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Occasional Digest, London (2025)

08/07/2025

Tuesday 8 July National Culture and Senior Citizens Day in Kiribati
The elders in Kiribati are an important part of society. Elder men are called Unimwane, and elder women are called Unaine.

Rather than the more familiar high chief structure, many of the islands were ruled by councils of Unimwane who met in Mwaneaba (meeting houses) to discuss and address all kinds of social, economic and political issues. The decisions made by the Unimwane are believed to be the best because they are made after careful deliberation by the oldest, wisest and most experienced members of the community.

Even though many decisions are now made by the courts and government of the country, the Unimwane association still plays an important role as a sounding board for many decisions.

Kiribati used to observe Unimwane on July 15th, followed a day later by Unaine Day.

Kiribati is the only country in the world to fall into all four hemispheres (northern, southern, eastern, and western).

https://bit.ly/4lg8f8u

07/07/2025

Monday 7 July Caricom Day in Guyana
The day marks the signing of the Treaty of Chaguaramas on this day on July 4th 1973. The Founding Fathers who signed the Treaty on that date were: Prime Ministers Errol Barrow of Barbados, Forbes Burnham of Guyana, Michael Manley of Jamaica, and Eric Williams of Trinidad and Tobago.

The treaty established the Caribbean Community and Common Market, which would go on to become Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

Caricom is a grouping of twenty countries: fifteen Member States and five Associate Members. It is home to approximately sixteen million citizens, 60% of whom are under the age of 30, and from the main ethnic groups of Indigenous Peoples, Africans, Indians, Europeans, Chinese, Portuguese and Javanese.

The Community is multi-lingual; with English as the major language complemented by French and Dutch and variations of these, as well as African and Asian expressions.

Stretching from The Bahamas in the north to Suriname and Guyana in South America, CARICOM comprises states that are considered developing countries, and except for Belize, in Central America and Guyana and Suriname in South America, all Members and Associate Members are island states.

https://bit.ly/4lARqEZ

06/07/2025

Man concerned to learn girlfriend has friends
A MAN in a new relationship was concerned to learn that his girlfriend has friends and an active social life.

Tom has been dating Jo, not their real names, for a month but has only just realised that her vague mentions of ‘friends’ are actually real people he is expected to meet.

He said: “Oh, what? Not again. This is exactly what happened with the last two.

“I want a girlfriend, not a whole bunch of other people to have to meet up and drink with and pretend to be interested in even though they clearly prefer Jo’s company to mine.

“Honestly I’ve no objection to her having them in theory but they’re getting in the way of us spending time together, like when I texted ‘U up?’ at 11pm on Monday and she was with her mate ‘Hayley’, whoever that is.

“I haven’t invited her to five-a-side with the lads, so why would she think I needed to know about all her personal life? What’s next?”

Logan added: “She’s said her brother’s coming over Saturday and we could go for a drink if I wanted. I’ve texted back ‘I think this is getting too complicated.’”
https://bit.ly/4kqMaD5

06/07/2025

Sunday 6 July National Day in Comoros
Comoros is a series of three islands (Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli) located in the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of Africa.

The islands first encountered Europeans when Portuguese explorers at the start of the 16th century, though it was France who established colonial rule on Mayotte (the westernmost of the islands) in 1841 when a local king ceded the island to France. Political infighting amongst the Islanders meant that resistance to the French appropriation was limited and by 1908 France had unified the islands under one administration.

In 1912 the islands became part of the colony of Madagascar. Madagascar gained its independence from France in 1960, with Comoros given autonomy a year later.

Probably the most famous rediscovered animal ever is the coelacanth fish. This creature was thought to have been extinct for 60 million years until it was found at the start of the 20th century in Comoros.

After an agreement was reached with France in 1973, referendums for independence were held on the four main islands, with Mayotte voting against independence from France.

On July 6th 1975, the Comorian parliament of the other three islands passed a unilateral resolution declaring independence, with Ahmed Abdallah becoming the first president.

https://bit.ly/44Cko0t

05/07/2025

Woman sets healthy boundaries of only doing what she wants to
A WOMAN has informed friends she is prioritising her mental wellbeing by setting boundaries of only doing what she enjoys.

Karen, not her real name, and her therapist have concluded that continually acting in ways that are not in accordance with her desires has proven detrimental to her sense of self and is causing her anxiety, so from now on she will not.

