India: Investigating sexual abuse allegations in Kerala’s film industry

From actors to makeup artists, 101 East meets the women alleging sexual abuse in India’s Kerala film industry.

In 2017, a male superstar in India’s Kerala film industry was accused of orchestrating the abduction and assault of an actress.

He denies the charges, but the assault prompted an investigation into widespread misconduct in the field.

She Zhijiang: Discarded Chinese spy or criminal mastermind?

World exclusive: Jailed tycoon She Zhijiang’s explosive allegations about Chinese spies and an international conspiracy.

Wanted in China and sanctioned by the United Kingdom, tycoon She Zhijiang is languishing in a Thai jail.

He’s been linked to scam sites involved in human trafficking and forced labour – but in a world-exclusive interview from behind bars, he tells 101 East he was a Chinese spy.

Now, with Beijing pushing for his extradition, he says his knowledge of state secrets has put a target on his back.

One of those secrets involves the identity of former Filipino mayor Alice Guo, who has been charged with money laundering, human trafficking and corruption in Manila.

How tribal communities are powering India’s Olympic hockey dreams

101 East meets the hockey players from India’s tribal communities who are reviving the country’s love for the sport.

In the remote tribal communities of eastern India, the sport of hockey thrives.

Tribal players excel at the game, helping India reclaim its place as a powerhouse of the sport.

After a four-decade Olympic medal drought, India returned to the podium at the Tokyo Games with the help of players like Amit Rohidas.

That victory reignited hopes that India could again rise to the top of the hockey world.

India’s disappearing mountains

101 East investigates the impact of illegally mining India’s mountains as desperate residents take on powerful miners.

In northern and western India lies an ancient mountain range, the Aravallis, believed to be hundreds of millions of years old.

Stretching across almost 700km (435 miles), the mountains are home to rivers, a diverse range of trees and wildlife, and according to experts, they are the main barrier shielding millions of people from an expanding desert.

The industries profiting off Chinese asylum seekers in the US

101 East investigates alleged human traffickers, scammers and middlemen profiting from the desperation of Chinese asylum seekers in America.

Reaching the United States has long been the dream for would-be migrants travelling across Latin America.

Thousands of Chinese have embarked on the dangerous route this year.

But reaching their final destination is no guarantee that their troubles will be over.

The Chinese migrants risking it all for the American dream

Chinese asylum seekers are entering the US via a dangerous route through Latin America. 101 East investigates.

Traversing Latin America to the United States has become a well-worn path for those seeking new lives.

But now, would-be migrants are coming from further afield – China.

This year, thousands have already made the trip known as “zouxian” or “the route”.

Their goal: asylum in the US.

Inside the US-China battle for silicon chip supremacy

101 East investigates the battle to control the world’s silicon chip industry.

From computers to toasters, smartphones to refrigerators, semiconductors are essential in our daily lives.

Advanced chips power military hardware, artificial intelligence and supercomputers.

But a persistent shortage is reshaping geopolitical relations, fuelling inflation and increasing tensions between the United States and China.

While demand for cutting-edge chips grows, only a few countries have the specialised knowledge and ability to produce them.

Taiwan produces 90 percent of the world’s most advanced chips, making its stability critical to global economic and geopolitical security.

The human cost of France’s nuclear tests in the Pacific

 101 East investigates the effects of France’s nuclear tests in French Polynesia.

For 30 years, France undertook nuclear testing in its Pacific territory, French Polynesia.

In recent years, investigations have revealed the effects of the tests were far greater than France has officially acknowledged.

A total of 193 nuclear tests were undertaken, including 41 atmospheric tests that exposed the local population and site workers to high levels of radiation.

A battle for rights and recognition: India’s female fighters

 

101 East meets the women wrestlers and boxers battling for their rights in and out of the sporting arena in India.

In India, wrestling is generally a man’s world. The practice dates back more than 1,000 years but, traditionally, girls were not allowed to even step onto a wrestling mat.

