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The Intelligence from The Economist

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May 31, 2021 • 22min

From the head down: rot in South Africa

Jacob Zuma, a former president, at last answers to decades-old corruption allegations. But graft still permeates his ANC party and government at every level. The pandemic’s hit to parents—particularly women—is becoming clear, from mental-health matters to career progression to progress toward gender equality. And the super-slippery surface that ensures you get the most from your toothpaste tube.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 28, 2021 • 20min

Caught in the activists: oil majors’ shake-ups

Activist investors installed green-minded board members at ExxonMobil; Chevron’s shareholders pushed a carbon-cutting plan; a Dutch court ruled Shell must cut emissions. We examine a tumultuous week for the supermajors. After years of scant attention, Scotland’s drug-death problem is at last being acknowledged and tackled. And the Peruvian pop star boosting the fortunes of a long-derided indigenous language.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 27, 2021 • 21min

On the origins and the specious: the SARS-CoV-2 lab-leak theory

The suggestion that the virus first emerged from a Chinese laboratory has proved stubbornly persistent; as calls mount for more investigation, it has become a potent epidemiological and political idea. Latin America’s strict lockdowns have had the expected calamitous economic effects. We look at the region’s prospects for recovery. And the tricky business of artificially inseminating a shark.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 26, 2021 • 22min

From out of thin air: Belarus dissidents' fates

The regime got its quarry—a widely read, dissident blogger and his girlfriend—but faces international condemnation for its piratical means. How to pressure what is increasingly a pariah state? Our correspondent in the Democratic Republic of Congo surveys the damage from a sudden volcanic eruption; another could come at any time. And why more music-copyright disputes are ending up in court.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 25, 2021 • 20min

To protect and serve: police reform one year after George Floyd

Protests have followed police killings in America with saddening regularity, but the scope of demonstrations following George Floyd’s murder may mark a turning point in how policing is monitored and regulated. We speak to Lee Merritt, an attorney for Mr Floyd’s family, and to our United States editor—asking how likely cultural and structural changes are to take hold. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 24, 2021 • 21min

From a tax to attacks: Colombia’s unrelenting unrest

Protests that began last month show no sign of abating; our correspondent speaks with Iván Duque, the country’s increasingly beleaguered president. Revelations about a blockbuster 1995 interview with Princess Diana cast a shadow over the BBC—when it already has plenty of fires to fight. And why it’s so hard to find an address in Costa Rica: there aren’t any. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 21, 2021 • 24min

The dust settles: ceasefire in Gaza

After 11 days of fierce fighting, Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire beginning in the early hours of Friday morning. But will the quiet last? In July, China’s Communist Party will celebrate its centenary. But that requires airbrushing much of its history. And, we look back at the life of Asfaw Yemiru, an Ethiopian educator who transformed the lives of more than 120,000 children. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 20, 2021 • 19min

Game on: the Tokyo Olympics

The Tokyo Olympics are due to begin in just over two months. But with coronavirus cases climbing in recent months, 80% of Japanese people want the games to be cancelled. The navigation signals sent by satellites like America’s GPS constellation are surprisingly weak. What happens when they’re jammed—or tricked? And in America cicadas have emerged from their underground redoubts for the first time in 17 years, for a frenzied few weeks of mating. How do you study a species that emerges fewer than six times in a century? For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 19, 2021 • 21min

Populists poised: Italian politics

Italy’s prime minister, Mario Draghi, has been cheered by the markets since taking on the job in February. But a coalition of right-wing populists are waiting in the wings should he falter. Mexico’s army hasn’t ruled the country since the 1940s. But the generals are now running everything from building sites to the border. And even during a pandemic, British medical students are struggling to get their hands on suitable corpses.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer
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May 18, 2021 • 22min

Hot air: emissions reduction

The International Energy Agency has published a report explaining what needs to happen if the world is to get to net zero emissions by 2050. It points to a transition away from fossil fuels on an epic scale. Today Somaliland celebrates its 30th anniversary. It has been a quiet success story in a sea of instability. But what it craves is international recognition as a state. And soaring share prices are normally cause for cheer—unless your computers can’t keep up. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer

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