'The artwork is not guilty': Swiss museum unveils Nazi era collection - Farrant, Theo (euronews, 2023)
A prestigious Swiss institution is attempting to navigate the troubled waters of displaying an art collection with questionable origins dating back to World War II and Nazi looted art.
Switzerland
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Academia and Education

'We need to record everything': This team stayed behind in a Ukrainian war zone - Mosley, Tonya (NPR, 2023)
Ukrainian filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov was in Mariupol when Russia invaded. "I just understood that we need to record everything," he says. His new documentary is 20 Days in Mariupol.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Kazakhstan Opens Secret KGB Archives Amid Moves Toward Decolonization In Central Asia - Chynybaeva, Baktygul (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 2023)
Central Asian states are trying to rehabilitate the victims of Stalin’s repression by opening up KGB archives and clearing the names of executed politicians, rebels, and other victims. But the Kremlin is not happy.
Kazakhstan
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Features; Kazakhstan; Russia

Amnesty petition demanding ceasefire in Gaza, Israel backed by over million signatures - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
The world is watching in horror as more and more civilians lose their lives each day amid Israel’s relentless bombardment and ground operations.
Israel
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Amnesty petition demanding ceasefire in Gaza, Israel backed by over million signatures - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
The world is watching in horror as more and more civilians lose their lives each day amid Israel’s relentless bombardment and ground operations.
Palestine (permanent observer to the UN)
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Redacted and out of reach: Canada’s access laws keep the country’s history locked away - Cardoso, Tom; Doolittle, Robyn (The Globe and Mail, 2023)
Researchers are often denied decades-old documents because there’s no process for declassifying them and poor records of what’s piled up in government warehouses
Canada
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Politics; Social Issues

Gaza: Hostage Videos an 'Outrage on Personal Dignity' - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
The practice by Hamas and Islamic Jihad of publicly releasing videos of Israeli hostages is a form of inhumane treatment that amounts to a war crime.
Palestine (permanent observer to the UN)
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Gaza: Hostage Videos an 'Outrage on Personal Dignity' - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
The practice by Hamas and Islamic Jihad of publicly releasing videos of Israeli hostages is a form of inhumane treatment that amounts to a war crime.
Israel
Keywords: 2023-10 November

We are witnessing a pandemic of inhumanity: to halt the spread, we must cling to the law - Khan, Karim (The Guardian, 2023)
There is no blank cheque in the Israel-Hamas conflict. The International Criminal Court (ICC) is working to ensure justice is on the frontlines, says Karim Khan Chief Prosecutor of the ICC
Israel
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Gaza; Hamas; International criminal court; International criminal justice; Israel; Israel-Hamas war; Law; Middle East and north Africa; Palestinian territories; War crimes; World news

Tanks on the Playground - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
“Tanks on the Playground,” documents the damage and destruction of schools and kindergartens in four Ukrainian regions during the first months of the fighting, causing significant damages. Russian forces also frequently looted and pillaged schools they occupied, a war crime.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Russia

What Really Happened to JFK? - Sayare, Scott (Intelligencer, 2023)
One thing’s for sure: The CIA doesn’t want you to know.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Senate Committee provides little pushback on Catholic representatives over residential school documents - Narine, Shari (Windspeaker.com, 2023)
A Canadian Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples may have been shocked two weeks ago when witnesses told them about the difficulties they were having in accessing Catholic Church records for children who attended Indian residential schools.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Canada; Europe; Indigenous Matters; Privacy laws; Residential Schools; Rome; Vatican

Hungary sacks museum chief for not enforcing under-18s ban at LGBTQ+ exhibition - Oltermann, Philip (The Guardian, 2023)
László Simon dismissed after National Museum allowed children to visit a World Press Photo show.
Hungary
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Art and design; Culture; Europe; Exhibitions; Hungary; LGBTQ+ rights; Museums; Photography; The far right; World news

Inuit leader warns of Labrador group's 'illegitimate claims' to Inuit identity - Forester, Brett (CBC News, 2023)
The head of the national organization for Inuit in Canada is warning the public about what he calls “illegitimate claims to Inuit rights” being advanced by a self-identified Indigenous group in south and central Labrador.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Mapping with deep meaning: Preserving memory in El Salvador - Stacey, Megan (Western News, 2023)
Western University Libraries (London, Ontario, Canada) is contributing to Surviving Memory in Postwar El Salvador by capturing the history of Salvadoran Civil War
El Salvador
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Human rights are a low priority for many national climate change adaptation policies, research finds - Lejtenyi, Patrick (Phys.org, 2023)
The link between human rights and climate change adaptation policy has not been a major source of discussion in national policies, according to a new study.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Court document claims Meta knowingly designed its platforms to hook kids, reports say - AP News (Associated Press, 2023)
Facebook parent Meta Platforms deliberately engineered its social platforms to hook kids and knew — but never disclosed — it had received millions of complaints about underage users on Instagram but only disabled a fraction of those accounts
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Despite Bans, Disabled Women Are Still Being Sterilized in Europe - Hurtes, Sarah (The New York Times, 2023)
Governments have declared the practice a human rights violation. But they have made exceptions that are divisive among parents, doctors and social workers.
Europe
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Abuse of the Disabled; Belgium; European Union; France; Hysterectomies; Iceland; Intellectual Disabilities; Reykjavik (Iceland); Women and Girls; audio-negative-sad; audio-negative-tragedy; audio-neutral-informative

Michelle Bachelet: The Universal Declaration is ‘good enough’ - Foulkes, Imogen (SWI swissinfo.ch, 2023)
Over a year out of her job as Human Rights Commissioner, Michelle Bachelet talks about her legacy and controversies that rocked her presidency.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

The doomsday vaults storing seeds, data and DNA to protect our future - Braidwood, Ella (The Observer, 2023)
Around the world, highly secure chambers are being built to preserve everything we need to withstand any number of worst-case scenarios.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November; DNA database; Environment; Plants; Science; World news

Labour abuses, including slavery, found on European fishing vessels - O'Donoghue, Saskia (euronews, 2023)
Research by a Washington DC-based organisation which tracks illicit money flows has found that tens of thousands of workers every year on these boats are estimated to be trapped in unsafe conditions.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

YouTube creators: Disclose AI use or face suspension - Euro News (euronews, 2023)
YouTube said creators that don't disclose their use of AI tools to make “altered or synthetic” videos face penalties - including content removal or suspension.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Mary Robinson: ‘everyone has core human rights’ - Foulkes, Imogen (SWI swissinfo.ch, 2023)
In 1997, Robinson’s friends warned her – in vain – not to take the job of UN Human Rights Commissioner. She talks about the challenges of the role.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

TikTok’s ‘For You’ feed risks pushing children and young people towards harmful mental health content - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
TikTok’s content recommender system and its invasive data collection practices pose a danger to young users of the platform by amplifying depressive and suicidal content that risk worsening existing mental health challenges.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

85% of people worry about online disinformation, global survey finds - Henley, Jon (The Guardian, 2023)
UN announces plan to tackle phenomenon as survey finds people worry particularly about impact on elections.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Digital media; Europe; Internet; Media; Politics; Social media; UK news; United Nations; World news

This activist built himself a website to track global LGBTQ+ laws. Now the UN uses it too. - Owen, Greg (LGBTQ Nation, 2023)
Equaldex maps where it's safe to travel so you don't have to.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November

Right to information still an ‘empty promise’ for billions - UN News (UN News, 2023)
The UN-appointed expert on freedom of opinion and expression has called for governments to strengthen efforts to close the “digital divide” and remove all barriers to the right to information.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 November; Freedom of the Press

