Latest news with #Protesters
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Bezos wedding protesters demand the billionaire ‘get out of our lagoon'
After Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez tied the knot in Venice on Friday, a few hundred protesters gathered Saturday at a city train station for a march, united with one message for the Amazon billionaire and his bride: go away. 'Bezos, f**k off,' they chanted in Italian. 'Out of our lagoon!' One bearded man toted a Shrek-themed placard with the same message: 'Get Out of Our Lagoon,' the 'a' in lagoon sprouting Shrek ears, with a Spotify link below for the theme song from the first movie in the series, Smash Mouth's 'All Star.' 'Bezos goes hand-in-hand with (US President Donald) Trump, who's fueling more money in war,' one woman bellowed into a microphone by the station. 'We are for peace.' '(Bezos) has such a lot of power,' Austrian protester Hans Peter Martin told CNN. 'And now he's abusing this city as a place to show off. So, he's not welcome here.' Sofia D'Amato, a 22-year-old Venetian, emphasized that the protests weren't about envy for Bezos' wealth or power. 'We are not jealous of the fact that he earns so much money, that he is one of the most powerful men in the world,' D'Amato told CNN. 'We are jealous when his wealth hits us in the face.' Venice's Ministry of Tourism says the three-day wedding, which reportedly cost $55 million, could provide a boost of almost 68% of the city's annual tourism turnover. On top of that, Sanchez and Bezos gave 1 million euros each to three Venetian cultural institutions, according to Reuters; a total of 3 million euros worth of donations. Their philanthropy left D'Amato unimpressed. 'They say that Jeff Bezos donated money to Venice,' D'Amato said. 'It was donated after our dissent. Such a sum for a magnate is paltry.' Protesters drew a stark contrast between the decadence of Bezos and Sanchez's wedding the day before and the harsh realities of working at the billionaire's company. 'We can barely pay the rent,' one woman, who identified herself as an Amazon worker, told a crowd of demonstrators. 'Many of us come from far away to reach the warehouse. We make do … we don't see these millions.' Some protesters joined in an old leftist chant as the demonstration moved toward the Ponte delle Guglie: 'The people united will never be defeated.' At least one protester took aim at the couple's fashion sense with a sign declaring that 'Money Can't Buy Style.' Many held aloft Amazon boxes with various messages inscribed: 'Rejected,' 'No Space for Bezos.' Multiple flags were visible among the protesters: Palestinian flags, pride flags, anti-fascist flags and Venice's fimbriated red standard were among the popular choices. A few individuals waved a modified version, the sword-bearing golden lion at its hoist wearing a black balaclava. Venice city officials were unamused by the protesters, denouncing them in a press release as 'ridiculous' and 'grotesque.' 'Contesting a wedding (any wedding) is already ridiculous in itself. But here we have exceeded all limits of common sense,' read a municipal statement released Saturday. 'We have descended into the folklore of 'No to everything.''
NHK
13 hours ago
- Politics
- NHK
Protesters rally in Bangkok, demanding resignation of prime minister
A massive rally was held in Thailand to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra. Local media report about 17,000 protesters, including conservative supporters, joined the rally in Bangkok on Saturday. The demonstration was triggered by a leaked telephone conversation on June 15 between the prime minister and former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who is currently Senate President. In the recording, Paetongtarn reportedly made negative remarks about a Thai army regional commander. A territorial dispute between Thailand and neighboring Cambodia has been escalating since May. Public dissatisfaction over the prime minister's handling of the conflict exploded after the leaked audio. Some protesters said the prime minister is too weak on Cambodia. They chanted, demanding that the prime minister leave office. On June 19, the second-largest ruling party pulled itself out of the ruling coalition in protest. The following day, a group of Senators submitted formal letters to the Constitutional Court, requesting the removal of the prime minister from office. Paetongtarn has not given into the demands.
