Religion

Conflict Kills Culture in Kashmir

By Athar Parvaiz
Nestled in a valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range, Kashmir is an idyllic and culturally rich region, a cradle of Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist religious relics and architectural sites.

Q&A: A Missionary Who Preaches Gender Equality

By Ivet González
Midiam Lobaina describes herself as a “Christian militant” who takes a feminist reading of the Bible to workshops and religious services around Cuba, to discuss gender equality and a culture of peace.

Pressure Builds for U.S. Response to Egypt Power Grab

By Carey L. Biron
The U.S. government is suggesting that pending aid worth billions of dollars for Egypt may be withheld unless President Mohamed Morsi dials back on recent moves, announced Thursday, that would consolidate his power and put his legislative decisions above judicial review.

Egypt’s Morsi to Meet Judges over New Powers

By AJ Correspondents
Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi is set to meet senior judges on Monday to try to ease a crisis over his new powers which has set off protests reminiscent of the revolution last year that brought him to power.

Briefly President, Now Pharaoh

By Cam McGrath
When Mohamed Mursi was sworn in as president in June there were concerns that the first democratically elected president in Egyptian history would be subservient to the military council that had ruled the country since dictator Hosni Mubarak was toppled in early 2011.
Half of the Brazilian population is black or mixed-race. Graffiti on a wall at the Bom Jardim Cultural Centre in Fortaleza. Credit: Mario Osava/IPSBrazil

Keeping African Roots Alive in Brazil

By Fabiana Frayssinet
A Nigerian diviner dances and sings next to a Brazilian priest of the Candomblé religion, brought to this South American country by African slaves, that is now being rescued from oblivion in school texts on national history and culture.

Radical Clerics Seek to Legalise Child Brides

By Cam McGrath
An ultraconservative Salafi cleric recently sparked outrage among Egypt’s liberal circles when he attempted to justify his opposition to a proposed constitutional article that would outlaw the trafficking of women for sex.

Kazakhstan Restricts Faith in the Name of Tackling Extremism

By Joanna Lillis
Religious life in Kazakhstan features a glaring dichotomy these days. Officials in Astana tout the country as a bastion of toleration, yet they are making it harder for those practicing what are deemed non-traditional faiths to worship openly.

Breast Cancer Screening Comes to Palestinians

By Jillian Kestler-D'Amours
Fatmeh Abu Hrar Tabeel has had her first ever breast cancer screening. “It feels good to know, of course. Thanks to god, I am well,” the 51-year-old mother of seven told IPS. “Now I can examine myself once a month from home; the doctor showed me how.”

Home Is Not for Visiting

By Pierre Klochendler
It came like a bolt from the blue on this serene city perched in the hills of Galilee. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared on Israel’s Channel Two television earlier this month, “I want to see Safed! It’s my right to see it, but not to live there.”

Christian Right’s Influence Shaken by U.S. Election

By Sarah McHaney
For decades, right-leaning white Christian evangelicals, currently at least 25 percent of the U.S. electorate, have been a significant and influential voting demographic.

Parents Worry After Malala Attack

By Ashfaq Yusufzai
Young schoolgirls seemed undeterred by the attempt to kill Malala Yousafzai, but parents in northern Pakistan are becoming increasingly concerned over their children going to school.

Military Curfew Slowly Strangling Nigerian Town

By Ahmed Usman
A recent military curfew imposed on the violence-wracked north-eastern Nigerian town of Potiskum has not only made life unbearable for residents, but it has also reduced their chances of survival.

‘Getting Worse for Minorities in Pakistan’

By Isolda Agazzi
Since the restoration of democracy in 2008, Pakistan has undertaken steps to uphold human rights, but the situation of minorities has only worsened, according to a group of NGOs. Dalits are in the worst state, facing both religious and social discrimination, they say.

Algeria Skips the Revolutionary Spring

By Giuliana Sgrena
As the Arab Spring continues to rage across the Middle East and North Africa, the gaze of the international media has largely passed over a country that was once known for its restive population, its long and bloody decolonisation struggle and revolutionary zeal.

Myanmar Accused of Dragging Feet on Rakhine Violence

By Carey L. Biron
With a new surge in sectarian violence in western Myanmar estimated to have killed more than a hundred people in recent days, top officials in the United Nations are criticising the Myanmar government for dragging its feet on addressing the “root cause” of a conflict that could disrupt the delicate reforms process underway in the country.

Q&A: ‘Baloch Groups to Unite Against Pakistan’

By Karlos Zurutuza
Fighters in the Balochistan province of Pakistan will soon set up a common front to take on the Pakistani military in their fight for Baloch independence, a senior commander of the Balochistan Liberation Front tells IPS in an interview.

Rights Report on Iran Highlights Executions, Political Prisoners

By Omid Memarian
More than a year into his mandate, Ahmed Shaheed, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, told the Third Committee of the U.N. General Assembly this week that the rights situation in Iran remains critical, especially as it pertains to human rights defenders, journalists, and religious and ethnic minorities.

Egypt Revolution Makes It Worse for Women

By Cam McGrath
During the uprising that toppled Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak women stood shoulder to shoulder with men in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, pressing the revolution’s demands for freedom, justice and dignity. But those who hoped the revolution would make them equal partners in Egypt’s future claim they may be worse off now than under Mubarak’s authoritarian rule.

Cattle Smugglers Thwart Pious Muslims

By Ashfaq Yusufzai
Muslims around the world will soon celebrate Eidul Azha, otherwise known as the ‘feast of the sacrifice’, the second most important festival day on the Islamic calendar.

U.S. Muslims Could Be Critical Voting Bloc

By Jim Lobe
With Barack Obama and Mitt Romney virtually tied with Election Day less than two weeks away, Muslim voters could play an unexpected critical role in deciding the outcome Nov. 6.
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