101 East

Almost every fresh produce that Australians buy will have passed through the hands of workers who have been fundamentally exploited, according to one union official. Across the country, hundreds of thousands of migrant workers toil in food factories and farms. Some of theses enterprises boast billion dollar revenues, but the profits aren’t being felt by the workers. Instead, food is picked and packed by exploited labour. Through working holiday visas and sometimes using false documents, Asian workers are grossly underpaid, forced to work punishing hours, and face abuse, harassment and assault. 101 East exposes the dirty secrets behind Australia’s fresh food produce. Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101eastAbout 101 East:

Sumiko hops into a coffin and lies down, testing it for size. For her, it’s a chance to 'try before you die'. The 40-year-old woman is among a growing number of Japanese taking a proactive approach to planning their funeral, sparking a booming death industry. In 2014, approximately 1.26 million people died in Japan. And with an ageing population, that number is estimated to continue rising until 2042. Japan is running out of space to bury the dead, and traditional funerals have become expensive as a result. The death industry and temples are trying to get creative by finding innovative, affordable ways to send their clients into the afterlife. We take a look at how Japan says its final goodbyes.Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101eastAbout 101 East:101 East is Al Jazeera’s award-winning Asia-Pacific current affairs and documentary programme, presenting bold, untold stories from the world’s most diverse region every week.

'I was inspired by Pacquiao because our stories are the same.' Motivated by the rags-to-riches story of national hero Manny Pacquiao, many Filipinos see boxing as a ticket out of poverty. But success stories are rare. 101 East follows a group of young fighters as they try to survive a brutal boxing industry. Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

With just minutes to spare, Filipina Mary Jane Veloso escaped death by an Indonesian firing squad that executed eight other foreigners found guilty of drug trafficking. Her lawyers argue Mary Jane is not a criminal but a victim of human trafficking. Like so many other Filipino workers forced to leave home to find work, they say she was poor, vulnerable and deceived. And if they can save her, they may be able to save others like her facing death row. 101 East investigates the case of Mary Jane as her family and supporters fight to bring her home.

Japan’s government believes it has found a cure for its faltering economy: Women. Long overlooked during more than two decades of economic stagnation, Japanese women are considered among the most highly educated but underutilised resource in the developed world. In what’s been dubbed ‘Womenomics’, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has put the country’s women at the heart of a strategy to revive Japan’s ailing economy. But with an endemic chauvinistic society, 101 East asks if women can conquer the gender gap to save Japan’s economy. Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

Hundreds of people in remote Aboriginal communities in Western Australia will be forced to abandon the land their families have lived on for generations.The state government is reviewing plans to cut services to up to 150 towns.The government says it's not about saving costs, but concern over reports that some communities are dysfunctional, plagued by substance abuse, alcoholism and widespread child sex abuse.Critics accuse the government of racism and failing to understand the importance of indigenous people living on ancestral land. 101 East meets residents who say they're facing the biggest threat to their way of life in decades, and examine whether their communities should be sustained.Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

Shot, then blown to smithereens with military grade explosives, the 2006 killing of Altantuya Shaariibuu was one of Malaysia’s most sensational murder cases. Even though years have passed since the young Mongolian woman’s death, it is one case that has refused to disappear. If anything, the mystery has deepened. 101 East investigates those who were involved in the case and asks whether the two men convicted of her murder are 'fall guys' for others who ordered the killing of Shaariibuu.

China’s love of ivory is helping to fuel an illicit global trade. The supply chain is complicated and often hard to trace, but it begins in the bush in Africa, where poachers kill an estimated 30,000 elephants each year. Tusks taken from slaughtered animals are then shipped through a complex web of middlemen before reaching Chinese buyers. A key conduit: the city of Hong Kong, where an undercover investigation reveals that legitimate operations are used to mask a far more sinister, more lucrative business. 101 East investigates the shadowy trade in illegal ivory. Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

Meet South Korea’s unlikeliest superstar – BJ Fitness Fairy.Each night, she eats enough for three people in front of a webcam watched by thousands of viewers. Critics say this bizarre trend is a symptom of widespread unhappiness and a rise of one-person households in South Korea. They believe it’s also a consequence of the government’s fanatic push to use food as a band aid after decades of conflict and colonisation. But the country’s love of food is also changing gender stereotypes. Cooking shows are inspiring men to enter the kitchen.

To outsiders, China can seem large, impenetrable and supremely powerful.It can smash world markets if it stops buying. It builds islands in waters claimed by not only China but other countries - with critics calling such actions belligerent and militant.But what do China's own people think about where their country is goingWhat do they make of their leader Xi Jinping and his economic reforms, his quashing of dissent and his drive against corruption101 East takes the pulse of the world's most populous nation through the lives of seven people in a single city - the old capital Nanjing.

