Category Archives: human rights

60 percent of West Bank without power | Maan News Agency

Crews worked overtime across the West Bank on Friday after 60 percent of the Palestinian territory\’s regions were plunged into darkness as a result of severe weather conditions.

Director General of the Jerusalem Electricity Company Said Hisham Omari told Ma\’an that there were at least 45 malfunctions in power lines across the West Bank as a result of the ongoing storm, and that although crews were working to fix them adverse driving conditions were inhibiting their work.

The majority of the power line malfunctions are located inside Israel on lines leading to the West Bank, but Israeli authorities are not fixing the malfunctions while also prohibiting the access of Palestinian crews to the areas.

Company crews were able to restore power to 80 percent of areas across large parts of Bethlehem and Jerusalem and are working hard to restore electricity to Ramallah as well, Omari said.

However, the power supply covers only 40 percent of the province as of Friday evening, and 60 percent remains in the dark, he added.

via 60 percent of West Bank without power | Maan News Agency.

British Fascists win – EU migrants (Roma and sort of Roma)face 100 new questions to make it harder to obtain benefits | UK news | theguardian.com

Income-related benefits such as housing benefit, income support and council tax benefit are to be harder for EU migrants to obtain from Friday as they face a string of 100 questions, including the reasons they were unable to find a job in their home country. They will also be asked about their ability to speak English.The new 100 questions in the fresh habitual residence test is being rushed out ahead of the transitional controls on Romanians and Bulgarians being lifted on 1 January.

via EU migrants face 100 new questions to make it harder to obtain benefits | UK news | theguardian.com.

The fourth wave of feminism: meet the rebel women | World news | The Guardian

The campaign for women\’s liberation never went away, but this year a new swell built up and broke through. Since the early summer, I\’ve been talking to feminist activists and writers for a short book, All The Rebel Women, and as I tried to keep up with the protests, marches and talks, my diary became a mess of clashing dates. The rush was such that in a single weekend in October, you could have attended a feminist freshers\’ fair in London, the North East Feminist Gathering in Newcastle, a Reclaim the Night march in Edinburgh, or a discussion between different generations of feminist activists at the British Library (this sold out in 48 hours, was moved to a room four times bigger, and sold out again).

You could have joined one of the country\’s 149 local grassroots groups, or shared your experience of misogyny on the site Laura Bates, 27, started in April 2012. Her Everyday Sexism Project has proved so successful that it was rolled out to 17 countries on its first anniversary this year, tens of thousands of women worldwide writing about the street harassment, sexual harassment, workplace discrimination and body-shaming they encounter. The project embodies that feminist phrase \”the personal is political\”, a consciousness-raising exercise that encourages women to see how inequality affects them, proves these problems aren\’t individual but collective, and might therefore have political solutions. This year, 6,000 stories that have been sent to the project about harassment or assault on public transport – the majority never reported to authorities – were used to train 2,000 police officers in London, and create a public awareness campaign. In its first few weeks, says Bates, the reporting of harassment on public transport soared. Everyday Sexism currently has more than 108,000 followers on Twitter. Of course, following a social media account isn\’t the same as joining a political party, but to put this engagement in perspective, Tory membership is now at 134,000.

via The fourth wave of feminism: meet the rebel women | World news | The Guardian.

Israel drops controversial Bedouin relocation plan | Maan News Agency

Benny Begin, tasked with implementing the so-called Prawer Plan, said he had recommended to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to \”end the debate on the law\” in parliament.

\”The prime minister accepted this proposal,\” he said at a Tel Aviv press conference, days after it emerged the governing coalition was divided on the proposed legislation.

The bill, which would have seen the demolition of some 40 unrecognized Bedouin villages in the Negev and the relocation of between 30,000 and 40,000 people, passed a preliminary ministerial vote in January.

But it faced intense objection from members of the parliament both from the Right, where lawmakers said the compensation in land and money offered to Bedouins was too generous, and from the Left, which said it was racist and accused the state of usurping the land of indigenous Palestinian inhabitants.

via Israel drops controversial Bedouin relocation plan | Maan News Agency.

