· February, 2013

Stories about Human Rights from February, 2013

Saudi Arabia: Activist Accuses Judge of Conflict of Interest

  20 February 2013

Earlier today, February 20th, the first hearing session for Saudi Political and Civil Rights Association (ACPRA) co-founder Dr Abdulkareem al-Khadr was held at Criminal Court in Buraidah. Among his "crimes" are "calling for and inciting to break the law, spread chaos and disturb public tranquility and safety by writing and publishing a statement that calls for protesting in public squares."

“Ask Angy” Humanizes the Experience of Undocumented Immigrants

  20 February 2013

Angy Rivera shares her immigration story with the world in hopes of humanizing this complex experience, particularly in the United States. Two years ago she publicly announced that "she did not fear being undocumented," and since then she writes a column entitled Ask Angy, in which she responds to questions, doubts, and comments.

Thai Paper Reveals Rape Victim's Name

  20 February 2013

The publication of the full name and personal documents of British sexual assault victim in Thai media outlets raises yet again the issue of lacking ethics in Thai mainstream media when it comes to reporting about crimes and the persons involved in those. Saksith Saiyasombut criticizes Thai media papers for...

Bulgarian Police Attack Anti-Government Protesters

  20 February 2013

GV Author Ruslan Trad has posted a video from the Feb. 19 anti-government protest in Sofia, Bulgaria: There were provocations and police violence. Police beating everyone. They did not want to arrest provocateurs, and people shouting, “These are provocateurs,” but police beat anyone on the street. Attack of the police...

Japan's Porn Law is Strangling Artists

  18 February 2013

World renown Fashion photographer Leslie Kee was arrested for selling obscene images at his latest exhibition in Tokyo. But is his work art or porn? In this post we look at the regulation of 'offensive' artistic expression in Japan.

Pakistan's Hazara Shias Demand Arrests, Protection After Deadly Bombing

  18 February 2013

In the latest attack against Pakistan's Hazara Shia minority, a bomb ripped through a busy market in the southwestern city of Quetta in Pakistan on February 16, claiming as many as 63 people and injuring 180 others. Many have accused the government of inaction, demanding that authorities step in and put an end to the mass killings.

A Second Revolution in Libya?

  18 February 2013

The road to democracy is a bumpy one for Libyans, who are marking the second anniversary of their revolution this week. Fozia Mohamed charts the reactions of bloggers on the occasion. Could this be Libya's real second revolution?

Saudi Charged for “Down with the House of Saud” Tweet

  16 February 2013

Bader Thawab is a Saudi Twitter user who was arrested back in September 2012 after writing tweets calling for the fall of the Saudi monarchy. Journalist Iman al-Qahtani managed to get a leaked copy of the list of charges that he faces, and published them online. Among the charges are following political dissidents on Twitter.

State-Sponsored Violence in Angola

  16 February 2013

Blogger Claudio Silva argues on Africa Is a Country that a deeper look at state-sponsored violence (urban evictions and crackdowns on protest) is needed to put into perspective two viral videos that recently shocked the country (see Global Voices coverage). He writes “the violence in Angola comes from the very...

#Shahbag Blogger Hacked To Death

  15 February 2013

Engineer Ahmed Rajib Haider, a young blogger and online activist participating in the ongoing Shahbag movement in the Bangladesh capital Dhaka was brutally killed a few hours ago, reports Mamur Hossain. Hasib Mahmud writes [bn] that a death warrant was posted against Rajib a few days ago on an Islamist-run...

Under Pressure, Spain Opens Door to Foreclosure Reform

  14 February 2013

The Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca (PAH), joined by an impressive social movement, fought for Congress to change mortgage legislation in Spain. In the end, the Popular Party bowed to intense public pressure mobilized via the #ILPescrache hashtag.