Kenyan money lending apps invade borrowers’ privacy to recover debts - Cecilia Maundu (Global Voices, 2024)
A report by the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law (CIPIT) at Strathmore University revealed that most lending apps collect far more data than necessary.
Kenya

Brazil Bans X from Using Children to Power Its AI - Han, Hye Jung (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
This week, Brazil’s National Data Protection Authority banned the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, from using the personal data of its child users in Brazil to train its artificial intelligence (AI).
Brazil
Keywords: Technology

End Prosecutions Targeting Kurdish Language Activities in Türkiye - Hugh Williamson (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
Rıfat Roni has spent more than a decade as an official court interpreter facilitating communication for Kurdish speakers in legal proceedings. This week, he found himself in the dock facing charges.
Türkiye

Archiving as resistance to genocide denial in Gaza - Kousta, Eleftheria (Waging Nonviolence, 2024)
Law for Palestine members discuss their database of genocidal statements by leading Israeli figures and how it can help defend human rights.
Palestine (Permanent Observer to the United Nations)

Women in public positions in North Macedonia are easy targets of hate speech - Metamorphosis Foundation (Global Voices, 2024)
Despite visible progress in the fight for women’s rights, increased representation in politics and greater attention to issues affecting women, the tendency to express contempt and insult them persists.
North Macedonia

Rights investigators call for protection of evidence, including mass grave sites - Vibhu Mishra (UN News, 2024)
In a landmark mission to Syria, the UN probe into the most serious rights violations committed in the country since 2011 has called on caretaker authorities to take immediate measures to protect mass grave sites and preserve critical evidence.
Syrian Arab Republic

Special Rapporteur on Torture documents Syrian violations for ICJ case - OHCHR (OHCHR, 2024)
There is a danger that important evidence of torture and other crimes is being lost in Syria, as families of missing people desperately seek news of their loved ones, the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Alice Jill Edwards warned today.
Syrian Arab Republic

Can Syria's devastated cultural heritage be rebuilt? - Stuart Braun (dw.com, 2024)
As Syria's brutal almost 14-year civil war comes to an end, heritage experts are working to protect the remains of the country's battered cultural riches — and to reconstruct them.
Syrian Arab Republic

Security Council Debates Use of Artificial Intelligence in Conflicts, Hears Calls for UN Framework to Avoid Fragmented Governance - United Nations (UN Meetings Coverage and Press Releases, 2024)
Rapidly evolving artificial intelligence (AI) is outpacing human ability to govern it, even threatening human control over weapons systems, the United Nations chief warned during a Security Council briefing today, urging Member States to swiftly establish “international guard-rails” to ensure a safe, secure and inclusive AI future for all. “Artificial intelligence is not just reshaping our world — it is revolutionizing it,” underscored Secretary-General António Guterres. AI tools are identifying food insecurity and predicting displacements caused by extreme events and climate change, detecting and clearing landmines, and soon will be able to spot patterns of unrest before violence erupts.
Worldwide

Humanity’s fate can’t be left to algorithms, UN chief tells Security Council - Vibhu Mishra (UN News, 2024)
The UN Secretary-General on Thursday urged the Security Council to act decisively to establish international guardrails for artificial intelligence (AI), warning that delays could heighten risks to global peace and security.
Worldwide

In Azerbaijan, authorities are again targeting journalists, in a new wave of arrests - Arzu Geybullayeva (Global Voices, 2024)
The authorities in Baku insist none of the criticisms are true, instead accusing those critical of the regime of double standards, bias and meddling in the country's internal matters.
Azerbaijan

A pro-China rapper blows whistle on Beijing's influencer network in Taiwan - Oiwan Lam (Global Voices, 2024)
Chen Po-yuan, an insider of a pro-China influencer network in Taiwan, publicly revealed the operation of mainland Chinese state agencies within the self-ruled region.
China

Bulgaria trying to force out Syrian asylum seekers after fall of Assad - Tondo, Lorenzo; Kassam, Ashifa (The Guardian, 2024)
NGO finds Syrians subjected to interrogations and reportedly pressed into signing return documents
Syrian Arab Republic
Keywords: Bulgaria; Europe; European Union; Refugees; Syria; World news

Bulgaria trying to force out Syrian asylum seekers after fall of Assad - Tondo, Lorenzo; Kassam, Ashifa (The Guardian, 2024)
NGO finds Syrians subjected to interrogations and reportedly pressed into signing return documents
Bulgaria
Keywords: Bulgaria; Europe; European Union; Refugees; Syria; World news

Getting serious about AI rules: Lack of enforcement capacity puts EU at risk - Voss, Axel (Euractiv, 2024)
In half a year, common EU rules start to apply to the most advanced AI models, crucial to supporting downstream industry and protecting citizens against systemic risks. The AI Office in the European Commission, however, is massively understaffed for the task, counting so far only around 85 staffers – out of which only around 30 team members are specifically tasked with the implementation of the AI Act.
Europe

AI-based-technologies for trustworthy solutions against disinformation - AI4TRUST - Euractiv's Advocacy Lab (Euractiv, 2024)
The AI4TRUST project aims to combat misinformation and disinformation in the EU by creating a trust-based environment that integrates the automated monitoring of social and news media with advanced AI-based technologies to enhance the work of human fact-checkers.
Europe

Spain introduces bill to combat online fake news - France-Presse, Agence (The Guardian, 2024)
Minister calls bill demanding digital platforms publicly correct false information ‘good news for democracy’
Spain
Keywords: Digital media; Europe; Internet; Media; Pedro Sánchez; Social media; Spain; World news

Commission opens TikTok investigation over Romanian presidential elections disinformation - Hartmann, Théophane (Euractiv, 2024)
The Commission could eventually fine TikTok up to 6% of its global worldwide turnover for failure to comply.
Romania

Liberian Warlord-Politician’s Death and the Search for Justice - Michelle Reyes Milk (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
Liberia’s Prince Y. Johnson, who rose to prominence first as a warlord and then politician, was implicated in serious abuses during the country’s two civil wars between 1989 and 2003.
Liberia

General Assembly Adopts 47 Third Committee Resolutions, including Texts on Nazi Glorification, Children's Rights, Palestine Statehood - United Nations (UN Meetings Coverage and Press Releases, 2024)
The General Assembly adopted 47 draft resolutions and one decision recommended by its Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, covering a wide range of issues, from countering violence against children and combating the glorification of Nazism to protecting the rights of Indigenous Peoples and ensuring the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. The draft on combating the glorification of Nazism contained in report A/79/456 elicited debate, triggering a recorded vote before its adoption. By the text, the Assembly expressed concern about the glorification of the Nazi movement, neo-Nazism and former members of the Waffen SS organization, including by erecting monuments and memorials and holding public demonstrations in the name of the glorification of the Nazi past.
Worldwide

Authorities using spyware and Cellebrite forensic extraction tools to hack journalists and activists - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2024)
Serbian authorities are using spyware and Cellebrite forensic extraction tools to hack journalists and activists in a surveillance campaign.
Serbia

Serbia used Israeli firm’s tech to enable spy campaign, Amnesty says - Euractiv.com with Reuters (Euractiv, 2024)
According to Amnesty, Serbia received phone-cracking devices as part of a broader package of assistance designed to help Serbia meet the requirements for EU accession.
Serbia

Serbia used Israeli firm’s tech to enable spy campaign, Amnesty says - Euractiv.com with Reuters (Euractiv, 2024)
According to Amnesty, Serbia received phone-cracking devices as part of a broader package of assistance designed to help Serbia meet the requirements for EU accession.
Israel

The Fragile Balance: Leon Langdon on Free Speech and Combating Religious Hatred - Jacobsen, Scott Douglas (International Policy Digest, 2024)
Leon Langdon discusses Humanists International's advocacy at the UNHRC, focusing on protecting freedom of expression, combating blasphemy laws, and addressing challenges to religious tolerance and minority rights
Worldwide

Online safety or censorship? Malaysia’s parliament passes two contentious media bills - Mong Palatino (Global Voices, 2024)
“These measures risk transforming Malaysia’s digital spaces into stricter and highly regulated environments, stifling open discourse and innovation while entrenching state control over the internet.”
Malaysia

