Nationwide protests at the police killing of a young ethnic Pashtun man in Pakistan&#39;s largest city have shone a spotlight on allegations of persecution by the authorities against refugees from the country&#39;s conflict-ridden northwest.

The country&#39;s Supreme Court launched an inquiry on January 19 into the death of 27-year-old aspiring fashion model Naqibullah Mehsud. He was one of four men killed six days earlier in what police initially said was a shoot-out with suspected Islamist militants. The Supreme Court plans to begin hearings on the case on Saturday.

The police team that killed Mehsud was under the command of senior superintendent Anwar Ahmed Khan, who has been suspended since Jan. 20 on the recommendation of a police inquiry committee. The committee was set up after Mehsud&#39;s father, Muhammad Khan Mehsud, who denies his son had any militant links, filed a kidnapping and killing complaint against him.

Anwar told Reuters he had done nothing wrong and said the investigation into his officers&#39; actions could allow the Taliban to regain a foothold in ethnic Pashtun parts of the city.

&quot;I had no knowledge of Naqibullah Mehsud. My staff told me that he is a militant with a criminal history,&quot; he said.

Police data from 2011 reviewed by Reuters shows that in the seven years Anwar has been in charge of Karachi&#39;s Malir district, which has a large Pashtun population, at least 450 people have been killed in 200 clashes with police that involved weapons. The data does not give details of the circumstances of the shootings.

A senior police official, who asked not to be identified, said that the majority of those killed were ethnic Pashtuns. Pakistan&#39;s ethnic Pashtun borderlands have been a hotbed of Islamist militancy in recent decades.

Militant policy

Pakistani police refer to any armed clash with suspects as an &quot;encounter&quot;. Some human rights activists and families of victims have for years alleged that such incidents are often staged to cover up extrajudicial killings.

Anwar told Reuters that armed operations to kill suspects were official police policy in Sindh Province, of which Karachi is the capital, to combat the threat from militants.

&quot;There was an on-going official policy ... for carrying out encounters to take out criminals and I have broken no law,&quot; he said.

The provincial police chief denied there was such a policy.

&quot;I don&#39;t need to respond to irresponsible allegations,&quot; Inspector General of Sindh police Allah Dino Khawaja said in a brief text message in reply to Reuters&#39; questions. &quot;He has to appear before the investigation to defend and prove his claims.&quot;

Sindh police said in a statement on Jan. 20 it had launched an inquiry &quot;to ascertain the facts regarding the police encounter in which Naqibullah Mehsud was killed&quot;.

Some campaigners among the sprawling city&#39;s Pashtun community say the story is not unusual. But it is the first to receive nationwide attention - in part because Mehsud, known as Naqib, does not fit the image of the militant from Pakistan&#39;s lawless northern heartlands.

&quot;He had a passion for wearing good clothes ... even in the picture of his body circulating on social media, he is seen wearing good clothes,&quot; his cousin Noor Rehman told Reuters, while holding back tears.

Another senior police officer said no evidence linking Naqib to militancy had been found.

&quot;His particulars were checked in all the criminal databases of police and nothing came up,&quot; the official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

Pakistan&#39;s chief justice on Tuesday summoned Anwar to appear for questioning at its first hearing this weekend. Earlier that day, he was not allowed to board a flight leaving Pakistan for Dubai, Pakistan&#39;s Federal Investigation Agency said.

Anwar told Reuters he does not plan to appear before the court. He said his children are studying in Dubai and he frequently visits.

Target group

Pashtuns are Pakistan&#39;s second largest ethnic group, and many have moved to the country&#39;s big cities to escape violence along the Afghan border.

But since the emergence of the Pakistani Taliban, whose leadership also comes from the Mehsud tribe in South Waziristan, Pashtuns who spoke to Reuters in Karachi say they are all now seen as potential militants.

&quot;This is not just about the fact that police are killing people, it is about racial profiling,&quot; Jibran Nasir, a human rights lawyer who said he was filing a petition with the Senate&#39;s human rights committee, told Reuters.

&quot;Naqib had a very public profile. Looking at pictures of Naqib modelling ... no one is willing to believe he had anything to do with Taliban. The problem here is not every Pashtun killed and profiled here is a model.&quot;

Figures posted by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on its website show 1,226 people were killed in 784 police encounters nationwide in the past two years.

In the days after Mehsud was killed, thousands of activists and Pashtun students staged protests in Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Islamabad and Quetta.

In Sohrab Goth, the majority Pashtun suburb of Karachi where Naqib&#39;s family live, three families told Reuters they had lost relatives in such incidents.

Reuters was shown death certificates and newspaper clippings, but was not able to independently confirm the circumstances of their deaths.

Sohail Anwer Sial, home minister in the Sindh provincial government whose department is responsible for the police, said the authorities were taking action over the Mehsud case, but that one or two incidents did not mean the entire police force was corrupt.

&quot;The same police force ... eradicated violence from the city during Karachi operation&#39;, which began in 2013 against militants,&quot; he said. &quot;One person&#39;s actions cannot be allowed to malign the system.&quot;

The country's Supreme Court launched an inquiry on January 19 into the death of 27-year-old aspiring fashion model Naqibullah Mehsud

Nationwide protests at the police killing of a young ethnic Pashtun man in Pakistan's largest city have shone a spotlight on allegations of persecution by the authorities against refugees from the country's conflict-ridden northwest. The country's Supreme Court launched an inquiry on January 19 into the death of 27-year-old aspiring fashion model Naqibullah Mehsud. He was one of four men killed six days earlier in what police initially said was a shoot-out with suspected Islamist militants. The Supreme Court plans to begin hearings on the case on Saturday. The police team that killed Mehsud was under the command of senior superintendent Anwar Ahmed Khan, who has been suspended since Jan. 20 on the recommendation of a police inquiry committee. The committee was set up after Mehsud's father, Muhammad Khan Mehsud, who denies his son had any militant links, filed a kidnapping and killing complaint against him. Anwar told Reuters he had done nothing wrong and said the investigation into his officers' actions could allow the Taliban to regain a foothold in ethnic Pashtun parts of the city. "I had no knowledge of Naqibullah Mehsud. My staff told me that he is a militant with a criminal history," he said. Police data from 2011 reviewed by Reuters shows that in the seven years Anwar has been in charge of Karachi's Malir district, which has a large Pashtun population, at least 450 people have been killed in 200 clashes with police that involved weapons. The data does not give details of the circumstances of the shootings. A senior police official, who asked not to be identified, said that the majority of those killed were ethnic Pashtuns. Pakistan's ethnic Pashtun borderlands have been a hotbed of Islamist militancy in recent decades. Militant policy Pakistani police refer to any armed clash with suspects as an "encounter". Some human rights activists and families of victims have for years alleged that such incidents are often staged to cover up extrajudicial killings. Anwar told Reuters that armed operations to kill suspects were official police policy in Sindh Province, of which Karachi is the capital, to combat the threat from militants. "There was an on-going official policy ... for carrying out encounters to take out criminals and I have broken no law," he said. The provincial police chief denied there was such a policy. "I don't need to respond to irresponsible allegations," Inspector General of Sindh police Allah Dino Khawaja said in a brief text message in reply to Reuters' questions. "He has to appear before the investigation to defend and prove his claims." Sindh police said in a statement on Jan. 20 it had launched an inquiry "to ascertain the facts regarding the police encounter in which Naqibullah Mehsud was killed". Some campaigners among the sprawling city's Pashtun community say the story is not unusual. But it is the first to receive nationwide attention - in part because Mehsud, known as Naqib, does not fit the image of the militant from Pakistan's lawless northern heartlands. "He had a passion for wearing good clothes ... even in the picture of his body circulating on social media, he is seen wearing good clothes," his cousin Noor Rehman told Reuters, while holding back tears. Another senior police officer said no evidence linking Naqib to militancy had been found. "His particulars were checked in all the criminal databases of police and nothing came up," the official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Pakistan's chief justice on Tuesday summoned Anwar to appear for questioning at its first hearing this weekend. Earlier that day, he was not allowed to board a flight leaving Pakistan for Dubai, Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency said. Anwar told Reuters he does not plan to appear before the court. He said his children are studying in Dubai and he frequently visits. Target group Pashtuns are Pakistan's second largest ethnic group, and many have moved to the country's big cities to escape violence along the Afghan border. But since the emergence of the Pakistani Taliban, whose leadership also comes from the Mehsud tribe in South Waziristan, Pashtuns who spoke to Reuters in Karachi say they are all now seen as potential militants. "This is not just about the fact that police are killing people, it is about racial profiling," Jibran Nasir, a human rights lawyer who said he was filing a petition with the Senate's human rights committee, told Reuters. "Naqib had a very public profile. Looking at pictures of Naqib modelling ... no one is willing to believe he had anything to do with Taliban. The problem here is not every Pashtun killed and profiled here is a model." Figures posted by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on its website show 1,226 people were killed in 784 police encounters nationwide in the past two years. In the days after Mehsud was killed, thousands of activists and Pashtun students staged protests in Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Islamabad and Quetta. In Sohrab Goth, the majority Pashtun suburb of Karachi where Naqib's family live, three families told Reuters they had lost relatives in such incidents. Reuters was shown death certificates and newspaper clippings, but was not able to independently confirm the circumstances of their deaths. Sohail Anwer Sial, home minister in the Sindh provincial government whose department is responsible for the police, said the authorities were taking action over the Mehsud case, but that one or two incidents did not mean the entire police force was corrupt. "The same police force ... eradicated violence from the city during Karachi operation', which began in 2013 against militants," he said. "One person's actions cannot be allowed to malign the system."

Pakistan police killing of a Pashtun youth fuels anger over 'encounters'

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson faces &quot;difficult&quot; talks next week with NATO ally Turkey on Syria and human rights, his delegation said Friday before a regional tour.

Late last month, Ankara began a cross-border offensive in northwestern Syria against what it calls a &quot;terrorist&quot; Kurdish militia supported and armed by Washington whose troops are back local militias against the Islamic State group (IS).

The Turkish operation further raised tensions between the two countries, whose relations were already complicated.

&quot;We are urging them to show restraint in their operations in Afrin, and to show restraint further along the line across the border in northern Syria,&quot; a senior US State Department official told reporters ahead of Tillerson&#39;s tour that begins Sunday and will also take him to Cairo, Kuwait City, Amman and Beirut.

&quot;You start with asking for restraint and look for ways that you can help bring it to an end as quickly as possible,&quot; the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on the US to pull its troops back from Syria&#39;s Manbij, which is east of Afrin.

&quot;Obviously we need to work with the Turks to figure out more about what their long-term intentions are,&quot; and to try to find a way &quot;to address their legitimate security concerns while, at the same time, minimizing civilian casualties and above all else keeping everything focused on the defeat-ISIS fight, which is not over,&quot; the official said.&nbsp;

It will be &quot;a difficult conversation,&quot; the official continued, referring to the &quot;very hot&quot; Turkish rhetoric on the subject.

Tillerson&#39;s visit is also expected to touch on other sensitive topics.

These include human rights and arrests that the US called &quot;arbitrary&quot; following a state of emergency declared after an attempted coup in 2016.&nbsp;

Turkey last year detained local employees of American diplomatic missions in the country, and arrested Taner Kilic, the president of Amnesty International in Turkey.

&quot;There&#39;s no pulling punches on that,&quot; a second senior State Department official said.

&quot;We&#39;ve been very public in our call to the Turks to let these folks go, and we&#39;ve been very firm in our private conversations with them as well.&quot;

He conceded: &quot;The Turks are angry and this is a difficult time to do business.&quot;

But Washington believes the two countries share fundamental underlying interests including Syria&#39;s stability, the defeat of IS, and countering the Kurdistan Workers&#39; Party (PKK) which both Ankara and the West consider terrorists.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson faces "difficult" talks next week with NATO ally Turkey on Syria and human rights, his delegation said Friday before a regional tour

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson faces "difficult" talks next week with NATO ally Turkey on Syria and human rights, his delegation said Friday before a regional tour. Late last month, Ankara began a cross-border offensive in northwestern Syria against what it calls a "terrorist" Kurdish militia supported and armed by Washington whose troops are back local militias against the Islamic State group (IS). The Turkish operation further raised tensions between the two countries, whose relations were already complicated. "We are urging them to show restraint in their operations in Afrin, and to show restraint further along the line across the border in northern Syria," a senior US State Department official told reporters ahead of Tillerson's tour that begins Sunday and will also take him to Cairo, Kuwait City, Amman and Beirut. "You start with asking for restraint and look for ways that you can help bring it to an end as quickly as possible," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on the US to pull its troops back from Syria's Manbij, which is east of Afrin. "Obviously we need to work with the Turks to figure out more about what their long-term intentions are," and to try to find a way "to address their legitimate security concerns while, at the same time, minimizing civilian casualties and above all else keeping everything focused on the defeat-ISIS fight, which is not over," the official said. It will be "a difficult conversation," the official continued, referring to the "very hot" Turkish rhetoric on the subject. Tillerson's visit is also expected to touch on other sensitive topics. These include human rights and arrests that the US called "arbitrary" following a state of emergency declared after an attempted coup in 2016. Turkey last year detained local employees of American diplomatic missions in the country, and arrested Taner Kilic, the president of Amnesty International in Turkey. "There's no pulling punches on that," a second senior State Department official said. "We've been very public in our call to the Turks to let these folks go, and we've been very firm in our private conversations with them as well." He conceded: "The Turks are angry and this is a difficult time to do business." But Washington believes the two countries share fundamental underlying interests including Syria's stability, the defeat of IS, and countering the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which both Ankara and the West consider terrorists.

Tough Turkey talks await Tillerson: Officials

Rebel fighters shot down a Russian plane over Syria&#39;s northwest Idlib province on Saturday, a monitor said, taking its Russian pilot captive.&nbsp;

&quot;Rebel factions shot down a Sukhoi 25. The Russian pilot came down in a parachute, before being captured,&quot; said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.&nbsp;

He could not immediately confirm which faction had shot down the warplane but hardline opposition factions and the jihadist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) are active in the area.

Rebel fighters shot down a Russian plane over Syria's northwest Idlib province on Saturday, a monitor said, taking its Russian pilot captive

Rebel fighters shot down a Russian plane over Syria's northwest Idlib province on Saturday, a monitor said, taking its Russian pilot captive. "Rebel factions shot down a Sukhoi 25. The Russian pilot came down in a parachute, before being captured," said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. He could not immediately confirm which faction had shot down the warplane but hardline opposition factions and the jihadist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) are active in the area.

Syria rebels down Russian plane, capture pilot: Reports

Growing extremism and religious intolerance are leading to thousands of Christians, Ahmadis and Hindus reportedly fleeing Pakistan.

Government inaction in countering religious harassment by Islamic groups has caused considerable heartburn. Even atheists are being targeted.

The Ahmadiyya community is an endangered community in Pakistan in spite of being an Islamic sect, and has been a target of death threats openly.

Excommunicated by the second amendment to Pakistan&#39;s Constitution in 1974, the Ahmadiyyas have faced a severe backlash over the initial changes made regarding Khatm-e-Nabuwat (finality of prophethood) in the Elections Reforms Bill passed in October.

According to the Pakistan Penal Code, an Ahmadi can be imprisoned for reading the Koran or even using Islamic titles, says a report published in the Asia Times.

The daily quotes Ahmadiyya spokesperson Saleem Uddin, as saying that the Ahmadis have been made scapegoats since the state of Pakistan was created in 1947, and added that people have forgotten the community&#39;s contribution in creating the country post-partition.

Atheists are another category of Pakistani citizens who are at huge risk, so much so that many of them have now deactivated their profiles over fears of being abducted. They also do not see their homes or the internet as safe spaces where they can share ideas.

Local atheists can pass off as Muslims, but Hindus and Christians are visible targets, as can be seen by the recent suicide bomb attack inside the Bethel Memorial Methodist Church in Quetta.

Threats by Muslim radicals have prompted innumerable Christians to flee Pakistan and look for asylum elsewhere.

The fate of Hindus is no different according to the Asia Times article. They too are seeking shelter abroad.

PML-N Senator Ramesh Kumar was quoted, as saying, &quot;around 5,000 Hindus leave Pakistan every year&quot; because of the extensive persecution. This includes forced marriages and kidnapping for ransom, as well as attacks on Hindu temples.

&quot;Hatred against Hindus, primarily driven from the ideology of Two-Nation Theory, is deeply injected in the veins of raw minds through distorted history and fabricated tales taught in books,&quot; the daily quotes Pakistani human rights activist Kapil Dev, as saying.

Calls for filtering out religion and distorted versions of history promoting hatred against Hindus are being made more frequently.

Activists want to counter radical Islamist perspectives with a secular narrative, but Ibn Abdur Rehman, secretary-general of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, doesn&#39;t see it happening anytime soon.

He told Asia Times. &quot;The state has surrendered to the radical Islamists and plans on gradually taking away every last bit of freedom from its citizens.&quot;&nbsp;

Government inaction in countering religious harassment by Islamic groups has caused considerable heartburn.

