Stories about Politics from October, 2019
30 October 2019
Pakistan shuts art installation depicting extrajudicial killings
"The closure is both an attack on free expression and an attempt to sweep under the rug a longstanding human rights problem."
The Hong Kong protests are becoming more violent because justice is not being served
"I am not asking you to tolerate violence, I am asking you to understand it."
28 October 2019
DreamWorks’ ‘Abominable’ film banned in Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines for showing China’s claim over disputed seas
"We have to engage with them, and they are sensible people...They are just being misled."
Angolan president's reforms drive positive impact on media — but limits persist
Under Angola's former regime, JES, prosecutions of activists and journalists were common. In 2017, João Lourenço (“JLO”) succeeded JES and journalists began to see reforms to press freedoms. But is it...
27 October 2019
From camps to prisons: Xinjiang’s next great human rights catastrophe
While most of the world’s attention has been focused on the region’s “re-education” camps, an incredible number of those detained in 2017 and 2018 are now being given lengthy prison...
26 October 2019
Yugoslavia wasn't a Soviet ally—so why does that misconception persist in Western media?
The Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia's independence from both the Eastern and the Western blocs was a key feature of its national identity.
25 October 2019
Cry of ‘Free the [bleeping] weed!’ leads to arrest of Trinidadian cannabis advocate
"To those who say the war is over, Rowley has promised to decriminalise, tell that to the citizens of this country who are packed 15 man to one stinking cell."
Soon Bangladesh's capital may have two more reasons to complain about the traffic
"People are suffering a lot for the traffic jams, the people want respite, please finish the first Metrorail project."
24 October 2019
Kanye West's use of Jamaican symbols sparks national dialogue on ‘branding’
"Successive political administrations have never fully appreciated the economic value of the brand ‘Jamaica’ nor the symbols that [represent] that brand including its flag and its coat of arms..."
Albanians angry at EU's failure to open accession talks–but for PM sun ‘still shining’
"This is the biggest mistake that the EU has made over these years, Albania is a reforming country who more than ever needed this decision to be positive."
23 October 2019
Mozambican journalists and activists targeted with threats in election year
Human rights organizations documented several cases in which journalists and activists were threatened and subjected to pressures interfering with their work in relation to the elections.
22 October 2019
Australian newspapers ‘censor’ their front pages in protest against government secrecy laws
"Journalists and whistleblowers in Australia live in fear of criminal charges, police raids and damaging court battles that threaten their professional careers and personal freedom."
Hong Kong political scientist likens Hongkongers to a stateless nation
'... to balance the interests of China, the US and HK people, the city needs a truly democratic self-government that can represent HK people's interests and understand the complexity of...
21 October 2019
Twitter users from North Macedonia fight disappointment with EU non-decision with humor
The date for the long-anticipated start of negotiations for Albania and North Macedonia's membership in the EU didn't materialize, due in large part to a lack of support by France.
Ahead of Tunisia elections, social media was flooded with mis- and disinformation
In the months leading up to the elections, mis- and disinformation spread widely across social media platforms, Facebook in particular.
19 October 2019
Is Trinidad & Tobago's LED lightbulb initiative a bright idea or a shot in the dark?
It may seem like a good idea in theory, but citizens are concerned that the fiscal measure of providing 400,000 households with LED bulbs is not part of a bigger...
18 October 2019
Bulgaria's far-right is attempting to shut down the country's oldest human rights NGO
A member of the European Union since 2007, Bulgaria took a turn to the far-right in 2017 when PM Borisov's center-right party GERB allied itself with a small coalition of nationalist...
How Ethiopia's ruling coalition created a playbook for disinformation
Manipulation tactics used by Ethiopia's ruling coalition members against each other in their internal power struggle serve as a blueprint for opposition groups to attack their opponents and the government.
From dictatorship to democracy: All eyes on The Gambia’s upcoming Universal Periodic Review
Ahead of The Gambia's Universal Periodic Review, which issues top the agenda of civil society organizations? "There has been a kind of a media boom after the dictatorship."
16 October 2019
Deadly police raids in Guinea as President Alpha Condé clings to power
Deadly police violence in Guinea as the president attempts to modify the constitution to cling to power. The demonstrations killed six people, including one police officer, and wounded many others.