Digital governance in the era of hybrid warfare, with Estonia’s digital minister - Santana, Giada (Euractiv, 2024)
In this episode, host Giada Santana is joined by Estonia's Justice and Digital Affairs Minister Liisa Pakosta to discuss Estonia's digital transformation and the challenges of securing a fully digital state in an era of escalating cyber warfare.
Estonia

States should ask "Where is Sombath?" at upcoming review of human rights record - International Federation for Human Rights (International Federation for Human Rights, 2024)
On the 12-year anniversary of the unresolved enforced disappearance of Lao civil society leader Sombath Somphone, we, the undersigned civil society organizations and individuals worldwide, urge United Nations (UN) member states to express their concern over this continuing crime and to call for the prompt resolution of Sombath’s case at the upcoming review of the human rights record of Laos.
Laos

Heritage, Indigenous Doing, and Wellbeing: Voices of Country - Sheehan, Norm; Jones, David S; Creighton, Joss; Harrington, Sheldon (Routlledge, 2024)
Heritage, Indigenous Doing and Wellbeing presents an Aboriginal Australian relational understanding of the world that offers a counter-narrative to the Western notion of heritage and new insights into the potential for sustaining the complex systems that support all life. From an Indigenous Australian perspective, the Western concept of heritage is intentionally exclusionary and supports social, political, economic, and environmental injustice.
Australia
Keywords: 2023-12 December

Restore, destroy or leave to rot? Battle lines drawn over west Africa’s architectural heritage - Egbejule, Eromo (The Guardian, 2024)
Uncompleted or abandoned buildings are a regular feature of the landscape. Now calls for restorations are increasing
Africa
Keywords: Africa; Architecture; Art and design; Culture; Togo; World news

35,000 registered missing in 13 years of conflict as ICRC helps families seek answers - International Committee of the Red Cross (International Committee of the Red Cross, 2024)
In the past 13 years, the ICRC has registered 35,000 cases of people who have gone missing in Syria. This number reflects the requests of the families who approached the ICRC - we know that in reality the numbers are far greater.
Syrian Arab Republic

SOS-defenders platform: Expose arbitrary detention of human rights defenders worldwide - International Federation for Human Rights (International Federation for Human Rights, 2024)
A collective of local, regional and international human rights organisations unveils SOS-Defenders, an action platform that exposes the alarming scale of arbitrary detention of human rights defenders worldwide.
Worldwide

Assad’s Fall in Syria Renews Push for Justice on Crimes Committed by His Regime - Bigg, Matthew Mpoke (The New York Times, 2024)
It seems unlikely that deposed President Bashar al-Assad, who fled to Russia, will be forced to stand trial. That is not deterring activists who have worked for years to document his government’s crimes.
Syrian Arab Republic
Keywords: Assad; Bashar al-; General Assembly (UN); Human Rights and Human Rights Violations; International Court of Justice (UN); International Criminal Court; Syria; Syrian Network for Human Rights; Syrian Observatory for Human Rights

The 'Smuggler' of Syrian Torture Archives Reveals His True Identity - Camille Tawil (Asharq Al-Awsat, 2024)
For many years, the world only knew them by the aliases Caesar and Sami. Since 2014, these two names have been associated with documenting torture in Syrian prisons. The photos they smuggled out of Syria shook the world and prompted the United States to impose strict sanctions on the regime of former President Bashar al-Assad, under what became known as the “Caesar Act.” These horrific photos documenting torture inflicted on detainees in Syrian prisons were used in courts in Western countries to convict Syrian officers on charges of torture and human rights violations.
Syrian Arab Republic

CFP: Compelling Tensions in Library and Information Science, Library Trends special issue - Cheryl Oestreicher (Publishing in the Archives Profession, 2024)
The field of library and information science (LIS) has compelling tensions similar to those explored by Thomas Kuhn in the fields of science. Many of these tensions have been a part of the discipline and profession for a long time, and others have emerged in the digital age with the explosion of information and the ways to access, manipulate, and share that information.
Worldwide

Bringing Perpetrators of Gross Human Rights Violations to Task - Groundviews (Groundviews, 2024)
The International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP), an independent NGO working since 2013 to protect and promote justice and accountability in Sri Lanka, has submitted more than 60 sanctions and visa ban requests against public and security officials to date as well as a series of universal jurisdiction cases. These have been sent to the governments of the US, UK, Australia, Canada and the EU as well as the UN. The submissions cover gross violations of human rights and significant corruption in respect of the army, navy, air force, police and intelligence officials, Tamil paramilitaries as well as civil servants including judges and former ministers, a press release from the organization said.
Sri Lanka

New Laws Threaten Free Expression, Privacy - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
El Salvador’s recently approved cybersecurity and data protection laws contain sweeping provisions that threaten media freedom and privacy rights, Human Rights Watch said today.
El Salvador

The Measure of Time: Using Age Determination to Secure Identity and Civil Documentation - IOM (ReliefWeb, 2024)
Four workstations in a corner office at the Nazal health centre in Fallujah are ready to receive their first applicants. A red ribbon and mint green signs are the only markings for this newly established age determination committee, supported by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Iraq, and the Government of France. This committee will open doors to a new life for thousands of Iraqis in Fallujah, 65 km away from the capital, and offer critical services that were previously out of reach for families displaced by the conflict with Daesh.
Iraq

CIA Official Charged With Leaking Israeli Military Plans - Sharp, Alexandra (Foreign Policy, 2024)
Documents posted on Telegram detailed Israeli weapons, munition, and troop movements ahead of its counterattack against Iran.
United States of America

CIA Official Charged With Leaking Israeli Military Plans - Sharp, Alexandra (Foreign Policy, 2024)
Documents posted on Telegram detailed Israeli weapons, munition, and troop movements ahead of its counterattack against Iran.
Israel

Slovak ombudsman and opposition to challenge information bill in Constitutional Court - Silenská, Natália (Euractiv, 2024)
The bill could lead to arbitrary decisions and inconsistent treatment of requests for information.
Slovakia

The Bibi Files review – tapes and testimony expose paranoia and petulance of Netanyahu family - Bradshaw, Peter (The Guardian, 2024)
Alexis Bloom’s documentary, which shows the Israeli prime minister and his family under police interrogation over corruption charges, reveals their sense of entitlement
Israel
Keywords: Benjamin Netanyahu; Culture; Documentary films; Fatah; Film; Gaza; Hamas; Israel; Middle East and north Africa; Palestinian territories; World news

Ukraine’s death-defying art rescuers - Higgins, Charlotte; Alexandrou, Nicola; Bury, Ellie (The Guardian, 2024)
When Putin invaded, a historian in Kyiv saw that Ukraine’s cultural heritage was in danger. So he set out to save as much of it as he could.
Ukraine
Keywords: Museums; Russia; Sculpture; Ukraine

US should declassify what it knows about deadly Colombian Supreme Court attack - Lauren Harper (Freedom of the Press, 2024)
Declassification diplomacy is one of US government’s most distinctive foreign policy tools, and it should be deployed as often as possible
United States of America

US should declassify what it knows about deadly Colombian Supreme Court attack - Lauren Harper (Freedom of the Press, 2024)
Declassification diplomacy is one of US government’s most distinctive foreign policy tools, and it should be deployed as often as possible
Columbia

Privacy, Trust and Social Media - Paliszkiewicz, Joanna; Kuanchin, Chen; Gołuchowski, Jerzy (Routledge, 2024)
The book examines the main issues and challenges associated with privacy and trust on social media in a manner relevant to both practitioners and scholars.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-12 December; Privacy

Key US agency that fights foreign influence in jeopardy after funding snub - Gedeon, Joseph (The Guardian, 2024)
Global Engagement Center targeted by Republicans skeptical of alleged censoring of conservative viewpoints
United States of America
Keywords: Republicans; US Congress; US foreign policy; US news; US politics

Repeal Harmful Internet Laws - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
The Vietnamese government should repeal a draconian new decree tightening control of internet use and the 2018 Law on Cybersecurity.
Vietnam

Syria’s prison records vital for war crimes evidence - Mahmut Geldi (Anadolu Agency, 2024)
Fadl Abdulghani, head of the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), emphasized the importance of preserving prison and detention center archives in Syria to uncover the fate of detainees and identify those responsible for torture and other war crimes.
Syria

