Ensuring Respect For & Protection of Migrants

Despite a wide legal framework for the protection of migrants, and a wide range of international, regional and national organisations and institutions dedicated to safeguarding their rights, migrants continue to experience violence, abuse and exploitation, according to a panel discussion Wednesday.

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.

Argentine Rights Violators under “House Arrest” Stroll the Streets

In spite of repeated violations of house arrest by people convicted of crimes against humanity during Argentina’s dictatorship, some activists remain in favour of this lenient alternative to prison, but they want better oversight by the courts.

Virtually At Sea in the Pacific

The Pacific Islands have some of the lowest rates of Internet penetration in the world, yet tech-savvy urbanites are behind the emergence of a number of social media sites dedicated to generating public debate and demanding government accountability. However, without real action, online forums speaking truth to power are constrained in impacting political and social reforms in the region.

Obama Pushes Universal Preschool Coverage for U.S.

Following on a surprise announcement supporting a universal preschool guarantee during his annual State of the Union address earlier this week, President Barack Obama spent much of Thursday pushing a suite of new policy initiatives aimed at vastly increasing access to high-quality education and development programmes for a child’s first few years of life.

BRICS Summit Means Business

African nations and other emerging countries are expected to soon outperform the developed world, and South Africa wants to take advantage.

Climate Change Threatens Caribbean Coral Reefs

Scientists and researchers are working together in a new initiative to collect data that will help determine the effects of climate change on coral in the Caribbean Sea.

Human Trafficking a Major Challenge to the International Community

Human trafficking continues to pose a major challenge to the international community even though some positive trends are visible, according to the Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2012.

African Troops Arrive As Divisions Fracture Malian Army

Soldiers belonging to the African-led International Support Mission to Mali continue to stream into this West African nation, as several hundred troops have already been deployed to secure towns across the country.

Radio: a Powerful Force for Shaping a More Peaceful & Sustainable Future

U.N. officials have hailed the enduring and transformative power of radio, not only as a means of sharing information with millions of people worldwide but also as a tool for shaping a more peaceful and sustainable future.

In the Land of Gas, the Residents Have None

The 19,000 inhabitants of the municipality of Caraparí, the area supplying a third of Bolivia’s gas exports, do not have access to gas or petrol, six years after the nationalisation of the mega deposit and almost a quarter century after its discovery.

Deadly Car Blast Hits Turkey’s Syria Border

(Al Jazeera) - At least 10 people have been killed and 30 others wounded following a car-bomb explosion near the border between Turkey and Syria, Turkish television reported.

Is Uzbekistan’s Economy Going into a Tailspin?

(EurasiaNet) - Uzbekistan has introduced sweeping new banking and import regulations that appear designed to keep hard currency from leaving the country.

Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas Threaten Civilians

The use of explosive weapons in populated areas -- whether a bombing in Pakistan, shelling in Sudan, Syria or Gaza, or the firing of unguided rockets in Israel-- is a major cause of death, injury and destroyed livelihoods.

Fishers Fight Over Dwindling Catch

Boats were tying up at the jetty and there was a bustle of activity as vendors cried their wares, offering shellfish to potential buyers, while young people, sharp knives in hand, filleted sea bass and red snapper. Meanwhile, on the promenade, octogenarian musicians played old-style cumbias and boleros for restaurant patrons.

Fidel Castro Votes to ‘Update Cuban Socialist Model’

Among millions of people flocking to the polls in Cuba to vote in general elections was the unexpected figure of former president Fidel Castro, making a surprise public appearance in what was interpreted as a reaffirmation of his support for the government of his brother, President Raúl Castro.

Hydroelectric Project Threatens Chile’s Lake Neltume

“This is paradise and they want to destroy it. This has had an enormous psychological impact on us,” says Guido Melinao, leader of the Mapuche indigenous community of Valeriano Cayicul, referring to the Neltume hydroelectric power plant project planned by the Spanish-Italian consortium Endesa-Enel.

U.N. Sees Global Decline in Female Genital Mutilation

There has been a decline in the life-threatening practice of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C), according to the latest figures released by the United Nations.

Tsunami’ of Diseases Waiting to Hit

A tsunami is looming on the horizon and the world is unprepared for it. This one won’t be a massive wall of water but a tidal wave of disease – and experts say the international community needs to act fast to keep it from crashing.

U.S. Prison Population Seeing “Unprecedented Increase”

The research wing of the U.S. Congress is warning that three decades of “historically unprecedented” build-up in the number of prisoners incarcerated in the United States have led to a level of overcrowding that is now “taking a toll on the infrastructure” of the federal prison system.