Daily Archives: May 7, 2021

2021-05-07: News Headlines

Internationalist 360 ∞ (2021-05-07). Colombia: 471 Persons Disappeared During the Mobilizations that Began April 28th. libya360.wordpress.com The Working Group on Enforced Disappearances in Colombia warned that 471 people disappeared in Colombia between April 28 and May 5, in the framework of the #ParoNacional. 379 of them are still missing. The Working Group on Enforced Disappearances in Colombia — MDTDF, warned about the human rights crisis experienced in the country as a…

sputniknews (2021-05-07). Over 370 People Go Missing During 9 Days of Tax Reform Protests in Colombia, Rights Group Says. sputniknews.com MEXICO CITY (Sputnik) – A total of 379 people went missing in Colombia over nine days of protests triggered by the now-shelved tax reform, the Movice National Movement of Victims of State Crime has announced.

Staff (2021-05-07). Corona restrictions not limit perseverance in ideal of Quds. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 07 (MNA) —While stressing on patience and rights of Quds in religious circles with holding various exhibitions, Head of Islamic Development Org. said that COVID-19 restrictions did not create any obstacle on perseverance of cause of Quds.

Peoples Dispatch (2021-05-07). Bill Gates' Stand on Intellectual Property Is Facing a Pushback. peoplesdispatch.org Alexander Zaitchik discuss Bill Gates' recent comments on intellectual property rights in the context of COVID-19 vaccines, his long history as a spokesperson for Big Pharma, and the various struggles across the world for a fairer IPR regime and health for all…

WSWS (2021-05-07). German government playing with fire by lifting restrictions and extending special rights to vaccinated citizens. wsws.org An incessant debate about special rights for those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine or recovered from an infection is being conducted in the German media.

sputniknews (2021-05-07). Delhi Protest Against Bill Gates for Refusing to Share Vaccine Tech With Developing Nations. sputniknews.com Just days before Joe Biden's administration supported India's proposal to waive intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, Bill Gates spoke out against sharing such patents with developing countries. His remarks have provoked much anger in India, which is battling the second coronavirus wave.

Stephen F. Eisenman (2021-05-07). My (Your) University is Still Racist and Equity Training Won't Change That. counterpunch.org When I began teaching almost 40 years ago, Ronald Reagan was president. Denouncing affirmative action and "welfare queens," and endorsing "states' rights" and Apartheid South Africa, Reagan described the America of Jim Crow as a golden age, the "shining city on a hill." Racism increasingly appeared to be woven into the fabric of national and international politics with no way to unravel it.

Joe Jurado (2021-05-07). Federal Grand Jury Indicts Derek Chauvin and 3 Other Ex-Cops on Civil Rights Violations. theroot.com Seeing actions actually have consequences for cops is a continually bizarre experience. A federal grand jury has indicted Derek Chauvin and the three other officers involved in the death of George Floyd on U.S. civil rights charges.

Anurag Deb (2021-05-07). Northern Ireland: dealing with the past. ukhumanrightsblog.com Lawyers working on cases dealing with Northern Ireland's troubled past know that this field of legal work develops slowly. Sometimes, however, developments occur at an unexpected and unwelcome speed. Such has been the case this week. From the collapse of a controversial trial to the reporting of a legislative "amnesty", the legacy of the Troubles …

Staff (2021-05-07). Police in Brazil Kill Two Dozen in Deadliest Favela Raid in Rio's History. truthout.org More than 100 heavily armed Brazilian police officers stormed a sprawling Rio de Janeiro favela Thursday and killed at least two dozen people, a raid that human rights activists, researchers, and journalists described as the The hourslong operation, purportedly aimed at drug traffickers in the poverty-stricken Jacarezinho favela, ultimat…

Staff (2021-05-07). Federal Grand Jury Indicts Chauvin, 3 Officers Present at George Floyd's Murder. truthout.org Four former Minneapolis police officers were charged by a federal grand jury on Friday for willfully violating George Floyd's constitutional rights when Derek Chauvin violently murdered the 46-year-old Black man. | Chauvin

