How Meghan Markle’s Life Will Change After Marriage to Prince Harry — a Royal Expert Reveals

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle during an official photo call to announce their engagement at The Sunken Gardens at Kensington Palace in London on November 27, 2017

Becoming royal. Will & Harry biographer and royal expert Ingrid Seward spoke to Us Weekly about how Meghan Markle‘s life will change after she marries Prince Harry.

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“She has joined the family firm and her every move will be dissected and analyzed and she will never be out of the limelight,” Seward told Us. “She has now become public property — not just in the UK — but globally. Nothing she has ever done will prepare her for this. It will be more intense than any celebrity has ever experienced. She is now public property. She has sacrificed her freedom and private life.”

The My Husband & I author continued, “There is no ‘training’ process as such,” for Markle to become a royal. “What Meghan will have to do is learn the British way of life and customs, which she has already started to do. She is basically learning a part and she will do it well.”

 

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Seward also revealed the type of perks that Markle can expect after she walks down the aisle and marries into one of the richest families in Europe.

“She will lead a life of immense privilege,” Seward said. “But it is regimented, and she will sacrifice her freedom for luxury and her silence. No accepting of free gifts, but every designer in the world will be clamoring to dress her. Great hairdressing! Great cars, private planes, cold houses and cold champagne, no financial worries and the best medical and health care, for starters.”

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As previously reported, palace officials announced last month that Harry and the Suits actress will wed at Windsor Castle’s St. George’s Chapel in May 2018. The pair, who met in July 2016 and confirmed their relationship that November, appear to be very in love, even holding hands during their engagement photo call and first royal appearance together — something that his brother, Prince William, didn’t do with Kate Middleton when they made their first post-engagement appearance together.

“There is no protocol which says you can hold hands or not,” Seward explained. “They can do what they want and just happen to be modern, and as Harry has often said he wants the monarchy to be more tactile and modern.”

Seward added that Harry and his bride-to-be will continue to live at Nottingham Cottage after their upcoming nuptials.

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“Nottingham Cottage already has plenty of pictures from the royal collection as do all the private royal homes,” Seward told Us about Harry and Markle’s home, which was previously occupied by William and Kate

Sheryl Sandberg: Facebook exec speaks truth about power and sexual harassment

Sheryl Sandberg is right about the need to redress the power imbalance as one part of the remedy for sexual harassment

“It’s the power, stupid.”

That’s Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg synthesizing for the masses — via Facebook, naturally — her take on the seemingly ceaseless revelations of sexual harassment and sexual assault.

Maybe Sandberg has hit on something. Maybe it’s time to battle the imbalance of corporate power with political campaign-style tactics. Maybe a slogan should be part of the strategy.

It worked well enough for Bill Clinton in the ’92 election. Campaign strategist James Carville’s sound bite — “It’s the economy, stupid” — was shorthand for inequality in America and proved effective in focusing the mind of the electorate. We remember what a big win it was for Clinton.

We also recall the Carville slogan was a deft way to deflect the chilling evidence around the candidate’s own relations with women.

So let’s not go there.

But Sandberg is to be commended for taking to Facebook Sunday, laying down her thoughts and prescriptions for urgently addressing a behavioural crisis. “We need systemic, lasting changes that deter bad behaviour and protect everyone, from professionals climbing the corporate ladder to workers in low-paid positions who often have little power,” she wrote. “We need to end the abuse of power imbalances due to gender — and race and ethnicity, too. We must not lose this opportunity.”

The COO was bound to come in for criticism given her privileged perch as a member of the corporate elite. (“Stop pretending you are a regular person!” read one response to her post. “Shut up!”) But she makes herself relatable by recounting her own journey. “Like almost every woman — and some men — I know, I have experienced sexual harassment in the form of unwanted sexual advances in the course of doing my job. A hand on my leg under the table at a meeting. Married men — all decades older than I — offering ‘career advice’ and then suggesting they could share it with me alone late at night. The conference where a man I declined leaving a dinner with came to my hotel room late at night and banged on my door until I called security.”

Here’s the power piece: “I didn’t work for any of these men. But in every single one of these situations, they had more power than I did. That’s not a coincidence. It’s why they felt free to cross that line.”

Fighting back has cost women careers and opportunities. Stories of this type mount daily. In the wake of these revelations, Susan Fowler’s experience sounds less and less astounding.

You may recall that Fowler was the Uber engineer who wrote of her experiences at the frat-boy ride-hailing company in her blog. Day One on the job Fowler received a string of chat messages from her boss, explaining that he was in an open relationship. Fowler wrote: “He was trying to stay out of trouble at work, he said, but he couldn’t help getting in trouble, because he was looking for women to have sex with.”

Fowler reported her boss’s behaviour to human resources. “I was told by both HR and upper management that even though this was clearly sexual harassment and he was propositioning me, it was this man’s first offence, and that they wouldn’t feel comfortable giving him anything other than a warning and a stern talking to.” Upper management made a point of telling Fowler that her boss was “a high performer” — the standard response when protecting misbehaving corporate stars.