Acting Piapot chief, other Sask. Indigenous people react to CBC investigation into Buffy Sainte-Marie - Quon, Alexander (CBC News, 2023)
Indigenous idendity - Investigation by CBC revealed details that contradict the songwriter's claims to Indigenous ancestry but Acting chief of Piapot First Nation says "When it comes to Buffy specifically we can't pick and choose which part of our culture we decide to adhere to.… We do have one of our families in our community that did adopt her. Regardless of her ancestry, that adoption in our culture to us is legitimate."
Canada
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Cultural appropriation; Identity Usurpation; Indigenous Identity

Social media companies must step up crisis response on Israel-Palestine as online hate and censorship proliferate - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
Social media companies must urgently address the fanning of online hate and racism against Palestinian and Jewish communities, Amnesty International said as the conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories escalates further
Israel
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Palestine

Spanish probe estimates more than 200,000 children abused by Roman Catholic clergy - France 24 (France 24, 2023)
Over 200,000 minors are estimated to have been sexually abused in Spain by the Roman Catholic clergy since 1940, according to an independent commission.
Spain
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Who is the real Buffy Sainte-Marie? - Leo, Geoff; Woloshyn, Roxanna; Guerrero, Linda (CBC News, 2023)
Indigenous idendity - Late 2022, CBC received a tip that Sainte-Marie is not of Cree ancestry but, in fact, has European roots. She is the latest high-profile public figure whose ancestry story has been contradicted by genealogical documentation - the latest chapter in the complex and growing debate around Indigenous identity in Canada.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Cultural Appropriation; Identity Usurpation; Indigenous Identity

Brazil slave trafficker’s links to top bank spark debate over reparations - Mallaret, Constance (The Guardian, 2023)
Researchers are at last revealing how slavery and the slave trade shaped the country’s institutions
Brazil
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Israel-Hamas: How an AI photo of a baby duped social media users - Khatsenkova, Sophia (euronews, 2023)
The war between Israel and Hamas has generated so much false or misleading information online that even fact-checkers and analysts are having a tough time keeping up. Social media is flooded with misleading posts and artificial intelligence is making things worse.
Israel
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Palestine

'The police were feeding information to the press': The Australian mother wrongly convicted of murder - Burke, Myles (BBC News, 2023)
After being convicted of murder in 1982, Lindy Chamberlain was exonerated six years later. In these exclusive BBC Archive clips, she describes what it was like to be wrongly accused.
Australia
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Misinformation

The long road to reconciliation in Burundi - Schwikowski, Martrina (DW, 2023)
Thirty years after the civil war between the Hutu and Tutsi began in Burundi, nobody has forgotten the atrocities. But the country's current conflict is more political than ethnic.
Burundi
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Israeli attacks wipe out entire families in Gaza - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
Amnesty International has documented damning evidence of war crimes.
Israel
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Palestine

Commission of Inquiry finds further evidence of war crimes in Ukraine - Independent Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine (UN News, 2023)
A new UN report has found continued evidence of war crimes and human rights violations committed by Russian authorities in Ukraine, including torture, rape and the deportation of children.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Measures taken following the unprecedented cyber-attack on the ICC - International Criminal Court (ICC) (International Criminal Court, 2023)
Five weeks ago, the International Criminal Court detected a serious cyber security incident, thanks to the alert mechanism provided by its monitoring system. The ICC has made various and serious efforts to address this attack. The Court deems it is its responsibility to continue to inform about these efforts and to provide the relevant additional information on the attack itself.
Netherlands
Keywords: 2023-10 October

What the Tokyo Trial Reveals About Empire, Memory, and Judgment - Buruma, Ian (The New Yorker, 2023)
The Allied tribunal in postwar Tokyo was modelled on the one in Nuremberg. If the Nuremberg trial was questionable in some respects, the trial of Japanese wartime leaders in Tokyo was far more dubious. John Dower, the finest American historian of modern Japan, called the Tokyo trial “a murky reflection of its German counterpart.”
Japan
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Gangsters are the villains in 'Killers of the Flower Moon,' but the biggest thief of Native American wealth was the US government - Fodder, Torivio (The Conversation, 2023)
The Osage murders of the 1920s are just one episode in nearly two centuries of stealing land and resources from Native Americans. Much of this theft was guided and sanctioned by federal law.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-10 October

‘Take flowers to our mass grave’: letters from Spain’s Franco victims collected in new book - Jones, Sam (The Guardian, 2023)
Thousands of people were imprisoned and shot by the Franco dictatorship between 1939 and 1944. Their letters home form a moving memorial to their bravery
Spain
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Books; Europe; Francisco Franco; History books; Spain; World news

An American Puzzle: Fitting Race in a Box - Lai, Rebecca K. K.; Medina, Jennifer (The New York Times, 2023)
Census categories for race and ethnicity have shaped how the nation sees itself. Here’s how they have changed over the last 230 years.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Black People; Census; Census Bureau; Race and Ethnicity; United States; United States Politics and Government

‘A knife in your heart’: Indigenous Australians grapple with grief after voice defeat - Collard, Sarah (The Guardian, 2023)
Australia overwhelmingly voted against enshrining an Indigenous voice to parliament to advise policy and lawmakers on issues affecting First Nations people. Just 40% of Australians voted in favour while indigenous communities overwhelmingly voted yes
Australia
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Australia news; Australian politics; Indigenous Australians; Indigenous voice to parliament

A New York Museum's House of Bones - Thompson, Erin L. (Hyperallergic, 2023)
The American Museum of Natural History holds 12,000 bodies — but they don’t want you to know whose.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-10 October

The Voice: Australians vote No in historic referendum - Ritchie, Hannah (BBC News, 2023)
The country has overwhelmingly voted No to a proposal aimed at elevating First Nations voices.
Australia
Keywords: 2023-10 October

The failed referendum is a political disaster, but opportunity exists for those brave and willing to embrace it - Williamson, Bhiamie (The Conversation, 2023)
The Voice to Parliament has failed. What does this mean for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people?
Australia
Keywords: 2023-10 October

The dangers of digital colonisation - Yates, Siena (E-Tangata, 2023)
The dangers of digital colonisation may not be obvious yet because, on the surface, technology seems to be advancing our reo and our connections instead of suppressing them.
New Zealand
Keywords: 2023-10 October

The Canadian museum filled with stolen art - Selkirk, Diane (BBC News, 2023)
The Ni'isjoohl memorial pole has been returned to Canada after being stolen by the British in 1928. Here, it will live out its days alongside hundreds of other appropriated items.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-10 October

From 1947 to 2023: Retracing the complex, tragic Israeli-Palestinian conflict - France 24 (France 24, 2023)
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict was reignited once again after a surprise offensive launched by Hamas against Israel. In retaliation, Israel ordered air strikes and a "complete siege" of the Gaza Strip, the Hamas-run Palestinian enclave.
Israel
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Top Russian Human Rights Defender Convicted for “Discrediting” the Armed Forces - Lokshina, Tanya (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
A Moscow court found Oleg Orlov, a leading Russian human rights defender, guilty on on charges of “discrediting” the military by speaking out against the war in Ukraine and sentenced him to a 150-ruble (approx. 1,500 USD) fine.
Russian Federation
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Californians can scrub personal info sold to advertisers with first-in-US law - Bhuiyan, Johana (The Guardian, 2023)
Delete Act signed by Gavin Newsom will enable residents to request all data brokers in the state remove their information
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-10 October; California; Data protection; Gavin Newsom; Privacy; Technology; US news

Global Playbook of Abuse to Silence Critics - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
Rwandan authorities and their proxies are using violence, judicial mechanisms, and intimidation to try to silence criticism from Rwandans living around the world.
Rwanda
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Rwanda’s Repression Across Borders - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
A new Human Rights Watch report outlines how the government of Rwanda keeps tabs on dissidents, both real and perceived, and how threats and acts of intimidation also happen across borders.
Rwanda
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Trial of ex-Rwandan officials involved in 1994 genocide kicks off - Euronews (euronews, 2023)
This is the sixth trial in Belgium's capital linked to the 1994 genocide of the Tutsi in Rwanda that killed hundreds of thousands of people.
Rwanda
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Rwanda