Moderator (2021-05-07). Chris Hedges on the Ruling Class' Revenge Against Julian Assange. scheerpost.com Art by Mr.Fish] Click to subscribe on: Apple / Spotify / Google Play The mistreatment of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange over the past decade has been defined as "psychological torture" by the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Nils Melzer. Yet, there is still no real end in sight to Assange's promethean plight. Several months after a British judge blocked his extradition to the U.S. |

Leon Kunstenaar (2021-05-07). Vigil for Refugee Rights, Stop Child Detention, Recognize Asylum at UUSF. indybay.org Unitarian Universalist Society of S.F. holds Cinco de Mayo morning Vigil…

Paul Cochrane (2021-05-07). Castigating Its Competitors: Western Hypocrisy and China. counterpunch.org The West's political and media assault on China increases week by week. Human rights has become the primary means of criticism and justification for sanctioning China over its actions in Hong Kong and treatment of the Uighers. This info war is creating a divide — those pro-Western 'values' arguing China has to be brought to

WSWS (2021-05-07). Gunboats dispatched to Jersey in UK/French fishing rights conflict. wsws.org The immediate turn to threats, denunciations and the deployment of the military in a minor dispute over fishing is a product of the imperialist powers' ever-deeper descent into nationalist reaction.

sputniknews (2021-05-07). US Jury Indicts 4 Ex-Officers for Violating George Floyd's Civil Rights. sputniknews.com WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — A US federal grand jury has charged all four of the former police officers involved in George Floyd's death with civil rights violations including violating his constitutional rights, the Justice Department said on Friday.

sputniknews (2021-05-07). Johnson, Macron Will Try to 'Dial Down Rhetoric', Reset Ties Amid Fishing Rights Standoff. sputniknews.com Tempers flared on Thursday between the UK and France in a maritime standoff over fishing rights to waters around the Channel island of Jersey as the French side accused the self-governing British Crown Dependency of restricting licences for small boats to operate within 12 miles of its shores, in a breach of the Brexit agreement.

Rick Rozoff (2021-05-07). Russian foreign minister to UN Security Council: West imposing totalitarianism, rejecting democracy in global affairs. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com And it's only taken twenty years of wars and color revolutions, sanctions and travel bans, freezing of assets and conspiracy theories about subverting elections in the U.S. and elsewhere, cyber warfare and chemical poisoning accusations, military-build-up along Russia's borders, repeated Security Council votes condemning the nation, isolation of Russia to the point where the West …

Staff (2021-05-07). France defends positions of US excessive demands on JCPOA. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 07 (MNA) — French Foreign Minister claimed that the United States has taken the necessary steps to lift sanctions imposed against Islamic Republic of Iran and that Iran needed to respond with "appropriate positions."

Kamal Iranidoost (2021-05-07). US agrees to lift bulk of sanctions: Iran top negotiator. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 07 (MNA) — A the end of the 4th round of talks between Iran and the P4+1, the top Iranian negotiator said that the United States has already announced its readiness to lift the bulk of the sanctions.

sputniknews (2021-05-07). Biden Administration Says Iran Sanctions Could Be Lifted Only If Tehran Returns To JCPOA Status. sputniknews.com &nbsp…

Dave DeCamp (2021-05-07). US Accuses Iran of Making 'Unrealistic Demands' for Sanctions Relief. news.antiwar.com Indirect negotiations between the US and Iran that have been ongoing in Vienna to revive the nuclear deal are dragging out due to the fact that the Biden administration refuses to lift all Trump-era sanctions. On Thursday, The unnamed official told reporters that a deal could be reached quickly if Iran has the political will.

