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Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called for an independent probe into the deadly crackdown on protests that rocked Eswatini, Africa's last absolute monarchy, in June.
In May, Burundi held a presidential election which was won by Evariste Ndayishimiye, candidate of the ruling National Council for the Defense of Democracy - Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD) party.
Ndayishimiye was hurriedly sworn in after the untimely death of president Pierre Nkurunziza in June.
Rights violations continue
The Council encouraged donor countries which had suspended aid to Burundi to continue dialogue towards resumption of development assistance.
A report by a UN watchdog in September said human rights violations were still being committed in Burundi, including sexual violence and murder.
The country was plunged into a crisis in April 2015 when Ndayishimiye’s predecessor Pierre Nkurunziza decided to run for a controversial third term, which he ultimately won in July 2015.
His candidature, which was opposed by the opposition and civil society groups, resulted in a wave of protests, violence and even a failed coup in May 2015.
Hundreds of people were killed and over 300,000 fled to neighboring countries.
While the police reform proposals are reasonable and fair, there will likely be some folks who don’t think so. The ultimate resolution will require sustained support from the electorate.
The post Police reform will require sustained effort appeared first on The Bay State Banner.
1. Democrats Flex Political Power What You Need To Know: At long last, leaders have completed an agreement on how to organize the evenly split U.S. Senate. 2. The Faces of White Privilege What You Need To Know: This January 20, we celebrated the anniversary of the release of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On?…
June 18: African nations backtrack on US UN probe
\tAfrican countries on Thursday backed off their call for the U.N.’s top human rights body to launch its most intense scrutiny on the hot-button issue of police brutality and systemic racism in the United States, after American officials led back-channel talks to air opposition to the idea, diplomats said.
The Africa Group was reworking a draft resolution but had already cut out language calling on the Human Rights Council to set up a commission of inquiry — its most potent tool of scrutiny — to examine issues like systemic racism and abuse against “Africans and of people of African descent” in the U.S. and beyond, said the diplomats, who were part of the talks.
June 16: African nations drag US to UN human rights council
\tAfrican nations have prepared a draft resolution at the U.N.’s top human rights body that singles out the United States and would launch intense international scrutiny of systemic racism against people of African descent in the wake of recent high-profile killings of blacks by American police.
It calls for a Commission of Inquiry — the rights body’s most powerful tool to inspect human rights violations — to look into “systemic racism” and alleged violations of international human rights law and abuses against “Africans and of people of African descent in the United States of America and other parts of the world recently affected by law enforcement agencies” especially encounters that resulted in deaths.
On Monday, the council agreed unanimously to hold the urgent debate on “racially inspired human rights violations, systemic racism, police brutality and the violence against peaceful protests” in the wake of the George Floyd killing in the United States.
(Trinidad Guardian) Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley says “under no circumstances” will Trinidad and Tobago implement an open-door policy to migrants.
The article Trinidad will not have open-door policy for migrants - PM appeared first on Stabroek News.
BY BLESSED MHLANGA ZANU PF has told Western countries, especially Britain and United States, “to shut up” and stop pontificating about democracy and human rights, adding that Britain and the US’s hands were historically dirty. Party acting spokesperson Patrick Chinamasa said Western countries could not lecture Zimbabwe on democracy when they were responsible for denying the people of Zimbabwe their freedom. “Zanu PF takes strong exception to being lectured on issues of human rights by citizens of countries which perpetrated the brutalities accompanying the Atlantic African Slave Trade and colonial conquest of Africa, and who refuse to render apologies or pay reparations,” Chinamasa said. Zimbabwe is under international spotlight over human rights violations, closing of the democratic space and clamping down on opposition political parties, resulting in the imposition of sanctions against top government figures. Chinamasa said this was a form of slavery and bullying by the Western powers, which were also yet to come clean on their role on slavery. “As a consequence of seeking to redress the brutalities that occurred in the colonisation of Zimbabwe, accompanied by dispossession of our land and brutal confiscation of livestock by colonialists, the country has suffered 20 years of naked bullying, economic isolation and severe sanctions regime by the former colonial powers now acting in concert as economic and political powers in support of what they allege are rights of 4 500 white former farmers,” he said. The British have since dismissed the letter brandished by Chinamasa at his Press conference as fake photoshop replete with errors, but Zanu PF insists it was genuine. Zanu PF also demanded that all Western countries which were involved in colonialism and slavery should pay compensation and offer apologies to those that they wronged. Chinamasa said instead the British found it worthwhile to compensate the slave owners instead of the slaves. “That at the time of abolition of the Atlantic African slave trade the British through the British Parliament approved and paid 20 million pounds to slave owners already rich through the labour of the slaves,” he said. Despite Chinamasa’s utterances, the Zanu PF-led government is pursuing re-engagement with the West after being left in the cold over alleged human rights violation. Chinamasa said sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe were unjustified and should be removed because there were an extension of slavery and colonialism.
