newsjiffy

Cuban blogger Yoani Sanchez attacked on way to march

2009-11-09T21:09:00.003Z

Cuban blogger Yonai Sanchez has been attacked while on her way with three friends to a march of young Cubans opposed to the Communist regime.

It is presumed that the attackers, who tried to force them into a car, were state security agents.

Whenthe four refused to get into the car, they were brutally attacked.

Sanchez and one of her friends were thrown in and driven a short distance and then thrown into a street, while two others were taken to a police station in a patrol car (summoned by their orginal attackers) and then released.

On her blog Generation Y, Sanchez vividly describes the assault and attempted kidnap:

Near 23rd Street, just at the Avenida de los Presidentes roundabout, we saw a black car, made in China, pull up with three heavily built strangers. "Yoani, get in the car," one told me while grabbing me forcefully by the wrist. The other two surrounded Claudia Cadelo, Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo, and a friend who was accompanying us to the march against violence. The ironies of life, it was an evening filled with punches, shouts and obscenities on what should have passed as a day of peace and harmony. The same "aggressors" called for a patrol car which took my other two companions, Orlando and I were condemned to the car with yellow plates, the terrifying world of lawlessness and the impunity of Armageddon.

Sanchez told El Nuevo Herald: "No blood, but black and blues, punches, pulled hairs, blows to the head, kidneys, knee and chest...in short, professional violence."

Last year, Harry's Place reported on how Cuban Ministry of the Interior agents tried to prevent Yoani Sanchez and her husband from holding a workshop for bloggers in Pinar del Río.

Time magazine has named Sanchez one of the world's 100 most influential people. Last month, the Cuban government refused to let Sanchez visit New York to receive a top journalism prize, while her blog Generation Y is often blocked in CUba.

Recently, Yoani Sanchez has blogged about a visit to the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Arts and Industry, where several blogger friends of hers were prevented from entering, despite the event being free for all, and journalist José Alejandro, who had the courage to speak out against media censorship in Cuba.

Along the Malecón reports that some supporters of Yonai Sanchez are using her photo as their Facebook profile photo in order to show their solidarity.

The Miami Herald also reports that a dozen Cuban bloggers and over one hundred Internet Sites recently took part in a virtual protest, "using Tweets, text messages and blog posts to send out messages like ``Freedom'' and demanding the release of all political prisoners".

One country that is not bothered by the repressive regime in Cuba is Russia. According to General Nikolai Makarov in September, the Russian military will help train Cuban military personnel and repair old Soviet military equipment.

Twenty years since the Berlin Wall fell

2009-11-09T19:56:00.003Z

Twenty years ago on this day, the Berlin Wall was brought down, removing the division between Communist East Germany and Capitalist West Germany.

Shortly afterwards, the Communist regime in East Germany collapsed and German unity (Deutsche Einheit) took place.

Five thousand people attempted to escape from East to West Berlin via the Wall.

One hundred were killed doing so. They are being remembered today.

An article in Spiegal International on files kept on East Germans by the secret polic (Stasi) makes fascinating reading:

Herbert Ziehm, who now heads up the department of requests for the Birthler Authority -- which manages the Stasi files -- said that the East German spooks also took notes on details that smacked of bourgeoisie. Ziehm, an East German, told SPIEGEL ONLINE that a look into his own file revealed that "the Stasi were very intrigued as to why my wife could drive and had a car even though she was a housewife." He added: "They were also fascinated by the fact that we were teetotallers and non-smokers. While after 20 years you can still laugh at the absurdity of it all, you always have to remember that people were getting arrested for the tiniest things."

West Germany is by no means perfect, and the past twelve months have shown how flawed capitalism is, but it was a much better place to live in than repressive East Germany.

Any regime that bans George Orwell's Ninteen Eighty-Four is no friend of dissent.

A minority, such as Morning Star columnist Neil Clark and Bruni de la Motte, mourn the fall of the German Democratic Republic.

However, the majority of Germans still feel that the demise of the Soviet Union is a good thing.

Celebrations are currently taking place in Berlin, including a line of 1,000 foam dominoes set up along the wall to be pushed over by former Polish President Lech Walesa, representing the collapse of Communism.

Via Harry's Place, the moment that the Berlin Wall fell:

The Berlin Twitterwall has been set up to allow people to share their thoughts on the Berlin Wall via Twitter.

Mercedes Butnz writes about other digital media projects related to the fall of the Berlin Wall at the Guardian's PDA Digital Content blog.

Disability hate crime in Cornwall

2009-11-08T18:25:00.010Z

While the motives for the recent murder of Mary Fox in Bodmin, Cornwall, are not yet known, it is fairly clear that her son Raum Fox has been a victim of hate crime in the past.

According to The Times, Raum had been bullied at Bodmin College about his acne and reported learning difficulties. He recently moved to St Austell College to escape the bullying.

As with the Fiona Pilkington case, there are reports of local youths being vicious.

Kerry Ollerenshaw, a 36-year-old care worker and friend, told The Times: "The kids on this estate can be very harsh. They hang around in groups, harassing and intimidating and Raum was a victim of that", while Gary Breslin told the Daily Mirror: "They have caused trouble round here, criminal damage and stuff like that. And I know that Mary's boy was being bullied."

