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Showing posts from March 14, 2021

Under Erdogan, Turkey pulls out of European treaty to prevent violence against women

  Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday pulled out of an international accord aimed at protecting women. Campaigners have claimed that the pact is important in the fight against domestic violence, especially after the announcement by country’s official gazette. The Council of Europe accord was forged in Istanbul to prevent, prosecute, and to end violence against women, and to promote equality. Turkish government provided no explanation for the withdrawal. But last year, officials from Erdogan’s AK Party had said that the government was planning to withdraw from the accord for a conflict over how to end violence against women in the country. Also read:  Erdogan slams Biden for 'killer' remarks, says Putin's response 'elegant' Turkey has witnessed a rise in femicides over the last year, and had signed the accord in 2011. The accord is believed by many Turkish folks, especially among conservatives to be encouraging viole

How Bangladesh's Mukti Bahini vanquished the Pak Army in 1971 India-Pakistan war

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  Bangladesh's Mukti Bahini(freedom warriors) was instrumental in fighting a  guerrilla war against the Pakistan Army as a paramilitary force during the war of liberation in 1971. Mukti Bahini: Bangladesh's freedom warriors Bangladesh's Mukti Bahini (freedom warriors) was instrumental in fighting a guerrilla war against the Pakistan Army as a paramilitary force during the war of liberation in 1971. The valiant fighters targeted Pakistan's key military and economic installations in a sabotage operation before the India-Pakistan war broke out in December, 1971.  The homegrown network conducted intelligence and undercover operations blunting the Pakistan forces as atrocities by Pakistani forces increased in the run-up to the 71

58 killed in 'barbarous' Niger attacks near Mali border

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  "The toll from these barbarous acts (is) 58 dead, one injured, a number of grain silos and two vehicles burned and two more vehicles seized," the government said.(AFP) On Monday afternoon, "groups of armed, still unidentified individuals intercepted four vehicles carrying passengers back from the weekly market of Banibangou to the villages of Chinedogar and Darey-Daye," the government said in a statement read out on public television. Posted by Prashasti Singh | AFP , Niger PUBLISHED ON MAR 17, 2021 05:56 AM IST Fifty-eight people have been killed in "barbarous" attacks on a bus and nearby villages in Niger close to the country's border with Mali, the government said on Tuesday. On Monday afternoon, "groups of armed, still unidentified individuals intercepted four vehicles carrying passengers back from the weekly market of Banibangou to the villages of Chinedogar and Darey-Daye," the government said in a statem

We defied orders to kill protesters: Myanmar's police refugees in India

  Aizawl: A group of police officers who defied the Myanmar army's orders to shoot opponents of the coup recounted their experience after they escaped to India. While speaking, they raised a three-finger salute, a symbol of resistance to Myanmar's military rulers. “We cannot hurt our people, that's why we came to Mizoram,” said one of the men, who hails from the northwestern town of Tedim. Mizoram state in India's northeast shares a border with Bangladesh and Myanmar. After the army coup, the police were ordered to “shoot people and not just the people, we were told to shoot our own family if they are not on the side of the army,” he said.  Indian villagers in Mizoram have given shelter to 34 police personnel and one firefighter who crossed into India over the last two weeks. They spoke to an Associated Press photojournalist on condition of anonymity because of fears of retribution against family members still in Myanmar. Back in Myanmar, the

US and China clash at UNGA meeting on combatting racial discrimination

  United Nations: The United States accused China on Friday (March 19) of committing "genocide and crimes against humanity" against Uighur Muslims and other minorities, and China accused the US of discrimination, hatred "and even savage murder of people of African and Asian descent." The clash came at the UN General Assembly 's commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and was sparked by one line in the speech by US Ambassador Linda Thomas Greenfield, who talked about being a descendent of slaves, growing up in the segregated South, and surviving racism including being called "an N-word." It came after the top US and Chinese diplomats wrapped up two days of contentious talks in Alaska, the first high-level face-to-face meeting since President Joe Biden took office. In rare public comments, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi traded sharply different views of

Myanmar military's brutality is becoming a problem not just for India, but entire region

  Gravitas has been telling you how the coup in Myanmar is becoming India's problem and the military's high-handedness has triggered an exodus. The use of force and mass surveillance by the junta is forcing people to leave Myanmar and seek asylum in India.  More than 400 nationals of Myanmar have now sought shelter in India. A 21-year-old, rifleman in Myanmar's military was ordered to kill the protesters as the protests for the restoration of democracy intensified. The man chose to rebel and fled to Mizoram in India. Also read | Myanmar deploys AI; Indonesian president calls for ASEAN meeting on coup crisis Earlier it was just military and police officers, but now even officials from Myanmar's emergency services are disobeying orders and fleeing to India. One such individual is Khaw who claims that he worked at the local fire department in the Chin state of Myanmar.  Khaw and his colleagues joined the civil disobedience campaign when the police ord

