Press Freedom

Battling Terrorism Shouldn’t Justify Torture, Spying or Hangings, Says U.N. Rights Chief

By Thalif Deen
The United Nations, which is the legal guardian of scores of human rights treaties banning torture, unlawful imprisonment, degrading treatment of prisoners of war and enforced disappearances, is troubled that an increasing number of countries are justifying violations of U.N. conventions on grounds of fighting terrorism in conflict zones.

Twiplomacy Gets Its Day in the Sun at U.N.

By Josh Butler
Formerly derided as the domain of time-wasting and self-obsession, social media has emerged as an unlikely shining light for international relations and social activism.

Glimmer of Hope for Assange

By Gustavo Capdevila
There is a window of hope, thanks to a U.N. human rights body, for a solution to the diplomatic asylum of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, holed up in the embassy of Ecuador in London for the past two and a half years.

OPINION: Looking Two Steps Ahead into Saudi Arabia’s Future

By Emile Nakhleh
Much has been written about King Abdullah’s legacy and what Saudi Arabia accomplished or failed to accomplish during his reign in terms of reform and human rights. Very little has been written about the role that Muhammad bin Nayef, the newly appointed deputy to the crown prince, could play in the new Saudi Arabia under King Salman.

OPINION: After the Terrorist Attacks in Paris

By Johan Galtung
What happened in Paris on Jan. 7 – known all over the world – is totally unacceptable and inexcusable.

U.N. Helpless as Saudi Flogging Flouts Torture Convention

By Thalif Deen
Flogging a dead horse, as the old idiom goes, is far removed from flogging a live Saudi blogger.

Press Looks at Future After “Charlie”

By A. D. McKenzie
In the wake of last week’s attack on French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo that left 12 people dead, a heated battle of opinion is being waged in France and several other countries on the issue of freedom of expression and the rights of both media and the public.

OPINION: Islamic Reformation, the Antidote to Terrorism

By Emile Nakhleh
The horrific terrorist attack on the French satirical publication Charlie Hebdo has once again raised the question about violence and Islam. Why is it, some ask, that so much terrorism has been committed in the name of Islam, and why do violent jihadists seek justification of their actions in their religion?

In Sri Lanka Cartoonists Aren’t Killed – They’re Disappeared

By Kanya D'Almeida
Scenes from the brutal shooting of 12 journalists with the French satirical weekly ‘Charlie Hebdo’ have monopolised headlines worldwide ever since two men opened fire in the magazine’s Paris office on Jan. 7.

OPINION: The Paris Killings – A Fatal Trap for Europe

By Roberto Savio
It is sad to see how a continent that was one cradle of civilisation is running blindly into a trap, the trap of a holy war with Islam – and that six Muslim terrorists were sufficient to bring that about.

Attack on French Magazine a “Black Day” for Press Freedom

By A. D. McKenzie
“They are cowards who react to satire by going for their Kalashnikovs.” That was how renowned French cartoonist Plantu described the killers of 10 media workers and two policemen in Paris Wednesday.

OPINION: Political Islam and U.S. Policy in 2015

By Emile Nakhleh
This year, Arab political Islam will be greatly influenced by U.S. regional policy, as it has been since the Obama administration came into office six years ago. Indeed, as the U.S. standing in the region rose with Obama’s presidency beginning in January 2009, so did the fortunes of Arab political Islam.

OPINION: We Have So Much to Learn From Cuba

By Robert F. Kennedy Jr
Earlier this month, President Barack Obama announced the restoration of diplomatic relations with Cuba after more than five decades of a misguided policy which my uncle, John F. Kennedy, and my father, Robert F. Kennedy, had been responsible for enforcing after the U.S. embargo against the country was first implemented in October 1960 by the Eisenhower administration.

Uzbekistan Gears Up to Vote for Rubberstamp Parliament

By Joanna Lillis
Uzbekistan's parliamentary elections on Dec. 21 will offer voters a choice, but no hope for change.

Leading Investigative Reporter Detained in Azerbaijan

By Justin Burke
Authorities in Azerbaijan took steps Dec. 5 to muzzle Khadija Ismayilova, an investigative journalist who is the country’s most vocal government critic. A Baku court granted a motion to hold Ismayilova in jail pending a criminal trial, while her Facebook page mysteriously went dark.

Mubarak Acquitted as Egypt’s Counterrevolution Thrives

By Emile Nakhleh
The acquittal of former Egyptian President Muhammad Hosni Mubarak is not a legal or political surprise. Yet it carries serious ramifications for Arab autocrats who are leading the counterrevolutionary charge, as well as the United States.

Kyrgyzstan Debates Russian-Style “Foreign Agents” Law

By David Trilling
Kyrgyzstan must protect itself from Arab Islamists and gay-loving Americans; so say supporters of a sweeping draft law that could shutter many non-governmental organisations and, like a Russian bill adopted in 2012, label foreign-funded activists as “foreign agents.”

Civil Society Freedoms Merit Role in Post-2015 Development Agenda

By Mandeep S.Tiwana
Nabeel Rajab, president of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, an advocacy NGO, is facing criminal charges for sending a tweet that said: “many Bahrain men who joined terrorism and ISIS have come from the security institutions and those institutions were the first ideological incubator”.

Azerbaijan’s Rights Activists on the Brink

By Vugar Gojayev
When Azerbaijan served as chair of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers, it scoffed at the spirit and purpose of the organisation and moved vigorously to squash all forms of free speech at home.

Fighting the Islamic State On the Air

By Karlos Zurutuza
There is daily news broadcasting at 9 in the evening and a live programme every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. For the time being, that is what Mosul´s only TV channel has to offer from its headquarters in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.

Pushing the Voice of Syrian Women For a New Future

By Shelly Kittleson
For most Syrian women, the war has been a disaster. For some, it has also been liberating.
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