ECUADOR: Bishop Fasts for Reconciliation in Jungle Province

Catholic bishop emeritus Gonzalo López Marañón has been fasting since May 24 in a park in the Ecuadorian capital to call for peace and reconciliation in Sucumbíos, an Amazon province immersed in a conflict over the Vatican's decision to put the diocese in the hands of an ultra-conservative Catholic order.

Street Harassment, Not ‘Compliments’

Men say they are giving compliments, or even claim they are being poetic. But to many women, cheeky or lewd remarks from men on the street are a form of harassment which is offensive, insulting and even denigrating.

Asylum-Seekers Find Refuge in a Street Paper

The reasons why people become street paper vendors are many and diverse. Some are homeless; others suffer mental or physical health problems, struggle with addiction or face unemployment. And some people do it because the magazines offer them the refuge they so desperately need.

CULTURE-CUBA: The Coco Solo Social Club, Open to All

The family history of writer Manuel Martínez rises up in large, black letters on the walls and ceilings of his house in a low-income neighbourhood of the Cuban capital. Photos and objects from times past complete this different kind of a book, which you can start reading from any point.

SRI LANKA: Plan to Host 2018 Commonwealth Games Opposed

Sri Lanka plans to host the Commonwealth Games seven years from now and spend two billion dollars, in what politicians and economists slam as another extravagant adventure aimed at boosting President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

OP-ED: Religion, Out of Place?

Brazil is seen as a country of diverse and profound faith. But though religion is an important reference point in the lives of the population, the extent of religious diversity in this sprawling country is not nearly so pervasive as belief itself.

INDIA: Kashmir in Search of Lost Culture

While the conflict in Indian Kashmir and the destruction it has caused often makes the news, its impact on culture has hardly gotten any attention.

Queer Film Fest Breaks India’s Social Glass Ceiling

More than a decade ago, when India’s first lesbian-themed film - ‘Fire’ by Deepa Mehta - was released, it was booed and met with protest and vandalism, forcing many fear-stricken theatre owners to take the film off their screens.

AUSTRALIA: Indigenous Say It on Film

From the Australian bush to Alaska’s Arctic wilderness, indigenous peoples’ stories and perspectives take centre stage at the Message Sticks Film Festival, the only annual event of its kind in Australia.

IBSA: India Cheers for Brazil, South Africa

When it comes to sports, India has always cheered for Brazil in soccer. Now come another three cheers, this time for South Africa in cricket. The reason: a South African named Gary Kirsten who coached India to win the Cricket World Cup this year, for the first time in 28 years.

OP-ED: Iran’s Greatest Spiritual Leader

Iran's officially recognised "spiritual leader" today may be Ayatollah Khamenei, but for hundreds of years before the current establishment of mullahs and ayatollahs, Iranians of all creeds have looked to another spiritual leader: Jalal ad- Din Rumi.

Q&A: “We Live in a Complicated World in Transition”

Fresh from a midnight arrival from Intuit's headquarters in California's Silicon Valley, Jean-Christophe Bas has just participated in the launch of a campaign to promote global inclusion, under the auspices of the U.N. Alliance of Civilizations (AOC) and the U.N. Scientific, Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and in advance of the World Day for Cultural Diversity on May 21.

Q&A: Prompting Cubans to Think and Talk

"I talk to deal with problems. In Cuba, there is too much formal, repetitive discourse and not enough directed at people, with their anxieties and joys," said Manuel Calviño, the host and writer of a television programme that tries not to add to that deficit.

OP-ED: Do One Thing for Diversity and Inclusion

All cultures contribute to the enrichment of humankind. Human beings must respect one another in all their diversity of belief, culture and language. Differences within and between societies should be neither feared nor repressed but cherished as a precious asset of humanity. This is a core challenge of the 21st century.

MIDEAST: When Talks Fail, Try Belly Dance

"Hop-a-li, Hop-a-la!" On the stage of the Arab-Hebrew Theatre established in the ancient Arab port of the vibrant Jewish metropolis, a troupe of Israeli men and women interlaces, belly dancing to a frenetic Hafla tune.

China Ponders This Royal Business

The glamour of the UK royal wedding is slowly disappearing from China's photo spreads, but it seems to have opened the door to a debate on the allure of old Britain's soft power and what makes an aspiring China lacking of it.

MIDEAST: Music Runs Into Walls

In the West Bank, dissident voices questioning the Palestinian Authority's increasingly authoritarian rule have become rare. But a young musician in Ramallah refuses to hold his tongue.

Young Panamanians Develop Antibodies Against Violence

In Panama's largest cities, minors under 18 not under supervision of an adult must be off the streets after 9:00 p.m. The juvenile curfew law means some spend several days behind bars until someone shows up to pay the fine.

Stray Dog Issue Hounds Animal Welfare in India

Moves to enact a new law on animal welfare in India have upset public health advocates, who fear it will interfere with efforts to control rabies-carrying stray dogs.

NEPAL: Women Race to the Top: Mt. Everest

The temperature is 10 degrees below freezing and the wind is like a hurricane, threatening to sweep away the unwary from the treacherously slippery mountain slope that has been home to Suzanne Al Houby and 39 other iron-willed women for almost a fortnight.

Indigenous Craftswomen Take on Mexican Fashion World

Reina Pérez, an Otomi indigenous craftswoman in the central Mexican state of Querétaro, skilfully embroiders "grecas" or traditional design motifs in threads of many colours, on fabrics that will be used to make dresses, skirts and blouses.