Growing extremism and religious intolerance are leading to thousands of Christians, Ahmadis and Hindus reportedly fleeing Pakistan. Government inaction in countering religious harassment by Islamic groups has caused considerable heartburn. Even atheists are being targeted. The Ahmadiyya community is an endangered community in Pakistan in spite of being an Islamic sect, and has been a target of death threats openly. Excommunicated by the second amendment to Pakistan's Constitution in 1974, the Ahmadiyyas have faced a severe backlash over the initial changes made regarding Khatm-e-Nabuwat (finality of prophethood) in the Elections Reforms Bill passed in October. According to the Pakistan Penal Code, an Ahmadi can be imprisoned for reading the Koran or even using Islamic titles, says a report published in the Asia Times. The daily quotes Ahmadiyya spokesperson Saleem Uddin, as saying that the Ahmadis have been made scapegoats since the state of Pakistan was created in 1947, and added that people have forgotten the community's contribution in creating the country post-partition. Atheists are another category of Pakistani citizens who are at huge risk, so much so that many of them have now deactivated their profiles over fears of being abducted. They also do not see their homes or the internet as safe spaces where they can share ideas. Local atheists can pass off as Muslims, but Hindus and Christians are visible targets, as can be seen by the recent suicide bomb attack inside the Bethel Memorial Methodist Church in Quetta. Threats by Muslim radicals have prompted innumerable Christians to flee Pakistan and look for asylum elsewhere. The fate of Hindus is no different according to the Asia Times article. They too are seeking shelter abroad. PML-N Senator Ramesh Kumar was quoted, as saying, "around 5,000 Hindus leave Pakistan every year" because of the extensive persecution. This includes forced marriages and kidnapping for ransom, as well as attacks on Hindu temples. "Hatred against Hindus, primarily driven from the ideology of Two-Nation Theory, is deeply injected in the veins of raw minds through distorted history and fabricated tales taught in books," the daily quotes Pakistani human rights activist Kapil Dev, as saying. Calls for filtering out religion and distorted versions of history promoting hatred against Hindus are being made more frequently. Activists want to counter radical Islamist perspectives with a secular narrative, but Ibn Abdur Rehman, secretary-general of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, doesn't see it happening anytime soon. He told Asia Times. "The state has surrendered to the radical Islamists and plans on gradually taking away every last bit of freedom from its citizens."

Pakistan's minorities fleeing because of religious intolerance

Bangladesh and Myanmar on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to begin repatriating Rohingya refugees from January, despite rights groups warning that their safety is still not assured should they return.

The foreign secretaries of Bangladesh and Myanmar met in Dhaka to finalise the agreement signed on November 23 for the voluntary return of nearly three-quarters of a million stateless Rohingya living in refugee camps along the border.

A new working group would &quot;ensure commencement of repatriation within two months&quot; by developing a timetable for the verification of refugee identities and logistics of their return, Bangladesh&#39;s foreign ministry said in a statement.

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<h5>The reaffirmation comes a day after Human Rights Watch, citing analysis of satellite imagery, said Myanmar&#39;s army burned down dozens of Rohingya homes within days of signing the repatriation deal with Bangladesh</h5>
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&quot;Now, we will start the next step of our work,&quot; Bangladesh foreign minister AH&nbsp;Mahmood Ali told reporters after the meeting.

The reaffirmation comes a day after Human Rights Watch, citing analysis of satellite imagery, said Myanmar&#39;s army burned down dozens of Rohingya homes within days of signing the repatriation deal with Bangladesh.

The watchdog said the deal was &quot;a public relations stunt&quot; and warned it contained no guarantee the Rohingya would be safe should they return to Myanmar&#39;s conflict-wracked Rakhine state.

An estimated 655,000 refugees from the stateless minority group have poured across the border into Bangladesh since August, fleeing what the US and United Nations have described as ethnic cleansing.

Last week the group Doctors Without Borders released a survey which found that nearly 7,000 Rohingya had been killed in the first month of the Rakhine violence.

The military has put the number in the hundreds and denied targeting civilians or committing atrocities, while Myanmar&#39;s leader Aung San Suu Kyi said major security operations stopped in early September.

Myanmar has in the past blamed fires in villages on Rohingya insurgents who on August 25 attacked security posts, killing a dozen police and triggering fierce army retribution.

Responding to international pressure, Suu Kyi&#39;s civilian government signed an agreement with Bangladesh to start the repatriation of the stateless Muslim refugees within two months.

The agreement promises the &quot;safe and voluntary return&quot; of displaced Rohingya in Bangladesh -- not just the latest 655,000 new arrivals but more than 70,000 from a separate influx in October 2016.

Testimonies gathered by AFP from displaced Rohingya in Bangladesh suggest few refugees wish to return to Myanmar, where many saw their villages burned to ashes and loved ones killed.

The persecuted minority has been the target of past pogroms in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, which does not recognise the group as a genuine ethnicity and has stripped them of citizenship.

Aid groups have warned Myanmar they would boycott any new camps for Rohingya returnees, saying refugees must be allowed to settle in their own homes and not forced into ghetto-like conditions.

The foreign secretaries of Bangladesh and Myanmar met in Dhaka to finalise the agreement signed on November 23 for the voluntary return of nearly 750,000 Rohingya refugees

Bangladesh and Myanmar on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to begin repatriating Rohingya refugees from January, despite rights groups warning that their safety is still not assured should they return. The foreign secretaries of Bangladesh and Myanmar met in Dhaka to finalise the agreement signed on November 23 for the voluntary return of nearly three-quarters of a million stateless Rohingya living in refugee camps along the border. A new working group would "ensure commencement of repatriation within two months" by developing a timetable for the verification of refugee identities and logistics of their return, Bangladesh's foreign ministry said in a statement. The reaffirmation comes a day after Human Rights Watch, citing analysis of satellite imagery, said Myanmar's army burned down dozens of Rohingya homes within days of signing the repatriation deal with Bangladesh × "Now, we will start the next step of our work," Bangladesh foreign minister AH Mahmood Ali told reporters after the meeting. The reaffirmation comes a day after Human Rights Watch, citing analysis of satellite imagery, said Myanmar's army burned down dozens of Rohingya homes within days of signing the repatriation deal with Bangladesh. The watchdog said the deal was "a public relations stunt" and warned it contained no guarantee the Rohingya would be safe should they return to Myanmar's conflict-wracked Rakhine state. An estimated 655,000 refugees from the stateless minority group have poured across the border into Bangladesh since August, fleeing what the US and United Nations have described as ethnic cleansing. Last week the group Doctors Without Borders released a survey which found that nearly 7,000 Rohingya had been killed in the first month of the Rakhine violence. The military has put the number in the hundreds and denied targeting civilians or committing atrocities, while Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi said major security operations stopped in early September. Myanmar has in the past blamed fires in villages on Rohingya insurgents who on August 25 attacked security posts, killing a dozen police and triggering fierce army retribution. Responding to international pressure, Suu Kyi's civilian government signed an agreement with Bangladesh to start the repatriation of the stateless Muslim refugees within two months. The agreement promises the "safe and voluntary return" of displaced Rohingya in Bangladesh -- not just the latest 655,000 new arrivals but more than 70,000 from a separate influx in October 2016. Testimonies gathered by AFP from displaced Rohingya in Bangladesh suggest few refugees wish to return to Myanmar, where many saw their villages burned to ashes and loved ones killed. The persecuted minority has been the target of past pogroms in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, which does not recognise the group as a genuine ethnicity and has stripped them of citizenship. Aid groups have warned Myanmar they would boycott any new camps for Rohingya returnees, saying refugees must be allowed to settle in their own homes and not forced into ghetto-like conditions.

Rohingya refugees to start returning to Myanmar from January: Officials

Human Rights Watch in a report <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/rohingya-situation-textbook-example-of-ethnic-cleansing-un-human-rights-commission-20075">named &ldquo;Kill the Chicken to Scare the Monkeys&rdquo;</a> said beneath the slick surface of gleaming high-rises in Singapore resides a &quot;repressive place, where the government severely restricts what can be said, published, performed, read, or watched.&quot;

In a hard hitting report, <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/myanmar-commanders-should-be-punished-for-rape-of-rohingya-women-girls-human-rights-watch-12085">the human rights agency said those </a>who criticize the government or the judiciary, or publicly discuss race and religion, &quot;frequently find themselves facing criminal investigations&quot;, adding,&quot;peaceful public demonstrations and other assemblies are severely limited.&quot;

&quot;Suppression of speech and assembly is not a new phenomenon in Singapore,&quot; the report obeserved, saying: &quot;Leaders of the ruling Peoples&rsquo; Action Party (PAP), which has been in power for more than 50 years, have a history of bankrupting opposition politicians through civil defamation suits and jailing them for public protests.

The international rights agency which frequently produces reports on country&#39;s social, economic and political affairs openly criticised the Singapore&nbsp;government.

&quot;The right to peaceful assembly is extraordinarily restricted in Singapore,&quot; the rights agency noted.

&quot;The only place a resident of Singapore can hold a public assembly without a permit from the government is at &quot;Speakers&#39; Corner,&quot; an area of tiny Hong Lim Park,&quot; the Human Rights Watch said.

The rights agency was particularly severe on Singapore&#39;s poor handling of its media saying the government has &quot;increased its regulation of internet content providers.&quot;

&quot;Websites found to be engaged in discussion of political or religious issues relating to Singapore can be required to undertake additional registration procedures and are subjected to additional restrictions,&quot; it said, adding,&quot;The government can also unilaterally declare that a website is a &ldquo;political association&rdquo; under the Political Donations Act and thus subject to stringent reporting requirements.&quot;&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
&quot;Whether accurate or not, there is a real sense that, if you challenge the government of Singapore, you will pay a price,&quot; the agency said.

The rights body said the Singapore government can penalize people for dissent in several ways through &quot;criminal prosecution, a government job, grants from the government for a project, or the imposition of additional regulatory burdens.&quot; 
&nbsp;

The international rights agency which frequently produces reports on country's social, economic and political affairs openly criticised the Singapore's government.

Human Rights Watch in a report named “Kill the Chicken to Scare the Monkeys” said beneath the slick surface of gleaming high-rises in Singapore resides a "repressive place, where the government severely restricts what can be said, published, performed, read, or watched." In a hard hitting report, the human rights agency said those who criticize the government or the judiciary, or publicly discuss race and religion, "frequently find themselves facing criminal investigations", adding,"peaceful public demonstrations and other assemblies are severely limited." "Suppression of speech and assembly is not a new phenomenon in Singapore," the report obeserved, saying: "Leaders of the ruling Peoples’ Action Party (PAP), which has been in power for more than 50 years, have a history of bankrupting opposition politicians through civil defamation suits and jailing them for public protests. The international rights agency which frequently produces reports on country's social, economic and political affairs openly criticised the Singapore government. "The right to peaceful assembly is extraordinarily restricted in Singapore," the rights agency noted. "The only place a resident of Singapore can hold a public assembly without a permit from the government is at "Speakers' Corner," an area of tiny Hong Lim Park," the Human Rights Watch said. The rights agency was particularly severe on Singapore's poor handling of its media saying the government has "increased its regulation of internet content providers." "Websites found to be engaged in discussion of political or religious issues relating to Singapore can be required to undertake additional registration procedures and are subjected to additional restrictions," it said, adding,"The government can also unilaterally declare that a website is a “political association” under the Political Donations Act and thus subject to stringent reporting requirements." "Whether accurate or not, there is a real sense that, if you challenge the government of Singapore, you will pay a price," the agency said. The rights body said the Singapore government can penalize people for dissent in several ways through "criminal prosecution, a government job, grants from the government for a project, or the imposition of additional regulatory burdens."

Singapore promotes itself as bustling modern state but is a repressive place: Human Rights Watch report

The UN rights chief told the Security Council on Monday that tough sanctions imposed on North Korea are complicating the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid and called for an assessment.

An estimated 18 million North Koreans, or 70 percent of the population, suffer from acute food shortages and aid agencies provide &quot;literally a lifeline&quot; for 13 million of them, said UN Human Rights Commissioner Zeid Ra&#39;ad Al Hussein.

&quot;But sanctions may be adversely affecting this essential help,&quot; he told a special Security Council meeting on human rights in North Korea.

Sanctions that have tightened controls over international bank transfers &quot;have caused a slowdown in UN ground operations, affecting the delivery of food rations, health kits and other humanitarian aid,&quot; he said.

The rights chief asked the council to conduct an assessment of the human rights impact of sanctions and urged them to take action to minimize consequences.

Over the past year, the council has adopted three rounds of sanctions aimed at choking off revenue to Pyongyang&#39;s military programs after Kim Jong-Un&#39;s regime carried out a sixth nuclear test and a series of advanced missile launches.

The council&#39;s sanctions committee on North Korea will meet later Monday to hear a briefing from a UN humanitarian official on the impact of recent punitive measures.

China fails to block rights meeting&nbsp;

The Security Council discussed the human rights crisis in North Korea despite objections from China, Pyongyang&#39;s ally.

China requested a procedural vote to block the meeting, but failed to garner enough support.&nbsp;

Ten countries voted to allow the meeting to go ahead, three opposed -- China, Russia and Bolivia -- while Egypt and Ethiopia abstained.

At least nine countries must back a contested agenda item for it to be discussed at the council and the veto does not apply.

Chinese Deputy Ambassador Wu Haitao said the council&#39;s discussion of rights abuses in North Korea was &quot;counterproductive&quot; at a time when tensions are running high on the Korean peninsula.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley said human rights should be discussed more often by the top UN body as a way to bolster conflict prevention.

&quot;Any country that does not take care of its people ends up in conflict,&quot; said Haley.

The United States, Britain, France, Sweden, Italy, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay had requested the meeting, the fourth to be held since 2014.

China has sought every year to block the special meeting, arguing that the Human Rights Council in Geneva was the forum to address concerns about North Korea&#39;s rights record, and not the Security Council.

Pyongyang is accused by a UN commission of inquiry of running a vast network of prison camps, resorting to torture, arbitrary detentions among other widespread abuses.&nbsp;

The rights chief told the council that &quot;the context of military tensions seems to have deepened the extremely serious human rights violations&quot; endured by the country&#39;s 25 million citizens.

The UN&#39;s political affairs chief, Jeffrey Feltman, returned at the weekend from a visit to Pyongyang, the first by a high-ranking UN diplomat since 2010.

Feltman will report to the council during a closed-door session on his visit on Tuesday ahead of a ministerial-level meeting on North Korea on Friday.

The council's sanctions committee on North Korea will meet later Monday to hear a briefing from a UN humanitarian official on the impact of recent punitive measures

The UN rights chief told the Security Council on Monday that tough sanctions imposed on North Korea are complicating the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid and called for an assessment. An estimated 18 million North Koreans, or 70 percent of the population, suffer from acute food shortages and aid agencies provide "literally a lifeline" for 13 million of them, said UN Human Rights Commissioner Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein. "But sanctions may be adversely affecting this essential help," he told a special Security Council meeting on human rights in North Korea. Sanctions that have tightened controls over international bank transfers "have caused a slowdown in UN ground operations, affecting the delivery of food rations, health kits and other humanitarian aid," he said. The rights chief asked the council to conduct an assessment of the human rights impact of sanctions and urged them to take action to minimize consequences. Over the past year, the council has adopted three rounds of sanctions aimed at choking off revenue to Pyongyang's military programs after Kim Jong-Un's regime carried out a sixth nuclear test and a series of advanced missile launches. The council's sanctions committee on North Korea will meet later Monday to hear a briefing from a UN humanitarian official on the impact of recent punitive measures. China fails to block rights meeting The Security Council discussed the human rights crisis in North Korea despite objections from China, Pyongyang's ally. China requested a procedural vote to block the meeting, but failed to garner enough support. Ten countries voted to allow the meeting to go ahead, three opposed -- China, Russia and Bolivia -- while Egypt and Ethiopia abstained. At least nine countries must back a contested agenda item for it to be discussed at the council and the veto does not apply. Chinese Deputy Ambassador Wu Haitao said the council's discussion of rights abuses in North Korea was "counterproductive" at a time when tensions are running high on the Korean peninsula. US Ambassador Nikki Haley said human rights should be discussed more often by the top UN body as a way to bolster conflict prevention. "Any country that does not take care of its people ends up in conflict," said Haley. The United States, Britain, France, Sweden, Italy, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay had requested the meeting, the fourth to be held since 2014. China has sought every year to block the special meeting, arguing that the Human Rights Council in Geneva was the forum to address concerns about North Korea's rights record, and not the Security Council. Pyongyang is accused by a UN commission of inquiry of running a vast network of prison camps, resorting to torture, arbitrary detentions among other widespread abuses. The rights chief told the council that "the context of military tensions seems to have deepened the extremely serious human rights violations" endured by the country's 25 million citizens. The UN's political affairs chief, Jeffrey Feltman, returned at the weekend from a visit to Pyongyang, the first by a high-ranking UN diplomat since 2010. Feltman will report to the council during a closed-door session on his visit on Tuesday ahead of a ministerial-level meeting on North Korea on Friday.