Five years ago, Kennedy Kembo arrived home to find his daughter missing. His wife had secretly taken her to Indonesia. But Indonesia hasn’t signed the Hague Convention meaning there’s little Australian authorities can do to bring them home. Australia has the highest rate per capita of international parental child abductions in the world, averaging two a week. But for Kennedy and many other parents, there’s hope. He’s hired private investigators that specialise in retrieving kidnapped children. After months of surveillance, they could be close to making a recovery. 101 East investigates the cost of divided families. Follow 101 East here: Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

All eyes are on Nov Sreyleak as she launches onto centre stage with acrobatic stunts at the Phare Cambodian Circus big top. The crowd erupts. She is on her way to stardom. It is a big leap from selling rice snacks on the streets to feed her family. One in five Cambodians live below the poverty line, even more in rural villages. Back in Sreyleak's hometown, children still scavenge dumpsites to help their families survive. Phare Circus is on a mission to train destitute children to become top class circus performers of risky stunts. Can they succeedFollow 101 East here: Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101eastAbout 101 East: 101 East is Al Jazeera’s award-winning Asia-Pacific current affairs and documentary programme, presenting bold, untold stories from the world’s most diverse region every week

In Pakistan, making music can have deadly consequences. For religious hardliners, secular music is seen as un-Islamic and they have silenced musicians’ voices. Some have been killed while others have fled the country. Those left behind face constant fear, death threats and poverty. It’s a far cry from the golden era of the ‘60s where tunes of all genres offered Pakistanis relief from military repression and political uncertainty. But now, some younger musicians are fighting to reclaim their stage.101 East asks, can Pakistan’s artists mend an already crippled industry Follow 101 East here: Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

Papua New Guinea is one of the most dangerous places in the world to give birth. In the Pacific Island nation, the risk of women dying during childbirth is one in 30 deliveries. In neighbouring Australia, the risk is one in 10,000.But a simple idea is helping turn the tide. By providing a bundle of gifts for a new baby and mother, women arebeing encouraged to leave their homes and come to local medical clinics to deliver their baby in safety. 101 East joins the doctor behind the idea on his medicalrounds in Papua New Guinea’s spectacular remote islands. Follow 101 East here: Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

Just four years ago Myanmar released hundreds of political prisoners and promised to embrace democratic reforms. But once again the number of students, activists and journalists jailed is rising. Reporter Pailin Wedel follows two women activists faced with persecution even as Myanmar prepares for the polls.

They may be small, but the world needs bees.They pollinate one-third of the food we eat - fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and food for livestock. But recently, bee colonies around the world have been collapsing, with bees dying at alarming rates.While the scientists try to find a solution, there is a buzz about Niue, a tiny South Pacific island.Here, abandoned hives of disease-free bees have been discovered deep in the jungle. Could they be the answer to one of the biggest problems facing global agriculture101 East travels to a speck in the ocean to find out.-

Blogging is a dangerous business in Bangladesh. Four prominent secular bloggers have been brutally murdered this year and a publisher linked to one of them was recently slashed to death. Police blame religious hardliners for the killings, and there are fears more attacks could follow. But it’s not just hardliners who are causing concern. The government too, appears to be cracking down on free speech. Some bloggers are now leaving Bangladesh while others have gone into hiding. In this edition of 101 East, we meet people whose lives are in peril because of the opinions they share online. Are the attacks on bloggers a sign of a deeper problem in Bangladesh Follow 101 East here: Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

China is one of the world’s largest auction markets, generating billions of dollars each year. And its ultra-wealthy are cashing into the world of quick returns.But not everyone's a winner.The insatiable appetite for ancient ceramics is feeding a dark underbelly. More than ever before, counterfeits are flooding in, fooling even the best experts.From the rolling hills of China's last archaeological site, to the kilns of forgery masters and the private museums of the country's super rich, 101 East explores the world of Chinese antiques and asks, will human greed destroy this centuries old historyJoin the conversation @AJ101EastFollow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

Alcohol is a big part of the Australian culture across every region, and every social class. But for Australian mothers this could be a disaster. The latest research shows there is no safe limit for drinking when pregnant. All it takes is a few drinks at the wrong stage of the pregnancy for mother’s unborn babies to suffer permanent brain damage. 101 East meets families who are now living with the tragic consequences, guilt and fear from fetal alcohol exposure. Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

As world leaders meet in Paris to discuss a new climate change agreement, Indonesia has unleashed an emissions catastrophe on a global scale.Toxic haze from fires swept across Southeast Asia, resulting in 21 deaths and the release of more greenhouse gases each day than the United States.400 pulpwood and palm oil companies are under investigation by the Indonesian Government.101 East follows the trail of evidence that leads from the smoke-filled plantations directly to major global brands. Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101east

Across Australia, the fear of ISIS-inspired violence has created a growing intolerance towards the nation’s Muslim community. It is fuelling a rise of ultra-nationalist groups determined to defend what they say is the Australian way of life. But how representative is this hatred in a country known for its multiculturalism101 East meets those driving the hatred, and those fighting back against the abuse. Follow 101 East here:Facebook: http://facebook.com/101eastTwitter: http://twitter.com/aj101eastInstagram: http://instagram.com/aj101eastHomepage: http://aljazeera.com/programmes/101eastAbout 101 East:101 East is Al Jazeera’s award-winning Asia-Pacific current affairs and documentary programme, presenting bold, untold stories from the world’s most diverse region every week.