Stories about Human Rights from January, 2014
Cartoon Character ‘Meena’ Changes South Asian Attitudes Towards Girls
"Since her inception 14 years ago she has shown millions of women and girls what can be achieved."
Gender-Based Violence Epidemic Hits Sex Workers in Honduras
Despite the fact that sex work is legal in Honduras, many groups and individuals view their actions as immoral. Those who murder sex workers believe they can literally treat these human beings as garbage to be disposed of. Such violence takes place against the broader backdrop of widespread gender- and sexuality-based violence...
Indonesian Maid Says She Was Beaten, Starved and Burned in Hong Kong
Another damning case of foreign maid abuse has recently been exposed in Hong Kong. Activist groups are working together to end this modern-day slave system.
Despite Controversial Past, Indian PM Candidate Narendra Modi's Star on the Rise
Chief Minister of India's western state Gujarat Narendra Modi is a polemic figure for his hotly debated role in the deadly 2002 riots in the state between Hindus and Muslims.
Jamaica: MLK Recognises the Role of Garvey
Diaspora litblogger Geoffrey Philp uses the occasion of Martin Luther King Day to agitate for the exoneration of the late Jamaican Pan-Africanist, Marcus Garvey.
Haiti, D.R.: Stateless in the Dominican Republic
jmc strategies blogs about the issue of Haitian statelessness in the Dominican Republic, specifically addressing anti-Haitian sentiment, questionable labour and living conditions, and forced repatriations, while offering solutions to the impasse.
INFOGRAPHIC: The New Anti-Democratic Laws of Ukraine
On January 16, 2014, Ukrainian Parliament adopted a series of bills with a severe violation of the voting procedure. Nevertheless, on the eve of the same day the bills were signed into law by President Yanukovych. Below is an infographic by civic movement CHESNO [uk, en] outlining the major legislative...
Enforced Disappearances in Sri Lanka: 2006-2013
Groundviews highlights a report (pdf), which aims to facilitate the criminalization of enforced disappearances in Sri Lanka during 2006-2013, recognize and uphold the rights of the victims families.
Two Opposite Arguments on Whether CAR Crisis is a Religious Conflict
Has the CAR Crisis Turned into a Religious Conflict ?
Being Gay in Nigeria Now Means Arrest, Prison
Nigeria has arrested dozens of gay men under the country's new anti-gay law, Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act, signed by President Goodluck Jonathan on January 7, 2014.
GV Face: Bangkok Shutdown and the Way Forward
In this episode of GV Face we speak to Saksith Saiyasombut, a Thai political blogger based in Germany, our Thailand author Aim Sinpeng & SE Asia Editor Mong Palatino.
Unethical Practices In A Bangladeshi Private Hospital
Emma Clare Burton-Chowdhoury, an Englishwoman (married to a Bangladeshi) living in Dhaka, Bangladesh, blogs about her experience in giving birth to a daughter in a Bangladeshi private hospital: The pediatric team at Apollo welcomed the premature delivery of our daughter with open arms as conveniently her special care boosted our...
Hydroelectric Projects in Panama: “Promised Development But Created Disaster”
Although dam developers and governments insist that local communities benefit from these projects, the reality on the ground in Panama suggests the opposite: communities are plunged further into poverty, environments are destroyed and irreparable harm is caused. As one witness who is living in the wake of the Chan 75...
Understanding Human Rights in Portuguese-Speaking Countries
[All links lead to Portuguese language pages, except where otherwise stated] The Portuguese language version of the educational manual for human rights “Understanding Human Rights” is available online. The website provides the complete manual in pdf format or divided into chapters, as well as training material, bibliographical references and institutional information specifically aimed at...
Aitezaz Hasan, Pakistan's Young Hero Who Took on a Suicide Bomber to Save his School
"We don’t need more Aitzazs’. Not one or one million. What we need is to be worthy of the one we lost."
Human Rights Violations During Ukraine's #Euromaidan Protests
One of many newly set up blogs following Euromaidan protests in Ukraine, which have entered their second month, has collected several graphic images of injured, bleeding protesters from the past several weeks of protests and speaks of the disturbing violations of basic human rights, such as beatings of citizens and...
French Restaurant In Pakistan Closed For Not Allowing Pakistanis
Blogger Farzana Versey from Mumbai weighs on the hypocrisy regarding alcohol consumption by Pakistanis while reporting on a recent incident: La Maison, run by Frenchman Philippe Lafforgue, in a part of his house at an upscale area of the capital Islamabad, has been forced to shut down after there was...
37 Million Students Start New Year with Free Textbooks in Bangladesh
"This is the kind of Bangladesh we would like to see...Children happy with new books seeking knowledge....not children with gun powder learning to make human BBQ"
Iran: Tech Bloggers in Jail
Jadi remembered and tweeted on Saturday, 11th of January, about jailed tech bloggers in Kerman province.The technology news website Narenji.ir in Kerman reported on December 3, 2013 that seven of their writers and technical staff were suddenly arrested with no information about where they were taken. Today is 40th day...
Iran: Jailed Blogger Needs Specialized Medical Treatment
Amnesty International says “the health of jailed Iranian blogger Mohammad Reza Pourshajari,a prisoner of conscience,is worsening. He is in urgent need of specialized medical treatment.” Mohammad Reza Pourshajari(aka Siamak Mehr) was arrested in September 2010.In his blog, Iran Land's Report, he would criticize the Islamic Republic and Islam with strong...