Social networking sites are now being examined by police to discover who put the firework through the Foxs' door.

Three teenagers aged between 12 and 16 were spotted chanting "shame, shame, shame" as the Foxs tried to escape, according to the Sunday Express.

Superintendent Martin Orpe told a meeting: ""To suggest that earlier press reports regarding the systematic intimidation or bullying of either of them was a cause of this incident is purely speculation and is unfounded at this time."

Devon and Cornwall police claim that no complaints of harassment were made by the Foxs.

Outrage was expressed in the media and by politicians when the news that Fiona Pilkington had killed herself and her daughter to escape abuse and intimidation from local thugs was first reported.

Has anything really changed? Has popular culture become less intolerant of those who are different? Are those committing the abuse being punished harshly? Are we tough enough on yobs who destroy communities?

Given that one of the alleged principal tormentors of Fiona Pilkington, Alex Simmons, has only just received an Anti-Social Behaviour Order (hardly a harsh punishment), I do wonder.

According to the Leicester Mercury, Anthony Warner Thorne, of Bardon Road, Josh Warner Thorne, of the same address, and Billy Joe Kenney, 20, of Elwell Avenue, Barwell have also received Anti-Social Behaviour Orders.

As with Bardon, the Berryfields Estate, where Mary Fox lived, seems to be a dangerous place for anyone who is different. I hope that community leaders work to change this.

I also hope that Bodmin College does more to prevent bullying. No-one should be harassed because of a disability.

Anyone with information should call Devon and Cornwall Police on 08452 777 444 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Tunisian blogger Fatma Riahi released from police custody

2009-11-08T17:17:00.005Z

Tunisan blogger Fatma Riahi, who is known online as Arabicca, has been released by police investigating whether she is the author of Blog de Z, according to a posting on the Free Arabicca blog.

According to Al Jazeera, Riahi was first summoned to appear before the Criminal Brigade of Gorjani in Tunis on Monday.

She was released only to be arrested the next day. Her home was searched, and her computer was confiscated, while police accessed her social media accounts.

During this time, she recieved little access to her lawyer Laila Ben Debba.

Riahi has not yet been charged as the police claim her file has not yet been given to a prosecutor, however if convicted she may face a three year prison sentence.

It is still possible that she may be re-arrested.

Join the Facebook group to show your solidarity with Fatma Riahi.

She has done nothing wrong, and neither has the author of Blog de Z, whose latest cartoon is of a bird with an "I'm not Fatma" sign.

Riahi's friend and fellow blogger Aymen Jamani gave the Los Angeles Times a copy of Riahi's final post before she removed her blog shortly before she was first arrested:

An exerpt:

Wanting to live free, read the newspaper you want, meet with friends or colleagues in a coffee house to discuss the development plan proposed by the municipality or the government, for coastal protection, the devastating side effects of the construction of a Marina, the curriculum of our children, to organize a concert of solidarity with a cause, to develop a campaign for the candidate best able to convey our ideas...to create an association to safeguard the Andalusian music or Berber language or to support victims of floods, to create a journal, write an article...participate in the organization of city life, it seems that this is what POLITICS means.

Unsurprisingly for a regime so keen to stifle dissent, a number of bloggers
have been arrested by the Tunisian authorities.

Global Voices Online ranks Tunisia as the country which arrested the fourth highest amount of bloggers in the past few years.

Only China, Egypt and Iran arrested more.

Journalism in Tunisia is also under threat.

On October 29th, Taoufik Ben Brik was arrested last week on charges of assault, which Reporters Without Borders regard as "bogus".

Ben Brik recently published a number of articles critical of the government of Tunisia in the French press.

Journalist Slim Boukhdhir was also attacked by five men on October 20th, two hours after he gave an interview alleging a lack of press freedom in Tunisia to the BBC, Amnesty International reports.

Argentina's ex-President Reynaldo Bignone is on trial for torture and mass murder

2009-11-03T22:13:00.006Z

The trial of former President of Argentina Reynaldo Bignone has begun in Argentina, according to the BBC.

Also on trial are five of his former army officers, including intelligence chief General Santiago Omar Riveros, and a Buenos Aires police commissione.

The seven are accused of the kidnapping,torture and murder of 56 people, committed in the Campo de Mayo dentention centre between 1976 and 1978, according to Momento24

Reynaldo Bignone was the last military ruler of Argentina, ending a long line of brutal dictators that began in March 1976 when the military junta first seized power.

Human rights groups estimate that 30,000 people died or went missing during purges of junta opponents between 1976 and 1983.

He had been under house arrest before the trial.

The case has taken six years to reach court and the ruling will be announced sometime in February 2010.

Taty Almeida, a member of Mothers of Plaza de Mayo, an association of Argentine mothers whose children went "missing" during the junta's rule, told Al Jazeera: "When I see them there I feel repulsed but I also feel a great deal of achievement because they're being put on trial."

