Politics

Amnesty Annual Report Suggest World Leaders Are Abandoning Human Rights

In the current times, where the entire world is facing problems with precarious economies, natural disasters and troubled environments, we need leaders who can guide us into a safe, peaceful and harmonious future. However, this is not something that we are seeing today.

According to the Annual Human Rights Report for 2016 from Amnesty International, our current leaders are aborting human rights with their detestable rhetoric and regressive policies.

The Amnesty report included some of the popular leaders like Russian leader Vladimir Putin, US President Donald Trump, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogna, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Phillippines President Rodrigo Duterte, and China’s President Xi Jinping. These leaders have constantly threatened the existence of human rights through their repugnant oratory. According to Salil Shetty, the secretary-general of Amnesty, there are very few governments in current times, who are taking a stand for human rights.

The Dwarfism Of Current Leaders Towards Humanity

The most controversial among these include the travel ban levied by the US President Donald Trump.

The report quotes on several events and policy implications of these world-famous leaders. The most controversial among these include the travel ban levied by the US President Donald Trump. This hateful move of the leader to ban entry of people belonging to Muslim-majority countries was the epitome of human rights violation. Despite economic progress and public discussion on democracy, the US remained the most unequal and violent region.

The situation in the Asia Pacific is similar where the human rights of the people are repressed. In various countries like Malaysia, China, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, North Korea, Singapore and Vietnam, ill treatment and torture was the tool to target marginalised people and defenders of human rights. Such violations and denial of justice to victims need to be addressed effectively.

Cuckolding on the rise – do we really need this?

Be The Cuck – Only Watch!

Awkward trend of cuckolding has been getting a lot of social power in last months and now there is even a dedicated website being released to promote it to mainstream. Called Be The Cuck its purpose is to promote this sexual fantasy of watching a significant other woman having sex with a third party while the original partner watches it. Videos on the website are recorded in POV, so you are the title Cuck – a person that can only watch.

Number of human rights defenders, journalists, activists and lawyers who faced harassment and intimidation under Xi Jinping’s rule in China is increasing.

The Chinese government has enacted and drafted various laws in the pretext of national security that suppresses these activists. The 61-year old human right activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo was imprisoned repeatedly for calling out major political reforms. In the same manner, North Korea practiced extreme repression and restrictions on its domestic independent media and freedom of speech.

The government crackdown on the Rohingya, a minority population, further resulted in the fleeing of more than 655,000 refugees to Bangladesh. The discrimination against Rohingya is the warning on the crisis that will follow This dreadful episode would stand in history as an example of catastrophic failure of the world to address such crimes.

The Effects Of Regressive Rhetoric

This hateful move of the US President Trump on travel ban has resulted in a domino effect leading to demonizing the minority group by other countries. Marginalised communities have been continuously targeted and overlooked by the government. Black people have faced racism, violence and discrimination in the majority of countries.

Women and children from the marginalised communities have faced violence, sexual violence, child labour, trafficking, and racial harassment.

Migrants and Muslims are vulnerable to discrimination and racial profiling in various parts of the world.

The Ray Of Hope

These inhuman acts have triggered many human rights activists and common people in opposing and protesting against such regressive ideologies. Many activists were killed in the past years while fighting for human rights against the governments. An example is the Women’s March in January 2017, they protested against the comments made by US President Trump during his election campaign.

The report mentions various other movements by the activists which challenged the ideologies and embraced the importance of respecting human rights. Thousands of activists and common people in various parts of the world have protested against violence, discrimination and suppression.

Human rights activists have used technology and various tools to demonstrate their outrage. They are anchoring on a digital future which involves effective use of mobiles, computers, FM radio, and social media to challenge injustice and fight for the respect and acceptance of human rights.

The Final Call

The report from this Amnesty is a wakeup call for people who believe in equality, humanity and peace. With World leaders who are constantly failing to attain this through their discriminating speeches, unfair laws and regressive policies, it is important for the people to rise and fight against them.

The report proves to be a warning on the ongoing crisis and continuous breach of human rights. It provides in-depth information on various policies and acts of different governments, which resulted in discrimination and violence around the world.

This Amnesty campaigns for freedom, dignity and justice to all and seeks public support to build a safe, peaceful, and a united world.

Is China’s Huge Presence In Africa The New Face Of Imperialism?

China’s presence in Africa has increased tremendously within two decades. To put it into perspective, it’s exports from African countries have increased from one to fifteen per cent within one decade; a trend that has made both America and the European Union uneasy.