CNN
19 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
After the Bezos wedding, protesters demand the billionaire ‘get out of our lagoon'
After Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez tied the knot in Venice on Friday, a few hundred protesters gathered Saturday at a city train station for a march, united with one message for the Amazon billionaire and his bride: go away. 'Bezos, f**k off,' they chanted in Italian. 'Out of our lagoon!' One bearded man toted a Shrek-themed placard with the same message: 'Get Out of Our Lagoon,' the 'a' in lagoon sprouting Shrek ears, with a Spotify link below for the theme song from the first movie in the series, Smash Mouth's 'All Star.' 'Bezos goes hand-in-hand with (US President Donald) Trump, who's fueling more money in war,' one woman bellowed into a microphone by the station. 'We are for peace.' '(Bezos) has such a lot of power,' Austrian protester Hans Peter Martin told CNN. 'And now he's abusing this city as a place to show off. So, he's not welcome here.' Sofia D'Amato, a 22-year-old Venetian, emphasized that the protests weren't about envy for Bezos' wealth or power. 'We are not jealous of the fact that he earns so much money, that he is one of the most powerful men in the world,' D'Amato told CNN. 'We are jealous when his wealth hits us in the face.' Venice's Ministry of Tourism says the three-day wedding, which reportedly cost $55 million, could provide a boost of almost 68% of the city's annual tourism turnover. On top of that, Sanchez and Bezos gave 1 million euros each to three Venetian cultural institutions, according to Reuters; a total of 3 million euros worth of donations. Their philanthropy left D'Amato unimpressed. 'They say that Jeff Bezos donated money to Venice,' D'Amato said. 'It was donated after our dissent. Such a sum for a magnate is paltry.' Protesters drew a stark contrast between the decadence of Bezos and Sanchez's wedding the day before and the harsh realities of working at the billionaire's company. 'We can barely pay the rent,' one woman, who identified herself as an Amazon worker, told a crowd of demonstrators. 'Many of us come from far away to reach the warehouse. We make do … we don't see these millions.' Some protesters joined in an old leftist chant as the demonstration moved toward the Ponte delle Guglie: 'The people united will never be defeated.' At least one protester took aim at the couple's fashion sense with a sign declaring that 'Money Can't Buy Style.' Many held aloft Amazon boxes with various messages inscribed: 'Rejected,' 'No Space for Bezos.' Multiple flags were visible among the protesters: Palestinian flags, pride flags, anti-fascist flags and Venice's fimbriated red standard were among the popular choices. A few individuals waved a modified version, the sword-bearing golden lion at its hoist wearing a black balaclava. Venice city officials were unamused by the protesters, denouncing them in a press release as 'ridiculous' and 'grotesque.' 'Contesting a wedding (any wedding) is already ridiculous in itself. But here we have exceeded all limits of common sense,' read a municipal statement released Saturday. 'We have descended into the folklore of 'No to everything.''
Washington Post
a day ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Around 100,000 march in Budapest Pride in defiance of Hungary's ban
BUDAPEST, Hungary — Around 100,000 people defied a government ban and police orders on Saturday to march in what organizers called the largest LGBTQ+ Pride event in Hungary's history in an open rebuke of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's government. Marchers gambled with potential police intervention and heavy fines to participate in the 30th annual Budapest Pride, which was outlawed by a law passed in March by Orbán's right-wing populist governing party. The march began at Budapest City hall and wound through the city center before crossing the capital's Erzsébet Bridge over the Danube River. Police diverted the crowd from its planned route to keep it separated from a small group of far-right counterprotesters, while members of Hungary's LGBTQ+ community and large numbers of supporters danced to music and waved rainbow and anti-government flags. The massive size of the march, which the government for months had insisted would no longer be permitted in Hungary, was seen as a major blow to Orbán's prestige, as the European Union's longest-serving leader's popularity slumps in the polls where a new opposition force has taken the lead. Some participants said that the march wasn't only about defending the fundamental rights of sexual minorities, but also addressed what they see as an accelerating crackdown on democratic processes under Orbán's rule. Orbán and his party have insisted that Pride, a celebration of LGBTQ+ visibility and struggle for equal rights, was a violation of children's rights to moral and spiritual development — rights that a recent constitutional amendment declared took precedence over other fundamental rights, including that to peacefully assemble. The law fast-tracked through parliament in March made it an offense to hold or attend events that 'depict or