Nicaragua tortured at least 229 political prisoners, rights group says - Reuters (Reuters, 2024)
At least 229 people detained in Nicaragua for political reasons have suffered various forms of torture and other "crimes against humanity" at the hands of the government over the past seven years, a human rights NGO said.
Nicaragua

Trump first-term inquiry into leakers led to invasive searches, report finds - Tait, Robert (The Guardian, 2024)
Justice department says lawyers overreached in aiming to discover who was leaking classified information in 2017
United States of America
Keywords: Donald Trump; House of Representatives; Law (US); US news; US politics

UN war crimes tribunals continue to address legacy cases, support national efforts - Vibhu Mishra (UN News, 2024)
The mechanism to complete the work of UN war crimes tribunals continues to make progress in delivering justice for the most serious crimes in Rwanda and the States of the former Yugoslavia, top officials told the Security Council on Tuesday.
Worldwide

Records Seized by Israel Show Hamas Presence in U.N. Schools - Becker, Jo; Rasgon, Adam (The New York Times, 2024)
While Israel asserts that the United Nations has tried to minimize the problem, the global organization says Israeli officials are waging an unfair campaign to discredit it.
Palestine (Permanent Observer to the United Nations)
Keywords: Gaza Strip; Hamas; Israel; Lazzarini; Philippe (1964- ); Palestinians; Teachers and School Employees; United Nations Relief and Works Agency

Records Seized by Israel Show Hamas Presence in U.N. Schools - Becker, Jo; Rasgon, Adam (The New York Times, 2024)
While Israel asserts that the United Nations has tried to minimize the problem, the global organization says Israeli officials are waging an unfair campaign to discredit it.
Israel
Keywords: Gaza Strip; Hamas; Israel; Lazzarini; Philippe (1964- ); Palestinians; Teachers and School Employees; United Nations Relief and Works Agency

Police unlawfully storing images of innocent people for facial recognition - Ungoed-Thomas, Jon (The Observer, 2024)
Privacy fears raised as report warns photographs of arrested people who are then released are being retained.
United Kingdom
Keywords: Facial recognition; Police; Privacy; UK news

National Archives digitize cold cases of Black American murders - Russell Contreras (Axios, 2024)
An Axios review of a new National Archives portal found just three digitized unsolved cases of lynchings, racial violence and murders of Black Americans, spawning several decades. The Civil Rights Cold Case Records Collection portal is the federal agency's latest attempt to index civil rights violations and provide a subject guide, part of an aim spelled out by law to bring justice to the victims in those cases.
United States of America

AI in War and Propaganda: Anna Mysyshyn on Disinformation, Democracy, and Digital Governance - Jacobsen, Scott Douglas (International Policy Digest, 2024)
Anna Mysyshyn explores the transformative role of AI in modern warfare and propaganda, highlighting its threats to democracy and strategies for resilience.
Worldwide

Colombia Asks U.S. to Declassify Records on 1985 Palace of Justice Case - Michael Evans (National Security Archive, 2024)
Washington, D.C., December 6, 2024 - Yesterday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced that he has asked the United States to expedite the declassification of archival records on the 1985 Palace of Justice case. The request is an important step forward for human rights advocates seeking to clarify the motivations and actions of the M-19 insurgents who stormed the building on November 6, 1985, and the Colombian government’s responsibility for those who died in the fire that tore through the seat of Colombia’s judicial branch and for the disappearances that occurred in the aftermath.
Columbia

Colombia Asks U.S. to Declassify Records on 1985 Palace of Justice Case - Michael Evans (National Security Archive, 2024)
Washington, D.C., December 6, 2024 - Yesterday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced that he has asked the United States to expedite the declassification of archival records on the 1985 Palace of Justice case. The request is an important step forward for human rights advocates seeking to clarify the motivations and actions of the M-19 insurgents who stormed the building on November 6, 1985, and the Colombian government’s responsibility for those who died in the fire that tore through the seat of Colombia’s judicial branch and for the disappearances that occurred in the aftermath.
United States of America

Hungary spied on EU officials, Belgian media reports - Wallace, Nicholas (Euractiv, 2024)
A joint report alleges that Hungarian intelligence searched EU officials' hotel rooms, and stole data from laptops.
Europe

A massive database of evidence, compiled by a historian, documents Israel's war crimes in Gaza - Hasson, Nir (Haaretz, 2024)
The report Dr. Mordechai has compiled online – "Bearing Witness to the Israel-Gaza War" – constitutes the most methodical and detailed documentation in Hebrew (there is also an English translation) of the war crimes that Israel is perpetrating in Gaza. It is a shocking indictment comprised of thousands of entries relating to the war, to the actions of the government, the media, the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli society in general. The English translation of the seventh, and to date latest version of the text, is 124 pages long and contains over 1,400 footnotes referencing thousands of sources, including eyewitness reports, video footage, investigatory materials, articles and photographs.
Palestine (Permanent Observer to the United Nations)
Keywords: Gaza; IDF; Israel war crimes; Israel-Gaza War; Palestinians

Ensure digital transformation supports access to information for people with disabilities - Article 19 (ARTICLE 19, 2024)
On the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, ARTICLE 19 underscores the right of people with disabilities to access information.
Tunisia

Documenting cases of violence against women and girls and recording the health sector response: How to strengthen health administrative data on intimate partner violence and sexual violence in the Region of the Americas. Information kit - Pan American Health Organization (Pan American Health Organization, 2024)
Violence against women and girls is a major public health challenges in the Region of the Americas. While preventing violence requires a multisectoral response, the health system has a critical role to play, including providing appropriate care and support to survivors of violence. One of the strengths of the health system response is its access to valuable data to monitor the response to violence, to sensitize others, and to advocate for change. Good health administrative data facilitate the adoption, adaptation, and improvement of the response to violence against women and girls. Generating comparable statistics on cases of violence and the quality of health care offered allows health professionals and those responsible for health management and policymaking to monitor key indicators and make decisions based on scientific evidence. This toolkit aims to support health workers, managers and policymakers in the collection and use of health administrative data on intimate partner and non-partner sexual violence. It includes information sheets that introduce and explain the importance of collecting health administrative data for cases of intimate partner violence and sexual violence and proposes a form for collecting these data and instructions for their correct use. It also stresses the importance of offering a health system response of good quality and based on human rights principles. The kit aligns with existing Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization recommendations and tools and provides practical guidance to health sector staff in the implementation of this guidance and the strengthening of health administrative data on violence against women and girls.
Americas

Nigeria: Amnesty International petitions ICC judges to end Prosecutor’s delaying of justice for atrocity crimes - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2024)
Amnesty International today submitted a legal filing to the Pre-Trial Judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on behalf of several victims’ networks, to request an end to the ICC Prosecutor’s indefinite and unfathomable delay to the start of the court’s investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Nigeria.
Nigeria

CFP: Critical Pedagogy Symposium: Decentering the West - Cheryl Oestreicher (Publishing in the Archives Profession, 2024)
This year’s Symposium is inspired by the pedagogies and practices of those thinking about colonialism, imperialism, transnationalism, epistemic injustice, and other frameworks for Decentering the West.
Worldwide

A North Korean Voice That Kim Jong-un Would Like to Silence - Sang-Hun, Choe (The New York Times, 2024)
Kim Seongmin, who fled to South Korea in the 1990s, broadcasts to his homeland twice a day, delivering the kind of information Pyongyang is trying hard to suppress.
North Korea
Keywords: Censorship; Content Type: Personal Profile; Defectors (Political); Free North Korea Radio; International Relations; Kim Jong-un; Kim Seongmin; North Korea; Politics and Government; Propaganda; Radio; South Korea

Hawaii Archives shed light on Pearl Harbor Memorial efforts - Kayli Pascal-Martinez (Island News, 2024)
As the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor is right around the corner, December 7, 1941, some documents at the Hawaii State Archives help to shed light on that part of Hawaii’s history and the state’s efforts to honor the war dead.
United States of America

Liberian ex-warlord Prince Johnson dies aged 72 - AFP (JusticeInfo.net, 2024)
Former Liberian warlord Prince Johnson, a key player in the country's back-to-back civil wars from 1989 to 2003, died Thursday aged 72, officials from his party and the Senate told AFP. Johnson, who was seen sipping beer in a video as fighters loyal to him tortured then president Samuel Doe to death in 1990, was […]
Liberia

