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Everything you need to know about the world today, curated by 95bFM and VICE NZ .Tapu Stolen From Wellington Art Gallery
A korowai worth over $10,000 has been stolen from a Wellington's Kura art gallery. The flax cloak is taonga and was handwoven by renowned weaver Garry Grace. The theft took place during the preparation for a Matariki exhibition, in an area where security cameras were not working. Since the theft, there have been sightings of a Māori man trying to sell the korowai outside of a Burger King. Curator Hannah Amu says the thief is preying on important tikanga, and is unlikely to be able to sell the korowai.Auckland’s New Ten-Year Plan
Auckland Council has officially signed off on a ten-year plan of transport investment, ahead of Sunday's fuel tax introduction. This will be the largest ever investment for Auckland of $12 billion, of which the regional fuel tax will cover $4.3b. Mayor of Auckland Phil Goff says the $4.3b will help to make critical transport decisions to tackle Auckland's unprecedented population growth. Other investments in the plan include $450m for the city's stormwater infrastructure, and a $311m fund for protecting the environment, including fighting kauri dieback.Upu Mai Whetū Showcase Starts
An event celebrating Aotearoa's indigenous literary and theatrical talents is coming to Auckland. Upu Mai Whetū will showcase poems covering a variety of topics through the lens of Māori and Pasifika poets and actors. Director, Fasitua Amosa, says the lack of indigenous voices in the mainstream can result in different perspectives being lost. “It's so easy to get just a palangi point of view on everything that it just becomes the only way you can think or you think is the right way to think.” Amosa adds he hopes the event will encourage Māori and Pasifika youth to reconnect with their culture.Kiwifruit Growers Waiting on Payout Decision
Kiwifruit growers may receive a government payout due to the bacterial vine disease PSA. The lawyers of the growers claim the disease came through Chinese pollen, approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The outbreak has cost the industry an estimated $9m since 2010. The Crown argues the Ministry is immune from responsibility for any biosecurity violations and that a compensation scheme of $25m will cover the damages. The court verdict will be reached later today.Parental Leave to be Extended
Paid parental leave will be extended by four weeks this Sunday as part of the government's families package. Parents who have been working for the last six months will receive 22 weeks paid leave from Sunday, up from 18 weeks, in a move preempting the goal of 26 weeks in July 2020. Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, Iain Lees-Galloway told 95bFM the leave is transferable between parents, and “any amount of the leave can be transferred to another partner”. Lees-Galloway also says the increase is part of a package that will work with the Best Start scheme and Working for Families payments that aim to help reduce child poverty in NZ. He says international evidence indicates New Zealand is offering the minimum amount of time for parents to bond with their children.Philippines Arresting Loiterers
Police in the Philippines have arrested more than 10,000 people in two weeks, after President Duterte ordered a fresh round up of 'idlers' caught for loitering in the streets. Of those arrested in Manila, many are women and children. While Philippine law prohibits jailing minors, in the absence of separate detention facilities, they usually end up in adult jail cells. In slum areas, many people are staying outdoors due to cramped and poorly ventilated housing in the country's tropical climate, but have become associated with street crime. Human Rights Watch deputy Asia director Phelim Kin says the police are “using a 'crime prevention' campaign that essentially jails low-income Filipinos for being in public".Trump and Putin to Meet
US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will hold a summit in Helsinki, Finland next month. The trip to the Finnish capital will follow a NATO summit in Belgium, and a UK visit where Trump will also meet with British PM Theresa May. The White House and Kremlin are reporting that a range of security issues will be discussed when the presidents meet, only their third time doing so on 16th July.EU Summit Underway
Migration issues are taking centre stage ahead of a European Leaders summit intended to discuss Brexit. German Chancellor Angela Merkel addressed her German government urging them to back a humane but tough asylum policy ahead of today's European Council Summit in Brussels. French President Emmanuel Macron is echoing Merkel's solution where EU states agree to support each other and not leave specific nations to deal with asylum seekers. Merkel is advising against nations acting unilaterally on immigration, such as Hungary who last week passed a law that criminalises helping undocumented immigrants. On the other hand, European Council President Donald Tusk says a failure to ensure full control of Europe's external borders risks strengthening the hand of newly emerging populist political movements, and Europe must be ready to prepare for worst-case scenarios.Cease-fire Signed in South Sudan
South Sudan's civil war has reached a cease-fire, allowing further humanitarian aid and an eventual establishment of a transitional government. The signing of the cease-fire lets members of Intergovernmental Authority on Development and the African Union oversee the unity government which will form in the next four months, and govern for the following three years. Rebel group spokesperson Garang Mabior says the rebels remain "cautiously optimistic". The civil war sparked in 2013 between President Salva Kiir and Vice President Riek Machar, and has since killed tens of thousands and exposed millions to malnutrition. Peace talks and agreements between the leaders have previously failed.Windows May Soon be Able to Generate Power for Skyscrapers
Skyscrapers could soon generate their own power, thanks to the development of see-through solar cells. New solar panel technologies could absorb unwanted UV or infrared light radiation that normally leak through glass delivering unwanted heat. As the technology allows transparent materials to absorb energy more efficiently, it raises the possibility of a large office building powering itself. Michael McGehee, a solar windows expert at Stanford University says not to count on the technology just yet. Containing the toxic materials of solar cells and long-term durability of the glass are still hurdles.Additional reporting by Harry Willis, Angus Coker Grant and Henry Porter.