Amnesty laws prevented former junta officers from facing trial for human rights abuses until they were struck down in 2005 by Argentina's Supreme Court, during the rule of President Nestor Kirchner.

Global Day of Solidarity with Iran on November 4th (13 Aban)

2009-11-03T21:37:00.006Z

Demonstrations will take place across the world on November 4th 2009 in support of those calling for democratic reform in Iran.

In London, there will be a demonstration outside the Iranian Embassy, 16 Prince’s Gate London, SW7 1PT, from 6pm until 9pm.

The nearest tube is South Kensington on the District, Piccadilly and Circle Lines.

November 4th is when students gather outside the former U.S. embassy.

Usually, according to Robin Wright of Time Magazine, they protest about American actions.

This year, they are protesting against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Supreme Leader Ayatullah Ali Khamenei.

The day is called 13 Aban on the Iranian calendar.

Other cities where I am aware of demonstrations are Paris (5pm until 7pm at the Place Saint-Michel,75006 Paris.The nearest Metro is Saint-Michel,Métro ligne 4 & RER B) and Frankfurt (at the Römerberg from 6pm).

If you know where other 13 Aban demonstrations are taking place, post below.

The year-long imprisonment of blogger Hossein Derakhshan, known as Hoder online, is but one reason to show solidarity.

Survivor of Sierra Leone's civil war Mariatu Kamara to have autobiography published tommorow

2009-11-01T20:53:00.005Z

Tired of the latest whinging rubbish by a D-list celebrity?

Want to read about someone interesting for a change?

Mariatu Kamara, who was captured and mutilated by soliders during Sierra Leone's civil war when she was twelve, will have her autobiography Bite of the Mango published tommorow.

The book, written with Susan McClelland and published by Bloomsbury, is on sale at £9.99 and you can obtain a copy for £8.49 at the Mail Bookshop.

Kamara is now living in Toronto, Canada. She is a Unicef Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflicts and is also studying to be a counsellor for abused women and children.

She has also set up the Mariatu Foundation.

You can read an extract from Bite of the Mango in the Daily Mail.

Sierra Leone's civil war, which began in 1991, caused the deaths of around 100,000 people as well as the displacement of millions. It ended in 2002.

Soliders from the Revolutionary United Front, who wanted to depose the government, were responsible for countless murders and mutiliations, including cutting off Mariatu Kamara's hands.

Sadly, the news that a survivor of a brutal civil war, who has used her life to help others, has published her life story, has recieved far less prominance in the British media than Stephen Fry's Twitter spat or Lady Gaga's Hello Kitty shoot.

British National Party candidate used to supply execution equipment

2009-11-01T20:38:00.000Z

What charming candidates the British National Party have.

David Lucas, a British National Party candidate for the East of England during the 2009 European elections and a Lakenheath Parish Council member, has been charged with various firearms offences.

Of even more interest is that Lucas used to make mobile execution chambers and said that he would: "sell them to whoever wants to buy them", until the European Union outlawed this trade in July 2006 when the European Commission Trade Regulation was brought in.

Lucas told the Newmarket Journal that he had not done business with Zimbabwe, but the People has alleged that a reporter posing as a representative of Robert Mugabe met Lucas in 2006 and was told: "They still use these [mobile execution chambers] in places like Libya and a few years ago I did some business with Zimbabwe so I know what your problems are."

We told him we wanted new gallows for provincial prisons in Zimbabwe and admired British craftsmanship. Lucas said proudly: "I have two systems - the traditional platform gallows or the mobile units which I have designed myself."

He pointed to an articulated lorry trailer and said: "I build trap doors into the bottom and you can have them with the sides open so people can see.

"Depending on the length of the trailer you could use five or six gallows at the same time.

"They are expensive but you can use them over and over again. Say you only have one execution team - that's all you would need.

Bringing back the death penalty is British National Party policy.

On their website, their webmaster Simon Bennett claims: "As most (if not all) of our readers will know, the British National Party have always supported the re-introduction of the Death Penalty in the United Kingdom."

However, I wonder how many British National Party members would support someone who has been alleged to have traded with Mugabe's Zimbabwe and Gaddaffi's Libya. I doubt the People story was part of his campaign literature.

It is rather disturbing that he sits on Lakenheath Parish Council.

I am glad the European Union has stopped the sale of mobile gallows, in particular when they are sold to despotic countries with little rule of law.

I would hope that anyone stupid enough to vote for the British National Party will at least consider David Lucas' former trade if he is a candidate again.

Labour plans to cut costs of elections abandoned

2009-10-31T18:22:00.011Z

It is not often I say this, but well done Jack Straw.

The Justice Secretary has announced that plans to close polling stations,replace polling cards with e-mail or call centre contacts and limit the number of hours during one can vote on election days, as reported in The Times yesterday, have been abandoned.

Although this plan was presented as a way to save money (from the party who brought you the Millenium Dome in 2000), I believe that it would have had the effect of further reducing participation in a basic human right.

Dizzy, in a fascinating analysis, alleges that: "the proposals themselves [were] rather blatantly designed to stifle the non-Labour vote and silence opposition of the fringe candidates who threaten to split their core vote".