World Court Begins Watershed Torture Case - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) hearings on October 10 and 11, 2023 on state-sponsored torture in Syria since 2011 are critically important for advancing justice.
Syrian Arab Republic
Keywords: 2023-10 October

‘I don’t want my mother’s story to die’: Holocaust account brought to life in virtual reality film - Nadia Khomami (The Guardian, 2023)
Documentary Letters From Drancy is named for the letters Alice Deichmann sent from an internment camp
France
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Culture; Europe; Film; France; Holocaust; London; London film festival; London film festival 2023; Second world war

Dutch Royal Prince Bernhard's Nazi membership revealed - Euronews (euronews, 2023)
The Dutch Royal household has confirmed that Prince Bernhard - prince consort for decades after World War II and husband of former Queen Juliana - was a member of the Nazi party.
Netherlands
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Genocide in California - Wills, Matthew (JSTOR Daily, 2023)
The extermination campaigns against the Yuki people, sparked by the California Gold Rush and statehood, weren’t termed genocide until the mid 1970s.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-10 October

ICMP Works with Ukraine’s National Police To Enhance Data Management Relevant to Missing Persons Investigations - International Commission on Missing Persons (International Commission on Missing Persons, 2023)
The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) has delivered a week-long data management training program at its Headquarters in The Hague to representatives of the Main Investigation Department (MID) of the National Police of Ukraine (NPU)
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Gilleleje: Denmark's seaside town that saved Danish Jews - Hall, Laura (BBC News, 2023)
This October, a fishing town on the Danish Riviera remembers one of the greatest collective acts of resistance of World War Two: its role in the flight and escape of the Danish Jews.
Denmark
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Greenland women seek compensation over involuntary birth control - Cooney, Christie (BBC News, 2023)
Some 4,500 women were fitted with coils as part of attempts to limit the territory's population.
Denmark
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Greenland; Sterilization; Women's Rights

Harassment and attacks on human rights activists in Palestine are rarely punished. - Stein, Sam (The Progressive Magazine, 2023)
A recent trial of an attack by an Israeli settler on a U.S. citizen shows how difficult it is to obtain justice when harassment and attacks on human rights activists are committed.
Palestine (permanent observer to the UN)
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Israel

On the March on Washington's 60th anniversary, watch how CBS News covered the Civil Rights protest in 1963 - CBS News - CBS News (CBS News, 2023)
On Aug. 28, 1963, Walter Cronkite began his evening news broadcast with a vivid description of the March on Washington. The day would come to be a watershed moment in the equal rights movement for Black Americans - Includes an 18-minute video recording.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-10 October

The Panama Papers proved encryption is a massive asset for democracy - Obermaya, Bastian (euronews, 2023)
We should celebrate the transformative power of encryption and spotlight the incredible things it has done in the fight to expose injustice and give a voice to the voiceless.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Planned EU laws on child sexual abuse have sparked a privacy row. Why? - Jones, Mared Gywn (euronews, 2023)
Some have argued the proposed EU law could usher in mass surveillance in the bloc through the scanning of all communications, including encrypted messages.
Europe
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Explainer: What is international humanitarian law? - UN News (UN News, 2023)
While aid workers serving conflict-affected civilian populations depend on a set of laws to protect them, some warring parties violate these global agreements, from targeting hospitals and schools to blocking aid workers from reaching civilians with lifesaving goods and services.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

‘Steve Bannon is watching us closely’: Naomi Klein on populists, conspiracists and real-world activism - Goodfellow, Maya (The Guardian, 2023)
Author speaks candidly about a ‘mirror world’ that feeds our anxieties, distorts reality and fuels the polarisation of society
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Books; Climate crisis; Culture; Environment; Naomi Klein; Naomi Wolf; Steve Bannon; The far right; US news; World news

UN Cybercrime Treaty: A Menace in the Making - Brown, Deborah (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
Governments are meeting in Vienna this week to negotiate a global treaty on cybercrime. But instead of fostering cooperation in cybercrime, the treaty may end up facilitating cross-border repression and make it more difficult to investigate actual cybercrimes.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Why companies should care about recent attacks on human rights - Gossage, Bobbie (Fast Company, 2023)
We’re seeing ‘an assault’ on civil rights, reproductive rights, and LGBTQ rights, say human rights advocates. Companies need to know they have skin in the game.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

TikTok says it has acted to curb disinformation amid Israel-Hamas war - Jolly, Jasper (The Guardian, 2023)
Moves comes after EU wrote to social media platform calling on it to step up its efforts over illegal content
Western Asia
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Digital media; European Union; Gaza; Israel; Israel-Hamas war; Palestine; Regulators; Social media; TikTok

Digitalisation has the power to revolutionise human rights tracking for the best - Zipoli, Dominico; Kirchmeier, Feklix (Geneva Solutions, 2023)
Digitalisation affects the realisation and enjoyment of human rights, creating new openings for violations. As offline and online settings have started blurring, we see offline reprisals against online action, and online tracing and intrusion to our privacy affecting our actions offline. But digital tools can also offer new ways of protecting human rights.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Why only 1% of the Snowden Archive will ever be published - Maurizi, Sterfania (ComputerWeekly.com, 2023)
Speaking to Computer Weekly after we published new revelations from the Snowden archive, the Guardian’s Pulitzer Prize winner, Ewen MacAskill, explains why more of the Snowden trove is unlikely to see the light of day.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Commission of Inquiry collecting evidence of war crimes committed by all sides in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories - OHCHR (UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, 2023)
There is already clear evidence that war crimes may have been committed in the latest explosion of violence in Israel and Gaza, and all those who have violated international law and targeted civilians must be held accountable for their crimes.
Western Asia
Keywords: 2023-10 October

‘Predator Files’ spyware scandal reveals brazen targeting of civil society, politicians and officials - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
Shocking spyware attacks have been attempted against civil society, journalists, politicians and academics in the European Union (EU), USA and Asia, according to a major new investigation by Amnesty International.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

WHO-OHCHR launch new guidance to improve laws addressing human rights abuses in mental health care - Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR); World Health Organization (WHO) (World Health Organization (WHO), 2023)
Ahead of World Mental Health Day, the World Health Organization and the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights are launching a new guidance, entitled “Mental health, human rights and legislation: guidance and practice”, to support countries to reform legislation in order to end human rights abuses and increase access to quality mental health care.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

GDPR harmonisation could be key to unleashing health data's potential - Peseckyte, Giedre (Euractiv, 2023)
While EU legislators debate between opt-in and opt-out options for the secondary use of health data under the European Health Data Space (EHDS) proposal, harmonising GDPR across the bloc could provide a solution.
Europe
Keywords: 2023-10 October

How police use location and search data to find suspects – and not always the right ones - Bhuiyan, Johana (The Guardian, 2023)
‘Geofence warrants’ tied a man in the wrong place at the wrong time to a crime he didn’t commit – is he the only one?
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Technology

Global Demand for Universal Social Security - Stroehlein, Andrew (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
Governments and international financial institutions should make a commitment to create social security systems that enable everyone to realize their rights.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October; Government; Social Security

MEPs vote in favour of stronger press freedom rules - Zsiros, Sandor (euronews, 2023)
Concerns have been growing in the EU over a backsliding of standards protecting journalists.
Europe
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Humanitarian Organizations must ensure protection of data during Emergencies - Daniel O’Malley (ReliefWeb, 2023)
Humanitarian organizations bear the responsibility of ensuring that their systems and procedures for data collection, processing, and utilization align with the best international standards and which data it needs to protect.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Punished for speaking up at the UN - Langrand, Michelle (Geneva Solutions, 2023)
Collaborating with the United Nations can have consequences, some more serious than others. Activists who have dared to denounce human rights abuses in their countries before the UN have faced smear campaigns. They have also been prevented from travelling, jailed or even killed in an attempt to stifle criticism.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-10 October

