense light-and-laser show that bathed the audience in reds, blacks and strobing effects.
The quartet were bunkered at the centre of a brutalist architectural structure over which a cadre of white-painted dancers writhed, frog-marched or lay disturbingly lifeless. The most striking moment came during the carnal Closer, where the bodies clawed their way up toward Reznor and dragged him into sliding down the concrete structure.
Geese live up to the hype
One of the most hyped indie rock acts of recent years, Brooklyn quartet Geese were guaranteed to pull a massive crowd to their sundown slot. The “saviours of rock” accolades have been powered by Getting Killed, the band’s thrilling third album, and frontman Cameron Winter’s critically adored solo album Heavy Metal.
Even fellow acts Sabrina Carpenter, David Byrne and Jack White migrated to watch Geese deconstruct classic rock inspirations and re-forge them into strange, intoxicating new possibilities.
What makes Geese special live is they have a synergy that cannot be faked. Never mind that they’ve been touring relentlessly — including eight Australian shows in a week around Laneway festival — these 20-somethings have been jamming together since they were young teens.
On songs like ‘100 Horses’ and the caustic ‘Trinidad’, with its explosive chorus of “There’s a bomb in my car!” it seems their wiry energy could fall off the rails any moment. But they don’t, and are able to funnel the same chaotic energy into sing-along moments like the sentimental ‘Au Pays du Cocaine’, gorgeous ‘Cobra’ and cathartic ‘Taxes’.
Oh, and they even cheekily snuck in their cover of Justin Bieber’s ‘Baby’ amid the rock-pocalypse spasms of prog-leaning original 2122. The result is the kind of set and band that’ll have future audiences boasting “I was there”.
Ninajirachi, Ecca Vandal did Aussie proud
Besides The Kid LAROI popping up in Bieber’s headline set, there were many homegrown acts flying Australia’s flag in the Californian desert.
One of them was Ecca Vandal, cutting a fascinating figure at the Sonora stage. Mixing metal, hip hop and pop to dizzying effect, she showcased tracks from her forthcoming album Looking For People To Unfollow.
Much like her fashionable patchwork outfit, Vandal’s music fuses unlikely elements together into a stylish whole. She can be growling and spitting over distorted riffs one moment, soaring to a candy-coated chorus melody the next.
She’s primed to be the breakout genre-mashing star following in the successful footsteps of Genesis Owusu and Ninajirachi.
The latter, a multi-ARIA and J Award winning electronic producer from the Central Coast, is clearly breaking through in the States.
Ninajirachi’s Coachella debut had as much energy as one of her hometown shows, the crowd singing loudly along to the fizzy hooks of EDM pop bangers like ‘I Love My Computer’ and ‘Infohazard’.
In a full-circle moment, Porter Robinson, one of Ninajirachi’s biggest influences and idols, joined her onstage to debut an unreleased collaboration titled ‘WannaCry’.
It was a cherry on top … Ninajirachi didn’t need the co-sign to prove herself as one of the most exciting names in electronic music right now. Already in high demand, tickets for her upcoming US and Australian tours are certain to be the hottest in town now.
On the final day of proceedings, The Chats delivered a flawless set of their breakneck punk rock, Eamon Sandwith proudly flying a Queensland State of Origin flag on his amp and encouraging those in the tent to call everyone watching online “a dickhead”.
Nobody moves like FKA Twigs moves
INDIO, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 12: (FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY) (NOT TO BE LICENSED FOR ANY STANDALONE OR SPECIAL INTEREST BOOK PUBLISHING USE CONCERNING THE COACHELLA MUSIC FESTIVAL AND/OR STAGECOACH MUSIC FESTIVAL) FKA Twigs performs at the Mojave Tent during the 2026 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at Empire Polo Club on April 12, 2026 in Indio, California. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for Coachella)
Arturo Holmes
British visionary FKA twigs has a penchant for wild choreography and bracing stagecraft. Her Sunday set did not disappoint.
Beginning her set lying on a bed, it was an intimate start to what swiftly escalated into a steamy, elaborate show packed with multiple costume changes and expressive, escapist dance moves.
