Active Citizens

The UN Must be at the Forefront of the fight for Civic Rights

By Burkhard Gnärig
The United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 provides the foundation for citizens’ rights to participate in shaping their communities.

133 Organisations Nominate Syria’s White Helmets for Nobel Peace Prize

By Lyndal Rowlands
Syria’s White Helmets - the volunteers who rescue civilians from collapsed buildings - could be the “most popular” nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize ever, according to human rights group, the Syria Campaign.

Peruvians Say “No!” to Violence Against Women

By Aramis Castro
Peruvians took to the streets en masse to reject violence against women, in what was seen as a major new step in awareness-raising in the country that ranks third in the world in terms of domestic sexual violence.

The Counter Narrative to Terror and Violence is Already Among Us

By Azza Karam
The French philospher Voltaire once said that “if we believe in absurdities, we shall commit atrocities.” Indiscriminate killing of self and innocent others, ostensibly in the name of some religion, is among the most absurd of beliefs. And rather than ceasing, the spiral of violence appears to know no end. There appears to be no locus, and no focus, beyond random killing.

Native Plants Boost Local Diets in El Salvador

By Edgardo Ayala
Juana Morales is cooking one of the most popular dishes in El Salvador: pupusas, corn tortillas with different fillings. But hers are unique: they are not made with the traditional corn tortillas, but use Maya nuts, a highly nutritional seed that has fallen out of use but whose consumption is being encouraged in rural communities.

Pan African Parliament Endorses Ban on FGM

By Desmond Latham
After years of wrangling and debates among African leaders, the movement to end female genital mutilation (FGM) is gaining real momentum, with a new action plan signed this week by Pan African Parliament (PAP) representatives and the U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA) to end FGM as well as underage marriage.

“Non-lethal” Pellet Guns Maim Hundreds in Kashmiri Protests

By Umar Shah
Hospitals in Kashmir’s summer capital are packed to capacity these days, their wards overflowing with pellet gun victims injured during violent clashes with government forces.

Right to Education Still Elusive for Native People in Latin America

By Orlando Milesi
Education, the most powerful instrument in the struggle against exclusion and discrimination, is still elusive for indigenous people in Latin America who remain the most disadvantaged segment of the population despite their wide presence in the region.

The Next UN Secretary General Should Be a Woman – and Must Be a Feminist

By Winnie Byanyima
The process for arguably the top political job on the planet is well underway.  And the time is right for a woman and a feminist to take the helm.

UN Spotlight for Dark Shadow over Civil Society Rights

By Tor Hodenfield
With more and more governments narrowing space for dissent and activism, the UN has emerged as a key platform to air concerns about acute rights violations and develop protections for civil society and other vulnerable groups.

Small Win for NGOs as UN Members Try to Exclude Critical Voices

By Aruna Dutt
An UN Committee responsible for giving non-government organisations (NGOs) UN accreditation has had one of its decisions overturned by other UN member states as it seems to be restricting NGOs which are perceived to be critical of governments.

No Medals for Sanitation at Rio Olympics

By Mario Osava
The biggest frustration at the Olympic Games, to be inaugurated in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro on August 5, is the failure to meet environmental sanitation targets and promises in the city’s beaches, rivers, lakes and lagoons.

El Salvador Faces Dilemma over the Prosecution of War Criminals

By Edgardo Ayala
The ruling of the highest court to repeal the amnesty law places El Salvador in the dilemma of deciding whether the country should prosecute those who committed serious violations to human rights during the civil war.

What can Development Banks do to Protect Human Rights?

By Phillip Kaeding
In a petition signed by 150 NGOs, the Coalition for Human Rights in Development have called for development banks to make sure that human rights are respected by their beneficiaries.

Teachers and Students: Tip of Iceberg of Mexico’s Human Rights Crisis

By Inés M. Pousadela
Mexico is experiencing a monumental human rights crisis. There is abundant evidence of widespread human rights violations in the country, including torture, extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and violence against journalists and human rights defenders.

Civil Society Organizations Worried About Declining Involvement

By Phillip Kaeding
Less than a year after the adoption of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), non-government organizations (NGOs) are concerned about declining possibilities for participation, both at the UN and in national politics.

Girls in Rural Bangladesh Take Back Their Futures

By Naimul Haq
Four years ago, Farzana Aktar Ruma, now 18, was almost married off without her consent.

Talking Openly – The Way to Prevent Teenage Pregnancy

By Fabiana Frayssinet
In plain and simple language, an Argentine video aimed at teenagers explains how to get sexual pleasure while being careful. Its freedom from taboos is very necessary in Latin American countries where one in five girls becomes a mother by the time she is 19 years old.

Crisis of the Left

By Umair Javed
Over the last few years, quite a few countries have witnessed the rise of social movements against inequality, xenophobia, and fiscal austerity. The most notable of these are the Occupy movement and Bernie Sanders’ campaign in the US, Syriza and Podemos in continental Europe, and the rise of Jeremy Corbyn and the Momentum campaign in Britain’s Labour party.

Post-War Truth and Justice Still Elusive in Bougainville

By Catherine Wilson
Almost every family in the islands of Bougainville, an autonomous region of about 300,000 people in the Pacific Island state of Papua New Guinea, has a story to tell of death and suffering during the decade long civil war (1989-1998), known as ‘the Crisis.’

Why I Started SMART ALEC – Lobbying for the Public Good

By Matthew Charles Cardinale
For many years, as a reporter, including for IPS, I wrote about the dominance of a giant, corporate-funded lobbying organization called ALEC (the American Legislative Exchange Council), on public policy in the United States.
« Previous Page — Next Page »
*#*