Category Archives: human rights

NYPD Crackdown On Subway Panhandlers Defies “Common Sense”: Gothamist

“There are more important things we have to worry about, like people becoming the victim of a crime,” a police source told the Post in a December 2, 2013 story. “People are getting thrown onto subway tracks, having their iPhones and iPads snatched. The last thing we’re worried about is a man begging for a nickel on the holidays. It’s common sense.”

via NYPD Crackdown On Subway Panhandlers Defies “Common Sense”: Gothamist.

Opinion: Between dream and nightmare | Europe | DW.DE | 02.12.2013

A political turning point

Ukrainians are familiar with such abuses by the police through media coverage about Moscow and Minsk. Their own country, however, hasn\’t seen such things since the Orange Revolution. In fact, the capital of Kyiv practically hasn\’t seen a week without some from of demonstration or proclamation. Ukrainians have gotten used to enacting their right to assemble in a creative and colourful manner. And now, of all times, when decisions of national importance like the EU accession are hanging by a thread – decisions that are of everyone\’s concern – out come the police batons.

It could be a political turning point the public is unwilling to accept. This, too, the Kyiv mass demonstrations are a sign of: Ukrainians refuse any orders to stay quiet. Until now, protests in the capital and elsewhere were primarily against the decision to postpone EU accession talks. But after the violence against peaceful demonstrators, the movement has gained new momentum: Calls are not only for a change in foreign policy any more; now it\’s about the government and its president to step down.

via Opinion: Between dream and nightmare | Europe | DW.DE | 02.12.2013.

French tattooists needled by ban of coloured ink – Europe – FRANCE 24

(Hollande’s government will now be hated by everyone with a tattoo or wants one in France – really stupid – people have been tattooing since the Celts ruled France!)

The French government plans to ban many of the products that make up coloured tattoo ink after a report claimed they could increase the risk of infection, allergy and cancer. The nation\’s tattooists are up in arms.

via French tattooists needled by ban of coloured ink – Europe – FRANCE 24.

CENSORED NEWS: O’odham and Anarchist Thanksgiving Day Protest Against Border Patrol

Article and photos courtesy of O\’odham and Anarchist solidarity action

Censored News

\”On Thursday, November 28th, 2013, a group of people made up by members of the Tohono O\’odham Nation, the Anti-Colonial Anarchist Bloc, and various Tucson community members in solidarity with those resisting ongoing colonisation on stolen Native land, gathered in front of the gates to the Border Patrol headquarters at Golf Links and Swan in Tucson.

via CENSORED NEWS: O’odham and Anarchist Thanksgiving Day Protest Against Border Patrol.

Thunderclap: Gaza Kids Sail Against Siege

On November 30, hundreds of children in Gaza will sail mini arks—40-cm long wooden model boats—into the Mediterranean sea to challenge the Israeli blockade of their home. In solidarity, groups from around the world will sail small vessels on their lakes, rivers and swimming pools. Help us send out an electronic flotilla of support by joining our campaign!

via Thunderclap: Gaza Kids Sail Against Siege.

Boris Johnson’s philosophy isn’t just elitist – it’s sinister | Suzanne Moore | Comment is free | The Guardian

Boris Johnson – or Borisconi, as I call him – has a severe case of premature ejaculation. Obviously I am using ejaculation here to mean saying something too soon and too hastily.

He has said what he really thinks. Will the electorate, the great lumpen mass of obviously stupid people, swallow it? Rich people are rich because they are better, cleverer, more ambitious. We should worship them for paying taxes. Try not to think about the ones that don\’t. Oh, and let\’s have Boris Island.

There are no surprises in what he said, other than timing. The Tories increasingly favour genetic explanations for inequality. If whole swaths of us are born poor, dumb and without the drive to get to Eton, never mind a jobcentre, it\’s our own stupid fault. Only lunatics would point to the \”cleverness\” of the bankers who fabricated formulae that sold off risk in ever smaller bundles, with no consequences for the buyers. Amazing how these intellectual giants produced an unmitigated disaster!

Let\’s move on, as Borisconi did in his party political broadcast for himself: let the wealthy take London, let a thousand Shards split the sky open so that golden showers rain down on to multibillionaires. Then, he got controversial with an ill-judged and frankly under-researched passage about IQ. Give me back my Mensa membership because any fule know any fule can be tutored up for IQ tests, which is why selective schools prefer this discredited measure of intelligence. Never mind. A genetically determinist argument – part selfish gene, part antisocial goonishness – is now in favour.

via Boris Johnson’s philosophy isn’t just elitist – it’s sinister | Suzanne Moore | Comment is free | The Guardian.

Taliban’s actions threaten Turkey, Europe with polio outbreak (SETimes.com)

Officials in Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria are already taking steps to prevent the spread of the disease. The UN Health Agency and Turkey started a massive vaccination campaign to immunise all refugee children younger than 5.

Genetic sequencing by experts has shown that the strain of virus found in Deir al-Zor Province, Syria, originated from Pakistan. Experts blame the jihadist militants who travel from Pakistan to Syria to take part in the Syrian civil war for the spread.

The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has been doing everything it can — from attacking and sometimes killing vaccination team members, or threatening parents and their children — to stop Pakistanis in the tribal region from getting the oral polio vaccine (OPV).

via Taliban’s actions threaten Turkey, Europe with polio outbreak (SETimes.com).

Settlers bulldoze Palestinian lands west of Salfit, chop olive trees | Maan News Agency

SALFIT (Ma\’an) — Israeli settlers raided lands in the northern West Bank with bulldozers on early Tuesday morning in order to level the area to prepare it for expansion of the nearby Ariel settlement block, a witness said.

Settlers razed the lands north of Bruqin village west of Salfit to prepare it for the construction of factories that will be a part of the adjacent Jewish-only settlement area.

The settlers, who are from the nearby Brukhin settlement, also chopped 10 olive trees in the Wadi Baqdonis area north of the village.

Researcher Khalid Mali said that \”the factories in the Ariel settlements are expanding,\” and highlighted that settlers have been confiscating lands from the Palestinian villages and areas of Bokin, Salfit, Sarta, Haris, and Kifl Haris.

via Settlers bulldoze Palestinian lands west of Salfit, chop olive trees | Maan News Agency.

The global struggle for peasants seeds: A struggle for our future | Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy

After all, according to ETC Group, 80-90% of seeds are sourced outside of commercial markets, that is to say through peasant seed systems, and farm-saved seeds. In the new publication, Our Seeds Our Future La Via Campesina chronicles ten experiences of peasant seed selection, saving, improvement, and re-use. These experiences in recovering and reproducing knowledge to improve peasant agricultural food production are mirrored by multitudes more in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas.

via The global struggle for peasants seeds: A struggle for our future | Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy.

Syria polio outbreak reaches 13 cases among children | Vaccine News Daily

Both the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the World Health Organization assessed there is a considerable risk that polio could spread to other countries in the region. There is also a risk of infection in European countries that received Syrian refugees.

via Syria polio outbreak reaches 13 cases among children | Vaccine News Daily.