UN sanctions affecting aid in North Korea: Rights chief

&ldquo;Maybe we should just stop flying altogether?&rdquo; was a rhetorical question many immigrants of colour, like myself, living in the North America asked on the night of November 8, 2016, as Trump was elected the US president. This rhetoric of fear is particularly pronounced among brown immigrants whether Muslim or not. But there is no denying that Muslims probably are the most fearful. The rising Islamophobia and targeted surveillance of Muslim communities over the last decade and a half leave them at greater risk of their civil liberties being massively compromised even outside of airports under a Trump Presidency. But it is <a href="http://www.surveillance-and-society.org/articles1(4)/sorted.pdf">airports</a> and air travels across the world and, especially, in North America and Europe where we have seen a persistent violation of civil liberties over the last sixteen years.&nbsp;

The permanent transformation of the landscape of American Civil Liberties and aviation experiences began with the terrorist attacks of 9/11, 2001.&nbsp; The U.S. government has detained, searched, surveilled hundreds of immigrants of colour, particularly, Brown and Muslim immigrants without due process, <a href="http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/aslj10&amp;div=21&amp;id=&amp;page=">disregarding their civil rights and civil liberties</a>. Visa requirements for these groups have become more draconian with full-scale background checks and scrutiny at multiple levels. &nbsp;

While the cases of active detentions and blatant and harmful discrimination have often been taken up by organisations like <a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/racial-justice?ID--9717=&amp;c=133&amp;Type=s%20%28&amp;redirect=cfmredirect/RacialEquality">American Civil Liberties Union</a> and the media, what seems to have been accepted and normalised in the public eye is the panopticonic surveillance of air travelers worldwide.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

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&nbsp;

Heightened security screenings, deplaning passengers, ad hoc questioning and long-winded document scrutiny in windowless rooms at airports, based solely on national origin, religious, ethnic and racial identifiers of passengers who are perceived to be of risk, is part of the regular air travel experience for some groups of people in today&rsquo;s world.&nbsp;

Airport surveillance has become an important collaborative and coordinated effort between private airlines, civil aviation departments of different governments, and on ground security staff. Phased introduction of security measures both in international and domestic airports eased the public into the altered reality of air travel. Immediately after 9/11, at least in the United States, there was a general public consensus for increasing airport security measures given the nature of the 2001 attacks on American soil.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.insidescience.org/news/how-do-we-know-if-security-measures-work-against-terrorists">Yet, there is no conclusive evidence to show if the intensification of airport security has reduced the chances of terrorist attacks. What is true is that, since the current forms of terrorism gained roots in the 1960s, the United States has been the calmest in the decades after September 1</a>1. There have been half a dozen significant incidences of terrorism in the U.S in the last ten years, some of them incited by self-proclaimed religious hatred, including the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/02/us/boston-marathon-bombi">Boston bombing</a>, the <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/12/us/orlando-nightclub-shooting/">Orlando killings</a>, <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2015/12/a-shooter-in-san-bernardino/418497/">San Bernadino shooters</a>.&nbsp;

I would also add the numerous mass shootings executed by a range of individuals, mostly <a href="http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2013/05/muslims-only-carried-out-2-5-percent-of-terrorist-attacks-on-u-s-soil-between-1970-and-20">White Americans</a>, as acts of terrorism because these <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/oct/05/viral-image/fact-checking-comparison-gun-deaths-and-terrorism-/">killed thousands of Americans</a> in the last five years alone. Almost all of these attacks were carried out by ideologically driven lone wolves or mentally ill individuals who were U.S. citizens and, most importantly, who had unfettered access to assault weapons because of the Second&nbsp;Amendment (gun) Laws.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

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&nbsp;

Despite these facts, airport security has continued to tighten and intensify. Private airlines have assumed the role of <a href="http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/aslj10&amp;div=21&amp;id=&amp;page=">&ldquo;front line of defense&rdquo;</a> for American national security. And at the brunt of these intensifications have been Muslim and/or racial minorities, especially South Asian travelers.&nbsp; Airlines with borrowed authority from national security departments (Homeland Security in the U.S.) of States have legally racially profiled brown bodies in the name of passenger and national safety.&nbsp; From degrading strip search of a <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2002/LAW/01/17/airport.search.lawsuit/index.html">Pakistani woman</a> at the O&rsquo;Hare airport in Chicago by the National Guard in 2002, recurrent detentions of the Hindi film superstar <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/12/asia/shah-rukh-khan-bollywood-star-detained/">Shah Rukh Khan</a> at U.S. airports, to my very own experience at the <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/facts-and-arguments/flying-while-brown/article30979345/">Glasgow airport</a> earlier this year, the stripping down of basic human and civil rights at airports for certain minoritised groups is far too common.&nbsp;

We are possibly at a historical moment where we can no longer ignore or normalise these violations. With the recent rise of alt-right across liberal democracies in the Western and the Eastern worlds and their leaders gaining absolute political power, we are at a juncture where the risk to lives and liberties of minorities are at all time high since World War II. It is time to call out civil aviation and governments for its gross infringement on civil liberties of everyday air travelers.

(Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Hundreds of immigrants of colour have been detained and searched without due process, disregarding their rights and civil liberties

“Maybe we should just stop flying altogether?” was a rhetorical question many immigrants of colour, like myself, living in the North America asked on the night of November 8, 2016, as Trump was elected the US president. This rhetoric of fear is particularly pronounced among brown immigrants whether Muslim or not. But there is no denying that Muslims probably are the most fearful. The rising Islamophobia and targeted surveillance of Muslim communities over the last decade and a half leave them at greater risk of their civil liberties being massively compromised even outside of airports under a Trump Presidency. But it is airports and air travels across the world and, especially, in North America and Europe where we have seen a persistent violation of civil liberties over the last sixteen years. The permanent transformation of the landscape of American Civil Liberties and aviation experiences began with the terrorist attacks of 9/11, 2001. The U.S. government has detained, searched, surveilled hundreds of immigrants of colour, particularly, Brown and Muslim immigrants without due process, disregarding their civil rights and civil liberties. Visa requirements for these groups have become more draconian with full-scale background checks and scrutiny at multiple levels. While the cases of active detentions and blatant and harmful discrimination have often been taken up by organisations like American Civil Liberties Union and the media, what seems to have been accepted and normalised in the public eye is the panopticonic surveillance of air travelers worldwide. What seems have been accepted and normalised in the public eye is the panopticonic surveillance of air travelers worldwide × Heightened security screenings, deplaning passengers, ad hoc questioning and long-winded document scrutiny in windowless rooms at airports, based solely on national origin, religious, ethnic and racial identifiers of passengers who are perceived to be of risk, is part of the regular air travel experience for some groups of people in today’s world. Airport surveillance has become an important collaborative and coordinated effort between private airlines, civil aviation departments of different governments, and on ground security staff. Phased introduction of security measures both in international and domestic airports eased the public into the altered reality of air travel. Immediately after 9/11, at least in the United States, there was a general public consensus for increasing airport security measures given the nature of the 2001 attacks on American soil. Yet, there is no conclusive evidence to show if the intensification of airport security has reduced the chances of terrorist attacks. What is true is that, since the current forms of terrorism gained roots in the 1960s, the United States has been the calmest in the decades after September 11. There have been half a dozen significant incidences of terrorism in the U.S in the last ten years, some of them incited by self-proclaimed religious hatred, including the Boston bombing, the Orlando killings, San Bernadino shooters. I would also add the numerous mass shootings executed by a range of individuals, mostly White Americans, as acts of terrorism because these killed thousands of Americans in the last five years alone. Almost all of these attacks were carried out by ideologically driven lone wolves or mentally ill individuals who were U.S. citizens and, most importantly, who had unfettered access to assault weapons because of the Second Amendment (gun) Laws. Private airlines have assumed the role of “front line of defense” for American national security. × Despite these facts, airport security has continued to tighten and intensify. Private airlines have assumed the role of “front line of defense” for American national security. And at the brunt of these intensifications have been Muslim and/or racial minorities, especially South Asian travelers. Airlines with borrowed authority from national security departments (Homeland Security in the U.S.) of States have legally racially profiled brown bodies in the name of passenger and national safety. From degrading strip search of a Pakistani woman at the O’Hare airport in Chicago by the National Guard in 2002, recurrent detentions of the Hindi film superstar Shah Rukh Khan at U.S. airports, to my very own experience at the Glasgow airport earlier this year, the stripping down of basic human and civil rights at airports for certain minoritised groups is far too common. We are possibly at a historical moment where we can no longer ignore or normalise these violations. With the recent rise of alt-right across liberal democracies in the Western and the Eastern worlds and their leaders gaining absolute political power, we are at a juncture where the risk to lives and liberties of minorities are at all time high since World War II. It is time to call out civil aviation and governments for its gross infringement on civil liberties of everyday air travelers. (Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

How civil aviation has changed globally after 9/11

It took a long time, but on Thursday Australia became the 26th country to achieve marriage equality.

The LGBTI community is euphoric and relieved with this hard-fought victory. But there is also trauma from the drawn-out postal survey campaign, which saw attacks on rainbow families and communities. It left many feeling vulnerable and distressed. In some cases, it brought back painful memories of the bullying and abuse they were subjected to in their adolescence.

But once the celebrations from Australia achieving marriage equality have subsided, the fight for LGBTI people to live lives free from discrimination will continue.

Watch:&nbsp;Marriage equality has passed, so what&rsquo;s next?

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A long way to go

The focus recently has, understandably, been on achieving marriage equality. However, it&rsquo;s important to recognise that this accomplishment does not mean that LGBTI people enjoy all of the same human rights as heterosexual people.

Australian law has not yet caught up with the reality of modern families. Children in LGBTI families may have more than two parents: a lesbian couple may have a child with the assistance of a gay couple, for instance, and all four parents may be actively involved in raising the child.

In contrast to Canada, which allows birth certificates to record up to four parents, Australia allows only two parents to be recorded. This means that this pivotal identity document may not accurately reflect a child&rsquo;s family structure.

Another issue that can now receive greater attention is the ongoing use of conversion therapies to &ldquo;cure&rdquo; a person&rsquo;s same-sex attraction. These harmful practices appear to have gone underground but are actually more prevalent in Australia than ever before.

Conversion therapies have been condemned by the medical profession as harmful and ineffective, and by the UN as a breach of human rights. Nevertheless, they continue in Australia.

In 2016, the Victorian government established a commissioner to investigate and ban unregistered health practitioners who claim to be able to convert same-sex-attracted people. However, the Health Complaints Commissioner does not have the power to examine faith-based organisations engaging in such practices, which limits this initiative&rsquo;s effectiveness.

In the US, however, several states and cities have enacted legislation to ban conversion therapy &ndash; either for minors or, in the case of New York City, for adults as well.

Additionally, a case in the state of New Jersey against a Jewish counselling group culminated in a decision that the group had committed consumer fraud when it promised to change a person&rsquo;s same-sex attraction into opposite-sex attraction and was held liable to pay damages.

Given the attempts to embed discrimination against LGBTI people in the marriage equality legislation under the guise of religious freedom, and the government&rsquo;s review into whether Australian law adequately protects religious freedom, now may not be the best time to advocate for the removal of religious exemptions from federal, state and territory anti-discrimination legislation.

As it stands, religious bodies are allowed to discriminate against a person on the basis of their sexual orientation. The impact of such exemptions was recently illustrated when a teacher at a Baptist school in Western Australia was lawfully sacked for being gay.

Another issue that has received little attention is the ongoing practice of subjecting intersex infants to surgical or hormonal interventions to &ldquo;fix&rdquo; their sex to appear male or female. Advocates are calling for such medical interventions to be banned unless it is freely given and fully informed consent.

Advocacy on the world stage

Australia achieving marriage equality will also help improve our human rights reputation on the international stage &ndash; which is in desperate need of help.

At its UN Human Rights Council periodic review in 2016, several countries recommended that Australia amend its laws to allow same-sex couples to marry.

Australia should also lend its support to persecuted LGBTI people in other parts of the world. This includes in the Asia-Pacific region, where 19 countries criminalise homosexuality. As Martin Luther King said: Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.

We should celebrate and enjoy the fact that Australia finally has marriage equality. But it is by no means the end of the road when it comes to the law reform necessary to enable LGBTI people to enjoy lives of dignity and equality.

Birth certificates that accurately reflect a child&rsquo;s family, ban on conversion therapies, removal of religious exemptions from anti-discrimination legislation, and prohibitions on surgeries to &ldquo;normalise&rdquo; an intersex infant&rsquo;s genitalia are just some of the issues that need to be fixed before Australia&rsquo;s LGBTI community can fully enjoy their human rights.

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-has-finally-achieved-marriage-equality-but-theres-a-lot-more-to-be-done-on-lgbti-rights-88488" rel="nofollow" target="blank">original article</a>.

Image Credit: AAP

(Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Australia legalising marriage equality does not necessarily mean LGBTI people enjoy all of the same human rights as heterosexual people

It took a long time, but on Thursday Australia became the 26th country to achieve marriage equality. The LGBTI community is euphoric and relieved with this hard-fought victory. But there is also trauma from the drawn-out postal survey campaign, which saw attacks on rainbow families and communities. It left many feeling vulnerable and distressed. In some cases, it brought back painful memories of the bullying and abuse they were subjected to in their adolescence. But once the celebrations from Australia achieving marriage equality have subsided, the fight for LGBTI people to live lives free from discrimination will continue. Watch: Marriage equality has passed, so what’s next? × A long way to go The focus recently has, understandably, been on achieving marriage equality. However, it’s important to recognise that this accomplishment does not mean that LGBTI people enjoy all of the same human rights as heterosexual people. Australian law has not yet caught up with the reality of modern families. Children in LGBTI families may have more than two parents: a lesbian couple may have a child with the assistance of a gay couple, for instance, and all four parents may be actively involved in raising the child. In contrast to Canada, which allows birth certificates to record up to four parents, Australia allows only two parents to be recorded. This means that this pivotal identity document may not accurately reflect a child’s family structure. Another issue that can now receive greater attention is the ongoing use of conversion therapies to “cure” a person’s same-sex attraction. These harmful practices appear to have gone underground but are actually more prevalent in Australia than ever before. Conversion therapies have been condemned by the medical profession as harmful and ineffective, and by the UN as a breach of human rights. Nevertheless, they continue in Australia. In 2016, the Victorian government established a commissioner to investigate and ban unregistered health practitioners who claim to be able to convert same-sex-attracted people. However, the Health Complaints Commissioner does not have the power to examine faith-based organisations engaging in such practices, which limits this initiative’s effectiveness. In the US, however, several states and cities have enacted legislation to ban conversion therapy – either for minors or, in the case of New York City, for adults as well. Additionally, a case in the state of New Jersey against a Jewish counselling group culminated in a decision that the group had committed consumer fraud when it promised to change a person’s same-sex attraction into opposite-sex attraction and was held liable to pay damages. Given the attempts to embed discrimination against LGBTI people in the marriage equality legislation under the guise of religious freedom, and the government’s review into whether Australian law adequately protects religious freedom, now may not be the best time to advocate for the removal of religious exemptions from federal, state and territory anti-discrimination legislation. As it stands, religious bodies are allowed to discriminate against a person on the basis of their sexual orientation. The impact of such exemptions was recently illustrated when a teacher at a Baptist school in Western Australia was lawfully sacked for being gay. Another issue that has received little attention is the ongoing practice of subjecting intersex infants to surgical or hormonal interventions to “fix” their sex to appear male or female. Advocates are calling for such medical interventions to be banned unless it is freely given and fully informed consent. Advocacy on the world stage Australia achieving marriage equality will also help improve our human rights reputation on the international stage – which is in desperate need of help. At its UN Human Rights Council periodic review in 2016, several countries recommended that Australia amend its laws to allow same-sex couples to marry. Australia should also lend its support to persecuted LGBTI people in other parts of the world. This includes in the Asia-Pacific region, where 19 countries criminalise homosexuality. As Martin Luther King said: Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We should celebrate and enjoy the fact that Australia finally has marriage equality. But it is by no means the end of the road when it comes to the law reform necessary to enable LGBTI people to enjoy lives of dignity and equality. Birth certificates that accurately reflect a child’s family, ban on conversion therapies, removal of religious exemptions from anti-discrimination legislation, and prohibitions on surgeries to “normalise” an intersex infant’s genitalia are just some of the issues that need to be fixed before Australia’s LGBTI community can fully enjoy their human rights. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Image Credit: AAP (Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Opinion: Australia approves marriage equality, but lots need to be done on LGBTI rights

Bangladesh has called for a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to discuss the human rights issue of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.

Recently, Bangladesh had sent a notice along with Saudi Arabia to the UNHRC in this regard, Dhaka Tribune has reported.

Their notice has received support of 33 of the 47 member states, and 40 other non-UNHRC nations.

The move comes just over a week after Sheikh Hasina-led government signed a bilateral agreement with Myanmar on Rohingya repatriation.

According to the national daily, Bangladesh also wants to discuss the human rights condition of other minorities living in Myanmar`s Rakhine state with the UNHCR members.

Since the military action began in Rakhine in August, after some militants attacked security forces&#39;&nbsp;post, over 6 lakh Rohingyas have fled the state to neighbouring countries, especially to Bangladesh.

As of now, 6.25 lakh refugees have taken shelter in the country.

According to Myanmar`s 1982 Citizenship Act, Rohingyas are not considered naturalised citizens and, repeatedly, have been at the receiving end of the ethnic clashes in the country.

