Day: June 24, 2022

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Sydney WorldPride Welcomes the World With Giant Human Progress Flag

Sydney World Pride 2023

Sydney World Pride 2023

SYDNEY, June 24, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Nearly 1,000 Sydneysiders have created a giant human Progress Flag on the steps of the Sydney Opera House.

The colourful display marks the 44th anniversary of the first Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and sends a message of welcome to the world as Sydney, Australia gears up to host WorldPride in 2023, with the hotly-anticipated tickets going on sale from 15 July. Locals and visitors alike can sign up to access early bird tickets.

Sydney’s famous Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is a must-do in the calendar of global Pride festivals – and Sydney WorldPride will be a 17-day celebration of Australian LGBTQIA+ fabulousness, with over 300 events across the city.

Taking place from 17 February to 5 March 2023, Sydney WorldPride will celebrate Australia’s brilliant and diverse LGBTQIA+ community, in a city renowned for its diversity, inclusivity and proud LGBTQIA+ population.

More than 500,000 people are expected to participate in Sydney WorldPride and the festival will feature much-loved events including the world-famous Mardi Gras Parade, which will be returning to Oxford Street for the first time in three years.

In addition, there will be exciting one-off Sydney WorldPride major events:

  • Live & Proud – Sydney WorldPride’s Opening Concert, presented by American Express – we’re getting the party started with this opening concert, hosted by Courtney Act and Casey Donovan.
  • Pride Villages – for 10 days from 24 February, sections of Crown Street and Riley Street will be closed and become home to stalls, dining and performances. On the final weekend of Sydney WorldPride, a section of Oxford Street itself will be closed to create a giant street party.
  • Bondi Beach Party, presented by Optus – for one day only, the sandy jewel of Sydney will become the city’s hottest club for 12,000 people.
  • Sydney WorldPride Human Rights Conference – the largest LGBTQIA+ human rights conference ever held in the Asia-Pacific region.
  • Blak & Deadly: The First Nations Gala Concert – experience a rainbow explosion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander LGBTQIA+ artistry, across a two-hour concert hosted by Steven ‘Faboriginal’ Oliver at the Sydney Opera House.
  • First Nations Gathering Space – held at Carriageworks and running across six nights, featuring exhibits, theatre, dining and drag.
  • Rainbow Republic, presented by Optus – six hours of live music, DJs and performances await you at The Domain, for a queer megamix of international and local acts.
  • Ultra Violet – an inclusive LGBTQIA+ women’s party at Sydney’s Town Hall where burlesque stars, cabaret performers and drag kings take to the stage.
  • Domain Dance Party – dance with 10,000 of your mates at the biggest LGBQTIA+ outdoor dance party Australia has ever seen.
  • Pride March – 50,000 people will join this historic Pride march across one of the world’s most-recognisable landmarks, the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Local and international headliners for major events will be revealed later this year.

Sydney WorldPride Chief Operating Officer, Gabriel Pinkstone, said: “In just a few months, Sydney will be transformed as more than 500,000 people come together for the global family reunion LGBTQIA+ people have been waiting for.”

“Sydney WorldPride is a party with a purpose, and will celebrate Sydney’s most iconic locations, from Bondi Beach to the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.”

“It’s the biggest summer event of 2023 and we can’t wait to welcome everyone back to celebrate Pride with Australia’s diverse LGBTQIA+ community.”

As well as Sydney WorldPride’s major events, there will be over 60 specially curated arts events and more than 20 sporting events as part of WorldPride Arts and WorldPride Sports. WorldPride Arts have been made possible thanks to Create New South Wales (NSW).

Sydney WorldPride will also feature a special one-off event in Newcastle called Pink Salt, an outdoor long table dinner to be hosted at The Station, featuring live performances and outrageous design.

Minister for Enterprise, Investment and Trade, Minister for Tourism and Sport and Minister for Western Sydney, Stuart Ayres, said: “Sydney WorldPride 2023 will showcase our incredible and inclusive city to a global audience and will re-establish Sydney as a must-visit destination for visitors.”

