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<figure id="figure-mrji1jp80vm2lff4qr"><img id="mrji1jp80vm2lff4qr" src="https://cdn.durable.co/covers/2fUnxYwQJTbxxzuMO2cBl743O1SqLiVHT7ErA3U55M6OrRxhgOxFv938ljgdpVHG.png" alt="Group of kids school volunteer charity with garbage bags cleaning up on the beach." title="Group of kids school volunteer charity with garbage bags cleaning up on the beach." class="object-cover bg-gray-100" style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="undefined" data-positiony="undefined" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://cdn.durable.co/covers/2fUnxYwQJTbxxzuMO2cBl743O1SqLiVHT7ErA3U55M6OrRxhgOxFv938ljgdpVHG.png" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;"></figure> An initiative that allows older people to speak face-to-face with their local MP has been launched. Age UK hopes its Tea with my MP scheme will provide a platform for constituents have their voices heard on the issues affecting them most. The charity said the Covid pandemic "hangover" and an "increasing digital divide" had made it harder for older people to reach out. Martin Creeth cares for his wife, who is living with dementia, and spoke with Bath MP Wera Hobhouse in the first session. He said: "It is a really good idea.""I think the chance to be able to have a face-to-face chat in a relaxed atmosphere is brilliant," he added. "I would be really thrilled if she could raise the topic of dementia in Parliament. It's a real problem of our age."Ms Hobhouse said: "It is often very easy to not see a particular section of your constituents and therefore that they actually reach out and make me come to them is really important. "Here, people are in a group where they can talk about their issues together and feel maybe less inhibited to talk about their financial and digital problems."Age UK's Bath and North East Somerset CEO, Simon Allen said it was "really clear" that the "digital divide is increasing". "Don't underestimate the hangover of the pandemic and the lockdowns," he said. "There's still a great many people who haven't fully regained the confidence to get back out in our community." He said the new scheme is a "great opportunity" for people to share their concerns. "Ultimately what we hope is that our local MP will be the champion for older people's voices in Parliament," he added. Sources：<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq8x32e0vd2o" data-mce-href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq8x32e0vd2o">https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq8x32e0vd2o</a>

Older people voice concerns in 'Tea with MP' scheme

<figure id="figure-lm1ot4smjm2lfi7wk" class=""><img id="lm1ot4smjm2lfi7wk" src="https://cdn.durable.co/covers/35mQ0DmwqnVJOTmyyzSM4ntXmijeRYeZO8LXVtSHJ2aEhlFhK9GVdbyolpBRSVj6.png" alt="Set of dog toys isolated on white. Collage." title="Set of dog toys isolated on white. Collage." class="object-cover bg-gray-100 " style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="undefined" data-positiony="undefined" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://cdn.durable.co/covers/35mQ0DmwqnVJOTmyyzSM4ntXmijeRYeZO8LXVtSHJ2aEhlFhK9GVdbyolpBRSVj6.png" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;"></figure> The Taliban in Afghanistan published outrageous new laws on “vice and virtue” that require women to completely cover their bodies, including their faces, in public at all times. In issuing the law, the Taliban claimed that women's voices could lead to vice, referring to their voices as aurat (a term in Sharia, or Islamic law, that signifies a man or woman’s intimate parts, which must be covered). Reducing their voices and bodies to things and sources of sin is an egregious act of sexualizing and objectifying women. These laws attack women’s personhood and autonomy, contributing to their further erasure from society. The Taliban have also announced that women should not be heard speaking, singing, or reciting aloud in public. When the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan three years ago, some were optimistic that “version 2.0” would be different and more open to women’s rights and human rights, as if their initial rule from 1996 to 2001 was not already defined by oppression and misery for the people of Afghanistan, particularly women and girls. For much of the international community, it seemed the Taliban’s past record, marked by unrelenting repression, flogging, stoning, and public executions, was easily forgotten. Many diplomats seemed quick to overlook the civilian lives lost due to Taliban attacks throughout the previous republic era. Since 2021, the Taliban have persistently attacked women's autonomy, oppressing them from every angle. They have banned girls and women from education beyond sixth grade, many forms of employment, and from public life. Having reduced women and girls to the status of non-humans, they severely restrict their movement, denying them any sense of agency or autonomy. After the new laws were announced, many Afghan women bravely defied the ban. Some women inside Afghanistan posted videos of them singing. Others gathered in parks outside the country, singing about freedom and women’s resistance, chanting that no one and nothing can silence the women of Afghanistan. Sources：<a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/08/27/talibans-relentless-assault-afghan-womens-bodies-autonomy" data-mce-href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/08/27/talibans-relentless-assault-afghan-womens-bodies-autonomy">https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/08/27/talibans-relentless-assault-afghan-womens-bodies-autonomy</a>

