Tolerance

Kuwaiti Election: Mixed Results

- Adam Clare

Kuwait just had its first election that women could run and vote in, which is more than a little late. Better late than never I guess. Not only did women get the vote (and were 57% of the electorate), the people of Kuwait has send a clear message to their government by electing reformists. There has been some corruption in the government and the reformists want to change that.

“By electing reformist candidates, the voters have sent a clear message to the government that they want change in Kuwaiti society, our correspondent says.”

World Refugee Day

- Adam Clare

Today is World Refugee Day, and the United Nations wants us to become more aware of the needs of refugees.

“From remote camps to big cities, from the steaming lowlands of Liberia to the high plateaux of Afghanistan, from floodlit fountains to fashion shows and soccer matches, the United Nations today celebrated World Refugee Day with a message of “Hope” broadcast around the globe by leaders, film stars and refugees themselves. ”

In Toronto Amnesty International, the Red Cross, and a whole load of local and small NGOs where at a rally at Yonge and Dundas Square. It was great to see so many people out and supporting human refugee rights.

Canadas Courts Challenge Use of Security Certificates

- Vanessa King

The Supreme Court of Canada is now facing a constitutional challenge regarding the federal government’s controversial security certificate process. The certificates have been issued by the Canadian Government since 2001 as means of detaining immigrants considered ‘security risks’ to Canada. However, the process offers no justice to detainees as many face imprisonment for years without charges and no access to a fair trial or evidence against them. In some cases there is risk of the person being deported back to their home country, where they face possible torture or even death. The issue has been followed closely by human rights groups such as Amnesty International, but has only recently made breaking news.

The hearings before the Supreme Court began on Tuesday and are expected to last three days. Along with much media attention ,Jim Loney ,an activist recently held hostage in Iraq, has joined a campaign called ‘Freedom Caravan’ which recently made a trek across eastern Ontario to protest the detention of 4 men currently held in Canada.

Viewers Want Realistic TV for a Change

- Adam Clare

I find this report to be a bit of shock, TV viewers acknowledge that they have a negative view of the developing world. Of course, it’s not their fault, but TV’s and viewers want that to change.

Hopefully this will serve as a wake-up call to journalists that we want critical analysis about the world and not just sports, boobs, and celebrity gossip.

“Reflecting the real world? How British TV portrayed developing countries in 2005 compliled by volunteer agency VSO, with DFID support, reveals that television viewers have an overwhelmingly negative view of the developing world and that they hold TV responsible. The report shows that viewers have a real appetite for richer representations of the world outside the UK and calls on broadcasters to invest more funds, creativity and talent in bringing the world to UK audiences. “

Amnesty International Invites Webmasters to Defeat Censorship

- Benny Powers 5 Comments

Worldwide human rights group, Amnesty International has begun a project called irrepressable.info to monitor and circumvent internet censorship.

The website gives visitors the opportunity to place a small box on their own sites which contains a snippet of censored information.

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