Human rights

On International Human Rights Day on Tuesday, all nine accused in the Bhima Koregaon violence wrote to the chairperson of the State Human Rights Commission, “condemning the environment of fear and criminalisation promoted by the State wherein the human rights of Indian citizens and especially those of human rights defenders who are critical of State policies are under threat.”Human rights advocates Surendra Gadling, Sudha Bharadwaj; writer Sudhir Dhawale; Mahesh Raut, who works for tribals; professor Shoma Sen; activists Rona Wilson, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves; and poet Varavara Rao who are in Yerwada jail wrote, “It is our strong contention that the State has arrested and continues to imprison us due to our long standing dissenting views as human rights defenders.” With the over 18-month incarceration, it said, “the Indian State seeks to create an environment of fear where all such voices critical of the government are warned that their human … [Read more...] about Bhima Koregaon accused write to human rights panel

        The United States has blacklisted former Karachi police officer Rao Anwar for “serious human rights abuses” during his term as Senior Superintendent Police for allegedly killing dozens of innocent people including Waziristan native Naqeebullah Mehsud in “staged” police encounters.Former SSP Malir Anwar, known as an encounter specialist, is among 18 individuals from six countries that the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed economic sanctions on for their alleged engagement in human rights violationsTuesday’s announcement was made in connection with International Human Rights Day.Anwar was accused of staging scores of fake police encounters in which a number of individuals were killed in Karachi.“The former cop was involved in over 190 police encounters that resulted in the deaths of over 400 people, including the murder of Naqeebullah Mehsood,” according to the … [Read more...] about US blacklists Pak cop Rao Anwar for corruption, serious human rights abuse

Xi's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind helps address challenges that global governance faces, experts say President Xi Jinping's idea of building a community with a shared future for mankind offers Chinese wisdom and solutions in promoting fairer and more reasonable global human rights governance, experts said. The vision — with pursuit of common progress and development at its core — represents bright prospects for human rights development, and will encourage developing countries to jointly oppose double standards in international human rights, they said. The two-day 2019 South-South Human Rights Forum, jointly hosted by the State Council Information Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, opened in Beijing on Tuesday, Human Rights Day, which falls on Dec 10 every year to commemorate the day the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. Lionel Vairon, CEO of CEC Consulting in Luxembourg and … [Read more...] about Nation’s wisdom promotes human rights cause

Video PlayerClose BEIJING, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The progress made in the field of human rights protection in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is a hard fact that cannot be disputed. Human rights include first and foremost the rights to life, subsistence and development. For Xinjiang, a vast borderland of challenging terrain, much has been done to develop the local economy, thus granting the people a better life. Xinjiang's economy has expanded 80 fold since the autonomous region was established in 1955. With a better economy, people's living standards improved. Since 2014, nearly 3 million people have shaken off poverty in Xinjiang. Today, Xinjiang is peaceful and moving fast toward prosperity. But the current peace did not come easily. It was hard-earned. Until only a few years ago, Xinjiang often fell victim to violent terrorist attacks which killed many innocent people. It was precisely the regional government's decisive counter-terrorism measures including the … [Read more...] about Commentary: Xinjiang’s human rights progress an indisputable fact

Video PlayerClose MOGADISHU, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The UN senior envoy in Somalia on Tuesday called on the country's youth to build on progress made to date in enshrining human rights as a vital foundation of their society. James Swan, the special representative of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia, said the promotion and protection of human rights is a key element in a country's path to peace and stability. "Somalia has made progress in this area. With youth making up the majority of the country's population, the onus will lie with them to ensure that Somali society continues in this direction," Swan said in a statement issued to mark Human Rights Day. He said the UN is encouraged by the steps made by the Somali government this year to increase the protection of human rights and to uphold its international obligations. This progress, the UN envoy said, includes the government's re-engagement with international human rights mechanisms, and the passing of the Women's Charter for … [Read more...] about UN calls on Somali youth to promote human rights protection for stability