The beginning of Norway’s reconciliation process - Andersen, Astrid Nonbo (JusticeInfo.net, 2024)
On November 12, the Norwegian Parliament apologized to the Sami, Kven, Norwegian Finns and Forrest Finns for its “Norwegianization politics” in the past. It also acted on the report and recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Three scholars explain what came out of this long-awaited reckoning.
Norway

Macron acknowledges 1944 ‘massacre’ of West African troops by French army - Associated Press (France24, 2024)
French President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged that the 1944 killing of West African soldiers in a Senegalese fishing village by French forces was a massacre for the first time. The soldiers had fought alongside the French during World War II, but were killed by their French counterparts in what historians believe was a dispute over unpaid wages.
Senegal

Macron acknowledges 1944 ‘massacre’ of West African troops by French army - Associated Press (France24, 2024)
French President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged that the 1944 killing of West African soldiers in a Senegalese fishing village by French forces was a massacre for the first time. The soldiers had fought alongside the French during World War II, but were killed by their French counterparts in what historians believe was a dispute over unpaid wages.
France

Australia passes world-first law banning under-16s from social media despite safety concerns - Sullivan, Helen (The Guardian, 2024)
Bill passes amid warning that process has been rushed and that a ban could push teenagers towards the dark web or into isolation
Australia
Keywords: Australia news; Social media; World news; Young people

Former ICC chief prosecutor says she faced threats and ‘thug-style tactics’ - Davies, Harry (The Guardian, 2024)
Fatou Bensouda says she and her family were subjected to ‘direct threats’ while working on the most sensitive cases
Keywords: Fatou Bensouda; International criminal court; Israel; Law; Middle East and north Africa; The Mossad; World news

Myanmar: ICC Prosecutor Requests Arrest Warrant - Human Rights Watch (2024)
The International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor’s request for an arrest warrant for Myanmar military commander-in-chief, Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, for alleged crimes against humanity is a major step towards justice for the country’s Rohingya population
Myanmar

Exhibition | Recent US Exhibitions Explore the Complexity of Puerto Rican Identity - Gonzalez, Damaly (ArtNews, 2024)
In a portrait from 1928, a Puerto Rican woman holds a devotional painting of the Virgin Mary and child. The work by Miguel Pou y Becerra is titled La promesa. The author mentions a feeling of the broken promise of salvation through Catholicism, forced upon Puerto Rico during Spain’s colonization of the island. At the Rollins Museum of Art in Orlando, Florida (on view through January 5)
United States of America

Exhibition | Recent US Exhibitions Explore the Complexity of Puerto Rican Identity - Gonzalez, Damaly (ArtNews, 2024)
Rollins Museum of Art in Orlando, Florida (on view through January 5)
United States of America

UK Supreme Court hears landmark legal challenge over how a ‘woman’ is defined in law - The Gleaner (2024)
LONDON (AP) — The United Kingdom Supreme Court on Tuesday began hearing a legal challenge focusing on the definition of “woman” in a long-running dispute between a women's right campaign group and the Scottish government. Five...
United Kingdom
Keywords: Scotland

The Colombia Banana Massacre of 1928: The Shocking Story - Dwyer, Cassandra (The Collector, 2024)
A simple workers’ strike led to the death of thousands as American fruit growers attempted to keep prices low with a looming Depression on the horizon.
Colombia

One woman killed every 10 minutes: The harrowing global reality of femicide - UN News (2024)
Worldwide

Revealed: Saudi Arabia accused of modifying official Cop29 negotiating text - Carrington, Damian (The Guardian, 2024)
Exclusive: News of changes to usually non-editable document ‘risks placing climate summit in jeopardy'
Saudi Arabia
Keywords: Azerbaijan; Climate aid; Climate crisis; Climate finance; Cop29; Environment; Middle East and north Africa; Saudi Arabia; World news

Preserving cultural heritage in times of war - Abram, Lisa (UVic News, 2024)
Responsible for creating the Conflict Aftermath Digital Archive Project (CADAP), Nathaniel Brunt is working with librarians and historians to ethically preserve and make accessible at-risk, conflict-related visual material.
Iraq

FARC leadership accused of war crimes over child soldiers - Liévano, Andrés Bermúdez (JusticeInfo.net, 2024)
In Colombia, six former FARC leaders have been charged with participating in the recruitment of child soldiers. Following the announcement by the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), they indicated that they accepted the charges against them.
Colombia

Accelerating humanitarian response: Inside MapAction’s Automated Data Pipeline - Evangelos Diakatos (Map Action, 2024)
In times of crisis, timely and accurate geospatial data is crucial for effective humanitarian response. This GIS Day 2024, we discuss a new project: an automated data pipeline to streamline the collection and preparation of essential geospatial datasets for emergencies. By replicating the data scramble process our GIS teams typically perform during emergencies, the MapAction Automated Data Pipeline aims to expedite the delivery of critical information to those who need it most.
Worldwide

Chief archivist apology to survivors of abuse in care - New Zealand Archives (New Zealand Archives, 2024)
The Chief Archivist Anahera Morehu sincerely apologises on behalf of Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga Archives New Zealand (previously the National Archives) for failing to effectively monitor Government recordkeeping
New Zealand

CFP: Item Not Found: Accounting for Loss in Libraries, Archives and Other Heritage and Memory Organizations - Cheryl Oestreicher (Publishing in the Archives Profession, 2024)
Call for Book Chapter Proposals for Item Not Found: Accounting for Loss in Libraries, Archives and Other Heritage and Memory Organizations
Worldwide

A Thousand Days of War in Ukraine | Human Rights Watch - Gorbunova, Yulia; Kvitka, Kseniya (2024)
November 19 marks 1,000 days since Russia’'s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. This grim milestone highlights the immense suffering the war has brought to Ukrainian civilians in particular as a result of the war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated by Russian forces.
Ukraine

Why Is Canada Protecting the Names of Suspected Nazis? - Noakes, Taylor (The Walrus, 2024)
The concept of a secret registry of names kept by the federal government feels at odds with our perception of Canada. But there is at least one such list—reportedly about 900 names long—that is one of the government’s most closely guarded secrets. It is a record of alleged or suspected war criminals and collaborators who were believed to have found refuge in Canada after the Second World War.
Canada

Mamadou Diouf: 'Imperial history can no longer be articulated exclusively by France' - Le Monde (2024)
The president of the commemoration committee for the Thiaroye massacre in Senegal believes that African countries must regain control of their historical narrative, and is calling on France to return all its archives.
Senegal
Keywords: France

Ottawa to compensate Inuit in Nunavik for mass sled dog slaughter | CBC News - Stefanovich, Olivia (CBC News, 2024)
The federal government says it will offer financial compensation to Inuit in Nunavik for the devastation caused by the mass slaughter of their sled dogs decades ago. More than 1,000 of the dogs that Inuit relied on for their livelihoods were shot to death by Mounties, employees of the Hudson's Bay Company and other authorities during the mid-1950s and late 1960s across Nunavik, the Inuit region of northern Quebec.
Canada

Mother-and-baby homes: Nursing homes used for 'secrecy', panel finds - Page, Chris (BBC News, 2024)
United Kingdom

Raising the roof: Building resilience through conserving historic homes in the Philippines | UN News - Pamintuan, Jorica (2024)
Philippines

Malcolm X's family sues US law enforcement agencies for $170 million over allowing assassination - RNZ News (RNZ, 2024)
The family of militant civil rights leader Malcolm X has filed a NZ$170 million lawsuit that accuses law enforcement agencies of allowing his murder to be carried out almost 60 years ago.
United States of America

Sierra Leone: Authorities must repeal colonial vagrancy laws following historic ECOWAS ruling - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2024)
The Sierra Leonean authorities must repeal vagrancy laws without delay, following a landmark ruling by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court that the colonial-era legislation discriminates against poor people and other marginalized groups, Amnesty International said. The ruling, made on 7 November, found that Sierra Leone’s vagrancy laws – which criminalize anyone […]
Sierra Leone

The Detached Papers: New records on the transatlantic slave trade on Discovery - The National Archives blog - Hellawell, Phillipa (Records and Research, 2024)
The National Archives has released over 8,000 new catalogue descriptions of documents related to the transatlantic slave trade.
United Kingdom