Taliban’s Relentless Assault on Afghan Women’s Bodies, Autonomy

<figure id="figure-k8jq6hh3om2leaxnv"><img id="k8jq6hh3om2leaxnv" src="https://cdn.durable.co/covers/23ZllC06BSlhJCnyaKZWrZlN7heIGrjC0g56lRi98LDTjDSeDfV5YxFJ9bcI9PXb.png" alt="A temporary yellow parkrun sign advising Caution Runners in an English park on a Saturday morning." title="A temporary yellow parkrun sign advising Caution Runners in an English park on a Saturday morning." class="object-cover bg-gray-100 " style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="undefined" data-positiony="undefined" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://cdn.durable.co/covers/23ZllC06BSlhJCnyaKZWrZlN7heIGrjC0g56lRi98LDTjDSeDfV5YxFJ9bcI9PXb.png" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;"></figure>A pensioner whose boiler was serviced for free by a local tradesman says she cannot believe there is someone willing to do "something for nothing". Gas engineer Tommy Tatton wanted to give back to older members of his community, and has offered free servicing to people about to lose their winter fuel payment. One, Val Merrill, 84, from Sandbach, Cheshire, said the payment cut remained a hot topic of conversation for people her age. "Everybody's on about it," she said. "You just stand in the bus queue and they say, 'How are we going to manage without this money?'."Mr Tatton described it as a "buzz" to give something back to those in need and hoped other gas engineers would also offer a helping hand. He said: "I can save a couple of hours a week, I can give that back to somebody. Why not help people who have just lost out?." Mrs Merrill is very grateful for what he is doing, especially because she is one of more than 10 million pensioners losing out on government support this winter. "I'll definitely be affected by it," she explained. "It means a lot. I mean £300 could pay your bill, couldn't it? And more." She said she was surprised by Labour's decision in early September to remove the payment. "I thought they we're going to do wonders for us when this new government came in but evidently not, and the pensioners are the first to lose something," she said. A spokesperson insisted the government was "committed to supporting pensioners". "Millions [are] set to see their state pension rise by £1,700 this parliament, through our commitment to the triple lock,” they said. “Over a million pensioners will still receive the winter fuel payment, and our drive to boost pension credit take-up has already seen a 152% increase in claims. “Many others will also benefit from the £150 warm home discount... while our extension of the household support fund will help with the cost of food, heating and bills.” Mrs Merrill's MP Sarah Russell said she applauded Mr Tatton's "kind offer", which is a "very civic-minded thing to do". "Although it's no longer financially feasible to award winter fuel payments to everyone over pension age regardless of need, I'm doing what I can to ensure support gets to the most vulnerable," she said. "I’ll be running events in the constituency to help people check their eligibility for and apply for pension credit, and other help such as the household support fund."Sources：<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c33v60zn8kko" data-mce-href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c33v60zn8kko">https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c33v60zn8kko</a>

Justice echoes

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Older people voice concerns in 'Tea with MP' scheme

Taliban’s Relentless Assault on Afghan Women’s Bodies, Au...

Gas engineer offers pensioners free boiler service