She explained: “For example, I didn’t want to go for Thai for Chris’s birthday last week, because lemongrass causes me distress, because I don’t like it.

“But instead of asserting my boundaries and putting myself first I allowed others to ignore my no, failed to express my discomfort and had a pad chaa I didn’t really want. So you can see what a violation that was.

“From now on I’m setting clear boundaries. If it’s a bar, it has to be one I like. If it’s a film it has to be one I fancy. If I want Kirsty to stop moaning about her ex then she needs to. Otherwise I’m falling into a trap of co-dependency and not valuing myself.

“Asking me to justify my boundaries is a violation. Not acknowledging them is disrespect. Joking about them is a manipulation tactic. Anyway, what are we doing this weekend?”

Friend Hannha, not her real name, said: “Does texting cross Charlie’s healthy, necessary boundaries? I can’t remember and can’t text to ask. So I won’t.”
https://bit.ly/4lHhY7O

05/07/2025

Saturday 5 July Constitution Day in Armenia
Having gained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Armenia was still using the old 1978 Soviet constitution.

A new constitution was required. While a first draft was presented in 1992, internal political struggles in Armenia meant that the new constitution was not put to a national referendum until July 5th 1995.

The constitution established Armenia as a democratic, sovereign, social, and constitutional state with Yerevan defined as the state's capital.

Since 1995, the constitution has been amended twice following national referendums in 2005 and 2015.

In 2018, a Velvet Revolution took place in Armenia with a younger generation, headed by Nikol Pashinyan, coming to power. The plan was to change the constitution again. A national referendum was planned for April 2020, though that is now on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since 2017, after an amendment made to the Law on Holidays and Memorial Days, July 5th is also the Day of State Symbols. The state symbols are the flag, the emblem and the anthem.

https://bit.ly/3IdS114

04/07/2025

Phone not left to charge overnight going to be a real prick all day now
A PHONE that was not charged properly now plans to be a real pain in the arse by looking as if it will run out of battery at any moment.

Although office worker Emma, not her real name, plugged her phone in last night she did not turn the charger on at the mains, for which she will hate herself all day.

She said: “How could I have been so stupid? I’ve basically got a day of worrying that my phone will go dead before some momentous news comes through.

“My phone’s always a bastard if it’s not charged properly. It’s almost as if it’s doing it deliberately because it’s pi**ed off, but that’s clearly a ridiculous idea.”

Samsung Galaxy Norman Steele said: “Do you people even begin to understand what it’s like having to listen to your inane conversations and text gibberish with just 11% charge?

“Just charge me properly. No ifs, no buts, just do it or I’ll stop you reading BBC News during a boring bus journey, even though it’s not very interesting and you’re just desperate for something to do.”

Emma added she would only be giving her work about 30 per cent of her attention today due to constant fear that she might be missing important messages.

She said: “I won’t be, obviously. But it’s nice to dream.”
https://bit.ly/4euSmIG

04/07/2025

Friday 4 July Ui Ariki Day in Cook Islands
In December 2011, former government minister Teariki Heather confirmed a new public holiday “Ra o te Ui Ariki”, commemorating the Ariki and the aronga mana of the Cook Islands.

Initially, the holiday was commemorated annually on July 6th - the date that the House of Ariki met for the first time in 1967.

The Cook Islands is a self-governing island country in free association with New Zealand. People inhabited the islands about 1000 years ago, and the first European contact happened in 1595. In 1890, the Cook Islands became aligned to the United Kingdom and became part of British dominions in 1900. The United Kingdom made the islands part of the colony of New Zealand one year after.

In 1965, the islands became a self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand. In the same year, the House of Ariki, a parliamentary body, was suggested, which was built in 1967. The House of Ariki is composed of 24 Cook Islands high chiefs (Ariki). As a result, Ra o te Ui Ariki can be translated as "Day of the high chief council".

The council does not have real legislation powers, and it plays an advisory role to the parliament.

https://bit.ly/44i1A80

03/07/2025

Thursday 3 July Independence Day in Belarus
The independence or national days of most ex-Soviet states takes place on the date that marks that country's independence after the fall of the Soviet Union in the early nineties.

