(2021-04-22). Ahead of crucial WTO meet, rights groups urge patent waiver on COVID-19 vaccines. peoplesdispatch.org 
The rich countries have opposed the proposal of a patent waiver for COVID-19 vaccines put forth by over 100 poorer countries, calling it harmful for the interests of drug companies…
(2021-04-22). Student leaders call on competition watchdog to take action over fee refunds. thecanary.co A group of students' unions have written to the competition watchdog, urging it to "take action to uphold students' rights" over tuition fees and rent payments amid the pandemic. | The open letter, backed by student leaders at 19 universities across the UK, calls on the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to help students asking for blanket fee refunds as a result of Covid-19 disruption. | It urges the regulator to address the "broken" complaints process for students claiming refunds, and help advise students on their ability to withhold fee payments "if they have lost out" due to the pandemic. | The letter,…
(2021-04-22). Maduro's Administration Present at the Ibero-American Summit: Delcy Rodríguez Asks that Venezuelan Funds Be Unblocked and Responds to Colombia's Duque. orinocotribune.com 
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela participated at the XXVII Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government, which took place in an online conference this Wednesday, April 21. As appropriate, the government of President Nicolás Maduro was represented by its Executive Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez. She gave a brief but forceful speech, adjusted to the regulations that govern speech rights in this international consultative forum. Two important moments are identified in her speech: the first came with the reiteration of the denunciation of the criminal blockade that curtails the fundamental rights of th…
(2021-04-22). Prague's Call for EU "Solidarity Expulsions" Against Russian Diplomats Falls on Deaf Ears. globalresearch.ca The U.S. failed to impose new sanctions on Russia and expel …
(2021-04-22). Vienna Talks Reveal Biden Team's Attachment to Sanctions that Would Torpedo Iran Deal. orinocotribune.com By Gareth Porter — Apr 18, 2021 | Biden's foreign policy team refuses to relieve Iran from sanctions illegally imposed by the Trump administration, setting the stage for the collapse of negotiations and a major crisis. | The Biden administration signaled once again at the April 9 Vienna meeting on the Iran nuclear deal that it intends to maintain Trump-era Iran sanctions in an effort to win political and military concessions going well beyond the original deal itself. Team Biden continued to insist during the conference that Iran return to full compliance with the nuclear agreement without any reciprocal US…
(2021-04-22). Emmett Till was the first George Floyd. peoplesworld.org 
CHICAGO (AP)—A Black Chicago teen's lynching in 1955 galvanized the Civil Rights Movement. A Black Minneapolis man's killing by police last year propelled a worldwide call for racial justice and ending police brutality. The murders of Emmett Till and George Floyd were separated by more than six decades, contrasting circumstances and countless protests, but their …
(2021-04-22). Testing the boundaries of causation in mesothelioma deaths. ukhumanrightsblog.com 
Wandsworth BC v HMC for Inner West London [2021] EWHC 801 (Admin) — read judgment Mesothelioma deaths arising from asbestos regularly come before coroners. This case, though, is of particular interest because it tests the boundaries of causation in relation to mesothelioma deaths — what evidence is needed to show that asbestos exposure led to …
(2021-04-22). 'Financing Border Wars' Corporations violating human rights on Arizona border. indybay.org The new report, "Financing Border Wars," details the push for border walls, drones and biometrics — including iris scans and finger prints — which violate the international human rights of migrants and refugees. The abuse includes tracking surveillance on phones and social media.
(2021-04-22). Darwin mobilises to free Medevac refugees. greenleft.org.au Chloe de Silva reports on the growing grassroots campaign for nine refugees to be released from indefinate detention in Darwin.
(2021-04-22). Opposition grows to revocation of Syrian refugees' residency permits by Denmark. peoplesdispatch.org Activists and human rights groups claim that the Danish government's move to declare parts of Syria safe for the refugees and asking them to return is based on a wrong assessment of the ground realities…
(2021-04-22). West Asian countries lead in global execution list, says Amnesty report. peoplesdispatch.org A scathing new report released by international human rights organization Amnesty International has revealed that countries in the Middle East-North Africa (MENA) region carried out the highest number of death penalties in 2020, reported Associated Press yesterday, April 21. The Amnesty report also stated that four countries in the MENA region, Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, carried out an overwhelming 88% of all known executions worldwide last year. | According to the report, Iran executed 246 people, Egypt 107, Iraq 45, and Saudi Arabia 27, on a wide range of "vague and overly broad terror-related and othe…
(2021-04-22). Iran Installs Advanced Uranium Enrichment Centrifuges in Natanz, Reports Say. sputniknews.com Iran has been partly violating the terms of its nuclear agreement, known as the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) after it was abandoned by the US in 2018. Tehran and the European parties to the deal held negotiations to revive the JCPOA, but Washington has so far refused to remove sanctions from the Iranian economy.
