Timbuktu Reclaims Its Treasures

Despite uncertainty and the ongoing conflict, Mali will work to rebuild and safeguard its cultural heritage, says the West African country’s minister of culture Bruno Maïga.

UN Looks, Sri Lanka Ducks

It has now become an annual affair. When the Geneva based UN Human Rights Council readies itself for the first of its annual regular sessions in February, the government in Sri Lanka gets ready to ward off yet another attempt to scrutinise its rights record.

‘Justice is Blind – But Not in the Case of Gender Violence’

On Tuesday, Feb. 19, famous South African paralympian Oscar Pistorius was charged with premeditated murder, with prosecutors arguing the athlete had "put on his prosthetic legs, walked seven metres and fired four shots through a locked bathroom door,” killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day.

Saudi Arabia Seen Unlikely to Seek Nukes If Iran Gets One

Challenging what has become conventional wisdom here, a new report released here Tuesday by an influential think tank argues that Iran’s neighbours - Saudi Arabia in particular - are unlikely to pursue nuclear weapons if Iran obtains one.

No-till Farming Holds the Key to Food Security

No-till farming is a response to climate change that fits well with the needs of the Caribbean: it increases the ability to capture water, while withstanding both drought and excessive rains, says expert Theodor Friedrich, representative of the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Cuba.

U.S. Urged to Delink Foreign Military, State-building Actions

Development workers and aid strategists are urging the U.S. government to adopt a comprehensive strategy for addressing root problems in “fragile states”, warning that an outdated focus on military intervention is draining resources and exacerbating security problems.

Mexico Mired in Oil Debates

Oil, the symbol of modern Mexico, is once again stirring up local political waters, with turbulent debates on the fate of the state-owned oil monopoly and conflicts over the privatisation of key economic and strategic areas.

OP-ED: Making Cities Safe for Women and Girls

There is no city or country in the world where women and girls live free of the fear of violence. No leader can claim: This is not happening in my backyard.

“Censorship by Murder Will Not Silence Truth”

It was almost four o’clock in the morning on Feb. 18, 1990, when Dr. Manorani Saravanamuththu pulled into the driveway of No. 42 Castle Street, an old Portuguese-style home located in a suburb of Sri Lanka’s capital, Colombo.

World’s Nuclear Environment Remains Politically Toxic

The world's nuclear environment has increasingly turned politically toxic, replete with threats, accusations and open defiance of Security Council resolutions.

Kenyan Media Magnifies Hate Speech – Again

With Kenyans set to go to the polls in just over two weeks, on Mar. 4, civil society has been closely monitoring the media’s coverage of the political campaigns in this East African nation – and they have found them wanting.

Taliban Running Out of Suicide Bombers

Taliban militants have been losing grip over the handling of their would-be suicide bombers. Of late they failed to carry out their missions as planned.

Q&A: “Neoliberalism Negates Human Rights”

Thousands of people marched through the streets of cities across Portugal "against exploitation and impoverishment" caused by the government's austerity cuts, in a protest organised by the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP), the country's largest trade union.

Correa Calls for Irreversible “Citizens’ Revolution”

Ecuador's President Rafael Correa secured yesterday his third term in office by a landslide, after vowing to radically deepen his project of citizens' revolution by making the changes achieved thus far "irreversible", fully achieving the goals of eradicating poverty, transforming the model of production and consolidating the "rule of the people”.

The Struggle to Keep Swaziland’s Primary Schools Free

As the Swazi government struggles to guarantee a no-cost nationwide primary school system, it finds itself sparring against school principals over the question if it is a lack of funds or an abundance of corruption that is standing in the way of its success. 

Erratic Weather Looms Above while Injustice Boils Below

The “Spirit of America” is one of 10 ferries that carry passengers from Manhattan to Staten Island. Its keel – which lies on the bottom of the boat and carves through the waters of New York Harbour– was built with steel from the collapsed Twin Towers.  

Organ Trafficking Plagues Global Community

With a rise in diseases worldwide that affect the liver, kidney, heart and pancreas, organ trafficking remains a challenge for the international community—a subject that Global Bioethics Initiative (GBI), a non-profit organization, has examined in great detail.

Struggle to Keep Swaziland’s Primary Schools Free

As the Swazi government struggles to guarantee a no-cost nationwide primary school system, it finds itself sparring against school principals over the question if it is a lack of funds or an abundance of corruption that is standing in the way of its success.

India Tightening Child Labour Laws

After one of the six males under trial for the rape and subsequent death of a 23-year-old woman was deemed an adolescent and therefore entitled to leniency, juvenile rights activists have found themselves pitted against irate members of the public demanding death sentences for all the perpetrators.

Switzerland Checks Mercenaries, Partially

The Swiss government has presented a draft law regulating the private military industry but critics argue the law is toothless.

Gangnam Style Finds a Tragic Touch in Gaza

“We wanted to do something to bring focus to the plight of Palestinian political prisoners, of which there are around 5,000 in Israeli jails, including hunger strikers, children, women,” says Mohannad Barakat, 30, one of seven Palestinians who have made a Palestinian version of the Gangnam style.