Dozens of children have been killed and hundreds arbitrarily detained in Myanmar since a coup more than five months ago, UN rights experts warned Friday. The UN child rights committee said it had received “credible information” that 75 children had been killed and around 1,000 arrested in Myanmar since February 1. “Children in Myanmar are […]
rights
US warns Egypt over crackdown on rights activists
The United States on Wednesday warned Egypt not to target rights campaigners after a prominent activist was indicted, saying the issue would be a factor in arms sales to the ally. Hossam Bahgat, executive director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, said this week that prosecutors indicted him and that his trial would start […]
Social media regulation threatens rights, UN warns
The United Nations on Wednesday warned that public and private actors are intervening against online content in ways that curtail rights and muzzle criticism. “You see a digital world that is unwelcoming and frequently unsafe for people trying to exercise their rights,” said Peggy Hicks of the UN Rights Office in Geneva. “You also see […]
Georgian MPs seek PM’s resignation over cameraman’s death
Opposition lawmakers in Georgia on Monday disrupted parliament to demand the prime minister’s resignation after a cameraman died, blaming the ruling party for the latest attack on journalists. Alexander Lashkarava, who worked for an independent TV news channel called Pirveli, died on Sunday — days after he was beaten by far-right activists during a protest […]
Iran summons Slovenia envoy over PM’s ‘baseless’ rights charges
Iran denounced Sunday what it labelled “baseless accusations” made by Slovenia’s Premier Janez Jansa at a meeting of an opposition group reviled by Tehran, and summoned its ambassador. The foreign ministry charged that Jansa’s participation at a meeting Saturday of the exiled People’s Mujahedin (MEK) was “unacceptable and undiplomatic”. It said it had summoned Slovenia’s […]
5-year jail term for Morocco journalist sparks condemnation
The sentencing of a Moroccan journalist to five years in prison for indecent assault sparked condemnation Saturday, with media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) deploring a trial “tainted by irregularities”. A Casablanca court on Friday sentenced Soulaimane Raissouni — on hunger strike for more than 90 days — after convicting him of indecent assault against […]
Family of slain Cambodia activist Kem Ley mark five year anniversary
As the family of slain Cambodian activist Kem Ley rebuild their lives in Australia, his youngest son, born just months after the assassination, acts as a human timepiece measuring the years since the five brothers lost their father. Kem Ley, a popular analyst and critic who dabbled in grassroots politics, was shot at point-blank range […]
Moroccan journalist gets 5-year jail term for ‘indecent assault’
Detained Moroccan journalist Soulaimane Raissouni was sentenced on Friday to five years in jail for indecent assault against another man. Raissouni, editor-in-chief of now-defunct newspaper Akhbar Al Yaoum, denies the charge and has been on a hunger strike for 93 days. He was not present in court for the sentencing. His supporters say the case […]
Keep politics out of the Games: Olympics chief
Olympics chief Thomas Bach pleaded Wednesday for politics to be kept out of the Games, saying they would otherwise become as divisive as other areas of society. The Olympic movement needs to be kept neutral and cannot be expected to solve civil liberties issues that politics had failed to fix, Bach said in a video […]
Thousands rally in Georgia to protest anti-LGBTQ violence
Thousands rallied Tuesday in the Georgian capital Tbilisi to denounce attacks on the LGBTQ community that shocked the Caucasus nation and forced activists to cancel a planned Pride march. Pride events are still controversial in the conservative country where the powerful Orthodox Church has previously clashed with Western-leaning governments over progressive social issues. On Monday, […]