He goes on to mention that reducing the number of polling stations will have a huge effect on those in rural areas: "What sort of voters live in rural areas? Couldn't perhaps be non-Labour voters could it? What about the elderly and infirm?"

The cost of participating in elections would have increased, and Dizzy regards this as a way of preventing Labour votes going to the British National Party: "Then there is a rather nifty idea of increasing the deposit for candidates. An excellent way to reduce the number of candidates on the ballots to only those from well-funded organisation. Handy if you're seeing your vote leak like a bucket full of holes to the BNP in former Labour strongholds. The best way to tackle the BNP is to make it harder for them to stand then they won't split your vote right?"

While I have no proof that these proposals were created in order to prevent a decrease in the Labour vote, I regard them as anti-democratic and shameful, and am glad they are not going ahead.

The annoucement by Jack Straw, who claimed he had not seen these plans, was only made after The Times got hold of the documents and published them yesterday.

The Ministry of Justice told The Times yesterday that the draft proposals were "work in progress", also saying that the paper they were contained was part of the normal negotiations with the Treasury during a spending round.

The Times reports that other proposals included reducing pay for election staff, transferring the running of the elections from local councils to the Electoral Commission and having fixed-term parliaments.

The latter idea of fixed-term parliaments is actually quite a good one, meaning that the Prime Minister cannot call an election when it suits him or her. David Cameron argued for these in May.

However, every other proposal published by the Times yesterday would have further reduced participation in British politics.

Death threats for Sri Lankan journalists who reported on alleged executions of Tamil rebels

2009-10-31T17:49:00.005Z

Two newspaper editors recieved deaths threats last week after reporting on alleged video footage of Sri Lankan government soldiers executing Tamil prisoners.

Frederica Jansz and Munza Mushataq, editors of The Sunday Leader, recieved the handwritten letters on 22nd October, according to ARTICLE 19.

The newspapers’s previous editor Lasantha Wickrematunge was assassinated in January, three weeks after receiving a similar death threat.

After his death, The Sunday Leader published a posthumous editorial by Wickrematunge where he blamed the Sri Lankan Government for attacks on journalists, saying: "Electronic and print media institutions have been burnt, bombed, sealed and coerced. Countless journalists have been harassed, threatened and killed. It has been my honour to belong to all those categories and now especially the last."

Journalist and former Convener of the Sri Lankan Free Media Movement Uvindu Kurukulasuriya told ARTICLE 19: "The Sri Lankan government has failed to investigate the murder of Lasantha and bring his killers to justice and now there are the same death threats against his successors."

ARTICLE 19 has called on the Sri Lankan government to immediately investigate the death threats against The Sunday Leader editor-in-chief Frederica Jansz and news editor Munza Mushataq, and to ensure the safety of both women.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has ordered an investigation, the BBC reports.

The footage, which was shown on Channel Four earlier this year, can be seen at Channel Four's World News Blog.

A recent US State Department report has also highlighted allegations that Sri Lankan troops or paramilitaries killed Tamil civilians during fighting with Tamil Tiger rebels.

Suren Surendiran, a member of the British Tamils Forum, claimed in the Guardian on Monday 26 October that "Sri Lanka has committed nearly every form of crime against humanity".

Phil Woolas is wrong on Zimbabwe

2009-10-30T23:44:00.002Z

Immigration Minister Phil Woolas has announced that the Home Office will begin removing 10,000 failed asylum seekers from Zimbabwe, according to Alan Travis in the Guardian.

Repatriation packages worth up to £6,000 will also be offered to failed asylum seekers to go home voluntarily.

Woolas commented on the Home Office Website: "The situation in Zimbabwe is improving under the Inclusive Government, and we will be looking to normalise our returns policy progressively as and when the political situation develops".

Is this the same Zimbabwe where President Mugabe's Zanu-PF has been accused of attacking Movement for Democratic Change spokespeople, where two Zimbabwe Election Support Network staff members can be arrested for "conducting a meeting without first seeking police clearance" and where there are still concerns over lack of press freedom?

Recently, the United Nations' torture investigator was refused entry to Zimbabwe, telling the BBC "I have never in any other country been treated in such a manner."

Amnesty International Africa Programme Director Erwin van der Borght said: "Dozens of human rights and MDC activists are on trial for simply exercising their internationally recognised rights, including the rights to freedom of association, peaceful assembly and expression. Some of these people were victims of enforced disappearance in 2008."

Zimbabwe is still a dangerous place. The forced removal of asylum seekers needs to be opposed by people across the political spectrum.

I would note that the Left are vocal about the Middle East, with Sussex University's student union voting to boycott Israeli produce in Union stores, but mostly silent on Zimbabwe.

It has been left to the Right and moderates in Britain to speak out against Mugabe. This must change.

Large turnout for vigil against hate crime in Trafalgar Square

2009-10-30T23:36:00.007Z

Tonight's vigil against hate crime had an excellent turnout, with Trafalgar Square packed with people holding candles.

Held in response to the murder of Ian Baynham, those present heard speeches from a number of supporters, including Darren Johnson MEP, a representative from London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard and Europe Minister Chris Bryant.