Arrest and detention of human rights lawyers an attack on the legal profession - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
Amnesty International strongly condemns the arrest and detention of human rights lawyers simply for discharging their functions.
Zimbabwe
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Government

American Education Hurt Black Students. We Deserve Reparations - Love, Bettina L. (Education Week, 2023)
The value of the educational harm inflicted on my generation of Black students exceeds $2 trillion, writes Bettina L. Love.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Black Students; Race; Students of Color

‘Immense challenges’ block justice for Ukrainian war victims, rights experts warn | UN News - Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine (UN News, 2023)
Justice and accountability for Ukraine’s war victims were among the topics raised by the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine during its latest country visit, which concluded on Monday.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Modern slavery: Pakistan’s latest climate change curse - Fazli, Shehryar (Al Jazeera, 2023)
Opinion: As Pakistan finds itself in another unpredictable monsoon season, vulnerable farming communities face a resurgence of indentured servitude and other forms of modern slavery.
Pakistan
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Climate Change

'White Torture' documents Iran's notorious prison methods - Mohammadi, Nargers (dw.com, 2023)
Narges Mohammadi's book and documentary about the plight of imprisoned activists in Iran sheds light on human rights abuses suffered by those behind bars in the Islamic Republic.
Iran, Islamic Republic of
Keywords: 2023-09 September

An annual survey from the Census Bureau aims for better data on the LGBTQ+ population - Rascoe, Ayesha; Wang, Hansi Lo (NPR, 2023)
The Census Bureau wants to use an annual survey to ask people over the age of 15 about their sexual orientation and gender identity. This data could help enforce civil rights laws.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Census; Civil Rights; Population Survey

Ethiopian Prince Alemayehu's lock of hair returned after 140 years in UK - Temuari, Hannah (BBC News, 2023)
Prince Alemayehu, who was taken to the UK aged seven, died at 18 after an unhappy upbringing.
Ethiopia
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Met Returns Two Antiquities To Yemen, Retains Possession For Now | Barron's - Agence France-Presse (Barron's, 2023)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art on Tuesday announced it had transferred ownership of two antiquities to Yemen, but that the war-torn country had agreed to leave them in New York for safe-keeping.
Yemen
Keywords: 2023-09 September; New Tork - Metropolitan Museum of Fine Arts

The Kids on the Night Shift - Dreier, Hannah; Kohut, Meridith (The New York Times, 2023)
For Marcos Cux — and thousands of other migrant children — working dangerous jobs that violate child-labor laws is the only American dream there is.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Accomack County (Va); Child Labor; Factory Farming; Guatemala; Illegal Immigration; Immigration and Emigration; Meatpacking Plants and Slaughterhouses; Perdue Farms Inc; Poultry; Tyson Foods Inc; Virginia; Workplace Hazards and Violations; internal-great-read; internal-sub-only

Canada’s Startling Claim Punctuates Tension With India Over Separatists - Mashal, Mujib; Kumar, Hari; Raj, Suhasini (The New York Times, 2023)
The allegation that India was involved in the killing of a Sikh leader in Canada came after New Delhi had accused Western countries of inaction on secessionist groups.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Bharatiya Janata Party; Canada; Espionage and Intelligence Services; India; International Relations; Secession and Independence Movements; Sikhs and Sikhism; Targeted Killings; Trudeau; Justin

Germany tried to make amends for Namibian genocide. It didn’t work. - Miller Llana, Sara; Chu, Lenora; Stetson Freeman, Melanie (CSMonitor.com, 2023)
The genocide, carried out by Germans between 1904 and 1908 when they controlled the colony of South West Africa, was directed at the Herero and Nama people of modern-day Namibia. Germans have grappled with issues around reparations for the Holocaust for decades, too few Germans even know what happened during colonial rule in Africa – a space overshadowed by the violent historic acts of France, Belgium, and the United Kingdom.
Namibia
Keywords: 2023-09 September

ESMA Museum and Site of Memory - Former Clandestine Center of Detention, Torture and Extermination - UNESCO World Heritage Centre (UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2023)
This property is located within the complex of the Former Navy School of Mechanics in Buenos Aires, in the former Officers’ Quarters. This was the Argentine Navy’s principal secret detention centre during the civil-military dictatorship of 1976-1983. As part of a national strategy to destroy armed and nonviolent opposition to the military regime, the Officers' Quarters building at ESMA (Escuela Superior de Mecánica de la Armada) was used for holding captive opponents who had been abducted in Buenos Aires and interrogating, torturing and eventually killing them.
Argentina
Keywords: 2023-09 September

How auto executives misread the UAW and ignited a historic strike - Welch, David (The Japan Times, 2023)
UAW president Shawn Fain’s aggressiveness reflects the mood of the American worker: anxious about job security and angry about a ballooning wealth gap.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September

A Russian anti-LGBTQ+ group is spreading dangerous misinformation across the globe - Russell, John (LGBTQ Nation, 2023)
The group has managed to broaden its global reach by translating its anti-LGBTQ+ propaganda into more than 18 major languages.
Russian Federation
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Letter suggests Pope Pius XII knew of mass gassings of Jews and Poles in 1942 - Associated Press (The Guardian, 2023)
Letter from church source in anti-Hitler resistance reporting 6,000 daily killings undercuts Vatican’s claims of lack of knowledge
Holly See
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Catholicism; Christianity; Holocaust; Second world war; Vatican

What happened to Mahsa/Zhina Amini? - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
In September 2022 Mahsa/Zhina Amini, a young woman from Iran’s oppressed Kurdish minority, visited Tehran with her brother. She was stopped and arrested by Iran’s “morality” police (gasht-e ershad), who routinely arbitrarily detain women who do not comply with the country’s abusive and discriminatory compulsory veiling laws.
Iran, Islamic Republic of
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Schiele artworks believed stolen during Holocaust seized from US museums - Associated Press (The Guardian, 2023)
Three artworks believed stolen during the Holocaust from a Jewish art collector and entertainer have been seized from museums in three different states by New York law enforcement authorities.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Fashion’s unseen stories: the homeworkers of Tirupur – in pictures - The Guardian (The Guardian, 2023)
Homeworkers in an all-female cooperative in Tirupur, Tamil Nadu – known as India’s knitwear capital – took part in a photography project where they were given cameras to document their work. All the women belong to the Anukatham union, which is fighting for recognition by the Tamil Nadu government, as well as better wages and conditions
India
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Art and design; Fashion; Garment workers; Global development; India; Photography; Society; South and central Asia; Women; World news

New equipment enhances health data management in war-affected regions of Ukraine - World Health Organization (World Health Organization, 2023)
WHO has donated essential information technology equipment to Ukraine in a bid to bolster health data management in the country’s most conflict-affected regions.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Bangladesh court jails prominent rights activists for two years - Al Jazeera; News Agency (Al Jazeera, 2023)
Adilur Rahman Khan and Nasiruddin Elan of Odhikar group documented extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.
Bangladesh
Keywords: 2023-09 September

International Criminal Court Opens Field Office in Kyiv To Track Russian War Crimes - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, 2023)
The International Criminal Court (ICC) had opened a field office in Kyiv as part of efforts to hold Russian forces accountable for potential war crimes committed during it's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Texas was state with most book bans in 2022, report shows - Salam, Erum (The Guardian, 2023)
Number of book challenges nationwide doubled from 2021 as book ban movement gathers speed in Republican-led states.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Books; LGBTQ+ rights; Race; Republicans; Texas; US education; US news

