Iran carries out more executions than any country in the world, with the exception of China. Offenses like murder, armed robbery, rape, and adultery carry the death penalty. Five people were recently executed in Iran, including a woman.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/22/world/middleeast/22briefings-Iranbrf.html
Tags: death penalty, execution, Iran
Close to 200 people died and another 1,600 were injured in the July riots between the Uighur minority and the Han majority in China. Since the riots, countless individuals have been taken in for questioning. According to Chinese law, authorities must tell detainees’ families where they are being held and why, as well as give them access to an attorney. In their ongoing report, Human Rights Watch has documented 43 people who have completely disappeared, and they believe the true number to be much higher.
Tags: disappear, ethnic minority, Han, Human Rights Watch, riots, Uighur, violence
Exiled Uighur leader, Rebiya Kadeer, is causing quite a stir all over the world by accusing the Chinese government of secretly executing members of the Uighur minority and detaining hundreds of others. China has made efforts to convince the world Kadeer is a terrorist, but have failed. Rather, several countries recognize her for her humanitarian work.
Tags: China, ethnic minority, exile, Kadeer, Uighur
The International Rescue Committee is a nonprofit organization that works with the U.S. State department to resettle refugees across America. Currently the committee is aiding refugees from Burma, whose language is almost non-existant. Despite the immense culture shock, the refugees are adjusting to American life with the help of a Burmese volunteer.
About 37,000 refugees fled to Buton from Ambon, in an attempt to evade terror and violence. The source of the problem is not entirely understood, but ranges from religious and idealistic hatred to a corrupt civil service. The regional government has not provided any assistance to these refugees, mainly consisting of women and small children who have no means to fend for themselves. Now, a journalist shares their story.
http://www.pepperdine-graphic.com/news/law-team-aids-religious-refugees-1.2043772#2
“When these victims of persecution come to campus, they see the cross,” said Judge Bruce J. Einhorn, founder and director of the Asylum Clinic. “They sit down with kind people who … listen to them respectfully. It’s transformative. Some of these people have never known kindness in their whole lives. And the first time they know it is here, at Pepperdine.”
The clinic does not only take in clients who are Christian converts. Any refugee who has been persecuted for his or her religion— whether it be Christianity, Judaism, Islam or another belief system— is eligible for representation. The clients, as well as the students in the clinic, come from a number of different religious and cultural backgrounds.
380,000 illegal immigrants are detained each year in the United States. Immigration Officials are weighing the options of transforming a prison-based detention system into one tiered according to the risk posed by individual detainees. They are exploring the use of converted hotels and nursing homes to make the system safer and more efficient.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/06/AR2009100601639_pf.html
Tags: detention centers, ICE, Obama Administration
[Avenging Angels]
The International Justice Mission is an evangelical Christian organization devoted to combating human rights abuses in the developing world. The organization’s President, Gary Haugen, suggests that the main problem disenfranchised people face is not hunger, homelessness or disease, but rather the failure of the criminal justice system to protect the poor from violence. The organization is best known for its controversial work of raiding brothels, providing evidence of trafficking to police. Unless of course, the police are involved with the abuse, which is often the case.
Tags: exploitation, human trafficking, International Justice Mission, sex trade
A South African white man was granted asylum in Canada after claiming persecution from black South Africans. He claims that due to his race, he is a target for robberies. He has been a victim of mugging seven times. A spokesperson for South Africa’s immigration ministry insists the claims were “aimed at tarnishing the good name of black and white South Africans and were racially motivated.”
Tags: Canada, racism, South Africa
Just after the UK Border Agency began a trial project of using migrants DNA to determine nationality, experts began criticizing the findings. They claim the project is scientifically flawed and makes assumptions about population structures. “Even if it did work, which I doubt, assigning a person to a population does not establish nationality–people move!” says one scientist.
Tags: country of origin, critics, DNA
