Democracy

Hussein’s Ghost Haunts Afghan Parliament

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A bill that would grant amnesty to warlords and militants, including government officials accused by human rights groups of war crimes, is advancing through Afghanistan’s legislature. The Telegraph reports that 25,000 former militants came to Kabul for a peaceful demonstration in support of the amnesty call, which the newspaper says was “triggered” by the execution of Saddam Hussein. But more than two decades of invasion, jihad and civil war have taken their toll. According to the Institute for War & Peace Reporting, some members of Parliament walked out to protest the vote, and citizens on the street are in a similar mood. “Parliament is a shelter for criminals,” a Kabul shopkeeper told the IWPR.

Democracy

HATE SPEECH: Talkin’ Crimes of Old Europe

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Germany’s push for new hate-crime laws across Europe is creating fissures in the growing European Union. Some former Soviet bloc nations want to include a provision that makes denial of Nazi and Communist war crimes equivalent. But the measure, advanced by Estonia, Poland and Slovenia, has been criticized by a Slovakian minister who says it’s impossible to equate fascism and communism. The E.U. Observer reports that Poles are also lobbying to ban the phrase “Polish death camps,” because, say advocates, such camps were built and operated by occupying Nazi forces. Meanwhile, a prominent Polish politician has drawn charges of anti-semitism after claiming in a booklet that there are “biological differences” between Jews and gentiles, TheParliament.com reports.

Democracy

Zimbabwe: Inflation, Dissent Converge

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With inflation at 1,600 percent, Zimbabwe is removing subsidies on flour, maize and fuel, causing prices to as much as quintuple for staple foods and transportation. Officials say inflation is caused by businesses that illegally increase prices set by the state, and to prevent corruption have doubled the salaries of youth militia charged with enforcing the new rules. The new militia salaries are about 10 times the amount paid to teachers and state doctors, a sore point in a nation where leaders of the national teachers’ union were recently arrested for calling for strikes over low wages. Robert Mugabe’s government routinely smothers dissent, last week detaining student leaders who protested a 2,000 percent fee hike, and banning an election rally by the opposition party. Sources:
“Zimbabwe: Police deny permission for Tsvangirai rally”
Business Day (South Africa), February 16, 2007
“Zimbabwe: Massive price hikes loom”
Zimbabwe Independent, February 16, 2007
“Zim militia squads pay doubles”
South African Press Association, February 13, 2007
Learn more about Zimbabwe on Newsdesk.org

Democracy

No Longer Illegal, Gays Are Still a Target in Chile

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Although homosexuality was legalized in 1998, gays in Chile still suffer public harassment and, in one case, beatings and sexual assault — all by the country’s own police force. Activists there have called for mandatory human rights training for police officers, or Carabineros, but the Santiago Times reports that officals have not welcomed the idea. Source:
“Police abuse of gays continues in Chile”
Santiago Times, February 7, 2007

Democracy

Contraception & Abortion: A Morning After for Chile, North Dakota

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Chile’s President Michelle Bachelet has issued an executive order legalizing free “morning after” contraception to teens without parental consent. The issue has split the ruling party in a socially conservative nation where divorce was only legalized in 2004. Supporters say the new rules will provide equal access to contraception for low-income Chilean women, according to the Santiago Times. In North Dakota, the legislature overwhelmingly passed a “trigger ban” on abortion that would take effect the instant Roe v. Wade were overturned. A second bill, which was defeated, would have banned abortion immediately and prosecuted women for seeking the procedure, the Bismarck Tribune reports.

Democracy

Hate Speech, Hindus and the Holocaust

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Germany hopes to use its E.U. presidency to push through a controversial law criminalizing Holocaust denial and incitement to hate crimes in all 27 European member states, many of which oppose the measure on free speech grounds. Hate-based crime is on the rise in Germany. Religious groups in five countries also oppose the law, saying its ban on swastika displays will affect 2.5 million European Hindus who still regard it as a sacred symbol. Sources:
“Germany pushes for E.U.-wide law on Holocaust denial”
Deutsche Presse-Agentur (Germany), January 19, 2007
“Hindus oppose swastika ban in E.U.” Press Trust of India, January 18, 2007

Democracy

The Loyal Opposition in Iraq, Lebanon

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A new organization of 500 Sunni scholars and clerics have vowed to stand with Iraqi officials and Shiites to “close the gaps and divisions among the Sunni authorities,” according to United Press International. The move puts them in potential conflict with the Sunni Islamic Scholars Association, Iraq’s highest Sunni authority and a dedicated opponent of the government and the political process. In Lebanon, a tax to privatize key industries and secure new loans for debt relief drew opposition from a coalition of Hizbollah, Christian, Druze, Sunni and leftist partisans. They say the tax will harm already-impoverished Lebanese, and neglects development and agricultural needs. Sources:

“New religious Sunni group declared in Iraq”
United Press International, January 19, 2007
“Lebanon’s new battleground”
Al-Ahram Weekly (Egypt), January 18-24, 2007
“Donors promise generosity in Paris despite turmoil in Beirut”
The Daily Star (Lebanon), January 25, 2006

Democracy

IRAQ: MOVING FORWARD

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A Peace Plan’s Ambition
A “blueprint” for stability in Iraq, proposed by former defense minister Ali Allawi, would replace American troops with an international security force, negotiate security treaties, and establish a “Middle Eastern Confederation of States” to bolster civil society and establish a collective supreme court. The Independent, which published Allawi’s original proposal, reports that the plan also calls for a decentralized Iraqi government divided into regions, and a World Bank-funded reconstruction council. Sources:
“The Iraqi proposals”
Independent (U.K), January 5, 2007
“From all corners, support grows for Iraq peace plan”
Independent (U.K), January 6, 2007

Democracy

Women: Rights & Welfare

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Progress in Yemen, Zimbabwe
A Western-educated Yemeni woman said she would break a law against women in politics by forming a party dedicated to gender equality. GulfNews.com reports that Sumaya Ali Raja, who was invited to deliver her message to a traditionally all-male council, got a mixed reception from conservatives, but was welcomed by the Socialist Party and others. Legislators in Zimbabwe finally passed a bill protecting women from domestic abuse … ten years after it was introduced. Activists say that one in four women there are victims of abuse, and linked domestic violence with high rates of murder and HIV infection.

Democracy

Philippines Named ‘Housing Rights Violator’

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Hundreds of thousands of the poorest Filipinos have been evicted or made homeless, according to Bulatlat magazine, as polluted, crowded shantytowns are privatized, occupied by troops and demolished. An activist group say the government allows “systematic” violation of housing rights across the country. Source:

“RP is 2006 housing rights violator”
Bulatlat (Philippines), December 31-January 6, 2007