Mexico is criminalizing land, territory and environmental defenders - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
The disproportionate use of criminal law is one of the main threats facing the right to protest peacefully in defense of land, territory and environment in Mexico, Amnesty International said today upon publishing a new report. Mexico: Land and Freedom? Criminalizing defenders of land, territory and environment documents the disproportionate use of the justice system to deter, punish and prevent defenders from protesting in demand of their rights.
Mexico
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Chilón; Colonia Maya; Land Defenders; Sitilpech; Zacatepec

United Nations Targeted by Allegations of Complicity with the Assad Regime - Insecurity Insight (ReliefWeb, 2023)
The brief highlights viral allegations claiming that the UN is part of an operation to hand over Syrian dissidents and refugees to the regime in Damascus.
Syrian Arab Republic
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Unmasked: Soldiers who 'enabled' mass torture at Ukrainian school - Krasteva, Gergana (Metro, 2023)
Dozens of men from military units under Russia’s command were unmasked as ‘enablers’ of unspeakable war crimes in eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Russian Federation; War Crimes

An emblematic documentary salvaged during Chile's dictatorship has been restored - Nájera, Jacobo (Global Voices, 2023)
How a group of people took coordinated action to safeguard the tapes of the Chilean documentary "The Battle of Chile, the Struggle of an Unarmed People."
Chile
Keywords: 2023-09 September

The US can rebuild trust abroad – by declassifying incriminating intelligence - Adler, David; Rebik, Misty (The Guardian, 2023)
But the United States can only secure cooperation if it builds from a foundation of trust – and that trust can only be won through transparency about the past actions of the US government that continue to haunt our neighbors.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Americas; Augusto Pinochet; CIA; Chile; Foreign policy; Richard Nixon; US foreign policy; US news

‘Illicit 6’ a threat to information sharing with foreign intelligence bodies - Edmond Campbell (Jamaica Gleaner, 2023)
The non-disclosure of the names of the six parliamentarians who are being investigated by the Integrity Commission (IC) for illicit enrichment could have a chilling effect on information sharing.
Jamaica
Keywords: 2023-09 September

‘Shut it all down’: UK legacy bill threatens Troubles-era atrocity inquests - Greene, Tommy (Al Jazeera, 2023)
Al Jazeera speaks to families who may not get justice after the UK adopts bill shutting down the Troubles inquests.
United Kingdom
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Civil War; Ireland

“If We Raise Our Voice They Arrest Us” - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
The 39-page report, “‘If We Raise Our Voice They Arrest Us’: Sri Lanka’s Proposed Truth and Reconciliation Commission,” documents abusive security force surveillance and intimidation of activists and campaigners from minority Tamil families of those who “disappeared” during Sri Lanka’s civil war. The authorities are using draconian counterterrorism laws to silence dissenting voices, including those calling for truth and accountability, while government-backed land grabs target Tamil and Muslim communities and their places of worship.
Sri Lanka
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Chile marks 50 years since Pinochet’s brutal coup - McGowan, Charis (Al Jazeera, 2023)
A half-century on, the country struggles with revisionism and denial as survivors continue their quest for justice.
Chile
Keywords: 2023-09 September; anniversary; dictatorship; forced disappearance

Republican senator says top federal officials should disclose medical records - Yang, Maya (The Guardian, 2023)
Suggestion comes after the competence of several legislators – both Democrat and Republican – has come into question
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Ageing; Democrats; Dianne Feinstein; Joe Biden; Nancy Pelosi; Republicans; US Congress; US news; US politics

The story of Qatari women’s rights defender Noof Al-Maadeed - Ibrahim, Khalid (Global Voices, 2023)
Human rights defender Noof Al-Madeed disappeared after releasing a series of videos in March providing evidence of violations of her civil and human rights by the Qatari State security apparatus.
Qatar
Keywords: 2023-09 September

MPs express anger after arrest of parliamentary researcher over alleged spying for China - Walker, Peter; Stacey, Kiran; Sabbagh, Dan (The Guardian, 2023)
Man is known to have had unescorted access to large parts of the Westminster estate.
United Kingdom
Keywords: 2023-09 September; China; UK news; World news

Coco Chanel exhibition reveals fashion designer was part of French resistance - Cartner-Morley, Jess (The Guardian, 2023)
A major retrospective of Coco Chanel has unearthed evidence that the fashion designer was a documented member of the French resistance. The previously unseen documents will go on display, along with contradictory evidence that she operated as a Nazi agent.
France
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Chanel; Europe; Fashion; France; Life and style; Nazism; Second world war; World news

‘Those kids belong to somebody’: elders demand truth about unmarked Aboriginal graves - Collard, Sarah; Allam, Lorena; Sharp-Wiggins, Blake (The Guardian, 2023)
Terrible conditions at Western Australia’s missions led to devastating loss and trauma. Calls are growing to investigate hundreds of graves and burial sites
Australia
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Australia news; Indigenous Australians; Stolen generations; Western Australia

Vice Pulled a Documentary Critical of Saudi Arabia. But Here It Is. - Mazurov, Nikita (The Intercept, 2023)
Vice’s coverage on Saudi Arabia changed after investment deals with the repressive kingdom. A deleted documentary is not completely gone. However it can be seen thanks to the videoplayback link displayed in the article.
Saudi Arabia
Keywords: 2023-09 September

100 people executed as authorities continue relentless ‘killing spree’ - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
Responding to the news that Saudi Arabia has already executed 100 people this year, Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Director, said: “In clear contrast to Saudi Arabia’s repeated promises to limit its use of the death penalty, the Saudi authorities have already executed 100 people this year, revealing their chilling disregard for the right to life.
Saudi Arabia
Keywords: 2023-09 September

German intelligence employee and acquaintance charged with treason for passing secrets to Russia - Moulson, Geir (AP News, 2023)
Prosecutors say an employee of Germany’s foreign intelligence service and an acquaintance have been charged with treason for allegedly passing secret documents to Russia.
Germany
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Mexico’s Supreme Court Orders Federal Decriminalization of Abortion - Tamés, Regina; Quijano Carrasco, Cristina (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled this week that Congress must eliminate federal criminal penalties for abortion, which means all federal health facilities should provide abortion care, a massive victory for human rights.
Mexico
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Elon Musk’s X sues California over new social media transparency laws - The Guardian (The Guardian, 2023)
The company, formerly known as Twitter, argued an assembly bill violates its free speech rights under the first amendment.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; California; Elon Musk; Internet; Media; US news; X (formerly known as Twitter)

Israel Declassifies Massive Archive To Mark 50th Anniversary of Yom Kippur War - Poris, Aaron (The Media Line, 2023)
Israeli history comes alive today like never before as the Israel State Archives releases thousands of documents related to the 1973 Yom Kippur War, including materials from the months leading up to and following the conflict. Most of these materials, previously confidential, have been examined, scanned, and made accessible in a new smart digital format that uses Google’s search technology.
Israel
Keywords: 2023-09 September

China's concerning new strategy on human rights: unite the world behind a 'selective' approach - Roberts, Geoffrey (The Conversation, 2023)
China is seeking not merely to resist but to dismantle a foundational idea of the post-Cold War international order – the universality of human rights.
China
Keywords: 2023-09 September

UK government concedes on Online Safety Bill's controversial spy clause, companies optimistic - Tar, Julia (Euractiv, 2023)
Following concessions on the UK’s Online Safety Bill, the government has conceded that their controversial wish for platforms to scan messages for harmful content, is not “technically feasible”, leaving tech companies hopeful it will not be enforced.
United Kingdom
Keywords: 2023-09 September

The Catholic Church defended human rights during Chile’s dictatorship. An archive tells the story - The Associated Press; Hernández, Maria Teresa (Toronto Star, 2023)
Dozens of shelves preserve an archive that gives account of a painful episode in Chile’s history: 47,000 instances of human rights violations during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
Chile
Keywords: 2023-09 September

‘Vastly worse than other scandals’: new film explores sexual abuse in Boy Scouts - Horton, Adrian (The Guardian, 2023)
In a Netflix documentary, survivors of sexual abuse and the whistleblower who spoke out share harrowing testimonies
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Culture; Documentary films; Film; Netflix