“It’ll be the first time this event has been held in the Southern Hemisphere and has the potential to be the biggest event Sydney has seen since the Sydney 2000 Olympics.”

“As a city and a state, we are embracing the freedom we have earned through the hard times of the past two years.”

“The NSW Government continues to invest in world-class entertainment, hospitality and events; our goal is to be the events capital of the Asia-Pacific and supporting Sydney WorldPride 2023 helps achieve this.”

“NSW is ready to host this event and we are encouraging visitors to make the trip to enjoy the best that Sydney has to offer.”

Local artists, producers and party promoters are also being invited to take part in Pride Amplified, a dedicated open-access program for arts, culture, experiences and parties, with hundreds of events expected to take place across Greater Sydney.

Clover Moore, the Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney, said: “The City is proud to be a fierce ally of the rainbow community and we are delighted to welcome the world to Sydney for Pride in 2023!”

“This is a fantastic moment for Sydney. Hosting WorldPride 2023 is an affirmation of our city as a richly diverse and accepting society, open to the world and inclusive of all, and a wonderful opportunity to help our arts, tourism and hospitality sectors that were so hard hit by the Covid pandemic.”

Gil Beckwith, Chief Financial Officer, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, said: “We’re incredibly excited to welcome the world’s LGBTQIA+ communities to our city for Sydney WorldPride and Mardi Gras.”

“This event will not only showcase the iconic surrounds of Sydney and NSW as a premier tourist destination, but it will also boost the profile of the Mardi Gras Festival to international audiences, creating a legacy that will have an important impact on the growth of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and our community in years to come.”

TICKETS

Every year, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is the hottest summer event in Sydney, with international headliners and visitors from around the globe joining one of the world’s most renowned Pride festivals.

Tickets go on sale to the general public at 09:00 AEST on 15 July via SydneyWorldPride.com.

To secure early access to Sydney WorldPride tickets, sign up now at sydneyworldpride.com to access pre-sale tickets from 09:00 AEST on 11 July. Mardi Gras Members not only get pre-sale access but discounted tickets on many Mardi Gras events.

American Express Card Members will also have access to a selection of Sydney WorldPride pre-sale tickets from 9 am AEST, 11 July via the American Express website (T&Cs apply).

Sydney WorldPride is proud to offer $49 + booking fee tickets to select events for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through MobTix, and for select concession card holders through our Affordability Program.

Special thanks to Gildan Brands Australia for their generous donation of over 1,000 Gildan t-shirts worn by the participants in the Human Progress Flag. 

MEDIA CONTACT:  Matt Fraser: mfraser@originalspin.com.au phone +61 401 326 007

ABOUT WORLDPRIDE

WorldPride is a global event licensed by InterPride, which is awarded to a different host city every 2-3 years.

Like the Olympics, cities bid to host the event and deliver a comprehensive program of arts, culture and festivals designed to engage global LGBTQIA+ audiences. The first WorldPride took place in Rome in July 2000, followed by Jerusalem (2006), London (2012), Toronto (2014), Madrid (2017), New York (2019) and Copenhagen + Malmo (2021).

FULL LIST OF 2023 EVENTS

A full list of the Sydney WorldPride festival’s events is as follows:

Related Images

Image 1: Sydney World Pride 2023

Human Progress Pride Flag at Sydney Opera House. Photo credit: Daniel Boud

Image 2: Sydney WorldPride – Human Progress Pride Flag – Sydney Opera House

Photo credit: Daniel Boud

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Groundbreaking Global Research Shows the True Value of Self-Care

Realising the potential of self-care, for everyone, everywhere will deliver even more savings and higher quality of life

Featured Image for Global Self-Care Federation

Featured Image for Global Self-Care Federation

GENEVA, June 24, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — At the beginning of WHO Self-Care Month, the Global Social and Economic Value of Self-Care study, released today in full by the Global Self-Care Federation, demonstrates that current self-care practices deliver significant economic savings and quality-of-life improvements:

  • savings of nearly $120 billion each year for global healthcare systems and, therefore, national economies.
  • savings of 40.8 billion productive days for both health practitioners and individuals, which translates to an average of 11.83 workdays per person per year. It corresponds to a value of $1,879 billion in welfare effects.
  • gain of 22 million quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), the standard measurement for the value of health outcomes.