DXE (2021-05-07). Sunday 5/30: Animal Sanctuary Volunteer Day. indybay.org 2785 Franklin Canyon Rd, Martinez…

Staff (2021-05-06). Anonymous Colombia Puts Duque on the Ropes with Massive Hacking Operation. orinocotribune.com The Anonymous group has been active during the human rights crisis in Colombia, sending a strong message to Iván Duque and taking down webpages of the Army, Senate, and Presidency. | On Tuesday, the international anarchist organization Anonymous reported through social media networks that it had returned "to Colombia due to the injustices generated" in the context of police and military repression against protests that have left 19 dead, 89 disappeared, and hundreds injured in the past week, according to the National Ombudsperson's Office. However, Anonymous often remains silent regarding the near-weekly massacre…

Carlos Arellán (2021-05-06). The Striking Silence of OAS' Luis Almagro on Colombia's Human Rights Crisis. orinocotribune.com While there are plenty of reasons to be aware of what is happening in Colombia, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro , looks the other way. | As of noon this Tuesday, May 5, the Uruguayan head of OAS had not said a word about the human rights crisis in Colombia, nor has he expressed any crisis of conscience regarding the police repression and human rights abuses, which according to the National Strike Committee, had killed 27 people by May 2. | Instead of following events that should concern him, due to his high position in the regional organization, Almagro met via vid…

teleSUR (2021-05-06). 100 People Injured and 30 Citizens Missing In Pereira, Colombia. telesurenglish.net Colombia's National Strike Committee (CPN) informed that over 100 people were injured and 30 protesters went missing during the demonstrations that have been taking place since last week in Pereira City. | RELATED: | One victim is Lucas Villa, a young student who was shot to death on Wednesday night during a peaceful demonstration. Two other protesters were also hit by gunfire. | Human rights defenders denounced that t…

Zach El Parece (2021-05-06). US Special Forces trained Mexican drug cartels linked to decapitation, torture, rape. thegrayzone.com An investigation into how U.S. Special Forces trained feared Mexican drug cartels responsible for grisly murders, and how Pentagon-backed counter-insurgency in Colombia and Guatemala has bled into organized crime. (This article was first published in CovertAction Magazine.) The Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) has established itself as one of the most feared paramilitaries in Mexico over the last decade. Images of the group have become the standard depiction of the Mexican cartels writ large. Their propaganda videos often feature groups …

Pablo Navarrete (2021-05-06). Colombian security forces are massacring people on the streets. thecanary.co In Colombia the right-wing government of Iván Duque is killing people taking part in an ongoing national strike protesting the government's economic policies and widespread human rights abuses. | Since the strike began at the end of April, Colombian human rights groups have estimated that In addition to the killings, there has been a major militarisation of cities, with reports of disappearances, sexual assaults on wom…

Phyllis Bennis (2021-05-06). Why HRW Designating Israel's Crimes as Apartheid Is a Very Big Deal. zcomm.org Human Rights Watch issuing an unsparing, 200-plus page legal and factual report concluding that Israeli government authorities are guilty of the crime of apartheid, is a very big deal…

Staff (2021-05-06). "Monumental Moment": U.S. Backs Waiving COVID Vaccine Patent Rights After Months of Blocking Talks. democracynow.org The Biden administration has announced it now supports temporarily waiving the intellectual property rights for COVID vaccines, in what the World Trade Organization is calling a "monumental moment." India and South Africa first proposed the waiver in October, but the United States and other wealthy nations blocked the WTO from even opening negotiations on the proposal. Supporters say the waiver is critically needed to increase the rate of vaccine production for the Global South as COVID-19 rapidly spreads in India, Latin America and other regions where few vaccines are available. Biden's support for the waiver is…

Binoy Kampmark (2021-05-06). Quibbling Over Cruelties: Human Rights Watch, Israel and Apartheid. counterpunch.org Criticism of Israel's policies towards Palestinians has always induced a defensive rage from its defenders and advocates. A Threshold Crossed, a report by Human Rights Watch, lit several fires of rage and disapproval. Israel, according to the authors, is responsible for apartheid policies.