Twigs herself brought some of the most elaborate body geometry, exhibiting sexual liberation in ‘Drums of Death’ or stylishly gyrating through ‘Sushi’ before having a red-dreaded wig installed onstage.
Combining mercurial melodies with experimental beats, FKA Twigs’s music has always been cutting-edge. But the dancier injection of last year’s excellent EUSEXUA album, along with more bumping moments from 2022 mixtape CAPRISONGS, has really levelled up the engagement. And sweat factor!
FKA twigs also provided a platform for diversity and expression. There was a whip-cracking dancer, a woman spinning on chains and authentic nods to ballroom culture in several club-inspired transitions and an entire mid-set stretch dedicated to frenetic voguing from a cadre of dancers.
Whether decked out as gothic royalty but singing like an angel for ‘Eusexua’ or inducing a “body high” for the ’90s ravetronica of ‘Perfectly’, FKA twigs delivered a mainstage-worthy performance.
How to watch Coachella
If you missed out on the fun this weekend, the festival does the whole thing all over again next weekend.
New Zealand and Australia will be able to stream most of the same sets as this weekend via the festival’s YouTube channel. Keep an eye out for confirmed times during the week.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Justin Evans, 24, is missing from Papa Stronsay in Scotland.SCOTLAND POLICE / SUPPLIED
An extensive search is underway on a remote Scottish island after a New Zealand monk disappeared from a monastery.
Justin Evans, 24, was last seen within the Golgotha Monastery on Papa Stronsay, Orkney.
Do you know more? Email melanie.earley@rnz.co.nz
Scotland police said he had last been seen shortly before midnight on Saturday, 11 April.
Evans was described as being six-foot-tall with short hair and a dark beard. He spoke with a New Zealand accent and was last seen wearing a white robe, police said.
Inspector David Hall said there had been extensive searches for Evans and concerns were growing as time passed.
“We are working with partner agencies and extensive searches are being carried out in the island area.
“I am now appealing for anyone may have visited the island and have any information on Justin or his whereabouts to contact us.”
Papa Stronsay was bought by an order of Catholic monks over two decades ago. According to 2022 Census data, nine people resided on the island.
The Golgotha Monastery was established by the traditionalist Catholic order Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer.
SNAP national leader Dr Christopher Longhurst said the allegations included children being told they were possessed by Satan, people having lengthy exorcisms performed on them without prior medical examination and isolation of parents from their children.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
The measure allows the government broad powers to control supplies and services including transport, or the consumption of fuel and light.RNZ Pacific / Sally Round
Tuvalu has declared a state of emergency on Funafuti Island for two weeks in light of risks to the fuel and electricity supply.
In a statement on Monday, Tuvalu’s governor-general Tofiga Vaevalu Falani said there is increasing instability in electricity generation and distribution systems on the island.
The measure allows the government broad powers to control supplies and services including transport, or the consumption of fuel and light.
“The declaration was made as a time-bound and necessary measure to enable the government to take coordinated and immediate action to safeguard public welfare, ensure equitable access to critical services, and maintain national stability during this period of heightened risk,” Falani said.
It is estimated the island nation spends around a quarter of its GDP on imported petroleum.
The declaration takes effect as of Tuesday.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Meaning “hurry up, let’s go,” the trademark slogan of Speedy Gonzales was, for generations of children, the first Spanish words they learned.
But by the 1980s, ABC had pulled his cartoons due to concerns that his dress, accent and characters like his cousin, Slowpoke Rodriguez, were insensitive toward Mexicans and Mexican Americans. The Cartoon Network followed suit in 1999.
This video is hosted on Youtube.
I’ve studied and written about the history of animation, including how characters have been received around the world. Though rooted in a well-intentioned effort at cultural sensitivity, taking Speedy Gonzales off the air was a step too far for many viewers. He was one of the few cartoon characters rooted in Mexican identity, and he’d become a cultural icon across all of Latin America. The ensuing uproar in the wake of his cancellation prompted the Cartoon Network to reinstate the cartoon mouse in 2002.
With Warner Bros. greenlighting a new Speedy Gonzales movie in January 2026, the character’s redemption arc appears complete.
