Monthly Archives: June 2016

Nationality + Migration, Race + Color + Ethnicity

U.K. News | Immigrants & Racial Minorities

Hate crime reports surge in U.K. in wake of Brexit
  • Since the U.K. voted to leave the European Union, a 500% increase in hate crimes reported online has drawn attention to a wave of racist, anti-immigrant sentiment in the country.
  • Some 331 reports have been filed through the online report filing portal in the week since the vote (a significant increase from the weekly average of 63) as critics of the “Leave” campaign have accused the anti-E.U. movement of stirring xenophobic sentiment in the country.
  • PM David Cameron announced additional funding to security forces to stem the tide and called on politicians across political parties to condemn hate crimes.

Read more:
“Hate crime reports surge in Britain after divisive EU referendum, police say” (Reuters)
“Cameron announces plan to tackle hate crime after vote to leave EU” (The Guardian)
“U.K. Announces New Plan to Tackle Hate Crimes” (The Wall Street Journal)

(Image Credit: PRU/HO/AFP/Getty Images, via The Wall Street Journal)

Class + Socioeconomics

Iran News | Class

Executive pay leaks stir outrage in Iran
  • Leaks of executive compensation at state-owned firms led to controversy when local media revealed some business leaders were receiving dozens of times the amount of pay the average Iranian household received.
  • Iranian law dictates that the top government salary should not exceed seven times the amount of the lowest paid, but bonuses and additional incentives have at times been used to skirt that requirement.
  • Four public bank chiefs have been fired in the wake of the revelations as Iranians continue to wait for the economic benefits of the lifting of international sanctions in 2015.

Read more:
“Executive pay stirs outrage, becomes political issue in Iran” (Reuters)
“Iran sacks bank chiefs amid uproar over high salaries” (BBC)
“Four Iranian Bank Chiefs Fired Over Salaries Scandal” (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)

Sexual + Gender Minorities

U.S. News | Transgender

Pentagon opens up military service to trans people
  • Effective immediately, trans men and women are able to serve openly in the U.S. Armed Forces under order of Defense Secretary Ash Carter.
  • The decision comes in the wake of the 2015 decision to open up combat roles to women and the 2011 abolition of the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” law barring openly gay and bisexual people from serving in the military.
  • Secretary Carter also indicated that the military would cover the medical costs for trans service members undergoing transition treatments.

Read more:
“Transgender People Will Be Allowed to Serve Openly in Military” (The New York Times)
“The Pentagon’s ban on transgender service just fell — but the details are complicated” (The Washington Post)
“Pentagon ends transgender ban” (CNN)

(Image Credit: Alex Brandon/Associated Press, via The New York Times)

Gender, Sexual + Gender Minorities

Cote d’Ivoire News | Gay Men

Six gay men featured in U.S. embassy photo attacked in Cote d’Ivoire
  • After holding an event in Abidjan in solidarity with the victims of the mass shooting in an Orlando gay club and posted a picture, the U.S. embassy posted a photo featuring members of a local LGBTI advocacy group to its website.
  • Days later, two of the men were physically attacked and the others harassed in separate incidents as the photo was circulated through digital channels.
  • While private same-sex relations have never been criminalized in Cote d’Ivoire, public visibility has subjected many LGBTI Ivorians to harassment and violence.

Read more:
“Gay men in Ivory Coast attacked for showing support to Orlando victims: rights group” (The Thomson Reuters Foundation)
“Gay men attacked over photo posted by U.S. embassy” (AP via CBS News)
“Orlando : des homosexuels menacés en Côte d’Ivoire pour avoir participé à un hommage” (Le Monde, in French)

Nationality + Migration

Turkey News | Travelers

Dozens from more than 9 countries dead, hundreds injured after attack on Turkey’s main airport
  • Three suicide attackers killed at least 41 and wounded 239 more in Istanbul’s Ataturk airport in an attack claimed by the Islamic State.
  • At least 23 victims were Turkish, while others killed included people from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, China, Iran, Jordan, Tunisia, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
  • Over the last year, Turkey has experienced multiple terror attacks as the government faces threats from the Islamic State, political divisions between Islamists and secularists, and violent conflict with Kurdish separatists.