LOCAL NEWS
A korowai worth over $10,000 has been stolen from a Wellington's Kura art gallery. The flax cloak is taonga and was handwoven by renowned weaver Garry Grace. The theft took place during the preparation for a Matariki exhibition, in an area where security cameras were not working. Since the theft, there have been sightings of a Māori man trying to sell the korowai outside of a Burger King. Curator Hannah Amu says the thief is preying on important tikanga, and is unlikely to be able to sell the korowai.Auckland’s New Ten-Year Plan
Auckland Council has officially signed off on a ten-year plan of transport investment, ahead of Sunday's fuel tax introduction. This will be the largest ever investment for Auckland of $12 billion, of which the regional fuel tax will cover $4.3b. Mayor of Auckland Phil Goff says the $4.3b will help to make critical transport decisions to tackle Auckland's unprecedented population growth. Other investments in the plan include $450m for the city's stormwater infrastructure, and a $311m fund for protecting the environment, including fighting kauri dieback.
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An event celebrating Aotearoa's indigenous literary and theatrical talents is coming to Auckland. Upu Mai Whetū will showcase poems covering a variety of topics through the lens of Māori and Pasifika poets and actors. Director, Fasitua Amosa, says the lack of indigenous voices in the mainstream can result in different perspectives being lost. “It's so easy to get just a palangi point of view on everything that it just becomes the only way you can think or you think is the right way to think.” Amosa adds he hopes the event will encourage Māori and Pasifika youth to reconnect with their culture.Kiwifruit Growers Waiting on Payout Decision
Kiwifruit growers may receive a government payout due to the bacterial vine disease PSA. The lawyers of the growers claim the disease came through Chinese pollen, approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The outbreak has cost the industry an estimated $9m since 2010. The Crown argues the Ministry is immune from responsibility for any biosecurity violations and that a compensation scheme of $25m will cover the damages. The court verdict will be reached later today.Parental Leave to be Extended
Paid parental leave will be extended by four weeks this Sunday as part of the government's families package. Parents who have been working for the last six months will receive 22 weeks paid leave from Sunday, up from 18 weeks, in a move preempting the goal of 26 weeks in July 2020. Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, Iain Lees-Galloway told 95bFM the leave is transferable between parents, and “any amount of the leave can be transferred to another partner”. Lees-Galloway also says the increase is part of a package that will work with the Best Start scheme and Working for Families payments that aim to help reduce child poverty in NZ. He says international evidence indicates New Zealand is offering the minimum amount of time for parents to bond with their children.
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Police in the Philippines have arrested more than 10,000 people in two weeks, after President Duterte ordered a fresh round up of 'idlers' caught for loitering in the streets. Of those arrested in Manila, many are women and children. While Philippine law prohibits jailing minors, in the absence of separate detention facilities, they usually end up in adult jail cells. In slum areas, many people are staying outdoors due to cramped and poorly ventilated housing in the country's tropical climate, but have become associated with street crime. Human Rights Watch deputy Asia director Phelim Kin says the police are “using a 'crime prevention' campaign that essentially jails low-income Filipinos for being in public".Trump and Putin to Meet
US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will hold a summit in Helsinki, Finland next month. The trip to the Finnish capital will follow a NATO summit in Belgium, and a UK visit where Trump will also meet with British PM Theresa May. The White House and Kremlin are reporting that a range of security issues will be discussed when the presidents meet, only their third time doing so on 16th July.EU Summit Underway
Migration issues are taking centre stage ahead of a European Leaders summit intended to discuss Brexit. German Chancellor Angela Merkel addressed her German government urging them to back a humane but tough asylum policy ahead of today's European Council Summit in Brussels. French President Emmanuel Macron is echoing Merkel's solution where EU states agree to support each other and not leave specific nations to deal with asylum seekers. Merkel is advising against nations acting unilaterally on immigration, such as Hungary who last week passed a law that criminalises helping undocumented immigrants. On the other hand, European Council President Donald Tusk says a failure to ensure full control of Europe's external borders risks strengthening the hand of newly emerging populist political movements, and Europe must be ready to prepare for worst-case scenarios.Cease-fire Signed in South Sudan
South Sudan's civil war has reached a cease-fire, allowing further humanitarian aid and an eventual establishment of a transitional government. The signing of the cease-fire lets members of Intergovernmental Authority on Development and the African Union oversee the unity government which will form in the next four months, and govern for the following three years. Rebel group spokesperson Garang Mabior says the rebels remain "cautiously optimistic". The civil war sparked in 2013 between President Salva Kiir and Vice President Riek Machar, and has since killed tens of thousands and exposed millions to malnutrition. Peace talks and agreements between the leaders have previously failed.Windows May Soon be Able to Generate Power for Skyscrapers
Skyscrapers could soon generate their own power, thanks to the development of see-through solar cells. New solar panel technologies could absorb unwanted UV or infrared light radiation that normally leak through glass delivering unwanted heat. As the technology allows transparent materials to absorb energy more efficiently, it raises the possibility of a large office building powering itself. Michael McGehee, a solar windows expert at Stanford University says not to count on the technology just yet. Containing the toxic materials of solar cells and long-term durability of the glass are still hurdles.Additional reporting by Harry Willis, Angus Coker Grant and Henry Porter.