A sea of candles was laid out near Nelson's column, and some were also used to spell out "No". No to hate crime and homophobia.

At nine o' clock, a two minutes' silence was held before comedian Sue Perkins read out the names of some of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual people murdered in Britain in the past ten years.

Comedian Stephen K.Amos ended the event by reminding those present that "we shall overcome", before the Gay Men's Chorus sang You'll Never Walk Alone, a beautiful end to the vigil.

Pinknews.co.uk reports that 1,192 homophobic offences were recorded between September 2008 and September 2009, showing how much there is to overcome.

The London vigil was organised by 17-24-30, whose name remembers the three bombings carried out against the gay community by nail bomber David Copeland in 1999.

Liverppol vigil in response to homophobic attack on PC James Parks:

A vigil will be taking place in Liverpool on Sunday 1st November outside Superstar Boudoir in Stanley Street, where trainee police officer James Parks was attacked on Sunday 25th October.

The vigil is organised by the Friends of Liverpool Gay Community and Scene, and will begin at 8pm.

Rwandan milita leader Desire Munyaneza convicted of genocide

2009-10-29T21:19:00.002Z

The first case brought under Canada's 2000 War Crimes Act has seen former milita leader Desire Munyaneza sentenced to life without the prospect of parole for 25 years for genocide committed in 1994.

According to the BBC, Desire Munyaneza was accused of leading a militia whose members raped and killed dozens of Tutsis, and of orchestrating a massacre of between 300 and 400 Tutsis in a church.

The judge wrote that Desire Munyaneza: "chose to kill, rape and pillage in the name of the supremacy of his ethnic group, reminding us that every time a man claims to belong to a superior race, a chosen people, humanity is in danger." How true the latter comment is.

A profile of the milita leader can be seen on Trial Watch.

The Rwandan genocide of 1994 saw the murder of hundreds of thousands of Tutsis and moderate Hutus by exteremists Hutus.

In related news, the trial of former Bosinan president Radovan Karadžić continues in the International Criminal Court.

Vigil against hate crime in Trafalgar Square on Friday 30th October in memory of Ian Baynham

2009-10-29T20:54:00.005Z

A candelit vigil will be taking place in Trafalgar Square, Central London on Friday 30th October opposing hate crime.

Ian Baynham, from south-east London was attacked there last month in a homophobic assualt, dying in hospital.

Organiser Ian Healey told the News Shopper: "I'm angry that another person has been killed, and for all the pain and grief that this will cause his friends and family for years to come.

“I think it's important that his death is not in vain and that it provokes us all to do what we can to try and prevent this happening again."

The vigil starts at 8pm, with a two minuite silence at 9pm. The Gay Men's Chorus will be singing and the London Gay Wind Symphony Band will be playing, while Sandi Totsvig will be compering. It ends at 10pm.

Nearest tube is Charing Cross, on the Bakerloo and Northern lines, and other tubes and bus routes are nearby.

Paul Birrell, Chair of PrideLondon told Gay UK News: "I am sickened and saddened by this needless death. This is the fourth homophobic murder in London in the last 12 months and this has to stop!

"I am confident the Metropolitan Police will bring Ian's killers to justice and we will offer them any and all assistance in doing so. I urge Londoners to join us in Trafalgar Square on Friday, 30th October to remember Ian"

At least a dozen honour killings a year in Britain, many more unreported to police

2009-10-25T18:22:00.011Z

According to police estimates, at least twelve people are murdered each year by relatives who have accused the of "dishonouring" them.

Many of these cases have involved forced marriages, but according to Tracy McVeigh in the Observer, honour-based violence has also occurred due to girls wearing makeup or talking to boys.

Many honour killings are also hidden from the police, made to look like accidents or forced suicides.

Support groups around Britain are working to combat this problem. The Henna Foundation is based in Cardiff, and Karma Nirvana, set up in Derby by Jasvinder Sanghera, whose sister was forced into a marriage, has recorded 300 calls a month.

In Leeds, HALT Domestic Violence has already helped issue one injunction using the Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007, according to the Yorkshire Evening Post.

According to Claire Ward, Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Justice, there have been 64 forced marriage protection orders between the act's implementation on 25 November 2008 and 31st August 2009.

Clearly, more needs to be done to prevent forced marriage and honour killings in the UK.

Diana Nammi, who runs the Iranian and Kurdish Women's Rights Organisation in London, has told the Guardian that: "Those who are lagging behind now are the religious leaders. They may pay lip service to change but they have networks and contacts and they are not trying to change anything.

"Sharia courts are letting Muslim women down and I am sorry to say that the British government is turning a blind eye to these courts. We have civil laws that cover every individual; none of these religious courts provide the same rights and protections for women."

In London, the Crown Prosecution Service has announced an increase in the number of specialist prosecutors dealing with honour-related violence.

Acting Chief Crown Prosecutor for London, Nazir Afzal OBE, who spoke at the conference where this was announced, has also presented a short DVD on honour-related crime which will be sent to every police officer in Britain.

