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Tag Archives: human rights abuses
American Justice? Two-and-a Half Cheers for the Department of Homeland Security!
This is a troubling, but moving story. It is about Ibrahim Parlak, a Kurd born in a small farming village in southeast Turkey in 1962. Being a Kurd in Turkey is not easy. As a minority ethnic and religious group, Kurds in Turkey have historically been … Continue reading
Posted in News, Original Content
Tagged department of homeland security, education, education in europe, farming village, human rights abuses, ibrahim parlak, interrogation, Kurd, Kurdish, kurds in turkey, military coup, military jail, Minority, oppression, police, southeast turkey, story, student, turkish consulate, Two-and-a
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Obama’s Pursuit of Sanctions Came at Expense of Human Rights
When the United States’ efforts to pass new Iran sanctions finally came to fruition just days before the June 12 anniversary of Iran’s dubious presidential elections, some observers concluded that the new sanctions must have been a result of the Irania… Continue reading
The Inside Story On Marjah
Round-up of today’s AfPak news.Amnesty: Northwest Pakistan a “rights-free zone.” A new report by Amnesty International, titled “As if Hell Fell on Me: The Human Rights Crisis in Northwest Pakistan,” blasts the Pakistani government for neglecting the ne… Continue reading
Posted in News, Original Content
Tagged AfPak, Amnesty, amnesty international, army, BBC, blasts, border region, crisis, free zone, Human, human rights abuses, human rights crisis, Islamabad, Marjah, pakistani army, pakistani government, region, story, today, tribal areas
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Controlling enablers in the conflict mineral trade
By Enrico Carisch, Advisor to Human Rights First
Congress is poised to take action to confront one of the most intractable problems in one of the most violent places on earth: conflict minerals in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Despite 10 years of United Nations reporting about vicious violence connected with gold, tin, coltan and wolframite, many international refining and trading companies insist, implicitly or explicitly, that their due diligence need not extend to the origins of these minerals. Well-intentioned governments have trotted out half-hearted responses to block this funding source for illegal militias and soldiers who commit gross human rights abuses in the Congo.
Posted in News, Original Content
Tagged action, advisor, carisch, coltan, conflict, Congo, Congress, democratic republic of the congo, due diligence, earth, earth conflict, eastern Democratic Republic, Enrico Carisch, gold, gold tin, Human, human rights abuses, human rights first, republic of the congo, Rights, United, violence
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The Real Story of China in Africa
If we believe the news headlines, China is propping up dictators, dispensing billions of dollars for shady deals, and destroying whole ecosystems in its quest to extract oil and minerals from Africa. Beijing’s scramble for Africa will establish a new era of resource colonialism, and intensify corruption, human rights abuses and economic dependence on the continent. The Dragon’s Gift, a new book by Deborah Brautigam, looks behind this media hype. It offers surprising insights and challenges us to take a new look at Africa’s development.
In 1978, an emerging powerhouse from East Asia found a new way to access the resources of a poor developing country. It offered $10 billion in loans, which the borrowing government had to repay in oil and coal. Before the year was over, the borrower had taken up more than 70 such loans, all of them to be repaid in oil. The deals were touted as a form of “win-win” cooperation. They go to the heart of China’s role in Africa. Surely, you will suspect, they must have resulted in a debt spiral and continued economic dependence?
Posted in News, Original Content
Tagged Africa, Beijing, China, colonialism, continent, corruption, Deborah Brautigam, debt spiral, dependence, developing country, dictators, East Asia, economic dependence, era, human rights abuses, media hype, News, oil, quest, Resource, scramble, scramble for africa, shady deals
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Women: The Oil That Turns the Wheels for ‘I Live Here’
This post was written with contributions from Erica Solomon and Judy Battaglia, both directors for the I Live Here foundation.
Mia Kirshner: The oil that turns the wheels of I Live Here Projects are women who volunteer for I Live Here. The projects are a series of book anthologies about human rights abuses all over the world. With each anthology, we provide programs to better the lives of the subjects that worked with us. Each of these women came to I Live Here for very different reasons. The ladies that work with us have full time jobs and, dare I say, struggle to make ends meet. In spite of that, they treat I Live Here like another full-time job. It’s pretty amazing to watch I Live Here swell this little movement. I Live Here now belongs to all these amazing women who have propelled us forward. In honor of International Women’s Day and the late nights of work, the heart and sometimes the frustration, I thought it was important to introduce you to some of the women who are the glue to I Live Here.
Posted in News, Original Content
Tagged anthologies, anthology, book, different reasons, erica, Erica Solomon, Foundation, full time job, glue, human rights abuses, I Live, international women, Judy Battaglia, Mia Kirshner, oil, Post, series, time, time jobs, volunteer, work, world
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How to Stop Torture – Proposal to Pelosi
For those of us Americans who oppose torture, including the use of water-boarding during the interrogation of detainees, it is a national priority to address the past human rights abuses committed by U.S. military personnel and military contractors in Iraq, Afghanistan and the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay. If the present system inherited from the Bush administration continues, there should be criminal convictions of military personnel for human rights abuses committed during the course of the “war on terror.” However, Congress seems to be in no mood to chase U.S. military operatives who have committed human rights abuses. Nor does the White House seem inclined to investigate, let alone prosecute, human rights abuses. Hopefully, the Supreme Court might be found to be a haven for rights. Just maybe. So, realistically then, aside from our appropriate rage and continuing protest, what can be done to reform how we protect our national interests while upholding human rights standards?
Our military people believe that the present system of detaining and interrogating people suspected of being connected to terrorism allows for C.I.A. and Blackwater types to enjoy relative immunity while the average soldier runs a risk of going to jail for following orders. Thus, in cases where someone with good information is picked up and he or she needs to be interrogated properly and efficiently, we have a split in American military operations at a critical time. The prisoner, it is assumed, has real information which would save lives and help our soldiers avoid bodily harm. How best to get this information is the question. Who is responsible for that work? How can the United States operate so that the rules of warfare are not violated? And how can the United States credibly assert that it is not torturing detainees? The average soldier is not likely to know the rules and appropriate procedures for interrogating detainees. The C.I.A. and Blackwater types are not to be trusted without oversight and enforceable guidelines. A clear-cut process is needed.
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Tagged Afghanistan, Blackwater, bodily harm, Bush, C.I.A, criminal convictions, critical time, detention, detention facility, facility, going to jail, Guantanamo Bay, human rights abuses, information, interrogation, Iraq, military contractors, national priority, present system, priority, relative immunity, soldier, System, U.S., United States, use
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Human Rights Watch To Obama: Less Rhetoric, More Action
As abusive governments intensified their attacks on human rights defenders and journalists documenting rights violations in 2009, the Obama administration delivered little but rhetoric in response, Human Rights Watch said today in issuing its World Report 2010.
According to the 612-page report that summarizes major human rights trends worldwide, the “devastating series of killings and threats” against lawyers, activists and journalists fighting human rights abuses in Burma, China, North Korea, Russia, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Afghanistan, Iran and a number of other countries over the past year is an unfortunate side effect of renewed human rights movements in those countries.
Posted in News, Original Content
Tagged administration, Afghanistan, Burma, China, Human, human rights abuses, human rights defenders, human rights movements, human rights watch, Iran, Kenya, killings, North Korea, Obama, report, response, rhetoric, Rights, Russia, Sri Lanka, today, unfortunate side effect, watch, world
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