These are the key findings of this groundbreaking research, which is the first global research project analysing the worldwide value and impact of self-care, across 155 countries. Importantly, it is the first study to include data from low- and middle-income countries, providing a unique global perspective.

Judy Stenmark, Director General at GSCF, said, “Given the proven benefits and efficiency gains that self-care delivers, it is clear self-care has to be given much higher priority by governments at all levels. It is currently an area that is sadly too often overlooked in health policy. And that applies to both the wealthier industrialised nations and the world’s lower-income countries and regions.”

The Study distinguishes between two main approaches. ‘Self-care first’ refers to the practice of self-care as the first treatment option, which is typically more prevalent in developed economies. The second is ‘self-care only’ is the use of self-care instead of doing nothing, in particular when it is the only available option in low-income countries.

Stenmark continued, “The Study very clearly demonstrates the benefits of self-care for individuals, healthcare professionals and health systems. It will be a major contributor to achieving universal health coverage and access to quality healthcare, both of which are clearly articulated in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and the World Health Organization’s ‘triple billion’ goals.

“It is now time to realise the potential of self-care, for everyone, everywhere.”

The Study split the 155 countries into three groupings based on healthcare accessibility and affordability. It analysed levels of self-care integration, using a systematic literature review, economic modelling and other exhaustive tools to determine the value of self-care in a robust, scientific manner, to estimate the value self-care can bring according to a country’s socio-economic context. Although the effects of self-care are quantified using the current and projected future consumption of over-the-counter (OTC) products, self-care is much more than that. Self-care is a multifaceted and multidimensional concept which includes a variety of health-related practices. There needs to be a greater recognition of these elements and the benefits of self-care from all key stakeholders.

Media Enquiries: claverty@selfcarefederation.org

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CORRECTION – Zoom Unveils Platform Evolution; Launches New Packaging and Translation Feature

  • Zoom One is a new offering that brings together options for persistent chat, phone, meetings, whiteboard, and more into a single, secure and scalable package
  • All-new translation feature allows meetings to be translated between English and any of the 10 languages, or from those languages into English

SAN JOSE, Calif., June 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —

Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) is updating a press release issued on June 22, 2022 to clarify that Unlimited Regional Calling is an optional add-on feature for Zoom One Enterprise and Enterprise Plus customers. Complete corrected text follows.

Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) today unveiled the latest evolution of its communications platform with the introduction of Zoom One, a new offering that brings together persistent chat, phone, meetings, whiteboard, and more into secure and scalable packages. Additionally, Zoom also launched an all new translated and multi-language captions feature.

“Simplicity is at the core of everything we do. As the Zoom platform has evolved from a meeting app to a comprehensive communications platform, it was clear that introducing new packaging like Zoom One was the next step in the company’s evolution,” said Greg Tomb, President, Zoom. “By bringing together chat, phone, meetings, whiteboard, and more in a single offering, we are able to offer our customers solutions that are simple to manage, so they can focus on business issues that matter most.”

“Businesses continue to realize the time and cost saving a single provider can offer. According to Omdia’s latest end user survey, 40% of organizations are prioritizing investments around eliminating multiple cloud-based UC solutions that may be deployed within their organizations,” states Brent Kelly, Principal Analyst, Omdia Research. “The need to simplify business operations is a market trend that we see as being increasingly important, and Zoom One’s tiered bundles and common management console aligns well to this customer demand.”

Zoom One’s intuitive experience
Purpose-built to work together, Zoom One’s intuitive experience offers customers the choice between six tiered offerings according to their business needs.