Chinese Businesman — There has been a huge influx of Chinese businessman to the African continent

African countries are increasingly finding it easier to collaborate with the Chinese than with other western countries. This is because of their policy on non-interference in local affairs of partner countries. Western countries on the other hand tend to meddle with local country’s politics which has made African countries wary of their intentions.

Furthermore, it’s not the Chinese government that is investing in Africa alone. In the last decade, there has been a huge influx of Chinese businessman to the African continent as well. Most of them have set up shop on the continent in order to take advantage of the huge market potential as well as resources.

Who Is Benefitting?

Over the years, the question of who benefits the most from Chinese relations has been a constant one. While China offers huge loans and concessions to African countries in order for them to undertake large infrastructure projects, there have been worries that the African governments are getting short changed. This is partly because of the manner in which these projects are initiated.

Most of these projects are awarded to Chinese contractors. Furthermore, the Chinese also bring in a considerable number of its experts when initiating these projects. This means that Africans don’t get to benefit from the transfer of skills or technology, thereby making them more reliant on the Chinese. This move is akin to the imperialism that Africa endured during and after the colonial period.

Different Approach

African Continent — Many African countries are still willing to partner up with China

While many might argue about China’s economic policy in Africa (whether it’s imperialistic in nature or serves to benefit Africans), their integration into African communities has made it hard to refute the fact that some investors have good intent. A section of Chinese investors complain that a few of them are destroying their image in Africa by exploiting the locals. They insist that there is a sizable majority of Chinese investors who are indeed concerned about the development of the communities that they are in, over and above making money.

African Take

Many African countries are still willing to partner up with China in order to advance their development agendas. Most of these countries have opened their doors to Chinese investment. Only the future will tell if this indeed was a great idea.

Check out how class struggle in America is influencing elections.

American Election Is A Clear Demonstration Of Class Struggle

Class struggle in American elections has become a substantive issue that all candidates have become quite aware of. It is not a new phenomenon in America but it has increasingly become a subject of hot contention. This is probably because of the 2007-2008 financial crises that led to a reduction in many people’s incomes and stagnation thereafter. In 2015 the real median income of the majority of households in America stood at $56,516, which was below that of the pre-depression crises period. However, there is nothing that has indicated class struggle as well as the 2016 American election. Experts say that this is a trend that is not about to change in the near future.

A Separation Of The Haves And Have-Nots

While it was easier to sell the American dream a few decades ago, the same can’t be said about the current situation in America. Initially, people who worked hard towards attaining their goals could curve out their piece of the pie in the American dream. However, the same seems not to be working currently.

People feel that the rich are becoming richer by the day while the poor are left to resort to their own means of survival.

This issue was carried along as a hot topic by many candidates in the 2016 election, such as Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton and most notably Donald Trump.

Americans wanted to know how they would benefit from each one’s candidacy and how equality of the classes would be restored to the nation. As a result, each candidate was awash with pledges about how they would revive the American dream. The democrats insisted that the rich would have to be taxed more in order for the money to be used in providing efficient services to the middle-class citizens. However, the republicans were of the notion that Americans were better off locking in their resources to themselves.

They insisted that in order for middle-class citizens to enjoy the country’s resources, there was a need to put in place tough regulations that restricted entry of migrants from other countries. Their whole idea was based on the notion that America’s middle- and lower-class citizens are having their jobs and opportunities stolen by migrants.

Middle- And Lower Class Constitute The Most Voters

All candidates understand that the middle- and lower class constitute the largest voting bloc. This means that in order for you to win successfully, you will have to capture the imagination of this class of voters. However, there is the slight issue of funding. Whereas the middle class constitute the largest voting bloc, the rich citizenry are the ones capable of funding the candidates’ election campaigns. This means that each party has to walk the delicate path of pleasing both classes.

Donald Trump, a well-known billionaire, probably won because of this. The middle class understands that candidates also work for the benefit of the rich who bankroll their election campaigns. However, Trump projected the image of a self-sufficient candidate who did not require any financial backing in order to carry out his campaign. He therefore won the hearts and minds of a vast majority of the middle-class segment who wanted someone who would be able to rebuke the rich without any fear of financial repercussions for his own campaign fund.

It remains to be seen whether the next election will remain to be a class struggle, or whether another issue will crop up.

Check out the looming refugee crisis in France.

Trevor Noah Reacts To Trump’s Call To Rough Up Suspects

Trump’s call to officers to rough up suspects during a speech in Long Island, adds to the huge list of controversial statements uttered since he became president. Even press statements from the White House, which suggested that the whole incident was a joke, did nothing to quell the anger of thousands of social media users. Trevor Noah is one of those people who criticised the president on his comments. The stand-up comedian found it alarming that someone as powerful as the president found it amusing to joke on a hot topic that had a bad history in America.