Pressure now needs to be put on religious leaders to condemn honour-related violence, both in their preaching and when visiting those who worship with them.

Former Bosnian President Radovan Karadžić to be tried tommorow for war crimes

2009-10-25T16:36:00.007Z

Radovan Karadžić, the former President of Bosnia, will go on trial tommorow at the International Criminal Court, located in the Netherlands.

Karadžić is charged with eleven counts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity during the 1992-6 Bosnian War, including his role in the siege of Sarajevo, the treatment of detainees in prison camps and the Srebrenica massacre, where over eight thousand people were killed.

One of those who will testify against him is Dzezana Sokolovic, whose seven year old son was killed by a Serbian sniper during the siege of Sarajevo in 1994.

During the four year siege, 10,000 people were killed or went missing, with the capital's population reduced by over half to 334,663 in 1995 due to deaths and forced migration.

The former president, who denies all charges, refuses to attend the start of the trial at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, according to the New York Times, claiming that he needs more time to prepare his defence.

A few days ago, he asked to delay the trial by ten months. He has also claimed that that US diplomat Richard Holbrooke offered him immunity from prosecution in return for withdrawing from politics, an argument rejected by the court.

Director of the Sense news agency Mirko Klarin has told the Guardian that he believes a defence counsel may eventually be imposed.

The trial of Slobodan Milosevic, also accused of war crimes during the Bosnian War, took four years and was still taking place when the former president of Serbia and Yogoslavia died.

Anthony Dworkin, of the Crimes of War Project, which studies war crimes law, told the Telegraph: "The court has learned lessons from the Milosevic trial so I think it will be a bit different...They will be a bit tougher on him, and they have narrowed it to the key points. I also think it will be relatively uncomplicated to link Karadzic to the ethnic cleansing campaign in Bosnia. He was much closer to events on the ground than Milosevic, and many of the other people who served alongside him in the Bosnian Serb leadership have already been convicted

Radovan Karadžić was arrested in July 2008 in Belgrade, after twelve years in hiding. He had assumed the identity of Dragan David Dabić, a practitioner in alternative medicine, and sold amulets on his website.

Also awaiting trial are Karadžić's former security chief Jovica Stanisic and nationalist leader Vojislav Seselj.

Britain criticised over attempts to send back asylum seekers to central Iraq

2009-10-24T14:33:00.004+01:00

The United Nations refugee agency has criticised European countries for sending asylum seekers back to central Iraq, according to the BBC.

Unlike the relativly safe Kurdish region in Northern Iraq, where failed asylum seekers have been sent back to up until recently, central Iraq is plagued by bombings and oppression from extremists.

Britain, Denmark and Sweden were cited by the agency as three examples of countries who have sent asylum seekers back to this area.

Last week, it emerged that Iraqi army officers at Baghdad Airport blocked an attempt by the British Government to send back 39 Iraqi detainees, allowing ten to voluntarity disembark and the rest to return to the United Kingdom.

Sandy Buchan, the chief executive of Refugee Action, told the Guardian: "If Baghdad is now deemed to be safe then where on earth is deemed dangerous? The Foreign Office itself has stated that even peaceful and non-political aid agencies like the Red Cross are not safe from attack.

"We believe that people who come from areas where there is widespread violence or human rights abuses should be granted temporary humanitarian protection until the situation in their country changes."

Asylum seekers have also been deported back to Afghanistan, according to the Daily Telegraph, which highlights the £120,000 cost to British taxpayers.

Asylum seekers in Britain forced to live on £5 a day:

Even those asylum seekers who are allowed to remain in Britain aren't allowed to work, instead recieving benefits which will be cut to £5 per day.

In a letter to the Sheffield Star, Graham Jones from Sheffield Amnesty International Group rightly says: "There is no point in creating a situation in this country where thousands of people live below the survival line. Much better to give them the opportunity to work legally or give them adequate support."

Of course, making asylum seekers live on benefits paid for by the taxpayer also allows political parties to use them as scapegoats at election time, including the British National Party.

Taliban threaten to attack voters in Afghanistan elections

2009-10-24T14:02:00.006+01:00

The Taliban has contacted news agencies with a statement warning of violence against those taking part in the Afghanistan elections on November 7th.

According to the BBC, Taliban forces fired rockets at polling stations during the elections in August, while at least two voters had their ink-stained fingers cut off.

"The Islamic emirate (of Afghanistan) once again informs all the people that no one should participate in this American process and should boycott the process" the statement warned, according to Al-Jazeera.

The election could also be affected by the threat of candidate Abdullah Abdullah to pull out unless officials from the government-appointed Independent Election Commission (IEC) were replaced.

Richard Holbrooke, the special U.S. envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, has however told Radio Free Europe that he believes extra troop numbers and greater experience will make this election a success.

Campaigning for the Novemeber 7th Afghanistan elections began today.

Southeast Asian nations launch new human rights commission

2009-10-23T20:56:00.001+01:00

A new human rights commission was launched by Southeast Asian nations today at a summitt in Hua Hin, Thailand, according to Al Jazeera.

The Asean Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights will be able to promote human rights, according to the New York Times, but will not be able to investigate governments or impose sanctions.