Afghan government, Taliban agree to accelerate peace talks after Moscow summit

  The Afghan government and the Taliban agreed on Friday to try to accelerate peace talks, at a meeting in Moscow that followed an international conference there on the peace process, Afghanistan's top peace official and a Taliban spokesman said. The United States, Russia, China and Pakistan called on Afghanistan's warring sides to reach an immediate ceasefire at the conference, held in Russia just six weeks before a deadline agreed last year to withdraw US troops. "We expressed our readiness to accelerate the (peace) process," Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of Afghanistan's High Council for National Reconciliation, told Russia's RIA news agency. "They (the Taliban) did as well." Moscow hosted the international conference on Afghanistan on Thursday, at which the nations involved issued a joint statement calling on the Afghan sides to reach a peace deal and curb violence, and on the Taliban not to launch any offe

Banned Terror outfit SFJ hires democratic govt affairs firm to lobby with Biden administration on Khalistan

Sikhs For Justice was founded and is primarily headed by lawyer Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. The Indian government banned the group in 2019 and designated Pannun a terrorist last year for promoting secessionism in his bid to create an independent Khalistan.  Washington DC : While India is hosting US Defense Secretary Austin, “Sikhs For Justice” a Pro Khalistan group hired Washington lobbyist “Blue Star Strategies” to lobby with Biden administration SFJ’s agenda of secession of Punjab from India. Democratic government affairs firm Blue Star Strategies has registered to lobby for a New York non-governmental organization that supports the secession of Punjab from India. CEO Karen Tramontano is lobbying for Sikhs for Justice to “raise awareness of the treatment of the Sikh community in India and efforts by the Sikh-American diaspora in the U.S. to d

‘We want measurable change’: a call to action to end systemic racism in social work

  Something is happening in social work. Social workers are mobilising and demanding change.  Following the recent wave of interest in anti-racist practices and anti-racist ways of being, a grassroots movement has mobilised on social media.  Whilst we have never met, in fact we don’t even know each other, we have come together with a strong and shared commitment. We’re social workers, we’re an anti-racist movement and we’re demanding systemic change through our activism. In the wake of police brutality and murder against black people being less hidden, it’s harder to ignore without being exposed as complicit. Collectively, it needs to be made clear by social work that we refuse to move on from this position. ‘We need a whole new system’ We want more than slight disruption for as long as it is on point to describe oneself as anti-racist.  We want measurable and felt change in social work. Change that can be called out, questioned and publicly held to account.  It is not a

Kenya: How Electoral Processes Fuel Extremism

  Nairobi — Months to a possible referendum to amend the country's Constitution and next year's General Election, electoral processes have been singled out as one of the major drivers of violent extremism in Kenya. It is a complex situation coupled by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, that has led to an economic meltdown, with thousands losing their jobs, while those still working, are retained on reviewed salaries. Officials at the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC) said political statements by politicians pushing a certain narrative have ended up radicalizing a section of Kenya's population. "We are engaging politicians," an official at the National Counter Terrorism Centre told Capital News. Other factors include integrity issues with the voting process that leave a section of the population disgruntled with an outcome they do not believe in. Notably, the country's political landscape is ethnically driven rather than issue

Aus spy agency to re-label Islamic extremism

  IANSLive Canberra, March 18 (IANS) Australia's domestic intelligence agency ASIO will ditch the expressions "Islamic extremism" and "right-wing extremism" to refer to violent threats as the labels are "no longer fit for purpose". Source: https://www.ianslive.in/index.php?param=news/Aus_spy_agency_to_re_label_Islamic_extremism-769674/Latest%20News/31

India advocates peaceful dialogue on Crimea at UNSC meeting

India on Wednesday advocated peaceful dialogue -- on the lines of the Arria formula -- on the situation in Crimea at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) follow-up meeting that was held earlier on March 12, 2021. Speaking at the UNSC, India's Deputy Permanent Representative-Political Coordinator to the UN R Ravindra said that India has advocated political and diplomatic solutions that protect the legitimate interests of all countries in the region and ensure long-term peace and stability in Europe and beyond. The path forward can only be through peaceful dialogue for a lasting solution acceptable to all concerned. Also read | We will never accept Russia's occupation of Crimea: G7 "I wish to clarify that India's relations with countries in the region stand on their own merit. They are not affected by any individual issue or crisis or external factors," he said. While thanking the Russian delegation for organising thi

Racism Against the AAPI Community Is a Beauty Industry Problem

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  What’s behind the rise in anti-Asian racism is no secret. The fuel was always there, in the patchwork of anti-Asian policies that recur throughout American history. But the xenophobic rhetoric of our former president—who publicly and repeatedly blamed Asians for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic—was the match. According to new data from the activist organization Stop AAPI Hate , nearly 3,800 anti-Asian hate incidents occurred between March 2020 and March 2021, the vast majority of those (68 percent) against Asian women. The brutal reality is that many more go unreported. Simply put, Asian Americans are living in fear. As an American of Filipino descent, I fear for my safety, for the safety of my parents—particularly my father, who works in New York City, where in just one week, three Asian men were beaten and stabbed . But mostly, I fear that our pain will remain invisible, like it always has, for as long as Asian Americans have dared to exist in America. I fear that the