The symbol chosen for this supposedly official currency for the South African portion is the killing of Afrikaaner leader Piet Retief and his men by the Zulu King Dingane in 1838. The killing of Retief is an important moment in the history of South Africa, culminating in the Zulu defeat by Vootrekkers at the Battle of Blood River. It is also extremely politically charged and was used by the National Party and apartheid architects as anti-African propaganda for decades. The day the battle was fought is remembered today as the public holiday Day of Reconciliation, where South Africans celebrate national unity across ethnic groups.
Why would the New Development Bank choose this symbol of ancient trauma to represent new economic progress for South Africa? Likely it didn't at all, and the bill is a fake.
Conservative Indian users on social media are also sharing their disappointment that the Taj Mahal was chosen as the Indian symbol since it was built by a Muslim emperor. While others are saying a more modern symbol of economic progress should have been chosen instead.
https://htxt.co.za/2024/10/official-brics-currency-mockup-revealed/
De-dollarization is one of Putin's priorities because trading in local currencies would mean that a heavily sanctioned Russia wouldn't be beholden to the Western US-dollar-dominated global financial order. But it's not easy to move away from the greenback. The organizers of the BRICS summit have advised foreign attendees to bring cash — specifically US dollars and euros — to the event in the Russian city of Kazan.
Most Russian banks will only take US dollars or euros — which Moscow has deemed “toxic currencies” — to exchange for rubles, according to a guide on the summit's website.
Going cashless isn't an option since it's not possible to use Mastercard or Visa cards issued outside Russia in the country. The two card issuers halted local operations days after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
The government has approved a resolution allowing regional authorities to conclude price stabilization agreements with producers and retail chains. The exception is goods whose prices are already regulated by the state, Interfax reports . “The decision taken will help maintain a stable situation on the domestic market and keep popular products available to citizens,” the government said in a statement.
Previously, this measure only applied to socially significant food products such as beef, pork, lamb (except boneless meat), chicken (except hams), frozen whole fish, butter and sunflower oil, milk, chicken eggs, granulated sugar, salt, black tea, wheat flour, rye and rye-wheat bread, bread and bakery products made from wheat flour, polished rice, millet, buckwheat, vermicelli, potatoes, fresh white cabbage, onions, carrots and apples.
https://t.me/astrapress/69287
Price freezes lead to shortages of goods and a black market.