  • Zoom One Basic provides free 40-minute Zoom Meetings for up to 100 attendees, persistent Zoom Chat for team messaging, limited Zoom Whiteboard for synchronous and asynchronous work, and real-time transcription.
  • Zoom One Pro provides everything Zoom One Basic offers without Meeting time limits, plus cloud recording.
  • Zoom One Business provides everything Zoom One Pro offers, plus Zoom Meetings for up to 300 attendees and unlimited Zoom Whiteboards.
  • Zoom One Business Plus provides everything Zoom One Business offers, plus Zoom Phone Pro with unlimited regional calling and Zoom’s all-new translation feature.
  • Zoom One Enterprise and Zoom One Enterprise Plus are similar to Zoom One Business, with larger meeting capacity and additional features, like Zoom Webinars, to help modern businesses scale. Unlimited Regional Calling is an optional add-on feature for Zoom One Enterprise and Enterprise Plus.

Zoom One Basic, Pro, Business and Business Plus plans are available for purchase online today. To purchase Zoom One Enterprise or Enterprise Plus, customers can speak to an account executive directly. For more information, visit https://zoom.us/pricing.

“If you provide a complete suite of reliable and easy-to-use communication tools that people can use to do their jobs, they are less likely to be using one-off solutions outside of our offerings – which in turn simplifies our support and delivery model,” said Rob Kerr, chief information officer at Cooley, a global law firm with 3,300 employees in 17 offices across the United States, Asia, and Europe. “Zoom’s secure portfolio of unified video, chat, whiteboarding, and telephony solutions aligns our global teams and allows Cooley to better serve its clients.”

For more information on the new, simplified offerings or to find the plan that is best suited for your business, visit the Zoom blog.

Introducing translated & multi-language captions
Launching first in Zoom One Business Plus and Zoom One Enterprise Plus packages, Zoom’s translated captions will allow users to view captions translated into the language of their choice. At launch, translations will be available between English and 10 additional languages, or from any of the 10 languages to English. The ability to translate directly to and from English is known as bi-directional translation. Translated captions display at the base of the screen while in a Zoom Meeting.

The bi-directional translations are available in the following languages: Chinese (Simplified), Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian.

To access the translated captions feature, Zoom One customers must upgrade to either the Zoom One Business Plus or Zoom One Enterprise Plus packages (in applicable countries).

Zoom also extended its automated captioning – the ability to caption in real-time what a speaker is saying in the same language as the one spoken – to include 10 additional languages. Automated captions previously were supported in English, but now can be displayed in the additional 10 languages referenced above. Multi-language automated captions are available in Business Plus, Enterprise, and Enterprise Plus packages with additional support for other plans coming soon.

About Zoom
Zoom is for you. Zoom is a space where you can connect to others, share ideas, make plans, and build toward a future limited only by your imagination. Our frictionless communications platform is the only one that started with video as its foundation, and we have set the standard for innovation ever since. That is why we are an intuitive, scalable, and secure choice for large enterprises, small businesses, and individuals alike. Founded in 2011, Zoom is publicly traded (NASDAQ:ZM) and headquartered in San Jose, California. Visit zoom.com and follow @zoom.

Zoom Public Relations
Candace Dean
Corporate PR Lead
press@zoom.us

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Hong Kong Nears Bottom in New Human Rights Survey

LONDON —

Human rights in Hong Kong have deteriorated rapidly since Beijing’s crackdown after the pro-democracy protests of 2019, according to a new survey.

The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) published a survey this week showing the rapid change in human rights in Hong Kong, which now ranks close to Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, both near last-place China.

Chung Kim-wah, honorary director of Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, told VOA in a phone interview that survey data show that civil society in Hong Kong has shrunk, and freedom of speech and assembly has been suppressed since the imposition of the Hong Kong version of China’s National Security Law in 2020.

“Watching events in Hong Kong over the past couple of years has been quite harrowing, and so I doubt that Hong Kong’s scores will come as a surprise to any Hong Kong watchers,” said HRMI spokesperson Anne-Marie Brook.

VOA Cantonese contacted the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., for comment on the HRMI survey but has not received a response.