Read more:
“Islamic State prime suspect after suicide bombers kill 41 at Istanbul airport” (Reuters)
“Victims in Istanbul Airport Attack Reflect City’s International Character” (The New York Times)
“At Least 41 Killed Including 13 Foreign Nationals In Attack On Istanbul Airport” (BuzzFeed News)

(Image Credit: Osman Orsal/Reuters, via BuzzFeed News)

Nationality + Migration, Race + Color + Ethnicity

China Feature | African Immigrants

China’s Disappearing “Little Africa”

China’s increased economic ties with sub-Saharan Africa countries have opened up new immigration channels, with a flurry of “Chinatowns” and “Little Africas” popping up in destination countries. But as urban “beautification” campaigns expand in China’s cities, African immigrants have found their economic and social spaces under threat. Guangzhou, home to what is estimated to be China’s largest population of black African immigrants, has seen its vibrant African market dampened as urban development, an economic downturn, increased policing, tightening immigration policies, and social stigma have driven many enterprising immigrants out of public areas. CNN takes a look at the shifting prospects for African immigrants in China.

Read:
“The African migrants giving up on the Chinese dream” (CNN)

(Image Credit: via CNN)

Nationality + Migration

Indonesia News | Immigrants

Exodus of wealthy immigrants tightens opportunity in Indonesia
  • Domestic jobs have decreased and a number of international schools have shuttered as wealthy immigrants have left the country and arrivals have slowed.
  • A slowdown in oil and gas demand has tightened the Indonesian economy and led to cutbacks in jobs that attract foreign workers.
  • Fluctuating immigration policy has sent mixed messages to potential investors, including a foreign worker age cap of 55 in oil and gas, an Indonesian language requirement, an expansion of social security to include foreign workers, and the (now-defunct) requirement to hire 10 local workers for every immigrant.

Read more:
“Empty houses and jobless maids: Indonesia’s expat exodus gathers pace” (Reuters)
“Indonesia Drops Visa Rules For Foreign Workers in Latest U-Turn” (Bloomberg, October 2015)
“Social Security Agency Opens Arms to Foreign Workers and International Organizations“ (JakartaGlobe)

(Image Credit: Bewiharta/Reuters)

Gender

U.S. News | Women

U.S. Supreme Court rejects restrictions on abortion clinics in Texas, Mississippi, and Wisconsin
  • The Court ruled 5-3 in favor of blocking restrictions enacted through a 2013 Texas law on the standards necessary for clinics to be allowed to operate within the state, the most expansive decision on abortion rights since 1992’s Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
  • The majority opinion found that the restrictions—which included requiring admitting privileges of doctors in nearby hospitals and heightened operational standards for the clinics—were medically unnecessary and reduced women’s access to safe abortion procedures.
  • The justices also declined to hear cases involving abortion provision restrictions in Mississippi and Wisconsin, and Alabama announced it would no longer pursue restrictions on abortion doctors in the wake of the Court’s decision.

Read more:
“Supreme Court Strikes Down Texas Abortion Restrictions” (The New York Times)
“Supreme Court spurns abortion restrictions in two more states” (Reuters)
“How the Texas abortion ruling will affect access across the US” (The Guardian)

(Image Credit: Michael Reynolds/EPA, via The Guardian)

Nationality + Migration

U.S. News | Undocumented Immigrants

U.S. Supreme Court tie upholds lower court decision against blocking deportation of undocumented parents
  • A 4-4 decision left in place an appeals court ruling blocking President Obama’s executive order shielding the undocumented parents of Americans and permanent residents from deportation.
  • The program, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA), would have protected more than 4 million from deportation but never went into effect after 26 states immediately challenged the 2014 order.
  • The plaintiff states argued that President Obama had overstepped his authority with the executive order, while the White House pointed out the President’s constitutional authority to issue it.

Read more:
“Supreme Court Deadlocks on Obama Immigration Plan. It Remains Blocked.” (The New York Times)
“Supreme Court, split 4-4, blocks Obama immigration plan” (Reuters)
“Obama’s huge new immigration plan, explained” (Vox, November 2014)

(Image Credit: Michael Reynolds/EPA, via The New York Times)

Religion + Belief

Pakistan News | Blasphemy Laws

Shopkeeper arrested for selling shoes with sacred Hindu symbol
  • The shoes contained the “Om” symbol, a spiritual icon in Hinduism, prompting protests and leading to the man’s arrest in the town of Tando Adam in Sindh province, home to most of Pakistan’s Hindu minority.
  • Though strictest for crimes insulting Islam, Pakistan’s blasphemy laws allow for the arrest of those accused of offense to any religion, including Hinduism.
  • Police indicated no offense had been intended and a shift in focus to the shoes’ suppliers, but if convicted, the shopkeeper faces up to 10 years in prison.