In Belarus, this was the case in 1990 when the Supreme Council of Belarus declared the country to be a sovereign nation free from the USSR on 27 July 1990. This date was celebrated as the Independence Day of Belarus until 1996.

In 1996, Alexander Lukashenko, country's first President oversaw a referendum in which nearly 90% of Belarusians voted to celebrate Independence Day on 3 July. The date was chosen to honour those who fought to free the capital, Minsk from N**i German occupation during the Great Patriotic War (Second World War).

When N**i Germany invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, Belarus was the first to bear the brunt of the attack. On 24 June, Minsk came under massive artillery shelling and air strikes from nearly 150 bombers.

Despite resistance from local fighters, the Germans seized Minsk on 28 June 1941. Not accepting the occupation, the residents began a resistance movement that lasted 1,100 days. The efforts of the citizens helped the armies of the 1st and 3rd Belarusian Fronts with the support of the partisans liberate the Belarusian capital from the invaders on 3 July 1944.

Belarus paid a high price for the freedom; a third of the population was killed during the war.

Independence Day is a tribute to the heroism and endurance of Minskers in their struggle to bring freedom to Belarus.

https://bit.ly/3I8OVLS

02/07/2025

Worker enters seventh year of anger
AN OFFICE worker has been furious with his colleagues, clients and all office equipment for seven years straight, it has emerged.

Systems analyst Wayne, not his real name, has been at the same company for eight years, remaining irritable, impatient and uncommunicative for all of that time.

When not muttering under his breath about the intranet or eating his sandwiches alone in the car park, Hayes is enraged about his portfolio of clients, whom he describes as ‘f**kheads’.

Colleague Nikki, not her real name, said: “I don’t know what would make him happy. Perhaps an apocalyptic event that destroyed everything on earth except him and his Honda Civic?

“If he doesn’t like it here, why doesn’t he leave? Apart from the obvious, which is that it’s hard to get any sort of job and he must work to keep a roof over his head because he was born into the lower echelons of an inherently unfair society.

“Actually I can sort of see where he’s coming from.”

Co-worker Tom, not his real name, said: “It is s**t working here, most of us try to make the best of it but Wayne responds truthfully to his situation like some sweary Buddha. Either that or he’s just a miserable bastard.”
https://bit.ly/4evZV21

02/07/2025

Wednesday 2 July National Anthem and Flag Day in Curaçao
Located in the south Caribbean Sea, Curaçao is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Designed by Martin Den Dulk, the country's flag was adopted on July 2nd 1984,.

The blue symbolizes the sky and sea, and the yellow stripe, the sunshine that bathes the island. The two stars represent the islands Curacao and Klein Curacao.

The words of the original 'Anthem of Curaçao' were written by Friar Radulphus in 1898. Until a new melody was written for it in 1930, the words were sung to the tune of the Dutch National anthem. In 1978 the lyrics were rewritten, as the original lyrics were seen as a bit 'colonial'.

Flag Day is celebrated with official ceremonies and cultural events at Plaza Brion and the Village of Barber.

https://bit.ly/4kpmE0Z

01/07/2025

Tuesday 1 July Sir Seretse Khama Day in Botswana
Seretse Khama was born on July 1st 1921 at Serowe, the Protectorate of Bechuanaland (now Botswana). Seretse Khama was the grandson and heir of King Khama III, who died in 1923. The Bangwato family of which Seretse Khama was the heir were hereditary rulers of the Protectorate. In 1925 Seretse Khama was made King, his uncle acting as regent.

Khama was training as a barrister in London after the Second World War, where he met and married Ruth Williams, a white English commoner. The story of Seretse Khama and Ruth Williams was depicted in the 2016 film, 'A United Kingdom'.

His marriage caused great difficulties for him at home and he was exiled in 1951.

The apartheid government of South Africa put pressure on Britain to remove Khama's chieftainship. A judicial inquiry declared him to be perfectly fit for the job, but this was hushed up to appease the South Africans.

Kahama returned to Bechuanaland in 1956 as a private citizen. Free to enter politics, he formed the Bechuanaland Democratic Party, won the elections and led the way to independence, becoming his country's first President. He remained in the post until his death, aged only 59, in 1980. He created a multiracial democratic society and is considered as one of the great successes of this era of African politics.

His son, Ian Khama, became Botswana's fourth president in 2008, serving for two terms

https://bit.ly/46nGHcK

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