Stories about Human Rights from July, 2011
United Arab Emirates: Adjournment of Blogger Ahmed Mansour's Tria
”Poor Arab and Emirati intellectuals and thinkers!” bewails Ahmed Al Mouhareb [ar] while reporting on his Twitter account the deferment the trial of the blogger and activist Ahmed Mansour and of four of his companions until September 26 [en]. Arrested in the beginning of April 2011, after having signed a...
Practicing legal profession in Vietnam
Attorney Huynh Van Dong writes about the challenges facing lawyers in Vietnam. He reports that an increasing number of lawyers are now in jail for “expressing their own personal opinion.”
Syria: Tanks Enter Hama on Eve of Ramadan
On the eve of Ramadan, Syrian troops have entered the city of Hama, reportedly killing as many as 45 people by 11:00 am on Sunday, July 31.
China: Hu Jia's tweets
Mainland Chinese activist Hu Jia had been imprisoned for 3.5 years under the charge of “inciting state sedition”. He was released on 26 of June 2011. @WLYeung has translated Hu's tweets about his state of mind.
Cote d'Ivoire: Unequal pay for equal work
Siriki Moustapha explains on africavox.com [fr] why equal pay for women still is a subject of debate in Ivory Coast: “These are men of varying socio-economic and intellectual levels; they do not think of themselves as old-fashioned, enemies of women, or even anti-feminist. Their logic is that the Ivorian woman...
Blog Carnival: Mexico – Citizenry, Violence and Blogs
Global Voices in Spanish has the pleasure of announcing a new edition of its Blog Carnival, which will be focused on bloggers and Internet users from Mexico, along the topic "Mexico: Citizenry, violence and blogs." Find out how, when and where you can participate or get involved by reading this post.
Cambodia: Blog Article Leads to Murder Investigation
Cambodian opposition politicians and embassy officials are now investigating the death of a young domestic helper in Malaysia after a news blog reported that the maid was a victim of physical abuse.
Kuwait: Bidun fly “Freedom Balloons”
A month ago, the stateless community of Kuwait started a 3 day-long campaign of “flipping your twitter avatar” to catch the media's attention and highlight their cause for the world. This Friday, they've made another campaign to set balloons in the air, calling them “freedom balloons". Mona Kareem shares the story.
China: Know more about activist Wang Lihong
Wang Lihong, one of many lesser known activists jailed in China, is facing imminent trial. The blog Free Wang Lihong has published a detailed English biography of her. Amnesty International has also issued an appeal to take action for her release.
Cuba: MSM Paying Attention
Pedazos de La Isla takes heart in the fact that “various English-language news sources have been brave enough to publish the truth about the Caribbean island”, saying: “In Cuba, there is much to report, whether it is through blogs, digital magazines, newspapers, television, radio, etc. On a daily basis, dissidents...
Bangladesh: Indigenous or Not Indigenous, That Is The Question
In recent months many Bangladeshi indigenous people have taken the streets holding meetings, human chains and rallies, demanding constitutional recognition of their identity. Bloggers also voice their opinions on this issue.
Cuba: Internet Restrictions
Uncommon Sense says that despite the arrival of “an underwater cable reached Cuba from Venezuela” designed to improve Internet access to the island, ” the regime has intensified its control of the Internet, restricting government employees’ access to Facebook and on networks that provide ‘illegal’ e-mail accounts.”
Haiti: Martelly's Promises
Toussaint on Haiti suggests that Haitians who voted for a Martelly presidency may now be suffering from buyers’ remorse.
Cuba: Differences of Opinion are Healthy
“‘The People's Path‘ is…a vision statement of what the movement for a free Cuba should be striving for,” writes Uncommon Sense, who, along with Babalu, thinks that despite Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet's lack of support, “the debate that the document, and Biscet's disapproval have sparked, are nothing but healthy for...
Hungary: International Critique Against New Constitution
Eva Balogh of Hungarian Spectrum reports on how US representatives are becoming increasingly concerned about the new Hungarian constitution and how the Hungarian government reacts to US and European crtitique against it.
Ukraine: Timoshenko Case Turning Sour
Levko of Foreign Notes argues that the trial against former Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko is quickly becoming a liability for President Yanukovich, with mounting international and domestic critique, and the trial in itself giving an additional political platform for Timoshenko.
The Balkans: Trials of Ratko Mladić and Goran Hadžić
At OpenDemocracy.net, Eric Gordy writes on what there is to expect from the upcoming ICTY trials of Ratko Mladić and Goran Hadžić.
EU, Poland: Airport Body Scanners; Shaminder Puri's Case
Dominika Bychawska-Siniarska of Europe of Human Rights writes on BlogActiv.eu about airport body scanners, “human dignity” and the case of Shaminder Puri, a British Sikh who was harassed at the Warsaw Chopin Airport last year.
Belarus: Schengen Visa=Guilty
Pyotr Kuznetsov mentions [ru] a Belarusian police officer who interpreted a Schengen visa in the passport of one of the women detained at a protest rally as a solid proof that she was not a law-abiding citizen. He said this to a colleague who used to know the woman and...
Belarus: Overview of Political and Economic Situation
An overview of the political and economic situation in Belarus – by Natalia Leshchenko at OpenDemocracy.net.
Russia: Policeman that Promised to “Rob and Kill” Dismissed
A policeman that was caught on camera saying that if he would be dismissed he would “go to the streets to rip, rob, and kill” (video [ru]) was dismissed, lenta.ru reported [ru]. The dismissal (result of a bloggers’ activity in spreading the word about the case), however, didn't solve a...