Norway apologises to Sami, Forest Finns and Kvens for forced assimilation policy | Norway | The Guardian - Bryant, Miranda (The Guardian, 2024)
The Norwegian parliament has apologised unreservedly to minority groups and Indigenous people for more than a century of historical injustices committed against them as part of its “Norwegianisation” policy.
Norway

Abuse in Care: Government prepares to formally apologise - RNZ News (RNZ News, 2024)
New Zealand's Prime Minister has apologized to the hundreds of thousands of people abused while in state care, and acknowledged the “unimaginable suffering” inflicted in children's homes and psychiatric hospitals.
New Zealand

The Dark History of Australia’s Blackbirding - Relli, Sarah (The Collector, 2024)
For more than 40 years, sugar barons practiced “blackbirding,” removing thousands of South Sea Islanders from their homes to work on sugar cane plantations.
Australia

When White Supremacists Staged the Only Successful Coup in U.S. History - Armstrong, Vanessa (Smithsonian, 2024)
On November 10, 1898, white supremacists in Wilmington, North Carolina, massacred upwards of 60 Black people and overthrew the city’s democratically elected government, instigating the only successful coup d’état in United States history. No one was brought to justice for the horrific violence, and over the next century, the event was largely ignored, whitewashed as a “race riot” if it was mentioned at all.
United States of Ameriuvca

How the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Continues to Impact Modern Life | Smithsonian Voices | Smithsonian Books Smithsonian Magazine - Sharpe, Christina (Smithsonian Books, 2024)
A new Smithsonian book reckons with the enduring legacies of slavery and capitalism
Worldwide

Justice Info publishes the report supposedly behind the genocide plot in Rwanda - Cruvellier, Thierry (JusticeInfo.net, 2024)
For the 1st time, Justice Info publishes the full report of the Commission which was presented by the Prosecutor of the Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) as the birth certificate of the genocidal project.
Rwanda

Macron 'acknowledges' France responsible for 1957 assassination of Algerian nationalist Larbi Ben M'hidi - Kessous, Mustapha (2024)
The young political-military leader of the National Liberation Front was hanged on the night of March 3, 1957, during the Battle of Algiers, by French soldiers who disguised the death of this 'national hero' as a suicide.
Algeria
Keywords: France

National Archives Aids in Tulsa Riot Mass Burial Identification - Lebonick, Cara Moore (National Archives, 2024)
By Cara Moore Lebonick | National Archives News ST. LOUIS, November 4, 2024 — On the 100-year anniversary of race riots erupting in the predominantly Black-populated and affluent Greenwood District in the city of Tulsa, OK, the city launched an investigation into unmarked graves in likely mass burial sites resulting from the riots. The laboratory assisting Tulsa, Intermountain Forensics, turned to the National Archives for records to help identify individuals from those graves.
United States of America

Group looks to determine scope of forced sterilization - Molesh, Omar (The Toronto Star, 2024)
Survivors Circle for Reproductive Justice hopes to of chronicle the history of First Nation, Inuit and Metis women and girls being forcefully sterilized and getting a better idea of how many people it affected.
Canada

Project reveals UK sites where black Americans fought to end slavery - Osuh, Chris (The Guardian, 2024)
Missing Pieces Project maps buildings in 189 locations where African American abolitionists spoke against slavery
United States of America
Keywords: Activism; Culture; England; Heritage; Race; Slavery; UK news; US news; World news

Project reveals UK sites where black Americans fought to end slavery - Osuh, Chris (The Guardian, 2024)
Missing Pieces Project maps buildings in 189 locations where African American abolitionists spoke against slavery
United Kingdom
Keywords: Activism; Culture; England; Heritage; Race; Slavery; UK news; US news; World news

For one survivor, the 1920 Election Day massacre in Florida was ‘the night the devil got loose’ - Podair, Gerald (The Conversation, 2024)
Mose Norman, a Black registered voter, was ready to cast his ballot for presidential candidate Warren G. Harding. But when he arrived at his polling place on Election Day, Nov. 2, 1920, in the orange grove town of Ocoee, Florida, near Orlando, Norman was turned away by white election officials because of supposed unpaid poll taxes. His name and the names of hundreds of other registered Black voters had been removed from the rolls by white poll workers.
United States of America

White House press office altered transcript of Biden ‘garbage remark’ call - Press, Associated (The Guardian, 2024)
Transcript released by the White House added an apostrophe to ‘supporters’ to change meaning after conferring with Biden, email shows
United States of America
Keywords: Biden administration; Donald Trump; Joe Biden; US elections 2024; US news; US politics

(Counter-)Archive: Memorial Practices of the Soviet Underground - Smola, Klavdia; Kukulin, Ilya; Bachmaier, Annelie (Springer Nature Switzerland, 2024)
Focuses on the archive as a form of art employed by various groups of the late Soviet underground, aiming to approach old archival materials related to the Soviet cultural underground on a meta-level of analysis to explore unofficial cultures, the history of state socialism, and topics of suppressed cultural memory
Russian Federation
Keywords: Archive; Memory; Slavic studies; Soviet history; art history; communism; counter-archives; cultural memory; self-archiving; suppressed memory; underground culture; unofficial culture

Reading the Archival Revolution - Vatulescu, Cristina (Stanford University Press, 2024)
The opening of classified documents from the Soviet era has been dubbed the "archival revolution" due to its unprecedented scale, drama, and impact. With a storyteller's sensibility, Cristina Vatulescu identifies and takes on the main challenges of reading in these archives.
Worldwide

Armenia: Surveillance Bill Threatens Right - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
The Armenian government’s bill for the mandatory installation of video surveillance systems with 24-hour police access throughout the capital, Yerevan, is unjustified and interferes with privacy and other rights.
Armenia

It’s Going to Take a Constant Fight to Preserve the Historical Record - Robinson, Nathan J. (Current Affairs, 2024)
The National Archives museum is backsliding into a sanitized mythological retelling of American history. Don’t assume the truth will prevail.
United States of America

Renowned photographer donates refusenik archives to South Texas Jewish Archives - The Jewish Herald-Voice (The Jewish Herald-Voice, 2024)
On Monday, Oct. 21, the Joan and Stanford Alexander South Texas Jewish Archives hosted a special lecture featuring renowned photographer and activist Janice Rubin. Entitled “Refuseniks Revealed: Stories of Struggle and Hope from the Soviet Union,” the talk shed light on Rubin’s daring 1986 mission to document the lives of Soviet Jews denied permission to emigrate – a group known as “refuseniks.”
United States of America

Renowned photographer donates refusenik archives to South Texas Jewish Archives - The Jewish Herald-Voice (The Jewish Herald-Voice, 2024)
On Monday, Oct. 21, the Joan and Stanford Alexander South Texas Jewish Archives hosted a special lecture featuring renowned photographer and activist Janice Rubin. Entitled “Refuseniks Revealed: Stories of Struggle and Hope from the Soviet Union,” the talk shed light on Rubin’s daring 1986 mission to document the lives of Soviet Jews denied permission to emigrate – a group known as “refuseniks.”
Russian Federation

Thailand: Silencing dissent and the fight for free expression - Article 19 (ARTICLE 19, 2024)
Silencing Dissent: Defamation Laws and the Fight for Free Expression in Thailand, underscores an urgent call for reform to protect freedom of expression and align the country’s legislation with international human rights standards.
Thailand

Türkiye: Workshops on freedom of expression standards and Council of Europe mechanisms - Article 19 (ARTICLE 19, 2024)
Two-day workshops on freedom of expression standards and Council of Europe applications on 12-13 November in Istanbul, Türkiye.
Türkiye

South Carolina’s Penn Center included in Unesco network to preserve enslaved people’s history - Hellmann, Melissa (The Guardian, 2024)
Center was one of the first US schools for formerly enslaved people, and now preserves Gullah Geechee culture
United States of America
Keywords: Black US culture; Culture; Race; Slavery; South Carolina; US news; Unesco; United Nations

EU: ARTICLE 19 contributes to Access Info’s report on access to documents - Article 19 (ARTICLE 19, 2024)
ARTICLE 19 contributed to a report aimed at EU institutions on improving the implementation of the public's right to access EU documents.
Europe

Biden apologizes for government's role in running Native American boarding schools - Pietrorazio, Gabriel (NPR, 2024)
Calling it "a blot on American history," president Biden formally apologized for the federal government's role in running boarding schools where thousands of Native American children endured abuse, neglect and eradication of their tribal identities.
United States of America

