The Bangladeshi government has expelled scores of Rohingya refugee children from schools in southeast Bangladesh since late January 2019, Human Rights Watch said today. Officials have ordered secondary schools near the refugee settlements in the Cox’s Bazar district to dismiss Rohingya students,…
GENEVA, Apr 1 2019 (IPS) – They are ordinary people – mothers, fathers, sisters, sons, daughters, brothers, friends. But for me they are extraordinary people – the ones who have the courage to stand up for everyone else’s rights. They are…
Dhaka, Apr 1 (UNB)— UN refugee agency UNHCR donated five buses for students of local colleges in Ukhiya and Cox’s Bazar city. The gesture is part of the agency’s appreciation of the local community’s role in responding to the Rohingya…
Disbelief and a hint of fear flashed across Zuzana Čaputová’s face as the news broke. After explaining to the Guardian how she would bolster the rule of law in Slovakia if elected president, Čaputová, a 45-year-old lawyer and the frontrunner…
The Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW), a Non-Governmental Organisation in Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council has in a statement said, Universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights and gender equality are foundational…
Dhaka, Mar 31 (UNB) – Stating that an impossible thing can be made possible through unity, Jatiya Oikyafront convener Dr Kamal Hossain on Sunday urged people to launch a united movement to ‘restore’ democracy in the country. “It’s mentioned in…
Dhaka, March 31 –The FR Tower, where a deadly blaze on last Thursday killed 26 people, is declared as “unusable until further notice” by a government probe committee as not only the building is badly fire-gutted but also has evinced…
UNITED NATIONS, Mar 29 2019 (IPS) – People with disabilities are being left behind, and steps must be taken to ensure their inclusion in the world of education and work. Approximately 15 percent of the world’s population, or an estimated one…
France’s highest court recently ruled that controversial bone tests to assess the age of unaccompanied migrant children are flawed, but nevertheless comply with France’s Constitution. The Constitutional Council acknowledged that such tests contain a “significant margin of error”. They have been the…
Dhaka, Mar 28 (UNB) – Stressing the importance of upholding human rights in enforcing laws, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday asked Rab members to be careful so that people are not unnecessarily harassed while taking actions against criminals. “Actions…
‘Western democracy is in crisis.’ Many pundits and scholars rehearse this narrative, in which the rise of populism and illiberalism are presented as challenging national democracies and the European Union. To address this challenge, it is suggested that existing democratic…
ROME, Mar 22 2019 (IPS) – If we ever needed proof of how the political system has become self-referential and unable to update itself, the latest student march in more than 1,000 towns is a very good example. Of course, politicians…
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the arch-rival of the ruling Awami League, yesterday accused the government of turning Bangladesh into a state of enforced disappearances. “Numerous leaders and activists of BNP and opposition have been victims of enforced disappearances…The government now…
Dhaka, March 20 – The High Court (HC) on Wednesday banned the making of any movie or drama on Jaha Alam, who was wrongly imprisoned for three years in place of the real accused, in connection with more than two…
Geneva (Kanaga Raja) – During the large-scale demonstrations that began in Gaza on 30 March 2018, individual members of the Israeli Security Forces, in the course of their response to the demonstrations, killed and injured civilians who were neither directly…
UNITED NATIONS, Mar 19 2019 (IPS) – Modern slavery and human trafficking is one of the fastest growing criminal industries and one of the biggest human rights crises today, United Nations and government officials said. During an event as part of…
(New York) – Thailand’s military government has failed to create conditions for a free and fair national election on March 24, 2019, Human Rights Watch said. The process for forming a new government, in which the junta-appointed Senate will have half the…
Dhaka, March 18 – The Anti-Corruption Commission or ACC is going to file a petition with the High Court today (Tuesday) seeking a stay order on making of a film based on the story of the wrongly imprisoned Jaha Alam.…
Dhaka, Mar 18 (UNB) – Bangladesh has rejected the US State Department’s 2018 country reports on human rights practices saying many things about Bangladesh mentioned in the report ‘by and large’ more applicable to the US rather than Bangladesh. “I’ve…
Christchurch, Mar 17 (AP/UNB)— The attributes that helped Jacinda Ardern rise to become New Zealand’s leader at age 37 include her optimistic outlook and bright personality. And she became an inspiration to working women around the world last year when…
JOHANNESBURG, Mar 8 2019 (IPS) – Africa is facing dire times. Climate change is having major impacts on the region and on agriculture in particular, with smallholder farmers, and especially women, facing drought, general lack of water, shifting seasons, and floods…
UNITED NATIONS, Mar 7 2019 (IPS) – The United Nations, which diligently monitors human rights violations worldwide, believes that centuries-old slavery still exists worldwide. The UN mandate on “contemporary forms of slavery” includes, but is not limited to, issues such as:…
By Tharanga Yakupitiyage UN, Mar 8 2019 (IPS) – It is time to rise up and fight a long-neglected taboo: menstruation. Marking International Women’s Day, United Nations human rights experts called on the international community to break taboos around menstruation,…
ACCRA/MONTEVIDEO, Mar 5 2019 (IPS) – The theme for International Women’s Day this year doesn’t resonate with us. #BalanceForBetter brings to mind slow gradual change, and assumes that if you provide women and girls with equal access then the society will automatically be…
Dhaka, Mar 7 (UNB) – Women’s job opportunities have barely improved globally since the early 1990s, UN labour experts said on Thursday, warning that female workers are still penalised for having children and looking after them. Released on the eve…
BHUBANESWAR, India and KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 26 2019 (IPS) – Do politicians’ words matter? Since becoming US President, Donald J Trump has dismissed his opponents and others he does not like as evil, stupid or both. He has referred to undocumented…
Dhaka, Feb 27 (UNB) – UN Secretary General’s Humanitarian Envoy Dr Ahmed Al Meraikhi on Wednesday laid emphasis on working together to find a political solution to Rohingya crisis saying humanitarian aid or action is not the only solution. “I…
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 25 2019 (IPS) – After an exhaustive study of modern day slavery, the Geneva-based International Labour Organization (ILO) concluded there are over 40 million people who are victims of slavery, including 25 million in forced labour and 15…
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 22 2019 (IPS) – Globally, youth are being left behind in education and employment, threatening the future vision of sustainable, inclusive, and prosperous societies. In a new report, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) highlight the need…
By Dr. Hanif Hassan Ali Al Qassim Geneva, Feb 22 (IPS) – The massacre of Srebrenica will enter human history as one of our darkest chapters. From 11 to 22 July 1995, Bosnian Serb military forces massacred approximately 8,000 Muslim…