Section: Inter Press Service (Italy)
“Drastic Decline” Seen in World Press Freedom
Source: Reporters Without BordersBy Leila LemghalefUNITED NATIONS, Feb 13 2015 (IPS)A leading advocacy group warns of a “worldwide deterioration in freedom of information” last year.Out of the 180 countries being surveyed, two-thirds have slipped in standards compared to last year, according to the Reporters Without Borders’ World Press...
Battling Terrorism Shouldn’t Justify Torture, Spying or Hangings, Says U.N. Rights Chief
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al-Hussein. Credit: UN Photo/Jean-Marc FerréBy Thalif DeenUNITED NATIONS, Feb 5 2015 (IPS)The United Nations, which is the legal guardian of scores of human rights treaties banning torture, unlawful imprisonment, degrading treatment of prisoners of war and enforced disappearances, is troubled...
Twiplomacy Gets Its Day in the Sun at U.N.
Behind the scenes at the UNTV studio where Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was recorded answering some of the 5,000 questions sent to him via Twitter and Chinese network, Weibo. Mr. Ban’s response to the questions, some of which were asked on-air, was streamed live on Facebook, Livestream, Tumblr and UN Webcast. Credit: UN Photo/Mark...
Marginalised Groups Struggle to Access Healthcare in Conflict-Torn East Ukraine
Social worker in the flat of a drug addict in Donetsk doing outreach work. Drug addicts, like other marginalised groups, including Roma, are victims of the collapse of the health system in East Ukraine. Credit: Natalia Kravchuk/International HIV/AIDS Alliance Ukraine©By Pavol StracanskyKIEV, Jan 28 2015 (IPS)With international organisations...
OPINION: The Corporate Takeover of Ukrainian Agriculture
In this column, Frédéric Mousseau, Policy Director at the Oakland Institute, argues that the United States and the European Union are working hand in hand in a takeover of Ukrainian agriculture which – besides being a sign of Western governments’ involvement in the Ukraine conflict – is of dubious benefit for the country’s agriculture...
Ruble’s Rout Breeds Uncertainty for Central Asian Migrants
Migrant workers ride in a bus through northern Kazakhstan in May 2014 on their way to find employment in Russia. As the value of the Russian ruble continues to fall, labour migrants from Central Asia say they are less inclined to work in Russia. Credit: Konstantin SalomatinBy EurasiaNet CorrespondentsTASHKENT, Dec 26 2014 (EurasiaNet)Sardor...
Russian Arms Producers Move Ahead of Western Rivals
The Tupolev Tu-is a large, four-engine turboprop powered strategic bomber and missile platform. First flown in 1952, the Tu-95 was put into service by the former Soviet Union in 1956 and is expected to serve the Russian Air Force until at least 2040. Credit: Dmitry Terekhov/cc by 2.0By Thalif DeenUNITED NATIONS, Dec 16 2014 (IPS)The world’s...
Marginalised Communities Warn of AIDS/TB “Tragedy” in Eastern Europe and Central Asia
Young boy sitting on a wall outside ‘Way Home’, a UNICEF-assisted shelter providing food, accommodation, literacy trainings and HIV/AIDS-awareness lessons to street children in Odessa, Ukraine. Because of unsafe sex and injecting drug use, street adolescents are one of the groups most at risk of contracting HIV. Credit: UNICEF/G....
Kyrgyzstan Debates Russian-Style “Foreign Agents” Law
The Kyrgyz parliament, as seen here in November 2014, may vote in December to consider a possible new law that would label foreign-funded organisations “foreign agents.” But some critics of the bill, which closely resembles a similar law already passed in Russia, argue it would add layers of bureaucracy and possibly force some civil society NGOs...
Shale Oil Threatens the High Prices Enjoyed by OPEC
Ranking of recoverable shale oil and gas reserves, which have revolutionised the global map of fossil fuels. Credit: ProfesionalMovilBy Humberto MárquezCARACAS, Nov 26 2014 (IPS)Shale fever and the political chess among major oil producers and consumers have put OPEC in one of the most difficult junctures in its 54 years of history.“OPEC was...