HRMI conducts national surveys to assess quality of life and safety from the state. The surveys are conducted in more than 30 regions worldwide and use up to 13 criteria outlined in United Nations treaties to measure the state of human rights. Respondents to the secure, online Hong Kong survey included local human rights workers, human rights lawyers and journalists covering human rights issues.

HRMI, which is based in New Zealand and the U.S., did not disclose the number or identities of the respondents, to protect them, according to Thalia Kehoe Rowden of HRMI. Some of the respondents have emigrated from Hong Kong.

The data show that Hong Kong’s freedom of assembly and association, freedom of expression and political participation continued to decline for the third consecutive year.

For example, the freedom of assembly and association is evaluated on a 10-point scale. Hong Kong scored 4.5 points in 2019 and 2.5 points in 2021, results the survey describes as “very bad.”

Freedom of expression fell from 4.7 in 2019, to 2.7 in 2021, while suffrage dropped from 4 to 2.4 over the same period.

However the survey also found the right to freedom from arbitrary arrest rose from 2.7 in 2019 to 3.5 in 2021.

And Hong Kong scored 4.6 out of 10 for its performance on the right to freedom from torture. According to HRMI, this falls “within the ‘bad’ category and means that a significant number of people are at risk of torture and ill-treatment.” It is the fourth lowest score among the East Asia and Pacific region countries the organizations tracks.

The scores reflect China’s crackdown on Hong Kong after months of pro-democracy street protests in 2019.

In terms of civil and political rights, China scores below 3.5 in 75% of indicators, which is considered “very poor.” In terms of freedom of assembly and association, freedom of expression and political participation, China’s overall score is only 2.1, the lowest among the 30 surveyed regions. This was the first year HRMI surveyed China.

“Hong Kong’s scores over the last three years are converging on China’s very low scores,” Rowden told VOA Cantonese via email Thursday evening. “Hong Kong’s empowerment scores [freedom of assembly and association; freedom of opinion and expression; participation in government] have fallen dramatically, so that they are nearly the same as China’s.”

Hong Kong survey respondents noted that Chinese law restricts freedom of assembly and association, and that anyone trying to run for office independently would be intimidated, even violently treated or imprisoned.

Dr. K. Chad Clay, an HRMI co-founder who is also its research methodology and design lead, told VOA Cantonese in an email that since the 2020 implementation of the Hong Kong version of China’s National Security Law, “speaking out is likely to result in arrest and detention, which has likely led many people to self-censor in order to avoid their own arrest in response.”

“Backing this up,” he added, “our data absolutely show a continued precipitous decline in the rights to opinion, expression, assembly, and association.”

Clay, director of the Center for the Study of Global Issues and an associate professor at The School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia, said it is important to note that Hong Kong’s “government may not feel the need to resort to as many arbitrary and political arrests now that empowerment rights are increasingly restricted.”

“In the years since the National Security Law was passed, it has been shown that speaking out is likely to result in arrest and detention, which has likely led many people to self-censor in order to avoid their own arrest in response,” he said. “Backing this up, our data absolutely show a continued precipitous decline in the rights to opinion, expression, assembly, and association.”

Chung said last year he saw police using the social gathering ban that is supposed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 to suppress gatherings in Causeway Bay on June 4 for the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. This “was very blatant and abusive of the law, and the purpose and spirit of the legislation is contrary to its original purpose.” This year, local authorities warned people to avoid the Victoria Park Tiananmen memorial and police detained several who ignored the caution.

Chung also said some Hong Kong political prisoners have been remanded for two years without being convicted. Because of the pandemic, outsiders are not allowed to visit inmates. One prisoner’s request for pens and paper was rejected.

“The most outrageous thing is that in just a few weeks, he was transferred to different prison cells five, six times without being given any reason,” he added. “This is obviously a kind of strategy that makes people lose their autonomy and lets them be manipulated. I think this is also torture.”