BLACK FAMILIES have been harder hit financially by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a recent...
The post Black families harder hit financially by COVID, government data shows appeared first on Voice Online.
HUMAN rights doctors have laid into government over its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying they had noted a “sad scenario” where the fight against the dreaded pandemic was being hampered by the poor living conditions at the quarantine facilities, resulting in the recent spike in cases.
“This sad scenario is further compounded by the poor state of the quarantine facilities whose standards fall far below the World Health Organisation minimum standards,” the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR) said in a statement yesterday.
“ZADHR strongly suspects that the recent spike in cases in quarantine centres is a result of the poor living conditions at the quarantine facilities.”
“ZADHR received reports that the Girls High quarantine centre, where a group of about 96 returnees — including pregnant women and an infant who were quarantined at Harare Polytechnic College on May 10, 2020 and later moved to Girls High School in Harare for further quarantining, upon arrival at Harare Polytechnic College — were not tested despite some individuals clearly exhibiting flu-like symptoms,” the doctors said.
ZADHR said it was concerned about reports that about 150 returnees were released from a Gweru facility four days ahead of schedule on May 24, 2020, after returnees threatened to protest against poor living conditions.
Over 40 stadiums and arenas have been transformed into polling sites in an effort to combat Black voter suppression.
Collins calls for more answers from banks as reports, studies highlight inequities Testimony from advocates, state government agencies, and banks themselves were all in agreement Thursday, October 15: Race remains the biggest predictor of whether somebody is approved for a home loan, and a major factor in how homes are evaluated in an appraisal process. The […]
[NEWS] Artisanal and small-scale mining is the main source of income for more than 100,000 gold and diamond miners in Liberia. Out of the 1,293 mining operations in the country, 1,142 (88.3 per cent) are artisanal and small-scale miners.
He was lucky because another black man was recorded as the 100th homicide in the city after another black teen shot 13 times at him just this week.
[Premium Times] StatiSense relied on data from the Debt Management Office to carry out its survey.
The Essa and Fatima Moosa Foundation has come out in defence of retired Judge Siraj Desai.
BRASILIA, (Reuters) - Brazil’s right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro has tried to sabotage efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 in his country and pursued policies that undermine the rights of Brazilians, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said yesterday.
The article Brazil’s Bolsonaro sabotaged anti-COVID-19 efforts, says Human Rights Watch appeared first on Stabroek News.
MADISON, WISCONSIN – The latest release of AARP’s Nursing Home COVID-19 Dashboard depicts a worsening crisis from coast to coast, including skyrocketing increases in deaths among Wisconsin nursing home residents since last fall. In the four-week period ending Dec. 20, 9.9% of nursing homes in Wisconsin reported residents with confirmed cases of coronavirus, and […]
The post New AARP analysis shows COVID-19 deaths skyrocketing in Wisconsin nursing homes appeared first on Milwaukee Community Journal.
Even as his recent report on the performance of Trinidad and Tobago’s extractive industries point to a decline in their revenue, going forward, the country’ Energy and Energy Industries Minister Stuart Young, speaking at the virtual launch of the Trinidad and Tobago Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (TTEITI) report, covering the performance of 2018 has said that the country’s economy will continue to look to the energy sector as a “pillar’ in pursuit of the twin-island Republic’s economic recovery from the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic.
The article Despite drop in oil, gas earnings… T&T economy still looks to energy sector appeared first on Stabroek News.
Just how vulnerable much of the Caribbean remains to economies that continue to be heavily dependent on tourism is reflected in a recent report published by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) which puts the financial cost of the still rampaging Covid-19 virus at a staggering US$33.9 billion.
The article Covid-19 toll on Caribbean tourism US$33.9 billion and counting - WITTC report appeared first on Stabroek News.
It’s been a school year like no other. Here’s what we learned. Lesson 2: Online learning is here to stay For weeks starting in January, from my home in Maryland, I sat in on a virtual course on American Indian education and policy at Salish Kootenai College on the Flathead Reservation in western Montana. The... [Read More]
[Cameroon Tribune] The Head of State honoured the worthy, valiant son of the nation with a Grand Cordon of the Cameroon Order of Merit medal decorated by PM Dion Ngute in Santa on July 3, 2021.
