Seoul Demands Release Of Tanker Seized By Iran
At the beginning of January, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps seized a South Korean tanker in Gulf waters and detained its crew. The incident comes amid rising tensions between Iran and South Korea concerning Iranian oil assets that were frozen in South Korean banks as a result of U.S. sanctions against
The Humanitarian Cost Of Trumpism
“Has ambition so eclipsed principle?” A pertinent, and increasingly unfathomable, question currently being asked by many, both within the US political system and without.
The Lessons of the Trump Presidency and the U.S. Nuclear Posture
The events on Capitol Hill on January 6, during the ongoing Congressional certification of President-Elect Joe Biden’s November election victory, stirred dismay across the world. Lieutenant General S. Clinton Hinote, a Deputy Chief of Staff at the U.S. Air Force, likened the chaotic storming of Washington’s iconic seat of power
Israel As A Settler-Colonial State
When creating a Jewish state, Israel aimed to have a Jewish-majority demographic and displaced the Palestinian population; from this perspective, Israel-Palestine can be considered a settler-colonial society. However, in current times, the conflict has hardened into a clash of nationalisms paradigm, as Israel has already settler-colonized the area and now
Poverty As A Social Policy Domain: The Intersections Between Income Inequality, Housing And Health In New Zealand
Poverty has been a significant issue in New Zealand for decades. Both Jacinda Ardern and John Key pledged to make child poverty a key focus when they campaigned to be in government. Multiple charities such as KidsCan were created to cater for lower income families and their special needs. It
South Asian Governments Consider The Death Penalty As Punishment For Sexual Violence
In a video released on December 17th, 2020, Human Rights Watch stated that South Asian governments should accept the advice of their experts and ignore “populist death penalty rhetoric” in order to stop sexual violence against women. There have been several high-profile sexual violence cases in South Asia, provoking comments
Iraq’s Positive Step Towards Justice For Child Soldiers
Iraq has taken positive steps and a human rights approach towards the release and treatment of children suspected to have ties to ISIS. Special committees have been formed to discuss the cases of numerous children held in detention centres in Iraq. These committees are said to be complying with international
Bangladesh Begins Relocation Of Rohingya Refugees
In the Bay of Bengal, authorities in Bangladesh relocated approximately 1,500 Rohingya refugees to a remote island, Bhasan Char. However, the relocation drew criticism from international human rights organizations. The Rohingya, a predominantly Muslim people, are highly persecuted and are stateless. The group is denied citizenship in their native Myanmar,
The Role Of Public Opinion In Normalizing Israeli-Arab Ties
A series of moves have taken place this past year by governments hailing from North Africa and the Middle East (otherwise known as MENA) in pursuit of formally normalizing diplomatic relations with Israel. Often professed by the Trump administration as representing something along the lines of a flagship development in
Pro-Kurdish Former Lawmaker Imprisoned On Terrorism Charges, Growing Concerns Over Turkey’s Violations of Rights and Freedoms
On Monday 21st of December, a Turkish court sentenced former Kurdish lawmaker Leyla Guven to more than twenty-two years in jail for three separate terrorism charges. The sentencing of Guven highlighted a growing concern over Turkey’s violations of fundamental freedoms and rights. In June, Guven of the Peoples’ Democratic Party
Targeted Killings Of Journalists in 2020: Taking A Closer Look At Mexico
At least 30 journalists were murdered around the world in 2020 as a result of their work, more than double the number from the previous year. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), 21 of those killed had been targeted in direct retaliation for their work, while others were
New Documents Uncover More About The Detention And Exploitation Of Uighurs, Other Minority Groups In Forced Labour And Re-education Camps in Xinjiang, China
In December 2020, the BBC published an extensive report about the forced manual labour of hundreds of thousands of Uighurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, China. Dr. Adrian Zenz, a senior fellow at the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation in Washington D.C., discovered documents revealing detention camps housing people
How To Better Abolish Modern Slavery
The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery was marked earlier this month on December 3rd as adopted by United Nations General Assembly. The day emphasizes the need to redouble our global effort to eradicate modern day slavery including human trafficking, sexual exploitation, child labour, forced marriage, and the use
Argentina Legalizes Abortion
Argentina entered the new year with the national legalization of abortion, making it the sixth and most populace Latin American country to decriminalize pregnancy termination. Argentina joined the relatively small group of pro-abortion countries in the primarily Catholic region of the world, abolishing section 86 of its 1921 criminal code
The Unresolved Maritime Boundary Dispute In The East And South China Seas
For the ninth year in a row, the Japanese Defense Ministry has requested for an increased defense budget, hitting an all-time high at $52 billion for planned military expenditures. The 2020 budget will see an 8.3% increase relative to 2019’s, according to CNN. Japan’s fast-track pace to increase the budget