Stories about Human Rights from October, 2015
Bangladesh Book Publishers Suffer Fatal Attacks in Wake of Blogger Killings
Both publishers had ties with Bangladeshi-American blogger and author Avijit Roy, who was attacked and killed in February 2015.
Latin American Art Show in Italy Promotes Compassion for Refugees and Immigrants
MirgrArte Postale explores immigration through 125 art postcards by 96 artists from 14 countries.
Iranian Student Held Without Charge, Pressured to Make False Confession
"Judicial officials...should not arrest youths and pass heavy judgments against them every time they criticize. My son should be sitting in class and studying right now.”
Indian Scholars Return Their National Awards to Protest Rising Intolerance
"We have never seen an atmosphere like this in India before. There never was any fear to freely voice one’s opinions."
‘Tajikistan's Aylan': A Migrant Child Dies in the Arms of the Russian Authorities
"Umar! Your death is the symbol of feebleness and dishonesty, Be my nation's pure herald before God."
Women Survivors Speak Out About Indonesia’s 1965 Mass Killings
“I was told I was only being taken in for questioning. It turns out I would be held for 14 years. From 1965 until December 1979. We never got justice."
Netizen Report: US Tech Companies Grapple with EU Data Rules in a Post-Snowden World
Ukraine rolls out Russian-style Internet blacklist, Cuba releases artist-blogger "El Sexto" after 10 months in prison, and Bahrain jails Zainab Al-Khawaja for insulting the king.
Demonstrators in Peru March 180 Miles to Protest Lead Poisoning in Children
The mining wealth of Cerro de Pasco in Peru has poisoned children with lead, and several dozen people decided to stage a 300-kilometer march in protest.
Social Media Help Trinidad and Tobago Police Arrest Child Abuser
Trinidad and Tobago used its social media powers for good this past week, when Internet users circulated video of a child abuse incident that led to two arrests.
From Okinawa to the UN, the Protest Against a US Military Base Continues
Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga went to the UN to address human rights violations he says the Japanese and American governments have committed.
Free Alaa Campaign Takes Social Media by Storm on the First Anniversary of His Imprisonment
Alaa Abd El Fattah has spent a year in prison for his activism. He has four more to serve. Netizens are making noise on his first year anniversary calling for his freedom.
Jailed for Anti-Monarchy Graffiti, Thai Musician Gets Support on Social Media
Opas C, a 68-year-old Thai, is serving a three-year jail term for writing an anti-monarchy graffiti in a mall toilet.
#FeesMustFall Hashtag in South Africa Turns Into #FeesHaveFallen. But Have They?
"The reality is that #FeesHaveFallen has been hushed into FeesHaveNotFallen. Nothing's changed; something has been prevented."
‘Our Detention Tells a Broader Story About Our Country': Reflections From Ethiopia's Zone9 Bloggers
"To our incarcerators who gave us those ordeals, even if you are not asking us for forgiveness, here we are."
Manhunt for Drug Dealer ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán in Mexico Leaves Citizens Displaced and Property Damaged
Internally displaced persons and damaged property in North Mexico are the result of the army's clashes with the gangs aimed at recapturing the leader of the international Sinaloa drug cartel.
Red Dresses Keep the Memory of Canada’s Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women Alive
Installation art project the REDress Project seeks to draw attention to the injustice faced by Canada's Aboriginal women: about 1,200 Aboriginal women have been murdered or gone missing since 1980.
Drug Trade and War Against Organized Crime Create Ghost Towns in Mexico
Organized crime in Mexico and the violence that comes with it have created a mass of displaced people forced to leave their homes, creating "ghost towns" in their wake.
Bomb Attack On Shia Gathering in Dhaka Raises Questions in Bangladesh
The Islamic State group has reportedly claimed responsibility for the Hussaini Dalan bomb attack, which killed one and injured over sixty others.
#FeesMustFall Brings South African Universities to a Standstill
Students argue that increases will keep poor, mostly black South Africans from higher education. Protests against the proposed university fee hikes, which started last Wednesday, and have spread nationwide.
Precarity and Resilience in Calais
"We are from countries that have been colonised or had wars fought against them—by the same countries that now treat us like criminals and make us risk our lives...”
Two Sides of the Reality: A Summer Lesson in Chios Island
For residents of the Greek island of Chios, the past summer brought a lesson that "will continue. . . as long as the misery inside and outside our country persists."