That “first offence” defence was a lie, as it turned out. Other women subjected to the same come-on from the same manager were told the same thing.

Sandberg is right when she says we have arrived at a critical moment. “Sexual harassment has been tolerated for far too long in the halls of government and companies large and small,” she writes.

The remedies? Sandberg has a set list, including clearly stated policies and principles; a commitment to treat all claims seriously, urgently and with respect; a process that is fairly and consistently applied for victims and the accused; reinforcing the importance that all employees have a role to play in keeping the workplace safe.

Directives such as those are only effective if the people at the top make it so. Ultimately, the most important cultural change is one Sandberg has been championing for years: having more women with more power.

“It wouldn’t solve all the problems we face if more women were in power,” she writes. “But one thing’s for certain: many fewer people would be groped and worse while trying to do their jobs. And that would be a major step in the right direction.”

SOCCER: North Korea’s national soccer teams in Japan for tournament as exception to sanctions

North Korea is competing against Japan, China and South Korea in the E-1 Football Championship, which starts Friday.  

Japan has banned North Korean nationals from entering the country as part of its sanctions against Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile tests.

TOKYO—North Korea’s national soccer teams arrived in Tokyo on Tuesday as an exception to Japanese sanctions against Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear development.

North Korea is competing against Japan, China and South Korea in the E-1 Football Championship, which starts Friday.

After a lengthy immigration process at Haneda international airport, the women’s team members, each wearing a matching red coat, were the first ones to be warmly welcomed by pro-Pyongyang ethnic Koreans living in Japan.

The Korean residents cheered and waved Korean flags. About half an hour later, the men’s team appeared in front of them, smiling and waving at the cheering crowd.

The arrival of North Korea’s men’s and women’s teams comes amid growing tension in the region. Pyongyang test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile that landed within Japan’s 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone, which experts said could hit Washington if launched on a standard trajectory. The U.S. and South Korean militaries are holding a major air force exercise.

Japan has banned North Korean nationals from entering the country as part of its sanctions against Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile tests.

China-Canada: Justin Trudeau says he raised human rights, death penalty, in meeting with Chinese premier

Prime minister was under pressure to press China’s leadership on imprisoned Canadians and human rights during his trade-focused trip.

BEIJING—Canada’s push to launch formal trade talks with China did not stop Prime Minister Justin Trudeau from raising a host of human rights concerns with the country’s No. 2 leader, something he said he would do again when he met with the regime’s President Xi Jinping Tuesday night.

Over the course of a bilateral exchange with Premier Li Keqiang and subsequent dinner on Monday, Trudeau said he voiced Canada’s opposition to the death penalty and pressed Li on the importance of gaining access to Canadian citizens who face “difficulty in legal situations.”

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The prime minister has been under pressure from human rights campaigners to push China’s senior-most leaders on the treatment of at least three Canadians who are jailed in the country. His apparent opposition to China’s use of the death penalty comes after Premier Li defended the practice during his visit to Ottawa last year.

Trudeau told reporters at a press conference Tuesday afternoon that his Liberal government in Ottawa can have such discussions with China because of its push for deeper links with the authoritarian state.

“We can have strong and frank discussions about issues that we see differently without endangering the positive relationship we have,” Trudeau said.

“Whenever I meet with world leaders, I bring up the issues of human rights. This is no exception. I brought them up last night — human rights and consular cases with Premier Li — and I will certainly be addressing those issues with President Xi.”

The prime minister later met with Xi at an official guesthouse for a private dinner Tuesday evening. There was no immediate word on what was discussed during the meal, which featured an array of dishes including foie gras-fried steak and abalone with oyster sauce.

Before their meal, the leaders shook hands and spoke briefly in front of reporters.

“I know that, as we look to building a better future for the entire world, the friendship between Canada and China will play an important role in setting the tone and the approach that will characterize the 21st century,” Trudeau told Xi.

During his press conference earlier in the day, Trudeau gave no indication that any of the jailed Canadians were set to be released, as was the case last year with Kevin Garratt, a pastor from British Columbia who was deported from China in early 2016, after spending two years in prison on spying charges.

The prime minister met with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing Monday but the two did not announce the start of formal free trade talks. Justin Trudeau says Canada is looking for “progressive” trade deals. (The Canadian Press)

Of the Canadians known to be in Chinese jails, Huseyin Celil has been imprisoned the longest. The Uighur man from western China was arrested on terrorism charges in 2006 and has been imprisoned ever since.

Sun Qian, a Falun Gong practitioner and Canadian businesswoman, was detained earlier this year, while B.C. wine seller John Chang was charged with smuggling his products into China and has been locked up since early 2016.

Since taking power and trumpeting its intention to improve relations with China, the Trudeau government has made the case that closer ties would make it easier to have “frank” discussions on matters of human rights and consular cases.

Speaking Monday after his meeting with Trudeau, Premier Li said they discussed human rights and the rule of law, and that it was “only natural that we don’t see eye-to-eye” on such issues. He said the countries were entering a “golden era” in their relationship, pursuing economic ties, promoting tourism and striking agreements to work together on climate change and other issues.

