Military Atrocities in Burma: HRW Daily Brief

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has twice recently gone out of its way to undermine LGBT rights in the US. In one case, it defended a baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple. Rather than uphold non-discrimination protections LGBT people, the DOJ seems more concerned with chipping away at them. A bill that would very deliberately undermine the protections afforded under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) in the US could be voted on soon in Congress. But members of Congress should ensure that the rights of people with disabilities are not diminished. A recent scene from “The Force of Loving,” the most popular soap opera in Brazil, actually portrays a long-overdue achievement of the country's justice system. From earlier today: Rohingya Muslims fleeing security forces in Burma’s Rakhine State have described killings, shelling, and arson in their villages that have all the hallmarks of a campaign of ethnic cleansing. Upwards of 370,000 Rohingya have now fled Rakhine state for Bangladesh since the outbreak of violence last month. It's also emerged that Burma's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, is to miss next week's UN General Assembly debate as criticism of her handling of the Rohingya crisis grows. All children have the right to a safe education. But around the world, schools are being attacked or occupied by military forces and other armed groups, putting students at risk and denying children their right to education. 69 countries globally have now signed the Safe Schools Declaration, to help protect schools, but so far the UK hasn't, and it's time for that to change. As early as first grade, students in Saudi schools are being taught hatred towards those of different faiths, HRW said today, with the country's religious studies curriculum containing hateful and incendiary language. Dozens of civilians have been killed since Sunday in suspected Russian air strikes in eastern Syria, activists say.