Europe's Center-Right Faces Moment of Truth: Daily Brief
Europe's center-right faces moment of truth; Argentina moves closer to legalizing abortion; Migrant children abused by French border guards; Vietnamese government should stop using force against protesters; India should act on UN report on Kashmir; Key concerns for Hodeida battle in Yemen; World Cup's true heroes; Spain to remove anti-migrant razor wire in Melilla; and Poland's Supreme Court rules in favor of LGBT group.
The European People's Party - the major center-right grouping of political parties in Europe - is facing a moment of truth. Will it support the rise of authoritarian populism in Hungary and risk being consumed by it? Or will it stand up for its democratic principles?
After Ireland's abortion vote, it was Argentina's turn yesterday. The chamber of deputies approved a bill that would legalize abortion in the first 14 weeks of pregnancy, marking a historic victory for women's rights in the country. If the Senate also approves the bill, Argentina would become the third Latin American nation to make abortion legal, after Cuba and Uruguay.
Migrant children are being detained and abused by French border guards in the Italian border according to a new Oxfam report. The report documents that French police are actually sending minors back to Italy, violating both French and EU law.
Vietnam should halt unwarranted arrests and use of force against demonstrators who turned out throughout the country to protest long-term leases in special economic zones.
The Indian government should commit to acting immediately on findings by the first-ever report by the United Nations on human rights in Kashmir. The report expressed concern over impunity for human rights violations, lack of access to justice and the use of excessive force by Indian security forces in response to the protests that began in 2016, which civil society groups estimate killed as many as 145 people.
All parties to the conflict in Yemen should minimize civilian harm during military operations against the western port city of Hodeida. The Saudi-led coalition, backed by the United States, and Yemeni government-aligned forces, backed by the United Arab Emirates, stepped up attacks on Houthi forces controlling the port in June 2018.
As the World Cup kicks off, Minky Worden, our Director of Global Initiatives, reminds all football fans to bear in mind who the true heroes of the tournament are: the migrant workers who built stadiums under unacceptable conditions and the rights defenders and journalists who exposed them.
The razor-wire on the fences that separate Morocco from the Spanish territories of Ceuta and Melilla has caused severe injuries to migrants trying to climb them. Now, the new Spanish interior minister has expressed his aim to remove it.
And in Poland, the Supreme Court has ruled against a man who refused to print materials for an LGBT group because he did not want to "promote" their rights movement.