The commission has already faced hostility from the powerful, with the governments of governments of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines and Singapore refusing to meet with nominated representatives today.

Thai, Malaysian and Indonesian representatives refused to attend, while the remaining representatives, many of whom were chosen by their governments, were not allowed to speak at the meeting, according to Malaysian national news agency Bernama.com.

Yuyun Wahyuningrum, an Indonesian human rights delegate who walked out of a meeting with government representatives today, told the New York Times that human rights groups supported the creation of the commission, but were concerned that it was not independent enough, with commissioners chosen by governments without outside consultation.

Rafendi Djamin, of the Asean Human Rights Commission, told Al Jazeera: "Everything cannot be done instantaneously. Yes, criticisms will arise, but the need to pay attention to human rights is vital, and the commission will be in its development stages for some time to come."

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of Thailand, who formally launched the Asean Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights, said that US$200,000 is available to fund the body.

As Al-Jazeera reminds me, Asea includes an absolute monarchy, a dictatorship and two communist states, while the host city of Thailand has deployed tens of thousands of soliders and police both in Bangkok and Hua Hin in order to prevent anti-government protesters storming the venue as they did in at the East Asian Summitt in Pattaya.

Let us hope the Asean Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights does make a difference.

New theme for Newsjiffy

2009-10-23T20:08:00.005+01:00

I have many interests.

I am interested in local news from Walthamstow, national and international news, Web 2.0, financial news and transport news.

All these, as well as other topics, have featured on my blog during the two and a half years it has been running.

One interest of mine is human and animal welfare. I have therefore decided to blog mainly on human rights, with the occasional animal-related post as well.

All around the world, people are facing hardship.

In Britain, we have just heard that the worst recession for generations is continuing to contract, destroying jobs, savings and often hope. Extremism is flourishing, and we are all being told that it is partly out fault by the elite for borrowing too much. I didn't, and neither did the majority.

I hope that this blog will go some way to publicising the opression faced by people around the world, from homosexuals in many parts of the UK to opponents of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran.

Over the next few months, I will see how well this works.

My posts from before October 2009 can still be read on here.

Life imprisonment proposed for homosexuals in Uganda

2009-10-18T11:15:00.002+01:00

A proposed new bill currently being debated by the Ugandan Parliament will allow a life sentence for homosexuality.

The bill, tabled by Ndorwa West MP David Bahati and seconded by Moroto County MP Obua Benson Ogwal, would also sentence to death anyone who has gay sex with a disabled person or someone under eighteen, according to PinkNews.

Bahati, who says his bill will protect children, youths and the "traditional family", dubbed this new crime "aggravated homosexuality".

The "promotion" of homosexuality will also become illegial. Punishable by a fine and five to seven years in jail, this would include funding gay organizations and publishing material on homosexuality.

Kate Sheill, Amnesty International’s expert on sexual rights, told Pink News: "Certain provisions in this bill are illegal; they are also immoral. They criminalise a sector of society for being who they are, when what the government should be doing instead is protecting them from discrimination and abuse."

In Uganda's Independent, Bob Roberts Katende says: "Though I may care about homosexuals existing in society, but eliminating them through death is a totally different thing. I think there are a host of less callous avenues to deal with the problem."

Uganda's Penal Code Article 145a already prohibits "carnal knowledge of any person against the order of nature", used to oppress gay people, according to the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission.

Oppose this new law against homosexuality (scroll down halfway when you click this link).

The author of the GayUganda blog also has some ideas on how Ugandans and those outside Uganda can oppose this law.

See the content of the bill.

The Ugandan tabloid Red Pepper is another instrument of homophobia in that country, referring to "bum shafters" in a foul anoymous article entitled "We have homos in cabinet".

Why not let them know what you think at infoATredpepper.co.ug

Estate agent wasting electricity in Walthamstow

2009-10-18T11:04:00.002+01:00

Is there really any need for the estate agents Lifestyle Property, located at 306 Hoe Street Walthamstow, to have a television showing Sky News in their window?

Is anyone really going to stand on the pavement outside watching it, especially when they cannot hear the sound, and can only really know what is going on from the news ticker at the bottom.

Much as I like Sky News, I don't think estate agents need to be using the earth's natural resources to broadcast it to the street outside.

I won't be using Lifestyle Property until they stop wasting electricty. I'll also be avoiding any other estate agent with a television stuck in its window. What's wrong with the little cards they usually use?

What examples are there of shops wasting electricty in your area?

Book Review: True Blue Strange Tales from a Tory Nation by Chris Horrie and David Matthews

2009-10-17T20:00:00.006+01:00

I've not only read most of Chris Horrie's and David Matthew's books, but have met the authors as well due to their connections with the University of Westminster, where I studied an MA in Journalism. Chris interviewed me back in February 2007, while David taught me for the Feature writing segment of the course, which I found hugely interesting.

I was invited to the book launch as well, but due to another commitiment I couldn't go, though one of my friends went to the launch party at the Cobden Club in Kensal Road, West London near Westborne Park tube.

