human rights activists

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Obama Puts Human Rights on Back Burner, Activists Say

Sometimes confrontation isn't best tactic, administration suggests

(Newser) - Human-rights workers had high hopes for the Obama administration after President Bush’s inconsistent, too-hot-too-cold policies—but so far, the Washington Post reports, activists think President Obama has let rights take a back seat to more pressing concerns. For example, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said pushing China on human...

Iranian Cops Raid Nobel Winner's Office

Prosecutors claim Shirin Ebadi's organization was acting as political party

(Newser) - Iranian police today raided the office of a human rights group led by Nobel prize-winning activist Shirin Ebadi, Reuters reports. The office was hours away from hosting a Human Rights Day celebration when cops shut it down. "We will protest against it," said Ebadi. "It will not...

Zimbabwe Activist Kidnapped in Mugabe Crackdown

Human rights activist was gathering abuse testimonials

(Newser) - A prominent Zimbabwe activist collecting evidence of human rights violations by President Robert Mugabe's regime has been kidnapped from her home by 15 armed men claiming to be police officers, reports the Guardian. Jestina Mukoko, director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project, was the best-known of 20 activists and dissidents to...

Israeli Soldier Shoots Prisoner on Tape

Blindfolded Palestinian demonstrator hit with rubber bullet

(Newser) - An Israeli soldier was arrested today after a human rights group released a tape showing him shooting a handcuffed and blindfolded Palestinian protester with a rubber bullet, YNetNews reports. The Israeli Defense Force questioned the man shortly after the incident, which was reported by an officer at the scene, but...

Chinese School-Collapse Critic Busted as Spy

Activist detained after trying to help bereaved parents

(Newser) - An activist who tried to help bereaved Sichuan parents get answers about why so many schools collapsed in May's earthquake has been arrested, the New York Times reports. Huang Qi was taken away by plainclothes police after posting information about the parents on his website. He has been accused of...

Amnesty Again Demands Gitmo Closure

'World leaders are in a state of denial' on human-rights abuses, group charges

(Newser) - The US has “distinguished itself in recent years through defiance of international law,”  says human-rights advocate Amnesty International in its annual reports, released today. The group called for the closure of Guantanamo Bay and other secret detention centers , the New York Times reports, and the prosecution of...

Pro-China Wave Dominates Aussie Relay

Protesters allege Beijing hand in feel-good atmosphere

(Newser) - The Chinese flag flew high at the Australian leg of the Olympic torch relay today, with pro-China partisans outnumbering pro-Tibet protesters four to one—and relative calm compared to the intensity of the relay to date. Human rights protesters alleged that Beijing, apparently embarrassed by the tone of earlier protests,...

Chinese Rights Advocate Jailed
 Chinese Rights Advocate Jailed 

Chinese Rights Advocate Jailed

EU, US slam China's handling of Hu Jia's case

(Newser) - A top Chinese human-rights activist has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison for writings and comments considered subversive, the New York Times reports. The case of Hu Jia, 34, been watched closely around the world; critics see it as part of a government crackdown on dissidents...

Slowly Changing Painful Customs

Kenya group develops alternatives to female circumcision

(Newser) - The practice of female circumcision has been twice banned in Kenya, but nearly 40% of young women still undergo the painful and dangerous rite of passage into married life. The Christian Science Monitor profiles activists at the Tasaru Girls Rescue Center who work with villagers—using role models, lessons about...

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