A speedy rise to stardom
“The fastest mouse in all of Mexico” first appeared in the 1953 animated short Cat-Tails for Two.
The short film features the general framework for future plots: Speedy helps members of his border community – a place inspired by Ciudad Juarez, just south of El Paso, Texas – evade the conniving Sylvester the Cat.
It opens with a town of starving mice looking longingly at the AJAX cheese factory through a fence establishing an “international border”. They try to determine who will try to outrun Sylvester, the factory’s guard. One of the mice says that his sister is friends with Speedy Gonzales. (Another pipes in that Speedy is friends with everybody’s sister, signaling Speedy as something of a Don Juan.) After they call on Speedy, he uses his speed and smarts to outrun and outwit Sylvester.
The basic premise also appears in a number of cartoons, from Tom and Jerry to Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote: An antagonist is consistently thwarted by a clever protagonist who avoids increasingly complicated traps and attempts at capture.
In the 1940s, with the European and Asian markets cut off due to World War II, Disney had turned to the Latin American market. The studio produced Saludos Amigos in 1942 and The Three Caballeros in 1944 to abide by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Good Neighbor Policy, which aimed to leverage diplomacy, trade and cultural exchange to improve relations with Latin America.
Speedy ended up appearing in 45 theatrical shorts. In 1969, Warner Bros. shut down its animation studio, but the character lived on in Saturday morning cartoon anthologies like The Bugs Bunny Show, which repackaged older cartoons for younger audiences.
Animation’s racial reckoning
The Cartoon Network pulled Speedy Gonzales from the air at a time when networks and studios were starting to reassess animated characters from earlier eras.
Many early cartoon characters, including Mickey Mouse, had been modeled after blackface minstrel characters. Warner Bros.‘ first star, Bosko, was originally patented as “Negro Boy”.
Since racist tropes were ubiquitous in early-20th-century animation, films and shorts like Disney’s Dumbo, Mickey’s Mellerdrammer or Warner Bros.’ All This and Rabbit Stew were either pulled, edited or updated to feature a content warning.
But after The Cartoon Network pulled Speedy Gonzales from the air in 1999, there was unexpected pushback from the Hispanic American community and the character’s Latin American fans.
Groups like League of United Latin American Citizens, the oldest Hispanic civil rights organisation in the United States, declared Speedy a cultural icon and requested that his cartoons return to the air.
Back when Speedy Gonzales was first introduced to audiences, Hollywood had been filming more movies in Mexico and at the U.S.-Mexico border. However, most of these films depicted Latinos as either incompetent or villains.
In this regard, Speedy represented something different. Though the character’s English speech and accent reflected stereotypes – and he was voiced by a white actor, Mel Blanc – the character was ultimately a clever, quick-witted and good-natured protagonist. And the Spanish dubbing of his cartoons in Latin America had removed the stereotypical accent altogether.
Let the people decide
The trajectory of Speedy Gonzales resembles that of another controversial cartoon character: Apu Nahasapeemapetilon from The Simpsons.
An Indian immigrant who earned his PhD in computer science in his home country, Apu becomes the manager of a convenience store in the US.
Some critics viewed Apu’s depiction as problematic; voiced by a white actor, Hank Azaria, Apu’s exaggerated Indian-American accent and catchphrase – “Thank you, come again” – was routinely mimicked and mocked by viewers of the show.
Cultural theorists like Jacques Derrida and Stuart Hall have written about the complexities of how audiences understand – and either resist or embrace – what they read and watch.
They ultimately argue that viewers and readers often interpret media however they see fit, regardless of the creators’ intent. For example, many minority groups who are underrepresented or misrepresented in popular culture will nonetheless find their own meaning and inspiration in characters, even if those characters weren’t supposed to represent those groups in the first place.
This happened with The Goofy Movie. Some audiences went on to describe the 1995 film as Disney’s first “Black” animated feature, despite the fact that the characters’ race is never mentioned. There were hints, of course: Black R&B singer Tevin Campbell played the movie’s fictional pop star, Powerline, and the themes of fatherhood and generational tensions eerily echo those in the play Fences, written by Black playwright August Wilson.