Accountability key to Sri Lanka’s future - United Nations (UN News, 2023)
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) on Wednesday emphasized the pressing need for Sri Lanka to address its accountability deficit, ranging from war crimes to rights violations, corruption and abuse of power.
Sri Lanka
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Germany matches DNA from skulls stolen from African colony to living relatives - Agence France-Presse (The Guardian, 2023)
Remains pillaged in colonial era for ‘scientific’ experiments are DNA matched to Tanzanian descendants
Tanzania, United Republic of
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Africa; Colonialism; Europe; Genetics; Germany; Museums; Tanzania; World news

How US immigration uses fake social media profiles across investigations - Bhuiyan, Johana; Levin, Sam (The Guardian, 2023)
Records from the Department of Homeland Security show it sought to expand undercover operations online despite pushback from Facebook.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Biden administration; Facebook; Meta; Social media; Social networking; Surveillance; Technology; Trump administration; US immigration; US news

Manchester Museum hands back 174 objects to Indigenous Australian islanders - Brown, Mark; correspondent, Mark Brown North of England (The Guardian, 2023)
Return of items to Anindilyakwa community hailed as landmark example of cultural repatriation
Australia
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Australia news; Culture; England; Indigenous Australians; Indigenous peoples; Manchester; Museums; UK news

Attack on Freedoms Targets LGBTI People - Human Rights Watch; Coalition to Defend Freedom of Expression in Lebanon (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
Lebanese authorities are systematically attacking the fundamental human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) people, the Coalition to Defend Freedom of Expression in Lebanon, comprised of fifteen Lebanese and international organizations, said today.
Lebanon
Keywords: 2023-09 September

The US election campaign heats up, so could the market for misinformation - Paul, Kari (The Guardian, 2023)
Twitter is not the only platform inviting political adverts back, as tech giants from Meta to YouTube compete for marketing money and eyeballs.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Advertising; Artificial intelligence (AI); Donald Trump; Elon Musk; Internet; Media; Meta; Technology; US elections 2024; US news; US politics; X (formerly known as Twitter); YouTube

Germany Sees More Aggressive Russian Disinformation Campaigns Since Invasion Of Ukraine - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, 2023)
Germany
Keywords: 2023-09 September

War Crimes Trial Opens For Bosnian Serbs Accused Of Rapes, Torture At Prison Camps During 1992-95 War - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, 2023)
The Prosecutor-General’s Office in the indictment said it has statements from 180 witnesses, including three experts, and has submitted more than 900 pieces of evidence.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Slovak elections: How platforms counter political misinformation under DSA - Zmušková, Barbara; Hartmann, Théophane (Euractiv, 2023)
Slovak voted on 30 September, the first to take place since the EU's DSA enforcement which obliges social media platforms to combat electoral manipulation.
Slovakia
Keywords: 2023-09 September

State-backed disinformation fuelling anger in China over Fukushima water - Davidson, Helen (The Guardian, 2023)
Reports of abusive behaviour towards Japanese citizens in China in response to wastewater release at nuclear site.
China
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Asia Pacific; China; Energy; Environment; Fukushima; Japan; Japan disaster; Nuclear power; Nuclear waste; World news

Twitter accused of helping Saudi Arabia commit human rights abuses - Kirchgaessner, Stephanie (The Guardian, 2023)
Lawsuit says network discloses user data at request of Saudi authorities at much higher rate than for US, UK and Canada
Saudi Arabia
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Saudi Arabia; Technology; US foreign policy; US news; World news; X (formerly known as Twitter)

Holocaust Ground Zero review – it is the unfathomable suffering that stays with you - Mangan, Lucy (The Guardian, 2023)
This distressing documentary outlines in a clear and accessible way the beginning of the mass execution of Jews under Hitler’s regime.
Germany
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Culture; Europe; Holocaust; Nazism; Second world war; Television & radio; Ukraine

‘It’s dangerous work’: new generation of Indigenous activists battle to save the Amazon - Phillips, Tom (The Guardian, 2023)
Campaigners in Brazil use drones to document work of self-defence teams trying to stop environmental destruction caused by illegal mining.
Brazil
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Amazon rainforest; Americas; Brazil; Conservation; Deforestation; Environment; Indigenous peoples; Mining; Trees and forests; World news

In Russia, authorities filter information and algorithms help them - Holod.Media (Global Voices, 2023)
Social networks want their users to spend more time on their platforms, to leave a more extensive digital footprint that can be used for various purposes.
Russian Federation
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Defriending Canada: Natural Disasters and Facebook’s Information Scrub - Kampmark, Binoy (International Policy Digest, 2023)
Canada has learned, much like Australia several years ago, that Facebook is willing to play hardball to scuttle legislation it doesn't like.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Russian Taxi Law Requiring Companies To Share Data With FSB Goes Into Effect - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, 2023)
A law requiring taxi companies to provide the Federal Security Service (FSB) with data on riders' trips has come into force.
Russian Federation
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Kremlin’s propaganda film about Ukraine war plays to empty cinemas - Sauer, Pjotr (The Observer, 2023)
The box-office flop, about a fictional violinist who gets caught up in the atrocities, is further evidence that Russians want to forget about the invasion.
Russian Federation
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Culture; Film; Russia; Ukraine; World news

Home Office secretly lobbied for facial recognition ‘spy’ company - Townsend, Mark (The Observer, 2023)
Officials reflected policing minister’s enthusiasm to roll out controversial technology across the country, particularly in retail settings
United Kingdom
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Chris Philp; Facial recognition; Home Office; Police; Politics; Surveillance; Technology; UK news

Architects look to Warsaw for lessons on rebuilding Ukraine from rubble - Walker, Shaun (The Guardian, 2023)
An exhibition highlights the Polish city’s innovative reconstruction effort after the second world war.
Poland
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Architecture; Cities; Europe; Poland; Ukraine; World news

New York plan to monitor Labor Day parties with drones prompts outcry - Yang, Maya (The Guardian, 2023)
Police accused of playing ‘fast and loose’ with New Yorkers’ rights to due process and to freely hold peaceful gatherings
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; NYPD; New York; US crime; US news; US policing; World news

Online News Act could see Google, Meta pay combined $234 million to Canadian media - Deschamps, Tara (CBC News, 2023)
The federal government has put a price tag on what it would like to see Google and Facebook spend under an act requiring the tech giants to compensate media for news articles.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Indigenous Matters

Liquidation of the SOVA Center for Information and Analysis - International Federation of Human Rights (International Federation for Human Rights, 2023)
The Observatory has been informed about the arbitrary dissolution of the SOVA Center for Information and Analysis (SOVA Center), a Moscow-based human rights organisation specialised in monitoring of hate crimes, nationalism, xenophobia and racism, freedom of religion and belief, as well as anti-extremism legislation.
Russian Federation
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Q & A: Why US advocates want more power to probe Indigenous boarding schools - Stepansky, Joseph (Al Jazeera, 2023)
Ben Barnes, chief of the Shawnee Tribe, tells Al Jazeera that advocates do not want the truth ‘sifted through a sieve’. Starting from around 1819 and continuing through the 1960s, generations of Indigenous children were separated from their families and sent to the institutions, run by government or missionary organisations. Washington released the results of a first-of-its-kind investigation into the boarding schools and their policies.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Boarding schools; Forced child removal; Shawnee Tribe

Sixty years of sound: The cassette’s past, present and future in Egypt - Simon, Andrew (Al Jazeera, 2023)
On its birthday, Al Jazeera looks beyond the cassette’s invention in Europe and at its life in Egypt. Adawiya, Imam and Kishk used the technology to circumvent censorship and reach a mass audience in the absence of Egyptian radio, which came under state control in 1934 and refused to give them airtime.
Egypt
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Canada kept vast documents with the Chinese Exclusion Act. So why couldn't I find my great-grandpa? - Wong, Teresa (CBC News, 2023)
When Teresa Wong went looking for information on her great-grandpa, she was surprised by what she couldn’t find — and what she discovered in herself.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-09 September

