This is a story not known to many Americans. It is about a journalist, caught up in the mayhem of war, in the absurdity of all or nothing/with us or against us attitude that undermined the standing of the US in the world. He spent seven years of his life in the custody of the […]
As one finds themselves fully engrossed in the holidays it is time that we take a moment to notice the little miracles that surround us everyday. To look into a child’s eyes and see the wonderment that they see, to see what one really feels when they are blessed with the spirit of giving, and […]
Report finds Haiti child slavery rampant Poverty has driven more than 225,000 children into positions as unpaid household servants across Haiti, the Pan American Development Foundation says in a report. Families unable to provide for the children send them to wealthier households to work, where some face mental and physical abuse on top of long […]
Can corruption really be stopped? With all the fuss that is made about anti-corruption programs and holding corrupt leaders to account, this is not a trivial question. There are people who argue that corruption is simply “the way things are done here” or “part of the culture,” implying that change is not possible. In this, […]
There is a blockbuster piece at Salon.com that looks at Five common mistakes in the coverage of the Copenhagen Accord. It punctures some of the fallacies that have abounded in some quarters such as that there could have been a better Accord voted on by the delegates, that the smaller developing nations rejected the Accord, […]
With the holidays coming up and getting the 2009 Year in Review together, we have been a bit light on posting. However here are some links to a few of the human rights stories from this past week. Detained in Iran, Russia, and China Last week NPR reported on three human rights stories from Iran, […]
Year in Review: This year in War Crimes began with two historical events that will change the shape of War Crimes and International Law for years to come. The first of those events: The beginning of trials at the International Criminal Court. This marks the beginning of International Criminal Justice on a truly global level. […]
(Angola Press) Kigali – The UN Security Council has given the tribunal for Rwanda’s genocide until 2012 to finish all its cases. The court, set up to try those most responsible for the genocide, was originally due to close in 2008 but some key suspects remain at large. Rwanda has long complained that the tribunal […]
(AFP) KIGALI — The acquittal by the UN court for Rwanda of a brother-in-law of former president Juvenal Habyarimana, an alleged planner of the Rwandan genocide, “shocked” Rwanda, the justice minister said Friday. Tharcisse Karugarama was speaking on national radio following the announcement of the extension to December 31, 2012 of the International Criminal Tribunal […]
As the negotiations in Copenhagen reminded us, scientific evidence demonstrates that the process of climatic change is now more concentrated and more threatening. As a result, human displacement due to environmental change remains an increasing concern in the 21st century. Populations are forced to move due to fast-paced events like hurricanes, slower processes like desertification, […]
Overview – There were critical developments, breakthroughs and some setbacks in 2009 in the policy, politics, business, economics, science, and technology of climate change and energy. There were moments of high drama in Copenhagen and Washington as well as low comedy. The landmark Waxman-Markey bill passed in the US House of Representatives, the Obama Administration […]
The impact of the global financial crisis creates an illusion that there are real prospects for effective co-operation to reach long-term global goals. Despite China’s immaculate hosting of the Olympic Games and its inevitable rise to the global negotiation tables as a key decision-maker, reality forces her to come to terms with her own pressing […]
Female Genital Mutilation (Circumcision) (FGM) is a human rights violation that follows women and girls across the globe. In the last few years news has begun to shed a little more light on the global fight, which in many ways is only in its infancy. In February 2008 10 UN agencies urge end to female […]
Reflections of a retired Baby Boomer Topic: Year in Review Overview: Overall defense issues played out pretty much as expected in 2009. In a January 27, 2009 testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates identified Afghanistan as the greatest military challenge and stated “we have not had […]