The fall-out from the Harvey Weinstein scandal is prompting a re-examination of nondisclosure agreements in the US amid fresh revelations about how the movie mogul silenced women who accused him of abuse.
Campaigners say the avalanche of allegations emerging against powerful men in Hollywood, journalism and politics show that publicity is a key factor in exposing wrongdoing.
However, Mr Weinstein was able to keep his history of sexual harassment and abuse secret through the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).
One of his victims, Ambra Battilana Gutierrez, an Italian model, told the New Yorker she signed a confidentiality agreement in 2015 before knowing the media mogul had a pattern of sexually harassing and abusing women.
“I didn’t even understand almost what I was doing with all those papers,” she said, discussing her settlement for the first time. “I was really disoriented. My English was very bad. All of the words in that agreement were super difficult to understand.”
Last month The New York Times revealed that Mr Weinstein had been the subject of multiple sexual harassment allegations. He was fired from the company he founded and expelled by the motion picture academy, the body that awards the Oscars.
The wave of publicity brought forth fresh allegations as dozens of other women described similar stories of harassment or assault.
They included Zelda Perkins, who worked as Mr Weinstein's assistant in the London office of Miramax, who broke a nondisclosure agreement she said she signed in 1998.
Kathryn Rubino, a senior editor at Above The Law, a legal industry blog, said it was becoming increasingly clear that the agreements were part of the problem.
“NDAs are a part of the legal landscape. It’s a tool that we are taught to deploy on behalf of our clients and it’s a normal part of the interactions your client might have,” she said.
“What we are learning as a result of the Weinstein scandal is that they are more than just neutral tools, that the culture of silence that they perpetuate can be really detrimental and problematic, particularly when you are dealing with people in an unequal power position.”
Typically, one party agrees to drop legal action in return for a payment and their silence. They are also often included in employment contracts to prevent former members of staff badmouthing their employers.
Lawyers for some of the women involved point out that NDAs can also have benefits for victims who want to remain out of the public eye.
In the case of Ms Perkins, she secured a clause that required Mr Weinstein to receive therapy and Miramax, the company he founded with his brother Bob, to set up a proper complaints procedure.
Nevertheless, his behaviour continued in secret for another 19 years.
As well as NDAs, Mr Weinstein used private intelligence firms to find information that could be used to discredit his accusers, such as Ms Gutierrez. On another occasion in the 1990s, his brother paid a settlement.
Bob Weinstein told The New Yorker: "Regarding that payment, I only know what Harvey told me, and basically what he said was he was fooling around with two women and they were asking for money. And he didn't want his wife to find out, so he asked me if I could write a cheque, and so I did, but there was nothing to indicate any kind of sexual harassment."
The power of publicity was clear once revelations reached the press. The scandal triggered a social media campaign with the hashtag #metoo as millions of women detailed past abuse they suffered.
This week the veteran American journalist Charlie Rose was sacked by CBS News and PBS after several women said he groped them or appeared naked in front of them. He has apologised for his behaviour although he has questioned some accounts.
At the same time it was announced that the head of Disney’s Pixar studio, John Lassiter, would be taking a six-month leave of absence after admitting “missteps” with employees.
The wave of allegations has prompted action in California, where a state senator is planning to introduce legislation to ban confidentiality clauses in such settlements.
“Secret settlements in sexual assault and related cases can jeopardise the public — including other potential victims — and allow perpetrators to escape justice just because they have the money to pay the cost of the settlements,” said Connie Leyva when she unveiled her plan.
Others wonder whether those examples might be better prevented by modifying the terms of NDAs to prevent their use when there is an obvious imbalance of power between abuser and abused. But even that offers no easy answers, said Ms Rubino, of Above the Law.
She said: “What is too much? How much power imbalance would trip that?”
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
The Two Popes
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce
Four out of five stars
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
Ammar 808:
Maghreb United
Sofyann Ben Youssef
Glitterbeat
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
WHAT%20IS%20THE%20LICENSING%20PROCESS%20FOR%20VARA%3F
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Company%C2%A0profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The language of diplomacy in 1853
Treaty of Peace in Perpetuity Agreed Upon by the Chiefs of the Arabian Coast on Behalf of Themselves, Their Heirs and Successors Under the Mediation of the Resident of the Persian Gulf, 1853
(This treaty gave the region the name “Trucial States”.)
We, whose seals are hereunto affixed, Sheikh Sultan bin Suggar, Chief of Rassool-Kheimah, Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon, Chief of Aboo Dhebbee, Sheikh Saeed bin Buyte, Chief of Debay, Sheikh Hamid bin Rashed, Chief of Ejman, Sheikh Abdoola bin Rashed, Chief of Umm-ool-Keiweyn, having experienced for a series of years the benefits and advantages resulting from a maritime truce contracted amongst ourselves under the mediation of the Resident in the Persian Gulf and renewed from time to time up to the present period, and being fully impressed, therefore, with a sense of evil consequence formerly arising, from the prosecution of our feuds at sea, whereby our subjects and dependants were prevented from carrying on the pearl fishery in security, and were exposed to interruption and molestation when passing on their lawful occasions, accordingly, we, as aforesaid have determined, for ourselves, our heirs and successors, to conclude together a lasting and inviolable peace from this time forth in perpetuity.
Taken from Britain and Saudi Arabia, 1925-1939: the Imperial Oasis, by Clive Leatherdale
Company profile
Name: Dukkantek
Started: January 2021
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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Essentials
The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.
Copa del Rey
Barcelona v Real Madrid
Semi-final, first leg
Wednesday (midnight UAE)
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65
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LUKA CHUPPI
Director: Laxman Utekar
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Cinema
Cast: Kartik Aaryan, Kriti Sanon, Pankaj Tripathi, Vinay Pathak, Aparshakti Khurana
Rating: 3/5
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
Naga
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Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
Jawan
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'The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey'
Rating: 3/5
Directors: Ramin Bahrani, Debbie Allen, Hanelle Culpepper, Guillermo Navarro
Writers: Walter Mosley
Stars: Samuel L Jackson, Dominique Fishback, Walton Goggins
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Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
The figures behind the event
1) More than 300 in-house cleaning crew
2) 165 staff assigned to sanitise public areas throughout the show
3) 1,000 social distancing stickers
4) 809 hand sanitiser dispensers placed throughout the venue
Australia squads
ODI: Tim Paine (capt), Aaron Finch (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.
T20: Aaron Finch (capt), Alex Carey (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Travis Head, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Andrew Tye, Jack Wildermuth.
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WORLD CUP SEMI-FINALS
England v New Zealand (Saturday, 12pm)
Wales v South Africa (Sunday, 1pm)
