Stories about Human Rights from May, 2006
Ethiopia: Jailing of journalists
Black Star Journal comments on the Ethiopian journalists who were charged with genocide by the government of Meles Zenawi. Needless to say the arrest of the so called treasoness and genocidal journalists has not stopped the bombing in Addis.
Banned White-Red-White Flag of Belarus Travels Abroad
This flag used to be the official state flag of Belarus from 1991 to 1995. Following the controversial referendum of May 14, 1995, president Aleksandr Lukashenko banned it and reintroduced a variation of the Soviet-time Belarusian flag. During their visit to Kyiv, Ukraine, in early May, Belarusian LJ users lysaye-dzyaucho...
Belarus: Interpol Chief Disagrees With EU Members
TOL's Belarus Blog reports that certain EU representatives of Interpol plan to boycott the upcoming meeting in Belarus; Interpol's head rightly disagrees with their position: “‘Why use an apolitical organisation, a meeting of police professionals, to send a political message, when the vehicles they usually have for sending a political...
Belarus: Political Refugees; Disinformation on Asylum Seekers
Leo Finkel of Maidan International writes about a press conference given by Belarusian political refugees in Kyiv; according to him, the number of Belarusian political asylum seekers will grow in the coming months. TOL's Belarus Blog reports on the false information spread by certain Russian news agencies: according to them,...
Belarus: Fake Dissident
TOL's Belarus Blog writes about Mikhail Vashkevitch, an impostor in the Belarusian opposition's ranks, about to lose his asylum in Bulgaria: “I wish we were back to the times when dissidents wrote books without asking for a $10,000 advance…”
Estonia: ‘War in the Woods’
Giustino of Itching for Eestimaa reviews a book on Estonian resistance to Soviet rule in the war years (War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, by Mart Laar).
Poland: Politics and Freedom of Speech
Our Man in Gdansk writes about how freedom of speech in Poland is sometimes affected by politics: “In the puling adolescent west the new boss of a TV station or newspaper might be expected to trot out some feelgood cliches about how he does not intend to interfere in anyway...
Trinidad and Tobago: Criminals’ rights?
The members of The Initiative Against Crime continue to explore the connections between Trinidad and Tobago's crime problem and mistreatment of prisoners. Kahaya is not surprised there was a prisoners’ riot at the San Fernando Magistrates Court yesterday, and Jahari Gamba asks, “Does the prison system change criminals or boost...
Ahmadinejad's Letter & Tehran Book Fair
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's letter to his US counterpart, George Bush, has attracted a lot of attention in international media. Several leading journals such as Washington Post or Le Monde, in France, published letter and tried to analyze that. This 18 pages letter has been a hot topic among Iranian...
China: Cultural Revolution turns forty
Asiapundit‘s myrick blogs on the fortieth anniversary of the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, photos included.
China: Cultural Revolution turns forty
“There is no official commemoration or acknowledgment in the PRC today,” says The Useless Tree blogger of the fortieth anniversary of the beginning of China's Cultural Revolution. “The Party has ordered the media not to discuss it. Just another one of those major chunks of modern history, like the Great...
China: Cultural Revolution turns forty
One interesting aspect of blogging in China is that the strict controls on newspapers, magazines, television and news websites from time-to-time leaves many bloggers with the responsibility and freedom to determine and define coverage of major issues and stories while mainstream media, despite all their resources, have no choice but...
DRC: Demonstration for Congolese in Belgium
Renouveau Congolais announces (Fr) that Debout Pour Le Congo [Stand Up for Congo] is organizing a demonstration today in Liege, Belgium against the “regular explusion [of Congolese] in collaboration with the Congolese government, author of many crimes and ongoing violations of human rights.” The demonstration will also demand that Belgium...
Ethiopia: Tell your stories
Weichegud!ET Politics calls on her fellow Ethiopians to “tell the story” of the Ethiopian elections and provides a list of sites supporting Ethiopia Day – 15th May
Australia: Migration policy
African Migrants on Australia's immigration policy …Migration Act to allow the offshore processing of all asylum seekers who arrive by boat
China: Wu Hao's whereabouts
Nina Wu, sister of illegally-imprisoned Beijing or Bust blogger Wu Hao writes of her ongoing push to find out where her brother is: “I still remember the first time I came to Beijing for little brother's affair, freezing to the point of shivering despite wearing an overcoat. Now, it's already...
Jamaica: Homophobia or not?
Francis Wade argues that Jamaicans aren't homophobic, but “homo-name-a-phobic”: “the particular kind of homo-related phobia that we have in Jamaica is not of gays themselves, but is instead of ‘being called gay’ … it is a fear that is shared by every single Jamaican, whether they are gay or not”.
Ethiopia: Interview with Obang Metho
Ethiopian Politics publishes an audio interview he had with Mr. Obang Metho Director of International Advocacy, for Anuak Justice Council (AJC) in which he discusses various human rights and political issues.
This Week In Palestinian Blogs: Al-Nakba Continues
Al-Nakba (or ‘the catastrophe’), the day Israel declared its independence on May 14th 1948, has been the main topic of this past week. For many Palestinian bloggers Al-Nakba means remembering this important moment in history, which set the stage for an ongoing struggle and tragedy; where both past and present...
Belarus: Ice Cream-Eating Flash-Mobbers Detained
EM of TOL's Belarus Blog thinks it'd be better for the Minsk flashmob community to move underground: “The problem with all of that is that KGB is reading those online communities as well, so there are usually security people present at the flashmobs even before they start. […] Or is...
France & Francophonia Commemorate Slavery Amidst Curriculum Controversy
Image courtesy of oliviermr2 A Day of Remembrance France commemorated slavery for the first time on May 10, reports Haiti's Alterpresse: Le président francais qualifie d’infamie, la traite négrière et invite les Français à « regarder tout notre passé en face », « sans concession ». Abdou Diouf, Secrétaire général...
