A Chilean man - adopted at birth and sent overseas - searches for the mother forced to give him up. He is among thousands now finding out the truth about their past. Many mothers were pressurised into giving up their children during General Pinochet’s military dictatorship in the 1970s and 80s. A government investigation is gathering evidence from judges, socials workers, medical staff and nuns who are all thought to be involved. Families are meeting after decades. And mothers are being reunited with children they were told were dead. (Image Mans Backman. Credit: Family photo)

Chile’s Stolen Babies

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The process of childbirth can be painful yet amazing, but at times and in some places, also very dangerous. Recorded in Malawi, East Africa, Claudia Hammond is joined by a panel of maternal health experts to figure out why it is that the equivalent of a large jumbo jet full of women die every day due to pregnancy or childbirth.    Together, they examine how so many women can still be at risk during this period despite a greater access to healthcare. They also look into whether an eighty-year-old drug could be a game-changer when it comes to haemorrhage. Plus, they consider a study of 1.3 million women which asked what it is that women actually want from maternal healthcare.  With Owen Chikwaza from the Malawi Ministry of Health, Linda Mipando of Kamuzu University and Elimase Kamanga-Gama, Director of the White Ribbon Alliance Malawi, Claudia looks at the many challenges and successes within the field, drawing from local experiences to offer global insights.  Produced by: Margaret Sessa-Hawkins 
Editor: Holly Squire 
Production Coordinator: Siobhan Maguire 
Presenter: Claudia Hammond 
Studio Engineers: Andrew Saunderson and David Sproule  (Photo: Pregnant woman being examined by a doctor. Credit: Holly Squire BBC)

The Evidence: Maternal Health in Malawi

Hear from the journalists and whistleblowers behind the World of Secrets investigation, The Disciples, which tells the story of the cult of Nigerian prophet TB Joshua. Presenters Charlie Northcott and Yemisi Adegoke, producer Rob Byrne and whistleblowers Rae and Ajoke explain how the investigation came about. Plus, the presenter of season one of World of Secrets, Rianna Croxford, reveals how she investigated allegations of sexual exploitation made against the former CEO of fashion giant Abercrombie and Fitch.
Hosted by Hannah Ajala, presenter of the Love, Janessa podcast, and recorded in front of an audience in London. ***This episode contains references to sexual, physical and psychological abuse*** If you have been affected by any of the issues in this podcast, please contact support organisations in your own country. For a list of organisations in the UK that can provide support for survivors of sexual abuse, go to bbc.co.uk/actionline. If you are suffering distress and need support, details of help available in many countries can be found at Befrienders Worldwide: befrienders.org.

Bonus: World of Secrets live

Last year in Italy the biggest anti-mafia trial in 30 years reached a climax. On the stand were the Calabrian ‘Ndrangheta: they are estimated to run 80 percent of Europe’s cocaine and to make more money in a year than McDonalds and Deutsche Bank put together. With access to mafioso-turned-collaborator Emanuele Mancuso, journalist Francisco Garcia looks at why Emanuele testified against his powerful family. What has this trial meant for the 'Ndrangheta? And has it changed life for Calabrians today?

Assignment: Italy's mafia whistleblower

Indian artist Abhishek Singh’s comic books have sold more than half a million copies and been translated into Italian, Spanish, French and English. His interpretation of the Indian myth, Krishna: A Journey Within, was the first graphic novel by an Indian writer and artist to be published in American comic book history. Abhishek has long included environmental themes in his work, but after travelling round the mountains and forests of India, and spending time with elephants in particular, he realised that most mythic tales concern kings and queens and battles, all about humans and human activity. He decided it was time to create a new non-human mythology, one which centres on our vulnerable environment and the animals who live within it. Paul Waters joins him in Delhi as he paints one of his pictures for his new graphic novel The Hymns of Medhini.

In the Studio: Abhishek Singh

Nataliya Zotova of BBC Russian tells us how Yulia Navalnaya has stepped in for her husband since his death and how there is somewhat of a precedent for this in Russia. Plus Ikechukwu Kalu explains how the BBC Igbo social media team use proverbs to connect with their audience.  Produced by Caroline Ferguson and Alice Gioia  (Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich)

Chile’s Stolen Babies

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