Tag Archives: Law & Politics

Nationality + Migration
Contracting economic prospects and increasing restrictions are driving Central Asian migrant workers from Moscow.
  • As Russia slides into recession, large net decreases in foreign populations have indicated flight from the country and fewer attempting to enter.
  • New requirements including acquisition of a work “patent,” an advance tax, medical examinations, and a test on Russian language, culture, and history have set significant new administrative and financial obstacles for migrant laborers.
  • The article highlights Kyrgyz workers, who face social isolation, discrimination, and barriers to service access.

“If America was next door, [migrants] would all leave…But what’s next door is Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, where the level of living is lower and there are no jobs. There’s nowhere to go.”

More on this story at The Guardian.

(Image Credit: Denis Sinyakov/Reuters, via The Guardian)

Sexual + Gender Minorities
Ireland’s gender identity bill moves away from medical to self-declarative model for legal recognition for transpeople.
  • The change in the bill applies to those over the age of 18 seeking to legally change their gender.
  • The bill also removes a “forced divorce” clause dissolving a marriage if one of the partners transitions.
  • In allowing for self-declaration, the bill hopes to separate civil registration and medical treatment considerations for trans individuals.

“Throughout the drafting of this Bill, I have listened carefully to the views of individual citizens, representative groups and public representatives. It is essential that this important legislation is in line with international best practice.”

More on this story at PinkNews.

Gender, Race + Color + Ethnicity, Religion + Belief, Sexual + Gender Minorities
Turkey’s parliamentary elections sees AKP lose majority, pro-minority Kurdish HDP win representation for the first time, and numerous victories for minority candidates.
  • While the AKP won the largest parliamentary share with 41%, HDP crossed the threshold of representation with around 13% of the vote, winning 80 seats in the parliament.
  • While the HDP has largely been defined by the Kurds it represents, it also opened up to all those marginalized by the party in power, including women, religious minorities, LGBT citizens, and other ethnic minorities.
  • The new parliament will see a record 96 women and its first Yazidi and Roma MPs, and the HDP also put forth the first openly gay candidate for office.
  • The momentum for the HDP grew out of 2013’s Gezi Park demonstrations, where protesters rallied against the government’s perceived encroachment on the country’s secularism.

“Turks and Kurds are well ahead of the political leaders of the country, and they have a lot of expectations of the democratic process that they have well bought into…This is a very impressive outcome. It shows that Turkey is going through an important political maturing process, and that an increasing number of people are interested in a pluralistic society.”

More on this story at The Guardian.

(Image Credit: Bulent Kilic/AFP/Getty Images, via The Guardian)

Religion + Belief
Saudi supreme court upholds sentencing of 1,000 lashes and 10 years in jail for blogger accused of “insulting Islam.”
  • After being sentenced for speaking out against the religious police in Saudi Arabia, Raif Badawi received the first 50 of his lashes in January before subsequent rounds were postponed for medical reasons.
  • Badawi and his lawyer Walid Abulkhair, also an imprisoned rights activist, have been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize by a Norweigian parliamentarian.
  • Badawi’s supporters have launched a Twitter solidarity campaign called #backlash, drawing red marks on their backs with lipstick to draw attention to his plight.
“All this cruel suffering happened to me because I expressed my opinion.”
More on this story at Middle East Eye.
(Image Credit: AFP Photo / Stephane de Sakutin, via Middle East Eye)
Gender, Nationality + Migration
U.S. family detention centers face renewed scrutiny following attempted suicide of 19-year-old immigrant mother.
  • The young Honduran had been held with her four-year-old son in the Karnes detention camp in Texas for eight months.
  • She was detained for attempting to enter the country for a second time without proper immigration papers, the result of a crackdown following last summer’s dramatic increase in border-crossings by families and unaccompanied minors.
  • The policy has subjected families (including young children) to up to a year of detention, leading to extreme stress and suicide attempts.

“I don’t feel I can live going back to my country. But you have treated us like an animal, you look down on us.”

More on this story at The Guardian.

Race + Color + Ethnicity
In the hangover following Kyrgyzstan’s interethnic violence of 2010, the Uzbek minority still smarts from persecution.
  • While prominent Uzbek activists remain imprisoned from the period, few ethnic Kyrgyz have been prosecuted for their role in the violence that left more than 400 dead and 80,000 displaced.
  • The government has been largely silent on ethnic segregation and discrimination, believing silence to be the road to reconciliation.
  • Concern persists that political leaders will use nationalistic, anti-Uzbek sentiment to drum up support ahead of elections.

“The problem is not just residential segmentation, it is also cultural: apart from the bazaar, there are few inter-communal links between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks.”

More on this story at EurasiaNet.

(Image Credit: David Trilling, via EurasiaNet)

Health + Ability
U.K. High Court rules the delay in disability payments by the Work and Pensions Secretary “unlawful and unacceptable.”
  • Two unnamed claimants filed suit claiming delays in personal independence payments (PIPS) breached common law and human rights.
  • The Court ruled against the human rights claim.
  • Recent figures suggest 78,700 claims await processing to determine eligibility for PIPS.

More on this story at the International Business Times.

(Image Credit: Reuters, via the International Business Times)

Health + Ability
New York City Department of Education announces $5.55 million initiative to fit schools with door alarms to prevent wandering by students with disabilities.
  • The funds will support the installation of 21,000 devices in more than 1,200 school buildings in the nation’s largest school district.
  • The move comes following the tragedy of 14-year-old Avonte Oquendo, a nonverbal, autistic boy who wandered away from school and was found dead in the East River three months later.

