In a move towards justice, the UN Human Rights Council has voted today on a resolution calling for an investigation into allegations of war crimes by all sides during the final months of Sri Lanka's civil war. Rather than ensuring justice to the conflict’s victims, Sri Lanka has launched an aggressive campaign against Sri Lankans who criticize the government.
Why was this vote so important? Just watch this video about the terrible abuses that happened at the end of the war.
However, not all countries on the UN Human Rights Commission voted in favor of holding Sri Lanka to account. Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines, for example, abstained from voting, while South Korea supported the move. Want more information? This website breaks down the voting record of all countries in the Human Rights Commission in detail.
Turkey’s government continues its battle against social media by ordering the closure of YouTube, much as it recently ordered Twitter shut down – all right before the country’s municipal elections. Yesterday, a court overturned Turkey’s ban on twitter, but people there still aren’t able to access the social media platform.
Hungary’s national elections are on April 6, but under a new constitution brought in by the current government, some Hungarian citizens with mental or intellectual disabilities continue to be denied the right to vote.
The United States should heed calls issued by an important UN human rights body to ensure that its surveillance activities are consistent with the right to privacy, both within and outside its borders.
Trade and the crisis in Ukraine are likely to dominate the agenda during US President Barack Obama’s first official visit to Brussels. But the European Union and Nato leaders also should use the summit to press Obama on ensuring that US operations against terrorist suspects, most often carried out by drones, comply with international law.
Former Soviet Block country Kyrgyzstan introduced an anti-gay bill similar to Russia’s.