promote' homosexuality to minors under age 18. Orbán earlier made clear that Budapest Pride was the explicit target of the law. Authorities installed additional cameras throughout the city center before the march, and were expected to use facial recognition tools to identify individuals who attend the banned event. According to the new law, being caught attending Pride could result in fines of up to 200,000 Hungarian forints ($586). The ban was the latest crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights by Orbán's government, which has already effectively banned both same-sex adoption and same-sex marriage and disallowed transgender individuals from changing their sex in official documents. Police rejected several requests by organizers in recent weeks to register the Pride march, citing the recent law . But Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony joined with organizers and declared it would be held as a separate municipal event — something he said that doesn't require police approval. But Hungary's government has remained firm, insisting that holding the Pride march, even if it's sponsored by the city, would be unlawful. Hungary's justice minister this week warned Karácsony that organizing Pride or encouraging people to attend would be punishable by up to a year in prison. More than 70 members of the European Parliament, as well as other officials from countries around Europe, participated in Saturday's march. Hadja Lahbib, the EU's commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management, earlier said that 'all eyes are on Budapest' as Pride marchers defy the government's ban.
The Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Around 100,000 march in Budapest Pride in defiance of Hungary's ban
Around 100,000 people defied a government ban and police orders on Saturday to march in what organizers called the largest LGBTQ+ Pride event in Hungary's history in an open rebuke of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán 's government. Marchers gambled with potential police intervention and heavy fines to participate in the 30th annual Budapest Pride, which was outlawed by a law passed in March by Orbán's right-wing populist governing party. The march began at Budapest City hall and wound through the city center before crossing the capital's Erzsébet Bridge over the Danube River. Police diverted the crowd from its planned route to keep it separated from a small group of far-right counterprotesters, while members of Hungary's LGBTQ+ community and large numbers of supporters danced to music and waved rainbow and anti-government flags. The massive size of the march, which the government for months had insisted would no longer be permitted in Hungary, was seen as a major blow to Orbán's prestige, as the European Union's longest-serving leader's popularity slumps in the polls where a new opposition force has taken the lead. Some participants said that the march wasn't only about defending the fundamental rights of sexual minorities, but also addressed what they see as an accelerating crackdown on democratic processes under Orbán's rule. Orbán and his party have insisted that Pride, a celebration of LGBTQ+ visibility and struggle for equal rights, was a violation of children's rights to moral and spiritual development — rights that a recent constitutional amendment declared took precedence over other fundamental rights, including that to peacefully assemble. The law fast-tracked through parliament in March made it an offense to hold or attend events that 'depict or promote' homosexuality to minors under age 18. Orbán earlier made clear that Budapest Pride was the explicit target of the law. Authorities installed additional cameras throughout the city center before the march, and were expected to use facial recognition tools to identify individuals who attend the banned event. According to the new law, being caught attending Pride could result in fines of up to 200,000 Hungarian forints ($586). The ban was the latest crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights by Orbán's government, which has already effectively banned both same-sex adoption and same-sex marriage and disallowed transgender individuals from changing their sex in official documents. Police rejected several requests by organizers in recent weeks to register the Pride march, citing the recent law. But Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony joined with organizers and declared it would be held as a separate municipal event — something he said that doesn't require police approval. But Hungary's government has remained firm, insisting that holding the Pride march, even if it's sponsored by the city, would be unlawful. Hungary's justice minister this week warned Karácsony that organizing Pride or encouraging people to attend would be punishable by up to a year in prison. More than 70 members of the European Parliament, as well as other officials from countries around Europe, participated in Saturday's march. Hadja Lahbib, the EU's commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management, earlier said that 'all eyes are on Budapest' as Pride marchers defy the government's ban.