The Power of Documenting War Crimes — and How to Do It - Villa, Santiago (Global Investigative Journalism Network, 2023)
Reporting on war crimes is essential in building the proof that opens the door to accountability, but it also goes further, by preserving and protecting a society’s memory and dignity.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-09 September

A flood of misinformation about migrants in Lampedusa - Galle-Tessonneau, Elise (The Observers - France 24, 2023)
Thousands of individuals, predominantly from sub-Saharan Africa, have recently arrived on the small Italian island of Lampedusa, reigniting the discussion on the EU and European states' approach to handling…
Europe
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Misinformation

Harmful ‘Prostitution’ Resolution Passes - Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
The European Parliament passed a resolution against “prostitution” on September 14, 2023, but removed some of its most harmful parts, Human Rights Watch said today. Parliament adopted a non-binding report. Regulation of Prostitution in the EU: Its Cross-Border Implications and Impact on Gender Equality and Women’s Rights, but rejected “calls for an EU-wide approach based on the Nordic/Equality model.”
Europe
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Rights expert appeals for action to tackle elder abuse - UN Human Rights Council (UN News, 2023)
A UN-appointed human rights expert on Friday called for urgent action and better data to stamp out the widespread problem of elder abuse.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-09 September

The Sámi people’s struggles to preserve their tradition - Euro News (euronews, 2023)
Europe's only indigenous people are demanding their rights in Brussels, which are threatened by the ecological transition and the lack of EU policies.
Europe
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Hong Kong's top court ruling paves way for recognition of same-sex partnerships - Le Monde; Associated Press (Le Monde.fr, 2023)
The court declared that the government must establish a legal framework for recognizing same-sex partnerships, marking a significant milestone for LGBTQ+ rights in the city.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-09 September

People of African descent facing ‘immense challenges’ in public square - UN OCHCR (UN News, 2023)
Members of the African diaspora continue to face immense challenges participating in public life in many countries, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) said in a new report on Tuesday.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Opinion: De-dollarisation is the new decolonisation - Lo, Alex (South China Morning Post, 2023)
Opinion: Everyone, whether America’s vassals or enemies, needs to move away from the dollar when their greenback-denominated assets can be taken from them on Washington’s say-so.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Opinion: The global human rights regime has collapsed - Guesmi, Haythem (Al Jazeera, 2023)
Opinion: Amid a climate emergency, seemingly endless conflict, and consequent refugee crises, the glaring absence of an effective global strategy to safeguard the most fundamental rights of impoverished and marginalised populations across the world has made it clear that the concept of “human rights”, as sacralised by the liberal West, has lost all meaning and purpose – for everyone, but especially for those of us in the Global South.
Worldwide
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Mapping Africa’s coups d’etat across the years - AJLabs (AlJazeera, 2023)
Majority of the world’s coups in Africa with at least 106 coups across Africa since 1950 and 108 unsuccessful attempts.
Africa
Keywords: 2023-09 September

Exhibition - Photographs that shaped the urban landscape - BBC News (BBC News, 2023)
Images of the often brutal urban landscapes of late 1960s Britain - captured by photographers working for the Architectural Review - can now be seen at the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in London until 24 February 2024, at RIBA Architecture Gallery in Portland Place, London.
United Kingdom
Keywords: 2023-09 September; Architecture; Urban Planning

Cultural appropriation and the erasure of cultural diversity - Pita Vaca, Irene Mairemí; Collazos Gottret, Isabel (Global Voices, 2023)
Cultural appropriation is a sensitive topic, prone to endless misinterpretations, because it touches the heart of who we are: a mixture of cultures difficult to unravel. Questioning “the cultural” in Bolivia provokes resistance, due to its strong intimate and identity component and, above all, because we do not know the histories of the cultures that surround us.
Bolivia, Plurinational State of
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Genocide; Holocaust

Even in a democracy like Canada, journalists often face efforts to keep information from the public - Fenlon, Brodie (CBC News, 2023)
Media spend time and money fighting lack of access, publication bans, secret trials.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Democracy

UN experts demand information on nine imprisoned human rights defenders - UN News (UN News, 2023)
UN-appointed independent rights experts have called on the Chinese Government to provide information about nine Tibetan human rights defenders serving prisoner sentences of up to 11 years.
China
Keywords: 2023-08 August

PQ to table legislation seeking expenses of No campaign during 1995 referendum - Denoncourt, Jean-Philippe; Canadian Press (Montreal Gazette, 2023)
The result of the referendum was so close that supporters have often accused the No side of having bent the rules on campaign financing.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Fraud; Quebec; Referendum

LGBTQ+ veterans file civil rights suit against Pentagon over discriminatory discharges - Kegu, Jessica; Axelrod, Jim; Samu, Shewna (CBS News, 2023)
A group of LGBTQ+ veterans who were kicked out of the military because of their sexual orientation filed a federal civil rights suit on Tuesday over the Defense Department's failure to grant them honorable discharges or remove biased language specifying their sexuality from their service records following the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" in 2010.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Class action; Veterans

Restitution of human remains: Repairing the mistakes of the past - Le Monde (Le Monde.fr, 2023)
French lawmakers are working on a bill that would facilitate the return of human remains, which would help repair the damage caused by colonization. But sorting through the thousands of remains in national collections will require far greater human resources.
France
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Decolonization

Public Data Getting Harder to Find in Mexico, Civil Rights Group Says - Reuters (US News & World Report, 2023)
Public information in Mexico is becoming more difficult to access under President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Mexicans Against Corruption and Impunity (MCCI) said on Wednesday as it showed that scores of government databases are no longer updated.
Mexico
Keywords: 2023-08 August

How indigenous conservation protects Canada's environment - Walker, Kira (BBC News, 2023)
In Canada, centring conservation with the country's indigenous peoples is allowing its original stewards to reconnect to their land and culture – and proving remarkably effective.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Algonquin First Nation; Cultural; Environment; Environment and Land Defender; Human Rights Defenders; Indigenous Guardians; Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg

Secret Canada: We broke the printer twice - Carduso, Tom (The Globe and Mail, 2023)
Updates on the latest additions to the Secret Canada database, plus a behind-the-scenes look at the process of filing 400 FOI requests
Canada
Keywords: 2023-08 August; FOI; Freedom of Information; Health & Medical; Social Issues

‘Dependent on the forest’: The fight for indigenous peoples’ rights in the Congo Basin - Gabel, Barbara (France 24, 2023)
The tropical forests of the Congo Basin are home to nearly 1 million indigenous people. After thousands of years of survival, deforestation is perhaps their biggest challenge yet.
Congo, Democratic Republic of the
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Descendants ask for restitution of Paris human zoo victims: 'People died, where are they?' - Guibert, Nathalie (Le Monde, 2023)
The bodies of eight Kalina people from French Guiana who died in 1892 are held in national collections. Their remains could be returned to their homeland, as the French government has pledged to facilitate restitutions to overseas territories.
France
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Decolonization; French Guiana; Kalina; Reparation; Restitution

Medical exploitation of Black people in America goes far beyond the cells stolen from Henrietta Lacks that produced modern day miracles - Hawkins, Deion Scott (The Conversation, 2023)
Medical exploitation is an often overlooked part of Black history and partly explains the mistrust that members of the Black community have for the medical industry.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Black American; Henrietta Lacks

Norway faces the difficult past (and present) of its treatment of indigenous peoples - Malinowski, Henryk (TVP World (Telewizja Polska), 2023)
A report by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission may be an opportunity to repair the relations with the Indigenous peoples.
Norway
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Forest Finns; Kven; Norwegian Finns; Sámi; Truth and Reconcilation Commission - Norway

