Hazardous child labour is a significant and ongoing issue for chocolate manufacturers. In September 2001, some of the biggest companies in the cocoa industry signed the Harkin-Engel Protocol and pledged to abolish the use of exploitative child labour. Almost twenty years later, the use of child labour is still rampant
On 10 November, it was reported by Reuters that a young woman was attacked as she left her job at a police station in Afghanistan’s central Ghazni Province. 33-year-old Khatera, who goes by only one name, was shot at and stabbed in the eyes with a knife. “I asked the
The United Nations has denounced the recent military coup in Mali, which saw the forced resignation of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta after he was detained by soldiers on Tuesday. Wearing a face mask amid the coronavirus pandemic, Mr. Keïta resigned in a televised address to the nation. He asked, “If
On 24 June, the head of Kabul’s negotiation team, Abdullah Abdullah expressed concern over an increase in violence by the Taliban, stating that it presents a challenge in starting peace talks with the group. This development follows a week during which hundreds of security force personnel have been killed in
On 15th of June, the United Nations removed Saudi forces from their annual blacklist of parties who have violated children’s rights. The decision came as a shock to many, given the UN’s own investigators found that there were hundreds of children who were killed or injured last year in Saudi
Pride Month is usually a time for celebration and reflection. However, this year’s gay Pride is happening in the middle of a global health crisis and civil unrest. As worldwide protests against systemic racism and police brutality are taking place, several LGBTQ organizations are refocusing their Pride events in alignment
On 25 May in Minneapolis at around 8 pm, the police were called on an unarmed black man whose name many have become familiar with – George Floyd. The next 8 minutes and 46 seconds of his life would be his last. Millions have watched the footage of Floyd pleading
What do Taiwan, Germany, Finland and New Zealand all have in common? They are run by women. Add in Iceland, Norway and Denmark and you could say that there is evidence that female leaders are tackling the ongoing coronavirus crisis better than their male counterparts. Since the beginning of the pandemic,
In a report released in March this year by Human Rights Watch, it was found that the Egyptian police, National Security Agency and military officials have been arbitrarily arresting and torturing children while prosecutors and judges turn a blind eye. In the 43-page report, the rights group has documented violations
On March 13, Breonna Taylor was killed by Louisville police. As the 26-year-old EMT and her boyfriend slept in their apartment, Louisville police burst into their home guns blazing, without warning in search of a suspect who was already in their custody. Taylor was shot eight times. Police claim that
On 7 May 2020, it was reported that at least 11 people have been confirmed dead and hundreds more hospitalized following a deadly explosion at an LG Polymers plant in India. The incident occurred near a village with a population of at least 3,000 on the outskirts of the city
It is no secret that sexual violence is widely used as a weapon of war. Rape has been deployed in conflicts throughout history as a form of psychological warfare intended to punish, intimidate, and destroy whole communities. Inge Skjelsbæk, professor at PRIO has said that over time, discourse has shifted
On Monday 20 April 2020, Human Rights Watch called for an immediate investigation following the execution of 31 unarmed detainees by Burkina Faso’s security forces in the northern town of Djibo, approximately 200 kilometres north of the capital Ouagadougou. The men, all from the Fulani ethnic group, were allegedly killed
The lockdowns and self-isolation orders imposed by governments around the world have proven to slow the spread of COVID-19. However, the dark reality is that the kafala system still traps many of the African and Asian migrant domestic workers in the Middle East. As the number of coronavirus cases rises,
In a bid to tackle the increasingly rapid spread of coronavirus, Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe is anticipated to declare a state of emergency in Tokyo and six other regions. In comparison to countries such as the U.S., Italy, and Spain, Japan has a relatively small number of outbreaks. Initially,
