Stories from June, 2019
In pictures: Nepal holds parade during international Pride Month
Participants demanded equal rights, including same-sex marriage, and were able to educate people about the diversity of the queer community, well beyond the term LGBTQ+.
Will Barbados be the first Caribbean nation to abolish the secondary school entrance exam?
"Every child deserves a good-quality education. Why we have a system that making our children feel they stupid if they don't pass for ‘a good school'?"
‘Stand with Hong Kong': Appeal to G20 leaders on extradition law crisis appears in major international newspapers
Proposed legal amendments would allow Hong Kong residents to be extradited to mainland China's judicial system. Protesters are appealing to G20 leaders for support.
Record sales, empty seats: The dark paradox behind this year's Copa America football tournament
Expensive tickets have ensured hefty profits for football federations while excluding most South American fans from enjoying the sport they love.
Playing against patriarchy: Muslim girls in India own the ‘male Space’ by playing football
While many think that gender equality in sport is utopian, there has been a growing movement where people are coming forward to talk and fix the problem of patriarchy.
Myanmar unites against anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination after tragic death of a young gay librarian
Kyaw Zin Win wrote in his last note, "[Myanmar] is a country that mocks the identity and existence of a person".
What will it take to combat digital authoritarianism in Southeast Asia?
"Applied to the Philippines and the rest of Southeast Asia, digital authoritarianism refers to how the internet has been weaponized in aid of existing authoritarian regimes."
China's censored histories: The evolving blacklist on Tiananmen Massacre
The blacklist shows an ongoing struggle between those vowing never to forget and authorities attempting to erase this piece of history from collective memory.
Turkey’s ‘Academics for Peace’ defend their beliefs from prison cells and exile
Turkish universities are being gutted of critical thinkers while academics serve time for showing solidarity with their fellow citizens.
Trinidad & Tobago's ‘Bike Man’ takes cycling to new heights
Trinidad and Tobago loves its "heights" -- and a skilful cyclist on a homemade bike that reaches 10-12 feet in height does not disappoint.
Climber who captured viral image of Mount Everest traffic is on a quest to conquer the world's 14 highest peaks in record-breaking time
There are only 14 mountains that are higher than 8,000 meters and former British Gurkha soldier Nirmal Purja is on a record-breaking mission to climb all 14 peaks in just 7 months.
“Language is also a form of resistance”
"As a citizen of the Mexican State, I demand that my language, our languages and peoples, have the same opportunities to survive and exist without the fear of being extinguished. "
Myanmar disables internet access in conflict areas of Rakhine and Chin states
The government and operators did not specify when access to the internet will be restored.
‘I found myself in life': Armenian barber excels as a counsellor for his elderly compatriots
One customer worries about the weakness in his legs following a stroke, another about "young boys with hair like women."
Equal and more equal: Separatist Abkhazia's passport policy
"I love my country very much, but seeing this injustice, I just want to leave."
Parents, students threaten to sue Bhutanese employment agency after ‘learn and earn’ debacle in Japan
Many students became sick from physical and mental stress. There were also reports of forced labor, and passport theft and illegal wage deductions by employers in Japan.
New documentary explores the roots of Myanmar’s persecution of the Rohingya community
"I wish people in Myanmar see this film, since it is not only about Rohingya, it is about all ethnic minorities, who have faced persecution for years."
Trinidad & Tobago walks the talk for World Conversation Day
For the first time, Trinidad and Tobago took part in World Conversation Day via a series of offline talks about topics from creativity to aging — all streamed online, of course.
‘Silence and invisibility hide under the sham that is Mexico’s racial intermixing’
"Intermixing as biopolitics denied the existence of black communities in this land."
Hong Kong anti-extradition protesters paralyze government and police operations
Among the demands made by Hong Kong's anti-extradition protesters is an independent investigation of police brutality in relation to the clashes on June 12.
‘Is vagina a dirty word?’ Ugandan feminist Stella Nyanzi's court battle continues
Nyanzi battles for her freedom of expression. Besides this case, Nyanzi still faces charges other charges of cyber harassment and offensive communication.