Simon Cheng, founder of Hongkongers in Britain group, told VOA in a phone call that the good thing about the quantified indicators is that the changes can be evaluated with the same standards, and “they don’t talk past each other and it won’t turn it [the survey] into a political game.”

“This will prevent China from saying that each (country) has its own standards and making everyone lose direction.”

Source: Voice of America

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Hong Kong Textbook Revision Seen as Chinese Political Move

HONG KONG —

Experts call China’s most recent move to rewrite Hong Kong’s history textbooks part of a larger plan to solidify a national identity in the city, which has been rocked by political turmoil since 2019.

Local media reported this month that new textbooks in Hong Kong secondary schools – still under review by the Education Bureau – say Hong Kong was not a British colony because Beijing did not recognize the unequal treaties that ceded the financial hub to Britain, according to The South China Morning Post. This is not a new Chinese position.

According to the new textbooks, China never gave up its sovereignty over Hong Kong and therefore, while the city was under Britain’s colonial governance it was not a colony, another local media outlet, Mingpao, that has access to the textbooks reported.

The new textbooks also call 2019 pro-democracy protests “severely violent events, parts of which incited sedition and overthrowing the government, posing a threat to the sovereignty, national security and benefits of Hong Kong.” They say outright that “foreign forces” were involved in the movement, and that the national security law implemented in 2020 “respects and protects human rights.”

To boost Chinese patriotism

The textbook overhaul is aimed at instilling Chinese nationalism in the city after the protests, according to Gina Anne Tam, an assistant professor specializing in Chinese history at the Trinity University.

It is “an attempt to downplay any narrative that treats Hong Kong as having distinct historical legacies from China,” Tam told VOA.

“Emphasizing British colonialism, in a word, emphasizes a distinct historical trajectory that has led to a distinct sense of identity in Hong Kong. By negating the legitimacy of British colonialism, the Hong Kong government similarly negates any historical trajectory that emphasizes a unique history or a unique culture.”

She said part of what constitutes Hong Kongers’ identity is the city’s colonial history.

“Hong Kong’s colonial history was certainly violent and oppressive. But the way Hong Kongers created a community within those circumstances and fought back against British colonialism, in part, helped create the unique Hong Kong society and culture that exists today.”

She added that recognizing a single version of history “strikes a similar resemblance” to its narrative revolving around Taiwan and Tibet – an idea echoed by Steve Tsang, the director of the China Institute at the SOAS University of London.

“The Communist Party has a monopoly of the truth and of history in China. Since Hong Kong is being integrated into the PRC [People’s Republic of China] more fully after the 2019 protests, the ‘one country, two systems’ and ‘Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong’ concepts are now subjected to only one interpretation – the party’s,” Tsang said, referring to the Chinese Communist Party.

e said 2013 guidance to local governments to rein in the “noteworthy problems” related to ideologies that China deemed threatening to its governance, known as “Document 9,” started an era of allowing a single interpretation of history in China.

“Hong Kong was previously allowed to be an exception. Not any longer,” he said. “In the [Chinese President] Xi [Jinping] approach to history, facts are merely incidental. Only interpretation matters, and only one interpretation is allowed.”

UN excludes Hong Kong in its list of recognized colonies

Not recognizing Hong Kong as a colony has been China’s stance for decades. In 1972, Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Huang Hua claimed full sovereign rights to Hong Kong and Macao and called the ceding of both cities a result of “a series of unequal treaties which the imperialists imposed on China” in a formal letter.

The settlement of the questions of Hong Kong and Macao is “entirely within China’s sovereign right,” Hua wrote, and does not fall “under the ordinary category of colonial territories.”

“Consequently, they should not be included in the list of colonial territories covered by the declaration on the granting of independence to colonial countries and people,” Hua wrote in the letter.

That November, the U.N. General Assembly officially excluded both cities from the U.N. list of colonial territories.

Rita Fan, a former lawmaker in Hong Kong and a member of China’s National People’s Congress said this month she would ask Western media to “double-check what happened in 1972 in the U.N.” and pointed to the Western attention to the textbook changes as a way to bolster “wrong concepts of ‘Hong Kong independence’ and ‘self-determination’ that have infiltrated into Hong Kong” in an interview with state media Global Times.