(2021-04-22). Pompeo Touts 'Toughest' GOP Sanctions Bill on Iran Amid Signs of Tentative Progress at Vienna Talks. sputniknews.com Amid ongoing Vienna talks to reactivate the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the Biden administration has been sending indications to Tehran that it may consider reducing punitive sanctions currently targeting Iran, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
(2021-04-22). Pompeo Joins House Republicans to Unveil Iran Sanctions Bill. news.antiwar.com Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo The legislation, titled
(2021-04-21). ACLU Demands Improved COVID-19 Protections for Florida Detainees. projectcensored.org The American Civil Law Union (ACLU) of Florida and Disability Rights Florida co-filed a class action lawsuit against the Sheriff of Broward County after receiving complaints of the county's lack…
(2021-04-21). System Fail # 8: The Ghosts of Democracy. dissidentvoice.org Discussion about sexual assault (including against minors), torture; scenes of police brutality, murder. In this episode, Dee Dos takes a look at recent developments in the social war in Greece, including the COVID-19 lockdown, the #MeToo movement and the hunger strike waged by 17th of November member Dimitris Koufontinas. We also include an interview with …
(2021-04-21). Amid Nuclear Talks, 40 Groups Urge Biden to Lift Sanctions on Covid-Ravaged Iran. commondreams.org "By prioritizing humanitarian relief for Iran and other sanctioned states, President Biden can follow through on his campaign commitment and demonstrate that the U.S. can be a force for global good." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-04-21). 'Exactly the Person We Need': Senate Confirms Civil Rights Champion Vanita Gupta for Key Spot at DOJ. commondreams.org Every Republican senator except one voted against the veteran attorney and rights advocate. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-04-21). The Supreme Court is also to blame for Daunte Wright's death. mronline.org 
When veteran Minnesota police officer Kimberly Potter, who is white, stopped Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, for an expired registration tag, she committed an act of racial profiling. | April 21, 2021 | Newswire…
(2021-04-21). Historian Khalil Gibran Muhammad: Policing in U.S. Was Built on Racism & Should Be Put on Trial. democracynow.org 
A Minnesota jury's conviction of former police officer Derek Chauvin on three counts for murdering George Floyd does not go far enough in dismantling police brutality and state-sanctioned violence, says historian and author Khalil Gibran Muhammad. "We know that while the prosecution was performing in such a way to make the case that Derek Chauvin was a rogue actor, the truth is that policing should have been on trial in that case," Muhammad says. "We don't have a mechanism in our current system of laws in the way that we treat individual offenses to have that accountability and justice delivered." Muhammad also l…
(2021-04-21). Arab-Americans in Chicago seek congressional support for Egyptian human rights. peoplesworld.org 
CHICAGO — Arab Americans here, like those across the country, have connections to 22 countries that are part of the Arab world. The U.S. witnessed the first large wave of Arab immigration between 1920 and 1924. Over time, Arabs established communities in all 50 states, became more integrated into society, and their existence in the …
(2021-04-21). 'Shackling of aged inmate, Mumia Abu-Jamal, is deplorable'. workers.org 
The following statement was released April 20 from the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commission concerning the practice by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections of shackling of political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal during his recent and current periods of hospitalizations. Read the statement at tinyurl.com/c7smdu24. GENEVA (April 20, . . . |
(2021-04-21). Speaking out against police repression in MN. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – On April 15, the Twin Cities Coalition for Justice for Jamar (TCC4J) hosted a press conference to denounce police violence against protesters. Sam Martinez of Twin Cities 4 Justice for Jamar emceed the rally. | The opening speech featured TCC4J member DJ Hooker, standing alongside Victor Ramirez of MN Immigrant Rights Action Committee, whose face was covered in bruises due to broken facial bones from a police projectile. | Speakers noted that police and city authority action are restricting First Amendment rights, the freedom of speech and to protest, including: | — Posting official signage ask…
(2021-04-21). Mexico: Lower House Approves Bill on the Right to Consultation. telesurenglish.net Mexico's Lower House on Tuesday approved a bill to institutionalize prior consultation with Indigenous peoples and Black communities on administrative and legislative projects that might affect their rights. | RELATED: | Indigenous Affairs Commission President Irma Carlos presented the initiative to debate after previous discussions in subcommittee commissions on April 13. The bill was passed with 466 votes in f…
(2021-04-21). Water Protector Steve Martinez Released From Grand Jury Detention. popularresistance.org Bismarck, ND — On March 3, Steve Martinez was jailed at the Burleigh County Detention Center after refusing to testify before a secret federal grand jury investigating 2016 protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. | Martinez is now finally free as of April 12, according to a statement posed to social media by the 'Support Steve Martinez' campaign. | Martinez has served over 60 in days in federal detention. He was previously been jailed for most of February 2021 for refusing to testify, but was briefly released after a judge found the magistrate who ordered him detained did not have the authority to do s…
(2021-04-21). Mali: Killings, 'Disappearances' in Military Operations. eurasiareview.com Malian soldiers have allegedly killed at least 34 villagers, forcibly disappeared at least 16 people, and severely mistreated detainees during counterterrorism operations in Mali's central Mopti region, Human Rights Watch said today. | Mali's transitional government should conduct credible and impartial investigations into these incidents. All were committed since the transitional government took power in an "Mali's security forces have shown s…
(2021-04-21). Russia: Rights experts call for immediate medical evacuation of Alexei Navalny. news.un.org Experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council called on Wednesday for the urgent medical evacuation of detained Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, fearing he is in "serious danger" due to deteriorating health and harsh prison conditions.