Where did 20,000 Jews hide from the Holocaust? In Shanghai - Schuerman, Matthew (NPR, 2023)
In the late 1930s, as the Nazis stepped up their persecution of German and Austrian Jews, many countries in the West severely limited the number of visas they granted to refugees. But there was one place refugees could go without even obtaining a visa: Shanghai. An exhibit in New York explores a little-known chapter of World War II.
China
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Holocaust; Shangai

Jordan's free speech boundaries tested with satire - Knell, Yolande (BBC News, 2023)
An Arabic magazine banned by Jordan for poking fun at a royal wedding hits back with ridicule.
Jordan
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Freedom of the Press; Satire

The Herculean task of digitizing Mexico’s vast Indigenous history - Thelmadatter, Leigh (Mexico News Daily, 2023)
The National Institute of Indigenous Peoples faces a monumental challenge: preserving over a century of documentation before it deteriorates.
Mexico
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Digitization; Preservation

National archives to digitize, transfer 6 million pages of Indian day school records, official says | CBC News - Forester, Brett (CBC News, 2023)
Canada's national archives is working to identify, digitize and transfer six million pages of federal Indian day school records to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR), the department head says.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Digitization; Library and Archives Canada; National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR); Reconciliation; Truth and Reconciliation Commission - Canada

New Project Will Recover the Names of Up to 10 Million People Enslaved in America Before Emancipation and Locate their Living Descendants - American Ancestors (Cision PR Newswire, 2023)
American Ancestors and Collaborators Announce the Launch of "10 Million Names," a Project to Honor the Family Histories of African Americans Whose Ancestors Lived Under Slavery, with a Permanent, Free, Publicly Accessible Database at 10MillionNames.org
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Ancient DNA reveals the living descendants of enslaved people through 23andMe - Callaway, Ewen (Nature, 2023)
A landmark genomic study raises the possibility that many more people could find links to distant ancestors through genetic analysis.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Databases; Genetics; History

International group working to identify Russian forces that carried out grisly war crimes on Kherson prisoners - Macias, Amanda (CNBC, 2023)
According to new evidence gathered by the investigation, at least 36 victims described the use of electrocution during interrogations of Kherson prisoners.
Ukraine
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Kherson; Russian Army; Russian Federation; War Crimes

Pakistan: Training journalists on fact-checking in a humanitarian crisis - International Committee of the Red Cross (International Committee of the Red Cross, 2023)
Factual and responsible reporting by the media can help affected communities cope better by enhancing their knowledge, connecting them with first responders, highlighting their needs and providing access to authorities.
Pakistan
Keywords: 2023-08 August

‘Denying our humanity’: how Santa Monica decimated a thriving Black community - Levin, Sam (The Guardian, 2023)
African Americans helped build the iconic beach town, historian Alison Rose Jefferson details as California weighs reparations.
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-08 August; California; California reparations; Race; US news

Declassified protocols indicate Golda Meir considered Palestinian statehood - Staff, Toi (The Times of Israel, 2023)
Documents show that former prime minister gave serious thought to possibility of formation of a Palestinian entity, despite public comments.
Israel
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Golda Meir; Palestine; Palestinian Statehood

Lebanon: Comedian Arrested for Critical Jokes - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
Lebanese authorities’ arrest and investigation of prominent comedian Nour Hajjar, solely in retaliation for his jokes, represents a new escalation in Lebanon’s crackdown on public criticism, the Coalition to Defend Freedom of Expression in Lebanon of which Amnesty International is a member, said today.
Lebanon
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Pierre Elliott Trudeau had a secret unit to spy on Quebec separatists - Serebrin, Jacob (DayFR Euro, 2023)
According to an article that has just been published in English in an academic journal, Prime Minister Trudeau’s office created an espionage unit in the 1970s to monitor Quebec sovereignists. The firm had also asked the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to pass on information to it – a request the defunct RCMP security service reportedly resisted.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Ugandan authorities must drop charges in death penalty case under Anti-Homosexuality Act - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
It is deeply disturbing that the Ugandan authorities are prosecuting people based on their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.
Uganda
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Decades After Dictatorship, Chile Mounts Search for Hundreds Who Vanished - Bonnefoy, Pascale (The New York Times, 2023)
President Gabriel Boric is announcing a new national search plan ahead of the 50th anniversary of the coup that toppled the government and led to the disappearance and killing of thousands.
Chile
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Association of Relatives of the Disappeared; Bones; Boric; Gabriel; Chile; Coups D'Etat and Attempted Coups D'Etat; DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid); Defense and Military Forces; Detainees; Fernando Ortiz; Human Rights and Human Rights Violations; Kidnapping and Hostages; Latin America; Missing Persons; Murders; Attempted Murders and Homicides; Pinochet Ugarte; Augusto; Political Prisoners; Politics and Government; Suits and Litigation (Civil); Torture

Australia to head to polls in October as PM confirms Voice referendum date - Morse, Callan; Cross, Jarred (National Indigenous Times, 2023)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed the date of the upcoming Voice to parliament referendum, announcing the vote will be held on October 14. Australians will head to the referendum polls for the first time in 24 years on the second Saturday in October to decide whether to enshrine an Indigenous Voice in Australia's constitution.
Australia
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Government; Indigenous Australians; Indigenous Matters

Indigenous Voice to Parliament vote set in Australia - The Associated Press (ICT News, 2023)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the referendum date, triggering just over six weeks of intensifying campaigning by both sides of the argument
Australia
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Mexico: Rights experts ‘outraged’ over attacks on women activists - UN News (UN News, 2023)
A group of UN independent human rights experts on Wednesday urged the Government of Mexico to investigate and prosecute those who attack and kill women activists searching for their missing relatives. |
Mexico
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Arbitrary detentions continue in Venezuela - Amnesty International (Amnesty International, 2023)
Venezuela: Arbitrary detentions continue as a tool of government control and repression. In the new report, Life detained: Politically motivated arbitrary detentions continue in Venezuela Amnesty International denounces the Nicolás Maduro.
Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
Keywords: 2023-08 August

Saudi Arabia: Man Sentenced to Death for Tweets - Human Right Watch (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
A Saudi court has sentenced a man to death based solely on his Twitter and YouTube activity.
Saudi Arabia
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Human Rights

93 possible unmarked graves discovered at former Beauval residential school - Paradis, Danielle (APTN, 2023)
English River First Nation in Saskatchewan announced Tuesday it has discovered nearly 100 potential unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school.
Canada
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Child abuse; Child death; English River First Nation; Residential Schools; Saskatchewan

Little space for dissent as Algeria sends researcher, journalist to jail - Simon Speakman Cordall (Al Jazeera, 2023)
Canadian-Algerian researcher among those sentenced for ‘publishing sensitive information’.
Algeria
Keywords: 2023-08 August; 2023-09 September

Under Pressure From Progressives, US Declassifies Documents Related to Chile Coup - Johnson, Jake (Common Dreams, 2023)
"Huge congratulations to the U.S. members who made this call from the delegation, and to all those who have fought like hell to declassify these files and bring justice for the bloody crimes of September 1973."
United States of America
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Chile; Declassification; Dictatorship; Pinochet

France further relaxes access to archives from brutal Algerian war - Agence France-Presse; euronews (euronews, 2023)
Cases of abuse and killings involving minors will now be open to further scrutiny after decades of campaigning.
France
Keywords: 2023-08 August; Algeria

President of Guyana demands slavery reparations ahead of apology from plantation owner descendants - Wilkinson, Bert; Associated Press (CityNews Toronto, 2023)
Guyana president Irfaan Ali on Thursday lashed out at the descendants of European slave traders, saying those who profited from the cruel, trans-Atlantic slave trade should offer to pay reparations to today’s generations.
Guyana
Keywords: 2023-08 August