Concerns raised over access to UK Biobank data after ‘race scientists’ claims - Pegg, David; Devlin, Hannah; Burgis, Tom (The Guardian, 2024)
Expert says any suggestion of Human Diversity Foundation accessing sensitive data could affect public trust in science.
United Kingdom
Keywords: Data protection; Genetics; Medical research; Science; UK news

1960s civil rights protesters who staged historic sit-in finally have arrest records cleared - Press, JEFFREY COLLINS-Associated (Winston-Salem Journal, 2024)
A judge in South Carolina has erased the records of seven Black men arrested in 1960 for sitting at an all-white lunch counter.
United States of America

Gun Companies Gave Customers’ Sensitive Personal Information to Political Operatives - Johnson, Corey G. (ProPublica, 2024)
At least 10 gun industry businesses, including Glock, Smith & Wesson, Remington and Mossberg, secretly handed over names, addresses and other data to lobbyists, who used the details to rally firearm owners to elect pro-gun politicians.
United States of America

King Charles heckled in Australia: the crown’s role in Indigenous rights in the Commonwealth - Murphy, Philip (The Conversation, 2024)
There is no avoiding the UK’s issues of colonial legacy.
Australia

Navy apologies for destroying Alaska Native village in 1882 - CBS News (CBS News, 2024)
The U.S. Navy issued an apology for destroying an Alaska Native village nearly 150 years ago. The 1882 attack in Angoon killed six children and caused such dire food shortages that villagers starved themselves so children could eat.
United States of America

European Parliament Revolutionizes Archive Access with Claude AI - Anthropic (Anthropic, 2024)
Discover how the European Parliament uses Anthropic's Claude AI to power Archibot, dramatically improving access to 2.1 million documents. Learn how this AI solution cuts search time by 80% and boosts user satisfaction, while maintaining ethical standards and security.
Europe

Unerased - Cooper, Ann (Nieman Reports, 2024)
In response to the threat of erasure, the Russian Independent Media Archive (RIMA) has digitised 131 Russian media outlets. The collection, comprising print and online sites, is open access and searchable, with content dating back to the 1990s.
Russian Federation

Protect and release our archived personal histories - Finn, Clodagh (Irish Examiner, 2024)
Under new legislation fast-tracked by the Minister for Children, the destruction, alteration or removal of records pertaining to survivors of institutional abuse will be a criminal offence.
Ireland

The history of Caribbean slavery is being lost. Britain must act now to preserve it - Trevelyan, Laura; Phillip, Nicole (The Guardian, 2024)
Climate-related disasters are destroying precious records.
Americas
Keywords: Americas; Barbados; Caribbean; David Lammy; Genealogy; Grenada; Hurricanes; King Charles III; Monarchy; Race; Reparations and reparative justice; Slavery; UK news; World news

The history of Caribbean slavery is being lost. Britain must act now to preserve it - Trevelyan, Laura; Phillip, Nicole (The Guardian, 2024)
Climate-related disasters are destroying precious records.
United Kingdom
Keywords: Americas; Barbados; Caribbean; David Lammy; Genealogy; Grenada; Hurricanes; King Charles III; Monarchy; Race; Reparations and reparative justice; Slavery; UK news; World news

UN Cybercrime Convention: A blueprint for human rights violations - Article 19 (ARTICLE 19, 2024)
ARTICLE 19 is seriously concerned about the UN Draft Convention on cybercrime, pending adoption by the UN General Assembly later in 2024.
Worldwide

Illuminating the “Hidden Corners of American Foreign Policy” - Peter Bergen (National Security Archive, 2024)
Bergen and Blanton wax philosophical about the government’s secrecy system and how the Archive’s many exposés, in Bergen’s words, “illuminate the often-hidden corners of American foreign policy.” The wide-ranging conversation explores the many ways that the Archive’s declassified revelations have put Blanton—who Bergen calls one of the “most prolific archivists” of American history—“in the room, both literally and figuratively, with the most powerful people on Earth.”
United States of America

Charleston Unveils Historical Marker at the Site of Firm That Held the Largest Known U.S. Slave Trade - Hawes, Jennifer Berry (ProPublica, 2024)
As a graduate student at the College of Charleston, Lauren Davila found an ad for the auction of 600 enslaved people. A ProPublica story last year revealed her discovery and unearthed the identity of the family responsible for the sale.
Americas

Friday essay: crimes, redemption and rebellion – the truths told in 65,000 years of Australian art are essential for national healing - Mendelssohn, Hoanna (The Conversation, 2024)
The third section of the Uluru Statement from the Heart is Truth. Without knowing the truth of the history of Australia’s Indigenous people, and how the European invasion continues to impact on them, it is hard to understand the pain behind the loss of The Voice referendum and the ongoing need for treaties. Marcia Langton and Judith Ryan are truth tellers. Their book 65,000 years: A Short History of Australian Art, should be in every library in the country. The truths they tell are compelling, enticing – sometimes appalling – and unless they are known, the country cannot heal.
Australia

Local industry watchdog sounds alarm over AI stealing South African data on LinkedIn - Schutters, Lindsey (Zawya, 2024)
The South African Artificial Intelligence Association (SAAIA) has called on the Information Regulator to investigate the use of South African user data by LinkedIn to train its artificial intelligence (AI) models without prior consent. This comes as the association seeks to promote responsible AI practices, ensuring that AI developments do not infringe on individual rights, particularly when it comes to the processing of personal data.
South Africa

Key lesson of this year’s Nobel Prize: The importance of unlocking data reuse responsibly to… - Stefaan Verhulst; Anna Colom; Marta Poblet (Medium, 2024)
We live in a paradoxical time of both data abundance and data scarcity: a lot of data is being created and stored, but it tends to be inaccessible due to private interests and weak regulations. The challenge, then, is to prevent the misuse of data whilst avoiding its missed use.
Worldwide

International Criminal Court Takes Important Step in DR Congo - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
On October 14, the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor, Karim A. A. Khan, announced that his office would step up investigative efforts in the Democratic Republic of Congo, focusing in particular on crimes committed in the North Kivu province since January 2022.
Democratic Republic of Congo

Namibia welcomes back descendants of ethnic group that fled colonial-era brutality - Angula, Vitalio (VOA, 2024)
In Namibia, descendants of people who fled German persecution in the early 1900s are returning to their ancestral homeland. The government of Namibia has set aside five commercial farms for the relocation of almost 100 ethnic Ovaherero people.
Namibia

Namibia welcomes back descendants of ethnic group that fled colonial-era brutality - Angula, Vitalio (VOA, 2024)
In Namibia, descendants of people who fled German persecution in the early 1900s are returning to their ancestral homeland. The government of Namibia has set aside five commercial farms for the relocation of almost 100 ethnic Ovaherero people.
Germany

Dozens of islanders locked up as grim history continues for Annobón - Egbejule, Eromo (The Guardian, 2024)
People who wrote protest letter to Equatorial Guinea authorities latest to feel wrath of draconian regime
Equatorial Guinea
Keywords: Africa; Equatorial Guinea; Human rights; Protest; World news

Indigenous Sovereignty Is Under Attack as Supreme Court Bends Rules for Settlers - Nagle, Rebecca (Truthout, 2024)
In the past 30 years, Indigenous tribes and tribal interests have lost two-thirds of all United States of America Supreme Court cases.
United States of America

Hundreds of Afghan soldiers to become eligible to live in UK after new information found - Sabbagh, Dan (The Guardian, 2024)
Estimated 500 rejected cases expected to be overturned after fresh evidence they were employed by the UK government in Afghanistan.
United Kingdom
Keywords: Afghanistan; Immigration and asylum; Military; UK news; World news

Hundreds of Afghan soldiers to become eligible to live in UK after new information found - Sabbagh, Dan (The Guardian, 2024)
Estimated 500 rejected cases expected to be overturned after fresh evidence they were employed by the UK government in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan
Keywords: Afghanistan; Immigration and asylum; Military; UK news; World news

‘Our heart that burned’: Israel is wiping out centuries of heritage in southern Lebanon - Walid El Houri (Global Voices, 2024)
As thousands are killed and wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Palestine and brutal attacks on Lebanon, the urgent need to save lives and cope with trauma often overshadows the devastating loss caused by the systematic destruction of heritage, memory, and history.
Lebanon