Of course, in the case of a character like Speedy Gonzales, depictions can become more nuanced as cultural norms and sensitivities change. Jorge R. Gutiérrez is set to direct the animated feature.
If his work on films like The Book of Life is any indication, he’ll be well-equipped to bring cultural awareness to the animated feature – even if Speedy continues to sport his big, floppy sombrero.
Jared Bahir Browsh is assistant teaching professor, critical sports studies, University of Colorado Boulder.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
The Cuba-flagged LPG/chemical tanker Pastorita leaves Havana Harbour on February 26, 2026.YAMIL LAGE / AFP
Cuba has been under US trade sanctions since 1962 and the past few months have further challenged the Caribbean nation, with tightened economic blockades by America.
University of Canterbury lecturer Josephine Varghese and Ambassador Luis Morejon Rodriguez talk to Kadambari Raghukumar in this Here Now episode.
Last December Josephine Vargehese found herself in the rare position of a being a speaker at a conference in Cuba. It was a chance she’d long been waiting for.
Indian-born, Christchurch based, Josephine Varghese is a lecturer at University of Canterbury, with a focus on analysing geopolitics through a post-colonial lens. She’s always felt drawn to Cuba.
“It’s a nation state that resisted imperialism, just 90 miles away from the United States coast. People are very fascinated by that in Kerala” said Varghese who was born in the south Indian state.
“Kerala has a a revolutionary history itself.”
Kerala occupies a long, narrow strip on the southwest coast of India. Since its formation in 1956, the people of Kerala have often elected the Communist Party of India to lead their legislative assembly.
The state has achieved the highest literacy rate in India and a consistently high GDP, while making huge investments in health and education. And over the years, it has built ties with the communist government and people of Cuba involving ideology, medical research, sport and literature.
“When I was in Cuba, just walking through the streets and having the interest that I have, I invariably talked to people about politics and people are well aware of international politics. When I’m in the West, it’s more around ‘oh India’s poor or backward and you’re running away from there’ – a very narrow understanding of India’s history, whereas in Cuba I felt that the awareness about India was rooted in India’s anti-colonial past.”
Varghese was a speaker at the Tricontinental Conference. The first Tricontinental Conference took place in Havana in 1966. This 60th anniversary event saw over 500 delegates from anticolonial movements across 82 countries from the Global South.
“I saw this as the pinnacle of my career and my life so far,” Varghese said.
She was visiting at a tough time for the Caribbean nation. Cuba’s in the midst of an economic and humanitarian crisis. Its economic struggles date back to the collapse of the Soviet Union and Cuba’s critics point to the communist government’s failure to adapt to the post-Soviet era.
But much of the current pressure stems from America escalating its embargo on Cuba this year – blocking Venezuelan oil and President Donald Trump threatening to “take” the country
Josephine arrived in Cuba in late 2025, before the escalation, but she was already seeing the pressures Cubans were facing.
“I went there in December 2025, actually the last shipment of oil to that country before this recent Russian oil tanker which broke you know USA’s blockade reached there. The last one was December 2025, just before we arrived there. And so it was a very critical time in Cuba.”
Back in New Zealand, Josephine was invited to share her experiences at a talk in Auckland a few weeks ago -where the Cuban ambassador to New Zealand, Luis Morejon Rodriguez was also present.
“We live under sanctions for more than 60 years and we continue trying to do our best. In the current context, diplomacy becomes more of an important. My role is to provide accurate informal information about Cuba, strengthen bilateral relations and promote cooperation between our people. It’s also important to explain the real impact of the blockade and the consequences of that policy to attempt to isolate Cuba. Many people here understand the differences between countries should be resolved through dialogue and mutual respect, not through economic coercion that ultimately affects ordinary people,” Luis Morejon told Here Now.
Some critics point out, however, that many ordinary Cubans have been pressured into silence by their government. Here Now tried to contact people within the Cuban community in New Zealand, but none of the persons contacted wanted to be interviewed.