Recently, Bangladesh had sent a notice along with Saudi Arabia to the UNHRC in this regard which has received the support of 33 of the 47 member states, and 40 other non-UNHRC nations

Bangladesh has called for a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to discuss the human rights issue of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar. Recently, Bangladesh had sent a notice along with Saudi Arabia to the UNHRC in this regard, Dhaka Tribune has reported. Their notice has received support of 33 of the 47 member states, and 40 other non-UNHRC nations. The move comes just over a week after Sheikh Hasina-led government signed a bilateral agreement with Myanmar on Rohingya repatriation. According to the national daily, Bangladesh also wants to discuss the human rights condition of other minorities living in Myanmar`s Rakhine state with the UNHCR members. Since the military action began in Rakhine in August, after some militants attacked security forces' post, over 6 lakh Rohingyas have fled the state to neighbouring countries, especially to Bangladesh. As of now, 6.25 lakh refugees have taken shelter in the country. According to Myanmar`s 1982 Citizenship Act, Rohingyas are not considered naturalised citizens and, repeatedly, have been at the receiving end of the ethnic clashes in the country.

Bangladesh calls for UNHRC meeting to discuss Rohingya crisis

United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council is expected to hold a special session on killings, rapes and other crimes committed against Rohingya in Myanmar.

There will be a special session on December 5,&nbsp;reported by Reuters&nbsp;

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid&nbsp; Ra`ad al-Hussein described the Myanmar army&#39;s crakcdown of Rohingya in Rakhine state as a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.

However, the military denied the accusations of murder, rape torture, and forced displacement.

So far&nbsp;more than&nbsp;600,000 Rohingya have been driven into Bangladesh since August.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

UN Human Rights Council is expected to hold a special session on December 5, on killings, rapes and other crimes committed against Rohingya in Myanmar

United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council is expected to hold a special session on killings, rapes and other crimes committed against Rohingya in Myanmar. There will be a special session on December 5, reported by Reuters UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra`ad al-Hussein described the Myanmar army's crakcdown of Rohingya in Rakhine state as a textbook example of ethnic cleansing. However, the military denied the accusations of murder, rape torture, and forced displacement. So far more than 600,000 Rohingya have been driven into Bangladesh since August.

United Nation rights council to hold special session on Rohingya: Reports

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who is <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/philippines-duterte-says-he-killed-someone-at-age-16-23894">facing international criticism for his bloody war on drugs,</a> said his country was willing to host a &ldquo;world summit&rdquo; to tackle how nations can protect human rights.

The firebrand leader, who spoke in a news conference late on Thursday while in Vietnam for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting, said the summit should focus on human rights violations not just in the Philippines but globally.

Some western countries and human rights groups have strongly criticised Duterte&rsquo;s anti-narcotics campaign that has killed more than 3,900 suspected drug users and peddlers, in what the police called self-defence after armed suspects resisted arrest.

Critics dispute that and say executions are taking place with zero accountability, allegations the police reject.

&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s have a summit of how we can protect human rights for all human race,&rdquo; Duterte said shortly after meeting with the Filipino community in Vietnam, where he also renewed his attacks against United Nations human rights expert Agnes Callamard.

&ldquo;What makes the death of people in the Philippines more important than the rest of the children in the world that were massacred and killed,&rdquo; he asked. He said all victims of human rights violations are welcome to attend the summit and air their grievances.

Duterte reiterated his threat to slap Callamard if she investigates him for the rising death toll in his war on drugs and would ask her why she has made no comments on the victims of bombings and violence in the Middle East.

&ldquo;What have you been doing all the time? Why are you so fascinated with drugs?&rdquo; Duterte said. Duterte also threatened to ban two American lawmakers from coming to Manila after they criticised U.S. President Donald Trump for inviting him to visit the United States.

&ldquo;If you do not like me, I do not like you. We&rsquo;re even,&rdquo; he said without naming the lawmakers. Democratic Rep. James McGovern and Republican Rep. Randy Hultgren had called on Trump to highlight the human rights situation in the Philippines in his upcoming visit to Manila.

&nbsp;

He said all victims of human rights violations are welcome to attend the summit and air their grievances.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who is facing international criticism for his bloody war on drugs, said his country was willing to host a “world summit” to tackle how nations can protect human rights. The firebrand leader, who spoke in a news conference late on Thursday while in Vietnam for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting, said the summit should focus on human rights violations not just in the Philippines but globally. Some western countries and human rights groups have strongly criticised Duterte’s anti-narcotics campaign that has killed more than 3,900 suspected drug users and peddlers, in what the police called self-defence after armed suspects resisted arrest. Critics dispute that and say executions are taking place with zero accountability, allegations the police reject. “Let’s have a summit of how we can protect human rights for all human race,” Duterte said shortly after meeting with the Filipino community in Vietnam, where he also renewed his attacks against United Nations human rights expert Agnes Callamard. “What makes the death of people in the Philippines more important than the rest of the children in the world that were massacred and killed,” he asked. He said all victims of human rights violations are welcome to attend the summit and air their grievances. Duterte reiterated his threat to slap Callamard if she investigates him for the rising death toll in his war on drugs and would ask her why she has made no comments on the victims of bombings and violence in the Middle East. “What have you been doing all the time? Why are you so fascinated with drugs?” Duterte said. Duterte also threatened to ban two American lawmakers from coming to Manila after they criticised U.S. President Donald Trump for inviting him to visit the United States. “If you do not like me, I do not like you. We’re even,” he said without naming the lawmakers. Democratic Rep. James McGovern and Republican Rep. Randy Hultgren had called on Trump to highlight the human rights situation in the Philippines in his upcoming visit to Manila.

Willing to host world summit on human rights: Duterte

The United Nations Security Council urged the Myanmar government on Monday to &quot;ensure no further excessive use of military force in Rakhine state,&quot; where violence has forced more than 600,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee the Buddhist-majority Asian country.

The United Nations has denounced the violence during the past 10 weeks as a classic example of ethnic cleansing. The Myanmar government has denied allegations of ethnic cleansing.

To appease council veto powers Russia and China, Britain and France dropped a push for the Security Council to adopt a resolution on the situation and the 15-member body instead unanimously agreed on a formal statement.

The council expressed &quot;grave concern over reports of human rights violations and abuses in Rakhine State, including by the Myanmar security forces, in particular against persons belonging to the Rohingya community.&quot;

&quot;The Security Council calls upon the Government of Myanmar to ensure no further excessive use of military force in Rakhine State, to restore civilian administration and apply the rule of law, and to take immediate steps in accordance with their obligations and commitments to respect human rights,&quot; it said.

Myanmar has been stung by international criticism for the way its security forces responded to attacks by Rohingya militants on 30 security posts. More than 600,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since Aug. 25.

&quot;The Security Council stresses the primary responsibility of the Government of Myanmar to protect its population including through respect for the rule of law and the respect, promotion and protection of human rights,&quot; the statement said.

It stressed the importance of transparent investigations into allegations of human rights abuses and &quot;in this regard, the Security Council calls upon the Government of Myanmar to cooperate with all relevant United Nations bodies, mechanisms and instruments.&quot;

Myanmar has refused entry to a UN&nbsp;panel that was tasked with investigating allegations of abuses after a smaller military counteroffensive launched in October 2016.

Myanmar&#39;s de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, has pledged accountability for rights abuses and says Myanmar will accept back refugees who can prove they were residents of Myanmar.

The Security Council said it was alarmed by the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in Rakhine state and warned that the increasing number of refugees &quot;has a destabilizing impact in the region.&quot;

The council demanded that the Myanmar government allow immediate, safe and unhindered humanitarian aid and media access. It asked UN&nbsp;Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to report back in 30 days on the situation.

More than 600,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar in the past 10 weeks

The United Nations Security Council urged the Myanmar government on Monday to "ensure no further excessive use of military force in Rakhine state," where violence has forced more than 600,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee the Buddhist-majority Asian country. The United Nations has denounced the violence during the past 10 weeks as a classic example of ethnic cleansing. The Myanmar government has denied allegations of ethnic cleansing. To appease council veto powers Russia and China, Britain and France dropped a push for the Security Council to adopt a resolution on the situation and the 15-member body instead unanimously agreed on a formal statement. The council expressed "grave concern over reports of human rights violations and abuses in Rakhine State, including by the Myanmar security forces, in particular against persons belonging to the Rohingya community." "The Security Council calls upon the Government of Myanmar to ensure no further excessive use of military force in Rakhine State, to restore civilian administration and apply the rule of law, and to take immediate steps in accordance with their obligations and commitments to respect human rights," it said. Myanmar has been stung by international criticism for the way its security forces responded to attacks by Rohingya militants on 30 security posts. More than 600,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since Aug. 25. "The Security Council stresses the primary responsibility of the Government of Myanmar to protect its population including through respect for the rule of law and the respect, promotion and protection of human rights," the statement said. It stressed the importance of transparent investigations into allegations of human rights abuses and "in this regard, the Security Council calls upon the Government of Myanmar to cooperate with all relevant United Nations bodies, mechanisms and instruments." Myanmar has refused entry to a UN panel that was tasked with investigating allegations of abuses after a smaller military counteroffensive launched in October 2016. Myanmar's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, has pledged accountability for rights abuses and says Myanmar will accept back refugees who can prove they were residents of Myanmar. The Security Council said it was alarmed by the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in Rakhine state and warned that the increasing number of refugees "has a destabilizing impact in the region." The council demanded that the Myanmar government allow immediate, safe and unhindered humanitarian aid and media access. It asked UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to report back in 30 days on the situation.

UN Security Council urges Myanmar to 'ensure no further excessive use of military force'

&nbsp;Russia is committing &quot;grave&quot;&nbsp;human&nbsp;rights&nbsp;violations in&nbsp;Crimea, including its imposition of citizenship and by deporting prisoners, a U.N.&nbsp;human&nbsp;rights&nbsp;report said on Monday.

&quot;Grave&nbsp;human&nbsp;rights&nbsp;violations, such as arbitrary arrests and detentions, enforced disappearances, ill-treatment and torture, and at least one extra-judicial execution were documented,&quot; the report said.

Russian&nbsp;authorities did not allow the U.N. investigation to enter the Crimean territory.

Russia occupied&nbsp;Crimea&nbsp;in 2014 and replaced Ukrainian laws with&nbsp;Russian&nbsp;laws, but its annexation has never been internationally recognised. The U.N. General Assembly ordered the human&nbsp;rights&nbsp;investigation in December 2016.

&quot;Imposing citizenship on the inhabitants of an occupied territory can be equated to compelling them to swear allegiance to a power they may consider as hostile, which is forbidden under the Fourth Geneva Convention,&quot; U.N.&nbsp;human&nbsp;rights&nbsp;chief Zeid Ra&#39;ad al Hussein said in a statement.

Russia had also broken international law by transporting detainees and prisoners from&nbsp;Crimea&nbsp;to Russia, the report said.

When it occupied&nbsp;Crimea, Russia automatically recognised all Ukrainians on the peninsula as Russian&nbsp;citizens, unless they sent a written rejection.

As of May 2015, about 100,000 people, about 4 percent of&nbsp;Crimea&#39;s population, did not have Russian&nbsp;citizenship, the report said, citing a&nbsp;Russian&nbsp;official.

About 19,000 people - mainly civil servants wanting to keep their jobs under Russia&#39;s de facto rule - were effectively forced to renounce their Ukrainian citizenship, the report said.

Russia says a March 2014 referendum legitimised its &quot;incorporation&quot; of&nbsp;Crimea. Opponents of the referendum have been targeted by laws against terrorism, extremism and separatism, and some have been forcibly interned in psychiatric institutions, the report said.

Many media outlets have been shut down and all&nbsp;Crimea&#39;s 22 congregations of Jehovah&#39;s Witnesses have been effectively outlawed, the report said.

Education in Ukrainian has almost disappeared and Russia has banned the Mejlis, a body representing&nbsp;Crimean Tatars, whose members have been subjected to intimidation, house searches and detention, the report said.

Russia is a veto-wielding member of the U.N. Security Council, which means it can block any attempt to hold it to account.

But Fiona Frazer, head of the U.N. office in Ukraine that produced the report, said it was important to document what was happening in&nbsp;Crimea&nbsp;so that victims could record the&nbsp;human&nbsp;rightsviolations they were facing and try to ensure justice and accountability.

"Grave?human?rights?violations, such as arbitrary arrests and detentions, enforced disappearances, ill-treatment and torture, and at least one extra-judicial execution were documented," the report said.

Russia is committing "grave" human rights violations in Crimea, including its imposition of citizenship and by deporting prisoners, a U.N. human rights report said on Monday. "Grave human rights violations, such as arbitrary arrests and detentions, enforced disappearances, ill-treatment and torture, and at least one extra-judicial execution were documented," the report said. Russian authorities did not allow the U.N. investigation to enter the Crimean territory. Russia occupied Crimea in 2014 and replaced Ukrainian laws with Russian laws, but its annexation has never been internationally recognised. The U.N. General Assembly ordered the human rights investigation in December 2016. "Imposing citizenship on the inhabitants of an occupied territory can be equated to compelling them to swear allegiance to a power they may consider as hostile, which is forbidden under the Fourth Geneva Convention," U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al Hussein said in a statement. Russia had also broken international law by transporting detainees and prisoners from Crimea to Russia, the report said. When it occupied Crimea, Russia automatically recognised all Ukrainians on the peninsula as Russian citizens, unless they sent a written rejection. As of May 2015, about 100,000 people, about 4 percent of Crimea's population, did not have Russian citizenship, the report said, citing a Russian official. About 19,000 people - mainly civil servants wanting to keep their jobs under Russia's de facto rule - were effectively forced to renounce their Ukrainian citizenship, the report said. Russia says a March 2014 referendum legitimised its "incorporation" of Crimea. Opponents of the referendum have been targeted by laws against terrorism, extremism and separatism, and some have been forcibly interned in psychiatric institutions, the report said. Many media outlets have been shut down and all Crimea's 22 congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses have been effectively outlawed, the report said. Education in Ukrainian has almost disappeared and Russia has banned the Mejlis, a body representing Crimean Tatars, whose members have been subjected to intimidation, house searches and detention, the report said. Russia is a veto-wielding member of the U.N. Security Council, which means it can block any attempt to hold it to account. But Fiona Frazer, head of the U.N. office in Ukraine that produced the report, said it was important to document what was happening in Crimea so that victims could record the human rightsviolations they were facing and try to ensure justice and accountability.

Russian occupation of Crimea marked by grave human rights violations: UN

Pressure grew on Myanmar Monday as a rights group urged world leaders to impose sanctions on its military, which is accused of driving out more than 410,000 Rohingya Muslims in an orchestrated &quot;ethnic cleansing&quot; campaign.

The call from Human Rights Watch came as the UN General Assembly prepared to convene in New York, with the crisis in Myanmar one of the most pressing topics.

It also came on the eve of a highly-anticipated national address by Myanmar&#39;s civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi -- her first on the Rakhine crisis.&nbsp;

The exodus of Rohingya refugees from mainly Buddhist Myanmar to neighbouring Bangladesh has sparked a humanitarian emergency. Aid groups are struggling to provide relief to a daily stream of new arrivals, more than half of whom are children.

Myanmar has suggested it will not take back all who had fled across the border, accusing those refugees of having links to the Rohingya militants whose raids on police posts in August triggered the army backlash.

Any clear moves to block the refugees&#39; return will likely anger Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheik Hasina, who will press the General Assembly to raise global pressure Myanmar to take back all the Rohingya massing in shanty towns and camps near the border.

Human Rights Watch also called for the &quot;safe and voluntary return&quot; of the displaced as it urge governments around the globe to punish Myanmar&#39;s army with sanctions for the &quot;ongoing atrocities&quot; against the Rohingya.

&quot;The United Nations Security Council and concerned countries should impose targeted sanctions and an arms embargo on the Burmese military to end its ethnic cleansing campaign against Rohingya Muslims,&quot; the group said in a statement.

Myanmar&#39;s military was hit with Western sanctions during its 50-year rule of the country. But most have been lifted in recent years as the generals have allowed a partial transition to democracy.

&quot;Burma&#39;s senior military commanders are more likely to heed the calls of the international community if they are suffering real economic consequences,&quot; said John Sifton, HRW&#39;s Asia advocacy director.

Suu Kyi&#39;s &#39;last chance&#39;&nbsp;

Nobel peace laureate Suu Kyi has shocked the international community with her near-silence on the plight of the Rohingya and her failure to condemn the actions of the army, with whom she has a delicate power-sharing arrangement.

Speaking to the BBC over the weekend, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called Suu Kyi&#39;s upcoming address a &quot;last chance&quot; to stop the unfolding humanitarian calamity.

But analysts say it will be difficult for her to tamp both global outrage and combustible religious tensions at home, where there is broad support among the mainly Buddhist populace for the army&#39;s crackdown.

&quot;I&#39;m worried that there is almost no possibility given the political climate in Myanmar for balancing the expectations of most of the country and the expectations of the international community,&quot; Richard Horsey, an independent analyst based in Myanmar, told AFP.&nbsp;

Duelling protests&nbsp;

The sharp divide was on display Monday as protests broke out in Dhaka -- where 20,000 Islamist hardliners marched in solidarity with the Rohingya -- and in Yangon, where a much smaller group of 300 gathered to blast global interference in the conflict.&nbsp;

The ultra-nationalists in Yangon braved a downpour as they waved Myanmar flags and banners describing the UN and global NGOs as &quot;supporting organisations for the terrorists&quot;.&nbsp;

While the world has watched the refugee crisis unfold with horror, there is little sympathy for the Rohingya inside Myanmar.

Many Buddhists revile the Muslim minority and have long denied the existence of the Rohingya as an ethnic group, insisting they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

Suu Kyi&#39;s government has so far defended the military campaign as a legitimate crackdown on the Rohingya militants, who first emerged as a fighting force last October.