Read more:
“Pakistani man charged with blasphemy over shoes with Hindu symbol” (Reuters)
“Hindus in Pakistan protest sale of Om-inscribed shoes” (The Hindustan Times)
“Man selling ‘Om’ inscribed shoes in Pakistan arrested for blasphemy” (The New Indian Express)

Additional:
“What are Pakistan’s blasphemy laws?” (BBC, November 2014)

(Image Credit: via The Hindustan Times)

Ideology + Affiliation, Religion + Belief

Bahrain News | Shiite Dissidents

Bahrain strips Shiite leader of citizenship as anti-dissident campaign continues
  • The Interior Ministry stripped Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim, a prominent Shiite cleric, of Bahraini citizenship, stirring protest among the Gulf country’s Shiite majority.
  • The denaturalization took place soon after a court ordered the suspension of Bahrain’s main opposition group, Al-Wefaq, which has led pro-democracy protests in the country since 2011.
  • The Sunni-led government has accused Shiite leaders of promoting foreign interests (namely Iran’s) and fomenting sectarian division and extremism in the country, leading to their denaturalization and expulsion.

Read more:
“Bahrain strips Sheikh Isa Qassim of nationality” (Al Jazeera)
“Bahrain’s Sunni Rulers Revoke Citizenship of Top Shiite Cleric” (The New York Times)
“Bahrain strips top Shi’ite Muslim cleric of citizenship” (Reuters)

(Image Credit: AP via Al Jazeera)

Ideology + Affiliation

Turkey News | Press Advocates

Three press rights advocates arrested in Turkey
  • Erol Onderoglu (Reporters Without Borders), Sebnem Korur Fincanci (Human Rights Foundation of Turkey), and Ahmet Nesin (author) were charged with spreading terrorist propaganda.
  • Now held in pre-trial detention, the three guest-edited an edition of Ozgur Kundem, a pro-Kurdish rights newspaper subjected to multiple investigations and lawsuits as part of the government’s crackdown on Kurdish separatist groups and their supporters.
  • President Tayyip Erdogan has come under international fire for his campaign against critical journalism in Turkey, which has seen journalists imprisoned, television stations taken off the air, and publications seized and shuttered.

Read more:
“Turkey arrests raise further concerns over press freedom” (AP via The Guardian)
“Reporters Without Borders representative, two others jailed in Turkey” (Committee to Protect Journalists)
“Turkey arrests three prominent press-freedom campaigners” (Reuters)

(Image Credit: Ozan Kose/AFP/Getty Images, via The Guardian)

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Turkey News | LGBT

Istanbul LGBT and transgender marches banned following threats
  • The Istanbul Governor’s Office revoked organizers’ assembly permits following threats from conservative groups, particularly Turkish ultranationalists.
  • Organizers criticized the government response as kowtowing to anti-LGBT parties rather than increasing security and protecting the LGBT community’s right to assemble.
  • Coinciding with Ramadan, Pride Week in Istanbul is scheduled to take place from June 19-26, with the main LGBT parade originally planned for the final day.

Read more:
“Governor’s Office bans LGBT Pride march in Istanbul” (Hürriyet News Daily)
“Turkey bans Istanbul gay pride due to ‘security fears’” (Al Jazeera)
“Istanbul authorities ban transgender and gay pride marches” (The Guardian)

(Image Credit: via Hürryiet News Daily)

Religion + Belief

Bangladesh News | Hindus

Hindu teacher attacked as Bangladesh cracks down on Islamist militants
  • Ribon Chakraborty, a college math teacher, survived a machete attack by three assailants in his home in Madaripur.
  • The government reported that the three attackers were a part of the banned group Hizb ut-Tahrir.
  • More than 11,000 have been arrested across the country in the last week, including political dissidents, as security forces have begun taking extensive action to combat the targeted killings of minorities that have left more than 30 dead since 2015.

Read more:
“Hizb ut-Tahrir men hacked Madaripur teacher” (Dhaka Tribune)
“Bangladesh Hindu teacher’s attacker killed in shootout” (Reuters)
“194 Held in Bangladesh Mass Arrests May Have Militant Ties, Police Say” (The New York Times)

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Mexico News | LGBT

At least 5 dead following May shooting in Mexico gay bar
  • On May 22, gunmen entered La Madame in Xalapa, Veracruz, and opened fire, with reports indicating between five and seven dead and 12 to 14 injured.
  • Reports indicate that six men entered the bar and began firing on patrons, with at least one witness reporting the attackers targeted a group of men before firing randomly on those present.
  • Security officials blamed the shooting on a territorial dispute by drug cartels, while LGBT activists argued police were downplaying the homophobic nature of the crime.

Read more:
“Cae presunto implicado en ataque al bar ‘Madame’” (El Universal, in Spanish)
“Ataque en bar de Xalapa fue contra ocupantes de una mesa: testigo” (Milenio.com, in Spanish)
“The Massacre at a Mexican Gay Bar That No One Talked About” (teleSUR English)
“7 people were killed in a Mexico gay bar, but it’s not big news” (PinkNews)

(Image Credit: El Universal)