Bubonic plague killed 20 villagers in Madagascar, health experts confirm | World news | theguardian.com

Once feared as the Black Death – the rodent-born disease that wiped out a third of the world\’s population in the Middle Ages – bubonic plague has killed 20 villagers in Madagascar in one of the worst outbreaks globally in recent years, health experts have confirmed.

The confirmation that bubonic plague was responsible for the deaths last week near the north-western town of Mandritsara follows a warning in October from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that the island nation was at risk of a plague epidemic.

The Pasteur Institute of Madagascar revealed on Tuesday that tests taken from bodies in the village last week showed that they had died of the bubonic plague. The institute added it was concerned the disease could spread to towns and cities where living standards have declined since a coup in 2009.

via Bubonic plague killed 20 villagers in Madagascar, health experts confirm | World news | theguardian.com.

Holden to cease manufacturing operations in Australia by 2017 – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Holden was GM’s Chevy in Australia and the remarks by their PM show they don’t, in fact,  have a clue or a plan… This will mean that Toyota will probably also leave and all medium and small suppliers will be shut down in a few years – will add up to 10,000 or more people out of good paying jobs and may lead to other industries deciding they can shift to exporting to Australia or just abandon the market. All because leadership at GM and in Aussie government’s are no longer up to their jobs!

Prime Minister Tony Abbott says it is \”dark day\” for manufacturing in Australia.

\”This is a dark day but there will be better days ahead,\” he told Parliament upon his return from South Africa, where he attended the Nelson Mandela memorial service.

\”It is my determination … to work with the people of Australia to ensure that the strengths of our society continue to be built on.\”

via Holden to cease manufacturing operations in Australia by 2017 – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation).

IAVA – Vets to Congress: #FinishThe4 | Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America

This week, veterans from all over the country are coming to DC to tell Congress that they can\’t leave for vacation without doing 4 simple things:

1. Fully fund the VA in advance (HR 813 and S 932)

2. Combat sexual assault in the military by passing The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2014 and the Military Justice Improvement Act (MJIA)

3. Charge in-state tuition for all veterans using GI Bill (HR 357 & S 944)

4. Ratify The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

This will only cost Congress 105 minutes this week. For less time than it takes to watch a movie, Congress can change the narrative on 2013 and make a huge difference in the lives of veterans and military families.

via IAVA – Vets to Congress: #FinishThe4 | Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

US turns its back on Afghan interpreters? | World | DW.DE | 10.12.2013

Death list

An Afghan officer warned Shinwari that he had been placed on a Taliban death list.

\”When the Taliban found out that I saved an American life – not one, but a couple of lives – and that I\’m supporting the American mission, they added my name. They have to kill me if they find me,\” Shinwari says.

In late November, a former interpreter for the German armed forces in Afghanistan was murdered in Kunduz. Dschawad Wafa\’s corpse was discovered in his car just over a month after the last German troops had left the northern Afghan province. Reports followed that the translator\’s name had stood on a list of local Afghan workers for whom Germany\’s federal government was set to provide entry visas due to threats of retaliatory attacks from the Taliban.

via US turns its back on Afghan interpreters | World | DW.DE | 10.12.2013.

Domino’s Pizza Workers Protest Low Wages, Get Fired: Gothamist

Employees of a Washington Heights Domino\’s claim they were fired from their delivery jobs after complaining to management about unfair wages. Workers at the 181st street chain participated in last Thursday\’s nationwide walkout in solidarity with the country\’s underpaid fast food workers, which included strong numbers of workers and supporters in New York City. Following the walkout, delivery workers—who are paid under $6 an hour and rely on tips to make a living wage—were asked to work extended hours inside the restaurant but were not offered increased hourly pay for their time inside the store. After bringing the issue to management\’s attention, the 24 employees were fired.

via Domino’s Pizza Workers Protest Low Wages, Get Fired: Gothamist.

Hopi objects go on sale in Paris despite US challenge – CULTURE – FRANCE 24

If the art being sold was from collections of stolen art by Nazi’s – would she rule the same?

The judge who ruled on the legal challenge filed on behalf of the Hopi acknowledged that the sale of the objects could \”constitute an affront to the dignity\” of the tribe.

But she said \”this moral and philosophical consideration does not in itself give the judge the right to suspend the sale of these masks, which is not forbidden in France\”.

via Hopi objects go on sale in Paris despite US challenge – CULTURE – FRANCE 24.