It was hardly surprising that I'd obtain a copy of their combined efforts, an observation of the modern Conservative Party and their cherished causes narrated by Chris Horrie. Call me biased, but it's rather brilliant.

Chris and David join the local Conservative Party in Richmond, an upmarket area of South West London, during the 2005 election campaign in order to discover more about what makes modern Tories tick .

They travel round Britain to meet conservative people engaged in conservative pastimes, such as the members of Rodmell's cricket team in Sussex and Countryside Alliance members at the Royal Show in Stoneleigh, Warwickshire.

Highlights include a rather bigoted speech given at a Conservative Way Forward dinner in London by former Industry Secretary Cecil Parkinson, where he allegedly praised Ian Smith and white minority rule in Africa, the difference between how Michael Howard and Boris Johnson campaign, and Chris Horrie's reaction to the Richmond Tories putting a huge Conservative sign up in his garden.

David Matthews and Chris Horrie conclude at the end of their hilarious tour of True Blue England that most members of the Conservative Party are elderly, more kindly than the majority of British people (though I would hold up a number of exceptions from their leaders, including former Conservative candidate and Conservative Party member Ian Oakley, documented in the book), and slightly unsure of how to relate to people who aren't white.

I would recommend anything written by Chris Horrie or David Matthews (this does sound a bit gushing I agree).

David Matthews has written Looking For a Fight, about the world of boxing, and Man Bites Dog, about dog racing, while Chris Horrie has written a number of books on the media including Tabloid Nation: From the Birth of the Mirror to the Death of the Tabloid Newspaper and Citizen Greg, about former BBC director general and current chair of the British Film Institute Greg Dyke.

David is still teaching journalism at the University of Westminster while Chris is teaching journalism at Winchester University.

One million empty homes across Britain

2009-10-17T19:10:00.004+01:00

Given the number of homeless people on Britain's streets, it is a national scandal how many homes are empty.

The Guardian reports on London mansions left to rot, and quotes this disturbing statistic:

One million homes are expected to be empty in the UK this year, despite 1.8 million Britons being on the waiting list for social housing, according to Inside Housing magazine's Empty Promises campaign

One way you can help is to support the Empty Homes Agency, an independent charity.

Inside Housing is also running a campaign against empty homes.

If you know a home which has been empty for several months, report it at the Empty Homes site.

In Waltham Forest, the borough which contains Walthamstow where I live, there are 2,715 homes empty according to the Department for Communities and Local Government.

This is a shocking situation. All political parties need to provide a response to the empty homes crisis.

Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg, what are your ideas to end this scandal?

Sheffield Social Centre squat evicted:

One way that empty properties are used is squatting.

Recently Pisgah House,a derelict listed building owned by the University of Sheffield, was squatted and turned into a social centre.

After eviction the social centre moved to a former National Health Service building, which they have also been evicted from.

Events that took place had included workshops on squatting and eviction, a reading group and a discussion on climate change.

You can see an interview with a member of the squatting group on the Forge Media website, which is the website for Sheffield University's student media, as well as a comment piece on the Sheffield Activist Network, who use the squat.

Good luck to the Sheffield squatters: those who are opposed to squatting should bear in mind that if leaving a home empty for a period of six months or more was made illegal then there would be less need for squatting.

Students at the University of Sheffield should also protest at the waste of an empty building as well as university funds used to evict squatters.

Leaving a building empty for a long period should be a crime when there are people sleeping on the streets.

Sky News and Channel Four explore new ways to promote content online

2009-10-16T21:25:00.006+01:00

Sky News, where I interned for three weeks in April 2008, launched a live online feed this week, according to the excellent Medianetwork.

You can access the online feed by visiting the Sky News homepage and scrolling down to Watch Live News on the right, just below Latest News in Video.

Julian March, Senior Executive Producer for Sky News Online, said: "The enhancements we have launched today on skynews.com reinforce our total commitment to video on the site. Breaking news in video is right at the top of our offering. We're delighted to showcase the great quality of Sky Player, and to give non-Sky customers access to just one of the many channels available to subscribers."

Medianetwork also reports that Channel Four has decided to upload shows to the video sharing site Youtube after broadcasting them on television.

According to Business Week, the first full-length content will appear in the new few months, with the partnership between Channel Four and Youtube running for three years.

CEO Andy Duncan told the London Daily News:

"Making our programmes directly accessible to YouTube's 20 million UK users will financially benefit both Channel 4 and our independent production partners and help bolster our investment in quality British content. It demonstrates our ability to strike dynamic commercial partnerships to help underpin our future as a commercially funded, not-for-profit multi-platform public service network".

The London Daily News reports that Michael Grade has hinted that ITV may do the same.

It is interesting that Channel Four already has a watch again service, 4ondemand.

One wonders if not enough people are aware of 4ondemand, as Basheera Khan in the Telegraph writes, or if Channel Four is trying to stem the flow of unauthorised clips of their shows on Youtube.

Sadly, only United Kingdom users will be able to view the shows. Youtube allows the uploader to filter by country those who view the clips.

The Scottish Daily Record also reports that imported programmes will not be uploaded.