Stories about Human Rights from January, 2013
Three Portuguese Language States Ignore UN Convention Against Torture
Three Portuguese language countries are part of a short list of states which have not ratified the UN Convention against Torture: São Tomé and Príncipe, Angola and Guinea Bissau. Fábio Pereira, Communications...
“Stop Erasing Hong Kong's History”
To prevent Hong Kong's government from destroying public records, citizens call for legislation to protect public archives and the citizens' right to access government information. As one of the supporter puts it, "a place without history is always a colony," and Hong Kong should be decolonized by efficiently documenting the city's own history.
Critical Mass: Wheels of Activism Come to Brazil's Salvador City
The international cycling movement Critical Mass - or Bicicletadas as it is been known in Brazilian Portuguese - has won the hearts of Brazilians, since cars have reached a saturation point on the country's congested roads. Visiting the city of Salvador in Brazil, Global Voices contributor, Thiana Biondo talked to Critical Mass local activists Roque Junior and Rosa Ribeiro. Check out the first part of the interview.
Mexico: Florence Cassez, Guilty of Kidnapping or Victim of a Staged Process?
A great fuss has taken over the cyberspace after the French citizen Florence Cassez was released from a Mexican prision where she stayed seven years charged with kidnapping, illegal gun possession and organized crime. Reactions are diverse, all of which demonstrate the complexity of the case.
Parallels Between Religious and Copyright Wars
Rick Falkvinge, the founder of Pirate Party, reinterprets the wars of religion that devastated Western Europe in the XVI and XVII centuries in terms of the current struggle to control...
Turkmenistan: Human Rights? What Human Rights?
In Turkmenistan, which ranks among the world's "worst of the worst" human rights abusers, the very existence of such rights is seen as 'fiction'. Some netizens blame Ashgabat's repressive regime on geopolitics. Yet some others say the country has a right to restrict the rights of its citizens.
Acid Violence: A neglected issue in Bangladesh!
Amader Kotha provides some statistics of Acid violence in the past decade in Bangladesh and points out that despite introduction of tough laws, lack of awareness results in repetitions of...
Côte d'Ivoire: Charles Blé Goudé Charged with War Crimes
After his arrest in Ghana, Charles Blé Goudé, nicknamed ‘Street General’ and close associate of former president Laurent Gbagbo, was charged with war crimes on January 21, 2013. His arrest caused great debate in the Ivorian blogosphere as it happened against a backdrop of national reconciliation in Côte d'Ivoire.
Police Use Pepper Spray on Bangladesh's Teacher Protesters
For the very first time in Bangladesh, the police used pepper spray to scatter hundreds of teachers and employees of private schools who were demonstrating in Dhaka. One teacher ended up with fatal reactions to the spray and died, sparking intense debate in Bangladesh.
Macedonian Sports Journalist Protests Harassment
A prominent Macedonian sports journalist Igor Filevski, who works as a correspondent from Spain, announced [mk] on his blog that he will no longer cover Macedonian sports in order to...
Iran: A Crime on YouTube, an Execution in Public
Two young men, Alireza Mafiha and Mohammad Ali Sarvari, were executed by hanging in Tehran, Iran in the early hours of January 20, before the eyes of public spectators who had gathered to watch.
Kuwait: Stateless Activist Goes on Hunger Strike
On January 16, stateless activist Abdulhakim AlFadhli entered hunger strike in prison right after getting a two-year jail sentence. The court charged the activist with attacking a policeman in a protest last March. The activist stated that this charge, among others, is fabricated against him because of his political activism in demanding the rights of Kuwait's stateless community.
Guatemala: Audience on Genocide Case
From Guatemala, blog Coordinación Genocidio nunca más [es] urges citizens to attend the historical court audience, where José Efraín Ríos Montt and José Mauricio Rodríguez Sánchez face trail for abuses...
Macedonians Ask State News Agency to Stop Manipulations
An online initiative against media manipulations [mk] perpetrated by the state-owned Macedonian Information Agency (MIA) asks citizens to express their dissatisfaction by sending e-mails to the agency. The action was...
Ecuador: The Case of the 10 from Luluncoto
The 10 from Luluncoto are the young people who lost their freedom on 3 March 2012, accused of terrorism and threats to the security of the State. Ten months later, the case continues to worry Ecuadorians and human rights organisations.
Sri Lanka: Code of Ethics For Media
Freedom Of Expression Sri Lanka reports that the Sri Lankan government has started the process of introducing a comprehensive code of ethics, for both print and electronic media, in accordance...
Petrodollars, Megalomania and Human Rights in Equatorial Guinea
President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea launched a charm offensive in 2011 and 2012 using his petrodollars to target the worlds of showbusiness, sport and international diplomacy. However, following his accession to chairmanship of the African Union, the civil society denounced him for his poor human rights record while the orgy of spending conducted by his son caused widespread revulsion.
Volunteers Settle Dispute Over Size of Moscow Protest?
No Russian opposition rally is truly over, it seems, until there has been an Internet flame war over the strength of its attendance. After the last protest march three groups have used independent approaches to produce a realistic headcount.
Scholars Call for an End to China's One-Child Policy
China's one-child policy is unshakeable, top family planning official announced on January 14.The announcement, which dismissed speculation that the one-child policy would be scrapped, has triggered another heated debate on Chinese social media.
Georgia's Gay Rights Activists Protest Broadcast of Secret Sex Tapes
On January 14, 2013, the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia announced that the previous chief of the Military Police Megis Kardava, secretly filmed videos of public figures having sex with homosexual partners. The office alleges these videotapes were used to blackmail the public figures into cooperation with President Mikheil Saakashvili's government.
Sant'Egidio Community Helps Free Senegalese Hostages
Last December, eight Senegalese prisoners were freed following long negotiations led by the Sant'Egidio community. The hostages were taken by guerrillas who have been fighting for independence in Casamance, Senegal's most southern region, since 1982.