Schools should be safe places for children — even during wartime. Emina Ćerimović On an autumn afternoon in 1993, following heavy artillery fire, my older sister Edina gave me a backpack and rushed me through deserted streets to a local…
Category: Human rights
Greece: A year of suffering for asylum seekers
EU-Turkey deal traps people in abuse and denies them refuge Athens – The EU-Turkey deal has trapped thousands of people in abysmal conditions on the Greek islands for the past year, while denying most access to asylum procedures and refugee…
Annan commission for access to Rakhine’s affected areas
BD, Myanmar should activate joint commission, strengthen ties, it suggests Dhaka, Mar 16 – The Myanmar government and the Rakhine State government should allow full and unimpeded humanitarian access to all areas affected by recent violence, suggests Annan commission on…
Protect miniroty rights against xenophobia: UN expert
She calls for urgent action to safeguard progress made in minority rights protection Geneva, Mar 16 – Expressing concern over the increase in hate crimes against minorities worldwide, a United Nations expert has called for swift guarantees to safeguard achievements…
Australia slammed for not backing probe of Rohingya Repression
The Turnbull government has refused to back an international investigation into atrocities against Rohingya Muslims despite a motion passed in the Senate urging Australia to call for a United Nations commission of inquiry. Australia’s statement at the UN Human Rights…
PM seeks AL’s reelection for continuation of dev
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday again urged the country’s people to cast their votes in favour of Awami League and its symbol ‘Boat’ in all the future elections for the continuation of development activities. “Awami League means development, so…
South Asia Poverty Report 2016 Launched in Colombo
South Asia Alliance for Poverty Eradication (SAAPE) has launched its fifth triennial Poverty Report in Colombo, Sri Lanka on 10 March, 2017 at the Women’s Education and Research Centre. Dinushika Dissanayake, Executive Director of Law & Society Trust (LST), Colombo,…
‘UN rights panel divided on best Myanmar probe path’
Geneva, Mar 14 (AP/UNB) — A U.N. expert on Myanmar says she’s “disappointed” at the lack of “appetite” at the Human Rights Council to back her call for the creation of Commission of Inquiry into alleged crimes against the Rohingya…
Burma victims deserve justice
Burma’s ethnic Rohingya Muslims are fleeing for their lives. Thousands of their homes were burned and many were killed and raped by Burmese soldiers. Burma’s military and civilian officials dismissed reports of these horrors as “fabricated news and rumors” and…
Breaking France’s addiction to its state of emergency
Like an addict, France does not know how to quit its state of emergency even though it has become clear that maintaining it erodes the rule of law and fosters human rights abuses while not keeping the country safer. The…
AL to accept people’s mandate in next polls: Quader
Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader on Friday said their party will accept the people’s mandate even it if loses the next general election. “The Prime Minister will respect people’s verdict even if she is defeated in the next parliamentary…
Cluster bombs being used by Saudi coalition forces in Yemen
Brazilian-made cluster munitions used on residential areas of Sa’da city One Yemeni mother describes a bomb ‘coming into the bedroom through the ceiling’ Incident comes after UK cluster munition use in Yemen discovered by Amnesty Amnesty International has corroborated new…
Two policemen identified for setting Santal homes ablaze
Two policemen were identified for their involvement directly in setting fire to the houses of Santal community during the eviction drive in Gobindaganj upazila, according to probe reports submitted by police administration. Rangpur Range Deputy Inspectors General (DIGs) of police…
HC orders transfer of Khaleda’s graft case to another court
The High Court (HC) on Wednesday ordered the transfer of the case of Zia Orphanage Trust graft to Dhaka Senior Special Judge’s Court (Metropolitan Session Judge’s Court) from Dhaka Special Judge’s Court-3. An HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim…
Release those jailed for no crime: PM
Underscoring the need for releasing those now in jail for no crime, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said the victims can also ask for compensation from the authorities concerned. Replying to a tabled question from Jatiya Party MP Nurul…
Pesticides detrimental to the rights to food and health: UN
A report by the UN’s Special Rapporteur on the right to food being presented to the Human Rights Council this week states that “Pesticides, which have been aggressively promoted, are a global human rights concern, and their use can have…
End gender-based violence: 16 envoys on Women’s Day
Dhaka, Mar 8 – Sisteen heads of foreign missions, stationed in Dhaka, have called upon all to stand with them and their Bangladeshi sisters and male allies to end gender-based violence (GBV) once and for all. “We call upon each…
On the Ground in Iraq’s Battle Civilians Caught in the Crossfire
The city of Mosul has been in the news lately as the Iraqi central government and Kurdistan Regional Government, with the support of a United States-led international coalition, undertook operations in October to retake the city—a last major urban stronghold…
A world without borders: Richer, fairer, and more free
By Nathan Smith Across the West today, a rising populist right is blaming established elites for letting in too many immigrants. The immigrants, the populists complain, lower wages, dilute the local culture, and pose a threat to national security. But…
BNP will join election after having poll-time neutral govt: Kh Mosharraf
Dhaka – The BNP will take part in the next general polls only after establishing a neutral election-time government, says BNP standing committee member Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain.
Why urgent review of Farakka Barrage necessary
GreenWatch Dhaka NewsDesk The demand recently made by the Indian state of Bihar to decommission the Farakka Barrage on the Ganges was positively scrutinised and some urgent steps were recommended to save Bihar from the recurrent flood problem attributed to…
BNP has no choice but to join polls, says Quader
Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader on Friday said BNP will have join the next general election since the party is at the risk of losing its registration if it boycotts the polls again. “As the January-5 election didn’t wait…
Legalising child marriage threatens girls’ safety: HRW
Bangladesh government should move quickly to adopt regulations to limit the harms of a new law that “legalises” child marriage, said the Human Rights Watch (HRW). “The focus now must be on containing the damage caused by Bangladesh legalising child…
Human Rights Violations in Rakhine State
To: Permanent Representatives of Member and Observer States of the United Nations Human Rights Council Geneva, 3 March 2017 Re: UN-mandated international Commission of Inquiry or similar international mechanism to investigate serious human rights violations in Rakhine State, Myanmar.
Philippines: Police deceit in ‘Drug War’ killings
Manila – Philippine police are falsifying evidence to justify unlawful killings in a “war on drugs” that has caused more than 7,000 deaths, Human Rights Watch said today in a new report. President Rodrigo Duterte and other senior officials have…
New Election Commission should get back people’s confidence
Dhaka – Country’s eminent citizens yesterday said that the major challenge of the newly appointed Election Commission (EC) is to bring back people’s trust on them that they would not be adherent to any political party.
20-Party lends support to BNP candidate in Comilla mayoral poll
Dhaka – The BNP-led 20-party alliance yesterday extended all out support to BNP mayoral candidate Monirul Haque Sakku in the upcoming Comilla City Corporation election.
Will democracy survive big data, artificial intelligence?
We are in the middle of a technological upheaval that will transform the way society is organized. We must make the right decisions now By Dirk Helbing, Bruno S. Frey, Gerd Gigerenzer, Ernst Hafen, Michael Hagner, Yvonne Hofstetter, Jeroen van…
Month of independence begins Wednesday
March, the historical month of independence, begins tomorrow when the nation will be observing the 46th anniversary of independence on the 26th March paying the highest homage to the war heroes who made Bangladesh a sovereign state. The nation engaged…
Russia: Don’t Veto Sanctions for Syria Chemical Attacks
Russia and other United Nations Security Council members should support a proposed resolution that would impose sanctions on Syrian government officials responsible for chemical attacks, Human Rights Watch said today. The Security Council is expected to vote on the resolution…