On Sunday Myanmar&#39;s Information Committee accused those who fled to Bangladesh -- more than a third of the Rohingya population -- of working in cahoots with the Rohingya militants, a rag-tag group of fighters armed with mostly rudimentary weapons.

&quot;Those who fled the villages made their way to the other country for fear of being arrested as they got involved in the violent attacks,&quot; the statement said.

&quot;Legal protection will be given to the villages whose residents did not flee,&quot; it added.

The violence has gutted large swaths of northern Rakhine in just over three weeks, with fires visible almost daily across the border from the Bangladesh camps.

Some 30,000 ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Hindus have also been displaced by unrest in northern Rakhine, where foreign aid has been severely curtailed.&nbsp;

On Monday, Doctors Without Borders repeated calls for &quot;unfettered access&quot; to the conflict zone, saying hundreds of thousands of people are thought to be languishing &quot;without any meaningful form of humanitarian assistance&quot;.

The call from Human Rights Watch came as the UN General Assembly prepared to convene in New York, with the crisis in Myanmar one of the most pressing topics.

Pressure grew on Myanmar Monday as a rights group urged world leaders to impose sanctions on its military, which is accused of driving out more than 410,000 Rohingya Muslims in an orchestrated "ethnic cleansing" campaign. The call from Human Rights Watch came as the UN General Assembly prepared to convene in New York, with the crisis in Myanmar one of the most pressing topics. It also came on the eve of a highly-anticipated national address by Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi -- her first on the Rakhine crisis. The exodus of Rohingya refugees from mainly Buddhist Myanmar to neighbouring Bangladesh has sparked a humanitarian emergency. Aid groups are struggling to provide relief to a daily stream of new arrivals, more than half of whom are children. Myanmar has suggested it will not take back all who had fled across the border, accusing those refugees of having links to the Rohingya militants whose raids on police posts in August triggered the army backlash. Any clear moves to block the refugees' return will likely anger Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheik Hasina, who will press the General Assembly to raise global pressure Myanmar to take back all the Rohingya massing in shanty towns and camps near the border. Human Rights Watch also called for the "safe and voluntary return" of the displaced as it urge governments around the globe to punish Myanmar's army with sanctions for the "ongoing atrocities" against the Rohingya. "The United Nations Security Council and concerned countries should impose targeted sanctions and an arms embargo on the Burmese military to end its ethnic cleansing campaign against Rohingya Muslims," the group said in a statement. Myanmar's military was hit with Western sanctions during its 50-year rule of the country. But most have been lifted in recent years as the generals have allowed a partial transition to democracy. "Burma's senior military commanders are more likely to heed the calls of the international community if they are suffering real economic consequences," said John Sifton, HRW's Asia advocacy director. Suu Kyi's 'last chance' Nobel peace laureate Suu Kyi has shocked the international community with her near-silence on the plight of the Rohingya and her failure to condemn the actions of the army, with whom she has a delicate power-sharing arrangement. Speaking to the BBC over the weekend, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called Suu Kyi's upcoming address a "last chance" to stop the unfolding humanitarian calamity. But analysts say it will be difficult for her to tamp both global outrage and combustible religious tensions at home, where there is broad support among the mainly Buddhist populace for the army's crackdown. "I'm worried that there is almost no possibility given the political climate in Myanmar for balancing the expectations of most of the country and the expectations of the international community," Richard Horsey, an independent analyst based in Myanmar, told AFP. Duelling protests The sharp divide was on display Monday as protests broke out in Dhaka -- where 20,000 Islamist hardliners marched in solidarity with the Rohingya -- and in Yangon, where a much smaller group of 300 gathered to blast global interference in the conflict. The ultra-nationalists in Yangon braved a downpour as they waved Myanmar flags and banners describing the UN and global NGOs as "supporting organisations for the terrorists". While the world has watched the refugee crisis unfold with horror, there is little sympathy for the Rohingya inside Myanmar. Many Buddhists revile the Muslim minority and have long denied the existence of the Rohingya as an ethnic group, insisting they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. Suu Kyi's government has so far defended the military campaign as a legitimate crackdown on the Rohingya militants, who first emerged as a fighting force last October. On Sunday Myanmar's Information Committee accused those who fled to Bangladesh -- more than a third of the Rohingya population -- of working in cahoots with the Rohingya militants, a rag-tag group of fighters armed with mostly rudimentary weapons. "Those who fled the villages made their way to the other country for fear of being arrested as they got involved in the violent attacks," the statement said. "Legal protection will be given to the villages whose residents did not flee," it added. The violence has gutted large swaths of northern Rakhine in just over three weeks, with fires visible almost daily across the border from the Bangladesh camps. Some 30,000 ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Hindus have also been displaced by unrest in northern Rakhine, where foreign aid has been severely curtailed. On Monday, Doctors Without Borders repeated calls for "unfettered access" to the conflict zone, saying hundreds of thousands of people are thought to be languishing "without any meaningful form of humanitarian assistance".

UN urged to punish Myanmar army over Rohingya 'atrocities'

&nbsp;A court in&nbsp;Vietnam&nbsp;jailed&nbsp;dissident&nbsp;Nguyen Van Oai for a further&nbsp;five&nbsp;years&nbsp;on Monday for violating the terms of his probation after a spell in prison, his lawyer said.

Human rights groups have expressed alarm over the Communist-ruled country&#39;s biggest crackdown&nbsp;on&nbsp;activists&nbsp;in&nbsp;years.

Oai, 36, was arrested in January while on probation after a 2013 sentence for activities aimed at overthrowing the government. He had been released in 2015.

On Monday, the people&#39;s court in Nghe An, central&nbsp;Vietnam, also found him guilty of resisting security personnel in performing their duty. He was given another four&nbsp;years&nbsp;on probation as well as the prison sentence.

&quot;Oai said he was innocent and he would appeal,&quot; his lawyer, Ha Huy Son, told Reuters.

The court made no immediate comment.

Despite sweeping economic reforms and growing openness to social change,&nbsp;Vietnam&#39;s Communist Party retains tight media censorship and does not tolerate criticism.

Human rights groups have expressed alarm over the Communist-ruled country's biggest crackdown?on?activists?in?years.

A court in Vietnam jailed dissident Nguyen Van Oai for a further five years on Monday for violating the terms of his probation after a spell in prison, his lawyer said. Human rights groups have expressed alarm over the Communist-ruled country's biggest crackdown on activists in years. Oai, 36, was arrested in January while on probation after a 2013 sentence for activities aimed at overthrowing the government. He had been released in 2015. On Monday, the people's court in Nghe An, central Vietnam, also found him guilty of resisting security personnel in performing their duty. He was given another four years on probation as well as the prison sentence. "Oai said he was innocent and he would appeal," his lawyer, Ha Huy Son, told Reuters. The court made no immediate comment. Despite sweeping economic reforms and growing openness to social change, Vietnam's Communist Party retains tight media censorship and does not tolerate criticism.

Vietnam jails dissident in crackdown on activists

About 2.9 million&nbsp;children in the age group of 10-14 years were reported married between 2001 and 2011, according to a report released by the country&#39;s apex child rights body today.

The report by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), based on Census 2011, is a statistical analysis of prevalence of such marriages, their genesis and geographical spread. It was released by Supreme Court judge Justice A K Sikri.

It states that despite the decline in child marriage, particularly in the age group of 10-14 years, there are 1.1 million boys and 1.8 million girls who were reported married in this age group between 2001-2011.

&quot;Child marriage violates the dignity of the child and is a major human rights violation. There are incongruities in different laws of the country dealing with child marriage and I urge lawmakers to address these disparities so that the social evil of child marriage is curbed. The NCPCR should tie up with the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) to conduct seminars in the target states with the help of paralegal volunteers,&quot; Justice Sikri said.

The analysis of the Census 2011 data identified 70 districts spread across 13 states with high rate of child marriages. 
These states are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

Though 13 districts in Rajasthan continue to figure prominently amongst the highest incidence districts with respect to child marriage, all these districts other than Banswara show a positive declining trend in child marriage over the decade.

Urban districts such as Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, Rangareddy and Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh and Davangere in Karnataka reveal an increase in marriage of girls below the legal age during the period.

Anand in Gujarat, Davangere in Karnataka and Dakshin Dinajpur in West Bengal are the districts where despite decrease in population between 2001 and 2011, incidence of child marriage among boys increased.

Women and child development ministry secretary Rakesh Srivastava said that the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-4 reported a decline in child marriage to 26 per cent from 47 per cent in NFHS-3, and hoped that NFHS-5 will find further decline in such marriages.

&quot;Recently Karnataka has amended the Prevention of Child Marriage Act, 2005 to make child marriage void and hoped that other states will follow suit. The NCPCR should conduct seminars and workshops in collaboration with the governments in the 13 states where child marriage is markedly prevalent,&quot; said Srivastava.

Analysing the reason behind child marriages, the NCPCR report states that girls in particular are married off because they are considered as &quot;paraya dhan&quot;&nbsp;or somebody else&#39;s wealth, and is often used by families to ensure that the girls is protected from premarital sex, pregnancy outside of marriage and the need to preserve &quot;family honour&quot;.

&quot;Girl children from poor households are at higher risk of becoming child brides. Where resources are limited, gendered social risks become more acute and opportunities more constrained, forcing parents to make decisions which disadvantage girls,&quot; the report states.

The report has also made a slew of recommendations to combat child marriages. Promoting free and compulsory secondary education, compulsory registration of marriages, mobilisation of religious leaders and community elders are some of the interventions proposed in the report.

(PTI)

The report states that girls in particular are married off because they are considered as 'paraya dhan'?or somebody else's wealth

About 2.9 million children in the age group of 10-14 years were reported married between 2001 and 2011, according to a report released by the country's apex child rights body today. The report by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), based on Census 2011, is a statistical analysis of prevalence of such marriages, their genesis and geographical spread. It was released by Supreme Court judge Justice A K Sikri. It states that despite the decline in child marriage, particularly in the age group of 10-14 years, there are 1.1 million boys and 1.8 million girls who were reported married in this age group between 2001-2011. "Child marriage violates the dignity of the child and is a major human rights violation. There are incongruities in different laws of the country dealing with child marriage and I urge lawmakers to address these disparities so that the social evil of child marriage is curbed. The NCPCR should tie up with the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) to conduct seminars in the target states with the help of paralegal volunteers," Justice Sikri said. The analysis of the Census 2011 data identified 70 districts spread across 13 states with high rate of child marriages. These states are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. Though 13 districts in Rajasthan continue to figure prominently amongst the highest incidence districts with respect to child marriage, all these districts other than Banswara show a positive declining trend in child marriage over the decade. Urban districts such as Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, Rangareddy and Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh and Davangere in Karnataka reveal an increase in marriage of girls below the legal age during the period. Anand in Gujarat, Davangere in Karnataka and Dakshin Dinajpur in West Bengal are the districts where despite decrease in population between 2001 and 2011, incidence of child marriage among boys increased. Women and child development ministry secretary Rakesh Srivastava said that the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-4 reported a decline in child marriage to 26 per cent from 47 per cent in NFHS-3, and hoped that NFHS-5 will find further decline in such marriages. "Recently Karnataka has amended the Prevention of Child Marriage Act, 2005 to make child marriage void and hoped that other states will follow suit. The NCPCR should conduct seminars and workshops in collaboration with the governments in the 13 states where child marriage is markedly prevalent," said Srivastava. Analysing the reason behind child marriages, the NCPCR report states that girls in particular are married off because they are considered as "paraya dhan" or somebody else's wealth, and is often used by families to ensure that the girls is protected from premarital sex, pregnancy outside of marriage and the need to preserve "family honour". "Girl children from poor households are at higher risk of becoming child brides. Where resources are limited, gendered social risks become more acute and opportunities more constrained, forcing parents to make decisions which disadvantage girls," the report states. The report has also made a slew of recommendations to combat child marriages. Promoting free and compulsory secondary education, compulsory registration of marriages, mobilisation of religious leaders and community elders are some of the interventions proposed in the report. (PTI)

In India, 2.9 million children got married between 10-14 years of age between 2001-2011: Report

More than two weeks after they disappeared, two Pakistani activists have announced themselves safe to their families, The Dawn reported on Saturday.

Salman Haider and Ahmed Raza Naseer&#39;s disappearance along with three others earlier this month had sparked protests and fears of a government crackdown.

&ldquo;Salman has been in contact with the family. He is safe and in good health,&rdquo; his brother Zeeshan Haider told Dawn.

The days the activist were missing &quot;were the most painful period in my life,&quot; the relative told AFP, adding the returned blogger was now &quot;in (a) safe place for some days&quot;.

&ldquo;He (Naseer) told us there was nothing to worry about, but said that he could not come home yet,&rdquo; his brother, Tahir, told Dawn.

The five men ? who campaigned for human rights and religious freedom ? went missing from various cities between January 4 and 7, triggering nationwide protests. The interior minister had vowed to ensure the activists&#39; safety.

There is no information about the whereabouts of three others. No group claimed responsibility for their disappearance. The families of the activists were harassed through campaign on social media that attempted to malign their names.

Human Rights Watch and other rights groups said their near simultaneous disappearances raised concerns of government involvement, which officials and intelligence sources have denied, AFP said.

Earlier this month Shaan Taheer, son of Punjab governor Salman Taseer who was killed five years ago, received death threats after he posted a Facebook video asking for people to pray for those charged under Pakistan&#39;s blasphemy laws.

Pakistan charged more than 200 people under blasphemy laws in 2015, many of them minorities. The charge is hugely sensitive in deeply conservative Muslim Pakistan, where even unproven allegations have stirred mob lynchings and murder, according to AFP.

(With inputs from agencies)

The two men ? who campaigned for human rights and religious freedom ? went missing between January 4 and 7

More than two weeks after they disappeared, two Pakistani activists have announced themselves safe to their families, The Dawn reported on Saturday. Salman Haider and Ahmed Raza Naseer's disappearance along with three others earlier this month had sparked protests and fears of a government crackdown. “Salman has been in contact with the family. He is safe and in good health,” his brother Zeeshan Haider told Dawn. The days the activist were missing "were the most painful period in my life," the relative told AFP, adding the returned blogger was now "in (a) safe place for some days". “He (Naseer) told us there was nothing to worry about, but said that he could not come home yet,” his brother, Tahir, told Dawn. The five men ? who campaigned for human rights and religious freedom ? went missing from various cities between January 4 and 7, triggering nationwide protests. The interior minister had vowed to ensure the activists' safety. There is no information about the whereabouts of three others. No group claimed responsibility for their disappearance. The families of the activists were harassed through campaign on social media that attempted to malign their names. Human Rights Watch and other rights groups said their near simultaneous disappearances raised concerns of government involvement, which officials and intelligence sources have denied, AFP said. Earlier this month Shaan Taheer, son of Punjab governor Salman Taseer who was killed five years ago, received death threats after he posted a Facebook video asking for people to pray for those charged under Pakistan's blasphemy laws. Pakistan charged more than 200 people under blasphemy laws in 2015, many of them minorities. The charge is hugely sensitive in deeply conservative Muslim Pakistan, where even unproven allegations have stirred mob lynchings and murder, according to AFP. (With inputs from agencies)

Missing Pakistani activists returned 'safe' two weeks after disappearance

Ilham Tohti, an Uighur scholar who was jailed for life for his criticism of China&#39;s official ethnic policies, was awarded the Martin Ennals Award for human rights defenders on Tuesday.

The scholar from China&#39;s mostly-Muslim Uighur minority has spoken publicly against China&#39;s policies towards the Uighur minority in their home region Xinjiang in western China. Xinjiang has seen a security crackdown in recent years, prompted by clashes that have killed hundreds.

The 46-year-old was sentenced in 2014 to life in prison for &quot;separatism&quot;.

&quot;The real shame of this situation is that by eliminating the moderate voice of Ilham Tohti, the Chinese government is in fact laying the groundwork for the very extremism it says it wants to prevent,&quot;&nbsp;said Martin Ennals Foundation chairman&nbsp;Dick Oosting&nbsp;in a statement, AFP reported.

The award named after Amnesty International&#39;s first secretary general is judged by the London-based rights group, with Human Rights Watch and other leading organisations.&nbsp;The award is given to &quot;Human Rights Defenders who have shown deep commitment and face great personal risk&quot;.

&quot;Ilham Tohti has worked for two decades to foster dialogue and understanding between Uyghurs and Han Chinese. He has rejected separatism and violence, and sought reconciliation based on a respect for Uyghur culture, which has been subject to religious, cultural and political repression in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region,&quot; reads the citation for Tohti&#39;s award on Martin Ennals Award <a href="http://www.martinennalsaward.org/?p=1078" target="_blank">website</a>.

The move was condemned by Beijing, with the foreign ministry&#39;s spokesman saying &quot;there is clear evidence of IIham Tohti&#39;s wrongdoings&quot;.

&quot;Ilham Tohti used to be a university professor in China. In his class, he hailed suspects who launched terrorist attacks as &#39;heroes&#39;,&quot; Geng said in a statement.&nbsp;

Teng Biao, an exiled human rights lawyer and friend of the jailed scholar, welcomed the award.

&ldquo;It is definitely good news,&rdquo; The Guardian reported Biao as saying. &ldquo;It won&rsquo;t necessarily lead to an early release or have direct consequences but at least this kind of prize will make the international community more aware of Ilham Tohti. Every award is helpful to Chinese political prisoners and human rights defenders.&rdquo;&nbsp;

The other two finalists included&nbsp;Syrian activist Razan Zaitouneh and a collective of Ethiopian bloggers called Zone 9.

