POLITICS-IRAN: Campus Cartoons Trigger Wave of Suppression

A new wave of suppression, following the publication of a cartoon of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei in several campus newspapers run by students of the prestigious Amirkabir University of Technology (AUT) ten days ago, has landed several student editors in jail.

CUBA: Children Use Art to Learn About Hunger

A Cuban child is drawing a train, heavily loaded with emergency food supplies that are about to be airlifted and dropped into areas where hunger is just a normal part of life. The drawing will be entered in an annual international competition called "WFP in Action," organised by the World Food Programme.

CANADA: Weakened Quebec Separatist Party in Shake-Up

Separatist Parti Québécois leader André Boisclair resigned suddenly this week after months of severe criticism from separatists disappointed by the last election results.

RELIGION-BRAZIL: Not Much of a Stir over Pope’s Visit

Pope Benedict XVI's five-day visit to Brazil, which begins Wednesday, has not raised much of a stir, except for among the devout faithful and those who are closely involved with the Catholic Church.

POPULATION-CHINA: Paying Up for Extra ‘Little Emperors’

The grey walls of Chinese houses in even the tiniest villages in this billion-plus country invariably display slogans extolling the wisdom of "fewer births, better quality of the nation". But a new counter-wisdom is on the rise in urban China, challenging the government's decades-old efforts to control the country's population growth.

RELIGION-BRAZIL: Growth of Evangelical Churches Fueled by ‘Personal Touch’

The Assembly of God Family Church is crowded with worshippers. In the dying gloom of the surrounding "favela" (shantytown), this church is a "bright and saving light," says a devotee who is asking that her spirit be freed from the daily problems that plague her.

RELIGION: Serbian Church Advances into Public Space

After decades in the shadows of communist rule, the Serbian Orthodox Church is fighting for a bigger presence in public life.

LEBANON: Resistance Being Rebuilt Too

As reconstruction resumes in the heavily bombed southern Beirut district Dahiyeh, the signs are evident of a rebuilding of resistance against Israel and the U.S.-backed government, largely by way of increased support for Hezbollah.

IRAN: Sanctions Aggravate Rights Situation

As economic sanctions are applied to this country for its nuclear activities, hardliners in the government are getting strengthened and successfully demanding even harsher curbs on individual liberties.

MEDIA-MEXICO: Broadcasting Law to Face Supreme Court Challenge

A year ago, the Mexican government and political parties caved in to pressure from powerful media consortia Televisa and TV Azteca, and passed a law that favoured the two broadcasting giants, to the detriment of aims to democratise the media.

VENEZUELA: The Gift of Native Tongues, On the Air

Eiker García and Nelson Maldonado took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly, producing a long "mmm" sound, following the instructions of the professional radio presenter who was giving them breathing and elocution lessons.

PRESS FREEDOM: On Parole in Portuguese-Speaking Countries

Only a small proportion of the 235 million people who live in the eight Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) countries scattered over four continents enjoy access to a truly free press.

RELIGION-BRAZIL: Pope to Come Looking for Lost Sheep

On his upcoming visit to Brazil, Pope Benedict XVI will find that the Roman Catholic Church, which used to be absolutely predominant in this country, has been losing members rapidly since the 1980s to the growing evangelical Pentecostal groups. And even more former Catholics now profess no religion at all.

PRESS FREEDOM DAY: Sri Lanka Out of the Reckoning

"Press and freedom? In Sri Lanka?" was the incredulous response of one journalist when asked what he thought of celebrating World Press Freedom Day, May 3. "Keep my name out of this," was all he would further venture to say.

TURKEY: Damocles’ Sword Now Hanging Lower

The Chinese have a saying, ‘May you live in interesting times'. It's a curse. Turkey has been living in "interesting times" for the past two weeks. And it may be a while before the country reverts to uninteresting ones.

JAPAN: Making Overtures in Central Asia

Japan was slow to realise the strategic importance of Central Asia. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, it took Tokyo three years to open embassies in the region. Several more years passed before prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto inaugurated a new "Silk Road" diplomacy.

PRESS FREEDOM DAY-PAKISTAN: Caught Between Taliban and Gov’t

Both the federal government and pro-Taliban groups threaten press freedom in Pakistan's largely rural Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA), along the porous border with Afghanistan.

LABOUR-IRAN: May Day Rally Reveals Deep Discontent

Deep discontent with unemployment, low wages, shortcomings in labour laws and suppression of workers' unions were all too visible at the well-attended May Day rally at Tehran's Shiroudi Stadium.

Q&A: “You Have to Work Nine to Ten Times Harder Than a Male Farmer”

As activists focus on the challenges facing workers this May Day (May 1), Martha Moside is calling for attention to be paid to the situation of female subsistence farmers in South Africa.

AFGHANISTAN: Coalition Killings Spark Furious Street Protests

Angry protests have erupted in two Afghan provinces against killings of civilians in military operations by coalition troops on Taliban targets.

CUBA: Twenty Years with God and the Revolution

Close to one of the busiest crossroads in the Cuban capital, but peaceful nonetheless, the non-governmental Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Centre (CMLK) has been active in Cuban society for two decades, working for a more participative social system.