News Jan 11, 2018 Turkey’s top court rules that two jailed journalists be released (Reuters) – Turkey’s Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday that jailed journalists Mehmet Altan and Sahin Alpay be released, saying their rights have been violated, broadcaster CNN Turk reported. There was…
News Jan 10, 2017 HRF Pres. writes on Venezuelan corruption in New York Post Venezuela is no longer a country with a government, institutions and a civil society. It’s a geographic area terrorized by a criminal enterprise that pretends to govern, with a civil society made up of two sets of people: accomplices and victims.
News Jan 10, 2018 Tunisia protests: Why are people taking to the streets? (CNN) – Demonstrators have taken to the streets in a number of Tunisian cities this week, calling for the government to scrap new austerity measures which include a hike in fuel prices and taxes on goods.
News Jan 10, 2018 Rights Groups Condemn Chechnya Activist’s ‘Abduction’ (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) – Human rights groups in Russia and abroad are condemning the detention of a leading activist in Chechnya on a narcotics charge they contend was fabricated,…
News Jan 9, 2018 Tunisia’s Opposition Urges More Protests (U.S. News & World Report) – Tunisia’s main opposition party on Tuesday called for protests to continue until the government scraps its “unjust” 2018 budget including price and tax hikes, a day after one demonstrator was killed in clashes.
News Jan 9, 2018 Iran protests: 3,700 people were arrested during Iran protests (CNN) – Roughly 3,700 people were arrested during recent anti-government protests in Iran, one of the country’s lawmakers claimed on Tuesday.
News Jan 9, 2018 Beijing Builds Its Influence in the American Media During China’s 19th Party Congress, held in Beijing from Oct. 18 to 24, the country’s state-controlled domestic media dutifully gave the dry, jargon-filled proceedings wall-to-wall front-page coverage.
News Jan 9, 2018 Turkmenistan dictator bans black cars because he likes white ones (Times of Malta) – Gurbanguly Berdimukhamedow, the dictator of the oppressive central Asian nation, has decided to ban black cars from the capital city Ashgabat.
News Jan 8, 2018 Egypt to hold presidential election March 26-28 (The Washington Post) – The chairman of Egypt’s election commission said Monday that the presidential election will be held March 26-28, with a runoff in April.
News Jan 8, 2018 Zimbabwe Releases American Charged With Insulting Mugabe HARARE, Zimbabwe — An American woman who was arrested in Zimbabwe in November over a tweet mocking Robert Mugabe, weeks before he was forced out as president, was set free on Thursday after state prosecutors failed to prepare their case.
News Jan 8, 2018 U.S. Sanctions Four More Venezuela Officials (The New York Times) – The U.S. government imposed sanctions Friday on four Venezuelan officials, accusing them of engaging in political repression and public corruption as part of President Nicolás Maduro’s government.
News Jan 8, 2018 Hungary fines main opposition party over billboards (Reuters) – Hungary’s State Audit Office (ASZ) has fined the main, nationalist opposition party Jobbik 331.66 million forints ($1.29 million) for an anti-government billboard campaign funded by a wealthy adversary of Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
News Jan 5, 2018 Friends of arrested Reuters reporter in Myanmar pour out hearts YANGON (Reuters) – Ever since Reuters Myanmar reporter Wa Lone was arrested on Dec. 12 on suspicion of violating the Official Secrets Act, friends and former colleagues have poured out their hearts and expressed hopes for his release on social media.
News Jan 5, 2018 Kyrgyz Opposition Politician Jailed For Corruption (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) – A court in Bishkek has sentenced Kyrgyz opposition politician Kanatbek Isaev to 12 years in prison on corruption charges.
News Jan 5, 2018 UN experts urge Iran to respect rights of protesters (CNN) – UN human rights experts urged Iranian authorities to respect the rights of protesters and voiced concern over Tehran’s restriction of social messaging services in a joint statement issued Friday by the UN agency for human rights.
News Jan 5, 2018 Venezuelan criminals are using food to recruit children into gangs (Miami Herald) – Venezuelan gangs are no longer recruiting youths in some poor areas by offering them easy money to buy clothes or the latest cell phones. Instead, they are offering food baskets.
News Jan 4, 2018 Tibetan activist put on trial in China for inciting separatism A Tibetan language activist who appeared in a New York Times video has been put on trial for separatism in proceedings dismissed as a “sham” by rights groups, a sign of increasingly hardline attitudes towards government critics.
News Jan 3, 2018 Ethiopia announces release of political prisoners (The Washington Post) – Ethiopia’s prime minister shocked the country Wednesday by announcing the release of all political prisoners and the closure of a notorious detention center to promote political dialogue.
News Jan 3, 2018 Somalia: UN Concerned Over Destruction of Humanitarian Infrastructure (UN News Centre) – A senior United Nations official in Somalia expressed deep concern over reports of the unannounced destruction of settlements for internally displaced persons (IDPs) as well as humanitarian infrastructure in Mogadishu.
News Jan 3, 2018 Deaths and detentions as Cameroon cracks down on anglophone activists (The Guardian) – Felix Agbor Nkongho looked over his shoulder at a secluded Yaoundé cafe. As a leader of Cameroon’s growing anglophone rights movement, he had reason to be on his guard.