(WION with inputs from AFP)

The 46-year-old was sentenced to life in prison for criticising China's official ethnic policies towards the mostly-Muslim Uighur minority

Ilham Tohti, an Uighur scholar who was jailed for life for his criticism of China's official ethnic policies, was awarded the Martin Ennals Award for human rights defenders on Tuesday. The scholar from China's mostly-Muslim Uighur minority has spoken publicly against China's policies towards the Uighur minority in their home region Xinjiang in western China. Xinjiang has seen a security crackdown in recent years, prompted by clashes that have killed hundreds. The 46-year-old was sentenced in 2014 to life in prison for "separatism". "The real shame of this situation is that by eliminating the moderate voice of Ilham Tohti, the Chinese government is in fact laying the groundwork for the very extremism it says it wants to prevent," said Martin Ennals Foundation chairman Dick Oosting in a statement, AFP reported. The award named after Amnesty International's first secretary general is judged by the London-based rights group, with Human Rights Watch and other leading organisations. The award is given to "Human Rights Defenders who have shown deep commitment and face great personal risk". "Ilham Tohti has worked for two decades to foster dialogue and understanding between Uyghurs and Han Chinese. He has rejected separatism and violence, and sought reconciliation based on a respect for Uyghur culture, which has been subject to religious, cultural and political repression in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region," reads the citation for Tohti's award on Martin Ennals Award website. The move was condemned by Beijing, with the foreign ministry's spokesman saying "there is clear evidence of IIham Tohti's wrongdoings". "Ilham Tohti used to be a university professor in China. In his class, he hailed suspects who launched terrorist attacks as 'heroes'," Geng said in a statement. Teng Biao, an exiled human rights lawyer and friend of the jailed scholar, welcomed the award. “It is definitely good news,” The Guardian reported Biao as saying. “It won’t necessarily lead to an early release or have direct consequences but at least this kind of prize will make the international community more aware of Ilham Tohti. Every award is helpful to Chinese political prisoners and human rights defenders.” The other two finalists included Syrian activist Razan Zaitouneh and a collective of Ethiopian bloggers called Zone 9. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Jailed Chinese scholar Ilham Tohti receives human rights award

In the wake of a blogger getting arrested for mocking Islam on Facebook in India, here is a list of some active netizens around the world who came at the crossroads with law of their country:&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;
<ul>
	<li>Asif Mohiuddin</li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/asif-20160921071630.jpg" />
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Blogger Asif Mohiuddin
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The 29-year-old blogger from Bangladesh was arrested on charges of defaming Islam. As part of a police crackdown on elements that use religion as a violence-incitement tool, &nbsp;Asif was arrested on charges of hurting religious sentiment through his writings on blogs and Facebook. Several others have been detained under the same law in the country.&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;
<ul>
	<li>Ismail &lsquo;Hilath&rsquo; Rasheed</li>
</ul>
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/000_hkg7553039-20160921072542.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Ismail &lsquo;Hilath&rsquo; Rasheed from Maldives
</div>
The blogger from Maldives was arrested for his involvement in a silent protest for religious tolerance. The protest took an ugly turn where several individuals attacked the group with stones and Rasheed was rushed to the hospital. 
 
&nbsp;
<ul>
	<li>Raif Badawi</li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/000_arp4358158-20160921073013.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Ensaf Haidar holds a picture of her husband Raif Badawi after accepting the European Parliament&#39;s Sakharov Human Rights Prize on behalf of her husband
</div>
The blogger from Saudi Arabia was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes for setting up a website that championed free speech in the kingdom. His blog was subsequently shut down after his arrest.&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;
<ul>
	<li>Avijit Roy</li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/000_del6397707-20160921073410.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
A Bangladeshi social activist pays his last respects to slain US blogger of Bangladeshi origin, Avijit Roy
</div>
The US blogger of Bangladeshi origin was hacked to death by a mob in Bangladesh for his controversial writings on religion and science. Before the incident, he had been getting several death threats from Islamists.&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;
<ul>
	<li>Ruslan Kotsaba</li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/ruslan-20160921073930.jpg" />
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Ruslan Kotsaba from Ukraine
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The Ukrainian blogger has been detained since February 2015 on charges of treason and obstructing the work of armed forces in Ukraine.&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;
<ul>
	<li>Tran Huynh Duy Thuc</li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/000_par3002035-20160921074154.jpg" />
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Blogger Tran Huynh Duy Thuc, stands during his trial at Ho Chi Minh City People&#39;s Court House
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Tran is a Vietnamese blogger who is currently serving a 16 year prison sentence for promoting anti-Socialist, anti-government propaganda and undertaking activities &lsquo;aimed at subverting the people&rsquo;s government&rsquo;. &nbsp;He is jailed, along with three other activists, after a trial lasting one day.&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;
<ul>
	<li>Yang Kaiheng</li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/000_8k1lt-20160921074616.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Ai Takagi and her husband Yang Kaiheng arrive at the court in Singapore
</div>
The 27-year-old blogger from Singapore ran a website called The Real Singapore, a site that was getting about 13 million views a month and was generating hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertising revenue. The government ordered a shutdown and arrested the blogger for provoking hatred against foreigners in Singapore and &#39;milking that hatred for profit&#39;.&nbsp; 
 
Curbing of freedom of expression for bloggers has become an issue globally.&nbsp;Let us know your views on this.&nbsp; 
 
 
(Contributed by: Zeba Khan)

Freedom of expression is not so 'free' and these writers paid for it

In the wake of a blogger getting arrested for mocking Islam on Facebook in India, here is a list of some active netizens around the world who came at the crossroads with law of their country: Asif Mohiuddin Blogger Asif Mohiuddin The 29-year-old blogger from Bangladesh was arrested on charges of defaming Islam. As part of a police crackdown on elements that use religion as a violence-incitement tool, Asif was arrested on charges of hurting religious sentiment through his writings on blogs and Facebook. Several others have been detained under the same law in the country. Ismail ‘Hilath’ Rasheed Ismail ‘Hilath’ Rasheed from Maldives The blogger from Maldives was arrested for his involvement in a silent protest for religious tolerance. The protest took an ugly turn where several individuals attacked the group with stones and Rasheed was rushed to the hospital. Raif Badawi Ensaf Haidar holds a picture of her husband Raif Badawi after accepting the European Parliament's Sakharov Human Rights Prize on behalf of her husband The blogger from Saudi Arabia was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes for setting up a website that championed free speech in the kingdom. His blog was subsequently shut down after his arrest. Avijit Roy A Bangladeshi social activist pays his last respects to slain US blogger of Bangladeshi origin, Avijit Roy The US blogger of Bangladeshi origin was hacked to death by a mob in Bangladesh for his controversial writings on religion and science. Before the incident, he had been getting several death threats from Islamists. Ruslan Kotsaba Ruslan Kotsaba from Ukraine The Ukrainian blogger has been detained since February 2015 on charges of treason and obstructing the work of armed forces in Ukraine. Tran Huynh Duy Thuc Blogger Tran Huynh Duy Thuc, stands during his trial at Ho Chi Minh City People's Court House Tran is a Vietnamese blogger who is currently serving a 16 year prison sentence for promoting anti-Socialist, anti-government propaganda and undertaking activities ‘aimed at subverting the people’s government’. He is jailed, along with three other activists, after a trial lasting one day. Yang Kaiheng Ai Takagi and her husband Yang Kaiheng arrive at the court in Singapore The 27-year-old blogger from Singapore ran a website called The Real Singapore, a site that was getting about 13 million views a month and was generating hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertising revenue. The government ordered a shutdown and arrested the blogger for provoking hatred against foreigners in Singapore and 'milking that hatred for profit'. Curbing of freedom of expression for bloggers has become an issue globally. Let us know your views on this. (Contributed by: Zeba Khan)

7 international bloggers who got arrested for crossing the line

India&#39;s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today alleged that the Congress was playing with the country&#39;s national security and said a clean chit by the Congress leader and home minister of southern Karnataka, G Parameshwara, to rights group Amnesty International makes it obvious that he is working on the orders of his party&#39;s high command. 
 
BJP leader S Prakash said Parameshwara has given a clean chit to Amnesty International in the anti-India sloganeering controversy as per the diktat of the Congress central leadership. 
 
&quot;After a long deliberation, they (Bengaluru Police) decided to file a case on sedition charges. The home ministry I believe comes under G Parameshwara. It is his department, which has filed the case. Now, he has given the clean chit even before the report is submitted. It is very clear that he is acting under the pressure of the high command,&quot; Prakash said. 
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<h5>The clean chit from the home minister came even as the organisation faces sedition charges over an event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised.</h5>
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<div class="share-blockquote"><a class="twitter popup" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=The clean chit from the home minister came even as the organisation faces sedition charges over an event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised." target="_blank">&nbsp;</a></div>
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Demanding that an impartial investigation must be done into the matter, the BJP leader expressed his disappointment that the clean chit has been given to Amnesty International even before the report was submitted. 
 
&quot;As far I am concerned, the investigation is over because the home minister has himself given a clean chit and no police officer will indict the Amnesty (International) anymore. It is a serious issue, you would have allowed the investigation to go on,&quot; he added. 
 
The Karnataka home minister yesterday said Amnesty India has never involved itself in any kind of anti-national activities. 
 
&quot;Amnesty International is not new to Bengaluru. This organisation has been functioning here for a long time. I don&#39;t know nor I have heard in the past about it or anyone from it involving in any anti-national activities,&quot; Parameshwara said. 
 
&quot;They had organised a programme about the Army&#39;s excesses in Kashmir. They had called a few families (from Kashmir) to console them and give them some sort of mental support, in which certain incidents took place about which an FIR has been registered,&quot; he added. 
 
The clean chit from the home minister came even as the organisation faces sedition charges over an event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised. 
 
The Amnesty International had earlier on August 13 organised an event as part of a campaign to seek justice for &quot;victims of human rights violations&quot; in Jammu and Kashmir that took an ugly turn with heated exchanges and alleged raising anti-India slogans. 
 
Mounting pressure on the government post the incident, the BJP activists staged protests on the streets demanding that a case of sedition be registered against Amnesty International. 
 
(ANI) 
 
 
&nbsp;

The home minister of Congress-ruled Karnataka yesterday said Amnesty India has never involved itself in any kind of anti-national activities

India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today alleged that the Congress was playing with the country's national security and said a clean chit by the Congress leader and home minister of southern Karnataka, G Parameshwara, to rights group Amnesty International makes it obvious that he is working on the orders of his party's high command. BJP leader S Prakash said Parameshwara has given a clean chit to Amnesty International in the anti-India sloganeering controversy as per the diktat of the Congress central leadership. "After a long deliberation, they (Bengaluru Police) decided to file a case on sedition charges. The home ministry I believe comes under G Parameshwara. It is his department, which has filed the case. Now, he has given the clean chit even before the report is submitted. It is very clear that he is acting under the pressure of the high command," Prakash said. The clean chit from the home minister came even as the organisation faces sedition charges over an event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised. Demanding that an impartial investigation must be done into the matter, the BJP leader expressed his disappointment that the clean chit has been given to Amnesty International even before the report was submitted. "As far I am concerned, the investigation is over because the home minister has himself given a clean chit and no police officer will indict the Amnesty (International) anymore. It is a serious issue, you would have allowed the investigation to go on," he added. The Karnataka home minister yesterday said Amnesty India has never involved itself in any kind of anti-national activities. "Amnesty International is not new to Bengaluru. This organisation has been functioning here for a long time. I don't know nor I have heard in the past about it or anyone from it involving in any anti-national activities," Parameshwara said. "They had organised a programme about the Army's excesses in Kashmir. They had called a few families (from Kashmir) to console them and give them some sort of mental support, in which certain incidents took place about which an FIR has been registered," he added. The clean chit from the home minister came even as the organisation faces sedition charges over an event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised. The Amnesty International had earlier on August 13 organised an event as part of a campaign to seek justice for "victims of human rights violations" in Jammu and Kashmir that took an ugly turn with heated exchanges and alleged raising anti-India slogans. Mounting pressure on the government post the incident, the BJP activists staged protests on the streets demanding that a case of sedition be registered against Amnesty International. (ANI)

Amnesty row: India's ruling party accuses Congress of playing with national security

Mexican police massacred 22 civilians in arbitrary executions during a raid on a drug gang last year, a human rights ombudsman said Thursday. 
 
The bloodbath happened in a raid by federal police against the Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartel in the western state of Michoacan on May 22, 2015. 
 
It was one of the bloodiest battles in the Mexican government&#39;s decade-long campaign against powerful drug gangs. 
 
Officers committed &quot;violations of the right to life by excessive use of force that entailed the arbitrary execution of 22 civilians,&quot; the country&#39;s National Human Rights Commission said. 
 
They also committed &quot;aggravated acts of torture on two people who were detained,&quot; commission chief Ismael Eslava said, reading from the report. 
 
Top state security official Renato Sales said the shooting erupted when the suspects refused to drop their weapons. 
 
&quot;We do not think the theory of arbitrary executions stands up,&quot; he told a news conference. 
 
The ombudsman said forensic investigations indicated police had moved the bodies of the dead and planted weapons on them. 
 
It said a police helicopter fired 4,000 rounds into the ranch where the suspects were. 
 
In total 43 people were killed in the raid, including one policeman and numerous suspected criminals. However only 22 of these were deemed arbitrary executions by police. 
 
The government said previously that the 42 people killed by police had attacked officers. It said the helicopter had fired to contain the suspects. 
 
(AFP)

A human rights ombudsman said police used 'excessive force' to kill drug gang members last year

Mexican police massacred 22 civilians in arbitrary executions during a raid on a drug gang last year, a human rights ombudsman said Thursday. The bloodbath happened in a raid by federal police against the Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartel in the western state of Michoacan on May 22, 2015. It was one of the bloodiest battles in the Mexican government's decade-long campaign against powerful drug gangs. Officers committed "violations of the right to life by excessive use of force that entailed the arbitrary execution of 22 civilians," the country's National Human Rights Commission said. They also committed "aggravated acts of torture on two people who were detained," commission chief Ismael Eslava said, reading from the report. Top state security official Renato Sales said the shooting erupted when the suspects refused to drop their weapons. "We do not think the theory of arbitrary executions stands up," he told a news conference. The ombudsman said forensic investigations indicated police had moved the bodies of the dead and planted weapons on them. It said a police helicopter fired 4,000 rounds into the ranch where the suspects were. In total 43 people were killed in the raid, including one policeman and numerous suspected criminals. However only 22 of these were deemed arbitrary executions by police. The government said previously that the 42 people killed by police had attacked officers. It said the helicopter had fired to contain the suspects. (AFP)

22 civilians were 'executed' in bloody Mexican drug raid

Thailand&#39;s army said today it had detained several people for questioning over a wave of deadly bombings in some of the country&#39;s best-known beach resorts that killed four people and wounded dozens, including tourists. 
 
Last week&#39;s blasts came days after Thais voted to accept a military-backed constitution paving the way for an election at the end of 2017. 
 
No one has claimed responsibility, although police and the government have ruled out ties to foreign groups, linking the bombings to an unspecified domestic issue. Analysts say suspicion would inevitably fall on enemies of the junta aggrieved by the referendum results, or insurgents from Muslim-majority provinces in the south of the predominantly Buddhist country. 
 
Several people are being held at army facilities, but none have been charged, military government spokesman colonel Winthai Suvaree told Reuters. 
 
&quot;Right now Sakkarin has been detained under Article 44 (by military). The arrest warrant is another separate thing (issued by police),&quot; said police chief Chakthip Chaijinda, referring to a suspect detained for arson. He denied another man who has also been arrested was detained in connection with the bombings. 
 
&quot;We have arrested Abdullah following another arrest warrant (from another separate case) from Krabi for which we believe that he has been on the run for several years. Now we have arrested him.&quot; 
 
The legislation gives the military government absolute power to take any steps needed to protect public peace and detain people for up to seven days without a court warrant. Winthai declined to say how many were detained, although rights groups fear the number runs into dozens, but no-one has yet been charged. 
 
Yesterday a deputy national police chief said the attacks were carried out simultaneously by one group on the orders of one person, but gave no further details.&nbsp;Over the weekend authorities defused at least five explosive devices which had failed to detonate. Three bombs went off in the Muslim-majority province of Yala late yesterday, but nobody was injured, police said. 
 
Defence minister Prawit Wongsuwan said last week&#39;s blasts were &quot;definitely&quot; not related to the southern insurgency, although some involved might have come from the region. 
 
Prawit told reporters today that the incident was an extension of the deep south insurgency, and it was possible they could have been hired from there. For more than a decade, Thailand has been divided between populist political forces led by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and the royalist and military establishment. 
 
They accuse Thaksin, toppled in a 2006 coup, of corruption and nepotism, charges he rejects. His sister Yingluck, who took power after a 2011 election win, was ousted in a 2014 coup.&nbsp;Fears that Yingluck and Thaksin could be blamed for orchestrating last week&#39;s attacks prompted a denial by their party. 
 