Controversial Statement

President Trump is on record as having asked the officers of Long Island not to be kind to suspects. He insisted that they should rough them up. Even the courtesy of holding down their heads while shoving them into the back of their patrol cars was unnecessary. These statements portrayed his endorsement of police brutality and ill treatment of suspects. People also gave the president a backlashing on Facebook and Twitter.

Trevor Noah also gave the president’s remarks substantial air time on his show. Not only did he criticise the decision by the Commander-in-Chief to comment on such an issue on video, but he condemned the manner in which the White House Press moved in to clarify that the president’s statements were meant as a joke. During this age and time when police cooperation with the community is needed, such a statement was enough to turn back the efforts that had been made so far.

Furthermore, Trevor Noah also noted the rhetoric used by the White House Press each time the president uttered comments that were unpalatable. He put down a line between being funny and joking and that Trump was neither of the two.

Not New To Controversy

Donald Trump will perhaps go down in history as the most controversial president that America has ever had. His controversies did not start the other day. He has been embroiled in controversy since the 90s and 2000s. During his campaign trail, he made comments that were received with mixed emotions by different divides in the country. His most controversial statement involved his dalliance with the Russians, where he requested them on national television to hack his opponent’s emails (Hillary Clinton).

What It Means To The Police Force

Even if Trump’s comments were meant as a joke, the damage done by them was quite irreversible. This is because of the fact that America is already grappling with hundreds of cases of excessive use of force by police, most of which are directed at black people. Even though excessive use of force by the police goes against their regulations, there are officers who have refused to abide by them.

As a result, the president’s remarks have the potential of being interpreted in the wrong way by such police officers.

Check out the astonishing statistics released by London’s police.

Savchenko Exchange Deal Sees Russians Jailed In Ukraine Return Home

Ukrainian military pilot Nadiya Savchenko

Russia and Ukraine engaged in a prisoner swap agreement in what was seen as a huge step towards negotiating a peaceful resolution to the conflict in the region. The high profile prisoners involved were Nadiya Savchenko, a Ukrainian military pilot and two Russian military personnel.

Even though this deal was seen as a humanitarian act from both sides, Russia still maintained that it was not involved in the war. Furthermore, the speaker of the upper house chambers of Russia maintained that this was not a prisoner exchange but rather an international obligation that required prisoners abroad to serve time in their home countries.

Nadiya Savchenko’s Reception

Savchenko returned home to a hero’s reception. She was allowed to return to Kiev aboard the Ukraine president’s jet. However, this was not the first time that she was popular among Ukrainians. Savchenko is the first woman military pilot in Ukraine and even before she went to serve in the war, she was already a local celebrity. However, her actions while in Russian custody cemented her popularity in Ukraine.

During her trial, she disrupted the sessions at one point to sing the Ukrainian national anthem. She was also steadfast on the war and was vocal enough to renounce the charges that were brought against her. At one point, she even went on a hunger strike to denounce the sentence that had been handed to her.

She was accused of having been involved in the killing of two Russian journalists who were covering the war. Though the evidence was not satisfactory enough, she was found guilty and sentenced to 22 years in prison for murder. (See how dissidents are imprisoned in Iran)

As a show of honour and popularity, Savchenko was elected as a Member of Parliament back home even while still in incarceration.

Russian Military Personnel

On the other side, Ukrainians accused two Russians captured in eastern Ukraine of waging a terrorist war and were each handed a sentence of 14 years in prison. The two had revealed to a Reuter’s reporter that they were indeed military personnel from Russia but that they were not on active duty. In a dramatic twist of events, they also accused the Russian government of neglecting their pleas to intervene.

While Savchenko was received as a hero, only a small media reception and their wives were available to receive the two Russians. This was a strategic move to boost her chances of being released from Russian custody.

Show Of Humanitarianism Or Simply A War Strategy?

The prison exchange is seen as a huge win towards fast resolution of the conflict in the region. However, some experts warn that Russia may have used the opportunity for its own gain. One of the reasons of their “humanitarian act” was the impending European Union meeting that was to deliberate on whether they would continue imposing sanctions on the country because of supporting the rebels in eastern Ukraine.

Given that Savchenko had also fought alongside American forces in the war in Iraq, Russia was also keen to have a deal with the Americans. They were reported as to have wanted to exchange her for a Russian arm’s smuggler who was being held in the United States. The United States bluntly rejected the deal.