SA News (2021-05-06). Over 100 Countries Back TRIPS Waiver On COVID-19 Vaccines. eurasiareview.com President Cyril Ramaphosa says a proposal by South Africa at the World Trade Organisation to waiver specific Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) obligations related to the manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines is now supported by over 100 countries. | The President said this when he responded to oral questions in the National Assembly on Thursday. | "We want to manufacture vaccines locally against the pandemic. It is for this reason that South Africa and India proposed the TRIPS waiver at the World Trade Organisation to enable the manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines in developing countrie…

WSWS (2021-05-06). UK: Second round of strikes at DVLA over safety at Covid-19 hotspot. wsws.org The action called by the Public and Commercial Services union is the only strike officially sanctioned by any trade union over Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic.

Staff (2021-05-06). Illegal sanctions serious obstacles to fight Covid-19. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 06 (MNA) — Iran's Deputy Representative to UN Zahra Ershadi called illegal and illegitimate sanctions against developing countries a serious obstacle to the fight against the Coronavirus.

news.un (2021-05-06). UN launches key initiative to protect seafarers' human rights amid COVID-19 crisis. news.un.org Around 200,000 cargo ship crew members are stranded at sea, beyond the length of their contracts due to COVID-19 restrictions, placing a major strain on their physical and mental health. New UN guidelines were published on Thursday, aimed at helping the industry better protect human rights at sea, as new COVID variants threaten to further delay crew turnover.

John Bachtell (2021-05-06). Suspending COVID vaccine patent restrictions puts people before profits. peoplesworld.org A move is underway internationally to temporarily scrap patent restrictions on COVID-19 vaccines that are making pharmaceutical companies' profits explode while many countries struggle to inoculate their people against the deadly virus. In a surprise but extraordinary decision, the Biden administration announced its support Wednesday for a waiver of such patent rights. But to happen, …

teleSUR (2021-05-06). COVID-19 Vaccines Patent Waiver Backed by US and Russia. telesurenglish.net The World Health Organization (WHO) recognized on Thursday the U.S. government decision to support the temporary suspension of intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, a move already backed by 66 countries. | RELATED: | The waiver would allow countries to copy and manufacture COVID-19 vaccines without risking legal suits over intellectual property. The initiative, promoted by India and South Africa last year, is consider…

John Bachtell (2021-05-06). Suspending COVID vaccine patent restrictions puts people before profits. peoplesworld.org A move is underway internationally to temporarily scrap patent restrictions on COVID-19 vaccines that are making pharmaceutical companies' profits explode while many countries struggle to inoculate their people against the deadly virus. In a surprise decision, the Biden administration announced its support Wednesday for a waiver of such patent rights. But to happen, all 164-member …

_____ (2021-05-06). Drone Whistleblower Jailed Ahead Of July Sentencing. popularresistance.org A federal judge ordered drone whistleblower Daniel Hale's arrest, and United States authorities took him into custody. | On April 23, Judge Liam O'Grady signed an order suggesting Hale violated the terms of his supervised release. An arrest warrant was issued, and on April 28, he was jailed. | Judge Theresa Carroll Buchanan, a different judge than the one who has presided over his case, held a hearing on the alleged "pretrial release violation." Hale maintained no violation had occurred, yet the court scheduled a bond revocation and detention hearing for May 4. | The chain of events came after a "special conditio…

Jay Connor (2021-05-06). Sounds Like Hate Returns to Explore the Driving Forces Behind Bigotry and Hate in America. theroot.com The Southern Poverty Law Center prides itself on monitoring the activities of domestic hate groups and other extremists, while working in partnership with local communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of all people. But did you know they also have a…

Jake Johnson (2021-05-06). 300,000 Deported in Biden's First 100 Days. orinocotribune.com By Jake Johnson — Apr 29, 2021 | A rights group warns that the U.S. president is "well on track to repeat" Obama's failures. | Rights group United We Dream warned Tuesday that unless he takes immediate steps to improve his administration's treatment of immigrants, President Joe Biden is at serious risk of repeating the destructive failures of former President Barack Obama, who deported Despite Biden's characterization of Obama's mass deportations as a "