‘Our heart that burned’: Israel is wiping out centuries of heritage in southern Lebanon - Walid El Houri (Global Voices, 2024)
As thousands are killed and wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Palestine and brutal attacks on Lebanon, the urgent need to save lives and cope with trauma often overshadows the devastating loss caused by the systematic destruction of heritage, memory, and history.
Israel

Canada’s Information Commissioners and Ombuds issue joint resolution calling for enhanced transparency in government operations - Information Commissioner of Canada (Information Commissioner of Canada, 2024)
In a joint resolution, Canada’s Information Commissioners and Ombuds from federal, provincial, and territorial jurisdictions are pressing their respective governments to prioritize transparency in the design and implementation of new systems, administrative processes, procedures, and governance models. This resolution reflects the need for a new standard in government operations and a collective commitment to fostering a culture of transparency and accountability across all levels of government in Canada.
Canada

Another Troubling Decision For Free Speech in Cameroon - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
Media discussions in Cameroon about the health of its president, Paul Biya, 91, are now outlawed.
Cameroon

NSW will remove 65,000 years of Aboriginal history from its years 7–10 syllabus. It’s a step backwards for education - Westaway, Michael; Pascoe, Bruce; Zarmati, Louise (The Conversation, 2024)
Australia's NSW Education Standards Authority will be removing the teaching of the Aboriginal past prior to European arrival from the Year 7–10 syllabus as of 2027.
Australia

French museums participate in Beijing’s erasure of Tibetan identity - Filip Noubel; Choekyi Lhamo (Global Voices, 2024)
Two major Paris museums are using terms other than “Tibet” to describe parts of their Tibetan cultural artifacts collections, thereby aligning themselves with Beijing’s policy of cultural erasure.
France

French museums participate in Beijing’s erasure of Tibetan identity - Filip Noubel; Choekyi Lhamo (Global Voices, 2024)
Two major Paris museums are using terms other than “Tibet” to describe parts of their Tibetan cultural artifacts collections, thereby aligning themselves with Beijing’s policy of cultural erasure.
China

‘I claimed our data’ – confronting the colonial archive is ‘intense Aboriginal love’ in action - Green, Charmaine Papertalk (The Conversation, 2024)
Charmaine Papertalk Green sifts through the violent, traumatic colonial archive, to know more about her Old People. It’s heartbreaking work, but a sliver of information can make a world of difference.
New Zealand

Croatian police accused of burning asylum seekers’ phones and passports - Lorenzo Tondo and Amy Hawkins (The Guardian, 2024)
Croatia’s border police force appear to be burning clothing, mobile phones and passports seized from asylum seekers attempting to cross into the European Union before pushing them back to Bosnia.
Europe

Argentine military dictatorship gets more sympathetic treatment - LaFranchi, Howard (CSMonitor.com, 2024)
Argentina's once notorious detention and torture center is a museum and memorial, open to the public since 2015. Last year it was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the few venues from recent history to figure on the organization’s list. But within weeks of ESMA’s designation as a space of global historic importance came the election of right-wing populist President Javier Milei.
Argentina

Palestinian archives: cultural heritage looted, destroyed and erased - Adnan, N.Z. (Hyphen, 2024)
Cultural heritage has long been a target of Israel’s war and occupation, with many archives across Gaza and the West Bank now gone forever
Palestine (Permanent Observer to the UN)

Hong Kong: End arbitrary censorship of Flow HK website - Article 19 (ARTICLE 19, 2024)
Authorities' blocking of the Flow HK website is a clear attempt to censor a leading independent voice for Hong Kong and among the diaspora.
Asia

When work becomes a party: capturing the joy of collective effort in an Indigenous community in Ecuador - Dehghan, Saeed Kamali (The Guardian, 2024)
Tristan Partridge, a photographer and social anthropologist, spent a decade documenting the working lives of the Kichwa-Panzaleo people of San Isidro for a new book
Ecuador
Keywords: Americas; Art and design; Culture; Ecuador; Global development; Indigenous peoples; Photography; World news

X overtakes WeChat in spreading Chinese disinformation about the 2024 US presidential elections - Oiwan Lam (Global Voices, 2024)
New research indicates that X, formerly Twitter, has overtaken WeChat, the most popular Chinese social media platform, in spreading disinformation about the US presidential elections and policies.
United States of America

X overtakes WeChat in spreading Chinese disinformation about the 2024 US presidential elections - Oiwan Lam (Global Voices, 2024)
New research indicates that X, formerly Twitter, has overtaken WeChat, the most popular Chinese social media platform, in spreading disinformation about the US presidential elections and policies.
China

We are Developing AI at the Detriment of the Global South — How a Focus on Responsible Data Re-use - Stefaan G. Verhulst; Peter Addo (Data & Policy Blog, 2024)
Recent research has underlined existing inequalities in artificial intelligence (AI) data production between developed and less-developed countries. An article in The Conversation demonstrated that while most data originates from wealthy countries, much of the less-valued quality-control labour is being outsourced to lower-income countries.
Worldwide

About 16 Million Syrian Citizens are Suffering as a Result of the Syrian Regime’s Control Over Official Documents - Syrian Network for Human Rights (Syrian Network for Human Rights, 2024)
The report notes that that the regime controls the process of issuing those documents in an unlawful and discriminatory manner...the regime has exploited Syrian citizens’ essential need for government documents, imposing excessively costly fees for these documents relative to Syrian citizens’ income
Syria

The Russian-Ukrainian Conflict and War Crimes: Challenges for Documentation and International Prosecution - Grzebyk, Patrycja; Uczkiewicz, Dominika (Routledge, 2024)
As the largest international armed conflict in Europe since World War II, Russia’s war against Ukraine has provoked strong reactions and questions about the post-1945 world order, the utility of the war, and the effectiveness of international criminal justice. Throughout the chapters in this volume, scholars and legal practitioners from Canada, Germany, Poland, Ukraine, the UK, and the United States present the results of interdisciplinary research, insights from the perspective of other post-communist states, and first-hand expertise from directly working on the documentation and prosecution of these crimes.
Ukraine

The Russian-Ukrainian Conflict and War Crimes: Challenges for Documentation and International Prosecution - Grzebyk, Patrycja; Uczkiewicz, Dominika (Routledge, 2024)
As the largest international armed conflict in Europe since World War II, Russia’s war against Ukraine has provoked strong reactions and questions about the post-1945 world order, the utility of the war, and the effectiveness of international criminal justice. Throughout the chapters in this volume, scholars and legal practitioners from Canada, Germany, Poland, Ukraine, the UK, and the United States present the results of interdisciplinary research, insights from the perspective of other post-communist states, and first-hand expertise from directly working on the documentation and prosecution of these crimes.
Russian Federation

She sought to prove her grandfather was poisoned at Camp Lejeune. Records she found could help thousands. - Chan, Merlissa (NBC News, 2024)
Jessie Hoerman said an archive of historical materials she has collected could help many bolster their challenging water contamination cases.
United States of America

How hundreds of California police officers have kept past misconduct confidential - John Yang (PBS News, 2024)
For decades, California police departments that want to sever ties with officers for misconduct have agreed to let them resign and to keep the bad behavior confidential in order to avoid lawsuits. But as a result, hundreds of officers have landed new jobs in law enforcement with no records of their past misconduct.
United States of America

Russia’s Global Information Operations Have Grown Up - DiResta, Renée, Josh A. Goldstein (Foreign Policy, 2024)
What began with Russian trolls on Facebook will require a lot more coordination to root out.
Russian Federation

EU's top court sets time-limits on using personal data for targeted ads - Hartmann, Théophane (www.euractiv.com, 2024)
The CJEU ruling could have implications for AI training, where companies scrap data to train AI models, according to the European Center for Digital Rights (Noyb).
Europe

Libya situation : ICC Pre-Trial Chamber unseals six arrest warrants. - International Criminal Court (International Criminal Court, 2024)
Today, 4 October 2024, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (“ICC” or “CPI”) granted the Prosecutor’s request to unseal six arrest warrants issued in the Libya situation on 6 April 2023 and 18 July 2023. The arrest warrants concern war crimes allegedly committed in Tarhunah, including murder, outrages upon personal dignity, cruel treatment, torture, sexual violence and rape.
Libya