“What the Hong Kong government is attempting is to gradually explain and correct these wrong concepts Western countries hope Hong Kongers will accept. Only if Hong Kong teachers and students can understand history correctly, can we prevent the requests of for self-determination and universal suffrage,” she said.

Education in peril

However, colonial governance and identity as a colony cannot be separated, a Chinese history teacher, who asked not to be identified, at a secondary school in Hong Kong told VOA.

“It is wrong to say that Hong Kong was never a British colony, as multiple historical documents show that. Colonial governance and the concept of colony should not be interpreted separately,” she said.

“And as a teacher, we need to have sufficient evidence to tell our students that foreign forces were indeed the driver of the 2019 protests, but I don’t think there is enough proof.”

While she said Chinese history is an important part of national education that should be strengthened, she does not think the wording change is right.

“After 2019, China probably wants to bolster national education in Hong Kong so citizens feel a stronger sense of belonging. … Personally I don’t quite accept this, and I would teach colonial governance and the concept of colony together,” she added.

In the future, though, she admitted that she and other teachers will have to follow the guidelines of the school and the Education Bureau.

Tam saw a bleak future after textbook changes.

“While this doesn’t negate the possibility of unique senses of identity forming, it makes it that much harder. Once something is normalized, it is significantly harder for anyone to try and complicate or question it,” she said.

Source: Voice of America

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Audax Private Equity Announces Strategic Growth Investment in BlueCat Networks

TORONTO, June 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Audax Private Equity (“Audax”) today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to make a strategic growth investment in BlueCat Networks (“BlueCat” or the “Company”), a leading provider of mission-critical, infrastructure software. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 2001, BlueCat is a leading provider of mission-critical, infrastructure software for network control, automation, and security. BlueCat’s Adaptive DNS™ platform is a dynamic, open, secure, scalable, and automated resource that supports the most challenging digital-transformation initiatives, such as adoption of hybrid cloud, virtualization, and rapid-application development. Some of the largest global enterprises, including 30% of the Fortune 100, trust BlueCat to provide the foundation for digital-transformation strategies such as infrastructure and application modernization, and manage cybersecurity risk through protective DNS security.

“Since our founding more than two decades ago, BlueCat has strived to ensure reliable, secure, and rapid access from users and devices to clouds and applications — making DNS an enabler of digital transformation and cloud adoption. This investment represents a significant milestone for our company, customers, employees, and all of our stakeholders, as we commence the next phase of our growth journey. Audax has a lengthy and reputable track record of successfully partnering and working collaboratively with software and technology companies in infrastructure and security, in particular by deploying its Buy & Build strategy to expand offerings and move into adjacent markets, and we look forward to benefiting from the firm’s value-add resources,” said Stephen Devito, Chief Executive Officer of BlueCat Networks.

“Having helped some of the biggest enterprises in the world overcome the compounding complexity in their networks, BlueCat possesses a high quality and innovative business model that is primed for both organic and inorganic growth,” said Iveshu Bhatia, Managing Director at Audax. “Importantly, BlueCat is positioned well to capitalize on the growth in network complexity driven by device expansion, cloud adoption and security requirements with its existing customers, and accelerate new customer growth through additional investment in channel partnerships. We are thrilled to have the unique opportunity to work closely with Stephen and the entire BlueCat management team to help take BlueCat to the next level,” said Timothy Mack, Managing Director at Audax.

Doug Grissom, Managing Director at MDP, said, “It has been a pleasure to work with Stephen and the entire BlueCat team and help them grow the business and extend BlueCat’s leadership as the trusted partner for companies implementing digital-transformation initiatives. We are confident that BlueCat has a bright future ahead in partnership with Audax.”

The transaction is anticipated to close in the third quarter of 2022 and is subject to certain closing conditions, including the waiting period required by the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act. Upon closing, Audax will own a controlling stake in BlueCat, with MDP fully realizing its investment in BlueCat.