(2021-04-21). The Washington Post's phony campaign on Uyghur "genocide" wsws.org With astonishing speed, the US media has swung into action churning out a growing deluge of propaganda with lurid horror stories of life in the detention camps in Xinjiang, calls for the US to boycott the Winter Olympics in Beijing, and demands for tougher measures against China.
(2021-04-21). Australia: Northern Territory Labor government pushing harsher bail laws for children. wsws.org The punitive measures would overturn some of the cosmetic "reforms" introduced to placate mass anger over the brutal treatment of children in NT detention centres such as Don Dale.
(2021-04-21). USA: Shackling of Aged Inmate, Mumia Abu-Jamal, is Deplorable — UN Experts. orinocotribune.com GENEVA (20 April 2021) — UN human rights experts* expressed serious concerns about the treatment and welfare of Mumia Abu-Jamal, an African-American man who has been in jail for 40 years in Pennsylvania, and is reportedly shackled to his hospital bed. Mr. Abu-Jamal had already been shackled to his bed during a four-day hospitalization in late February while being treated for heart failure. | Mr. Abu-Jamal has been denied visits from his family and access to his lawyers and spiritual advisor after being admitted to an undisclosed hospital around 10 April, where he will reportedly undergo surgery. "This ongoi…
(2021-04-21). USA: UN Experts Call for President Biden to End Death Penalty. strategic-culture.org UN human rights experts* have called on President Biden to do everything in his power to end executions in the United States, at both the federal and state level. | "The death penalty is an abhorrent practice. It serves no deterrent value and cannot be reconciled with the right to life," said the experts. | "Despite retentionist States' pretence that capital punishment can be implemented in a 'humane' fashion, executions have repeatedly resulted in degrading spectacles. The death penalty is an inherently flawed form of punishment which disproportionately impacts African-Americans and people living in poverty," th…
(2021-04-21). UN rights chief welcomes verdict in George Floyd murder case. news.un.org The guilty verdict against Derek Chauvin in the George Floyd murder trial has been welcomed by the UN human rights chief, who said on Wednesday that "any other result would have been a travesty of justice".
(2021-04-21). Privacy Rights Do Not Come With a Price Tag. aclu.org Apps you use every day on your phone collect and sell sensitive data, including your location over time. That data could wind up in government hands without you even knowing it — and it's already happening to millions of people across the country. When the government wants to obtain our private information, like our location data, the Fourth Amendment requires it to go to court and obtain a warrant, but over the past year, we've learned that the government has been buying its way around this requirement. Agencies are purchasing location data and other sensitive information from private companies without…
(2021-04-21). Uncomfortable Truths, Justice, and George Floyd. strategic-culture.org We ignore uncomfortable truths. The melding of the horrors of slavery with civil rights era lynchings with the killing of George Floyd, all wrapped in the means-what-you-want-it-to-mean of systemic racism, flirts with incitement to violence. It won't fix anything but falling MSM circulation rates, but that's sort of the point.
(2021-04-21). Moderate Israelis Can Help Achieve Two-State Solution — OpEd. eurasiareview.com The strongest force pushing for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not coming from the Arab world or the Arab American community — it is coming from the Jewish community. | Every Arab and Muslim conference held in America discusses the suffering of the Palestinian people and the need for justice, but few talk about how to achieve that goal. So it is ironic that the loudest voice calling for a two-state solution is J Street, which advocates for Jewish rights and for peace. | Not surprisingly, many Arabs don't support J Street, despite the fact it recognizes Palestinian rights and…
(2021-04-21). Stand Up America Celebrates New York Assembly Passing Voting Rights Restoration Bill. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2021-04-21). Voting Rights Advocates Applaud Passage of NY Bill to Stop Disenfranchisement of Parolees. commondreams.org "By passing this bill, the state Assembly has sent a clear message: If you live in the community, you should be able to vote." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-04-21). Sri Lankan opposition mounts anti-China campaign over Colombo Port City bill. wsws.org The opposition parties are not concerned about the bill's suppression of workers' rights, but are whipping up a nationalist, anti-China campaign to align Sri Lanka with the mounting US-led confrontation with Beijing.
(2021-04-21). 'US Intervention in Venezuela Failed Resoundingly', Cuba Says. telesurenglish.net Addressing the XXVII Ibero-American Summit this Wednesday, Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel reaffirmed his country's commitment to international cooperation and rejected coercive measures seeking to destabilize nations. | RELATED: | Diaz-Canel decried that developing countries carry the burden of foreign debt, and some of them suffer unilateral sanctions that violate international law and hinder their development. | He also referr…
(2021-04-21). GOP introduces largest package of Iran sanctions in Congress. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 21 (MNA) — The Republicans in the US Congress unveiled on Wednesday what they described as the largest package of Iran sanctions in history, US media reported.
(2021-04-21). 40+ Orgs to Biden: Iran Needs Sanctions Relief. commondreams.org ______________________________…