Loot: How Israel Stole Palestinian Property – book review - John Westmoreland (Counterfire, 2024)
Adam Raz’s Loot contributes important new research on how Israelis plundered and dispossessed Palestinians during the Nakba, finds John Westmoreland Adam Raz has made an important addition to the study of the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in this detailed volume containing original research.
Israel

Loot: How Israel Stole Palestinian Property – book review - John Westmoreland (Counterfire, 2024)
Adam Raz’s Loot contributes important new research on how Israelis plundered and dispossessed Palestinians during the Nakba, finds John Westmoreland Adam Raz has made an important addition to the study of the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in this detailed volume containing original research.
Palestine (Permanent Observer to the UN)

Inside the Palestinian Sound Archive: preserving the audiovisual legacy of Palestine, one record at a time - Hingley, Olivia (It's Nice That, 2024)
The Palestinian Sound Archive, compiled by Mo’min Swaitat and the Majazz Project, preserves and releases Palestinian musical heritage, ranging from Palestinian Bedouin music to revolutionary music. In the context of the destruction of cultural heritage in Gaza, Swaitat states the ultimate aim is to "...regain hope of return, for us, and our material culture."
Palestine (Permanent Observer to the UN)

Why do we need a standalone Convention on Crimes against Humanity? - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2024)
Crimes against humanity refer to certain crimes committed as part of widespread or systematic attacks against a civilian population. They shock the conscience of humanity itself. The first prosecution using the term occurred when Nazi leaders were tried at Nuremberg last century, in response to the horrors of the Holocaust.
Worldwide

Preserving the Ephemera of War - Gronlund, Melissa (New Lines Magazine, 2024)
Social media is increasingly important for documenting conflicts and atrocities as they occur, but efforts to store the data for the future are fragile and fragmentary
Worldwide
Keywords: Middle East

IOM Recognized as Main Data Provider in IASC’s Management Response to Independent Review of Humanitarian Response to Internal Displacement - IOM (International Organization for Migration, 2024)
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) welcomes the recognition of its Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) as a lead provider of country-level data on internal displacement in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Management Response to the Independent Review of the Humanitarian Response to Internal Displacement
Worldwide

Julian Assange says he ‘chose freedom over unrealisable justice’ - Rankin, Jennifer (The Guardian, 2024)
WikiLeaks founder says he pleaded ‘guilty to journalism’ in deal for his release and calls for protection of press freedom
Worldwide
Keywords: Council of Europe; Europe; Human rights; Julian Assange; Law; Media; Press freedom; WikiLeaks; World news

IDB Joins WMO, UNDP and UNEP to Support Weather Data Systems, Tackle Climate Change in Latin America & the Caribbean - UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office (UNDP, 2024)
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) signed an agreement that will help the collection and sharing of critical climate and weather data, advancing efforts to support climate adaptation and enhance regional climate coordination in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Americas

Tulsa Race Massacre Update: DOJ Review Called Long Overdue - Wright, Bruce (NewsOne, 2024)
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced it intended to launch a formal review of the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921 when white supremacists destroyed a thriving Black business district and killed hundreds of people in the Oklahoma city.. “It only took 103 years, but this is a joyous occasion," said Damario Solomon-Simmons, the lawyer who filed a lawsuit on behalf of remaining survivors.
United States of America

Access to Records | Independent Panel Truth Recovery - Truth and Recovery Independant Panel (Truth and Recovery Independant Panel, 2024)
The Truth Recovery Programme enacts the recommendations made in the Truth, Acknowledgment and Accountability Report. The integrated truth investigation will look further into the workings of Mother and Baby Institutions, Magdalene Laundries, and Workhouses in Northern Ireland, and the associated pathways and practices.
United Kingdom

New Terrorism Database Threatens Rights - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2024)
A new Niger government ordinance creating a database of people suspected of terrorism undermines fundamental rights enshrined in national and international law.
Niger

TikTok and WHO Join Efforts to Combat Misinformation - Oritro Karim (Inter Press Service, 2024)
Today’s digital age is centered around TikTok, the short-form social media platform that hosts around 1 billion global users. Sensationalized or reductive videos often get the most engagement with young audiences, leading to the spread of misinformation on a global level. On September 26, the World Health Programme (WHO) and TikTok announced a year-long collaboration.
Worldwide

End to fight over Zondo archives in sight - Paul Hoffman (BusinessLIVE, 2024)
There is an ongoing spat between the department of justice and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) concerning the fate of the materials put together and archived as part of the extensive work done during the Zondo state capture commission at a cost of over R1bn to the taxpayer.
South Africa

President Akufo-Addo Challenges Ghanaian Journalists To Combat Disinformation Ahead Of 2024 Elections - Africa Press Release (Zawya.com, 2024)
President Akufo-Addo Challenges Ghanaian Journalists To Combat Disinformation Ahead Of 2024 Elections
Ghana

Exhibition | Alanis Obomsawin. The Children Have to Hear Another Story - MAC Montreal (MAC Montreal, 2024)
The exhibition is dedicated to the work of Abenaki documentary filmmaker, activist, and singer Alanis Obomsawin who first emerged as an artist and Indigenous rights activist. Until January 26th 2025
Canada

California Passes Law Protecting Consumer Brain Data - Moens, Jonathan (The New York Times, 2024)
The state extended its current personal privacy law to include the neural data increasingly coveted by technology companies.
United States of America
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence; Biometrics; Brain; California; Computers and the Internet; Data-Mining and Database Marketing; Law and Legislation; Newsom; Gavin; Privacy; Regulation and Deregulation of Industry; State Legislatures

Malaysia: Do not delay our Right to Information - Article 19 (ARTICLE 19, 2024)
The theme of 'Mainstreaming Access to Information and Participation in the Public Sector’ is highly relevant for Malaysia as the push for federal Right to Information (RTI) legislation gains momentum. Malaysia is on the brink of achieving this goal, which would ensure the right to information is both comprehensive and accessible to all individuals in Malaysia.
Malaysia

A child bride won the right to divorce - now the Taliban say it doesn't count - Durrani, Mamoon; Khamoosh, Kawoon (BBC News, 2024)
The Taliban have been revisiting rulings made under the US-backed government, overturning thousands of cases.
Afghanistan

30 years of Indigenous resistance with Ellen Gabriel | 'Colonial-rooted poverty will not be solved by more colonial solutions'. - Cyca, Michelle (The Narwhal, 2024)
Thirty-four years ago, Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel was thrust into the spotlight when she was chosen as the spokesperson for the Kanienʼkehá:ka (Mohawk) communities of Kanehsatà:ke and Kahnawà:ke, as they resisted the planned expansion of a golf course on into their sacred lands and burial ground. In the decades since the 78-day standoff ended, Gabriel has remained a steadfast defender of Indigenous homelands and an advocate for Indigenous Rights and sovereignty, particularly the rights of women.
Canada

Judge who sentenced Evan Gershkovich says trial did not look at evidence - France-Presse, Agence (The Guardian, 2024)
Neither prosecution nor defence requested material evidence be looked at in trial of US journalist, judge says.
Russian Federation
Keywords: Evan Gershkovich; Press freedom; Russia; US news; World news

India's Star Health sues Telegram after hacker uses app's chatbots to leak data - Kalra, Munsif Vengattil and Aditya (Zawya.com, 2024)
Star in the notice described the incident as "illegal hacking and unauthorized accessing of the confidential, sensitive" information
India

Former PiS minister charged with abuse of office for disclosing patient records - Krzysztoszek, Aleksandra (www.euractiv.com, 2024)
Adam Niedzielski, the health minister in the previous conservative PiS (ECR) government, has been charged with abuse of office for publishing a patient's private medical information.
Poland

Oklahoma man executed by lethal injection despite conflicting evidence - Marcos, Coral Murphy (The Guardian, 2024)
Emmanuel Littlejohn will be executed for role in 1992 shooting, which would be state’s third execution this year
United States of America
Keywords: Capital punishment; Oklahoma; US news

Media Freedom as a Fundamental Freedom and a Human Right: Protecting Journalists and Their Access to Conflict Areas - Schmidt, Annie (International Peace Institute, 2024)
In light of ongoing wars and rising geopolitical tensions, defending and protecting media freedom is more crucial than ever. As an integral part of the right to freedom of expression and access to information, media freedom can be fundamental even to the safety and survival of civilians in armed conflicts.
Worldwide