This week, the Senate will decide whether to save jobs and services, protect health care for children, fund summer jobs for youth, provide help for unemployed families, and boost the economy. In last minute surprise maneuvers, members of the House of Representatives passed a scaled back jobs bill that dropped key supports for families who […]
There is a lot of discussion on the issue of ending gender-based violence in recent media and the topic is far from new and far too widespread for many to see quick solutions and changes. However much has been done to raise awareness on gender-based violence and related issues and how they impact girls, women, and their families. […]
By Cordelia Rizzo We knew that something was wrong with Father Marcial Maciel Degollado, former leader of the Legionaires of Christ, and his order, long before he was openly accused of child abuse in the ’90s. Last month, two years after Maciel’s death, Vatican has finally officially condemned Maciel’s behavior and is effectively imposing martial […]
The legal standing of indigenous people improved earlier this week when Nicaragua ratified the only binding international law for tribal people, the International Labour Organization Convention 169. While ILO Convention 169 covers many of the same provisions as the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, unlike the UN Declaration it is legally binding […]
Children across the developing world are abused, trafficked, and forced in to situations of harsh labor, many receive little to no education, however often their stories remain silenced. IRIN has recently launched a new series of short films which illustrate the difficult challenges that many children across the globe face on a daily basis. IRIN […]
Amnesty cites torture in 111 countries Individual governments are using their diplomatic power to cripple international justice efforts and helping to drive human-rights abuses around the world, Amnesty International charges its annual report released today. The group found torture used routinely in 111 countries and called on major powers such as the U.S., China and […]
Last Friday Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued his annual report to the UN Security Council took a historic step as for the first time it included a list of violators who use child soldiers. The countries which included Somalia’s transitional government; Congo’s armed forces; Myanmar’s army; and rebel groups in Congo; Myanmar; the Philippines, Colombia; Sudan; […]
According to UNICEF, “More than 70 per cent of almost 11 million child deaths every year are attributable to six causes: diarrhoea, malaria, neonatal infection, pneumonia, preterm delivery, or lack of oxygen at birth.” Recently there has been a lot of discussion on meeting the Millenium Development Goals (MDG) as the 2015 deadline grows increasingly near […]
UN seeks more women for peacekeeping A five-year effort to increase the numbers of women involved in United Nations peacekeeping operations is producing results in police units, but lagging in military units, UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations officials say. The presence of female peacekeepers, supporters argue, can be a calming influence during tense security situations […]
Uganda, one of the more stable societies in Africa, plans to enact the death penalty for gay and lesbians who repeatedly engage in homosexual relationships. Last year, American missionaries spread their version of the Gospel in Uganda. Hatred, against gays and lesbians, was never too distant. ‘The Ugandan MP who sponsored the bill, David Bahati, […]
Many stories covered in the past week by other blogs on the Foreign Policy Blog network also have a strong human rights component to them. Here is a roundup of those stories from our own blog network: Goldstone, apartheid, and the duty of a judge: Much has been said in the blogosphere since Yedioth Ahronoth […]
On the ninety-fifth anniversary of the founding of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, the 2010 Jane Addams Peace Association‘s Children’s Book Committee announces the following Award winners and honor books. The Jane Addams Children’s Book Award is given annually to books that engage children in thinking about peace, social justice, world community, […]
By Jehan Sadat As the widow of Anwar Sadat, I cannot count myself an objective analyst of his policies; but I am not the only one who believes that the world is poorer for his absence, nor am I the first to note that statesmen of Sadat’s caliber are in short supply. Perhaps then, it […]
It’s rare that human rights activists get truly excited about anything happening in Washington, let alone celebratory. But that is not the case this week as yesterday the US took a step forward in helping end Africa’s longest running conflict with the House of Representatives passing the Lord’s Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery […]
Time magazine recently published an article which indicated that child abuse will likely climb as the economic downturn continues. The article, Study: Shaken-Baby Cases Rose During the Recession, reports on a study which was presented on May 1, 2010 at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting in Vancouver, Canada. Child-abuse expert Dr. Rachel Berger of […]