Press Release - A Case-Study on the Treatment of Ethiopian Migrants
BY Everson Mushava THE relationship between the ruling Zanu PF party and its sister liberation movement — African National Congress (ANC) of South Africa — is on a cliffhanger after the latter revealed yesterday that it had had enough of the Harare regime’s antics characterised by “threats and blackmail”. “You can’t always have a neighbour that is always blackmailing you,” ANC national chairman Gwede Mantashe (pictured) tweeted following threats by Zanu PF director of information Tafadzwa Mugwadi to ‘expose’ ANC’s alleged sinister agenda which necessitated its two visits to Harare last year. “This relationship with Zimbabwe (Zanu PF) is always filled with threats and blackmail. I don’t like that. If Zanu PF wants to spill the beans on our meeting with them, they must. I am eager to hear what they want to spill,” he charged. He was referring to two meetings held in Harare by the two parties last year to resolve Zimbabwe's political and economic crises. South Africa’s Finance minister Tito Mboweni weighed in, tweeting: “I wish the President could just allow me nyana to tackle that turncoat @TafadzwaMugwadi @Sophie_Mokoena @tyengeni1954 @pulemabe.” He added: “In fact, ANC chairperson, @GwedeMantashe1 should have said that the relationship is abusive! This must be stopped! It must end!” Last August, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa dispatched three envoys to meet Zanu PF in an effort to resolve the country’s political and economic crises amid fears that problems in Harare could destabilise the southern African region. However, Zanu PF insisted that the country was not in a crisis. Last week, Mugwadi singled out SABC correspondent Sophie Mukoena accusing her of filing fake stories about President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration. He courted a diplomatic tiff with the ANC leadership when he threatened to “leak a bombshell on why the ANC delegation came (to Harare)”. This forced Ramaphosa to respond during an interview with the SABC on Saturday, daring Mugwadi to come out in the open with his “bombshell” and reveal the “real reason” which he claimed was behind his party’s visit to Zimbabwe last year. Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo yesterday chose to downplay the fallout, saying: “There are no alarm bells at all, we continue as we were. There is nothing alarming. We will continue to relate as we have always done. We have cordial relations with our colleagues, there is no problem at all. We don’t worry about anything; we have one common destiny which we want to push for economic emancipation.” On Sunday, Khaya Moyo said Zanu PF would take disciplinary action against Mugwadi over his unsavoury remarks. “A communiqué was issued on the constructive two-day meeting by the two fraternal parties and indeed these meetings will continue in the future. Nothing was amiss and necessary measures will be taken by Zanu PF concerning those involved in this matter,” Khaya Moyo said. “The President and first secretary of Zanu PF Cde ED Mnangagwa, the President of the ANC Cde CM Ramaphosa called each other in high esteem and n
[HRW] The trial of three security force members accused of being involved in the massacre of 21 civilians in Ngarbuh, in Cameroon's North-West region, is due to begin on December 17, 2020. It is expected to be an important step in tackling impunity.
AN informal network of European non-governmental organisations, the Zimbabwe Europe Network (ZEN) has called on the European Union Parliament to pass a resolution condemning ongoing human rights violations in the southern African country.
ZEN co-ordinator Hugo Knoppert accused President Emmerson Mnangagwa of being a tyrant hiding behind COVID-19 lockdown restrictions to perpetuate human rights abuses.
“ZEN calls upon the EU Parliament to adopt a resolution condemning the recent human rights violations in Zimbabwe,” Knoppert said.
“Therefore, ZEN welcomes recent statements by the EU delegation, EU embassies, and individual diplomats, and urges them to continue to speak out on human rights and democracy issues.”
Knoppert urged the EU institutions to use the upcoming planning summit of their Multi-annual funding framework to rethink its strategies of engagement and supporting Zimbabwe.
Calling it a “dark and shameful week,” South African president Cyril Ramaphosa denounced the latest surge in violence against women, including the murder of a woman eight months pregnant.
But his remarks ring hollow when a “new government report” released in September also declared gender-based violence a national crisis.
Nomakhosazana Xaba, in her late 20s, says this violence now resembles a country at war against its women.
After the September report, President Ramaphosa announced a five-point plan to tackle violence against women, including media campaigns, strengthening the criminal justice system, and providing training for healthcare workers and counsellors.
Commenting on the recent surge of violence, he blamed the sale of alcohol during lockdown level 3.
By Alberto Brunori, the Regional Representative for Central America and the English-speaking Caribbean of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
People in the Caribbean face some of the highest levels of violence in the world.
The article A strictly security-focused approach to crime prevention is costly, ineffective and paves the way for human rights violations appeared first on Stabroek News.
It made perfect sense to me. With COVID-19, African Americans have had higher infection rates, hospitalization rates and death rates. In fact, according to a recent report from the Shelby County Health Department, 59 percent of coronavirus deaths in Shelby County are African Americans. Vaccines from Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna, both approved by the Food and […]
[New Zimbabwe] The United States (US) representative to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield has dismissed United Nations (UN) special rapporteur Alena Douhan's report blaming \"targeted sanctions\" against Zimbabwe had failed the country's economy.