Staff (2021-05-06). Justice Department Raises Concerns Over Cyber Ninjas' "Audit" of Arizona Ballots. truthout.org The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Rights Division has expressed serious concerns over an audit of the 2020 election in Arizona's largest county, noting that the firm hired to conduct the review may be taking illegal actions. | In a letter written by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Pamela Karlan, the DOJ worried that 2.1 million ballots from Maricopa County may be compromised due to the lack of security at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum where the audit is taking plac…

Staff (2021-05-06). Police and State Violence Have Secondary Impacts: Complex and Lasting Trauma. truthout.org These last weeks, months, years and decades we keep on adding names to the list — Adam Toledo, Daunte Wright, Ma'Khia Bryant, Ronald Johnson, Pierre Loury, Rekia Boyd, Nickolas Lee, Laquan McDonald, Archie Lee Chambers, Maurice Granton, Anthony Alvarez…. The list of victims of police murder seems never-ending. Then there is the list of police torture survivors — Gerald Reed, Stanley Howard, Tony Anderson, Darrell Fair, Sean Tyler, Kilroy Watkins, and on and on and on. Many of us…

Anonymous669 (2021-05-06). Central Syria: 15 Fighters Of Palestinian-led Force Killed, Or Injured In New ISIS Attack. southfront.org Illustrative image. | On May 5, at least 15 fighters of the Palestinian pro-government al-Quds Brigade were killed or injure as a result of an attack by ISIS cells in central Syria. | According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the attack took place in the outskirts of the town of al-Sukhnah in the eastern countryside of Homs."Syrian Observatory activists have documented the death of three members of the Palestinian al-Quds Brigade and the injury of 12 others in an attack by ISIS cells when members of the al-Quds Br…

Prensa Latina (2021-05-06). Cuba begins days against homophobia and transphobia. mronline.org Cuba is celebrating from Tuesday to May 30 the 14th edition of the Conference against Homophobia and Transphobia, under the slogan 'All rights for all people.' | May 6, 2021 | Newswire…

Eurasia Review (2021-05-06). Niger: New Government Should Investigate Massacres. eurasiareview.com Niger's first democratic transition since independence provides President Mohamed Bazoum's new administration with an opportunity to prioritize accountability for alleged war crimes committed by all sides in Niger's armed conflict, Human Rights Watch said today in a On March…

news.un (2021-05-06). Latin America rights groups face growing threats, attacks: Bachelet. news.un.org UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet on Thursday issued an alert over the rising number of threats, attacks and attempts to undermine national human rights institutions, in Latin America and the Caribbean.

_____ (2021-05-06). Venezuela Reiterates Its Commitment To Human Rights And Justice. popularresistance.org Mexico City, Mexico – The Venezuelan Attorney General's Office submitted an updated report to the International Criminal Court (ICC) on April 30 detailing its efforts to address alleged human rights abuses by state officials. | In September 2018, Venezuela's right-wing opposition, with support from the US and a handful of allied countries, filed a suit before the ICC accusing the Nicolás Maduro government of being responsible for "crimes against humanity" during violent anti-government protests in 2017. | Attorney General Tarek William Saab said his office had engaged in "meticulous" work to defend human rights.

sputniknews (2021-05-06). Policeman Who Reportedly Raped 11-Year-Old Had a Record And Was Rehired Due to Police Negligence. sputniknews.com Last week, Alabama State Trooper Christopher Bauer was arrested on charges of sexually abusing an underage girl. He is currently being held in the Montgomery County Detention Facility under a $105,000 bail.

Leon Kunstenaar (2021-05-06). Vigil for Refugee Rights, Stop Child Detention, Recognize Asylum at UUSF. indybay.org Unitarian Universalist Society of S.F. holds Cinco de Mayo morning Vigil…

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