海角大神

Israel鈥檚 leaders promised to improve citizens鈥� safety. Yet amid recent deadly violence, security policies haven鈥檛 changed, and inflammatory rhetoric threatening even harsher measures keeps the peril of an even worse explosion in plain sight.

The announced return of U.S. military forces to the Philippines comes at a time of rising U.S.-China tensions.聽A key question is whether this will escalate the rivalry or send signals that reduce the chances of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.

The world gets transfixed by the issue of the moment, like earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, and then moves on. True commitment shows itself over months or more. Myanmar is an example of failure, Ukraine a model for success.

A court case to determine the rightful leader of the Dawoodi Bohra community is highlighting the oft-ignored issue of female genital mutilation in India. For many Bohra women, issues of freedom and safety are on the line.

The pandemic offered more time to reflect on the spaces we inhabit. With her latest album, Black Belt Eagle Scout celebrates how her own perspective on a familiar place changed.聽

More than two weeks after a New York-based financial research firm accused one of India鈥檚 largest business conglomerates of 鈥渁 brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades,鈥� the country鈥檚 major stock exchanges are still seeking balance.聽

Markets, like horses, scare easily. They need distance to assess what made them bolt. India鈥檚 financial regulators have opened at least one new probe into the allegations against the Adani Group, a large-scale infrastructure developer with close ties to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The group shed roughly $120 billion 鈥� half its value 鈥� after the report went public on Jan. 24.

But what is already apparent is that the claims against Adani have sent a fresh impulse of integrity through India鈥檚 public institutions and civil society. 鈥淭he lesson for everyone is that we should believe in top class governance and we should open our books and records to everyone in the world,鈥� Amitabh Kant, Mr. Modi鈥檚 chief representative to the G-20 group of nations, told Bloomberg.

The two-year forensic study of Adani鈥檚 practices by Hindenburg Research comes at a time when international investors regard India, now the world鈥檚 most populous country, as a promising alternative to China for its business environment. The report鈥檚 conclusions raise new concerns about Mr. Modi鈥檚 economic model, which has consolidated lucrative public contracts in a small group of wealthy developers at the expense of local competition and foreign investment.

Those practices may be one reason why public perceptions of corruption are so high in India. The latest Transparency International index, released last month, shows that 89% of Indians say government corruption is a big problem.

The Adani Group and Mr. Modi vehemently deny the claims, and Mr. Modi鈥檚 party adjourned Parliament three days in a row amid opposition demands to debate the report. But India鈥檚 most important financial institutions have been less dismissive. The heads of the Securities and Exchange Board of India and the Reserve Bank of India have reiterated their commitment to public integrity. Two local stock exchanges have put three Adani Group companies under trading surveillance. The Supreme Court is expected to hear two 鈥減ublic interest litigations鈥� on the report.

The ripples have spread offshore. Norway鈥檚 sovereign fund announced it was disinvesting from the Adani Group. The global stock index MSCI, meanwhile, said today it was reevaluating the proportion of Adani Group stocks open to international investors in public markets.

In its most recent assessment of India as a destination for foreign investment, the U.S. State Department noted that 鈥淚ndian-specific standards not aligned with international standards [have] effectively ... restricted the expansion in bilateral trade and investment.鈥� The scrutiny of the Adani Group casts uncertainty over a broad range of critical infrastructure projects in India.

Yet by casting a light on public integrity, it already had a salutary effect. As Mr. Kant noted in an opinion essay on Feb. 5, 鈥淕ood governance ... is about empowering people with the tools that will enable them to grow individually and as a community. This requires a capacious and humane public administration.鈥