William Blair and Nomura Securities International, Inc. are serving as financial advisors to BlueCat. Ropes & Gray is serving as legal counsel to Audax and Kirkland & Ellis is serving as legal counsel to BlueCat and MDP.

About BlueCat

BlueCat is the Adaptive DNS™ company. The company’s mission is to help the world’s largest organizations deliver reliable and secure network access from any location. To do this, BlueCat re-imagined DNS. The result – Adaptive DNS™ – is a dynamic, open, secure, scalable, and automated resource that supports the most challenging digital transformation initiatives, like adoption of hybrid cloud and rapid application development. The company is headquartered in Toronto and New York and has additional offices throughout the world, including Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Singapore.

Learn more at bluecat.com.

About Audax Private Equity

Audax Group is a leading alternative investment manager with offices in Boston, New York, and San Francisco. Since its founding in 1999, the firm has raised over $30 billion in capital across its Private Equity and Private Debt businesses. Audax Private Equity has invested over $9 billion in 150 platforms and over 1,100 add-on companies, and is currently investing out of its $3.5 billion, sixth private equity fund. Through its disciplined Buy & Build approach, Audax Private Equity seeks to help platform companies execute add-on acquisitions that fuel revenue growth, optimize operations, and significantly increase equity value. With more than 300 employees, Audax is a leading capital partner for North American middle market companies. For more information, visit the Audax Private Equity website: www.audaxprivateequity.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

About Madison Dearborn Partners, LLC

Madison Dearborn Partners, LLC (“MDP”) is a leading private equity investment firm based in Chicago. Since MDP’s formation in 1992, the firm has raised aggregate capital of over $28 billion and has completed over 150 investments. MDP invests across five dedicated industry verticals, including basic industries; business and government software and services; financial and transaction services; health care; and telecom, media and technology services. For more information, please visit www.mdcp.com.

Contacts

For Audax:
Julie Rudnick / Zachary Tramonti
FGS Global
Audax-SVC@SARDVERB.com

For BlueCat:
Pierre Hamilton
Senior Manager, Corporate Communications
pr@bluecatnetworks.com

For Madison Dearborn Partners:
Jake Yanulis / Rohan Yaradi
Abernathy MacGregor
AbmacMDCP@abmac.com
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2022 Corporate Calendar – Update

2022 Corporate Calendar – Update

Turin, 23rd June 2022. Iveco Group N.V. (MI: IVG) announces that the meeting of the Board of Directors for the approval of Q2 results has been brought forward to 27th July 2022.

The conference call for investors and financial analysts is confirmed on 28th July. This will be accompanied by a listen-only webcast and presentation available to the public.

Iveco Group N.V. (MI: IVG) is a global automotive leader active in the Commercial & Specialty Vehicles, Powertrain, and related Financial Services arenas. Each of its eight brands is a major force in its specific business: IVECO, a pioneering commercial vehicles brand that designs, manufactures, and markets heavy, medium, and light-duty trucks; FPT Industrial, a global leader in a vast array of advanced powertrain technologies in the agriculture, construction, marine, power generation, and commercial vehicles sectors; IVECO BUS and HEULIEZ, mass-transit and premium bus and coach brands; IDV, for highly-specialised defence and civil protection equipment; ASTRA, a leader in large-scale heavy-duty quarry and construction vehicles; MAGIRUS, the industry-reputed firefighting vehicle and equipment manufacturer; and IVECO CAPITAL, the financing arm which supports them all. Iveco Group employs approximately 34,000 people around the world and has 28 manufacturing plants and 29 R&D centres. Further information is available on the Company’s website www.ivecogroup.com

Media Contacts:
Francesco Polsinelli, Tel: +39 335 1776091
Fabio Lepore, Tel: +39 335 7469007
E-mail: mediarelations@ivecogroup.com

Investor Relations:
Federico Donati, Tel: +39 011 0073539
E-mail: investor.relations@ivecogroup.com