· June, 2013

Stories about Human Rights from June, 2013

The Strange Case of Puerto Rico and the Death Penalty

  29 June 2013

During the 5th World Congress Against the Death Penalty, recently held in Madrid, Spain, participants assembled to discuss the status of Puerto Rico, where the death penalty, though abolished in 1929, could still be imposed thanks to its relationship with the United States. Periodismo Ciudadano's Elisa Moreno Gil interviews Puerto Rican attorneys and activists to learn about the island's special situation.

Ninety Countries Meet for Global Conference Against Death Penalty

  28 June 2013

Representatives of 90 countries participated in the 5th World Congress Against the Death Penalty in Madrid, Spain. Some of the key topics discussed were the abolition of the death penalty, along with the related issues of adherence to human rights treaties, the procurement of a moratorium in death penalty convictions, and legal reforms.

The Bahamas: Intellectual Property & Reparations

  26 June 2013

The amount of traditional knowledge that is stolen from our region on a daily basis is staggering. Blogworld suggests that there is a link between that knowledge and required compensation for “the slaves and their ancestors [who] have never been paid for the generations of their labour.”

Podcast: Chinese Dissident's NYU Departure

  26 June 2013

Sinica Podcast hosts New Yorker correspondent Evan Osnos who talks about Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng's departure from NYU, how the Snowden affair may or may not affect Sino-American diplomacy, and his forthcoming book about his experience in China.

New Regulations for Skype and Viber in Bahrain

“Security considerations” are being cited as reasons behind new regulations which could put an end to the use of popular services such as Skype, WhatsApp, Viber and Tango in Bahrain. A government official says a study is being conducted to regulate Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) applications - popular services, whose use is costing telecommunication companies.

Salafists Attack Shia Homes in Egypt, Killing Four

Four Egyptian adherents of the Shia faith were killed in Egypt today when the house they were meeting in was attacked by Salafists, following two weeks of instigation against the Shia. According to various reports, the house the Shia were meeting in, in Giza, Cairo, was attacked and burned. Al Badil News quotes a witness from the mortuary [ar] who says that one of those killed was slaughtered and the remaining three had injuries to their heads. The horrific incident unleashed anger online.

Thousands Are Joining Bosnia's ‘Babylution’

  20 June 2013

The death of a baby girl has people in Bosnia-Herzegovina crossing the country's deep ethnic divides by the thousands to protest together against the government's failure to remedy a lapse in the law that is preventing newborns from being given an identity number and, by extension, travel papers and healthcare.

A Year of Demanding Justice in Paraguay: What Happened in Curuguaty?

  20 June 2013

A year after a clash that resulted in the death of 11 farm workers and 6 police officers in Curuguaty, Paraguay, organizations that defend human rights and farm workers point out that the criminal case investigating the incident is partial and that there were several human rights violations during the proceedings, such as executions and subjecting the farm workers to torture as acts of revenge.

Interview: “How Are Things in Bamako, Mali?”

  19 June 2013

At the time of writing, June 2013, France is still fighting Islamists in Mali. Paris-based Anne Morin and Awa Traoré, her friend in Bamako decided to share a video journal of their conversations on Skype on YouTube. Anne wanted to stay up to date with the region's news, and also with her friends. She told Global Voices' Anna Gueye more about this journal as well as her links with Mali.

Brazil: “Gay Cure” Approved by Chamber of Deputies

  19 June 2013

The proposed law allowing psychologists to undertake treatment to reverse homosexuality was approved yesterday, June 18, by the Human Rights Commission of the Chamber of Deputies. The commission president, anti-gay preacher Mr Marco Feliciano, took the opportunity of promoting this issue while everyone was protesting against the issue of reducing...

Bermuda: A Milestone for Human Rights

  19 June 2013

‘It’s kind of absurd to me that we’re even having this discussion. The God I serve says we are to love one another.’ Breezeblog comments on Bermuda's “pass[ing] [of] the amendment to the Human Rights Act making it illegal to discriminate against someone because of their sexual orientation.”

Caribbean: Is Somebody Watching?

  18 June 2013

The ongoing saga with U.S. Internet surveillance whistleblower Edward Snowden has captured the attention of the world. In two blog posts, one from Trinidad and Tobago and the other from Cuba, there is an interesting juxtaposition between high-tech spying and old-fashioned intelligence, even though they both pit the citizens against the state.