The hunt for India’s timber trafficking kingpin

 

101 East investigates the rise of India’s alleged kingpin of red sandalwood smuggling and the fight to capture him.

India’s red sandalwood is one of the most expensive timbers in the world. It is also an endangered species.

An international black-market trade in it has decimated valuable forests, with armies of smugglers terrorising local law enforcement.

One man stands accused of being at the top of the trade – Sahul Hameed.

Inside India’s explosive population growth

 

As India becomes the world’s most populous country, 101 East investigates controversial family planning measures designed to curb population growth.

India has surpassed China as the world’s most populous country.

Driven by states like Bihar, the country’s population is forecast to continue growing.

The bullying crisis sweeping across South Korean schools

 

101 East investigates South Korea’s school bullying crisis and meets those fighting for change.

South Korea is undergoing a national reckoning on school bullying.

Studies show that nearly one in three students suffered bullying from peers at school. And there has been an alarming rise in suicides by school-aged children.

Investigating China’s Secret Overseas Stations

 

101 East investigates a global network of secret Chinese ‘police outposts’ and allegations Chinese dissidents are being stalked and harassed in Europe.

In Europe, a Chinese dissident fears for his safety.

He says his life is being destroyed by harassment and threats he believes are linked to a network of unofficial Chinese police outposts – and he says he has evidence to prove it.

Bringing back Asia’s stolen artefacts

 

101 East joins the hunt to bring back Asia’s looted artefacts from museums and private collections across Europe, the US and Australia.

Since the 19th century, thousands of ancient artefacts have been looted from Asian countries, ending up in Western museums and private collections.

Now archaeologists, activists, internet sleuths and lawyers are joining forces to hunt down the priceless stolen artefacts and have them returned home.

Should we mine the Pacific Ocean to power a green energy future?

 Resource companies and island nations are scouring the Pacific Ocean for vast untapped minerals.

Trillions of rocks found on the seabed contain metals that could power electric cars and green energy.

The Rise of North Korea’s Most Powerful Woman

 

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, has an increasingly prominent role in the communist regime and some observers believe she is his natural successor.

The Kim family has transformed the so-called Hermit Kingdom into a dynasty that operates like a royal family.

Kim Yo-jung has a tight bond with her brother and has been entrusted with important diplomatic missions.

As a nuclear state technically still at war with neighbouring South Korea, North Korea is a crucial player in Asian geopolitics.

Australia: World’s Worst Gamblers

 

Australians are the world’s biggest gamblers, losing $25bn a year. And poker machines are their preferred choice of poison.

Despite its relatively small population, the country is home to 20 percent of the world’s “pokies”, as the machines are known locally, with most found in community pubs and clubs.

Gambling causes widespread social destruction, but taking on the vested interests behind an industry that generates billions in profits and taxes has proved extremely difficult.

Indonesia’s Rebel Bikers

Across Indonesia, death-defying motorbike riders are the star attraction at fun fairs known as “pasar malams”.

The performers propel their bikes up the near-vertical walls of the so-called “Devil’s Barrel”, a two-storey high wooden structure.

Stunt riding is a male-dominated world in the conservative Muslim-majority country, but now a group of young women are blazing their own trail.

 

Leaving Afghanistan: Starting over in a new land

 

After the Afghan capital, Kabul, fell to the Taliban in August 2021, there was a mass exodus as civilians fled their homeland.

They are now scattered around the world, from New Zealand to North America.

But what are their new lives like in countries and cultures far from home?

Resurrecting Australia’s Extinct Tasmanian Tiger

 

Australia’s thylacine has been extinct for almost 100 years, but a group of the country’s scientists say they will have it roaming the wilds again in a matter of years.

Having received a $15m funding windfall, they are embarking on a project to bring the so-called Tasmanian tiger back to life and are hoping the technology they develop will also help save endangered species from extinction.