(Reuters)

They are being held at army facilities but none have been charged, a Thailand military government spokesman said

Thailand's army said today it had detained several people for questioning over a wave of deadly bombings in some of the country's best-known beach resorts that killed four people and wounded dozens, including tourists. Last week's blasts came days after Thais voted to accept a military-backed constitution paving the way for an election at the end of 2017. No one has claimed responsibility, although police and the government have ruled out ties to foreign groups, linking the bombings to an unspecified domestic issue. Analysts say suspicion would inevitably fall on enemies of the junta aggrieved by the referendum results, or insurgents from Muslim-majority provinces in the south of the predominantly Buddhist country. Several people are being held at army facilities, but none have been charged, military government spokesman colonel Winthai Suvaree told Reuters. "Right now Sakkarin has been detained under Article 44 (by military). The arrest warrant is another separate thing (issued by police)," said police chief Chakthip Chaijinda, referring to a suspect detained for arson. He denied another man who has also been arrested was detained in connection with the bombings. "We have arrested Abdullah following another arrest warrant (from another separate case) from Krabi for which we believe that he has been on the run for several years. Now we have arrested him." The legislation gives the military government absolute power to take any steps needed to protect public peace and detain people for up to seven days without a court warrant. Winthai declined to say how many were detained, although rights groups fear the number runs into dozens, but no-one has yet been charged. Yesterday a deputy national police chief said the attacks were carried out simultaneously by one group on the orders of one person, but gave no further details. Over the weekend authorities defused at least five explosive devices which had failed to detonate. Three bombs went off in the Muslim-majority province of Yala late yesterday, but nobody was injured, police said. Defence minister Prawit Wongsuwan said last week's blasts were "definitely" not related to the southern insurgency, although some involved might have come from the region. Prawit told reporters today that the incident was an extension of the deep south insurgency, and it was possible they could have been hired from there. For more than a decade, Thailand has been divided between populist political forces led by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and the royalist and military establishment. They accuse Thaksin, toppled in a 2006 coup, of corruption and nepotism, charges he rejects. His sister Yingluck, who took power after a 2011 election win, was ousted in a 2014 coup. Fears that Yingluck and Thaksin could be blamed for orchestrating last week's attacks prompted a denial by their party. (Reuters)

Thailand detains several people for questioning over deadly blasts

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau marched with thousands of people in Montreal&#39;s annual gay pride parade yesterday, his third such appearance of the summer. 
 
Large crowds along the parade route greeted the youthful politician whose popularity is soaring, as he walked through the city`s downtown alongside colourful floats, dancers and musicians. 
 
Trudeau made history in July when he became Canada&#39;s first sitting prime minister to participate in Toronto&#39;s gay pride parade, and also attended Vancouver&#39;s pride event. &nbsp;Canada is &quot;an open, positive society,&quot; the prime minister said, speaking in French. &quot;It&#39;s an example that we should provide to the whole world.&quot; 
 
Among G7 countries he is the only head of government or head of state to have participated in a gay pride parade.&nbsp;Government representatives from all of Canada&#39;s political parties joined Trudeau in Montreal. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s important that all parties are here to recognise that the rights of the LGBT community are Canadian and human rights,&quot; Trudeau said before the event, sporting a seafoam green button-up and white pants.&nbsp; 
 
Two girls led the procession holding a banner bearing the names of the 49 victims killed in the June 12 nightclub attack in Orlando, Florida.&nbsp;&quot;The Orlando massacre was a dark moment, and it`s important to denounce these acts daily,&quot; said Quebec justice minister Stephanie Vallee, who is heading an action plan against homophobia. 
 
&quot;We must fight against homophobia, transphobia and aversion to diversity throughout the entire country,&quot; Vallee said.&nbsp;Trudeau noted that the government would focus on recognising transgender rights this year. 
 
His government unveiled legislation in May that would add &quot;gender identity&quot; as a banned grounds for discrimination under the Canadian Human Rights Act, alongside race, religion, age, sex and sexual orientation. 
 
(AFP)

Trudeau made history in July when he became Canada's first sitting prime minister to participate in Toronto's gay pride parade

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau marched with thousands of people in Montreal's annual gay pride parade yesterday, his third such appearance of the summer. Large crowds along the parade route greeted the youthful politician whose popularity is soaring, as he walked through the city`s downtown alongside colourful floats, dancers and musicians. Trudeau made history in July when he became Canada's first sitting prime minister to participate in Toronto's gay pride parade, and also attended Vancouver's pride event. Canada is "an open, positive society," the prime minister said, speaking in French. "It's an example that we should provide to the whole world." Among G7 countries he is the only head of government or head of state to have participated in a gay pride parade. Government representatives from all of Canada's political parties joined Trudeau in Montreal. "It's important that all parties are here to recognise that the rights of the LGBT community are Canadian and human rights," Trudeau said before the event, sporting a seafoam green button-up and white pants. Two girls led the procession holding a banner bearing the names of the 49 victims killed in the June 12 nightclub attack in Orlando, Florida. "The Orlando massacre was a dark moment, and it`s important to denounce these acts daily," said Quebec justice minister Stephanie Vallee, who is heading an action plan against homophobia. "We must fight against homophobia, transphobia and aversion to diversity throughout the entire country," Vallee said. Trudeau noted that the government would focus on recognising transgender rights this year. His government unveiled legislation in May that would add "gender identity" as a banned grounds for discrimination under the Canadian Human Rights Act, alongside race, religion, age, sex and sexual orientation. (AFP)

Canadian PM Trudeau marches in Montreal gay pride parade

The World Bank adopted a new set of policies on Thursday that aim to expand protections for people and the environment in projects financed by the bank while making it easier for borrowers to comply with its standards. 
 
The global lender dedicated to fighting poverty, whose commitments rose to more than $60 billion this year, said the new environmental and social framework had involved the &quot;most extensive consultation ever conducted&quot; by the bank. 
 
&quot;These new safeguards will build into our projects updated and improved protections for the most vulnerable people in the world and our environment,&quot; World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said in a statement. 
 
The Bank last year acknowledged that its projects had sometimes resulted in forced population displacements. World Bank projects in regions around the world have been accused of underwriting human rights abuses. 
 
But the first major update to the World Bank&#39;s safeguard policies in nearly 20 years has drawn fire from some non-profit groups for creating &quot;loopholes&quot; with more vague language and more reliance on borrower country laws and standards. 
 
&quot;The bank has effectively dismantled thirty years of environmental and social protections for the world&rsquo;s most impoverished and vulnerable peoples,&quot; said Stephanie Fried, executive director of the Ulu Foundation, a non-profit group focussed on forest preservation. 
 
The new rules are to take effect in 2018 and will require client states to conduct a &quot;broadened social assessment and management of environmental and social risks,&quot; to guarantee labour rights and prohibit any form of forced labour. 
 
Projects will have to reduce environmental harm and avoid large-scale population displacements, according to the new policy. 
 
Kim told reporters on a conference call that one key example of the changes will be increased protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities. The bank pulled out of a $90 million loan to Uganda&#39;s health system in 2014 after the government passed a law that imposed life sentences for certain homosexual activities and made it a crime not to report violations. 
 
Kim said the World Bank had committed increased funding to work with its 189 member countries to lift their own environmental and human rights safeguards to match those of the Washington-based development lender. 
 
While welcoming some improvements, Nadia Daar, head of the Washington office at Oxfam International, said in a statement that her organization was &quot;frustrated and disappointed&quot; that the new policy had not gone further. 
 
The bank information centre, an organisation which lobbies to improve World Bank policies, said the new rules lacked &quot;the strength and clarity that people negatively impacted by development so profoundly depend upon&quot;. 
 
As the latest version of the rules became public last month, Human Rights Watch likewise said it &quot;does not require the bank to respect human rights&quot;. 
 
Kim, the Bank president, said the framework represented &quot;the best possible compromise&quot;. 
 
&quot;We had to find a path down the middle where we can both ensure that abuses didn&#39;t happen and at the same time make it possible for borrowers to borrow,&quot; Kim told reporters in a conference call. 
 
Overly strict criteria risked harming the economic prospects of poor countries, he said.&nbsp;The Bank currently faces a growing number of other actors in global development, including China, seen as placing fewer conditions on financing. 
 
(Agencies)

New rules have drawn fire from NGOs for creating loopholes and shifting responsibility to the borrowing nations

The World Bank adopted a new set of policies on Thursday that aim to expand protections for people and the environment in projects financed by the bank while making it easier for borrowers to comply with its standards. The global lender dedicated to fighting poverty, whose commitments rose to more than $60 billion this year, said the new environmental and social framework had involved the "most extensive consultation ever conducted" by the bank. "These new safeguards will build into our projects updated and improved protections for the most vulnerable people in the world and our environment," World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said in a statement. The Bank last year acknowledged that its projects had sometimes resulted in forced population displacements. World Bank projects in regions around the world have been accused of underwriting human rights abuses. But the first major update to the World Bank's safeguard policies in nearly 20 years has drawn fire from some non-profit groups for creating "loopholes" with more vague language and more reliance on borrower country laws and standards. "The bank has effectively dismantled thirty years of environmental and social protections for the world’s most impoverished and vulnerable peoples," said Stephanie Fried, executive director of the Ulu Foundation, a non-profit group focussed on forest preservation. The new rules are to take effect in 2018 and will require client states to conduct a "broadened social assessment and management of environmental and social risks," to guarantee labour rights and prohibit any form of forced labour. Projects will have to reduce environmental harm and avoid large-scale population displacements, according to the new policy. Kim told reporters on a conference call that one key example of the changes will be increased protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities. The bank pulled out of a $90 million loan to Uganda's health system in 2014 after the government passed a law that imposed life sentences for certain homosexual activities and made it a crime not to report violations. Kim said the World Bank had committed increased funding to work with its 189 member countries to lift their own environmental and human rights safeguards to match those of the Washington-based development lender. While welcoming some improvements, Nadia Daar, head of the Washington office at Oxfam International, said in a statement that her organization was "frustrated and disappointed" that the new policy had not gone further. The bank information centre, an organisation which lobbies to improve World Bank policies, said the new rules lacked "the strength and clarity that people negatively impacted by development so profoundly depend upon". As the latest version of the rules became public last month, Human Rights Watch likewise said it "does not require the bank to respect human rights". Kim, the Bank president, said the framework represented "the best possible compromise". "We had to find a path down the middle where we can both ensure that abuses didn't happen and at the same time make it possible for borrowers to borrow," Kim told reporters in a conference call. Overly strict criteria risked harming the economic prospects of poor countries, he said. The Bank currently faces a growing number of other actors in global development, including China, seen as placing fewer conditions on financing. (Agencies)

World Bank's new environmental framework angers human rights critics

Government security forces in South Sudan executed civilians and gang -raped women and girls during and after heavy fighting last month in the capital Juba, the United Nations human rights chief said on Thursday. 
 
Zeid Ra&#39;ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, called on the government of President Salva Kiir to prosecute perpetrators and urged world powers to take &quot;urgent action&quot; to halt violence in the world`s newest state. 
 
&quot;While some civilians were killed in crossfire between the fighting forces, others were reportedly summarily executed by Government (SPLA) soldiers, who appear to have specifically targeted people of Nuer origin,&quot; Zeid said in a statement.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The fighting also resulted in widespread sexual violence, including rape and gang rape by soldiers in uniform and men in plain clothes.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has called on the South Sudanese government to prosecute those responsible

Government security forces in South Sudan executed civilians and gang -raped women and girls during and after heavy fighting last month in the capital Juba, the United Nations human rights chief said on Thursday. Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, called on the government of President Salva Kiir to prosecute perpetrators and urged world powers to take "urgent action" to halt violence in the world`s newest state. "While some civilians were killed in crossfire between the fighting forces, others were reportedly summarily executed by Government (SPLA) soldiers, who appear to have specifically targeted people of Nuer origin," Zeid said in a statement. "The fighting also resulted in widespread sexual violence, including rape and gang rape by soldiers in uniform and men in plain clothes." (Reuters)

Security forces in South Sudan killed civilians, gang-raped women, says UN

Australia is deliberately failing to combat the abuse of asylum-seekers on the Pacific island of Nauru to deter others from arriving by boat, two global human rights groups said Wednesday.&nbsp; 
 
The report by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW) is a scathing criticism of Canberra&#39;s immigration policy under which asylum-seekers trying to reach Australia by boat are taken to Papua New Guinea or Nauru.&nbsp; 
 
The government, which said today it rejects the report&#39;s allegations, has a policy of refusing asylum-seekers settlement in Australia and keeping them in the Pacific islands or returning them home, even if they are refugees.&nbsp; 
 
&#39;Deliberate policy to deter asylum-seekers&#39;&nbsp; 
 
In the latest criticism of the Canberra&#39;s controversial stance, Amnesty and HRW said asylum-seekers and refugees on Nauru suffered &quot;severe abuse, inhumane treatment, and neglect&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
The government&#39;s &quot;failure to address serious abuses appears to be a deliberate policy to deter further asylum-seekers from arriving in the country by boat&quot;, it added.&nbsp; 
 
Doctors, lawyers and refugee advocates have previously criticised the offshore settlement, with allegations that some asylum-seekers suffered sexual abuse and mental health problems while in the camp.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Driving adult and even child refugees to the breaking point with sustained abuse appears to be one of Australia&#39;s aims on Nauru,&quot; said HRW&#39;s Michael Bochenek, one of the two researchers who went to Nauru last month to interview 84 asylum-seekers and refugees.&nbsp; 
 
Those interviewed, who came from nations including Iran, Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan, told the rights groups they had developed severe anxiety, an inability to sleep, mood swings, prolonged depression and short-term memory loss, while describing conditions as &quot;prison-like&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;People here don&#39;t have a real life. We are just surviving. We are dead souls in living bodies. We are just husks. We don&#39;t have any hope or motivation,&quot; one woman said.&nbsp; 
 
Australia refutes allegations&nbsp; 
 
Australia said Amnesty did not consult with the immigration department about the investigation, with a spokesman adding that the &quot;department strongly refutes many of the allegations in the report&quot;. 
 
 
Conditions &#39;abhorrent&#39;&nbsp; 
 
Asylum-seekers on Nauru have been free to roam around the tiny nation since last year, no longer forced to stay in the detention centre.&nbsp; 
 
But the researchers said conditions outside the centre were &quot;abhorrent&quot;, with reports that asylum-seekers were beaten, robbed and harassed by some members of the local community. Despite criticism of its immigration policy, Australia&#39;s conservative government has strongly defended it, saying it has halted the spate of boat arrivals, and drownings, of earlier years.&nbsp; 
 
But refugee advocates and journalists say a veil of secrecy has been drawn around the processing centres in Papua New Guinea and Nauru, with only a handful of them gaining access to the camp in recent years.&nbsp; 
 
Some 442 asylum-seekers are being held in Nauru, and another 854 on Manus Island, according to immigration department data ending June 30. But PNG has said that its camp on Manus will close after its Supreme Court found that detaining people at the centre was unconstitutional and illegal.&nbsp; 
 
PNG&#39;s Supreme Court has now ordered Canberra to present a resettlement plan for asylum-seekers held on Manus Island by Thursday, including options about where else they could go if they did not want to remain in the Pacific nation, a lawyer for the detainees, Ben Lomai, told AFP.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP)&nbsp;

The government's 'failure to address serious abuses appears to be a deliberate policy to deter further asylum-seekers from arriving by boat'

Australia is deliberately failing to combat the abuse of asylum-seekers on the Pacific island of Nauru to deter others from arriving by boat, two global human rights groups said Wednesday. The report by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW) is a scathing criticism of Canberra's immigration policy under which asylum-seekers trying to reach Australia by boat are taken to Papua New Guinea or Nauru. The government, which said today it rejects the report's allegations, has a policy of refusing asylum-seekers settlement in Australia and keeping them in the Pacific islands or returning them home, even if they are refugees. 'Deliberate policy to deter asylum-seekers' In the latest criticism of the Canberra's controversial stance, Amnesty and HRW said asylum-seekers and refugees on Nauru suffered "severe abuse, inhumane treatment, and neglect". The government's "failure to address serious abuses appears to be a deliberate policy to deter further asylum-seekers from arriving in the country by boat", it added. Doctors, lawyers and refugee advocates have previously criticised the offshore settlement, with allegations that some asylum-seekers suffered sexual abuse and mental health problems while in the camp. "Driving adult and even child refugees to the breaking point with sustained abuse appears to be one of Australia's aims on Nauru," said HRW's Michael Bochenek, one of the two researchers who went to Nauru last month to interview 84 asylum-seekers and refugees. Those interviewed, who came from nations including Iran, Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan, told the rights groups they had developed severe anxiety, an inability to sleep, mood swings, prolonged depression and short-term memory loss, while describing conditions as "prison-like". "People here don't have a real life. We are just surviving. We are dead souls in living bodies. We are just husks. We don't have any hope or motivation," one woman said. Australia refutes allegations Australia said Amnesty did not consult with the immigration department about the investigation, with a spokesman adding that the "department strongly refutes many of the allegations in the report". Conditions 'abhorrent' Asylum-seekers on Nauru have been free to roam around the tiny nation since last year, no longer forced to stay in the detention centre. But the researchers said conditions outside the centre were "abhorrent", with reports that asylum-seekers were beaten, robbed and harassed by some members of the local community. Despite criticism of its immigration policy, Australia's conservative government has strongly defended it, saying it has halted the spate of boat arrivals, and drownings, of earlier years. But refugee advocates and journalists say a veil of secrecy has been drawn around the processing centres in Papua New Guinea and Nauru, with only a handful of them gaining access to the camp in recent years. Some 442 asylum-seekers are being held in Nauru, and another 854 on Manus Island, according to immigration department data ending June 30. But PNG has said that its camp on Manus will close after its Supreme Court found that detaining people at the centre was unconstitutional and illegal. PNG's Supreme Court has now ordered Canberra to present a resettlement plan for asylum-seekers held on Manus Island by Thursday, including options about where else they could go if they did not want to remain in the Pacific nation, a lawyer for the detainees, Ben Lomai, told AFP. (AFP)

Rights groups slam Australia for abuse of asylum-seekers

Human rights activist Sarah McBride made history yesterday when she became the first openly transgender person to speak at a major party convention. 
 