“We see tremendous potential in such co-operation,” Li said.

OLG awards man half of $6.1M lottery prize with remainder in legal limbo

An Ontario man who parted ways with his live-in girlfriend after winning the lottery has been awarded half of the disputed $6.1-million Lotto 6/49 prize. But the other half is subject to dispute.

An Ontario man who parted ways with his live-in girlfriend after winning the lottery has been awarded half of the disputed $6.1-million Lotto 6/49 prize.

But the rest of the cash bonanza remains in legal limbo.

As first disclosed by the Star, Maurice Thibeault arrived at the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp.’s Toronto prize centre holding one of the two winning tickets in the Sept. 20 jackpot, worth $12.2 million.

But before the Chatham resident could collect the money, his former girlfriend Denise Robertson, 46, obtained an emergency court injunction and alerted OLG not to hand over the millions.

“OLG has verified that the ticket in question was purchased by Maurice Thibeault and will proceed to pay him one-half (approximately $3.07 million) of the prize on or about Dec. 30, 2017,” the provincial gaming agency said in a statement.

“The other half of the prize, which is in dispute, will be paid into court in 45 days unless the parties resolve the matter privately or choose to take part in the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario’s lottery dispute arbitration process,” OLG said.

“OLG’s prize claim review process is in place to ensure OLG pays the right prize to the right person.”

Robertson’s lawyer, Steven Pickard, said Monday that “barring a settlement, it’s going to end up in court.”

“The only formal process that we have left to us is a statement of claim. Other than something that’s agreed to by the parties, the next step is a statement of claim,” said Pickard.

“She does claim that half of the $6.1 million is hers. She doesn’t dispute his half. It’s our position that what’s being paid to court is entirely hers,” he said.

“They shared everything. She’s adamant and quite confident that she’s entitled to her half. Despite the fact that he’s going to get his half first, she doesn’t think that changes her entitlement.”

Neither Thibeault, 46, nor his lawyer, Richard Dinham, returned repeated messages seeking comment.

Sources close to Robertson have said she asked Thibeault if the ticket, which had the numbers 6, 17, 29, 37, 45 and 47 on it, had won and he responded that it hadn’t.

Her friends say she thought nothing of it until he moved out of her house five days after the draw.

In their two years and one month of living together in her house, with her teenage daughter from a previous marriage, the couple often played the lottery, said a source.

Thibeault bought the ticket at a Chatham convenience store using a debit card linked to his personal bank account.

His friends say while she texted him to ask if he’d bought a ticket, she did not ask him whether their numbers had won.

They also maintain he had been planning for months to end the relationship and the lottery win merely expedited the separation.

The two are not considered common-law spouses as they had not cohabited for the requisite three years and have no children together.

On Sept. 25, Robertson, a federal public servant, arrived home to find Thibeault, a father of three who worked at a granite and glass supply firm, had cleared out all his belongings from their shared home. He had also quit his job.

The other half of the overall $12.2-million prize was won by a ticket holder in Quebec.

Jury rules Rohinie Bisesar unfit to stand trial in PATH stabbing Date for first-degree murder trial has been postponed until after the accused receives treatment.

Rohinie Bisesar, left, is charged in the 2015 stabbing death of Rosemarie Junor.  (TORONTO POLICE)

Rohinie Bisesar is unfit to stand trial for the first-degree murder of Rosemarie Junor, a Toronto jury has decided.

The jury reached its verdict Tuesday after deliberating for an hour.

Both the Crown and defence agreed with the opinion of a forensic psychiatrist that Bisesar suffers from schizophrenia and would be unable to conduct a defence or instruct her legal counsel.

Dr. Ian Swayze told the jury Monday that Bisesar, as a result of her current condition, would be unable to effectively engage in the trial process. Swayze said Bisesar’s mind is impaired by hallucinations and delusions.

Bisesar testified she is not suffering from a mental illness but agreed she is not fit because her movements and thoughts are controlled by an unknown entity that has implanted devices in her body.

A trial date scheduled for Jan. 8 has been postponed until after Bisesar receives treatment and is determined to be fit to stand trial for the fatal stabbing of Junor on Dec. 11, 2015.

Robert Karrass, Bisesar’s lawyer, said the jury’s decision is the correct one.

“Miss Bisesar needs treatment for a significant mental disorder …in order to actively engage in this matter,” Karrass said outside the downtown Superior Court of Justice.

“It’s unusual that a person with significant mental health issues has enough insight to realize that there’s an issue, but not enough insight to realize that they are unfit as a result of that issue.”

Justice John McMahon is expected to make a 60-day treatment order. After that period, Bisesar will return to the court for a new fitness hearing in front of a new jury.

At that time, if the jury finds she is now fit, a new trial will be set. If she’s continues to be unfit, then additional treatment will be ordered, Karrass explained.

Russian Athletes To Compete Under Olympic Flag At 2018 Games, In Doping Punishment

The International Olympic Committee has banned Russia from competing at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, following a vote on Tuesday.

However, it allows for individual Russian athletes "under strict conditions" to compete under the Olympic flag, according to a release from the IOC.

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