“These notification systems will give school officials important new tools to further our commitment to ensure safe communities.”

More on this story at Disability Scoop.

(Image Credit: Taimy Alvarez/Sun Sentinel/TNS, via Disability Scoop)

Religion + Belief
U.S. Supreme Court rules Muslim woman can pursue discrimination claim against Abercrombie & Fitch for being denied job because of religious headscarf.
  • The ruling was 8-1 in rejection of the notion that companies can shield themselves from discrimination claims through neutrally applied, one-size-fits-all policies.
  • The claim sparking the judgment came from Samantha Elauf, who in 2008 was turned down for a job at an Abercrombie Kids store due to the company’s policy banning headwear.
  • Shifting the responsibility onto employers for discussing accommodations, the judgment clarifies that applicants do not have to disclose their religious affiliation in order for a necessary, reconciliatory conversation about accommodations to begin with applicants.

More on this story from Reuters.

Age
As Japan expects to lower the voting age from 20 to 18 this month, Japanese youth are ambivalent about the impact.
  • The Lower House has passed the measure, signaling the start of a legislative change that would be the first in 70 years to alter the minimum voting age and would enfranchise 2.4 million 18- and 19-year-olds.
  • While some Japanese teens welcome the empowerment in a country that often prioritizes senior rights, others express apathy, resonating with the record-low 32.58% voter turnout among twentysomething voters in the last election.
  • One civics expert calls for educational reforms to prepare the newly enfranchised populace for the decision-making and engagement process voting entails.

“I hope the lowered voting age will encourage more young people to pay attention to politics and make efforts to get their messages across. Only then can Japan turn into a real democracy.”

More on this story at The Japan Times.

(Image Credit: The Japan Times)

Sexual + Gender Minorities
Judge strikes down Guam’s law against same-sex marriage, paving the way for couples to be married beginning next week.
  • Because Guam, a U.S. territory, falls under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Chief Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood ruled Guam must follow its 2014 ruling striking down same-sex marriage bans.
  • Governor Eddie Calvo’s defense acknowledged the inevitability of the outcome given the earlier ruling.
  • Plaintiffs Loretta Pangelinan and Kathleen Aguero hope to be able to file for a marriage license next Tuesday, when Chief Judge Tydingo-Gatewood’s ruling is expected to go in effect.

“It’s a battle we shouldn’t have had to fight…I mean, it’s love and love must win, so we’re just grateful.”

More on this story at Pacific Daily News.

(Image Credit: Rick Cruz/Pacific Daily News)

Gender

News

Colombia passes new hate crime law building in tougher punishments for gender-based violence against women.
  • The bill–passed with 104-3 in favor–targets violence of a physical, psychological, or sexual nature.
  • Those convicted could now face up to 50 years in jail.
  • The bill was named for Rosa Elvira Cely, a woman whose brutal attack, rape, and murder in a Bogota park spurred mass protests in 2012.

Presidential adviser for women’s equality Martha Ordonez said that in Colombia a woman was the victim of a violent act on average every 13 minutes, and that every four days one was killed by her partner.

More on this story at BBC.

(Image Credit: Getty Images, via BBC)

Sexual + Gender Minorities

News

Ugandan LGBT activist remains skeptical of the effectiveness of U.S. sanctions against Uganda for its anti-homosexuality laws.
  • The U.S. imposed sanctions ranging from financial divestment to visa restrictions a year ago.
  • Celebrated activist Pepe Onziema shares that conditions on the ground have changed little: fear still permeates his daily life as the threat of violence follows him wherever he goes.
  • Activists have filed suit against Scott Lively, the American pastor widely viewed as having contributed to the creation of Uganda’s anti-gay laws.

“Le gouvernement est devenu encore plus arrogant à notre égard…Cela signifie que le but recherché par les sanctions n’a pas été atteint, surtout pour la communauté LGBT. Cela a peut-être permis un meilleur dialogue entre les gouvernements, mais pour nous sur le terrain, nous en avons subi les conséquences.”

Translation: “The government has become more arrogant with regard to us…That means that the goal sought by sanctions hasn’t been achieved, above all for the LGBT community.  That has perhaps allowed for a better dialogue between the [U.S. and Ugandan] governments, but for us on the ground, we have suffered the consequences of it.”

More on this story at RFI (in French).

(Image Credit: Mike Coppola/Getty Images for GLAAD/AFP, via RFI)

Religion + Belief

News

Hungarian PM dismisses multicultural society as something from which Hungary must be spared.
  • Viktor Orban denounces “mass-scale” intermingling of different faiths.
  • He has been outspoken in his opposition to the EU’s response to the Mediterranean migration crisis.

“Multiculturalism means the coexistence of Islam, Asian religions and Christianity. We will do everything to spare Hungary from that.”

More on this story at Reuters.

Nationality + Migration
The first refugees arrive in Cambodia as part of Australia’s controversial program resettling asylum seekers from its offshore detention center.
  • Political opposition leaders and human rights advocates criticize the government’s harsh stance against refugees and their resettlement in an under-resourced country with a poor rights records.
  • Australia has offered Cambodia A$40 million as part of the resettlement deal.
  • Despite cash incentives, few refugees have taken up the Australian government on its offer.

More on this story at Reuters.