&quot;Four years ago, I came out as transgender while serving as student body president in college. At the time I was scared. I was worried that my dreams and my identity were mutually exclusive. Since then, though, I have seen that change is possible. I witness history as an intern at the White House and helping my home state of Delaware pass protections for transgender people,&quot; McBride told the crowd in Philadelphia. 
 
&quot;Will we be a nation where there is only one way to love, only one to look, and only one way to live? Or will we be a nation where everyone has the freedom to live openly and equally, a nation that is stronger together? That is the question in this election.&quot; 
 
McBride currently works as the national press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign. She was also the first openly transgender woman to work at the White House when she interned in the Office of Public Engagement in 2012. 
 
(Reuters)

'I have seen that change is possible.' Sarah McBride is the first openly transgender person to speak at a major party convention

Human rights activist Sarah McBride made history yesterday when she became the first openly transgender person to speak at a major party convention. "Four years ago, I came out as transgender while serving as student body president in college. At the time I was scared. I was worried that my dreams and my identity were mutually exclusive. Since then, though, I have seen that change is possible. I witness history as an intern at the White House and helping my home state of Delaware pass protections for transgender people," McBride told the crowd in Philadelphia. "Will we be a nation where there is only one way to love, only one to look, and only one way to live? Or will we be a nation where everyone has the freedom to live openly and equally, a nation that is stronger together? That is the question in this election." McBride currently works as the national press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign. She was also the first openly transgender woman to work at the White House when she interned in the Office of Public Engagement in 2012. (Reuters)

Transgender activist makes history at Democratic National Convention

Implementing a UN resolution calling for the investigation of alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka during a war with separatist rebels is complicated and needs more consultations to build confidence, a senior US official said. 
 
The United States along with other Western countries have long demanded an international investigation into the killing of thousands of ethnic minority Tamils in the final weeks of the war, in 2009, under then Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. 
 
Both the military and Tamil rebels &quot;most likely&quot; committed war crimes including mass killings of civilians, during the 26-year war, the United Nations said in a landmark report last year. 
 
Sri Lanka has promised to implement the UN resolution adopted in October that calls for a special court with foreign judges to investigate. 
 
But President Maithripala Sirisena, who came to power last year, is facing resistance to an investigation from political rivals led by his predecessor, Rajapaksa. 
 
US Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Tom Malinowski said international participation in a special court had been emphasised because of &quot;an erosion in the confidence&quot; in Sri Lankas courts over the years.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;These are complicated issues and there needs to be a process of consultation with all in order to ensure these things are done in a way that earns confidence of the people,&quot; Malinowski told a group of reporters in Colombo late on Thursday. He said the UN resolution respected Sri Lankas sovereignty. 
 
&quot;Under the resolution, the government of Sri Lanka will determine the structure and the composition of the court,&quot; he said, noting that Sri Lanka had made a commitment to include some international participation in the investigation. 
 
The UN resolution also calls for an inquiry into missing people and progress in reconciliation. 
 
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra`ad Al Hussein said in an annual report last month Sri Lanka must rein in its military forces, prosecute war crimes and win the confidence of the Tamil minority. 
 
He also said witnesses must be protected under an effective transitional justice mechanism that should include international judges. 
 
Rajapaksa, while president, rejected international intervention in addressing rights abuses and denied visas for top UN officials who wanted to assess conditions in the South Asian country after the war ended in May 2009. 
 
(Reuters)

US, along with other countries, has long demanded an international investigation into the killing of thousands of Tamils

Implementing a UN resolution calling for the investigation of alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka during a war with separatist rebels is complicated and needs more consultations to build confidence, a senior US official said. The United States along with other Western countries have long demanded an international investigation into the killing of thousands of ethnic minority Tamils in the final weeks of the war, in 2009, under then Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Both the military and Tamil rebels "most likely" committed war crimes including mass killings of civilians, during the 26-year war, the United Nations said in a landmark report last year. Sri Lanka has promised to implement the UN resolution adopted in October that calls for a special court with foreign judges to investigate. But President Maithripala Sirisena, who came to power last year, is facing resistance to an investigation from political rivals led by his predecessor, Rajapaksa. US Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Tom Malinowski said international participation in a special court had been emphasised because of "an erosion in the confidence" in Sri Lankas courts over the years. "These are complicated issues and there needs to be a process of consultation with all in order to ensure these things are done in a way that earns confidence of the people," Malinowski told a group of reporters in Colombo late on Thursday. He said the UN resolution respected Sri Lankas sovereignty. "Under the resolution, the government of Sri Lanka will determine the structure and the composition of the court," he said, noting that Sri Lanka had made a commitment to include some international participation in the investigation. The UN resolution also calls for an inquiry into missing people and progress in reconciliation. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra`ad Al Hussein said in an annual report last month Sri Lanka must rein in its military forces, prosecute war crimes and win the confidence of the Tamil minority. He also said witnesses must be protected under an effective transitional justice mechanism that should include international judges. Rajapaksa, while president, rejected international intervention in addressing rights abuses and denied visas for top UN officials who wanted to assess conditions in the South Asian country after the war ended in May 2009. (Reuters)

US acknowledges complications in Sri Lanka war crimes investigation

After a border official stopped him from leaving Bahrain last week, citing a security order, human rights lawyer Mohammed al-Tajer said he checked with the departments in charge of passports and investigations and was told no travel ban was in place. 
 
The 50-year-old lawyer, who had been planning a short visit to Saudi Arabia, was not surprised. He had joined a growing list of people confined to their country as part of what rights groups describe as an attempt to crush the opposition. 
 
Tajer said some people found out when they headed to the airport last month to fly to Geneva to attend a meeting by the UN Human Rights Council. Others were informed when they tried to cross the King Fahd Causeway to Saudi Arabia last week. 
 
&quot;There are 17 of us -- some of them are not rights activists or well known figures,&quot; Tajer, who has defended prominent Bahraini opposition activists, told Reuters. 
 
19 people prevented from travelling abroad: Human rights group&nbsp; 
 
Amnesty International says at least 19 people, including doctors, lawyers, academics and journalists, have been prevented from travelling abroad in the past month.&nbsp; 
 
Bahrain&#39;s Sunni-led government, mainly drawn from the ruling al-Khalifa family, has been rattled by opposition calls for major reforms, including a cabinet chosen from an elected parliament, and a deep financial crisis that has forced it to cut subsidies and increase basic prices. 
 
The crackdown also follows a deepening diplomatic row between Bahrain`s main Sunni backer, Saudi Arabia, and Shi`ite power Iran. 
 
The rift has grown wider since Iranian demonstrators, angry at the execution of a prominent Shi`ite Muslim cleric in January, ransacked Saudi missions prompting Riyadh and Manama to sever diplomatic ties with Tehran. 
 
Government maintains it does not tolerate human rights violations&nbsp; 
 
Bahraini authorities had no immediate comment on the travel ban in general or on Tajer&#39;s situation. The government says it does not tolerate human rights violations and has established bodies to receive complaints. 
 
Bahrain&#39;s National Institution for Human Rights (NIHR) said it had &quot;noted with concern&quot; the increased number of cases of travel bans and called for them to stop. 
 
&quot;The NIHR notes that decision to ban travel without a judicial order obstructs the constitutional of movement and travel, which contradicts the kingdom`s international and regional commitments related to human rights,&quot; it said in a statement to Reuters. 
 
Shaken by bouts of unrest since Arab Spring-style mass protests in 2011, Western-allied Bahrain, where the U.S. Fifth Fleet is based, has explained a crackdown on opponents in recent weeks as &quot;correcting&quot; the political discourse. 
 
Since June, Bahraini authorities have closed down the main Shi`ite opposition group al-Wefaq, revoked the citizenship of top Shi`ite Muslim cleric Ayatollah Isa Qassim and re-arrested prominent rights campaigner Nabeel Rajab for anti-government Tweets. A court has also more than doubled the prison sentence on al-Wefaq leader Sheikh Ali Salman. 
 
&#39;Bahrain &nbsp;has entered a deeply worrying new phase of clampdown&#39;&nbsp; 
 
Rights groups have documented the travel bans. 
 
The Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) said on July 4 it had recorded at least 14 cases of rights campaigners and civil society activists having been banned from travel in June. 
 
Amnesty International said it had recorded 21 cases since 2015, 19 of them in the past month alone. 
 
&quot;Preventing human rights defenders, journalists and former prisoners of conscience from leaving their own country is just one of a long list of repressive tactics the Bahraini authorities have sought to punish and muzzle its critics in recent weeks,&rdquo; said Ariel Plotkin, Amnesty International&rsquo;s Bahrain campaigner. 
 
&quot;Bahrain has entered a deeply worrying new phase of clampdown on human rights, instilling fear on civil society,&quot; he added.&nbsp; 
 
Apart from Tajer, they include Sharaf al-Mousawi, the head of Bahrain`s branch of Transparency International, Rula al-Saffar, president of the Bahrain Nursing Society and brain surgeon Taha al-Durazi and his wife.&nbsp; 
 
On July 7, Bahraini journalist and activist Ahmed Radhi was banned from boarding a flight from Manama to Oman, without any prior notification of any ban imposed on him. 
 
&quot;My name is not on any list of banned people and I have a certificate of good conduct from the investigations department, yet I am banned from travel,&quot; Radhi said, according to his Twitter account. 
 
Tajer said it was normal in Bahrain for people to be punished with measures such as travel bans without an official order being presented by any party. 
 
&quot;Don&#39;t be astonished. Many things that cannot be explained happen,&quot; Taker said. &quot;In Bahrain, everything is possible, especially against people who are not viewed with satisfaction by the government,&quot; he added.&nbsp; 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;

'Preventing human rights defenders, journalists from leaving their own country is just one of a long list of repressive tactics'

After a border official stopped him from leaving Bahrain last week, citing a security order, human rights lawyer Mohammed al-Tajer said he checked with the departments in charge of passports and investigations and was told no travel ban was in place. The 50-year-old lawyer, who had been planning a short visit to Saudi Arabia, was not surprised. He had joined a growing list of people confined to their country as part of what rights groups describe as an attempt to crush the opposition. Tajer said some people found out when they headed to the airport last month to fly to Geneva to attend a meeting by the UN Human Rights Council. Others were informed when they tried to cross the King Fahd Causeway to Saudi Arabia last week. "There are 17 of us -- some of them are not rights activists or well known figures," Tajer, who has defended prominent Bahraini opposition activists, told Reuters. 19 people prevented from travelling abroad: Human rights group Amnesty International says at least 19 people, including doctors, lawyers, academics and journalists, have been prevented from travelling abroad in the past month. Bahrain's Sunni-led government, mainly drawn from the ruling al-Khalifa family, has been rattled by opposition calls for major reforms, including a cabinet chosen from an elected parliament, and a deep financial crisis that has forced it to cut subsidies and increase basic prices. The crackdown also follows a deepening diplomatic row between Bahrain`s main Sunni backer, Saudi Arabia, and Shi`ite power Iran. The rift has grown wider since Iranian demonstrators, angry at the execution of a prominent Shi`ite Muslim cleric in January, ransacked Saudi missions prompting Riyadh and Manama to sever diplomatic ties with Tehran. Government maintains it does not tolerate human rights violations Bahraini authorities had no immediate comment on the travel ban in general or on Tajer's situation. The government says it does not tolerate human rights violations and has established bodies to receive complaints. Bahrain's National Institution for Human Rights (NIHR) said it had "noted with concern" the increased number of cases of travel bans and called for them to stop. "The NIHR notes that decision to ban travel without a judicial order obstructs the constitutional of movement and travel, which contradicts the kingdom`s international and regional commitments related to human rights," it said in a statement to Reuters. Shaken by bouts of unrest since Arab Spring-style mass protests in 2011, Western-allied Bahrain, where the U.S. Fifth Fleet is based, has explained a crackdown on opponents in recent weeks as "correcting" the political discourse. Since June, Bahraini authorities have closed down the main Shi`ite opposition group al-Wefaq, revoked the citizenship of top Shi`ite Muslim cleric Ayatollah Isa Qassim and re-arrested prominent rights campaigner Nabeel Rajab for anti-government Tweets. A court has also more than doubled the prison sentence on al-Wefaq leader Sheikh Ali Salman. 'Bahrain has entered a deeply worrying new phase of clampdown' Rights groups have documented the travel bans. The Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) said on July 4 it had recorded at least 14 cases of rights campaigners and civil society activists having been banned from travel in June. Amnesty International said it had recorded 21 cases since 2015, 19 of them in the past month alone. "Preventing human rights defenders, journalists and former prisoners of conscience from leaving their own country is just one of a long list of repressive tactics the Bahraini authorities have sought to punish and muzzle its critics in recent weeks,” said Ariel Plotkin, Amnesty International’s Bahrain campaigner. "Bahrain has entered a deeply worrying new phase of clampdown on human rights, instilling fear on civil society," he added. Apart from Tajer, they include Sharaf al-Mousawi, the head of Bahrain`s branch of Transparency International, Rula al-Saffar, president of the Bahrain Nursing Society and brain surgeon Taha al-Durazi and his wife. On July 7, Bahraini journalist and activist Ahmed Radhi was banned from boarding a flight from Manama to Oman, without any prior notification of any ban imposed on him. "My name is not on any list of banned people and I have a certificate of good conduct from the investigations department, yet I am banned from travel," Radhi said, according to his Twitter account. Tajer said it was normal in Bahrain for people to be punished with measures such as travel bans without an official order being presented by any party. "Don't be astonished. Many things that cannot be explained happen," Taker said. "In Bahrain, everything is possible, especially against people who are not viewed with satisfaction by the government," he added. (Reuters)

Travel clampdown in Bahrain 'attempt to crush opposition', rights groups claim

India should conduct an impartial probe into the use of lethal force by police during the violent protests following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in Kashmir and ensure that basic human rights are protected, a leading human rights body has said. 
 
&quot;A major grievance of those protesting in Kashmir is the failure of authorities to respect basic human rights,&quot; Human Rights Watch (HRW) South Asia director Meenakshi Ganguly said in a statement. 
 
&quot;Ensuring that rights are protected and prosecuting those responsible for abuses would be an important first step,&quot; she said. 
 
HRW said Indian authorities should credibly and impartially investigate police use of lethal force during the violent protests in Jammu &amp; Kashmir that ensued since the killing of Hizb&nbsp;militant Wani last week. 
 
&quot;Rock-throwing at demonstrations is serious but does not provide police a free pass to use force against protesters,&quot; Ganguly said in a statement. 
 
&quot;The Indian authorities need to send a clear message that lethal force is only an option when a life is at imminent risk, and those misusing force will be held accountable,&quot; she said. 
 
Ganguly also called on protest organisers to take steps to deter supporters from engaging in violence, including attacks on law enforcement officers. 
 
The HRW said in a statement while law enforcement officials have a duty to protect lives and property, they should use non-violent means as far as possible and use lethal force only when absolutely necessary to save lives. 
 
The authorities should not only investigate the use of firearms that resulted in death and injury, but also the use of pellet guns, which can cause serious injury when fired at close range or at an individual&#39;s eyes, it said. 
 
The findings of the investigation should be public and result in appropriate disciplinary action or prosecution. 
 
(PTI)

Human Rights Watch wants investigation into use of pellet guns which can cause serious injury when fired at close range

India should conduct an impartial probe into the use of lethal force by police during the violent protests following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in Kashmir and ensure that basic human rights are protected, a leading human rights body has said. "A major grievance of those protesting in Kashmir is the failure of authorities to respect basic human rights," Human Rights Watch (HRW) South Asia director Meenakshi Ganguly said in a statement. "Ensuring that rights are protected and prosecuting those responsible for abuses would be an important first step," she said. HRW said Indian authorities should credibly and impartially investigate police use of lethal force during the violent protests in Jammu & Kashmir that ensued since the killing of Hizb militant Wani last week. "Rock-throwing at demonstrations is serious but does not provide police a free pass to use force against protesters," Ganguly said in a statement. "The Indian authorities need to send a clear message that lethal force is only an option when a life is at imminent risk, and those misusing force will be held accountable," she said. Ganguly also called on protest organisers to take steps to deter supporters from engaging in violence, including attacks on law enforcement officers. The HRW said in a statement while law enforcement officials have a duty to protect lives and property, they should use non-violent means as far as possible and use lethal force only when absolutely necessary to save lives. The authorities should not only investigate the use of firearms that resulted in death and injury, but also the use of pellet guns, which can cause serious injury when fired at close range or at an individual's eyes, it said. The findings of the investigation should be public and result in appropriate disciplinary action or prosecution. (PTI)

Probe use of lethal force in Kashmir: Rights group to India

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