In response, Luis Morejon responded “Here in New Zealand we have a very small Cuban community and they are spread out for the whole country. It is natural that there are different perspectives regarding Cuba this diversity of view exists in many societies, not only in Cuba. What is important is that discussions are based on respect, facts and understanding and complex reality faced by Cuban people we are consistently emphasize is that political differences should never justify policy that harm the entire population. The Cuban people deserve the opportunity to develop without external pressure or economic strangulation,” Morejon said.
Here Now’s Kadambari Raghukumar asked Varghese if global issues like the embargo on Cuba connect back to New Zealand at all. She said “communities in New Zealand have in the past spoken out vociferously against imperialism, for example, when it came to the anti-apartheid struggle, New Zealand took a leading role among the West, for example, in opposing apartheid, um, but also the anti-nuclear movement over here. We understand that the Pacific is one of the contested spheres of influence. I think that our interest in Aotearoa New Zealand is to have an independent foreign policy that protects us and also protects the Pacific from imperial wars”.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Oscar award-winning documentary Mr. Nobody Against Putin is a classic story of “a very regular person finding his power and finding his voice”, director David Borenstein says.
Pavel “Pasha” Talankin is the film’s main character – a videographer and events coordinator at Karabash Primary School near Russia’s Ural mountains.
Talankin was uncomfortable with the pro-war lessons he and his colleagues were expected to deliver. He surreptitiously captured footage from his school and sent it to Borenstein who then crafted the documentary.
This video is hosted on Youtube.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
File photo. Hungary’s veteran nationalist leader Viktor Orban conceded defeat.AFP
Hungary’s veteran nationalist leader Viktor Orban conceded defeat after a landslide election victory by the upstart opposition Tisza party, in a setback for his allies in Russia and US President Donald Trump’s White House.
Results based on 46 percent of votes counted showed the centre-right, pro-EU Tisza party of Peter Magyar winning 135 seats – or a crucial two-thirds majority – in the 199-member parliament, ahead of Orban’s Fidesz party.
“The election results are not final yet, but the situation is understandable and clear,” Orban said at the Fidesz campaign offices. “The election result is painful for us, but clear.”
Pollsters predicted a record voter turnout, with Hungarian television showing long queues outside some voting stations in Budapest. Data at 1630 GMT, half an hour before polls were due to close, showed 77.8 percent of voters casting their ballots, up from 67.8 percent four years earlier.
If the final results confirm the early readings, an end to Orban’s period in government after 16 years in power would have significant implications not only for Hungary, but for the European Union, Ukraine and beyond.
It would likely spell an end to Hungary’s adversarial role inside the EU, possibly opening the way for a 90 billion euro loan to war-battered Ukraine blocked by Orban.
Defeat for Orban could also mean the eventual release of EU funds to Hungary that the bloc had suspended due to what Brussels said was Orban’s erosion of democratic standards.
Orban’s exit would also deprive Russian President Vladimir Putin of his main ally in the EU and send shockwaves through Western right-wing circles, including the White House.
In Hungary, a Tisza victory could open the way for reforms that the party says would aim to combat corruption and restore the independence of the judiciary and other institutions.
However, the extent of such reforms will depend on whether Tisza can secure the two-thirds constitutional majority it would need to reverse much of Orban’s legacy.
Economic stagnation hurt Orban’s support
Orban, a eurosceptic, carved out a model of an “illiberal democracy” seen as a blueprint by Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement and its admirers in Europe.
But many Hungarians have grown increasingly weary of Orban, 62, after three years of economic stagnation and soaring living costs as well as reports of oligarchs close to the government amassing more wealth.
Tisza’s leader Magyar appears to have successfully tapped into this frustration.
Casting his vote for Tisza in the Hungarian capital, Mihaly Bacsi, 27, said the country needed change.
“We need an improvement in public mood, there is too much tension in many areas and the current government only fuels these sentiments,” he said.
Another voter, who gave her name as Zsuzsa, said she wanted continuity.
“I would really like if all the results that have been achieved in recent years remain – and I am terribly afraid of the war,” she said, referring to the conflict raging in Ukraine, Hungary’s eastern neighbour.
Orban sought to cast Sunday’s election as a choice between “war and peace”. During campaigning, the government blanketed the country with signs warning that Magyar would drag Hungary into Russia’s war with Ukraine, something he strongly denies
– Reuters
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand